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 www.freepressjournal.in | twitter.com/fpjindia
Reg. No. Mcs/048/2018-20; RNI No. 1541/1957 I M.p.c.s office Mumbai-400001

320c. 220c.
Sunrise: 07:04 am
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Vol. 64 No. 251 | SATURDAY | FEBRUARY 20, 2021 | 14 Pages | EDITIONS: Mumbai*, Pune, Indore, Bhopal, E-Paper
EDIT The creator is the
ST GIVES UP 51,000 A WIN FOR ALL MADHURI DIXIT NENE only one pervading
everywhere.
LEVEL AS BEAR MAUL WORKING WOMEN TALKS ABOUT HER He is Ananda.

INTENSIFIES Pg 7 Pg 15 LOVE FOR DANCE Pg 19

Sri Ma

No foreign strain in three state districts

BMC sends 90 samples to NIV for testing, to check if there's a variant in Mumbai
SANJAY JOG & SWAPNIL MISHRA
Mumbai
No new variants of Covid-19 have
been detected in Amravati, Yavat-
mal and Satara districts in Maha-
rashtra, where currently there is a
surge in cases, according to a the
state health department. Samples
from these districts tested at the BJ
Medical College, Pune, have not re-
vealed the presence of the UK or
South African or Brazilian strains.
The statement from the state health
department came after the district
collectors of Amravati and Yavat-
mal imposed strict curbs in these
regions, including partial lockdown
and curfew, to arrest the spread of
the infection.
From Mumbai, meanwhile, as a
precautionary measure, the Brihan-
mumbai Municipal Corporation
(BMC) has also sent 90 samples, cat-
egorised as mild, severe and asymp-
tomatic. Reports are expected in the
next 10-12 days.
A day after researchers found two
new corona strains in the state, the
health department had asked the
three districts of Akola, Amravati
and Yavatmal, to send samples to
the National Institute of Virology
& National Centre for Cell Science
in Pune for genome sequencing. 275
samples from Akola, Amravati and
Yavatmal were sent to the NIV for
testing. However, no foreign strain
of the virus was found.
Amid increasing cases in Pune
and Satara districts, four samples
each from Satara, Yavatmal and
Amravati were tested at the B J
Medical College laboratory in
Pune. ‘‘No mutation similar to
those found in new strains in the
UK, South Africa or Brazil was ob-
served. The same was the case for
the 12 samples from Pune district,’’
the health department said.
According to Rajesh Karyekarte,
head of the department of microbi-
ology at the state-run B J Medical
College, the new mutations were
characterised by the virus’s ability
to escape neutralising antibodies in
the host body. Further, the state gov-
ernment’s technical adviser, Dr
Subhash Salunkhe, asserted that a
mutation found in Amravati
seemed to be more infectious.
The spurt in infections is because
of the large gatherings at weddings
and other functions, where no phys-
ical distancing is being followed,
noted Dr Murlidhar Tambe, Dean
of B J Medical College and Sassoon
General Hospital.
CONTD. ON P12

PIC: BHUSHAN KOYANDE

Macho Vivek Oberoi CHINA PROPAGANDA AMID PULL-OUT

sans mask, helmet

PRIYANKA NAVALKAR
Mumbai
A ‘reckless’ pre-dawn Valen-
tine’s Day spin on his new
motorbike with his lifelong
Valentine but without his
helmet seems to have netted
Bollywood actor Vivek
Oberoi an e-challan from the
traffic police on Friday. The
incident came to light when
a video of a helmetless
Oberoi riding a motorcycle
went viral on social media.
Acting on the information,
the Santacruz division of
traffic police issued him an
e-challan of �500 for the vio-
lation.
Not just that, the actor was
also found flouting a basic
Covid norm – he was not
wearing a mask. Police said,
for this he would be booked
under relevant sections of
the Indian Penal Code and
Covid-19 notifications for vi-
olating the pandemic pro-
hibitory orders imposed by
the government. They were
in the process of registering
a first information report
against the actor at the time
of going to press.
CONTD. ON P12
Galwan, lies & video
KJM VARMA / Beijing
The Chinese Army may have
withdrawn from parts of
eastern Ladakh but there is
no let-up in propaganda from
across the LOC despite the
ongoing disengagement ex-
ercise.
The PLA, keeping up the
pretence that only India had
suffered heavy casualties in
Galwan Valley, claimed on
Friday that just four Chinese
soldiers were killed in the
fierce clash with the Indian
Army in June last year. This
was the first official ac-
knowledgment by the Chi-
nese of the casualties.
on part of the PLA troops,
oddly projecting the PLA as
the weaker side on the day of
the clashes. The upshot of
the false narrative is that the
had trespassed into the Chi-
nese side. This was again
done perhaps to address the
online anger and questions
over why the Chinese gov-
ernment has been silent for
so long on the casualties.
For domestic consumption,
China's military authorities
have also honoured two offi-
cers and three soldiers, in-
cluding the four who re-
ceived the awards posthu-
mously, for defending the
country's western border.
The propaganda has been
unleashed even as the tenth
round of Corps Commander-
level talks is scheduled to
start at 10 am at the Moldo

350 fined
STAFF REPORTER / Mumbai The immediate provoca- PLA troops defeated the "for- border point on the Chinese
tion for China's statement, eign troops" despite being side of the LAC. This will be
More than 300 passengers were fined for not wearing masks downplaying the casualty outnumbered. the first engagement be-

for not
while travelling on Central and Western railway on Friday. figure, seems to have come A one-and-half-minute tween the two sides at a sen-
The Mumbai Division and the BMC have fined 350 commuters from Russia which stated in video, released by China and ior level after conclusion of
in the last 24 hours, compared to the 461 penalised on a news report published by posted on Shiwei’s official the disengagement process
February 18. In a joint drive with the BMC that went on till State-run TASS that China Twitter account, however, in Pangong lake areas,

wearing
6pm on Friday, the CR had fined 200 maskless commuters, had lost 45 men in the bloody debunks the claim that they sources told NDTV.
collecting Rs 40,000 in all, while the WR netted Rs 30,000 by standoff. were outnumbered. The A top officer in the
fining 150 such passengers. According to railway officials, The other lie that China video shows scores of sol- security grid confirmed to

masks
most commuters were compliant with Covid norms at railway tried to perpetuate to handle diers from both sides jostling the TV channel that on the
stations but there were some who were found in violation. the domestic disquiet over in a water body in the Gal- table at Moldo will be issues
“Since trains have resumed for all, we have been acting its heavy casualties was a re- wan Valley. at Depsang, Gogra Hot
against defaulters. There are some passengers who do not port published first on Fri- In a concerted attempt at Springs, CNN (Charding

on train
follow Covid norms but for the most part, others do,” said an day by People's Liberation misinformation,  the video Ninglung Nallah) track
official. Until February 18, the CR and WR had penalised 2,600 Army Daily. It tried to weave strives to create the impres- junction at Demchok and Pa-
and 2,900 commuters respectively, for being without masks. a tale of bravery and courage sion that the Indian troops trolling point 15.

Fast News
SC tells RBI
Greta gets in the act again
TAILPIECE

to frame bank RAMDEV UNNAO ‘DEATHS’: MYSTERY CRACKED

‘MAGIC’
In less than 48 hours, the Unnao Police have unravelled the mystery
behind the death of two minor Dalit girls in Baburaha village in

locker rules FPJ NEWS SERVICE

New Delhi
human rights. These must
be a fundamental part of any
did not require her for the
time being and the agency
Unnao on Wednesday evening. The police have arrested two youth,
identified as Vinay alias Lamboo and Raju, in connection with the

OUR BUREAU / New Delhi It is climate activist Greta

The Supreme Court on Fri-
day directed the Reserve
Bank of India to frame com-
prehensive rules within six
months on bank locker and
safe deposit facilities to pre-
vent the banks from impos-
ing unilateral and unfair
terms on the consumers.
Pending the RBI rules, the
Bench of Justices Mohan M
Shantanagoudar and Vineet
Saran said the principal laid
down by it on responsibili-
Thunberg again. In solidari-
ty with Bengaluru activist
Disha Ravi, who has been ar-
rested as a part of a Khalis-
tani plot to create a twitter
storm on the eve of Republic
Day, Greta has said: The free-
dom of speech and the right
to peaceful protest and as-
sembly are non-negotiable
Desi touchdown Only e-payment to I
democracy.’’
A Delhi court on Friday
sent Disha, who was whisked
away by the Delhi Police
from her residence in Ben-
galuru, to three-day judicial
custody.
The Delhi Police had pro-
duced her before the court
on expiry of her five-day cus-
todial interrogation.
The police said that they
may seek her further interro-
gation once her co-accused --
Shantanu Mukul and Nikita
RETURNS poisoning of three girls, two of whom died.  The police claimed that
Vinay was having a one-sided love-affair with one of the girls. He
had asked for the mobile number of the girl but she refused to
Jacob -- join the questioning. share. The girl had spurned his offer to be friendly with him also.
Mukul and Jacob have Enraged, the jilted lover Vinay invited the girl to meet him in a field
been asked to appear before on Wednesday afternoon. The girl took her two sisters along on the
the investigating agency on pretext of collecting fodder for animals. On the way, they bought a
February 22, the agency told few packets of chips. Vinay came there with a water bottle along
the court. with his friend Raju. He had mixed some strong pesticide in the
Some media coverage sen- water. Vinay told police that he only wanted to offer the water bottle
sational. to the girl he loved but they all drank. After a few minutes they fell
CONTD. ON P12 unconscious. The boys had planned to sexually assault the girls once
The proof is in eating it… they were unconscious.
t is Ramdev magic
again! Haridwar-based
Patanjali Ayurved on
SPARE MY MOM THE GALLOWS, SAYS SON
Even as a prison in UP is of her family, including a baby,

for Mars Rover farmers hereafter

ties of the bank will be bind-
ing on all banks providing
such facilities.
It also directed the RBI to
draft suitable rules on the
responsibility of the bank
for loss or damage to the
contents of the lockers.
The case stemmed from
Kolkata-based Amitabha
Dasgupta challenging the
Friday said its medication readying the scaffold for what in 2008.) "I love my mother. I
‘Coronil’ has received certi- could be the first-ever hanging have only one request to make
fication from the Ayush of a woman post-Independence, to President Uncle: That he
Ministry as per World Shabnam Ali’s 12-year-old son, doesn't let my mother be
MARCIA DUNN OUR BUREAU / New Delhi Health Organization certifi- Mohammed Taj, has appealed hanged," Taj told reporters on
Cape Canaveral SWATI ON cation. The company claims to President Ram Nath Kovind to Thursday. Standing on a chair,
A NASA rover streaked THE DOT The Centre on Friday mandated online e-mode payment to
farmers of Punjab and Haryana from the upcoming season
that this is the first evi-
dence-based medicine for
commute her death sentence.
(Shabnam was sentenced to
he held up a slate with a
written request seeking
through the orange Mar-
tian sky and landed on the
planet on Friday, accom-
S wati was photographed
in a blue outfit and a
black bindi in the control
for procurement, ruling that no further relaxation will be en-
tertained, as allowed since 2015-16, on the requests of the two
state governments.
combating COVID-19.
The ‘cure’ for the lethal
virus was launched at an
death for killing seven members "forgiveness" for his mother.

United Bank of India for its plishing the riskiest step room. On Twitter, social It also urged the farmers of the two states agitating on Del- event presided over by ARJUN’S ENTRY IS STRICTLY ON MERIT

decision to break open his
mother's locker taken on
rent in Deshapriya Park,
Kolkata branch, in the early
50s. He was made a joint
holder of the locker by his
mother, who is no more. The
locker was broken open de-
spite full payment of rent
and some jewellery put in it
was found missing.
yet in an epic quest to bring
back rocks that could an-
swer whether life ever exist-
ed on Mars.
As the six-
wheeled Persever-
ance landed, mil-
lions of miles
away in the US
space agency's con-
trol room, a
M
media users applauded her hi’s borders not to confuse this with the three farm laws Union Health Minister umbai Indians head coach Mahela Jayawardene has
and also wrote about the under dispute. Harsh Vardhan and Trans- said that they picked Arjun Tendulkar purely on
"Lady with the bindi." "Big The Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribu- port Minister Nitin Gadkari. merit. "We've looked at it purely on the basis of his
love for Swati Mohan, tion said the scheme of direct online payment to the farmers Patanjali had introduced skill set. I mean, there is going to be a big tag on his head
rocking that bindi predates the three farm laws under dispute. Coronil’s earlier avatar on because of Sachin. But, luckily, he's a bowler, not a batsman.
in the control The ministry said the E-mode of payment has already been June 23 last year, when the So, I think Sachin will be very proud if he could bowl like
room," a user said. adopted partially by Haryana and Punjab. pandemic was at its peak. Arjun," ESPNcricinfo quoted Jayawardene as saying.
She was raised in CONTD. ON P12 CONTD. ON P12
the Northern
Virginia- LAST WORD
Washington DC

Tough guy Kohli recounts when he was in the pits

The court imposed a cost woman's voice rang metro area and
of Rs 5 lakh on the bank as a out: "Touchdown completed her
compensation to Dasgupta, confirmed!” bachelor's degree
holding that the amount be The announce- from Cornell
deducted from the salary of ment was from University in PTI / New Delhi Cricket' podcast, Kohli con- that you are not in control of a phase when I literally
the erring officers. If they Indian-American Mechanical & ceded that he went through anything at all," he recalled. couldn't do anything to

had already retired, it said
the bank will have to pay the
cost. It also ordered Rs 1 lakh
to be paid to the appellant as
the litigation expenses.
The victim, however, got
justice after 25 years of strug-
gle. Even in the Supreme
Court, the case went on for
more than a decade as he had
filed the appeal back in 2010.
scientist Swati Mo-
han who leads the
guidance, navigation,
and control operations
of NASA's Mars 2020
mission.
In her role as flight con-
troller, Mohan played a piv-
otal role in the landing of
the historic craft.
CONTD. ON P12
Aerospace
Engineering; she did
her her M.S. and Ph.D
from Massachusetts
Institute of Technology in
Aeronautics/Astronautics.
Over the course of her
career with Nasa, Swati has
worked on the Cassini
mission to Saturn.
I
ndia captain Virat Kohli
has revealed that he bat-
tled depression during a
harrowing tour of England
in 2014 where he felt like the
"loneliest guy in the world"
after a string of failures
with the bat.
In a conversation with for-
mer England player Mark
Nicholas on his 'Not Just
a tough phase during the Kohli had a disastrous tour overturn things...I felt like I
particularly difficult tour. of England in 2014, register- was the loneliest guy in the
"Yes, I did," was his re- ing scores of 1, 8, 25, 0, 39, 28, world," he said of the Eng-
sponse when asked whether 0,7, 6 and 20 in five Tests, av- land tour.
he had suffered from de- eraging 13.50 in his 10 in- Kohli remembered feel-
pression at the time. nings. He roared back to ing alone despite the fact
"...it's not a great feeling to form in the tour of Australia that there were supportive
wake up knowing that you after that, accumulating 692 people in his life. He said
won't be able to score runs runs in the Test series. professional help was what
and I think all batsmen have "You just don't understand he needed.
felt that way at some stage, how to get over it. That was CONTD. ON P12
MUMBAI
Private hospitals must be
roped in for immunisation
drive, says Shiv Sena MP
SANJAY JOG | Mumbai
Shiv Sena Member of the
Parliament (MP) Priyanka
Chaturvedi, in a letter to Union
Health Minister Dr Harsh
Vardhan, urged to rope in
private hospitals in the
immunisation drive,
consider opening more
mobile vaccination
centers and plug the
issues faced on the
CoWIN application.
She has also appealed
to de-regularise the sale
of vaccines and cap the cost
of the same to ensure that there
is no high cost for the citizens to
bear or fear hoarding.
Chaturvedi’s letter coincided
with the 1,01,88,007 COVID-19
vaccine doses administered
across India. “It would be unfair
to the country that we do not
use our own strength and
Min Bacchu Kadu detected
positive for the second time
MUMBAI: Maharashtra Minister of State for
School Education Bacchu Kadu was for the
second time detected positive for COVID-19.
Earlier, he had tested positive and after
recovery had resumed his duties.
Kadu, who hails from Amravati district where
COVID-19 cases are rising rapidly, in a tweet
said, “My COVID-19 test is positive for the second time. I am
currently in isolation. Everyone who has come in contact with me
in the last few days should take care of themselves. If necessary,
undergo the COVID 19 test.”
No one is afraid of
speaker’s election,
assures Ajit Pawar
SANJAY JOG | Mumbai
Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar,
on Friday, said no one is afraid of
holding elections to the speaker’s
post, adding that the Maha Vikas
Aghadi government will win the
poll with a comfortable majority.
He was responding to Leader of
Opposition Devendra Fadnavis’
jibe that the government was
afraid of facing the election and
that this is the first government
that is scared about its own
legislators.
“No one is scared of the
speaker’s election. Whoever
is running the
government, they have
to be ready to face any
situation. If we were
afraid of the election,
then we would
not have allowed
the
MAHARASHTRA STATE COOPERATIVE BANK SCAM
‘No point in raking up charges again’
SANJAY JOG | Mumbai
Maharashtra Deputy Chief
Minister Ajit Pawar heaved a sigh
of relief after he and 75 others
got a clean chit in the alleged Rs
25,000 crore Maharashtra State
Cooperative Bank (MSCB) scam. In
his first reaction, Pawar said, “If
there is truth in the allegations,
then action will be taken.” Pawar
completely denied charges
levelled in the complaint against
him and others about their
alleged involvement in the scam.
“Whatever has happened, has
happened. No point in raking up
the charges again and again,”
noted Pawar.
The committee headed by retired
district judge Panditrao Jadhav in
its report, recently submitted to
the Cooperation Department,
gave a clean chit. It came days
before the commencement of a
budget session of the state
legislature from March 1. The
MUMBAI | SATURDAY | FEBRUARY 20, 2021
leverage all our available
resources to help the society rid
itself of the virus,” said
Chaturvedi. She emphasised the
need for the availability and
accessibility of the vaccines,
especially when India is once
again seeing an increase in
COVID-19 cases and
various strains of the
virus have also been
detected.
She said, as per the
Health Ministry data,
COVID-19 vaccine
supplies are
underutilised. “In fact, the
data of vaccine supplies shows
that only 31.45% of Covishield
and 11.75% Covaxin have been
administered to frontline
workers. If this is the case,
shouldn’t we reconsider our
policy of regulating the
availability of vaccines?” she
asked.
-FPJ Political Bureau
resignation of Nana Patole as the
assembly speaker. Patole had met
me and Chief Minister Uddhav
Thackeray and later submitted his
resignation. Congress party high
command informed the party's
decision. Thereafter, Patole told
us that he is stepping down and
later resigned,” said Pawar.
Pawar, who is the Nationalist
Congress Party (NCP) group
leader of the legislative party,
said that the MVA government
has the support of 170 legislators
and it is fully prepared for the
poll. "Today, we have
the support of about
170 members of the
legislative
assembly (MLA)
and are prepared
to face the
legislature during
the ensuing
budget session.
There is a clear
majority,” he
opined.
Anna Hazare files protest petition
MUMBAI: Activist Anna Hazare has filed a protest petition in the
sessions court against the closure report filed by the Economic
Offences Wing (EOW) of the Mumbai police in the multi crore
Maharashtra State Cooperative Bank (MSCB) scam. In the case,
among the accused, are several politicians across parties,
including Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar. Hazare, in his protest
petition, said that, in 2016, he had approached the Bombay
High Court through a PIL in the matter. In February, 2017, he
had filed a complaint at Mata Ramabai Ambedkar Marg police
station, but the police had not registered an FIR on it.
opposition had planned to target
Pawar on the issue and the
pending inquiry into the similar
scam by the Enforcement
Directorate. However, the
committee report has come handy
for Pawar to defend himself in the
legislature.
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP)
leader and Minister of Rural
Development Hassan Mushrif,
BUDGET SESSION COULD
RUN FOR 4 WEEKS: DEPT
.The proceedings on the assembly and council can take place for four days followed by a three-day recess
.During this period, those who are infected with the virus can be detected and sent under medical observation
SANJAY JOG
Mumbai
Even though the Business
Advisory Committees of
the state assembly and
council have decided the
proceedings for March 1 to
March 8 amidst the rising
COVID-19 cases, the
Health Department has
suggested an option to in-
crease the duration, per-
haps, up to four weeks. Al-
ready, the state legislature
secretariat has declared
that the testing is manda-
tory for ministers, legisla-
tors, staff and journalists
ahead of the budget ses-
sion beginning March 1.
According to the Health
Department, the proceed-
ings on the assembly and
council can take place for
four days followed by a
three-day recess. During
this period, those who are
infected with the virus
can be detected and sent
under medical observa-
tion.
Officer from the state
legislature secretariat
confirmed that the Health
Department has mooted
this option. “However,
there was no formal dis-
cussion at the BACs held
on Thursday. It may come
up at the next meeting
slated for February 25,” he
said. Deputy Chief Minis-
ter Ajit Pawar, who holds
the finance and planning
department, will present
the second budget of the
Maha Vikas Aghadi gov-
ernment on March 8.
The state legislature sec-
Fuel price hike,
actors' tweets:
Patole, ex-CM
trade barbs
MUMBAI: A day after BJP
leader Devendra Fadnavis said
Maharashtra Congress chief
Nana Patole's comments on
some actors not taking a stand
on the fuel price hike issue were
for "publicity", the latter hit back
on Friday saying the former
chief minister's comments need
not be taken to heart.
Patole had, on Thursday, said if
actors Amitabh Bachchan and
Akshay Kumar do not take a
stand on the issue of fuel price
hike, then screening of their
films and shootings would not
be allowed in Maharashtra.
Criticising Patole, Leader of the
Opposition in the Assembly
Fadnavis had reportedly said the
Congress leader's remarks were
aimed at "seeking publicity" and
should not be taken seriously.
-Staff Reporter
who also received a clean chit,
alleged that it was a ploy hatched
by state Bharatiya Janata Party
(BJP) unit chief Chandrakant Patil,
during his tenure as revenue
minister in the BJP-led
government, to trap him in the
case, but it has now been foiled.
“I had not attended the meeting
of MSCB. But my name was roped
in for an inquiry,” he added.
“
The Health Department has mooted this
option. However, there was no formal
discussion at the BACs held on Thursday.
It may come up at the next meeting slated
for February 25.
- OFFICER,
retariat has worked out
the sitting arrangement
whereby only one member
will sit on one seat. Con-
sidering the 288 members
of the assembly, some
members will be accom-
modated in the officers’
and visitors’ galleries in
order to avoid crowding.
Only one personal assis-
tant of a legislator will be
allowed. The entry of visi-
tors will be banned.
Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray accompanied by Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and other leaders
celebrated Shiv Jayanti at Shivneri Fort. In his address, Thackeray said the war against the virus is
underway. He urged the citizens to wear masks, which he called the armour to defeat the virus.
State to be India's first $1 trillion
economy by 2025, says Thackeray
SANJAY JOG | Mumbai
Notwithstanding the competition
from various states, Maharashtra
attracts one-third of the Foreign
Direct Investment (FDI) inflow in
India. The state is on its path to
becoming the country’s first
trillion-dollar economy by 2025
backed by infrastructure-led
focus on growth, a progressive
policy ecosystem and a large
pool of skilled workforce, said
Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray
here on Friday. In his virtual
address at the NASSCOM
Sule demands probe into BJP
MLA's statement about dons
MUMBAI: NCP Lok Sabha MP
Supriya Sule on Friday
demanded an SIT probe into a
reported statement by BJP MLA
Ganesh Naik that "international
dons" knew him.
Sule claimed Naik's reported
statement had national security
ramifications and it was her duty
that it be brought to the notice
of the Centre, specially Union
Home Minister Amit Shah.
If need, the matter will be raised
in Parliament, the Baramati MP
said at an event in Navi
Hema Upadhyay murder: Witness identifies chloroform bottle used in crime
MUMBAI: In the artist Hema Upadhyay and her lawyer Harish
Bhambani’s double murder case, a panch witness who deposed before
a Dindoshi sessions court on Thursday identified a chloroform bottle
which was allegedly used in the crime by the accused. As per the
STATE LEGISLATURE SECRETARIAT
In a related develop-
ment, the Maharashtra
Legislative Council chair-
man Ramraje Nimbalkar
has sent a letter to the
state government, asking
it to get all the legislators
vaccinated. This will help
the legislators to attend
the budget session. As per
the Government of India’s
prescribed norms, front-
line workers are being ad-
ministered vaccines cur-
Technology & Leadership Forum,
Thackeray said Maharashtra,
which is the land of
opportunities and a prominent
destination in India to conduct
business, would be at the
forefront in this era of change.
Thackeray said under Magnetic
Maharashtra 2.0, the
Maharashtra government signed
54 MOUs worth Rs 1,12,939
crore. The investors included
those from countries like the
USA, UK, Spain, Japan,
Singapore and South Korea. “I
urge industry leaders and
Mumbai. Naik, who quit the NCP
and joined the BJP ahead of the
2019 Assembly polls, had
reportedly told his supporters
during an event in Navi Mumbai
that they need not fear
hooliganism as "international
dons" knew him.
Speaking on the issue, Sule said,
"It is an issue of national
security. I think I should write to
(MHA) Amit Shah, seeking
immediate SIT probe of people
from Maharashtra who have
such contacts." -Agencies
“ coronavirus. Tikait, one of the leaders of farmers' agitation against
rently.
The opposition has
pressed for a duration of
four weeks for the budget
session. Bharatiya Janata
Party (BJP) has said that
if there will be any at-
tempt to curtail the dura-
tion, it will clearly prove
that the Maha Vikas Agha-
di government wants to
run away without facing
the discussion on a num-
ber of current issues.
companies to explore
Maharashtra’s technological
landscape and make this state
their home and preferred
destination for business,” he
said. He added that Maharashtra
is the largest economy in the
country with a GDP of close to
half a trillion dollars and
contributes 16% to the country’s
GDP.
Thackeray said Maharashtra has
embarked on a journey to adopt
emerging technologies including
Blockchain, Artificial intelligence
and Internet of Things (IoT).
ACQUITTALS IN 31-YR-OLD CASE
Victim could not identify ‘robbers’
Some witnesses dead, some untraceable
BHAVNA UCHIL | Mumbai
A sessions court, on Tuesday,
acquitted two men in a 31-year-
old case of robbery at gunpoint
as the complainant and his
friend, who was present at the
spot, could not identify them in
court.
The men John D’souza, 58, and
Baldin Miranda, 60, had
absconded before the trial could
begin in the case. The court had
framed charges against their two
co-accused who were later
acquitted. The trial against
D’souza and Miranda had been
separated and was dormant, till
they were arrested in 2019 after
non-bailable warrants were
issued against them.
The court noted that, as per the
prosecution’s report, some
witnesses were dead and some
prosecution case, during the altercation that took place in absconding
accused Vidyadhar Rajbhar’s workshop where he had called artist
Hema Upadhyay and her lawyer Harish Bhambani, the duo was
smothered with a cloth soaked with chloroform. -Staff Reporter
QUICK BYTES
COVID-19 surge in Maharashtra: NCP
ministers postpone 'janta darbars'
MUMBAI: Redressal meets for citizens, popularly known as 'janta
darbars', of NCP ministers in Maharashtra have been postponed
for two weeks in view of a surge in COVID-19 cases in the past
few days, the party said on Friday.
In a statement, the NCP said people can email their problems to
ncpjantadarbar@gmail.com during this period.
Incidentally, two of the NCP's ministers, Jayant Patil and Rajesh
Tope, had, on Thursday, announced that they had tested positive
for coronavirus.
Such janta darbars were being held by the party since August last
year.
As on Thursday, Maharashtra had a caseload of 20,81,520,
including 51,669 deaths. -Agencies
Samyukta Kisan Morcha firm on
holding 'Maha Panchayat' in Yavatmal
NAGPUR: Even as the district administration in Maharashtra's
Yavatmal has denied permission to the February 20 'Maha
Panchayat' of farmer leader Rakesh Tikait due to rising COVID-19
cases, its organiser- Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM)- on Friday said
it is firm on holding the public meeting there. The SKM said that if
Tikait and other leaders are stopped in Yavatmal, then a sit-in
protest would be held.
The administration in Yavatmal district on Thursday ordered curbs
on gatherings and also closure of schools (which had reopened for
select classes) for ten days in view of the rising cases of
the new farm laws on Delhi borders, was scheduled to address the
rally at Azad Maidan ground in Yavatmal city. -Agencies
Bombay Bar Association elects new
team of office bearers for three years
MUMBAI: The Bombay Bar Association (BBA) has elected its new
team of office bearers and Standing Committee members for a
period of three years.
The BBA conducted its elections amidst a high voter turnout on
Thursday.
While senior advocate Nitin Thakker was elected as the President
of the Association, senior counsel Birendra Saraf was elected its
Vice President.
Advocate Vishal Kanade was elected its Secretary.
Among BBA's newly-elected 20 standing committee members are
senior advocates Venkatesh Dhond and Jimmy Pochkhanawalla.
Pochkhanawalla has been on the committee uninterrupted for 40
years, perhaps, the longest an advocate has served in the
committee. -Agencies
Bhandara hosp fire: 2 nurses
booked for culpable homicide
MUMBAI: A case of culpable
homicide has been registered
Ten babies died last
against two nurses for their
alleged negligence in connection
with the fire at a newborn care
unit in Vidarbha's Bhandara
month after the fire
broke out at a special
newborn care unit of
district, Maharashtra Home the four-storey district
Minister Anil Deshmukh said on
Friday. hospital in Bhandara
Deshmukh said the matter is town, about 900 kms
being "thoroughly" probed by
DSP-level officers. from Mumbai.
"A case of culpable homicide has
been registered against two
nurses who were found officers," Deshmukh tweeted.
negligent in an investigation Ten babies died last month after
carried out in the case of a tragic the fire broke out at a special
fire accident that took place in
the natal care unit at Bhandara.
The matter is being thoroughly
newborn care unit of the four-
storey district hospital in
Bhandara town, about 900 kms
investigated by DSP-level from Mumbai. -Agencies
were not traceable for their
evidence to be recorded before
the court.
During the trial, the victim of the
robbery could not identify the
accused in court, nor could his
friend who was beside him at
the time. The duo, though, had
stated regarding the incident in
their testimony.
Judge SB Agarwal said, in his
judgment, that the identity of the could not prove the seizures, as
accused is doubtful and there is the concerned witness in
no evidence that the accused connection with the seizure could
were the same robbers who had not be examined. The court said
robbed the informant and his that recovery of such articles at
friend. the instance of the accused is a
In June, 1988, at the instance of strong circumstance to prove his
Miranda, the police had allegedly involvement in the alleged
recovered the gold ring, chain offence, but the non-examination
and wrist watch robbed by the of an independent witness to
accused. These articles were prove the seizure of articles
seized and panchnamas were makes the prosecution case on
made. However, the prosecution their recovery doubtful.

ACTIVE CASES IN STATE, CITY JUMP IN 1 WEEK
Maha and Mumbai witness 30 per cent and 17 per cent surge in active cases in past 7 days
SWAPNIL MISHRA
Mumbai
COVID-19 active cases
across Maharashtra and
Mumbai increased 30 per
cent and 17 per cent in the
past seven days respectively.
According to the data pro-
vided by the state and civic
health departments, there
were 31,474 active cases in
the state till February 12
which increased to 40,858 by
February 18. Similarly, the
city also witnessed a spike
in active cases from 5,296 to
6201 during the same period.
Officials have attributed
this surge to the lethargic
behaviour of citizens by not
following the COVID norms.
With the city’s COVID-19
pandemic curve flattening,
the state started to ease re-
Won't take financial burden for Absence of regular officer
new edu schemes: State tells HC in SoBo’s B Ward cripples
NARSI BENWAL
Mumbai
The Maharashtra govern-
ment recently blamed the
COVID-19 pandemic for its
current financial instability.
It said that owing to the pan-
demic, its revenue sources
decreased and so it won't be
in a position to spend more
money on granting scholar-
ships to students of para-
medical technology (Bsc
PMT) course.
A Bench of Justices Atul
Chandurkar and Pushpa
Ganediwala was seized with
a contempt plea filed against
the state's medical education
and medicine department.
The plea sought contempt
proceedings against the de-
partment for not complying
with the HC's orders passed
in April 2019 by which the de-
partment was ordered to con-
sider the representation of
Hotel manager among
4 arrested for stealing
customers’ card data
SACHIN GAAD
Mumbai
The Mumbai Crime Branch
Unit 9 arrested a gang of four
for allegedly duping people
after stealing their card de-
tails. The accused include the
manager of a Powai-based
hotel who used to steal cus-
tomers’ data and sell it to the
mastermind of the gang.
So far, 20 people have been
duped by the gang and it is
feared that their number
could be much higher as this
was going on since the last
six months, said police.
The fraud came to light re-
cently when officials of a na-
tionalised bank approached
the crime branch and com-
plained about several cus-
tomers being duped by on-
line fraudsters even though
they did not share their card
details or Personal Identifi-
cation Number (PIN) to any-
one. The bank official said
that they have found a com-
mon link and most of the vic-
tims visited a hotel in Powai.
The crime branch official
raided the hotel but the own-
er of the hotel said that he
has no role in it and said that
he suspect his previous man-
ager Yashwant Gupta, 23,
alias Sonu who was recently
sacked after his waiter alert-
ed about the malpractices.
The crime branch officials
waited there after learning
that Gupta was frequently
MSRDC plans to beautify Mumbai-Pune Expressway
SWEETY ADIMULAM
Mumbai
The Maharashtra State Road
Development Corporation
(MSRDC) has proposed plan-
tation along Yashwantrao
Chavan Mumbai-Pune Ex-
pressway. The proposed proj-
ect is part of the augmenta-
tion of the existing express-
way through 'Missing Link'
Project. It has floated a ten-
der inviting agency to submit
bids on/before March 19.
Moreover, MSRDC intends to
pre-qualify suitable bidders
Ysharing
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readers’ views on issues that matter to them. Write in to us at connectfpj@fpj.co.in,
your views along with your name, occupation and photograph to be featured in
‘Chatter that Matters’ – a weekly segment in The Free Press Journal
THIS WEEK’S QUESTION: With a recent rise in COVID-19 cases in the city, what measures
should be taken to prevent a second wave of the virus?
RISING COVID CONCERNS
Health workers sanitising CSMT on Friday after city witnessed highest
single-day spike of COVID cases since January 2021.
strictions that were imposed
to break the chain and con-
trol the spread and trans-
mission of the virus. But it
has been learnt individuals
have become careless over
taking necessary precau-
tions. According to statis-
tics, not only the active cas-
all development works
the students within a period
of three months. The repre-
sentation was for providing
scholarships and stipends to
the students of the PMT
course. However, with no de-
cision on their representa-
tions yet, the students sought
contempt proceedings
against the department.
The state through its coun-
sel told the bench that it has
already decided the repre-
sentations and the same have
been rejected.
seen in the vicinity and
nabbed him as soon as he ar-
rived.
"During the manager's in-
vestigation, it was revealed
that he generally asks his
waiters to bring customers
cards and secretly copy its
data with a skimmer device.
Later he personally visits the
table with the ATM machine
and remembers the PIN
number as customers en-
tered. He later sold the data
along with PIN number for
Rs 500 per card to the master-
mind of the gang, said Nan-
dakumar Gopale, senior in-
spector of crime branch unit
9,” said the police.
During the course of inves-
tigation, the crime branch ar-
rested three more identified
as Mohammad Faiz Choud-
hary, 27, Azaruddin Ansari,
23 and Ishtiaq Jamal Khan,
22. According to the police,
Choudhary was previously
arrested three times in simi-
lar cases. He used to procure
data from Gupta.
THE AGENCY PLANS TO CARRY OUT PLANTATION ALONG 75 KM STRETCH
eligible for participation in
the bid stage, it clarified.
According to MSRDC, the
appointed agency will be re-
sponsible for carrying out
the work in two phases. The
- Pic: BL Soni
es but also the positivity
rate of the state and city has
increased to 9.48 per cent
and 4.28 per cent in the last
seven days as compared to
6.73 per cent and 3.59 per
cent respectively which was
between February 5 and
February 11.
The government counsel
said, "The state government
has in the light of
the Covid-19 Pandemic situ-
ation and having found that
there is substantial shortfall
in revenue coming to the
state and the same has ad-
versely affected financial sit-
uation, it has been decided
via a government resolution
issued in May 2020, that no
additional financial burden
can be taken by the state."
"The state won't be in a po-
sition to take loans for new
scheme and therefore, the
grant of scholarship and
stipend to the students in
B.Sc. PMT cannot be consid-
ered by the state presently,"
the counsel submitted.
Accepting the statement,
the judges disposed of the
contempt proceedings with a
directive to the students to
challenge the decision appro-
priately.
Falsely implicating
spouse to affect
job amounts to
mental cruelty: HC
NARSI BENWAL / Mumbai
Making unfounded allega-
tions against the spouse or
their relatives with a view to
cause problem for the
spouse's jobs would amount
to cruelty, ruled the Bombay
High Court recently.
A Bench of Justices Atul
Chandurkar and Pushpa
Ganediwala said, "Making
unfounded allegations
against the spouse or his/her
relatives or making com-
plaints with a view to affect
the job of the spouse
amounts to causing mental
cruelty to the spouse."
The ruling was pronounced
while dismissing a husband's
plea seeking divorce from his
wife. As per the husband, his
wife had secured a job by
showing a false caste certifi-
cate. He also alleged that his
wife suffered from epilepsy.
The wife claimed that the
husband and his family
members often picked up a
quarrel with her. "This con-
duct of the husband of not
pleading that the wife was
suffering from epilepsy and
stating the same for the first
time in his deposition as well
as making wild allegations
that the wife and her rela-
tives had secured false caste
certificate without attempt-
ing to substantiate the said
allegations has resulted in
causing mental cruelty to the
wife," the judges said.
total length of the said work
is about 75 km. Through this
proposed work the MSRDC
desires to beautify the
stretch as a green corridor.
A senior official from
SPREADING RISK
� Active cases in state
increased to 40,858 by
February 18 from
31,474 cases on
February 12
� Positivity rate of the
state and city rose to
9.48% 4.28% in the last
seven days
Senior health official from
the state health department
said controlling cases is all
team effort and citizens are
the part of the team who can
contribute more than gov-
ernment agencies. There
are many reason cases have
increased due to which ac-
tive cases also surged.
“Individuals need to ad-
here to COVID norms for
PRATIP ACHARYA
Mumbai
With no regular ward officer
for the past six months, pub-
lic representatives of south
Mumbai's B Ward is facing
sheer inconvenience in get-
ting approval for a number of
developmental works in this
ward.
The B Ward covers south
Mumbai's Bhindi Bazar, Don-
gri, Sandhurst Road and
Masjid areas. According to
the rules of Brihanmumbai
Municipal Corporation
(BMC), a qualified Maha-
rashtra Public Service Com-
mission (MPSC) candidate
designated as assistant mu-
nicipal commissioner is ap-
pointed as the ward officer.
The key responsibilities of
the ward officer include ad-
ministrative management of
the ward, coordinating with
corporators and monitoring
the ongoing project works.
Man, daughter duped of `5L on
pretext of exchanging dollars
PRIYANKA NAVALKAR
Mumbai
A city-based father-daughter
duo was duped of Rs 5 lakh
on the pretext of getting dol-
lars worth Rs 20 lakh in ex-
change for just Rs 5 lakh. The
conwoman gave them papers
in exchange for dollars and
duped them of the hard-
earned money. While a case
has been registered at Saki
Naka Police Station, no ar-
rest has been made yet.
According to police
sources, the complainant, a
security officer with a cruise
liner ship in Australia, ar-
rived in the city early this
month to visit her parents.
When the complainant was
in the market with her father,
she was approached by a
middle-aged woman, who be-
friended them and showed
them a note of $20, and said
that she had at least 1,475
such notes in the denomina-
tion of $20, which is valued at
Rs 20 lakh. But since she
MSRDC, who did not wish to
be named said, "As per the
green policy now, every new
highway should have planta-
tion. Samruddhi Mahamarg
will also have hundreds of
trees on similar lines the new
missing link route will have
trees."
The appointed agency will
be responsible not just for
plantation but also to main-
tain and take care of the
trees over there, he asserted.
The state government has
given MSRDC special plan-
ning authority status to car-
which everyone needs to
wear facemasks in public
places and avoid visiting
crowded places. One needs
to take utmost care while
travelling as it's our duty
through which we can be
safe from contracting infec-
tions,” he said.
Health experts believe the
state government and BMC
should take strict action
against those who violate
COVID norms. The citizens
should understand that
wearing a mask for the next
six months is more than get-
ting vaccinated. “Until all
get vaccinated, it is essential
for the civic body to remain
stern and issue guidelines
for travellers and func-
tions,” said Dr Deepak Baid,
president of Association of
Medical Consultants.
Earlier, Nitin Arte was in-
charge of this ward. Howev-
er after his retirement on Au-
gust 31, there has been no
regular ward officer in this
ward. Presently, the charge
has been given to Chakra-
pani Alle, who is the ward of-
ficer of the adjoining C Ward
(Kalbadevi, Chira Bazar and
Bhuleshwar).
"As there is no dedicated of-
ficer in our ward often our
meetings get cancelled and
rescheduled also, unless
there is a regular official we
won't be able to work togeth-
er at the ground level," local
Congress Corporator Afreen
Shaikhtold FPJ.
She said two other impor-
tant executive posts are also
lying vacant in this ward.
"The charge for designated
officer for building and facto-
ries is being given to assis-
tant engineer of A Ward and
there is no executive engi-
neer for the maintenance of
storm water drains and
building proposal," Shaikh
stated.
"B ward has a number of di-
lapidated buildings but the
post of designated officer is
vacant for more than ward,"
she added. "As these posts
are vacant the work pressure
gets doubled in the other offi-
cials," stated a civic official
working in this ward re-
questing anonymity.
wants to encash the money
quickly, she was willing to
give it away for Rs 5 lakh.
The complainant and her
father found it to be a good
deal and showed interest in
the proposition. Subsequent-
ly, the woman introduced the
father-daughter duo some
other members-- two women,
who met the complainant
near Saki Naka metro sta-
tion to exchange the money
on February 13. The women
took the money worth Rs
5lakh from the victims and
handed them a plastic bag,
which reportedly consisted
of 1,474 notes of $20, valued
at Rs 20 lakh.
Police said the conwomen
asked the complainant and
her father to not open the bag
here as it was unsafe to carry
such an amount. They ad-
vised them to check the mon-
ey after reaching home. The
father-daughter duo checked
the bag in the car, only to find
bundles of plain paper in-
stead of US dollars.
ry out missing link project.
Through this project, the dis-
tance will reduce by 13 km
and also it will decongest the
Khandala Ghat section that
is currently narrow.
The total civil cost of the
missing link project is Rs
6,600 crore. It comprises 10.5
km long twin tunnels, having
four-lanes. And two cable
stayed bridges (Viaducts) of
eight lanes each and aug-
mentation of existing Mum-
bai Pune Expressway to eight
lanes from Khalapur Toll
Plaza to Khopoli exit (6.5km).
MUMBAI
MUMBAI | SATURDAY | FEBRUARY 20, 2021
Illegal fuel stations busted in
city, company’s MD arrested
SOMENDRA SHARMA
Mumbai
The CB Control of Economic
Offences Wing arrested the
Managing Director of MS
Westcare Joint Venture Com-
pany in the case wherein the
police had busted two illegal
fuel stations in the city. The
accused is alleged to be the
main brain behind this rack-
et, police said. The police
have also summoned
Khopoli-based petrochemi-
cal company officials that
used to provide industrial oil
to these fuel stations.
The accuse has been identi-
fied as Lalit Shah (49) and he
is the second accused to be
arrested in the case.
According to Joint Com-
missioner of Police (EOW),
Niket Kaushik, specific in-
formation was received on
February 4 that diesel was il-
More than 7,900
beneficiaries
given COVID jab
STAFF REPORTER / Mumbai
Day after more than 100 per
cent of beneficiaries turnout
at the vaccine centres, the
numbers of beneficiaries
drop to 77 per cent on Friday.
According to the vaccine
data, 7,920 of the targeted
10,300 beneficiaries were in-
oculated in the last 24 hours
at the 29 vaccine centres in
Mumbai.
However, more frontline
workers are coming forward
for the vaccination drive
compared to healthcare
workers. Moreover, the num-
bers of the second dose also
increased to 789 from 954 just
a day before. Moreover, the
technical glitches in the Co-
Win app persist.
Suresh Kakani, Additional
Municipal Commissioner
said the numbers will in-
crease for the second dose in
future and more healthcare
workers will come forward.
“There are days when the
numbers come down, more-
over today was the public
holiday due to which num-
bers might have decreased,”
he said. Officials said the
drop in number of health-
care workers is due to mis-
conceptions on the vaccines.
Schools affiliated to ICSE, ISC
await board exam schedule
RONALD RODRIGUES
Mumbai
Schools affiliated to the
Council for the Indian School
Certificate Examinations
(CISCE) have demanded clar-
ity over schedule of the
board examinations of Class
10 Indian Certificate of Sec-
ondary Education (ICSE)
and Class 12 Indian School
Certificate (ISC).
In response, the CISCE said
board exams, which are usu-
ally conducted in February,
have been postponed due to
the COVID-19 pandemic this
year.
Schools said while other
private and state boards have
announced dates of Classes
Doc who received
first jab contracts
infection, recovers
AGENCIES / Mumbai
A doctor attached to a civic-
run hospital who had re-
ceived the first dose of coron-
avirus vaccine contracted
the viral infection some days
ago and has now recovered, a
BMC official said on Friday.
An expert from the Maha-
rashtra government's task
force said this was not un-
usual as a recipient of
COVID-19 vaccine does not
develop immunity immedi-
ately.
The 46-year-old doctor
working at BYL Nair hospi-
tal tested positive for the
virus nine days after he re-
ceived the first dose of Cov-
ishield vaccine, said an offi-
cial of the Brihanmumbai
Municipal Corporation.
Dr Ramesh Bharmal, dean
of the hospital, told PTI that
the doctor tested positive last
week but now he has recov-
ered from the infection and is
expected to join work soon.
legally stored in huge tanks
and kept inside two shipping
containers placed on the foot-
path and its illegal use and
sale of diesel was going on
large scale in Dharavi and
Mahim areas. Subsequently
a team led by police inspector
Nitin Patil conducted raids
and arrested Indrasingh
Rathod, who worked as a su-
pervisor of the illegal fuel
stations.
About 13,550 litre of diesel
stored in several tanks has
been seized by the police
City reports highest
single-day spike of 823
corona cases in 2021
SWAPNIL MISHRA
Mumbai
The city has reported the
highest single-day spike of
823 new COVID-19 cases
since January this year on
Friday. Five patients suc-
cumbed to the diseases in the
city in the past 24 hours. This
is the highest number of pos-
itive cases being reported in
the city so far this year.
With Friday’s count, the to-
tal positive cases in the city
rose to 3,17,310, with 11,435 fa-
talities. Meanwhile, the dou-
bling rate in Mumbai has
dropped to 393 days from 525
days in the past seven days,
while the weekly growth rate
of cases has also increased to
0.18 per cent from 0.13 per
cent during the same period.
However, the number
COVID-19 tests also dropped
to 18,366 on Friday as com-
pared to 22,382 tests which
were performed just a day be-
fore. Moreover the positivity
rate also increased to 4.48 per
cent from 3.28 per cent in the
last 24 hours.
Maharashtra also wit-
nessed a spike in corona cas-
10 and 12 board exams, the
CISCE has not yet released
the exam schedule.
Nilofer Zaveri, a teacher of
ICSE board school, said, "We
are waiting for the Class 10
exam schedule so that we can
help students to prepare for
board exams accordingly.
The CISCE should release
the timetable soon because
students need sufficient time
to prepare."
Schools said generally
ICSE Class 10 and ISC Class
12 board exams are conduct-
ed in February every aca-
demic year.
Vishesh Mahajan, a teacher
of ISC board said, "We need
to conduct preliminary ex-
aminations and practicals
Sena blames BJP for
cut in corporators’ fund
PRATIP ACHARYA
Mumbai
Amid severe allegations of
mismanagement of funds,
the civic administration on
Thursday cut the annual cor-
porators’ development fund
by Rs 100 crore. As a result,
the chairman of the Brihan-
mumbai Municipal Corpora-
tion (BMC) standing commit-
tee (SC) of the Shiv Sena has
held the Bharatiya Janata
Party (BJP) responsible for
civic administration's deci-
sion to cut the funds.
Last week, senior BJP cor-
porator and group leader of
the party in the BMC had
written to the municipal
chief accusing SC chairman
Yashwant Jadhav of misus-
ing the funds. Mishra had
also written to the Controller
and Auditor General de-
manding audit in finances.
Following this, the civic
chief had frozen the corpora-
tors’ fund. However, it was
along with other equipment
like diesel dispensary ma-
chines/pumps. The said con-
tainers were being used as il-
legal fuel stations. Apart
from using the said diesel in
their vehicles, the accused
would also sell diesel to oth-
ers cheaper than the prevail-
ing market rate. A case was
then registered by the police
at Dharavi police station.
Inspector Patil said, "The
said company had taken the
contract of BMC to supply
them Clean Up vehicles. The
company would run their ve-
hicles for the BMC and would
bill the BMC for the services
and fuel. The BMC had given
permission to the company
to set up their office fo their
operations. The company set
up containers on footpaths of
Mahim and Dharavi and
they would store tanks filled
with adulterated diesel."
es in the last 24 hours, with
the state recording 6,112 new
cases and 44 COVID-19
deaths on Friday, pushing its
tally to 20,87,638, with 51,713
deaths till now.
Suresh Kakani, Additional
Municipal Commissioner
said the cases will increase
for the next 14 days and then
it will start to decrease.
“We have to be more strict
and vigilant to ensure coro-
na protocols are being fol-
lowed across the city. We
have also intensified action
against the citizens not
wearing the face mask and
the crowded places like mar-
riage halls and gymnasiums,
for not following COVID-19
protocol,” he said.
tests. Considering the entire
education system has shifted
to online mode, students
might have queries regard-
ing certain concepts and les-
sons. We need to conduct re-
vision and doubt solving lec-
tures before the board ex-
ams."
The CISCE said, "Without a
doubt, the schedule for ICSE
and ISC 2021 examinations
will not take place at the reg-
ular time in February or
March, given the current
pandemic situation in the
country and notwithstand-
ing the upcoming elections
in five states as well. The
dates for the examinations
will be announced later, at
the appropriate time."
later lifted earlier this week.
"Due to the pandemic out-
break last year, a number of
projects got stalled which the
corporators were supposed
to take up this year and the
cut in budget will cause hin-
drance to a number of devel-
opmental works," Jadhav
told FPJ.
Jadhav stated he along with
other group leaders had
tabled the proposal for allot-
ting Rs 975 crore for the cor-
porator's developmental
works but the administration
cleared only Rs 675 crore cit-
ing financial constraints.
"Last year the SC had allot-
ted Rs 173 crore to BJP as
part of developmental funds
but till date their corporators
have not been able to show
their expenses clearly," Jad-
hav added. He added hence-
forth the funds will be allo-
cated through the SC based
on requirements and trans-
parency on the funds will be
maintained.
3 wards in western suburbs to face low water pressure
MUMBAI: Mumbaikars living in areas Andheri East and West,
Jogeshwari and Goregaon will face low water pressure supply between
February 24 and February 25 as the Brihanmumbai Municipal
Corporation (BMC) will carry out repair works for diversion of
ED NABS 3 FOR Rs 177 CR FRAUD
Chargesheet has been filed under provisions of MCOCA
PRATIK SALUNKE
Mumbai
The Enforcement Direc-
torate (ED), Nagpur, has ar-
rested three persons in
connection with alleged
black marketing of govern-
ment ration which led to
massive losses to the gov-
ernment exchequer.
The names of the arrest-
ed persons are Sampat
Namdeo Ghorpade, Arun
Namdeo Ghorpade and
Vishwas Namdeo Ghor-
pade. They were arrested
under the provisions of
Prevention of Money
Laundering Act, 2002
(PMLA) on Wednesday.
ED initiated investiga-
tion on the basis of an FIR
registered by Nashik Po-
From Health to conservancy workers, Bird flu in Maharashtra:
total 197 BMC staffers died of Covid-19 128 poultry birds dead
DIPTI SINGH
Mumbai
The Brihanmumbai Mu-
nicipal Corporation (BMC)
has been at the forefront
ever since the pandemic
first hit the city in March
2020. As the city's cumula-
tive COVID-19 count
reached the 3.17 lakh mark
on Thursday, thousands of
civic staff (frontline and
health workers) are among
the victims who have fallen
prey to the deadly virus.
According to the BMC
data, over 6,000 civic employ-
ees have tested positive for
the virus so far, of which 197
have succumbed to it.
Till September 2020, 2,588
employees had contracted
the virus. According to data
from BMC, since April, 2020,
about 6,079 civic employees
had contracted the disease.
Of these 6,079 employees,
5,047 have recovered. Those
contracted the virus include
2,364 civic health workers.
Of the total lot, 197 suc-
cumbed to the infection.
PMC okays setting NMMC chief asks to reactivate
up health centres doctors’ WhatsApp group
across Panvel
AMIT SRIVASTAVA
Navi Mumbai
The general body of Panv-
el Municipal Corporation
(PMC) approved setting up
9 health centres across the
corporation area. At pres-
ent, there are only six
health centres and there is
huge pressure on patients
at each centre.
The new centres will
come up in Takka in Panv-
el, Khanda Colony,
Kamothe, Podi in New
Panvel, Taloja Majkoor,
Dhansar, Turbhe, Tondere
Najhari and Kalamboli.
Pritam Mhatre, the oppo-
sition leader at the corpo-
ration welcomed the deci-
sion and claimed that he
was demanding health
centres for a long time.
The civic body faced an
acute shortage of health
workers and establish-
ments during the COVID-
19 period. While there was
a need for one health cen-
tre for every 50,000 popula-
tion, only six health cen-
tres were functioning in
the PMC area. As there
was no health centre in the
rural areas, all the burden
fell on the health centres in
the urban areas.
Earlier, there were only
six health centres under
Golfers to showcase their talent at first edition of CIDCO Masters Cup
AMIT SRIVASTAVA
Navi Mumbai
The City and Industrial Develop-
ment Corporation (CIDCO) will
hold the first edition of the CID-
CO Masters Cup 2021 on February
20 at its Kharghar Valley Golf
Course (KVGC) in Navi Mumbai.
Tennis legend Leander Paes and
golfers associated with various
golf clubs of the Mumbai and
Pune region like the Bombay
Presidency Golf Club (BPGC),
Willingdon Golf Club, Oxford Gulf
lice under sections
465,468,471 and 120-B of In-
dian Penal Code, 1860
against the accused. "In the
said FIR, chargesheet has
already been filed by the
Maharashtra state police
authorities, Nashik, under
the provisions of Maha-
rashtra Control of Organ-
ised Crime Act (MCOCA),
1999," the agency stated on
Friday.
"All the three accused
gained illicit pecuniary
advantage from public dis-
tribution system (PDS) by
forming an organised
crime syndicate and there-
by started black marketing
of government quota ra-
tion grain at Nashik. It
was revealed during inves-
tigation that the accused
Maximum who lost their lives due to COVID-19
are the workers from SWM department
According to the BMC offi-
cials, most employees who
tested positive for COVID-19
are from the Solid Waste
Management (SWM) De-
partment and Health De-
partment, including many
staffers who worked at the
ward level.
“These are frontline staff
who come directly in con-
tact with COVID-19 pa-
tients, work at containment
The new centres will
come up in Takka in
Panvel, Khanda Colony,
Kamothe, Podi in New
Panvel, Taloja Majkoor,
Dhansar, Turbhe,
Tondere Najhari and
Kalamboli
the PMC jurisdiction. Out
of them, two health cen-
tres are in Panvel and the
remaining in New Panvel,
Kalamboli, Kharghar and
Kamothe. Pritam Mhatre,
corporator Dr Surekha
Mohokar, Preeti George
and Sarika Bhagat have
been following the demand
for reopening of Primary
Civil Health Center under
the corporation area since
2018. Finally, the proposal
was approved during the
General Body meeting
held on February 18.
Leader of Opposition,
Mhatre insisted that there
should be a health centre at
Khandha Colony as well.
“It will be beneficial for the
citizens if there is a new
health centre within the
limits of the municipality. I
brought these matters to
the notice of the adminis-
tration,” said Mhatre.
Resort, Poona Golf Club, US Club,
and Golden Swan are expected to
participate in the tournament.
At present, the KVGC has 9 holes
golf course which will be expand-
ed to 18 holes golf course. In addi-
tion, there is also a plan of devel-
oping a country club with modern
facilities which will be unveiled.
There will be live streaming of
the unveiling ceremony and the
golf tournament on CIDCO’s so-
cial media.
Dr Sanjay Mukherjee, vice
chairman and managing director
underground aqueducts. Civic officials will be diverting two 900 mm
and 1200mm underwater aqueduct near Trauma Hospital at
Jogeshwari. This will affect the water supply in the wards K East, K
West and P North which covers areas between Goregaon to Vile Parle.
RATION MAFIA
THE LOOT
� The accused systematically
executed the criminal
activity with the help of
other unknown
accomplices
� They started black
marketing of government
quota ration grain at
Nashik
� Food grain was kept to be
used in schemes like
Antyodaya Yojna,
Anganwadi and PDS
persons had indulged in
unlawful activities as an
individual singly and
jointly as a gang. The
crime money generated by
zones and have been as-
signed field work,” a BMC
official said.
Maximum who lost their
lives due to COVID-19 are
workers from SWM depart-
ment, which collects
garbage, including biomed-
ical waste from assigned ar-
eas. Around 45 workers of
the SWM department have
died due to coronavirus in-
fection. Others who suc-
AMIT SRIVASTAVA / Navi Mumbai
In view of the increasing num-
ber of COVID cases in the state
including in Navi Mumbai Mu-
nicipal Corporation (NMMC)
area, the municipal commis-
sioner Abhijit Bangar held a
special meeting of all ward offi-
cers and medical officers
and instructed them to re-
main vigilant in view of
the changing situation.
COVID infection is found in
many members of the same
family, and positive cases are on
the rise among young children.
“In view of the present sce-
nario, there is a need to pay at-
tention on COVID cases and
concrete efforts should be
made to create awareness
among the citizens for strict
adherence to COVID safety
FB friend duped of `23L in epilepsy medicine deal
SURESH GOLANI
Mira Bhayandar
Striking a business deal with
an unknown person whom
he met on a popular social
networking site Facebook
cost a 54-year-old serviceman
from Nallasopara more than
Rs 23 lakh in a span of less
than two months.
In his statement to the po-
lice, the complainant who
works as an artisan in a Mal-
ad-based beading and em-
broidery firm said that he
SHOWTIME
gang and that this organ-
ised crime syndicate was
also involved in stealing of
government quota food
grain which is also known
as ration foods which used
to be kept reserved for poor
strata of the society to be
used in schemes like Anty-
odaya Yojna, Anganwadi
and PDS.
All the three accused per-
sons had systematically ex-
ecuted this criminal activi-
ty with the help of other
unknown accomplices and
there by generated the pro-
ceeds of crime of around
Rs 177 crore, the ED said.
these illegal activities was On Thursday, all three ac-
of around Rs. 177 crore," it cused were produced be-
stated. fore a court and they have
According to ED, Sampat been sent to ED custody for
was the head of the mafia eight days.
cumbed to the infection in-
clude two department SANJAY JOG / Mumbai
heads, two from the tax as-
sessment and collection de- A total of 128 poultry birds
partment, 37 from the health died due to bird flu in Ma-
department, 10 from the harashtra. No mortality of
Mumbai fire brigade and 13 other birds like herons,
from the security guards. sparrows, parrots and
Also among the dead are crows was reported in the
nine contractual workers / state. The samples of poul-
health workers. try birds are being sent for
According to the BMC offi- testing to the National In-
cials, the civic administra- stitute of High Security An-
tion has taken several meas- imal Diseases in Bhopal
ures to prevent the spread of and Disease Investigation
the virus among its employ- Section, Pune.
ees. According to the depart-
“Employees are strictly ment of animal husbandry,
not allowed to gather in 7,12,172 poultry birds in-
large numbers in corridors cluding 5,78,360 birds from
or outside the BMC head- Navapur in Nandurbar,
quarters, canteen or even in 26,03,728 eggs and 72,974
ward offices. There are sani- poultry feed have been sci-
tisers at every entry point of entifically destroyed from
the building. Many wards at the 1 km radius from the
their level have installed poultry farms in infected
foot-operated lifts, elevators zones.
and sensor-based taps in toi- The state government has
lets. However, there can be released Rs 3.38 crore to-
many other sources of infec- wards compensation to the
tions too. All we can do is poultry farmers where the
stay alert and maintain hy- culling of poultry birds,
giene," the official added. disposal of eggs and poul-
having symptoms.
The ward officials have been
directed to ensure that the
number of persons present at
the wedding halls as well as
banquet halls is strictly follow
the rules and regulations. The
commissioner clarified that
those violating the rules in
this regard should be pe-
nalised and also the
SPIKE IN COVID CASES management of the hall
should be punished.
rules,” said Bangar during the
review of COVID situation
“With the introduction of
the COVID 19 vaccine, most
held this week. of the citizens is not wearing
Bangar directed that at least masks thinking that the pre-
20 persons who came in close ventive vaccine has been in-
contact with COVID infected troduced. Now, we will take
people must be traced and to more effective punitive ac-
be tested. He also asked to re- tion against the negligent cit-
activate the WhatsApp group izens who are seen violating
of private doctors for an in- the Covid safety rules,” said
tensive monitoring of people Bangar.
came in contact with Hanna
Nayas on FB in June-2020.
Claiming to be a permanent
citizen of Berkshire in Eng-
land, Hannah said she
worked as an assistant pur-
chase manager with a reput-
ed pharmaceutical company.
Soon the two exchanged
mobile numbers and fre-
quently chatted on instant
messaging apps. After a few products in bulk from an In-
weeks, Hannah made a very dian company based in Itana-
lucrative offer. She told the gar (Arunachal Pradesh) but
complainant that their com- for some reason, the compa-
pany buys natural herbal ny had decided to stop pur-
of CIDCO said, “We are delighted
about the first edition of the CID-
CO Masters Cup 2021. With recent
developments and proposed ambi-
tious projects, Kharghar is emerg-
ing as an ideal destination for fu-
ture high-class residential and
commercial needs. Similarly, the
Kharghar node is looking forward
to become a sports hub in the fu-
ture. The event will also unveil
the plan for the expansion of
KVGC to a full-fledged 18 holes
golf course with all modern
amenities to conduct commercial
MUMBAI | SATURDAY | FEBRUARY 20, 2021
Panel seeks immediate
release of Dr Saibaba
Ex-DU professor recently tested positive for Coronavirus
STAFF REPORTER / Mumbai
The Committee for the De-
fence and Release of Dr GN
Saibaba, who is serving life
term in Nagpur Central jail
and has tested positive for
Coronavirus recently, has
called for the immediate re-
lease of the former DU pro-
fessor on humanitarian
grounds.
It said he is currently suf-
fering the infection’s symp-
toms of cold, high fever,
throat infection, body ache,
joint pain, shortness of
breath, severe headache and
muscle spasms.
In a press release, the com-
mittee said that he has also
been suffering from various
other serious ailments in-
cluding a grave heart condi-
try feed have been carried
out in the infected zones for
containment of bird flu.
The state government has
delegated powers to the dis-
trict collectors under the
provisions of Prevention
and Control of Infectious
and Contagious Diseases in
Animal Act, 2009 for the
prevention, control and
eradication of Bird Flu.
The poultry farmers have
been urged to follow strict
biosecurity measures. The
chicken shop proprietors
Thane’s COVID-19
count rises by 506
THANE: With the addition of
506 coronavirus positive cases,
the infection count in Thane
district of Maharashtra
mounted to 2,59,125, an
official said here on Friday.
These new cases were
reported on Thursday, he
added. As the virus claimed
the life of five more patients,
the death toll in the district
rose to 6,219.
The COVID-19 mortality rate
stood at 2.40 per cent, he
added.
So far, 2,49,268 patients have
recuperated from the infection,
which improved the recovery
rate to 96.20 per cent.
There are 3,638 active cases in
the district at present, the
official said.
In neighboring Palghar district,
the coronavirus case count has
gone up to 45,603, while the
death toll is 1,202, another
official said.
chases from the dealer.
Hannah said that the
products having medicinal
value to cure asthma and
epilepsy were available in
India for Rs. 760 to Rs. 765
per packet and were sold to
their company for 2800 dol-
lars. With a promise of
placing orders, Hannah
struck a deal seeking 40
per cent of the profit pro-
ceeds. She also gave him a
contact number of a woman,
claiming that she would sup-
ply the products.
tournaments and stimulate inter-
national tourism.”
Kharghar, being the most mod-
ern node of Navi Mumbai is expe-
riencing various developments in
it and surroundings like Navi
Mumbai International Airport,
Navi Mumbai Metro, Corporate
Park, Housing schemes with
Transit-Oriented Development,
Kharghar Hills Plateau, etc. This
will make it an ideal node
equipped with residential, com-
mercial, transit, and cultural fa-
cilities.
MMR
Saibaba needs two helpers to
assist him with his daily needs.
As he has tested positive, the
jail has kept him in quarantine
and the helpers, who are
negative, are not available to
help him
tion, hypertension, kidney
stones, brain cyst, pancreatic
problems and attenuation of
the shoulder and arm mus-
cles and nerves resulting in
partial paralysis, most of
which developed in jail.
Given his many comorbidi-
ties, the COVID infection
may prove fatal.The specific
heart condition is hyper-
trophic cardiomyopathy
with left ventricular dysfunc-
tion, and as his oxygen levels
drop further, as happens with
are strictly directed to use
gloves, mask covering
mouth and nose, stringent
practices in the shop and to
maintain social physical
distancing norms.
The state government has
appealed to the citizens not
to consume raw, half
cooked poultry meat or
eggs. Further, the govern-
ment has urged the citizens
not to spread misconcep-
tion and rumours based on
unscientific information
about bird flu.
HC notice to SIC on Rajiv case
convict’s Dutt remission plea
AGENCIES
Mumbai
The Bombay High Court has
issued notice to the Maha-
rashtra State Information
Commission on a plea filed
last year by a convict in the
Rajiv Gandhi assassination
case seeking details of the
early release of actor Sanjay
Dutt convicted in the 1993
Bombay serial bomb blast
case.
A division bench of Jus-
tices KK Tated and RI Chagla
on Wednesday heard the plea
filed by A G Perarivalan (48),
who intends to cite Dutt's
case to seek early release for
himself.
The court issued a notice to
the State Information Com-
mission and posted the plea
for further hearing next
month.
Perarivalan had ap-
proached HC in July last year
after he failed to get proper
Man kills woman, daughter
over marriage refusal
NAVI MUMBAI: A 26-year-old
truck driver allegedly stabbed
to death a 37-year-old mother
and her 18-year-old daughter
after the mother refused to
marry her daughter with him
on Friday morning in Pargaon
in Panvel. They all are from the
Hingoli district. The accused
also attacked the girl’s 41-year-
old father with the chopper and
the latter suffered severe
injuries in his hands.
According to the police, the girl
Sujata Balkhade, her mother
Surekha Balkhade, father
Siddharth Balkhade and her three
other siblings stayed in the same
neighbourhood as the 26-year-
old accused. They are all from
Hingoli district of Maharashtra
and they knew each other for the
past several years.
Shivraj Patil, deputy
commissioner of police (zone 2)
said, “The accused is a truck
driver and his wife had passed
away in October, last year. He
wanted to marry Sujata.
However, her family was
against it.”
He added that around three
COVID, there will be an in-
creased strain on the heart,
increasing chances of car-
diac arrest, the release read.
Dr. Saibaba needs two
helpers to assist him with his
daily needs. As he has tested
positive, the jail has kept him
in quarantine and the helpers,
who are negative, are not
available to help him, thus the
professor is left completely
helpless, the committee’s con-
venor Professor G Haragopal
said in the statement.
TMC, KDMC to
put extra effort
to contain Covid
PRIYANKA DHOMSE
Thane
With the increasing number of
COVID cases in the city, both
Thane Municipal Corporation
(TMC) and Kalyan Dombivli
Municipal Corporation (KDMC)
gear up to be more vigil on
contract tracing, resuming
COVID centres, compulsory
check-ups of outsiders and strict
action against citizens roaming
without masks and violating
social distancing norms.
"To curb the increase in the
COVID-19 cases, the TMC will
focus more on contact tracing,
quarantine process and making
available sufficient ambulances.
Strict action will be taken
against the one who are caught
violating COVID cases," said
TMC official from health
department.
Both the civic bodies have
directed the concerned
authorities to keep check on the
public places, marriage halls,
stations and bus stops where
the gathering of crowd is often
noticed. Hence, the strict action
should be initiated against such
citizens violating COVID safety
norms.
response from the Maharash-
tra prison department to
queries filed by him under
Right to Information Act.
The convict had sought in-
formation pertaining to
Dutt's early release.
Perarivalan, at the age of
19, was convicted to life im-
prisonment for having pro-
vided two 9-volt batteries
which were used in the bomb
that killed former prime
minister Rajiv Gandhi in
1991.
He is presently lodged at
the Puzhal Central Prison in
Chennai and has spent 30
years in jail.
In his petition, Perarivalan
said that in March 2016 he filed
an application before Yerwada
prison authorities seeking in-
formation pertaining to Dutt's
release on early remission,
and if the Centre and state
government's opinions were
taken before deciding to grant
Dutt early remission.
months ago, the girl’s family
and the accused had been to
their native place in Hingoli,
and the accused kept asking for
marriage. Meanwhile, the girl’s
family returned to Panvel
around a month ago, the
accused stayed back. “But the
accused kept calling girl’s father
over the phone from Hingoli for
the wedding. However, the
family did not budge before
him,” said Patil.
Around 8.30 am on Friday, the
accused reached the girl’s
house with a chopper in the
hand and started arguing for
marriage. When he was
resisted by the family, he
attacked with the chopper.
“Since they were residing on
rent, the father went out to
inform their landlord about the
incident. Meanwhile, in a fit of
rage, the accused then attacked
the girl and her mother. He
stabbed the girl on her throat
multiple times and then slit her
mother’s throat. Both the
women died on the spot and
the accused then ran away,”
Patil said. –AMIT SRIVASTAVA
 MONEY
BIZ BUZZ Forex reserves down by $249 mn to $583.6 bn
Small venture capitalists making a The country's foreign exchange reserves fell reserves had declined by USD 6.24 billion to
beeline for startups: Report by USD 249 million to USD 583.697 billion in
the week ended February 12, RBI data
stand at USD 583.945 billion. It had touched
a record high of USD 590.185 billion in the
Investments into the startup ecosystem by micro venture showed on Friday. In the previous week, the week ended January 29, 2021. MUMBAI | SATURDAY | FEBRUARY 20, 2021

St gives up 51,000 level Rs 96.62 in Mumbai

capital funds, investments under USD 30 million, have
jumped manifold to USD 341 million in the past three years
through 730 deals across 566 startups, says an industry
report. In the past decade, micro VCs have emerged as
promising players in the domestic startup investor landscape
Oil on boil: Petrol at
providing the much needed risk capital as well as hands on

as bear maul intensifies

mentorship to their portfolio companies as they seek to
achieve product market fit and become ready to scale with
stable business models. NEW DELHI: Petrol and
diesel prices maintained its
LIC Housing Finance disburses northward rally on Friday,
the eleventh consecutive day
Rs 1,331 cr of loans via mobile ap when its retail prices rose
LIC Housing Finance on Friday said it has disbursed Rs 1,331 across the country, with the
crore worth loans through its mobile banking app in the last MARKETS EXTEND LOSSES FOR FOURTH DAY; PSU, BANK STOCKS BEAR THE BRUNT global oil market remaining
one year. It said the 'Homy' app facilitated 14,155 customer stable but firm.
home loan applications since its launch on February 14, NEW DELHI: Equity sex declined 654.54 points Accordingly, oil marketing
2020. Of these, loans were disbursed to 6,884 customers benchmark indices cracked or 1.26 per cent, and Nifty companies raised the pump
amounting to Rs 1,331 crore so far, it said in a release. "We further on Friday amid fell 181.55 points or 1.19 per price of petrol by 31 paise
are thrilled with the massive customer response received over weak Asian cues with cent. and diesel by another 33 Across the country as well
the past year and aim to work towards the ultimate objective banking and auto majors "The Nifty-50 and BSE paise per litre in Delhi. the petrol and diesel price in-
of organizing and automating every facet of customer taking a hit. Sensex declined by 1.2 per With this increase, petrol is crease ranged from 30-35
interaction under Project RED," LIC Housing Finance MD and The Sensex tumbled 435 cent this week as market now priced at Rs 90.19 a litre paise per litre depending on
CEO Y Viswanatha Gowd said. points while the Nifty mood became cautious on and diesel Rs 80.60 a litre in the level of local taxes on the
slumped below the 15,000- rising global and local bond the national capital. two petroleum products.
DLF's rental arm acquires 51.8% mark on Friday as markets
buckled under selling pres-
yields. The broader mar-
kets that is NSE Mid Cap
At this price in Delhi,
petrol has breached Rs 90 a
In Mumbai, petrol price is
just Rs 3 per litre short (Rs
stake in Fairleaf for Rs 780 crore sure for the fourth session 100 Index and BSE Small litre-mark across all metros 96.62 a litre) of touching
Real estate major DLF Group's rental arm DLF Cyber City on the trot amid a lacklus- Cap Index are both in the and around all major cities three digit mark of Rs 100
Developers Ltd (DCCDL) has acquired 51.8 per cent stake in tre trend in global markets. green this week. The US 10 of the country. per litre for the very first
Fairleaf Real Estate Pvt Ltd for Rs 780 crore. In December last The 30-share BSE Sensex Year Bond yields have risen In fact, the retail price of time ever.
year, DCCDL had entered into a securities purchase agreement
with funds managed by Hines, a global real estate
investment, development and management firm, to acquire
ended 434.93 points or 0.85
per cent lower at 50,889.76,
pressured by robust selling
137 pts 1.2%
fall in Sensex and
from below 1 per cent to 1.29
per cent, building in eco-
nomic impact of the USD
petrol has crossed Rs 100 a
litre-mark in several cities in
Maharashtra, Madhya
Diesel price in the city is
closing on Rs 90 a litre (Rs
87.67 a litre).
drop in Nifty to
stake in Fairleaf. in banking and auto coun- Nifty this week 1.9 trillion stimulus pack- Pradesh and Rajasthan. In all other metros, petrol
14,981.75
ters. age. Thes states also have one of is over Rs 90 a litre mark
Stranded assets a long-term risk for Similarly, the broader
NSE Nifty gave up the biggest laggard in Friday's On the other hand, In-
"Almost 37 stocks from
Nifty-50 lost ground this
the highest levels of local
levies on petroleum prod-
while diesel is well over Rs 80
a litre.
major fossil fuel exporters: Fitch 15,000 level, dropping 137.20 session, tumbling 5.06 per dusInd Bank, HUL, Dr Red- week with Pharma and se- ucts in the country. Premium petrol has
Fossil fuel exporters face a loss of GDP, government revenue points or 0.91 per cent to cent. It was followed by SBI, dy's, NTPC, Reliance Indus- lect consumers losing the In the last 11 days (since crossed Rs 100 per litre mark
and export receipts from the transition to a lower-carbon 14,981.75. Axis Bank, ICICI Bank, Ba- tries and Bajaj Finserv most," said Rusmik Oza, February 9), the price has in several cities of Ra-
economy over the coming decades, Fitch Ratings has said in a A day after topping the jaj Auto, Maruti and M&M, were among the gainers, Executive Vice President, gone up by Rs 3.24 per litre jasthan, Madhya Pradesh
new report. For the most-exposed sovereigns and those that Sensex gainer's chart, which shed up to 3.77 per climbing up to 1.97 per cent. Head of Fundamental Re- for petrol while diesel rate and Maharashtra a few days
do not adequately prepare for it, climate change stranded- ONGC emerged as the cent. During the week, the Sen- search at Kotak Securities. has risen by Rs 3.47 a litre. back.
asset risk is likely to lead to rating downgrades as the effects
become clearer, closer and more material.

Inox Air to invest Rs 2,000 crore Urban consumer PILOT PROJECT

to set up eight medical oxygen plants
Inox Air Products, the industrial and medical gases business
division of the diversified Inox Group, is investing Rs 2,000
confidence ticks up
crore to augment capacity by 50 per cent, with eight new air
separation units across the country over the next 36 months. AGENCIES
This is the largest greenfield investment coming to the New Delhi
industrial gases sector in the country, the company said.
Consumer confidence
US crude inventories slump 7.3 mn among urban Indians has
moved up slightly, by 0.9
barrel in week to Feb 12, exports rise percentage point, in Feb-
Crude oil inventories in the US slumped by 7.3 mln barrels to ruary so far, according to a
461.8 mln bbl in the week ended Feb 12, data from the monthly Refinitiv-Ipsos
country's Energy Information Administration showed. Market Primary Consumer Senti-
participants had expected the stockpile to decline by 2.0 mln ment Index (PCSI) survey.
bbl, according to a poll by Dow Jones. "US crude oil The PCSI, which is driv-
inventories are at the five-year average for this time of year," en by the aggregation of
the Energy Information Administration said in its report. the four weighted sub-in-
dices is a mixed bag this
K’taka Bank reports fraud of Rs 34 cr month, the survey said.
The PCSI Employment
against IL&FS Transportation Confidence (Jobs) sub-in-
Karnataka Bank has reported to the Reserve Bank of India a dex moved up 1.5 percent-
fraud in its credit facilities extended to IL&FS Transportation age points, the PCSI Cur-
Networks Ltd with an outstanding balance of Rs 34.16 crore. rent Personal Financial
"The above entity had availed credit facilities from us during Conditions (Current Con-
2016 under multiple banking arrangements wherein our bank ditions) sub-index in-
was one of the member banks and during 2018, the creased by 2.8 percentage
borrowing account was classified as a non-performing asset points, and the PCSI In-
and has been fully provided for." vestment Climate (Invest-
ment) sub-index is up by
Jubilant FoodWorks to fully acquire 2.1 percentage points.
However, the PCSI Eco-
Fides Netherlands for Rs 250 crore nomic Expectations (Ex-
Food services major Jubilant FoodWorks said on Friday it will pectations) sub-index is
fully acquire Fides Food Systems Cooperatief UA Netherlands
down by 1.3 percentage
points.
The findings are based
on an Ipsos online poll con-
ducted during January 22,
2021 to February 5, 2021.
For this survey, 500 people
from Ipsos India online
panel aged 16-64 years
were interviewed.
The Refinitiv/Ipsos India
Primary Consumer Senti-
ment Index is a monthly
national survey of con-
sumer attitudes on the cur-
rent and future state of lo-
cal economies, personal fi-
nance situations, savings
and confidence to make
large investments.
NSO TO TRACK
ONLINE PRICES
TO MAP RETAIL
INFLATION
MUMBAI: The National
Statistical Office is set to
begin a pilot project to track
online retail prices for the
proposed new series of
Consumer Price Index, a
government official said.
"The NSO is planning a
pilot project with IIT Madras
to see how online prices can
be captured," the official
told Informist.
The project aims to study
technical and legal issues
emanating from the process
of capturing prices of online
transactions, and address
them before such prices can
be included in the new CPI
series, the official said. This
is part of the exercise to
include transactions on e-
commerce platforms in retail
price data.
The statistics office can
either use database of e-
commerce platforms like
Amazon or Flipkart or can
use web crawler to track
online transactions.
Nestle selling North American
bottled-water brands for $4.3 bn
AGENCIES
New Delhi
Global food giant Nestle is
selling its bottled-water
brands in North America
for USD 4.3 billion to a pair
of private-equity firms that
hope to reinvigorate sales.
Brands including Poland
Spring, Deer Park, Arrow-
head, Ozarka, Zephyrhills
and Pure Life will be sold to
a subsidiary of One Rock
Capital Partners and in-
vestment firm Metropoulos
& Co. The deal, which is ex-
pected to close this spring,
will create one of the
largest beverage compa-
nies in the US.
Dean Metropoulos, who
previously led turn-
arounds at Hostess Brands
and Pabst Brewing Co., will
be serve as chairman and
interim CEO of the inde-
pendent company that will
house the brands acquired
from Nestle.
Swiss-based Nestle said it
intends to sharpen its focus
on its international premi-
um water brands, includ-
ing Perrier, S. Pellegrino
and Acqua Panna, which
were not part of the deal.
The new owners, mean-
while, hope to boost the bot-
tled-water brands, which
have seen slower sales
growth in recent years.
US bottled-water sales
have grown every year
since the 2009 recession, as
health-conscious con-
sumers have switched
away from sugary soft
drinks. Bottled water out-
sold soft drinks for the
fourth year in a row in
2019, according to the Inter-
national Bottled Water As-
sociation.
But that growth has been
slowing amid criticism
from environmental ac-
tivists about waste from
single-use plastic bottles.
Consumers have also been
switching to flavored and
sparkling waters, like
LaCroix or Coca-Cola's
smartwater brand. Lower-
cost store brand bottled wa-
ters have further cut into
sales.
Nestle's North American
water business has 27 pro-
duction facilities and more
than 7,000 employees. It
sources water from 38 ac-
tive springs throughout the
US.
That practice has come
under increasing scrutiny
from environmental
groups. Last year, lawmak-
ers in Washington state
considered __ but ultimate-
ly dropped __ legislation
that would ban companies
from bottling ground wa-
ter.

RJio's Dec user additions impacted Airtel may buy more in

(Fides) for an agreed investment of 24.8 million pounds
(about Rs 250 crore) through its wholly-owned subsidiary
Jubilant FoodWorks Netherlands BV. Fides is the beneficial DHFL war to
owner of 32.81 per cent of equity shares of DP Eurasia NV,
bring code of
by farmers' protest, say analysts spectrum sale on Mar 1
which is a public company listed with London Stock Exchange
Plc and is the exclusive master franchisee of the Domino's
Pizza brand in Turkey, Russia, Azerbaijan and Georgia. conduct for
Lupin expects biosimilars, injectables INFORMIST earnings for the quarter
INFORMIST/ Mumbai
lenders at IBC
New Delhi ended December, the com- Telecom companies' earnest
to pilot medium-term growth pany had said it saw high money deposit ahead of the NEW DELHI: The high-profile
Lupin Ltd expects biosimilars and injectable drugs to be major The drop in Reliance Jio In- subscriber churn during spectrum auction scheduled bidding war between Piramal
growth drives in the medium-term, and hopes to earn $300 focomm Ltd's subscriber the quarter due to "mali- to start on Mar 1 shows that Group and Oaktree Capital
mln in sales of biosimilars within the next four to five years, addition in December was cious and motivated cam- Bharti Airtel Ltd is expected over beleaguered Dewan
the company said at a recent virtual conference by Kotak on account of the loss of paigns against Reliance to invest more than previ- Housing Finance may have
Institutional Equities. The company is also working on various subscribers in Haryana Group in select geogra- ously estimated, as well as had an unintended
complex injectable products including peptides and expects and Punjab, as protests by phies". buy more spectrum in the consequence--a new code of
this segment to become a $250-mln business during the farmers took a toll on the Rivals have, however, de- 2,300-MHz band, ICICI Secu- circles. conduct for committees of
same time. company in these two nied these allegations. JM rities said. Operators can buy spec- creditors under the Insolvency
states, analysts said. Financial said that histori- The research firm's com- trum worth five-to-seven and Bankruptcy Code.
Boat appoints former GCPL The Mukesh Ambani-
owned firm lost 0.5 mln and
states have been at the fore-
front of protests against
cally, it had not seen such
sharp subscriber losses in
ments come a day after the
Department of Telecom-
times the earnest money
deposit.
The Insolvency and
Bankruptcy Board of India and
executive Vivek Gambhir as CEO 1.6 mln subscribers in the new farm laws that the two states for Reliance munications released de- As Bharti Airtel has put the Reserve Bank of India are
Consumer tech products brand Boat on Friday said it has Haryana and Punjab, re- were approved by Parlia- Jio, and so the losses in tails of earnest money de- in a deposit of 30 bln ru- considering drafting a code of
appointed former Godrej Consumer Products executive Vivek spectively, which led to a ment in September. Punjab and Haryana could posits placed by each tele- pees, the company is ex- conduct for committees of
Gambhir as its Chief Executive Officer. At Boat, Gambhir will net addition of only 0.5 mln The protestors, who have largely be attributed to the com operator for the spec- pected to invest 150-210 bln creditors to ensure that
be closely working with co-founders Aman Gupta and Sameer users during the month. been agitating since No- protests. trum auction. rupees in the upcoming timelines under the
Mehta to drive the company's vision and accelerate the While the muted sub- vember, mainly at the bor- Reliance Jio's net sub- Telecom operators pro- spectrum as against an ear- bankruptcy code are followed
overall growth, a statement said. scriber addition was along ders of Delhi, say the new scriber addition of 4.6 mln vide earnest money de- lier estimation of around in letter and in spirit.
expected lines after the Oct- laws will aid big corporates in Oct-Dec was the lowest posits in the form of bank 20 bln rupees, ICICI securi- "While DHFL (Dewan
Uber loses UK Supreme Court fight, Dec earnings, the extent of
subscriber losses in Punjab
such as Reliance Industries
Ltd, the parent company of
since it was launched, No-
mura said.
guarantees when they ap-
ply for pre-qualifying for
ties said.
The Department of
Housing) is a high-profile
case, even in some of the
must classify drivers as workers and Haryana - the two Reliance Jio. But Reliance Jio's active the spectrum auction. Telecommunications will other lesser known cases,
Taxi ride-hailing giant Uber must classify its drivers as states impacted the most by According to reports, subscriber addition of 3.2 The size of the deposit de- auction the spectrum in there have been instances
workers with minimum wage, holiday and sick pay rights, the ongoing farmers' soon after the protests mln in December was high- termines the bidders' ini- multiple frequency bands where biases of lenders have
rather than be categorised as self-employed, the UK Supreme protests - was surprising, started, Realince Jio start- er than the overall sub- tial eligibility to pick up of 700 MHz, 800 MHz, 900 been clear about who they
Court ruled on Friday. The decision follows a long-running brokerage house JM Finan- ed receiving port-out re- scriber addition for the sec- spectrum, based on which MHz, 1,800 MHz, 2,100 MHz, prefer to take over the asset,"
legal dispute which the American company had taken right cial said in a note. quests from customers. ond month in a row, ana- it can target a certain quan- 2,300 MHz, and 2,500 MHz one of the sources told
up to the highest court in Britain. Farmers from the two While announcing its lysts said. tum of airwaves in specific in 22 circles of the country. Informist.

NMDC aims 40 mt output in FY22, to Role of Narayana Murthy firm A HUGE NUMBER WILL BE FORCED TO SWITCH TO NEW OCCUPATIONS BY 2030: MCKINSEY REPORT

Covid puts 1.8 cr Indians at a jobs crossroads

commission steel plant by June
NMDC Ltd plans to produce 40 mln tn of iron ore in 2021-22
(Apr-Mar), up from the 35-36 mln tn likely this year. The
state-owned firm is likely to mine 27-28 mln tn of ore
from Chhattisgarh, and 14 mln tn from Karnataka, the
senior management said at the Edelweiss India e-Conference
2021.
Muthoot Finance plans to raise
Rs 6,000 crore through bonds
Muthoot Finance on Friday said its board has approved a
proposal to raise up to Rs 6,000 crore by issuing non
convertible debentures (NCDs). The funds would be raised by
way of private placement of redeemable NCDs to be issued in
one or more tranches as may be decided by the board or a
committee thereof from time to time, it said in a filing with
the stock exchange.
Bharat Forge’s capex scale-up to be
contingent on defence order flow
Bharat Forge Ltd plans to keep capital expenditure for the
upcoming financial year stating April at a mere 500 mln
rupees, and will raise it depending on the flow of orders from
the defence sector. This is in line with the company’s strategy
of following an asset-light model.
requires investigation: CAIT
NEW DELHI: Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) has asked
Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal to conduct an investigation
into the role of Amazon supplier, Cloudtail India owned by N.R. AGENCIES/ Mumbai find a new job, it said, adding 18 mil-
Narayana Murthy. lion of those will be in India itself.
CAIT in a letter to Goyal has sought a point wise investigation COVID-19 will have a lasting impact The impact on India has been mini-
including mockery of the law by Cloudtail India Limited and on labour markets, and as much as 18 mized because between 35-55 per cent
Appario Retail (P) Limited, joint ventures with Amazon India
Limited.
million Indian workers will be forced
to switch to a newer occupation by
of the country's workforce depends on
what was classified as the outdoor
"In this context, we reiterate that not only Amazon, its joint 2030 because of the pandemic, a re- production and maintenance arena,
ventures in India too are hand in glove and knowingly helping it port said on Friday. which includes construction sites,
desecrating our country's rule of law. It is also deeply worrying The impact will be "disproportion- farms, residential and commercial
that some banks are colluding with Amazon by helping it keep ately" felt on low-wage workers in re- grounds, and other outdoor spaces.
prices lower than the market through exclusive policies giving tail, food services, hospitality, and of- tries including India. In India, the share of total work
cashback," CAIT said. fice administration, the report by Three broad changes in consumer hours expended using physical and
"We draw your kind attention towards Cloudtail India (P) McKinsey Global Institute, a think- behavior and business models will manual skills will decline by 2.2 per-
Limited, a company owned by Sh Narayan Murthy, Appario tank, said. persist to varying degrees because of centage points, while time devoted to
Retail (P) Limited, owned by Mr. Ashok Patni, Darshita The pandemic has disrupted labour the pandemic which include the rise technological skills will rise 3.3 per-
EtelDarshita Mobiles, STPL-Green Mobiles and Rocket
Kommerce", CAIT said.
markets because companies have
been forced to respond to a new di-
of remote work, the increased em-
brace of e-commerce and virtual in-
centage points, it said.
"The long-term effects of the virus
It added that these together control 80% of business on mension of work - physical proximity, teractions, and the more rapid de- may reduce the number of low-wage
Amazon marketplace. Though according to law and policies, the an official statement explained. ployment of automation and AI (arti- jobs available, which previously
marketplace (Amazon) should not have relation or control over The report identifies the lasting im- ficial intelligence), it said. served as a safety net for displaced
the retailer (eg Cloudtail), these retail companies are fully pact of COVID-19 on labour demand, This will lead to a reshuffling of jobs workers," Susan Lund, a partner at
controlled by Amazon. Thus, Amazon's "marketplace" narrative is the mix of occupations, and work- in the economy over a decade, and McKinsey Global Institute (MGI),
a mere myth, CAIT said. force skills required in eight coun- over 100 million workers will have to said.
 MONEY MUMBAI | SATURDAY | FEBRUARY 20, 2021

BIZ BUZZ
FM Sitharaman interacts with top Govt to appeal against Cairn Centre to invite bids for
Air India Airport Services
award, defend taxation right
industry captains of Tamil Nadu
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday held an
informal meeting with top industrialists of Tamil Nadu to elicit
their views on the budget she presented on February 1. TVS NEW DELHI: After receiv-
Motor Chairman Venu Srinivasan, MRF Ltd Chairman M ing interest for Air India,
Mammen, India Cements Ltd Vice Chairman N Srinivasan, Centre now plans to invite
former Ashok Leyland Chairman R Seshasayee and Apollo NEW DELHI: The government is likely with the tribunal order. bids for the national carri-
Hospitals MD Sunita Reddy were among those who took part to file an appeal against the USD 1.4 The first person said the govern- er's ground handling com-
in the meeting, sources said. billion international arbitration ment, however, has kept open the pos- pany -- Air India Airport
award won by Cairn Energy in a tax sibility of a resolution within existing Services -- within the next 2
Govt sanctioned 134 food processing dispute, even as the issue did not fig-
ure during two-days of talks the Fi-
Indian laws.
The options under the existing provi-
months.
Accordingly, the express
projects last year despite pandemic nance Secretary held with the compa- sions, the person said, include Cairn of interest (EoI) will be is-
The Centre sanctioned 134 food processing projects across ny officials to look for a resolution, opting for the direct tax dispute settle- sued soon within the next
various states last year despite the COVID-19 pandemic and is sources with knowledge of the matter ment scheme Vivad se Vishwas, which two months, Civil Aviation ny's annual report, its FY19
committed to the growth of the sector, Union Minister said. gives relief on interest and penalty if Secretary Pradeep Singh net profit had risen to Rs
Rameswar Teli said. Minister of State for Food Processing Soon after the second meeting in as the principal tax demand is paid. Kharola told IANS. 63.81 crore from Rs 53.84
Industries Rameswar Teli participated in the fourth edition of many days between Cairn CEO Simon The tax department had in March The entities has been crore reported for FY18.
Emerging North East event on Friday in Guwahati. Thomson and Finance Secretary Ajay 2015 slapped a tax demand of Rs 10,247 transferred to a SPV -- Air Similarly, the total rev-
Bhushan Pandey ended, a person in- crore on Cairn for the alleged capital India Assets Holding -- as enue grew to Rs 707.16 crore
Bank unions stage protest; plan to formed of the development said the
government intends to defend its sov-
of Indian assets overseas.
"Constructive dialogue is continu-
gains it made on reorganising its India
business prior to an IPO in 2006-07.
Air India has already been
put on block to be divested.
from Rs 669.26 crore (restat-
ed) during 2017-18.
march towards Parliament in March ereign right in taxation and will file an ing," Thomson said after the meeting It levied short-term capital gains tax Notably, the national car- In 2018-19, the process of
Opposing government's privatisation plans, bank unions on appeal against an international tribu- on Friday. He did not elaborate. in raising the demand even though rier's wholly-owned sub- strategic sale was initiated
Friday staged protest in all the state capitals and plan to march nal ordering India to return USD 1.4 Cairn in a letter to the Indian gov- Cairn had over several years built the sidiary is a profitable ven- with appointment of a
towards Parliament next month if their demands are not met, billion to the British firm. ernment last month indicated it could India business that included develop- ture. transaction advisor and is-
All India Bank Employees' Association (AIBEA) said. Finance However, another person briefed on seize overseas assets such as airplanes ing the Ravva oil and gas field in the It is engaged in ground suance of Preliminary In-
Minister Nirmala Sitharaman during her Budget speech earlier the discussions between Cairn and Fi- and ships if New Delhi fails to comply KG Basin and discovering the nation's handling services which formation Memorandum.
this month announced plans to privatise two PSU banks. nance Ministry said the option of In- with the arbitration award and return biggest onland oilfield in Rajasthan. are offered to other airlines However, the Centre's ear-
dia appealing against the verdict did the value of the shares sold, dividend Cairn at that time stated that its in- as well. lier attempts to divest close
Govt plans to invite bids for green not figure in talks either on Thursday
or Friday.
seized and tax refund withheld by the
income tax department to recover part
ternal reorganisation was in compli-
ance with the law and had been ap-
In terms of financials,
AIAPS is a debt free compa-
to 100 per cent stake in the
company did not elicit
hydrogen projects in 3-4 months Cairn on its part remained tight- of the tax demand it had raised using proved by various regulatory bodies ny and has been a profitable healthy response.
In a drive to push clean energy in the country, the government lipped on the parleys it has initiated retrospective legislation. including SEBI. It denied evading any venture since the first year The company was formed
plans to invite bids for green hydrogen projects in three-four with an aim to avert the company hav- The firm has already started identi- taxes prevalent at that time and chal- of its autonomous opera- with an aim to provide uni-
months, Union Power Minister R.K. Singh said. "We have ing to take legal recourse to recover fying assets it could seize in the event lenged the tax demand through inter- tions in 2014-15. fied ground handling
already had discussions with the relevant ministries--Ministry the amount including through seizure of Indian government does not comply national arbitration. According to the compa- services.
of Petroleum and Natural Gas, Ministry of Steel and Ministry of
Chemicals and Fertilisers," he said. A proposal had been made
to the petroleum and steel ministries to replace 10%
consumption of total hydrogen with green hydrogen.
ED to probe Amazon Five states undertake power sector reforms
for rules dodging
Ashok Leyland starts production at NEW DELHI: Reform linked
additional borrowing per-
Gross State Domestic Prod-
uct (GSDP) for meeting the
13.53 per cent.
Karnataka has surpassed
new bus facility in Andhra Pradesh missions are stimulating re- target set for the state for re- the ACS-ARR Gap target of
Ashok Leyland Ltd today said it had started commercial forms in the power sector duction in AT&C losses and Rs 0.50 per unit by reducing
production of buses at its new facility in Vijayawada, Andhra NEW DELHI: Spelling more across the states. additional 0.05 per cent of the gap to Rs 0.44 per unit.
Pradesh. Once completed, the 75-acre plant will be able to trouble for e-commerce giant As a part of the reform GSDP for crossing the ACS- Rajasthan has also
produce 4,800 buses a year, and will also have a learning Amazon, the Enforcement process, five more states -- ARR gap target. achieved the ACS-ARR Gap
centre and an advanced service training centre. The company Directorate (ED) will exam- Bihar, Goa, Karnataka, Ra- Uttarakhand has achieved reduction target. Against
had earlier said the plant would be capable of manufacturing ine its documents over alle- jasthan and Uttarakhand the targets for reduction in the target of Rs 1.40 per
buses across all models under the Ashok Leyland brand. gations that it dodged India's have successfully met the both AT&C losses and ACS- unit, the state has abridged
regulators, sources said on target set by the Power min- the three reforms in Power ARR gap. AT&C losses in the gap to Rs 1.16 per unit.
Atul Auto again defers start of new Friday.
An ED source related to the
istry for reduction in Ag-
gregate Technical & Com-
Sector stipulated by the De-
partment of Expenditure,
the state have reduced to
19.01 per cent against the
Similarly, Bihar has also
achieved the ACS-ARR Gap
Rs 200 crore plant on low demand development told IANS, "We mercial (AT&C) losses or Ministry of Finance. target of 19.35 per cent. reduction target by 10 per
Low capacity utilisation at its operational plant and a will examine the documents achieved the targeted re- A part of additional bor- ACS-ARR Gap in the state cent reductions in the ACS-
continued drop in sales over the last year has again forced of Amazon, as it has been al- duction gap in Average Cost rowing ceiling to the states has been reduced to Rs 0.36 ARR Gap.
Atul Auto Ltd to defer the start of commercial production at its leged that it favoured big sell- players like Amazon and of Supply and Average Rev- is linked to undertaking re- per unit against the target Implementation of the re-
new 2-bln-rupee factory near Ahmedabad. The plant, located ers on its India platform, and Flipkart pertaining to cer- enue Realisation (ACS- forms in the power sector. of Rs 0.40 per unit. form has made these five
in Changodar, is expected to double Atul Auto's three-wheeler used them to maneuver tain multi-brand retail busi- ARR). States get permission to Goa has brought down the states eligible to mobilise
capacity to 120,000 units a year. around rules meant to pro- nesses and an observation Reduction in AT&C losses borrow and amount equiva- AT&C losses to 11.21 per additional financial re-
tect the country's small re- made by the Delhi High and ACS-ARR gap are two of lent of 0.05 per cent of the cent against the target of sources of Rs 2,094 crore.

Marico enters instant noodles category

CCI seeks comments for Indian tailers from getting crushed
pharma market competition study
by e-commerce giants, inter-
nal documents show."
The Competition Commission of India has sought comments
from stakeholders for its study on the pharmaceutical sector,
This will be the second
time in the span of 20 days
which is aimed at developing a better understanding of the
competition landscape in the industry. It will conduct
that the ED will be probing
the e-commerce giant in In-
consultations with companies, stockists, chemists. dia. In January, the ED had
initiated a probe against
Amazon for Foreign Ex-
change Managaement Act
APPOINTMENTS (FEMA) violations.
The probe is being conduct-
Volvo Cars elevates Jyoti Malhotra as ed under various sections of
FEMA after the central
Managing Director probe agency recently re-
Volvo Cars India on Saturday said it has ceived a communication
appointed Jyoti Malhotra as its new from the Union Commerce
Managing Director with effect from March 1, Ministry seeking "necessary
2021. Malhotra, who currently serves as the action" against e-commerce
Director Sales and Marketing, would be the
Court in relation to Amazon.
The source said that the fi-
nancial probe agency's exam-
ination of documents is
based on the report of a glob-
al newswire, which reported
that it dodged India's regula-
tors.
The report said that two
sellers on the Amazon's India
platform Â- merchants in
which Amazon had indirect
equity stakes Â- accounted
for around 35 per cent of the
platform's sales revenue in
early 2019. It means some 35
of Amazon's more than
400,000 sellers in India at the
time accounted for around
two-third of its online sales.
AGENCIES/ New Delhi
Nestle's Maggi and ITC's
Yippee have a new competi-
tor as FMCG major Marico
Ltd has announced its foray
into the instant noodles seg-
ment with the launch of
'Saffola Oodles'.
The development comes in
line with the company's fo-
cus on strengthening its
foothold in the healthy,
ready-to-cook snacking cat-
egory and widening its de-
mographic relevance, the
company said in a state-
ment.
"In line with the growing
consumer demand for deli-
cious yet healthy eating op-
tions, Saffola Oodles is a
perfect combination of a de-
licious masala flavour, the
goodness of wholegrain
oats, and real vegetables
and makes for a mouth-wa-
tering snack," it said.
It is highly customisable
and takes only five minutes
to prepare, the statement
added.
Commenting on the new
launch, Koshy George,
Chief Marketing Officer,
Marico said, "Since the
launch of Saffola Masala
Oats, Saffola has become a
mainstay in the ready-to-eat
snacking market in India.
Once again championing
the healthy indulgence nar-
rative, we have launched
Saffola Oodles in the in-
stant noodles category."
EV use should
be mandatory
for govt depts,
says Gadkari
MUMBAI: Transport Minister
Nitin Gadkari on Friday made
a case for making it
mandatory to use electric
vehicles for all officials in
government ministries and
department.
He also suggested that
government should give
subsidy to buy electric
cooking appliances instead
of giving support for buying

MFs cut positions in Nifty biggies NPS, APY subscriber

first Indian to head the company in India.He
joined the company in August 2016. cooking gas to households.
Malhotra has over 24 years of automotive Addressing at the launch
experience in the sales and marketing domain. He has held Go Electric campaign,
national, regional and local positions in various automotive
companies like Mahindra & Mahindra, Maruti Suzuki and Fiat
Auto India before taking over as Director Marketing and Sales in
NEW DELHI: As equity and
equity-linked mutual funds
witnessed outflow of funds
crore while Indigo Paints
garnered Rs 140 crore and
Home First received Rs 120
base rises 22% in Jan Gadkari said, "Why don't we
provide subsidy on electric
cooking appliances. We
Volvo Car India. Malhotra succeeds Charles Frump who has been for the seventh consecutive crore in Januuary. NEW DELHI: The number of crease of 31.17% in the sub- already provide subsidy on
at the helm since October 2017. "Frump has completed a month in January, domestic As per the data from the subscribers under govern- scriber base to 2.65 crore at cooking gas. " He was of the
successful tenure in India and is moving over to another global mutual funds trimmed posi- Association of Mutual ment-run pension schemes January-end 2021 as against view that electricity cooking
assignment," the Swedish automaker said in a statement. tions in Nifty heavyweights Funds in India (AMFI), eq- NPS and APY rose nearly 2.02 crore in the year-ago is clean and will also reduce
including Reliance Indus- uity-linked mutual fund 22% to 4.05 crore at January- period, showed the PFRDA import dependence for gas.
CARS24 appoints Kunal Mundra as CEO tries (RIL), Infosys and
Bharti Airtel, showed an
schemes saw a net outflow
of Rs 9,253.22 crore last
end this year, according to
data from PFRDA.
data.
PFRDA said central gov-
Gadkari suggested that use
of electric vehicles should be
for cars vertical Edelweiss report. Bharti Airtel (Rs 1,200 bil- month. There were over 3.33 crore ernment employees sub- made mandatory for all
CARS24, an online platform for pre-owned It noted that alhough MFs lion), PowerGrid and TCS The net outflow stood at subscribers under both the scriber base rose 3.74% to government officials.
vehicles, on Tuesday said it has appointed were net sellers in the tele- (Rs 1,000 crore each)," it Rs 10,147.12 crore in Decem- schemes by the year-ago 21.61 lakh, while state gov- He, further, urged Power
Kunal Mundra as CEO of its cars vertical in com major Bharti Airtel, said. ber, Rs 12,917.36 crore in No- same period. ernment employees base in- Minister R K Singh to make
India. In this newly created role, Mundra foreign portfolio investors The report titled 'Edelweiss vember, Rs 2,724.95 crore in It shows a year-on-year in- creased 7.44% to 50.43 lakh is mandatory to use electric
will be responsible for the company's car (FPI) increased their bet in Fund Insight: Feb 2021' noted October, and Rs 734.40 crore crease of 21.63%, the Pen- at end-January 2021. vehicles for officials in his
business in India, while closely working with telecom stocks in January. that MFs partcipated in all in September. sion Fund Regulatory and For the 'all citizen sector' department saying he will do
the co-founders to device expansion "In January, domestic MFs the IPOs last month. Equity funds have wit- Development Authority category, the subscriber so for his departments.
strategy, a statement said. Mundra was the trimmed positions in Nifty The funds also bought nessed net outflow for the (PFRDA) said in a release base under NPS jumped He said that use of 10,000
CEO and Founder of CEAT Specialty Tyres for 5 years, and a heavyweights like Reliance IPOs worth Rs 1,200 crore last seven months, largely on its website on Friday. 31.72% to 14.95 lakh, while electric vehicles in Delhi can
member of ExCom for CEAT Tyres. He has alos served as Industries (Rs 2,081 crore), and out of this, IRFC got the due to profit booking by Under Atal Pension Yo- for the corporate sector it alone save Rs 30 crore per
Executive Vice President at Bain Capital Private Equity. 'In his new Infosys (Rs 2,011 crore), major chunk with Rs 927 traders. jana (APY), there was an in- rose 17.71% to 10.90 lakh. month.
role, Kunal will help futureproof the brand as we continue to

Cement firms see higher demand but muted Airfare band, curbs
grow and revolutionise the way Indians buy or sell pre-owned
vehicles,' CARS24 India co-founder and CEO Vikram Chopra said.

Marico appoints Mansi Tiwari Somvanshi

as Head- Corporate Communications
Mansi Tiwari Somvanshi has joined Marico as
pricing; likely to face input cost flare-ups likely to go in summer
Head- Corporate Communications. She stated
TEJI MANDI In the eastern market, prices remained flat Domestic air traffic
on her LinkedIn post, “#newbeginings Elated
to share that I have joined Marico as Head -
Corporate Communications. I couldn't have Demand for cement is witnessing an uptick
in February on a monthly basis. However,
this market has been quite volatile over the
NEW DELHI: With domes-
tic air traffic expected to in-
crease further in the com-
� is increasing day
by day and has now
asked for a better first week! Thank you after a drop during the first few weeks of year as price has declined ~Rs 50/bag or ing summer season, the
Marico for such a warm welcome!! Feels January. As per a Motilal Oswal report, ~15% since May’20. In contrast, prices in government may remove reached about 3 lakh
proud to be a part of an organisation that volume is bouncing back strongly. On the the southern market are still up ~Rs 30/bag the fare band besides lifting passengers a day
touches the lives of 1 out of every 3 Indians. Looking forward to pricing front, the trend remains largely YoY to Rs 371/bag in Feb’21, led by hikes other restrictions, Minister
working alongside leaders who have made Marico one of the muted, however, it varies from one taken over Apr–May’20. On yearly of State for Civil Aviation and some other restrictions
most respected name across categories and across markets in geography to another. comparison, prices are up Minister Hardeep Singh are likely to be done away
Asia and Africa.” Prior to joining Marico, Mansi worked with 11%/12%/12%/3% YoY in Andhra Pradesh / Puri has said. with," the statement added.
Vodafone Idea Limited as General Manager, Corporate Demand picking up: Tamil Nadu / Karnataka / Kerala. Replying to queries at the The minister also in-
Communications, for more than four years. Before that she was Pan India demand for cement has been meeting of his ministry's formed about the UDAN
associated with Pidilite Industries and Reliance infrastructure Ltd. strong in February led by continued strong Energy cost shooting up: consultative committee on scheme giving details of the
demand in the east, north, and central. Increasing cost of raw materials will affect Thursday, Puri also said do- bidding process and the
Dipti Rode joins L&K Saatchi & Saatchi Demand is reviving in the west. But, the
south market still remains weak. The companies would be
the operational efficiency of cement
companies in the coming quarters. Petcoke
mestic air traffic is increas- routes, the statement said.

as Senior Creative Director

L&K Saatchi & Saatchi has announced the
Demand in the East has been particularly
strong (>10% YoY). It is supported by pre-
appointment of Dipti Rode as Senior Creative election spending in West Bengal and strong
Director. She is an experienced Creative industrial/infra demand in Odisha.
Director with a demonstrated history of Demand in west, north, and central has
working in the marketing and advertising improved in February as the construction
industry. Dipti is a seasoned creative hand work is picking up due to a receding winter.
with over 14 years of professional experience Revival in the west market is largely
across leading agencies in India. She joins the supported as Maharashtra volumes are now
agency from What’s Your Problem (WYP) where she was on the rise for the first time since the
instrumental in driving creative engagement and strategy for pandemic.
brands like Arrow, Tanishq, Future Generali, Johnnie Walker Demand in the South has remained weak
among others. Prior to WYP, Dipti has worked with Publicis on a yearly basis but improved sequentially.
Ambience, DDB Mudra and Think Why Not. Andhra Pradesh and Telangana markets, in
particular, are gaining more traction.
Send your Corporate Appointment news and photographs
to Sachin Tikare at sachin@fpj.co.in Mixed pricing trend across the regions :
Pricing trend in February remained mixed
� looking to neutralise the
rising input costs from increasing
demand and lower requirements
for plant maintenance due to
the seasonal factors
across the regions. Prices improved by 1-2%
in North in February, led by a hike of Rs
5–10/bag hike across the region. Prices in
Central India remained flat at Rs 349/bag
compared to January. Central India has
largely remained flat over the years. Current
prices are up only 3% YoY. Trend in the
western market is also similar. Cement price
is up 1% MoM in Mumbai and Ahmedabad.
On a yearly basis, it is up 3% YoY.
prices have risen substantially up to 71%
from last year. Cement producers are likely
to switch to imported coal to mitigate the
rising pet coke prices.
Diesel price is also up 26% YoY in Feb’21
which would result in higher freight, power
and fuel cost in Q4FY21. However, the
companies would be looking to neutralise
the rising input costs from increasing
demand and lower requirements for plant
maintenance due to the seasonal factors.
Teji Mandi (TM Investment Technologies
Pvt. Ltd.) is a SEBI registered investment
advisor. No information in this article should
not be construed as investment advice.
Please visit www.tejimandi.com to know
more.
ing day by day and has now
reached about 3 lakh pas-
sengers a day, an official
statement said on Friday.
Puri also explained the
Members of Parliament
about various steps taken
by this ministry during the
COVID-9 pandemic for the
benefit of people as well as
the aviation sector, said the
statement.
"He informed about the
fare bands introduced with
floor price and ceiling
price. He further said that
in the summer schedule, as
domestic traffic would in-
crease more, the fare bands
It added that the minister
said four rounds of bid-
dings have been done and
more than 700 routes have
been sanctioned.
Also, over 300 routes have
been operationalised under
the scheme, the minister
stated, as per the statement.
Terming the Darbhanga
airport in Bihar as one of
the successful examples un-
der the UDAN scheme, Puri
further provided informa-
tion about airports and
flights in Bihar, Punjab, Ut-
tar Pradesh as well to the
members of the committee,
it said.
Jharkhand HC rejects Lalu Yadav’s bail plea
RANCHI: The Jharkhand High Court on Friday reje-
cted Lalu Prasad Yadav's bail plea in the Dumka
treasury case asking the RJD chief to file a fresh
petition after two months. Yadav, who has been in
prison since December 2017, was sentenced to 7
years imprisonment in 2018 under the IPC and 7
years under the Prevention of Corruption Act in
connection with the fodder scam case.
NATION
MUMBAI | SATURDAY | FEBRUARY 20, 2021

INDIA-CHINA BORDER STANDOFF UTTARAKHAND

Morning cuppa
Disengagement in
TRAGEDY
166m of Tapovan
tunnel cleared proves fatal for 2
Pangong area over cops shot by ultras
DEHRADUN: Rescuers were
on Friday busy finding more
bodies as they toiled hard
and used different gadgets in-
side a tunnel in disaster hit
Tapovan project in Ut-

Unnao Dalit sisters

tarakhands Chamoli district.
10th round of military talks on further withdrawal from “We have reached 166m
Hot Springs, Gogra & Depsang in eastern Ladakh today deep inside the tunnel and
6m in slope. We are using all

cremated amid
AGENCIES / New Delhi gadgets to look for more bod-
ies," a top official said.
After completing the with- Elsewhere also, rescuers
drawal of troops and wea- used dog squads, binoculars,

pons from the north and
south banks of Pangong lake,
India and China will hold a
fresh round of high-level mil-
itary talks on Saturday to
take forward the disengage-
ment process in Hot Springs,
Gogra and Depsang in east-
ern Ladakh, sources said on
Friday.
The 10th round of Corps
Commander-level talks are
scheduled to start at 10 am at
the Moldo border point on
the Chinese side of the Line
of Actual Control, and will
be the first engagement betw-
een the two sides at a senior
level after conclusion of the
disengagement in Pangong
lake areas, they said.
Sources said pulling back of
troops, weapons and other
military hardware as well as
dismantling of bunkers,
tents and temporary struc-
tures in north and south
banks of Pangong lake were
completed on Thursday and
both sides have carried out a
verification of the same.
"Both sides will also carry
out a comprehensive review
of the disengagement pro-
cess in Pangong lake areas,"
said a source.
Sources indicated during
the Saturday’s talks, India
will insist on a faster disen-
gagement process in remain-
ing areas to bring down ten-
sion in the region, which has
witnessed a tense standoff
between the two militaries
for over nine months.
On February 11, Defence
Minister Rajnath Singh told
Parliament about an agree-
ment between India and Chi-
na on disengagement in the
north and south banks of
Pangong lake that mandated
both sides to "cease" forward
deployment of troops in a
"phased, coordinated and
verifiable" manner.
Under the agreement, he
said China will pull back its
troops to east of Finger 8 ar-
eas in the northern bank of
Pangong lake while the Indi-
an personnel will be based at
their permanent base at
Dhan Singh Thapa Post near
Finger 3 in the region. Simi-
lar action would take place
on the south bank of the lake,
he said. The sources said
troops of both sides have re-
treated to positions that were
agreed to by both sides.
The disengagement began
on February 10.
The Indian delegation at
Saturday's talks will be led
by Lt Gen PGK Menon, the
Commander of the Leh-
based 14 Corps while the
Chinese side is expected to
be headed by Maj Gen Liu
Lin, the commander of the
South Xinjiang military dis-
trict of the PLA.
tight security
SRAWAN SHUKLA / Lucknow
The two minor Dalit girls,
who died under mysterious
circumstances, were cremat-
ed amid tight security in
Baburaha village under Ut-
tar Pradesh’s Asoha police
station on Friday morning.
Police Commissioner Ran-
jan Kumar, IG Lakshmi
Singh, District Magistrate
Ravindra Kumar, SP Anand
Kulkarni were present dur-
ing the cremation. Heavy se-
curity arrangements were
made for the creation and the
police kept the trouble-mak-
ers outside the village.
Entire village was in tears
when the procession was tak-
en out at 9 am on Friday. The
deceased’s brother had per-
formed the last rites. The
family wanted to wait for an-
other brother, who was com-
ing from Surat, but police
convinced them to cremate
the other girl also. The post-
mortem report of the girls
suggested they died of poi-
son. DGP HC Awasthi said
the autopsy ruled out rape
and there were no external
injury or ligature mark on
the bodies.
CM Yogi Adityanath an-
nounced to bear all medical
expenses of the third sister
who has been battling for her
life at Regency Hospital in
Kanpur. The issue has al-
ready taken a political colour
and is likely to be raised by
the opposition during the
budget session.
Meanwhile, 6 teams have
been formed to probe the
case and the SP is himself
monitoring these teams, the
police said. "Six teams were
formed to investigate the
case. SP Unnao himself is
monitoring these teams.
Postmortem report has re-
vealed several things and our
probe is heading in the right
way. We hope to get a head-
way soon,” IGP Lucknow ra-
nge Lakshmi Singh told ANI.
rafts and other equipment in
their search operation for 143
missing persons.
ITBP chief reviews rescue
ITBP chief S S Deswal on
Friday visited the Tapovan
tunnel and Raini village,
which bore the maximum
brunt of a recent flash flood
that has claimed 62 lives so
far, even as over 140 people
are still missing.
“The director general took
stock of the search-and-res-
cue operations being con-
ducted at the Tapovan tun-
nel. He also visited the other
small tunnel, from where 12
people were rescued on Feb-
ruary 7, the day the disaster
struck," a spokesperson of
the ITBP said, adding, Desw-
al also visited Raini village,
which got cut-off.
A senior officer pays his last respect to J&K Police SPO Mohammad
Altaf in Srinagar on Friday.
SRINAGAR: A regular
morning cup of tea proved
fatal for 2 unarmed police-
men who were gunned down
by a terrorist in an upmar-
ket Srinagar area, an inci-
dent witnessed by people
and captured on CCTV cam-
eras, police said on Friday.
The two policemen, posted
in nearby Saddar police sta-
tion on the high-security air-
port road, had gone to a close
by shop to have their morn-
ing tea when they were at-
tacked by the terrorist, po-
lice said. The nearby police
station and a security
bunker at the beginning of a
lane had given them the con-
fidence to go to the tea shop
unarmed, they said.
The terrorist, Saqib, can be
seen pulling out an assault
rifle hidden inside his 'pher-
—Sajad Hameed
lice, had joined militancy
seven months back. The Re-
sistance Front (TRF), be-
lieved to be a shadow outfit
of the banned Lashkar-e-
Taiba terror group, has
claimed responsibility for
the attack. The policemen
were rushed to SMHS hospi-
tal. Constable Suhail was the
first to succumb while con-
stable Mohammed Yusuf,
lost the battle of life as he
was being wheeled into the
operation theatre. Police
teams rushed to the area and
scanned CCTV cameras in-
stalled by shops and houses,
and identify the terrorist as
Saqib from Barzulla.
In separate gunfights earli-
er in the day, 3 unidentified
terrorists were killed in an
encounter in south Kash-
mir’s Shopian, while in cen-

UP Oppn seeks martyr

FAST NEWS an' and pumping bullets at tral Kashmir’s Budgam, a po-

Fake Ayodhya Trust portal: 2 booked

Strong India-Aus them at a close range. The at-
tacker can be seen fleeing
liceman was killed and a sec-
ond injured, officials said.

LUCKNOW: The Ayodhya Police booked 2 persons for running a fake ties will play key the spot as people scatter
around in horror.
3 arrested for attacking
Krishna Dhaba owner’s son
role in shaping
status for dead ryots
website similar to Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust to collect Police said there were two Separately, the J&K Police
donations for Ram temple fraudulently. The police booked Tejveer Singh other accomplices with him said it arrested 3 militants,
and Gaurav Kumar on a complaint by trustee Dr Anil Mishra late on
Thursday night. The accused had copied Trust’s original website and post-C world: PM at a distance, which includ-
ed a wanted militant from
who shot and injured the son
of a popular eatery owner in
content to collect donations online. The complaint stated they had chan- NEW DELHI: The strong In- South Kashmir. "We have Srinagar city on Wednesday.
ged the QR Code and bank account details. On scanning the QR Code it
showed the name of Tejveer Singh and bank account of Gaurav Kumar,
dia-Australia partnership
will play an important role in
SRAWAN SHUKLA / Lucknow ing ryots to protest against
the three Farm Laws which
BKU: Do not invite identified the terrorist and
we will soon catch hold of
Kashmir IGP said the mili-
tants had shot at at Akash
he added. Ayodhya circle officer Rajesh Rai said a case under IPC Secs shaping the post-COVID Raising the farmers’ issue in are meant for their welfare BJP netas to events him," Jammu and Kashmir Mehra, the son of the owner
420, 419, 66C and 66D was and police teams formed to arrest them. world, PM Modi said on Fri- UP Assembly, Opposition and to double their income. DGP Dilbagh Singh said. of 'Krishna Dhaba' on Wed-
day and expressed confi- Samajwadi Party (SP) has de- The CM was angry over op- AGENCIES / Muzaffarnagar Saqib, according to the po- nesday evening in Sonwar.
Ex-Union home secy’s mobile snatched dence the two nations would manded martyrs' status to position parties disrupting
JAIPUR: Former union home secretary and former Rajasthan chief take the lead in providing cir- farmers who died during the house proceedings and stag- The farmers' union which
secretary Rajiv Mehrishi became a target for thieves who fled with the cular economy solutions. ongoing agitation. ing frequent walkouts over has recently staged a pan-
retired IAS officer’s mobile phone while he was cycling near the Addressing the valedictory Disruption marked the sec- farmers’ agitation. CM Yogi chayat in Muzaffarnagar's
Rajasthan University in Jaipur. Police said 2 bike-borne assailants drove function of the India-Aus- ond day of proceedings in the said that the measure taken Sisauli, urged people not to
up to Mehrishi on Thursday evening. His mobile phone was fixed on the tralia Circular Economy state legislature. Members of by the Modi government for invite any BJP leader to a
cycle’s handle. The robbers snatched the mobile and fled. One miscreant Hackathon, Modi said con- SP, BSP and Congress stor- the welfare of farmers was family function or a pro-
hid the number plate of the bike. Mehrishi called up Jaipur police sumption-oriented economic med the Well and raised anti- hurting the political inter- gramme until the prevailing
commissioner Anand Srivastava and informed him of the incident after models have put a great str- government slogans when ests of Opposition parties deadlock situation between
which an FIR was filed. After Mehrishi’s complaint, Gandhi Nagar police ain on the planet. "We must their demand for holding a and their pockets too. the farmers and the govern-
station SHO Narendra Pareek, Gandhi Nagar police station ASP Rajvir never forget we are not the discussion on farmers’ agita- ment ends.
Singh, Adarsh Nagar ASP Neelkamal Meena and other cops reached the owners of all Mother Earth tion was ignored by Speaker The directive, given by
spot and scanned the CCTV footages. —FPJ Correspondent has to offer, but merely its HN Dixit. Amid noise and Bhartiya Kisan Union (BKU)
trustees for all the future gen- din, the Speaker adjourned chief Naresh Tikait in
Snag-hit plane makes emergency landing erations to come,” he said. the house for an hour. Sisauli, takes forward the de-
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A flight from Sharjah to Kozhikode with Stressing it is not enough to Leader of Opposition Ram cision of social boycott of
112 passengers made an emergency landing at the international make production processes Govind Chowdhary said BJP leaders, taken earlier at
airport here on Friday due to a snag in the aircraft. The Air India more efficient and less pol- many farmers a Kisan Maha Panchayat in
Express plane developed the snag in the hydraulic system and made luting, he said no matter how died during FARMERS’ Muzaffarnagar.
the landing at Thiruvananthapuram where the airlines has the base
with more technical experts,an airport official said. "The flight landed
fast or slow one drives, if the
direction is wrong, then one
the stir but the
government
AGITATION The move is expected to
make things awkward for the
safely at around 1 PM. All the passengers, including the crew, are is bound to reach the wrong has not done anything for “Many of them have not BJP which has asked its lead-
safe and evacuated. The aeroplane has been moved to the technical destination. "And so, we their families. “The state gov- even read the Farm Laws, yet ers to reach out to farmers
area for repairs," Director of the airport C V Ravindran told PTI. must set the right direction." ernment should accord the they are creating anarchy in and explain to them the posi-
The PM called for looking status of martyrs to farmers the garb of farmers’ agita- tive impact of farm laws.
Coal scam:CBI searches 13 locations at consumption patterns, who died during the agita- tion to serve their political "BKU chief Naresh Tikait
NEW DELHI/KOLKATA: Several teams of the CBI on Friday launched and how their ecological im- tion,” demanded Chowdhary. interests. There is a demo- had advised people to not
search operations at 13 locations in poll-bound West Bengal, including pact can be reduced. Noting Oppn creating anarchy: CM cratic way of resolving is- send 'chitthi' (invitations) to
the premises of coal mafia Jaidev Mondal in an ongoing probe into the it is where the concept of a CM Yogi Adityanath slamm- sues, if there are any. The BJP leaders for any pro-
coal scam case involving the coal mafia Anup Majhi, who is still on the circular economy comes in, ed the Opposition parties on Prime Minister has given an gramme till the impasse
run, sources said. A source related to the investigation told IANS: Modi said the concept can be the floor of the House charg- open offer for further dia- ends," said Chaudhary Congress leader Rahul Gandhi gives a shoulder to the mortal
“Several CBI teams have been carrying out searches at 13 locations in a key step in solving many of ing them with creating anar- logue, yet they continue to in- Digamber Singh, state presi- remains of party leader Captain Satish Sharma who passed away
four districts of the West Bengal." The searches are going on in Kolkata, our challenges. chy in the country by incit- cite farmers,” he fumed. dent of BKU's youth wing. on February 17, in New Delhi on Friday. —ANI
Purulia, Paschim Bardhman and Bankura. The source claimed that the

Covid vaccination crosses 1-cr mark

agency teams are also conducting searches at the premises of Mondal,
Gurudeb Majhi and a company named Amiya Steel. 7 Pak Hindu
Nathu-La snowstorm: 447 tourists rescued migrants get
GUWAHATI: The army has rescued 447 tourists stuck at snow- OUR BUREAU those fears, they said.
bound Nathu-La near the India-China border in Sikkim following a
snowstorm, defence officials said on Friday. Defence spokesman Lt
citizenship New Delhi / Lucknow /
Bangaluru / Raipur
Experts told the gov-
ernment that if peo-
Col P Khongsai told IANS soldiers in a prompt action rescued the FPJ CORRESPONDENT / Jaipur ple coming from Ma-
447 tourists from the high reaches of Nathu La near the India-China In a new milestone in the harashtra are not
border following sudden heavy snowfall on Thursday. He said the Seven Pakistani Hindu refu- fight against Coronavirus monitored properly,
tourists in 155 vehicles were stuck on the Nathu La-Gangtok road gees who have been living in pandemic, India on Friday there could be a surge
following a severe snowstorm and sub-zero temperatures. Jaipur for the past 15 years crossed 1.02 crore vaccina- in cases in Chikkodi,
got Indian citizenship on Fri- tions in a span of just over a Belagavi, Bagalkot
Fake ‘PM Yojana Loan’ site luring Indians day. Jaipur district collector month. Over 6.58 lakh doses and Vijayapura.
NEW DELHI: A website that goes by the name of 'Pradhan Mantri Antar Singh Nehra gave the were administered in the last However, Karnataka
Yojana Loan' and was earlier linked to a Google Play Store app with the Pakistani refugees the Indi- 24 hours, the Health Ministry is yet to take a call. Dr KV
same name (the app has now been removed) is luring Indians in INDIA SUCCESSFULLY TEST FIRES HELINA, DHRUVASTRA ANTI-TANK an citizenship at the Jaipur said. The Covid-19 recovery VIRUS TIDBITS Trilok Chandra, commis-
providing loans, in exchange for personal identifiable information that GUIDED MISSILES: India on Friday successfully test fired indigenously- collectorate. Jawahar Ram, rate has also touched 97.30% � Madras High Court notice sioner, health and family wel-
can potentially be misused online, New Delhi-based think tank Cyber- developed anti-tank guided missile systems 'Helina' and 'Dhruvastra', Sonoari Bai, Gojar Bai, Gord- of 1.09 crore infections as 1.07 to Centre, 5 others, over fare department, said the
Peace Foundation warned on Friday. The personal details that were co- paving their induction into the Army and the Indian Air Force respecti- han Das, Ganesh Chand, crore have recovered so far, of Covishield side effects on vax technical advisory commit-
llected from the applicants such as Aadhaar card, ration card, PAN card vely, officials said. The defence ministry dubbed the missiles one of the Basan Bai and Arjan Singh which 10,896 in the past 24 volunteer tee will consider the matter
are openly available on the website and can be misused by any hacker. most-advanced anti-tank weapons in the world. The missiles were test were granted citizenship. hours. However, the figure � Puducherry logs 14 new and guidelines will be
13 TURTLES FOUND DEAD IN SARSAI NAWAR LAKE IN UP fired at Pokhran deserts in Rajasthan. "The system has all-weather day- Nehra congratulated the did not match as many as coronavirus cases, toll rises to framed based on their sug-
ETAWAH (UP): Around 13 turtles, belonging to an endangered and-night capability and can defeat battle tanks with conventional Pakistanis on becoming Indi- 13,193 new cases of the dread- 662 with 2 fatalities gestions.
species, were found dead in the Sarsai Nawar lake of Etawah armour as well as with explosive reactive armour. It is one of the most- an citizens and hoped that ed virus found in one day in
� Jharkhand allows 100%
Fresh cases in C’garh schools
district, UP, which was declared a Ramsar site last year. advanced anti-tank weapons in the world," the ministry said. they would serve the country 7.71 lakh tests. attendance in govt offices, Two students at a govern-
and live as dutiful citizens. Clean chit to Tablighis cinema halls to reopen at 50% ment school in Surajpur dis-

IKEA to open first store in Noida, to invest `5,500 cr in UP

SRAWAN SHUKLA / Lucknow
The state government on Fri-
day signed MoU with
Swedish furnishing giant
IKEA which will open its
first store in Noida and in-
vest Rs5,500 crore in UP.
The MoU was signed virtu-
ally at the Chief Minister res-
idence in Lucknow in the
presence of CM Yogi
Adityanath, Industry Minis-
ter Satish Mahana, Noida
Authority and IKEA offi-
cials. The company was
handed over land lease deed
papers. Ikea has bought 12
acres in Sector 51 of Noida at
Rs850 crore and paid stamp
duty of Rs56 crore. IKEA’s
country property manager
David McCausland signed
the land papers on behalf of
the company. It will be devel-
oping integrated commercial
projects having shopping
malls, hotel, offices, retail ar-
eas in 5 lakh sq ft in Noida.
The company officials
claimed the construction will
begin shortly. The IKEA in-
vestment will generate 8,000
direct and indirect employ-
ment opportunities to thou-
sands of people.
The CM said it was a
golden opportunity
for the company to in-
vest in Noida where
Asia’s largest Jewar
International Green-
field Airport is com-
ing up. He assured company
officials all support and
hoped the company will fur-
ther expand and make in-
vestment in other cities.
Peter Betzel (in pic), IKEA
India CEO said the company
plans to set up a mix of large
and smaller city centre
format stores, with e-
commerce facility, in
UP over 7 years.
The world’s largest
furniture and home
product retailer had got
approval from India in
2013 to invest Rs10,500 crore
to build a supply chain infra-
structure and open 25 stores
by 2025. IKEA had opened its
first store in Hyderabad.
Those who got the Indian
citizenship have been living
in Jaipur since the past 7 to
15 years. They all fled reli-
gious persecution in Pak-
istan and settled in Ra-
jasthan. Gordhan Das said he
has been living in
Mansarovar, Jaipur for 9
years. He said he hails from
RahimyarKhan province in
Pakistan. “We always felt un-
safe the scared there. We saw
no future for our children in
Pakistan,” he said. A brim-
ming Das said, “It has been a
long wait. Now, I am sure my
family and I will be able to
get all the rights due to citi-
zens, and serve the country.”
A Lucknow court has given a
clean chit to 17 members of
Tablighi Jamaat, including
seven foreign nationals,
booked during Covid-19 lock-
down, for want of evidence.
They were booked during
lockdown under Sections 188,
269, 270, 271 of the IPC, Sec-
tion 14 of the Foreign Act
and Section 3 of the Epidem-
ic Diseases Act. All the ac-
cused, including ten Indians,
were on bail but facing trial
in cases against them lodged
by the Lucknow Police.
The Chief Judicial Magis-
trate (CJM) Lucknow Sushil
Kumari observed that there
was no prima facie evidence
capacity
produced before the Court to
make the accused persons
face the trial in cases against
them.
K’taka may ask for Covid
certificates: Karnataka is
contemplating imposition of
mandatory Covid negative
certificates for people com-
ing from the neighbouring
state of Maharashtra.
Since Karnataka shares a
border with Maharashtra,
experts fear travellers could
spread infections, especially
among districts in north Kar-
nataka. Insisting on negative
certificates will put to rest
trict and eight teaching staff
of Sainik School Ambikapur
in Chhattisgarh were found
Covid positive. The schools
have been sealed, health de-
partment officials confirmed
on Friday. “Two students of
class 10th at government
high school Panchhidand in
Pratappur block of Surajpur
district were detected Covid
positive,” Chief Medical and
Health Officer Surajpur RS
Singh said adding the school
has been closed.
CMHO Ambikapur Punam
Singh Sisodia informed that
eight teachers at Sainik
School Ambikapur were de-
tected Covid positive.
NATION
PM launches
projects in Kerala
... says India is giving
great importance
to solar energy
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM:
Launching a slew of projects
in the power and urban sec-
tors in poll-bound Kerala,
PM Modi on Friday said In-
dia is devoting great impor-
tance to solar energy to en-
sure a stronger fight against
climate change and also con-
nect the country's farmers
with the solar sector.
Speaking after inaugurat-
ing and laying the foundation
stone of key projects in the
southern state via video con-
ference, Modi said in the last
six years, India's solar ener-
gy capacity has gone up 13
times. The projects inaugu-
rated included the 320 KV Pu-
galur-Thrissur power trans-
mission project, built at
Rs5,070 crore, to facilitate
transfer of power from the
western region and help
meet the growth in load in
Kerala.
He noted India has also
brought the world together to
the international solar al-
liance. "India is devoting
great importance to solar en-
ergy.Our gains in solar ener-
gy ensure: A stronger fight
against climate change.A
boost to our entrepreneurs."
Defamation charge: Shah summoned
ARITRA SINGHA / Kolkata
A special court designated
for MLAs and MPs has sum-
moned Union Home Minister
Amit Shah to appear before it
at 10 am on February 22 re-
garding the defamation case
filed by TMC MP Abhishek
Banerjee. The judge
of the special court at Bid-
hannagar has asked Shah to
either appear physically or
through a pleader to answer
the case registered against
him under IPC 500.
At a public rally at
Kolkata’s Mayo Road in Au-
TRS leader’s kin
held in advocate
couple’s murder
HYDERABAD: Telangana
Police on Friday arrested the
fourth accused in the grue-
some murder of an advocate
couple in the Ramagundam
town of Peddapalli district.
The accused Bittu Srinu, is
a key conspirator in the dou-
ble murder and also the
nephew of ruling Telangana
Rashtra Samithi leader and
Peddapalli Zilla Parishad
Chairman Putta Madhu.
Srinu is the fourth accused
to be arrested in connection
with the murder of Gattu Va-
man Rao and his wife Naga-
mani, who were the practic-
ing lawyers at the Telangana
HC. According to the police,
Bittu Srinu had provided his
car and sickles to the as-
sailants for the killings.
The couple, who were re-
turning to Hyderabad from
Manthani, were waylaid and
brutally hacked to death in
full public view by assailants.
SC expunges remarks by
NCLAT against 3 members
OUR BUREAU / NEW DELHI:
The SC on Friday expunged rem-
arks made by a National Compa-
ny Law Appellate Tribunal bench
against three sitting members of
the tribunal. "We have gone
through the case. We are with
you. Observations made against
members of the tribunal stand
expunged from the record," said
Justice Rohinton Fali Nariman,
even before the hearing began.
He was heading a 2-judge
Bench which also included
SC refuses to entertain plea against
MP law on religious conversions
NEW DELHI: The SC on Friday
refused to entertain a plea
challenging the validity of
controversial Madhya Pradesh
ordinance regulating conversions
due to inter-faith marriages. A bench
headed by Chief Justice SA Bobde asked petitioner lawyer
Vishal Thakre to go to the Madhya Pradesh High Court in the
proceedings conducted through video conferencing. "Approach
the Madhya Pradesh High Court. We would like to have the
views of the high court. We have sent similar matters back to
the high court," said the bench which also comprised Justices
A S Bopanna and V Ramasubramanian.
Lawyers desirous of sharing important judgements, with a word
count of up to 200, can send them to fpjcitydesk@gmail.com.
Newspieces that meet all the requisite criteria, as per the
editor’s discretion, will be published in The Free Press Journal.
MUMBAI | SATURDAY | FEBRUARY 20, 2021
His statement on climate
change and the efforts by the
country to drastically cut
carbon emissions came on a
day the US officially rejoined
the Paris climate accord, giv-
ing a boost to the global fight
against climate change.
"Work is also underway to
connect our hardworking
farmers with the solar sector
- make our Annadatas (farm-
ers) also Urjadatas," Modi
said to highlight his govern-
ment's commitment to link
the country's vast farming
sector with green energy
amid farmers' protest
against the new farm laws
brought by his government.
"Under PM Kusum Yojana,
over 20 lakh solar power
pumps are being given to
farmers," he said.
Correcting mistake of
neglecting Assam
PM Modi asserted he is cor-
recting the "historical mis-
take" committed by govern-
ments since Independence of
neglecting Assam, as he gift-
ed a bouquet of development
projects worth Rs10,000 crore
to the state ahead of the as-
sembly poll. Modi said BJP’s
double engine govts at the
Centre and in Assam re-
duced geographical and cul-
tural distances between the
state and rest of the country.
gust 2018, the then BJP na-
tional president Amit Shah
was heard stating that the
BJP-led central government
had released money for the
people of West Bengal and
that the Mamata Banerjee-
led Trinamool Congress gov-
ernment didn’t distribute the
money to the poor.
“Narada, Sharda, Rose Val-
ley, Syndicate's corruption,
nephew's corruption, a series
of corruption has been done
by Mamataji,” Shah was
heard saying at Mayo Road
on August 11, 2018.
Following this, a defama-
4 weeks to Odisha
to reply to AP claim
OUR BUREAU
New Delhi
The Supreme Court on Fri-
day granted four weeks to
Odisha to reply to Andhra
Pradesh government's affi-
davit over it holding the Pan-
chayat elections on February
13 in the disputed areas, on
which Odisha claims owner-
ship.
The Odisha government
had filed a contempt plea
against senior officials of
Andhra Pradesh for notify-
ing the panchayat polls in
three "disputed areas".
It is a 53-year-old dispute
over the territory between
Odisha and Andhra Pradesh.
A bench of Justices AM
Khanwilkar and Dinesh Ma-
heshwari took note of the
submission of senior advo-
cate Vikas Singh that Odisha
be given some time to file its
Justice B R Gavai. The 3-member
NCLAT bench had referred a
matter to the larger 5-member
bench, which made the alleged
"personal and unsavory" remarks
against the 3 members.
They moved SC against
remarks.The 5-member bench
led by acting chairman, Justice
Bansi Lal Bhat had passed
strictures against the 3-member
bench of justice (retd) Jarat
Kumar Jain, Bavinder Singh, and
Vijai Pratap Singh.
Modi-Shah ‘striking chord’
with Bengali sentiments
ARITRA SINGHA
Kolkata
Both Prime Minister Naren-
dra Modi and Union Home
Minister Amit Shah are try-
ing to woo voters by touching
Bengali sentiments.
While PM Modi recited po-
ems of Nobel Laureate Ra-
bindranath Tagore at the
convocation of Visva Bharati
University, Shah, inaugurat-
ing a gallery at National Li-
brary, stated TMC didn’t give
Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose
the due respect.
The TMC is not lagging be-
hind. While the BJP leaders
are now being frequently
seen eating Bengali food at
the houses of farmers and
refugees, TMC leaders are
heard quoting verses of Ne-
taji and Swami Vivekanan-
da. CM Mamata Banerjee is
often heard saying that the
TMC is a party of Bengal
while BJP is of Gujarat.
Modi, while reciting a
poem of Tagore in Bengali,
said: “Gurudev Ra-
bindranath Tagore thought
of open schools as he wanted
students to showcase their
talents in public. He always
thought larger than life. The
tion case was filed on August
28, 2018, by Abhishek Baner-
jee, who is also the nephew of
CM Mamata Banerjee. Inci-
dentally, not just Shah but all
the leaders of the saffron
camp had time-and-again
stated about Abhishek’s al-
leged involvement with
ponzi scams in West Bengal.
Reacting to the move, BJP
spokesperson Shamik Bhat-
tacharya said, “The ruling
Trinamool Congress is
aware that they are losing
grounds in the state for whi-
ch they moved the court. We
will tackle it legally.”
reply on the Andhra Pradesh
government's affidavit.
In its affidavit, the AP gov-
ernment has denied any
breach of the Apex Court's
directions since it has been
duly administrating its own
territories and has not in-
fringed upon the areas of
Odisha.
The Naveen Patnaik gov-
ernment has challenged the
AP notification for the local
body polls with regard to the
disputed area and said the
notification amounts to in-
vading Odisha's territory.
QUICK LOOK
SC notice on Omar
divorce case stuck
in Delhi HC
OUR BUREAU / New Delhi
Former J&K CM Omar Abdullah
has knocked at the doors of the
Supreme Court for an early
divorce with his wife Payal,
sister of Rajasthan Congress
leader Sachin Pilot, after her
lawyer refused the virtual
hearing in Delhi High Court.
A Bench of Chief Justice of India
Sharad Arvind Bobde and
Justices AS Bopanna and V
Ramasubramanian on Thursday
issued a notice to the Registrar
General of the High Court,
fixing the next hearing on April
5.
Abdullah has challenged the HC
circular issued in April last year
that requires consent of both
sides for hearing of a case
through the video-conferencing.
His plea is that his matrimonial
appeal filed in February 2017
against the trial court is 2016
order is still not listed by the
High Court for hearing.
Tharoor slams Kerala govt for dumping cricket for recruitment rally
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, known for his deep love
for the game of cricket on Friday slammed the decision by the Pinarayi Vijayan govt
to dump hosting the India-South Africa women's cricket series to hold an Army recru-
itment drive at the Sports Hub-Greenfield Stadium, here. The drive will take place
from Feb 26 to March 12. Tharoor tweeted, "Attention Kerala cricket lovers: I've tho-
roughly looked into the bizarre decision to schedule an Army recruitment drive at the
Thiruvananthapuram Sports Hub at the expense of hosting the India-South Africa
women's cricket series. This will damage the turf and jeopardise future events here".
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
No foreign strain in three state districts
Meanwhile, the Wardha district collector has issued an order for the
closure of schools and colleges, from Classes 5 to 12, in view of the
rising number of cases.
Pune District Collector Rajesh Deshmukh revised the Covid-19
guidelines on Friday and has directed the imposition of a Rs 500 fine
on mask violators. ‘‘ Instructions have been issued to both the
municipal corporations (Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad) and the rural
areas, to strictly implement the guidelines for the prevention of
were arrested from the New coronavirus spread. Restrictions will be imposed if these guidelines
Alipore area while they were are not strictly followed,’’ he said. ‘‘Currently, there is a restriction
sitting inside their car. The on the gathering of people in the district. Therefore, citizens will not
security personnel was also be able to crowd public places. However, no curfew has been
there inside the car. imposed in the district,’’ he added.
After being tipped off, A team appointed by the concerned department should conduct a
Kolkata police followed the special operation to check the use of masks and sanitisers at all
movements of Goswami as hotels, restaurants, etc. In case of violation of rules at a place, the
the BJP youth wing leader concerned department should take strict action.
used to stop at a particular It will be mandatory to obtain permission from the concerned police
point, and on Friday arrested station before conducting any private or public event, which is likely
them as they found narcotics to be crowded. Also, it will be binding on the organisers to follow
worth lakhs in her hand bag Covid-19 instructions at the venue. In case of any violation, action
and below the car seat. will be taken through the concerned local police station.
MHA to send 125 companies Yavatmal and Amravati are among the districts that have shown
of central troops considerable increase in new cases in the last one week. "We were
Twelve companies of Cen- asked by the state government to conduct genome sequencing of
tral Forces will be deployed samples. The D614G strain which is prevalent was found in all the
in West Bengal from Feb 20. samples," said a senior health official.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah watch participants during the cycle Over 125 more central But in Amravati, Yavatmal and Satara, they also came across
rally at National Library in Kolkata on Friday. —PTI troops will reach West Ben- different mutations. “In Amravati, we came across a mutation
gal on Feb 25 to ensure law named E484K in all the four samples. When we inquired if all
BJP government also intro- still inspires people. Netaji’s and order in the poll-bound samples belonged to one family, we were told they were taken from
duced Gender Inclusion selfless service to the nation West Bengal. According to different locations, so the conclusion was that it was a common
Fund at 2021-22 budget to em- will continue to inspire gen- sources, the Ministry of mutation. Following which, we have sent more samples to NIV for
power girls.” erations to come. Leaving Home Affairs (MHA) had de- genome sequencing," he said.
Inaugurating, ‘Shauryan- ICS job, his struggle for In- cided to deploy as many Dr Hari Pawar, District Health Officer (DHO), Yavatmal, said they had
jali Programme’, at the Na- dia’s freedom can never be troops as possible to ensure not found any new strain but as a precautionary measure, they had
tional Library in Kolkata to forgotten,” mentioned Shah. free and fair elections. The been asked to send the samples. The positivity rate in this district
pay respect to Bengali revo- BJP youth wing leader held West Bengal BJP leaders had increased to 47 per cent from the earlier 13-15 per cent. “We
lutionaries, Amit 'shah al- West Bengal BJP youth wing had time-and-again request- have sent 100 samples to the NIV Pune for genome sequencing. We
leged that the TMC govern- general secretary Pamela ed the Central government can only comment further after getting the NIV report. So far, there’s
ment is making efforts to for- Goswami on Friday was ar- and also met Chief Election no new strain in our district,” he said.
get the legacy of Netaji Sub- rested for having narcotic Commissioner Sunil Arora According to a state health department official, even though no
has Chandra Bose. products in her car. to deploy troops in the poll- foreign strain has been found in the samples tested, preliminary
“Netaji is still loved and re- Goswami along with her bound West Bengal to avoid investigations have revealed a change in the composition of the
spected by people. His spirit friend Probir Kumar Dey untoward incidents. virus. “How much the virus has changed in the virus and how this
will affect people will be clear only after investigation is complete,”
CHHATTISGARH DIARY he said.
Ready for Kerala 4 WOMEN AMONG 6
Dr Murlidhar Tambe, Dean of B J Medical College and Sassoon
General Hospital, said these "small curves" (spurts in infections) are
CM post if BJP NAXALS SURRENDER happening due to lax behavior by the public, as gatherings,
weddings and various functions are taking place with laxity in
wins: Metro man AVDHESH MALLICK / Raipur observing physical distancing . Additional Municipal Commissioner
Suresh Kakani said they were also taking necessary steps to curb
NEW DELHI: Set to enter the
political fray by joining the
BJP next week, technocrat E
S ix Maoists including five carrying cash rewards on
their heads surrendered before police in the
insurgency hit Dantewada district here on Friday.
cases across Mumbai. “We have sent 90 samples to check if there is
a new variant in Mumbai that could be a super-spreader following
which the positivity rate in these three districts has increased to 50
Sreedharan on Friday said Out of the six, four were women Maoists, police said. per cent. We have also directed all the BMC staff to intensify the
his main aim is to help the Of the surrendered ultras one carried a cash reward testing and tracing,” he said.
party come to power in Ker- of Rs 5 lakh, two carried rewards of Rs 3 lakh each and
ala and that he will be open to two others carried rewards of Rs 2 lakh on their heads, an Macho Vivek Oberoi sans mask, helmet
chief ministership. official press release from Dantewada police said. Sources said Oberoi had shared a four-minute video of his new bike
He said the focus will be on A woman Maoist identified as Kumari Jogi Kawasi was a being delivered on the eve of V-Day and his subsequent exuberant,
developing infrastructure in member of the Maoist Katekalyan area committee and in-charge inaugural ride with wife Priyanka Alva in tow, on Twitter. Shortly
a big way and bring the state of KAMS. The state government had declared a reward of Rs 5 after the video ‘took flight’, Twitterati showed him some tough love,
out of the debt trap if the lakh on her head. Likewise, Kamlu alias Santosh Podiyam carried taking him to task for flouting traffic rules by not donning a helmet.
BJP wins the assembly polls a reward of Rs 3 lakh on his head, Payke Kovasi Rs 3 lakh, Bhume According to a senior traffic police officer, the video was reported by
that are likely to be held in Uike Rs 2 lakh and Linga Ram Uike Rs 2 lakh. Pande Kawasi, a a user, following which an e-challan was issued to the actor on
April-May this year. member of Maoist CNM, too surrendered before police.The ultras Friday evening by Assistant Inspector Nandkishore Jadhav from the
Known as 'Metroman' as were also impressed by ‘Lon Varratu’ (homecoming in local Santacruz traffic police division. The incident and the issuing of the
well as for the efficiency in language) programme of the Dantewada police. e-challan was confirmed by the Deputy Commissioner of Police
completing big infrastruc-
ture projects, Sreedharan
told PTI that he will contest
BJP WOMEN CELL CALLS PROTEST
W e have decided to carry out statewide demonstrations over
(Traffic Western) Somnath Gharge.
Greta gets into the act again
the assembly elections if the increasing crime against women," said ex-Woman and Child The Delhi High Court on Friday said certain media coverage of
party wants and will also be
open to chief ministership if
Development Minister and BJP leader Lata Usendi. After the
Congress government formed in the state, the number of cases of
investigation into the FIR against climate activist Disha Ravi for her
alleged involvement in sharing a toolkit backing farmers' protest
the party asks. rape and atrocity against primitive tribal women have increased in indicates "sensationalism and prejudicial reporting", but declined to
The 88-year-old technocrat the state, Lata Usendi said. The government has failed in providing order removal of any such content at this stage.
also made it clear that he protection to the girls and women in the state. Therefore, we have The high court, in its order, merely asked media houses to ensure
will not be interested in gov- decided to stage dharna in every district of the state. that no leaked investigation material is broadcast as it could affect
ernorship, saying that it is the probe and directed Delhi Police to abide by its stand on affidavit
purely a "constitutional po- ELEPHANTS ATTACK TOURIST SPOT that it has not leaked, nor intends to leak, any probe details to the
sition and no powers at all"
and that he won't be able to
make any positive contribu-
A group of 22 wild elephants attacked the Gangrel dam, a
popular tourist spot in Dhamtari district on Friday and created
havoc. Principal Chief Conservator of Forest (PCCF) Wildlife PV
press. The judge said that while a journalist cannot be asked to
reveal a source, he/she has to ensure that the source is "verified and
authentic" and the content being published is not "merely
tion to the state being in Narshingha Rao said, "Right now I am travelling. So, will not be speculative or conjectural".
such a position. able to give any details about the situation." The court further ordered that editorial teams of media houses shall
ensure that only verified data and content is broadcast and the
investigation in the FIR against Ravi "is not hampered in any
PILOT’S SHOW OF STRENGTH manner".
Ramdev ‘magic’ again
AT KISAN MAHAPANCHAYAT
However, despite the chest-thumping debut, it had to face severe
criticism for want of scientific evidence; also, the trials were not
URVASHI DEV RAWAL / Jaipur clinically controlled, it was pointed out.
Finally, on the basis of the available data, the Ministry of Ayush had
Rajasthan former deputy CM Sachin Pilot’s then recognised Coronil as merely a "supporting measure." The
kisan mahapanchayat in Kotkhavda village Ayush Ministry, in turn, had indicated it was an "immuno-booster"
in Jaipur district on Friday was ostensibly to only.
oppose the central farm laws but the power This time, Patanjali has covered its flanks well. It has also secured
tussle in the Congress was the backdrop for the Certificate of Pharmaceutical Product from the Ayush section of
the show of strength. Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation, as per the WHO
The meeting once again indicated that the certification scheme.
rift between Pilot and chief minister Ashok Under CoPP, Coronil can be exported to 158 countries.
Gehlot still seems to be simmering. After the centre. We are committed to the cause of Commenting of the development, Swami Ramdev said, Coronil will
rebellion by Pilot against the state leadership farmers. Our leader Rahul Gandhi came to help the humanity while providing affordable treatment based on
last year that almost brought down the gov- Rajasthan to support farmers in their fight naturopathy.
ernment, the Congress high command has and Priyanka Gandhi is leading the fight in
unsuccessfully tried to broker peace between UP,” he said. Desi touchdown for Mars Rover
the two leaders. Pilot’s supporters took it upon themselves The landing marks the third visit to Mars in just over a week. Two
Pilot, however, denied any division in the to make the Kotkhavda mahapanchayat a suc- spacecraft from the United Arab Emirates and China swung into
party. He said the kisan mahapanchayats are cess. And going by the mammoth crowd, they orbit around Mars on successive days last week. All three
being held as part of the Congress party’s seem to have succeeded in a show of strength missions lifted off in July to take advantage of the close alignment
farmer outreach. to the party leadership. Political analysts say of Earth and Mars, journeying some 300 million miles in nearly
“The central government has turned a blind Pilot is hoping to use the farmer rallies to his seven months. Perseverance, the biggest, most advanced rover
eye to farmers. The Congress party is stand- advantage and show his detractors that he ever sent by NASA, is the ninth spacecraft since the 1970s to
ing with the farmers in their fight against the has a strong political base in the state. successfully land on Mars, every one of them from the US. The
car-size, plutonium-powered vehicle landed in a 5-by-4-mile strip
3 more Cong MLAs to quit FROM PAGE 1 on an ancient river delta full of pits, cliffs and rocks. Scientists
believe that if life ever flourished on Mars, it would have
in Puducherry, govt sure Tough guy Kohli recounts when he was...
happened 3 billion to 4 billion years ago, when water still flowed
on the planet.
to lose trust vote: BJP "Personally, for me that was a revelation that you could feel that lonely
even though you a part of a big group. I won't say I didn't have
Over the next two years, Percy, as it is nicknamed, will use its 7-foot
(2-meter) arm to drill down and collect rock samples containing
BENGALURU: 3 more Congress people who I could speak to but not having a professional to speak to possible signs of bygone microscopic life. Three to four dozen chalk-
MLAs are set to resign from the who could understand what I am going through completely, I think is size samples will be sealed in tubes and set aside to be retrieved
Assembly in Puducherry, a key a huge factor. "I think I would like to see it change." The India captain, eventually by another rover and brought homeward by another
BJP leader claimed on Friday considered one of the best batsmen in modern cricket, believes mental rocket ship. The goal is to get them back to Earth as early as 2031.
even as he asserted the health issues cannot be overlooked as they can destroy a person's
beleaguered V Narayanasamy career. "Someone whom you can go to at any stage, have a Only e-payment to farmers hereafter
government would lose the trust conversation around and say 'Listen this is what I am feeling, I am In Punjab, the MSP was paid to the farmers through Arthiyas and in
vote. Two of the 4 Congress finding it hard to even go to sleep, I feel like I don't want to wake up Haryana, the Food Corporation of India made the payment directly
MLAs who quit the House -- A in the morning. I have no confidence in myself, what do I do?' "Lot of into the farmers' bank accounts.
Namassivayam and E people suffer with that feeling for longer periods of time, it carries on This, however, requires the farmers to register themselves online as
Theeppainthan -- have already for months, it carries on for a whole cricket season, people are not the FCI won't procure from those not registered.
joined the BJP. able to get out of it," Kohli said. "I strongly feel the need for The ministry said in a press note that the e-mode of payment will
BJP in-charge of the UT Nirmal professional help there, to be very honest," he added. ensure all value chain participants, including farmers, Arhityas
Kumar Surana said the other Fondly remembering his growing up days, Kohli said the Indian team of (brokers) and Mandis get their payments directly in their respective
two Congress MLAs -- Malladi '90s had really inspired him to take up the sport. Kohli lost his biggest bank accounts, instead of getting it through another value chain
Krishna Rao and A John Kumar - supporter, his father Premchand, at the age of 18 and he considers it as participant, as was the case now in which Arhityas pay the
- would join the J P Nadda-led the "most impactful" incident of his life. Kohli is seen as a tough, farmers.Reeling out the statistics of Rs 4.22 lakh food subsidy in the
party. "The two will be joining competitive and enigmatic character on the field and he revealed that in current financial year up to March 31, the ministry claimed Punjab
the BJP. They are speaking with real life too he is no different. …I have never worked towards creating farmers got Rs 1,16,653 crore, while their Haryana counterparts got
our leadership," Surana, also a perception for myself which is perfect from a worldly point of view.’’ Rs 24,841.56 crore.The ministry explained that e-mode of payment
Vice-President of Karnataka unit "For me what matters is what I can do as an individual and how much I is not intended to replace the current Mandi system. It only ensures
of the BJP, told PTI. can provide on the cricket field as an individual," he said. "I cannot payment in more transparent ways; also, the digital E mode avoids
"Certainly, 100 per cent", he said fabricate things to look good in front of certain set of people. That's just leakages.
when asked if the Congress not who I am," he asserted. Another thing he hardly cares about is the It also clarified that the Centre has no intention to eliminate the
government would lose the vote expectations from him when he is on the field. "Expectation is honestly a Arthiyas in Punjab and Haryana; no directions have been issued to
of confidence in the House. burden when you start thinking about it too much." eliminate them from the Mandi system.
Dutch finance minister’s skating tweet lands him on thin ice
THE HAGUE : The Dutch finance minister was on thin ice Friday for taking to a speed skating oval with one of the Netherlands’ greatest
Olympians. Finance Minister Wopke Hoekstra faced criticism Friday for breaching the country’s tough coronavirus lockdown after posting a
photo of himself on Twitter skating alongside Sven Kramer, the winner of four Winter Olympics gold medals in speed skating. “Sport is
incredibly nice and also healthy,” Hoekstra tweeted.
WORLD
MUMBAI | SATURDAY | FEBRUARY 20, 2021

China considers UK vows to share vaccines,

but details thin as G-7 meets
new actions to lift AGENCIES / London

flagging birthrate
AGENCIES
Beijing
China is considering addi-
tional measures to increase
its flagging birthrate, more
than four years after ending
its controversial one-child
policy.
For decades, China en-
forced strict controls on ad-
ditional births in the name
of preserving scarce re-
sources for its burgeoning
economy. But its plunging
birthrate is now seen as a
major threat to economic
progress and social stability.
On Thursday, the National
by 427,300 in 2019 over 2018.
Authorities said last week
that registered new births
fell 15.3 per cent last year to
just 10 million.
China abandoned its one-
child-policy in 2016 to allow
families to have an addition-
al child.
However, the move had
only a temporary effect on
the birthrate, with many
couples citing the high cost
of raising children and oth-
er economic and social bar-
riers in deciding not to have
more children.
Experts have been calling
for further reforms because
Some of the world’s wealth-
iest countries are promis-
ing to share coronavirus
vaccines with the poorest,
but details of when and
how many remain scarce as
leaders of the Group of
Seven economic powers
hold their first meeting of
2021 on Friday.
Prime Minister Boris
Johnson of Britain, which
holds the G-7 presidency
this year, is meeting virtu-
ally with the leaders of
France, Germany, Italy,
Canada, Japan and the
United States to discuss in-
ternational challenges —
chief among them the pan-
demic that has killed al- British PM Boris Johnson is meeting virtually
Britains Prince Harry and wife Meghan Markle pose for a photograph in the Sunken Garden at
most 2.5 million people with the leaders of France, Germany, Italy,
around the world.
Kensington Palace in west London. Prince Harry will relinquish his honorary military appointments and Wealthy nations have Canada, Japan and the United States to
patronages after confirming to Queen Elizabeth II that he and wife Meghan Markle will not return as snapped up hundreds of discuss international challenges
working Royals, Buckingham Palace announced on Friday. millions of doses of vac-
cines against the virus, was is “difficult to say with French President Em-

It’s final: Harry and Meghan

Health Commission issued a of economic concerns and while some countries in the any kind of certainty” manuel Macron gave a
statement saying it will con- the problem of an aging pop- developing world have little when or how much Britain firmer target, saying Eu-
duct research to “further ulation. or none. could donate. rope and the US should al-
stimulate birth potential.” It China had a population of Johnson, whose country “We’re not really able to locate up to 5 per cent of

won’t return as working Royals

said the initiative will focus
first on northeastern China,
the country’s former indus-
trial heartland that has seen
a major population decline
as young people and families
depart for better opportuni-
ties elsewhere.
The region comprising the
three provinces of Liaoning,
Jilin and Heilongjiang saw
its total population decline
for the seventh straight year
1.34 billion in 2010 with an
annual growth rate of 0.57
per cent, down from 1.07 per
cent a decade earlier, statis-
tics bureau data show.
The latest census was con-
ducted in the second half of
last year and the results
have not yet been released.
A UN report says India is
projected to overtake China
as the world’s most populous
country by 2027.
AGENCIES
London
Buckingham Palace has
confirmed that Prince Har-
ry and his wife, Meghan,
will not be returning to roy-
al duties, and Harry will
give up his honorary mili-
tary titles.
When Harry and Meghan
stepped away from full-time
royal life in early 2020 it was
agreed the situation would
be reviewed after a year.
The palace said Friday
“that they will not be re-
turning as working mem-
bers of The Royal Family”.
It said Harry’s appoint-
ment as captain general of
the Royal Marines and with
other military groups would
revert to Queen Elizabeth II.
The couple now live in Cal-
ifornia and are expecting
their second child.
has had almost 120,000 coro-
navirus deaths, will prom-
ise to give “the majority of
any future surplus vac-
cines” to the UN-backed
COVAX effort to vaccinate
the world’s most vulnerable
people, and will encourage
other G-7 countries to do
the same, the British gov-
ernment said.
But Foreign Office Minis-
ter James Cleverly said it
give with certainty either a
timescale or the numbers
involved,” he told the BBC.
Anti-poverty group, One
Campaign, said Britain’s
promise was not enough.
“The virus won’t wait on
us to be ready before it mu-
tates, so we need to get these
vaccines around the world
as quickly as possible,” said
Romilly Greenhill, the
group’s UK director.
their current COVID-19
vaccine supplies to the
poorest countries “very
fast, so that people on the
ground see it happening.”
In an interview with the Fi-
nancial Times, Macron sug-
gested Russia and China
are engaged in a “war of in-
fluence over vaccines” by
offering doses of their own
products to some African
nations.

8 killed in
Uganda
mudslides
AGENCIES
Kampala
Eight people were killed and
three others injured on
Thursday in mudslides
caused by heavy downpours
in the western Ugandan dis-
trict of Buhweju, police said
on Friday.
Martial Tumusiime, re-
gional police spokesman for
Greater Bushenyi, a border-
ing district, told Xinhua by
Old habits imperil Iraq as doctors warn of second wave
AGENCIES 3,896 a day on February 18 and
Baghdad approaching September’s daily
peak of more than 5,000.
In the busy emergency room of The Health Ministry says 50
Baghdad’s main public hospi- per cent of the new cases are
tal, Ali Abbas stood face uncov- from the new, more infectious
ered, waiting for his sickly fa- strain that first broke out in the
ther. Dozens of other patients U.K. More than 657,000 people
and their relatives mingled have been infected by the virus
without masks. in Iraq and 13,220 have died
It’s a scene that confounds
health workers in Iraq, who
warn that the country is enter-
since February.
Doctors told The Associated
Press they’ve seen the flare-up Red Cross concerned
over rebel offensive
ing a new wave of coronavirus coming for weeks. They blame a
cases, in part because many careless public and a govern-
shirk precautions. ment unable to fully enforce
“I don’t believe in the coron- virus protocols.

telephone on Friday that sev-
en people were killed on the
spot while the eighth person
died in a nearby health cen-
ter, the Xinhua news report-
ed. The three injured were
rushed to nearby health cen-
ters for treatment.
Tumusiime said the dead
included four members of
the same family.
“They were taking shelter
from one house after it start-
ed raining heavily. Unfortu-
nately, the house was swept
by mudslides,” he said.
avirus, I believe in God,” the 21-
year-old Abbas said in the mid-
dle of the hospital floor, defying
the facility’s rules requiring
masks.
On Friday, Iraq was under its
first full day of a new curfew
imposed by the government in
response to infection rates that
have shot back up again after
easing last autumn.
The curfew runs all day Fri-
day to Sunday, and from 8 p.m.
to 5 a.m. the rest of the week.
Mosques and schools are
closed, large gatherings prohib-
ited, and the wearing of masks
and other protective gear will
be enforced, according to a
statement from the govern-
ment.
A complete lockdown, includ-
ing closing airports and bor-
ders, is also being considered,
two government officials said,
speaking on condition of
anonymity because they were
not authorized to brief the me-
dia.
New cases, down under 600 a
day just a month ago, have
sharply increased, reaching
“I am a doctor fighting public
ignorance, not the pandemic,”
said Mohammed Shahada, a
pulmonologist at Baghdad’s al-
Zahra Hospital.
At al-Zahra Hospital, the year
began with just four patients in
the 90-bed isolation ward. By
the start of February, that
jumped to 30 severe virus pa-
tients. Shahada expects more in
the coming weeks.
At his private clinic, some pa-
tients have walked out rather
than abide by his strict face
mask requirement, he said.
in central Yemen
AGENCIES / Cairo
The International Commit-
tee of the Red Cross in
Yemen said Friday it was
“extremely concerned” by
the recent escalation of vi-
olence between Iran-
backed Houthi rebels and
government forces in in
the oil-rich Marib
province.
“The ICRC urges all par-
ties to the conflict to take
humanitarian crisis.
Marib province has
served as a sort of haven
for around 1 million Yeme-
nis who have fled Houthi
offensives since the start of
the war in 2014, according
to UN figures.
The UN special envoy for
Yemen Martin Griffiths
told the UN Security Coun-
cil Thursday that the con-
flict had taken “a sharp es-
calatory turn” after the

Six police officers suspended US: Aid pause to Ethiopia no

every possible measure to Houthis launched the
protect the civilians, their Marib offensive.
properties and all civilian “I have condemned this
essential infrastructures,” many times... and I repeat

for misconduct during Capitol longer linked to dam dispute

the agency tweeted. my call now: The attack on
The ICRC said it has pro- Marib must stop,” Griffiths
vided medical supplies, in- said. “It puts millions of
cluding surgical kits, to civilians... at risk, especial-

Hill riots; 29 under probe BY CARA ANNA

Nairobi

The United States says it

has informed Ethiopia’s
government. A spokes-
woman
Prime
for
Minister
Ethiopian
Abiy
Ethiopian Renaissance
Dam that it has nearly com-
pleted on the Blue Nile Riv-
er is essential for develop-
death and the presence of
thousands of soldiers from
neighboring Eritrea, which
Ethiopia’s government has
hospitals treating
wounded, vowing to con-
the

tinue with the provision of

medical needs.
ly with the fighting threat-
ening to reach the camps
for internally displaced
persons.” Yemen’s war
AGENCIES selfie with a protester, while has decided to “de-link” its Ahmed did not immediate- ment and the pulling of denied. Earlier this month, started in 2014 when the
Washington another officer was wearing suspension of millions of ly respond to a request for millions of people out of The US has said Eritrean Houthi rebels renewed Houthis seized the capital,
a hat with then-President dollars of aid to Ethiopia comment. poverty. soldiers should “immedi- their attacks on Marib, the Sanaa, and much of the
A total of six US police offi- Donald Trump’s slogan from that country’s dispute Ethiopians were furious Egypt says it threatens its ately” leave Ethiopia. last anti-Houthi strong- country’s north. The Saudi-
cers have been suspended “Make America Great with Egypt over a massive after former President Don- water supply. And earlier this week, a hold in central Yemen. Ad- led, US-backed coalition in-
with pay and another 29 Again.” On Tuesday, House hydroelectric dam project. ald Trump last year direct- Ethiopia is now under State Department vances stalled however tervened months later to
have been put under inves- Speaker Nancy Pelosi said But the State Department ed the suspension of aid to pressure from the US and spokesperson said “we re- amid stiff resistance and dislodge the rebels and re-
tigation over the US Congress would es- early Friday said that does their country in a rare ex- others including the Euro- main gravely concerned by airstrikes from the Saudi- store the internationally
their con- tablish a special commis- not mean all the roughly ample of his direct involve- pean Union and United Na- the widespread humanitar- led coalition that opposes recognised government.
duct during sion to probe Capitol Hill USD 272 million in security ment in an African issue. tions over the deadly fight- ian suffering and reported them. The latest bout of vi- The conflict has killed
the riots on attack. On January 6, a and development assis- Ethiopia had left a US-led ing in its northern Tigray human rights abuses in the olence killed dozens of some 130,000 people and
Capitol group of then US tance will immediately attempt to mediate the dis- region, where some 6 mil- Tigray region.” The fighters, mostly Houthis, spawned the world’s worst
Hill on President Don- start to flow, and it depends pute with Egypt, alleging lion people have been large- spokesperson urged “an im- and sparked fears of a new humanitarian disaster.
Janu- ald on more recent “develop- bias. ly cut off from the world mediate end to the fighting
ary 6, ments” - an apparent refer- Trump also caused an up- since fighting began in No- in Tigray, full and unhin-
ac- ence to the deadly conflict roar by saying downstream vember between Ethiopian dered humanitarian access, MOSCOW: India’s strategic ties with Russia has very deep historic
cord- in Ethiopia’s Tigray region. Egypt would “blow up” the and allied forces and Tigray an independent investiga- roots which provide stability and trust strong enough to navigate
ing The State Department dam project that Cairo con- ones. tion into the human rights the complexities of the current world, Foreign Secretary Harsh
said humanitarian assis- siders an existential threat. Witness accounts have violations and abuses and Vardhan Shringla has said, as he sought to allay concerns that New
tance remains exempt from Ethiopia asserts that the emerged of massacres, peo- for those responsible to be Delhi is under pressure from the US to abandon military-technical
the aid suspension. It said it USD 4.6 billion Grand ple beginning to starve to held accountable.” cooperation with Moscow.

to a police department
spokesperson.
“Acting Chief Yogananda
Pittman has directed that
any member of her depart-
ment whose behaviour is
not in keeping with the De-
partment’s Rules of Con-
duct will face appropriate
discipline,” said police
spokesperson John Stolnis,
as quoted by CNN.
Last month, CNN had re-
ported that the Capitol po-
lice were investigating at
least 10 officers, while two
were suspended.
According to Tim Ryan, a
member of the House of
Representatives, one of the
suspended officers took a
Trump’s supports stormed
the US Capitol building.
The unrest took place af-
ter Trump urged his sup-
porters to protest what he
claims is a stolen presiden-
tial election. Five people —
four protesters and a police
officer — were killed in the
riots. The last time the
Capitol was stormed was
when British troops
marched into Washington
and set fire to the building
in 1814.
The deadly attack prompt-
ed the House Democrats to
move to impeach Trump.
The Senate trial that ended
this weekend acquitted
Trump.
Massive breach fuels calls for US action on cybersecurity
AGENCIES
Washington
Jolted by a sweeping hack that may have
revealed government and corporate se-
crets to Russia, US officials are scram-
bling to reinforce the nation’s cyber de-
fenses and recognising that an agency cre-
ated two years ago to protect America’s
networks and infrastructure lacks the
money, tools and authority to counter
such sophisticated threats.
The breach, which hijacked widely used
software from Texas-based SolarWinds
Inc., has exposed the profound vulnerabil-
ity of civilian government networks and
the limitations of efforts to detect threats.
It’s also likely to unleash a wave of
spending on technology modernization
and cybersecurity.
“It’s really highlighted the investments
we need to make in cybersecurity to have
the visibility to block these attacks in the
future,” Anne Neuberger, the newly ap-
pointed deputy national security adviser
for cyber and emergency technology said
Wednesday at a White House briefing.
The reaction reflects the severity of a
hack that was disclosed only in December.
The hackers, as yet unidentified but de-
scribed by officials as “likely Russian,”
had unfettered access to the data and
email of at least nine U.S. government
agencies and about 100 private companies,
with the full extent of the compromise
still unknown. And while this incident ap-
peared to be aimed at stealing informa-
tion, it heightened fears that future hack-
ers could damage critical infrastructure,
like electrical grids or water systems.
President Joe Biden plans to release an
executive order soon that Neuberger said
will include about eight measures intend-
ed to address security gaps exposed by the
hack. The administration has also pro-
posed expanding by 30% the budget of the
U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure
Agency, or CISA, a little-known entity now
under intense scrutiny because of the So-
larWinds breach.
Republicans and Democrats in Congress
have called for expanding the size and role
of the agency, a component of the Depart-
ment of Homeland Security. It was created
in November 2018 amid a sense that U.S.
adversaries were increasingly targeting
civilian government and corporate net-
works as well as the “critical” infrastruc-
ture, such as the energy grid that is in-
creasingly vulnerable in a wired world.
Speaking at a recent hearing on cyberse-
curity, Rep. John Katko, a Republican
from New York, urged his colleagues to
quickly “find a legislative vehicle to give
CISA the resources it needs to fully re-
spond and protect us.”
Biden’s COVID-19 relief package called
for $690 billion more for CISA, as well as
providing the agency with $9 billion to
modernize IT across the government in
partnership with the General Services Ad-
ministration.
 THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:
It is not wise to be wiser than
is necessary.
― PHILIPPE QUINAULT
SINCE 1928
FOUNDER EDITOR: S SADANAND
A win for all
working women
J I
ournalist Priya Ramani’s acquittal by a Delhi court of
charges of criminal defamation brought by editor-
turned-politician M J Akbar, a celebrity journalist, au-
thor and a former Union minister to boot, is a win, not only
for Ramani, but for working women everywhere, who have
been victims of sexual harassment at the workplace or else-
where. Despite the ‘Me Too’ movement on social media
which encouraged hundreds of women to speak up and
speak out against sexual harassment, the grim reality is
that most victims are unable to speak up about the issue,
leave alone secure protection from the perpetrators or jus-
tice. In fact, a survey conducted by Local Circles at the
height of the ‘Me Too’ movement found that 78 per cent of
women surveyed had admitted to facing some form of sex-
ual harassment at the workplace, but had dared not com-
plain about it. While the lower court’s verdict may well be
challenged later, it nevertheless upholds certain important
principles, which should serve as a precedent the next time
those in a position of power try to use their superior re-
sources to try and silence their victims. The court held that
the right to reputation cannot be given more importance
than the right to dignity of women. More importantly, it
has also held that the act of ‘speaking up’ against harass-
ment does not face any statute of limitations. A victim has
the right to air her grievance at any time, even decades af-
ter the actual offence. “Time has come for our society to un-
derstand that sometimes a victim may for years not speak
up due to the mental trauma. The woman cannot be pun-
ished for raising her voice against sexual abuse,” the court
observed. The ruling also underlines the fact that truth is
the only witness required in such cases. The ruling has im-
portant takeaways, not only for working women, but for all
those in a position of power at the workplace. While the
Supreme Court’s guidelines issued in the wake of the rape
of a Dalit woman – popularly known as the Vishakha
Guidelines – provided a framework of systems and process-
es to be followed by employers, and the Sexual Harassment
of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Re-
dressal) Act, 2013, subsequently enshrined them in law, the
fact remains that these guidelines continue to be observed
more in the breach. Despite paying lip service to the legal
requirements, most organisations have manifestly failed to
create an atmosphere where workplace predators fear gen-
uine repercussions, and equally important, victims feel se-
cure enough to speak out, as the Local Circles survey clear-
ly shows. Business leaders – be they promoters, CEOs or
powerful political or bureaucratic leaders – must bear the
blame for this. They have collectively failed to create the
most basic requisite for working women – a safe workplace
and an enabling environment for speaking out against ha-
rassment. Ramani’s bold fight against systemic patriarchy
and the court’s endorsement of her right to speak up will
serve as a beacon of hope to working women everywhere.
Welcome return to inclusivity
U
S President Joe Biden has moved swiftly to undo
most of the harsh anti-immigration policies initiat-
ed by his predecessor Donald Trump. He has kept
one of his key poll pledges by moving one of the most
sweeping legislative reforms to America’s immigration
processes. If passed by both chambers – the Democrats con-
trol the House of Representatives and enjoy a wafer-thin
majority in the Senate – it could see America return to its
pre-eminent position as the beacon of hope for oppressed
people everywhere, as well as those who simply dream of a
better life for themselves or their children. He has already
used his executive authority to halt construction of the
Mexico wall, axed the so-called Muslim travel ban and re-
instated the DACA programme, which protects illegal im-
migrants who were brought in as children. Getting the US
Citizenship Act of 2021 through both Houses may prove a
tougher act, as the last time an attempt was made to pave a
path to citizenship for juvenile illegal immigrants, some
Democrats sided with the Republicans in shooting it down.
Nevertheless, Indians have much to cheer, with Biden’s
latest move. The Act proposes an eight-year pathway to cit-
izenship for more than 11 million undocumented workers,
of whom at least half-a-million are Indian. It also plans to
eliminate country-based quotas for employment-based
green cards and work authorisation for dependents of H-1B
foreign workers, both of which will ease the path for Indi-
an knowledge workers, particularly those in the IT sector.
Those who have been waiting more than 10 years for green
cards also get immediate legal residency, which will bene-
fit tens of thousands of Indian tech workers and their fam-
ilies. More encouragingly, a Gallup poll found that for the
first time since 1965, more Americans believe immigration
should be increased. Biden appears to have ushered in an
era of greater inclusivity for America.
FPJ ARCHIVES JANUARY 28, 1963
Be ready to defend freedom, youth told
NEW DELHI, JAN. 27 (PTI)--Prime Minister Nehru today urged
the people to help strengthen the defence of the country at a fast
pace "so that no one dare insult us or invade our motherland
again".
Shri Nehru said that the present generation was charged with the
task of defending the honour and integrity of our country. "We
must now remain ever ready to protect our freedom and to
repulse any aggression."
The Prime Minister was addressing a rally of the NCC and ACC
cadets, here.
Letters to the editor should be sent to: The Free Press Journal, Free Press House, Free Press Journal Marg, 215 Nariman Point, Mumbai. 400021; Fax: 22874688, e-mail: mail@fpj.co.in; Type letter, leave space, write your views and name. Letters may be edited for clarity and space.
EDIT
Will a Ram mandir lead to ‘Ram rajya’?
The Fault With Reality
ANIL SINGH
f you thought that the contentious
Ram temple had ceased to be an is-
sue with the Supreme Court judg-
ment, you were mistaken. It has now
come literally to your doorstep.
Since last month, right wing cadres
have been going from house to house,
seeking donations for the construc-
tion of the Ram temple in Ayodhya.
Now, there is nothing illegal about
raising funds for a religious structure
as long as the trust is registered, re-
ceipts are given and accounts submit-
ted. Donating for a cause is also an in-
dividual choice. However, the manner
in which the whole thing is being car-
ried out is disquieting.
To begin with, the Ram Janmabhoo-
mi movement to build a temple to the
deity at the Babri masjid site was di-
visive. So, when the donation pam-
phlets equate the building of the tem-
ple with nation building (‘Mandir nir-
man se desh nirman’), they are strik-
ing at the secular foundation of India.
Contrary to the BJP’s claims, a lot
many still believe that the state should
be neutral on matters of faith. And the
majority echoes Nehru’s view that the
temples of modern India are its big in-
frastructure projects. Why, what is
Modi’s promise of inclusive develop-
ment, ‘Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas’ all
about?
Yet, we are in an era when religion
has been weaponised to the extent that
even a chief minister is heckled with
slogans of ‘Jai Shri Ram’, with the PM
watching silently from the dais.
The climate of fear in which dis-
senters, from students to septuage-
narians, are being locked away for
years without a trial, also deters non-
conformism. All this emboldens the
donation seekers to question the reli-
gion and patriotism of Hindus who
disagree with them when it should be
the other way round.
Gated societies, which are so para-
noid about access control that they
didn’t even let in census enumerators,
have no compunctions about ‘Ram se-
ONE FLEW OVER THE NEST
Duke and Duchess of Sussex tell Queen they will not be returning as working members of Royal Family
I thought these 2 wanted to be out of the public eye? Every time I start to forget about them there’s another announcement.Stay in the USA
and out of the public eye. No one cares. We all have a lot more going on than giving a flying one about you 2
There’s no such thing as a working member of the royal family.
Why should anyone have to bow or worship the ground someone walks on purely because they were born into privelige and you werent?
The queen is the last vestige of an archaic and redundant form of governance. A party piece for American tourists to take photos of.
Exactly. Megan better stay away from this racist, reactionary, hell-hole of an island.
Curiously, the government is bent on promoting hydropower but is not interested in promoting the service sector
A Himalayan disaster that was avoidable
Viewpoint
BHARAT
JHUNJHUNWALA
B
elow the land mass of India, there is a huge
tectonic plate, known as ‘Indian Plate’. The
rotation of the earth is causing this plate to
continually move northward just as matter
moves to the top in a centrifuge. The Indian Plate
crashes into the Tibetan Plate as it moves to the
north. The pressure between these two plates is
leading to the continual rise of the Himalayas, in
general and earthquakes in Uttarakhand, in par-
ticular. Thus, Uttarakhand has been having an
earthquake every ten years, leaving aside the last
20 years.
A possible reason for earthquake not taking
place in the recent period could be that the load of
water in the Tehri reservoir is acting like a cush-
ion between the two plates just as two boxers stop
for a moment if a child were to stand between
them. Despite this cushion, however, the Indian
Plate continues to push against the Tibetan Plate.
Consequently, a bigger earthquake is likely to oc-
cur in the future.
Landslides take place due to the tectonic distur-
bances which have been putting large amounts of
material into the river for thousands of years.
This material has been carried to the plains by
the Ganga. The entire landmass of India, from
Haridwar to Ganga Sagar has been made of such
material. Therefore, we should not be under any
illusion that such landslides can be prevented.
The present tragedy at Rishiganga could have
been precipitated by the minute vibrations creat-
ed by the northward movement of the Indian
Plate, combined with weakening of the glaciers
due to global warming.
The blasting done for the tunnel of the Tapovan
Vishnugad hydropower project did not help. Sci-
entists say that the vibrations from the explo-
sions do not travel very far. However, the minute
vibrations may have contributed to the disaster,
just as minute doses of homeopathic medicines
have a strong effect.
The above-mentioned natural work of the Gan-
ga carrying the material requires that the river
be allowed to flow freely, just as an elephant re-
vaks’ entering freely at night and
knocking at every door. Would these
gated societies have let in volunteers
seeking donations for the reconstruc-
tion of the Babri masjid? That’s legit-
imate too but no one would even dare
talk about it.
On the other hand, the Ram ‘bhakts’
boast that even Muslims have con-
tributed towards the temple.
Some housing societies are sending
requests for donation on their letter-
heads with the reminder that even the
President of India has contributed for
the temple. They even keep tabs on
who have paid and who haven’t. Mes-
sages are circulated by such societies
naming those who haven’t, giving
them another opportunity to donate to
a ‘national cause’. Big Brother and the
thought police are here.
For those who have lived through the
‘Mandir Wahin Banayenge’ cam-
paign, which insisted on building a
temple on the mosque site, this is rem-
iniscent of the aftermath of the Babri
masjid demolition when the lumpen,
armed with electoral rolls, hunted Babies die like
Muslims residents of upmarket
south Mumbai localities. In fact, Mus- flies in our
lim-owned establishments were hospitals for lack
torched, including those right outside
police stations; a precursor to Gujarat-
of oxygen
2002. cylinders, as in
Such was the terror that posh hous-
ing societies in Mumbai removed the
Gorakhpur, or are
name plates of Muslim occupants, charred to death
who took the cue and fled to safer ar- because of faulty
eas till sanity returned. Nonetheless,
their apartments were marked with a incubators, as in
‘chand-sitara’ (moon and star) sign. the Bhandara
Today, the Hindutva brigade is mark-
ing the houses of the non-contribu- civil hospital
tors, by not pasting a Ram Mandir recently but we
sticker on the door. The others with
stickers can mark themselves as safe.
are obsessed
Even those who question the need with a temple for
for a door-to-door collection drive
when the Shri Ram Janambhoomi
Ram ‘lulla’ (the
Teerth Kshetra Trust itself admits to infant Ram).
having received more than Rs 1,500
crore in donations, think it prudent to
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Sean@RealSeanJReeves
Sam Puncher@sam_puncher
Pompey Pedro@PompeyPedro
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quires a free range. The hydropower projects
make barrages on the river that obstruct its free
flow. The Ministry of Environment had consti-
tuted a committee chaired by Ravi Chopra, under
the orders of the Supreme Court after the 2013
disaster. The committee said that the damage in
the 2013 cloudburst episode was confined to above
and below the hydropower projects. The commit-
tee said that the landslide at Kedarnath became a
disaster not because there were exceptional rains
but because the flow of the Mandakini and
Alakananda rivers was being obstructed by a
number of under-construction and commis-
sioned hydropower projects. The present land-
slide has likewise become a disaster because the
Rishiganga and Tapovan Vishnugad projects had
obstructed the flow of the Rishiganga and
Dhauliganga rivers. These rivers would have car-
ried the material of the landslide to the sea
smoothly, had there been no obstruction to their
flow.
What is curious is that the government is
building these projects even though they have
become economically unviable. The cost of elec-
tricity made from greenfield hydropower proj-
ects is about Rs 7 to Rs 10 per unit at present.
Then there are the environmental costs of hy-
dropower projects that are not accounted for in
the price.
The National Environment Engineering Re-
search Institute, Nagpur, has found that the Gan-
ga has about 200 types of “phages” that can kill 17
types of disease-creating bacteria. The Yamuna
and Narmada, in comparison, have less than 30 of
these. The Ganga also has more copper and ra-
dioactive thorium that kill the bacteria. These
unique qualities of the Ganga arise when her wa-
ter absorbs the vegetation and she rapidly flows
over rocks and stones.
Fishes like the ‘mahseer’ migrate from the
plains to the high Himalayas and rid the water of
pollutants. The hydropower projects create either
a tunnel into which the water of the river is di-
verted; or they create a reservoir, in which the wa-
ter flows at a very slow speed. In both cases, the
rubbing action of the water is curtailed and the
migration of fishes is obstructed. According to
this writer’s assessment, the cost of electricity
generated from the hydropower will become Rs 18
per unit from the proposed Kotlibhel-1B project,
if the cost of environmental damage is added to
the cost of electricity.
MUMBAI |SATURDAY | FEBRUARY 20, 2021
fob off the fund-raisers with a hun- rates. The gangster was forced to scale
dred rupee note, lest they be targeted. down the pandal when Justice A P
The Ram mandir sticker on their door Bhangale, then with the MCOCA spe-
marks out another victim of intim- cial court, took suo motu notice of an
idatory majoritarianism. investigative report by yours truly
Actually, it is ironic that we are col- and ordered an inquiry into the fund-
lecting funds for a temple in the mid- ing of the pandal.
dle of a pandemic when these shrines The police ought to take notice of the
offer no succour; some such as Tiru- fund-raising for the Ram temple given
pati even sacked employees. No the fear it has generated. After all, the
amount of ‘mantra jaap’ (reciting failure of the Mumbai police to curb
mantras) or showering flowers or the ‘maha aartis’ on the streets was
ringing bells helped where Covid was one of the reasons why the post-Babri
concerned. violence spread so fast.
Incidentally, how are people being al-
lowed to go door-to-door when Covid
At the end of the day, it is a political
decision but the governments in non-
cases are on the rise again? BJP states are either looking the oth-
The need of the hour is to fund mass er way or starting their own fund-rais-
vaccination, to build more public hos- ing drives for the Ram temple.
pitals and to increase the health budg- The donation drive is basically an
et, which remains 1.5 per cent of the outreach program for the next gener-
GDP, the fourth-lowest in the world. al elections. It also serves to keep the
Babies die like flies in our hospitals focus away from the mismanagement
for lack of oxygen cylinders, as in of the economy, foreign policy and of
Gorakhpur, or are charred to death be- the country itself.
cause of faulty incubators, as in the The Hindutva agenda can be
Bhandara civil hospital recently but rammed through (no pun intended)
we are obsessed with a temple for Ram
‘lulla’ (the infant Ram).
and critics can be silenced but if a
temple could usher in Ram rajya, it
So gullible are we that even gang- would have happened long ago, with
sters like Chhota Rajan exploit our re- the reconstruction of the Somnath
ligious sentiments. For years, he put temple.
up a spectacular Ganeshotsav pandal
which drew lakhs of devotees. The The writer is an independent journalist
display of clout boosted his extortion based in Mumbai.
LETTERS
SATURDAY'S SWIPE TO THE
EDITOR
Don’t antagonise
Bollywood
Ref.: ‘Will stall films if Big B,
Akshay remain silent,
threatens Nana’ (February
19). The state Congress chief
Nana Patole’s warning to
Amitabh Bacchan and
Akshay Kumar is uncalled
for. Everyone has the
freedom to choose when to
express oneself. How can
Patole expect actors – those
adept at changing their garb
at the drop of a hat - to be
consistent. Attitudes such as
Patole’s will only act as a
catalyst for the proposed
migration of Bollywood to
Uttar Pradesh. So, silence
will truly be golden for the
state’s political actors, if
they have the interests of
the state at heart.
Ravindra Bhagwat
And all this while, solar power is available at Once upon a time…
about Rs 3 per unit, against Rs 7 to Rs 18 from hy- The tinsel town personality
dropower projects. The problem is that solar pow- against whom the state
er is produced in the daytime while there is more
demand is more in the morning and evening,
Congress is adopting a
confrontationist posture,
which are called ‘peak’ times. However, daytime used to be a family friend of
electricity can be converted into peaking power at the GOP’s ruling dynasty. He
a cost of just 50 paise per unit. Therefore, solar once got the party’s ticket to
peaking power is available to us a less than Rs 4 contest a Lok Sabha seat in
per unit. The Uttarakhand Power Corporation North India and had won. In
has purchased peaking power from the India En- those times, he enjoyed so
ergy Exchange at a price of about Rs 3.50, 4.30 and much clout that he could
2.60 per unit in the last three years. Yet, the Gov- meet the then PM at any
ernment of Uttarakhand persists with hy- time, even as the party’s
dropower projects, despite their huge cost. The own CMs, who sought an
argument is that hydropower projects bring ‘de- appointment with the PM to
velopment’. discuss official matters,
The alternative is for Uttarakhand to develop were kept waiting for days.
the service sector. A sanatorium for tuberculosis Arun Malankar
patients was established at Bhowali near Nainital
about a century ago. The idea was that the pa- Ill‐informed min
tients would regain their health amidst these syl- It was appalling to note the
van and natural surroundings. The alternative damaging and misleading
before Uttarakhand is to make software parks, remarks the junior minister
universities, hospitals and computer centres on for finance, Anurag Thakur,
the banks of the Ganga in the hills so that hu- is reported to have made
mankind makes use of the higher psychological about the banking industry. It
qualities of the Ganga and the natural beauty in exposes his poor knowledge
which she flows. This approach will lead to less of economics and finance
environmental burden on the Himalayas and also when he observed that
beget more economic progress. The youth of Ut- privatising a sick bank would
tarakhand will get high-paying permanent jobs not attract investors; that
as nurses, doctors, teachers and programmers in India needs more robust
these activities. banks, more lenders,
At present, they get low-paid jobs for the 10-odd increased credit and
years during the construction of these projects. liquidity; that the NDA
Again, curiously, the government is bent on pro- government inherited a
moting hydropower but is disinterested in pro- banking system laden with
moting the service sector. The reason appears to NPAs from the UPA regime.
be that hydropower projects require environment He conveniently appears to
clearance, forest diversion, electricity licence and
land acquisition, in which government officials
have forgotten the Atal
Bihari Vajpayee regime of
have a huge role. The development of services five years. He claims the NDA
sector is ignored because software giants will not government carried out an
fall on their knees to get environment clearances, extensive asset quality
like hydropower proponents would do. Uttarak- review and set up a prompt
hand must give up its misplaced objective of corrective action framework.
building hydropower projects, obstructing rivers Actually, these steps were
and inviting disasters. taken in the tenures of former
RBI Governors Raghuram
The writer is a former Professor of Economics, IIM Rajan and Urjit Patel.
Bengaluru. Satish Murdeshwar
 (V)INGLISH CHALLENGE
Another turner
MUMBAI |SATURDAY| FEBRUARY 20, 2021

SPORTS CAFE
Make or break for Jamshedpur FC
VASCO: Jamshedpur FC need nothing less than a win while
Mumbai City FC would look to jump to the top spot with a victory
when the two sides face each other in an Indian Super League
match here on Saturday. In fact, Jamshedpur have to win the India expect Ravichandran Ashwin and Axar Patel to exploit the conditions
remaining two matches and hope for the other four teams aiming to
break into the top four to drop points.
PRESS TRUST OF INDIA
Ahmedabad
Chikkarangappa's putts Open Golf title

S
AHMEDABAD: Bengaluru's Chikkarangappa took centre-stage on enior speedster Umesh
Friday as he shot a solid final round score of four-under 68 to earn Yadav's fitness test,
a remarkable come-from-behind win at the Gujarat Open Golf which will be conduct-
Championship 2021 here. ed in two days time, will de-
termine if he can join Shreyas Iyer eyeing
good show
Jasprit Bumrah and Ishant
Three-way contest brewing for crown Sharma in a three-prong In-
PANCHKULA: The limelight will be on nine-time champion A. dia pace attack for the up-
Sharath Kamal and G. Sathiyan as India's top paddlers step onto coming Day/Night Test
the arena for the 82nd National Table Tennis Championships here against England.
on Saturday. The 200 entrants that have entered the fray believe The Test, which will be
the group qualification events at the Tau Devi Lal Indoor Stadium played with the pink ball, PRESS TRUST OF INDIA Pune.
will mark a fresh beginning for them. will start here on February Mumbai This is the second do-
24. mestic tournament to be

It is learnt that the Indian
Seher Atwal grabs maiden pro win team management wants to
PUNE: Seher Atwal finally cherished her maiden professional win play to its strength and there
as she overcame three bogeys on the front nine to claim the fourth could be a turner on offer
leg of the Hero Women's Pro Golf Tour, here on Friday. Indian golf with Ravichandran Ashwin
legend Arjun Atwal, 22-year old Seher, who started the day with a and Axar Patel ready to ex-
two-shot lead, shot a final round of 2-over 73 but still emerged a ploit the conditions to the
three-shot winner at the Poona Club Golf Course. fullest.
With Ashwin and Axar ac-
counting for 15 of the 20 wick-
Sokolovas arrives to conduct camp ets in the second Test, India,
BENGALURU: Renowned physiologist and sports science expert keeping in mind the swing-
Dr Genadijus Sokolovas arrived in Bengaluru on Friday to conduct ing pink ball under lights,
the national swimming camp at the Dravid-Padukone Centre for
Sports Excellence. Sokolovas' six-day visit is scheduled to conclude
might drop Kuldeep Yadav
and include a third pacer.
on February 25. Bumrah automatically
comes back after rest and the
toss-up will be between
India's football WC qualifying postponed Umesh and Mohammed Siraj
KUALA LUMPUR: India's 2022 FIFA World Cup/2023 Asian Cup
qualifying round matches, which were scheduled to be played next
for the third pacer's slot.
"Umesh's fitness test will
month, have been postponed to June due to coronavirus-related happen in a couple of days
travel and quarantine restrictions.. time," said a senior BCCI of-
ficial on Friday.
Umesh was ruled out dur-
SL appoints Vaas as bowling coach ing the second Test against
COLOMBO: Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) on Friday appointed former Australia in Melbourne last
pacer Chaminda Vass as the national team's fast bowling coach for December due to a calf mus-
the upcoming tour of West Indies. His appointment comes following cle injury.
He has been an effective
the resignation of David Sekar, who was the national fast bowling
bowler on Indian tracks and
coach, SLC said in a statement.
was menacing during the
country's inaugural
Lankan pacer Prasad calls it a day Day/Night Test in Kolkata.
COLOMBO: Sri Lanka fast bowler Dhammika Prasad has However, it will be interest-
announced his retirement from international cricket with immediate ing to see how dry the Motera
effect. Prasad, 37, last played a Test match in October 2015 wicket is considering there
against the West Indies here. He represented Sri Lanka in 25 Tests could be dew.
and 24 ODIs, bagging 75 and 32 wickets respectively. He also "Look, it doesn't matter if
the ball is red or pink. If you
played lone T20 International against Australia in 2011.
keep a dry wicket, ball will
Indian boxers assured of 12 medals
All-rounder Hardik Pandya at the renovated Motera stadium in Ahmedabad
turn and extra lacquer won't
be of any consequence," a
former India spinner said
when asked for his opinion.
"However, if there is dew
then obviously the ball will
start skidding and it might
just be good for batting. So
that can't be discounted," he
said.
India squad for
last two Tests
Virat Kohli (Capt), Rohit
Sharma, Mayank Agarwal,
Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar
Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane (vc),
KL Rahul, Hardik Pandya,
Rishabh Pant (wk),
Wriddhiman Saha (wk), R
Ashwin, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar
Patel, Washington Sundar,
Ishant Sharma, Jasprit
Bumrah, Md. Siraj.
S
ome established
names such as
Shikhar Dhawan and
Shreyas Iyer will be aim-
ing to make an impression
before the white-ball series
against England when the
Vijay Hazare 50-over com-
petition gets underway in
bio-secure bubbles across
six venues on Saturday.
Shreyas Iyer, who missed
the Syed Mushtaq Ali Tro-
Hardik feels unreal phy as he was recovering
from shoulder injury,
Ahead of the third Test against England, India all-rounder along with others like
Hardik Pandya posted his picture with Motera Stadium in Bhuvaneshwar Kumar
the background on social media and said it was a surreal ex- and Dhawan will be keenly
perience to be at the world's largest cricket stadium.
"It feels surreal to be out here at the world's largest cricket
stadium, Motera. Absolutely magnificent," Pandya said in a VIJAY HAZARE TROPHY
tweet.
For the upcoming day-night Test at Motera Stadium, both watched during the tour-
the Indian and England teams arrived in Ahmedabad on nament.
Thursday. The four-match series currently stands level at 1-1 While Tamil Nadu, win-
and now both teams will lock horns in a pink-ball Test, be- ner of the recent Syed
ginning February 24. The fourth Test of the series will also be Mushtaq Ali Trophy, has a
played at the Motera Stadium. strong team and others
The BCCI's selection committee on Wednesday announced like Karnataka, Mumbai
that pacer Umesh Yadav will join the team in Ahmedabad af- and Delhi will also fancy
ter his fitness Test for the third and fourth Test against Eng- their chances.
land. Umesh will replace Shardul Thakur in the squad, and The tournament will
the latter will be released for the Vijay Hazare Trophy. give the players a chance
Apart from this, the selection committee has decided to not to impress the national se-
make any other change in the squad and every other player lectors, before the ODI
has been retained who was in the squad for the first two Tests. and T20 series against
India achieved an emphatic 317-run win against England in England, which will begin
the second Test of the ongoing four-match series. As a result, in March. India is slated
the series stands levelled at 1-1 and Virat Kohli-led side has to play five T20s in
also reached the second spot in World Test Championship Ahmedabad and three
(WTC) standings. ODIs against England in
conducted by the BCCI in
this curtailed season after
the Syed Mushtaq Ali Tro-
phy, the national T20
championship.
The focus will be firmly
on Shreyas, who is back to
lead Mumbai, the domes-
tic giants, who also have a
new coach in former India
off-spinner Ramesh
Powar.
He will be eager to make
an impact and so will the
prolific Suryakumar Ya-
dav, who is close to mak-
ing the Indian team.
Even Prithvi Shaw, who
has been named Shreyas'
deputy and has been short
of runs, will want to
bounce back stronger.
Mumbai had an emi-
nently forgettable outing
in the Mushtaq Ali Tro-
phy, failing to make it past
the group stage and going
down to minnows
Puducherry.
Pacer Bhuvaneshwar
Kumar, who will lead Ut-
tar Pradesh, will be raring
to go as well and so will
another white-ball spe-
cialist Shikhar Dhawan,
who last played in the se-
ries against Australia.

Maiden WTA title for

NEW DELHI: Asian youth gold medallists Babyrojisana Chanu ASSOCIATED PRESS up to Nadal at the 2019 U.S.
(51kg) and Vinka (60kg) advanced to the semifinals of the 30th Melbourne Open.
Adriatic Pearl tournament in Budva, Montenegro, assuring
Daniil Medvedev simply does
Medvedev "It was my first Grand Slam
final against one of the great-

India’s Ankita Raina

themselves of at least a bronze medal each with dominating first-
round wins. not lose right now. Not to Top est," said Medvedev, a 25-

takes on
10 opponents. Not to anyone, year-old from Russia. "Sun-
really. Certainly not to a day, I'm going to come (up)
Mumbai City's Boumous suspended drained Stefanos Tsitsipas in against one of the other
NEW DELHI: Mumbai City FC's Hugo Boumous has been handed the Australian Open semifi- greatest."
an additional two-match ban and imposed a fine of Rs 2 lakh by the
All India Football Federation's (AIFF) disciplinary committee for
'gross serious indisciplinary unsporting acts and misdemeanours' in
nals.
Now let's see what happens
against Novak Djokovic in
Djokovic It took just 75 minutes for
Medvedev to grab a two-set
lead against Tsitsipas. He

their Indian Super League match against FC Goa, played on Rod Laver Arena.
Medvedev made it to his
February 8 at the GMC Stadium Bambolim. second Grand Slam final as
he pursues his first major
FC Goa’s Bedia cleared of biting charges championship, overwhelm-
MARGAO: All India Football Federation's Disciplinary ing fifth-seeded Tsitsipas 6-4,
Committee on Friday cleared FC Goa captain Edu Bedia of 6-2, 7-5 on Friday at Mel-
charges of "unsporting behaviour" and decided not to impose bourne Park to run his win-
ning streak to 20 matches.
any additional punishment after he was show-caused for an
That includes a dozen victo-
allegedly violent foul on an opponent during an India Super ries against members of the
League match. Top 10.
"He's a player," Tsitsipas
Man U thrash Real Sociedad said, "who has unlocked pret-
MADRID: Real Sociedad's UEFA Europa League adventure came ty much everything in the
to an end when they were beaten 4-0 by the Manchester United in game."
the first leg of their round of 32 tie on. The Basque side's home Tsitsipas, a 22-year-old
from Greece, came out flat,
were totally outplayed by Manchester United, who were once again looking drained after an epic
inspired by Portuguese midfielder Bruno Fernandes. four-hour victory over Rafael
Nadal in the quarterfinals
Bayern’s Tolisso out for 3 months Wednesday, coming back
MUNICH: Bayern Munich midfielder Corentin Tolisso will be out for from a two-set deficit.
at least three months after tearing a tendon in his left thigh in Still, Medvedev was terrif-
training, coach Hansi Flick said Friday. Tolisso's injury comes ahead ic, getting broken just once
and accruing 17 aces among
of a Champions League game at Lazio on Tuesday and could affect his 46 winners.
his chances of making France's squad for this year's European That latter total featured a
Championship. backhand pass he flipped
in final
down the line after sprinting
into a slide for a break in the
next-to-last game, a spectacu-
lar effort Medvedev celebrat-
ed by raising both arms and
waving his hands in a ges-
ture that told the world,
Check me out!
"The moment that I won the
match," Medvedev called it.
"One of my best shots in my
career."
In Sunday's final (7:30 p.m.
local time, 3:30 a.m. EST), the
No. 4-seeded Medvedev will
take on No. 1 Djokovic, who
already owns eight Aus-
tralian Open titles among his
17 Grand Slam trophies as he
tries to gain on the men's
record of 20 shared by Nadal
and Roger Federer.
Djokovic, who won his
semifinal against 114th-
ranked qualifier Aslan
Karatsev on Thursday, is a
combined 17-0 in semifinals
and finals at Melbourne
Park.
"It's him that has all the
pressure, getting (closer) to
Roger or Rafa in the Grand
Slams," Medvedev said. "So I
just hope that I'm going to get
out here, show my best ten-
nis. As we see, I can win
(against) some big names if I
play good. That's the main
part. He has, for sure, more
experience, but more things
to lose than me."
Medvedev was the runner-
went up 3-1 in the third be-
fore Tsitsipas made things a
tad more interesting, if only
briefly, by taking three
games in a row, including his
only break of the match.
But Medvedev, his baseline
defense exquisite, proved too
tough.
"I'm happy that I managed
to change my focus and
change the momentum,"
Medvedev said.
Earlier, down a set and a
break in the second, Tsitsi-
pas sat down at a changeover
and chucked an open water
bottle, causing a splash on
the court that forced ball kids
to scramble for towels to
wipe up the mess. The petu-
lant scene drew a side-eye
from Medvedev.
Early in the third set,
Medvedev told chair umpire
James Keothavong that Tsit-
sipas' father, who also coach-
es him, "is talking way too
much" from the stands.
Ankita Raina (R) along with her doubles partner Kamilla Rakhimova
FPJ NEWS SERVICE
Melbourne
Ankita Ravinderkrishan
Raina, the Indian profession-
al tennis player, won her
maiden WTA title by lifting
the Phillip Island Trophy
along with Russian partner
Kamilla Rakhimova, a feat
which will catapult her into
the top-100 in the doubles for
the first time in her career.
Ankita and Kamilla erased
a one-set deficit to beat the
Russian combination of
Anna Blinkova and Anasta-
sia Potapova 2-6 6-4 10-7 in the
summit clash here.
The 28-year-old Indian
shared the US $ 8000 prize
money with her partner and
earned 280 ranking points,
which will take her to 94
from the current 115 when
the WTA doubles chart is up-
dated next week.
Ankita will become only
the second player to crack
the doubles top-100 since Sa-
nia Mirza, who is a six-time
Grand Slam champion.
For the Indian, who made
her Grand Slam debut at the
Australian Open in the dou-
bles, and also won a round in
the main draw of a WTA sin-
gles tournament.

WHAT’S Indian Derby on March 28 Mumbai’s Setalvad bros supreme

10.00: Australian Open; Pre Show; Sony Six
As Mumbai race returns to the Mahalaxmi racecourse from February 28 FPJ NEWS SERVICE nals this year. Mumbai’s Se-
Mumbai talvad brothers brought
13.30: Australian Open; Mid Show; Sony Six JOE WILLIAMS home the win and are now
13.30: Australian Open women's final Mumbai Setalvad brothers, Kaevaan ready for the Asian games
17.30: Australian Open; Post Show; Sony Six and Zahan donning the 2022. They had earlier repre-
19.30: ISL; Jamshedpur FC and Mumbai City FC Star Sports 2 Three Grade 1 races including the Indian Der- colours of Amateur Riders sented India in the Asian
22.30: The Saudi Cup 2021; Eurosport by are on cards as the horse racing is all set to Club (ARC), were at their Games 2018 in Jakarta.
return to the iconic Mahalaxmi Race Course best as they bagged gold and The ARC team was the only
00.30: Dutch League; 23 VVV Venlo vs AZ Alkmaar; Eurosport from February 28. silver medals respectively in team to represent Mumbai at
02.15: PGA Tour - The Genesis Invitational Day According to sources, the Royal Western In- the 150 cm Grand Prix at the the NEC. In addition to Kae-
dia Turf Club (RWITC), Mumbai season National Equestrian Cham- vaan and Zahan Setalvad,
which began in Pune November, last year pionship (NEC) held in Del- Abbas Tinwalla, and Iyanah

2016 THIS DAY, THAT YEAR

will get back at the Mahalaxmi Racecourse hi, recently. Mehta completed the team.
come February 28. The two-time national Iyanah being the only female
Elaborating the big races that are scheduled champions, Kaevaan and Za- Gold medal winner Kaevaan representing ARC.
Brendon McCullum said goodbye to to be held at the Mahalaxmi Race Course, it is number of people attending the races by the han have won in 2016 & 2021 Setalvad (L) Applauding the achieve-
international cricket by breaking the understood that, the Indian Oaks Gr.1 and government. We are delighted that we have fi- and 2018 and 2019. recognition, training options ment, ARC Hon. Secretary
The Indian Derby also Gr.1 races will be run nally got the clearance from the authorities, At the national in Delhi and facilities available to- Riyhad Kundanmal said, "We
record for the fastest Test hundred by
on March 7 and 28 March 2021 respectively said Zavaray Poonawalla, the chairperson of they were astride German, day," said gold medalist, Kae- congratulate the entire team
two balls - 54 to the 56 taken by the while The Indian Turf Invitation Cup week- RWITC, while talking to a section of the me- Dutch and French warm vaan Setalvad. from ARC, the sole represen-
joint holders at the time, Viv Richards end races is likely to be held on April 18 this dia. blood horses which are espe- Zahan Setalvad shared his tatives from Mumbai for the
and Misbah-ul-Haq. The feat came in year. “Health and safety will be on top of the cially bred for the showjump- views while saying, "winning prestigious National Eques-
Christchurch against Australia, where, Meanwhile, all measures have been taken to cards. All provisions of SOP will be main- ing sport. a medal in this champi- trian Championship. We are
coming in to bat at 32 for 3 on a lively put in place as the racing comes back to the tained and no entry without the mask," said “It feels great to be able to onship is a proud moment, elated and proud that Kae-
pitch, McCullum hit his second ball for city, with the restrictions of Covid-19 easing Poonawalla cautioned, while drawing the at- put ARC and Mumbai on the despite all the challenges.” vaan and Zahan won the gold
four. Then with 15 minutes left for lunch, he took Mitchell Marsh for further, and the Maharashtra government tention of the government guidelines which national map in the sport of The extremely challenging and silver medals. This is a
21 runs in an over. He was caught off a no-ball on 39, and giving a go-ahead for the RWITC in their as- will be maintained with all respects. showjumping. We hope that 150 cm Grand Prix for NEC much-deserved win for their
signment. The club authorities have assured Pune which has been hosting the Mumbai this would encourage young- saw only seven horse-rider extreme hard work, despite
responded with a six and two fours from his next five balls.
to accomodate 600 people at the venue to wit- season will see their last race on February 21, sters to enter the sport and combinations from Delhi, the challenges and restric-
McCullum took New Zealand to 370, but centuries from Joe Burns ness the live action of racing at this centre. after it was decided that the Mumbai racing pursue excellence and com- Mumbai and Bengaluru who tions posed by the Covid-19
and Usman Khawaja gave Australia a series-winning lead. "We have been allowed relaxation in the will return back to the city. mitment given the scale of managed to qualify in the fi- pandemic in the city."

Printed and Published by Girdharlal Lakhotia for the Proprietors, Indian National Press (Bombay) P. Ltd., at Journal Press, Free Press House, Free Press Journal Marg, 215, Nariman Point, Mumbai-400 021. Tel: 69028000, Advt. Dept. 69028026. E-mail: mail@fpj.co.in • OFFICE: Indore: 3/54, Press Complex, A. B. Road, Indore-452 008, Tel: 2555111-2, Fax: 2558555,
New Delhi: 1/8 INS Bldg., Rafi Marg, New Delhi-110 001; Tel.: 23718853; Kolkata: Tel.: 22875645; Chennai: Tel: 28217766; Bhopal: Tel: 2660570, 4271345. Air Surcharge Rs. 2.00 only. Managing Editor: Girdharlal Lakhotia. Editor: S. S. DHAWAN. Reg. No. MCS/048/2018-20; RNI No. 1541/1957
 Nokia 3.4 to go on sale in India on February 20
NEW DELHI: HMD Global, the home of Nokia phones, announced on Friday
that its recently launched Nokia 3.4 will be available in India starting February
20 in fjord, dusk and charcoal colour options. The smartphone will be available
across leading retail outlets and online channels in India, including
Nokia.com/com, Amazon.in and Flipkart, at Rs 11,999 for the 4GB+64GB
storage variant. Additionally, potential customers on Jio would be entitled to
benefits worth Rs 4,000. The benefits include instant cashback of Rs 2,000 on
the prepaid recharge of Rs 349 plan and Rs 2,000 worth of vouchers from
partners. The smartphone features a 6.39-inch punch-hole HD+ display with a
resolution of 720 x 1560 pixels and an aspect ratio of 19.5:9. The device is
powered by 2.0GHz octa-core Snapdragon 460 processor coupled with up to
4GB of RAM and up to 64 GB of storage. –IANS
MUMBAI | SATURDAY | FEBRUARY 20, 2021

Brain hustles harder when the reward is big

Amazing Ayurveda
Badam Tel ache, musculoskeletal dis-
(Rogan Badam) orders etc. and get instant
relief.
Key property: This almond- Ingredients: Malkangni/ According to a study, the amount of mental effort humans put into a certain task is usually
based ayurvedic oil im- Jyotishmati (Celastrus influenced by the gains or the benefits they are going to get
proves physical Paniculatus), ginger
strength and nour- powder, ashwa- FROM OUR BUREAU ments, the researchers
ishes the body. gandha, maha- New Delhi demonstrated that partici-
rasanadi kwath, pants performed better on

W
Ingredients: Al- akra patra ras e invest mental ef- tasks when there was a big-
mond (madar tree sap), fort in a task in re- ger potential prize and when
Quantity: Should arandpatra ras, sponse to what we they felt like their efforts
be applied as per dhatura patra ras, stand to gain, and in re- made a difference in earning
the requirement as a ratanjot (alkanet) and sponse to how much the out- that prize.
massage oil. Or as directed sesame oil. come hinges on our perform- “This study sheds light on
by the physician. Quantity: For external use ance, research finds. For ex- the neural circuits that drive
only. It should be used as a ample, what makes a person motivation, which in turn
Vatantak Tel massage oil. decide to turn off the TV and
switch on their brain to com-
help us learn more about
why people may have trouble
(To know more about Shri Mohta
Key property: By massag- Ayurvedic Rasayanshala, plete work for their job? getting motivated, whether it

Sunday social
ing the body with this oil, call: 0151-2523227/ or reach at We tend to assume that the be situational or chronic and
one can get rid of prob- mohtarasayanshala amount of mental effort a due to depression or other
lems like joint pain, back- @gmail.com) person invests in a task is in- pumping praise from a su- matter, and the reward will disorders,” says Amitai

class by Ram sir!

fluenced by the reward they
Disclaimer: The description of the above-mentioned stand to gain — so in this
products is an excerpt from a booklet, Sankshipt Aushad case, the effort results in a
Parichay Patrak. Please consult your doctor/ or contact paycheck, and successful ef-
the clinic before taking them. forts could result in ego-
pervisor, a bonus, a promo-
tion, or perhaps even a new,
higher-paying job.
But what if the person does-
n’t believe that their efforts
be the same no matter how
hard they try? How does that
person decide how much ef-
fort to expend—if any at all?
In three related experi-
Shenhav, study author and
an assistant professor of cog-
nitive, linguistic, and psycho-
logical sciences at Brown
University. BHAVNA UCHIL masters course in social
Mumbai work with that qualifica-
tion, but have an aptitude

Be careful if you are Ancient Egyptian brewery F

or the past 19 years, for such work,” says the
Screen time Ram Adsule has 52-year-old, who is a post-
impacts boys been spending his graduate in social work.

using Clubhouse app is the oldest ever found

Sundays teaching those Many are women who
and girls from less-privileged back- are homemakers and
differently grounds. He teaches a
short course in social
some, retired people. “The
idea is capacity building
LONDON: Screen time FROM OUR BUREAU / New Delhi sustain them in the land of dos, consisted of at least work, which not only en- in the field,” he says. He
affects boys and girls dif- the dead,” says Matthew D. eight separate installations, ables them to find jobs, tells those passing out to

A
ferently, a new study sug- rchaeologists have un- Adams, senior research built in parallel and spaced but helps create an army dedicate at least one Sun-
gests that boys who play covered evidence for scholar at the Institute of about 8 meters (26 feet) apart. of volunteers during day a month to social
video games regularly the world’s oldest Fine Arts at New York Uni- Six of the eight, each approx- times of need, such as the work while they pursue
are less likely to develop known industrial-scale brew- versity, who co-leads the imately 20m long × 2.5m wide 2005 Mumbai floods. their jobs.
depressive symptoms ery. The brewery was an an- North Abydos Archaeology × 40cm deep, (about 65 feet x During the deluge, his In the pre-COVID times,
whereas girls who stay cient complex with the ca- project with Deborah Vis- 8.2 feet x 15 inches) have been students, many of whom the Virar resident would
active on social media pacity to produce enough chak, assistant professor of examined so far in the new are now part of his volun- travel on Sundays to the
platforms may experi- beer to serve thousands of art and archeology at Prince- excavations, partly buried teer group We Care, took NGO's centres in Borivili,
ence an increased risk of people in a single batch.The ton University. under later tombs. part in medical camps and Vasai and Dahisar, dedi-
depressive symptoms. AGENCIES / New Delhi cations. “Both scenarios are team of American and food distribution relief. The cating at least six hours to
The findings indicate united by one thing – the de- Egyptian archaeologists, group with 450 volunteers teaching students there.

that boys, who played
video games at age of 11
had 24 per cent fewer de-
pressive symptoms three
years later, whereas girls
who used social media
most on days at age 11
had 13 per cent more de-
pressive symptoms three
years later. The team said
that the effect of reduced
depressive symptoms
was only significant
among boys with low
physical activity levels.
They suggest that less
active boys could derive
more enjoyment and so-
cial interaction from
video games. –IANS
A
s invite-only audio con-
versation app Club-
house gains popularity,
cyber security experts
warned on Friday that hack-
ers can distribute malicious
code under the guise of fake
applications to join the plat-
form. There are privacy con-
cerns because Clubhouse
works with a Shanghai-based
company called Agora to pro-
vide real-time audio technolo-
gy support. The firm is head-
quartered in Shanghai and
Silicon Valley.
Denis Legezo, security ex-
pert at cyber-security firm
Kaspersky, said that there are
two main concerns here – the
sale of invites and fake appli-
sire to exploit users’ interest
in the social platform,” he
said in a statement.
The first scenario is simply
monetisation on a small scale.
“However, the second scenario
is more serious. Attackers can
distribute malicious code under
the guise of popular software –
for instance, a fake version of
Clubhouse for Android,” Lege-
zo emphasised.
“A fake malicious applica-
tion can do exactly what you
allow it to do in the security
settings of your Android – to
get a rough or accurate loca-
tion of the device, record au-
dio and video, attain access to
messengers, etc.,” he warned.
–IANS
who discovered the facility
while excavating at the site of
Abydos in southern Egypt,
date the brewery to the dawn
of ancient Egyptian history,
circa 3000 BCE. That’s the ap-
proximate time of the politi-
cal unification of Upper and
Lower Egypt and the emer-
gence of the pharaonic state,
the era of King Narmer.
“The capacity of the facility
was industrial in its scale
and unprecedented for its
time, able to produce many
thousands of liters, and prob-
ably built to supply the funer-
ary cults of Egypt’s first
kings, in which rituals were
conducted both to worship
them as divine figures and to
General view of the south
exterior of the enclosure of
King Khasekhemwy (circa
2750 BCE). A massive deposit
of beer jars was found ex-
tending over nearly the en-
tire excavated area. (Credit:
Greg Maka for the North
Abydos Project)
The brewery, located on the
edge of the desert at the
northern end of ancient Aby-
Each installation contained
about 40 large ceramic vats,
arranged in two rows and
supported by rings of sun-
dried mud struts, or “fire
legs.” Brewers used the vats
for slow-cooking, or “mash-
ing,” a thick mixture of grain
and water that was then
strained and fermented to
produce beer in ancient
Egypt.
also regularly visits old age
homes to spend time with
residents, conducting activ-
ities like yoga and reading
for them.
Adsule meets potential
volunteers at the NGO
where he has been teach-
ing the certificate course
that spans six months,
without charging the or-
ganisation. Over the
years, he has taught over
1,500 students, most of
whom he says are now
into social work. “There
are children who have
studied upto eight or 10th
grade and cannot get ad-
mission in a bachelors or
Now, though, he teaches
online for three hours on
Sundays.
As an operations man-
ager with Childline, his
regular job through an
NGO for the government
helpline involves provid-
ing immediate help to
children that call in dis-
tress situations — having
faced physical and sexual
abuse. He helps them
through the administra-
tive processes before they
can be safe at shelter
homes.
“It is the satisfaction so-
cial work gives that drives
me,” he says.

Pfizer vaccine 75% effective BRINGING UP FATHER / FRANK JONSON DENNIS THE MENACE ACROSS
1 Former name for
Crossword #023

after first shot: Israeli Study River Krishna (6)

7 Unspecified person
(8)
Jerusalem: A team of Is- Yochay, director of the hos- 8 Call to ___ : cry to
raeli researchers on Fri- pital’s Infectious Disease start fighting, in a
day showed that Covid-19 Epidemiology Unit, only way ? (4)
infections reduced by 75 170 people became infected 10 Large ape (6)
per cent after the adminis- during the two week peri- 11 Globule of air (6)
tration of the first dose of od. Of those who contract- 14 Blood-classification
the Pfizer vaccine. ed the virus, 99 showed system (3)
The data, published in symptoms. Eighty-nine of 16 Lascivious man (5)
the peer-reviewed Lancet the sick were 17 Large mice (4)
medical journal, centered unvaccinated. 19 Wanderer (5)
on a study of around 9,000 She said the hospital is 21 Countrified (5)
22 Insignificant (5) Peshawar ? (6) 19 Crazy person (3)
Sheba healthcare workers, now completing research BLONDIE / Dean Young & Mile Gersher 23 Son of Lord Rama 2 Pulsates (6) 20 Fifth month (3)
around 7,000 of which re- on the impact of the sec-
and Sita (4) 3 Org. (4) 21 Goes back on (7)
ceived their first dose in ond dose, which she said 26 Bygone (5) 4 Denial or negation 22 Favorite (3)
January. researchers still believe is 28 Chafe (3) ? (7) 23 Middle Eastern
The researchers at Sheba essential. However, she 29 Having grooves (6) 5 Skepticism, disbelief country (6)
Medical Center found a 75 noted that the research 30 Waste drains (6) or indecision ? (5) 24 Over in Germany (4)
per cent decrease in all in- supports the UK govern- 31 At a distance (4) 6 Overexcited (5) 25 Charlton of filmdom
fections and an 85 per cent ment's decision to spread 32 "Hive care" anagram 8 He came to the (6)
reduction in symptomatic out the time between the for one who did do crease with _ __ in 26 Organ meat (5)
infections between 15-28 first and second shots of it ? (8) his hands.... (1,3) 27 Territory ruled by a
days after vaccination, The the vaccine in order to 33 Confine (6) 9 Lowing sound (3) duke (5)
Jerusalem Post reported. inoculate more people. 12 Evil or sinful (3) 28 In short he's an
According to Gili Regev- –IANS DOWN 13 Harplike official during a
1 ____ Pass : the instruments (5) football or a hockey
trade route 15 Value (5) match (3)
BOARD GAMES GUIDING LIGHT between Kabul and 18 Clear as __ (1,4) 30 Indian dress (4)

Mastermind Offal, 27 Duchy, 28 Ref, 30 Sari. Solution

Finding motivation at work using the spiritual lens Reneges, 22 Pet, 23 Kuwait, 24 Uber, 25 Heston, 26
bat, 9 Moo, 12 Bad, 13 Lyres, 15 Worth, 18 A bell, 19 Nut, 20 May, 21
gets 12 chances to do so. After each attempt,
the code-maker provides a clue and the code- – Rajesh Mohan Rai Down: 1 Khyber, 2 Throbs, 3 Assn, 4 Refusal, 5 Doubt, 6 Hyper, 8 A

breaker responds by filling in a row of code
pegs on the board. The code-maker indicates
which part of the guess is right or wrong by
placing flat key pegs on the board.
The game continues until the code-breaker
cracks the code or completes 12 guesses.
SPARKLER The Bearded Debtor
THE French poet Germain Saint-Foix had
gone to a hairdressing saloon to have a
shave and the barber was lathering his
face when a businessman entered. The
poet owed the man a lot of money and
when the businessman saw Saint-Foix,
he angrily demanded his money.
THE board game Mastermind is designed to be
“Please don’t make a scene, monsieur,”
played by two persons above the age of 8. One
said Saint-Foix. “Won’t you wait for the
of the players creates a code and the other tries
money until I’m shaved?”
to decipher it with the help of the clues.
The game consists of a decoding board,
“Certainly,” said the businessman.
code pegs and key pegs. The board has 12
“You heard that?” Saint-Foix asked the
barber. “He said he will wait until I’m
rows, each with 4 large and 8 small holes. At
shaved and monsieur is a man of his
the two ends of the board are 4 large holes
word.”
covered by a shutter. This is where the player
Then he picked up a towel, wiped the
creates a secret code using any of the six
lather from his face and left, leaving the
coloured pegs.
businessman gaping. Saint-Foix wore a
The code-breaker has to guess the colours
beard till the end of his days!
of the code pegs and their exact positions. He
4345 / © 2020 Amrita Bharati, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan
H
ow do you motivate yourself when things
are not working out as per your plan at
work? You just don’t feel like coming to
work. Most likely, you are not motivated enough to
work and contribute.
Below tips may help you, however, this would
support you in getting the routine tasks out of way
and may bring back the excitement and energy re-
quired for accomplishing bigger tasks.
Get the small, simplest, non-tiring tasks out of
your list, it helps you see yourself moving forward
and put you in motion to achieve higher, more
complicated tasks.
You may start something which is close to your
heart. It gives you the motivation to keep moving.
You may prioritize all the tasks and start com-
pleting them one by one as per the priority. This
helps you in finishing the tasks with high impor-
tance.
You may decide to alter the lens and change your
perspective. It helps you to refocus with purpose.
The lens you use to see the world around you de-
pends fully upon you. Looking through the spiri-
tual lens offers exciting opportunities to you to
learn, unlearn, relearn, forgive, forget, sharing, re-
(Spiritual organisations keen to be featured in this space contact : features@fpj.co.in)
Olden, 28 Rub, 29 Fluted, 30 Sewers, 31 Afar, 32 Achiever, 33 Intern.
ceiving with gratitude etc. Abo, 16 Satyr, 17 Rats, 19 Nomad, 21 Rural, 22 Petty, 23 Kush, 26
You as a spiritual being you may look for some- Across: 1 Kistna, 7 Somebody, 8 Arms, 10 Baboon, 11 Bubble, 14
thing meaningful to do, say and contribute each
and every moment in life. Use your spiritual lens
which may help you come out of the lack of moti- EASY_PAGE_1_4.TIF
FPJ - SUDOKU - 26 Level: Hard
vation in your routine life. Brighten others to get
the self-motivation. You may choose any or all of
the tips mentioned below:
Look around you at your workplace, send a smile
to someone who needs motivation more than you
need.
Listen to others compassionately, suspend all the
judgement. Share some good video, motivating
quotes with people at the workplace. It inspires
others and motivates you to keep doing good, in-
cluding finishing your own tasks in time.
Remember your strengths and how have you
used the same in the past to overcome a low phase
in life.
Keep repeating positive affirmations.
Be the source of positive energy for others, the
WHAT TO DO: Fill in the grid so
positive energy radiated through you is received
back multiple folds and brightens your day too. that every row, every column
and every 3x3 box contains the
(The writer is a Delhi based Master Coach
digits 1 to 9. Every puzzle has
and a Motivational Speaker)
only one correct solution.

YOUR DAY By Nilikash P. Pradhan

ARIES: Writers may have a favourable
day. New business deals will be
successful. Trading in shares will be
beneficial.
TAURUS: You may be given new projects
at the workplace. Working with
experienced people from your field will
enhance your knowledge.
GEMINI: Home renovation or expansion is
on the horizon. A close friend of yours may
guide you and help you in solving a long-
pending legal matter. Health will be fine.
CANCER: Helpful colleagues at the
workplace will share the workload and
which will make your work less stressful.
Domestic life will improve.
LEO: You will be in a confused state of
mind over a certain issue. First, resolve
all your internal doubts and then
proceed towards decision making.
VIRGO: Your relations with your clients,
associates and other concerned persons will
improve as the period rolls on. Today, you
may face difficulties on the romantic front.
LIBRA: Business people, medical
professionals and those in the film
industry may get good opportunities.
Spend more time with your family.
SCORPIO: A new romantic relationship is
indicated. A family outing or a vacation is
on the cards. You will be able to wrap your
work assignments/ projects on time.
SAGITTARIUS: Those in the field of sports
and politics will impress their seniors with
their performances. Co-workers' support at
the workplace will boost your performance.
CAPRICORN: Things may go with ease
on the career front. Your low willingness
to work hard is the only roadblock
towards the road to success.
AQUARIUS: Stress and worries are likely
to fade away. You should focus on
creating a happy atmosphere at home.
Make decisions wisely.
PISCES: Your relationship with colleagues is
likely to improve. Patience and confidence
will be rewarded. You will successfully be
able to keep your opponents under control.
 Billie Eilish merican singer-songwriter Billie Eilish is seeking a restraining order against a man

seeks restraining A who has allegedly harassed her since last August. According to E! News, in court
documents filed on February 11 and obtained by the outlet, the Bad Guy singer
requested the court to grant her civil harassment restraining order against John
Matthews Hearle, a 23-year-old man, who also goes by Adam Lucifer. Billie also requested
order against additional protective orders for her parents, Maggie Baird and Patrick O’Connell, as per the
documents. According to Billie's declaration, for the past six months, Hearle has “harassed and
stalker threatened” the singer while parked at a school across from her family home. —ANI

MUMBAI | SATURDAY | FEBRUARY 20, 2021

I cried when saw Madhuri

‘Mad’ over
dance!
Madhuri Dixit Nene, who returns as a judge on
Dance Deewane season 3, talks about the show
and her love for the art form
S
for the first time...
Choreographer Shabina Khan, who has made Bollywood stars like Madhuri Dixt Nene,
Amitabh Bachchan, Govinda, and others dance to her tunes, gets nostalgic while
speaking about her journey in the film industry

LIPIKA VARMA

habina Khan is a
force to reckon with
in Bollywood. She
started off as an as-
sistant of choreographer
Ganesh Hegde for the 1996
film, Khamoshi: The Musical,
LIPIKA VARMA to learn classical dance. But, there starring Manisha Koirala and
are no boundaries for learning any Salman Khan. She later assisted ace
I have been a fan of Madhuri Dixit
Nene since childhood. I was assisting
for Pukar. When I first saw her on
the sets, I started crying. Everyone
then told her about me being her fan.
Madhuri ma’am smiled and said, ‘If
you are my fan then sizzle and show
me your talent...’ After I danced on
the entire song, she instantly said,
‘Aaj toh mein tumhari fan ho gayi.’
Shabina and Amitabh Bachchan And, you have also made Sunny
Deol dance...

M
adhuri Dixit Nene ruled form of art... they can learn it on- choreographers like Ganesh shooting for Department
the ’90s and impressed the line too. Acharya [Masterji], Prabhudheva Whatever steps Sunny Deol per-
audience not just with her When I watch these participants and the late Saroj Khan. She soon formed, he would say, ‘I enjoy doing

TAGRAM
acting skills, but also with on the show and learn about their turned an independent choreogra- this much only…so make me do this
her dance moves. The actor, struggles, I understand their ago- pher for filmmaker Ram Gopal Var- much only.’ I was assisting Ganesh

HAN/INS
fondly called Dhak Dhak girl of nies. I remember my struggles too. ma’s 2003 film, Mein Madhuri Dixit masterji. And, an assistant’s job is to
Bollywood, started dancing when But, I feel they were nothing in Banna Chahti Hoon. And, there has make the star dance to their tunes.

ABINA K
she was three years old. She is also comparison to these dancers. been no looking back for her since While I taught Sunny to dance, I felt
a trained classical dancer. Some of Who do you consider Dance then. Shabina recently launched Re- he was like a child. I really loved this

her popular dance numbers like Ek
do teen (Tezaab), Dhak dhak (Beta),
Mera piya ghar aaya (Yaraana),
Choli ke peeche (Khalnayak) and
many others are still making fans
groove to their beats. Madhuri,
who was last seen in Karan Johar’s
Kalank, is now back as the judge
on season three of the dance reali-
ty show, Dance Deewane. Her co-
judges include choreographers
Dharmesh Yelande and Tushar
Kalia. Dancer and choreographer
Raghav Juyal returns as the host of
the show. And, soon, Madhuri will
also be making a digital debut with
a web series titled The Heroine,
which she announced last year.
But, not much is known about the
project. We caught up with the ac-
tress before she got busy with her
judging duties to talk about the
show, her love for dance, and more.
Excerpts from the interview:
Many participants in reality dance
shows are not trained dancers...
How important do you think formal
training is for such dancers?
The world has become very small.
There are so many talented
dancers who do not have enough
money to be trained formally. Most
of the dancers who participate in
Dance Deewane come up on the
stage after learning online only. By
learning dance online, they excel
in their performances. Formal
training becomes especially impor-
tant when you want
Deewane in Bollywood? ality in Reality, an initiative through
Jo bhi achcha dance kare, which she wants to provide a plat-
woh mere liye Dance Dee- form to dancers to show off their
wane hai. But, Govinda is skills. Apart from this, she has chore-
such an exuberant dancer who ographed for Salman Khan's Rad-
performs so well; Amitji [Amitabh he and will be making Aayush
Bachchan] has his own style of Sharma dance for Antim. In an
dancing; Varun Dhawan and Tiger interaction with the Cinema
Shroff are excellent dancers Journal, Shabina spoke about
as well. her journey as a choreographer
Are Arin and Ryan [Madhuriʼs sons] in the film industry and working
interested in dance as well? with stars like Govinda, Sunny
One of them did learn hip hop, but Deol, Madhuri Dixit among
they are more keen on playing mu- several others. Excerpts from
sical instruments. They love play- the interview:
ing piano, guitar and other instru- How did you get your first break as
ments. Everyone in my family an independent choreographer?
loves art... ours is a wholesome Ramu sir [filmmaker Ram Gopal
band of creativity. For the matter Varma] is the one who gave me my
of fact, when a family bonds on first break. Actually, he had seen me
any kind of art or craft there is assist Ganesh masterji for the song
more understanding and bonding Nikal le bhaiye sambhal le bhaiya.
between them. He saw me and said, ‘Yeh ladki ka-
Thereʼs this raging debate that OTT mal dance karti hai’. Then one day,
is affecting theatrical releases of when I was shooting in Chennai, I re-
films. Whatʼs your take? ceived a call from Ramu sir’s produc-
Nothing can replace theatrical tion house. In fact, he had actually
films, they are being made for the called up masterji [Ganesh Acharya]
OTT is fine. In any case earlier too to ask about me. But, I was not
they were shown online after their working with him then. However,
release in theatres. But, on OTT his production house managed
platforms there are no language to get my number and called me the workings of the film industry
constraints and one can be as cre- to audition for Mein Madhuri
ative as the story needs one to be. Dixit Banna Chahti Hoon. I
Makers can make heartfelt stories was given an opportunity to
on OTT platforms, while for the choreograph two songs.
big screen, they need to take into I was surprised as I didn’t
consideration the commercial have much understanding of
viability too. cameras. But with director Chan-
dan Arora’s help I shot all the songs.
Later, Chandan also taught me edit-
PICS: SH
Shabina at work
Salman Khan and Shabina
during Dabangg 3
ing and it was then I realised its
importance. Later on I thoroughly
learnt editing as well.
Did you always want to become
a choreographer?
Dance is in my blood... dance is
everything to me! I was 14 when I
started working. I participated in
dance competition. Then I got a
chance to work with filmmaker San-
jay Leela Bhansali in Khamoshi
while assistanting my guru Ganesh
Hegde. I very young and didn’t know
that well. Undeniably, I started liking
working behind the camera. I always
wanted to ‘create’, and this thought
of showing off creativity through
dancing crossed my mind. Thus,
tried my hand at choreography.
You have worked with Madhuri Dixit
Nene. Any anecdotes you would like
to share about her?
quality of his. Sunny was very sweet
and would simply say, ‘I can’t do this
it won’t be possible for me to do it.’
Then, I would show him the steps and
he would follow me like a baby.
What about working with Amitabh
Bachchan? How did that go?
I was wonder-struck when I saw
Amitabhji. When we met on the
sets of Ram Gopal Varma’s film De-
partment, he asked me politely,
‘Batao masterji pehla shot kya
hai...’ I was speechless and almost
choked. He was sweet enough to
comfort me and recount stories
from his past.
You have been an assistant choreog‐
rapher on many of Govindaʼs movies.
Do you think we need more dancers
like him?
Govinda is an exuberant dancer, and
it becomes difficult to take eyes off
him when he dances. Dance is lost in
the pseudo aristocratic world. I want
dance to come back as not many peo-
ple are dancing. Their dance seems
to be like an exercise regime. Look-
ing at Govinda, Madhuri and Sridevi
perform any dance number would
enlighten you. I’m not blaming any-
body, just requesting everybody to
get dance back minus acrobatics.
Choreographers Remo DʼSouza,
Ahmed Khan, Prabhudheva have
turned directors. Do you want to try
your hand at direction too?
I do get directorial offers, but I am fo-
cusing on B You and Reality in Reali-
ty. I like to take life as it comes. I have
no intentions of turning to direction
at the moment.

Kargil calling for A ‘short’ reunion for Anupam Spotted

Bollywood Bytes

Aamir Khan? Kher and Aahana Kumra

B A
ollywood superstar Aamir Khan will shoot for nupam Kher will soon be
the final schedule of his upcoming film Laal seen in the short film Hap-
Singh Chaddha in Kargil, a source close to the py Birthday, which the ac-
project said on Friday. “The team is waiting for the tor describes as a mystery dra-
snow to melt so that the team can go ahead and ma. Shoot of the film is sched-
shoot the Kargil war sequence in May and June. uled to start on Monday. The
This sequence is of great importance to the film's Prasad Kadam directorial unites
plot,” said the source. “Aamir, who is known to be a Kher with Aahana Kumra. The
perfectionist has made Laal Singh Chaddha his actors had earlier worked togeth-
passion. He is even looking into the edit and back- er in the 2019 release, The Acci-
end work of the film. He’s completely focused on dental Prime Minister. “It’s a
the film and has decided to switch off his mobile short film that I am doing, which is a mystery drama. It’s nice
phone until the film hits the theatres, enabling to work with new people. It will be nice to work with Ahana. I Shah Rukh Khan
him to concentrate on the film hundred percent,” like the intriguing part of the story,” Kher said.
the source added. —IANS —IANS

I
f Shah Rukh Khan thought

The many
he would manage to slip
Shilpa Shetty Kundra
Be it the story of a smalltown girl playing a phone sex operator or others asserting past the watchful eyes of
the photogs he was clearly
their rights across society, women are ruling the OTT space with new-age stories mistaken. Even though he
tried to hide behind a hoodie,
Bombay Begums

shades
the ever-alert paparazzi caught
a glimpse of the star at
The upcoming series stars Pooja Bhatt, Shahana
Gateway of India, Mumbai.
Goswami, Amruta Subhash, Plabita Borthakur
Also snapped was nine-month
and Aadhya Anand. The story revolves around
pregnant Kareena Kapoor
four women in Mumbai who come from different

of women
Khan with son Taimur Ali Khan
strata of society. The series is directed by Lip-
at sister Karisma
stick Under My Burkha maker Alankrita Shrivas-
Kapoor’s home. Shilpa
tav and will stream on Netflix from March 8.
Shetty Kundra struck
a happy pose for
the waiting
lensmen.
—CJ Desk
emale-centric themes have found a fresh

F lease with the rise of OTT platforms. A

string of women-oriented series have
grabbed audience attention. More than tele-
vision and the big screen, filmmakers have
found an ideal platform to experiment more freely
with subjects focussing on womanhood and issues
related to women in the digital space. Be it the story
of a smalltown girl playing a phone sex operator or
women asserting their rights across society, there
are diverse shades being served.
Actress Nyra Banerjee, who plays the role of a
phone sex operator in the series Helllo Jee says, “I
think people find the situations and characters more
relatable. Also, OTT has an audience which is com-
paratively more open to various scenarios the
women are. They are more accepting.”
Actress Maanvi Gagroo, who will soon start shoot-
ing for the third season of Four More Shots Please,
says, “Till now we had not seen such characters on
screen, but it doesn't mean that they don't exist in
real life. Of course, these are slightly dramatised ver-
sions but these things happen. There are women
who drink and party, make their own money, and
make mistakes. They live life on their own terms.
Four More Shots 3
The show will soon start shooting for
season three, with the previous two
seasons having gained popularity. The
Amazon Prime series presents life of
four women, played by Sayani Gupta,
Bani J, Kirti Kulhari and Maanvi
Gagroo. While the show initially faced
criticism for its unconventionally-pre-
sented narrative from certain sections,
the OTT audience overall has loved it.
Helllo Jee
The lead character, portrayed
Dev DD 2 by Nyra Banerjee, is a phone
sex operator. The story is
The AltBalaji show carved a special space with
about how the girl, who hails
season one, as it reinvents Sarat Chandra Chat-
from smalltown India, finds a
topadhyay’s classic literary work Devdas with
unique way to earn liveli-
PIC: VIRAL BHAYANI

They are regular people trying to lead life on gender reversal. Here, Devdas is Devika, played
their terms.” Here are four shows on OTT that credi- hood. Currently streaming on Kareena Kapoor Khan
by Asheema Vardaan. Sanjay Suri is a new-age,
bly toast women's empowerment, and are worth AltBalaji, Hello Jee has gar- and Taimur Ali Khan
male version of Chandramukhi, as Anurag.
checking out. nered a huge following.
Akhil Kapur is Parth (Paro). Rashmi Agdekar is
—IANS
Chandni, or a female Chunnilal, who is a lesbian.
 NONE BUT OURSELVES CAN
FREE OUR MINDS.

— BOB MARLEY,
SINGER-SONGWRITER

MUMBAI | SATURDAY | FEBRUARY 20, 2021

ALWAYS TRY TO
MAKE A DIFFERENCE:
NISHANT KASHIKAR
have been shot in Australia too! But now,
we've pivoted to leveraging the OTT plat-
forms. Content has become an integral part
of our marketing efforts. Apart from English
content, we are also focusing on regional
platforms and working with the likes of
Marathi YouTube channel, BhaDiPa. In digi-
tal, it's not just leveraging Search, but also
NISHANT KASHIKAR, Country Manager (India & Gulf), Display, Social, Content, Videos, Program-
matic, etc., that we're doing currently. Pre-
Tourism Australia, believes that there has to be a COVID, almost 60% of our budgets were on
purpose for doing anything that one sets out to do. digital media, and today, 100% of our invest-
ments are on digital. We have also moved
Here, he takes us through his eventful career and from demographic targeting of audiences to
philosophies in life, and the many facets of his current more psychographic targeting, to keep the
LESSONS FROM M S BANGA
Many years ago, I had the opportunity to
attend the AdAsia conclave in Jaipur, and I
listened to this insightful presentation by
M S Banga, former chairman of Unilever
India. He said that to become an iconic
brand, you need to have four ‘I’s. First, the
brand should treat you as an individual.
Second, the brand should inspire you to do
something right, something different.
Third, it’s about intimacy – you as a
customer need to have a loyal and a
lasting relationship with the brand. Lastly,
it should appeal to your inner self. This is a

FIRST PERSON
lights on during a phase where international valid proposition even today, and will
role as brand custodian of Tourism Australia travel has come to a standstill. continue to be relevant in future as well.

Having a purpose…
I started off as a management trainee with
pharmaceutical and healthcare company Ab-
bott. I was responsible for the launch of a
product called PediaSure. Then I joined
Thomas Cook and Kuoni, to market holidays.
Now, with Tourism Australia, I market a des-
tination. It’s been an amazing journey of
marketing things that really appeal to people
in their day-to-day lives. I've always believed
that there has to be a reason for your exis-
tence, and some purpose as to why you're do-
ing a particular job. So, at Abbot, it was all
about enhancing the quality of life, address-
ing that guilt factor which all moms have…
At Thomas Cook and Kuoni, it was all about
enriching lives, uniting families by organiz-
ing hassle-free holidays. And thereby con-
tributing to the world economy, as tourism is
a major contributor to GDP of most nations.
At Tourism Australia, the purpose is to
strengthen the people-to-people links
between the two countries and
showcasing why there's truly
nothing like Australia. A
common thread binds all
my marketing efforts,
and that is advocacy.
Bringing Australia
closer…
When I joined
Tourism Australia
almost a decade ago
in June, 2010, we
had this unfortu-
nate incident in
Australia involving Indian students, and
Australia's reputation took a hit. We
launched a campaign called ‘Namaste Aus-
tralia’, showcasing Australia through the
eyes of Indians. It had real people talking
about their real experiences. Ever since then,
be it the ‘Namaste Australia’, ‘There’s Noth-
ing like Australia’, ‘Restaurant Australia’,
‘Undiscover Australia’ , or the most recent
ICC T20 World Cup campaign titled ‘Experi-
ence the Game and Beyond’, advocacy, work-
ing with influencers and ‘Friends of Aus-
tralia’ have been an integral part of all our
marketing efforts.
"Just before COVID struck,
we had the high-profile
Tourism Australia Board
come to India to understand the
India opportunity and what are the
issues and challenges we need to
address. We want to keep the India
dream alive, and keep investing in
this market."
— NISHANT KASHIKAR
Over the years, I've also seen a transition in
the media environment. Earlier, we worked
with the likes of Sony, Star Plus and Zee, to
take broadcast projects into Australia, right
from ‘Bade Achhe Lagte Hain’, to ‘Pyar Ka
Dard’, to ‘Yeh Hain Mohabbatein’. In fact, we
had a wonderful relationship with Balaji
Telefilms, all of Ekta Kapoor’s family soaps
Nurturing the India dream…
Going forward, we are focusing on three
things - to keep the India dream alive, as we
truly believe that India has the potential to
contribute quite significantly to the Aus-
tralian economy. This market has the poten-
tial to be in the league of 1 million visitor ar-
rivals markets and be either the No. 3 or No.
4 market for Tourism Australia. Just before
COVID struck, we had the high-profile
Tourism Australia Board come to India to
understand the India opportunity and what
are the issues and challenges we need to ad-
dress. We want to keep the India dream alive,
and keep investing in this market.
Secondly, we kept the lights on. We en-
sured that Australia is right up in the consid-
eration set of high value travellers as well as
the entire travel industry. We've leveraged
the Border-Gavaskar series quite effectively,
working with influencers and celebrities on
various content platforms. Lastly, we've been
trying to keep ourselves ready to attack as
soon as the borders open, exploring new
partnerships with banks, credit cards and
other non-travel partners, who will have ac-
cess to a database of high-value customers
who will have the propensity to travel.
Playing the virtual game…
When the Indian cricket team travelled to
Australia for the Border-Gavaskar series, we
had spectators at 25% to 50% of stadium ca-
pacity. At this point, Australia is virtually
COVID-free. Our research shows that almost
87% of Indians believe that it is safe to travel
to Australia. Our efforts have been to create
virtual experiences for Indian travellers,
sowing the seed in their minds to think
about Australia as the next holiday destina-
tion. We have been doing interesting sessions
like an Australian Masterchef teaching Indi-
an travel agents to cook using native, indige-
nous Australian ingredients. Then we had
this penguin parade from Phillip Island, we
took Indians on a virtual journey of the Mel-
bourne Cricket Ground, showcased the kan-
garoos and koalas from Kangaroo Island in
Australia. We took them on a virtual under-
water journey from one of the pontoons in
the Great Barrier Reef and a rainforest expe-
rience from Cairns, and so on. Recently, we
launched 8D videos, based on sound engi-
neering technology, where you not only visit
those destinations virtually, but also listen to
the sounds of that particular place, live sit-
ting in your home. Then, we've had these en-
gaging sessions with cricketing greats like
David Warner and Brett Lee, as well as part-
nerships with the likes of BuzzFeed, where
we seed content, for example, on what is it
that you could do beyond the MCG or the
SCG or the Adelaide Oval.
Influencers have played a significant role
in strengthening Brand Australia in India.
We have an advocacy programme called
‘Friends of Australia’, where we have
celebrities or influencers or artists who've
got a passion to promote Australia; we have
almost 150 Friends of Australia all around
the world. In India, we worked with Sanjeev
Kapoor when we launched our Restaurant
Australia campaign, with Harsha Bhogle for
the ICC World Cup 2015 campaign, with Pari-
neeti Chopra for our Undiscover Australia
campaign and most recently for the ICC T20
Women's World Cup, we appointed Mithali
Raj as a Friend of Australia.
Belief beyond passions…
Always a Mumbaikar, working in the travel
industry gave me the opportunity to travel,
and it is now a passion. Another passion is
cricket; I play professional T20 game every
weekend - and this is another link to a crick-
eting country like Australia. I love music. My
wife is in her fifth year of Sangeet Visharad,
so I accompany her to musical performances.
During the lockdown, I also got into creating
small videos for the family; hosting and com-
pering family events. Yoga and meditation
through Art of Living and Vipassana help
me keep my mental balance.
Three words that are extremely close to my
heart are: ‘Make a Difference’. Be it your
personal life or your professional life, dealing
with colleagues or with your organization or
business partners, it's really very important
to make a difference, and you will be respect-
ed only if you bring about a change, or con-
tribute to somebody's life in a fruitful man-
ner. The Nishant Kashikar that I would like
to see is somebody who makes a positive dif-
ference to this world, or to the society or
community, and that would be the real rea-
son for my existence.
(AS TOLD TO SRABANA LAHIRI)

Top rung marketers to decode ‘Brands and Consumers: 2021 and Beyond’
C
onsumer behaviour
Two-part webinar has gone through a
paradigm shift dur-
series conducted ing the COVID-19 pandem-
by the Indian ic. As a corollary, it has
posed new challenges for
Society of brands. In order to under-
stand the strategies devised
Advertisers (ISA), by top brands to tackle the
challenges of this global
in association with pandemic and to look be-
the Free Press yond it, the Indian Society
of Advertisers (ISA), in as-
Journal and ABP sociation with the Free
Press Journal and ABP
Network, to be held Network, is organising a
webinar ‘Brands and Con-
5 pm onwards on sumers: 2021 and Beyond’.
This two-part unique webi-
February 24 and nar series will be addressed
March 3 by the best Marketing
minds from across indus-
tries.
Commenting on the initia-
tive, Sunil Kataria, ISA
Chairman, said, “The Indi-
an Society of Advertisers
(ISA) is an apex body, suc-
cessfully representing the
interests of the advertising
fraternity for nearly 70
years. The world has gone
through a very difficult
COVID period during 2020.
This sad event has signifi-
cantly impacted all brands
and consumer behaviour.
It’s time to review and,
more importantly, under-
stand the learnings and the
way forward for the indus-
try both in the short term
as well as the long term.
Over the years, ISA has
been organising knowledge
seminars/webinars for the
benefit of the ecosystem of
advertisers and marketers.
Continuing the same, our
next two-part webinar se-
ries focuses on the issue
most of us are facing:
Brands & Consumers-2021
and Beyond. We bring you
leadership views and strate-
SUNIL
KATARIA
ANIL
VISWANATHAN
ANUJ PODDAR
GAURAVJEET
SINGH
SHASHANK
SRIVASTAVA
SUPARNA
MITRA
gies from across the Manu-
facturing and the Services
sectors."
Abhishek Karnani, Direc-
tor, The Free Press Journal,
said, “This session will be
significant to all advertisers
and marketers who want to
strategise the future course
of actions for their brands.”
While the first session of
the two-part webinar series NARENDRA ABRAHAM RAHUL
AJAY KAKAR MOHIT KAPOOR RAVI DESAI
on Wednesday, February AMBWANI ALAPATT KARTHIKEYAN
24 will be focused on
‘Manufacturing’, the sec- Foods Pvt. Limited; Anuj Johnson & Johnson. This Mass & Brand Marketing other industry bodies in-
ond session on Wednesday, Poddar, Executive Director, session will have names (in International, Amazon In- volved in the Indian adver-
March 3 will focus on ‘Ser- Bajaj Electricals Limited; alphabetical order) like dia. tising, marketing and me-
vices’. Both webinars will Gauravjeet Singh, General Abraham Alapatt, Presi- The knowledge partner dia industry. The ISA is a
be of one hour duration, Manager – Media (South dent and Group Head-Mar- for the webinar is Mogae founder member of the
from 5 pm to 6 pm. Asia), Hindustan Unilever keting, Service Quality, Fi- Media and Laqshya is the WFA (World Federation of
The session on ‘Manufac- Limited; Shashank Srivas- nancial Services & Innova- outdoor partner. Advertisers), Brussels. It’s
turing’ will be moderated tava, Executive Director, tion, Thomas Cook (India) Notably, the Indian Socie- one of the three constituent
by Sunil Kataria, ISA Maruti Suzuki India Limit- Limited; Ajay Kakar, Chief ty of Advertisers (ISA) has bodies of BARC (Broadcast
Chairman and CEO – India ed and Suparna Mitra, Marketing Officer, Aditya been the flagship national Audience Research Coun-
& SAARC, Godrej Con- CEO - Watches and Wear- Birla Capital; Mohit body and unique voice of cil) and one of the founders
sumer Products Limited. ables Division, Titan Com- Kapoor, Group Vice Presi- advertisers pan India for of ASCI (Advertising Stan-
He will be in conversation pany Limited. dent -Advertising & Innova- close to 70 years. The ISA dards Council of India).
with (in alphabetical order) The second session on tions, Jio Platforms Limit- stands for education, repre- Catch the webinars live 5
Anil Viswanathan, Senior ‘Services’ will be moderated ed; Rahul Karthikeyan, Di- sentation, protection and pm onwards on both days
Director - Marketing by Narendra Ambwani, rector - Marketing, Upgrad support to the advertisers. on the YouTube channel of
(Chocolates), Insights & An- ISA Executive Council Education Private Limited; It works in an excellent fra- the Free Press Journal and
alytics, Mondelez India Member and former MD, and Ravi Desai, Director, ternity relationship with ABP Live.

Knowledge partner
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