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PAGES: 68 VOL.7 | ISSUE: 12, JANUARY, 2020
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JULY 2019
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VOL:7 I SSUE:12 I JANUARY, 2020 `30 Editor A . Rammohan Rao Chief of The Bureau D. Bal Reddy
Correspondents P. Vishnuvardhan Reddy P. Ramamohana Reddy M. Vittal Setty Mallesh Babu G.P. Nagaraju Reporters M.Praveen Kumar Mandha Ravi Kumar
Photographers M Vijay S. Sridhar, Shair Ali Baig Cover & Layout ACK. Venkata Srujan General Manager Mohd. Nizamuddin
Chief Executive (Marketing) Venkata K. Ganjam (GK) Chief - Business & LifeStyle K. Bharath Reddy Marketing Associate M. Akhil Raj Shaker
The News You Like Phone: 9701141377, 9848133363 E-mail: thenewscoordinator@gmail.com Website: thenews.co.in
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Note: Focus/Infocus features are marketing initiatives, any legal disputes comes under the jurisdiction of courts in Hyderabad
EDITORIAL
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year in the history of a nation may not be very long. But it can initiate changes which can change the direction of the nation’s journey into the future and can positively impact the lives of the people. The year 2019 was eventful for our country. A Year that has ended with lots of hope and satisfaction. The decisive government at the centre has not only continued with its steps to correct the course of the nation but has also removed the discrimination in certain quarters. The silent majority of this country which has been putting up with discrimination, because of the appeasement politics adopted by some political parties, for more than seventy years has found a voice. Together, the nation is determined to stand up to challenge of a pack of traitors who are descendants of Jaichand and Mir Jafar. During 2019 we as a nation had achievements and heartbreaks. ISRO has made the country proud by racing into space like never before with sincere effort to reach Chandrama and by launching satellites including that of most advanced radar satellite of our own. The nation could fully embrace Kashmir with the removal of dividing walls like Article 370 and Article 35(A). Now, removing decades-old suffering of the non-muslim populace of Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan who are a minority in these countries and came to our country as refugees, unable to face discrimination & persecution in their respective countries. On the international level Indians, persons of Indian origin in many countries in the world have excelled in various fields. In the UK and the USA, they not only could occupy prestigious government and corporate positions and got elected as lawmakers. What pains the ordinary citizen of the country is that some political parties and perennial pessimist ‘intellectuals’ have been misleading the common Muslim of the country about CAA. This has lead to mindless violence and destruction in many parts of the country. People in the North East with genuine concern also have resorted to violence. At the same time the perennial ills like heinous abuse of women and children, caste inspired hatred continued during the year. Yet there is no need to feel that everything is lost. India as a vibrant democratic country has emerged strongly over the years. Citizens who gave a historic majority to BJP in Parliamentary elections in the first half of 2019 later decided to promote opposition parties in various state Assembly elections. All political parties had the courage to accept & respect the people’s mandate. This shows solid foundation on which our democracy stands. Our judicial system stood on a rock-solid pedestrial to deliver judgements. Above all we have proved ourselves as resilient people. Moving ahead with these strengths and correcting our limitations we can and will march forward to a bright future. Let us hope and believe that the year 2020 will be the right step towards glorious India. Wishing everyone A Happay New Year 2020 & colourful Sankranthi! Jai Hind!
(A Rammohan Rao)
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
4 CONTENT
AP makes ‘Disha Act’ 7
End of RTC employees unions? 21
Battle cries in the name of protests 27
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
CONTENT
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Setback to saffron 31
Inferno in Delhi Kills 43 62
In Nizam funds casePakistan to pay India 63
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
6
STATES
Choppadandi PS ranked
Best among 10 in India
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hoppadandi Police Station of Karimnagar Police Commissionerate was declared as 8th best police station among the top 10 in the country. The police station, famous for being people-friendly, disabled-friendly, child-friendly and eco-friendly is considered a model police station in the State by the Ministry of Home Affairs After being separated from Karimnagar rural police, the Choppadandi police station was established in 1989 with a new building and the houses for the staff members. About 26 police personnel are discharging their duties in Choppadandi police station. Survey Team's inspection: In the first phase, a survey was conducted across the nation and about 70 police stations were selected
and in the second phase out of 70 police stations, Choppadandi stood at third position and has been selected to compete in the race of Model Police Stations. Later, a team from New Delhi visited the Choppadandi police station and examined the activities there and submitted the report to the Ministry of Home Affairs. The Ministry of Home Affair considering the points such as CCTNS (Crime and Criminal Tracking Networking System) uploading; solving the cases that were registered against women; ST and SC cases, property loss cases, enrolling of PD Act cases, proactive steps are taken; programmes conducted as part of community policing; prevention of anti-social activities; maintenance of the police station building neat and tidy, maintenance of the record and
files properly etc. The surveyors also considered the people-friendly and disabled friendly, childfriendly and eco-friendly attitude of the cops also arrangement of drinking water facility, toilet, lighting, greenery, counselling rooms and parking place for the people visiting the police station and others. Apart from the usual facilities, Choppadandi police station has additional services for the people. According to petitioners, the police station seems more of a corporate office with a reception area, greenery and water harvesting pits. A survey for the same was conducted in two phases, a team from New Delhi examined the activities of the police station. In the first phase of the survey, which included inspection of how the cases against women were dealt with including SC/ST atrocity cases, the police station secured 30 per cent marks. Following the same, in the field survey, the station secured 70 per cent marks. Improved quality of lockups, toilets, waiting hall, CCTV cameras command control room and others helped the police station to get the rank. Commissioner of Police, VB Kamalasan Reddy, on being feted said that about 7 police stations have been renovated. “We are implementing plastic prohibition, providing wheelchairs for physically challenged visitors along with portable fire extinguishers,� the police commissioner said.
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
STATES
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AP makes ‘Disha Act’
Death penalty in 21 days for rape
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THE NEWS BUREAU
he Andhra Pradesh state Assembly has passed the Andhra Pradesh Criminal Law (Amendment) 2019 Bill, christened ‘AP Disha Act’ (Andhra Pradesh Criminal law (Amendment) Act 2019) and the AP Special Court for Specified Offences against Women and Children. This is a radical legislation under which those convicted in rape cases could be hanged, and if conclusive evidence is available, the judgement must be delivered within 21 days. In tune with the announcement made by Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy to bring in a legislation to act tough against the perpetrators of crimes against women and children, the government has prepared the Bill. The government intends to amend the Indian Penal Code Section 354 and incorporate a new Section 354 (e) to bring social media within its ambit to make it a crime to post anything that may be construed as an insult to women. Such a crime will invite two-year jail sentence. If the convict repeats the crime, he could be sentenced to four years of rigorous imprisonment. The perpetrators of sexual offences against minors will be punished under IPC Section 354 (F). As per the severity of the crime, punishment will be given from 10 to 14 years. At present, the punishment for crimes under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act is three to five years
of imprisonment. The new legislation is intended to expedite cases to ensure speedy justice to women victims and act as an effective deterrent. As per the provisions of the Bill, the investigation into crimes against women should be completed within a week and the trial must be completed within two weeks in fast track courts.It facilitates conviction within three weeks if the accused are caught redhanded with evidence establishing their guilt beyond any reasonable doubt. That law at present mandate completion of investigation in four months and the proposed Bill brings it down to 21 days. It also stipulates that special courts must be set up in each district to try crimes against women such as acid attacks, rape, gangrape and sexual harassment among others. Under the CrPC, from filing FIR to the judgement, there are 9-10 stages of procedure for all the cases. The stages of a criminal case include complaint, investigation, bail, charge-sheet, discharge or framing
of charges, evidence, defence evidence, statement of accused, arguments and then the judgement. The stages of evidence, defence evidence and arguments consume a lot of time. If the entire process has to be completed within 21 days, there should be an amendment to the CrPC. According to Section 167 (2) of the CrPC, any investigation pertaining to an offence punishable with death, imprisonment for life or imprisonment for a term of not less than 10 years has to be completed in 90 days. In any other offence, it has to be completed in 60 days. If the investigation is not completed within the stipulated period, the accused can apply for bail. The government’s decision to amend the Indian Penal Code Section 354 and make a provision for a new Section 354 (e) to bring social media within its ambit and treat it a crime to post anything that may be construed as an insult to women, is most unlikely to be implemented as any crime listing has to be done by the CrPC.
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
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STATES
High court’s order implimented
At last Lokayukta appointed
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THE NEWS BUREAU
inally, Lokayukta was appointed. Nearly six years after the formation of Telangana the state government has appointed former High Court judge Justice C V Ramulu and former Law Secretary V Niranjan Rao as Lokayukta and Upa-Lokayukta respectively. It also appointed G Chandraiah, a former judge of the High Court, as Chairman of the State Human Rights Commission. A committee, headed by Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao(KCR), finalised the names of Lokayukta and Upa-Lokayukta at a meeting during the last week of December. The Committee members included the Legislative Council Chairman, Gutha Sukhender Reddy, Legislative Assembly Speaker Pocharam Srinivasa Reddy, opposition leaders in the Assembly and Council Syed
Ahmed Pasha Quadri and Syed Aminul Hasan Jafri (both belonging to AIMIM). The recommendations made by the committee were accepted by Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan, a press release from the Chief Minister's office said. nearly 6 years that too deadline was given by HIGH COURT OF Telangana by 20 DEC 2019 for filling up the posts of Lokayukta and SHRC chairman. On 19/12/2019 Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao held a meeting with Assembly Speaker Pocharam Srinivas Reddy and others and forwarded the selected list, by which later evening Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan on 19/12/2019 appointed Justice C.V. Ramulu and Justice G. Chandraiah, former judges of the then Hyderabad High Court, as the Lokayukta and the chairman of the State Human Rights Commission respectively .apart from this Former
law secretary V. Niranjan Rao will be the Upa Lokayukta, while N. Anand Rao and Mohammed Irfan Moinuddin will be members of the SHRC. A deadline given by High Court of Telangana has necessitated the state government to the appointment of long-vacant Lokayukta and state Human Rights Commission. High Court has given time to complete these appointments by 20, December. Exactly day before the deadline the committee has finalized and recommended the names to Governor appointment. Before that, the state government on December 13 issued the ordinance amending the Telangana Lokayukta Act 1983 and Protection of HR Act 1993 to deal with nonavailability of retired chief justices and appointing retired judges of the High Court to head both the institutions. Earlier a Khammam-based social activist Koini Venkanna had filed the PIL Telangana High Court bringing out notice of High court that thousands of cases were pending with the Lokayukta and the SHRC. He complained that both the key posts were kept vacant due to the state government's apathy. The exorbitant delay in filling up the vacant posts is causing unnecessary problems to people. After hearing the issue, a division bench comprising Chief Justice Raghavendra Singh Chauhan and Justice Shameem Akhter issued a notice to the Telangana government.
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | DECEMBER 2019
STATES
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Multiple capitals for AP
Decentralise & devlope A
THE NEWS BUREAU
ndhra Pradesh is going to have three capital cities. In a bid to decentralize and develop three regions of this was proposed. Initially Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy has indicated this. Next, the expert committee appointed by state government too recommended decentralised development in the state by having three capital cities. Jagan Mohan Reddy said that.’’We can think in terms of having three capitals, one being the legislative capital and the other two being executive capital and judicial capital.’’ He felt that the government has to discuss in the direction of developing all the regions and the concept of multiple capitals too could be considered. Meanwhile the expert committee appointed by YS Jagan Mohan Reddy has also recommended decentralised development in the state by having three capital cities for the legislature, executive and judiciary and put the available resources to the best use with concern on environment and balanced regional growth. From the time the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) has taken over the power in the state, the fate of Amaravati -- the 'world-class' capital conceived by earlier TDP government chief minister Chandrababu Naidu is uncertain. The earlier Telugu Desam Party (TDP) government had brought in a ‘grand design’ of a capital city developing the 53,000 acres with a
cost of Rs 1.00 lakh crore But our priorities present government looks different. Jagan Mohan Reddy says "We need Rs 60,000 crore for that as there was no water in Rayalaseema region despite the heavy rains and floods. We need Rs 16,000 crore for taking Polavaram water to North Andhra and for drinking water grid we need Rs 40,000 crore. For the Nadu-Nedu programme, we need Rs 29,000 crore for the schools and hospitals put together and since our priorities are so different and aimed at welfare, we have to consider if spending Rs 1.09 lakh crore is necessary for the capital formation." The panel in Amaravati committee headed by GN Rao told media that Visakhapatnam will be the executive capital from where the secretariat will function and will also have the chief minister's office, while Amaravati will be the legislative capital and Kurnool will have the high court with one bench each at Amaravati and Visakhapatnam. The committee had taken into consideration all the aspects and toured all the regions. It took public opinion into account receiving 30,000 representations and also extensively toured the 29 villages and recommended returning the land where there is no need. Thullur has been considered as flood-prone area, GN Rao said. Taking the Karnataka model into account, the state will be divided into four zones with Srikakulam, Vizianagaram and Visakhapatnam forming the north zone, followed by East and West
Godavari districts and Krishna as the central coastal region, Guntur, Prakasam and Nellore coming under south coastal the four south western districts forming Rayalaseema. The four regions will have a Commissionerate which will take care of all the issues of the respective regions. The development model would be vertical from Ichchapuram to Nellore developing urban settlements and horizontal by connecting the Krishna Godavari basin and develop a canal system and solar energy while Rayalaseema should get the water and comprehensive development, the members said. The committee headed by GN Rao, includes Vijay Mohan R Annjali Mohan, Dr Mahavir, Dr Subba Rao and Arunachalam, which submitted its report to the government on Friday. The budget and winter sessions of the Assembly will be held at Amaravati and the Raj Bhavan, the Assembly will be located between Mangalagiri and Nagarjuna University, which is not prone to floods. The flood-prone areas would be avoided and the existing infrastructure would be put to best use and environment is an issue which needs a major concern.
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | DECEMBER 2019
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CRIME
Diverted medicines
Amassed Rs100 crore
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P. VISHNUVARDHAN REDDY
he ACB unearthed a mindboggling Rs 113 crore worth of disproportionate assets of Ch. Devika Rani, former Director of Insurance Medical Services, after conducting simultaneous raids at her residence at Hyderabad and her relative’s residences at Tirupati and Kadapa The ACB has been investigating Devika Rani and her husband Dr P Gurumurthy, a retd civil surgeon, in connection with allegations that they diverted medicines meant for ESI beneficiaries to other private parties. Devika Rani reportedly colluded with pharma companies as well. December 3, the investigators conducted simultaneous searches at Dr Devika’s residence at Hyderabad and her relatives’ houses at Tirupathi and Kadapa. During the
investigation, the ACB sleuths found that the accused acquired the ill-gotten property in her name as well as that of her family members. The disproportionate assets recovered by ACB include Rs 3.8 crore-worth villa and Rs 2.65 crore-worth three flats at Shaikpet village and a flat worth Rs 1.27 crore at Somajiguda. Besides, officials seized 16 commercial shops in Hyderabad worth Rs 3.85 crore, an independent house in Rajendra Nagar, an independent house in Vizag, 11 open plots in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, 32 acres of the agricultural land bank balance of Rs 1.13 crore with multiple institutions, and Rs 8.4 lakh cash from the couple’s residence. While the document value of recovered immovable properties is approximately Rs 15 crore, ACB claims that the market value could
come up to Rs 100 plus crore. The investigators are also probing Devika for her payment of Rs 2.3 crore to PMJ Jewellers. The officers arrested P Gurumurthy on December 4, and they produced him before ACB Court, Hyderabad. He is currently lodged in the Chanchalguda central prison in the city. ACB officials had arrested Devika Rani on September 27. The arrests came a day after the investigators probing the 'multi-crore' scam carried out simultaneous raids at 23 different places belonging to officials of IMS and four private persons in Hyderabad and Warangal. According to officials, Dr. Devika Rani along with her other colleagues and four private individuals, including a Telugu news channel journalist had allegedly diverted 300 crores by procuring the medicine from nonrate Contract firms in the guise of 'emergency medicines'.The investigators were acting upon various complaints filed against Devika and 17 other government employees. They are accused of creating fake indents and indulging in the falsification of records. It has caused a loss of Rs 11.69 crore to the government exchequer. ACB authorities had also arrested Dr Cheruku Arvind Reddy, proprietor of Venkateshwara Health Centre in Balanagar, his supervisor K Ram Reddy and a lab technician K Likhith Reddy as part of the scam.
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
COVER STORY 11
Clash of Tollywood titans
Pongal film panorama T
BY: L.VENUGOPAL
he coming year 2020 is so much interesting for film lovers in two Telugu states. It’s not only for its rhythmic sense but also it attracts many ways including Telugu cinema's glamour. The first month of the year 2020, that's January, seems to have glittered
with top stars' crazy projects at the Tollywood box-office. Though 2019 has given a bitter experience to the Telugu cinema people with the least success rate, this time Tollywood has had many an expectation on new releases of the first month. Especially, Mahesh Babu faces off with Allu Arjun in the arena of Pongal movie combat.
Mahesh's 'Sarileru Neekevvaru', which's directed by Anil Ravipudi, who goes on with his consecutive successes, is slated to be released on January 11th, on the very second day Allu Arjun's 'Ala...Vaikuntapuramulo', where Trivikram has handled the megaphone for the third time for his hero, going to hit the screens on
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
12 COVER STORY
January 12th. Thus these two movies are creating a special alluring among the movie-buffs. Both films have had special attractions to their credit. Fierce cockfight in offing: Mahesh Babu, who's on his hat trick with two blockbusters 'Bharath Ane Nenu' and 'Maharshi' previously, now, 'Sarileru Neekevvaru' on the line. The director of the film Anil Ravipudi has also had a good track record with his previous movies. Interestingly, the hero Mahesh shares the production with Dil Raju and Anil Sunkara, both are his lucky hands. And the film has the music by Devi Sri Prasad, where Tollywood's latest glamour sensation Rashmika Mandanna plays the love interest of the hero. Above all, its Vijayasanthi, yesteryears 'Lady Superstar’, makes her come back with the same 'Sarileru
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
Neekevvaru'. With all these assets the film is making a business of above Rs. 125 crores all over the globe. After many speculations movie title, ‘Sarileru Neekevvaru’ was announced on May 31, 2019, 75th birthday of Krishna, the father and yesteryears Tollywood hero. The filmmakers unveiled the title poster. On August 15, 2019, coinciding with the Indian Independence day, they have released a tribute song ‘Sarileru Neekevvaru’ for Indian Army for their bravery and sacrifice for the country, which was sung by Deepak Blue and lyrics penned by Devi Sri Prasad. Tollywood Top star Mahesh Babu is coming to theatres this Sankranthi with SarileruNeekevvaru. Superstar Mahesh Babu appears in an Army Major role in
COVER STORY 13
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
14 COVER STORY
this movie. After a gap of 5 years this Superstar is coming with Mass Entertainer. His last two films 'Maharshi' and 'Bharath Ane nenu' are two sensations on Large and small screens. This action film stars Mahesh Babu as Indian Army Major Ajay Krishna while Rashmika Mandanna plays the female lead role. 'Sarileru Neekevvaru' also features Vijayashanti, Prakash Raj, Satya Dev, Pradeep Rawat, Hari Teja, Sachin Khedekar, Rajendra Prasad, Subbaraju, Vennela Kishore and Ajay. On the other hand 'Ala Vaikuntapuramulo' has some attractions in its own way. The film is the third attempt of the hero Allu Arjun and the director Trivikram, they had seen the grand success with their previous movies 'Julayi' and 'Son of Satyamurthy'. Thus, the combo attempted to make their mark again at the box-office with their third venture. The duo also on their hat trick. Already the movie's music, composed by Thaman, making a sensation all over. The film's being produced by S.Radha Krishna (China Babu), this time, shares the production with Allu Aravind, father of the hero. The film adds
the glamour with its female protagonist Pooja Hegde and interestingly Taboo, who also a glamour queen for previous generations, plays a key role. Sources say that the film also touches the above Rs.120 crore through its business. The teaser of the stylish star, Allu Arjun's Ala Vaikunthapurramloo was released a short while back and it is garnering a great response from netizens. The teaser has clocked 1 million views in just 7
minutes and that pretty much speaks for itself. The teaser itself was packed with class and mass elements. Allu Arjun is at his stylish best and stands as the main asset of the teaser. Trivikram's trademark dialogues and classy presentation have made this teaser an instant hit. Ala Vaikunthapurramloo stars Allu Arjun, Pooja Hegde, Tabu, Jayaram, Murali Sharma, Navdeep, and Akkineni Sushanth in prominent roles. Not only business both the films have already been making their marks respectively all over through their publicity. Mahesh's 'Sarileru Neekevvaru' teaser made its mark while Allu Arjun's 'Ala... Vaikuntapuramulo' also did its sign with its two memorable songs and a song "Saamajavara Ramana...' created history on youtube. At the same time both the heroes, Mahesh and Arjun have a good track record in Pongal race. Mahesh has tasted grand success with his 'Okkadu' and 'Seetamma Vakitlo Sirimalle Chettu' in the same season, where Allu Arjun has also had his block-
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
COVER STORY 15
buster 'Desamuduru' on the same Pongal race, and his cameo appearance 'Evadu' also a Pongal hit. These two movies are going to fight like betting cocks in the coming Pongal race. During last week of November, a statement from the Active Telugu Film Producers Guild (ATFPG) declared that a meeting with the producers of Sarileru Neekevvaru and Ala Vaikunthapurramulo helped avoid the box office clash of the films. Both films had earlier announced their release dates as January 11. After intervention by ATFPG, it was decided that Sarileru will arrive on January 11 and Ala Vaikunthapurramulo on January 12. Even then many foresee these two movies are going to have a fierce fight like wellbred Pongal cocks. Rajni magic is ready: Before these two crazy projects, Tamil Superstar Rajnikanth makes a way to his new film 'Darbaar', which's directed by A R Murugadoss, releases on 9th January, 2020. The film is being dubbed in Telugu
with the same title and Anirudh Ravichander's music stands one of its credits. Murugadoss is noted for his films where he adds some social cause to his ventures. This noted director first time works with Superstar Rajnikanth. This will be an attractive thing for this project. Rajni also seeks for a grand success, he didn't taste it after his 'Enthiran', which's dubbed in Telugu as 'Robot', where Aish-
warya Roy Bachchan played the female lead and the film made a sensation all over the globe. Thus, Rajni's fans have had much hope in this 'Darbaar'. One more interesting thing for director Murugadoss is 'Darbaar' is the movie which participates in Pongal race after 14 years of his directorial debut 'Dheena', where Tamil young superstar Ajith played the title role, that hit the screens on January 14th 2001, a successful movie that made a path to the director's golden future. Superstar Rajinikanth said, " We couldn't think about anyone else but AR Murugadoss to direct ‘Darbaar’ movie. I loved his 'Ramana' and 'Gajini'. I had been wanting to work with him for long. Murugadoss knew what kind of roles would interest me and he came up with 'Darbar' in a week's time. That's how this project got birthed. At one level, this movie is a suspense thriller. I am happy to have got to work with a director who blends message with entertainment, like Shankar.” Along with these three, Nandamuri Kalyan Ram's 'Entha ManchiVaadavuraa', which's di-
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
16 COVER STORY
rected by Sateesh Vegesna, who already tasted a Pongal success with his 'Satamanam Bhavati' in 2017, also participates in the race. The film has been produced by noted music company Aditya Musics and it has had the music by Gopi Sundar. Mehreen Kaur Pirzadea plays the heroine. This family entertainer also makes some interest. The film is slated to release on 15th January. Another two on the way: Apart from the Pongal race another two projects making curiosity, those are Anushka's 'Nissabdam' and Raviteja's "Disco Raja'. Raviteja has been waiting for good success, for quite some time. He didn't get a grand success after his 'Raja the great'. Now, Raviteja and his fans have many hopes in 'Disco Raja', which's going to hit the screens on 24th January. The film has three glamour gals including Payal Rajput, Nabha Natesh and Tanya Hope. This film is directed by VI Anand, who made some interesting movies like 'Ekkadiki Potavu Chinnavaada' and 'Kshanam'. 'Disco Raja' has the music by Thaman, a lucky chop for Raviteja, gave memorable tunes for the hero for his 'Kick, Balupu, Mi-
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
rapakay, Anjaneyulu and Power'. So, 'Disco Raja' has also had some interesting points to its credit. On the other hand Raviteja's 'Vikramarkudu' heroine Anushka also making some curiosity with her latest venture 'Nissabdam', which's directed by Hemanth Madhukar and produced by noted writer Kona Venkat along with TG Viswanath. Madhavan shares the screen with Anuskha, where she plays another challenging role as a dumb and deaf gal with many a talent including fine arts like music and art. The film has the music by Gopi Sundar and the producers have a plan to release this on 31st of January. Last January disappointed a lot, except with the grand success of 'F2', directed by Anil Ravipudi, who's also in the race this time with his 'Sarileru neekevvaru'. This January promises something more than the last year. All these projects have had their own assets and their business also, according to the sources, making well. Now, it's time to perform their level best at the booking counters. Hope, all these crazy projects do well at the box-office.
COVER STORY 17
(The author is Telugu film critic & Tollywood researcher)
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
18
INVESTINGATION
Ghatkesar Tahsildar’s Tamasha
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Rytu Bandhu funds swindled
BY: D.BAL REDDY
t is the general perception that violation of rules and corruption is rampant in police department. However, senior officials of the anti-corruption agencies of the state say violation of rules and corruption is highest in revenue department. The revenue officials commit glaring irregularities for obvious reasons to cause benefit for select people notwithstanding the fact that the irregularity will cause serious loss to the state exchequer and common people. Here is one classic case. The then Tahsildar of Ghatkesar mandal in Medchal district N. Rajeshwar Reddy issued a proceeding in favour of a group of people which amounts to framing of incorrect record by public servants in collusion with certain private persons causing wrongful loss to the state exchequer and innocent buyers of house plots. The Tahsildar facilitated change of entries in revenue records under the guise of correction of revenue records in possession column without proper verification of facts. It appears those who have got ‘corrected the records’ have made the Tahsildar happy in return for the favour. The case is like this. M. Janardhan Reddy, S/o late Malla Reddy, M. Krishna Reddy, S/o late Chandra Reddy, M. Venkat Reddy, S/o late Narsi Reddy, M. S. Upender Reddy, S/o Ranga Reddy, all residents of Pratapa Singaram
WRONG ENTRIES MADE IN PAHANIS TAHSILDAR RAJESHWAR REDDY ISSUES PROCEEDINGS RYTU BANDHU FUNDS SWINDLED IN GHATKESAR MANDAL BHAVANI NAGAR PLOT OWNERS LEFT HIGH AND DRY
Village, Ghatkesar Mandal were the owners, possessors and pattedars of agricultural dry land in survey numbers 315, 316 and 317, total admeasuring Ac. 25.17 Gts. They have obtained approval for house sites layout in their land and sold most of the house plots through their General Power of Attorney (vide Document No. 135/1088, dated 04.04.1988) M. Buchi Reddy, S/o Late Chandra Reddy. Several common people pur-
chased the house plots since 1988 in survey numbers 315, 316 and 317 with their hard earned money and life savings. All of them subsequently applied for land regularization, while many of them even obtained bank loans for purchase of the house plots. Various banks have issued loans after thorough verification of the documents and on the recommendation of their legal advisers. Subsequently the plot owners formed into an association and reg-
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istered the same as Sri Bhavani Nagar Welfare Association vide registration No. 6882/99. Though many of the plot owners obtained building permission from Pratapa Singaram Gram Panchayat, no one has started construction as most of the plot owners are residing elsewhere due to their work requirements. Taking advantage of this and due to the steep rise in land prices, previous land owners Janardhan Reddy, Krishna Reddy, Venkat Reddy, Upender Reddy along with their GPA Buchi Reddy approached the then Tahsildar N Rajeshwar Reddy on the pretext of correction of entries in possession column of the pahanies and managed to get their names entered in the possession column in the pahani vide Proc.No.B/343/2018, dated 18.04.2018 of the Tahsildar, Ghatkesar Mandal, Medchal District. The plot owners have submitted a detailed statement to the then Tahsildar vide letter dated 25.01.2018 stating that the previous land owners were trying to get the revenue records changed into
INVESTINGATION 19
their names whereas the truth is that they have already sold the plots to various persons on the strength of the layout approved by Gram Panchayat. However, the previous land owners created a fake housing society in the name of K.K. Colony Housing Society and arranged to submit a fabricated compromise petition saying they have no objection for change of entries in the revenue records. After changing the
entries, the fake housing society was dissolved and its president by name M. Rajesh disappeared. The Tahsildar did not consider the objections of the genuine land owners but took the letter submitted by the fake housing society on record and issued proceedings changing the entries in the pahanies. Based on the changed entries in the revenue records the previous land owners in collusion with some
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20 INVESTINGATION
revenue officials, secured pattedar pass books and siphoned off funds under the ‘Rytu Bandhu’ scheme thus committing the crime of causing wrongful loss to the state exchequer. When the plot owners approached the present Tahsildar for removing the wrong entries made in the revenue records on the strength of the proceeding issued
by the previous Tahsildar, the new official issued an endorsement No.B/343/2018, dated 17.12.2019 of the Tahsildar, Ghatkesar Mandal, Medchal District, saying that pattedar passbooks have been issued in the name of previous land owners on the basis of the proceedings issued by the previous Tahsildar and suggested the plot owners to approach the Revenue Divi-
sional Officer for justice. While so, the previous land owners are threatening the plot owners and trying to dispossess them from the plots thereby causing wrongful loss to the plot owners and grab the land from the plot owners. Thus, the previous land owners conspired with the then revenue officials and got their names entered in the possession column of the pahanis with a criminal intention of causing loss to the government exchequer and plot owners. The plot owners made a representation to the RDO concerned on December 27 seeking to nullify the wrong entries made in the pahanis on the basis of colluded proceedings issued by the then Tahsildar, Rajeshwar Reddy. The RDO has assured to look into the matter and take action accordingly. From this one thing is clear that revenue officials can do whatever they like with the stroke of a pen notwithstanding the fact that their stroke can cause wrongful loss to the state exchequer and common people.
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STATES
21
Leaders targetted End of RTC employees unions?
T
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he operation of eliminating employees unions has begun. The TRS which had all the support during the agitation for a separate state and during the last election has is now finding the same supporters as painful burden on the back. Chief Minister K.Chandrashekar Rao(KCR) while addressing carefully chosen RTC employees meeting at his official residence on 1, December has revealed his mind about unions. On the lines of his ideas Telangana Road Transport Corporation (TSRTC) has stripped off all privileges of Unions. KCR on that day has announced that the 50,000 RTC employees
would be taken back, however, they must not fall into traps of the unions. The chief minister had categorically stated that unions only look for power and privileges and did not care about workers welfare. A day after this, the Telangana Mazdoor Union office was found locked and shut down by the TSRTC management, preventing any kind of further meetings there. “The privileges that a recognised union enjoyed have been withdrawn. These include shutting down of office accommodation, closure of extended telephone services and cancellation of ‘relief leaves’,” said a senior official. The recognised union previously enjoyed an office space inside Bus Bhavan to hold their meetings,
however, this was shut down. The phone connection was given to them to make calls, costs of which were borne by the RTC management. Around 17 to 18 individuals getting relief leaves, like getting salaries without having to report to duties, were also cancelled. “The relief leaves were cancelled The union leaders have to report to duty,” The union leaders were also among the around 50,000 employees of the TSRTC who reported to work last week. Ashwathama Reddy reported at MGBS as a controller, K Raji Reddy at Musheerabad Depot 1 as traffic inspector and M Thomas Reddy as a deputy traffic superintendent in Karimnagar depot. Immediately after stripping
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22
STATES
privileges of the unions the TSRTC management released a declaration form for employees urging authorities to state that they would not hold union elections for a period of two years. The form given to all employees states: “We serve in various positions of the depot and this is to inform that we are setting up a Worker’s Welfare Council for fast track resolution of our problems. We are confident in that working for us, so kindly do no hold trade union elections for at least two years.” The form had a space for signatures and was directed to the Labour Commissioner. It is reported that unless an employees signs and hands over he/she was not allotted the duty. Even though there was pressure from the unions not to sign the papers, several employees had done so. However, The sudden move has naturally not gone down well with the unions, with the Employees union immediately launching a depot-wide dharna in protest. To get back privileges, union leaders write to MD and Labour Commissioner. TSRTC JAC has sent in one letter addressed to the managing di-
rector of TSRTC and the Labour Commissioner, stating that the revocation of these rights is against the law. After all their privileges were stripped off by the TSRTC management, the TSRTC unions are now approaching the Labour Commissioner to ensure that their rights are restored The previous union’s term ended in August 2018 and fresh elections were delayed due to the State and General elections. “The Executive Director has communicated to withdraw the facility of relief, which is unfair as per the Code of Discipline,” noted E Ashwathama Reddy, convenor of TSRTC JAC. Their letters state that since TMU is a recognised union as per the ballot conducted under Clause 3 and 6 of the Code of Discipline in 2017, the management cannot revoke their rights as they are basic labour and union rights given by the central provisions. "Relief is not the only issue. With this crackdown, they have disallowed nearly 90 state and zonal secretaries from having a day off to hear the woes and issues of workers" noted Thomas Reddy. He further stated that if the management fails to
revoke the restrictions, they will explore legal routes to reclaim their rights. TSRTC JAC convenor Ashwathama Reddy, however, said: “Labour laws will tell if unions should be there or not. As per the code of discipline, we won with 17,000 votes.”Another union leader Raji Reddy said, “Trade unions have been involved in the fight for freedom be it for India or Telangana. If you have issues with unions, invite us to talk and resolve them.” Telangana State RTC leaders fight pressure to end unions Management asks workers to sign declaration against elections to unions and opt for Welfare Council instead. “Even when we had unions, it took us nearly 55 days to resolve the issue. If they take away unions now, then the workers will drown,” he said. JAC leader K Raji Reddy also stated that the move must desist as it was not in tune with the Central government’s rules on labour and unionisation. Forming unions are part of basic labour rights, and must not be taken away at any cost, he observed.
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FOR THE PEOPLE 23
D. BAL REDDY
Waiting ends for TRS leaders
G
Feast is getting ready
ates for large scale appointments of ruling party leaders in Telangana as a corporation, the chairman is opened. Several ruling Telangana Rastra Samithi legislators who were not accommodated as ministers in Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao (KCR)’s Cabinet, are likely to get these key posts as the State government. To facilitate this TRS government has brought an Ordinance, exempting as many as 28 Corporations form the office of profit. The Telangana Payment of Salaries and Pensions and Removal of Disqualifications (Amendment) ordinance, 2019 - which is the seventh Ordinance to be introduced this year - was published in the State Gazette on 4, December. This has become necessary for the TRS because of it’s ‘Akarshan TRS’ has attracted the majority of MLAs for main opposition Congress and Telugudesham parties. Though almost all of them gave an identical statement “ I am attracted by progressive policies and people-friendly administration of KCR government. To help my constituency development and to serve my constituency people in a
better way I am joining ruling TRS. I have neither asked for any post nor TRS promised me anything.” But it is widely believed and discussed in political circles that almost all of the legislators who have shifted their loyalties to TRS were promised some official post for them or their family member. But when it comes to sitting MLAs
they can not hold another office along with Assembly or council membership, where salary is paid. To overcome this limitation the corporation chairman posts need to take out of the list of ‘Office of profit’. The appointment of corporation chairmen gained considerably in view of growing dissatisfaction among TRS leaders and their followers in recent months.
According to sources, several senior leaders, including former Deputy Chief Minister Kadiyam Srihari, ministers Nayani Narasimha Reddy – Dr.Laxma Reddy – Juppali Krishana Rao Tummala Nageswara Rao –who were denied Cabinet berths, are likely be nominated as chairpersons of some of the key Corporations. Former Deputy Speaker of the Assembly M Padma Devender Reddy Nizamabad Urban MLA Begala Ganesh Gupta, who is the only Legislator representing the Vysya community and Wardhannapet (SC) MLA Aroori Ramesh names are also likely to be considered for one of the nominated posts. Leaders, who joined the TRS from the Congress, may also, be considered for the top posts and they include D.Nagender LB Nagar MLA Devireddy Sudheer Reddy and Tandur MLA Rohith Reddy. Eventually the hard reality is: There are no free lunches. Similarly, there is a change of mind for a politician unless there is an unfailing availability of ‘Cash or kind’.
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Pak, Bangla, Afghan minorities
Citizenship act protects P
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resident Ram Nath Kovind gave his assent to the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2019, turning it into an act. According to an official notification, the act comes into effect with its publication in the official gazette on 12, December. Amid raging protests, the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2019 was passed after a fierce debate in both houses of parliament. The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2019, which seeks to give Indian nationality to non-Muslim refugees from
Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan facing religious persecution there, was passed in Lok Sabha by 311-80 votes at the stroke of midnight after seven hours of heated debate. In Rajya Sabha with 125 votes polled in support while 105 against in the strength of 230 members. The majority mark in the House was 116. According to the Act, members of Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi and Christian communities, who have come from these countries till December 31, 2014, will not be treated as illegal immigrants. The opposition argued that the
bill, by mixing religion with citizenship, violates the basic structural feature of secularism as envisioned in the preamble of the Constitution. It also said that the bill was against articles 14 (that guarantees equality before the law for all), 15 ('no person shall be discriminated on the basis of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth'), 21 ('no person shall be deprived of his life or personal liberty'), 25 ('all persons are equally entitled to freedom of conscience and the right to freely profess, practise, and propagate religion') and 26 ('freedom to manage religious
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affairs') of the Constitution. The government, on the other hand, said that article 14 of the Constitution does not forbid "reasonable classification" for the purposes of legislation. The home minister cited the example of 1971 when the government after the Bangladesh War had used such "reasonable classification" to grant citizenship to people who came from the country. He said the world over such classification is used to allow or not allow citizenship (e.g. the US granting Green Cards based on investments or research etc). Justifying the use of religion as a classifier, he said that the three neighbouring countries which are part of the bill have a state religion so minorities in these countries will be based on religion and since Islam is the state religion, religious persecution of Muslims cannot happen in these countries. The government also said that article 11 of the Constitution empowers Parliament to regulate the right of citizenship. Union Home Minister and Member Amit Shah, while answering the queries raised by the members of the House on the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2019, assured that the “Bill is not antiMuslim and Indian Muslims need not worry about anything”.Shah said that there would have been no need for this Bill if the country would not have been divided in 1947. This Bill will bring a solution to the issues related to citizenship that aroused after the partition. Giving reference to the NehruLiaquat Pact, Shah said that under the pact both parties came under to an understanding that the minorities will be given equality, freedom to trade, freedom of expression, and religion. But on contrary to the
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pact, the minorities on the other (Pakistan) side was barred from contesting elections and their number also declined continuously. However, in India, the minorities got the chance to hold reputed positions like President, Vice-President, and Chief Justice.“This is not the first time that an amendment has been brought in the Bill,” Shah asserted. “When citizenship was granted to Sri Lankan immigrants then why Bangladeshis were left out? When Uganda immigrants were given citizenship then why Pakistani and Bangladeshi immigrants were left out?” asked Shah. Politicising the bill has begun very next day of it’s passing Lok Sabha. A day after voting to pass the bill in the Lok Sabha, Shiv Sena said that its support to the bill in the Rajya Sabha is not a given as many of its "queries have not been answered.'' Two senior leaders of JD(U), a BJP ally in Bihar, questioned the party's decision to back the bill saying it was discriminatory Protests have begun in some
North Eastern states with A 11-hour bandh called by the North-East Students' Organisation (NESO), an umbrella body of influential students' bodies of the region, against the CA. The protest have hit normal life in the Northeast. Schools, shops and markets remained closed in many areas of the region. Agitators clashed with security forces and train services were affected in Assam while the Tripura government suspended SMS and mobile internet connectivity for 48-hours.
UNWARRANTED INTERFERENCE:
The US Commission on International Religious Freedom, a commission of the US government said on that, the US government should consider sanctions against Amit Shah if the Bill is passed by the Upper House too. India termed the reaction as "neither accurate nor warranted." Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan pitched in with a tweet saying the bill "violates all norms of international human rights law and bilateral
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THE NATION
agreements with Pakistan." : In neighbouring Bangladesh, meanwhile, the military has started erecting fences around camps housing lakhs of Rohingya refugees despite complaints from community leaders and rights groups, reports news agency AFP. Frustration has been growing in Bangladesh about hosting the refugees, particularly since the latest attempt to repatriate them to Myanmar failed in August.
HOW MANY PEOPL E ARE LIKELY TO BENEFIT?
Exact numbers are hard to come by, but, Himanta Biswa Sarma, a senior Bharatiya Janata Party minister in Assam said that around 10 million or 1 crore people would benefit from the change in the law. That number is likely to include some of the 1.9 million residents of
the state who do not find their names in Assam's National Register of Citizens. Interestingly, many people who are the targeted beneficiaries of the scheme — non-Muslim minorities from neighbouring countries forced to take refuge in India — have thus far not pushed for citizenship on this count, although some may have already obtained citizenship through other routes according to the Intelligence Bureau. In October 2016, the Director of Intelligence Bureau (DIB) told a Joint Parliamentary Committee that, "there are 31,313 persons belonging to minority communities who have been given long term visa on the basis of their claim of religious persecution in their respective countries and want Indian Citizenship". He was testifying before the Joint Parliamentary
Committee on Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2016, which was tabled in January. He also told the Joint Parliamentary Committee that of the 31,313 people on Long Term Visa's 25447 were Hindus, 5807 were Sikhs, 55 Christians, 2 Buddhists and 2 Parsis. But the real number could be much higher, he added. Many more would have already "taken citizenship by various means." The DIB added that "they might have obtained passport, ration card. All other documents they might have obtained and they might have already registered themselves in the voter's list. So, for all practical purposes, they are already citizens of this country. The bill is for those who have applied and who have claimed that they have been persecuted in their respective country."
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CAA and NCR
Battle cries in the name of protests
A
A.RAMMOHAN RAO
t least 25 people were killed in clashes with the police as antiCAA protests rocked in various states in the country. Several people, including 100 plus policemen, were also injured in the classes schools and colleges those states were shut many days. Section 144 has been imposed with internet services suspended in many districts of those states. Till last week of December more than 25 people have lost their lives nationwide since the protest against the amended citizenship act and the proposed nationwide National Register of Citizens. Of them 18 deaths were in Uttar Pradesh, where police and protesters had
clashed in Lucknow, Kanpur, Saharanpur, Sambhal and elsewhere. An NDTV report based on video evidence from Kanpur has raised doubts over UP police's claim of not shooting at protesters. 879 people were arrested in Uttar Pradesh so far. Preventive action was taken against 5,000 others. 135 criminal cases have been registered against protesters in UP. Meanwhile, the UP police have begun sealing shops in Muzaffarnagar, two days after CM Yogi Adityanath said his government would seek badla (revenge) against protesters, saying their properties will be sealed. Protests against the amended Citizenship Act which spread to many states have taken the shape of
the battle against union government which protesters attacked public property, their so-called ‘intellectuals’ abused country’s Prime Minister and Home Minister. Students from some universities such as Jamia Milia University, Aligarh Muslim University, Maulana Azad National Urdu University in Hyderabad and few other from various parts of the country like IITs (Kanpur, Bombay and Madras), Tata Institute of Social Science in Mumbai, Delhi University, Central University of Kerala, Pondicherry University, Mumbai University and Kolkata's Jadavpur University protested against the contentious law and expressed solidarity with the students of Jamia. Uncontrolled violence:
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While Jamia's vice-chancellor Najma Akhtar has demanded a high-level probe into Delhi Police's crackdown at the Jamia Milia University. There are conflicting reports on who instigated the violence on the streets of Delhi with which violence in the name of protest against CAA and NRC has begun. One bus was set ablaze and many were damaged. Jamia students and teachers' association have distanced themselves from the violence, so has the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA who held simultaneous protests. Delhi Deputy CM Manish Sisodia (of AAP) blamed "dirty politics" and called for an investigation to find the true culprits. Sisodia also tweeted a picture that shows Delhi police personnel pouring some unidentified liquid into the bus; police say they were dousing the fire with water. Delhi Police has registered two FIRs for rioting and damage to public properties against unknown persons;
police said culprits will be identified using CCTV footage. Opposition leaders - CPI(M)'s Sitaram Yechury, Congress leaders Ghulam Nabi Azad and Kapil Sibal, CPI's D. Raja, RJD's Manoj Jha and JD-U's Sharad Yadav condemned Delhi Police and demanded a judicial inquiry into the incidents at Jamia. Beyond varsities, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee led a massive rally in Kolkata, declaring the new law and the National Register of Citizens can be enforced in the state only over her "dead body"; in Delhi, Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra led a sit-in protest at India Gate. Is it nobody’s property? The irony is public property, that's paid for by taxpayers' money being damaged by members of the public in the name of protest. Fact remains that no one ends up paying for the destruction of property and vehicles, like it, happened during
protests, for example four DTC buses, 100 private vehicles and 10 police bikes were set ablaze or damaged in the clashes between people protesting against the CAA and the Delhi Police. The damage in Delhi follows on the heels of the violence in West Bengal against the CAA and arson in Assam which saw three rail stations, a post office and a bank, along with several vehicles being damaged or set afire. There seems no fear in people who damages public properties. One of the main reason is the conviction rate, at 29.8%, in damage to public property cases. Checking facts indicates just no one really ends up paying for the damages. At the end of 2017, there were 14,876 cases of damage to public property pending before various courts. Haryana, UP and Tamil Nadu led the list with the highest number of such cases amounting to almost 6,300 offences for damage to
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THE NATION
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Citizenship Act
I
It’s not the first time Muslims barred
t turns out, that the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) isn't the first time that the Centre has made a distinction between nationals of the three neighbouring countries of Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh, on the basis of their religious identity. The Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) last year introduced a regulation that allowed Long Term Visa - LTV holders from Afghanistan, Bangladesh or Pakistan who were either Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis or Christians The CAA grants citizenship status to LTV holders of minority communities from this Islamic countries to buy a house or an office in India. The Act specifically omits Muslims from these three countries from acquiring any property in India. The Act allows minorities from Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh, who are in India on an LTV, to buy one property for residential purposes - self-occupied - and one property for conducting their business. However, as a safeguard, it prohibits even these minorities from buying any property located ‘in and around restricted/ protected areas so notified by the Central Government and cantonment areas.’ Moreover, the buyer needs to submit a declaration to the Revenue Authority stating the source of funds, along with the nationality and that
public property. Why did this happen? Is law is Toothless? The Prevention of
he/she is an LTV holder - facts which also need to be stated on the registration papers. While the Act facilitates the buying of properties in India for minorities from the Muslim majority countries in India's neighbourhood, it forbids them from selling their properties until they have acquired Indian citizenship. They may, however, transfer the properties after obtaining approval from either the area DCP or the FRRO or the FRO. The Act also allows the government to confiscate these properties if it's determined that the owner has indulged in anti-India activities. What is the LTV? Depending on why a person from these three countries (Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh) comes to India, an LTV may be issued for either 5 years or 1 year -in either case, it's issued only to those who are coming here with the intent to become Indian citizens. The extension is given on a two-year basis. For the nationals of the three countries named in the CAA, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) specifies four categories - minorities, (Hindus, Sikhs, Christians, Parsis, Jains and Buddhists) from the three nations, women or nationals from the three countries married to Indian citizens, widows or divorcees of Indian origin wishing
Damage to Public Property Act, 1984 for the first time introduced penal provisions for violent
to return to India and on compassionate grounds. For other foreign nationalities, an LTV is granted on a case-bycase basis if it's certified that the applicant is persecuted in the home country - this is so as India is not a signatory to the 1951 United Nations Convention on the Status of Refugees and the 1967 Protocol thereof. Interestingly, the rules make specific mention of Pakistani or Bangladeshi women - with no mention of their religion married to Indians to be granted LTVs whereas, in the case of Afghanistan, it allows Afghans, regardless of gender or religion and married to Indian nationals, to be eligible for LTV. Though the tourism ministry has proposed an LTV to tourists in order to boost tourist inflows and forex earnings, people coming to India for work bared from getting an LTV. LTV holders can only work either for the private sector or be self-employed - they are barred from employment in any government establishment. They can buy a house but can't sell it. They can open a bank account, get a PAN and an Aadhar card and even obtain a driving licence. Their children are allowed admission in educational institutes without any prior government approval. protests - with prison terms ranging from six months to 10 years and fines for those found guilty of
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THE NATION
arson and mob violence during a protest. The Prevention of Damage to Public Property Amendment Bill that was introduced in the wake of the Jat agitation in Haryana in 2016, sought to treat protests by politicians with kid gloves. Among the amendments was a provision to grant the leader of a political party relief if he/she could prove that the violence and damage was done
"without his knowledge" and despite his exercising "due diligence" to prevent the offence. The bill also sought to water down the punishment for abetment of such damage by classifying it as a lesser offence than the actual act of damage allowing leaders of political parties another escape route from the law. Supreme Court said it will hear
matters concerning violence in Jamia and Aligarh Muslim University, provided "rioting stops first" but added: "prima facie I don't think Court can do much, it's a law and order problem". Meanwhile, PM Narendra Modi said the violent protests were "unfortunate and deeply distressing". "Debate, discussion and dissent are essential parts of democracy but, never has damage to public property and disturbance of normal life been a part of our ethos," he added. PM Modi also said his government's schemes had never discriminated against anyone based on their religion, and accused the Congress, its allies and "urban Naxals" of "misleading people and stoking emotions". "The citizenship law or the NRC has nothing to do with Indian Muslims. They have nothing to worry," he said. Even as he led the rally in Delhi, peaceful protests were held in Delhi, Hyderabad, Bengaluru and elsewhere. (With Bureau inputs)
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THE NATION 31
Jerk in Jharkhand
Setback to saron
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ssembly election results for tribal-dominated Jharkhand state has given a jerk to ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). It’s a graph in state polls continued to dip steadily with the party ceding Jharkhand to the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha-Congress-Rashtriya Janata Dal combines after votes were counted on 23, December. Since 2018, BJP has lost Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan and Maharashtra. (Maharashtra and Jharkhand has slipped out of the BJP's hand within two months). Clearly, its huge victory in the Lok Sabha elections in April-May this year has not translated into gains at the state level.
The saffron party now governs only 35 per cent of the country's landmass compared with over 75% during its peak in March 2018 when it was in power in the entire Hindi-speaking heartland. In the same period, the percentage of the population is governed by the BJP in the states, either on its own or with its allies have dropped from over 69% to around 43%. That said, the BJP did emerge as the single largest party in Maharashtra (105 out of 288 seats) and Haryana (40 out of 90) barely a few months after the Lok Sabha polls. But the defeat in Jharkhand has been absolute, given that it's the first time since the state's formation that it has not emerged as the single largest party, as it always had once
jointly with the JMM. (The seat counts for the JMM and Congress on Monday was 30 and 16, respectively. RJD picked up 1.) Also, BJP's vote share of more than 55 per cent in the state during the Lok Sabha elections slumped to 33% in the Assembly polls. How well the regional parties are holding up against the BJP. In fact, the Congress playing second fiddle to the JMM (a regional party) appears to be a throwback to the Grand Old Party's pre-2004 political strategy. Think the Congress knitting alliances with small parties and reaching the position to dare and defeat the NDA led by Atal Bihari Vajpayee in the Lok Sabha polls that year. With Jharkhand, the Congress has now returned to power in seven states. Spare a thought then for Raghubar Das, the incumbent Jharkhand CM and the first nontribal to occupy the chair. The fivetime MLA who never lost an election since 1995, was slain by former cabinet colleague and BJP rebel-turned-independent candidate Saryu Roy by over 15,000 votes in Jamshedpur East. Das resigned as CM late on Monday evening. And the person who's set to replace him is former CM Hemant Soren (of the JMM). Soren won from the two seats he contested: Dumka and Bahrain. And buoyed by this big win, expect him to last more than the 14 months he did during his first stint.
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STATES
BJP sweeps Karnataka bypolls
Now a majority government
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he ruling BJP bagged 12 out of the 15 assembly seats that went to bypolls in Karnataka in December first week. The polls held 5, December has helped the BS Yediyurappa government hold on to power. The bypolls were held to fill the vacancies caused by the disqualification of 17 rebel Congress and JD(S) MLAs, whose revolt led to the collapse of the 14-month-old H D Kumaraswamy-led coalition government in July and paved the way for BJP to come to power. The results may finally bring political stability that has eluded Karnataka since the 2018 polls threw up a hung assembly. The actual strength of the 225-member Karnataka assembly goes up from 208 to 223 and that of the BJP from
105 to 117, four more than the halfway mark. Last year, the BJP, after emerging as the single largest party (with 104 seats) had attempted to form a government first but failed to get the numbers. The Congress (with 78 seats) and the JD(S) (37 seats) then formed a coalition government but it fell after 17 MLAs from the two parties rebelled and resigned from the assembly. With the 17 MLAs disqualification, the assembly strength was reduced from 225 to 208. With 15 seats got filled up, the effective strength of the assembly now is 223. The BJP has 105 MLAs (including an independent) so to reach the majority mark of 112 (in a 223-member assembly) on its own, the party needed 7 seats (including the Speaker, who has a casting vote). But the saffron party has won 5 seats more.By winning
12 seats now have a comfortable majority in the assembly. Now Yediyurappa, who was sworn in as CM on July 26 for the fourth time, would get a shot at completing his full term, something which he couldn't do on earlier three occasions. The Karnataka BJP is in a jubilant mood with results of this crucial byelections. But the party may now face the problem of accommodating all the rebels in the state Cabinet as promised. There are just 34 Cabinet posts and more than 50 ‘senior’ MLAs who have won more than three elections. The Congress, which had won 12 of those 15 seats in the 2018 assembly polls, won just two this time around, prompting senior leader and former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to resign as the legislature party leader.
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THE NEWS
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IN FOCUS
Nagula Narender
A leader from the people
Y
BY: BENCHMARK SYS.
ou are the sixth son of a fourth class government employee. Live in a village away from the city. Your family financial position allowed to just complete graduation in a government college. Where will you stand? Look for a job, however small it may be and curse destiny. Here is a young man, Nagula Narender exactly from this background and zooming into a position where he is not only is great support family but the society with a number of service activities. Narender (38) of Bandlaguda Jagir in Gandipet Mandal. His father Nagula Ramulu has a very big family to support. Being in the village, almost 40 KM away from Hyderabad he could barely manage to send his bright, sixth son to govt. degree college in Chintal Basti. Inspite of difficulties Ramulu and his wife Balamani strived to see him continue his education. Soon after graduation Narender has started cultivation and fallowed eco-friendly methods. This made him stand as an example for many. After that, he started a realty business. Narender’s fair practices, persistence in providing customers with the best value for their investment has made him popular and flourish in the dog eat dog real estate business. “It’s my parents' sacrifices, values they have taught made me commitmented to what I do and they made what I am today. They are my living Gods.” Says
Narender. Narender’s friendly and helpful nature made him dear to many people in Bandlaguda Jagir and surrounding villages. While running a profitable real estate business he started to help solve various problems faced by people. School education to local transport in all possible areas he has identified issues causing difficulties to villages and adjacent colony residents. Systematically working on them. “ I spend around twenty-five per cent of my profits to undertake social development activities,” Narender said. Common needs of govt. primary school like painting, sports equipment, electrical works and repairs, maintenance identified and provided. When plants distribution programme conducted at a school Narender has observed that there
was leakage in the slab, the painting was gone, the main gate was damaged, electrical wiring collapsed and fans are not working. He immediately initiated the work of that school Painting, Electrical repairs and general maintenance work. Every year Narender provides the Books and Shoes to children at Govt School Bandlaguda Jagir on the occasion of daughter Ananya’s birthday at primary school. Sliding and Mario round and Sports items were also provided to primary school children. Narender established Water purifier plant to provide healthy and hygiene water at low cost. Supplying the RO water at minimum cost of Rs.5/- per 25 Ltrs bubble to colony members. This facility is being used by 30 colonies around Bandlaguda Jagir approx 1000 families. The main objective is supply-
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
IN FOCUS
ing hygiene and purified drinking water to all with low cost. During summer months water scarcity is becoming a major problem to so many colonies in Bandlaguda Jagir and residents are reached for a solution. Responding to their need Narender started free water service tanker for the season and covered daily two/three colonies. In Anand Enclave colony he has experimented with rainwater harvesting which is a huge success. “Whatever new I first experiment it at my house and colony where I live. Then with that experience we simply develop the project for other colonies to implement. This not only saves investment by avoiding unnecessary spending and improves efficiency in implementing it on a bigger scale,” explained Narender. One innovative service started by Narender is local transport facility by name Ganapathi Express Auto services. This he has begun from Jul’2019 for residents who are dependent on someone to pick from home to the main road and main road to back home. For
women, students, senior citizens he is charging Rs. 5 only. Handicapped people are given free service. These Electric autos are completely safe and secure equipped with CC camera, GPS Tracking system, Solar Panel and eco-friendly. This service is available in 3 different routes covering the main junction in and around Bandlaguda Jagir. Ganapati Express App developed for residents who are using the services. Most common needs in colonies are street lights, Roads, Water facilities, people approached Narender for solving these issues. As a local person had a broad view of how to solve the common issues in colonies. He had strived to provide solutions for the same with no hesitation with or without the help of govt support. He made the habit to serve the society as common man. People started realizing that his ever refusing attitude in helping them. With Narender going the extra mile in finding solutions to local problems people found him very
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helpful to them more than to his family and friends. There was a suggestion to him from some of the residents to contest in gram panchayat elections. This has led to his entry into politics in 2003 by joining TDP. In 2007 he got elected as 12th ward member from Bandlaguda Jageer. In next elections held in 2014 his wife N.Shravanthi represented the 16th ward in the same village. Now residents of the colonies suggested him to contest in Bandlaguda Municipal Corporation elections. The suggestion soon become a demand on him to represent local issues by representing them as Corporator. many of the colony associations and prominent residents are supporting him to make the better society. “owing to this I am contesting in Municipal election in Bandlaguda Municipal Corporation.” Said Narender with a smile. After all new generation leadership is the power came from position is to empower the people. This is what driving Nagula Narender's journey in public life.
Before After
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
36
HEALTH
Balance in sleeping time
reduces diabetes risk
S
THE NEWS HEALTH DESK
leeping more or less than the average seven hours may increase the risk of developing diabetes in men, a new study warns. The findings showed that men who slept the least and the most were more likely to have an impaired ability to process sugar compared to men who slept an average amount of about seven hours. The men at either end of the spectrum had higher blood sugar levels than men who got the average amount of sleep. Conversely, women who slept less or more than average were more responsive to the hormone insulin than women who slept the average amount. They also had enhanced
the function of beta cells - the cells in the pancreas that produce the hormone insulin. This suggests lost sleep may not put women at increased risk of developing diabetes, the study said. "In men, sleeping too much or too little was related to less responsiveness of the cells in the body to insulin, reducing glucose uptake and thus increasing the risk of developing diabetes in the future," said Femke Rutters from VU University in the Netherlands. During the last 50 years, the average selfreported sleep duration for individuals has decreased by 1.5 to two hours. The prevalence of diabetes has doubled in the same time period, the researchers noted. "Even when you are healthy,
sleeping too much or too little can have detrimental effects on your health," Rutters said adding, "this research shows how important sleep is to a key aspect of health glucose metabolism." The study, published in the Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, is the first to show opposite effects of lost sleep on diabetes risk in men and women. In the cross-sectional study, the team examined the sleep duration and diabetes risk factors in 788 healthy adults ranging in age from 30 to 60 years old. The researchers observed sexspecific relationships between sleep duration and glucose metabolism in the participants.
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
INTERNATIONAL 37
Finland’s Sanna Marin
Meet the world's youngest PM
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THE NEWS BUREAU
inland's 34-year-old Sanna Marin has become the world's youngest Prime Minister. She is head of a coalition government in Finland after the country's ruling Social Democratic Party council picked her to take charge following Prime Minister Antti Rinne's resignation. Finland's government resigned last week after the Centre Party said it had lost confidence in Social Democrat Prime Minister Antti Rinne over his handling of a postal strike. Sanna Marin is from the dominant Social Democrats were chosen by her party as the sole candidate for prime minister. Centre Party chief Katri Kulmuni, 32, will get the finance post in the new cabinet. Marin will be younger than other sitting prime ministers like New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern who is 39 and Ukrainian premier Oleksiy Honcharuk who is 35. North Korea's Kim Jong-un is reported to be 35. Marin will be the third-ever female PM of Finland. The five parties in power - four of them led by women - decided to stay in a coalition and continue with the same programmes, but said there would be a reshuffle. Marin has had swift rise in Finnish politics since becoming head of the city council of her industrial hometown of Tampere at
the age of 27. "I myself have never thought about my age or my gender, but rather about the issues for which I took on politics and about the reasons for which we were trusted in the elections, the former transport minister told public broadcaster YLE after being picked as the prime minister candidate by her party. Political scientist Jenni Karimaki of Turku University said the new government reflected what voters had wanted in last April's election, with many new young women and men voted into parliament."There are more women in the parliament's composition than ever before...Voters and citizens wish to see more women in top positions, bearing even the heaviest responsibilities the society can offer," she told. Finland was one of the first country in Europe to give women voting rights back in 1906 and the
first country in the world to vote women to parliament in 1907. Marin will be the third female to head the government. "For the world, it's interesting that they are young, and that they are all female. For Finland, this is not a sensation," said political commentator Risto Uimonen. Marin, who has spoken about growing up in a disadvantaged family, is a leftwinger within her party and a strong defender of Finland's generous welfare state.A long-time fan of alternative metal band Rage Against The Machine, she has said she "dreams of free daycare" for all to add to Finland's public education, which is already free of charge from primary school to university. Marin, who was the Minister of Transport and Communications in the last cabinet is now leading a centre-left coalition of five parties all headed by women. "I have never thought about my age or gender, I think of the reasons I got into politics and those things for which we have won the trust of the electorate," she told reporters. Marin has taken over in the middle of labour unrest and a wave of strikes which will halt production at some of Finland's largest companies from Monday. The Confederation of Finnish Industries estimates the strikes will cost the companies a combined 500 million euros ($550 million) in lost revenue.
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
38
ENVIRONMENT
India's doing well on climate change
Not out of risk
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THE NEWS BUREAU
ndia was ranked ninth in the Climate Change Performance Index published at the COP25 summit in Madrid. Last year, India was ranked 11. The study analysed the progress towards the 2°C goal in 57 countries and the European Union as a bloc, who together are responsible for over 90% of global greenhouse gas emissions. Though the country was ranked ninth, effectively the sixth-best as no nation was ranked in the top 3. According to the publishers of the report, the Germanwatch, the New Climate Institute and the Climate Action Network, India's comparatively low levels of per capita emissions and energy use and ambitious 2030 targets resulted in high ratings in the respective categories. It says India's 2030 renewable energy target is rated very high
for its well-below 2°C compatibility. The report though is not all praise for India. It says: "Despite an overall high rating for its Climate Policy performance, experts point out that the government has yet to develop a roadmap for the phase-out of fossil fuel subsidies that would consequently reduce the country's high dependence on coal." Coal is by far the biggest source of energy in India, contributing over 54 per cent of India's power. Renewable energy sources, including solar, wind, biomass, together contribute just about 22 per cent. Though no country was rated "gold", "silver" or "bronze" for exemplary work, Sweden topped the list with a score of 75.77. It was followed by Denmark, Morocco and the UK. The United States, which has begun the process of formally withdrawing from the Paris
Agreement is ranked the worst among the 67 countries, with a score of 18.6. Saudi Arabia is the second-worst offender India pays the 'steepest price' for climate change With 2,081 deaths due to natural calamities in 2018, India paid the highest 'price' for the effects of climate change, evidenced from the floods that wreaked havoc in Kerala last year - according to the Climate Risk Index 2020 released by Germanwatch, an environmental think tank, at the ongoing COP25 in Madrid. It's not just floods - heatwaves too have taken their toll, with a death toll of 25,000 since 1992. However, that's not all the bad news for India on the aftereffects of climate change - according to the report, India is now the 5th most at-risk country due to climate change, which is a drop of nine places from its 2017 rank of 14th. At close to $38 billion - which is more than the market cap of India's biggest car company, Maruti Suzuki - India's economic and financial losses were the highest among the 10 worst-affected countries due to climate change last year. Overall, India's suffered the second-highest losses financially, with only the US suffering more, in excess of $200 billion, due to the numerous cyclones and hurricanes it regularly gets buffeted by. The report, which says India lost 0.36% of its GDP due to losses caused by extreme weather events in 2018, adds that 11 of India's 15 warmest recorded years have occurred between 2004 and 2018. Citing an ILO report, it warns that India could end up losing 5.8% of its working hours due to heat stress - amounting to 34 million full-time jobs out of 80 million lost globally.
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
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THE NEWS BUREAU
he 2010s almost certainly will be the hottest decade on Earth since instrument temperature data began to be gathered in the 19th century (and very likely long before that), according to new data released this in December from the World Meteorological Organization. “Since the 1980s, each successive decade has been warmer than the last,” the WMO stated in its provisional state of the climate report. The WMO also found that the past five years have been the warmest such period on record, as 2019 careens toward the second- or third-warmest year. The past month tied for the warmest November on record globally, according to the Copernicus Climate Change Service, in a statistical dead heat with November 2016 and just behind November 2015. The global average temperature in 2019 (January through October) was about 1.96 degrees Fahrenheit above the preindustrial period. The magnitude of recent warming is noteworthy since, under the Paris Climate Agreement, countries pledged to hold global warming to “well below” 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit of warming and to aspire to keep it to 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit. Reporting by various international newspapers have shown that numerous hot spots exist around the planet that has already soared past the 3.6degree threshold. (Dangerous new hot zones are spreading around the world) What’s remarkable about the warmth this year is that there has been no strong El Niño present in the tropical Pacific Ocean, as there was in 2015-2016. Such events
ENVIRONMENT
39
The 2010s will go down in history
The hottest decade
tend to boost global average surface temperatures and can reconfigure weather patterns from the United States to Africa and Australia. Typically, the hottest years of a given decade occur when an El Niño is present, but 2019 illustrates the increased role played by human-caused climate change in driving temperatures ever higher. In a stark report delivered to negotiators gathered for U.N. climate talks in Madrid recently, the secretary-general of the WMO, Petteri Taalas, laid out the new findings. WMO Secretary-General Petteri Taalas added that higher temperatures could make heatwaves, floods and tropical cyclones "more regular occurrences". At just 1°C hotter than pre-industrial times, 2019 has already seen deadly heatwaves in Europe, Australia and Japan, superstorms devastate southeast Africa and wildfires rage out of control in Australia and California. One trend the WMO pointed to is a sharp uptick in ocean heat content, which
is leading to more pervasive marine heatwaves. The oceans are the world’s main heat sponge, absorbing more than 90 per cent of the added energy building up in the climate because of increasing concentrations of greenhouse gases. “In 2019, ocean heat content in the upper 700 meters (in a series starting in the 1950s) and upper 2000 meters (in a series starting in 2005) continued at record or near-record levels, with the average for the year so far exceeding the previous record highs set in 2018,” the WMO found. The WMO's Greenhouse Gas Bulletin, published last week, said that climate-changedriving greenhouse gas emissions in the atmosphere hit a new high. The report said carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations rose from 405.5 parts per million in 2017 to 407.8 parts per million in 2018 2.3 parts per million rise that exceeded the average annual increase from 2005-2015 of 2.06 parts per million.
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
40
EDU-VOICE
PROF. G. NARSIMULU
Voice to disadvantage sections
English is the medium
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he Andhra Pradesh state government Decided to shift 4400 schools from Telugu medium to English medium in a phased manner so that children from poor and economically disadvantaged and first-generation students will have equal opportunities to compete with students of more privileged and affluent sections of the society. While announcing his decision Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy said “Toeradicate poverty, students of all sections of the society should get jobs for which English as a medium of instructions is important. The state’s illiteracy rate has been 33%against the National rate of 27%. The focus has to be on primary education which is why we plan to make I to VI English Medium .” When the state government is taken the decision to introduce English medium schools from 2020-21 academic year the entire opposition parties in Andhra Pradesh state and a section of the elite community expressed their opposition. They further said that the child is more convenient when classroom instruction is taken place in Mother's tongue up to the
primary level then only they are able to get enough skills. The teachers who are working in primary and upper schools managed by the government and panchayat raj institutions are at present teaching in Telugu medium and all of sudden if the medium is changed to English it is difficult task them to transform themselves within a short period. Joesph Sudheer Babu president of the Andhra Pradesh state teacher union said “Is the right of every student to study in his/her mother tongue. The primary education is considered to be the most important and if it is child mother tongue, it prepares the child in better position. why is the government enforcing the English medium on Telugu medium students? There Is no guarantee that English medium will fare better. We will continue to protest until the government Withdraws its order. It is an ill-advised move because there are not enough teachers to train all the Telugu medium teachers”. Thus English in India is a symbol of people aspirations for quality in education and fuller participation in National and Interna-
tional life.The visible indicator of this presence of English is That today it’s teaching being demand by many to be taught at the very initial stages of schooling, The mushrooming of private English medium schools and the early introduction of English in state schools. National knowledge commission (2007) however stressed the use of the child’s mother tongue as a Medium of learning at the primary stage, still supports English teaching starts from class 1 so that After 12 years of schooling the learner’s will have access to higher education and employment opportunities in India and aboard. The education is concurrence subject, the centre and each state has the freedom to introduce its own education policy. only Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Odisha, West Bengal Uttarakhand, Chhattisgarh, Kerala and Uttarpradeshr introduced English language as a second language from 3 class and Gujarat, Dadar&Nagarhaveli, Dadar& Diu started English from 5 the class whereas the rest of the states introduced the English language from class1 onwards.
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
Looking at the criticism of the opposition political parties and teachers unions in Andhra Pradesh against the introduction of English medium at government and local body schools is baseless. If a student studied Telugu medium up to Intermediate, he/she has to study English in professional courses and the software companies recruit the persons who can speak and communicate through English language only. Looking at the composition of students admitted into government and local bodies are basically from socially economically disadvantaged sections and even their mother tongue of tribes is not of Telugu languages and for them, there is no difference between Telugu or English. Hence if they are admitted English medium initially, they feel difficult later they will improve. The Gurukul system of education in Telangana state with more one lakh enrolment every year from fifth class to graduate courses in English medium hails from weaker sections and first-genera-
tion students could equally compete with urban elite students placed very important places in society. The visionary of Telangana chief minister K.chandrashekar Rao gave enough freedom to this institution to introduce new innovative teaching models and encourages senior students to mentoring junior students and parents are encouraged to involve themselves and interact with the officers of the institutions about the progress of their children from time to time. According to A.Murali IAS officer in Telangana state who took voluntary retirement states that richer and socially advantaged communities irrespective of parties and differences come into one platform to oppose the entry of children of disadvantaged sections into English medium schools.Along with their children. Further, he said when he interacted with several teachers in schools of the Telangana state expressed that they are to ready to acquire the necessary skills to teach English medium schools. The teachers working in government and local bodies are
EDU-VOICE 41
highly qualified and if they are given freedom and provide minimum facilities, they can able to change and bring desired changes in their students. Both Telangana, as well as Andhra Pradesh state governments, should revamp the entire educational system and learn to the student is a joyful experience but not a burden . The student below five years has the natural talent to acquire fluency in five languages and it is the teacher has provided a meaningful learning experience. The examination system with outdated syllabus has to be replaced with the curriculum and courses to bring the latent talent of the student. The introduction of English medium in all schools of the state is sincerely carried out by providing infrastructure facilities English labs and in-service training to the teachers definitely impact on the entire society. (The Author is a retired professor Lifelong Education Osmania university Hyderabad.)
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
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LIFE STYLE
Ten simple ways
Reduce your screen time
M
LOCAL LIFE COACH
ost of us need to spend many hours a day looking at a screen. Follow these 11 easy tips to reduce your screen time where you can. For most of us, a large part of our day requires us to look at a screen of some description. For some of us our profession, the job involves working on computers. For some more people, it’s activities which are part of their leisure. Whatever the reason excessive screen time can cause eye damage as well as affect our posture and mood. You Go Temporarily Blind
After Glancing at your Smartphone at night. Unfortunately, many of our leisure activities such as video games, film and TV also add to the amount of time we are passively watching a display. While it is impossible to completely escape the screen, there are ways to reduce the time you place your eyes and brain under the screen strain. Here are 11 easy ways to reduce your screen time. 1. Eat your meals without a screen: It may be tempting to use your meal breaks as a time to catch up on online news or social media. But by banning the screen during these breaks
you’ll not only give your eyes a rest, but you will also likely enjoy your food more. 2. Limit your non-work screen time: Don’t check your work emails or communication channels at home. While in a cutthroat corporate world it feels urgent to stay ahead of the game, constantly checking your work email while at home increases your exposure to the screen and also raises your stress levels. Leave your work at work. 3. Don’t watch movies or TV in bed: Watching films and TV is undoubtedly enjoyable, but try
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
LIFE STYLE and do this on your couch rather than in your bed.Watching from your sofa or chair makes it easier to stop watching that addictive TV show rather than pressing play on the next episode if you are already in cosy in bed. 4. Cut down on computer socializing: The internet gives us thousands of ways to stay in touch with friends and family all over the world. But constant chatting means our eyes are down on our phones and other devices an excessive amount.If possible try and schedule phone calls with distant loved ones and make face-to-face catch-ups with closer relatives. 5. Set a timer: Keeping up to date on your social media channels is fun and socially very important for many users. But these channels can also be a big-time waster for many people. If you enjoy Facebook, Instagram or community boards try and set a limit of how much time per day you will spend there. The next step is to gradually reduce this, particularly on days where your screen usage is high for other reasons. 6. Ban phone charging from the bedroom: Don’t charge your
phone next to your bed as it will tempt you to check for messages or even the time if you wake during the night. Looking at your phone's screen just before bed has been shown to disrupt the sleep patterns of some people too. Next time you have some time to kill in boredom or just feel the urge to aimlessly scroll through social media try and pick up a book, do a craft activity or take a walk. 7. Schedule a meeting phone call instead of using chat: It is easy to get dragged into long online conversations with co-workers that could have been easily resolved with just a short conversation. Try and use the phone or set up face-to-face meetings as an alternative to lengthy screen-based chats.
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8. Think of other ways to access information: Instead of always turning to Google for a recipe, home hints or facts. Take a visit to your local library, phone a friend or look for a book in your own collection that can answer your query. 9. Get your news in a condensed feed: The internet has provided us with a wealth of ways to access news. But trawling through headlines to make sense of the latest events can take time and means hours glued to your device. Try and find a reliable news source you like and subscribe to their daily updates that allows you to quickly scan headlines for things of interest rather than dive into a black hole of information. 10. Exercise as you watch: Source: If you do have to spend a lot of time in front of the screen or just can’t stop watching your favourite TV programme try and combine this time with some exercise. Lots of simple stretches and workouts can be done from the comfort of your sofa or living room floor. At least this way your screen time is being used to help you in other parts of your life. (Locallifecoach@gmail.com)
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
44
HEALTH
Rice brands for Diabetes T
Not a grain of truth
THE NEWS BUREAU
he 'diabetic-friendly' rice variety is no help to suger patients. The rice sold in the market as 'diabetic-friendly' was in fact nothing more than parboiled white rice. This was revealed by Diabetes researchers recently. Food scientists from Madras Diabetic Research Foundation (MDRF) who conducted a test of 15 supermarket brands of rice have revealed that even the brown rice being sold may in fact be more polished and whiter than the white rice. In addition, the scientists at MDRF also found that one of the brown rice brands an incredible claim of having a value of 8.6 on the glycemic index (GI) - used to rank carbohydrate levels in food, the lower the index score, the lower the carbohydrate content. One of the most ridiculous claims was a brand which professed to be 'sugar-free' - given that rice contains starch which is converted to glucose, a form of sugar, on digestion, there can't be sugarfree rice! As for cooking brown rice, which takes longer due to the presence of bran, Indians tend to add a lot of water when cooking brown rice, which in fact, breaks the bran layer - which is why MDRF says instead of the usual 1:3 rice water ratio, it may be better to cook with a 1:1.5 ratio. According to the scientists, the lowest known GI score is 40 - a GI value of less than 55 is considered
low while a score of above 70 is considered high. The brand, according to the MDRF study, did not have any scientific corroboration for its claim and turned out to be parboiled brown rice - with its grains showing fissures on their surface which allows greater water absorption when cooked and in turn increases the GI. In this background Diabetoligists are suggesting not to bother with so-called diabetic food. To say the food is a diabetic food is now actually against the law. This is because there isn’t any evidence that these foods offer you a special benefit over eating healthy. They can also often contain just as much fat and calories as similar products, and can still affect your blood glucose level. These foods can also
sometimes have a laxative effect. It’s better to get your essential nutrients by eating a mixture of different foods. This is because some supplements can affect your medications or make some diabetes complications worse, like kidney disease. All carbs affect blood glucose levels so it’s important to know which foods contain carbohydrates. Choose the healthier foods that contain carbs and be aware of your portion sizes. At the same time, it’s also important to cut down on foods low in fibre such as white bread, white rice and highlyprocessed cereals. You can check food labels when you’re looking for foods high in fibre if you’re unsure.
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
CARE n CURE 45
Pain in the heel DR. V. VENU MADHAV
Just can't ‘walk it off’
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ore heels are one of the worrying health issues in adults. It is most commonly caused by Plantar fasciitis. A strain of the ligaments in an area of the foot called the plantar fascia leads to this. The fascia provides support as the toes bear the body's weight when the heel rises during walking. Running, jumping, or standing for long periods of time can strain the plantar fascia. Most people with plantar fasciitis notice improvement in symptoms with or without treatment within a year. It is a selflimiting disease. Symptoms: The most common symptom of plantar fasciitis is pain beneath the heel and sole of the foot. The pain is often worst when stepping onto the foot, particularly when first getting out of bed in the morning or when getting up after being seated for some time. You may have pain in one or both of your feet. The duration of symptoms usually ranges from months to a few years. For some, it can be treated very quickly. For others, the problem can persist for years, becoming a long-term debilitating issue. Who are at Risk ?:
Excessive training (particularly a sudden increase in the distance run). improper running shoes / Footwear. Running on unyielding surfaces. Prolonged standing or walking on hard surfaces. Flat feet. High arches. Obesity. A sudden increase in weight (over a period of 1 year). Most commonly middle aged people get affected with sore pain with the typical presenting symptoms. Females and males are equally affected. Are there any Tests to confirm ?: Plantar fasciitis is a clinical condition that is usually detected
only by clinical examination by an Orthopaedician. X-ray of heel some times help to differentiate from other causes apart from platar fasciitis. Most commonly, patients with plantar fasciitis have spurs in the heel bone (Calcaneum) which are detected on X-ray. These spurs are usually a reactive bone formation due to underlying inflammatory pathology and not the cause of the pain by itself. How to get rid of the sore heel ?: As discussed, the symptomatology usually ranges from a few months to years. If turned chronic it is even a debilitating condition
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
46 CARE n CURE
but has a definitive treatment for it. Home care remedies for Sore Heel: Rest - Limiting athletic activities and getting extra rest may help to relieve your symptoms. If possible, avoid excessive and repetitive heel impact from jumping, dancing, and distance running. A complete lack of physical activity, however, is not recommended, as this can lead to stiffening and a return of pain. Icing - Applying ice to the area, for example for 20 minutes up to four times daily, may relieve pain. Ice and massage may also be used before exercise. Heat - Occasionally immersing your both feet in warm water for about 20 minutes up to 2-3 times a day also helps. Stretching Stretching exercises may be helpful. Home exercises include the calf-plantar fascia stretch and toe towel curls. Protective footwear - a) Silicone Heel cups/ Insoles: They offer additional cushioning and can be reused in any of the shoes. People suffering from a sore heel are always suggested to wear them in their shoe to give extra comfort. b) Gel Heel protectors / Cushion cups - They can be worn over ankle directly without changing from footwear to footwear. Soft cushioning in the form of gel over the heel part of this brace helps to relieve the pain.c) MCR footwear – Microcellular Rubber is a soft cushioned material used for making soft footwear. However, the longevity of the material with daily use is limited and needs a frequent change every 6 weeks as the material gets hardened. d) Arch supporting shoes – Shoes with arch support lined interiorly, Flexible footwear with soft padding and cushioning are always recom-
mended while performing running or walking as a routine exercise. Sore heels are better “off” while walking with the above footwear. Such patients are always suggested to wear them right from getting out of bed to going back to bed. Change of footwear within the home and when going outside is recommended to avoid contamination at home. People who work or live in buildings with concrete floors should wear shoes with extra cushioning. Other plantar fasciitis treatment options - If these noninvasive measures fail to improve the pain, your health care provider may recommend trying one of the following: Medications: Pain medication - A clinician may recommend a short course of a nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drug (NSAID) to relieve pain. However, prolonged use of these medications have many possible side effects, and it is important to weigh the potential
risks and benefits. Physiotherapy: Kinesiology Tape support - Taping the affected foot with a technique known as "Kinesiology taping" – with different resistant band tapes may help, particularly if you experience pain first thing in the morning. Shockwave therapy - Some clinicians recommend shockwave therapy. This involves using a special probe to generate sound waves that provide a burst of energy to the sole of the foot. The treatment is initially painful. In high-quality studies, it has not been proven to be more effective than placebo treatment (ie, pretend treatment that doesn't really deliver a dose of energy, or delivers a dose too low to have an effect). Invasive Treatment Options : Steroid injection - An injection of a steroid (also called "glucocorticoid") medication in your foot can help to relieve pain, although the effect may wear off after a few weeks. The doctor will press on your foot in order to locate the tender area and give the injection in that spot. The injection can be repeated, although many clinicians limit the number of times they will give injections because they believe repeated injections may weaken the tissues of the sole of the foot. However, this belief is unproven. Surgery - Surgery is rarely required for people with plantar fasciitis. It would only be recommended if all other treatments had failed and if you have had persistent symptoms for at least over 1-2 years. Surgery involves detaching the plantar fascia from the heel bone.
(Author is a Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon, FS Endocrine Centre, Santhoshnagar, Hyderabad.)
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
TECHNOLOGY
'Prahari' Patroling Drone
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Assisting to protect borders
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THE NEWS S & T DESK
tudents of IIT-Kanpur have developed a drone with advanced autopilot system. Named 'Prahari' the drone can not only carry a load of about four to five kilograms but can also patrol sensitive zone for three hours continuously. The autonomous system (drone) consists of an unmanned helicopter with a drone catching net. 'Prahari' is unique in this way that it can chase, outrun and capture the rogue drone. This system has been developed by a team of IIT students under the guidance of Prof Abhishek and Prof Mangal Kothari of the department of aerospace engineering. The drone is equipped with an advanced autopilot system and is capable of handling the sudden changes in weight and inertia (of this drone) while capturing the rogue drone. India has an estimated over 6 lakh rogue or unregulated unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and security agencies are analysing modern anti-drone weapons like 'sky fence' and 'drone gun' to counter-terror or similar sabotage bids by these aerial platforms, official sources. An official blueprint prepared by central agencies has been accessed by that states unregulated drones, UAVs and remotelypiloted aircraft system is a "potential threat" to vital installations, sensitive locations and specific events and a "compatible solution" is required to counter them.
‘Prahari’ is specially designed for border surveillance and national security. Defence experts have shown great interest in this unique drone. According to them ‘Prahari’could be very handy for the armed forces for maintaining vigilance along with the border areas and for capturing the rogue drones which pose a serious threat to national security. With recent Pakistani drone activity on western frontiers designing this drone significant development. The autonomous system (drone) consists of an unmanned helicopter with drone catching net. ''Prahari'' is unique in this way that it can chase, outrun and capture the rogue drone. A data estimation study conducted by these agencies state that over 6 lakh unregulated drones, of various sizes and capacities are
present in the country and anyone of them can be used for launching a nefarious act by disruptive elements. Recent incidents like the lethal drone attack on Saudi Arabia's largest petroleum company and arms dropping by UAVs in Punjab from across the India-Pakistan border has alerted Indian security and intelligence agencies. Prof Abhishek said, "This drone can be used for a wide range of applications, ranging from surveillance, crowd monitoring, crowd control, delivery of emergency supplies, precision agriculture, hostage situations, chemical, and nuclear agent detection. It can also outrun the rogue drone and can capture it in its nets. Recently, HRD minister Ramesh Pokhriyal 'Nishank' had shared the video of this drone on Twitter.
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DEFENCE COLUMN
WG CDR TJ REDDY VSM (RETD)
Criminal justice in armed forces T
Can be a model to follow
he recent cases of violence against women in various states have triggered shock and protests from citizens across the country, demanding safety of women in public places by the authorities. The case of Disha at Hyderabad which involved rape and murder followed by the encounter killing of alleged accused echoed the need for quick justice exposing the maladies of prevailing justice system in the country. Such incidents, unfortunately, are regularly happening, not just limited to one place or one nation. It may perhaps be appropriate to first let the readers know that India is NOT (R) NOT rape capital of the world, as some tend to portray. The rank of countries in the world in terms of rape tells the factual position(Source - data from World Population Review, 2019): 1.South Africa, 2.Botswana, 3.Lesotho (formerly Basutoland), 4.Bermuda, 5.Sweden, 10.Australia, 12. Belgium, 13.America, 25. France, 41.Germany, 42.Netherlands, 45. Italy, 70.Russia 89.Singapore, 91. India India has been characterised as one of the "countries with the lowest per capita rates of rape.
Many rapes go unreported in various countries including India. Rape is the fourth most common crime against women in India. The most important aspect of the offence is that, according to the last National Crime Records Bureau(NCRB) annual report, 98 per cent of the cases of rape were committed by someone known to the victim. The ‘Me Too movement’ marginally increased awareness around sexual misconduct in many countries including India, in cases where accused and the victim was known to each other. The Murder to eliminate evidence is expectedly high in the case of mass rape and when the victim more often than not is a stranger. Sexual offences in the military: Incidents of sexual assault are a real and recognized problem, both in civilian life and in the military. While studies suggest that the number of sexual assaults in the military may be far less than the number in civilian society, sexual assault has a uniquely greater damaging effect on the military, such that even one incident is unacceptable. Incidents of sexual assault are detrimental to morale, destroy unit cohesion, show disrespect for the
chain of command, and damage the military as a whole, both internally as well as externally. This is the main reason that every offence is dealt with in a time-bound manner in the armed forces. Ethos of armed forces: The members of the armed forces are from the same strata of society and therefore are no different when it comes to early upbringing and imbibing social values. Then how come the Indian Armed Forces are considered by the public to be synonymous with honour, discipline, integrity, loyalty, courage, duty, respect, sense of sacrifice, patriotism, selfless service, moral values and ethics. It would not be erroneous to say that the general expectation level of integrity and moral values of defence personnel is much higher than their civilian counterparts who gladly enjoy the liberty to abdicate under conditions of stress! “The moral and ethical value system in the Armed Forces is not an abstract concept. In fact, it is the very foundation, upon which, the entire edifice of the Service organisation has been built. By virtue of a strong moral and ethical value system, the Armed Forces are held in high esteem, by
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
DEFENCE COLUMN
the citizens of the country,” said former Army Chief General VK Singh in an interview given during a few years back. From a civilian’s perspective, it is not only important what the armed forces do, but also how they do it, which raises the bar of public expectations for exemplary behaviour. Indian armed forces, the largest volunteer army in the world follow the tradition of soldiering with deep-rooted sentiments and demand unlimited accountability from its personnel. Public thus realise that the military is fundamentally different from the civilian world. Ethics and moral values are never dispensable. They are an integral part of human survival. I believe that the sheer dynamism of defence institutions and their historical traditions would ameliorate all discrepancies and mould the character of a soldier into the desired configuration. Justice system is one such institution that
is nurtured to ensure that black sheep in defence forces are dealt with expeditiously. The military justice system is a well-developed, unique, and integrated the criminal justice system, which handles many criminal cases per year, ranging from minor violations to major felonies. In almost all of these cases, the system works to ensure justice is done strictly observing the dictum “Justice delayed is justice denied’. Fast track the judicial process : There will always be widespread outrage to the brutality of perpetrators in raping and killing, unlike in the cases of other sexual offences of a lesser degree. Expeditious legal process and awarding appropriate punishment alone may not fully ensure the safety of women. Preventive measures such as gender-sensitive gender education needs to be undertaken as a reformative process which will, in the long run, help the behav-
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ioural aspects in society to reduce the crime rate including rape. The real culprit at present is a moribund judicial system that fails to deliver expeditious justice. India needs the rule of law. Everyone sees this, but the courts must see this too. It is here the system can borrow a leaf from the defence forces. In a society the accused must fear, the criminals should fear and not the women. Fear of getting caught, fear of justice and fear of punishment is absolutely necessary. Criminal administration should be improved in the country. Strengthening of the four wings of the Criminal justice system – police, prosecution, judiciary and prisons, is the need of the hour.
(Author A Wing Commander was a Fighter Controller who actively participated in 1965and 1971 wars. He was awarded VSM(VishishtSeva Medal) by the President of India in January 1976. Views expressed by the author are personal.)
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STATES
Disha murder accused
Final rites performed
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THE NEWS BUREAU
inally, the bodies of accused who killed in an encounter while recreating the crime scene in Disha's case have been handed over to their families. Family members have performed the last rites. Bodies were handed over after a second autopsy by All India Institute of Medical Sciences(AIMS) doctors as per Telangana High court orders. On 21, December, a Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Raghvendra Singh Chauhan and Justice A. Abhishek Reddy has directed the State government to request the AIIMS to send three seniormost forensic doctors to Hy-
derabad for conducting the second post-mortem, which should be completed by 23, December 5 p.m. The three-member team, comprising Sudhir Gupta, head of forensic at the AIIMS, Abhishek Yadav and Adarsh Kumar is conducting the autopsy, while Varun Chandra is assisting them. The autopsy for about four hours. The entire procedure is being video recorded and the footage will be submitted to the Registrar General of the Telangana High Court. Doctors from the Gandhi Hospital has been asked to not be a part of the procedure. Gandhi Hospital Superintendent Sravan Kumar said that the autopsy was conducted without any involvement of the
Gandhi Hospital doctors. This is the second time the autopsy was conducted. The first autopsy was conducted on December 6 at Mahabubnagar Government Hospital and later the bodies were shifted to Mahabubnagar Medical College for preservation. Subsequently, the bodies were shifted to Gandhi Hospital here. Meanwhile, the family members of the slain accused have reached the morgue to collect the bodies after the autopsy. The bodies were handed over to their family members 18 days after the encounter. Amid heavy security, the bodies were sent to the Maktal Mandal of Narayanapet district in two ambulances. Later, Jolla Shiva, Jolu Naveen, Chennakeshavulu and Mohammed Arif funeral services were held in Jakleru with their family traditions. They accused of raped and killing of a veterinary doctor on November 27 near the Tondulalli tollgate in the Hyderabad suburb. The accused - Mohammed Arif, Jollu Shiva, Jollu Naveen and Ch. Chennakeshavulu - were killed in an exchange of fire with police at Chatanpalli near Shandnagar, when they were taken to the reconstruction of the crime scene, in the early hours of December 6.Sources in the Telangana Police department said the forensic experts reached the State capital on Sunday evening and will return to New Delhi on Tuesday.
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STATES
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Benefits for TSRTC employees
Fares hike for passengers
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THE NEWS BUREAU
TC bus tickets, passes have become expensive. As historic TSRTC strike has ended Govt. also advised the public transport hike the prices. The 20 paise-hike in basic fare, in force from December 3.These effectively additional burden commuters between Rs 4 Rs 27 in all services across Telangana. RTC passengers have to shell out at minimum Rs 5 more in the city and Rs 4 more in the districts to commute each day. The last time when ticket fares were
hiked in 2016, the cost of student bus passes was not increased. But now, all bus passes - be it student, government-employees or general - have gotten more expensive. As for tickets, the ‘basic’ fare ranges from Rs 0.63 to Rs 2.10, and with the 20-paise hike, minimum fares have shot up from Rs 6 and Rs 10 to Rs 10 and Rs 15 respectively. The increase in rates has been calculated as a percentage and then applied to the ‘minimum’ fare for each of the bus services, officials said. The prices increase progressively based on the distance
travelled. So, at most, a journey on a ‘City Ordinary’, or ‘Metro Express’ bus will cost Rs 35 (for 40 km) as against the previous Rs 30. Travelling on a ‘Metro Deluxe’ bus will cost up to Rs 45 (for 40 km) as against Rs 30. Similarly, a ‘Palle Velugu’ bus journey will now cost a maximum of Rs 100, as opposed to the previous rate of Rs 73 to travel up to 120 km. Those travelling more than 15 km in districts, and those travelling less than 4 km in the city will be affected by the price hike, as the base fares for
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
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STATES
‘City Ordinary’ bus services have gone up from Rs 5 to Rs 10. The only services for which fares have not been hiked are AC buses and airport liners. However, those who use other buses on a daily basis might end up shelling out at least Rs 300- 500 extra per month, depending on the service they opt for Officials said the fare hike was long due as the cost of diesel was Rs 58-59 per litre when the rates were last increased. Now, a litre of diesel costs about Rs 71, and the RTC will no longer bear the burden of the rise in fuel charges.
RTC STAFF GET THEIR SALARY OTHER BENEFITS:
After 54 days of strike, RTC employees have joined back in duties on 2, December. In different parts of the state, they were seen jubilant to start working again. After about 60 days, the TSRTC employ-
ees received their salaries for September, on Monday. The salaries ideally must have been credited by October 1 but since the employees were on strike, they did not get paid. Seeing their plight, several civil groups came forward and helped them both financially and in kind. With the payment of salaries, the relief came in as a blessing for the employees who have been cash strapped and living in hand-tomouth conditions during the strike period. All this has begun on 1, December when Chief Minister K.Chandarashekar Rao met around 500 selected RTC employees drawn from all bus depots in Telangana over lunch at his official residence Pragathi Bhavan. A slew of benefits poured in from Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao after they called off their strike and joined duty. RTC employees’ retirement
age is increased in the from 58 to 60. Pay not only for September but also for the strike period of October and November will be paid. Bus passes for their children, three months of child-care leave for women staff on a par with government employees was announced. Now women RTC employees are totally exempted from night duties. Complete job protection assured to all employees. RTC routes will not be privatized as warned during the strike period. The state government will be allocating Rs 1,000 crore in the budget for the corporation. In return, KCR sought from RTC staff hard work to fetch the corporation profits again, and if they did this, he would not hesitate to give them a bonus every year like in the case the workers of the Singareni Collieries Company Limited (SCCL), even up to Rs 1 lakh per year to each of them.
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LIFESTYLE
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New age customers
Buy - buoy shopping
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THE NEW LIFESTYLE DESK
ith the beginning of the new year, Pongal festival shopping season is in full swing. The discerning Indian customer spending considerable time in mall-and site-hopping for retail therapy. Take Tulsi Srikanth. She loves shopping and regularly goes to the nearby mall, sifts through the latest collection of various brands, tries them
on and finalises a few items. But instead of rushing to the billing counter, the 25-year-old BPO employee walks out of the store empty-handed. Her retail therapy, however, continues. After reaching home, Tulsi logs on to her laptop computer browses through some e-retail sites to find the items from her shopping mall list and puts them in her e-shopping
cart. And when the online sale begins, she orders them all. Retail happiness entails shopping in an urbane setup and yet getting value for money. So, modern customer like walk into malls to enjoy the great ambience and exceptional customer service, and place orders online to grab the best deals says new-age marketing experts. This is how a college student recently bought a pair of Nike sneakers
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
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LIFESTYLE
worth Rs5,500 (showroom price) for Rs2,900 online a marketing manager told. With high disposable income and world-class shopping experience, the well-heeled, travelled and informed Indian shopper has changed. He is no more driven by needs but desires. For him, a sale is a new festival, and retail therapy a source of entertainment and happiness. Every time they purchase something, it gives them a sense of achievement and that is what makes them happy. Unlike earlier when shopping
was all about walking into a store to pick up necessary items, now shopping is a way to find happiness, an experience that lasts hours inside air-conditioned shopping complexes, with well-lit and tastefully done-up ambience and polite staff to tend to you. After all who wants to break a sweat in the noisy and congested street bazaars when a more comfortable option is available? And, shopping arcades are flirting with innovative ideas to increase footfalls. Nothing less than a unique shopping experience is
what makes shoppers happy these days. If an outlet or mall don’t live up to their expectations, they wouldn’t come back to them, say businessmen. New shopping concepts are emerging, too. On the one hand, an increasing number of retailers are launching their mobile apps also to help online buyers to decide from their convenient place. New trend thus replacing the traditional showroom approach. Indians are increasingly becoming a consumption-based society, according to creative director of a major online market company. Another indicator of this is the growing number of collections rolled out by brands every year— winter, summer spring, autumn and festive. In the past, however, companies offered just two collections—summer and winter. Didn’t most of the people use to do major shopping only twice a year? All this shows how shopping is increasingly becoming happiness oriented. Besides, with economic growth and infrastructural development, global brands are easily available in the country. Along with them, they have brought their world-class customer service too. Once exposed to it, the new-age shopper now wants the same everywhere, every time.
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
IN FOCUS
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Dr. Kamakshi Bhaskarla
Medico made to the movie world D
BY: BENCHMARK SYS.
r.Kamakshi BhaskarlaTolywood heroines usually say ‘I wanted to become Doctor but become Actor.’ But the incase of Dr.Kamakshi Bhaskarla it exactly what happened. After finishing MBBS she wanted to join MD or MS and wanted to become paediatrician or Nuerosugeron. But her artistic hobbies and persuing them has finally landed her in Tinseltown. The journey which has begun with Miss India Telangana in 2018 has taken this twenty-plus Telugu girl to Tollywood. She has six feature films, two web series on her hand. Majority of them are being produced by major production houses and directed by leading film directors. In an interview Dr.Kamakshi Bhaskarla has narrated her unusual journey, projects she is working and shared her future plans. Excerpts: Question: What are the films you are acting in now? Kamakshi Bhaskarla: I have six projects on hand. Two of them are on sets. The first one is produced by Geeta Arts(of Allu Aravind garu) and directed by Bommarillu Bhaskar garu. I am playing the role of an NRI girl in this film. The second one on the sets is being directed by Rama Raju garu. In this film, I am paring with a new hero This is one of the three
films in which I am playing the lead role. The other one is directed by ‘Sakala Kala vallabhudu’ fame Shiva Ganesh garu, the second one is directed by Kovera garu. Q: Are you also on the small screen? KB: Yes. Presently I am working in two web series. One produced by Arhat(Geeta Arts group) and other is being produced by Annapurna Studio. Arhat pro-
duction is on sets now. Q: What kind of roles you like to do? KB: I don’t want to confine my self to lead roles alone. My goal to be a film artist. Ready to take supporting roles also. The only consideration is the opportunity to perform in challenging roles to realize the fullest potential as an artist.
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IN FOCUS
Q: What made you choose film career over medical profession. KB: No. It’s not choosing films over medical practice. It so happened, a series of events lead to this. My hobbies and artist in me has made me walk towards acting. All this has begun when five years back when I was in the third year of medicine. While studying medical subjects, a sudden introspection has begun in me. What is that I was doing with Kuchipudi dance, Karnatka vocal I learnt for years? During those fivesix months of internal churning, I was reading, watching videos about lives of successful new generation Indian women I was stumbled upon articles – videos about Miss World and Miss Universe like that of Sushmita Sen (Miss Univers 1994). I wanted to aim higher than what societal norms dictated from me. After finishing my MBBS in 2017, I started on a journey that would challenge me and make me the winner of Femina Miss India Telangana 2018 title and one of the finalists at Femina Miss India 2018. Q: Tell us about your family. KB: I come from a modest & conservative middleclass family. My father Muralikrishna is a cinematographer. Mother housewife. Brother an engineer. My parents gave the highest priority and importance to education and wanted me to be a Doctor, brother an engineer. Through learning and practising fine arts was encouraged we were told those arts are only for recreation and unwind from academic pressures. That is how my decision to compete for Miss World competition was not welcomed in the beginning. My mother was the only exception. Father opposed it initially. But when I have made it to the national level list of contestants he happily supported my efforts. Q: What are your experiences so far? KB: I have forgone a very lucrative Medical field to follow my heart and passion for the arts. Albeit a “well-settled women” in the eyes of society. Thanks to my hard-working nature, patience and healthy respect towards risk which always were my biggest aids; I want to make my mark on silver-screen as well. I have always been a very artistic person, I loved to sing, dance and draw since a very young age. I think that’s one of the reasons I took strides towards arts field. Q: What are your future plans and how you see it? KB: I know, I am just taking baby steps right now, falling and getting up is part and parcel of this field. I hope to act in roles that are remembered for a long time. I think it's hard to get those kinds of roles because acting is an art but a film is a business, only a few
writers and directors can achieve the middle ground to accommodate the commercial viability of this art form; I am trying my best let's see what the future holds. Q: You said you want to transform lives of others How will you that? KB. Soon after completing my medical course I have started working with ‘Voice For Girls’ an NGO. This organisation is involved in spreading awareness among young girls in remote villages about their rights, preventive health issues, inspiring them to independent individuals. The work was close to my heart I have dedicated most of my time for its activities. I joined ‘Voice For Girls’ as a volunteer and within few months, I was made Field coordinator. I will continue to that kind of work with young girls even in future. As a film artist, medical professional I will be able to reach a much bigger audience, a wider field for my activities.
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
IN FOCUS
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Dr.K. Shekar Reddy
Waterman of Bhootpur
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BY: BENCHMARK SYS.
eet Dr.Kadire Shekar Reddy. You will have the company of a young leader with abundant zeal to help the people around him. A fast emerging political leader with a sound foundation at the grassroots level. A tasks master to get things done for greater welfare for his constituency. A Mandal Prajaparshath president of Bhootpur Mandal in Mahbubnagar district, Shekar Reddy(41) is an offbeat, new generation socio-political leader. He was in news this month for receiving Doctorate for his untiring work to improve the lives of local communities. Coming from a lower-middleclass family in Maddigattu village of Bhootpur Mandal of Devarkadra Assembly constituency Shekar
Reddy has a hard childhood. Though keen on education, his family could not afford him to study further after graduation. “During school day even buying a notebook was difficult for my parents. As a college student, I have decided not able to buy little things like notebooks, pens & pencils should not disappoint children, poor families,” says Shekar Reddy. Almost a decade back he started distributing stationary to poor school students in villages in Bhoothpur Mandal by spending Rs.5 lakhs every year. Apart from this he also helps poor families in performing marriages of girls. It is reported in local newspapers, that ‘Every marriage of a poor village girl in the area will have magala sutram from Shekar Reddy’. All these social supporting
works Shekar Reddy says is ‘normal’ as a businessman he has earned money and sharing a part of it with people in need. But what made this man who “prefer to be in the village’ in spite number of opportunities to shift and expand his business in Hyderabad, favourite for villages beyond his native Mandal is a different initiative which has brought change in lives of thousands of farmers. The efforts of him with the help of local leaders helped to irrigate 15,000 plus acres of land and solved drinking water problem in 20 villages of Bhootpur Mandal. “Exactly three years back we use to get drinking water in tankers. Majority of farmers have disposed of their cattle for want of water. The next year we did not find sufficient water to bring with tankers. Now
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IN FOCUS
our efforts bearing fruits. Groundwater level also has gone up.” Says Shekar Reddy. All this lifechanging process for almost a lakh population became possible when Shekar Reddy with the support of Devarkadra constituency legislator Ala Venkateshwar Reddy and State government achieved the gigantic feat of bringing Krishna waters to the Maddikhan lake in the Maddigattu village of Bhootpur Mandal. Last (2018)year on 5, Decem-
ber canal leading to the Maddikhan lake and filled the lake with the Krishna water and also released fish in the lake inagurated. "My dream of making my village have Krishna water to irrigate lands. Overcome drinking water shortage has become a reality. After the formation of Telangana, I was convinced that we can do it and met with all the leaders in the government taking my proposal to fill the Maddikhan Lake with the Krishna waters. They not only recognised the potential but went the extra mile to implement the project,” says Shekar Reddy sounding a deep sense of gratitude. As the project costed Rs. 106 crores are completed and farmers of villages under Bhootpur Mandal
is a happy lot with the Maddikhan Lake brimming with Krishna water. Now they need not migrate to other cities for work as they can now irrigate more than 15,000 acres of land. But all this was not possible easily inspite of support from Govt, MLA, Local leaders. A number of issues have come up in land acquisition. Formers who were lost their land for canal work were adamant. This has delayed the project for more than one year. Work has to be completed within a short time to draw water from the main canal. To help speed up the canal works, Sekhar reportedly spent Rs 70 lakh from his own pocket while Devarkadra MLA Alla Venkateshwar Reddy had offered to provide the trucks free of cost during the canal works. Finally the all these efforts and determined resolve to get Krishna waters to the villages could achieve success. It is reported that farmers of Boothpur saying "It is a dream come true for us. We are proud to have a great leader like Shekar Reddy from our village who has spent his own money and paid it to the farmers for acquiring land on behalf of the government.”
One may immerse in service of people around selflessly. But by recognizing the impact their committed service has made and making will help the society in the long run. It a not only way of expressing the gratitude on behalf of all the people who have benefited with the service of the selfless individuals but can inspire others to follow him. When the Global Human Peace University at Chennai has awarded Kadire Shekar Reddy the Honorary Doctorate for his ‘Service to the society’. Dr. Pratab Singh Tiwari, Vice-Chancellor of Global Human Peace University congratulated Shekar Reddy and said it gave him a pleasure to honour a young leader of selfless service. “With this, my responsibility has further increased and shall do more for the social cause and uplift of the poor in the village," Shekar Reddy said. When he has received the Honorary Doctorate almost 50 villagers from Bhootpur Mandal were present the award presentation ceremony. What made them all go all the way to Chennai from Bhootpur? The award has refected the gratitude they have in their mind towards whom they started calling ‘Our own Bhageeratha’. AfterallWater nurtures life!
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SELF HELP
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Personal growth
Why it is not working for many?
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LOCAL LIFE COACH
ozens of Personality development or Personal advancement books are flooding market every week in our country. Apart from classics and international bestsellers written by stalwarts like Napoleon Hill, Stephen Covey, Anthony Robbins, Bob Proctor but their Indian language translations are made available. Thousands of young, educated, ambitious individuals are flocking to books stores and purchasing them. Many of them buy more than one book and some acquire all most all such books with a hope to improve themselves. But very few are really
able to benefit from the book or all the books they buy. Why things do not turn out as expected? We or one of our friends may be one of them. Let us find out the reasons in this article. In the end, you may answer 3 questions, which will further help to help yourself. On recent Independence Day, I have just got back from my reading room after watching Bob Proctor's 'Your are born rich' seminar recording on my laptop. The energy and passion of Bob never fail to impress me. In this seminar, Bob talked about getting into a state of “Flow” or “Allowing”. The idea he put out was this: Our natural state is that of a co-creator of the Uni-
verse we live in. We have the power and ability to make out thoughts our reality. That's not so hard to understand. So then why is it that we still falter and struggle with our goals and dreams? The Top reason personal growth doesn't work for most people is “resistance”. This resistance comes from worry, fear, negative emotions and thoughts that cause us to move away from our natural state of flow. And this is why no matter what practices some people adhere to when it comes to the Law of Attraction, most people just get small or trivial results. They have the right mindset and they understand the whole concept of “thoughts
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SELF HELP
become reality”, yet they still can't seem to successfully apply “thought manifestation” into all areas of their life permanently. To be honest, I'm also included in this. There have been times where I thought I had found my remedy, my cure-all a technique to achieving my goals, but just like a novelty buy, the feeling of joy vanishes. The feeling fades and I'm back to square one. I was out of “flow” or a state of “allowing.” Soon go to Amazon or Flipkart’s books section in search of ‘One more’ Personal advancement or Positive psychology book. So rituals, Goal setting, Vision boards, Affirmations etc isn’t enough? So what's the underlying reason “personal growth”, “positive thinking”, “goal setting”, “and vision boards” or whatever you want to call it isn't working for us? Is there a reason why brilliantly written books totally dedicated to helping us are still failing to live up to its promise? What are we
missing here? Now, don't get me wrong, I'm a strong believer in the personal advance movement and Law of Attraction and it's something I apply to my daily life. I also firmly believe that my thoughts become my reality. But in order for these to work, I must be open to receiving FIRST. Again, you can call it what you like. “Open to receiving”, “receiving from the Universe”, or “eliminating doubts/negative beliefs”. Some trainers call it the Art of Allowing. Here the point is we need to be open and willing to accept impact-making changes that come by following the way writer - trainer presented to us and gifts that you desire before you can attract it. Wayne Dyer sums it up perfectly: We do not attract what we want, we attract who we are. So, it's not that you've failed in positive thinking. It's just that you might be having some trouble with allowing or receiving. How do we perma-
nently get into our state of allowing/ receiving? But before we can help ourselves get into a state of allowing/receiving, we need to understand the roadblocks we are facing… so need you to answer 3 questions. Here are 3 questions: 1. What are you trying to manifest now? 2. What tools or practices are you using to achieve this? (E.g.: Goal setting, affirmations, Law of Attraction, vision boards, meditation etc) 3. Are you 100 per cent confident you are doing everything you can to make it work? Or do you still have some doubts? I want to know what it is that you do to get the things you want or desire. What are your rituals or practices? What has helped and what hasn't helped? What doubts do you have? Let me know. (Locallifecoach@gmail.com)
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EVENTS OF INTEREST 61
Mr & Miss urban India
Platform for modelling prospects
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THE NEWS-LIFESTYLE DESK
he most delighting festival has arrived at pearl city! Mr & Miss urban India 2019 grand finale fashion show was held in Shilpa kalavedika, Hitech city. The fourday show begun on 12, December and concluded on 15 December 2019. Many leading models from Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Pune and Hyderabad have participated in this show. Madhu Jain and Somi reddy were the main juries members. This is part of Indian Fashion and Film festival has brought participants from across the country
and provides them with a unique opportunity to showcase their talents in front of fashion and film experts. The festival comprises of Miss and Mr Urban India 2019, Kids National Fashion Contest 2019, Mrs. Urban India 2019, Story Pitches by Upcoming Directors, Workshops, Movie auditions and the Fashion Magazine Launch. The extravagant Fashion Expo included fashion stalls, movie stalls, food stalls and several others. The Kids Entertainment Zone is the centre of attraction for all the kids. Sixteen different workshops will be organized at the event with the opportu-
nity to learn different skills. CEO of CMOF GLOBAL Mr.Srinivas said that those who want to enter into the modelling and fashion world this is the best platform. Nearly more than 100 models participated in this fashion competition. Kids national fashion contest has also been held in which around 80 kids had participated in this ramp walk. Apart from this Mrs. India 2019 was also conducted in which nearly 40 women from all parts of India participated.since 5 months modelling auditions are being conducted in Pune, Bengaluru nad Hyderabad for this grand finale. Nearly 30 upcoming Directors have shown their movie teasers and scripts in front of production houses and producers which is a direct platform for Directors and producers meet. While 3 directors got on the spot chance. In this meet producers Prakash Naidu, Shivala Prabhakar, Kasi and others have participated and acted as Jury members. On the final day evening, auditions have been held for models, artists and technicians who want to enter into the cine field.
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
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THE NATION
43
Indeference of authorities D
Inferno in Delhi Kills
THE NEWS BUREAU
elhi's has witnessed one of the worst fire tragedies since the Uphaar cinema tragedy in 1997 and the Lal Kuan fire in 1999. Forty three people mostly labourers, dead and many others injured after a massive fire broke out in a factory in Delhi early morning of 8, Dicember. Magisterial probe ordered into the Anaj Mandi blaze and the owner of factory arrested. This is the second massive fire incident in Delhi this year. Earlier in February, seventeen people were killed in a fire incident in Karol Bagh area. Mmassive fire ripped through a factory in Anaj Mandi area in north Delhi's Rani Jhansi Road at around 4:30 am. Fire officials said the blaze broke out, due to a short circuit on the second floor of the four-storey building, which was being illegally used as a workshop and warehouse, doubling up as residential quarters for the labourers at night. While the flames were not that strong, the lack of ventilation meant people on the third and fourth floor of the building started passing out or dying due to asphyxiation. Many of those killed and injured were fast asleep when the fire broke out. The officials says the building was filled with hazardous carbon monoxide and most workers died due to suffocation. The congested area made it difficult for 150 firefighters to carry
out rescue operations. Blaze from 100 m away because it broke out in one of the area's many alleyways, tangled in electrical wire and too narrow for vehicles to access, authorities at the scene said. national capital. Most of the rescued persons were affected by smoke. According to Delhi Fire Service Director Atul Garg, the building did not have a fire clearance and no fire safety equipment was found installed on the premises. Delhi Police have arrested Rehan, the owner of the building, and a case has been registered under Section 304 (punishment for culpable homicide not amounting to murder) of the Indian Penal Code against him. "Rehan and his manager Furkan have been arrested. The police are also interrogating brothers of Rehan—Shan and Imran. We
are also looking for those who were running the factory," informed DCP, North, Monika Bhardwaj. The Delhi Government has ordered a magisterial probe into the blaze. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who visited the accident sitedirected the District Magistrate of Central Delhi to submit a report. Kejriwal announced a compensation of ten lakh rupees each to the families of the dead and one lakh rupees each to the injured and free treatment.
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
THE NATION
63
Costs in Hyderabad Nizam case
Pakistan to pay India T
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he high court of England and Wales ordered Pakistan to pay India and the two princes party to the long-drawn dispute 65% of their legal costs in the historic case of 7th Nizam of Hyderabad’s £1million deposit in London. This case has gone through several twists and turns with India and the descendants Mukarram Jah and Muffakham Jah on one side and Pakistan on the other. In October, the court had ruled in favour of India and the two descendants of the late 7th Nizam of Hyderabad, who sent £1million to a London bank in 1948, now estimated to value at least £35 million. The court ordered that Prince Muffakham Jah be paid £1,835,445.83, the government of India £2,802,192.22 and Mukarram Jah, the VIIIth Nizam £795,064.63 (65 per cent on an account of their costs). Paul Hewitt, representing the VIII Nizam, said: “Today’s hearing brings this litigation, which started in 2013 but where the underlying dispute dates back to in 1948, to an end at long last. .We are pleased that Pakistan has decided not to contest Mr Justice Smith’s judgment. Our client His Exalted Highness the VIII Nizam will now have access to the funds which his grandfather, HEH the VII Nizam, intended him to have.” The historic case has gone
through several twists and turns with India and the descendants Mukarram Jah and Muffakham Jah - on one side and Pakistan on the other. Pakistan had claimed that the money on the ground was a payment for supplying arms to the Hyderabad state during India’s annexation in 1948. The 7th Nizam had transferred the £1 million to the then Pakistan ambassador in London, Habib Ibrahim Rahimtoola, for safekeeping, who agreed “to keep the amount mentioned by you in my name in trust”. The amount, accruing interest over the decades, lies in the National Westminster Bank in London. The 166-page judgment by Justice Marcus Smith set out the history of the dispute, from India’s ‘Operation Polo’ to the annexation of Hyderabad, and later develop-
ments that include the Nizam in 1965 ‘assigning’ the President of India the claim to the money in London. The judge had rejected Pakistan’s claims of illegality on India’s part. Pakistan had alleged that India’s annexation of Hyderabad was unlawful and that it followed that India and the princes should be barred from any claim to the fund. India argued that the question of whether India’s annexation of Hyderabad was lawful was irrelevant to the question of ownership of the fund. The judge concluded that India’s submission was wellfounded and that even if there were illegality of the nature alleged by Pakistan (the judge has not made any findings on that issue), any such illegality would, in any case, be irrelevant to the claim.
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
64
SPACE TECHNOLOGY
Advanced radar satellite
RISAT-2B1 in service
I
THE NEWS BUREAU
ndia now has the most advanced radar satellite of its own. Country’s advanced radar-imaging satellite RISAT-2B1 launched into space from Sriharikota during the second week of December. India's Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) successfully took off on its 50th spaceflight on placing the RISAT-2B1. The imaging satellite is armed with X-band radar which is mostsuited for military use for its beyond-line-of-sight communication. It can operate effectively during day/night and all weather conditions, irrespective of the cloud cover and would power the country’s border surveillance. The
satellite was injected into low-earth orbit, precisely 576 km from the earth’s surface, and would be inclined at 37 degrees, crucial for its data-collection. “This is a very, very important mission for India. It is an excellent satellite with hi-fi earth observation (capabilities),” media quoted ISRO Chairman K Sivan as saying. The satellite, weighing 628 kgs, was launched aboard PSLV-C48 from Satish Dhawan Space Centre, in Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh. The rocket also carries nine other foreign satellites -- six from the USA and one each from Israel, Japan and Italy - as part of a commercial arrangement with NewSpace Private Limited. The rocket had a perfect lift-off as it roared
high up into the clear blue skies, with subsequent separation of each of its four stages. The trajectory was as intended, as per ISRO. After 16 minutes of the takeoff, all foreign satellites separated one by one, and the entire flight duration was completed in 21 minutes. This was the sixth mission of Isro this year, but 72nd launch vehicle mission from Sriharikota. The satellite will replace the RISAT-2, which was launched in 2009. India uses RISAT-2 to monitor terrorist activities at the borders adjacent to Pakistan and thwart their infiltration bids. The satellite also helped Indian intelligence agencies to plan surgical strike in 2016 in Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (PoK) and the Balakot aerial strike earlier this year. The RISAT-2B has a lifespan of five years and will also be used for military surveillance. ISRO is planning to launch a few more all-weather radar imaging RISAT satellites in the next one year. It is also preparing to launch Chandrayaan-2 in July which will land on Moon in September.The rocket carrying Chandrayaan-2 is expected to lift-off from SDSC. Chandrayaan-2 consists of three modules: the orbiter, lander (Vikram), and rover (Pragyan). The first two will be interfaced mechanically and stacked together as a single integrated module inside the launch rocket.
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
SHOBHA’S PAT ON MIND 65
DR SHOBHA RAJU
Help youth to raise above hormones
“
Respect women
Don’t caste bad looks on a woman” - much easier said than practised for many. All religious leaders know and preach us that the pleasures, body asks for, are momentary and permanent is only the spiritual bliss. But didn’t we witness a number of them being caught red-handed in cases of molestation, totally against to their own preachings? We listen to their sermons. They listen to their hormones! Bottom line is - mechanical preachings of sermons like “Speak truth”, “Don’t hurt others” are like paper boats. Won’t carry any weight. If they have to be imbibed, make them into small skits and present them very effectively to kids. Let them know what love is...what courtesy is...what sacrifice is...what pain is...what hunger is....what compassion is... A movie is a great medium which has a tremendous impact on the human mind. Recently we have observed
a few patriotic movies that were released before elections had yielded the expected results. An ordinary boy turned spiritual and became Bala Yogi after watching the movie, “Bhakta Ramadasu”. I am grateful to my mother and sister for showing me movies like “Lava Kusha”, “Bhakta Prahlada”, “Sati Sakku Bai” in my childhood. They had a great impact on nurturing the devotion in me and influenced my decision to take the propagation of Annamayya Sankeertanas as my life’s mission relinquishing my ambition of becoming a playback singer. Most amazing thing to me is people advising the youth to be good in their conduct, while they encourage movies which are full of violence and obscenity. You say you cried a lot watching a sad scene. You say you became very devotional watching a devotional scene. You say you felt patriotic watching a patriotic movie. Don’t
you think...obscenity will also have a bearing on your mind...particularly young minds? Their minds are stuffed with all the obscenity. Movies are Gurus to them teaching how to dress up, how to talk, how to walk... Our censor board has to be strong not to allow any dirt into our movies. I studied tenth in Kurnool city. It so happened that a guy, who was a self-proclaimed leader of our class happened to find his name etched on a desk in the classroom. He looked at the etching with a grave face and stood before girls and asked in such a dramatic way, “Who etched my name?”. In a style, he pointed his finger at few girls, one after the other and asked “Did you etch? You? You? You?” Everybody denied. He laughed weirdly and said, “If I don’t figure out who did this by the same time tomorrow, I am not Raghavendra at all”. His follower asked him, “Rujuvu? (Evidence?)” in a typical cinema comedian style. He laughed
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
66 SHOBHA’S PAT ON MIND
funnily bending his head backwards and said, looking upwards like a C.I.D., “This Raghavendra knows no defeat”. The next day Rupa, one of my classmates was entering the classroom. He blocked her way and accosted her, “Nuvve chekkav kadaa?” (You only etched right?). She said disgustedly, “ey..chi...who would etch your name?” She brushed him aside and came to the girls' side and sat. She started complaining about him to all of us in whispers angrily. Meanwhile our Chemistry sir, Mr Veeranna came. He was altogether a different kind of a person whom we were all afraid of. Rupa got up and in a fit of emotion complained about Raghavendra. “What did you lose if somebody etched your name? First of all, why do you think it’s your name only? Why are you teasing that girl, idiot?”, asked Veeranna sir. The hero’s ego was hurt. “Sir! How do you understand this pain, sir? I will not sleep until I prove who etched my name, sir!”, he said very emotionally, in a typical NTR style. Veeranna sir who was about to burst out in anger on Rupa’s complaint, burst out in loud laughter. He asked all the boys to stand up on the bench and took a cane into hands saying that the cane will reveal the truth. Boys knew how Veeranna sir works with a cane. All were afraid. Deena, in a fit of fear, said that it was Raghavendra himself who etched his name on the desk. “I saw him doing that as I waited for him to go home on Saturday evening. I was afraid to tell because he will beat me, sir”. Thus Raghavendra attracted all beatings supposed to have been served to everyone by Veeranna sir. I recall the whole scene so
vividly because the acting was so grave though the case was so frivolous. What does Raghavendra get by this bogus acting? It’s just an urge to live movies and ape his favourite heroes! I narrated the whole episode to tell you how the movies affect day to day lives of youth weirdly. I had been to my elder sister, who was then doing her masters in Osmania University. I observed a common scene of boys always teasing girls singing movie songs and dialogues or the ones inspired by them. Most of them were Rajesh Khanna's (Aradhana was running to the full houses), a few were Devanands (Prem Pujari), Kapoors so on... I came to Tirupati and joined Sri Padmavathi Women’s College in Junior Intermediate. I saw the college girls were Vanisrees in spirit. When movies impact the youth so much in particular, let us take every precaution to see that they are made based on themes of human values. Knit beautiful stories based on human values and make beautiful movies which would mould the personalities. When I said this, Veteran Hero, Nageswara Rao garu for whom I have high regard, countered saying, “How many of the viewers turned into Bhakta Tukarams after watching the movie?”. It had a great impact on me. I sang those songs fondly. In the last scene, Tukaram requests his wife to get ready to go to Vishnu Lokam with the body, in a special vehicle that would be sent by Vithala. His innocent wife thinks that it was all his illusion and goes out on some work. Tukaram singing His Name boards the vehicle as all the people of the town watch him in awe and devo-
tion fly off to Vishnu Loka. His wife comes to know of this and runs to the spot but by the time she reaches the spot, Tukaram was gone. How many days the scene haunted me! The non-attachment that was so natural to Tukaram and his wife’s innocent attachment to her husband brought tears even now as I write this. How many viewers like me would have had a wash of attachment at heart? Shringaram is called “Rasarajam”, the master of fine emotions. Without romanticism no Kavyam (literary work) is tasteful. But that has to be portrayed in a sacred way which encourages one to take a respectable approach towards women. If it is pulled down to baser emotional level, the human mind will be wrongly impacted. Right from infant stage right values, right feelings and fine emotions have to be inculcated and nurtured through nice stories, songs, rhymes, skits, books, video plays, movies. It forms a good Samskaram and the strength of it prevents the compelling hormones, which in turn can prevent cases like Disha. Once they come to a considerable age, the technic of meditation through which one can transcend body consciousness at will could be taught eventually. Anyways it’s always hard to make one climb a mountain but very easy to push one down from there. One push is enough. Also, it’s difficult to elevate one’s thinking while it’s easy to raise baser passions in him. Let’s create a society where conscientious living prevails not the erratic spell of hormones.
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | JANUARY 2020
(Author is a well-known musician, Devotional singer, writer and composer.)
The News You Like January, 2020
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RNI No: APENG/2013/48048 P.R. No. RNP/HD/1187/2020-22 (DOP: 1st of Every Month; DOP: 8/9-1-2020)
THE NEWS YOU LIKE | DECEMBER 2019