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PNS n VIJAYAWADA

The Cabinet has approved thenew law, approving anamendment to the existingAct, to control the sand mafia.With the new Act, there is apossibility of two yearsimprisonment for the people,who excavate, or transport thesand illegally without permis-sion.

Earlier, the Act was enact-ed to impose a fine on thepeople, who transport, orexcavate the sand illegally.Now, they have to undergoimprisonment for a period oftwo years. This was alreadyannounced by Chief MinisterYS Jaganmohan Reddy onNovember 4 in a review meet-ing on the sand issue. Thesame was approved by theCabinet on Wednesday.

Minister Perni Nani said:"We noticed that a few peoplewith the criminal mindset,some with political connec-tion and others to rake inmoolah are transporting thesand illegally in the midnightand selling them at a higherprice. To control these prac-tices, the Chief Minister hasdecided to bring in the law".

On September 5, the new

sand policy came into effect,but the mining departmenthad failed to provide onlinefacility to book sand andunable to supply requiredsand to the people. But, trans-port of illegal is going onunabated during the mid-

night. Due to non-availabili-ty of the sand, constructionworks were stalled and thelabourers, who depend onthem, have lost their liveli-hood.

Continued on Page 3

‘Two-year jail for illegaltransportation of sand'

Ministers defend scrapping of capital project

PNS n VIJAYAWADA

The Cabinet has approvedthe decision of ChiefMinister to introduceEnglish Medium inGovernment Schools forStandards I to VI from thenext academic year.

Minister for Informationand Public Relations PerniNani on Wednesday saidthe government had alreadytaken suggestions, feedbackfrom the parents and VidyaCommittees. The initiativeto introduce EnglishMedium in governmentschools on which wider dis-cussions and arguments aregoing on, has got theapproval of the Cabinet.

Nani said, "After gettingthe feedback from the peo-ple during the Padayatraand later holding consulta-tions with the parents of chil-dren, who are studying in thegovernment schools as wellas members of the VidyaCommittees, Chief MinisterYS Jaganmohan Reddy hadtaken the decision. There isno truth in the argumentthat he has taken the deci-sion without any study orwithout any preparation. Wehave done the groundworkand after studying the issuecomprehensively, the gov-ernment has taken the deci-sion, which will make a goodimpact on the families ofweaker sections."

Cabinet nodfor Englishmedium ingovt schools

PNS n VISAKHAPATNAM]

BJP MLC Somu Veerraju hasmade sensational commentsagainst TDP president NChandrababu Naidu and hisparty members. He said that theTDP will lose its existence as itwill be wiped out in the State by2024. Veerraju further statedthat all the TDP MLAs will jointhe BJP soon.

Addressing the media hereon Wednesday, the BJP MLCreminded that people were fedup with the ruling ofChandrababu Naidu and theTDP faced a humiliating defeatin the 2019 elections. Hence,people are not ready to acceptthe TDP leadership again in theState, he said.

Veerraju disclosed that hehad met TDP leader and for-mer minister Ganta SrinivasaRao recently, but refused todivulge any details about themeeting. He gave an open wel-come to all the TDP leaders,who were willing to join the BJP.

"The BJP MLC further saidthat many leaders in AP arejoining our party, as the BJP isthe only alternative in the stateby 2024. The Yellow Media istrying in all possible ways forChandrababu's words to reachthe public, but the people of arenot going to believe his wordsanymore," said Veerraju.

He further made fun of theTDP's president's efforts to getback to power in 2024, and said

that even Chandrababu mayjoin BJP by 2024. Veerraju hasindirectly hinted at Ganta'sentry into the BJP. All thesehave given rise to speculationsin political circles over GantaSrinivasa Rao entry into BJP.

Buzz is that as already fourTDP MPs and few former min-isters joined the BJP party,even Ganta will follow thesame route and join BJP soon.

TDP wipe-out in Andhra by 2024, saysSomu Veerraju

The BJP MLC further saidthat many leaders in AP

are joining our party, as the BJPis the only alternative in thestate by 2024. The Yellow Mediais trying in all possible ways forChandrababu's words to reachthe public, but the people of arenot going to believe his wordsanymore

— SOMU VEERRAJUBJP MLC

PNS n VIJAYAWADA

The Cabinet has approved thedecision to regularise theunauthorised layouts of lowerand middle class people livingin towns, albeit with a few rid-ers. Only the plots registered inindividual names will beaccepted. The sites registeredin the names of organisationswill not be considered, heclarified.

Briefing the media about theother decisions of the Cabinetat Amaravati on Wednesday,Information Minister PerniNani the Andhra PradeshEnvironment ManagementCorporation is in the offing.The Corporation will be taskedwith taking steps to curb pol-lution and to declare 2,000 ofthe 9,000 industries in the redcategory in the State. Industrialwastage is causing pollutionand damaging the environ-ment, so the Corporationwould monitor these aspectsand see that the rules were fol-lowed, the Minister explained.

He said ex gratia to the fam-ilies of fishermen who die inharness will be increased fromRs 5 lakh to Rs 10 Lakh. Thedecision would come into forcefrom November 21, markingthe World Fishermen's Day aspart of the YSR MatsyakaraBharosa programme, whichwas announced by the ChiefMinister earlier.

The minister said that for

the establishment of 84 villagecourts in the State, the govern-ment will amend the VillageCourts Act-2008 besides theAndhra Pradesh AdvocatesWelfare Fund Act. The Cabinetapproved additional posts thatinclude a director and threeDFO rank Assistant Director

posts in the Home department.The Minister said that the

Cabinet has taken a decision toapprove the appointment ofTrust Board members in eighttemples in the State. TheCabinet approved amendmentto the Andhra PradeshMunicipal Law Act.

Andhra Pradesh cabinet has taken the decision to approve theappointment of Trust Board members in eight temples in the state.

Varaha Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy Devasthanam - Simhachalam,Veera Venkata Satyanarayana Swamy Vari Devasthanam -Annavaram, Venkateswara Swamy Devasthanam - Dwarka Tirumala,Durga Malleswara SwamyVarla Devasthanam - Vijayawada,Srikalahasteeswara Swamy Devasasthanam - SrikalahastiBhramaramba Malleswara Swamy Devasthanam - Srisailam, LakshmiTirupatamma Devasthanam - Penuganchiprolu, Swayambhu SriVarasiddhi Vinayaka Swamy Devasthanam - Kanipakam

New Trust boards for temples

l Now, they have to undergoimprisonment for a period of two years.This was already announced by ChiefMinister YS Jaganmohan Reddy onNovember 4 in a review meeting on thesand issue and the same was approvedby the Cabinet on Wednesdayb

l Earlier, the Actwas enacted to

impose a fine onthe people, who

transport, orexcavate the

sand illegally

PNS n AMARAVATI

With the Andhra Pradesh gov-ernment and a Singapore con-sortium scrapping the pro-posed multi-billion-dollar cap-ital city Amaravati project on"mutual consent", two stateministers on Wednesday citedreasons that led to such adevelopement.

Finance MinisterRajendranath notedthat developmentof 1700 acresalone, out of theone lakh-acre cap-ital region, was notonly not an easytask but also impossi-ble.

At least Rs 2 lakh crore isrequired to develop the onelakh acres. Unless that muchamount is spent and the wholearea developed, there is nomeaning having a business dis-trict within it, he pointed out.

The project will take decadesand decades tocomplete.Neither time nor thefinances permit it, he added.

The capital city, initially esti-mated to cost SGD15 billion,was the brainchild of formerchief minister N ChandrababuNaidu, who lost power in theassembly elections this year.

S i n g a p o r e ' sMinistry of Tradeand Industry(MTI) said onTuesday thedecision wasbased on "mutu-

al consent"between the Andhra

Pradesh State govern-ment and the Singapore con-

sortium, consisting of AscendasSingapore, which is now part ofCapitaLand Group, andSembcorp Development.

The decision to close theAmaravati Capital City Start-Up Area project was made byAndhra Pradesh, headed byChief Minister Y S JaganMohan Reddy, in a governmentorder on Monday. The projectwas formally scrapped withthe state Cabinet on October 30deciding to terminate the agree-ment with the consortium.

Continued on Page 3

PNS n NEW DELHI

The Supreme Court onWednesday upheld the dis-qualification of 17 Congress-JD(S) MLAs in Karnataka bythe then Assembly Speakerbut paved the way for them tocontest the December 5 by-polls on 15 seats in the state.While upholding their dis-qualification, the apex court setaside the portion of the ordersby the then speaker K RRamesh Kumar by which thelegislators were disqualifiedtill the end of the 15thKarnataka LegislativeAssembly's term in 2023.

A bench of justices N VRamana, Sanjiv Khanna andKrishna Murari said it is clearthat the Speaker, in exercise ofhis powers under the TenthSchedule of the Constitution,"does not have the power toeither indicate the period for

which a person is disqualified,or to bar someone contestingelections". "We must be care-ful to remember that the desir-ability of a particular rule orlaw, should not in any event beconfused with the question ofexistence of the same, andconstitutional morality shouldnever be replaced by politicalmorality, in deciding what theConstitution mandates," thebench said in its 109-page

judgement. The court saidthere is a growing trend ofSpeakers acting against the"constitutional duty of beingneutral" in addition to politi-cal parties indulging in horsetrading and corrupt practicesdue to which citizens are beingdenied stable governments.

The Speaker, being a neutralperson, is expected to actindependently while conduct-ing the proceedings of the

House or adjudication peti-tions, it said.

SC paves way for disqualified MLAs to contest Dec 5 bypolls

NEW DELHI: Congressspokesperson Randeep SinghSurjewala on Wednesday saidthe Supreme Court's decisionon the disqualification of 17MLAs in Karnataka has burstthe bubble of BJP's 'OperationKamal.' Taking to Twitter,Surjewala demanded theYediyurappa-led BJPgovernment in Karnatakashould now be dismissed for"brazenly and illegally" bringingdown the Congress-JanataDal(S) alliance government inthe state. "The SC's decisionupholding the disqualificationof "defector MLAs" has burstthe bubble of BJP's 'OperationKamal'.

SC decision has exposed'Op Kamal: Congress

DISQUALIFIED MLAS JOINING BJPBENGALURU: Elated by theSupreme Court's ruling partial-ly in their favour, all the 17 dis-qualified legislators are joiningthe ruling BJP on Thursdayahead of the December 5 by-elections, a party official said onWednesday.

"All the 17 MLAs, including14 from the Congress and 3 fromthe Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S)will join our party on Thursdayhere and 15 of them will contestin the by-elections on our partysymbol," BJP state unitspokesman G Madhusudanasaid. The apex court earlier in theday upheld their disqualificationby former state assembly speak-er K.R. Ramesh Kumar.However, the 3-judge benchallowed them to contest the by-elections from the assembly seg-ments they resigned in mid-July

before they were disqualified andexpelled by their parties by July-end for defying their party whip.They had stayed away from theassembly on July 23 when theformer coalition governmentled by CM HDKumaraswamylost the trust-vote in the assem-bly, leading to the fall of the 14-month-old coalition govern-ment the same night (July 23)."The top court's ruling came intime for the rebels to file nomi-nations for contesting the by-polls from their assembly seatsbefore the last date of filingpapers on November 18," saidMadhusudana. A 3-judge benchheaded by Justice N.V. Ramanaruled that the Assembly Speakerwas not empowered to disqual-ify the legislators till the end of the term of the Assembly in 2023.

Stop harassing oppn:Kishan Reddy PNS n VISAKHAPATNAM

Union Minister of State forHome G Kishan Reddyaccused YSR Congress Party ofharassing the BJP workersrather than focusing on gov-ernance. There are strong evi-dences with the party to provehis allegations against the YSRCongress Party, the ministerclaimed.

The YSR Congress Partyhas come to power with a mas-sive mandate, hence, it shouldwork for the welfare of thepeople. Instead, the partyworkers are attacking politicalleaders, including BJP, KishanReddy said.

Addressing a press confer-

ence here on Wednesday,Kishan Reddy said that theYSR Congress Party had tar-geted some of the party work-ers in Anantapur, Guntur andSrikakulam districts. He sug-gested to the party high com-mand to stop political harass-ments on the party leaders andworkers. Commenting on theEnglish medium compulsoryfrom Class 1 in governmentschools, he said it was not cor-rect and the mother tongueshould be honoured. The stu-dents would be benefittedwith the English medium edu-cation, but it should happen,along with Telugu, heremarked.

Continued on Page 3

Union Minister of State for Home G Kishan Reddy addressing a press conferencein Visakhapatnam on Wednesday

CJI is publicauthority, fallsunder RTI: SCPNS n NEW DELHI

The Supreme Court onWednesday held that theoffice of the Chief Justice ofIndia is a public authority andfalls within the ambit of theRight to Information Act.

A five-judge Constitutionbench headed by ChiefJustice Ranjan Gogoi upheldthe 2010 Delhi High Courtverdict and dismissed threeappeals filed by SecretaryGeneral of the SupremeCourt and the Central PublicInformation officer of theapex court.

Cautioning that RTI can-not be used as a tool of sur-veillance, the top court in itsjudgement held that judicialindependence has to be keptin mind while dealing withtransparency.

The bench, also compris-ing Justices N V Ramana, DY Chandrachud, DeepakGupta and Sanjiv Khanna,said that only the names ofjudges recommended by theCollegium for appointmentcan be disclosed, not the rea-sons.

SC strikes downFinance Actamendments

JNU rolls backproposed hostelfee hike

NEW DELHI: Union Cultureand Tourism Minister PrahladPatel on Wednesday said thedecision on the formation ofthe AyodhyaTrust willbe takenat thelevel oft h ep r i m eminister."The decisionon the trust — how will it beformed, who all will be itsmembers -- will be taken at thelevel of the prime minister, Icannot comment more onthis," Singh told a televisionchannel.

Settling the fractious issuethat goes back more than acentury, the Supreme Courtbacked the construction of aRam temple by a governmenttrust at the disputed site inUttar Pradesh's Ayodhya onSaturday and ruled that analternative five-acre plot mustbe found for a mosque in theHindu holy town.

PM will takedecision onAyodhya trust

NEW DELHI: The JawaharlalNehru University's executivecommittee on Wednesdayrolled back the proposed hos-tel fee hike and also has nowproposed a scheme for eco-nomic assistance to studentsfrom Economically WeakerSections (EWS).

The move comes as a hugesuccess for the agitating stu-dents who have been on strikefor over 15 days now."Executive Committeeannounces major rollback inthe hostel fee and other stip-ulations. Also proposes ascheme for economic assis-tance to the EWS students.Time to get back to classes," R.Subrahmanyam, UnionEducation Secretary, tweetedon Wednesday.

The move comes after theexecutive committee of theuniversity meet to discuss thehostel draft manual whichhas been at the heart of thecontroversy that brought thevarsity to boil.

NEW DELHI: The SupremeCourt on Wednesday struckdown rules in the amendedFinance Act 2017 on tribunalsand directed the governmentto reformulate fresh normswith respect to appointment oftribunal members.

A bench headed by ChiefJustice Ranjan Gogoi directedthe Ministry of law to conductimpact study and submitreport to the apex court.

The top court directed thatappointment in tribunalsshould be in accordance withrespective statutes.

I continue to coach:GopichandPNS n MUMBAI

Chief national badmintoncoach Pullela Gopichand onWednesday said the reasonhe continues to coach isthat the play-ers needhim andthere isstill nos u c -c e s -s i o nplan inplace.

"Well, to be honest, thereason why I continue tocoach and I am obsessedabout it is also because Ihaven't had...I don't see thesuccession plan come by soeasily, it is been tough," saidGopichand.

Regularisation ofillegal layouts okayed

Finance MinisterRajendranath notedthat development of1700 acres alone, out ofthe one lakh-acrecapital region, was notonly not an easy taskbut also impossible

Current Weather ConditionsUpdated November 13, 2019 5:00 PM

ALMANACTODAY

Month & Paksham:Kartik& Krishna PakshaPanchangamTithi : Dwitiya: 07.54 pmNakshatram: Rohini: 10:48 pmTime to Avoid: (Bad time to start

any important work)Rahukalam: 01:24 pm – 02:48 pmYamagandam: 06:23 am – 07:48 amVarjyam: 02:32 pm - 04:11 pm07:00 pm - 06-07 amGulika: 09:12 am - 10:36 amGood Time: (to start any important work)

Amritakalam: 07:30 pm - 09:09 pmAbhijit Muhurtham: 11:37 am - 12:22 pm

VIJAYAWADAWEATHERForecast: clearTemp: 32/22Humidity: 74%Sunrise: 06.20Sunset: 05.40

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CAPSULE

Chandi Yagamconcludes at SriKapileswaraSwamy temple VIJAYAWADA: Chandi Yagamconducted at the TTD localtemple of Sri KapileswaraTemple, as part of the monthlong event of Homa Mahotsavamconcluded on Wednesday. Aspart of the grand valedictoryChandi Homa Samapti,Mahapurnahuti, KalashaUdwasana, Mahabisekam andKalasabisekam were performedin the morning and will befollowed by japam, homam andnivedana events in the evening.The TTD also plans to performRudra Yagam on November 14at Sri Kapileswara Swamytemple and interested couplecould participate with Rs 500ticket, beget blessings and getone uttarium, blouse and annaprasadam. Deputy executiveofficer Subramanyam,superintendent Bhupati, templeinspector Reddy Sekhar, priestsand devotees participated in theevent.

Sealed tendersinvited for transportof foreign coins TIRUPATI: The TTD has invitedsealed tenders from qualifiedbanks and recognised foreignexchange dealers for lifting andtransportation of foreign coinscollected in TTD hundis and nowkept at the treasury at the TTDadministrative building inTirupati. The foreign coinsbelonging to Malaysia, USA,Europe, Singapore, Australia,Canada, Lanka, Kuwait, Bahrain,Thailand, Nepal, New Zealand,Qatar and Oman are collected inSrivari hundi at Tirumala andalso at the hundis in other TTDtemples. The TTD said that thesealed tenders would be openedat the office of the deputyexecutive officer of treasury andinventories at the TTDadministrative building inTirupati on November 28.Interested persons could log onto the TTD websitewww.tirumala.org for moredetails.

VIJAYAWADA | THURSDAY | NOVEMBER 14, 2019 vijayawada 02

PNS n VISAKHAPATNAM

Journeys make memories whenone travels comfortably. WaltairDivision of East Coast Railwayhas depicted an excellent solu-tion in order to improve pas-senger amenities at railwaystations by adopting innovativeconcepts.

Yet another step towardsenhancing passenger comfort,the division took initiative tooperate battery operated carsthrough outsourcing withround-the-clock availability atVisakhapatnam RailwayStation.

Waltair Divisional RailwayManager Chetan KumarShrivastava inaugurated thefacility on Wednesday. The

project was initiated under thenon-fare revenue policy. Twobattery operated cars will beavailable for passenger ser-vice. Apart from a driver, thebattery-operated car can

accommodate five persons toferry them across eight plat-forms at the station.

The service of the vehiclescan be availed directly orthrough mobile numbers avail-

able round-the-clock. Thesepaid services will be availableto all the passengers with pri-ority to the elderly people andpatients. The charges for car-rying passengers within station

fixed at Rs 45 per passenger.One can book the vehicleonline or at the station. Thefacility would be made avail-able with toll-free numbersfor hassle-free service.

Battery cars for passengers at Vizag Rly Stationn The charges for carrying

passengers within stationfixed at Rs 45 perpassenger

n The project was initiatedunder the non-farerevenue policy.

n Two battery operatedcars will be available forpassenger service

n Apart from a driver, thebattery-operated car canaccommodate fivepersons to ferry themacross eight platforms atthe station

PNS n VISAKHAPATNAM

Andhra University College ofEngineering College (AUCE)will take part in an interna-tional research projectResidential Building EnergyDemand Reduction in India(RESIDE).

The research by researchersin India and the UnitedKingdom is being undertakenby IIIT Hyderabad, MalaviyaNIT Jaipur, Andhra UniversityCollege of Engineering(Autonomous), Oxford BrookesUniversity and University ofWest of England. It was fund-ed by both the countries

The idea is to assess allaspects of residential energyuse, building envelope, homeappliances, indoor environ-ment and occupant behaviour.Further the result of the studyis to develop residential build-ing code for high-quality, low-energy housing across all fiveclimatic zones of India and toimprove the living conditionsof the people.

Residential buildings inVisakhapatnam are also beingundertaken during 2019-2021,which fall under warm-humidclimatic zone. Sensors thatcan only measure indoor airtemperature, humidity andelectricity consumption dur-ing all the seasons are installedby students/personnel trainedfor the research purpose atAndhra University College ofEngineering. Physical char-acteristics of the building likeslab and wall material, win-dows and adjacent buildingsare also analyzed by them.

The purpose of this study isto better understand how elec-tricity is used in residentialhomes in Visakhapatnam to

make out ways of managingand reducing energy con-sumption. In view of thisresearchers request the resi-dents of Visakhapatnam toactively volunteer and partic-ipate in the study.

AU Engg College tostudy residential energyuse across country

n Residential buildings inVisakhapatnam are alsobeing undertaken during2019-2021, which fallunder warm-humidclimatic zone. Sensorsthat can only measureindoor air temperature,humidity and electricityconsumption during allthe seasons are installedby students/personneltrained for the researchpurpose at AndhraUniversity College ofEngineering

n Physical characteristics ofthe building like slab andwall material, windowsand adjacent buildingsare also analyzed bythem.

n The purpose of thisstudy is to betterunderstand howelectricity is used inresidential homes inVisakhapatnam to makeout ways of managingand reducing energyconsumption

n In view of thisresearchers request theresidents ofVisakhapatnam toactively volunteer andparticipate in the study

79% Indians preparing western food in kitchens: SurveyIANS n NEW DELHI

At least 79 per cent Indians arepreparing western food in theirkitchens, at least once a week,which is mostly consumedduring evening or dinner timeas a full meal, a survey by mar-ket research firm Ipsos said onWednesday.

The survey titled 'TheEvolving Indian Palate' wasconducted with 1,000 house-holds across 14 cities, whoconsumed non-home cookedwestern food in the last onemonth and prepared westernfood at home, with the help ofwestern sauces or spreads, atleast once a month.

"The Dr Oetker-Ipsos surveyhas revealed some interestinginsights into western food con-sumption habits in urban India.It is indeed encouraging for us

to see that consumers today aremore open to experimentingwith food in their kitchens withIndo-Western fusion food

becoming a rage in particular,"said Oliver Mirza, ManagingDirector and CEO for DrOetker India & SAARC.

The advantage that westernfood has in terms of ease ofpreparation makes it a conve-nient choice, the Oetker - Ipsos

survey has further revealed.The survey also found that

only about 19 per cent ofhouseholds consume western

food during breakfast. Keytrigger for the growing interestin western foods is conve-nience with comments like it is"easy to cook" (68 per cent) andhas wide acceptance, with com-ments like "good to share withfamily and friends" (57 percent), "Enjoyed by children" (53per cent) and "Good to serve toguests" (46 per cent), theresearch said.

However, western food is notrelegated to special or celebra-tory occasions. Seventy percent respondents said thatwestern food is more likely tobe a meal replacement ratherthan being limited to occasionsowing to its ease of preparation.

The study found that irre-spective of cuisines, prepara-tion of western foods at homeis a family affair with two outof five people preparing meals

with assistance such as spouse(34 per cent), friend (23 percent) or another family mem-ber (38 per cent). The researchalso found that younger peopleare embracing western foodsmore.

As a result, seven out of 10western food consumers arebelow 30 years of age, with thewestern food drive being ledmostly by the youth and chil-dren in their families. "Despitethe entrenched traditional foodhabits, urban Indians areincreasingly becoming opento Western cuisine with morepeople taking to Western foodas a part of their regular con-sumption regime. Wide accessto information, time-pressedand evolving lifestyles, are thekey factors to this change," saidSreyoshi Maitra, ExecutiveDirector, Ipsos.

EGGRATES

` 38,100 (10 gm)

` 30

GOLD

` 44,300(1kg)

` 6600

HYDERABAD 380VIJAYAWADA 413VISAKHAPATNAM 410RETAIL PPRICE `4.10

SILVER

VIJAYAWADABULLION RATES

`/100

CHICKENRATES

Dressed/With Skin `145

Without Skin `165

Broiler at Farm `100

`/KG

(IN VIJAYAWADA)

PNS n AMARAVATI

A one-day workshop on'Qualitative Methods:Approaches and Techniques inMarketing and ConsumerBehaviour Research' was organ-ised by VIT-AP School ofBusiness (VSB), VIT-APUniversity. Prof Jeyavelu, Dean,VSB, welcomed the participantsand addressed the gathering.

He shared the vision of VSBto create practically relevantand future-ready students. Heexplained about BBA and PhDprogrammes that are current-ly being offered by VSB and theplan to offer. BBA BusinessAnalytics in the next academ-ic year. He also announced aseries of upcoming workshopson Econometrics, Case methodand many others that are goingto be held in the coming aca-demic year.

Dr M Romesh Singh,Professor and Head of

Department of Anthropology,University of Hyderabad, whois a recipient of UniversityChancellor award-2017, wasthe resource person in theone-day workshop. The work-shop discussed topics onBusiness Anthropology, impor-tance of Ethnography in busi-

ness study, methods andapproaches of qualitativeresearch, Ethnography andDigital Ethnography. Theworkshop highlighted theinfluence of Anthropology inBusiness Studies. DrMadhulika Sahoo, AssistantProfessor, VSB, was the facul-

ty coordinator of the workshop.Faculty and research schol-

ars from different universitiesand colleges, namely, PSCMRCollege of Engineering andTechnology, Sri VasaviEngineering College, SRMUniversity, KLU University,Nagarjuna University,Gudlavalleru EngineeringCollege, SanthiramEngineering College, DNRSchool of Management,Andhra Loyola Institute ofEngineering & Technology,Paladugu Parvathi DeviCollege of Engineering andTechnology College, AdityaInstitute of Technology andManagement, KoneruLakshmaiah Business School,PVP Siddhartha Institute ofTechnology, Eswar College ofEngineering, NarasaraopetaEngineering College(autonomous) and VIT-APUniversity participated in theworkshop.

VIT holds meet on marketing techniquesGovt to buycorn from ryots PNS n VIJAYAWADA

The State government set upcorn procurement centres inVizianagaram and Kurnoolon Wednesday. After a dis-cussion during the Cabinetmeeting, Chief Minister YSJaganmohan Reddy instruct-ed officials to open procure-ment centres immediately.

Minister for AgricultureKanna Babu highlighted theproblems of corn producersduring the Cabinet meeting.He said corn price had dippedto Rs 1,500 from Rs 2,200 perquintal within a week. Aftera discussion on the issue, theChief Minister asked the offi-cials to procure corn directlyfrom farmers through theAgricultural MarketingDepartment at an MSP of Rs1,700. The procurement cen-tres were opened soon afterthe Cabinet approval for thesame.

PNS n VIJAYAWADA

On the eve of the WorldDiabetes Day on Thursday, ahealth camp with the slogan'Protect our families from dia-betes' was organised by theDepartment of AppliedNutrition of SiddharthaMahila Kalasala in associationwith Reddy's Labs and ApolloDiagnostics here onWednesday.

Chief guest Dr RamineniSivaramakrishnaiah saidNovember 14 will be observedas the World Diabetes Day asit happens to be the birthanniversary of a scientist, whoinvented insulin. He said 10per cent of diabetics are suffer-ing from Type 1 of the condi-tion and the remaining 90 percent from Type 2 variety of thelifestyle disease.

Dr Sivaramkrishnaiah saiddiabetes can be controlledthrough balanced diet, exercise

and change in lifestyle.Diabetologist Dr G Sri Devi,who took part in the event,said if diabetics do not controltheir disease there is a dangerof all organs of the body get-ting damaged. People wouldbe prone to skin diseases ifthey do not control diabetes,she warned.

Director of the college Dr TVijayalakshmi said diabetescan be controlled only throughdiscipline. Principal Dr MNalini was also present.

Diabetes camp held

PNS n VISAKHAPATNAM

Vedanta InstituteVisakhapatnam is organis-ing public discourses on theBhagavadgita Chapter - V -The Yoga Of RennunciationOf Action (Karma SanyasaYoga)- at Dr YVS MurthyAuditorium from November16 to 19. The discourse willbegin from 6.30 pm everyday. Registrations are notrequired and are free to all.

The 5th chapter of theBhagavadgita has 29 verses.This chapter elucidates stateof renunciation, stage ofdevelopment preliminary tomeditation and realisation.The chapter deals with fourimportant aspects: The threedistinct stages of spiritualgrowth- Yogi, Sanyasi, Jnani;How they relate to action;State of Supreme Being andrenunciation precedes med-itation and realisation.

Only knowledge changesone's l ife. Little bit ofVedantic knowledge willremove all your problems.Sorrow, misery, fear, one goesthrough because of notunderstanding one's realnature.

These discourses are anexcellent platform to come

and explore. Vedanta Institutein Visakhapatnam is con-ducting 'jnana yajna' for thepast four years. This yearSushila, senior disciple ofSwami Parthasarathy, willspeak on the Chapter V of theBhagavadgita.

Sushilaji dedicated overthree decades to the full-time study research andpropagation of Vedanta- theancient philosophy of India.Her logical and systematicpresentation of the subject incontemporary thought andlanguage has been widelyappreciated. Sushilaji alsoaddressed educational andcorporate institutions world-wide on the practical applica-tions of Vedanta.

DISCOURSE ONGITA IN CITY

PNS n VISAKHAPATNAM

National Research DevelopmentCorporation (NRDC) underthe Ministry of Science andTechnology signed a memoran-dum of agreement (MoA) withAnil Neerukonda Institute ofTechnology and Science(ANITS) to cooperate in thedevelopment and protection ofinnovative technologies devel-oped in the institute and theirsuccessful commercialisation.

The MoA was signed duringan awareness program for MSMEunits on IP Rights atVizagapatnam Chamber ofCommerce and Industry. NRDCofficials guided the MSME unitmembers and students throughthe IP Rights, Copyrights and theimportance of applying for theserights.

The agreement was signedand exchanged between Dr H Purushotham, CMD,NRDC and Dr TV HanumanthaRao, Principal, ANITS. Seniorofficials Dr BK Sahu, Manager,N R D C - I P F C & T I S C ,Visakhapatnam, GVR Naidu,Assistant Director and In-charge,MSME-DI, Visakhapatnam, AmitSrivastava, CEO, Bio-Valley,AMTZ, Visakhapatnam and othersenior executives, officers and pro-fessors from the organisations

were present during the signingceremony.

NRDC-IPFC&TISC hasplayed a major role in estab-lishing industry-academia col-laboration in the region ofAndhra Pradesh. ANITS hasdynamic research and devel-opment culture.

NRDC and ANITS recog-nise their respective strengthsof the two organisations andaccordingly agree to cooper-ate in the development andprotection of innovative tech-nologies developed in theinstitute and their successfulcommercialisation.Under thisagreement, NRDC will pro-vide ANITS with value addedservices and promotion of

IPR, prototype developmentand technologies commer-cialisation.

NRDC inks MoA with ANITSto promote innovation

Students at a workshop on 'Qualitative Methods: Approaches and Techniques inMarketing and Consumer Behaviour Research' organised by VIT-AP School ofBusiness (VSB), VIT-AP University, in Vijayawada

n The survey titled 'The Evolving Indian Palate' wasconducted with 1,000 households across 14 cities,who consumed non-home cooked western food inthe last one month and prepared western food athome, with the help of western sauces or spreads,at least once a month.

n With the help of western sauces or spreads, atleast once a month.

n "The Dr Oetker-Ipsos survey has revealed someinteresting insights into western food consumptionhabits in urban India. It is indeed encouraging forus to see that consumers today are more open toexperimenting with food in their kitchens withIndo-Western fusion food becoming a rage inparticular," said Oliver Mirza, Managing Directorand CEO for Dr Oetker India

ANITS has dynamicresearch anddevelopment culture.NRDC and ANITSrecognise the strengthsof the twoorganisations andagree to cooperate indevelopment andprotection of innovativetechnologies

Waltair Divisional Railway Manager Chetan Kumar Shrivastava inaugurating battery car facility in Visakhapatnam on Wednesday

VIJAYAWADA | THURSDAY | NOVEMBER 14, 2019 vijayawada 03

Children of fishermen community enjoying at Jalaripeta in Visakhapatnam on Wednesday Photo- Tirupathirao G

A FFIELD DDAY

PNS n VIJAYAWADA

Alleging that TDP president NChandrababu Naidu is respon-sible for sand crisis in theState, YSRCP MLA fromPenamaluru KolusuParthasaradhi has observedthat it is strange that he is goingto take up dawn-to-duskDeeksha seeking solution tothe problem. It is only a ployto divert the attention of peo-ple from Naidu's corrupt deedscommitted during his tenure.

Addressing a press confer-ence here on Wednesday, hesaid though Naidu is aware thatsand crisis has been solved, heis still going ahead with hishunger-strike only to gainpolitical mileage from it.

He challenged Naidu toprove charges levelled againsthim with proof. "Naidu shouldprove that I have created anartificial scarcity of sand byhoarding the same. If he failsto prove the charges, I shall alsoobserve Deeksha at the samecamp," he said.

Charging Naidu and Lokesh

with involvement in scamsworth lakhs of crores of rupees,Parthasaradhi said they hadallowed TDP MLAs to mintmoney through illegal sale ofsand during the their regimegovernment. "Is it not true thatTDP leaders had looted pub-lic money by selling thou-sands of tonnes of sand illegal-ly?" he questioned.

Naidu has the history ofdestroying well-established sys-tems, the YSRCP MLA saidand alleged that he is playing

dramas with his supporters likePawan Kalyan. "Who can denythe fact that sand crisis hasbeen created because of riversin spate?" he said.

Parthasaradhi alleged thatillegal sand mining was carriedout near the residence of Naiduduring the TDP government."Is it not true that taking cog-nizance of this, the NationalGreen Tribunal imposed a fineof Rs 100 crore on the TDPgovernment?" he asked.

He claimed that Chief

Minister YS JaganmohanReddy was reviewing the sandsupply situation from time totime to tide over the problemthat has arisen due to floods toRivers Godavari and Krishna.Now, there is no dearth of sandin the State, he added.

‘Naidu taking up Deekshato divert public attention’

N Chandrababu Naidu Penamaluru Kolusu Parthasaradhi

n Though Naidu is awarethat sand crisis has beensolved, he is still goingahead with his hunger-strike only to gainpolitical mileage from it,alleged YSRCP MLA KParthasaradhi

n He challenged Naidu toprove charges levelledagainst him with proof

n "Naidu should prove thatI have created anartificial scarcity of sandby hoarding the same. Ifhe fails to prove thecharges, I shall alsoobserve Deeksha at thesame camp," he said

PNS n VIJAYAWADA

Is TDP leader Devineni Avinashready to cross over to the YSRCPcamp? The answer seems to bea firm 'yes' though there is noofficial confirmation.

The son of late DevineniRajasekhar (Nehru), who hadheld sway over city politics fornearly three decades, has beendillydallying over the issue forsome time now. Rumours weredoing the rounds in the past onemonth that the Devineni scionwas veering towards the YSRCP.

Avinash called a press confer-ence at Guntur recently anddenied the reports. He said hewould remain in the TDP untilhis last breath and follow in thefootsteps of TDP supremo NChandrababu Naidu.

The issue is back into focus onWednesday when a meetingpresided over by senior TDPleader Kadiyala Buchi Babu dis-cussed the issue. About 2,000 fol-lowers of Avinash attended themeeting.

It is learnt that most of thespeakers at the meeting felt thatAvinash is not getting the kindof attention he deserves in the

party. He is not even invited tothe Vijayawada East constituen-cy meeting of the party conduct-ed recently. Though a decisionhas not been taken by the youngpolitician over his defection toYSRCP, his close aides say it isnow only a formality.

Avinash is understood to havedecided to stay from Naidu'sdawn-to-dusk Deeksha to beobserved on Thursday.

When contacted, a YSRCPMLA pleading anonymity, said:"I have come to know that ameeting of Avinash's supporterswas held in the city."

Asked to comment onwhether Avinash would join

YSRCP, he quipped, "There is apossibility."

TDP leaders Vemuri BhaskaraKutumba Rao (Chittayya),Chairman of GandhiCooperative Bank, formerDeputy Mayors Alla Challa Raoand Arava Satyam, VijayawadaUrban TDP Vice-PresidentManti Koteswara Rao, formerStanding Committee Chairmanof VMC Vengala Srinivasa Raoand former sarpanch of KanuruAnne Chitti Babu were amongthose present at the meeting.

Is Devineni Avinashveering towards YSRCP?

Devineni Avinash

The issue is backinto focus onWednesday whena meetingpresided over bysenior TDP leaderKadiyala BuchiBabu discussedthe issue. About2,000 followers ofAvinash attendedthe meeting

PNS n VISAKHAPATNAM

When there are restrictions inKashmir due to lockdown fol-lowing abrogation of Article370, Lammasingi, known asAndhra's Kashmir, is callingtourists.

On Wednesday,Lammasingi, Tajangi,Minumuluru and a few areasin Vizag Agency recorded thelowest temperature of the sea-son with the mercury dippingto around 6 degrees Celsiusand is expected to drop furtherthis month. The early morn-ing dense fog affected thevehicular traffic and localswere forced to stay in indoors.

Officials of RegionalAgricultural Research Station(RARS) at Chintapalle, whorecords the temperature atChintapalle, and calculate thetemperature of surroundingareas in Lammasingi and oth-ers by deducting 2 to 2.5degree Celsius from the tem-perature of Chintapalle.

On Wednesday, the temper-ature of Chintapalle droppedto 8 degrees Celsius and thetemperature in Lammasingi isaround 6 degrees Celsius, theyadded. RARS officials said thatChintapalle was located about850 metres above sea level and

Lammasingi and Minumuluruwere located about 950 metresabove sea level. AsLammasingi being 950 mtshigher, the temperature isaround 2 to 2.5 degrees Celsiusless than Chintapalle.

With the night temperatedropped to six degrees Celsiusin Lammasingi and otherparts, the residents and thetourists are feeling the realchill. Tourists are expectingthat the temperature may fur-ther drop in the coming days.

Locals preferred to stayindoors while the tourists areseen huddling around thebonfires during the morninghours to keep themselveswarm. Even before December,cold weather conditions haveprevailed in many parts ofVizag Agency.

Temperature dropsin Lammasingi

n Locals preferred to stayindoors while thetourists are seenhuddling around thebonfires during themorning hours to keepthemselves warm. Evenbefore December, coldweather conditions haveprevailed in many partsof Vizag Agency

Elaboratearrangementsfor CM's visit toOngole todayPNS n VIJAYAWADA

Elaborate arrangementshave been made for ChiefMinister YS JaganmohanReddy's visit to Ongole atPVR High School grounbdson Thursday. The ChiefMinister will inaugurate theState government's presti-gious programme 'Nadu-Nedu' in the city.

District Superintendentof Pol ice |SiddharthKoushal said on Wednesday15,000 to 20,000 peoplemay turn up for the pro-gramme and instructedpolice personnel to ensurethat inconvenience iscaused to them.

Koushal said 1,500 secu-r ity personnel weredeployed for security. Hesaid traffic on the AnjaiahRoad in the city will bediverted towards KurnoolRoad and MangamuruRoad from the beginningtill the end of the pro-gramme.

Only school buses com-ing from Chimakurti sidewould be allowed on theAnjaiah Road up to onehour before the start of theChief Minister 's pro-gramme. School buses com-ing from Kandukur sidewill be allowed to be parkedin the designated place.They will be allowed topass through theMangamuru Road, RythuBazaar and Gandhi Park.

Additional SP (Admin) BSarat Babu, DSP, CIs and SIsin the district took part inthe meeting.

‘Two years jailfor illegaltransportationof sand'

Continued from Page 1

It may be recalled that sixworkers committed suicideand the government has paidtheir families Rs 1 lakh com-pensation. TDP's protests, JanaSena's long march and Left par-ties' unending protests mount-ed pressure on the governmentdespite defending the situationsaying floods as the reason. Inthis backdrop, Jagan has takena decision to curb the illegalsand transport, adding a clauseof two years imprisonment forthe culprits. This may take afew days' time to implementdue to procedural courses.Until now, the MiningDepartment is imposing thefine on the illegal transporters.

Stop harassingoppn: KishanReddy

Continued from Page 1

In a counter attack to ChiefMinister YS JaganmohanReddy's comments on Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu,he said that the Chief Ministershould at least maintain digni-ty while talking about the peo-ple like President and Vice-President. The BJP has chalkedout a plan to come to power intwo Telugu States in 2024 as theparty is emerging as a strongopposition in both the States,Kishan Reddy exuded confi-dence.

Kishan Reddyurged to provide TVOA at Vizag airportPNS n VISAKHAPATNAM

Andhra Pradesh Air TravellersAssociation (APATA) hassought Union Minister forState for Home Affairs GKishan Reddy's intervention inintroducing Tourist Visa onArrival (TVOA) for foreignnationals arriving atVisakhapatnam airport. TheUnion Minister was in the cityfor the past two days.

The APATA, in its request tothe Union Minister, mentioned,"The new state of AndhraPradesh is in need of your sup-port for facilitating an increasein tourism and improved visaformalities. Visakhapatnam isthe 9th richest city in the coun-try in terms of GDP and hometo many industries. Currentlyairports offering TVOA facil-ity in eight cities in the coun-try are Delhi, Mumbai,Chennai, Kolkata, Kochi,T h i r u v a n a n t h a p u r a m ,Hyderabad and Bengaluru."

The association also men-tioned that the introduction ofTVOA will help the tourist flowinto our state and also helpboost tourism. Also, we haverecently sanctioned the e-Tourist Visa facility atVisakhapatnam airport.

PNS n VIJAYAWADA

Former minister and seniorTDP leader SomireddyChandramohan Reddy hasalleged that police highhand-edness is on the rise in Nelloredistrict. Addressing a pressconference in Nellore onWednesday, he said aBackward Class youth -Gandikota Karthik (24) - wasforced to commit suicide dueto harassment by the police.

Somireddy alleged that thepolice not only removed hisroadside fast food outlet, butalso asked him to report at thepolice station every day. Thisled to the youth committingsuicide, he added.

"The situation is no betterat police stations in Podalakuruand Muthukuru where SIs hada field day, harassing peoplesupporting the TDP,"Somireddy said and addedthat in some cases, the entire

families are being harassed.Stating that all the 10 YSRCP

MLAs and two MPs, who hadwon in the last election, areunleashing a reign of terror byusing the police to harass oppo-sition leaders, the TDP leadersaid people in the district arewondering why the police haveturned so subservient.

He recalled that YSRCPactivists had attacked anIndependent candidate -

Kuarapati Vijaya Raju - righton the day of elections inSarvepalli Assembly con-stituency. "Now, the police areharassing Vijaya Raju by sum-moning him for opening arowdy-sheet against him," healleged.

He said a driver wasthrashed mercilessly by theToredu police while he wastransporting two buffaloes inhis vehicle. Though owner of

the buffaloes was present in thevehicle and he was ready toexplain that he had hired thevehicle to transport his animal,the police did not listen.

Police are harassing TDPworkers by foisting cases onthem in Reddipalli andBiradavolu in Podalakurumandal and Madamanurumandal in Manubolu,Chandramohan Reddy said.

The TDP leader said mem-bers of Rajaka communityhave been cultivating somelands for a long time now. But,the police are harassing them,he alleged.

While Dalits had appointeda pastor in a church atGovindareddipalem inMuthukuru mandal, the localSub-Inspector is not allowinghim to conduct the Sunday ser-vices, he said and warned thatthe TDP would launch an agi-tation in the district againstpolice excesses.

TDP to launch stir against ‘police excesses’

PNS n VISAKHAPATNAM

The Vizag police with the sup-port of RPF and GRP person-nel on Wednesday arrestedtwo Bangladeshis Labilu andJuwel at Vizag Railway Stationin connection with the doublemurder of an elderly couple atVenmony in Chengannur ofKerala.

Acting on information fromthe Kerala police, Vizag policenabbed the two persons, whowere travelling in Chennai-Howrah (Coromandel)Express train to reach WestBengal from where theyplanned to go Bangladesh.The Vizag police also recov-ered gold jewellery, cash and afew others from theBangladeshi men.

It may be recalled that anelderly couple was found bru-tally murdered in their homeat Venmony in Chengannur ofKerala last Tuesday. Thedeceased were identified as APCheriyan (75) and his wifeLillykutty Cheriyan (68).

The Kerala police investigat-ed the case and observed thatthe Bangladeshis Labilu andJewel murdered the coupleand decamped with gold, cash

and a few other valuables. Thepolice alerted the cops ofneighbouring States and issuedlookout notices for the duo.

A senior police officer withVizag Police Commissioneratesaid that the elderly couplewere found lifeless on Tuesdaymorning by their neighbours.The deceased couple was stay-ing in their home all by them-selves as their daughter Binduand son Dipu are workingwith their families in theMiddle East.

Labilu and Jewel are migrantworkers from Bangladesh andcame to Venmony through alocal contractor. The duo cameto the couple's house for clean-ing the house premises andremove tender coconuts fromthe trees near the house onSaturday.

Since the couple used to gochurch on every Sunday, the

migrant workers didn't comefor work on Sunday. OnMonday, no one seen that theelderly couple outside of theirhouse. On Tuesday, the milksupplying woman of the areaobserved that the couple did-n't take the milk bottle that wasplaced on Monday in front ofthe main door.

Sensing something wrong,the milk supply woman alert-ed the neighbours., who foundthe couple with injuries ontheir faces and other parts inthe home and some gold andcash were missing from thealmirah in the house, policesaid. "We have handed over theBangladeshis and seized goldand cash to Kerala police onWednesday afternoon. Sincethe crime was reported inKerala, the Kerala police willfurther investigate the case,"Vizag police added.

2 Bangladeshis held in Vizag forkilling elderly couple in Kerala

n Stating that all the 10YSRCP MLAs and twoMPs, who had won in thelast election, areunleashing a reign ofterror by using the policeto harass oppositionleaders, the TDP leadersaid people in the districtare wondering why thepolice have turned sosubservient

Ministersdefendscrapping ofcapital project

Continued from Page 1

The project which envisagedthe development of the start-uparea in the state's capital cityremained a non-starter in thelast 30 months since the previ-ous Chandrababu Naidu gov-ernment signed a memoran-dum of understanding with theSingapore consortium, raisingdoubts over its prospects, par-ticularly with a change of guardin the state.

It was the first major real-estate venture that the previousTDP government had under-taken under the Public- PrivatePartnership mode and select-ed the Singapore consortium ofAscendas-Singbridge andS embcorpDevelopmentthrough the controversial SwissChallenge method as theMaster Developer.

Andhra PradeshMunicipal AdministrationMinister BotchaSatyanarayana claimed onWednesday that everybodywas opposed to the SwissChallenge and the manner inwhich the project was award-ed. "Even the High Courtfound fault with the SwissChallenge method, he said.

Prince Charlesvisits gurdwara,tries flipping‘chapati'PNS n NEW DELHI

Britain's Prince Charles onWednesday paid obeisance atthe Bangla Sahib gurdwarahere, during which he tried hishand at 'seva' or voluntary ser-vice in the community kitchenon the holy premises. As hearrived at the Sikh temple in theheart of New Delhi, he was pre-sented a bouquet by gurdwaraofficials. During the visit amidtight security, he was takenaround the gurdwara com-plex, including the communi-ty kitchen, as a gurdwara man-

PNS n NEW DELHI

In a move that may positivelyimpact over 10 million peopleliving on the coastline, India onWednesday kicked-off a USD 43million project to boost climateresilience in three coastal Statesin partnership with the UnitedNations DevelopmentProgramme (UNDP).

The project is funded by theGreen Climate Fund, establishedwithin the framework of theUnited Nations FrameworkConvention on Climate Change(UNFCCC) to assist developingcountries.

The six-year project will buildclimate-resilient livelihood for 1.7million people in AndhraPradesh, Maharashtra andOdisha, offset 3.5 million tonnesof carbon, protect vulnerableecosystems, and benefit anoth-er 10 million people withimproved shoreline protection,the UNDP said in a statement.

"India's coastal areas are quitevulnerable to climate changeand in the last five years, we haveseen increased floods andcyclones in these regions. Thispace-setting new initiative willhelp enhance resilience andadaptability, lead to emissions

reductions and support sustain-able livelihoods," said RaviShankar Prasad, additional sec-retary in the EnvironmentMinistry.

"It aligns well with the prior-ities of the National Action Planon Climate Change, the StateAction Plans, and the national-ly determined contributionsunder the Paris Agreement," hesaid. The Indian government willfinance an additional USD 86.8million towards the new projectto mainstream and accelerate theimpacts of the Green ClimateFund grant.

Shoko Noda, UNDP IndiaResident Representative, saidthis initiative will not just buildclimate resilience among peopleliving on India's coasts, it will alsohave considerable long-term

environmental benefits.The project will work with

communities in restoring ecosys-tems and promoting climate-resilient livelihood options, suchas the sustainable farming ofmud crabs. "It establishes Indiaas a leader on climate action, andmarks an essential step for Indiato reach its goals outlined in theParis Agreement and 2030Agenda for SustainableDevelopment," the UNDP said.

This initiative will particular-ly address India's strategic planto achieve its nationally deter-mined contributions under theParis Agreement, which focuseson adaptation efforts in vulner-able communities, it said.

"Over 1.7 million people areexpected to directly benefit fromlivelihoods support, with anoth-

er 10 million indirectly benefit-ting from improved shorelineprotection. The initiative will alsofocus on providing tangible ben-efits for vulnerable communities,including women, female-head-ed households, young people andthe elderly, and members ofScheduled Castes and Tribes," theUN body said.

It said through the project,over 3.5 million tonnes of carbondioxide will be sequesteredthrough restored ecosystemsover the next 30 years.

To protect life on land andbelow water as outlined in the2030 Agenda, project activitieswill focus on restoration and con-servation of over 15,000 hectaresof mangroves, coral reefs, sea-grasses and saltmarshes.Communities, including thelocal youth, will be trained towork with scientists in monitor-ing ecosystem health and coastalecology.

To strengthen climate risk-informed coastal managementand infrastructure planning, theinnovative project will create anonline decision-support toolavailable via mobile phone foruse by government officers, aca-demic institutions, communitymembers and scientists.

India gets USD 43 million fromGreen Climate Fund, AP to benefit

PNS n MUMBAI

The Congress and NCP arelikely to hold meetings inDelhi in next three to fourdays to work out modalitiesof their possible tie-up withthe Shiv Sena to form gov-ernment in Maharashtra.

Sources said on Wednesdaythat NCP chief Sharad Pawar,and senior party leadersPraful Patel and Sunil Tatkareare likely to hold parleyswith the Congress to evolve aconsensus on what should bethe policies if the Shiv Senais to be backed to form gov-ernment.

"The Congress president(Sonia Gandhi) will take acall on who will discuss theseissues with the NCP on ourparty's behalf. The discus-sions are likely to be held inDelhi\ over the next three tofour days," a senior Congressleader said on condition ofanonymity.

The leader reiterated thatthe Congress and NCP willfirst work out details of the'common minimum pro-gramme' (CMP) at their levelbefore the Shiv Sena comesinto picture.

The meet ings in thenational capital will followdeliberations among Pawar,senior Congress leaderAhmed Patel and other seniorleaders of the two parties hereon Tuesday.

The Congress and NCPhave set in motion theprocess of holding meetingsafter the Shiv Sena turned

away from its ally BJP, andapproached them seekingsupport to form governmentin Maharashtra- placed underthe President 's rule onTuesday.

The BJP and Shiv Senacontested the October 21Assembly polls together.They, however, fell out afterthe Shiv Sena persisted withits demand of sharing thechief minister's post on rota-tional basis.

On Wednesday, the NCPnamed its leaders ChhaganBhujbal, Ajit Pawar, JayantPatil , Nawab Malik andDhananjay Munde as mem-bers of the joint committee to

be formed to discuss theCMP with the Congress.

"State leaders of both theparties will work out theCMP at their level first. Thenthe same will be discussed inthe meetings of national lead-ers in Delhi," a senior NCPleader said. In the lastmonth's polls to 288-memberstate Assembly, the BJP won105 seats, followed by theShiv Sena-56, the NCP-54and the Congress-44.

Any party or alliance thatseeks to form government inMaharashtra will have tosecure support of at least145 MLAs on the floor of theHouse.

PNS nMUMBAI

Shiv Sena president UddhavThackeray met MaharashtraCongress leaders here onWednesday and said talks overgovernment formation in thestate were progressing in the"right direction" and a decisionwill be taken at an appropriatetime. Maharashtra Congresschief Balasaheb Thorat, how-ever, dubbed the meet withThackeray as a "courtesycall", and said the fact thatthey were meeting wasitself a "positive" step.

Thackeray held talks withThorat, former state chiefminister Ashok Chavan andsenior Congress leaderManikrao Thakare at a suburbanhotel. The meeting, which tookplace a day after President'srule was imposed in the state,lasted for about an hour.

"Everything is going fine.Talks are on in the right direc-tion and a decision will beannounced at an appropriatetime," Thackeray told reportersas he came out of the hotel aftermeeting the Congress leaders.

Later, when Thorat was askedif the meeting was positivetowards formation of new gov-ernment, he said, "Our meetingwith Uddhav Thackeray was acourtesy call. The fact that we aremeeting is itself a positive devel-

opment."Manikrao Thakare said that

the meeting was held to createan "amicable atmosphere" forfurther talks.

The meeting with Thackeraytook place in the backdrop ofTuesday's talks among AICCleaders Ahmed Patel, K CVenugopal, Mallikarjun Khargeand NCP chief Sharad Pawar onthe issue of forming a 'commonminimum programme' (CMP)for government formation alongwith Shiv Sena, Thorat said.

"The Congress and NCP willhave to arrive at a mutual under-standing and have clarity on spe-cific issues for a common agen-da, and then, if necessary, will get

in touch with the ShivSena again," he said.

The NCP hasalready named its fivemembers for a jointcommittee to be

formed for deciding a'common minimum

programme', Thoratnoted, adding that the

Congress will also name itsmembers soon. He said theCongress expects to completethe deliberations fast.

Thackeray on Tuesday saidthe Shiv Sena needs a clarity onthe common minimum pro-gramme just like the Congressand NCP, if a government is tobe formed with their support.

"We have got six months. TheShiv Sena, NCP and Congresswill sit together and work out aCMP. The Sena and theCongress-NCP have differentviews on several issues...they willwork out and stake claim forgovernment formation,"Thackeray said.

VIJAYAWADA | THURSDAY | NOVEMBER 14, 2019 nation 04SHORT READS

Babul Supriyo facesprotest during visit tocyclone-hit areasKOLKATA: Union ministerBabul Supriyo on Wednesdayfaced massive protests andwas asked to go back by agroup of people when hereached South 24 Parganas totake a stock of the situation incyclone ‘Bulbul'-hit areas.Supriyo, who said on Tuesdaythat he had been asked byPrime Minister Narendra Modito visit the storm-affectedareas in West Bengal, claimedthat the agitators wereactivists of the ruling TrinamoolCongress (TMC). Shortly afterhe reached Namkhana, one ofthe worst-affected places in thestate, protesters stopped hisconvoy and showed him blackflags. The Union minister,despite clarifying that he was inthe district to look into theground-level situation, wasasked to go back by theprotesters. "I knew I would faceprotests during my visit (tocyclone-hit areas).

HC gives 2 weeks to CBIto file reply on ChristianJames' bail plea

AgustaWestland case

Gang stealing fuelfrom vehicles onexpressways bustedNoida (UP): Three allegedmembers of an inter-state gangthat targeted vehicles onexpressways for fuel werearrested in Greater Noida earlyon Wednesday, police said.The accused were held around12.30 am by officials from theDankaur police station after achase on the Eastern PeripheralExpressway, which connectsGhaziabad to Faridabad viaNoida and Greater Noida, theysaid. "The gang was active inNational Capital Region and hasbeen working for a few yearsnow in Noida, Greater Noida,Ghaziabad, Gurgaon, Hapur,Moradabad. They roamed intheir modified-truck on theYamuna Expressway, EasternPeripheral Expressway andNoida-Greater NoidaExpressway and target vehicles,including trucks for fuel,"Superintendent of Police,Greater Noida, Ranvijay Singhsaid. "They used rubber pipesto transfer oil from vulnerablevehicles and transferred it todrums kept in their truck. Later,they would sell the oil in far offplaces to unauthorised fuelseller," he told reporters.

NEW DELHI: The Delhi HighCourt on Wednesday gave theCentral Bureau of Investigation(CBI) two weeks' more to file itsresponse to the bail plea ofChristian Michel James, analleged middleman, relating tothe AgustaWestland VVIPchopper scam cases, after theagency said it was about to filea charge sheet in the matter.Justice Anu Malhotra asked theCentral Bureau of Investigation(CBI) to file its response beforeNovember 29, the next date ofhearing, after the agency said itwas going to file a charge sheetin the corruption case and thatit will contain names of publicservants and bureaucrats. TheCBI sought time from the courtto file its response around thesame time it will file its chargesheet in the case. The court,thereafter, listed Michel's bailpleas in the CBI and theEnforcement Directorate (ED)cases on November 29.

TIE-UP WITH SENA

CONG, NCP LIKELY TO HOLD TALKS IN DELHI

The BJP and Shiv Sena contested theOctober 21 Assembly polls together.They, however, fell out after the ShivSena persisted with its demand ofsharing the chief minister's post onrotational basis

With Mahaunder Prezrule, GADasks for filesPNS nMUMBAI

A day after President'sRule came into force inMaharashtra, the min-istries have been ordered tohand over possessions tothe General AdministrativeDepartment (GAD) byWednesday evening.

The GAD order isapplicable to all ministries,OSDs (Officers on SpecialDuty) working for minis-ters, personal secretariesand personal assistants.

They are directed tosubmit telephone bills andreturn identity cards issuedto them to the GAD, theorder stated. They are toldto return official files, con-fidential documents, officestationary, furniture etc.

The Central Rule cameinto force on Tuesdayevening, 19 days after thefractured mandate in thestate assembly polls failedto elect a clear winner.

The BJP, which wonmaximum 105 seats,declined to stake the claimto form government, as itsalliance partner Sena (56)refused to lend support.

Thackeray held talks with Thorat, former state CM Ashok Chavan and senior Congressleader Manikrao Thakare at a suburban hotel.The meeting, which took place a day afterPresident's rule was imposed in the state,lasted for about an hour

Talks on in right direction: Uddhavafter meeting Congress leaders

PNS n BHUBANESWAR

Odisha Chief Minister NaveenPatnaik on Wednesday askedall BJD MLAs to attend theassembly session religiouslyand called for a daily report oftheir attendance. Though theparty did not impose any whip,Patnaik issued the directionwhile presiding over the rulingBJD Legislature Party meetingahead of the commencementof the winter session hereWednesday. The chief ministerasked the government chiefwhip, Pramila Mallick, to sendhim attendance report of theparty MLAs in the House at

11.30 am every day. "A partyMLA who wants to go on leavefor two or more days will haveto seek my permission",Patnaik told the Biju Janata Dal

legislators. The winter sessionof the Odisha assembly beganon Wednesday and it will endon December 19. It has beenobserved that the CM attendsquestion hour during assemblysessions without failure but assoon as he leaves the house, theattendance of the BJD MLAsbecomes thin. In the 147-members Odisha assembly,BJD has 113 MLAs followed by

BJP 23, Congress 9, CPM 1and an Independent. Aftermassive win of BJD in the statepolls this year, Patnaik becamechief minister of Odisha for thefifth time continously since2000.

The BJD president alsoinformed the party MLAs thathe will review their perfor-mance in the house. "Themembers should actively par-

ticipate in debates. I would beparticularly watching the per-formance of first-time mem-bers," Patnaik said.

The chief minister alsoasked the party MLAs to sub-mit bi-monthly activity reportto him. "You all know that MPsare submitting bi-monthlyactivity report to me. Similarly,we would have MLAs reportsubmitted bi-monthly to me,"he said. The BJD presidentformed a four-member com-mittee comprising seniormembers - Soumya RanjanPatnaik, Usha Devi, AmarPrasad Satpathy and KishoreMohanty, to suggest and frame

the reporting format and con-tents. In accordance with thestate governments 5Ts (teamwork, transparency, technolo-gy, time leading to transfor-mation) policy, Patnaik saidthe BJD MLAs should usetechnology. Stating that hewelcomes constructive criti-cism from the oppositionmembers, Patnaik said thestate government is ready fordiscussion on any issue to beraised by the opposition.

He also suggested the MLAsto dedicate their time for thewelfare of the citizens andreiterated that the people ofOdisha are their real masters.

ODISHA WINTER SESSION OF ASSEMBLY

PNS n BHUBANESWAR

Chief Minister Naveen Patnaikon Wednesday urged theCentre to accord the status ofa 'National Maritime HeritageFestival' to Odisha's Bali Jatrafestival. Patnaik in a letter toUnion Tourism and CultureMinister Prahalad Singh Patelsaid: ".. I would request you tokindly consider the social-cultural importance of BaliJatra festival and accord it thestatus of a National MaritimeHeritage Festival."

The state government hasalready recognized the annu-al Bali Jatra, a trade fair beingheld in the Mahanadi river bedas the state festival and hasnow sought the Centres recog-nition for the age-old tradi-tional event.

"I am sure that (status)would be a befitting tribute toour heritage and an inspirationfor our future," Patnaik men-tioned in the letter.

The chief minister in the let-ter mentioned that as India

looks towards the East torevive the age-old contactswith South East Asia aiming atmutual economic growth ofIndia and the countries in thatregion, it would be appropri-ate and timely that Bali Jatra,which celebrates the enter-prising spirit of ancient India,is recognised at the nationallevel. This will be a steptowards acknowledging thedaring initiatives of our sea-faring ancestors, he added.

Elaborating on the annualfair in the Millennium City ofCuttack, the chief ministersaid that Bali Jatra commem-orates the glorious tradition ofseafaring activities of Odiamariners (Sadhavas).

"The festival begins in themonth of November on thefull-moon day of Kartika(Purnima) and continues forseven to ten days. It is cele-brated annually as a largeopen fair and is considered tobe one of the most celebratedfestivals of Odisha," Patnaikmentioned in the letter.

Odisha CM seeks NationalMaritime Heritage Festivalstatus for Bali Jatra

PNS n NEW DELHI

Transparency activists onWednesday welcomed theSupreme Court's decision onbringing the office of theChief Justice of India underthe ambit of the RTI Act, say-ing the apex court has reiter-ated the established positionin law in the matter. "I wel-come the decision of the con-stitution bench to reiteratethe established position inlaw that the CJI is a publicauthority under the Right toInformation (RTI) Act," saidVenkatesh Nayak, head ofaccess to information pro-gramme, CommonwealthHuman Rights Initiative(CHRI), an NGO.

In a landmark verdict, abench headed by Chief JusticeRanjan Gogoi upheld the 2010Delhi High Court verdict thatthe office of the Chief Justice

of India comes within theambit of the RTI law and dis-missed the three appeals filedby Secretary General of theSupreme Court and theCentral Public InformationOfficer of the apex court.

The top court said that onlynames of judges recommend-ed by the Collegium forappointment can be disclosed,not the reasons.

Cautioning that RTI cannotbe used as a tool of surveil-

lance, it held that judicialindependence has to be keptin mind while dealing withtransparency. About theSupreme Court's remark thatRTI cannot be used as a toolof surveillance, Nayak termedit as "extremely unfortunate"observation. "It is extremelyunfortunate that an observa-tion has been made that RTIcan be a tool for surveillanceon the judiciary. Surveillancehas unfortunately been equat-ed with transparency that isrequired under a law dulypassed by Parliament," he said.

Nayak said surveillance iswhat the government oftendoes under executive instruc-tions and that is not the pur-pose of the RTI Act. "Peoplewhose cases relating to theirlife, liberty, property andrights are decided by the highcourts and the SupremeCourt. People have the right toknow not only the criteria butall materials that formed thebasis of making the decisionregarding appointments ofjudges in accordance with theprovisions of the RTI Act," hesaid.

Transparency activists hail SCdecision on bringing CJI under RTI

Rupee slipsbelow 72-markagainst USD

‘No need for govt to setup trust for Ram templeas one already exists’ PNS nMUMBAI

The Indian rupee droppedbelow the 72-level against theUS dollar in intra-day trade onWednesday amid growingconcerns over country's pooreconomic indicators.

The Indian currency wastrading 57 paise lower at 72.04against the US dollar at 1548hours. On Monday, the localunit had closed at 71.47 againstthe US dollar. Forex marketwas closed on Tuesday for"Guru Nanak Jayanti". Forextraders attribute the weaknessin the forex market to weakfactory output numbers andweak global cues. Showingsigns of sluggishness in theeconomy, industrial produc-tion shrank by 4.3 per cent inSeptember, registering theweakest performance in sevenyears due to output decline inmanufacturing, mining andelectricity sectors, as per offi-cial data released on Monday.

PNS n AYODHYA

There is no need for the gov-ernment to set up a new trustfor the Ram Temple as direct-ed by the Supreme Courtbecause the RamJanmabhoomi Nyasalready exists, itspresident MahantNritya Gopal Dassaid on Monday.

R a mJanambhoomi Nyas isan organisation run bythe Vishwa HinduParishad (VHP).Mahant Nritya GopalDas said in a statement thatthere is no need of forming anew trust by the government."The trust (Ram JanambhoomiNyas) already exists. We cangive a shape to it and new mem-bers can be added as per need,"

he said. Other seers associat-ed with the Ram Templemovement expressed differingviews on the establishment ofthe trust. Mahant Suresh Das,chief of the Digambar Akhara

, said that the apex courthad clearly said that

new trust was to beformed by the gov-ernment.

"It is the responsi-bility of the Union

government to set upthe trust and not of theRam JanambhoomiNyas. But representa-tives of the nyas should

be in the trust," he said.Nirmohi Akhara chief

Mahant Dinendra Das said thetrust must be formed as per thedirections of the court butexpressed reservations overAkhara members joining it.

PNS n LUCKNOW

Authorities are gearing up togive Ayodhya a completemakeover following theSupreme Court verdict in favourof a Ram temple, with plans tobuild resorts, a five-star hotel,international bus terminal andan airport.

Besides these, the UttarPradesh government also plansto start a cruise on the Saryuriver. Elaborating about thedevelopmental plan, deputydirector Information ofAyodhya division MurlidharSingh said,"Ayodhya TeerthVikas Parishad will be consti-tuted. Plans are on to start rivercruise on Saryu river inAyodhya. It will take almost four

years for Ayodhya to become acity like Tirupati," he said.

Singh said work will be start-ed at a very fast pace to constructan international airport inAyodhya, so that the first flightcan take off by Ram Navami

(birth celebration of Lord Ram)in April 2020.

He said the expansion ofAyodhya railway station will alsobe undertaken apart from con-struction of an internationalbus terminal in the town. In

addition, a flyover measuring 5-kilometre- long will come upbetween Faizabad and Ayodhya,he said. Work to construct a five-star hotel and setting up 10resorts in Ayodhya is likely tocommence in December, hesaid. "The temple of Lord Ram,which will be built in Ayodhya,will be the biggest religiousplace in the country. If 2,000craftsmen (kaarigar) will beworking for 8 hours in a day,then the temple will be ready intwo-and-half years. So far 65 percent of the stones have beenalready carved," MurlidharSingh said. He added that theresponsibility to look after thearea of nearly 5-kilometrearound the temple will be on theSupreme Court-mandated trust

for construction of a temple atthe site in Ayodhya.

A number of religious insti-tutes will come up in the 77-acrecampus of the temple.

A Gaushala (cow shed),Dharamshala (rest house) andVedic institute along with otherreligious buildings will be builtin the vicinity of the RamTemple, he said.

Ayodhya will be developed asan 'Aadhyatmik Nagari'(Spiritual City), and as many as10 Shri Ram 'dwaar' (gates) willbe built, he said.

As many as 10,000 'rainbasera' (community restingplace) will also be constructed,he said, adding that all pondsrelated to Lord Ram will be ren-ovated.

SC VERDICT IN FAVOUR OF RAM TEMPLE

Authorities set to give Ayodhya complete makeover

Mahant Nritya Gopal Das

A party MLA who wants to go on leave for two ormore days will have to seek my permission

— SURESH, founder of Bamboo House

It is extremely unfortunate that an observation hasbeen made that RTI can be a tool for surveillanceon the judiciary. Surveillance has unfortunately been

equated with transparency that is required under a law dulypassed by Parliament

— VENKATESH NAYAK

Naveen Patnaik asks for daily attendance report of BJD MLAs

VIJAYAWADA | THURSDAY | NOVEMBER 14, 2019 nation 05SHORT READS

Civil Servicesprobationers learnarchery for focusDEHRADUN: Probationary IASofficers are trying their hand atarchery during a three-daycourse, aimed not just atteaching them to score abullseye. At the first workshopof its kind at Mussoorie's LalBahadur Shastri NationalAcademy of Administration,trainee Civil Services officersare being taught by three-timenational archery championDinesh Bhil. The programmefor IAS, IPS and IFSprobationers began onWednesday. The trainees arebeing taught the high-concentration sport to helpthem learn patience and how tofocus on a target for betterresults, Bhil, who is the archerycoach at the Sports Authority ofGujarat, said. At least sixmonths are needed even tolearn the basics of archery, Bhiltold.

HC notice to Centre onpassport rules on sexreassignment surgery

8 killed, 11 injured intwo separate roadaccidents in BiharBIHAR: Eight persons werekilled and 11 others injured intwo separate road accidents inBihar's Nalanda and Rohtasdistricts on Wednesday, policesaid. Six persons were killedand three were injuredseriously when a speedingtruck collided head-on with anautorickshaw in which thedeceased and injured personswere travelling near DurgaNagar village in Nalandadistrict, the police said. DeputySuperintendent of PoliceSomnath confirmed the deathof six persons including anewborn baby in the mishap.The three injured persons havebeen admitted to Bihar SharifSadar hospital and theircondition was serious, thepolice said. In another incident,two persons were killed andeight others injured five ofthem seriously when an SUV inwhich they were travellingrammed into a stationary gastanker on Grand Trunk road(NH 2) near Suara mor underDehri-on-Sone police stationarea in Rohtas district in theearly hours of Wednesday,police said.

CHENNAI: A Chennai residenthas moved the Madras HighCourt, seeking to declarepassport rules which requiresubmission of SexReassignment Surgerycertificate for genderdetermination as"unconstitutional", saying theyviolate Article 21 of theConstitution that deals withpersonal liberty. A divisionbench of Justices MSathyanarayanan and NSeshasayee issued notice toUnion Ministries of Law andJustice and External Affairs,returnable by December 12, onthe petition of Sivakumar TD.The petitioner, who has beenactively involved in furtheringthe interests of the LGBTQcommunity, referred to aSupreme Court judgmentrelating to the rights oftransgenders in the plea.

PNS n BASIRHAT (WB)

West Bengal Chief MinisterMamata Banerjee, after con-ducting an aerial survey ofcyclone 'Bulbul'-hit areas inNorth 24 Parganas, said onWednesday that the lossincurred by the state due to thenatural calamity might go up toRs 50,000 crore. Banerjee hand-ed over a cheque of Rs 2.4 lakheach to the family members offive people from the district wholost their lives in the calamity.

Taking note of the fact that atleast 15 lakh hectares of agri-cultural land was damaged dueto the storm, she said the affect-ed farmers would get all helpfrom her government.

"Going by what I have seen,I think the cyclone has led tomassive destruction. By massive,I mean really massive... Peoplesitting in Kolkata and otherparts of the state will be not ableto realise the degree of devasta-

tion. "If I'm not wrong, I thinkthere has been a loss of Rs50,000 crore," the chief ministersaid at an administrative reviewmeeting here following thereconnaissance.

Those who have enrolledtheir names for the state gov-ernment's crop insurancescheme would get 100 per centcoverage for their loss, sheasserted. "A total of 15 lakhhectares of agricultural land

has been damaged. The entirepaddy cultivation has beenruined. I assure the farmers ofall form of support from ourgovernment. The farmers underthe state's crop insurance poli-cy will get hundred per cent cov-erage," Banerjee said. TheTrinamool Congress (TMC)supremo further said that thestate government would soonannounce a special package forthe affected farmers.

At least nine people have losttheir lives in the calamity - fivefrom North 24 Parganas, threefrom South 24 Parganas and onefrom Purba Midnapore - whileseven fishermen were still miss-ing, Banerjee said during themeeting.

According to the chief min-ister, six lakh people have beenaffected and over five lakhhouses damaged due to thecyclone, which made landfalllate on Saturday between SagarIslands in West Bengal andKhepupara in Bangladesh.

The CM gave assurances torebuild damaged houses underher government's 'Banglar Bari'scheme. She also announcedone hurricane lamp and fivelitres of kerosene for each affect-ed family in the state. Banejeedirected the education depart-ment to provide books toschoolchildren appearing forboard examinations in thestorm-hit areas.

Mamata pegs loss due to cyclone‘Bulbul' at Rs 50,000 crore

Govt extends moratorium on soft loan to sugar millsPNS n NEW DELHI

As the Rs 15,000 crore soft loanscheme for sugar mills is mov-ing at a snail's pace, the gov-ernment has extended themoratorium period for repay-ments by six more months,according to sources. Now, themoratorium period is one-and-a-half years. A moratori-um period is a time during theloan term when the borroweris not required to make anyrepayment.

The Centre had announcedthe loan package in two tranch-es -- first in June 2018 amount-ing to Rs 4,440 crore and theother in March 2019 of Rs10,540 crore. The objectivewas to help millers in clearingcane arrears and divert surplussugar for ethanol manufactur-ing. A soft loan is a loan thatis given at a subsidised interestrate.

"When the soft loan scheme

was launched to augmentethanol production in the coun-try, one year moratorium wasprovided. This has now beenextended to 1.5 years in the inter-est of sugar mills and farmers,"a highly placed source said.

A notification in this regardwill be issued soon, the sourceadded. Of 418 applications for

the loan, the food ministry hasfound 282 eligible. Of this, 114applications have been clearedfor loans amounting to Rs6,139.08 crore, as per officialdata.

However, banks have sanc-tioned the loan to 45 applicantsand disbursed Rs 900 crore to33 applicants till September-

end, the data showed.The soft loan package is

being implemented by the foodministry, which provides a listof eligible loan applicants tobanks for further process.

According to industryexperts, only 5-6 per cent of thetotal soft loan amount of Rs15,000 crore announced under

the scheme has been disbursedso far by banks.

The sugar industry is of theview that much of the time isbeing wasted in the first screen-ing at the ministry level. Ideally,banks should check the eligi-bility criteria and sanction theloan amount accordingly.

"In this process, the schemehas not been able to take offproperly. The scheme waslaunched in June 2018 and stillthe ministry is screening theapplications. At this pace, millsmay not benefit from thescheme. It takes at least 18months to establish an ethanolunit," another industry officialsaid.

At present, 3-4 lakh tonne ofsugar gets diverted for ethanolmaking. With creation of addi-tional capacity under thescheme, 9-10 lakh tonne ofsugar is expected to be divert-ed for ethanol production.

Sugar mills have supplied

175 crore litres of ethanol to oilmarketing companies (OMCs)till October 22 of the 2018-19season (October-September)and helped them achieve 5.2per cent blending with petrol,as per industry data.

The soft loan wasannounced to improve liquid-ity of mills, reduce sugar inven-tory and facilitate timely clear-ance of cane dues of farmers.

However, cane arrear stillremains high at Rs 9,000 croreso far this year based on thesugarcane price fixed by boththe Centre and states, as per theministry data.

There is a sugar glut in India,the world's second largest sugarproducer after Brazil. Thecountry had produced 32.5million tonne and 33.1 milliontonne in 2017-18 and 2018-19seasons (October-September),respectively, much higher thanthe domestic consumption of25 million tonne.

PNS n NEW DELHI

As pollution levels in the nation-al capital hovered close to emer-gency levels, Delhi ChiefMinister Arvind Kejriwal onWednesday said the odd-evenscheme could be extended, if theneed arises. The road rationingscheme started on November 4and is expected to end onNovember 15.

"If the need arises, we willextend it (odd-even scheme),"Kejriwal said in response tomedia queries on whether theroad rationing initiative, aimedat curbing vehicular pollution,will be further extended.

Delhi-NCR gasped for breathtoday as the noxious smog result-ing from raging farm fires andunfavourable weather pushedpollution levels in the regiontowards the "emergency" zonefor the third time in the last 15days.

Kejriwal blamed stubble burn-ing in neighbouring states forrepeated episodes of smog inDelhi and said it has hit Delhi'simage worldwide.

"I remember GermanChancellor Angela Merkel was inDelhi a few days ago ... when apublic health emergency wasdeclared. What kind of image ofDelhi she must have carried toher country," he said.

The chief minister said Delhi'sneighbouring states, especially

Haryana and Punjab, are burn-ing crop residue disregardingstrict directions from theSupreme Court.

"The air quality oscillatedbetween the good and moderatecategories in the early part of thisseason because of our continu-ous efforts to check pollution.But it deteriorated due to theintrusion of stubble plume fromPunjab and Haryana," he said.

"The number of farm firesreduced in between due to rainsin Punjab and Haryana. It led toa decline in Delhi's pollution.The incidents of stubble burninghave shot up again. These statesare not even following theSupreme Court's directions.Delhi people are sufferingbecause of it," he said.

Kejriwal reiterated that paddystraw can be used to producecompressed natural gas and coalwhich will also increase theincome of farmers. "I have met

many experts. I am myself anengineer. Stubble can be con-verted into CNG. The founda-tion stone of an industry that canconvert paddy straw into CNGhas be laid. I have talked toIndraprastha Gas Limited andthey are ready to procure allCNG produced from stubble," hesaid.

Many factories, which canconvert stubble into coal, havecome up in Punjab. NationalThermal Power CorporationLimited is ready to purchase allthe coal produced through thismethod, he said, adding thesemeasures will also help generateemployment and increase theincome of farmers.

According to the govern-ment's air quality monitor,SAFAR, the share of stubbleburning in Delhi's pollution ispredicted to be 22 per cent onWednesday. It was 25 per cent onTuesday.

May extend odd-evenscheme if required: Kejri

PNS n KOLKATA

The BJP on Wednesday tookout a rally here to protestagainst the spurt in denguecases in the city and its fringeareas and accused theTrinamool Congress govern-ment of trying to "hush up" thefigures.

The protest march, con-vened by BJP Yuva Morcha,has been taken out fromCentral Avenue in the city andis scheduled to culminate atKolkata MunicipalCorporation (KMC) head-quarters, with the gherao ofthe civic office.

"The state government hasbeen deliberately trying to

hush up the figures (of thosekilled and affected). Thegovernment and the KMCare more keen on hidingthe actual numbers ratherthan taking steps to tacklethe menace," state BJP pres-ident Dilip Ghosh, who ledthe rally, told reporters.Police sources, however, saidthat barricades have been setup near Chandni ChowkMetro station to stop therally beyond that point.

The saffron party said itwanted to submit a deputationto Kolkata Mayor FirhadHakim regarding the denguemenace and, if stopped, theparty would resort to a sit-indemonstration.

BJP takes out rally incity to protest spikein dengue cases

PNS n NEW DELHI

The Centre has asked its depart-ments to allow government-runtraining institutes to conducttransparency audits on proactivedisclosure of information ontheir websites, according to apersonnel ministry order.

The suo motu disclosure ofinformation to the public ismandated under Section 4 (2) ofthe Right to Information (RTI)Act, 2005, so that people have touse the transparency law less toget information. Each ministryor public authority should get itsproactive disclosure packageaudited by a third party everyyear, as per norms. The auditshould cover compliance withproactive disclosure guidelinesas well as adequacy of itemsincluded in the package.

It must also examine whetherthere are any other type ofinformation which can be proac-tively disclosed. The audits will

be done annually and commu-nicated to the CentralInformation Commission everyyear through publication onwebsites.

"Further, the task of under-taking transparency audits maybe given to the respective train-ing institutes under each min-istry/department/public author-ity and across the states andunion territories," the ministrysaid in the order. However, incases where no training instituteexists under ministries ordepartments, the tasks of under-taking transparency audits maybe given to any governmenttraining institutes, it said.

PNS n NEW DELHI

In a bid to empower women inthe rural areas, the Centre hasdecided to carry out a socialaudit of its flagship welfareschemes by them and they willalso work as the nodal personsto resolve the complaints of thebeneficiaries of these pro-grammes, a top governmentofficial said on Wednesday.

In a social audit, the benefi-ciaries themselves assess theimpact of government schemesand programmes by comparingofficial records with the actualground situation, AmarjeetSinha, Secretary, RuralDevelopment, told PTI on thesidelines of the National Seminaron Social Audit of RuralDevelopment Programmes.

Educated women in the ruralareas associated with the self-help groups (SHGs) workingunder the National RuralLivelihood Mission (NRLM)will check whether the welfareworks were being carried outproperly or not, he added.

The social audit started withthe Mahatma Gandhi NationalRural Employment GuaranteeAct (MGNREGA), but later theRural Development Ministryextended it to all of its welfareschemes, including the PradhanMantri Awas Yojana (Gramin)

and the Pradhan Mantri SadakYojana (Rural).

"The idea is that these women,whom we usually call didi (eldersister), will check whether thework under the welfare schemeshas properly been done or not,whether pensions have beenreceived by elderly persons,whether beneficiaries got theirhouses built or not," Sinha said,suggesting that these womenwere better placed to checkleakages in the schemes. Thewomen will be paid for con-ducting the social audit of the

welfare schemes, he added.Besides, to empower these

women and make them stake-holders in a better implementa-tion of the schemes in the ruralareas, it was decided that theywill also work as the nodal per-sons of these schemes for griev-ance redressal, Sinha said.

"They have been given theresponsibility of working as thegrievance redressal nodal per-sons, so that the complains andproblems of the beneficiaries ofthese schemes in rural areas caneasily be resolved," he added.

Currently, such a social auditis done for the MGNREGA, therural housing programmes andalso for funds allocated throughthe 14th Finance Commission,Sinha said, adding that it willnow be extended to variouswelfare schemes of other min-istries as well.

The ministry has finalised theauditing standards for the socialaudit with the Comptroller andAuditor General (CAG), heinformed.

The government, alongwith the Tata Institute ofSocial Sciences (TISS) andthe National Institute of RuralDevelopment and PanchayatiRaj, Hyderabad, has alsodeveloped a short-term cer-tificate course on social auditsfor district and block resourcepersons and SHGs, Sinha said.

Rural women to auditgovt’s welfare schemes

PNS n NEW DELHI

Strengthening primary healthcare, creating green spaces andoutdoor gyms and empoweringfamilies are some of the mea-sures listed out by the WorldHealth Organisation to itsmember countries in SouthEast Asia to tackle rising casesof diabetes.

Though these measures gobeyond the health sector,WHO Regional Director forSouth-East Asia Dr PoonamKhetrapal Singh stressed thathealth authorities should act asnodal agencies, working acrosssectors to find high-impactsolutions that also reducehealth care costs.

An estimated 91 millionpeople in the South East Asia

region have diabetes andaround 49 million, more thanhalf, are unaware of their con-dition, Singh said.

As part of the region's pri-mary health care approach intackling diabetes, families mustbe empowered to act as theyhave an important role in cre-ating awareness of the risks ofdiabetes, Singh suggested.

"They are also the first toidentify diabetes' signs, symp-toms, risks and complications.When complemented by accessto quality primary health care,families are an important assetin the battle against diabetes,"she said.

Families can be made awarevia social and behavioralchange campaigns that high-light their role as a first line of

defense. Campaigns shouldalso outline how families canwork together to develophealthy habits.

This is particularly impor-tant, given that most diabetescases are type 2, meaning theycan be avoided by healthy eat-

ing and adequate physicalactivity, Singh said.

The creation of green spacesand outdoor gyms will facilitate

weight management. "Third, all families should

have access to quality primaryhealth care. Primary-level ser-vices must be equipped todetect diabetes, including thehigh and rising incidence ofpre-diabetes. A reliable supplyof quality medicines and med-ical products that can helpmanage cases should be onhand," she said.

Each of the interventionsoutlined in the ColomboDeclaration on acceleratingthe delivery of noncommuni-cable diseases (NCD) servicesat primary level, which theregion adopted in 2016, mustbe fully implemented, Singhstressed.

Undiagnosed or poorly-con-trolled type 1 or type 2 diabetes

can lead to heart, kidney, nerveor eye damage. It can also leadto premature death, which inthe region accounts for justunder 50 per cent of all deathscaused by NCDs. Preventingand controlling NCDs is one ofthe region's eight flagship pri-orities.

The region's member statesare taking decisive action. Allcountries have developednational multi-sectoral NCDaction plans and each plan con-tains specific interventions totackle diabetes.

Their roll-out has occurredalongside member state effortsto strengthen primary-levelNCD services, which will alsohelp the region achieve itsflagship priority on universalhealth coverage.

WHO for toning up primary health care, educating families to tackle diabetesThey are also thefirst to identifydiabetes' signs,symptoms, risksand complications.Whencomplemented byaccess to qualityprimary healthcare, families arean important assetin the battleagainst diabetes

BSY govt is‘illegal’,dismiss it, saysKarnataka CongPNS n BENGALURU

Welcoming the Supreme Courtdecision on the disqualifiedMLAs, the Congress inKarnataka on Wednesday saidthe verdict proves that the BJP-led government in the state was"illegal" and sought its dis-missal. While KPCC PresidentDinesh Gundu Rao asked BJPnot to give tickets to the dis-qualified legislators to contestpolls if it has "any morality left,"CLP leader Siddaramaiah saidthe verdict was a lesson to defec-tors to whom people wouldteach a lesson in the December5 bypolls. "Supreme Court haspartially upheld the thenSpeaker Ramesh Kumar's deci-sion. I welcome the verdict,"Siddaramaiah said. Speaking toreporters here, he said, thecourt's stand was that defectingwas "immoral" and "violation oftrust of the voter".

The Centre hadannounced theloan package intwo tranches --first in June 2018amounting to Rs4,440 crore andthe other inMarch 2019 of Rs10,540 crore

Educated women in the rural areas associated withthe self-help groups working under the National RuralLivelihood Mission will check whether the welfareworks are being carried out properly

Centre tells depts toallow transparency audit

Submission to an inviolable sense ofjustice, order and probity ought tobe at the heart of professionals ren-dering policing and legal servicesto society. The nobility of purpose

in both these professions mandates a cer-tain code of conduct and ethics that positsthe responsibility to the citizenry at largeand, thereby, the nation. Many such man-dates have been legislated, ingrained andtemplatised in the form of standard pro-cedures, processes and even uniformsthat they bear with aplomb and responsi-bility. The allegorical personification ofLady Justice (originally Lustitia, the god-dess of justice in the Greek mythology)with a blindfold, a balance and a sword isdeeply symbolic of those who uphold itstenets as protectors of justice.

Similarly, the khaki uniform of thepolice personnel is freighted with the cit-izen’s charter that explicitly seeks, amongother things, the “maintenance of law andorder in civil society” as a common bondbetween the two services. Many illustriouslawyers and policemen (and policewomen)have conducted themselves with the high-est dignity, civility, service and personal sac-rifices that have been the pride of the soci-ety and the nation.

Yet, the unfortunate spectacle of theviolent clash between policemen and thelawyers at the Tis Hazari court in thenational capital shamed the edifice of jus-tice, which is the shared responsibility ofthese two callings. In an age of recklesssocial media, the free flow of visuals of thefights, accusations and the public protestswas a reflection of institutional breakdownat various levels.

The immediate impact of this whol-ly avoidable fracas goes way beyond theperceptions about these two professions.It speaks volumes about the institutionalone-upmanship, prevailing societal angerand above all, a misplaced sense of enti-tlement that some individuals may carry— all of which could taint the entirety oftheir services. For the sake of nationalsecurity and order, institutional blame-game must be contained with immediateeffect. The High Court-appointed judicialinquiry must ascertain individual acts ofmisdemeanour and those involved mustbe punished, irrespective of their profes-sional callings.

However, the lazy and wanton lust tosully the reputation of either of the insti-tutions can have unfathomable repercus-sions that the nation can ill-afford, giventhat both are unique and irreplaceable ser-vices, often the only source of ensuring jus-tice to the citizenry. To that extent, the actshould be treated as a matter of individual(at best a group of individuals) culpabili-ty or complicity as opposed to a situationwhere the top-brass of either institutionslock horns on behalf of their colleagues.The fact that the violence was triggered by

a seemingly innocuous dis-pute over a parking space reeksof ego, vanity and a sense offiefdom that was involved. Theproverbial “turf-war” furthereroded the citizen’s waningtrust, faith and decorum aboutgovernmental and judicialarms, who are in dire need forreforms and reassurances.

In the melee of excesseswas the regrettable irony of theDelhi Police’s motto of “Shanti,Sewa, Nyaya” (Peace, Serviceand Justice) or indeed, the factthat the lawyers are the ultimaterestorers of the law of the land.The hapless citizenry couldonly mull and reminisce theirown experiences at the handsof either of these two.

Such incidents also give aparallel vent to latent concernsthat have remained unad-dressed for far too long butcontextualising the same tothis incident is to distract fromthe immediacy and specificityof action. The unwarrantedpoliticisation of the incident,with political parties assumingpositions that suit their imme-diate narrative, can only fan thefire. Sane voices, who are eitherin positions of seniority in therespective hierarchies or thosewho have retired from officialservice, would do yeoman ser-vice by insisting on isolating theindividuals concerned in theviolence, as opposed to takinginstitutional positions.

Other collateral concernslike work conditions and offi-cer-soldier relationship in thepolice among others, howevertrue and important in theirown right, are a matter of sep-arate enquiry and resolution. Infact, there has been a plethoraof committees and commis-sions that have identified var-ious reforms pertaining to theefficacy of the judicial andpolicing services.Unfortunately, political willhas been lacking and eveninstitutional lethargy to under-take the recommendationsmade by experts in the field.

A more reassuring arm ofthe Government has been thearmed forces. The principalfactor for this has been the rel-ative isolation from the politi-cisation of its environment,functioning and ethos. In casesof individual culpability per-taining to the rare wrong-doings of a soldier of thearmed forces, care is taken toisolate them from institution-al framework as disciplinecannot be compromised.

Discipline, leadership andsoldiering ethos are made towalk the talk in the armedforces. The finest example ofthis is the “officer-to-soldier”fatality ratio, which is the high-est for any military in theworld. It is the professional cul-ture and standard that are atstake when murmurs abound

of creeping politicisation evenin the armed forces.

The onus is on theGovernment to contain thisincident with speedy interven-tion, resolution and then usherin the much-delayed institu-tional reforms. No society canthrive where a revenue officeris burnt alive during the con-duct of his/her duty, wherepolice-lawyers vandalise pub-lic property, where policemenin uniform protest raising slo-gans, where suicide attemptsfor justice by lawyers are made.Indeed, forgotten from therecent limelight is the unprece-dented tragedy of the warheroes of the armed forces sit-ting on roadside, asking forwhat was rightfully promised inOROP.

There is certainly a powerplay of institutional relevance,elbow-room and assertion atplay. The fight over the park-ing lot was symbolic of the mis-placed sense of entitlementthat is at work with a few thatshame their own institutions.This incident should lead tocorrective introspection andcooling of tempers as opposedto a field day for those whohave vested interest in TRPs,partisan concerns or perpetu-ating the existing systemic rot.

(The writer, a military vet-eran, is a former Lt Governor ofAndaman & Nicobar Islandsand Puducherry)

From the west to the east, BJP’s allies inthe National Democratic Alliance (NDA)are seeking to assert themselves and give

the “big brother” a tough time in both pre andpost-poll scenarios. That’s because theresults in Maharashtra have proven that theBJP, regardless of the brute force of the LokSabha verdict, cannot make it on its own. Ithas hardly recovered from the jolt inMaharashtra, where its three-decade-old ally,the Shiv Sena, snapped ties with it for its fail-ure to honour a rotational chief ministerial for-

mula, but is staring at another one in Jharkhand. Here its long-time ally, the AllJharkhand Students’ Union (AJSU), has upped the ante by staking claim to 17seats for itself. But the BJP is not willing to concede. The AJSU has since goneahead by fielding its candidate even against the BJP’s State unit chief. As if thiswasn’t enough, another BJP ally, the Lok Janshakti Party (LJP), has announcedit will go alone and field its candidates in 50 of the 81 Assembly seats.

The timing is all wrong for the BJP, which is actually looking to consolidateits gains in the State. The Raghubar Das-led regime has the distinction of com-pleting a full five-year-term, which is a first in the 20-year history of the Statethat has always had fractured mandates leading to half-a-dozen Chief Ministershelming the affairs from time to time. For the BJP, however, the LJP is not a causeof worry given its minuscule presence in the State. The LJP contested only oneAssembly seat in 2014 and lost. By contesting 50 seats this time round, its newpresident Chirag Paswan wishes to gain some foothold in Jharkhand. But as faras AJSU is concerned, the party, which is a product of the Jharkhand move-ment, has a strong presence, especially in areas around Ranchi. AJSU has beena part of almost all Governments formed in Jharkhand ever since the State’screation when Babulal Marandi became the first Chief Minister. Its chief SudeshMahto has handled plum portfolios throughout, including that of the funds-richRoad Construction department. He played a key role in hijacking MLAs to propup the Arjun Munda regime. The AJSU is also gaining strength from the fact thatOpposition parties are courting it. AJSU fighting alone, nevertheless, will be advan-tage BJP as the former shares a support base with the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha(JMM) and could cut into its votebank. Despite its dominance, the BJP cannotalienate time-tested allies who have stood by it through thick and thin. As ShiromaniAkali Dal (SAD) leader Naresh Gujral said, the BJP should not treat its allies aslesser partners as they, too, have self-respect.

When the glass Pyramid came up in thecourtyard of the Louvre Museum,ostensibly to serve as a central con-

duit for a more functional visitor movement, thethen French President François Mitterrand waslambasted for creating “an architectural joke,an eyesore, an anachronistic intrusion ofEgyptian death symbolism in the middle of Paris,and a megalomaniacal folly.” Parisians still havemixed feelings about the new-age intrusion,which has allowed more utilitarian and pedes-trianised access to art besides increasing foot-

falls. But the oddity of its existence was such that critics and conservationistscompelled the architects to tone down on drama, keep much of the rejig of theLouvre’s internal map underground and stay away from the surrounding classi-cal architecture. Mitterrand, an avid art lover, was thinking about keeping the Louvrerelevant for generations than sealing a political legacy. However, the real intent ofthe argument that Lutyens’ Delhi needs a makeover, particularly the central vistaof the Rajpath, to create more spaces for Ministry offices and freeing up morecitizen-friendly spaces, is entirely political and in no way cultural or futuristic. Tradition’sco-existence with modernity is encoded in our DNA and Delhi is the best testi-mony, where each successive ruler has sedimented through relics and monu-ments. And Delhiites have never denied heritage its place — Rajput, Islamic, Europeanor colonial — making it a part of their living history, one where Lutyens’ Delhi isa key chapter. Talking of the central vista and the domed buildings around it, dowe really need to tamper with the elegance and classicism of design here? Thegreen pavilions, perches, cupolas and the islands are the only democratic spaceswhere citizens can move and roam free, catching the afternoon sun in the mid-dle of winter and the gentle breeze of a summer evening. No kiosk or retail spaceis needed for it is precisely to escape these that Delhi families assemble here.

Besides, being the first stretches to be locked down for security around Republicand Independence Days, they are anyway sanitised and cannot ever be a porousevent space like Washington’s National Mall. Redevelopment wouldn’t necessar-ily mean more freedom to the masses. Considering the India Gate and now thewar memorial are a tribute to martyred soldiers no less, do we need to screamour triumphalism and identity any louder with an Eiffel tower-like structure? Shouldn’tthe Government be wiser to leave a legacy of policy and governance instead?Repurposing administrative offices within the shell of an existing facade and rejig-ging interiors are the done thing. But to change the skyline is quite the other. Agreed,there may be an increasing demand for land in the cities and the size of theGovernment means that its bureaucracy needs to be accommodated. Does thatmean Lutyens’ bungalows should be torn down indiscriminately without attempt-ing a solution within the original plan? Cannot some Government accommoda-tion be relocated to areas where vertical structures are the norm than the excep-tion? The Rajpath has been our ceremonial pivot, providing a monumental, dig-nified and symbolic setting for governmental structures, museums and nationalmemorials. Attempting to change it for no pressing reason, therefore, is like mar-ginalising and eroding its place-based identity. Simply because of its historicityas a power statement. One that the current regime wants to overlay with its ownimposition of a Bharat Parv, as if we never had one through millennia. Prime MinisterNarendra Modi doesn’t quite like the “Lutyens’ world” and the power structuresembedded in it. “For me, everything is about the people of India,” he had said.But in the name of breaking elitism and freeing up space for people, one cannotjustify political point-scoring. Or even the political economy it will generate — theproject is expected to run into multi-crore tenders. There are fruits of preserva-tion; they serve as reminders of what was and where we need to go. There areonly ruins of demolition, forcibly reconstructing the past on wobbly stubs to suitour ends. Given the secrecy around the makeover project, the least the Governmentcan do is to put a proposed plan to a public vote, keep it transparent, consulta-tive and reasonable and synchronise its character with the aspiration of Delhiitesto be citizens of a world heritage city. The city’s application, submitted to the Unescoin 2013, lists Lutyens’ Bungalow Zone (LBZ) along with Shahjahanabad (old Delhi)as the rationale for seeking the tag. That sure will have a longer legacy than prov-ing a point for BJP’s manifesto of 2024, the deadline of the project.

JNU hullabaloo

Sir — This refers to the editori-al, “Fee hike unjust” (November13). There is no doubt that therehas been a significant hike in boththe hostel room fee and one-timemess fee at the Jawaharlal NehruUniversity (JNU) but we alsoneed to ponder as to how longwill the State exchequer keepfunding its students’ subsidisededucation. The monthly fee of`20 for a hostel room is some-thing that really needed to bechanged but at the same time, theauthorities should have held dis-cussions with the stakeholders onthe amount that needed to beincreased. There should havebeen a hike that would not pinchtoo much as students from all sec-tions of the society come to studyin this varsity. While it’s good thatthe authorities have partiallyrolled the proposed fee hike, stu-dents need to introspect whythere should not be a basic hikein their fees when they are beingpart of one of the most soughtafter universities in the country.There has to be some rationalityin this entire issue.

Bal Govind Noida

Expand bases

Sir — It is given to understandthat an applicant can apply for anormal passport at all Post OfficePassport Sewa Kendras (POPSKs)and Passport Sewa Kendras(PSKs) spread across variousStates. It is further given tounderstand that for tatkal pass-

port applications, an applicant canapproach only a few PSKs locat-ed within the States. Thus, for anapplicant there is no possibility toapply for a tatkal passport at anyPOPSKs located across variousdistrict headquarters.

The current non-availabilityof tatkal appointments at POPSKsis causing much inconvenience tothe applicants. All are compelled

to approach the nearest PSKlocated within the State. Themove, thus, causes inconvenienceto the applicants owing to logis-tical factors to reach the venue.

The Ministry of ExternalAffairs must accept tatkal-basedpassport applications and allotappointments under tatkal quotaat POPSKs, too. The suggestedmove will entail quick processing

of such applications and subse-quently may even reduce theburden of PSKs.

Varun DambalBengaluru

The great reformer

Sir — As the Chief ElectionCommissioner, TN Seshanbrought many reforms in thecountry’s electoral process, whichincludes the enforcement of theModel Code of Conduct, introduc-tion of voter ID cards for eligiblecandidates and curbing malprac-tices like the exchange of liquor andmoney during elections.

The real tribute to Seshanwould be to enforce one of hisorders where he directed that theballot papers be mixed withoutfail before they were counted sothat polling agents would notknow in which booth who votedand how. This will partially curbthe behaviour of our elected rep-resentatives who tend to tiltdevelopment funds towards thearea that voted for them.

Harvinder Singh ChughJalandhar

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

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op nionVIJAYAWADA | THURSDAY | NOVEMBER 14, 2019

06

Guarantors vs enforcers

BHOPINDER SINGH

The brawl between police officers and lawyers over a parking lot was the manifestation of amisplaced sense of entitlement at work. The episode should lead to corrective introspection

RCEP is in our interest. If it is signed by other 15nations and we are sittingoutside, no multinationalwill want to come here.

NITI Aayog vice chairman—Arvind Panagariya

Today, whether it's pageantry,surviving in the modelling business or entering Bollywood,I don't think you'll survive ifyou're not strong as a person.

Actor—Lara Dutta

India, China and Russia aredoing absolutely nothing toclean up their smokestacks.The garbage that they drop inthe sea floats into Los Angeles.

US President—Donald Trump

S O U N D B I T E

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

Seshan was a poll crusader

Before TN Seshan occupied the office of the ChiefElection Commissioner (CEC), not much wasknown about the game-changing ability of the

Election Commission of India (ECI). Seshan provedwhat the electoral body could do to instill decorum inthe way elections were conducted in the country. Untilhe took over, booth captures, corruption, imperson-ation, vandalism and violence were part of the elec-tion process. The introduction of electors' photo iden-tity cards was one of the measures taken by him whichput the ECI’s integrity on the rising graph. The ModelCode of Conduct got a fresh meaning as the “maver-ick” Seshan cracked the whip on politicians.

Ironically, Seshan paved the way for a three-mem-ber ECI. His aggressive style and frequent tiffs withleaders prompted former Prime Minister PV NarasimhaRao to re-introduce the three-member ECI. Again,Seshan met his match in the Supreme Court after hecontested the powers of two newly-appointed ElectionCommissioners — MS Gill and GVG Krishnamurthy.

He had to eat the humble pie everytime he tried toassert his supremacy. Despite his frequent squabbleswith the Government, colleagues and the courts,Seshan was the architect of the “new ElectionCommission” in India.

Ganapathi BhatAkola

SUCH INCIDENTSALSO GIVE

PARALLEL VENTTO LATENT

CONCERNS THATHAVE REMAINED

UNADDRESSEDFOR TOO

LONG BUTCONTEXTUALISINGTHE SAME TO THIS

INCIDENT IS TODISTRACT FROMTHE IMMEDIACY

AND SPECIFICITYOF ACTION. THEUNWARRANTED

POLITICISATION OFTHE INCIDENT CANONLY FAN THE FIRE

Send yyour ffeedback tto:letterstopioneer@gmail.com

Trouble in Jharkhand

Women need to get out oftheir comfort zone. It’s timefor them to lead the trans-formation in emerging tech-nologies like AI and IOT.

Union Minister—Smriti Irani

Repairing and rejigging heritage structures is one thing, changing skylines quite the other

After Maharashtra, allies AJSU and LJP turnadamant on seats, show BJP why it needs them

Let Rajpath be

Shed the protectionist mindset

POINTCOUNTERPOINT

The Regional Comprehensive EconomicPartnership (RCEP) is a conglomeration of10 members of the Association of South

East Asian Nations (ASEAN) viz. Malaysia,Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore, ThePhilippines, Myanmar, Brunei, Laos andCambodia plus six others viz. Australia, NewZealand, Japan, South Korea, China and India.If it really sees the light of day with all 16 mem-bers intact, the group will cover 3.6 billion peo-ple or almost 50 per cent of the world’s popula-tion and account for nearly 40 per cent of theglobal GDP (Gross Domestic Product).

India is aiming to double its GDP to $5 tril-lion by 2024-25. To achieve this, it is looking interalia to doubling its exports from the current over$500 billion to $1 trillion and increasing agricul-tural exports 2.5 times from $40 billion to $100billion. In this backdrop, the RCEP with a com-bined GDP of $30 trillion presents, at least onpaper, a huge opportunity that the country can’tafford to miss.

Since 2012 (when the RCEP was mooted),29 rounds of negotiations have already been held.During the ASEAN Summit (November 11-15,2018), Prime Minister Narendra Modi hadcalled for early conclusion of the process. In therecent ministerial gathering held in Bangkok(October 10-12), even as discussions reached adeadlock over a dozen contentious issues, min-isters were given 10 days to iron out the differ-ences. If, they didn’t succeed, Modi, with hisfamed “Midas touch” was expected to make ithappen in the third RCEP leaders’ summit.

However, on November 4, Modi announcedIndia’s decision not to join the group citing that“the present form of the RCEP Agreement doesnot fully reflect the basic spirit and the agreedguiding principles of RCEP. It also does notaddress satisfactorily India’s outstanding issuesand concerns”. So, what are India’s major con-cerns? And, are these valid?

First, India wants the reference date forundertaking tariff reduction to be extended to2019 instead of 2014 planned initially. Since 2014,the Government has raised import duty on 3,500items. In this backdrop, if for the purpose of phas-ing out duties, it were to use 2014 as a referencepoint, this benefit will be lost. The Indian stanceis perfectly logical as the quotation date for com-mencement of tariff cuts has to be in sync withthe date the agreement takes effect.

Second, under the Most Favored Nation(MFN) clause, the investment or service relatedconcessions given to a trading partner under abilateral treaty have to be automatically extend-ed to all other members of the group without anytime gap. India was not inclined to accept this.This stance is illogical. MFN is a cardinal prin-ciple governing World Trade Organisation(WTO) — the international body dealing withglobal rules of trade. India should not be seenas taking a stance which is inconsistent withWTO rules.

Third, India wanted an “automatic triggersafeguard mechanism.” What it really means isthat in the event of import of a particular com-modity exceeding a certain number (also knownas threshold), this clause will automatically kickin, giving the right to the importing country(read: India) to apply higher tariff to prevent asurge. This stance is untenable as it militatesagainst the principle of free international tradebased on comparative advantage.

The rationale behind eliminatingtariffs on goods moving across interna-tional borders is to enable participat-ing countries to maximise their respec-tive gains from trade. This overarchingobjective will be defeated if a membergets the right to automatically increasethe duty, which will prevent the export-ing country from realising the fullpotential of its low cost. Moreover, ifIndia insists on this clause, others toowill want it. In that scenario, all mem-bers will end up compressing the mar-ket for each other.

Additionally, there will be practi-cal problems in determining the thresh-old level (each member would like tokeep it at the lowest level possible forextracting maximum mileage) and thenumber of commodities to be coveredby this dispensation (each member willinsist on having a large number). Theywill end up denying access to the mar-ket for each other instead of expansion,which is the overriding considerationbehind forging a free market area.

India should shun the idea ofautomatic trigger safeguard mecha-nism. Instead, it needs to focus moreon requiring member countries torefrain from giving subsidies, includ-ing “hidden” (as China does by mak-ing fuel, power and other inputs sub-sidised for enterprises) so that a situa-tion of selling commodities at belowcost (or dumping in plain words) inother members’ markets is avoided.Further, it should insist on stricter andtransparent rules of origin to ensurethat China does not use other members’territories to flood the Indian market(it is learnt that our negotiators have notdone enough home work in this area).

Fourth, India is opposing thedemand of other members to seek tradeconcessions in its domestic space.Termed as “ratchet” in trade terminol-ogy, the concept implies that any pol-icy changes will be automatically com-

mitted under RCEP agreement to allmembers after a fixed period. While,India is willing to give concessions inthe services and investment segment,developed countries are pushing forsimilar concessions in goods trade aswell.

Fifth, India is also not comfortablewith the “standstill” clause, whichbinds a member to the current level ofdomestic liberalisation in services;hence can’t be reversed in future. Forinstance, if the Modi Governmentwishes to withdraw the 51 per centForeign Direct Investment (FDI) inmulti-brand retail, which was allowedearlier in 2012 by the UPA dispensation,it won’t be able to do so.

Having taken a policy decision inthe overall interest of our economy,there is nothing wrong in staying withit to ensure stability of the policy envi-ronment.

Finally, India has offered to phaseout Customs Duty on imports fromChina on nearly 74 per cent of the tar-iff lines (jargon for a product as definedin lists of tariff rates; products can besub-divided, the level of detail reflect-ed in the number of digits in theHarmonised System code used to iden-tify the product) as against 90 per centof tariff lines on imports from all othermembers. China refused to join nego-tiations on this offer which it consid-ers highly restrictive.

To sum up, India’s approach tonegotiations on RCEP is overly protec-tionist. Barring shifting the referencedate for undertaking tariff phase out to2019, in all other areas, theGovernment’s stand is not tenable. It isborne out of the fear that joining thegroup will devastate our farmers andsmall-scale industries at the currentjuncture when the economy is in thegrip of a slowdown. Its worry is moreon account of a flood of imports fromChina. This fear is unfounded.

First, under the agreement, tariffelimination is mooted over a reasonablylong period of up to 20 years and itshould be possible to backload most ofit, especially on sensitive items. Anyapprehension of an adverse effect in thenear-term is misplaced. TheGovernment should not allow its deci-sion to be obliterated by the presentstate of the economy.

Second, the handicap of domesticindustry is more due to local factorssuch as the high cost of power, fuel (cur-rently, neither is under the Goods andServices Tax, which means suppliers arenot eligible for Input Tax Credit result-ing in a cascading effect on cost.Besides, the excise duty and ValueAdded Tax are also high), logistics, cap-ital and so on. If only these costs arelowered, “Made in India” productscan compete with the lowest pricedgoods from anywhere in the world.

Third, we also need to look at thepotential that China offers for boost-ing India’s exports. The Chinese econ-omy is undergoing a metaphoricaltransformation from export-driven(until hitherto) to domestic consump-tion and from industry to services.According to an estimate, China hasplans to import goods and servicesworth $12 trillion over five years.India should tap this potential market.

Keeping in mind the criticality ofbeing an integral part of the global sup-ply chain to achieve a $5 trillion econ-omy, India needs to reconsider its deci-sion. The Government should shed itspresent tough stance on MFN, safe-guard mechanism, “standstill” and“ratchet.” On the offer to China, thismay be improved to 80-85 per cent(from the 74 per cent already on thetable). With a flexible mindset, itshould consider joining RCEP which isexpected to be sealed in March 2020.

(The writer is a New Delhi-basedpolicy analyst)

Keeping in mind the criticality of being an integral part of the global supply chain to achieve a $5 trillion economy, India needs to reconsider its decision on RCEP

analysis 07F I R S T C O L U M N

Governor’s decisionunconstitutional

MARKANDEY KATJU

President’s Rule in Maharashtra must be shotdown by the SC. Elections are a costly affair and apoor country like India can ill-afford frequent polls

UTTAM GUPTA

INDIA’SAPPROACH TO

NEGOTIATIONS ONRCEP IS OVERLYPROTECTIONIST.

BARRINGSHIFTING THE

REFERENCEDATE FOR

UNDERTAKINGTARIFF PHASE

OUT TO 2019, INALL OTHER

AREAS, THEGOVERNMENT’S

STAND IS NOTTENABLE. IT ISBORNE OUT OFTHE FEAR THAT

JOINING THEGROUP WILL

DEVASTATE OUR FARMERS

ANDSMALL-SCALE

INDUSTRIES ATTHE CURRENT

JUNCTURE WHENTHE ECONOMY ISIN THE GRIP OF ASLOWDOWN. ITSWORRY IS MORE

ON ACCOUNT OF AFLOOD OF

IMPORTS FROMCHINA.

THIS FEAR ISUNFOUNDED

In my opinion, the recent imposition of President’s Rule inMaharashtra under Article 356 is unconstitutional and needs to bedeclared as such by the Supreme Court (SC). In the recent elections

to the 288-member Maharashtra Legislative Assembly, the BJP got 105seats, the Shiv Sena got 56, the NCP 54 and the Congress 44. Althoughthe BJP and the Shiv Sena had fought the election in alliance, after thepoll it fell apart on the issue of power-sharing. No single party got amajority in the House and no alliance could be formed claiming a major-ity. Hence the Governor of the State recommended President’s Rule,which was imposed. Now, a similar situation had arisen in Uttar Pradesh(UP) in 1996 where also President’s Rule was imposed soon after theLegislative Assembly elections for the same reason, viz no party, norcombination of parties, had a majority in the House.The imposition ofPresident’s Rule was challenged in the Allahabad High Court (HC) anda full Bench of the HC, of which I was a member, held the impositionunconstitutional, vide HS Jain vs Union of India case.

The reasoning which the full Bench gave in that case squarely appliesto the imposition of President’s Rule in Maharashtra too and it was this:“It has been held in the authoritative judgment of the Supreme Courtin Bommai’s case, (1994) 3 SCC 1 (in paragraphs 109, 120, 383 and391) that imposition of President’s Rule should not be resorted to unlessall other recourses have failed.”

In paragraph 112 of my decision, I observed: “The Governor shouldhave sent a message to the House under Article 175(2) of theConstitution, after summoning it under Article 174(1) stating that despitehis best efforts he was unable to find out who can command the con-fidence of the House and hence the House itself should inform himabout such person. The Governor in this message should have askedthe House to assemble and decide the matter within a reasonable peri-od of time and then inform him. In this message the Governor couldhave also warned the House that if it did not make up its mind withina reasonable period of time, the House may have to be dissolved.” Inparagraph 128 of my decision, I observed that in case of a fracturedelectoral verdict, where no party or combination of parties appearedto have a majority in the House, “the only legal alternative left for theGovernor is to ask the Assembly to inform him about the person inwhom it has confidence. Who can be in a better position than the Houseitself to inform the Governor in whom it has confidence?” And in para-graph 131 of my verdict I stated, “Although this course of action hasnot been expressly mentioned in the Constitution, it logically flows outof Article 164(2) and is the only democratic alternative short of dis-solution. In today’s era of fractured verdicts, it is the only logical method.”

I referred to Article 6 of the Japanese Constitution which states,“The Emperor shall appoint a Prime Minister as designated by the Diet”(the Japanese Parliament is called the Diet) and observed “Althoughwe do not have a similar provision in our Constitution, while judiciallyinterpreting it we can borrow from the democratic spirit of the JapaneseConstitution.”

Thus, when the Governor of Maharashtra could not find any partyor combination of parties, which appeared to have a majority in theAssembly, before recommending imposition of President’s Rule he shouldhave sent a message to the House under Article 175(2), after sum-moning it under Article 174(1), asking the House to assemble, delib-erate and then inform him within a reasonable period of time in whomit has confidence, so that he could be appointed Chief Minister.

In Bommai’s case it was held that imposition of President’s Rulewas a very serious step and was a last option, to be resorted to onlywhen all other recourses failed. In Maharashtra, as in UP in 1996, therewas an option left, as referred to above. Hence without resorting to it,recommending imposition of President’s Rule straightaway was clear-ly unconstitutional.

Some people may ask what use such a step would have beenwhen the political leaders were unable to come to a compromise?

The answer was given in paragraph 134 of my judgment. “In myopinion, if the elected members are permitted to come together andmeet in the House, then a Socratic debate may take place and it is pos-sible that a solution may emerge. When two or more persons are sit-ting separately they may not be able to resolve their differences butwhen they come together it is possible that by discussions and nego-tiations some compromise may come about. This is the democraticmethod also. The elected representatives may put pressure on theirleaders to give up their intransigent and uncompromising attitude andadopt a more flexible approach.”

It must be remembered that elections are a costly affair and fre-quent polls are a recourse which a poor country like India can ill-afford.Also, frequent elections were one of the causes of the collapse of theWeimar Republic and Hitler coming to power in 1933. Hence everyeffort should be made to avoid them.

If elected representatives are not allowed to meet in the House,should they meet in a tennis court, as happened in France during theFrench Revolution of 1789?

(The writer is a former judge of the Supreme Court of India.)

Many environmental scepticswill write off wind energy asa resource that has literally

gone with the wind and rightly so,as India still has a long way to gobefore it can say that wind power hascome to play a pivotal role in becom-ing the alternate source to fossil fuels.

Having said this, wind energyobviously cannot be written off as ithas tremendous potential that is justwaiting to be tapped. The specificcircumstances in India are not ableto create an enabling environmentfor the full-fledged harnessing of thisamazing pollution-free sustainableand renewable power resource.

The speed at which India is pro-gressing on its wind energy agendais not encouraging whereas the tar-gets the country has set itself are veryambitious.

Why is there such a major dis-connect between plan and action? Isit due to the lack of a cohesive vision?

For instance, India has set anambitious target of achieving 175gigawatt (GW) renewable energycapacity by 2022. As per the Ministryof New and Renewable Energy’s fig-ures, at the end of 2018, India hadan installed capacity of 35 GW.Hence, the jump from 35 GW to 175GW by 2022 sure looks ambitiousand maybe a tad unachievable, notbecause the target is high but becausethere is an absence of aggressive pol-icy-backed implementation effortsand initiatives to achieve the same.

The world is witnessing a majorshift from fossil fuels to renewableenergy, mainly due to the risingawareness regarding their ill-effects.

Thanks to thisawakening, thecost of renewableenergy infrastruc-ture is comingdown rapidly else-where in theworld, but in Indiathis fall in installa-tion rates is nottranslating intorenewed enthusi-asm for windenergy and this isconcerning. The full potential ofwind energy, if and when harnessed,has the ability to mitigate climatechange and pollution together. In ourrenewable energy sector, the empha-sis on grand plans and commitmentsis given primary importance, where-as time-bound execution of projectsis sorely missing. Yet another press-ing factor is going to make relianceon renewable energy compulsorysooner than later. According to a

study by theIndian StatisticalInstitute, the pro-jected domesticsocial cost ofcoal-based powergeneration will betoo high by 2024-25. This willnecessitate reduc-tion in building ofnew coal-basedpower plants andrender the opera-

tions of the existing ones unviable.At a time such as this, a fully-devel-oped portfolio of renewable energyoptions will be able to shoulder theburden of India’s energy demand.However, this portfolio, with a robustGW capacity cannot happenovernight and needs a sufficient runup, which is not happening in thecountry today.

Senior environmentalists andpolicymakers must understand that

though time is short, it is also ripefor harnessing wind energy. This isbecause the technology is availableand energy storage is improvingexponentially as a lot of innovationis taking place. Hence, it will bemuch more easy to adopt windenergy today than ever before.

Wind energy cannot be seen asa back-up resource or a plan B.Renewable power sources, especial-ly the trio of solar, wind and hydropower are going to be the mainstayof the future energy sector of thecountry. To make this happen Indiamust invest appropriately also.

According to the estimates of theUS-based Institute for EnergyEconomics and Financial Analysis(IEEFA), the country will require$500 to $700 billion in renewableenergy and supporting grid invest-ment over the coming decade inorder to meet its renewable energytargets. Some immediate steps can goa long way to counter the wind ener-

gy generation slowdown.India must first, bring policy

consensus and ensure that imple-mentation and execution remain thestrong points of its policy. Also, amonthly monitoring of the hurdlesbeing faced by the renewable ener-gy sector will help in smooth scal-ing up of the wind energy portfolio.

In addition to this, the authori-ties may want to prepare a com-pelling mix of wind and solar ener-gy generation options for small andmedium investors as this will raiseawareness and present a major busi-ness opportunity too. The properand viable storage of energy is anongoing issue, which needs to betaken care of as well.

Wind energy has a potential thatis still waiting to be tapped and Indiacan easily sail through any futureenergy crisis only if it has got thewind in its sails.

(The writer is an environmentaljournalist.)

Answer to power woes blowing in the wind? The speed at which India is progressing on its wind energy agenda is not encouraging, whereas the targets the country

has set itself are very ambitious. Why is there such a major disconnect between plan and action?

KOTA SRIRAJ

VIJAYAWADA | THURSDAY | NOVEMBER 14, 2019

www.dailypioneer.com

EVERYTHING IS GOING FINE. TALKS ARE ON IN THERIGHT DIRECTION AND A DECISION WILL BE

ANNOUNCED AT AN APPROPRIATE TIME.— SHIV SENA PRESIDENT

UDDHAV THACKERAY

OUR MEETING WITH UDDHAV THACKERAY WAS ACOURTESY CALL. THE FACT THAT WE ARE MEETING ISITSELF A POSITIVE DEVELOPMENT.—MAHARASHTRA CONGRESS CHIEF BALASAHEB THORAT

F O R E I G N E Y E

John Tsang, Hong Kong'sformer financial secretary,defeated by Carrie Lam forthe chief executive’s post,has said that given theimbalance of powerbetween protesters and theChinese Government, thelatter must take the initiativeto de-escalate the force it isusing. Coming from a pro-establishment figure it is astriking statement. Yet it will almost certainlygo unheard by Beijing.

(The Guardian editorial)

BEIJING NEEDS TOSTEP BACK A LITTLE

VIJAYAWADA | THURSDAY | NOVEMBER 14, 2019 money 08

CAPSULE

Britannia Ind sharesgain 5 pc afterrobust Q2 earningsNEW DELHI: Shares ofBritannia Industries onWednesday jumped almost 5per cent after the companyposted 32.90 per cent rise inconsolidated net profit for thequarter ended September. Atclose of trade, the scripmoved up 4.94 per cent toclose at Rs 3,270.25 on theBSE. During the day, it jumped5.86 per cent to Rs 3,299.At the NSE, it gained 4.84 percent to close at Rs 3,270.75.The food company on Mondayposted 32.90 per cent increasein consolidated net profit to Rs402.73 crore for the quarterended September 30, 2019.The company had reported anet profit of Rs 303.03 crorefor the July-September perioda year ago, BritanniaIndustries said in a BSE filing.Net sales were up 5.88 percent to Rs 3,022.91 croreduring the quarter underreview as against Rs 2,854.81crore of the correspondingquarter previous fiscal.

TVS Srichakra postsJuly-Sep quarter netat Rs 20.26 crNEW DELHI: TVS SrichakraLtd on Wednesdayreported a 31.4 per centdecline on its standalone netprofits at Rs 20.26 crore forthe July-September quarter.The Tamil Nadu-based tyremanufacturer had recordednet profits at Rs 29.57 croreduring corresponding quarterof previous year, TVSSrichakra Ltd said in a BSEfiling. For the half year endingSeptember 30, 2019standalone net profits was atRs 46.51 crore, as comparedto Rs 63.53 crore recordedsame period last fiscal.The standalone total incomefor the quarter under reviewwas at Rs 546.72 crore asagainst Rs 636.49 croreregistered a year ago.

Adani Green Energy Q2 profit atRs 102 crNEW DELHI: Adani GreenEnergy on Wednesday posteda consolidated net profit of Rs102 crore profit for theSeptember quarter of 2019-20. The company reported aloss of Rs 188 crore in theyear-ago period, a BSE filingsaid. Total income rose to Rs711.96 crore in the secondquarter from Rs 458.89 crorea year ago. "Adani GreenEnergy continues to expandand invest in the renewablesspectrum following thegovernment's mission to bethe world's largest renewableenergy expansion programmeof 175GW till 2022. Thecompany will continue toprovide reliable, sustainable,round the clock green powerfor India's growing powerdemands and needs,"Chairman Gautam Adani saidin a statement.

Nita on the board of Metropolitan Museum of ArtPTI n NEW YORK

Philanthropist andChairperson of the RelianceFoundation Nita Ambanihas been elected tothe board of thep r e s t i g i o u sMetropolitanMuseum ofArt here forher "trulyexceptional"commitmentto preserve andpromote India'sart and culture.

Chairman DanielBrodsky of the museum,considered as the largest andmost visited art museums in

the world, announced thatNita has been named itsHonorary Trustee. Her electiontook place at the meeting of the

board on Tuesday.Welcoming Nita,56, to the board,

Brodsky, in astatement, saidthat her “com-mitment toThe Met andto preservingand promoting

India's art andculture is truly

exceptional. Hersupport has an enor-

mous impact on the museum'sability to study and display artfrom every corner of the world.”

Nita, wife of RelianceIndustries Chairman MukeshAmbani, is also the Founderthe Reliance Foundation,which has supported The Metsince 2016, beginning withthe exhibition ‘NasreenMohamedi', which was thefirst museum retrospective ofthe artist's work in the UnitedStates and was also one of The

Met Breuer's inaugural exhi-bitions.

She is also a member of TheMet's International Council.The museum had announced inOctober 2017 that the RelianceFoundation promised a “gen-erous gift" to support exhibi-tions that explore and celebratethe arts of India. It had not stat-ed the amount of the gift.

The museum had thendescribed Nita and Mukesh as"great champions of The Met."

In a statement made at thetime of the announcement of thegift in 2017, Nita had said thatIndia has a rich heritage of artand culture that can be tracedback to the fourth century B.C.

She had said that theFoundation aims to recognizeand promote the “valuable tra-dition” by offering opportuni-ties and platforms for Indianart not only within the coun-try but at various institutionsaround the globe as well.

“This partnership with TheMet enables Indian art to beshown at an iconic institutionand further encourages us to

continue our work in the artworld,” she had said then.

The first exhibition to ben-efit from the Foundation's giftwas ‘Modernism on theGanges: Raghubir SinghPhotographs' that ran fromOctober 2017 till January2018, followed by‘Phenomenal Nature:M r i n a l i n iM u k h e r j e e '( J u n e -S e p t e m b e r2019). Thise x h i b i t i o nmarked the firstcomprehensive dis-play of the renownedIndian sculptor's work inthe United States.

Chairman Daniel Brodsky of themuseum, considered as the largestand most visited art museums in theworld, announced that Nita has beennamed its Honorary Trustee

BUDGET 2020

FM wants suggestions to rationalise income tax, dutiesPNS n NEW DELHI

In perhaps the first instance,the finance ministry has kickedoff the exercise to formulate thenext budget by seeking sug-gestions on changes in directand indirect taxes from indus-try and trade associations.

Finance Minister NirmalaSitharaman, who had toannounce additional measuresto stimulate a slowing economywithin a month of her maidenbudget being approved byParliament, is due to present theannual budget for the financialyear 2020-21 on February 1.

While the ministry holdspre-budget consultations withrepresentatives of different sec-tors and stakeholders, theDepartment of Revenue in thefinance ministry perhaps forthe first time put out circularseeking suggestions for changesin income tax rates for bothindividuals and corporates aswell as in indirect taxes such asexcise and customs duty.

The November 11 circularasked industry and trade asso-ciations to give "suggestions forchanges in the duty structure,rates and broadening of taxbase on both direct and indi-rect taxes giving economic

justification for the same.""Your suggestions and views

may be supplemented and jus-tified by relevant statisticalinformation about the produc-tion, prices, revenue implicationof the changes suggested andany other information to sup-port your proposal," it said.

After her maiden budgeton July 5, Sitharaman onSeptember 20 announced acut in corporate income taxesfor domestic companies to 22per cent from 30 per cent pre-viously. This would bring effec-tive corporate tax rate, includ-ing all additional levies, to

about 25.2 per cent, for com-panies which are not receivingany incentives or exemptions.

New manufacturing com-panies formed after October 1will enjoy a 15 per cent (effec-tive rate of 17 per cent) cor-porate income tax rate, against25 per cent previously.

The move is estimated toresult in Rs 1.45 lakh crore inrevenue loss for the govern-ment during 2019-20.

Subsequent to this, therehave been demands for a reduc-tion in income tax rates forindividuals as well so as to putmore money in the hands of thecommon man for a consump-tion-led revival of the economy.India's economic growth hadslipped to a six-year low of 5per cent in the April-June quar-ter and the revival may take afew quarters despiteannouncements to boost realestate and financial sectors.

"As regards direct taxes,while forwarding your pro-posals, please take into con-sideration the recent initiativesof the government to reducecorporate tax rates applicableto domestic companies" pro-vided they do not avail of anyother tax rebate or concession,the orders said.

After her maiden budget on July 5,Sitharaman on September 20announced a cut in corporateincome taxes for domesticcompanies to 22 per cent from 30per cent previously

ClearTax aimsfor Rs 100 crbiz from onlineGST coursePNS n NEW DELHI

Financial Technology firmClearTax has rolled out anonline GST course with plansto generate Rs 100 crore busi-ness by March 2020.

The company has set a tar-get of training 75,000 tax pro-fessionals, and more than 2lakh businesses through newe-learning course in part-nership with online educationplatform Udemy.

"We expect to train 75,000tax professionals, and morethan 2 lakh businesses by ournew e-learning course by theend of March 2020, before thelaunch of the new GST returnfiling system. This coursecomes at a cost of Rs 4,800.However the company is cur-rently giving a discount of 25per cent till December 31,"ClearTax founder and CEOArchit Gupta told PTI.

At discounted rate and fullenrolment rate, back of theenvelope calculation showsthat the company will beable to generate business ofRs 100 crore.

Sensex tumbles229 pts amid weak macro dataPNS n NEW DELHI

Benchmark BSE Sensex onWednesday dived 229 pointsas concerns over poor macrodata and confusion over US-China trade deal persisted.

Further, continued unrest inHong Kong led to fall inregional markets, also impact-ing sentiment on Indianbourses.

A sharp depreciation in theIndian rupee too added toinvestors' woes, traders said.The rupee dropped below the72-level against the US dollarin intra-day trade.

After gyrating 386 pointsduring the day, the 30-shareSensex ended 229.02 points, or0.57 per cent, lower at40,116.06.

Similarly, the broader NSENifty fell 73 points, or 0.61 percent, to end at 11,840.45.

Yes Bank was the top loserin the Sensex pack cracking6.51 per cent, followed bySBI, Axis Bank, Vedanta, SunPharma, ICICI Bank,IndusInd Bank, ITC, Infosysand Tech Mahindra, shed-ding up to 3.69 per cent.

On the other hand, TCS,RIL, HUL, Maruti and NTPCrose up to 3.76 per cent.

Posing questions over themuch-anticipated truce deal,

US President Donald Trumpdubbed China a cheater ontrade even as he seeks an ini-tial settlement to calm an 18-month trade war, adding to theuncertainty over the dealbetween the two countries.

Bourses in Shanghai, HongKong, Tokyo and Seoul settledup to 1.82 per cent lower vio-lent protests in Hong Kong.

Exchanges in Europe werealso trading in the red in theirrespective early deals.

After gyrating386 pointsduring the day,the 30-shareSensex ended229.02 points,or 0.57 per cent,lower at40,116.06

PNS n NEW DELHI

Prakash Javadekar onWednesday took charge as theMinister of Heavy Industriesand Public Enterprises, twodays after Shiv Sena leaderArvind Sawant resigned fromthe Union Cabinet.

Javadekar also holds infor-mation & broadcasting, andenvironment, forest and cli-mate change portfolios.

Speaking to reporters here,Javadekar said he hoped theadditional charge was for atemporary period and therewill be a regular arrangementin place thereafter.

"I have assumed charge ofheavy industries and therelated ministries. I hope it'sfor temporary period becausethere will be a regulararrangement thereafter. But,as I was asked I have assumedthe charge and will startfunctioning right from today(Wednesday)," Javadekar toldreporters.

Javadekar takescharge as HeavyIndustries Minister

‘Engineering exports decline 6 pc in Sep’PNS n NEW DELHI

Falling for the fourth straightmonth, India's engineeringexports declined over 6 per centto USD 6.36 billion inSeptember as against USD 6.77billion in the same month lastfiscal, EEPC India said onWednesday.

The country's engineeringshipments contribute 25 % to theoverall merchandise exports.

A clearly visible global slow-

down is biting engineeringexports, suffering setbacks inalmost all major destinations

including the US, EuropeanUnion, Middle East, SouthAsia or even CIS countries,with September shipmentsconceding fourth straight

monthly decline and fifth infiscal 2019-20, the engineeringexporters body said.

Engineering exports fromthe country witnessed over 6per cent decline inSeptember, dropping in allmonths of fiscal 2019-20 bar-ring May, it added.

In September 2019, ship-ment of Indian engineeringproducts stood at USD 6.36 bil-lion as against USD 6.77 billion.

Global stocks sink after Trump threatens more China tariffsPNS n BEIJING

Global stocks sank Wednesdayafter President Donald Trumpthreatened more tariff hikes onChinese imports if talks aimedat ending a trade war fail toproduce an interim agreement.

Market benchmarks inLondon, Frankfurt, Shanghaiand Tokyo declined.

Trump said Tuesday that anagreement on the "Phase 1"deal announced last month"could happen soon." But hewarned he was ready to raisetariffs "very substantially" if thatfails.

The two sides disagree pub-licly about whether

Washington agreed to roll backsome punitive tariffs imposedin the fight over Beijing's tradesurplus and technology ambi-tions. The Chinese govern-ment said last week that wassettled, but Trump denied that.

Trump's comments "servedas a reminder of the challengethat the two sides face," saidJingyi Pan of IG in a report.However, she said, investorssaw them as "positioning state-ments," reducing their impact.

Wall Street closed Tuesdaywith modest gains.

In early trading, London'sFTSE 100 declined 0.4 percent to 7,338.51 and Frankfurt'sDAX lost 0.5 per cent to

13,222.13. France's CAC 40shed 0.5 per cent to 5,888.55.Wall Street, futures for thebenchmark Standard & Poor's

500 index and the Dow JonesIndustrial Average were down0.3 per cent.

In Asia, the Shanghai

Composite Index lost 0.3 percent to 2,905.24 and Tokyo'sNikkei 225 sank 0.9 per cent to23,319.87. Hong Kong's HangSeng tumbled 1.8 per cent to26,571.46.

South Korea's Kospi retreat-ed 0.9 per cent to 2,122.45 andAustralia's S&P-ASX 200 sank

0.8 per cent at 6,698.40. India'sSensex lost 0.3 per cent to40,215.20. Taiwan, NewZealand and Singaporedeclined.

Hong Kong shares, alreadyunder pressure from the US-China tariff war and slowingglobal demand, have been jolt-

ed by growing violence in anti-government protests.

The protests began in Juneover a proposed extradition lawand expanded to includedemands for greater democra-cy and other grievances. HongKong tumbled into its firstrecession in a decade in the lat-est quarter.

On Tuesday, the S&P 500ended up 0.2 per cent while theDow was unchanged. TheNasdaq gained 0.3 per cent toa record.

Momentum for the markethas been mostly upward formore than five weeks as wor-ries about the US-China tradewar have eased.

Trump's comments "served as areminder of the challenge that the twosides face," said Jingyi Pan of IG in areport. However, she said, investorssaw them as "positioningstatements," reducing their impact

PNS n NEW DELHI

ABB India's standalone netprofit more than doubled to Rs79 crore in the quarter endedSeptember 30, 2019, mainlydue to higher revenues.

The company follows Januaryto December financial year.

ABB India had posted a netprofit of Rs 36 crore in thequarter ended September 30,2018, a BSE filing said.

Total revenue of the com-pany rose to Rs 1,746 crorein July-September from Rs1 ,492 crore in t he year-ago quarter.

The company's total orders

rose 5 per cent year-on-year(YoY) to Rs 1,606 crore.

Service orders were up 16per cent YoY led by processimprovement and productionoptimisation initiatives whenprivate capex continues to

lag, the company said in astatement.

While electrification andmotion businesses continuedthe solid growth pattern,robotics and discrete automa-tion and industrial automa-tion are facing challenges innavigating sectoral head-winds, it added.

The quarter was alsomarked by orders for smartcities in Ranchi and the ancientcity of Ujjain for smart powerdistribution equipment likecompact substations and ringmain units. A steel major alsoplaced a significant order onelectrification ArTuK panels.

‘Govt to push OSHCode for passage inBudget session’PNS n NEW DELHI

The government will pushOccupational Safety, Healthand Working Conditions(OSH) Code in the Budgetsession of Parliament forapproval, said Labour MinisterSantosh Gangwar onWednesday.

The Code was introduced inthe Lok Sabha on July 23,2019. It is expected to enhancethe coverage of workers man-ifold and also merge 13 centrallabour laws into a single codewhich would apply to all estab-lishments employing 10 ormore workers.

It will subsume 13 labourlaws relating to safety, healthand working conditions. Theseinclude the Factories Act,1948, the Mines Act, 1952, andthe Contract Labour(Regulation and Abolition)Act, 1970.

"We will definitely bringthe Occupational Safety,Health and WorkingConditions (OSH) Code,2019, in the Budget Session.

Parliamentary standing com-mittee has sought public com-ments on the Code," the min-ister told reporter on the side-lines of an event of Employees'State Insurance Corporation(ESIC).

Santosh Gangwar

Indian Hotelsshares climb6% on Q2 profitPNS n NEW DELHI

Shares of Indian HotelsCompany on Wednesdayclimbed over 6 per cent afterit reported a consolidated netprofit of Rs 69.30 cr for the sec-ond quarter ended September.

The company's stock ral-lied 6.08 per cent to close atRs 155.40 on the BSE. Duringthe day, it jumped 7.84 percent to Rs 158.

At the NSE, it gained 6.17per cent to close at Rs 155.60.

In traded volume terms,2.35 lakh shares of the com-pany were traded on the BSEand over 48 lakh shares onthe NSE during the day.

The Tata Group firm onMonday reported a consoli-dated net profit of Rs 69.30crore for the second quarterended September 30, 2019.

It had posted a loss of Rs5.57 crore in July-Septemberperiod a year ago, IndianHotels Company Ltd (IHCL)said in a filing to the BSE.

Total income rose 4.83 percent to Rs 1,028.57 croreduring the quarter underreview as against Rs 981.15crore in the correspondingquarter of the previous fiscal.

The country'sengineeringshipments contribute25 % to the overallmerchandise exports

ABB India Jul-Sep net profit soars to Rs 79 crWe will definitely bringthe OccupationalSafety, Health and

Working Conditions (OSH) Code,2019, in the Budget Session

SANTOSH GANGWARLabour Minister

A RAPID CHANGE IN THE INCIDENCE, WITHIN A GENETICALLY STABLEPOPULATION, IMPLIES THAT NON-GENETIC FACTORS ARE ACTIVEAND THAT THE INFLUENCE OF GENES IS RELATIVE TO POPULATION,TIME, AND PLACE. IT SUGGESTS THAT SOMETHING HAS CHANGED INTHE ENVIRONMENT OUR CHILDREN ENCOUNTER OR IN THE WAY THEYARE REARED

any people knowthat Children’sDay is celebratedon November 14in memory ofPandit Jawahar Lal

Nehru. But a lesser-knownfact is that November 14 isalso commemorated asWorld Diabetes Day. The co-occurrence of both days issymbolic as there has been arise in the number of chil-dren having diabetes.

In the early 20th-century,childhood diabetes wasincredibly rare. This was fol-lowed by a steep rise in thenumber of recorded casesduring the mid-20th centuryand the trend has been risingsince.

“People with Type-1 dia-betes need to take insulinevery day to stay alive whileType-2 diabetes is when thebody doesn’t make or useinsulin well. A recent studyhas found that the rate ofdiabetes in children andteens rose between the years2002 to 2012. The researchersreported an increase in therates of both Type-1 andType-2 diabetes,” states NIH(News In Health) a monthlynewsletter.

But what may be the causebehind children being affect-ed by diabetes at such earlystages of their life? In answerto this question, DrLakshman, Professor,

Department of CommunityMedicine, Osmania MedicalCollege, said, “As time passes,each generation is less likelyto avail fresh, natural food.The food given to childrensince their childhood is moreoften than not lined with sat-urated fats, artificial sugarsetc. Certain toxic chemicalsare branded as edible as well.Such foods may lead to sev-eral diseases. Diabetes maybe a more prevalent diseasebut it’s just one of the severaldiseases this generation faces,most of which are food-borne.”

The changing demographyof childhood diabetes hasmajor implications for ourunderstanding of the disease.A rapid change in the inci-dence, within a geneticallystable population, impliesthat non-genetic factors areactive and that the influenceof genes is relative to popula-tion, time, and place. It sug-gests that something haschanged in the environmentour children encounter or inthe way they are reared.

“Being overweight is closelytied to the development ofType-2 diabetes. Overweightchildren have an increasedlikelihood of insulin resis-tance. As the body strugglesto regulate insulin, high bloodsugar leads to a number ofpotentially serious healthproblems,” says Dr Deepa

Agarwal, Chief Nutritionist atTanvir Hospital.

Responding to the futurecomplications that childrencould face due to the onsetof diabetes at a young ageshe said, “Heart and bloodvessel diseases such as coro-nary artery disease withchest pain (angina), heartattack, stroke, narrowing ofthe arteries (atherosclerosis)and high blood pressurelater in life for one. Nervedamage is yet another prob-lem. Excess sugar can injurethe walls of the tiny bloodvessels that nourish yourchild’s nerves, especially inthe legs. This causes tin-gling, numbness, burningsensation and even pain.Nerve damage usually hap-pens over a long period oftime. Kidney damage, eyedamage, skin conditions,osteoporosis are other pos-sible problems that mayaccompany diabetes in thefuture.”

She adds, “Helping yourchild maintain good bloodsugar is very important.Also, teaching your child theimportance of eating healthyand participating in regularphysical activity goes a longway. Another importantaspect that cannot be over-looked is scheduling regularvisits with your child’s dia-betes doctor and a yearly eyeexam beginning no more

than five years after the ini-tial diabetes diagnosis.”

“Public health/communitymedicine is an importantsubject that is provided inseveral medical fields but inmost cases, it is taken very

lightly. Public health in-charges are meant to beincorporated into policymak-ing. This is a major issue thatI wish policymakers lookinto,” concludes DrLakshman.

While Nehru is remembered onNovember 14, people often skip

looking into the prevalence ofanother important issue in

society, that is, the rise in thenumber of diabetes casesinvolving children, writesANUSHKA PRADEEP

M

‘BURN FAT AWAY TOKEEP DIABETES AT BAY'

The food given to childrensince their childhood ismore often than not linedwith saturated fats,artificial sugars etc.Certain toxic chemicalsare branded as edible aswell. Such foods may leadto several diseases

DR LAKSHMAN

An important aspect thatcannot be overlooked isscheduling regular visitswith your child’sdiabetes doctor and ayearly eye exambeginning no more thanfive years after the initialdiabetes diagnosis

DR DEEPA

heatre, as an artform has under-gone variouschanges over theyears with changesin cultures and

advancements in technology.Gone are the days when the-atre groups used to travelvarious places to stage social-ly relevant plays. In the early1900s, street plays played akey role in spreading aware-ness among people.

Later came cultural centreswhere one could watchsocially relevant plays. But,with technology makingeverything simpler and rightat our fingertips, peoplestopped going out to watchthese plays. This has resultedin a reduction in the audi-ence members at theatres.

Bhoomika Theatre Grouphas found an innovative solu-tion to this issue by comingup with a new concept calledMungitlo Naatakam (Theatreat your doorstep), where thegroup visits various coloniesin the city and stages plays.

Speaking to The Pioneer,Udaya Bhanu Garikapati,director of the group, said,“Theatre today is diminish-ing and people have forgottenthe charm of seeing storiescome to life in front of themas a live performance. Even ifpeople are interested to gowatch plays, the sheer timeand energy it takes to travelin traffic discourages many.So to bring back that magicwe came up with MungitloNaatakam.”

However, this is not thefirst time the group hastried to introduce this con-cept. He shares, “This con-cept was introduced by us inthe early 2000’s, where wetravelled to differentcolonies and societies inHyderabad and performedplays in community centresand halls. This year, we arebringing it back to help youexperience the joy andmagic of theatre withouthassles like travelling orpurchasing costly tickets.”

When they started stagingplays at colonies, they usedto distribute pamphletsabout what they were goingto perform a day before andinvite people for the show.Usually they stage plays onSundays and disseminate theinformation on Saturdays.

Udaya Bhanu said that theidea is to get the theatreaudience back to the people.All they need is power sup-ply and an area to perform.The rest is taken care of bythem. Bhoomika TheatreGroup specialises in theatrefor children and has stagedmany plays for them.

Udaya Bhanu shares,“This attempt is to get moreaudience as the audience hasbeen decreasing every yeardue to traffic and distance. Ibelieve that many will havethe chance to watch playsthanks to this initiative.”

People who want to wit-ness live theatre at theircolonies can contact atbhoomikatheatre@gmail.com

Theatre at yourDOORSTEP

Bhoomika Theatre Group has come upwith an innovative concept called

‘Theatre at your doorstep' to stagesocially relevant plays that reach a

wider audience, finds V SATEESH REDDY

T

Theatre today isdiminishing and peoplehave forgotten thecharm of seeing storiescome to life in front ofthem as a liveperformance. Even ifpeople are interested togo watch plays, thesheer time and energy ittakes to travel in trafficdiscourages many. Soto bring back that magicwe came up withMungitlo NaatakamUDAYA BHANU GARIKAPATI

ThursdayNovember 14, 2019

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Vijayawada Thursday November 14, 2019

FUN TIME

Rules

ARCHIE

GARFIELD

SUDOKU

REALITY CHECK SPEED BUMP CROSSWORD

GINGER MEGGS

NANCY

CALVIN AND HOBBES

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

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

Yesterday’s solution

what’s brewing?Christian Bale cursedout by Dick Cheneyover movie portrayal

cademy award-winningactor Christian Balelearned former US VicePresident Dick Cheneydespised his portrayal inVice through a rude

message he received from anotherparent at his son’s school.

The Dark Knight Rises stargained weight to play the politicianin the 2018 biopic, and althoughhis on screen performance wonhim an Oscar nomination, itappears Cheney was notimpressed with the film,reports aceshowbiz.com.

Bale says he onlyfound out aboutCheney’s disdain for theproject through a mutu-al acquaintance.

“Strangely enough itwas through my son’sschool,” the actor recalledto Yahoo! Entertainment.

“One of the mums was

at a party that (Cheney) was at,and she said, “Oh, I’m going to beseeing Christian tomorrow, youhave anything to say to him?”And he said, “Tell him he’s ad**k.’”

Bale initially took the remark as ajoke, but Cheney wasn’t laughingwhen he said it, “I went, ‘Oh, atleast he’s got a sense of humour,’” heshared. “And she said, ‘No, there

was no humour to it what-soever’”.

The Brit had previ-ously said he was-

n’t granted ameeting with

PresidentGeorge W. Bush’snumber twoprior to theshoot, so hecould only hopethat Cheney waspleased with the

film.

A

Peter Andre’sstrict dating

rules fordaughter

inger PeterAndre says he isgoing to be verystrict when hisdaughter,Princess, 12,

starts dating someone.He found it funny to

find out chef GordonRamsay’s daughter Tillydating chef GinoD’Acampo’s son Luciano.However, Pete admits hewouldn’t be happy if he wasin Gordon’s position,reports mirror.co.uk.

In his column for a mag-azine, he wrote: “As some-one on the outside, I thinkit’s brilliant (that Tilly isdating Luciano), but if Ifound myself in a similarposition to Gordon and wewere talking aboutPrincess, I’m not sure I’d be

laughing.“Unless the lad’s dad was

a priest, the mum a nunand the boyfriend was inthe church choir, in whichcase I’d fully support therelationship.”

He added: “I said to herand (son) Junior they’llneed to be extra carefulwhen they’re older becausewhatever they get up to, itwill always get back to theparents because of socialmedia.

“So the advice I’ve giventhem before they do any-thing is, ‘Would dad like itif he saw it?’”

Princess and Junior, 14,are Peter’s children fromhis marriage to Katie Price.He also has two youngerchildren, Amelia and Theo,with his current wife Emily.

S

ctor Sonu Sood has decided to help theIndian Badminton team for the annualSpecial Olympics Asia Pacific.

Besides motivating them personally,Sonu has also sponsored their travel andstay during the Special Olympics, which

is being held in Bangkok.According to a source, the Happy New Year actor

is taking keen interest in their training and is in con-stant touch with the coach to check if there is any-thing that the team requires for the championship.

“Sonu has always held sports in the highestregard. When he got to know that our Indian bad-minton team will be going for such a prestigiouscompetition, he didn’t think twice before offering hishelp. He is really excited to see how these six playersperform and make India proud,” the source added.

“I wish them best of luck and I’m sure they willmake India proud. My all support to them,” Sonusaid.

A

Sonu Sood lendssupport to IndianBadminton team

aving gone to sets earlier this July, thefilming of Sai Tej and RaashiKhanna-starrer Prathiroju Pandage,except for a song, has beenwrapped up. Directed by Maruthiand produced by Bunny Vass,

the film is an emotional comedy entertain-er, with Satyaraj playing a key supportingrole. Recently, the film’s unit has been toUS to shoot a small schedule. The pendingsong will be shot soon in picturesque loca-tions.

Speaking about the film, Maruthi hadearlier told us, “In my earlier films I mir-rored the day-to-day happenings of societyin an entertaining way. Prathiroju Pandagefollows the same template. It’s a film whichcelebrates death. Satyaraj’s part is about to diebut he believes in living his life to the fullest,celebrating every day and so, the title. It’s astory which every household will connect. Saiwill be playing his NRI grandson.”

The film’s promotions have kicked off andfrom the end of this month; the makers arekeen to amp upmarketing activityfurther. With SaiTej’s last Chitralaharidoing decent busi-ness, expectationssurrounding this newfilm, which will open onDecember 20, are high.

fter announcing thata remake is beingmade on Marathisuper hit Natsamratin Telugu as RangaMarthaanda with

Prakash Raj and Ramya Krishnalast month, filmmaker KrishnaVamsi has now signed on mae-stro Ilaiyaraaja to composemusic. This would be the sec-ond time the famed tunesmithwill be rendering music for afilm of Krishna Vamsi. They’veearlier created magic withAnthapuram in 1998. One ofthe film’s songs, Asalemgurthuku raadu... is still afavourite for many.

Going by his latest tweets,the filmmaker has already start-ed music sessions with the mae-stro in Chennai. His friend andactor Prakash Raj too accompa-nied him. “Fortunate n blessedto b associated with the godagain for RANGA-MAARTHANDA..... ThQ sir(sic),” wrote Krishna Vamsi onTwitter on Tuesday evening. Asource says Ranga Marthaandarequired composer ofIlaiyaraaja’s stature and bothVamsi and Prakash Raj are gladthat the Padma Vibhushan

recipient is on board. The film is a joint production

venture between AbhishekJawkar and Madhu Kalipu, withVamsi’s another best friendUttej tasked to adapt the scriptto Telugu tastes.

Natsamrat (2016) told thestory of a veteranShakespearean actor (played byNana Patekar) who retires from

the stage and into painfultragedy of old age, facingungrateful family and his fleet-ing legacy. The film was thescreen adaptation of notedMarathi playwrightKusumagraj’s iconic Marathiplay Natsamrat which was firststaged in 1970. Prakash Raj willbe stepping into the shoes ofPatekar.

ansika Motwani is an easy-going person who enjoyscomedies and popcornentertainers in real life, sowhen an opportunity to be apart of a full-length enter-

tainer like Tenali Ramakrishna BA BLcame her way, there was no way thatshe could’ve overlooked it. In the court-room crime comedy slated to hit the-atres tomorrow, she plays a lawyer.“She’s a flop with her profession. Shethinks of herself as a big lawyer butisn’t. All the sections that she reels outin the film turn out to be factuallyincorrect. She chooses the professionbecause of her father who is renownedlawyer. She is innocent. How Tenalihelps her and how she supports himlater in a case is what the film dealswith,” Hansika shares.

Smiling wide, she adds, “If not anactor, I would’ve been a lawyer in reallife. When I was pursuing my 11th stan-dard, a thought that I should pursue lawcrossed my mind as I was good at argu-ing. But I’m glad that I’ve become anactor and I’m extremely happy with myprofession.”

Talking about profession, how doesshe look back at her 12-year journey tillnow? “I got better than what I asked for.I'm happy with the choices I have madetill now but there’s a lot more toachieve. This is just the begin-ning. Work is everything tome and I want to keepentertaining further. I’mnot an insecure actress.I come with my ownconfidence and I knowwherever I go, I will

make my mark. I want every-one to do well, so that there isno negativity around me,” sheasserts.

Of late, she has limited herwork in Telugu, making herpresence felt in every twoyears. Her last Telugu film wasGopichand-starrer GowtamNanda (2017). Is it a consciousdecision or is that offers fromTelugu have dried up? “I’vebeen extremely busy in Tamil. Ihave four-five films out there torelease. When I have dates and ifthe content pleases me, languageis never a barrier to me. In factfor Tenali Ramakrishna BA BL,Nageswara Reddy garu had towait for my dates but it worked outvery well in the end,” she clarifies.

The actress was in the news recentlyfor signing Bhagamathie director GAshok’s next endeavour, a web seriesfor streaming giant Amazon Prime. Sheadmits she watches a lot of shows onAmazon and Netflix and is glad thatshe is a part of a web series, as they arethe thing now. “It’s a thriller which hasbeen mostly shot during nights. Mypart has different shades to it and it’sabout how she overcomes big hurdlesin her life. I couldn’t get a breather atall on sets as I’m spearheading it. Its

being shot in Telugu and will bedubbed into other languages.

In another three days, I willcomplete my portions.It will start streaming

early next year,”she signs off.

GOT MORETHAN WHAT I ASKED FOR:Hansika onher career

Actress Hansika talks toNAGARAJ GOUD about her

role in Tenali Ramakrishna BABL, her packed

schedule withmany Tamil

movies inthe kitty,

the choiceof stories

she’slooking,

etc.,

Vijayawada Thursday November 14, 2019

H

H

A

11

tollywoodRajasekhar escapes unhurtin road mishap on ORR

ctor Rajasekhar had anarrow escape after hisblack Mercedes metwith an accident lateon Tuesday night atHyderabad’s Outer

Ring Road (ORR) near PeddaGolconda. He sustained a minorcut on his forehead. He was onhis way back to home fromRamoji Film City and was travel-ling alone when the mishap tookplace.

As rumours spread thick andfast that he sustained multipleinjuries, the actor issued a state-ment on Wednesday morning,saying he was safe and that heinformed the police about theincident before reaching home.

Recalling the incident, he said,“On Tuesday night, while I wasreturning to home from RamojiFilm City via Outer Ring Road, Imet with an accident at theGolconda Appa Junction. Seeingthe condition of my vehicle, com-muters on the road came to myrescue and brought me out of thevehicle. They recognised me as anactor. I borrowed their phone andimmediately informed the policeand my family members.”

Blaming flat tyre as the cause ofaccident, Rajasekhar’s wifeJeevitha said, as soon he returnedhome, his doctor friend examinedhim and said the condition ofRajasekhar was okay. “He wasgiven first aid to the cut on his

forehead and advised some painkillers. The police asked me togive a statement after Rajasekharrecovers and we would be doing itsoon,” Jeevitha said.

Rajasekhar is not new to roadaccidents. More than two yearsago when his career was notgoing great guns, he met with anaccident, hitting another car inthe process. When reportsemerged that he was drivingunder the influence of alcohol, hesaid he was on anti-depressionpills as he was recovering fromthe death of his mother.

Incidentally, three challans arepending on his car (TS 07 FZ1234) for over speeding and dan-gerous driving.

A

Ilaiyaraaja, Krishna VamsiRE-TEAM AFTER 21 YEARS

roducer Shoba Rani,who has distributedTamil films likeThuppakki, Billa 2and Puli in Telugu,

under her SVR Media, hasnow shifted focus to producingoriginal content. She is plan-ning to produce five Telugufilms next year and has alreadystarted groundwork for the

same. The scripts for the fivefilms have been locked, whileShoba is on the hunt for suit-able actors and technicians totake them forward. The idea isto encourage fresh talent, shesays. Aspiring actors and tech-nicians can reach out to star-making2020@gmail.com withtheir profiles to bag a chancein her production ventures.

It's a wrap forPrathirojuPandage

P

SHOBA RANI toproduce originalcontent

INDORE: He is new to captaincy but Bangladeshskipper Mominul Haque is confident that theadded responsibility will not affect his batting,which will be crucial to his team’s chances ofupstaging an accomplished India in the Testseries.

The 28-year-old Mominul has replacedShakib Al hasan as five-day format skipper.

“I am not feeling pressure just because Ihave been appointed captain. The way I bat-ted before captaincy, I will bat in the same waynow,” said the left-hander, who is also theteam’s premier batsman with eight hundreds.

“I always try to think about the positiveaspects. There are a few positives in beingcaptain as well. Your knowledge about thegame increases. You tend to become moreresponsible as a player. So I think, it will helpme improve my performance,” he added.

Mominul feels that since expectationsfrom his side are not particularly high, the pres-sure is also a bit less.

Asked about India’s pace bowling might,Mominul said: “India is such a team that theycan challenge different opponents in differentways.

“May be they will challenge us with spin

attack. We are ready to face both spin and paceattack challenge from India. Definitely, it willbe tough for us. But we are preparing to faceit.”

Asked what has changed in Bangladeshcricket in nearly two decades from the timethey first played a Test in 2000, Mominulpointed at the attitudinal shift.

“I think the mentality of players haschanged. Players have become more disci-plined. Also they are more eager to play five-day games as well,” he said.

While Virat Kohli termed MustafizurRahaman as a threat, Mominul didn’t disclosewhether the pacer will be a part of playing XI.

“We have not planned about the team andthe playing eleven has not been selected yet.You will know tomorrow (today) if he plays,”he said.

Asked about missing Shakib and TamimIqbal, Mominul said others are more aware inthe absence of the two stalwarts.

“I think three players are missing becauseShakib bhai is equal to two players. Yes, it willbe challenging. But there is no scope of think-ing about it too much now,” he said. PTI

PTI n INDORE

The action begins with thered cherry but the focus isfirmly on the pink ball as a

formidable India looks to over-power a depleted-but-grittyBangladesh in the first Test of atwo-match series starting here atHolkar stadium today.

The rubber opens here but thebuzz and the talk has been con-sistently centered on the secondgame in Kolkata, which will beplayed under lights — a historicfirst for both the teams.

This is also that one series inthe World Test Championship cal-endar, in which Virat Kohli’s men,currently in the “pink of form”, cansteamroll the rag-tag oppositionwell inside four days.

In fact, on paper, it is difficultto imagine how Bangladesh, with-out Tamim Iqbal and the suspend-ed Shakib Al Hasan, will even beable to compete in a format,which has been their weakest tilldate.

Having crushed South Africain their last series, this Indianteam, with inarguably their great-est-ever pace unit till date, willdefinitely be too hot to handle fora side whose best batsman —skipper Mominul Haque — hasless than 10 Test hundreds (eight).

Although Mushfiqur Rahimand Mahmudullah Riyad arecommitted cricketers but in thelongest format, they aren’t exact-ly formidable names.

Compare that to India’s pre-mier willow wielders — Kohli (26hundreds), Ajinkya Rahane (11),Cheteshwar Pujara (18). Theyhave 50 plus ton collectively andit will be one hell of a task forMustafizur Rahaman, Taijul Islamand Mehidy Hasan Miraj to stopthis line-up.

And before these three evencome into play, Bangladesh willhave to deal with openers MayankAgarwal and the indomitableRohit Sharma, who can makemincemeat of their bowlingattack.

Add to it, India’s bowlingunit with 800-plus scalps, this isone contest where the ‘David’looks incapable of slaying theproverbial ‘Goliath’.

Not to forget that Bangladesh,in their last Test match under the

mercurial Shakib’s leadership, lostto Afghanistan in a one-off game.

The Indians, however, do notwant to take anything for grant-ed.

“Bangladesh is a very goodteam. We played very well againstSouth Africa but that’s past now.With (World) Test Championship,every match is equally important.We like to take one game at a timewhich is Indore now,” vice-captainRahane said.

“We completely respect the

Bangladesh team and we aregoing to play to our strengthrather than thinking about theirs,”he added.

The track at the Holkar sta-dium has always been a battingparadise with ridiculously shortside boundaries but there isbounce on offer.

Mohammed Shami andUmesh Yadav are certainties inthe pace line-up while RavindraJadeja and Ravichandran Ashwinare expected to make the squad.

Kohli indicated that IshantSharma will be playing as thethird seamer instead of an addi-tional spinner.

“Yeah that seems pretty like-ly looking at the pitch. Alsobecause of the way Umesh hasbowled, Shami obviously hasbeen brilliant. Bumrah isn’t fit yet.Ishant’s probably been our mostconsistent bowler in the last twoyears and a big big reason for oursuccess in Test cricket is his abil-ity to just keep bowling in thesame area and the others comeand pick up wickets,” he said.

“But also he has picked up 4-5 wickets on many occasionswhen he’s gone through a greatspell. So I think his experiencewill always be handy for theteam.”

For Bangladesh’s young guns,the ‘biggest test’ in the Test willbe to stretch this Indian team to

the fifth day which looks unlike-ly at the moment.

SQUADSIndia (12): Rohit Sharma,Mayank Agarwal, CheteshwarPujara, Virat Kohli (captain),Ajinkya Rahane, Ravindra Jadeja,Wriddhiman Saha (wk),Ravichandran Ashwin,Mohammed Shami, UmeshYadav, Ishant Sharma, KuldeepYadav. Reserves: Shubman Gill,Hanuma Vihari, Rishabh Pant.Bangladesh: Mominul Haque(captain), Imrul Kayes,Mushfiqur Rahim (wk),Mahmudullah Riyad,Mohammed Mithun, LitonKumar Das, Mehidy Hasan Miraj,Mustafizur Rahaman, NaeemHasan, Saif Hasan, ShadmanIslam, Taijul Islam, Abu Jayed,Ebadot Hossain, Al AminHossain.

sport 12VIJAYAWADA | THURSDAY | NOVEMBER 14, 2019

PTI n INDORE

The pink ball swings more than thered one but how it would behave

after getting old, especially when dewwill be a factor, is keeping India skip-per Virat Kohli intrigued ahead ofteam’s historic day-night Test.

The pink ball Test is still a fewdays away but Kohli, on the eve of theseries-opener, was busy answeringquestions related to the second Teststarting November 22.

“I think it’s a new way to bringexcitement to Test cricket. The pinkball I played yesterday (on Tuesday),I felt it swings a lot more as comparedto the red ball because there’s extralacquer (quote of paint) on the ballwhich doesn’t go away too fast. Andthe seam holds upright quite a bit,”the skipper’s initial observationseemed in sync with what his deputyAjinkya Rahane had assessed.

Kohli said they are yet to figureout how the old ball will behave dur-ing November evenings in Kolkata.

“If the pitch has extra help for thebowlers, then they will be in thegame, especially fast bowlersthroughout the course of the Testmatch. I don’t know how the old ballbehaves because with the dew and thelacquer going off, it will be interest-ing to see how much the old balldoes,” the skipper said.

However he made it clear that fora pink ball to be effective, it is impor-tant to have lively tracks.

“With the pink ball havingenough life in the pitch will be veryimportant factor.”

The Indian team did not practicewith the pink ball under lights but didtake a few throw-downs on Tuesdayto adjust to the colour of the new ball.

“I hadn’t played with the pinkball before. I was given an opportu-nity to try and I wanted to. So thatwas my mind-set behind playing withthe pink ball. You require extra con-centration to pick the pink ball sud-denly when you’re playing with thered ball.

“It was to work on the reflexes alittle bit as well. Because when youplay with the red ball in the net andyou arrive at the pink ball, it gets verydifficult to pick, which can be the casein the game as well. To get into thatzone was the reason behind it,” heexplained.

The skipper also maintainedthat while the hype about the day-night Test is understandable, thefocus of his team is firmly on the firstgame. A testimony to that was no‘pink ball’ training on the eve of thematch.

“In Test cricket, I don’t think youcan afford to take focus away. Noteven one session, not even one over.With the red ball you need to beabsolutely precise in your focus,every game that you play, every ballthat you play, every situation that youare in. Our prime focus is tomorrow’sTest match.

“We are looking forward to thatfirst and then we will focus on thepink ball later,” he made it clear.

On the opposition, Kohli termedMustafizur Rahaman as the man towatch out for.

“He is a very good bowler so he’sgoing be a threat, a key player forBangladesh. He’s an experiencedbowler. He knows the Indian bats-men as well, having played the IPL.So, it’s a challenge but we must lookforward to those challenges,” Kohlisaid.

PBL 55 TTO BBEGIN OON JJAN 220New Delhi: Some of the top shuttlers includingWorld Champion P V Sindhu will be in action whenthe fifth edition of the Premier Badminton League(PBL), featuring eight teams, gets underway onJanuary 20. The upcoming season whichconcludes on February 9 will be staged this time inChennai, Delhi, Lucknow, and Bangalore. Theleague owned by Badminton Association of India(BAI) and organized by Sportzlive, offers a totalpurse of `6 crore with the winner taking home acheque of `3 crore.

POORAN SSUSPENDED FFOR BBALL-TTAMPERINGDubai: West Indies wicketkeeper-batsman NicolasPooran was on Wednesday handed a four-matchsuspension after admitting to ball-tampering in thethird ODI against Afghanistan, an offence for whichhe also issued a public apology. He will now missthe next four T20 International games for the WestIndies and will have five demerit points added to hisrecord. The game in question took place inLucknow on Monday.

PERRY PPLANS RRECORD-BBREAKING SSHOWSydney: American popstar Katy Perry announcedon Wednesday she will be performing at the final ofthe Women's Twenty20 World Cup in Melbournenext March before an expected record crowd onInternational Women's Day. “Aussie Aussie AussieOi Oi Oi!” Perry said in an Instagram post using theAustralian sporting chant. “Let's break somerecords — join me in Melbourne on March 8, 2020for the ICC @T20WorldCup Women's Final. We'llRoar in support of these awesome women onInternational Women's Day!” The InternationalCricket Council said Perry would perform bothbefore and after the final in “what is anticipated tobe the biggest women's cricket match of all time.”

BOULT TTO PPLAY FFOR MMI, RRAJPOOT FFOR RRRNew Delhi: New Zealand fast bowler Trent Boultwill play for Mumbai Indians in next year's IndianPremier League while domestic pacer AnkitRajpoot will represent Rajasthan Royals after theywere successfully traded by their respectivefranchises. According to an IPL statement, Boultwill play for Mumbai Indians after being traded byhis current team Delhi Capitals, while Rajpoot hasbeen traded successfully by Kings XI Punjab. Boultmade his IPL debut in 2014 and played for DelhiCapitals in the 2018 and 2019 season. He has 38IPL wickets from 33 games. Rajpoot, a right-armfast bowler who joined KXIP in 2018, has played 23IPL matches and has 22 wickets in his kitty.

2019 WWORLD KKABADDI CCUP FFROM DDEC 11 TTO 99Chandigarh: The 2019 World Kabaddi Cup, to beorgainsed by the Punjab government, will be heldfrom December 1 to 9, state's Sports Minister RanaGurmit Singh Sodhi said on Wednesday. He alsosaid that this year's tournament would be dedicatedto the 550th birth anniversary of Sikh guru, GuruNanak Dev ji. Sodhi said nine teams -- India, USA,Australia, England, Sri Lanka, Kenya, New Zealand,Pakistan and Canada -- are expected to take part inthe tournament. He, however, informed thatPakistan and Canada are yet to get clearance fromthe Indian government. The inauguration of theevent would be held on December 1 at Guru NanakStadium, Sultanpur Lodhi and four matches wouldbe held that day. The closing ceremony would beheld at the Shaheed Bhagat Singh Sports Stadiumin Dera Baba Nanak.

JUVENILE HHOMES LLEAGUE LLAUNCH TTODAYNew Delhi: Football Delhi is all set to launch aJuvenile Homes Football League at JawaharlalNehru Stadium from November 14 to December15. This league is part of the Juvenile HomesFootball Programme, launched by Football Delhi incollaboration with the Department of Child andWomen's Development, Government of Delhi.Eight Juvenile Homes are part of this footballprogramme and 6 teams will be participating in thetournament.

6 MMEDALS AASSURED IIN AASIAN YYOUTH BBOXINGUlaanbaatar: India were assured of a bagful ofmedals at the Asian Youth Boxing C’ships after sixof the country's pugilists advanced to the semiswith dominating victories on Wednesday. Soy Selay(49kg), Aman (+91kg), Ankit Narwal (60kg),Naorem Chanu (51kg), Jasmine (57kg) and Vinka(64kg) made the last four stage. Selay defeatedPhilippines' Flint Jara 5-0, while Aman (+91kg) out-punched Taiwan's Kai-Hsung Wang in a bout thatdidn't go the full distance. Narwal was also upagainst a Taiwanese in Yu Lin and the Indianprevailed 5-0. In the women's draw, Chanu claimeda 5-0 triumph over Korea's Eunsu Sun. Jasmineand Vinka were both rewarded for domination withearly closure. While Jasmine got the better ofJapan's Kimura Mona, Vinka sailed past Taiwan'sHsueh-Tzu Tsui. AGENCIES

SINGLES

IANS n NEW DELHI

The first six overs in a T20game is considered the

most crucial as both the bat-ting and bowling team look tograb early advantage and withthe World T20 in Australialess than a year away, Indiaopener Shikhar Dhawan isvery clear that for him it willbe all about attacking fromthe word go Down Under.

Dhawan said that even asevery team and every individ-ual is playing with an eye onthe showpiece event, he does-n’t really have any special plan.All he wants to do is keep itsimple and start on the attackbefore settling down and pro-viding the middle order theperfect platform to finishwith a flourish.

“The plan is to play a niceattacking game as an openerin the first six overs andbuild a good total. I like toplay aggressive and if somewicket is slow or if the ball isstopping on it, then obvious-ly the plan changes according-ly. If we can manage to get say

50-55 runs in the first sixovers, then the momentum isthere for a good finish. My jobwill be to primarily start welland then score big. Smart andattacking game is my mantrafor the T20 format,” he smiled.

Asked if it will be aboutone between him and RohitSharma playing anchor asthe other attacks, Dhawananswered in the negative.

“Play as per the situation.If some day Rohit is attackingand I am not being able toconnect well, then that is dif-ferent. But otherwise, I don’tbelieve that only one batsmancan attack. If your game is toattack, then you must staynatural. Also, when you attackfrom both sides then thepressure is on the opposition,”he explained.

While Indian teams overthe years have been all aboutits batsmen, the current teamhas some of the best bowlersand Dhawan feels that is thereason why this team has wonconsistently both at homeand on foreign soil.

“It is matter of tremen-dous pride that we have ateam of bowlers who actual-ly put the opposition bats-men on the backfoot. I feelthe bowling line-up is one ofthe major reasons that we arewinning consistently andalso along with the pacebowling attack, we also havethe experience to adapt. Theytrain as professionals andknow their job very well,” he

explained.While he is one of the

first names when the playingXI for the limited-overs teamis announced, lack of formhas seen him miss the bus inthe longer format. ButDhawan isn’t ready to give upand wants to return with abang.

“Absolutely looking toget back. I am always on forTest cricket and when I getthe opportunity (in domes-tic cricket) I will be playing.I will play Ranji Trophywhen I am free. I will not sitat home. When I am notplaying all the three for-mats, I will definitely playdomestic cricket,” he said.

Dhawan also said thatTeam India will be one of thefavourites to win the trophycome the World T20 nextyear.

“We are strong con-tenders. From now onwardswe will play so many T20sthat we will get refined andbe ready for the World T20.I am sure that we will do real-ly well there,” he said.

PTI nMELBOURNE

Australian legend AdamGilchrist has described

Harbhajan Singh as his “neme-sis”, saying the Indian off-spin-ner and Sri Lanka’s MuttiahMuralitharan were the twotoughest bowlers that he facedduring his international career.

Talking about his illustri-ous career’s milestones andmemorable moments, thewicketkeeper recalled the 2001away Test series against Indiawhere Harbhajan starred withthe ball.

“He (Harbhajan) was abit of a nemesis for me rightthroughout my career. I foundhim and Murali probably thetwo hardest bowlers to face,”Gilchrist told cricket.Com.Auin their “The UnplayablePodcast”.

The 2001 series, consid-ered one of India’s finest, sawthe hosts break Australia’s 16-match win streak in Tests.

While the visitors won thefirst Test by 10 wickets,

Harbhajan wreaked havoc onAustralia helping India win theremaining two Tests.

“(We were) five for 99, Iwent in there, got a hundred off80 balls, we won in three daysand I just thought, ‘What havethese blokes been doing for 30years. How easy’s this?’”Gilchrist said.

Harbhajan, who wasadjudged Man of the series,picked 32 wickets in threematches, including India’s firstTest hat-trick at the EdenGardens in Kolkata duringthe second Test.

“And how wrong I was.We’ve only got to fast forwardto the next Test match and Icame back to reality,” Gilchristsaid.

“As it would turn out, bythe end of that series we prob-ably needed to learn how to puta handbrake on just to get aholding pattern, rather than‘attack, attack, attack’ becauseit doesn’t always work —Harbhajan bamboozled us,”he added.

India vs BangladeshLive from 9:30am ISTSTAR SPORTS 1 NETWORK

Indian pacer Ishant Sharma bowls at nets during India’s practice session ahead of 1st Test against Bangladesh PTI

India aim to buildon early World TestChampionship leadagainst Bangladesh

REDALERT

INDIA-BBANGLADESH IIN TTESTSVenue Played Ind won Ban won DrawnIn B’desh 8 6 - 2In India 1 1 - -Total 9 7 - 2

HIGHEST IINNINGS TTOTALSIndia: 687- 6 dec at Hyderabad 2016-17B’desh: 400 at Bangabandhu Stadium, Dhaka 2000

HIGHEST IINDIVIDUAL SSCORESIndia: 248* Sachin Tendulkar at Dhaka 2004B’desh: 158* Mohammed Ashraful at Chittagong 2004

BEST BBOWLING IIN AAN IINNINGSIndia: 7-87 Zaheer Khan at Mirpur,Dhaka 2004B’desh: 6-132 Naim-ur-Rehman at Dhaka 2000

BEST BBOWLING IIN AA MMATCHIndia: 11-96 Irfan Pathan at Mirpur, Dhaka 2004B’desh: 7-174 Shakib Al Hasan at Chittagong 2010

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