First India-Jaipur Edition-11 November 2020

AHMEDABAD l WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2020 l Pages 12 l 3.00 RNI NO. GUJENG/2019/16208 l Vol 1 l Issue No. 347

AS LORD RAM

COMES TO AYODHYA WE ARRIVE IN YOUR

Hearts Dear Reader,

U

UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath

ttar Pradesh is the heart of the nation. Even the Prime Minister of the country Narendra Modi represents this state, which is culturally rich and politically sensitive. It means more reasons for First India - which heralded from the historical city of Jaipur - to mirror the vibrance of Lucknow. On its journey, First India also made Ahmedabad its karmbhoomi. Now with three editions, First India is all set to make a mark in the journalistic canvas at a time when leading newspapers in the country are shrinking their horizon. Under Aditya Nath Yogi leadership, the state is all set to celebrate the upcoming Diwali festival in an exceptionally colourful manner, where not only lord Rama Temple and its surrounding sites, but the entire Ayodhya and especially 300 religious sites would be illuminated with colourful lights, a world-class scenario in its own way.

In fact, Chief Minister Yogi is lucky and fortunate to have direct access and supervisory guidance benefit from his two principal mentors i.e. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Even on Monday, the Prime Minister launched 16 new projects for Varanasi area with an estimated cost of 220 crores. In such an enthusiastic development scenario, First India will try to bring a positive sense of journalism in Uttar Pradesh and will try to function as a powerful bridge between the people and the state government of Uttar Pradesh. Therefore, the paper’s Editorial policy will be largely focused on a free, fair and independent journalism, but with intelligent support to the Chief Minister for his government’s public welfare schemes, especially meant for the upliftment of the poor. So, come and join hands to build a new Uttar Pradesh.

I would also like to avail this opportunity to convey our heartiest greetings on the upcoming historical festival of Diwali, with a new sense of enthusiasm and prosperity.

Best Wishes Jagdeesh Chandra, CEO & Editor in Chief

Happy Diwali

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IN-DEPTH

BJP PROVES EXIT POLLS, JD-U NOW A JUNIOR PARTNER

AHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2020

02

SUSTENANCE OF EMPLOYEES IS CRUCIAL FOR BUSINESS STABILITY

A

s early trends showed the National Democratic Alliance of Bharatiya Janata Party-Janata Dal-United sweeping the Bihar Assembly election, exit polls which predicted a majority for the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD)-led Mahagathbandhan (MGB), seemed to fall flat. That all the exit polls were way off the target in making those projections became abundantly clear towards the evening.

In the cliff-hanger, the MGB with 113 seats had failed to move ahead of the NDA (122) at last count.

While fortunes fluctuated, the one clear outcome of the difficult-to-call election was BJP’s lead over Nitish Kumar’s JD-U. At one stage the count was BJP 72, a gain of 19 seats, and JD-U 43, a loss of 29 seats. Political analysts believed that it was BJP’s plot to ease Nitish out from power and take the state’s charge in its hands. Chirag Paswan, leader of the Lok Janshakti Party (LJP), became a willing partner and BJP’s proxy in this game of thrones by turning against Nitish. One could say that but for LJP Nitish’s party would have fared much better. Not that the LJP was any gainer. As it cut into JD-U votes, Chirag himself had to be content with no seat. Pavan Verma, Nitish’s aide until he was expelled, has been vocal about BJP’s plan. “The BJP seems to have achieved its goal of reducing Nitish Kumar to junior partner, which was the goal of Chirag Paswan move,” Verma was quoted as saying. He was the one to point out that not once did Prime Minister Narendra Modi “reprimand” Chirag for his strong criticism of Nitish. On his part, Nitish did sense trouble and even expressed his displeasure but could do little else.

With BJP now the bigger party, Nitish will have to wait for the prime minister to keep his promise of making him the chief minister. But given his weakened position, will Nitish agree? Moreover, will BJP legislators let go of the historic opportunity to lead a coalition government in Bihar? As the BJP was better placed to form the government, there were speculations about Nitish’s next move.

The other surprise was Asaduddin Owaisi’s All-India Majlise-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) grabbing five seats and the performance of Left parties. The CPI-M, CPI-ML, and CPI, the main beneficiaries of the MGB, together won 17 seats in a return of the communist influence in Bihar’s hinterland.

No election is complete without complaints against returning officers. The same happened in Bihar with the JD-U complaining to the EC about foul play.

This is the second time that exit polls have gone wrong in predicting poll outcomes in Bihar. In 2015 the exit polls were off the mark by a huge margin. The exit polls then predicted an edge for the BJP and allies over RJD and the JD-U. When results came, BJP was reduced to around 58 seats with RJD-JD-U grabbing 178 seats.

BHAVESH UPADHYAY BUSINESS/ HR EXPERT

T Many business houses are still feeling inadequacy of employees and especially lack of skilled and capable employees. In such circumstances, to employ fresh employees is a very sought after and good option for companies and most of them recruit fresh graduates straight out of campus/ institutes

he success in business is mostly dependent on employees and youngsters especially, who with their enthusiasm and innovation lead the company towards growth. In most companies across India, youth is especially given much importance and managements always aim at getting the youth associated with the company as much and as long as possible. The path of growth is back on track in India, because of which big and small business houses are making huge leaps. Whether the company is small or big, the question of human resources management is an area that puts everyone in dismay.

Many business houses are still feeling inadequacy of employees and especially lack of skilled and capable employees.

In such circumstances, to employ fresh employees is a very sought after and good option for companies and most of them recruit fresh graduates straight out of campus/ institutes. India has witnessed a revolution in the field of education because of which enough manpower is available but it hasn’t solved the issues of the business houses because such

entry level employees quit the companies very quickly.

Recently an institute which is associated with human resources carried out a survey on the stability of entry level employees. It carried out survey of 1000 small and big companies across India. The results have been quite startling. Most of the entry level employees leave the company after a period of six months. According to the survey, the attrition rate will remain approximately 15 per cent but the possibility of attrition rate amongst newly employed is likely to remain 35 % and more.

This is truly mind-boggling and it is becoming an area of concern for the companies. The attrition rate in private limited firms is more whereas in PSUs, the rate of quitting jobs is relatively lesser. Automobile, OEM, Infrastructure, IT etc. show high attrition rate according to the survey, whereas in fields like Pharma, Textiles etc. the situation seems reasonably under control.

According to another survey, the rate of entry level employees quitting jobs is more in Engineering and IT industry. In medium sized companies, the attrition rate is even high. Whereas in food, FMCG, chemical, pharma, it is relatively lesser but is undoubtedly worrisome.

In the survey, interviews of CEOs and HR Managers were taken. Most of these professionals feel that to-

WHEN THE NEW YOUNG EMPLOYEES WERE QUESTIONED ABOUT THE REASON FOR QUITTING JOBS WITHIN NO TIME, MORE THAN 80 PERCENT WERE OF THE OPINION THAT EITHER THE KIND OF JOBS THAT WE WERE HANDED OVER TO THEM OR THEIR JOB PROFILES WEREN’T APPROPRIATE

day’s youth want to make a fast paced career graph.

They are unable to do one task uninterruptedly for a longer spell of time. It was also observed that in most companies, there are no special policies for entry level employees; they are just considered one amongst the rest. In few companies, there is a tradition of a mentor for entry level employees but very few companies implement this system. Many benefits have been observed due to this system and it has been quite successful in sustaining these entry level employees to their jobs.

When the new young employees were questioned about the reason for quitting jobs within no time, more than 80 percent were of the opinion that either the kind of jobs that we were handed over to them

What a Biden presidency will mean for race relations

T

he American public has had its say and for the first time in a generation denied a sitting president a second term.

United States President Donald Trump’s tenure lasted just four years, but in that time he dragged policy on an array of key issues in a dramatic new direction.

Joe Biden’s victory, confirmed by the Associated Press late morning on November 7, presents an opportunity to reset the White House agenda and put it on a different course.

Three scholars discuss what a Biden presidency may have in store in three key areas: race, the US Supreme Court and foreign policy.

RACISM, POLICING AND BLM PROTESTS The next four years under a Biden administration

will likely see improvements in racial justice. But to many, it will be a low bar to clear: President Donald Trump downplayed racist violence, egged on rightwing extremists and described Black Lives Matter as a “symbol of hate” during his four-year tenure.

Indeed, according to polls, most Americans agree that race relations have deteriorated under Trump.

Still, Biden is in some ways an unlikely president to advance a progressive racial agenda. In the 1970s, he opposed busing plans and stymied school desegregation efforts in Delaware, his home state. And in the mid-1990s he championed a federal crime bill that made incarceration rates for Black people worse. He bungled the hearings that brought Clarence Thomas to the Supreme Court by allowing

Republican senators to dismiss Anita Hill’s damning testimony of Thomas’ sexual harassment and by failing to allow other Black women to testify.

But that was then.

During the 2020 campaign, President-elect

Biden consistently spoke about problems stemming from systemic racism.

Many voters will be hoping that his actions over the next four years must match his campaign words.

One area that the Biden administration will surely

address is policing and racial justice. The Justice Department can bring accountability to police reform by returning to practices the Obama administration put in place to monitor and reform police departments, such as the use

of consent degrees. More difficult reforms require redressing how mass incarceration caused widespread voter disenfranchisement in Black American and Latino communities.

“My administration will incentivise states to automatically restore voting rights for individuals convicted of felonies once they have served their sentences,” Biden told The Washington Post.

Biden can help address how Americans think about and deal with unexamined racial biases through reversing the previous administration’s executive order banning anti-racism training and workshops. In so doing, Biden can build on psychological research on the bias to make American workplaces, schools and government agencies equitable, just places.

SOURCE: THE CONVERSATION

or their job profiles weren’t appropriate. “When we join the company, we have very high goals. We want to prove our mettle in the organization but are sadly given only paper work. This results in absolute disillusionment and we immediately look for other better job prospects.” Another recurring complaint is that what they study is never used in their job profile and neither are they given proper guidance.

One thing is very clear that if the company aspires to see growth in business, then the contribution of youth for a longer time is significantly required. The management and HR department should make special efforts to see that entry level employees are able to make fair amount of contribution and are able to stay for a longer time in the organization, for which appropriate environment needs to be created. It’s about giving due importance to entry level employees and also to see that the company derives adequate benefits.

Youth requires proper direction and guidance. If they are not given proper attention after recruitment, then they feel lack of enthusiasm. It’s a mandatory requirement that every young employee should be ideally given a proper mentor. So that any unrest that the employee faces, can be discussed and sorted with their mentor.

THE VIEWS EXPRESSED BY THE AUTHOR ARE PERSONAL

Top

TWEET Amit Shah @AmitShah I congratulate CM @NBirenSingh ji, @STikendraBJP and karyakartas of @BJP4Manipur unit on BJP’s resounding victory in the assembly by-polls. Grateful to the people of the state for their unwavering trust in BJP and PM @narendramodi’s commitment towards the development of Manipur.

Piyush Goyal @PiyushGoyal Braving COVID-19, economy getting back on track faster with trains carrying more goods, and retail visits going up. Indian Railways carried 13.2% more goods for the week ending 8 November, 2020 than in the same period last year.

Spiritual SPEAK

Little by Little. Through patience and repeated effort, The mind will become stilled in self.

—Bhagavad Gita

Vol 1 Issue No. 347 RNI NO. GUJENG/2019/16208. Printed and published by Anita Hada Sangwan on behalf of First Express Publishers. Printed at Bhaskar Printing Planet Survey No.148P, Changodar-Bavla Highway, Tal. Sanand, Dist. Ahmedabad.

Published at D/302 3rd Floor Plot No. 35 Titanium Square, Scheme No. 2, Thaltej Taluka, Ghatlodiya, Ahmedabad. Editor-In-Chief: Jagdeesh Chandra. Editor: Anita Hada Sangwan responsible for selection of news under the PRB Act

AHMEDABAD l WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2020 l Pages 12 l 3.00 RNI NO. GUJENG/2019/16208 l Vol 1 l Issue No. 347

RAMANI DID NOT MAKE STATEMENTS FOR PUBLIC GOOD BUT OUT OF VENGEANCE: AKBAR TELLS COURT

ALL MUST RESPECT TERRITORIAL INTEGRITY FOR REGIONAL CONNECTIVITY: PM MODI’S STERN MESSAGE TO CHINA OUR EDITIONS: JAIPUR, AHMEDABAD & LUCKNOW 17°C - 34°C

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MODI’S POPULARITY DEFIES ALL EXIT POLLS

NITISH EMERGES ‘TEJASHWI’

Mohd Fahad

Patna: Even as the Election Commission stated that counting of votes will continue till late in the night, the trends suggested that the ruling NDA alliance has nosed ahead of Mahagathbandan. As per the reports, the NDA was leading in 124 seats as opposed to the Grand Alliance, which was ahead in 111 seats. The majority mark is 122. While there was still time for the final results, one thing was clear -- the BJP that had remained a junior partner in the NDA in Bihar so far was going to end up having the upper hand.

Notably, the Chirag Paswan-led LJP’s decision to pull out of NDA seems to have backfired while Left parties were doing fairly well this time scoring in double digits.

Owaisi’s AIMIM could play role in case of hung assembly.

Madhya Pradesh byelections: BJP wins, saves govt

NITISH WILL BE CM: BIHAR BJP CHIEF Patna: Sanjay Jaiswal, president, BJP Bihar unit, tells Liz Mathew that Nitish Kumar will be chief minister of the NDA government in Bihar for the next five years. This victory is for Modiji and also for Nitish Kumar.

AMIT SHAH @AMITSHAH Every section of Bihar has once again voted for the development of NDA by denying hollow politics, casteism and appeasement politics. This is the victory of the hopes and aspirations of every Bihar people. It is a triumph of double engine development of @narendramodi and @ nitishkumar. Congratulations to the workers of @ BJP4Bihar

MAXIMUM CITY WINS

NDA

124

l

MGB

111

l

LJP

1

l

OTH

7

l

Awaited

0

l

BIHAR VERDICT

PM MODI TWEETS “Bihar has taught the world the first lesson of democracy. Today Bihar has told the world again how democracy is strengthened. A record number of poor, deprived and women of Bihar also voted and today have also given their decisive decision for development,” PM Modi tweeted.

243 / 243 Target : 122

BYPOLLS RESULTS

Rohit Sharma’s 68 and Trent Boult’s 3/30 - including two wickets in his first two overs - helped Mumbai Indians beat Delhi Capitals by five wickets in the final of Indian Premier League 2020 in Dubai on Tuesday. With this win, Mumbai added a fifth IPL title to their kitty.

UTTAR PRADESH l BJP-6 l SP-1

JHARKHAND l Cong-1 l JMM-1

ODISHA l BJD-2

GUJARAT l BJP-8 l Cong: 0

KARNATAKA l BJP-1 l Cong-0

NAGALAND l Ind-1 l NDPP-1

CHHATTISGARH l Cong-1 l BJP-0

MANIPUR l BJP-4

MADHYA PRADESH

l BJP-19

TELANGANA l BJP-1 l TRS-1 HARYANA l Cong-1

l BJP-0

l BJP-0

l Ind-1 l Cong-9

Shah dials Nitish amidst number game

New Delhi: As the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) kept up a slim lead in the counting of votes in Bihar, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar received a call from Home Minister Amit Shah this evening.

Sources said Amit Shah dialled Nitish Kumar to discuss the results but the details are not known yet.

While the NDA is on top in Bihar, Nitish Kumar has been reduced to number three.

Nitish Kumar, 69, is likely losing the senior partner status that he enjoyed in Bihar for years.

Bhopal: With the BJP headed for winning two-thirds of seats in Madhya Pradesh assembly bypolls, BJP leaders on Tuesday said people of the state have reposed faith in the leadership of Shivraj Singh Chouhan and dubbed his predecessor Kamal Nath as an accidental chief minister.

As per the Election Commission’s latest data, the BJP has won 19 seats and Congress nine, out of the total 28 assembly seats that went for bypolls.

The BJP came to power in March after the collapse of the Kamal Nath-led Congress government following a revolt by a section of Congress MLAs led by Jyotiraditya Scindia their entry into BJP. “This result shows people of the state have reposed faith in BJP and the leadership of Shivraj Singh Chouhan and were unhappy with Congress,” senior BJP leader and Union Minister Narendra Singh Tomar told PTI.

Tomar said the mandate was never against the BJP in the state, as the party had got more votes and only a few seats less than Congress in the last assembly election.

“It’s a victory of the party’s collective leadership,” he said.

Echoing similar sentiments, the BJP’s incharge for the state Vinay Sahasrabuddhe said the integration between the newcomers, the organisation and the party cadre has happened in an effective manner and the result justifies that.

“My basic presumption and basic assessment was that mandate of the Madhya Pradesh assembly elections were never for Congress. Because of some arithmetical deficit, we missed the threshold to get the power. Congress formed government in Madhya Pradesh by chance and Kamal Nath was an accidental chief minister and that mistake has been rectified,” Sahasrabuddhe told PTI. Turn to P6

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and BJP State President VD Sharma greet each other as they celebrate their party’s victory in bypolls, in Bhopal on Tuesday.

Clean sweep in by-elections cements rise of ‘Congress-yukt BJP’ in Gujarat Gargi Raval Ahmedabad: The people of eight state assembly constituencies gave the Bharatiya Janata Party a resounding win on Tuesday. With this, the BJP has added five former Congress leaders to its ranks, and has cemented its position in the Assembly, where it has 111 seats against

the Opposition’s 65.

In terms of vote shares, the BJP won 55% of all the votes, while the Congress got just 34.4%. Another 8.46% went to other candidates, and 2.16% of voters chose to show their dissent by choosing the NOTA (None of the Above) option.

Now, after the thorough defeat, Congress leaders Amit Chavda

and Paresh Dhanani have offered their resignations.

It is to be noted that the by-elections for the eight seats was necessitated after eight Congress MLAs resigned in the run-up to the Rajya Sabha elections, which were held in June. Later on, the former MLAs joined the BJP, and five were given BJP tickets to contest the bypolls.

All five won.

The Congress took its worst beating in the Dang seat, where BJP candidate Vijay Patel drubbed

—PHOTO BY HANIF SINDHI

Ruling party won all eight state Assembly seats that went to the polls last week, now has 111 seats

CM Vijay Rupani is flanked by his deputy Nitin Patel on his right and BJP state unit chief CR Patil on his left, as the trio show the victory sign after the by-election results were announced.

Suryakant Gavit of the Congress to take home the win with a lead of 60,095 votes. Patel received 94,006 of the total 1,35,098 votes, while Gavit got a very modest 33,911 votes, while 2,939 votes were marked NOTA. Another turncoat, Jitu Chaudhary gave the BJP a win in the Kaprada seat having been elected for the fifth consecutive time with a margin of 47,066 votes over Babubhai Vartha from the Congress, who got just 65,875 votes.

Similarly, the BJP’s Kiritsingh Rana won the Limbdi seat with a lead of 32,050 votes at the end of 42 rounds of counting. Rana received a total of 88,928 votes while Congress candidate Chetan Khachar got 56,878.

The contest in Morbi was neck and neck, with the now-BJP candidate Brijesh Merja narrowly beating his Congress opponent Jayantilal Patel by a mere 4,649 votes. Merja got 64,711 votes while Patel managed 60,062.

Turn to P6

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04

VOTE A WIN!

Workers of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) were in a celebratory mood on Tuesday after the ruling party swept all eight seats up for grabs in the state legislative assembly by-elections, defeating their arch rival Congress. Dancing to the beat of drums and holding up banners of the party’s lotus symbol, members of the party welcomed Chief Minister Vijay Rupani upon his arrival at ‘Kamalam’, the state headquarters of the party, in Gandhinagar.

—PHOTOS BY HANIF SINDHI

WHAT DOES THE BJP’S WIN REALLY MEAN?

Patil tastes first success as state unit chief, faces challenges ahead Haresh Jhala Gandhinagar: It’s time for celebration at the Gujarat unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party, which swept all eight seats in the state Assembly by-elections held last week. Not only did these polls give CR Patil his first big win as state unit chief, they also gave Chief Minister Vijay Rupani--who has long been rumoured as being on the way out--a lifeline. The duo’s next challenge will be the upcoming local body polls, which are slated to be held in January as of now.

However, the eightseat win was not easy, nor was it even expected. Had the BJP expected a walkover even in one of these constituencies, the party would not have felt the need to show its strength in all eight to the extent that it did. For instance, Morbi--which was expected to be a close contest from the start--saw Rupani’s wife, Anjali Rupani camped out on the day of voting.

In addition, the BJP is also believed to have received an unexpected boost from Shankersinh Vaghela, who wanted to ensure that the Congress did

Chief Minister Vijay Rupani with BJP state unit chief CR Patil.

—PHOTO BY HANIF SINDHI

Just the trailer, BJP will bag 2022 general elections too: Rupani First India Bureau

CM Rupani feeds BJP state unit president CR Patil a sweet after the results of the bypoll were declared, as Deputy CM Nitin Patel looks on.

—PHOTO BY HANIF SINDHI

not win the Abdasa seat.

Political observers say that the Independent Muslim candidate was a proxy candidate meant to divide the vote.

The ploy seems to have worked.

Pradyumansinh Jadeja, this time a BJP candidate, was re-elected with 31,709 votes at the end of 15th round.

On the other hand, Congress candidate Shantilal Sendhani received

14,476 votes--just 10 more than Independent candidate Hanif Padiyar.

Interestingly, this was the first time the Congress openly talked about social engineering, having selected its candidates based on the caste dominant in each of the constituencies. Yet, all of these candidates lost and--worse--the Congress party’s campaign against turn-

coats failed.

The answer to this apparent riddle can be found on social media, where sarcastic comments such as, “If Congress MLAs are eventually going to join the BJP, why not just vote for the BJP?” have been gaining traction.

Now that the party has won, it will no doubt claim that the people have voted for development. What no one will say out

loud is that this “development” is reserved for constituencies that vote for the BJP. In addition, this win will also hide any cracks within the ruling party, with the Congress being tainted as a house divided, being left with just 65 seats in the Assembly, against 111 for the BJP, two for the BTP, one for the NCP, and one Independent MLA.

Gandhinagar: The favourable results logged by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the state legislative assembly by-elections have once again proved that the party has the trust of the voters. Party leaders granted the credit for the huge win to the hard work of the workers and also thanked the people for putting their faith in the party.

After being in doldrums about the party’s performance in elections, the state unit of the BJP has regained confidence that it will win big in the impending municipal corporations, nagarpalikas, and

district and taluka panchayat polls as well. Chief Minister Vijay Rupani put out a statement about the party’s future plans.

“These results are just the trailer before the civic body and panchayat polls likely to be conducted before March next year, and also the General Elections in 2022,” he asserted.

CM Rupani added, “People have rejected the Congress party. On the other hand, the state as well as central government has launched several developmental projects, even amidst a health crisis like the COVID-19 pandemic. I feel that those things influenced voters and that is why they

voted for BJP candidates in the bypolls.”

Thanking party workers and voters for the victory, BJP state unit president CR Patil said that several factors played a role in the party’s win. “One of the factors is that the Congress party’s ‘negative’ campaign was rejected by the people. Congress is rapidly shrinking and will continue to sink further,” he stated.

Patil also lauded voter’s list page committees for their dedication.

Now, all one has to do is wait and watch if CM Rupani’s claim of “many more Congress wickets falling” comes true or not.

TAKING THE HIGH ROAD

Cong leaders accept by-election defeat, thank workers for hard work One the reasons for the opposition party’s dismal performance was lack of organization First India Bureau Ahmedabad: After managing to grab none of the seats in the state legislative assembly by-elections, the Congress party accepted the mandate of the people on Tuesday. Party leaders accepted their defeat in the bypolls and stated that it was now time for introspection. If sources are to be believed, one of the reasons for Congress’ loss was

lack of organization within the party.

Leader of Opposition Paresh Dhanani penned a poem after receiving word on the by-election results.

“Defeat is a reflection of the party’s shortcomings. And we accept this mandate,” he said. Entitled “By-election Results”, the poem read, “The result is a mirror of our shortcomings; I accept the mandate with my head down; The fiery triumph of

black money bags; overcoming recession, inflation and unemployment; including BJP’s ‘Bhai’ and ‘Bhau’; Congratulations to the winning candidates; Salute to the Congress workers who stood firm in the “freedom struggle.”

Addressing a press meet, Gujarat Pradesh Congress Committee (GPCC) president Amit Chavda gave a statement on the loss. “We thought the people

Rajiv Gandhi Bhavan, the Congress headquarters in Ahmedabad, wore a deserted look after the byelection results were declared.

—PHOTO BY HANIF SINDHI

would teach the traitors (former Congress MLAs who defected to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) a lesson, but we accept their mandate,” he stated.

He added, “The BJP convinced Congress MLAs to resign to ensure that it grabbed one more seat in the Rajya Sabha. We were banking on the possibility that voters would ensure defeat for those who jumped into the fray for power and money. We thought that the people would teach a lesson to the ‘traitors’. But, we are a democracy, so we accept

the mandate of the people. We will go back to the drawing board and work out the reasons for our defeat. But, I would like to congratulate all the party workers who kept fighting against the BJP even amid the pandemic.”

Hardik Patel, working president of the GPCC, took to his Twitter handle to put out a message for the national leaders of Congress. “The merchant changes by the reasons of defeat-victory, not the followers of ideology. I will fight and win, and stay in Congress till I die.”

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State fire safety committee shuts down 18 illegal units

05

Discharge number falls as daily cases cross 1K, again

—FILE PHOTO

‘Action Taken’ report to be submitted to govt by Nov 18; NGT has taken suo motu action First India Bureau

SEALING DRIVES

Gandhinagar: Legal action has been initiated against illegal industrial units in Gujarat, Vipul Mitra, Additional Chief Secretary, Department of Labour and Employment, told the media on Tuesday. The move follows last week’s fatal accident at an illegal chemical godown on the PiranaPiplaj Road in Ahmedabad which killed 12 people.

Mitra said that the committee set up by the government to prevent fires in the state sealed 18 units, including at Revakaka Estate and Nanuka Estate in Ahmedabad. In addition, 12 units have been issued sealing notices by a joint team from the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC), the Gujarat Pollution Control Board (GPCB) and the Directorate of In-

The state tested 52,960 samples in the past 24 hours, and now has 12,478 active cases.

First India Bureau

Vipul Mitra, Additional Chief Secretary, Department of Labour.

dustrial Security and Health (DISH).

Further, the AMC has launched a campaign to demolish illegal constructions

in Vastral and Lambha. The campaign against illegal industrial units operating without no-objection certificates (NOCs)

from the fire department has been on in every municipal corporation since Monday.

Mitra on Monday headed a review meeting of the state government committee, which was also attended by GPCB Chairman Sanjeev Kumar, Ahmedabad’s Deputy Municipal Commissioner UK Mehta, GPCB Member Secretary, DISH, and other senior officials.

According to Mitra, every district collector and local civic

body has been instructed to launch a campaign across the state to seal industrial units which seem to be illegal constructions. In addition, the ‘Action Taken Report’ of this joint survey will be submitted to Mitra by November 13 and to the state government by November 18.

It is to be noted that the National Green Tribunal has initiated suo motu action on the issue and a hearing has been scheduled for Wednesday.

Gandhinagar: The state saw another four-figure jump in the daily number of new COVID-19 cases. Worryingly, this was accompanied by a much lower number of patient discharges than usual.

The state recorded 1,049 COVID-19 cases on Tuesday, taking the total to 1,82,741 cases since March. It also discharged just 879 patients, as opposed to the usual number, which has been at 950

1,049 cases, 5 fatalities take tally to 1,81,629 cases and death toll to 3,773 or higher since of late.

During the last 24 hours, there have been five fresh fatalities attributed to the novel coronavirus in the state. Three occurred in Ahmedabad while Surat and Rajkot accounted for one each.

This has brought the total numbers of COVID-19 deaths to 3,773.

Failure to launch: Ro-Pax on hold days after inauguration

LIGHTS OVER NOISE

First India Bureau B h av n a g a r / S u r at : On Tuesday, the RoPax ferry service connecting Bhavnagar district’s Ghogha and Surat district’s Hazira suffered a technical snag due to which operations have been suspended for two days—just two days after its launch by Prime Minister Narendra Modi via video conferencing.

According to sources, the private company that launched the service, Indigo Seaways Ltd, has informed passengers about the suspension of operations and assured that the service will resume once the snag is addressed.

First India tried to get an official statement on the issue from the company, but its customer care numbers were not reachable.

Interestingly, the trial run of the ferry service which was held last Friday had also de-

Again, Surat topped the list of new cases with 183, and was followed by Ahmedabad with 178, Vadodara with 119 and Rajkot with 129. Cases were also reported in Jamnagar (44), Surendranagar (44), Gandhinagar (42), Patan (40), Mehsana (39), Banaskantha (39), Sabarkantha (36), Amreli (20), Junagadh (16), Morbi (15), Kheda (14), Kutch (13), Panchmahal (12), Tapi (12), Narmada (8), Bhavnagar (8), Dahod (5) and Aravalli (3).

Two young women check out lanterns in fanciful forms while shopping in Ahmedabad on Tuesday, in the runup to Diwali, which promises to be a quiet affair with strict restrictions on the bursting of crackers.

—PHOTO BY HANIF SINDHI

WOMEN POLICE HAILED FOR PANDEMIC WORK First India Bureau The ferry service linking Ghogha and Hazira was launched by PM Modi on Sunday.

veloped a technical problem. Therefore, it took nine hours for the ferry to cover the distance between Ghogha and Hazira, a journey it had to complete within four hours.

This is not the first time that a ferry service has suffered setbacks in the state.

In 2017, when the Ghogha-Dahej Ro-Ro

service was launched, it had also developed issues and had to cancel trips several times.

It was finally shut down owing to certain issues on both ends of the voyage.

The union ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways attempted to resume operations of but failed. After a lot of deliberation, the route

—FILE PHOTO

of the ferry service was changed from GhoghaDahej to Ghogha-Hazira and even then it could not keep it from breaking down.

The government also plans to launch a similar service from Kandla to Hazira. But, it will only go ahead if the Ghogha-Hazira service runs successfully for a while.

Surat: The city-based Textile Working Group and Salon Owners group felicitated 960 women police personnel of the Surat police department, for their commendable service amid the COVID-19 pandemic on Tuesday.

The cops each received a gift vouchers for Rs5,000—cumulatively worth Rs10.30 lakh—in the presence of city police commis-

The cops each received a gift vouchers worth Rs5,000.

sioner Ajay Tomar and BJP MP Darshana Jar-

dosh, among others.

Tomar said, “Women

police personnel performed their duties excellently amid the COVID-19 pandemic. They have shown that they are made of strong stuff and all they need is cooperation and warmth.”

He added, “The number of women in the police department is also expected to increase in the near future. Women make up 50% of the population of our society and they must be well-represented in the law enforcement community as well.”

NUOVA CASA

Italian couple adopts Amdavadi orphan born with a clubfoot 

With the almost 18-month adoption process finally over, Alberto & Dossi Senaldo are excited to finally take five-year-old Mahendra home to Italy

First India Bureau Ahmedabad: Mahendra is only five years and 11 months old. He can barely understand and converse in Gujarati and Hindi, but has picked up the Italian language in a very short span of time, thanks to Alberto Senaldo and his wife Dossi, who have adopted the little one.

After the COVID-19 pandemic hit the state, the couple has been in touch with Mahendra through

video conferencing, ever since they knew that they wanted to give him a home.

The Senaldos, who live in a joint family, had initiated the legal process of adoption last March, which was finally approved recently. Alberto, who is a metal worker, and Dossi, a pastry chef by profession, landed in Ahmedabad to take Mahendra to Italy, his new home.

Mahendra’s new mother Dossi seemed very enthusiastic upon completion of the adop-

Mahendra with his new parents, Alberto and Dossi Senaldo.

tion process. “We will do our best to make him feel at home in the family and see to it that he soon learns Italian. There won’t be any pressure on him about anything. All we want to do is groom him in an open environment. He is a lucky boy because he will get to eat chocolate every day, since I am a pastry chef,” she exclaimed.

“If there had been no pandemic, the adoption process would have been completed sooner but, thanks to the Central Adoption Resources Au-

thority (CARA) and the Ahmedabad District Collector, we will be going back home with our son,” said an emotional Alberto.

“When Mahendra was admitted to the orphanage home, he weighed just six kilograms and was severely malnourished. He also had a clubfoot, but with the help of a physiotherapist and other doctors, Mahendra has overcome the physical challenge,” said Sandeep Sagale, Ahmedabad District Collector.

INDIA AHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2020

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PM MODI IN VEILED ATTACK ON PAKISTAN

‘Unnecessary attempts made Priya Ramani’s to bring bilateral issues in SCO’ remarks were Pak PM Imran Khan & Chinese President Xi Jinping were present New Delhi: Taking an indirect swipe on Pakistan, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said there is an attempt to bring bilateral issues at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), which is against the consensus and spirit.

Prime Minister said this in his remarks at the SCO meet hosted by Russia, Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan and Chinese President Xi Jinping were also present during the meet. He said, “It is unfortunate that repeated attempts are being made to unnecessarily bring bilateral issues into the SCO agenda that violate the SCO Charter and Shanghai Spirit. Such efforts are contrary to the spirit of

PM Narendra Modi addresses during 20th SCO Summit.

A PROUD MOMENT FOR RAJASTHAN

consensus and cooperation that defines SCO.” Pakistan has time and again attempted to rake up Kashmir issue

at the SCO. “India strongly believes in peace, security and prosperity. And we have always voiced

opposition to terrorism, illegal arms smuggling, drugs and money laundering. India has been firm in its commitment to work under the SCO as per the principles laid down in the SCO Charter,” PM Modi said.

Prime Minister reiterated India’s demand of reforming UN, he said, “The United Nations has completed its 75 years. But despite many successes, the basic goal of the United Nations is still incomplete. The world struggling with the economic and social suffering of the epidemic is expected to bring about a complete change in the system of the UN. We expect full support of SCO member nations in this effort,” PM said. —ANI

IN THE COURTYARD

Military court asks govt to hike Major defamatory: MJ Akbar Gen-officer’s salary

MJ Akbar

Priya Ramani

New Delhi: Former union minister MJ Akbar on Tuesday submitted before a Delhi court that the statements made against him by journalist Priya Ramani were defamatory, were widely disseminated, and lowered his reputation.

Senior advocate Geeta Luthra, appearing for Akbar, told the court that the former minister by his contin-

uous hard work had become the editor in a short period of time and no one has ever cast any aspersion on his character ever.

Akbar’s lawyer also cited testimonies of witnesses to prove that Akbar had an impeccable reputation & said that Ramani’s statements were defamatory and lowered Akbar’s reputation & were widely disseminated. —ANI

ASSEMBLY BYPOLLS IN VARIOUS STATES-2020

Scindia congratulates BJP’s winning candidates, thanks voters Bhopal: As the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) took a lead in the Madhya Pradesh by-polls, party leader Jyotiraditya Scindia on Tuesday congratulated all the winning candidates and thanked the voters as well.

“Heartiest congratulations to all the candidates of the Bharatiya Janata Party who won the MP Assembly byelections. At the same time, heartfelt gratitude to all the devout voters. I am confident that all the winning candidates will always be ready for public service and proper development of their constit-

Jyotiraditya Scindia congratulated all BJP winners.

uency,” Scindia tweeted (roughly translated from Hindi).

“Congratulations and best wishes to BJP candidate Hardeep Dang Ji for winning by a huge majority in the by-election of Suwasra Assem-

bly,” he added. The BJP is leading on 21 seats, while Congress and BSP are ahead on six and one seats, respectively in Madhya Pradesh bypolls, as per the Election Commission of India on Tuesday.

—Agencies

BJP’s Dubbak by-poll win, a warning to TRS in Telangana New Delhi: The BJP caused a major upset in Telangana by edging out the ruling TRS in Dubbak assembly seat by-polls by a narrow margin and provided further evidence of its emergence in the state as the chief political opponent to the ruling party that has so far been dominant in the state since its creation.

The TRS lost to the BJP by a little over 1,000 votes in the see-saw contest between BJP candidate M Raghunandan Rao and TRS rival Solipeta Sujatha.

The by-poll, held on November 3, saw close to 82% voter turnout and was necessitated

M Raghunandan Rao

due to the death of sitting TRS MLA Solipeta Ramalinga Reddy in August this year. TRS candidate Solipeta Sujatha is Reddy’s wife.

Though 20 other candidates were also in the fray, it was always expected that TRS, BJP and Congress would be the only serious contenders for the seat.

—Agencies

BJD Set To Win Both Tirtol Ruling coalition retains both seats & Balasore Assembly Seats defeating BJP candidates in J’khand Bhubaneswar: The ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) candidates are leading on both the Assembly seats in which by-polls were held in Odisha, as per the Election Commission on Tuesday. As per the ECI, BJD candidate Swarup Kumar Das is leading from the Balasore seat by 2,671 votes, while Bijaya Shankar Das is

ahead by 6,400 votes from the Tirtol seat. While BJD’s vote share at 12:15 pm stands at 53.5 per cent, that of its closest rival Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is 38.77 per cent. BJP’s Manas Kumar Dutta is trailing behind the BJD candidate on the Balasore seat, while the party’s Rajkishore Behera is trailing from the Tirtol seat.

Ranchi: The Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) and the Indian National Congress emerged winners defeating Bharatiya Janata Party candidates decisively in a close fight in the byelections to the Dumka and Bermo Assembly seats in Jharkhand. Congress’ Kumar Jaimangal (Anup Singh) won by a comfortable 14,225 votes against the BJP’s Yogeshwar Mahto

FROM PG 1 Madhya Pradesh...

Congress had formed the government in 2018 after the party won 114 seats in the assembly elections and was backed by four independents, two BSP MLAs, and one SP MLA. The BJP had got 109 seats in the 230-member house.

Later Scindia along with 22 other Congress MLAs joined BJP, which led to fall of the Kamal Nath government and the Shivraj Singh Chouhan-led BJP govern-

ment was formed.

Clean sweep...

In Karjan, BJP candidate Akshay Patel got 76,958 votes against Congress candidate Kiritsinh Jadeja’s 60,533 votes to win by a margin of 16,425.

BJP candidate Atmaram Parmar’s got a total of 70,886 votes and won by 22,595.

Congress candidate Mohan Solanki got 48,291 votes in Gadhada.

In Abdasa, for a long time it seemed that Independent can-

didate Hanif Padyar would the runner-up spot from. However, he had to be satisfied with third place, having received 26,463 votes.

P r a d hy u m a n s i n h Jadeja won the seat with 71,848 votes while the Congress party’s Shantilal Shanghai came in second with 35,070 votes.

In Dhari, the BJP’s JV Kakadia received 49,974 votes while Congress’ Suresh Kotdia got a total of 32,765.

‘If Digvijaya questions EVMs, it means BJP is winning’ Bhopal: As the initial trends in the Madhya Pradesh by-polls gave an edge to the BJP, state’s Minister Narottam Mishra on Tuesday said that when Congress leader Digvijaya Singh questions EVMs then it means that the BJP is winning. Reacting to the emerging trends, he said, “BJP has nothing to lose. You should ask people who are losing. We will only gain from here onwards. I heard Digvijaya Singh’s statement. If he’s questioning EVMs, it means that the BJP is winning.”

By-elections were held on 28 seats in Madhya Pradesh on November 3. —ANI

harashtra govern harashtra govern.

“Batul” in Bermo.

Jaimangal got 49.36 per cent of the votes polled against Batul’s 41.89

per cent. In Dumka, Basant Soren of the JMM defeated Lois Marandi of the BJP.

Narottam Mishra

Selective tampering of EVMs done: Digvijaya Singh on MP by-polls result Bhopal: As Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) established a lead in Madhya Pradesh by-polls, senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh on Tuesday alleged that “selective tampering” of EVMs was the reason behind his party losing seats “that [Congress] would not have lost in any circumstance.

“EVMs are not tamper-proof, and selective tampering is done.

There are seats that we would have not lost in

06

any circumstance but we did by thousands of votes. We’ll hold a meeting tomorrow and analyse the results,” said

Digvijaya Singh while addressing media. In response to the Congress leader’s allegations, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said that Digvijaya Singh is making excuses for his party’s defeat.

“Last time when his (Digvijaya Singh) party won 114 seats in the elections, then there was no issue in EVM? He never accepts the truth. He can only make excuses for the defeat of his party,” said the Chief Minister.

New Delhi: In a significant decision, which might pave the way for hiking salaries of Major General-rank officers in the defence services who are getting lesser pay than their juniors, the Armed Forces Tribunal has directed the government to increase the pay of an Air ViceMarshal of the Indian Air Force (IAF).

Air Vice-Marshal P Subhash Babu had approached the Armed Forces Tribunal through counsel Ankur Chhibber against the anomaly which has come up after the implementation of the Sixth pay Commission where senior Colonels and Brigadiers get more pay than the Major Generals as they get military

service pay while the latter do not get it.

“Respondents are directed to step-up the pay of the applicant retrospectively with effect from July 1, 2017, bringing it at par with his immediate juniors and thereafter grant all arrears of pay retrospectively with effect from July 1, 2017,” the Tribunal said.

—ANI

Arnab moves SC challenging Bombay HC order over bail

Bombay HC had refused to grant interim relief to Arnab.

New Delhi: Republic TV Editor-inChief Arnab Goswami on Tuesday moved the Supreme Court challenging the Bombay High Court order, which refused to grant him interim relief in the 2018 abetment to suicide case.

Goswami, in his plea moved through advocate Nirnimesh Dube, made the Maharashtra govern-

ment, Mumbai Police, Central government and other respondents in the matter.

The Bombay HC had on Monday refused to grant interim relief to Arnab Goswami and two others and directed him to approach a lower court to seek bail. A division bench of Justice SS Shinde and Justice MS Karnik gave order.

SR REPUBLIC TV EXECUTIVE HELD IN FAKE TRP SCAM Mumbai: Republic TV’s distribution head Ghanshyam Singh was arrested on Tuesday in connection with the alleged TRP (Television Rating Point) rigging scam, a Mumbai crime branch official said. Singh, who is also Assistant Vice President of the Republic Media Network, was picked up from his residence around 7.40 am, the official said.

BIRLA FLIES TO DELHI Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, who had reached Kota from New Delhi late on Monday night, left for New Delhi on Tuesday evening by 9 PM Air India flight. At the airport, Birla was accompanied

by OSD Rajeev Datta and Protocol Officer Rajendra Singh along with other officials and supporters.

TALKING POINT AHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2020

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TIME

07

UN REPORT SAYS UP TO 850,000 ANIMAL VIRUSES COULD BE CAUGHT BY HUMANS, UNLESS WE PROTECT NATURE

FOR CAUTION

H

uman damage to biodiversity is leading us into a pandemic era.

The virus that causes COVID-19, for example, is linked to similar viruses in bats, which may have been passed to humans via pangolins or another species.

Environmental destruction such as land clearing, deforestation, climate change, intense agriculture and the wildlife trade is putting humans into closer contact with wildlife. Animals carry microbes that can be trans-

ferred to people during these encounters.

A major report released today says up to 850,000 undiscovered viruses which could be transferred to humans are thought to exist in mammal and avian hosts.

The report, by The United Nations’ Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), says to avoid future pandemics, humans must urgently transform our relationship with the environment.

Microbes can pass from animals to humans, causing disease pandemics. —SHUTTERSTOCK

—SHUTTERSTOCK

A WAY FORWARD

HUMANS COSTS ARE MOUNTING

T

he report is the result of a week-long virtual workshop in July this year, attended by leading experts. It says a review of scientific evidence shows: “…pandemics are becoming more frequent, driven by a continued rise in the underlying emerging disease events that spark them. Without preventative strategies, pandemics will emerge more often, spread more rapidly, kill more people, and affect the global economy with more devastating impact than ever before.”

The report says, on average, five new diseases are transferred from animals to humans every year – all with pandemic potential. In the past century, these have included:  the Ebola virus (from fruit bats),  AIDS (from chimpazees)  Lyme disease (from ticks)  the Hendra virus (which first erupted at

a Brisbane racing stable in 1994).

The report says an estimated 1.7 million currently undiscovered viruses are thought to exist in mammal and avian hosts.

Of these, 540,000-850,000 could infect humans.

However, rather than prioritising the prevention of pandemic outbreaks, governments around the world primarily focus on responding – through early detection, containment and hope for rapid development of vaccines and medicines.

As the report states, COVID-19 demonstrates: “…this is a slow and uncertain path, and as the global population waits for vaccines to become available, the human costs are mounting, in lives lost, sickness endured, economic collapse, and lost livelihoods.”

This approach can also damage biodiversity – for example, leading to large

T

—SHUTTERSTOCK Govts are focused on pandemic responses such as developing vaccines, rather than prevention.

culls of identified carrierspecies. Tens of thousands of wild animals were culled in China after the SARS outbreak and bats continue to be persecuted after the onset of COVID-19.

The report says women and Indigenous communities are particularly disadvantaged by pan-

demics. Women represent more then 70% of social and health-care workers globally, and past pandemics have disproportionately harmed indigenous people, often due to geographical isolation.

It says pandemics and other emerging zoonoses (diseases that have

jumped from animals to humans) likely cause more than US$1 trillion in economic damages annually. As of July 2020, the cost of COVID-19 was estimated at US $8-16 trillion globally. The costs of preventing the next pandemic are likely to be 100 times less than that.

he IPBES report identifies potential ways forward. These include:  increased intergovernmental cooperation, such as a council on pandemic prevention, that could lead to a binding international agreement on targets for pandemic prevention measures  global implementation of OneHealth policies – policies on human health, animal health and the environment which are integrated, rather than “siloed” and considered in isolation  a reduction in land-use change, by expanding protected areas, restoring habitat and imple-

menting financial disincentives such as taxes on meat consumption  policies to reduce wildlife trade and the risks associated with it, such as increasing sanitation and safety in wild animal markets, increased biosecurity measures and enhanced enforcement around illegal trade.

Societal and individual behaviour change will also be needed. Exponential growth in consumption, often driven by developed countries, has led to the repeated emergence of diseases from less-developed countries where the commodities are produced.

Cracking down on the illegal wildlife trade will help prevent pandemics. —AP

So how do we bring about social change that can reduce consumption?

Measures proposed in the report include:  education policies  labelling high pandemicrisk consumption patterns, such as captive wildlife for sale as pets The cost to governments of dealing with pandemics far outweighs the cost of prevention. —SHUTTERSTOCK

as either “wild-caught” or “captive-bred” with information on the country where it was bred or captured  providing incentives for sustainable behaviour  increasing food security to reduce the need for wildlife consumption.

SOURCE: THECONVERSATION.COM

Beginnings are full of promises, they are a message of hope, of faith in self and others and are a path to the future!

2ND FRONT

—Jagdeesh Chandra, CEO & Editor, First India

AHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2020

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COVID-19 UPDATE

WORLD

INDIA

GUJARAT

1,273,806 5,15,37,959 1,27,514 86,29,701 3,773 1,82,719 DEATHS

MAHARASHTRA 45,435 DEATHS 17,26,926 CASES

CONFIRMED CASES

TAMIL NADU 11,387 DEATHS 7,48,225 CASES

DEATHS

KARNATAKA 11,430 DEATHS 8,51,212 CASES

CONFIRMED CASES

Gujarat farmers continue to sell in open market to quickly monetise the harvest ahead of Diwali

Shishir Awasthi

MSP SLIDE!

Farmers encashing their harvest ahead of festive season.

kets with their produce.

Farmer leaders informed that ahead of Diwali festival, they want to monetise their harvested crop and take home the cash for payments and purchases.

“APMC yards will observe holidays from November 13 to 18. Farmers have a tendency to encash their harvested crop before the festival.

So we are seeing a rush

for selling. Farmers prefer to sell in the open markets over participating in MSP operations even if there is not much difference in prices now,” said an office bearer at Rajkot’s Bedi APMC yard.

Gujarat Deputy Chief Minister Nitin Patel had expressed satisfaction that farmers were getting higher prices from the open market. “The

—FILE PHOTO

Centre had increased the groundnut MSP for this year. The State Government had also made adequate arrangements to conduct procurement operations. We expected a higher crop. But recently, groundnut oil demand is high across the world and oil mills and crushers and exporters have increased their purchases. So, market

DEATHS

DELHI 7,143 DEATHS 4,51,382 CASES

Farmers ignore MSP, sell their groundnut in open market Ahmedabad: With newly harvested crop continuing to flood the markets, groundnut prices have softened by `400 a quintal in Gujarat. Yet, groundnut farmers don’t seem to be keen on participating in the procurement operations at MSP by the State agencies.

On October 27, at one of the largest groundnut markets at Gondal in Saurashtra, prices had touched a peak of `5,755 per quintal with arrivals at 8,084 quintals. On Monday (November 9), the arrivals increased to 9,397 quintals softening the prices to `5,500.

The prices had briefly slipped below the Minimum Support Price levels of `5,275 (for season 2020-21), to `5,255 on November 2 as farmers flooded the mar-

08

prices are higher than MSP. This is the reason why many farmers are not participating in procurement operations. Just like farmers, the government is also happy about it,” Patel said.

According to advance estimates, kharif groundnut output is set to hit a record 54.6 lakh tonnes this year, much higher than 45 lakh tonnes last year.

CONFIRMED CASES

RAJASTHAN 2,008 DEATHS 2,15,071 CASES

Muslim independents queer pitch for Cong candidates on 2 seats First India Bureau Ahmedabad: The opposition Congress party in Gujarat not only lost all the 8 assembly seats in the by-elections, but also saw several independent Muslim candidates queering its pitch in Morbi and Abdasa constituencies.

The Congress lost Morbi by a margin of 4,688 votes, while the combined votes of as many as 3 Muslim candidates who were contesting here was more than this.

Bhatti Hushenbhai of All India Majlis-EInquilab-E-Millat got 870 votes while independent Muslim candidates Movar Nijambhai Gafurbhai and Bloch Ismail Yarmahmadbhai polled 3,162 and 2,107 votes

Congress HQ in Ahmedabad.

—FILE PHOTO

respectively. If Muslims had voted en bloc for the Congress party, the picture would have been different in Morbi.

Abdasa is more curious. Here, Padhiyar Hanif Jakab, an independent Muslim candidate bagged 26,463 votes, while Akub Mutva from Bahujan Mukti Party got 4,983 votes and Ibrahim Halepotra 1,239 votes.

Usually, Muslims

are known to traditionally vote for the Congress but this time, in continuation of the trend of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, their votes got split between the Congress, several independent candidates and the BJP. This explains why the BJP seems to have got votes from a cross section of castes, classes and communities.

AFTER 90-YR-OLD MOM’S PLEA, WOMAN OF 67 TO GET HER BIRTH CERTIFICATE

TRYING THEIR LUCK!

First India Bureau

Fishermen looking for a catch at the Sarkhej Roza lake in Sarkhej area in Ahmedabad on Tuesday.

—PHOTOS BY HANIF SINDHI

Ahmedabad: A local court has directed Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) to issue a birth certificate to a woman, 67 years after her birth.

At the time of her birth, her parents had failed to register her name with the Birth and Death Department of the AMC. The court directed the AMC to issue a birth certificate to Bhavnaben Mehta after collecting the late fees. After her mother moved the court to get her child’s birth certificate.

Bhavnaben was born

—FILE PHOTO

Gujarat High Court.

in 1953 but her birth was not registered. The court took note of the documents, including original school leaving certificate of Bhavnaben, submitted as evidence.

Copies of forwarding

letters of school and general register were also put on record by the applicant. Considering all the documents and affidavit placed before the court, it directed AMC to issue her a birth

certificate.

Ninety-year-old Viruben Mehta had moved the local court seeking issuance of a birth certificate for her daughter as she required it as a document to obtain her

passport. The court considered the affidavit submitted by the applicant under section 269 of the CrPC Act. According to the Birth and Death Registration Act 1969, it is mandatory to register a birth within 21 days of occurrence.

After this, registration is considered as late and a late fee of Rs2 is charged if registration is done between 21 days and 30 days, and the fee is Rs5 if the birth registration is done within a year. After one year, a late fee of Rs10 is charged and permission of the court is required.

BORN GENIUS!

A’bad child prodigy is world’s youngest computer programmer 6-year-old Arham entered Guinness Book of World Records after clearing a Python programming test

First India Bureau Ahmedabad: A sixyear-old boy from Ahmedabad has set a record of sorts of being the world’s youngest computer programmer and says he hopes to be an entrepreneur one day.

Arham Om Talsania, a Class 2 student, entered the Guinness Book of World Records after completing a test on the Python pro-

gramming language.

Arham told reporters, “My father taught me coding. I started using tablets when I was 2 years old. At the age of 3, I bought gadgets with iOS and Windows. Later, I got to know that my father was working on Python.”

“I want to be a business entrepreneur and help everyone. I want to make apps, games and systems for coding. I also want to

This boy has pleasantly surprised one and all.

help the needy,” Arham says.

His father Om Talsania said, “Since he was very young, he was very much interested in gadgets. He used to play games on tablet devices. He also used to solve puzzles. I taught him the basics of programming and he started creating his own small games.”

The official website of the records book states that, “The

youngest computer programmer is Arham Om Talsania (India, b. 24 January 2013), who is 6 years and 364 days old, as verified in Gujarat, India, on 23 January 2020.”

The website says that Talsania “broke this record title a day before his 7th birthday, thus achieving the record title of youngest computer programmer.”

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09

AHMEDABAD, WEDNESDAY NOVEMBER 11, 2020

Varanasi

As First India launches its Lucknow Edition, City First dips into the rainbow of Uttar Pradesh and brings you just a glimpse of the varied colours which abound in this most bountiful of states!

Shri Madhusudhan Bapuji Ashram, Vrindavan

Fatehpur Sikri

ANITA HADA

anita.hada@firstindianews.com

I

have always felt a special connect with Uttar Pradesh, part of it stems from the fact that my birthplace is Allahabad/ Prayagraj, the holy town, one of the oldest cities, the confluence of Ganga, Yamuna and Sarasvati and then I had the chance to spend many years in this bountiful state as an Army officer’s wife.

I write holy town and wonder at the same time that which town of UP is not special and holy in its own way?

Varanasi, Ayodhya, Mathura/ Vrindavan, Sarnath, Gorakhpur …the list is long but the wonders of this state only start with the holy towns. We all are well aware that the Taj Mahal, with its place of pride on the World map, leads the way in sightseeing and people come from lakhs of miles to stand in awestruck wonder at the sight of this symbol of love!

Uttar Pradesh beckons with its diversity in food, cultural sights, festivals, traditions and the people. I absolutely adore Lucknow which still has the languid grace of a Kathak dancer even in this modern humdrum of life. By the way, this ancient dance

form, Kathak also originated in Uttar Pradesh. Lucknow is the only place in the world where I rue that I am a vegetarian now and have to miss the delights of Biryani and kebabs. I just focus on the Petha of Agra, the pedas of Mathura and the chatpati Lucknowi basket chat; with a full stomach one can roam around Hazratganj and shop for Chikan and ‘Itr’- nothing beats the fragrance of Lucknow! One of my best vacations was at the Jim Corbett park (in UP at that time) and I still hold the memories close. Varanasi woos you spiritually, filling your soul with a deep peace, I believe every person who visits Varanasi definitely entertains a thought to stay back and lose oneself forever in the winding lanes on the ghats of Mother Ganga, I know I did!

Uttar Pradesh is like a beautiful perfect rose, each petal is beautiful, fragrant and complete in itself and I can only say that it would take more than a lifetime to enjoy all the wonders this state has to offer.

Sarnath

Dudhwa Tiger Reserve

Taj Mahal, Agra

Ayodhaya

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AHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2020

10

SHARING LIFE JOURNEY, POLITICAL VIEWS, FAMILY HISTORY AND MORE...

With the

people o

f Bharatp

ur

Anirudh Bharatpur

Y

oung and energetic, Anirudh Bharatpur is an experienced hospitality marketing professional. He nurtures his traveller’s spirit, enjoys delicacies from different cuisines and has an infectious love for auto.

An eligible bachelor with plans to pursue a career in politics, he believes in holistic growth and respecting the opinion of others. In an exclusive interview with First India, Anirudh Bharapur shares details about his family’s history, academic background, political views, passions and interests, and much more.

Q2. What significance does your family’s history and heritage hold for you?

A- It is an honour and a privilege to belong to a historic lineage like mine. As an individual, I am an independent person with my personal opinions and beliefs. However, I have grown up with a sense of respect for the beliefs of others as well, whether they are religious, political or spiritual. I owe this learning to my familial upbringing and the heritage of my family’s name. It has inculcated respect for tradition and culture in me and kept me rooted.

Q3. Share something with us that readers probably don’t know about you. Could be a hobby or a passionate personal interest.

A- I love to travel, explore

FA CE OF TH ED AY

Q1. Tell us a little bit about your career experience.

A- After completing my GCSE and A Levels from the Leys School, Cambridge and a B.Sc in Computer Science and Management as well as a Masters in Management (M.Sc.) from the University College London, I had the opportunity to teach Marketing as an Associate Teaching Fellow at the Department of Management Science at UCL for

try. Most people are completely unaware of the many health issues that are caused by it and by the impurities that are commonly found in dairy products.

My dietary intake is completely dairy-free (well almost).

about 18 months. Post this, I went on to pursue a career in Hospitality Marketing in Dubai with the Oberoi Group of Hotels and further progressed to work with Kerzner International where I worked for One&Only Resorts and Atlantis The Palm, Dubai.

Anirudh Bharatpur with his father, Vishvendra Singh Bharatpur

new places and enjoy different cuisines. As an avid auto enthusiast, I enjoy offroading as well. My adventurous spirit has led me on many exhilarating expeditions behind the wheel.

Something that most people would not know about me is that I am against the consumption of dairy products.

No offence to the cows, but lactose intolerance is a highly neglected condition in our coun-

YOUR DAY Horoscope by

Saurabbh Sachdeva

Anirudh Bharatpur with his mother, Divya Bharatpur and Vikram Oberoi of the Oberoi Group of Hotels

on my social media handles.

Q5. Future plans on a personal front? You’re considered an eligible bachelor. Is a wedding on the cards soon?

A- Like any single young person, of course, I plan to find someone like-minded to spend my life with. However, I feel that this is a decision that needs serious thought and deliberation so I am taking my time about it.

Q6. What would be a message you would like to share with our readers during this global pandemic?

A- During the pandemic, we definitely need to be wearing a mask as well as regularly washing and san-

itising our hands. Apart from this, it is also equally important to be looking after our mental health. It is a much-neglected topic of discussion in our country.

The lack of human interaction that has resulted from the spread of Covid-19 across the world is bound to escalate mental health problems. So, my message to everyone is - Stay sane and reach out to friends and family and even professionals if you feel you are facing a mental health issue. Talking helps and the virtual world we live in has made that process easier even in the current scenario where we are all physically distancing ourselves. Make use of these platforms and do not be ashamed if you are feeling out of sorts.

ARIES

TAURUS

GEMINI

CANCER

You need a break from day to day tensions and the way to cope up with stress is to meditate. You will succeed in any sort of examination if you put your heart and soul to it.

Strenuous job must be avoided today. You will earn good money if you are in some speculation job.

Fantastic day for investing money in stock market as you can make fortune. You miss your parents a lot and somewhere fear to loose them. Admit your faults in relationship. Conviction is all you need to reach your goal.

Make an appointment with a counsellor if you need guidance.

You may have a little fight with sibling but don’t drag it and make peace asap.

You care about your lover but somehow hesitate in expressing that care. On social front, you may have to spend some extra money in buying gifts for someone for some specific occasion.

You don’t take rejections easily and that ‘s not how things should be always.

You may need a friend’s help in love related matters. Spend time talking with likeminded people as it will make you feel good for now.

Boisterous behaviour is what everyone needs right now.

MAR 21 - APR 20

APR 21 - MAY 20

MAY 21 - JUNE 21

JUNE 22 - JULY 23

LEO

VIRGO

LIBRA

SCORPIO

This is the best time to try something new with life give yourself a new purpose. You will feel amorous towards your wife. Work on your limitations, there can be no better time than this. You have more opposite sex friends than the same and you may be judged sometimes.

You are very generous by nature and also you are the backbone of your family.

Today is a favourable day for business. You may postpone your study plans. Be careful of the words that come out of your mouth. Your lover may finally say yes to get married to you.

You make sure to make things work your way. You are most wanted by your friends. You can have romantic affair in office and a serious one. You will invest your money in clothes and accessories today. You are a God fearing person. Merriment and excitement is on the cards today.

There may be delays in property possession and it won’t effect you. You are happy spending whole day at home. Some of you may feel very lazy today. Help your mothers at home today and give them a reason to smile. Tomfoolery should be encouraged in business.

JULY 24 - AUGUST 23

AUG 24 - SEP 23

SEPT 24 - OCTOBER 22

OCT 23 - NOVEMBER 22

SAGITTARIUS

CAPRICORN

AQUARIUS

PISCES

You workout daily to keep yourself fit. You may start a side business to earn extra money. You are not a jealous kind and you feel happy for others.

Family may arrange a meeting with an eligible bachelor. You are a very grounded person. Scrumptious food is what you are craving for today.

You have a big heart and you always help someone if you can. You love gardening and you can spend day in doing only that. Video gathering is possible as you miss your social circle like anything.

Flamboyant nature makes you a hit and you draw lots of attention.

You give tough competition to people. Many people get inspired by you. You will get special treatment from your dear ones. Your time invested in studies will not get wasted and stop making excuses. Oppressive views must not be nurtured. Be easy going in life and don’t take too much tension.

Visit a doctor if you have any doubts about your health. Don’t attack stress even if you don’t have any.

Let go of things that are not in your control. You want to have your own house and you will work hard to make your dream come true.

Globetrotter is a thing of the past.

NOV 23 - DEC 22

SONALI CHOUDHARY, Influencer

Q4. What are you currently working on career wise? What are your political views and leanings? Any plans to pursue a career in politics in a full-fledged manner in the near future?

A- Presently, I am looking after family’s historic assets, trusts and investments. Politics is also an option I am pursuing. I feel that our country is in dire need of young, energetic, and effective politicians who aim to work for the development of the nation in a timely and efficient manner. I find Sachin Pilot and Tejasvi Surya to be inspirational youth leaders who work with efficiency and are very focused on their work.

Those are my political views and I am fairly vocal about them

DEC 23 - JAN 20

JAN 21 - FEB 19

FEB20 - MARCH 20

ETC www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia

AHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2020

11

Importance of a PT Teacher

Apologies

from Eva D

...her post

Green Diwali

A

ctor Bhumi Pednekar who has launched an environment protection initiative called ‘Climate Warrior’, has come up with an innovative idea, this Diwali, to spark a conversation on the need for conservation of nature by gifting saplings to her industry friends and colleagues this festive season.

Talking about the reason for gifting saplings to her friends, Bhumi disclosed, “The reason behind gifting saplings to my family, friends, and colleagues comes from a very simple thought of spreading green joy on Diwali. I am a climate warrior and while I absolutely love the spirit of Diwali, the festivities and gifting our near and dear ones, I thought this year I should start by changing the way I give gifts to people.” —ANI

esperate Housewives star Eva Longoria recently issued an apology for her comments about the Presidential election on MSNBC. For the unversed, earlier this month, Eva appeared on the network and said, “women of colour showed up in big ways,” regarding Joe Biden‘s win. “Of course, you saw in Georgia what Black women have done but Latina women were the real heroines here, beating men in turnout in every state and voting for Biden-Harris at an average rate of 3:1.” The actress later apologised via Twitter for her comments and clarified her previous statement, saying: “I’m so sorry and sad to hear that my comments on MSNBC could be perceived as taking credit from Black women.

When I said that Latinas were heroines in this election, I simply meant that they turned out in greater numbers and voted more progressively than LATINO MEN.” —Agency

Rajkummar Rao

C

hhalaang is all set to release later this week and the excitement is over the top.

The film is all set to release exclusively on Amazon Prime Video and the trailer has refreshed a lot of memories from childhood. Lead actor Rajkummar Rao shares the importance of a PT

teacher in school and how neglecting physical fitness has its own repercussions in the long term.

“A PT teacher plays a very important role in our lives, they lay the foundation and importance of physical fitness. Some people take it seriously and some people don’t.”, says the actor —Agency

Lowering demands

Eva Longoria

TOPPING THE CHARTS

A

riana Grande topping the charts! The singer’s sixth studio album, Positions, debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, the chart company confirmed Sunday.

The album moved 174,000 units in its first week, earning her the highest one-week total for an album since bundles stopped

Bhumi Pednekar

factoring into chart and sales rankings. Billboard reports that it’s “the second-largest streaming week for a non-R&B/hiphop or Latin album in 2020. Only Taylor Swift’s Folklore managed a larger streaming sum this year, in its debut week, among non-R&B/hip-hop and Latin titles, with 289.85 million streams.”

—Agency

Ariana Grande

Johnny Depp

I

t has been a few rough weeks for Johnny Depp. The actor faced defeat in the libel case where he sued a UK publication for deeming him a “wife beater”. A few days after the verdict, there were rumours about Warner Bros in a spot over the

mounting pressure over Depp’s involvement in Fantastic Beasts 3. It was followed by the actor opting to step down on the production house’s request. Now, rumour has it that the actor is ready to lower his price for big franchise movies. —Agency

PREPPING UP

Lost between comedy & horror

A

Still from ‘Laxmii’

Chrissy Teigen’s post

LAXMII DIRECTOR Raghava Lawrence

KAVITA CHAUHAN cityfirst@firstindia.co.in

T

he film is portrayed as a horror-comedy, based on the director’s 2011 Tamil original, ‘Kanchana’.

The story of the film revolves around Akshay Kumar (Aasif) who is married to Kiara (Rashmi) against the will of her parents. Finally, a day arrives when they get invited to Rashmi’s home by Rashmi’s mother to

CAST & CREW Akshay Kumar, Kiara Advani, Manu Rishi Chadha, Ashwini Kalsekar, Rajesh Sharma, Ayesha Raza Mishra, Sharad Kelkar, Tarun Arora RATING:

reconcile. It’s when Akshay takes the family kids to a ground to play cricket which apparently is haunted and the comic storyline starts turning into horror. Aasif, whose life’s mission

it is to fight superstition, starts acting funny and that’s when the family realises he is possessed by a ‘bhatakti-hui-aatma,’ out to take revenge.

The film ‘Laxmii’, previously called ‘Laxmmi Bomb’, seems to have been assembled as it went along, with not one coherent thought through it. The film is quite a spoiler at times and you feel as if the comedy scenes are being forced upon. The acting of all the actors including Akshay Kumar and Kiara Advani is nothing to really look forward to. Overall it’s torture to sit through the entire film and you only wish for it to end.

FINDING JOY

C

hrissy Teigen and John Legend had a griefstricken few weeks due to the loss of their third child, who they had already given the name Jack. Recently, Chrissy is seen finding joy from her kids Luna Stephens, 4, and Miles Stephens, 2.

Taking to IG recently, the 34-year-old television personality

shared two videos revealing how kind and considerate Luna is with her recent gesture of honouring baby Jack’s ashes. Showing the box filled with the ashes, which was placed next to a teddy bear, Teigen emotionally explained, “This is the cutest, most beautiful thing I have ever seen. She’s amazing.”

—Agency

Taapsee Pannu

... her post

ctor Taapsee Pannu on Tuesday shared a glimpse from her upcoming sports-drama ‘Rashmi Rocket’, as she kicks in a fascinating fitness workout from the practice field.

The ‘Pink’ star shared a post on Instagram, in which she is seen practising ‘Dhanurasana’ yoga pose amid a green grass field. The actor has been putting a lot more efforts in following her strict fitness regime as she is preparing her body like an athlete. e posted by the 38-year old star, she is wearing a pastel pink sports tee and a dark mauve jogger. She captioned the picture as, “The bow and the arrow! #Rashmirocket.

(Along with a bow emoticon)”.

—ANI

CITY BUZZ www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia

AHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2020

ECO-FRIENDLY DIWALI

Kirti Bihani

12

PROUD MOMENT

Diya light generates peaceful vibration, Winning over darkness with illumination, Crackers are a symbol of blast and destruction, Why burn such pieces of devastation, And spread undesirable smoke and pollution?

To mark the victory over evil and its eradication, This Diwali let’s do an organic celebration, Adorn houses with flower decoration, Wear new clothes with jubilation, Worship Ganesh Lakshmi with devotion, From Rama Yug, this is the tradition, Why should we increase pollution?

This Diwali let’s do an eco-friendly celebration, Let’s light up every house of the nation, To glow like a constellation, So elated is the entire population, Make Swastik and rangoli creation, This auspicious Kartik month of our religion, It’s Ramji’s Ayodhya return celebration, Let’s make a commitment and declaration, This Diwali we’ll celebrate without pollution, Not burning crackers for nature’s conservation, To avoid its chemical activation and stimulation, Which affects many and their respiration.

As this is good for the entire civilization, This Diwali let’s do an eco-friendly celebration.

CITY FIRST

I

IHMR University, Jaipur, has been ranked 20th in the Outlook-ICARE India MBA rankings 2021 in the category-Top Private MBA Institutions across India. IIHMR University is also the 6th ranked Private B Schools in the west zone according to the rankings by Outlook-Icare. This has been declared in the magazine Outlook Annual Ranking of India’s top private MBA Institutions under the various category in its recent publication.

Outlook ICARE has evaluated the strengths of IIHMR University on different scales and awarded its overall score of 76.72 for making it earn a coveted ranking among others. The current ranking considers several parameters, including Research, Employability, Faculty quality, Inclusiveness, and Diversity. On this occasion, Dr P. R. Sodani, President (Officiating), IIHMR University said that “It is an incredibly proud moment for me to see that the institution is fulfilling its vision through sustained hard work.” cityfirst@firstindia.co.in

DRIVING THE GROWTH CITY FIRST

C Posting ceremony CITY FIRST

R

otary Club, Jaipur released the poster to honour Plasma Donors during the event where Rotary and Rotaract Club posting ceremony was held at the Golden Tulip, MI Road. The ceremony was chaired by Rota-

ry District 3054 District Governor Rotarian Rajesh Aggarwal.

On the occasion, the co-province of Pal Rotarian Gaurav Dhamani was also present.

Initially, the charter presentation was given by the president of the club Tarun Jhalani of the sponsor club Jaipur Citizen. Club

Advisor Rotarian Arvind Batra and Sunita Batra congratulated Charter President Tarun Jhalani, along with the members in the program.

The program was conducted by RJ Sachin and at the end of the ceremony, club member Vikas Patni thanked all the guests. cityfirst@firstindia.co.in

onfederation of Indian Industry-Rajasthan organised the 2nd Edition of Conference on Driving the Growth of Industry through R&D and Innovation on Tuesday on the digital platform.

Governor of Rajasthan, Kalraj Mishra was the eminent speaker in the session attended by various field experts.

The conference provided a forum for innovation experts from the industry to come together and deliberate on a wide range of topics surrounding innovation management such as R&D-Driven Open Innovation technology, Business Models, 3D Printing; AI Implementation and Industry 4.0 and many others related to “Innovation in Era of Disruption” in various sectors like Textiles, Garments, Gems & Jewellery, Manufacturing, Auto sector etc. cityfirst@firstindia.co.in

A NEW RAY OF HOPE City First

A

police officer in Jaipur is providing a chance of resuming studies, to several girls and women who could not complete their education. The Police’s initiative has come from Jaipur Commissionerate (North) DCP, Rajiv Pachar. The plan is to help women in the nearby areas of

WHAT’S HAPPENING!

17 Police station. The initiative has received a great response from slum areas and high-density old city area. This nation-building drive began on 25 Sept, with 300 girls from the Ramganj area, 100 from Brahmpuri, 100 Subhash Chowk and 100 – 100 Shastri Nagar & Amer Police Station areas.

It was Yusuf Khan, who runs an NGO,

Missile Man vision, who first hit upon the Idea, during the Covid induced lockdown. He thought since everyone was working from home, It was an ideal time for those girls to resume their studies through distance learning. This initiative opened the door of limitless opportunities for girls and women who drop out due to various reasons and nurture faith in common people. cityfirst@firstindia.co.in

HAPPY B’DAY! GUJ: A Food Bloggers’ meet was organised at Vaibhav Chaudhary’s Crave In Restaurant in Surat on Monday.

It was hosted by Paparazzi Alnawaz Abjani.

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GUJ: Demonstrators wearing a protective face mask ant t-shirts with a message, as they protest demanding to boycott China-made products at the Anandnagar area of Ahmedabad on Tuesday.

—PHOTO BY HANIF SINDHI

GUJ: Workers were seen making protective face masks inside a factory unit near Kathvada for precautionary measures against COVID-19 in Ahmedabad on Tuesday.

—PHOTO BY HANIF SINDHI

GUJ: More than 150 people took part in the Sardar Run under the Narmada Trails initiative on Sunday morning. The participants covered distances ranging from 3 km to 21 km in the beautiful and peaceful environs near the Statue of Unity. The event was hosted by Statue of Unity Tent City -1 and organized by Stereo Adventures.

(From 1-6) IAS (UP) Ram Kewal, IAS (UP) Sorabh Babu, IAS (UP) Radhey Shyam Mishra, IAS (UP) Aparna U, IPS (RAJ) Rajesh Meena and IPS (RAJ) Kunwar Rashtradeep celebrated their birthdays on 10 November, Tuesday. We wish them all the best!