22 May 2020

OUR EDITIONS: JAIPUR & AHMEDABAD

CORONA

27°C - 43°C

ALERT AHMEDABAD l FRIDAY, MAY 22, 2020 l Pages 12 l 3.00

COVID-19 UPDATE

RNI NO. GUJENG/2019/16208 l Vol 1 l Issue No. 176

INDIA

WORLD

3,31,737 51,41,142 3,584 1,18,222 773 DEATHS

CONFIRMED CASES

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

DEATHS

CONFIRMED CASES

DEATHS

GUJARAT

12,910

CONFIRMED CASES

#CYCLONEAMPHAN

A TRAIL OF DESTRUCTION

PM Narendra Modi will travel to West Bengal and Odisha on Friday to take stock of the situation in wake of cyclone Amphan and conduct aerial surveys.The development comes hours after West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee requested him to come and visit affected areas. At least 72 people have died in West Bengal due to Cyclone Amphan, CM Mamata Banerjee said on Thursday. PM has assured of every possible help to the two states which faced the havoc caused by the cyclone. CM also announced a compensation of Rs 2 lakh to Rs 2.5 lakh for the family members of each of the deceased. Kolkata and several other parts of West Bengal wore a battered look after the extremely severe cyclone ‘Amphan’ left a trail of devastation in the state, blowing away shanties, uprooting thousands of trees besides swamping low-lying areas. The ravaging cyclone left some portions of the Kolkata airport flooded as some portion, including tarmac getting water-logged. P5

Civil Aviation’s Corona travel plan: Cap on fare, 1/3rd flights to operate New Delhi: Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Thursday said that a minimum and maximum fare for three months has been set for the domestic flight services, which resume from May 25.

“We have set a minimum and a maximum fare. In the case of Delhi, Mumbai the minimum fare would be Rs 3,500 for a journey between 90-120 minutes.

The maximum fare would be Rs 10,000. This is operative for three months—till one minute to midnight on August 24,” said Puri at a press conference here.

Earlier this week, Puri had said that domestic flight operations will resume from May 25, noting that all airlines and airports were ready.

Puri said that guidelines have been issued for the passengers and airports, which are to be followed during flight operations.

Turn on P6

Air routes divided into 7 categories

RULES FOR YOUR OWN GOOD  On May 25, flights commence but only one-third operations permitted  Passengers will have to report at airport two hours prior to flight’s scheduled departure  Only those with web check-in will be allowed to enter terminal  Passengers will have to wear masks

have to provide their medical details through the Aarogya Setu App or by filling up a selfdeclaration form

to ensure easy availability of hand sanitisers at all entry points and also to be available at various touch points

 Passengers staying

 All F&B, retail outlets

in containment zone can’t travel

to be opened with COVID-19 precautions

 Passengers who have been tested positive for COVID-19 will not be allowed to travel

 Take-away, digital payments, self-ordering booths at F&B and retail outlets to be encouraged to prevent crowding

 Airlines won’t provide meal services in flights

 Vulnerable persons such as very elderly with co-morbidities, pregnant ladies, passengers with ailments advised to avoid travel

 All passengers will

 Airports would have

 Only one check-in bag allowed

 Mats or carpets soaked with bleach (sodium hypochlorite solution) would be placed at the entrance for disinfecting shoes

New Delhi: Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Thursday said that all the air travel routes have been divided into seven bands based on duration of flights ranging from 40 minutes to 210 minutes.

The aim of the exercise is to prescribe upper and lower limits of fares and the caps on fares would be in place till August 24.

The minister said the first band will consist of flights that are of less than 40 minutes duration. Second, third, fourth and fifth bands of upper limit would be of flights with durations of 40-60 minutes, 60-90 minutes, 90-120 minutes and 120-150 minutes, he said.

The sixth and seventh bands would consist of flights with durations Turn on P6

India rejects China’s claims of troops trespassing LAC New Delhi: India on Thursday rejected China’s allegations that Indian troops crossed over to the Chinese side of the frontier in Ladakh and Sikkim, asserting that New Delhi has been taking responsible approach towards border management.

External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said it was the Chinese side that recently undertakook activities hindering India’s normal patrols in the areas.

‘1.78 LAKH TRAIN TICKETS BOOKED WITHIN 3 HOURS’ New Delhi: Indian Railways on Thursday said that over 1.78 lakh train tickets were booked within three hours of opening of the online bookings for some trains that are to start operations June 1 onwards. Booking for trains, which will have both AC & non-AC coaches, can be done only online.

INDO-CHINA FLARE-UP: US BACKS INDIA

“Any suggestion that Indian troops had undertaken activity across the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the Western Sector or the Sikkim sector is not accurate,” Srivastava said.

Turn on P6

Washington: The US has backed India amidst a flare-up of border tensions with China with a top diplomat describing Beijing’s aggression as “not always rhetorical” and accusing it of continuing with its “provocative and disturbing behaviour” to try to shift the status quo. Turn on P6

FIR AGAINST SONIA GANDHI OVER TWEETS ON PM-CARES FUND Karnataka: Sagar police in Shivamogga district have filed an FIR against Congress interim president Sonia Gandhi over some tweets posted on the official Twitter handle of the party criticising the utilisation of the PM CARES fund and the way Prime Minister Narendra Modi has handled the COVID-19 situation. P5 PAK GOVT’S COVID SITE SHOWS PAK OCCUPIED KASHMIR AS PART OF INDIA New Delhi: A map on a government website of Pakistan shows PoK as part of India, as it rightfully is. Pak govt’s site to give info on Corona covid.gov.pok describes PoK as part of India. This comes at a time when Pakistan is constantly violating ceasefire violation along the Line of Control even as the world fights deadly Coronavirus.

HLL Lifecare denies Guj govt claim that it ordered Dhaman-1  Puducherry cancels ventilator order on the same day health dept extols its virtues Haresh Jhala & Marilyn Gore Gandhinagar: Was the state just caught in a barefaced lie? A day after the Gujarat government claimed that national public-sector company HLL Lifecare Ltd was purchasing “5,000 units” of Dhaman-1 ventilators, the firm has refuted this

claim. This comes less than a day after the Puducherry government evening cancelled its order for 25 Dhaman-1 from Rajkot-based Jyoti CNC. On Wednesday, the top brass of the state health department had addressed the media to extol the virtues of the Rajkot-made ventilator after reports of its

—FILE PHOTO

THE BIG DEAL

Chief Minister Vijay Rupani and Deputy Chief Minister Nitin Patel launched Dhaman-1 in April.

inadequacy emerged from the Civil hospital in Ahmedabad, which received several units from Jyoti CNC in April.

The controversy surrounding Dhaman-1 began with an

internal health department communique exposing the weaknesses of the machine and demanding high-end ventilators.

Interestingly, the Civil Hospital in Ahmedabad has not

installed compressors despite Jyoti CNC director Parakramsinh Jadeja clearly stating that Dhaman-1 is compressor-based and not volume-based.

On Wednesday, Principal Secretary (Health) Jayanti Ravi had gone to the extent of stating that HLL Lifecare, which is known for setting and following strict quality standards, was buying 5,000 units. This was meant to be an endorsement of the quality of the Dhaman-1.

Turn on P6

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

AHMEDABAD | FRIDAY, MAY 22, 2020

02

GLOBAL STATE OF AFFAIRS

LAND BANKS MAY BECOME

REPOSITORY OF CONFLICT

COUNTRY TOTAL CASES

TOTAL NEW DEATHS DEATHS

1,603,929 95,502 RUSSIA 317,554 3,099 SPAIN 280,117 27,940 BRAZIL 296,033 19,148 UK 250,908 36,042 ITALY 228,006 32,486 FRANCE 181,575 28,132 GERMANY 178,864 8,273 TURKEY 153,548 4,249 IRAN 129,341 7,249 CANADA 81,277 6,145 S ARABIA 65,077 351 BELGIUM 56,235 9,186 MEXICO 56,594 6,090 CHILE 57,581 589 USA

Centre and States creating land banks to woo firms deserting China, but experts say the idea may create more land disputes

+566 +127 +52 +254 +338 +156 +85 +3 +27 +66 +114 +12 +36 +424 +45

WWW.WORLDOMETERS.INFO LAST UPDATED: MAY 21, 2020, 11:40 PM

IN GUJARAT DISTRICT

TOTAL CASES

9449 750 SURAT 1227 RAJKOT 82 BHAVNAGAR 114 ANAND 85 BHARUCH 37 GANDHINAGAR 198 PATAN 68 PANCHMANHAL 71 BANASKANTHA 99 NARMADA 13 CHOTA UDEPUR 22 KUTCH 61 MAHESANA 93 BOTAD 53 DAHOD 32 PORBANDAR 5 JAMNAGAR 46 MORBI 2 SABARKANTHA 52 ARAVALLI 93 MAHISAGAR 77 KHEDA 53 GIR SOMNATH 34 VALSAD 17 TAPI 3 NAVSARI 14 DANG 2 SURENDRANAGAR 16 DWARKA 12 JUNAGADH 13 AMRELI 2 OTHER STATES 5 TOTAL 12910 AHMEDABAD

VADODARA

Barren dusty land along the Ahmedabad Riverfront in the city. —PHOTOS BY HANIF SINDHI

First India Bureau New Delhi/Gandhinagar: The central government -- and so industrially progressive states such as Gujarat, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh -- are learnt to be in an overdrive to identify land parcels to create a bank of sorts to woo companies moving out of China after the corona pandemic.

But experts and researchers have warned that pursuing the idea of a land bank is likely to threaten resources of poor and vulnerable communities, and pave for conflict situations.

Pranab Ranjan Choudhury, who is the convener of the Centre for Land Governance, a non-government organisation working on land issues, has pointed out that in an atmosphere where states are competing to attract both foreign and domestic investment in industries, land banks evolved as “bypass-institutional measures” and “smart instruments” to make land expeditiously and adequately available, as part of ease of doing business.

“To do so, it strategically avoids legal bottlenecks of acquiring land

First India Bureau Gandhinagar: In a bid to rally the public, Chief Minister Vijay Rupani on Thursday launched a campaign against the novel coronavirus under the slogan ‘Jitse Gujarat ane Harse Corona’ (Gujarat will win and Corona will lose).

In a video conference with religious gurus, sportsmen, social activists and celebrities from 33 districts of the state, Rupani requested them to join the campaign, which relies heavily on social media.

The CM has appealed to the people

Salt manufacturing firm in Kharaghoda in Surendranagar district.

that demands following legitimate procedures.

That the government land constitutes a substantial quantity of land available with most of the state which can be made legally available to industries at ease, has led to the establishment of such land banks by the states,” Choudhary told an environmental news portal.

A land bank includes large tracts of land kept under the control of governments or private organisations for future development.

In India, where land is at a premium, acquiring land is complex and if gover nment-owned firms or private organisations fail to acquire the land due to conflicts, high-worth projects get shelved. In such a scenario, land banks have emerged as an important tool to attract industry and investment because most land parcels (in the land banks) already have most of the required clearances. This facilitates smooth set up of industrial projects without delay and bureau-

cratic procedures.

Choudhary has stated that land banks pose three critical challenges that often turn this ‘innovation’ by the state on its head.

“Designed to provide land at ease to the businesses, it results into difficult and perennial land conflicts, often delaying or stalling investment, defeating the very purpose it meant to address.”

Stressing that availability of “computerised land records and digitised cadastral maps (map

showing land ownership and may include information on land use) makes it easier to identify government lands in clusters suitable for industrialisation”, he said.

However, he insisted that the “Conflicts come thick and fast, as the de jure records that the bank show and de facto uses that is on the ground, often don’t match.”

Government agencies and think tanks have been encouraging land banks. In 2018, NITI Aayog had advocated for the creation

of land banks by states to ensure ease of business.

E.A.S. Sarma, a former secretary to the government of India said that “land bank idea is not a prudent one for the states to pursue.”

He emphasised that many states have already displaced marginal workers by forcibly acquiring their lands under the guise of “public purpose” and formed land banks.

“Usually land from such a land bank would have been acquired forcibly from small farmers at a nominal value, provided under the draconian land acquisition laws. But, when that land is given to industry, the latter raises thousands of crores of rupees of loans from the financial institutions at the prevailing market rates. In other words, through the land bank vehicle, the states are passing on huge unearned benefits to the industry, which finally get reflected as profits in their balance sheets. It indirectly amounts to exploiting the marginal farmers to benefit influential industry promoters. The social benefit of such an industry is usually small or even negative,” Sarma told the news portal.

SAMPLE RECEIVED SAMPLE NEGATIVE

Chief Minister Vijay Rupani. —FILE PHOTO

quintal chana.

As of Wednesday night, the state has helped 9.18 lakh migrant workers return to their home states on 633 Shramik trains. On Thursday, another 64 trains left with workers.

The state government has relaxed norms of the lockdown to bring the economy back

17 3 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 24

1,66,152 1,53,242

0

Asks public to upload selfies, screenshots of Arogya Setu app with #itooamcoronawarrior Meanwhile, Information and Broadcasting Secretary and Secretary to the Chief Minister Ashwani Kumar said here that 56.26 lakh quintal food grains have been traded in 146 markets since April 15, when they resumed operations. This includes 16.93 lakh quintal of wheat, 2.80 lakh quintal of castor and 2.34 lakh

619 35 57 2 8 9 3 8 4 6 4 0 0 1 4 1 0 0 2 0 3 3 1 2 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 773

UNDER EXAMINATION

Social media-savvy CM launches victory slogan ‘Jitse Gujarat ane Harse Corona’ to upload selfies with elders on May 22, and selfies with masks on May 23 with the hashtag “I too am corona warrior”. He also asked that they download the Government of India app Aarogya Seva Setu and share screenshots on social media with the same hashtag.

TOTAL NEW DEATHS DEATHS

on track.

To make transportation easy, the government resumed state transport services on Wednesday, when 6,454 local and 46 express buses ferried 23,069 passengers in five zones of the state. These buses ran from 8 am to 6 pm only. Before passengers boarded, they were screened and sanitized

by GSRTC (Gujarat State Road Transport Corporation) staff.

On Thursday, 3.40 lakh APL-1 card holders in Ahmedabad city received free rations for May. In containment zones, rations are being distributed at fair price shops from 8 am to 3 pm, while in non-containment zones they are being distributed from 8 am to 4 pm. In Ahmedabad city, Dhanvantri ambulances treated 6,600 patients in 14 wards.

These ambulances are also used for screening and sample testing.

GUJARAT AHMEDABAD | FRIDAY, MAY 22, 2020

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

With 82% of all active cases, A’bad nears the 10K mark

New dad frantic with no updates on wife’s case Gargi Raval

269 discharged, 24 deaths, 371 cases in 24 hours; total now 12,910 cases, 773 dead First India Bureau

03

WORRISOME

Ahmedabad: “My wife and I were elated when we became parents, but our joy was short-lived. The doctors told me that my wife had tested positive for COVID-19 and shifted her to Civil Hospital from LG Hospital. Moreover, ever since her admission to Civil Hospital, the hospital authorities keep saying that her report is pending. Today, my newborn is at home away from her mother and I am shattered,” said Vastralresident Kishan Patel.

Patel’s wife is among eight patients of LG’s gynaecology ward to have been also been shifted to Civil.

“I am puzzled as to how my wife got infected. We took all the precautions. The other women who were admitted here also tested positive for novel coronavirus. ,” he stated.

Sources say 23 pregnant women admitted to LG Hospital in the

Gandhinagar: Sixteen districts reported 371 positive cases, but the highlight of Thursday’s health bulletin was the recovery rate in a few cities. Mehsana had 13 fresh cases, Banaskantha, 11, Mahisagar, 9, Aravalli, 7, and Gir-Somnath, 6, but the state health department focused more on sending a positive message by citing the recovery rates of Bhavnagar (73.67%), Surat (67%), and Rajkot (67.07%).

Ahmedabad continues to inch its way closer to the 10,000 mark.

The city has 9,449 positive cases with 233 new cases reported in the past 24 hours. In all, 619 patients have died in the city, while 3,330 were discharged. This means there are still 5,500 active cases in

Ahmedabad.

Given that the state has a total of 6,649 active cases, Ahmedabad now accounts for a whopping 82% of the state’s active cases.

Two migrant workers arrested for rioting on Monday have tested positive for Sars-Cov-2.

The state has a to-

HC notice to state in journo case

City witnesses season’s hottest day at 44.1 °Celsius Protest gets Cong leader beaten, held

Ahmedabad: The Gujarat high court on Thursday issued notice to the state government regarding journalist Dhaval Patel’s quashing petition. The court has asked the government to reply to the petition before May 26, when the matter is set to be heard next.

Ahmedabad Crime Branch had charged web journalist Dhaval Patel with sedition for reporting on the chances of change of guard in the state. Patel then moved a quashing petition through advocate Anand Yagnik. The petition came up before Justice Sangeeta Vishen, who heard the petitioner and special public prosecutor Mitesh Amin’s primary submission. The matter was then admitted and a notice was issued to the state asking it to file a response by May 26. Yagnik also submitted that the sedition section can be invoked only in cases where usage of words which could incite violence.

First India Bureau

Ahmedabad: The city recorded its hottest day of the season and the highest maximum temperature of 44.1 degree Celsius on Thursday. According to the weatherman, heatwave-like conditions are likely over the next two days.

The Indian Meteorological Department

tal of 12,910 positive cases. While 773 patients have died, 5,488 have been discharged.

Twentyfour patients died in the past 24 hours across six districts.

Zydus Diagnostics, a unit of Cadila Healthcare Limited, has supplied the first batch of 30,000 COVID Kavach

(IMD) had warned of heatwave in a few centres of Gujarat for Thursday. The temperature in Ahmedabad, in all probability, will hover around 43°C until the weekend. This can be attributed to the westerly to northwesterly winds passing through the state, which are dry and hot in nature.

The Met department

Elisa Tests to the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) free of cost to aid testing in the state.

Meanwhile, a publicinterest litigation has been moved in the high court with a prayer to direct the state to review the cases of jail inmates and release them, in view of the

novel coronavirus outbreak. The petitioner has said that jails in the state are overcrowded and in such situations the disease can spread faster. So jail inmates, especially those aged 60 years or older, or suffering from other serious illness should be either granted temporary bail or parole.

—PHOTO BY NANDAN DAVE

First India Bureau

—FILE PHOTO

A medic takes a sample for testing in Ahmedabad.

A woman pushes a cart in the afternoon heat.

forecasts clear skies with dry weather in the city for Friday. The maximum temperature is

UNFETTERED BY LOCKDOWN

expected to hover around 43°C, while the minimum temperature could be around 27°C.

—PHOTO BY HANIF SINDHI

SHOCKING

last two days have tested positive for COVID-19.

Hospital superintendent Dr Saurabh Tripathi said all pregnant women who visit the hospital for check-ups are tested for COVID-19.

Fire engulfs Surat godown Surat: A fire broke out in the second and third floors of a godown of a furniture and electric showroom near Sachin and Railway Station Road in the city on Thursday. The fire was brought under control by the fire department.

Hojiwala and Sachin GIDC firefighters rushed to the spot after learning of the incident. Large number of people gathered near the incident spot to watch smoke and flames bellowing from the godown. The fire is estimated to have caused extensive damage to the showroom.

Ambaliya was assaulted so badly, he fainted.

First India Bureau Rajkot: Congress leader Pal Ambaliya was detained by Rajkot police from the Collectorate on Wednesday, when he was protesting the low price of crops. Ambaliya had said he would rather donate the onions and cotton to the PM Cares Fund than accept the low price being offered by the government when he was assaulted by police.

“Ambaliya protested against the injustice being meted out to farmers. For that, he was beaten up and detained by the police,” said Amit Chavda, president, Gujarat Pradesh Congress Committee.

Chavda added, “When

FRONTLINE WARRIOR

Duty first, honeymoon later for this LRD jawan Marilyn Gore Morbi: If there’s anything this ongoing health crisis has shown us it’s that not all superheroes wear capes. Every day, we hear new cases of seemingly normal, everyday folks who have been putting their personal and social lives on hold to take a stand on the front line in the fight against the spread of the novel coronavirus.

Meet Prafullaba Haubha Parmar.

Most brides take a few days to soak in the bliss of being newly married, but this Lokrakshak Dal Jawan was back at work at the Wankaner Taluka Police Station the very next day, her crisp uniform complemented by chuda and mehndi. She had only taken one day’s leave.

In what has quickly become the new normal, there was only a

NEW NORMAL

handful of guests—12 family members to be precise—as Prafullaba tied the knot on May 17 at the Arya Samaj Bhavan in Tankara, which was once home

to Arya Samaj founder and revolutionary spiritual leader Dayanand Saraswati.

Speaking to First India, Wankaner Police Sub-Inspector RP Jade-

ja said, “Prafullaba has been a very committed part of our team since 2016.”

Calling her decision to take just the one day off for her wedding a mature decision, Jadeja added, “As she is a very mature and sincere colleague, she was aware that had she gone on a long leave, her absence would have been a burden on at least two colleagues. Most of the team members

“We are testing all pregnant women who come to the hospital as per government protocols. Most have tested positive because they came from red zone or containment areas,” he said.

He added, “Since ours is not a designated COVID-19 hospital, we contact SVP or Civil Hospital whenever a patient tests positive.

Women who come in with labour pains are given the best possible treatment. We also commence treatment for patients who have to await their turn to be received by designated hospitals.”

The highest maximum temperature across the state was recorded in Deesa, where mercury touched the 44.9 °C mark. There were five centres in the state which recorded temperatures above 44°C: Surendranagar at 44.6 °C, Gandhinagar at 44°C, and Kandla Airport at 44.2°C, apart from Ahmedabad and Deesa.

First India Bureau

Children take advantage of the relaxation in lockdown norms to play on the frame of a handcart in Ahmedabad.

—FILE PHOTO

LG Hospital.

are already working 12-15 hours a day.”

He lauded her ability to convince her parents, in-laws and brand-new husband as well. “It was a brave decision to resume duty the very next day. She and her family have earned a lot of respect from our entire team. As none of our team members could attend the ceremony, when she reported on duty on May 18, we not only wished her but also gave her party.”

Prafullaba Haubha Parmar.

Ambaliya was presented before the revenue officer on Thursday, he fainted. We have learned that the police assaulted him; that too in the hometown of Chief Minister Vijay Rupani.”

The Congress is set to launch a campaign on Friday and submit a memorandum to district collectors across the state.

“We want action against the cops who attacked a leader who is also a farmer. He demanded the proper price of the crops for the greater good of the state’s farming community and was assaulted and charged by the police for his efforts,” said Congress chief spokesperson Manish Doshi.

PERSPECTIVE AHMEDABAD | FRIDAY, MAY 22, 2020

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

IN-DEPTH

CAUTIOUS MOVE TOWARDS A NEW NORMAL

ECONOMIC STIMULUS FOR SMALLMEDIUM SECTOR IS OXYGEN KEWAL KHANNA

E

ither coronavirus pandemic has loosened its stranglehold or there is pressing urgency to breathe life in the economy, we are emerging from paranoia to restart a normal life, or what is going to be the new normal.

The first step towards restoring normalcy was taken with the announcement of a relief package for different sectors. This was followed by the easing of restrictions in lockdown 4.0 to boost supply and consumption demand. For relief of citizens stuck here, there and everywhere and also to revive the aviation sector, Union Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Puri on Thursday announced the resumption of domestic air travel, keeping the interests of airlines and air travellers in mind.

This was preceded by Railways Minister Piyush Goyal asserting “that it was time to take India towards normalcy after weeks of the shutdown”. Online booking of tickets for about 100 trains is to start on Friday. More Shramik specials are to be added to ease the rush of migrants. Despite the stringent safeguards required to make one eligible both for train and air journey, flying would be a preferable option for many given the lesser time needed to reach a destination.

Inter-state road transport was permitted when lockdown 4.0 guidelines were announced. There was a rider, however, that respective governments had to agree to allow entry of buses into their states. This makes the bus and car travel a complicated affair. Keeping in view how Haryana and Uttar Pradesh have sealed their borders with Delhi, the civil aviation ministry has taken all stakeholders on board so that passengers from Noida and Delhi do not face any inconvenience in reaching the airport.

The minister said that all commercial flights which remained suspended from March 25 in view of the lockdown will resume from May 25.

The airlines will book tickets for only 33 percent of capacity to keep air passengers safe from Covid-19 which is yet to peak in India.

Passengers will have to mandatorily walk through a thermal screening zone and have to have the Aarogya Setu app on their mobiles. As there was an apprehension of airlines jacking up fares to make up for their losses, the ministry has put a cap on the maximum chargeable fares and also ensured that airlines don’t bleed due to fare restructuring. In the case of trains, railways will charge normal fares.

As 80 percent of cases are asymptomatic requiring proper testing at airports and railway stations, the former is better equipped than the latter. For instance, the flow of passengers can be better regulated at airports where the staff will be wearing PPEs. With only 33 percent passengers per flight capacity being allowed screening too will be easier. Railways may find implementing the SOPs cumbersome.

While everyone seems weighed down by forced confinement, one should enjoy this freedom but with caution.

The writer is author of Indian Economy Towards Globalisation & Former Financial Advisor, Indira Gandhi Canal Board

T

According to a survey conducted by the All India Manufacturing Organisation (AIMO) of 5000 MSMEs has revealed that 71% of businesses were not able to pay salaries in March. The survey further disclosed that 43% would shut their shop if panic extends beyond eight weeks

he coronavirus crisis has spelled havoc globally shattering the economy of a number of countries in the world and India is not free from its ramifications causing millions of job losses and productivity. Governments all over the world have resorted to lockdowns and imposing social distancing has become a new norm, the post-pandemic world will wake up to a new trading culture.

Here in India too this global calamity has battered all sectors of the economy with micro, small and medium enterprises among the worst-hit causing massive unemployment, productivity loss, vanishing demand, and purchasing power.

Considered as the growth engine of the Indian economy, the MSMEs account for 33.4% of India’s manufacturing output, employing about 120 million people and generating 45% of India’s exports.

As a consequence of COVID 19, stoppage of economic activity has triggered panic across the country with business and manufacturing units facing widespread extinction and losses being majority of them rely on day to day business to say afloat.

According to a survey conducted by the All India Manufacturing Organisation (AIMO) of 5000 MSMEs has revealed that 71% of businesses were not able to pay salaries in March. The survey further disclosed that 43% would shut their shop if panic extends beyond eight weeks.

Looking at the prevalent conditions and widespread unemployment along with shrinking demand, necessitated on the part of the government to usher in immediate measures which could prove as oxygen to the Continuity and commencing production in this important sector of the Indian economy. Thus, to inject lifeblood to MSME sector, the GOI while announcing economic

stimulus for revival of the economy, announced a number of concessions for this important sector of the economy. Nirmala Sitharaman the Finance Minister while announcing 20 lakh crores mega Economic stimulus for the Indian economy, six economic stimuli were for the small and medium sector since this sector has been constantly clamoring for relief since the lockdown, being worst affected by the downturn.

This sector doesn’t have large buffers that blue-chip companies have, the economic relief package for MSME’s aims at their revival and growth.

The blue map of economic stimulus for MSME’s sector lays down measures to streamline their operations and continue productivity by:

l Further announced to inject

Considered as the growth engine of the Indian economy, the MSMEs account for 33.4% of India’s manufacturing output, employing about 120 million people and generating 45% of India’s exports

l MSME’s having declared Non-

Performing Assets or those Stressed will be eligible for equity support as the govt will facilitate the provision of Rs 20,000 crore as subordinate debt.

l To meet the complaints of

entrepreneurs about their Payments, it has been decided that all receivables by the MSME’s sector shall be cleared within 45 days by all central public sector enterprises.

l COLLATERAL FREE AUTO-

MATIC LOANS FOR BUSINESS: The eligibility criteria for this loan is that the borrower should have less than Rs.25 crore outstanding and turnover of Rs.100 crore. An emergency credit line will be granted to businesses (MSMEs) from banks, NBFC’s up to 20% of the outstanding credit as on 29.2.2020. The tenure of the loan would be four years with 12 months moratorium on principal repayment. 100% credit guarantee cover will also be given to banks and NBFC’s on principal and interest by govt. One can avail this facility till October,20.

l Another vital concession pro-

vided to this sector is Reserving purchases from MSME’s for procurement of government supplies up to the tenders of Rs 200/- crore where no global companies will be allowed to participate except domestic ones.

l RBI has also declared several

monetary measures to accelerate credit pipeline having the lowest repo Rate of 4.40% of the century.

Protecting women during the pandemic L

ast month, Sheuly rushed into a Dhaka hospital in need of emergency treatment. The 25-year-old Bangladeshi woman had just given birth at home – thinking it a safer setting than the hospital during a pandemic. But as she began to suffer from post-partum hemorrhage – one of the leading causes of maternal death worldwide – avoiding exposure to COVID-19 was the furthest thing from her mind. The same was true of Majufa Akter, the midwife who sprang into action and saved Sheuly’s life, despite not having yet received adequate personal protective equipment (PPE).

Giving birth is an intense moment in a woman’s life under any cir

04

cumstances. Doing so during a pandemic imbues the experience with a new form of stress. Mothers do not know whether to go to hospitals – where they fear exposure to the coronavirus, personnel shortages, or separation from their partners – or to give birth at home, where medical complications often become far riskier. This is just one example of how the imperative of managing the COVID-19 pandemic is complicating the delivery of essential health services – and leaving women, in particular, highly vulnerable.

Around the world, when health systems are overstretched, services for women are often among the first to suffer, resulting in increased maternal and child morbidity and mortality. To illustrate

Giving birth is an intense moment in a woman’s life under any circumstances.

Doing so during a pandemic imbues the experience with a new form of stress the risks, we have modeled the pandemic’s possible impact on three key sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services:

births assisted by skilled health-care providers, including midwives; births taking place in health facilities; and access to contraception.

While reduced access to SRH services is a problem in many parts of the world, including developed countries like the United States, we focused our analysis on 14 countries in the Asia-Pacific region that are particularly vulnerable: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan,

Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Laos, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, the Solomon Islands and Timor-Leste. All already have high maternal mortality ratios – more than 100 deaths per 100,000 live births, which often reflect lower use of health services, such as giving birth in medical facilities or with the help of skilled birth attendants.

The best-case scenario, according to our model, is a 20% decline in use of the three key services. That would lead to a 17% increase in maternal mortality ratio, equivalent to 25,493 additional deaths this year alone. The worstcase scenario – a 50% decline in use of services – would produce a 43% increase in maternal mortality, or 68,422 additional

deaths. Of these additional maternal deaths, a considerable proportion would be attributable to the increase in fertility resulting from reduced access to contraceptive services.

In fact, reduced access to contraception and family planning services further exacerbates risks.

Border closures and other supply-chain disruptions could reduce the available supply of contraceptives, which are often out of stock even in normal times. Movement restrictions could prevent women from getting to pharmacies or clinics, particularly if family planning is not deemed “essential.” And fear of exposure to the coronavirus could stop women who have access from pursuing services.

FOR FULL REPORT LOG ON TO WWW.PROJECTSYNDICATE.COM

Rs.3.74 lakh crore liquidity in the system besides providing another Rs. 50,000 crores for refinancing window to NABRD, SIDBI, and NHB where the banks are required to make this investment within one month.

All said and done the economic stimulus provided to MSME’s sector has kept into consideration the three key issues facing the sector of delayed payments, procurement policy of the government and liberal credit line to the manufacturing units whose balance sheets stand badly battered and production having come to halt due to the economic impact of COVID 19.

It is expected that the economic stimulus will prove a game-changer in removing the pains of the sector whereby restoring the productivity and Supply chain vis a vis ensuring that the unemployment curve gets flattened.

The government’s economic stimulus package is focused on local shops that are responsible for 40% of employment and drive more than 90% of retail commerce. One should be optimistic of a quick recovery by taking it with a Pinch of salt the government agencies and institutions do their homework efficiently, impartially, and punctually under the stewardship of competent Minister Nitin Gadkari to minimise the impact of COVID 19.

THE VIEWS EXPRESSED BY THE AUTHOR ARE PERSONAL

Top

TWEET Dharmendra Pradhan @dpradhanbjp In this challenging hour, the country stands in solidarity with the people of Odisha and West Bengal. I urge everyone to stay safe and pray for the well-being of all. May Lord Jagannath bless our people to weather this storm. #CyclonAmphan.

Piyush Goyal @PiyushGoyal Govt led by PM @NarendraModi ji approves procurement of 26 defence items from local suppliers to boost ‘Make in India’.

Thanks to RM @RajnathSingh ji’s initiatives, manufacturing capabilities will improve to provide quality products for India’s defence.

Spiritual SPEAK

The only real failure in life is not to be true to the best one knows. —Buddha

Vol 1 Issue No. 176 RNI NO. GUJENG/2019/16208. Printed and published by Anita Hada Sangwan on behalf of First Express Publishers. Printed at Bhaskar Printing Planet Survey No.148P, Changodar-Bavla Highway, Tal. Sanand, Dist. Ahmedabad.

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

To Receive Free Newspaper PDF Daily Whatsapp: http://bit.ly/whatsappahm

Telegram: https://t.me/firstindiaahmedabad Click the above link� & subscribe us on your preferred platform.

INDIA AHMEDABAD | FRIDAY, MAY 22, 2020

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

05

72 died in Bengal due to Amphan: Mamata Bengal is yet to decide on the losses it has suffered in the cyclone that made landfall Wednesday afternoon New Delhi: Hours after Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted that the country stood in solidarity with cyclonehit West Bengal, the state’s CM Mamata Banerjee requested him to pay a visit to see the havoc wreaked by the storm. “I would request PM Narendra Modi to come and visit Cyclone Amphan-affected areas” she said at a press briefing. She said 72 deaths have been reported due to Cyclone Amphan.

“There have been casualties.I announce a compensation of Rs 2.5 lakh to the families of those who died in cyclone Amphan,” she said. Bengal is yet to decide on the losses it has suffered in the cyclone that made landfall Wednesday afternoon before heading away towards Bangladesh.

Earlier in the day, the NCMC which reviewed the situation in the cyclone affected areas of Odisha and West Bengal decided to send additional teams of the NDRF to the latter to speed up restoration work, especially in Kolkata. —PTI

Nadda to announce his new team by June New Delhi: A senior BJP leader said, “There are hundred per cent chances that Nadda will announce his new team either by the end of this month or by the first week of June.”

According to sources, his new team may have new faces -- with representation to all sections of society and all the states.

In a circular sent recently to all the states, Nadda had laid emphasis on selecting youths and women and new faces for his new team.

He had asked for a list from the states with regard to this.

Sources have also told that his new team may have a mix of some old guards and new faces. Nadda is likely to continue with Bhupendra Yadav as election in-charge of Bihar and Kailash Vijayvargiya will continue with his responsibility in West Bengal. —Agencies

‘Massive challenge’ for NDRF to carry out restoration work New Delhi: National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) Director General SN Pradhan said that it is a “massive challenge” for NDRF to carry out restoration work in view of COVID19.”But our teams were semi-prepared for cyclone Amphan as they were preparing for the combination of COVID-19 and floods. Our personnel observe pro-

The Union Cabinet Secretary held a meeting with the West Bengal and Odisha Chief Secretaries to estimate the damage and response, earlier in the day. The situation in Odisha is under control, and hopefully, normalcy will return in the next 24 to 48 hours in Odisha.

A car parked along a road, damaged by an uprooted tree after super cyclone Amphan in Kolkata.

—SN Pradhan, NDRF Chief

People retrieve belongings from their houses, damaged in aftermath of Cyclone Amphan in a slum.

Cong condemns FIR against Sonia

Prez accepts credentials of 7 envoys online

New Delhi: The Congress has condemned registration of FIR against interim chief Sonia Gandhi in Shivamogga in Karnataka for questioning PMCARES fund. Congress said this “BJP dictatorial mindset is an attempt to threaten transparency.”

Congress Spokesperson Jaiveer Shergill in a statement said “Registration of FIR against Smt Sonia Gandhi in Shivamogga Karnataka for raising questions on PM Cares Fund depicts BJP’s dictatorial mindset.”

“This is an attempt to threaten transparency, avoid answerability and exposes BJP nervousness on audit of the Fund,” added Shergill.

The FIR registered by K V Praveen an advocate alleged that Congress party shared misleading tweets about PM-CARES fund on May 11 under Section 153/505 IPCA.

New Delhi: President Ram Nath Kovind became the first ever titular head of a state to receive & accept diplomatic credentials of seven foreign envoy digitally.

“This was the first time that credentials were presented through digital medium. The President remarked that digital technology has enabled world to overcome challenges posed by COVID-19 & carry out its functions in an innovative manner,” the Rashtrapati Bhavan tweeted.

UP CONG CHIEF IN JUDICIAL REMAND Lucknow: UP Congress president Ajay Kumar Lallu, who was arrested in Agra on Wednesday evening by Lucknow police, has been sent on 14 days’ judicial remand.The Congress leader was brought to Lucknow the same night & produced before a magistrate.

CONG LEADER HELD FOR ABUSIVE TWEET

Karnal: Cong leader Pankaj Punia was arrested by police in Karnal over charges of posting objectionable content on social media. The Congress leader had allegedly posted an abusive tweet that had also criticised UP govt’s management of migrant workers crisis.

PM Modi to visit West Bengal, Odisha today New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will travel to West Bengal and Odisha on Friday to conduct an aerial survey of the damage caused by Cyclone Amphan, a government spokesperson said.

“Tomorrow, PM @narendramodi will travel to West Bengal and Odisha to take stock of the situation in the wake of Cyclone Amphan. He will conduct aerial sur-

veys and take part in review meetings, where aspects of relief and rehabilitation will be discussed,” PMO tweeted.

This will be PM Modi’s first visit anywhere since the first lockdown to halt the spread of coronavirus was put in place on March 25. NDRF chief SD Pradhan told that Odisha, wasn’t hit as badly as Bengal and would be back to normal in another two days or so.

CABINET SECY GAUBA REVIEWS SITUATION New Delhi: Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba on Thursday, reviewed situation in the cyclone-affected areas of Odisha and West Bengal with the States and Central Ministries/Agencies concerned in the aftermath of cyclone Amphan, the officials of the Government of India said.

TOLL REACHES 15 IN BANGLADESH Dhaka: The death toll due to severe cyclonic storm Amphan rose to 15 on Thursday in Bangladesh.

Cyclone Amphan made landfall along the coastline of India and Bangladesh leaving a trail of destruction in the region. The storm has weakened now, Dhaka Tribune reported.

‘Defence sector more affected by Corona’ New Delhi: Amid Covid-19 lockdown, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday said that the defence sector is “more aggravated” than other sectors as the only buyer of Defence products is the government.

Acknowledging the hardships faced by the Defence industry, Rajnath Singh said, “Manufacturing sector has been affected the most due to lockdown and disruption in existing supply chains and the defence sector is no exception to this. Rather, it can be said that the

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh addresses MSMEs E-conclave themed on ‘Business Continuity for MSMEs in Defence Sector’ in New Delhi.

Defence sector is more aggravated than other sectors as the only buyer of defence products is the government.”

The Minister was ad-

dressing, via video conference, MSMEs E-conclave, jointly organised

by SIDM, Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and Department

of Defence Production.

“I am very happy to know that SIDM has accelerated the manufacturing of DRDO (Defence Research and Development Organisation) designed PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) kits, masks, ventilator parts in the field of defence industry by efficient coordination and channelisation. Within less than two months, we have not only met our domestic demand, but we can also think of helping neighbouring countries in the coming time,” he said.—ANI

OVER 1L SAMPLES TESTED IN 24 HRS’ Delhi HC Judge set New Delhi: A total of 1,03,532 samples were tested for COVID-19 in the last 24 hours in the country, said the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) on Thursday.

As per ICMR’s bulletin, a total of 26,15,920 samples of coronavirus have been tested as of May 21.Earlier, ICMR

also released revised guidelines for TrueNat,

a comprehensive assay for screening and testing for positive cases for COVID-19.

A circular published by the apex medical body also elaborated on the steps to be followed for new testing.

As many as 5,609 new COVID-19 cases were reported in India in the last 24 hours. —ANI

RAJIV GANDHI’S 29 TH DEATH ANNIVERSARY

Priyanka pens emotional tribute to father Rajiv New Delhi: Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra penned an emotional tribute to her father and former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi on his 29th death anniversary on Thursday.

Taking to Twitter, the Congress General Secretary wrote, “To be kind to those who are unkind to you; to know that life is fair, no matter how unfair you imagine it to be; to keep walking, no matter how dark the skies or fearsome the

tocols of social distancing and sanitization,” Pradhan said. Road clearance process has picked up pace & has been completed in some localities. “It will take some time to restore electricity & telecom services in affected areas which will need assistance of technicians, & we are ready to help them wherever required,” Pradhan said.

To nurture a strong heart, and fill it with love no matter how great it’s sorrows; these are the gifts of my father’s life.

—Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Cong GS I am proud to be the son of a true patriot, liberal and a benevolent father. As Prime Minister, Rajiv ji had pushed India on the path of progress. He took many important steps to empower the country with his forward-looking vision. Today, on his death anniversary, I salute him with affection and gratitude.

—Rahul Gandhi, Congress Leader storm.” “To nurture a strong heart, and fill it with love no matter how

great it’s sorrows; these are the gifts of my father’s life,” she said in another

tweet. She also shared the last photograph of herself with Rajiv.

Rajiv Gandhi took over the charge of the Congress in 1984 following the assassination of his mother & then PM Indira Gandhi. He became India’s youngest PM at the age of 40. Born on August 20 in 1944, Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated by a LTTE suicide bomber during an election rally in Sriperumbudur in Tamil Nadu on May 21, 1991. —ANI

to take charge as DSCRC President New Delhi: The Central government has accepted the resignation of Delhi HC judge Justice Sangita Dhingra Sehgal. She is set to take charge as the President of the Delhi State Consumer Redressal Commission soon.

Justice Sehgal was scheduled to retire as a judge of Delhi HC in June 2020. A notification issued on Thursday said that Justice Sangita Dhingra Sehgal has tendered her resignation from the office of Judge, Delhi High Court, in pursuance of provision (a) to clause (1) of Article 217 of the Constitution, with effect from May 30, 2020.

In November 2019, the Union Cabinet had approved her name for the appointment as the President of the Delhi State Consumer Dispute Redressal Com-

THE MOVE

mission on ‘whole time’ basis. The appointment of Dhingra is for a term of five years or till she attains the age of 67 years, whichever is earlier. —ANI

INDIA AHMEDABAD | FRIDAY, MAY 22, 2020

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

‘More than 20,000 Indians brought back’ During Vande Bharat mission, clear emphasis was on evacuating our citizens who were genuinely stranded New Delhi: Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Thursday said that upwards of 20 thousand Indian citizens have been brought back to the country under the Vande Bharat mission so far and the number will rise further in the coming days.

“Under Vande Bharat mission, we have brought back more than 20 thousand of our citizens from various destinations. We have at the same time utilised the outgoing aircraft to carry our citizens who are normally residents abroad, and needed to travel because they have jobs to do and other commitments,” Puri said at a press conference here.

The Minister added that some countries are “at this point of time not allowing foreign nationals to come back,” stating that six countries in the Gulf and the Middle East, and some others in East Asia are included in the list.

MP Congress MLAs told to vacate official bungalows Bhopal: The Shivraj Singh Chouhan government has started the process of sealing the official bungalows of many former ministers of the previous Kamal Nath regime. Some of the MLAs had not vacated their ministerial bungalows.

They were all issued notices last week to vacate the houses. None of them had, however, responded.

Former ministers whose bungalows have been sealed are former ministers Tarun Bhanot, Sajjan Singh Verma and Hukum Singh Karada.

The Home Department of MP has also issued notices to Brijendra Singh Rathore, Omkar Singh Markam, Priyavrat Singh, Sukhdev Panse, Kamleshwar Patel, Lakhan Ghanghoria, Sachin Yadav and Surendra Baghel.

Bhanot was served two notices in a quick succession.

Congress leader and MP Vivek Tankha has objected to government’’s decision.

MIGRANTS AT KANDIVALI

Migrants board a train at Danapur station in Patna to reach their destination.

It is important to note that the Indian government launched the first phase of the Vande Bharat Mission on May 7 and the second phase was started on May 16.

He further said that the Vande Bharat mission had started “somewhat cautiously”, and the intention in be-

tween May 6 and 13 was to bring back 12,800 people, but the numbers were ramped up in the second week, and a substantial increase in the number of flights from Air India, with the private players also joining in the coming days will be seen.

He, however, added,

—PHOTO BY PTI

“During Vande Bharat mission, our effort was not to bring back everyone who wanted to come back. The clear emphasis was on evacuating our citizens who were genuinely stranded and in distress abroad.”

Civil Aviation Minister Puri had earlier

Mumbai: Amid the coronavirus spread, hundreds of migrant labourers on Thursday gathered at the grounds in Kandivali’s Mahavir Nagar in the hope to board Special Shramik trains to return home.

Notably, today two out of three trains scheduled to leave from Borivali for Uttar Pradesh, were cancelled today.

The police have requested the migrants to return to their shelter homes and vacate the spot as a precautionary measure to halt the spread of the virus. said, “When we announced #VandeBharatMission on 5th May, we met virtually.

The very fact that we are meeting on May 21 physically, it is a reflection of the fact that we have gained more confidence in the normalisation of the situation & resumption.” —ANI

‘MORE TRAINS TO RESUME’ New Delhi: As the government prepares to steer the current situation in the country towards normalcy despite the rise in COVID-19 cases, Railways Minister Piyush Goyal announced that development of protocols for resuming ticket booking at counters is underway and in next 2-3 days, people will be able to book their tickets from the counters as well.

As of now, tickets can only be booked online through the IRCTC website. More trains will be resumed by the government, adding that it is now time to take India towards normalcy. From Friday, booking of train tickets will resume at around 1.7 lakh common service centres across the country, he said. —ANI

India’s recovery rate improves to 40.23%: Govt New Delhi: A total of 3,002 COVID-19 patients have been reported cured in the last 24 hours and India’s total count of cured COVID-19 patients stands at 45,299, Health Ministry said on Thursday.

It said the recovery rate has improved to 40.23 per cent from 39.62 per cent a day earlier.

The total number of COVID-19 cases in India stand at 1,12,358 including 63,624 active cases, 3,435 deaths and one migrated. Of the active

FUND WORTH RS 218.50 CR TO SHGs

cases, only about 2.94 per cent are in ICU. The case mortality rate in India is 3.06%, which is much lesser in

comparison to the global case mortality rate of 6.65%.

A Health Ministry release citing an analysis

‘Nepal’s border issue with India is mere politics’ Kathmandu: Nepal’s recent friction with India over a land dispute is just politics for domestic consumption, according to a leading Nepali analyst Man Bahadur Basnet.

Recently, Nepal released a new political map that shows the areas of Kalapani, Limpiyadhura, and Lipulekh within its borders. However, India regards these areas as part of its territory.

“We haven’t been able to re-

KP Sharma Oli with PM Narendra Modi.

—FILE PHOTO

turn to our settlements due to the sealed border,” said Ashok Singh

Bohara, chairperson of the rural municipality’s Ward No 1. —ANI

ior US diplomat for South and Central Asia, said China’s border tensions with India and Beijing’s increasing assertiveness in the contested South China Sea have some correlation.

“The flare-ups on the border, I think, are a reminder that Chinese aggression is not always just rhetorical. And so whether it’s on the South China Sea or whether it’s along the border with India we continue to see provocations and disturbing behaviour by China that raises questions about how China seeks to use its growing pow-

er,” Wells, the outgoing head of the South and Central Asia bureau in the US State Department, told reporters in a conference call on Wednesday.

said that 64 per cent of those who have died are males and 36 per cent are females.

In terms of age distri-

bution, 0.5 % deaths are reported in less than 15 years age group, 2.5 per cent in 15-30 years age group, 11.4 % in people aged 30 to 45 years, 35.1 per cent in those between 45 to 60 years and 50.5 per cent in people above 60 years.

The release said that 73% of death cases had underlying co-morbidities. Elderly people (above 60 years of age) and people having comorbidities are identified as high risk groups for COVID-19. —ANI

J&K policeman killed in militant attack in Pulwama Srinagar: A J-K Policeman was killed and another was injured after militants attacked security forces in South Kashmir’s Pulwama district on Thursday afternoon.

Thursday’s attack took place in Prichoo area of Pulwama.A senior police officer in Srinagar confirmed that one cop who was critically injured in the attack has succumbed to injuries. “Another one is injured,” he said.

Police sources said that it was a joint naka

06

POWER Gallery APPOINTMENT OF NEW SEBI CHIEF DELAYED

Appointment of new SEBI Chief is believed to have been delayed because of the Covid 19.

12 PMG GET ONE YEAR EXTENSION IN THEIR PRESENT POSTING

As many as 12 Indian Postal Service officers working as PMG have been given extension in their present place of posting for a period of one year. They are: Anil Kumar Singh as PMG, A & N Island with HQ Kolkata; Jaleswar Kanhar as PMG, Berhampur; Veena R Srinivas as PMG, NK Region, Dharwad; Lalitendu Pradhan as PMG, Sambalpur region; Anil Kumar II as PMG, Bhagalpur; Dr N Vinodkuamr as PMG, Goa region; Shobha Madhale as PMG, Navi Mumbai; T Mangminthang as PMG, NE-I region; vinod Kumar Verma as PMG, Kanpur region; S S Kujur as PMG, BD & M, Ranchi; Sanjiv Ranjan as PMG, South Bengal region and TM Sreelatha as PMG Kurnool.

UPGRADED POSTING OF PRAMOD PATHAK AS JS, AYUSH TO ADDL SECRETARY LEVEL EXTENDED

The upgradation of the post of Pramod Kumar Pathak as Joint Secretary in the Ministry of AYUSH to Additional Secretary level, has been extended tupo June 30, 2021. He is a 1986 batch IFS officer of Kerala cadre.

UPGRADED POSTING OF SK DEV VERMAN AS JS, MINORITY AFFAIRS TO ADDL SECRETARY LEVEL EXTENDED

The upgradation of the post of SK Dev Verman, as Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Minority Affairs, to Additional Secretary level, has been extended upto March 17, 2021. He is a 1988 batch IAS officer of Manipur cadre.

UPGRADED POSTING OF JUTHIKA PATANKAR AS JS, SKILL DEVELOPMENT TO ADDL SECRETARY LEVEL EXTENDED

The upgradation of the post of Juthika Patankar, as Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship, to Additional Secretary level, has been extended upto July 1, 2021. She is a 1988 batch IAS officer of UP cadre.

UPGRADED POSTING OF RASIKA CHAUBE AS JS, STEEL TO ADDL SECRETARY LEVEL EXTENDED

The upgradation of the post of Rasika Chaube, as Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Steel, to Additional Secretary level, has been extended upto July 8, 2021. She is a 1986 batch IDAS officer.

RAMESHWAR PRASAD GUPTA TO JOIN AS SECRETARY, EF&CC ON JUNE 1

Rameshwar Prasad Gupta will be taking over the charge as Secretary, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change on June 1, 2020. He is a 1987 batch IAS officer of Gujarat cadre.

PRADIP KUMAR TRIPATHI TO JOIN AS SECRETARY, STEEL ON JUNE 1

Pradip Kumar Tripathi will be taking over the charge as Secretary, Ministry of Steel on June 1, 2020. He is a 1987 batch IAS officer of J&K cadre.

10- DEPUTATION TENURE OF SUNIL SHARMA EXTENDED

Central deputation tenure of Sunil Sharma working as Joint Secretary, Department of Health & Family Welfare has been extended upto May 18, 2021. He is a 1985 batch IRPS officer.

TS TIRUMURTI ASSUMES CHARGE AS INDIA’S PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE TO UN of J-K police and CRPF men when militants fired at the party. Additional forces were rushed to the area and a cordon & search operation has been launched to nab the attackers.

TS Tirumurti has assumed charge as Permanent Representative of India to the UN in New York.

B R SHARMA IS NOW CHAIRMAN J&K PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION

B R Sharma has been appointed Chairman of the J&K Public Service Commission. He is former 1984 batch IAS officer of J&K cadre.

FROM PG 1 HLL Lifecare...

When First India attempted to verify the state government’s claim with the Thiruvananthapuram-based HLL Lifecare, the company flatly denied it.

“We have not placed order for Dhaman-1, the Gujarat government must have placed order directly,” Binu Thomas, HLL Lifecare’s General Manager-Purchase told us before quickly hanging up the phone.

That morning, Ravi also said that the Puducherry government had placed an order for 25 Dhaman-1

units. By evening, the Union Territory had cancelled its order.

Puducherry Chief Minister V Naranswamy announced the cancellation on Twitter. “Lot of controversy has risen about the functioning of Dhaman-1, By-pat machine from Gujarat, Rajkot.

I discussed with the honourable health minister, Government of Puducherry. We will cancel the order, and a letter has been sent to them to that effect,” the tweet read.

Indo-China...

Alice G Wells, the sen-

India rejects...

“Indian troops are fully familiar with the alignment of the Line of Actual Control in the India-China border areas and abide by it scrupulously. All Indian activities are entirely on the Indian side of the LAC,” he said. The LAC is the de-facto border between the two countries.

“In fact, it is the Chinese side that has re-

cently undertaken activity hindering India’s normal patrolling patterns. Indian side has always taken a very responsible approach towards border management. At the same time, we are deeply committed to ensuring India’s sovereignty and security,” he said.

China has accused India of unilaterally attempting to change the status of the un-demarcated border in Ladakh.

Civil Aviation’s...

“The cabin crew will be required to be in full protective gear. Only one check-in bag will be

allowed.

Passengers should report at least two hours before the departure time,” he said.

“A passenger will be required to wear protective gear, face mask and carry sanitiser bottle.

Airlines shall not provide the meal on board.

Water bottles will be made available in the gallery area or on seats,” he added.

He also said that self-declaration or Aarogya Setu App status on a compatible device would be obtained to ensure that a person does not have COVID-19 symptoms.

“Passengers with red

status on Aarogya Setu App will not be allowed to travel,” he said.

Stating the rules for different routes for the carriers, the Minister said: “For operations from the metro to non-metro cities and vice-versa, where the weekly departure is less than 100, airlines are free to operate any routes of one-third capacity of approved summer schedule 2020. For all other cities, airlines are free to use one-third capacity of approved summer schedule 2020.”

The minister said that some tweaking of procedures, based on the expe-

rience garnered from domestic flight operations, will be needed to be studied before thinking of starting international flights. —ANI

Air routes... between 150-180 minutes and 180-210 minutes, said Puri.

Aviation Secretary P S Kharola said 40 per cent of seats in any flight would have to be sold at the mid-point of the lower and upper limits of air fares.

The minister said he can’t comment right now on when flight operations would be restored completely.

It is a bitter truth that a goal achieved easily does not give us the same degree of satisfaction as the one we have to strive and sweat for.

—Jagdeesh Chandra, CEO & Editor, First India

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

2ND FRONT AHMEDABAD | FRIDAY, MAY 22, 2020

171 pregnant women among 13,000 corona-hit in Gujarat

Most cases have been reported from the worst Covid-19 hotspot, Ahmedabad First India Bureau Gandhinagar: As many as 171 women from the over 13,000 corona-infected people in Gujarat so far were pregnant, with Ahmedabad city recording the maximum 80 women from this. All the 33 districts of the State, including eight metros, have reported Covid-19 cases.

Giving information about the spread of coronavirus among pregnant women, Dr. Neelam Patel, Additional Director, State Health and Family Welfare, said that so far 171 pregnant women have contracted Covid-19 in the state. According to the guidelines, a corona report is mandatory for all pregnant women living in containment zones five days before delivery.

Of the 171 cases reported so far, 54 pregnant women have had a successful Caesarean

MIXED BAG

Many corona-infected pregnant women have delivered babies through successful surgeries.

section. Two women have also died. At present, pregnant women are being treated as per the protocol.

The official said that besides contact tracing, the Central teams have directed the local authorities that their surveyors should also inquire about Reproductive Child Health (RCH), elderly family members’ health, pregnant

mothers and people in the family with preexisting diseases.

The State Government is also required to sensitise households on preventive measures related to the coronavirus.

There are Central teams of experts deployed in 20 districts in various states, including Mumbai, Thane, Pune in Maharashtra; Ahmedabad, Surat, Va-

dodra in Gujarat; South East and Central District in Delhi; Bhopal, Indore in Madhya Pradesh; Chennai in Tamil Nadu, Hyderabad in Telangana; Jaipur, Jodhpur in Rajasthan; Agra, Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh; Kolkata in West Bengal and Kurnool, Guntur, Krishna in Andhra Pradesh.

The experts are from All India Insti-

tute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research, JIPMER, National Institute of Health and Family Welfare (NIHFW), National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) and All India Institute of Hygiene and Public Health (AIIPH), among others.

Locusts spotted again in Banaskantha, Patan First India Bureau

Palanpur/Patan: Small swarms of locusts have descended in some isolated parts of Banaskantha and Patan districts of north Gujarat for the last few officials have assured farmers not to panic.

The number of insects this time is much less as compared to the huge swarms that invaded parts of north Gujarat in December last year and affected standing crops in 25,000 hectares of area, officials said.

After a gap of five months, smaller swarms of about 200 to 300 locusts have entered Banaskantha and adjoining Patan, Banaskantha District Agriculture Officer P K Patel said.

“Though we are not supposed to control such a small number of locusts as per international guidelines, we are spraying pesticides wherever we find the locusts.

We sprayed chemicals on a small swarm at a village near Deesa to-

Small swarms of locusts have been spotted in North Gujarat again, but officials say nothing to worry.

Such smaller swarms are not a threat. They are naturally controlled by peacocks, crows and other birds. We have also deployed hand-held pumps to spray pesticides so that farmers do not panic.

—PK Patel, Banaskantha District Agriculture Officer

day. There is no need to panic,” Patel said.

He said these smaller swarms of locusts might have separated from the large ones that have descended in the desert of Jaisalmer in Rajasthan, where an operation against the insects is underway.

“Such smaller swarms are not a threat.

They are naturally controlled by peacocks, crows and other birds.

We have also deployed hand-held pumps to spray pesticides so that

HC puts cops in a dock IIM-A gets legal notice for not paying wages over kid killing by dogs to migrant workers on its campus First India Bureau

First India Bureau Ahmedabad: The Gujarat High Court has sought an explanation from the police as to whether proper investigation procedure was followed in a case of abandonment of a newborn child, who was later killed by dogs in Navsari district in March.

Justice BN Karia on Wednesday sought an affidavit from Jalalpore police inspector about compliance of the legal procedure.

The court has sought reply by June 17 following a petition filed by an advocate Kirti

Kumar Bhatt.

The lawyer has claimed that the Jalalpore police has not investigated the case as per the Criminal Procedure Code in a case of killing by animals. He says such cases mandate calling of an executive magistrate for inquest upon finding the dead body.

He submitted that Jalalpore police had registered an FIR after an abandoned child was killed by dogs on March 14, but only for abandonment of the child and not for killing of a human being by animals.

Ahmedabad: Harried migrant labourers working at a construction site at the Indian Institute of Management in Ahmedabad have sent a legal notice to the top Bschool’s administration for allegedly not paying them for two months during the lockdown.

IIM-Ahmedabad has denied the charges.

Over 100 migrant workers had gathered on a busy road near IIM Ahmedabad on Monday

Legal notice has been served to IIM-A over labourers working on its construction site being denied wages.

and pelted stones at the police and vehicles passing by, demanding that they be sent back to their homes at the earliest. A day later, in a legal notice

sent to the IIM-A Director, Gujarat CS Anil Mukim and ACS Vipul Mittra. The notice stated that some workers were “brutally” thrashed, and

Many salutations to the late Shri Rajiv Gandhi on his death anniversary; to the man who dreamt of creating a modern India through the fusion of technology and human values to find new meaning in the lives of the people.

two of those detained have been found to be infected with coronavirus.

“This is to bring to your notice once again that IIMA has not paid the wages to the migrant labourers for the past two months,” their lawyer Anandvardhan J Yagnik said in the notice. IIM-A Director Errol D’Souza told reporters, “All workers are paid their dues. The primary issue is their understandable perceived delay in obtaining travel permits.”

Ahmedabad: Gujarat Secondary and Higher Secondary Education Board has decided to provide information and other questions related to 12th science and general streams as well as 10th examinations

Information related to 10th and 12th Board exams would now be available on phones and emails.

through mobile phones and email.

Secretary of the Board of Education DS Patel stated in a circular on Thursday that examinations related information will also be made available to interested students, parents and schools over phone

and email, in view of the Covid-19 crisis.

Education Board officer BA Chaudhary can be contacted on mobile number 6359418988, while officer VJ Desai could be reached on 7567918968 for information related to 12th Science stream.

Woman defies lions blocking way, delivers baby in ambulance First India Bureau Gir-Somnath: A pregnant woman gave birth to a baby in an ambulance van past Wednesday midnight when a pride of lions blocked a narrow road in Gir forests leading to a government hospital in Gir-Somnath district.

The woman from Bhakha village had called the 108 emergency ambulance van after feeling labour pains. Afsana was being taken to a hospital

in Girgadhada in the ambulance when the road was found blocked by a pride of four lions.

Finding no other way around to escape as the road was too narrow, the ambulance stopped at the spot and waited for the lions to move.

But suddenly the woman started having extreme labour pain, which forced the staff of the ambulance to carry out the delivery.

Emergency Medical

Though a local person Jadav, who understood the behaviour of lions, tried to scare them away, the lions refused to budge. Some of them even sat in front of the vehicle, blocking its passage.

With lions blocking the road, a pregnant woman delivered a baby in the ambulance van in the middle of Gir forests.

Technician Jagdish Makwana and driver

Bharat Ahir carried out the delivery in the

—Chetan Gaadhe, Emergency Management Executive

vehicle itself successfully. The mother and

the baby were taken to the hospital after wait-

farmers do not panic,” Patel said.

Meanwhile, official sources said locusts have also been found in Saurashtra’s Bhavnagar and Surendranagar districts.

In December last year, locusts from desert areas of Pakistan descended in Gujarat districts like Banaskantha, Mehsana, Kutch, Patan and Sabarkantha and attacked several crops like mustard, castor, cotton, fennel, jatropha and cumin.

@ahmedpatel

State Board exams info now on phone, email First India Bureau

08

ing some more time, as the herd of lions stayed there for 20 more minutes.

A similar incident had occurred in July 2017 when a woman identified as Makuben Makwana had delivered a baby in the ambulance that was on its way to hospital. The herd of lions had blocked the way in Gir forest.

The paramedic staff conducted delivery when the ambulance was surrounded by the lions.

Honda to start 2-wheeler production on May 25 First India Bureau B e n g a l u r u / Ahmedabad: As India gears up to kickstart the economy, Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India Pvt. Ltd. (HMSI) on Thursday announced that it would resume its production operations at all its four plants in two phases.

With a 360-degree outlook of balancing the forward and back-end linkages across its ecosystem and the evolving market demand, Honda has aligned its production plans. Production will resume in a phased manner from May 25 from its biggest plant in Narsapur in Karnataka followed by those in Manesar (Haryana), Tapukara (Rajasthan) and Vithalapur (Gujarat) to follow soon from the first week of June in a staggered manner.

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

09

AHMEDABAD, FRIDAY MAY 22, 2020

SPEAK UP During this quarantine period, I have designed and painted more than 200 masks till date and gave it to the needy people, who are working amid lockdown like the cleaning workers, milkman, vendors, watchmen etc.

I am a teacher at Maharaja Sawai Man Singh Vidyalaya Jaipur and after getting done with my zoom classes, I utilize my creativity and passion for painting into making masks for those who are working tirelessly.

—KAMNA KAUL Masks are in Vogue and now an inseparable part of our lives and we are following the 3-layer filtration system in making them. As it is Summers in India, we are using 16 mm thick silk in pastel shades carved with Embroidery. Apart from this, Khadi and Linen fabric and traditional prints are also doing well with the season. We are also prepping up for wedding season and designing matching Embroidery, Zardosi and Gotta-Patti masks to match with heavy traditional attires.

—KIRTI RATHORE I do not belong to this stream but with the thought to control the COVID-19 spread and to give people a better experience of wearing such a useful accessory, we started designing the face masks keeping the different choices and preferences in mind from May. Our masks are made up of completely organic cotton fabric and we provide sober checks and solid designs for men, Sanganeri block and Dabbu prints for women and nursery prints for kids in masks.

—SMITA JAIPURIA Given the tropical weather in India, cotton is the most comfortable material to make masks. There are different techniques such as the button masala, a creation of designer Anuj Sharma, where one can make their own mask using a few rubber bands, handkerchiefs and buttons without stitching. I have been making masks with painted floral designs on handkerchiefs and also using stamping techniques. Artists can also use embroidery and stitch quotes or patterns onto their masks for a bohemian look.

—AAKANKSHA CHAWDA INPUTS BY TANVI SHARMA

Safety with Style The usage of Face Masks has become the need of the hour and designers have wasted no time adding flair to them.

City First got in touch with a few makers from Jaipur & Ahmedabad to know more about the current fashion trends! longed periods.

Wearing a designer mask doesn’t mean that anybody is trivializing the global pandemic, but as we lose our ability to communicate through smiles and visual cues with most of our face covered up, it’s no harm to come up with alternative ways of making a first imp r e s sion.

KIRTI CHAUHAN

kirti.chauhan@firstindia.co.in

W

ith just a matter of time, ‘Face Masks’ will be an everyday fashion staple from being the much-coveted item during the coronavirus outbreak. Although, taking facial protection isn’t new for a few, but it was never as essential as it is now.

Since the government has made it compulsory to cover nose and mouth when going out in public, it is a clear mandate for fashion lovers, especially girls, to go beyond those boring plain masks and start making their cool and funky chic mask collection that can go well with their personality and dresses.

Grabbing the opportunity, designers, as well as some naturally creative people, have entered into the mask market, making facial coverings in breathable fabrics equipped with high specification N95 air filters, thus providing the fashion-conscious with protective options. They are leaving no stone unturned in making comfortable high-end fashion fabric-based and transparent face masks featuring animal

prints, butterflies, strawberries and more unique as well as funky prints that embody the youthful spirit of a person from using comfortable cotton fabric to other materials like silk, lace, organza etc.

Interestingly, the journey of the invention in this field has led ‘AirX’ to develop and launch the world’s first-ever coffee mask made from Viet-

namese coffee, which is antibacterial, reusable and biodegradable.

However, the invention goes beyond when a student at Eastern Kentucky University developed transparent face masks that allow clinicians to more clearly interact with the patients they’re taking care of, especially who are deaf and use visual cues to help them understand what a speaker is saying.

Reusable and washable masks are the only sustainable option, just ensure that they are comfortable as you will wear them f o r pro-

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

AHMEDABAD | FRIDAY, MAY 22, 2020

10

WOULD POETRY ‘PADDLE THE COSMOS’ THROUGH CORONA? ASHISH GAUR

cityfirst@firstindia.co.in

A

supererogatory furloughs for some and solitary confinement for some. Books filled up spaces between couples and wriggled across the homes in tripod gaits.

So, where does poetry enter here? With April being National Poetry month “cherry on the cake” is that the creatives amongst us are being poetic in this pandemic. Poems are wriggling through those padlocked grey matters which were shell verged in cocoons of subsistence.

Glancing historically the twenty line poem on Quarantine with five stanzas was first penned by Eavan Boland amidst Irish famine and it being political was baptised as being quarantine ballad. And then here we are with our second phase in accordance.

We too amongst us coquettishly winked those proses off our clandestine wings of dexterity.

Pages filled daily and are typo shared amongst what’s app groups, social media and on vivid poetic platforms. Talent plat-

FA CE OF TH ED AY

s the virus was mumbling viremia and squeezing its eye balls to capture the world into its pangs and slowly when an epidemic out broke into a pandemic we were silently getting ourselves along to stay put in confinement.

Least we knew that this unaccustomed earth under our feet is actually preparing us for Bon Voyage to the season of perplexities and thoughts of tribulations and phantasms.

‘We’ to start with were fed heavily on enthusiasm with daily boluses of, unsought for few and fervent to majority, the pedantry and rambunctious sycophancy. Obviously it filled our reins with determination to sail through and stuffed our lungs with enough air to blow the damn virus to inferno.

Who would not appreciate a pat on his back!

Doordarshan rushed to get the fervent minions off the pandoras box and held us in arms as the overzealous channels glared across those evil blue corneas.

As the father’s taught the family to donn the masks like a superman and swoop across the kindle to fetch those crispy colourful chips, the mother’s chivalry churned the culinary skills aided heavily by Haber Kitchen and Tara Dalal’s videos.

Ordeal of binge watching series on Netflix and sleeping cosy in cushioned air-conditioned rooms with no hustle to be in the beeline next morning were as

They teach us to use full stop in those differentiating phrases and use blank exclamatories towards bigotry and extremism.

Sitting across the table is Mademoiselle Amrita Pritam oozing eros and pragmatic platonic adulation for Sahir and Sahir resonating the desires in Talkhiyaan and through many more kabhi kabhi’s helping us claim those lost cosmic connections.

Holding the mic to our soldiers in love is Kumar Vishwas being modern Ramayanian orator as well as singing impersonating ek Deewana Kehta hai to ek Pagli ladki ke bin and on other perspect is Piyush Mishra

forms are buzzing with performers and ballads are being trumped anon.

Amongst many Poets cheesed across the dough of life I cherry pick my marigolds and tulips amidst the meadow.

As I see them all, Rumi gives wisdom and inextricably links souls, Shakespeare says emotions find thoughts which travel in words and Emily Dickinsons disseminates experimentation with expressions and with them shoulder to shoulder are Ramdhari Dinkar and our nom de plume Nirala narrating in bohemian tradition the much needed rebellion against social injustice, acceptance and exploitation. They wield the light of wisdom to our sights inspiring us to

YOUR DAY Horoscope by Saurabbh Sachdeva

hold the ancillary hapless palms across muddy hungry streets and pull them with us to be amongst us.

Standing around is our own lean machine Bachchan inspired by Persian writings and penning in Devnagiri, teasing us with his Madhushala specially in this sans spirit quarantine and raging couplets of Agneepath thereby making us walk those extra miles in confinement daily.

At closed quarters are our models of young angry men Dhumil, Agyay, Adam Gondvi and Pash personating idealistic, communistic, rebellious and ferocious ballads and Muktibodh leading experimentation,cretique and modernism to Hindi literature.

ARIES

TAURUS

GEMINI

CANCER

Do whatever it takes to reach your fitness goal as it is the need of an hour.

Problems come and go, remember its your attitude that defines everything. Some of you may become successful entrepreneurs and will bring lots of prosperity to home.

You spend a lot of money on lifestyle and there is no harm in that as far as your pocket allows. Business deals will turn out to be profitable.

You may have to face some healthy competition in office today. Don’t take too much tension over trivial issues.

Money invested in some foreign scheme will give multiplied returns.

Professionally, people admire you and look upto you. Your worries have come to an end and life feels good again. It will be really refreshing for you to go on a short trip to someplace close to nature.

You are doing whatever it takes to get your health back on track. Don’t delay in taking decisions when need in financial matters. Your positive phase has started and things will be just fine as you move along.

You may get romantically involved with your colleague.

MAR 21 - APR 20

APR 21 - MAY 20

MAY 21 - JUNE 21

JUNE 22 - JULY 23

LEO

VIRGO

LIBRA

SCORPIO

Money is not a problem for you anymore, life is sorted that ways. Your are very conscious sometime about how you look, remember the way you feel inside reflects outside so feel confident inside. Homemakers may bring three sixty degree change in the house.

You have managed to achieve your set goal so move ahead and decide what’s next. Encourage people when you see they are loosing their mind. Your family is your priority today and you will really pamper them. Never be scared of competitions.

You are full of energy and ready to conquer the world. You must be very judicious in your spending.

You will participate in lots of competitions in the coming time. You will take some time off from work to rejuvenate yourself. You have a good friends circle.

Your mantra of life is to live and let other live. You are peaceful inside and thats what will reflect outside. You can expect a bonus. On professional front, you will help others in meeting their deadlines.

You will spend some fun time with friends today.

JULY 24 - AUGUST 23

AUG 24 - SEP 23

SEPT 24 - OCTOBER 22

OCT 23 - NOVEMBER 22

SAGITTARIUS

CAPRICORN

AQUARIUS

PISCES

You are satisfied with your life and you are making all the efforts to make it better.

You are handling your financial matters really well and you have all the support you need. You have started to enjoy your work and now going to office is no more a burden for you.

You pay a lot of attention to what you eat and when you sleep and thats the secret behind your well being. You may give a lot of attention today to your financials. Those in hospitality sector will get lots of appreciation for the hard work you have been doing lately.

You must try and be regular with your exercises to see visible effect. Go right ahead with your endeavours and help will come when you may need it.

You are aware of all the changes taking places around you on work front and nothing effects you. Your spouse is your strength.

In the pursuit of being absolutely fit, please don’t over staring yourself. Your monetary strength will rise with time. You will be firmly established in your profession. You may not get much time to spend with family today but you will compensate for it in the future.

NOV 23 - DEC 22

LAVINA TANDON, Model

being our own Khalifa of thought-provoking lyrics, catchy percussions and soul-stirring themes. They are moulding many amongst us to be like them and not as them.

Gulzaar is father to foetuses, new born, born again and self proclaimed ones holding hands with firmness and softness at

same time. He guides us through simplistic words with deep feelings and his patent idiosyncratic Triveni.

Watching from gazing stars amidst poetic galaxies are flying wish stars Robert Frost, Kipling and Wilde elated, contended, ecstatic and appeased at breaming - grinning bouquet of proses, Sonnet, Tanka ,Sestina and Cinquians. The gaze of Ghalib, Mir and Daag Dehelvi with amazed corneas and lightened brims is visible to pitch perfect Matla, Radif,Qaafiyaa and Nazms.

Laughing they go to clouds raining down those acclaims.

Poems give hope, poems transpire strength and also does it gives wings to fly. Aren’t these the things humanity is looking for to be saved and to get saved? Isn’t this is what the soul nourishes with?

Shouldn’t these be used to heal wounds of religious bigotry and social stigma? Haven’t they in past as well healed the world?

So, as our labs overtime on brainstorming the solution, Lets vaccinate ourselves with proses, couplets, nazms, shayaris and poems, quarantine ourselves with those beautiful octavos of the stalwarts and when not wielding the scalpels of our breads -let the blotch quill in thoughts, imaginations and ebb on the pearly bleached cellulose fibres moulded into papers.

I already see cosmos paddling across!

- The writer is a health care professional in Department of cardiac transplant and cardiac surgery in Mumbai.

DEC 23 - JAN 20

JAN 21 - FEB 19

FEB20 - MARCH 20

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

AHMEDABAD | FRIDAY, MAY 22, 2020

A ‘QUARANTINE’ CUT!

11

Decisive Sia!

K

riti Sanon got a ‘quarantine cut’ from her sister, singer Nupur Sanon, amid lockdown. She took to Insatgram Stories, where she shared a boomerang video and a picture of herself along with Nupur.

In the boomerang video, Nupur holds a pair of scissors and a spray bottle of water even as Kriti gestures with her fingers to suggest a haircut.

With a ‘quarantine cut’ sticker on the image, Kriti wrote: “Lets do this!!! @nupursanon.”

In the second image, Nupur is seen chopping Kriti’s long tresses even as the actress seems nervous.

“Wait for it a lil longer... Gonna post the look tomorrow,” she wrote.

On the work front, Kriti will next be seen in ‘Mimi’, directed by Laxman Utekar. The film is a remake of the National Award-winning 2011 Marathi film ‘Mala Aai Vhhaychay’.

—IANS

Sia

S

inger Sia has shared that she adopted two 18-year-old boys last year. “I actually adopted two sons last year. They were 18, they’re both 19 years old now.

They were ageing out of the foster care system,” the 44-year-old Australian artiste said in a recent interview.

On how they are handling being in quarantine during the coronavirus pandemic, Sia admitted that they “are both finding it pretty difficult, one more so than the other”. “But they’re both doing things that are really good for them right now, that are really helpful,” she continued.

“They’re really doing a lot of educational stuff that’s good for them.” Sia did not share their names or any additional information about her new family.

—IANS

Kriti Sanon; (inset) Her posts

Adorable wishes for SONSHINE!

S

hilpa Shetty Kundra’s son turned eight on Thursday and the proud mother could not help but gush about her little one, Viaan Raj. The 44-year-old actor shared a video on Twitter and expressed love for her son to mark his special day. The ‘Dhadkan’ actor posted a oneminute and 19-second video which comprised of many photographs of the mother-son duo and some more with businessman husband Raj Kundra.

“Every step of the way, I promise I’ll be by your side. Whenever you need a hug, I’ll be right here, with my arms spread wide. I’ll never stop loving you & believing in you, Coz you’re my Sonshine & my pride! Happy 8th birthday, Viaan-Raj,” she captioned. Viaan now has a younger sister as well. The actor and husband had welcomed a little angel Samisha on February 15 through surrogacy.

The couple announced the arrival of their baby girl through an Instagram post. —ANI

Not Retiring!

P

op star Britney Spears is not thinking of retiring, says younger sister Jamie Lynn. She also said when the star wants to make music, shell make it. Asked about the singer’s retirement, Jamie said in a recent interview: “No, no, no. Obviously, right now, she’s just trying to quarantine.” “She’s taking it day by day. And when she wants to make music, she’ll make it. I don’t think you can ever retire someone from their passion,” she added. Though, when asked if the ‘Baby one more time’ singer had plans for new music, Jamie said: “I don’t think so.” But she said the during the pandemic her sister, 38, is just relaxing at her Los Angeles home.

—IANS

ROKAFIED!

Britney Spears; (inset) Her post

STRUGGLING! W

hile speaking about her experience of mental health issues, Dakota Johnson recently revealed that she has struggled with depression since she was 15-years-old.

And now, amid the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic, the actress opened up about finding it hard to stay positive while dealing with the depression during the lockdown. It’s been about two months since the ‘Fifty Shades Of Grey’ actress put an end to her social life to practice social distancing, and just like a lot of other people across the world, staying alone at home is not getting any easier for her.

During her latest interview, the 30-year-old Hollywood star said she feels lonely. “You are at home, you’re not with your friends, you’re not with your family, you are not able to do the things that make you feel worthwhile,” Johnson said.

—IANS

Rana Daggubati and Miheeka Bajaj

A

fter recently confirming his relationship with Miheeka Bajaj, Telugu superstar Rana Daggubati has now made it official with a roka ceremony. The actor took to social media on Thursday to share moments from the private function with his fans and followers. ‘“And it’s official,” the ‘Baahubali’ star wrote on Instagram while sharing a happy picture of the couple. For the daytime ceremony, the couple opted for a colourful, floral decor and fairy lights. In the photographs, Rana is seen beaming with joy in a white shirt with a matching Shilpa Shetty Kundra; white dhoti.

—IANS (inset) Her post

Dakota Johnson

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 | FRIDAY, MAY 22, 2020

CORONA WARRIORS! CITY FIRST, JAIPUR

A

s the graph of the corona case rose in Jaipur, many helping hands also came forward. But there were some warriors who got infected in the war of humanity against COVID-19, but their passion remained the same. It is worth mentioning that thousands of Anganwadi workers of Jaipur district along with many others, who are going door to door in every village, town and urban area, are on the front line. Out of these, three Anganwadi workers, who got infect-

ed while performing their duties, want to get fully recovered and get back to their work despite suffering from the disease. Deputy Director of the Integrated Child Development Department, Usha Sharma said that there are about 2,000 Anganwadi workers in Jaipur district. Among them, Anganwadi Sahayika, Aasha Sahyogini, Anganwadi workers and mini workers were involved in the prevention of the spread of coronavirus in the district. While giving their duty as a corona warrior, 3 workers and 2 Asha Sahyogini of the department got infected by the coronavirus. But their

NUANCES

12

desire helped them recover from the disease and now all the three workers, previously admitted in Naraina, NIMS and SMS Hospital, have been discharged. However, they have to stay home due to medical protocol and weakness. In such a situation, they are in constant touch with their field worker colleagues and officers and want to return to their job again. Their families are also supporting them in this decision.

Still, 2 Asha Sahiyogini are undergoing treatment and would recover soon by defeating coronavirus. cityfirst@firstindia.co.in

TWEETED!

WHAT’S HAPPENING!

OF KATHAK CITY FIRST

O

n the sixth day of the ongoing on Thursday, ‘Online Learning – Children’s Summer Festival’, viewers learned about the nuances of Jaipur Gharana style of Kathak in the session ‘Jaipur Kathak’. The 3-day online learning session is being conducted by Kathak exponent, Namita Jain. During the session, the viewers had the opportunity to explore various dance sequences, hand gestures, feet work and much more. It was a unique opportunity for viewers to learn and revive dance skills, gain knowledge on Kathak, and understand the significance of the

Vaibhav Gehlot

dance in today’s time.

The session began with a brief introduction of Kathak as a dance form.

The term Kathak is derived from the word ‘Katha’ which means ‘story’, and ‘Kathakar’ which means ‘the storyteller’. Specialties of the Jaipur Gharana style of Kathak were also shared.

This was followed by a brief discussion on the importance of ‘Taal’ and ‘Leh’ in Kathak. Similarly, the type of instruments used or played during a Kathak performance and what is played on these instru-

West Bengal: Shades of Colours, a Bengali cloud short film, directed

by Pradip Dhar, co-story writer, Ayanjit Sen, editor, Abhinaba Halder, and concept writer, Souvik Biswas, shows how the family bonding has changed for the better in recent days, especially at a time when the entire country is in a lockdown mode. This film was made indoors without breaking the rules of lockdown, including social distancing.

ments during the performance were also discussed.

Today, 22 May, the second day of the ‘Jaipur Kathak’ online learning session ‘Jaipur Kathak’ will be conducted by Kathak exponent, Namita Jain. The session will begin with a short revision of the previous day’s teachings. The day’s lesson will focus on ‘Hast Sanchalan’ (hand postures), movements used during the dance to make the body look graceful, Mudra, Taatkar and much more. cityfirst@firstindia.co.in

MICRO EVENTS! O

Rajasthan: Amid the lockdown, the young sculptor from Studio Shilpik, Gautam Vyas, paid a tribute to former PM Late Rajiv Gandhi on the occasion of his death anniversary, by giving the final touch to his sculpture, under the guidance of his father renowned Sculptor Laxman Vyas.

—PHOTO BY MUKESH KIRADOO

Rajasthan: During the ongoing online musical series ‘Sumiran’, initiated by Rajasthan Forum, in association with Shree Cement and Raghu Sinha Mala Mathur Charity Trust amid the nationwide lockdown, a Jaipur based young singer Rohit Kataria along with Father Chandra Kataria, partner Akanksha Kataria and sister Vrinda Kataria, mesmerized the online audience with their performances on popular patriotic songs, on Thursday.

CITY FIRST

wing to the global pandemic, large size weddings and events are not possible; however, weddings and other landmark life events are taking place with limited friends and family around. Realising the need to design these events aesthetically, a Jaipur based firm ‘Event Crafter’ has taken a first of its kind initiative in the country to make these events special while strictly following the relevant safety procedures. They have introduced ‘Micro by Event Crafter’ to design these events in a minimalist yet contemporary way with a well trained and equipped team to ensure all safety SOPs are followed.

Throwing light on some of the safety SOPs to be fol-

lowed in the events, Founder and CEO of Event Crafter, Siddhartha Chaturvedi shared, “The Safety SOPs have been broadly divided into pre-event, during the event and post-event categories. There are as many as 60 safety procedures that are to be followed in an event. These include sanitization of decor material, temperature screening of every individual before en-

tering the venue; seating arrangement according to social distancing norms; limited staff, among others.

Wearing of masks, gloves and sanitizers both by guests and staff will be mandatory. The hallmark of these events will be sustainable, minimal waste and intimate experiences combined with great aesthetics.” cityfirst@firstindia.co.in

HAPPY B’DAY!

IAS Rashmi Gupta (top) and IPS N Ravindra Kumar Reddy celebrated their birthdays on 21 May, Thursday. We wish them all the best!

Gujarat: Irfan Pathan talked about COVID-19 from the point of view of a sportsperson with Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani via video conferencing with Vadodara collector Shalini Agrawal and other officials at the Vadodara Collectorate office on Thursday.