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Power of Thoughts

DEADLY

VIRUS

NOT INFECTED BUT AFFECTED

OUTLOOK 2020

TOURS & TRAVEL

BIG LOSS IN MUTUAL FUND SIP? KNOW YOUR OPTIONS

INVESTMENT

DEFENCE

Letter from the

Power of Thoughts

Editor in Chief

Editor

A Fresh Story of Industrial Growth

HARIOM TYAGI

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ttar Pradesh Chief Minister, Yogi Adityanath’s plan to set up the country's biggest film city of the state will depict a fresh story of development across the NCR. This beautiful film city is being created at the YEIDA sector 21 and it is situated along the Yamuna Expressway. Soon after the UP Government took its decision in favour of creating a New Film City in UP, a massive search for suitable land in and around Noida city started. Ultimately, acres of land at spread along the Yamuna Expressway was identified for this promising project. The authorities concerned were directed to prepare an action plan in this regard. Resolving all issues and possible conflicts between buyer and seller, Yogi Adityanath promised to ensure the protection of consumers' rights by all possible means and asked the authorities to make a registry of the booked flats with immediate effect. Consequently, the Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authorities (YEIDA) was directed to expedite the work of ongoing projects like Convention and Habitat Centre, golf course and the expansion of the Metro and a shooting range. Mandatory steps were taken to resolve the issues related to traffic snarls across the localities. The Delhi-Meerut Expressway, DelhiGhaziabad-Meerut Regional Rapid Transit System and the Inner Ring Road in Meerut are among a few others that can make the traffic system more easing in the days to come. The entire Meerut Metro project will hopefully be completed by March 2025 while the priority section from Sahibabad to Duhai would be completed by March 2023. For early completion of the projects, the officials and the concerned agencies are leaving no stone unturned to execute their plans. This film city would not only provide better opportunities to the film-makers but will also offer job opportunities to the myriads of local youths and skilled or unskilled manpower in the NCR. In the blueprint shared by the incumbent UP CM, the proposed film city will cover an area of about 780 acres, out of the total areas of 1,000 acres, allotted for the entire projects under the jurisdiction YEIDA. It would not only throw challenges to the Bollywood but will also augur well for the Noida and nearby realty markets. This Film City along the Yamuna Expressway will add a new dimension to the economic base of the region, besides making the AgraMathura-Vrindavan tourism circuit more lucrative. This is one of the mega infrastructural developments in the region that would further augment the investment sentiments in the state. The site is close to the upcoming international airport, expressways, Delhi, Mathura and benefitted with several advantages. It is believed that the ‘Film City’ in Uttar Pradesh would certainly give a boost to the real estate sector in Noida, Greater Noida and the Yamuna Expressway. It would be an immediate impact on property prices that could be more fruit fetching for the builders as well as the buyers.

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BRIEFING COVER STORY

NATIONAL

PM Modi Participates in ‘Ekta Diwas’ Parade, Recalls Maharshi Valmiki

INSTIGATOR DR. ARUN VIR SINGH (I.A.S.)

FILM CITY AT YEIDA

INTERNATIONAL

OPINION

US, European Countries to Set Paradigm of Transparent Relationships

BUSINESS OUTLOOK

‘We are Back’ Nitish Says His Close Saffron Aid

IN-DEPTH

Gas Major of US Likely to Invest about USD 10 Billion in India

December 2020

Among Europe’s Worst Virus Hit-Areas - ‘Belgium’

OBSERVER DAWN

BRIEFING

TOP STORY Top 20 Influential Women of 2020

54 8

BIZ TIPS Ways to Win Trust of B2B Audiences through Contents

DEFENCE Fresh Spectrum Warfare Wing of US Air-force

INT’L BIZ First Nuclear Power Plant of Belarus Takes a Fresh Momentum

OBSERVER DAWN December 2020

LIFESTYLE These Home Décor Ideas are Here to Stay

TOUR & TRAVEL Most Important Tourist Places in Himachal Pradesh

National

KARNATAKA GOVT STEPS UP TO BAN COW SLAUGHTERING

arnataka Minister for Animal Husbandry and Waqf, Prabhu Chavan, has said that a law banning Cow Slaughter on the model of Gujarat will be brought into force in the state. While, inaugurating a Rs 29.60 lakh Veterinary Hospital at Anchatageri, a village in Karnataka district, the Minister said that several steps were taken to strengthen the rules to prevent animal cruelty in the state, since he took over the department. Also, in accordance with a Supreme Court order, for the first time in Karnataka, an Animal Welfare Board had been created to prevent Animal cruelty, he said and added that steps were also being taken to create a 24-Hour Service War Room, to ensure Veterinary Doctor’s service in time to those Farmers involved in Dairy, Poultry, Sheep and Piggery Sectors, whereby, the farmers can call the service on a toll free number. For this purpose, 15 Sanjivani Veterinary Ambulance Vehicles have been provided so far covering in 16 districts and 15 more such vehicles will be added soon. These Mobile Ambulances are equipped with all necessary instruments, such as Scanning, Surgical, Laboratory, and Medicines to provide Emergency treatment on the spot to the Animals. These will go to the doors of the farmers, which is like a Veterinary Hospital reaching the doorsteps of the needy. He said that out of the total strength of 18,000 Veterinary Doctors, 9,000 positions were lying vacant in the state and a proposal has been sent to the Finance department to provide clearance to fill the vacancies soon. The Minister stated that several Animal husbandry equipment, such as RT-PCR's from the Hebbal Agriculture College were handed over to the State Medical Department for the utilization in handling the COVID-19 pandemic. In order to increase administrative efficiency in the department, all the offices of the Animal Husbandry Department in Bangalore were moved into one building, he added.

WHATSAPP MESSAGES CAN'T BE USED AS EVIDENCE AGAINST DRUG PEDDLER

hatsapp messages with a co-accused are not substantial and sufficient to hold an accused behind the bars, especially when there is no recovery of contraband, said a special NDPS court in Mumbai. The order was passed by the special NDPS judge S.H. Satbhai on Thursday as he granted bail to an Australian architect who was arrested last week on charges of procurement and consumption of drugs. Accused Paul Gerard Bartels, a resident of Santacruz West of Mumbai, has been living in India for the last 8 years. While no contraband was recovered, NCB officials claimed that they had come across chats in which drugs were discussed with two other accused in a case which the agency is probing in actor Sushant Singh Rajput’s death. The Judge said, “From said messages, it is tried to contend that the accused is dealing in drugs as a peddler/ supplier of drugs. But at this stage, those WhatsApp messages are not substantial and sufficient to hold the role of accused as a peddler/supplier of drugs”.

While granting bail to Bartels, the court noted, “In case in future, if the cogent material is collected by the NCB demonstrating the role of accused as peddler/supplier of drugs, then the scenario would be different. The fact that the NCB, after the arrest of accused on his production before the Metropolitan Magistrate, did not ask for his NCB custody, it goes to show that there was no material available with the NCB to interrogate the accused and to make the further investigation explaining that he is not the consumer of the drugs, but his role is as a peddler/supplier of drugs”.

COVID-19: CHALLENGES GROWUP FOR DEVELOPING NATIONS

he challenges grown up for the developing world to plan Covid inoculation programs for their dense populations with two leading U.S. drug makers issuing encouraging results from the trials of Covid-19 vaccines. “Its jab is almost 95% effective and Pfizer, with co-developer BioNTech, reported 90 percent efficacy in their trials”, Moderna announced. For a pandemic that has infected more than 53 million and killed more than a million people around the world, the bar for an effective shot is set at 50%. Both companies announced their results in press statements and not in peer-reviewed journals, but the declarations have been received positively by international health experts. America’s Virus expert, Dr Anthony

OBSERVER DAWN December 2020

National

PM MODI PARTICIPATES IN ‘EKTA DIWAS’ PARADE, RECALLS MAHARSHI VALMIKI

r i m e M i n i s t e r, N a r e n d r a M o d i , participated in the Ekta Diwas Celebrations to commemorate the Birth Anniversary of ‘Loh Purush’, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel at Kevadia in Gujarat.

Besides, witnessing the Ekta Diwas parade, he offered floral tributes at the Statue of Unity and administered the Ekta Pledge on the occasion. “Various projects that have been inaugurated for the integrated development of Kevadia will help in increasing the tourism of the region. The tourists will now have the option to visit the Statue of Unity to get the darshan of Sardar Saheb through a sea-plane service as well”, Modi said.

PM Modi, recalled Adikavi Maharishi Valmiki, whose birth anniversary coincide with Ekta Diwas.

behind the obstacles that were coming in its development. He added, today the country is establishing new dimensions of unity. He listed the steps taken for the restoration of peace in the Northeast and the initiatives taken for its development. He said, following the Apex Court’s verdicts, the construction of Ram Temple started in Ayodhya. Of course, this is an attempt to restore the cultural glory of India envisioned by Sardar Patel. He remarked that today, 130 crore countrymen together are building a nation that is both strong and capable, in which there should be equality and there are also opportunities. He said only a self-sufficient country can be confident of its progress as well as its security. He added therefore that the country is moving towards becoming selfsufficient in the various fields including defense as well.

Meanwhile, PM Modi, recalled Adikavi Maharishi Valmiki, whose birth anniversary coincide with Ekta Diwas. He reiterated that Maharshi Valmiki had made efforts to make India more vibrant, energetic and culturally united. He expressed his happiness and appreciated the way the entire country has proved its collective strength, its collective will in the face of this epidemic, is unprecedented. Prime Minister further said, now Kashmir has moved on a new path of development, leaving

is the molecule that provides information to the cells of the body to produce the antigen," explained Zoltan Kis, a research associate at London's Imperial College. In layman's terms, the concept means injecting part of the coronavirus' genetic code into the body, which in turn trains the immune system to attack should the real virus try to invade. Both require low temperatures -- minus 20 Celsius for Moderna and an ultra-cold storage of minus 75 Celsius for Pfizer. Health experts in India find Pfizer's shot, in particular, a difficult proposition for the country.

Fauci said, “So I think this is a really strong step forward to where we want to be about getting control of this outbreak”. Both Moderna and Pfizer used innovative technology in designing their vaccines. "So this technology involves making the RNA, which

"Pfizer vaccine has to be kept at -70 degrees Celsius, which is a challenge for developing countries like India where we will have difficulties in maintaining a cold chain, especially on rural missions," said AIIMS director Randeep Guleria. He added it was almost encouraging news in vaccine research for those in Phase III trials.

December 2020

OBSERVER DAWN

International

A THREE-STEP AGREEMENT BETWEEN INDIA & CHINA

mong other developments, India and China have on November 6, 2020 discussed the disengagement plan from the Pangong lake area during the 8th Corps Commander-level talks in Chushul.

The ongoing India-China border conflict may be resolved soon as the armies of the two countries have agreed for disengagement from parts of the Eastern Ladakh sector under which they would be moving back to their respective positions before April-May timeframe earlier this year. The disengagement plan was discussed between the two sides during the 8th Corps Commander-level talks which were held on November 6 in Chushul. According to the disengagement plan which is to be carried out in three steps in one week from the talks in the Pangong lake area, the armoured vehicles including tanks and armoured personnel carriers were to be moved back from their frontline deployment to a significant distance from the Line of Actual Control (LAC) by both sides. The disengagement of tanks and armoured personnel carriers was to be carried out within one day. The talks were held on November 6 in which External Affairs Ministry's Joint Secretary Naveen Shrivastava and Brigadier Ghai of Directorate General of Military Operations had taken part. In the second step to be carried out near the northern bank on the Pangong Lake, both sides were supposed to withdraw around 30 per cent of troops every day for three days. The Indian side would be coming close to its administrative Dhan Singh Thapa post while the Chinese had consented to go back to their position east of Finger 8. In the third and last step, the two sides were to withdraw from their respective positions from the frontline along the southern bank of Pangong Lake area which includes the heights and territories around Chushul and Rezang La area.

US, EUROPEAN COUNTRIES TO SET PARADIGM OF TRANSPARENT RELATIONSHIPS

he recently elected United States President, Joe Biden, spoke to fellow heads of government and state of four European countries. Biden discussed his interest in reinvigorating bilateral and transatlantic ties, including through the NATO and the EU with his fellows. He also discussed COVID-19 and a sustainable economic recovery, Iran’s nuclear programme, climate change and human rights. Biden had said earlier that as President he would offer Iran a credible path back to diplomacy. He added that he would re-join the Paris accord. Biden also discussed the conflicts in Ukraine and Syria with Mr. Macron, as per the press release. The Presidentelect also spoke with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and

OBSERVER DAWN December 2020

ALLEGING SECURITY LAPSE DONALD TRUMP FIRES DHS OFFICIALS

he United States President, Donald Trump, fired a senior Department of Homeland Security (DHS) official, Christopher Krebs, who had countered his claim that the electoral activities were pursued. Trump announced his recent decision through Twitter handle. In his Twitter handle, Donald Trump said, “Chris Krebs’ recent statement on the security arrangements during the Presidential Election 2020 was completely wrong. In that statement, there were massive improprieties and fraud — including dead people voting, Poll Watchers not allowed into polling locations, glitches in the voting machines which changed votes from Trump to Biden, late voting, and many more. As such, with immediate effective Chris Krebs has been terminated as Director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency [CISA]”. “The President’s allegations of massive improprieties are unsubstantiated. His campaign and some allies have filed lawsuits in a number of battleground States, but none of these have thus far successfully overturned any results”, Krebs stated. Krebs had tweeted, “Various election

International

US SAYS CHINA KEEPS NO RIGHT TO CHOOSE NEXT DALAI LAMA

tressing that the Tibetan Buddhists have successfully picked their spiritual leader for hundreds of years, a top US diplomat says China has no theological basis to pick the next Dalai Lama.

security experts agree in almost every case. These claims either have been unsubstantiated or are technically incoherent”.

“I am delighted to serve. We did everything right. Defend Today, Secure Tomorrow”, Krebs tweeted soon after he was fired on November 17, 2020

“Altogether 59 scientists and officials — many of them computer scientists and security researchers — had released a letter stating that to their knowledge, there was no credible evidence that the outcome of the election in any State had been altered as a result of being technically compromised”, Krebs said in his Twitter handle. “I am delighted to serve. We did everything right. Defend Today, Secure Tomorrow”, Krebs tweeted soon after he was fired on November 17, 2020. In an official statement Krebs had said that he was expected to be fired.

Ambassador at Large for International Religious Freedom, Samuel D Brownback said, "I travelled to Dharamshala, India to speak to the Tibetan communities that were assembled there in exile and to tell them that the US is opposed to China picking the next Dalai Lama”. He said that during a conference call during his visit to India in October. In a question asked by the media, he said, "They have no right to do that. They have no theological basis to do that. The Tibetan Buddhists have successfully picked their leader for hundreds of years, if not longer, and they have the right to do that now”. Samuel D Brownback said the US supports that religious communities have the right to pick their own leadership. “That certainly includes the next Dalai Lama. So we've pushed back against that. We are going to continue to push back against that. We think that is completely wrong of the Chinese Communist Party to assert that they have that right," he said. The 14th Dalai Lama, now 85, has been living in India ever since he fled Tibet in 1959 following a Chinese crackdown on an uprising by the local population. The Tibetan governmentin-exile operates from Dharamsala in Himachal Pradesh. Over 1,60,000 Tibetans live in India. Samuel D Brownback accused China of one of the worst religious persecution situations in the world today, if not the worst.

“praised her leadership” as per the readout of the call. The discussions between Biden and Merkel include COVID-19, climate crisis, the sustainable global economic recovery. Trump’s relationship with Merkel was tense — the two were at loggerheads over tariffs, the NATO and their different approaches to immigration. Biden also spoke with Irish Taoiseach Micheál Martin and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, with whom Trump has a warm relationship. Biden reaffirmed his commitment to the Good Friday Agreement (the Northern Ireland peace agreement) with both leaders. This had been a point of discussion when British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab visited the U.S. in September this year. Bidden said, “We can’t allow the Good Friday Agreement that brought peace to Northern Ireland to become a casualty of Brexit”. Any trade deal between the U.S. and U.K. must be contingent upon respect for the Agreement and preventing the return of a hard border. Johnson also announced the congratulatory phone call on Twitter, saying the two had discussed “shared priorities”.

December 2020

OBSERVER DAWN

Business Outlook

GAS MAJOR OF US LIKELY TO INVEST ABOUT USD 10 BILLION IN INDIA

he investment plan of Air Products is important for the Indian government, which is working towards reducing coal imports and dependence on fossil fuels.

The US-based gas major Air Products and Chemicals is planning to invest USD 5-10 billion in India over the next five years towards coal gasification projects. Air Products and Chemicals, a world leader in coal gasification, is expected to build and operate several coal gasification complexes in India. As part of its investment plan, Air Products and Chemicals will partner with coal suppliers like Coal India to get the feedstock and supply industrial gases to end customers. Initially, the company is planning to invest USD 2 billion in the country, said the report quoting Richard Boocock, Senior Vice-President and Chief Information Officer of Air Products.

India is a growing market for manufacturing and the 'selfreliant India' policies will also help growth of consumption of industrial gases, a primary enabler for industrial activity across many sectors”, he said.

It may be noted that Air Products has around 750-plus production facilities worldwide in over 50 countries with 1,800 miles of industrial gas connections for over 30 different manufacturing

industries. Boocock said the company sees India as a major growth market in the future as the country is further opening up the coal sector for energy security. “Industrial gases are a highly localized industry as its transportation is an issue. India is a growing market for manufacturing and the 'self-reliant India' policies will also help growth of consumption of industrial gases, a primary enabler for industrial activity across many sectors”, he said. Air Products’ investment plan is important for the Indian government, which is working towards reducing coal imports and dependence on fossil fuels. It has set a target to gasify 100 million tonnes of coal by 2030.

card Phase-II by Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, and Prime Minister of Bhutan, Lyonchhen Lotay Tshering, was held on November 20, 2020”. While, addressing the weekly briefing on November 20, 2020, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson, Anurag Srivastava, said, “PhaseII will now allow Bhutanese cardholders to access the RuPay network in India. India and Bhutan share a special partnership, anchored in mutual understanding and respect, reinforced by a shared cultural heritage and strong people to people links”.

INDIA-BHUTAN TO LAUNCH PHASE-II OF RUPAY CARD

mong other major developments, India and Bhutan have stepped up to launch the second phase of the RuPay card. A statement issued by the Indian PMO recently, said, “A virtual ceremony for the joint launch of RuPay

While, addressing the weekly briefing on November 20, 2020, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson, Anurag Srivastava, said, “Phase-II will now allow Bhutanese cardholders

OBSERVER DAWN December 2020

Noticeably, the prime ministers of India and Bhutan had in August 2019 jointly launched Phase-I of the project during the state visit of the Prime Minister to Bhutan in August 2019. The implementation of Phase-I of RuPay cards in Bhutan has enabled visitors from India to access ATMs and Point of Sale (PoS) terminals across Bhutan. RuPay is an Indian card scheme, launched as an alternative to the MasterCard and Visa card schemes.

Business Outlook

INDIAN GOVT BANS IMPORTS OF AC, REFRIGERATOR FROM CHINA

n what could be termed as a big blow to China, the Indian Government has banned the import of air conditioners with refrigerants. This step is aimed at providing a big boost to domestic production. The Director-General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), Government of India had on November 22, 2020 issued a notice in this regard. These are being moved from Free to Prohibited class. The fresh ban on importing air conditioners with refrigerants has been imposed after approval was given by the Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal. The country had earlier put the import of television sets under a restricted In what could be list and had asked importers to seek licenses from the termed as a big DGFT. The domestic market of air conditioners in India blow to China, is huge, believed to be around USD 5-6 billion. The the Indian government, however, wants local manufacturers to Government has banned the step up production and sale, in line with its Aatmanirbhar import of air Bharat mission. Also worth noting is the fact that the Commerce Ministry’s infestation arm, Directorate General of Trade Remedies (DGTR), has recommended antidumping duty of five years on Choline Chloride imports from China, Malaysia and Vietnam, after a flurry of complaints by domestic manufacturers. Besides this,

RBI GETS OVER A MILLION FOLLOWERS ON TWITTER

conditioners with refrigerants. This step is aimed at providing a big boost to domestic production

India had in August introduced an import embargo on over 100 items to boost indigenization of defense production in the country. Some items like artillery guns, light combat helicopters, assault rifles, corvettes and radars are few which will no longer be imported from foreign countries. The main focus is to increase indigenous manufacturing of all such equipment to boost self-reliance. However, a major push behind India’s self-reliant drive was the recent border standoff with China. Since the conflict began, India has been cutting down on imports from China as part of strict trade measures.

In a Twitter post Das said, “The RBI Twitter account reaches one million followers on November 22, 2020”. Das further congratulated his all colleagues in RBI.

The RBI’s Twitter handle is followed by more than 10,00,000 people around the globe, making it one of the most popular central banks in the world. It may be noted that RBI now has more ith more than a million Twitter followers, the Reserve Twitter followers than the US Federal Reserve and the European Bank of India (RBI) has become the world’s first central Central Bank. This achievement is commendable, considering that bank that has got such a place in social media. The RBI the 85-year-old central bank was a latecomer Governor, Shaktikanta Das, congratulated his central bank on Twitter. Its account was created in January colleagues following the development. The US Federal 2012, much later than the Twitter handles of Reserve, US Federal Reserve and the European Central central bank, Bank (ECB). The second-most followed central has only 6.77 bank on Twitter is the Banco de Mexico or the lakh followers. central bank of Mexico. It has 7.74 lakh followers, Meanwhile, followed by the Bank of Indonesia with 7.57 lakh the secondfollowers. The US Federal Reserve, the world’s most powerful monetary most prominent central bank, has only 6.77 lakh authority in followers. Meanwhile, the second-most powerful the world, ECB, monetary authority in the world, ECB, has 5.91 has 5.91 lakh lakh followers on Twitter. The ECB is followed by followers on the Central Bank of Brazil with 3.82 lakh follows Twitter and then comes the Bank of England with 3.17 lakh followers.

The RBI’s Twitter popularity has surged since March 2019 when it had just about 3.42 lakh followers. By March 2020, its follower counts jumped to 7,50,000 and followers further increased by 1.5 lakh since March 25, 2020.

December 2020

OBSERVER DAWN

Opinion

SURFEIT OF CONTRASTING, CONFUSING NARRATIVES AS POLLING STARTS By Sidharth Mishra

arratives do matter in polls. They increasingly started to influence voting patterns ever since the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) unveiled the power of social media during the 2013 Delhi Assembly polls, emerging as a political force from almost nowhere. Prime Minister Narendra Modi quickly picked the threads and patented it during the 2014 campaign. The spin masters and media strategists were never as important they are today in any poll campaign. Though the best-known political spin master Prashant Kishor is conspicuous by his absence from campaign in his home state, the spin of words is complementing the pace and gruel of campaign at grassroots. Recently Bihar’s Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi took to twitter to say that the rival RJD’s Chief Ministerial face Tejashwi Yadav has humiliated the upper caste at a rally in the remote Rohtas area. Bihar BJP’s tallest leader Sushil Kumar Modi, is a known baiter of the upper castes and often targeted by leaders of his party for step-motherly treatment to communities loyal to the BJP. Posting of such information by Sushil Modi somewhere betrays the jitter in the BJP campaign, which suspects that a section of upper caste voters could vote for the grand alliance (Mahagathbandhan) of the RJD, Congress and the Left parties. The magnitude of edginess is such that Sushil Modi has also claimed that his rivals used black magic a few years back against him. This nerviness despite the opinion polls showing a clear lead for the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA), has a context. In Bihar the pre-poll surveys have often differed with the post-poll results. During the 2015 polls, BJP’s vote share was projected to be 35.5 percent and RJD-Congress together 15.2 percent. However, when the results came out RJD-Congress together had polled 25.5 percent and BJP’s share had come down to 25 percent. Mahagathbandhan’s campaign unlike the electioneering of the past, this time around is reaching out to the communities beyond its traditional vote bank of Muslims and Yadavs. Tejashwi so far has remained ‘vocal on local’ issues and refused to get into a debate on issues of Article 370, CAA and Ram Mandir. Promising jobs and controlling prices of essentials are the lynchpin of his campaign. In fact, to charges like use of black magic he responded saying that such moves to deviate focus. To illustrate the point further, MIM leader Asaduddin Owaisi has been complaining that Yadav is quiet on the Muslim issues. However, the master strategist of Mahagathbandhan’s campaign (read incarcerated leader Lalu Prasad Yadav), knows for sure talking on these tricky issues would be walking on a minefield laid by the BJP. Like Jharkhand, where Congress, RJD and JMM fought together, the focus was kept on local issues and they successfully ousted the BJP government. So, the Gupkar declaration cuts no ice, and Rahul Gandhi mentioning China doesn’t get much appreciated in the strategy room of the grand alliance. In the back alleys of Bihar, not to forget that its politically most cognizant state, there is also talk about the volume of vitriol which Chirag Paswan is pouring on Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. The late central minister was never known to be abusive towards his political rivals and was rather known to enjoy a congenial relationship across the political spectrum, which helped him smoothly hop alliances. On the other hand, his son Chirag has even threatened to jail JD(U) supremo Nitish Kumar for alleged corruption in the ‘7 Nishchay’ scheme. Addressing an election rally, he is reported to have promised

that if the LJP comes to power, he will initiate a probe and all those found responsible, whether an official or the Chief Minister, will be jailed. Given Chirag’s ‘loose’ talk, there is concern in the strategy room of Mahagathbandhan. There is a feeling that given the past history of conflict between known supporter castes of Nitish and Dusadhs (Paswan’s community), such venomous attack on Nitish could consolidate chief minister’s vote bank. Chirag is taking this conflict further ahead by having put up candidates against another NDA alliance partner, Mahadalit leader Jitan Ram Manjhi’s Hindustan Awam Morcha. As mentioned in these columns earlier, given the social structuring and their impact on the voting patterns, Nitish Kumar right during his first term as the Chief Minister created the electoral vertical of the Mahadalits. In 2007, soon after he had consolidated his position as Chief minister, Nitish Kumar set up the State Mahadalit Commission to recommended inclusion of extremely weaker castes from the list of Scheduled Castes. Dusadhs and Chamars were kept out of the list of castes recommended by the commission to be categorised as Mahadalits. Till date, despite the Mahadalit Commission coming out with two more recommendation, Dusadhs are still to find place in the Mahadalit list, though Chamars have made it. The empowered Mahadalits, given Chirag’s spiteful attack on Nitish, could consolidate behind the chief minister the way did in 2010 and 2015. This is the 15% vote share which Nitish showcases in addition to his traditional Kurmi supporters, the community he belongs to. Thus, the alleged BJP gamble to cut Nitish Kumar to size through Chirag Paswan could end-up benefitting the incumbent Chief Minister.

OBSERVER DAWN December 2020

(The writer is a senior journalist and political analyst)

Opinion

‘WE ARE BACK’ NITISH SAYS HIS CLOSE SAFFRON AID By Swati Chaturvedi

oon after the toughest election of his life, the JDU Chief, Nitish Kumar, rang up the BJP leader, Sushil Kumar Modi, who had served as his Deputy Chief Minister. "Hum log aa gaye hain," he said to the BJP leader. After an all-nighter of counting votes, their alliance finally had emerged as the winner in Bihar after being all shook up by Tejashwi Yadav, all of 31 years old. The result was a complete deviation from what the exit polls on Saturday had predicted - sumptuous victory for Tejashwi Yadav, who, with his helicopter, conducted about 250 rallies through his campaign, nearly one in every constituency of the large state. It was his intuitive announcement of providing 10 lakh government jobs that supercharged him into seemingly pole position. Battered by the economic devastation of Coronavirus and a stalling of development in Bihar, what the youth wanted more than anything else was jobs. The BJP first tore Tejashwi Yadav's commitment apart, claiming it would leave the state broke. Then, when it realized he was onto something, they said they would provide 19 lakh jobs, nearly double of what he had headlined in his sales pitch. So how did the BJP-Nitish Kumar alliance scramble out of their bind? For your columnist, there are two big winners and two equally big losers whose stories are intertwined. Let me explain why. Tejashwi Yadav now leads the single-largest party in Bihar. Runner-up is the BJP, just one seat behind. That's how close the whole thing was. Tejashwi Yadav certainly didn't have it all laid out for him. His father, Lalu Yadav, synonymous with corruption and ‘jungle raj’ in the state is in jail. He turned his campaign into an immersive experience, solely on the basis of his charisma and his commitment to address audiences in every part of the state. The crowds were magnificent in size. In an interview with NDTV aboard his chopper, he wiped his face repeatedly as he moved between two large rallies, professing that his

19 rallies a day outdid his father's record of 16. Tejashwi Yadav, till now, had been a lackluster politician, showing all the encumbrances of a political heir. Though his speeches and connect with voters have always been his strength, as Deputy Chief Minister to Nitish Kumar (their government collapsed in 2017), he came across as entitled and irresponsible, often missing important meetings and failing to make any sort of mark on the policies or actions being implemented. He was 26 at the time. This election has delivered him as the first mass leader of the next generation of politicians. His shrewd strategy of never referring to his father in his speeches or allowing his photos on publicity material indicates solid instincts. Much will depend now of whether he can muster the commitment to serve as a dedicated opposition leader. The tantalising prospect of serving as the young Chief Minister of Bihar and the third member of his family to take that office was neutralized heavily by his ally, Rahul Gandhi, who drove a hard bargain. The Congress contested 70 seats but won only 19. Yet again, the Congress has exercised its role as the weakest link, proving not just ineffectual but dangerous for any coalition that it is a part of. Tejashwi Yadav was reluctant to concede so many seats to Rahul Gandhi but was nudged by Lalu. Tejashwi Yadav stayed on message emphasizing only jobs, jobs, jobs. He also sidestepped hot button Hindutva issues and personal attacks on his family made by an uncharacteristically flappable Nitish Kumar. In contrast, Rahul Gandhi, while addressing meetings, focused on personal attacks on Prime Minister Narendra Modi which have now been established as harmful, given the PM's lavish popularity.

December 2020

(The writer is a journalist who has worked with the various renowned media houses in India)

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Opinion

US’S PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION 2020 REFLECTS A SHADOW OF DIVIDED NATION By Sol Goldman

t was a long November night. Technically, it ended three hours after the midnight of November 3, when both contestants — Joe Biden and Donald Trump — had made their speeches. But, politically, the night has not yet ended. As of now, Biden is quite close to 270 electoral votes, which will make him the next US president. But he is not there yet. And even if he gets to 270, Trump has already filed legal cases questioning the vote in several states. It is unclear what the courts will do, how long they will take, whether there will be more cases. In 2000, only Florida (29 electoral votes) was legally contested, and a settlement took until December 12. We have four Floridas now: Wisconsin (10), Michigan (16), Georgia (16) and Pennsylvania (20). Of these, Biden has won the first two, and has been closing the gap in the last two, generating anxiety in the Trump camp. More legal challenges can’t be ruled out. Trump’s first postelection speech overflowed with his customary traits. He declared victory (with tens of millions of votes still uncounted), claimed voter fraud (with no prima facie evidence provided), asked states, where he was ahead on the night of November 3, to stop counting (when are democrats afraid of votes?), and threatened legal action. As of now, we have little national-level data on three important issues: What proportion of each racial and ethnic community voted for the two candidates? What was the gender distribution? And were there serious age-cohort differences? These important issues can be analysed only when disaggregated statistics come in. But here is what we do know. The turnout was historic. In presidential elections, the turnout in the US rarely crosses 60 per cent. Since 1960, only four times has that bar been crossed: In the three elections of the 1960s and in Obama’s 2008 election. The turnout this year is likely to touch 65 per cent. That even a pandemic

could not depress the turnout should demonstrate how high the stakes were. We also now know that early votes — roughly 100 million out of the nearly 150 million — were disproportionately Democratic, and the Election Day votes were overwhelmingly Republican. As a result, in most swing states, Trump was ahead on election night, and on November 4, as mailed ballots were counted, Trump leads progressively shrank, or disappeared altogether. In Georgia, Trump was ahead by 3,72,400 votes before midnight on November 3. At 8 am on November 5, the lead had come down to roughly 18,000. The state-level trends are also quite clear. Trump’s clearest path to victory was to keep in his victory column all Republican states he won in 2016, losing at best two of three Democratic states he unexpectedly swung: Michigan (16), Wisconsin (10), and Pennsylvania (20). He has lost the first two and Pennsylvania is uncertain. But the most striking development is

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Opinion that Biden might flip one or more of three Republican states — Georgia (16), North Carolina (15) and Arizona (11). That is why Biden is closer to 270 than Trump. For most people, a statistical survey of elections is an exercise too dispassionately clinical. An election is as much about the meanings as about the data. What do the victories and defeats signify? In what ways are they linked to larger ideas and narratives of a polity and society?

Since the mid1960s, the theme of equality has been more potent, bringing about many positive changes in America’s race relations and leading also to the election of a black president in 2008 and 2012

At a policy level, this election was about the pandemic and the economic devastation of the last many months. But it was also about three less policy specific matters, each important in its own way. The first was simply the question of decency and civility in presidential conduct and public discourse. Should a president act like a bully, and encourage followers to do the same? The second was whether false narratives, formulated repeatedly and proclaimed loudly from the highest

first is the so-called American creed, stemming from the constitutional values of equality and freedom. The second has always been the belief that America is a white nation and all non-white groups should recognise white primacy.

Both themes have been simultaneously present, though the exact mix has varied in different periods. Since the mid-1960s, the theme of equality has been more potent, bringing about many positive changes in America’s race relations and leading also to the election of a black president in 2008 and 2012. Trump’s rise was a negation of the egalitarian trends of the previous five decades and a call for a return to white supremacy. Even in his likely defeat, nearly half of America has embraced this revival. This half has also accepted the power of narratives over truth. Stated differently, narratives are the truth according to this view, requiring no independent verification. Arguments in politics, if they ally with prior beliefs, are to be celebrated. Beliefs themselves are not to be

What Trump stands for is manifestly obvious, not hidden. Nearly half of America approved of him and his conduct

office of the land, are more important than the truth. How could a president claim a successful taming of the pandemic when more than 2,30,000 people lost their lives? The third, and perhaps most important, was whether America is about racial equality and inclusion, or about white supremacy. The answer to the last three questions is summed up in an awful and revealing statistic. Even after failing to contain the epidemic, behaving in an unpresidential manner with unerring regularity, ignoring and even approving right-wing militia groups and their violence, and repeatedly engaging in racist and misogynistic conduct, Trump received 48 per cent of the popular vote. It shows a deeply divided nation. What Trump stands for is manifestly obvious, not hidden. Nearly half of America approved of him and his conduct. Scholars of American history and politics have argued that two ideas about America’s national identity have often reverberated in the nation’s politics since its founding. The

subjected to external validation. All validation is internal to beliefs. This kind of politics has often led to great devastation in history. Arguments in politics can’t be equated with religious beliefs. The latter may not require external proofs for their continuation, but the former cannot bring about sustained enhancement of collective life without some notion of empirical validation. Public policies must be shown to have larger benefits. One of Biden’s biggest tasks will be to heal a deeply fractured America, restore civility and decency in public life, and seek to revive the precedence of truth over narratives. (The report was first appeared in the print edition of the Indian Express in November 2020. The writer is a professor of international studies and professor of political science at Brown University)

December 2020

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In-Depth

AMONG EUROPE’S WORST VIRUS HIT-AREAS - ‘BELGIUM’ Despite being small, Belgium is so divided. Recently, it has been hit hard again by the pandemic and now presents some of the most worrying statistics in a continent already reeling under the resurgence of the deadly coronavirus

ften known for medieval towns, renaissance architecture and also for being the headquarters of European Union and NATO, the small town Belgium, a country in Western Europe, is again in news, it’s too, for a wrong reason. Despite being small, Belgium is so divided. Recently, it has been hit hard again by the pandemic and now presents some of the most worrying statistics in a continent already reeling under the resurgence of the deadly coronavirus. If ever there was a common enemy for the rival Dutch- and Frenchspeaking citizens and regions to fight, this would Alexander surely be it. But even now cooperation goes De Croo told against the grain in Belgium, to the extent that Belgians, “As the prime minister had to intervene with a special of midnight, address to the nation, pointing out that exceptional with immediate effect, circumstances demand exceptional measures — like: just about total unity. everywhere the same measures will apply. The last thing we need is division and a scattered order of battle.

Alexander De Croo told Belgians, “As of midnight, with immediate effect, just about everywhere the same measures will apply. The last thing we need today is division and a scattered order of battle. We should not let ourselves be divided”. His appeal came after talks with regional leaders, who so often bicker and stall and leave rudderless a nation with a federal and three regional governments which are responsible for an area barely 300 kilometers (185 miles) at its widest reach. After protracted disagreements between the linguistic groups that left Belgium without a fully functioning government for nearly

500 days until De Croo became prime minister of a 7-party coalition one month ago and now, it was time to stand together.

De Cropo said, “The only battle we have to fight is with the virus, which knows no bounds of language or color, age or gender”. This week, news struck that the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control had recorded Belgium — shoehorned in between Germany, France and the Netherlands — as having the highest 14-day cumulative number of COVID-19 cases per 100,000 citizens, just surpassing the Czech Republic. On

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In-Depth

Christoph D'Haese, the mayor of Aalst in Flanders, recently said he would no longer accept patients from Brussels, Belgium's largely francophone capital

October 28, 2020, the top two reversed roles again with the Czechs standing at 1,448.7 compared to Belgium's 1,424.2 in a standings nobody wants to lead. Both far outstrip even hotbeds like France or Spain. In all in Belgium, 11,038 people have died so far in the pandemic. All this in a wealthy nation of 11.5 million people where no fewer than nine ministers — national and regional — have a say on health issues. The dictum less is more never reached the Belgian high echelons of power.

The former member of the European Parliament, Luckas Vander Taelen, who is also a historian, said, “A great many politicians can claim power but, in the end, no one is ever responsible”

The former member of the European Parliament, Luckas Vander Taelen, who is also a historian, said, “A great many politicians can claim power but, in the end, no one is ever responsible”. He termed Belgium's system of multiple layers of government to serve the 6.5 million Dutch-speaking Flemings in the north and the 5 million Francophones ‘institutional lasagna’. The pandemic finds in Belgium one of the most densely populated countries in Europe, a crossroad of international trade. Its capital, Brussels, hosts the headquarters of the 27-nation European Union with its steady stream of international visitors. But Belgium's political makeup, with its multiple regional authorities, also creates a kaleidoscope of different government health measures. Throughout the crisis, the Belgian population was unified in one thing: The general sense of bewilderment about the ever-changing rules imposed by the different layers of government and a growing confusion caused by clumsy communication. For someone living near Brussels, a bar closing hour or a maximum cap on attending a funeral might face different rules within just 20 kilometers. In the evening of October 27, 2020, the regional government of Flanders finally considered adapting its coronavirus curfew to match that of the francophone region and Brussels, but then thought better of it. While it stays at midnight in the north of the country, it is at 10 p.m. in other areas, complicating life for everyone who travels from one region to the other. Underscoring the threat, authorities said altogether 689 people were rushed to the hospital with COVID-19, 60 more than the record during the March peak. “And admissions continue to rise”, said crisis center virologist Steven Van Gucht. He added that ICU admissions are doubling every eight days and, if it

continued unabated, would reach the saturation level of 2,000 patients around till the first week of November this year. Even during the health crisis, linguistic strife has raised its head, something which has never been fully contained during almost two centuries and two World Wars, when the whole nation faced one common enemy.

Christoph D'Haese, the mayor of Aalst in Flanders, recently said he would no longer accept patients from Brussels, Belgium's largely francophone capital. “Medical solidarity has limits and borders," he said. Hospital authorities disagreed and insisted that the essence of medical solidarity was the lack of borders. When the Brussels UZ hospital, with Flemish roots, warned that the capital needed to take tougher action to contain the crisis, the Francophone Brussel’s Health Minister, Alain Maron, sniped back that when a Flemish hospital in Brussels raises a problem, it is a major issue, and when six of 14 hospitals in (Flemish) Antwerp are in the same situation, nobody talks about it. Vander Taelen has seen it all before. “So fast, you get to the level of village politics. Even when lives are at stake," he said. As Belgium hobbled through the first wave of the pandemic without a fully functioning government, one of the last measures De Croo's predecessor took in September was to relax restrictions — against the advice of many medical experts. That relaxation is now partly blamed for the record surge this fall. Charles Michel, the European Union Council President, was groomed in Belgian politics but now says against such a foe as the coronavirus only a continent-wide approach is effective. “This crisis has already demonstrated that no single country can tackle the situation on its own”, he said. Any management of this epidemic on a patchwork basis, whereby some would emerge better off than others, would serve only to exacerbate the economic imbalances. And when it comes to the patchwork of rules in Belgium, the country's Roman Catholic bishops urged everyone in a letter ahead of All Saints Day Sunday to apply one rule of thumb: Go for the safest measure, the safest figure. In the short term it is the toughest approach. In the long term, the most secure. They said, “We can win the battle against the coronavirus only if we do it together.

December 2020

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In-Depth

COVER – PAGE CARTOON MOCKING TURKISH PRESIDENT, CONDEMNED BY TURKISH LEADERS

mong other major protests, the Turkish officials railed against the French satirical magazine, Charlie Hebdo, over its cover-page cartoon, mocking Turkish President, Recep Tayyip Erdogan. They have accused the publication of sowing the seeds of hatred and animosity. The cartoon could further heighten tensions between Turkey and France over French President, Emmanuel Macron’s firm stance against Islamism following the beheading of a teacher who showed caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad for a class lesson on free speech. The Islamist leaders from across the globe put-forth their criticism of what they see as attacks on Islam in the West, while France vowed not to back away from defending freedom of expression. The cartoons that led to the teacher’s death were the same drawings that were at the center of a deadly 2015 extremist attack on Charlie Hebdo’s staff. The Prophet Muhammad cartoons upset many in the Muslim world. But it was Erdogan who led the charge against France and questioned Macron’s mental state. France then recalled its ambassador to Turkey for consultations, a first in French-Turkish diplomatic relations. Ibrahim Kalin, who is the spokesman of Erdogan, through his Twitter handle, said, “We strongly condemn the publication concerning our president of the French magazine, which has no respect to faith, the sacred and values”. The office of the Ankara Chief Prosecutor has launched an investigation into Charlie Hebdo managers over the cartoon, Tukey's state-run Anadolu news agency reported. Insulting the president is a crime in Turkey punishable by up to four years in prison. Turkey's Foreign Ministry later summoned the French charge d’affaires to protest the cartoon and to demand that the French authorities “take the necessary political and legal steps” against the drawings, which the ministry said “exceed the boundaries of freedom of expression,” Anadolu reported.

Erdogan himself said he had not looked at the drawing and had nothing to say about the ‘dishonorable’ publication. Speaking in the Parliament, Erdogan told his ruling party's legislators, “My sadness and anger does not stem from the disgusting attack on my person but from the fact that the same (publication) is the source of the impertinent attack on my dear Prophet”. He went on to criticize France and other Europe nations' colonial past saying that he was murderers. Tensions between France and Turkey have mounted in recent months over Turkish actions in Syria, Libya and the Caucasus Mountains region of Nagorno-Karabakh. The cartoon depicted Erdogan in his underwear holding a drink and lifting the skirt of a woman wearing an Islamic dress. “I condemn this incorrigible French rag's immoral publication concerning our president”, the Turkish Vice President, Fuat Oktay, said through his Twitter handle. Macron's stance sparked anti-France protests in Turkey and in other Muslim countries as well as calls for the boycott of French goods. French government spokesman Gabriel Attal said the country would not

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In-Depth

“We, too, have rights; right of not to hurt our feelings and not to offend our values”. Speaking at a Cabinet meeting, Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani also weighed in on the debate

back down in the face of what he termed ‘efforts of destabilization, of intimidation’. Attal said, “France will never renounce its principles and values, and notably the freedom of expression and freedom of publication”. Referring to the 2015 attack on Charlie Hebdo attack that killed 12 people and was the first in a series of extremist attacks on France, he said, “It was hateful comments toward journalists, toward a newsroom, that led to the bloodshed we have seen in recent years in our country”. In Egypt, the country's top Muslim cleric called on the international community to adopt universal legislation criminalizing anti-Muslim discrimination and activities. At a gathering celebrating Prophet Muhammad’s birthday, Sheikh Ahmed al-Tayeb, Al-Azhar’s Grand Imam, also condemned the slaying of the French teacher in Paris as “an odious and painful murder”. He said that offending Islam and Muslims has become a tool to mobilize votes. He called the ‘offensive cartoons’ depicting Muhammad a blatant hostility against this noble religion and its prophet. Egypt’s President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi said that offending

About 300 members of Pakistan’s radical Jamaat-eIslami party rallied in the port city of Karachi to denounce Macron

the prophet undermines “high values” many Muslims believe in. He said, “We, too, have rights; right of not to hurt our feelings and not to offend our values”. Speaking at a Cabinet meeting, Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani also weighed in on the debate. Roushani said, “If Europe and France are after rights, ethics and culture they have to withdraw from intervention in Muslim affairs”. Scores of people gathered in front of the French Embassy in Tehran, setting the French flag on fire and chanting “Death to France.” Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan meanwhile, wrote letters to the heads of Muslim states, expressing his concern over the “ridicule and mockery” of Islam’s Prophet Muhammad and desecration of the Quran in the Western world, especially in Europe. Khan wrote that ‘covert and overt discrimination’ against Muslims is widespread in Europe. “I believe the leadership in these countries, often acts out of lack of understanding of the intrinsic deep passion, love and devotion Muslims all over the world have for their Prophet”, he wrote. He urged Muslim leaders to take the initiative to call for an end to this cycle of hate and violence. About 300 members of Pakistan’s radical Jamaat-e-Islami party rallied in the port city of Karachi to denounce Macron. The demonstrators wanted to march toward the Consulate of France but police stopped them. In the biblical town of Bethlehem in the West Bank, Muslim and Christian leaders led a rare interfaith demonstration to denounce Macron’s defense of the publication of the cartoons. About 50 people, including dozens of local officials and dignitaries, gathered in front of the Church of the Nativity, where tradition says Jesus was born. Greek Orthodox Archbishop Atallah Hanna said the gathering was meant “to send a strong message from the Holy Land that we Palestinians, Christians and Muslims, reject hate speech and racist speeches and call always for brotherhood, peace and love”. Associated Press writers Angela Charlton in Paris, Samy Magdy in Cairo, Nasser Karimi and Amir Vahdat in Tehran, Munir Ahmed in Islamabad and Mohammed Daraghmeh in Bethlehem, West Bank contributed. Meanwhile, the Iranian protesters hold defaced pictures of French President Emmanuel Macron during a protest against Macron and the publishing of caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad they deem blasphemous, in front of French Embassy in Tehran, Iran on October 28, 2020. Macron has vowed his country will not back down from its secular ideals and defense of free speech. (Courtesy: AP)

December 2020

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Cover Story

By Steve Kearns

INSTIGATOR DR. ARUN VIR SINGH

FILM CITY AT YEIDA OD Desk

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Cover Story

magine a Dream Land for movie creators. What all would it comprise of really? To start with, some scenic landscapes and a myriad of the film set, yes. Probably a lot of technical production gear equipped with the 21st-century technological advancements. Easily accessible crew members with a sound knowledge of what they’re doing, right. And lots of fun really. Painted quite a picture there, didn’t it? It’s only the fortune that soon our own Uttar Pradesh is going to be blessed with the state of the art infrastructure along with world-class technology all packed together in the dream project of Infotainment City. The news of a new Film City being set up in Noida splashed all over the media for the last few months. CM Yogi Adityanath while announcing this project, said that there are many well-known personalities in the film industry that are from Uttar Pradesh and the setting up of the Film City nearby would certainly fuel up their creativity and that the youth will certainly be profited from such a project at a far less distance as opposed to the Mayanagri Mumbai, which is the established centre for Entertainment related endeavours. This is very endearing news to the creative talents of North Indians, especially those residing near Delhi and U.P. Uttar Pradesh is the largest state in the country in terms of population. It has a population of 24 crores. It has been the hub of culture, religion, language and politics since ages and the legacy still continues in modern times. The scenic background and an aura of spiritual serenity make Uttar Pradesh an ideal eye candy for the Film City. With several films and web series now being shot in UP, the dedicated film city is likely to generate employment while providing a haven for filmmakers. This Project of Film City in Uttar Pradesh will further ease the Film Industry by providing them with a plethora of opportunities to explore the state in all its glory.

What is Infotainment City all about? The YEIDA Film City also known as Infotainment City is a very ambitious project by the UP government and YEIDA authority. This project comprises of a studio complex that will provide all the facilities required for film making to movie producers. It will include several studios, sets, backlogs, a wide range of production and post production and other film industry services / facilities that can accommodate several film and television productions simultaneously.

December 2020

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Cover Story The special feature of this Infotainment City will be that it will not only used by film makers but also will serve as a popular tourist spot and recreation centre featuring many natural and artificial attractions including gardens, landscapes, amusement parks, statues, miniatures, streets, hotels, restaurants and shopping destinations.

achievement is concerned while in Government of India, he has done a lot for the handicraft export, in the Ministry of Textile. He opened a lot of franchise shops across the globe, in the textile industry where the company he joined, was of only five crore turn over and when he left the company it was around fifteen thousand crores. The company was a subsidiary of the Ministry of Textile.

What is YEIDA?

As far as professional achievement is concerned he is very satisfied with the work which he has done. He has faced a lot of challenges to break the bureaucratic chain, to pursue seniors, to take orders from the ministry. There were bad precedent in the manufacturing and general perception was also that the

Y E I D A s t a n d s f o r Ya m u n a Expressway Industrial Development Authority. The name YEIDA became popular recently when the ambitious Film City Project was announced. The Notified area under YEIDA includes parts of land that runs beside the Yamuna Expressway in Gautam Buddh Nagar, Bulandshahar, Aligarh, Hathras, Mathura and Agra. The Sector-21 land under YEIDA would be utilized for the purpose of construction of Infotainment City. A vast area of around 1000 acres has been chosen for this purpose. Another great thing is that it is only about 3.5 Kilometres away from the striking Jewar International Airport which is going to become the second largest airport in Asia.

Dr. Arun Vir Singh The Man Behind it all Dr. Arun Vir Singh is the CEO of Yamuna Development Authority and true words, the gem behind the construction of the massive Film city Project under YEIDA. He started the journey of his career by taking up M.Sc. in Ichthyology. He further completed his Ph.D. in Endocrinology. After this, he pursued his MBA in HR (Human Resource) and IB (International Business). After completing his education, he decided to join into civil services. In his career he held posts as SDM in Administration Nagar Nigam Ghaziabad, SDM in Farrukhabad, Secretary Noida Authority and ACEO Noida Authority. He also held a position of GM (International Business and Corporate Affairs) and HHE in the Ministry of Textile, Government of India. He currently is the Executive Director in International Businesses, CEO of YEIDA as well as CEO of NIAL. As far as the biggest

DR. ARUN VIR SINGH (I.A.S.) Chief Executive Officer Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (YEIDA) and Noida International Airport Limited (NIAL)

government should not do business, but he wanted to break that and government must do business, if it can establish a certain benchmark. So he started factories in Chennai and Noida, both factories are doing very well and a lot of people are doing jobs and they were able to elevate the quality of life. He abides by the success mantra to be sincere and honest try to help as much as you can. Life victory doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t go to stronger or weaker man but sooner or later the man who wins is the man who thinks he can if you have determination you can do anything. He dedicates his success to his teacher, who taught him that whatever you do, do it with full devotion, commitment and passion. Never think that you want to be a big person in terms of money and economic achievements. Always try to be a big person with your character, moral, behaviour with humility. He believes humility is his biggest assets and the virtuous path is his ultimate aim.

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Interview

INFOTAINMENT CITY WILL PROVIDE TOP-NOTCH SERVICES FOR FILM-MAKERS WORLDWIDE â&#x20AC;&#x201C; DR. ARUN VIR SINGH The Greater Noida Film City, also known as Infotainment city is a highly ambitious project of the Uttar Pradesh Government. In order to seek answers to few significant questions, Hariom Tyagi, Group Editor Observer Dawn interviewed IAS Dr. Arun Vir Singh, the CEO of Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (YEIDA) and Noida International Airport Limited (NIAL). Here is an excerpt of the conversation.

Q. Film City in Greater Noida is a highly awaited and one of the most aspiring project by the UP Government. How much has the project progressed so far? A. Many meetings have been conducted by CM Yogi alongside Yamuna Development Authority in this regard. It was further notified that the sector 21 area would be utilized for Film City Project. We have designed a road map for this purpose. Both Indian and Foreign Companies were acquainted for this purpose too and a meeting is scheduled in upcoming months to be. Revenue Models will be shortlisted after 25 November.

Q. The Infotainment City is to be developed on a huge scale of around 1000 acres. What facilities are anticipated to be constructed here and how will it be different from the current hub of filming in the country- the Mumbai Film City? A. Our principal aim is to ensure that if a person arrives at the Infotainment City with a movie script in his hand, he should leave with the finalised digital copy. So, whatever procedures are involved in between, like shooting, voice recording, sound mixing, post production, VFX and digital platforms, all facilities entailing are to be provided at the Infotainment City. The Infotainment City will be equipped with brand new international

Selection of Consultant for Preparation of Detailed Feasibility Report for Development of Film City in YEIDA (Phase 1) Region is under process. Key dates for bidding are: Bid Upload Date

29-10-2020 Last Ddate of Receiving Queries

13-11-2020

Pre-bid Conference

18-11-2020 Bid Due Date

03-12-2020 Opening of Technical Bids

07-12-2020

Hariom Tyagi, Group Editor Observer Dawn is sitting with IAS Dr. Arun Vir Singh, the CEO of YEIDA and NIAL while taking interview

December 2020

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Interview

technology which would be easily available to the creators.

Many big names from the Film Fraternity were present during the meeting conducted by CM Yogi in this regard. Almost all of them have shown huge interest and have given their ideas and advices for the same.

Q. So are there any note worthy production houses around the corner that have shown interest in the development of the Infotainment City so far? A. Many big names from the Film Fraternity were present during the meeting conducted by CM Yogi in this regard. Almost all of them have shown huge interest and have given their ideas and advices for the same. As this project will progress further, there will be a dialogue on Stakeholders. This project is not supposed to be accessible to only a certain geographical area. It is being developed in UP which is the heart of the country and its canvas is much bigger than the state. It is an effort to bring all the creators together for a cause. Q. What efforts have you put in to attract the actors and producers to the Infotainment City? A. Well, the basic concept is to have a world-class infrastructure and to provide best of services for creators. You can come and shoot here and then proceed towards technical procedures at essentially the same location. I think that is a solid enough factor to appeal all creative minds in the country.

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Q. There have been several attempts to setup a Film city in Noida earlier too and they havenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t been so successful. What things are being done differently this time? A. To start with, the film city proposed earlier was a very small one. It was conceived on a smaller land area of Sector 16 in Noida. The major mistake was that studios were allotted to the production people who already were quite established in the Mumbai film city hence it was never a priority for them. This time we have taken up the project to a quite larger scale. We are trying to provide much larger world class facilities so that everything from scratch during the filmmaking process could be completed here. Also this time, the scale of the project is way bigger. It will be an Infotainment city this time rather than just being a film city. It is also going to house some of the top educational institutes to train the creators with filming procedures. Q. The development of a creative project essentially requires a huge technical crew which the earlier proposed film city lacked majorly. How different is it going to be this time? A. It is going to be entirely technically proficient this time. Almost 70-80% of the technical crew involved in the film industry of south India are actually from Uttar Pradesh. We actually have an immensely talented

Interview

human resource in the state and they just need training sothere will be a complete industry of the technical know-hows. There is also a plan to put up an educational institute for learning the technicalities. These steps are very vital for the successful implementation of the film city. Q. How much of the proposed 1000 acre land for the Infotainment City has been acquired so far? A. The proposed Film city land is very close to the Jewar International Airport. Almost 500 acre of land has already been acquired by us and other 500 acre would be acquired by land pooling. All farmers who own the surrounding land have agreed to this. Hence, there is going to be no dispute with regard to this matter. Q. What are the proposed transportation facilities for better connectivity to the Infotainment City? A. Firstly, the Jewar International Airport, which will be one of its kinds, is situated at a distance of only 3.5 kilometres from the Infotainment city. Also, there is a direct link proposed from Yamuna Expressway to Infotainment City. There is a very close connectivity from the Eastern Peripheral Expressway too. It will also interchangeably connect with the Western Peripheral Expressway, which in turn will connect the film city to Manesar, Sohna and Faridabad. The proposed Bullet train pathway will also be easily accessible. There is another proposition of connecting Mumbai-Delhi Expressway directly to the Infotainment City via Ballabhgarh. Metro is being planned for this route and DMRC has already been approved for the same. Hence, the Infotainment City will be fully equipped with a multi-model connectivity service.

Q. There are many exemplary film cities in Hyderabad, Los Angeles, Singapore to name a few. Have their models been studied for the development of this project? A. Yes indeed. Ramoji Film city, Warner Brothers Studios and Universal Studios were thoroughly studied for this purpose. The consulting team working on this project is studying about all famous film cities and is supposed to visit them all practically for 2 months. All the learning will surely be applied here. Q. Earlier the film city in Noida was developed and distributed to few popular names who further sold off their lands. What is your strategy to prevent this practice in the Infotainment City? A. Well, we have learned from our previous experiences and this time we are not offering lands for acquisition and planning the Infotainment City to be based on more of a rental agreement system. The creators can rent a space according to their needs.

The Jewar International Airport, which will be one of its kinds, is situated at a distance of only 3.5 kilometres from the Infotainment city. Also, there is a direct link proposed from Yamuna Expressway to Infotainment City

Q. What is something that you will like to tell our readers? A. I would like to add on about the massive Jewar International Airport which is under construction and is just 3.5 kilometres away from the proposed Infotainment City. It is supposed to have 5 runways and it will be the second largest airport in Asia and fifth largest in the world. The second phase of construction will begin in the next 15 days and the Airport is expected to be ready by 2023. About 3.5 lakh people will be employed during its construction. It is a highly ambitious project which will fuel the Infotainment City in turn and make it accessible to the world.

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THE INFOTAINMENT CITY - A DREAM COMING TRUE

he establishment of world class civil and public amenities is proposed in the Film City. It will be an endeavor to develop it as a well-known dedicated infotainment zone. The time ahead is clearly of OTT and media streaming. For this, a high capacity, world class data center will also be set up in the infotainment zone. A smooth and foul-proof arrangement is being considered for content distribution as well as the facility of tax exemption. With the support of all, this film city will take shape soon. The Master Plan of Film City was envisioned to support Film Production as well as Film Tourism. Its main goal is to serve as a Space for Creative Media Art Production, provide opportunities For Enjoyment & Learning, Healthy & Safe Occupancy, offer good On-Site Connectivity and Environmentally Sensitive Development. The YEIDA authorities are very serious about the country's most beautiful and biggest film city proposed in Uttar Pradesh. The Infotainment City is envisioned to have Five Zones in its master Plan namely: 1. Entrance & Office 2. Shooting and Residential Area 3. Theme Park and Outdoor Locations 4. University and Studio Rooms 5. Jewar International Airport

Architectural Features The Studios in Film City are to be designed as one hub (one stop place for all the film related fraternity). A lot of flexibility will be provided in the type and the size of studios. There also will be a provision of Pre – production, production and post-production facilities under one roof. The studios will also provide a unique State wise Village set up. A University is also said to be set up in the area in which State-of-art facilities will be provided. It will offer opportunities for students to work with media professionals and is bound to be vibrant destination to learn and work. The Monumental Avenues of the Film City include Retails, Food court , Amphitheatre, Viewing Gallery, Simulator rides, Amusement park, Common multi-level parking, Helipad,World Class Bollywood Museum that showcases wide spectrum of the Indian Cinema and also promote film exhibits, film archives and will also showcase the film process. The Outdoor locations for shooting purposes will also be set up in the Film City that includes the sets of Mandir, Gurudwara, Church, and Police station, Metro Station, Railway Stations, Bus Stand, Court, Chawl, Hospital, Petrol Pump and other Shops.

Post-Production Facilities Post-production is part of filmmaking and the video production process making of motion pictures, television programs, radio programs, advertising, audio recordings, photography, and digital art. This includes activities carried out under special effect studio, video editing, rerecording and editing soundtracks, adding visual special effects, sound design and sound effects, transfer of color motion picture film to video or DPX, to name a few.

The Outdoor locations for shooting purposes will also be set up in the Film City

Post production building in the Infotainment City will be equipped with Recording studio room, Sound room and mixing room, editing rooms, Blue and Green screen halls, Miniature working shades and Workstations.

Water Filming Facility Studio will offer a range of interior, exterior and underwater tanks that enable any shot to be achieved efficiently and in complete safety. A globally unique under water filming stage will also offer a controlled environment with ultraviolet filtration system. An underwater stage will be available for all types of surface and underwater filming. The water temperature will be maintained at a comfortable working temperature of 30 degrees C (87 degrees F) which would mean that there is no need to spend time heating it.

Comparison with other World Class Film Cities While Infotainment City is all set to be a hope for the country, it is not the First Time that the country is witnessing the development of a world class infrastructure. India already houses the World’s largest Film City, better known as Ramoji Film City in Hyderabad. Spread across a sprawling 2000 acres Ramoji Film City, set up by Ramoji Group in 1996, is a dreamy celluloid journey. Certified by the Guinness World Records as the world’s largest Film studio complex, Ramoji Film City attracts millions of tourists every year from all over

The Outdoor locations for shooting purposes will also be set up in the Film City that includes the sets of Mandir, Gurudwara,Church,and Police station, Metro Station, Railway Stations, Bus Stand, Court,Chawl, Hospital and other Shops

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Uttar Pradesh will give a gift to the world by giving impetus to this tradition, by developing a grand, divine and well-equipped full film city that meets your needs. All your suggestions for its development are welcome India. It was built by Telugu film producer Ramoji Rao in 1996. The film city also has two hotels inside it, 47 sound stages and permanent sets ranging from railway stations to temples. On the other hand is the oldest film city of the country which is an integrated film studio complex situated in Goregaon East, Mumbai. It has several recording rooms, gardens, lakes, theaters and grounds that serve as the venue of many Bollywood film shootings. It was built in 1977 by the state government to provide facilities and concessions to the film industry. The plan for Film City was prepared and executed under the guidance of V. Shantaram. It was renamed Dadasaheb Phalke Chitra Nagari in 2001 in memory of India's first producer-director-screenwriter Dadasaheb Phalke, who is considered father of Indian film industry. It has been the shooting location for almost all Bollywood films. It has all types of location available for shooting including a temple, prison, court, lake, mountains, fountains, villages, picnic spots, garden and even a man-made waterfall. Film City spans across more than 520 acres land in the suburbs of Mumbai and has approximately 42 Outdoor Shooting Locations & 16 studios of various sizes.

The Master Plan of Film City was envisioned to support Film Production as well as Film Tourism

When we consider the structures similar outside India, the first and foremost is bound to be the Hollywood in Los Angeles. Many of its studios such as Paramount Pictures, Warner Bros., and Universal Pictures were founded there and Paramount still has its studios there.Hollywood was incorporated as a municipality in 1903. It was consolidated with the city of Los Angeles in 1910, and soon thereafter a prominent film industry emerged, eventually becoming the most recognizable in the world. It roughly has an area of 2246.4 acres, which also includes the residential areas. Comparatively, The Infotainment City is bigger in size than the Mumbai Film City and is expected to have world class advanced technologies that would give strong competition to existing counterparts.

What Yogi Said Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, while announcing this ambitious project, mentioned that there is no place of imperfection in Uttar Pradesh. Nothing incomplete happens here. It is the land of Ram's Ayodhya, Krishna's Mathura, Shiva's Kashi as well as Buddha, Kabir's and Mahavira's. It is the place where the holy Ganga, Yamuna and Saraswati unite. These are all symbols of perfection. Uttar Pradesh will give a gift to the world by giving impetus to this tradition, by developing a grand, divine and well-equipped full film city that meets your needs. All your suggestions for its development are welcome. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath expressed his desire to create the country's largest film city in Greater Noida and setting up a dedicated infotainment zone (film city) in Uttar Pradesh. In further order, it may also include Etawah's Lion Safari. He said that through dialogue one gets an opportunity to understand and meet each other's needs. The Chief Minister said

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that the need of the hour is to take advantage of the suggestions and experiences of the people of the film world.We are ready to give a new option to the global film industry. CM Yogi Adityanath said that all of you are a heritage for us, giving a platform to the culture and the Indian tradition to the next generation. It is certain that the ordinary person does not turn the pages of history, but through cinema, you connect it with him by keeping it in his mind forever. Movies are a mirror of society. Films have introduced our culture to the world. With a view to promote film production in the state and to provide special opportunities to local talent, it has decided to establish Modern Film City and Infotainment Zone in the state. The Chief Minister said that while this film city we are proposing, it will become a symbol of India's identity.

Opinions of Film Fraternity Since this announcement was made, eminent personalities of the film world have congratulated CM Yogi Adityanath. The people of the film world have given their ideas and opinions on the ambitious film city project. The Chief Minister also met the big personalities of cinema later and discussed in detail about the proposed film city with many veterans including Anupam Kher, Paresh Rawal, Udit Narayan, Nitin Desai, Kailash Kher, Anoop Jalota, Ashok Pandit, Satish Kaushik. The Chief Minister said that Uttar Pradesh has immense grace of nature and God. Films have introduced the world to our Indian culture. It is a mirror of society. In such a situation, to promote film

production and to provide special opportunities to local talent, the Government of Uttar Pradesh has decided to establish Modern Film City and Infotainment Zone in the state. In order to make our efforts more useful, profitable and comprehensive in this direction, we are inviting suggestions from all over the world. Bahubali film writer Vijendra Prasad is very glad to get a thousand acres of land for Film City. He said that we hoped that only five hundred acres of land would be available, and this is certainly an upgrade. There was a discussion about how to build a film city, how it should be made and where to build it. Hesaid that I would be happy to come to this film city and shoot my entire film. Film actor, producer-director Anupam Kher said that we will irrigate the seeds of the film city, which have been sown by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. He said that it has been proved that your government believes in working, not in speaking. About 25â&#x20AC;&#x201C;26 people were involved in this video conferencing with CM Yogi Adityanath. The meeting was also attended by Noida,

Senior painter Lalit Pokharia considers UP Film City as an employment opportunity. He says that in the film industry it is not just acting, there is a whole unit of filmmaking

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Cover Story OD Take There is a lot of enthusiasm among the local artists of the state. Currently, more than 70 percent of Awadhi, Braj and Bhojpuri films are also being shot in Uttar Pradesh. The film makers currently have to spend a lot for the location in Mumbai, the supposed centre of filming in the country. Recording of studio, dubbing, mixing songs are among the amenities which will be provided which also act as a support to music fraternity. Getting all the facilities under one roof in Film City will remove a lot of obstacles in the path of local talent.

Greater Noida and Yamuna Expressway along with film actors, producers, directors and top officials of Uttar Pradesh Film fraternity. Yamuna Expressway Board had written a letter to the government informing about the availability of thousand acres of land.

Opinion of local artists The innocent singer Sobti, the founder of the Madhavas rock band in Mathura, believes that Film City in Noida can prove to be a big benchmark. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath is known for his deep love for cultural values. According to reality show writer Anand Srivastava, with the production of UP Film City, the birthplace will become the land of work for movie makers. Now to complete the dreams, you have to travel not just the distance of roads but creative journey. Music director Dr. Rakeshwar Malaviyahas said that this effort by Yogi Adityanath has given new wings to all those artists who have been deprived of the opportunity of visiting Mumbai and performing their art. As per the folk dance artist Raghavendra Pratap Singh, Yogi gave the gift of construction and installation of Film City, Noida to all of us artists. As a dancer, we artists will also get the opportunity of dance direction, along with paving the way for making Indian classical and folk dance world famous. Along with all the art classes, the dance class is also excited that as soon as possible we artists will get an opportunity to get familiar with their new world. Senior painter Lalit Pokharia considers UP Film City as an employment opportunity. He says that in the film industry it is not just acting, there is a whole unit of filmmaking.

Although the work of the Film City in Uttar Pradesh is still in the primary stage, but if for one time be assume that with the activeness of the government, a film city will be created in the state, then there are many things on which the film city without working is dubious to be very successful. As a matter of fact, in the production of any film,the technical experts behind the scenes play a far bigger role than the actors. Uttar Pradesh has given a lot to the film industry and is still giving it, but the talent related to other aspects of filmmaking has not developed enough in the state. The reason is that there is no necessary arrangement for it. Things like cinematography and editing are important in filmmaking. There needs to be a concrete system of teaching and training of these technical subjects related to film production by the time the structure of the film city is erected. That is, if proper implementation of film policy is done, then Uttar Pradesh can be full of possibilities of film production. Parallel to the making of Film City, the Yogi government is also required to work on all the points through which adequate environment is developed for it. By doing this, by the time the film city is ready, the necessary basis and environment for film production in the state will also have been prepared. Uttar Pradesh will definitely get its benefits in the coming time.

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Is Anxiety Taking Over Your Life Too? THESE STEPS MIGHT HELP YOU! Imagine this scenario. It’s a normal day in your life. Everything has been going smoothly. You’ve been thinking of planning a long weekend and suddenly you start feeling bad about things. You no longer are the same cheerful person that you were about a few moments ago. Feels familiar? Well, that’s anxiety scratching its vicious nails my friend. The entire world is facing stress as a group because of coronavirus. Facing anxiety with stress increases the chances of suffering from depression. But, by taking care of ourselves, we can manage anxiety. A patient with a mental anxiety disorder commonly has symptoms of anxiety and fear, which can interfere with daily activities. Examples of anxiety disorder include panic attacks, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). At the same time, its symptoms include stress and its treatment, includes antidepressants, counseling and medications.

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WHAT IS ANXIETY DISORDER? It is a mental condition in which the patient has a feeling of negative thoughts, anxiety and fear with a sharp restlessness like sudden hand tremors, sweating etc. If not treated properly in time, it can be very dangerous and can also cause epilepsy. Later on, the patient can also harm himself.

THE SYMPTOMS OF ANXIETY DISORDER ARE:

Worrying about small things in life more often than not is a symptom of anxiety. Due to this, even normal daily tasks get interrupted.

THE CAUSES OF ANXIETY DISORDER ARE:

When someone is very upset, their sympathetic nervous system becomes very fast and due to this, the heartbeat increases, sweating, the body starts to vibrate and the mouth also starts to dry up.

Long-term feeling of fatigue can also be a symptom of anxiety disorder. Hence, it is very important to find out whether this fatigue is due to some other reason or because of anxiety. If fatigue is accompanied with headaches or nervousness, then it could be a symptom of anxiety. Over-worrying causes sleepiness as well as stress. Similarly, irritability, feeling of tension in muscles, difficulty sleeping, and difficulty in getting along with people is also a symptom of anxiety disorder.

Stressful environment: Situations like stress or sudden death of a friend or breakup can trigger the symptoms of an anxiety disorder.

Intoxication: Many people resort to alcohol and other intoxicants to relieve their grief, but these drugs can never get rid of anxiety disorder but will make the problem more serious. The person will become intoxicated etc. and as soon as the effects of the drug are over, there will be an increase in anxiety with the summons.

Family History: People who have ever had a history of mental health problems in their family may have problems with multiple anxiety disorders. For example, if the grandfather had this problem, the grandson may show signs of it.

Personality disorder: Some people also fall prey to anxiety in the course of perfection. They do not like anything, but much of their time is spent trying. But when this stubbornness of perfection becomes a feat or a kind of craze, it leads to an anxiety disorder.

Health related matters: Any physical problem such as thyroid, asthma, diabetes or heart disease can also cause anxiety disorder. People with depression are more prone to suffer from anxiety disorder.

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STEPS TO REDUCE ANXIETY

According to sources, anxiety can be avoided by adapting oneself to adversity. Medical measure available to cure anxiety, but there is no other effective way than caring for oneself. It can be avoided by adopting these 10 methods:

1- Distract yourself Distract yourself when you feel that your anxiety level is increasing faster. That is, divert attention from whatever is going on in your mind. Engage yourself somewhere that can reduce your anxiety. Try to be happy. Do not think about what you are worried about or insecurity. Focus on something else. If possible, call your friends and go out for a walk. Really, give yourself a break.

2- Focus on the feet Here is a quick exercise for you if your anxiety increases. Focus your thoughts on your feet while standing or sitting for some time. Think of them- are the feet hot or cold, how do they work, how are the joint joints made? With this exercise, you can focus your mind and thoughts on something that has no scope for any anxiety or stress.

Diverting yourself in this way for a while will give you a sense of comfort.

3- Walk Whenever the anxiety starts increasing and you feel that youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re getting very upset, you should walk non-stop for at least 3 minutes. While walking you should focus on your speed. Reduce the speed of walking, think about the place where you are walking, wonder about trees or plants in your surroundings or whatever. Even with this exercise, you will divert yourself to thinking something in which there is no such thing as anxiety and stress.

4- Do household chores Anxiety can also be reduced by engaging yourself in some household chores. According to experts, the only reason for

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having anxiety is that people keep thinking about things for a long time. Due to this, there comes a feeling of insecurity and tension in them which in turn promotes anxiety. You can stop yourself from over thinking about one thing by engaging in household chores. Housework takes some time. It also engages your brain and requires hard work, so it can prove to be a long exercise. By doing this, you can stay away from anxiety for long hours.

5- Do "5 Finger Breathing" 5 Finger breathing exercises calm the mind. Your mind will also feel relaxed and at the same time you will feel refreshed. You can do this easily by adopting the following steps. First, bring your right hand in front of you, and spread your fingers as much as possible. Then turn the fourth finger of the second hand on the outer edge of the five fingers of the right hand. Start this process from the thumb to the little finger. Youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve to breathe in when you start, hold when

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Anxiety sometimes occurs to the extent that people's heart beat and blood pressure increase

the fingers reach the upper part and release the breath. Continue this sequence for five fingers and when you have completed it, repeat the process again from there on. Do this for about two to three times.

6- Connect with nature The most effective way to reduce anxiety is to connect to nature. Unwind yourself by visiting a river, pond, park or any natural site. During this time stay away from the phone, hum some things to you, talk to yourself. This is a kind of meditation that will help you remain calm. According to experts,

whatever the level of anxiety, this method is very effective.

7- Re-Discover Yourself During anxiety we are in another world, where we start to lose confidence and hope in ourselves. This is why we start thinking very pessimistically about our career, family, studies and jobs. According to experts, rediscovering yourself in such a situation can prove to be very effective. Re-discovering yourself means thinking about yourself, for instance who are you, what is your ability, why are you important. By doing this, your confidence returns and the anxiety level is significantly reduced.

8- Enjoy the thinking sessions During stress and anxiety, sometimes we are distracted. That means not living in the moment and thinking something else. According to experts, it is good to have a final limit in anxiety. With this, we can avoid going into deep thinking about things. So instead of stopping the thinking process, enjoy it.

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9 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Aroma Therapy Anxiety sometimes occurs to the extent that people's heart beat and blood pressure increase. It becomes difficult to sit in one place and concentrate at the work at hand. This is normally called as anxiety attack in medical terms. According to experts, one should inhale fragrances during an ongoing anxiety attack. Due to the aroma, the brain gets calmed in a short time, hence the effect of anxiety starts decreasing.

10- Accept the current situation The biggest reason for having anxiety is that we are not very accepting of the conditions. We tend to run away from them instead of fighting or facing them. Because of this, our body and mind are not able to adapt themselves to that situation and we tend to have anxiety. On the other hand, when we accept the circumstances, we learn to live with them, which keep our hopes up. Therefore, to avoid anxiety in the contradictory situation, one should accept the current situation.

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STRUGGLE FOR AN OPEN BED RATHER LYING IN INTENSIVE CARE WARD

painful silence for months ultimately, exposed and he makes four more calls to go, each with careful words. It was around 2 pm in the intensive care unit (ICU) of Marseille’s La Timone hospital, when Dr Julien Carvelli was in telephonic calls with the families hit by the second wave of the coronavirus across the region. With the intensive care wards at over 95% capacity in France for over 10 days, Carvelli makes at least eight of these difficult calls a day. In Marseille, this wave is bringing even more people to the ICU than the first one in the spring, many in more severe condition. Carvelli warns one father that his son may need to be put into a coma. Carvelli acknowledges, “For the moment, he’s holding on. But it’s true that — I don’t know what you’ve been told already —This respiratory state is worrying”. There was a long pause on the other end. France is two weeks into its second coronavirus lockdown, known as “le confinement”. The intensive care team at La Timone, the largest hospital in Southern France, struggled to keep even one bed open for the influx of patients to come. The doctors and nurses tell themselves and each other that they just have to hold on a little longer. Government tallies show infections may have reached their second-wave high point, and hospitalizations dropped last weekend for the first time since September. But the medical workers are also frustrated that France did not prepare more in the months after the first wave. And while doctors and nurses were seen as heroes back then, this time is different. “Before, they applauded every night. Now they tell us it’s just doing our job,” says Chloe Gascon, a 23-year-old nurse who has spent half her 18-month career under the shadow of coronavirus. Her voice carries more than a trace of bitterness. Marseille has been submerged with coronavirus cases since September. The port city, on France’s Mediterranean coast, was spared the worst of the virus last spring only to be hit with a vengeance as the summer vacation wound down. Bars and restaurants closed across the city on Sept. 27, more than a month before they shut down nationwide. It

wasn’t enough. Almost a decade of budget cuts left France with half the number of intensive care beds this year, when it needed those most. By the time the first confinement ended on May 11, more than 26,000 people had died in France. The government pledged to take advantage of the expected summer lull to add beds and train reinforcements. That was the time to act, when new infections were at their low point, said Stephen Griffin, a virologist at the University of Leeds. He said, “It was always bubbling away under the surface”. But it was only in early fall that work started on refashioning an acute care wing at La Timone, which opened less than two weeks ago and still has exposed wiring and a fiberboard barricade with duct tape. The promised reinforcements have been slow in coming as well, and any training they get is in the moment, as Pauline Reynier is learning during her first week as an ICU nurse. Compared to the emergency room, the ICU is a relatively calm place, with moments of urgency when a patient needs more oxygen

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or an intervention. The quiet is punctuated by the constant soundtrack of machines beeping. There is no good news here; the best news is that a patient is stable enough to be moved elsewhere. When the 12-hour nursing shift starts at 7 a.m., all 16 beds are filled with COVID-19 patients, and five are conscious. For those in artificial comas, it takes about an hour and at least two people to wash and then carefully rotate each one in their beds, keeping the wires and plastic tubing in place. This is Reynier’s first task. She helped in a regular coronavirus ward during the first wave and offered to retrain over the summer for intensive care. Instead, the 26-year-old was sent back to cardiology, which was filling with patients who had postponed heart surgeries. It was just a week into the second lockdown that the call came to report to the ICU on Nov. 11, a lightly staffed national holiday. This is only Reynier’s second shift as an ICU reinforcement. Her new colleagues barely know her name and have little time to teach. The daughter of a nurse who also works at La Timone, she largely learns by watching.

Insight Story

While doctors and nurses were seen as heroes back then, this time is different

Carvelli says, “We just have to help them to hold on until their bodies can heal”. But intensive care is a terrible thing in itself. Not everyone can survive it. This is not what he tells families during the half-hour or so he spends calling them each day. Each call is over in minutes. “We have to be reassuring and at the same time tell the truth. It’s a balance that is sometimes hard to find,”

It takes months to train as an intensive care nurse, years to become experienced in the grueling specialty of holding death at bay. This virus is even more demanding than the usual urgent challenges. Caregivers risk nearly as much as the patient, and dress accordingly, each time they enter a room. And so going to the bedside means planning multiple tasks at once: washing, tooth brushing, checking vitals, changing IV drips and, finally, turning the patient over to help improve breathing.

to hand over anything needed and help strip off and discard the protective gear at the end. Every gesture takes on outsized importance. Mid-morning, the man in Room 6 improves enough to go to acute care. At the same time, doctors realize that Room 11 in the makeshift ward isn’t equipped for the dialysis machine that the unconscious patient inside now urgently needs. He has to be moved across the hall to the main ICU. The doctors and nurses snatch aprons, gloves and goggles off the cart outside to swaddle themselves. It’s about 25 meters (yards) away — a quick left, through two sets of double doors, past the break room and the workstation. Moving the 60-year-old man ultimately requires 14 medical workers, 45 minutes of preparation — including hooking him up to a portable oxygen generator that later must be disinfected. They start moving the bed at 10:40 a.m. It takes 15 minutes to maneuver him into position in Room 6. Sweat darkens the back Reynier’s pale blue scrubs. A cleaning crew storms Room 12, filling it with the smell of bleach: One bed is now free. It is 1:30 p.m. and many of the nurses are in the windowless break room. The doctors have converged on Room 9, just outside. The 54-year-old man was conscious in the morning, but his oxygen levels are dropping, and it's time to sedate and into bate him. Again, doctors and nurses converge, three people inside and three outside Room 9 to fetch tubing, scissors, bandages. The doctors replace an IV in the man’s right arm and gently cover his torso with the sheet when they’re done, an hour later. Now, all but four of the 16 coronavirus patients are in artificial comas. Carvelli says, “We just have to help them to hold on until their bodies can heal”. But intensive care is a terrible thing in itself. Not everyone can survive it. This is not what he tells families during the half-hour or so he spends calling them each day. Each call is over in minutes. “We have to be reassuring and at the same time tell the truth. It’s a balance that is sometimes hard to find,” Carvelli says quietly. There's a silver lining to a very dark cloud: This time around, doctors have learned enough about the disease that they know when a patient is about to die and can summon families to the ICU. That's

Reynier pulls on a long-sleeved apron over the scrubs with a quick twist of the wrist to knot the neck, then a pair of gloves. Punch a thumbhole through the bottom of the sleeve to secure the gloves, and then pulled on a second pair of gloves. The head covering goggles and finally a second apron in plastic X-ray technicians wear a third set of gloves to handle the plates. Doctors performing an intubation or other major procedure wear a plastic face shield over the goggles. For every person inside the room, someone stands on the outside

December 2020

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Insight Story to be in the morning and late afternoon. She believes the promises of the government are empty. “They serve other interests than the comings and goings of a hospital. I have never seen that, either for the patients or the caregivers”, she says when the mood has calmed. Marseille was once one of the world’s richest cities, its natural harbor an international hub dating back to 600 BC and its founding by Greeks of Phocaea. The city is in a waterfront depression ringed by limestone hills, with La Timone almost straddling its central axis. what happened at La Timone last week. During the daily calls, families ask about the most recent coronavirus test — patients are tested three times each week — about oxygen levels, sedatives. “You know, even if he tests negative, it doesn’t mean he will heal more quickly,” Carvelli gently tells the daughter of a man in the ICU for four days. “No, it’s just that if he doesn’t have COVID, it’s one less thing”, she replied. The man is still positive, but Carvelli tells her he is conscious. Her voice breaks as she says goodbye. The disease is taking its toll on the staff as well. No doctors and only a few nurses have been infected at La Timone, but they are exhausted. At 4:30 p.m., two hospital managers come down, in part to gauge morale. Marie-Laure Satta, at 37 one of the senior nurses, confronts them testily, with Reynier looking a little lost at her side. The younger woman has just learned that she’ll be returning to the ICU for at least the next few weeks, and she is both relieved and worried. The reinforcements need checklists, written instructions, something tangible to guide them so they’re a help to the regular staff, not a burden, Satta says, her entire body tense with emotion. “I’m talking about wellmeaning people who are here to aid, who just need a little reminder”, she snapped and further added that they needed some rest. The managers understand, but it’s not clear how much they can control. The conversation ends cordially even so, and they make their way out of the ICU. Satta calls after them, “Good luck to you too, because you’re not in any better position than we are”. Like all the caregivers at La Timone, Satta is completely dedicated during the greatest

Satta says, her entire body tense with emotion. “I’m talking about well-meaning people who are here to aid, who just need a little reminder”, she snapped and further added that they needed some rest. The managers understand, but it’s not clear how much they can control

medical crisis of her generation. But she yearns for something less stressful once this is over, maybe helping to arrange organ transplants. Her husband works the night shift at the ICU and they have two children in preschool. Neighbors help out with the childcare gaps, which tend

OBSERVER DAWN December 2020

Many historians believe the first wave of the Black Plague in Europe originated in the Marseille port. The continent’s last major Plague outbreak, in 1720, killed half the city’s population. Local schoolchildren visit the Frioul archipelago, 4 kilometers off the coast, and the Hôpital Caroline, which cared for sailors with the Plague. “What we’re going through now will be studied in history, because it’s exceptional,” Reynier tells her new colleagues. By now, the day shift is nearly over. The bed in Room 12 is still free, and the physician overseeing the night shift hopes to keep it in reserve, to keep just a little slack in the overloaded health system. “I want to keep a bullet in my chamber,” Dr. Fouad Bouzana says, between phone calls from other hospitals asking about open beds. La Timone’s emergency room calls, asking for space for a man, COVID positive. Bouzana asks them to run more tests and call back. The ICU doesn’t accept everyone; doctors learned in the first wave that coronavirus patients need a certain base level of strength and health to make it through the recovery. That night, Bouzana turns two coronavirus patients away, deeming them too elderly and frail to submit to intensive care. They’ll stay in the acute care ward next door in hopes their condition improves, and he’ll review the decision with the dayside doctors later. But he harbors little doubt. “We discuss it together. If one of us wants to take a patient and the others don’t, we always take the patient”, he said adding that they usually agreed. And hence, at around 2 am the man from the emergency room was shifted to the last remaining bed. However, the ‘La Timone’ appeared full again.

0 2 Top Story

TOP

INFLUENTIAL WOMEN OF

2020 Shrishti S. Nagar

There was a time when women were assumed to be less than men. The scenario in present times is definitely a sight to behold as today, in almost all the working fields all over the world, women of India have proved their talent, hard work and strength. By the way, today Indian women are achieving tremendous success in all fields of life and are contributing significantly to the development of their family, society and country and world. But, in the corporate world of India too, Indian women have made their own special identity due to their ability and tireless hard work. This article features the Top of the Influential pioneer Indian women who have given a new direction to the corporate world and all other women can get inspiration from these successful gems.

Nita Ambani

Kalli Purie

Zia Mody

Kiran Mazumdar Shaw

Roshni Nadar Malhotra

Arundhati Bhattacharya

Indra Nooyi

Vandana Luthra

Indu Jain

Naina Lal Kidwai Suchi Mukherjee Chanda Kochhar

Shobhana Bhartia

Ekta Kapoor

Falguni Nayar

Mallika Srinivasan

Neelam Dhawan Vibha Padalkar

Anita Dongre

Richa Kar

Top Story

Nita Ambani

ita Ambani was born on 1 November 1964 in a middle-class family in Mumbai. Her father held a high position in a company of Birla. Neeta was interested in Indian classical dance from the very beginning and wanted to pursue a career in it while her mother wanted her to be a chartered accountant. Nita Ambani's higher education is from Mumbai's famous Narsee Monjee College of Commerce and Economics. She also started Reliance Foundation's CSR branch, Reliance Foundation, Charitable Trust which has become the largest private foundation in the country. In 2014, she was elected to the board of Reliance Industries as a non-executive director.

Born: 1 November 1964 Previous Name: Nita Dalal Occupation: Chairperson, Reliance Foundation & Dhirubhai Ambani International School; Owner, Mumbai Indians; Founder, FSDL; Philanthropist Spouse(s): Mukesh Ambani

She also serves as the founder and president of Dhirubhai Ambani International School, a premier school aimed at imparting quality education in Mumbai and she is the first Indian woman to become a member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC). Neeta Ambani is running the Indian Premier League (IPL) Mumbai team. She is widely known for her support of IPL. However, there are some lesser known facts about Nita Ambani. For example, she has always taken a keen interest in social problems. She is currently running at Dhiru Bhai International School, Mumbai. She is a classical dancer and persuaded Mukesh Ambani to open a state-of-the-art hospital in Mumbai, namely Kokila Ben Hospital.

Kalli Purie Birth Place: Delhi Occupation: Group Editorial Director (Broadcast & New Media) of the India Today Group Parent(s): Aroon Purie and Rekha Purie

Zia Mody

alli Purie is the Group Editorial Director (Broadcast & New Media) of India Today Group. She is particularly known in the industry for creating synergy between India Today Group's superiority in traditional journalism and New Media.

ia Mody is known as the undisputed leader in corporate law in India. According to Zia, winning the cases discussed and earning accolades is not as important as to be remembered in the court for one’s skills for years. It is more difficult to build attitude and good conduct and this is the speciality of a good lawyer.

Kalli Purie has a lot of experience in running all media properties including TV channels, apps, digital newspapers, besides organizing international events and creating social media strategies for the group.

Zia Mody is an Indian legal adviser. She was born on 19 July 1946. Zia is an important figure in corporate mergers and acquisitions law, securities law and in the fields of private equity and project finance. Zia was born in a Parsi family, to former Attorney General of India Soli Sorabjee, who is an active member in the Bahá'í community. Zia Mody had her early education at Elphinstone College, Mumbai. She did her legal education from Silwyn College, Cambridge and acquired her master’s in 1979 from Harvard Law School.

Currently, Kalli has the editorial reins of three other channels including the undisputed number one channel. She is also leading all the events of the group. Apart from this, she is also promoting digital media in a seamless manner.

Born: 19 July 1956 Occupation: Founder & Managing Partner of AZB & Partners Spouse(s): Jaydev Mody

She passed the state bar exam and qualified as a lawyer in New York. Zia worked with Baker and McKenzie in New York City for five years at her husband's behest before returning to India. Zia Mody has 3 daughters, andis is married to businessman Jaydev Mody and now lives in Mumbai. Her firm AZM & Partners ranked first among the top law firms for mergers and acquisitions. Zia confesses that while growing up, the only topic discussed at the dinner table was law. She knew that she had to make her career in law. Naturally, her father is her inspiration and mentor.

OBSERVER DAWN December 2020

Kalli Purie, who has a very clear vision about the future of news, is an important member of the team whose architecture of the news room is designed keeping in mind the future, which is a suitable place for multimedia and related devices. Kalli has been the speaker of many international (FIPP, GEN) and national media (AIM, E4M, FRAMES) industry events. She has graduated in Politics, Philosophy and Economics from Oxford University, UK.

Top Story

Kiran Mazumdar Shaw

iran Mazumdar-Shaw is an Indian woman businessman, technocrat, investigator and also the founder and president of 'Biocon Limited', a leading biotechnology institute in Bangalore. She is also the author of 'The Story of Bear'. She started by making 'Enzyme' for 'Liquor Fermentation' in 1978 in a small shed in Kormangala near Bangalore. In their project, Irish partner Biocon Chemicals sold their shares to Unilever after a few days and Unilever became Kiran Mazumdar's new partner. But this partnership became a foothold for Kiran Mazumdar. Unilever did not allow them to do research work on any other product due to which, Biocon Limited remained a 'One Product' Company for 25 years. Kiran Mazumdar's relationship with Unilever ended in the year 1998 and this year was also the 'Turning Year' of her life. Kiran Mazumdar's 'Biocon Limited' business has now been worth about 25 billion rupees. They have a significant contribution in redesigning the bio-technology sector in the world. Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw was born on March 23, 1953 in Bengaluru (Karnataka). She completed her schooling in 1968 from Bishop Cotton Girls High School, Bangalore. She completed her B.Sc. (Zoology Hons) degree from Bangalore University in the year 1973. After this, she received higher education in the year 1975 from Ballarat College, Melbourne University (Australia) on the subject of 'Molting and Brewing'. During this time she worked as a trainee Malster in Carlton and United Breweries, Brewer, Barrett Brothers and Burston, also in Melbourne. She also worked for some time as a technical consultant at Jupiter Breweries Limited in Kolkata and also as a technical manager at Standard Molting Corporation, Baroda from 1975-1977. In 1998, at the age of 45, she married John-Shaw, a native of Scotland; currently John Shaw is the vice-president of 'Biocon Limited'. Currently, 62-year-old Kiran is the Chairman and Managing Director of 'Biocon Limited'. Apart from this, she is also the current president of IIM Bengaluru.

Born: 23 March 1953 Occupation: Founder & chairperson of Biocon Spouse(s): John Shaw

Roshni Nadar Malhotra Born: 1980/1981 Occupation: Chairperson, HCL Technologies Spouse(s): Shikhar Malhotra

oshni became the CEO of IT company HCL in 2009 at just 28 years old. The very next year she became the executive director of the corporation. HCL, which works for technology, healthcare and infosystems, is worth about 48 thousand crores and takes all its strategic decisions. She is also a trustee of Shiv Nadar Foundation, whose focus is on education and this foundation has established some of the top colleges and schools in India. Roshni is married to Shikhar Malhotra and they also have a son. Her husband also helps her in the Shiv Nadar Foundation.Roshni Nadar, the only daughter of Shiv Nadar, has been educated in Delhi. Roshni then did her graduation in media from Northwestern University. During this time she was also an intern in CNBC channel. After graduation, she also worked in the London office of Sky News. After this, at the behest of her father, she left this job. After this, she did her MBA from Social Enterprise Management and Strategy from Kellogg Graduate School of Management.

In October 2008, Roshni returned to India from abroad and joined her father's HCL Corporation.

December 2020

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Top Story

Arundhati Bhattacharya

rundhati Bhattacharya is currently the chairperson of State Bank of India (SBI), India's largest bank. She is the first woman who went to this post of State Bank of India. She assumed the position on 7 October 2013. She succeeded Shri Pratip Chaudhary, who retired from the post on 30 September. Before joining this post, 57-year-old Bhattacharya was the Managing Director and Chief Financial Officer of SBI.

Born: 18 March 1956 Occupation: 24th Chairperson of State Bank of India Spouse(s): Pritimoy Bhattacharya

Bhattacharya joined SBI in 1977 as a probationary officer. During her 36-year tenure at the bank, she held key positions such as Deputy Managing Director and Corporate Development Officer, Chief General Manager (Bengaluru Circle) and Chief General Manager (New Business). She has also served as the in-charge of surveillance in the bank's New York office. She has also headed SBI Capital Markets Limited, a subsidiary of SBI. She was also instrumental in establishing three of the bank's latest subsidiaries. These are General Insurance Subsidiary, Custodial Subsidiary and SBI Macquarie Infrastructure Fund. As the chairperson of State Bank of India, several achievements have been associated with her name at the same time. She is the first woman to reach the highest position of this bank in the history of two centuries of State Bank of India (founded-1806 AD). Not only this, SBI is India's largest bank with 15000+ branches and 22% stake in bank deposits across India and being one of its top leaders, she has become one of the most powerful women in India.

Falguni Nayar

Born: 4 January 1957 Occupation: Chairperson and editorial director of the HT Media Spouse(s): Shyam Sunder Bhartia

hobhana was born in the famous Birla family in 1957 in Kolkata city. She grew up in Kolkata and received her primary education from Loreto House School. After that she did her graduation from Kolkata University. After this, she was married to Shyam Sundar Bhartia of 'Jubliant Life Science Limited'. Shobhana joined the Hindustan Times Group in the year 1986, when she was the chief executive of one of the first national news papers in India. She also held the post of Chancellor of Birla Institute of Technology Pilani for some time.

alguni is the founder of online beauty and wellness retailer Nykaa.com. The company's business is currently more than 200 crores which gives employment to about 230 people. The business of this company is expected to reach 300 crores by the end of 2017. Falguni studied at the 'Indian Institute of Management' (IIM) in Ahmedabad and then worked as a capital investment managing director at Kotak Mahindra Bank. Falguni laid the foundation of her business in the field where big brands from India and abroad were already spreading their feet. Falguni went ahead with a passion to be different and new from everyone. They made their place in the market in the same way that we make a place for ourselves by moving everyone in a crowded bus by moving them with elbows.Nykaa was not even included in the beauty and wellness products 5 years ago. Currently Nykaa sells 400 brands of products. It has about 40,000 products on its website. Nykaa completed its first round of funding in June 2014. During this time, the company raised $ 3.2 million from Indian investors.

Shobhana Bhartia

Born: 19 February 1963 Occupation: CEO of Nykaa.com Spouse(s): Sanjay Nayar

OBSERVER DAWN December 2020

This institute was founded by her grandfather. Shobhana pays attention to both the economic and editorial aspects of Hindustan Media Group. It is believed that she has played a big role in the rejuvenation of Hindustan Times Group. In 2005, Shobhana raised about 400 crores by releasing public equity of HT Media which was a huge success in itself. In 2006, Shobhana was also nominated as a member of the RajyaSabha by the UPA government. Shobhana takes an active part in promoting literature, sports and science achievements through her foundation.

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Mallika Srinivasan Born: 19 November 1959 Occupation: Chairman & Managing Director â&#x20AC;&#x201C; TAFE; Board member of Tata Steel, AGCO and U.S.-India Business Council Spouse(s): Venu Srinivasan

orn on 19 November 1959, Mallika is the eldest daughter of South Indian industrialist Sivasailam. After doing her MA from Madras University, she went abroad to pursue further studies. She did her MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, USA. After coming back to India, she joined the family business.

She joined TAFE in 1986 at the age of 27. After joining the company, Mallika implemented a smooth and ethical business strategy from the beginning. When she joined TAFE, the turnover of the company was around 85 crores and it has amplified to about USD 160 crores in today's time. With the support and guidance of her father and the TAFE team, Mallika went on to make positive changes one after the other and gradually TAFE diversified her business into many areas which include tractors, agricultural machinery, diesel engines, engineering plastics, hydraulic pumps, cylinders, batteries, automobile franchises and plantations. With her hard work, faith and dedication Mallika made TAFE a company based on high technology. However, all this was not as easy as it appears today. Under the leadership of Mallika Srinivasan, TAFE has emerged as the world's top three tractor manufacturer and India's largest tractor exporting company. Ms. Mallika is an iconic name due to her contribution to Indian industry and academia. She is known for her commitment to excellence in operations, transformation in Indian agriculture and customer focus by leveraging TAFE's capabilities to redefine the agricultural machinery business and deliver high quality and relevant products.

Anita Dongre Born: 3 October 1963 Occupation: Founder of House of Anita Dongre Spouse(s): Pravin Dongre

nita Dongre was born on Thursday, 3 October 1963 in Bandra, West Mumbai. Her family has its roots in Jaipur. Anita's father moved to Mumbai a few months before her birth. Her interest towards fashion came at a very young age. She was inspired by the women of her household who make beautiful accessories using raw clothes. She graduated in commerce from NM College in Mumbai. Subsequently, Dongre enrolled at SNDT University in Mumbai to pursue a degree in fashion. Later, she did an internship with the former royal family of Dhrangadhra in Gujarat. After completing her undergraduate studies, Anita Dongre started designing clothes for local boutiques. She gave clothes to the boutique for about 12 years. After a few years, Anita began experimenting with Western apparel and designed a collection of clothes for the young women, but, no shop agreed to accept it. So, this was when she decided to sell herself and Anita Dongre Design was born. She started the business in 1995 with a small 300 square feet area with her younger sister, Meena Sehra. Her fashion house, House of Anita Dongre sheltered four different brands, Global Desi (Western Wear and Ethnic Wear), Anita Dongre (bridal, couture prĂŞt, menswear), and Anita Dongre Grassroot (organic dresses). Apart from apparel brands, Anita has also launched a jewelery brand called "Pink City" under her fashion house.

December 2020

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Top Story

Indra Nooyi

I Born: October 28, 1955 Occupation: CEO of PepsiCo Spouse(s): Raj Nooyi

ndra Nooyi is a well-known name in the Business World. She is the CFO and President of PepsiCo. IndraNooyi was born in 1974 in Chennai. She graduated in Science from Madras Christian College. Indra Nooyi started her career in Johnson & Johnson Co. & Textile Co. Mettur from Beardsell as Product Manager. In 1994, she joined PepsiCo. and in 2006, she was made the CEO of PepsiCo. Indra Nooyi is a successor member of Yale Corporation, a Level B Director of the Board of Directors of the New York Federal Reserve, a member of the International Rescue Committee "Catlister" and a member of the Lincoln Performing Arts Center and also a member of the Board of Trustees of the Eisenhower Fellowship and currently S-Bharat is contributing to the Business Council as the Speaker. In 2007, she was awarded the Padma Bhushan in the field of industry and trade by the Government of India.

Born: 1957

Indu Jain

Occupation: Chartered Accountant; Chairman of Max Financial Services Ltd. and others

75-year-old billionaire, Indu Jain was born in the country's most populous state, Uttar Pradesh. Indu Jain is currently the chairman of Bennett, Coleman & Company Limited, one of the largest media groups in the country. This media group has become well recognized due to its daily newspapers The Times of India, The Economic Times and TV news channel Times Now. Under her leadership, the Times Group has touched many new heights. Her husband is no longer in this world. She has two sons, Sameer and Vineet, who now run their family business. Although she has gained fame as the chairman of Bennett, Coleman & Company Limited, she has also become a special identity as a spiritualist, humanist, entrepreneur, educationist and patron of culture and art. Mrs. Indu Jain was honored with 'Padma Bhushan' by the Government of India in January 2016. But her great identity is not limited here, MrsIndu Jain was the main inspiration for creating 'The Oneness Forum', Which was formally inaugurated in the year 2003 by the President of India. This forum has recently been awarded the 'Mahatma Mahaveer Award'. This award is given to those special persons associated with every field of life who do various things to bring a sense of unity in the world.

Spouse(s): Rashid K. Kidwai

aina Lal Kidwai has a bachelor's degree in economics from Delhi University and an MBA from Harvard Business School. Naina Lal Kidwai was the first Indian woman to graduate from Harvard Business School.

Born: 8 September 1936 Occupation: Chairman and CEO of Bennett Coleman & Co Ltd. Spouse(s): Ashok Kumar Jain

Vandana Luthra Born: 12 July 1959 Occupation: Founder, VLCC Spouse(s): Mukesh Luthra

Naina Lal Kidwai

Naina Lal Kidwai is a Chartered Accountant by profession and heads HSBC Bank in India. She is also currently the chairperson of FICCI. She has held important positions in many banks. She is the first Indian woman to run a foreign bank in India. Naina Lal Kidwai was awarded the Padma Shri by the Government of India in 2007 for her contribution in the field of trade and industry.

orn in Kolkata, West Bengal, Vandana Luthra is the founder of beauty and wellness company VLCC Health Care Ltd. VLCC is today established in 11 countries, thanks to beauty expert Vandana Luthra. Vandana Luthra started her career in 1989 when the first of her two daughters was just 3 years old. After undertaking Polytechnic for women from Delhi, Vandana Luthra received higher education from Germany, UK and France for beauty, fitness, food and skin care. Vandana Luthra was awarded the Padma Shri in 2013.

OBSERVER DAWN December 2020

Top Story

Suchi Mukherjee Born: 1973 Occupation: Founder and CEO of Lime Road

uchi Mukherjee is the founder and CEO of Lime Road and e-commerce website under the Lifestyle & Accessories category. Interestingly, when she was on maternity leave, the idea of building Lime road came to her mind. Suchi is a graduate in economics from the London School of Economics, She has several awards and recognitions such as K.C. George Prize for her extensive contribution to Nag Economics, the best student in Economics. St. Stephen's College, University of Delhi, George Memorial Scholarship, Cambridge Commonwealth Trust Scholarship and Fellowship, Chadbourne Scholarship for Merit, both of which were awarded by Cambridge University and a British Chevening Scholarship at the London School of Economics.Her company has raised USD 20 million from Light Speed Venture Partner, Matrix Partners and Tiger Global. Suchi previously worked at several well-known companies such as Lehman Brothers Inc., Virgin Media, eBay Inc., Skype, and Gumtree, where she served as managing director for more than 2 years.

Chanda Kochhar Born: 17 November 1961 Occupation: Former MD & CEO, ICICI Bank Spouse(s): Deepak Kochhar

handa Kochhar, born in Rajasthan, is currently the MD and CEO of ICICI Bank. Chanda received a Masterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Degree in Management Studies from Jamnal Bajaj Institute of Management Studies, Mumbai. She was awarded the Wockhardt Gold Medal for excellence in Management Studies and the JN Bose Gold Medal in Cost Accountancy. Chanda Kochhar is married to Deepak Kochhar, who is a Wind Energy Entrepreneur. Chanda and Deepak were classmates in business school. ICICI Bank under the leadership of Chanda Kochhar won the "Best Retail Bank of India" award in 2001, 2003, 2004 and 2005 and "Excellence in Retail Banking Award" in 2002; both awards were given by an Asian banker. Apart from this, Chanda Kochhar was awarded Global Awards by Retail Banker International in 2004, Business Woman Awards by Economic Times in 2005 and Rising Star Award by Retail Banker International in 2006.

December 2020

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Ekta Kapoor

ho does not know Ekta Kapoor today, the woman who changed the face of Indian television. Ekta Kapoor, creative head of Balaji Telefilms, has made a place in the hearts of people through television. Her father's name is Jeetendra, who was a film superstar of his time. Her mother's name is Shobha Kapoor. She has a younger brother named Tusshar Kapoor who is an actor in Bollywood films.

Born: 7 June 1975 Occupation: Television producer, joint managing director of Balaji Telefilms Parents: Jeetendra and Shobha Kapoor

Today Ekta Kapoor is counted as one of the top women entrepreneurs. Ekta Kapoor has given many hit serials through her production company Balaji Telefilms which includes 'Kyonki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi' and 'Kahani Ghar Ghar Ki'. She has also produced in many Bollywood films. Ekta has strong and creative business skills. She received the 2006 Hall of Fame Award by the 6th Indian Telly Awards, for her invaluable contribution to the Indian television industry.

ibha Padalkar has been appointed MD and CEO of one of the country's major insurance company HDFC Life Insurance in September 2018. Vibha associated with HDFC Life Insurance Company in August 2008. She is also a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India.

Vibha Padalkar is also associated with Finance, Legal, Secretariat and Compliance, Internal Audit, Pension Assistant etc. She was awarded the Institute of "Chartered Accountants of India" in 2011 and the "CFO - Woman of the Year" award for "Excellence in Financial Control, Compliance, Corporate Governance and Ethics".

Birth Place: Chennai Occupation: MD, CEO & Director at HDFC Standard Life Insurance

Neelam Dhawan Occupation: Managing Director of Hewlett-Packard India Spouse(s): Atul Dhawan

Born: 17 July 1980 Birth Place: Jamshedpur Occupation: Founder and CEO of Indian lingerie e-retailer Zivame

Vibha Padalkar

Vibha Padalkar qualified as a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of England and Wales in 1992. In addition, she has worked in various fields such as Business Process Outsourcing (WNS Global Services), FMCG (Colgate Palmolive India Limited) and Big 4 audit firm (Lovelock & Lewis (part of Price water house Coopers)).

Richa Kar

icha is the founder and CEO of Zivame, an online lingerie store in India. It would not be wrong to say that she acted by breaking her boundaries in the most audacious way. Richa completed her engineering in 2002 from BITS, Pilani, after which she worked for some time in the IT industry. She then went on to do a postgraduate in Management Studies from the Narsi Monjee Institute of Management Studies in 2007 and then worked with a retailer and global tech company before setting up Zivame. com. It is probably the first online lingerie (inner wear) company in India and this company has also played an important role in educating women across the country about inner wear. She started the company from a small office. But, within just 3 years her company had more than 200 employees and more than 5,000 styles.

eelam Dhawan is currently the Country Managing Director of IT Company Hewlett-Packard India. She joined HP India in 2008. Prior to this, she was also the Managing Director of Microsoft India. She has also worked in large IT companies like HCL and IBM. Neelam Dhawan is a graduate in Economics from St. Stephen's College, New Delhi and an MBA from the Faculty of Management Studies. In the early days, Neelam Dhawan was rejected by companies like Asian Paints and Hindustan Unilever, which manufactured fast moving consumer goods. These companies believed that a woman is not suitable for market facing roles. But she proved with her courage that women are not less than anyone.

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Defence

DESPITE TENSION WITH CHINA, INDIA & US SIGN INTEL-SHARING AGREEMENT

ndia and the United States have signed a basic exchange and cooperation agreement for geospatial cooperation, a major defense pact for the exchange of classified geospatial intelligence between their armed forces. The agreement was signed between the U.S. National GeospatialIntelligence Agency, which is part of the Defense Department, and the Indian Ministry of Defence during the third 2+2 dialogue between the defense and foreign ministers of the two counties. India and the U.S. negotiated the terms of the agreement for more than a decade, according to an MoD official. The officials explained, “BECA will permit the U.S. armed forces to provide advanced navigational aids and avionics and share geospatial intelligence to India that will help boost the accuracy of the Indian military’s automated hardware systems and weapons such as drones, cruise missiles and ballistic missiles”. The third round of the bilateral 2+2 meeting was held in India on Oct. 27 against the backdrop of a tense border standoff with China in eastern Ladakh. In a joint statement the ministers — Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Minister of External Affairs Subramanyam Jaishankar, with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Defense Secretary Mark Esper — described the pact as a significant step in bilateral relations. The Defense Technology and Trade Initiative, meant to bolster the joint production of weapon systems, was also discussed, and a bilateral summit is planned later this year to strengthen defense industrial cooperation, the joint statement noted. “We have identified priority near-term projects for joint development between respective agencies, which need to be fast-tracked under the DTTI and resolved

The two countries will also hold the inaugural Industrial Security Annex summit later this year to further strengthen defense industrial cooperation, the joint statement read

to work

together in defense [research and development] more efficiently,” Singh said. India wants co-development and co-production of defense technologies in areas related to cybersecurity; military space; air-launched small unmanned systems; lightweight small arms; ISTAR (intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance) aircraft; unmanned aerial systems; advanced artillery ammunition; and mortar and rocket systems, according to another MoD official.

The two countries will also hold the inaugural Industrial Security Annex summit later this year to further strengthen defense industrial cooperation, the joint statement read. The annex, signed in December 2019, enables greater industry-to-industry collaboration for co-production and co-development in the defense sector.

INDIA PROMOTES FOREIGN INVESTMENT, STOPS IMPORTING WEAPON

OBSERVER DAWN December 2020

Defence

INDIAN ARMY FORCES TO DIG OUT OLD SLEEPING BAGS

constituted in 2015 recommended that they are fit for use by troops deployed at lower altitudes. Therefore, a decision was taken to preserve the consignment as reserve. In July 2020, a portion of this consignment was issued to troops deployed at lower altitudes undergoing training and acclimatisation.”

Further, the official claimed that the consignment has been found to be “satisfactory” by troops and “there have been no complaints whatsoever”. These items were dispatched for newly inducted troops undergoing training and acclimatisation before being deployed on heights.

The bags were procured in 2006 but not issued after they were found to be unfit for use in “glacier and super higher altitude areas”.

The sleeping bags were finally taken out of long storage and sent to Ladakh after India deployed over 50,000 troops to counter similar moves by China. Given the unexpected deployment, India has been trying to source high-altitude survival gear from across the world, including under a logistics exchange agreement with the US. As reported by ET, almost 11,000 sets of Extended Cold Weather Clothing System have come from the US Army stockholdings.

ith thousands of troops deployed to new forward posts in eastern Ladakh after aggressive moves by China, the Army has been forced to dig out old sleeping bags from its reserves to equip soldiers for bitter winter months on the frontier.

The Italian supplier concerned was also penalised heavily for supplying faulty items and the bags were placed in storage at Kanpur. In 2015, according to the Army, a board of officers re-examined the consignment and cleared it for use in “lower altitudes”. Explaining the decision to use them now, an official said: “A board of officers

UNION GOVT APPROVES THREE JOINT MILITARY LOGISTICS NODES

s the tri-services pursue the formation of unified theatre commands, the Government has formally approved the first set of joint structures to handle the logistics and boost integration among forces, reports Times of India. The first three joint logistics nods (JLNs) at Mumbai, Guwahati and Port Blair will handle the small arms ammunition, rations, FOL (fuels, oils and lubricants), general stores, civil-hired transport, aviation clothing, spares and engineering support to all the three services. Each of the JLNs will have a lead service which will take care of all provisioning and procurements. While JLN at Mumbai will be led by the Indian Navy, Indian Army will lead the JLNs at Guwahati and the Andaman and Nicobar Command (ANC).

overnment of India has on November 20, 2020 announced that global companies can now invest up to 74 percent in the country’s defense manufacturing units, up from 49 percent, without requiring any government approval. The Union Finance Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, expressed hope that the new policy will attract foreign companies with high-end technologies to set up their manufacturing bases in India in collaboration with Indian companies. Her announcement came as part of reforms Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government is implementing to revive India’s economy, which has been shattered by the coronavirus pandemic. She also told reporters that India will stop importing weapons that can be made in the country. “We will notify a list of weapons and platforms for ban on their imports and fix deadlines to do it,” she said, adding that this will improve self-reliance on defense manufacturing. India introduced up to 49 percent foreign direct investment in defense production in 2016 to attract modern technology in the country. That attracted more than 18.34 billion rupees until December last year, according to a government statement. India issues defense-industrial licenses for making tanks, military aircraft, spacecraft and their parts, UAVs, missiles for military purposes, and warships. India, a major buyer of military equipment, depended largely on the former Soviet Union during the Cold War. But it has been diversifying its purchases by opting for U.S. equipment as well. During U.S. President Donald Trump’s visit to India in February, the two countries signed a deal for India to buy from the U.S. more than $3 billion in advanced military equipment, including helicopters.

In addition to the aforementioned three JLNs, similar nodes will also come up in other parts of the nation as functional theatre commands take shape and manifest over the coming years. These will likely ensure cost-effectiveness in operations. The formation of the theatre commands is an initiative of the Government to reform and transform the three services and boost integration. The efforts in this regard are being led by Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Bipin Rawat, who stated in a seminar last week that the integrated commands will “become operational in next two to three years”.

December 2020

OBSERVER DAWN

Defence

FRESH SPECTRUM WARFARE WING OF US AIR-FORCE By Mark Pomerlean

he Air Force department of the United States’ defense department has planned to create a new wing focused on electromagnetic spectrum warfare come springtime. While plans for the new wing — the 355th Spectrum Warfare Wing — have previously been discussed, officials Tuesday provided the most in-depth details regarding its creation, functions and timeline.

Capability Collaboration Team, that was briefed to service leadership in January 2019. Specifically, two items identified in the study that led to the wing’s creation is that the Air Force’s electromagnetic spectrum capabilities atrophied over the past decades and there will need to be greater reliance on the spectrum in the future, according to Brig. Gen. Marty Reynolds, vice commander of the Air Force Warfare Center, who spoke during the same conference.

He explained, “The wing, which is tentatively set to activate in March 2021, will enable the fielded forces to continually contest and on demand attack adversary functional structures controlling their key processes”. While delivering his “The wing, which speech during a virtual conference on November is tentatively 17, 2020, the deputy commander Air Combat set to activate in March 2021, Command, Lt. Gen. Chris Weggeman said, “Their will enable the mission is to execute the U.S. version of Chinese fielded forces nodal warfare”. The conference was hosted by the to continually AFCEA’s Alamo chapter. The wing will fall under the contest and on purview of the Air Force Warfare Center — which demand attack performs operational test and evaluation, tactics adversary development, and advanced training — instead of the functional new information warfare command, 16th Air Force, structures controlling their which has operational control of electronic warfare. The key processes” wing is a direct outgrowth of the Air Force’s yearlong study on electronic warfare, called the Enterprise

Spectrum is an enabler, he said. “If we believe that and we understand how important data is — that the computing and sensing at the edge is going to be informant going forward — then we have to make sure that we protect the transport of that data and that we can aggregate the data so we can make predictions to the analysis,” he added.

Other electromagnetic spectrum changes made within the Air Force recently include the realignment of its electromagnetic spectrum management office from Air Combat Command to the Headquarters Air Force staff under the deputy chief of staff for intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance and cyber effects operations, or A2/6. Weggeman noted that the new wing will develop, host, integrate, test and distribute electronic warfare and electromagnetic spectrum mission “ware,” while also assist in electromagnetic battle management support and be an agile software pipeline for Air Force platforms. The wing will be a clearing house for electromagnetic spectrum professionals who focus on electronic protection and electronic attack linked and improved through software and cognitive abilities, Reynolds explained. He added that platforms should be able to connect and share data so a platform conducting electronic support can rapidly reprogram information and share it to an electronic attack platform. The commander of the new wing will be Col. William Young, who previously commanded the 53rd Electronic Warfare Group. Air Force officials provided the most detailed description to date regarding its forthcoming spectrum warfare wing.

OBSERVER DAWN December 2020

Defence

SENATE TO BUY 17 MORE F-35, ADDS USD 1.7 BILLION IN DEFENSE BUDGET

he US Senate is willing spend an additional amount of USD 1.7 billion to buy 17 more F-35 fighter jets for the military in fiscal 2021. The Senate Appropriations Committee’s USD 696 billion defense spending bill, which was released Nov. 10, would add 12 F-35 As for the Air Force and five F-35Cs for the Navy and Marine Corps for a total of 96 jets in FY21. That’s five more than House appropriators proposed. The release of the Senate’s spending proposal paves the way for an eventual deal with the House, which passed its own appropriations bill in July. But no matter which chamber of Congress wins out, the Defense Department will fall short of the 98 F-35s it purchased in FY20, potentially signaling that even Congress has a limit on how far it will go to beef up purchases of the Lockheed Martin-made jet. In addition, lawmakers want more visibility from the Pentagon about how exactly it’s spending taxpayer funds. “The “some concerns over the ability to measure delivered Committee notes that the Department of Defense The committee software updates against planned capabilities, the continues to request fewer than 60 F-35A variants,” directed the synchronization of capability of fielded aircraft, and the which is the Air Force’s yearly procurement goal, “and Pentagon’s ability to maintain training cycles”. that the F–35B procurement profile was reduced to 10 F-35 program aircraft in the fiscal year 2021 President’s budget request, office to provide information “However, the committee is deeply concerned with five fewer than were planned in the fiscal year 2020 about how the Department’s approach to budgeting for C2D2 President’s budget for fiscal year 2021,” the committee Lockheed Martin stated in its explanation of why it had chosen to boost and the lack of detail in the budget justification is compensating funding for the program. The funding, however, will materials,” the committee added, criticizing the the government come with some strings attached. Senate appropriators program’s budget documentation for not always for spare parts that were not want quarterly reports on the status of Turkish suppliers providing easy “traceability ” among requested, ready on time to in the F-35's supply chain. Turkey was ejected from the allocated and spent funding. Senate appropriators be installed on F-35 program in 2019 following its acceptance of the also questioned the F-35 program’s strategy of buying the aircraft Russian S-400 air defense system, and the Pentagon is components in bulk ahead of need, a practice called in the process of removing Turkish companies from the “economic order quantity.” Usually, bulk purchases of aircraft’s supply chain. However, the full transition from Turkishparts are done in tandem with congressionally approved multiyear made components will not occur until around 2023 — a timeline contracts, but lawmakers approved EOQ procurement for the F-35 that has frustrated some lawmakers. with no multiyear contract in place. The committee also directed the Pentagon’s F-35 program office to provide budgetary information about how Lockheed Martin is compensating the government for spare parts that were not ready on time to be installed on the aircraft. The company in September agreed to invest about $70.6 million to fix problems that the Defense Department said had resulted in increased costs and hours lost. Despite adding funds to purchase more jets, lawmakers raised a number of concerns about a lack of transparency regarding the finer points of F-35 production, sustainment and modernization. “The committee continues to support follow-on modernization of the F-35” through the department’s Continuous Capability Development and Delivery strategy, which calls for using agile software development practices to enable incremental updates to the F-35 every quarter, the committee said, though it noted

The EOQ buy for F-35 lots purchased from FY18 through FY20 never resulted in the estimated $400 million in savings originally projected, the Senate committee said. And because the Pentagon had decreased the number of F-35s it planned to buy over FY21 through FY23, it is unlikely that the projected savings for that time period also would not be reached. “Given the lack of savings materialized and continued adjustments to F–35 aircraft quantities year-over-year, the committee questions whether appropriations for EOQ should continue to be provided to the F–35 program,” the committee said. However, the committee notes that changes to funding, contracting, and acquisition strategies midstream could have detrimental effects on program costs and the supplier base and therefore recommends fully funding the EOQ requested in fiscal year 2021.

December 2020

OBSERVER DAWN

Int’l Biz

FIRST NUCLEAR POWER PLANT OF BELARUS TAKES A FRESH MOMENTUM

he first nuclear power plant of Belarus began operating on November 3, 2020. This is a project that has spooked its neighbor Lithuania, which immediately cut off importing electricity from Belarus. The Russian-built Astravyets nuclear power plant, 40 kilometers (25 miles) south of the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius, has been connected to Belarus' power grid and has started producing electricity, according to Belarusian electricity operator Belenergo. The authorities of Lithuanian have been opposing the plant's construction for long, arguing that the project has been plagued by accidents, stolen materials and the mistreatment of workers. In line with the country's law banning electricity imports from Belarus once the plant starts, Lithuania's Litgrid power operator cut the inflow of electricity from Belarus upon receiving data that the Astravyets nuclear reactor had started producing energy. Rosatom, the state nuclear corporation of Russia that has built the plant has rejected the Lithuanian complaints, saying the plant's design conforms to the highest international standards as confirmed by the International Atomic Energy Agency, a U.N. watchdog. The corporation also insisted that it “has a zero-tolerance policy on corruption and an internal control system that ensures that any illegal or inappropriate practices are stopped and prosecuted.” It argued that the project’s launch would help reduce the region’s carbon emissions by up to 10 million tons of CO2 equivalent every year. In a statement to the media, Rosatom said, “We are working closely with Belarus’s national nuclear regulator, the World Association of Nuclear Operators, and with the EU’s European Nuclear Safety Regulators Group to make absolutely certain that there are no unaddressed risks or ‘threats to safety”. The power plant’s construction was delayed when the reactor’s hull slipped to the ground in July 2016 after workers failed to strap it properly during installation. Rosatom insisted at the time that the reactor

wasn’t damaged, but it agreed to replace the unit at the demand of Belarusian authorities. Belarus suffered severe damage from the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear disaster, which spewed radioactive fallout from a plant in then-Soviet Ukraine across large areas of Europe. That painful legacy has fueled opposition to the nuclear plant project in Belarus. Lithuania closed its sole Soviet-built nuclear power plant in 2009 and has forbidden the purchase of energy from Belarus. In recent weeks, Lithuanian authorities have handed out free iodine pills to residents living near the Belarus border. Iodine can help reduce radiation build-up in the thyroid in case of a leak of radioactivity. Recently the personnel work to begin loading nuclear fuel at Belarus' first nuclear plant which was built by Russia's state nuclear corporation Rosatom, near Astravets of Belarus. Belarus’ first nuclear power plant has started operating, a project that has spooked its neighbor Lithuania. The Russia-built Astravyets nuclear power plant, 40 kilometers (25 miles) south of the Lithuanian capital Vilnius began generating electricity on Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2020 according to the Belarusian electricity operator Belenergo. Lithuanian authorities long have opposed the plant’s construction, arguing that the project has been plagued by accidents, stolen materials and mistreatment of workers. (Courtesy: AP)

The corporation also insisted that it “has a zerotolerance policy on corruption and an internal control system that ensures that any illegal or inappropriate practices are stopped and prosecuted.”

OBSERVER DAWN December 2020

Int’l Biz

GOVERNMENT EXTENDS TECHNOCENTRIC HELP TO BOOST UK FIRMS

he Government of United Kingdom has recently published guideline through which the authorities concerned has said that it will help the UK firms negotiate the ‘Ethical, Legal and Commercial (ELC)’, questions they may encounter in China. Besides, they would also be able to get possible help from the UK authorities while working with Chinese businesses and safeguard national security concerns. This guideline was released by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) on Friday sets out key issues digital and tech small and medium enterprises (SMEs) should consider as they weigh the benefits and risks of commercial ventures, as well as signposting specialist sources of advice. The DCMS notes that China is the UK's third-largest export market and the world's second-largest and fastest-growing major economy. It has also warned that accessing the market should be done ‘safely’ and in a way that reflects the UK's values and takes account of national security concerns. The UK Minister for Digital and Culture Caroline Dinenage said, “The latest statistics show UK-China bilateral trade has exceeded the 76 billion pound mark for the first time and our digital tech sector is the fifth biggest exporter of services in the world. But we recognize the ethical, legal and commercial questions businesses face when they work in China or with Chinese businesses”. She added, “The UK is determined to support our businesses to engage with China in a way that reflects the UK's values and takes account of national security concerns”. A new online hub, which the DCMS said has been developed in response to demand from the tech sector, will support "safe and appropriate" UK-China collaboration in digital and tech. The guidance will help SMEs to make a success of business ventures linked to China, to choose the right partners and to manage risk by taking appropriate steps. Julian David, the CEO of techUK said, “We welcome the government's launch of the bespoke guidance to SMEs and we look

forward to working together to help digital and tech SMEs to grow safely and successfully in China”. He stressed, “At techUK, we recognize the massive opportunity that China presents for the UK's digital and tech businesses as well as challenges that firms face when navigating each other's unique marketplaces. To be successful and protect their operations, digital and tech businesses need to know the challenges and take the right steps to navigate them”. The DCMS said that the new hub complements measures announced earlier in the year to support UK tech companies to seize trade and investment opportunities overseas. These included a new Digital Trade Network for Asia-Pacific, which will support UK SMEs to break into the Asian market, and a new Tech Exporting Academy to provide expert advice to UK scale-ups on subject areas essential to expansion, including regulation, intellectual property, and compliance. During June 2020, the UK government had stipulated that Chinese giant Huawei will be completely removed from the UK's 5G networks by the end of 2027 in the wake of US sanctions on the company over data privacy concerns. Restrictions on Huawei operating in the ‘sensitive’ and critical parts of the UK network have also been in place.

A new online hub, which the DCMS said has been developed in response to demand from the tech sector, will support "safe and appropriate" UK-China collaboration in digital and tech

December 2020

OBSERVER DAWN

Int’l Biz

ENGLAND GETS ECONOMIC SUPPORT TO DEAL WITH CORONAVIRUS CRISIS

overnment of Britain, in association with the Bank of England has resolved to give a further boost an economy facing difficulties due to the Coronavirus lockdown across the world. With the central bank increasing monetary stimulus by a bigger than anticipated 150 billion pounds, the government extended its salary support program.

Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, offered a slew of bleak virusrelated statistics to explain the need for the new tighter measures. This financial support will follow the rules. While talking to the media, Johnson said, “I know many of you are anxious, weary and quite frankly fed up with the very mention of this virus”. The extension of the furlough program, which sees the government pay 80% of the wages of people retained by firms, up to 2,500 pounds a month, comes on the day that England is back in lockdown and the other U.K. nations — Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland — live under heightened restrictions. Like others in Europe, the U.K. has seen a sharp spike in new coronavirus infections recently. Johnson said the average daily number of new cases was now 22,398 against 9,716 a month ago. That's led to big increases in the number of people needing hospitalization, and in those dying. On Wednesday, the U.K. recorded another 492 virus-related deaths, the highest daily number since May, taking the overall death toll to 47,742, Europe's highest. The Job Retention Scheme, which was introduced alongside the national lockdown in March and helped keep a lid on unemployment, was due to expire at the end of October and to be replaced by a less generous program. The lockdown will see millions of workers going idle once again as it requires all non-essential venues such as pubs, restaurants, and stores selling items like books, clothing and sneakers, to close. Support for self-employed workers was also made more generous. “It’s clear the economic effects are much longer lasting for businesses than the duration of any restrictions, which is why we have decided to go further with our support”, Sunak told lawmakers. “Hospitality is facing a tough winter, so this enhanced support is crucial and will safeguard jobs and help businesses to plan for more certain future”, said the CEO of the U.K. Hospitality lobby group, Kate Nicholls.

The Bank of England estimates that the numbers of people on furlough will more than double in November to 5.5 million. At the height of the program, around 9 million workers, or around a third of the workforce, were on furlough. While welcoming the move, the main opposition Labor Party said the delay in doing so generated uncertainty and prompted some firms to dismiss staff in recent weeks. The government said the scheme could be backdated so anyone on payroll on Sept. 23 but then made redundant can be re-employed. “This cycle of bluster, denial and then running to catch up is costing jobs and causing chaos,” said Labour's economy spokeswoman, Anneliese Dodds. Though the furlough program prevented mass unemployment, the jobless rate has edged up from a four-decade low of 3.8% to 4.5% during the pandemic. On Thursday, supermarket chain Sainsbury’s said it will shed around 3,500 jobs as part of plans to permanently close its meat, fish and deli counters, as well as some of its Argos standalone stores. The extension came as the Bank of England warned that the British economy will contract a further 2% in the fourth quarter and faces an “unusually uncertain” outlook. However, it laid out the hope that a recession — widely defined as two straight quarters of contraction — may be avoided. Its nine-member policymaking panel increased the bank's bond-buying program to ensure banks carry on lending. The stimulus was bigger than the 100 billion pounds anticipated in financial markets. Governor of the Bank, Andrew Baily, said, “We believe there is value in acting quickly and strongly to support the economy and avoid the risks of any short-term disruption”.

OBSERVER DAWN December 2020

Intâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;l Biz

FRESH BIZ DEAL BETWEEN US & UK TO BEGIN IN LONDON

he EU and UK officials are likely to resume trade talks in London soon. Through this, they will try to bridge the gap between the two sides, what they termed a significant difference on fishing quotas and competition issues. Boris Johnson said that the outlines of an agreement were clear and a deal was there to be done. But he has insisted the UK is prepared to leave the single market and customs union on 31 December without agreement. The EU's chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier and his UK counterpart Lord Frost are in a race against the clock to conclude a future economic partnership in time for it to come into force when the post-Brexit transition period ends on 31 December. The UK had on January 31, 2020 left the EU but continued to follow the bloc's rules until the end of the year. If there is no agreement at that point, trade between the two will default to World Trade Organization (WTO) rules - with tariffs set to be introduced on many imports and exports, pushing up costs for firms and consumers. Both sides say they want to avoid this although the EU has said it will not do a deal at any price. The UK is willing to leave on what it calls Australian terms - which it conceives as limited sector-bysector agreements mirroring the EU currently has with Australia. It means that the UK will efficiently trade under the WTO guidelines. Johnson said that a more comprehensive deal on trade in all goods and services, based on the EU's agreement with Canada, was in progress. He added, "I have always been a great enthusiast for a trade deal with our European friends and partnersâ&#x20AC;?. The broad outlines are pretty clear, we just need to get on and do it if we can. After a telephonic conversation with Johnson, the European Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen, said that some progress had been made in recent weeks after the EU agreed to discuss specific legal texts. She further said that a large difference

remained over the question of access to British fishing waters from 2021 and regulations on the rights of worker environmental protection and state aid designed to maintain a level-playing field. Before visiting London Barnier tweeted that any deal must respect the interests and values of the EU and its 27 member states. The meeting comes as the House of Lords look likely to vote down controversial clauses in the government's Internal Market Bill. The clauses would give ministers powers to override parts of the Brexit withdrawal agreement reached with the EU, including obligations on state aid rules. The recently elected US President, Joe Biden, has previously been openly critical of the bill, fearing it could lead to a hard border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland - and has warned this could be a deal-breaker for any US-UK trade deal. Talking to the media, the Environment Secretary, George Eustice, said that the bill was all about protecting peace and stability arguing that it ensured Northern Ireland businesses have unfettered access to GB markets. He argued that the bill would push the EU into having to close the border between Northern Ireland and Ireland to protect the bloc's single market.

December 2020

OBSERVER DAWN

Int’l Biz

ISSUES KEEPING NATO’S RELEVANCE ALIVE By H Binnendijk & D S. Hamilton

he NATO alliance survived four years of U.S. President Donald Trump due largely to strong congressional support and clever leadership by Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. After the bell ringing and fireworks end in European capitals to welcome President-elect Joe Biden, the alliance will need to realize that it cannot go back to business as usual. The world has moved on during those four years and the alliance will need to continue to rejuvenate in order to remain relevant. That rejuvenation process will be enshrined in a new Strategic Concept, which should emerge over the next year or so. Stoltenberg already has a so-called reflection process underway designed to identify key areas where change is needed. Biden’s foreign policy team will now weigh in. NATO’s rejuvenation might unfold under what we call the “Four Cs.” We should want an alliance that is more coherent, more capable more comprehensive in scope and with a more co-equal balance of contributions to the common defense. The return of Joe Biden alone will contribute to NATO’s coherence, and reverse poisonous trans-Atlantic political relations. But the problem is deeper.

process through which allies can assess mechanisms to uphold their mutual commitment to strengthen their free institutions, avoid straying from agreed democratic practices and prevent allies from confronting each other militarily. Second, the alliance needs to continue its efforts to strengthen its capabilities in two distinct areas: conventional military might and resilience against so-called hybrid or non-kinetic attacks. Since the Russian annexation of Crimea in 2014, NATO nations have begun to focus again on a major power competitor. Four NATO battle groups are forward-deployed to the Baltic States and Poland. Threat A small, very high-readiness force and a larger readiness perceptions differ markedly initiative were undertaken to back up those battalions. across the alliance. There is broad lack of confidence in commitments to the North Atlantic Treaty, including its mutual defense Article V.

Threat perceptions differ markedly across the alliance. There is broad lack of confidence in commitments to the North Atlantic Treaty, including its mutual defense Article V. There is democratic backsliding among several NATO members. Allies are facing off against each other in the Eastern Mediterranean. There are differing attitudes about Russian behavior around the Black and Baltic Sea. There are differences about the endgame in Afghanistan. And there are uncertainties of how the alliance should address China’s growing security role in Europe and the global commons. The new Strategic Concept will need to enhance coherence by reaffirming common democratic values and recommitting to the common defense. This will be the most important element of a new Strategic Concept. A review of the Strategic Concept can provide a

OBSERVER DAWN December 2020

A mobilization initiative was designed to make sure ready forces can forward-deploy quickly. But European defense budgets constrained by COVID-19 will put those initiatives in jeopardy. The Strategic Concept will need to prioritize those programs. The alliance must also more methodically address unconventional challenges to human security from Russia such as media disinformation, corrosive cyber

Int’l Biz Finally, the new Strategic Concept should result in more co-equal trans-Atlantic distribution of military capabilities and responsibilities

technology dependencies and used coercive diplomacy to stifle European voices. NATO’s expanded role should include reducing those dependencies and developing much closer partnership ties with America’s Asian allies. Finally, the new Strategic Concept should result in more co-equal trans-Atlantic distribution of military capabilities and responsibilities. This is less about traditional burden-sharing than it is about responding to two historical trends. Europe’s response to the Trump years has been to seek greater strategic autonomy. China’s military challenge has American planners focusing on Asia first. Many American friends of Europe are discussing a possible new division of labor, with the United States focusing more on China and European militaries focusing on Russia. This, however, could leave Europe poorly defended and open to coercion. The Strategic Concept will need to divine an elegant solution, perhaps with Europe accepting the responsibility to provide half of the capability needed to defend against a major Russian attack. The NATO has remained history’s strongest alliance precisely because it has adapted to new strategic conditions. It can do so again. According to Roger Lenton, for NATO to be focusing on China illustrates that it still struggles to articulate relevance since the implosion of the Soviet Union. The Alliance is basically admitting that Russia, although an irritant, is simply no longer a serious threat. NATO has recently used Sure, it could conduct a quick, limited incursion its mobility in the Baltics, but Europe has more than enough and civil military power to push it back, if it had the defense assets will. Perhaps it is time that a European Union to mitigate “military” take over the defense of Europe. The the impact of ascertain that China is an imminent threat to the COVID-19 Europe is as weak as the organization’s claim that pandemic. NATO it needed to get involved in Afghanistan for the navies have contributed to “security of Europe”! Both are just lame excuses saving the lives for NATO’s continues existence.

operations, supply chain disruptions and energy intimidation. of refugees at The Strategic Concept needs to design resilience programs so sea One, Ira Straus, says one crucial correction, I that alliance members can better protect the critical functions agree warmly with the agenda of this article and of our societies to such disruptive dangers. Next, the scope of hope it has great influence. What is wrong is in NATO’s mission needs to be more comprehensive. NATO’s misunderstanding democratic backsliding. There is a democratic core tasks of collective defense, crisis management and cooperative backsliding in different spheres from Left and Right, and they are security must be expanded to include countering challenges that symbiotic. As long as the backsliding from the Left continues its contribute to global instability. Those challenges would range from advance, the backsliding from the Right will continue as in large managing global warming and pandemics through the refugee crisis part a reaction against it. to the rise of China. NATO has recently used its mobility and civil defense assets to mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. NATO navies have contributed to saving the lives of refugees at sea. In addition, the consequences of a major ice melt will have a significant security impact in the Arctic, along urban coastlines and on further refugee flows. To remain relevant, NATO must begin to define its role in these areas. Stoltenberg has focused the alliance’s attention on China. That nation is increasingly partnering with Russia in the military arena including defense industrial cooperation and joint exercises. It also has invested in European strategic infrastructure, created

The backsliding pushed from the Left is against the freedom of speech and thought - the freedom that is the very foundation for democratic discussion and decision-making. “It is specifically a collective threat to our ability to discuss security affairs in NATO, and to sustaining a friendly discourse about NATO. Is it really any secret that, by trashing NATO in his campaign, Trump was doing virtue signaling or dog whistling to the peace movement (which mostly liked him) and the Greens and the Left (which were ambiguous about him as a consequence), not just to the isolationist faction within the Right? Or that the reason he didn’t act on this destructively in practice, mostly actually constructively on burden sharing”, said Ira Straus.

December 2020

OBSERVER DAWN

Biz Tips

WAYS TO WIN TRUST OF B2B AUDIENCES THROUGH CONTENTS By Emily Clayfield

Recently, customer interviews for our largest B2B client found that visitors to these pages simply found it hard to understand the processes the business was offering.

elationships based on trust equate to better retention rates, more efficient decision making, higher conversion, happier employees and more satisfied clients. Trusting relationships also facilitate greater scope for creativity and make it easier to bounce back and learn from mistakes. Practical tips to build trust with your B2B audience through content marketing would really work much.

The ways content marketing helps us earn the trust of our audiences Within the climate of skepticism, with 42% of buyers not knowing which brands to trust, there’s a huge opportunity for content marketing. Studies suggests that the B2B buyers have a strong preference for self-education in the early stages of the buying process and over 70% of B2B buyers prefer to have a clear understanding of their needs before they talk with a sales rep. To rebuild trust and restore faith in the system, institutions must step outside their traditional roles and work towards more integrated operating model that puts people— and the addressing of their fears—at the centre of everything they do. These are:

Prioritize Your Listening The biggest piece of advice for building trust through content would be to listen first, observe customer behaviors and understand audience’s needs and goals in relation to your product or service. Once they are listened, we must tailor our advice, expertise and insights directly to those observations. A study in the Harvard Business Review found that listening to buyers and taking a proactive approach can increase purchase ease by 86%.

The key points to ask our audience about their problems rather than drown them out with solutions. To earn trust, you should use your content marketing to teach audiences something they didn’t already know

Recently, customer interviews for our largest B2B client found that visitors to these pages simply found it hard to understand the processes the business was offering. Fixing this was as straightforward as adding step-by-step process breakdowns to the pages for maximum clarity. The key points to ask our audience about their problems rather than drown them out with their

solutions. To earn trust, you should use your content marketing to teach audiences something they didn’t already know without any ulterior motive. Our recent guide on newsworthy data gathering is a good example of this principle in action:

Personalize What You Listen

You are most likely trying to build a long-term relationship with your customers. Just like any serious relationship, the personal touches count. By tailoring the content you serve to specific audience groups and individuals, you’re more likely to satisfy their needs and in turn, build their trust. By making sure anyone who is talking to clients knows about all the great assets you produce. Teams can then recommend resources to the prospects who will find them most useful. In order to analyze the effectiveness of this method of distribution, create personalized campaign tags. Tailor your tone of voice to your audience, just because you are discussing business topics, there’s no need to assume that all B2B customers need to be spoken to in a formal way.

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Biz Tips Personalise your content by offering varying levels of technical detail on complex products. This allows you to cater to different degrees of understanding and ensures you don’t alienate certain groups.

• Review your online presence. • Just as importantly, make sure you are represented accurately offline.

We tend to mark our technical resources with a corresponding level such as this Beginners’ Guide to Google Analytics.

Display Proof of Competence

Maintain Transparency The easier you make it for potential clients to get to know you, the easier they’ll find it to trust you. Transparency can be difficult to achieve, but here are my top tips to tackle the issue with content. These are: • Ensure your information architecture makes it really easy to find information about you, your business, your history, your products and your existing customers. • Explain your products in detail and let prospects know what to expect when working with you. This should be based on the experiences of existing customers. • Go behind the scenes and demonstrate your unique processes. • Answer the difficult questions up front with FAQs on product pages. Openly compare yourself to competitors and acknowledge your differences as well as your USPs. You might not offer the lowest price but admit that and explain the valid reasons why. • As far as possible, display pricing, ratings, lead times and details about technical support. If you are not sure how to display pricing, here’s a really interesting study by Benjamin Brandall who analyzed the pricing pages of the 250 most successful SaaS products in the world.

Maintain Consistence

Customers just want to be able to trust that your company can solve their problems and it is your job to demonstrate that it absolutely can. Content marketing in all its forms is the perfect tool to hammer that message home. In order to legitimize claims of competence, your brand should play an active role in your industry community including speaking at industry events, contributing to discussions in forums, on social and in industry publications. Countless studies have shown the link between building trust and seeing someone’s face. In fact, this LinkedIn study suggests that users with photos receive nine times more connection requests. Similarly, verifiable author reputation note is not only a factor in Google’s search quality guidelines, but studies have shown that users deem information more credible when an author’s expertise is established online. Better yet, offer to put prospective clients in touch with existing clients. It will speed up the research phase and decision making. Respond to reviews and follow up with specific action – demonstrate that you changed your ways of working because you heard what your customers had to say and acted upon it. Just like when McDonalds removed plastic straws from their UK restaurants in response to public pressure.

Share more than you might initially be comfortable with. Share analyses of difficult projects, write about issues your industry is struggling with and your own work-in-progress solutions

The B2B sales cycles are often long and complex so earning and maintaining trust requires consistency and commitment. There are several things you can address immediately in order to improve consistency and, in turn, earn your audience’s trust: • Have a core set of values and stick to them. Anyone who has contact with clients, existing or prospective, should use the values as a guiding principle for all communications.

Trust in Authenticity Outside of the B2B world, we recognize the need to be more vulnerable in order to forge deeper and more productive relationships. You can apply this theory to the way you communicate with customers in order to earn their trust. Here are some things to try:

• Share more than you might initially be comfortable with. Share analyses of difficult projects, write about issues your industry is struggling with and your own work-in-progress solutions. Ask your customers for their help and feedback and always own up to mistakes. This might seem counterintuitive but admitting you’re not perfect is much more believable and trustworthy than pretending you get everything right 100% of the time. • Avoid stock photography. You need to form a human connection with potential customers in order to establish trust and that can be difficult if you’re not meeting face-to face. The next best thing is to share real photos and video of your people, products and premises wherever possible within your content. From your website imagery to your social media channels, give potential customers an authentic insight into your brand and introduce them to the people they will be working with on a day-today basis. (Courtesy AP)

December 2020

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Lifestyle

RUSTIC LOOK IS IN

f you are an old soul, then there is nothing better than metallic shades like gold, silver, bronze to give the house a royal look. If you also want to give a royal look to your home, then decorate it with metallic shades. If you have painted the walls of the house in white or off white color, then you bring home decor accessories of metallic shades without any thought. With this you can give your house a royal look in minutes. You can additionally go overboard and give the house a royal look with golden chandeliers. Artistic sculpture or statues and statues of deities can give you a royal look to your home.

THESE

HOME DĂ&#x2030;COR

IDEAS ARE HERE TO

STAY

MORE ROOM IN THE BATHROOM

he best way you can use interiors design is your bathroom. There are many ways you can try to make your bathroom stylish. With bathrooms such as spa centers, the look can change. Every corner of your bathroom should be made with stylish interiors design. You can make your bathroom something like this where you can give the look of benches, stools, and window seats etc. Brightbold colors are also supposed to appear in the bathroom. Architects and designers are painting the bathroom pink, yellow, blue, green, and what not!

OBSERVER DAWN December 2020

Home Interior has taken center stage in 2020. The key reason responsible for this could be the fact that people are now spending more time at home. Architects and designers are recognizing their responsibilities well in this period and trying to give the best to the clients with regard to interior design. There are some designs which have been trending for a while now. People have been spending a lot of their time scrolling through Pinterest to find their inspirations. The tutorial videos to re-innovate the interiors the easy way have been trending too. Here are some trending dĂŠcor ideas that have captured the market and are supposed to stay here for a long time.

GREEN-GREEN ALL THE WAY

ndoor plants have for long been a significant part of interior design projects, but now the trend of keeping oversized plants indoors has literally captured the markets. In most homes, and of course all over the social media; the indoors have got a common element- a lot of plants. There is something about that lush greenery that instantly captures your attention, especially when everyone wants their spaces to be photogenic. Along with the picturesque vibes, the greenery all around is believed to improve physical health, mental health and overall ecosystem. Reclaimed wood, hanging plants, green walls and green installations will soon be a huge part of the main stream interior.

Lifestyle

WOOD IS GOOD

he past few decades we all have been using stones for our interiors decor in our kitchens and rooms. But apart from stone, wood is such a thing that interiors can be used better in design. Yes, if you want to give your home a different look, then you can also use wood in the interiors design of your house. Better quality wood can make your home look much better.

Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;M AT THE OFFICE HOME

ow that 'working from home' has become commonplace, the importance of flexibility in the home has become more than ever. Working areas are no longer formal. But at the same time, one cannot just merge their work lives with the living room or any other room. Therefore, small study rooms are being made. These study nooks can be associated with larger furniture pieces. You can go one step further and combine the look with a closet or bookshelf. Also, a ton of motivational quotes will complete the look.

THE NATURE LOVER

ute, Bamboo, Wooden Decor is also a good option for nature lovers. If you are also a nature lover, then you should jump straight in and decorate your house with wooden furniture. For this look, you can decorate the house with cane or bamboo furniture. Indoor plants, water fountains, fresh flowers will make your home more beautiful. You can choose shades like brick texture, organic colored wallpapers, olive green, off white to paint the walls of the house. Curtains made of nature friendly material like jute or cotton will look surreal with this look.

December 2020

OBSERVER DAWN

Tour & Travel

Most Important Tourist Places in

OBSERVER DAWN December 2020

Tour & Travel

imachal Pradesh is a very renowned state of India which is known for its colossal beauty, tourist destination and its attractive places. Himachal has a special place in the heart of the tourists visiting India. Its serene lakes, high mountains and ancient temples are bound to captivate their attention. The striking beauty of Himachal with its high valleys and hills provides peace to the people visiting here. Himachal Pradesh is bordered by Uttaranchal in the east, Jammu and Kashmir in the north, Punjab in the west, Uttar Pradesh in the south. The production of apples is quite high in Himachal Pradesh, due to which it is known as the state of Apples. The flattering environment, scenic landscapes, colorful culture, adventure sports, sightseeing and a variety of fairs and festivals are very special. Himachal Pradesh is one of the most preferred destinations for tourists as well as pilgrims. The summer season is considered the best time to visit Himachal Pradesh which starts from the month of March and ends in June. If you live in a warmer place in the country, then traveling to Himachal Pradesh in summer can be a surprisingly pleasant experience. Travelers can enjoy trekking, paragliding, camping, hot air ballooning and water sports during the summers.

December 2020

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Tour & Travel

SHIMLA

himla is the capital city of Himachal Pradesh and is also one of the most popular hill stations in northern India. Mall road, toy train and colonial architecture of Shimla are very popular among tourists, honeymooners and families visiting here. Shimla is positioned at an altitude of 2200 meters. Amidst beautiful hills and mystifying forestry, Shimla is one of the most beautiful places in India. It has many historical temples as well as colonial style buildings. Shimla was called the erstwhile summer capital of British India and the captivating natural beauty and atmosphere of this city could compel any tourist to come here again.

MANALI

anali is situated between the snow capped slopes of the Pir Panjal and Dhauladhar ranges. It is situated at an altitude of 1950 meters above sea level, which is a part of Kullu district of Himachal Pradesh. Manali is an extraordinary natural site with its lush green forest, meadows speckled with beautiful flowers, blue streams and a relentless scent of freshness. It is a paradise for lovers and lovers of nature. From the museums to the temples, from the thrill of the river to trekking trails, from the villages to the bumpy lanes at this hill station, it attracts tourists. The sound of the flowing water of Kullu River and the sound of birds will mystify you.

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Tour & Travel

DHARAMSHALA

haramshala is located at a distance of 17 km from Kangra. It is considered to be the gateway to the Kangra Valley. The snow-covered Dhauladhar mountain range here makes this place extremely amazing. Dharamshala is also known as the holy residence of the Dalai Lama. The city is divided into upper and lower divisions with varying elevations and peaks. The city of Dharamshala at its lower and upper division is known as McLeoad Ganj. Being a Tibetan hub, Dharamshala is a very popular place to learn about Buddhism and Tibetan culture.

SPITI

he Spiti Valley is surrounded on all sides by the Himalayas, and is situated at an altitude of 12,500 feet above sea level. The cold deserts of the Spiti valley, snow-capped mountains, winding roads and picturesque valleys excite the tourists visiting here. It is one of the places in Himachal Pradesh that receives sunshine for only about 250 days a year, which makes it one of the coldest places in the country. You can go by motorway only during the summer days and this place is covered with thick snow for about 6 months of the year.

December 2020

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Tour & Travel

KASAULI

asauli is a small city in the southwestern part of Himachal located on the lower banks of the Himalayan Mountains. It is a hilly town situated on the way from Chandigarh to Shimla. It is an ideal peaceful place away from the crowds of cities. It is situated amidst the beautiful deodar forests and is specially known for magnificent Victorian buildings built by the British. The region is home to many endangered species of flora and fauna in the dense forests. Kasauli's serene environment makes this place one of the most special tourist destinations of Himachal.

KINNAUR

innaur is also known as the "Land of God" which is located about 235 km away from Shimla. It is quite famous for the beauty of its lush green and Rocky Mountains. It shows the remarkable existence of a different kind of culture comprising of the brotherhood of Hinduism and Buddhism. Whenever Hindu tourists come to this place, they definitely go to visit the famous Kinnar Kailash. It is said that Kinnar Kailash belongs to Lord Shiva and there are also the stories about its relation to the Pandavas. There are multiple old Buddhist monasteries and temples in Kinnaur nearby which have their own significance and are also worshiped by Buddhists.

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Tour & Travel

MANDI

andi is a historic city situated on the banks of the Beas River. It has long been an important commercial center. It gets its name as the sage Mandava is said to have meditated here. The city of Mandi is rapidly developing but it still retains its original charm and character. Mandi is famous for its 81 old stone temples and exquisite carvings, which is why it is popularly called the 'Varanasi of the Hills'. The city has noteworthy examples of old palaces and 'colonial' architecture. The temples of Bhootnath, Trilokinath, Panchavaktra and Shyamkali are most famous in the Rewalsar region of Mandi. The International Shivaratri Fair at Mandi is a major attraction of the region every year that is a weeklong. The Shivaratri fair attracts tourists as well as locals in cultural events such as exhibitions, exhibitions, games etc.

KUFRI

ufri is one of the most sought after holiday destination in Himachal. Kufri is located about 10 km away from Shimla. If you are in transit to Shimla then you should definitely go and visit this place. Due to the high altitude of Kufri, snow is seen everywhere during the winter. Although there is not much to see in Kufri, but the temples and serene and mystifying views here make this place stand out. Kufri is well-known as a support base for tourists visiting Shimla, hence it is relatively crowded.

December 2020

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Tour & Travel

KULLU

ullu is a popular tourist destination of Himachal Pradesh which is very often associated with Manali as usually tourists visiting Himachal visit both Kullu and Manali together. It is an open valley with its panoramic views and grandiose hills covered with pine trees. Kullu is situated at a height of 1230 meters which is a delightful place for nature lovers. This place is also famous as it offers a variety of adventure sports to visiting tourists. Raghunath Temple and Jagannathi Devi Temple are two very famous religious sites of Kullu.

PALAMPUR

alampur is a very exceptional tourist destination of Himachal Pradesh which is surrounded by pine forests and tea plantations. Palampur city has many rivers and is also known for its amazing confluence of water and greenery. Situated amidst the majestic Dhauladhar Ranges, Palampur is famous worldwide for its tea gardens and good quality of tea. Palampur was first seen by the British after which it was transformed into a center of trade and commerce. The Victorian style mansion and palace located in this city looks very beautiful.

OBSERVER DAWN December 2020