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PUNE, OCTOBER 29-NOVEMBER 04, 2016 | www.thegoldensparrow.com
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What ails our rural hospitals? 04, 2016 29-NOV PUNE, OCT
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TGS LIFE
The 360 rural hospitals in Maharashtra provide free medical care to a majority of the village population. But with the rising population, these hospitals are in dire need of the upgradation of facilities as well as adding on the necessary aspect of specialty treatments See p08-09
BJP, MNS trying to woo voters with Diwali gift bags
See p03
MUMBAI
THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY OCTOBER 29-NOVEMBER 04, 2016
PUNE
“Forcing anyone to pay money is considered as extortion. The deal brokered by the chief minister between the film producer and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) can be considered as a form of extortion.” - Ajit Pawar, NCP Leader
Kshatriya orders speedy filing of affidavit on boundary row Maharashtra Chief Secretary Swadheen Kshatriya today directed the officials to file state’s affidavit before the Supreme Court regarding the boundary dispute with Karnataka before January 2017. Maharashtra has been long claiming Belgaum and some other border areas in Karnataka which have Marathi-speaking population. The directions were given at a meeting of the high-powered committee on the boundary dispute. Chief of the committee Prof N D Patil and Additional Chief Secretary (General Administration) Bhagwan Sahai were among those present. Kshatriya also directed the Law and Judiciary department to appoint a legal expert in place of Prabhat Ranjan Tiwari who passed away recently. Arvind Datar and Harish Salve are representing the state in the apex court. Kshatriya said all documents related to the case should be scanned and sent to the legal office in a month’s time. A request would be made to the Supreme Court to conduct hearing of the case on a fast-track, he said. Maharashtra Government would soon appoint a nodal officer to assist the legal team in Delhi, he said. PTI
HC slams Maha govt on noise pollution cases After Awaz foundation filed a number of PILs, judges of the HC issued notices to ACPs of Ulhasnagar and Borivali
The Bombay High Court today came down heavily on the Maharashtra government for not attending to public complaints about violation of noise pollution rules, saying there was hardly any compliance by the authorities in this regard. Going through the affidavit filed by the Maharashtra government, a division bench headed by Justice Abhay Oka noted that of the 61 complaints pertaining to noise pollution in Mumbai, the police had acted only in 11 cases. There was hardly any compliance with the high court orders of August 10, August 11, August 12 and August 16, 2016 pertaining to implementation of noise pollution rules. In these orders, the high court had asked the government to enforce the noise pollution rules. Today, the bench noted, on going through the government affidavit, that hardly any compliance had been made by the state in this regard. The judges also noted that the government had asked the Assistant Commissioners of Police in suburban Borivali and Ulhasnagar region of nearby Thane district to take action
against the violators of noise pollution rules but they had not acted on the public complaints. “No panchnama was drawn after the complaints were filed. Also, there was no decibel meters available to measure noise levels. In such cases, the offenders would ultimately get acquitted,” the bench observed. The judges issued notices to the ACPs of Ulhasnagar and Borivali for failing to take action against the offenders in cases of violation of noise pollution rules. The bench also asked the Maharashtra Chief Secretary to look into the earlier orders passed by the high court with regard to implementation of
FUN-TOONS
Fans enjoying with popular comic characters during the inauguration of the Comic Con India in Mumbai
Ferreira and 3 others held in Q-Net case
cheating and under relevant provisions of IPC, besides under Prize, Chits and Money Circulation Schemes (Banning) Schemes Act, the officer said. On October 19, Ferreira, Desai, Balaji and Rao were brought to Hyderabad and placed under arrest in connection with another cheating case involving QNet and its Indian subsidiary M/s Vihaan Direct Selling India Pvt Ltd registered by Central Crime Station, a wing of Hyderabad City Police. However, the Hyderabad High Court stayed further proceedings against them into the case. PTI
India 13th in protection of minority investors P 14
CEO fakes death to evade arrest Manoj Sharma, CEO of SpeakAsia embroiled in Rs 2275 crore fraud, has faked his own death to avoid arrest, investigating team believes BY SANTOSHEE MISHRA @TGS WEEKLY
PTI
Former world billiards champion Michael Ferreira and three others were arrested today in connection with three cheating cases registered against them here in the alleged multi-crore rupee fraud involving marketing company QNet, Cyberabad Police said. Ferreira (78) and Malcom N Desai, share-holders of M/s Vihaan Direct Selling India Pvt Ltd, along with M V Balaji and Srinivas Rao, associated with the firm, were earlier arrested in Mumbai by Maharashtra Police. “All the four were brought on PT (production transit) warrant from Mumbai last night and arrested today. There were three cases registered against them under Madhapur and Kukatpally police stations,” DCP (Madhapur Zone) Vishwa Prasad told PTI. The four were produced before a court, which sent them in judicial custody until November 9, the DCP said, adding that they were being shifted to Cherlapally Central Prison. They were booked on charge of
21st century libraries can help fight poverty: Ansari P 12
noise pollution rules and decide what steps the government proposes to take. The bench also asked the Chief Secretary to hold a meeting with officers concerned if necessary and file an affidavit on December 17. The high court was hearing a bunch of public interest litigations filed by Awaz Foundation and others seeking implementation of noise pollution rules and regulations. The earlier orders of the high court had asked the authorities to draw a panchnama in a case of public complaint about violation of noise pollution rules, monitoring of noise decibel levels by meters and deputing officers to the spots where complaints have been filed. PTI
Investigators probing the Rs 2,276 crore SpeakAsia fraud case, after the arrest of Renu Sharma, 55, wife of Manoj Sharma, India CEO of SpeakAsia, suspect that Manoj is alive and has purposely spread rumours about his own death in Singapore. SpeakAsia which is a Singapore-based company, was introduced to India in 2010 by Sharma. The Economic Offence Wing (EOW) of the Mumbai Police is presently probing the fraud to the tune of about Rs 2,276 crore by SpeakAsia involving 24 lakh investors pan India. After making few return payments, the company SpeakAsia wrapped up its operations in the year 2011 across the country. According to the EOW officials, Renu, wife of Sharma who was on the run, was arrested along with another accused Arun Rai, 35, a franchise owner. “Renu’s husband, CEO India SpeakAsia, had planned, designed and executed the scam here. She claimed that her husband died in Singapore due to cancer in the year 2014. ,” said a official of the EOW. Adding, “It seems that Sharma planned his death to avoid the arrest and legal action against him in the fraud which he engineered in the country. He fled after
Manoj Sharma
we registered the case in 2011. There are videos we have accessed from a social networking site and also an interview of Sharma by some scribe in Singapore,” he said. “Soon we are planning to write to the authorities and meet the scribe and visit the hospital where Manoj Sharma took treatment,” revealed the officer. So far, the EOW has arrested 32 persons in the case of the multi-level marketing (MLM) firm. “Sharma, Renu and Rajeev Mehrotra, an arrested accused, floated a company, Tulsiyat Tech Pvt Ltd. Whatever money they received from investors, was kept in Tulsiyat’s bank account and later transferred to SpeakAsia’s Singapore account. About Rs 701 crore was laundered from India to Singapore,” said another EOW officer. Renu, said police, has been arrested since she was one of the directors of Tulsiyat. The investors are still hoping to get their money back and some of the accused have assured them to return their money. The police have frozen 215 bank accounts having more than Rs 141 crore in them.
Rakesh Maria questioned by CBI in Sheena Bora case Former top cop of Mumbai police Rakesh Maria, now Maharashtra’s Director General (Home Guards), and two other senior officials of the force have been questioned by CBI in connection with the Sheena Bora murder case in which the agency is about to wrap up investigation. CBI officials said that the three officers were “examined” as they were part of the initial probe team which investigated the case and arrested Indrani Mukherjea. The spotlight had fallen on Maria and his crack team after CBI arrested media baron Peter Mukherjea last year. There were allegations that Maria had not probed the property angle in the case and not quizzed Mukherjea. Sheena, was allegedly strangled in a car in Mumbai on April 2012 by her mother Indrani Mukerjea, her former
Shivaji Memorial: Can’t lay underwater pipelines & cables, say BMC, BEST Maharashtra government’s project of raising a grand statue as the memorial of Chhatrapati Shivaji in the Arabian Sea may face hurdles, with the BMC and BEST saying they cannot lay underwater pipelines and cables due to lack of expertise. BMC and the power utility want the work of laying water pipelines and electricity cables to be given to some other agencies. “So far, the BMC has hardly done any work like the Shivaji memorial, where we will be the sole agency for water supply for daily use. BMC needs to lay pipeline below sea water, But it does not have expertise to carry out such work and it has been already communicated to the government. “If a separate agency is roped in for construction of the same, then we can supply water,” an official of BMC water supply department told PTI. The state government plans to develop the grand memorial of the Maratha warrior king in the Arabian sea off Girgaum chowpatty, which will boast of the tallest statue in the world. A few days back, the government floated a tender quoting the total project cost to be Rs 3,600 crore. They also stated that it would use its own funding and some assistance from the Centre for the project. It has already made a provision of Rs 100 crore for the memorial, which is to be completed by 2019. The cost of the project was estimated to be Rs 700 crore in 2009, although no concrete development took place till last year. PTI
husband Sanjeev Khanna and her former driver Shyamvar Rai. Sheena’s body was then dumped in a forest in neighbouring Raigad district. Maria, a 1981-batch IPS officer was removed as Mumbai police Commissioner and replaced by Ahmed Javed, a 1980-batch IPS officer. Maria was alleged to have taken “unusual
interest” in the Sheena Bora case and frequently visited Khar police station for questioning the accused. As various theories floated about the reasons for Maria’s transfer, the Maharashtra Home Department had said the changes were made taking into account the law and order factor ahead of the Ganapati festival, dismissing suggestions that had anything to do with the ongoing investigation in the case. However, former Mumbai Police Commissioner Satyapal Singh, now a BJP MP from Uttar Pradesh, had told TV channels that one of the reasons for shifting Maria could be that he was close to Peter Mukerjea. Former Mumbai police commissioner Julio Ribeiro had said Maria was “people friendly” but added that investigating a murder case is not the job of a police Commissioner. PTI
Maha govt goes in for a dress change of nurses The Maharashtra government has decided to go in for a change in the conventional uniforms of nurses, where females will now be required to wear beige salwar suits and sarees on duty while males would put on similar coloured shirts and pants along with white aprons. According to a Government Resolution (GR), the decision has been taken post consultations and consent of the Maharashtra Government Nurses Federation (MGNF), who have been complaining about the difficulties faced while working in white frocks in busy tertiary care hospitals. The government has mandated around 20,000 nurses across the state to wear beige coloured uniforms while on duty. It has also mandated matrons to wear uniforms noticing that they often took the liberty of not adhering to the uniform rule in hospitals. Kamal Vaykole, Secretary, MGNF said, “We were fighting for this uniform since a long as too many problems crop up in the white one, including those uniforms getting dirty very easily.” The MGNF also contended that maintaining a white
dress/frock along with an apron and cap was difficult and moreover where female nurses had to climb staircases or handle patients at odd hours and places. “We think that a saree or a salwar kameez would be more practical and beige colour would be easier to maintain than spotless white,” Vaykole said. MGNF had filed a writ petition in the Bombay high court five years ago, demanding a change in the traditional white frocks, considering the discomfort while functioning in busy wards. The nurses had said that since many patients usually sleep on the ground, working became difficult for them. Government officials subsequently requested the representatives to withdraw the petition and assured them that a final decision will be taken on the matter soon. After the petition was withdrawn by the MGNF, the committee, in their suggestions, accepted the demands and paved a way for the change in uniform for nurses, an official from the medical education and drugs department said. PTI
THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY OCTOBER 29-NOVEMBER 04, 2016
PUNE
“We completely support having an alliance with Shiv Sena for the municipal elections in Pimpri Chinchwad. We have held informal talks with Shiv Sena leaders in this regard. Now, a formal proposal will be sent forward.” - Laxman Jagtap, Chinchwad MLA
‘93 madrassas in Sindh have solid links with terrorist groups’ P13
BJP, MNS trying to woo voters with Diwali gift bags BJP and MNS party workers distribute ‘gift’ bags to prospective voters for the upcoming elections, in direct violation of the model code of conduct BY TUSHAR RUPANAVAR @tusharrupanavar The Election Commission of India (ECI), on October 21, announced the election schedule for vacant seats in the state legislative council (MLC), and candidates are to be elected from local bodies. The ECI conducts state legislature council elections. Six lawmakers’ seats of the state legislature are vacant, and thus the model code of conduct is now in force in Pune city and surrounding rural areas. Corporators from municipal corporations, Zilla Parishads and Panchayat Samiti members are the
ones who vote in the MLC elections, so the ECI has imposed the model code of conduct in the entire district. Despite this, some Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) corporators are openly distributing bags containing pulses, sugar, jaggery, perfume, diyas, and soaps to prospective voters in the civic body elections, to be held in February 2017. This is a violation of the model code of conduct by corporators, of which the election administration seems to be completely unaware. The bags carry the logos of their party, and pictures of party leaders. Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) corporators have been distributing these bags to voters in Mangalwar Peth, Kasba Peth and Somwar Peth. The bags also have photos of guardian minister Girish Bapat. The BJP and MNS workers wear their party caps and mufflers while distributing these bags, telling citizens that these bags are sent by their party leaders as Diwali gifts for voters.
Health dept to recruit doctors through walk-ins Authorities scrap appointments through civil services
BY DNYANESHWAR BHONDE @dnyanesh1 The rising number of vacancies in the rural health centres across the state and the indifference of doctors to join duty in these areas have prompted the health department to scrap recruitment through civil services like Maharashtra Public Service Commission (MPSC). Instead, class one doctors’ posts (graduated and postgraduate) will be recruited through ‘walk in interview’ by the committee presided by the collector of respective district. The Pune district administration will begin recruitment of permanent doctors through ‘walk-in’ process within a week. The committee set up by public health department is presided by respective collectors of the district and the members will be chief executive officer of district council, district social welfare officer, district civil surgeon, district health officer and assistant commissioner tribal development. “The committee will arrange interview for Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS), Medicine Doctor (MD) Master of Surgery (MS) doctors class one posts and will recruit them for permanent post. The move will help appoint full-time doctors in rural health institutions for the state,” said Dr PG Darshane, assistant health director, Pune. As per a recent study, there are nearly 40 per cent vacant posts of doctors and other staff in rural health institutions like primary health centre, sub health centre, rural hospitals and sub district hospitals. The High Court also had expressed worry over the issue in the past. Speaking on the condition of anonymity, a doctor said that the remuneration paid by governments is less as compared to private sector and the facilities at these centres are poor, leading to vacant posts in rural areas. “Payment is less as compared to running own clinics and many cannot handle workload and political pressure. Doctors working in private health institutions are paid handsome amount of money and enjoy other facilities. The government should hike the salaries of doctors for them to take up rural responsibilities,” the doctor said. Owing to poor response from doctors for the recruitment process through MPSC, the authorities decided to form a committee and issued the new Government Resolution (GR) in this regard. These doctors will be offered Rs 15,600 to Rs 39,100 as remuneration. All posts will have reservations as per the policy. However, there is no data available with the government on vacant posts in rural areas. Deputy health director Dr Hanumant Chavan said that the doctors who cleared from government and private medical colleges will be recruited. “We are issuing the advertisements in newspaper within a week. Candidates who completed their education from BJ Medical College, Kashibai Navale Medical College, DY Patil Medical College and those from any part of the state can apply for the posts,” said Dr Chavan. dnyaneshwar.bhonde@goldensparrow.com
The Diwali ‘gift’ bags with the party logos and leaders’ pictures
During Diwali, the prices of chana and besan shoot up as they are used extensively to make sweets. Kasba Peth resident Omkar Dixit said, “Since the last two days, BJP and MNS party workers have been distributing bags containing items related to Diwali, and appealing to
citizens to favour their political party in the upcoming civic body polls. The PMC elections are at hand, so independent candidates contesting the elections too are distributing such bags in our area. This is nothing but bribing the voters.” Mangalwar Peth resident Narayan
Pawar said, “The BJP is distributing these gift bags, keeping an eye on the PMC elections. The bags have guardian minister Girish Bapat’s photo on it. Bapat is sitting in a responsible constitutional position while his supporters distribute bags. It is sad and harmful for our democracy that party workers are openly appealing to citizens to favour their political party in the upcoming PMC elections. It is a violation of the model code of conduct imposed by the ECI for the MLC elections. These political people disappear for four years after the PMC elections, and suddenly they have appeared now that the elections are three months away. They only woo voters at this time, and after the elections, they loot taxpayers’ money.” District collector, chief elections and surveillance officer Saurabh Rao said, “The model code of conduct for MLC elections is now in force in the entire district. So distributing bags with party leaders’ photos and symbols to voters is a violation of the model
code of conduct. I will send our flying squad to these peth areas where these bags are being distributed. We will directly file cases of violation of the model code of conduct against people doing this.” BJP house leader of PMC, Ganesh Bidkar, whose supporters are distributing gift bags to voters, said, “Diwali has great importance in Hindu culture. It is not possible for poor people to celebrate Diwali during such high inflation. Therefore we distribute Diwali items to these people. I am not aware that the model code of conduct is in force now, otherwise we would not distribute these bags to people.” Guardian Minister Girish Bapat said, “I am not aware of people who are distributing such bags to citizens. I will immediately inquire into the matter and take action against them. Personally, I have not sent anybody to distribute such things to citizens; I am well aware that the model code of conduct for MLC elections is in force now.” tushar.rupanavar@goldensparrow.com
THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY OCTOBER 29-NOVEMBER 04, 2016
PUNE
“There is an inherent weakness in pilot BRTS which cannot be put right. The busiest corridor in Pune does not have a single safe crossing, either a foot overbridge or underpass. This should be taken up on priority.” - Maj Gen SCN Jatar (retd), President, Nagrik Chetna Manch
From bricks to clicks, with Pune-based Olito
Venkaiah bats for consensus in Uniform Civil Code
P10
P12
Fire station at MIDC yet to kindle into reality
Pimpri-Chinchwad civic body neglecting the safety of people working in these industrial areas BY VICKY PATHARE @Vickypathare2
The Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) is yet to learn lessons from the recent fi re outbreaks in industrial areas. In a case of clear negligence of fi re safety norms that could put the lives of thousands of people working in industrial area of Bhosari and Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC) in danger, the five-year-long pending proposal of a fi re station at Bhosari MIDC is gathering dust. The proposal got a go-ahead
two months back and the tender to construct the fi re station at Bhosari MIDC Phase II was sanctioned, but the engineering department of PCMC is yet to take any positive step. The MIDC Bhosari was merged under PCMC more than three decades ago, yet the area lack basic facilities. The twin town has expanded by leaps and bounds and houses more than 15,000 small and medium business functioning in MIDC Bhosari, Kudalwadi and Chikhali. Currently there are five fi re stations in PCMC areas located at Chinchwad, Talawde, Rahatni, Bhosarigaon and Pimpri, a facility that is insufficient for the growing population. The proposal to build a fi re station at Bhosari MIDC has been neglected by the administration and public representatives. “The PCMC civil department is least bothered about public service and
security. There are three fi re stations in pipeline to come up at Chikhali, Chinchwad including the Bhosari MIDC phase II but, I am fed up of requesting them for several times,” alleged Kiran Gavade, Chief Fire Officer, PCMC. “It will hardly take two months to construct the fi re station but due to the lackadaisical approach of the PCMC the work is pending. Now when everything is cleared and tenders are issued, why is the civil department causing delay. Several times I have raised the issue in the meeting but in vain. The new fi re station at Bhosari MIDC will have two fi re tenders and 25 workers,” said Gavade. The Centre has admitted that Indian cities and rural areas are facing shortage of fi re stations as little less than 3,000 such units are operating against the requirement
of over 8,500. Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju said India has 2,987 fi re stations against the requirement of 8,559, which shows
a deficiency of 65 per cent. The Standing Fire Advisory Council, which has representatives from all states, has recommended setting up
fi re stations based on response time — fi ve to seven minutes in urban areas and 20 minutes in rural areas. He said the maintenance of fi re service is a municipal function but the Centre pitches in with funds and training to improve the infrastructure and quality of manpower needed to tackle fi re incidents. The National Disaster Management Authority had issued guidelines in April, 2012 to standardise the type of equipment and training of personnel to modernise and improve fi refighting capabilities in the country, Rijiju said. The National Fires Service College, Nagpur provides training to fi re officers in advanced techniques of fi refighting and rescue, keeping in mind changes such as industrialisation, growth of industry and expansion of urban areas, he said in his written response. vicky.pathare@goldensparrow.com
THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY
RAHUL RAUT
FEATHERED COMPANY
PMC to put details of No way to treat a pregnant lady 4,000 doctors online soon
OCTOBER 22-28, 2016
“Any new entrants to our party (BJP) shall not be automatically eligible to get ticket for the forthcoming civic polls in the city. (In light of recent induction of leaders in BJP under CM Devendra Fadnavis’ supervision)” - Girish Bapat, Pune District Guardian Minister
Tibet’s thangkas find new fans P13
BY GUNWANTI PARASTE @gunwantiparaste
BY TUSHAR RUPANAVAR @tusharrupanavar
The central government recently amended the Maternity Benefit Act 1961, which increased the paid maternity leave for working women from 12 weeks to 26 weeks. This amended act is applicable to establishments employing ten or more persons. But Archana Potdar, an employee of Visionindia Software Exports Limited, an ISO 9001:2008 certified IT company based at Karvenagar, was denied the maternity leave she asked for. Archana complains that Visionindia intimidated her and wanted to force her to resign when she filed an application for maternity leave. The Union cabinet on August 10 amended the Maternity Benefit Act 1961 by introducing the maternity benefit amendment bill 2016 in Parliament. Rajya Sabha too gave its nod to this amendment on August 11. As per the new amendment, government has increased maternity leave from 12 weeks to 26 weeks. The act protects the employment of women during the time of her maternity and entitles her to a maternity benefit of full paid absence from work to take care of her child. Visionindia had got the tender of central government’s ICT (Information and Communication Technology) programme two years ago. Through this ICT programme, Visionindia recruited 838 teachers for 838 schools across Satara, Sangli, Kolhapur, Ratnagiri, Sindhudurg district to teach computers to 9th and 10thstandard students on contract basis. The amended act is applicable to Visionindia company as well as its employees whose number is more than ten. Visionindia employee Potdar currently serves as ICT teacher in Satara district. “I am working with Visionindia company as teacher under ICT
BY DNYANESHWAR BHONDE @dnyanesh1
programme since the last two years. I teach computers to students at a school in Satara district. But when I filled an application for maternity leave, the company refused me the leave. Being a women employee, it is my right to get maternity leave of 26 weeks. But the company chiefs rejected my leave application, threatened me, and wanted to force me to resign due to my pregnancy. In the past, the company has forced pregnant women employees to resign. Their policy is to recruit new teachers in the place of pregnant women employees, by refusing them maternity leave and forcing pregnant women employees to resign. The company is harassing its women employees. I personally requested my seniors and had written many applications for maternity leave, but they refused,” she said. Social activist and advocate Rama Sarode said, “Not giving maternity leave to women employees is an offence as per maternity benefit act 1961 and this act applicable to both public as well as private establishments where more than ten workers are working. Archana can file a case against this company in court as well as at the state women’s right commission for denying maternity leave and forcing her to resign due to pregnancy. It’s every working woman’s right to get 26 weeks maternity leave and establishment has to
Wellness Clinic in Chowdhari building in Bhavani Peth area near Ghodke mutton market. The police filed an offence against Khan after Dr Ayyub Khan Dinesh Bende, medical ward officer (Bhavani Peth) who is also member of anti quackery cell headed by PMC health department, suggested it. Dr Bende had forwarded a report to PMC health department on February 17, 2016, urging action against Ayyub Khan after Bende found during inspections, that he did not have a valid degree to do allopathic practice. During the inspection on February 16, 2016, Dr Bende found that Ayyub Khan was present in Wellness Clinic in Chowdhari building in Bhavani
The quack has been identified as Ayyub Khan, who runs the Wellness Clinic in Chowdhari building in Bhavani Peth area near Ghodke mutton market
Pigeons roost in their hundreds in the bare branches of a tree at Sukhsagar Nagar in Katraj, filling the air with the noise of cooing and fluttering of wings
Under the Right to Information Act, hiring of employees is done from 11am to 6pm. But in a first, hiring was done at 2 am by the Right to Information Commission, Pune. The RTI Pune Commission is working blindly, said RTI activist Prof Jayant Gaikwad of Ahmednagar. “It’s the first instance of hiring being done at night. When I received the hiring order letter, I was confused about the timing, which was said to be 2 am. I thought that it was a typing mistake. I tried to contact the concerned person and department, but I did not get a proper response. I even wrote to the department but in vain. Then I called their landline number, which was also unfruitful. The concerned person did not reply nor did he admit their mistake. They sent be a corrected copy, which mentioned the time as 2 pm,” he said. The Right to Information Act has completed 11 years on October 12, 2016. From October 6 to 12, RTI week was celebrated. Gaikwad wanted information about 12 different issues related to the Right to Information Commission. Another mistake by the commission was that they put the wrong name of Deenanath Katkar in the letter. State Information Commission, Pune, deputy officer Raviraj Phalle said that it was a typing or copy paste mistake. It’s a small mistake by the clerk but it is being blown up out of proportion. In the corrected letter, we have put the correct time and name. People must understand
TGS NEWS SERVICE @TGSWeekly
The street children on Shankarsheth Road got a surprise when former said Dr Vaishali Jadhav, assistant medical officer of deputy mayor Aba alias Ulhas Bagul PMC, who had initiated the drive. and his family celebrated Diwali with On October 19, PMC had filed an FIR at them on Friday (August 28) morning. Samarth Police Station against a bogus doctor Bagul, his wife Jayashree, their son from Bhavani Peth area for allegedly treating Amit and the leader’s supporters patients without holding a valid degree or medical reached Shankarsheth Road locality council registration. The quack has been identified near Swargate and gave the kids as Ayyub Khan, who runs the Wellness Clinic in bath in warm water after massage, Chowdhari building in Bhavani Peth area near distributed cloths to wear and sweets Ghodke mutton market. before bursting crackers with them. Meanwhile, the authorities Speaking to TGS, Bagul said, had called for ‘proactive for this quack “Every citizen who can afford to approach’ with cooperation celebrate the festival should spend from medical bodies to tackle some time with these kids who rarely the issue of quacks and fake get the chance to enjoy. The city sees doctors operating in the city. many people from various regions of A proposal to direct beat the state coming to Pune in search constables to keep an eye on livelihood. And many end up on such activities in areas under roadsides and left with no alternative their jurisdiction, and alert the but to beg. There are some migrated medical council of suspected families leaving in huts near the quacks in the area was also on railway office on Shankarsheth Road. the cards. Under the Act, all We have tried to being a cheer of their doctors are required to display faces.” their registration numbers on a Features health , anxiety & depression , tgs.feedback@goldensparrow.com boardmental outside clinics. suicide prevention , self harm & self injury , In other partshoodof, griefthe pregnancy & early parent & loss ) country, in a bid to check DR. Ashiya Mishra quacks from playing with ( Depression Specialist ) the lives For of the freepeople, querieseven the High Court has directed dr.mentalhealth@surgical.net the chief secretary and the contact :- 9175689422 principal secretary (Medical Health) to comply with orders prohibiting unauthorised, unregistered and un-qualified persons from practicing modern medicine. The court has directed officers to also strictly enforce provisions of PC and PNDT Act. The court instructed CMOs and DMs to initiate prosecution and file FIRs against those persons who have qualifications in Homeopathy, Unani, Ayurveda, Siddha, Tibbi, etc., but are practicing modern medicine by prescribing drugs and carrying out surgeries/operations. DMs and CMOs have been directed to carry out inspection of diagnostic centres under their jurisdiction for compliance of the provisions of PC and PNDT Act. tgsfeedback@goldensparrow.com
The staff of Visionindia Software Exports Limited, an ISO 9001:2008 certified IT company based at Karvenagar
The health department of Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has collected the details of over 4,000 doctors operating from the 15 ward offices of city area. Doctor’s details including name, degree, registration with respective council will soon be updated on PMC websites. Health department has issued notices to doctors whose registration is incomplete and have made changes in The game is up their names. dispensing allopathic With rising numbers Man medicines in Bhavani Peth area is found to have no valid license, qualifications of quacks operating in city, or medical council the move will be helpful in registration monitoring doctors in the city area and identifying quacks. Once the details are online, citizens can check whether the doctors they are taking treatment is eligible with claimed degrees, respective councils. The updated information will be helpful in issuing notifications to the doctors as their details are available with the health department. PMC had started the drive of collecting information of doctors four years back. Health workers and officials of the respective wards collected the information going door to door of the operating doctors from private hospitals, clinics, nursing homes and other health institutions. They took the information like how many MBBS, MD, MS, BAMS, Homoeopath, Unani, Siddha and Yoga doctors are running clinics in the area. They checked their registration with Medical Council of India (MCI), Maharashtra Medical Council (MMC) and respective councils. “We have collected data of more than four thousand doctors and will update it as category wise on the websites. The doctors that we miss in this drive will be included in future campaigns,” The Samarth police have booked a man from Bhavani Peth area for allegedly treating patients without holding a valid degree or medical council registration, on October 19. Despite filing an offence under sections of the Maharashtra Medical Practitioners Act, 1961, the police have not arrested the man till date, and he continues his practise. The quack has been identified as Ayyub Khan, who runs the
Street children celebrate Diwali
Odd time for new staff to report to work
Visionindia company accused of denying pregnant women employees maternity leave, and holding back workers’ pay cheques
TGS NEWS SERVICE @TGSWeekly
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give her total salary during her leave.” Shashikant Jadhav, ICT teacher of Visionindia, said, “I have been working at Visionindia under ICT programme as teacher since the last two years. But the company is very irregular in payments. It has not paid us for the last ten months and we have no food to eat. ICT teachers working at Visionindia in various districts came to the Pune office to meet the chairman and directors of the company. But they stopped our payments for the last ten months under false pretexts like government not paying the company. The company also did not give maternity leave to some of our women teachers during their pregnancy. This is a violation of women’s rights as well.” Director of Visionindia Software Exports Limited, JV Kulkarni said, “We have taken this issue of our women employees not getting maternity leave seriously. We will take strict action against the officer in charge who has denied maternity leave to these women teachers working in our company in the ICT programme. About payment, in the next 3-5 days we will definitely give their pending payments,. The government delayed our payment instalment, so payments of these teachers were delayed.” tushar.rupanavar@goldensparrow.com
Prof Jayant Gaikwad
Letter issued by RTI office
the technical problems, he said. Right to Information Commission, Pune Commissioner Rajendra Jadhav said that it was a technical mistake. Gaikwad’s hiring was first decided in the morning at 11 am. Then we decided to change it to 2 pm. Then the rectified letter was sent to Gaikwad. gunwantiparaste@goldensparrow.com
Peth. Khan was administering to six patients present in the clinic. Dr Bende sent a decoy patient, Rupesh Babar, complaining of an abdominal problem. Khan prescribed a powder and some tablets and demanded Rs 400 from Babar. Dr Bende then asked the ‘doctor’ to furnish educational documents related to medicine practice. Khan furnished certificates of Alternative Medical Council, Calcutta, an identity card and a B Pharmacy Degree Certificate. He also showed his visiting cards which mentioned ‘Wellness Clinic, Dr Ayyub H Khan, B Pharm, DN, CSGM, DASM, AMCC, DOT, and his letterhead which mentioned Dr Ayyub Khan. All the certificates turned out to be invalid during the inspection. He had not a single certificate issued by Maharashtra Medical Council (MMC) or any other competent council certificates. As per the law, no man can dispense allopathic medicines or put ‘Dr’ before his name without having a valid degree or registration in Maharashtra Medical Council . So Dr Bende opined in the report to the health department urged to file an FIR against the man as per the act, in Samarth police station. It took nine months to file the complaint by the PMC health department and the FIR was filed against Ayyub Khan on October 19 in Samarth police station. The complainant is Dr Dinesh Bende. Khan has been charged under sections 33 (1) and 33 (2) of Maharashtra Medical Practitioners Act, 1961. The case is being investigated by Police Sub Inspector (PSI) Shivaji Jadhav of Samarth police station. Despite registering the complaint against the doctor, Samarth police have not arrested him yet. Samarth police station police sub inspector (PSI) Shivaji Jadhav, who is investigating the case, said that he had no clue. “There is nothing like this,” he said. Asked if the PMC had submitted the inspection report to the police station,if the FIR had been registered, and the investigation assigned to him,he said, “I have not see the documents yet and don’t know whether the FIR has been lodged or not, as I was out for some days. I will see the documents and decide.” dnyaneshwar.bhonde@ goldensparrow.com
Food trucks proliferate as PMC turns a blind eye There is a growing number of mobile food trucks operating around the city, but there is no government mechanism to monitor how they ply their trade BY VICKY PATHARE @Vickypathare2 There is a growing number of mobile food trucks doing lucrative business across the city. But the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) is yet to come up with a draft policy to regulate the space, location, timings and food standards to be followed by food truck operators. The trucks are commonplace in western countries, and their popularity has grown in India over the past few years. However, there are currently no checks and balances to regulate them here. The food trucks are seen near major office complexes and market areas such as Viman
Nagar, Aundh Road, Sus Road and Baner, and are known to cause traffic jams. Several such trucks are parked in no-parking or no-hawkers zones, but neither the traffic police, Regional Transport Office (RTO) nor the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) seem interested in taking action against them. The RTO, which is authorised to act, has not moved against a single food truck. Vendors also do not bother to seek permission from the RTO to make modifications to vehicles. Most are registered as passenger vehicles according to RTO records, and have made unauthorised modifications. “As per the Motor Vehicle Act, the Food Truck vendors have to take permission from the Regional Transport Office (RTO) for making modifications in the vehicles and commence the business. These vehicles are modified without permission and ply without valid fitness certificates and are flouting multiple rules and no actions are taken against them,” said Sanjay Raut, Deputy RTO. “RTO, till date, hasn’t received a single application to modify the vehicles as mobile
canteen and all the vehicles plying in the city are illegally modified. The food trucks have to seek permission from RTO with No Objection Certificate from Traffic Department, FDA and Local Authority (PMC or PCMC). As they park the vehicles in no-parking zones and there is no place allotted for them, they are not liable to get NOC from them, which makes their application form incomplete. Unable to get NOC from this department, they don’t seek permission from RTO to modify vehicles,” said Raut. “In this case, RTO can take penal action against them and even cancel registration and seize vehicles,” he said. “All the food trucks have to comply with food laws, including the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, and are legally responsible to ensure that food sold or prepared for sale is safe to eat and free from contamination. Th is food trucks fall under the category of petty manufactures. There are around 370 licensees in Pune region registered with FDA as petty manufactures,“ said Shivaji Desai, Joint Commissioner FDA (Food). vicky.pathare@goldensparrow.com
RTO has not taken action against a single food truck
THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY OCTOBER 29-NOVEMBER 04, 2016
“There are four major spots which wolf packs live. These areas are Dive Ghat, Bhuleshwar temple and Jejuri. We are putting in a equest that these areas should be developed into wildlife protection zones.” — Mihir Godbole, a Pune-based Wildlife Enthusiast
Our brains get ‘slacker’ as we age P11
Pune cops neglect rise of alcoholics at Vaikunth
The number of alcoholics and drug abusers at the Navi Peth crematorium has been on a rise for a while now and those working there have no option but to stay mum BY TUSHAR RUPANAVAR @tusharrupanavar
The Vaikunth crematorium in Navi Peth area is one of the bigger and certainly one of the more well-known funeral procession facilities run by the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC). Spread over 12 acres of land, visiting the place will allow you to witness lush greenery and cleanliness. However, in the last few weeks there has been a tremendous rise in the number of alcoholics and drug abusers that frequent the place. Hailing from the surrounding areas of Dandekar bridge, Dattawadi, Parvati Payatha and Sinhgad, these people, also commonly known as topers, start to gather within the premises of the crematorium in the evenings with their liquor bottles and cigarette packets. The workers for the fear of their lives do not intervene in their functions. Manoj Awale who works at the gas furnace unit at Vaikunth said, “It’s been a month now these topers have been using the crematorium as their hang-out. Most of them have a
Vaikunth crematorium in Navi Peth, spread over 12 acres of land, has now become a favourite spot for alcoholics and drug abusers
criminal background and have even formed a group called Rada.” He further added that they visit the place to celebrate various occasions and threaten to beat the workers if they interfere in any way. Succumbing to their threats the PMC workers have no option but to let them use the place. It has however started becoming a daily affair now and letting go of it any
longer is no option, the workers feel. Initially there would be a police van patrolling the premises at night, but that too came to a halt a few months ago. This one activity which could have been a cause of fear for these alcoholics is also not functioning anymore. There is absolutely nothing to curb their behaviour and this is the biggest problem, the workers
there explained. On the flip side since these alcoholics already have criminal records the act of us threatening to call the police makes no difference to them either, they added. It is usually around nine in the night that the groups start pouring into the crematorium and are around till dawn. “For the last few days some of them have also been using drugs in the premises especially hashish. They gather near the Shiva temple to smoke and this happens sometimes during the day too. Claiming to be followers of Lord Shiva, they attribute this habit of theirs to the fact that they are his disciples and make a failed attempt at justifying themselves,” another worker there informed us. Considering the fact that hashish is a drug and is illegal in India, this act of theirs cannot be ignored. It is also insulting on many levels for the relatives of the deceased who visit the crematorium. The police department has completely been neglecting the issue. Police inspector of Vishrambaugh police station when contacted, told TGS that they would initiate action soon, “We will immediately appoint our marshals on this issue. The patrolling will definitely be started at Vaikunth and the surrounding areas once again. If anyone is found indulging in any illegal activity like that of smoking hashish or drinking at Vaikunth through the night, we will take stringent action against them.” tushar.rupanavar@goldensparrow.com
PUNE
57 borrowers owe banks Rs 85,000 cr P14
FDA tracking down fake food inspector Imposter claiming to be a food inspector, ‘borrows’ Rs 500 from sweetmeats shop owner at Aundh, and vanishes into thin air BY VICKY PATHARE @Vickypathare2 The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) personnel are tracking down a culprit who impersonated a food inspector and extorted money from a sweetmeats shop owner at Aundh. In his late thirties, the imposter threatened lodge a complaint against the sweetmeats shop owner for selling substandard quality products. But when he could find no fault with the sweetmeats, he asked for a loan of Rs 500 from the shop owner. Devram Parihar, 56, owner of Parihar Sweet and Dry Fruits, Aundh, has lodged a complaint against the unidentified person at the Pune FDA office. Vidya Parihar, 50, the shopkeeper’s wife and the shop workers were attending to customers at around 3.00 pm on Thursday, October 13, when the imposter, who said his name was Nargude, entered the shop. He threatened to lodge a complaint against VidyaParihar, for selling substandard quality products. She told him to speak to her husband. “He requested me to give him Rs 500 to service his car, and said that he would return it after two days. As it was a nominal amount, I agreed and told him to collect the money from Ramesh Mini Market situated next to my shop, after
which he left immediately,” Devram said. I smelt something fishy when he had not returned after three days. The image of him and his white Maruti Ritz car has been captured in the CCTV camera of the shop, which I have handed over to FDA officials. Although the amount is small, it’s a serious offence to pose as a government officer. He should not dupe other people too which is why I lodged the complaint at the FDA,” said Devram. “There is no one named as Nargude working as food inspector with us. The person in the CCTV footage is someone I am seeing for the first time,” said Shivaji Shinde, FDA Joint Commissioner (Food). “As soon as I came to know about the incident, I inquired about the visit to the sweet home with my food inspector KS Shinde, who looks after the Aundh area. We are conducting a probe to find the fake food inspector, and our officials are telling all the vendors to be careful. The FDA has urged citizens to confirm their identity and ask for ID proof before allowing entry to and making monetary transactions with strangers,” he said. vicky.pathare@goldensparrow.com
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THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY OCTOBER 29-NOVEMBER 04, 2016
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Women catching up with men in drinking habits
“The redesigning exercise may not guarantee better performance of BRTS with safety for commuters, pedestrians and road users in general.” - Prashant Inamdar, Convener of Pedestrians First
No sharing of black money reports
P 11
P 14
New lease of life for kids with heart disease THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY OCTOBER 08-14, 2016
PUNE
“The site is around 15-20 km away from Pune. The proposed airport will be connected with six routes including national highways 4 and 17. There will be a special ring-road connecting major industrial establishments with the proposed airport from Hadapsar.” - Devendra Fadnavis, Chief Minister
The health department has arranged surgeries for poor children with cardiac ailments, at different hospitals in November
BY
DNYANESHWAR BHONDE @dnyanesh1 Thereare good tidings for the 47 poor children from Pune district suffering from cardiac ailments, who have been awaiting surgeries for one or two years. All 47 will undergo the necessary heart surgeries in November, at different hospitals under various schemes, according to the plan worked out by the Pune deputy health director. One-and-a-half-yearold girl Durva Sudhakar Dhavare of Chinchwad recently succumbed to heart disease, so the number is 47 now. TGS had highlighted the children’s ordeal in the October 7 edition, with the headline, ‘The lives of these kids hang by a slender thread’. Th is has prompted the health departmentto do the needful. Taking cognizance of the TGSreport, the health department has been spurred into action. It has started taking follow-ups of the ailing children, and surgeries have been planned for almost all the 47 kids.
These children suffering from cardiac ailments were identified by the Rashtriya Bal Swasthya Karyakram (RBSK) doctors.The children’s families neither have the money for treatment nor the required documents. The parents are overjoyed that the health department has arranged surgeries so quickly for their kids. Deputy health director (Pune region) Dr Hanumant Chavan, who has followed up the issue, said that they have sort out the heart surgeries issue. “Most of the surgeries have been stalled as the parents don’t have mandatory documents like ration card, identity card or income proof. But we have assigned document completion work to the respective RBSK doctors of the area, who will do it by the end of this month. After completion of the documents, the children will be operated on under various health schemes,” said Dr Chavan. “We have held meetings with the collector, charity commissionerate and deputy director,along with Sassoon Hospital and RBSK doctors, and finalised how and where to perform the surgeries,” said Dr P G Darshane, assistant director of health services. Of the 47, 18 patients’ documents will be completed within a week.Five children have already been operated on. There are six children, whose surgery costs exceed Rs three lakh.They cannot be eligible for the Rajiv Gandhi Jivandai
33 vendors booked for selling illegal cigarettes BY VICKY PATHARE @Vickypathare2 State legal metrology department has booked 33 vendors for selling imported cigarettes sans declaration. The statewide special drive was conducted after a detailed study of the mode of trading practices adopted by the sellers of imported cigarettes. Inspector General of Police and Controller of Legal Metrology Amitabh Gupta had ordered to conduct the drive after several complaints were received by the LMO department about cigarettes sold with no declaration. The LMO had conducted a twoday special drive in Pune, Mumbai, Nagpur and Mahabaleshwar. In Pune, sellers like Choice Enterprises, Smokers Corner, Kalyani River Corner, Siddeshwar Panwala, AP Traders, Bhageshwar Traders are Heera Agency are amongst those booked for violating the norms said, DL Kove, deputy controller, Pune region “Violations in the state include
selling imported cigarettes having no declaration viz, maximum retail price, name, address and contact details of the importer, size, weight, packaging and expiry date of the commodity and many other things which are mandatory as per law. “A clear violation of the Legal Metrological Act 2009, Packaging and Commodity Rule 2011 was found in these cases,” said Kove. The vendors make huge money by selling imported cigarettes in comparison to the Indian brands. “They cheat customers as there is no price stated on the packages and also evade paying taxes and government duties as there are no declaration on the packages. We suspect that the stock belongs to black market and have even seized goods worth lakhs,” Kove said. Meanwhile, the legal metrology department has registered cases against the e-commerce giants Amazon and Flipkart for alleged violation of Legal Metrology Act, 2009, by flouting packaging norms.
Is writing to the PMO the last ray of hope for these 48 children awaiting heart surgeries?
An RTI appeal has enabled a 74-year-old to get justice. Owing to the carelessness of the Talegaon Nagar Parishad, his house had been declared as being unauthorised. The parishad issued permission for the house construction, and after some time, told the man to pay a fine because construction was done without permission. The man then fi led a plea under the RTI, after which the house was declared to be authorised. Narayan Devi Das Pandit, of Talegaon Dabhade, has his house in Indrayani Colony. In 1991, he had taken permission from the Talegaon Nagar Parishad to construct his own house. In 2003, he wanted to construct the fi rst floor. Pandit wanted his own house map so hewent to the Talegaon Nagar Parishad office. They refused to give him a house map, saying that he had not taken permission for house construction. They said that his house
This is the house that Pandit built
was unauthorised and that he would have to pay a fine of Rs 5,000. Pandit told them that he had already taken permission for construction in 1991. He then paid the fine but decided to fight for justice. Pandit fi ledan RTI on April 1, 2014 in Talegaon Nagar Parishad. He had asked for information about the map of land plot
AWAITING TREATMENT
BY DNYANESHWAR BHONDE @dnyanesh1 The Pune collector and district health officials had been on their toes since they received the letter from the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) to trace seven-year-old Vaishali Yadav, and arrange her surgery as soon as possible. After two days of searching, the collectorate officials identified Hadapsar resident Vaishali, who was suffering from congenital heart disease, and the surgery costing Rs three lakh was done for free promptly at Ruby Hall Clinic on June 2, despite not having identity proof like ration card. This miracle has happened because she had written a letter to the PMO, quoting her parents’ inability to finance the surgery. But what about those 48 poor children from Pune district awaiting heart surgeries, whose families neither have the money for treatment nor required documents. If they are not operated upon, some of them will die, and who will be responsible for their deaths? All of them deserve to be treated like Vaishali, if they write to the PM. According to statistics available with Rashtriya Bal Swasthya Karyakram (RBSK) officials, as many as 48 poor children identified by 73 RBSK teams in Pune district are in need of urgent heart surgeries. Some of them have waited for five years, but their parents are unable to raise the money for the surgery. These parents along with the doctors have made countless visits to government, charity and private hospitals in Pune and Mumbai, but to no avail. According to sources, there are more than 200 children awaiting surgeries in Pune district, but officials are downplaying the number to just 48. Teams of RBSK doctors identified these children from PMC and ZP schools and Anganwadi centres in districts, and refer them for further treatments to Aundh Civil Hospital. After conducting various tests like 2-D echo and cardiac catheterisation, it is the responsibility of the civil surgeon to facilitate heart surgeries in their own hospital, charity hospital or through Rajiv Gandhi Jeevandayee Arogya Yojana (RGJAY), free of cost, as these patients are from weak economic backgrounds. Some children are not treated under RGJAY as some diseases are not covered under the scheme for the poor to avail of the treatment for free. So these children are still waiting for the surgery. Even charity hospitals in Pune are not ready to operate on them free of cost.
Tejaswini Rale Tejaswini Sunil Rale, 9, of Jawalake Khurd (Khed) was detected by a RBSK doctors team in 2013. She has complicated heart problem as her aortic valve is not working. Her father Sunil Rale visited DY Patil Hospital, Ruby Hall Clinic, Budhrani and NM Wadia Hospital but they refused operation citing her as a high-risk patient. “I have given my consent to these hospitals but they are not ready to operate on her,” said Sunil, who is a farmer. Tejaswini has a nine-month-old sister Shriya who underwent surgery for Atrial Septal Defect. Yash Nivrutti Kamble Yash Nivrutti Kamble, 9, of Bhatnagar in Kalewadi is suffering from Tetralogy of Fallot (TOF), a congenital heart disease that causes inadequate flow of blood to the lungs for oxygenation, which requires ‘Biventricular Repair’ surgery. Though Yash was identified by the Pimpri-Chinchwad RBSK team’s Dr Umesh Jaiswal last year, he has been suffering from the heart problem for the past five years. He is in need of surgery but his parents are unable to afford the cost of the surgery. Yash’s father Nivrutti is a daily wage worker, and his mother works as housemaid. Yash is now in serious condition and unable to walk. His parents are tired of visiting hospitals and requesting politicians for help. The surgery is not covered under RGJAY so they are helpless. Hospitals are refusing to treat Yash as it is a high-risk operation.
Tejaswini (right), baby sister Shriya (centre) with their mother
Varsha Popat Pawar, 14, of Daund died two and a half years ago as she was not operated on in time. Maharashtra RBSK Doctors and Employees Association (DREAMS), an association of the RBSK doctors in the state, wrote a letter to the Civil Surgeon of Aundh hospital, reminding him to facilitate heart surgeries of these high risk children, but nothing has happened yet. “We are following up the issue since last three years with several reminders but nothing has happened yet,” said Dr Pranali Vetal, president of DREAMS. “Now all of these children have written letter to PMO like Vaishali to get health aid,” said Dr Vetal. Deputy Health Director (Pune division) Dr Hanumant Chavan said that they are going to facilitate these surgeries through RGJAY. The new amendment is being made by RGJAY to include these pending surgeries. dnyaneshwar.bhonde@goldensparrow.com
Durva Sudhakar Dhavare Durva Sudhakar Dhavare, 1.5, lives in a slum in Chinchwad. Her father is a daily wage worker and her mother is a housewife. They lead a hand-to-mouth existence. Durva is suffering from a ventricular septal defect (VSD), a congenital heart defect in the ventricular septum, the wall dividing the left and right ventricles of the heart. She is underweight and suffers from severe malnutrition (SAM). She was identified by doctors in 2015, but is unable to avail of the surgery as her family is unable to raise the Rs three lakh needed for the surgery. The couple also has a six-year-old son Kishor. Poorva Sunil Badhe Poorva Badhe, three and a half years old, who lives at Davadi Nimgaon of Khed tehsil, is suffering from high risk heart disease. She requires surgery which costs Rs 2.5 lakh. Her father is a farmer and has spent almost Rs 50,000 on tests to diagnose the disease. Doctors are refusing to perform surgery on her as it is complicated. Her parents are awaiting surgery at a camp in Mumbai, as advised by RBSK’s Dr Pranali Vetal. Vaibhav Dashrath Rathod Vaibhav Dashrath Rathod, 4, of Nanekarwadi in Chakan, has a hole in his heart (ventricular septal defect). His father works in a company. He has taken Vaibhav to Sahyadri Hospital, and other charitable hospitals, but they have refused to operate on him.
Women-exclusive Govt order on privatisation not want their wards to undergo the surgeries. rickshaw plan One patient has migrated to his stalled own state. Th e total count of patients is 47, which has of hospitals flouted by PMC been finalised by the health department. Once
Arogya Yojana (RGJAY) and have been referred to the charity commissioner officials, who have takenup the responsibility to operate on them at top city hospitals free of cost. PMCTh rents Shahu surgeries which are too much e out11 Hospital to private player Orakas at just onehave been referred to Sassoon complicated, rupee a month General Hospital. A team of cardiac experts from England is visiting the SassoonHospital mayor cardiac department from “The November12 to himself has 18. Th ree children’s diagnosis is now being violated the state completed. The parents of four children do BY TUSHAR RUPANAVAR @tusharrupanavar
Despite the state government stay order on privatisation of hospitals under local bodies,the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) run Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj Hospital in Wanowrie, which falls under Mayor Prashant Jagtap’s ward, has been recently given to Orakas green acres private hospital to run for the next 30 years, on the rent of just one rupee per month. The mayor has thus violated the state government stay order. Congress and Republican Party (RPI) corporators strongly opposed the privatisation of Shahu Hospital, but the mayor forcefully passed the proposal thanks to his majority in the house. Orakas hospital offers orthopaedic, diagnostic care and treatment and has a trauma centre. According to the agreement with PMC, Orakas hospital will give just one per cent concession on bills to Pune patients for orthopaedic treatment under the central government health scheme. PMC administration has cited lack of patients at Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj Hospital as reason to give this hospital to Orakas Hospital on public private partnership (PPP) basis for 30 years at just one rupee monthly rent. Shahu Hospital was constructed by PMC on land reserved under R-7. According to current market rates, the property is worth Rs six crore. But it was given to the private hospital with just a Rs 30 lakh deposit and one rupee monthly rent, on the flimsy premise that they are giving modern medical treatment to the citizens of Pune. There was only one tender from Orakas for the tender process of giving Shahu Hospital on PPP basis.According to the MRTP act, PMC must float a second tender by minimising terms and conditions, so that more private players can participate. But PMC has violated this rule as well
BY VICKY PATHARE @Vickypathare2
and granted tender to Orakas without falls under Mayor Jagtap’s ward, and he implementing tender procedure for a was determined on giving it to a private second time. player. They passed this proposal in PMC opposition leader Arvind the general bodyon majority basis. But Shinde said, “The state government tomorrow if anybody goes to court, this had already given stay order to privatise entire procedure court may be scrapped.” PMC run Rajiv Gandhi Hospital in PMC RPI house leader Dr Yerwada, because the Siddharth Dhende said, government had already “Politicians in power at taken a policy decision PMC do not care a whit to restrict local bodies about citizens’ health. from privatisation of It is a myth that good their hospitals. Providing medical facilities are health care facilities is the provided only by private responsibility of any local hospitals. I am an MBBS body, according to the doctor and I know this as MRTP act. But in this a fact. Thirty per cent case, the mayor himself of Pune’scitizens live in has violated the state slums. How can they government’s orders and afford to pay bills of given PMC property of private hospitals? There ARVIND SHINDE Shahu Maharaj Hospital are Pune hospitals that worth more than Rs six demand a Rs 15,000 crore on rent to a private deposit before starting a player, by promising that the hospital will patient’s treatment. So this is a serious provide specialised medical treatments. matter.How many common people can The standing committee decided to give afford treatment at Orakas Hospital? It is Shahu Maharaj Hospital on rent to a our responsibility to provide health care private player, saying that the hospital facilities free of cost, or provide modern will provide modern specialised medical treatments at fair and minimum costs. treatment to citizens. But the general We strongly opposed the privatisation of body is above the standing committee. Shahu Hospital in the house but mayor They sidelined the general body and passed the proposal on the basis of their gave the tender to Orakas. This hospital majority in the house.”
govt orders.”
Legal metrology department also seize their stock
the documentation is completed, most of the surgeries will be done through RGJAY, officials said. Most of the children are suffering from congenital heart defect (CHD), also known as a congenital heart anomaly or congenital heart disease. There is a problem in the structure of
PMC health chief Dr S T Pardeshi said, “Orthopaedic treatment is only available at PMC run Kamla Nehru Hospital, so there was a need toextend this facility to other PMC hospitals as well. Orthopaedic and trauma care machinery is expensive, and we did not have adequate staff for trauma care, so we had no option but to take the help of private players. Since there were only 7/8 patients at Shahu Maharaj Hospital, there was no question of running an OPD. It was Mayor Jagtap’s wish to start a specialised medical treatment centre at Shahu Maharaj Hospital. The health department executed orders according to elected representatives’ wishes.” Mayor Prashant Jagtap said, “This is misunderstanding among many honourable corporators that we have done privatisation of the PMC run Shahu Maharaj Hospital. It is just a joint partnership with Orakas Hospital to offer modern medical treatment like orthopaedic and trauma care to the citizens of Pune. We followed the tender procedure as well while giving Shahu Hospital on rent to Orakas Hospital, so there is no issue of favouring anybody here in tender procedure. This hospital falls under my own ward and there was a demand from people to set up trauma care and orthopaedic treatment in Shahu Hospital. It takes substantial investment to set up a trauma care and specialised orthopaedic surgery. So the best option was to give it to a private player, because PMC does not have need to invest money in it. It requires a minimum investment of Rs three crore to set up a trauma centre. Orakas has to invest this amount on its own. As per our agreement with Orakas, they have to treat 60 per cent patients recommended by PMC and 40 per cent private patients. Orakas has agreed to give one percent concession on bills to patients under the central government health scheme. Most importantly, Orakas has agreed to give free orthopaedic and trauma care medical treatment facilities to sitting corporators, PMC officials and former members as well.” tushar.rupanavar@goldensparrow.com
The state government’s dream project of an exclusive autorickshaw service run by women for women has failed to take off six months after its announcement. The state government has reserved a five per cent quota of autorickshaw permits for women drivers. The project envisages women autorickshaw drivers who will cater to women commuters only. It has been held up owing to the colour issue. The women have demanded that the autorickshaw colour should not be changed to pink from the standard black and yellow, so that the vehicles can be given out on rent. But the Regional Transport Office thinks this is unethical and action will be taken against such a practice. As per the state transport ministry decision, 3000 autorickshaw permits were distributed in the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) and Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) limits. Of these, 160 autorickshaw permits were reserved for women. Fifty-eight women had applied for autorickshaw permits, of which 29 were found to be eligible for the permits, and the remaining applications were rejected owing to errors in the forms and lack of eligibility criteria. Regional Transport office (RTO), Pune has issued permits to 18 women but not a single woman autorickshaw driver is to be seen in Pune driving a pink autorickshaw. To speed up the process, the Pune RTO had issued notices in August to all this autorickshaw permit holders to complete the colouring work and bring out the pink autorickshaws on the roads. “The state government had allotted a five per cent reservation of permits to these women as a move towards women empowerment,” said Anil Patil, deputy regional transport officer, Pune. Earlier, the colour of the womendriven autorickshaws was not finalised. The RTO has taken declarations from all the permit holders that any colour which would be decided by the state transport department would be followed. “The statement about the colour
issue was agreed to, so why are they now not ready to make changes to the autorickshaws? Most of them want to give their autorickshaws to others on rent and earn money, but as per the rules it is not ethical and cannot be done. Action will be taken if any of the autorickshaws are found to be driven by male drivers,” said Patil. “These pink autorickshaws will be given more preference by the women commuters as they find it safer to travel in these autorickshaws especially at odd times,” he said. Indira Nagarkar, 58, who received the autorickshaw permit through a lottery, said, “I have applied for this permit stating that the vehicle would be driven by my son as he is jobless. I am too old and at this age it will not be possible for me to drive an autorickshaw,” she said. Pushpa Narsale, is another woman who has suffered losses. “I have bought the autorickshaw on loan and have being paying the EMIs for the last two months from my own pocket. I have not earned a single penny from this autorickshaw,” she said. “The RTO authorities have told us that the autorickshaws cannot be driven by any male. This is wrong. Family members of the permit holders should be allowed to drive the autorickshaws,” said Narsale. Autorickshaw permit holder Rupali Rawade is not sure if she will drive the autorickshaw. “We have not given any declaration about the change in colour to the RTO. What difference will the autorickshaw colour make?” she said. vicky.pathare@goldensparrow.com
the heart that is present at birth, which can be life-threatening. Some of them are suffering from Atrial Septal Defect (ASD), a defect of the upper chambers of the heart (atria), where the wall (septum) between the right and left atrium does not close. Some of them are suffering from heart murmur, a whooshing sound made by blood circulating through the heart’s chambers, valves, or through blood vessels near the heart. Some are suffering from Tetralogy of Fallot (TOF) that results in low oxygenation of blood due to the mixing of oxygenated and deoxygenated blood in the left ventricle via the ventricular septal defect. Speaking to TGS, joint charity commissioner officials said that they have been taking appointments of the hospitals which perform pediatric heart surgeries in the city free of cost under the IPF fund. “Six children have been referred by the health department to us. We are in touch with the medical social workers of city hospitals for surgery purposes. Not a single child will be deprived of surgery,” said Shivaji Kachare, joint charity commissioner. “We are happy that the health department has taken cognizance and is arranging the surgeries. Now our children will get a new lease of life,” said Sunil Rale of Khed, father of nineyear-old Tejaswini Rale, who is awaiting heart surgery. dnyaneshwar.bhonde@goldensparrow.com RAHUL RAUT
TEARS IN HEAVEN
A beggar woman has left her tearful little child hanging precariously from a metal barricade, even as vechicles pass by at extremely close range, on this busy street near Sarasbaug chowk
RTI comes to the rescue of wronged Talegaon resident
BY GUNWANTI PARASTE @gunwantiparaste
P7
The lives of these kids hang by a slender thread
Amitabh Gupta, special inspector general of police and controller of legal metrology, stated in a release that some customers had lodged complaints with his office. Based on the inputs, the legal metrology department carried out raids at warehouses of Amazon and Flipkart in Bhiwandi in Thane district, and seized products worth around Rs 85 lakh. Eighteen types of packaged commodities worth Rs 37 lakh were seized from M/s Instacart, and 21 types of packaged commodities worth Rs47.7 lakh were seized from M/s Amazon Sellers Services Pvt. Ltd, it said. These packages did not conform to the “Package Commodity Rules, 2011,” the release said. The complaints said, among other things, that packages did not mention MRP of the goods, the weight, details of manufacturing, packing dates, contact details of makers or suppliers, etc., Gupta stated. With Agency inputs vicky.pathare@goldensparrow.com
Talegaon resident gets justice after filing an RTI plea, since the nagar parishad had declared that his house was unauthorised despite taking permission
No tendency among youth to get heart diseases: study
number 78, dating back to January 13, 2003. The parishad told him that the fi le was not available, since they did not preserve ten year old documents but destroyed them. Pandit asked for a list of the destroyed documents but the parishad ignored the application. Pandit decided to fi le a second appeal on November 7, 2014, asking for list of the destroyed documents. The second hiring commission passed judgment in Pandit’s favour, saying that documents for 2000 and 2003 years were available. The fi rst appeal officer said that they would provide the documents relating to the land to Pandit. The Nagar Parishad also decided to refund the money taken as fine from Pandit. A Talegaon Nagar Parishad official told TGS that ten year old documents were destroyed. But the 2000 and 2003 documents were available and would be provided to Pandit. They also commission would refund Pandit’s money, and tender an apology for causing him mental stress. Commissioner Ravindra Jadhav said that the map copy, construction map and related documents were not provided. Talegaon Nagar Parishad did not have any documents to prove that Pandit’s house was unauthorised. The commission passed judgment that Pandit’s house was not unauthorised, and that his money should be refunded. gunwanti.paraste@goldensparrow.com
Banks fleecing customers on home loan EMIs
SC lawyer terms the practice as a big scam
BY GUNWANTI PARASTE @gunwantiparaste The Bombay High Court has given notice to banks that charge extra interest in the fi rst EMI. All banks must explain to the high court their reason for this extra charge. In 2015, a PIL was fi led against Union of India, Ministry of Finance through its fi nance secretary; the Reserve Bank of India, through its Governor; Managing Director and CEO, ICICI Bank Ltd. Mumbai; ICICI Bank Ltd, Vadodara through its directors; and ICICI Bank Limited, Bhandarkar Institute Road Branch, through its branch manager. Speaking to TGS, city-based Supreme Court Advocate Ashutosh Srivastava said, “We bought a home in NIBM area in 2014. We took a home loan from ICICI Bank. We mailed the bank about pre-EMI interest, but it ignored our mail and charged full interest. If the home loan starts in mid-month, then the bank should not charge for the full month, but the bank does not count the days. If the period between the loan starting date and preEMI date is five days, then the customer has to pay interest for only five days, unlike the prevalent period where bank taxes the customer for the full month.”
The senior lawyer has questioned the rationale behind this practice and terms the argument of ‘system error’ cited by banks as silly. “Any system error can be rectified by banks. It is a scam that has looted customers for years. The PIL seeks an answer and solution. Today, buying a home is not easy for every person. Banks give home loan and take interest. But for what reason do banks charge pre-EMI? I am happy that the high court has now shown interest in this matter, because it has become a big scam where illegal money is collected from home loan customers,” he said. Srivastava has filed PIL No 51 of 2015 and appears in person Vs Union of India, Reserve Bank of India, ICICI Bank and others before Bombay High Court, in the interest of borrowers/loan account holders who have availed housing loans from ICICI Bank Ltd. He said respondents number 3 to 5 are illegitimately and unlawfully charging interest for the whole first month EMI to its housing loan borrowers/loan account holders, instead of from the date of disbursement of the loan to the date of 1st EMI and as such, the respondent bank (ICICI Bank Ltd) has been charging interest from the retrospective date, thus affecting millions of housing loan borrowers/loan account holders. The HC issued notice to the respondents, and will take up the case on November 28, 2016. gunwanti.paraste@goldensparrow.com
THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY OCTOBER 29-NOVEMBER 04, 2016
“All these years, the Maratha community and their leaders have discriminated against Kunbis. Marathas don’t marry their sons and daughters into Kunbi families.” — Avinash Lad, Deputy Mayor, NMMC
“The triple talaq issue is an internal problem of Muslims and in this context the Muslim community should seriously think over it. In the present era there should not be any kind of gender-based discrimination.” — Bhayyaji Joshi, RSS All India General Secretary
Of emissions and expletives In India, the use of fourletter words, also called gutter language , is quite common, particularly in the back-streets of old towns BY A C TULI Imag ne h s One fine morn ng when you se e down on he se ee w h your morn ng newspaper he very firs h ng ha your eyes c ap on s a boxed news em on he ron page say ng ha augh ng sneez ng cry ng yawn ng be ch ng and break ng w nd n pub c add no on y o a mospher c po u on bu a so o g oba warm ng and here ore he governmen proposes o ax hem For a wh e you h nk ha s perhaps one o hose harm ess e okes w h wh ch newspaper ed ors some mes en oy hrow ng he r readers n o a merry con us on You here ore re-read he news em h s me very care u y hop ng o de ec he g veaway ca ch n he ex bu h s me oo you find s no a a a oke bu a dead ser ous h ng You wonder how h ngs wh ch one s accus omed o assoc a ng w h eccen r c ru ers o med eva ages cou d happen n a progress ve modern democra c coun ry We some me back a sn ppe n a newspaper sa d ha h s was prec se y wha came very near o ak ng p ace n New Zea and - he on y d fference be ng ha he sa d pun ve ax was proposed o be ev ed on heads o ves ock ra her han on human be ngs Accord ng o he
New Zea and po c ans em ss ons o arm an ma s bo h ora and ana were add ng o g oba warm ng There was however no men on n he news em abou how h s pa hbreak ng d scovery had been made by he New Zea and Governmen One wonders how arm an ma s o New Zea and wou d have reac ed o he proposed evy hey cou d read newspapers and were g ed w h he power o speech Obv ous y hey wou d have re or ed We s r how abou em ss ons o human be ngs? S nce human be ngs ou number arm an ma s no on y n New Zea and bu a over he wor d and ha oo by a a r y arge ra o defin e y becomes a ques on o e h cs ha s I arm an ma s are proposed o be axed or he r em ss ons hen why eave ou human be ngs? Le hem be axed oo Merc u y he New Zea and governmen s proposa o evy h s ax on arm an ma s 43 cen s per ves ock head had o be d scarded because he
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armers who have a power u obby n he par amen o he r coun ry opposed oo h and na Merc u y soon be er sense preva ed and he proposa o ax arm an ma s was cance ed In ac ns ead o ax ng arm an ma s he New Zea and governmen wen o he o her ex reme I se apar a subs an a sum o research an ma em ss ons and he r mpac on he a mosphere Here s ano her odd p ece o n orma on abou how a governmen h nks I appears ha nowadays busybod es n pos ons o power en oy work ng on nove even b zarre schemes o m k he common man o fi he governmen coffers Some me back here was ano her newspaper sn ppe say ng ha n a sou hern reg on o Russ a offic a s have n roduced a ban on he use o our- e er words n pub c p aces Th s accord ng o he news repor was obv ous y mean o promo e c v y and po eness n pub c e And hose
CoEP’s tricycle wins TGS NEWS SERVICE @TGSWeek y
who flou h s ban so was repor ed n h s sn ppe sha have o pay a fine ha may go up o 15 000 roub es As expec ed he ban proved a good moneysp nner or he oca au hor es who knew ha us ng our- e er words was as na ura or he r peop e as brea h ng So n us a ew mon hs hey co ec ed more han a m on roub es hrough fines Wh e may be a we -mean ng s ep o c eanse he conversa ona Russ an anguage by bann ng he use o abus ve erms n pub c p aces he ques on s rema ns s here any p ace n he wor d where peop e scrupu ous y avo d us ng our- e er words n n orma a k? O course such a heaven o ngu s c pur y and chas eness does no ex s anywhere Moreover one doub s soc a sc en s s wou d approve o such bans or a anguage hey w say oses much o s co our v gour and pungency when p a n ear hy words express ve o s rong emo ons and ag a ed ee ngs are exc sed rom In Ind a he use o our- e er words a so ca ed he gu er anguage s qu e common par cu ar y n he back-s ree s o o d owns and c es where empers r se eas y when a d spu e be ween wo ag a ed par es sudden y erup s n o a regu ar s ang ng ma ch o v upera ve words The anguage hey hen use or each o her s ncreas ng y marked by co our u our- e er words wh ch o course you wou d no ke your ch dren o hear Though hese words are no ound n any vernacu ar d c onary here s no deny ng ha hey are as essen a a par o our anguage as he ones we use n c v zed d scourse PTI Fea ure
second pr ze or u y second pr ze or grad en award or be ng he firs eam o c ear echn ca nspec on and Dronacharya Award or bes acu y adv sor o Dr PR Dhamanagonkar The eam nc uded Sanke Munde An ke Chavan Rahu Bhumkar Udhav Pa Pu a Bhonga e Swapan Yeu kar ayandru Ksh rsa h N n Darde Harshavardhan Pa Gaurav Aarekar Anup Yadg re dnyasa Ra hod Paya Dabb r Kaver Vasekar Swapna Sh nde Mayur Mohokar Aakash Gunde N kh Bendre Krushna Bahe and Pa av Pawar The ergonom ca y des gned veh c e shou d be aerodynam c and eng neered or per ormance and sa e y The ob ec ve s o promo e nnova on and genera e consc ousness owards env ronmen - r end y mob y so u on The even was he d on he campus o Love y Pro ess ona Un vers y and pr zes o Rs 1 akh Rs 75 000 and Rs 50 000 were awarded o op hree w nners ou o par c pa ng 105 eams SAE s a na ona body or he au omob e eng neers and has been work ng w h nd v dua s rom op au omob e commun y nc ud ng eng neers execu ves and academ c ans s nce 2002 g eedba k@go den parrow om
Ou o 105 par c pan s he eam rom Co ege o Eng neer ng Pune CoEP bagged second overa pos on a SAE Ind a s eco- r end y na ona even Efficyc e-2016 organ sed by Soc e y or Au omo ve Eng neer ng-Nor hern Ind a Sec on SAENIS and Love y Pro ess ona Un vers y a andhar KIET Group o Ins u ons Ghaz abad and Governmen Co ege o Techno ogy Co mba ore were firs and h rd w nners respec ve y Efficyc e der ved rom effic en -cyc e prov des s uden s an oppor un y o conce ve des gn and abr ca e a hreewhee ed veh c e powered by humane ec r c hybr d power The veh c e shou d be capab e o sea ng wo passengers and ready or day- o-day mob y needs CoEP s eam Ve oc racers ach eved success a he compe on he d dur ng Oc ober12-16 a a andhar “Vu can 3 0” he eam s bes aes he c des gn crea on was eye-ca ch ng no on y or udges and ndus r a s s bu a so or e ow par c pan s rom o her ns u es The pr zes won by Ve oc racers are firs runners up firs pr ze or durab y firs pr ze or marke ng presen a on
Young minds & imaginations on fire Students of Suryadatta National School impress parents and visitors by their creative products made out of waste
CARS, BIKES, TRIPS, GEAR HONEST, FUN REVIEWS
TGS NEWS SERVICE @TGSWeek y
Regardless of what bike you ride, your knees and thighs are typically going to come into contact with the fuel tank/airbox cover, which is usually made of painted metal or plastic. The problem is that metal and plastic don’t stick very well to textile, nylon or any material that you’d typically wear as pants on a motorcycle ride. Anchoring to your bike with your knees and thighs is critical for safety and confidence. Most sport riders are familiar with grippy stickers that you can put in place on the sides of your tank to alleviate this. Techspec is one such brand, which makes a unique ‘snakeskin’ pattern rubber material that can be applied to your tank with adhesive. Unlike some other brands of grip pads that look like organic globs or some sort of acupressure surface, the Techspec item is a fairly basic,
AUGUST 6, 2016 PUNE
THRILL OF DRIVING
TGS LIFE JULY 9, 2016 PUNE
THRILL OF DRIVING
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till buzzing from what must have been thousands of curves across just over a hundred kilometres of road, it occurred to us that perhaps we should take a break and refuel our bodies, since the Honda CB500X we were riding showed no signs of using any significant quantity of gasoline. We were at Pai canyon, a small lookout point for tourists along the highway with four food and one coffee stall. My spouse enjoys the occasional coffee, so she requested one. The beans were promptly ground in front of us, mixed with condensed milk, ice and water, and served in a convenient plastic container. All this while, I bit down on a prepackaged Tuna sandwich knowing full well that the nearest fresh tuna was at least 1200km away. Both the sandwich and coffee were fresh and delicious. If this was roughing it on a road trip, it’s exactly my style.
JULY 16, 2016 PUNE
THRILL OF DRIVING
SHIMA D-TOUR WP GLOVES
Perfect roads as far as the eye can see
MOTORCYCLING THROUGH THAILAND niceties of the rest of Thailand. Think perfect 4G If you’re a motorcycling enthusiast, or have connectivity, AirBNB and the most incredible become one in the recent past, you’ve probably gourmet burger I’ve ever eaten on the street. The known or heard of someone who’s ridden a bike Pai river itself is popular for white water rafting around our ASEAN neighbour. In fact, there at various skill levels, and you can even take a is now a land route from North-East India slow boat to Laos, which takes two days and through Myanmar into Thailand. Heck, you costs just 1750 baht, or about 3500 rupees. In can go all the way to Singapore before you hit fact, our overnight stay and jaunt in the night the inevitable shore. There are many reasons to market ended up costing less than Rs 2000 for this, not least of which is the incredible road the two ofconverter us. Try getting that deal in Panchgani automatic. It’s a traditional torque you won’t be banging and down network. You’re very unlikely toso see a badly anyupnight of thetheyear. gearbox like a dual-clutch unit, but it’s okay. In potholed section of tar. In termsterms of distances, And that, in essence, is a microcosm of the of speed, it’s somewhere in the middle the country is about 1600km longofand 1000km experience you’re likely to have on any a economy automatictype and aofperformancedual-clutch. It can be sluggish, we across, so there’s plenty to explore.tuned Of particular road trip in but Thailand — it’s cheap to the point think it matches the character of the engine. note car” is the Mae Hong a long circuit sure, we’ve driven slower. Paddle shifters What else do you call a vehicle that the term “pony was coined for?Son loop --For
THOROUGHBRED By Tushar Burman @tburman
T
here are many legends surrounding the birth of the Ford Mustang, one of America’s most well-known performance cars. I will avoid the word “iconic” because it’s so overused in this context that I challenge you to find a launch or drive report without it. One such legend has its name inspired by the legendary P51 Mustang fighter aircraft used by the USAF, which makes sense seeing its “aviation inspired” interior on this 2015 model we drove. Other stories tell of how the entire allocation of the original run of the Ford Mustang sold out in just a few months. It has been an immensely popular vehicle since its birth in 1964-65, and this is its 52nd year in continuous production, despite the challenges of the ‘70s oil crisis, various downturns and such. Other muscle cars have come, gone and been resurrected, but the Mustang has been a constant. The model Ford has launched in India is the Mustang GT and it wears all-new bodywork compared to the outgoing model. The previous generation started the “retro-futuristic” craze back in 2005 and has served the company well, spawning innumerable special editions and variations on performance and body style. This new model bears the same basic shape, but has a much more stylish, swoopy visage. The front is more aggressive with a wider grille and three slashes in each headlamp, while the rear looks more old-school with the same three-segment design following through. The classic long bonnet and short boot with a fastback roofline remains, covering a 2+2 cabin and a surprisingly roomy boot! It’s all very well executed, betraying no irony or cheesy nostalgia. This truly does look like many decades of progress have been made to get to this handsome shape. The Mustang is only available in the V8 engine option for India, which makes
TGS LIFE
are present and are best used in sport mode or one of the sharper driving modes. There are four of those, including a “Track” mode that turns off the traction control, unleashing all 515Nm upon the rear wheels. Some of our colleagues were caught unawares as their cars did unintended 180-degree turns. The Mustang isn’t for the hardcore trackjunkie, despite what the driving modes may say. The tendency is to safely understeer as opposed to snap-oversteer. Of course, you can get it to do the latter but it’s a deliberate effort. The upside is that it’s very easy to get used to and just, well, drive. Suspension is pliant and comfortable, ground clearance is generous, which should make it good to use in our road and traffic conditions. The interior is a bit bland — all black and grey surfaces, but with a surfeit of buttons. The steering wheel has no less than four separate clusters of buttons for various controls. Everything is generally where you expect it, save for the bonnet release, which is inexplicably in the passenger footwell. We had to get off the car for motorcycle to open the hood! Comfort is good, however, with supportive leather seats, usable rear seats (but not for adults), cup holders, armrest with storage, two west of Chiang Mai which is considered oneUSB of slots, an SD card reader and an 8” information/navigation screen. the best riding roads in Asia. Among the first All this at Rs 65 lac, ex-showroom Delhi, stopovers on this route is a popular, butshould still tiny which translate to about Rs 77 lac onroad.If Maharashtra town called Pai, which we visited. Chiang buyers will be disappointed however, as the recent revision in RTO taxes Mai were Pune, think of Pai asmeans Wai,thatexcept the imported Mustang GT will 140km away. probably cost north of Rs 80 lac. Still, in this price waterfalls segment, one’s options are cars like the Nestled in a valley replete with Audi TT and the Mercedes CLA 45 AMG. and lush greenery, Pai is a small with all-wheel drive and much Bothtown are smaller, a growing tourist population, sharper pioneered aroundby a track, but also less practical in terms of ground clearance, comfort and backpackers. It’s close enough to the border space. With the Mustang, you have the with Myanmar to have cultural heritage, influences of and enough space in the machismo for a verybut grand tour, as long as you leave the hill tribes in terms of food andboot clothing, Our Honda CB500X proved an able, fun and comfortable ride for our trip that giant spare tyre at home. significant enough to have all the infrastructural tushar@goldensparrow.com
TANKED-UP TGS LIFE
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By Tushar Burman @tburman
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that Himachal Pradesh is likely to make more of a dent in your bank balance. Food, boarding and infrastructure are organised and consistent, typical of a nation that takes tourism seriously, and with pride. You never pass a street stall without a sing-song “Sawatdi-khaaaa” (Thai for namaste, quite literally), friendly smiles and a disarming lack of guile. Thailand also has strong cultural connects to India, having a Hindu and Buddhist history. It occasionally surprises the uninformed when encountering names and iconography from the Ramayan and other Hindu mythology. There is, in fact, a Thai version of the Ramayan on TV, with Ram played
perfect sense. There’s an intimate connect Mustang, but the saving grace was that those in most minds between muscle cars and big, were around the lauded Buddh International brawny engines. That’s not to say that the Circuit, India’s only F1 track. As you’d Mustang has always had a V8. There have expect, the Mustang is pretty fast in a straight been many inline-four options over the years line. This time round, it isn’t too bad around as well, but we suspect the international the corners either, having an independent EcoBoost version would not be accepted in rear suspension instead of an ancient liveour market. The motor makes 395bhp and axle type found in most generations of the 515Nm of torque, which is down somewhat car. This is clearly a grand-tourer sort of car. from the international model. This is The suspension feels quite plush, there’s to accommodate the varying fuel perceptible body roll when you’re quality available in India. We’re hustling around the corners and Verdict pleased with this decision; a car things are generally smooth at + Comfort, like the Mustang deserves to speed. I suppose we should be price, heritage be driven, not bragged about pleased as consumers that we’ve - Middling auto when comparing specs, while come to a point where we can gearbox your staff takes a jerrycan to actually buy much harder-core the nearest 97 octane bunk, performance cars in this price TGS rating which is probably an hour away. bracket. ;;;;2 Trust us: we know what it’s like The V8 sounds nice inside the to have a hoot of a car in the garage cabin, but isn’t particularly evocative because it’s out of pricey fuel. It wears beefy insideChiang or out. It’s butjump-off muted burble Maia isdeep your point tyres shod around 19” wheels and uses large that comes to the ear; no snap crackle and adventures Brembo brakes to bring things to a halt. pop drama of European tyre-burners. The We only had five short laps in the India edition only comes with the 6-speed
THRILL OF DRIVING
The TUV300 urban SUV gets more punch with a 100hp motor
MOTO GEAR
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hen we last drove the TUV300 shortly after its launch, it was a pleasant surprise in its package, refinement and general ability around the city. At the time, we didn’t really take it on an extended highway jaunt and probably just as well; you see, in it’s previous guise, the TUV300 came with a modest 75hp output motor, which was fine in urban environs, but didn’t really have punch anywhere in the rev range. That has now changed with Mahindra calling this iteration the mHawk100 motor -- essentially the same thing but now putting out considerably more power and torque, up to 100hp and 240Nm. If you’ve read our previous assessment of the TUV300, not much has changed, save for our experience with other, more recent SUVs in and around the same segment. The TUV300 crossover/hatchback which was globally unveiled in is surprising in its nice interior accoutrements. A great AC, Out back are the jump seats that make this he SUV,urban technically, a very decent infotainment system with Bluetooth and iPod a 7-seater. It’s doable, but not comfortable for long journeys. Then April, Datsun’s Redi-GO finally makes its way to Indian roads. connectivity that works flawlessly, a nice two-tone Dash that again, have you seen how many passengers tourist cabs can pack The Redi-GO runs on a three-cylinder i-SAT engine mated looks contemporary and a quiet cabin that belies the intrinsic into a Scorpio these days? The jump seats fold 799 up andccrear seats nature of a three-cylinder Diesel engine. It should sound and feel fold down to liberate a lot of extra cargo room, you need it.manual transmission. It produces 53 hp, 72Nm of to ashould five-speed rough, but it doesn’t. Nothing in the SUV does. Call us picky but this author is not a fan of the TUV’s torque and delivers a fuel efficiency of 25.17 kmpl. The top speed Of particular interest to us in this new 100hp guise of the aesthetic. I’d prefer the front of the NuvoSport with a squat stance is 140 Kmph and the ground clearance is 185mm. The vehicle on TUV, was the suspension. You see, the Mahindra NuvoSport, instead of sharp corners and the face of Bane, Batman’s formidable which we also recently tested, uses the same engine, but has a foe. That said, with a top-end model, you do get at a nice display thefinish, press launch looked solid, with most details standing up problem with considerable body roll. Not so much with the TUV, decent looking alloys and wheels that fill their wells properly. to scrutiny. While it may be built to a cost, it looks good in the flesh which is controlled and feels more secure at highway speeds. It There are even some nice extras like a start-stop system (well, not andextends doesn’t also feels a bit firmer, but that’s a trade-off we’re willing to make: really nice in our traffic), an eco mode that rangebetray while it’s budget category. some more jerks to the spine in exchange of careening off a cliff sacrificing power, and static cornering lamps, Safety which are aisboon courtesy “Datsun PRO-SAFE7” which includes on a sharp bend. Engine performance is also on par with the when turning the wide vehicle in darkness. In fact, we’re confused braking NuvoSport, but after using the TUV’s manual transmission, we about why these features don’t make it toshortest the NuvoSport, whichdistance, high strength body shell to absorb impacts, ended up missing the AMT of the NuvoSport, which somehow gets cruise control as consolation. But thegood TUV doesn’t. Strange. visibility and wider view of the road, high bolster support while managed to keep things feeling sprightly. Still, it’s evident from the quality of thecornering, interior that the TUV absorbing steering and a driver airbag. energy With the benefit of hindsight and experience, we can also is meant to be a bit more upmarket. But it costs between 10 and Five personalized kit options are available: Urban, Style, Kool, say that the current TUV300 feels a bit heavy to steer compared 16,000 rupees LESS than the NuvoSport. Confused? So are we. to peers like the Vitara Brezza and NuvoSport, but retains the On our extended time with the TUV300, urban and Easy Kit - Premium. Colour options available Easywe’ve Kit done - Sporty surprisingly, far better than the NuvoSport practical turning radius we enjoyed previously. It’s squared-off commuting, Mumbai-Pune highway runs, multi-passenger are: White, Silver, Interior Grey,is,Ruby and Lime. The Datsun Redi-GO design (tank-like, according to Mahindra) has the benefit of outings and cargo runs, and we were unable to run the comes with warranty of 2 years/unlimited km andandthe car allowing excellent visibility while squeezing into tight tank dry, so anecdotally, the mHawk100 engine ais also with follow-me-home lamps, parking sensor other bellscan and be spaces, which the TUV can do despite its width. The quite efficient. Highway runs were usually whistles one expects in a India modern App’. vehicle. Mahindra is churning Verdict booked via cruising mobile app called ‘Datsun breadth manifests in internal space as well, with the between 100 and 120, which is where the vehicle out vehicles rapidly based on what are fast turning out to be + Refinement, front passenger having plenty of shoulder space. feels most comfortable. We’re sure the 240Nm is proven platforms. Perhaps at some point they will also consolidate performance, The rear seat is wide enough for three passengers capable of more sprightly performance, but the vehicles to be less confusing. As a parting googly: you can still buy price as well, though we did hear the odd complaint TUV300 weights 2.2 tonnes, so there’s only so the old, less powerful engine with the TUV300, but the new one - Heavy steering much it can do. The rest of it is up-to-date. Dual costs just Rs 8,000 more, so why would you? about jerks being transmitted up into the spine from rear passengers. airbags and ABS are present, as are keyless entry tushar@goldensparrow.com TGS rating ;;;`2
Datsun Redi-GO launched, starting at Rs 2.38 lac
VW launches Ameo compact sedan Sub-4m three-box starts at Rs 5.14 lac
the palm area and a reinforced, soft pad on the knuckle. There’s a rubber screen wiper on each thumb, which worked very well on our rainy rides. Waterproofing is good, with light showers being repelled entirely. The D Tour WP do seem to run a bit large, so you might need to order one size smaller than your typical glove. Recommended. Shima D-Tour WP gloves PRICE: Rs 4800 BUY AT: Kombustion Imports & Exports Pvt Ltd (+91 87938 84215)
is that there’s no inner lining flapping about behind the exterior shell. Those can be infuriating to put on and take off. Shima’s solution is to fuse the waterproof liner with the exterior shell. This makes for a slightly stiff feel, but far more comfortable in the long run. Fasteners are good, with a velcro cinch at the wrist and a larger velcro pad to secure the cuff, which is extra roomy to accommodate your sleeve, should you choose to wear the gloves over them. The velcro Hondapads themselves are CB500X not the typical sort, with the + Refinement, base (hooked) part being Fueling, practicality a - much Bland flatter, smoother material that catches less on TGS rating dri-fit material. Protection ;;;;2 is adequate for this sort of glove, with some leather in
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MIDDLE CHILD Hardcore performance is great for track days. Audi has a more everyday option @tburman
Minimal badging on the sides and at either end
W has finally put a price tag on its sub-4m sedan — the Ameo, and it’s very competitive. Evidently, the company has taken steps to address its reputation in making cars that are costlier to own than the competition. In this case, the Ameo ends up being cheaper than their own Polo hatchback, Currently, the Ameo is availabel only with a petrol engine — the same 1.2l MPI three-cylinder motor we’ve seen before in the Skoda Fabia and VW Polo. A diesel is promised soon. Volkswagen is touting several segment-firsts: rain-sensing wipers, static cornering lamps, cruise control and a centre armrest up front, but the kicker for us is that two airbags and ABS are standard on all variants, which is a big step forward at this price point. Visually, the Ameo looks very similar to its Polo and Vento cousins, with a slightly stubby-looking front and
back. The rear boot is expectedly short, but allows a bit more cargo volume than the Polo hatchback. It’s not the Large plenty prettiest integration of a boot thatboot we’vestores seen, but VW and is easy to access have been understated in their styling of the rear. In a front three-quarter view, the boot does not draw attention to itself, which is probably a good thing. Watch for a detailed review of the made-in-India Ameo next week. Prices:
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udi’s S line of cars don’t get the recognition they deserve. Sitting in between the standard models and the totally performance-oriented RS cars, they sit as the middle child, often overlooked. We have, on occasion, driven the RS5, RS7, even the R8 and come away impressed by the raw power they pack into seemingly standard body styles. But let’s face it: a wolf in sheep’s clothing isn’t likely to make you a nice wool coat. It’d rather eat the coat with you in it. Not so much the car on this page: the S5, which is what Audi calls a “sportback”, basically a sedan with a hatchback rear and more rakish roofline. In terms of size, it sits somewhere between an A4 and an A6 but ends up feeling surprisingly compact. Even in terms of performance potential, you could consider the S5 the middle child. There are sportscars in the lineup that make less power. Why then did Audi feel the need to paint the media car in this lurid yellow, we have no idea. It’s a unique shade for sure, akin to pure printer’s ink
R is equipped with Brembo monobloc callipers, Showa big piston forks, Öhlins rear suspension and Pirelli Diablo Rosso Corsa Tyres. The Thruxton R is priced at Rs 10.90 lac ex-showroom, Delhi. That’s a lot of bike for the money, and should appeal to a wide swath of motorcyclists with it’s “modern classic” vibe. This rounds out the new Bonneville platform with the Speed Twin, Bonneville T120 and Thruxton R coming in at attractive prices and all immediately available. Triumph continues to push aggressively forward in terms of models and marketing. There are more than a few lessons for some other manufacturers to learn.
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MERCEDES-BENZ GLC LAUNCHED AT RS 50.7 LAC JUNE 18, 2016 PUNE
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expanse of nice, flat luggage area and very easy to access thanks to the hatch opening. It’s a bit like THRILL the Skoda Octavias of old -- looking like sedansOF DRIVING with hatches hiding huge boots. On the go, the S5 is a refined experience. The 7-speed dual-clutch transmission is quick and smooth, and shifts gears with digital efficiency. Press the throttle with aggression and the gearbox quickly shifts down, releasing a nice V6 roar from the quad pipes out back. It’s a chatty car in that it likes to make nice growly noises when provoked, but never overpowers. The sound is enough for feedback and kicks, but does not cause discomfort. High-rev gearshifts release a nice crackle from the exhaust. Paddle shifters are present for those times when you think you know better than the car’s electronics. Driving modes can be chosen Dash is usual Audi fare. Dark two-tone upholstery between comfort, dynamic, efficiency or tailored and carbon trim look sporty to your individual tastes. Ride quality is where the generally luxurious experience breaks, with than anything else and it drew attention wherever the large wheels and relatively low profile tyres it went. Though, we suspect, it would pass under transmitting road imperfections to the passenger. the radar in a more sedate paint job. Few, if any Setting the car in ‘Comfort’ mode didn’t do much external features stand out. You have a typical in this regard. Audi front grille, headlamps and design language On our favourite, winding hill road, the S5 tweaked slightly to accommodate the curvaceous shone with its Quattro permanent all-wheel rear hatch. The red ‘S’ badges are also discreet on drive system. There’s always more grip than you the front and the back. need, and it works well with the performance of Step inside and the treatment is typical Audi. the motor. The specifications will surprise you if “Butat mom! my friends have SUVs with lower and the GL-class). Mercedes provides two If you’ve been in a recent A-type sedan, everything you drive the car before looking theAllbrochure: coefficients!”. IsV6! this a common refrain in engine options: the diesel GLC 220 d outputs is familiar. There’s the MMI screen, central console 329hp and 440Nm from thedrag supercharged your household? Tired of doing the school run 170hp and 400Nm of torque while the petrol and ergonomics as expected, but with a small, We’ve driven much angrier-feeling carsright angles? Mercedes GLC 300 outputs 245hp and 370Nm of torque. in an SUV that has only beendelivers listening tothis you and your burgeoning Officially, Mercedes has launched the fiddly jog dial. The steering wheel also with less power. Thhas e S5 ilk and is readyDespite to address this sticky problem. GLC ‘Edition 1’, which is their traditional was doesn’t have explicitly labelled phone capability with little drama. Verdict One is no longer stuck with the BMW X6 as of saying ‘first batch’. As they’ve done before, controls, which is something that being 4.7 metresthelong, the that S5 slices feelsthrough the air rather the Edition 1 cars come into the country as only SUV + Refinement, bashes itfootprint into submission. CBUs (fully imported). This is Mercedes’ sixth will confuse those coming from compact with than a small performance, The Mercedes-Benz other car brands. Upholstery is in width-wise. Visibility is good andGLC class of vehicles luxury SUV in the country, making their lineup was launched on 2 June, conveniently slotting the most comprehensive among the luxury car unique black and dark brown and there the flat-bottomed feels into thesteering sliver of space left between the GLEpurveyors. It’s just “nice” class and GLS-class (previously, the ML-class Expectedly, equipment levels are high. is much leather on display. There nice to till around good surfaces. are some lacquered carbon fibre The ORVMs could have done a TGS rating trim pieces along the door and other better job showing the sides and rear ;;;`2 surfaces as well, though we’re not sure if of the vehicle, but that could be down it’s the real thing. The seats are comfortable to personal preference. and supportive one-piece units for the front, lending The Audi S5 has plenty ofIn performance a surprise move, Mahindra launched vehicle from 0-80% charge in 1 hour and an all-electric feeling version of its Verito sedan, 45 minutes, is reserved only for the top (D6) a sporty look without being uncompromisingly potential, but keeps everything the eVerito, on 2 June. Mahindra variant. Fast charging needs to be done hardcore like the near-race seats you’d find in a comfortable and luxurious. It isdubbed an odd, middle claims that the sedan can go 110km on a at one of Mahindra’s designated charging sports car. child and we imagine it will have takers than fullless charge. The manufacturer is claiming stations, while a standard full charge takes costsbecause as low as Rs 1.15/km. 8 hours and 45 minutes using a 15-amp Rear legroom is good for a person of my size more overt sportscars or luxuryrunning sedans e eVerito also phones home home plug. Other features include (5’9”) but then, few grown men are actually my of the niche it occupies. That’sThan opportunity with a variety of information regenerative braking and a Claims a size, so we’d suggest a seating capacity of four for for the buyer who wants something diff erent. (Telematics). Fleet sales seem feature called REVIVE, which range of to becomes a likely target, especially is basically an 8km power maximum comfort. At least one passenger we rode Certainly no other car we’ve seen in this considering the aging Verito/ reserve for emergencies. You 110km on a with commented on how his i20 felt more spacious shade. At just north of Rs 69 lac ex-showroom, Logan platform. The eVerito don’t get airbags in any variant. full charge in the back. Again, apart from the “sport” theatre, the price will give you pause. You can buy more in key is available immediately Performance is about New Delhi, adequate for city use, which is there is little else to talk about. Open the hatch spacious luxury cars for less, or cities: more overt sports Mumbai, Bangalore, Kolkata, where Mahindra is pitching the and it’s another world. Literally! Audi claims 480 cars for as much. Stuck in the middle again. Pune, Chandigarh, Hyderabad, Jaipur, and eVerito. Top speed is claimed at 86kmph tushar@goldensparrow.com litres of cargo space, and we believe them. It’s a vast Nagpur. and the 110km range is dependent on load.
THRILL OF DRIVING
Marks the sixth luxury SUV that Mercedes sells in India
AMEO=POLO PLUS By Tushar Burman
bottomed steering wheel which feels nice to manipulate. If we were to nitpick, we’d say that the touchack in 2009, when Volkswagen introduced screen infotainment system is a bit smaller than the Polo in India, it was a breath of fresh on the hatch, but it serves the purpose perfectly air. At the time, the go-to car for the well and doesn’t end-up looking aftermarket like segment was the Maruti-Suzuki Swift, and some recent cars we’ve driven. You get steeringwhile the Fabia did exist to represent a European mounted controls, cruise control and a cooled contender, it was deemed too odd and expensive glove box for beverages on hot days. A centre for what it offered. Volkswagen was reeling from armrest is available for the driver which is a slim problems with the Skoda brand’s service and unit much like in the Vento. You don’t get rear cost complaints and didn’t want to repeat the AC vents behind it, however. same mistakes with VW. Fast-forward to 2016 Rear seat accommodations are quite and anecdotally, VW cars are still considered comfortable, and the extra knee room over the expensive to run (they’re not; this author owns a Polo hatch is apparent. Headroom at the rear is petrol Polo). VW has taken specific note of this at a premium, much like the Polo hatch, so those sentiment with the Ameo compact sedan, and with long torsos (or generous behinds) may hit has launched it for a very competitive price, even their heads on the roof. slightly undercutting the Polo hatchback! If you’ve read so far and are wondering where How they’ve achieved this was not the masala begins, well, it doesn’t. The Ameo immediately apparent to us on our long-ish test is striking in its anonymity. Even viewed from drive. The car is fundamentally the same inside the front 3/4 angle, one can barely discern the and out, save for the added boot. We drove the boot sticking slightly out of the rear. It’s a tiny Eighteen-inch alloys areHighline standard. Mercedes sunroof, lighting switchable petrol variant (the diesel motor will ambient extension of the body, to bewith sure, since the idea during Diwali) and fit, finish and quality and is to fit a sedan within fourbehind metres tothe qualify will provide an optionalcome off-road engineering colours levels, cargo bars rear to be on par with the hatch. Plastics for lower taxes. We’ve always liked the practical package that raises the appeared ride height by 20mm seat that liberate another 30 litres of luggage are just as pleasing to the touch, with no hollow, depth of the Polo boot, and this remains useful in and offers three additional ride modes: - find.space what an up EASYplasticky-feeling spots we off could The two-and the Ameo. Mercedes Only now, the calls volume goes from dashdrive and beige interior remain,PACK and make tailgate. 294 litres inDO the hatch to 330 in the sedan. It’s a road, incline and slippery.tone Five modes are WE HAVE YOUR the cabin feel airy. Bonus points for the flatminor bump, but it’s there. @tburman
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standard in the GLC: Comfort, Eco, Sport, Sport+ and Individual. Hill descent control is standard as well. We also see the use of Verdict Mercedes’ new 9G-TRONIC nine-speed + Safety,auto price transmission. - Marginal enginethe Slotting in below their range-topper, rating GLC understandably gets plentyTGS of comfort ;;;22 and convenience features. There’s a panoramic
ATTENTION YET? Safety is typical Mercedes fare: ABS, ESP, Crosswind-assist, PRE-SAFE, Attention Assist, Active Parking Assist, 7 airbags, LED headlamps and adaptive tail lamps. All this could be yours at Rs 50.7 lac for the diesel GLC 220 d, and Rs 50.9 lac for the GLC 300 petrol, ex-showroom, Pune.
It’s finally here: the Polo with a boot
The exterior of the boot itself is reasonably well integrated, and not as much of a tack-on like you’d find on the Swift Dzire. Not as good as the Ford Figo Aspire, but not bad. The tail lamps are simple and don’t draw attention to themselves. Styling seems to be borrowed from the Skoda design language, with a crease running across the otherwise slab-like boot lid. Everything seems to be designed to be anonymous. VW have had to adjust the front and rear overhangs accordingly, and the car ends up looking a bit stubbier than the hatch. The Ameo at present is only available in a petrol variant, utilising the venerable 1.2l MPI three-cylinder motor that does duty in the hatch. It generates 75PS and 110Nm of torque, which felt inadequate six years ago, and continues to be. It’s a flexible engine, to be sure, with useful low-end grunt that allows you to have a load of passengers and navigate inclines with grace rather than amateurish slipping of the clutch. However, there’s no getting around the rough sound of the three-cylinder and this author continues to field the same questions he’s had to with his own car: “is this a diesel?”. Once at highway speeds, it’s okay, but overtakes take effort. You do get cruise control, however, so that sort of balances things out a bit. The stiff suspension makes the car fun
Engine and interior mimic the Polo hatch
to drive, but is hard on all passengers. We really wish VW would do something about this. Perhaps the most important thing about the VW Ameo is the fact that it comes in at such a competitive price, and that it does so with two airbags and ABS as standard across variants. There are some segment-firsts such as rainsensing wipers, cruise control and auto up/down power windows with anti-pinch all-round, but that’s about it. The Ameo is a competent car at a competitive price about in the middle of the pack. You can get more features for more money with a Hyundai, but you get the secure, Teutonic feel of a well-built car with the VW. The petrol engine is a mixed bag, and we suspect many will wait for the diesel this Diwali. tushar@goldensparrow.com Watch a video overview here:
Mahindra launches all-electric eVerito
Triumph Bonneville Thruxton R launched for Rs 10.90 lac
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while remaining lightweight. Features are basic but thoughtful. There’s a water-resistant pocket within the shell at chest level for your phone, and a felt pocket above the waist for your glasses. Unfortunately, this pocket is unusable when the rain liner is in place. Zippers are of high quality as is the neck fastener, which uses velcro and has a soft pad where your neck meets the textile. The jacket comes with CEapproved armour in the shoulders, elbows, and along the back. Fit appears to be European, which slimme riders. will work well for slimmer There are button fasteners on the sleeves to get a more snug fit, and velcro on the cuffs and waist. The RST mesh jacket will be available in this black/red combo, or the inverse: red/black. RST mesh jacket Price: Rs 9500 Buy at: Bay City Speed Shop (baycityspeedshop@gmail.com)
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JULY 30, 2016
By Tushar Burman
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RST MESH JACKET
RST is a British manufacturer of motorcycle apparel that has recently become available in India. The distributor pegs them as a mid-tier brand, but we were impressed with the thought behind this jacket and its features. This is a basic textile/mesh jacket with a supplied, removable rain liner. Some background: it’s very hard to stay entirely dry in motorcycle gear unless you use an impermeable rain jacket over your kit or invest in much more expensive stuff. Rain liners are nice to have, but rarely foolproof. Thankfully, this RST jacket comes with a liner that zips into the shell using a long U-shaped zipper. Sleeves are held in place with small elasticated loops holding onto buttons on the liner. It’s a snug fit and doesn’t move around much. This design allows the jacket to be quite resistant to rain in light to medium rain,
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wo months after the release of the Bonneville T120, Triumph has rolled out Thruxton R in the Indian market. The 1200cc Thrurxton R runs on a high power, 8-valve, parallel twin engine generating just over 95hp and 112Nm of torque. This is a higher output version of the mill that powers the T120. The Thruxton R carries feature like ABS, ride-by-wire, traction control, torque assist clutch, LED DRL, LED rear light, an engine immobilizer and a USB charging socket. The bike also has riding modes to choose from: road, rain and sport. The equipment list continues; the Thruxton
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Riding your motorcycle in the monsoon is a necessity for many, but it also brings out the adventurers. You’ve almost certainly got that Facebook friend who takes his bike to impossibly wet and dirty locations just because she can. If you’d like to follow suit but prefer to stay a bit drier, we have some kit you might want to consider
MOTORS IN THAILAND Riding or driving in the country is bound to feel familiar to an Indian tourist. For one thing, they drive on the left side of the road — a colonial vestige similar to ours. They accept International Driving Permits issued in India. Being part of the ASEAN region with a large contract manufacturing industry also means Shima a recently-released Polish brand of that vehicles tend to be similaris to what you’ll see on Indian roads. Toyota Innovas and Corollas,far less known than the typical motorcycle apparel, Suzuki Swifts, Nissans and familiar European gear you’ll see on your mates on a Sunday ride. luxury cars in urban areas. What you’re likely to they aren’t be unprepared for However, is the automotive culture of scrimping on their debut. customisation that If seems the is country. theto pervade catalog anything to go by, the lineup is It’s ridiculous! On my first day in Bangkok, I was thorough and top-notch betraying no cost-cutting. passed by a courier delivery truck with massive tested the D-Tour WP (waterproof) gloves oversize rims and We’ve tyres. Even cabs — whether licensed or Uber —and are seldom without an impressed. To begin with, have seen come away obligatory level of customisation. the price isis right: Rs 4800 for a pair of this kind Automotive enthusiasm even more is a good the dealThai indeed. evident in the two-wheelers ride. There are several things to Unlike in India, where culturally, we’re about Key is the fused liner, which like about the gloves. “bigger is better”, the Thai have a different take Shima calls NextFit/NextDry. What this means on their commuter vehicles. Step-thrus and
VISHAL KALE
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MONSOON
So close yet so far. Perfect reasons to take off for a motorcycle trip
by a Gujarati. He has a huge fan following! Having been (and motorcycled across) the country twice, I almost tend to take it personally when people refer to the country and its sex trade, as if the nation is one giant red light district. It isn’t, and you should definitely avoid visiting it with someone who holds that belief. This author travelled the length of the country with his spouse, feeling perfectly secure despite being a nervous traveller. It truly is a place where you can hit the road without any specific plan and come off the bike feeling like you’ve explored and seen something new.
@tburman
TGS LIFE
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Road-tripping in Thailand
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By Tushar Burman
black rubber piece. We think it goes rather well on our “modern classic” Ducati Scrambler. Grip is excellent, whether seated or standing, and it doesn’t rip up your pants or cause discomfort. Also useful is the fact that the adhesive allows you to remove and reposition the pads a number of times before losing efficacy. It also comes off without leaving residue. Grippy tank pads are one of the cheapest mods you can do to you bike to allow you to ride safer and more confidently. It certainly helps in the rains to make sure you stay on the bike. The Techspec pads are available for most popular bikes, or you can buy them in self-adhesive panels and cut them to suit your vehicle. Techspec ‘snakeskin’ tank pads PRICE: Rs 4000 - Rs 7500 depending on application BUY AT: Bay City Speed Shop (baycityspeedshop@gmail.com)
Legroom is decent at the back. Headroom is a bit tight for taller passengers.
The eVerito will be available in three variants with marginal differences between them. Unusually, fast-charging ability, which Mahindra claims can charge the
Prices start at Rs 9.5 lac ex-showroom, Delhi, for the D2 variant after state and FAME subsidies. The D4 and D6 variants cost Rs 9.75 and 10 lac respectively.
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TECHSPEC TANK PADS
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A large, comfortable V8 grand tourer at an attractive price. We drive the Ford Mustang GT at the BIC
Teache s and he s aff o SNS he ped he s uden s make he exh b on a success
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THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY OCTOBER 29-NOVEMBER 04, 2016
Chakan Hospital
PUNE
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hirty-bed rural hospitals are the mainstay of rural health care provided by the state government. Rural, migrant, lower middle class and poor people avail of primary medical facilities from the 360 rural hospitals in Maharashtra. Nearly 75 per cent of the population from rural areas benefits from the medical facilities rural hospitals. Pune district itself has 25 rural hospitals. As per the norms, there is one rural hospital per tehsil. But at some places, there are three RHs for one tehsil as per the population’s requirements. These hospitals provides basic health services like immunisation, Out Patient Department (OPD), delivery wards, general medicines, laboratories, autopsy centres, ambulances and over 25 staff, including doctors, sisters, and other workers. There is one civil hospital at Aundh, which provides multi-specialty health care. All RHs are operated and monitored by the civil surgeon of the district, who reports to the public health department. RHs were started in 1980 as per the committee’s reference to the government. There are earlier guidelines regarding the running of the hospitals that are still in force. With the exponential increase in the population, the hospitals’ work load has increased so much that the RHs are proving to be inadequate to cater to the rising numbers of patients. There is an urgent to increase their capacity. Experts feel that the facilities at these hospitals should be upgraded urgently for them to provide care to every patient who approaches them. From staff, equipment to operating guidelines, every RH needs to be upgraded in every aspect. And though the RHs run on an identical pattern, every RH must have different specialties, for the patients who require special remedies. But apart from the building infrastructure, there is no upgradation to be seen, either as regards staff, beds, special units or treatment protocol. There is an upsurge in cardiac and cancer patients, but not a single rural hospital has either cardiac or cancer units. With such a dire lack of necessary facilities, there is an additional burden on the already overburdened tertiary care units like Sassoon General Hospital and Yashwantrao Chavan Memorial Hospital, in Pune and Pimpri Chinchwad respectively. This situation leaves no option for some patients but to approach private hospitals, which charge exorbitant rates, and private health institutes have thus proliferated across the state. TGS visited RHs at Alandi, Chakan, Shikrapur and Paud on the outskirts of Pune, as well as the Civil Hospital in Aundh, which caters to patients from all over the district. It was quite evident that there was a constant flow of patients at hospitals situated close to the villages, while hospitals situated long distances away from the villages or tehsils had a relatively poor response. Some of the hospitals have the necessary building infrastructure, but were lacking in the aspects of equipment and staff. Some of the hospitals were found to be able to provide quality healthcare to the people. There is need for a widening of the scope of the rural hospitals so that they are adequate to provide healthcare to each and every poor citizen of the state. There must be also the adding-on of specialty departments, which is not part of the RH format. Most of all, what is needed is political will, and a change from the government’s indifferent approach towards health care, which is the reason why the rural hospitals still continue to function along obsolete guidelines.
BY DNYANESHWAR BHONDE Waiting for the medical officer...
There was not a single patient admitted to the hospital
Chakan Rural Hospital is bang in the main chowk of Chakan, on Shikrapur Road. The three-acre plot where a new building has come up in the last couple of years, also has old buildings in a dilapidated state. The new two-storey RH building is incomplete with construction going on at snail’s pace. The first floor where the male, female and general wards will be located is under construction. We visited the hospital on Wednesday at around 2 pm. There was long queue of around 50 pregnant women at the MO room. The ground floor has the cabin of medical superintendent Dr Madhav Kankawale, an MBBS doctor specialising in gynecology. Next to it are two patients’ diagnostic cabins, rooms for telemedicine, dressing, HIV counselling and medical help, a laboratory and a post delivery ward. The hospital gets over 300 patients at the
OPD, and six medico-legal cases are handled. Every month 40 normal deliveries and 30 post mortems are carried out on an average. There is also a delivery ward, and laparoscopic OT for family planning. One of the washrooms for women was locked, while the door to the male washroom was open, causing some women patients some embarrassment. There are 27 staffers, including four doctors (one superintendent and three medical officers), five intern doctors, seven nurses, a lab technician and other workers. The hospital has only one post delivery ward with hardly ten beds, all of which were unoccupied. The staff said that this was a common ward where all types of patients, male and female, delivery patients and others were kept. But there was not a single patient admitted in the hospital. “We have a huge response from patients from Chakan and adjacent villages. We have fixed every Wednesday for Antenatal Care (ANC) for women. Currently there is no separate male or female ward and the work is
underway as the funds were released very late,” said an official from the hospital. Patients in a serious condition are referred to Aundh Civil Hospital, YCM or Sassoon hospitals.
Why are patients still wary of getting treatment at this hospital?
Aundh General Hospital, a 300-bed facility hospital, has 14 specialist wards. Medicine, surgery, orthopaedic, paediatrics, pathology, ENT, dental and other facilities are also available at the hospital. So why are patients still wary of getting treatment at Aundh hospital? Well, basic and primary treatments are available, but advanced treatment is not available here. Even the doctors agree that Aundh hospital lacks super specialty facility. The hospital has demanded that the government make Aundh hospital a super specialty hospital. Complicated cases are referred to private hospitals or Sassoon General Hospital. The number of patients has increased in the last decade. There were 2,86,288 OPD patients in 2014-15, 3,22,965 in 2015-16, and 1,58,595 OPD patients in 2016-17 till September. There were 20,061 admission patients in 2014-15, 21,796 in 2015-2016, and 9690 in 2016-2017 till September. But there is a lack of facilities. Patients have to go to private hospitals as cardiologists or cancer treatment is not available here. The first DEIC centre was started at Aundh General Hospital, where children of 0 to 6 age group with disabilities were identified and given good treatment. This centre enables children with disability to lead a normal life. Some 800 to 1000 patients visit this centre. The number of delivery patients has increased. Thirty to 40 Caesareans are done here monthly. There are 50 class I and class II doctors available at the hospital. It has a skin lab. Medicines not available in stock are purchase from the market with the government funds.
‘The hospital staff, including the doctors and nurses, are very careless’
In heart of Alandi, next to Sant Dnyaneshwar Maharaj Mandir is the two-storey Alandi Hospital, that was built two years ago, to provide health care to the around one lakh population of Alandi municipal council and the adjacent villages. When we visited the hospital on Tuesday afternoon at around 3 pm, there were 5/6 patients waiting at the medical officer (MO) Dr Prakash Gurutawad’s room for primary diagnosis. The hospital medical facilities include gynecology, pediatrics, family planning etc. The 30-bed hospitals has male, female and delivery wards, which were 50
Paud Hospital
to 60 per cent occupied by patients. There are three doctors at the hospital, including class one category Dr G G Jadhav, who is the medical superintendent, and Anjali Rajpure the other two are MBBS and PG degree holders. The staff doctor claims that they has a staff numbering 25 staff, including anaesthetist, pediatrician and gynecologist, along with six intern BAMS doctors, seven sisters, a lab technician and cleaning staff. The hospital OPD department is always crowded, with about 600 patients every day, and 30 to 40 deliveries per month. Caesarean and complicated deliveries are referred to Aundh Civil Hospital or YCM Hospital as the hospital is not equipped to provide proper care available. The OPD time is from 9 am to 2:30 pm and from 2:30 pm to 5 pm. “We have a huge response from Alandi and surrounding villages. Not only the poor but even prestigious people come to our hospital for availing the hospital’s health care and medical advice,” said Dr Gurutawad. He said that a year ago the OPD had less than 50 patients every day, but now the number has reached 600. “We admit patients suffering from dengue, chikungunya, women
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THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY OCTOBER 29-NOVEMBER 04, 2016
PUNE
at ails rural itals?
Shikrapur Hospital
n Maharashtra provide majority of the village ising population, these of facility upgrades as well treatments
E AND GUNWANTI PARASTE Imposing facade of Shikrapur RH, but not a patient in sight
ivery and more. These patients get all medical ent, bed and meal free of cost. All of the beds are d we have to discharge patients if new patients be admitted,” he said. e also asked patients about the quality of medical ey were getting at Alandi Hospital. jali Mohan Rajpure, 25, resident of Alandi, a wife was admitted to the hospital for five days as s diagnosed with dengue. She feels that the staff ay heed to patients’ problems. “The sisters don’t d when we call them for help. Hardly any sister he ward. I was referred to the YCM Hospital was not possible to me to be admitted there as I wo little children. I insisted on being admitted to Hospital and then the doctors admitted here,” njali. mesh Ghule, 42, of Alandi was in the male ward first floor of the hospital. He echoed Anjali’s “The hospital staff, including the doctors and are very careless. One injection is used to inject atients. If the saline bottle gets empty we have he ground floor holding the empty saline bottle sister to remove it, as no sister is available in the The sisters keep chit-chatting among themselves, rude to the patients if we complain,” said Ghule,
What RH guidelines say
RH is 30-bed curative care hospital
There are 387 approved RHs but only 360 are operational
One RH includes a medical superintendent, gynecologist, surgeon, pediatrician and anesthetist and other staff, numbering 25
Operates on referred patients by PHC and walk-in patients
Every RH has X-ray, lab, ambulance, ANC clinic, OPD ward, IPD ward
di Hospital
who is suffering from dengue and has been in the male ward for five days.. “The bed sheets are not changed and neither is the floor cleaned every day. Four patients ran away from the ward because they were not given proper treatment,” said Ghule.
It does not seem at all like a government hospital, with its open space and garden
Shikrapur Rural Hospital is about two kilometres away from Pune-Ahmednagar Road. Half a kilometre of dirt
road leads to the well-constructed hospital building. In fact, it does not seem at all like a government hospital, with its open space and garden. The wards and cabins are spacious and clean. The ground floor is built on the same plan as other RHs, with advanced facilities like solar heater, and a Reverse Osmosis Plant (RO) plant on the premises. Clearly cleanliness is a priority here. But in contrast, there is a desultory response from patients. There are barely 150 OPD patients in a day, and just six deliveries carried out here in an entire month. Officials say that the hospital is too far from Shikrapur, and that there is another primary health centre five kilometres from the hospital, which are the reasons for the scanty number of patients. We found medical officer Dr Archana Kamble available in her cabin. She said that the 30-bed hospital has general OPD, ANC clinic and other facilities. “We admit patients suffering from dengue, diarrhoea, asthma and others. We have an autopsy centre where 15 autopsies are carried out. We treat snake bite patients too. Everything is done free of cost,” said Dr Kamble. The hospital has a total staff of 26, including superintendent Dr V G Kashid, three MOs, seven sisters, five intern doctors, a lab technician, pharmacist, and a dedicated ambulance. There was only one old patient admitted in a 12-bed ward. The patient said that he was suffering from asthma. The government has invested only in the building infrastructure but not in equipment or OT, radiology, trauma centre or Intensive Care Units
The dirt road that leads to Shikrapur Rural Hospital
(ICU), which are essential if the hospital is to cater to all kinds of patients.
X-ray technician post vacant for one and a half years
There has been a vacancy for X-ray technician at Paud Rural Hospital for the last one and a half years. So patients are forced to go to Pune for X-rays, a distance of about 25 km from Paud. Basic care is provided, but in the case of emergency, patients are referred to Sassoon General Hospital, Pune. Patients come to Paud RH from different places in Mulshi tehsil. There is an X-ray machine at the hospital and Paud RH charges Rs 50 for an X-ray. But without a technician, patients have to travel to Pune and pay Rs 300 at private hospitals. Sassoon General Hospital X-ray charges start from Rs 75. After the last technician was transferred, the government has ignored a replacement. Hospital staff and doctors said that numerous letters have been sent regarding a X-ray technician. In a month, there are about 25 patients for X-rays. The hospital deals with 20 to 22 delivery cases every month. Ninety per cent of normal delivery are done at the hospital. Critical and emergency cases, where surgery is needed, are referred to Sassoon General Hospital. Since women doctors are not available, all delivery cases are handled by male doctors. Some women complain about the lack of lady doctors but they don’t have any option. Paud RH has 30 beds available for patients. Every day 200 to 250 OPD patients come to the hospital. There are more OPD patients during the monsoons, as there are more viruses, as well as more cases of snake bite, viral fever, cough etc. Mulshi being a tourist destination, during monsoon there are more tourists and therefore, outside patients. They also get the occasional accident case. Emergency and critical cases are sent to Sassoon General Hospital. The hospital has every general treatment facility. Paud RH medical officer Dr Anil Joshi said, “We provide good medical facilities to our patients. We purchase medicines that are not available in the local stores. We get patients from Mulshi taluka. We perform regular surgeries and complicated cases are sent to Sassoon General Hospital and other hospitals. We have three medical officers, seven nurses, and resident doctors available round the clock. We also have HIV test facility. We have two ambulances, easily available during emergencies. We have routine checkups for pregnant women.” tgs.feedback@goldensparrow.com
Aundh Hospital
Dr Hanumant Chavan, deputy health director (Pune division), says that these RHs provides curative services to rural patients who are referred by primary health centres (PHC). “Every tehsil has one to three RHs as per the population. But there is one RH for three to four PHCs in Pune. Those are not tertiary care hospitals but give curative treatment to patients who are referred by PHCs. All RHs are governed by civil surgeon,” said Dr Chavan. “All RHs have new buildings with required health equipment. These hospitals need to be upgraded as per the increasing population and we are trying. We are filling the vacant posts of the doctors too within a week,” he said.
Aundh Hospital
THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY OCTOBER 29-NOVEMBER 04, 2016
PUNE
TECH/START-UP Gender parity: India at a lowly 87
“The word robot comes from the Czech “robota“. This translates into forced labour, or work.” -http://www.thefactsite.com
VR the world! BY ANAND PARTHASARATHY The swift transition of Virtual Reality from pricey, underused technology to an affordable mainstream tool is nothing short of remarkable and has all happened in the last six months. The biggest stimulus has been the launch of VR headsets that work with mobile phones. While the top end of the technology—coming from Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, Sony VR is still out of reach of most of us with asking prices in the Rs 40,000 - Rs 60,000 range, the market at the budget end has exploded in two directions: VR headsets made for specific brands of mobile phones—like Samsung’s Gear are becoming cheaper by the day, adding only a couple of thousand rupees to the cost of the phone The best news has been the launch of third party VR headsets that work with all brands of phones and can also be used directly to view VR content on TV or PC monitor.These too are priced around Rs 1800 - Rs 2500. Chinese phone maker Gionee has now entered the arena with its first ever VRenabled mobile phone. The Gionee S6 Pro comes pre-loaded with a VR app, backed by 4GB RAM for an immersive and intuitive user experience. One innovative feature is the Split Screen which allows the user to watch a VR video already playing while receiving notifications from messenger apps in the other half-screen. Gionee provides games in G-Store (VR) along with various VR friendly videos. While the S6 Pro phone, a 4G VoLTE handset with 13 MP and 8MP cameras, 5.5 inch Full HDS screen and a finger print scanner costs Rs 23,999, the VR headset is available for an additional Rs 2499. Chennai-based Zebronics was among the first this year to launch an Indian VR headset—the Zeb VR—and its thick foam padding, magnetic lock for the adjustable front cover and pair of focus-adjusting
lenses make for a comfortable headset that at Rs 1,600, is as good a fit as global brands costing much, much more. And Zebronics removed one ‘pain point’: the Zeb VR can be used with any make of smartphone up to 6 inches in size. A switch lets you interact with the VR app on the phone. Another VR headset in this price band is Procus One, which claims the biggest lenses in a VR set available today—42 mm.
It takes any mobile phone from 3.6 inches to 6 inches and costs Rs 1899 from Amazon. The latest VR headset, launched on October 26, is the PTron Xtreme 360 from Mobile and Tech Accessories e-tailer, LatestOne.com. It can take phones from 4.7 inch to 5.5 inch and its lens diameter is 38 mm. This gives it an effective field of view of 110 to 115 degrees with a 5.5 inch phone. It is one of the most affordable VR
VR comes to Indian Cinema
Perhaps the biggest news for VR in India came earlier this week when the makers of the 2015 Telugu/Tamil blockbuster Baahubali announced that they were shooting a sequel: “Baahubali 2 : The Conclusion”, using a special VR camera system built by chip maker AMD. The AMD VR camera is in fact, 32 separate cameras looking in different directions. To give fans a heads-up on what the VR effects will look like, when the film premieres in April 2017, the makers have put together a short on-set movie on the making of the film. You can experience the VR effect using the 360 degree navigation button on the YouTube video version of the film. Search for “On the sets of Baahubali: A VR Experience.”
Tools for a peaceful Diwali! BY V. SUDHAKSHINA Not every one enjoys a noisy cracker-filled Diwali. Many would like to shut out the noise. Modern apartments often come with near -sound proofing with insulated glass like Fenesta, but even this can’t eliminate the high decibel sounds of thoughtless revelry —and infants as well as the elderly, not to speak of pets often have a tough time. Here is a suggestion for partial relief which does not involve any purchase—just an app on your mobile: Noise Machine by Synopsia blocks the background sound by creating white noise that helps you sleep or relax. You can use this app by plugging earphones to phones or use Bluetooth speakers in your room. The app generates white, pink and red noise (terms that denote the audio distribution of the sound) depending on the frequency of the background noise levels. It is available for free in GooglePlay Store. We are not promising that it will fully cut out the sound of crackers, but especially if you use earphones, the soothing sound will reduce the nuisance. Of course if you already own a pair of noise cancelling headphones, putting them on will substantially reduce
the outside sounds. Active noise cancelling is a technology invented by Dr Amar Bose of Bose audio fame. It creates a sound wave, equal and opposite to the incoming sound and thus cancels it. Today many headphones come with active noise cancelling, but remember the technology addresses a steady back ground noise like traffic or aircraft hum—and loud spikes like a cracker will get through although muted. Today noise pollution laws specify the maximum decibels for different areas and times. But at festivals like Diwali, all the laws are broken with impunity. If you want to establish a record of the sound level in your neighbourhood this Diwali, try a sound monitoring app like Sound Meter. Developed by SmartTools, this app shows noise levels in decibels by using your phone’s builtin microphone. It lists normal noise levels in different surroundings like children’s park, traffic, etc and lets you know when it exceeds the limits. You can also take screenshots and use it as an evidence. Sound Meter is
P 12
Virtual Reality comes into mainstream use as headsets become affordable sets on offer today at Rs 999. Of course, if your budget is tight, you can always go for the DIY route and assemble Google’s basic VR headset, called Cardboard (and rightly so because it is made from cardboard and rubber band with a pair of plastic lenses). You can buy a kit online for a couple of hundred rupees. What to view The problem with all VR sets is what do you do with it. To some extent, Zebronics has solved the problem by making its headset compatible with Google Cardboard apps — and Google is ensuring that a growing collection of free 3-D and VR friendly apps are available. In other ways too, businesses are increasingly exploiting VR as a marketing tool. Pepperfry.com, the leading furniture and home marketplace has introduced virtual reality tours of its Pepperfry Studios in Mumbai. Customers can explore Pepperfry Experience Centere in Santacruz and Kanjurmarg, Mumbai, in 360 degree and 3D on their laptop, mobile, and tablets from the comfort of their home. By using a Virtual Reality headset they can also check out the Studio Pepperfry furniture in VR. The company plans to open 20 more Studios across key metros in the country by the end of 2016, and will provide virtual reality tours for all its Studios. Real estate websites like CommonFloor. com have been among the first to harness VR to give potential buyers of apartments and homes, a feel for how they will look, once furniture is added. Earlier this year, Tata Motors, attached a cardboard VR set to copies of a national daily newspaper, so that readers could see the 360 degree video of their new car. Thomas Cook has been mass mailing 5,000 brochures, equipped with inexpensive cardboard VR headsets for their customers to check out their tours. But as with all things in India, Bollywood is the biggie—and sooner or later will wake up to the potential of Virtual Reality.( see box) Meanwhile, if you do decide to buy a VR headset, you will find enough and more of stuff to see at YouTube alone. I entered the search term “Virtual Reallity video” and it turned up over 8 million videos. Enough for starters! IndiaTechOnline
It is hardly four months since healthcare startup Olito got going. Sensibly it began by marrying ‘bricks’ to ‘clicks’ -- it has a full fledged medical centre and pharmacy in Model Colony, Pune. But -- and here’s the difference -- patients are encouraged to download the Olito mobile app which allows them to: Book in-person or tele-consultancy appointments with specialist doctors; avail home care health services by trained physiotherapists; book appointments for diagnostics services -blood, urine/ stool tests, X-rays, ECG; avail of home collection of samples; view past and upcoming
appointments; upload health documents so you do not have to carry them or fear losing them; download prescriptions uploaded by doctors; download invoice/ receipts for payments made to Olito and add your family members and maintain all family health records at one place. This is as good as it gets in one healthcare app! But not enough for those behind the startup.
YahooMail, now in Marathi
The latest version of the mail client for Android mobiles comes in 7 Indian languages Yahoo, the parent company may be in the news for its corporate troubles—but YahooMail continues to be a favourite email client for lakhs of Indians. This week, the mobile version for Android devices has extended support to seven new Indian regional languages: Hindi, Gujarati, Bengali, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Marathi. With this update, Indian users whose language setting on their phone is set to one of the seven Indian regional languages mentioned above will automatically experience Yahoo Mail in their preferred language. Additionally Yahoo Mail app on Android has added some new features that are fully compatible with the new Android 7.0 Nougat verson. Multi-Window View: Users can use Yahoo Mail sideby-side with other apps. When you’re composing an email, you can reference the article you just read, and more, all without having to switch between apps. Quick Actions: Now, directly reply to a message right from a notification, without having to open the app. You can also now quickly view and dismiss bundled notifications, or, archive, delete, star, and more on each notification individually. The new features are now available with the latest version (5.10) of the Yahoo Mail app from the Play Store.
These tools will help you reduce those phataka sounds View Ramayana serial on mobile
available for free download in GooglePlay store. Another such app is Decibel 10th. This app also allows you to share the decibel reports via email and social networking sites. You can download it for free at the iTunes store and GooglePlay store. IndiaTechOnline
From bricks to clicks, with Pune-based Olito Healthcare startup has feet in Model Colony—but sets its sights on Pan India telemedicine
IN THE APP WORLD
The co founders of Olito, are Rajesh Kumar Singh the CEO who is a post graduate from Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore with a background in Civil services, IT & Pharma; Payal Mahawar, the CTO, who has worked in the technology sector for more than a decade including 5 years in US and Pankaj Bhatia, the Head of
IT Products with experience of more than 12 years in IT & more than 5 years in US. Their vision is to take Olito to other cities by tying up with local hospitals and diagnostic centres. But more importantly, they plan on creating a network of paramedics and pharmacists who will reach people’s doorsteps in rural reaches where there may be no local medical facilities and then link them to doctors in bigger cities using telemedicine technology. It is a bold vision for healthcare in India—and the experience in Pune will be the bedrock on which Olito hopes to live up to its motto and acronym: ‘One LIfe TO Live’. Meanwhile if you are a Punekar, you can download the Olito app at Google Play or visit the multi specialty clinic on Squadron Leader Sureshchandra Bhagwat Road, Model Colony, Shivajinagar. IndiaTechOnline
NexGTV has acquired rights to 30-episode animated series and offers it free nexGTv, India’s largest subscription-led video entertainment app, has secured the worldwide digital telecast rights to the Ramayana serial from HT Media Ltd. So this Diwali, nexGTv users across the globe will be able to view 30 episodes of the animated series on its web and mobile platforms. Viewers can watch the episodes as a part of its free content catalogue. The series can be accessed either through www.nexgtv.com or through the nexGTv mobile app, available on both Android and iOS. nexGTV has also partnered with acclaimed director Imtiaz Ali to launch a project called ‘SPOTLight’. Aspiring film makers can develop original short videos across a variety of genres including horror, satire, drama, social, poetry, comedy original music, fiction and reality. NexGTV will carry selected videos under ‘SPOTLight’ on its ‘TV on mobile’ platform, which reaches millions of users. Imtiaz Ali will judge top five-viewed videos on nexGTV every month and select one video for the grand prize of Rs 1 lakh.
IndiaTechOnline
IT is like that...
ENVIRONMENT “Wildlife is disappearing within our lifetimes at an unprecedented rate. Biodiversity forms the foundation of healthy forests, rivers and oceans. We are entering a new era in Earth’s history: the Anthropocene.” - Marco Lambertini, Director General, WWF International
H EALTH
THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY OCTOBER 29-NOVEMBER 04, 2016
PUNE
“There is so much shaming around food and weight. We need to work together as a nation on improving public health and clinical support for individuals with obesity and targeting environmental risk factors.” -Maya Vadiveloo, Assistant Professor, University of Rhode Island
India’s renewable target optimistic: IEA Industry forecaster sees weak grid infrastructure posing challenges to renewable deployment BY GURDIP SINGH
Agency expects the share of renewables in power generation to grow from 16 per cent in 2015 to 19 per cent in 2021
The share of renewables in India’s power generation is expected to touch 19 per cent in 2021 as the country has set a more optimistic target of having a 175-gigawatt renewable capacity by 2022, International Energy Agency said. In a report released recently, International Energy Agency (IEA) said the renewable capacity is expected to grow by almost 76 gigawatt (GW) over the medium term versus 66 GW in the Medium-Term Renewables
Our brains get ‘slacker’ as we age
It is not just our skin that starts to lose its youthful firmness and elasticity as we age, but our brain too gets ‘slacker’, a new study has found. Researchers from Newcastle University (UK) and Federal University (Rio de Janeiro) investigated the way the human brain folds and how this ‘cortical folding’ changes with age. Linking the change in brain folding to the tension on the cerebral cortex - the outer layer of neural tissue in our brains - the team found that as we age, the tension on the cortex appears to decrease. The research sheds light on the underlying mechanisms which affect brain folding and could be used in the future to help diagnose brain diseases. “One of the key features of a mammalian brain is the grooves and folds all over the surface a bit like a walnut but until now no-one has been able to measure this folding in a consistent way,” said lead author Dr Yujiang Wang of Newcastle University. “By mapping the brain folding of over 1,000 people, we have shown that our brains fold according to a simple
universal law. We also show that a parameter of the law, which is interpreted as the tension on the inside of the cortex, decreases with age. The expansion of the cerebral cortex is the most obvious feature of mammalian brain evolution and is generally accompanied by increasing degrees of folding of the cortical surface. In the average adult brain, for example, if the cortex of one side - or hemisphere - was unfolded and flattened out it would have a surface area of about 100,000 square millimetre, roughly one and a half times the size of a piece of A4 paper. Previous research has shown that folding of the cortex across mammalian species follows a universal law - that is, regardless of size and shape, they all fold in the same way. “From this, we identified a parameter that decreases with age, which we interpret as changing the tension on the cortical surface. It would be similar to the skin. As we age, the tension drops and the skin starts to slacken. The study was published in the journal PNAS. PTI
Market (MTMR) report in 2015. Th is upward revision is due to much higher capacity additions of solar photovoltaic (PV), which are anticipated to account for 50 per cent of all new renewable capacity growth over the medium term, said IEA in its MTMR released at the Singapore International Energy Week. “Onshore wind is expected to expand by 25 GW over the medium term thanks to a strong project pipeline, new supportive policies to encourage the repowering of old sites, and the announcement of wind auctions to develop 1 GW of capacity that should drive additional growth after 2018,” it said. However, the scaling back of AD (accelerated depreciation tax policy in India) from 80 per cent to 40 per cent, which will come into effect at
Counting on fingers may make kids smarter: Study Parents, take note! Counting on fingers may make your kids smarter, suggests a new study which found that children who have better perception of their hands tend to be more skilled at math. Finger perception - the ability to distinguish, name, or recognise the fingers - is associated with math skill and even when people are not manually ticking off numbers, areas of the brain associated with fingers are still activated, researchers said. In order to analyse how the mind works while performing arithmetic, Ilaria Berteletti from Gallaudet University in the US and colleagues scanned the brains of 39 children between ages eight and 13 while they mentally subtracted and multiplied single-digit numbers. Scans showed two regions of the brain associated with fingers - the somatosensory area, which responds to sensations such as pressure, pain or heat and the motor area, which controls movement. Both were active during subtraction, even though kids did not use their fingers to arrive at the answers. There was no similar brain activity during multiplication, which the researchers interpreted as a reflection of how kids learn to subtract versus how they learn to multiply, ‘The Wall Street Journal’ reported. “You probably learned subtraction using your fingers. Multiplication was probably presented verbally and with rote memorisation. For us, it is evidence that the two types of operations rely on different networks,” Berteletti said. Researchers are sure that kids who have better finger perception tend to be more skilled at mathematics. PTI
Women catching up with men in drinking habits Women across the world now consume nearly as much alcohol as men, according to a new research which shows that the gender gap in drinking habits is closing. The trend, known as ‘sex convergence’, is most evident among young adults, according to researchers from University of New South Wales in Australia. Historically, men have been far more likely than women to drink alcohol, and to consume it in quantities that damage their health, with some figures suggesting up to a 12-fold difference between the sexes. However, now evidence is beginning to emerge that suggests this gap is narrowing. In a bid to quantify this trend over time, researchers pooled the data from 68 relevant international studies out of a total of 314, all of which had been published between 1980 and 2014. All the studies included explicit regional or national comparisons of men’s and women’s drinking patterns across at least two time periods. The studies included data collected between 1948 and 2014, representing people born as far back as 1891, all the
way up to 2000, and including a total sample size of more than 4 million. Sixteen of the studies spanned 20 or more years; five spanned 30 or more. The researchers used the following criteria to inform their data search: lifetime and/or current alcohol misuse or dependence; alcohol related problems; treatment for alcohol issues; and the timeframe of use and the development of related problems. They used 11 key indicators of alcohol use and associated harms for their analysis. These were grouped
into three broad categories - any use; problematic use, which included binge/ heavy drinking; and the prevalence of associated harms. Births were grouped into cohorts - specific timeframes from 1891 to 2000 - all of which spanned five years, with the exception of the first (1891-1910) and the last (1991-2000). The pooled data showed that the gap between the sexes consistently narrowed across all three categories over time. Men born between 1891 and 1910 were over twice (2.2) as likely as their female peers to drink alcohol; but this had almost reached parity among those born between 1991 and 2000 (1.1). The same patterns were evident for problematic use, where the gender gap fell from 3 to 1.2, and for associated harms, where the gender gap fell from 3.6 to 1.3. After taking account of potential mathematical bias in the calculations, the gender gap fell by 3.2 per cent with each successive five year period of births, but was steepest among those born from 1966 onwards. The study appears in the journal BMJ Open. PTI
the end of fiscal year (FY) 2016, and the pace of implementation of recently announced wind auctions remain forecast uncertainties, it said. Hydropower capacity is expected to expand by over 10 GW alongside solar PV and onshore wind, driven by the government’s 5 GW small hydropower target by the end of the country’s 12th Five-Year Plan (FYP) in 2022. The increasing policy focus on small hydropower should partly off set delays in large-scale hydropower projects due to increasing environmental concerns. India’s agreement with Bhutan to co-develop over 2 GW of mostly large hydropower projects should also contribute, the report said. The weak grid infrastructure in India is seen posing challenges to renewable deployment over the
medium term, but the grid integration of variable renewables remains an important focus of the government with its green corridor programme and the national smart-grid mission, it said. Overall, the share of renewables in power generation is expected to grow from 16 per cent in 2015 to 19 per cent in 2021. In India, the accelerated deployment of renewables over the medium term could be 46 per cent higher and is primarily dependent on the success of the country’s many cross-cutting reforms to improve state electricity board governance, increase compliance levels of the Renewable Purchase Obligation (RPO) and improve the financial health of insolvent distribution companies. Accelerated deployment will
require increased state participation in the country’s Ujwal DISCOM Assurance Yojana (UDAY) scheme to open up the banking system and financially restructure distribution companies and continued efforts to expand and upgrade the country’s grid infrastructure. Better synchronisation among national goals and state-level policy implementation will be necessary to support further uptake of solar PV (which could add an additional 19 GW compared with the main case) and successful implementation of future onshore wind auctions, it said. The diversification of financing sources could bring the cost of debt down and improve the economic attractiveness of renewables, it said. PTI
Air pollution damages blood vessels
Exposure to fine particulate matter may cause blood vessel damage and inflammation among young, healthy adults, according to scientists who have found how air pollution contributes to cardiovascular disease and related deaths. Researchers studied the component of air pollution known as fine particulate matter (PM2.5) - the tiny pieces of solid or liquid pollution emitted from vehicles, factories, power plants, fires and smoking. They found that periodic exposure to fine particulate matter was associated with abnormal changes in the blood that are markers for cardiovascular disease.
Commuters boarding a metro train in New Delhi. The air pollution in Delhi city may enter underground metro premises
As air pollution rose, they found small, micro-particles indicating cell injury and death significantly increased in number; levels of proteins that inhibit blood vessel growth increased; and proteins that signify blood-vessel inflammation also showed significant increased. “These results substantially expand our understanding about how air pollution contributes to cardiovascular disease,” said study lead author C Arden Pope professor at Brigham Young University (US). The study was published in the journal Circulation Research. PTI
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THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY OCTOBER 29-NOVEMBER 04, 2016
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“It is unfortunate that there is no Union Education Ministry in our nation. We currently have an HRD ministry. The name of HRD ministry should be changed to Education Ministry as the HRD is just a part of it.” - Manish Sisodia, Delhi Education Minister
Venkaiah bats for consensus in Uniform Civil Code Min says BJP to focus on development, good governance in poll campaign NEW DELHI: Uniform Civil Code (UCC) will not be brought through the back door and without a consensus, says Information and Broadcasting Minister M Venkaiah Naidu who rejects the charge that contentious issues have been raked up by BJP to polarise elections, especially in Uttar Pradesh. Issues like triple talaq, civil code
and Ram temple will not be used by BJP for political mileage in the upcoming elections, says the Minister who asserts that they will be fought on development agenda. Holding that such crucial issues should not be looked through prism of electoral benefit, the Chief Spokesperson of the government also rejects opposition criticism that surgical strikes were being politicised. “The Government does not consider it (triple talaq) as a religious matter. It is a question of gender sensitivity. It is wrong to say that we are interfering in Muslim issues. The same Indian Parliament, the same political system had brought Hindu Code Bill, Divorce Act, banning Hindu Marriage Act, banning dowry and Sati practice, all these things are done by Indian Parliament,” Naidu told PTI in an interview. Making it clear that broad consensus will be required for bringing Uniform Civil Code, he said the allegations that Triple Talaq is a backdoor entry for the UCC was unjustified. “We are not discussing about the common civil code or uniform civil code as of now. The Law Commission has issued a questionnaire and asked people to react.
“You cannot have a uniform Civil Code without a broad consensus. You have to work and move in that direction,” he said hoping that the Supreme Court will come out with the right decision on the issue of triple talaq. Naidu said these sensitive issues should not be linked to polls as the elections are like festivals in India which keep coming now and then. Defending the government affidavit in the Supreme Court on triple talaq issue, he said nobody then said it (Sati) was a Hindu practice that government was interfering in that. “Somebody might have said it also. But in collective wisdom, the entire country has moved further. We have reformed ourselves. Similarly, when the practice is going on which is discriminatory, which is doing injustice to women, we think it should end,” Naidu said. He said it was Muslim women and organisations which were demanding end of triple talaq who had gone to the Supreme Court. Referring to Articles 14 and 15 of the Constitution that speaks against discrimination, the Minister said, “The Government of India wants every religion, every personal law to be in accordance with that. And if the society transforms itself, it’s always better.” Naidu said divesting a woman by simply, saying talaq three times was totally against the principles of natural justice and the practise must end. “This debate was not started by us. Somebody went to court and the Supreme Court while discussing the issue wanted to know the views of the Government.
India can make 492 nuclear bombs: Pak BY SAJJAD HUSSAIN
ISLAMABAD: India has sufficient material and the technical capacity to produce between 356 and 492 nuclear bombs, a research by a Pakistani thinktank has claimed. The study titled ‘Indian Unsafeguarded Nuclear Program’ published by the Institute of Strategic Studies Islamabad (ISSI) is co-authored by four nuclear scholars including Adeela Azam, Ahmed Khan, Mohammad Ali and Sameer Khan. “A groundbreaking research study reveals that India already has sufficient material and technical capacity to make 356 to 492 nuclear bombs. This work is in contrast to several earlier studies which took a much modest view of the Indian nuclear bomb making potential,” the ISSI said. It said that the purpose of the study was to provide an understanding of the true history, size, extent and capabilities
of the different aspects of the complex Indian nuclear programme which New Delhi has kept outside the International Atomic Agency safeguards. According to the authors, the study contains evidence that India has the largest and oldest unsafeguarded nuclear programme in the developing world and among the states not party to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). Former Chairman Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission Ansar Pervez said the research breaks new ground by providing officials, researchers, scholars and students with new insight into India s nuclear weapon making capacity. He said in terms of detail, depth, analysis and the use of information from primary sources, the research is far superior to several studies on the Indian nuclear programme and carefully blends social science perspective with technical details. PTI
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And the government has filed an affidavit saying that our view is that triple talaq is unjust, unfair, uncivilised and saying it must come to an end. “That’s what we have said. How is it connected with UP elections,” he said. Replying to a raft of questions on Ram temple issue, Naidu said, “People of India want a brilliant temple at the birth place of Rama but how do you go about it. You have to have an agreement between contending parties or you will have to abide by the legal verdict which is taking too long. He maintained that as far as government is concerned, government and political parties have no role in constructing a temple. “You can facilitate or remove obstructions or create obstructions like what Mulayamji had done earlier,” he said. The Minister said as far as government and BJP are concerned UP elections are not going to be fought on the Rama Janambhoomi or common civil code or triple talaq. “They are going to be fought on developmental issue.” To a question that focus was now sought to be brought on these contentious issues, he shot back, “If you do not talk about it then it is said you have forgotten Ram. When you talk about them, then it is said Ram is remembered because of UP elections.” Naidu said BJP was going to focus more on development and good governance in the campaign for UP polls, adding it does not mean that the party has given up on issues like Uniform Civil Code and Rama Janambhoomi. PTI
Labour trouble and China’s investments P 14
Gender parity: India at a lowly 87 GENEVA/NEW DELHI: India was ranked low at 87th place globally in terms of gender equality despite a jump of 21 places from last year largely due to progress on the education front while Iceland has topped the chart. India was ranked 108th on the annual Global Gender Gap index compiled by Geneva-based World Economic Forum. India has closed its gender gap by 2 per cent in a year and its gap now stands at 68 per cent across the four pillars that WEF measures — economy, education, health and political representation. The major improvement has been in education where “India has managed to close its gap entirely in primary and secondary education”, WEF said, adding that in the economic sphere, “much work remains to be done”. India ranks 136 in this pillar out of 144 countries. On educational attainment, India was ranked at 113th place; in terms of health and survival, it was a placed at a lowly 142, while on political empowerment it was among the top 10 countries.
According to the WEF’s Global Gender Gap Report 2016, the prospects of global workplace gender parity slipped further, and economic parity between the genders could take 170 years after a “dramatic slowdown in progress”. Globally, the leading four nations continue to be Scandinavian: Iceland (1), Finland (2), Norway (3) and Sweden (4). The next highest placed nation is Rwanda, which moves one place ahead of Ireland to 5th position. Following Ireland, the Philippines remains unchanged at 7th, narrowly ahead of Slovenia (8) and New Zealand (9), which both move up one place. With Switzerland dropping out of the top 10, 10th position is taken up by Nicaragua, WEF said. In 2015, projections based on the Global Gender Gap Report data suggested that the economic gap could be closed within 118 years, or 2133. The latest report noted that the prospects for workplace gender equality have slipped beyond our lifetimes to 2186. PTI PTI
LAST VOYAGE
India’s oldest and longest serving aircraft carrier of Indian Navy INS Viraat sets sail from Kochi for Mumbai where it will be decommisionned
21st century libraries can help fight poverty: Ansari TEZPUR ASSAM: Libraries of the 21st century can help fight poverty and narrow the gap between rich and poor, said Vice President Hamid Ansari while inaugurating the three-day 19th National Convention on Knowledge, Library and Information Networking (NACLIN) at Tezpur University. “For the first time in history, perhaps, the poor have an opportunity to enhance their wealth through the creation and use of knowledge. And libraries can play a central role in this notable movement,” said Ansari at the convention organised jointly by DELNET-Developing Library Network, New Delhi and Tezpur University. “DELNET is a major resource sharing library network connecting more than 5,600 libraries in India and eight other countries. NACLIN 2016 will discuss a large number of latest issues under the theme Smart Libraries and Inspired Librarians: Managing New Technologies, Digital Content and Service,” he said.
Ansari highlighted the role of DELNET in promoting information technology in library sector across the nation and the concept of smart library. He further said Internet not only accelerates the pace of knowledge dissemination, but also gives rise to changing conception of knowledge, production and use. “I am a bookworm and feel totally at home with books and matters relating to them. I can also testify to the efficiency of
DELNET. A path breaking effort made in 1998 at the India International Centre Library, New Delhi,” Ansari said. “It is now supported by the National Informatics Centre (NIC) of our Ministry of Communications and Information Technology and the Ministry of Culture,” he said. “It is relevant to remind ourselves that technology in the service of humankind has its limits,” he referred to astrophysicist Stephen Hawkins and Vice President M Hamid Ansari being welcomed by Dr Mihir Kanti Chaudhari, ViceChancellor of Tezpur Central University on his arrival for the 19th National Convention on Knowledge, Library and Information Networking (NACLIN 2016) at Tezpur University, Tezpur, Assam
Vice President states libraries continue to play a central role in providing open and free access to information and ideas said “our digital future may be dystopian (exact opposite) with the growth of artificial intelligence threatening very human existence.” Stating that libraries continue to play a central role in providing open and free access to information and ideas, the Vice President said explosion of information now being produced in digital format has dramatically changed expectations about the production as well as the use of knowledge. “By providing equitable and affordable access to knowledge and information to larger numbers in society, they can allow a larger proportion of society to participate in the knowledge driven growth,” he said. Libraries must transform and avail these opportunities to remain vital forces of knowledge dissemination in the years ahead, Ansari added. The Vice President also pointed out that in the present context libraries have the obligation to act as equalisers. PTI
THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY OCTOBER 29-NOVEMBER 04, 2016
“I think this all started when George Washington refused to become a king, right? Donald Trump probably would have called him a ‘loser’. He is attacking everything that has set our country apart for 240 years.” - Hillary Clinton, Democratic Presidential Nominee, US
Beating the legend P 16
We are an ally who stood by India in darkest hours Sergei Chemezov, close aide of Russian Prez Vladmir Putin, says 2017 will mark the two nations’ 70 years of relationship BY SNEHESH ALEX PHILIP NEW DELHI: With deals over USD 12 billion in kitty this month, including leasing of a second nuclear submarine, Russia hopes to bag more projects as it termed itself as not just a business partner but an “ally” who stood by India in its “darkest hours”. Russia is eying the multi-billion dollar deal for P75-I project of India under which six conventional submarines are to be built with Air Independent Propulsion systems and the next aircraft carrier project besides the deal to jointly develop a fifth generation fighter aircraft. Asserting that there is no limit to what India and Russia can do together, a top Russian defense official claimed the US and Europeans can never give what Moscow can and has offered. “We are ready not just to deliver most serious weapons, most important weapons but continue to give our state of art technology,” Sergei Chemezov, CEO of Rostec State Corporation, an umbrella organisation of 700 hi-tech civilian and military firms, told PTI. “Russia is a friend, an ally and not a business partner. Russia stood by India during its
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darkest hours. Next year will mark 70 years of our relationship. It is a long time,” he said and noted that Russia had stood by India when it faced sanctions after the 1998 nuclear tests. “Not so in the recent past, when India was under sanctions, we were pretty much the only partner for India. “Russia has been a partner not only in every day military supplies but also most sensitive and most important supplies including a nuclear submarine which was rented to India for you to use,” said Chemezov who is also a close aide of Russian President Vladmir Putin. “Come to think about it, I would not imagine any other country to do that, he said. Not in the past or in the future. I cannot imagine US or Europe giving India such a strategic asset,” he said when asked about the tough competition that US and Europe are giving to Russia in the Indian defence market. Not only did Russia lease out a nuclear powered submarine, it actively helped in the building India’s first indigenous nuclear weapon carrying capable submarine INS Arihant which has been inducted into the Indian Navy. Chemezov said “it is a very special year for us and will be marked by major projects
and things are starting already.” He, however, admitted that from a third person’s point of view, there might have been some decline in some areas of defense between the two countries. US and some European countries have managed to strike mega deals with India which the Russians were also competing for. “It is not a linear sort of relationship. We feel that ties are definitely developing and increasing,” he said. Giving example of the deadly BrahMos missile, Chemezov said that not only has Russia delivered high value equipment but has also collaborated with India on developing strategic assets. He pointed out that in late 1990s, Russia had transferred technology for Su30 MKI, India’s frontline fighter aircraft. “At that point of time, it was our most modern equipment, our most modern plane. When we had actually signed that agreement, Russia did not even equip its army with this. “This was basically our newest highest technology. That shows and speaks about our relationship with India,” he said. He also gave the example of T90 tanks, saying they are “not in anyway less but in many way, modern than any advanced US or European technologies”. He said there is scope for cooperation in the P75-I and the aircraft carrier project. “There is definitely scope for both of those. There is pretty much no limit to what we could do together. Anything that is within our realm of things and possibilities, means it is the same with India,” he said. Chemezov said that Russia has already submitted its proposals for both projects. PTI
PTI
ON WAR PATH
Iraq’s elite counterterrorism forces advance toward Islamic State positions as fighting to retake the extremistheld city of Mosul enters its second week, in the village of Tob Zawa, outside Mosul. A convoy of special forces advanced toward the village of Tob Zawa, encountering roadside bombs and trading heavy fire with the militants. Loudspeakers on the Humvees blared Iraqi patriotic music as they pushed toward the village
2016 deadliest yr for migrants
ADB declines to fund Pak’s big dam project in PoK
BERLIN: The UN refugee agency said that at least 3,800 migrants have died in the Mediterranean Sea so far this year in an attempt to reach Europe, making 2016 the deadliest year on record. The Geneva-based agency had warned that this year’s death toll was likely to exceed the 3,771 deaths reported for the whole of 2015. “We’re receiving more reports of deaths in the Med,” spokesman William Spindler tweeted. “We can now confirm that at least 3,800 people have died, making 2016 the deadliest ever.” Scores of migrants have been drowning each week as the fragile and often overcrowded boats they travel on capsize or sink, the UN agency said. It blamed bad weather, flimsy boats and the fact that migrants fleeing war and poverty are increasingly taking the hazardous central Mediterranean route from Libya to Italy in an attempt to reach Europe. A deal between the European Union and Turkey largely closed off the eastern route. About half of the 327,800 migrants who crossed the Mediterranean this year did so using the central route, where about 1 in every 47 people dies. By comparison, the overall death rate for the whole Mediterranean last year - when more than a million people arrived in Europe - was one in 269 crossings. The UN agency also said that smugglers have been changing their tactics, arranging mass embarkations of thousands of people at once. AP
ISLAMABAD: The ADB has refused to commit funds for Pakistan’s USD 14 billion dam project on Indus river in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), two years after the World Bank declined to fund the project following Islamabad’s refusal to seek an NoC from India. “We did not really make any commitment. This is a very big project,” Asian Development Bank (ADB) president Takehiko Nakao said at a joint news conference with Finance Minister Ishaq Dar on the conclusion of the 15th ministerial meeting of the Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation (CAREC) programme. Underlining that the project on Indus river in Gilgit-Baltistan in PoK was very important for Pakistan’s energy and irrigation requirements, Nakao called for the formation of more partnerships that could provide funding for the project, expected to generate a power output of 4,500 MW. “We haven’t decided [whether to fund] this project yet because it needs big money,” he said, the Dawn reported. He said presently the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) was conducting a feasibility study on the dam. Islamabad has consistently failed to attract foreign lenders for the project. Repeated efforts to rope in the World Bank as a co-lender had failed two years ago when the government declined to seek a No objection Certificate from India for the project. PTI
‘Page turned’ as thousands leave Calais ‘Jungle’ in flames
CALAIS: French authorities were wrapping up a dramatic operation to clear thousands of migrants from the notorious “Jungle” camp as fires engulfed the sprawling slum. “It’s really the end of the Jungle today,” said top regional official Fabienne Buccio. “A page has been turned.” Riot police were massed outside the main entrance to the camp near the port of Calais, barring migrants who had fled the blazes from going back in to retrieve their belongings. Around 100 people could still be seen inside the Jungle as volunteers tried to persuade the migrants to leave. “We’re telling them it’s the last day, that if they don’t leave the police will arrest them and send them back to their countries,” said Enrika, who works for the Lithuanian charity Care for Calais. Risking their lives to reach Calais with the hope of sneaking across the Channel to Britain, most of the migrants had fled conflict or persecution in countries such as Eritrea, Sudan and Afghanistan. “We left our nations behind us in flames, only to find the Jungle go up in flames too,” said Aziz Yaacoub, a 25-year-old from the troubled Sudanese region of Darfur. The authorities have said those who agree to be moved can seek asylum in France. Buccio said more than 5,000 migrants had left the camp, most boarding buses to head to shelters around France, and expected the departures to total “at least 6,600”. Estimates of the camp’s population ranged between 6,400 and 8,100 before the operation began. Upwards of 1,000 unaccompanied children are being housed temporarily at an on-site park of specially fitted — and heated — shipping containers. Aid workers said the camp was full, with Samuel Hanryon, spokesman for Doctors Without Borders (MSF), warning that dozens of “unregistered minors are wandering around, lost, wondering where they will spend the night”. AFP
Nat Geo’s ‘Afghan girl’ arrested in Pak
DAWN
PESHAWAR: Sharbat Gula, the famed green-eyed ‘Afghan girl’ who was immortalised in 1985 when the National Geographic magazine published her haunting picture on its cover, was arrested for staying in Pakistan with fake identity documents. Confirming her arrest, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) authorities said Sharbat, now in her 40s, was arrested from the Nothia area for illegally possessing a Pakistani ID card. Dubbed as ‘Mona Lisa of Afghan war’, Sharbat catapulted into global prominence after National Geographic photographer Steve McCurry captured her iconic photograph when she was a 12-year-old girl at the Nisar Bagh refugee camp on the edge of Peshawar in 1984. She had migrated to Pakistan after situation in Afghanistan became worse and married to a Pakistani man. Sharbat was arrested for fraud from her home following a two-yearlong investigation. She has been charged under Section 419, 420 of the Pakistan Penal Code and Section 5(2) of Prohibition of Corruption Act. She was earlier investigated by the law enforcers who discovered that she was living in Pakistan with fraudulent identity documents. She had also obtained fake identity cards for her two children. Sharbat, who applied for a Pakistani identity card in Peshawar in
April 2014, had used the name Sharbat Bibi. She was one among thousands of Afghan refugees who managed to dodge Pakistan’s computerised system to get an identity card. The FIA authorities are also conducting raids to arrest her husband and two children. Earlier, three National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) officials, including a Deputy Assistant Director and processing officers, were suspended for allegedly issuing her the ID card illegally. Pakistan has been tackling the Afghan refugee crisis for over three decades; the UNHCR has termed it as the “largest protracted refugee situation globally.” According to UNHCR figures, Pakistan is home to some 3 million Afghan refugees, half of whom are unregistered, making it the third-largest refugee hosting nation in the world. PTI
‘93 madrassas in Sindh have solid links with terrorist groups’ Sindh chief minister directs police, Rangers to begin ops against madrassas harbouring terrorists
Protesters comprising people from Jammu and Kashmir and PoK demonstrating outside the Pakistan High Commission in London
KARACHI: Around 93 madrassas in Pakistan’s Sindh province have “solid links” with terror groups or banned outfits and authorities will soon launch an operation against those Islamic religious schools harbouring terrorists, a media report said. Pakistani intelligence agencies have credible information about
the activities taking place in these madrassas, according to The Express Tribune. A special meeting held at the Sindh Chief Minister’s House to review the law and order in the province was apprised about these numbers, the report said. Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah presided over the meeting, which was also attended by the Rangers directorgeneral Major General Bilal Akbar and provincial heads of intelligence agencies among other members of civilian leadership. The chief minister directed
the police and Rangers to begin an operation against madrassas harbouring terrorists. “This kind of attitude will not be accepted,” said Shah. “We will not allow anybody to shed blood of innocent people in the name of religion or using a sacred place. This operation will also be targeted and intelligence-based.” The operation will be started just after Chehlum, a religious observance that occurs 40 days after the Day of Ashura. He further directed the home department to put the 93 madrassas
involved in dubious activities on the watch list and maintain a record of their day-to-day activities. The heads of law enforcement agencies briefed the chief minister about the recent arrests of some high-profile terrorists who have given clues of other terrorists living in the city and about their plans. It was pointed out that illegal immigrants living in Karachi and in its outskirts and slum areas were either harbouring terrorists or supporting them. Some of them are directly involved in terrorist activities, the report said. PTI
MONEY MATT ER S
THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY OCTOBER 29-NOVEMBER 04, 2016
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“In a democracy, the labourers should not have to struggle to receive their legitimate dues. There should be a system so that the process of finalisation of retirement benefits for all employees can begin a year in advance before their retirement.” —Narendra Modi, Prime Minister
Signpost In-principle nod for strategic sale of PSUs The Union Cabinet gave in-principle approval to Niti Aayog’s proposal for strategic sale in over a dozen public sector undertakings (PSUs) including those that are making profits. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said the names of PSUs that are up for strategic stake sale would be made public once they are going to be put up for the auction. “The recommendations of the NITI Aayog with regard to both disinvestment and strategic sale came up for consideration. In principle the Cabinet has approved the recommendations with regard to some of the units,” the minister said. Each case would be considered separately after it has been examined by the Department of Disinvestment and the ministries concerned, he said.
No sharing of black money reports
Finance Ministry says it will cause breach of privilege of Parliament
BY ASHWINI SHRIVASTAVA The Finance Ministry has declined to share reports submitted to it nearly three years ago on the quantum of black money held by Indians inside the country and abroad, saying it will cause breach of privilege of Parliament. The reports are related to studies commissioned by the previous UPA government five years ago. These were conducted by Delhi-based National Institute of Public Finance and Policy (NIPFP), National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER) and National Institute of Financial Management (NIFM), Faridabad. Replying to an RTI query, the Ministry said study reports of NIPFP, NCAER and NIFM were received by the government on December 30, 2013, July 18, 2014 and August 21, 2014 respectively. When asked about the copies of the reports and action taken on them, it said they are under examination by the government. “Information is exempt from disclosure under Section 8 (1) (c) of the RTI Act, 2005, as the study reports received from the three institutes are under examination of the government and the same along with the
NITI Aayog Vice-Chairman Arvind Panagariya said the Indian economy has the potential to touch USD 6-8 trillion in the next 15 years, as against USD 2 trillion at present. “India is currently a 2 trillion dollar economy. If the GDP continues to rise 6-8 per cent, then India can become a 6-8 trillion dollar economy in the next 15 years,” Panagariya said at an interactive session by Indian Chamber of Commerce here. Though there are many challenges before the Indian economy at present, but overall the country has a great future, he added. “We are back to reforms stage. In the last 10 years, reforms got slowed down, but today we are again in the same position where we had left reforms,” Panagariya said. He informed that NITI Aayog is working to achieve this target and has accordingly adopted a 15-year vision document. “The Vision Document is for our long-term goal. And apart from that, we have a seven-year Strategy Document, enlisting the roadmap ahead. Besides that, we have a threeyear Action Plan,” Panagariya said. To boost industry and growth, the economist said different economy-friendly laws are being enacted or amended by states as well as the Centre. PTI
Finance Ministry replied to the RTI query filed by PTI
government’s response on these reports are yet to be taken to the Parliament through the Standing Committee on Finance,” the Ministry said in reply to the RTI query filed by PTI. The Section bars disclosure of information “which would cause a breach of privilege of Parliament or the state Legislature”. There is at present no official assessment on the quantum of black money within the country and abroad. The NDA government at the Centre has been taking steps to unearth black money. About Rs 65,250 crore of undeclared income has been declared under the recently concluded income Declaration Scheme — which provided an opportunity to people, who had not paid full taxes in the past, to come forward and declare
their domestic undisclosed income and assets. “The issue of black money has attracted a lot of public and media attention in the recent past. So far, there are no reliable estimates of black money generated and held within and outside the country,” the Finance Ministry had said while ordering the studies in 2011. The different estimates on quantum of black money range between USD 500 billion to USD 1,400 billion. A study by Global Financial Integrity estimated the illicit money outflow at USD 462 billion. “These estimates are based on various unverifiable assumptions and approximations. Government has been seized of the matter and has, therefore, commissioned these institutions to get an estimation and sense of the quantum of illicit fund generated and held within and outside the country,” the Ministry had said on May 29, 2011. The Terms of Reference (ToR) for the studies included assessment or survey of unaccounted income and wealth and profiling the nature of activities engendering money laundering both within and outside the country. The study was to identify, among others, important sectors of the economy in which unaccounted money is generated and examine the causes and conditions that result in the generation of that money. PTI PTI
‘Economy can reach USD 6-8 trillion in 15 yrs’
IT IS TATA FOR MISTRY
File photo of Ratan Tata (L) with Cyrus Mistry. Tata Sons removed Cyrus Mistry as its Chairman, nearly four years after he took over the reins of the group. Ratan Tata makes a comeback, taking over as the company’s interim boss for 4 months
57 borrowers owe banks Rs 85,000 cr Only 57 borrowers have defaulted on bank loans worth a whopping Rs 85,000 crore. The Supreme Court said this after perusing a report submitted by RBI about persons who have taken loan worth over Rs 500 crore and defaulted and asked the central bank why their names should not be made public. “Who are these people who have borrowed money and are not paying back? Why this fact that the person has borrowed money and not paying back be not known to public,” asked a bench headed Chief Justice TS Thakur. The bench, also comprising Justices DY Chandrachud and L Nageswara Rao, said if the bar was lowered below Rs 500 crore, then the default amount would cross over Rs one lakh crore. Observing that if people file an RTI query, they must know who the defaulters are, it asked the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) why the information on defaulters should be withheld. “People should know how much money a person has borrowed and how much money he needs to pay back. The amount payable should be known to public. Why should you withhold the
“TRAI needs to settle the issue of Reliance Jio free tariffs. Nothing can be free for a lifetime. TRAI must have some confusion regarding the PoIs offered to Reliance Jio.” —Sunil Mittal, Bharti Airtel Chairman
information,” the bench said. Counsel appearing for RBI opposed the suggestion and said that not all defaulters were wilful. The central bank says it is working in the interest of banks and names of defaulters cannot be made public as per the statute, he said. To this, the bench said, “You (RBI) must work in the interest of the country, not just in the interest of banks”. Advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing for NGO Centre for Public Interest Litigation (CPIL), favoured disclosure of the outstanding loan amount and cited an apex court verdict of December 2015 to claim that RBI has to provide all information. The bench said it will hear the matter on the aspect of disclosure of names of defaulters. PTI
India will be home to 10,500 start-ups by 2020: Nasscom India has emerged as the third largest start-up base and such ventures are poised to grow 2.2 times to reach 10,500 by 2020 despite a perception that the ecosystem in the country has slowed down in the last year, says a report. India is in the third position just behind US and UK, and nearly 1,400 new start-ups are expected by end of 2016, up by 8-10 per cent from last year, revealed the “Indian Startup Ecosystem Maturing - 2016” report by NasscomZINNOV. The report also finds that Bengaluru, NCR, and Mumbai continue to lead as the major start-up hubs in the country. In terms of vertical growth, investors are looking at domains like health-tech, fin-tech, and edu-tech. With a total funding of approximately USD 4 billion, close to 650 startups were funded signifying a healthy growth of the ecosystem, the report said. “The start-up landscape in the country is becoming the epitome of innovation, with companies bringing out solutions that are aimed at solving locally relevant issues..,” said Nasscom Chairman CP Gurnani. PTI
Labour trouble and China’s investments BY KJM VARMA China is unlikely to deter its firms from investing in India, but it is not going to be an easy sailing for Chinese investors who will have to deal with labour unions which they are not used to at home, official media reported. As India is wooing investments from China, “the Chinese government has not expressed opposition to the general industrial transfer from China to India”, an article in the state-run Global Times said. Chinese officials have rolled out concrete measures to encourage local enterprises to go abroad and explore overseas markets, including India, it said. “Currently, India is on track to hold on to its spot as one of the world’s fastest growing emerging countries, and Chinese manufacturers are salivating over this fast-growing consumer market. Furthermore, the Chinese economy will likely gain momentum from the formation of a new cross-nation industry chain between the two neighbours. “Considering the above factors, China’s government is unlikely to deter
India’s effort to woo Chinese component companies, despite the possibility that this could cause job cuts in the manufacturing sector at home. But at the same outbound investment by Chinese component enterprises into India will not be a ‘plain sailing’ as ‘the greatest challenge of setting up plants in India lies in the hesitation of Chinese entrepreneurs to step up local production,” it said. The article said, “as Chinese component enterprises become more deeply entrenched in the Indian economy, they will soon encounter a number of differences between the two countries in terms of commercial ecology”. “For instance, Indian labour unions ensure workers have a voice in corporate governance, while Chinese entrepreneurs usually lack experience dealing with strong unions,” it said. Despite being a Communist nation, China has no labour unions except the state controlled All China Federation of Trade Union which toes the government line on labour related issues with very few incidents of labour unrest. PTI Pepper, a companion robot from e-commerce giant Alibaba, attracts visitors during the World Robot Conference in Beijing, China. The conference showcased China’s burgeoning robot industry as the nation seeks to increase the use of robots in its manufacturing and service industries
India 13th in protection of minority investors India’s global ranking in terms of protection of minority investors has slipped three notches to 13th, but remains much higher than the country’s overall 130th rank for ease of doing business. The subranking for protection of minority investors is topped jointly by New Zealand and Singapore. Others that ranked higher than India are Hong Kong, Malaysia, Kazakhstan, the UK, Georgia, Canada, Norway, the UAE, Slovenia and Israel. In the World Bank’s latest ‘Doing Business’ report, India’s place remained unchanged from last year’s original ranking of 130 among the 190 economies that were assessed on various parameters. However, the last year’s ranking has been now revised to 131 from which the country has improved its place by one spot. The list of countries in the Doing Business 2017 is topped by New Zealand while Singapore
is ranked second. The report said protection of minority investors indicator measures the protection of shareholders against directors’ misuse of corporate assets for personal gain and the rights and role of shareholders in corporate governance. According to the report, India carried out an ambitious, multi-year overhaul of its Companies Act, bringing Indian firms in line with global standards, particularly in respect of accountability and corporate governance practices while ensuring businesses contribute more to shared prosperity through a quantified and legislated corporate social responsibility requirement. Company regulation is an ongoing process. Since the enactment of the Companies Act, 2013, the corporate affairs ministry issued notifications on a regular basis to address ambiguities in the law. PTI
Don’t reject mediclaims on whimsical grounds: forum Consumer forum observed that the insurance firm had collected the premium much before the date of policy renewal and cannot reject claim citing its expiry
A consumer forum has asked insurance companies not to reject claims on “whimsical and technical grounds” as people buy mediclaims to cover medical exigencies. “Consumers purchase mediclaim policies to cover medical emergencies and exigencies and the insurance company should not reject claims on whimsical and technical grounds,” the North Delhi District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum said. The forum, headed by its President KS Mohi, directed the Oriental Insurance Co Ltd to pay Rs 90,879 along with a sum of Rs 10,000, to Saket resident Keshav Saran Sharma, holding that the company had rejected his claims on frivolous grounds. It rejected the company’s claim
that the patient’s insurance cover had expired and held that there was no delay in renewal of the policy. “In this case, there is not even a single hour break in the 2nd policy. Therefore, taking into view the totality of facts and circumstances of the case and especially the fact that the patient was discharged on January 30, 2012 i.e. well within the currency of the insurance policy, the repudiation by the insurance company was illegal and unjustified,” it said. In his complaint, Sharma had said he taken a mediclaim policy valid from January 27, 2011, till midnight of January 26, 2012, and the sum insured was Rs 2,50,000. He said that his wife was admitted for treatment of breast cancer on
January 26, 2012 at Max Super Specialty Hospital in Saket and discharged within four days. Sharma had also claimed that the premium for renewal of policy was paid on January 23, 2012 but the insurance company renewed the policy by maintaining the continuity from 00.00 hours January 27, 2012 till midnight of January 26, 2013. The insurance company rejected the claim of Sharma saying that the patient was admitted on January 26, 2012, which was the date of expiry of the policy. The forum observed that the company had collected the premium cheque dated January 23, 2012, much before the date of policy renewal. “This policy also shows that the premium cheque dated January 23, 2012 for a sum of Rs 23,514 was collected by the company on January 23, 2012 i.e. much before the date of renewal of the policy,” it held. PTI
THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY OCTOBER 29-NOVEMBER 04, 2016
WATCH OUT best beverages in town! Blessed with soulful voice Amol Sawant has been enchanting the audience with his melodious voice. His strong inclination towards bollywood and classical songs makes him favourite amongst todays generation. When: October 29 Where: Rastafa Cafe, Baner
TRICK OR TREAT
ENJOY A FESTIVE DIWALI BRUNCH Enjoy the expansive views of the lush outdoors that make for the perfect setting to spend a relaxing afternoon, devouring a wide spread at Coriander Kitchen. Featuring authentic Indian and Maharashtrian fare from across the country put together by our chefs, the brunch will also include a traditional Maharashtrian faral table that will be set up to pamper the taste buds of guests with traditional Diwali treats like chaklis, chivda, karanjis and ladoos. On the menu will be Motichoor Foam, Kesar Panna cotta with Balushahi Churma, Apple with Naankhatai crumble, a special chocolate bar. When: October 30 Where: Coriander Kitchen, Conrad Pune, Mangaldas Road
to curate an on-going artistic experience. The effort began with the selection of four artists - Ishita Dharap, Patanjali Bhati, Sameer Dixit and Sam Bullough and the hosting of a group exhibition of their work at Gyaan Adab held in January. This time around, the four ‘Emerge’ artists have added to their previous work and will be exhibiting the next ‘Emerge’ show at Darpan Art Gallery. When: November to to 8 Where: Darpan Art Gallery, Patrakar Bhavan Lane
EUPHONIOUS SATURDAY
EMERGE
Diwali brings with it a host of delicious-sounding traditional drinks. Have you tried any, and what are your favorites? All over the world eating and drinking is at the heart of religious festivals, and Diwali, which begins on a Friday, is no exception. So drop by this weekend to avail amazing offers on IMFLs and Beer!! Let’s celebrate with some great drinks and games!! When: October 29 and 30 Where: Wynkk – The Lounge , Ganeshkhind
BOMBAY HIGH FEAT DJ ABHISHEK MANTRI
Rastafa Cafes Euphonious Saturday is a vibrant celebration of live music, great grub and the
WEEK THAT WAS
Lost The Plot is celebrating Halloween this Saturday by screening horror movies with the theme: haunted houses. The movies being screened are: The Pact, Paranormal Activity and The Conjuring. On Saturday you can also stay back for the exclusive Halloween party at the movie screening. Make sure you keep the lights on before you go to bed, a satisfying horror film outing is definitely going to lead to scenes and images haunting you for a while! When: October 29 Where: Lost the Plot Pune, Seasons Hotel, Aundh
The Faraskhana Police Station personnel have busted a gang of motorcycle thieves, Two unidentified men opened fire at the manager of a petrol pump, and and recovered ten motorcycles stolen took away his scooter and a bag containing money. The incident took from various parts of the city from their place on Monday (October 24) at around 4 pm, at Dehugaon. Police possession. The accused have been identified said that Bhimsen Kalekar, 46, manager of Sant Tukaram Petrol Pump, as Prathmesh Gavali, 19, of Bhavani Peth, was going to deposit the money at Baner Nagari Sahakari Bank. He Preetam Ganjave and Rohan Vidhate, both was parking his red Activa scooter near the bank, when unidentified of Navi Peth, and Anshul Jadhav. DCP men opened fire at Kalekar. The bullet entered his stomach, injuring him Zone 1 Sudhir Hiremath said, “The gang seriously. Another unidentified man snatched the bag containing money who called themselves the Duke gang, and the scooter. Some bystanders took Kalekar and admitted him to used to steal the high-priced, high-speed Aadhar Hospital, Dehu Road. The police have seized the Hero Honda KTM Duke motor bikes for joyrides with Passion motorcycle used by the culprits. It seems to be a stolen vehicle their girlfriends. They had achieved some as the number plate had been changed. The police also recovered a chilli notoriety for stealing the high-speed bikes powder packet from the spot. An eyewitness said that Kalekar was for joyrides, which, after running the petrol parking his bike near the bank when two persons came on a bike. One tank dry, they would sell to their relatives of them fired at Kalekar, injuring him, after which they took Kalekar’s and friends.” Faraskhana Police Station scooter and fled from the spot. Only one shot was fired. A Tukaram in-charge PI Rekha Salunkhe told TGS, Petrol Pump employee said that on Monday Kalekar was not carrying “We nabbed the culprits after a thorough cash in his bag. But the culprits expected Kalekar’s bag to contain cash, investigation. Ten stolen two-wheelers have that he usually deposits in the bank. Dehu Road police station PI Arun been recovered from their possession, and More told TGS that the culprits must have kept a watch on Kalekar, and with their arrest, we have solved ten bike were familiar with his routine of depositing the petrol pump collection theft cases. They used to steal high-speed in the bank. They seemed to have been waiting for him, and as soon as he bikes for joyrides and once they ran out of SPORTS arrived near the bank and was parking his scooter, they opened fire and petrol, they would look for Wcustomers to sell m — injured him, took his bag and scooter, and from the spot. the vehicles. GThe recovered vehicles were is no secret that I arrived to the Olympic Games short of preparation “Untouchable in our team has to be the fled spirit, the pride, the “It THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY PUNE
commitment to the club, the respect to the fans - that has to be untouchable, not players.” — Jose Mourinho, Manchester United Manager
EDITOR
Pune’s swimming coach Jitendra Khasnis has been appointed coach of the Indian team for the UIPM Biathle and Triathle World Championship to be held in Florida, USA. Five players from Pune have been selected in the Indian squad. Arjun Adkar, Geeta Malusare, Sai Disle, Parth Kharate and Parth Gore performed impressively in the 7th National ranking biathle tournament held at Haryana in July. Adkar had won two gold medals in this tournament and is expected similar performance from him at the international level.
This Halloween weekend celebrate with your friends at a trending new social hangout spot Bombay High with DJ Abhishek Mantri along with supporting acts by DJ Zack and DJ Sid. DJ Abhishek who has just got back from the World Party Destination - Ibiza and Thailand promises to make us dance to fresh Ibiza tunes. When: October 29 Where: Bombay High, PuneBanglore Highway
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TGS NEWS NETWORK @TGSweekly City youngsters Jayesh Pungalia and Snehal Mane have a golden chance to gain valuable international points as they have received wild card entries to the $50,000 KPIT ATP Challenger and $10,000 Women’s ITF tournaments to be held in Pune next week. Pungalia, who had played in the qualifiers of this tournament’s previous edition, is in superb form and has been honoured with the player of the year award by the Maharashtra State Lawn Tennis Association. On the other hand, 16-year-old Snehal has recently won an under-18 ITF title in Mauritius. “Our aim is give youngsters an opportunity in the big league. This tournament will be a
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Almost all the top Indian women players, with the exception of Ankita Raina will be seen in action at the event, which will be led by former Indian National Champion Prerna Bhambri, current National Champion Riya Bhatia, National runner-up Etee Mehta and Rio Olympian Prarthana Thombare. The KPIT- MSLTA Tennis Fest will also witness the finals between the winner of the Mumbai Leg of the Junior Tennis League and the winner of the Pune Junior tennis League. Over 50 children will feature in the event, and clinics will be held by players for tennis players from the city along with the event. Sheetal Iyer has been appointed as the referee for the ITF women’s event. Carmelo Di Dio of Italy, one of the senior most ATP supervisors, will be the chief of the ATP event. tgs.feedback@goldensparrow.com
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The short format of field hockey played on a half-regulation size hockey pitch, is seen as a possible way for the future development and growth of the sport worldwide. Moreover it’s likely to regenerate the skills and techniques, which are overshadowed by power game. The experts are of opinion that this 5-a-side format will give Indian subcontinent players a fair chance to revive their dominance in the sport. To promote this new format, Hockey W India is conducting first 5-a-side hockey tournament at Shiv Chhatrapati sports complex in Balewadi from October 26. “This short format allows flexibility so that it can be played on any surface and on different sized pitches. A match will consist of three periods of 10 minutes each with an interval of three minutes between the periods. Some of the key differences from field hockey are in terms of the ways goals are scored and penalties imposed,” said Manoj Bhore, Joint Secretary of Hockey India. Unlike traditional hockey, goals in 5s don’t have to be scored from insideTh the circle. A goal is awarded when the ball crosses the line from anywhere on the court. In addition, the ball is moved using a push, scoop or fl ick and no hitting is allowed as it is being played at an indoor arena. In terms of fouls, only free hits and challenges are awarded for respective offences by an attacker or defender. A challenge is similar to the way shootouts are conducted in modern hockey. Free hits and fouls follow the same rules as modern hockey as well. Former Indian Team Captain Dhanraj Pillay, who has been named as the brand ambassador of the event, said that the Indian players were struggling to match the fitness and power of European players. But, with this shorter format, they can have a good opportunity to use their skills. To be hosted by Hockey Maharashtra, the championship will have eight teams, including Association of Indian Universities, Hockey Haryana, Hockey Jharkhand, Hockey Karnataka, Hockey Maharashtra, Hockey Odisha, Hockey Punjab and Uttar Pradesh Hockey. tgs.feedback@goldensparrow.com
WASHINGTON: As ISIS sees its territory shrink to half its original size and its dreams of a caliphate evaporate, the extremist fighters are losing access to the sources of revenue that once gave them their power, prompting them to turn to extortion, kidnapping or foreign donations like their predecessors, the militant group al-Qaida. The Islamic State group had a unique ability to capitalise on the natural resources of its territory in
stolen from parking lots at different spots in the city. The gang members targeted mostly Duke bikes and Bullets. They used duplicate keys to unlock and decamp with the bikes.” The police have recovered four KTM Dukes, three Royal Enfield Bullets, a Hero Honda CBZ, a Honda Activa, and a TVS Jupiter w w Wm scooter, totally worth over Rs 10 lakh. UN G
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This is brilliant! I read this news piece on a Sunday and it just made my day. significant sacrifices Islamic terrorism has long been torturing the world with its actions. So many people have gotten killed in their name of god and countless lives destroyed, funnily, from their own community as well. For long, the IS had its grounds in Iraq and while it is so brilliant that it has been forced out of it, it is doubly amazing that the repercussion has been its financial backfall. It is the most important task of this time, stopping terrorism. Lanka m a y - Altaf Sheikh offi e pay Th
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It makes me tremendously happy to see the IS losing ground and financial backing CARS B KES PS GEAR for its activities. The fact that they would have to now resort to TR petty crimes to grow HONEST FUN REV EWS their dollars via extortion and kidnapping is a sign of their growing weakness. Islamic terrorism is one of the biggest problems of the world currently. Not because it results in great number of killings, but because it is the sign of a sad reality for countless people. These wars don’t help anyone. While i am happy with IS’ weakening, it MONSOON O G AR is important to note that their acts are not an isolated MO occurrence. A lot of global superpowers are involved and the world we see today is a collective doing. - Aban Shetty Th
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currently makes about USD 4 million per month from taxes in Mosul alone. Al-Hashimi said the group charges a 4 per cent income tax on salaries less than USD 600 per month, and 5 per cent on monthly salaries between USD 600 and USD 1,000. Bank robberies made up the Islamic State group’s third biggest source of revenue, mainly in Mosul, where there was more than USD 500 million in state-owned bank vaults
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Residents of Koregaon Bheema in Shirur threaten to lock school and boycott exam
Tibet’s Thangkas find new fans
Lanka Imilitary Tibet was captured long back. have a KHANNA sacrifices that Pakistan and its people officer pays lot BYofADITITibetan have seeked havefriends made in combating who terrorism. LONDON: Days ahead of Prime We are helping Pakistan develop its compensation to Minister Theresa May’s visit, capacityand to protect itself prosecute LTTE refuge in IndiaIndia i andrealise, they familyare a the UK hailed Pakistan’s “significant those who plan and commit terrorist sacrifices” in combating terror while attacks,” it said. lost people. Their culture, their identity responding to a petition calling on The petition, authored by an Indian- COLOMBO: A retired army the British government to “strongly origin professional Naman Paropkari, Lieutenant who was charged with has been shamefully taken away from an LTTE member in 1998 condemn” Pakistan for providing a safe was launched with the aim of gathering murdering haven for terrorists. as many as 100,000 signatures by the paid Rs 2 million to the victim’s family ruling. The petition titled ‘UK Government March 29, 2017, see deadline so Thangka that the as per a High Court them. To however getting The Colombo High Court in to strongly condemn Pakistan or issue is considered for a parliamentary August had sentenced the officer for a providing safe haven for terrorists’ on debate in the House of Commons. embraced byhad people outside Tibetan years rigorous imprisonment and the official government website “Pakistan continues to double speak twothe crossed the 10,000 signatures required on issue of terrorism. It has aided and suspended him for ten years over the death of Robert Velinthan in custody to make it incumbent upon the UK abetted enemies of the international community iscoalitiona(of which good sign. Thangka government to respond. Britain is a leading in 1998. The officer was accused of shooting “Pakistan has made significant partner with the US) against terrorism. paintings are beautiful expressive. and murdering handcuffed sacrifices in opposing terrorism. The Osama Bin Laden’s hideout wasand in carelessly UK has regularly raised with Pakistan Pakistan. Pakistan continues to harbour Velinthan in Point Pedro town in district as he wasthose trying to flee the need to immaculate take consistent action UN sanctioneddetailing terror networks,” the Jaffnathat The the army’s custody. The money was against all terrorist groups operating petition said. on his behalf by this the Joint within its borders,” the response from is The 19,429 signatures gathered so collected works have impressive. I hope the UK Foreign and Commonwealth far on the UK-wide petition have come Opposition backers of former President Office (FCO) read. largely from London and northern Mahinda Rajapaksa. occurrence According Tibetan to the UN estimates, “The UK regularly highlights strengthens regions of England with heavy Indian- the to Pakistan, at the highest level, the origin populations. May is scheduled more than 40,000 civilians were killed importance of taking effective action to arrive in India on November 6 for in Sri Lanka during the final phase of movement to freedom. against all terrorist groups operating in a three-day visit, which will include a the three-decade long Tamil conflict Pakistan, as Pakistan has committed to bilateral dialogue with Prime Minister in 2009. The Sri Lankan government -disputes Riya Gupta the UN figure. do,” the response said. Narendra Modi. “We recognise the significant
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In their heyday centuries ago thangkas had patrons and practitioners in Nepal, Bhutan, Tibet and northern India, and in 2009, UNESCO added them to its list of the intangible cultural heritage of humanity, calling them “an integral part of the artistic life of people” on the Tibetan plateau. Now there are more than 100 apprentices — including some Han Chinese, the country’s overwhelming ethnic majority — at Wulan’s Danba Raodan school, who get free tuition in return for helping their teachers with their
The Kopregaon Bheema Zilla Parishad primary school
posts of the total 49 headmaster positions. Only 64 teachers are available for teaching primary students in the entire area. Speaking to TGS, Koregaon Bheema Village Upsarpanch Ganesh Phadtare said, “The authorities are least bothered about primary education in our area. These schools are running with teachers carrying out the responsibilities of a principal.
internal corruption agency, suggesting corruption may be a factor, Glaser and al-Hashimi said. To compensate, there’s been a noticeable spike in the IS group’s revenue from criminal activity, such as extortion the Paris-based Center for the Analysis of Terrorism says BJP remains firm on not A Peshmerga convoy drives towards a frontline are no serious charges against him. in Khazer, about 30 kilometres east of extortion accounted forentry a thirdinto of the its Pintya Dhawade, Prakash Dhole, allowing Iraq. Iraqi government and KurdishSunanda forces, backed by US-led Gadale and Shyam coalition Shinde air and revenue in 2015, compared 12 criminal per Mosul, party to those to with have not yet joined the BJP.long-awaited They met ground support, launched coordinated military operations as the fight CM Fadanavis regarding development cent in 2014. backgrounds to wrest the northern city of Mosul from Islamic State fighters got underway works in their wards. Sitting and AP former corporators from Congress, BY TUSHAR RUPANAVAR @tusharrupanavar
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is devoted to its ‘party with a difference’ tag, and will not allow those with criminal backgrounds into the party fold. But in the last few days, some local corporators and others accused but not convicted by the court in criminal cases have entered the BJP. “We will give entry to other party leaders in the BJP only after taking local MLAs into confidence. The BJP is a cadre based party and people are happy with its two years of governance. It is my personal view that BJP will win the upcoming Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) elections to be held in February 2017 on its own, without forging alliances with any political party,” said Rajya Sabha Member of Parliament Sanjay Kakade. As many as 18 sitting and former corporators from various political parties joined the BJP recently with the help of Kakade, at Varsha, the official residence of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. But Pune gangster Kamlakar Kisan alias Baba Bodke’s and Shyam
paintings. The students spend 10 hours every day learning how to trace figures in pencil, wield delicate paintbrushes and apply pigment to canvas. The revival comes after a turbulent past — the Dalai Lama fled Tibet in 1959 after a failed uprising against Chinese rule and the ravages of Mao’s Cultural Revolution laid waste religious tradition and iconography as zealous Red Guards — including Tibetans — sought to destroy the “Four Olds”: customs, culture, habits and ideas. “Beyond the destruction of artworks and monasteries ransacked, looted or burned, a lot of the expertise was lost,” said Amy Heller, a Tibetologist and art historian based in Switzerland. The censorship had been such for 10 years that people were reluctant to bring out their thangkas, for fear of being denounced.” Many Tibetans accuse Beijing of wanting to dilute their culture and the Dalai Lama says Tibet is the victim of “cultural genocide”. Beijing considers the Himalayan region an integral part of its territory. AFP
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Shinde’s photos with CM Fadnavis have gone viral in the social media, tarnishing the BJP’s image. The party also faced severe media criticism after inducting Pintya Dawade, Prakash Dhole and Shyam Shinde, all of whom have several pending court cases against them. Kakade said, “Nobody is a criminal until convicted by court. The media runs negative stories regarding BJP giving entry to people with criminal backgrounds. We will not give entry to people who are convicted in criminal cases. There were some allegations against Pintya Dhawade and Prakash Dhole, who recently met CM Fadanavis, and the court actually acquitted them. So they are not criminals, and the media has falsely run these stories. Not a single case has been registered against Pintya Dhawade for the last seven years. Shyam Shinde has some pending court cases but there
feature on the index, was ranked 39th. businesses to thrive. I am working with London performed well across all London’s business community to ensure areas, retaining its top spot for the fifth their needs are met as we leave the EU year in a row and ranking above other and that our great city maintains its cities such as New York, Tokyo and global position,” London mayor Sadiq Paris. The UK capital was first awarded Khan said. the leading position in 2012, the year New York experienced no significant it successfully hosted the Olympic and change in its ratings, retaining its No. 2 Paralympic Games. slot, also for the fifth year running. “This research shows that despite Paris dropped out of the top three the recent voteIndira to leaveNational the EU, London to fourth position, due with largely to a School class But after being smeared Fevicol,
There is scarcity of teachers also with one teacher sometimes managing two classes together. Our children are suffering and the officials are playing with their academic future.” The village’s former panch Nitin Gawhane said, “We will be left with no option but to lock the school and boycott examinations if the authorities do not take any favourable decision. We plan to hold agitations if the officials VISHAL KALE
NCP and MNS are eager to join the BJP before the PMC elections. But we will give entry to only those with good social backgrounds. The BJP policy is to give adequate representation to all castes. Now BJP will give entry to leaders from other parties only after taking local MLAs into confidence.” Regarding an alliance with Shiv Sena for the PMC polls, Kakade said, “The BJP is getting strong support from voters in Pune. It is my personal view that party should go solo in PMC elections without forging alliances with anybody. But the party high command will take a final call on alliances and it will be final for us as well. Right now there are more than 15 corporators who wish to join the BJP. The BJP is going to do a survey of PMC wards. We have not promised party tickets to anybody entering the BJP. The decision to give tickets will be taken on the basis of this survey. There are no differences between guardian minister Girish Bapat and myself. Both of us are working for the growth of our party. Bapat is a senior leader of party and he will lead us in the PMC elections.” tushar.rupanavar@goldensparrow.com
Tokyo overtook Paris and moved into third place. The increase was due to a number of factors, including a reduction in Japan’s rate of corporate taxation, an increase in the number of A painter is perched high above the ground with just a rickety bamboo scaffolding for visitors to the city from abroadsupport, and anat a building on Bhandarkar Road increase in the number of direct flight connections to overseas destinations. Singapore completes the top 5 cities in the annual ranking. PTI The teacher asked, ‘Yeh beaten another student during a dance was required.
do not arrange for headmasters after Diwali.” Meanwhile, Education officer (Shirur) Arjun Misal admitted that 21 zilla parishad primary schools in Shirur are running without headmasters. “As the matter is already in court, we cannot take any action. The villagers had filed a petition demanding the authorities to fill up vacant posts immediately and the court is yet to give its judgment. Many schools in other districts are also running without headmasters. We have already conveyed our position to the village representatives. Villagers have been holding protest marches in the past and now plan to lock the school and boycott the half-yearly exams. Planning to prevent children from appearing for exams will only affect their children’s future.” Some officials claim that senior teachers were not promoted to the post of headmasters as they failed to fulfill some qualifications and criteria as per the government policy. Experts blame authorities for the pathetic state of school education in the tehsil and express dismay to know that school don’t have a regular principal or headmaster. In most cases, teachers take up the responsibilities of the principal. gunwanti.paraste@goldensparrow.com
CMs should cooperate in finding solution: Forum Belagavi
Fadnavis
Siddaramaiah
Goa and Maharashtra Chief Ministers should cooperate in finding a solution for drinking water in this region of Karnataka, Kalasa Bhanduri Horata Samiti (Kalsa Bhanduri Agitation Forum) said. The Samithi President Vijay Kulkarni said Chief Minister Siddaramaiah should take the same efforts as he did for the Cauvery issue in finding a solution. “We believe in amicable settlement and good relations with neighbouring states,” he told reporters here. Kulkarni said, “If Goa and Maharashtra do not co-operate for drinking water requirement of this part of the state then we will have intensify our agitation.” Karnataka has locked horns with the neighbouring Goa on the larger issue of sharing Mahadayi River water between both the states. The Kalasa-Banduri project is being undertaken by Karnataka to improve drinking water supply to the twin cities of Hubballi-Dharwad and the districts of Belagavi and Gadag. PTI
Lady teacher suspended for smearing Fevicol on student’s face teacher smears Fevicol on the face and hands of a class III students BY DNYANESHWAR BHONDE @dnyanesh1
In a shocking incident, Smita, (name changed) a standard III girl student of Indira National School (INS), Tathawade on Pune Mumbai highway, was humiliated by a lady teacher, who smeared the girl’s face and hands with the adhesive Fevicol. The reason for the teacher’s wrath was that Smita had squeezed out too much Fevicol from the tube during the art and craft class.
Smita was in tears, while the rest of the class was laughing at her humiliation. Smita’s shocked and aggrieved parents demanded action against the lady teacher, who was suspended by the INS administration. On the day of the incident, a tearful Smita returned home and narrated the incident to her mother. She said she did not wish to continue at INS school, and asked her mother to enroll her in a different school. Smita’s parents expressed their distress over the incident on the social media. The incident happened last week. Smita’s parents’ message said, “Our daughter is a student of class IV at Indira National School. Today she was humiliated in front of the entire
class by her class teacher. The children were in an art & craft class, in which they had to use Fevicol. The amount of Fevicol Smita had squeezed out on a newspaper was more than what
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extra Fevicol kiska hai?’ My daughter accepted that it was hers. She got bugged further and said, ‘Ab yeh Fevicol iske face pe lagega,’ and applied the Fevicol on her face, hands and eyebrows. My daughter started crying and all the children were laughing at her because of this humiliation. Since the Fevicol had dried, it was very painful for my daughter to remove it.’’ “We enquired about the class teacher with other parents and most of them had complaints about the teacher’s behaviour towards their wards,” said one of the parents. Confirming the incident, another parent, on condition of anonymity said that there were several complaints against the same teacher, who had
Lady teacher suspended
TGS LIFE
Wow, I am shocked. I read about how the lady teacher smeared Fevicol on the student’s face because the child MONSOON MO O squeezed G AR mistakenly out too much adhesive from the tube. I am astonished as to how and what is it with people? Do they not have a brain of their own? How can rage take over every sense of MIDDLE CHILD rationale and heart for someone to do this? I am glad the school authorities took action against her and suspended her. Hope the kid is okay now. - Priyam Ghoshal TANKED-UP TGS LIFE
JUNE 25, 2016 PUNE
JUNE 11, 2016
THRILL OF DRIVING By Tushar Burman @tburman
Tibet’s thangkas find new fans
BEIJING: Her eyes riveted to the canvas, Wulan meticulously applies colour to an image of the Buddha, using pigments made of crushed pearls, turquoise and agate. The 34-year-old is one of dozens of students at a school in Lhasa learning the medieval Tibetan art of “thangka” — minutely detailed paintings depicting Buddhist deities or symbols, usually on cotton canvas or silk scrolls. But she is not Tibetan. Ethnically Mongol, she moved 2,500 kilometres to embark on seven years of studies. Beijing’s forces took over Tibet in 1951 and the Communist government reviles the exiled spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, but the region’s traditional religious art is now increasingly being embraced by outsiders — including from China’s Han ethnic majority — as both buyers and producers. “Thangkas are captivating a growing number of people,” said Wulan. “Traditional cultures are more and more recognised in China, which wasn’t always the case in the past, during the economic boom.”
BY GUNWANTI PARASTE @gunwantiparaste
The 21 zilla parishad (ZP) primary schools in Shirur Tehsil (Pune District) are running without headmasters for the past four years. The local representatives and villagers are making regular rounds of the office of Pune Zilla Parishad Education Department in vain. The primary school located at Koregaon Bheema in Shirur is one such school. Primary education in the area is being greatly hampered due to acute crisis of headmasters and teachers. The critical situation has a bearing effect on the education of children with many children unable to read and write. Children are also unable to do basic arithmetical operations. With no sign of any positive development coming from the authorities, some villagers have threatened to lock the school and boycott exams. The education department is yet to fill the 21 vacant
attack, push over analysis are some of tests carried out for bridges inspection. Birajdar said a CoEP team, including six-seven students, will visit Aurangabad after Diwali. COEP team has already done a structural audit of heritage bridges like Shivaji Bridge, Sambhaji Bridge and other old bridges in Pune. Earlier, district collector Nidhi Pandey had asked the state public works department to carry out a structural audit of all the three historical gates located near the existing bridges. During his recent visit to the city, guardian minister Ramdas Kadam had directed the PWD officials and others to speed up the process and complete the all the required formalities at the earliest to start work on the bridges. “Accordingly, we have asked a private agency to undertake the structural audit of the bridges,” Pandey said. gunwanti.paraste@goldensparrow.com
DEFYING GRAVITY Nobody is a criminal until convicted by court: Kakade Pratika Yashaswi Freelance content consultant The less firecrackers in the country, the better. I think it’s understandable to take this stand, but Londonultimately tops Global Index this Power act will City get lost in the noise of war. It’s petty. You can’t shut down the Chinese LONDON: London has topped the the world across six key measures of is the best place in the world to do perceived decrease in the levels of 2016 Global Power City Index for the economy, research business. firecrackers. cultural interaction economy byand development, barring Butand research youand can fifth consecutive year with Mumbai culture, accessibility, environment and From start-ups to global enterprises development. The terrorist attacks of ranked 39th on the list of the world’s livability. across all industries and sectors, the November 2015 are also likely to have hurt your business. leading global cities for business, Mumbai, the only Indian city to capital offers the ideal environment for influenced those ratings. innovation and culture, according to a report released recently. The 2016 Global Power City Index (GPCI) report, which was released by the Mori Memorial Foundation’s Institute for Urban Strategies, ranked London as the leading overall city, highlighting the capital’s strong cultural offering, ease of doing business and global transport links. The report ranks 42 major cities of
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London tops G oba Power C ty Index UK hails Pakistans Losing ground, IS looks for new money sources
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and cash reserves that once amounted to more than USD 1 billion in 2014, said Daniel Glaser, the Treasury Department’s assistant secretary for terrorist financing. With those resources slipping away, the Islamic State group is expected to revert to “traditional methods we see al-Qaida using whether it’s deeppocket donors, whether it’s charities, whether it’s NGOs, whether it’s criminal activity,” Glaser said in a
UK hails Pakistan’s ‘significant sacrifices’
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The College of Engineering Pune (CoEP) has received a proposal from Aurangabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) to carry out structural audit of bridges across the city limits. The collapse of British-era bridge in Mahad has woken up authorities to carry out structural audit of bridges across the city limits. AMC would go for structural audit of bridges either through structural engineers from the civic panel or by appointing a third-party agency. Officials have already directed executive engineers to start review of bridges. CoEP Professor BG Birajdar confirmed the request from AMC. The structural stability of all bridges in the city will be ascertained. A report, which will list strengthening and bearing capacity of bridges, will be considered while carrying out the audit. The institute will do the structural audit of 8 to 10 bridges located in Aurangabad city. The civic officials held discussion with CoEP representatives and will hand over the acceptance letter soon. The three bridges at Barapulla Gate, Makkai Gate and Mehmood Gate are 350 years old and their audit is a must. Structural audit needs internal and outer inspections. Rebound hammer, ultra velocity, carbonation corrosion test, concrete strength, core testing, chemical
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hen we last drove the TUV300 shortly after its launch, it was a pleasant surprise in its package, refinement and general ability around the city. At the time, we didn’t really take it on an extended highway jaunt and probably just as well; you see, in it’s previous guise, the TUV300 came with a modest 75hp output motor, which was fine in urban environs, but didn’t really have punch anywhere in the rev range. That has now changed with Mahindra calling this iteration the mHawk100 motor -- essentially the same thing but now putting out considerably more power and torque, up to 100hp and 240Nm. If you’ve read our previous assessment of the TUV300, not much has changed, save for our experience with other, more recent SUVs in and around the same segment. The TUV300 is surprising in its nice interior accoutrements. A great AC, a very decent infotainment system with Bluetooth and iPod connectivity that works flawlessly, a nice two-tone Dash that looks contemporary and a quiet cabin that belies the intrinsic nature of a three-cylinder Diesel engine. It should sound and feel rough, but it doesn’t. Nothing in the SUV does. Of particular interest to us in this new 100hp guise of the TUV, was the suspension. You see, the Mahindra NuvoSport, which we also recently tested, uses the same engine, but has a problem with considerable body roll. Not so much with the TUV, which is controlled and feels more secure at highway speeds. It also feels a bit firmer, but that’s a trade-off we’re willing to make: some more jerks to the spine in exchange of careening off a cliff on a sharp bend. Engine performance is also on par with the NuvoSport, but after using the TUV’s manual transmission, we ended up missing the AMT of the NuvoSport, which somehow managed to keep things feeling sprightly. With the benefit of hindsight and experience, we can also say that the current TUV300 feels a bit heavy to steer compared to peers like the Vitara Brezza and NuvoSport, but retains the practical turning radius we enjoyed previously. It’s squared-off design (tank-like, according to Mahindra) has the benefit of allowing excellent visibility while squeezing into tight spaces, which the TUV can do despite its width. The breadth manifests in internal space as well, with the front passenger having plenty of shoulder space. The rear seat is wide enough for three passengers as well, though we did hear the odd complaint about jerks being transmitted up into the spine from rear passengers.
Datsun Redi-GO launched, starting at Rs 2.38 lac
VW launches Ameo compact sedan Sub-4m three-box starts at Rs 5.14 lac
TGS LIFE
JULY 30, 2016 PUNE
THRILL OF DRIVING
Hardcore performance is great for track days. Audi has a more everyday option By Tushar Burman
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crossover/hatchback which was globally unveiled in Out back are the jump seats that make this he SUV,urban technically, a 7-seater. It’s doable, but not comfortable for long journeys. Then Redi-GO finally makes its way to Indian roads. April, Datsun’s again, have you seen how many passengers tourist cabs can pack Redi-GO runs on a three-cylinder i-SAT engine mated into a Scorpio these days? The jump seatsThe fold 799 up andccrear seats fold down to liberate a lot of extra cargo room, you need it.manual transmission. It produces 53 hp, 72Nm of to ashould five-speed Call us picky but this author is not a fan of the TUV’s torque and delivers a fuel efficiency of 25.17 kmpl. The top speed aesthetic. I’d prefer the front of the NuvoSport with a squat stance is 140 Kmph and the ground clearance is 185mm. The vehicle on instead of sharp corners and the face of Bane, Batman’ s formidable foe. That said, with a top-end model, you do get at a nice display thefinish, press launch looked solid, with most details standing up decent looking alloys and wheels that fill their wells properly. to scrutiny. While it may be built to a cost, it looks good in the flesh There are even some nice extras like a start-stop system (well, not andextends doesn’t really nice in our traffic), an eco mode that rangebetray while it’s budget category. sacrificing power, and static cornering lamps, Safety which are aisboon courtesy “Datsun PRO-SAFE7” which includes when turning the wide vehicle in darkness. In fact, we
@tburman
Minimal badging on the sides and at either end
shortest braking distance, high strength body shell to absorb impacts, good visibility and wider view of the road, high bolster support while cornering, energy absorbing steering and a driver airbag. Five personalized kit options are available: Urban, Style, Kool, Easy Kit - Sporty and Easy Kit - Premium. Colour options available are: White, Silver, Grey, Ruby and Lime. The Datsun Redi-GO comes with a warranty of 2 years/unlimited km and the car can be booked via mobile app called ‘Datsun India App’.
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W has finally put a price tag on its sub-4m sedan — the Ameo, and it’s very competitive. Evidently, the company has taken steps to address its reputation in making cars that are costlier to own than the competition. In this case, the Ameo ends up being cheaper than their own Polo hatchback, Currently, the Ameo is availabel only with a petrol engine — the same 1.2l MPI three-cylinder motor we’ve seen before in the Skoda Fabia and VW Polo. A diesel is promised soon. Volkswagen is touting several segment-firsts: rain-sensing wipers, static cornering lamps, cruise control and a centre armrest up front, but the kicker for us is that two airbags and ABS are standard on all variants, which is a big step forward at this price point. Visually, the Ameo looks very similar to its Polo and Vento cousins, with a slightly stubby-looking front and
back. The rear boot is expectedly short, but allows a bit more cargo volume than the Polo hatchback. It’s not the Large plenty prettiest integration of a boot thatboot we’vestores seen, but VW and is easy to access have been understated in their styling of the rear. In a front three-quarter view, the boot does not draw attention to itself, which is probably a good thing. Watch for a detailed review of the made-in-India Ameo next week. Prices:
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udi’s S line of cars don’t get the recognition they deserve. Sitting in between the standard models and the totally performance-oriented RS cars, they sit as the middle child, often overlooked. We have, on occasion, driven the RS5, RS7, even the R8 and come away impressed by the raw power they pack into seemingly standard body styles. But let’s face it: a wolf in sheep’s clothing isn’t likely to make you a nice wool coat. It’d rather eat the coat with you in it. Not so much the car on this page: the S5, which is what Audi calls a “sportback”, basically a sedan with a hatchback rear and more rakish roofline. In terms of size, it sits somewhere between an A4 and an A6 but ends up feeling surprisingly compact. Even in terms of performance potential, you could consider the S5 the middle child. There are sportscars in the lineup that make less power. Why then did Audi feel the need to paint the media car in this lurid yellow, we have no idea. It’s a unique shade for sure, akin to pure printer’s ink
Triumph Bonneville Thruxton R launched for Rs 10.90 lac
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wo months after the release of the Bonneville T120, Triumph has rolled out Thruxton R in the Indian market. The 1200cc Thrurxton R runs on a high power, 8-valve, parallel twin engine generating just over 95hp and 112Nm of torque. This is a higher output version of the mill that powers the T120. The Thruxton R carries feature like ABS, ride-by-wire, traction control, torque assist clutch, LED DRL, LED rear light, an engine immobilizer and a USB charging socket. The bike also has riding modes to choose from: road, rain and sport. The equipment list continues; the Thruxton
R is equipped with Brembo monobloc callipers, Showa big piston forks, Öhlins rear suspension and Pirelli Diablo Rosso Corsa Tyres. The Thruxton R is priced at Rs 10.90 lac ex-showroom, Delhi. That’s a lot of bike for the money, and should appeal to a wide swath of motorcyclists with it’s “modern classic” vibe. This rounds out the new Bonneville platform with the Speed Twin, Bonneville T120 and Thruxton R coming in at attractive prices and all immediately available. Triumph continues to push aggressively forward in terms of models and marketing. There are more than a few lessons for some other manufacturers to learn.
Legroom is decent at the back. Headroom is a bit tight for taller passengers.
expanse of nice, flat luggage area and very easy to access thanks to the hatch opening. It’s a bit like the Skoda Octavias of old -- looking like sedans with hatches hiding huge boots. On the go, the S5 is a refined experience. The 7-speed dual-clutch transmission is quick and smooth, and shifts gears with digital efficiency. Press the throttle with aggression and the gearbox quickly shifts down, releasing a nice V6 roar from the quad pipes out back. It’s a chatty car in that it likes to make nice growly noises when provoked, but never overpowers. The sound is enough for feedback and kicks, but does not cause discomfort. High-rev gearshifts release a nice crackle from the exhaust. Paddle shifters are present for those times when you think you know better than the car’s electronics. Driving modes can be chosen Dash is usual Audi fare. Dark two-tone upholstery between comfort, dynamic, efficiency or tailored and carbon trim look sporty to your individual tastes. Ride quality is where the generally luxurious experience breaks, with than anything else and it drew attention wherever the large wheels and relatively low profile tyres it went. Though, we suspect, it would pass under transmitting road imperfections to the passenger. the radar in a more sedate paint job. Few, if any Setting the car in ‘Comfort’ mode didn’t do much external features stand out. You have a typical in this regard. On our favourite, winding hill road, the S5 Audi front grille, headlamps and design language tweaked slightly to accommodate the curvaceous shone with its Quattro permanent all-wheel rear hatch. The red ‘S’ badges are also discreet on drive system. There’s always more grip than you need, and it works well with the performance of the front and the back. Step inside and the treatment is typical Audi. the motor. The specifications will surprise you if If you’ve been in a recent A-type sedan, everything you drive the car before looking at the brochure: is familiar. There’s the MMI screen, central console 329hp and 440Nm from the supercharged V6! We’ve driven much angrier-feeling cars and ergonomics as expected, but with a small, with less power. The S5 delivers this fiddly jog dial. The steering wheel also capability with little drama. Despite doesn’t have explicitly labelled phone Verdict controls, which is something that + Refinement, being 4.7 metres long, the S5 feels compact with a small footprint will confuse those coming from performance, width-wise. Visibility is good and other car brands. Upholstery is in unique the flat-bottomed steering feels black and dark brown and there - It’s just “nice” nice to till around good surfaces. is much leather on display. There The ORVMs could have done a are some lacquered carbon fibre TGS rating better job showing the sides and rear trim pieces along the door and other ;;;`2 of the vehicle, but that could be down surfaces as well, though we’re not sure if to personal preference. it’s the real thing. The seats are comfortable The Audi S5 has plenty of performance and supportive one-piece units for the front, lending a sporty look without being uncompromisingly potential, but keeps everything feeling hardcore like the near-race seats you’d find in a comfortable and luxurious. It is an odd, middle child and we imagine it will have less takers than sports car. Rear legroom is good for a person of my size more overt sportscars or luxury sedans because (5’9”) but then, few grown men are actually my of the niche it occupies. That’s an opportunity size, so we’d suggest a seating capacity of four for for the buyer who wants something different. maximum comfort. At least one passenger we rode Certainly no other car we’ve seen comes in this with commented on how his i20 felt more spacious shade. At just north of Rs 69 lac ex-showroom, in the back. Again, apart from the “sport” theatre, the price will give you pause. You can buy more there is little else to talk about. Open the hatch spacious luxury cars for less, or more overt sports and it’s another world. Literally! Audi claims 480 cars for as much. Stuck in the middle again. tushar@goldensparrow.com litres of cargo space, and we believe them. It’s a vast
VISHAL KALE
It is so great to know that two of our city’s youngsters Jayesh Pungalia and Snehal Mane have gotten selected through a wild card entry to the international tournaments KPIT ATP Challenger and Women’s ITF. I am really happy that our sport youth are getting big league opportunities. We definitely should make the base more robust for more sports other than cricket to grow in India. - Vishal Garware
RBI optimistic on inflation, warns of risks
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Losing ground, IS looks for new money sources
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Struggle over dengue
BY GUNWANTI PARASTE @gunwantiparaste
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Golden chance for city players
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“The government is restoring it (Rang Mahal) just in time, before the woodwork gets destroyed, since such workmanship is difficult to come by. Besides, the original THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY OCTOBER 22-28, 2016 PUNE work will always be of greater value.” - Saili Palande-Datar, City-based historian
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TGS NEWS SERVICES @TGSweekly
learning experience for them and eventually it will help them when they will graduate to the next level. We expect at least 8-10 players from Maharashtra to make it to ATP draws in the main and qualifying draw and provide them an opportunity to compete at world class level and that too on the home turf,” said MSLTA secretary Sundar Iyer. Meanwhile, Saketh Myneni, Ramkumar Ramnathan, former Wimbledon junior doubles winner Sumit Nagal, his Vietnamese partner Nguyen Hoang Thien and Russian Tennis Olympian Evgeny Donskoy are some of the big names that will be seen in action in the men’s event. “Interestingly, the winner of the tournament has made it to the top 100. In 2014, Yuchi Sugita of Japan won the event and went on to make it to the top 100, while in 2015, Yuki Bhambri won the event that propelled him into the top 100. We hope this year too this event will help the winner to move into the coveted top 100 bracket,” said Kishor Patil, chairman of the organising committee and MD of KPIT.
Aishwarya Rajagopalan Student It’s funny how Chinese firecrackers have been banned in India since 2014 for containing unstable chemicals, but only a call of patriotism is seeing the ban being put to effect. It raises the question of what the nature of Indian patriotism is and whether the true instability lies in the chemicals or the patriots.
vaccines to growth next year Utkarsh Krishnan Writer CoEP towhoscrutinise 21 ZP schools run without TheGolden move on the boycott “We mustpart reassure ourof citizensvendors — those all aroundto the world are very concerned about our inability chance Aurangabad to put an end to the tragedy in Syria. We must also be ready to usebridges Chinese fireworks might seem creditable andthe tools at our disposal to apply for city players pressure: a resolution or an emergency special session of the UN General Assembly are such options.”headmasters in Shirur P 16 - Stephane Dion, Foreign Minister, Canada a definite expression of nationalistic sentiment in the currently heated geopolitical climate. It is however also foolhardy given the strain that the firework trade puts on the lives of thousands of children. The industry is rooted in Sivakasi Islamic State group had in Iraq and Syria and swiftly implement a recent discussion at the Washington when they captured the city in June Tamil Nadu and bears witness to incessant system of taxation and governance that Institute for Near East Policy. 2014, but that was “a one-time take generated some rule an area that once was Beyond oil and gas sales, the for them,” Glaser noted, and they are useallowed ofofit toSwitzerland. child labour, toil quickly soburninghard USD 30 million per month the size Islamic State who group also generated through that to cash. add a As the battle gets underway to some USD 30 million per month Glaser says the Islamic State group in Iraq from taxation and retake Mosul, the to group’sDiwali largest in Iraq from and extortion is under financial duress. Fighter “sparkle” attaxationour homes. There is also the environmental aspect extortion in 2015 stronghold in Iraq, the Islamic State in 2015. Hisham al-Hashimi, an salaries have been cut in half in some group is being denied access to expert on IS who advises the Iraqi areas, including in Raqqa, Syria, its de to consider. against forms of domestic use of fireworks. revenue sources such as oilPersonally, and gas government, said the I’m militant group facto capital. Theall group also set up an
First national 5-a-side hockey to be held in Balewadi from October 26
Jayesh Pungalia and Snehal Mane get wild card entries to ATP and ITF events respectively
Abdul Ahad Naushad Student Hypocrisy. If you truly want to ban Chinese products, stop using your iPhones and most of your major home appliances, all of which are made in China. This selective “patriotism” by trying to make a statement has no purpose. It’s very irksome and wannabe. You want to really do something for your country? Stop harming the environment by using these crackers whether Indian-made or Chinese or whatever. Be a true patriot by being smart.
OCTOBER 22-28, 2016
Losing ground, IS looks for new money sources
Golden chance for city players
Prahlad Menon Entrepreneur After the Explosives Act, 2008, this actually is one of the few times the country has tried becoming stricter on the local markets during religious festivals. Technically we should have not used chinese crackers as the chemicals used are known to be more colorful but highly harmful. Most of the stock was smuggled and now it is atleast better to know that one is buying taxed goods at MRP.
THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY
Shorter version of hockey will help Indian players’
Shivajians FC take on PIFA in opener
Khasnis appointed as Indian coach
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and not fully recovered, but the goal was to compete and win a medal for Spain. This forced recovery has caused me pain since then.” — Rafael Nadal, Tennis Player
Signposts
DSK Shivajians FC will begin their campaign in the Under-16 Youth League with a home game against PIFA, Mumbai at the DSK Dream City Football fields on October 22. This year, the Maharashtra Zone comprises of two groups of four teams each. DSK Shivajians FC is in Group B along with Mumbai FC and Steadfast FC Mumbai Rush SC. The teams will play on a home-away basis among themselves in the round robin stage. The group topper will qualify for the National final round. The League, which commenced last season as the U-15 Youth League, has been refurbished as the U-16 Youth League keeping an eye on the forthcoming FIFA U-17 World Cup India 2017.
In what seems like a wave of patriotism that has gripped firecracker sellers and buyers this year, vendors have taken a stand to not support the Chinese economy by deciding not to get any ‘Made in China’ firecrackers. We ask Punekars what they think of this move
FOUR YOUTHS ARRESTED, TEN STOLEN MOTORCYCLES SEIZED FROM THEIR POSSESSION
UNKNOWN CULPRITS SHOT AT PETROL PUMP MANAGER NEAR BANK IN DEHUGAON
OCTOBER 22-28, 2016
VOX POPULI
Indraneel Nighojkar Filmmaker I feel it’s good to have this patriotic feeling towards your country and be part of a ‘wave’ like this, to stand in support of your country. It’s a good move by the vendors cause now people are going to ‘proudly’ burst crackers that are ‘not made in China’. But honestly that patriotic feeling should be there otherwise also, at all times. It should be expressed in all matters as far as cleanliness (Swacch Bharat), population and pollution control etc are concerned. The support shown is good but how much of a difference it’s going to make to Diwali celebrations and the Chinese economy I really don’t know. Although I hope we have a safe and cracker free Diwali.
JW Marriott Pune is turning spooky this Halloween. Spice Kitchen, their in house multi-cuisine restaurant is curating a Halloween themed dinner on Monday, 31st October. You may not be scared, but you will surely be left awed with the various Halloween inspired delicacies that the chefs are crafting together. Come along with your bunch of friends or your loved ones and get prepared to be amazed! Where: Spice Kitchen, SB Road When: October 31
GET READY FOR A SPOOKY WEEKEND
Gyaan Adab has collaborated with Susan Bullough Khare – well–known art educationist and art therapist
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competition. Ryan Shikha, member of the Parent Teacher Association, raised an alarm after she came to know of the incident. Shikha called Smita’s parents, school authorities and police, and asked them to take appropriate action against the school. Shikha said, “Whatever happened was shocking. If the Fevicol had gone into the nose of the girl, her life would have been threatened. The teacher Sakshi, who has done this, is a criminal and she must be punished. If the school knew about the incident, why did they not inform the police and immediately get her arrested? Now the school is saying that the teacher has been suspended.” Shikha called the police and asked
them to take action. The police said that they will take action against the school. Confirming the news, INS administrative officer Matin Shaikh said that the teacher had been suspended. “We have suspended the concerned teacher today morning from the school. We are submitting all reports related to this to the school management,” said Shaikh. However, he refused to reveal the name of the teacher. As per the faculty record found on the website of INS, the teacher’s name is Sakshi Rai, and she teaches Hindi. Our efforts to contact INS executive principal Gita Pillai failed to evoke a response. dnyaneshwar.bhonde@goldensparrow.com
THE GOLDEN SPARROW ON SATURDAY OCTOBER 29-NOVEMBER 04, 2016
PUNE
SPORTS
“Every team has streaks of good results and bad results. It is a part of our profession. The strange thing is after seven years as a manager, it happens now.” — Pep Guardiola, Manchester City Manager
Signposts Huge response for Pune Open A record number of 1100 tennis players from across India in various age groups will be seen in action at the Pune Open Tennis Championship organised by Navnath Shete Sports Academy, under the auspices of the PMDTA, and played at the Deccan Gymkhana tennis courts. This is the fifth consecutive year of this event. The tournament will offer a total prize money of Rs 14,00,000. The event will held in Under-8, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18 boys and girls groups, men’s singles and doubles. National Champion Siddhant Banthia, Suresh Dakshineshwar, Atharva Sharma, Shivani Ingle, Nitten Kirrtane, Tejas Chaukulkar, Gargi Pawar, Richa Chougule will be seen in the action.
Radhika Sapkal wins state title Pune paddler Radhika Sapkal defeated Mumbai’s top seed Gloria George in the midget girls final in the recently held 47th Inter District and 78th Maharashtra State Championship at Balewadi. However, in the cadet girls’ final, top seed Prutha Vartikar of Pune went down to Mumbai’s Sampada Bhiwandkar. In the sub-junior girls’, Pune’s Neha Mahangade got knocked out in semi-finals, when she lost to Mumbai Subrub’s Aditi Sinha, while Martand Binisiwale went down to Omkar Torgalkar in the men’s singles.
“What you cannot accept being a tennis player is that you cannot be sorry for yourself. It doesn’t matter what situation you been through.” — Svetlana Kuznetsova, Russian Tennis Player
Beating the legend Nys Hugo and Luca Magroli were in seventh heaven after knocking out Leander Paes and Ramkumar Ramnathan during ATP Challenger tournament BY ASHISH PHADNIS @TGSWeekly Indian tennis superstar and veteran Leander Paes is a legend in his own right. Racking up some staggering numbers in his 25-year career, the 18time Grand Slam winner has carved a niche for himself amongst the all-time greats. He has kept the Indian flag flying even on the biggest of stages, the Majors, Olympics, Davis Cup. No wonder he has gained a huge respect from the younger generation and even playing against the legend is something they cherish. Nys Hugo of France and his Swiss partner Luca Mragaroli experienced that feeling on Thursday. Although, they had more reasons to cheer, as this unseeded pair ousted Leander and his partner Ram Kumar Ramanathan, who had made his Davis Cup debut against Spain in super tie-breaker. “It was a proud feeling to beat the legend. They were playing wonderful and first it was hard to get the momentum. But later in the second set, we improved our performance, gained confidence and that helped us in the tie-breaker,” said Hugo. Of course, they were too excited with their encounter with Leander. “It was our first match against him. Being on court with him was a great feeling. He is just unbelievable. He has been at the top bracket for the last 20 years, has been winning grand slams. Even at the age of 43, he is playing like
Nys Hugo (L) of France and his Swiss partner Luca Mragaroli during the match
a youngster. He is a true legend, I would say. We would feel lucky if we could get even ten per cent of his career,” said Luca after the match. “First time, I saw him playing live in London. Even at this age the way he was coming to net quickly was impressive. Even his match against Radek Štěpánek was truly remarkable,” said Hugo. Nys Hugo and Luca Magroli caused the biggest upset with a 2-6,6-3,10-4 score in the doubles quarterfinals at the $50,000 KPIT MSLTA ATP Challenger tournament. “In the first set, Leander was playing so well. He was coming up with really good skills, great returns and volleys. He was reading the game well.
We have to do something and then we decided to focus on Ramanathan. He was the weaker member of the team. Though, he had some good serves and good play from baseline, he was uncomfortable in volleys. So we tried to trap him with more and more volleys. That really worked for us,” said Hugo. “We had expected that the crowd would support the local players. However, we were happy that they were cheering both teams. They were enjoying the match and it boosted our morale,” he said. Meanwhile, Leander took a lot of time to console Ramkumar, who was crestfallen and even broke his racquet by banging it on the court out of frustration. ashish.phadnis@goldensparrow.com
Takale hopes to push up the leaderboard TGS NEWS SERVICES @TGSWeekly As the Asia-Pacific Rally Championship season reaches its business end, Pune rally driver Sanjay Takale is hoping to make a dent in the points table and push up the ranks in the Asia Cup points table after a hassle-free shakedown at Johor Bahru. Takale feels right at home on Malaysian roads, so the experienced driver is confident of a good result this weekend. Behind the wheel of his Cusco EZY Racing Subaru Impreza, Takale is aiming for a podium place in both the Asia Cup and Production Cup titles as well as gaining valuable overall APRC drivers’ points. “I can look at podium finish in Asia Cup as I am only 11 points away from the third-placed driver Michael Young, who is my team-mate at Cusco-EZY Racing. I am currently fifth in Asia Cup but the fight is very much there,” said Takale. “Also in the overall APRC championship I am fourth and though Young has a good lead over me, my plan would be to first finish and then earn good points in Malaysia,” he continued. Takale’s team-mate, New Zealander Michael Young, is also his biggest rival although the two are good friends and often swap information on the roads, cars and everything to do with the rally. “Unfortunately and fortunately, my main rival is my own team-mate Michael Young. But I know he is great driver and I have full respect for his driving abilities. He is driving a much slower car than the leaders from MRF-
FCPC Academy boy Kuruniyan gets Villarreal stint
The Kerala-born youngster becomes first home grown player to be selected for the premier Spanish club TGS NEWS SERVICES @TGSWeekly The Rajesh Wadhawan Group owned Indian Super League Club FC Pune City got a big boost to their academy plans as a player they have groomed, Ashique Kuruniyan will head to La Liga club Villarreal to play for their third team, on loan. This the first time that a home-grown Indian academy player has been selected by a top Spanish club to ply his trade in Europe. Excited at the development, FC Pune City CEO Gaurav Modwel said, “This is testimony to the fact that India is brimming with talent and the right talent needs the right guidance to make the right moves. Ashique has the correct attitude and an appetite for goals. He will only get better with his stint in Spain and I won’t be surprised if he goes on to have a longer spell in Spain beyond the one-year loan that we have agreed to with Villarreal CF. I would like to thank Villarreal for taking this step and I hope this turns out to be first of many such initiatives that we will take together for the growth of Indian football.”
The Kerala-born youngster has already made the right moves when he was picked for the India Under-19 team for the AFC U-19 Championships in Palestine. Prior to that, Ashique represented India in the Under-18 side in the FAM-Frenz Asia Champions Trophy, where he scored a wonderful solo goal for India that brought him into the spotlight. Primarily a winger, Ashique can play across the forward line. Ashique said he was keen to make a mark in Spain and come back a better player and play for India and FC Pune City both. “This is a dream come true. All these years, we would admire these top clubs and their players from afar, but thanks to FC Pune City and Villarreal, I will get a chance to play at one of the most respected clubs in Spain,” said Ashique. Villarreal CF’s President Fernando Roig said this is just the beginning of identifying good talent from India and giving them a chance to play against their youth team. “Villarreal CF was more than happy to absorb Mohamed Ashique Kuruniyan in their side because we saw the spark in him. Our coaches will work on him and we will aim to realise his true potential. His development as a player is given and this will only bode well for football in India in general. We thank FC Pune City for facilitating this move and hope this inspires a lot more young talent to make it big in Europe.” La Liga President Javier Tebas said this was just the beginning of identifying good talent from India and giving them a chance to play against the best in the business. “We thank FC Pune City and Villarreal CF for creating a competitive pathway for young talented players. Through ISL, we have already seen a lot of Spanish coaches and players come to India in the last three years. For us at La Liga, it’s heartening to see Indian players making a move to Spain as well. We hope that this inspires many more young talented Indian players to get opportunities in Spain.” tgs.feedback@goldensparrow.com
Skoda team, but his times are very good,” Takale explained. While Takale and Japanese codriver Noriko Takeshita, who has joined Takale since the first round in New Zealand, are in the hunt for multiple podiums across the various APRC classes including the Production Cup, Takale knows they have a huge challenge ahead of them and will be drawing on his vast experience across the often car-breaking roads. Since winning the Malaysian Rally Championship in 2011, Takale has competed in the region a lot and is probably one of the most experienced drivers on these roads at the event this year. “Malaysia is like my second home. I have done more rallies here than anywhere else. The route has slippery stages and tropical climate makes driving in Johor one of the toughest in the world. If it rains then the track becomes rough and slippery. “Actually, you never know how slippery they are till you go on to them. The terrain is simply unforgiving, even if you make one small mistake,” explained Takale. tgs.feedback@goldensparrow.com
NIO Vision Marathon on November 6 TGS NEWS SERVICES @TGSWeekly
FC Pune City players form a defending wall during their match at Nehru Stadium
FC Pune City squanders lead, shares points with Delhi club Team’s winless streak continues with a draw against Delhi Dynamos in their away match in capital city TGS NEWS SERVICES @TGSWeekly Despite a first-half lead, FC Pune City missed an opportunity to garner three points, as they managed a 1-1 draw against Delhi Dynamos in a Hero Indian Super League encounter at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Delhi. FC Pune City stunned the hosts after taking the lead in the stoppage time of first half with their first real attempt on goal through Jesus Tato but Delhi Dynamos managed to snatch a point late in the game after Milan Singh found the mark from a set-piece in the 79th minute. The draw did not alter any team’s fortunes on the ISL table. Delhi Dynamos continue on the sixth spot with seven points from six matches while Pune City, who have also won
just one of their six matches, have six points and remain just above bottomplaced FC Goa. No doubt Delhi Dynamos were the dominant side and should have won comfortably at home. They created lot of chances but it was FC Pune City’s keeper Edel Bete who stood guard to his net denying the host any advances. The goalkeeper, who won the Golden Glove last season and has won two consecutive ISL titles in his first two seasons, kept his team in the hunt with numerous saves until he was beaten by Milan Singh. It was a superb night for Edel Bete who was simply unbeatable. In the first 45 minutes, Bete made six saves, the first of which was in the 12th minute. Florent Malouda played a delicious flick for Milan who took a shot from just inside the box. The ball took a deflection and looked good enough to sail into the top corner of the net but Bete somehow managed to get his fingertips to the ball. Ten minutes later, a dominant Delhi brought the best out of Bete again. It was Gadze who controlled an overhead pass from Malouda, turned away from a defender and shot on goal
only for Bete to leap high and avert the danger. FC Pune City surged ahead much against the run of play. In the 45th minute, Rahul Bheke’s long cross inside the danger zone was headed towards the goal by Jesus Tato, leaping over Souvik. His header should have been collected but goalkeeper Soren Porei and defender Anas Edathodika simply looked at each other even as the ball hit the post and entered the goal. In the second session, Bete again rescued Pune a number of times. A minute after resumption, Ruben Gonzalez’s low grounder was kept away by the ever-alert goalkeeper. A rare mistake from Bete when he collided with his own defenders in the 53rd minute looked like the end of the clean slate but Delhi’s Brazilian striker Marcelinho couldn’t keep his attempt on target. Bete, however, was beaten in the 79th minute and Delhi rewarded for their persistent efforts. A free-kick on the right by Marcelinho was smartly pushed towards Milan who took a low grounder that slipped between two Delhi players and past a diving Bete. tgs.feedback@goldensparrow.com
National Institute of Ophthalmology (NIO) will organise the second edition of Vision Half Marathon in the city on November 6. The race will see blind and visually impaired runners participate with running enthusiasts from the city. The NIO Vision Marathon is striving to raise awareness about avoidable blindness. Many are in that age group where they could get conditions like Glaucoma or Cataract. In many cases, sight that is lost cannot be recovered. Regular, simple check-ups can help prevent permanent blindness, informed Dr Aditya Kelkar, director of NIO. “We at NIO are determined and dedicated towards creating awareness and concern about avoidable blindness in society and in delivering holistic eye care. Hence, patients’ education and awareness about avoidable blindness and other eye diseases is the first step towards treating these causes of irreversible blindness,” he said. The event which is being conducted by city based Run Buddies Club, will include a Half Marathon, 3Km, 5Km, 10Km or a half marathon of 21Km races. However, the variety of options has been added to the regular run event. In NIO marathon, one can run any of these distance blindfolded with their buddy, run half the distance blindfolded while partner runs the remaining distance blindfolded. After regular participants can have a run with the visually impaired, not just for them to have fun but for normal people to experience and feel their world and see how normal they are and willing to take on jobs and responsibilities like everyone else, informed Kelkar. “This is an excellent opportunity for companies to showcase the positive work that each employer is doing,” he said. As part of this program, Kelkar and his team of doctors are conducting free eye check-up camp along with training program currently going on at Pimple Saudagar, University and Kalyaninagar. This program is a rigorous fitness program with proper goal setting. Many companies have this program as part of their employees’ fitness initiative. tgs.feedback@goldensparrow.com