CMYK
03
THUMBNAILS
Offering puja to observe
Rathayatra festival at
Dakshineswar Adyapeath,
in Kolkata on Tuesday.
� SUBAL SAHA
Number of
containment
zones go up,
corona cases
drop slightly
KOLKATA, 23 JUNE
The containment zones in
the city has increased by
over 500 in the last 10 days
though a slightly lower
number of Corona cases
were recorded in the last 24
hours.
The state recorded 370
fresh Corona cases with
81 cases being recorded
in the city in a single day.
Currently, there are a total
of 1714 containment zones
in Kolkata.
On 10 June, there were
1127 containment zones in
the city and on 21 June, the
number rose to 1714. Infact
around 50 containment
zones are being added per
day. On 20 June there were
1662 such zones and an
additional 52 zones were
added in the next day.
According to an offi-
cial, currently containment
zone refers to a particular
house or premise instead
of the entire area.
In the last 24 hours, 11
patients died due to Coro-
na of which four are in
Howrah, three each in
Kolkata and North 24 Par-
ganas and one in East Mid-
napore. The total Corona
death toll has risen to 580.
In North 24 Parganas and
Howrah 55 and 49 cases
have been detected respec-
tively.
Till now, 14,728 Corona
cases have been detected
in the state.
The recovery rate has
risen further to 62.58 per
cent with 531 patients being
discharged from hospitals
since yesterday. A total of
9218 patients have been
cured till now. Currently,
there are 4930 active Coro-
na cases in the state. SNS
Covid-19 eclipses Rath Yatra
celebrations in Bengal
SNS &PTI
KOLKATA, 23 JUNE
The annual Rath Yatra was a
low-key affair in West Bengal
due to the Covid-19 pandem-
ic, with just a handful of devo-
tees visiting the ISKCON tem-
ples in Kolkata and Mayapur,
and some offering prayers at
the Lord Jagannath shrine in
Hooghly district.
No chariot was taken out
in any part of the state to
avoid public gatherings, but
priests and devotees per-
formed the rituals, while main-
taining social distancing norms,
official sources said.
Chief Minister Mamata
Banerjee extended her greet-
ings to the people on the occa-
sion.
“Greetings to all my broth-
ers and sisters on the occasion
of the #RathYatra Festival. May
the blessings of Lord Jagannath
be showered on all, specially
during this disturbing time of
the Covid-19 pandemic. Jai
Jagannath,” Banerjee posted
on her Twitter handle.
The nine-day festival is
usually marked by a proces-
sion of chariots, in which the
three deities ~ Jagannath,
Balaram and Subhadra ~
embark on an annual journey
to Gundicha temple and back.
At the International Soci-
ety for Krishna Conscious-
ness (ISKCON) temple in
Kolkata, all rituals were per-
formed on the temple premis-
es, its spokesperson Rad-
haraman Das said.
“Three small chariots, sim-
ilar to the ones pulled by chil-
dren, were taken out briefly on
the temple compound by the
monks, as a symbolic gesture.
Every year, idols of the three
deities are taken to Maidan area
in chariots. This year, all ritu-
als will be performed in the tem-
As tunnel boring work for
E-W metro resumes, cracks
appear in Bowbazar homes
24 residents from two families of 7 Durga Pithuri Lane and 94 B. B. Ganguly Street were evacuated
STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE
KOLKATA, 23 JUNE
T
wenty-four residents
of Bowbazar are caught
in a tug of war between
their health and safe-
ty. Minor cracks in a building
at 7 Durga Pithuri Lane has
forced the residents of two
buildings out of their home
amid the pandemic.
As the tunnel boring
machine, Urvi, resumed tun-
nelling last Friday at Bow-
bazar that had earlier wit-
nessed a mishap last year,
residents of Durga Pithuri
Lane, which was the epicen-
tre of the cracks and crevices,
were keeping their fingers
crossed. However, minor
cracks in one of the houses
adjoining the East-West Metro
route on B. B. Ganguly Street,
where tunnelling started afresh
last week, were noticed on
Monday. According to the
local residents, fresh cracks
have been seen at three places
in the building at 7 Durga
Pithuri Lane, after the TBM
restarted the job of excavat-
ing the remaining tunnel
between Bowbazar and Seal-
dah, on 19 June.
Twenty-four residents from
two families of 7 Durga Pithuri
Lane and 94 B. B. Ganguly Street
were evacuated and shifted to
TMC targets PM over petrol price hike
STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE
KOLKATA, 23 JUNE
The Trinamul Congress on
Tuesday hit out at Prime Min-
ister Narendra Modi for the
fuel price hikes for 17 days in
a row, saying it is “disgrace-
ful to unleash a planned dis-
aster” on the common peo-
ple at a time when the coun-
try is in the throes of a pan-
demic.
Petrol price was hiked by
20 paise per litre and diesel
by 55 paise on Tuesday as oil
companies increased rates
that took the cumulative
increase to a steep Rs 8.5 and
Rs 10.01 per litre, respective-
ly.
TMC leaders used #Mod-
iBabuPetrolBekabu hashtag
on their Twitter handles.
Abhishek Banerjee, senior
ple,” Das said. Last year, around
4 lakh people had gathered to
pull the chariots on city streets,
he said. “We are praying to Lord
Jagannath for strength to fight
the crisis. People should be able
to turn up in large numbers next
year on this day,” he said.
At the ISKCON Mayapur
centre, which also happens to
be the global headquarters of
the religious order, only a
restricted number of follow-
ers, along with servitors and
monks, were allowed inside the
Chandradaya temple.
A makeshift 'Gundicha'
temple has been constructed
on the premises, where idols
of the three deities will be
kept for eight days. Devotees
will be given permission to offer
prayers, only after screening
and proper sanitisation,
ISKCON Mayapur spokesman
Subrata Das said.“As part of our
'Mercy on Wheels' initiative,
people can watch the obser-
vance of rituals online by log-
ging on to our website,” the
spokesperson said.
The chariot festival, which
is marked by traditional feasts
and commemoration in
Mahesh, in Hooghly district ~
home to the 624-year-old
Jagannath temple ~was also
observed without any pomp
and show.
Mr. Soumen Adhikari, the
chief priest of Jaganath tem-
ple said,“This is for the first time
in the history of 624 years of
Mahesh Ratha Yatra that the
chariot was not rolled out.
However, as per the Apex court
decision, the Puri chariots
were granted permission to be
rolled out. Mahesh Jaganath
chariot holds a high esteem after
Puri chariot.” Lakhs of devo-
tees who usually visit Mahesh
during the festival, are saddened
over the unexpected occurance
of events due to Covid-19.
We have decided to extend suspension of academic activities
in higher educational institutions till 31 July
ADDING THAT UNIVERSITIES HEADS WILL DECIDE HOW TO CONDUCT ADMINISTRATIVE FUNCTIONS
Portion of three-storied building collapses, bike damaged
STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE
KOLKATA, 23 JUNE
Residents of a three-storied
building at Chetla Central
Road had a close shave after
a considerable portion of
the second floor balcony col-
lapsed, smashing a motor-
bike parked below.
It felt like an earthquake
had hit the foundations of the
100 year-old building at 11B
Chetla Central Road when an
intense vibration was felt, fol-
lowed by heavy thud sounds,
recalled Manabendra Man-
gal, a resident of the build-
ing on its ground floor. His
testimony was backed by
other residents too who were
in deep shock right after a por-
tion of the structure col-
hotels in Central Kolkata yes-
terday. The 24 residents of
the area are to return home
tomorrow. Although the cracks
are minor, the residents were
shifted as a precautionary
measure by the authorities of
Kolkata Metro Rail Corpora-
tion Limited (KMRCL).
Considering the outbreak
Petrol price was hiked
by 20 paise per litre
and diesel by 55 paise
on Tuesday as oil com-
panies increased rates
TMC leader and nephew of
West Bengal Chief Minister
Mamata Banerjee, said it is dis-
graceful to snatch the bene-
fit of low crude oil prices by
imposing record duty hikes.
“While people are facing
severe economic distress dur-
ing #COVID19, @naren-
dramodiJi decided to snatch
the benefit of low crude oil
prices by imposing record
duty hikes. However, when it's
rising again, he passes on
the hardship to the common
man. Disgraceful! #Mod-
iBabuPetrolBekabu,” he tweet-
BREAK FROM TRADITION
Priests and devotees carry idols of Lord Jagannath, Balaram and Subhadra, as a symbolic gesture after the Rath Yatra procession
was cancelled due to the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus, in Kolkata on Tuesday. � BHASKAR MALLICK
21 GPs in Burdwan fail to get five per cent of
developmental work done, Rs 169 cr still unused
KANCHAN SIDDIQUI
BURDWAN, 23 JUNE
Twenty one Gram Panchayats
across Burdwan (East) failed
to secure even five percent of
the scheduled development
works and just four Panchay-
ats could ensure 80 percent and
above completion of jobs in
the district, as per the 2020-
21 financial year administra-
tive report, till 31 May.
Comparing the perfor-
mances of 2019-20 with the pre-
sent financial year, it was
observed that work assess-
ment in two Panchayats –
Baghason in Monteswar block
and Durgapur in Memari – 1
block, was zero per cent. This
raised the eyebrows in the
ruling Trinamul Congress.
It felt like an earth-
quake had hit the
foundations of the
100 year-old building
at 11B Chetla Road
lapsed in the afternoon. It is
learnt that five families reside
in this building.
The premises of the struc-
ture remained coved with
pile of bricks which rained
down from the upper balcony
that crumbled like a cookie
leaving iron rods, that held
the balcony from above, sus-
pended and jutting out.
However, it was learnt
that the building was not
marked as a ‘dangerous build-
ing’ by the Kolkata Munici-
of COVID-19 and the proto-
col associated with it, KMRCL
officials are taking particular
care during the stay of the evac-
uees at the hotel. Unlike before,
only two persons are being kept
in one hotel room. The hotel
management are also said to
be taking initiatives of saniti-
sation at the hotel and while
ed.
TMC secretary-general
and state minister Partha
Chatterjee said duties on
petrol and diesel have seen
a rise of nearly 247.89 per cent
and 794.10 per cent, respec-
tively since Modi took over
reins of the country.
“And yet again, @naren-
dramodi Ji unleashes a new
planned disaster on his dear
countrymen. Since 2014, the
duties on petrol & diesel have
seen a rise of nearly 247.89%
& 794.10% respectively. Yes,
you read that right and no,
@narendramodiJi does not
care,” he said on Twitter.
Chatterjee's cabinet col-
league and senior party leader
Chandrima Bhattacharya
said, “PM Modi's way of car-
ing is scaring the people of his
country.
Nargis Begum, MLA, Memari
said: “We are scrutinising how
a Panchayat board could
remain just idle over the year.”
Among the 21 Panchayats,
those performed below 5 per-
cent were – Ajhapur GP in
Jamalpur, Palita GP in Ketu-
gram-1, Nigon GP in Mon-
galkote, Lodhna GP in
Khandaghosh, Satgachhia-2 GP
in Memari-2 block. These Pan-
chayats spent less than Rs 20
lakh in 2020-21 year till 31 May.
Burdwan (East) accom-
modates 215 Gram Panchay-
ats. According to the report, per-
formance of 113 Panchayats
was below 24 percent and
that of 102, were above 24 per
cent till 31 May of this finan-
cial year.
Ahead of 2021 Assembly
CMYK
EDUCATION MINISTER PARTHA CHATTERJEE
pal Corporation (KMC) who
otherwise have put boards on
several dilapidated build-
ings in the city which are no
less than 1,500.
KMC board chairman
Firhad Hakim reached the
place after being intimated
of the incident. Teams of
KMC demolition wing, too
reached the spot. Mr Hakim
said, “The residents in this
building have been living
here since long. The build-
ing suffered from lack of
maintenance resulting from
an apparent feud between the
owner and the tenants. I had
earlier visited the place to con-
vince the dwellers to sit and
sort out the impasse that is
leading to a bigger threat
that hovered over the lives of
serving the food. The evacuees,
however, are apprehensive of
their health while staying out
of their home in the prevail-
ing threats of the virus. “In the
present scenario, the safest
place for an individual is his
or her home," said one of the
evacuees staying at a hotel in
the ongoing situation is expos-
‘Stop endorsing
Chinese brands’
KOLKATA, 23 JUNE
A Press communique
by the Bharat Chamber of
Commerce stated that Dr.
Lobsang Sangay, President
of Central Tibetan Admin-
istration, in a web seminar
with the chamber, said the
more effective solution for
India than banning Chi-
nese goods, can be if Indi-
an celebrities stop endors-
ing Chinese brands and
switch to Indian ones which
will push the sales of the lat-
ter without the need of boy-
cotting.
Dr Sangay remarked,
it will be a win-win propo-
sition to take forward
the Prime Minister’s
endeavour of “Make in
India”. SNS
Elections, the ruling Trina-
mul Congress has expressed
concern over the performance
by a significant number of
Panchayats in Burdwan (East)
– a district where the rural econ-
omy is ruled by the extensive
agro-based livelihood. Minister
and district president of the rul-
ing Trinamul Congress, Swa-
pan Debnath, summoned the
governing body members of
the Panchayats those, accord-
ing to him, ‘were mocking at
the state’s mission to lead
mammoth development works
in rural Bengal.’
He also held meeting with
the uppercase of the respec-
tive administrative depart-
ments linked to rural devel-
opment works.
“Till the year-end on 31
KOLKATA, WEDNESDAY 24 JUNE 2020
the residents. Instruction to
carry out maintenance work
fell on deaf ears.”
He added, “At present,
KMC team is demolishing the
portions which are in a pre-
carious state but sooner or
later, this structure will col-
lapse. We will install a warn-
ing board outside the prop-
erty and include it in the
records as a dangerous build-
ing.”
It may be noted that in
every monsoon, the city
throws up reports of build-
ing collapses. The KMC,
though has been trying to con-
vince owners and tenants
through attractive schemes
to get the decade old struc-
tures repaired, it has turned
out to be apparently futile.
ing us to health risks. Although
the arrangements are satis-
factory, we are living in appre-
hensions about our health. It
is difficult to choose between
the two. While staying at home
was important during the
pandemic, shifting was
required for our safety. ,” he
added.
PCC chief hits out at Dilip Ghosh
STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE
KOLKATA, 23 JUNE
PCC chief Somen Mitra today
lambasted BJP state presi-
dent Dilip Ghosh who said that
those who do not know vio-
lence are cowards. What more
can be expected from those
who are not ashamed even
after killing Mahatma Gand-
hi, the veteran Congress leader
said.
The BJP leader and others
in his party "trade-in democ-
racy", the PCC chief said.
They understand that buy-
ing and selling is democracy
and are unaware of the fact
that it evolves from the peo-
ple, he felt.
The BJP MP from Midna-
pore talks of counter-vio-
lence and he claims that once
in power he will bring back
March, we were surprised to
note that Rs 219 Crore was lying
unutilised with the Panchay-
ats who have failed to survive
the benchmark of targeted
development works,” said
Debnath adding, “It’s a shame
on those boards who mis-
used the opportunities to
serve the people.”
Lodhna Panchayat that
performed below five percent
incidentally, is the home turf
of Burdwan (East) Zilla Parishad
Sabhadhipati Shampa Dhara.
She said: “The figure of
unutilised funds with the Pan-
chayats currently was not Rs
219 Crore, as it has come down
to Rs 169 Crore after work-ten-
ders worth Rs 50 Crore was
passed just ahead of the Covid-
19 lockdown.”
Wife’s body found in
decomposed state: Police
SNS &PTI
KOKATA, 23 JUNE
A day after a man allegedly shot
his mother-in-law and took his
own life, after flying down to
the city from Bengaluru, where
he had also apparently killed
his estranged wife, a police offi-
cer here on Tuesday that the
murder in the Karnataka cap-
ital might have been com-
mitted two days ago. Shilpi's
(the wife) body was found in
a decomposed state in her
Whitefield flat in the Kar-
nataka capital, said police.
Preliminary probe also revealed
that he also wanted to elimi-
nate his father-in-law and
brother-in law, as well.
“The preliminary invsti-
gation into the Kakurgachi
murder case so far revealed that
Amit had also considered mur-
dering his father-in-law and the
brother-in-law. The father- in
law had escaped death by flee-
ing the room. The brother-in-
law, Vineet Dhandhania
spurned Amit's invitation to
come down to Kakurgachi
from Gurgaon, citing unavoid-
able issues,” said an officer.
The father in-law, Subhas
Dhandhania, was lucky as the
bullet went off-target and he
manage to flee the room, bolt-
ing the door from outside
where Amit had shot her moth-
er- in- law, Lalita Dhandhania
to death. He had left his son
at his brother's residence here,
ahead of his meeting with in-
laws in Phoolbagany.
Meanwhle, the 50 page sui-
cide note, that was recovered
from the spot, said investiga-
tors, is likely to play a key role
in unravelling the mystery of
the motive behind the murders.
peace in a year, Mitra said. He
is unaware that revenge pol-
itics has no place in the cul-
ture of Bengal,
Otherwise, the 34-year
long Left Front regime could
not have been removed with-
out the use of bombs or pis-
tols, the PCC chief said. It was
replaced silently by a people'
s revolution, Mitra who had
then joined Trinamul Congress
No takers for Covid
victims’ bodies
TIRTHANKAR MITRA
KOLKATA, 23 JUNE
Donation of bodies for use in
medical teaching and research
has taken a hit after Covid-19
struck. There are especially no
takers for bodies of those
that succumbed to Covid-
19.
Institutions are rejecting
bodies of corona victims,
said Braja Roy, chief adviser
of Gana Darpan. For decades,
this voluntary organisation has
been at the forefront of the
movement of donating bod-
ies post passing.
Admitting the reluctance
to accept bodies if the cause
of death is Covid-19, Roy said
that this trend would continue
for a while. Things are likely
CU’s Hardinge Building
renovation work to be delayed
PRESS TRUST OF INDIA
KOLKATA, 23 JUNE
Renovation of the Hardinge
Building, one of the three
heritage structures on the
Calcutta University College
Street campus, is likely to be
delayed by two-three months
due to the lockdown, a senior
varsity official said.
Registrar Prof Debasis Das
said that the repair work by
the PWD started a year back,
but as the process was near-
ing completion, it got delayed
due to the Covid-19 pan-
demic and the subsequent
lockdown.
“We hope to finish it in
another two to three months,”
Das said.
The university is also set-
ting up new gates at the two
The suicide note laid bare the
fact that Amit had killed his wife
at her Bengaluru flat before
coming down to Kolkata. It also
stated that he was going to com-
mit suicide after killing his in-
laws, police sources said.
The suicide note also con-
tained, said an officer, the
minute details ranging from
their pre-married, conjugal
and down to their frictions and
run-ins over the custody of their
only son since a divorce suit
was filed after their marital life
went awry.
An initial probe has sug-
gested that the Agarwal cou-
ple, both chartered accountants,
had separated around two
years ago and was fighting a
legal battle for divorce.
Shilpi had been staying in
Bengaluru with their son, while
Amit lived in Uttarpara near
here, the police said.
The 42-year-old allegedly
killed his mother-in-law Lali-
ta Dhandhania, aged around
60 years, at her flat in Phool-
bagan, after an altercation on
Monday evening.
His father-in-law, who man-
aged to escape, informed the
local police station, following
which a team of officers arrived
at the residence and found Agar-
wal lying in a pool of blood and
the firearm on the floor. “The
case is still at a nascent stage,
and more details will be avail-
able after a probe,” the officer
stated.What is causing concern
among the investigators is
how Amit accessed the “6 mm
pistol” that he used to kill his
mother in-law and himself.
Whether he had hid it some-
where in the city or anyone had
supplied to him, is being inves-
tigated.
and was elected an MP said.
People's support cannot be
secured through intimida-
tion, the PCC chief said. More-
over, for a change of regime,
Ghosh is depending on the
mercenaries who were in Tri-
namul but have now found
shelter in the saffron camp,
he said.
Mitra announced during
the day that Rajya Sabha MP
Pradip Bhattacharya and party
MLA Asit Mitra would repre-
sent the party at the all-party
meeting convened by the
chief minister, Mamata Baner-
jee at Nabanna tomorrow to
tackle the COVID 19 situation
in the state. The absence of
the leader of the Opposition
in the state Assembly, Abdul
Mannan is a surprise omis-
sion in this team, party sources
said.
to look up once the pan-
demic eases, he felt.
Not much blame can be
laid at the door of the insti-
tutions hesitant to accept
such bodies, Roy felt. After all,
the risk of infection from the
disease cannot be taken at a
time when the world battles
to find a cure, he said.
Meanwhile, the number of
people pledging to donate
their bodies has also dipped.
Even as daily life inches
towards normalcy, the trend
of working from home is
increasingly gaining curren-
cy leading to fewer crowds.
This has markedly reduced the
scope of reaching out to peo-
ple by volunteers of Gana
Darpan and similar organi-
sations, Roy said.
entrances overlooking College
Street and Presidency Uni-
versity.
“The gates will represent
the great heritage of the 163-
year-old university and will
be befitting to the stature of
the institution. In a way, they
will reflect the character of Cal-
cutta University,” the official
said.
An amount of Rs 20 lakh
will be spent on the repair
work, he added.