RNI No. TELENG/2018/76469

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HYDERABAD, SATURDAY, MAY 14, 2022; PAGES 12 `3

ALMANAC

Updated: MAY 13, 2022 5:00 PM

Forecast: Scattered thunderstorms

Temp: 32oc

Humidity: 29%Sunrise: 5:49 AMSunset: 6:35 PM

Month & Paksham:

Tithi: Trayodashi: May 13 05:27 PM

to May 14 03:23 PM

Chaturdashi: May 14 03:23 PM

to May 15 12:46 PM

Nakshatram:

Chitra: May 13 06:48 PM

to May 14 05:28 PM

Swati: May 14 05:28 PM

to May 15 03:35 PM

Rahukalam: 9:00 AM to 10:36 AM

Yamagandam: 1:48 PM to 3:24 PM

Varjyam: 10:37 PM to 12:06 AM

Gulika: 5:48 AM to 7:24 AM

Amritakalam: 11:25 AM to 12:56 PM

Abhijit Muhurtham: 11:46 AM

to 12:38 PM

TTOODDAAYY

HYDERABAD WEATHER

LIFE INSURANCE CORP PRICES IPO ATTOP END OF INDICATED RANGE

Life Insurance Corp (LIC) has priced its initial public offering atthe top of the indicated range, at 949 rupees ($12.28), a sourcefamiliar with the matter said on Friday. The state-owned

insurance behemoth is likely to be listed on stock exchanges onMay 17. LIC did not immediately respond to an email requestseeking comment. The source, not authorised to speak to themedia, did not want to be identified. The price range for the issuehad been set at between 902 and 949 rupees per share. LIC offereda discount to employees and retail investors of 45 rupees per sharewhile policyholders were given a discount of 60 rupees per share.

SCIENTISTS GROW PLANTS IN SOILFROM MOON FOR FIRST TIME

Scientists have for the first time grown plants in lunar soilbrought back to Earth by astronauts in the Apollo missions, astep towards producing food and oxygen on the Moon or

during future space missions. The researchers at the University ofFlorida (UF) in the US showed that plants can successfully sproutand grow in lunar soil. Their study, published in the journalCommunications Biology, also investigated how plants respondbiologically to the Moon's soil, also known as lunar regolith, whichis very different from soil found on Earth. This research comes asNASA's Artemis Program plans to return humans to the Moon.

FOURTEEN PEOPLE KILLED INNEPAL ROAD ACCIDENT

At least 14 people were killed and 10 others injured when ajeep carrying voters to a polling station veered off the roadand fell 500 feet off a hilly road in Nepal on Friday. The

accident occurred at Arkhalbas in the Syangja district. At least14 passengers were killed and 10 others injured in the accident,police said. The jeep was carrying voters to a polling station.Local polls are being held across Nepal on Friday. Roadaccidents are very common in Nepal. The country is mostlycovered with mountains and most roads are narrow. Busaccidents in the country are generally blamed on poor roads.

WICKREMESINGHE ASSUMES DUTIES,OPPOSITION DECLINES SUPPORT

Ranil Wickremesinghe assumed office as the Prime Minister of SriLanka for the sixth time on Friday even as Opposition parties SJPand JVP announced that they will not extend any support to him as

his appointment has been made with "zero regard" to the voice of thepeople. The 73-year-old United National Party (UNP) leader took over asSri Lanka's 26th prime minister on Thursday as the country was withouta government since Monday when President Gotabaya Rajapaksa's elderbrother and prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa resigned after violenceerupted following an attack on the anti-government protesters by hissupporters.

PNS n HYDERABAD

Chief Minister K ChandrashekarRao will hold a review for imple-mentation of the next phase PallePragati and Pattana Pragati pro-grammes.

The high-level meeting will beheld under the chairmanship theChief Minister at Pragati Bhavanat 11 am on May 18. State CabinetMinisters, Zilla ParishadChairmen, all District Collectors,Local Bodies’ chiefs, all districtDPOs, state level ForestDepartment officials, MunicipalCorporation Mayors,Commissioners and other high-level officials will participate inthe review.

NAVEENA GHANATE n HYDERABAD

Telangana Chief Minister KChandrashekar Rao is determined toannounce the launch of a national party,and, going by what sources shared withThe Pioneer, no amount of pressurefrom the Centre will deter him.

KCR is preparing to pull off a featdone by TDP founder N T Rama Raoin the 1984 elections. TDP was the firstregional party to become the mainopposition party in the 8th Lok Sabhafrom 1984 to 1989.

Following Indira Gandhi's death, the1984 General Election saw the Congresswin a landslide victory, with the TDPwinning 30 seats and accounting for4.31% of votes, thus achieving the dis-tinction of becoming the first region-al party to become a national opposi-tion party.

Sources said that when KCR men-tioned that they would play a key rolein national politics and set an agendafor the nation, he did not mean beingPM alone.

KCR has been showing all traits of

NTR - be it in handling Governor, orpreferring farm house, or starting aregional party, among others. It wouldbe no surprise if he aspires to be the sec-ond regional party to become the mainopposition.

Sources indicated that KCR's role innational politics was on the cards andthat he would announce the detailstowards the fag end of the year. Noamount of pressure from the Centrewould deter him from moving forward,sources asserted.

It may be mentioned here that theCentre has decided to stop the Fiscaland Responsibility Budget

Management Loans (Act) (FRBM)limits for Telangana; thus preventingthe state from going for open marketborrowings. That is, it is not giving per-missions to go for loans. This is direct-ly going to impact all the welfareschemes, including flagship schemeslike Rythu Bandhu, Dalit Bandhu,Bhagiratha, loan waiver and 2BHK,among others.

Chief Minister K ChandrasekharRao, during the recent plenary, said: "Itis not about building a front against thisparty or that party. It will be a pro-peo-ple". He added, "Our fight is not to dis-lodge anyone from power or againstany political party." KCR had recentlyvisited many states, includingMaharashtra, Jharkhand and TamilNadu.

It may be mentioned here that a fort-night ago, KCR, during the TRS ple-nary, dropped hints about BharatiyaRashtra Samithi (BRS). KCR said thathe had received suggestions fromleaders to turn the TRS into BRS, inorder to float an all-India party. Priorto that, he even said that there was spacein national politics.

PNS n HYDERABAD

TRS working president and ITMinister K T Rama Rao has said thatBJP's national leaders only know howto tour Telangana once in a while andtry to spread hatred amongst the peo-ple in the state, though they did nothelp fulfil a single promise made toTelangana while meeting everyrequirement of states like Gujarat ona war footing.

On Friday, KTR wrote an open let-ter to Amit Shah, ahead of the latter'sarrival in Telangana.

Amit Shah will be visitingTelangana on Saturday.

KTR stated that the BJP had beenspitting venom on Telangana for thepast eight years. The BJP had alwaysinsulted the Telangana movement."We will fight for the rights of the peo-ple of Telangana and demand ourrightful share under the APReorganization Act," he said. KTR

stated that the people of Telanganaknew the true colours of the BJP,which had not done any good toTelangana.

KTR warned the BJP about itsstep-motherly attitude towardsTelangana and stated that people herewould give a befitting reply to theseunfaithful leaders. Posing questionsto Amit Shah, KTR said: "BJP shouldtell which of the promises madeunder the AP Reorganization Act toTelangana were fulfilled by them. Isit not true that BJP washed of theirhands when TRS leaders demandedthe establishment of a rail coach fac-tory in Kazipet? But the BJP govt atthe Centre has allocated a rail coachfactory to Gujarat for Rs 20 crore.

When you can allot a rail coach fac-tory to Gujarat, why not forTelangana? Why this partialitytowards Telangana?"

"Can you name even a single cen-tral educational institution allocatedto Telangana by the NDA govt? Nota single medical college was allocat-ed to Telangana under the NDA govt.Lakhs of students in Telangana areunable to pursue medical courses.Does this not affect Prime MinisterNarendra Modi, who earlier respond-ed to the injustice done to a medicalstudent during the admission processin Gujarat?" asked KTR.

Pubs, bars told to instal CCTVcameras with 30-day backup

m ‘No succumbing to Centre's pressure'

KCR keen on national party Amit Shah should come with assurances: KTRKTR'S POSERS TO

CENTRE ON BIAS

AGAINST TS

PNS n HYDERABAD

The announcement regarding 'Oneseat for one family' made by AICCchief Sonia Gandhi at the Congressparty's Chintan shivir on Fridaymay spell trouble for manyCongress leaders in Telangana.

For, there are many Congressleaders in Telangana who wantseats for more than one familymember in the next elections. Thisruns counter to Sonia's significantstatement on the first day of theparty's Chintan Shivir at Udaipur,Rajasthan.

Speaking to 'The Pioneer,' AICCofficial spokesperson Dasoju Sravansaid that Sonia's statement was

welcome. "It should be followed inletter and spirit. True democracywill be restored only if all politicalparties keep social justice in mindwhile distributing tickets. Tickets

must be distributed in proportionto the population of different groupswithout taking into considerationthe wealth of the candidates," hesaid.

Around 10 Telangana Congressleaders have been expecting twotickets for their family members.

Former TPCC chief N. UttamKumar Reddy, former minister K.Jana Reddy, the MP, MLAKomatireddy brothers, MLASeethakka, CLP Leader Mallu BhattiVikramarka, Ponnala Laxmaiah,former minister Konda Surekha,former MP Anjan Kumar Yadav,former MLC K. Premsagar Rao,Sangareddy MLA T. Jagga Reddy,and some others want more than

one ticket for their family membersin the next polls. Former TPCCchief N. Uttam Kumar Reddy hasbeen expecting two tickets -- one forhimself and the second one for hiswife and former MLA PadmavathiReddy. Uttam Kumar Reddy maycontest from Huzurnagar and hiswife is hoping for a ticket to contestfrom Kodad.

Former minister K. Jana Reddy isexpecting one ticket for himself andthe second one for his sonRaghuveer Reddy. Jana Reddy maycontest from Nagarjuna Sagar andplans to field his son RaghuveerReddy from Miryalaguda.

Sonia's statement spells trouble for many TPCC leaders‘ONE SEAT FOR ONE FAMILY'

KTR SENDS LEGAL NOTICETO BANDI SANJAY

PNS n HYDERABAD

“India is built on the three ‘Ds’ ofdebate, discuss and dissent, but notdestruction,” Minister KT RamaRao said here on Friday.

He was addressing mayors,chairmen, and councillors ofmunicipalities on the government’s‘Pattana Pragati’ (progress oftowns) programme.

“The worse thing in our coun-try is the shouting and screamingat authorities. People have a mis-conception that if they are rudethings will get done. If you insultofficials it is like insulting yourselfand your own government. Do notplace cameras at meetings if youwant meaningful discussions,”KTR said. KTR said that placingcameras at meetings would not begood as the authorities will get dis-couraged due to the fact that evenminor mistakes made at meetingscan go viral on social media.

“Development cannot take placeovernight. We will work according

to our agenda. It is not right toshout at others,” he said.

KTR said that MunicipalCouncil meetings should proceedin a systematic, planned manner.

He said all municipalities shouldachieve their targets, includingpreparing new master plans, dig-ital door numbering, constructingmodel markets, and providingpiped water to every household bythe end of this financial year.

“Before the end of March 31,2023, every municipality shoulddefinitely have a new master plan,”he said, addressing the meeting ofmunicipal chairpersons, mayorsand commissioners.

KTR directed all municipalitiesin the state to put in place digitaldoor numbering, modern ‘dhobighats,’ faecal sludge treatmentplants, integrated vegetarian andnon-vegetarian markets, and toprovide piped water connection toall households.

Debate, discuss & dissentbut not destruction: KTR

K VENKATESHWARLUn HYDERABAD

All eyes are now on the BJP’s May14 public meeting at Tukkuguda inMaheshwaram in which UnionHome Minister Amit Shah is par-ticipating as the people are eager-ly waiting to know what Amit Shahhas to say.

Amit Shah’s meeting is takingplace after former AICC chiefRahul Gandhi’s meeting atWarangal during which Rahul gavemany assurances to the people ofTelangana.

In this context, the TS people areexpecting more from Amit Shah.Moreover, the BJP wants to provethat it is the alternative to the rul-ing TRS. Given this backdrop, BJP

cadres, leaders, and the people areeagerly waiting for Amit Shah’smeeting.

Union Tourism Minister G.Kishan Reddy has made it clear thatAmit Shah is going to call on thepeople to end Chief Minister K.Chandrasekhar Rao’s corrupt, fam-ily rule at the public meeting beingheld to mark the conclusion of thesecond phase of the Praja SangramaYatra. Kishan said that the BJP isplanning to organise Amit Shah’s meeting on a grandscale.

Kishan and Huzurabad MLAEatala Rajender have checked outthe venue of the public meetingbeing held at Tukkuguda inMaheshwaram on May 14 in whichAmit Shah is attending as the chief

guest. Speaking on the occasion,

Kishan said that KCR has beenforcibly imposing his family’s ruleon the people of Telangana. KCR isplanning to keep the entire state inthe hands of his Kalvakuntla fam-ily. But that will not happen, he said.

The Kalvakuntla family has beenfacing severe opposition from thepeople of Telangana as the peoplehate KCR and his family, Kishansaid.

The TRS failed to win theGHMC elections even though itdistributed money door to door.The people gave a shock to KCR inHuzurabad even though he spentbillions, he said.

All eyes on Amit Shah’s public meeting

PNS n HYDERABAD

The Centre spent Rs 22.24 crore onthe Buddhavanam Project that isbeing inaugurated by KTR on May14, Union Tourism Minister G.Kishan Reddy said.

He said the TRS government hadhim, the Union Tourism Minister, bynot inviting him to the inaugurationof the Buddhavanam Project.

Meanwhile, Kishan said in aTweet, “The Buddhavanam Projectbeing inaugurated by TelanganaMinisters near Nagarjunasagar inNalgonda district on May 14 isfunded by the Centre. The Centrehad given Rs 22.24 crore for the proj-

ect.” Kishan extended best wishes inanother Tweet, “My best wishes to theBuddhist community on the occasionand on the eve of Buddha Purnima.”

He also posted an invitation cardprepared by the Telangana Tourism

Department. The invitation cardnamed Gutha Sukhender Reddy(Council Chairman), and MinistersGuntakandla Jagadish Reddy and DrV. Srinivas Goud as chief guests apartfrom KT Ramarao.

The card named Dr PallaRajeshwar Reddy (TRS MLC), N.Uttam Kumar Reddy (NalgondaMP), Banda Narender Reddy(Nalgonda ZP Chairman), MankenaKoti Reddy (MLC), Nomula Bhagath(Nagarjuna Sagar MLA), BadugulaLingaiah Yadav (MP), and K. AnushaReddy (Chairperson, NandikondaMunicipality) as special guests.

Kishan Reddy alleges protocol violationSays TS govt insulted him by not inviting for Buddhavanam inauguration

PNS n HYDERABAD

All bars, pubs, and restaurantsmust install CCTV cameras with30-day backup, Hyderabad PoliceCommissioner CV Anand toldtheir owners at a meeting here onFriday.

The Commissioner held themeeting in the backdrop of therecent case at the Pudding andMink pub where cocaine was foundduring a raid.

Addressing the owners of pubsand bars Anand said, “Hyderabadis now attracting investments fromabroad and from other parts of

India. So we expect you to run busi-nesses in a responsible mannerupholding the city’s image which isgetting damaged by a few who vio-late rules for petty gains. The 24-hour permission for star hotels toserve liquor was given to serve

international travellers and is notmeant for the local public.”

He also added that soon business-men will be able to apply for therenewal of licenses and for freshlicenses through the website of theHyderabad City Police.Commissioner Anand stressed thatorders received after 11 pm should notbe accepted and that all establishmentsmust close by 12 pm (midnight). OnFridays and Saturdays an exemptionof one hour has been given with a half-an-hour grace period to clean up andsettle accounts, he added.

CM to review Palle ,Pattana Pragati

AIMIM insultedMuslims by glorifyingAurangzeb: FadnavisPNS n MUMBAI

Maharashtra BJP leader DevendraFadnavis on Friday said AIMIMMLA Akbaruddin Owaisi had insult-ed "nationalist Muslims" of the coun-try by trying to glorify Aurangzeb.Fadnavis was speaking to reportersafter his arrival from Varanasi in UttarPradesh. Owaisi, MLA fromChandrayangutta in Telangana, hadrecently offered prayers at the tombof the 17th century Mughal emper-or in Khuldabad in Maharashtra'sAurangabad district.

TRS working president andMunicipal AdministrationMinister K T Rama Rao onFriday sent a legal notice toBJP TS unit president BandiSanjay for acts of libel, slanderand defamation. He demandedthat the BJP leader must offeran unconditional apology within48 hours for the unfoundedallegations made against him.Otherwise, a case ofdefamation would be filed in acourt of law, he warned.During an interaction with thepublic during his PrajaSangrama Yatra, Bandi Sanjaysaid that 27 Intermediatestudents had died "because ofMinister KTR" and that it wasunfortunate that Chief MinisterK Chandrasekhar Rao "did notcare to respond". The noticeread, "You, (Sanjay) being apublic figure enjoy wide reachand popularity amongst thegeneral public.

The Telangana movement."We will fight for the rightsof the people of Telanganaand demand our rightfulshare under the APReorganization Act’’

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hyderabad 02HYDERABAD | SATURDAY | MAY 14, 2022

EGG

RATES

HYDERABAD 385

VIJAYAWADA 385

VISAKHAPATNAM 410

RREETTAAIILL PPRRIICCEE `̀33..8855

`̀//110000

CHICKEN

RATES

Dressed/With Skin `308

Without Skin `328

Broiler at Farm `162

`̀//KKGG

(IN HYDERABAD)

Decongest Hyd roads: Gudur

PNS n HYDERABAD

TPCC chief Revanth ReddyTweeted on Friday that thereis no land in Telanganaaccording to the TRS gov-ernment to give three acresto Dalits and to establish theTribal University. But theKCR government has landworth Rs 100 crore to donateto the TRS to construct itsHyderabad district office,Revanth said.

AICC official spokesper-son Dr Dasoju Sravanalleged that the TRS govern-ment has been grabbinghundreds of acres from thepoor in the name of landacquisition in the Hanwadavillage of Mahbubnagar dis-trict.

He alleged that the TRSgovernment had put up fenc-

ing on the lands of the poorusing JCBs during a singlenight af ter mis leadingcourts. He alleged that thegovernment has been takingover the lands of the poor togive it to bigwigs.

A Minister has been

behaving of fensively inMahbubnagar district. TheTRS government has beenbehaving lawlessly all overTelangana and is trying tograb the lands of the poor,Dr Dasoju said.

He said that governmentofficials have become slavesto Minister V. Srinivas Goud.Does Chief S ecretar ySomesh Kumar have a mindor not?, he asked. He saidthat the CS should not tellthe court something and dojust the opposite.

Dr Dasoju said that thegovernment has to pay com-pensation as per the LandAcquisition Act–2013 if thegovernment takes over thelands of the public. He madeit clear that the Congress willstand by the poor till they getjustice.

The month-long secondleg of the PrajaSangrama Yatra, cul-

minating in a public meetingto be addressed by UnionHome Minister Amit Shah atTukkuguda in Rangareddydistrict on Saturday, will beremembered as a milestone inthe political history ofTelangana for many reasons.Spearheaded by BJPTelangana unit presidentBandi Sanjay Kumar, theYatra shook the TRS estab-lishment to its core, by expos-ing the 'Bangaru Telangana'(Golden Telangana) narrativecraftily created and nurturedby Chief Minister KChandrasekhar Rao and hisson KT Rama Rao.

The first and foremost factthat came to the fore is thegross negligence of the TRSgovernment in developingPalamuru. Contrary to theclaims of the father-son duothat their reign had trans-formed this once dry area

into lush green fields, every-one could see busloads ofmigrant workers heading toMumbai on a daily basisstreamed live during theYatra. This migration insearch of livelihood opportu-nities is due to the lack ofdevelopment in this region.People of this region migratenot just to Mumbai and Punebut also Kurnool and othercities in Andhra Pradesh foreducational and medicalneeds, exposing the utter lackof progress and apathy shownover the last eight years bythis government towardshealth and education ser-vices in the state.

The success of public meet-ings held at Alampur, Gadwal,Makthal, Narayanpet andMahabubnagar gave atremendous boost to BJPcadre. Electrifying speeches ofleaders like BJP national pres-ident JP Nadda, charged upleaders and cadre to work forcapturing power in the com-

ing elections. An innovativeprogramme, christened'Prajala gosa-BJP bharosa',conducted as part of theYatra, became a huge hit.Undoubtedly, a double-engine sarkar is the need ofthe hour.

In the first week itself, theYatra scored major pointsagainst the government. Bythen, KCR was forced by theBJP to promise to procurepaddy from farmers. Hisattempts to project theCentral government as a vil-lain boomeranged and his 2-hour sit-in at New Delhi

proved to be a damp squib.The cold-shouldering by hisso-called friends thoroughlyexposed his bombastic claimsto rally the entire oppositionas a front against the BJP atthe national level.

TRS working president andIT Minister KTR released anopen letter to Sanjay with abundle of lies. KTR allegedthat the Centre was biasedagainst Telangana. The issuesraised by the BJP leadersdebunked the government'sclaim to have achieved'Bangaru Telangana'. Sanjay'sletter to the Chief Minister

highlighting the government'sfailure in waiving loans offarmers met with noresponse. His demand for anall-party meeting to discussissues faced by the farmingcommunity also fell on deafears.

The second week of theYatra saw an awesome publicresponse to the issues raisedby the BJP leaders on 'family

rule', corruption, lack ofhealthcare, non-availabilityof water, power supply prob-lems and so on. Havingsensed the mood of the pub-lic, KCR held confabulationswith election strategistPrashant Kishor in PragatiBhavan.

During the third week ofthe Yatra, TRS held a plenaryto mark its 21st FoundationDay without a single mentionof their beloved phrase'Bangaru Telangana'. A packof lies were presented in theform of resolutions at the ple-nary. KCR made incoherentremarks during his presi-dential speech. On the onehand, he said that the awardsreceived from the UnionGovernment remained proofof the wonderful perfor-mance of the State govern-ment, and on the other hand,he alleged that the Modigovernment was workingagainst the interests of theState.

The Chief Minister didnot feel shy to claim credit forthe top 10 villages selectedacross the country under theSansad Adarsh GrameenYojana (SAGY). "All top tenvillages belong to Telangana,"he announced amidstapplause from his cadre, hid-ing the fact that most of thebest performing villagesunder the scheme comeunder the constituencies rep-resented by the BJP MPs!

While the Yatra was in fullswing, a series of murdersand suicides rockedTelangana, exposing the sadstate of Law and Order in thestate. A BJP leader, 24-year-old Sai Ganesh, was forced totake his life by consumingpoison, unable to bear theharassment caused by thefoisting of dozens of casesagainst him by theKhammam police, allegedlyat the behest of TRS MinisterPuvvada Ajay Kumar. Amother and son had commit-

ted suicide in Kamareddy,unable to bear the harass-ment of TRS leaders. Thedaylight honour killing of a25-year-old Dalit, Nagaraju,in full public view inHyderabad by his Muslimwife's family membersshocked everyone. In all thecases, the response from thegovernment was slow incoming for obvious reasons.

The Yatra, which coveredfive districts, three parlia-mentary constituencies andnine assembly segmentsalong 372 kilometres,received more than 25,000petitions indicating the levelof frustration among thepublic. The public meeting tobe addressed by Amit Shahwill sound the death knell forthe KCR government, whichfailed Telangana miserably onall fronts.

(The author is a spokesperson of BJP

Telangana unit)

KISHORE POREDDY

People of this region migrate not just toMumbai and Pune but also Kurnool andother cities in Andhra Pradesh foreducational and medical needs, exposingthe utter lack of progress and apathy shownover the last eight years by this governmenttowards health and education services inthe state.

The Yatra that busted a fake narrative!

PNS n HYDERABAD

Senior BJP leader GudurNarayana Reddy has urged thepolice and civic officials toimmediately take steps to easethe traffic congestion inHyderabad city.

In a media statement issuedon Friday, he said that peoplewere experiencing hell onroads during peak hours. Hesaid that vehicles were unableto move due to the bumper-to-bumper traffic. Travelling onthe arterial roads ofHyderabad has become anightmare for the public, headded.

Gudur said that traffic isvery heavy at main junctionsand motorists were forced towait for a long time to crosseach junction. Traffic jamshave become the order of theday on Hyderabad’s roads, hesaid in his statement.

He said that due to theCovid pandemic traffic had

come down in Hyderabadfrom 2020 March to Januarythis year. But now traffic hasreached normal levels as allbusinesses and governmentoffices have started function-ing normally.

“Many IT sector employeeshave also started to workfrom offices. Cabs are back onthe roads carrying IT employ-ees. All these have beenincreasing traffic on theroads,” Gudur NarayanaReddy said.

He said that apart from theincreasing traffic, encroach-ments on roads have alsobecome a major reason fortraffic jams. He said that foot-paths have been occupied andthe setbacks being left bydevelopers and builders arebeing grabbed.

Gudur said that the roadsaround KBR Park are a goodexample of the chaos on theroads. Traffic conditionsaround KBR Park could be

seen at all major junctions inHyderabad.

He said that the open spacesaround KBR Park have beenlet out for paltry sums toshopkeepers by the HMDAand GHMC. There is no ser-vice road around the parkand drivable roads haveshrunk substantially.

He suggested that the traf-fic police, the HMDA, andGHMC officials should joint-ly inspect the KBR Park andfind out the reasons for theheavy traffic there.

He also suggested to thetraffic DCP and other con-cerned officials to go aroundHyderabad during peak hoursto personally experience theproblems being suffered bycommoners on the roads.

Gudur said that continuousaction is required to ease thetraffic congestion and providerelief to the motorists ofHyderabad instead of a fewcosmetic steps here and there.

Congress blasts Govt forallocating prime land to TRS

Continued from page 2

The Minister asked if AmitShah could answer whyBayyaram Steel Plant was notallocated to Telangana, despitepromising the same in APReorganization Act?

"Telangana has been thetop investment destinationfor global firms. Yet, Telanganais not being given any indus-trial incentives. Why? Do youhave an answer for it?Scrapping ITIR project inTelangana, denying city's rapiddevelopment in the IT sectorshows how BJP conspiresagainst Telangana", he said.

KTR asked: "After rejectingITIR status to Telangana, canyou name at least one pro-gramme introduced by theBJP government as an alterna-tive option for the develop-ment of the IT sector? Whatanswers do you have for theyouth of Telangana who lostopportunities in IT companiesdue to the rejection of ITIR?Why are you not allocatingnew Software TechnologyParks to Telangana whose ITsector is progressing at a rapidspeed?"

He asked about thePalamuru Rangareddy liftIrrigation Scheme and said,"What answer do you have forthe farmers of Palamuru andRangareddy districts who feel

cheated by you for not allocat-ing national status to the pro-ject? Instead, you haveannounced to give nationalstatus to Karnataka's UpperBhadra project? This showshow partial BJP is towardsTelangana farmers".

On the Krishna waters,KTR said: "For the past eightyears, why are you not refer-ring to the Brijesh Kumar tri-bunal to resolve the issue of575 TMC irrigation water,which is the rightful share ofTelangana? Instead, you haveappointed the Krishna RiverManagement Board, whichonly further exploits the right-ful share of water toTelangana".

KTR demanded that thenumber of funds allocated toTelangana in the past eightyears, keeping aside the fundswhich the state receives con-stitutionally, be disclosed.

On Hyderabad, KTR asked,"Isn't it the fact that you aretroubling the citizens ofHyderabad by becoming ahurdle in the construction ofskyways by not allocatingdefence lands to the Stategovt? Is it not true that you areallocating crores of rupees asfunds for river rejuvenationprojects in BJP-ruled statesand not allotting even a pennyto the Musi River rejuvenationworks?"

He asked, why BJP was

not extending financial sup-port to the Hyderabad PharmaCity? "Why no DefenceIndustrial Corridor toTelangana? Why move it to aState which has zero presenceof defence factories, whileTelangana houses majorAerospace and defence com-panies? Not a single megapowerloom textile cluster wasallocated to Telangana, despiteTelangana leading the way forothers in the textile sector", hewrote.

KTR said, "Why are youcreating hurdles in procuringpaddy produced by farmers ofTelangana? Why did the BJPgovt not allocate TurmericBoard to Nizamabad? Whydid the BJP MP completelyforget the promise made to thepeople of Nizamabad, evenafter writing it on a bondpaper during the 2019 elec-tion?"

He asked if Amit Shah willmake a statement on the abo-lition of cess on petrol pricesand reducing the prices. Heasked why the World HealthOrganization's TraditionalMedicine Center, which was tobe set up in Hyderabad,moved to Gujarat."Instead ofsupporting the newly set upInternational ArbitrationCenter in Hyderabad, youhave set up another center inGujarat", he concluded.

KTR SENDS LEGAL NOTICE TO BANDI SANJAY

Therefore, as an elected sitting Member of Parliament, you are at alltimes under an obligation to act in a bona fide manner and conformto a high standard of integrity.. However, in the greed to derivepublicity, an attempt was made to falsely imply the issue ofIntermediate students' suicide upon my client". The notice issued bythe lawyer read, "In view of the false allegations made against myclient and the attempts to malign his reputation, Bandi Sanjay isliable for legal action, including payment for damages andcompensation. Also, to extend unconditional apology within 48hours". The notice said that KTR had garnered immense goodwilland reputation amongst the general public both as a dedicatedpolitician and as a dynamic individual for the various initiativesundertaken by him. In 2021, KTR sent a legal notice to RevanthReddy for linking him to the Tollywood drugs case. The Courtrestrained Revanth from linking him to the drugs case.

Continued from page 2

Komatireddy VenkatReddy and his brotherKomatireddy RajagopalReddy may contest fromNalgonda and Munugode, asthey did in the last elections.

Mulugu MLA Seethakkahas been expecting a ticket forher son also. Seethakka hasbeen making her son visit theBhadrachalam constituency.

Former PCC presidentPonnala Laxmaiah is alsohoping for two tickets --onefor himself and the secondone for his daughter-in-lawVaishali Reddy.

Former minister KondaSurekha is also expecting twotickets --one for herself andthe other for her husbandMurali or her daughter.

CLP Leader Mallu BhattiVikramarka is hoping for twotickets -- one for himself andthe second one for his wife.Mallu Bhatti Vikramraka'sbrother Mallu Ravi will alsocontest the election.

Former MP M. AnajanKumar Yadav also wants twotickets - one for himself andthe other for his son AnilKumar Yadav.

Sangareddy MLA T. JaggaReddy also wants two tickets--one is for himself and theother one for his wife ordaughter.

Continued from page 2

He asked pub and restau-rant owners to politely noti-fy customers by dimminglights 10 minutes beforeshutdown. This is the prac-tice in developed countries,he said. The meeting wasattended by Addl. CP(Crimes and SIT) ARSrinivas, Joint CP (Admin)M. Ramesh, and the DCPs ofall zones and other policeofficers.

Amit Shah should come with assurances: KTRSonia's statementspells trouble formany TPCC leaders

Pubs, bars...

Continued from page 2

"Owaisi has attempted toglorify Aurangzeb and, thus,has insulted the nationalistMuslims in this country.Aurangzeb can never be anidol for Muslims in this coun-try. He had torturedSambhajiraje before killinghim," Fadnavis said.

"We will not tolerate any-thing that glorifies Aurangzebin any way. Those who are try-ing to do so should face someaction. If someone clicks aphotograph in Lilavati hospi-

tal (referring to images ofIndependent MP NavneetRana in the MRI room), thisstate government immediate-ly rushes to act but does noth-ing in this matter," the formerchief minister added.

Asked about cases beingfiled against MNS chief RajThackeray at several placesafter his Aurangabad rallyseeking removal of loudspeak-ers atop mosques, Fadnavissaid Chief Minister UddhavThackeray was "implementingthe policy of people withwhom he is sharing power."

AIMIM insulted Muslims byglorifying Aurangzeb: Fadnavis

Debate, discuss...Continued from page 2

KTR said about 46 per centof the state’s population is liv-ing in urban areas now. Morethan half of the state’s popu-lation would be living intowns in another five to sevenyears, he said.

Urban areas contribute thelion’s share of Telangana’sGSDP (Gross State DomesticProduct) which has doubledduring the last seven years, hesaid.

Hyderabad accounts forone-fourth of the popula-tion but it contributes 45 to50 per cent of the GSDP, hesaid.

Kishan Reddy alleges...Continued from page 2

Buddhavanam ProjectSpecial Officer MallepallyLaxmaiah will preside overthe programme and TSTDCChairman Uppala SrinivasGuptha would be the guest ofhonour.

District CollectorPrashanth Jeevan Patil andTSTDC MD B. Manohar Raowould also attend the pro-gramme.

Meanwhile, in anotherdevelopment TRS WorkingPresident KT Ramarao hasserved legal notices onTelangana BJP chief BandiSanjay Kumar for tweeting onMay 11 that Intermediatestudents had died due toKTR.

KTR has sought an apolo-gy for the statement fromSanjay and has threatened tofile a defamation case if thereis no apology.

PNS n NEW DELHI

A massive fire rippedthrough a three-storey com-mercial building near Mundkametro station in west DelhiFriday evening, leaving at least26 dead and 40 injured, policesaid.

Around 60-70 people havebeen rescued from the building,the police said, adding somepeople are still trapped inside.

According to fire depart-ment officials, informationabout the blaze was receivedaround 4.40 pm followingwhich 24 fire tenders wererushed to the spot.

"It's a tragic incident 14 deadbodies confirmed and 12 peo-ple are injured," Deputy

Commissioner of Police(Outer) Sameer Sharma saidaround 10 pm.

PNS n VIJAYAWADA

Chief secretary Dr. SameerSharma’s service tenure hasbeen extended by six moremonths. The State govern-ment received a commu-niqué from the DoPT abouthis service extension onFriday. It is Sameer Sharma’ssecond extension. While hewas to retire at the end of lastNovember, his service hasnow been extended till thisyear's November end.

CS SAMEER SHARMA

GETS EXTENSION

All eyes on Amit Shah’s public meeting Continued from page 2

Kishan said that he wasconfident that the BJP’s flagwill fly high in the nextTelangana elections. Thefather-son government of TShas been engaging in a cam-paign of falsehood against theCentre and the BJP, he added.

KCR has also been day-dreaming about taking charge

of developing the nation bygiving an impression that hehas already developedTelangana in a big way. Thereis no need for money to day-dream, Kishan said mockingKCR.

Eatala said that Amit Shah’smeeting has great importance.KCR has lost the people’s con-fidence and he has been rulingthe state using Machiavellian

tactics.BJP leader Bandi Sanjay

Kumar launched his PrajaSangrama Yatra to explainthese things to the people, hesaid.

“We will make Amit Shah’spublic meeting a grand successand that will shock KCR. KCRhas been criticising the PrimeMinister irresponsibly,” Eatalasaid.

26 dead, 40 hurt in Delhi fire mishap

PNS n HYDERABAD

As a part of a 3-day official studytour to the State of Tamil Nadu,Telangana BC CommissionChairman Dr. VakulabarnamKrishna Mohan Rao, alongwith the panel nembers Ch.Upendra, Subhpradh PatelNooli and K.Kishore Goud,met Tamil Nadu Chief MinisterMK. Stalin at his office onFriday and apprised him of theintent, content and purpose(Caste Data Enumeration to beundertaken in TS and legal-glitch-free implementation of69% reservation for the BCs)behind the tour.

The BC CommissionChairman and the accompany-ing team members expressedtheir deep appreciation of the ini-tiatives and welfare measuresundertaken by the Governmentof Tamil Nadu under MK. Stalinas regards the Backward Classescommunities in the State.

The study team led by Dr. Raofelicitated Stalin. It held detaileddiscussions with Sattanathan,

Ambasankar and Janarthanamas well as the ChairmanJustice(Retd) Thanikachalamand officials of TN BackwardClasses Commission. They aretrying to understand themethodology and parametersadopted while formulating thesurvey design and instrumentsover a period of time which setthe exact format for withstand-ing the legal scrutiny of its rec-ommendations and implemen-tation processes. Dr. Rao andthe team called on RajaKannappan, Minister forBackward Classes, Governmentof Tamil Nadu. The visiting del-egation also met Karthik,Principal Secretary,Department of BackwardClasses Welfare, Government ofTamil Nadu and Amudha,Principal Secretary, Departmentof Panchayat Raj, Governmentof Tamil Nadu and ascertainedthe technical information aboutthe implementation of 69%reservation and local bodyreservations for BCs in theState.

TS BC panel hails Stalin’s steps

hyderabad 03HYDERABAD | SATURDAY | MAY 14, 2022

PNS n RANGAREDDY

The sleuths of LB Nagar zoneSOT, along with Malkajgiripolice, busted an interstatered sanders smuggling racketand apprehended two per-sons. They seized 31 redsanders weighing about 1,500kg , 3 mobile phones and cashRs.1600, total valued atRs.60,18,600. The accused per-sons were identified as ShaikMohammed (arrested), MullaBasheer Amhed (arrested) andMurthy(absconding).

Shaik Mohammed Rafi isnative of Maddunur of Kadapadistrict in AP. Basically he is abanana fruit business manand has been transportingbananas from AP to variousstates.

The other accused MullaBasheer Ahmed is resident of

Sainikpuri and native ofKurnool district. He used topurchase bananas from ShaikMohammed and sell the samein Telangana. Due to finan-cial losses, they hatched a planto procure and sell the red

sanders in Telangana. Theycame in contact with Murthyof Kadapa district in AP.Murthy supplied 31 redsanders weighing about 1,500kgs. They brought the redsander logs to Hyderabad andplaced them near Governmentland in Moula-Ali Dargah ofMalkajgiri. On 12th May, inthe evening on a tip off, SOTLB Nagar Zone Team withassistance of Malkajgiri policeconducted raid and appre-hended the two accused per-sons. They also seized redsandal logs and other materi-al. The above arrests weremade under the supervision ofRachakonda CP Mahesh MBhagwat, Addl CP G. SudheerBabu, DCP Rakshitha K.Murthy, SOT DCP K.Muralidhar, ACP D. VenkannaNaik and other staff.

Red sanders smuggling: 2 held,31 logs worth Rs 60 lakh seizedSIDDHARTH KUMAR SINGH

n HYDERABAD

The state of Telangana has atotal of 2, 21, 000 organ donors,according to an RTI. The RTIreply from `Jeevandan' to asocial activist mentioned thatunder the Jeevandan CadaverTransplantation Programmewhere donors can pledge theirorgans for donation after braindeath both offline and online,the total number of pledgeddonors offline are 2, 00,000 andonline 21,000 till date.

The RTI also revealed that atotal of 1,021 brain deaddeceased donors have donatedtheir organs in the last 9 years.The organs were donated aftertaking consent from thedonor's family. It started in2013 with 41 donors thenincreased to 51 in 2014, 89 in2015, 106 in 2016, 150 in 2017,150 in 2018, 134 in 2019, 75 in2020, 162 in 2021 and 53 till

date in 2022. There was also anincrease of 20-30% in donorsafter Jeevandan held theirawareness programmes acrossthe state.

While answering the ques-

tion on unregistered dona-tions, Jeevandan in the RTIreplied that there are no unreg-istered donations happening inTelangana as after the patientis brain dead, the transplant

coordinators counsel and takeconsent from the patient's fam-ily members and the donor isregistered under the Jeevandanscheme. Speaking to thePioneer, Aleti Rajesh Sagar,an

RTI Activist who had filedthe RTI in April 2022 said,``After seeing the news of

people frequently dying inroad accidents, found out thatfew of them had registeredthemselves as organ donors. Iwanted to find out the numberof organ donors in Telangana.So, I filed the RTI and then Ireceived a reply fromJeevandan where they provid-

ed me with all the statistics.The data is from 2013

when Jeevandan wasformed. What we canalso find out from thedata is that in 2020due to the Covid cri-sis the donor numberhad decreased, butthen it shot up again in

2021."The undivided state

of Andhra Pradesh in 2013had cleared a comprehensive

scheme ̀ `Jeevandan" proposedby Cadaver TransplantationAdvisory Committee (CTAC)to give a boost to organ trans-plantation in the state.

Telangana has 2, 21, 000 organ donors: RTI

An RTI query

revealed that a total of

1,021 brain dead deceased

donors have donated their

organs in the last 9 years.

The organs were donated

after taking consent

from the donor's

family.

DEEPIKA PASHAM

n HYDERABAD

It has been over two years thatthe Department of Intermediate has appointed trainedcounsellors and psychologiststo guide students to cope upwith the stress, strain and alsoremove fear to face examina-tions. Counsellors workingwith the department havereceived more calls forMathematics subjects as stu-dents were complaining thatthey are forgetting the formu-las though they practise for sev-eral times. One of the coun-selors Saroja shares, "A lot ofcalls from the MPC students,they ask me why these formu-las are so tough and also theyquestion about any techniquefor remembering them.Students also ask me why theyforget mathematics so quicklyand though they write andpractice, they are unable tosolve the previous year'spapers." We mostly providethem with a time table before

the exam, we are usheringthem that early morning hourspractice can be helpful and alsoask them to solve the easy ques-tions first, so that they havetime to think and apply theaccurate formula for otherquestions. We guided them togain concentration for memo-rising the formulas, she added.

Apart from the students, thedepartment's toll free numberis receiving calls from software

engineers. These employeesare expressing that they have nojob satisfaction and seeking fortechniques to stay committedto the work.

Counselors also received acall from Swiggy delivery per-son, who has completed engi-neering but working for finan-cial problems. He complains ofragging at office from higherofficials as he is educated, butworking as a delivery person.

Not pertaining to the averagestudents, counsellors are receiv-ing calls from students whohave scored 98 per cent in col-lege pre-finals. Students havealso asked about how to scorethe maximum marks in lan-guages, as marks are not givenmore than 95 in the languages.

Earlier the department usedto receive between 20 to 28calls per day, but now they arenearing to above hundredevery day. They have record-ed that these callers preferevenings to call everyday.Students are also sharing withthe counsellors that they arefeeling confident and relaxed toattempt the exams.

Inter students forgetting mathematicsformulas request counsellors for techniques

PNS n HYDERABAD

The state of Telangana intends toget a jump start in the hugelypromising sector of 3D printing,said Minister for MunicipalAdministration and UrbanDevelopment KT Rama Rao onFriday while speaking at theNational Conference on 3DPrinting in Medical Devices andImplants. The meet was organisedby National Center for AdditiveManufacturing (NCAM) inHyderabad.

In his keynote address, KTRspoke about how NCAM and theconference supports that start-upand innovation ecosystem in thestate and how it helps to establishTelangana as a leader in emerg-ing technologies. He also said,``India has a huge opportunity inthe 3D printing segment tobecome a dominant player.During the pandemic, weobserved several young entrepre-neurs display their innovation and

use 3D printing to quickly devel-op parts of ventilators and otherdevices. We also have T-Worksthat has been using 3D printingfor their prototyping efforts.Through all these efforts,Telangana intends to get a jumpstart at this hugely promising sec-

tor and it is with this intent, weestablished NCAM and conduct-ed this key conference."

The day-long national confer-ence featured exhibitions of thelatest 3D printing technology,panel discussions on latest trends,applications and challenges of

this technology in medicine anda round table between doctors,industry leaders and academicexperts to discuss the roadmap fordeveloping an ecosystem for addi-tive manufacturing (AM) in med-icine. One of the highlights of theconference was the announce-

ment of 20 partnerships withleading organisations in AM tech-nology from India and abroad.These partnerships aim to fulfillNCAM's core objective of pro-moting the adoption of additivemanufacturing in India.

Other guests present at theevent were Principal SecretaryJayesh Ranjan, CIO NCAM RamaDevi Lanka, CEO NCAM JaspreetSiddhu and Commissioner (SouthAsia) at Global Victoria,Government of Victoria, AustraliaMichelle Wade.

TS aims to jumpstart 3D printing

Minister K T Rama Rao and others at the national conference on 3-D printing in Hyderabad on Friday

One of the highlights

of the conference was

the announcement of

20 partnerships with

leading organisations

in AM technology from

India and abroad.

Apart from thestudents, thedepartment's toll freenumber is receivingcalls from softwareengineers.

PNS n HYDERABAD

Rachakonda police has pro-vided an ex-gratia of Rs 13lakh to the family of a policewoman who died in the lineof duty. Jyotsna, a lady con-stable, who worked at theJawahar Nagar police stationin the Rachakonda policeCommissionerate, was criti-cally injured in a road acci-dent and died after beingtreated at a hospital for 38days. As per the directions ofRachakonda CP, AdditionalDCP Admin Srinivasulu hashanded over the cheques ofRs 8 lakhs of ex gratia and Rs5 lakhs from welfare fund tothe family members ofdeceased constable on Friday.

Ex gratia of Rs 13 lakhgiven to kin oflady constable

AWS InCommunities renovatesgovt school at HythabadPNS n HYDERABAD

AWS InCommunities(Amazon Web Services) hasestablished a new oxygen gen-eration plant and renovated aschool to strengthen ruralinfrastructure in Telangana.

While schools are the foun-dation of learning, the bestlearning outcomes require anenvironment that is comfort-able and inspiring. However,for students and staff at theZilla Parishad High School inHythabad in Rangareddy dis-trict even basic facilities wereout of reach. They had to con-tend with damaged toilets,lack of access to drinkingwater, water seepage in class-

rooms, and a worn-out schoolbuilding. Come the new aca-demic year, the school will wel-come students to newly reno-vated premises with clean andsafe toilets, a cooking shed, andcheerful, freshly painted class-rooms. These initiatives werecompleted by AWSInCommunities in collabora-tion with Concern IndiaFoundation. Sabitha IndraReddy, Minister for Education,Telangana, who inauguratedthe facility said, "Educationand healthcare are key pillarsthat support the goals of all-round rural development andthe creation of a sustainablesociety. The unprecedentedsituation resulting from the

Covid-19 pandemic requiresall sections of society, includ-ing corporates, to come togeth-er to tackle challenges such asgaps in schooling, and accessto affordable and reliablehealthcare. I would like tothank AWS for their help tobuild the rural infrastructurein Telangana."

The team also undertookextensive civil and electricalworks, plumbing, carpentryand painting work. A waterstorage tank with 300 litrescapacity and a water purifierhave been installed to providea healthy water supply. Theteam also provided furnituresuch as benches, tables, andchairs.

PNS n HYDERABAD

The parks under BuddhaPurnima project lack basicfacilities, no ticket pricesboards, contractors workingirregularly, Sanjeevaiah chil-dren's park has no drinkingwater. Visitors to these parksface inconveniences due tolack of basic amenities. Themanagement of the BuddhaPurnima project parks hasbecome chaotic. The projectneeds an Officer on SpecialDuty (OSD).

The parks under this projectare NTR Garden, NecklaceRoad and Sanjeevaiah Park. Itis learnt that some people wereinjured in a recent accident at

NTR Garden due to lack park-ing places. No action was takenagainst the contractors fortheir negligence for not allot-ting parking places for vehicles.Police are imposing penaltiesfor parking vehicles on roads.Parking spaces for vehicleswere not allocated in LumbiniPark, allege leaders ofCommunist Party of India.

Although the contract withIxora Agency for housekeepingservices expires in December2021, they are working withoutnew tenders. The CPI leadersalso demand regular paymentof wages for workers. Theydemand to provide the basicfacilities for the visitors andcomplete development works.

Parks under Buddha Purnimaproject lack basic amenities

PNS n HYDERABAD

The Center for Cellular andMolecular Biology (CCMB)Hyderabad on Friday announced that they have developedIndia's first mRNA vaccine.The team at Atal IncubationCenter-CCMB (AIC-CCMB)led the development of the vac-cine.

``Even though Covid-19 iswaning, the vaccine platformholds promise for many infec-tious diseases that India faces.This is a proof-of-principlewherein we have shown thatwe can replicate the mRNAvaccine technology end-to-end. The beauty of this tech-nology is in its modularity andrapid turn-around times. Thatmeans with significantly lessefforts, the developed technol-ogy can be used to sire vac-cines for other infectious dis-eases like dengue, tuberculosisor malaria, said Dr VinayNandicoori, Director, CCMB.

Dr Rajesh Iyer, Scientist

involved in the project said,``We observed robust immuneresponse against SARS-CoV-2spike protein in mice, uponadministration of 2 doses ofthe mRNA. The anti-spikeantibodies generated werefound to be more than 90%efficient in preventing thehuman ACE2 receptor bindingto the coronavirus."

``The current war with thepandemic has brought to lightmany vaccine technologies

and India's vaccine pro-gramme is highly lauded.However, we lacked the potentmRNA vaccine technology, asdeveloped by Moderna andPfizer/BioNtech to combatCovid-19 in the USA andEurope. The developed tech-nology is different frommRNA vaccine developedfrom Geneva Bio, which isbased on self-replicating RNA"said Dr Madhusudhan Rao,CEO AIC-CCMB.

CCMB develops ‘India’sfirst mRNA vaccine’

CCMB officials addressing media persons in Hyderabad on Friday

PNS n HYDERABAD

Telangana Minister for AnimalHusbandry Talasani SrinivasYadav on Friday inaugurated amini diagnostic center at a 50-bed Government Hospital inAmeerpet. The diagnostic cen-ter was set up at a cost of Rs 74lakh.

Addressing on the occasion,the Minister said, ̀ `Since the for-mation of Telangana state, thegovernment has brought inmajor changes in the medicalsector. The number of peoplevisiting government hospitalshas seen a sharp increase and thisis because of the developmentprogrammes being carried outby the government. As the diag-nostic center has been set uphere, people will no longer haveto visit Osmania or Gandhi hos-pital." The Minister also said that

the government had sanctioneda 30 bed hospital before the for-mation of the state, but afteridentifying the demands of thelocal people, the present govern-ment has built a 50 bed hospitalin Ameerpet at a cost of Rs 3,78crore. He requested patients notto visit private diagnostic centersto get the tests done, instead theyhave to visit the diagnostic cen-

ter at government hospitalswhere 57 types of tests are beingdone free of cost. An ambulancewill soon be sanctioned to thehospital by the government, saidSrinivas Yadav. The programmewas attended by MLC Vani Devi,District Medical Officer DrVenkat, Hospital Superinten dentDarshad and T-Diagno sticsprogramme officer Arun Kumar.

Mini-diagnostic centeropened in Govt Hospital

Minister Talasani Srinivas Yadav, MLC Vani Devi and others at the launching ofmini-diagnostic center at government hospital in Ameerpet in Hyderabad on Friday

PNS n HYDERABAD

Over 310 units of double bed-room houses are ready foropening at Banda Maisammain Bansilalpet. The 2-BHKhouses were constructed at atotal cost of Rs 23.65 crore,said officials from GreaterHyderabad MunicipalCorporation (GHMC). Roads,Buildings, Legislative Affairs,Housing Minister PrashantReddy and Livestock, Fisheriesand Cinematography MinisterTalsani Srinivas Yadav willinaugurate these units onSunday.

Each of these houses is builtin 560 square feet with a costof 7.75 lakhs. Amenities suchas cement road, drainage andelectricity poles, 300 m sewer-age line, sump for 100 klcapacity drinking water, instal-lation of street lights, 11 lifts,16 shopping shutters are beingbuilt for the benefit of resi-dents. The state government iscommitted to provide better

infrastructure to the people inthe wake of Hyderabad grow-ing into a cosmopolitan city.The main objective is to makeHyderabad a slum-free cityt.With this aim, double bed-room houses are built in dif-ferent areas under GHMCand are being made availableto beneficiaries in phasedmanner. The GHMC has set atarget of constructing onelakh double bedroom housesat 111 locations in GHMClimits and has so far complet-ed over 70,000 units.

310 units to be given tobeneficiaries tomorrow

Attendancethroughbiometriconly: DMEPNS n HYDERABAD

Telangana Director ofMedical Education (DME)on Friday issued a circulardirecting the institutionsto record the attendance oftheir respective facultythrough biometric methodonly. The circular said,``All thePrincipals/Directors/Superintendents of all the insti-tutions under DME areagain informed that thedaily attendance of facultyshould be recorded only bybiometric method bothentry and exit. This wasinformed earlier, but someinstitutions are not fol-lowing it. This will beviewed seriously." The cir-cular also said that dailyafter 9:30 AM the details ofattendance should beshared by the representa-tives of institutions in thewhatsapp group createdfor the purpose.

2BHK HOUSES AT BANDA MAISAMMA

04HYDERABAD | SATURDAY | MAY 14, 2022

PNS n WARANGAL

Minister for Panchyat RajErrabelli Dayakar Rao onFriday directed the DistrictCollector to deploy more lor-ries to transport the procuredpaddy from the procurementcentres to the rice mills.

The Minister, during hisvisit to China Gudur village inJangaon district to inspectthe process of paddy pro-curement at the procurementcentres, the farmers com-plained to him that the thepaddy remained at the centresonly.

He suggested to the farm-ers that they may bring to hisnotice any problem being

faced by them. He sought to instil confi-

dence in the farmers by assur-ing them that the TRS govern-

ment would procure everygrain of paddy produced byTelangana farmers during theYasangi season.

Minister for Panachayat Raj Errabelli Dayakar Rao interacting with farmes at aprocurement centre at Chinna Gudur in Jangaon district on Friday

PNS n JAGTIAL

District Collector G Ravi onFriday directed the officials toensure that paddy procure-ment at procurement centresis carried out speedily. Heparticularly instructed the offi-cials to take all measures forthe protection of farmers.

The Collector was inspect-ing the paddy procurementprocess at Bommena,Thanadrial and Sirikonda andmedepally under Kathalpurmandal and Mohanraopet andother places under Koratlamandal.

Ravi interacted with the

farmers at the procurementcentres. He advised farmers todry the paddy properly beforeit was brought to the procure-ment centres. The Collectorinstructed the officials at theprocurement centres to pro-cure paddy speedily withoutgiving any trouble to the farm-ers. He asked the officials todeploy more hamalis to trans-port the procured paddy to therice mills. He examined themoisture content of paddy inthe procurement centres. Heasked the officials to makeavailable tarpaulins in suffi-cient numbers at the procure-ment centres.

Officials told to ensure protectionof farmers at procurement centres

Jagtial District Collector G Ravi inspecting procurement centres at Bommenavillage Jagtial district on Friday

PNS n WARANGAL

City Police CommissionerTarun Joshi has said the mainobject of the police is to eradi-cate the ganja menace in theState and wean the youth awayfrom narcotics.

The police under the cityPolice Commissionerate under-took a novel campaign with thetitle 'Awaken Warangal' toexplain youth on the harmfuleffects of ganja and other narcot-ic substances. The police also

stressed the need to follow traf-fic rules.

To sensitise the people, aramp walk participated bynational and international mod-els and para-athletes. Several cul-tural programmes would beorganised on the occasion. A topTollywood actor is going toattend an event as chief gust, hesaid, but did not divulge thename of the chief guest. CityPolice Commissioner along withother police officials released awall poster of the event.

Police to undertake campaign towean away youth from narcotics

‘TRS govt committed to bring allservices in districts under one roof’

PNS n SIDDIPET

Bejjanki VRO Srikant Reddyhas been accused of encroach-ing upon the ancestral landbelonging to two persons.Addressing the media at thePress Club here on Friday,Nimma Narayana Reddy andDharma Reddy alleged that theVRO first got the 550 squareyards of site under surveynumber 680D in Bejjankitransferred in the name of hisbenami holder Kurella Yellaiahand later got it registered in thename of his wife Sweta. Wheninformation has been soughtabout it under the RTI in theMRO office, the MRO officeauthorities denied having anyproceedings in this regard.

They sought legal actionagainst Srikant Reddy whoencroached upon their land.

They pointed out thatSrikant Reddy was placedunder suspension twice oncharges of misuse of power.

Bejjanki VROaccused of grabbing land

PNS n MULUGU

National Mirchi Task ForceCommittee director NSambasiva Reddy on Fridaypromised to provide Rs 1 lakhworth of paddy seeds free totribal farmers in the first weekof June during Vanakalam sea-son at Shanigakunta village.The free seed distribution wouldbe taken up with the help ofAnnapurna Seeds and Farmcompany in Warangal. He saidhe had decided to help the trib-al people in the village becausethey had lost everything in a fireaccident recently. He distributedclothes, worth Rs 75,000 clothesto the people in the village. It was sponsored by Vikas AgriFoundation Vice-chairman PNaresh, and NasireddyVenkateswara Reddy.

Free paddy seedspromised to tribal farmers

PNS n NIZAMABAD

Telangana State RoadTransport CorporationChairman and Nizamabadrural MLA BajireddyGoverdhan on Fridaybooked mangoes online fordelivery through the TSRTCMango Express.

The RTC Cargo deliverystaff delivered MangoExpress Pack to the RTCchairman.

Later, Goverdhan Reddysaid that over 13,000 havebooked mango packsthrough Mango Express. Ifanyone books mangoes onwww.tsrtcparcel.com themangoes would be deliveredin four or five days. The costof five kg of mangoes withthe inclusive of transporta-tion charges would be Rs581.

RTC chairmanreceives mangoes throughRTC cargo service

TSRTC chairman Bajireddy GoverdhanReddy receiving a box containingmangoes delivered by the TSRTCCargo Service in Nizamabad on Friday

PNS n SIDDIPET

The body of a 39-year-oldman was found on the out-skirts of Dubbak town onFriday. The body was iden-tified as that of RachamalluySrinvias. He hailed fromDubbak town.

Initially, it was thoughtthat he could have died in aroad accident.

The police, however, saidthat there were injuries onthe neck and other part ofthe body. Srinvas is survivedby wife, a son and a daugh-ter The police are investiga-tion.

Body found

TSLPRB receives above 4.5 lakh applications in 11 daysPNS n HYDERABAD

The Telangana State LevelPolice Recruitment Board(TSLPRB) has receivedmore than 4.5 lakh applica-tions from nearly 2.5 lakhcandidates in the past 11days, since the board start-ed accepting online applica-tions. Of these, more than 1lakh applications (23%)were received from womencandidates and the remain-ing from males.

TSLPRB had announceda total of 17,291 vacanciesfor various posts in thePolice department, Disasterresponse & fire servicesdepartment, Prisons & cor-rectional services depart-ment, Special protectionforce, Transport depart-ment and Prohibition andExcise department. TSL-PRB has been acceptingonline applications sinceMay 2 and the deadline isMay 20.

EnergyTech Global expandscentral office in HyderabadPNS n HYDERABAD

EnergyTech Global, a 100%owned subsidiary of TheEnergy Collective (TEC) - aNew Zealand based company,has expanded its footprint inHyderabad city by addingadditional modules to its cen-tral office at NSIC BusinessPark ECIL, a satellite office atN-Heights. HiTech City.

Jayesh Ranjan, PrincipalSecretary, Ralph Hays - NewZealand Consul General andTrade Commissioner, India,Sri Lanka, David Pine - NewZealand High Commissionerto India and Bangladesh, LukeBlincoe, CEO - The EnergyCollective group inauguratedthe new office on Friday.

Speaking on the occasion,Kishore Borra, ManagingDirector EnergyTech Global,said, "The new office spacemarks the roll-out of the com-pany's aggressive India growthplan. With 250+ associatesand leadership in all function-al areas, we are actively hiringfor multiple roles in applica-tion development, testing, sup-port, DevOps, data science,analytics, and customer expe-rience as we are looking toincrease our India headcountto 1000 by 2025. LukeBlincoe, Group CEO of TheEnergy Collective, said, "TECis a founder-led growth busi-ness active in energy-tech andenergy retail markets. Around1,50,000 households across

Australasia are supplied elec-tricity by our award-winningbrands Electric Kiwi andReAmped Energy. We havenow expanded our serviceofferings to Broadband andGas.

After inaugurating, JayeshRanjan said, " TheGovernment of Telangana ispromoting a policy calledGrowth In Dispersion (GRID)to encourage IT companies tolook outside Cyberabad andexpand their presence. I hopethe success and growth impe-tus of EnergyTech Global onthe Eastern corridor propelsmore companies to open hereand contribute to the holisticdevelopment of the ITIndustry in this city."

PNS n HYDERABAD

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) onFriday appointed convenerfor the party's State unitorganisational developmentand training committeeand conveners for all17 Lok Sabha con-stituencies. TheAAP appointedDiddi Sudhakar asthe convener ofthe organisationaldevelopment andtraining committee,according to AAP Stateunit election in-chargeSomnath Bharti. SomnathBharti also appointed conven-ers for all the 17 Lok Sabhaconstituencies. They are-Indira Shobhan(Secunderabad), DiddiSudhakar (Khammam), Burra

Ramu Goud (Nizamabad),Suresh Thallapally(Warangal), Shoban BabuBhukya (Mahabubabad), DrSudhakar Pappula

(Malkajgiri), RandeerSingh (Karimnagar),

Chintalapally Babu(Mahabubnagar),Madhu Malem(Peddapal l i ) ,P r a v e e nC h a n g l e r a(Zaheerabad), C

Janardhan Reddy( M e d a k ) ,

Mohammed Mazeed(Hyderabad), Hari Prasad

Goud Anthati (Bhuvanagiri),Dr Solomon Raj(Nagarkurnool), SubhashRathod (Adilabad),Mahammad Afzal(Nalgonda), Barka KrishnaYadav (Chevella).

AAP appoints convenersfor LS constituencies

Energy Tech Global delegates at the launch of office in Hyderabad on Friday

TS horticulture Dept has only five pack house facilities

PNS n SIDDIPET

Minister for Finance T HarishRao has said that the objectiveof locating all governmentoffices at one place is to enablethe people to help easily accessall services under one roof.

He was addressing a gather-ing, after laying the foundationstone for the village panchayatoffice at Markuk in Gajwel con-stituency and also a villagefunction hall and integratedgovernment offices' complex atmandal level on Friday. He alsolaid the foundation stone for aGajwel-Pragnapur modern busstation, to be built at Rs 5 crore.

He also laid the foundationstone for Rs 25 lakh ViswakarmaBhavan for the benefit ofVeerabhadra community andfor a modern bus station atPragnapur.

The TRS government alone isimplementing welfare schemesfor the past seven decades. Hedescribed Chief Minister as ahumanist who is providing foodto the hospital attendants ofpatients. Paddy production inTelangana currently is 2.59 croretonnes as against 99 lakh tonnesearlier. Refuting allegations ofBJP that Kaleshwaram projectdid not irrigate even one acre ofland, he asked the saffron party

leaders to come to Siddipet,Dubbaka, Gajwel constituenciesfor them to see how manyponds, tanks were full withKaleshwaram waters.

He said that the TRS govern-ment would give Rs 3 lakh forthe poor to build houses on theirown lands. Further, he said thatthe subsidy for cultivation of oilpalm is put at Rs 1,000 crore. Heappealed to farmers to come for-ward to cultivate oil palm liber-ally. The government has plansto run train to Tirupati fromKachiguda and Gajwel. Peoplefaced drinking water problemsunder the regimes of the previ-ous regimes, he said.

Construction of the mostmodern bus station in ChiefMinister's constituency ofGajwel at a cost of Rs 5 crorewith 8 bus bays and construc-

tion of a bus bay in Gajwel townat a cost of Rs 2 crore andlaunching of construction of Rs4 crore bus station at Pragnapuris a happy occasion, he said. Theface of Gajwel has changed forbetter in four years with ringroad works launched at a cost ofRs 297 crore are alsmost near-ing completion. Gajwel districthospital was built on a par withprivate hospitals.

All community associationshave their own buildings, hesaid. Zilla Parishad ChairpersonRoja Sarma, MLC YadavaReddy, FDC chairman PratapReddy, undivided Medak dis-trict DCCB chairman ChittiDevender Reddy, DistrictAdditional Collector SrinivasReddy, GADA special officerMutyam Reddy and others werepresent on the occasion.

‘Mana Vooru-Mana Bandiwill transform State intovibrant knowledge society'

Minister for Finance THarish Rao on Fridayexpressed confidence

that Mana Vooru-Mana Badiwould change the face ofgovernment schools in theState. It would ultimately helptransform the State into avibrant knowledge society, hesaid. Speaking at a meeting,shortly after laying thefoundation stone for renovationof a high school at a cost of Rs80 lakh at Kukunoorpalle villageunder Kondapaka mandal,Harish Rao said thegovernment had decided tointroduce English medium ingovernment school from thenext academic year. Theintroduction of English mediumis aimed at fulfilling the dreamsof the students from poorfamilies to pursue highereducation not only in thecountry but also abroad. Chief Minister K ChandrasekharRao has rolled out ManaVooru-Mana Badi scheme toensure that the governmentschool have all facilities on apar with corporate schools.

Minister for Finance T Harish Rao laying foundation stone for modern bus station inGajwel on Friday

PNS n HYDERABAD

Telangana horticulture hasonly five pack house facilityof the required 100. Thegovernment is looking atentrepreneurs to invest inpack houses which aregrowth engines forHorticulture exports.

Pack houses are structureswhere the harvested pro-duce is pre-cooled, cleaned,graded and packed as perrequirements/ certificationsof the destination market.Such units also contain coldstorage facilities to establisha cold chain right from theplace of origin of produce todestination.

E Sreenivasa Rao, ARS,Advisor (Horticulture) said,'Several important horticul-tural crops like mango, cit-rus, pomegranate, fig, drag-on fruit and vegetables are

being grown in Telangana.Our farmers are well versedwith the cultivation of thesecrops for getting an exportquality produce. Severalfarmers are even doing thisorganically after getting req-uis ite cer t i f icat ions .

However, our produce is notable to reach internationalmarkets, where our farmerscan get better prices.

The major interventionneeded in this regard isestablishment of pack hous-es.Ansh Agronomy is one

such pack house facilityestablished by Anandsagar inthe 2019-20 at Chinna reval-l i (V) , Ba lanagar(M),M a h a b u b n a g a r ( D i s t ) ,Telangana. They are engag-ing with local farmers andare able to successfully

export mangoes and special-ity herbs like Rose mary,Basil, Thyme, Lemon grassetc. to different destinationsin Europe.

Sreenivasa Rao recentlyvisited this unit and opinedthat, 'Pack houses are a hugeinvestment and entrepre-neurship opportunity in thestate of Telangana. Each suchunit may cost around Rs.60Lakhs and we need atleast100 such units, while wecurrently have less than fivein the State. Enterprisingyouth should enter this field,establish contacts in interna-tional markets and connectthem to the local small andmarginal farmers, followingGood Agricultural Practices(GAP). These would helpbuild green businesses andalso sustainably improve thelivelihoods of small and mar-ginal farmers in the state.'

Warangal police displaying wall posters released to sensitise youth on harmfuleffects of drugs, in Warangal on Friday

SHIFTING OF PADDY TO RICE MILLS

Minister directs Collectorto deploy more lorries

Call to register criminal cases against TRSleader who encroached on Dokur temple landsPNS n MAHABUBNAGAR

Social activist and president ofNGO, Nenu Saitam, DiddiPravin Kumar has made itclear that his struggle wouldcontinue till criminal cases areregistered against theencroachers of temple lands inDokur village ofDevarakadramandal inMahabubnagar district.

Addressing the media at hisNGO office here on Friday, healleged that a ruling TRSleader encroached upon 4.5acres of Sri Karta Ramaswamytemple belonging toWanaparthy group of templesin Dokuru village under sur-vey numbers 265, 266, 272 and542. The land has been givenaway to the temple to enablethe temple authorities to con-duct daily rituals of the presid-ing deity under Dhoopa,Deepa and Naivaidyamscheme. The TRS leaderencroached upon the landand illegally cultivating paddy

in the land. Dokuru Bheem Reddy has

been waging a fight against theencroachment for the pastfour years. The TRS leader hadallegedly threatened him toneutralise him, Pravin alleged.

On the request of BheemReddy to save the templelands at any cost, Pravin saidthat he embarked on an actionplan in this regard. As part ofit, he said he lodged com-plaints withD e v a r a k a d r a Ta h s i l d a r,Mahabubnagar DistrictCollector, EndowmentsOfficials and other State-levelauthorities. A group of

Revenue, police, Endowmentsofficials had employed pres-sure tactics and it enabled theencroachers to obtain a stayorders from court till May 9.As the stay has been vacated,the Endowments Departmentofficials have taken back pos-session of the encroachedlands. Some of the encroach-ers have full support of thelocal Revenue officials leadingto endowments authoritiesdelaying taking possession ofthe land for the past fouryears. At least now, theEndowments Departmentshould file criminal casesagainst the temple landencroachers. He said that hestruggle would continue tillstrict action was taken againstthe encroachers.

Bheem Reddy said that hehas been fighting to protectthe temple lands for the pastfour years. He welcomedEndowments Departmentofficials taking possession ofthe encroached lands.

Non-governmental organisation Nenu

Saitam president Pravin Kumar speaking to

the media in Mahabubnagar on Friday

nation 05HYDERABAD | SATURDAY | MAY 14, 2022

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Aspecial court here on Friday refused to grant permission to Maharashtra's formerhome minister Anil Deshmukh to undergo a shoulder surgery at a private hospitaland said he could get the medical procedure done at the state-run J J Hospital in the

city. Deshmukh had sought permission to be temporarily shifted to a private hospital ofhis choice to undergo the surgery and treatment for his dislocated shoulder. The NCPleader said he would bear theexpenses. The Enforcement Directorate(ED) had, however, opposed the pleaand said that the J J Hospital was well-equipped with qualified doctors toperform the surgery. The court rejectedDeshmukh's application and said hecould get the surgery and treatmentdone at the J J Hospital. Deshmukh iscurrently in judicial custody followinghis arrest by Enforcement Directorate(ED) in November last year in a moneylaundering case.

Deshmukh can undergo shouldersurgery in state-run hospital: Court

With singing of national anthem made compulsory in all madrassas in neighbouringUttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh Home Minister Narottam Mishra on Friday said asimilar step could be considered in the state. He made the statement in response

to a query asked by reporters here. Speaking separately, Madhya Pradesh BJP chiefVishnu Dutt Sharma said 'Jana Gana Mana' should be recited in all educationalinstitutions across the country.Singing of national anthem "Jana GanaMana" has been made compulsory atall madrassas in Uttar Pradesh startingThursday. The Registrar of the UttarPradesh Madrassa Education Boardissued an order to this effect to all theDistrict Minority Welfare Officers onMay 9. Talking to reporters, ministerMishra said the national anthemshould be sung everywhere. "It is agood thing. It is a national anthem andit can be sung everywhere," he said.

MP govt may consider making nationalanthem recital compulsory at madrasas

Leader of Opposition in the Karnataka Assembly Siddaramaiah on Friday accused the BJPgovernment in the state of trying to force anti-conversion law on the people throughordinance route to "divert attention from corruption and lack of administration." The

former Chief Minister even urged the Governor to reject the 'The Karnataka Protection ofRight to Freedom of Religion (anti-conversion) ordinance', stating that itis aimed at "harassing" minorities. TheKarnataka cabinet on Thursdaydecided to promulgate the ordinanceto give effect to the law againstforceful religious conversions. TheKarnataka Protection of Right toFreedom of Religion Bill was passedby the Legislative Assembly inDecember last year. However, it ispending for passage in the LegislativeCouncil, where the ruling BJP is oneshort of majority.

‘K'taka govt forcing anti-conversionlaw to divert attention from corruption’

Sonia targets Modi, saysminorities being ‘brutalised'PNS n UDAIPUR

Congress chief Sonia Gandhion Friday launched a blister-ing attack on Prime MinisterNarendra Modi, charging thatit has become clear that hismantra of 'minimum gov-ernment, maximum gover-nance' means keeping thecountry in a permanent stateof polarisation, "brutalising"minorities and "threatening"political opponents.

In her inaugural address atthe party's 'Chintan Shivir'here, she urged delegates todeliberate with an open mind

and send out a clear messageof strong organisation and

unity. She said the Shivir isalso an occasion to deliberate

on the many challenges aheadof us and bring organisation-al changes. “It is both'Chintan' about national issuesand meaningful 'aatmachin-tan' (self-introspection) aboutour party organisation,” shesaid.

Gandhi charged that it hasbecome “painfully clear” whatPrime Minister Modi and hiscolleagues really meany bytheir frequently used slogan ofmaximum governance, min-imum government.

“It means keeping thecountry in a permanent stateof polarisation, compelling

people to stay in a constantstate of fear and insecurity. Itmeans viciously targeting,victimising and brutalisingminorities who are an integralpart of our society and equalcitizens of our republic,” shecharged. “It means using oursocieties age old pluralities todivide us and subverting acarefully nurtured idea ofunity and diversity. It meansthreatening and intimidatingpolitical opponents, malign-ing their reputation, jailingthem on flimsy pretexts usinginvestigative agencies” Gandhifurther alleged.

In her inauguraladdress at theparty's 'ChintanShivir' here, sheurged delegates todeliberate with anopen mind and sendout a clearmessage of strongorganisation andunity.

Population not sole criterionfor J&K delimitation: CECPNS n NEW DELHI

Population was an importantbut not the sole criterion whilecarrying out the delimitationexercise in Jammu andKashmir, Chief ElectionCommissioner Sushil Chandrasaid on Friday and assertedthat the union territory has tobe seen as "one unit" where theentire population has to begiven representation in 90assembly constituencies.

Chandra, who was an ex-officio member of the delimi-tation panel which gave itsfinal order on restructuring theassembly seats in Jammu andKashmir earlier this month,also said there were "lots ofproblems" with the earlierdelimitation and those havebeen corrected now. He wasresponding to questions oncriticism from certain quartersthat going by the populationratio, Kashmir Division got alesser number of seats as com-pared to Jammu.

"Population is only one ofthe criteria of the delimitation.Besides population, there arefour other criteria as per pro-

visions of the DelimitationAct and the Jammu andKashmir Reorganisation Actwhich say that considerationwill also have to be given to thephysical conditions, and com-munication facilities, publicconveniences and the admin-istrative units of that area. Sothese are four other criteriathat have to be looked into. It(population) is one of theimportant criteria but not thesole criteria. That one shouldkeep in mind," Chandra toldPTI. Chandra, who demits theoffice of CEC on Saturday, saidJammu and Kashmir should beseen as one unit. "It cannot be(seen) in different parts. It is

one single union territory. Thewhole population will have tobe given representation in 90constituencies. The (Kashmir)valley has been given less orJammu (division) has beengiven less -- it is one whole unitcomprising 20 districts and 207tehsils. We will have to see it asone whole unit."

The Delimitation Commission on Jammu and Kashmir,formed in March 2020, noti-fied its final report on May 5giving six additional assemblyseats to the Jammu region andone to Kashmir Valley andbringing areas of Rajouri andPoonch under the Anantnagparliamentary seat.

Jammu Division will nowhave 43 assembly seats andKashmir 47 in the 90-memberhouse. The changes will comeinto effect from the date to benotified by the central govern-ment. Earlier, the erstwhileassembly had 87 seats -- 46 inKashmir, 37 in Jammu 37 andfour in Ladakh.

Ladakh, in the reorganisa-tion of the erstwhile state, wasdeclared as a union territorywithout an assembly.

PNS n AHMEDABAD

A special CBI court here hasconvicted two retired and oneserving Indian Air Force person-nel in a 27-year-old custodialdeath case at Jamnagar Air ForceStation in Gujarat and sentencedthem to life imprisonment.

The court of CBI special judgeN D Joshi on Thursday sen-tenced then Squadron LeaderAnoop Sood and Sergeants AnilK N and Mahendra SinghSherawat to life imprisonment,a release issued by the CBI stat-ed on Friday.

Sood and Anil have alreadyretired from service, while

Sherawat is still in service, it said.The trio were found guilty ofkilling Girja Rawat, who worked

as a cook at Air Force-I,Jamnagar. Of the seven accusedin the case, three were convict-

ed, one died during the course ofthe trial, while three others wereacquitted by the court, the cen-

tral agency said.As per the case details, Rawat

was a cook in the DSC Mess ofAir Force-I, Jamnagar. OnNovember 13, 1995, around 10to 12 Air Force police officials,including Sood, conductedsearches at his residence andforcibly took him with them, asthey suspected him of stealingliquor from the Air Force can-teen. It was alleged that theaccused tortured Rawat to makehim confess about the theft. Inthe evening, his wife visited theGuard Room and requested theofficials to release her husbandand was told that he would bereleased soon.

Guj: 3 IAF personnel sentenced to life

PNS n NEW DELHI

Delhi Deputy Chief MinisterManish Sisodia has written toUnion Home Minister AmitShah urging him to stop the"destruction" ensuing in thenational capital due to the anti-encroachment drive by the BJP-ruled municipal bodies. In anonline briefing, Sisodiaslammed the "bulldozer poli-tics" of the BJP and claimed thatthe civic bodies are planning toraze 63 lakh dwellings in thenational capital.

"Of these, 60 lakh houses arein unauthorised colonies whilethe remaining three lakh arethose where people haveextended their balconies orcovered them. We have learntthat notices have been sent tothem," Sisodia said. "This will

lead to a huge destruction in thenational capital. Almost 70 percent of the population of Delhiwill be rendered homeless," headded.

The Aam Aadmi Party willoppose the demolition driveand I have written to the Unionhome minister to seek his inter-vention in the matter, he said,

adding that they are even readyto go to jail.

"I have written to him (Shah)saying that this (demolitiondrive) should be stopped. Ifbulldozers are to be used, theyshould be used to demolish thehouses of those BJP leaders andcivic body representatives whotook bribes to allow such struc-tures to be constructed," he said.In the letter, Sisodia said thereare 1,750 unauthorised colonieswhere nearly 50 lakh people liveand 860 slum clusters which arehome to around 10 lakh people."In Delhi, the BJP has a plan torun bulldozers on thesecolonies. Every day, some BJPleader reaches a colony with abulldozer," Sisodia said in theletter written in Hindi. "Apartfrom this, three lakh peopleresiding in unauthorised and

DDA colonies have been givennotices for making alterationslike extending their balcony orcovering it. In reality, there is nohouse in Delhi where alter-ations have not been carriedout," he added.

He further alleged that in thelast 17 years, councillors, offi-cials and mayors of the civicbodies took bribes to allowjhuggis and providing plots forunauthorised colonies.

Now when there is a threat toBJP's rule coming to an end inthe municipal corporations,they are trying to ruin people'shouses, he said. "I appeal to you(Shah) to tell BJP leaders to notindulge in dangerous politics inthe name of bulldozers and tofix accountability of those wholet these illegal constructionshappen," Sisodia said.

Sisodia urges Shah to stop demolition drive in Delhi

Plea against delimitation commission

The Supreme Court on Friday sought a response from theCentre, Jammu, and Kashmir administration, and ElectionCommission of India (ECI) on a plea of two Kashmir residents

challenging the government's decision to constitute the delimitationcommission for redrawing the assembly and Lok Sabhaconstituencies in the Union Territory. A bench of Justices SanjayKishan Kaul and MM Sundresh issued notice to the Centre andElection Commission of India and sought their responses within sixweeks and said that the rejoinder affidavit shall be filed in twoweeks thereafter. At the outset, counsel appearing for two Srinagarresidents Haji Abdul Gani Khan and Dr. Mohammad Ayub Mattoo,said that contrary to the scheme of the constitution, thisdelimitation exercise was carried out and alteration of boundariesand inclusion of extended areas could not be done.

Kashmir varsity prof, PC among 3 J-Kgovt employees sacked for terror linksPNS n SRINAGAR

Jammu and Kashmir adminis-tration on Friday sacked threegovernment employees,including a professor and apoliceman, for their allegedlinks with terror groups, offi-cials said. The trio was termi-nated from services based onthe recommendation of a des-ignated committee constitutedunder Article 311 (2) (c) of theConstitution that allows dis-missal from service without aninquiry in the interest of theState's security.

Those sacked are AltafHussain Pandit, chemistry pro-fessor at Kashmir University,Mohammed Maqbool Hajam,teacher in the school educationdepartment, and GhulamRasool, a constable with theJammu and Kashmir Police.

Hussain Pandit is actively asso-ciated with the proscribedJamaat-e-Islam (JeI). He hadcrossed over to Pakistan forterror training and remainedan active terrorist of theJammu Kashmir LiberationFront for three years before hisarrest by the security forces,sometime in 1993. He contin-ued to be an active cadre of JeIand worked as a terror

recruiter. Pandit was instru-mental in organising stonepelting and violent protestsover the killing of terrorists in2011 and 2014, the officialssaid.

In 2015, Hussain Panditbecame an executive memberof the Kashmir UniversityTeachers Association and usedhis position to propagate seces-sionism among students.

Jamia Millia extends deadline forUG, PG admissions to May 25PNS n NEW DELHI

Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI) onFriday extended the last date ofsubmission of online applicationforms for all graduate and post-graduate courses till May 25.Earlier, May 13 was the last datefor submission of the admissionforms. The deadline for registra-tion has been extended for all JMIprogrammes such as post-grad-uate, undergraduate, postgradu-ate diploma, advanced diplomaand diploma programmes, exceptfor the PhD programme. Theuniversity said this was done asthe last date for registration forthe Common University Entrance

Test (CUET) has been extendedto May 22. "In view of the exten-sion in the last date of CUETAdmission form, the Vice-Chancellor, JMI has very kindlyapproved the extension in the lastdate of filling of online applica-tion form for all Jamia pro-

grammes like PG/UG/PGDiploma/ Advanced Diploma/Diploma programmes andForeign Nationals/NRI wardsexcept PhD programmes for theacademic session 2022-2023 from13.05.2022 to 25.05.2022," a noti-fication issued by Jamia read.

PNS n BENGALURU

Faced with the possibility oflocal body polls that were due,following the recent SupremeCourt order, Karnataka ChiefMinister Basavaraj Bommaion Friday said the governmentis considering moving the apexcourt seeking time to fix reser-vation for other backwardclasses (OBCs) or for anopportunity to go by the reser-vation that existed until now.

The Chief Minister alsoexpressed hope about gettingtime.

"On OBC reservation.....onecase regarding BBMP (BruhatBengaluru Mahanagara Palike)is pending before the SupremeCourt, secondly regarding Zillaand Taluk Panchayat polls toowe have to request that we(govt) have to give OBC reser-vations legally and constitu-

tionally," Bommai said.Speaking to reporters here, hesaid the options before the gov-ernment were to appeal fortime or to request for anopportunity to go by old OBCreservation. "We are hopeful ofgetting time...We have to go forpolls with OBC reservation,either to go by reservation thatexisted so far or give time fornew reservation," he added.

The Supreme Court onTuesday directed the MadhyaPradesh State ElectionCommission (SEC) to issue apoll programme for local bod-ies within two weeks. Theapex court said the ongoingactivity of delimitation or for-mation of the ward cannot bea legitimate ground to be setforth by any authority to notdischarge its Constitutionalobligation in notifying theelection programme at theopportune time and to ensurethat the elected body isinstalled before the expiry offive-year term of the outgoingbody. The bench said its orderand directions are not limitedto Madhya Pradesh but to allthe states/ union territories andthe respective election com-mission to abide by the samewithout fail, to uphold theconstitutional mandate.

Local body polls: K'taka govt likely to seek

time from SC to fix reservation for OBCs

NCP minister seeks

action against

Twitter userPNS n MUMBAI

Maharashtra minister and NCPleader Jitendra Awhad on Fridaydemanded strict action againsta Twitter user, who allegedlywrote on the micro-bloggingsite that time has come to pre-pare "Baramati's NathuramGodse for the 'Gandhi' ofBaramati". The Twitter user,however, did not mention thename of any leader or politicalparty in his purported com-ment. Baramati, a town in Punedistrict of the state, is the hometurf of NCP patriarch SharadPawar. Godse was the onewho had assassinated MahatmaGandhi on January 30, 1948.

Miscreants peltstones at boutique,open fire in PunjabPNS n PUNJAB

Three unidentified youthsallegedly pelted stones at a bou-tique and opened fire in the airat Mukerian main bazaar here,police said on Friday. Sajan(18), a native of Pathankot butis currently residing inMukerian, was seated outsidehis aunt's boutique onThursday evening when thethree youths arrived there andasked him for the address ofanother store, the police said.They left after Sajan told himthat he did not know theaddress they were looking for,but returned about 10 minuteslater and launched the attack,according to the police com-plaint. Police said they recov-ered some empty bullet shellsfrom the area. A case has beenregistered and further investi-gation is underway, they said.

Nidhi Chibberappointed CBSEchairpersonPNS n NEW DELHI

Senior bureaucrat NidhiChibber has been appointed asthe chairperson of the CentralBoard of SecondaryEducation(CBSE) as part of asenior-level bureaucraticreshuffle effected by the Centreon Friday. Chibber, a 1994batch IAS officer ofChhattisgarh cadre, is current-ly Additional Secretary,Ministry of Heavy Industries.She has been appointed aschairperson of the CBSE in therank and pay of AdditionalSecretary to the government ofIndia, an order issued by thePersonnel Ministry said. VivekKumar Dewangen, a 1993 batchIAS officer of Manipur cadre,has been named Chairman andManaging Director, REC Ltd.,Ministry of Power.

1995 CUSTODIAL DEATH CASE

CHINTAN SHIVIR

Excited to bring‘Jungle Cry' toaudiences andshare with themthe journey ofthese heroes.

Actor

— Abhay Deol

I am deeply saddened to knowabout the passingaway of HHSheikh Khalifa bin Zayed.

Prime Minister — Narendra Modi

nism is the fourth sibling inthe Abrahamic family of reli-gions and shares their intoler-ance towards any other beliefsystem and like its siblings, hasno hesitation in turning uponits fellow siblings as well.

However, it must beadmitted that it is the Hinduswho have largely been at faultin first allowing the emergenceof a separate entity within thesovereign state of India after1947, and thereafter, notputting forth their point ofview eloquently and convinc-ingly enough. In fact, over thecenturies, they have not react-ed sufficiently for the Muslimsto know how badly they havehurt Hindu sentiments. Infact, more often than not,they have gathered aroundtheir destroyed edifices, weptand beaten their breasts. As aresult, when the Babri struc-ture at Ayodhya was broughtdown by Hindus, they hadsurprised the Muslims for thefirst time in centuries. Beingthe first such incident it couldbe taken as an exception thatproves the rule. Now, withdemands being raised for therestoration of Gyanvapi atVaranasi and the Idgah atMathura, there is amazement,albeit privately, as to what hascome over the Hindus.

Of equal consternation, ifnot greater, are the demands

for changes in the names ofroads named after medievalMuslim conquerors. Whilethere is much stomach-churning and hand-wringing,accompanied by a flurry ofattempts to turn the narra-tives in favour of the “secular-liberal” lobby, hardly anyonehas stopped to think, leavealone acknowledge that theinjuries were first inflicted byMahmud of Ghazni on thefamous Somnath Temple andsoon followed by his attack onthe Keshav Dev Mandir atMathura. Not long thereafter,were the unholy adventuresby Mohammed Ghori whenhe converted three templesinto one mosque at Ajmerand named it “Adhai Din KaJhopra”; the aggression wascompleted in 60 hours andhence the name. Barely a fewyears earlier, he had devastat-ed Kannauj, then consideredthe capital of India.Qutbuddin Aibak’s destruc-tion of 27 Jain temples atDelhi’s Meharauli and con-verting them into a mosquecalled “Quwwat-ul-Islam” orthe “might of Islam” was thenext chapter of deliberatehumiliation inflicted uponthe Hindus.

I suppose the type of sen-timents would differ fromperson to person. Even if weaccept this contention, it was

all supposedly settled with thepartition of the country onthe midnight of August 14,1947, when one-thirds ofHindu were given away toappease the progeny of thosemedieval conquerors, whosepolitical representatives haddeclared in unambiguousterms that they could not co-exist with the Hindus. Butsuch a settlement did notmaterialise and post-inde-pendent India allowed “astate within a state” to existand flourish. When VladimirLenin conquered the RussianEmpire for communism,most of the churches, syna-gogues and mosques wereconverted into municipaloffices, departmental stores orplaces of any other civil pur-pose. In 1973, I happened tovisit the sites of three suchconversions. These changeswere presumably acceptedon the morrow of the RussianRevolution.

Be that as it may, it wouldhave been much better if theHindus had found a sufficient-ly eloquent manner of express-ing their pain, the Muslimscould then have taken the cur-rent changes in their stride.

(The writer is a well-known columnist, anauthor and a former memberof the Rajya Sabha. The viewsexpressed are personal.)

JOURNALIST’S KILLINGSir—The killing of Al Jazeera journalistShireen Abu Akleh by the Israeli forces ina raid in Jenin in the occupied West Bankwas tragic. Documenting life under occu-pation was her sole crime. It was what ledto her targeted killing by the Israeli forces.The 51-year-old brave journalist did her jobin a place where her life was susceptible todanger. But undeterred by the prospect ofbeing killed, she discharged her duties. Shewas the epitome of a passionate and bravejournalist. She sympathised with thePalestinian cause.

She reflected in her work the pain andsuffering of the Palestinians living in occu-pied areas. She was affectionately called “adaughter of Palestine”. She keenly observedthe Israeli-Palestinian conflict; she chose tobe on the frontlines and at flashpoints totell the story – the Story of the stories of thePalestinians. Her face is familiar to all thosewho follow the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.Her unique way of telling the story won hermany admirers. Her voice conveyed thestrength of her feeling when she reportedthe systematic and structural oppressionand repression of the Palestinians on a dailybasis by the right-wing Israeli regime. TheIsraeli military stilled her voice, but her mar-tyrdom will inspire all those who cherishfreedom and justice.

G David Milton | Kanyakumari

BACK-BREAKING INFLATIONSir— The retail inflation shoots up to a 95-month high in April, paving the way formore policy rate hikes by the central bank.Inflation has remained above the centralbank’s upper tolerance limit for four con-secutive months. The data released by theNational Statistical Office showed thefood inflation rate in April soared to 8.38per cent as prices of edible oils and vegeta-bles shot up by 17.3 per cent and 15.4 percent, respectively.

Fuel inflation also breached the dou-ble-digit mark at 10.8 per cent in April dueto rising retail prices of petrol, diesel, andcooking gas even as crude oil prices soft-ened from March. The second roundimpact of higher energy prices has become

visible with transport and communicationprices rising in double digits by 10.9 percent. The services sector inflation rate roseto a 115-month high at 8.03 per cent ashousehold goods and services (7.79 percent) and personal care (8.62 per cent)inched up. With this there is very heavy bur-den on the common people who are strug-gling for survival and the country is head-ing for a disastrous situation.

Bhagwan Thadani | Mumbai

WIDENING NATO BLOCSir—Recently, in Russia's neighbouringcountry Finland, a referendum was heldregarding joining the NATO. About 62 percent of people had given their consent tojoin the NATO. However, it is noteworthythat just before the Russian invasion ofUkraine, most people in Finland wanted toremain neutral. However, seeing the con-dition of the people of Ukraine, they felt thatjoining the NATO bloc would securetheir 13,00 kilometres border with Russia.Moreover, till 1917 Finland was a division

of Russia. Therefore, the vultures of Russiamay also have an eye on them. NATOSecretary-General Jens Stoltenberg hassaid he expects the membership process forSweden and Finland to be "quite quickly".

Jang Bahadur Singh | Jamshedpur

MARITAL RAPE A CRIMESir—It is gut-wrenching to read the splitjudgment on marital rape by the Delhi HighCourt where one judge said it is not a crimeas the existing law. A husband has no rightto force himself on his wife. A rape is a rape,there is no exception.

The act of rape itself destroys the insti-tution of marriage. It was expected that boththe justices should have declared maritalrape as a crime. However, the only graceis that both the judges have allowed the par-ties to move the Supreme Court againsttheir split verdict on marital rape.

Vishal Mayur | Tumkur

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

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If the Hindus had found a sufficiently eloquent manner of expressing their

pain, the Muslims could then have taken the current changes in their stride

CONTRAST A PRAYER

HALL WITH ARESIDENCE OF

GOD, ONE WOULDKNOW HOW

DEEPLY THE HINDUSENTIMENT HASBEEN HURT FOR

CENTURIES BY THEDEMOLITION OF

TEMPLES BYISLAMIC INVADERSAND CONQUERORS

FROM WEST ANDCENTRAL ASIA

LETTERS TO TTHE EDITOR

PRAFULL GORADIA

The Supreme Court’s verdict to stay allpending cases, appeals and proceedingswith respect to the charges framed under

Section 124A (Sedition law) was historic andcourageous. In its first affidavit filed beforethe Supreme Court, the Central Governmenthad vociferously defended the sedition law,and argued that the 1962 verdict of a consti-tution bench in Kedar Nath Singh vs State ofBihar case upholding its validity had withstood"the test of time" and needed no reconsider-

ation. However, the Government filed anoth-er affidavit, wherein it said, it had decided tore-examine and reconsider the sedition law,and urged the apex court to wait for the reviewby a "competent forum" and to "not invest time"on petitions filed by the Editors' Guild of Indiaand others. The dramatic political volte-facereflected the discomfort of the ruling estab-lishment in losing the sharp claws of the colo-nial law.

In the early 1960s, Kedar Nath Singh wassentenced to rigorous imprisonment for hisspeech, “We believe in that revolution, whichwill come and in the flames of which the cap-italists, zamindars and... will be reduced toashes and on their ashes will be establisheda government of the poor and the downtrod-den people of India.” India’s first PrimeMinister Jawaharlal Nehru had wanted to "getrid of it (Section 124A)," and the latestSupreme Court verdict is a ray of hope.

Haridasan Rajan | Kozhikode

Historic verdict

Hindus’ incoherentangst about identity

Afew people know whatSir Arnold Toynbeetold his Indian audi-ence when he came to

address them to commemorateMaulana Abul Kalam Azad.Toynbee had come at JawaharlalNehru’s special invitation in theearly 1960s. Arnold Toynbeesaid: “In the course of the firstRussian occupation of Warsaw,the Russians had built an EasternCathedral in the city that hadbeen the capital of the once inde-pendent Roman Catholic coun-try Poland. The Russians haddone this to give the Poles a con-tinuous ocular demonstrationthat the Russians were now themasters. After the re-establish-ment of Poland’s independencein 1918, the Poles pulled thiscathedral down. I do not blamethe Polish Government for hav-ing pulled down the Russianchurch. The purpose for whichthe Russians had built it had beennot religious but political, and thepurpose had also been intention-ally offensive.”

In the Abrahamic religioustradition, a church or mosque isa prayer hall. It is not unusual fora parish in Europe to sell formoney a church; say, for the rea-son it does not attract an ade-quate number of worshippers onSundays. I was present inEngland when such a sale wasmade in Leicester and the sold-off place was brought down to bereplaced with a temple. In WestAsia, including Saudi Arabia,mosques are brought down tostraighten or widen highways. Bysharp contrast, in the Hindubelief, a temple is the residenceof the divine. Therefore, it is veryimpious to meddle with its struc-ture. Contrast a prayer hall witha residence of God, and onewould know how deeply theHindu sentiment has been hurtfor centuries by the demolitionof temples by Islamic invadersand conquerors from West andCentral Asia; it is almost impos-sible for an Abrahamic person toimagine the extent of the psycho-logical injury thus caused.

Quite to the contrary, whenthe communists came to powerin Russia in 1917, they wentabout targeting all places of wor-ship. This is no surprise; commu-

Both Opposition and the BJP camps will keenly watch the deliberations at the three-day Congress Chintan Shivir at Udaipur where the GOP will try to find ways tostem the rot within the party and settle the leadership issue. Ironically, the grand

old party which wants to lead the nation has no permanent leader itself. The continua-tion of Sonia Gandhi as interim president is not only a perceptional disaster but it alsoreflects a complete lack of professionalism in the functioning of the party and its obses-

sion not to allow anyone outside the Gandhi family tosteer its course even when 10 Janpath has failed toperform, at least electorally. An army is as good asits general, the saying rings so true in the case ofCongress. Sonia Gandhi rarely makes any publicappearance, and Rahul Gandhi has yet to project him-self as a leader who can keep the party together, mendfences with old guards, and sacrifice his foreign jauntsfor the party’s sake. Somehow a perception has gainedground over the years that Rahul Gandhi lacked thekiller instinct to lead the party to electoral victories. It’sone thing to address public rallies and hit out at theModi Government, it’s another to plan and plot strate-

gies to fight electoral battles. Take the case of Punjab and Uttarakhand, where Congressvirtually gave walkovers to the BJP in the assembly polls because of the failure of the leadership to resolve the infighting even at the peak of electioneering.

Sonia Gandhi’s words in her inaugural address at the Chintan Shivir that “We needto change the way of our working”, apply as much to the party workers as to the lead-ership. Similarly, when Sonia urged party leaders to keep the organization above per-sonal ambitions, saying the party has given “us a lot and it's time to pay back,” manywould ask should not charity begin from home. For years the Congress leaders havebeen playing the same old tune. It’s time they walk the talk themselves. Sonia Gandhimay have rightly said that the Shivir is an occasion to discuss the challenges beforethe party and bring organisational changes, but if Congress did not resolve the leadership issue and showed a readiness to empower leaders from outside the Gandhifamily, too, then all the talks about organizational revamp will have few takers.

The effect of Cyclone Asani has waned. The moisture-laden easterly winds did lowertemperatures for a couple of days in the north. The plains are back to witness-ing a return of the debilitating heatwave. The weather office has issued a yellow

alert that could soon be upgraded into an orange alert. Are any steps afoot to mitigatepeople's misery as the temperatures threaten to cross 46 degrees Celsius in Delhi andneighbouring states? A welcome step is shortening school hours, limiting students'outdoor activities, and relaxing the dress code norm. However, is there a need for pri-mary schools to function? The heat threatens the adult population in no less measure.Sunstrokes are on the rise and dehydration is common. And yet there is no attemptto advance or shorten office hours. Private offices can easily shift to the WFH modeif advancing office hours is not possible. Online work in digitised government depart-ments is recommended. The situation eminently suits half-day work timings. Routineactivities in courts like date extensions, submission of documents, and bail arguments,especially related to petty crimes, can be online. However, what about the daily-wagelabourers, agricultural labourers, and civic workers of the public works departments?

Millions spend their days under the unrelenting sunwith barely any protection or nutritious supplements.The civic works have not been stopped or postponedanywhere. Big projects related to national highways,track-laying, and construction of bridges and build-ings have no systems to allow for reduced workinghours. In some states, the governments makearrangements for cool drinking water, buttermilksachets, and medical camps. Most states have first-aid kits at the primary health centres in rural areas.But all these efforts miss the point. They essentiallydeal with basic resuscitation measures for labourers

and workers suffering heat strokes. We are witnessing a definite, recurring pattern ofextreme summer heat. The pattern is already an intrinsic part of summers,and clima-tologists fear things may become worse in the coming years. So, we should be talk-ing about more than the basics. The focus should be on tweaking working hours with-out affecting productivity but sparing the workers from heat fatigue. Proposals for thework hours to begin earlier than usual or shift to the late afternoons and early eveningsareworth examining. Implementing them is not easy without backup infrastructure, includ-ing the provision of power and, possibly, transport and arrangements of creches, tem-porarily in 'anganwadis', for the children of the labourers. By now, the National DisasterManagement Authority could have met to discuss a summer public works protocolroping in organisations from the Centre, the States, and the non-governmental sector.The Authority's website does recognise the threat that extreme summers pose. Thehomepage lists the criteria offered by the weather office for heatwaves and spells outfirst-aid and stroke-prevention measures. It also acknowledges that India is also feel-ing the impact of heatwaves. But that is all.

An unforgiving May

Walk the talkIf Congress did not resolve the leadership issuethen talks about revamp will have few takers

PICTALK

People perform yoga during a yoga event ahead of International Day of Yoga at the banks of Lower Lake in Bhopal PTI

Revised work hours protocol for extreme summers is needed

I'm a player livingwith an injury. It's nothing new.It's somethingthat is there,unfortunately.

Tennis star— Rafael Nadal

Many said you will get jobs if youlearn Hindi. Is itso...Look here inCoimbatore, whois selling panipuri.

TN Higher Education Minister — K Ponmudy

SOUNDBITE

Competition systemin India is wellbehind big boxingcountries and itneeds to seize themomentum back.

High Performance Director— Santiago Nieva

as ‘sustainable’ when it ‘meets theneeds of the present without com-promising the ability of future gen-erations to meet their own needs’.There are three pillars of sustainabil-ity - environment, society andeconomy. Environmental sustain-ability is the most familiar conceptwhich emphasizes on not overusingnatural resources and focus ontheir sustainable management.Global actions are required to pro-tect natural ecosystems and biodi-versity, for ensuring clean water andair. Social sustainability has theobjective to ensure that everyone hasaccess to basic necessities like,clean, water, adequate food, health-care, shelter, and human rights. Italso means setting policies toencourage fair policies at workplaceso that there is no exploitation anddiscrimination. Economic sustain-ability has been defined as practicesthat support long-term economicgrowth without negatively impact-ing social, environmental and cul-tural aspects of the community.Multi-level collaboration is requiredto achieve sustainability and addressinterconnected problems by balanc-ing the needs of economic growthand resource conservation equally.We all should all take steps to incor-porate sustainability into everyaspect of our life. Our willingnessto think and act differently byputting economic development andenvironment on equal footing ascentral parts of the same equationwill help us resolve glaring problemslike, air pollution, food shortage andfood scarcity.

Entities can have positiveimpact on society and the economyby improving their sustainabilityperformance. Sustainability

Reporting is gaining momentumyear on year due to stakeholder’sever-rising demands for more trans-parent and better communicationregarding their sustainability prac-tices, initiatives and performance.Much like their global counterparts,Indian corporates too are leaningtowards the reporting frameworksto demonstrate their ability to cre-ate, preserve and grow value for adiverse stakeholder base.

The Institute of CharteredAccountants of India (ICAI) has astrong tradition of service to thecountry towards sustainable as wellas economic development. ICAIthrough Sustainability ReportingStandards Board (SRSB), has takenseveral initiatives in the sustainabil-ity domain and is working tostrengthen the sustainability report-ing ecosystem in the country.Witha view to strengthen sustainabilityreporting ecosystem in the country,important publications like,Background Material on BusinessResponsibility and SustainabilityReporting (BRSR) and Standard onAssurance Engagements (SAE) 3410“Assurance Engagements onGreenhouse Gas Statements” havebeen released. SustainabilityReporting Maturity Model (SRMM)Version 1.0, a comprehensive scor-ing tool, has been developedtomeasure their sustainability perfor-mance in terms of four levels ofmaturity of sustainability reportingnamely Level 1 to Level 4.Publication on “SustainableDevelopment Goals (SDGs) -Accountants Creating SustainableWorld - Part 1, 2 and 3” has beendeveloped to encourage all stake-holders to contribute towards theattainment of SDGs. ICAI

Sustainability Reporting Awards2020-21 and ICAI SustainabilityReporting Awards 2020-21 arebeing conducted to recognize,reward and encourage Excellence ofBusinesses in SustainabilityReporting and bring to light theiroutstanding contribution to the2030 Agenda for SustainableDevelopment. Capacity buildingof the chartered accountants in thisemerging area is being done by con-ducting online Certificate onBusiness Responsibility andSustainability Reporting. Awarenessinitiatives like, Carbon FootprintChallenge, ICAI SustainabilityLiteracy Drive, Corporate film onSimple Steps to make our PlanetSustainable, Champions of SDGsand SDG Videos have also beenundertaken.Contributing to theinitiatives of SEBI to create anecosystem via Social StockExchanges, ICAI is in the process ofdeveloping Social Audit Standardsand working on CertificationCourse for Social Auditors.

ICAI is partnering with stake-holders, government, regulators,and others to help maximize con-tribution to SDGs and also collab-orating with international bodies inadvancing sustainability agenda.ICAI also welcomes the announce-ment of formation of newInternational SustainabilityStandards Board (ISSB) by theIFRS Foundation (IFRSF) andextends full support towards conver-gence to a single set of sustainabil-ity reporting standards. New initia-tives have been planned in the areaof Sustainable Finance, GreenBonds, ESG rating and Climaterelated Financial Disclosures. ESGTalk show, sustainability awarenessquiz, training program for boardmembers on ESG, tree plantationdrive are other initiatives in pipeline.All these initiatives are focusedtowards promoting sustainableorganizations that create long-termvalue for investors and society.

A sustainable future requiresthat homo sapiens live within plan-etary boundaries in harmony withnature. Governments and policy-makers should work together toenhance national implementationand strengthen institutions toachieve the SustainableDevelopment Goals by the targetdate of 2030, leaving no one behind.As individuals, we all should con-tribute in addressing this global cri-sis by changing our mindset andhabits and adopting sustainablechoices in our day-to-day life. Ahealthy planet will thrive and nurture happy and safe survival forpresent and future generations.

Sustainability - roadto a better future

“…MR. (RANIL) WICKREMESINGHE HAD NO LEGITIMACY INTHE CURRENT PARLIAMENT RIGHT FROM THE BEGINNING. HE DID NOT EVEN WIN IN HIS CONSTITUENCY.”— MP, TAMIL NATIONAL ALLIANCE M A SUMANTHIRAN

“MY BEST WISHES TO THE NEWLY APPOINTED PM…ILOOK FORWARD TO WORKING TOGETHER WITH HIM

TO MAKE SRI LANKA STRONG AGAIN.”— PRESIDENT OF SRI LANKA

GOTABAYA RAJAPAKSA

Urbanisation the world over has spawned transport systems rang-ing from bicycles to horse drawn carriages, buses, cars,trains.The ultimate in trains being the ‘Bullet’ trains which first

appeared in Japanin 1964. Typically, a commute should last no morethan 2 or 3 hours beyond which sustaining it on a daily basis,5 daysa week, months on end, would be somewhat inconvenient. The urbansprawl has been somewhat limited by this need to commute wheretypically the Railway commuter systems world over such as the DelhiMetro, London tube, or New York Transit system running at an aver-age speed of 100 kmph would cover 200 kms in 2 hrs. However, theJapanese found a way to beat this limit by introducing trains with anaverage speed of 250 kmph, the bullet-shaped nose of the lead bogieearning it the name — ‘Bullet’ train. It connected Osaka 500 kms awayto Tokyo, enabling a daily commute in just 2 hours. Rising out of theashes of the Second World War II, Shinkansen was a bold reasser-

tion of Japanese national pride, and involved concerted effort by theGovernment, business and the scientific community to place priori-ty on train travel. These state-of the-art trains run on dedicated trackslaid usually on concrete to minimise maintenance, and have few levelcrossings, enabling them to maintain an accident-free record for thelast almost 60 years. Tokaido Shinkansen, covering 515 km betweenTokyo and Shin-Osaka, was the first service, serving a number of majorcities Shin-Yokohama, Shizuoka, Nagoya, and Kyoto en route.

Laid with tracks having a curve radius of no less than 4 km, thespeed could now be raised to 260 km. Serving the major cities ofShin-Osaka, Shin-Kobe, Okayama, Hiroshima, Kokura, and Hakata,the line was a precursor to a nationwideShinkansen network. Now,most trains attain a maximum speed of 300 kmph. A new stationcomplex at Shinagawa, just south of Tokyo station, was opened inOctober 2003, which allowed some trains to start and terminate there,thereby increasing the number of trains on the Tokaido line from 11to 15 per hour, that is, one every four minutes. In all, nine lines,ranging from the smallest of Hakata-Minami with just 8.5 km runby JR West, and the longest of Tokyo-Hachinohe of 593 km, totalling2556 km are now in operation. Japan, being a relatively small coun-try, the short runs at high speeds have successfully made the nationvir tually a suburb of Tokyo. And to keep commuters happy, trainsrun, as suburban trains of Mumbai do, on some sections atthree-and-half-minute intervals during peak hours. Back home, we stillhave to dream about our own “Bullet” trains soon becoming partof the Indian scenery running between Ahmedabad and Mumbai,making the 492-km journey in just two hours against the seven nowtaken by the super-fast Shatabdi Express.In the process it wouldalso put fast growing tier 2 cities such as Surat, Valsad, Bharuch,and Vadodara, on a quick transit map connecting to India’s finan-cial capital, Mumbai. With trains running at an average speed of 250kmph, completing a journey from city-centre to city-centre in justunder two hours would also save a traveller the hassles of a longcommute to and from the airport, security checks and uncertain-tycreated during foggy days. Trains may be delayed, but you don’thave to cool your heels in the passenger lounge waiting for theannouncement to board. Last but not the least, they will always reachyou to the intended destination, and in one piece.

(The writer is a former Member,Railway Board. The viewsexpressed are personal.)

HYDERABAD | SATURDAY | MAY 14, 2022

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FIRSTCOLUMNTHE JAPANESE HAVE THEIRS,

WE’LL SOON HAVE OURS

POINTCOUNTERPOINT

SANJEEV SINGHAL

It’s all about commuting

from home to work and back!

A MASS OF PLASTIC

WASTE NAMEDAS “GREAT

PACIFICGARBAGE

PATCH”APPROXIMATELY

1.6M KM INSIZE, TWICETHE SIZE OF

TEXAS, ISFLOATING ONTHE SURFACE

OF PACIFICOCEAN

(The writer is a C.A. and Chairman,

Sustainability ReportingStandards Board.

The views expressed are personal.)

The importance of start-ups in an economy can-not be undermined as

they are technological revolu-tionaries, disruptors and cre-ators. They create new indus-tries, provide jobs, increaseincome levels, improve qualityof life and play a critical role inthe changing the image of anation. With as many as 50,000startups, of which a significantincrease is from tier-II andtier-III cities like Kochi,Ahmedabad and Pune, India isnow considered world’s 3rdlargest ecosystem, accordingto Startup India portal.

However, failure is theother side of Startup industry.In a study conducted by OxfordEconomics and IBM’s Instituteof Business Value, it was foundthat 90% of India’s startups faildue to lack of innovation. In

fact, according to KPMGreport, in 2020, revenue ofatleast 30 percent of Indian star-tups declined by about 80 per-cent, whereas 70 percent ofthem had the probability ofrunning for the next threemonths only.

Apart from business envi-ronment created by govern-ment and a robust banking net-work, a strong venture capitalindustry is one of the crucialrequirements to develop suc-cessful startups. Overall, thesuccess of start-ups is a collab-orative effort of both entrepre-neurs and venture capitalists.

Venture capitalists work ina highly competitive environ-ment and yet typically generatea mediocre return. Add to thisthe high failure rate of entrepre-neurs, a better working strate-gy is a critical need of the hour

for venture capitalists. The typeof financing provided by ven-ture capitalists is unique andvery different from that provid-ed by private equity funds orcommercial banks. These orga-nizations provide funds in theform of corporate lending tofirms that are established andhave a proven track record ofoperations and profitability.On the other hand, venture cap-italists provide funding to new,

high risk, technology-orientedcompanies that operate in a fastand volatile environment withconstantly changing paradigms.They work with entrepreneurswith an idea but fairly lessexperience about implementingthe idea, identifying and puttingtogether a competent team anddeveloping the customer base.The lack of experience and anestablished record of perfor-mance of startups make invest-ments in them extremely riskyand uncertain. According toHarvard Business School’sentrepreneurship professorShikhar Ghosh, about three-quarters of startups backed byventure capitalists are not suc-cessful enough to return cash totheir investors. Therefore, therole of venture capitals has to bemuch more than selecting agood business and provide

funding and should extend tovalue-creation. In addition toproviding strategic direction,most venture capitalists arealready extending their supportto various functional aspects ofstart-ups. Firstly, venture capi-talists help in team building instart-ups by identifying andrecruiting appropriate talent,which is the most importantasset of a start-up. Secondly,providing support to theadministrative activities likeaccounting, legal and otherroutine organizational respon-sibilities can free up founders’time which can be further usedfor growing business. Thirdly,venture capitalists help start-upsin building the right skills for allemployees and the leadershipteam. Fourthly, probably themost important, is providingstrategic focus by defining the

target market, underlining thescope of the product or service,identifying the competitiveadvantage and providing appro-priate strategic direction.Additionally, support to build-ing a customer base is an essen-tial encouragement. And last-ly, the most important aspect ofventure capitalist and entrepre-neur relation is access to its net-work. Venture capitalists alsoprovide performance metrics tostartups to monitor, measureand report their performance attheir early stage.

So, on what basis should aventure capital fund decide theextent of its involvement in astartup - at a very basic level, theparticipation is only financial;the next level is mentorship andguidance; and the advancedlevel is operational. The deci-sion is ought to be made by ana-

lyzing its assets and resources.The most common and impor-tant resource of a VC is cashthat represents the absoluteamount of funds available. If thecash resources are strong, VCswould invest in an administra-tive function that would addvalue to a startup, and in casethe cash resources are notstrong, VCs can introduce thestartups to their network whichcan meaningfully assist them.Brand resources are also veryimportant for a VC which canbe evaluated by the frequencyof their citing in print, electron-ic and social media. Networkresources are perhaps the mostcrucial of all contributionstowards the growth of startups.Introductions to members ofpersonal networks can helpstartups in either time-savingsor cost-savings or both.

The role of venture capitals has to be much more than selecting a good business to provide funding and should extend to value-creation

Venture Capitalists to provide strategic direction to startups

(The writer is AssociateProfessor at Amity

University, Noida. The viewsexpressed are personal.)

HIMA BINDU KOTA

R C ACHARYA Mankind is facing the greatestthreat of climate emergencywhich is being termed as“Code red for humanity”.

Industrialization, urbanization andincreasing population has led to unprece-dented crisis catalysed by over exploitationof natural resources, and their contamina-tion with toxic chemicals and pollutants.There are far-reaching impacts of ever-increasing greenhouse gases on our plan-et. According to estimates of variousagencies like, Organization for EconomicCooperation and Development (OECD)this will result in rise of earth temperatureby 02 °C by 2050.

Global warming is giving rise to nat-ural calamities like, flood, drought, melt-ing of glaciers, etc. As per a UnitedNations report the human-caused rate ofextinction of species of both plants and ani-mals at present is hundreds of times high-er than the natural rate in the past and asthe situation is turning out it can be thou-sands of times higher in near future. Acrossthe world, people are facing challenge ofavailability of potable water, pure air tobreathe and also ever an alarming problemof land degradation.

“The Global Risks Report 2022” issuedby World Economic Forum states that overa 10-year horizon, the health of the planetdominates concerns: environmental risksare perceived to be the five most criticallong-term threats to the world as well as themost potentially damaging to people andplanet, with “climate action failure”, “extremeweather”, and “biodiversity loss” ranking asthe top three most severe risks. Human-induced climate change is causing danger-ous and widespread disruption in natureand affecting the lives of billions of peoplearound the world, despite efforts to reducethe risks. People and ecosystems least ableto cope are being hardest hit.Non-degrad-able wastes being generated is increasingevery minute and are the cause of conta-mination of natural resources and also caus-ing harm to the humans. As per a recentreport, a mass of plastic waste named as“Great Pacific Garbage Patch” approximate-ly 1.6 million km in size, twice the size ofTexas, is floating on the surface of PacificOcean.

This alarming situation is the majorattention area and it is the need of thehour that Governments and non-govern-ment organizations involving individuals,communities, countries, and the globe aswhole, aligns themselves with the basicprinciples of ‘sustainability’. Human soci-ety and economy are thriving on nature,and only harmonious existence will allowHomo sapiens to persist and thrive on this planet.

Sustainability emphasizes the need forsociety to conserve resources, protect nat-ural ecosystems, minimize pollution andpromote social equity. In 1987 the WorldCommission on Environment andDevelopment, also popularly known as theBrundtland Report, defined development

Sustainability emphasizes the need for society to conserve resources,protect natural ecosystems, minimize pollution and promote social equity

HYDERABAD | SATURDAY | MAY 14, 2022 Money 08

MONEY MATTERS

Brookfield AssetManagement-basedPipeline Infrastructure

Ltd has signed a pact withstate-owned GAIL for jointlydeveloping a hydrogen-basedecosystem in India.The MoU aims at collectivelyexploring the feasibility,desirability and viability of

hydrogen as a source of energy and thus build a partnership betweenthe companies, official sources said. Pipeline Infrastructure Limited(PIL) is owned by India Infrastructure Trust, an infrastructureinvestment trust sponsored by Brookfield Asset Management, a globalleader in alternative asset management and one of the largestinvestors in real assets. PIL owns and operates a 48-inch diameter,1,480 km long Kakinada to Bharuch gas pipeline that connects majordomestic supply hubs on the east to key demand centers in the west.It is a vital link in India's national gas grid.GAIL is India's largest gastransporting and marketing company. It owns about two-thirds oftruck pipelines. Pipelines are a critical element in transportinghydrogen, a zero-carbon emitting energy source that has caught thefancy of the world.Several Indian firms including GAIL have announcedplans to make hydrogen. Aayushi Agarwal, Assistant Vice President(Strategic Planning & New Initiatives), PIL and Ashu Singhal, ExecutiveDirector, GAIL signed the MoU in the presence of PIL CEO AkhilMehrotra and GAIL Director (Business Development) M V Iyer.

Brookfield-backed PIL, GAIL signpact for hydrogen collaboration

Serum Institute ofIndia on Friday saidit has signed an

agreement with theSymbiosis InternationalUniversity earlier thismonth to set up aresearch centre forvaccines andbiologicals.

The R&D (Research & Development) centre will lead thedevelopment of new vaccines, technologies, products andinnovations in immunisation practices that provide equitable accessto life-saving interventions, especially across Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs). The entity will work towards improvinghealth equity against future pandemics and infectious diseases.It will also ensure cross-programme coordination and collaboration,

as the facility will be an ecosystem that would also have R&Dcentres for stem cells, nanotechnology, medical image analysis,applied artificial intelligence and waste resource management,among others.

Serum Institute, Symbiosis to set upresearch centre for vaccine development

PNS n NEW DELHI

India's merchandise exportssurged 30.7 per cent to USD40.19 billion in April onaccount of healthy perfor-mance by sectors like petro-leum products, electronicgoods and chemicals, even astrade deficit widened to USD20.11 billion during themonth, the commerce min-istry said on Friday.

Imports during the monthunder review grew by 30.97

per cent to USD 60.3 billion.The trade deficit in April

2021 was at USD 15.29 bil-lion."After a record perfor-mance in the last financialyear, the exports continuedrobust growth in April, 2022with merchandise exportsscaling a new high by cross-ing USD 40 billion," it said.

Petroleum and crude oilimports during the monthrose by 87.54 per cent toUSD 20.2 billion. Coal, Cokeand Briquettes imports

jumped to USD 4.93 billion,as against USD 2 billion inApril 2021.

Gold imports, however,dipped by about 72 per centto USD 1.72 billion during themonth under review, fromUSD 6.23 billion in April2021.

Engineering goods exportsincreased by 15.38 per cent toUSD 9.2 billion, while petro-leum products exports soared113.21 per cent to USD 7.73billion.

Exports up 30.7 pc to US$ 40.19bn in Apr; trade deficit widens

PNS n NEW DELHI

US auto major Ford hasshelved plans to manufactureelectric vehicles in India forexports despite gettingapproval from the govern-ment for production-linkedincentives.

The company, which inSeptember last year hadannounced that it would stopvehicle production at its twoplants in the country as part ofa restructuring exercise, said itis exploring other alternativesfor its manufacturing facilitiesat Chennai and Sanand inGujarat.

As part of the ongoing busi-ness restructuring in India,Ford has continued to explorepossible alternatives for itsmanufacturing facilities. Thisincluded applying for the pro-duction-linked incentivesscheme, which allowed us toexplore utilising one of theplants as a potential EV man-ufacturing base, a Ford Indiaspokesperson said.

"After careful review, wehave decided to no longerpursue EV manufacturing forexports from any of the Indianplants. We remain grateful tothe government for approving

our proposal under theProduction-Linked Incentivesand for being supportive whilewe continued our exploration,"the spokesperson added.

Ford was among the 20automotive firms, along withthe likes of Tata Motors,Suzuki, Hyundai, Kia andMahindra & Mahindra, thatgot approval for the Rs 25,938crore Production-LinkedIncentive (PLI) scheme for theautomobile industry inFebruary this year.

On the future of the com-pany's two plants, thespokesperson said, "FordIndia's previously announcedbusiness restructuring con-tinues as planned, includingexploring other alternativesfor our manufacturing facili-ties. We continue to work

closely with unions and otherstakeholders to deliver anequitable and balanced plan tomitigate the impacts ofrestructuring."

The company has beenreported to be in talks withhomegrown auto major TataMotors to sell its Sanand plantwhile it is scouting for buyersof the Chennai plant.

Last year, after nearly threedecades of struggling to makea mark in India, Ford MotorCo decided to stop vehicleproduction at its two plants inthe country and sell onlyimported vehicles going aheadas part of a restructuring exer-cise. The company, whichinvested about USD 2.5 billionat its Chennai (Tamil Nadu)and Sanand (Gujarat) plants,has incurred losses of overUSD 2 billion in India.

As per the plan, the vehicleassembly in Sanand plant wasstopped by the fourth quarterof 2021 and, vehicle and enginemanufacturing in Chennai willbe stopped in the second quar-ter of 2022.

It will, however, continue tomanufacture engines from itsSanand plant which will beexported to the company'sglobal operations.

Ford shelves plans tomanufacture EVs in India

Escorts Q4 net drops 28 pc to Rs 190 cr

PNS n NEW DELHI

RIL-backed omnichannelplatform Fynd on Friday saidit plans to hire over 1,200 engi-neers this year and 30 per centof them will be recruited fromAhmedabad. From Gujarat,the company will look forskilled developers frompython, full stack, NodeJS,angular, java, and DevOpsengineers across all levels, itsaid. "We aim to strengthenthe company's existing engi-neering and product teamsand welcome innovativeminds to our growth-orient-ed team of over 640 members.The onboarding of extensivedevelopers from Ahmedabadcity shall further support ourstrenuous efforts of buildingand delivering next generationcutting edge tech productsfrom scratch," Fynd Co-Founder Farooq Adam said.

Fynd to hire over1,200 engineers

PNS n WEISSENHAUS

The European Union is givingUkraine another 500 millioneuros ($520 million) to buyheavy weapons to fend off theRussian invasion, the bloc'sforeign affairs chief saidFriday at a gathering inGermany of top diplomatsfrom the Group of Sevenwealthy nations.

Josep Borrell, the EU's highrepresentative for foreign pol-icy, said he was also hopefulof getting the bloc's membernations to agree to an oilembargo against Russia soon,despite misgivings from somecountries.

“We will provide a newtranche of 500 more millionsto support the military ofUkraine,” Borrell toldreporters ahead of the G-7meeting in Weissenhaus, on

Germany's Baltic Sea coast.The funds would be allocatedfor the purchase of heavyweapons and take the EU'stotal financial support forUkraine to 2 billion euros($2.1 billion), he added.

Top diplomats fromGermany, Britain, Canada,France, Italy, Japan and theUnited States also are attend-ing the meeting. They plan toseek more ways to pile pres-

sure on Russia through eco-nomic sanctions, isolateMoscow internationally andto counter disinformationspread by Russia, Borrell said.

EU diplomats are scheduledto hold talks Monday on apossible embargo of Russianoil. Hungary has resisted themove because of its heavydependence on Russianimports, but Borrell expressedoptimism.

G7 unite against Russia; EU pledges funds to Ukraine

PNS n NEW DELHI

India loses more people inroad accidents than in a war,Union Minister General(retd) V K Singh said onFriday.

Addressing an event organ-ised by industr y bodyAssocham, Singh said roadsafety is the most importantissue which the governmentneeds to tackle.

"More than 1.35 lakh peo-ple lose their lives due to roadaccidents every year...thisnumber of people whom welose every year (due to roadaccidents), is worse thanfighting a war," the UnionMinister of State for RoadTransport and Highways said.

The minister lamented thatunfortunately, road safety isconsidered something that

comes once a year."We have road safety week.

We upgraded it to road safe-ty month," he said, adding hisview is that it should be a 365-day affair.

"It's not confined to oneweek, it is not confined to a

month because there is somuch at stake," Singh empha-sised.

According to recent gov-ernment data, total 3,66,138road accidents occurred inIndia during 2020, causing1,31,714 deaths.

More lives lost in road accidentsthan in war, says V K Singh

Elon Musk saysTwitter deal‘temporarily on hold'PNS n LONDON

Elon Musk said Friday thathis planned $44 billionpurchase of Twitter is “tem-porarily on hold” pendingdetails on spam and fakeaccounts on the socialmedia platform. It's anoth-er twist after signs of inter-nal turmoil amid the Teslabillionaire's planned buyoutof the company, includingthat Twitter fired two of itstop managers Thursday. Itwasn't clear whether thefake account issue couldscuttle the deal.

Emirates Air lost $1 billion, butthat's an 80% improvement PNS n NEW DELHI

On-demand convenience plat-form Swiggy on Friday said ithas entered into a definitiveagreement with TimesInternet to acquire dining outand restaurant tech platformDineout for an undisclosedsum.

Dineout, which serves din-ers across its network of 50,000restaurants in 20 cities, willcontinue to operate as anindependent app post theacquisition, Swiggy said in astatement. Founders ofDineout -- Ankit Mehrotra,Nikhil Bakshi, Sahil Jain and

Vivek Kapoor -- will joinSwiggy once the acquisition iscompleted, it added.

"The acquisition will allowSwiggy to explore synergiesand offer new experiences ina high-use category," SwiggyCEO Sriharsha Majety said.

Dineout co-founder & CEO AnkitMehrotra said, "We stronglyfeel that with Swiggy's deepunderstanding of the ecosys-tem and our shared passion fora superior consumer andrestaurant experience, ourjoint forces will help providea holistic platform in thisindustry."

Swiggy to acquire Dineout

PNS n NEW DELHI

Agritech startup Fyllo onFriday said it has raised USD2 million (over Rs 15 crore) ina funding round led by TriveniTrust, Ninjacart and existinginvestor IAN. New investors,including Venture Catalysts,StarAgri, Kia Ora Ventures,Singularity Ventures andMastermind Capital, also tookpart in the round, the compa-ny said in a statement. Thecapital raised will be used forexpansion to new markets andtowards research and develop-ment to support more crops, itadded.The startup has devel-oped crop-specific models forirrigation, nutrients, diseases,pests and weather manage-ment for each physiologicalstage of crop and soil. Its

Internet of Things (IoT)enabled system measures pre-cise requirements of plants ona real-time basis and providestimely advice to farmers. Fylloco-founders Sudhanshu Raiand Sumit said farmers haveseen the impact of technology,and the adaptability hasincreased. Having received thefunding, the company is look-ing to invest in expanding thebrand to new markets andmore crops.

On its investment in Fyllo,Triveni Trust managing trusteeM K Dhanuka said, "Fyllo'sspecific, precise and AI-drivenadvice to farmers helps themincrease their crop productiv-ity and lower input cost. 100per cent customer retentionreflects the farmer's confidencein Fyllo's offering.

Agritech startup Fylloraises US$ 2 million

PNS n DUBAI

One of the world's biggest air-lines and the Mideast's top car-rier, Emirates Air, said Fridayit lost USD 1.1 billion over thepast fiscal year, but that figurestill marks an 80% improve-ment from the year before. Theairline said revenue was up91%, reaching USD 16.1 bil-lion. As Emirates Air claws itway out of the worst of thepandemic, its main hub ofDubai International Airportremains the busiest in inter-national travel.

Emirates expects to climbout of the red and see profitsthis year as it plans to start pay-ing back its shareholder, theDubai government, some ofthe USD 4 billion it threw theairline to stay afloat amidCOVID-19 lockdowns.

The carrier's success andfinancial health is seen as abellwether of Dubai's owneconomy, which relies heavily

on tourism, foreign invest-ments and real estate pur-chases by the world's elite.

The emirate, which is part ofthe United Arab Emirates, wasquick to swing open its doorsto foreign travelers with fewrequirements for entry after abrief, but extremely stringentlockdown period in 2020.

Chairman and chief execu-tive of Emirates, SheikhAhmed bin Saeed AlMaktoum, said business recov-ery picked up pace in the sec-

ond half of the fiscal year, withdemand for travel comingback. It's unclear how much ofthat was related to travel to vis-itors coming to Dubai to expe-rience its six-month-longWorld Fair, or Expo, thatended in March.

The airline hadposted a staggering USD 5.5.billion loss in the previous fis-cal year — the first time theairline had not churned out aprofit in more than threedecades.

PNS n NEW DELHI

Farm machinery and con-struction equipment majorEscorts Ltd on Friday report-ed a 28.42 per cent decline inconsolidated net profit atRs 189.98 crore in the fourthquarter ended March 2022,impacted by lower sales.

The company had posteda consolidated net profit ofRs 265.41 crore in the samequarter of the previous fiscal,Escorts said in a regulatoryfiling.

Consolidated revenuefrom operations during thequarter under review stoodat Rs 1,878.51 crore asagainst Rs 2,228.75 crore inthe year-ago period.

For the quarter endedMarch 2022, tractor volumeswere at 21,895 units, down32.8 per cent as against32,588 units in the year-agoperiod, the company said.

Construction equipment

sales in the fourth quarterwere at 1,286 units, down19.8 per cent from 1,604units earlier.

For the fiscal endedMarch 31, 2022, Escorts saidits consolidated net profitwas at Rs 735.61 crore ascompared to Rs 871.63 crorein the previous fiscal, down15.6 per cent.

Revenue from operationsfor FY22 came in at Rs7,238.43 crore as comparedto Rs 7,014.42 crore in FY21.

Escorts Ltd Chairman andManaging Director NikhilNanda said the farm sectoris seeing some positive tail-winds.

"With prediction of anormal monsoon and goodnews on crop prices andproduction, we hope thissector will continue to flour-ish," he said, adding the con-struction and railway sectorshave also shown signs ofimprovement.

Addressing anevent organisedby industry bodyAssocham,Singh said roadsafety is themost importantissue which thegovernmentneeds to tackle.

PNS n TEHRAN

Iranian authorities havearrested at least 22 demon-strators who had beenprotesting sudden pricehikes of subsidised staplefoods in two southern cities,state media reported early onFriday. The arrests follow Iran'sannouncement this weekthat the cost of cooking oil,chicken, eggs and milkwould rise by as much as 300per cent as food prices surgeacross the Middle East due toglobal supply chain snarlsand Russia's invasion ofmajor food exporterUkraine.

Iran arrests at least22 personsprotesting staplefood price hikes

Reliance top-ranked Indian firmon Forbes Global 2000 listPNS n NEW DELHI

Billionaire Mukesh Ambani'sReliance Industries Ltdclimbed two spots to No. 53on Forbes' latest Global 2000list of public companiesworldwide.

Forbes Global 2000 ranksthe largest companies in theworld using four metrics:sales, profits, assets and mar-ket value, Forbes said releas-ing the 2022 ranking of theworld's top 2,000 companies.

Reliance is the top-rankedIndian firm on the list, fol-lowed by State Bank of Indiaat No. 105, HDFC Bank atNo. 153 and ICICI Bank atNo. 204.Other top 10 Indianfirms on the list include state-owned Oil and Natural GasCorporation (ONGC) at 228rank, Housing DevelopmentFinance Corporation Ltd(HDFC) at No. 268, IndianOil Corporation (IOC) atNo.357, Tata ConsultancyServices Ltd (TCS) at No.384, Tata Steel at No. 407 andAxis Bank at No. 431.

"Energy and banking sec-tor corporations were amongthe highest-ranking Indiancompanies in Forbes' Global2000 list of public companiesthis year," the publicationsaid.

Oil-to-telecom-to-retail

conglomerate Reliance,which recorded sales of USD104.6 billion between April2021 and March 2022,became the first Indian com-pany to generate over USD100 billion in annual revenue.

"On the Global 2000,Reliance climbed two spots toNo. 53 among all public com-panies worldwide and rankedfirst among Indian compa-nies," it said. "Earlier this year,Forbes estimated Ambani'snet worth to be USD 90.7 bil-lion, landing him at No. 10 onthis year 's bi l l ionaireslist ."Mukesh's fatherDhirubhai launched the busi-ness in the early 1960s, start-ing with import and exportlicences for nylon, rayon andpolyester.

Today, the company's busi-nesses include plastics andpetrochemicals, mobile tele-com services and retail.

With a market cap of USD56.12 billion, SBI grabbed theNo. 2 spot on the list ofIndia's largest. "The bank,headquartered in Mumbai,has 24,000 branches and62,617 ATMs across thecountry. Private sector banksICICI and HDFC followednext on the Global 2000 listof Indian companies, high-lighting the growth of thebanking sector in India."

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SaturdayMay 14, 2022

TALIB ZAFFER

hen Fowzia Afaq (nowDr Fowzia Afaq) fromthe valley of Kashmircame to Hyderabad in2011, little did she knowabout what was there in

the store for her. In this edition of the

Hyderabond, we bring to you thedeeply intimate association of DrFowzia with the city. Right fromhow Hyderabad shaped her careerto her wedding shopping, meeting

the King Khan to meetingher husband for the

first time,every-

thing about her journey from a girlwho came here to learn to a womanwho professes.

Association with Hyderabad:

My association with the placestarted way back in 2011, althoughthere was a gap in between. I camehere to do my masters. I wanted todo my masters in Urdu literaturefirst, but I was from a mass mediabackground so I studied the subjectat Maulana Azad University.After that I had to go backhome for a couple of years,But in 2015, I got my PhDadmission back here. Icompleted my PhD byaround 2019, wentback home again,and now I teach

here as an

Assistant Professor. The associationwith the city has helped me shapemy career and life. I came here as ayoung girl and now I am here as awoman who is an assistant profes-sor, that is a journey in itself.

Best memory in Hyderabad:

I have a lot of goodmemories here-going out

with friends, roamingaround the city, making doc-

umentary films, but if I had tochoose one I would choose

when I got the Gold medal formy masters in our convocation in

2016. That day they had invitedShahRukh Khan, the President ofIndia and Sanjiv Saraf, the founderof Rekhta. Also, the day I got myPHD in 2019. These days willalways be etched in memorybecause they changed my life.

Everything aboutHyderabad is so welcom-ing:

I absolutely love thiscity; the people, the cul-

ture, and the cuisines. Everythingabout Hyderabad is so welcoming.It feels like a mix of many culturesthat has space for everyone. And,especially coming from a Muslimfamily, the city in itself is very relat-able.

On the other hand, for aKashmiri girl who has grown uparound Mountains and lakes thesummers are very harsh here.

Along with that, the traffic jamsare the only things that I

would want to changeabout the city.

Meeting myhusband here:

I met myhusband herefor the firsttime at aUniversityprogram. So,in a waymost of thegood thingsin my lifehave actually

happened here.After we got

married becausehe was already

working here, Idecided to settle

here too with him. Ialso love literature, espe-

cially Urdu literature. Ihave met a lot of people here

who appreciated and enhanced myinterest and craft in poetry. I evenmet my best teachers here, whoguided and supported me all theway through, which honestly Imight have never gotten inKashmir.

Sense of security: As a woman I feel Hyderabad is a

very safe place compared to variousparts of the country. You can goanywhere you want all alone with-out any sort of fear. There is a senseof inclusiveness here. Nobody treatsyou differently because of whereyou come from. I even did all mywedding shopping here. I even metmy best friends Musheera, Afsana,

Najma here. This city hasgiven me a lot. It hasbecome my second homeand it will always have aspecial place in my Heart.

Hyderabad, a specialhome away from home

w

Attention! Beware ofOmicron XE Variant

symptoms in kids

heOmicronvariant ofSARS-CoV-2virus has

been the object ofimmense speculationin global and domes-tic media. Presently,Omicron is the pre-dominant strain incirculation. While thetransmission rate ofOmicron in compari-son with other vari-ants of concern ishigher, available datasuggests that diseasecaused by this strainis less severe thanother COVID strains.Omicron has alsobeen a cause of anxi-ety because of parentsconcern regardingtheir children. Seeingas those aged lessthan 12 years are stillnot eligible for vacci-nation, impact ofOmicron on childrenis a point of concern.

In discussions withpediatricians whohad the experience oftreating children inthe last wave andfrom data presentlyavailable, the infec-tion in children

mostly presentedwith fever, sore throatand rhinorrhoea.Little to no complica-tions were observed.Also as compared toadults, the postCOVID infectionperiod was associatedwith less malaise.

Dr AbhilashaKochhar, Sr.Microbiologist,MetropolisHealthcare Ltd, “It isrecommended andencouraged to vacci-nate children in eligi-ble age group i.e., 12years and above as onthe day of vaccina-tion (as per theMinistry of Healthand Family Welfareguidelines). This willhelp in reducingseverity of diseaseand complicationssuch as MIS-C (MultiSystem InflammatorySyndrome in chil-dren) and post-COVID induced dia-betes. Other thanthat, it has been sug-gested that as with allcoronavirus strains, itis best to followCOVID appropriatebehaviour and safetymitigation steps like

frequent handwash-ing, wearing masks,limited interactionsin closed rooms andsocial distancing.”

Keeping all of thisin mind, it is advisedthat parents vaccinatetheir children, con-sult your pediatri-cian, and stay calm.

This variant main-ly has an effect on theupper respiratorytract and childrentend to have higherupper respiratorytract infections ascompared to adultsmaking them morevulnerable. The firstsymptoms are a sorethroat, then a drycough and fever, per-spiration, weakness—all the symptoms typ-ical of acute upperrespiratory diseases.

Dr SupriyaAwasthi, Professor,School of AlliedHealth Sciences,Noida InternationalInstitute of MedicalSciences, “Cold-likesymptoms such as arunny nose, persis-tent sneezing, sorethroat along with aheadache and coughhad become morecommon. In children,Omicron can lead togastrointestinal ill-nesses with symp-toms including highfever, diarrhoea, andvomiting, which maycause dehydration.

If you notice any ofthese symptoms, werecommend thatyou be testedimmediately, sothat you canbegin the treat-ment processon time.Otherwise, itwill be moredifficult toavoid com-plica-tions.”

t

Home is the mostprized possessionin an individual’s

life. We generally viewour house to be a warmresting place after a longhectic day. People tend tobe always on board formaking changes andredoing interiors to keepit updated while follow-ing the ongoing trends.We have that uncontrol-lable urge to make itcomplete with all thingsnecessary so that nothingis missing from our ownlittle paradise. Changingyour interiors can gener-ally take a toll consider-ing the heavy cost thatincludes the price. Findbelow some perfectBudget-friendly ways tomake your home lookstylish as Priti Lohiya,MD, Priti InternationalLtd. lists them:

Incorporate multi-function furniture:

Multi-function furni-ture has become the newnormal post-pandemic.These multi-utility furni-ture pieces do the trickand enhance your interi-ors while bearing mini-mal cost. Look out for asofa-cum- bed which can

be used dually for theprice of one. Similarly,coffee tables can act as alight refreshment tableand work desks duringoffice hours. These space-saving furniture itemsdon’t make a hole in yourpockets.

Go for the minimalis-tic decor trend:

Minimalistic interiorsare the current ongoingtrend in the home decorindustry. Less is more iswhat is portrayedthrough this trend.Minimalistic approachtends to do justice toredoing your house bymaximising spaces withminimum furniture. Thisis a quick method forinvigorating the vibe ofyour space by revising thefurnishings. Make theideal use of the spacewhile putting your fur-nishings. Make a formatthat will make your homelook more open.Example: Go for a book-shelf in one corner and alounge chair in the other.

Add that much-need-ed lighting effect:

The lighting in thehouse can have a major

effect. Guarantee thatthere is a great deal ofregular light coming inover the course of theday. To make it a com-fortable climate in theevening, you should sim-ply add lights, pixielights, or candles. Followthis home stylistic layoutthought for your room toadd a heartfelt vibe.

Add colours:

You can change theappearance of the houseby switching around yourtextures. Change yourcushion covers, floor car-pets and rugs, anddraperies to give yourspace a new and freshlook. A definitive home-style thought for your liv-ing room is to layer vari-ous surfaces with differ-ent colors. This will addthat little additionaloomph to your familyroom.

Styling your home canbe a daunting task. Makesure you enjoy thisprocess and incorporateyour vibe into your inte-riors. Little efforts canmake a remarkable differ-ence. Go ahead and usethese tips for that perfectmakeover of your house.

Budget-friendly ways to make yourhome look stylish

10

Hyderabad Saturday May 14, 2022 what’s brewing?

In order to giveits customers anew taste, Voila

launched a newmenu, speciallycurated for thisseason. Apartfrom the maincourse, the menualso includesmouth-wateringdesserts like shahitukda, breadpudding withghee-tosted nuts,Hyderabad'sfamous trufflepudding, seasonalfruits, and manymore.

Ice cream has become a major part of our daily life, especially during the summers. However, it’s not an easy task to guess the flavours of the ice creamgiven the huge number of variants available in the market. Making this even more fun, HybizTV is set to host The Great Indian Ice-cream TasteChallenge on May 29 at the Hi-tech city. The winner of this will receive a cash price of Rs. 1 lakh, while the runner-up will get Rs. 50,000.

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FUN

Serilingampally MLA Arekapudi Gandhi, along with Ch Vasanth Kumar MD, Senior Consultant Physician and Diabetologist, Apollo Hospitals, P. VenkataRamana, MD; and B. Vinay Kumar, CEO, GreenQuris, launched three innovative and revolutionary healthcare and food supplement products, along withthe launch of their official website www.greenquris.com, at Jubilee International Centre.

Rules

ARCHIE

GARFIELD

SUDOKU

REALITY CHECK CROSSWORD

GINGER MEGGS

NANCY

l Each row and column cancontain each number (1 to 9)exactly once.

l The sum of all numbers inany row or column mustequal 45.

Yesterday’s solution

CALVIN AND HOBBES

SPEED BUMP

TALK FASHION

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l Bindul Aparna

Actresses Ritika Chakraborty,Divya Narni, along with a fewmodels and fashion enthusiasts,

graced the grand curtain raiser ofSutra Fashion and Lifestyle weddingspecial exhibition in the city onFriday. The exhibition will commencefrom May 20 and will go on till May22 at Hotel Taj Krishna, Banjara Hills,Hyderabad.

The film‘Don,’ whichhit the

screens on May13, is directed bySiva Karthikeyanand has receivedpositive reviewsfrom all quarters.Leaving the illogi-cal cinematic lib-erties apart, thefilm is said tocontain equalamounts of come-dy and emotion.

Tamil directorAtlee, who tookto Twitter, con-gratulated theentire team as hewrote, “Don emo-tional familyentertainer@Siva_Kartikeyansuper perfor-mance da, lovely

film, thanks forgiving an oppor-tunity to debutdirector, massda”.Dir_Cibidirector sir, soproud of you da,

great movieemotionallymoved to keeprocking love youda. Congrats tothe entire team”,Atlee added.

A video wasalso posted by thedirector of ‘Theri’,along with theabove message,which was shotfrom the theatreduring his watch.

‘Don’, starringSivakarthikeyan,SJ Suryah, andSamuthirakaniand directed byCibi

Chakravarthi, is afun entertainerwith a message.While the endingis a little preachy,‘Don’ manages toimpress for themost part.

SivaKarthikeyan’snext project willbe with Telugudirector Anudeep,who is bestknown for thesuperhit parodydrama ‘JathiRatnalu.’RashmikaMandanna and

RituVarma

willplaythefemalelead

in thisbilin-gual

Telugu-Tamil

film.

Dir

ecto

r A

tlee

app

reci

ates

the

team

of

Don

1. Bhala Thandanana

The film directed by ChaitanyaDantuluri of Banam famefeatured Catherine Tresa asthe female lead andRamachandra Rau as theantagonist. According to thelatest, the film’s OTT pre-mieres are confirmed. Thefilm will be streamed onDisney+ Hotstar OTT fromMay 20.

2. RRR

RRR the S.S. Rajamouli-directed film thattook the country

by storm with its box officereceipts will now be releasedon OTT a few months afterits worldwide theatricalrelease. Jr NTR and RamCharan’s epic RRR will bereleased on a popular OTTon May 20 ON Zee 5.

3. Morbius (Telugu dub)

The superhero film Morbius hitthe Indian cinema theaterson April 1, 2022. Helmed byDaniel Espinosa, Morbius isbased on a Marvel Comics

characterof the

same name which was writ-ten by Roy Thomas alongwith Gil Kane. The film ismade under the big bannersColumbia Pictures with thecollaboration of MarvelEntertainment. The Telugudubbed version of Morbiuswill release on the OTT plat-form BMS Stream on May 19.

4. Acharya

Chiranjeevi and Ram Charan-starrer Acharya to have glob-al digital premiere on PrimeVideo on 20 May. The Teluguaction drama also stars KajalAggarwal, Pooja Hegde, SonuSood and Jisshu Sengupta inpivotal roles.

It’s official!Samuthirakani to direct

Pawan Kalyan'supcoming multi-starrer

Samuthirakani, whoplays one

of the maincharacters in therecently releasedSarkaru VaariPaata, hasrevealed detailsabout hisupcoming pro-ject.

Samuthirakaniconfirmed in arecent candidinterview that hewill soon directPawan Kalyan.

“Fans willreceive goodnews soon. As Iam myself a fanof PawanKalyan, I willdirect PawanKalyan keeping afan’s point ofview in consid-eration,” says

Samuthirakani.Pawan Kalyan

will star in anintriguingremake of theTamil filmVinodhayaSitham, as previ-ously reported.The Teluguremake will bedirected by actorSamuthirakani,who also direct-ed the Tamilversion.In thismuch-anticipat-ed remake,Pawan Kalyanand his nephewSai Dharam Tejwill star togeth-er.

TrivikramSrinivas is alsoexpected to penthe screenplay.FeaturingSamuthirakani,

ThambiRamaiah, andMunishkanth inthe lead roles,the originalmovieVinodhayaSitham wasreleased lastyear.

The storyrevolves arounda tragic car acci-dent, in which aself-centered anddominating mandies, and on hisrequest, he isgiven an addi-tional 90 days tolive so that hecan make thingsright.

The Teluguremake ofVinodhayaSitham is expect-ed to begin inJuly.

11

Hyderabad | Saturday May 14, 2022 tollywood

PNS | HYDERABAD

uvvu NenuPrema, Star Maa’snew project,which is theadaptation of a

popular Star Plus daily soapIss Pyaar Ko Kya NaamDoon? is going live on thechannel from May 16.

This project will see yetanother new face makingher way in Telugu tinsel-town. Ahead of the launch,we caught up with the lead-ing actress of the serialPavithra B Naik. Pavithra isoriginally from Bengaluru,Karnataka and has workedin the Sandalwood enter-tainment industry. This isthe first time that she is act-ing in Telugu and her expe-rience, she says has beenmemorable.

“This is the first time thatI am doing a Telugu project.I knew the language a littlebit but wasn’t as fluent in it,so had to work on it,” saidthe actress.

When we asked whatmade her choose this pro-ject to debut in Teluguindustry, she credits herdebut to her character in theserial, which is lively andbubbly. She feels her charac-ter is so relatable to every-one.

“I really liked the charac-ter because this is the firsttime that I am doing such acharacter, so it was a chal-

lenge. I have done manycharacters in Kannada and

there I have done more ofsoft characters and of girls

who are very less spokenand reserved, this is differ-ent so I like it,” said theyoungster.

Like any other newentrant, Pavithra is headover heels about this projectand can’t wait for the audi-ence to watch her on theirscreens. “The preparationfor this was very good, I wasvery happy when theyapproached me for this seri-al. This is a remake of thewell-known Hindi serial IssPyaar ko kya naam doon. Iwas a fan of this serialbeforehand. I used to followit from day 1 till its lastepisode. Since I alreadyknew about the character, Iam very much related to theserial because I have a sisterin real life and even thecharacter has a sister. Thecharacter is similar to whatI am in real life,” she added.

Sharing about her associ-ation with the city of pearls,the actress said, “I havebeen here only a few times,on trips with my friendsmostly. Now that I am herefor work, I would love toexplore the City. Even thecast and crew of NuvvuNenu Prema was very sup-portive, I was so happywhen they offered me therole, and working with myco-star Swaminathan wasgreat, he was also verycooperative.”

The show will air everyMonday to Saturday at 6.30pm on Star Maa.

“I want to explore the city

more,” says Pavitra Nayak

n

ctor Siddharthhas been a partof numerousprojects buthas never

essayed the role of a con-tent moderator, whichincidentally is his nextperformance in Disney+Hotstars upcoming series— Escaype Live. Sharingdetails about his charac-ter in his OTT debut pro-ject, Siddharth spelt outhis own views on socialmedia as well.

“I play a content mod-erator in Escaype Live. It’sa character that enablesyou to see the world ofEscaype through him andhis ambitions and moti-vations. As far as socialmedia is concerned intoday’s world, it’s impor-tant to strike a balance toits exposure. Excess ofanything is bad. And intoday’s time, people needto have more real interac-tions as compared to vir-tual gratification. Theinternet is a make-believeplace which mirrors yourreal life. An individualneeds to be as careful asone can be.”

Escaype Live isa fictionalstory,

penned by Jaya Mishraand Siddharth KumarTewary, that could verywell be true and real. Thestory features a bunch ofcontent creators, on dif-ferent paths but one goal,to produce viral contentto emerge victorious in alife-changing competi-tion announced by thehottest new app in thecountry called EscaypeLive. Produced underSiddharth KumarTewary’s One LifeStudios, the nine-episodeseries emphasizes on thehuman tendency to becompetitive and the driveto succeed. The seriesexplores the lengths con-tent creators and techgiants are willing to trav-el to achieve their aspira-tions.

Set across differentcities of India, the seriesleveraged different dia-logue writers for eachcity to add regionalauthenticity. Dance Ranistory based in Jaisalmersaw her dialogues beingpenned by Vinod

Sharma while Amcha’slines were penned byAmol Surve. Similarly,Banaras-based charactersof Meenakumariand Sunaina'sdialogueswere writ-ten byRanveerPratapSinghwhileDarkie andFestishGirl's dia-logues werepenned by JayaMishra andSiddharthKumarTewary.The

cast includes JaavedJaaferi, Shweta TripathiSharma, SumedhMudgalkar, Swastika

Mukherjee, PlabitaBorthakur,

WaluschaD'Souza,Ritvik Sahore,Geetika VidyaOhlyan,JagjeetSandhu,Rohit

Chandel andchild actor

Aadyaa Sharmaamong others.

a

Films to watch this week on OTT

Importantto strike a

balance withsocial media

exposure, saysSiddharth

Prabhas, whorecentlyappeared in

Radhe Shyam along-side Pooja Hegde, isnow busily shootingfor his next movieProject K under NagAshwin’s direction.

Prabhas will nextstar in a movietitled Spirit, whichwill be directed byArjun Reddy fameSandeep ReddyVanga.

Apparently, either

RashmikaMandanna or KiaraAdvani will bepaired with Prabhasin his upcomingthriller drama,Spirit.

It is reported thatSandeep feels eitherRashmika or Kiarawill best suitPrabhas in the filmand he will be lock-ing one of them forthe film soon.Notably, Sandeep isalready collaborat-

ing withRashmika forRanbir Kapoor’sAnimal.

Kiara, on theother hand, is tostar opposite RamCharan underShankarShanmugam’s direc-tion.

Spirit will hit thefloors once Prabhaswraps up his cur-rent commitments-Project K andSalaar.

Rashmika,

Kiara in race

for Spirit

HYDERABAD | SATURDAY | MAY 14, 2022 sports 12

AP n PARIS

Gianluigi Donnarumma haswarned Paris Saint-

Germain that they must choosebetween him and rival goal-keeper Keylor Navas next sea-son.

Italian Donnarummasigned from AC Milan lastsummer to join veteran Navas,35, who has been in the Frenchcapital since leaving RealMadrid in 2019.

Despite stressing his "verygood relationship" with Navas,Donnarumma insisted it wasout of the question to share thejob next season.

"No, I think it will surely nothappen like that, because Ithink the club will make choic-es," Donnarumma said.

"We're two good guys, weunderstand the situation, but itwas hard, and for him too, butlet's say that we managed itwell."

Donnarumma said "yes ofcourse" he wanted to stay nextseason with his contract run-ning until 2026.

The 23-year-old lifted hisfirst league title with PSG, whilefor Costa Rican Navas it was asecond in France to join the LaLiga trophy and threeChampions League trophies hewon in Spain.

"It's beautiful, it's my firstleague title, I'm very happy, andit's my first trophy with the ParisSaint-Germain shirt," said

Donnarumma."I'm very proud to belong to

a great, very ambitious club,always aiming higher."

Donnarumma arrived inFrance after being named thebest player in the Europeanchampionships which Italy won.

"The debut was not easy,because it was my first outsideItaly, in a new club, a new city(but) pressure, no," explainedDonnarumma, who had spentsix years in Milan.

"I feel a big family behindme, a big club, the welcome wasgreat, and after it was easier forme."

Donnarumma sid it hadn'tbeen an "easy" season, giving itseven out of 10.

"I know I can do more," hesaid. "I haven't played so manymatches, only half, that wasn'teasy. In the conditions I expe-rienced, I couldn't give themaximum, but I'm convincedthat I can give a lot more to thisteam and this club."

In addition to PSG'sChampions League exit to RealMadrid in the last 16,Donnarumma's Italy failed toqualify for a second straightWorld Cup.

"It was hard, very hard," hesighed.

"The following days werevery difficult, but there is nogoing back. What we did at theEuro will remain in history, wehave achieved somethingincredible.

AP n ROME

Stefanos Tsitsipas reached the semi-finals of the Italian Open on

Friday after beating local hero JannickSinner 7-6 (7/5) 6-2 in a match whichwas stopped for over 10 minutes atmatch point after a spectator fell ill.

World number five Tsitsipas hasalready won the Monte Carlo Mastersthis season and reached the last fourin impressive style against ItalianSinner, who was in his first ever Romequarter-final.

Next up Tsitsipas will faceAlexander Zverev, who made thesemis after comfortably seeing offCristian Garin, the only unseededplayer left in the tournament, 7-5, 6-2.

It will be the third time in thespace of a month that the Germanwill meet the Greek in the last four,with the pair sharing the honoursfrom clashes in Monte Carlo andMadrid.

The Greek finally took the open-ing set after breaking Sinner to take

the tie-break to 6-5 and from their hisopponent didn't recover.

The fervent atmosphere wasfinally dampened when Tsitsipasbroke Sinner in game three and worldnumber 13 Sinner had no reply, los-ing his serve again to love in gameseven.

Sinner's fate seem sealed but atmatch point for Tsitsipas someone inthe crowd appeared to collapse andplay was stopped amid loud whistlesdirected at the umpire who wantedto continue.

What seemed like an age passedbefore the spectator was stretcheredout of centre court and Tsitsipas couldfinally serve his match point, and asimple passing shot from Sinner'smiscalculated drop shot sent himthrough.

SABALENKA WINSTsitsipas will take number four

spot in the world rankings onMonday after Rafael Nadal's shockthird-round exit at the hands of DenisShapovalov on Thursday night.

Shapovalov faces Casper Ruudknowing a win would give him a pos-sible semi-final against NovakDjokovic, who is in action in the day'sfinal match against Canada's FelixAuger-Aliassime.

Djkokovic needs to beat Canada'sAuger-Aliassime in order to maintaintop spot in the world rankings, a posi-tion he has held for a record 369weeks.

Aryna Sabalenka reached thewomen's semi-finals after beatingAmanda Anisimova 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 andsetting up a potential clash with worldnumber one Iga Swiatek.

Third seed Sabalenka beatAmerican Anisimova for the firsttime in five attempts and now awaitsthe result of Swiatek's last-eightmatch with Bianca Andreescu.

Anisimova had endedSabalenka's Madrid title defence inthe first round at the end of lastmonth. Swiatek, the reigning cham-pion in Rome, is on a run of 25straight wins and gunning for a fifthtournament victory in a row.

AP n LONDON

Harry Kane scored twice asTottenham beat 10-man

Arsenal 3-0 on Thursday witha north London derby master-class that kept alive their hopesof finishing in the PremierLeague's top four.

Antonio Conte's sidewould have been eliminatedfrom the race to qualify for nextseason's Champions League ifthey had lost to their bitterrivals on Thursday.

But Kane tormentedArsenal once again as theTottenham striker opened thescoring with a controversialpenalty.

Crucially, Arsenal's RobHolding was sent off for twobookings in seven minutes.

Kane netted again beforethe interval and Son Heung-min bagged Tottenham's thirdgoal in the second half.

Instead of sealing a returnto the Champions League forthe first time since the 2016-17season, fourth-placed Arsenalnow face a nerve-jangling con-clusion to the top-four battle.

Arsenal still hold a slenderadvantage, but the end of theirfour-match winning run leavesthem just one point ahead offifth-placed Tottenham, withboth sides having two gamesleft.

Conte said several weeksago that it would be a "miracle"if Tottenham reached theChampions League given theirlowly position when hereplaced the sacked NunoEspirito Santo in November.

But their victory inarguably the biggest northLondon derby since Arsenalwon the league at White HartLane in 2004 ensured that mir-acle could still come true.

Conte believes finishingin the top four is "like winning

a title in another country, a bigachievement" given the depthof talent and wealth at the topof the Premier League.

To decide who takes thelucrative prize, Tottenham hoststruggling Burnley on Sundaythen travel to relegatedNorwich, while Mikel Arteta'smen visit Newcastle onMonday and entertain Everton.

Arteta's bewildered expres-sion throughout Arsenal'scapitulation suggested it is farfrom certain he will be able to

lift his players to finish the job.Third-placed Chelsea, five

points above Tottenham, willlikely need a draw from theirlast two games to be sure oftheir top-four place given theirvastly superior goal difference.

As well as the hugeEuropean stakes for both sides,Tottenham also felt lingeringresentment about Arsenal'ssuccessful appeal to have thisfixture postponed in Januarydue to Covid and injury prob-lems.

AP nMADRID

Karim Benzema continuesto add his name to Real

Madrid's record books, scoringhis 323rd goal on Thursday todraw level with Raúl Gonzálezas the club's second-highestscorer behind CristianoRonaldo.

Benzema netted in the firsthalf of the team's 6-0 rout of last-place Levante in the Spanishleague, with Madrid havingsecured the title a few roundsago.

The result sealed Levante'srelegation after five consecutiveyears in the first division.

Vinícius Júnior, Benzema'strusted attacking partner allseason, scored a hat trick forMadrid as it continues to pre-pare for the Champions Leaguefinal against Liverpool in Parison May 28, when it will try towin a record-extending 14thEuropean title.

Benzema is now 128 goalsshy of the 451 scored byRonaldo, who played at theclub until 2018.

Benzema's close-rangeheader in the 19th minute off across by Vinícius gave the Frenchstriker his league-leading 27thgoal, which is nine better thanany other player in the compe-tition this season. He has scoredmore than a third of Madrid's 77

league goals so far.It was the 20th goal in the

last 15 matches in all competi-tions for Benzema, who hasbeen key in the team's run to theChampions League final, scor-ing decisive goals in everyknockout round of the Europeantournament — including twohat tricks.

He could have added anoth-er goal on Thursday butunselfishly fed Vinícius the ballfor the team's fifth after clearingthe goalkeeper inside the area.

Vinícius had netted his firstgoal in the first half before clos-ing the scoring in the final min-utes for his maiden hat trick withMadrid. Ferland Mendy andRodrygo scored their goalsbefore halftime. Benzema wasreplaced in the 75th along withLuka Modric, who set up threeof Madrid's goals.

AP n LONDON

Liverpool will bid to keep theirquadruple chase alive in Saturday'sFA Cup final against a Chelsea

side hoping to welcome incomingowner Todd Boehly with victory atWembley.

Jurgen Klopp's men have fourmatches left in their historic attempt tobecome the first English team to winall four major trophies in one season.

They beat Chelsea to lift the LeagueCup in February and have reached thefinals of the FA Cup and ChampionsLeague, where they face Real Madridon May 28.

No English club has come this closeto such an incredible clean sweep, butLiverpool know their hopes of winningthe Premier League are starting to fade.

Manchester City moved threepoints clear of the second-placed Reds

with a 5-1 win at Wolves on Wednesdayand need four points from their last twogames against West Ham and AstonVilla to retain the crown.

If a second English title in three sea-sons proves beyond Liverpool despitetheir blistering form in the second halfof the season, then winning two morecup competitions would be a memo-rable consolation.

First up is a rematch with Chelsea,who fought gamely in an intenseLeague Cup final in February beforeLiverpool prevailed 11-10 in the shoot-out that followed a 0-0 draw.

Liverpool and Chelsea are the firstEnglish teams to meet in both domes-tic finals in the same year since Arsenaland Sheffield Wednesday in 1993.

Klopp's side will hope they emulateArsenal, who did the cup doubleagainst Wednesday that season.

But, in their 60th game this season,

fatigue could be a threat to Liverpool'shopes of a first FA Cup triumph since2006. In a bid to keep his stars fresh,Klopp made several changes inTuesday's win at Villa, yet still lost Brazilmidfielder Fabinho to an injury thatrules him out of the final.

The history chasers will be back onleague duty at Southampton on Tuesdayand, aware of the strain on the squad,Liverpool captain Jordan Hendersoncalled for one last push, starting atWembley.

"The more it goes on, the moreimportant and intense the games are.We are using all the squad and I thoughtthe boys that came in were brilliant(against Villa)," Henderson said.

"That's football and there's going tobe ups and downs in a game. You've gotto react in the right way. To be honest,the boys have done that for a long peri-od of time.

"The boys have been incredible.Stay together in important momentsand you get your rewards in the end.

Let's prepare now for a big game onSaturday."

Like Liverpool, Chelsea's seasonwill conclude with 63 games played, butit has been Thomas Tuchel's side whohave looked more drained in recentweeks.

Before Wednesday's 3-0 victory atLeeds consolidated their grip on thirdplace, the Blues had won just once infive league games as they struggled torecover from their painful CL quarter-final exit at Real Madrid.

MUNICH: Robert Lewandowskihas opened the door to ahigh-profile transfer aftertelling Bayern Munich that hewill not be extending his con-tract beyond June 2023 whenit expires, German mediareported on Friday.

The 33-year-old Polandinternational forward hasscored 343 goals for Bayern

and twice picked up FIFA'sPlayer of the Year Awardsince joining from Dortmundin 2014.

"Goal machine RobertLewandowski will leave theclub no later than the summerof 2023," claimed the dailySport Bild.

"In recent weeks, FIFA's2021 Player of the Year told

his bosses at Bayern that hewould not extend his contract,which is still valid for oneyear."

The Sport1 site, citing itsown sources, confirmed thisinformation.

According to severalreports, Lewandowski hasrecently been in contact withBarcelona. AP

It’s Liverpool vs Chelsea in FA Cup final

AP n BIRMINGHAM

Aston Villa completed the per-manent signing of Barcelona

playmaker Philippe Coutinho onThursday in a deal the La Liga clubsaid is worth 20 million euros.

The Brazilian has impressedsince arriving at Villa on loan inJanuary after struggling to make animpact at Barcelona.

Barca confirmed the transferincludes a 50 percent sell-on clause

if Coutinho leaves Villa.The former Liverpool star,

who has scored four times andcontributed three assists for Villa,has agreed a contract that runsuntil 2026.

"This is a brilliant signing forAston Villa," Villa boss StevenGerrard told the club's website.

"Phil is a model professionaland his impact on the group hasbeen very clear since he joined inJanuary."

AP nMANCHESTER

One of the most famousmoments in Premier League

history has been immortalizedoutside the Etihad Stadium inManchester.

To mark the 10-year anniver-sary of Sergio Aguero's title-clinch-ing goal against Queens ParkRangers in 2012, Manchester Cityunveiled a statue of the Argentinestriker celebrating his dramaticstrike.

"Truthfully, it is a very beauti-ful thing for me, to see myself 10years ago is very moving," Aguerosaid.

"In those 10 years, I was ableto win a lot of trophies and was ableto help the club become one of themost important in the world.

"I am very grateful to the clubfor making this statue in recogni-tion of my football career inManchester. It is something veryspecial."

Man City unveilAguero statue

Donnarumma saysPSG must choose himor Navas next season

Spurs win North London derby Benzema equals Raul’s Real goal record

Lewa turns down Bayern extension

Tsitsipas sees off Sinner to reach Rome semis

AP n ROME

Rafael Nadal crashed out of theItalian Open in the third

round on Thursday after fallingto a shock 1-6, 7-5, 6-2 defeat atthe hands of Denis Shapovalov.

Defeat in Rome for 'King ofClay' Nadal casts doubt over hisprospects at the upcomingFrench Open, where he has beencrowned champion 13 times butfaces a threat from teenage phe-nomenon Carlos Alcaraz.

The 35-year-old had been outfor six weeks with a rib injurybefore returning for last week'stournament in Madrid, and hebegan limping in the third set.

Nadal has won an all-timerecord 21 Grand Slam titles in aglittering two-decade careerwhich may now finally be reach-ing its downturn.

World number 16Shapovalov, who had pushedNadal all the way when knockedout at this stage of the tourna-ment last year, will now faceCasper Ruud in the quarter-finals.

Nadal knocked out by Shapovalov

Villa seal permanentdeal for Coutinho