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JOURNALISM OF COURAGESINCE 1932

DA ILY FROM: AHMEDABAD , CHAND IGARH , DELH I , JA IPUR , KOLKATA , LUCKNOW, MUMBAI , NAGPUR , PUNE , VADODARA

SATURDAY, JANUARY 16, 2021, NEW DELHI, LATE CITY, 18 PAGES `6.00 (`8 BIHAR & RAIPUR, `12 SRINAGAR) WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMJOURNALISM OF COURAGE

SINCE 1932

WORLD

COPS, EX-MILITARYAMONGTHOSEWHOSTORMEDU.S. CAPITOLINDONESIA QUAKEKILLS AT LEAST42,INJURESHUNDREDSPAGE12

VACCINATIONAGAINSTCOVID-19TOBEGIN

Form own group todiscuss laws: Govtto farmer unionsNopoint,onlya fewspeak forus, sayunions;object toFIRs, raids,notices

PMtolaunchrollout,3,006vaccinationsitesfor3croreprioritygroups

HARIKISHANSHARMA&RAAKHIJAGGANEWDELHI&LUDHIANA,JANUARY15

FAILING TOmake any headwayin talkswith farmer unions de-manding the repeal of the newagriculturelaws,theCentresug-gested Friday that the unionsconstitute their own informalgroupwhich could list expecta-tions andmake a proposal thatcouldbediscussed.Theunions,spearheadingthe

protestsatthegatesofDelhisinceNovember26, said therewasnopoint in forming an informalgroupwhenevennow,onlyafewamong themspeak onbehalf ofthefarmersduringthetalks.Leaders of the unions said

they told the ministers —

AgricultureMinister NarendraSingh Tomar, Food MinisterPiyush Goyal and Minister ofStateforCommerceandIndustrySom Prakash — that “we arefarmers,notyourpoliticalrivals”.

CONTINUEDONPAGE2

IRAMSIDDIQUE&BENITAFERNANDOBHOPAL,MUMBAI, JANUARY15

THEINDOREpolicesaysithasnoevidence regarding the allega-tions againstMunawar Faruqui,and on Friday failed to producea case diary before the IndoreBench of the Madhya PradeshHigh Court at his bail hearing.Still, the case against the come-dian,held forallegedobjection-able remarks against Hindudeities, now has six youngstersbehindbarsformorethanafort-night. Of the six, one is thebrother of the show's organiser

who was in the audience, an-other a friend of Faruqui's whohadnothingtodowiththeevent,anda thirdwhoseonly family isaminorbrotherrunningaroundforhimnow.AnIndoreSessionsCourthas

rejected all the bail petitions ithas heard so far. After the ad-journment Friday due to "non-availability"of policecasediary,the High Court will take upFaruqui's bail plea earliest bynextweek.Faruqui, 28, was arrested

alongwithNalinYadav,PrakharVyas, Priyam Vyas and EdwinAnthonyonJanuary1fortheal-legedobjectionableremarksand

for "hurting religious senti-ments"atashowin Indore,onacomplaint byEklavyaGaud, thesonofBJPMLAMaliniGaud.Thenext day, Faruqui's friendSadakatKhanwasheldwhenhewent tomeethimincourt.Faruqui was booked under

IPCSections295A(outragingre-ligiousfeelings)and269(unlaw-ful or negligent act likely tospread the infection of any dis-ease dangerous to life) amongothercharges.At the bail hearing Friday,

Faruqui and Yadav's lawyerAnshumanShrivastavappealedto theHigh Court to reschedulethe hearing for later in the day.

"Since the Tukoganj PoliceStation (where thecase is regis-tered)isacrosstheroadfromtheHighCourtpremises,wearguedthat the police should be askedtogetthediary...howeverit (thehearing) was adjourned," hesaid, calling it a tacticby thepo-lice toharasshis client.On January 13, a Judicial

Magistrate First Class had ex-tendedthejudicialcustodyofallthe accused except Sadakat foranother twoweeks.Shrivastav had earlier ques-

tionedthegroundsonwhichbailhad been rejected by theSessions Court. "The criminallaw does notwork on assump-

tionsbut their bail hasbeende-nied on an assumption that itwill lead to lawandorderprob-lemsandnotonanytechnicalorlegalgrounds."An Indore-based producer

and upcoming comedian,Prakhar, 24, had contactedFaruqui for the show. Faruqui'swas tobe themainact, of about75minutes, with Prakhar andYadav, 24, another small-timecomedian, doing five-sevenminute gigs each. Priyam,Prakhar's younger brother, wasattending the show. Faruquicame down from Mumbai,whileYadavtravelledfromDharinMadhyaPradesh.

In its application to theSessions Court on January 6 ob-jecting to Prakhar and Priyam'sbail pleas, the Tukoganj PoliceStationsaidPrakharhadmadeallthe arrangements, and accusedhimofmakingobjectionablere-marks against Hindu deities inhisopeningact.Itarguedthatbailbedeniedastherewere lawandorder issuesinUjjainandIndoreafter theremarks.Prakhar andPriyam's family

could not be contacted despiterepeatedattempts.Nalin'syoungerbrother,who

is 17 and a second-year com-merce student, said Nalin was

CONTINUEDONPAGE2

PAGE1ANCHOR Comedian stays in jail, co-accused include brother, friend, organiser

EklavyaGaud(left),MunawarFaruquiat the Indoreshow,before itwasstoppedfollowingGaud’scomplaint

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEMUMBAI,NEWDELHI,JANUARY15

ASUPPLEMENTARYchargesheetfiled by theMumbai Police onJanuary11 in theTRPscamcasecontains over 200pages of pur-portedWhatsAppconversationsbetween Republic TV editorArnabGoswamiandthenCEOofBARC (Broadcast AudienceResearch Council) ParthoDasgupta, who is now in cus-tody,showingtheirallegedprox-imity,withGoswamimorethan

once offering to mediate onDasgupta's behalf with the po-litical leadership, including thePrimeMinister's Office (PMO),and claiming at one point, "All

ministersarewithus".In oneof the chats,whichgo

back to July 2017, 'Dasgupta'sends 'Goswami' exclusive TRP(Television Ratings Point) data.The police have alleged thatGoswamipaidDasguptamoneysoastoshowthehighestTRPsinthe news segment for the twoRepublic channels.While theyclaimevidencetoprovethis, it isnot part of the chats attached tothesupplementarychargesheet.TheBARCcalculatesTRPs,onthebasis of which advertisementratesforTVchannelsaredecided.

CONTINUEDONPAGE2

OmarAbdullahat the IdeaExchangeonFriday. Express

BUSINESS AS USUAL

BYUNNY

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI, JANUARY15

FORMER CHIEFMinister of theerstwhile state of Jammu andKashmir and vice-president ofJ&KNational Conference OmarAbdullah Friday said theSupremeCourtneeds to imme-diatelystepintohearanddecidethepetitionschallengingtheab-rogation of Article 370 and 35Aon the lines of its recent inter-ventiononthe farmlaws.“It is not like the Supreme

Court is notworking at all. WehaveseentheSupremeCourttakecognizanceofwhatishappeningwiththefarmerprotestsandstepinto those. If the farmerprotestscan invite the attention of theSupremeCourt and their obser-vations can includewords that‘this didnot seemto include anyconsultation’…then therewerenoconsultationswithJ&Kbeforewhathappenedon5thofAugust,2019. By that same yardstick of

CONTINUEDONPAGE2

Mumbai Police cite WhatsApp chatsbetween Arnab and ex-BARC chief

DEEPTIMANTIWARYNEWDELHI, JANUARY15

PRESIDENTRAMNathKovindonFridaydonatedRs5,00,100fortheconstruction of the Ram templein Ayodhya, as theRamjanmabhoomi TeerthKshetraTrustbegananationwidecampaigntocollectdonations.“A delegation of four people

had gone to receive the goodwishes of theHon'ble President.ThePresidentalongwithhisfam-

ily donated a chequeof five lakhandonehundred rupees for theconstruction of the temple.Wearehappythatthisnationalmove-mentfortempleconstructionhasbegun with his hands,” VHPspokespersonVinodBansalsaid.ThePresident'sofficedidnot

issueanofficialstatementinthisregard. VHP sources said thePresidentmade thedonation inhispersonal capacity.The delegation that visited

KovindincludedformerPrincipalSecretary to the PrimeMinister

andheadofthecommitteefortheconstructionof theRamTemple,NripendraMishra,memberoftheTrustSwamiGovinddevGiri,VHPInternationalWorkingPresidentAlok Kumar, and RSS leaderKulbhushanAhuja.VHPsourcessaidthefirstday

of the donation drive had seenan enthusiastic response notonlyfromseveraldignitariesbutalso from common people. Adelegation is supposed tomeetPrimeMinister NarendraModi

CONTINUEDONPAGE2

KAMALDEEPSINGHBRARAMRITSAR, JANUARY15

THE NATIONAL InvestigationAgency (NIA) has summonedBaldevSinghSirsa,thepresidentof Lok Bhalai Insaf WelfareSociety (LBIWS)which is one oftheunionsparticipating intalkswith the Government over thenew farm laws, in connectionwith a case registered against aleader of the outlawed outfit,Sikhs for Justice (SFJ).Sirsa has been asked to ap-

pear at theNIA headquarters inNew Delhi on January 17 for

questioning in the case againstSFJ'sGurpatwantSinghPannuforanallegedconspiracytocreatean“atmosphereoffearandlawless-nessandtocausedisaffection inpeople and to incite them to-wards rising in rebellionagainsttheGovernmentof India”.On Friday, LBIWS was

CONTINUEDONPAGE2

KAUNAINSHERIFFMNEWDELHI, JANUARY15

ONSATURDAY, India begins theworld’slargestimmunisationex-ercise against Covid-19, whichhas so far infectedmore than acrore people and killed morethan 1.5 lakh in the country. OnDay 1, at 3,006 session sites,around 100 beneficiaries eachfrom the 3 crore priority groupcomprisinghealthcareandfront-lineworkerswillbegiventhefirstshots of Covid-19vaccines, afterthe rollout is launchedbyPrimeMinisterNarendraModi.Detailed backend prepara-

tions up to the block level havegone into the immunisationdrive, taking into account boththe experience from India'sUniversal ImmunisationProgrammeandtheboothstrat-egyduringelections.A technical support team

basedinDelhiwilloperate24X7to address any issues related tothe flagship Co-WIN platform,whichwillhold real-time infor-mationonthevaccinationdrive,including stocks, storage tem-perature, and individualisedtrackingofbeneficiaries.Expertswill be at hand on the platformtoaddresseverythingfromtech-nicalglitchesreportedfromvac-cination sites to any adverseeventsfollowingimmunisation.There is a designated AdverseEvent Following ImmunisationManagement Centre, to whicheverysessionsite inthecountryhasbeen linked.A ‘Communication Control

Room’ at theUnionMinistry ofHealthwill closelymonitor any"disinformationcampaignandru-mourmongering" regarding thetwovaccinestobeadministered

CONTINUEDONPAGE2

ArnabGoswami;ParthoDasgupta

Representativesof farmerunionsafter theninthroundoftalkswiththegovernment inNewDelhi, Friday.AmitMehra

On farmers, SC flaggedno consultation, let ithear us on J&K: Omar

First shot at recovery today

AttheLNJPHospital inNewDelhiFriday,aheadof therolloutof theCovid-19vaccinationdriveacrossthecountry.PraveenKhanna

ASTHASAXENANEWDELHI, JANUARY15

FROMNURSINGorderliestotopdoctors, a total 8,100healthcareworkers who have for monthsfought the Covid-19 pandemicfrom the front in Delhi, will re-ceive doses of the vaccine onSaturday, the first day of India's

mass inoculationdrive.“Public kodikhanahai, aisehi

Covid khatam hoga (We have toshow the public, this is howCovid-19 will end),” said 28-year-old Pavitra Chaturvedi, anursing orderly at the capital'sRajiv Gandhi Super SpecialityHospital.Chaturvedi, who has been

posted in the Covidward of the

Delhi government-run hospitalsince the beginning of the pan-demic,waselatedandemotionalto be among thosewhowill re-ceivethefirstshotsofthevaccine.“Last yearwas a critical time

forallofus.Bhagwansemaangtehainkiaisatimefirkabhinaaaye.(Wepray toGod,mayweneverhave to see such a time again),”

CONTINUEDONPAGE2

Aise hi Covid khatam hoga: Over8,000 to get vaccine in capital todayVACCINEEFFICACY

NEEDSNUTRITIONBOOSTERBYKSRINATHREDDY

WITHHOPEVaccinationDaymarksanation’sgratitudeto itsCovidwarriors—andopensanewchapterofhopewithcaution

PAGE10

THEEDITORIALPAGE

THESUPREMECourt'sde-layintakingupthematterrelatedtotheconstitu-tionalchangesinJ&Kcouldresult inthenewsit-uationbecomingperma-nent,andapointcouldbereachedwhereitwouldbeimpossibletoundosomeof thechanges,OmarAbdullahsaid.

Maybecomeimpossibletoturnclockback

THECOUNTDOWNCOVIDTALLY1 crore 1.5 lakhcases deaths3,006Vaccinationsites

INFRASTRUCTURE

2,900coldchainpoints240walk-incoolers70walk-in freezers45,000 ice-linedrefrigerators41,000deepfreezers300solarrefrigerators

PERSONNEL2,360 trainedatcentrallevel;5.7LAKHvaccination teammembers at state level

BUDGET

`480 cr

CO-WIN:24X7supportteam, for technicalglitches,adverseevents

tostates for firstphase

DAY1:100-oddtobevaccinatedateachsite

NEXTMEETINGONJAN19

BaldevSinghSirsa

ThechequefromPresidentRamNathKovind, inNewDelhionFriday.Anil Sharma

Kovind gives Rs 5 lakh, Governors & chiefministers too donate for Ram Temple

NIA summons farm unionleader for questioning, hesays bid to derail protest

SUPPLEMENTARYCHARGESHEET INTRPSCAMCASE

New Delhi

THESECONDPAGE2 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHEINDIANEXPRESS,SATURDAY, JANUARY16,2021

WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

The importanceof averdicton India’s inter-faithmarriage lawNEWEPISODEEVERYDAY

In today’sepisode,we're lookingataAllahabadHighCourtverdictanditsimpactonIndia's lawfor inter-faithmarriages.

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EXPRESSRESEARCH EXPRESS EXPLAINED

INDIANS INSURINAME:WHYNORETURN

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Omar Abdullahconsultation, then the SupremeCourtneedstostepinwithwhathappened in J&Kand start hear-ing us out and let theweight ofour arguments make up theirminds,”saidAbdullahduringtheIdeaExchangeprogrammeatTheIndianExpress (detailedtranscripttobepublishedMonday).AbenchheadedbythenChief

JusticeofIndiaRanjanGogoihadissued notices on August 29,2019,onthepetitionsrelatingtoJ&Kandreferredittoafive-judgebench chaired by Justice NVRamana. The five-judge benchtook up thematters onOctober1,2019,butsomeraisedthepointthattheseshouldbereferredtoaseven-judge bench. This prayerwas rejected onMarch 2, 2020.ButduetoCovid-19andthesub-sequent national lockdown,hearing of almost everymajorcase involving constitutionalquestionshasremainedpending.Omar Abdullah, however,

said he will have to trust theSupreme Court when it madethe observation that it can turnbacktheclockwhenitcomestochanges made to the law per-taining to J&K, but said he feelsthat it will reach a pointwhereit will be impossible to undosomeof thechanges.“The timewill end up being

of theessence.Youcannothaveindefiniteperiodofdomicilebe-ingchangedorlandlawshavingbeenaffectedorcadreof J&Kad-ministrativeservicesandpoliceofficersbeingchangedor forestservices officers being changedand similar changes being putintoplaceandthenturnaroundandsayallthiscanbeundone….because somebodywill say somuch water has flown in theJhelumthatwewillnowhavetoaccept this as the new reality...whichisnotwhatwearewillingtoaccept,” saidAbdullah.While commenting on the

lackof4Gconnectivityinmajor-ity of J&K’s districts, the deten-tionsofpolitical leaderslikePDPleaderNaeemAkhtar and travelrestrictions on themainstreamleaders, Abdullah said, “Whichfundamental rights dowehavetoday?None. You do not enjoythe right to free speech. Youdonotenjoytherighttofreemove-ment… and for the BJP, this isnormal.IguessthisistheJammuandKashmirthatwascarvedoutandtheyaretellingusitisnormalandlearntolivewithit...which,Iamsorry, Iamnotwillingtodo.”

Kovind donatesas well for his “blessings andgoodwishes”, sources said.The sources said the Chief

MinistersofMadhyaPradeshandUttarakhand, Shivraj SinghChouhan and Trivendra SinghRawat respectively; the Gover-nors ofMaharashtra, HimachalPradesh, Jharkhand, andUttara-khand, Bhagat Singh Koshiyari,Bandaru Dattatreya, DraupadiMurmu, andBaby RaniMauryarespectively;andGujaratDeputyChiefMinisterNitin PatelmadedonationsonFriday.Uttar PradeshChiefMinister

YogiAdityanathhaddonatedlastyear. On Friday, the state Infor-mationDepartmentsaidAditya-nath had contributed anotherchequeofRs2lakh,PTIreported.According to the VHP, Chief

MinisterRawat gavea chequeofRs1.51 lakh, andGovernorMau-rya a cheque of Rs 1.21 lakh.KoshiyaridonatedachequeofRs1.11lakhataneventinNagpur.NCPchief SharadPawarwas

quoted by PTI as saying it was“strange”ifGovernorsweretak-ingpart inacampaigntocollectmoney for the temple.Onaqueryon themass con-

tactprogrammetoseekfundstobuildtheRamtemple,Pawarsaiditwas the right of any organisa-tion to seek funds, PTI reported.“But I have heard, I don’t know

howfar it is true, thatGovernorsof statesarealsotakingpart init.If that news is true, then it isstrange,”Pawarsaid,withouttak-inganynames,accordingtoPTI.The donation drive for the

templehasbeenspearheadedbythe RSS and VHP. Sources saidRSS chief Mohan Bhagwat hadvisitedValmikiTempleonDelhi’sMandirMarg,wherechiefpriestKrishnashah Vidyarthimade adonation after a ceremonialprayertokickstartthecampaign.SwamiAwadheshanandGiri

“went begging” for the templeto Dalit settlements in Nagpur,while Sadhvi Rithambara led asimilar drive amongmembersof the Scheduled Castes inMumbai, theVHPsaid.RSSleadersSureshJoshiand

Manmohan Vaidya too leddrives in different states. Trustchief and VHP leader ChampatRaivisitedTejgaonvillageinRaeBareli,UttarPradesh,whereatafunction organised by formerBJP MLA Surendra BahadurSingh,achequeofRs1,11,111wasgiven to Rai. Following this, Raimet UP Governor AnandibenPatel,whodonatedaswell.“Programmeshavebeenheld

in all state capitals. Themove-ment is catchingmomentum,and there is a lot of enthusiasm.We haven’t yet started collec-tions in seven states, which in-clude Tamil Nadu, Kerala,Manipur, Haryana, and Delhi,”VHPspokespersonBansal said.Although thedrive to collect

donationsinDelhiwillbeginonlyon February 1, several business-men andpoliticians fromDelhihaddonatedon January14dur-ingtheinaugurationoftheTrust’scampofficeinKailashColony.Among thosewho donated

were industrialists PunitDalmiya, Subhash Goyal, and SK Jindal, and MPs GautamGambhirandParveshVerma.TheTrusthadannounced in

December 2019 that it wouldlaunch the donation drive inJanuary. Ithadsaidthatnearly4lakhvolunteerswouldcover55crore people (11 crore families)in5 lakhvillages inawhirlwind44-day campaign endingFebruary 27, the first day of theholydipat theKumbhMela.ThepushbyHindutvagroups

tocollectdonationshavealsoseensome incidents of violence andclashesbetweencommunities.InDecember,clasheserupted

in aMuslim-dominated villageinIndoredistrictaftermembersofright-wingHindugroupspar-ticipating inarally tocollectdo-nations for the Ram temple,stoppedinfrontofamosqueand

allegedlyraisedslogans.A few days before this inci-

dent, there were clashes inUjjain's Muslim-dominatedBegumBaghneighbourhoodaf-ter slogans were raised in aBharatiya Janata YuvaMorcharally, leadingtostone-pelting.

ComedianyettopresenthisactattheIndoreshow when he was arrested.“WhenIwenttovisitNalininjail,hewasworriedaboutmysafetyas there is just the twoof us. Hekept repeating that he did notcrack any jokes on religion,” hesaid. The brothers lost theirmothertwomonthsago.Among thosearrested, Sada-

katwas innoway involvedwiththe show, uncle Yunus Khanpointedout.Hewas in Indore tomeethisgrandmother,andwenttomeet his friend Faruqui. “Hewasarrestedfornomistakeofhis.He is a clean-heartedperson, al-wayswillingtohelp,”Yunussaid.Not much is known about

Anthony,apartfromthefactthatheisanIndoreresidentandwasthe“eventcoordinator”.Nobailapplicationhas beenmovedonhisbehalf.Faruqui’s tourmanager and

stand-upproducerVisheshArorasaidFaruquihadbeendoingthisparticular comic routine sinceNovember, had done 25 showsalready andwas to do 20moreacrossdifferentcitiesafterIndore.Prior to theHyderabad showonDecember31too,therehadbeensome trouble,with Faruqui get-tingthreatsonline,Arorasaid.Sotheyhadarrangedbouncers.AccordingtoArora,theyhad

bouncers in Indoreaswell. “Butwhenthemobcame,thebounc-ers disappeared,” themanagerwho was in Delhi at the timesaid.HeaddedthatFaruquihadneverfacedtroublefromtheau-dienceduringashowearlier.Arora,whoclaimstohavealso

representedKunalKamraamongothers, saidhe advises clients tocancel shows if threats escalate.“ButMunawar decided that hewoulddotheseshows(aswedid-n’tseeaproblem).”Faruqui’s lawyer Shrivastav

said the FIR filed by Gaud, theconvenor of Hindu RakshakSanghatan, did not specify thecomments allegedly made byFaruqui.“Thepoliceshouldhaveverifiedtheallegationsandthenarrested the accused,” he said.The lawyer added that allegedremarks by Faruqui againstHomeMinister Amit Shah andonGodhrariotswerebasedonavideoshotabout fouryearsago.Town Inspector of Tukoganj

Police Station Kamlesh Sharmahad earlier told The IndianExpress they had no evidenceagainstFaruquidirectlyandthathehadbeenbookedasanorgan-iser.“There’snoevidenceagainsthim for insulting Hindu deitiesor Amit Shah,” he said. He saidthetwovideossubmittedbythecomplainant were of anothercomedian with him allegedlycracking jokesonLordGanesh.

Form own groupThe unions also objected to

thefilingofFIRsagainstfarmersparticipating in the protests,Income Tax raids on arhtiyas(commission agents) backingthe farmers, andNIA notices tothree transporters sendingbuses toDelhi anda journalist.During themeeting, Tomar

asked the unions if theywouldend the agitation if the govern-mentwere to firm up a discus-sion on an Act guaranteeingMSP.Tothis,theunionssaidtheywould continue to protest untilthethreefarmlawsarerepealed.Emergingfromthemeeting,

Tomar told reporters that “thediscussioncouldnotreachade-cisive turn” and the two sideshad decided to meet again atnoonon January19.“Iamhopefulthattheunions

willmakeeffortstotakeforwardtoday’s discussion.Weeven toldthemthatiftheysowish,theycanformtheirowninformalgroup,ofthosewhocandiscusslawsprop-erly,theirexpectationsofthegov-ernment,whatisinthelawsthatisagainstthefarmers. If theydis-cuss andmake a proposal, thegovernmentisreadytodiscussitwithanopenmind,”hesaid.Thegovernment’ssuggestion

thattheunionsconstituteanin-formal group to list grievancescomesaftertheunionsrejectedafour-memberexpertcommitteeappointedbytheSupremeCourt,saying the members were infavourof the farmlaws.On Thursday, Bhupinder

SinghMann, president of BKU(Mann) and chairman of AllIndia Kisan CoordinationCommittee, recused himselffromthecourt-appointedpaneland said “I will always standwithmyfarmersandPunjab”.Defendingthegovernment’s

approach to the negotiations,Tomar told reporters that “thegovernment, during severalrounds of discussion withfarmer unions, identifiedmanyof their apprehensions, andagreedtodispeltheseapprehen-sions. Unions were also sent awrittenproposalonbehalfofthegovernment. But that proposal

wasnotacceptabletothemand,therefore, thedialogue ison.”Asked about the need to

haveaparalleldiscussionwhena committee has been formedby the Supreme Court, Tomarsaid: “We are all committed tothe Supreme Court andwill re-mainsoinfuture.Nooneshouldhave any doubt on that. TheGovernmentof Indiawelcomesthe Supreme Court decision.Whenever the committee…calls the Government of India,we will present our views…Since the farmerswere alreadyin talks with the government,andthedatefixed,weaskedtheunions if theywanted to comefor the talks, then theyshould.”To a query on the Attorney

General’s statement that sepa-ratistswereenteringthefarmerprotests,hesaid:“Asperour in-formation, farmers from two-threestatesareagitatingandsit-ting on dharna. Some of thefarmers, as representatives ofthese farmers, are negotiatingwith the government. The gov-ernment is holding talks withthem by considering them asrepresentatives of farmers.Wehavenot thoughtbeyondthat.”ShivKumarKakka,president

of Rashtriya Kisan MazdoorMahasangh,said:“Weraisedtheissue of Income Tax raids onarhtiyas in Punjab. Cases werefiledagainst900Haryanafarm-ers under (IPC section) 307 (at-tempttomurder).Then,theNIAraidstransportersandcallsthemforinterrogation.Youaretakingvindictive action against thosewho are helping us. This is notconstitutional. He (minister)saidwewill look into it and seewhythis ishappening.”“IraisedtheissueofMSPand

askedwhydoesthegovernmentescapefromadiscussiononMSPin everymeeting? Thedemandfor repeal of the three Acts isequal to the legal guarantee forMSP,”hesaid,addingthatoneofthe ministers said there hadneverbeena lawonMSP.“I saidif therewasno lawearlier, thenshouldn’t a lawbeenacted?”.Kulwant Singh, president of

JamhooriKisanSabha,said:“Wetook up thematter of NIA no-tices to four persons in Punjab.Three are transporters and thefourthajournalist.TheministerstoldusthattheywillasktheNIAto have a re-look. We askedthem to stop all political pro-grammesof theBJP in favourofthe farm laws in Punjab, on thelines of Haryana. They said in-structionswill be issued to thePunjabBJPunit too.”“When they suggested that

we set up a five-member com-mittee,weopposeditbyraisingour hands.What is the point ofsuch a committee? Even now,onlya fewofusspeak,”hesaid.Abhimanyu Kohar,

spokesperson for RashtriyaKisan Mahasangh, said: “Wetold theministers that we arefarmers,notyourpoliticalrivals.We have neither contested anyelection in the past, nor doweplan to do so in future… Weasked themwhy theywere tar-getingindividualswhenwehadnothing personal against them.We said our protest will inten-sifyif theycontinuesuchtactics.Wewill neither step back, norend the agitation under thesepressuretactics.Apowerfulgov-ernmentshouldnot feel threat-enedby themasses.”Balbir Singh Rajewal, presi-

dentofBKU(Rajewal),said:“Werejected the proposal to form a5-member committee. Morethan 500 farmer unions of thecountry support this agitation,42 of them come for themeet-ings,only7speak.Whatelsedotheywant?Wewillnotformanycommittee.”Joginder Singh Ugrahan,

presidentofBKU(EktaUgrahan)said:“Iwillgowiththedecisionof all protestingunions on suchmeetings,butmypersonalopin-ion is that date after date formeetings are of no importance.It only shows that the govern-ment is buying time andwantsto tire us. Our focus now is tomake the Republic Day tractorparade successful. Increasingpressurewill force the govern-ment to repeal the laws.”

NIA summonsrepresented by Puran Singh intheninthroundoftalkswiththeGovernment. Speaking to TheIndianExpress,SirsaaccusedtheCentre of trying to derail thefarmers' protest. “First, theGovernment tried to derail thefarmer agitation through theSupreme Court, now it is usingtheNIA,”hesaid.On Tuesday, Attorney

GeneralKKVenugopalhadtoldthe Supreme Court that theGovernment has “been in-formed there is a Khalistani in-filtration” in the ongoing farm-ers’protestsonDelhi'soutskirts.The Indian Expresshas learnt

that Sirsa is among several per-sons, including activists, whohavebeenissuedsummons“forthepurposeofansweringcertainquestions” relating to the caseagainstPannuundervarioussec-tions of the IPC and UnlawfulActivities (Prevention)Act.“Manypeoplewhoareasso-

ciatedwith the farmers' agita-tionhavebeen sent these sum-mons. It is to terrorise thoseworkingfor farmers.Butwearenot going to be affected by this.We will not bend. The NIA isworking day and night to scut-tle the kisan parade on January26. The Government is bent ondefamingtheprotest,"saidSirsa.TheNIA's FIR in the case ac-

cuses “Sikhs For Justice, an'UnlawfulAssociation'undertheUnlawfulActivities(Prevention)Act, 1967, and other Khalistaniterroristoutfits”ofenteringintoaconspiracy.The FIR claims that “huge

fundsarebeingcollectedabroadfor on-ground campaigns andpropaganda against theGovernment of India includingstagingdemonstrationsoutsideIndianmissionsincountrieslikethe USA, UK, Canada, Germanyandso forth”.It claims that the “funds so

collectedarebeingsentthroughNon-Governmental Organi-sations to pro-Khalistani ele-ments based in India, to under-take terrorist acts and to striketerror in thepeopleof India.”AccordingtotheFIR,the“SFJ

leadership has planned largescale disruptive activities in-tended to damage governmentand private property and alsodisrupt suppliesandservices...”

WhatsApp chatsInthechats,theformerBARC

CEOappears tobetrying to fendoffcomplaintsagainsttheorgan-isationbytalkingoffavoursdoneto the BJP, andGoswami appar-entlyofferstohelpbymediatingwith the PMO, ministers andotherpersonalities,includingone‘AS’. Among thosenamed in thechatsareformerMinisterofStateRajyavardhanRathore.Despite repeated attempts,

Rathore was not available forcomment. There was no re-sponsefromPMO’sInformationOfficer Dheeraj Singh till thetimeof going topress.The supplementary charge-

sheet was filed against threepersons,includingDasgupta.Anearlier chargesheet onNovem-ber 25 had named 12 personsandsixchannels forallegedrig-gingof TRPs.Dasgupta and twoothers,RepublicMediaNetworkCEO Vikas Khanchandani andformer BARC Chief OperatingOfficerRomilRamgarhia,areun-derarrest.Dasgupta’s associationwith

Goswami goes back to the timewhenbothworkedatTimesNow.Dasgupta's advocate Arjun

SinghThakursaid,“Therearemo-tivated interests in leaking thechats between twoprivate per-sons who are known to eachother. There is nothing incrimi-nating in the chats, that are of aprofessional nature.” AmemberfromthelegalteamrepresentingGoswami refused to comment.Policehavesaidthatinvestigationisongoing, andasecondsupple-mentarychargesheetwillbefiled.

■April 17,2017‘Dasgupta’ tells 'Goswami'

that other channels, envious of"thesuccessofhischannel",werequoting ministers. 'Goswami'replies:"Allministerswithus."Hegoesontoadd,"...notevenasec-retarymeets India Today,NDTVandTimesisboycottedbygovt.”

■ July7,2017When'Dasgupta'talksabout

theMinistryof InformationandBroadcasting getting a com-plaint against Republic, 'Gos-wami' writes, "about the dishFTA (free-to-air) thing. rathoretoldmeandsaidheiskeepingitaside." Rathore, apparently, is areference to then I&B MoSRajyavardhanRathore.

■ April 4, 2019'Dasgupta' speaks about

complaintsbysomenewschan-nels to the Telecom RegularityAuthorityof India(TRAI)againstBARC, telling 'Goswami': “CanyouhelpbytellingAStotellTRAItopipedownonbarc?"'Goswami' says he can send

a message, adding whether'Dasgupta'couldpointoutthreeaspects where TRAI actionwould"hurtAS... politically".On April 6, 'Goswami' tells

'Dasgupta': "PMOhasbeen toldbymepersonallyaboutBARC."

■ April 21,2019'Dasgupta' tells 'Goswami':

"Best is if ASaskshimtostayoffBARC", in a reference to 'Rajat'(Rajat Sharma of India TV, whowas heading the NationalBroadcasters'Assocation then).'Goswami' replies: 'Don't get

BARCdirectly inAS gaze. Politi-cianshaveawayofseekingentry.'In a press conference on

December 26, the MumbaiPolice also claimed to have re-trieved emails between thenBARCemployees that indicatednumberswere being fudged tohelp Republic. The contentsstated,“Pleasefindbelownum-bers on English news. As re-quired Times Now numberswerechangedwhileRepublic iskeptthesame.”Anotherexcerptread, “...Times Now, CNNNews18 will be changed ... impres-sions of Times Now have beendecreaseddrasticallyacross theuniverse... the impressions ofRepublic TV remained un-changed..”

FULLREPORTSONwww.indianexpress.com

FROMPAGEONE

First shot at recovery today

Over 8,000 to get vaccine in capital today

onSaturday—Covishield fromtheSerumInstituteofIndiaandBharat Biotech's Covaxin. OnFriday,UnionMinisterofHealthHarsh Vardhan reviewed thepreparations, particularly theworkingofCo-WIN.The first phasewill also see

2,900 cold chain points, 240walk-in coolers, 70 walk-infreezers,45,000ice-linedrefrig-erators, 41,000 deep freezers

and300 solar refrigerators be-comeoperational.HealthMinistryofficialssaid

thatRs480crorewasbeingdis-bursed to states for the opera-tional cost of vaccinating the3crore priority group,with theshareofthesharestobedecidedaspertheirbeneficiaryload.Intherun-uptotherollout,

the Centre held over a dozenmeetings with states. On

Tuesday,thestatesweretoldto“exercise caution” against“proxies”, bymaking sure thatbeneficiaries seeded theirmo-bilenumberswithAadhaar.Atthe January 11 meeting, PMModi told states, “It ismy re-quest that the real-time datagenerated during the vaccina-tionshouldbeuploadedontheCo-WIN platform. The stateshavetoensurethis.Evenasmall

glitchcancausedamagetothismission." JammuandKashmirand Chhattisgarh,which havereported issues related to con-nectivity, have been providedwith an offline data uploadmechanism.Asearly asDecember1, the

firstdryrunofCo-WINwascon-ducted in Rajasthan andTelangana.Thefeedbackwasin-corporatedintheplatform.

hesaid.Over 10,000 people have

diedfromthenovelcoronavirusinfection in Delhi. Across thecountry, thevirushas sickenedmorethan1.05crorepeopleandkilledmorethan1.5lakh.The city has received 2.64

lakh doses of Covishield, theIndian variant of Oxford-AstraZeneca'sAZD1222vaccine,and 20,000 doses of BharatBiotech'sCovaxin,fortheimmu-nisationprogramme.“This is a totally unprece-

dented situation as thewhole

world has virtually come to astandstill because of the pan-demic.Whentherewasawaveof Covid-19 cases, all the non-Covidpatientsdisappeared.Wehadmanycancerpatientswhocameinatalaterstageofthedis-easebecausetheydidnotwanttocometothehospital[earlier],”DrShyamAggarwal(62),amed-ical oncologist and bonemar-row transplant specialist at SirGangaRamHospital,said.“It’s a newworld, andwe

have to end thepandemic,”DrAggarwal said. “A lot of things

have gone awry, and everyoneishoping that thisdiseasegoesaway so life can return to nor-mal.Thevaccine,besidestakingprecautions, is the only thingthatwill help us eliminate thedisease.”ChiefMinisterArvindKejri-

wal and Health MinisterSatyendar Jain will visit theDelhigovernment’sLokNayakHospitalonSaturdaytoinspectthe vaccination drive.Accordingtosources,anurse,acleaner, and a doctor will bevaccinated in the presence of

theCM.Calling it the “way for-

ward”, Dr Ravi Bansal (46), aseniorconsultantwiththede-partment of nephrology atPSRIHospital,said:“Theroleofvaccines is to decrease thenumberofpeoplewhoaresus-ceptible to thevirus. So, eitheryougettheinfectionorgetthevaccine. The virus should beeliminated from society oncethenumberof people suscep-tibletothevirusisreduced.Itisthedutyofeveryonetogetvac-cinated.”

Contact for Advt. Booking: M/s Friends Publicity Service

23276901, 23282028 (M): 9212008155, 9212665841.

EXP E S EDU TIONR S CA

New Delhi

3THEINDIANEXPRESS,SATURDAY, JANUARY16,2021

THECITYWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

INCOMING: 1,000LOW-FLOORCNGBUSES

SOURAVROYBARMANNEWDELHI, JANUARY 15

THE DELHI Metro network,which grew from 8 km to 380kmbetween 2002 and 2021, isusedby6.18per cent people inthecity forcommute,withover60percentpublic still depend-entonbuses, theDelhigovern-ment's socio-economic surveyhas found.The Metro is popularly

knownasDelhi's lifeline and iscredited with radically trans-forming thecity'spublic trans-portsystem.Ontheotherhand,the fleet of public buses, espe-ciallyundertheDelhiTransportCorporation, has steadilyshrunk over the last decade.On Friday, the DTC placed

orders for 1,000 low-floorCNGbuses, a decade after buseswere last inducted in the cor-poration. There are approxi-mately 6,693 public buses —3,760 DTC and 2,933 clusterbuses—inthecapitalasofnow,as against the Supreme Court-mandated requirement of11,000 buses."Congratulations Delhi!

After 12 years of wait, ordershavebeenplacedbyDTC to in-duct 1,000 low-floor AC CNGbuses.All thesebuseswillbeonroadby September 2021.Delhigovernment is committed to apollution-free Delhi by build-ing a world-class public trans-port system," Chief MinisterArvindKejriwal tweeted.According to the findingsof

the survey, accessed by TheIndian Express, the preferredmode of 63.62 per cent of thepeople is "public bus/schoolbus/charteredbus"and6.18percent take theMetro.Metro us-age is highest among residents

of theNewDelhidistrict (10.89per cent) and least in case ofnortheastdistrict (3.16),whichjoinedtheMetronetworkwiththe introduction of the Pink

Line in2018andremainshighlydependentonsharedautosandcabs.Thesurvey, thebiggestof its

kind, covered1.02crorepeopleand was conducted betweenNovember2018andNovember2019.While the Metro tickets

range between Rs 10 to Rs 60depending on the distancetravelled, busfares are rela-tively low,with themini-mum andmaximumfares being Rs5 and Rs 15 incaseofnon-ACbuses and Rs10-Rs 25 incase of ACbuses.Residents of the north dis-

trict use buses themost (75.18per cent), while Shahdara seesthe least use (50.25 per cent).In case of Shahdara, 21.51

per cent people use personaltwo-wheelers for commuting— above the city average of15.44 per cent.The survey found that de-

spite the acute shortage ofbuses in the city, it remainedthe most preferred mode ofcommutetotheworkplace,ed-

ucational institutes or otherplaces.Only0.32percentof thepeople use personal four-wheelers.Thepreferredmodeof com-

mute is along the linesof own-ershipofprivatevehicles,asde-tailed inpart oneof the survey,findings of which were pub-lishedbyThe IndianExpress lastSeptember.

It had re-vealed that ofthe20.05 lakhhouseholdssurveyed,51.78percentof the house-holds de-clared to beowners ofpersonal ve-hicles, out of

which 40.35 per cent possessonly two-wheelers, 4.34 percent households only four-wheelers and 6.59% house-holds possess both two- andfour-wheelers.The survey also found that

11.15 per cent people useshared autos, e-rickshaws andshared taxis to commute.Only 0.19 per cent of those

surveyed use hired autos andcabs,1.02percentcommuteonbicycles, and 2.08 per cent oncycle rickshaws.

BEFORE THE JAB, A FRESH COATPreparationsunderwayatLokNayakhospitaladaybeforetheCovid-19vaccinationdrivebegins, Friday.ThishasbeenDelhigovernment’s largestCovid facility.PraveenKhanna

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI, JANUARY15

DEPUTY Chief MinisterManishSisodia Friday launched theDelhi government’s StreetTheatre and Performing ArtsFellowship tosupportartists.The fellowship is aimed at

promotingstreetartinDelhiandhasbeenextendedto500artistsfrom diverse backgrounds in-cluding theatre, music, danceand finearts.DuringthelaunchattheDelhi

Secretariat,Sisodiasaid,“Thiswillcreate a taste for art and cultureamongthepeopleofDelhi.Therewill be live art performances onthestreetsaswehavecreatedthisfellowshiptogiveanopportunitytoartiststoexpresstheirart.”

He added, “Artists fromDelhi, over the past few years,have been asking me to pro-mote street art. They pointedout that though there are con-centrated cultural hubs likeMandi House, we need to ex-pand culture to all parts of thecity to give aplatform to streetartists toshowcase their art.”Thefellowshipcomesunder

Delhi government’s depart-ment of art, culture and lan-guages and offers a monthlystipend of Rs 5,000 to thosewhoareselected for it.Theartistswillperformina

teamof 10 everyweek at vari-ouspublicplaces Februaryon-wards. Each team has beentrainedby“eminenttheatreex-perts”andwouldincludeartistsofdifferentart forms.

LowestCovid casessince May 9

GOVERNMENT OF NCT OF DELHIDIRECTORATE OF GURDWARA ELECTIONSF-BLOCK : VIKAS BHAWAN : I.P. ESTATE :

NEW DELHI-110 002Phone No. 2337 0225, 2337 8681

PUBLIC NOTICEThe work relating to Revision and preparation of PhotoElectoral Rolls of all 46 Gurdwara Wards of Delhi SikhGurdwara Management Committee, had commenced w.e.f22.10.2020 and the last date for receipt of claims andobjections, being 31.12.2020.

The Directorate of Gurudwara Elections, GNCTD, in itsendeavour to make error-free Photo Electoral Rolls, hasordered physical verification of all Photo/Non Photo Electors, inthe existing Delhi Sikh Gurudwara Electoral Rolls. The fieldstaff/Enumerators have reported around 86,000 entries, whichare liable to be deleted, from the Delhi Sikh GurudwaraElectoral Rolls, on account of the electors being notresiding/dead /replicated entry.

Such lists are displayed for each ward by the EROs at theirrespective, Designated Centers. The list of such Electors is alsoavailable on our website, for anyone to view and object to anyentry/ entries, liable for deletion.“gurudwaraelections.delhi.gov.in”.

The Sikh Citizens are requested to please go through the listonline or at the Designated Centers and the objections if any,against the entry/entries, may be made before the respectiveEROs, within 07 days of publication of this Notice. Thedeletions would be carried out by the EROs, after expiry of thisperiod, after considering the objections received, if any, as perrules.

Sd/-(NARINDER SINGH)

DIP/Shabdarth/0552/2021 DIRECTOR (GE)

Fellowship to booststreet theatre, artists

New Delhi: The Delhi govern-ment has further reduced thenumber of beds reserved forCovid-19 patients from the ex-isting 30per cent to 15per centof the total bed capacity, andCovid ICUbeds fromexisting40percent to25percentof theto-tal capacity, orat least twice thenumber of occupancy of Covidbeds.This came on a day Delhi

recorded 295 fresh Covid-19cases on Friday, the lowest inmore thaneightmonths.“Lowest number of cases

recorded since May 9, 2020.Positivity rate in Delhi hasdropped to an all-time low of0.44%.Wearmaskandfollowso-cial distancing to keep yourselfand your family safe,” tweetedDelhiHealthMinisterSatyendarJain.ENS

1.2 CRORESURVEYED: PREFERREDMODESOF TRANSPORTATION

63.62%Publicbus/schoolbus/charteredbus

15.44%Personal two-wheeler 11.15%Sharedauto/e-rickshaw/taxi

1.02%Bicycle6.18%Metro

2.08%Cyclerickshaw

0.19% Hiredtaxi/auto0.32%Personal four-wheeler

Metro city’s lifeline but busesstill carry bulk of Delhiites

DELHI SURVEYC O M M U T I N G

CongratulationsDelhi!After 12 years ofwait,orders havebeenplacedbyDTC to induct 1,000low-floorACCNGbuses.All thesebuseswill be onroadbySeptember2021.Delhi government iscommitted to apollution-freeDelhi by building aworld-classpublictransport system

ARVINDKEJRIWALCHIEFMINISTER

Total VacantHOSPITAL BEDS 11,863 10,725VENTILATORS 1,430 1,108

Dailycases Recoveries Deaths TestsJan14 340 390 4 71,325Jan15 295 427 10 66,921Total 2,795* 6,18,357 10,732 97,33,648

CORONAVIRUSIN THECAPITAL *T

otalactivecases

TOTAL CASES

6,31,884

New Delhi


THECITYWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

SOFIAHSANNEWDELHI, JANUARY15

THE DELHI High Court Fridaysaid the right to receive salaryand pension is a fundamentalright under Article 21 of theConstitution, andwarnedthat itwill stop perks of councillors aswell as senior officers of civicbodies to utilise funds for pay-mentofsalariesofMCDworkers.It also sought details of the ex-penditure incurredonthem.Thecourtmadetheobserva-

tionsduringthehearingofamat-ter regarding non-payment ofsalariesandpensionsofemploy-ees of North and East DelhiMunicipalCorporations and thehealth institutionsrunbythem.“Weall get a lot of perks.We

as judges get a lot of perks. Ifsome of those perks are takenawaybecauseof someproblem,we are not going to suffer thatmuch.Wearealllivinglikelords,peopleat the top. Ihavenodiffi-culty in saying this, I am also abeneficiary of that.We can andwe should take the haircut as aresponsiblecitizen.Whyshouldthepoormansuffer, the class IVemployee?” observed JusticeVipinSanghi.ThedivisionbenchofJustices

Sanghi and Rekha Palli said thestatedreasonofpaucityof fundscannotbeacceptedasanexcuseforsuchnon-payment.The court said payment of

salariestoemployeesofcorpora-tions, including doctors, para-medicstaffandhealthcarework-ers, is an absolute necessity and

the same has to be prioritisedover other discretionary expen-diture that the corporations areincurring.“If anyonehas to take ahair-

cutduring these timesdue to fi-nancialconstraintsof thecorpo-

rations, ithas tobethepeopleatthe top,” it said, ordering civicbodies to place before court thedifferentheadsofexpenditureinrelation to their councillors andClass IandIIofficers.Duringthehearing, thecourt

wastoldthatthecivicbodieshadearliertakenloansfromtheDelhigovernment and the samewasreadjustedagainsttheirbasictaxassignment(BTA),whichalreadystood reducedon account of fallinrevenuesduringthepandemic.Thebenchobserved that the

RBI had last year imposed amoratoriumon enforcement ofclaimsbybanksandfinancialin-stitutions during the pandemicas the businesseswere hit. ThecourttoldtheDelhigovernmentthat the recovery could havewaited and that the samewasuncalledforasthetaxcollectionineverysectorwaslow.Thecourthas nowasked the governmentcounsel to seek instructions onthe aspect of release of loanamountswhichwere deductedearlier fromtheBTA.

The court also said theDelhigovernmentshouldbeconsciousof the fact that theemployeesofthese corporations are also vot-ers inDelhi. “If youare inpower,you are in power because ofthemalso.Don’t treat themas iftheyarenotyourvoters,” it said.Italsoobservedthat themu-

nicipal corporations may beruledbyadifferentpoliticalpartybut thecouncillorswerenot theones suffering. “They are sittingpretty;thatiswhywearesayingthatwehavetogivethemahair-cut. They will all be roamingaround in their cars, usingmu-nicipalfacilities,perksandpetrolandeverything.Theyarenotsuf-fering. It is the poormanwho issufferingandpeoplewhoareac-tuallyworking and risking theirlives,”observedthecourt.

Construction ofnew Parliamentbuilding beginsEXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI, JANUARY15

THECONSTRUCTIONofthenewParliament building com-mencedThursday,with labour-ers beginning excavationwork,saidofficials.The new building is being

constructedbyTataProjectsLtdand is estimated to cost Rs 971crore. The construction is ex-pectedtobecompletedby2022,in time for the 75thIndependenceDay.Earlierthisweek,a14-mem-

ber heritage panel gave its ap-proval to the new Parliamentbuildingwhilealsogivingthego-ahead to theCentral Vista rede-velopmentproject.TheSupremeCourt had asked the Centre toseek prior approval from thepanelandotherrelevantauthor-itiesbeforestartingconstructionof thenewbuilding.A senior official from Tata

Projectssaidthatdespitethede-layinstarting,theywillcompletetheprojectontime."Aplanofac-tionisalreadyinplacetoacceler-atetheschedulebyaugmentingresourceslikeskilledmanpowerand formwork, etc... The rein-forcementrequiredtobeplacedin the raft andwalls are ready.Otheroff-siteactivities likepro-curement of stone for externalcladding,MEP LLEs, carpets, etchappenedduringthese35days.Wearemorethanconfidentthatwe will be able to deliver thisbuilding to the nation on or be-fore time," said SandeepNavlakhe, vice-president and

business unit head of TataProjects Ltd.Laying the foundation stone

for the new Parliament onDecember 10, PrimeMinisterNarendraModihadsaidthatthenew building will fulfill thecountry’saspirationsof the21stCenturywhile symbolising the“co-existenceofthenewandtheold”. “The (existing) building isnowlookingtoretire.Itisincum-bent upon all of us to give 21stCentury IndiaanewParliamentbuilding,”hehadsaid.ThenewParliamentbuilding

will house larger LokSabhaandRajyaSabhahallswithcapacitiesof 888seatsand384seats toac-commodate an expandedParliament. The Lok Sabha hallwill also have an additional ca-pacity, up to 1,272 seats, to hostjoint sessions.Accordingtothedesignplan,

the architecture of the newParliamentshallcomplementorharmonisewiththatof thepres-entParliament andotherbuild-ingsof theCentral vista.

ANANYATIWARINEWDELHI, JANUARY 15

THREE PEOPLE, including aneight-year-old and a bystanderwhotriedtorescuehim,diedina fire that broke out in a build-ing at the furniture market inKirti Nagar Thursdaynight.DelhiFireServiceschiefAtul

Gargsaid, “Wegotacallaround11pmthata firehadbrokenoutat a godown at the KamalaNehru camp, where fires usu-ally spread very quickly. Abovetheshopwasaclusterof roomswithmany tenants. The build-ing had collapsed completely.Searchoperations for survivorswent on till morning.” He saidthat thecauseof thefirehasnotbeendetermined so far.The victimswere identified

as Rohit (20), Sanjay (32) andRajesh (8).Two of them were among

the families which lived in theeight rooms above the shop atthe furnituremarket.Rajesh'smotherManorama

(25), whoworks as a domestichelp, said, “We were sleepingandwokeupdue to a feeling ofimmense heat… As we wererunning out, I grabbed myyounger son, who is two yearsold.Rajeshcouldnotmake it ashe fell unconscious. There wasso much smoke, we couldhardly see.”First toarriveat thespotand

raise analarmwasRohit (20), aresidentof thenearby JJ colony.

Kamal (20), who works atone of the factories in the areaandisanacquaintanceofRohit,said, “Rohit drives a van andused to park it right near thisshop.Hewasthefirstonetono-tice the smoke coming out ofthe building. He raised thealarm, and managed to savemanypeople.”Kamal too helped in evacu-

ating people from the spot.“Rohit did not return when hewent back to save Rajesh,” hesaid.RinaDevi (35), Rohit’s aunt,

said, “We kept calling his mo-bile till 2 ambutwenevergot aresponse.He lost his life savingothers.” She said they also lostaration/groceryshopinthefire.Rohit’s cousin Gautam (14)

said, “A few of us searched forhis body in the morning andfound it around 8 am. It was inthe drain running behind thebuilding andwas buried underthe debris… I couldn’t recog-nisehimbuthehadatattooofastar on his arm and used towear white sneakers… that’show I knew itwashim.”Meanwhile, police are on

thelookout fortheownerof thebuilding.Vijay Kumar Singh, SHO of

the Kirti Nagar police station,said, “WegotaPCRcall at10.55pm, and reached the spot in afew minutes. The landlord ofthe building, Tony, has fled. Acase has been lodged againsthimunder IPCsections285and304, and investigation is on.”

SUKHBIRSIWACHCHANDIGARH,JANUARY15

TOAVOID long jams on roads, alarge number of farmers plan tomovetoDelhibordersasearlyasJanuary 20 to participate in the“tractor parade” planned forRepublicDay.Farmoutfit leaders estimate

the participation of almost onelakhtractorsfromHaryanaalone,with asmany as 7,000 villagesdespatchingseveralvehicles.Thenumber of protesters at Delhibordershasbeenincreasingoverthepastfewdays,withmoretrac-tors from Punjab and Haryanajoiningeveryday.“Thenumberofthosemoving

to Delhi borders daily has dou-blednow,aheadofthe‘tractorpa-rade’,”saidSureshKoth,afarmerleader fromHisar,whohasbeencampingatSinghuborder for50days.“The bigmovement of trac-

tors to Delhi borders fromHaryana villageswill start fromJanuary 23.Wehope at least 20tractors from each villagewith200personsineachtractortrolleymovestoDelhiborders.Frombigvillages, 150-200 tractor trolleyswillmovetoDelhi,”saidKoth.Farmers say that every day,

300 tractor trolleyswith at least20 farmers in each move toSinghu border fromPunjab andHaryana. “As many as 50-100

tractortrolleysreturntotheirvil-lages to perform their duties intheir fields,”saidafarmleader.On Friday, farmers in nearly

500 vehicles from Sirsa andFatehabad districts of HaryanamovedtoDelhi’sTikriborder.Byevening, the cavalcade hadcrossedHisarhopingtoreachbySaturdaynight. “Farmers equatethecurrentagitationwitha‘free-dom struggle’ -- a fight to savetheir land fromcorporates,” saidMandeepNathwan,afarmleaderfromFatehabad,wholedthecav-alcade.“This protestwill change the

politicalatmosphereofthecoun-trywith farmers, labourers and

working classes joining hands,”saidNathwan,who is presidentof the Kisan Sangharsh Samiti,Haryana.“Frommanyvillages,vehicles

gotoDelhiforaday,carryingfooditems for protesters. Villagerswhowishtodonaterationormilkinformvillagecommitteesintheevening so their items can betaken toDelhi in themorning. Alarge number of farmers nowdon’t sell theirmilk, and insteadprefertogiveittoprotesters,”saidNathwan.Nathwan said farm leaders

have also started a campaign tomakevillagesawareabout“anti-farmer forceswhomaytryto in-

cite people to harm the ongoingprotest”.“Inthepastfewdays,wehave heard different types ofprovocative calls regarding the‘tractor parade’ from somepeo-plewhowant to see violence inthe stir to defame the agitators.Butwehaveinitiatedacampaigntomakefarmersawarethattheyshouldfollowthecallof onlytheSanyuktKisanMorcharegardingthenextsteps.Ouragitationwillremainpeaceful,”saidNathwan.Meanwhile,aseniorHaryana

Police officer said the crowd isgrowing by the day: “We arekeeping an eye on the develop-mentsandwilltakeanappropri-atedecisionifandwhenneeded.”

To avoid jams, Haryana farmerssay will start for Delhi on Jan 20

JIGNASASINHANEWDELHI, JANUARY15

AHEADOF Republic Day, whenfarmersplantobringthousandsof tractorsintothenationalcap-ital, members of the NihangcommunityFridayheldamarcharoundSinghuborder.Around 50 horse riders, all

from the community of armedSikh warriors, took out theirhorses andmarched from themainstageat theprotest site tillthe end, spanning over 15 km.Farmerscalledthisapreparationand rehearsal for Republic Day,

when they will hold a marchfrom Singhu to Tikri and otherbordersofDelhi.Kashmir Singh (19), one of

the youngest in the group, dec-

orated his horse with flowersandcolourfulfabric.Hesaidthatwhile farmers will marchwiththeir tractors, Nihangswill usetheirhorses insolidarity.“I have been here for almost

one month. We will supportfarmersbecauseweknowtheselawswillkilltheirlivelihood.Myuncleisalsoafarmerandhetellsme that he isn’t able to sell hisvegetables at a good price.Wewant the government to wakeupandhelpus,”hesaid.Balancing two drums on his

horse, Sikander (27) said, “Weneedtopractisebecausewewillhave to cover a longer distance

on Republic Day and also playthedrumsandraiseslogans.Wewant the government to repealthe laws or wewill enter Delhiandmarchontheroads.”Sofar,over300NihangSikhs

have joined fromPunjab.Chandkaur (58) said he

joined the protestwith farmersonNovember28andaddedthathe doesn’t want the farmers tostay at the borders. “We havebeen suffering here. I see themeetings and other news, thegovernment is not ready to lis-ten to us.Wewill go to Rajghator Jantar Mantar, where theCentrecanseeus.”

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI,JANUARY15

THEWORK for the redevelop-ment of NewDelhi railway sta-tion is in full swing with theRailway Land DevelopmentAuthority organising virtualroadshowsforglobalstakehold-erstoengagetheminvariousas-pectsof theproject.Infrastructuremajorssuchas

Adani, GMR, JKB Infra, France’sSNCF, Arabian ConstructionCompany and Anchorage hadtakenpartintheproject’spre-bidmeetingheldinSeptember2020.

Asper theestimatebyRailways,the project is going to involve a$680million investment and isslated to be completed in fouryearsafter thework isawarded.Theroadshowsarebeingheld

between January 14 and 19 andprospectiveinvestorsanddevel-opersfromvariouscountries andcities such as Singapore,Australia,DubaiandSpainwillbeengagedindiscussionsabouttheproject concept and the pro-posedtransactionstructurewithpotentialbidders.“RLDA has also developed a

walkthrough of the project thatwill be showcased during the

roadshowforanin-depthunder-standing," said Ved ParkashDudeja,vicechairman,RLDA.The NewDelhi railway sta-

tion is planned to be developedon a Design-Build FinanceOperateTransfer(DBFOT)model,whereintheprivatepartywillgetthe lease of the station buildingfor60years.Theprojectiscurrentlyatthe

Request for Qualification (RfQ)stage, with the due date onFebruary2,2021.TheMasterPlanarea is approximately 120hectares, out of which 88hectares is being planned inphase1.

3 civil volunteers held for issuingfake Covid challans, pocketing cashEXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI, JANUARY 15

THREECIVILdefencevolunteershave been arrested fromNorthAvenue for allegedly issuingfake Covid-19 challans and ob-taining penalty amounts intheir Paytmaccounts.DCP (New Delhi) Dr Eish

Singhal said the accused —Sunny(19),YashwantRathi (21)and Lucky (20) — are posted inthe office of SDM (NewDelhi),JamnagarHouse. "Theyused toissue fake Covid-19 challans topeople visiting TalkatoraGarden.Themattercametono-

tice on December 31, when aShakarpurresidentwasissuedafakechallanbytheaccused,"hesaid.In his complaint, the victim

said hewas sitting in TalkatoraGarden with a friend, whenthree civil defence volunteersallegedly fined them Rs 2,000each for notwearingmasks.As the complainant did not

have Rs 4,000 cash, he paidthemviaPaytm,policesaid.He,however, got suspicious overthe authenticity of the challanand later approachedpolice.Singhalsaid,"Weconducted

a detailed inquiry and soughtdetails of the alleged Paytm

beneficiary. We got to knowthattheallegedmobilenumberwasregisteredintheSDMofficein Sunny’s name."Duringthecourseof inquiry,

itwas revealed that thechallanwasnot issuedfromSDMofficeandwas found tobe fake."All the three Civil Defence

volunteers posted in SDMOffice, Jamnagar House, wereidentifiedandarrestedwiththehelpof technicalsurveillanceaswell as local information," headded.During questioning, they

confessedtohaving issuedfoursuchfakeCovid-19challans,po-lice said.

Contractorarrested for‘abducting’DGCA staffEXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI, JANUARY15

DELHIPOLICEarresteda24-year-oldman and a taxi driver for al-legedlyabductinganofficialfromthe Directorate General of CivilAviationofficeandsnatchinghisphoneandIDcard.Police said the accused,

VaibhavChaturvedi, a contractor,wasallegedlyangryafter staffersofaplanedidnotallowhimtousethewashroomwhen the planewaslanding.Thetaxidriver,KuwarSingh(37),has toldpolice thathesimply followedChaturvedi's in-structionsashethoughtthelatterwasaseniorofficer.On January 8, Chaturvedi

went to theDGCAoffice to file acomplaint.Aseniorpoliceofficersaid, “He (Chaturvedi) told usthathefoundtwo-threeofficialsinaninebriatedstateandhadanaltercationwiththem.Heposedasa seniorpoliceofficer andab-ducted a Junior SecretariatAttendant named SurenderPrasadfromtheoffice.”TheaccusedtookSurenderto

SafdarjungHospitalforamedicalexaminationbut thedoctors re-fused to do the test as he didn'thave apolice application.Whileanother DGCA employeereachedthehospital,ChaturvediallegedlysnatchedhisphoneandtookoffwithSurenderinhiscar.He allegedly snatched

Surender's phone and ID cardlaterandlefthimatBPMarg.Theaccused also gave him his per-sonalnumber.DCP (South) Atul Kumar

Thakursaid,“Wereceivedacom-plaintfromSurenderonJanuary8. During the investigation, wetraced thevehicle number fromCCTVs near Safdarjung and theDGCA hospital. Chaturvedi hadalreadygivenhispersonalnum-ber to Surender.We contactedhimandtoldhimtoappear forastatementbuthedidn’tcome.Hewas thenapprehended fromhishouse in Rohini.With his help,thedriverwasalsoarrested.”Chaturveditoldpolicethathe

found“3-4mendrunkinaroom”when hewent to file his com-plaintattheDGCAoffice.Inanat-tempttotakeactionagainstthem,he allegedly abducted Surendertogethimmedicallyexamined.

Along the 15-km stretch at Singhu, 50horsemen trot ‘in R-Day preparation’

Theconstruction isexpectedtobecompletedby2022

8-yr-old, man whotried to rescue himdead in market fire

Anartist’s impressionof thenewrailwaystation

Youngstersatop JCBs, seeingoff tractorsnearHisarFriday

At themarch. PremNathPandey

Pullsupcivicbodies, seeksdetailsof theirexpenditure; tellsDelhigovt:Theiremployeesareyourvoters too

MCDworkers unpaid, High Courtwarns thatits councillors could be given a ‘haircut’

Sanitationworkershaveprotestedagainstsalarydelay.Archive

BRIEFLYDashcamhelpscatchmanNewDelhi:Threedaysaf-ter a 26-year-old manwas killed in a hit-and-run inWestDelhi, policearrested the accused.Policesaidtheyidentifiedtheaccusedwiththehelpof a dashboard cameraon a car. The incidenttook place on Tuesdaynight under the RajouriGarden flyover and thevictimdiedduring treat-mentThursday.

MPtotakevaccineonSatNewDelhi:FormerUnionminister and sitting LokSabha MP MaheshSharma Friday said hewould take theCovid-19vaccineSaturday,becom-ingoneof thefirstparlia-mentarianstogetjabbedforCovid in thecountry.

DUcollegeprincipal inplagiarismrowgets2ndtermNewDelhi: The Principalof Delhi University'sAryabhattaCollegeManojSinha,whowas accusedof plagiarism by anAcademic Councilmem-berandagainstwhomaninquiry is pending, hasbeengivenasecondterm.

PleaseeksraisingriotscompensationtoRs50lakhNew Delhi: The DelhiHighCourtFridaysoughta reply from the Delhigovernmentonapetitionseeking enhancement ofcompensation for thosewho suffered losses dur-ingtheNortheastDelhiri-ots in February last year.Thepetitionersbeforethecourtsoughtatotalcom-pensation of Rs 50 lakh,includinganinterimpay-mentofRs10 lakh.ENS

$680 million project afoot to redevelop NewDelhi station, Railways woos global investors

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For vaccinationyou must:

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Wait for 30minutesafter you have beenvaccinated

Do take the second doseat due date for completeprotection

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& citizens above 50 years of age or to citizens

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New Delhi

GOVT&POLITICS6 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHEINDIANEXPRESS,SATURDAY, JANUARY16,2021

Office of the Executive EngineerProvincial Division, P.W.D., Hapur

(Email ID:- [email protected])No:- 2161/3A Date- 30-12-2020

E-Procurement Notice Inviting TendersOn behalf of Governor of Uttar Pradesh invites online bids through e-tendering from the registered firm for Road Category A, B, C and Das per applicable. The bid document may be uploaded from dated 03.02.2021 to 11.02.2021 up to 2:00 PM. Technical bids will be openedon date 11.02.2021 at 03.00 PM. by the Committee in the office of the Executive Engineer, Provincial Division, PWD, Hapur. Date offinancial bid will be inform separately to the technically qualified contractors. In case of holiday or office closed the technical bid/financialbids will be opened on next working day in the same manners.

1. The Bid Security and Tender Document fee must be deposited through Internet Banking only2. All registered contractors have to upload Turnover certified by CA of last 5 Years and details of maximum cost work satisfactorily

completed in last 5 years on Chanakya Software before submission of tender.Details of E-Tender uploaded on http://etender.up.nic.inshall also be uploaded on UP PWD Chanakya Software before last date and time of submission of Tender.

3. Bidder has to upload required documents as per Government order No. 879(1)/ 23-7-2020 P.W. Anubhag-7 Lucknow Dt. 25.08.2020for “Prahari Application” in Chanakya Software by accessing hyperlink available for Tendering Process. UR for Prahari ishttp://wms.uppwd.gov.in/Prahari/

4. Terms and other conditions related to bid available on http://etender.up.nic.in

Sl.No

DISTRICT Name of Work Estimatedcost

(Rs. inLac)

BidSecurity

(Rs.inLacs)

Cost ofTender

Time ofCompl-etion

Address ofExecutiveEngineerexecutingthe work

Address ofSuperinte-

ndingEngineer

Address ofChief

Engineer

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

1 HAPUR Dibai Bridge (canal Patri) Meerut border toRajapur road (ODR) and Simbhali toNawada road junction and rapid diversionimprovement work

15.00 1.50 300+ 500+ GST@18%

02Month

EE,PD, PWD,

Hapur

SE, BSRCircle,PWD,

Bulandshahar

CE,MZ, PWD,

Meerut

Sd/-Assistant Engineer

P.D., PWD,Hapur

Sd/-Executive Engineer

P.D., PWD,Hapur

UPID-158845 Dt. 13.01.2021www.upgov.nic.in

Office of Superintending Engineer,Moradabad Circle, P.W.D. Moradabad

E-Procurement Notice Inviting TendersNo. 155/Nivida-Moradabad/20-21 Date 08-01-0211. On behalf of the Governor of UP, tenders for following work are invited by the Superintending Engineer, Moradabad Circle, PWD Moradabad onlineon website http://etender.up.nic.in from registered contractors from 16-01-2021 at 10.00 am to 05-02-2021 at 05.00 p.m. Technical bid /Prequalificationof tenders shall be opened on 06-02-2021 at 12.30 pm in office of undersigned by tender committee in presence of authorised representatives/bidderswho wish to be present. Financial bid of the tenders’ who qualify in technical bid shall be opened on date and time as specified by a notice in the officeof undersigned. In case of Government holiday the required process shall be carried out on next working day.

Rules/conditions & details of the tender are available at website http://etender.up.nic.in.Sd/-

E.E. (Rajeev Govil)Superintending Engineer Moradabad Circle, PWD Moradabad

Ph. 0591 – 2414619

Sl.No

Name of Work Estimatedcost (withBitumen)Rs.in Lacs)

BidSecurity(Rs.inLacs)

Time ofcompletion of thework (Includingrainy season)

Cost of tenderdocumentsincludingGST (RS.)

Category of roadcontractor eligible

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 81 Amroha Construction of road from vill. Biderna to Amroha-

Chajlet road87.00 6.35 3 Months 2354.00 “A & B”

Road category

2 Amroha Construction of road from vill Naurangi(Joya) toSirsa mohan

45.00 4.25 3 Months 2354.00 “A, B & C”Road category

3 Amroha Construction of road from Kumakhiya- Laloonagla-Chakkalilet road (ODR) to Ghansurpur Milak


4 Amroha Construction of road from Nagli Meera Shah roadto Nagli Kat

80.00 6.00 3 Months 2354.00 “A, & B”Road category

5 Amroha Construction of road from Amroha-Kailsa-Pakwada road to Dhela Nagla via Kailsa


6 Amroha Construction of road from Mau to Dhana Nagla 78.00 5.90 3 Months 2354.00 “A & B” Road category

7 Amroha Construction of road from Deeppur to Budanpur viaAmheda

77.00 5.85 3 Months 2354.00 “A & B”Road category

8 Amroha Construction of road from Meera Sarai SirsaKhumar Faunda Patti road to Sultanpur


9 Amroha Construction of road from Gangdaspur to MilakGauspur via Khairo wali madaya


10 Amroha Construction of road from Raghunathpur to Devipura 42.00 4.10 3 Months 2354.00 “A, B & C” Road category

11 Amroha Construction of vill. Bhatpura Sakaniya road. 41.00 4.05 3 Months 2354.00 “A, B & C” Road category

12 Amroha Construction of road from vill. Lathirapul toKaniram Ashram


13 Amroha Construction of road from Kumrala- Chakanwala-Bachraun road Km 2 to Kumrala


14 Amroha Construction of road from Dhanauri to Naseerpur 97.00 6.85 3 Months 2354.00 “A & B” Road category

15 Amroha Construction of road from Gajraula- Khadgujar-Mukari road km 8 to Mehmdi


16 Amroha Construction of road from Gajraula-Mukari-Rajabpur road to Baldana


17 Amroha Construction of road from vill. Shahbazpur road toGanga Tigri Mela


18 Amroha Construction of road from vill. Apraula Chauraha tovill. Takhatpur Govt. School


19 Amroha Construction of road from vill. Jajru to Alipur 48.00 4.40 3 Months 2354.00 “A, B & C” Road category

20 Amroha Construction of road from vill. Kaural to Nawadavia Naya Gaon road


21 Amroha Construction of road from Dehra Kadar Baksh toMalakpur Bhoor


22 Amroha Construction of road from Bhutpura to NekpurJr.high school


23 Amroha Construction of road from Beebra Khurd toMubarakpur via Shahidpur


24 Amroha Construction of road from vill. Prithvipur khurd toShahid Arvind Samadhi via vill. Yusufpur


25 Amroha Construction of road from Peepli Ghosi road toPrithvipur Khurd via Gajsthal Degree college


26 Amroha Construction of road from Usmapur to Kasampur Mev 41.00 4.05 3 Months 2354.00 “A, B & C” Road category

27 Amroha Construction of road from Naseer Nagla to Peelakund 41.00 4.05 3 Months 2354.00 “A, B & C” Road category

28 Amroha Construction of road from Bahadurpur Chak road toJabdi Kura Mafi road


29 Amroha Construction of road from Jamnakhas road toKutubpur Hamidpur


30 Amroha Construction of road from Mubarakpur Sadpur roadto Sultanpur


31 Amroha Construction of road from Rampur Junnardar toBadshahpur


32 Amroha Construction of road from Nehtaur-Noorpur-Amroha-Joya road to Jamnakhas nahar ki patri toBeebra khurd via khera


33 Amroha Construction of road from vill. Kailbakri jamnakhasroad to Bhukapuri via Chamunda


34 Amroha Construction of road from Vill. Kailbakri to SherSingh Chikara College


35 Amroha Construction of CC road in Abadi portion of Ringroad/Bypass of District amroha (ODR)


36 Amroha SR of Laloo Nagla-Chakkalilet road to Umri Sadatroad km 2 to Bamaniya Kothipura road


37 Amroha SR of Khaikhera to Behlolpur road via Karmallipur,Rehdra, Kaserva


38 Amroha Road Safety work on Chetan Chauhan road (ODR) 54.00 4.70 3 Months 2354.00 “A, B & C” Road category

39 Amroha SR of Khawri to Rasoolpur Bhanwar Ahatmali road(ODR-33)


40 Amroha Renewal from P.C. on Nauganwa to Bijnor JilaSeema Nahar ki Patri road (ODR)


DISTRIC

T

UPID NO-158889 DATE-14/01/2021www.upgov.nic.in

Office of the Commandant 23rd Battalion SAFPTS(DOG)Bhadbhada Road Bhopal(M.P) NO.

No. commandant/23rd bn/SAF/PTS(DOG)/M-105/2021, DATE-07/01/2021:-Notice inviteing Limited Tender along with seale Tender

1- Online E-Tender along with Sealed Tenders are invited for purchase of approximately14 dog pups of the following breeds (04 pups of breed Mudhol hounds, 02 pups of breedKombl, 02 pups of breed Chippiparai, 02 pupps of breed Kanni, 02 pups of breedRajapalayam, 02pups of breed Rampur hound) for PTS(Dog) under 23rd Battalion SAFBhopal(M.P.) Tender documents can be download from website https:mptenders.gov.in.To obtain Tender form and documents online, deposit fee of Rs: 2000/- and e-procurementprocessing fee online on website https://mptenders.gov.in to download Tender form and documents.2-Tenders and documents can be submitted online on website https://mptenders.gov.intill prescribed date and time, and hard copy of sealed tender must be deposited in theoffice of Deputy Commandant PTS(Dog) 23rd Battalion SAF, Bhadbhada Road Bhopal(M.P.) till prescribed date and time.3-Visit website https://mptenders.gov.in for perusing and downloading detailedinformation.4. Time Table -

Sd/-Commandant

G.17733/20 23rd battalion SAF, Bhopal

Sr. no. Detail of Tender Date and Time

01 Last date and time for buying online Tender formand documents

18.01.2021 Time 05.30 P.M.

02 Last date and time for submitting online Tender 18.01.2021 Time 05.30 P.M.03 Last date and Time for depositing sealed hard copy

of Tender in PTS(Dog) 23rd Battalion18.01.2021 Time 05.30 P.M.

04 Date and time for opening Technical Bid 19.01.2021 Time 11.30 A.M.

05 Date and time for opening Prize Bid 25.01.2021 Time 12.00 PM.

Qû ¦fªf IYe QcSXe, ¸ffÀIY W`X ªføYSXeªf¶f °fIY IYûSXû³ff IYe Q½ffBÊ ³fWXeÔ, °f¶f °fIY dPX»ffBÊ ³fWXeÔÜ

JD(U) may get50% share incabinet berths

EC moves to protect honest statepoll officials from ‘victimisation’

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEPATNA, JANUARY15

FACING CRITICISM over thestate’s law and order situation,Bihar Chief Minister NitishKumar on Friday urged theme-dianotto“demoralisethepolice”andaddedthatBiharisstillatthe23rd position in the country intermsof crime.Referring to the murder of

IndiGo airlines stationmanagerRupesh Kumar Singh two daysago,hesaidthepolicewerethor-oughlyinvestigatingthecaseandthe state DGP was personally

monitoringtheprobe.Kumarwas speaking to re-

portersaftertheopeningofa6.3-km,six-laneroadnamedafterfor-mer PrimeMinister Atal BihariVajpayee.AtalPathconnectsNehruPath

— commonly known as BaileyRoad—andJPsetu.Theroadproj-ectcostRs380crore.Responding to questions on

the investigation into the IndiGoexecutive'smurderintheheartofthe state capital, Kumar said,“Therearereasonsformurderandtherearepeoplebehindit.Thepo-lice are investigating thematterwithallearnestness.”Asked if the statepolicewas

losingitscredibility,heshotback,“Hasthemediaforgottenthelawandordersituationbefore2005?Do not demoralise the police.Bihar is still placed on the 23rdposition in thecountry in termsof crime.”When asked furtherquestions,theChiefMinistersug-gestedmediapersonstoprovidealeadintotheinvestigation.

Asked about law andorder, Nitish tells medianot to demoralise police

SANTOSHSINGHPATNA, JANUARY15

DESPITEBEINGthejuniorpartnerin the ruling coalition in Bihar,with43MLAsascomparedtotheBJP’s 74, JD (U)might succeed ingettinga50percentshareincab-inetberths,sourcesfrombothpar-tieshavetoldTheIndianExpress.Themuch-awaitedcabinetex-

pansionislikelyanytimenow.TheJD(U)hadsentoutames-

sageofdispleasuretoitsallyaftersix out of seven partyMLAs inArunachal Pradesh switched toBJP. Ever since, BJPhas been try-ingtoplacatetheJD(U).BiharBJPin-chargeBhupendraYadav andstate BJP chief Dr Sanjay Jaiswalrecently called onnewly-appoi-ntedJD(U)presidentRCPSingh.SourcesinBJPandJD(U)hint-

ed that top leaders had “almostagreedona50:50 cabinet berthsharing formula on the lines ofseat-sharingbefore2020Assem-bly and2019 LokSabhapolls”. ABJP leader said, “AmidposturingbytheRJDinitsbidtocreatepolit-ical instability, theBJPisshowingmagnanimity in the sharing ofcabinetberthswiththeJD(U).”

SHUBHAJITROYNEWDELHI, JANUARY15

EIGHTMONTHSafterthebound-ary rowerupted between IndiaandNepal,foreignministersofthetwocountriesdiscussedtheissueandexpressed the commitmenttoearlycompletionofthebound-aryworksinthedisputedareas.VisitingNepal Foreignminis-

ter PradeepKumarGyawali saidthe two sides aremindful thattheyshouldnotletanyoutstand-ing issue “become irritant in anotherwisefriendlyrelationship”.AskedaboutChina'sinfluence,

hesaidNepalhasalwaysensuredtheir soil is notmisused againstanyof itsneighbours.After the bilateral meeting

with External Affairsminister SJaishankar,Gyawalisaid, “Yes,wediscussed theboundarymatters.Webotharecommittedtofinaliseitattheearliest.”Hewasrespondingtoaques-

tionataninteractionorganisedbyIndianCouncil ofWorldAffairs.“Needlesstosaythattherelation-shipbetweenneighbourshas itsowncharacters.Mutualtrust,un-derstandingandrespect for eachother’s sensitivitiesandconcerns

contributetostrengthenthefoun-dationofsuchrelationships.”“Inthisspirit,wedesiretostart

the conversationwith a view toresolving thequestionof bound-ary alignment in the remainingsegments.Many of youmay beawarethatNepalandIndiashareover1,800kmlong internationalboundarymostofwhichisjointlymapped.Only in the stretchesofsome kilometers, thework re-mainstobecompleted,”hesaid.“Wepursue an independent

foreignpolicyandourconductofexternalrelationsisbasedonabal-ancedoutlook.Wedonotharbourill-willagainstanyone.Amitywith

all and enmitywith none is ourmotto.Guidedby the sameprin-ciples,weseek to foster relationswithneighbours andall friendlycountries around theworld,” hesaid,inathinly-veiledreferencetothebattle for influencebetweenIndiaandChina.Jaishankartweeted,“Co-chai-

red the 6th India-Nepal JointCommissionMeetingwith [email protected] re-viewof ourbroadongoingcoop-eration.Confidentthatourmulti-facetedpartnershipwillcontinuetostrengthen.”

FULLREPORT ONwww.indianexpress.com

India, Nepal commit to earlycompletion of boundary works

ExternalAffairsMinisterS JaishankarwithNepalcounterpartPradeepKumarGyawalionFriday. Source:Twitter

DELHICONFIDENTIAL

MASTER PLANTOPLEADERSof theBJPhadathree-hourmeetinginDelhionFriday to discuss the campaign strategy for theWest Bengalelections. In themeeting, attended byHomeMinister AmitShah,BJPpresident JPNadda,BJPgeneralsecretary inchargeofWestBengalKailashVijayvargiya,amongothers, itwasde-cided thatShahandNaddawill visit thestateat least twiceamonthtoaddressrallies.PrimeMinisterNarendraModi,whoisgoingtobethestarcampaigner, is likelytoholdralliesonlyafterelectionsareannounced, sources said.

NEW ROLEMEMBEROFParliamentandformerChiefJusticeofIndiaRanjanGogoihastakenontheroleofanarbitratorinaprivatedispute.Earlierthisweek,notingtheconsentofbothparties,atwo-judgebenchoftheSupremeCourtappointedhimasasolearbitratorinadisputeinvolvingaThailand-basedcompany.

OLD VACANCYYETANOTHER sessionof Parliamentwill begin in a fortnight,butthereisnowordonfillingupthepostoftheDeputySpeakerofLokSabha.Theforthcomingsessionwillbethefifthofthe17thLok Sabha. And it is unusual that the government has let theConstitutionallymandatedpostlievacantone-and-a-halfyearsafterconstitutionofthe17thLokSabha.TheCongresshadraisedtheissueinthelastsession,withparty’sfloorleaderAdhirRanjanChowdhurywritingtotheSpeaker.SomeCongress leadersar-guethatthepartyshouldbegiventhepostasbyconventionthepostisgiventoanon-rulingparty,buttheywonderwhethertheBJPwouldextendsuchacourtesy,giventhatrelationsbetweenthegovernmentandthemainoppositionpartyhavehitthenadir.

NewDelhi: Takingnote of incidents of “victimisation” of state chiefelectoralofficersandotherofficialsinthepost-elec-tionperiodonflimsygrounds,theElectionComm-issionhasdirectedallstatestoseekitspriorapprovalbeforeinitiatinganydisciplinaryactionagainstsuchofficers during their tenure, as alsoup tooneyearaftercompletionof theirstintwiththepollpanel.Inalettertothecabinetsecretaryandchiefsec-

retariesofallstatesandUnionTerritoriesThursday,theECsaidithasnotedsomeincidentsof “victimi-sation”ofCEOsandadditional,joint,deputyandas-sistant CEOs in thepost-electionperiod. It said insuchascenario,theseofficersarenotonly“demo-tivatedbutalso theirmorale isgreatly reduced”.TheECsaid“thestate/UTgovernmentsshallin-

variablyobtainpriorapprovalof theCommissionbeforeinitiatinganydisciplinaryactionagainsttheChiefElectoralOfficersandotherofficersuptoJointChiefElectoralOfficerduringtheirtenureandalsouptooneyear fromitsexpiry”. PTI

Government of Uttarakhand “e” procurement NoticeBid Identification no :- 168 / Nivida(Garhwal) Dated : 15.01.2021[ksy@10

Name of works EstimatedCost

Period ofCompletion

CONSTRUCTION OF MULTIPURPOSE HALL AT

PITHORAGARH

Name and Address of Officer inviting the Bid:-

Date and Time Availability of bid documents

in the portal:-

Pre Bid Meeting

Last Date/Time for receipt of bids in the portal:-

2050.00 Lakh(Including G.S.T)

14 months

General Manager, Construction Wing,

Uttrakhand Peyjal Nigam , 403/1

Indira Nagar, Dehradun

19/01/2021 -18.00 Hrs.

25/01/2021 -15.00 Hrs.

04/02/2021 -17.00 Hrs.

Details of subsequent addendum/corrigendum/cancellation etc. may be obtained from the website.

Further details can be seen from the e-procurement portal "https://uktenders.gov.in"

S.N.

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

mÙkjk[k.M is;ty lalk/ku fodkl ,oa fuekZ.k fuxedk;kZy; eq[; egkizcU/kd] fuekZ.k foax

mRrjk[k.M ljdkj dk midze403@1 bfUnjk uxj] nsgjknwu&248001 nwjHkk"k@QSDl% 0135&2764075

General Manager (Garhwal)

E-mail:- [email protected], [email protected]

New Delhi


GOVT&POLITICSWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEJAIPUR,JANUARY15

FORMER UNIONminister andbusinessman KamalMahavirprasadMorarka died inMumbai on Friday evening fol-lowingaheartattack.Hewas74.“Hewas fine till around5pm

today,butpassedawayshortlyaf-terwardsowingtoaheartattack,”said Rajendra Sharma, one ofMorarka’saides.RajkumarSharma,MLAfrom

NawalgarhinRajasthan,tweeted,“ShockedatthedemiseofformerUnionMinister and famous in-dustrialist of Nawalgarh, ShriKamalMorarkaji.Thisisirrepara-bledamagetoallofus.”Morarkawasincumbentpres-

ident of Samajwadi JanataParty(ChandraShekhar).Hewaselectedto Rajya Sabha in 1988. In

November1990,hewasappointedaMinister of State in the PrimeMinister’sofficeduringthetenureof ChandraShekhar–hismentor—asPM.HisuncleRRMorarkawasalsoanMPinthethirdLokSabha(1962)fromJhunjhunu.Born and brought up in

Mumbai, Morarkawas alwaysconnectedtoNawalgarh,thelandofhisancestors,inJhunjhunudis-

trict. In the early 1990s,Morarkaset up theM RMorarka - GDCRural Research Foundation inNawalgarh, inmemoryof his fa-therMRMorarka.TheFoundationfocusesonresearchanddevelop-ment to help farmers, includingrecyclingof farmwaste“throughtraditionalandmodernmethods.”Overtheyears,ithashadaspecialfocusonorganicfarming,andthedevelopment andpromotion ofVermicultureTechnology.Morarka also served as Vice

President of Rajasthan CricketAssociation aswell as the VicePresident of Boardof Control forCricketinIndia(BCCI).Morarkawas also known for

Left of Centre, a collection of hisspeechesinParliament,onthesig-nificant events of the 1990s, in-cluding theBofors scam, the lib-eralisation of the economy, theBabri Masjid demolition, theHarshadMehta scamandmore,

while hiswildlife photographywas presented in a coffee tablebook Roar: AWalk Through TheWildWithKamalMorarka.A man of many talents,

Morarkawas also theproprietorof Hindi daily Chauthi Duniya,amongothers.Hehadlastcontestedanelec-

tionin2016.InMay2016,Morarkahadthrownhishat inthering,asanindependentcandidate,onthelastdayof nominations forRajyaSabhabyelectionsfromRajasthan.HewasbackedbyCongressMLAsandotherOpposition legislators.However, BJP candidate MVenkaiah Naidu, then a Unionminister, aswell asparty leadersOm Prakash Mathur,Harshvardhan Singh ofDungarupur royal family and re-tired RBI officer RamkumarVerma,hadmanagedtowin.Morarka is survived by his

wifeandtwodaughters.

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI,CHANDIGARH,LUCKNOW,JANUARY15

CONGRESSLEADERRahulGandhion Friday said Prime MinisterNarendraModi doesnot respectfarmers andaccusedhimof try-ingtotirethemoutastheyprotestagainstthethreenewfarmlaws.Leading aprotest in the capi-

tal as part of a nationwide cam-paignbyhisparty,hesaidthefarmlawswill finishfarmersandis in-tendedtohelpahandfulofindus-trialists.Hesaidfarmershaveun-derstood that their freedomandrightsareinperilandaddedthatiftheir rights are allowed to besnatchedawaytoday, themiddleclasswillbethenextinline.“Ifwedon’t stop this here, thiswill go

on,”hesaid.“Look at themedia, IT, retail,

power, look at entire India... youwillseeonly4-5people.Thereare4-5bigbusinessmenandModi...and no one else. No farmers, noworkers,nootherbusinessmen...Airport,court,everythingisbeingrunbythesefivepeopleandwhois allowing them to run these –NarendraModi,” he said. RahulsaidthePrimeMinisterthinks“hecan tire out the farmers”. “...hethinks in 10 days, 15 days or 20days... theywill all go back... be-causehedoesnothave thebasicrespectforthefarmers.Hethinksthe farmerswill runaway if theyare forced to sit for 10, 15, 20, 30days...Modiji... you cannot scarethefarmersof India.”He said the government’s

talkswithfarmerunionsarede-

laying tactics.InHaryana, several Congress

leadersweredetainedastheyap-proached theRaj Bhavanaspartoftheparty’snationwideprotestsagainstthenewlaws.“The arrest of Congressmen

who took to the streets to sup-port the annadata on KisanAdhikarDiwasshowsthedicta-torialmindsetof theBJP-JJPgov-ernment,”formerCMBhupinderSinghHooda said.InLucknow,Congressworkers

led by state party chief AjayKumarLalluwereallegedlytakenintocustodywhiletheyweretry-ing to march towards the RajBhawan.A seniorpoliceofficerdenied

this,sayingtheywereonlyshiftedto aplace earmarked for the agi-tationtomaintainlawandorder.

JOHNSONTABENGALURU,JANUARY15

ACABINETexpansioncarriedoutbyKarnataka ChiefMinister B SYediyurappaonJanuary13totakehisteamstrengthto33–onelessthanitsfullcapacityof34–hasex-poseddeepdivisionsandalackofunityinthestateBJPunit.Contrary toexpectations that

the cabinet expansionwillmo-mentarilystrengthenthepoliticalpositionofYediyurappa,themoveappearstohaveexposedmultipleloyalties and differences in theparty–despitetheChiefMinistertrying to tone down his ownwishesinthechoiceofnewmin-isters.Withmoredissidencelikelytoemergeinthepartyandwithinthecabinetwhenportfoliosareal-lottedYediyurappahasdecidedtoholdbackonportfolioallotmentsuntil theconclusionofatwo-dayvisit to the state byUnionHomeMinister and senior party leaderAmitShah.“HomeMinister Amit Shah

will be arriving onSaturday andwill leavethenextday.Portfolioswill be allotted after that,”YediyurappasaidonFridaywhenaskedabout thedate theportfo-lioswill be allotted to the sevennewministers.Thecabinetexpansionwhich

sawYediyurappaaccommodatingthreemembersof the legislativecouncil – two of themnewen-trants to the party from theCongress and thirda leaderwho

lost the2018statepolls –has re-sulted indissent amongcoreBJPworkers andnearly10-12MLAswhoareamongthe105whowonthe2018pollsonBJPtickets.ThefactthatYediyurappahas

given12oftheavailable34minis-terialpoststonewentrantstotheBJP from theCongress and JDS–whowere among17MLAswhohelped the BJP overthrow theCongress-JDS coalition andmuster themajority of 113 seatsforformingthegovernment–isasource of anger among partyMLAsaswell as the fact that fiveMLCshavebeenincluded.Themostvirulentstatements

againsttheCM’schoiceshascomefromVijayapuraMLABasavarajPatil Yatnal,whohas repeatedlyattacked Yediyurappa and saidthathewill not last longasCM–without attracting any censurefromthepartyhighcommand.“Hardworkandhonestyhave

notbeenrecognisedinthecabinetexpansion.TheChiefMinisterhasgivenprominencetopeoplewhoblackmailedhim tomake them

ministers.Oneofthemisnowapo-liticalsecretaryandtwoareminis-ters,”Yatnal said inVijayapuraaf-ter theexpansion. “YediyurappahasblackmailedthepartybyusingtheVeerashaivaLingayatcommu-nity. Even thoughPMModi andAmitShahwerenotkeen,thecab-inetexpansionhasbeendone.”“YediyurappaandVijayendra

[the CM’s son] have bought outCongress leaders aswell. Is theCongress alive as an oppositionanymore?... Those who insultHinduGodsarebecomingminis-ters,”Yatnalsaid.OtherMLAswhohave been

vocal in their dissent are SathishReddy, who lamented that hewouldnothavebeenignoredifhispolitical mentor H N AnanthKumarwas alive; ArvindBellad,who said evenhis fatherwas ig-noredinthepastforcabinetposi-tionsintheBJP;RajuGouda,whosaid onlyMLAs fromBangaloreand Belagavi have got promi-nence.SomeothercoreBJPMLAswhohaveexpressedunhappinessincludeSunilKumar,SARamadas,Thippareddy,MPRenukacharya,Abhay Patil, Shankargouda PatilandSomashekharReddy.“Some 10-12MLAs are un-

happy. If they have any com-plaints, let them approach theparty leadership in Delhi. Theyshould not bring the party intodisreputebymakingpubliccom-ments,” Yediyurappa saidwhileattemptingtodeflecttheblame.

FULLREPORTONwww.indianexpress.com

SHAJUPHILIPTHIRUVANANTHAPURAM,JANUARY15

FROMAhikeinpensionsthatwillbenefit 48 lakhpeople to laptopschemes for disadvantaged sec-tions and adigital platform thataims toprovide20 lakh jobs, theLeft government inKerala Fridayrolledoutaseriesofsocialwelfaremeasures inthe lastBudgetof itstermwiththreemonthstogofortheAssemblypolls.According to theBudgetpre-

sentedbyFinanceMinisterThomasIsaac, themonthly socialwelfarepensionhasbeenincreasedbyRs100toRs1,600.Laptopswillbepro-videdathalf-costtochildrenfromthefamiliesof fishermen,SCsandAntyodayahouseholds,andat25percentcostforthoseintheBPLcat-egory“toattainthegoalofalaptopinallhouseholds”.Thebig-ticketannouncement,

however, is themove to set up adigital jobsplatform. “Weaimtoutiliseall thepossibilitiescreatedby work near home and workfromhome.Opportunitieswillbecreated for companies to recruitemployees for centralisedorde-centralised jobs. Details of thoseprofessionalsandtrainedpersonswillbemadeavailableonadigitalplatform,’’ Isaac saidwhile pre-sentingtheBudget.Thegovernmentwillalsopro-

vide benefits to candidates se-lectedbycompaniesthroughthisplatform, he said. These includeloansforequipmentpurchasedbystate-run financial institutionswithgovernmentguaranteesandwork station facility on conces-sionalrent.

Thestategovernmentwillalsoshoulderthesocialsecurityliabil-ity of those being recruitedthrough theplatform, includingtheemployer’scontributiontotheProvident Fund. “If PF is not pre-ferred,insurancepremiumforter-mination benefit payable on re-tirement will be paid by theGovernment. Health insurancewillbeprovided,’’ Isaacsaid.Forthis, theMinistersaid, the

KeralaDevelopment InnovationStrategyCouncil (K-DISC)will berestructuredasanodalagencyformaintaining contactwith firmsprovidingjobs,impartingtrainingto job-seekers dependingon re-quirement,maintaining a plat-form for providing information,andencouraginginnovation.Around500post-doctoralfel-

lowshipswithamonthlystipendof Rs 1 lakh will also be intro-duced, Isaacsaid.The Budget has proposed a

welfare fund forworkers undertheNational Rural EmploymentGuaranteeScheme.Anotherhigh-lightoftheBudgetistheproposedmapping of atrocities againstwomeninall localbodies.


I am with Trinamool:Satabdi does a U-turnEXPRESSNEWSSERVICEKOLKATA,JANUARY15

ADAYaftervoicingherdiscontentwith her party, TrinamoolCongress (TMC)MPSatabdi RoyonFridaydid an about-turn andsaidshewas“withTrinamool”.Following a meeting with

DiamondHarbourMPAbhishekBanerjee,who is ChiefMinisterMamataBanerjee’snephew,Roysaid, “I amwithTrinamool. I amstayingwiththepartybecauseofMamataBanerjee.Thisisthetimeto stay together and put up aunited fight. I have apprisedAbhishek Banerjee ofmy com-plaintswiththeparty.Hehasgivenassurancestoaddresstheissues.IamnotgoingtoDelhitomorrow.”Therewere reports that Roy

mightmeetUnionHomeMinister

Amit Shah inDelhi on Saturday.On Thursday, the three-timeBirbhumMP had claimed in aFacebook post uploaded by herfans’ club that “some people”werestoppingherfromreachingout topeople, andnot informingheraboutpartyprogrammes.On Friday, the TMC reached

out to her even as she resignedfrom the state government’sTarapithDevelopmentBoard.

AHEADOFPOLLS

KeralaFinanceMinisterThomas Isaaconhiswaytopresent theBudget.Express

Kerala Budgetlists pensionhike, digitalplatform for jobs

SREENIVASJANYALAHYDERABAD,JANUARY15

FACINGPOLITICALheatover inci-dents of vandalism at templesacrossthestate,theYSRCPgovern-mentinAndhraPradeshonFridayreleased investigation reports inninecasesinwhichoppositionTDPandBJPworkersandsympathisershavebeenaccusedof spreadingfalsenewsand instigating theat-tacks.Thereports,however,donotsaywhotargetedthetemples.Thegovernmentclaimedthat

17 TDPmembers and four BJPmemberswere involved incasesrelated to vandalismat temples.ThirteenfromTDPandtwofromBJPhavebeenarrestedinthiscon-nection, itsaid.BoththeTDPandBJPsaidthe

governmentwastryingtoblametheoppositionparties insteadofgoing after the culpritswho in-dulgedinvandalism.TDP general secretary Nara

Lokeshsaid, “Insteadof arrestingthe personswho actually dese-crated the idols andattacked thetemples,theyarearrestingpeoplefortheirpostsonsocialmediaandorwritingreportsinnewspapers,highlightingtheissue.”TheTDPhasclaimedthatthere

havebeenover 145 incidents ofvandalismat templesduring theYSRCPregime.However,thegov-ernmenthaslistedonlyninecases,blaming TDPor BJPworkers forfalseinformation.BJP state president Somu

Veerajusaidthegovernmentwasmaking a desperate attempt toblame other political parties.“Thereisnoefforttocatchtherealculprits. This isanattempt toputblameonotherparties,”hesaid.Inoneof thecases, TDPsym-

pathiserCMadhusudhanReddy,who posted a message onTelegramaboutmiscreantsdam-aginganidolofGoddessSaraswatiat Srungeri Shankar Math inGuntur district,was arrested forspreading false information. Thepolice report said Reddy for-warded thenews about an inci-dentthatoccurredtwoyearsago.In a separate case, two TDP

workers and two BJP workerswere arrested in RajahmundryUrbanonSeptember12 lastyearforalleged falsepropagandathat

aLordGaneshaidolhadbeendes-ecrated.InaDecember5case, thepo-

lice arrestedBSubbareddy, 44, aTDP sympathiser, for putting agarland of slippers on an idol ofLordHanuman.Inanothercase,onDecember

28, the Kurnool Police arrestedfour TDP workers – SyedFakruddin, B Jayaramudu, GRamanjaneyulu andGPeddaiah–forallegedlydemolishinganidolatatempleinMaddikera.TheFIR,however,stillstatesthatunknownoffendersdemolishedtheidol.InaDecember30case,police

inKurnoolarrestedanallegedTDPsympathiser,whowas a templecommitteemanagementmem-ber of Lord Anjaneya Swamy atMarlamanda village, after he re-portedthatlegsofoneoftheidolsinthetemplehadbeenchopped.Twojournalistswhoreportedhisclaiminlocalmediawerealsoar-rested.Thepolicereportclaimedthatanelectrician,whileworkinginsidethetemple,slippedandfellcausingdamagetotheidol.Inaseparatecase, six local re-

porterswhowere alleged TDPsympathiserswere arrested onchargesof reporting “false”newsthat idols of Lord LakshmiNarasimhaandGoddessChenchuLakshmiweredamagedatatem-pleinPrakasamdistrict.Thepolicesaid the six knewthe idolsweredamagedduetowearandtear.Inthreeothercases,policear-

restedtwoallegedTDPactivists inVisakhapatnam,aBJPmandalsec-retary in Srikakulamand an al-legedBJPworkerinthethirdcaseoversimilarallegations.


EXPRESSNEWSSERVICELUCKNOW,JANUARY15

BSPpresidentMayawationFridayannouncedthatherpartywouldcontestthestateelectionsinUttarPradesh andUttarakhand nextyearonitsown.“TheBSPinboththesestates,

unlike Bihar (2020 Assemblyelections) and Lok Sabha polls(2019),will not have anyunder-standingwith any other party,”Mayawati told the media onFriday.SheappealedtoBSPwork-ers not to celebrate her 65thbirthday due to the pandemicand instead help those in need.Shealsoreleasedherbook,titledAtravelogueofMyStruggleRiddenLifeandBSPmovement.“Ontheoccasionofmybirth-

day,Iwouldliketomakearequestto the Central government. Thefarmershavebeenprotesting inDelhiwithfull fervour...ourpartywouldagainrequesttheCentretoagreetoallthedemands,”shesaid.Hailing thevaccinationdrive,

she said “our party requests theCentral government to providethevaccinetocommonpeopleinthe entire country for free”. Shesaid if the Centre does not, thenthe state governments shouldprovidevaccinationfreeofcost.

MANOJCGNEWDELHI,JANUARY15

WHILEWATCHINGtheJallikattuevent fromanelevatedpodiumat an arena in Avaniyapuramnear Madurai on Thursday,Rahul Gandhi stood up at onepointtoseethebulltamingmoreclosely, prompting one of thecommentators to say: “LookRahul Gandhi has stood up tosee... He didn’t knowotherwiseJallikattu would not have beenbanned...Hehaspromisednottobanitagain.Congratulations,thebullhaswon.”Thestraycomment,notinjest

butinenthusiasm,perhapssum-marised the Congress’s new-found politics in Tamil Nadu. Itwas a course correction and anemphaticoneat that. The timingis a no-brainer since Assemblyelections are justmonths awayandthepartyinalliancewiththeDMK is trying hard to upset theAIADMK-BJPcombine.The commentator then said

hadRahul been invited to TamilNadu,thebanonJallikattuwouldnot have happened in 2006. HewasreferringtothebanimposedbytheMadrasHighCourtin2006on the bull-taming sport after aspectator'sdeath.The court ruling aside, itwas

the Congress-led UPA govern-mentwhichhad in July 2011 in-cluded bulls in a list of animalsthat “shall not be exhibited ortrainedasperforminganimal”,ef-fectively banning the local sport,which the then Environment

Minister JairamRamesh feltwasa“barbaricpractice”.Thedecisioncameinforhuge

criticism in Tamil Nadu. TheCongress’s state leadershipwasnot amused. Andmuch to theirchagrin, the SupremeCourt up-held theEnvironmentMinistry’sorderinMay2014.SowhenRahulwenttoTamil

NadutowatchtheJallikattueventon Thursday, itmarked the em-phaticconclusionofacoursecor-rectionbytheCongresswhichbe-ganin2014itself.The first flip-flop by the

Congress came inApril 2014. InthemiddleoftheLokSabhaelec-tions, the central governmentsubmitted an affidavit in theSupremeCourt reversing its ear-

lierdecision.Ittoldthecourtithadremoved thebull fromthe list ofanimals not to be exhibited ortrainedasperforminganimals.From2011 to 2014, the UPA

government had threeEnvironmentMinisters – JairamRamesh,JayantiNatarajanandMVeerappaMoily.Thefirstnotifica-tioncamein2011whenRameshwas theminister. Natarajan didnotdoanythingasthematterhadreached the Supreme Court bythen. In2014, theCentre–whichwas under immense pressure –reversed the stance.Moilywasthentheminister.“In order to strike a balance

andtosafeguardtheinterestofallstakeholders, including the ani-mals,while keeping inmind the

historic,culturalandreligioussig-nificanceof theeventandwithaview toensure that nounneces-sarypainorsufferingiscausedtothe animals, participants andspectators, the government ofIndia proposes to exempt ‘bulls’participating in ‘Jallikattu’ in thestate of Tamil Nadu from thepurviewofthe2011notification,”theCentresaidinanaffidavit.Butthestanddidnotfindfavourwiththeapexcourt,whichbannedthesportinMay.In2017,whenthe issue flared

upagainwith thousandsof pro-testers assembling at Chennai'sMarinabeach tooppose theban,theCongress extended support.“TheCongress respects therightsofpeopleofTamilNadutopreservethecultureandprotecttherichtra-dition of Jallikattu,” Congressspokesperson leader RandeepSinghSurjewalahadsaidthen.ButRahul’s latestvisithasnot

amusedeveryone. “It is too littletoolate.Theissuestartedin2011.This (his visit) is clearly election-related,” Natarajan, who is nolongerwiththeCongress,toldTheIndianExpress.Her successor,Moily, said, “It

isaculturalsport,aculturalevent.Ifyougoonbanningsuchthings...therearethousandsofsuchthingswhichhappen... it is a traditionalsport. People knowhowto safe-guard themselves. Even the ani-malsenjoysuchasport.Everyvil-lageinthecountry...wehavesuchculturalevents.Peopletakepleas-ureinit...itisnotthateverycoun-tryman should take to cricket orfootball... it isavillagesport.”

PM thinks he can tireout farmers, says Rahul

Rahul’s Jallikattu visit: Cong coursecorrection ahead of TN elections

‘RequestCentre togivevaccinetocommonpeople forfree’

BSP to go it alone in UP,Uttarakhand: Mayawati

RahulGandhiinAvaniyapuramnearMaduraionThursday.PTI

Congress leadersduringaprotestagainst theCentre’s farmlaws, inNewDelhi.Thepartytookoutmarchesatall statecapitalsandgheraoedRajBhawansonFriday.Express

BSYdelays portfolioallocation as anger growsin party over cabinet picks

TMCMPSatabdiRoy

KAMALMAHAVIRPRASAD

MORARKA

1946-2021

Ex-Union minister Kamal Morarka dies at 74

Andhra govt releasespolice reports, blamesTDP, BJP workers forspreading fake news

AndhraCMYSJaganMohanReddyparticipates in‘KamadhenuGopuja’ tomarkKanumafestival, inGunturdistrict. PTI

TEMPLEVANDALISM

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI,JANUARY15

PRIMEMINISTERNarendraModiwill flag off eight trains connect-ingdifferentregionsof thecoun-trytoKevadiya,theareawhichhastheStatueofUnity,onJanuary17.Modiwillalsoinauguratesev-

eral other projects related to therailways sector inGujaratduring

the event. Chief Minister ofGujarat and Union RailwaysMinisterwillbepresentontheoc-casion.Modi will inaugurate the

Dabhoi – Chandod gauge con-vertedbroadgauge railway line,Chandod–KevadiyanewBroadGaugerailwayline,newlyelectri-fiedPratapnagar –Kevadiya sec-tionandthenewstationbuildingsofDabhoi,ChandodandKevadiya.

PM to flag off 8 trains to boostconnectivity to Statue of Unity

BSYediyurappa PTI

New Delhi


EXPRESSNETWORKWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

GOA

GovtdecidestoshiftIITprojectoutofSattariPanaji: Bowing to publicpressure, theGoagovern-ment on Friday an-nounced that the pro-posed IIT campus at ShelMelaulimvillageinSattaritalukawillbeshiftedtoan-otherpartofthestate.Theproject hasmetwith se-vereoppositionfromlocalresidents, who staged alarge-scale protest at thevillage, insisting that theywill not part with theirland for the campus.Speaking to reporters,Chief Minister PramodSawantsaidthestategov-ernment has decided toshift the project due toconstant opposition fromlocal residents. “We re-spect sentiments of peo-ple,whichiswhywehavedecidedtoshift...” PTI

GoaChiefMinisterPramodSawant

BRIEFLY

HARYANA

2arrestedfortryingtorapestudent inHisarHisar: An auto-rickshawdriverandhisaccomplicewere arrested for al-legedly trying to rape acollegestudentinsidehisthree-wheeler on inHisar, police said onFriday. The incident tookplace on Wednesdaywhenthevictimboardedthe auto-rickshaw to goto her educational insti-tute. Upon reaching theinstitute, the auto driverkept driving. He and hiscompanion then at-temptedtoallegedlysex-ually assault thewoman,said the police. Two po-licepersonnel werepass-ing by and heard theshoutsof thewomanandnabbedtheaccused. ENS

MAHARASHTRA

2DopplerradarscommissionedinHimalayasPune:UnionMinister DrHarsh Vardhan Fridaycommissioned twoof theten indigenously builtDopplerweather radarswhichwillcloselymonitortheweatherchangesovertheHimalayas.ServicesofX-bandDoppler radars atMukteshwar inUttarakhand andKufri inHimachal Pradeshwereinaugurated in a virtualceremonyontheoccasionof the 146th foundationday of the IMD. Coveringthe central andwesternHimalayas, thesedualpo-larised radarswill gatheratmospheric variationsandcanpicksignalsofex-tremeweather. ENS

UTTARAKHAND

GovttosponsorTVshowtoboosttourismDehradun: The govern-ment on Friday said itwouldsponsoraTVreal-ityshowbasedonadven-turesports—tobehostedby actor AmitabhBachchan — in a bid topromote tourism in thestate. After the Cabinetmeeting, governmentspokesperson MadanKaushik told reportersthatthestategovernmentwill provide sponsorshipof Rs 12.21 crore for therealityshow.Sourcessaid70 per cent of the showwill be televised in thestateandthattheproduc-tion agency would alsodesignitsmarketing.ENS

PRESSTRUSTOFINDIANEWDELHI, JANUARY15

INAtoughmessagetoChinaamidthe Ladakh standoff, Army chiefGeneralMMNaravaneonFridaysaidnooneshouldmakeanymis-take of testing India’s patienceevenasheassertedthatabefittingresponsewas given to the “con-spiracy” of unilaterally changingthestatusquoalongthenorthernfrontier.Gen Naravane, at the same

time, said India is committed toresolve the over eight-month-longmilitarystandoffwithChinathroughtalks.InhisaddressattheArmyDay

paradeinDelhiCantonment,GenNaravanesaidthesacrificeof the“Galwan heroes” in easternLadakhinJunelastyearwillnotgowaste and that the IndianArmywill not allow any harm to thecountry’s sovereignty and secu-rity.“Wearecommittedtoresolvedisputesthroughtalksandpoliti-caleffortsbutnooneshouldmakeanymistake of testing our pa-tience,”hesaidinthepresenceofthecountry’stopmilitarybrassin-cludingChiefofDefenceStaffGenBipinRawat,NavyChief AdmiralKarambirSinghandIAFChiefAirChiefMarshalRKSBhadauria.Referring to the situation

along the Line of Control (LoC),GenNaravanesaidPakistancon-tinuestoshelterterroristsand300to 400 of them are waiting intraining camps on the PakistanisidetoinfiltrateintoIndia.GenNaravanealsonotedthat

eightroundsofmilitarytalkswereheld between India and China."Our effortswill continue to findasolutiontothecurrentsituationon thebasis ofmutual andequalsecurity,"hesaid.

DARSHANDEVAIAHBPDHARWAD, JANUARY15

AT LEAST 13 peoplewere killedand eight were injured after aminibuscollidedhead-onwithatruck on theHubballi-Dharwadbypass road in north KarnatakaonFridaymorning,policesaid.According to police, a group

of17women—allofwhomhadstudied at St Paul’s Convent inDavangere—were travelling toGoaforatrip intheminibus.“The tempo (minibus) had

left Davengere at around 3 am.When it reached near Ittigatticross, located about 8 km fromDharwadcity, at around7am, itcollided with a truck comingfromtheoppositedirection,”saidan officer from DharwadRuralPolice.“According to a preliminary

investigation, all 17women areclassmates. They go for a tripevery year. This year, they hadplanned to go to Goa and oneamong themwas a doctor,” po-licesaid later intheevening.The drivers of both vehicles

havealsodied,policesaid.Thein-juredwereshiftedtoalocalhos-pital in Hubballi. Later in the

evening, one of the injured pas-sengers—a47-year-oldwoman— was airlifted to Bengaluru.SpeakingtoTheIndianExpress,DrShaliniNalawad, founder-direc-torofICATTAirAmbulancessaid,the patient was admitted toManipal Hospital in Bengalurufor further treatment. “The pa-tientsustainedheadinjuries,wewere giving her constant care...Her condition is stable,” sheadded.Chief Minister BS

YediyurappaandPrimeMinisterNarendra took to Twitter to ex-pressgrief over the incident.

In a tweet in Kannada,Yediyurappa expressed shockand grief over the tragedy andsaid officials had been asked toinvestigatethecauseof theacci-dentandsubmitareportsoon.Prime Minister Narendra

Modi took to Twitter saying:“Saddenedbythelossoflivesduetoaroadaccident inKarnataka’sDharwaddistrict.Inthissadhour,my thoughts are with the be-reavedfamilies. Iprayforaquickrecoveryof those injured.”A case has been registered

and further investigation is un-derway,policeofficialssaid.

Agroupof17womenwasheadedtoGoaintheminibus.ExpressArmyChiefGeneralMMNaravaneat the73rdArmyDayParade inNewDelhionFriday.PTI

Army chief: Noone should makemistake of testingIndia’s patience

319DAYSSINCEPANDEMICBEGAN

TRACKING INDIA’SCOVIDCURVE

CASES:1,05,27,683TESTS: 18,49,62,401 | RECOVERIES: 1,01,62,738

ACTIVE CASES:2,13,027DEATHS: 1,51,918

JAN14CASES DEATHS RECOVERIES TESTS15,590 191 15,975 7,30,096

STATESWITHRISINGACTIVECASESACTIVECASES RISEINLASTWEEK

Kerala 66,666 2,073Maharashtra 52,558 1,447Odisha 1,980 61

STATESWHEREACTIVECASESAREDECLININGACTIVECASES DECLINEINLASTWEEK

Rajasthan 5,675 1,793UttarPradesh 10,080 1,706Chhattisgarh 7,418 1,441

STATESREPORTINGMAXIMUMCASESONJAN14 TOTAL

Kerala 5,490 8,31,260Maharashtra 3,579 19,81,623WestBengal 680 5,63,475

STATESREPORTINGMAXIMUMDEATHSONJAN14 TOTAL

Maharashtra 77 51,477Kerala 19 3,440WestBengal 17 10,010DataasonJanuary14,releasedbyUnionMinistryofHealthandFamilyWelfare,IndianCouncilofMedicalResearchandstategovernments.Often,thenumbersreleasedeverydaycontaindatafrompreviousdays

aswell.Assuch,trendsbasedondailynumbersareonlyindicativeandnotdefinitive

KARNATAKA

13 dead afterminibuscollideswith truck

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEKOLKATA, JANUARY15

THE CBI’s Economic OffencesWingarrestedSubhraKundu,wifeof Rose ValleyGroup chairmanGautam Kundu, in Kolkata onFridayinconnectionwithitsprobeinto the multi-crore chit fundscam. The EnforcementDirectorate,whichhad arrestedGautamin2015,isalsoinvestigat-ingtheRs17,000-crorescam,saidtobethebiggestinBengal.According to sources, theCBI

willtakeSubhratoaBhubaneswarcourt on Saturday for transit re-mand.Thecasewasregistered inOdisha. TheCBI arrestedSubhra,whowaswantedby theCBI andEDanddidnotreplyto notices,af-ter getting information that shewasinherSouthKolkatahouse.The Rose Valley Group al-

legedlycheatedthousandsofde-positors, promising abnormally

highreturnsoninvestmentsinitsillegal schemes. As per sources,Subhraisthedirectoroftwocom-panies of RoseValleyGroup. CBIofficerssaidshecouldnotgiveanysatisfactoryanswertobanktrans-actionsby these twocompanies.She is alleged to have siphonedcrores,whichweresaidtobepro-ceedsof crime,andmanagedtheRoseValleyGroupcompaniesaf-terGautam’sarrest.SeveralTMCleadershavebeen

interrogated,arrestedandjailedinconnectionwiththecase.TMC leaderSaugataRoysaid

aboutSubhra’sarrest,“Idon’twanttogive itmuch importance.Whydid it take themso long toarrestherwhenGautamKunduwasar-restedlongback?”

SubhraKundu

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICELUDHIANA,CHANDIGARH,JAN15

TWODAYS after a double-goldmedallistattheSpecialOlympicsdied of an illness waiting for aRs30lakhcashrewardpromisedbythethenSAD-BJPgovernmentin 2015, the Congress dispensa-tion on Friday announced Rs 5lakh financial assistance for hisfamily.TheannouncementbyPunjab

Sports Minister Rana GurmitSodhi cameon a day The IndianExpresshighlighted theplight ofRajvirSingh.The 21-year-old Ludhiana

youthhadwon twogoldmedalsin cycling at SpecialOlympics in2015heldatLosAngeles.Hedieddue to abrain-relatedailment attheChristianMedicalCollegeandHospital (CMCH)Wednesdayaf-terbeingonventilatorsupportfornearlyamonth.

Inastatement,ministerSodhisaidseniorofficialsofthedepart-ment have been asked to handover the financial assistance toRajvir’sfamily.In July 2020, Chief Minister

AmarinderSingh,inavideomes-sage,hadsaidthathisgovernmentwillhelpRajvirandotherSpecialOlympianswaiting for their cashrewards.Sportsofficials revealedthatsofar,thegovernmenthasnotnotified any policy to releasepending cash rewards to SpecialOlympicsmedal-winners.Rajvir’s father Balbir Singh,

whoworks as a labourer, said,“Thismoneyisnowjustpaperforus.Mysonisdead.Hadtheygiventhismoney earlier, Imight havesavedmyson”.

ARMYDAYCELEBRATIONS

RajvirSingh

Punjab announces aid afterdeath of Special Olympian

Chit fund case: Wife ofRoseValley chief held

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICELUCKNOW,JANUARY15

THE BJP on Friday nominatedformerGujarat cadre IASofficerArvindKumarSharmaas a can-didate for the Uttar PradeshLegislativeCouncilpolls,adayaf-terhe joined theparty.Sharmarecentlytookvolun-

tary retirement as the secretaryof the UnionMinistry of Micro,Small andMediumEnterprises.He has worked closely withPrimeMinister NarendraModiforabout20years.Besides Sharma, the saffron

partyalsodeclaredthecandida-tures of Deputy Chief MinisterDinesh Sharma, state unit pres-ident Swatantra Dev Singh andstateBJPvice-presidentLaxmanAcharya.Theelections for the12MLC

seatswillbeheldonJanuary28.The nomination process has al-ready started. The 12 outgoingMLCs include Dinesh Sharma,Swatantra Dev Singh andLaxman Prasad Acharya. Theseat of former Bahujan SamajParty (BSP) leader NasimuddinSiddiqui isvacantduetohisdis-qualification after he switchedto theCongress.

UP: BJP fieldsex-IAS officerAK Sharmain MLC polls

OMKARGOKHALEMUMBAI, JANUARY15

THEMAHARASHTRA govern-ment on Friday assured theBombay High Court that itwouldnot take any coercive ac-tion against Republic TV editor-in-chief Arnab Goswami andotheremployeesof ARGOutlierMedia Private Limited, whichruns the channel, till the nexthearing in theTRP fraudcase.Following this, the Bombay

High Court decided to continuethe relief granted toRepublic TVemployeesfromcoerciveactiontill January 29. Earlier, the reliefwasgranted till Friday.TheHCalso tookonrecorda

status report filed by theMumbaiPolicepertainingtotheprobe in a sealed envelope.Further,thecourtpermittedpar-ties to thecase toapproach itbygivingnoticetotheotherside, incaseof anyurgency.Thechannelhad filedanap-

plicationseekingtomaketheED,which is investigating a com-plaint related to TRP fraud inLucknow,apartytothecase.Thegovernment, however, had“strongly objected’ and soughttimeto filea reply to theplea.

TRP case: Govtsays no coerciveaction againstRepublic TVstaff till Jan 29

ARANYASHANKARNEWDELHI, JANUARY15

UNITEDNATIONSSpecialRappor-teuronthesituationofhumanrig-htsdefendersMaryLawlorFridaysaidIndiadoesnot“properlypro-tecthumanrightsdefenders”.Shealso said shehadwritten

to thegovernment inNovember,“raising concerns” over JesuitpriestStanSwamy’sarrestincon-nectionwiththeBhimaKoregaoncase,buthadnotyetreceivedare-sponse.Lawlorwasspeakingatanonlineeventmarking100daysofSwamy’sincarceration.“Indiaisastatewhichdoesn’t

properlyprotecthumanrightsde-fenders.Iamappalledbythetrea-tmentofhumanrightsdefenderssuch as Father Stan Swamywhoembodiessolidarity,”shesaid.“It’sclearthattherearesevere

challengestopromotingandpro-tectinghumanrightsinthecoun-try.Makenomistake, the state isresponsible for protectionof hu-manrightsdefenders,”sheadded.Lawlor criticised the UAPA,

saying its “definitionof a terror-ist act isnotpreciseor clear, andfails to provide legal certainty”.Shealsosaid the lawhas ledtoa“highlyconcerningconflationof

humanrightsadvocacywithter-rorism”. “In November 2020, IsentalettertoIndiangovernmentraising concerns about arrest.Governmentsaregivena60-dayperiodduringwhichtheyareex-pected to reply... But I amstill toreceivearesponsefromtheIndianauthorities,”shesaid.Adivasi rights activist Xavier

Dias, whoworked closelywithSwamy, said what happenedwas “very unfortunate, unfairandunjust”.Delhi University professor

Apoorvanand moderated thediscussion.Dancer and activist Mallika

Sarabhai performed to MayaAngelou’s poem Still I Rise andsaid Swamywas “a personwhohasdoneextraordinaryworkforthe poorest and themostmar-ginalised”.A sipperbearing thephotoof

Swamy alongwith the hashtag“releasefrstan”was released ontheoccasion—Swamywaspro-hibitedfromaccessinghissipperforalongtimebyjailauthorities.

Eventmarked100daysof StanSwamy’sincarceration

UN representative: Indiadoesn’t properly protecthuman rights defenders

KARISHMAMEHROTRANEWDELHI, JANUARY15

INWHATappearstobeacounter-intuitive outlier, HimachalPradeshhas proposed a sewagemanagement action plan thatcontrastsmodelssuggestedbythecentralgovernmentandinterna-tional consultancies. Despite aconcerted four-year push fromthe Centre towards individualseptic tank solutions, even inur-banareas,thehillstateplanstodigupmore ground to enlarge itspipedundergroundnetworks.Himachalsubmitteditsaction

plan thismonth to the CentralMonitoring Committee (CMC),which is overseeing compliancetoasetofNationalGreenTribunalorders tomake sewage 100 percenttreatedbyMarch2021.Overthepastfouryears,states

havebeennudgedtowardsFaecalSludgeandSeptageManagement(FSSM)—on-site, decentralisedsolutions such as septic tanks—followingamajorpush fromtheCentrewhich came outwith aFSSMpolicy in 2017. In July lastyear,aNationalMissionforCleanGangawebinarwasalsoheld for“mainstreaming”FSSM.While states such asOdisha,

MadhyaPradesh,Uttar Pradesh,

MaharashtraandAndhraPradeshhavebeguntoleantowardsFSSMinmediumand small urban set-tings, others like Gujarat,WestBengalandHimachalhaveshownless inclination. Currently, thecountryhasonly25FaecalSludgeTreatment Plants (FSTPs),whichtreat sewage from septic tanks,but cities arebuilding400more,according to a CMC report of

Septemberlastyear.Asthestatesbegintochartout

theirdirections,Himachalisexpe-riencinganacuteurgency.In2016,Shimla’s insufficiently treatedsewageintheAshwaniKhudriversystem led to aHepatitis E out-break,whichcausesjaundice.Itaf-fectedmore thanhalf of the totalfamiliesinthecityinthreemonths.“Thereishugeurgency.Theyhaveseenthe implicationofnotdoingthiswell,” PwCurban infrastruc-ture consultant ShivanshuChauhantoldTheIndianExpress.Roughly 70 per cent of

Himachal’s57citiesareconnectedtoundergroundpipesand,tocon-necttheremaining,thestateplansto build 23more sewage treat-ment plants and convert septictank services intonetworks, saidNaveenPuri,Himachal’sEngineer-in-chief inJalShaktiAbhiyan.When asked about the deci-

sion, AMRUT Joint Secretary DTharasaid: “Inahilly state... FSTPis good enough to immediatelydealwiththeproblem.Septageisa good idea.”He said ultimatelythedecision is thestate’sandtheCentreplaysa“supportive”role.Alongwith AtalMission for

Rejuvenation and UrbanTransformationorAMRUT,afteradeclared-achievement of open-defecation free (ODF), govern-

ment sources said decentralisedsewagemanagement inODF++willbeofhighpriorityinthenextphase of the Swachh BharatMission-Urban. In the 2020SwachhSurvekshan ranking, anFSSMactionplangives anurbanlocal body40marksandover95percenton-sitesanitationcover-agegives80marks.While Himachalmay seem

like an obvious site for decen-tralisedsewagesystems,engineersinthestatecitedmajordifficultiesinconvincingprivateactorstotra-versethehillsforde-sludgingsep-tic tanks. “Alongwith theCentre,NitiAayogalsosaidcarrysewagefromseptictankstotheplant.ButinHimachal,westudiedit,itisnotpossiblehere,”Purisaid. Anotherchief engineer,Susheel Justa, saidmismanaged septic tanks havecontinuouslyleaked,contaminat-ingthewatertable.AbhishekAkhilesh, a KPMG

executivewhoworkswithUrbanAffairsMinistry,said:“Himachalisabit of auniquecase.... Given thegradient, getting these low-pow-ered trucks to de-sludgewhenthey are filledwith two tons ofwasteisdifficult.”However,under-ground isnot a “panacea” either,hesaid,forthesamegradientcon-cernswill requiremore costly,pressurizedsewerlines.

THECENTRE’SpushforFSSMfollowsargumentsfrommajorinternationalagencies,suchastheAsianDevelopmentBank(ADB)andtheGatesFoundation,whichprovidesignificantfundingfortheseprojects.Theysaycentralised,large-scalesewaragesys-temsaretime-consuming,expensive,andenviron-mentally-disruptive.AFebruary2020ADBreportpushesstrongly forade-centralisedsolutionforsewageandfecalsludgemanagement.

InternationalagenciesbackFSSME●EX

PLAINED

Sewage action plan: Himachal walksdifferent path, despite Centre’s push

ARUNSHARMAUDHAMPUR, JANUARY15

GENERAL OFFICERCommanding-in-Chief,NorthernCommand, Lieutenant GeneralYK Joshi on Friday said the gov-ernment's move to revoke thespecial status of the erstwhilestateof JammuandKashmirhadhelpedrestorefaithof thepeopleingovernmentinstitutions.Speaking on the occasion of

ArmyDayataneventinUdham-pur, LtGen Joshi said, “Theabro-gation of Article 370 and im-provement in governancethereof, hasbeenamajorgame-changerandhelpedrestore faithof thecommonpeople in the in-stitutions of government.” Headded that the recently-heldDistrict Development Councilelections in theUTof J&K “con-veyed the resolve of the awaam

(populace) to shun separatismandembracedemocracy’’.OnAugust5,2019,theBJP-led

Central government revoked thespecialstatusgrantedtothestateof J&K under Article 370 of theConstitution andbifurcated thestateintotwoUnionTerritories—J&KandLadakh.Thegovernmentthenmoved

toestablishathree-tierPanchayatiRajsysteminJ&KbyholdingDDCpolls inthelastquarterof2020.In his address, Lt Gen Joshi

said the Army too had played arole in “creating an ecosystemand normalcy inwhich peoplecan resume and live their livesnormally” despite the Covid-19pandemic. Pointing out thatOperationSadbhavanahadbeenpivotalinprovidingjobopportu-nitiesandeducationtotheyouth,he said, “We aremaking a lot ofefforts towin over the youth bygivingthembetteropportunities

ineducationandemployment.”Speaking of the challenges

faced by troops of theNorthernCommand, Joshi said, “First,wehavetheWesternadversarythatisPakistanandwhichhasnotyetre-lented fromproducing terror asan instrument of State policy.Second,wehaveNorthern bor-derswherewehaveseenChinesebelligerentsalongtheLACwherethey tried to alter the status quoandwhich has been contestedwith resolve and courageby theIndianArmy;andthird,theinter-nalsituationinJ&K,whichisstablenow,butcanflareupanytime.”Onthesituationat theLAC in

Ladakh,hesaid, “I amextremelysatisfiedwith all the actions theNorthernCommandhastakento-wards the endof August 29-30.”Hesaidthecommandisataposi-tionofoperationaladvantage,ne-gotiatingwithChina’sPLAfromapositionofequivalence.

Army commander: Revocation of J&Kspecial status helped restore faith in govt

New Delhi

DEEPTIMANTIWARYNEWDELHI, JANUARY15

FOURCBI officials,whohadbeen raidedby the agency on Thursday for allegedcorruption, hadallegedly receivedmorethanRs50lakhfromtwocompaniesun-derprobeforbankloanfraudforallegedlyleakingcrucialcaseinformationtooffice-bearersof the twofirms.The four officials — Dy SPs R K

Sangwan and R K Rishi, Inspector KapilDhankadandstenoSameerKumarSingh—have been booked under various sec-tionsof thePreventionofCorruptionAct(PCAct) and the IPC.According toCBI, these officialswere

sharing information about cases againstShreeShyamPulp&BoardMillsPvtLtdandFrostInternationalinexchangeforbribes.Theagencyhasalsobookedoffice-bear-

ersofthesecompanies,includingSujayandUday Desai, both directors in FrostInternational, andMandeepKaurDhillon,additional director in Shree ShyamPulp.Apartfromthis,twolawyers,ArvindKumarGuptaandManoharMalik,havealsobeenbookedforallegedlybribingtheofficials.According toCBI, in the case of Shree

ShyamPulp,DySPRKSangwan,whowasonce the investigatingofficer of the case,“paidabribeofRs10lakhincashonbehalfofMsMandeepKaurDhillonto(inspector)KapilDhankad”. Inreturn,CBIhasalleged,Dhankadconveyedconfidential informa-

tionrelatingtotheinvestigationtoSangwan“withanintentiontofavourtheaccused”.CBIhasallegedthatDhankadalsore-

ceivedabribeofRsRs10lakhfromDySPRishiwhomade thispaymentonbehalfofDesaisof Frost International.“Further, it is reliably learnt that Shri

RKRishi,DSPreceivedRs15 lakhs twicethrough two advocates namely ShriManoharMalik and Shri Arvind Gupta(having office in Defence Colony) to ex-tend favors to a Chandigarh based com-panyagainstwhichacorruptioncasewasbeing investigatedbyCBI. In thismatter,ShriKapilDhankadtwicereceivedRs2.5lakhs fromShriArvindGupta forhavingbrokeredthedealthroughShriRKRishi,”theCBIFIRsaid.“It has also been reliably learnt that

thedetailsof the investigationofmanyothercases includingconfidentialnotesand directions have been communi-cated by Shri Sameer Kumar Singh,Steno, toShriRKSangwanandShriRKRishi on pecuniaryconsiderations to pro-tect the interestsof theaccused,” the FIRadded.The agency had on

Thursday raided itsown headquartersapart from14other lo-cations across thecountry in connectionwith the case.

9WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHEINDIANEXPRESS,SATURDAY, JANUARY16,2021

Office of the

Chief Electrical Inspector to Govt., HaryanaSCO 117-118, Sector-17-B, Chandigarh

(e-mail: [email protected]).Telephone No. 0172-2704 Fax No. 0172-2710171

INVITING APPLICATIONS FOR AUTHORISATION OFCHARTERED ELECTRICAL SAFETY ENGINEER

(CESE) IN THE STATE OF HARYANA

Opening date of Registration of online application: 22.12.2020

Extended Closing date of Registration of online application:25.01.2021

Extended Last date of submission of fees: 29.01.2021

Online applications are invited from eligible Engineers toauthorize them as Chartered Electrical Safety Engineers underregulation 5A of the Central Electricity Authority (Measuresrelating to Safety and Electric Supply) Amendment Regulations,2018 and guidelines issued by CEA. For more detail, visit ourwebsite: www.ceiharyana.in

Chief Electrical Inspectorto Govt., Haryana, Chandigarh

1421/7/HRY

PUBLIC NOTICEIt is brought to the kind notice that sanction for engage-

ment of one personnel for Courier Services through out-sourcing policy, in the office of the Jt. Excise & TaxationCommissioner, Gurugram (Range), has been accordedby the Excise & Taxation Commissioner, Haryana,Panchkula as per Haryana Govt. Instruction, tender forengagement of one personnel through outsourcing policyis hereby invited to call for dated 21.01.2021. All the out-sourcing contractors who fulfill the terms and conditionsas prescribed by the Haryana Govt. will submit their quo-tations till dated 21.01.2021 at 2.00 P.M. in the office ofthe undersigned situated at “C-1, Tower-I, Infocity-I,Sector-34, Gurugram”. The tender will be opened on thesame day i.e. 21.01.2021.

Jt. Excise & Taxation CommissionerGurugram (Range),

1432/7/HRY

CENTRAL UNIVERSITY OF PUNJABONLINE INTERVIEW FOR MEDICAL OFFICER

(MALE/FEMALE)Online Applications are invited for Online Interview for engage-

ment of a Medical Officer (Male/Female) on purely Temporary/Contractual Basis on or before 25.01.2021.

For Date & Time of Interview, Eligibility Conditions, Link forapplying Online, Last Date of Application, Terms & Conditions andother details, please visit www.cup.edu.in.

REGISTRARMain Campus, VPO Ghudda, Distt. Bathinda-151401 Email: [email protected]

CUPB-30 Advt. No. CUPB/20-21/011 Dated: 15.01.2021d½fÄff´f³f IYf dWaXQe øY´ffa°fSX d½fV½fd½fôf»f¹f IYe ½fZ¶fÀffBMX ´fSX CX´f»f¶²f W`XÜ

F. No. 54/25/2020-MediaGovernment of India

Ministry of Social Justice and EmpowermentDepartment of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities

5th floor, Antyodaya BhawanCGO Complex, New Delhi-110003.

Government Notified the List of Posts Identified Suitable forPersons with Benchmark Disabilities

The Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities on 4thJanuary 2021 notified 3566 posts in Central Governmentestablishments as suitable for persons with benchmark disabilities(disability of 40% and above) under the Rights of Persons withDisabilities Act, 2016. These posts include 1046 in Group A, 515 inGroup B, 1724 in Group C and 281 in Group D posts. Posts havealso been identified suitable for new categories of persons withdisabilities such as dwarfism, acid attack victims, musculardystrophy, autism spectrum disorder, intellectual disability, specificlearning disability, mental illness and multiple disability have beenadded. This list is not an exhaustive one and Central Ministries /Department/Autonomous Bodies and Public Sector Undertakingsmay further supplement. This notification will broaden the scope foremployment for persons with benchmark disabilities in Governmentestablishments.A list of 2973 posts identified suitable for persons with benchmarkdisabilities was last notified on 29.07.2013 in terms of the repealedPersons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunity, Protection of Rights andFull Participation) Act, 1995. As compared to the earlier notified list,593 new posts have been added.The list of posts notified by the Central Government on 04.01.2021 isbased on the recommendations of an expert committee constitutedunder the chairpersonship of the Secretary, Department ofEmpowerment of Persons with Disabilities and consisting experts,persons with benchmark disabilities and representatives fromvarious associations of persons with disabilities.Details of the list are available on the website of the Department.Notification is also available onhttp://egazette.nic.in/WriteReadData/2021/224370.pdf.

davp 38117/11/0057/2021

AVISHEKGDASTIDARNEWDELHI, JANUARY15

AZONALrailwayhaswithdrawna recent policy order, whichsought to deploy bungalowpe-onsforofficersthroughcontrac-tual manpower, after theRailwayMinistryintervenedandclarifiedthatzonescannotdoso.TheOdisha-basedEastCoast

Railway had issued a policy or-der earlier thismonth that saidif options of appointing bunga-low peons from available staffstrength does notwork out, therailwaycanoutsourcethejobbyhiringmanpoweroncontracttoworkat thehomesof officers.This came amonth after the

RailwayMinistry issuedthenewcentralpolicygoverningengage-ment of Telephone AttendantcumDakKhalasi (TADK)orbun-galowpeons. It said that bunga-low peons are to be appointedfrom available railway staff inLevel1categoryandofficerscouldnolongerrecruitfreshcandidates.This effectivelyput a stopon the100-year-oldpolicyof bungalowpeons,officerssaid,citingthefactthatitisnotfeasibletotakeLevel-1(GroupD)stafffromexistingde-partments and deploy them athomes,consideringthereishardlyanymanpowertospare.Intheearliersystem,officers

could choose to engage anyonetoworkasTADKandafter threeyears,theTADKwasformallyab-sorbed as a Railway employeefollowingdueprocesses.However, TADKcontinues to

beanentitlementand,accordingto officials, at least 30 officers inEastCoastRailwaysarecurrentlywaiting for apolicy clarity tode-ploy bungalow peons at theirhomes. Several such cases areacrossallzonalrailways.Thenow-withdrawnorder,issuedwiththeapproval of the zonal GeneralManager,cameinthatcontext.

CBI says 4 of its officialsgot Rs 50 lakh in bribesfor leaking info to 2 firms

East Coast Rlywithdraws orderto hire bungalowpeons on contract

ED questionsKhadse over2016 land dealMumbai: NCP leader EknathKhadsewasquestionedformorethansixhoursbytheEnforcementDirectorate (ED) at its office inMumbai’s Ballard Pier on Fridayin connectionwith a 2016 landdealinPune.Khadse,whoarrivedattheEDofficearound11amandleft at 5.30 pm, toldmediaper-sons: “Theyaskedquestions andI triedtogiveanswers.Whateverdocuments or information theyneed, Iwill provide, andwill ap-pearbeforethemagainwheneverthey ask.”Khadse (68),whoquitthe BJP and joined theNCP lastOctober,was summonedby theEDonDecember30,2020,incon-nectiontothecase.ButheskippedappearanceonthegroundthathewasquarantinedduetoCovid-19,andwasgivenmoretime.KhadsehadresignedfromthenDevendraFadnavis-ledCabinet in 2016af-terfacingallegationsthathemis-usedhis official powers to facili-tate thepurchaseof governmentland inBhosari near Punebyhisfamily.ENS

New Delhi

10WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

WITH HOPEVaccinationDaymarksanation’sgratitudetoitsCovidwarriors—andopensanewchapterofhopewithcaution

ANEWCHAPTERinthecountry’sbattleagainstthenovelcoronaviruswillopentodaywhenPrimeMinisterNarendraModi launches the anti-COVIDvacci-nationdrive acrossmore than3,000 sites. If things go according toplan, byJuly-end,30crorepeoplewillhavereceivedshotsagainst thecontagionthat

has takenmore than1.5 lakh lives in thecountry. Forapandemicwearypopulation, foraneconomydesperateforgreenshootsofrevivalandforahealthcaresystemstretchedtoitslim-its, thisdriveoffershope.Thespeedatwhichthevaccinesweredevelopedandrolledoutisaremarkableachievementforthecountry’sscientific,regulatoryandadministrativeestab-lishment.MoresowhenitcomesastheCOVIDcurvebendsreassuringly.Itisalsoappropri-ate that the first ones in thevaccine line are thebravewomenandmen—doctors, healthworkers,paramedics—whofoughtthepandemicatthefrontlinesandmanyofthemwatchedtheircolleaguesdie.January16,therefore,isalsoadayforthenationtoexpressitsgratitude.Atthebeginningofthepandemicearlylastyear,themostoptimisticprojectionswereof

avaccinebythemiddleof2021.Therollingoutof thepreventives inrecordtimewasfacili-tatedbycompressedschedulesandregulatoryprocedurestailoredforanemergency.Thoughthesafetyofthevaccinesseemsassured,morewillbeknownabouttheirefficacyinthetimetocome.Evenas the firstvialsarebeingrolledout, scientistsare trying tounderstandhowlongdotheseconferimmunity.Workisoninlaboratoriestoascertaintheefficacyoftheshotsinpreventinginfectionamongsttheelderlyandstudiesarebeingconductedabouttheper-centageof thepopulation thatneeds tobe inoculated fordevelopingherd immunity. TheBharat Biotechvaccinewill beused in clinical trialmode soextra care andcautionwill beneeded.Atthesametime,thefactthatmorevaccinesareupforregulatoryapprovalmeansthatastrongershieldagainstthevirusisnotfaraway.Vaccinesareworkinprogress—thefirstshotsmarkthebeginningoftheendofthescourge

but the recovery is likely tobe long-drawn. TheCOVIDcurvehas anasty trendof turningagain,juriesareoutonthenewstrainsandsuppliesarestillwaybelowthenumbersneededforherdimmunity.Vaccinatorswilleducatetherecipientsabouttheworkingofthevaccinesandtheirpossibleside-effects.Amonitoringsystemisinplacetoreportadverseeffects.Theseshouldbe the first steps inbuildingpublic trust in thevaccines. Thereare likely tobemorechallengeson this front aspublic discourseon the inoculationdrive takesoff. The comingmonths couldposepublic communication challenges for thegovernment andhealth au-thorities—asmuch theywill placedemandson the logistical and scientific fronts. All in-volvedmustfollowthescience—stayingmaskedandsociallydistanced.

AFTER IMPEACHMENTTrumpismremains.Americaneedsadeeper reckoningwiththeweaknessesandcleavages thatTrumpexploited

O UTGOINGUSPRESIDENTDonald Trumpmust take a large share of the re-sponsibilityandblamefortheviolenceunleashedbythemobattheCapitolinWashingtonDConJanuary6.Hecontinuestodenythathehaslostthepres-identialelectionanddirectlyincitedhissupportersonthedayJoeBiden’svic-

torywastobeofficiallyconfirmedbyCongress.Assuch,theUSCongress'sdecisiontoservehimwithArticlesof Impeachment—foranunprecedentedsecondtimeinasmanyyears—isanimportantmoment.Atleast10RepublicansinCongressbrokeranksandvotedforim-peachment.WhilehistrialintheSenatemaynotconcludebeforehedemitsofficeonJanuary20—theRepublican-majorityupperhousemeets fora full sessiononly fromJanuary19—the impeachment carries great symbolic value.However, the focusonTrumpand the im-peachmentmustnotdistracttheworld’soldestdemocracyfromareckoningwiththedeeper,systemicissuesthatleduptotheCapitolsiege.Thecomplicitiesand failuresof politicalparties, institutionsof stateandAmericancivil

society in the face of the Trumpdisruption cannot be brushedunder the carpet once hedemitsoffice.TheRepublicanssupportedaleaderwholiedrepeatedly,oftenruledbyexec-utivefiat,underminedinstitutionsathomeanddidhisbesttodismantletheUS'sroleandcom-mitments inthe internationalarena.Theroleof lawenforcementagencies intheattackontheCapitolstandsinsharpcontrasttothewaytheydealtwiththeBlackLivesMatterprotests—somepolicemenwereseentakingselfieswiththosewhostormedthelegislatureonJanuary6. The role of socialmedia,which amplified Trump's voice andwhere algorithms rewardcontroversyandencouragepolarisation,mustalsobeexamined.ThechargeagainstTrumpis“incitinganinsurrection”,buttheconditionsthatmadethat

incitementpossiblewill not disappearwithout seriouswork anddialogue, in society andpolitics.TheUS,whichhasoftensoughtto“export”democracyandlecturedothersonthemer-itsofaliberalorder,mustrealisenowthatdemocracyisnotjusthardwonbutalsohardmain-tained. And itmust face the fact that thedivisiveness that Trumpexploited is embeddeddeeplyinAmericansocietyandpolitics.In2008,whenBarackObamawaselected,therewasafeelingintheUSthatAmericahadturnedthecorneronracism.That,astheWhitesuprema-cistcrowdattheCapitolshowed,wasnotthecase.ItwouldbeamistaketothinkthatTrump'sloss—orevenhisimpeachment—alonecanaddressTrumpism,thattoxicmixofpopulism,executivehigh-handedness,andbigotry.

HAPPILY UNMARRIEDSeouladvisory topregnantwomenillustrateswhySouthKoreanwomenhavebeenwalkingaway frommotherhood

I T’SATRUTHnot acknowledgedenough that awoman—single,marriedorpreg-nant—isalwaysinpossessionofasurfeitofuselessadvice.Seoulcityauthorities,how-ever,havecomeupwithacategoryof counsel thatcanonlybedescribedas:Hownottoinconvenienceyourhusbandasyoustrugglewiththeminormatterofchild-

birth.Theadvisoryaimedatpregnantwomenasksthem,amongotherthings,nottolookdi-shevelled as they cookmeals for their husbands, clean out the fridge,make sure there isenoughtoiletpaper inthehouse,andarrangeforchildcare if theyhaveotherchildren—allthis,beforetheyadmitthemselvestothehospital.Thisremarkablepieceofcondescensionwascraftedin2019,butitsrediscoveryonsocial

mediahas led to anuproar, followedbydemands for anapology. It comesat a timewhenSouthKoreaisgrapplingwithadecliningpopulationandfallingbirthrates—in2020,forthefirsttime,thenumberofdeathsinthecountryoutstrippedbirths.Forthefourth-largestecon-omyinAsia,thisisacrisis—andithopestoprodwomenintohavingmorechildrenthroughpublic campaigns andgenerousparental leavepolicies. Thewomenhaveother battles tofight.SouthKorea’sgenderpaygapisoneofthelargestamong37countriesoftheOrganisationforEconomicCooperationandDevelopment.Professionalmobilityisdifficultgiventheen-trenchedsexismincorporatelife.Agrowingfeministmovementhasledtoasharpquestion-ingof the inequalities ofmarriage in adeeplypatriarchal society. As a result,motherhoodandthe“secondshift”itentailsisnothighonwomen’sagenda:ThenumberofSouthKoreanwomenwhobelievetheyneedtomarryfellto44percentin2018from62percentin2008.In aworldnot runbypatriarchal values,motherhoodandmarriage could arguablybe

hardtoselltowomen,giventhecostontheirlivesandbodies.TheSeoulcityauthorities’vi-sionofdomesticslaveryintheserviceofentitledmenillustratespreciselywhySouthKoreanwomenarerunningawayfromitstyranny.

Vaccine plus

KSrinathReddy

CUday Bhaskar

Nutritionisanimportantinfluencerof immunity.Vaccineefficacyneedsanutritionboostertoo

REVIEW THE PARADECovid, financialconsiderationscall forreconsiderationofthisyear’sR-Dayspectacle

HOWLONGWILLtheimmunityconferredbytheCOVID-19vaccine last?Will the immuneresponsebestronginallpersonswhoreceiveit? These are frequently askedquestions, asvaccinesaresettorolloutinIndia.Theanswersprovided,betheysixmonthsortwoyears,as-sumethatthestrengthanddurationofthevac-cine response are entirely dependent on thevaccine,without taking intoaccount theage,nutritional status orpre-existinghealth con-ditionsinthepersonreceivingthevaccine.Ignoringnutrition as an important influ-

encerofbothnaturalorinnateimmunityandacquiredoradaptive immunitydeveloped inresponse to infectionoravaccine,hasconse-quences. Itdoesnotusually influencethede-cision to immunise but ignoring this aspectleads to neglect of nutrition in both publichealthpolicyandclinicalpractice.Avaccineonlyprovidestheantigenicstim-

ulus for the body to react. Howcapably thebodyreacts is considerably influencedbythenutritionalstatusandwillvaryamongindivid-uals.Differentfacetsofnutritioninfluencethisresponse.Thedietmaybedeficientinvitalnu-trientsneededforarobustimmuneresponse.Itmayhaveelementsthatstokehighlevelsofinflammation in the body, consuming thebuildingblocks of immunitywhich couldbebetterutilisedfortheadaptiveresponsetothevaccine.Theseeffectsareverylikelyifthediethas a high content of ultra-processed foods.Thedietmayalsoadverselyaffectthecompo-sitionof our gutmicrobiomewhich,with itstrillionsofbacteria, isturningouttobeanim-portant influencer of our immunity. Thehealthymicrobiomethrivesonplantsourcedsoluble fibre in thedietand isdestabilisedbyexcessive sugar, trans fats, red andprocessedmeats,alcoholandtobacco.Studiesontheimmuneresponsetoseveral

vaccines,rangingfrompolioandcholeratoro-tavirus,haverevealedthatdeficienciesofsev-eralkeynutrientsadverselyaffectthestrengthoftheimmuneresponse.Dietaryproteindefi-ciency is anobvious culprit, as antibodiesareproteinstoo.Zincandseleniumareimportantminerals thathavebeenshowntopotentiatevaccine efficacy, apart fromenhancingnatu-ral(innate)immunity.VitaminE,too,hasbeen

proposedasanutrientthatenhancestheim-muneresponsetoavaccine.Itisnotjusttheantibodylevelsthatarein-

fluencedbynutrition.Themoredurablecom-ponentofthebody’simmuneresponse,cellu-larimmunity,isaffectedbynutrition.In2006,Japaneseresearchersreportedthatmicefedadietwith5percentcasein(milkprotein)hadlowerTcell counts thanmice fed20per centmilk protein. Productionof interleukin-2, animportantcomponentofthechemicalammu-nition in the body’s response, was loweramongtheCD4+Tcellsinthelowproteindietgroup.Theresearchersconcludedthat“inad-ditiontodevelopmentofaneffectiveDNAvac-cine,themanagementof thenutritionalstateis important for thepreventionof infectiousdiseasebyDNAvaccination.”Adoubleblind,placebocontrolledclinical

trialinFrancerevealedthatelderlypersonsliv-ing in a carehomedevelopedmoreantibod-ies and fewer respiratory infections, whencompared to a similar group that didnot re-ceivethesesupplements.Theimmunesystemneedsthesetwomineralsforastrongresponseagainst viral infections. That is true for bothnatural immunity and for the immune re-sponsetoanadministeredvaccine.Itisnotnecessarytosupplementthesenu-

trients alongwith the administration of thevaccine.Thatwouldnotbepossible inamassimmunisationprogramme, thoughnutritioncounsellingmaybeprovided alongwith thevaccinationduring thepost-injectionobser-vationperiod.Whatisneededisareconsider-ationofpoliciesthatinfluenceouragriculturalprioritiesandshapeourfoodsystems.Enablingpeopletoconsumehealthydietswillboostnat-ural immunitythatcanfightoffmicrobial in-fectionandalsotobuildarobust immunere-sponsewhenstimulatedbyavaccine.Are our agriculture and food systems

presentlyconfiguredtodothat?Sadlynot.Wearepresentlyofferingcerealsstrippedof fibreandultra-processed foodswithout adequateandaffordable supplyof pulses,millets, fruit,vegetables,nutsandfishwhichcanprovideusmuchneededproteins,vitamins,mineralsandfibre.Eveneggsarebeingremovedfromschoolmid-daymealmenus in somestates, despite

their beingpowerpackedwith thenutrientsneededforimmunity.The impactof climatechangealsoneeds

tobeconsideredasweexaminethefutureoffoodsystemsandnutrition inourcountry.Astudy from Columbia University (DataScienceInstitute,2018)estimatestheimpactthatclimatechangewouldhaveon India,by2050. The nutrient quality of stapleswoulddecrease, according to the study. It projectsthatglobalwarmingwouldresultin49.6mil-lionnewzincdeficientpersons,38.2millionnew protein deficient persons, apart from106.1 million children and 396 millionwomenwhowouldbe irondeficient. It con-cludes thatdiversifyingcropproduction, re-placingsomepartofricecultivationwithmil-lets and sorghum,wouldmake India’s foodsupplymorenutritious,while reducing irri-gationdemand, energyuseandgreenhousegas emission. “Such diversification of cropswouldalsoenhanceIndia’sclimateresiliencewithout reducing calorie production or re-quiringmore land”, thestudyconcludes.Even as we prepare to immunise our

manymillions, the big challenge of publichealth nutrition remains the production ofeasilyavailableandaffordable foodsourceswhich enable people to consumebalanceddiets which are physiologically suited togrowth and good health across a long lifecourse. Thesediets shouldalsobepredom-inantlyplant-based,makingthembothnu-tritionallyappropriateandecologicallysus-tainable. Ultra-processed foods should beregulated and taxed to decrease their pro-duction,promotionandconsumption.Thesestepsarenotonlygoodforhumannutritionbutalsoforreducingtheriskofzoonotic in-fections bymaintaining an ecological bal-ance.Thebonusisabenefit inslowingdownclimate change.Ourprotectiondoesnot lieonly at the tip of a needle that injects thevaccinebutevenmoresointhepoliciesthatdeterminewhatfillsourplatewhenweeat.

Thewriter,acardiologistandepidemiologist, isPresident,PublicHealthFoundationofIndia(PHFI)andauthorofMakeHealthinIndia:ReachingaBillionPlus.Viewsarepersonal

IN AN unprecedented step, India will notprint the annual budget documents as hasbeenthecasesincethefirstbudgetwaspre-sentedonNovember26,1947.Thisconsid-ered decision was taken in the light ofCOVID-19 constraints, since printing suchdocuments entails keeping 100 officials inisolation in cramped conditions in NorthBlock for almost a fortnight. This is a pru-dent and commendable decision. Bravo.Extrapolating fromthisdeparture from

traditional practice, there is a compellingcase to review the Republic Day parade(January 26) and consider deferring thisgrand annual spectacle for reasons thatcouldbeclusteredas“COVIDplus”.Thepa-rade has already been trimmed and willnow terminate at India Gate instead of theRedFort. Further, thenumberof personnelinamarchingcontingenthasbeenreducedfrom 144 to 96 and to ensure appropriatesocial distancing, only 25,000 visitors willbepermitted.AnxietyaboutCOVID-19andtheincreasedfootprintduetothenewvari-ant has already led to UK Prime MinisterBoris Johnsoncancellinghisownparticipa-tionas thechief guest.Hence, the2021pa-radewill be further trimmed.Given these developments, it is oppor-

tunetoreviewtheRepublicDayparadeandits symbolism. Public health regulationsand COVID-19 precautions indicate thatpreparationfor theparadeandtheconductof thisgrandeventwill increase theproba-bility of the virus spreading. This is an em-pirical reality.In end December, 150 army personnel

who arrived in Delhi for the parade testedpositiveforthevirusandwereswiftlyquar-antined.Luckily,nofurthercaseshavebeenreported. However, bringing themarchingcontingents, state tableaux and 25,000 in-viteestogetherforafour-hourpublic,open-air event (even if they are allmasked)maynot be as prudent, for the likelihood of ex-posure leading to COVID-19 infections iscertain. Is this desirable?The2021paradeisstandalonebutthere

are two other elements about continuingwith the parade that warrant a wider de-bate. The first is the symbolism of the pa-rade andwhat it represents. There is littledoubt that for pageantry, colour and spec-tacle, theRepublicDayparade isdistinctiveandhasearnedhighpraiseglobally forhowit is conducted. India adopted itsConstitution on this day in January 1950and became a sovereign republic, therebyshedding the last formal colonial links.The day is special for both the country

and its citizens, as are all national days theworld over. But should theworld’s largestdemocracycontinue to“celebrate” its sov-ereigntyandcommitment to the letterandspirit of the Constitution by this markedemphasison itsmilitarycapability?This isan issue that merits informed and objec-tive debate both within Parliament andamong citizens for there will be manyviews on this subject.The parade is an expensive event and

somenumbersare instructive.Preparationfor the parade begins months in advanceand entails expenditure by the Centre and

state governments. It is a complexbudget-ary exercise to arrive at a consolidated fig-urebutsomestrandsprovideaballparkfig-ure. An RTI query elicited the followingexpenditureincurredbythecentralgovern-ment on the parade: It increased from Rs145 crore in 2001 to Rs 320 crore in 2014andthisdoesnot includecomponentssuchasVIP securityarrangements, trafficdiver-sions,etc.Onemayconjecturethatthecor-respondingfigure for the2020parademaybe closer toRs 500 crore.Ata timewhenthegovernmentcoffers

are severely straineddue toCOVID-19andthedefenceministry is seeking innovativeways to “tighten thebelt”of the “fauj”, anyfiscal savingought tobegivendueconsid-eration and Rs 500 crore is not insignifi-cant. To place this in context, India has 33SainikSchools that trainyoungboys for themilitary and the first schools began in1960-61. Thousands of these children be-came officers and did the nation proud.Alas, some of these schools are now likelyto shut down (for example, Kazhakootam,Kerala) since fundsasmodest asRs6croreare not available.Thelimitedsuggestionistodeferthepa-

rade this year anddeliberate on its contin-uation in the course of the year. Perhaps, aparadeevery10years?Thenextonewhenthe republic is 80? And in the interim, usethe funds saved to school the next genera-tion todefend the country and the flag.

Thewriter isdirector, Society forPolicyStudies,NewDelhi

A vaccine only provides theantigenic stimulus for thebody to react. How capablythe body reacts isconsiderably influenced bythe nutritional status andwill vary among individuals.Different facets of nutritioninfluence this response. Thediet may be deficient in vitalnutrients needed for arobust immune response. Itmay have elements thatstoke high levels ofinflammation in the body,consuming the buildingblocks of immunity whichcould be better utilised forthe adaptive response to thevaccine. These effects arevery likely if the diet has ahigh content of ultra-processed foods.

The day is special for boththe country and its citizens,as are all national days theworld over. But should theworld’s largest democracycontinue to ‘celebrate’ itssovereignty andcommitment to the letterand spirit of theConstitution by this markedemphasis on its militarycapability? This is an issuethat merits informed andobjective debate both withinParliament and amongcitizens for there will bemany views on this subject.

FOUNDED BY

RAMNATH GOENKA

B E C A U S E T H E T R U T H I N V O L V E S U S A L L

§ §

THEINDIANEXPRESS,SATURDAY, JANUARY16,2021 WORDLYWISESomeverypoorcountriesrungreatvaccination

systems,andsomericheronesrunterribleprograms.—BillGatesTHEEDITORIALPAGE

STRONG HAND IN ASSAMTHEGOVERNMENTMAYreachformorere-pressivemeasures to counter theagitationinAssambecauseof theimpressionthattheuse of force has begun to pay. HomeMinister Zail Singh has confided in manypeoplethattheagitationispeteringout.TheCongress (I) pamphlet on theoneyear ruleof Mrs Gandhi has also indicated that themethods used have contained the move-ment.There isan increasing feelingamongthe government that the agitation wouldnot have continued this long had the pro-testers been dealt with a firm hand. Thegovernmentisquiteconvincedthatastronghand against the protesters will bring the

student leaders to thenegotiating table.

JANATA MERGER STALLEDTHE JANATA (S) merger with the JanataParty is not likely to come about. The pro-posedmerger isdoubtfulbecauseof theat-titude of Raj Narain, the head of Janata (S)whowasastrongvotaryof themove in thefirstplaceandhadworkedhardforthepur-pose. According to Janata Party sources, hehas broken his understanding with theJanata Party President Chandrashekar. TheJanata Party president had persuaded RajNarain to retire from politics and let hispartymen join the Janata Partywhere theseniormemberswould be given due posi-

tion.Narainnowrefuses to retire.

UK CITIZENSHIP ROWTHEBRITISHGOVERNMENT’Snewnation-alitybillhascreateddissatisfactionamongstimmigrantcommunities, especiallyAsiansdespite theHomeOffice’s assurance that itwould stand by those who are entitled toBritish citizenship. The Home Office hassaid there is no question of going back onthe assurances to thosewhohave been al-lowed to stay according to the voucherscheme. However, representatives of peo-ple originally from the Subcontinent saythat they do not knowwhere they standwith respect to citizenship.

JANUARY 16, 1981, FORTYYEARSAGO

New Delhi


WHATTHEOTHERSSAY“An exceptional assault on democracy had to be met with an exceptional displayof resolution and retribution. The present and future safety of the republicdemanded no less.” —THEGUARDIANTHE IDEASPAGE

WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

One final note: Can we inferfrom these data that Indiamight be approaching herdimmunity, and doing sobefore vaccines are widelyavailable? The many EastAsian economies that havesucceeded (for example,Vietnam, Taiwan, Cambodia,Laos, China etc.) did so bycontrolling infections at anearly stage, that is, infectionswere never large enough towarrant a relationship withherd immunity. Ditto thecase with regions in sub-Saharan Africa. Only Indiastands out with a flatteningcurve among those that hadearlier experienced anexplosion of infections.

Access deniedLegalactionagainstScihubandLibgenframes

problemofcontrolandgovernanceofknowledgeinaglobalisedworld

THERECENTLITIGATIONSagainstScihubandLibgenbyElsevier,WileyandACSbringustoamoment ofmany realisations about con-trolandgovernanceofknowledgeinacade-mia.Inthelatterhalfofthe20thcentury,glob-alisation led to the imperative of applying“global” standards to higher education. Asglobal standardshavebeenunofficially un-derstood as the prevailing practices inAmericanandEuropeaninstitutions,thishasposed a seriousdilemma for institutions intheglobalsouth.Suchparametersareoftennotcompatible

withtheeducational systemsthathavehis-toricallyevolvedincountrieslikeIndia,witha colonial past andapersisting “non-indus-trial”present.Precisepoint-basedmeasure-mentscurrentlyappliedtomeasureknowl-edgeproduction appear to bemisplaced inknowledgeecosystemsof the global south.Moreover,thelargerquestion,whethersuchprecisemeasurements, akin toparametersmeasuringindustrialproductivity,helpinas-sessing the relevanceof knowledgecreatedanddisseminatedinanysocietalcontext,in-cludingthosewithan industrial culture likeinEuropeandAmerica,remainsunanswered.In India, UGC has been the regulatory

bodyresponsible formaintainingstandardsinhigher education,while addressing chal-lenges of globalisation. Processes of UGCmandated “standardisation”have inpartic-ular impacted social sciences andhumani-ties research in Indianuniversities.Over theyears, UGChas linked institutional fundingto ranking and accreditation systems likeNAACandNIRF. Inorder toevaluate institu-tions, thesebodieshaveevolved“objective”criteria,whichrankuniversitiesbasedonfac-ultyresearchmeasuredbycitationsinglobaljournaldatabases likeSCOPUS.Evenforfac-ulty promotions andeligibility for researchsupervision, it is articles published in suchdatabasesthatareconsideredvalid. Incom-parison,importancegrantedtoresearchout-putslikebooksorotherformsisdeclining.The insistenceof publication in journals

failstodistinguishbetweenthevariedtrajec-toryofdisciplines.Itismoreofanimpositionof STEM (science, technology, engineeringandmanagement)criteriaonsocialsciencesandhumanities.While in STEMdisciplines,research isoftenhighlyobjectiveandquan-tified,andconclusionscanbepublishedmoreeasily as reports, short studies or articles, insocial sciences andhumanities research issubjective, analytical and argumentative.Within social sciences, too, there are somedisciplines like economicswhere researchmethodscanpossiblybemoreempiricalandquantitative.Ontheotherhand,indisciplineslike history, sociology, politics, philosophy,psychologyandliterature,researchersspendyearswritingbooks that engagewith ideasincomplexways.Thesameisalwaysnotpos-sible in a series of articles published overyears.Indevaluingbooksasauthenticformsof research, UGCdoesmajor disservice todoyens of social sciences and humanitieswhose globally acclaimedbookshave con-

tributedsignificantlytoknowledgebuilding.Tyrannyof“peerreview”isanotherphe-

nomenonthathauntsscholars.Sincecontin-uousproductionandpublicationhasbecomenecessary forprofessional growth, teachersspendmostof theirproductivetimewritingarticlesandgettingthempublished,therebymissingoutonqualityengagementwithped-agogyand research. This has led to a surfeitofarticlesonanypossiblesubjectcompetingwitheachotherforcitations.Moreover,withlongreviewprocessesassociatedwithjour-nalarticles,itisnotreallyasefficientameas-ureofresearchoutputasisclaimed.Whileprofessionalgrowthinuniversities

basesitselfonquantifiedindices,theprocessof peer review itself is subjective, and de-pendsupontheknowledge, inclinationandavailabilityoftimeoftheparticularreviewer.It isnotunheardof getting twoopposite re-views for the samearticle, sometimesevenexpectinganauthortorevisetheentireargu-ment that shemaybemaking. Researchersin interdisciplinary areas face even greaterchallenges as their reviewersmight comefromconventionalfields.Itisoftenquitechallengingforscholarsto

meetpeer-reviewstandardsofA-listedjour-nals.ThishasactuallyrequiredtheUGCtoex-pand its own list, ending up including andsubsequentlydeletinga largenumberof lo-callypublishedjournals.Further,theghettoi-sationofresearchinpaywalledjournaldata-bases makes research inaccessible forstudentsasuniversitiescontinuetocutdownlibrary budgets. Students and teachers, ac-cessarticlesthroughpiratedsiteslikeLibgenand Scihub, prone to be shut down at anypointof timeasevidentfromthelitigations.Clearly, access to knowledge is structurallymadeinequitableinfavouroftheeliteand/ormoneyedinstitutionsandtheirconstituents.Tobesure,whenweideateabouttheout-

comeof research, it is not simply a case ofbooksversusarticles. Theaboveargumentsmaintainforthepossiblemultiplicitythatcanemergeas theend-result of research. Therearethoseseminaljournalarticlesthatarepro-fuselycitedfordecadesandthereareexcep-tionalbooks thathavesurvivedcenturiesofideation. In addition, interdisciplinary andpractice-basedresearchcanthrowupsocialand ecological experiments, artworks andperformances,andnumerousnewoutcomesyettobeconceivedasresearchoutputs.Anystraight-jacketed emphasis on particularformsof research outcomesmisses out onthevery essenceof research, particularly insocialsciencesandhumanities, that isarichand complex engagement of the humanmindwiththeworldaround.ThereisnodoubtthatIndianhigheredu-

cation requires reforms, but the latter needtobe cognisant of the reality of higher edu-cationinIndia.WhiletheUGChopestoraisethestandardstogloballevels,precarityofem-ployment, longer teachinghours, a dismalstudent-teacherratio, lackofsabbaticals,re-search and travel grants, access to researchfacilities andoffice space, adversely impactthe research potential of teachers.“Regulating” researchneeds tobe replacedwith “facilitating” research, allowingmindstothinkandgestate.Unfortunately,intheeraof thehegemonyof financecapital, govern-mentsgloballyareunderpressuretocutbackonexpenditureonpublicinstitutions,includ-ingeducational. Regulationswithoutfacilita-tionwillmerely bureaucratise the gover-nanceofknowledgewithoutgeneratinganypathbreakinginsights.

BanerjeeteacheseconomicsandKothiyalteacheshistoryatAmbedkarUniversity,Delhi

IT IS ALMOST a year since the virus first ap-pearedoutsideofChina.Therehavebeensev-eral falsealarmsabouttheendof thevirus; itisstillongoing,andinmostpartsoftheworld,the second leg of the virus (post July 2020),has beenworse than the first. There is reliefon theway—vaccineshavebeendevelopedand are being distributed, andmaybe theworldreturnstonormalcy inmid-2021.Economists(andpolicymakers) likenat-

ural experiments and plenty have been onoffer.Forthefirsttimeinworldhistory,coun-tries went into lockdowns as a deliberatestrategy to counter the virus. The strategyemergedfromtheveryplacefromwherethevirus first appeared —Wuhan, China. Asmany countries closed shop, the spread oftheviruswasarrested,butonlytemporarily,as it nowappears.A studyof theevolutionof thevirus sug-

gests the following sets of conclusions. First,likeJoanRobinsonsaidinanothercontext,foreverything that can be said about the virus,theopposite is also true. Lockdownswork—and they don’t. If theyworkedwas the con-ventional conclusion (and there aremanywhostillbelievethatlockdownsare“efficient”in controlling infections) thenhowdoesoneexplain the intensity andmagnitude of thespreadpostthelockdown?Whatex-antethe-ory of lockdowns expected/stated/believedthatpostthelockdown,therewouldbemanycases, let alone that the cases would be farhigher thanduring lockdowns?Butwhatonecanexplainistheanswerof

the faithful. The answer is simple andstraightforward—thelockdownswereliftedtooearly, theinfectionhadnotdiedout,andhence the explosion in cases (and deaths).There will be time to analyse this proposi-tion in some detail — but, for themoment,this defence is as close to circular reasoningasyoucanget.Bythis“logic”, if thevirusdidnot re-emerge (as in New Zealand, Taiwan,orThailand),thetimingof lockdown-liftwasperfect. If it did re-emerge (as in most ofWestern Europe and the US — see table),then “obviously” it is the case that the lock-down-lift came tooearly.The data does yield (ex-post) somenon-

nihilist conclusions. There is a commonpat-terntothesuccessstories.Someofthemem-ployed a lockdown — but all the successstories involved a version of the 3-T policy.Testing,TracingandTreatment.The3-Tspol-icyisbasedongovernmentsrampinguptest-ing capabilities to identify those that areCOVID–19positiveandisolatingthemtopre-vent the spread of the disease; next, tracingeveryonewho came in contact with thosewhohadtestedpositive;testingthecontacts;and then treating those that tested positiveusingdifferentclinicalprotocols.That lockdown is not a necessary condi-

tion forvictory isemphatically supportedbythe fact thatmorethana100countriesprac-tised lockdowns at one timeor another, andlessthanadozensucceeded.Butallcountriesthat did succeed also practised ancientwis-domasembedded in the3-Tpolicy.This factdeserves emphasis. Theworld has enduredmany viruses,many contagions. Check your

historybooks—noregion/countrypractisedalockdownpriorto2020.Shouldonebelieve,therefore,thatallotherviruseswerelesscon-tagious? TheUS strategy of confronting the1957-58 flu is discussed in Lockdowns andClosuresvsCOVID–19:COVIDWins(availableat http://ssbhalla.org/wp-content/up-loads/2020/10/Lockdowns-Closures-vs.-COVID19-Covid-Wins-Nov-4.pdf)andshouldbe required reading for lockdown and otherexperts.TheUShadaversionofthecommonflumuchworsethananyexperiencedbefore,orsince.YettheUSauthorities,undertheableleadership of D AHenderson, faced the fluwithout lockdowns.Whatwas the strategyemployed? The same as that practisedwithallinfectiousdiseasesforcenturies—attempttoisolate,andsocialdistancefromthepatient.Inthe1957-58flu,someschoolswereclosed,othersremainedopen;dittowithworkplaces;but emphatically no lockdown. The 3-T is amodernversionof thesame.The table reports the data on COVID in-

fectionsanddeathsforseveralregionsof theworld(andselectedcountries).Thedataarepresented for three dates— end-June, end-September,andJanuary11,2021.Thereadercan peruse the comparisons at leisure, butwe will discuss the India pattern inSeptemberandnow.EndSeptemberwasthetimewhen there was great worry; expertsand themedia were obsessedwith India’sbadvirus“performance”,andtheoriesweredeveloped as to how India could not domuch right. No one (or very few)were pre-dicting what actually transpired. EndSeptember, the Indian average (cases permillion)was4,712—almost identical to theworld average (4,486) and the average ofMiddle East andNorthAfrica (MENA). As ofJanuary11,MENAandtheworldarecloseto-gether(12,398and12,526),but India isone-third lower.The deaths permillion evolution is like

cases, but there is a noticeable difference.DeathsareconsiderablylowerinIndia—only113permillionversus271permillionfortheworld and 274 forMENA.Note the very lowvalueof deaths in sub-SaharanAfrica and inEastAsia.Twobroadconclusions follow,butalsoneedafollow-up.First,poorercountries

seem to have been affected less adverselythan the richer, more advanced economies.One suggested explanation (possibility) isthatpoorercountrieshavehadto live longerwithdiseases(andbadsanitation)and,there-fore,havedevelopedsomeimmunitywhichmake them less prone to infections, ceterisparibus. Second, EastAsiahas avery low in-cidence of COVID-19, even after excludingChina. One possible explanation is that thisregion has had greater experiencewith flu(forexample, theavian flu).One additional note about the continu-

ingmarch towards herd immunity in India.In a paper presented at IRADE inDecember,wemadea forecast of the “end”of COVID inIndia—wehadsaid12millioninfectionsandthe end sometime in April. Our forecast forIndiaasoftoday—10.5millioninfectionsandtheendsometimeinMay-June.Basedontheavailablestate-leveldata,somestatesinIndiahavealreadyachievedherdimmunitywhileother states are catching up. States likeAndhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Jammu andKashmir, JharkhandandGoahave seen flat-tening; others like Karnataka,Maharashtra,arecatchingup.One final note: Canwe infer from these

datathatIndiamightbeapproachingherdim-munity, and doing so before vaccines arewidely available? The many East Asianeconomiesthathavesucceeded(forexample,Vietnam,Taiwan,Cambodia,Laos,Chinaetc.)did so by controlling infections at an earlystage, that is, infections were never largeenough towarrant a relationshipwith herdimmunity.Dittothecasewithregionsinsub-SaharanAfrica. Only India stands outwith aflatteningcurveamongthosethathadearlierexperienced an explosion of infections. TheextraordinarydeclineofCOVID-19cases(anddeaths) in India is an issue, like lockdowns,deservingof amoredetailedstudy.

Bhalla isExecutiveDirector IMFrepresentingIndia,Sri Lanka,BangladeshandBhutan.

Bhasin isaNewDelhibasedpolicyresearcher.Theviewsexpressedare thoseof theauthorsanddonotnecessarily represent theviewsof

the IMF, itsExecutiveBoard,or IMFmanagement

PLATFORM DANGERSTHISREFERSTOthearticle, 'Afterblock-ingTrump' (IE, January15). As themas-siveassaultontheCapitolillustrated,so-cialmediaplatformslikeParler,FacebookandTwitterhavegrownhugelypopularandhaveturnedintoopinioninfluencersinsteadofbeingplatformsfortheharm-less haring of information. This putsgreateronuson theplatformowners toensure that their technology isnotmis-used in thenameof freedomof speech.This ismorenecessary for India,wheresocialmedia is becoming ameans tospreadmisleadingrumoursabouttheef-ficacyofCOVID-19vaccines.

YGChouksey,Pune

ADANI'S RISETHISREFERSTOthereport, ‘FinanceandNiti had raised red flagsbeforeAdani’scleansweepofsixairports’, (IE, January15).Themindbogglingriseofsinglecor-porate entity — the Adani Group— intermsof airportsbaggedandtheshareofnationalpassengertraffichandledisworrying. Coupledwith the steep fallin the share of Airports Authority ofIndiaon the samemetrics in just threeyears,thisshouldserveasawarningnotjusttheCentralpublicsectorundertak-ingbutalsoothercompetingcorporateentities. This development proves theargument of protesting farmers andsubstantiatestheirfearaboutthethreefarmlawsaremeanttobenefittwocor-

porategroups.GangadharKaralay,Nagpur

SOUND JUDGMENTTHISREFERSTO the editorial, 'The cor-rection' ( IE January 15). TheAllahabadHC judgment should be celebrated forthefactthatitbringstheSpecialMarriageAct, 1954, closer to the objectivewithwhichitwasenacted.Strikingdowntheprovision requiring 30 days notice en-suresmore safety and security for cou-pleswhomayfacestringentactionsfromtheir familymembers or theother self-proclaimed“protectors”of religion.

SarachanaSisodia,Delhi

LETTERS TO THEEDITOR

RECENTREPORTSSUGGESTthattheupcom-ingbudgetmay includeproposals for a BankInvestment Company (BIC), anchoring thegovernment’sshareholdinginitsbanks.Witha predominantly bank-led growth strategy,banksfacethedauntingtaskofmanagingthepandemic’s impact on their balance sheetswhile spearheading the country’s economicrecovery. A bulk of the responsibilitywill fallonpublicsectorbanks(PSBs)whichdominatethebankingsector.A fiscally constrainedgovernment, there-

fore,appearstobelookingatalternativestore-duceitsburdenasthespectreofanothercap-italinfusionlooms—thegrossnon-performingassets(GNPAs)ofPSBsareprojectedtoincreaseto16.2percentintheJuly-Septemberquarter,inabaseline scenario, up from9.7per cent inthesameperiod lastyear,with likely implica-tions for capital adequacy.Moreover, the effi-cacyofrecapitalisationofbanksbythegovern-ment is also under scrutiny. Despite capitalinfusionofnearlyRs3.1lakhcrorefrom2015-16to2019-20,PSBshavecontinuedtounder-perform.TheComptrollerandAuditorGeneral(CAG)hassoughtdetailsonbankrecapitalisa-tionsince2016-17, includingthebasis fordis-tributionof capital amongbanksand the im-pactontheirperformance.The BICwas proposed by the P J Nayak

Committee constituted by theRBI in 2014 to

examinegovernanceatpublicandprivatesec-torbanks.ThecommitteeobservedthatifthePSBscontinuetobegovernedbadly,recapital-isationwould only impose significant fiscalcostswithout the corresponding benefits toitsprincipalshareholder—thegovernment.Itofferedtwooptions—privatisationoracom-pleteoverhaulofbankgovernance.Thelatteris envisaged in the formof agradualdisasso-ciationofthegovernmentfromtheoperations,management and governance of PSBs. Thiswouldunfoldoverathree-stageprocesstoen-surethattheboardsofpublicsectorbanksareindependently and professionallymanagedsoas to generate returns to reduce claimsontheexchequer.Oncetheboardsofpublicsec-tor banks are reconstituted on professionallines,inlaterstages,thecommitteeenvisagedthat theBICownerwould transformfromanownertoaninvestorwhoseprimaryrespon-sibilitywouldbetoprotect thegovernment’sfinancial investment in the banks by raisingthe returns to the government. The BIC is,therefore,awelcomestepinasmuchasitsig-nals the government’s intent to pursue re-forms to improve the governance and per-formanceofPSBs.However,thedetailswillmatter.Theown-

ershipandgovernanceoftheBICitselfwillbecrucial— itwill need tobe allowed to garnertherequisitetalentandexpertise,andoperate

withfreedom.Intheabsenceof this, itwouldmerelyaddanotherlayerwhilepreservingthestatusquo.Thelessthanencouragingexperi-enceoftheBanksBoardBureau(BBB)thatwastoprecedetheBICis instructive.TheBBBwasset up in 2016 to advise on the selection andappointment of senior boardmembers andmanagement,avoidvacanciesbyhelpingwiththe planning of appointments ahead as alsoadvicethePSBsonstrategiesforbusinessandraisingcapital.However,inpractice,theBBB’sadvicehasnotalwaysbeenheededto,andap-pointments have not always beenmade ontime.TheBBB,asoriginallyconceived,wastoconsist of three senior bankers. However, itwasexpandedtoincluderepresentativesfromtheRBIandthegovernment.Thegovernmentwouldneedtoensurethe

necessaryfreedomfortheBICtooperatewhilecircumscribingitsownrole.Theultimatesuc-cessof thesereformswilldependonhowthegovernmentdisassociates itself andempow-erstheBIC,theboardsandthebankstofunctionindependently— fromselection of talent tostrategicdecisionmaking.TheNayakcommit-teehadsuggesteda shareholders’ agreementbetween the BIC and the government thatwoulddetailoutandformalisethisfreedom.TheBBBwasalsooriginally envisagedby

the committee as a temporary arrangementforadvisingonboardappointmentsbefore it

wouldbesubsumedby theBIC.However, nofurther stepshavebeen forthcomingafter itsestablishment. A clear time-bound roadmapwould,therefore,sendanencouragingsignal.TheobjectivesoftheBICwouldhavetobe

clearly defined too. If capital raising is one ofthegoals, thestructureofaholdingcompany—withaportfolioofcomparativelybetterper-forming andnon-performing banks— to at-tractinvestmentsmustbeassessed.Inthisre-gard, the RBI has reportedly, in the past,expressed reservations on the BIC structurebeingapotentialchallengeforinvestorstoas-sess the relative risks, returns and perform-ance of the banks. This raises thequestionofwhether privatisationwould not be a betteralternative,particularlyasthetransitionofthegovernment fromanowner to a pure finan-cial investor initsbanksis likelytotaketime.Itwouldbeimperativetocarefullyaddress

suchconcernsandquestionstoensurethesuc-cessofrestructuringthegovernment’sowner-shipandinfluenceinPSBsenvisagedthroughthe BIC. Given these concerns, privatisationmaybeabetteralternative.Thebudgetcouldsignal this intentbyannouncingthefirststep—therepealof theBankNationalisationActsandtheStateBankof IndiaAct.

PandeyandPriyadarshiniarefellowsatNIPFP

IDEASONLINE

ONLY IN THE EXPRESS

●● MAKINGRATIONSHOPSWORK:

JYOTHIKRISHNANANDMOULESHRIVYAS

●●WHATTHEBUDGETCANDOFORMSMES:AMRITAPILLAI

Only Indiastandsoutwitha flatteningcurveamongthosethathadearlierexperiencedanexplosionof infections

Is India nearing herd immunity?

www.indianexpress.com

TABLE 1: COVID INFECTIONS&DEATHS (PERMILLION)

REGION CASESPERMILLION DEATHSPERMILLION30-Jun 30-Sep 11-Jan 30-Jun 30-Sep 11-Jan

World 1379 4486 12526 67 134 271

EastAsia (excl.China) 115 369 867 4 10 21

WesternEurope 3586 7420 40023 432 459 1016

EasternEurope 2464 5822 28036 44 113 538

LatinAmerica 4026 14434 26370 178 526 843

MENA(MiddleEast 2023 4733 12398 49 124 271&N.Africa)

China 59 63 67 3 3 3

Russia 4611 8372 24448 66 147 445

Sweden 6811 9417 51405 552 589 984

Germany 2373 3556 24303 110 116 537

US 7854 21564 68802 380 617 1147

Israel 3009 29581 61999 38 187 455

India 437 4712 7847 13 74 113

Source:COVID-19Dashboardby theCenter forSystemsScienceandEngineering (CSSE)at JohnsHopkinsUniversity (JHU)

Budgetmusttakestepstowardsprivatisingownershipofpublicsectorbanks

Away out for the bankRadhika Pandey andDPriyadarshini

ArindamBanerjeeand Tanuja Kothiyal

Illustration:CRSasikumar

Surjit S Bhalla andKaran Bhasin

New Delhi


THEWORLDWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

UGANDA

MusevenitakesearlyelectionleadasrivalallegesfraudLONG-TIME LEADERYoweriMusevenitookanearly lead in Uganda’spresidential election ac-cordingtopreliminaryre-sultsonFriday,thoughhismain rival said there hadbeen widespread fraudand his supporters hadthe right to protest.With29.4% of votes fromThursday’sballotcounted,Museveni had won1,852,263votes,or63.9%,while main oppositioncandidateBobiWinehad821,874 (28.4%), the elec-toralcommissionsaidjustafter11am.Thenormallybustling capital KampalawasquietonFriday,ahol-idayafterThursday’selec-tion, with most shopsclosed.REUTERS

UgandanPresidentYoweriMuseveni

TOPOFTHEWORLD

AUSTRALIA

FakeUSlegbandgetspigeonareprieveAPIGEONthatAustraliade-claredabiosecurityriskhasreceived a reprieve after aUS bird organisation de-clared its identifying legbandwas fake. The bandsuggestedthebirdfoundinaMelbourne backyard onDec26wasaracingpigeonthathad left theUSstateofOregon, 13,000 kmaway,twomonthsearlier.Onthatbasis,Australianauthoritieshad said they consideredthe bird a disease risk andplanned to kill it. But thenews from theUS that thebandwas fake,whichwasconfirmed by Australia’sAgriculture Department,meansthatthebirdislikelyfromAustralia itself and sowillnotbekilled.

INDONESIA

Diversfindcasingofcrashedjet’sblackboxINDONESIANDIVERShavefound the casingof a cock-pit voice recorder from aSriwijaya Air plane thatcrashedintotheJavaSealastweek,butarestillsearchingforitsmemoryunit,navyof-ficer Abdul Rasyid said onFriday. “We’ve found thebodyorcasing,we’vefoundthebeaconandnowwe’relooking for thememory,”AbdultoldreportersaboardthenavyshipRigel.Hewasconfidentdiverswouldfindthememoryinthenextfewdays, adding that blackboxes are usually strongand can withstand animpact.REUTERS

RESPONSETOWASHINGTONVIOLENCETOBEPROBED

MICHAELBIESECKER,JAKEBLEIBERG&JAMESLAPORTAWASHINGTON,JANUARY15

ASUSPresidentDonaldTrump’ssupportersmassed outside theCapitol last week, a line of menwearing helmets and body ar-mour trudged purposefully upthemarble stairs in a single-fileline,eachmanholdingthejacketcollarof theoneahead.Theformationisstandardop-

erating procedure for a combatteam that is “stacking up” tobreach a building. Itwas a chill-ing sign that many at the van-guard of themob that stormedtheseatofAmericandemocracyeither hadmilitary training orweretrainedbythosewhodid.AnAssociatedPressreviewof

publicrecords,socialmediapostsandvideosshowsat least21cur-rentorformermembersoftheUSmilitaryorlawenforcementhavebeenidentifiedasbeingatorneartheCapitolriot,withmorethanadozenothersunderinvestigationbutnotyetnamed.Among themost prominent

to emerge is a retired Air Forcelieutenant colonelwhowas ar-restedafterhewasphotographedwearing a helmet and body ar-mour on the floor of the Senate,holdingapairofzip-tiehandcuffs.A retiredNavySEALposteda

Facebookvideo about travellingfromhisOhio home to the rallyandseeminglyapprovingofthein-vasionof“ourbuilding,ourhouse.”

Also under scrutiny is an ac-tive-dutypsychologicalwarfarecaptainfromNorthCarolinawhoorganised threebusloadsof peo-plewhoheadedtoWashingtonforthe“SaveAmerica”rallyinsupportthePresident’sfalseclaimthattheelectionwasstolenfromhim.

Two police officers from asmallVirginiatownwerearrestedbytheFBIafterpostingaselfieofthemselves intheCapitol.While thePentagondeclined

to provide an estimate for howmanyother active-dutymilitarypersonnelareunderinvestigation,themilitary’s top leaderswereconcerned enough ahead ofPresident-elect JoeBiden’s inau-gurationthattheyissuedahighlyunusual warning to all servicemembersthisweekthattherightto free speech gives no one therighttocommitviolence.Federalwatchdogs launched

asweepingreviewofhowtheFBI,the Pentagon and other lawen-forcementagenciesrespondedtothe Jan6 riot, includingwhethertherewerefailuresininformationsharingandotherpreparations.The inquirieswill be under-

taken by the inspectors generalfor the departments of Justice,HomelandSecurity, InteriorandDefence.AP

REUTERSWASHINGTON, JANUARY15

FEDERALPROSECUTORSofferedan ominous newassessment oflast week’s siege of the USCapitol by President DonaldTrump’s supporters onThursday,sayinginacourtfilingthatriotersintended“tocaptureandassassinateelectedofficials”.Prosecutorsofferedthatview

inafilingaskingajudgetodetainJacobChansley, theArizonamanandQAnon conspiracy theoristwhowasfamouslyphotographedwearinghornsashestoodat thedeskofVicePresidentMikePenceinthechamberof theUSSenate.The detentionmemo, writ-

ten by Justice Departmentlawyers in Arizona, goes intogreaterdetail about theFBI’s in-vestigationintoChansley,reveal-ing that he left a note for Pencewarning that “it’s only amatterof time, justice is coming.”“Strongevidence, including

Chansley’s ownwords and ac-tions at the Capitol, supportsthat the intentof theCapitol ri-oterswas tocaptureandassas-sinate elected officials in theUnited States government,”prosecutorswrote.

AGUSTINUSBEODACOSTA&STANLEYWIDIANTOJAKARTA, JANUARY15

APOWERFUL earthquake killedat least 42 people and injuredhundredsonIndonesia’sislandofSulawesionFriday,trappingsev-eralunderrubbleandunleashingdozensof aftershocksasauthor-itieswarnedofmorequakesthatcouldtriggeratsunami.Thousandsof frightenedres-

idents fled their homes forhighergroundwhenthemagni-tude 6.2-quake struck 6 kmnortheastof thetownofMajene,at a depth of just 10 km, shortlybefore1.30am.The quake and aftershocks

damagedmore than300homesandtwohotels,aswellas flatten-ingahospitalandtheofficeofare-

gionalgovernor,whereauthoritiestoldReuters several peoplehavebeentrappedundertherubble.“PraisebetoGod,fornowOK,

but we just felt another after-shock,” said Sukri Efendy, a 26-year-old residentof thearea.As many as 42 people have

been killed,mostly inMamujuand the rest in the neighbour-ingdistrictofMajene, thecoun-try’s national disaster mitiga-tion agency said in a situationreportonFridayevening.Morethan 820 people were injured,it said.REUTERS

STEPHANIEVANDENBERGTHEHAGUE, JANUARY15

PRIMEMINISTERMark Rutte’sgovernment resignedonFriday,accepting responsibility forwrongful accusationsof fraudbythetaxauthoritiesthatdrovethou-sandsof familiestofinancialruin,oftenonthebasisofethnicity.The cabinetwould remain in

placefornowinacaretakercapac-itytomanagethecoronaviruscri-sis, Rutte said. He then rode hisbike toKingWillem-Alexander’s17th century baroqueHuis TenBoschpalaceinTheHaguetodis-cusshisresignation.Anelectionhasalreadybeen

scheduled for March 17 at theendofRutte’s third term.“This is about tens of thou-

sands of parents who werecrushedunderthewheelsof thestate,” Rutte told journalists.“There canbenodoubt, this is a

colossal stain.”A parliamentary inquiry

foundlastmonththatofficialsatthe tax service hadwrongly ac-cused families of fraud overchildcare subsidies, causing an“unprecedented injustice”.Around10,000 families had

beenforcedtorepaytensofthou-sandsofeuroseach,insomecasesleadingtounemployment,bank-ruptciesanddivorces.Manyofthefamilieswere targetedbasedontheirethnicoriginordualnation-alities,thetaxofficesaidlastyear.This “is absolutely unac-

ceptable in a law-based state”,Rutte said.REUTERS

KJMVARMABEIJING, JANUARY15

CHINAHAShonouredavirolo-gist from aWuhan-based bio-lab, whichwas at the centre ofa Covid-19 storm, as a WHOteamarrivedat theChinesecityto probe the origins of thecoronavirus.Shi Zhengli of the Wuhan

InstituteofVirology(WIV),whohas earned themoniker of “BatWoman” for her passionate re-searchintobatsandviruses,washonoured as an “advancedworkerof theChineseAcademyofSciences(CAS)”, thestate-runGlobal Times reported, citing aWIVannouncementonFriday.USPresidentDonald Trump

hadallegedthatthenovelcoro-navirusemanatedfromWIVbe-fore it spread across theworld.After she was linked withTrump’s allegation in local andforeignmediaearlylastyear,Shiconspicuously disappeared formonthsamid rumours that shehad defected. But she laterresurfacedandcriticisedTrump,saying his claim “jeopardisesand affects our academic workandpersonal lives”.PTI

REUTERSMOSCOW,JANUARY15

RUSSIAANNOUNCEDonFridayitwaspullingoutoftheOpenSkiestreaty,sayingthatthepact,whichallows unarmed surveillanceflights overmember countries,hadbeenseriouslycompromisedbythewithdrawalof theUS.The move, announced by

Russia’s foreignministry, comesdaysbeforeUSPresident-electJoeBiden’s inauguration amid fearsofaburgeoningarmsrace.The US left the Open Skies

arms control and verification

treaty in November, accusingRussia of violating it, somethingMoscowdenied.Russia said in a statement

thatMoscowhadmadespecific

proposals to othermembers tomitigate against the impact ofthe US exit but that those pro-posals were not backed byWashington’sallies.

ASSOCIATEDPRESSTERREHAUTE, JANUARY15

THEUSgovernment executed adrugtraffickerThursdayforslay-ingsevenpeopleinaburstofvi-olence in Virginia’s capital in1992, with somewitnesses inthedeath-chamberbuildingap-plaudingasthe52-year-oldwaspronounceddead.Corey Johnson’s execution

went ahead after his lawyersscrambled to stop it on groundsthatthelethal injectionofpento-barbitalwould causehimexcru-ciatingpaindue to lungdamagefromhiscoronavirusinfection.Hewas the12th inmate exe-

cutedattheprisoninTerreHaute,Indiana, sincetheTrumpadmin-istration restarted federal execu-tions following a17-year hiatus.The lastduring thepresidencyofardent death-penalty advocateDonaldTrumpwassetforFriday.Johnson, who his lawyers

saidwas severelymentally dis-abled, was pronounced dead at11.34pm.Whenasked if hehadanylastwords, Johnsonfocusedon a room tohis left designatedformembers of his family. “No.I’m OK,” he said, Seconds later,he said softly while gazing in-tentlyatsameroom,“Loveyou.”After the execution, his

lawyers released Johnson’s laststatement. In it, he said thepizzaandstrawberry shakeheateanddrankbeforetheexecution“werewonderful” but hedidn’t get thejelly-filleddoughnutshewanted.Headded:“Thisshouldbefixed.”

Cops, ex-military personnelamong those at Capitol riot

Duringthestormingof theUSCapitolonJanuary6.Reuters

US prosecutorssay rioters meantto capture, killelected officials

Biden unveils $1.9 trillion plan tostem Covid-19 and steady economyRICARDOALONSO-ZALDIVAR&BILLBARROWWILMINGTON,JANUARY15

USPRESIDENT-ELECT Joe Bidenhasunveileda$1.9trillioncoron-avirusplantoend“acrisisofdeephumansuffering”byspeedingupvaccinesandpumpingoutfinan-cialhelp to thosestrugglingwiththe pandemic’s prolonged eco-nomicfallout.Calledthe“AmericanRescue

Plan,” the legislative proposalwouldmeet Biden’s goal of ad-ministering100millionvaccinesbythe100thdayofhisadminis-tration, and advance his objec-

tive of reopeningmost schoolsbythespring.Onaparalleltrack,it delivers another round of aidto stabilise the economywhilethepublichealtheffortseekstheupperhandonthepandemic.“We not only have an eco-

nomicimperativetoactnow—I

believewehaveamoral obliga-tion,”Bidensaidinanationwideaddress Thursday. At the sametime, he acknowledged that hisplan“doesnotcomecheaply.”Biden proposed $1,400

cheques for most Americans,whichontopof$600providedinthe most recent Covid-19 Billwouldbringthetotaltothe$2,000thatBidenhascalledfor. Itwouldalsoextendatemporaryboost inunemployment benefits and amoratorium on evictions andforeclosuresthroughSeptember.Anditshoehornsinlong-term

Democratic policy aims such asincreasingtheminimumwageto$15anhour andexpandingpaidleaveforworkers.AP

THEOPENSkiestreatyallowssurveillanceflightsfrommembercountriestogatherin-formationonmillitaryactivities.RussiafearsthateventhoughtheUShasexitedthetreaty, itwillcontinueto

haveaccesstooverflightintelligencegatheredbyitsallieswhoarestillsignatories.Russiaex-itedthepactreportedly

afterothersrefusedtogiveas-surancesthattheywouldnotsharethisintelligencewithUS.

Russia announces exit from OpenSkies treaty citing US withdrawal

Washington’sexitworriesMoscow

US executesVirginia gangkiller despiteCovid infection

Indonesia quake kills atleast 42, injures hundreds

China honours‘Bat Woman’ ofWuhan-based lab

DutchPMMarkRutte leaves theRoyalPalace inTheHagueonFriday.Reuters

Dutch govt resignsover ‘colossal stain’of tax subsidy scandal

JESSIEPANGHONGKONG, JANUARY15

THECOMPANYwhichapprovesinternet domains inHongKongsaid it will now reject any sitesthat could incite “illegal acts”,raisingnewconcernsaboutfree-doms after Beijing’s impositionof anational security lawontheChinese-ruledcity lastyear.Holdersof .hkdomainswere

advisedofthepolicychangelateon Thursday, sources toldReuters, hours after internetservice provider Hong KongBroadband Network (HKBN)said it had blocked access to

HKChronicles,awebsiteofferinginformationaboutanti-govern-mentprotests.Themovescamejustdaysaf-

ter the arrest of over 50 pro-democracyactivists,andsourceshave told Reuters that China isplanninga furthercrackdown.

HKBNsaid ithadblocked thewebsite in compliancewith thenationalsecuritylaw,thefirstsuchcensorshipinthecityof itskind.In the emails, theHongKong

Domain Name RegistrationCompany alerted holders of .hkdomains to thenew“acceptableuse” policy by its parent, HongKong Internet RegistrationCorporationLimited,whichgoesintoeffectonJan28,accordingtocopiessharedbyrecipients.Itsaiditcouldrejectapplica-

tions fornew.hksites that itbe-lieves could incite criminal acts,abuseprivacyorprovidefalseormisleading information.“The rolloutof theacceptable

usepolicyisquiteworrying,”saidonewebsiteoperator.“Thingslikeproviding falseormisleading in-formation,whoaretheytodecide?Arethesepreventivemeasuresforfuturefalsenewsregulations?”Themoves are fuellingwor-

ries that a censorship mecha-nism similar to China’s “GreatFirewall” isbeingput inplace inHongKong.While the internet inmain-

land China is heavily censored,residents inHong Kong have sofarenjoyedgreaterfreedomsun-der the “one country, two sys-tems” framework that it waspromisedwhen Britain handeditbacktoChinain1997.REUTERS

ThemainpageofHKChronicleswebsiteasseenfromJapanonThursday.Access to thewebsitewasblockedbyaninternetserviceprovider inHongKong.AP

Fears over ‘Great Firewall’ extending to HongKong as internet firm says can block ‘illegal acts’

2020 among the threewarmest years: WMOANJALIMARARPUNE, JANUARY15

THEYEAR2020wasamong thethreewarmest years on record,said a statement by theWorldMeteorologicalOrganisation.Last year, the average global

temperature recordedwas 14.9degrees Celsius, whichwas 1.2degreesabovepre-industriallev-els (1850 - 1900). Thewarmestever years recorded are 2016,2019and2020, theWMOsaid.InIndia,2020wastheeighth

warmest recorded since 1901,when the IndiaMeteorologicalDepartmentstartedmaintainingtemperature records.“The exceptional heat of

2020 is despite a LaNina event,

whichisatemporarycoolingef-fect,” said Prof Petteri Taalas,Secretary-General,WMO.LaNinaisanoceanicphenom-

enonwhencoolerthannormalseasurfacetemperaturesarerecordedalong the central andequatorialPacificOcean. It affects theglobalaveragetemperatures.ThecurrentcycleofLaNinaisexpectedtocon-tinuetillthemiddleof2021.Under the Paris Climate

Agreement,worldleadersagreedtotrytokeepwarmingwellbelow2degreesabovepre-industriallev-els inorder toavoid themostex-tremeeffects of climate change.However, the WMO’s GlobalAnnualtoDecadalClimateUpdatesays there is aone-in-five chancethat by 2024, warming wouldhavealreadyexceeded1.5degrees.

In thetownofMamuju inWestSulawesi, Indonesia,onFridayafter theearthquake.AP

ShiZhengliat theWuhanInstituteofVirology lastyear.AP

Nepal gives emergency nod forIndia-made Covishield vaccineSHIRISHBPRADHANKATHMANDU, JANUARY15

NEPALHASgrantedemergencyapproval for AstraZeneca’sIndia-made Covishield vaccineagainst the novel coronavirusthat has claimed nearly 1,950lives in the country.Thedecisiontogrant theap-

proval forthevaccinewastakenonFriday,Nepal’sDepartmentofDrugAdministration(DDA)saidinastatement.

“Conditionalpermissionhasbeengrantedforemergencyuseauthorisationof Covishieldvac-cineagainstCovid-19 inNepal,”thestatement said.DrugmajorAstraZenecahas

partneredwith the Pune-basedSerumInstituteof India(SII), theworld’slargestvaccinemanufac-turer, for the supply of the vac-cine to the Indian governmentandalsotoalargenumberof lowandmiddle-incomecountries.The vaccinewas developed

in collaboration with the

UniversityofOxford.NepalonFridaydetected270

newcoronaviruscases,takingthenationalCovid-19tallyto266,816.Of the total cases reported so far,260,567people have recovered,whereas1,948havedied,accord-ingtotheMinistryofHealth.Inthepast24hours,390peo-

ple have been discharged fromisolation centres after their re-covery, while five new deathshave been reported. As of now,Nepalhas4,301Covid-19activecases, it said.PTI

Thecabinetwillremaininplacefornowinacaretakercapacitytomanagethecoronaviruscrisis

Theplanincludesgiving$1,400chequestoAmericans

Biden picks FDAex-chief Kessler tolead vaccine scienceWashington:US President-electJoe Biden has picked a formerFoodandDrugcommissionertoleadvaccine science inhisdrivetoput100millionshots intothearmsofAmericansinhisadmin-istration’s first 100 days andstemtheCovid-19pandemic.DrDavidKessler,whowillhave

the titleof chief scienceofficerofCovidresponse,headedtheFDAinthe1990s.Hehasbeenacting asan adviser to Biden, andhis ap-pointmentwasannouncedFridaybytheBidentransitionoffice.Kesslerwill assume respon-

sibility for the scientific side ofOperationWarpSpeed,aneffortlaunched under the Trump ad-ministration to rapidly developvaccinesandtreatments.AP

USPRESIDENTDonaldTrumpwill leaveWashingtonnextWednesdaymorning, aheadof President-elect JoeBiden'sinauguration, according to apersonfamiliarwiththeplan-ning. Trumphadalreadyan-nouncedthathewouldnotbeattendingBiden’s inaugura-tion.HeisexpectedtoremaininFloridawitha small groupofaides.AP

‘TRUMPTO LEAVEWASHINGTONONINAUGURATIONDAY’

New Delhi

CORONAVIRUSDASHBOARD

13WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

KABIRFIRAQUENEWDELHI,JANUARY15

IN THEhorror subgenreweknowas ‘zom-biemovies’, youmight findaringof theon-goingpandemic.FromthepioneeringNightoftheLivingDead (1968)totherecentSouthKorean production Train to Busan (2016),thesefilmsshowzombiesinfectingordinarypeopleandturningthemintozombies,and,just like it ishappening inCovid-19, theun-infectedaroundthemlivinginpanicastheytrytostaysafe.It turnsout that theconnectionmaybe

deeper than just a resemblance betweenfiction and fact. If you like horror, particu-larly zombie films, watching themmayhave prepared you better for the Covid-19pandemic. That’s the conclusiondrawnbyresearcherswhohavepublishedtheirfind-ingsinthejournalPersonalityandIndividualDifferences.

Whyzombies?Thestudycoveredhorrorfansingeneral,

aswellasmorbidlycuriousindividuals.Theconclusion isbasedonresponses fromhor-rorfanswhowatchedanykindofapocalyp-ticfilms—‘zombiemovies’, ‘post-apocalyp-ticmovies’,and‘alien-invasionmovies’.“However,Ithinkzombiemoviesinpar-

ticularbearresemblance—literallyandsym-bolically — to the pandemic,” said ColtanScrivner,aUniversityofChicagoPhDstudentwholedthenewstudy.“Zombieoutbreaksalmostbydefinition

are pandemics,” Scrivner told The IndianExpress,byemail.“Thecauseisalmostalwayssomesortof infection.Charactersinzombiefilmslearnhowtoavoidgettinginfectedandoftentrytofindacurefortheinfection.Inad-dition, they learnwhat theworld looks likewhen society begins to break down or nolonger functionsasnormal.Althoughexag-gerated in the films, this resembles a real-worldpandemicinsomeways.”

Buthowdoeswatchingsuchfilmshelp?■ The informationwe obtain from an

imaginedzombieapocalypse,thestudysug-gests,may serve us in analogous situationsin the realworld. “They [zombie film fans]reportedfeelingliketheyknewwhattobuyforthepandemicandthattheconsequencesof the pandemic did not take themby sur-prise,”Scrivnersaid.

■FansofhorrorfilmswerefoundtoshowlesspsychologicaldistressduringCovid-19.

“Presumably, frequent users of horrorme-diaoftenemployemotionregulationstrate-gies,whichmayleadtoimprovedemotionalcopingskills,” thestudysays.

Howweretheseconclusionsdrawn?Theresearchersasked310participantsa

varietyofquestions.Onescalemeasuredtheirresilienceorpsychological distress; anotherassessed themonmorbid curiosity. A thirdscalewasthe‘Big5’(neuroticism,agreeable-

ness, extraversion, openness to experience,conscientiousness). Participants also ratedhowmuchofafantheywereofdifferentgen-res(horror,romance,zombiefilmsetc).“Wewereabout to find that, controlling

fortheBig5personalitytraits,horrorfansandmorbidlycuriouspeopleweremorepsycho-logicallyresilientduringtheearlymonthsofthe Covid-19 pandemic in theUS.We alsofoundthatfansof...zombie,apocalyptic,andalien-invasionfilmsreportedbeingmorepre-paredforthepandemic,”Scrivnersaid.

If Iamnotahorrorfan,shouldIstartwatchingzombiefilmsnow?ForresilienceagainstCovid-19,itmaybe

too late. But according to study co-authorJohnJohnson,aPennsylvaniaStateUniversitypsychologist,itisnevertoolatetomakereadyfor thenexthurdle in life. “I'mnot sure thatwatchingsuchmoviesnowwouldbehelp-fulforourcurrentsituation.However,myun-derstanding of pandemics and other life-

challengingeventsisthatsimilarfuturechal-lenges are absolutely inevitable,” Johnsonsaid in comments published on thePennsylvaniaStateUniversitywebsite.BothJohnsonandScrivnerbelievefiction

is away to imagine simulated realities thatprepareusforfuturechallenges.ScrivnertoldThe Indian Express: “Horror inparticular of-fersawaytosafelyexperiencedangerousen-vironments and dangerous social interac-tions.This letspeopledotwothings:

■“Peoplecanpractisebeingafraidorbe-ing anxious and learninghow to overcomethat feeling. This likely can lead to betteremotionregulationskillsand,ultimately,bet-terpsychologicalresilience.

■”Peoplecanalsolearnsomespecificin-formation. For example, people whowatched pandemic-themedmovies likeContagionmayhavelearnedwhatarealpan-demiccouldlooklike.Thiscouldallowpeo-pletobebetterpreparedforwhenarealpan-demiclikeCovid-19occurs.”

@ieExplained#ExpressExplainedIf there are questions of current or contemporary relevance that youwould likeexplained, pleasewrite to [email protected]

Jallikattu: pride & politicsSIMPLYPUTQUESTION&ANSWER

E EXPLAINEDTHEINDIANEXPRESS,SATURDAY, JANUARY16,2021

ARUNJANARDHANANCHENNAI, JANUARY15

WITHASSEMBLY polls round the corner inTamilNadu,thePongalfestivalandJallikattu,the traditional bull-taming sport, havecaughttheattentionoftheBJPandCongress.WhiletheBJPorganisedPongalcelebrationsled by national and state leaders in severaldistricts,Congress leaderRahulGandhiwasin Madurai on Thursday to witness aJallikattuevent.Inthepast,boththeBJPandtheCongress

have faced public anger for their stands orJallikattu, a controversial sport which hasfaced long legal battles over cruelty to ani-mals, andwhich at the same time is a sym-bolofTamilculture.Intheirpresenteffortstocelebrate these cultural symbols ahead ofelections, the two national parties have at-tackedeachotherover theirpast stands.

What is Jallikattu?The bull-taming sport is popular in

Madurai,Tiruchirappalli,Theni,Pudukkottaiand Dindigul districts — known as theJallikattu belt. Jallikattu is celebrated in thesecondweek of January, during the Tamilharvest festival, Pongal.Atraditionover2,000yearsold,Jallikattu

is a competitive sport aswell as an event tohonourbullownerswhorearthemformat-ing. It isaviolentsport inwhichcontestantstry to tame abull for a prize; if they fail, thebullownerwins theprize.Inanagewhenthe farmsector is largely

mechanised, there are nomajormonetarybenefitsforbullownersinbreedingJallikattubulls other than the prizes they get duringtheJallikattuevents.Traditionally,theseusedto be a dhoti, a towel, betel leaves, bananasanda cashprize of Rs 101.Over the last twodecades,theprizeshaveincludedgrinders,afridgeandsmall furniture.

Whyis it important inTamilculture?Jallikattu is considereda traditionalway

forthepeasantcommunitytopreservetheirpure-breednativebulls.Atatimewhencat-tlebreedingisoftenanartificialprocess,con-servationists and peasants argue thatJallikattu is away toprotect thesemaleani-malswhichareotherwiseusedonlyformeat

if not forploughing.Kangayam, Pulikulam, Umbalachery,

Barugur andMalai Maadu are among thepopular native cattle breeds used forJallikattu. The owners of these premiumbreedscommandrespect locally.

Whyhas itbeenthesubjectof legalbattles?InIndia, legalbattlessurroundinganimal

rights issues emerged in the early 1990s. AnotificationfromtheEnvironmentMinistryin 1991 banned the training and exhibitionofbears,monkeys,tigers,panthersanddogs,whichwas challenged by the Indian CircusOrganisationintheDelhiHighCourt.In1998,dogswereexcluded fromthenotification.Jallikattu first cameunder legal scrutiny

in 2007when the AnimalWelfare Board ofIndia and the animal rights group PETAmoved petitions in the Supreme CourtagainstJallikattuaswellasbullockcartraces.

The Tamil Nadu government, however,worked itsway out of the ban by passing alaw in 2009, which was signed by theGovernor.In 2011, the UPA regime at the Centre

addedbullstothelistofanimalswhosetrain-ingandexhibitionisprohibited.InMay2014,daysbeforetheBJPwaselectedtopower,theSupreme Court banned the bull-tamingsport,rulingonapetitionthatcitedthe2011notification.

So, is it legalorbannednow?That is the subject of a case pending in

the Supreme Court. The state governmenthas legalised these events, which has beenchallenged in thecourt.In January 2017,months after the death

of Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa, massiveprotests erupted across Tamil Nadu againstthe ban,withChennai citywitnessing a 15-day-long Jallikattuuprising.

The same year, the Tamil Nadu govern-ment released an ordinance amending thecentralActandallowingJallikattuinthestate;thiswas later ratifiedbythePresident.PETAchallengedthestatemove,arguing

itwasunconstitutional.In 2018, the SupremeCourt referred the

JallikattucasetoaConstitutionBench,whereit is pending now. Themain question to beresolved is whether the Jallikattu traditioncanbeprotectedasaculturalrightofthepeo-ple of Tamil Naduwhich is a fundamentalright.Article29 (1)mandates that “anysec-tion of the citizens residing in the territoryof Indiaoranypart thereofhavingadistinctlanguage, script or culture of its own shallhave theright toconserve thesame”.Like Tamil Nadu, Karnataka too passed a

lawtosaveasimilarsport, calledKambala.AsimilarattemptbyMaharashtra,too,waschal-lengedincourt,beforeitwaspassedasalaw.Except in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka,

wherebull-tamingandracingcontinuetobeorganised,thesesportsremainbannedinallother states including Andhra Pradesh,PunjabandMaharashtraduetothe2014banorder fromtheSupremeCourt.

What is thepoliticsplayingout?AftertheDMKregimein2009hadissued

anotificationinfavourof Jallikattu,itwasthe2011amendmentbytheUnionEnvironmentMinistry that led to the ban on Jallikattu in2014.WhiletheUPAregimewasblamedfortheban,theBJPattheCentretoohadshownan indifferent approach to the controversyuntilthe2017uprisinginChennai,attendedbythousandsofpeoplewhoseslogansoftentargeted theNarendraModi regime.Now,thetwopartiesarecompetingwith

each other to assert their support to theJallikattu event. Rahul Gandhi said atMaduraionThursdaythathehadwitnessedJallikattu and that itwas safer forbothbullsand bull tamers. He also charged BJP withmakingeffortstosuppressTamilcultureandlanguage. For the BJP, national general sec-retary inchargeof TamilNaduin-chargeCTRavihasaccusedRahulofhypocrisy,remind-inghimof theUPAgovernment’s standthatJallikattu is “cruel andbarabaric”.The BJP is in alliance with the ruling

AIADMKinTamilNadu,while theCongressis anallyof themainoppositionDMK.

INDIAACTIVECASES 213,027

WORLDTOTALCASES93,363,092

Source:JohnsHopkinsUniversity,updatedat11pmonJan15

INDIATOTALCASES10,527,683

Source:MinistryofHealth&FamilyWelfare,updatedat11pmonJan15

Note: The Jan13 figure in this graph isbasedon thegovernmentupdateon Jan14

Jan5 Jan14LAST 10 DAYS

213,027

227,546

250,000

200,000

150,000

How zombie filmsmay have prepared fans for Covid-19 pandemic

Nightof theLivingDead (1968).Zombieoutbreaksarepandemics,saysresearcher.

RAHELPHILIPOSENEWDELHI,JANUARY15

ELEVENMEMBERSof theUAE’s royal familyarrived in Panjgur district in Balochistan re-cently to hunt the internationally protectedand vulnerable houbara bustard under a li-cenceissuedbythePakistanForeignMinistry.Earlier thisweek,Pakistanalso issuedspecialpermitstoDubairulerSheikhMohammedbinRashidal-Maktoum,thecrownprinceandfiveothermembersoftheirfamilytohuntthebirdduring the2020-21huntingseason,PakistandailyTheDawnreported.ThisisnotthefirsttimeroyalsfromtheGulf

and theirwealthy friends have reached thedesertsofPakistantohunttherarebird.Thesecontroversialprivatehuntingexpeditionsdateback over four decades andhave continuedevenafterPakistan’sSupremeCourtimposedablanketbanonthekillingofthehoubarabus-tardin2015,whichwaslaterreversed.

Whatisthehoubarabustard?Itisalargeterrestrialbirdfoundinpartsof

Asia, theMiddle East andAfrica. TheNorthAfricanhoubara (Chlamydotis undulata) andtheAsianhoubara (Chlamydotismacqueenii)areseparatespecies.TheAsianhoubara is re-

latedtothecriticallyendangeredgreatIndianbustardnativetoIndia.After breeding inCentral Asia during the

spring,Asianhoubarabustardsmigratesouthto spend thewinter in Pakistan, theArabianpeninsula andnearbySouthwestAsia. SomeAsianhoubarabustardsliveandbreedinpartsof Iran,PakistanandTurkmenistan.According to the International Fund for

HoubaraConservation(IFHC),roughly42,000Asianhoubarabustardsandover22,000oftheNorthAfricanhoubarabustardsremaintoday.Themainreasonsforthedeclineinthespecies’

population arepoaching, unregulatedhunt-ingandthedegradationof itsnaturalhabitat,theIFHCwebsitestates.

WhyisthehoubarahuntedinPakistan?Vast swathes of land in Pakistan are allo-

catedinblockstowealthydignitariesfromtheUAE, Saudi Arabia and otherGulf countries,who arrive in the country to hunt the birdseveryyearusinghuntinggearandfalcons.Theykillthebirdforsportandalsobecauseitsmeatissupposedtohaveaphrodisiacqualities.Media coverage is not permitted, but the

scale of eachhunt is believed tobe consider-able. Eachpartyhasaconvoyof overadozenSUVsandoftenthedignitariescomewiththeirownstaff, localstoldtheBBC.

WhydoesPakistanallowArabroyaltytohuntthehoubarabustard?Foroverfourdecades,thePakistanForeign

Ministryhasbeenextendingyearlyinvitationstowealthy and powerful Arabs for huntinghoubarabustardsinthedesertsofBalochistanandPunjab, tostrengthenthecountry’s rela-tionswith Gulf nations. Arab hunters firststarted coming to Pakistan to hunt in the1960s after the houbara bustard populationintheArabianpeninsulabegantodwindle.Similar expeditions tookplace across the

border in Rajasthan, where Arab royaltyhuntedthegreatIndianbustarduntiltheprac-ticewasbannedin1972.In Pakistan, too, the Supreme Court im-

posedabanonhuntingthehoubarabustardin 2015. Challenging the ban, the govern-ment argued that wealthy Arabs broughtprosperitytounderdevelopedareasaroundthehuntingfieldsandthebanwouldhaveanegativeimpactonPakistan’srelationswithMiddle East countries. The ban on huntingwas lifted in2016.

Howmanybustardsdotheyhunt?Eachpermitallowsthe individual tohunt

atotalof100bustardsinadesignatedareadur-inga10-daysafari.ButtheArabVIPsareknowntoviolate the termsof thepermit andkill farmore bustards than agreedupon. In 2014, aSaudi Arabian prince and his entourage al-legedlyshotdown2,100houbarabustardsdur-ingathree-weekhuntingsafari, sparkingna-tionwideoutragefromconservationists.ItwasthisbacklashthatculminatedintheSupremeCourtban, laterrevoked.PakistanPrimeMinisterImranKhan,who

hadopposedhuntingthebirdwhilehewasinopposition, personally approved the specialpassestoDubairulerSheikhMohammedbinRashidAl-Maktoumandhisfamilymembers.

TheAsianhoubara(Chlamydotismacqueenii). IFHC

JallikattucontestatAvaniyapuram,MaduraionThursday.PTI

The houbara: hunted by UAE royals at Pak invite

HEALTH BEHAVIOURS and depres-sion, stress, or loneliness have beenknowntoalterthebody’sabilitytode-velop an immune response to vac-cines. This could potentially includethenewCovid-19vaccines,theinter-nationalorganisationAssociationforPsychological Science (APS) has cau-tioned. Simple interventions, how-ever,maymaximisethevaccine’sini-tialeffectiveness,theAPShassaidinanew report, which recommends ex-ercising and getting a good night’ssleep in the24hoursbeforevaccina-tion.Thereporthasbeenaccepted for publicationin the journalPerspectives onPsychologicalScience, theAPSsaid.Thekeytoavaccine’s

successisensuringthatacriticalpercentageof thepopulation is effectivelyvaccinatedtoachieveso-called herd immunity.While vaccination pro-grammesarebeing rolledout invar-iouscountries,noteveryonewillgainthe full benefit immediately.Environmental factors, as well as anindividual’sgeneticsandphysicalandmentalhealth,canweakenthebody’simmune system, slowing the re-sponse to a vaccine, theAPS said in amedia releaseonthenewreport.It flags the concern that thenovel

coronavirushastriggeredaconcurrentmentalhealthcrisisaspeopledealwithisolation, economic stressors, andun-certaintyaboutthefuture.Thesechal-lenges are the same factors that havebeenpreviouslyshowntoweakenvac-cineefficacy.“Ournewstudyshedslightonvac-

cine efficacy andhowhealth behav-

ioursandemotionalstressorscanalterthe body’s ability to develop an im-muneresponse.Thetroubleisthatthepandemicinandof itselfcouldbeam-plifying these risk factors,” AnneliseMadisonofOhioStateUniversity, leadauthoronthepaper,saidinastatementissuedbytheAPS.Vaccinesworkby challenging the

immunesystem.Withinhoursofavac-cination,thereisaninnate,generalim-muneresponseonthecellular levelasthebodybegins to recognise apoten-tial biological threat. This frontline re-

sponse by the immunesystemiseventuallyaidedbytheproductionofanti-bodies,which target spe-cific pathogens. It is thecontinuedproduction ofantibodies that helps todeterminehoweffectivea vaccine is at conferringlong-termprotection.“In our research,we

focusmostheavilyontheantibody response,

thoughitisjustonefacetoftheadaptiveimmune system’s response,” JaniceKiecolt-Glaser of the Ohio StateUniversity,seniorauthoronthepaper,wasquotedassaying.AlthoughtheCovid-19vaccinesal-

readyincirculationarehighlyeffectiveaccordingtotrialresults,thesepsycho-logical and behavioural factors canlengthentheamountoftimeittakestodevelopimmunityandcanshortenthedurationofimmunity,theauthorssaid.ButKiecolt-Glasersaid:“Thethingthatexcitesmeisthatsomeofthesefactorsaremodifiable.It’spossibletodosomesimplethingstomaximisethevaccine’sinitialeffectiveness.”

Source:AssociationforPsychologicalScience

PAPERCLIP

NEWRESEARCH

Depression could reducevaccine efficacy; psychologistssuggest exercise and rest

Covid-19vaccinebeingadministered intheUK.Reuters

AheadofAssemblypolls, JallikattuhasbecomethesubjectofpoliticsbetweenCongressandBJP.AlookatwhatitmeansforTamilculture,andthecontroversiesleadingtoanongoinglegalbattle

New Delhi

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HARYANA STATE CHILD PROTECTION SOCIETYWOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT

Bays No. 15-20, Pocket-II, Sector-4, Panchkula, Phone No. 0172-2580359ADVERTISEMENT

Applications are invited to fill up posts of Chairperson, Child WelfareCommittee & Member, Juvenile Justice Board as per provisions under JuvenileJustice (Care & Protection of Children) Act, 2015 and Juvenile Justice(Care and Protection of Children) Model Rules, 2016 as per followingQualification, Terms and Condition:

Honorarium: Member of the Juvenile Justice Board & Chairperson, ChildWelfare Committee shall be paid as per sitting which shall include sittingallowance, travel allowance and any other allowance, as the State Governmentmay prescribe.TERMS & CONDITIONS:1. Applicant must have a domicile of Haryana.2. Applicant will maintain his/her headquarter as the presence is required

even at odd hours or on short notice and the appointment will be can-celled if headquarter is not maintained.

3. Applicant shall have to submit a self-declaration/affidavit on the followingpoints with application form. All conditions from (i) to (vii) of the followingpoint must be fulfilled.

i. He/she has not previous conviction record.ii. He/she has not been involved in any immoral act or in the Act or Child

abuse or employment of child labour.iii. He/she is not holding such other full time occupation that does not allow

him/her to give necessary time and attention to the work.iv. He/she will give details about his/her Previous/Present post tenure in any

District of Juvenile Justice Board and Child Welfare Committee.v. No enquiry is pending against him/her in any Agency/Court.vi. The applicant should not have any past record of violation of human rights

or child rights.vii. The applicant should not have been removed or dismissed from service

of the Central Government or a State Government or an Undertaking orCorporation owned or controlled by the Central Government or a StateGovernment.

4. Willing candidates may send/submit their application form on the pre-scribed format on or before 14.02.2021 till 5.00 P.M. along-with support-ing documents i.e. educational qualification and experience certificateetc. in the office of concerned District Programme Officer, Women andChild Development of respective district.

5. Direct application received at Headquarter of WCD, will be rejected.6. Department has reserved the right to reject the incomplete application

form without any prior notice of the candidate.7. Incomplete Application form in any manner will be rejected.8. Prescribed Application Performa may be downloaded from the depart-

mental website www.wcdhry.gov.in.Member Secretary

Haryana State Child Protection SocietyWomen and Child Development Department,

Haryana, Panchkula.

Sr. Name of Post District wise numberNo. of Posts

1. Chairperson (Child welfare Committee) Palwal

2. Member (Juvenile Justice Board) Jhajjar- 1 Post (Reserved forFemale)

Minimum seven years experience of working with Children in thefield of Education, Health, or Welfare Activities, or should be apracticing professional with a Degree in Child Psychology orPsychiatry or Sociology or in the field of law.

Not less than 35 years on the date of Advertisement.

Seven years of experience of working with Children in the field ofEducation, Health, or Welfare Activities, or should be a practicingprofessional with a Degree in Child Psychology or Psychiatry orSocial Work or Sociology or Human Development or in the fieldof law or a retired Judicial Officer.

Above the age of 35 years on the date of advertisement.

Three Years

Qualification of JJBMember

Age of JJB Member:

Qualification ofChairperson of CWC

Age of CWCChairperson

Tenure:

1415/4/HRY

Government of Jammu & KashmirOFFICE OF THE EXECUTIVE ENGINEER PWD (R&B) DIVISION RAMBAN

(Short Term) NOTICE INVITING TENDERS

e-NIT No: 53 of 2020-21 Dated: 12-01-2021 (E-tendering).For and on behalf of the Lt. Governor of Jammu and Kashmir UT, the Executive Engineer PWD (R&B) Division Ramban invites tenders by e-tendering modeon Item/%age rates from approved and eligible Contractors/Firms registered with J&K UT. CPWD, MES & Railways for the following work:-

1.The Bidding documents Consisting of qualifying information, eligibility criteria, specifications, Drawings, bill of quantities (B.O.Q), Set of terms and con-ditions of contract and other details can be seen/downloaded from the departmental website www.jktenders.gov.in as per below schedule:

Sd/-(Er. Maqbool Hussain)Executive Engineer

PWD (R&B) Division RambanNo: 13832-54Dated: 12-01-2021

1. Date of Issue of Tender Notice 12-01-2021

2. Period of downloading of bidding documents From 13-01-2021,10.00 A.M to 21-01-2021, 4.00 P.M

3. Date, Time and place of pre-bid meeting

4. Bid submission Start Date 13-01-2021 From 10.00 A.M

5. Bid Submission End Date 21-01-2021 up to 4.00 P.M

6. Submission of hard copy of tender documents Only successful bidder who is declared as L1 should submit the hard copy after opening of financial bids

7. Date & time of opening of Technical Bids (Online) -[The date 22-01-2021 at 12.00 A.M in the Office of the Executive Engineer PWD (R&B) Division Ramban.should be one day after deadline for receiving of hard copies]

8. Date & time of opening of Financial Bids (Online) To be notified after technical bid evaluation is completed

Position of AAA = AvailablePosition of funds = AvailablePosition of Technical Sanction = Available

S. Name of Work Name of Estimated cost Cost of Earnest Time Time & Date of Class ofNo. Division of Work Tender Doc. Money allowed Opening of tender Contrac-

(in Lacs) (in Rs) (In Lacs) for completion (Technical Bid) tor

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

1. 75.15 1000 @ 2% of 03 Months “A, ClassAdv. Cost

2 25.00 600 @ 2% of 03 Months “A, B &Adv. Cost C ” Class



5 3.27 600 @ 2% of 01 Month “A, B , &Adv. Cost D ” Class

Construction of R/wall on Banihal Chanjloo road inkm 5th RD ( 725-775 ) RD ( 925-950) in km 6th RD( 125-225),RD (325-385) , RD (400-425) ,(RD 625-700) (Under NABARD)

Construction of 30 mtr span steel foot bridge alongwithapproaches and path at Gujjarnar Chachihal Banihal.Distt. Ramban( Under UT Infrastructure Sector)

Construction of District Material Testing Lab. atMaitra, District Ramban.

Repair and Renovation of Medical Sub CentreSawani ( Reconstruction above plinth) (Under HealthSector Distt. Plan)

Constt. /Providing and laying of Tiles work on lanefrom Shiv Temple to H/o Kuldeep Kumar Gupta andH/o Romesh Kumar W.No 4 MC Batote. (UnderDistt. Plan)

DIPJ-9990

PWD(R&B)

DivisionRamban

22-01-2021 at12.00 A.M

DELHI JAL BOARD (Govt. of N.C.T. of Delhi)OFFICE OF EXECUTIVE ENGINEER (C) DR. VIII

Yamuna Vihar Sewage Treatment Plant(Adjoining Dr. Ambedkar College) Delhi — 110 094

Phone: 011-22813593 Email:- [email protected] NIT NO- 5 (2020-21)

Further details in this regard can be seen at https://govtprocurement.delhi.gov.in.

S.No

Name of work Estimated ContractValue (ECV)/ Amount

put to tender (Rs.)

EarnestMoney

(EMD) (Rs.)

Tender processingFee Non

Refundable (Rs.)

Date of Release ofTender/ Tender Id.

Last date/timeof receipt of

tender

1 Providing, Laying & Jointing250mm dia internal sewer linein left out portion of differentcolonies in AC-68 Gokalpur

3,60,52,527/- Nil(declarationform to be

filled)

1500/- 2021_DJB_198729_1dtd. 14.01.2021

08.02.2021upto 3.00 P.M

Sd/-Executive Engineer(C) DR-VIII

ISSUED BY P.R.O. (WATER)Advt. No. J.S.V. 320 (2020-21)

“STOP CORONA; Wash Your Hand, Wear Mask, Maintain Social Distancing”

OIPR-04011/11/0091/2021

PNIT NO (e-TENDER) :e-PT-III/EE/RDSD/2020-21 DATED-11/01/2021The Executive Engineer, RD Store Division,Gurkhabasti, Agartala invites e-tender forprocurement of ISI marked (IS:1786:2008) TMT bar(3600 MT) as per specification of DNIT from eligiblebidders upto 3.00 PM of 01/02/2021. For detailsvisit website - https://tripuratenders.gov.in andcontact at M- 9774488585. Any subsequentcorrigendum will be available in the website only.

Sd/-Executive Engineer

RD Store DivisionICA-C-2805-21 Agartala

14 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHEINDIANEXPRESS,SATURDAY, JANUARY16,2021

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Collection of Toll Tax on Sikar- Jhunjhunu-Luharu Road. UBN No. RRC2021WLOB00481 826.04 Lakh

Afg³f»ffBÊ³f d³fd½fQf ´fi´fÂf OfC³f»fûO I S³fZ I e A½fd²f dQ³ffaI 13.01.2021 ´fif°f: 09.00 ¶fªfZ ÀfZ 18.01.2021 Àff¹fa 06.00 ¶fªfZ °fI

¸fWXf´fi¶fa²fIY

Office of the Additional Chief Engineer Water ResourcesZone Udaipur

No. ACE/Acc./Bhilwara/2020/17328 Date:- 29.12.2020E-NIT No. 08/2020-21

Bids for Renovation of Meja Feeder, District Bhilwara are invited frominterested bidders upto dated 19.01.2021 till 06.00 PM. Other particulars ofbid may be visited on the Procurement portal http://eproc.rajasthan.gov.in,www.water.rajasthan.gov.in/wrd, www.dipr.rajasthan.gov.in &http://sppp.raj.nic.in

Sd/-(Bhuvan Bhasker)

Additional Chief EngineerUBN:- WRD2021WLOB01791 Water Resources ZoneDIPR/C/420/2021 Udaipur

SENSEXDOWN549POINTSTO49,034

PRESSTRUSTOFINDIAWASHINGTON,JANUARY15

SNAPDEAL, ALONG with fourshopping complexes, two ofthem inNewDelhi alone, havefigured in the 2020 Review ofNotorious Markets forCounterfeitingandPiracy issuedby the Office of the US TradeRepresentative.The four Indianmarkets that

havefoundmentioninthelistareHeera Panna in Mumbai,KidderporeinKolkataandPalikaBazaarandTankRoadinDelhi.“Holdingintellectualproperty

rights violators accountable andensuring that American innova-tors and creators have a full andfairopportunitytouseandprofitfromtheirworkiscriticalforbothphysicalandonlinemarkets,”USTrade Representative RobertLighthizersaid.

Snapdeal,4 shoppingcomplexes inUS NotoriousMarkets List

Xi asks ex-CEO ofStarbucks to helpfix US-China tiesJOEMCDONALDBEIJING,JANUARY15

CHINESEPRESIDENTXiJinpingisasking former CEO HowardSchultzofStarbuckstohelprepairUS-Chinese relations that haveplunged to their lowest level indecadesamidatariffwarandten-sionovertechnologyandsecurity.A letter fromXi toSchultz re-

portedFridaybytheofficialXinhuaNewsAgencywas a rare directcommunication from China’sparamount leader to a foreignbusiness figure. Schultz openedStarbucks’ first China outlet in1999andisafrequentvisitor.XiwrotetoSchultztoencour-

agehimandStarbuckstocontinuetoplayanactiveroleinpromotingChinese-USeconomic and tradecooperationandthedevelopmentof bilateral relations,Xinhua re-ported.Notextoftheletterwasre-leased.Xinhuagavenoindicationwhethertheletterreflectedanini-tiative toaskAmericancorporateleaderstohelpchangepolicyafterPresident-electJoeBidentakesof-ficenextweek.Economistsandpolitical ana-

lystssayBidenislikelytotrytore-vivecooperationwithBeijingoverNorthKoreaandotherpoliticalis-sues.Butfewchangesontradeareexpectedduetowidespreadfrus-trationinWashingtonoverChina’shumanrights recordandaccusa-tionsoftechnologytheft.The Cabinet press office did-

n’timmediatelyrespondtoques-tions about what Xi wantedSchultz to do and whether he

contacted other American busi-ness leaders.Schultz, whowas Starbucks

CEOuntil2017andchairmanun-til2018,ledanaggressiveexpan-sion thatmadeChina its biggestmarketoutsidetheUnitedStates.Schultz said in 2019 that he

wasconsideringrunningforpres-identasanindependentbut laterdropped that.Xinhua saidXiwasrespondingtoaletterfromSchultzthat congratulated the Chineseleaderonthecompletionofawell-off societyunderhis leadership,Xinhuasaid.AP

ENSECONOMICBUREAUMUMBAI,JANUARY15

DOMESTICSTOCKmarketscameundersellingpressureasoverseasmarketsremainedsubduedamidrisingCovidcases inChina,morerestrictionsinmanycountriesandgrim prospects about a fasterglobaleconomicrecovery.The$1.9trillionUSstimulusplanalsofailedtoboost themarkets. TheSensexdeclined549points,or1.1percent,to49,034.67and theNifty50 fell161.90points, or 1.11per cent, to14,433.70onsellingpressure.Thebroadermarkets also re-

mainedunder pressure as bothmid-andsmall-capsendedwithlosses of 1per cent each.On thesectorfront,excepttelecom,allthe

otherindicesendedwithlosses.The rupee snapped its three-

sessionwinningstreakandsettledfor theday3paise lowerat73.07againsttheUSdollaronFriday.UK’s Office for National

Statistics reported that theeconomy shrank 2.6 per centinNovember.Meanwhile,WallStreet’smain

indicesdroppedFriday,weighed

down by losses in major USlenders after their earnings re-ports,while incomingPresidentJoeBiden’sstimulusplansparkedfearsofariseincorporatetaxes.At11:39amET,theDowJones

Industrial Average fell 135.21points, or 0.44 per cent, to30,856.31 and the S&P 500 lost18.40 points, or 0.48 per cent,to3,777.14.

CoCTOCLEARPLAN INCOMINGDAYS&FORWARD ITTONCLT

GEORGEMATHEWMUMBAI,JANUARY15

THEPIRAMALgroup is all set tobagthetroubledDewanHousingFinanceCorporation(DHFL),withlendersledbypublicsectorbanksbackingitsRs37,250-crorebidforthetakeoverofthemortgagefirm.Accordingtobankingsources,

bankswerenotinfavourofclear-ing the bid by the US’ OaktreeCapital,whichhasbeeninafiercebattlewith the Piramals for thehousingfinancefirm.ThePiramalbidgot94percentvotingfromthelenders,whiletherequiredmajor-ity is 66 per cent. However,Oaktree’sbidgotonly45percentbacking.ThePiramalsarelikelytomergeDHFLwith their financialservices business once thebid isclearedbythebankruptcycourt.

The Committee of Creditors(CoC)isexpectedtoofficiallycleartheproposal in the comingdaysand forward it to the NationalCompanyLawTribunal.After Piramal revised its bid,

Oaktreehad increased thebidbyanother Rs 1,700 crore after thedeadline.Oaktree,inalettertothecreditors,hadclaimedaRs2,700-croreundervaluationby theCoC.Oaktree had also proposed itwould offer Rs 1,000 crore fromthe sale of DHFL’s life insurancebusinesstothelenders.Last Friday, PiramalCapital&

Housing Finance said its bid forDHFLoffers thehighest upfrontcashrecoveryandhasthehighestscoreaccording to theevaluationmatrix. Piramal said it formallysubmitted a final bidwithin thedeadline,whileOaktree sent anadditionalofferafterthedeadline,

offeringRs1,700croremore.Realising that its bid falls se-

verelyshort,OaktreesentanemailonDecember24—twodaysafter

thedeadline—offering anaddi-tionalRs1,700crore,Piramalsaid.“Reserving the right in abiddingframeworkisblatantlyillegalandmischievous—ifthisweretobeal-lowed;everyonewill bidRe1 forall assets, ‘reserve’ the right to in-crease, lookat otherbids and in-crease to slightlymore than thehighestbid,”Piramalsaid.Oaktree’s bidhad reportedly

claimedthatDHFL’sNCDswouldbeassignedan‘AAA’ratingiftheirresolution plan is accepted.However, ratingagencies arenotallowed by law to provide any‘creditopinion’orhave‘indicativecreditratingdiscussions’,Piramalsaid. Piramal had said the pro-posed takeover of DHFL’s insur-ancebusinessbyOaktreemayin-viteregulatorychallengesasitisaforeign entity. Currently, 49 percent of DHFL Pramerica Life

Insurance isownedas foreign in-vestment by PrudentialInternationalInsuranceHoldings.On November 29, 2019, the

ReserveBankof India(RBI) filedan application for initiation ofinsolvency against DHFL, mak-ing it the first non-banking fi-nancial company (NBFC) toun-dergo theprocess.Inthefirstbiddinground,Pira-

malEnterprisesofferedRs15,000crore forDHFL’s retail arm,whileOaktreeofferedRs27,800croreforthe entire firm. SC Lowy,mean-while,offeredRs2,300croreforitsnon-slumredevelopmentauthor-ityloanbook.Afterthelendersex-pressedunhappinessoverthelowbids, all the companies revisedtheirbidssignificantly.Lendersandcreditorsarelook-

ing to recoverRs83,000 croreofunpaidloansofDHFL.

THEDHFLresolution isimportant for the finan-cial sector,whichwashitbythecollapseof IL&FSandtheDHFLcrisis.WhileDHFLowesaroundRs80,000croretobanksandothercreditors, fullrecoverymaynothappenasbondholdersarenotsureaboutgettingtheirmoneyback.

ResolutionvitalE●EX

PLAINED

Piramal group likely to bagDHFLas lenders back `37,250-cr bid

ENSECONOMICBUREAUNEWDELHI, JANUARY 15

HCL TECHNOLOGIES on Fridayposteda31.1per cent rise in itsDecemberquarter net profit atRs 3,982 crore on the back ofstrong momentum in its digi-tal, products and platformsegment, and exuded confi-dence inclocking furtheraccel-eration inbookings in thecom-ing quarters.

TheITservicesmajor,whichhad registered a net profit ofRs 3,037 crore in the year-ago

period,hasalsocrossedthe$10billion revenue milestone inCY2020.HCLTech’srevenuegrew6.4

per cent to Rs 19,302 crore inthequarter under review, fromRs 18,135 crore in the year-agoperiod (as perUSGAAP).The company recorded rev-

enue growth at 3.5 per centquarter-on-quarter in constantcurrency, beating its own esti-mateof1.5-2.5percentgrowthfor theDecember quarter.

■HCLTech’srevenuegrew6.4percenttoRs19,302croreinthequarterunderreview,fromRs18,135croreintheyear-agoperiod.

REVENUEUP6.4%

HCL Tech Q3 net surges by 31%

Mumbai: The benchmarkbondyieldroseonFridaytoathree-weekhighasalackofanopenmarket operation an-nouncementdisappointedin-vestors ahead of a debt saleandvariableratereverserepoauctionlaterintheday.“Ithasbeendecidedtore-

store normal liquidityman-agement operations in a

phasedmanner,”theRBIsaid.Markets read the release

as an indication that theRBIwas looking to roll back themassivecashsurplusinbank-ingsystem.The10-yearyieldwas trading at 5.95 per centversus5.93percentThursdayandoff theday’s highof 5.96per cent— its highest sinceDecember24.REUTERS

Bond yields rise in absenceof OMO announcement

Washington:TheTrumpad-ministration took anotherswipeatChinaanditsbiggestfirmsonThursday,imposingsanctions on officials andcompanies for allegedmis-deedsintheSouthChinaSeaandimposinganinvestmentbanonninemorefirms.The firms are Comac,

Xiaomi Corp, AdvancedMicro-Fabrication Equip-ment, LuokungTechnologyCorp,BeijingZhongguancunDevelopment InvestmentCenter, GOWIN Semicon-ductorCorp,GrandChinaAirCo, Global Tone Commu-nicationTechnologyCo LtdandChinaNationalAviationHoldingCoLtd.REUTERS

Trump blacklistsXiaomi, CNOOC,Skyrizon, 6 others

USindicesdropasBiden’s$1.9trillionproposalsparksfearsof rise intaxes

BRIEFLYNodtophase3trialsofSputnikNewDelhi:DrReddy’sLabo-ratoriessaidFridayithasgotapprovalfromtheDrugsCo-ntrollerGeneral of India forphase3clinicaltrialsfortheSputnikVCovid-19vaccine.

SAILOFS:Govtmayget`2.6KcrNewDelhi:Thegovernmentexpects to garner Rs 2,664crorefromoffloading10percent stake in steelmakerSAIL via an offer for sale(OFS),whichwassubscribedoverfivetimesonFriday.

NormsissuedforaircargoNewDelhi:Aviation regula-tor DGCAon Friday issuednormsforairlinesthatwantto carry cargo inpassengercompartmentofaircraft.PTI

IGLnamesnewchairmanNewDelhi:IndraprasthaGasLimited(IGL)saidthatArunKumarSingh,Director(Mar-keting),BPCL,hasalsotakenoverasChairmanof IGL.

NewformatforbizresponsibilityNewDelhi: Sebi said Fridaythe proposed format forbusiness responsibility andsustainability reporting forlisted companieswill bringingreatertransparency. ENS

IMFMDKristalinaGeorgievaduringamediaroundtable. PTI

IMF: India took ‘very decisive’steps to deal with pandemicLALITKJHAWASHINGTON,JANUARY15

IMF MANAGING DirectorKristalina Georgieva haspraised India for taking“veryde-cisive”stepstodealwiththecoro-navirus pandemic and its eco-nomic consequences and askedthe country todomore this yearto support an accelerated trans-formationof theeconomy.Participatinginaglobalmedia

roundtable on Thursday, theInternational Monetary Fund(IMF) chief predicted a less badoutlookforIndiaintheupcomingWorldEconomicUpdate,tobere-leasedonJanuary26.“When I calledoneverybody

tostay tuned for January26, thatapplies verymuch to India. Youwouldseeapictureinourupdatethatislessbad.Why?Becausethecountry actually has taken verydecisiveaction,verydecisivestepstodealwiththepandemicandtodealwith the economic conse-quencesof it,”Georgievasaid.Withregardstotheglobalpic-

ture,theIMFMDsaidthatgrowthforecastsfor2021paintalessdirepicture than the previous esti-matesofOctober. PTI

Whyis it important:Therewillbelittleimpactongrowthandprofitabilityforthecompanies,andmarginswillbeinlinewithpre-Covid-19levels, in2021-22forsuchcompanies

~95%:Shareofstaff in ITcompaniesthathavetransitionedtowork-from-home,mitigatingthepandemicimpact

$180billion:Estimatedsizeof IndianITsector,asper industry lobbyNasscom,includingthebusinessprocessoutsourcingbusiness

Estimatedgrowthinrevenues in2021-22:■ 7-9%inrupeeterms■ 5-8%indollarterms

Source: IcraRatings/PTI

‘Revenue of IT companiesto grow up to 9% in FY22’Demand for digital technologies and resumption of normaleconomic activitieswill drive sales for IT firms, pushing theirrevenue growthup to 9% in FY22, an Icra report said

Keyrisksforcompanies:■ Increaseinminimumwages

■ Changestoeligibleoccupations

■ Frequencyandrestrictionsin issuanceforH-1Bvisas

ENSECONOMICBUREAUNEWDELHI,JANUARY15

MERCHANDISEEXPORTSinchedupinDecember,forasecondtimesince February 2020,while im-ports advanced for the first timein10months, suggesting agrad-ualreturntowardsnormalcy.Thequickestimatereleasedby

theCommerceMinistryonFridayshowsexportsrose0.1percentonyearto$27.15billioninDecember,betterthana0.8percentcontrac-tionannouncedearlier.Imports roseatamuch faster

paceof7.6percentlastDecemberto $42.59 billion, inflating tradedeficit to a 25-month high of$15.44billion.The rise in imports reflects a

nascent revival of domestic de-mand, following the Covid-in-duced compression sinceMarchlastyear,asbusinessesgothrougha“reset”phase,takingadvantageof theliftingof lockdowncurbs.However, as pointed out by

analysts, some amount of pent-updemandforrawmaterialsmayalsohave contributed to the riseinimports,althoughit’sstillanen-

couragingsign.If inbound shipments con-

tinuetorise,import-sensitiveex-ports, too,will get a boost but itwillalsomarkareturntotheusualhightradedeficittrend.The outbound shipment of

core products (goods excludingpetroleumandgems&jewellery),which reflects the economy’scompetitiveness, grew 5.5 percentinDecember,againsta0.4percent fall in the previousmonth.Similarly,core importsrose8percentlastmonth,comparedwitha1.7percentfall inNovember.Overall,merchandiseexports

isstilldownby15.7percentuptoDecember this fiscal, while im-portsshrunkby29percent. FE

‘Farm Bills have potential,but safety net is crucial’Washington:TheIMFbelievesthefarmBills passedby the govern-menthavethepotentialtorepre-sentasignificantstepforwardforagricultural reforms, but a socialsafety net is needed to protectthosewhomightbeadverselyim-pactedduringthetransitiontothenewsystem, a spokesperson forthegloballendersaid.Gerry Rice, director of

communications, IMF, said thenewmeasures will reduce therole of themiddlemen and en-hanceefficiency.“However,itiscrucialthatthe

social safetynet adequatelypro-tects those who might be ad-verselyimpactedduringthetran-sition to this new system,” Ricesaid, respondingtoaquestionontheongoingfarmerprotests. PTI

-80

-60

-40

-20

0

20

Apr 2020 Dec 2020

Exports

Imports

(% change, y-o-y)

-60.98

0.1

7.6

-59.7

Source: Ministry of commerce

First time in 10 mths,imports in positivezone; exports inch up

Markets shrug off US stimulusplan; Covid, lockdowns weigh

New Delhi

It is General Information that I,AmirAhmadAnsari,sonofShri.Jamil AhmadAnsari,Residingat,H.No.1559,KatraPathanWala sarai KhalilSadar-BazarDelhi-110006,declare that nameOfminehasbeenwrongly-writtenas JalilAhmedAnsari aged 49-years inmybirth-certificate theactualnameofmine isAmirAhmadAnsari respectively.

0040559781-8

II,,ssuuggaarraa begum,W/ovafatiAddress-1459/2wazir-nagargali.no.7, kotlamubarakpurnewDelhi-110003,changedmyname to sugrabegum.

0040560351-2

II,,SSuukkhhddeeeepp Singh,Sonof,RanbirSinghSahni,R/o E-9,Model-Town-II,.Delhi-110009,informthat givennameSukhdeepandsarnameSingh. 0040560351-1

II,,SSaavviittrrii DeviW/o,No.1519569,RankSprSubhashChanderBhatia,R/oH/no. 128,J &kBlock,Laxmihave changedmyname toSavitri Bhatia for,all purposes.

0040560357-5

II,,SSaannjjooyy Sarda,S/o-LateVidyaSagar Sarda,R/o-SupertechEmeraldCourt, Aspire-4,Apartment 1004,Sector-93,Noida,G.B. Nagar,havechangedmyname toSanjaySarda for all purposes.

0040560354-10

II,,SSaannggeeeettaa RaniW/o-ChanderMohanR/o-3/130,2ndFloor,SubhashNagar,N.Delhi-17 havechangedmyname toSangeetaRani Arora. 0040560354-9

II,,SSaakkaawwaatt Ali S/o-AbdulWahidresidingatD-1/118,Gali No-1,NehruVihar,Delhi-110094have changed mynameandshall hereafter be knownasShakhawatAli for all purpose

0040560354-4

II,,SSaakkaawwaatt Ali S/o-AbdulWahidresidingatD-1/118, Gali No-1,NehruVihar,Delhi-110094havechanged mynameandshallhereafter be knownasShakhawatAli for all purpose

0040560354-3

II,,SSaaiimmaaD/o-MohammadHashimAnsari R/o-R/179Gali.No-9RameshPark Laxmi-NagarDelhi-110092,havechangedmyname toSaimaAnsari. 0040560357-1

II,,SSHHIIKKHHAAKHANDELIYAW/oSachinGuptaR/oWZ-33,Phase-II,OmVihar, UttamNagar,WestDelhi-110059HaveChangedmyName toMAHIGUPTA for all purposes

0070727262-1

II,,PPrreemmLataMagoo,W/oGulshanRai MagoonR/o-E-12/5Krishna-NagarDelhi-110051,have changedmynametoPrem lataMagoon,permanently. 0040560351-6

II,,PPrraavveeeenn SharmaAliasVirendraSharma,S/o JaiPrakashSharmaR/oThakuran-Mohlla KalkaMandir,DadriG.B.Nagar declare that infuture I,shouldbeknownandrecognizedonly-asPraveenSharma’s S/o JayprakashSharmaandnot in,theNameofVirender Sharma. PraveenSharmaDadri. 0040560326-1

II,,PPrraattiimmaaGupta,W/oShri.SachinKumar,R/o-33B,Pockt-C,Sidharth Extension,NewDelhi-14,have inductivelymentionedmynameasPratimaKumari in thedocuments submitedbeforeIndianAir Force insteadofPratimaGuptamyname isPratimaGuptaand the same isrecorded in all identity cardissuedbyGovt.Of India bothnamePratimaKumari andPratimaGuptapertain tomeand I am oneand the sameperson. 0040560357-7

II,,PPaarraammjjiitt kaurMatharuD/O.GyanSinghR/O.449, block-2, Subhash-Nagar, Tagoregarden,Delhi-110027,havechangedmyname toParamjitkaur,for all purposes.

0040560351-4

II,,PPaallllaavvii D/oSuresh JainR/o 74,HumayunPur, SafdarjungEnclave, Delhi-110029,havechangedmyname toPallaviJain permanently.

0040560354-1

II,,KKaannuupprriiyyaa JhaD/o-MukeshKumarVermaR/o 625,Pocket-5,MayurVihar, Phase-I,NewDelhi-110091have changedmyname toKanupriya.

0040560357-2

II,,MMaannoojj Kumar Jain S/o-JangBahadur JainR/o-1/6114,SecondFloor,GaliNo.2,East RohtashNagar,Shahdara,Delhi-110032have changedmyname toManoj Jain. 0040560357-3

II,,JJooyy FraserD/o LateAnepy JobDasDanielW/o-Amal Raj FraserR/o-TLMCommunityHospitalStaff QuartersHouse,No.2,Road.No.69,NandNagri Delhi-110093,havechangedmyname to JoyDanielFraser for all purposes.

0040560357-4

II,,JJaassmmeeeett SinghMatharuS/O.SukhdevSinghMatharuR/O.449, block-2, Subhash-Nagar, Tagore-garden,Delhi-110027,have changedmynameto Jasmeet Singh,for allpurposes. 0040560351-5

II,,JJAAVVEEDDAKHTAR,.S/oRIYAZAHMADADDRESS-F-1/5, BLOCK-F,JOGABAI EXTENTION, JAMIANAGAR,DELHI 110025, changedmyname to JAVEDMALIK.

0040560351-8

II,,IIbbaaddAhmadkhanS/o-IftikharAhmadkhanR/o162/25,2ndFloor,GaliNo-4,GhaffarManzil,JamiaNagar,Okhla,Delhi-110025,havechangedmynameto IbaadAhmadkhanpermanently 0040560354-2

II,,AAnnkkuurr s/oRoshanLalR/o4/1808,RamaBlock,BholaNathNagar,Shahdara,Delhi-110032havechangedmynametoAnkurLalpermanently.

0040560354-6

II,,AARRUUNNRADHESHYAMGUPTAS/oRadheyshyamGuptaR/oHouseNo-305S.F,I.PColony,Sector-30-33,Amarnagar, Faridabad,Haryana-121003HaveChangedmyNametoARUNGUPTAforallpurposes. 0070727388-1

II,,AAMMAARRSINGH,S/oAJAIBSINGHR/o-B-575MIG,DDA-FLATS,EAST-OF-LONIROAD,SHAHDARA,DELHI-110093,HAVECHANGEDMYMINORDAUGHTERNAMEFROMAKSHI JAINA(LIC-POLICYNO.253776482)TOGRITIRAJ,FORALLPURPOSES. 0040560351-7

II,, SimranKaurw/oJatinderSinghr/o8/43,RameshNagar,Delhi-110015havechangedmynametoSATNAMKAURpermanently.SATNAMKAURandSIMRANKAURbotharesameandoneperson. 0040560286-1

II,, ShresthGuptaS/oSh.RajeevGuptaR/o-H.No.156,MainRoad,Maujpur,Delhi-110053.HavechangedmynametoShreshthGupta 0040560307-1

II,, SahadevSharmaS/oDharmpalSharmaR/oA-2/345,SecondFloor, Sector-8Rohini,DelhichangednametoSahdevSharma. 0040560354-5

II,, SURBHIAGARWALRADHEYSHYAMAGARWAL,W/oVARINDERKUMAR,R/oHOUSENO2138C,CHANDIGARHHOUSINGBOARDFLATS,BLOCKNO9,SECTOR63,CHANDIGARH160047, havechangedmynameto SURBHIAGARWALRADHEYSHYAM.

0070727396-1

II,, RamveerS/oKanhaiyaSinghR/oD-27,AcharyaNiketan,MayurViharPhase-1Delhi-91,havechangedmynamefromRamveer toRamveerSingh forall futurepurposes.

0040560323-1

II,, PravinkumarS/oSh.ZileSinghR/o-H.No.F-58, st.No-01Rajendra-park,Gurgaon-Haryana, I,haveChangedmynamefromPravinkumar toKabeerPunia.AlsoknowasAllfuturepurposes 0040560307-2

II,,NNaavveeeennAggarwalS/o-R.K.AggarwalR/o-C-33,New-KrishnaPark,Vikaspuri,N.Delhi-18,havechangedmyminorson’snameNeevAggarwal toTanushAggarwal.Aged-14-years. 0040560354-8

II,, KusumPalSinghMalikaliasKusumPalaliasKPSMalikS/oHarbirSinghR/oFlatNo.3258,Sector-D,Pocket-3,VasantKunj,NewDelhi-110070,havechangedmynametoKusumPalMalik. 0040560320-1

II,, KAWALMEETKAURREEN,spouseofWGCDRHSREENresidentof7436,POCKETD-7,VASANTKUNJ,NEWDELHI-110070havechangedmynamefromKAWALMEETKAURREENtoKAWALMEETREENvideAffidavitdated14.01.2021atNewDelhi. 0040560320-2

II,, Chhaya D/oRamveerSinghR/oD-27,AcharyaNiketan,MayurViharPhase-1Delhi-91,havechangedmynamefromChhayatoChhayaSingh forall futurepurposes 0040560322-1

II,, AkankshaKukrejaw/oMaheshKumarR/oU-86, ShukkarBazar,Near-ShikshaDeepSchool,UttamNagar,NewDelhi-110059,havechangedmynamefromAkankshaNarayanSinghtoAkankshaKukreja forall futurepurposes. 0040560317-1

II,, AhsanMalikS/oAbdulKarim,R/o2462,RangMahalKhurd,PhatakHabashKhan,TilakBazar,Delhi-110006,declarethatnameofmineandmydaughterhasbeenwronglywrittenasAhsanandZainabAnusharespectively inmyminordaughterZainabMalikaged15years inherSchoolRecords.Theactualnameofmineandmydaughter isAhsanMalikandZainabMalikrespectively

0070727373-1

IIhithertoknownasKALPANAJAINaliasKUM.KAMLESHKUMARI JAINaliasPRATIBHAJAIND/OGOPICHANDJAINW/OPAWANJAINR/OR-49/BGurupreetNagarUttamNagarWestNewDelhi- 110059havechangedmynameandshallhereafterbeknownasPRATIBHAJAIN

0040560310-1

IIVirenderKumarS/oFakirChandR/oPlotNo.13, E-Block,GaliNo.1, F/F,BhagwatiGardenExtn.UttamNagar,Delhi-110059havechangedmynametoVirenderGarg forall Purposes.

0040560335-1

IIVipulGuptaS/oGouriShankerGuptaR/oFlatNo-18062,PrestigeShantiniketan, ITPLMainRoad,Whitefield,Hoodi,Bengaluru,Karnataka-560048,havechangedmynametoKrishnaMohinGupta

0070727384-1

IManjulaND/oNarayanjiGirmaji RaoandW/oDheerajKamlekar R/o 8-12-96/S/77NP,Plot-77, 1ST Floor, Sri RamanaColony, RD-3, Karmanghat,Hyderabad, Telangana-500079,have changedmyname toManjari RaoKamlekar

0070727378-1

II VedPrakashMeenaS/oKailiRamMeenaR/oQtr-54N, CBIColony, VasantVihar, Delhi-110057, have changedmynametoSidharthMeena

0070727371-1

II SureshKumarAgarwal S/oJagdishAgarwal R/o FlatNo-I-303, BestechParkViewGrandSpa, Sector-81, Lakhnola (110),Gurgaon,Haryana-122004,have changedmyname toSureshKumar 0070727372-1

II Raj KumariWd/oLateD.N.VermaR/oWZ-1260, NangalRaya, NewDelhi-110046declares that thenameofmyhusband isD.N.Verma, DayaNandVermaandDayanandS/oLateA.L.Verma.All namesareof oneand the sameperson.

0040560304-7

IIMeenakshiW/O,Aditya SaxenaR/oHouseNo-29, JatonWaliGali, Singhola, Near PunjabAndSindBank, Delhi -40 havechangedmyname toMeenakshi Khatri

0040560287-1

II JoyDevgourevS/OYashPalSharma,R/OHD-168, HD-Block,Sector-135, NoidaGautamBuddhaNagar, U.P.,IHaveChangemyname JoyDevgourevSharma for,allpurpose. 0040560326-2

II AnitaW/oHarnekSinghR/oHNo-1, AmanNagar, NearIndianOverseasBankSuranussi, Jalandhar, Punjab-144027, have changedmynametoHarpreet Kaur

0070727376-1

II Amit ChhabraS/o Late Sh.SurinderMohanChhabraR/oFlatNo.02, PlotNo.28,Kamakshi Appartment, Sector-6, Dwarka, NewDelhi-110075have changed thenameofmyminor son fromHarshitChhabra toHarshit AChhabrafor all purposes. 0040560304-6

I,SukhdevSinghMatharuS/O.Kashmeer SinghR/O.449,block-2, Subhash-Nagar, Tagore-garden, Delhi-110027,have changedmynametoSukhdevSingh,for allpurposes. 0040560351-3

I,Somvir,S/oDhani Ram,R/oWZ-47,Village-Budella,Vikaspuri, NewDelhi-110018have changedmynametoSomvir for all futurepurposes. 0040560357-6

I,SachinKumar,S/oShri.RamChanderGupta,R/o-33B,Pockt-C,Sidharth Extension,NewDelhi-14,have inductivelymentionedmydaughter’snameas Jahnavi in placeofjanhvi Kumari in thedocuments submitedbeforeIndianAir Force thenameofmydaughter isMiss JanhviKumari and the same isrecorded in all identity cardissuedbyGovt.Of IndiabothnameMiss Jahnavi andMissJanhvi Kumari pertain tomydaughter andShe is oneandthe sameperson.

0040560357-8

I,NaveenKumar S/o-Krishan LalPiplani R/o-H.No.9,SainikVihar,Pitampura,Delhi-110034have changedmyname toNaveenKumarPiplanipermanently.

0040560354-7

PPEERRSSOONNAALL

EEDDUUCCAATTIIOONNAALL

LLOOSSTT&&FFOOUUNNDD

Classifieds

''IMPORTANT''Whilst care is taken prior toacceptance of advertisingcopy, it isnotpossible toverifyits contents. The IndianExpress (P) Limited cannot beheld responsible for suchcontents, nor for any loss ordamage incurredasaresultoftransactions with companies,associations or individualsadvertising in its newspapersor Publications. We thereforerecommend that readersmake necessary inquiriesbefore sending any monies orentering into any agreementswith advertisers or otherwiseacting on an advertisement inany manner whatsoever.

PUBLIC NOTICEThis is to inform the general public atlarge that my client Raj Kumar S/oLate Sh. Ram Saran R/o C-15/35,Ganesh Gali, Gali No.4, ArjunMohalla, Mauj Pur, Delhi hasdisowned & severe all relations withhis son Pawan Sharma & his wifeSunita from his all movable andimmovable assets as they are notunder their control and any persondealing with them shall be doing so athis/her own risks and consequencesand my client will not be held liablefor any of their acts & deeds.

Sd/-SANJAY SOTI (Advocate)

D-1655/2001

PUBLIC NOTICEGeneral Public is hereby informedthat my client Smt. Ranjeeta Kaurw/o Late Manjeet Singh haslost/found missing on 10.01.2021property documents/Sale Deedetc. of her Flat No. 702 (7th Floor),Versova Godavari Co-op. HousingSociety Limited, RDP-2, VER-14,MHADA Layout, Survey No. 120,Versova, Andheri (W), Mumbai andwith Garage Parking space no. 17on Ground Floor from herresidence C-627, New FriendsColony, New Delhi.

Sd/-Naveen Kumar (Advocate)

Enrl. D-2524/09

PUBLIC NOTICENotice is hereby given to allconcerned that my client Sh. SunilKumar Goyal and Smt. Mamta GoyalR/o B-5/276, First Floor, Sector-5,Rohini, Delhi-85, has disowned/debarred/ discarded his real daughterGeetika Goyal, due to theirmisbehavior, disobedience, illegalactivities/assets, also ceased allhis/her relations with him, any personwhosoever deals with his/her shall doat his/her their own risks/costs/responsibility.

Sd/-Vimal Tripathi (Advocate)office: 373, Ground floor

Pocket-4, Sector-22Rohini Delhi-86

PUBLIC NOTICEMY CLIENT SHILPA GREWAL GUPTAW/O LATE VISHWANATH GUPTA R/OWZ-59, JOHRI HOUSE, VILLAGENANGLI JALIB, B-1 BLOCKJANAKPURI, NEW DELHI-110058, DOHEREBY INFORM THE PUBLIC ATLARGE THAT THE HUSBAND OF MYCLIENT LATE VISHWANATH GUPTAEXPIRED ON 16.10.2020 AND HE WASABSOLUTE OWNER OF CHAMBERNO. 347, WESTERN WING, TISHAZARI, DELHI AND 309, 3RD FLOOR,DDA BUILDING DISTRICT CENTRE,LAXMI NAGAR, DELHI AND JOINT/CO-OWNER OF PROPERTY BEARINGNO. C-138, SECTOR-26, NOIDA ANDD-6, SECTOR-30 NOIDA AND OTHERMOVABLE PROPERTIES/ ASSETS. MYCLIENT AND HER MINOR DAUGHTERBEING LEGAL HEIRS OF LATEVISHWANATH GUPTA HAVE LEGALRIGHTS, CLAIMS, INTEREST, SHAREETC. IN THE ABOVE SAIDPROPERTIES. MY CLIENTAPPREHENDS THAT SH. ONKARNATH GUPTA (FATHER-IN-LAW), SMT.MANORAMA GUPTA (MOTHER-IN-LAW) , SH. AMARNATH GUPTA(BROTHER-IN-LAW) AND SH.PRAKASH NATH GUPTA (BROTHER-IN-LAW) MAY TRY TO SELL,TRANSFER, ALINEATE, PARTPOSSESSION ETC OF THE ABOVESAID PROPERTIES, WHICH SHALL BEUNLAWFUL AND ANY PERSONDEALING WITH THE ABOVE SAIDPROPERTIES WITH IN-LAWS OF MYCLIENT WILL BE DOING SO AT THEIROWN RISKS, CONSEQUENCES ANDCOSTS ETC.

Sd/- NEERAJ SOOD (Advocate)Ch. No. 390, Civil Wing,

Tis Hazari Courts, Delhi-54

PUBLIC NOTICEI, Rohit Malik, Advocate, Off. 124-125, 1stFloor, Vishal Tower, District Center, Janakpuri,New Delhi-110058, Mobile No. 9871630682,7827623043, on behalf of my client Sh. KapilTannan, s/o Sh. Ashok Kumar Tannan, r/o431, Anand Kunj, Vikas Puri, New Delhi-110018, do hereby inform to the GeneralPublic that my client is going to purchase theFlat No. 921, Anand Kunj Vikas Puri, NewDelhi-110018 from Smt. Sunita Kumar, w/oLate Sh. Sunil Kumar r/o Flat bearing No. 921,Anand Kunj, Vikas Puri, New Delhi-110018. Allperson claiming an interest in the saidproperty or any part of thereof by way of sale,gift, lease, possession, easement attachmentor otherwise however, are hereby required tomake the same known to me on my givenaddress or Mobile No. within 15 days from thedate hereof, failing which the said transfer ofproperty will be completed without anyreference to such claim and the same if anyshall be considered as waived and it will beassumed that the property is free from all theencumbrances.

Sd/- Rohit Malik (Advocate)124-125, 1st Floor, Vishal Tower, District

Center, Janakpuri, New Delhi-110058

PUBLIC NOTICETHIS IS TO INFORM YOU ALL PUBLIC ATLARGE THAT MY CLIENT SMT. SUNITASHARMA W/O SH. NARESH SHARMARESIDENT OF 28-A MIG PAHADGANJ, DDAFLATS, MOTIA KHAN, DELHI-110055, HASDISCONNECTED ALL HER RELATIONSAND DEBARRED HER DAUGHTER MS.SHRUTI SHARMA FROM ALL IMMOVABLEAND MOVABLE PROPERTY, ASSETS,BANK ACCOUNTS ETC. DUE TO THE ACTOF MARRIAGE SOLEMNIZED BY HERWITH KARAN SHARMA S/O PRAMODSHARMA AGAINST THE WILL OF ALL THEFAMILY MEMBERS. IF ANY PERSONDEALS WITH HER IN ANY MANNER THENTHEY WILL DO SO AT THEIR OWN RISKAND SOLELY RESPONSIBLE FOR THESAME.Sd/- MANOJ KUMAR & PRIYANKA SINGH

AdvocateChamber No. 563, Patiala House Courts

New Delhi-110001

PUBLIC NOTICEBe it known to all that my clients Sh.Mohammad Sajid S/o Sh. MohammadAshfaq and his wife Smt. Sadiya Begumboth R/o H.No. 1990, 1st Floor, GaliMeerdhan, Lal Kuan, Delhi-110006, havesevered all relations with their son Sh.Salman Sajid and his wife Smt. ZahiraKhatoon @ Albina Zahira and havedisowned and disinherited them from alltheir movable and immovable propertiesdue to abovesaid Smt. Zahira’s unrulybehavior and her threat to falsely implicatethe entire family of my clients. Whosoeverdeals with them in any manner, shall do soat his/her own risks, cost andconsequences. My clients shall not beresponsible for the same.

Sd/- Yusuf NaqiAdvocate

Office: 301/C-15, Acharya Niketan,Mayur Vihar Phase-1, New Delhi-110091.

PUBLIC NOTICEBe it known to all that my clientsSh. Rakesh Kumar son of LateSh. Balwant Rai & Smt. MeenaKumari wife of Sh. Rakesh Kumarboth Resident of House No. 167,First Floor, School Wali Gali,Azadpur, Delhi-110033 havesevered all their relations andconnections with their son Sh.Tarun Ralli, daughter-in-law Smt.Geetika and their legal heirs andhave debarred and disownedthem from all their movable andimmovable properties, with im-mediate effect, as they are actingbeyond uncontrol of my clients.Whomsoever deals with them inmonetary form or in any other na-ture shall do so at his/her/theirown risk, cost and responsibility.S.K. Shrivastva (Advocate)

Reg. No. : D/73-IB/1991Ch.No. : 618, Dwarka Court, Delhi-75

II,,RRaahhuull Rathore,S/oSudarshanKumarRathore,R/o-213/1,Paschimabad JNUDelhi-110067,have Lostmymigration-certificateRoll.No.9182094 year-2019issuedbyKVJNUCampus,New-Delhi,finderContact-8130127295. 0040560351-10

II,,RRaahhuull kumar Singh,s/omadanSinghR/o.h.no-97,chhawlaextn.Part-2 chhawla-village,Delhi,have lostmyoriginal/certificateClass-12thyear-2011Rollno-9167768CBSE-DELHI. 0040560357-10

II,,SSuusshhmmaa rani D/o Mangalsen,R/oh.no-100,Durgapark,Dallupura,Delhi-96,havelostmy originalcertificate/marksheet class-10th(2012 ) Rollno-8603699Class-12th(2014) Rollno-9602929CBSE-Delhi.

0040560357-11

IItt is notified for the informationthatmyOriginalQualifyingExaminationCertificate ofMain Sr. SecondaryExaminationof Year-2019,Roll.No-2632117, issuedbyCBSEhasbeenactuallylost.Nameof the candidateSuryadityaMor, R/oD-304,SohnaRoadColony,ParkviewCity-1, Gurugram,Haryana-122101. FinderContact. 0040560357-9

IItt is notified for the informationthatmyOriginalQualifyingExaminationCertificate ofMain, Senior SecondaryExaminationof Year 2007, RollNo.6252645 issuedbyCBSEhasbeenactually lost. Nameof thecandidateREKHAAddressArmyPublic School, Delhi CanttMobNo.9871089587

0010120992-1

NNaattiioonnaall Central council ofVocational Training invitedapplication for start TrainingandStudyCentrewww.nccvt.inMob.7499647774/ 9823647194

0090280356-1

PPOOUULLTTRRYY

CORRIGENDUMVENDOR REGISTRATION:ARMY HOSPITAL (R&R)

DELHI CANTT

Refer notice for vendorregistration dated 17 Dec 2020.

Last date for submission ofapplication form was erroneously

printed as 15 Mar 2021 onapplication form. Last date of

submission of application form is30 Jan 2021.

CCOOBB400Y, Kadaknath, Kaveri,D.P.Cross, Giriraj, Bater, chicksavailable, eggswill behatchedandgiven, RehmaHatchery:9067757721 (Pune)

0090280397-1

CLASSIFIEDS&TENDERS16 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHEINDIANEXPRESS,SATURDAY, JANUARY16,2021

New Delhi

CALENDAR 17WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHEINDIANEXPRESS,SATURDAY, JANUARY16,2021

CROSSWORD4329

ACROSS1 I ringEnidback forahealingapplication(6)

4 ApianotestedandgiventheOK(8)

9 Discontinuationof issuedorder (6)

10 Verygoodarticle forcakedecoration(8)

12 Listawaitermaybeasked for(4)

13 Goddessof light? (5)14 Votecastbyobjector? (4)17 Itdoesn’tbecomeagrown-up(12)

20 Acraft school foryoungsters(8,4)

23 Felt sorryaboutunion leaderbeingbolshie (4)

24 WorryresultswhenHaroldgetsshort (5)

25 If there’samanaround,he’sfromtheU.S. (4)

28 Conditional statement? (8)29 Adeity father foundoutsideaChinese temple (6)

30 MasterfulmanIdon’thavetoreplace (8)

31Workof amanwhoisgoodatfigures (6)

DOWN1 Thesortof speechthatgetsreported(8)

2 Saynotogettingarecordbymailorder (8)

3 Outstanding featureof one’sdisposition(4)

5 Whereyoumightgo inAmerica if youhavetime(12)

6 Theknotsailorsavoid (4)7 Expresses requirements forachoir (6)

8 Monster inwomen’sclothing?(6)

11 Drops fromhardwork(12)15 Lookwellon(5)16 Americanneedstimeforpractice (5)

18 Ourhaste ruinedthedistribution(5-3)

19 Wisestep in thepresentera(5,3)

21 Conductedanexamination infavourof retirement? (6)

22 Blamedforanuproar(6)

26 Astudyaboutadistinguishedacademic (4)

27 Isunable toplay thehypocrite(4)

ARIES (Mar21 -Apr20)PassionateAriensshould aim forfamily gatheringsandhome

entertainments. Those of youplanningdecorations or evendreamingof amoveof homeshould be able to takeyour plans one verymajor stepforward. Themessage ofthemoment is to bebusinesslike.

TAURUS (Apr21 -May21)Still, there's no let-up fromplanetarypressures.However,if you talk about

personal feelings youmayfind that theold adage, aproblemshared is aproblemhalved, ismore truenowthanit everwasbefore.Next, you'llhave todealwith all thefinancial implications.

GEMINI (May22 - June21)Chance encounterswill lead to amuchmore fulfillinglifestyle for you and

your lovedones. Yet I can'tpretend that everythingwillbe easy, and someof thepeople you encounter over thenext fewdaysmay try yourpatience to the limit—andbeyond.

CANCER (June22 - July23)Shopping trips arebound to involvehigher costs.Indeed, almost

every area of life is going towork outmore expensive thanyouhoped. Youmust talkabout your problems,otherwise you'll have to acceptthe sole blame for anymistakes. Get expert helpwhenever youneed it.

LEO (July24 -Aug23)Abrilliant aspectbetween theSunanda series of otherplanets, places

hurdles in yourpath. Lifeis like anobstacle-coursefeaturing traps for theunwarybutbigprizes for thewinners. Long-distancejourneys are strongly signifiedby theMoon.

VIRGO(Aug24 - Sep23)Youmaybemisunderstood.However, yourstrengthat the

moment lies in repairing thedamage left bypeoplewhohavenocontrol over theirfeelings. If your confidenceshoulddip, then rememberthat you'replayinga longgameandyouneedareliable strategy.

LIBRA (Sep24 -Oct23)This is bound tobeoneof those timeswhenyoudon't seeeye to eyewith

partners and lovedones,especially ifmoney is involved.Spendingor savingplans couldprovide the catalyst for a livelyexchangeof views. But, then, ifyouget financial concernssortedout, emotional strainswill be eased.

SCORPIO (Oct24 -Nov23)Whatadull oldworld itwouldbe ifeveryoneagreedallthe time.A frank

exchangeof views is inevitable,butdo trynot to fly off thehandleor takeeverything toopersonally. You're a little bitaccident-prone, sopleaseusecarewith thepricelessheirlooms.

SAGITTARIUS(Nov24-Dec22)Youhavewaited toolong for the rewardsyoudeserve, but youmayhave realised

that youwon't get anythingyouhaven'tworked for. Bynextweek, you'll be able tofigureouthowtoget roundarecentdelay.Onewordofadvice: take steps to get intotip-topphysical form.

CAPRICORN(Dec23 - Jan20)Lunar alignmentsanchor you toreality, but thoseofyoupursuing

romantic adventuresmaybesweptoff your feet. In spite of ageneral argumentativeatmosphere, the chancesof averypleasurablewindfall aremuchhigher thenaverage.Takeyour chances.

AQUARIUS (Jan21-Feb19)Youseemtohavetheedgeathomeandyoucan, if youwish, get yourown

way. Remember that, as far asfamilymembers areconcerned, causesofdiscontent are still verymuchalive. If youput yourmind to it,this is a timewhenonemajorfinancial orpersonal obstaclecanbe surmounted.

PISCES (Feb20 -Mar20)Window-shoppingandcasual spendingis oneoption fortoday. Butdevoting

someof your resources tocharity is another. Indeed, it'sprobably thebest if youwantto avoid continuedpersonalturmoil. Youdon't knowyetwhat sort of changesyou'll setin trainonceemotional issuesare raised.

SUDOKU4354

DifficultyLevel2sInstructionsTosolveaSudokupuzzle,everydigitfrom1to9mustappear ineachofthenineverticalcolumns, ineachoftheninehorizontalrowsandineachofthenineboxes.

DifficultyLevel1s=Veryeasy;2s=Easy;3s=Medium;4s=Hard;5s=VeryHard;6s=Genius S

OLU

TIONSUDOKU4353

Givenbelowarefour jumbledwords.Solvethejumblestomakeproperwordsandmovethemtotherespectivesquaresbelow.Selecttheletters intheshadedsquaresandjumblethemtogettheanswerforthegivenquip.Whenone___,one__.-CharlotteWhitton(4,.,3)

SOLUTION:SANDS,FOUNT,QUENCH,MORGUEAnswer:Whenonemust,onecan.-CharlotteWhitton

DNSAS EHNQCU

FUTON EGORUM

SolutionsCrossword4328:Across: 1Sprag,8Lei,9Totempole,10Essence,11Tower,13Traits,15Amatol,18Liege,19Featherdusters,21Beardless,23Och,24Screech,25Tides.Down:1Solvent,2Reinstate,3Geton,4Duties,5Symptom,6Ego,7Shear,12Watchword,14Treadle,16Larches,17Afresh,18Lobes,20Asset,22Air.

JUMBLEDWORDS

OVERTHEHEDGE byMichael Fry&TLewis

CALVIN&HOBBES byBillWatterson

MARVIN byTomArmstrong

DAYTODAY BYPETERVIDAL

DELHI JAL BOARD (Govt. of N.C.T. of Delhi)OFFICE OF EXECUTIVE ENGINEER (C) DR. III

Kanhaiya Nagar, Delhi - 110035Phone: 011-27394876 Email: [email protected]

STOP CORONA; Wear Mask, Follow Physical Distancing, Maintain Hand Hygiene

PRESS NIT NO- 05 (2020-21) (Re-invited)

Further details in this regard can be seen at https://govtprocurement.delhi.gov.in.

S.No

Name of work Estimated ContractValue (ECV)/ Amount

put to tender (Rs.)

EarnestMoney

(EMD) (Rs.)

Tender processingFee Non

Refundable (Rs.)

Date of Release ofTender/ Tender Id.

Last date/timeof receipt of

tender1. Providing/ Laying balance

portion of outfall sewer ofSubhadra Colony by open cut& Microtunneling

1,61,49,791/- Exempted 1000/- 14.01.2021 /2021_DJB_198712_1

15.02.2021upto 3.00 P.M

Sd/-Executive Engineer(C) DR-III


DELHI JAL BOARD : GOVERNMENT OF NCT OF DELHIOFFICE OF THE EXECUTIVE ENGINEER (SDW)-III

STP YAMUNA VIHAR, WAZIRABAD ROAD DELHI-110053Tele- 22814128, Email: [email protected]

AddendumIn reference in NIT No. 04 (2020-21) dated: 08.10.2020 [Tender ID-2020_DJB_195411_1] all prospective bidders are hereby inform to download the reply ofbidders query received in Pre-bid meeting dated: 26.10.2020 from the portal ofhttps://govtprocurement.delhi.gov.in.

“STOP CORONA; WEAR MASK, FOLLOW PHYSICAL DISTANCING, MAINTAINING HAND HYGIENE”


Sd/-(Bhushan Verma)

Exe. Engineer (SDW)-III

NOTICEBOARD CORPORATE ASSOCIATE DIARY A P P O I N T M E N T S , M O V E M E N T S , C E L E B R A T I O N S , H O N O U R S

E V E N T S , A N N O U N C E M E N T S , L A U N C H E S , C S R I N I T I A T I V E S , A P P O I N T M E N T S , M O V E M E N T S , C E L E B R A T I O N S

ICSI recently organised the ICSI National Awards for Exc-ellence in Corporate Governance 2020. The Award recognisesthe impeccable performances by Corporates and Pro-fessionals in the Corporate Governance arena. Piyush Goyal,Union Minister for Railways, Commerce & Industry, ConsumerAffairs and Food & Public Distribution, graced the occasionas the Chief Guest while Justice AK Sikri, Former Judge,Supreme Court of India & International Judge, SingaporeInternational Commercial Court, was the Chairman of the Juryfor the Awards. The Lifetime Achievement Award wasbestowed on Dr. Cyrus S. Poonawalla, whereas the HonoraryDegree of the ICSI conferred on Shri Kumar Mangalam Birla.

NBT India The over a month-long 9th International AdolescentSummit, 2020: Life Skills, Health, Safety & School Wellbeingclosed recently in a Valedictory function over a virtual event.Organized by Expressions India with NBT India as theKnowledge Partner, the event was inaugurated Dr. RameshPokhriyal ‘Nishank’, Minister of Education, GoI, on 18December 2020. Nearly 14,000 students and teachersinvolving over 1200 schools from all over India participatedin the summit. Rajat Sharma, Chairman & Editor-in Chief,INDIA TV News, was the Guest of Honour at the event.

UT of Lakshadweep The Administration of UT ofLakshadweep has issued a revised SOP with effect from 28thDecember, 2020 by doing away with the quarantine system atKochi as well as in the islands. Anyone can visit the islandsfrom mainland with a negative test report of RT-PCR obtained48 hours before the travel. Lakshadweep has been able tokeep the situation normal and ensure the smooth functioningof all government offices, schools, hospitals and all otherestablishments. Praful Patel, Administrator, UT of Laks-hadweep, has appealed to all the citizens of the UT to remainpeaceful and follow the revised SOP in letter and spirit.

Embassy of Kyrgyzstan Early elections of the President of theKyrgyz Republic and a referendum on the form of governanceof the Kyrgyz Republic were held recently. 3,563,574 voterswere registered on the voter list. There were 2,474 pollingstations set up for holding the elections, out of which 48 wereabroad. According to the Central Commission for Elections &the Referendum of the Kyrgyz Republic, as per the preliminaryvoting results, Sadyr Zhaparov won with 79.18% of the votesin the early elections of the President of the Kyrgyz Republic.According to the preliminary results of voting in thereferendum, 81.29% of voters chose the presidential form ofgovernance.

POWERGRID has won the SHRM HR Excellence Award atthe SHRMI20 India Annual & Tech Conference. This isthe first award that the SHRM body has awarded to anyPSU in India. POWERGRID won the award aftercompeting with almost a dozen PSU organisations andmore than 360 organizations participating in the overallawards process. The award was presented to K.Sreekant, CMD, POWERGRID and V.K. Singh, DirectorPersonnel, POWERGRID in person at POWERGRIDCorporate Office.

NTPC Ltd’s very first unit, which was commissioned 38years ago at Singrauli in Uttar Pradesh, has achieved thehighest Plant Load Factor (PLF) of 100.24% among allthermal units in the country between April 2020 toDecember 2020, data published by Central ElectricityAuthority (CEA) showed. The 200 MW unit wascommissioned in 1982 and the robust PLF signifies theexceptional operational and maintenance efficiency atIndia’s largest power generation company.

IRCTC has announced the launch of various air tourpackages to leisure & pilgrimage destinations in India topromote Domestic Tourism in the new year. These fixeddeparture tours have been strategically planned for a veryshort duration in the next three months considering theLong Weekends and Holiday combinations for ServiceClass Employees & General Public. Tour Package toAndaman is LTC Compliant for Govt. Employees.

IGNOU has been accorded A++ grade by NAAC.Informing this, the Registrar of the University said thatIGNOU is the first HEI in the ODL system to be accreditedby the NAAC. As on date, IGNOU has 30 lakh students onroll and with this recognition by NAAC, ODL and onlinelearning will play a major role in access and equity tohigher education.

HNLU recently conducted its Four th Convocation,wherein two research scholars were awarded Ph.D.,while 223 and 750 students got LL. M. and B.A.LL.B.(Hons.) degrees respectively. There were 61 gold medalrecipients from across the batches of 2015 to 2019. Mostof the gold medals were awarded to the Girl students.Justice Sharad Arvind Bobde, the Chief Justice of India& Visitor of the University, delivered a special address onthe occasion and Bhupesh Baghel, CM of Chhattisgarh,delivered the Convocation address.

POWERGRID received SKOCH Silver Award for its transfor-mational performance in response to the COVID-19 pandemic& itsSkill developmentandemploymentgenerationprogramforsustainable growth of 200 underprivileged Women in Damoh.

AWARD - POWERGRIDPK Das, CMD, IREDA & AK Singh, CMD, NHPC, signed aMoU, in presence of other senior officials from both the or-ganizations, to support NHPC in Green Energy projects forthe next 5 years.

MOU - IREDA

TRIFED recently reviewed the progress of MSP for MFPScheme and other tribal development schemes in Chhattis-garh. Pravir Krishna, MD, TRIFED, met with senior stategovernment officials for the meeting.

MEETING - TRIFEDDinesh Khara, Chairman, SBI, inaugurated the reno-vated Branch of SBI at P-Block, Connaught Circus, NewDelhi. Vijuy Ronjan, CGM of SBI, New Delhi Circle alongwith other senior officials were also present.

INAUGURATION – SBIPunjab National Bank Ghaziabad recently inauguratedits Digi Hut for customer convenience in Signature Mall,Govindpuram. It was inaugurated by V Dubey, ED of theBank.

INAUGURATION - PNB

IndianOil Aviation recently fuelled the historic Air India flightfrom San Francisco at Bengaluru. S Sahay, ED (Aviation),HO and H Rathore, CGM (Aviation), SR were at the airport towelcome and greet the crew.

ACHIEVEMENT - INDIANOIL

Naveen Patnaik, CM, Odisha and Dharmendra Pradhan,Union Minister for PNG & Steel jointly launchedBindu Sagar Lake Cleaning project at Bhubaneswar re-cently.

LAUNCH – INDIANOIL

GRSE recently signed a contract for 01 Ocean Going Passen-ger & Cargo Ferry Vessel for Republic of Guyana. Govt. ofGuyana signed the contract with the shipyard to build anOcean-Going Vessel at a cost of 12.7 MUS$.

CONTRACT – GRSESobha K. Baba, President, and Dr. Meenakshi Davar, Di-rector (HR), POSOCO, distributed blankets and adult dia-pers to the elderly people in Guru Vishram Vridh Ashram,Delhi, for their betterment in harsh winters.

CSR - POSOCO

DEVELOPMENT AND PANCHAYATS DEPARTMENT

PANCHAYATI RAJ, PUBLIC WORKS, DIVISION

KARNAL

CORRIGENDUM

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VolLXXXIXNo.58Regd.No.DL-21046/03-05 R.N.I.No.506/57. PrintedandPublishedbyR.C.Malhotraonbehalf of The IndianExpress (P)LimitedandPrintedatThe IndianExpress (P)LimitedPress,A-8,Sector-7,Noida-201301andPublishedatThe IndianExpress (P)Limited,MezzanineFloor,ExpressBuilding,9&10,BahadurShahZafarMarg, NewDelhi-110002.Editorialoffice: The IndianExpress (P)Limited,MezzanineFloor,ExpressBuilding,9&10,BahadurShahZafarMarg, NewDelhi-110002.Phone:0120-6651500.Advertisingoffice: The IndianExpress (P)Limited,B1/B,Sector-10,Noida-201301.Phone:0120-6651291.Chairmanof theBoard:ViveckGoenka,Chief Editor:RajKamal Jha,Editor:UnniRajenShanker,Editor (Delhi):RakeshSinha** **Responsible forselectionofNewsunderthePRBAct.Copyright: The IndianExpress (P)Limited.All rightsreserved.Reproduction inanymanner,electronicorotherwise, inwholeor inpart,

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EBSCORELATEEQUALISERVSKERALAScott Neville scored with a stunning header in the dying minutes to help SC EastBengal secure a 1-1 draw against Kerala Blasters in a Hero Indian Super Leaguematch at Tilak Maidan, here on Friday. Jordan Murray put Kerala ahead in the64th minute before Neville's stoppage-time equaliser (90+5) ensured that SCEBextended their unbeaten run to six games. PTI

SANDIPGJANUARY 15

IN SEPTEMBER last year, January 2021seemed far away. TNatarajan left home inChinnappampatti, near Salem, for theIndianPremier Leaguealready thinkingofhis return flight in mid-November, themonth he would become a father for thefirst time.He had already decided on the temples

heshouldvisitandtheritualsheshouldper-formafterreturninghome,besidesgrowingabeard till thechildwasborn.Some 360 kilometres south of

Chinnappampatti, inChennai,WashingtonSundarwas restlessly awaiting the day hewould leave for theUAE.Bereftof compet-itive cricket, his life, he said in a RoyalChallengersBangalorevideo, felt lifeless. “Iwish I could just keep on playing cricketnon-stop,” he said.

Not overawedFourmonths later,beyondtheirwildest

dreamsor fantasies,necessitatedbyachainof unusual incidents and unprecedentedcircumstances, both found themselves asTest cricketers, playing apre-eminent roleon the opening day of the decisive fourthTest at theGabba.Sundar heckled thewicket of themost

prolific batsman in contemporary Testcricket, Steve Smith, before Natarajan’stwin strikes, of centurion MarnusLabuschagne andMatthewWade, limitedthedamageAustraliawouldhave inflictedon India. But for their timely strikes, theday’s final score (274/5) would have as-sumedmonstrous proportions.Natarajan was vying with Kuldeep

Yadav for the fifth bowler’s slot. Sundar’sbatting, bowling control and potentialplans of leg-trap against Smith andLabuschagne made him a sure shot to re-place RavichandranAshwin.The team management felt that it

wouldbewiser togowithNatarajan forhiscontrol, left-armer’s angle, and ability to

reverse from round the stumps.Onthemostoverwhelmingdayof their

careers, neitherdebutantunderwhelmed.At no point did it weigh on them that onewas replacing arguably the finest fastbowler in India’shistory, and theother thefinest off-spinner of this generation. Theyexuded anunreal composure.

Truth stranger than fictionNeitherwouldhavenurturedevenfaint

hopes of making their Test debuts on thistour.Washingtonwas part of just the T20Isquad,Natarajanwaschosenamongthere-servesbeforeVarunChakravartypickedupaninjuryandhewasnamedasthereplace-ment.Hewaspicked for the thirdODI, andthen the T20Is.Washington featured in allthree T20Is.Both were supposed to leave after the

white-ball leg, butwereasked tostaybackas net bowlers. Bothwere thrilled, thoughNatarajanwas longing to seehis daughter.But his childhood coach A Jayaprakashcalledhimtosay“nottoworryaboutthingsbackhome.” “I toldhim just tokeephis fo-

cus on his game. It was the best chance inhis life. I toldhim to take everynet sessionas a Testmatch,” says Jayaprakash.Natarajan’s rise is a remarkable, class-

transcendingmoment in Indiancricket too—thesonof aporterandtea-shackvendorplaying Test cricket. There have been sev-eral famished-to-famousstories in the IPL,but few in international cricket.Washington’s isamorestraightforward

tale; he progressed through the conven-tional route, playing the U-19World Cup,makinghisFirst-Classdebutat17, IPLdebutayear later andputtingon the India jerseyat the end of 2017.

Different stylesUnlike Natarajan, who exudes a rustic

charm, Washington is a metro-boy withoodlesof confidenceandahintof swagger.The big stage hardly frazzles him. Like in2017, after Rising Pune Supergiant’s chiefspinnerRavichandranAshwinwas injured,hewas called for trials.UnfazedbybowlingtoSmith,MSDhoni

and Ben Stokes in the nets, Washington

swiftly earned a contract. He was thrownstraightaway into thedeepend, anddidn’tlook back. He featured in all their remain-ing games and endedupwith the second-best economy rate in the league.“I know how important it is to latch

onto every single chance you get at anylevel of thegame.Youcan takenothing forgranted,”hehadtold thisnewspaperonce.

Breaking stereotypesHowever,bothhadonebigmythtobust

ontheirdebuts.That theycanbemorethanusefulwith the redball. BothhavemodestFirst-Class experience —Washington hasgrabbed 30 wickets from 12 games whileNatarajan has 64 from20.There was always a rider that hung to

their necks: Are they good with the redball? Can they bowl long spells? Do theyhave Test-match temperament?On Friday, they ticked all those boxes.

Theybowledwithself-awareness, craftandcunning. They were barely frazzled whenbowling to the likes of Smith andLabuschagne.Ithasbeenafeatureof India’sdebutants

in this series. Theyarenotoverawedbythestage or the reputation of the opponents.Mohammed Siraj, in fact, is doing a mini-Stuart Broad on David Warner, knockinghimout twice in three bouts.In the company of Shardul Thakur and

Natarajan,hecompensated for the injuredNavdeep Saini on Friday.

Together against adversityIt reflects the team ethos. There is a

senseof togetherness. Even though JaspritBumrahwas not fit to play, hewas lurkingnear theboundary rope, offeringadvice toSiraj, Saini and Natarajan. Ashwin wouldbe seen alongsideWashington.Nobody is detached, everyone is in-

volved. It’s the hallmark of great teams.Fromthis cohesivenessemergesasenseofcourage thatonecouldride theroughestofwaves and repel the fiercest of storms, aconviction that no setback could setthemback.

Ontheculminationof theirscarcely-believable journeytoTestdebuts,Natarajan&Sundarshowtheybelongatthat level

SHAMIKCHAKRABARTYJANUARY15

The first dayof theBrisbaneTest endedwithAustralia having their nose slightly in front.Without three dropped catches, the hosts,however,wouldhave finished theday losingatleastsevenwicketsinsteadoffive.Droppedcatches have become routine in this series,withboth sides benefitting from fielding er-rors.Australia’sMarnusLabuschagnehasrid-denhisluckmorethananyoneelse.

Howmanycatcheshave Indiadroppedsofar?Going by statistical data fromdifferent

sources,Indiahavedropped31catchesduringtheir ongoingAustralian tour so far, startingfrom theODI series. In the threeODIs, Indiadropped sevencatches followedby12 in thethree-matchT20I series. In theAdelaideTest,thevisitorsputdownfourcatchesfollowedbyone inMelbourne, four in Sydney and threemoreinBrisbaneonFriday.

HowmanycatcheshavetheAussiesdroppedintheTests?SofarinthreeTests,Australiahavegrassed

13 catches – one in Adelaide, seven inMelbourneandfiveinSydney.

HowhaveAustraliansbenefittedfromIndia’serrors?Thereareexamplesaplenty.Topointouta

few: In the first Test, in the 18th over of

Australia’sfirstinnings,Labuschagnesurviveda sitter, as Jasprit Bumrah dropped himoffMohammedShami. Thebatsmanwason12then. In the23rdover, Prithvi ShawdroppedLabuschagneoff Bumrahwhenhewason21.Hewentontoscore47. In the 55th over, MayankAgarwal droppedTimPaineoffBumrah on 26. The Australianskipperendedupon73notout.Cut to Brisbane on Friday,

whenAjinkyaRahanedroppedLabuschagneoffNavdeepSaini’sbowlingwhenhewason37andAustraliaun-der pressure at 93/3. Ten overs hence,CheteshwarPujaradroppedhimatfirstslipoffTNatarajanon48.Labuschagnerodehis lucktoscorehisfifthTestcentury.In the 80th over, Shardul Thakur let go a

simplecaught-and-bowledopportunitytoal-

lowCameronGreenareprieveon19.ThatwasjustbeforeIndiatookthesecondnewballandadismissalwouldhavehadAustraliasixdown.Green stayed till the endof theday to tilt thebalanceinthehosts’ favour.

HowhavetheIndiansbenefittedfromdroppedcatches?Inthe81stoverduringIndia’sfirstinnings

inMelbourne, Steve SmithdroppedRahanewhenhewason73.The India captainscored112totakethegameawayfromAustralia.InthethirdTest,RishabhPantsurvivedon

three during India’s second innings, whenPainedroppedhimoffNathanLyon.PantwasnewtothecreaseafterRahanehadbeendis-missedinthesecondoveronDayFive.Theleft-handerwentontoscore97,whichraised theprospectofanimprobableIndianvictory-push.Eventually, his innings set theplatform for a

memorabledraw.Inthe101stoverof India’ssec-

ond innings in Sydney, substituteSeanAbbottflooredRavichandranAshwinwhenhewas on 15, andwithnineovers remaining, Painedropped Hanuma Vihari offMitchell Starc. AshwinandVihariremainedunseparatedtilltheend

tosecureagreatescape.

WhyLabuschagneisoneoftheluckiest?ACricVizAnalyst tweetmentions thathe

hasbeendropped10 times inhis Test career,which is currently 18-Test-old. In 29 inningsbefore Friday’smatch, Australia’s No. 3 had

scored1,752 runs at an averagenorth of 60.Another tweet from the samehandlepointsout:“Sincethestartofthe2019Ashes,onlyBenStokes has beendroppedmore often in Testcricket”.

WhoshouldbeheldresponsibleforIndia’scatchingglitches?Rahane’sdroponFridaywasaone-off, for

heisoneofthesafestcatchersintheteam.ButIndia’soverallfielding/catchingstandardsdur-ingtheongoingtourhavebeenwaybelowpar,toput itmildly.Somesittershavegonedownandwhile theerrorshavebeenmadebyTestcricketerswho are supposed to take thosecatches,fieldingcoachRSridharhasalottoan-swer for. Two years ago, the erstwhileMSKPrasad-led selection committee had re-ap-pointedSridhar, ignoringSouthAfrican JontyRhodes’scandidature. Itwouldbeinterestingto see if the current selection committee,headedbyChetanSharma,ortheBCCIhierar-chycall for anexplanation fromSridhar afterthetour.

Anyfixedtemplatetoimprovecatching?Former India captain Mohammad

Azharuddin, arguably thecountry’s greatest-everall-roundfielder,hadoneduringhisplay-ingdays. “It’s imperative to take at least 150-200 catches during practice every day. As afielder,youshouldalwayswanttheballcom-ingatyouandthemoreyoutakethosecatches(in practice), themore you feel comfortable.Youare always game-ready,” Azhar told thispaperduringaconversationlastyear.

Destiny’s children

MIHIRVASAVDA&SRIRAMVEERANEWDELHI/MUMBAI,JANUARY15

WHENFASTbowlerNavdeep Saini hobbledoffthefieldatTheGabbaonFriday,aftersuffer-ingagroininjury,hecompletedIndia’s‘Injured11’ line-upfromthetourtoAustralia.The unprecedented number of walking

wounded in just one tour is thehighest-evertollforTeamIndia,beitanawayseriesorhome.Sportsscienceexpertshavereasontobelievethatinaseasonafterapandemic-forcedbreak,more squad rotation andeffectiveworkloadmanagementoftheplayerscouldhavehelpedpreventinjuries.“Muscle injurydoesn'thappenovernight.

Itstartswithaniggleandthenitgetsbigger.Itcanbearesultofloadandalsofromcertainac-tions,” Ramji Srinivasan, India’s strengthandconditioningcoachduringthe2011WorldCup,toldTheIndianExpress.“Forget the impact injuries that Ravindra

JadejaorMohammadShamisuffered.Thatcanhappentoanybody,anywherebutload-man-agementinjuriesaredifferent.”Considerthis:Bumrah,whohasnotplayed

alotof cricketsincesufferingastress fractureonhisbackafterthe2019WorldCup,bowled

60 overs in the IPL, 27.3 overs in the 3ODIsagainstAustralia and117.4 overs in the threeTestmatchesheplayed.Afternotsteppingoutofhishouseforal-

most fourmonthsdue to the lockdown, theleader of India’s bowling attackhas bowled205.1 overs in the last fourmonths. This isbesides thehourshewouldhavebowled inthe nets, ran on the field and, occasionally,

wielded thebat.Incontrast,hisAustraliancounterpartPat

Cumminshasbowled42lessthanhim(163.1overs)duringthesameperiod.While the cricketers are used to a hectic

schedule,whatmakesthisseasondifferent istheybeganplayingcompetitivematcheswith-out proper pre-season because of the lock-downrulesthatwereinforcebackthen.Apre-season allows the body to get used to therigoursofplayingday-inandday-out.

Lockdownwoes“During the lockdown, even if youwere

training, it’s not at a competitive level.Whenit’sacompetition,thepressuresarewaymore.Andnomatterhowmuchyoutrain,thebodyforgets the rigours of a tournament,” physio-therapistNikhil Latey,whohasworkedwithleadingIndiansportspersons,said.Srinivasan said there is a tendency to

plateau in the lockdown,whichalso affectedthe aerobic fitness of the bowlers.Withoutgoodrunningmechanics,headded, thereisa‘potential riskforaninjurybecauseof thede-mandsofbowling–thefoot landing, thewayyou transfer weight, release and follow-throughallmatter.’"Suddenlyafterbowling fourovers in IPL,

you find yourself in Australian conditions,”Srinivasan said. “Cricket is a running game.Underlockdown,runningfitnesshasbeenhit.That'swhybowlersaregettingmoreinjured.”MichaelHarding,whowas thephysio of

EnglishPremierLeaguesideNewcastleUnitedfor 14years before joiningEast Bengal in theIndianSuperLeaguelastOctober,saidcricket’s‘explosive’ naturemakes the playersmorepronetoinjuries.“Cricketcanbeabitmoreexplosivecom-

paredtoafewothersports.Inthat,ifyouareafielder,youarestandinginoneplaceorarein-active for short periods and thenhave to ex-plodeintoasprintfromastandingstart(anup-rightposition).Thatmightpredisposethemtomoreinjuries,”Hardingtoldthispaper.More so inAustralia,where theoutfields

aresofterandmostgroundshaveaslightlyup-hill run-uparea,Srinivasanadded.Hefurtherexplained:“Thecombinationof thetwoputsgreatpressureonposterior-chainofthebody.Thecalfandglutesarealwaysunderstress.Toputitsimplyit’slikerunningonasandybeachandonhardground.Indiangroundsareharder,theonesinAustraliaaresand-basedoutfields,andhencesofter.Thestrainismanifold,espe-ciallyforIndia’sbowlers,whoaren’tbornandbroughtupthere."

An arduous taskLateysaideventhoughIndianteamphysio

Nitin Patelwouldhaveknown these factors,there is little he couldhavedoneabout it be-

causeoftheschedulingofthematches.Whatcouldhavepreventedthis, instead, ismanag-ingtheplayers’workload.Sports physiotherapistHeathMatthews

said themost crucial factor tominimise therisk of an injury is to go slowly. “It’s all aboutwhatwe call loadmanagement.Howmuchloadareyouputtingyourbodyunder?Andareyougivingyourbodyenoughtimeforrecoveryand developing strength over a period oftime?”Matthews,who is theheadof sportsscience and medicine at HN RelianceFoundationHospital inMumbai,said.Srinivasanwondered if the loadmonitor-

ingof Indianplayershasbeendoneproperly.“ThereissomemissinglinksomewherethatIcan'tanswerwithoutdata.Wasloadmonitor-ingdoneproperly?Whatwere the IPL train-ersdoing?"hequestioned.Headdedthatrepetitiveinjuriestoplayers

likeBhuvaneshwarKumarandIshantSharmaarealsoa‘worry’.“Forget IPL, go back in time and see the

data. Data can't just be for one-and-halfmonths. Is the loadmonitoring decipheredproperly?Whyarethesameinjurieshappen-ing to the same guy over a period of time?Repetitive injuries are a worry, be itBhuvaneshwarKumarorIshantSharma.”

NavdeepSainiwalkedoffwithagroinstrainonDay1of theGabbaTest .AP

WashingtonSundarcelebrateswithRohitSharmaafterdismissingSteveSmith. (Above)MarnusLabuschagneafterreachinghis ton. AP

AjinkyaRahanedroppedMarcusLabuschagnewhenhewason37. AP

How catching standards in the series have dropped

Experts on injuries: No proper pre-season, sand-based outfields, load management

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEJANUARY15

THEAUSTRALIANmedia has reported thatIndianfastbowlerMohammedSirajwascalleda 'grub' bya sectionof the crowdonDay1ofIndia’s final Test at theGabba. Fielding in thedeep,nearSections215and216oftheBrisbane-stadium, the right-arm-quickwas repeatedlycalled‘grub’byagroupoflocalfans,areportintheSydneyMorningHeraldsaid.ThiscomesjustdaysafterSirajwasallegedly

raciallyabusedbyasectionofthecrowdattheSydneyCricketGround(SCG)duringthethirdTest.A spectatornamedKate (whopreferredtogoonlybyherfirstname),whowasseatedinthesamestand,wasquotedinthereport.“Theguysbehindmehavebeencalling–

shouting–bothWashington(Sundar)andSirajgrubs. (They) targetedSirajand itwasachantsimilartotheSCGone.Isuspectit’snotacoin-cidence that it’s Siraj being targetedpost theSCGstuff,”shesaid.OnDay4ofthethirdTestatthe SCG on Sunday, Siraj and fellow-pacerJasprit Bumrah had been allegedly raciallyabusedbyagroupofunrulyspectators.Siraj hadalsobeen targetedwith a chant

whenspectatorschangedthelyricstothesongQueSera,SerabymakingitQueShiraz,Shiraz.Thebowler,however,approachedhiscap-

tain Ajinkya Rahane and the umpires PaulReiffel andPaulWilson, pointingout thecul-

pritsinthestands.Thiscameaftercrowdsfromthe same stands – Brewongle and CliveChurchill - had allegedly abused theHyderabadionDay3oftheTestaswell.“WehaddecidedSaturday(Day3)evening

that if something like thishappensagain,wewill immediately identify them,” an IndianteammanagementofficialhadtoldTheIndianExpressatthetime.WhentheabusewasrepeatedonDayfour,

playwashaltedfor10minutesassecurityper-sonnelescortedsixmembersofthecrowdoutofthevenue.Siraj’sactionsearnedagreatdealof praise fromboth the IndianandAustraliancamps.OnFridaythepacerwasyetagaininthefiring lineof thecrowd.Avideopublishedonsocialmediaby theSMHreporter capturedaspectatoryelling:“Siraj,giveusawave,giveusawave,giveusawave.Siraj,youbloodygrub.”Sundar,whohasbeenaddedtothesideto

replacetheinjuredRavichandranAshwin,hadalsobeencalled ‘grub’ by the samesectionoffans.Atthemoment,therehasbeennoreportbyanIndianplayeragainstcrowdbehaviouratTheGabba.Securityofficialswereonhighalertinthestadiumthatsawaround13,000specta-torsenter towatchthematch.Katedescribedhowguards dismantled a beer snake (cupsstackedtogethertoformasnake)whenasetofmendressedaslifeguardsstartedtobuildone.The officials also removed a spectatorwhostoodonhis seat to start an “Aussie, Aussie,Aussie”chant.

SCORECARD

AUSFIRSTINNINGS 274/5(87ov)DWarnercSharmabMSiraj 1(4b)MHarris cWSundarbThakur 5(23b)MLabuschagne c†PantbNatarajan 108

(204b,9x4)SSmith cSharmabWSundar 36(77b,5x4)MWade cThakurbNatarajan 45(87b,6x4)CGreen notout 28(70b,3x4)TPainenotout 38(62b,5x4)■Extras (b4, lb4,nb5) 13■FoW:1-4(Warner,0.6ov),2-17(Harris,8.1ov),3-87(Smith,34.1ov),4-200(Wade,63.4ov),5-213(Labuschagne,65.5ov)■Bowling:MSiraj19-8-51-1,TNatarajan20-2-63-2,SThakur18-5-67-1,NSaini7.5-2-21-0,WSundar22-4-63-1,RSharma0.1-0-1-0

DAY2,LIVEONSONYSPORTSNETWORK,5:30AM

AUSTRALIA VS INDIATHEGABBA

Toss: Australia, chose to bat

Australia’s lockdownwasn’tasharshasIndia’sandnearlyall theirplayersbegantraininginJuneandlocalleaguesbeganlaterthatmonth.Thismeanttheywerepreparedfortheseasonintermsofmatch-fitness.Additionally,severalAustralianplay-erswhoareintheTestsquadwerenotapartof theIPL,whichreducedtheirworkload.Someof theirplayershavehadacomparatively lesserworkout inthemiddleaswell,as il-lustratedbyBumrah’sstatsvis-à-visCummins.MitchellStarcskippedthelasttwoseasonsof theIPLtofocusonICCtournaments.

WhyAustralianplayerswerebetterpreparedE●EX

PLAINED

India pacer Siraj called a‘grub’ at Gabba: report

NotamemorableseniordebutforArjunMumbai: Left-arm pacer ArjunTendulkarmade hisMumbai seniorteam debut on Friday in a SyedMushtaq Ali Trophymatch againstHaryana,whichthehosts lostbyeightwickets . In the Elite E League groupclash played at the suburban BKCground,Mumbaimade143after opt-ingtobat first,a targetwhichHaryanaoverhauledin17.4overs. Arjunhadanoffdaywiththeballashereturnedwithratherunimpressive figuresof 1/34 inthethreeoversthathebowled.Hedis-missed Haryana opener ChaityaBishnoi(4)cheaplyafterheedgedade-livery towicket-keeperAdityaTare toclaim his maiden wicket for theMumbai senior team. Incidentally,Tendulkar’slastRanjiTrophygamewasagainstHaryanabackin2013.BRIEF SCORES:Haryana 144 for 2(Rana75*,Chauhan43*)beatMumbai143 (Ankolekar 37, Jaiswal 35, JayantYadav 4-22, Chaprana 3-22) by eightwickets

SaurabhsmashesworldrecordNew Delhi: India ace SaurabhChaudhary smashed the finalsworldrecordwithastunning246.9towinthe10mairpistolT1men'strialsattheon-goingnationalshootingtrialsonFriday.Haryana'sManuBhakeralsoemergedvictorious in theT1women's 10mairpistol trials at the Dr Karni SinghShooting range.Bothworldnumber4Saurabhand 2Manutoppedtheirqual-ificationroundsbeforegoingontowinthe finals. Saurabh shot a sizzling590inthe60-shotqualificationround,be-foreproducingarecordscoreof246.9inthefinaltoannihilatehisopposition. NKorea'sKimSongGukholds the finalsworld recordwith a score of 246.5.Manu, on theother hand, shot 580 inqualifyingwhichwas enough to giveherthetopspot. AGENCIES

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