First India-Ahmedabad Edition-21 October 2020

AHMEDABAD l WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 21, 2020 l Pages 12 l 3.00

P5

RNI NO. GUJENG/2019/16208 l Vol 1 l Issue No. 326

GADKARI LAYS FOUNDATION OF INDIA’S 1ST MULTIMODAL LOGISTIC PARK

IF I AM INEXPERIENCED, WHY IS BJP USING FULL FORCE AGAINST ME? TEJASHWI

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P6

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to PM: When will Wishful PM preaches Corona Rahul you throw Chinese out?

conduct in festive season REMEMBER, COVID-19 IS STILL AROUND SAYS MODI TO NATION, WHILE EMPHASISING IMPORTANCE OF WEARING MASKS

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said the countrymen should not forget that the lockdown may be over but the virus that causes the Coronavirus disease is still around as he addressed the nation.

“It has been a long journey from Janta Curfew to now. Economic activities are also increasing. Many people have started going out of their houses. The festival season is around and markets too have been full of buzz,” said PM Modi.

The prime minister then highlighted the strides made by the country in the battle against Covid-19, but said that the number of cases are increasing in other parts if the world.

He asked the people of the country to be care-

ful. “Recent videos show that people are becoming very lax with the precautions we take. Videos show that people are being irresponsible and not taking the steps advised to a very large extent.

This cannot happen,” he said.

“We must not think that things are normal again.

You are putting yourselves, your families, children and elders in your home in grave danger by not taking the proper precautions,” PM added.

MAJOR TAKEAWAYS FROM PM’S ADDRESS

1

In this festive season, markets are bright again but we need to remember that the lockdown might have ended but the virus still persists.

2

With efforts of every Indian over last 7-8 months, India is in a stable situation, we must not let it deteriorate.

Turn to P6

3 4

India recovery rate in the country is good. The fatality rate is low.

In India, 5,500 people out of every 10 Lakh population in India are infected, whereas in countries like the US & Brazil this figure is around 25,000.

Wayanad: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday stepped up his attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the military standoff with China in eastern Ladakh, telling him the nation wants to know when will the Chinese troops be thrown out of Indian territory.

“The prime minister will not say one word about China”, the Wayanad MP, who is on a three day visit to his parliamentary constituency, told a news conference here.

Gandhi was responding to questions, including one about Modi’s announcement that he will share a message with the nation at 6 pm on Tuesday. “ I don’t think there’s any other country in the world today where a foreign power can take land from the country and then no answer from the leadership.

This is shocking to me....So what I would like is the prime minister to tell the nation

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi addresses a press conference in Wayanad on Tuesday.

—PHOTO BY ANI

tunate.”

Kamal Nath ji is from my party but personally, I don’t like the type of language that he used…I don’t appreciate it... regardless of who he is. It is unforRahul Gandhi, Congress leader (See P5)

when the Chinese are going to be thrown out of Indian territory,” Gandhi said.

The union government had earlier termed as “mischievous interpretation” the Congress’ claims that China had occupied Indian territory in the eastern Ladakh region. “What’s the date by which the Chinese soldiers are go-

ing to be kicked out of India? That’s what I want to know. But I guarantee you that the prime minister won’t have the guts to say that”, he said when asked about Modi’s address to the Nation later this evening. Gandhi said it’s a lie that nobody has taken any land from this country, adding, Turn to P6

Backing farmers! Punjab rejects Raj ACB arrests ADG UIDAI CBI to probe TRP Centre’s Laws, passes own Bills for taking bribe in Delhi scam on UP govt’s Assembly passed 4 Bills after an over 5-hour long recommendation discussion, in which BJP MLAs did not take part Ahtesham Siddiqi

Chandigarh: Following a marathon fivehour discussion, the Punjab Legislative Assembly on Tuesday unanimously passed four Bills to negate the Centre’s three contentious farm laws. The legislations were backed by the Opposition parties, including SAD, AAP and MLAs of Lok Insaaf Party even though BJP did not take part in the proceedings.

The Bills seek to amend the Farmers Produce Facilitation Act, the Farmers Agreement and Farm Services Act, the Essential Commodities Act, and the Civil Procedure Code.

The state government’s legislative coun-

Punjab CM Captain Amarinder Singh speaks during special Assembly Session, in Chandigarh on Tuesday. —PHOTO BY ANI

ter provides for imprisonment of not less than three years and fine for sale or purchase of wheat or paddy under a farming agreement below the minimum support price. The provisions exempt farmers

from the attachment of land up to 2.5 acres and provide for the prevention of hoarding and black marketing of agricultural produce.

Speaking with reporters outside the Assembly, Turn to P6

BL Soni

Dinesh MN

Accused Pankaj Goyal

Naveen Sharma

Goyal accepting a bribe of Rs 1 lakh at UIDAI regional office in New Delhi.

The daredevil action was conducted by Kota ACB ASP Thakur Chandrasheel Kumar under the direct supervision of ACB DG BL Soni and ADG Dinesh MN. The accused ADG of UIDAI was incharge of the Aadhar identity cards for five states includ-

ing Rajasthan. Ironically, Goyal is a resident of Bhusawar in Rajasthan.

ACB DG BL Soni said that the arrested UIDAI senior officer Goyal was demanding Rs1 lakh bribe for allotting 10 franchise kiosks to the complainant, from Kota, who had applied for Aadhaar franchise.

ACB ADG Dinesh MN directed Kota ASP Thakur Turn to P6

Kota: Apart from being the first ‘big fish’ in ACB net after BL Soni took over the charge, in perhaps the first of its kind action in its history, the Rajasthan Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) team arrested the Assistant Director General of Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) Pankaj

Lucknow: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Tuesday took over the probe into alleged manipulation of Television Rating Points (TRP) after registering an FIR. The cenral agency took over the probe from Lucknow police on the recommendation of Uttar Pradesh government. A case was registered in Lucknow’s Hazratganj police station on the complaint of a person named Kamal Sharma, which was transferred to the CBI. The FIR has been registered against unidentified people. The charges include manipulating the TRPs using

forged means. The alleged scam was brought to light by Mumbai police earlier this month which registered a case.

Republic TV is one of the four channels being investigated. Six people have so far been arrested by the police in connection with the scam, which allegedly involves inducing homes which form the sample set whose TV viewing is monitored Turn to P6

CR Patil takes a helicopter ride to Dang, Cong cries ‘show-off’ The BJP state unit president travelled to the district to address a public gathering, ahead of the assembly bypolls Gargi Raval Ahmedabad: With the election campaign for the state legislative assembly by-elections heating up, all political parties have started wooing the voters in the eight constituencies up for bypolls. Owing to the COVID-19

pandemic, restriction on the public assemblies has been enforced by the state government and yet leaders of both Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Congress have been addressing public gatherings. On Tuesday, BJP state unit president CR Patil

CR Patil welcomed by local leaders on his arrival in Dang on Tuesday.

travelled to the Dang district in a helicopter, to address voters. This move irked the opposition party, which termed it as ‘show-off ’ by the ruling party.

Senior Congress leader Arjun Modhwadia said, “This is nothing but a show-off on part of the BJP. They should realize that this is a byelection and not a state election. Also, Gujarat is a small state geographically so people can reach from one end to the other in a few hours by road. Frankly,

there was no need to waste so much money on a helicopter ride, but BJP is a rich party.”

He warned that the BJP must be sensible while flaunting its wealth. “Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many people have struggled to receive timely medical attention and several have lost their jobs. So, the BJP must be careful in exposing its money.

However, everyone knows how the ruling party’s money has been earned, so it is obvious

that it will be wasted like this,” he asserted.

Furthermore, Modhwadia said that CR Patil had enough wealth of his own to hire a helicopter for transportation.

“The latest scams have surfaced from Surat, the hometown of Patil. The black market sale of the Tocilizumab injectable drug and the Rs22 crore train ticket hoopla, all happened under the nose and with the blessings of BJP. Now, they want to influence voters of Dang with such stunts,” he remarked.

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Gargi Raval Ahmedabad: Both the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Congress say they are confident of winning the by-election slated to be held on November 3. However, a victory for either party in Dang district would depend on getting a majority vote share from the Christian community in the largely tribal constituency.

Traditionally, the party has mattered more to the people of Gujarat’s smallest district, than the individual candidate. And, so far, it has been a Congress stronghold for decades, with the exception of the Assembly election in 2007, when Vijay Patel defeated Congress leader Madhubhai Bhoye by 7,883 votes. The Congress was back in the driver’s seat with the very next Assembly election, when Mangal Gavit defeated Vijay Patel by 2,422 votes in 2012. Mangal Gavit went on to win the next Assembly poll as well in 2017.

The upcoming election, however, might swing either way.

First, while power has traditionally largely remained with the Congress even at the panchayat level, this time, the BJP and the Congress are running the panchayat together.

The next variable is the parties’ choice of candidate in the constituency which has a large Christian vote bank.

The Congress nominee, Suryakant Gavit is a Christian and has some experience contesting elections.

However, he seems to

AHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 21, 2020

BJP AND CONG WILL HAVE TO GET A MAJOR SHARE OF THE CHRISTIAN VOTE BANK FOR A BYPOLL WIN

THE DANG EQUATION

Suryakant Gavit, Congress candidate for Dang.

be missing the boost his more popular cousin, Chandra Gavit, could have lent to his campaign.

On the other hand, BJP candidate Vijay Patel, while not a Christian, has Mangal Gavit, the Chris-

tian former MLA who resigned from the Congress and joined the BJP, in his corner. This, despite the fact that Mangal Gavit has defeated Patel in two previous polls. Moreover, the BJP has shown that

Vijay Patel, BJP candidate for Dang.

it has thrown its full force behind its candidate-something local observers say is not as obvious in the case of the Congress and its candidate.

Faysal Bakili, a senior journalist from the South Guja-

rat region says the BJP might take the bypoll with a thin margin. “Chandra Gavit, the Congress candidate’s betterknown cousin, has been conspicuous by his absence from the campaign.

Mean-

Rain forecast delays groundnut procurement by five days  Set to be held on October 21, the acquisition of harvest from farmers will now be conducted on October 26 First India Bureau Rajkot: After over 10,000 sacks of onions and peanuts got soaked in the rain in Bhavnagar, Saurashtra a few days ago, the state government seems to be in no mood to tempt fate.

After receiving word on a rainy forecast, it has postponed the groundnut procurement from farmers.

Online registration for groundnut procurement concluded on Tuesday afternoon, but the acquisition will now commence from October 26. Farmers will be able to sell their groundnut produce at

Several farmers brought their produce to market yards for sale, despite being warned about rainfall.

the Minimum Support Price (MSP) of Rs1,055 per 20 kilogram.

Around 4.47 lakh farmers had registered for the procurement till Monday evening. “Earlier, the government had announced that the procurement would start from October 21 and would be conducted at more than 139 centres across the state.

But, owing to the rain

forecast, it has been postponed for five days and will now commence on October 26,” said Jayesh Radadia, state Civil Supplies Minister. He also appealed to farmers not to bring groundnuts to market yards until Monday next week.

As the state plans to procure over 13,66,00 metric tonne of groundnut this season, the Gujarat

Civil Supplies Corporation has hired 2,000 godowns to store the acquired groundnut harvest.

For the past two days, market yards across Saurashtra have ceased groundnut trading due to the rain forecast and asked farmers not to bring their produce to market yards for sale. And yet, hundreds of farmers queued up with their

groundnut harvest outside market yards.

“In Rajkot district alone, groundnut will be acquired at 14 centres by state as well as central agencies. Each centre will be deputed with one officer and four employees to ensure fair procurement.

Each centre will also be equipped with CCTV cameras. Initially, 20 farmers will be called for the procurement daily and the number will later be increased to 50 to 70,” said Rajkot Agriculture Officer RR Tilwa.

He added, “The procurement will last for 90 days. It has also been made clear that each farmer may only sell 2,500 kilogram of groundnut. It has already been announced by the state government to discourage farmers from hoping to sell all their entire harvest in one go. This year, over 15,000 more farmers than last year have registered for the procurement in Rajkot district.”

while, Vijay Patel is contesting the election for the fourth time. Additionally, state minister for tribal affairs Ganpat Vasava has been camped in the constituency ahead of the election. And an-

02

DISTRICT PROFILE 

other known face, Mangal Gavit, has joined the BJP as well. The Congress candidate has some public support, but only time will tell if he has enough to garner the votes necessary for a win,” Bakili observed.

The Congress candidate is confident, though.

“I have been seeing an overwhelming response during my door-to-door campaign. I got positive vibes and I am sure people will vote for me. I am addressing unemployment and water issues being faced by locals.

Every year around 40,000 youth migrate from the district in search of employment,” Gavit told First India.

Corrupt I-T dept has failed demonetization: BJP leader  Surat’s PVS Sarma tweeted that local jeweller got an exemption for `84 lakh in unaccounted income First India Bureau Surat: PVS Sarma, a BJP leader from Surat took to Twitter on Tuesday to accuse the Income-Tax department of exempting a local jeweller from paying tax on making charges on the same that day Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced Demonetization. In his tweet, Sarma shared documents dated November 08, 2016, which allegedly show that the I-T department exempted Kalamandi Jewellers from paying taxes on unaccounted income of Rs84 lakh.

The tweet, which also tagged the PMO and the finance minister, read: This is how the idea of Demonetization was defeated by the corrupt.

(Kalamandi Jewellers had) cash deposits of Rs110 crore, an income (of) Rs84 lakh (and a) tax liability (of) Rs80 lakh.

PVS Sarma

(Yet, the) I-T department’s investigation wing closed (its) eyes, and the settlement commission accepted illogical arguments, (which) caused huge revenue loss.”

According to the papers Sarma has in his possession, Kalamandi sold some 2,10,240.694 grams of gold between 8.30pm and midnight on the night of November 08, 2016. Customers paid an additional Rs30-40 as making charges per gram of gold. However, these making charges were not to be found on the bill, and customers paid in cash. That night, the total amount collected as making charges was Rs84,09,627. The

company later claimed that it had distributed the same amount to its staff for their hard work and sales they did on the said night and thus asked that the I-T department to exempt it from tax. The documents show that the IT-department approved the jeweller’s application.

The jeweller saw sales of a whopping Rs96,28,26,427 during the four hours in question--far more than the Rs15,92,32,501 it earned cumulatively on November 05-07, and up to 6.30 pm on November 08. Between November 10 and November 12, the company deposited Rs109.99 crore.

GUJARAT AHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 21, 2020

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Show-cause notices to Amul Dairy directors challenged

03

Farmers protest against inadequate land payouts

Petition filed in the state HC to quash notices sent by the Anand cooperative registrar First India Bureau Ahmedabad: The show-cause notices issued by the Anand district cooperative registrar to elected directors of the Kaira District Cooperative Milk Producers’ Union (Amul Dairy) has been challenged in the Gujarat High Court.

The petitioner has pleaded the court to quash and set aside the notices.

In his petition, Kanti Sodha Parmar submitted that the Anand district cooperative registrar had issued notices to the elected directors of Amul Dairy and asked them to remain present before the registrar on October 20. The registrar has argued for the nomination of three directors of the dairy’s board by the state government.

The Anand cooperative registrar also fixed October 23 for

RAGA’S PLEA

The farmers say DFCCIL paid less than the market rate for their land, despite a Supreme Court order.

First India Bureau

—FILE PHOTO

Amul Dairy.

the election of the chairman and vicechairman of the board. On the other hand, petition filed by Parmar and others stated that the three directors appointed by the state government were elected to create an artificial majority on the board of directors. This was because the government was not inter-

ested in allowing majority members to run the dairy’s affairs.

Further, the petitioner and other directors will appear before the district registrar and object to the nomination of the dairy board of directors, on the recommendation of the state government.

The petition also discouraged the state

government as well as the registrar from nominating the three directors. “Until a verdict is not pronounced on this petition, the presiding officer should not allow nominated directors to enter the meeting hall or stop them from participating in the meeting scheduled for October 23,” added the petition.

After Congress established its supremacy in the cooperative sector by garnering the maximum board of directors in Amul Dairy, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has turned antsy to claim the cooperative prize too. It remains to be seen whether the ruling party will be successful in its endeavour or not.

Surat: Officials from the Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India Limited (DFCCIL) encountered a demonstration by local farmers when they reached their farms to acquire land for the freight corridor route, which is to be established between Umra and Udhna division on Tuesday. It was the second consecutive day of the protest by the agricultural workers.

The farmers alleged that the officials were disobeying court orders and destroying their crops when they had demanded a few

days to cultivate their harvest.

The main reason for the protest is the lower rates DFCCIL has paid farmers to acquire their land. They had approached the Supreme Court with their plight and the apex court had directed the DFCCIL to pay farmers for their land commensurate to the market rate. The farmers stated that the market rate for their land was Rs15,700 per acre and that they had received Rs2,200 to Rs2,500.

One of the local farmers stated, “The DFCCIL has acquired 80 acre land for the goods freight corridor to be laid down be-

tween Umra to Udhna.

Around 100 farmers were approached for the acquisition but they were left unsatisfied with the compensation amount paid to us for our land. We decided to take our case to the high court and then also approached the Supreme Court. In its order, the apex court directed the DFCCIL to pay the market rate of the land to the farmers.”

He added, “But, the DFCCIL paid us Rs2,200 to Rs2,500 per acre. The government has compensated more than the market rate for the land acquired for the bullet train project but turned stingy with us.”

nCoV gives GSEB schools WOMAN FILES COMPLAINT AGAINST HUSBAND 21-day break for Diwali First India Bureau

—FFILE PHOTO

First India Bureau Gandhinagar: The State Education Department has announced that, this year, the Diwali vacation will begin from October 29 and schools will reopen from November 19th. While students have been out of school since March, Tuesday’s announcement means a 21-day break for teachers and staff of schools affiliated with the Gujarat State Education Board (GSEB).

While the state is yet to decide whether to reopen schools after Diwali due to the ongoing pandemic, teachers may also not have to attend school physically from November 19.

In the past 24 hours, the state has conducted 52,915 tests, and detected 1,126 new cases.

There are now 14,267 active cases in the state, with 76 patients on ven-

Ahmedabad: For the safety and security of her two daughters, one of whom is a minor, a woman filed a domestic violence complaint against her husband with Vatva GIDC police station.

The station’s Assistant Sub Inspector is investigating the case lodged under various sections of the Indian Penal Code.

Shilaben Sharma, a resident of the city’s Jashodanagar area, filed a criminal complaint against her hus-

band Yogesh Radheshyam Sharma on Monday night. She has alleged that she has been a victim of domestic vio-

Students have been out of school campuses since March.

1,126 cases, 8 fatalities take state tally to 1,61,848 cases, toll to 3,654 tilators. Surat and Ahmedabad each account for two of the eight deaths on Tuesday, while Gandhinagar, Mehsana, Rajkot and Vadodara each had one fatality.

Surat had the highest number of new cases, with 231. Cases also emerged in Ahmedabad

(178), Rajkot (104), Vadodara (113), Jamnagar (71), Mehsana (46), Gandhinagar (43), Narmada (33), Surendranagar (30), Sabarkantha (28), Banaskantha (26), and Amreli (20).

Surat district now has 1,971 active cases.

Of the 140 patients being treated at the New Civil and SMIMER Hospitals six are on ventilators, and 64 are on oxygen support.

Ahmedabad city has 10 new micro containment zones, taking the total to 108 such zones.

Around 500-600 protesters gathered outside the Rajiv Gandhi Bhavan, state headquarters of the Gujarat Pradesh Congress Committee (GPCC) on Tuesday, to show their support for Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) Leader of Opposition Dinesh Sharma, a day after his resignation. Several demonstrators were set to shave their heads at the protest but backed out at the last minute.

—PHOTO BY HANIF SINDHI

‘COVID-19 more urban pandemic than a global one’ Ahmedabad: Senior Advisor and Chief of Urban Section at UNICEF Thomas George has called the ongoing novel coronavirus crisis an urban pandemic rather than a global one. Addressing a session titled ‘COVID Crisis in Cities: Impact on Children and Response’, he said, “COVID-19 is more of an urban pandemic than a global

pandemic with more than 90% of the cases reported in urban areas until early September 2020. The biggest impact has been the loss of schooling, which has affected the education of 1.6 billion children, onethird of whom have no access to digital education.”

The session was part of the on-going virtual global current affairs series being organized by city-based business

MICA is currently hosting a series of sessions on virtual global current affairs.

—FILE PHOTO

school MICA. “Although cities are engines of growth and represent vibrant cultures, an array of choices, improved facilities, and infrastructure, they have failed to provide such features and benefits over a period of time. What makes urban areas more critical for UNICEF is that 56% of the global population currently resides in urban areas. Interestingly, this percentage of the population contributes

few months ago. According to the complainant, her husband allegedly thrashed her elder daughter for texting someone on her phone.

According to police sources, the woman lodged a complaint for the safety and security of her daughters. Police have registered a complaint against the accused and are working on the case under a number of sections of the IPC.

Better a ‘mad’ candidate than a traitor: Dhanani

IN SOLIDARITY

EXPERT SPEAK

First India Bureau

lence for more than two decades.

She further alleged that after getting fed up of her husband’s cruelty she had even filed for a divorce petition before the family court 12 years back. However, at the last moment her husband promised her that she would never be harassed again and so she withdrew the petition.

Police officials say the accused persons started harassing her again a

to 80% of the global GDP, 70% of overall energy consumption, and 70% of carbon emissions,” George said.

Analysing the situation of the urban poor, he added, “We believe that people living in urban areas have access to facilities and a better quality of life. But in one of our studies, we found that 40% of the 70 countries surveyed had urban poor living in conditions worse than those of the rural poor.”

First India Bureau Ahmedabad: With the by-elections for eight state Assembly seats set for November 03, leaders of both the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Congress have launched political attacks on each other.

Leader of Opposition Paresh Dhanani recently termed former Congress leaders who joined BJP as “traitors” and also alleged that they had been “bought” by the ruling party for Rs16 crore each.

On Tuesday, Dhanani took the electoral battle to another level, when he tweeted a cartoon and said, “If he (the candidate) was mad, it

would be all right, but he should not be a traitor!” The cartoon had two chairs placed opposite each other with one of them occupied by a “mad” man and the other had a stab wound from a knife plunged into its back. Dhanani used chairs to send a symbolic message to former Congress MLAs. Eight Congress MLAs had resigned ahead of the Rajya Sabha election earlier this year. Five of these officially joined the BJP, including Pradyumansinh Jadeja (Abdasa), Brijesh Merja (Morbi), JV Kakadia (Dhari), Akshay Patel (Karjan), and Jitu Chaudhary (Kaprada) and are contesting the upcoming by-elections for the BJP.

PERSPECTIVE AHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 21, 2020

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WHY CORPORATE SURVIVAL MATTERS

IN-DEPTH

HEED PM’S ADVICE ON PANDEMIC TO AVOID RECURRENCE

SHUBHRANSHU SINGH The writer is a corporate professional, marketing leader, columnist and a social and political commentator. He writes on brand building, marketing, history, politics, technology and business

F

estival season is here. And the end of the lockdown has given the festive spirit the buoyancy it deserves. Lest the people lower their guard to enjoy the festive moments, Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his short address reminded them that while the lockdown may have ended but the novel coronavirus has not gone. He warned them against throwing caution to the wind as they celebrate Durga puja, Dussehra, Diwali, Chhath Puja, and Eid Milad un Nabi and advised them to follow the necessary pandemic protocols of wearing masks and maintaining a safe distance with one another.

The prime minister said that corona cases in India were on the decline, the recovery rate was high and the fatality rate was low. He compared the situation in India with that in Brazil, the US, Spain, and Britain where the fatality rate was 600 out of every 10 lakh population against India’s 83. The PM emphasized that despite the recovery rate being high, complacency could ruin the success story.

“In this festive season markets are bright again but we need to remember that the lockdown might have ended but coronavirus still persists. With the efforts of every Indian over the last seven-eight months, India is in a stable situation, we must not let it deteriorate,” the PM said.

The “bright markets” have brought with them the fervent hope of an economic revival and a boost in consumer demand during the festival season will help the green shoots visible in the economy take firm roots. Indicators show that there is an increase in electricity and fuel consumption, inter and intra-state movement of goods, and retail financial transactions. Driving the upswing is the agriculture sector which expects a bumper Kharif harvest.

All this advantage will come to naught if the people do not heed the prime minister’s advice.

And the people have really stopped fearing the virus probably because of the high recovery rate and low fatalities. That the people just don’t seem to care can be seen in markets that are bustling with crowds without masks and social distancing. It was also demonstrated at the Banke Bihari temple in Vrindavan. With more than 25,000 devotees turning up to offer prayers after the temple was opened, it had to be shut indefinitely just after two days.

Puja pandals in West Bengal and elsewhere could turn into hotspots if the Banke Bihari temple incident gets repeated there. The Kolkata High Court has decreed that the pandals will remain out of bounds for visitors but puja organizers have sought a review of the order. Thankfully, Ramlilas have either gone digital or are being performed sans crowds without any fuss.

In Europe, America and Britain Covid-19 has made a comeback leading to fresh lockdowns. It is up to us to ensure that we do not face another phase of confinement.

M

Companies are legal entities, but they are also mortal. The average life expectancy of a multinational corporation — Fortune 500 or its equivalent is 40 years. This has been studied by many management thinkers –Jim Collins, Arie de Geus, Peter Drucker, Tom Peters, Richard Pascale amongst others

y entire career has been working with global brands and companies. I have worked in great multinationals such as Unilever, Visa, and Diageo. I have had the privilege of managing global brands in highly competitive categories. I am a supporter of competitive free markets that are sensibly regulated. I sincerely believe that corporations should be exposed to natural competition and the risk of failure. Otherwise, they will not be efficient and the fruits of their sustained success will not accrue to society at large. Capital is the accumulated saving of society. It must fetch return.

A global corporation is an important institution in the modern world. There is an enormous concentration of wealth and influence in the top 1000 corporate entities of the world.

Just one American company Amazon now has a market capitalization that is fast approaching the nominal GDP of India!

Companies are legal entities, but they are also mortal. The average life expectancy of a multinational corporation — Fortune 500 or it’s equivalent is 40 years. This has been studied by many management thinkers –Jim Collins, Arie de Geus, Peter Drucker, Tom Peters, Richard Pascale amongst others.

Undeniably, management has focused on profits. This is what they are supposed to do. It is the fiduciary bargain that gets struck. Their creed is to maximise shareholder value.

Social responsibility is mostly a matter of compliance with the law. Now that thinking has to change. For corporate institutions to flourish it is important to always adapt to the context. Corporations that endure for generations have a cohesive corporate community with a strong sense of identity. They have loved brands with strong consumer communities. They are prudent and conservative in financial matters.

The Fortune 500 was first published in 1955 was led by General Motors, a company that held the

top position for more than 30 years. It was a pillar of the US economy. In 2009 it went bankrupt. Through the Troubled Asset Relief Program, the US Treasury invested a total of $51 billion into the GM bankruptcy.

Today, capital is abundant.

The skills, capabilities, and knowledge of people are scarce.

Learning is tomorrow’s capital. Data is the new oil. Every company needs to grapple with continuous change.

To survive and flourish -business owners, executive management, corporate boards, and senior operations executives must dedicate a great deal of time to nurturing their people.

The essence of wealth creation in the new economy is the deployment of creative capability. All companies desperately need high learning and innovation. Corporations have to turn into networks. They have to look beyond being limited liability companies, a legal frame dating back to the 19th-century industrial enterprises. They have to see themselves as living systems composed of other living systems — the people who worked for them and their allies and partners. A company’s success no longer depends primarily on its ability to raise investment capital. Success depends on the ability of its people to

The essence of wealth creation in the new economy is the deployment of creative capability. All companies desperately need high learning and innovation. Corporations have to turn into networks.

They have to look beyond being limited liability companies, a legal frame dating back to the 19thcentury industrial

learn together and produce new ideas. The corporations that are ready to survive and thrive for long do not see themselves primarily as economic units to produce profits.

Today, in the Fortune 500, the companies which consistently rise —Amazon, Facebook, eBay, Microsoft, Google, Netflix, — have relatively few capital assets. The difference between their high capitalized share values and the low values of capital assets on their balance sheet represents a valuation of the intellectual capability of their human components. In the most successful companies, this valuation is comparatively high.

Most of the longest surviving

The Trump administration targets critical race theory

I

n his latest attack on democratic values and principles, US President Donald Trump issued executive orders purging critical race theory (CRT) from diversity training in US federal agencies. According to the first order issued on September 4, “The divisive, false, and demeaning propaganda of the critical race theory movement is contrary to all we stand for as Americans and should have no place in the Federal government.” The order refers to diversity training that involves discussions of white privilege and the systemic forms of racism that are embedded within US history and institutions.

According to the president’s most recent Executive Order on Combating Race and Sex Stereotyping issued on September 22, the so-called

04

“destructive ideology” of white privilege is “grounded in misrepresentations of our country’s history and its role in the world.”

It is significant that these directives follow months of nationwide protests against racism in policing and the criminal justice system. The interdisciplinary field of critical race theory occupies an important position in the ideological basis of the Black Lives Matter movement.

Activists protesting against systemic racism have made a point of acknowledging the many important critical race theorists and philosophers of the past and present who have advanced struggles for racial justice.

The radical right has taken note of the relationship between CRT and Black Lives Matter. Breitbart News, for example, defines CRT as “the leftist, racist doctrine

that forms the intellectual underpinnings of Black Lives Matter, Antifa, and other radical organizations currently engaged in unrest on America’s streets.”

CONTEXT AND REACTION The Trump administration’s censorship of CRT is an effort to counter the scholarly and intellectual critique that has been integral within advocacy and policy change to advance

racial, sex and gender justice. It is the ability of CRT to name and challenge systemic racism that makes it confrontational to the ability of white and male privilege and power to remain unmarked, unnamed, and unchallenged. In their response to Trump’s directive, the deans of all five California’s law schools stated that “CRT invites us to confront with unflinching honesty how race has operated in our history

and our present, and to recognize the deep and ongoing operation of ‘structural racism,’ through which racial inequality is reproduced within our economic, political, and educational systems even without individual racist intent.”

Critical race theory has been put into practice through diversity education and training, showing how racism and sexism are not merely beliefs held and perpetuated by individuals, but that these and other forms of discrimination and exclusion are institutional and systemic. To eliminate CRT is to censor words and concepts like intersectionality, implicit bias, stereotyping, stigma, whiteness, white privilege, and systemic and institutional racism, which effectively closes down processes of naming and unlearning unearned privileges

associated with one’s race and gender.

CRT and cognate forms of diversity training have become important means of advancing the equal recognition and rights of those who have been historically excluded and victimized on the basis of their race, gender, disability or sexual orientation not only in the United States but in many parts of the world. In South Africa (the main context in which this author conducts research and teaching), CRT has been integral within efforts to name and challenge the persistence of white supremacy and white privilege in public and private sectors. Critical diversity studies has also emerged as a recognized academic field and area of professional development and training in South Africa.

SOURCE: FAIR OBSERVER

corporations –Unilever, Nestle, GE, Coca-Cola - now recruit top people from the outside, which they rarely did before. They have gone past the logic of growing their own timber.

If society thinks of companies primarily as limited-liability organizations, with powerful fiscal legislation protecting them — and if managers have been taught at business school only about efficiency and bottom-line return on investment capital — then we will struggle with the more profound concept of work communities. We will have a hard time making the transition to a world where capital only has a secondary role to play, and where people shouldn’t pay more for capital than its market value.

Conventional business must recognize that the new business reality is about people.

They must see that their critical competitive success factor is producing more talented output than their competitors.

They can only accomplish this by getting people to learn and to work together better.

We all must pay heed to the human side of the enterprise and ensure that companies must be fundamentally humane to prosper.

FOR FULL REPORT LOG ON TO WWW.THECONVERSATION.COM

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TWEET Dharmendra Pradhan @dpradhanbjp GOI under the leadership of PM Shri @narendramodi ji is committed to usher in a clean energy future that has minimal impact on the environment. The steps taken today, including trial of #HCNG on 50 buses will be a major breakthrough in India’s journey towards hydrogen economy.

Anand Sharma @AnandSharmaINC The fall in COVID cases must not lead to any false sense of complacency or boastful claims, far removed from reality. India has taken severe blows- sufferings of the poor, collapse of economy, unprecedented contraction of industrial production & millions of jobs lost.

Spiritual SPEAK

One moment can change a day, one day can change a life, and one life can change the world.

—Buddha

Vol 1 Issue No. 326 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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BIHAR POLLS

IF I AM INEXPERIENCED, WHY IS BJP USING FULL FORCE AGAINST ME? TEJASHWI

The RJD leader also said UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s presence in Bihar on Tuesday will not be a challenge for him Patna: Mahagathbandhan’s chief ministerial candidate Tejashwi Yadav on Tuesday hit back at Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) saying that if he is inexperienced as a leader then why is the world’s largest party using its full force against him.

“If I am inexperienced then why are you (BJP) deploying full force against me? This proves that they are desperate. Is Nitish Kumar’s face not working?

BJP is the largest party in the world but they don’t have any CM candidate,” said Yadav while speaking to the reporters. “They have used full force against me and I am alone. They call me inexperienced but I have been an MLA, Leader of Opposition and also held deputy CM’s post. My five years of experience is equivalent to 50 years of expe-

‘Bihar is writing history of progress under Nitish Kumar’

The Yadav scion, Tejashwi, also mocked BJP saying that the world’s largest party does not have a chief ministerial candidate & people have lost faith in Bihar CM Nitish Kumar.

—FILE PHOTO

rience,” he added.

The RJD leader also said the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s presence in Bihar on Tuesday will not be a challenge for him.

“He is not a challenge. They are so des-

perate and in despair, they have understood that they will not form the government again,” he added.

Yadav scion also mocked BJP saying that the world’s largest party does not have a chief ministerial candidate

and people have lost faith in Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.

Bihar will go to polls in three phases: October 28, November 3 and November 7 for its 243 Assembly seats. The results will be declared on November 10. —ANI

Ramgarh: UP CM and one of the BJP’s star campaigners Adityanath began his campaign for Bihar polls heaping praise on his counterpart Nitish Kumar for ushering in progress and prosperity in the state. His comments came at an election rally in Ramgarh constituency which is also known as ‘mini Chittorgarh’ for the prominent presence of Rajput community. “Bihar is writing the history of progress and prosperity under the leadership of Nitish Kumar,” he said.

He began his speech by invoking Lord Ram and went on to attack the Congress and the RJD for playing caste politics. —ANI

Now, Pakistan supported terrorists cannot enter Kashmir and attack jawans because if they do Indian jawans will enter Pakistan and kill terrorists.

They will not do it,” Adityanath said at a public rally here in Karakat assembly constituency of Bihar. “’Bharat tere tukde honge’ slogan cannot be raised in JNU now. The only slogan being raised in the country is ‘Ek Bharat Shrestha Bharat’ under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

—Yogi Adityanath, UP CM

HC seeks ECI reply on party’s plea New Delhi: Delhi HC sought response of the ECI on a plea by the newly formed political outfit, Plurals Party, seeking to use a common symbol of ‘Chess Board’ during the Bihar Assembly polls, scheduled to commence from October 28.

Justice Jayant Nath issued notice to the ECI and asked it to file its reply within four weeks and listed the matter for further hearing on December 21.

The party, represented through advocate Jatan Singh, has sought to direct commission to allow use of a common election symbol of ‘Chess Board’ or any other free symbol.—PTI

Don’t appreciate Kamal Rajnath’s nod to DRDO procurement manual Nath’s remarks on woman leader: RaGa FACILITATING INDIGENOUS DEFENCE INDUSTRY

Wayanad: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi condemned former Madhya Pradesh chief minister’s remark against a woman leader and said he personally doesn’t appreciate the language Kamal Nath used.

“Kamal Nath ji is from my party but personally, I don’t like the type of language that he used...I don’t appreciate it, regardless of who he is. It is unfortunate,” said Gandhi on the former MP CM’s “item” remark, while addressing a press briefing in Wayanad. Former CM Kamal Nath referred to Imarti Devi as an “item” at an election meeting in the Dabra assembly constituency in Gwalior district, sparking a controversy.

“Suresh Raje ji hamare ummeedvar hai..yeh uske jaise nah hai...kya hai uska naam ... main kya uska naam lun? ...apko toh mujhe pehle savdhan karna chahiye tha; yeh kya item hai, Kamal Nath said in Hindi. —ANI

New Delhi: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday approved a new procurement manual for Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) to encourage the participation of the Indian industries in research and development activity to facilitate the indigenous Defence Industry.

Rajnath Singh said that the new manual

Rajouri: People get jobs under MGNREGA Rahul Gandhi

KAMAL NATH REFUSES TO APOLOGISE Bhopal: Soon after Congress leader Rahul Gandhi condemned former Madhya Pradesh chief minister Kamal Nath’s remark on the woman leader, the latter refused to apologise saying he has already clarified the context in which he made that statement. “It is Rahul Gandhi’s opinion. I have already clarified the context in which I made that statement... Why should I apologise when I did not intend to insult anyone? If anyone felt insulted, I have already expressed regret,” said Nath. Earlier today, Rahul Gandhi while addressing a press briefing in Wayanad condemned Nath’s remarks saying that he did not like the kind of language the former Chief Minister used. —ANI

NADDA ACCUSES CONGRESS OF PRAISING PAK, QUOTES RAGA Buxar: BJP president JP Nadda has accused the Congress of praising Pakistan, citing examples of Rahul Gandhi and Shashi Tharoor. Speaking at a public rally, Nadda said, “See what they say whenever elections come.

Mani Shankar Aiyar had gone to Pakistan and said save us from Modi and remove Modi. This

Rajnath Singh with Secretary DRDO Dr G Satheesh Reddy during release of PM-2020.

is the patriotism of the Congress party. Shashi Tharoor from the platform of Pakistan abused India and praised Pakistan.”

“Rahul Gandhi speaks the language of Pakistan. On the other hand, Pakistan in UNGA, to raise the issue of Kashmir and Article 370 took the argument of Rahul Gandhi, the BJP president said.

Rajouri: The labourers from the far-flung hilly areas of Kalakote block, 65 kilometres from Rajouri, are relieved after getting employment under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA).

The residents of Barmanadal panchayat in Rajouri had been jobless since the COVID-19 lockdown. “A lot of these labourers working in cities were left unemployed during the COVID-19-induced lockdown. So, the Rural Development Department

CONQUER THE UNCONQUERED: TEJASVI SURYA ON NEW ROLE New Delhi: BJP MP Tejasvi Surya assumed charge as the new president of party’s youth wing in the national capital and said that “we will work towards building political workers for 21st century India”. Surya has succeeded Lok Sabha Mumbai MP Poonam Mahajan after completion of her tenure. “Today, I officially took charge as President of BJYM with blessings from Poonam Mahajan Ji. BJYM will strive to conquer the unconquered; will work towards building political workers for 21st century India; Surya tweeted.

decided to provide them with an alternate source of income near their home,” Khalil Choudhary, Kalakote Block Development Officer, told ANI. “We’re also working to provide these labourers with pucca homes under the Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana by 2022,” he added.

“Poor people are thanking government for providing them with employment under MGNREGA. They’re hopeful of earning livelihood through this, said a Sarpanch. —ANI

‘No Entry’ boards put outside Bengal pandals after HC order Birbhum: ‘No Entry’ boards were placed outside Puja pandals in the Police Line area of Birbhum after Calcutta HC declared pandals ‘noentry zones’ for visitors in West Bengal in view of ongoing pandemic.

According to the court’s order, only organisers can enter the Puja pandals in the state. The court had also ordered that people would not be allowed within a five-metre distance for small pandals and 10 metre for big pandals. The HC also asked

PNB SCAM: FRESH CASE AGAINST RETD OFFICIAL GOKULNATH SHETTY New Delhi: The CBI has booked retired deputy manager Gokulnath Shetty, the main accused in the Rs13,000-cr Punjab National Bank fraud allegedly perpetrated by Mehul Choksi and Nirav Modi, in a fresh case of receiving a bribe of Rs 1.08 cr from Rishika Financials that arranged bank guarantees for Gitanjali Gems, offi-

will help towards realising PM Modi’s dream of Atma Nirbhar Bharat.

“The new DRDO Procurement Manual will facilitate the indigenous Defence Industry by simplifying the processes and ensuring their participation in design and development activities. PM2020 will help towards realising PM Modi’s dream of Atma Nirbhar Bharat.” —ANI

cials said.It is alleged that owner of Rishika Financials, Debajyoti Dutta, was in business of arranging quotes of LoUs from foreign funding banks, they said on Monday. Officials said that after getting confirmation from Dutta, Shetty used to issue LoUs using the international banking messaging service, SWIFT.

Acc to HC, only organisers can enter the Puja pandals in state.

each puja committee to submit a blueprint on crowd management.

Last week, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had urged Durga Puja committees not to

allow people without masks in pandal during Puja celebrations.

This year, Durga Puja will be celebrated from October 23 to October 26. —ANI

139 STRANDED INDIANS RETURN VIA ATTARI-WAGAH BORDER Attari: A total of 139 Indian nationals returned from Pakistan via the Attari-Wagah border on Monday as travel restrictions were imposed earlier due to the coronavirus-induced lockdowns.”It is because of the coronavirus-induced lockdown that we were not able to come back to our country. You know how it feels to come back home after so long. We are happy to come back to our motherland,” said Qamruz Zamane. Gunshafa a Delhi-based resident said that she is grateful that she has returned home.

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India has largest number of recoveries COVID-19 UPDATE : The country is second in most number of tests done globally; death rate amongst lowest New Delhi: India has the largest number of COVID-19 recovered cases in the world and it stands second in terms of the number of tests conducted in any country, Union health secretary, Rajesh Bhushan said on Tuesday.

“We have the largest number of COVID-19 recovered cases in the world and we stand second in terms of the number of tests conducted in any country.

The COVID-19 recoveries have crossed 67 lakhs in India. We have conducted more than 9.6 crore COVID-19 tests in the country,” Bhushan said during a press conference on COVID-19 situation in the country. While many countries have reported a surge, India has recorded 310 cases per million in the last 7 days, which is amongst the lowest globally, Bhushan said.

“Similarly, India has

New Delhi: Union Ministry of Health on Tuesday said 78 per cent of the new recovered coronavirus cases are observed to be concentrated in 10 states/Union Territories (UT) and 75 per cent of the new confirmed cases are from 10 states and UTs. Maharashtra, Karnataka and Kerala contribute more than 5,000 to the new confirmed cases, according to the ministry. India has leaped across several significant milestones in its fight against COVrecorded 83 deaths per million in the same period, which is also amongst the lowest globally. The recovery rate, at present being 88.63 per cent and continues to improve. Simultaneously, active cases are now below 7.5 lakhs and continue to decline,” he added. —ANI

ID-19. The new confirmed cases in the last 24 hours have fallen below 50,000 (46,790) for the first time in nearly three months. The new cases were 47,703 on July 28. With a high number of COVID-19 patients recovering every day and the sustained fall in the mortality rate, India’s steady trend of dipping active cases continues.

The percentage of active cases has fallen below 10 per cent. The total positive cases of the country are less than

7.5 lakh (7,48,538) and comprise merely 9.85 per cent of the total cases.

The ministry said, this achievement is the result of collaborative, focussed and effective action by states/UTs under the Centre’s strategy of comprehensive and high countrywide testing, prompt and effective surveillance and tracking, quick hospitalisation and effective adherence of the Standard Treatment Protocol issued by the Union Government. —ANI

‘6 prisoners infected with COVID-19 in Delhi jails’ New Delhi: The jail authorities submitted before the Delhi High Court on Tuesday that six prisoners, who are lodged in several jails in the national capital, are currently infected with COVID-19. The

Telangana floods: Delhi Govt announces`15cr donation New Delhi: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday said that the people of Delhi stand with the people of flood-hit Hyderabad. He also announced the decision to donate Rs 15 crore to the Telangana government.

“Floods have caused havoc in Hyderabad.

People of Delhi stand by our brother and sisters in Hyderabad in this hour of crisis,” the Chief Minister tweeted.

In another tweet, he said, “Delhi government will donate Rs 15 crore to the Govt of Telangana for its relief efforts.” Earlier in the day, K Chandrashekar Rao spoke to Kejriwal over the phone and thanked him on behalf of the people of Telangana.

“Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has announced Rs 15 crore financial assistance to Telangana state for the relief and rehabilitation works following heavy rains and flash floods that the State experienced. Arvind Kejriwal said the Delhi state

78% of new recovered COVID-19 cases emerge from 10 states/UTs

CM Arvind Kejriwal

RESCUE OPERATIONS UNDERWAY!

would stand by the Telangana state in this hour of natural calamity. Telangana State Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao thanked Arvind Kejriwal on behalf of people in Telangana for announcing Rs 15 Crore financial assistance. On Tuesday, KCR spoke to

Kejriwal over phone and thanked him for the generous help,” the Telangana CMO said in a message. Over 37,000 people have been rescued from flood-affected areas of Hyderabad, while 33 people died due to the inundation caused by incessant rain over past week. —ANI

try, when experts have warned there could be a surge in the number of Covid-19 cases if people lower their guard.

asserted that his party was committed to supporting the farming community in their fight against the legislations, which have triggered protests in Punjab, Haryana and some other states. —ANI

jail authorities submitted that there are 2,318 prisoners involved in heinous crimes who have been granted interim bail by the High Court and trial courts. The report said another 2,907

prisoners involved in minor crimes have also been granted interim bails.

Senior Standing Counsel (Criminal) Rahul Mehra also informed that 6,711 inmates are presently on

interim bail or parole granted in view of the pandemic and added that while as per the affidavit only six persons were suffering from corona, at present the said number has come down to three. —ANI

One more Gadkari lays foundation terrorist killed stone of India’s 1st multi in Pulwama modal logistic park encounter New Delhi: Union MinPulwama: Jammu and Kashmir police and security forces killed one more unidentified terrorist in an encounter in Hakripora area of Pulwama district on Tuesday, taking the total count of terrorists killed to three.

“PulwamaEncounterUpdate: 01 more unidentified #terrorist killed (total 03). Search going on. Further details shall follow,” the Kashmir zone police tweeted. Earlier, the Kashmir zone police informed two terrorists were killed in the ongoing encounter.

“Pulwama Encounter Update: 01 more unidentified terrorist killed (total 02). Search going on. Further details shall follow,” the Kashmir zone police informed on social media platform Twitter.

Before that, the police tweeted about the start of the encounter and informed that police and security are jointly conducting the operation. —ANI

ister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari virtually laid the foundation stone for the first-ever multi-modal logistic park at Jogighopa, in Bongaigaon district of Assam on Tuesday.

Gadkari informed about the same in a series of tweets and said the Central government is committed to the economic and social development of northeastern part of the country. “Laid the foundation stone of country’s first multimodal logistics park in Assam in the presence of Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal, MoS Gen (Retd) Dr V K Singh, MoS Dr Jitendra Singh, MoS Rameshwar Teli, MPs, MLAs and senior officials,” he tweeted.

“Under the leadership of Hon’ble Prime Minister Narendra Modi, we are committed to the economic and social development of North East,” he added.

He hashtagged his

consumers.

“The Bills (Farm Bills) have become an Act at the Parliament but Vidhan Sabha unanimously rejected those Acts. We’ve adopted a resolution and have come here together. We gave copies of the resolution to the Governor and requested him to approve it,” Captain Amarinder was quoted as saying by ANI. “It first goes to Governor, then to President. If it doesn’t happen then we have legal methods too. I hope the Governor approves it because it is unanimous,” Singh added.

Singh also said that he had sought an ap-

pointment from President Ram Nath Kovind between November 2-5.

“Entire Vidhan Sabha will go to him,” he said.

As the House took up the Bills and the resolution for discussion, SAD MLA Bikram Singh Majithia welcomed the legislations and spoke on the need for consent from the governor or the president in case the Bills were forwarded to them before becoming Acts. —Agencies

06

POWER Gallery BRIG. RANJIT SINGH APPOINTED AS IG, ASSAM RIFLES

Brig. Ranjit Singh, VSM, Madras (Inf), has been appointed as Inspector General (East) in the Assam Rifles on deputation basis for a period of 18 months.

DALJIT SINGH CHAUDHARY PROMOTED AS ADG IN ITBP

Daljit Singh Chaudhary, IG, ITBP has been promoted and posted as ADG ITBP. He is a 1990 batch UP cadre IPS officer RESHUFFLE OF IAS OFFICERS IN HARYANA

The Government of Haryana has issued orders for the fresh posting of six IAS officers. Accordingly, Jaibir Singh Arya has been appointed as Deputy Commissioner, Bhiwani, while Ram Kumar Singh is Commissioner, Municipal Corporation, Panchkula.

Similarly, Ajay Kumar was posted as Deputy Commissioner, Mahendragarh; Vikram as Commissioner, Municipal Corporation, Karnal; Mahavir Singh as Secretary, RTA, Panchkula and Mohammad Ikram Raza will be joining as Additional Deputy Commissioner, Panchkula. Besides, eight officers have been relieved from the charges of Secretary, RTA of the respective districts they are currently posted in. The officers are: Anish Yadav, Manoj Kumar, Ms. Preeti, Uttam Singh, Rahul Hooda, Prashant Panwar, Rahul Nanrual and Abhishek Meena.

PHALNIKAR APPOINTED ADG, CISF

P S Phalnikar, IG, NSG, has been appointed as Additional Director General in Central Industrial Security Force (CISF). He is a 1989 batch IPS officer of MP cadre.

ANANT KUMAR SINGH APPOINTED AS IG, BSF

Anant Kumar Singh has been appointed as Inspector General in Border Security Force (BSF) on deputation basis. He is a 1994 batch IPS officer of MP cadre.

SUNITA SINGH IS DEPUTY DIRECTOR, OFFICIAL LANGUAGE

The Ministry of Home Affairs, Department of Official Language, has appointed Sunita Singh as Deputy Director (Official Language), Department of Posts.

RESHUFFLE OF IAS OFFICERS IN HIMACHAL PRADESH

As many as 20 IAS officers have been transferred and posted to different places in Himachal Pradesh.

Nitin Gadkari

tweets as “PragatiKaHigway” or highway of progress.

In another tweet, Gatkari informed the Rs 693.97 crore park will reduce logistic cost and bring global opportunities. “Being built with an investment of Rs 693.97 crore, the multi-modal logistics park will become a milestone in the development of North East.

The project will reduce logistic cost and bring global opportunities to the region. It is being developed under Bharatmala Pariyojana,” he tweeted.

Assam CM Sonowal who presided over the e-foundation stone laying ceremony thanked PM Modi and Union Minister Gadkari. —ANI

GERA TO SUCCEED BALAKRISHNAN AS DIRECTOR (IS&P), BHEL ON DEC 1

Mrs. Renuka Gera, Executive Director of BHEL, will be taking over the charge as Director (Industrial System & Products), Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) on December 1, 2020. She will succeed present incumbent S Balakrishnan retiring in November, 2020.

ABHAY CHOUDHARY TO JOIN AS DIRECTOR (PROJ), POWER GRID ON NOV 1

Abhay Choudhary, ED, Powergrid, will be taking over the charge as Director (Projects), Power Grid Corporation of India Limited on November 1, 2020.

ADDITIONAL CHARGE FOR THREE IFS OFFICERS IN MOEF & CC

Three IFS officers of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF & CC) have been handed over additional charge. Accordingly, Pankaj Asthana, IGF (NAEB), was given additional charge of CEO, National Authority, CAMPA, while Ms Bharti, IGF (SU/IFS), will hold additional charge of IGF (FC) and MS VL Roul Kullai, DIGF (FP) of DIGF (RT).

By arrangement with: http:// whispersinthecorridors.com

FROM PG 1 Wishful PM...

“If you are negligent, you are putting the lives of others at risk,” PM Modi said.

India, he said, is working on two or three possible vaccines and “we are trying our best to get a vaccine, as is the rest of the world”. “I want to let you know that once we get a vaccine, everyone will get it in a planned, phased and fast manner,” he added.

This is PM’s seventh address to the nation since the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic hit the country.

Tuesday’s address came ahead of the festival season in the coun-

Rahul to...

The Army believes otherwise, the Defence ministry believes otherwise. But the PM is not able to face the reality.

The Congress leader also accused Modi of weakening the country’s basic structure, and said it was important every citizen should understand this.

On the recently enacted contentious agricultural laws, the Congress leader claimed these would break the back of the farmers and

Punjab rejects...

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh said that the copies of the resolution have also been handed to the Governor for approval. Singh said his government’s four Bills were aimed at preventing the damage that the central laws would cause to the state and its agriculture, while allying the fears of farmers and

Raj ACB... along with his team to go to the UIDAI Delhi regional office and verify the complaint. The final action was taken on Tuesday, in Delhi,

after the two top cops of ACB, Soni and Dinesh, gave green signal to their team led by Thakur while keeping a watch on the accused for 30 hours.

The ACB has registered a case under Prevention of Corruption Act 1988 and are questioning Goyal. ACB has also coordinated with CBI in Delhi to conduct a search of the residence of the accused in Delhi. The house of the accused in Jaipur, where his parents reside, is also being searched. ACB is said to have discovered papers of a land in the name of Goyal’s wife. It is noteworthy that the ACB

took action on the 1999 batch officer within 48 hours of the complaint.

CBI to... to ensure that certain channels get higher ratings.

Meanwhile, Republic Media Network’s Editor-in-Chief Arnab Goswami on Tuesday wrote a letter to President Ram Nath Kovind, on safeguarding the fundamental rights of media and the press and seeking to draw the President’s attention to the grave Emergency-style injustice and constant harassment being meted out to the network.

In another development, former Assistant

Commissioner of Police (ACP) Iqbal Shaikh has approached the city civil court seeking a restraining order against the news channel Republic TV and its editor-in-chief Arnab Goswami from airing any material related to TRP scam.

An FIR in the case has been registered at Kandivali police station.

Shaikh has moved a suit for defamation against Goswami and the channel for making comments against the police force in connection with the TRP scam.

The suit is likely to come up for hearing on Wednesday.

TALKING POINT AHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 21, 2020

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07

COVID-19 ON MIND, DURGA PUJA CELEBRATIONS

LOW KEY SANS IDOLS, PANDALS IT'S THAT TIME OF THE YEAR. THE FRAGRANCE OF SHIULI', THE DELICATE ORANGE AND WHITE FLOWERS THAT BLOSSOM RIGHT ABOUT NOW, MINGLES WITH THE AUTUMN BREEZE TO HERALD DURGA PUJA BUT THE FRANKINCENSE IS MISSING AND A WARY QUIET HAS OVERTAKEN THE SOUND OF FESTIVITIES. IN THE AIR THERE IS THE VIRUS AND THE FEAR OF IT

T

he Bengali community in the Delhi-NCR region is staying away from Durga Puja festivities, a community affair in parks and other open spaces. And nowhere is this more evident than in Chittaranjan Park, often known as ‘mini Bengal’.. It’s two days before Durga Puja begins and Delhi’s predominantly Bengali neighbourhood has never been quieter. The parks that have for decades served as venues for larger than life themed pandals housing ornately decked Durga idols for five days every year are deserted. Keeping in mind the COVID-19 scare, puja committees in C R Park, as the south Delhi locality is known, and elsewhere in Delhi-NCR have decided to keep celebrations low key, hosting rituals online, sans idols, cultural programmes, bhog’ and in several places even the customary floral offerings.

On Monday,12 Durga Puja Committees of Chittaranjan Park, Greater Kailash 1 and 2, Alaknanda, and Kalkaji met at a temple and unanimously decided that the puja celebrations this year would be suspended due to the coronavirus pandemic. The meeting was convened by Greater Kailash MLA Saurabh Bharadwaj and attended by the sub-divisional magistrate, police officials and other agencies. “Most of the population of C R Park and members of puja committees are senior citizens and it is important they remain indoors and avoid contact with unknown people in pandals, Bharadwaj, a legislator of Delhi’s ruling Aam Aadmi Party, said. But almost all the committees will host a small kalash puja/ghat puja to ensure continuity of puja by these samitis , according to a statement issued after the meeting.

C R Park’s Mela Ground Committee, which is known for organising grand celebrations, featuring not just unique puja themes but also cultural performances by leading artists from Bengal, is one of them. Unfortunately this year we are not organising Durga Puja on a large scale considering the unprecedented situation. No ‘pandal’ will be installed to pre-

Labourers carrying idols of Goddess Durga on their way to a puja pandal ahead of the Durga Puja festival, in Kolkata, Sunday.

Workers carry a Goddess Durga idol from a clay modeller studio to a community pandal, ahead of Durga Puja festival, in Kolkata, Tuesday.

vent large gatherings to keep the public safe from this contagious disease. No activity will be organised except a ceremony called ghot pujo’ which will be performed on ashtami with not more than 15 members and a priest at our Mela Ground park, Avik Mitra, a member of the organising committee, told PTI. Durga Puja is celebrated over four days -- sashti, saptami, ashtami and navami which this year fall from October 22 to 24. On the fifth day, dashami, devotees bid adieu to the goddess and the idol is immersed. In line with the Delhi government’s guidelines, 15 committee members, including two priests, will be allowed to

attend the rituals physically within the park precincts, the final list for which has to be submitted to the police. For others, the ghot pujo’ will be streamed live on the committee’s Facebook page. All those who enter the premises will have to submit a self-attested declaration stating that they have not come in direct contact with any Covid positive patient in the last 48 hours.

The Arogya Setu app will be mandatory for 15 members. Hand sanitisation, wearing of masks and maintaining social distance will be of utmost priority for all the members attending the ghot pujo’, Mitra said. C R Park’s BBlock puja committee too has

Idols of Goddess Durga and other deities at a community puja pandal during Durga puja festival, in Kolkata, Monday.

Family members perform puja of Goddess Durga at their centuries old traditional puja house, during Durga Puja festival, in Kolkata, Tuesday.

reduced the annual five-day affair to a single day celebration with a ghot pujo’ on October 24 from 7 am onwards. Only the priest and two helpers will be allowed to participate in the rituals. Unprecedented times call for unprecedented action, said Suprakash Majumdar, general secretary of the committee.

“This year, the committee has decided that flowers, sweets, and fruits from individual homes cannot be offered. Nothing will be accepted by the priest due to COVID-19 restrictions. There won’t be any pandal’, idol , entertainment/cultural events, sports events, bhog’ distribution at our ground either, Majumdar said.

The B Block committee is, however, accepting donations in cash as well as online and via cheque, all exempt from income tax. Puja spirits are running low even beyond Delhi’s mini-Bengal’. Covid on their mind, Green Park’s Matri Mandir society also has chosen to go the ghot pujo’ way despite the state government’s nod for small scale celebrations.

It would have been very difficult to restart after the government allowed puja celebrations.

We will stick to our plan of performing ghot pujo’. We will follow all rituals and no short cuts as far as the puja is concerned, said Debashis Saha, chief coordinator of the Matri Mandir Sarbojanin SOURCE: PTI

Durga Puja Samiti. While members of the committee will be paying their respects to the deity from their respective homes, the committee has decided to send money to all the workers associated with the celebrations every year. We have decided to pay needy workers who were associated with our puja like the dhaki’ (drummers), cooks, and security personnel.

Also, we will donate to the PM’s relief fund, Saha said. Caution is key in the suburban town of Gurgaon that falls in Haryana.

Gurgaon’s DLF5 Durga Puja committee has capped the number of people present within the pandal at any point of time at 45.

We will keep it as simple as possible minimalistic, functional set up for pandal decorations. Our theme this year is about embracing minimalism, acknowledging the power of nature and appreciating the value of life, people and our society. Apart from keeping all rituals and activities of the puja at a minimum, we also intend to cut down all costs wherever possible, and use part of the savings from the funds raised to help people impacted during this time, a committee spokesperson said. While individuals will be allowed to attend rituals physically, for those not keen to come to the pandal, especially the elderly and other vulnerable communities, celebrations will be telecast online on the committee website and its social media handles.

We have built a website for puja visit slot booking 30 minute slots each, allowing 25 visitors in each slot and volunteers, security and sanitisation staff up to 20. No overlaps, or cross directional movement will be allowed. Attendees would be socially distanced once they are inside the venue. There will be flowerless pushpanjali’ to avoid any common touch points, the committee member said. The website will also be used to coordinate food distribution to minimise crowding. There will be pre-packaged takeaway bhog’ on one of the days. People will not be allowed to sit down and consume food. Just a clean handover of takeaway packages booked through the website, the spokesperson said.

CONCEPT: DIVYA HEMNANI

DESIGN: CP SHARMA

It is important to give dreams to children to fly but it is also important to give them responsibility to anchor them to the ground!

2ND FRONT

—Jagdeesh Chandra, CEO & Editor, First India

AHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 21, 2020

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

COVID-19 UPDATE

WORLD

INDIA

GUJARAT

11,26,527 4,08,88,114 1,15,938 76,48,248 3,654 1,61,848 CONFIRMED CASES

DEATHS

MAHARASHTRA 42,453 DEATHS 16,09,516 CASES

TAMIL NADU 10,741 DEATHS 6,94,030 CASES

DEATHS

KARNATAKA 10,608 DEATHS 7,76,901 CASES

CONFIRMED CASES

State Finance Dept’s 6-month estimates show a total tax loss of ` 11,576 cr during April-Sept, 2020 Darshan Desai

With all economic activity halted, Gujarat's tax revenues suffered a hit.

—FILE PHOTO

HUGE FALL TYPE OF TAX

APR-SEP-2020

APR-SEP-2020

SHORTFALL

GST & VAT

`25,064 cr

`33,544 cr

-25%

Stamp Duty

`2,336 cr

`3,972 cr

-41%

Electricity Duty

`3,079 cr

`3,585 cr

-14%

Vehicle Tax

`850 cr

`1,791 cr

-53%

Professional Tax

`124 cr

`126 cr

-1.47%

Passenger Tax

`0.24 cr

`1.87 cr

-87%

`60 cr

-18%

Prohibition & Excise `50 cr

(Source: Finance Department, Gujarat Government)

DEATHS

DELHI 6,081 DEATHS 3,36,750 CASES

ACT OF GOD? Gujarat reports huge ` 8,480 cr dip in GST-VAT income Gandhinagar: The Covid-19 crisis and the extended lockdown have had a sledgehammer impact on the Gujarat Government’s finances with the State reporting a sharp fall of a staggering Rs 8,480 crore in its combined net revenue from GST and VAT in the first two quarters of 2020-21 as against the collections in the corresponding period last year.

Taking all key tax heads into account, the State suffered an overall shortfall of a whopping Rs 11,576 crore between April to September, 2020. As a result, Gujarat Government’s capital expenditure on development works has fallen by more than Rs 3,150

08

crore.

All this, notwithstanding the Centre recently attributing the corona-infected financial situation to an “act of God,” and apparently washed its hands off the GST dues of the States.

During the first 6 months, as on September, 2020, the State collected Rs 31,503 crore from 7 key tax heads while the corresponding amount was Rs 43,079 crore in the first 6 months of 2019-20 (See Table).

The State’s GST collection as on September, 2020, was Rs 17,444 crore as against Rs 22,825 crore in the April-Sept, 2019, period. The corresponding numbers for VAT were Rs 7,620 crore (2020-21) and Rs 10,719 crore (2019-20).

As a result of this

fall in its income, the government’s capital expenditure for development works has shown a drastic cut of Rs 3,150 crore. According to an internal review document of the State’s finances accessed by First India, Gujarat reported Rs 6,875.83 crore capital expenditure between April and July in 2019-20 while the number number stood at Rs 3,725.68 crore in the same period this year.

What is worrying, the State has had to borrow Rs 10,477 crore during the April-July period and this is 31.24% of the loan liability of Rs 33,535 crore budgeted for 202021. The percentage last year in the corresponding 4 months was 16.36%.

JAGDEESH CHANDRA’S VISIT TO HIMACHAL PRADESH

CONFIRMED CASES

RAJASTHAN 1,774 DEATHS 1,77,123 CASES

CM Rupani throws open `210 crore projects for Surat First India Bureau Surat: Chief Minister Vijay Rupani on Tuesday inaugurated development works worth over Rs 201 crore undertaken by Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) and Surat Urban Development Authority (SUDA), expressing his desire to make Surat a land of opportunity.

At a virtual function, Rupani said, “Surat has increased the pride of Gujarat twice in national cleanliness survey. In order to fulfill the vision of our Prime Minister Shri Narendrabhai that our cities should compete with the modern cities of the world, Gujarat has made the metropolitan cities advanced and modern.”

He said the government was working on a war-footing to take forward Surat’s important projects like Metro Rail, Riverfront, Tapi Cleaning, Dream City and Diamond City in the near future.

State BJP President

CM Vijay Rupani addressing a virtual function. —FILE PHOTO

CR Paatil said Surat was fast moving towards becoming another Singapore and Rupani for his cooperation in the development of the city.

The inaugurated projects include extension of BRTS corridor to Kadodara, Rs 1.16 cr health centre at Variyav-Tadvadi, Rs. 12 lakh gazebo and garden, Rs 14 lakh Shantikunj and Killolkunj gardens at Adajan, Rs 51.88 cr CC road, footpath, streetlight, street furniture, canal beautification from Anuvrat Dwar junction to Jamnaba Park in Athwa zone and Rs. 17.31 cr drainage system in VesuBharthana.

SpiceJet to operate 62 new domestic, int’l flights First India Bureau

Governor of Himachal Pradesh Bandaru Dattatreya with Jagdeesh Chandra at Rajbhavan at Shimla on Tuesday morning. The latter paid a courtesy visit to the Honourable Governor during his two day visit to the hilly state.

Governor of Gujarat, Acharya Devvrat with Jagdeesh Chandra at an event in Solan on Monday, October 19 where the Honourable Governor addressed a National level Natural farming Workshop for young farmers. He also released a book by the late Vaidya Surat Singh, the founder of Pajhota Andolan and called out to people to make each village a model of Natural farming.

Ahmedabad: The SpiceJet on Tuesday announced the launch of 62 new domestic and international flights. The airline will operate non-stop flights on the Ahmedabad-MuscatAhmedabad and Delhi-Muscat-Delhi sectors from October 21, 2020, under the air bubble agreement with Oman.

The airline also announced the launch of 58 new domestic flights, further strengthening

its domestic network.

SpiceJet will be the first and only Indian carrier to launch flights on Delhi-Kandla-Delhi sector.

Not only this, the airline is also introducing flight services on Ahmedabad-GoaAhmedabad, Goa-Hyderabad-Goa, MumbaiGuwahati-Mumbai, Ahmedabad-KolkataAhmedabad, Delhi-Durgapur-Delhi, HyderabadMumbai-Hyderabad, Kochi-Kolkata–Kochi, Pune-Chennai-Pune, Madurai-Delhi-Madurai and Mangalore-DelhiMangalore sectors.

RAY OF HOPE

What Covid? A’bad housing demand jumps 144% in July-Sept quarter Magicbricks’ report reveals that affordable housing post-pandemic is doing better First India Bureau Ahmedabad: The Covid-19 crisis has put a damper on the Navratri festivities, but Diwali may bring a glimmer of hope with demand for property in Gujarat’s top city Ahmedabad showing a remarkable recovery.

The latest report of the July-September

quarter by leading property tracker, Magicbricks, says property searches during this period, as compared to the previous 3 months, grew by an astronomical 144% in Ahmedabad.

The agency’s PropIndex report adds that the average prices in the city moved up by 0.6% driven by demand in the affordable localities. In

an evidence of how people’s finances have been hit, the report reveals that the “2 BHK configuration and price below Rs 4,000 per sqft dominated the property search criterion.”

Simultaneously, the 3 BHK configurations had a share of 36% in the demand pie, which increased from 31% during the April-June

quarter. But even in this, a greater traction

has been observed in the affordable housing.

“It is interesting to note that while lower

priced properties witnessed price increase, properties costlier than Rs 5,000 per sq ft observed a price decline,” the report states.

Both, demand and supply had maximum concentration towards northern and western areas, especially across areas such as Chandkheda, Vaishnodevi, Gota, SG Highway, Satellite, South Bopal and Thaltej, given that they are connected via SG Highway and Sardar Patel Ring Road.

Sudhir Pai, CEO, Magicbricks, said, “Today, the shift is towards affordability as home buyers have reduced their budget but they haven’t changed their preference in terms of BHK or size.”

He claims the Gujarat Government’s nod to multi-storey buildings (70 or more floors) and redevelopment of old urban buildings are expected to help, besides the government’s new affordable rental housing policy.

www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia AHMEDABAD, WEDNESDAY OCTOBER 21, 2020

ROCKY ORIGINAL ROCKSTAR!

On Shammi Kapoor’s 89th birth anniversary City First pays a tribute to the zestful, uninhibited, charming, iconic actor through one of his best moviesTeesri Manzil

ANITA HADA

anita.hada@firstindianews.com

A

aja aaja… main hoon pyaar tera …” beckons a twisting, cavorting Shammi Kapoor and a super cute Asha Parekh shrugs off her coat to join him as they both jerk and twist to some of the most amazing music ever heard!

I watched Teesri Manzil because it had my favourite actor Shammi Kapoor but fell in love with the entire movie – its storyline-one of

the few suicide/murder mysteries of the time, the love story with a twist, the simply amazing music, hummable songs which are still with me after decades, the characters, dialogues and the super chemistry between Shammi and Asha.

The music was simply awesome and no one but the drop-dead handsome Shammi Kapoor could have done justice to it and boy… did he do it! One of the best performances by Shammi and in fact why just him? All the actors be it Asha Parekh, Premnath, Helen, Prem Chopra or K N Singh in a character role, gave performances of a lifetime. One of Vijay Anand’s finest! But the soul of Teesri Manzil is the young dashing Kapoor who so reminded me

of Elvis Presley as he rocked the floor as Rocky. His sheer energy and histrionics breathed life into the character, just watch him and Asha rock n roll to Aaja aaja!

Each number is a treat- O Haseena Zulfonwali and O Mere Sona Re Sona are still on the playlist of parties!

And even today’s generation will attempt the Shammi head-bob and uninhibited dancing style! Deewana Mujhsa Nahin, Dekhiye Sahibon Woh Koi Aur Thi and Tumne Mujhe Dekha Hokar Meharbaan – each song is a classic.

It was actually an edge of the seat murder mystery with thrill and suspense from the start till the end.

The intense love story of Shammi and Asha is always in the background of the suicide/murder and a Asha’s search

for the killer, Rocky!

Shammi Kapoor was the best of the Kapoor khandaan for me, singing, dancing, skiing, riding, flirting his way into our hearts. He was sauve sophisticated, bringing an old world charm with a youthful iconic look to his films. He brought zest and life to everything he did in reel and real life.

09

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AHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 21, 2020

10

Yahoo RAINU SINGH

cityfirst@firstindia.co.in

A

FA CE OF TH ED AY

young, tall and strikingly handsome man stands atop a mountain, yells ‘YAHOO’ and dives headlong into the Himalayan snow!!

There could not be a more abiding imagery of the one and only Shammi Kapoor.

Such joyful spontaneity gushed out into thousands of movie theatres across India from the late 1950’s to early 1970’s. It lifted the mood of millions in those sombre days of a struggling India!!

While most other movies of that era reflected harsh realities, Shammi Kapoor imparted youthful energy via his optimism & swagger!!

The fact that he was strikingly handsome, with an imposing presence and vernal fluorescence, made him a role model for the aspiring!!

YOUR DAY Horoscope by Saurabbh Sachdeva

He symbolised the casting away of the yoke of slavery & despondency that had kept all heads bowed for centuries.

He made the audience dance in the aisles by his improvised style of dancing... gyrating, and often, over-the-top!!

There was no choreographer to create his dance routine and movement sequences.

It was an exhibition of verve & vitality.

He was the second of the three star-sons of Prithviraj Kapoor, the Pioneer of Indian Theatre & Hindi Film Industry. In a career spanning 2 decades and 200 Films, there was no peer who entertained the audience more.

He even directed classic films like Manoranjan & Bundal Baaz, that were said to be ahead of their times.

No surprise that he picked up many Awards, including 4

by IIFA and 3 by Filmfare for Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor and Lifetime Achievement.

Unlike most people, he was too energetic and positive to rest on these Laurels.

Turning his career path 180

with the misconception that he was the owner of Yahoo Inc. Perhaps its a Divine tribute to Shammi’s genius that the word ‘YAHOO’ encompasses both his passions!!

ARIES

TAURUS

GEMINI

CANCER

Goddess of wealth is smiling at you, you may add to your wealth from various resources. Real estate businessmen will have a neutral day today, no profit no loss.

On work front, you will successfully persuade your client to agree with the required terms and conditions.

You may be walking on the creativity path leading to the stardom in future. You will observe some serious positive change in your life styles as a result of your resolution and you may go on a new health fad. You will strengthen your financial capabilities as you keep moving forward.

Today is your lucky day, you will have gains as far as property is concerned.

Your efforts to quit junk food will pay. You will see a positive change in your health. Don’t worry if you land up spending extra today, it may prove beneficial later. You may feel over loaded with work.

Good health is a blessing and you have worked for it as you are not only serious about what you eat but also a fitness freak. Somethings are beyond one’s control so don’t get disappointed if there is a delay in payment or salary. You may experience someone over ruling you.

MAR 21 - APR 20

APR 21 - MAY 20

MAY 21 - JUNE 21

JUNE 22 - JULY 23

LEO

VIRGO

LIBRA

SCORPIO

You are in awesome mood today. Today you will enjoy the perks of being fit and healthy. You will surely become wealthy but it will take some time, patience is the key to success.

At work front, you will bounce back with double strength and will conquer it all.

Elder one is finally healthy, fit and sound with the full support of your family and the doctor. Keep your expectations straight, you may not receive the financial help from someone you expect but from else where. You will get the opportunity to occupy the center stage.

You will help someone in desperate need today and will earn lots of blessings.

Keep up the spirit and do not go astray from the fitness regime. You may crack a big deal and will make huge profits. You will get a lot of appreciation which will motivate you to further outstand.

You love healthy food and promote the same. You remain in perfect shape as always. You will have many gains from various resources. At professional front, your practical approach to problem solving may not help you so try different ways to fetch desired results.

JULY 24 - AUGUST 23

AUG 24 - SEP 23

SEPT 24 - OCTOBER 22

OCT 23 - NOVEMBER 22

SAGITTARIUS

CAPRICORN

AQUARIUS

PISCES

Reinvent your bond with people who have become distant. You may today, so be careful of what you eat.

Work on your finances and search for your strength. On work front , give your best today and leave no stone unturned to prove how hard working you are. Catch up on things.

Value people who loved you and may still love you for who you are. You must take actions on time as far as your health is concerned please keep your health on priority. You will see an improvement in flow of money in your life but may not meet your expectations.

You are capable for attracting anyone you like with your talks. Keep up with your efforts in trying hard to maintain a balance between healthy diet and exercise routine. Go ahead and give your all, in search of greener pastures as far as your finances are concerned.

Because of your determination to be in good condition, your health remains in good shape. You may make money from an unexpected source so get ready to fill your pocket. Today your senior may hand over many responsibilities to you all at once.

NOV 23 - DEC 22

AYESHA DHULE, Content Creator

degrees, he bedazzled his fraternity & fans by adopting a field that contrasted sharply with Films, but had the same vision and zeal!!

Long before Indians had been introduced to the miracle of Internet, Shammi Kapoor arranged a personal Internet connection from a British company!! With urgent endeavour he became the Founder and Chairman of IUCI (Internet Users Community of India)!!

A consummate Gizmo freak, he wanted Internet to become a medium for growth and advancement of all fields.

He lit the first candle of this futuristic Tech in India after having lit up the Silver Screen by bringing ‘Manoranjan’ in the lives of millions.

Above all this, Shammi Kapoor personified the word ‘YAHOO’ worldwide. When the Cyber MNC, Yahoo inc., opened one of its branches in Mumbai, Jerry Yang, the company’s founder, invited Shammi Kapoor to grace the inaugural function. This left many

DEC 23 - JAN 20

JAN 21 - FEB 19

FEB20 - MARCH 20

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Apart from bringing a new wave of cinema that highlighted NRI sensitivities on the Indian screen, Aditya Chopra directorial, DDLJ also gave us one of Bollywood’s most loved jodis – Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol. City First takes you down the memory lane with some Tweets!

AHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 21, 2020

11

SILVER JUBILEE FOR DDLJ ran! 2 people, 1 film, 25 years and the love doesn’t stop coming in! I am truly grateful to all the people who made it what it is today.. a phenomenon and a part of their history. The fans! Big shoutout to all of you #25YearsOfDDLJ.”

MITALI DUSAD cityfirst@firstindia.co.in

S

hahrukh Khan and Kajol starrer ‘Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge’ completed 25 years on Tuesday. Directed by Aditya Chopra, the film also starred Amrish Puri, Anupam Kher, Farida Jalal among others.

One of the most loved films in Indian cinema is still running today in Maratha Mandir of Mumbai for the last 1237 weeks.

On the occasion of DDLJ’s 25th anniversary, SRK and Kajol updated the names of their Twitter handles to their

Kajol and Shah Rukh Khan

characters in the film, Raj and Simran respectively. Anupam Kher also changed his social media display picture to his character from the film.

King Khan took a walk down the memory lane and posted a beautiful video to celebrate the 25 years of DDLJ. Along with the

video, SRK wrote, “25 years!!!

Filled with gratitude towards you for loving Raj & Simran, with all your heart. This always feels special. #DDLJ25.”

Kajol also took to her Twitter handle and penned a sweet note for her fans.

She wrote, “Raj & Sim-

...still from DDLJ

JEN’S DISAGREEMENT J

Kartik Aaryan

SUPPORTING

Women Artisans

A

fter a coronavirus-induced hiatus of seven months, actor Kartik Aaryan has hit the shooting floor -- he walked the ramp on Tuesday to flag off Lakme Fashion Week digitally.

There, however, was more to it.

The Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety star turned showstopper for celebrity costume designer Manish Malhotra, who teamed up with Mijwan Welfare Association, which works with women artisans. Malhotra has shared a glimpse of his new collection, capturing a sneak-peek into Kartik’s new look in his showstopper avatar, on Instagram. The ace designer praised the star for his special gesture. —ANI

ennifer Aniston is not ready to risk the health of her father’s health for work.

The 87-year-old John Aniston is set to resume work on his ongoing drama Days of Our Lives. The actor, who has been a part of the NBC daytime drama series from 1983, was planning on heading to Burbank to reprise his role as Victor Kiriakis.

However, Jennifer wasn’t okay with it. She decided to “put her foot down” and requested her father to talk to the producers.

She initiated the scenes featuring her dad to be rapped at his home situated in an exclusive gated community. “Jen persuaded him to talk to producers about taping his scenes at home. The execs have agreed,” the source informed the international outlet. The insider also added that his scene partners will be “chauffeured thee and, of course, tested for Covid prior to arrival.”

—Agency

...poster of the film

THE NOTEBOOK’S SECRET OUT!

James Garner

R Jennifer Aniston

M

umbai’s COVID crisis may have given other cities an opportunity to host shootings for Hindi films. Lucknow is all set to host the cast and crew of John Abraham and Divya Khosla Kumar starrer Satyameva Jayate 2, the shooting for which will commence from today, Wednesday. The team will continue shooting till January 2021. Milap Zaveri, who is all praise for the Uttar Pradesh government, said.

—ANI

G

Maisie Williams

yan Gosling and James Garner were perfect as young and old versions of Noah Calhoun in The Notebook, but it turns out that the iconic movie could’ve starred George Clooney and Paul Newman instead! George recently revealed that he and Paul had eyed the project together so they would work together in something.

“We were going to do The Notebook together,” he shared. “I was going to play him as a young man, and it was funny. We met and said, ‘This is it.

It’s going to be great.’” But it never came to be after George realized he didn’t look anything like a younger Paul. Paul Newman died in 2008 after battle with cancer.

—Agency

Shoot begins today

GOT STAR REVEALS! ame of Thrones actor Joe Dempsie, who played Gendry Baratheon on the HBO series, recently opened up about his experience on the iconic show. The actor also shared that according to him, the fling between his character and Arya Joe Dempsie Stark would have “never” lasted beyond the final season of the show.

The last season of the epic fantasy drama, which ended it’s over eight-year-long run-in May 2019, saw Gendry, the last living bastard son of King Robert Baratheon, and Maisie Williams’ Arya spend the night together before the battle against the White Walkers begins.

“I think I’ve always thought that as wounded as he might have been in the aftermath, Gendry has time to sit down and think properly about it and rationalise everything.” the actor told.

—Agency

Ryan Gosling

Prithviraj Sukumaran

Tested Positive

M Divya Khosla Kumar

...poster of the film

alayalam actor, director and producer Prithviraj Sukumaran has tested positive for COVID-19.

Prithviraj confirmed the same on Tuesday through a statement on Twitter.

He wrote, “Hello everyone! I’ve been shooting for Dijo Jose Anthony’s “Jana Gana Mana” since the 7th of October. We had strict protocols in place with regards to Covid regulations and associated safety measures. As is the norm, all involved in the shoot were tested before the schedule started and after the last day of shoot in the courtroom set we had put up, tests were repeated.”

—ANI

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

AHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 21, 2020

12

News from the Hills!

CITY FIRST, Himachal Pradesh

T

he Governor of Gujarat, Acharya Devvrat addressed a National level natural farming Workshop for young farmers at Solan on Monday, 19 October where he also released a book by the late Vaidya Surat Singh, the founder of Pajhota Andolan and called out to people to make each village a model of Natural and natural farming and said that the young farmers should make each village of HP a model of natural farming so that it can become an ideal model in the country.

The agriculture minister of Himachal Pradesh Virender Kanwar, Additional Deputy Commissioner Solan Anurag Chandra Sharma, Atma Project Deputy Director Ravindra Singh, senior official, farmers and horticulturists were present on the occasion.

Project Executive Direc-

Governor of Gujarat, Acharya Devvrat at lunch with Jagdeesh Chandra at Solan on Monday.

VISIT TO THE HILLY STATE Governor of Gujarat, Acharya Devvrat released a book by the late Vaidya Surat Singh, the founder of Pajhota Andolan along with other dignitaries.

tor Dr Rajeshwar Chandel gave the vote of thanks.

The governor said that with the cooperation of the Himachal Pradesh Government, he had inspired farmers and orchardists to adopt natural farming in the state and now everyone is able to realize the benefits of it.

Today Himachal Pradesh is leading in the area of natural farming, he added.

The Governor also suggested the farmers to adopt mixed farming in

oilseeds.

Acharya Devvrat said that natural farming in Himachal Pradesh was promoted under the Khushhaal Kisan Yojana under the leadership of chief minister Jairam Thakur and was adopted as a mission mode.

He said that the use of water in natural farming is very less, its product is good for a long time and it is absolutely safe for humans and animals to maintain the natural fertility of the land.

Governor of Gujarat, Acharya Devvrat

place of one crop as natural farming so that their incomes could increase significantly. He said that nature has provided an in-

comparable environment to Himachal Pradesh and the farmers should pay attention to the production of vegetables, fruits and

The Governor of Himachal Pradesh Bandaru Dattatreya with Jagdeesh Chandra at Rajbhavan Shimla. Also seen with them are Secretary to the Governor Rakesh Kanwar, Former Advisor to Governor Dr Shashikant and Dr Shashi Bhushan.

On the occasion, he also unveiled a book written by late Vaidya Surat Singh,

An Artist with Passion

HAPPY B’DAY! IAS Shyam Singh Rajpurohit (left) and IAS Muhammad Junaid PP celebrated their birthdays on 20 October, Tuesday. We wish them all the best!

the leader of the Pajhota movement in the presence of his family members.

BUZZZ

NEHAL NAYAR

nehal.nayar@firstindia.co.in

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DURING THE DAY! GUJ: Residents of a housing society in Khokhra area of Ahmedabad perform aarti of Goddess Jagdamba on the third day of Navratri on Tuesday.

—PHOTO BY HANIF SINDHI

GUJ: A Garba group poses during their photoshoot on the fourth day of the nine-day long Navratri festival, in Vastral area of Ahmedabad on Monday.

—PHOTO BY HANIF SINDHI

RAJ: The poster launch of the upcoming romantic song ‘Zara Aur Paas’ starring TV artists Ankit Gera and Ruchita Sharma held on Tuesday at Rangalar Cafe, Jaipur.

The song is going to be released on 30 October on Elegant Eye Production’s YouTube channel.

RAJ: The annual literary fest Inka ‘20 organised by the Department of English, St. Xavier’s College, Jaipur was held on Tuesday with this year’s theme being ‘Phantasia: Infinity & Beyond’. During the inaugural session, Head of the Department, Dr Atiqa Kelsy elaborated on the theme and need of Inka ‘20. It was followed by the blessings by Rev. Fr. Varkey Perekkatt, SJ, Manager, Rev. Dr Sherry George and Rev. Dr Raymond Cherubin, Vice Principals, St. Xavier’s College, Jaipur.

ollowing your passion is something that helps in boosting up your confidence. Neeru Soni from the Pink City is the perfect example of someone who has followed their passion and made it their carrier. From working as an art teacher to volunteering as a music teacher, working with NGOs, working as a fashion planner and mechandiser, to being a certified fitness instructor, Neeru has done it all.

Her fitness studio ‘The Boxing Nightingale’ is at a

Neeru Soni

boom at the moment, where she teaches MMA, and also vocal music.

Talking about her journey, Neeru said, “I have always worked with big corporate companied in the field of fashion

CONGRATULATIONS! IPS Daljit Singh Chaudhary from 1990 batch, UP cadre has been promoted from IG ITBP to ADG ITBP. He is currently on central deputation.

M IPS Daljit Singh Chaudhary

ords cannot express the sorrow; Bimla Bhatia left for her heavenly abode on 18 October. Rasam Pagri will be held today between 3 to 4 pm at the community hall in Keshav Nagar, Civil Lines, Jaipur.

Her departed soul is deeply mourned by her husband Manohar Lal Bhatia, son Kuldeep, daughter-inlaw Shubhra and grandsons Mehul Late Bimla Bhatia and Arijit.

On the occasion of the Commemoration of Late H.H. Brigadier Bhawani Singh MVC of Jaipur Royal family, the prestigious annual awards ceremony ‘Sawai Jaipur Awards 2020’ is going to be organised virtually this year on the evening of 22 October. The Maharaja Sawai Mansingh II Museum Trust will be giving awards in 24 categories. The awards show will be streamed live on the MSMS II Facebook page. On the occasion, the book ‘Bubbles’ on Brigadier Bhawani Singh, MVC will also be released

by Padmini Devi and Diya Kumari.

7th Foundation Day! CITY FIRST

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merchandising, and later realised that I had a different calling, which was my passion for music and fitness. So I quit my job to follow my heart.”

“My family has always been a huge support throughout and I am very grateful for the beautiful journey I’ve had. I wish to inspire people and touch as many lives as I can, through my gift of music,” she added.

ohan Foundation Jaipur Citizen Forum (MFJCF) celebrated its 7th Foundation Day through a webinar on Zoom on Monday. MFJCF is dedicated to the noble cause of Organ donation for the last 7 years in Rajasthan. Amla Batra, a member of MFJCF moderated the program. She invited the Honorary Chief Guest of the program Dr Sunil Shroff (Managing Trustee of Mohan Foundation). Dr Shroff discussed the achievements of MFJCF in Rajasthan for the noble cause of Organ Donation and also added that this noble cause would have never started in Rajasthan without the phenomenal efforts of Bhavna Jagwani, Rajiv Arora and their MFJCF team.

Dr Shroff also discussed his experience of KBC Karamveer’s episode During the webinar which helped

in sensitizing Indian society towards the cause of Organ Donation. In addition to this, Lalitha Raghuram (Country Director, Mohan Foundation) also appreciated the efforts of MFJCF in Rajasthan and discussed her journey of associating with Bhavna Jagwani. Furthermore, Rajiv Arora (President, MFJCF) and Bhavna Jagwani(Convener, MFJCF), offered gratitude to Dr Shroff for his guidance and inspiration to start the noble cause of Organ Donation in Rajasthan. As the program moved forward a knitted song, ‘Sur Mile Mera tumhara’ was also played which was sung by each member of MFJCF to symbolize the togetherness of MFJCF. cityfirst@firstindia.co.in