First India-Ahmedabad Edition-12 September 2020

OUR EDITIONS: JAIPUR & AHMEDABAD

CORONA

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ALERT AHMEDABAD l SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2020 l Pages 12 l 3.00

COVID-19 UPDATE

WORLD

9,16,777 2,85,18,579 DEATHS

MAHARASHTRA 28,724 DEATHS 10,15,681 CASES

CONFIRMED CASES

TAMIL NADU 8,234 DEATHS 4,91,571 CASES

RNI NO. GUJENG/2019/16208 l Vol 1 l Issue No. 287

INDIA

DEATHS

KARNATAKA 7,067 DEATHS 4,40,411 CASES

CONFIRMED CASES

An IAF aircraft flies in Ladakh region amid India-China stand off, in Leh on Friday. —PHOTO BY PTI

quoted Wang as saying.

“Indian partners expressed commitment to cooperation and dialogue for de-escalating tensions at the border.

We are ready to take conciliatory steps ... The

Chaos in Kangana’s flight: All protocols followed says IndiGo New Delhi: IndiGo Airlines on Friday responded to a notice sent by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) over the photography and videography in ChandigarhMumbai flight in which actress Kangana Ranaut was present.

The carrier, in a statement, said it has informed the aviation regulator that all norms were followed. “We have given our statement to DGCA regarding the matter pertaining to flight 6E 264 from Chandigarh to Mumbai, on September 9, 2020. We would like to reiterate that our cabin crew, as well as the captain, followed all the requisite protocols, including announcements to restrict photography, follow social distancing and

Chaos on the 6E-264 flight of IndiGo took place on Wednesday, as media persons flocked Kangana to take her version.

maintain overall safety.

IndiGo also followed the requisite protocol of documenting this matter in its post-flight report,” the carrier said.

“We are committed to providing a safe, hasslefree experience to our passengers,” IndiGo added.

Earlier in the day, DGCA sought a report

from IndiGo airlines on photography and videography during actress Kangana Ranaut’s flight from Chandigarh to Mumbai on September 9. The chaos on the 6E-264 flight of IndiGo took place on Wednesday. Ranaut had boarded the flight to return from Chandigarh to Mumbai, Turn to P6

most important thing is to avoid new violations of the obligations on the border ... Troops and equipment should be withdrawn from the Line of Actual Control,” he added.

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Drug use: 15 Bollywood celebs on NCB radar Mumbai: Actor Rhea Chakraborty, who has been arrested by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) in a drug case linked with Sushant Singh Rajput’s death has revealed names of around 15 B-Grade Bollywood celebrities who are involved in drug use, sources said.

Among these 15 celebrities, some are procurers of drugs and some are consumers, they said. The NCB investigation also revealed that there is some circle also who procures and supply drugs to celebrities, sources said.

During the NCB investigation, it was found that Showik and Dipesh Sawant used courier service for the delivery Turn to P6

DEATHS

DELHI 4,687 DEATHS 2,09,748 CASES

Foreign ministers of both countries, who met in Moscow, proposed a new set of confidence building measures to maintain peace along disputed boundary Moscow: China is Both Armies ready to take “conciliatory steps” in order to hold talks in avoid new violations of the obligations on InChushul dia-Chinese border,

matter, I discuss it all the time with Minister Jaishankar and India’s security officials ... Yesterday, I had a long conversation with my Indian counterpart (Jaishankar),” Sputnik

GUJARAT

77,462 46,53,455 3,183 1,10,971

READY FOR DE-ESCALATORY STEPS AT LAC, SAYS CHINA said Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Friday, a day after holding a crucial meeting with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar over the current standoff in Ladakh.

Speaking during a joint press conference with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, Wang said troops and equipment should be withdrawn from the Line of Actual Control (LAC). “As for relations between China and India, the whole world follows developments.

BRICS member states are in contact on the

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Leh (Ladakh): Indian Army and Chinese Army held Brigade Commander level talks in Chushul, Ladakh on Friday, a day after the meeting between Foreign Ministers of the two countries.

Indian Army sources said the meeting started at 11 am and ended around 3pm. India recently outflanked China by taking control of strategic heights near Pangong Lake’s southern bank. It thwarted an attempt by Chinese soldiers to transgress into Indian areas in Ladakh.

—ANI

CONFIRMED CASES

RAJASTHAN 1,207 DEATHS 99,036 CASES

Industrial production declines 10.4 pc in July 1 New Delhi: Industrial production declined by 10.4 per cent in July, mainly due to lower output of manufacturing, mining and power generation, as per the government data released on Friday.

According to the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) data, manufacturing sector production registered a decline of 11.1 per cent, while the output of mining and power fell 13 per cent and 2.5 per cent, respectively.

“In view of the preventive measures and announcement of nationwide lockdown by the Government to contain the spread of COVID-19 pandemic, a large number of the industrial sector establishments were not operating from the end of March 2020 onwards.

“This has had an impact on the items being produced by the establishments during the

IIP data says manufacturing sector production declined.

Growth in consumer non-durables Consumer non-durables remained the only category posting a growth, the pace of its expansion halved in July 2020, suggesting that restocking of inventory lost some steam. Despite continued improvements, capital goods and consumer durables underperformed the other categories in July 2020 period of lockdown.

With the lifting of restrictions in the subsequent periods, industrial activity is resuming,” the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementa-

tion said in a press release.

The Index for July 2020 stands at 118.1 as compared to 54.0, 89.5 and 108.9 in April, May and June 2020, respectively, it added.

—PTI

BASKING IN GLORY?

Ducks taking rest on a makeshift banana raft at Mayong Village in Morigaon on Thursday.

—PHOTO BY ANI

VVIP Chopper scam: CBI to prosecute ex-CAG, 4 others New Delhi: The CBI has sought sanction to prosecute former defence secretary Shashi Kant Sharma, who later became Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG), in connection with alleged corruption

in the Rs 3,600-crore Agusta Westland VVIP helicopter deal, officials said on Friday.

The agency is likely to file a supplementary charge sheet giving the role of Christian Michel, the alleged

middleman in the deal who was deported from the UAE and is currently in judicial custody, they said.

In its supplementary charge sheet, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is also

likely to give the alleged roles of some former public servants, who were holding key decision making positions when the deal for the helicopters was being discussed, the officials said.

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ACCEPTANCE IS KEY

After Asarwa’s refusal, Sola Civil Hospital shares COVID-19 data Cong leader Joher Vohra had filed an RTI to understand ground reality of pandemic Gargi Raval Ahmedabad: After Civil Hospital (Asarwa) and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel (SVP) Hospital refused to share COVID-19 data in response to a Right to Information (RTI) petition, Civil Hospital (Sola) has handed over

details of nCov cases and deaths.

Congress leader Joher Vohra had filed an RTI application to ascertain the ground reality of the number of cases being admitted to government hospitals amid the COVID-19 pandemic. But, he was denied details by Civil

MOTION DENIED! Congress leader Joher Vohra had filed an RTI application to ascertain the ground reality of the number of COVID-19 cases being admitted to government hospitals. However, Civil Hospital (Asarwa) denied his request citing the Epidemic Diseases Act. The Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Hospital--which is run by the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation--also denied the request, but said it was an attempt to maintain patients’ privacy.

Hospital (Asarwa), which cited the Epidemic Diseases Act as the reason for the refusal, while Ahmedabad

Municipal Corporationrun SVP Hospital blamed the denial to maintenance of patients’ privacy.

“The varying responses I received from different authorities blew my mind. I have been gathering COVID-19 data, as I am convinced that it is being under-reported.

This is a serious health crisis and the government must inform the people about the actual reality,” Vohra told First India.

He further added that interpretation of the RTI varied with authorities.

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NEWS AHMEDABAD | SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2020

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02

‘Stopping the Bullet’ may be a time-honoured magic trick, but can farmers in South Gujarat pull it off?

Haresh Jhala Surat: Imagine hurtling through lush green fields in a highspeed train or on a road trip. The idea may be exciting to many, but farmers in the South Gujarat region say the cost is simply too great.

They are now preparing to take a stand against having to hand over any part of their fertile farmland for either the Bullet train or the Express Highway projects.

To this end, farmers meetings have been held in Bardoli, Navsari, Valsad and Bharuch over the past few days.

Gujarat Khedut Samaj president Jayesh Patel told First India on Friday, that the meetings aimed to create awareness and share the latest developments on these projects, including the petitions pending before the Supreme Court.

Patel said the farmers’ movement had come to a standstill since the lockdown was imposed. As a result, the farmers were totally

THE COST OF DEVELOPMENT

The government will need to acquire land belonging to more than 2,000 farmers for the high-speed Bullet train project connecting Ahmedabad and Mumbai.

—FILE PHOTO

cut off, leading to the need to share the latest information about where the agitations stood and the plan going forward.

The government is set to acquire agricultural land belong-

ing to 2,000-2,200 farmers for the highspeed train project that will connect Ahmedabad and Mumbai. Most farmers from Navsari are against giving their land for the Bullet

train project. Similarly, about 30% of farmers in Surat and 50% of farmers in Valsad have not accepted the government’s offer of compensation or signed consent letters.

The farmers are demanding the market price for their land, while the state is offering 56% more than the circle rate, plus a bonus of Rs5 lakh for signing the consent letter. Circle rate is the minimum

price at which a plot can be sold or allocated.

This rate/price is decided by local development authorities or the state government.

Farmers who had signed consent papers earlier are unhappy

even after receiving 80% of the assigned compensation. Some of them had approached Khedut Samaj and had shown interest in joining the petition pending before the Apex court.

With the Express

Highway project between Vadodara and Mumbai, which has been on hold for more five years now seeing a revival, farmers have begun to include this project in their protests as well.

Expressed concern over drop in GST income, inflation, unemployment First India Bureau Ahmedabad: Leader of Opposition in the Gujarat Assembly Paresh Dhanani has alleged the Centre of keeping the country’s economic data under wraps. He also accused the Gujarat government of mismanagement which led to economic strain in the state. He attributed the economic crises of the past four years to demonetization and ‘faulty’ introduction of the Goods and Services Tax (GST).

“After the lockdown was imposed, the situation has worsened. The country has been pushed into inflation and unemployment. In the middle of all this, the state government is organizing festivals and unnecessary events,” Dhanani asserted.

In the first 90 days of

‘BJP’S FAULT’

 Next five days likely to bring light thunderstorms to many parts of the state

First India Bureau

Paresh Dhanani

COVID-19 outbreak itself, the BJP-led central government has denied grant of the GST share to states.

“The state government’s GST income has reduced considerably. In 2019, the state’s income for GST was Rs13,700 crore, against which, in 2020 it has received only Rs8,900 crore. A decrement of Rs4,800 crore has been re-

—FILE PHOTO

corded. And, as per the report released by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), the total debt of the state stood at 2,88,910 crore in 2019,” said the leader.

Dhanani further added that under BJP’s governance, the business sector has not received enough boost, with a few business industries not receiving the push of develop-

ment like the information & technology and the service sectors. He cited the examples of well-known industry big-wigs’ admittance about GST and demonetization leaving businesses in the state under stress.

“The government has come up with slogans, but then left people at the mercy of their own fate,” he remarked.

Ahmedabad: As many as 69 talukas in Gujarat witnessed a wet Friday, as the rains returned after a break. However, rainfall was relatively less intense and no floodlike situation has been created.

Kaprada in Valsad received the highest rainfall for the day, with 73mm between 6 am and 6 pm, followed by Posina in Sabarkantha, which received 50mm of rain during the same time duration. Ahmedabad too received rains, giving citizens relief from the sizzling heat of the past few days.

There are more rains ahead as well, with the India Meteorological Department announc-

—PHOTO BY HANIF SINDHI

LOP Dhanani alleges govt 69 talukas receive low-intensity rainfall as clouds return to Guj ‘hiding’ economic data

Light showers on Friday brought Ahmedabad some relief from the recent heat.

ing another five-day round that is expected to begin on Friday. A low-pressure is expected to develop in the Bay of Bengal around Sunday. In addition, wind patterns and weather conditions over the next five days will create favourable conditions for rains.

The next five days are likely to bring light thunderstorms with lightning and surface winds of less than 40

kmph in gusts. These are expected to be accompanied by moderate rain that is very likely at isolated places in all the districts of the Gujarat region and in Daman, and Dadra and Nagar Haveli, and in all the districts of the Saurashtra–Kutch region as well as Diu. Heavy rains are very likely at isolated places in the districts of the South Gujarat region, namely Surat and Tapi,

as well as Bhavnagar district in Saurashtra.

The state has so far received 1,014.85mm— 122.12% of its annual average of 831mm—of rain this season.

While all four months of this year’s monsoon have brought heavy rains, August topped the list with 644.51mm of rainfall. June had 122.24mm, July had 228.66mm and September has seen 19.45mm of rainfall so far.

MORE ATTRACTIONS

State announces new heritage policy to boost tourism, employment  Historical & ancient structures to have museums, hotels, restaurants, banquet halls First India Bureau Gandhinagar: Chief Minister Vijay Rupani on Friday announced a new heritage policy under which hotels, restaurants, banquet halls and even museums can be set up at historical monuments that were constructed before 1950.

The new policy will provide tourists with the opportunity to experience a stay at historical monuments in the state. It is also expected to boost local employment and the tourism industry.

The policy will utilize unused ancient and heritage structures with the aid of Rs5-10 crore funds sanctioned by the

state government. New or existing heritage hotels will undergo renovation or expansion as part of the heritage policy. According to policy provisions, developers will be provided with aid of Rs45 lakh to Rs1 crore, to build new establishments or restore existing heritage museums, banquet halls and restaurants. One of the conditions of restoring or expanding such structures is that it should be done without altering or damaging the existing structure(s).

The state govern-

Chief Minister Vijay Rupani

—FILE PHOTO

ment believes that the new policy will place Gujarat on the world heritage tourism map.

International tourists will not only be able to visit sites such as Rani ni Vav, Champaner or Ahmedabad’s Walled City, among other world heritage sites, but also enjoy a stay at ancient palaces, forts owned by royal families and other historical monuments.

This move will facilitate the enhancement of the tourism sector in the state and also add an earning resource of foreign currency.

It remains to be seen how the new heritage policy is implemented in Gujarat’s many ancient city ruins, palaces, forts, tombs, stepwells and temples.

The state, which is also home to the archaeological sites of the Indus Valley Civilization such as Lothal, sacred summits of Jainism and Buddhism, and other heritage structures, will certainly replenish its tourist attractions with the resources to enhance the tourism industry.

GUJARAT AHMEDABAD | SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2020

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Farmer immolates himself after rain washes out crop Babbubhai Pokhiya had been hoping to pay off his debts with the proceeds from his harvest Haresh Jhala

AVOIDABLE LOSS

Rajkot: A farmer from Chhodavadi village immolated himself after heavy rainfall washed away his standing crop and, with it, any hope he had of paying back his considerable debts.

Chhodavadi village sarpanch Ramesh Kothiya told First India, “Fifty-year-old Babubhai Pokiya owned 12.5 acres of land and had sown cotton and groundnut in this monsoon season. However, last spell of rains in August destroyed the standing crop. Babubhai had been deep in debt, and was expecting to repay those debts after selling this season’s crops. But the rain shattered his dreams. Left with no viable alternative way to repay his debts and provide for his family, he committed suicide on Thursday evening.”

Bharatsinh Jhala, an activist from Citizens

Resources and Action Initiative (CRANTI) called the incident “the shocking result of bad policies and little concern for farmers”. Just two days ago, Jhala had written to Chief Minister Vijay Rupani and Prime Minister Narendra Modi requesting that the government waive all farmers’ debt.

“If the government had waived off farmers’

debt, Babubhai would not have committed suicide,” he said.

Twenty-three farmers committed suicide in Gujarat in 2019. As many as 133 and 132 persons connected with farming sector had committed suicide in 2017 and 2018, respectively.

The CRANTI activist has demanded compensation of Rs10 lakh for Babubhai’s family.

The state has announced a crop damage survey, but these are done at a snail’s pace.

How can a farmer expect to repay debt or meet his family’s financial needs from compensation?” asked Dahyabhai Gajera, president of Kisan Sabha. “For instance, Upleta taluka has 51 villages. The 10 teams carrying out the survey, have so far covered just

25% of damaged fields. The state had promised to complete the survey within 15 days, but eight days have already passed. How do they expect to cover the remaining 75% in seven days?” he asked, instead suggesting that the government give minimum financial assistance of Rs50,000 per hectare to farmers who have suffered rain damage.

03

Heat is on as DGVCL cuts power to township First India Bureau Surat: As if the rising mercury and humidity levels were not enough to deal with on their own, residents of Vivekanand Township in Surat’s AdajanPal area have to also contend with a lack of electricity. While residents claim that Dakshin Gujarat Vij Company Limited (DGVCL) cut off the power with no warning, the stateowned power distribution utility says the roughly 2,000 residents were sent not one, but four notices.

A DGVCL official, who asked not to be named since he is not authorized to speak to the press, told First India, “Many accidents have been taking place due to bad wiring in the township. The township was sent four notices asking residents to either lay underground cables or to cooperate

Residents of Vivekanand Township.

CRUX OF THE MATTER

with DGVCL, and allow us to erect new electricity poles. They have not taken any action on their own, and neither have they offered any cooperation. So the company decided to stop supplying them electricity since it is dangerous to do so at the moment. The connection will be restored if the

residents cooperate.”

Residents disagree.

“We have answered every notice, in these times of crisis. But today, without any prior notice, they just cut the power, due to which 500 families living in the township are facing hardship,” said Rajesh Vadhela, president of Vivekanand Township.

SMC slashes water connection charges With spike in nCov cases, Rajkot First India Bureau

than 4.75 lakh illegal water connections in Surat, which will be legalized till December this year under the new ‘Nal Se Jal’ scheme of the state government.

The new proposal by the local civic body, the SMC, will only benefit houses that are built

Surat: The Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) on Friday took the decision to slash water connection charges by 75% percent in an effort to legalize all connections in the city.

There are more

on an area of up to 200 square metre of land.

All the citizens need to do is pay 25% of the amount charged for a new water connection and get their connection legalized. The local civic body will now charge Rs500 instead of Rs2,000 for a water connection.

RELIGIOUS FREEDOM

Devotees of Lord Hanuman gathered outside Camp Hanuman on Friday to demand that the temple be reopened in time for the traditional Saturday puja. While the Army has given permission for the temple—which is located inside the cantonment—to be opened after being shut to curb the spread of COVID-19 months ago, sources say it has remained closed due to differences between the trustees and the priest.

—PHOTO BY HANIF SINDHI

gold dealers demand lockdown First India Bureau Gandhinagar: The state has again reported a record single-day jump with 1,344 new cases emerging on Friday. Rajkot city reported 99 cases and two deaths in 24 hours. However, locals put the number of deaths at a much higher 22—16 from the city, and three each from rural areas and other districts. In addition, the city’s Gold Dealers’ Association has demanded that the state reimpose lockdown in Rajkot, after 35 jewellery traders and five of their family members were struck down by the virus. For now, jewellery shops have voluntarily shut and will remain closed September 12-19.

With the state having conducted 71,668 tests in 24 hours, there are now 16,318 active cases, with 94 patients on ventilator support. Of the

AMC health workers sanitize Chandlodia in Ahmedabad on Friday after several cases of COVID-19 were reported in the area.

—PHOTO BY HANIF SINDHI

1,344 new cases, 16 fatalities take tally to 1,10,971 cases, and death toll to 3,181 16 patients reported dead, five were from Surat, three from Ahmedabad, two each from Rajkot, Vadodara and Bhavnagar, and one each from Banaskantha

and Gandhinagar.

Surat had the highest number of cases with 275, of which 174 were from the city and 101 from rural areas.

Ahmedabad had 174, Vadodara, 132, Jamnagar, 116, Bhavnagar, 45, Gandhinagar, 40, Junagadh, 35, Patan, 30, Panchamahal, 29, Amreli, 26, while Bharuch and Kutch each had 25.

Vadodara-based Ma-

haraja Sayajirao University (MSU) has decided to close the Hansa Mehta library, after its librarian Mayank Trivedi tested positive for the novel coronavirus. BJP leader Pradipsinh Vaghela from Sanand has also tested positive. He had accompanied the party’s state unit president CR Patil during his tours of Saurashtra and North Gujarat.

FROM THE HORSE’S MOUTH

Parents approach HC with prayer to be heard on fee issue 





All Gujarat Vali Mandal filed a petition and requested the court to include it in the proceedings; hearing scheduled for September 18

First India Bureau Ahmedabad: The All Gujarat Vali Mandal has knocked on the doors of the Gujarat High Court and requested it to make it party to the ongoing school fee issue being heard by the court.

On behalf of the organization, Naresh Shah filed a petition through advocate Vishal Dave. The petitioner’s submission was that they too should be heard in

the school fee controversy since it affects them directly.

As a solution, the state government had proposed a 25% waiver in tuition fees of students. The offer was turned down by the Self-Financed Schools Management Federation and the state was unable to persuade the federation to come to an amicable solution.

Meanwhile, as per reports, over 38 schools have welcomed the government’s decision to

High Court of Gujarat.

—FILE PHOTO

introduce the 25% tuition fee waiver for students until schools are reopened.

In fact, around 20 schools in diamond city Surat, affiliated with the management federation have already implemented the state’s solution to the fee issue.

On Thursday, the Self-Financed Schools Management Federation had filed its response to the state’s resolution and categorically disagreed to the proposal of introducing

a 25% rollback in fees.

The federation also put forth its own solution to the fee issue and stated that school managements were ready to work out a fee rollback ranging from 10 to 100% but, only on a case-bycase basis and not across the board.

Earlier, the state had approached the state high court with a prayer to issue fresh directives on the school fees issue.

The court has kept the matter for further hearing on September 18.

PERSPECTIVE AHMEDABAD | SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2020

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IN-DEPTH

WILL DGCA BAR CHAOTIC MEDIA PERSONS

W

hen stand-up comedian Kunal Kamra heckled a senior television journalist on board an Indigo flight in January this year, all hell broke loose. The Civil Aviation Ministry took cognizance of the journalist’s complaint and aviation minister Hardeep Puri asked all airlines to take action and impose restrictions on the comedian. Subsequently, Kamra was banned from flying for six months first by Indigo and then by Air India and Spicejet. Puri called Kamra’s behaviour as “offensive” and aimed at creating “disturbance inside an aircraft”. For Puri the incident was completely unacceptable as it endangered the safety of other passengers on the flight.

Now videos have surfaced showing chaos on Indigo’s Chandigarh-Mumbai flight 6E-264 which had the Bollywood actress Kangana Ranaut as a passenger.

Electronic media persons with mics and seemed to be in a frenzy to get a byte of the actress who has taken on Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray over Sushant Singh Rajput case. Not only were other passengers inconvenienced, social distancing and mask-wearing protocols were also defied by journalists who carried on with their work of reporting from inside the aircraft all the way to Mumbai.

After the Kunal Kamra incident the DirectorateGeneral of Civil Aviation made it clear that unruly behaviour on-board an aircraft will constitute unruly behaviour. The airline clarified that its crew followed all the protocols and even documented the incident in its post flight report.

The aviation regulator is expected to act on this flagrant violation of flying and pandemic rules but will it be as harsh on media personnel as it was against the comedian?

Mission Karamyogi for responsive and efficient bureaucracy KEWAL KHANNA Former Financial Advisor, Indira Gandhi Nahar Board and author of number of books

A

INDIA, CHINA BACK FROM THE BRINK

I

n a constructive development India and China agreed on a five-point plan to resolve the dispute in eastern Ladakh where armies of the two countries have been locked in an eyeball to eyeball confrontation for over five months. As per the plan the two countries will abide by all existing agreements and protocol on management of the frontier, maintain peace and tranquility and action that could escalate tension. This was the outcome of the talks between Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar and Wang Yi of China in Moscow. In a joint statement the Ministry of External Affairs said, “The two foreign ministers agreed that the current situation in the border areas is not in the interest of either side. They agreed, therefore, that the border troops of both sides should continue their dialogue, quickly disengage, maintain proper distance and ease tensions.”

It was also agreed that the two sides will take guidance from the consensus reached between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Xi Jinping at their informal summits in 2018 and 2019. Once the situation along the border eases, the two sides will work on new confidence building measures.

Given the tense standoff, this five-point agreement is like coming back from the brink. The success of this agreement will depend on how serious the Chinese are about implementing it. So far China has failed the test of trust and the misgivings will remain. Building a consensus will be a challenge despite the positive beginning. China has to begin disengagement in the Pangong Tso Lake area where it has tried to grab Indian territory.

Modi government wants to reform the bureaucracy.

The union cabinet has approved a civil services capacitybuilding initiative called the “ Mission Karamyogi” that will apply to 46 lakh central government employees both higher civil servants and lower civil servants covering up to the level of section officers

dministrative reform is a continuous process and respective governments have been indulging in this exercise ensuring that its bureaucratic paraphernalia is responsive to public needs and there is efficiency and integrity in the implementation of government programmes, policies and timely delivery of public services meant for public welfare.

Though India has one of the finest higher civil services in the world but make it function efficiently it needs now and then reorientation and training.

Modi government wants to reform the bureaucracy. The union cabinet has approved a civil services capacity-building initiative called the “ Mission Karamyogi” that will apply to 46 lakh central government employees both higher civil servants and lower civil servants covering up to the level of section officers. The mission talk of “RULE BASED TO ROLE BASED” linking training and development of the civil servants by making available continuous learning opportunities at every level and not just at the senior level to enhance operating competence. The necessity for such a mission has arisen to overcome the challenges bureaucracy is facing like Rule Orientation, political interference, inefficiency with promotions, and growing the conflict between the generalist and specialist services.

The present status quo with greater challenges of development and situations like pandemic, long-pending civil services reforms were needed. The capacity of the civil servant at every level plays a very vital role in rendering a variety of services, implementing welfare programmes and performing core government functions. Today the necessity is to develop progressive and imaginative civil servants who work in close coordination, not in department silos. The focus has to be on building and monitoring a continuously learning and goal focused workforce, that is more

suited for current and future administrative challenges.

Mission Karamyogi picks up the issues of training, competency, mapping and target performance, assessments and offers an architecture that will help transform them, thus improving efficiency and better services to citizens.

GOVERNANCE STRUCTURE There are five major components of Mission Karamyogi for implementation, evaluation, and monitoring. At the apex level, a Human Resource Council headed by the Prime Minister which will also include State Chief Ministers, Union Cabinet Ministers, and experts specialist. The role of this Council will be to approve and review the civil services capacity building program. Down the top of the ladder will be a Cabinet Secretary Coordination Unit comprising select secretaries and cadre controlling authorities.

There is also a provision for a Capacity Building Commission, comprising of experts in related fields and global professionals.

The function of this commission will be to prepare and monitor annual capacity building plans and audit human resources available in the government.

It is as if previous governments have not taken such measures but they were far more limited in scope.

Over a decade and half ago in 2004 NDA Government- UPA-!

THE PRESENT STATUS QUO WITH GREATER CHALLENGES OF DEVELOPMENT AND SITUATIONS LIKE PANDEMIC, LONGPENDING CIVIL SERVICES REFORMS WERE NEEDED

P.C. Hota, a former chairman of UPSC Submitted an extremely detailed report looking at every aspect of civil service. In its report one illuminating chapter that put the startling observations of the Hota committee about what ailed the civil services. They were fairly scathing in tone. They talked of a civil service that had lost its neutral character, was prone to corruption, was afraid of taking bold decisions, and had become a handmaiden of politicians because of the latter’s ability to transfer out government servants at will. Civil servants were not only arrogant but had lost touch with ground realities. Hota committee also observed that civil servants were not result-oriented because they had no clear targets in most of the cases.

Mission Karamyogi is a big

The neglected water and sanitation crisis T

he COVID-19 crisis has laid bare the importance of access to clean water, sanitation, and hygiene. As we all know now, hand washing is one of the best frontline defenses against the virus. Yet three billion people – almost half of the world’s population – lack access to basic hand-washing facilities, around onethird (2.2 billion people) do not have access to safe drinking water, and almost twice as many (4.2 billion) go without safe sanitation services of any kind.

The situation is even worse in the Pacific Islands, where the share of the population without secure access to potable water is twice that of the global average, and where sanitary indicators are lower than in Sub-Saharan

04

Africa. As we are seeing in countries like Papua New Guinea, the absence of facilities for maintaining basic hygiene makes it incredibly difficult to combat the virus once it takes hold.

Yet despite our knowledge of the problem, water and sanitation continue to slide down the political agenda globally. Politicians are rarely as eager to open a wastewater plant as they are to cut the ribbon in front of a new school or hospital. But the problem is not so much a lack of political will as an inability to seize political opportunities. After all, it is hard to think of any other government service as important as the delivery of clean water and sanitation.

The real problem, in fact, is finance. For too long, governments have seen water and sanitation

as a drain on national budgets rather than as an investment opportunity. As a result, they have traditionally relied on taxes, tariffs, and transfers to subsidize the sector. And though people are often willing to pay for access or improvements to these services, the utilities struggle to cover the costs of basic operations or maintenance

without additional support.

This makes no sense politically, considering that people desperately want and need these services.

But it also makes no sense economically. The losses associated with inadequate water and sanitation services currently total some $260 billion (1.5% of global GDP) per year, whereas

every dollar invested in water and sanitation brings a four-fold return in health, economic, and educational outcomes – all of which can serve a government’s broader economic and social agenda.

The biggest challenge is to persuade governments to view the sector as assets that will yield high economic and financial returns without breaking the bank. Such a shift in mindset will also lend momentum to other long-needed reforms. There are ample opportunities for improvement in sector planning and management, subsidy targeting, cost-recovery policies, and tariff regimes, as well as a need for new earmarked taxes and other options for cross-subsidization.

Some governments are already pursuing these op-

portunities. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Swachh Bharat Mission, for example, has helped focus national attention on water and sanitation issues, as have recent efforts

by President Muhammadu Buhari in Nigeria. Meanwhile, other governments have expanded access to repayable finance mechanisms designed to reduce risk and pool financial resources at a national, municipal, or household level.

For example, in Kenya, the national water regulator has worked with the World Bank to adopt “shadow credit ratings” with which to attract more financing. In Indonesia, the government has used grants for lower-income households to improve services for those who need it most.

civil services reforms programme covering 46 lakh employees including the lower cader upto section officers, for which a sum of Rs.510.86 crore will be spent over a period of five years from 2020-21 to 2024-25, The ultimate aim and objective of Mission Karamyogi is to ensure “Ease of Living” for the common man, “Ease of doing business” and “Citizen Centricity” that is reducing the gap between the government and citizens. This can only be achieved by regular and constructive involvement by the government and civil servants. Mission Karamyogi is a big idea to make Indian bureaucracy role oriented strengthening efficiency and positive response to people’s welfare. We hope as the mission gets active, some of the major discrepancies pointed out by PC Hota Committee should automatically get resolved. Providing access to online training to all government servants would hugely help the capacity building process. Some of the bureaucrats feel that another council like the Capacity Building Commission may result in more bureaucracy at a time when the government is promising minimum government.

All said and done it is going to be a big bang reform and hope its outcome lead to greater people’s welfare and government’s vision gets translated in letter and spirit.

THE VIEWS EXPRESSED BY THE AUTHOR ARE PERSONAL

Top

TWEET Dharmendra Pradhan @dpradhanbjp An excellent initiative, the #StateStartUpRankings will foster competitiveness and propel states and UTs to work towards uplifting the startup ecosystem.

Hon. PM Shri @narendramodi’s govt. is committed to make India a global hub of innovation, startups and manufacturing.

Subramanian Swamy @Swamy39 Congress has issued a statement today that Government should talk with China only for making it observe Status Quo Ante. What is there to talk about it? Send a letter to China to clear out. If the Chinese don’t then send the army to evict the Chinese troops. No talking

Spiritual SPEAK

Those who cling to perceptions and views wander the world offending people. —Buddha

SOURCE: PROJECT SYNDICATE

Vol 1 Issue No. 287 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.

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INDIA AHMEDABAD | SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2020

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NEP WILL ENSURE HOLISTIC DEVELOPMENT: PM MODI New Delhi: We will have to take our students forward with 21stcentury skills, said Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday, adding that the National Education Policy (NEP)-2020 will ensure the holistic development of students.

The Prime Minister said that the National Education Policy (NEP)-2020 has been built in such a way that the syllabus could be reduced and the focus could be on fundamentals. He also spoke about developing a National Curriculum Framework to make learning “integrated, inter-disciplinary, funbased, and complete experience.”

Apart from the Prime Minister, Union Minister for Education, Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank, Minister of State (MoS) Sanjay Dhotre, among others from various States, also took part in the two-day conclave on School Education in 21st Century un-

PM Modi gives ‘Mantra’ for ‘New Age Learning’

PM Narendra Modi addressing a Conclave on School Education in 21st Century under the National Education Policy 2020, through video conference, in New Delhi on Friday.

—PHOTO BY ANI

der National Education Policy (NEP)-2020, which began today.

“NEP 2020 will ensure the holistic development of learners. We have to advance our students with 21st-century skills. These 21st Century skills will be: Critical Thinking, Creativity, Collaboration, Curiosity, Communication,” the Prime Minister said.

“NEP will bring in a reduction in curriculum content to enhance essential learning and critical thinking. Stress will also be given to removing language barriers in order to achieve better results in learning,” he added.

The PM thanked principals and teachers for their enthusiastic participation in the campaign to implement

AERO INDIA 2021: FEBRUARY 3-7, 2021

Rajnath Singh launches website of Aero India 2021

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh launches the website of Aero India 2021, which is scheduled for 3-7 February 2021, in New Delhi on Friday.

—PHOTO BY ANI

New Delhi: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Friday launched the website of Aero India 2021, which will be held between February 3-7, 2021.

“Raksha Mantri Shri @ rajnathsingh launched the website of @AeroIndiashow 2021 at South Block today.

The Aero India Show is scheduled from 03 to 07th of February, 2021 in Bengaluru,” Office of Defence Minister said in a tweet.

Aero India 2021 was also discussed at India-UK Defence Equipment Subgroup Meeting. Principal Spokesperson, MoD, tweeted. — ANI

RMO INDIA@DEFENCEMININDIA Raksha Mantri Shri @rajnathsingh launched the website of @AeroIndiashow 2021 at South Block today. The Aero India Show is scheduled from 03 to 07th of February, 2021 in Bengaluru.

DEFENCE MIN HOLDS REVIEW MEETING WITH NSA DOVAL New Delhi: According to officials, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh held a security review meeting with NSA Ajit Doval, CDS General Bipin Rawat & three services chiefs to discuss ongoing situation on China border.During the meet, Indian side clearly conveyed that it expected full adherence to all agreements on management of border areas and would not countenance any attempt to change status quo unilaterally. At the end, the Ministers reached an agreement on five points that will guide their approach to current situation.

SENSEX, NIFTY END FLAT; LOG WEEKLY GAINS Mumbai: Domestic equity benchmarks Sensex and Nifty ended on a flat note on Friday amid lack of fresh buying triggers and mixed global cues.

The 30-share BSE Sensex ended 14.23 points or 0.04 per cent higher at 38,854.55. The broader NSE Nifty rose 15.20 points or 0.13 per cent to close at 11,464.45. SBI

was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, spurting 2.30 per cent, followed

by TCS, Tech Mahindra, Bajaj Finance, Hindustan Unilever, Kotak Bank, Titan and Infosys. On the other hand, IndusInd Bank, PowerGrid, Asian Paints, Bharti Airtel and HDFC Bank were among the laggards, dropping up to 1.71 per cent.

NEP-2020 and reiterated that building it was just the beginning.

“The new NEP is a means of fulfilling New India, New Expectations, New Requirements. Behind it is the hard work of last 4-5 years, people of every field, every genre, every language have worked on it. But this work has not been completed yet,” he said.—ANI

‘Delhi metro to start ops on all sections from Sept 13’ New Delhi: The Delhi Metro will start its operations on all sections from at 6 am on September 13 for a week, informed Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC).

“This Sunday, 13th September, Metro operations will start at 6:00 AM on all sections.

Starting next Sunday, 20th September, regular timings as per earlier time table with services starting at 8:00 AM on Phase 3 sections (on Sundays) will continue,” DMRC said in a statement.

DMRC resumed services on the Magenta and Grey lines today under Stage-II of restarting its operations with all COVID-19 protocols in place.

After a gap of more than five months, the Delhi metro had resumed its services in a phased manner in three stages beginning from September 7.

The metro, which had suspended its services in March due to the COVID-19 outbreak, reopened with caution putting into place a series of measures. —ANI

GOVT LISTS 23 NEW BILLS FOR MONSOON SESSION New Delhi: Government has listed 23 new bills, including 11 which seek to replace ordinances, for introduction in Parliament’’s Monsoon session beginning Monday. One of the ordinances government plans to pass as a bill during the session relates to providing preventive measures against violence on heathcare personnel. The ordinance makes acts of violence against healthcare personnel deployed in combating COVID-19 a non-bailable offence with maximum punishment of seven yrs imprisonment & Rs 5L fine.

New Delhi: Education, when connected to the students’ surroundings positively, affects their lives, said PM Narendra Modi and also gave the five principles for “New Age Learning”.

Apart from PM, Union Minister for Education, Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank, MoS Sanjay Dhotre, among others, also part in two-day conclave on School Education in 21st Century under NEP-2020, which began today. “When education is connected to surroundings it has an effect on life of student, & also whole society. We should promote easy & new techniques which will be the basis for New Age Learning, with Engage, Explore, Experience, Express, and Excel as its roots,” the PM said. —ANI

05

RAGA AGAIN QUESTIONS GOVT ON CHINESE AGGRESSION IN LADAKH

‘When exactly will you get our land back?’

New Delhi: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who has been repeatedly questioning the Centre on the issue of Chinese aggression across LAC in eastern Ladakh, took to Twitter to once again take a jibe at the government.

“The Chinese have taken our land. When exactly is GOI planning to get it back? Or is that also going to be left to an Act of God?” the former Congress president asked on Twitter.

He was referring to finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s recent remark that Covid-19 was an ‘act of God’ which may result to contraction of the economy this fiscal.

Gandhi’s tweet comes after EAM S Jaishankar met his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi on the sidelines of SCO summit in Moscow. At the meeting between the two leaders, India and China reached a five-point consensus on easing border tensions in Ladakh. —Agencies

RAHUL GANDHI @RAHULGANDHI The Chinese have taken our land. When exactly is GOI planning to get it back? Or is that also going to be left to an ‘Act of God’?

MP BYPOLLS: CONG DECLARES CANDIDATES FOR 15 SEATS Bhopal: Congress announced candidates for 15 seats for MP by-election.Ravindra Singh Tomar, Satyaprakash Shekarwar, Mevaram Jatav, Sunil Sharma, Suresh Raje, Phul Singh Baraiya, Pragilal Jatav, Kanhaiyalal Agarwal, Vishwanath Singh Kunjam, Madanlal Choudhary Ahirwar, Vipin Wankhede, Rajveer Singh Baghel, Ram Kisan Patel, Asha Dohar and Premchand Guddu from.By-elections are due on 26 seats which fell vacant following resignations of 24 Congress MLAs and death of two legislators earlier.

IN THE COURTYARD

SC notice to states on PIL over nonimplementation of ‘Ayushman Bharat’ New Delhi: The Supreme Court issued notice to Odisha, Telangana, Delhi and West Bengal on a petition claiming that there is non-implementation of the Central government’s Ayushman Bharat health scheme in these states and union territory.

A three-judge bench, headed by CJI Sharad Arvind Bobde, issued notices to the states and union Territory posted the matter for further hearing likely after two weeks.

The petition, filed by one Perala Shekhar

Rao thorough lawyers Hitendra Nath Rath and Shravan Kumar, said that the Union of India has been implementing ‘Ayusman Bharat’ health insurance scheme for 50

crore people of the country with an annual budget of 6,400 crore.

“Under this scheme poor people are entitled to avail treatment for various health problems including

the testing and treatment for COVID-19 pandemic,” Hitendra Rath, for the petitioner, told the top court.

“That except Telangana, Delhi, West Bengal and Odisha, all the States in the country are implementing/ availing the Ayushman Bharat Scheme,” the plea said.

It said that this has resulted the denial of health insurance benefit provided by UOI to the people of four states which is contrary to Article 14 and 21 of the Constitution of India. —ANI

‘States should execute govt’s SOP on Corona’ New Delhi: The Supreme Court said state governments are obligated to implement the Centre’s standard operating procedure (SOP) on Covid-19 pandemic, including on transporting a confirmed case or a person suspected of infec-

tion. A bench comprising Justices Ashok Bhushan, R. Subhash Reddy and M.R. Shah said all states should follow the SOP and take appropriate measures in connection with augmenting the capacity of ambulances.

TO WIN BIHAR POLLS POLITICS IS BEING PLAYED ON A DEATH: SENA Mumbai: In a veiled reference to Sushant Singh Rajput death case, Shiv Sena in its mouthpiece Saamana said that to win election in Bihar and to get votes of specific caste, politics is being played on a death. “To win election of Bihar and to get votes of specific caste, politics is being played on a death. Nation-

al and political policies are decided in this regard.

But millions of people become unemployed and poor, no policy is prepared on this,” Sena said.

“On absurd statements of an actress, a large section of society is delivering unilateral political rhetoric. This is not a politics of national interest,” it added.

The observation by the bench was made during hearing of PIL filed by an organisation named ‘Earth’, which claimed that ambulances are charging excessively from Covid-19 patients, therefore the state governments should fix

charges for them.

SG Tushar Mehta, representing Centre, submitted before the bench that Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare had issued the SOP on this issue and all state governments would have to implement it.

UDDHAV NOT WELCOME IN AYODHYA, SAY SEERS, VHP Ayodhya: The saints of Ayodhya and the Vishwa Hindu Parishad have announced that Maharashtra Chief Minister and Shiv Sena chief, Uddhav Thackeray, “is no more welcome in Ayodhya”, following the Kangana Ranaut episode. Mahant Raju Das, priest of the Hanuman Garhi temple, questioned the BMC’s demolition of Ranaut’s office and said, “Uddhav Thackeray and Shiv Sena are no more welcome in Ayodhya. Now, the Maharashtra Chief Minister will face stiff opposition from seers of Ayodhya if he comes here.

INDIA AHMEDABAD | SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2020

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74% ACTIVE CASES FROM 9 STATES 3 most affected states by COVID-19, acc to MoHFW are Maharashtra, Karnataka & Andhra

New Delhi: Close to 74 per cent of the total active cases in the country are from the ninemost affected states, according to the Union Health Ministry.

The three most affected states by COVID-19, according to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW), are Maharashtra, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh, which have 4,60,692 active cases or 48.8 per cent of the total cases in the country. The six other states, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Odisha, Assam and Chhatisgarh have 2,36,545 cases or 25.1 per cent of the active cases.

The MoHFW also said as many as 1,209 deaths have been registered in the past 24 hours. Out of which Maharashtra has reported 495 deaths followed by Karnataka with 129 deaths, whereas Uttar Pradesh has logged 94 deaths.

“96,551 new cases have been reported in

‘Ensure no restriction imposed on moving medical oxygen between states’ New Delhi: Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan has urged States and UTs to ensure that no restriction is imposed on movement of medical oxygen from one State to another.

It may be noted that oxygen support is one of the key clinical management in treating COVID-19 patients across India.

According to Health Ministry, so far, less than 3.7% of active patients are on oxy-

‘100% SURGE IN RECOVERY RATE’

ing an exam to do so in isolation. According to revised document by Health Ministry, in regular course, a symptomatic candidate should be referred to nearest health centre and given an opportunity to un-

Rajesh Bhushan

gen support in the country.

Bhushan’s decision come when Ministry got to know that a few States are trying to curb free inter-State movement of oxygen

ies, and formed a special committee to assist her in party matters.

The new members in the Congress Working Committee (CWC), the party’s highest decision making body, will re-

place Faleiro, Vora, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury and Tamradhwaj Sahu. The six-member special committee, formed to assist her in organisational and operational matters, will have AK Antony, Ahmed Patel, Ambika Soni, KC Venugopal, Mukul Wasnik and Randeep Surjewala as its members.

Surjewala has also been made the general secretary in-charge for Congress affairs in Karnataka.—PTI

dertake examination through other means, or the university or educational institution shall arrange for taking the exam at a later date when student is declared physically fit.

“However, if a student

New Delhi: Social ac- tilatory support since tivist Swami Agnivesh, Tuesday, the doctors said. who was suffering from “He was sufferliver cirrhoing from liver sis for a long cirrhosis and time, died of died today due multi-org an to multi-organ failure at a failure as his Delhi hospicondition detetal, doctors riorated and he said. went into carSwami Agnivesh He was 80. diac arrest at 6 Agnivesh was critically pm,” a spokesperson of ill and admitted to an the hospital said. ResusciICU of the Institute of tation was attempted but Liver and Biliary Sci- he passed away at 6:30 pm, ences, and was on ven- he said. —PTI

‘China to hand over 5 missing Arunachal men today’ Guwahati: The five youths from Arunachal Pradesh who had strayed across the border to Chinese side earlier this month would be handed back to India on Saturday, informed union sports minister Kiren Rijiju.

“The Chinese PLA has confirmed to the Indian Army to hand over the youths from Arunachal Pradesh to our side. The handing over is likely to take place anytime tomorrow, i.e. 12 September,

2020 at a designated location,” Rijiju, who represents BJP from Arunachal West seat, tweeted.

The five youths from

Tagin tribe, who used to work as porters for Indian Army, had gone missing on September 2 reportedly from Sera-7 on the Indian side of

the McMohan line bifurcating Arunachal Pradesh and Tibet autonomous region (TAR) of China.

Following their disappearance, a brother of one of the youths posted on social media that they had been ‘abducted’ by PLA. The same accusation was made by Tapir Gao, BJP MP from Arunachal East and Congress MLA from Pasighat Ninong Ering in their tweets. Responding to a hotline message sent by Indian Army,

Chakraborty amid lockdown, sources said.

In the statement, the courier boy has revealed that he took courier from Sushant’s house from Dipesh and delivered to Rhea Chakraborty’s house where Showik Chakraborty received the packet containing half kilogram of drugs.

According to sources, the phone number of Dipesh and Showik was saved in the mobile of courier boy.

Call details between courier boy, Showik and Dipesh have also confirmed this movement of the drugs, sources said.

Cross questioning has been done with Dipesh, Showik and Courier boy in this regard.

A special court in Mumbai on Friday rejected the bail plea of actor Rhea Chakraborty, her brother Showik and others in connection with a drug case related to the death of Sushant Singh Rajput.

The Special NDPS court also rejected the bail plea of Abdul Basit, Zaid Vilatra, Dipesh Sawant and Samuel Miranda, who were arrested by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) in the case. —ANI

VVIP Chopper...

In order to prosecute the officers whose alleged role surfaced during investigation, the CBI has approached the defence ministry seeking nod to prosecute Sharma and the then Air Vice Marshal Jasbir Singh Panesar, besides others, they said.

The agency has also sought sanction to charge sheet three former IAF officers -- deputy chief test pilot S A Kunte, wing commander Thomas Mathew and group captain N Santosh, they said, adding that Kunte and Santosh retired as air commo-

Kiren Rijiju

Manoj Kumar is likely to join the Government of India as Secretary this month. He is a 1988 batch IAS officer of Himachal Pradesh cadre.

SHAMBHU NATH SINGH TO RETIRE IN NOVEMBER AS SPECIAL DIRECTOR IN THE IB

According to some reliable sources, Shambhu Nath Singh is retiring in November. He is a 1986 batch IPS officer of Manipur cadre.

GANGADHARAN STANDS RELIEVED TO JOIN MINISTRY OF CULTURE supply by exercising provisions under various Acts.—ANI

is found to be symptomatic, permission or denial thereof, in such cases shall be granted as per policy already enunciated on the issue

by Examination Conducting Authorities,” revised SOP said.—ANI

Sonia removes Azad, Kharge as Social activist Swami AICC gen secy; Reconstitutes CWC Agnivesh dies at Delhi hosp New Delhi: In a major reshuffle of the party, Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Friday removed Ghulam Nabi Azad, Motilal Vora, Ambika Soni, Mallikarjun Kharge as AICC general secretaries, and reconstituted CWC and appointed P Chidambaram, Randeep Surjewala, Tariq Anwar and Jitendra Singh as its regular members.

Gandhi also removed Luizinho Faleiro as AICC general secretar-

MANOJ KUMAR TO JOIN GOI AS SECRETARY

V S Hejmadi, GM, AIL, is expected to get a second term as Director (Finance), Air India Limited (AIL).

The first term of him is coming to an end on October 31, 2020. He is supposed to get a second term till June 30, 2023.

REVISED SOP FOR CONDUCTING EXAMS AMID CORONA New Delhi: The government has issued a revised SOP for conducting examinations amid COVID-19 pandemic, removing the provision that allowed symptomatic candidates who insist on tak-

POWER Gallery

V S HEJMADI LIKELY TO GET SECOND TERM AS DIRECTOR (FIN), AIR INDIA

A health worker collects swab sample from a girl in New Delhi.

the last 24 hours. Of this, Maharashtra alone has more than 23,000 and Andhra Pradesh has more than 10,000,” the ministry said.

Nearly 57 per cent of the new cases are reported from only five states. —Agencies

06

China’s People’s Liberation Army had informed on Tuesday that the youths have been found on their side and their condition was fine.

“The youths, who were hunting in the area, had inadvertently crossed over to other side. The PLA informed us that they all are okay.

Formalities for their early transfer are being coordinated with Chinese side,” Lt Col Harsh Wardhan Pande, PRO (Defence), Tezpur, Assam, had said.

dores.The officials said that the sanction is pending with the defence ministry since March.42.27 million Euros, approximately seven per cent, from the companies to swing the Rs 3,600 crore deal in their favour.

C Gangadharan stands relieved to join as Director, Ministry of Culture. He is a CSS officer.

DEPUTATION TENURE OF RAKESH AGGARWAL AS JOINT DIRECTOR, CBI EXTENDED

The deputation tenure of Rakesh Aggarwal, working as Joint Director in the Central Bureau of Investigation, has been extended for a period of two years till September 2, 2022. He is a 1994 batch IPS officer of HP cadre.

NO EXTENSION TO ITS OFFICER, DOT TO PRASAR BHARTI

Prasar Bharti has relieved T K Upadhyay, ADG after the DoT denied him further extension, informed a few reliable sources from the department. The ITS officer has been asked to report back to the parent department.

TWO IRS-IT OFFICERS GET NEW POSTINGS

‘Let virtual courts continue post pandemic’ New Delhi: The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a paradigm shift with technology stepping in every field, and the judiciary was no different the typical physical courtrooms were replaced by virtual ones where proceedings were conducted through videoconference. Now, Parliament’s Standing Committee on Law and Justice, in its 103rd report ‘Functioning of Court Proceedings through VC has recommended that the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology may be approached to develop indigenous software applications to handle virtual court hearings.

It also wanted development of Artificial intelligence systems capable of supporting bulk documentation etc.

Dr Sunil Gautam and Pitambar Das have been appointed as CIT (OSD) in the office of Principal CCIT, Delhi Region and Shishir Srivastava was posted as CIT (OSD) in the office of Principal CCIT, Mumbai Region.

APPA RAO APPOINTED AS ED (T), RAILWAY BOARD

Appa Rao, ED, Railway Stores, has been assigned an additional charge of Executive Director (Transformation) in Railway Board. He is an IRSS officer.

RESHUFFLE OF IPS OFFICERS IN UTTAR PRADESH

As many as 13 IPS officers have been transferred and posted to different places in Uttar Pradesh, informed the sources. Accordingly, Suresh Kulkarni has been appointed as SP, Unnao; while Amit Kumar-1 was made SP, UP 112 Lucknow and Arag is SP, Hardoi. Similarly, Ram Abhilash Tripathi has been appointed as SP, Siddhart Nagar; Swapnil as Deputy Police Commissioner, Lucknow; Shlok Kumar as SP, Raibareilly; Narendra Kumar Singh as SP, Hamirpur; Vinod Kumar Singh as SP, Hamirpur; Rohan as Commandant 4 Bt PAC Pragraj; Keshav Kumar as SP, Kanpur Dehat; Vijay Dhul as SP, Khiri.

11 OFFICERS OF MADHYA PRADESH CADRE CONFIRMED IN IFS

As many as 11 officers of Madhya Pradesh cadre have been confirmed in Indian Forest Service (IFS). They are: HC Gupta, HS Mishra, SKS Tiwari, Adarsh Srivastava, NS Yadav, ML Harit, Alok Pathak, MS Bhagadiya, KS Patta, HS Manjhi and CS Chauhan, informed departmental sources.

By arrangement with: http:// whispersinthecorridors.com

FROM PAGE 1 Chaos in... where the civic body had demolished portions of her residence.

In the bid to take a comment from the actress on the demolition, a group of journalists followed Kangana on the flight where media persons could allegedly be seen flouting COVID-19 norms. —ANI Drug use... of drugs from Sushant’s house to Rhea’s house in April, amid lockdown.

Courier person has confirmed that he collected courier from Dipesh Shawant and was delivered to Showik

After Asarwa’s...

“The Sola Civil Hospital shared day-wise details of COVID-19 cases and deaths, when I had asked for month-wise details. I wonder why the SVP and Civil Hospital (Asarwa) did not share the data,” he remarked.

Vohra expressed his bewilderment when he realized that even refusal to share information by different authorities had no uniformity. “If these government-run organizations genuinely had a reason to censor the information then, their responses should have been uniform. But, their varied responses clearly indicate that they are unwilling to share COVID-19 data,” said Vohra.

The Congress leader plans to file an appeal for the information that he culls from the data he has received from

Civil Hospital (Sola).

India-China...

Jaishankar met Wang on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Foreign Ministers’ meet in Moscow on Thursday.

According to a joint press statement about the meeting, the two leaders had a “frank and constructive discussion on the developments in the India-China border areas as well as on IndiaChina relations.”

“The two Ministers agreed that both sides should take guidance from the series of con-

sensus of the leaders on developing IndiaChina relations, including not allowing differences to become disputes,” it read.

Tension is high along the LAC as Indian and Chinese Army are engaged in a standoff at several points.

The meeting came days after Chinese soldiers fired in the air while attempting to close in on Indian positions across the LAC in eastern Ladakh. This was the second highlevel face-to-face meeting between the Chinese and Indian officials. —ANI

TALKING POINT AHMEDABAD | SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2020

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07

CONTRARY TO WHAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN EXPECTED, WORKING FROM HOME WAS ONE PART OF THE PANDEMIC RESPONSE THAT WENT REMARKABLY SMOOTHLY

REMOTE WORK EXPERIMENT UPPED PRODUCTIVITY 13% same observation has been attributed to Bertrand Russell.)

Marchetti’s Law says we spend about an hour travelling to work whatever the era. If working from home eliminated an hour of commuting, without changing t i m e spent on work or reducing production, the result would be equivalent to a 13% increase in productivity (assuming a 38-hour working work).

If half the workforce achieved such a gain, it would be equivalent to a 6.5% increase in productivity for the labour force as a whole. For comparison, let us look at the radical microeconomic reforms of the 1990s, including privatisation, deregulation and national competition policy. In 1995 the main advocate of these reforms in Australia, the Productivity Commission then called the Industry

Commission estimated they would increase the country’s national income by 5.5%. In retrospect, that estimate appears to have been over-optimistic.

Although there was an upsurge in measured productivity growth in the mid-1990s, the

total increase relative to the long-term trend was less than 1 percentage point per year above normal. Low productivity growth since then has wound back those gains.

A HUGE BENEFIT

SUPPORTING WORKERS

E

ven so, those reforms were, and to a large extent still are, widely seen as a crucial contributor to economic prosperity. So, an improvement of 6.5% would be a huge benefit. It would be enough over a few years to offset the economic costs of the lockdown and many other impacts of the pandemic. But, as in the case of microeconomic reform, this initial estimate may be misleading. And even if there are real benefits on average, it is important to ask who will get them and who, if anyone, will lose. A study by Harvard and New York University economists finds that people working from home spend around 48 minutes more time per day connected to their offices, leaving an average gain in the free time of only 12 minutes per day.

It seems likely, however, that at least some of this time is spent on household tasks, especially to the extent that workers had to take on child care and homeschooling during the lockdown period.

And, as well as saving commuting time, workers also save the monetary costs of commuting and at least some of the time spent getting ready for work. On balance, it seems clear that on average working from home yields net benefits. However, workers for whom social contacts at work represent a significant “fringe benefit” will lose that benefit, while other workers who value privacy or separating work and social life will gain a benefit.

T

WORK TO GET HARDER FOR MANAGERS

S

imilarly, those who rely on chatting to colleagues to develop ideas will lose something relative to those who prefer more systematic approaches to obtain information relying on electronic contact. Another group of workers who might lose from remote working are middle managers. To the extent that management depends on “presenteeism”, that is, physically keeping an eye on workers, remote working presents problems. Intrusive checking on computer activity is likely to be resisted and evaded. Managers will have to learn to manage by objectively assessing results rather than observing what people do, and to get that evidence accepted further up in the hierarchy.

he pandemic has shown how whole sectors of the economy, such as aged care, rely on casual workers piecing together multiple jobs, with no access to standard conditions like sick leave.

Younger workers, in particular, suffer from underemployment and difficulties in making the transition to permanent full-time work. What will be needed is both an expansion of publicly funded employment in a wide range of services, including aged care and a reversal of trends towards casual and contract employment. Disastrous though it has been, Covid-19 has taught us a lot about ourselves and about how our economy and society work. If we learn these lessons, we might be able to benefit and mitigate at least some of the har m done by the disaster.

MANAGEABLE FOR EMPLOYERS

F

or employers, the shift to working from home has had a little immediate impact.

Workers wages have not changed and, at least in the short run, neither has the spending on office space. But, in the long run, remote working offers the possibility of much greater flexibility in hiring. Some employers such as Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg have already floated the idea of paying workers less because they can now live in cheaper locations, setting the stage for future conflict. For the most part, disputes over sharing the benefits of remote office work will be hashed out between employers, workers and unions, in the ordinary workings of the labour market. But what about the other half of the workforce, who do not have the option of working from home? In particular, what about the mostly low-paid service workers who depend on people coming into offices? If the productivity gains made possible through remote work are to be shared by the entire community, substantial government action will be needed to make sure it happens. Most obviously, the higher rate of JobSeeker allowance has helped us get through the pandemic without the upsurge in suicide and other measures of social distress predicted by many. Returning to the povertylevel unemployment benefit would be a disaster.

SOURCE: THE CONVERSATION CONCEPT: DIVYA HEMNANI DESIGN: CP SHARMA

O

ne of the most striking responses to the Covid-19 pandemic has been the sudden shift of around half the workforce to working at home. In many cases, this was combined with an equally sudden shift to homeschooling. Contrary to what might have been expected, working from home was one part of the pandemic response that went remarkably smoothly. Most kinds of office work continued almost as if nothing had changed.

Discussion of the crisis has mostly worked on the assumption that a return to something like the pre-crisis “normal” is both inevitable and desirable.

But the unplanned experiment we have been forced to undertake suggests we might have stumbled upon a massive opportunity for a microeconomic reform, yielding benefits far greater than those of the hardfought changes of the late 20th century. The average worker spends an hour on commuting every workday. Remarkably, this is a figure which has remained more or less stable since Neolithic times, a finding known as Marchetti’s Law. (The

Treat others according to the person you are, your values and upbringing, not how they treat you. That is their path, not yours.

2ND FRONT

—Jagdeesh Chandra, CEO & Editor, First India

AHMEDABAD | SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2020

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SWEET RETURN : India sends home 760 Pakis, Pak 748

08

ABVP flags Cong leader son in exam with mobile

Ever since the lockdown, the estranged neighbours have ensured human compassion Shishir Awasthi New Delhi: With India allowing the repatriation of 74 Pakistanis stranded across cities due to the Coronavirus-induced lockdown on Thursday as informed by the Pakistan High Commission, more than 760 nationals of the bordering country have been sent home since March 20.

Official sources said the Pakistani nationals had been repatriated through the Wagah-Attari border. The Pakistani citizens are stuck in Gujarat, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Punjab. While India’s COVID-19 cases have soared to 44 lakh, Pakistan has 2.99 lakh cases.

As against this, in return, the Pakistan Government on June 19 repatriated 748 Indians.

They were allowed to proceed to India via the Wagah border on June

HOME-BOUND

Pakistanis were repatriated and Indians came home through the Wagah-Attari Border in Punjab.

25, 26 and 27, officials said.

The Indians were sent home in three batches with the first two comprising 250 individuals each, while the last batch comprising 248 individuals. While there were some delays, official sources con-

firmed that most listed Indians had crossed over from the neighbouring country.

Regular international flights from India would remain cancelled till September 30 with the Centre operating flights on a case-to-case basis.

Meanwhile, Pakistan has resumed interna-

tional flight operations at all airports in the country from August 9.

The Imran Khan-led government has claimed that it has flattened its COVID-19 curve despite conducting the lowest number of tests.

The return and repatriation from India started on May 7 with the Centre launching the Vande Bharat mission to bring back Indians stranded abroad via

aircraft and naval ships in a phased manner.

As many as 13.74 lakh Indians have returned from abroad till date, the Ministry of External Affairs said on Thursday.

While Kerala welcomed the largest number of Indians, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Gujarat, and Andhra Pradesh followed it.

Phase 6 became operational on September 1 and 1,007 international flights have been scheduled to operate during this month. Of these, 270 international flights have already been operated from GCC countries, Jordan, Afghanistan, Maldives, China, Thailand, US, UK, Canada, France, Germany, Singapore, Malaysia, Philippines and Australia, said the MEA. Bilateral travel arrangements form the bulk of this phase with travel ‘bubble’ flight operations from 11 countries.

Son of Congress spokesperson Jayrajsinh Parmar was found with a cell phone in an exam hall.

First India Bureau Ahmedabad: The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) on Friday asked the Gujarat University to take strict action against a student leader of National Students Union of India (NSUI) who has been spotted sitting with phone in university exam. The ABVP said the university must set an example.

ABVP also released CCTV footage in which NSUI senate member of Law faculty Harsh Aditya Parmar could be seen

at an exam hall at HA College with a mobile phone in his possession. Harsh Aditya is son of Gujarat Congress spokesperson Jayrajsinh Parmar.

In a press release, the ABVP said the university should not succumb to any pressure just because a student happened to be the son of a politician and take action.

Meanwhile, when asked about his son sitting in the exam with his mobile phone, Congress spokesperson Jayrajsinh Parmar told a TV news channel that he found nothing wrong in this.

Confirming that he was carrying a phone with him, Harsh Aditya Parmar later told mediapersons that he had seen his mobile phone just to put it on the silent mode.

ABVP also released another CCTV footage in which an NSUI leader entered the examination hall when the exam was underway.

The ABVP, students wing of ruling BJP, claimed that it had made representations before the university earlier too demanding action against rogue elements of NSUI on the campus.

Vadodara firm faces CBI SIT to probe ‘suicide’ of Surat Patidar leader inquiry for defrauding BoI First India Bureau

Surat: Surat Rural Police on Friday formed a Special Investigation Team to probe into the alleged suicide of cooperative sector Patidar leader

First India Bureau Vadodara: The CBI on Thursday lodged an FIR against Vadodara-based Mayfair Leisures Ltd and its directors for allegedly cheating the Bank of India to the tune of Rs 54.19 crore.

The firm was floated in 2011 by the Bhatnagar family, which controls Diamond Power Infrastructure Ltd (DPIL).

The Bank, in its complaint to the CBI, has accused the firm and its directors of “criminal conspiracy, criminal breach of trust and forgery for the purpose of cheating”, among other things.

In 2018, the CBI had registered a case against DPIL promoters for allegedly duping a consortium of 11 banks and default-

Durlabhbhai Patel.

The 74-year-old leader, a resident of Suryapur Society in Rander area, allegedly committed suicide by jumping into a lake at Jalaram stone quarry owned by him at Khan-

jroli village in Mandvi taluka of Surat district on Tuesday.

Police said Patel had allegedly given a note to his firm manager Sandeep Gamit and told him to hand it over to his son Dharmesh Patel. In

SHADOW OVER NAVRATRI

the note, Durlabhbhai reportedly held 5 persons, including Rander police inspector Laxmansinh Bodana, responsible for his death.

Dharmesh lodged a complaint against the them, besides 5 others,

Collector gets old copper coins polished in Patan First India Bureau

—FILE PHOTO

ing on a loan of Rs 2,600 crore. In 2019, DPIL promoters Amit Bhatnagar, Sumit Bhatnagar and their father Suresh Bhatnagar were arrested by the CBI. Now, the Bank of India has accused Mayfair Leisures of diverting a loan sanctioned for constructing a fivestar hotel. BoI had sanctioned a term loan of Rs

63 crore in 2012 against total project cost of Rs 112.93 crore to the company for building a fivestar hotel in Vadodara.

The company’s directors in connivance with “unknown public servants of BoI” diverted the funds to group companies and its directors, causing the bank a loss of Rs 54.19 crore, said the FIR.

With uncertainty looming large over Gujarat’s much-awaited Navratri garba festival, businessmen and artisans at the famous traditional garments street Law Garden are in a pathetic state. Dharmeshbhai’s family has been selling Gujarat’s legendary chaniya choli for the last 40 years but the Covid-19 crisis has brought all that to a halt.

including 3 police constables, a vernacular daily journalist Mukesh Kulkarni and one Hetal Desai. Surat DSP Usha Rada said, “As of now, no one has been arrested. Efforts are on to trace them.”

Patan (North Gujarat): The Patan District Collector has ordered polishing of ancient copper coins, which were excavated from different places in the district between 1999 and 2000.

According to an official release, during excavation at a farm and at the courtyard of a school in Patan taluka between 1999 and 2000, the copper coins that looked like legal tender

in old times were discovered. And the coins had remained preserved in the strong room of the district treasury office. “With an aim to make the people (of Patan) aware of their legacy and to ascertain further utility of the coins, Patan Collector Anand Patel has taken personal interest and got the same recounted,” said the release. The rare coins seem to have something written on it in Urdu or Persian.

NUMERO UNO

UNSTOPPABLE: Guj rises again as best startup performer Rankings for developing startup ecosystems puts Guj in the ‘Best Peformer’ category, while Karnataka and Kerala are ‘Top Performers’ 

First India Bureau New Delhi: Known for its entrepreneurial spirit, Gujarat has once again emerged as the natural best performer in developing startup ecosystems for budding entrepreneurs.

The latest rankings

of States and union territories (UTs) by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) has put Gujarat on the top among all states and Delhi, barring north-eastern states and other UTs. The results of the second edition of Ranking

of States on Support to Startup Ecosystems were released by Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Friday. According to it, among all the northeastern states except Assam and all UTs except Delhi, Andaman and Nicobar Islands has emerged as the best performer.

A total of 22 states and 3 UTs participated in the exercise. The rankings are based on the initiatives taken to develop the startup ecosystem

—FILE PHOTO

for promoting budding entrepreneurs.

The ranking framework 2019 has seven broad reform areas consisting of 30 action points ranging from institutional support, easing compliances, relaxation in public procurement norms, incubation centres, seed funding, venture funding, and awareness and outreach.

To establish uniformity and ensure standardization in the ranking process, the States and UTs have been di-

vided into two groups.

While UTs, except Delhi, and all States in NorthEast India, except Assam, are placed in Category ‘Y’. All other States and UT of Delhi are in Category ‘X’.

The evaluation committees comprising independent experts carried out a detailed assessment of responses across various parameters. Many parameters involved getting feedback from beneficiaries which was gathered through more than

60,000 calls made in 11 different languages to empathetically connect with beneficiaries to ascertain the real situation at the implementation levels.

The Department has worked out 5 categories for the ranking purposes: Best Performers, Top Performers, Leaders, Aspiring Leaders and Emerging Startup Ecosystems. Within each category, entities are placed alphabetically.

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09

AHMEDABAD, SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 12, 2020

Beyonce Sharma Jayegi?

Beyonce

Facing endless wrath from fans on social media, the film industry needs to shun its fixation with bygone eras as misogyny, sexism and patriarchy will no longer be forgiven or igno red!

Ishaan Khatter and Ananya Panday in a still from ‘Beyonse Sharma Jayegi’

MOHD FAHAD

The author is a Jaipur-based journalist

F

irst thing first, the lyrics of ‘Beyonse Sharma Jayegi’ are horrendous.

The song also seems offtune. But it may not be racist as claimed.

The lines “Chamkeeli lachkeeli tu jo kamar yeh hilayegi, (pause) tujhe dekh ke goriya Beyonse sharma jayegi” have stirred up a hornet’s nest with netizens terming it ‘goriya’ (fair lady Ananya) vs Beyonce (who is dark complexioned).

Not just the fact that with Beyonce trademarking her name, the song may face legal repercussions for using the pop star’s name, the song also seems to have scored self-goal probably due to the ‘pause’, otherwise reading the lyrics in

one go concludes that the ‘chamkeeli lachkeeli’ can shake better than Beyonce rather than Beyonce will feel shy of fair skin as misconceived. And if you understand the lyrics in the described fashion, then the song actually ends up celebrating Beyonce’s dancing skills.

As for ‘goriya’, the Khaali Peeli director Maqbool Khan has put out a statement saying, “The term ‘goriya’ has been so often and traditionally used in Indian songs to address a girl, that it didn’t occur to any of us to interpret it in a literal manner.”

His statement finds logic going by the past songs lyrics like “Goriya chura na mera jiya” written by Sameer or the vintage “Gori tera gaon bada pyara” penned by Ravindra Jain and sung by legendary Yesudas.

Having given the song the benefit of doubt, it is important to highlight in the same

breath that Bollywood is an industry that exists in a ‘fair complexion’ obsessed nation. It needs to get over the rhetoric and become more sensible as the same nation has finally hit the ‘ Fa i r & L ove l y ’ campaign for a toss. It can no longer continue its fixation with bygone eras where misogyny, sexism, and patriarchy will be forgiven or ignored.

Such lyrics will only add fuel to the prevalent anti-Bollywood sentiment and end up justifying the movement even more. Coming back to the Ishan-Ananya featuring song, it has so far garnered 8.56 lakh dislikes on YouTube while being watched one crore times in the last four days since its release.

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AHMEDABAD | SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2020

10

The actor who believes it is so boring to

PLAY THE GOOD GUY GURMAN SINGH cityfirst@firstindia.co.in

T

FA CE OF TH ED AY

here are certain actors who are absolutely terrific in whichever roles they choose! Today, we celebrate a man who has always been able to carry off anything with style, from delivering witty dialogues of masala movie to dancing in a photo frame, from a drunken cricket coach to a man with a bomb. Naseeruddin Shah is an is an Indian film, stage actor, and also a director! Name it and he has done it all!

He is widely regarded as one of India’s greatest actors ever, and his numerous feted performances include roles in ‘Paar’, ‘Nishant’, ‘Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro’, ‘Ijaazat’, ‘Manthan’, ‘Mirch Masal’, ‘Mirza Ghalib’ Mohan Joshi Hazir

Ho!, Ardh Satya and Katha Despite his success as an actor in films, Shah calls theatre his true and eternal love. His production company Motley Productions has produced several plays.

But as a creative person, he was not enthused by the depiction of human life.

Shah has won numerous awards in his career, including three National Film Awards, three Filmfare Awards and an award at the Venice Film Festival. The Government of India has honored him with the Padma Shri and the Padma Bhushan for his contributions to Indian cinema.

In Anand Tiwari’s newest web-show Bandish Bandits, Naseeruddin Shah’s central character of Pandit Radhemohan Rathore, a Hindustani classical virtuoso, cuts a formidable figure. He is a patriarch with a conspicuously inflated ego that urges him to establish a Gharana named after him.

Some of his remarkable films are

1

A WEDNESDAY : Naseeruddin played a phenomenal character in this movie.

He was the ‘aam aadmi‘, who decided that terrorism has taken too much from the lives of common people, and decides to take law into his own hands.

2

SARFAROSH : Shah portrayed the role of a person who was torn between two countries after the partition. He expressed the pain of not being accepted as an insider of the country quite beautifully.

3

Iqbal : The story is about a cricket-obsessed deaf and mute boy from a remote Indian village as he aims to overcome barriers to become a cricketer and fulfills his dream of playing for the Indian cricket team.

YOUR DAY Horoscope by Saurabbh Sachdeva

ARIES

TAURUS

GEMINI

CANCER

Neglecting your parents advice in love related matters is not a right thing to do, please consider what they have to say to you. You are all time concerned about your kids and thats not right, you must have a life of your own Having anxiety and assumptions are waste of time.

You are inclined towards joining a government service. An extraordinary mind leads to extraordinary inventions, you may be the one of the kind. You are never effected by too many praises or criticism and thats a great thing. Sensibly spending money is an act of wise.

On academic front, you should stop taking your studies lightly as these are constructive years of your life. To be in limelight is someone you cannot avoid because of your stars. You know how to make someone fall in love with you. You live to see your loved ones smile.

Continue walking on the path that you are chasing and you will reach your destination. A gift from your lover will make you cry. You enjoy and laugh a lot when you are taking with your friends. You love to make food for others. Metal strength is not something you were born with.

MAR 21 - APR 20

MAY 21 - JUNE 21

JUNE 22 - JULY 23

LEO

VIRGO

LIBRA

SCORPIO

A good guidance can make or destroy someone’s life so be wise before advising someone. Your peace of mind is most important for you and you don’t let anything or anyone play with it. You are conscious about how people perceive you and thats not good, you should live freely.

You are in great shape also because of how your spouse takes care of you.

Don’t let anything stop you from running after your dreams as only this is what will give you the satisfaction that you have been craving for. Don’t be harsh with your family because of too much work.

You are always available for your parents in one call. You are in no mood to compromise with your kid’s career therefore you will do everything in your capacity. You will spend a happy day with your family and may also buy something expensive for the house.

You believe in etiquettes and a good demeanour and you don’t take both of these lightly. You may have some naughty thoughts about your lover today. You have a competitive spirit which lead to your improvement without you realising about it.

You’ll be a part of a big project.

JULY 24 - AUGUST 23

AUG 24 - SEP 23

SEPT 24 - OCTOBER 22

OCT 23 - NOVEMBER 22

SAGITTARIUS

CAPRICORN

AQUARIUS

PISCES

You may start a new business related with the essential items of day to day life. You always seek elder’s blessings before starting with anything new. You love your childhood friends and you keep giving them a call once in a while as you like to stay in touch with your loved ones.

You have children who value you more than anybody. Youngsters may feel desperate to get in relationship but please be patient and be in a nice company. You need someone’s special advice in business matters. You need to change your way of approaching a situatio.

Now is the time to invest your hard earned money in properties. Candle light dinner with your spouse is all it will take to make things right after any argument. Cultivating harmony in relationships isn’t easy, it requires lot of hard work and also a nice positive behaviour.

You are likely to go for a public serving field as far as your career is concerned.You are amazing with your hands and anything that involves you hands often gives marvellous results be it cooking, art etc. You will get answers to all your unanswered questions.

NOV 23 - DEC 22

PRASANNA AUDICHYA, Model

APR 21 - MAY 20

DEC 23 - JAN 20

JAN 21 - FEB 19

FEB20 - MARCH 20

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AHMEDABAD | SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2020

11

SITA IN

ADIPURUSH?

L

ast month, T-Series and Om Raut made a grand announcement of reuniting one more time after the blockbuster ‘Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior’. It was out that Prabhas and Bhushan Kumar are teaming up for a big period drama based on Indian mythology. They revealed that Om will be directing Prabhas in one of the biggest Indian films ever - ‘Adipurush’ which is modelled on the Ramayana.

Right after Prabhas was locked to play the main lead, the makers revealed that Saif Ali Khan will be stepping in as Ravana for the big budgeted saga. But people were still wondering who would play Sita in ‘Adipurush’. Now, the makers have almost locked in on a name. A trade source said, “Anushka Sharma is the top contender for the role. Om met and narrated the whole idea to Anushka and she was blown away by his vision. In fact, their meeting had a very positive outcome and it will most likely be her playing Sita on screen.”

—Agency Anushka Sharma

Cyrus covers Hall & Oates

RESUMING

WORK B

M

iley Cyrus is giving fair warning to potential future lovers. The singer joined Jimmy Fallon on Thursday’s Tonight Show, and joked about her freshly single status. Before sitting down with Fallon as his only guest of the night, Cyrus performed her new single, Midnight Sky, and then joined him via video chat, while seated on a giant, brightly colored post-modernist throne.

After talking about her various inspirations, collaborations, and cover songs off her the forthcoming album, She Is Miley Cyrus, Fallon asked about her cover of the 1982 Hall & Oates classic Maneater, which she later performed as her second song of the night.

How did you choose ‘Maneater?’ I love that song! Fallon asked. I think it’s very important to be transparent, Cyrus said. I’m freshly single, so anyone watching that’s my future ex-husband, just know, I told you.

I’m just like, just wear it all out in the open, she added with a laugh. There are no skeletons in the closet, I warned you first.

—Agency

Miley Cyrus

ollywood is getting back on its feet and resuming work, slow and steady. It was previously reported that Salman Khan will be eyeing to complete ‘Radhe: Your Most Wanted Bhai’. Now, it is said that Alia Bhatt and Ranbir Kapoor starrer ‘Brahmastra’ is also expected to start rolling soon. The movie, directed

by Ayan Mukerji, has witnessed setbacks in the past. With the COVID-19 lockdown coming in place, the film’s filming has been impacted. However, Ranbir and Alia have resumed work and have been dubbing for the film lately, reported sources.

Another source said that the duo has been visiting a dubbing studio in Bandra and completing the post-production work. Ranbir was also reportedly in the studio with Ayan on Thursday.

While the duo completes dubbing, Ayan has been coordinating with his postproduction team to finish work on footage that has been shot.

—Agency Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt

‘SITARA’ TO RESUME

F

Late Diana Rigg

GOT STAR DIES AT 82

B

ritish actor Diana Rigg, who came to fame in the cult 1960s TV show The Avengers and recently appeared in Game of Thrones, died on Thursday aged 82.

Rigg, who had a long career in theatre as well as appearing in the James Bond film On Her Majesty’s Secret Service in which her character marries the British spy died at home with her family.

Rigg, born in Doncaster in northern England, moved with her

family to India before going to school in England. She studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art before making her debut at the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1959.

It was her role as the karate-kicking leatherclad secret agent Emma Peel in the Avengers, alongside Patrick McNee’s bowler-hatted John Steed, that brought her to wide attention. Several Game of Thrones stars took to social media and paid their tributes. —Agency

Sobhita Dhulipala

ilmmaker Ronnie Screwvala’s upcoming romantic drama ‘Sitara’ is all set to resume shooting in November. The film, which is set for digital release, stars ‘Made In Heaven’ actor Sobhita Dhulipala and ‘Four More Shots Please!’ actor Rajeev Siddhartha in the lead roles. Film critic and trade analyst Taran Adarsh took to Instagram to share the update about the resumption of the shoot.

“A N N O U N C E MENT... #SobhitaDhulipala and #RajeevSiddhartha in #Sitara... A direct to digital release...

Directed by Vandana Kataria...

Produced by Ronnie Screwvala,” he shared on Instagram.

Adarsh also revealed that the film had completed a brief schedule in Mumbai before the coronavirus induced lockdown.

—ANI

Poster of the film

Fast & Furious 9 Going to Space

A

fter dominating the global box office for several years, it looks like the Fast and Furious franchise is now all set to enter space. In an interview with Sirius XM, Michelle Rodriguez, who plays Letty Ortiz in the franchise, hinted that this could be the big surprise of Fast 9.

On being asked if they are going to space in the film, Michelle was shocked but elated at the same time and said, “No way! How did you guys find that out? See what happens, people start talking behind the scenes when a movie doesn’t come out and forget about it. Things get out. Nobody was supposed to know that.”

While she confirmed that her character is not in space, one can only imagine that this opportunity must have only landed in Vin Diesel’s lap. Vin has played Dominic Toretto in the action franchise known for its stunts.

—Agency

GOING BEHIND THE MIC

T

ara Sutaria is starkly different from all her contemporaries. Unlike others, she likes tk keep to herself and is not worried about the competition around. Tara talks about how life has changed post a successful 2019, matters of the heart and her relationship with boyfriend Aadar Jain. Not just that, she also revealed a lot about her next two films ‘Tadap’ and ‘Ek Villain 2’.

After becoming one of the most promising newcomers to hit the market last year, Tara didn’t have to look back at all. She quickly signed up two big films - The RX100 remake opposite Ahan Shetty (tentatively titled ‘Tadap’) and the ‘Ek Villain sequel’ that also stars John Abraham, Disha Patani and Arjun Kapoor.

Tara had something special to reveal about the latter. She shares that she’s not just acting but also singing in her next two films. “I’m really excited for my role in Villain sequel because the story is very unpredictable. The first part was such a great film and I also get to play something that I wanted to, since the age of 4. I’m excited because I’m singing in both my films that are upcoming now.” —Agency Tara Sutaria

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AHMEDABAD | SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2020

5 ELEMENTS OF LIFE

Dr SANCHITA LEKHI SINGHI

A

s we continue to evolve as advanced human beings, through millions of years.

From Satyug to Kalyug, we humans have changed our thoughts to our daily lifestyle. but one thing that has remained constant are the five elements (Panch Tatva).

The air, water, earth, fire and the soul. What are these elements and why do they exist till today? They

QUE...

QUEen Q1. It has recently come to my knowledge that a homosexual couple is moving into the house opposite. Our community tries to upload its family values, so I would appreciate any advice you have as to improving the quality of our neighborhood in light of these unfortunate circumstances.

Ans. My dear ‘family values upholder’, the only thing unfortunate is our unawareness! Homosexuality is not a crime and two people setting up house together should not threaten anyone or anything. I can understand your discomfort because such a couple is not the norm. The LGBT community is still struggling to find acceptance so they usually keep a low profile.

Give your imagination a rest, they are as normal as you and me and you should in fact take it upon yourself to help them and the community become comfortable with each other. Take it as a beautiful opportunity given by the Almighty for you to learn that all of us are humans and the feeling of brotherhood and compassion has to override our human prejudices.

Q2. Is it normal to doubt if I should be with my partner or not?

Ans. Well, this is an ambiguous question my doubtful one! Yes, it is natural to doubt whether you should be with your partner physically or not until a firm commitment has been made.

Physical intimacy is not something to be taken casually and an intelligent person always must doubt, think and question before succumbing to this step with anyone with whom you are romantically involved. It is not easy in these times of quick flings but I believe that you should not commit to a physical relationship till you are very sure about your feelings and at least partially sure about your partners. Trust is a critical factor, your body is not to be given away lightly. So, yes, doubt is natural.

Have any questions?

Mail them to quequeenfirstindia@ gmail.com; don’t worry, your name will not be disclosed!

Dr. SANCHITA LEKHI SINGHI Celebrity Tarot Reader & Meditation Expert

didn’t evolve with us. The power that these elements comprise are the life sources that are the basis of human existence.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Vasundhara Raje offers sweets to Dushyant Singh.

Dushyant Singh celebrated his birthday with simplicity on Friday. The Jhalawar-Baran MP received greetings from across Rajasthan, his mother Vasundhara Raje also tweeted a photograph (above) and showered blessings on him.

DB Gupta, Advisor to Chief Minister Rajasthan celebrated his birthday on 11 September, Friday. We wish him all the best!

We must understand the true value and respect these five elements to channel greater power from them. The material-

ist needs we have today are worthless and will not help us in survival, Our problems are rapidly increasing every day

and that’s why many of us are turning to mediation today as we are understanding the need to be mindful. Tap into the pow-

POSTER OUT

CITY FIRST

J

agdeesh Chandra released the poster of the 4th Piggy Bank International Short Film Festival on Thursday along with R Pritesh, Founder Festival Director and Renu Singh, Founder Managing Director of the PBISF Festival. The festival is proposed to be held in the month of February 2021. There has already been a submission of 490 Films from 47 countries, to date.

Piggy Bank International Short Film Festival is meant and dedicated to Short Film Makers, internationally. It’s an annual event and a worldwide accepted platform by

Film Makers.

GRAVITY EVENT has been doing this festival for a couple of years now, in Jaipur. The main motive of this Festival is to provide a platform to short filmmakers who use to produce their first film generally from the saved pocket money hence named ‘Piggy Bank’. Here they can showcase their films, made any time, as there is no time limit. They get watched, appreciated, recognized, and awarded, if applicable, which give them and encouragement for their hard work. They can also use that acknowledgment or winning certificate to the Giant Film Houses as it gives a value adds to their produced short films. cityfirst@firstindia.co.in

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er of 5 elements with meditation, our life sources can really help us to achieve happiness and longevity.

Our human body is also made with these 5 elements- fire element consists of ego and power, water for life and calm, earth for growth and grounded, air for breathing and relaxation and soul for life and connection with these elements.

Imagine what miracles could happen if we could activate these elements in our body, we will drift towards a miraculous life.

By simply meditating, we turn our lives towards a spiritual lifestyle and closer to the universal laws. cityfirst@firstindia.co.in

WHAT’S HAPPENING!

RAJASTHAN: Prof.

H.D.Charan, Vice-Chancellor, Bikaner Technical University has been selected as the Visionary Leader of the Year - 2020. On Friday, he was selected from Rajasthan State in the category of Eminent Engineer Award-2020.

RAJASTHAN: On the occasion of Teachers’ Day, Monica Jain of Tagore Vidya Bhawan, Jaipur was honoured for giving 100% results in the board examination by Digambar Jain Mahasabha in an online honour ceremony.

5-day FDP program successfully

completed at SKIT, Jaipur

RAJASTHAN: On the anniversary of the Gurukul of Indian culture, a program of tree planting was organised by Vinod Sharma, President of the Students’ Union at the Medical College Jodhpur on Friday.

CITY FIRST

T

he TEQIP-III RTU (ATU) sponsored Five days Faculty Development Program on Recent Trends in Advanced Machining and Additive Manufacturing organized by Rajasthan Technical University, Kota, and Swami Keshvanand Institute of Technology, Management & Gramothan, Jaipur came to an end on 11 September 2020, with a Valedictory function. In the first session, Dr. Pankaj Kumar Gupta, MNIT, Jaipur gave a detailed discussion on Advances in Newer Machining Methods. Dr. Kusum Meena, IIT Delhi gave his expert lecture on Additive Manufacturing. In the third session, Dr. Chetan, IIT Bhubaneswar gave his expert lecture on the Application

Remembering Late Kanhaiyalal Sethia of Sustainable Technology in Machining of Aerospace Alloys. The Chief Guest of the FDP Valedictory ceremony was Dr. Kusum Meena (IIT, Delhi). At the closing ceremony, Dr. Manish Chaturvedi (Coordinator, RTU) stated that this type of program is very useful for Faculty. Dr. Dheeraj Joshi, HOD, Mechanical Engineering, thanked all the speakers and participants. cityfirst@firstindia.co.in

The eminent poet from Rajasthan, Kanhaiyalal Sethia was remembered on his 101st birth anniversary. Rajasthan Progressive Writers Association (RPWA) organized a webinar on Thursday to mark the occasion in which several writers expressed their views on his life, creative works and social concerns. His son Jaiprakash Sethia also took part in the webinar. He talked about the personal moments he shared with the poet along with his creative writings. The General Secretary of RPWA Ish Madhu Talwar thanked everybody and said efforts will be made by the association to establish a world poetry museum in the great poet’s workplace Sujangarh.

- City First

GUJARAT: The Cultural Council of Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar (IITGN) and the Spic Macay IITGN chapter is bringing ‘Kala Samanvay’, a series of live online cultural events from today, 12 September to 14 September. All the events will be LIVE on IITGN Cultural Council’s YouTube channel.

KNOWLEDGE WEBINAR SERIES

CITY FIRST

I

n the Knowledge Webinar Series of Rotary Club Jaipur on Friday, famous writer, film lyricist, filmmaker Avinash Tripathi gave a live speech. It is worth noting that Avinash currently lives in Mumbai and is also writing for a few established OTT channels along with

scripts for many films.

Avinash has also written songs in films and has been associated with Jaipur and he has also been working in cinema teaching at the

prestigious University of Jaipur.

Avinash spoke about creative writing while addressing the enlightened people and the general audience associated with Rotary. He said that often the first thought that comes to our mind should always be sidelined in creative writing. He

also explained the difference between cinema writing and creative writing. Informing the grammar of the script, he threw light on the various steps of preparing a bound script from the idea generation. Rotary Club Jaipur President Rotarian Pradeep Singh Rajawat, praising the

talent of Avinash Tripathi, described him as an inspiration for the youth. He also hoped that such webinars would help the youth to make cinema a career. Various officers and Rotarians of the Rotary Club were present in the program.

Dr Siloni Thapar, Secretary of the Club thanked all. cityfirst@firstindia.co.in

GUJARAT: After Helmet Drive was organised by Ahmedabad Police on Friday, people were seen buying helmets to avoid challans. Police are taking very strict actions against those who are not wearing helmets on a two-wheeler ride.

—PHOTO BY HANIF SINDHI