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JOURNALISM OF COURAGESINCE 1932

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

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2020, NEW DELHI, LATE CITY, 20 PAGES `6.00 (`8 PATNA & RAIPUR, `12 SRINAGAR) WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMJOURNALISM OF COURAGE

SINCE 1932

PM targets Opp:‘not with farmers,youth or soldiers’HARIKISHANSHARMA&LALMANIVERMANEWDELHI, DEHRADUN,SEPTEMBER29

TARGETINGTHEOpposition forprotestingagainstthenewfarmlaws, PrimeMinister NarendraModi on Tuesday said “thesepeople are neither with thefarmer, norwith the youth, norwith thesoldiers”.Saying that they were “op-

posingjustforthesakeofoppos-ing”,Modisaid“peoplewhoop-pose and protest are becomingincreasingly irrelevant for thecountryandsociety”.Speakingattheinauguration

of six projects related to the

Namami Gange mission inUttarakhand, via video confer-ence, Modi said: “They are op-posing the independenceof thefarmer.Thesepeoplearenowin-sultingfarmersbysettingonfirethe goods and equipment thatfarmers worship.” YouthCongress workers from Punjabset a tractor on fire near IndiaGateonMonday.

CONTINUEDONPAGE2

LACCRISIS:HOPESOFEARLYRESOLUTIONRECEDE

SHUBHAJITROYNEWDELHI, SEPTEMBER29

PUSHING ITS old claim line inLadakh and hardening its posi-tion on the situation there,Beijing Tuesday said it does notrecognise theUnionTerritoryofLadakh and is opposed to theconstruction of Indian infra-structure there.NewDelhi reacted sharply,

sayingithas“neveracceptedtheso-called unilaterally defined

1959LineofActualControl”,andthat it is “untenable”.This exchange between the

two sides comes a week aftertheirmilitarycommandersmetattheMoldoborderpointfacingChushul following theMoscowagreementbetweentheForeignMinisters to dial down tensionsalong theLAC.In Beijing, Chinese Foreign

Ministry spokespersonWangWenbin, responding to a ques-tion on Indian road-buildingalong the border, said China“doesnotrecognizetheso-calledUnion Territory of Ladakh” by

CONTINUEDONPAGE2

AASHISHARYAN&SUNNYVERMANEWDELHI, SEPTEMBER29

INAmovethatislikelytomountmorepressureonChinesetradeand investment in India, thegovernmentisplanningtoscru-tinise old and new private sec-tor joint ventures and invest-ment agreements to check forallegedviolationof taxlawsandother laws, multiple sources in

the know of the developmenttoldThe IndianExpress.Thepriority,thesourcessaid,

will be vetting documents andagreementsofcompaniesintheinformation technology and fi-nance sector. The scope of theprobe will, however, be ex-panded in time to cover otherstrategic and non-strategic sec-tors.“With the emphasis on

Atmanirbhar Bharat, there isCONTINUEDONPAGE2

Hardening stance, China rejectsLadakhUT, raises 1959 claim line KAUNAINSHERIFFM

NEWDELHI, SEPTEMBER29

AN ESTIMATED one in 15 indi-vidualsaged10yearsandabovewereexposedtothenovelcoro-navirus infection by August, in-dicating that a large part of thepopulation is still susceptible tothe virus, according to the sec-ondnationwidesero-survey.Releasing the findings on

Tuesday, ICMRDirectorGeneralBalram Bhargava said 6.6 percent of the 29,082people (aged10 years and above) surveyedfromAugust17toSeptember22showed evidence of past expo-suretoCovid-19.Theprevalencewas higher for adults (aged 18yearsandabove)at7.1percent.This is a significant increase

from the 0.73 per cent preva-lencefoundinthefirstsero-sur-

vey,conductedbetweenMay11and June 4, among adults in 70districts.Thesecondsurveywasconducted in thesamedistricts,but children (above 10 years)

CONTINUEDONPAGE2

WITHRESTRICTIONSbe-ingeased, thesero-sur-veyshowsstateswithdenselypopulatedurbanclusters remain themostvulnerable.Withwinterarriving,precautionarybehaviour remains themostessential tool toprotect the90percentsusceptiblepopulation.

UrbanclustersvulnerableE●EX

PLAINED

Just 6.6% exposedto Covid till Aug:New sero-survey

BUSINESS AS USUAL

BYUNNY

THE IDEASPAGE

OPPOSINGFORTHESAKEOFOPPOSINGBYBHUPENDERYADAVPAGE13

ED freezesits accounts,Amnestyshuts itsIndia offices

SHUBHAJITROY&JOHNSONTANEWDELHI,BENGALURU,SEPTEMBER29

NGOAMNESTYInternationalonTuesday announced that it wasshutting its offices in India andletting go of its staff, nearly 150members, in Bengaluru andDelhifollowingthefreezingof itsbank accounts by theEnforcementDirectorate.“The complete freezing of

Amnesty International India’sbank accounts by theGovernment of India which itcame toknowon10September2020, brings all thework beingdone by the organization to agrinding halt,” AmnestyInternational India said in astatement. The officeswill shutbyWednesday.Amnesty called the freezing

ofaccounts“akintofreezingdis-sent” and said the action was“the latest in the incessantwitch-huntof human rights or-ganizations”, leaving them un-able to carry onwith campaignand research work in India.Executive Director of AmnestyInternational India AvinashKumarsaidoveremail thatthey

CONTINUEDONPAGE2

Babri ordertoday, in thedock areAdvani,Joshi, BhartiMANISHSAHULUCKNOW,SEPTEMBER29

ALMOST28yearsafterthedem-olition of the Babri Masjid, aSpecial CBI Court willWednesdaypronounceitsjudg-ment in the conspiracy case.While the court has directed allthe 32 accused, including BJPleaders L K Advani, Uma BhartiandMurli Manohar Joshi, to bepresent in court, there was noclarityonTuesdayonhowmanywill come.While Advani, Joshi and co-

accused Nritya Gopal Das areabove 80 years of age andmaycitehealthconditions,Bhartiandanotheraccused,SatishPardhan,are in hospital. Bharti is beingtreated for the coronavirus andPradhan for a gangrene condi-tion.FormerUttarPradeshchiefminister Kalyan Singh, who isamong the accused, was dis-charged from hospital onMondayafterundergoingtreat-mentforCovid-19.Theyoungestaccused, Pawan Kumar Pandey,is inhis50s, a lawyer said.“We have no idea whowill

notattendcourtproceedingsto-morrow.Nodefence lawyerhasfiledexemptionapplicationsfora client,” defence lawyer K KMishrasaid.

CONTINUEDONPAGE2

ZEESHANSHAIKHMUMBAI, SEPTEMBER29

AFIRST-OF-ITS-KIND ‘TimeUseSurvey’ conducted by theMinistry of Statistics andProgramme Implementationhas shown that only 38.2 percent of the population partici-patesin“employmentandother

relatedactivities”,spending429minutes(7hoursand9minutes)onanaverageeachday.Thereis,however,awidegen-

der disparity,with only 18.4 percentwomenparticipatinginem-ployment activities comparedwith 57.3 per cent men; also,whilemen spendon an average459minutes(7hoursand39min-utes), women spend only 333minutes(5hoursand33minutes).TheNSS report, ‘TimeUse in

India2019’,whosefindingswerereleasedTuesday,hasbeencon-

ducted for the first time in thecountry.Theprimaryobjectiveofthe surveywas tomeasure par-ticipationofmenandwomeninpaidandunpaidactivitiesaswellasmeasurethetimedispositionsondifferentactivities.The survey was conducted

between January 2019 andDecember2019.Asmanyas1.39lakh households across thecountry comprising 4.47 lakhpersonsover theageof sixwereenumerated.Itshowswomenparticipation

in unpaid domestic services forhouseholdmembers – cooking,cleaning, householdmanage-ment– isashighas81.2percenteachdaycomparedwith26.1percentformen.Womenspend299minutes (almost 5hours), thriceasmuchasmen(97minutesor1hour37minutes).There is also a stark differ-

ence in the time spent bymenandwomenincare-givingactiv-ities to a dependent child or anadult.While only 14 per cent of

CONTINUEDONPAGE2

PAGE1ANCHOR

299 vs 97 min per day: NSS confirmshousehold, unpaid work falls on women

PMattheinaugurationof theNamamiGangeprojects.ANI

JIGNASASINHAHATHRAS,SEPTEMBER29

AROUND 7 am, the 28-year-old’sphonerang. Itwasacallthefamily had been dreading fordays. “It wasmy father, he saidshewasdead... Just likethat,mysister is gone. We were up allnight,prayingforherrecovery,”he said, crying.OnTuesdaymorning, the19-

year-oldDalitwomanwhohadbeenassaultedandallegedlygan-grapedby fourupper-castemeninHathrasdistrict,UttarPradesh,

onSeptember14, died atDelhi’sSafdarjungHospital. Fighting forher life for thepast15days,withher tongue cut by the assaultersandher spinal cordandneck se-verely injured, leavingherparal-ysed in all four limbs, she hadbeenmovedfromanAligarhhos-pital toDelhithedaybefore.AseniordoctoratSafdarjung

Hospital said she had beenbrought in onMonday at 3.39pm.At5.30amTuesday,shesuf-fered a cardiac arrest. “Shewasdeclareddeadat6.15am.”The accused—Sandeep, 20,

hisuncleRavi,35,andtheirfriends

Ramu,26,andLuvKush,23—havebeenbookedonchargesofmur-der,gangrapeandundertheSC/STAct. ADG, Law and Order (UPPolice),PrashantKumarsaidthatin2015,acaseofassaulthadbeenfiledbythevictim’sfamilyagainstRavi, but due to “witness hostil-ity”,hehadgotbail.Aninitialmedicalreportofthe

CONTINUEDONPAGE2

‘My daughter said she wanted to come home... Shewas conscious again, I thought she would survive’

Chinese investment pacts,pvt JVs invite Govt scrutiny

Untenable, says India,Beijingnot interested inclarifyingLAC;Chinaopposesborder infra-constructionby India

WorkonahighwayinLadakh.Reuters

UPWORST IN CRIMESAGAINSTWOMEN,SCs: NCRBPAGE 8

HATHRASDALITVICTIMDIES;PROTESTS INDELHI, UP

Police takeawaythefatherandbrotherof the19-year-oldHathrasvictimfromSafdarjungHospital inDelhi, afterpersuadingthemtoendadharnaonTuesday. TashiTobgyal

(A Govt. of India Undertaking, Ministry of Defence)43/46, Garden Reach Road, Kolkata-700024

Visit us at: www.grse.inCIN No.: L 35111 WB 1934 GOI 007891

NK SINGHCHAIRMAN, 15THFINANCECOMMISSION

THE EXPRESSINTERVIEW

P 17

New Delhi

THESECONDPAGE2 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY,SEPTEMBER30,2020

Hathras casewoman confirmed strangula-tion and assault. Kumar said amedical report by doctors atAligarh hospital had found evi-denceregardingrape“inconclu-sive”, andhadsent samples toaforensic laboratory for “furtherclarity”.Protesters gathered at the

SafdarjungHospitalasthenewsof thedeathspread.BhimArmychiefChandrashekharAzadmetthe woman’s father, while theCongress held protests in Delhiand Lucknow. The family onlyleftwiththebodyintheevening,afterprotestingwithofficials tomeettheirdemands.Thepolicecordoned off roads leading tothe family’svillage.Waiting for the body of the

teenager, the youngest of herfive children, at their Hathrashome, the woman’s mothercried that she hadn’t been ableto be with her in her last mo-ments.“Imetherlastafewdaysago... She said she wanted tocome back home, missed hernephewsandnieces... Sinceshehad regained consciousness, Ithought shewouldsurvive.”The teenager’s parents and

two brothers work as farmlabourers,whileher twosistersaremarriedandliveinothervil-lages.“Iwantthemtobepubliclyhanged...What have they doneto my daughter, my family?”cried themother.Thefamilyhadanearlytwo-

decade-old dispute withSandeep’s relatives.Of the600-oddfamiliesinthevillage,nearlyhalfareThakur.Brahminsmakeup another 100, with 15-oddfamiliesDalit, asperofficials.The 19-year-old was born

the same year as Sandeep’sgrandfatherwas booked underthe SC/ST Act and served threemonths in prison for allegedlythrashing the victim’s grandfa-ther.Themotherclaimsthattheteenagergrewupawareof their“status”, never mingling withtheuppercastes.Of the five siblings, only the

two brothers attended school.Themother said the three girlswenttoschool foronlyayearortwo. “The school is far away... Itwasunsafe,” shesaid.Theteenagerkepttoherself,

andwastheclosesttohersister-in-law. “Everyone went to thefieldstowork,andthetwoofusstayed home. She was fond ofmakingmehndi,drawingrango-lis,” said the sister-in-law, amotherof three.Villagersrecallashyteenager

whowasmostly seen going tocollect fodder for their animalswith hermother — like on thedayshewasassaultedLocals said with Sandeep’s

family owning a fair amount ofland,hehungaroundnotdoingmuch. The family’s homewaslocked on Tuesday. “Sandeepcreatestroublebutnoonereallysays anything... He drinks, ha-rasses women. Everyone isscared of the family,” said a vil-lager,onconditionofanonymity.In her statement to the po-

lice, the woman had saidSandeephadbeenharassingherforsix-sevenmonths.Hersister-in-law said, “We had noticed achange.Sheseemedscared,hes-itanttogooutof thehouse,eventowhereourcowsarekept...Butshedidn’t saywhy.”Abrothersaidinrecentdays,

shehadstoppedgoingtothelo-cal market as well, though sheloved buying bangles and hairaccessories.Headded that theywereawaretheycouldn’taspireforthingstheuppercastescould.“Maybeshewasscaredof thesemen.Shecouldn’t leadanormallife like the other girls, couldn’tgo tomarketsandrestaurants.”On September 14morning,

the teenager and her motherhadgonetoafieldnearbytocutgrass for their cows, when the19-year-oldwentmissing. Thefour accused allegedly draggedher intothefields,unnoticedby

themother,whoishardofhear-ing.Shefoundherlyingcoveredinblood just100metresaway.HathrasDMPraveenKumar,

said,“OnSeptember14,wereg-isteredacaseofattempttomur-der and under the SC/ST Act.Later,thewomantoldthepoliceabouttherape.Wewill takethecase toa fast-trackcourt.”

WITHENS,DELHI

Amnestywould approach the KarnatakaHighCourt.TheEuropeanUnionbecame

the first international body toraise the issue through diplo-matic channels. In an email re-sponding to The Indian Express,theEUspokespersonforForeignAffairs and Security policy inBrussels, NabilaMassrali, said,“Notprejudgingtheoutcomeofanyinvestigationorjudicialpro-ceedings, the European Unionhighly values the work ofAmnesty International andhopesthatthematterwillbere-solvedallowingAmnestytocon-tinue itsactivities in India.”Shesaidtheyhad“raisedthe

issuewithour Indian interlocu-torsinNewDelhiandinBrusselsexpressing our concerns” andhoped the issueswill be solved.“TheEUiscommittedtothepro-tection and empowerment ofcivicactors.”The Union HomeMinistry

(MHA)saidAmnesty’sclaimsofa “witch hunt” were “far fromthe truth”. The Ministry saidAmnesty had been given per-mission under the ForeignContribution (Regulation) Act(FCRA) only once, in 2000, andsincehadbeendeniedthesame,including by the UPA govern-ment. ItaccusedAmnestyUKofcircumventing the regulationsby remitting large amounts ofmoneytofourentitiesregisteredin India, byclassifying it asFDI.“Amnestyis freetocontinue

humanitarianwork in India, asisbeingdonebymanyotheror-ganisations. However, India, bysettledlaw,doesnotallowinter-ferenceindomesticpoliticalde-bates by entities funded by for-eigndonations,” theMHAsaid.In a statement, Amnesty’s

Kumarsaid,“Theharassmentbygovernmentagencies includingthe Enforcement Directorate isa result of ourunequivocal callsfortransparency...morerecentlyfor accountability of the Delhipolice and the Government ofIndiaregardingthegravehumanrights violations in theDelhi ri-otsandJammu&Kashmir.Foramovement that hasdonenoth-ingbutraiseitsvoicesagainstin-justice, this latest attack is akinto freezingdissent.”Amnesty said they came to

know on September 10 that alltheir accounts were frozen bythe ED as part of a probe into a2018case. “Weassessedall sce-narioswherewe could survivebut there was none,’’ anAmnestystaffmembersaid.SomeofAmnesty’s150staff

members will continue as vol-unteers in order to ensure con-tinuityof itsprogrammes.Thegovernmentcaseagainst

Amnesty India broadly rests ontwoinvestigations,oneallegingdiscrepanciesundertheForeignExchangeManagementAct,andanothercasethatwasregisteredbytheCBIallegingviolationsun-der theFCRA.In October 2018, Amnesty

properties in Bengaluru hadbeen searched by the ED aftertheAmnestyInternationalIndiaFoundationTrustwasaccusedofcreating a commercial armcalled Amnesty InternationalIndiaPvtLtd(AIIPL)allegedlytoreceiveforeignfundinginviola-tionof theFCRArules.According to the ED case,

AmnestyInternationalIndiahad“receivedforeignfundsthroughacommercialroutetotheextentofRs36crore’’.Outof this,Rs10crorehadbeenreceivedaslong-termloanandplacedinfixedde-posits while an Indian entity,

Indians for AmnestyInternational Trust, had estab-lishedanoverdraftfacilityforRs14.25 crorewith the10 crore ascollateral, theEDhadalleged.“The Rs 26 crore was re-

ceived in twoseparatebankac-counts of AIIPL as consultancyservices. The inward remit-tances received by AIIPL fromoverseas (were) in violation ofFDIguidelines,’’ theEDhadsaid.Following the EDprobe, the

Income Tax department hadsent “investigative letters tomore than 30 small regulardonors’’, Amnestysaid.Amnestyfirstcomplainedof

being harassed by the ED afterthe “10-hour-long” October2018raid.“Mostof theinforma-tion and documents that weredemanded during the searchwere already available in thepublic domain or filedwith the

relevant government authori-ties,” it said.Subsequently, in 2019, the

CBIhadfiledacaseagainstAIIPL,the Indians for AmnestyInternational Trust, AmnestyInternational India FoundationTrust, Amnesty InternationalSouth Asia Foundation. The EDhadalsoissuedashowcauseno-tice to Amnesty alleging viola-tionsoftheforeignexchangelawto the tuneof Rs51crore.Denying the allegations,

Kumarsaid, “All financial trans-actions between AIIPL andAmnesty International LimitedUKoranyotherentityaremadein full compliance with theCompaniesActandotherappli-cable laws... AIIPL has receivedpayments for contractual serv-ices rendered to its clients. Onthe other hand, the operationsof Indians for Amnesty

International Trust are fundedsolely bymoney raisedwithinIndia... (frommainly)individualsupporters (around 11,000 innumber).”“Amnestyhasnotbeencon-

victed. It has not even been puton trial in court,’’ formerAmnesty executive directorAakarPatelsaidonsocialmedia.The BJP attacked Amnesty

for accusing government of go-ingafterit,notingthattheNGO’scredentials had come under acloudunder theUPAaswell.Operating in 80 countries,

Amnesty has had run-ins withthegovernmentsof TurkeyandNigeria as well, but the onlyother country where its officewasshutwas inRussia in2016.WhileinJune2019,Amnesty

had been denied permission tohold a press conference inSrinagartoreleaseareportover

use of the Public Safety Act inJammu and Kashmir, later thatyear it had testified at the USCongressional hearing on thehumanrightssituationinSouthAsia,withaspecial focuson theabrogation of Article 370. InNovember 2019, Amnesty hadreleased a report on the role offoreigners’tribunalsinAssam.Ithas also taken up the BhimaKoregaon case, where activistshave been held. Recently,Amnesty released reports onKashmir one year after specialstatuswas revoked, and on theFebruaryDelhi riots.

—INPUTSBYESHAROY,DIPANKARGHOSE

Babri orderThepolicehavebeenputon

alert topreventany lawandor-derproblems.Nritya Gopal Das and an-

other accused, VHP vice-presi-dentChampatRai, are theheadand chief secretary of the ShriJanmabhoomi Teerth KshetraTrust set up to build the Ramtemple at the disputed site inAyodhya.The other accused include

Unnao MP Sakshi Maharaj,FaizabadMPLalluSingh,GondaMP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh,Vinay Katiyar, and SadhviRitambhara.The CBI had filed a

chargesheet against 49 peoplein the case, of whom 17 diedduring trial.In 2001, a trial court had

droppedproceedingsagainst21of the accused. The verdictwasupheld by the High Court.However, on April 19, 2017, theSupreme Court had orderedrestoration of the conspiracychargesandordereddailyhear-ing in the case, with trial to beconcluded in twoyears.The charges of conspiracy

are in addition to the existingcharges against the accused ofpromotingenmitybetweendif-ferentgroupsongroundsof re-ligion, for which they are alsofacing trial.The CBI argued that the ac-

cused had conspired and insti-gatedkarsevakstodemolishthemosque. The accused havepleaded innocence saying theywere implicated by the thenCongress government at theCentre aspolitical vendetta.Lastyear,theSupremeCourt

hadallottedthedisputedsite inAyodhya for construction of aRam temple, while calling thedemolition of themosque a vi-olationof thelaw.Analternativefive-acresitewasmarkedinthecity forbuildingamosque.Last month, the Special CBI

Courthadrecordedstatementsof Pradhan, Advani and Joshiunder Section 313 of the CrPC.Underthesection,ajudgeques-tionstheaccusedonthebasisofevidence andgivesanopportu-nity toexplain theallegations.

Sero-surveywere included.Significantly,thesecondsur-

veyshowsthatchildrenarealsovulnerable to the infection. “Allagegroupsabove10yearswerefound to have been exposed tothe infection. Earlier, we wereunder the impression that itdoesnotaffectbelow18years,”saidBhargava.“Preventionfatiguehastobe

avoidedandwehave to stick tothe5Tstrategy:test, track,trace,treat and use of technology.Non-pharmacological interven-tions like physical distancinganduseof facemasks continueto remain essential. In light oftheupcomingfestivities,winterseason and mass gathering,containmentstrategiesmustbeimplemented,”Bhargava said.The survey,whichwas con-

ducted in the backdrop of re-strictions being eased and re-sumption of economic activity,reveals that the risk gradient ishighest in urban slums. Theprevalence in urban slumsstood at an estimated 15.6 percent, as compared to 8.6 percent in non-slum urban areas,and4.4per cent in rural areas.With testing being ramped

up in the last twomonths, thesurvey found 26-32 infectionsper reported casebyAugust, ascompared to 81-131 in the firstround inMay.“But remember, we can

never, in an epidemiologicalsense, identify every asympto-matic individual. That is whysero-surveyisanadditionaltoolforcontracttracing,”saidDrVKPaul,Member,NITIAayog.Dr Paul said the data has to

be analysed from twoperspec-tives. “First, the (containment)measures adopted have keptthe prevalence at lower levels,despite the un-lockdown; sec-ond,itrevealsthatmorethan90per cent of the population issusceptibletothevirus,”hesaid.

“In winter, respiratoryvirusesspreadfaster. Inthenextfivemonths,maintainingsocialdistance and wearing a maskbecomes even more impor-tant,” he said.Bhargava said there are two

waysof lookingatthedata.“Wecansaythatourseroprevalenceis comparable to the sero-sur-veys across the world;Switzerland(8percent), theUK(7 per cent), Belgium (5 percent), or theUS (9.3per cent).”

PM targets OppReiterating that the MSP

would not be scrapped, Modisaid: “Thecountryhas freed itsfarmers from restrictions.Now, the farmer can sell hisproduce toanyone,anywhere.”“Aaj desh dekh raha hai ki

kaisekuchh log sirf virodhke liyevirodhkar rahehain (Thecoun-try iswatchinghowsomepeo-ple are opposing just for thesake of opposing),” he said.“These people are spread-

ing confusion among farmersabout MSP. The MSP will re-mainandthe freedomof farm-ers to sell their produce any-where will also remain. Somepeople are unable to acceptthis freedom. One of theirmeans of generating blackmoney has ended.”He said theOppositionhad

also criticised thegovernmenton other issues including theJan Dhan scheme, GST, onerank-one pension, surgicalstrikes, Rafale acquisition,Statue of Unity and Ram tem-ple. “Yeh log na kisan ke saathhain, nanaujawanke saath, aurna hee jawan ke saath (thesepeople are neither with thefarmer,norwith theyouth,norwith the soldiers),” he said.“It has become their habit

to oppose everything that ishappening for thecountry,”hesaid. “With time, these peopleare becoming irrelevant... Aparty, whose four generationsruled thecountry,wants to ful-fill its selfish interests by rid-ingontheshouldersof others.”Modi also inaugurated the

Ganga Avalokan Museum atHaridwar, released a book onthe Ganga, and the new logofor the Jal Jeevan Mission. Heunveiled guidelines for villagepanchayats and water com-mittees under the Jal JeevanMission, and announced a100-day campaign to belaunched on October 2 to en-sure drinking water connec-tion to every school and an-ganwadi.

Household workmen participate in unpaid caregiving services for householdmembers spending on average76minutesaday(1hourand16minutes), the share of womenis double at 27.6 per cent.Women also spendmore thantwohours(2hours14minutes)in suchcare-giving.The survey also shows that

Indiansdonot like tobeunpaidvolunteersortraineesortotakepart incommunityororganisa-tion-basedunpaidvolunteering.Only2.4percentof therespon-dents said they volunteer forsuch work. The time spent onvolunteeringisaround101min-utes aday.However, participation in

socialisingandcommunicationthrough chatting, conversing,community participation bytakingpartingatheringsandre-ligious participation, is veryhighwith almost 91.3 per centof the respondents taking partin these activities each day,spendingonanaveragearound143minutes eachday.Participation in culture,

leisure,mass-mediaandsportspractices through reading,watching television isalsohighwith86.9percentof thepartic-ipantsspendinganaverage165minutes everyday.

FULLREPORTSONwww.indianexpress.com

FROMPAGEONE

China rejects Ladakh UT

Chinese investment pacts, pvt JVs invite Govt scrutiny

India, and “opposes infrastruc-ture construction in disputedborderareasformilitarycontrolpurposes”.“According to the recent

consensus reached betweenChina and India, neither sideshould takeanyactions inbor-derareasthatwouldcomplicatethe situation, soasnot toaffecttheeffortsof both sides toeasethe situation,”Wang said, ac-cording to China state-runtabloidGlobalTimes.The spokesperson’s state-

ment that Beijing “does notrecognisetheUnionTerritoryofLadakh” is an escalation in itsrhetoric,ascomparedtoitscom-mentlastyearfollowingtheab-rogationof Article 370and thedecisiontobifurcatethestateofJammu andKashmir into theUnion Territories of J&K andLadakh.Atthattime,Chinahadobjected to the formation ofLadakhasUnionTerritory, say-ingthis“undermineditsterrito-rial sovereignty”. Beijing hadalso expressed “serious con-cern” about the current situa-tion in the region andhad said“relevantsidesneedtoexerciserestraintandactprudently”.ButBeijing’scommentsnow

are contrary to the spirit of theconversationbetweenExternalAffairsMinisterSJaishankarandChineseForeignMinisterWangYionSeptember10.MeetinginMoscow,thetwosidesadoptedafive-pointapproachtoresolvethe crisis andagreed that theirtroops “should continue theirdialogue, quickly disengage,maintain proper distance andeasetensions”.China’s hardening of posi-

tionwasalsoreflectedinastate-menttoTheHindustanTimesinBeijing, inwhich it said that itabides by the LACasproposedbyPremierZhouEnlai toPrimeMinister JawaharlalNehru in aletterdatedNovember7,1959.In the statement in

Mandarin, theChinese ForeignMinistry said, “Firstly, China-India border LAC is very clear,that is the LAConNovember7,1959.Chinaannounceditinthe1950s, and the internationalcommunityincludingIndiaarealsoclearaboutit.”InNewDelhi,theMinistryof

External Affairs responded tothe Chinese ForeignMinistrystatement onChina’s positionontheLAC.“India has never accepted

the so-called unilaterally de-fined1959LineofActualControl(LAC). This position has beenconsistent andwell known, in-cluding to the Chinese side,”MEA spokesperson AnuragSrivastavasaid.Furthermore,hesaid,under

their various bilateral agree-ments including the 1993AgreementonMaintenanceofPeaceandTranquilityalongtheLAC, 1996 Agreement onConfidenceBuildingMeasures(CBMs) in the military field,2005 Protocol onImplementationofCBMs,2005Agreement on PoliticalParameters and GuidingPrinciples for settlementof theIndia-ChinaBoundaryQuestion,“both India and China havecommitted to clarification andconfirmationoftheLACtoreachacommonunderstandingofthealignmentof theLAC”.

“In fact, the two sides hadengagedinanexercisetoclarifyandconfirmtheLACupto2003,but this process couldnotpro-ceedfurtherastheChinesesidedid not show awillingness topursue it,” Srivastava said, put-tingtheonusonBeijing.“Therefore, the insistence

now of the Chinese side thatthereisonlyoneLACiscontraryto the solemn commitmentsmadebyChina in these agree-ments,”hesaid.“As we have previously

made clear, the Indian sidehasalwaysrespectedandabidedbytheLAC.AstheDefenceMinisterstated inParliamentrecently, itistheChinesesidewhich,byitsattempts to transgress the LACinvariousparts of theWesternSector, has tried tounilaterallyalterthestatusquo.”In the last fewmonths, the

Chineseside,hesaid,hasrepeat-edly affirmed that the currentsituation in the border areasshould be resolved in accor-dance with the agreementssignedbetween the twocoun-tries.Referring to the September

10meetinginMoscowbetweentheForeignMinisters,SrivastavasaidtheChinesesidereiteratedits commitment to abidebyalltheexistingagreements.“We therefore expect that

theChinese sidewill sincerelyandfaithfullyabidebyallagree-ments and understandings intheir entirety and refrain fromadvancinganuntenableunilat-eral interpretationof the LAC,”hesaid.The Indian response, sharp

intoneandtenor,afterthesixth

round of Corps Commander-level talks,whichwas also at-tendedbyaseniorIndiandiplo-mat, signals that the two sideshavehardened their positionsdiplomaticallyaswell.At the talks, the two sides

hadagreednottoengagein“es-calatory behaviour” along theLAC.Whiletherewasnoagree-ment on “disengagement” atthefrictionpoints,thetwosidescame to an understanding onnot escalating the situationgiven that troops of the twoarmiescontinuetobewithinfir-ingrangeofeachother.“They agreed to earnestly

implement the importantcon-sensusreachedbytheleadersofthe two countries, strengthencommunicationontheground,avoidmisunderstandings andmisjudgments, stop sendingmoretroopstothefrontline,re-frainfromunilaterallychangingthesituationontheground,andavoid taking any actions thatmay complicate the situation,”ajointpressreleasestatedafterthemeeting.Sourcessaidthatif“non-es-

calatorybehaviour”holds for areasonableperiodoftime,itwillgiveconfidencetotakethenextstep.Andtotaketheprocessfor-ward, sources said, anotherroundof talks could then takeplace between the command-ersandthediplomats.But Beijing’s latest remarks

reflect a hardening of stance.Hopes of anearly resolutionoftheLadakhcrisisarefastreced-ing,and itappears that thetwoarmieswill have to keep theirtroops deployed in the regionthroughthewintermonths.

greaterscrutinyofinvestmentsfromsomeofourneighbouringcountries. Aswe have alreadyenunciated, any opportunistictakeoverinthefinancialsectorcannot be allowed and the in-vestors should not hesitate insubjecting themselves toscrutiny under the rules andregulations,” a senior govern-mentofficial said.Intheinformationtechnol-

ogyspace, thecall tobringun-der scrutiny companies withChinese investments arose af-ter intelligence reports sug-gestedthatsomeofthesefirmsmay be violating tax laws aswell as local data storagenorms,anotherofficial said.“There is no harm in going

over these agreementswith afinecombonceagainjusttoen-sure therehavebeennoviola-tions. If any discrepancies arefound,wewilltakeacallonthefuturecourseofaction,”theof-ficial said.The government has been

cautious on Chinese invest-

ments in Indian companies aswell as their participation intenders for public procure-ment.In April, the government

amendedtheforeigndirectin-vestment rules mandatingprior approval for investmentby entities in countries thatshare landborderswith India.“…an entity of a country,

which shares a land borderwithIndiaorwherethebenefi-cial owner of an investmentinto India is situated in or is acitizenofanysuchcountry,caninvest only under theGovernment route,” theDepartment for Promotion ofIndustry and Internal Trade(DPIIT)hadthensaid.Themove came days after

China’s central bank, People’sBankofChina, raiseditsshare-holdinginHDFCtooveronepercent.The government said that

priorapprovalwascompulsoryforforeigninvestmentsfromallcountriessharingborderswith

Indiatoprevent“opportunistictakeovers” of domestic firmsfollowingthepandemic.Later in July, the govern-

ment amended the GeneralFinancial Rules, 2017 aswell,and imposed restrictions onpublic procurement frombid-dersofcountrieswhichsharealandborderwith India.Citingnationalsecurityand

defence, the amended rulessaid that bidders from coun-trieswhichsharealandborderwith India will be eligible toparticipate in Indian bids onlyif they are registeredwith theregistrationcommitteeconsti-tutedbytheDPIIT.The companies from these

countriesarenowalsorequiredtotakemandatorypoliticalandsecurity clearance from theMinistryofExternalAffairsandMinistryofHomeAffairs.The latest move to scruti-

nise old and new agreementpapers is the economic falloutof a tense border standoff be-tween India and China in

Ladakh.On June 17, two days after

20 Indian Army personnelwere killed in clashes withChinese troops in GalwanValley, the Department ofTelecommunications barredstate-runBSNLandMTNLfromusing Chinese equipment forthe4Gnetworkprojects.The tender was formally

cancelled later. A revised ten-der which specifically barsChinese companies frompar-ticipatinginthetenderhasnotbeen issued yet. Other thanthat, Chinese companies havealso been barred frompartici-patinginanyhighwaytenders,andtheir investment inmicro,smallandmediumenterpriseshavebeenbanned.In June, the government,

citing the “emergentnatureofthreats”, banned 59 Chinesemobile applications. InSeptember, another 118 appsandgames,whichincludedthepopular game PUBG, werebannedin India.

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3THEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY,SEPTEMBER30,2020

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EXPRESSNEWSSERVICENOIDA, SEPTEMBER29

AWOMAN, arrested for al-legedly luring a DefenceResearch and DevelopmentOrganisation(DRDO)scientistinto what police are calling a'honeytrap'case,hastargetedrich and influential individu-als in the past too, officers inNoida said Tuesday. Thewoman, SunitaGurjar (45), isthe allegedmastermind of agang involving fourothers, allmen. The arrests weremadeonMondayafter a scientist inNoida was lured and kid-napped, and Rs 10 lakh wasdemandedasransomfromhisfamily to releasehim.“Based on their question-

ing, the gang has been activefor the past four-fivemonths.The woman would identifyand target individuals via awebsite.Shewouldtalktothetarget andarrange ameeting.Once the person turned up,the accused would kidnaphimandask for ransom,” saidRanvijaySingh,ADCP,GautamBudhNagar.According to police, more

than five people appear tohave been targeted so far, butdidnotfileacomplaintowingto "embarrassment".Sunitahails fromAgahpur

in Noida, where shewas alsoknownasBabli. Inphotosup-loadedonline,shecanbeseenstandingnexttoBJPleaders. Inoneposter, she is seen thank-ing the party for appointingher as the 'Mandal Adhyaksh'of the BJP's district women'swing.“Sunita never held any

postandwaspossiblyapartofthe women's wing. She hasnot been active for the lasttwo-three years. We have alarge registration base andanyonecanjointheparty.Thepartywas never aware of anyof her other activities. Shetalked about social workmostly,” said Dimple Anand,general secretary and formerin-chargeof theNoidaMahilaMorcha. Dimple features insome photographs withSunita.Police said Sunita is also a

distant relative of ManveerGurjar,winnerof the2018edi-tionofBiggBoss. This connec-tion had helped her get pho-

tographs with someBollywood celebrities, policesaid.Sunita, along with co-ac-

cused Deepak and Rakesh,made a fakewebsite offeringmassageservicesinNoida.Shewouldcontactthepersonwhoapproached a number givenon thewebsite. In initial con-versations, she would evalu-ate if the person is wealthy,police said, adding she hadrentedaproperty inSector41as an Oyo Hotel where themen would be brought. Oyodid not respond to a querysentbyThe IndianExpress.TheDRDOscientist lefthis

residence on Saturdayevening after telling his wifehe needed to purchase someitems. According to police,whenhewenttomeetSunita,he was assaulted and heldhostageinavehiclebeforebe-ing taken to thehotel room.The first ransom call was

made tohiswife onSaturday.Over the next few hours, thefamily tried to arrange themoney. When the familycouldnotarrangetheransom,they informed police and acase of kidnapping was filedinSector49police station.Based on surveillance, the

accused'svehiclewasspottedclose to the hotel. Police thenintercepted the vehicle, aHonda City, and Deepak wasarrested, while two othersmanaged toescape. Thehotelroomwas raided and the sci-entist was rescued, whileSunita and Rakesh were ar-rested.

ABHINAVRAJPUTNEWDELHI,SEPTEMBER29

DOCTORSATNorthMCD'sHinduRaoHospital stagedapen-downstrike for two-three hours onTuesday morning against thesalary delay, an issue that alsorocked the civic body's Housemeetinglater intheday.They have also launched an

onlinecampaign,postingpictureswiththetext—'DoctorsonCovidduty,UnpaidDay106,HinduRaoHospitalDelhi'—–ontheirsocialmedia sinceMonday, with thechange in days being updatedregularly.DrSagarDeep,general-secretary of the hospital'sResident Doctors' Association,saiddoctorswillbeholdingtwo-hour protests every day till theirsalaries are paid. "Those riskingtheir lives arenotbeingpaidde-spite regular protests.WewerelastpaidinJune,"hesaid.

Meanwhile, North DelhiMayor Jai Prakash said he “sus-pended”around20ofthe30AAPcouncillorsforthreehousemeet-ings for allegedly “misbehavingand creating ruckus” during itsproceedingsonTuesday.

“Theagendawasfixedfordis-cussingsalariesofemployees,buttheywere creating commotionanddemandingdetailsofcorrup-tion allegations concerning ahealth officer, and details ofmoneyduetotheNorthMCDbydifferentagencies.Theycreatedaruckuswiththesole intentionofnot allowing any discussion,”Prakashsaid.NorthMCD’soppo-sitionleaderVikasGoelsaid AAPleaders were not given time tospeakandraisetheissueof “cor-ruptionbyamedicalhealthoffi-cer”. “We also asked them tospecify the agencies that owemoney to theMCD,which theydidnotanswer.Theyareonly in-terestedinblamingtheDelhigov-ernmentforeverything,"hesaid.Doctors and nurses in other

NorthMCD-run hospitals havealsobeenholdingprotests.

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI,SEPTEMBER29

ADELHIcourtTuesdaydismissedthe bail plea of journalist RajeevSharma,whohasbeenaccusedofespionage under the OfficialSecretsActinacaseregisteredbyDelhi Police's Special Cell. Thecourtalsodismissedhispleatoal-lowhimtomakepublic thecon-tentsof theFIR.“An independent press is

stated to be the fourth pillar ofdemocracy.Ajournalist isanim-portant brick in the said pillar ofdemocracy. The foundation ofdemocracycannotbeshakenifallpillars of the democracy includ-ing the presswork towards sta-bility and growth. However, if ajournalist...decidestoactwiththeintention todestabiliseandneg-atively impact the sustainabilityand survival of democracy, thatwouldbeadarkestdayintheFreePressmovement,”saidthecourt,whiledecliningthebailplea.In his order, Chief

MetropolitanMagistrate PawanSinghRajawat saidSharmamayattempttohampertheinvestiga-tionifheisreleasedonbailatthisstage.“Ihaveperusedthecasefilewhich includesnot only thedis-closurestatementoftheaccusedpersons but also othermaterialwhichwere recovered at his in-stancecoupledwiththeprelimi-nary electronic evidence col-lected by the investigatingagency, points towards involve-ment of accused in commissionofoffenceunderSections3/4and5oftheOfficialSecretsAct,1923,”thecourtsaidintheorder.

Sharma, representedby sen-ior advocate Adish Aggarwala,had arguedwhile seeking bailthatheisaseniorjournalist,agedabout 61 years, and is sufferingfromvarious ailments like acutesinusproblemsandisathighriskof contracting coronavirus.However, the court said the ail-ments are not such theywouldendangertohislifeifdeniedbail.Thecourt alsonoted that jail ad-ministration hasmade arrange-ments for keepingnewentrantsin isolationwardsorcells topre-vent spread of Covid-19. As perthe case details, Sharma is ac-cusedofhavinglinkswithforeignintelligence officers and gettingfundsfrom“foreignhandlers”forallegedlyconveyingsensitive in-formationpertaining tonationalsecurityandforeignrelations.HewasarrestedonSeptember14.AChineseandaNepalesenationalwerearrestedlater.Thecourtalsosaidthe“likeli-

hood of any attempt of tamper-ing evidence or influencingwit-nesses cannot be ruled out” ifSharma is released on bail,adding,“...theinvolvementoffor-eignagenciesatwhosebehestac-cused Sharmawas passing outthesensitiveinformationisyettobe investigated. If released, hemay indulge in thwarting thecourseof investigation.”

RajeevSharmawasarrestedonSep14 undertheOfficialSecretsAct

Court denies bailto journalist heldin espionage case

Woman who luredscientist into ‘honeytrap’ heads gang of 5

Ruckus in North MCD Houseover salary delay to docs, staff

Thewoman, SunitaGurjar(45), istheallegedmastermindofaganginvolvingfourothers,allmen.Policesaidshewouldidentifyandtargetindividualsviaawebsite.Shewouldtalktothetargetandarrangeameeting,andoncethepersonturnedup,theaccusedwouldkidnaphimandaskforransom

ThedoctorshadlaunchedanonlinecampaignonMonday

Total VacantHOSPITAL BEDS 15,827 9,471VENTILATORS 1,319 510

Dailycases Recoveries Deaths TestsSep28 1,984 4,052 37 36,302Sep29 3,227 2,778 48 59,102Total 27,524* 2,43,481 5,320 30,20,158

CORONAVIRUSIN THECAPITAL *T

otalactivecases

TOTAL CASES

2,76,325

48DEATHSONTUESDAY,HIGHESTSINCEJULY8

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI, SEPTEMBER29

CLOSE TO33%of those tested inthecityaspartof theSeptemberserosurveyhaddevelopedCovid-19antibodies,The IndianExpresshas learnt. The findings of thethirdsurveywillbepresentedtotheDelhiHighCourtWednesday.The presence of antibodies

indicatestheindividualhasbeenexposed to thevirus in thepast.Inthelastserosurvey,thisfigurewas 29.1%. “The results showthat only about a third of thepopulationhasbeenexposedtothevirus so farand thatprecau-tions such as social distancingandwearingmasksmustbeob-servedkeenlytolimitthespreadof infection,” said a seniorDelhigovernmentofficial.On Tuesday, meanwhile, 48

people succumbed to the dis-ease.ThisisthehighesttollsinceJuly8.Over thepast10days, thecasefatalityratiohasbeen1.12%— up from 0.94% (10 day aver-age) till a fewdaysago.The sudden increase in

deathshashealthdepartmentof-ficialsworried,asforthepastsev-eralweeks,theyhavebeenaskedto focusondeaths insteadof theoverall Covid count. “After ob-servingthebehaviourofthevirusfor twomonths,we realisedwecannot completely stop peoplefromgettinginfectedandwewillhave to learn to livewith Covid.Thefocusthenshiftedtomanag-ingthenumberofdeathsandwesawimmediateresults.Overthepastweek,however,asthenum-

berofreportedcaseshasgoneupduetoincreasedtests,casefatal-ity ratio has also increased. Thisisamatterofconcernandweareholdingmeetingstoseewhatwecandotodecreasethisrate,”saidaseniorgovernmentofficial.Thecity’soverall fatalityratio

is1.93%atpresent,with5,320outof 2,76,325 people who havetestedpositivesuccumbingtothevirus sinceMarch. On Tuesday,3,227people tested positive outofover59,100samplespicked.AsthenumberoftestsconductedinDelhihasincreasedoverthepastmonth,thenumberofdailycaseshasalso increased.Over thepastweek, positivity ratehas been inthe6%-7%range.Theoverallpos-itivity rate sinceMarch,mean-while,standsat9.15%.

38% of those admittedto hospital requireoxygen: DataAs per data provided by the

Delhigovernment, anaverageof

around38%of thoseadmittedtohospitals require administrationof oxygen. An analysis done onSeptember22showsthatof7,242patients admitted to hospitalsacrossthecity,2,793(38.5%)wereonoxygensupport.Thepercent-ageofpatientsrequiringventila-torsupportwas3.83%.Officials said that at present,

oxygenisavailableonmostbedsset aside for Covid patients. “Aswecontinuedtolearnaboutthepandemic,werealisedearlyoxy-gen support in people whoseoxygensaturationlevelsaredip-ping is helpful. This also helpedreduce the death rate,” a seniorgovernmentofficial said.A majority of those who

testedpositivehaverecoveredathome.DatabetweenMay5andSeptember 23 shows that only2% of those under home isola-tion had to be shifted to hospi-tals after their condition deteri-orated.Therearecloseto18,000active Covid patients underhome isolationatpresent.

Sero survey suggests33%have antibodies

ThefindingswillbepresentedtoDelhiHCtoday.Archive

New Delhi

PANELTOSUBMITREPORTSOON

4THEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY,SEPTEMBER30,2020

THECITYWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

ASTHASAXENANEWDELHI, SEPTEMBER29

A REVISED Covid strategy forDelhi, prepared by an expertcommittee headed by NITIAayogmemberDrVKPaul,willfocusoncontaining thevirus inrural areas. According tosources, in a meeting with theDelhi government onMonday,experts discussed certain areaswhichneedtobeinfocusaspartof therevisedcontainmentplan.“There is a small rural area

belt in Delhi where the spreadof the disease has been ob-served. The rural communityalso has to be protected to en-sure there is no further spread.However,with a rise in cases, itwas expected that the diseasewill spread to these areas aswell,” said a member of the

committee,whodidnotwishtobenamed.In the firstweek of June, the

MinistryofHomeAffairs (MHA)

had formed an expert commit-tee to devise a strategy for con-tainmentofCovid-19inthecap-ital.Thedocumentwasprepared

by a team of experts — AIIMSDirectorDrRandeepGuleria,NITIAayogmemberDrVKPaul,ICMRchiefDrBalramBhargavaandDrSujeet Kumar Singh fromNCDC—andit suggestedcappingtest-ing charges and treatment costforCovidpatients.This is the second time that

the experts have stepped in tosuggest preventive measures.The committee is likely to sub-mit its report in adayor two.“Thepandemic,asawhole, is

a dynamicprocess. As the situa-tion changes, youneed to refinethecontainmentplan.Theremustbe aperiodic review,whichwasheldonMondaywithtopofficials.We reviewed all dimensions ofpandemiccontroltoseehowpeo-ple are behaving, hospital pre-paredness,andhowcontainmentstrategies shouldmove forwardwith the required changes,” said

another officialwhowaspart ofthereviewmeeting.According to senior district

officials, an increase in cases inruralareasmaybeduetothefo-cus on the special surveillancegroup which includes rick-shaw/auto, taxidrivers,domes-tic helps, daily wage workers(plumbers,electricians,carpen-ters andmechanics) and dailysuppliers of food, essentialitems, groceries, etc. The groupwas included in the revisedSOPs issued by the Delhi gov-ernmentinthefirstweekof July.“We have been focusing on

aggressivetestingforthespecialsurveillance group. Those whotest positive are immediatelyisolated and family membersaretracedforcontainment.Thishas ledtoanincreaseincases inruralareas,”saidanofficial fromthe statehealthdepartment.

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI, SEPTEMBER29

ADAYafterheallegedlykilledhisfather-in-lawinRohtakandshotat his friend in Outer Delhi’sAlipurSundaynight,sub-inspec-torSandeepDahiya(36)wasar-restedfromRohini. Initial inves-tigation revealed that he wascaughtwhenhe cameout fromPrachin Mahakali Mandir inRohiniSector3andwasgoingtokill himself.“Sandeep Dahiya was ar-

rested from Sector 3, Rohini,around11amonTuesdaybyjointteams of special staff, cyber celland Lahori Gate police station,”saidDCP(North)AntoAlphonse.According to police, Dahiya

was in a relationship with thewoman he allegedly shot at onSunday evening. Police said thetwowere in his car and got intoanargument,followingwhichheallegedlyshotatheranddumpedheronthehighwaynearAlipur.OnMondaymorning,hekilled

his father-in-law in Haryana’sRohtak. “Around 7-7.30 am,Dahiya reached Bhainsi villageand parked his car near his es-trangedwife’shome.Hefoundhisfather-in-law,RanveerSingh(65),cleaningtheareaoutside.Thebul-lethitRanveer’s foreheadandhedied on the spot. Dahiya spedaway. An alert was flashed inRohtak andadjoiningdistricts tonabDahiya,” inspector RajinderBhoora,SHOof Lakhanmajrapo-licestation,hadsaid.SeveralteamsfromtheNorth

districtwerelookingforhimandfoundthathepostedamessage,withthesubject, ‘Dyingdeclara-tion’, in his batchmate group at6.19am.“Inhismessage,heexplained

the reason for shooting thewoman, who he claimed waspossessive and not letting himtalktohiswomencolleagues.Healso claimed that his father-in-lawwas responsible for his di-vorce.Heaskedhisfriendstotakehis body from the Singhu bor-der,” saidaseniorpoliceofficer.Police said the teams then

tracedhislocationtoSinghubor-derbutdidn'tfindhimthere.“At9.18 am, it was found that his

phone was on; his locationpointed toM2K, Rohini’s Sector3. A team from Lahori Gate po-licestationreachedthespotandfoundhiscarintheparkingarea.Theynabbedhimwhenhecameoutof PrachinMahakaliMandirand took him into custody,” anofficer said.His service revolver, with

fourlivecartridges,andhisvehi-clehavebeenrecovered.During questioning, police

said Dahiya revealed that aftershootingatthewoman,hewenttoRohtakwherehekilledhisfa-ther-in-law.Hethendrovetothebackyard of an industrial areaandstayed there inhis car.Dahiya,anativeofSisanavil-

lage in Sonepat, is also facingdowry andmental harassmentcharges.Acriminalcasewasreg-isteredagainsthiminthisregard,which is under trial in the civilcourt.“Hiswife,Rajesh,andfather-

in-law had accused Dahiya ofdemandingdowryandmentallyharassing Rajesh. The couplehave two children, an eight-year-old daughter and a six-year-old son. He was facingthese accusations for the lastcouple of years. They had beenliving separately since then…Dahiya had been pressuringRajesh to give their son’s cus-tody tohim,which she refused.Dahiya, on several occasions inthepast,alsogot intoheatedar-guments and altercations withhisfather-in-lawonthesameis-sue,” inspector Bhoora told TheIndianExpress.

DEADLY CONSEQUENCEDelhiDistrictAdministrationdeploysstaffersdressedasYamrajandChitragupt toencouragepeople tousemasks,at IndiaGateonTuesday.AbhinavSaha

Cop on shootingspree arrested, wasconsidering suicide

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI, SEPTEMBER29

DELHIJALBoard(DJB)vice-chair-man Raghav Chadha Tuesdaysaid four Central governmentagencies and the threeMCDs inthecityhavependingduesworthRs6,811crorethattheyowetotheDJB forwater supplyandsewer-ageservices.TheCentralagenciesinclude Indian Railways,whichowesRs 3,283 crore, the CentralPublicWorksDepartment,owingRs189crore,DelhiDevelopmentAuthority Rs 128 crore and theDelhiPoliceRs614crore,hesaid.The North MCD owes Rs

2,466 crore, SouthMCD Rs 80croreandEastMCDRs49crore.Speaking at the Delhi

Secretariat, Chadha said, “... thepandemic and all other factorshavenowputtheDJBinaprecar-ious situation. If thedues arenotclearedwithinthestipulatedtime,theboardshallbeconstrainedandleftwithnootheroptionbuttoini-tiatecoerciveactionuntil fullandfinalpaymentisrecovered.”Chadha said bills of some

agencieshavebeenpendingsince2013 andmany opportunitieshave been given to them in thepast for payment, with noticesalsobeingsent.Earlierthismonth,theDJBis-

sued “last opportunity” showcausenotices to the seven agen-ciesanddepartments.AnoticetoaCPWDexecutive

engineer,issuedonSeptember5,said,“Alastopportunityforclear-anceofoutstandingduesisbeingprovided through this showcausenotice,within30daysfromthe service of this notice, failingwhichwarrant of distress underSection 87(1) of Delhi WaterBoardAct,1998,andattachmentof themoveable property andbank accountwill be issued for

therecovery.”Chadhaadded,“Inthenotices

senttothesedepartments,somedepartments havewritten to usand sought clarification.We areconfidentthattheywilldefinitelyfulfill theirfinancialobligations.”NorthMCDstandingcommit-

tee chairman Chhail BihariGoswami said the corporationdoes not owe any outstandingbillstotheDJB.“Theyarelyingbe-causetheywanttohidetheirownfaults.Theyhaven’tpaidtheirlia-bilities to the corporation in thefirstplace,”hesaid.SouthMCDmayor Anamika

Mithilesh alleged Chadha hasmade a false statement: “TheDelhi government has rajaswa(revenue dues) worth Rs 1,100crore to the MCD that theyhaven’t paid.” EastMCDmayorNirmal Jain said, “There are nosuchbillspendingfromourside.”NorthernRailways chief PRO

DeepakKumar said, “Railway isregularly payingmonthlywaterbills to DJB for water supply.However, Railway has reserva-tionswith regard to significantnumber of water bills, as someconnections donot exist on site,andlargenumberofconnectionsareunmetered.RailwayhasmadereferencestoDJBforthesame."Hesaid,“However,waterbills

of each connection need to bereconciled jointly by DJB andRailway officials, alongwith sitesurvey. The payment of the rec-onciledamountthusarrivedwillbemade.”Anofficial fromCPWDaddi-

tionaldirectorgeneral,Delhi re-gion, S C Bhardwaj's office saidtheir financial department hasrecentlyclearedsomeoutstand-ingdues.Bhardwajcouldnotbereached foracomment.Spokespersons of the DDA

and the Delhi Police did not re-spondtoqueries.

4 central agencies,MCDs owe Jal BoardRs 6,811 cr: Chadha

Bilkis: If govtwilling tolisten, won’tprotest again

Punjab Youth Cong chief held forsetting tractor on fire at RajpathEXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI, SEPTEMBER29

ADAY after a group of men, in-cluding severalmembers of theYouthCongress’Punjabunit,setatractoronfireatDelhi’sRajpathin a bid to protest against thefarm bills, Delhi Police has ar-rested the unit’s presidentBrinder Singh Dhillon, alongwiththreemoremembersofthePunjabYouthCongress.DCP (New Delhi) Dr Eish

Singhalsaid,“OnMonday,wear-rested sixmen, andonTuesday,wearrestedfourmore—Dhillon,All India Youth Congress (AIYC)national general secretaryHarish Panwar, AIYC's nationalgeneral secretary AbrahamRoyMani and AIYC secretary BuntyShelke. Interrogation ison.”TheFIRinthematterhasfiledatTilakMargpolice station.Late Tuesday afternoon, the

Punjab Youth Congress, how-ever, posted on their Facebook

page that the fourmen“surren-dered at the Tilak Marg policestation”.Asperthepolice,around7.15

am-7.30 am onMonday, 15-20people gathered at Rajpath —which is a breach of security —and set a tractor on fire. Policeclaimed themen entered DelhiafterPSOs(personalsecurityof-

ficers) postedwith Dhillon es-corted theminagypsy.DCP Singhal said, “We have

written a letter to Punjab Policeseeking departmental actionagainst these policemen.” A re-sponse fromthePunjabPolice isawaited,saidaDelhiPoliceofficer.APCRcall regarding the inci-

dent wasmade onMonday at

7.42amandtwofiretenderswererushed to the spot. The flamesweredousedandthetractorwasremovedfromthesite.PolicehadfiledanFIRandarrestedsixmem-bersof theYouthCongress.The incident was a security

breach as Mansingh Road andthe surrounding areas in NewDelhi fall in the high securityzone, where Section 144 is inplace throughout theyear.OnMonday,membersof the

Punjab unit of the YouthCongresstooktosocialmediatopost photos and videos of thetractor being unloaded from atruckandbeingsetafire.The Indian Youth Congress

had tweeted, “Our countrythrives on the blood and sweatofourfarmers.FromfightingtheBritish to feeding the entire na-tion,ourfarmersarethenation’sbackbone. On #BhagatSingh’sbirth anniversary YouthCongress set ablaze a tractor inprotest against the govt’s anti-farmerBills.”

DDA’s housing scheme to haveoption of choosing type of flat

ASHNABUTANINEWDELHI, SEPTEMBER29

EVENBEFORE82-year-oldBilkistook to the streets to protestagainstCAA/NRClastDecember,the spirit of resistancewasalivewithin her — for as long as shecan remember, she has advo-cated equality among themenandwomen of her family. “Wehave rights, and if we are notgranted it, wemust ask for it,”she toldThe IndianExpress.On Tuesday, Bilkis, listed

among the100most influentialpeople of 2020 by Timemaga-zine, was felicitated for herrecognitionbywomen’sgroupsatthePressClub.“Myonlyotherwish is that thegovernment lis-tens to our demands regardingCAAandNRC. If theyarewillingto listen, we will not protestagain,evenafterCovid,”shesaid.Bilkiswasbornandgrewup

in a small village in UttarPradesh, where she livedmostofher life. Itwasonlynineyearsago, shesaid, that sheshifted toDelhi. Grandmother of 11 girlsand eight boys, she said, “I hadnever done something like thisbefore.ButwhenIsawchildrenbeingbeatenupinJamia, Icouldnot sit home and do nothingabout it.”Weareaskingforourrightsso

thatfuturegenerationsdonotsuf-fer,”shesaid.

BilkisatPressClubonTuesday. PraveenKhanna

SixmembersofYouthCongressPunjabwerearrestedearlierfor setting the tractorablazeat IndiaGateonMonday. Express

ABHINAVRAJPUTNEWDELHI, SEPTEMBER29

THE DELHI DevelopmentAuthority(DDA)hasintroduceda new clause in its upcominghousingscheme,tobelaunchedin December, under which onecan choose the kind of flat theywant in a society. However, ap-plicants will have to pay extramoney for it.The proposal to introduced

‘preferential location charges’,whichwillbebetween1.5%and3% of the total cost of the flat,was passed in ameeting of theDDA’s highest decisionmakingauthorityTuesday.“If one wants green facing,

groundfloor,cornerlocation,fac-ing green area or facing mainroad, one will have to pay be-tween 1.5% and 3% of the totalcost,” said DDA commissioner(housing)RajivGandhi.However,no preferential location chargesfor floorwill be levied for allot-mentof ground floor topersonswithdisability,Gandhisaid.On offer in the scheme are

843 flats — 215 Higher IncomeGroup (HIG) flats near JasolaVihar-ShaheenBaghMetrosta-tion,352Middle IncomeGroup(MIG)flats inDwarkaSector19-B,and276EconomicallyWeakerSection (EWS) flats inDwarka’sManglapuri. A senior officialsaid apercentageof flatswhichare in good locations such as

Jasola and Dwarka will also bebroughtunder theambit.Thistime,theDDAhascome

out with only new flats, and inareas that haveMetro connec-tivityandotheramenities, inanattempt to reaffirm its imageastheagencywithbetter facilitiesthan private ones, senior offi-cials said.In three-four months after

December, the process ofscrutiny of applicants, draw oflots, issuance of demand-cum-allotment letters and handingover the flats would be done.Successful candidates have theoptiontosurrendertheirflatsaf-terthedrawwithinaprescribedperiod, else allotment will beautomatically cancelled.

Revised coronavirus strategy placesemphasis on capital’s rural pockets

Ahealthworker takesaswabsample forCovid-19testonTuesday.PraveenKhanna

SISandeepDahiyahadpostedamessagewiththesubject ‘Dyingdeclaration’

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI, SEPTEMBER29

INAU-turnfromitsearlierdeci-sion,AmbedkarUniversityDelhi(AUD)hasnowofficiallydeclaredthat itwill continue its policy ofgiving 100% fee waiver to allSC/ST/PWDstudentsseekingad-missions to its courses for an-other year. However, apprehen-sions with regard to itsreservation policy have beenraisedbyAUDStudents’Council.The Indian Express had re-

portedonSeptember6thatAUDdecidedtogranta100%feewaiveronly to those students whosegrossfamilyincomewaslessthanRs3 lakhper annum, citing stateand central government rules.

However, AUDSC said there arestillmanyissueswiththereserva-tionpolicy,andheldaheldaday-longprotestoncampusMonday.“Tilllastyear,anSC/STstudent

waseligibleforreservationin85%NCT seat if theypassed their lastqualifyingexaminDelhioriftheywereDelhiresidents.Thisyear,thelattercriterionhasbeenremoved.IfanSC/STstudent,despitebeing

fromDelhi, had their qualifyingexamoutside,theywouldbecon-sideredinthe15%non-NCTreser-vation... Theywouldneedacastecertificate from outside Delhi,whichtheywon’thaveastheyareDelhi residents,” said AUDSCtreasurerShubhojeetDey.AUD Public Relations Office

didnotrespondtocallsandtextsbyThe IndianExpress.

The IndianExpress reportdatedSeptember6

AUD to continue with 100% feewaiver for all SC/ST students

Sisodiatestsnegative,dischargedNewDelhi:Deputy ChiefMinisterManishSisodia,whowas suffering fromCovid-19 and dengue,was discharged fromhospitalonTuesday. The48-year-oldwas shiftedtoMaxhospital in Saketon Thursday evening,considering his "falling"bloodplatelet count andlowoxygenlevel.Hewasadministered plasmatherapy,hoursafterbeingadmittedto thehospital.The AAP leader hadtestedpositiveforCovid-19 on September 14 andwasinhomeisolation.

FamilymulaqatstoberesumedatprisonsNewDelhi:Sixmonthsaf-ter the threeDelhi pris-ons halted family mu-laqats in thewakeof thecoronavirusoutbreak,themeetings are set to re-sumeOctober1onwardswithaslewofchanges.Asper an order issued byMukesh Prasad, thenewly-appointedAdditional InspectorGeneral of Delhi Prisons,"familymulaqatwill bepermitted between 7.30amto11.30amalldayex-cept Saturdays, Sundaysandgazettedholidays."

HCnoticetoDUonsalaryofteachersNew Delhi: The DelhiHighCourtonTuesdayis-suedanoticetotheDelhigovernment, UniversityofDelhiandfourof itsaf-filiated colleges on a pe-tition filed by the teach-ers working there forrelease of their salaries,which has allegedly notbeenpaidsinceMay.ThedivisionbenchofJusticesHima Kohli andSubramonium Prasadasked the colleges to fileastatusreportinthecasewithin two weeks andlistedthecaseforhearingonNovember4.

MLA RaghavChadha’slaptopstolenNew Delhi: AAP MLARaghavChadhahaswrit-ten to the Delhi PoliceCommissioner after twomenallegedly broke therear window of his carand stole his laptop inNaraina Vihar. The inci-dent took place onMondaynight.Policesaida case of theft has beenregistered.“Thespotwasexamined. CCTV footagefromnearby areas is be-ing checked and sincereeffortsarebeingmadetotrace the culprits and re-cover the laptop,” saidDeepak Purohit, DeputyCommissioner of Police(West). ENS

BRIEFLY

0-50 Good

ANANDVIHARModerate

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SIRIFORTModerate

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SHADIPURModerate

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51-100 Satisfactory 101-200 Moderate 201-300 Poor 301-400 VeryPoor 401-500 Severe

DWARKA- SECTOR8Poor

0

203AQIPM:10

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Pollutant:OZONE

New Delhi

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*An initiative byADVERTORIAL

Standing by peopleUttarakhand in Safe HandsUttarakhand in Safe Hands

The Uttarakhand state government has already put inplace many measures that are benefitting people

Day & Residential

0135-2607359

7037146114

IN THE Covid-19 pandemic when thehealth sector in the whole world is facing achallenge and youths are losing jobs as theindustries are struggling for a revival

from the crisis, Uttarakhand chief ministerTrivendra Singh Rawat in the guidance ofPrime Minister Narendra Modi took signifi-cant initiatives that kept the people in hill-state safe, averted community transmissionof the virus and created job opportunities forthe migrants who returned to the hills duringthe lockdown.

HealthAlong with increase in testing of suspected

Covid-19 cases, health department in Ut-tarakhand stressed upon the surveillance andcontact tracing of the positive cases and pre-venting spread of the infection by notifyingcontainment zones in all the districts. To en-sure that people in the containment zonesstay inside their homes, local administrationsupplied the basic amenities and food materi-als at their door steps both during and afterthe lockdown.

But the most effective tool in coping upwith the epidemic was strengthening ofhealth infrastructure across the state that hadstarted in 2017, days after Rawat sworn aschief minister.After Covid outbreak earlier thisyear,dedicated Covid hospitals and covid carecentres were set up and equipped with 30,500isolation beds, 481 ICU beds, 1,846 oxygensupport beds and 543 ventilators. ICUs are setup in all the districts at present. In March,when the Corona pandemic hit India, therewas no facility for testing Covid-19 samplesin Uttarakhand. But at present, five govern-ment and several private laboratories are test-ing thousands of samples every day. Newmedical colleges are being established inRudrapur,Haridwar and Pithoragarh.The gov-ernment increased the doctors to more thandouble in the hills in the past three years andthis played a key role in ensuring availabilityof medical staff for treatment of both Covidand non-Covid patients.

EmploymentWhile the Opposition parties are targeting

governments in the BJP ruled states on the is-sue of growing unemployment, Chief Minis-terTrivendra Singh Rawat gave a befitting replyto them by maintaining thrust on creating jobopportunities in three years.The governmentclaims that more than seven lakh youths weregiven jobs under various departments in thepast three-and-a–half years. Maximum 5.8lakh jobs were provided through self entre-preneurship, private investment and con-struction projects. Uttarakhand SubordinateService Selection Commission in three yearsconducted 59 examinations and completedselections to 6,000 posts.Recruitment processto fill 7,200 posts is underway.

TransparencyCM Rawat enjoys the credit for bringing

transparency in the functioning of the govern-ment departments — from field offices to Sec-retariat. People have started believing thatthat Rawat has removed “mafia-tantra”(nexus between the corrupt and criminal) fromthe Secretariat. Introduction of new initiativessuch as e-filing, e-office, e-cabinet, CM dashboard,CM helpline 1905, right to service,anda transparent system for transfers, has re-moved red-tapism in every government office.

Conservation of habitation in hillsFacing the blot of having ‘ghost villages’,

Uttarakhand first time got an integrated ap-proach towards reverse migration in the cur-rent regime to bring back the youth who left

the hills and moved to other states for liveli-hood in the past one decade.To retain“Pahadka paani aur pahad ki jawaani” in the hills,Rawat government constituted a migrationcommission to suggest measures for rehabili-tation in hilly areas and make people “atmanirbhar”(self-dependent).

TourismClosure of tourism during the lockdown has

affected the economy and livelihood of localpeople. Impact on tourism due to restrictionson movement was obvious. But the state gov-ernment earlier this month eased the restric-tions to attract tourism and the people fromadjoining states have started rushing to placesacross the state.

Protecting the interest of industriesSingle window system has been set up so

that industrialists conveniently get clearancesto start operations and employ skilled youths.Industries manufacturing goods essential forprotection from Covid-19 had been exemptedfrom closure during lockdown.

Wildlife protection and safety ofpeople

Gifted with natural forests and variousspecies of wildlife, the state government isworking on to mitigate man-animal conflictand save human life,their crops and populationof wildlife species as well. The state govern-ment is also working to protect crops fromwildlife.

New Delhi

THEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY,SEPTEMBER30,2020

GOVT&POLITICSWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

DELHICONFIDENTIAL

WAIT AND WATCHSEAT-SHARING in theNDA is yet tobe finalised inBihar, andBJPleadersaretight-lippedabouttheLJP,whichhasbeende-manding 30-plus seats. A section of BJP leaders feels that ifLJP contests alone, the party should claimmore seats in itsarrangementwith the JD(U).While theBJPwants to contestthe same number of seats as JD(U), the latterwants the up-per hand, even if by one seat. The JD(U), led by CMNitishKumar, fearsthatcontestinganequalnumberof seatswouldemboldentheBJPafterelections.Whilethetwopartiesstrug-gle to reach an agreement, the LJP impatiently awaits a re-sponse to itsdemand.

TRAVEL PLANSAS PROTESTS against the farm laws continue in Punjab andHaryana, seniorCongress leaderRahulGandhi is planning totraveltothetwostatestosharpentheattackagainsttheCentralgovernment.While a section of the Congresswants him tolaunch a padayatra, Covid protocolmay come in theway ofthat. Top leaders from Haryana are meeting in DelhiWednesday to chalk out the agitation plan. The PunjabCongress, too, is finalising its protest planWednesday. Oncethat is done, Rahulwill travel to both states by road. Leaderssaid Rahul could travel tomandis and interactwith farmersandjointheparty’sprotestatsomeplaces.

WARM WELCOMEDANISHPMMetteFrederiksen(42)gotmarriedinJuly,afterherweddingwas postponed and rescheduleddue to a busy firstyearinofficethatincludedthepandemic.PMNarendraModi,whoheldavirtualbilateralsummitmeetingonMonday,con-gratulatedheratthebeginningofthemeetingonhermarriagetofilmmakerandphotographerBoTengberg(55)andsaidthathe lookedforwardtowelcomingherwithher familyto India.

CASE COUNTRAIL BHAWAN,which has recorded themaximumnumberofCovid-19cases in itsemployeesamongallCentralgovern-mentoffices,onTuesdaysawsomemorestafferstestingpos-itiveatthepremises.Officialsaremiffedthatatthistime,con-struction/maintenance activities are continuing in thebuilding,withlittleregardtosocialdistancing.Morethan120officialsworking in thebuildinghave testedpositiveso far.

ENS&PTINEWDELHI, SEPTEMBER29

THEELECTIONCommission(EC)on Tuesday declared bypolls toone Lok Sabha seat and 56Assembly seats, even as itwith-heldtheannouncementforsevenotherAssemblyseatsonaccountof“difficulties”expressedbychiefsecretariesandchiefelectoralof-ficers of Assam, Kerala, WestBengalandTamilNadu.According to the EC, 54

Assembly seats—28 inMadhyaPradesh,eightinGujarat,seveninUP,twoeachinOdisha,Nagaland,Karnataka and Jharkhand, andone each in Chhattisgarh,TelanganaandHaryana—willgotopollsonNovember3.OnNovember 7, pollingwill

beheldfortwoAssemblyseatsinManipurand1LokSabhaseat inBiharwillvoteonNovember7.Thelargestchunkofseatsgo-

ingupforpollsarefromMadhyaPradeshwhere 28 seats fell va-cant after rebel CongressMLAs

had switched over to the BJP inMarch.Thishad led to the fall oftheKamalNath-ledgovernmentin thestate.The votes for all the bypolls

willbecountedonNovember10,alongside the counting of votesfor the general Assembly elec-tions inBihar.Beforeannouncingthesched-

ule, thepoll panel issuedasepa-ratestatementonTuesdaytosaythatithasdecidednottohold“atthis stage” Assembly bypolls inseven seats across Kerala, TamilNadu,AssamandWestBengal.Thedecisionhas been taken

based on inputs received fromthechief secretariesandpollof-ficials in these states, the pollpanel said in the release.While there are two vacan-

cies each in the Assemblies ofAssam, Kerala and Tamil Nadu,one seat is vacant in theWestBengal legislature.The term of the Legislative

Assemblies of the four stateswouldendondifferentdatesbe-tweenMayand Junenextyear.

6

EC announces bypollsto 56 Assembly seats,one LS constituency

SHUBHAJITROYNEWDELHI, SEPTEMBER29

ASEXTERNALAffairsMinister SJaishankar heads to Japan nextweek, hewill participate in theforeignministers’meetingoftheQuadrilateral grouping onOctober6—thefirstsuchmeet-ing amid the tension betweenIndia andChinaover theborderstand-off.Jaishankarwillalsoholdsep-

aratebilateralmeetingswithUSSecretary of State Michael RPompeo, Japanese ForeignMinisterToshimitsuMotegiandAustralian Foreign MinisterMarisePayne.The Ministry of External

Affairs on Tuesday announcedthevisitof Jaishankar—thiswillbe one of the few in-personmeetings at a timewhenmostmeetings have been in virtualmodeduring thepandemic.Jaishankar will be in Tokyo

onOctober6-7forbilateralcon-sultationswiththeJapanesefor-eignminister. “The twominis-

ters are expected to discuss bi-lateralandregionalissuesofmu-tual interest,” the MEA state-ment said.“Duringthevisit,theExternal

AffairsMinisterwill alsopartic-ipate in the Second India-Australia-Japan-USAMinisterialMeeting on 6 October, 2020, inwhich the ForeignMinisters oftherespectivecountrieswillpar-ticipate,” thestatementadded.This is the secondQuad for-

eignministers’ meeting — thefirst suchmeeting took place inNewYorkinSeptemberlastyearon the margins of the UNGeneral Assembly. Last week,

senior officials of the Quadgrouping hadmet through vir-tualmode.“The ForeignMinisters shall

discussthepost-Covid-19inter-national order and the need fora coordinated response to thevarious challenges emergingfrom the pandemic. They willalso discuss regional issues andcollectively affirm the impor-tanceofmaintainingafree,openand inclusive Indo-Pacific,” theMEAstatementsaid,withaclearsignal to Beijing’s aggressivestance inSouthChinaSea.Meanwhile, inBeijing,China

on Tuesday criticised the forth-

comingmeeting of the foreignministers of India, Australia,JapanandtheUS—QuadrilateralSecurity Dialogue or Quad— inTokyo,sayingitisopposedtotheformation of “exclusive clique”harming thirdparty’s interests.Asked for his reaction to the

Quadmeeting, Chinese ForeignMinistry spokespersonWangWenbin told a media briefingthat “peace, development andglobal cooperation is the over-riding trendof today’sworld”.“Multilateralandplurilateral

cooperation should all be open,inclusive and transparent. Noone should seek an exclusiveclique,” he said. “Efforts shouldbe made to enhance regionalcountries’ mutual understand-ing and trust, instead of target-ingathirdpartyorharmingthirdparty’s interests,”headded.“Wehopetherelevantcoun-

trywill proceed from the inter-estsof regionalcountriesanddomore things conducive to re-gionalpeace,stabilityanddevel-opmentinsteadofthecontrary,”Wangsaid.

SANTOSHSINGHPATNA,SEPTEMBER29

WITH ITS other options ex-hausted,theRashtriyaLokSamataParty (RLSP) on Tuesday an-nounced a tie-upwith Bahujan

SamajParty(BSP)and JanvadiParty Socialist(JPS). The newalliance said itwould contestall 243Assemblyseats.RLSPpresi-

dent and formerUnion minister UpendraKushwahaisalsohopefulofbring-inginVikasshilInsaanParty(VIP)ofMukesh Sahni,whohas beenmaking last-ditch efforts to re-mainintheGrandAlliance.Kushwaha, whowalked out

of theGrandAlliance lastweek,had reportedly contacted bothJD(U)andBJPbut failedtostrikea deal because the NDA is al-readycramped.FormerCMJitanRamManjhi’sparty,HindustaniAwamMorcha (Secular), hadalso returned to the NDA aboutamonthago.At a joint press conference

with BSP convenor RamjiGautam, BSP's Bihar unit headBharat Prasad Bind and JPS’sSanjaySinghChouhan,Kushwahasaid:“Wewillcontestall243seats.OurcommongoalistouproottheNitish Kumar government.WehavealwaysbeentalkingaboutabettereducationsysteminBihar.”Attacking both theNDAand

GrandAlliance, Kushwaha saidthepeopleofBiharhavebeen“be-trayed”bybothalliancesover30years when it came to gover-nance.“Nitishfailedtobuildasin-glemodel hospital or school inBihar.LaluPrasad(RJD)andNitishKumarare twosidesof thesamecoin...ItriedtoimpressuponthemthatGrandAllianceshouldchangeits leader. Lalu could not ensure

that his son (Tejashwi Yadav)couldclearhisClass10examina-tions,”saidKushwaha.One of the alliance partners,

the BSP, has influence inGopalganj, Rohtas and Kaimurdistricts, borderingUP. Thepartywon six seats in the February2005 Assembly polls and fourseats in October 2005 polls. Itfieldedcandidatesin228seatsin2015pollsandgot justover2percentvotesandnoseats.The JPS led by Sanjay Singh

Chouhan—anOBC—has influ-enceinGhosiareaofUP.Thepartywas in alliancewith the BJP in2012and2017Assemblypollsand2014LokSabhapolls,anditscadrehasbeenactiveinBagaha,ValmikiNagarandKaimurinBihar.Meanwhile, chances of a

broaderthirdfrontlookbleaknow,withAsaduddinOwasi's AIMIMandformerMPPappuYadav’sJanAdhikarPartyhavingseparateal-lianceswithsmallerparties.

SANTOSHSINGHPATNA,SEPTEMBER29

WHILEMANYparty leaders andcadres arepressing for the LJP tocontesttheBiharAssemblyelec-tionsonitsown,thepartyisseenas engaging in a final round ofbargainingoverseatswiththeBJP.The party is now likely to take adecisiononwhethertostaywiththe BJP-led NDA, despite partychiefChiragPaswan’sseverecrit-icismof ChiefMinister andchiefof fellow NDA partner JD(U)NitishKumar,onWednesday.The saffronpartyhas report-

edlymadeafinalofferof27seatsto the LJP, and has also told itssmallerpartnerthattwoMLCpo-sitionsfromthepartywillbecon-sideredatalaterstage.Several LJP leaders insist on

contesting 143 Assembly seatsalone. Party MP from Vaishaliconstituency, Veena Devi, said,“Althoughwewill support anydecision our party president(Chirag)takes,ourworkerswantustoconteston143seats.”Party spokesperson Ashraf

Ansari told The Indian Express,“We have our list of 143 candi-datesready.Wehaveleftittoournational president, ChiragPaswan, to take a final call.” He

saidseniorLJPleadersdiddiscussBJP’soffer,and“it isnowtimeforafinalcall”.Chirag hadmet BJP national

president JPNaddaonTuesday.TheLJPislikelytodelayitsde-

cisionuntilWednesday as partypatriarch RamVilas Paswan islikely to undergo a surgical pro-cedure. On Tuesday, Chirag hadvisitedPrachinHanumantemplein NewDelhi to pray for his fa-ther’swell-being.Although the scene of action

is Patna, most LJP leaders arecampedinthenationalcapitaltowaitfortheparty’sfinaldecision.ChiraghadlastweeksaidhewasunabletoleaveDelhigivenhisfa-ther’s illness.A source in the BJP said the

party has offered the LJP a “re-spectable number of seats”. AseniorBJPleadersaid,“Chiraghasperhaps gone too far in his criti-cismoftheChiefMinister.WearestilltryingtokeeptheNDAintact.It is now up to Chirag to takeacall.”

LIZMATHEWNEWDELHI,SEPTEMBER29

THEPARLIAMENTARYpanel onInformationTechnologywillcon-tinue to be headed by CongressleaderShashiTharoor,whosede-cisions tosummonFacebookex-ecutives and takeup the issueofinternetrestrictionsinJammuandKashmirhaddrawntheireofBJPmembersinthecommittee.SomerulingpartyMPshadalsosoughtthe removal of Tharoor as panelchairman.OnTuesday,whenLokSabha

SpeakerOmBirlareconstitutedthe

department-relatedparliamentarypanels,Tharoorwasre-nominatedastheheadoftheITpanel.Former Unionminister and

SADleaderHarsimratKaurBadal—whoexited theUnionCabinetandwhose party quit the NDAover the new farm laws—wasmade amember of the externalaffairscommittee.Although therewas specula-

tion aboutmajor changes in theparliamentarypanels,bothRajyaSabha chairman M VenkaiahNaidu andBirla largely retainedthe compositionof the commit-tees. Newly electedRajya SabhaMPswere alsonominated to the

re-constitutedcommittees.The BJP retained chairman-

ship of key panels exceptHomeaffairs,whichwill continue tobeheadedbyCongressleaderAnandSharma.WhileBJPgeneralsecre-taryBhupenderYadavwas reap-

pointedchairmanofthecommit-tee on Personnel, PublicGrievances, Law and Justice,Congress’s JairamRameshwillhead the panel on Science andTechnology and Environment,andForests andClimateChange.Newly elected Rajya SabhaMPJyotiradityaScindiawasincludedin the committee on HumanResourceDevelopment.In August, BJPMPNishikant

Dubey,amemberof theITpanel,had sought the removal ofThiruvananthapuram MPTharooraschairmanof thecom-mittee, citing the “flawedmodeand terrible disdain towards the

establishedparliamentary insti-tutions”, referring to Tharoor’scomments about thepanel’s de-cision to summon Facebook.However, the Speaker hadgivenTharoorconsentforthemove.WiththerulingBJPandoppo-

sitionCongressengaginginawarofwordsoverproceduresofpar-liamentary standing committeemeetings, Birlahadwritten toallpanel heads asking themnot totakeupsubjudicemattersincom-mitteemeetings “asper conven-tions” andavoidmatters relatedtonationalsecurityinthediscus-sionswhile sticking to confiden-tialityrules.

RLSPchiefUpendraKushwahawithBSPconvenorRamjiGautamandJPS leaderSanjaySinghChauhaninPatna. PTI

EVENASUpendraKushwahaannouncedanewalliance,hewouldknowthat this is thetoughestphaseof hispolitical career.HehadwonUjiyarpurLokSabhaseat in2014,butfailed to impress in the2015Assemblypolls ashispartywononly twoseats. TheRLSPhadcrossedover to theGrandAlliancebefore2019LokSabhapollsandcontested fiveLokSabhaseats, butwithoutsuccess.

CrucialpollforKushwaha

Kushwaha tiesup with BSP,JPS; alliance tocontest all seats

DECISION2020BIHAR

ChiragPaswan

Chirag carries onhard bargain withBJP as cadres pressfor going it alone

Thefourtheditionof the India-JapanMaritimebilateralexercise JIMEX,betweenthe IndianNavyandJapaneseMaritimeSelf-DefenseForce (JMSDF), completedthreedaysof exercise,onMonday.Shipsundertookanti-airandanti-submarinewarfareexercises, trackingandtacticalmanoeuvres intheNorthArabianSea.ANI

Opposedto formationof exclusivecliqueharmingthirdparty interests:China

Jaishankar to attendQuadFMmeet in Japan onOct 6

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI, SEPTEMBER29

VICE-PRESIDENTM VenkaiahNaidu testedpositive for Covid-19 in a routine test on Tuesdaymorning. He is asymptomaticand has been advised homequarantine.HiswifeUshaNaiduhastestednegativeandisinself-isolation, the official Twitterhandle of the Vice-Presidentstated.“The Vice President of India

who underwent a routineCOVID-19 test today morninghas been tested positive. He ishowever, asymptomatic and ingood health. He has been ad-visedhomequarantine.HiswifeSmt.UshaNaiduhasbeentestednegativeandisinself-isolation,”theofficialTwitterhandlestated.SeveralUnionministershave

tested positive in the last fewmonths.The monsoon session of

Parliament was cut short byeightdaysdue to the increasingnumberof Covid cases.While itwas scheduled to conclude onOctober1,boththeHouseswereadjourned sine die onSeptember23.The Vice-President is the

Chairmanof theRajyaSabha.Asof Tuesday, Indiahas9.47

lakh active cases, while 51 lakhhavebeendischarged.A total of96,318 people have died due tocoronavirus so far.

SeparatebilateralmeetingswillbeheldwithUSSecretaryofStateMichaelRPompeo, JapanForeignMinisterToshimitsuMotegiandAustralianForeignMinisterMarisePayne;ChineseforeignministryspokespersonWangWenbin

ShashiTharoor,HarsimratKaurBadal

Tharoor continues as head of IT committee,Harsimrat member of external affairs panel

SHUBHAJITROYNEWDELHI,SEPTEMBER29

INDIAONTuesdaysaidthat jointeffortstocombathumantraffick-ing are the need of the hour, asExternal Affairs Minister SJaishankar met BangladeshForeign Minister A K AbdulMomenthroughvirtualmode.Ties between the two coun-

tries had been strained sinceDecember last year as the CAAandNRCissuestookcentrestage.Jaishankar said, “Sincere ef-

fortshavealsobeenmadebybothsidestodevelopgreatercoordina-tionbetweenour border guard-ing forces throughmechanismslikejointpatrollingandexchangeofrealtimeinformation.Istronglyfeel that joint efforts to combathumantraffickingaretheneedofthe hour. Our border guardingforcehasbeenparticularlysensi-tisedonthisimportantissue.”A joint statement said that

bothministers noted thediscus-

sionsonbordermanagementandsecurityintherecentlyconcluded50thDirectorGeneralLevelTalksbetween the BSF and BorderGuards Bangladesh (BGB) inDhaka.“Both sides agreed that the

loss of civilian lives at theborderisamatterofconcern…,”thejointstatementsaid.The Bangladesh side high-

lighted that thenation is deeply

concernedattheriseinkillingsofBangladeshi nationals by Indianborder forces, a statement fromBangladeshForeignMinistrysaid.“It also said that the impor-

tance of educating the borderpopulation about the sanctity ofthe international border wasstressedupon…,” the jointstate-mentsaid.

FULLREPORTONwww.indianexpress.com

‘Joint efforts to combat humantrafficking need of the hour’

ExternalAffairsMinisterS JaishankarduringavirtualmeetingwithBangladeshForeignMinisterDrAKAbdulMomen, inNewDelhionTuesday.ANI

MVenkaiahNaidu

Vice-Presidenttests positive,asymptomatic

New Delhi

EXPRESSNETWORK 7WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY,SEPTEMBER30,2020

New laws like a stab infarmers’ hearts: Rahul

SAYSLEGISLATIONMUSTBEOPPOSED

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI, SEPTEMBER29

ARGUING THAT the farm lawsare yet another attack on thepeople likedemonetisationandthe GST, Congress leader RahulGandhionTuesdaysaidthelawswill have to be opposed as theyare like a “stab in the farmers’hearts”.“Thesethreelaws…thereisno

difference between them andnote ban. There is no differencebetween themand theGST. Theonlydifferenceisthatthisisstab-bingyourheartswithaknife.Teenbaar aapke pair main kulhadimaari…ab aapke dilmain churamaar diya hain,” Rahul said in avideoputoutbyhimonsocialme-dia platformswhich showshiminteractingwithsomefarmers.He said the lawswill have to

be opposed for the farmers andfor the future of the country.“They did not build this coun-try… they had sided with theBritish. So they don’t under-stand… and what you said isprofound…thevoiceof farmersisthereintheyouth,intheArmy,inthepolice…thevoiceof farm-ershasalotofstrength. It iswiththe help of this voice that IndiaattainedIndependenceandonceagain India will become inde-

pendent through the farmers’voice,”hesaid.Rahulalsosaidthenewfarm

laws will foster an East Indiacompany-likecultureandaddedthat this time, a “West Indiacompany”hascome in.Some Congress leaders said

the farm laws agitationwas theideal platform for Rahul tolauncha fiercecampaignonthegovernment, adding that in thepast, he had raised issues likeland acquisition in UttarPradesh’s Bhatta Parsaul andOdisha’sNiyamgiri.SpeakingtoRahul,Dhirender

Kumar, a farmer fromChamparan in Bihar, said farm-ers are being exploited in thenameoftheselawsandtheywillbeforcedtocommitsuicidedueto hunger. He said the 2006 BillabolishingtheAPMCActinBiharshould be implemented in thestate once again. Ashok Bootrafrom Yavatmal inMaharashtrafearedthatnoonewouldbuythefarmproduceatminimumsup-portprice (MSP). A farmer fromJhajjar said the farmers wouldnotgetanythinginanycaseandtheywerejustbeing“harassed”.A farmer from Washim inMaharashtra told the Congressleader that if MahatmaGandhiwas alive, he would have op-posed these laws.

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI, SEPTEMBER29

THE SUPREME Court will onWednesdayheartheCBI’sappealchallenging the Kerala HighCourt’s 2017 order upholdingChiefMinister PinarayiVijayan’sdischargeinthemulti-croreSNC-Lavalingraftcase.Theplea,alongwithpetitions

bysomeoftheotheraccusedchal-lenging theHCdirection askingthemtoface trial,hasbeen listedbeforeabenchheadedby JusticeUULalit.Petitions arising out of the

SNC-Lavalin case, filed in 2017,wereinitiallylistedbeforeabenchheadedby the thenChief Justice.Later, theCBI also filedanappealandallmatters came tobe listedbeforeabenchheadedby JusticeNVRamana.OnAugust 31 this year, they

werelistedbeforeabenchheadedby Justice Lalit, which howeversentitbacktotheJusticeRamanabench.OnNovember5,2013,ades-

ignated CBI court inThiruvananthapuram had dis-chargedVijayanandsixotherac-cused in the case. The CBI thenapproached the HC, which up-heldthedischargeofVijayanand

twoothers.However,theHCsetasidethe

dischargeof threeother accusedanddirectedthatthecaseagainstthemberevivedinthetrialcourt.The case relates to the award

of contracts for renovation andmodernisation of three hydro-electricprojectsinKeralabetween1995and1997,whenVijayanwasthe state electricityminister. TheMoU between the Kerala StateElectricity Board (KSEB) and theCanadiancompanywassignedonAugust10,1995.Subsequently,anauditbythe

Principal AccountantGeneral ofAudit in Kerala pegged losses tothe exchequer due to thedeal atoverRs350crore.The CBI had alleged that

Vijayan as electricity ministershowedunduehasteandinterestintheexecutionofthesupplycon-tractsinFebruary1997.ItclaimedthatKSEBexecuted the contractinhasteattheinstanceofthemin-ister, when SNC Lavalin offeredgrants for the construction of acancercarehospital inKannur.

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEPATNA,SEPTEMBER29

THE BIHAR government hasbeenabletocreatejobopportu-nities through its agriculturepolicies and theNarendraModigovernmenthasbeenconstantlytrying to improve the situationin the farm sector, UnionAgricultureMinister NarendraSinghTomarsaidonTuesday.The Unionministerwas ad-

dressing farmers in the statethrough a virtual meet, whichwas also attended by Bihar’sagriculture minister PremKumar in Patna. He reiteratedthat theMSPwouldcontinueasusual.“PMModihadassuredfarm-

ersof lookingforwaystodoubletheir income soon after takingover the reins of the NDA gov-ernment.HehasgivenRs10,000

monetaryhelptosmall farmers,who account for 86 per cent ofthetotalpopulation(of farmers).Our government has given Rs 1lakhcroreAtmanirbharpackagefordevelopmentofagriculture,”Tomarsaid.Theminister said that Bihar

was the first state to haveopened themarket to farmers,referring to the state govern-ment’s decision to repeal theAPMC Act in 2006. “Now thatnewagriculture lawshavebeenpassed, farmers of the countrywillbeable tosell theirproduceintheopenmarketwithoutpay-ing any tax and at their ownrate,”Tomarsaid.

Tomar: Bihar creating jobsthrough agricultural policies

NarendraSinghTomar

PinarayiVijayan

Congress leaderRahulGandhiduringavirtual interactionwithfarmersonthenewagricultural lawsonTuesday.PTI

Top court to hearCBI appeal againstPinarayi’s discharge

LAVALINGRAFTCASE

New Delhi

8THEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY,SEPTEMBER30,2020

EXPRESSNETWORKWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

GUJARAT

Vadodara:ThreedeadinbuildingcollapseVadodara: Three peoplewere killed and onewasinjured when a three-storey building inVadodaracollapsedintheearly hours of Tuesday.According to local resi-dents, the building wasoriginally at least threedecadesoldandundergo-ingarenovation.Thethreedeceasedwere construc-tionworkerswhowereliv-ing in thebuilding toexe-cute renovation andrestructuring work.VadodaraChiefFireOfficerParth Brahmabhatt said,"The four persons weretrappedunder a slab andthe operation (to rescuethem)wentonforalmostthree hours... All wereshiftedtohospitalandonlyonesurvived.ENS

Thebuildingwasbeingrenovated.

BRIEFLY

MAHARASHTRA

AspiringactordiesbysuicideinMumbaiMumbai:A26-year-oldas-piring television actor al-legedlydiedby suicide athis rented flat onSunday.Accordingtopolice,AkshatUtkarsh,fromMuzaffarpurinBihar,was stresseddueto lack of work and hadborrowedmoneyfromhisfriendsandfamily.Nosui-cide notewas recovered,police said. Utkarsh,whohadshiftedtoMumbaitwoyearsago,wasstayingasapayingguest ina flatwithowner Sneha Chauhan.PolicesaidChauhan,inherstatement, said the actorwasstressedduetolackofworkandwasrunningoutofmoney. ENS

TAMILNADU

Womankillshusband,triestoclaimaccidentCoimbatore:AwomanwasarrestedhereonTuesdayon charges of killing herhusbandwithaknife, po-licesaid.FranklinBrittowasbroughttohospitalwithin-juries to theneckandab-domen and doctors de-claredhimbroughtdead.On inquiry, Carolyn toldpolice that her husbandsustainedtheinjuriesacci-dentally when she sud-denlyturnedwhilecuttingvegetables.However, shecrackedduring sustainedinterrogation and con-fessedthatshehadstabbedherhusbandduringanar-gument,policesaid. PTI

BhupendraRana

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEPUNE,SEPTEMBER29

ACOURTinPunehasrejectedtheanticipatory bail application ofveteran theatre and film actorVikramGokhale in connectionwith a case of alleged cheatingandfraudovera25-year-oldlanddevelopment project atMulshi.Thecourt,however,grantedhimprotection from arrest tillOctober 17 so that he can ap-proachtheBombayHighCourt.InMarch, a criminal offence

was registered against Gokhale(79) and two others, JayantMhalgi and hiswife Sujata. Thecasepertains toaProjectGirivanby a company named SujataFarms, floated by Mhalgi andSujata.Gokhalewasthechairman

ofthecompany,buthehasmain-tained thatheresigned fromthepositioninJanuary.Public Prosecutor Pushkar

Sapresaidthatafterthecourtre-jectedGokhale'spleaforanantic-ipatorybail, thedefence lawyerssoughttimetoapproachtheHighCourt against the order. OnMonday, the court grantedGokhaleprotectionfromarresttillOctober17toapproachtheHighCourt.Thecopiesof theseorderscouldbeaccessedonTuesday.Thecomplainantsinthecase

have alleged that they werecheated because the land plotstheywere given actual posses-sionofaredifferent,andinmanycasessmaller,thantheonespur-chasedby themviasaledeeds.Gokhale could not be

reached forcomment.

BhimArmychiefChandrashekharAzadprotestsoutsideSafdarjungHospital inNewDelhi. TashiTobgyal

ATIKHRASHIDPUNE,SEPTEMBER29

FILMMAKERSHEKHARKapurhasbeenappointed chairmanof thegoverningcounciloftheFilmandTelevisionInstituteof India(FTII).“Ministryof Informationand

Broadcasting today announcedShekhar Kapur as the newPresident of FTII Society andChairman of FTII GoverningCouncil. His tenure will be tillMarch 3, 2023,” said a commu-nique fromPune-basedFTII.Kapur, known for films like

Masoom (1983),Mr India (1987),Elizabeth(1998)andBanditQueen(1994),willreplacetelevisionpro-ducer B P Singh. Singh’s tenurehadendedinMarch2020buthe

wasgivenanextensionowingtothecoronavirussituation.Singh was appointed FTII

chairman inDecember2018af-ter his predecessor, actorAnupamKher,abruptlyresignedfrom the post citing interna-tional shootingassignments.

The FTII students' body saidthat Kapur's appointmentcomesatanimportantmoment."There has been a constant at-tackonpubliceducationalinsti-tutions inthecountrywithcon-tinuousfeeshikesandcurbingofstudent voices of dissent andrepresentation.WehopeShekarKapur, a noted filmmaker, willcarry forward the vision of theinstitution and take it forward.We strongly urge him to takenote of the ongoing fee hike is-sues and curbing of students’voicesintheAcademicCouncil,"said Aadith V Sathvin, whoheads theFTII students' body.FTIISocietyhas24members

comprising 12 ex-officiomem-bers and 12 persons from thefieldof art andculture.

ShekarKapur

Filmmaker Shekhar Kapur namedFTII governing council chairman

REALESTATEFRAUDCASE

Court rejects anticipatorybail plea of Vikram Gokhale

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI, SEPTEMBER29

THESUPREMECourtonTuesdayasked the Jammu and Kashmir(J&K) administration if formerChiefMinisterMehboobaMufti’sdetentionunderthePublicSafetyAct (PSA) can be extended be-yondayearand, if so, “howlongdoyouproposetoextendit”.“How longhas thedetention

been for and onwhat grounds?Can the detention be extendedbeyondoneyear?”JusticeSKKaulasked Solicitor General TusharMehtawhoappearedforJ&K.The two-JudgeBench,which

included JusticeHrishikeshRoy,was hearing a a plea filed byMehbooba'sdaughter,IltijaMufti,challengingthedetention.TheBench asked the J&Kad-

ministration to respond to Iltija'splea,andfixedthematterforhear-ing onOctober 15 to enable theCentretofileitsaffidavitandIltija

tofileacountertoanaffidavitfiledby the J&K administration onMonday. “Wealsowant toknowtheproposal of the government,andhow longdoyoupropose toextend it (Mehbooba’s deten-tion),”theBenchtoldMehta.TheSGsaidhewouldaddress

the Bench on these aspects.SayingMehbooba's detentionwason thegroundofmaintain-ing public order, he sought tohighlight some of her state-mentsmadeatthetimeofabro-gationofArticle370.InanaffidavitfiledonMonday,

theSrinagarDMsaiddetailedcon-siderationof thematerial on thebasisofwhichMehboobawasde-tained showed her “past con-duct...in glorifying militants,brazenlyincitingreligiontodividepeople”, “demoralising securityforces”and“proclivity to indulgeinsuchbehaviourinfuturewhichwould be highly prejudicial tomaintenanceofpublicorder...”The “petitioner herself ad-

mitsthatsomeofthespeechesofthedetenuglorifiedmilitantsorweredivisive innature, thus therationalnexuswithdisturbanceto public order is amply borneout by the petitioner’s own ad-mission,” saidtheaffidavit.Referring to the charge that

he did not apply his mind towhether such speech hadcausedbreachofpublicpeaceinthepast,theDMsaidthisdefeatsthepurposeof preventive legis-lationwhichisto“pre-emptany

prejudice to maintenance ofpublicorder”.“The grounds of detention

and the dossier clearly indicatethereexistsaliveandproximatelink in the events that occurredin the past, the activities of thedetenu and the possibility ofsuch activities beingprejudicialtomaintenanceofpublicorder,”said theaffidavit.“Itistritelawthatthepastcon-

duct or antecedent history of apersoncanappropriatelybetakeninto account inmaking adeten-tion order,” it said. “It is usuallyfromprior events showing ten-denciesorinclinationsofaperson(that) a decision canbe takenbythedetainingauthorityregardingthe likelihoodof the saidperson,in the future, acting in amannerprejudicialtothemaintenanceofpublicorder,” itsaid.The affidavit said

Mehbooba’s “acts... squarely fellwithintherealmofpublicorder,as it was calculated to disturb

publicpeaceandtranquillity”.“Itisneedlesstoemphasisethattheincitementof thepublicatlarge,pertains topublicorder,” it said.The affidavit saidMehbooba

hadnotavailedtheremedyavail-ableunderPSA—tomakearep-resentation to the government.The “order of detention alongwith grounds of detention,dossier and documents inEnglish language, on the basiswhereof detention order waspassed,weresuppliedtothede-tenu in order to enable her tomakeaneffectiverepresentationas stipulated in law,” it said.Subsequently, these were re-ferredtotheadvisoryboard,“butthedetenu...despitebeingawareof the same and being madeawareof thesame,purposefullyfailed tomake a representationbeforethesaidadvisoryboard”,itsaid.TheaffidavitalsosaidthatIltija

shouldhavefirstapproachedtheJ&KHighCourt.

MehboobaMufti

211DAYSSINCEPANDEMICBEGAN

KEYSTATESTOWATCH■Maharashtra■Andhra■TamilNadu■UttarPradesh■Delhi

7 DAYS EARLIER:

1.60NOW:

1.57

7 DAYS EARLIER:

8.52NOW:

8.41

DETECTED TODAY

70,589RECOVERED TODAY:

84,877

TOTALCASES13,51,1536,81,1615,86,3973,90,8752,73,098

DOUBLINGTIME**50.8066.5772.7658.6854.82

SURGEIN24HOURS11,9215,4875,5893,7901,984

7-DAYAVGGROWTH*1.42%1.08%0.99%1.23%1.31%

TRACKING INDIA’SCOVIDCURVE

CASES:6,145,291TESTS: 73,110,041| DOUBLING RATE: 50.24**

RECOVERED:51,01,397DEATHS:96,318

*CompoundedDailyGrowthRateover last7days **Calculatedover7-daygrowth

DataasonSeptember28, releasedbyUnionMinistryofHealth, ICMRandstates.Oftendailynumbersincludedatafrompreviousdays.Assuch, trendsbasedondailynumbersare indicative,notdefinitive

CASE FATALITY RATIO

Deaths as a ratio ofpositive cases (in %);indicator of progressin averting deaths

Positives againstnumber tested

(in %); indicator ofthe spread of disease

Becoming sick vsrecovering; more

recoveries for 14 daysmay signal the peak

POSITIVITY RATE DAILY IN, DAILYOUT

NAVEEDIQBALSRINAGAR,SEPTEMBER29

TWOCIVILIANSwhowerebeingquestioned for their role in theJuly 18Amshipora encounter inShopianhavebeenremanded inseven-daypolicecustodybyChiefJudicialMagistrate,Shopian.Of the two, whose names

havenotbeenofficiallyreleasedby J&K Police, one comes fromShopian district and the otherfromPulwama.Sources told The Indian

Expressthatthetwohadworkedas“informers” for theArmyandare suspects in the killing ofthreecivilians intheAmshiporaencounter.A thirdsuspect,whohadbeendetainedforquestion-ing,hasnotbeenarrestedso far.Threepeople hadgiven their

finaldepositionbeforetheArmyCourt of Inquiry on Saturday.Sources said the threewere “thelast contacts of the three de-ceased”andarebeingquestionedfortheirrole intheincident.On September 18, the Army

hadconfirmedthat identitiesofthe three killed at Amshiporamatched thoseof threemissinglabourers from Rajouri: AbrarAhmed (25), Imtiyaz Ahmed(20),andMohammedIbrar(16).On September 25, Inspector

General (Kashmir Zone) VijayKumar had said that DNA sam-ples of the three deceasedlabourersmatched those of thefamilies fromRajouri.Thepolicehadearliersaidthat

“militant links” of the threelabourersareunderinvestigation.However, sources said claimsmadebythe“Armysources”willbe verifiedwhen they are offi-ciallyhandedovertothepolice.Families of the victims had

contested the security force’sversion that the three killed inthe Amshipora encounterwere“terrorists”afterseeingtheirpic-turesonsocialmedia.Since the confirmation of

DNAmatch,theyhavedemandedthat the bodies of the threecousinsbereturnedtothem.

ANANYATIWARI &ASADREHMANNEWDELHI, LUCKNOW,SEPTEMBER29

THE OPPOSITION on Tuesdaytargeted the BJP government inUttar Pradesh over the death ofthe 19-year-old Dalit woman,whowasallegedlygangrapedbyfourupper-castemeninHathras.In Delhi, BhimArmy leader

Chandrashekhar Azad and hissupportersheldaprotestoutsideSafdarjungHospital, where thewomandied.As protesters raised slogans

againsttheUttarPradeshgovern-ment,thewoman'sfathertoldTheIndianExpress:“Wejustwantjus-tice,thatisall.”Thefamily,andprotesters,de-

mandeddeathpenaltyforthecul-prits, and anassurance from thestate government that itwouldensurejustice.Althoughthepost-mortemwas over by afternoon,the family refused to leave. “Norepresentative of the central or

stategovernmenthasmetus.Wewill not leave till one of themmeetsusandpromisesusjustice.Wewant justice,wewantdeathpenaltyfortheculprits,”saidarel-ative. After hours of protests andnegotiationswith officials, thefamilyfinallyleftforHathrasintheevening.Whilethefamilywaited,sev-

eral Dalit leaders joined theprotest. “We demand deathpenalty for the culprits. The girlshouldhavebeentakentoAIIMS,likewe had demanded earlier.This government does notwanttheDalitcommunitytorise,”saidAzad.“WewillnotbackdowntillourDalitdaughtergetsjusticeandtheculprits arehanged,” saidRajKumar Diwan from the AkhilBharatiyaValmikiSabha.Several Congress and AAP

leadersalsoreachedthehospital.“ThefamilyshouldbegivenRs50lakhcompensationandagovern-mentjob,”saidCongressleaderPLPunia.TheCongressalsoheldprotests

inUP. A candlelightmarchwas

held outside the party office inLucknow.“Thegirlwhofacedan-imallikebehaviourinHathrassuc-cumbed. For two weeks, shefoughtwithdeathinhospitals.Thestatehasbeenshakenbyrapein-cidentsinHathras,Shahjahanpurand Gorakhpur, one after theother…The lawandorder situa-tioninthestateisterrible...nosignof safety forwomen in the state.Thekillersmustget themost se-verepunishment.YogiAdityanath,youareanswerable for thesafetyofwomen in the state,” tweetedparty general secretaryPriyankaGandhiVadra.“Abrutalmurderofadaughter

afterherrape.Thebodywastakenawaywithoutinformingthefam-ily members. It has become ahobbyofthisgovernmenttomur-der democracy,” tweeted stateCongresschiefAjayKumarLallu.“Thistenureof theBJPisdiffi-

cult for thedaughters andsistersof the state,” Samajwadi PartypresidentAkhileshYadav said inastatement.HesaidsomeSPlead-erswere stopped by the police

when they went to meet thewoman'sfamilymembers.“ThenewsoftheDalitvictim’s

deathaftergangrapeisverytragic.Thegovernmentshouldensureallhelptothefamily,andshouldalsoensure that the case isheard inafast-track court,” tweeted BSPchiefMayawati.At a press conference in

Lucknow,AAPleaderinchargeofUttar Pradesh and Rajya Sabhamember Sanjay Singh alleged:“TheBJPgovernment is standingwith the accused instead of thegirlsofthestate”.HealsotargetedMayawati.“IwasseeingMayawatiji’sstatement.ItseemedlikeaBJPmouthpiece.YouareaDalitleaderandafour-timeCMandyoucan’traiseyourvoiceevenaftersuchanincident.Thisissad,”hesaid.“Thedeathof theHathrasvic-

tim isamatterof shamefor soci-ety... It is very sad that somanywomenarebeing rapedandweareunable toprovidethemsecu-rity.Theculpritsshouldbehangedassoonaspossible,”tweetedDelhiChiefMinisterArvindKejriwal.

HATHRASWOMAN’SDEATH

Justwant justice, saysfather; Oppn targets UP govt

DIPANKARGHOSENEWDELHI, SEPTEMBER29

CRIMES AGAINST women in-creased7.3percentfrom2018to2019, and crimes againstScheduled Castes alsowent up7.3 per cent in the same period,accordingtotheannualNationalCrimeRecordBureau’s“CrimeinIndia” 2019 report released onTuesday.In terms of absolute num-

bers,UttarPradeshreportedthehighestnumberof cases inboththese categories. But Assam re-portedthehighestrateofcrimesagainstwomen (per lakhpopu-lation),whileRajasthanhad thehighest rate of crimes againstScheduledCastes.“A total of 4,05,861 cases of

crimeagainstwomenwere reg-isteredduring2019, showinganincrease of 7.3% over 2018(3,78,236 cases). Majority ofcases under crime againstwomen under IPC were regis-teredunder ‘crueltybyhusbandorhisrelatives’(30.9%),followedby‘assaultonwomenwithintentto outragehermodesty’ (21.8%),‘kidnapping & abduction ofwomen’(17.9%)and‘rape’(7.9%).Thecrimerateregisteredperlakhwomen population is 62.4 in2019incomparisonwith58.8in2018,”says theNCRBreport.UPreportedthehighestnum-

ber of crimes against women(59,853), accounting for 14.7percentofsuchcasesacrossthecoun-try. Itwas followedbyRajasthan(41,550 cases; 10.2per cent) andMaharashtra(37,144cases;9.2percent).Assamreportedthehighestrate of crime againstwomen at177.8 (per lakh population), fol-lowed by Rajasthan (110.4) andHaryana(108.5).Rajasthan reported thehigh-

est number of rapeswith 5,997cases,followedbyUP(3,065)andMadhyaPradesh(2,485).Intermsof rate of rape cases, Rajasthanwas thehighest at15.9 (per lakh

population), followed byKerala(11.1)andHaryana(10.9).UPalsohadthehighestnum-

berofcrimesagainstgirlchildrenunderthePOCSOActwith7,444cases, followed byMaharashtra(6,402)andMP(6,053).Thehigh-est rate of these crimeswere inSikkim(27.1perlakhpopulation),MP(15.1), andHaryana(14.6).UPhadthehighestnumberof

dowrycases(2,410),atarateof2.2(perlakhpopulation),followedbyBihar(1,120).Accordingtothere-port, 150 acid attackswere re-ported in2019, ofwhich42 tookplaceinUPand36inWestBengal.The report, which runs into

threevolumesand isover1,500pages,saysatotalof45,935caseswereregisteredascrimeagainstScheduled Castes (SCs), “show-inganincreaseof7.3%over2018(42,793cases)”.“Crime rate registered

showed an increase from 21.2(per lakhpopulation) in 2018 to22.8 in 2019. Crime head-wisecases revealed that simple hurtwith28.9%(13,273cases)formedthe largest chunk of cases ofcrimes/ atrocities againstScheduledCastesduring2019. Itwas followed by cases underSC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities)Actwith 9.0% (4,129 cases), andcasesunderrapewith7.6%(3,486cases),” says thereport.UP reported themost cases

againstScheduledCastes–11,829cases,accountingfor25.8percentof thecasesacrossthecountry. ItwasfollowedbyRajasthan(6,794cases; 14.8 per cent) and Bihar(6,544; 14.2 per cent). However,therateofsuchcaseswashighestinRajasthanat55.6(perlakhpop-ulation), followed byMP (46.7)andBihar(39.5).Rajasthanalsohad thehigh-

estnumberofrapesagainstDalitwomen (554), followed by UP(537) andMP (510). The rate ofrape against Dalit womenwashighest inKeralaat4.6(per lakhpopulation), followed by MP(4.5) andRajasthan (4.5).

SC to J&K admn: Can Mehbooba’sdetention be extended beyond a year

Two questionedin Shopianencounter killingby Army sent to7-day custody

UPtopscrimesagainstwomen,SCs

NCRB data: 7%rise in crimesagainst women

SHIVNARAYANRAJPUROHITNEWDELHI, SEPTEMBER29

THENATIONAL Green Tribunal(NGT)hasexpressedconcernaf-ter six states asked theMinistryof Environment, Forests andClimateChangetowhittledownthe size of eco-sensitive zone(ESZ)undertheecologicallyfrag-ileWesternGhatsby6,386.65sqkm.“There is demand for more

and more exclusion by thosewho claim the need for ‘devel-opment’whileneedfor‘environ-mentprotection’doesnotallowacceptance of such demands.Thisaspectneedstobefinalisedandhasbeenpendingconsider-ation for the last about eightyears,”anNGTbenchheadedby

Tribunal chairman AdarshKumar Goel said in an orderpassedonTuesday.TheWesternGhatscover six

states — Gujarat, Maharashtra,Goa,Karnataka,KeralaandTamilNadu. The K KasturiranganCommittee had in 2012 ear-markedaround60,000sqkmasESZ. In 2014, the thenMoEF is-sued a draft notification declar-ing56,825sqkmintheWesternGhatsasESZ.Sincethen,ithasissuedthree

moredraftnotificationsandhasyettotakeafinalcallontheclas-sification.Ofthesixstatesthathavesug-

gested reduction in ESZ,Maharashtrahassoughtthehigh-estexemptionat2,570.88sqkm,followed by Kerala (1,337.24 sqkm), Karnataka (1,571 sq km),Goa(754sqkm),Gujarat(129sq

km) and Tamil Nadu (24.53 sqkm).Maharashtra has also sug-gestedaseparateareaspreadover1,740sqkmtobeincludedinESZ.The notification has been

hanging fire for more than adecade, asmany states and theCentre believe that once areasundertheGhatsareclassifiedasESZ,developmentactivitieswillbeoff-limits.“Thatthereisaconcernofthe

States about prohibition of cer-tain activities having implica-tions on medical care, healthcare and education,” MoEFCCsaid inanaffidavit toNGT.Theministrysaidsomestates

areconcernedthattwocommit-teereportsondelineationof theWestern Ghats were based onthe2001census.

FULLREPORTONwww.indianexpress.com

NGT concerned as 6 states want 6k sqkmto be taken off Western Ghats eco zone

New Delhi

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India has larger med tech companies,but predominantly trading Chinese prod-ucts, refurbished machines or selling prod-ucts that are not compliant with interna-tional safety standards. India is still lackingin enforceable safety and performanceregulations.The Large MNCs have broughtin advanced technology and Complianceto India but rarely develop core technol-ogy or products from concept to end of lifein India.There are another breed of“Makein India”Champions who import full mod-ules and components from China andother countries and sell them directly orpackage them in Indian Sheet metal en-closures to show them as made in india.Many of these have mastered the art ofmanaging Govt tenders and have a goodportion of their revenues coming fromGovt sales. Putting everything together,Indian Med tech manufacturing is lessthan 10% of the 4 Billion US Dollarsmedtech buy.

Here is the story of Covid ventilators:Skanray has been manufacturing and ex-porting Advanced ICU ventilators since2014.The GOI and the state governmentshave been buying ventilators from Chinain large quantities while Skanray sold inthe premium Private sector or exported todeveloped countries. The popular Euro-pean and the US brands too sold to theGovernment but in much smaller quanti-ties.

Come Covid and the only choice beforethe Govt was to scout for Domestic manu-facturers and Skanray / Max ventilators ofAB industries were the only ICU ventilatormanufacturers with long domain experi-ence.The rest of the ventilator story is therein overdose and variety in public domain.Many start-ups, JV,Cheap imports, secondhand machines, scams,accolades, theoriesand metaphysics emerged during this pe-riod.Our Nethas congratulated each otherfor creating products for Covid in a shorttime.The truth was that we always existedand exported while the successive Gov-ernments slept over this critical health sec-tor and imported for reasons best known toall of us dealing with the Govt.

On the 18th of March, 2020 we got acall from Niti-Ayog, Health and defenceministries requesting for 100,000 ventila-tors for the national calamity.The underly-ing story here is that the states and centrecouldn’t import from China or elsewhereduring Covid since these countries had do-mestic shortages and compulsions of theirown.China chose to cater to the Europeanand American markets first since theycould realise almost double the price thatthey could get in India. China had starteddismantling Covid hospitals in April andhad lots of sparingly used machines readyto export. Not many know that importsfrom China has grown significantly sincemarch 2020 in medtech while we all havebeen screaming "Atma Nirbhar" and"Make in India" from our rooftops. Mostindian manufacturers believe that cheapimports may replace the domestic buy oncelife is back to normal.This rush for Make inindia may last just as long as the covid virusthat came from China followed by theirproducts that helped combat the virus.

For us it was a cruel comedy to watchall kinds of hype peddled in the name ofAtma Nirbhar Bharat. Even in a nationalcalamity, many state governments in-dulged in large scale chinese imports, cor-ruption and scandals in covid treatmentand the indian banks never lent anyone ontime. It was the CDC that is owned by the

UK Govt that came forward quickly withan offer for working capital,not the Indianbanks nor the state or central Govts.

We have payments as old as 3 yearsfrom theAndhra,Telangana and Chhattis-garh Govts that never comes with anyamount of follow up or legal notices.Funny part is that these same Govts areasking us to set up facilities in their statepromising crores in Grants. Our Legal sys-tem will take decades to deliver justice.This is the story of hundreds of companiesworking with the Govts. Unless this isfixed,we will never have anAtma NirbharBharath with self-respect and dignity.

The only silver lining was the speed atwhich the PMO,BEL,DRDO,the Ministry ofExternal affairs,Commerce,health and de-fence worked round the clock to help us de-liver the 30,000 units the GOI placed for theSkanray CV 200 advanced ICU ventilatorson BEL. It was a clean GOI to GOI transac-tion with no scope for middlemen or graft.

It would be misguiding the public if wedidn’t bring out the positive changes wesee with the GOI in the last few years .

The central govt and a significant chunkof the bureaucracy has changed for good.We find the GOI spending long hours onkey policy matters and long term plans forthe nation that may not bring rich electoraldividends . Compared to the past wherewe had very little talk on long term poli-cies and lots of debates on sops, freebies,subsidies, minority, majority, backward,forward issues linked strongly to the elec-toral politics of the country.

Corruption in the central Governmenthas reduced significantly while most stateGovts cutting across party lines continued

to be as corrupt and bureaucratic as ever.The decisions and execution may not bealways right, they may not have deliveredthe results expected ,but at least there is asincere effort towards transparency, to-wards transforming the nation. It’s time tocapitalise this leadership and good inten-tions of the Centre.

Here are some concrete steps to build arobust and self-reliant med-tech industry.

1Atma Nirbhar in Med tech is local R&D and innovation with a min of 70%

value add manufacturing in India.Assemblyor labelling of Chinese/ imported kits is notMake in India.

2A 10 year undisturbed R & D, Manu-facturing, Global compliance plan is

the foundation of Atma Nirbhar Bharat.We just can’t have “make in India” prod-ucts that can’t be sold in US, Europe,Japan and the rest of the world. A Suc-cessful Atma Nirbhar should also get ussignificant exports.

3Backward integration and quality supplychain is the core of creating a manufac-

turing eco system. We are far away fromwhat the world expects from an alternativeto Chinese capabilities as a global supplier.Our Democracy and English speaking pop-ulation is nice for poetry, not enough forcompanies to move away from China andset base in India, but we can surely getthere. There is an urgent need for pre-dictability in Government policies.Politicalparties need to look at long term collabo-rative work so that the successive govern-ments won’t overturn earlier policy deci-sions. There is a need to relook at thepolitical system and policies to reassureGlobal companies and investors that thereis continuity of policy and time bound ap-provals. Its time to stop talking and startexecuting.

4Law of reciprocity should be appliedby the Indian Government to coun-

tries that impose high tariff on Indiangoods and use the regulatory route to de-lay or block the entry of indian products.We have some countries that have 67%tariffs on Indian products while the Indiangovernment buys large volumes fromthese same countries levying 5% importduties. There are free trade agreementsthat the GOI signed several years agowith countries that never let Indian goodsin their shore . Blocking imports or levyinghigh import duties will be detrimental toIndian manufacturing sector since cheap,unsafe, substandard products will be soldin the indian market in the name of Makein India andAtma Nirbhar. Its a balancedstep that the MEA, Commerce ministryand Finance ministry has to take looking atall aspects of business, trade and neigh-borly relations.

5Development of Indian industry is notjust providing land.Most of what state

Govts do is focus on acquiring fertile agri-cultural land and sell to the industry at sub-sidised rates.This has led to land hoardingby industrialists and real estate sharkslargely controlled by politicians. Disallowchange of use of industrial land pan Indiaand bring in strong laws to reacquire in-dustrial land not fully utilised in 3 years.Millions of sq kms of land will be freed indays. Its worthwhile to go back and checkthe story of the SEZ, ESDM , tech parks,clusters that came up since 2000 and seewhat happened to all these schemes. Thetruth will be out. For a Med Tech / coremanufacturing sector, land is the last thingto worry. Skilled engineers, quick and reli-able IMPEX policies and clearances,Friendly and consistence tax laws,matured,honest, researched IT , GST laws sans ac-tivism and harassment are more importantthan just land and sops.

6Fab facility for semiconductors is some-thing that India lacks to become truly

Atma Nirbhar in Electronics and Med techwhich has forex impact higher than that ofpetroleum imports. India had a semicon-ductor complex in Chandigarh that got de-stroyed in fire and we never have been ableto get semiconductor Fab in India even afterdecades of meetings and discussions. It’stime we look at this on top priority.BEL hada semiconductor transistor and IC manu-facturing unit which is now decommis-sioned.

7Vibrant Domestic market and health-care/ Medtech market is the basis for

new investments and growth. The MNC`scame to India at the same time they set

base in China. Indian Med tech market andhealthcare penetration has been dismalwhile China grew a hundred times. Com-panies that brought in R & D / Manufactur-ing lost money and interest to invest dueto poor domestic demand, corruption intenders and high attrition in trained R & Dstaff.China provided a strong supplier basewith the Government supporting them togain domestic market and exports. Ofcourse China used this to build its own localskills, its own Atma Nirbhar China and in-house technology disregarding interna-tional IP laws.

Currently the healthcare delivery pene-tration in India is less than 20% in its huge1.4 Billion population. Increasing thehealthcare delivery and insurance cover to40% of the population will spurn a 500%growth in healthcare delivery , Medtech,pharma, consumables, health tourism,telemedicine,homecare and help India be-come a Global healthcare hub. The Govtshould should keep off in pricing mattersof education, healthcare and farm sectorunless it provides a sustainable market andstability.Growth and competition will reg-ulate the price anyway more effectivelythan Govt in the long run. The govt has norole in pricing for a 100% privately fundedsector that is alive inspite of the govern-ment and not because of the Govt or itspolicies.

It was European / Scandinavian tech-nologies that China scaled in the mobilemarket to make cheap cell phones and ser-vices to the entire world. India has a uniqueopportunity to do the same in Healthcare.With its versatile and strong tech base,withits strong democracy, with its value sys-tems, respect for IP, 80% lower cost in coreresearch budgets, 70% cheaper in engi-neering, V & V, testing , SW developmentcosts, 50% higher productivity in labourcosts, Healthcare is above 500 Billion US$forex earner for India if the Govt and indus-try works with speed,oneness and serious-ness.

Med tech in specific has nothing in com-mon with pharma,healthcare delivery busi-ness, consumables and services eventhough they are all bracketed as healthcareand brought under the pharma regulators.

China which is usually compared withIndia has more than 16,000 Medtech com-panies and 300 of them sized above Rs.1000 Cr,while India with a similar popula-tion,potential in technology and manufac-turing capabilities, lower cost of R&D andmanufacturing has very few companies inMed tech core technology .This is excludingthe few multibillion dollar MNCs operatingin India. Thanks to the hostile ecosystem,corruption, opaque tendering processes,weak quality vendor base and the patheticindian banking sector.

8Atma Nirbhar is not just “make in In-dia”. There is no country in the world

that is self-reliant in technology, raw ma-terials and market.So is India.

If China sheds its expansionist policiesand foster a long term relationship basedon equality and territorial integrity, India,China,Pakistan,Bangladesh,Afghanistan,Myanmar, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka andother neighbours can form a Asian unionwith a common currency, shared economyand an open border. We can together beself-reliant to a large extent and keephealthy balance of trade with US, Europe,Japan and rest of the world. It’s just that wehave to keep religion and beliefs private,stop expansionist attitude in territory or re-ligion,stop cross border terrorism and shunviolence in all forms. If Europe that foughtbloody wars just few decades ago can dis-solve the borders and become one largeeconomy, why can’t we create an AsianUnion?? Commerce, Finance and Foreignaffairs ministries need to be tied up closelyfor the long term good of the nation. For-eign affairs is the enabler of atma Nirbhar.

9If this can’t happen in reasonable time,India, Israel, Japan, US, UK, Italy, the

Middle East and few others can create alarger economic alliance of barter and shar-ing to cooperate in Food, Healthcare andknowledge sectors that are core to well be-ing. Covid has shown us that if the bordersare shut permanently in this Global econ-omy,the entire human race will be affectedand destroyed eventually. We are at riskwith Skewed Globalisation and blind na-tionalism.

10There is this new thinking thatneeds research and public debate

to develop consensus within the nation.Can we do away with GDP and Con-

sumerism based economy? Can we lookat a sustainable minimalistic society tofocus on just food self sufficiency, healthand happiness and rural empowermentwith a common spiritual awakening thanreligious fundamentalism? The time hascome to reset and Restart. Else nature willreset us for sure.

"Views expressed are that of the writer,and publication does not constitute

endorsement thereof"

Vishwaprasad ALVA is the founder and Managing Director of SkanrayTechnologies which is in the forefront of Medtech in India that also took Indian

Medtech Global. A Champion of Veganism, Telehealth, Primary educationreforms, Agricultural sector reforms, Mr Alva is born and brought up in

Mangalore in an Agrarian family. His father was in State Govt service andmother into Kannada literature. Mr Alva is an Alumni of St Aloysius,

Mangalore, AC Tech Karaikudi,a PG degree from NIT K and trained at Kirloskarinstitute of Advanced Management studies and GE Healthcare. Mr Alva has

exposure to Industry and society in about 20 countries around the world and hasbeen in the forefront of anti-Corruption Campaign, Social harmony and Ahimsa

apart from his association with Industry and education sectors.

9WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY,SEPTEMBER30,2020

New Delhi

EXPRESSNETWORK10 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY,SEPTEMBER30,2020

Regd. Office.: PSEB Head Office, The Mall, Patiala-147001CIN: U40109PB2010SGC033813; Website: www.pspcl.in

E-Tender Enquiry No. 285/P-3/EMP-W 11731 dt. 24.09.20 &Tender ID: 2020_POWER_54032_1Scope of Work: Breakdown/ preventive Mtc. & overhauling ofBFP’s/CEP’s/CWP’s/BCW’s/Misc. Pumps and allied auxiliaries of4x210 MW BHEL make units at GGSSTP, Roopnagar.Time period: One year EMD: Rs. 2,35,000/- fixed.Date & time upto which tender shall be received: 30.10.2020 & 11.00 AM.Date & time of opening of Tender: 06.11.2020 & 11.30 AM

Tender specification can only be downloaded from PSPCL web-site https://eproc.punjab.gov.in & no hard copy of the same will beissued by this office.Note:

1) In case any difficulty regarding uploading of the tender theprospective bidders are requested to get clarification from thisoffice and or M/s e-procurement system Government of Punjab.Contact No.+91-(172)-2970263/284. It is also requested to gettheir digital signature well in time so as to submit tenders throughe-tendering only.2. It is informed that in case tender process is not completed due toany reason, no corrigendum will be published in newspaper. Detailsregarding corrigendum may be seen on websiteeproc.punjab.gov.in.

Sd/-DY. SE/Monitoring,

GGSSTP, RupnagarRTP-39/2020

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ANDHRA PRADESH INTEGRATED IRRIGATIONAND AGRICULTURE TRANSFORMATION PROJECT

(World Bank Aided Project)Request for Bids (National Competitive Bidding)

Sd/- Superintending Engineer, Irrigation Circle, VijayawadaDIPR No.349PP/CL/ADVT/1/1/2020-21, Dt: 29/09/2020

Tender Notice No.01/APIIATP/2020-21, Dated: 28.09 2020Tender Notice No.02/2020-21, Dated: 28.09 2020

The Superintending Engineer, Irrigation Circle, Krishna District, PinCode: 520002, Andhra Pradesh invites Bids from the intending Biddersfor 14 Nos. of Works for an amount of Rs.843.00 Lakhs vide T.No.02/20-21Dt.28.9 2020 and District Project Director, APIIATP, Krishna & ExecutiveEngineer, Special Division, Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh invites Bid fromthe intending Bidders for the 1 No. of work for an amount of Rs.27.14 Lakhsvide T.No.01APIIATP/20-21 dt.28.9.2020 under “Andhra Pradesh IntegratedIrrigation and Agriculture Transformation Project (APIIATP) (World BankPhase-Ill)” from Dt: 05.10.2020 @ 11.00 hrs. to 12.11.2020 upto 17.00 hrs.For complete details visit us at: www.apeprocurement.gov.inQueries : For T.No.01/20-21 Dt.28.9.2020District Project Director, APIIATP, Krishna & Executive Engineer, SpecialDivision, Vijayawada, 520002, Andhra Pradesh. Contact No: 7901093085.Queries for T.No.02/20-21 Dt.28.09.20200/o Superintending Engineer, Irrigation Circle, Vijayawada-520002, KrishnaDistrict, Andhra Pradesh, Contact No: 0866-2575276, 7901093033.

HC allows ED, CBI pleas for earlyhearing on appeals in 2G scam casesSOFIAHSANNEWDELHI, SEPTEMBER29

THE DELHI High Court onTuesday allowed applicationsfiled by the EnforcementDirectorate (ED) and theCBI forexpedited and early hearing incases challenging acquittals ofthose accused in the 2G spec-trumcase.Thecourtorderedthatthepe-

titionsseekingleavetoappealbelistedforhearingonOctober5forahearingonday-to-daybasis.FormerUnion Telecommin-

isterARaja,DMKMPKanimozhiand others were acquitted in acase of money laundering andcorruption in the 2G spectrumcase2017.Withcourtsclosedduetothe

Covid-19pandemic,thepetitionsagainst acquittals in the alleged2G scam have not come up forhearingsinceMarch.TheEDandCBIhadrecentlyapproachedtheHCforanearlyhearinginthecase,as Justice Brijesh Sethi,whohaspart-heardoneof the appeals inthemattersinceOctober2019, issettoretireonNovember30.

Most people or partieswhowere previously accused in thecasehaveopposedtheprayerforexpeditious hearing in themat-ter.Incasetheargumentsremaininconclusive before the bench,the court was told, theywouldhave to be heard afresh by an-otherbench.Thecentralagenciesalso argued that the cases have“greatpublic importanceinvolv-ing issues of integrity amongstthe government functioning,whichhasplacedUnionof IndiainavulnerablepositionnotonlyinIndiabutglobally”.In Tuesday's order, Justice

Sethi said that he court is of theopinion that all attempts shouldbemade to hear thematter as

early as possible. “Though thiscourthaslimitedtime,yetnooneshould carry an impression thathewillnotgeta fairopportunityofhearing.Thiscourtassuresthateveryonewill be given an effec-tive hearing. However, it goeswithout saying that irrelevantandrepetitiveargumentsneedtobeavoided,” theorderstated.Observing that interests of

justice demand that part-heardmatters,asfaraspossible,shouldnotbeleftinconclusive,thecourtsaid the lawyers should assist insuchmatterstoavoidtheneedforfreshhearingbyanewbench,asthatwould cause “unnecessaryloss to thepublic exchequer andwastageof thejudicial time”.Rejecting the argument

against hearing of the casesthroughvideo-conferencing,thecourt said, “...thiscourthasbeenconducting hearing throughvideo conference since 24thApril, 2020, andcaseswhicharevoluminous in nature have alsobeen decided. This groundshould not, therefore, be an ex-cuse for this court or for thelearned counsels for not pro-ceedingwiththearguments...”

ARMY’SOFFICIALRECOMMENDATIONREPORTTODEFENCEMINISTRY

KRISHNKAUSHIKNEWDELHI, SEPTEMBER29

ANOFFICIALrecommendationre-port of Indian Army,which hasbeenunder discussionwith theDefenceMinistry for over a year,haspointedoutthat lossestotheexchequer due to poor qualityproductionofdefenceequipmentbyordnance factories since2014–estimatedat approximatelyRs960crore–couldhavebeenusedtobuy100155-mmmediumar-tillerygunssuchastheHowitzer.Inlatestitsreport,updatedtill

July,theArmyhasrecommendedcorporatisation of theOrdnanceFactoryBoard(OFB),whichalignswith the government’s plan tocorporatise the41ordnance fac-tories, 13 development centresandnineinstitutesoflearningun-dertheBoard.The government has ap-

pointedanEmpoweredGroupofMinisters (EGoM), headed by

DefenceMinister Rajnath Singh,to “oversee andguide the entireprocess,includingtransitionsup-port and redeployment plan ofemployeeswhile safeguardingtheirwagesandretirementbene-fits”. The EGoM, set up onSeptember 11, will also decidewhetherOFBshouldbeconvertedinto a single ormultiple govern-ment-ownedcorporateentities.Several employees’ unions

haveopposedthemoveandhavethreatened a nationwide strikestartingOctober12.OfRs960crorementionedby

theArmyreport, itsaidRs658.58croreworthof ammunitionwasdisposedofwithintheir shelf lifebetween April 2014 and April2019, andRs303.23 croreworthofminesweredisposedofwithintheirshelf lifesinceMay2016.Thereportstated:“Lackofac-

countability andpoor quality ofproductionresultsinfrequentac-cidents.Thisresultsininjuriesanddeathof soldiers.Onaverageone

accidenttakesplacesperweek.”Thereportstatedthat27lives

ofsoldiersandcivilianshavebeenlostand159peopleinjuredin“ca-sualtiesduetoOFB-manufacturedammunition and armament.”since2014.The reportmentioned that

403 suchaccidents occurredbe-tween2014and2019.Themaxi-mumnumberofmishaps–267–are related to the infantry. Therehavebeen87artillery-relatedac-cidents,44inthearmouredcorps,and15 in air defence, the reportstated.This is not the first time the

Armyhasraisedquestionsonsup-pliesunderOFB.Earlier thisyear,aninternalassessmenthadmen-tionedthatasOFBfactoriesarethe“main source of supply of armsand ammunition” to the Army,“anydropinqualityofOFBprod-ucts has amajor bearing onwarwagingpotentialof thecountry”.Similar to theArmy's recent

recommendation,theassessment

had found that since 2014 therehasbeen, onaverage, an ammu-nition-relatedaccident“every5.5[five-and-a-half] days or once aweek” . Itmentioned that acci-dents occur “primarily due tofaulty ammunition, defective ar-mament and faulty drills by thecrewoperatingtheequipmentorduetodeficienciesinstoragecon-ditions”.Isolatedaccidenttakeplacein

modernarmiesacrosstheworld,and IndianArmy is “facedwithaserious issueof regularaccidentsprimarilyduetodefectiveammu-nition”,theassessmentstated.It had identified someprob-

lemareasbesidesaccidents.Theseinclude defects in ammunitionand replacement of defectivecomponents; slowdevelopmentand production of ammunitionrequiredbytheArmy;lackof fol-low-upactionbyOFBonsurprisechecksorderedbytheArmy;poorpackaging; andahigh rate of re-turnforrectification.

Rs960cr lost since 2014 dueto faulty OFB ammo: Army

ESHAROYNEWDELHI, SEPTEMBER29

TRANSGENDER PERSONSwhowant to declaretheirdesiredsexwillnolongerhavetogothroughamedicalexaminationinordertodoso,accordingto the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights)Rules2020, issuedbytheUnionMinistryof SocialJusticeandEmpowermentonMonday.TheRules, first releasedasadraft in July, invit-

ingobjectionsandsuggestions,hadbeencriticisedby the LGBTQcommunity for “taking away’’ theirdignitybymandatingthatathirdperson,suchasaDistrictMagistrate,wouldverify,andsubsequentlycertify thegenderof aperson.NotifiedonSeptember25, theRulesnowstate

thattheDistrictMagistratewill“subjecttothecor-rectnessoftheapplicant’sparticulars,gettheappli-cationprocessedbasedontheaffidavitsubmitteddeclaringthegender identityof anyperson,with-out anymedical or physical examination, andthereafter, issue an identification number to theapplicant, which may be quoted as proof ofapplication.”Theapplicationtodeclaregenderistobemade

physicallytotheDistrictmagistrate,tillthesystemgoes online. Parentswill also be able tomake anapplicationonbehalf of theirchild.Transgender persons who have officially

recordedtheirchangeingender,whetherasmale,female or transgender, prior to theseRules com-ing into force will not be required to submit anapplication for certificate of identity.In the newRules,stategovernmentshavealsobeendirectedtoconstitutewelfareboardsfortransgenderper-sonstoprotecttheirrightsandinterests,andfacil-itate access to schemes and welfare measuresframedby theCentre.Theyalsocall forareviewofallexistingeduca-

tional, social security, health schemes, welfaremeasures, vocational training and self-employ-mentschemesto includetransgenderpersons.State governments are also required to take

stepstoprohibitdiscriminationoftransgenderper-sonsinanygovernmentorprivateorganisation,orprivate and public educational institution undertheirpurview, “andensureequitableaccess toso-

cial and public spaces, includingburialgrounds”.TheCentrehas furtherman-

datedthattransgender-sensitiveinfrastructure such as separatewards in hospitals and wash-roomsbeconstructedwithintwoyearsof theRulesbeingnotified.Everystategovernmentisre-

quired to also set up aTransgender Protection Cell un-der the chargeof the state’sDGPandDistrictMagistrates tomon-itor cases of offences againsttransgender persons and to en-sure timely registration, investi-gationandprosecution.

GOVERNMENT OF ODISHAOFFICE OF THE EXECUTIVE ENGINEER,

KALAHANDI RWS&S DIVISON, BHAWANIPATNA.INVITATION OF BID THROUGH e - TENDERING

Bid Identification No- 19/EE/RWSS/ 2020-21 /Bpt Dated. 25.09.202001. Name of the work: As perANNEXURE -A

Cost of tender paper & payment of EMD to be made online payment system.Further details can be seen from the e-procurement portal http://tenderodisha.gov.in.

Sd/- Executive Engineer,Kalahandi RWS&S Division, Bhawanipatna

Procurement Officer Bid identification No Availability of tender online forbidding on office hour only.

Date of opening(Technical Bid)

From To1 2 3 4 5

Executive Engineer, KalahandiRWS&S Division, Bhawanipatna

19/EE/RWSS/2020-21 /BptDated- 25.09.2020

01.10.202010.00 AM

21.10.2020 05.30PM

22.10.2020 10.00AM onwards

O-401

OIPR-25005/11/0005/2021

e-mail: eerwsskld@gmail.comeerwss_kld@nic.in

Phone No: 06670-230784

Transgender rulesissued: no medicalexam needed todeclare desired sex

FormerUnionTelecomministerARaja,DMKMPKanimozhiandotherswereacquittedinacaseofmoneylaunderingandcorruptioninthe2Gspectrumcase2017

JHEERAMGHATIATTACKCASE

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI, SEPTEMBER29

THESUPREMECourtTuesdaydis-missedtheChhattisgarhgovern-ment’s plea for adirection to thejudicial commissionprobing the2013JheeramGhatiMaoistattack,inwhich29people,includingsen-ior Congress leaderswerekilled,toexamineadditionalwitnesses.A bench headed by Justice

AshokBhushanpointedout thatthecommissionhadnotagreedtothestategovernment’srequesttoexaminemorewitnessesandhadclosedtheproceedings.“The Commission said in

September that itwill notexam-ine any new witnesses afterOctober 1, 2019… It said thosewhowantedtobeexaminedwill

fileanaffidavitbutnoonefiled…Youwantedtheexpertwitnesstobeexaminedbutcommissiondidnotagree.Youmayhaveextendedthe commission’s tenurebut thecommissionclosed theproceed-ings,” said the bench, also com-prisingJusticesRSubhashReddyandMRShah.Thestategovernmenthadap-

proachedthecourtagainsttheor-deroftheChhattisgarhHighCourtrejectingitspetitionfordirectionstoexamineexpertwitnesses.Appearing for the state gov-

ernment, Senior Advocate AMSinghvisaidthatafteranewgov-ernment came to power in thestate in2018, additional termsofreferenceweregiventothecom-mission but nothingwas done.Expert witnesses such as theDirectorofJungleWarfarehadnot

been examined, hesubmitted.However, the court pointed

outthatthecommisionhadaskedthosewhowanted to be exam-inedaswitnessestofiletheiraffi-davits.“Butnoonefiled.Howcantheybeexaminednow?”Chhattisgarh Congress chief

NandKumarPatel, formerleaderof opposition in the stateMahendra Karma, and formerUnion minister VidyacharanShuklawere among those killedin the attack inBastar district onMay25,2013.On May 28, 2013, the then

RamanSinghledBJPgovernmentinthestatehadsetupaspecialju-dicial enquiry commissionheaded and itwas tosubmit thereportinthreemonths.

-WITHPTIINPUTS

Apex court dismisses Chhattisgarhpetition to examine more witnesses

AISHWARYAMOHANTYBHUBANESWAR,SEPT29

WITHTHEissueofprivateeduca-tionalinstituteslevyingfeesamidthe pandemic pending in court,Odisha’s Department of SchoolandMassEducationhassubmit-tedareporttotheHighCourtpro-posing feewaiver slabs up to 30percent.“AnMoUhasbeensigned for

the feewaiver by 14memberswhohaveagreedforthewaiveroffees at a flat rate. Thewaiverwillonlybe applicable after theHighCourt'sdecision,”aseniorofficialfromthedepartmentsaid.Awaiver of 7.5 per cent has

been proposed for a fee slab ofRs 6,000-12,000, 12per cent forRs12,001-24,000,15percent forRs24,001-48,000,20percentforRs48,001-72,000,25percentforRs 72,001-1,00,000 and 26 percent for charges aboveRs1,00,000.For residential schools, a 30

per cent waiver has been pro-posedonhostelfees.

Odisha proposesup to 30 pc feewaiver for pvtschool students

New Delhi: UnionMinister forEnvironment,ForestsandClimateChange Prakash Javadekar onTuesday said his ministry onOctober1willholdavirtualmeet-ingwiththeenvironmentminis-ters, secretaries and StatePollutionControlBoardsofDelhi,Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan andUttarPradeshtoreviewtheirpre-parednesstohandleairpollutionin the comingmonths— inviewofstubbleburninginthestates.“This is a very important

meetingandwearetakingallpos-siblemeasures beforehand...Wehave heldmanymeetingswiththesestatesalready...Inthemeet-ingonOctober 1,wewill reviewtheworkthathasbeendoneoverthepast fewyears tomitigateairpollution, includingbyCPCBandbystates,”saidJavadekar. ENS

Stubble burning:Centre to meetpollution controlboards of 5 states

New Delhi

EXPRESSNETWORK 11WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY,SEPTEMBER30,2020

EOI : REGISTRATION OF VENDORS FOR SUPPLY OF DRUGS &NOTIFIED MEDICAL DEVICES AND CONSUMABLES TO MEDICAL

STORES, INHS ASVINI AT MUMBAIAPPLICATIONS are invited from Original Manufacturers/AuthorizedStockists/Dealers/Agents/Distributors for inclusion in Vendor Database as suppliersof Pharmaceutical Products/Medical Consumables/Medical Gases/Medical Devices.Application with supporting documents may be downloaded fromwww.defproc.gov.in. Performance of the existing vendors in the previous years willbe taken into consideration for continuation of inclusion in the Vendor Database.Application Form along with ink-signed/attested hard copies of all supportingdocuments duly completed in all respects is to be dropped in Quotation Box labeledas "VENDOR DATABASE" placed in Office of the Medical Stores, INHS Asvini, NearRC Church, Colaba, Mumbai — 400 005. The scanned copies of all documents areto be forwarded via e-mail to oic-medicalstores@navy.gov.in. Last date ofsubmission is within 21 days from the date of publication of this advertisement.INCOMPLETE APPLICATIONS WILL BE SUMMARILY REJECTED WITHOUTANY FURTHER COMMUNCATION TO THE CONCERNED. NOREPRESENTATION/ REQUEST FOR EXTENSION OF DATE WILL BEENTERTAINED.DETAILS ARE ALSO AVAILABLE AT www.defproc.gov.in. THE DETAILS OFCONTACT PERSON FOR ANY QUERY IS AS FOLLOWS:- OIC TENDERSECTION (MEDICAL STORES) ON TELEPHONE - 022-22143750

davp 10702/11/0046/2021

OMKARGOKHALEMUMBAI, SEPTEMBER29

THEBOMBAYHighCourtTuesdaysaid thatwhile it did not agreewithactorKanganaRanaut’stwe-ets against the state governmentandMumbaiPolice,ShivSenaMPSanjayRaut shouldhave shown“grace” and restraintwhile re-spondingtoher.Theobservationsweremade

byadivisionbenchof Justices S JKathawallaandRIChaglaafter itexaminedRaut’saffidavitinwhi-chheadmittedthattheexpletivehe used in an interview to a TVchannelwasdirectedatRanaut.On Monday, Raut’s lawyer

PradeepThorathadsaidthatashisclient had not taken Ranaut’sname, it couldnot be construedthatheverballyabusedtheactor.The benchwashearingRan-

aut’s plea against thedemolition

of alleged unauthorised alter-ationsatherPaliHillofficebytheBMCearlierthismonth.OnMonday,when the court

askedher to substantiate claimsthatRautabusedherverbally,heradvocateBirendraSaraf playedaclipofRautspeakingtoareporter.In his affidavit Tuesday, Raut

saidRanautdidnotapproachthecourtwithcleanhandsandhence,wasnot entitled to any relief. Hesoughtthatthepleabedismissed.“Idenythat Ihavethreatened

the petitioner on September 5newsvideoinaderogatoryandab-

usivemannerasalleged.IsaythatinthesaidinterviewIhaveonlyre-ferredtothepetitioneras‘dishon-est’ because the petitioner hadmadeastatementsayingMumbaiis like ‘Pak occupied Kashmir(PoK)’. I say that I had respondedbecause the petitioner had in-sultedMumbaiandMaharashtra.”Whenthecourtreferredtothe

“kanoonkyahai?” remarkmadebyRautwhilespeakingtothere-porter,hiscounselsaidthatitwasout of “provocation” and wasmadeafterthepetitioner(Ranaut)saidMaharashtraisnotsafe.

WithThoratnotappearingforthehearing,hisassociatesubmit-ted, “He (Raut) is not concernedwith this demolitionmatter. Heshouldhavebeenmoreresponsi-ble,buthehadnointentiontodis-respect the law. There was nothreateningmessage.”Tothis,JusticeKathawallasaid,

“You (Raut) area leader, aparlia-mentarian.Youshouldhavebeencautious while making state-ments. Evenwedon’t agreewithwhat thepetitioner (Ranaut)hassaid.Isthisthewaytoaddressit?”“We are allMaharashtrians

andweareallproudtobeMaha-rashtrians.Butthatdoesn’tmeanwego andbreakher house. Youhavetoshowgrace... Isthisanex-ampleyousetforothersbyasking‘kanoonkyahai’?”thejudgesaid.Seekingwritten submissions

from all parties in the case,the court posted thematter fornextweek.

ShivSenaMPSanjayRaut KanganaRanaut

SHAJUPHILIPTHIRUVANANTHAPURAM,SEPTEMBER29

AWARDINGLIFE imprisonmenttotheISISterroristSubahaniHajaMoideenonMonday,anNIAcourtinKochi said: “Howeasilyhede-ceived the Consul General inTurkey, his dexterity to keep thejourney of no return (as he be-lieved then) a secret fromall hiskinandhisforesightednesstouseamobile phone of a particularbrandpresumablyforallhisvitalcommunications demonstratethatnormalmethodsofreforma-tionwillbeineffectiveforhim.”Moideen, 35, of Thodupuzha

in Idukki,wasamemberof ISIS’sOmar al-Hindimodule, whichwanted to carry out terrorist at-tacksinSouthIndiaandestablishanISISunitinKerala.Sixothersinthemodule,whichwasbustedin2016,were convicted last year;manyareabsconding.The court's observation

stemmedfromtheunusual jour-

neyoftheyoungmanfromaTamiltradingfamilythatcametoKeraladecadesago, toareligious fanaticfascinated with ISIS who feltdeeplyattachedtoIraq,andhopedtohaverelativestherebymarriage.AccordingtotheNIA,Moideen

left fromChennai in April 2015and reached Mosul, Iraq viaIstanbulwiththeintentionofjoin-ingtheISIS’swarinSyriaandIraq.Hewas given 25 days’ “reli-

gious training” and 21 days’“weapon training”, whichwasmainlyaboutdismantlingandas-semblingautomaticrifles.Aspartofphysicaltraining,Moideenwasasked todoakickingexercise, inwhichhewassupposedtolandonhisleftfootaftercompletingakickwithhis right foot.However, ac-cordingtohisconfession,hefailedto landproperly, felt an “electricshock-like pain” in his left knee,

andcollapsedontheroughcem-entfloor.Histrainerssubsequentlyjudgedhimunfit for activewar-fare,andputhimonguardduty.One day, while he was on

guard duty, a shell killed twofighters, for which Moideenblamed himself. He asked forpermissiontoreturnhome,whi-chwas denied— andMoideenwasthrownintojail.Hewasfina-lly left inastreet, fromwherehecrossed the border into Turkey.At the Consulate in Istanbul, heliedthathewasatouristwhohadlost his documents, and that hewaswith a Sufi group. In Septe-mber2015,hereturnedto India,slippingpastsecurityagencies.Back inthecountry,Moideen

contacted an ISIS sympathiser,whomhehadmetonsocialme-dia.HealsoprocuredtwofakeSIMcards and, according to theNIA,“triedtocollect50kgeachofchlo-rate,phosphorus,sulphurandalu-minium powder, (explosives)which coulddestruct an areaupto5kmradius”.Before leaving for Istanbul,

Moideenhadestablishedcontactsin the ISIS in Iraq. The NIA hasfoundhechattedwithoneSaberAbdulla,withwhomhediscussedDaeshandDawlatul Islam, alter-nativenamesforISIS.InMay2014,hediscussed themost advancedlong-range sniper rifle and, in achatwithsomeonewith thedis-play name “Wa alikmalsalam”,sought advice on reaching Iraq.NIA has seized jackets andsweatersthatheusedinIraqfromhishouseinThodupuzha.AtThodupuzha,whichMoid-

eenleftafterhighersecondarysch-ool andwherehe returnedyearslaterasanamateursoftwarepro-fessional, ayouthwhoknowshisfamily, said: “WestartednoticingchangesinMoideenaround2013-14.Fromdenim,hestartedtowearablack turbananda longbeard,andgoonfrequentpilgrimages.’’TheNIA judgeobserved that

“theactof theconvict isablotonthe cultural conscience of thisstate” and “ablow to its pride asoneof themostprogressivesoci-etiesinthenation”.

SubahaniHajaMoideenat theNIAcourt inKochiMonday

Show grace, you are a parliamentarian: HC to RautRANAUTPALIHILLOFFICEDEMOLITION

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEBENGALURU,SEPTEMBER29

DESPITEOFFICIALSof theCentralCrimeBranch in Bengaluru notfindingdrugsinthepossessionoftwoKannadaactorsaccusedofbe-ingpartofadrugscandalinKarna-taka, a special court forNDPSActcaseshascitedthecollectiveseiz-ureofdrugsfromotheraccusedtorejectthebailpleasoftheactors.The bail pleas of Ragini

Dwivedi (30) and SanjjanaaGalrani (30), actorswho are ac-cusedwith14othersofbeingpartofaracketinvolvedinuseofdrugsat parties inBengaluru,were re-jected by the court,which citedcollective seizures aswell as al-legednon-cooperationbytheac-tors inprovidingdata fromtheirphonestothepolice.Dwivedi’s advocate con-

tendedthatnodrugswerefound

inherpossessionandthatanyal-legedamountofdrugsconsumedwasonlyasmallquantity.The NDPS court, however,

ruled that “whenall the accusedpersonshave committed theof-fencesundertheabovecrime,thequantity seized fromall the ac-cused together is to be consid-ered”.Thecourtcitedtheseizureof 12gramsof cocaine,55gramsof ganja, 11.5 grams of ecstasytablets and 10 grams ofMDMAfromallthearrested.RejectingDwivedi’s bail plea,

thecourtalsocitedpolicefindingsofcallrecordslinkinghertoanal-leged Senegalese national ar-rested for drug peddling inBengaluru.ForGalranitoo,thecourtcited

the collective seizure of drugsfromall theaccused to reject thebailplea.Galranihasbeenaccusedof deleting aWhatsApp groupwhereshewasaparticipantwith

afriendRahulThoshe(35)andot-herswhoallegedlyattendedpar-tieswheredrugswereavailable.ThebailpleaofThosheandan-

ticipatorybail pleas of twootheraccused— filmproducersVinayKumarandShivaprakash—werealsorejected.The CCB is investigating al-

leged drug use in parties inBengaluruonthebasisofinforma-tiongleaned froma2018seizureof1.5kgof cocainefromthreeal-legeddrugpeddlersincludingtwoAfricans,andarecentNCBbustofa racket to supply psychedelicdrugs forparties inBengalurual-legedlyinvolvingtwoyouthsfromKeralaanda24-year-oldwoman.

Court rejects Kannada actors’ bailpleas, cites collective drug seizure

GOVERNMENT OF NATIONALCAPITAL TERRITORY OF DELHI

OFFICE OF THE COMMISSIONER OF EXCISEL-BLOCK, VIKAS BHAWAN, I.P. ESTATE, NEW DELHI

No.F.10(56)/96-97/IMFL/EX/PF/1522-1539 Dated: 16.9.2020

ORDERIn pursuance of the provisions of Rule 52 of Delhi ExciseRules, 2010, it is hereby ordered that following dates shallbe observed as “Dry Day” in the National Capital Territoryof Delhi by all L-1, L-1F, L-2, L-3, L-4, L-5, L-6, L-6FG, L-6FE, L-7, L-7FG, L7FE, L-8, L-9, L-10, L-11, L-12, L-12F, L-14, L-18, L-23, L-23F, L-25, L-26, L-31, L-32, L-33, L-34and L-35 licensees and opium vends located in Delhi.

In addition to above, all L-16, L-17, L-19, L-20, L-21, L-22,L-28, L-29, P-10 and P-13 licensees shall observe dry dayon 02.10.2020 (Mahatma Gandhi’s Birthday).The licensees shall not be entitled to any compensation onaccount of any changes effected in the above list.

The restriction of sale on liquor on dry days mentionedabove shall not apply to the service of liquor to residents incase of hotels having L-15 license.

All the licensees shall exhibit this order at someconspicuous place of their licensed premises.

The business premises of a licensee shall be kept closedon dry day.

DIP/Shabdarth/0326/20-21

Sd/-(RAVI DHAWAN)

COMMISSIONER (EXCISE)

Sl.No Occasion Date DAY

1 Mahatma Gandhi’s Birthday 02.10.2020 Friday

2 Dussehra 25.10.2020 Sunday

3 Milad-un-Nabi or Id-e Milad(Birthday of Prophet Mohammad) 30.10.2020 Friday

4 Maharishi Valmiki’s Birthday 31.10.2020 Saturday5 Diwali (Deepavali) 14.11.2020 Saturday

6 Guru Teg Bahadur’s MartyrdomDay 24.11.2020 Tuesday

7 Guru Nanak’s Birthday 30.11.2020 Monday

Can’t say won’tdo anythingbecause it issensitive probe:Delhi HC to I&B

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEBHOPAL,SEPTEMBER29

SENIOR IPSofficer PurushottamSharma,whowasservingasaSpe-cialDG inMadhyaPradesh,wassuspendedonTuesdayeveningformoralturpitudeanddomesticvi-olence.Issuingtheorder,thestatehomedepartmentstatedthatac-tionhasbeen takenas Sharma’sresponse to theexplanationsou-ghtoversomevideosofhimbeat-inghiswifewasunsatisfactory.The suspension comes aday

after twovideosof Sharmawent

viral. Inone,hewasseenbeatinghiswife followingaheatedargu-ment.Inanother,Sharma'swifeisseen questioning him over hispresenceinaflatwithawoman.After the videos went viral,

Sharma, whowas holding thecharge of Special DG (Prosecu-tion), was relieved of his dutiesandattachedtothehomedepart-ment.Later,thedepartmentsou-ghtanexplanationfromhim.Meanwhile,Sharma’sdaugh-

terDewanshiGautamhaswrittento Chief Minister Shivraj SinghChouhan, supporting her fatherandurgingthestategovernment

tostop“degradinghisimage”.In the letter, Dewanshi has

stated that hermother has beensuffering froma chronic psychi-atricdisorder.Shehaswrittenthathermotherispartofthe“0.1per-cent” of women in the countrywho “use legal provisions toha-rassrespectablemen”.Dewanshihasallegedthather

mother has been constantly ha-rassingher fatherwhile he triedhisbesttomaintainthedignityofthefamily.ShehasurgedtheDGPtotake

action to stop these videos from“degradingherfather’s image”.

MP: Video of him beating wife viral, IPSofficer suspended for domestic violenceToMosul and back, Kerala ISISman’s

extraordinary brushwith terror

RHEABAILPLEA

NCB raises drugcrimes, sayscase should belesson for others

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEMUMBAI, SEPTEMBER29

THEBOMBAYHighCourtreserveditsordersTuesdayonbailpleasbyactorRheaChakraborty,herbrot-her Showikand threeothers inadrug case lodged following thedeathof actorSushantSinghRaj-putafterNarcoticsControlBureau(NCB)submittedthatthethecaseshouldbe“alesson”forothers.Asingle-judgebenchofJustice

SarangVKotwalconductedaday-long hearing on the bail pleasTuesday.OnSeptember11,aspe-cial court rejected bail pleas ofRhea, Sushant’s domestic helpSamuelMirandaandcookDipeshSawant,Showik,andallegeddrugpeddler Abdel Basit Parihar, fol-lowingwhichtheymovedHC.During the hearing in HC,

Additional SolicitorGeneralAnilSingh,appearingforNCB,toldthecourt that itwill have to keep inmind thebackdropunderwhichthe NDPS Act was formulated.“Thisissortofacrime,asinterpre-tedbytheSupremeCourt,whichisworse thanmurder or culpablehomicide.Murderaffectsoneper-sonorafamily.However,this(drugcases)affectstheentiresociety.”ASG Singh said, “All persons

arrested till noware connectedwitheachother and it is a syndi-cate. This is not a case related toSushant SinghRajput death. Hemay have been one of the con-sumersbuttheentiretransactionanddealisnotrestrictedtohim.”“If rolemodels in the society

aredoingthis,othersaregoingtofollow.Thenwhatisthefutureofthiscountry?...thisshouldbeales-sonforothersalso.”

PLEABYRAKULPREET

SOFIAHSANNEWDELHI, SEPTEMBER29

THEDELHIHighCourt Tuesdaysaid theMinistry of Informationand Broadcasting cannot say it“willnotdoanything”oncomplai-nts againstTVchannelswhenaninvestigationissensitiveinnature.Theobservationfollowedthe

Centre’ssubmissionregardinganapplicationby actor Rakul PreetSingh. The actor has sought thecourt’sinterventionagainst“fakereporting”bythemediaaboutherroleinthedrugscasebeinginves-tigated by theNarcotics ControlBureau against actor RheaChakrabortyandothers.JusticeNavinChawlaordered

theministry and News Broad-castersAssociation to informthecourtaboutthestepstakeninpur-suanceofitsearlierordertoexpe-ditiouslytakeadecisiononcom-plaints filed by the actor againstvariousnewschannels.Additional Solicitor General

ChetanSharmaearliersubmittedthat anyorder in thematterwillhave a “cascading effect” on theinvestigation in the drugs case.ThecourtwasalsotoldthatSinghwas issued a summons by theNCBbutsheisnotanaccused.“...it is a sensitivematter.We

havetotakeabalancedviewoftheentirething.Todayanyorderthiswayorthatwayisboundtohavesomecascadingeffectonongoinginvestigationwhich is at crucialstage,”saidSharma.However, thecourt said, “You

have a power under Cable Tele-vision [Networks (Regulation)]Act.Thepetitionerhascometoyousayingthatherearethreereports,which are totally derogatory towomenandtheyare totally false.Nowrightorwrong...maybetheallegationistotallywrongasfarasthepetitionerisconcernedbutyouwillinvestigateintoit.YoucannotsayIwillnotdoanythingbecauseitisasensitiveinformationorsen-sitiveinvestigation.”Rakul Preet’s counsel, Aman

Hingorani, submittedontheac-tor’s behalf, “I don’t do drugs…Myreputation is in tatters.”

New Delhi

12WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

A COSTLY PAUSEDelay inappointingexternalmembers to themonetarypolicycommitteewasavoidable, createsneedlessuncertainty

INANUNUSUALmove, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) onMondaypostponedthebi-monthlymeetingof themonetarypolicy committee (MPC),whichwasscheduled tobeheld fromSeptember 29 toOctober 1.While the central bankdidnot cite any specific reason for doing so, thepostponement is presumablyduetothe fact thegovernment isyet toannouncethethreeexternalmembers

of thesix-memberMPC.Thefour-yeartermof thelastthreeexternalmembers—ChetanGhate, Ravindra Dholakia and Pami Dua — had ended recently. Considering that thetimelineforthedepartureof theexternalmemberswasknownwell inadvance, thede-lay in appointing thenewmembers to the committee is inexplicable. The ensuingun-certaintywasbest avoided.It has been argued thatwith headline retail inflation continuing to be elevated, the

delayinappointingthenewmemberstotheMPCisunlikelytomatterasthenewmem-bers are likely tomaintain status quo on rates. But thatwould be amyopic argument.Firstly, the newmemberswill need time to not only arrive at an informed view on thestance of monetary policy at this critical juncture, but also to be familiarisedwith theprocedures andworking of the committee. Secondly, theMPC statement serves as animportant document on two counts:One, for providing greater clarity over the state oftheeconomy,andtwo, forprovidingforwardguidance.Consideringthatsincetheonsetof theCOVID-19pandemic,thecentralbank,whileprovidingsomedirectionalguidance,has repeatedly refused to provide any firm estimate of either inflation or growth, thiswould have been anopportunemoment for theRBI/MPC topresent its ownestimates,and layout the trajectorygoing forward.The RBI had previously sought an extension for the three external members until

Marchduetotheongoingpandemic.Thiswouldhavegiventhegovernmentampletimeto select their successors. Inexplicably, again, this requestwas not accepted.While re-portedly, the search committee for selecting the externalmembers, headedbyCabinetSecretaryRajivGauba,hasrecommendedalistofcandidates,theprocessofselectionap-pears tohavebeenheldupbybureaucratichurdles. Thisdelay shouldhavebeenantici-patedandavoided.Possible issuesof conflictof interest couldalsohavebeenaddressedin time. It is unfortunate that suchdelays in appointments to key positions are becom-ingincreasinglycommon.Inthepast, forexample,therehavebeendelaysintheappoint-mentof deputygovernorsof theRBI. Thereare costs, such instances injectmoreuncer-tainty inanalready insecureenvironment.Moreso,whenarguments formodifying theinflation targeting regimearegainingground.

OPEN THE DOORScientific institutionshavenotre-designedsystemsto

accommodatetalentedwomen.Policymustaddressthisgap

ANEWGOVERNMENT policy that proposes to rank Indian institutes ofscienceontheproportionof thewomentheyemploymustbeheartilywelcomed.Suchanequityratingwillmeasuretheinstitutesonchildcarefacilities,butalsotheconcreteopportunitiestheyprovidetheirwomencolleagues to become leaders. In doing so, the Department of Science

andTechnologysignalsa larger realisationthatequalityandgenderparitycannotcomewithout institutionsactively seeking tocreate theconditions for it.TheoddshavebeenstackedagainsttheIndianwomanscientist foralongwhilenow.

If shehasmanagedtoholdontoher interest inthefaceofendemicandwidespreadbiasaboutgirls inSTEMandmake it tocollege,her talenthas inevitably run intomorewalls.In2005, agovernment task force found thatwhile thenumberofwomenenteringuni-versity to study sciencehasgoneupby30per cent fromthe1950s, theydropoff just asthey are about to enter teaching or pursue doctoral research. The reasons are not un-known—given thechoicebetweennurturinga familyandacareer in research,womenmayendupchoosing,orbeingcompelledtochoose,the“mommytrack”.Butitisalsotruethatscientific institutions—likemanyotherinstitutions—havenotgivenmuchthoughtto re-designing their systemstoaccommodate talentedwomen.The IITs, especially, arestrikingoffenders,withadismalrecordinemployingwomenatthefacultylevel, thoughother institutionsdonot faremuchbetter.The pandemic has led to fears that the doubling ofwomen’s labour at home, due to

lack of childcare and the prolonged shutdownof schools,will force themout of jobs orprofessions, resulting in a setbackby close to adecade. Academia is not an exception tothisrule.But ithasalsounderlinedwhat feministscholarshiphasarguedfor long—thatproductivity andmerit of (male) professionals is shored up by the devalued domesticlabourperformedbywomen.It isnotinevitablethatacademicexcellencehastogohandinhandwithsystemic lackof equity.Onewayout is toadoptapolicy redesign thatputstheneedsofwomenatthecentreof the institutionalagenda,andworkaroundit, ratherthanforcethemtosquaretheirlivesaroundtheinstitute'sdemands.Scientificinstitutionsmustrecognise thatnoteveryoneflourishesonthe“level-playing field”—andthenfindways tocorrect thisbias. Thenewpolicy isa right, andoverdue, first step.

POOR TRUMPRevelationsabouthis taxreturnshitUSPresidentwhere

ithurtsmost—hisbraggadocio

IN2016AND2017, theyear self-proclaimedbillionaireDonaldTrumpwontheUSpresidential electionandhis first year inoffice, he filed$750 in incometaxreturns. In2017,heorhisbusinessespaid$1,45,400intaxesinIndia.Undernor-mal circumstances, or at least before 2016, the real worry for a US presidentwouldbeabout the repercussionsof possible chargesof beinga taxevader. In

theTrumpera, though, it’s all about image.TheNewYork Times report on Trump's taxes over twodecades has suggested that

he has, like many of the rich, used every loophole in the law to pay less than mostworking-class families do to thegovernment. But,more importantly, it suggests thatTrump is a terriblebusinessmanandhismuch-toutedArt of theDealhas all thehon-esty of a drunken boast in a bar full of strangers. For Trump,who has carefully culti-vated and campaigned on a reputation of being a ruthless, successful businessman—arguingeventhathispersonalwealthmeansthathe is free fromlobbyists’ influence—theNYT revelations aremore than just apolitical blow inanelectionyear. Theyhitat the heart of Trumpism—his braggadocio.What if themanwith golden furnitureandhis nameonbuildings is broke?ForsomeinIndia, thereissomepettysatisfactiontobehadinall this,asmallsenseof

schadenfreude. Inhispoliticalspeeches,Trumpinsistedthatitwasbygreatcunningandeven trickery that Indiahadset the termsof tradewith theUS.And thatTrumpwas thepresidentwhowouldmake sure that themoneyowed to theUSdidnot flowoverseas.Turnsout,he’sbeenpayingusall along.

Split and effect

Suhas Palshikar

SADexit fromNDAmaynothurtBJPmuch—but itopensupcompetition, shakesuppoliticalgame

THE DECISIONOF the Shiromani Akali Dal(SAD) to part companywith its long-termally need not be surprising except on thequestionoftiming.Coalitiontheoristswoulddescribethepost-2014NDAasasurplusma-jority coalition— the BJP has had the num-bers in Lok Sabha on its own and all allieshavebeensuperfluous. Itwassustainedbe-causethealliescouldgetashareinpowerattheCentreandmakethemostof thealliancein their states. Most of the NDA allies havebeenunable towinmajorities on their ownintheirstatesandthatforcedthemtoremainwiththeBJP.Butbynature,smallerpartnersare redundant insurpluscoalitions.Overtheyears,particularlyafter2014,the

relatively stronger allies of the BJP havewalked out of the NDA (occasionallywalk-ingbackintoo).TheShivSenawasthefirsttotrytowalkout,thoughitquicklybacktrackedafter the state elections. The JD(U)’s depar-ture producedmore drama since it led to anewpower equation inBihar. Both the ShivSena and JD(U)were unable at that time tosettleforanalternativearrangement.Buttheindicationswereclearthatthechangedcon-textwould lead toa re-thinkbybothsides.Actionsof parties areoftenviewed from

theprismof cynicismbecausepartiesact inself-interest. It iseasythereforetoberatetheSAD for its sudden pro-farmer turn. Thechoices of the JD(U) and Shiv Sena lackedeventhatfigleafofpolicydifferences.Butin-steadofevaluatingsuchdecisionsthroughaso-calledmoral compass, we could checktwothings:One,doestheactionmakesenseinthecontextofcoalitionpolitics?Two,doesa self-serving decision indirectly produceanythingbeyondself-interest?Thefirstconcernsthedifferencebetween

nationalandstatepartiesintheirapproachtocoalitionpolitics. TheBJPalwayshadaclearambition to not only replace the CongressfrompowerattheCentrebutalsoasthecen-tral force in politics. Early in the 1990s, theBJP realised that itwas far away frombeinganall-Indiaparty. Itsetaboutcreatinganall-India footprint by seeking to gain power atthe national level. This strategy brought

about theNDA,where anti-Congress forcescouldbepersuadedtopoolresources.Forthemanystatepartiesthathademergedbythen,such non-Congress alliances offered an op-portunity to extend their influence beyondthestate.Historically,theBJPhashadlimitedpres-

ence in many states — Karnataka,Maharashtra,AndhraPradesh,Odisha,WestBengal or even Bihar. The NDA served twopurposes. It ensured an electoral front thatcould help the BJP become a critical playernationallyandformthegovernmentinDelhi.Secondly, it allowed the BJP to obtain afoothold in states where it did not have apresence. If one looks at the growth of theBJP in Karnataka,Maharashtra or Bihar, be-tween 1996 and 2004, this latter purposewasadmirablyservedatthecostofstatepar-ties. Therefore, itwas for the stateparties totakeacallonhowlongtogowiththeBJP.Thefragmentation of the NDA was thus in-evitable. The advent ofModi only hastenedthat process both because of the person-alisedauthoritythatnowmarkedtheBJPandbecauseofModi’sabilitytosituatethepartysohandsomely in thepowergrid.Since2013-14,theBJPbegantoloseinter-

estinallieswhonowbecameanunnecessaryburden.Butitstillcontinuedtohumourstateparties through theNDAforavarietyof rea-sons.ThisstrategycouldeffectivelyblocktheCongress in some states at least. Besides, instateslikeTamilNadutheBJPcontinuestobeaweakforceandneedsstate-levelparties toget an entry. Third, it needs allies inmanystatestoformgovernmentsthere—asinthecaseofHaryana,andJharkhand.Similarly, inBihar,Maharashtra or Punjab, the party cancometopoweronlybysharingpowerwithastate-levelplayer.Butitswillingnesstosharenationalpowerinexchangehasbeensharplydeclining post-2014. It ismore comfortablewith smaller state level playerswho can bemoreeasilymanaged.Therefore, itwasonlyamatter of time before larger state partiesidentified a pointwhere the possible bene-fitsof thealliancearenullifiedbythecostsatthestatelevel.Possiblywiththeexceptionof

the JD(U),no statepartywitha sizablepres-encewouldnowremainwiththeBJP.Once state parties quit the coalition,

theybegin todiscoverwhat iswrongwiththe BJP. Onemay blame them for realisingit too late, but their discoveries areusuallyaccurate. In this sense, theself-servingde-cisions of state parties to part ways withthe BJP serve a larger purpose.Justlikethestridentanti-BJPstancetaken

by the Shiv Sena after its fallout with thatparty, theSADhasnowappealed toallnon-BJP parties to join hands on the farmers’ is-sue.Thiswouldputpressureonfence-sitterslike the YSR Congress and TRS. Should thathappen,theBJPwouldbeslowlymovingto-wardsgrand isolation.Will that hurt the BJP or will it bask in

the glory of that isolation? Modi’s (andmore so, Shah’s and Adityanath’s) BJP isprobablywaitingtoenjoythatglorious iso-lation — because in that would also be arecognition that it is theonlyholderof realpower. More than that, it would allow theBJP to more openlymarch towards whereit hasbeen itching tomove in thepast yearor so—an ideological position that openlydefies theConstitutionandapoliticalprac-tice that rejects all democratic norms. Theisolationwouldalsoenableothers to iden-tify clearlywhat theBJP stands for.Except, perhaps, inHaryana, the current

noise created by the SADmay not hurt theBJP much but it still opens up the field ofcompetition.Morethanthat, itbrings inthefreshair of robust contestation in apoliticalenvironmentstuffedwiththesmokeofarro-gancebornoutof electoral successes.They may well fail in bringing about

change, but in the last instance, in theircynical pursuit of self-interest, parties likethe Shiv Sena or Akali Dal have, unbe-known to themselves, saved themselvesfrom continuing the sin against theConstitution anddemocracy.

Thewriter, basedatPune, taughtpoliticalscienceand is currently chief editor,Studies

in IndianPolitics

Since 2013-14, the BJP beganto lose interest in allies whonow became an unnecessaryburden. But it still continuedto humour state partiesthrough the NDA for avariety of reasons. Thisstrategy could effectivelyblock the Congress in somestates at least. Besides, instates like Tamil Nadu theBJP continues to be a weakforce and needs state-levelparties to get an entry. Third,it needs allies in many statesto form governments there— as in the case of Haryana,and Jharkhand. Similarly, inBihar, Maharashtra orPunjab, the party can cometo power only by sharingpower with a state-levelplayer. But its willingness toshare national power inexchange has been sharplydeclining post-2014.

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,WEDNESDAY,SEPTEMBER30,2020WORDLYWISE

Here ismyprinciple: Taxes shall be leviedaccordingtoability to pay. That is theonly

Americanprinciple.— FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELTTHEEDITORIALPAGE

Shalini Chawla

A DEEPENING NEXUSAsChina-Pakistan tiesbecomewider, Indiamustprepare for implications

WITHTHEFinancialActionTaskForce(FATF)meeting in sight, Pakistan is gearing up togathersupportfromChinatoavoidtheblack-listing. Reports suggest that Islamabad islikely to persuade the US to support it as itfeels it can leverage itsmuch-lauded role asa successful negotiator in the US-Talibanagreement signed on February 29. WhilePakistanwillhavesupport fromTurkeyandMalaysia,BeijingisexpectedtopushhardinPakistan’sfavouratthemeeting.Pakistanhasbeen on the FATF grey list since June 2018and even though Islamabad is getting itsprogressreportready,thereislittleevidenceto suggest that its faith in the use of terror-ismasastatepolicyagainstIndiawillchange.Pakistan’sgrowingalliancewithChinahas

beenamajor factorthathasalleviatedinter-national pressure on it, altering its strategiccalculus.Beijing’sall-outsupporttoPakistanprovidedroomtoshrinkIslamabad’srelianceontheWest(especiallytheUS).Importantly,Pakistan’smilitary build-up has continuedwithChinesedefenceimportsdespiteitseco-nomicslowdownandmountingdebt.China’s assistance to Pakistan over the

lastsixdecadeshasexpandedfromapurelymilitary relationship to economic anddiplomatic levels. Beijing’sweapon supplynot only added toPakistan’s defence capa-bilitybutalsostrengtheneditswill tocarryoutaproxywar throughterrorismin India,without the fear of beingdefeated in retal-iatory Indian aggression.China’s lavish military assistance to

Pakistan has been on four critical fronts:

Export of Chinese conventional militaryequipment; support in Pakistan’s nuclearbuild-up;assistancetoPakistan’sindigenousdefence industry and intelligence sharing.ThesupplyofChineseconventionalweaponsstartedinthe1960sand1970swithF-7sandMiG-19 fighters. In the 1980s, the PakistanArmy inventory had significant Chineseequipment including the T-59MBTs, T-60andT-63LightTanks,andType531APCs.Bytheearly1980s,ChinahadprovidedPakistanabout 65 per cent of its aircraft andmorethan70percentof its tanks.Pakistan started its naval acquisitions

fromChinainthe1980swithalong-termob-jectiveofstrikingadealfortechnologytrans-ferforindigenousproductioninthefuture.Inthe last twodecades, the focusof Pakistan’sdefenceprocurementhasbeenonthebuild-upof itsairforceandthemaritimestrikeca-pabilities of its navy. In these, technologytransfer fromChina has been a key feature.The AircraftManufacturing Factory (AMF),under the Pakistan Aeronautical Complex(PAC) at Kamra, started production of theKarakoram-8jettrainerincollaborationwiththeChinaNationalAero-TechnologyImportandExportCorporation (CATIC). JF-17 is co-developedbyPakistanandChinaandreportssuggest the PAChas been producing 58 percent of the JF-17’s airframe, and China’sChengdu Aircraft Industry Corporation 42percentof it. In2006, thePakistanNavyor-dered four F-22P-type frigates from Chinaand itwasagreed that the fourthF-22Pwillbe manufactured in Pakistan at a Karachi

shipyard.PNSASLATisthefirstindigenouslybuilt frigate of the navy and the productionwas done in collaboration with the ChinaShipbuildingandTradingCompany.On the nuclear front, Pakistan received

helpwiththereactor,weapondesignaswellasnuclearmaterial (in the1970sand1980s).China continuedmissile technology assis-tance to Pakistan and the technology of theChineseM-11wasusedbyPakistantodevelopmissiles, includingHatf-3/Hatf-4 (based onM-11)andHatf-6(basedonChineseM-18).Theintelligence-sharingcooperationbe-

tween the twocountrieshasdeepenedandreportssuggestpostingofPakistan’s ISIoffi-cers (from this March) to China’s CentralMilitary Commission’s Joint StaffDepartment. Thealliance expanded into aneconomic partnership with the China-PakistanEconomicCorridor,whichPakistanseesasagame-changer.Beijing’sdiplomaticsupport to Pakistanhas grown significantlyaftertherevocationofArticle370andChinahas repeatedly raised the Kashmir issue attheUNSecurityCouncil.It lookslikeChinawantsitsalliancewith

Pakistan to serve as an exemplar to smallernations inSouthAsiaandtheMiddleEast tofulfil its boundless strategic and economicambition.TheSino-Paknexusisexpectedtogrow further in the coming years and Indianeeds to be strategically prepared to dealwith the implicationsof thealliance.

Thewriter isdistinguished fellow,Centre forAirPowerStudies

The intelligence-sharingcooperation between the twocountries has deepened andreports suggest posting ofPakistan’s ISI officers (fromthis March) to China’sCentral MilitaryCommission’s Joint StaffDepartment. The allianceexpanded into an economicpartnership with the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor,which Pakistan sees as agame-changer. Beijing'sdiplomatic support toPakistan has grownsignificantly after therevocation of Article 370 andChina has repeatedly raisedthe Kashmir issue at the UNSecurity Council.

IRAN DOMINATES SEASIRAQCLAIMEDNEWterritorialgainsinsouth-western Iran and Iran claimed a sweepingnavalvictory.TehranRadioquotedIran’snavyas saying it was in complete control of theStraitsofHormuz,thePersianGulf’soutletandadding that foreign commercial ships couldproceednormally as longas theydon’t headfor Iraq’s ports. An Iranianmilitary commu-nique quoted by a Paris-basednews agencyspokeofasea-borneraidbytheIraniancoastguardsonIraqioilstoragefacilitiesatFaw.

IRAQ READY TO TALKIraqdispatcheditsForeignMinisterSaadoumHammadeh to theUnitedNations to attend

theUNGeneralAssemblysessionanddefendtheIraqistandinthewarwithIraq. Italso in-formed the UN Secretary General KurtWaldheim that it accepted the SecurityCouncil’s call lastnight for anend to fightingwith Iran. Iraq has, however, not specified ifits response was tide to conditions. IraqiPresident SaddamHussein said hewas pre-paredtoholddirectnegotiationswithTehrantosettlethedispute.

PITCHING FOR DELHIIRAN’S ROVING AMBASSADOR ShamsArdakhani,whoistouringseveralcountriesto put forth Iran’s point of view, flew intoDelhi and met Prime Minister Indira

Gandhi. He said that as leader of the Non-AlignedMovement India has a role in pro-tecting the territorial integrity of Iran,which,healleged,hasbeenviolatedbyIraq.He said Irandidnot accept theoffer ofme-diation by Pakistan President Zia-ul-Haqbecausenoground ruleswere laid.

ON STRIKECentralgovernmentemployeesareobserv-inga“one-daypaystrike”onSeptember30to demand bonus for all such employees.Their other demands include parity of paywith public sector employees, a hike in DAandanincrease inhouserentandcitycom-pensatoryallowances.

SEPTEMBER 30, 1980, FORTYYEARSAGO

New Delhi

13THEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY,SEPTEMBER30,2020

WHATTHEOTHERSSAY“Inequality is a US national emergency. It ought to be addressed by increasedtaxes on the wealthy ” —THEGUARDIANTHE IDEASPAGE

WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

India is an incrediblyunequal society. Highereducation is a highly selectiveenterprise with restrictedparticipation in the guise ofmeritocracy, thusperpetuating andexacerbating inequality. But,university students oftentranscend self-absorptiondriven by personalaspirations realising thattheir entitlements have comeat the cost of someone else’sdeprivations andmarginalisation. Theybecome concerned about thelarger social and politicalissues like poverty, socialexclusion and injustice, andbegin to try and give voice tothe voiceless. This issomething to be celebratedand not frowned upon.

Opposing for thesake of opposing

BJPwasopentoadebateanddivisiononfarmbills,Oppositionfloutedrules.Givingitacleanchitsetsbadprecedentforparliamentarydemocracy

OF LATE, SOMEhave interpreted the free-domofexpressionguaranteedunderArticle19 of the Constitution not as a freedom tospeak and express but as a licence to holdparliamentarydemocracyhostagebytear-ing down the rulebook— literally so. Theyhavefoundsupportersinintellectualcircles,whohaveblamedthegovernment—byex-tension the BJP — and created a smoke-screentoconcealwhatreallytranspiredonSeptember 20 in Parliament tomisleadfarmersandothercitizensof thecountry.In his column, ‘Railroading the bill’ (IE,

September 22) PratapBhanuMehta raisesthreequestionswhile referring to thepas-sage of farm bills in the Rajya Sabha onSeptember 20. Curiously, he doesn’tmen-tionwhocametothewelloftheHouse,whosabotagedtheDeputyChairman’smike,whoheckledhimandwhotoretherulebook.Iwanttosettherecordstraightbecause

IwasintheHousethatday.Thefirstquestionraised byMehta pertains to the QuestionHour. He says itwas “unnecessarily” sus-pended.TheQuestionHourwassuspendedbecausetheMonsoonSessionwascurtailedduetothepandemic.However,the“righttoquestion”wasn’tsuspended.Onlyoralques-tionswerenotallowed—thememberswereallowed to submitwritten questions. Thegovernment answered 1,567 unstarredquestionsin10sittingsoftheHouse.Besides,92 ZeroHour submissions and 66 SpecialMentions onmatters of urgent public im-portanceweremade. State assemblies, in-cluding in Kerala, Maharashtra, Punjab,Rajasthan andWest Bengal, have also sus-pended theQuestionHourdue to thepan-demic.Mehtamakesnomentionof them.Mehta’s secondpoint is about the Bills

not being referred to committees. TheOppositionoftenmakesahueandcryoverthematter.Buttheykeepopposingandob-structing Bills in theHouse even after theSelectCommitteehasmaderecommenda-tions. Even as the amendment to refer theBill to the Select Committeewasmoved,Deputy Chairman Harivansh was sur-rounded by hostile members, whosnatchedpapers fromhim.Punjab,Maharashtra,OdishaandTamil

Nadu already have contract farming. Acommittee formed by the UPA govern-ment in 2010 had recommended thatAPMC and corporate licencemonopoliesin the agri sector should not be allowed.It’s evident that the Opposition opposedtheBills for the sakeof opposing.ThethirdpointMehtareferstoisthe“di-

vision” of votes. But for a division to be al-lowed, theHousehas tobe inorder.Mehtacuriouslymissed this point.Was it the BJPlegislatorswhodisruptedorder?No.Parliamenthadalongpeacefuldebate

that day. The BJP gave up its own time toaccommodate others who wanted tospeakon theBills—33members fromallparties spoke. The last to speak was

CongressMP Ahmed Patel. As soon as hefinished speaking, members of his partyand other opposition parties rushed intotheWell andcrippled theproceedings.TheOpposition did not have the num-

bers toblockthese legislation.This iswhatpromptedittoexecuteapre-plannedstrat-egy to stall the passage of the Bills by allmeans. The BJPwas open to a debate anddivision for two reasons. One, the govern-ment had the numbers. Two, that iswhattheprocedure laysdown.Rule 235of theRules of Procedure and

ConductofBusiness,RajyaSabhasaysthatamember,amongotherthings,“shallkeeptohisusualseatwhileaddressingtheCouncil”.Italsosays“aMemberdesiringtomakeanyobservation on any matter before theCouncilshallspeakfromhisplace,shallrisewhen he speaks and shall address theChairman”. Division is not possiblewhentheHouseisnotinordersoastoavoidcon-fusion in taking the votes. That’s alsowhyRule 235 (vii) and Rule 237 requiremem-berstobeintheirseats.Besides,Rule259re-quirestheChairmantopreserveorderintheCouncilandhehasall thepowerstodoso.Shamelessly,theOppositionshotvideos

of its own hooliganism and released it —againinviolationofrules.TheprotestersputthesafetyoftheChairandothermembersatrisk by flouting COVID-19 protocols. Theyevenriskedthesafetyofthemarshalsbyre-fusingtocomedownfromthechairsandta-blestheyhadclimbed.Neither theeightMPs identifiedasvio-

lators nor their parties, expressed regret,forcing their suspension from theHouse.The protesters then took the drama to theParliament lawns. When the DeputyChairman, in a spirit of statesmanship,brought tea and snacks for them the nextmorning, they refused toaccept it. Instead,theybrazenlyjustifiedtheirbehaviour.Somehavegiventhesituationastrange

spin and are blaming the government forpassingtheFarmBill,andsubsequentpiecesoflegislation,intheOpposition’sabsence.Isitthegovernment’sjobtobringOppositionMPstotheHouse?Diditeverdenyadebate?Parliamentarydemocracyrequiresare-

sponsible government and an equally re-sponsibleOpposition.WilltheCongressandits intellectual supporters tell the nation,howmany Bills were passed during theUPA/Congressregime?TheCongressandtheirintellectualsup-

porters, inabidtojustifytheunrulybehav-iour of the Opposition, have been unsuc-cessfullytryingtoshifttheblameontotheChair. Infact, theproductivityof theHousewas100.47percent—25BillswerepassedandsixBillsintroduced.Thenormalofhighproductivity witnessed during the lastthree sessions has continued. As a result,theoverallproductivityof thelastfourses-sionsisapraiseworthy96.13percent—thebest for four consecutive sessions duringthelastfiveyears. Inasharpcontrasttothe28percent timespentonBills since1952,57 per cent of the functional time of theHousewasspentonBills.ThecleanchithandedtotheOpposition

by the likes ofMehta sets a badprecedentfordemocracy.If thepartiesandpeoplebe-hind the ruckus are not called out,we runtheriskof seeingsuchuglyscenesagain.

Thewriter isNationalGeneralSecretary,BJPandRajyaSabhamember

IT WAS DEEPLY distressing to read(‘Universities discuss how to get students tobehave’, IE, September9) thekindof expres-sionsreportedlymadeduringarecentwebi-narbysomeuniversityadministratorsaboutstudents—“criminals, rowdy elements”…“newyouthlessexposedtoscoldingandbeat-ing”…“(must) ensure that they aremargin-alised,segregatedandkeptoutofthecampusat anycost”. Itwasappalling to find teacherswhoarechargedwiththeresponsibilityofstu-dents’welfare reportedly talking about stu-dentsinsuchdeeplyadversarialanddisparag-ingterms.Theseareexpressionsonenormallyassociates lesswith universities andmorewithpenal institutions.Theyrepresentclue-lessnessabouttheideaoftheuniversityandalackofimaginationofhowteachersmusten-gagewith student communitieswhile serv-ingasuniversityadministrators.Most teachers who have had stints as

university administratorswill tell you howdelicateandchallengingthejobofengagingwithstudentcommunities is.Whateverthechallenge,onecardinalrulethatallgoodac-ademic administrators keep inmind is thatattheendof ittheirrelationwithstudentsisdetermined by their primary role as teach-ers. I have served five years presiding overthe team of proctors at the University ofDelhi. Therewereseveralmajorstudentag-itationsatthattime.Wewereevengheraoedbystudentsa fewtimes.But, those challenging occasions also

brought to the surface the deeper humandimensions of our relationship with stu-dents.Our teamof proctors always tried tokeep engaging with students in a dialogicprocess, someofwhichwere difficult con-versations, but every timewewere able toreconnectwithourbasicbondingwithstu-dents. We tried to go beyond the conven-tional disciplinary role attached to the of-ficeofproctorandestablishedinstitutionalstructuresforongoingcommunicationwithstudents and for proactively addressingtheir concerns andproblems.When the Ambedkar University Delhi

(AUD)wasbeingestablishedwiththeimagi-nation that itwould be a self-governing col-legial communityof scholars, studentswerevisualisedasanintegralpartof thatcommu-nity. Students participated actively in someaspectsoftheadministration.Forinstance,allpublic-dealing during the annual admissioncycle aswell as counselling prospective stu-dentswasmanaged almost entirely by thestudentsthemselves.TheStudentCellstaffedby students themselves addressed their on-goingconcerns.PriortoinstitutingtheStudentCouncil at AUD, the students elected a con-stituentassemblytodrafttheirownconstitu-tion.Theyconducttheirownelections.Studentsattheuniversitylevelarealready

adults and citizenswith voting rights. Theyaremajorstakeholdersinauniversity—theirsisthemostcritical investmentinhigheredu-cation since they invest some of theirmost

formativeyearsinthatprocess.Theyhavethehigheststakeintheperformanceofauniver-sitybecausetheirownfuturehingesonit.So,it is terribly incorrect to infantilise studentsandtreatthemasmerebeneficiariesparasitis-ingonthelargesseofgovernments.Theyare,in fact,partners in theshapingandfunction-ingofauniversity.India is an incredibly unequal society.

Higher education is a highly selective enter-prisewithrestrictedparticipationintheguiseofmeritocracy, thus perpetuating and exac-erbating inequality. But university studentsoftentranscendself-absorptiondrivenbyper-sonal aspirations, realising that their entitle-mentshavecomeatthecostofsomeoneelse’sdeprivations andmarginalisation. They be-come concerned about the larger social andpolitical issues like poverty, social exclusionand injustice, andbegin to tryandgivevoicetothevoiceless.This is somethingtobecele-bratedandnotfrownedupon.Similarly, if the youth are keen to give

expression to concerns about possible fu-tures — scenarios like irreversible geo-cli-matic changes, technological disruptions,nuclearwar and so on— inwhich theirs isthe highest stake, that should reassure us,becausewewill then know that the futurewill seetheemergenceof awiserandsanerleadershipinall sectors.Therewillbeanewkindofpolitics focusingonissuesof the fu-ture,wherethe leadership isgoingtobe in-creasinglyyounger.Theyouthhasagreaterpropensity to think creatively about long-term concerns that will need questioningthe very assumptions of the prevalent or-der, since they do not have a vested inter-est in theperpetuationof the status quo.If thismeansbeingpolitical, thenthat is

the politics that every concerned citizenshould be into. The irony is that when stu-dents get too self-absorbedand focusedontheir ownpersonal aspirations, it is usually

consideredacharacterof “good”students–the ones who are apolitical. But, being“good” thiswayalsohasanunderlyingpol-itics—thepoliticsofperpetuatingthepreva-lentpower structures and relations.Theuniversityisatraininggroundforcit-

izenship,teamworkandleadership.Inadem-ocraticpolity, leadershipisabouttakingpeo-ple along andmanagingmultiple views andperspectives, holding consultations, negoti-ating differences, resolving conflicts and ex-ploringconsensus.Itincludeslearningtodis-agreewithouthaving tobedisagreeableandtocontestandarguewithoutbeinguncivil.Contestationswithinuniversitieshavean

inherentelementofrole-play—thereissomeposturinginvolvedinconfrontationsbetweenstudentsanduniversityadministrations.Suchconfrontations oftenmanifest roles histori-callyscriptedwithintheparadigmofconflicttheorieswithbinaryoppositionalforcescon-testing towrench control from each other.However,thereisaneedtogobeyondthispar-adigmandcreatively transcend these legacyscripts.Newwaysshouldbeexploredforpart-neringwith students in planning, designingand administering universities, particularlyacademic structures, programmes andprocesses. The futuremay see the profile ofstudentschangeconsiderablyintermsofageandexperience,giventhepossiblefluxinem-ploymentnecessitatingworkingpeopletore-turn touniversity forperiodicupskillingandreskilling.Thiswillincreasinglydiffusethedis-tinctionbetweenteachersandstudents.It is, therefore, time to discard some of

our outdated conceptions about engage-mentwithstudents.Otherwise,ouruniver-sities are likely to get frozen in time andregress intomediocrity.

Thewriter isprofessor,Central InstituteofEducation,UniversityofDelhiandformervice

chancellor,AmbedkarUniversityDelhi

DEPENDENT DEFENCEThisrefers tothereport, ‘Govt’snewde-fence acquisitionpolicydropsoffsets in3 typesof contracts,’(IE, September29).The purpose of the offset clause in de-fencecontractswithforeignentitiesistoensurethatIndiaisnotdependentonfor-eigncountriesforcriticaltechnologyfor-ever.Theobviousreasonforthefailuretobring incritical technology inthepast isthefailureofthegovernmenttopushforthesovereigncommitmentgivenbytheforeignentity.Droppingtheoffsetprovi-sion is tantamount tobeingdependentin the field of defence forever. The gov-ernmentmustreconsideritsdecision.

GangadharKaralay,Nagpur

UNWANTED BREAK-UPTHIS REFERS TO the editorial, ‘End of apact’(IE,September29).Maybethepolit-icalcompulsionsoftheShiromaniAkaliDal(SAD)aremoreresponsiblethantheBJP’s arrogance for the endof the part-nershipbetweenthem.ThepeasantryisthelifelineofSAD’spolitics.Itcannotaf-fordtoditchitoverissuesassensitiveasagricultural ones. The BJP leadershipshouldhaveexhaustedalloptionsbeforelettingthispactgotothepan.UnlikethepresentBJPleadership, itspredecessorsseemed to be well aware of the in-evitability of the necessity of having acordialrelationshipwiththeSAD.

TarsemSingh,Mahilpur

STAND TOGETHER

‘THISREFERSTOthereport, 'CongCMslookatbypassingfarmlaws,itsMPgoesto SC' (IE, September 20). First, theCongressorganisedthefarmersagainstthe farm laws. Now, it asks its CMs tobypassthemanditsMPhasgonetotheapexcourt. It is not judicious toorgan-isedemonstrationswhenthousandsofpeoplehavediedbecauseofCOVID-19.Political parties should come togethertofightagainstCoronaandsavepeoplefrom unnatural deaths. Farmers’demonstrationsarenot justified in thecurrentcircumstances.

ALAgarwal,Delhi

LETTERS TO THEEDITOR

AMONGALLTHEcoronawarriors, themostvisible, yetmost underappreciated, are thehumble policemen. Despite limited re-sourcesandariskto life, India’spoliceagen-cies have risen to the challenge. Withoutthem,achievingtheprimaryobjectiveof thelockdown — restricting the outbreak —wouldhavebeen impossible.As the lockdownbegan on themidnight

ofMarch 24, people confined themselves totheirhomes, commercial activities cametoahalt and transportwas grounded, traditionalpolice functionswere replacedbynewones.In place of the routine duties of law-and-or-dermaintenance, crime control, and trafficmanagement,thepolicehadtomakesurethatthe lockdownwas effective. As the situationevolved, many new responsibilities wereadded. As the pandemic is expected to con-tinue for a fewmoremonths, newer dimen-sionsofpolicingwillemerge.The National Policy on Disaster

Management(NPDM)2009describesthepo-lice as the “first andkey responders” inadis-aster.Apandemicwasnot“anotifieddisaster”before COVID-19. When the lockdown —amongstthemoststringentintheworld—be-gan, the police neither had any standard op-eratingprocedure(SOP)norguidelines.That,however,didnotdeterpolicemenandpolice-womenfromriskingtheirlivestoensuresafetyfor the rest. They havemanned barricadepointsdayandnighttopreventunauthorisedmovement, advised those violatingmove-ment restrictions, sometimes used force tostop them, anddrawn“Lakshmanrekhas” in

marketplaces.Theyhavegonebeyondthecallofduty—supplyingvegetablesandgroceriesto people in containment zones and arrang-ing foodand transport formigrant labour onthemove. They have protected healthcareworkersandensuredtheseamlessmovementof transport and logistics for essential com-modities.Policestationsandcheckpointshavebecome sites for public health campaigns.Posters, banners, and street plays have beenused to communicate the importance of so-cial distancing andhand-washing—officershaveevendemonstratedproperhand-wash-ingtechniquesattrafficstops.Thesedutieswillcontinue for awhile andwill becomemorechallengingasthecountryopensup.More importantly, the police force has

beenworking under life-threatening condi-tions, sincemanyof themdonothaveaccesstopersonalprotectionequipment(PPE).Theyriskcatchingtheinfection,takingithomeandexposingtheirfamily.Hundredsofthemhave,in fact, been infected andmanyhave died aswell.Whenmanyof themhad tobequaran-tined, the strengthof the forcewasdepleted,forcing the department to draw personnelfrom non-combat units or other sources.Manpowershortagebecameacuteasthetasksexpanded,especially instates likeBihar.Asdayswentby,thenumbersofthosear-

riving in states fromoutside, and thenquar-antined, rose to staggeringheights, creatinganightmare for the administration. Thepo-liceescortedmigrantlabourersfromrailwaystations in cities to quarantine centres. Themagnitude of the task canbe gaugedby the

numbers. In Bihar, for instance, therewere12,909 quarantine centres inwhich 22 lakhpeople had registered and over 6 lakh hadtakenshelterasofMay28.Ontopofthesechallenges,thepolicefaced

attacks fromangry people for acting againstlockdownviolationsandtakingsuspectedpa-tientstotestingcentres.Astheadministrationwasseverelystrained,therewasoftennoclar-ity onmatters likemovement passes,whichledtoconflictswithpeople.These examples of social service are not

meant to celebrate thepolice, but to bring tolightacoreaspectof itswork.Juxtaposingthetwofunctions—law-and-ordermaintenanceandsocialservice—broadensourunderstand-ingof policebehaviourandperformance, es-pecially in exceptional situations. India’s re-sponsetoCOVID-19hashighlightedtheotherpolice function, social service. This is in tunewith the recommendation of the NationalPoliceCommissionof1980:“Thepoliceshoulddulyrecognise,andbetrainedandequippedtoperform the service-oriented role in provid-ingrelief topeopleindistresssituations”.Thepandemichastaughtseveralvaluable

lessons.Thepoliceneedstobetterappreciateits role as the first responder in emergenciesandconsciouslyadoptdisastermanagement— including disaster risk reduction activities—asoneofitsprimaryfunctions.Policereformcommittees toohave spoken about this role.TheNationalDisasterResponseForce(NDRF)andSDRFsinsomestatesdohaveanessentialrole.Buttheseagencieshavetheirlimitations.Therefore,buildingtheground-levelcapacity

of the police — and sister agencies like firesafetyauthorities—iscriticaltotheirfunction-ingasthefirstresponder.Policetrainingfocusesdisproportionately

on public order with a heavy emphasis on“hard” skills —weapon use, crime control,combat skills and crowd-control drills.Policing during the pandemic has under-scoredtheneedforsoftskills—forexample,dealingwith people through effective com-municationandcoordination.Policetrainingshould include a component on medicalemergencies. The police need to prepareSOPs forpublichealthcrises.In villages,with the large-scale returnof

migrants,thepoliceforcegotstretchedtothemaximum,andpeopletookuponthemselvesthe role of policing — and they did well asthey sawthemselves aspart of the solution.Thismodel should be promoted for normaltimesaswell.Communitypolicingpracticesare used inmitigating communal tensions,indealingwithleft-wingextremismandur-banpolicing.Buttheseareoftenlocalisedad-hocinitiatives. It’stimetointegratecommu-nitypolicing into thepolice’s organisationalethos. Training academies should devotemore timeto this subject.Community policing will be much

needed in the comingmonths, when con-flictsatfamilyorvillagelevelandpettycrimesare likely tocomeupassocial aftershocksofCOVID-19. Involving an alert community inthe taskwillhelp the force.

Thewriter is formerDGP,Bihar

Policingduringthepandemichasunderscoredneedforsoftskills

Apeople’s forcePNRai IDEAS

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Bhupender Yadav

ShyamMenon

CR Sasikumar

Binarywhichequates ‘good’with ‘apolitical’ ismisconceived.Universitiesare traininggrounds forcitizenshipand leadership,wherestudents learntoengagewithconcerns thatgobeyondthepersonal

Good students, bad students

New Delhi

CLASSIFIEDS&TENDERS14 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY,SEPTEMBER30,2020

I, RITAROBINSON,D/OROBINSONLAL,H.NO.425,SUNLIGHT-COLONYNO-2, NEAR-SHALIMAR-CINEMAASHRAM-JANGPURA SON.DELHI-110014.Changedmyname toRITA, permanently.

0040549873-2

I,RitaKhara,W/oRobinKharaR/o-J-16-B Street.No.7,Vijay-Colony,Ghonda,Delhi-110053,inform thatmynamewrongly-writtenRita inmyminor Son'sHimanshuKharaBirthCertificatebutmyCorrect-name isRita khara.

0040549865-3

““II,, HarendraSinghBhandari s/oLateM.S.Bhandari r/o 148,Sarvhit Aptt., Sector-17/A,Dwarka, NewDelhi, amalsoknownasH.S.Bhandari.”

0050169814-1

I,VinayS/oRajendraPrasadPathakR/o 28/89GandhiColony,Morena,MadhyaPradesh-476001,HaveChangedMyNameToVinayPathak.

0040549949-4

I,Swati BanswalD/oMurlidharBanswal R/oB-44ABlock-B,Janta Flats RaghubirNagar,Delhi-110027,HaveChangedMyNameToSwati,For Future.

0040549949-5

I ANSHARORAS/oASHOKKUMARR/o-C-208YAMUNASPORTSCOMPLEXSURAJMALVIHARDELHI-110092,HAVECHANGEDMYNAMETOTRIGUNARORA 0040549957-1

MMyyminor Son’s actual/ correct-name isMitul Dass insteadofMitul Das.Raj Kumar,E-12,Third-Floor,NewMultan-Nagar,PaschimVihar,NewDelhi-56. 0040549940-2

IItt is for general information thatI,Devender PalSingh,S/o.SantokhSingh,R/o-80, Gali.No.8,ShankarNagar,Krishna-Nagar,Delhi-110051,declare that nameofminehasbeenwrongly-writtenasDevinder Pal Singh inmyminor daughterDivleenKaur(Aged-15Years)School-Record.Theactual nameofmine isDevender Pal Singh.

0040549957-6

II,,hhiitthheerrttoo knownasCLARATOPPOaliasCLARALAKRA,D/oLate Sh.JOHNTOPPO,W/oFRANCISXAVIER LAKRA,employedasAssistant SubInspector in theDelhiPolice,Residingat,RZF-767/29,Raj-Nagar Part-II,PalamColony,NewDelhi-110077,havechangedmynameandshallhereafter be knownasCLARALAKRA. 0040549957-5

II,,SShhiirraajjuuddddiinn Saifi,S/o-ShabbirSaifi,R/o-H-855-856,Shakurpur,Delhi-110034,inform that inmyminorson’s JishanSaifi school-recordsmineandmywifenamewaswrittenasShirajuddin andShamim,whereasmineandmy-wifecorrect-name is ShirajuddinSaifi andShamimSaifi.

0040549949-9

II,,SSuummaannBalaw/oAnuragMalhotra, R/o FlatNo.YS-21,Shiva Enclave, A-4, PaschimVihar, NewDelhi-110063havechangedmyname toSumanMalhotra, permanently

0040549911-1

II,,SSaammssaaddAli,S/oManjurAhemad,R/o-RZ549/405,Gali.No-15E,ShivPuri,West Sagar Pur,NewDelhi-110046,have changedmynametoShamshadAli.

0040549940-7

II,,RRaavviinnddeerr Kumar,S/o Late.HoriLal,R/o 1/4006,Street.No.6,RamNagar-Ext.SDDelhi-110032,have changedmyminorson’s nameRizuShankwar toReyanshShankwar,for allfuture,purposes.

0040549939-7

II,,RRaajjnnii Kant S/o LateHemSinghR/oC-615-A, 3rd Floor,Gali No-3,GaneshNagar-2, Shakarpur,Delhi-110092,have changed thenameofmyminor son fromAryanDevKadamtoRudraDevSirohi agedabout 14 years forall futurepurposes.

0040549940-6

II,,NNiiddhhii GargD/o-GhanshyamBihari GargR/o-A-1/11, Varun-Appartment, Sector-9,Rohini,Delhi-110085,havechangedmynameafter-marriage toNidhi BansalW/o-ArvindKumarBansal,permanently

0040549939-2

II,, VishakhaPandeyD/oVasudevPandeyW/oGauravGamotR/oRamwadi, PalodaBanswara,Rajasthanpin : 327605 havechangedmynameandshallhereafter be knownasVishakhaGamot.

0070715625-1

II,,MMDDTASADDUKANSARI S/oShamsuddinAnsari r/o LIG-375,Hastsal,N.D-59,declare thatminename iswronglywrittenasTasadduqueAnsari inmyminor sonManzar Imam aged15yr school records.Theactualnameofmine isMDTASADDUKANSARI respectivelywhichmaybeamendedaccordingly.

0070715633-1

II,, SharmaVirat Dubey,S/oPradeepDubeyR/o.Plot-No:-670A,Flat.No.C-3,Shakti Khand,Indirapuram,Ghaziabad(UP),Pincode-201014, inform thatmyamendednamewill beSharmaVirat Dubey,for allpurposes.

0040549946-2

II,,MMDDSOWKOTTULLASK,S/OTAJIMSKR/O.H.NO.140GALI.NO.8,B-BLOCK,SHIVKUNJ,SANT-NAGAR,BURARI,DELHi-110084,MyCorrect-Name isMDSOWKOTTULLASK,ThatMyDaughter Incorrect-NameSahinaToCorrect-SahinaKhatoon,and2ndDaughterName-Nurjhan,ThatMyWifeincorrectName-HalimaBegeumToCorrect-HalimaBegum,ForAll purposes.

0040549949-11

II,,HHIITTHHEERRTTOOKNOWNASPOOJAMUNDHRA,D/o-NIRANJANKUMARMUNDHRA,R/o-3/36B,SAHDEVGALI,VISHWASNAGAR,SHAHDARA,DELHI-110032,HAVECHANGEDMYNAMEANDSHALLHEREAFTERBEKNOWNASDIVYAMUNDHRA 0040549957-2

II,,GGuurrvviinnddeerr Singh,S/o LabhSinghR/o-WZ-113,Gali.no.13,GuruNanak-Nagar,Tilak-Nagar,Delhi-110018,havechangedmyname toGurvinder SinghSandhu,permanently.

0040549940-1

II,,GGUUDDDDII SAHU,W/oGyanchandsahu,R/o.U-1/54,Budh-vihar,phase-1,Delhi-86,informthat nameofmyandmyhusbandhasbeenwrongly-mentionedasGuddi andGyanchand myminor son satyamsahu inhis school-recordandother documents.The correctname isGuddi sahuandGyanchandsahu.whichmaybeAmendedAccordingly.

0040549939-9

II,,CCoolloonneell Omvir Panwar,S/oShri.Dharmavir,R/o.H.No.34,Shahpurjat AndrewsGanj,NewDelhi-110049,that I,havechanged thenameofmyminordaughter(agedabout-14-years)fromDevanshi toDevanshi Panwar,for allfuture,purposes.

0040549939-6

II,,AAkkrraammSahil S/OShahabuddeenR/OFlatNo.6,BarshaPG,Sarhaul, Sector-18,Gurgaon-122004,havechangedmyname toSahilKhan. 0040549949-7

II,, VikasChanderDhawan, S/oMadanLal R/o-B-61 2nd-FloorFront-Side, Anoop-Nagar,Jeewan-ParkUttam-NagarNewDelhi-110059, havechangedmyname toVikasChanderMadan.

0040549923-2

II,, VEENADEVI,W/oMAHESHSINGH, R/o-C-2, 2ND-Floor, F-311/4, KH.No.476/477, Jawahar-Park, khanpur,N.Delhi-110062,have changedmyname toBEENA, permanently .

0040549940-3

II,, SnehaPatwariW/o,BharatBhushanPatwari R/o,H.No.WZ-177,Third-Floor, Khampur,WestPatel-Nagar, New-Delhi-110008,have changedmynametoShashi Patwari.

0040549949-3

II,, SimranKaurKalsi D/o-TrilochanSinghR/o-A-32 ShamNagar, NewDelhi-110018, havechangedmyname ToSimranKaur. 0040549923-5

II,, ShwetaDuggal D/oAshwiniKumarDuggal R/oA-12/A,Sector-27KailashHospital,Noida, GautamBuddhaNagar,Uttar Pradesh-201301, havechangedmynameandshallhereafter be knownasShwetaRohanDuggal. 0070715634-1

II,, ShishRamAlaria R/oA-4o-c,Dda Flats, GuruGobindSinghKunj, TagoreGardenExtn., NewDelhi-110027have changedmyminor daughter’s name fromNysaAlaria toNysa for allpurposes. 0040549935-1

II,, AmitMahajanS/oSh. YashDevMahajan, R/oB-492, NewFriendsColony, NewDelhi-110065have changedmynametoAmeethMahajan for allfuturepurposes.

0040549921-1

II,, Sachin S/oVijayPal, Add-32,Nimri Chowk, Bakoli, Delhi110036, changedmyname toSachinChauhan.

0040549939-1

II,, Akanshi Uppal, D/oAjayUppalR/o-108 Top-Floor SandeshVihar PitampuraDelhi-110034,changedmyname toAkankshiUppal. 0040549923-8

II SurveenKaurD/O,AmarjeetSinghHiraR/o 3/11, GeetaColony, Delhi-110051havechangedmyname toSurveenKaurHira for all purposes.

0040549937-1

II Shivani KaulW/oAtul Kaul R/o1218, gali kashmiriyan, kuchapati ram, sita rambazar, Delhi-6 haveChangedmyname fromUmaRani to Shivani Kaul forAllFuturePurposes.

0040549922-1

II Sachin Jain@Sacheen Jain S/oAdishKumar JainR/o-P-51,StreetNo.3,ShankarNagarExtension,KrishnaNagar,Delhi-110051,havechangedmyname toSachinJain. 0040549957-3

II BhoomikaSinghW/oMohdNaumanKhanR/oH.No 956,Gali No.8, RKMarg, ChauhanBanger, Delhi -53 have changedmyname toBhoomikaKhan. Ihavealso changedmy religionfromHindu to Islam

0040549938-1

II Atul S/oKLSharmaR/oB3A/69A janakpuri NewDelhihave to changemynameAtultoAtul Sharma 0040549887-1

II,, Sukhwinder SinghS/oDharamChandR/oShergarh,Hoshiarpur, Punjab-146001,have changedmyname toSurjit Bhatia. 0070715603-1

II,, Sarabjeet Singh S/oMohinderSinghR/o.H.No.182A, Chand-Nagar, NewDelhi-110018, havechangedmyname toSarabjitSingh. 0040549923-4

II,, SantoshW/oDevenderKumarVermaR/o-H.No.-30D, PKT-J&-K, DilshadGarden, Delhi-110095,have changedmynametoSmt. SantoshVermapermanently. 0040549925-2

II,, RajeshSharma,S/o sh.BabuLal Sharma,H.no-777, sector-14, Gurgaon-122001, havechanged myminor sonname,fromBhavyaSharmaToBhavaySharma for all, futurepurpose. 0040549923-1

II,, RASHMEENKAURKOHLI,W/OAMARDEEPSINGHKOHLI R/O-J-187-A, RAJOURI-GARDEN,NEWDELHI-110027HAVECHANGEMYNAMETORASHMEENKAUR.

0040549939-5

II,, Phool Kumar S/oKhajanSinghR/oH.No.336,Maharajpur-3,Sahibabad,Ghaziabad, UttarPradeshhave changedmyname toMonu. 0040549949-8

II,, Nidhi,W/oAshishKumar, R/oC-189, KendriyaVihar, Sec-51,Noida, changedmyname toNidhi Puri, for all futurepurposes. 0070715594-1

II,, NehaWaliaD/oKuldeepSinghWaliaW/oLokeshKhannaR/o-F-69, KamlaNagar, Delhi-110007,have changedmynametoPoojaKhanna.

0040549949-1

II,,MOHANCHAND,S/o.SHIVDATTJOSHI, R/o-WZ-42-43,BalUdyan-RoadK.L.Nursing-Home, Uttam-Nagar,Extn.N.Delhi-110059,changedmyname toMOHANCHANDRAJOSHI,Permanently.

0040549940-5

II,,MAHESHKUMARS/o-MOTILAL, R/o-C-2, 2ND-Floor,F-311/4, KH.No.476/477, Jawahar-Park, khanpur,N.Delhi-110062,have changedmynametoMAHESHSINGH,permanently. 0040549940-4

II,, LakshmiKanthanVenkatesh,S/oV.S. LakshmiKanthan, R/oC-1106, Prateek Laurel, Sec-120,Noida, U.P., have changedmyname fromLakshmiKanthanVenkatesh to LakshmiVenkatesh for all futurepurposes. 0040549930-1

II,, Jolly Sam,W/oSh.SamKAbraham,R/oRZ-2061,Gali.No.27,2nd-Floor,Aradhana-Apartment,TughlakaBad-Extn,NewDelhi-110019,have changedmynamefromJollymolGeorge to JollySam,for all futurepurposes.

0040549939-8

II,, KanhiyaAhuja S/oDaulat RamAhujaR/oNP-140BPitampuraDelhi-110034, changedmyname toKanhiayaAhuja for allPurpose. 0040549923-9

II,, JitendraKumar, S/oSurendraKumarR/O-G-12/48-A, SangamBihar, NewDelhi-110062,havechangedmydaughter’s namefromDipanshi toDeepikapermanently. 0040549925-1

II,, JITENDERKUMARS/ODALJITSINGHR/OWARDNO.2,PANABAITHAN,VILLAGEBERI,JHAJJAR-124201.HARYANA.CHANGEDMYNAMETO JITENDERSINGH.

0040549939-3

II,, JASWINDERKAURW/OMANPREETSINGH JAGGIR/O-WZF-21B,SANT-GARH,TILAKNAGAR, DELHI-110018.CHANGEDMYNAMETOJASWINDERKAUR JAGGI.

0040549949-6

II,, DineshPaswanR/o- 112-A,Zamrudpur, G.K.-I, NewDelhi-110048, have changedmyminor son’s name fromRahulKumar toRahul KumarPaswan, for all purposes.

0040549896-1

II,, AkashDeepS/oVedPrakashVinayakR/o-E-44 , UpperGround-Floor, Prashant-ViharDelhi-110085, changedmyname toAkashDeepVinayak

0040549923-7

II,, Devender kumar, S/ORaghuvar dayal, Address-G-112 Sangam-Vihar, Deoli, SouthDelhi-110062.InmysonVarunBhardwaj’s CBSE 10th-certificate,father’s-name isDevender Sharmawhilemycorrect-name isDevenderKumar. 0040549923-10

II,, DILEEPSANHOTRAS/OSUSHILKUMARR/OWZ-659 F/138,RISHINAGAR, SHAKURBASTI,DELHI-110034.CHANGEDMYNAMETODILEEP. 0040549939-4

II,, Deepak, S/OUpendraRoy, R/O123CGG1VikasPuri NewDelhi-110018 have changedmynametoDeepakRai. 0070715592-1

II,, BANDANADEVI, D/O.HARINARAYANBORKATAKY,H.NO.138 ,ROOM.NO-5,HUMAYUNPUR, SAFDARJUNG-ENCLAVESOUTH/WEST DELHI-110029, changedmyname toBANDANADEVI BORKATAKY,permanently. 0040549923-6

II,, AshanandChhabraC/oNathuRamR/o L-1004, 10th Floor, RajNagar Extension,VVIPAddresses, Ghaziabad, UttarPradesh-201001HaveChangedmyName toAshaNand.

0070715636-1

II,, Ashi JainAlias Shruti JainD/oManoj JainR/o 9, Bagh Farzana,Agra, Civil Line, Agra, UP-282002, have changedmynametoShruti Jain. 0070715605-1

II,, Anit Kumar S/oOmPrakashR/oB-8/214, Sector-3,Rohini,Delhi-110085havechangedmyname toAneetKumar. 0040549949-2

PPEERRSSOONNAALL

LLOOSSTT&&FFOOUUNNDD

Classifieds PUBLIC NOTICEBe it known to public at large that myclient Mujeeb Ahmed S/o Haneef R/oWZ-936A, Basai Darapur, Masjid WaliGali, Ramesh Nagar, New Delhi-110015, above said property has beenpurchased by the mother of my clientnamely Smt. Sarvari (now deceased)from Sh. Khursheed Ahmed S/o AbdulKarim, R/o WZ-932, Basai Darapur,Masjid Wali Gali, Ramesh Nagar, NewDelhi-110015, and after her death myclient is co-owners and in possession ofproperty No. WZ-936A, Basai Darapur,Masjid Wali Gali, Ramesh Nagar, NewDelhi-110015. If anybody misused theaddress of the above noted propertyafter its purchased, he/she/they shall beliable or responsible for the same, myclient shall not be liable or answerablein any manner whatsoever.

Sd/- DAVINDER KUMAR RAJORA(Advocate)

Ch.No. C-96, C.L. Joseph Block,Tis Hazari Courts, Delhi-54

PUBLIC NOTICE“MY CLIENT SHRIMATI GITA, WIFE OFLATE SHRI VIJAY KUMAR RESIDENTOF HOUSE No. 2085, GROUNDFLOOR BASTI PEEPAL WALI, SADARBAZAR, DELHI-10006 DOES HEREBYDISOWN AND DISINHERIT HER SONSHRI NEERAJ AND DAUGHTER-IN-LAW SHRIMATI POONAM @ KANIKAAS WELL AS HER GRAND CHILDRENMs. SHIVANYA AND MASTERABHIMANYU FROM ALL HERPROPERTIES MOVABLE ANDIMMOVABLE. THE PUBLIC IS HEREBYINFORMED THAT ANY PERSONDEALING WITH THEM SHALL BEDOING SO AT THEIR OWN RISK.”

Sd/- DEVRAJ SINGH (Advocate)Ch.No. 121, W. Wing,

Tis Hazari Courts, Delhi-54

PUBLIC NOTICEBe it know to all that my clients Shri VinayKumar and Smt. Prabha Sehgal BothResidents of Flat No. 41, Akash KunjApartments, Sector-9, Rohini, Delhi-110085,do hereby debar and disown their sonLakshay Sehgal and his wife Smt. NavyaGupta D/o Sh. Anil Kumar Gupta, from theirall movable and immovable property, as theywere not obedient towards my clients anddisputes my clients at severally occasions, asthey on their own have also severed with allrelation with my clients.Now onwards they cease to be the legal heirsof my clients for all purposes whatsoever.Anybody deals with them shall be at his/her/their own risks and responsibility, for whichmy clients shall not be responsible at anycost.”

Sd/-Meena Chaudhary Sharma

AdvocateEnrl. No. D567/87

Chamber No. 456, First FloorWestern Wing, Tis Hazari

Delhi-110052

PUBLIC NOTICEBe it known to the public at largethat my client Abdul Kalam S/oLate Mohd. Siddiq R/o IX/2882,Malka Manzil, Bulbuli Khana,Turkman Gate, Delhi 110006 isowner of the property bearing No.X/746 & 746 A (old)/ 1115 -1116(new), Mohalla Raqab, GanjmeerKhan, Behind Delite Cinema, AsafAli Road, Delhi by virtue of Hibamade by his father MohammadSiddiq S/o Mohd. Ibrahim on20.05.2004 and a declaration tothis was executed on 30.07.2004.Said Mohd. Siddiq was owner ofthe property by virtue of Hibamade by Hakim MohammadHakim S/o Hakim MohammadFazil and a declaration to thiseffect was also executed by HakimMohammad Hakim in is favour.Said Hakim Mohammad Hakimwas owner of the property fromRamji Lal who was owner by virtueof Sale Certificate. My client isenjoying the property since thevery day of Hiba. Any body who ishaving any right, title and interestin the property may contact myclient within fifteen days from thedate of this publication failingwhich it shall be presumed that nobody has any claim against thesaid property.

Sd/-Meenakshi

AdvocateSeat: Opp. Treasury,

Tis Hazari Courts, Delhi-54

PUBLIC NOTICENOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN ON BEHALFOF MY CLIENT SH. GOVIND SINGH ALIASGOBIND S/O BHAGMAL, R/O WZ-1593,BHOOP SINGH GALI, NANGAL RAYA, NEWDELHI-110046 WHO IS THE ABSOLUTEOWNER OF THE ABOVE SAID PROPERTYAND HEREBY HE HASDISOWNED/DEBARRED HIS SON AJAYTANWAR, DAUGHTERS RAMA DEVI,HEMLATA, URVASHI AND MEENAKSHIFROM ALL MOVABLE AND IMMOVABLEPROPERTIES WITH IMMEDIATE EFFECTAND HE WILL NOT BE RESPONSIBLE FORANY ACTS AND DEEDS DONE ON THEIRBEHALF. HE HAS SEVERED ALLRELATIONS FROM THEM. IF ANY PERSONKEEPS RELATIONS WITH THEM THEYARE REPONSIBLE FOR THEMSELVES.

Sd/-Prateek Tanwar

AdvocateD/1905/2009

Off. 12/21, 1st Floor,Old Rajinder Nagar,

New Delhi-110060Ph. 9810443443, 9999904746

PUBLIC NOTICE

Naresh Kumar Kaushik (Advocate)Ch. No. 139, District Court, Hapur

Be it known to all concerned that myclients Chaklesh Kumar Sharma and hiswife Surekha Sharma R/o- H.No. 11,Village-Simrouli, Post-Babugarh, District-Hapur, U.P-245201, have severed allrelations with their Daughter ChitraSharma disinherited/disowned anddebarred her from all their properties,movable and immovable and my clientswould not be responsible for the act,deed and things done by her.

Àff½fʪfd³fIY Àfc¨f³ff¸fZSZ ¸fb½fd¢I »f A¸fS³ff±f ´fbÂf ßfe ¸fa¦f°f Sf¸f E½fa ßfe¸f°fe ¸f²fb´f°³fe ßfe A¸fS³ff±f d³f½ffÀfe ´»ffgM ³f¸¶fS 78, £fÀfSf ³fa¶fS29/4, ¸fa¦f»f ¶ffªffS SûO, ¶fe.E»f.IZ ./E, A¦fS ³f¦fS, ´fiZ¸f³f¦fS, RZ ªf-3, ³fªfQeI ¨fa¨f»f ³fdÀf˦f Wû¸f, dQ»»fe-41 ³fZA´f³fZ ´fbÂf Aû¸f VfaI S ½f CÀfI e ´f°³fe ßfe¸f°fe ´fied°f d³f½ffÀfe¸f.³fa. 1268, ¶f¦fe¨fe °f³fÀfb£f Sf¹f, Aªf¸fZSe ¦fZM, dQ»»fe-110006 I fZ C³fIZ Qb½¹fʽfWfS, »fOÞfBÊ Óf¦fOÞf I S³fZ, ÓfcNZ IZ ÀfûÔ¸fZÔ Ra Àff³fZ I e ²f¸fdI ¹ffa QZ³fZ IZ I fS¯f A´f³fe Àf¸fÀ°f ¨f»f E½faA¨f»f Àfa´fdØf¹fûÔ ÀfZ ¶fZQ£f»f I S°fZ WbE A´f³fZ Àf·fe ´ffdS½ffdSIdSV°fZ ³ff°fZ Àfa¶fa²f-d½f¨LZQ I S d»fE W`ÔÜ A¶f B³f Qû³fûÔ ÀfZ ¸fZSm¸fb½fd¢I »fûÔ I f I ûBÊ dSV°ff-³ff°ff ³fWeÔ SWf W`, ·fd½f¿¹f ¸fZÔ B³fIZdI Àfe ·fe ´fiI fS IZ dIi ¹ff-I »ff´fûÔ, Qe½ff³fe, R üªfQfSe ½ffQ-d½f½ffQ, »fZ³f-QZ³f AfdQ IZ d»fE ¸fZSm ¸fb½fd¢I »f CØfSQf¹fe ³fWeÔWûÔ¦fZ, B³f Qû³fûÔ ÀfZ »fZ³f-QZ³f I S³fZ ½f Àfa¶fa²f S£f³fZ ½ff»ff À½f¹fadªf¸¸fZQfS Wû¦ffÜ

Sd/-Deepak Kashyap

AdvocateEnrolment No.: D/3836/09

PUBLIC NOTICEMy Client Mr. Omkar Nath Pandita, S/oLate Radha Krishna Pandita, R/o A-76,Kh. NO. 1680, Ground Floor, Phase-I,Aya Nagar, New Delhi 110047 havedisowned and debarred his SonRakesh Pandita and Daughter in lawNeetu Pandita from his all movable,immovable properties due to theirdisobedient towards my client and theyhave been acting against his will andinterest. My client have also severed allhis relations with them. My client shallnot be responsible for their any act,deed, transactions in any manner.

Sd/- Avinash Kumar (Advocate)Ch. No. 715, Saket Courts

New Delhi-17

PUBLIC NOTICE

"The public at large is informed thatour clients Naeem S/o Jamiluddinand his wife Nargis Begum R/o H.No-5664, Basti Harphool Singh Delhi,Sadar Bazar, Delhi-110006 havedisowned and debarred theirDaughter in law and his Son MusaR/o Kasabpur, Sadar Bazar,Delhi110006 from their all moveable& immoveable properties and havealso severed all their social relationsfrom them due to their disobedientattitude and misconduct & cruelbehaviour and both of them out ofcontrol of our clients. If anybodydeals with them in any respect,he/she himself/herself shall beresponsible for the same and ourclients and their other familymembers shall not be responsible forthe same in any manner whatsoever.

B. KHAN ADVOCATEEnrl. D-1620/99

Chamber No. 169, Civil WingTis Hazari Courts, Delhi-110054

PUBLIC NOTICEIt is hereby informed to public at largethat my clientess Smt. Purnima SharmaW/o Sh. Krishan Kant Sharma R/o 139,A.G.C.R. Enclave, East Delhi-110092 ispurchasing a property bearing No. 140,A.G.C.R. Enclave, East Delhi-110092from Sunstar lnfrabuild Pvt. Ltd. Ifanyone has any objection/claimregarding above said property, pleasecontact within 7 days. Contact No.9873251100.

Sd/-MAYANK YADAV

AdvocateCh. No. : D-512, D-Block,

5th Floor, Karkardooma Courts,Delhi Mob. No. 9711424811

PUBLIC NOTICE“This is for the information of general public thatmy client Smt. Pinki Verma W/o Sh. Nirmal KumarVerma R/o GH-8, Flat No.536, Paschim Vihar,New Delhi-110087, has disowned and debarredher son ANKIT VERMA AND DAUGHTER-IN-LAWSARGAM MALHOTRA from all her movable andimmovable properties with immediate effect andsevered all her relations and connections withthem, because they are out of control of my clientand misbehave with her.Anybody dealing with them shall do so at his ownrisk and responsibilities thereto and my client andher family shall be in no way responsible for anyact, deeds and things done by them.

Sd/-MITHILESH KUMAR JHA

AdvocateERN. NO. D-1267/07

Off. S.R.-II Distt CentreJanak Puri, New Delhi-110058

PUBLIC NOTICEI, MR. NAND KISHORE BATRA S/O SH.MOTI RAM BATRA R/O E-114, WESTPATEL NAGAR, NEW DELHI, am co ownerof Govt. Built-up Qr.No. F-57, D/S Qrs., WestPatel Nagar, New Delhi and havemisplaced/lost my original General Power ofAttorney executed by allottee SMT. DAROPTIDEVI W/O LATE SH. BHIM SEN in favour ofSH. AMRIK SINGH S/O LATE SH. CHUNILAL, vide GPA Regd. No. 9792, in Addl. BookNo. 4, Volume No. 2552 on pages 1 to 5,dated 23.11.1992 entered in the office of Sub-Registrar, Sub-Distt. No. 1, Kashmere Gate,Delhi in respect of above said property, & Ihave lodged an FIR/NCR Vide LR No.582748/2020 Date 18/09/2020, with PoliceStation Crime Branch, Delhi, if anybody findsthe said document, Please inform me at theabove said address and contact me thismobile no. 8810613190.

PUBLIC NOTICEThis notice has been given by my clientMaya Sharma D/o Salig Ram R/o B-17/00,Sector-1, Amarpali, Rohini, Delhi- 110085,who have misplaced some of her originalProperty document- “Agreement to sellMaya Sharma” & “Agreement to sellPankaj Kumar” of D-217, Avantika Sector-I, Rohini, Delhi-110085. My client herebyinform General Public through this PublicNotice that she is the sole owner of abovegiven property. If anybody has any claim ofownership rights/claim/interest/objectionon this property he/she can raise his/herobjection within 15 days at above saidaddress/Phone no. 9868205996 and afterthat period it shall be presumed that myclient has clear ownership/title of propertyand no other person have any Legal Rightsin this property.

Sd/- PANKAJ KUMAR (Advocate)Enrl. No. D-1233/2010

PUBLIC NOTICEIt is informed to the Public at large thatmy client Ms. Bhagwandai Bisht W/oSh. Umed Singh Bisht, R/o 1061-BG I-Block, Phase-6, Aya Nagar, SouthDelhi, New Delhi- 110047, herebydebarring/disowning her son DIGVIJAYANAND SINGH BISHT, daughter-in-law ABHA BISHT and their Daughters’DIGVIJAY LAKSHMI & LAKSHMIRAWAT from her all properties(movable and immovable) because theyare not under control of my client. Myclient has also severed all her relationsfrom them will be not responsible forany acts done by them.

Sd/- Pradeep Sharma (Advocate)Ch. No. 260 Saket Courts

New Delhi-17

''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 NOTICE“General public at large is hereby informedthat my clients-Sh. Satyapal S/o Lt.Prakash Chand, his wife-Ms. Geeta Deviand his sons-Sh. Rahul, Sh. ShivamKhobba and his married daughter-Ms.Sangeeta, All also R/o H. No. RD-67,Church Road, Ravi Dass Nagar, Narela,Delhi- 110040 have severed all theirrespective relations from daughter/sisterMs. Manisha D/o Sh. Satyapal,Temporarily staying at H. No. RD-67,Church Road, Ravi Dass Nagar, Narela,Delhi- 110040 due to her willfuldisobedience, misbehave and extortiveconducts and also have disowned her fromtheir movable and immovable properties.Any person dealing with aforesaid- Ms.Manisha shall be doing so at his/her ownrisk and the same shall not be binding onmy aforesaid clients in any manner,whatsoever.

Sd/- ANAND BHARDWAJ (ADVOCATE)(ENRL. NO. D-312-R/96)”

CH. No. 51, CIVIL WING, TIS HAZARICOURTS, DELHI- 110054

PUBLIC NOTICEIt is hereby informed to the public that ourclients Sh. Komal Krishan Sharma and hiswife Smt. Promila Sharma both residentsof F-234, Third Floor, New RajinderNagar, New Delhi-110060, havedisinherited their son Mr. Rajeev Sharma,his wife Mrs. Preeti Sharma and theirdaughter Baby Aarohi Sharma allresidents of F-234, Third Floor, NewRajinder Nagar, New Delhi-110060 asMrs. Preeti Sharma has beencontinuously harassing, abusing andthreatening our clients. Our clients andtheir family have severed all theirrelations with Mr. Rajeev Sharma, his wifeMrs. Preeti Sharma and their daughterBaby Aarohi Sharma and as such theyhave no right or claim in any manner in allthe movables and immovables of ourclients and their family. Any persondealing with them shall be doing so athis/her risk. Our clients shall not beresponsible in any manner for the acts/omissions of the aforesaid persons.

D.R. JAIN LAW FIRMCH.NO. 195, W. Wing,

Tis Hazari Courts, Delhi-54

IItt is notified for the informationthatmyOriginalQualifyingExaminationCertificate ofMain Secondary Examinationof Year 2019 andRollNo.9208066 12th issuedbyCBSEhasbeenactually lost.CandidateName: Rahul Raj,FlatNo.58, KanchanchangaApartment, plot no.90, IPExtension, Patparganj, Delhi-110092M-8178989965

0040549897-2

IItt is notified for the informationthatmyOriginal PropertyDocuments ofWZA44GulabBagh,Nawada,UttamNagar,NewDelhi hasbeenactuallylost onDate:15-09-2020Time:08:30pm.OwnerNameSureshkumarVermaandNeeraj Verma If foundpleasecall-9999090567 0040549897-1

II priyank shrivastavaR/0H.no998 , drmukherjeenagarDelhi110009 have lostmyM.TECH(ASM,IIT KHARAGHPUR)degree certificate year( 2010-12) roll no 10AG66R07on 11aug2020near batra cinemadrmukherjeenagar..FIRNO482534/2020 0040549934-1

II,, JitanderKumarGupta,S/O.OmParkashGuptaowner of C-401,Munirka-CGHS, Sec-9,Dwarka,NewDelhi-110075,have lostmyoriginalShare certificate.no.155 ofMunirkaCGHS-Limited,New-Delhi. 0040549940-10

II,, LeelaDevi,W/o LateBimalKumarR/o.A-1/236A, KeshavPuram,Delhi-11035, declaredthatmyplot recommendationletter no.F-33(29)/39/87/L&B/ALT17055,dated-09.05.1988,havebeenlost. FinderContact-9350899128 0040549946-1

II,, Jasleen kaur,D/o Ishwar SinghR/o.H-17/262,RatiaMargSangamVihar,Dehli-80,havelostmyoriginal-certificateClass-10thYear-2019Rollno-8239812CBSE-DELHI.

0040549939-10

Govt. of PunjabDepartment of Local Self Government

Municipal Corporation AboharNo. 1963 Dated 18.09.20

Notice Inviting Tender

Request for Proposal (RFP) for selection of Project Development &Management consultants for developing and monetizing of landparcels in abohar Municipal area.

Request for Proposal (RFP) for selection of Project Development &Management Consultants for developing and monetizing of land parcelsin Abohar Municipal area is floated for inviting bids. The documents areuploaded on Punjab Govt. official tender website eproc.punjab.gov.inEligible and Competent firms may submit their bids as per prescribedproforma contained in the documents.

Sd/-Commissioner

Municipal Corporation, Abohar79735/Pb

II SANJAYKUMAR R/o-38C,Sainik Enclave, VipinGarden,UttamNagar, Delhi-110059inform that in school recordofmyminor daughter namelyVANSHIKASHARMA, thenameofmywife hasbeenmentionedasPINKYSHARMAwhereasherCorrect name isHEMLATASHARMA. 0040549915-1

IIMOHAMMADPARVEJ, S/OMOHAMMADSUFIYANKHANR/OH.NO.105, BIW-COLONYNTPC-BADARPUR,NEWDELHI-44, HAVECHANGEDMYNAMETOMOHAMMADPARVEJKHAN,permanently. 0040549923-3

II GeetaUpretiW/oGirishChandraSharmaR/o II-B/335,GF, Vaishali, Ghaziabadhavechangedmyname toGeetaSharma 0050169761-1

II BijayKumarAgrawal aliasVijayAgrawal S/o Late Sh. DinDayal Agrawal R/oC-604,Saraswati Vihar, Pitampura,NorthWestDelhi, Delhi-110034have changedmyname toBijayKumarAgarwal for allpurposes. 0040549908-1

II ChristinaAnthonyW/O, SunilAnandR/oA-5/b-290 ShantiKunj PaschimVihar, Delhi-110063 have changedmynametoChristinaAnand

0040549936-1

II,, BandnaDevi D/oSh. KaramChandR/oTehsil Shri NainaDevi jiMayoth (342), Bilaspur,Himachal Pradesh-174310,have changedmynameandshall hereafter be knownasVandnaShreeThakur.

0070715590-1

II Ashuw/oAtul SharmaR/OB3A/69A janakpuri NewDelhihave changedmynameAshutoAshuSharma 0040549888-1

I, Aadi Gupta, sonof Sonika,resident of, Jacranda 502, ShipraSrishti Apartments, Ahinsakhand1, Indirapuram,Ghaziabad, have changedmyname toAdvit Gupta for allpurposes. 0040549996-1

New Delhi

MANISHSAHULUCKNOW,SEPTEMBER29

A SPECIAL CBI court in Lucknow has fixedWednesday,September30forpronouncementofitsjudgmentintheBabriMasjiddemolitioncase.While theSupremeCourthasdelivered the

final judgment in the Ayodhya title suit,Wednesday’s judgmentwill be the first in thenearly 28-year-old demolition case. Once pro-nounced, it canbechallenged inhighercourts.Of the49accused,32arealive today.

The cases filedAfter the demolition of the BabriMasjid on

December6,1992,twoseparatecaseswerefiledatRamJanmabhoomipolicestationinFaizabad.Thefirstwasfiledat5.15pmbythethenSHO,

PriyamvadaNath Shukla, against unknown karsevaks.ThiswasunderIPCsections395(dacoity),397 (robbery or dacoity,with attempt to causedeathorgrievoushurt),332(voluntarilycausinghurt to deter public servant from duty), 337(causinghurtbyactendangeringlifeorpersonalsafety of others), 338 (causing grievous hurt byactendangeringlifeorpersonalsafetyofothers),295 (injuring or defiling place of worshipwithintenttoinsultthereligionofanyclass),297(tres-passingonburialplaces,etc)and153-A(promot-ingenmitybetweendifferentgroupsongroundsof religion, race, place of birth, residence, lan-guage,etc.,anddoingactsprejudicialtomainte-nanceofharmony). Policealso invokedSection7of theCriminalLawAmendmentAct.ThesecondFIRwasfiled10minutes laterby

sub-inspectorGangaPrasadTiwari, in-chargeofRamjanmabhoomipoliceoutpost,againsteightpersons including senior BJP leaders — L KAdvani, Murli Manohar Joshi, Ashok Singhal(now deceased), Giriraj Kishore (deceased),VishnuHari Dalmia (deceased), Vinay Katiyar,UmaBhartiandSadhviRitambhara.Thiswasun-der IPC sections 153-A, 153-B (imputations, as-sertionsprejudicial tonational integration)and505(statementsconducingtopublicmischief).BetweenDecember6and21,policeregistered

47more FIRs,mostly relating to assault on andlootingofmediapersonsduringthedemolition.

The CBI probeThe state government initially assigned the

caseagainstunidentifiedkarsevakstotheCrimeBranch’s Criminal Investigation Department(CB-CID).OnDecember12,1992, thestatesenta recommendation to theCentre for transferoftheinvestigationtotheCBI,whichlodgedanFIRandbegan its investigation the followingday.The other case, inwhichAdvani and others

were named, was investigated by local policeandthereaftertheCB-CID.OnDecember16,thestate government in consultation with theLucknowBenchof theAllahabadHighCourt is-sued anotification setting up a special court ofa judicial magistrate in Lalitpur for this case.After getting sanction, the CB-CID filed achargesheet againstAdvani and the sevenoth-ers in this courtonFebruary27,1993.OnJuly8,1993,thestategovernmentincon-

sultationwiththeHighCourtissuedanotherno-

tification, transferringtheplaceof sittingof thecourt fromLalitpur toRaeBareli.InAugust1993, thestategovernmentsenta

recommendation foraCBIprobe into theother48FIRs.TheCBIwashandedoverallthesecases.InSeptember, thestategovernment, incon-

sultationwith the High Court, issued anothernotification constituting a special court inLucknowfor thecases relating todemolition.Meanwhile,theCBImovedanapplicationin

theRaeBarelicourt,seeking—andgetting—CBIpermission for further investigation in thecaseagainstAdvaniandothers.

The CBI case in courtOn October 5, 1993, the CBI filed a

chargesheetagainst40persons in theLucknowcourt.OnOctober8,thestategovernmentissueda notification that the case against Advani andotherswouldalsobeheard inLucknow.In January, 1994, the Rae Bareli court trans-

ferred records on the demolition case to theLucknowcourt. In 1996, theCBI filed a supple-mentarychargesheetagainstninemorepersons.InSeptember1997, theLucknowcourt took

cognisanceof theCBI chargesheetandorderedchargesbeframedagainstaccused.Summonseswere issued. In itschargesheet, theCBIclaimedithadevidencethatthedemolitionwasthefall-out of a larger conspiracy. Charges under sec-tion120-B IPCwereadded.InFebruary2001,33oftheaccusedfiledape-

tition in theHigh Court challenging the sum-monses issuedby the Lucknowcourt. They alsochallengedthetrialofthecaseagainstAdvaniandothers in the Lucknowcourt. Their groundwasthat the state governmenthad issued thenotifi-cationonthetransferofthecasewithoutconsult-ingtheHighCourt.TheCBIrequestedthegovern-menttoissueafreshnotificationafterconsultationwiththeHighCourt;thegovernmentdidnot.OnFebruary12,2001,theHighCourtpassedan

order finding no illegality in a joint singlechargesheetforall theFIRsonthegroundthatalltheoffenceswerecommittedinthecourseofthesame transaction to accomplish the conspiracy,andthattheevidenceforalloffencesisalmostthesame. Thecourtupheldtheframingofchargesinall48cases,excepttheoneagainstAdvaniandoth-ers. “TheHighCourt observed that thenotifica-tiondatedOctober 8, 1993, bywhich the trial ofthecaseinwhichAdvaniandotherswereaccusedwas transferred to Lucknow, was legally notsound,”saiddefencecounselAbhishekRanjan.TheHighCourtsaidthemistakeinissuingthe

notificationonOctober8,1993wascurableandthiscouldbedonethroughanothernotification.

The case against AdvaniOnMay4,2001,basedontheHighCourtorder,

theLucknowtrialcourtdroppedproceedingsonthecaseagainstAdvaniandothers.Italsodroppedproceedings against 13other accused includingMahantAvaidyaNath,RamVilasVedanti,Mahant

Nritya Gopal Das, Kalyan Singh, BalasahebThackerayandChampatRaiuntil rectificationofthegovernmentnotification.Thecourtheld thatthese 21 accusedwere covered in the case inwhichAdvaniandotherswereaccused.IntheLucknowcourt,thetrialwasonagainst

28personsnow.InJune2001,theCBImovedtheHigh Court against the Lucknow court orderdroppingproceedingsagainst21persons.In2003,theCBImovedtheRaeBarelicourtre-

questing that it start proceedings of the caseagainstAdvaniandothers. It requestedthatdoc-umentsofthiscasebesummonedfromLucknow,andalsomovedanapplicationinLucknowcourtrequesting that it send thesedocuments toRaeBareli.TheLucknowcourtorderedthesebesent.OnSeptember19,2003,theRaeBarelicourt

discharged Advani and summoned the otherseven accused. These seven thenmoved theHigh Court against the summons. The CBI toomovedapetitionoverAdvanibeingdischarged.InJuly2005,theHighCourtsetasidetheRae

Bareli court order and directed all the accusedtoappear. OnJuly28, it framedchargesagainstAdvaniandthesevenothers.In August 2010, the Lucknow court framed

chargesagainst the remainingaccused.In 2011, the CBI moved a Special Leave

PetitionaftertheHighCourthadupheldtheMay4,2001trialcorderorderdroppingproceedingsagainst21.OnApril19,2017,theSupremeCourtordered adding of criminal conspiracy charges

againsttheaccusedthenfacingtrialinRaeBareli.The court also ordered restoration of chargesthathadbeendroppedagainst13accused,andclubbing of the trial against Advani and others(twoofthemhadpassedawaybythen)withthecasebeingtriedinLucknow.Thecourtdirectedthat thereshall benotransferof the judgecon-ductingthetrialuntil theentiretrialconcludes,and the trialbeconductedday today.In May 2017, the Lucknow court ordered

framingofchargesagainstAdvani,Joshi,KatiyarandBharti.Freshchargesweremadeoutagainstthe13againstwhomproceedingsweredropped.

This year, so farTherecordingofprosecutionwitnessstate-

mentswas completed inMarch this year. Thecourt then began recording statements of theaccusedunderSection313CrPC.The statements of Satish Pradhan, Advani,

Joshi and RamChandra Khatri were recordedthroughvideoconferenceas theycouldnotap-pear in court because of various reasons. Therecording of statementswas completed in Julythisyear.Thedefencedidnotproduceanywitnesses.The prosecution submittedwritten argu-

ments onAugust 21, and the defence did so onAugust 31. On September 16, the court said thejudgmentwouldbepronouncedonSeptember30.Anearlierdeadline for judgmentexpiredonAugust31beforetheSupremeCourtextendedit.

15WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

TOTALRECALL

SIMPLYPUTQUESTION&ANSWER

GEORGEMATHEW&SUNNYVERMAMUMBAI,NEWDELHI, SEPTEMBER29

ONOCTOBER 1, the Reserve Bank of India’sMonetaryPolicyCommittee(MPC)wassup-posedtoannouncethecountry’skeyinterestrates and themonetary policy for the nexttwomonths.Thiswillhavetowaitasthegov-ernment is yet to appoint three newmem-bersata timewhenthepandemic is raging,GDP growth is floundering and borrowersare bracing for a mega loan restructuringprocess.

WhydidtheRBIpostponetheMPCmeeting?Thebi-monthlymeetingwas scheduled

forSeptember29toOctober1.TheRBIpost-poned it as it failed to nominate its threemembers to the six-member panel. Thetenure of the threemembers appointed bythe government in 2016 expired after thepreviouspolicyonAugust6.MPCisthestatu-tory committee that fixes the keypolicy in-terestrateandmonetarypolicystanceofthecountryaswell as the inflation target.

HowareMPCmembersselected?RBIGovernorShaktikantaDasisthehead

of theMPC, while the Deputy Governor incharge of theMonetary Policy Department(Michael Patra) and the Executive Directorlookingafterthemonetarypolicyaremem-

bersfromtheRBIside.Thethreegovernmentnominees are selected by a committeeformed by the government for a four-yearterm. The three members whose tenureended in August are: Dr Chetan Ghate,Professor,IndianStatisticalInstitute;DrPamiDua, Director, Delhi School of Economics;and Dr Ravindra H Dholakia, formerProfessor, IIMAhmedabad.AspertheRBIAct,thequorumforanMPC

meeting is four, and in effect the committeecannotmeetuntilatleastoneexternalmem-berispresent,inadditiontothethreeRBIrep-resentatives. If there’s a tie on any proposal,theRBIGovernorholds thecastingvote.

WhatdidtheMPCdointhe last fouryears?The bi-monthlyMPCmeeting discusses

thedomesticandinternationalscenariobe-forefinalisingtherepoandreversereporates.If thereisnoconsensusontherateorpolicy,therewill bevotingprocess.MPCmembersdiffered on a couple of occasions on thequantum of repo rate changes but eventu-allywentbythemajoritydecision.AlthoughtheMPC slashed the key policy rate— reporate — by 250 basis points to four per cent,the rate cut transmission has been ratherslowwithbankstakingtheirtimetopassonthebenefits.

Whatdoesthedelay inannouncingthenewmonetarypolicymean?

Interest rates play a crucial role in theeconomy. Any delay in changing the rateswill impact the economy asMPC sets therepo rate (the rate atwhichRBI lends fundsto banks) and reverse repo rate (the rate atwhich the RBI borrows funds from banks).Thepandemicisstillevolvingandcreditoff-takehasbeensluggish.“Theeconomyisfac-ingaseriouschallengeandtheRBIhasbeenleadingfromthefrontwithquickresponsesthroughratecuts, injectingliquiditythroughopenmarketoperationsandlong-termrepooperationsandavarietyof innovativetoolstomanageandensurefinancialstability. Inthishour of economic emergency, theMPC hastobe inplace to formulatepolicy.Thisdelaycould have been avoided," said V KVijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist atGeojit Financial Services.

WhywasMPCcreated?Prior to October 2016, the RBI Governor

used to decide on policy rate. Even thoughhewas assisted by a team of officials fromthecentralbank,theultimatedecisionrestedwith the Governor. India joined a growingband of countries that, beginning in 1990,adopted flexible inflation targeting as theirframework formonetarypolicy.In 2016, the government had provided

statutory backing to theMPC by notifyingamendmentstotheRBIAct,1934.Theinfla-tiontargetandtolerancebandaroundit,andaccountability with respect to failure to

achievethetarget,werenotifiedbythegov-ernmentduringMay-August2016.Itwasforthefirst timethatanexplicit inflationtargetwasgiventotheRBI,alongwithfailurelevel.Rate-setting decisionswere nowmade

through voting in theMPC rather than theGovernor alone taking a call on thesemat-ters.TheRBInowreleasesbothMPCresolu-tionsandminutesoftheminutes(withalag)—providingadetailedreviewoftheanalysisand individual assessment of themembersthatwent into framingof thepolicy.

Hasitbeeneffective inframingthemonetarypolicy?The first MPC meeting was held on

October4,2016whenUrjitPatelwastheRBIGovernor. TheMPC has since then slashedthereporateby250basispointsto4%inthelast fouryearswith115bpsreduction in thelast ninemonths.With retail inflationpick-ing up in recentmonths, theMPC in its lastpolicy review in August kept the repo rateunchangedat4%whiledecidingtocontinuewiththeaccommodativestance.Thecurrentinflationtargetis4%—withinabandof2-6%—whichtheRBIisexpectedtomaintain.Theretail inflation level is nowabove the targetof 6%with theAugust reading at 6.69%, andit has been above themedium-term targetof4%fornearlyayearnow.TheamendedRBIAct defines failure as average inflationbreaching the toleranceband for threecon-secutivequarters,not instantly.

What delay in RBI panel meet means

@ieExplained#ExpressExplainedIf there are questions of current or contemporary relevance that youwould likeexplained, pleasewrite to explained@indianexpress.comE EXPLAINED

THEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY,SEPTEMBER30,2020

KarsevaksatopthedomeofBabriMasjidonDecember6,1992. ExpressArchive

Ayodhya conspiracy: waiting for verdictALucknowcourtwillpronounceits judgmentontheBabriMasjiddemolitioncaseonWednesday.Alookathowthetrialhasprogressedovertheyears

T H E A C CU S E D49TOTAL 32LIVING

TookoutRathYatra,wasatdemolitionsite;unlikelytoappearonhealthgrounds

LKADVANI, 92

BJPveteranwas atdemolitionsite;unlikelytoattendonhealthgrounds

MURLIMANOHARJOSHI,86

WasUPCMin1992;hasrecoveredfromCovid-19, is likely toappear

KALYANSINGH,88

FormerBJPMPisaccusedofprovocativespeechatsite.Expectedtoappear

VINAYKATIYAR,65

InRathYatraforsometime,promisedShivSenawouldtakepart inkarseva

BALTHACKERAY, DECEASED GIRIRAJKISHORE , DECEASED

VHPleaderwasatsite,accusedofmakingprovocativespeeches

ASHOKSINGHAL ,DECEASED

Accusedofprovocativespeeches;testedCovidpositive,notlikelytoappear

UMABHARTI, 61

VHPleaderaccusedofprovocativespeechesatsite, likely toappear

SADHVIRITAMBHARA,56

HeadofTrustfortemple.TestedCovidpositive,thennegative,notlikelytoappear

MAHANTNRITYAGOPALDAS,82

SITT ING MPS

AGE PROFILE

EVIDENCE CHECKLIST

52PawanKumarPandey isyoungest, all theother

accusedareover60.

80+ BesidesAdvani, Joshi,NrityaGopaland

KalyanSingh,othersover80areSatishPradhan,DharmendraSinghGujjarandRNSrivastava

351prosecutionwitnesses314piecesofmaterialevidence,includingnewspapersandcassettesand270exhibits thatincludedFIRsandnotificationsissuedbythegovernment

PROMINENT FACES

SAKSHIMAHARAJ(UNNAO)

LALLUSINGH(FAIZABAD)

BRIJBHUSHANSHARANSINGH(KAISERGANJ)

CORONAVIRUSDASHBOARD

INDIAACTIVECASES 947,576

WORLDTOTALCASES33,173,176

Source:JohnsHopkinsUniversity,updatedat11pmonSept29

INDIATOTALCASES6,145,291

Source:MinistryofHealth&FamilyWelfare,updatedat11pmonSept29

Note: TheSept28 figure in this graph isbasedon thegovernmentupdateonSept29

1100,000

1000,000

900,000Sept19 Sept28

LAST 10 DAYS

1,010,824

947,576

ALL3LIKELYTOAPPEARSeniorVHPleaderwaspresentonsiteofdemolitionalongwithother leaders

New Delhi

MARIACASPANINEWYORK,SEPTEMBER29

JODICOOKwilldropoffhersontohis Brooklyn school on Tuesdayfor the first time inmonths, buteventhoughhersix-year-oldwillgetatleastsometimeinteractingfacetofacewithteachersandstaff,shefearsitwillnotbeenough.Going back to the classroom

was the only viable option forRoberto, Cook said.Hehas somelearningchallengesanddidnotdowellwith remote learningwhenschoolsshut lastspring.Butevenwith a return to the classroom,Cookfearshemightnotgetaccesstoalltheservicesheneeds.

“I’m going to kind of go intoitthinkingofthisyearasawash,”Cook, a 48-year-oldwhoworksin real estate, told Reuters. “Heneeds additional support thathe’snotgoing tobeable toget.”Hundreds of thousands of

students who have chosen in-person learningwill head backto the classroom in New YorkCity this week after amonths-longhiatusspurredbyCovid-19.Childreninelementaryschools

areduetostartin-personinstruc-tiononTuesdayaspartofthecity’sblendedlearningplan,whichcallsforstudentstospendsomeof theweek in schools and the remain-derlearningathomeonline.Effortstobringstudentsback

totheclassroominthecountry’slargestpublicschooldistrictserv-ingmorethan1millionstudents

didnotgooffwithoutahitch.MayorBilldeBlasiodelayedin-

person learningatpublic schools

twiceduetostaffingshortagesandotherdifficulties arising fromthepandemic. Recently, positive test

ratesforthecoronavirushavebeenrising in someneighbourhoods.Shouldthecitycrossits3%thresh-

old, schoolswill have to close in-personlearning.Mostothermajorschooldis-

tricts in the US have scrappedplans to resume in-personedu-cation for now. In Los Angeles,thesecondlargestschooldistrictin the nation, and Chicago, stu-dents are staying home and us-ing laptops toattendclasses.Despitethechallengesposed

bythismostunusualschoolyear,Cook said the teachers and staffat their Brooklyn school hadbeen“great”intherun-uptothestartof in-personeducation.Theycalled forcheck-insand

followedupwhenthefamilyhadtodelaythestartofRoberto’svir-tual learning earlier thismonth,

andtheyscrambledtomakesurehe gets access to the in-personspecial care he needs, althoughtheycouldnotguaranteeitduetolimitedresources.Classrooms in the city’s

schools lookverydifferent fromwhat pupils are accustomed.Educatorshadtoimplementnu-merouschangesinordertomeetnew health and safety guide-lines, including revamping oldventilationsystems.Face coverings, fewer desks

placedsixfeetapart, lunchintheclassroom, outdoor classes forsome, and nurses on the prem-ises are some of the noveltiesawaiting students and staff thisacademicyear.REUTERS

16THEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY,SEPTEMBER30,2020

THEWORLDWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

MEANWHILE

JAPANAIRLINESVOWSTOUSE INCLUSIVELANGUAGEJapanAirlinessaid itwouldretire thephrase“ladiesandgentlemen”fromin-flightannouncementsmadeinEnglish,asymbolicsteptowards inclusivity inacountrywhereactivistshave longfoughttochangeentrenchedgendertraditions.Greetingsandannouncementsat theairportandinthecabinwouldusegender-neutral languagesuchas“allpassengers”or“everyone”, theairlinesaid.

PAKISTAN

SingerMeeshaShafibookedfor‘smearcampaign’againstAliZafarAPAKISTANI lawenforce-ment agency has bookedsinger Meesha Shafi andeight others for allegedlystaging a smear campaignagainst fellowsinger-actorAliZafar,whohasworkedinIndian films,with a sexualharassmentcomplaint. TheFederal InvestigationAgency’s (FIA), cyber-crimedivision, Lahore, registeredanFIRagainstShafiandoth-ersundersectionsofthepe-nalcodedealingwithpublictransmissionof false infor-mationtoharmthereputa-tionorprivacyofaperson.InApril 2018, Shafi accusedZafarof sexualharassment.In Nov 2018, Zafar filed acomplaintwithFIA,allegingmanysocialmediaaccountswere posting defamatorymaterialagainsthim.PTI

MeeshaShafi

TOPOFTHEWORLD

SRILANKA

CattleslaughterbannedinLankaTHE SRI Lankan govern-menthasapprovedapro-posaltobancattleslaugh-ter in the island nation.However,itdecidedtoim-portbeefforthebenefitofthosewhoconsumeit.TheCabinet onMonday ap-provedtheproposaltobancattle slaughter in thecountry, a Cabinetspokesman said Tuesday,adding that legalising thedecisionwouldbedoneindue course. “As a countrywithaneconomybasedonagriculture, the contribu-tionof the cattle resourcetodevelopthelivelihoodofthe rural people of SriLanka is immense,” theCabinet noted, approvingtheproposal.PTI

THEGULF

UAEtolaunchspacecrafttomoonin2024THE UNITED ArabEmiratesplanstosendanunmanned spacecraft tothemoon in 2024, a topEmirati official saidTuesday, the latest gam-ble in thestarsby theoil-richnationthatcouldseeitbecomeonlythefourthnationonEarthtoaccom-plish that goal. The an-nouncement by Dubai’srulerSheikhMohammedbin Rashid AlMaktoum,who also serves as thevice president and PMofthe hereditarily ruledUAE, shows the rapidex-pansionof thespacepro-gramme that bears hisname.AP

LIFE AFTER COVID LOCKDOWN

Lost year: New York parents wrestle with uncertainty as schools open

JANEWARDELLSEPTEMBER29

THEGLOBAL coronavirus deathtollrosepastamilliononTuesday,accordingtoaReuterstally,agrimstatistic in a pandemic that hasdevastated the global economy,overloaded health systems andchangedthewaypeoplelive.The number of deaths from

thenovelcoronavirus thisyear isnowdouble thenumber of peo-plewhodieannuallyfrommalaria—andthedeathratehasincreasedin recent weeks as infectionssurgeinseveralcountries.“Our world has reached an

agonising milestone,” UNSecretary-General AntonioGuterres said inastatement.“It’s amind-numbing figure.

Yetwemust never lose sight ofeach and every individual life.Theywere fathers andmothers,wivesandhusbands,brothersandsisters, friendsandcolleagues.”It took just threemonths for

Covid-19deaths todouble fromhalf a million, an acceleratingrate of fatalities since the firstdeathwas recorded in China inearly January.More than 5,400 people are

dyingaroundtheworldevery24hours, according to Reuters cal-culations based on Septemberaverages,overwhelmingfuneralbusinessesandcemeteries.Thatequatestoabout226peo-

pleanhour,oronepersonevery16seconds. In the time it takes to

watcha90-minutesoccermatch,340peopledieonaverage.“Somanypeoplehave lost so

manypeopleandhaven’thadthechancetosaygoodbye.Manypeo-plewhodieddiedalone...It’sater-ribly difficult and lonely death,”World Health Organisation

spokeswomanMargaret HarristoldaUNbriefinginGeneva.Experts remain concerned

thattheofficialfiguresfordeathsand cases globally significantlyunder-representtherealtallybe-cause of inadequate testing andrecording and the possibility ofconcealmentbysomecountries.The response to the pan-

demic has pitted proponents ofhealthmeasureslikelockdownsagainst those intent on sustain-ingpoliticallysensitiveeconomicgrowth,withapproachesdiffer-ing fromcountrytocountry.TheUS,BrazilandIndia,which

togetheraccountfornearly45%ofallCovid-19deathsglobally,haveall lifted social distancingmeas-uresinrecently.REUTERS

World crosses ‘agonisingmilestone’of onemillion coronavirus deaths

JOHNWHITESIDESSEPTEMBER29

HOURSBEFOREhis first debatewithUSPresidentDonaldTrump,DemocraticpresidentialnomineeJoeBidenonTuesdayreleasedhis2019taxreturnsandhiscampaigncalledonTrump,whohas comeunderfirefornotreleasinghisre-turns,todothesame.Biden,duetosharethestage

withTrumponTuesdayeveningin Cleveland, took the step twodaysaftertheNewYorkTimesre-portedthatTrumphadpaidjust$750 in federal income taxes in2016and2017—andnonein10of theprevious 15years. Trumphadlongsoughttokeephisper-sonal financial recordssecret.Biden’staxesshowedthathe

and hiswife Jill paidmore than$346,000 in federal taxes andother payments for 2019 on anincome of nearly $985,000 be-fore seeking a refund of nearly$47,000theysaidtheyhadover-paid thegovernment.The 2019 tax returns for

Biden’s runningmate, SenatorKamalaHarris,alsowerereleased.“Thisisahistoricleveloftrans-

parency meant to give theAmericanpeoplefaithonceagainthattheirleaderswilllookoutforthemandnot their ownbottomlines,” Biden’s deputy campaignmanager,KateBedingfield,saidona call with reporters. “MrPresident,releaseyourtaxreturnsorshutup,”Bedingfieldadded.

WithoveramillionAmericansalready casting early ballots andtimerunningouttochangemindsorinfluenceundecidedvoters,thestakes are enormous as the twoWhiteHousecandidatestakethestage fiveweeksbefore the elec-tion.REUTERS

AnethnicArmeniansoldier firesanartillerypieceduringfightingwithAzerbaijan’s forces inthebreakawayregionofNagorno-KarabakhonTuesday.Reuters

REUTERSLONDON,SEPTEMBER29

THE BRITISH government haswarnedanumberofculturalinsti-tutions that their public fundingcould be called into questionshould they remove statues orother objects that have becomethefocusofprotestsorcomplaints.TheissueofhowBritainshould

dealwith the legacies of its past,especially its role in slavery andcolonialism,hasbeenthesubjectof passionate debate since thestatueofaslavetraderwastoppledbyprotestersinBristolinJune.Since then, officials have re-

moved the statue of anotherslavetraderinLondon,aconcerthall inBristolhasrenameditself,and venerable institutions likeOxfordUniversityhavegrappledpubliclywithwhat to do aboutcontestedheritage.In a letter sent to the British

Museum,theNationalGallery,theTateGalleryandotherprominentculturalinstitutions,culturemin-isterOliverDowdensaidthegov-ernmentwasagainsttheremovalofstatuesandsimilarobjects.“Somerepresentfigureswho

have said or done thingswhichwemay find deeply offensiveand would not defend today,”Dowdensaidintheletter,whichwas sent on Sept 22 but pub-lished onMonday. “But thoughwemaynowdisagreewiththosewho created themorwho theyrepresent, they play an impor-tantroleinteachingusaboutourpast,withall its faults.”

NAILIABAGIROVA&NVARDHOVHANNISYANBAKU,YEREVAN,SEPT29

ARMENIA AND Azerbaijan ac-cused one another on Tuesdayof firing directly into eachother’s territoryastheworstre-gional fighting since the 1990sragedforathirddayandciviliandeathsmounted.Both reported firing from

the other side across theirsharedborder,well to thewestof the breakaway Nagorno-Karabakh region over whichfierce fighting broke out be-tween Azeri and ethnic

Armenian forces on Sunday.The incidents signalled a

further escalation of the con-flict despite urgent appealsfromRussia, the US and othersto stop fighting.Also fuelling tensions,

Armenia said an F-16 fighter jetbelonging to Azerbaijan’s closeally Turkey had shot down oneof itswarplanes over Armenianairspace, killing thepilot.It provided no evidence of

the incident. Turkey andAzerbaijancalled theclaim“ab-solutelyuntrue”.Dozens have been reported

killed and hundredswoundedsinceclashesbetweenAzerbaijan

and its ethnic Armenianmoun-tainenclaveofNagorno-KarabakhbrokeoutonSunday.Nagorno-Karabakhisabreak-

away region that is insideAzerbaijan but is run by ethnicArmenians and is supported byArmenia. It broke away fromAzerbaijan in awar in the1990s,butisnotrecognisedbyanycoun-tryasanindependentrepublic.A descent into all-out war

could drag in regional powersRussia andTurkey.MoscowhasadefencealliancewithArmenia,which is the enclave’s lifeline totheoutsideworld,whileAnkarabacks its own ethnic Turkic kininAzerbaijan.REUTERS

Deathratehas increased inrecentweeksasCovid-19 infectionssurge inseveral countries

Workerspreparenewgravesataburialareaprovidedbythegovernment forvictimsofCovid-19,atPondokRanggoncemeterycomplex in Jakarta, Indonesia.Reuters

It’samind-numbingfigure.Yetwemustneverlosesightofeachandevery individual life.Theywerefathersandmothers,wivesandhusbands,brothersandsisters,friendsandcolleagues.”ANTONIOGUTERRESU.N. SECRETARY-GENERAL

9 in 10 recovered patientshave side-effects: study

Fauci: New adviser givingTrump bad advice on virusWashington:TwoseniorUSpub-lichealthexpertshaveraisedcon-cerns thatWhiteHouse adviserScott Atlas is providingmislead-ing or incorrect information onthe coronavirus pandemic toPresidentDonaldTrump,accord-ingtomediareportsonMonday.The top US infectious dis-

easesexpert,AnthonyFauci,toldCNNMondayhewasconcernedthat information given by Atlas— a late addition to theWhiteHouse coronavirus task force—was “really taken either out of

contextoractually incorrect”.The comments from Fauci

came hours after a news reportquotedRobertRedfield,directorof the US Centers for DiseaseControlandPrevention, sharingsimilarconcerns.“Everythinghesays is false,” Redfield wasquotedassayingbyNBC.Atlas,aneuroradiologistwith

nobackgroundininfectiousdis-eases, has downplayed the im-portance of masks and also ad-vocated a strategy based on“herd immunity”.REUTERS

Seoul:Nineintencoronaviruspa-tientsreportedexperiencingside-effectssuchasfatigue,psycholog-icalafter-effectsandlossof smelland taste after they recoveredfrom thedisease, according to apreliminarystudybySouthKorea.Inanonlinesurveyof965re-

covered Covid-19 patients, 879people or 91.1% responded theyweresufferingat leastoneside-effectfromthedisease,theKoreaDisease Control and PreventionAgency (KDCA) official KwonJun-wooktoldabriefing.Fatiguewasthemostcommon

side-effectwith26.2%reading,fol-lowedbydifficulty in concentra-tionwhichhad24.6%,Kwonsaid.Other after-effects included

psychologicalormentalside-ef-fectsand lossof tasteor smell.Kim Shin-woo, professor at

KyungpookNational UniversitySchool of Medicine in Daegu,soughtcommentsfrom5,762re-covered patients in SouthKoreaand16.7%ofthemparticipatedinthe survey.While the researchwasdoneonlinefornow,Kimwillsoonpublish the studywith de-tailedanalysis,hesaid.REUTERS

Thestage isset for2020’s firstpresidentialdebate,onthecampusof theClevelandClinic inCleveland,Ohio.Reuters

RACE FORTHEWHITE

HOUSE

Pak Opp leader ShahbazSharif remanded inNAB custody for 14 daysMZULQERNAINLAHORE,SEPTEMBER29

PAKISTAN’S LEADER of theOpposition and PML-N chiefShahbaz Sharif was on Tuesdaysentona14-dayphysicalremandbyan accountability court in as-sets beyondmeans andmoneylaunderingcase,adayafterhewasarrested by the NationalAccountabilityBureau(NAB)here.Shahbaz,theyoungerbrother

ofthree-timeformerprimeminis-terNawazSharif,was taken intocustody from the Lahore HighCourt’spremisesonMondayafterthecourtrejectedhisbailapplica-tionintheRs700crores($41.9mil-lion)moneylaunderingcase.The69-year-oldformerchief

ministerofPunjabprovincewasproduced before the accounta-bility court Judge Jawad-ul-HasanonTuesday.Shahbaz requested the court

to allow him to present argu-mentsinhisdefenceinsteadofhislawyer.Thecourtallowedhim.

He denied anywrongdoingand said PrimeMinister ImranKhan's nexuswith theNABhasmademockeryof accountabilityinthecountryandtheyaretarget-ingtheoppositionleadersonly.“Money laundering charges

againstmeare baseless. I donotdo business. My parents hadworkedhardtoestablishbusinessinthecountryandtransferredthesametomychildren,”hesaid.Afterthearguments,thejudge

acceptedNAB’srequestfor14-dayphysical remandof Shahbazandordered that he be brought tocourtagainonOct13.PTI

ShahbazSharif

Kuwait’s EmirSheikh Sabahdies at 91

UK govt warnsmuseums not toremove statuesover protests

REUTERSKUWAIT,SEPTEMBER29

KUWAIT’S RULINGEmir SheikhSabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah hasdied, his office announced onTuesday, plunging his countryinto mourning for a leader re-garded bymanyGulf Arabs as asavvydiplomaticoperatorandahumanitarianchampion.Sheikh Sabah, 91, had ruled

thewealthyoil producer andUSallysince2006andsteereditsfor-eign policy for more than 50years.Hisdesignatedsuccessorishisbrother,CrownPrinceSheikhNawafal-Ahmadal-Sabah.“Withtheutmostsadnessand

grief for theKuwaiti people, theIslamicandArabworldandpeo-ple of friendlynations, theEmiriDiwan mourns the death ofSheikhSabahal-Ahmadal-Jaberal-Sabah,theemirofKuwait,”hisofficesaid.Theemirwasinhospi-tal in theUS since July after sur-geryforanunspecifiedcondition.Sheikh Sabah had sought to

balance relationswithKuwait’sbiggerneighbours—forgingclosetieswithSaudiArabia,rebuildinglinkswith former occupier IraqandholdingdialoguewithIran.

Kuwait EmirSheikhSabahal-Ahmadal-Sabah

Karabakh conflict zone widensas Turkey denies downing plane

Thousandsof studentsheadbacktoschools inNewYorkCitythisweekafteramonths-longhiatus.Reuters

WHILEFAMILIESacross theUSwereonedgeaboutthecomingschoolyear,topWhiteHouseof-ficialswerepressuringtheCDCtoplaydowntheriskofsendingchildrenbacktoschool,accord-ing to documents and inter-viewswith government offi-cials. The effort included anattempt to find alternate data

showingCovid-19wasweaken-ing andposed little danger tochildren. A member of VicePresidentMikePence’sstaffsaidshewasurgedbyMarc Short,thevicepresident’schiefofstaff,togettheCDCtoproducemorereports and charts showing adecline in coronavirus casesamongyoungpeople.NYT

White House pressured CDC overschool risks, federal officials say

THEPOLARISINGnatureoftheTrumppresidencyhasmeantthereareonlyabout9%ofvot-erswhodon’tcurrentlyfavouronecandidateovertheother,accordingtoReuters/Ipsospolling.Thisislessthanhalfthenumberofnon-commit-tedvotersin2016.Whilethedebateisunlikelytochangethemindsofpeoplewhoei-therstronglysupportorop-poseTrump,itisstillexpectedtobecrucialforthoseunde-cidedonwhetherBidende-servestheirvote.

FewermindstochangeE●EX

PLAINED

Hours before debatewith Trump, Bidenreleases tax returns

New Delhi

17SENSEX: 37,973.22 ▼ 8.4 NIFTY: 11,222.40 ▼ 5.15 NIKKEI: 23,539.10 ▲ 27.48 HANG SENG: 23,275.53 ▼ 200.52 FTSE: 5,905.18 ▼ 22.75 DAX: 12,820.57 ▼ 50.30

THEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY,SEPTEMBER30,2020

ECONOMYWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

GOLD`51,367

RUPEE`73.86

OIL$40.83

SILVER`61,919

Note:Gold,silverratesatDelhispotmarket;goldper10g,silverper1kg;Brentcrudeasof0000IST

Internationalmarketdata till1900IST

CBDT issues guidelines for TDS/TCSon e-commerce transactions from Oct 1ENSECONOMICBUREAUNEWDELHI,SEPTEMBER29

THE CENTRAL Board of DirectTaxes (CBDT) onTuesday issuedguidelinesforapplicabilityofTaxDeductedatSource(TDS)andTaxCollected at Source (TCS) for e-commerce transactions effectiveOctober1.Thelevieswillbeappli-cableonsalesofgoodsexceedingRs50 lakh,withexemptiontoanindividualandHUFwhoreceivesless thanRs5 lakhand furnishesPAN/Aadhaar. The TDS is pro-posed to be levied on e-com-merce transactions at 1per centinPAN/Aadhaarcases.The proposed TDS/TCSwill

notbeapplicablefortransactionsin securities and commoditieswhichare traded throughrecog-nised stockexchangesor clearedand settled by the recognisedclearing corporation, includingrecognised stock exchanges orrecognisedclearingcorporationslocated in the InternationalFinancialServiceCentreaswellastransactionsinelectricity,renew-able energy certificates and en-

ergysavingcertificatestradedviapowerexchanges,theCBDTsaid.A payment gatewaywill not

be required to deduct tax on atransaction,ifthetaxhasbeende-ductedbythee-commerceoper-ator.Foraninsuranceagentorin-suranceaggregator,theCBDTsaidiftheinsuranceagentorinsuranceaggregatorhasnoinvolvementintransactions between insurancecompanyandthebuyerof insur-ancepolicy after the first year ofpolicy, hewouldnot be liable todeduct tax for subsequent yearsbut the insurance companywillberequiredtodeducttaxoncom-missionpayment, if any,madetothe insuranceagentor insuranceaggregator for those subsequentyears. TCSwill be applicable onsale of motor vehicles fromOctober1forvaluelessthanRs10lakhforsalestoconsumers.

Tax experts said somemoreclarity is requiredon issues suchas applicability of TCSprovisionsondeemedexports to SEZunits.“The circular clarifies on severalpuzzling aspects such as no ad-justmentforsalesreturn,discountorGST component and applica-bility on receipts postOctober 1,evenifsaleswasmadebeforethatperiod.However,severalambigu-ous aspects needmore claritysuchasapplicabilityofTCSprovi-sionsondeemedexportswithinIndiatoSEZandEOUunits,freeofcost sales andwarranty replace-ments.One-commerceTDS, themost significant uncertainty isaround treatmentof subsequentreturnsofgoodsbycustomersandconsideration of discount codesandgift vouchers for computingamounts to be subject to TDS.Foreign e-commerce operatorsalsoneed tocomprehendthe in-terplay between Section 194-OandEqualisationLevywhensup-plyof goodsorprovisionof serv-ices encompasses resident e-commerceparticipants,”SandeepJhunjhunwala, partner, NangiaAndersenLLPsaid.

Pradhan invites cos tobuild 6.5 MT crude storagecapacity across countryENSECONOMICBUREAUNEWDELHI,SEPTEMBER29

UNIONMINISTERof PetroleumandNaturalGasDharmendraPra-dhanonTuesday invitedcompa-niestodevelop6.5milliontonnes(MT) of crude storage capacitiesacross the country, as theCentreeyes to increasecrudeandpetro-leumproducts storage capacityfromexisting74daysto90days.India’sexistingstrategicpetro-

leumreservefacilitiesarelocatedin Visakhapatnam (1.3 MT),Mangaluru(1.5MT)andPadur(2.5MT).Aspertheconsumptionpat-ternofFY20,thestoragescanpro-videforabout9.5daysofcrudeoilrequirement.State-runoilmarket-ing companies (OMCs) can stockforanother64.5days.Thegovernmenthas already

given ‘in-principle’ approval forbuildingtwoadditionalstoragefa-

cilitieswithtotalcapacityof6.5MTunderthepublic-privatepartner-shipmodelatChandikhol,Odisha(4MT)andPadur,Karnataka (2.5MT).Accordingtosources,thegov-ernmentislookingforprospectivepartners like financial investors,foreignoil companies, and largeconstruction firms to build theproposedoilreserves.Thereisalsoapossibilitytoen-

ter into a concessionaire agree-mentwith thesepartners for theconstruction,fillingandoperationofthesefacilities.“Wearealsoex-ploringoverseascrudestoragefac-ilitiesintheUSandothercommer-cially viable locations”, Pradhansaid, speakingat a conferenceonenergy security organised byGlobalCounterTerrorismCouncil.Toreduceimports, theCentre

isplanningtodevelopalternativefuelssuchasethanol,secondgen-erationethanol, compressedbiogas(CBG)andbiodiesel. FE

BRIEFLYStateborrowing:RBIgivestimeNewDelhi:TheReserveBankofIndia(RBI)Tuesdayexten-dedbysixmonthstheaddi-tionalflexibilityprovidedtostatestoraisefundsviamar-ketborrowingandoverdraft.

GooglePlaybillingissuesNewDelhi:ManyIndiansta-rtups are concerned overGoogle’sPlaybillingsystem,saying it can’t forceappde-velopers to sell services byusingonlyitsbillingsystem.

AmazonIndiaunitgetsfundsNewDelhi:Amazonhas in-fusedRs1,125croreintooneof its India units, AmazonSellerServices. PTI

TDSisproposedtobeleviedone-commercetransactionsat1%inPAN/Aadhaarcases

PARTOFGAVICOVAXFACILITY

ENSECONOMICBUREAUNEWDELHI,SEPTEMBER29

SERUM INSTITUTE of India (SII)said on Tuesday it had receivedadditionalfundsthatwouldallowittodoubleitssupplyofCovid-19vaccinestoIndiaandotherpoorercountries as part of theGavi CO-VAXfacility.ThePune-headquar-teredvaccinemakerwill nowbeusingthesefundsfromTheBill&MelindaGatesFoundationaswellasGavi, TheVaccineAlliance, tosupply 200million vaccines tothesecountriesasearlyasthefirsthalfof2021.SII currently has agreements

tomanufactureCovid-19vaccinesdevelopedbyAmerican vaccine

makerNovavax,aswellasOxfordUniversity in collaborationwithSwedish-British drugmaker

AstraZeneca. “This brings the to-talnumberofvaccinedosestobecovered by the partnership be-

tween SII, Gavi, and the GatesFoundationtoanaggregateofupto200milliondoses,followingtheinitial agreement for up to 100million doses announced inAugust. The arrangement againprovides anoption to secure ad-ditional doses if thevaccinespil-laroftheAccesstoCOVID-19ToolsAccelerator sees a need for it,”statedSII inarelease.“The fundingwill help accel-

eratethemanufacturingbySIIforcandidatevaccineslicensedfromAstraZenecaandNovavax,whichwillbeavailableforprocurementif theyare successful in attainingfull licensure and WHOPrequalification,”itstated,addingthatthevaccinesunderthisagree-mentwillhaveaceilingpriceof$3

per dose. This is additional to adeal between AstraZeneca andGavi announced in June,whichwillcommitanextra300milliondoses of theOxfordUniversity-AstraZeneca candidate to thewiderCOVAXFacility.Under the COVAXumbrella,

Gavi is coordinating the COVAXFacility,whichprovides govern-mentswith the opportunity tobenefit froma large portfolio ofCOVID-19candidatevaccinesus-ing a range of technology plat-forms,producedbymoremanu-facturersacrosstheworld,withabiggermarkettoprovidesecurityofdemand.IndiaisaGavibenefi-ciaryandwill,therefore,receiveacertainproportionofthevaccinesfromtheCOVAXfacility.

PRANAVMUKULNEWDELHI,SEPTEMBER29

INA falloutbetweenauthori-ties in Indiaand itsair-bubblepartner Germany, theEuropean country’s nationalcarrierLufthansasaidTuesdayit will have to cancel allplannedflightsbetweenIndiaand Germany betweenSeptember30andOctober20becauseofan“unexpectedre-jection”ofitsflightschedulebyIndianauthorities. The IndiansidesaidthatLufthansawasof-fered a curtailed schedule tomitigatethedisadvantagebe-ingfacedbyIndiancarriersdueto inequitabledistributionoftrafficinfavourofLufthansa.TheGermancarriersaidin

astatementthatithadappliedfor continuation of specialflights itwasallowedtooper-ateuntilendofSeptember,butwill nowhave to cancel theflights.InternationalpassengerflightshavebeensuspendedinIndiasinceMarch23duetothecoronavirus lockdown.However, special flightshavebeenpermittedunderair-bub-blearrangements,whichIndiahasenteredintowith14coun-tries,includingGermany.“Lufthansasincerelyurges

theIndianauthoritiestoworktogether with the Germangovernmentinordertoestab-lishatemporarytravelagree-ment between both coun-tries. Such an agreement isnecessary to address the ur-gent need of tens of thou-sands of Indians and foreignnationals for travel to andfrom India and would alsohelp balance the interests ofboth countries’ airlines,” aLufthansaspokespersonsaid.“This appeal follows the

unexpected rejection ofLufthansa’s planned flightscheduleforOctoberbyIndianauthorities.Lufthansahadap-plied for the continuation ofspecialflightsitwasgrantedto

operate until the end ofSeptember. This applicationprocessisnecessarysinceIndiahassofarnotacceptedthein-vitationby theGermangov-ernment todiscussdetails re-garding a temporary travelagreement between bothcountries,”theairlinesaid.A seniorgovernmentoffi-

cial saidoneof themain rea-sons behind the actionwasEuropean carriers operatingsixth-freedomflightsbycarry-ingpassengers from India toNorthAmericandestinationsandnotallowingAirIndiatodothesame.Thesixthfreedomofflying—whichletsanairlinetoflypassengersfromonecoun-trytoahubinitshomecountryandfromtheretoathirdcoun-try— isnotallowedunderairbubble arrangements. Earlierthis month, the Centre for-mallyaskedEuropeanairlinestostopsixth-freedomflights.India’s aviationwatchdog

Directorate General of CivilAviationsaid thecountryhadformalisedanair-bubblewithGermany in July this year.“However, there are restric-tionsinplaceforIndiannation-als desiring to travel toGermanywhichwasputtingIndiancarriers at a significantdisadvantage resulting in in-equitabledistributionoftrafficin favour of Lufthansa,” theDGCA stated. “As againstIndian carriers operating3-4flightsaweek,Lufthansaoper-ated20flightsaweek.Inspiteof thisdisparityweoffered toclear 7 flights a week forLufthansawhichwasnot ac-ceptedby them.Negotiationscontinue,”theDGCAsaid.Lufthansa said it had

scheduled flights forOctobertocontinueconnectingDelhi,Mumbai andBengaluruwithEuropeandotherregionsinitsworldwide network. “TheOctober schedulewouldalsohave seen the addition offlights to and fromChennai,”theairlinesaid.

SECTORWATCHAVIATION

Lufthansa cancels all Indiaflights from Sept 30 toOct 20, citing ‘rejection’of schedule by authorities

Govt receivesoffline bids for23 mines outof 38 offered

COMMERCIALCOALAUCTIONS

ENSECONOMICBUREAUNEWDELHI,SEPTEMBER29

THEUNIONCoalMinistryhasre-ceivedofflinebidsforonly23coalmines, out of the 38 blocks of-fered for commercial coal auc-tions. Asmany as 46 companieshaveplacedtheirbidsphysicallyfor commercial coalmining, thegovernmentsaid.Sources in coalministry said

that the online bids will beopenedonWednesday.The government on June 18

had launched themaiden auc-tionforcoalblocks,whereprivateplayers can participatewithoutany end-use restrictions. Thiswouldalsobethefirstsetof coalassets to be auctioned offthrough the newmarket-deter-minedrevenuesharemodelthatreplaced the fixed fee/tonneregimethatturnedoffprivatein-vestors. FE

India among worst performing economies;stimulus inadequate, says Abhijit BanerjeePRESSTRUSTOFINDIANEWDELHI,SEPTEMBER29

NOBEL LAUREATE AbhijitBanerjeeonTuesdaysaidIndia isamong the worst performingeconomies in theworld and thegovernment’s economicstimuluswasinadequatetotackletheproblem.He, however, said that the

country will see a revival ingrowth in the July-Septemberquarterof thecurrentfiscal.Speaking at a virtual event,

Banerjee said the country’s eco-nomicgrowthwasslowingdowneven before the Covid-19 pan-demichitasrealGDPgrowthhadmoderated from 7 per cent in2017-18to6.1percentin2018-19and4.2percentin2019-20.“Indianeconomyisamongthe

worst performing in theworld.The country’s economywill seerevivalinthecurrentquarter(July-September),”hesaid,addingthat

economicgrowthin2021isgoingtobebetterthanthisyear.The country’s economycon-

tractedbya record23.9per centin the first quarter of the currentfiscal.GoldmanSachshassharplycut its 2020-21GDP forecast to acontractionof14.8percent.FitchRatings has also revised its fore-castto10.5percentcontraction.Banerjee,currentlyaprofessor

at Massachusetts Institute ofTechnology (MIT), said he does

not think that India’s economicstimuluswasadequate.“India’s economic stimulus

waslimited.Itwasabankbailout.Ithinkwecouldhavedonemore,”hesaid.The stimulusmeasures “did

notincreaseconsumptionspend-ingoflowerincomepeopleasthegovernmentwas notwilling toputmoneyinthehandsofthelowincome population”, he ex-plained.InMay, the government had

announcedaRs20.97 lakh croreeconomicpackage,whichalsoin-cludesliquiditysupportfromtheRBI.Talking about inflation,

BanerjeesaidIndia’sgrowthstrat-egywas a closed economywiththe government creating lots ofdemand,which resulted inhighgrowthandinflation.Replying to aquery onmon-

etisationofdeficitby theRBI, theeminent economist said “deficitfinancingisagoodidea”.

NobelLaureateAbhijitBanerjee. File

AmediccollectsasamplefromapoliceconstableviaRapidAntigenkit forCovidtest, inMumbai. PTI file

‘In 2019, 38.2% persons engagedin employment, related activities’

Why this is important: The primary objective of the NSO’sfirst TUS is tomeasure participation of men andwomen inpaid and unpaid activities, across both urban and rural partsof the country

First TUS report:TheNSO’sfirst TimeUseSurvey (TUS),for January-December 2019,measured the participationrate and time spent on paidactivities, care activities,unpaid activities, etc

1,38,799:Householdscovered in the survey fromwhere information on time usewas collected,with,■ 82,897 rural■ 55,902 urban

Source: NSO/PTI

Detailsofpeopleengaged ingainfulemploymentandrelatedactivities:Acrosscountry57.3% 18.4%males femalesIn rural areas56.1% 19.2%males femalesIncities59.8% 16.7%males females

Asmuch as 38.2 per cent of persons, of the age of six yearsor above, were engaged in employment and relatedactivities in the country in 2019, the Time Use Survey ofthe National Statistical Office (NSO) stated

THEGOVERNMENTstillneedstofinalisehowmanyCovidvaccinesitwill requireandhowitplanstofundtheirdistri-bution,sothat itcanplanaheadandaccountforanyshortagesinthecur-rentproposedsupply.

ChallengesremainE●EX

PLAINED

SII todoubleCovidvaccinesupplyto200mndoses

Listed companies need to discloseforensic audit to stock exchanges

Sebi board meet: Strongercode of conduct for MFs

ENSECONOMICBUREAUMUMBAI,SEPTEMBER29

THE SECURITIES and ExchangeBoardofIndia(Sebi),atameetingof its boardTuesday, approvedastronger codeof conduct for themutualfundindustry,whichwillhavetobefollowedbyassetman-agement companies (AMCs), aswellastheirfundmanagers,chiefinvestmentofficersanddealers.Sebialsoaskedlistedcompan-

iestodisclosetheinitiationofanyforensicaudittostockexchanges.For the codeof conduct, Sebi

saidtheCEOofanAMCwillbere-sponsible to ensure that it is fol-lowedbyexecutivestostrengthentheiraccountability.Currentmut-ual fund regulations mandateonlyAMCsandmutualfundTrus-teestofollowacodeofconduct.Ontheforensicauditbylisted

companies,theregulatorsaid“thefact of initiationof forensic audit(bywhatevernamecalled)along

withnameofentityinitiatingtheforensicauditandreasonsforthesame, if available,”shouldbedis-closedtothebourses.Sebi also askedcompanies to

alsomakepublic the final foren-sicaudit report,alongwithman-agementcomments,ifany,unlessthe forensic audit has been initi-ated by a regulatory or enforce-mentagency.The Sebi board also tweaked

inside trading regulations. It hasgiven informants — a kind ofwhistle blowerwho reports al-legedviolationsofinsidertradinglawstotheregulator—uptothreeyears to report violations undertheinsidertradinglaws.Further,suchinformantsmust

nowincludespecificinformation,suchasdetailsofsecurities,tradesby suspects etc. whenreporting such violations of in-sidertradinglaws.Moreover,thecapitalmarkets

watchdoghas strengthened theroleofdebenturetrustees.

INTERVIEWWITHFIFTEENTHFINANCECOMMISSIONCHAIRMAN

FIFTEENTHFINANCECommissionChairman NK SINGH saidConstitutional frameworkdefin-ingthe federal structureneedstoberevisitedinlightofthechangesthat have taken place over theyears. In an interview toSUNNYVERMAand PVAIDYANATHANIYER,he said theCommission, inthebackdropoftheCovid-19pan-demicanditsimpactontheecon-omy,isdebatingwhetherthereisaneedforadifferentapproachindetermining the targets for fiscaldeficit and debt consolidation.Editedexcerpts:

Over the last several years,one is seeingmoreandmorepoliticisationof the federalstructureof Indianpolity?Howdoyouexplain this?What is theway forward?Weneedtorevisit inamore

fundamental way the 7thSchedule of the Constitution.The 7th Schedule of theConstitution divides broadlythe subject intoUnion subjectsand state subjects and thosewhich are on the concurrentlist. Over a period of timewhathappened is that this got in-creasingly eroded ever sincethatexecutiveorderwaspassedconstituting the PlanningCommissionin1951.Nowthereis a need to fundamentally re-visit the7thScheduleandhaveaholisticview.Second, themis-use of Article 282 of theConstitution, readwith the7thSchedule, which says that theCentral government or thestates maymake any grant foranyschemeorproject inpublicinterest.AllCentrallySponsoredSchemes which came up then,quiteafewof themstrictlyhap-pen to be in the domain ofstates (asper readingof the7thSchedule)but throughthemu-tual consent mechanism exer-cised under Article 282. Thenthe third dimension to it is thestandalone entitlement drivenlegislation of the Parliament—theRighttoEducationAct, thenstandalone legislation of foodand employment. It alreadymakes it verymurky. I have ar-gued that these kinds of verycosmetic classification haveoutlived their utility and weneed to revisit the drawingboard…After the abolition ofthePlanningCommission, Icer-tainlybelievethatboththecon-current list, 7th Schedule andArticle282requiresanindepthholistic review. Federalismas aphilosophy, which is highly,highly desirable for a complexcountry like India must go be-yond partnership which is notembedded wholly in fiduciaryobligations.

Thenational government isseen tobegetting stronger,playinga role inmanystatesubjects includinghealthandeducation.Howdoyousee this trend?I think that twothingshave

happened globally. Most im-portant isthatgovernmentsde-rive their legitimacy from thesovereignty and the will ex-pressed by the people throughparliamentary democracies.Thefundamentalbasisof socialcontract as done by John Lockeand Hobbes is that the right to

rule is with the consent of thepeople.So thisultimately is theissue: what do the people ofIndiawant…Peoplewishtoex-press their aspiration in oneformor the other, the kind andnature of governance that theyhave.Secondpoint is thatglob-ally we pride ourselves in thatwefollowWestminster’smodelofdemocracy…Ifindthat therehas been a great erosion in themother of the Westminstermodel, which is the UnitedKingdom.Nationalelectionsarewonor lost on thebasis ofwhoisprojectedas the leaderof theintended party. So what hashappened is that over a periodof time in India also, is that inorder to impart political stabil-ity to the governance, peoplehaveoptedforwhoistheleaderand particularly for nationalelectionsonwhomyouwishtorepose trust.

Youhavebeenengagingwith states across theboard.After thepandemic,what istheir feedback regarding thedamage to their economies?Thepandemichas certainly

highlighted the distress of theUnion and the states. Certainlyboth theUnion and states havebeen stressed at a time whentheir revenue targets are notlikelytobemet.HowshouldtheFinance Commission go aboutaddressing it, one of the chap-ters (inour report) isPandemicTimes, Analysis for the Futurewhich is about to be finalised.This chapter is really designedinsomewaysfortheconscious-nessof theFinanceCommissionand what needs to be specifi-callydonetoaddress the issuesarising out of the pandemic.Clearly, the health infrastruc-ture in the country has beensystematically neglected. Ourpublic outlay on health, unlikein comparison to other peergroupcountriesandthosewithsimilarpercapita income, is lessthan 1 per cent of GDP out ofwhich about 0.65 per centcomes from the states andabout approximately 0.3 percent comes from the Centre.One of the things the FinanceCommission is seriously con-sidering is howwithin the fis-cal framework, how can thehealth issue be addressed bythree things. One, reprioritisethe expenditure, two, seek thestateandtheCentre to increasepublic outlay, and direct sec-toral interventions inthesector.Finally, shallweattimesof suchstress not look at a somewhatdifferent framework in deter-mining the ballparks for bor-

rowings,namelythetargets forfiscaldeficitandtargets fordebtconsolidation.

Howwill you factor inextremeuncertainties inyourassessment, couldtherebeyear-wisedevolution target?Itwouldbeextraordinary if

devolutionpercentagesweretovary foreachyearof ouraward.Thishasneverbeendone. Itwilllend ameasurable uncertaintyand volatility The advantage ofhaving a five year award is thepredictability and stability itbrings.Thereforebeforewebe-gin tovary thedevolution itselfover this period we have totread with very great caution.We do notwant to injectmoreuncertainties than the pan-demic itself and the currenteconomic situation may havedone for the states. Second, theissue is how we calibrate thepath. Now it’s clear that mostFinance Commissions had theadvantage, theopportunityandthe luxury of making constantprojectionsof bothgrowthandtax buoyancy for the entire pe-riod. We do not unfortunatelyhavethat luxuryduetothecur-rent pandemic. We thereforehad to look to recalibrategrowthrates ineachperiodandtolookattheconsequentialrev-enue buoyancy…we have toagree on a figure on the nextyear’s rebound, and then wehave to factor in return of nor-malcy in following years.

States areworried theymayhave to funddefenceexpenditure?It was a deep recognition

that the defence of Indianeededaveryseriousattentioneven before the current issueswith our neighbours. All I cansay is that at this stage we areseriouslyengagedinaddressingthis issue, in recognising thatdefenceof Indiais indivisiblere-sponsibility of the responsibleIndian citizen.

Manystateshave sought50per cent taxdevolution,areyousympathetic tothat view?There is an old saying that

you thinkwhere you sit.We asa Finance Commission do notwant to leave behind a legacywhich in any way contradictsthe image and the symbol onthe cover of the FinanceCommission—(whichdepicts)thestatesandtheCentreonthetwoendsof thescale i.e.,50:50.

Full report onwww.indianexpress.com

Need to revisit Centre-state relations;standalone laws on education, food &jobs have made it murky: NK Singh

New Delhi

18 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY,SEPTEMBER30,2020

GOVERNMENT OF ODISHAOFFICE OF THE SUPERINTENDING ENGINEER

RURAL WORKS CIRCLE, KENDRAPARA- JAJPURNo. Tender Online RCK-06/20 Letter No.1354 Date: 23.09.2020

“e” Procurement NOTICEO-4061. Name of the work : Construction of Building Works in the District of Jajpur.2. Class of Contractor : B & A Class as spcified in the column 6 of the Annexure.3. Time for Completion : As Specified in the Column- 7 of the Annexure.4. Detail Projects : As per annexure attached5. Other details :

Procurement Officer Bid IdentificationNo.

Availability of Tender On-line for bidding Last Date & Time of seekingtender clarification

Date & Time of opening of tenderFrom To Technical Bid Financial Bid

1 2 3 4 5 6 7Superintending Engineer, Rural Works

Circle, Kendrapara- JajpurTender Online

RCK-06/2005.10.2020at 11.00 AM

20.10.2020 to 5.00 PM 19.10.2020 up to 2.00 PM 21.10.2020at 11.00 AM

29.10.2020 at11.00 AM

Further details can be seen from the website: www.tendersorissa.gov.in Sd/- Superintending Engineer,Rural Works Circle, Kendrapara- Jajpur

OIPR/25129/11/0004/2021

e mail- serw_kpd@yahoo.com

ANC/52824/FIRMS/REGN/2020

HEADQUARTERS ANDAMAN & NICOBAR COMMAND, PORT BLAIRREGISTRATION NOTICE

1. Commander-in-Chief, Headquarters Andaman & Nicobar Command invites application fromreputed and reliable firms for registration as approved contractors for supplies/services atHeadquarters Andaman & Nicobar Command, Port Blair and all Defence Units/ Establishments/Formations in Andaman & Nicobar Islands from prospective suppliers/ firms/ fabricators,manufacturers, authorized dealers and Agents willing to supply goods/ provide services/undertake works for Andaman & Nicobar Command on competitive basis. The category of item/services likely to be contracted/ purchased/ hired/ repaired are as follows:-

(a) Perishables Foods Items:- Supply of Bread, Vegetables, Fruits, Onion, Potato, Mutton(Fresh/ Blast Frozen), Chicken (Live/ Dressed/ Blast Frozen), Fish, Eggs, Frozen Foods,etc.

(b) Non - Perishables Foods Items:- Supply of Cereals/Sugar/ Salt/ Refined Oil,/Atta(Wheat Flour),/ Maida (Flour Superior)/ Bakery items, Pulses/ Besan, Chocolate, Tinnedand Packed food items, Charcoal/ Wood, Condiments etc.

(c) General/ Outsourcing/ maintenance Contracts:- Material Handling & Transportation,Fabrication of Clothing items/ Stitching of Uniforms, Hiring of Boats/ Transport/ Packers &Movers/ Technical Works, Out Sourcing of Various Services (Office Works/Housekeeping/ Vegetation clearance/ Garbage clearance etc.), Annual Maintenance ofPhotocopier Machines/ IT Equipments/Water Purifiers etc.

(d) Local Purchase:- General use Stores, Medical Stores/Medical Equipments/ Medicines,Stationery items, Rubber Stamps, Machinery/Spares Parts (authorized dealers/traders),Automobile Spare Parts, Tyres & Tubes, Paints & Hardware stores, Electrical SpareParts/Electronic items/Computer and Spares, Engineering Spare Parts, Batteries, PlasticGoods, Furniture’s, Marine Equipments etc.

(e) Repair and Services: - Motor Transport Vehicles and Two Wheelers, Tyres (Retreading),Typewriter/Duplicator photocopier, Computers, Air Conditioners etc.

(f) Printing works, Interior designer/ decorator, Furnishing

2. The application should include the following information:-(a) Sale Tax/ Central Service Tax/ Central Sale Tax registration certificate in respect of their

business item wise (a copy may be enclosed).(b) In case of SSI the registration number to be produced.(c) Details of items/ services/work intended to be supplied/ provided/ undertaken with

dealership/ agency testimonial if any. Preference will be given to firms dealing in particularcategory of items.

(d) Details of ability for after sales services.(e) Name and full address on bankers proof of bank details.(f) Latest Income Tax Clearance Certificate, copy of PAN Card and last three years IT

returns.(g) Details showing supplies/ service made to any Govt/ Public sector Organisation. If for any

reason such contract terminated, give details.(h) Details of business including financial details of the firm (Balance Sheet).(j) For hiring of services, the firm should be in possession of EPF, Labour Registration

Certificate and services Tax Registration certificate (ST-1/ST-2).

3. Firms are mandated to register themselves with CPPP (Central Public Procurement Portali.e. www.eprocure.gov.in) and obtain individual DSC (Digital Signature Certificate) forparticipation in all future tendering process by HQANC on e-procurement platform.

4. The Representatives of this Command will physically visit and verify the firm premises for:-(i) Ownership/Lease deed documents duly attested by notary public.(ii) Management.(iii) Infrastructure.(iv) Manpower.(v) Test Lab.(vi) Book Keeping, CST etc.(vii) Range of products.(viii) Address of Office/Shop /Ability.

5. The form for registration can be downloaded from website http://andaman.gov.in under news& announcement. Filled application under a letter head with relevant documents (photocopiesonly) should reach to this Headquarters to SSO (Contract). Incomplete application will berejected without assigning any reasons. The envelope be marked as “Registration of Firms” andthe same be forwarded through post at the under mentioned address:-

The Commander-in-ChiefHeadquarters Andaman & Nicobar Command[for SSO (Contract & Victualling)]Delanipur, Haddo P.O.Port Blair - 744102

6. Details can be obtained from Senior Staff Officer (Contract) HQANC between 1030 to 1230hrs on any working day. Telephone No. - 03192-248608.

Sd/-(Raahul Mahajan)

Capt (IN)Command Logistics Officer

davp 10132/11/0001/2021 for Commander-in-Chief

GOVERNMENT OF MEGHALAYA OFFICE OF THE DEPUTYCOMMISSIONER::SOUTH GARO HILLS::BAGHMARA.

No.SGH/DC/GENL/26/2020/40 Dated Baghmara, the 24th September, 2020

COAL AUCTION NOTICEThis is for general information of all concerned that the following quantity ofunclaimed coal seized in the locations indicated below will be sold in public auctionafter completion of 15 days of the issue of this Notice under Section 21 (4A) of theMines and Minerals (Development & Regulation) Act, 1957.

Interested parties/individuals may submit their applications in plain paper by affixingcourt fee stamp of Rs. 1000/-. The base price fixed by the Hon'ble High Court ofMeghalaya is Rs. 2160/- per Metric Tonne. The applications may be enclosed insealed envelopes clearly indicating the LOT Number applied for, on the cover of theenvelope and dropped in the sealed Auction Box kept in the office room of the HeadAssistant, Deputy Commissioner's Office. N.B. It is to be noted that one person is notpermitted to apply more than once in a LOT.The last date of receipt of application is 9th October 2020 up to 12:00 PM and willbe opened three days later on 13th October 2020 in the office chamber of theDeputy Commissioner, South Garo Hills, Baghmara in the presence of the bidders.

TERMS AND CONDITIONS:-1. Application/tender must be submitted along with 2(two) passport size photos,

attested copy of EPIC or any other documents to support his/her identity.2. The intending bidder shall have to deposit earnest money of 10% of reserve price

by Bank Draft in favour of the Deputy Commissioner, South Garo Hills,Baghmara.

3. The interest persons/parties may inspect the seized coal from the site anytimeduring office hours before bidding and the undersigned will not be responsible forover assessment/under assessment of seized coal at the site.

4. The non-tribal applicants will have to enclose a License for Trading by NonTribals issued by the Garo Hills Autonomous District Council for the last 3 (three)years.

5. The applicant will also have to enclose a "No Objection Certificate" issued by theA'king Nokma of the area of the LOT for which he/she is bidding along with theapplication,

6. On the date of auction, intending bidder shall submit proof of payment of EarnestMoney, Identity Proof and GSTIN.

7. Award will be given to highest bidder and in case the bidder is absent or thesuccessful bidder is unable to deposit the amount in time, the award will be givento the next highest bidder.

8. In case all the top bidders fail to deposit the bid amount within the given time orsurrenders, the Auction Notice will be cancelled and fresh Auction will be calledand security deposit shall be forfeited to the Government.

9. The undersigned will not be responsible for any loss or damage of coal causeddue to stealing or natural calamities.

10. In case of any dispute the decision of the undersigned will be final.11. The successful bidder should deposit 50% of bid amount after adjusting the

earnest money deposit within 24 hours and the balance amount should be paidbefore the lifting of the auctioned coal.

12. The transportation of the auction coal will be allowed only after producing thevalid transport challan issued by the Competent Authority after production oflifting order and verification of payments of Royalty, Cess and GST.

Sd/-Deputy Commissioner

South Garo Hills, Baghmara

LOTNo.

Location Quantity(MT)

Venue forAuction.

Date forAuction

Time

1 Rongding Awe Dangsa AweRongsa Awe GaregittimAgrengittim

13,512.215 Office of theDeputy

Commissioner,South Garo

Hills, Baghmara

13th October2020

12:00 PM

2 Rongding Awe Pathargittim 12,794.5003 Jadigittim 14,304.000

MIPR No.0942 Dated 29.09.2020

Rajasthan State Road Development And Construction Corporation Ltd., JAIPURNo. NIT/2020-21/10789-97 Date 22.09.2020d³fd½fQf Àfc¨f³ff/20-21d³f¸³fd»fd£f°f I f¹fÊ IZ d»f¹fZ IZ ³Qi/Sfª¹f ÀfSI fS IZ Ad·f¹ffadÂfI e d½f·ff¦fûÔ õfSf ´faªfeIÈ °f E½fa A³fb·f½fe Àfa½fZQI ûÔ ÀfZ d³f²ffÊdS°f ´fi´fÂf ¸fZÔ BÊ-´fiû¢¹fcS¸fZ³M ´fidIi ¹ff WZ°fb Afg³f»ffB³f d³fd½fQf¹fZÔAf¸fadÂf°f I e ªff°fe W`Ô:

IYf¹fÊ IYf d½f½fSX¯f AfSXdÃf°f »ff¦f°f (÷Y.) d³fd½fQf Àfc¨f³ff Àfa£¹ffConstruction of 5 Nos. Type-I Residential Building at Bundi.UBN No. : RRC2021WSOB00295

325.00 Lac BÊ-199/20-21

Construction of 24 Nos. (12 Nos. Type-I and 12 Nos. Type-II) Judicial Quarters at Kota.UBN No.: RRC2021WLOB00293

1320.00 Lac BÊ-204/20-21

Afg³f»ffBÊX³f d³fd½fQf ´fi´fÂf OXfCX³f»fûOX IYSX³fZ IYe A½fd²f dQ³ffaIY 28.09.2020 ´fif°f: 09.00 ¶fªfZ ÀfZ 19.10.2020 Àff¹fa 6.00 ¶fªfZ °fIY

d³fd½fQf ÀfZ Àfa¶fad²f°f Àf¸fÀ°f d½f½fS¯f E½fa ÀfaVfû²f³f ½fZ¶fÀffBÊM http://eproc.rajasthan.gov.in, http://sppp.rajasthan.nic.in °f±ffhttp://roads.rajasthan.gov.in ´fS QZJf ªff ÀfI °ff W` Ü B¨LbI Àfa½fZQI ûÔ I û A´f³fZ dOdªfM»f WÀ°ffÃfS IZ ¸ff²¹f¸f ÀfZ ½fZ¶fÀffBÊMhttp://eproc.rajasthan.gov.in ´fS SdªfÀMOÊ I S½ff³ff Af½fV¹fI W`Ü ¸fWXf´fi¶fa²fIYY

New Delhi

CALENDAR 19WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY,SEPTEMBER30,2020

CROSSWORD4237

ACROSS1 Most importantarchitecturalmonument tosee?(9)

8 Sailorashortdistancenearerthestern (5)

9 Futuristicball (7)10 Badcold that isyielding(6)

11 Bravedcouldbe,but isn’t(6)

12 Excitededitorsgoingafteraspace traveller(8)

15 Incorrectkitmeans trouble(8)

18 Goandhunt fornothing(6)

20 Spotacello that’sbeenputout(6)

21 Painstakingpreparation(7)

22 Untie trickyknot(5)

23 Suchapencil servesnousefulpurpose (9)

DOWN2 Bill gets freeof bitterness (5)3 Accommodatingplaceprovidesachange for thoseover fifty (6)

4 Flinchbecauseof ahandicap(8)

5 Leharcompositionabout loveset inPakistan(6)

6 Statebuildingof topical style(7)

7 Turnupwithasix-footerescort (9)

11Girlupsetwithatroubledsoul -howirregular (9)

13 NewsonnetaboutNewYorkpoet (8)

14 Possiblyspyonfashionablemedium(7)

16 Napping, thegeneral isswallowedbyasnake(6)

17 Agravecommitment(6)

19 Capitalgrowth(5)

ARIES(Mar21-Apr20)I suspect thatyou’llhave littlepatiencewithpeoplewhowant tositaround

and indulge themselves. It’s farmore likely thatyou’llwant tobeoff toa flyingstart,especiallynowthatadventurouspersonalpossibilitiesareset to return.Let’s face it; thereareoptionsandchoicesyou’venotevenconsideredyet.

TAURUS(Apr21-May21)Today’seventsarelikely tohaveanairofmysteryaboutthem.Aspotof

confusion is likely,but timespentaloneor inrelativeseclusioncanprovetobegenuinelyenjoyable. Letnobodycallyoustuffy, foryouareabout tosurpriseusall—andhow.

GEMINI (May22- June21)Itmaytaketimetogetgoing—youseemtohaveslippedagearor

two.However, I thinkthebestthingyoucando is turnyourattentionbackto interestsandquestionswhichyouoncefoundso fascinating,butwhichhavesincebeenputontheshelf.

CANCER(June22- July23)Variety is thespiceof life.At least itought tobe, foryouareagainabout to

bepresentedwithanopportunity tocomeoutofyourshell andbecomethedarlingof yoursocial circle.Pleasedon’tholdbackand,onceyouhavemadeupyourmind, there isnopoint incounting thecost.

LEO(July24-Aug23)It isoftensaid thatthis isa timeof yearforchildren, towhich I seesome

adultsholding theirheads intheirhands.Yet therearemanylessonsyoucan learn fromsmallpeoplewhen itcomestospontaneouspleasure.That’swhyyoushouldpayattentionforonce!

VIRGO(Aug24-Sep23)Thestarshaveshifteddecisivelyinto thoseregionsofyoursolarchart

withsignificance foryourhomeandfamily. Ironically theresultmaybeaboutofindecisionover thecomingweek,possiblybecauseyouroptionswill expandandthealternativesgrow.

LIBRA(Sep24-Oct23)You’re readytobecheeredup.Onepieceof goodnewsis thatanexcursion

ormeetingwhichwascancelledorpostponedshouldsoonbebackontheagenda.Theaccent isonpersonalandjointmoneymatters,but itseemsthatyoumaysitonthefence fora littlewhile longer.

SCORPIO(Oct24-Nov23)Besecretive, firmandrealistic. Inotherwords,youmaybeyourself.

Otherpeoplemightno longeragreewithyou,but it seemsthatyoucontrol thepursestrings.Youcanthereforepresentpartnerswithafinancial faitaccompli, andtheywillhave tosmileandacceptyourdecisions.

SAGITTARIUS(Nov24-Dec22)Youhaveshownatendencyto fritteryourmoneyawayinthepast,butyou’ll

soonhaveachanceto thinkagain, andmaybetochangeyourmind.Pleaserememberthat there isabsolutelynoroomatall forcomplacency,mainlybecausealthoughyouthinkthatapersonalmatter isnowsettled, there is stillmoreinformationtocome.

CAPRICORN(Dec23- Jan20)If you feelyouhavetohideawaytogetenjoymentnow, itmaybebecauseyou

areuncertainhowotherswillreactonce theyknowhowyoureally feel. This is fine,and Idon’t thinkanyoneshouldcriticiseyouforhangingontoalong-standingsecret.

AQUARIUS(Jan21-Feb19)Compromise isnotabig featureof yourchartover thenextfewmonths, and I

thinkyou’reunlikely tobendnow.Onlyonminorandpossibly irrelevantdetailswillyoubehappyto letpartnersget theirway.Ontheotherhand, if youwant tokeep lovedonessweetyoushouldprobably throwthemsomecrumbsof comfort.

PISCES(Feb20-Mar20)Youaresoeasilysweptalongbyevents, and if youfeel thatall goingon

aroundyou is larger than life,you’reprobablyright.Asocialopportunity isabout topresentyouwithmorethanyoubargained for:a friend is soontoshowhiddentalents.

SUDOKU4247

DifficultyLevel1sInstructionsTosolveaSudokupuzzle,everydigitfrom1to9mustappear ineachofthenineverticalcolumns, ineachoftheninehorizontalrowsandineachofthenineboxes.

DifficultyLevel1s=Veryeasy;2s=Easy;3s=Medium;4s=Hard;5s=VeryHard;6s=Genius

SOLU

TIONSUDOKU4246

Givenbelowarefour jumbledwords.Solvethejumblestomakeproperwordsandmovethemtotherespectivesquaresbelow.Selecttheletters intheshadedsquaresandjumblethemtogettheanswerforthegivenquip.Wedon’tseethingsas___are,weseethingsas__are-AnaisNin(4,..,2)

SOLUTION:LEAVE,HOTLY,MOTHER,JEWELSAnswer:Wedon’tseethingsastheyare,weseethingsasweare-AnaisNin

ALVEE EMORTH

HLOTY EEJLSW

SolutionsCrossword4236:Across:1Wrinkle,4Brace,7Gape,8Minuting,10Secondmate,12Siesta,13Botany,15Painedlook,18Porridge,19Race,20Doyen,21Relayed.Down: 1Wages,2Inpocket,3Enigma,4Bluntwords,5Adit,6Eagerly,9Initiation,11Mahogany,12Stamped,14Onager,16Knead,17Fray.

JUMBLEDWORDS

OVERTHEHEDGE byMichael Fry&TLewis

CALVIN&HOBBES byBillWatterson

MARVIN byTomArmstrong

DAYTODAY BYPETERVIDAL

DIRECTORATE OF MANAGEMENT SERVICESDEFENCE RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT ORGANISATION

DRDO BHAWAN, RAJA JI MARG, NEW DELHI-110 011

ONLINE-NOTICE INVITING E-TENDER (NIT)1. The Director, Management Services, DRDO Headquarters, Rajaji Marg, New Delhi-110011 onbehalf of the president of India, desires to procure the following service:

2. Online bid are invited for supply of items/ services listed in Part V of this RFP as per Two BidSystem. The online bid (both Techno- commercial and price bid) should be uploaded by the bidderbefore the due date and time.

3. The documents may be downloaded from Defence e-Procurement Portal sitehttps://defproc.gov.in.

4. This RFP is being issued with no financial commitment and Buyer Reserves the right to change orvary any part thereof or foreclose procurement case at any stage. The Buyer also reserves the rightto disqualify any vendor, should it be necessary, at any stage on grounds of national Security.

5. You may contact Director, Management Services, DRDO Headquarters, Rajaji Marg, New Delhi-110011 related to bidding condition, bidding process, rejection of bids, specifications, terms andconditions or any other grievances related to purchase in writing.

Sd/-(Rajeev Ranjan)

davp 10301/11/0076/2021 Dy. Dir. MS

SlNo.

Tender Reference No. Nomenclature Quantity EMD

1. DRDO/ DMS/ 02/ Proc (HQ)/ 7134/DQR&S- 3rd Party Sftwr/20-21/M/01and Defence e-Procurement Portaltender ID No. 2020_DRDO_371945_3

Centralised RateContract for Hiring ofThird Party Software IV& V Services.

As pertender

Rs. 23 Lakh

Clarification end date and time 30 Sep 2020 at 1700 Hrs

Bid submission end date and time 07 Oct 2020 at 1400 HrsBid opening date and time 08 Oct 2020 at 1500 Hrs

Telephone No. of Contact Person for queries Sh. Rajeev Ranjan, Dy. Dir. &Sh. SK Patra, SO011-23007039/7932

Govt of Jammu & KashmirOFFICE OF MATERIALS MANAGEMENT OFFICER (PURCHASE-I)

SHER-I-KASHMIR INSTITUTE OF MEDICAL SCIENCESSOURA, SRINAGAR-190011 Tele/FAX NO.: 0194-2403929

Email ID: ammopurchase1@skims.ac.in

E-NIT No.: SIMS 325 (P 1st) Cylinders Tender 05 of 2020DATED: 28.09.2020

Sub: Notice inviting e-tenders for Purchase of Medical Gas Cylinders.E-tenders are invited for and on behalf of Lt. Governor UT of Jammu & Kashmir,

through Director, Sher-I-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences, Soura, Srinagar,from Manufacturers/Registered dealers having valid License for supply of MedicalGas Cylinder compatible to Oxygen Gas, Nitrous Oxide Gas, Carbon Dioxide Gasand Nitorgen Gas, as per the specifications detailed in the annexures annexed tothis notice to SKIMS, Soura, Srinagar, to be submitted under Two Bid CoverSystem- Cover I “Technical Bid” & Cover II “Price Bid.” The tender documents/detailed specification are available at www.jktenders.gov.in./www.skims.ac.in

The tenders should be submitted strictly in accordance with the provisions ofthe detailed e-NIT.

Sd/-Materials Management Officer,

Purchase-I, SKIMS.No.: SIMS-325 (P 1st) Cylinder Tender 05 of 2020-8154-63Dated: 28.09.2020SIMS-5376

Sr. No. Description Tender Fee Earnest Money1. Supply of Medical Gas Cylinders compatible to Medical Rs. 2,000/- Rs. 1,50,000/-

Gases such as Oxygen Gas, Nitrous Oxide Gas,Carbon Dioxide Gas and Nitrogen Gas.

Sr. No. Nomenclature Schedule1. Date of publish 28.09.20202. Tender Download Start Date 28.09.20203. Clarification Start Date 28.09.20204. Last date of clarification if any 05.10.2020 (upto 2 pm)5. Bid Submission Start Date 07.10.2020 (at 9 am)6. Bid Submission End Date 27.10.2020 (upto 2 pm)7. Technical Bid Open Date 31.10.2020 (at 12.00 pm)8. Financial Bid Open Date To be notified later

Post Bag no. 1. Yelwal, Mysore 571 130Telephone : 0821-6724/6418/Fax : 0821-240 3064

Date: 25/09/2020

NOTICE INVITING e-TENDER

The Chief Engineer, BHABHA Atomic Research Centre, Mysoreinvites for & on behalf of the President of India, Sealed item ratetenders in two parts from eligible contractors for those havingadequate experience and capabilities to execute similar works ofsuch magnitude as detailed in this tender.Tender Reference No. BARC/MYS/BLDG31/CES/12/2020-21Name of work Site area grading for upcoming Building

No. 31 at BARC plant site, Mysuru.Estimated Cost Rs 4.25 Crore (Rupees Four Crore

Twenty Five Lakhs only)Earnest Money Deposit Rs. 8.50 Lakhs (Rupees Eight Lakhs Fifty

Thousand only)Period of Completion 06 MonthsTender Sale Period From 01.10.2020 (1100 hrs) To

16.10.2020 (1800 hrs)

Interested tenderers may please refer detailed Notice InvitingTender (NIT) for eligibility criteria and other details, which canbe downloaded from web site www.tenderwizard.com/dae andwww.barc.gov.in

Sd/-Chief Engineer

For & on behalf of President of India

Government of IndiaDepartment of Atomic Energy

Bhabha Atomic Research CentreCivil Engineering Section

OFFICE OF CHIEF ENGINEER/METERINGC-3, SHAKTI VIHAR, PSPCL, PATIALA, PUNJAB 147001

Tel. No. 0175-2218871, Fax No. 0175-2200284,e-mail: se-hq-metering@pspcl.in

CIN: U40109PB2010SGC033813; Website: www.pspcl.inRegistration Number: 33813,

e-tendering portal: https://eproc.punjab.gov.inNOTICE INVITING TENDER

Tender specification can only be downloaded from PSPCL e-tenderingwebsite https://eproc.punjab.gov.in. Tender ID is:2020_POWER_53803_1

Note: Corrigendum, if any, after the publication of this tender enquiryshall only be uploaded on website: https://eproc.punjab.gov.in and will notbe published in newspapers.

Sd/-SE/HMC

PSPCL, PatialaC-310/202083372/Pb

Tender Specification No.

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MQP-163/2020-21/PO(M)

Procurement of ‘ISI’ Marked LT AC, 1- Phase 2-wire,Whole Current Static Intelligent Keypad Pre-Payment AMR compliant Energy Meters with‘Optical Port’ of rating 10-60 Amps. 50Hz, 240 V ofAccuracy Class-1 along with Consumer interfaceUnit and web based vending system.

10,000 meters.

Tender documents can only be downloaded fromwebsite https://eproc.punjab.gov.in

22.09.2020 at 11.00 Hrs.

29.09.2020 at 11.00 Hrs. in the chamber of ChiefEngineer/Metering

21.10.2020 upto 11.00 Hrs.

22.10.2020 upto 11.00 Hrs

29.10.2020 at 11.30 Hrs.

Er. Charanjit Singh Hazuria SE/HMC, PSPCL,Patiala.

SALUTE THE SOLDIERMartyr of CISF on 30th September

CISF proudly remembers the supremesacrifice

of this brave-heart. On this day, he laid down

his life while saving the lives of employees of

Vishakhapatnam Steel Plant during massive

fire at Coal Chemical Plant. His courage and

bravery would remain an abiding source of

inspiration for the force force. The force will

remain eternally indebted to him for his noblest

deed.

HC /FIRE Y. V.

CHETTY CISF

UNIT, VSP VIZAG30-09-2000

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OONN TTHHEE TTUUBBEE

INDIANPREMIERLEAGUERajasthan Royals vs KKR7.30pm, Star Sports Network

Why Washington Sundar’s spell isbeing called the ‘best in IPL so far’

We know what Sanju Samson did this summerVISHALMENONNEWDELHI,SEPTEMBER29

DURINGTHE lockdown,when therewasnoclarityaboutwhenhewouldgettoplayhisnextmatch,SanjuSamsongottheopportunitytore-assesshisgameandthe timeto fine-tunehisskills. InApril, hebeganpreparationswithhismentorand formerKerala team-mate,RaiphiGomez,inThiruvananthapuram.The twowould spend time together, dis-

cussingcricket.Duringoneofthosechats,SanjutoldGomezthatitwaslackofconsistencythatwaspreventinghisdevelopmentintoaprolificrun-scorer.“Hehadhardlyscoredanythingsub-stantialinthelastIPLafteronecentury.It’ssome-thingthathasbeenhurtinghimforawhilenow.Hewasworriedthathewasnotabletotakethegametothenextlevel,”GomeztoldTheIndianExpress.SanjucalledupAmalManohar,hiscol-legemateatThiruvanthapuram’sMar IvaniosCollege.Manohar—aformernational-levelath-letebeforeaknee injuryendedhiscareer—isnowacertifiedfitnesstrainer.Hehasbeenwork-ingcloselywithother top sportspersons likebadmintonplayerHSPrannoy.Manohar testedSanjuon fourparameters

—speed, strength, endurance, andagility. Theresultsprovidedclues tohisglaring inconsis-

tencylevelsintheIPL.“WemetinAprilandaf-ter conductingabasic testonSanju, I realisedthathewashardlygetting timetorecoverbe-tweenmatches in the IPL. Simplyput,hewascarryingthefatiguefromonematchtotheother,whichwasactingasanimpediment,”Manoharexplained.Hedevisedaseriesofexercisesthathelped Sanju build muscle mass, becomestronger,improvehisagility,allofwhichwouldaidinquickerrecoverybetweenmatches.Sanjuworkeddiligentlyon theseaspects

andwithinfourweeks,begantonoticedrasticimprovements.

Foodfor thoughtTherewas another aspect that neededa

closewatch:hisdiet.It’snotthatSanjuwascare-lessaboutwhatheate.Hewantedsomeoneex-periencedtocloselymonitorhismeals.Gomezwas instrumental inhiringArun,anexecutivechefatZamZamBunCafe.“Afriendhadrecom-mendedhisname.So, I senthimamenuandaskedhimtopreparemeals forSanju, andheimmediately cameonboard,”Gomezelabo-rated.While chalkingout themenu,GomezgaveArunthreespecific instructions: includecarbohydrates inmoderation,maximisepro-teinsandeliminatefats.“It’sachallengetoprepareamenutailor-

made to the needs of sportspersons. I have

taken care to ensure Sanju’s fitness is notcompromised,whileatthesametime,there’samethodtoimprovisesothathedoesn’tgetboredofeatingthesamestuff,”Arunoffered.Evenduring the lockdown, Sanjuwould

spendatleastfivehoursintraining.Arunwouldconstantlykeep in touchwithhishigh-profileclientonWhatsapptoapprisehimofthemenu.Typically, lunchwouldconsist ofwheatdaliawithmushroom,eggwhites, chickenbreast,alongwithwatermelonseedsaladandmixed

fruit.Dinnerusuallyincludedaportionofkiwimarinatedchickenwithscrambledeggwhite,cucumberandjalapenocornkernelsalad.“Sometimes, Iwouldsubstitutedaliawith

riceandalsoincludefishonaregularbasissinceSanjuprefers seafoodover leanmeat. Iwouldalso includeat least three typesof fruits andsnacks likemuffins and cookiesmade fromwholewheatflourandnotmaida,”Arunsaid.All that thehardworkandpreparation is

payingdividends.There’salmostasenseof in-fallibilityinSanju’sbattinginthisIPL.Followingthe twopower-packedperformances—a32-ball74againstChennaiSuperKingsanda42-ball 85 versusKingsXI Punjab— theKeralawicket-keepergaveapeek intohismindset. “Iammoreawareofmygamenow.Thatapart, Ihavebeenworkinghardonmy fitness, diet,trainingandmystrengthbecausemygamere-liesalotonpower-hitting,”hesaid. ThatSanjupossessesall theattributesof apower-hitteriswelldocumented.Buthelooksfresherandmoreateasewithhimself thaneverbefore.

TrainingwithtennisballsGomezbelieves thatafter theblazingstart

to Sanju’s IPL season, he canonly get better.Gomezknowshowdemanding this tourna-ment is, givenhis stintswith theRajasthanRoyals,KochiTuskersKeralaandPuneWarriors

Indiafrom2008to2010.“WhenIparticipatedintheIPL,itwasaneye-

opener forme. Itgavemean insight intohowsomeoftheworld-classplayerstrainandoper-ate.Irealisedthatyourcricketingskillsalonewillnotguaranteeyousuccess.Itwillhappenwhenyourdiet, fitness andmindare in sync. I amhappythatSanjuhasusedthistimeduringthelockdowntohisadvantage,”Gomezopined.Duringthe fivemonthswhencompetitive

cricketingactivitywassuspended,SanjutrainedregularlywithtennisballsonGomez’sterrace.Despite the space constraints, the seniorprowouldreplicatedifferentmatchsituationsandurgethe25-year-oldtodemonstratehispower-hittingbykeepingastillbase.Thiswasdonewithsuchdevotionthatovertime,itbecamepartofSanju’smusclememory.“RahulDravidhadsaidthat if youwantto

master one shot, you need to play at least10,000balls.Apartfromtraininganddiet,thisiswhat Sanjuhas beendoingduring the ex-tendedbreak. Suchanelaboratepreparationis essential because only then canyou scoreback-to-back100sinIPLandstillremainfreshbecause yourbodyneeds that energy to fuelyou,” the 35-year-old explained. “He hasworkedhardinthesefivemonthsandisofftoa good start now… I hope he canmake itcount,”heconcluded.

SanjuSamson’sblisteringstart to IPL istheresultofhardworkandpreparationduringthe lockdown.BCCI

Sun rises, eventuallyCapitalgains forHyderabadat theexpenseof till-nowunbeatenDelhi

SHAMIKCHAKRABARTYSEPTEMBER29

RASHIDKHANmesmerisedwithhisspinwhileDavidWarner’scaptaincywassuperb.AslowAbuDhabi pitchnotwithstanding, SunrisersHyderabadweredefendingjustaboutaparto-tal. Theyhad littlemargin forerror, especiallyafter two losses in their first twogames. TheRashid-WarnercombohelpedSunriserssecuretheir firstwininthis IPL.Theirvictorymargin,15runs,though,doesn’ttellthewholestory.Sunrisers’effortswereevenmorelaudable

forthefactthattheybowledsecondandhadtocounter the dew. From the experiencedBhuvneshwar Kumar to young AbhishekSharma,everybodystooduptobecounted.ButRashidwasthex-factor,whilehiscaptainwasthemastermind.

RashidweavesmagicRashid came into theattack in theeighth

over.Capitalshadaslowstartallright,butwithShikharDhawanandShreyasIyeratthecreaseandbighitterstofollow,asteepaskingratewasstillnotafactor.Sunrisersneededwickets.Theleg-spinneraccounted for Iyerwitha tossed-updeliverythatheheldbackalittle.TheCapitalsskipperwent for a lofteddriveover coverbutwasbeatenintheair.Also,thebatturnedinhishand.Sunrisershadthewickettheywerelook-ingfor.Dhawanwasrelyingonthesweepshottocounter thespinners.Rashid removedhimwithawrong ’uninhis thirdover,as thebats-manwasdeclaredoutonreferral. After threeovers,Rashid’sfiguresread:3-0-10-2.Theleggiereturnedtobowlhisfinaloverat

the death. RishabhPant andMarcus Stoiniswerebattingandtheequation–49runsoff24balls–wasstillprettygettable.Pantwentforapremeditatedsweep,butRashidhadbowledthedeliveryatadslower.Theleft-handerwascaughtatdeep-squarebyPriyamGarg.Rashidhadjustonewicketinthefirsttwomatches.OnTuesday, he returnedwith3/14 in fourovers.StillearlydaysinthisIPL,butSunrisersneededtogettheircampaignunderway.Andhisbrilliancewasnotrestrictedtojust

pickinggame-turningwickets.RashidwasthereasonwhyWarnercouldcontinuewith left-

arm spinner Sharma against Capitals’ left-handedbatsmen.Withwickets fallingatoneend,Capitalsbatsmendidn’thave the leewaytotargettheyoungster.

Warner’smasterclassWarner is theheartof thisSunrisers team.

Heisyettogetabigscoreinthistournamentbuthis33-ball45ensuredthathisteamhadagoodstartafterbeingsentin.WhenSunrisersfielded,Warner’splanchokedtheopponents.ThewayheheldbackRashid’s finaloverwasexcellent.Hehadaclearplanforhisbowlers–trytotakesixesoutoftheequation,bowlfullandforcethebatsmentohittowardsthelongboundary.Hedirectedhisbowlerstotargettheblock

hole.Left-armseamerTNatarajanwasthebestamong theSunrisersbowlerswith regards toexecutingyorkers.Kumargavetheearlybreak-throughbydismissingPrithviShawinthefirstover and then returned to take thewicket ofShimronHetmyer. Sunrisers bowlerswerebowling toaclearplan, laidoutby their skip-per. The team’sbatting, too,wasprofessional.JonnyBairstow scored a half-century. KaneWilliamsonplayeda lovelyhand, coming infromthecoldandaquadricepsinjury.Sunrisershadlabouredto38fornolossattheendofthe

Powerplay.Onlytwofoursandasixhadbeenhitinthefirstsixovers,bothbyWarner.Theskippergotoutaftergettingastartand

the Sunrisers battingwasn’t finding the re-quiredtempo.Bairstow,too,wasn’ttimingtheballwell. He fell prey to amistimedpull offKagisoRabada.ButSunrisersdidn’tpanic.EvenAbdulSamad,whomadehis IPLde-

but, swung fearlessly at the death. He con-nectedoneprettywellforasixbutmissedafewaswell. But the youngman from Jammu&Kashmirdidn’tlookunderpressure.Onceagain,credittoWarnerforallowingadebutanttobefearless. As for Capitals, they are anevolvingteam.Theycameintothisgameafterback-to-backwins.ButonTuesday,Sunrisersoutplayedtheminall threedepartments. Iyerelected tofieldbecauseof thedewfactor in the secondhalf.Heprobablymisreadthepitch.Thedeci-siontogiveAxarPatelonlytwooversdidn’tau-gurwelleither.Iyer’scaptaincyisstillaworkinprogress.Warner’scaptaincymasterclassmusthavegivenhimplentytolearn.BRIEF SCORES: Sunrisers Hyderabad

162/4 in 20 overs (J. Bairstow 53, DavidWarner 45; K Rabada 2/21) beat DelhiCapitals147/7 in20overs(ShikharDhawan34, RashidKhan3/14) by15 runs.

RashidKhan finishedwith figures of 3/14. BCCI

SANDIPGSEPTEMBER29

AT THE end of the Royal ChallengersBangalore-Mumbai Indians IPL game thatwas decided in the Super Over, all the talkwas about Ishan Kishan’smissed hundredand the genius of AB de Villiers. However,oneoutstandingbowlingeffortescapedtheattentionof fansandpundits. Inamatchthatsaw402runs,23foursand26sixes,RCBall-rounderWashingtonSundar’s effortof 4-0-12-1wasamasterclassineffectivespinbowl-ing inside thePowerplay.Theoff-spinnerdidn’tconcedeany

boundaries, bowled 13dot balls, andcreated unbearable pressure. IndiacoachRaviShastritweeted:“Thebestperformance in the IPLso far.”

BackgroundHistorically, spinnershave troubledRohit

SharmainthePowerplay.Inthepastthreeedi-tionsoftheIPL,theyhavegothimoutsixtimes.MaybethiswaswhatpromptedViratKohlitobringonWashingtoninthesecondover.

1ST OVER (2ND OF INNINGS): ROHITMISCUESPULLWashington knew that Rohit likes flight

andwidthfromaspinner.Washingtongavehimneither. Rohit likes to sashaydown thetrack,butWashington’sbriskpace,touchingthehigh90s,kepttheMIcaptaingluedtothecrease. Andhealsoknewthatnothing frus-tratesRohitmorethanbeingtieddownbyaspinner.ThefirstballspunbackintohimandRohit stared suspiciously at the pitch. ThenWashingtonbeganmixingupthe lengths.The next ball landed on a spinner’s good

lengtharea.Butbecausethefirstballhadspun,Rohitwaited for it andplayed it on the backfoot. The thirdwas short of good length, towhichhecameforwardanddroveconfidently.Rohit sensed the next ball would be

shorter in length. The pull is his percentagestroke.Theball indeedwasshorterinlength,only that it was not short enough to bepulled, came quicker than expected, andlanded on off andmiddle, denying him thewidth thatallowsa freeswingof thebat.

Rohit failed to time the ball and wascaughtatdeepmid-wicket.■Washington’s figures:1-0-2-1

2ND OVER (4TH OF INNINGS): THESTRANGLE JOBTo Ishan Kishan,Washingtonwent flat

andkepttheballonthestumps.Theleg-sidewas sufficiently manned inside the ring,whichmeant evensingleswerehard toget.Itwasnotuntilthefourthball,whenthemid-on fielder was pushed back, that Kishanmanagedasingle.HisploywasdifferentagainstQuintonde

Kock,inthatheshedhisdefensive-ness and went on the attack.Knowing the South African’s pen-chant for cutting, he pulled hislength back a trifle, tempting himto go deep into the crease and cutlate.Hewasnearlysuckedintothe

trap—edgingtwicewhentryingtoforcethecut.■Bowling figures:2-0-3-1

3RDOVER (6TH OF INNINGS): SIMPLYUNHITTABLEThe last over of the Powerplay is when

batsmen, especially when chasing a steeptarget, go berserk. But they ran out of ideasagainst Washington. When they tried tomanufacture a shot,Washington routinelyout-thoughtthem.Onthesecondballof theover, de Kock tried to go inside-out, butWashington darted it so fast into middlestumpthat theshothadtobeabortedatthelastmoment.■Bowling figures:3-0-7-1

4THOVER:(10THOFINNINGS):PANDYALOCKEDUPHardik Pandya relishes hitting off-spin-

nersover cowcorner.Hegoesdeep into thecrease,getsundertheballandheavesitovermid-wicket.But just likehe induceddoubtsin Rohit’s mind with one that spun backsharply,Washingtonmade the second ballgrip the surface and bounce. StraightawayPandya turned cautious andwas happy ro-tating strike. It wasWashington’smost ex-pensiveoverof theday- five runs!■Bowling figures:4-0-12-1.

Dominant Djokovic cruises through openerREUTERSPARIS, SEPTEMBER29

NOVAKDJOKOVIC got his quest for an 18thGrand Slam title back on track as he com-menced his French Open campaignwith adrama-free6-06-26-3victoryoverMikaelYmeronTuesday.Little over three weeks since Djokovic

wasdefaultedintheU.S.Openfourthroundfor hitting a line judgewith a ball, hewas amodel of self-control as he outclassed theyoung Swede. Had Court Philippe Chatrierbeen packed with fans rather than just asmattering on Tuesday because of theCOVID-19restrictions,Djokovicmighthaveexpected some heckling from the some-times ficklepost-lunchFrenchaudience.Instead, it was as gentle a return to the

GrandSlamspotlightasthe33-year-oldtopseed could havewished for as he charmedthe tinyaudiencewithhis silky repertoire.

The first set took only 20 minutes asYmer struggled to even lay a glove on the2016 champion. Djokovic did drop serve

early in the second setwhen an attempteddrop shot fell short but therewasno tetchyresponse this time, just an ironic chuckle.TheSerbthenledtheapplauseforYmer

whenthe22-year-oldranbacktoretrievealob-volleyandplayedashowreelbetween-the-legs winner Nick Kyrgios would havebeenproudof in the sixthgame.But it was one-way traffic as Djokovic

polished off the second set with his trade-mark cleanhitting. The 80th-rankedYmer,facingaworldnumberoneforthefirsttime,stuckmanfullytohistaskinthethirdsetandDjokovicbecamealittlesloppyashehandedbacka servicebreakwithadouble-fault af-terwhichhe flexedhishand.Djokovicglaredatsomeoneinthecrowd

in the followinggamebut refocused to reeloff the last three games for victory and setup a clash with Lithuania’s RicardasBerankis.Djokovic was odds-on to win the U.S.

Open, with Rafa Nadal and Roger Federer

absent,andmovewithinoneGrandSlamti-tleof theSpaniardandtwobehindtheSwisswho is not in Paris. The script was rippedfrom his grasp though when a frustratedswipeataballresultedinitaccidentallyhit-tinga female line judge in the throat.Since that humiliation, however,

DjokovichasreboundedtowintheRometi-tleandwith thedampParisianclayplayingmore like a slow hardcourt, it looks tailor-madefortheSerbtoend12-timechampionNadal’sRolandGarrosdomination.

Pliskova advancesCzech second seed Karolina Pliskova

managed to rein in her errors and found away past battling Egyptian qualifierMayarSherif with a 6-7(9) 6-2 6-4 victory in theopening roundof theFrenchOpen.Teenage Danish qualifier Clara Tauson

caused a shock as she beat American 21stseedJenniferBrady6-43-69-7intheopen-ing roundatRolandGarros.

SYNOPSIS

Rashidweavesmagic.Warnergivesamasterclassincaptaincy.

BRIEFLY

FRENCHOPEN

RealMadriddon'tneedanymoreplayers:ZidaneMadrid: RealMadrid coach ZinedineZidane has no interest in bringing inanymore players before the transferwindowclosesnextweek,hesaidonTuesday. Madrid still looked like aworkinprogressinSaturday’sscrappy3-2winoverRealBetisafterdrawingtheir first game of the season 0-0 atReal Sociedad, but the Frenchmandoes not believe adding to his squadis the answer. “We already have a lotofplayers,whywouldwewanttoaddanymore,”Zidanetoldanewsconfer-ence ahead of Wednesday’s homegameagainstRealValladolid. “It isal-readyverydifficulttopickateam,be-causeall theplayersareverygood,sowhy addmore. Themarket is openuntil Oct. 5 but I’m very happywithwhat I have. This squad ismine andformetheyare thebest.”

Suarezbringsleadership,Costacharacter:SimeoneLondon: AtleticoMadrid’sDiegoCostaandnewsigningLuisSuarezcanformadeadly partnership this season sayscoach Diego Simeone. Costa scoredAtletico’sfirstgoalinthe6-1thrashingof GranadaonSundaybeforemakingwayforSuarez,whomarkedhisdebutsince switching fromBarcelonawithan incredible return of two goals andanassist inthespaceof20minutes.“Of course they canplay together.

The important thing is that they playtothebestoftheirabilities,Diegowithhis character, Suarezwith his leader-ship,”SimeonetoldanewsconferenceaheadofAtletico’sgameatHuescaonWednesday. “They are different play-ers.Diegolikestoplaydownthewingsandrunintospace,whileSuarezisbet-ter at short sprints,making diagonalrunsintothearea,playingwithhisbacktogoalandbeingadangerouspresenceinthearea.”

Bayern’sSanetomissSuperCupMadrid: Bayern Munich wingerLeroy Sane will miss Wednesday’sdomestic Super Cup againstBorussiaDortmundwith a knee in-jury while defender David Alaba isdoubtful, coach Hansi Flick said onTuesday. Bayern, who won four ti-tles this year, lost Sunday’s leaguegame at Hoffenheim 4-1 to suffertheir first defeat of 2020. “Leroy isout. Hewillmost likely be out untiland will return after the break forinternational matches (betweenOct. 7-13),” Flick told reporters.Defender Alaba is doubtful with amuscle problem, with a final deci-sion to be taken onmatchday.

REUTERS

I may not always get itright, says HamiltonREUTERSLONDON,SEPTEMBER29

FORMULAONEchampionLewisHamilton,who accused stewards of seeking to stophim winning at last weekend’s RussianGrand Prix, said on Tuesday that he was“onlyhuman”andwouldcontinueto learn.Inwhat read like a veiled apology, but didnot referdirectly to the race inSochior thestewards, the Mercedes driver posted amessageonInstagramthankinghis fans fortheir support.“Imaynotalwaysgetitrightinthefaceof

adversity,”wrotetheBriton,whoisonewinfrom equallingMichael Schumacher’s all-time record 91. “I may not always react thewayyouwantmetowhentensionsarehigh,but I amonly human after all and I ampas-sionateaboutwhat Ido.“I’m learning and growing every day,

and I’ll take my lessons and keep fighting

ontothenextone.Thankyoutothosewhocontinue to support and are right therefightingwithme.”Hamilton, a six timesworld champion,

finishedthird inSochiafterstartingonpoleposition. He collected two penalties, to-talling10seconds, forpractisingstartsinthewrongplacebefore the racehadstarted.Askedif thepunishmentseemedexces-

sive, he told SkySports: “Of course it is. Butit’stobeexpected.They’retryingtostopme,aren’t they?”RacedirectorMichaelMasire-jected theaccusationsafter the race.“If Lewis wants to raise something, as I

havesaid tohimbefore... thedoor isalwaysopen,”hesaid. “Wehavethestewardsasanindependent judiciarytoadjudicate... therewas an infringement and it doesn’t matterif itwasLewisHamiltonoranyotheroneofthe19drivers.”FormulaOne’smanagingdi-rector for motorsport Ross Brawn said onMonday that Hamilton should lick hiswoundsand learn fromhismistakes.

NovakDjokovicdefeatedMikaelYmer6-0,6-2,6-3.AP

New Delhi