PUBLISHED FROM LUCKNOW
: UPENG/2007/19688
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Editorial: Food thought Over 1 cr households registered under rooftop solar scheme: PM Dravid hopes Ashwin doesn’t call it quits anytime soon
Akhilesh Yadav explains why he did not Jaishankar's 'what
attend Cong's ‘Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra’ friends are for' reply
OUR CORRESPONDENT
LUCKNOW: Samajwadi Par-
ty chief Akhilesh Yadav on
Sunday issued a statement
explaining why he could not
attend the concluding cer-
emony of the ‘Bharat Jodo
Nyay Yatra’ in Mumbai. In
a letter written to Congress
leader Rahul Gandhi, Yadav
said that he could not attend
the event owing to the Lok
Sabha nomination prepara-
tions in Uttar Pradesh.
“Today your Bharat Jodo
Nyay Yatra is concluding in
Mumbai. Rare are those
people, who can take out
such ‘yatra’…The Election
Commission yesterday an-
nounced the elections. Nom-
inations will begin in UP from
March 20, and owing to its
preparations, I will not be
able to attend the closing
POLLS TO BE HELD IN
2 PHASES IN OUTER
MANIPUR
NEW DELHI: Voting in the
Outer Manipur constituency
will be held in two phases,
and those living in camps
in violence-hit state will be
allowed to vote from their
camps, Chief Election Com-
missioner Rajiv Kumar said
on Saturday. As the Election
Commission announced
the dates for Lok Sabha
polls, queries were raised
over the number of seats
totalling up to 544, instead
of 543. Kumar said the in-
crease was due to Outer
Manipur being counted
twice, since polls will be
held there in two phases.
POLICEWOMAN RAPED
BY CONSTABLE IN
UTTAR PRADESH’S
JALAUN: OFFICIAL
JALAUN (UP): A lady police
constable was allegedly
raped here by another con-
stable posted with her, a po-
lice official said on Saturday.
Additional Superintendent
of Police (ASP) Dr Asim
Choudhary said based on
the complaint filed by the
victim on Friday alleging
that constable Karamvir
Singh misbehaved with her
and raped her, the Superin-
tendent of Police formed
an investigation committee.
Based on the committee’s
report, a case was regis-
tered against Singh, who
has now been arrested, the
Additional Superintendent
of Police said.
NFR REGISTERS 7.8%
GROWTH IN FREIGHT
UNLOADING
MALIGAON: To maintain
supply of essential and oth-
er commodities, Northeast
Frontier Railway is continu-
ously registering increase
in freight unloading. 1,238
freight carrying rakes were
unloaded during the month
of February, 2024 which is
more than 7.8 per cent in
comparison to the same
period of the previous year.
During April 2023 to Febru-
ary 2024 of the current fi-
nancial year, 12,750 freight
carrying rakes were unload-
ed within the jurisdiction of
NF Railway.
ucknow news
VOL. 18 | ISSUE NO: 198 | Monday, 18 March 2024 | DAILY MORNING | Page 4 | Price Rs 1.00
programme of the yatra,” the
letter read.
Yadav also congratulated
the Congress leader for his
“strong determination” to
carry out such a Yatra. Call-
ing Gandhi a “rare person”,
the SP chief wrote: “You
started this yatra from Ma-
nipur, which is burning due
to the failure of the BJP gov-
ernment. You have given a
‘Political retribution’: Baghel after his
name appears in Mahadev App case FIR
OUR CORRESPONDENT
RAIPUR: Senior Congress
leader and former Chhat-
tisgarh chief minister Bh-
upesh Baghel on Sunday
reacting over the first in-
formation report (FIR) reg-
istered against him in the
Mahadev App betting scam
by the Economic Offence
Wing (EOW), said that the
case is purely political and
his name was added force-
fully by the Bhartiya Jana-
ta Party (BJP)-led govern-
ment.
Addressing a press con-
ference in Raipur on Sun-
day Baghel said, “The FIR
against me was lodged on
March 4 by the EOW then
why was it not published on
the EOW website till now?
My name was later added
after being pressured. This
means the BJP fear losing
Rajnandgaon seat and Ch-
hattisgarh because they
know my candidature will
have an impact across the
state,” said Baghel.
He said that it was his
government which took ac-
tion against such betting
apps in the past. The Con-
gress government lodged
72 FIRs in connection with
IMD predicts rise in maximum temperature
OUR CORRESPONDENT
NEW DELHI: Day tempera-
tures are likely to increase
by two to four degrees Cel-
sius over northwest India, in-
cluding Delhi, Haryana and
Punjab from the next week,
the Indian Meteorological
Department (IMD) has fore-
cast.
“There is likely to be a
gradual rise in maximum
temperatures by two to four
degrees Celsius from the
next the four to five days”,
IMD’s Sunday bulletin said.
According to the IMD,
the maximum or day tem-
perature has remained be-
low normal by two to three
degrees Celsius in many
strong message against the
dictator government from
the north-east. During the
course of the entire yatra,
you met (people from) all the
sections of the society, in-
cluding farmers, youngsters,
women, elderly and you got
acquainted with their prob-
lems very closely.”
He added, “…Not only
hopeful, but fully confident
the Mahadev betting App,
and arrested over 450 peo-
ple in Chhattisgarh and
across the country, he said.
The former chief minister
claimed that not only in Ra-
jnandgaon, but the BJP will
suffer losses in the entire
state due to his contesting
the Lok Sabha elections.
“We also wrote to Google
to close Mahadev App but
there are a lot of betting
apps that are still active.
BJP has been in power for
four months in Chhattisgarh
and for the last 10 years in
the Centre, what are they
doing?” said Baghel.
He alleged that the BJP
does not want to arrest the
real culprits. “Shubham
Soni gave a response in
the presence of the con-
sulate general, why wasn’t
parts of the country except
over some parts of Jam-
mu-Kashmir-Ladakh-Gilg-
it-Baltistan-Muzaffarabad,
Himachal Pradesh, Punjab
and Northeast and south
Peninsular India, where
these are near normal. But,
now there will be a gradual
Akhilesh Yadav joined
Rahul Gandhi during the
Uttar Pradesh leg of the
‘Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra’ in
Agra on February 25
that the public will uproot and
throw out the BJP, which is
against the farmers, young-
sters, backwards, Dalits and
women. The real success of
the yatra will be that the BJP
gets defeated in these elec-
tions.”
Akhilesh Yadav joined
Gandhi during the Uttar
Pradesh leg of the Yatra in
Agra on February 25. This
came shortly after the two
parties ended their deadlock
over seat sharing in Uttar
Pradesh and confirmed an
alliance.
Notably, the SP will con-
test on 63 seats, while the
Congress agreed to fight
he arrested then?... Why
aren’t those accused being
brought back to India?” he
questioned.
He further said that more
than 200 ATM cards were
seized, but these were op-
erated from somewhere
else.
“We also issued a lookout
notice against Ravi Uppal.
It was the responsibility of
the Government of India
to catch them but they did
not catch them,” Baghel al-
leged.
Baghel claimed that his
government was the one
who wrote to Google to shut
down the app.
Chhattisgarh Police has
filed a case naming former
chief minister Bhupesh Ba-
ghel as an accused in the
Mahadev Online Book app
shift towards hot weath-
er, it said. “Hot and humid
weather is also likely to con-
tinue over Kerala and Mahe
during the next four days,
over Rayalaseema during
the next three days and over
Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and
Karaikal during the next two
from 17 constituencies in
Uttar Pradesh. According to
the seat-sharing formula,
the Congress will contest
Mathura and Fatehpur Sikri
parliamentary seats, while
the SP will contest Agra,
Firozabad, Mainpuri in Agra
Division and Aligarh, Hathras
and Etah in the Aligarh divi-
sion - all the constituencies
the ‘Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra’
passed through.
The ‘Nyay Yatra’, which
began in strife-torn Manipur
on January 14, concluded
on Saturday after 63 days in
Mumbai.
The event was attended
by senior Congress leaders
Sonia Gandhi, Mallikarjun
Kharge, Priyanka Gandhi,
NCP (SP) president Sharad
Pawar, Shiv Sena (UBT) pres-
ident Uddhav Thackeray, and
RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav.
scam, estimated to be worth
6,000 crore, a development
that could lead to legal prob-
lems for the Congress lead-
er ahead of the Lok Sabha
elections.
Baghel has been charged
with various sections per-
taining to cheating, criminal
conspiracy, breach of trust,
and forgery under the Indi-
an Penal Code (IPC), and
sections 7 and 11 of the
Prevention of Corruption Act
in a first information report
(FIR) filed by the EOW in Rai-
pur on March 4.
Those named along with
Baghel in the FIR include
Mahadev promoters Sour-
abh Chandrakar and Ravi
Uppal, 16 other named
accused persons, and “un-
named” bureaucrats, police
officers and officers on spe-
cial duty (OSDs) during his
tenure as the CM. HT has
reviewed a copy of the FIR.
The financial crimes probe
agency had alleged in No-
vember 2023 that Chandra-
kar and Uppal paid bribes
worth 508 crore to Baghel.
The two are currently in de-
tention in a UAE facility and
extradition requests have al-
ready been sent through the
ministry of external affairs.
days”, the weather forecast
agency said in its bulletin on
Sunday.
“Temperatures have been
largely below normal over
the northwest due to back-
to-back western disturbanc-
es which led to incursion of
cool air but now we are not
expecting any major WD
immediately. Due to direct
sunshine, temperatures will
start increasing,” said M Mo-
hapatra, director general,
IMD. “No major weather ac-
tivity is expected over north-
west India now. This will
lead to both rise in day and
night time temperatures.
Maximum will reach around
33 degrees Celsius over Del-
hi next week.
to Bulgaria minister
OUR CORRESPONDENT
NEW DELHI: Bulgaria's depu-
ty prime minister on Sunday
thanked India, Prime Minis-
ter Narendra Modi, external
affairs minister S Jaishankar
for rescuing the hijacked ves-
sel MV Ruen from pirates
which had Bulgarian nation-
als on board. "I express my
gratitude to the navy for the
successful operation to res-
cue the hijacked vessel Ruen
&its crew members, includ-
ing 7 BG nationals. Thank
you for support &great ef-
fort. We continue to work
together to protect lives of
the crew," Bulgarian minister
Mariya Gabriel posted on X.
'That's what friends are for,"
Jaishankar replied.
The Indian Navy on Sat-
urday made 35 pirates to
surrender and rescued MV
Ruen which was hijacked by
Somali pirates on December
14 last year.
All crew members were
rescued unhurt on Saturday.
The Navy deployed its
P-8I maritime patrol air-
craft, frontline ships INS
Kolkata and INS Subhadra,
and high-altitude long-en-
durance (HALE) unmanned
Rahul Gandhi's sharp attack on
PM at INDIA bloc's Mumbai rally
OUR CORRESPONDENT
NEW DELHI: In an apparent
dig at Prime Minister Naren-
dra Modi, Congress leader
Rahul Gandhi alleged ma-
nipulation of the Electoral
voting Machine and said
“King's soul is in the EVM.”
Addressing the people at
the conclusion ceremony of
the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra,
Rahul Gandhi said, “There
is a word 'Shakti' in Hindu-
ism. We are fighting against
a Shakti. The question is,
what is that Shakti. The soul
of the King is in the EVM.
This true. The soul of the
King in the EVM and every
institution of the country, in
ED, CBI and Income Tax de-
partment," PTI reported.
“We had to undertake
the journey because today
the media does not raise
important issues of the
country – Unemployment,
inflation, farmers issue, Ag-
niveer issue. All these issues
are not visible in the media
'Elvish Yadav was hiding information': Police
OUR CORRESPONDENT
NOIDA: Popular YouTuber
and television personality
Elvish Yadav was on Sun-
day arrested by the Noida
Police in a case linked to
the use of snake venom as
a recreational drug at a par-
ty last year. He was sent to
14-day judicial custody by a
local court. Later, the police
revealed why the controver-
sial celebrity was arrested.
R.N.I. Reg. No.
aerial vehicle. The elite
MARCOS commandos were
air-dropped for the opera-
tion by C-17 aircraft. During
the 40-hour operation, the
pirates fired on the Indian
Navy and the Navy respond-
ed in self-defence. "INS Kol-
kata, in the last 40 hours,
through concerted actions
successfully cornered and
coerced all 35 Pirates to
surrender and ensured safe
evacuation of 17 crew mem-
bers in the evening today
from the pirate vessel with-
out any injury," Navy spokes-
person Commander Vivek
Madhwal said.
The hijacking of Bulgar-
ia-owned MV Ruen in De-
cember 2023 was the first
time since 2017 that any car-
go was boarded by Somali
today,” Gandhi said.
They want to crush us:
Kharge
Congress national pres-
ident Mallikarjun Kharge
said, "The 'Shakti' Rahul
Gandhi was talking about,
I will say openly that Modiji
has this Shakti in the form
of RSS and Manuvaad...
They want to crush us using
this Shakti."
BHARAT JODO NYAY
YATRA CONCLUDED AT
SHIVAJI PARK
Rahul Gandhi concluded
his Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra
with a rally at Shivaji Park,
Noida DCP Vidya Sagar
Mishra said that Elvish Ya-
dav was called for question-
ing on Sunday afternoon
but he wasn't cooperating.
The police officer claimed
the Gurugram resident had
been hiding information.
"Elvish Yadav was called
for questioning today in
a case pertaining to the
Wildlife Protection Act. It
was found that he was hid-
ing information during the
pirates.
Bulgaria's foreign minis-
try said it was seeking the
"speedy return" of seven res-
cued Bulgarian crew mem-
bers. The other crew were
nine Myanmar and one An-
golan national.
The Indian navy has kept
tabs on the MV Ruen since it
was seized by Somali pirates
380 nautical miles east of
the Yemeni island of Socotra
in December. The pirates,
who at the time released one
injured Bulgarian sailor into
the care of the Indian navy,
had taken the MV Ruen and
its remaining 17 crew mem-
bers to Somalia's semi-au-
tonomous state of Puntland,
where the Indian navy said
it was moored off the city of
Bosaso.
in the presence of the INDIA
bloc's several prominent
leaders. Joining him are
Tamil Nadu chief minister
MK Stalin, RJD leader Te-
jashwi Yadav and Shiv Sena
(UBT) chief Udhaav Thack-
rey.
Upon his arrival, Gandhi
paid homage to the statue
of Chhatrapati Shivaji Ma-
haraj and visited the me-
morial of Shiv Sena founder
Bal Thackeray to offer his re-
spects. Notably, Shivaji Park
has long served as a venue
for rallies and gatherings of
the Shiv Sena.
interrogation," the officer
said. He said he was pro-
duced before the court by
enhancing the sections of
the NDPS Act in the case.
"A case under Wild Life
Protection Act-1972, was
filed (against Elvish Yadav
and others). Today he was
called for interrogation and
was produced before the
court by enhancing the sec-
tions of the NDPS Act in the
said case," he added.
2 Lucknow, Monday, 18 March 2024 Lucknow News (English Daily)

No Water, No joy
EDITORIAL
Food thought
Global food prices posted the biggest annual drop since
2015, amid signs that lower wholesale food prices are
starting to feed through to supermarket shelves. An index
of food-commodity prices created by the United Nations’
Food and Agriculture Organisation fell about 10 per cent in BANGALORE REELS UNDER ACUTE WATER SCARCITY AMID HIGH TEMPERATURES
2023, according to data released recently. The FAO Food
Price Index (FFPI) stood at 118.5 points in December 2023, AS THOUGHTLESS URBANISATION OF THE PAST COMES TO HAUNT THE ONCE ‘GARDEN CITY’
down 1.8 points (1.5 per cent) from its November level, as In the second week of Jan-
decreases in the price indices for sugar, vegetable oils, and uary, the Arakan Army (AA),
meat more than offset increases in dairy products and ce- an ethnic armed group in
reals. western Myanmar’s Rakh-
The index stood 13.3 points (10.1 per cent) below its cor- ine state, declared control
responding level one year ago. For 2023 as a whole, the in- over the port town of Pal-
dex recorded 124.0 points, 19.7 points (13.7 per cent) lower etwa, situated on the Ka-
than the average value in 2022. The FAO Cereal Price Index ladan River, sharing borders
averaged 122.8 points in December, up 1.8 points (1.5 per with India and Bangladesh.
cent) from November, but still 24.4 points (16.6 per cent) In a statement on January
below its December 2022 value. 14, AA spokesperson Kh-
After falling for four consecutive months, wheat export ine Thu Kha expressed the
prices increased in December, supported by weather-relat- group’s commitment to co-
ed logistical disruptions in some major exporters and ten- operate with neighbouring
sions in the Black Sea amidst solid demand. World maize countries.
prices also strengthened in December, underpinned by The AA stated that its inten-
concerns about Brazil’s second crop plantings, and logisti- tion was to assume control
cal constraints hindering shipments from Ukraine. Among over administration and law
other coarse grains, world prices of barley increased, while enforcement in the Paletwa
sorghum prices decreased slightly. region. Meanwhile, the Ara-
In December, the FAO All Rice Price Index rose 1.6 per kan Army, which has been
cent above its November level. Indica quotations under- inflicting massive defeats
pinned this increase, rising in response to purchases by on the Junta in the Rakhine
some Asian buyers and reduced competition among ex- state, has urged men from
porters owing to India’s export restrictions and tight avail- the Rohingya community to
abilities in Vietnam. flee to the ‘liberated’ areas to
According to the rice index, international rice prices regis- escape their forced conscrip-
tered a 21 per cent annual increase in 2023, largely owing tion into the military, reports
to concerns about the impact of El Niño on rice production The Wire.
and in the aftermath of export As per a report by The
restrictions imposed by India. For India’s assertion of its Hindu, by the first week of
the year as a whole, the FAO Ce- ‘non-Western’ identity February, 388 people, most-
real Price Index stood at 130.9 despite holding strong ly border security guards of
points in 2023, down 23.8 points ties with the West is Myanmar, and Army person-
(15.4 per cent) from the 2022 a positive culmination nel, had entered Bangladesh
record annual average, reflecting of the evolutionary [through the border along
well-supplied global markets. engagement through Chittagong and Rakhine].
While the index tracks raw historical, cultural, As fighting intensified in the
commodity costs rather than and civilisational Chin state of Myanmar, an Muslim Rohingyas appear to have emerged as the new enemies of the ruling elite in the country
retail prices, the steep drop exchanges; The non- estimated 5,000 Myanmar connectivity project can take decided to scrap the ‘free On February 29, Chief released in August 2019, left
could indicate potential relief on Western approach nationals were believed to place in Rakhine State right movement regime’ (FMR) Minister Lalduhoma told the out 1.9 million of the total 33 Northeastern India
the way for consumers, as food emphasises interaction have entered Mizoram in now as the AA has estab- along the 1,643-km In- Assembly that the Mizoram million applicants, reported has a long history of
prices ease from a 2022 peak with the world as a the first week of February it- lished control in almost all do-Myanmar border, imple- government decided not to Hindustan Times. Mean- proautonomy movement
that followed Russia’s invasion physically as well as self. Data from the Mizoram the major towns and supply mented almost five years collect the biometric details while, Senior Congress lead- Indo-Pakistan border to the
of Ukraine and contributed to a an emotionally shared Home Department indicate routes. As a result, the Ka- ago, in 2018, to facilitate the of refugees from Myanmar er Pawan Khera asserted north-east IndoMyanmar,
cost-of-living crisis in countries space that there were 31,364 ladan project too has almost people living in the border and Bangladesh in the State. that the Citizenship (Amend- Indo-Bangladesh border.
across the world. Corn and wheat Myanmar nationals living in died as Paletwa is essential areas. Under this regime, ev- The Ministry of Home Affairs ment) Act 2019 will be re- Compared to Afghan- and
futures prices saw their biggest annual declines in a decade different parts of the state. for this project and Paletwa ery member of the hill tribes had asked the State govern- pealed if the party comes to Pakistan-based terrorists,
last year, as supply concerns faded. Futures prices for hogs It may be recalled that fol- is no longer in control of the – either a citizen of India or ment to collect the data in power after the Lok Sabha Muslim Rohingyas in Myan-
and palm oil also posted big declines. lowing the February 1, 2021 military junta.” It may be re- Myanmar and who is a resi- April 2023. v On February elections. According to him, mar and Bangladesh are
While the UN’s index is now at the lowest level since Feb- coup, Myanmar has been in called that KMTTP was one dent of an area within 16 km 28, police commandos laid “the cutoff date of 1971 is soft targets.
ruary 2021, lower wholesale costs have been taking some turmoil. of India’s flagship connectiv- of the IndoMyanmar border down arms in protest against sacrosanct for Assam. But Moreover, India’s pow-
time to percolate down to supermarkets and consumers. Political analysts argue ity projects that had aimed on both sides – could cross the attack and abduction of CAA will take it away and er corridor, DelhiAhmed-
However, there are signs that food inflation is cooling. The that the militarised state at enhancing road and mar- the border on producing a a police officer. 2014 will be the cut-off date.” abad-Mumbai, is situated
indicator fell sharply in the UK last month to the lowest since is not only fragile or failing, itime connection with South- pass. Around 200 armed mis- The situation got further very close to the Indo-Paki-
June 2022, while food, fuel and alcohol price rises have also but has failed. Myanmar be- east Asia. Due to the ongoing This was issued by the creants had stormed the heated up when the Assam stan border. Nonetheless,
slowed in New Zealand. Food prices increased 2.1 per cent came the world’s largest pro- conflict, the security of the competent authority and house of a police officer in Chief Minister Himanta Myanmar and Bangladesh
in the 12 months to February 2024, the smallest increase ducer of opium in 2023. It strategically vital Sittwe Port, was valid for a year; availing Imphal East. ASP Moirangth- Biswa Sarma said that he borders are at a much safer
since May 2021, according to figures released by Stats NZ now produces an estimated developed by India as part of this facility, a person could em Amit and his escort were would be the first to resign if distance from the dwellings
this month. 1,080 metric tonnes of opi- the USD 484 million Kaladan stay for up to two weeks per abducted. one person, who has not ap- of the political and business
The 2.1 per cent increase is noticeably lower when com- um (essential for producing Multi-Modal Transit Project, visit. According to the Minis- The most serious protest plied for the National Regis- leaders of India. Therefore,
pared with the 12.0 per cent increase in the 12 months heroin), higher than Afghan- is now at risk. try of Home Affairs, the In- came from China. Its For- ter of Citizens (NRC), gets cit- Muslim Rohingyas are the
to February 2023. The lower annual increase was due to istan, reports Hindustan Reacting to these develop- dian government scrapped eign Ministry spokesperson izenship, as quoted by NDTV. new enemy of the Indian rul-
cheaper fruit and vegetable prices, down 9.3 per cent in Times. In October 2023, the ments, the Union Home Min- the FMR to ensure the inter- Wang Wenbin criticised In- In West Bengal, panic has ing elites.
the 12 months to February 2024. “Cheaper prices for fresh Arakan Army, the Myanmar ister Amit Shah announced nal security of the country dian Prime Minister Naren- spread among several peo- Against this background,
produce such as tomatoes, broccoli, and lettuce drove the National Democratic Alli- that the central government and to maintain the demo- dra Modi’s visit to the East ple across Bengal after they the Gazetteer notification of
decrease in fruit and vegetable prices,” consumer prices ance Army and the Ta’ang plans to build a fence along graphic structure of India’s Section of the China-India received letters from the the Citizenship Amendment
manager Will Bell was quoted as saying. All other broad National Liberation Army, the entire 1,643-kilometer North Eastern States bor- boundary. Unique Identification Author- Act (CAA) on March 11, deac-
food groups increased in the 12 months to February 2024. calling themselves the Three Indo-Myanmar border. Ma- dering Myanmar. Resistance Wang noted that India has ity of India (UIDAI), inform- tivation of thousands of Aad-
Price movements, in order of their contribution, were: Brotherhood Alliance, said in nipur shares approximately against fencing the border no right to arbitrarily develop ing them that their Aadhaar har cards in Bengal during
restaurant meals and ready-toeat food prices – increased a joint statement that they 390 km of a porous border There has been widespread the area of Zangnan in Chi- number had been deactivat- last few weeks, and the well-
by 6.7 per cent, grocery food prices – increased by 3.9 per had begun “Operation 1027” with Myanmar. Mizoram resistance from the local na, and India’s moves will ed and their requirements to planned propaganda against
cent, non-alcoholic beverage prices – increased by 4.3 per in Myanmar’s Shan state. has a porous border of 510 communities against the In- only complicate the bound- stay in the country were not Muslim youths for ‘raping
cent, meat, poultry, and fish prices – increased by 0.2 per The offensive could be- kilometres with Myanmar. dian government’s decision ary question and disrupt the fulfilled. Hindu women’ of Sandesh-
cent. “Going out for a meal or grabbing takeaways was come a new major front in Arunachal Pradesh shares to fence the Myanmar bor- situation in the border areas An official in the Ranchi re- khali, a border town of mixed
more expensive in February 2024,” Bell is said to have add- the strife-torn Southeast a 520-kilometer border with der. between the two countries. gional office of the UIDAI ad- Hindu and Muslim popula-
ed. Monthly food prices fell 0.6 per cent in February 2024 Asian nation. India’s reaction Myanmar and Nagaland’s For example: v On March It claimed that the area of mitted that they had issued tion in the Bengal-Bangla-
compared with January 2024. On February 7, 2024, the border with the country ex- 1, The Nagaland Assembly Zangnan is Chinese territory around 1 lakh such letters desh border region, should
The biggest contributor to this fall was fruit and vegeta- Ministry of External Affairs tends to 215 kilometres. adopted a resolution urging and the Chinese government across the country, reports be analysed.
bles, driven by cheaper prices for apples, kumara, and to- (MEA) asked Indian citizens Speaking on the X plat- the Indian government to re- has never recognised the so- Telegraph. Observations The In addition to these, the
matoes. Other items that have contributed to the monthly in the Rakhine state of Myan- form, the Indian Home consider its decision to fence called “Arunachal Pradesh”, above developments in the presence of Rohingya and
fall include boxed chocolates, yoghurt, and lamb. The FAO mar to leave the region im- Minister said, “The Modi the Indo-Myanmar border illegally set up by India, and eastern and north-eastern Khalistani terrorists in
grain index fell more than 16 per cent compared to this mediately. The advisory said: government is committed and scrap the Free Move- firmly opposes it. borders of India indicate a Sandeshkhali has been al-
time last year, despite increasing slightly last month due to “In view of the deteriorating to building impenetrable ment Regime (FMR) with the Nonetheless, India has growing discontent of the leged by the BJP leaders. It
weatherrelated disruption in shipments from key exporters. security situation, disruption borders. It has decided to neighbouring country. strongly refuted the allega- citizens of eastern and north may also be mentioned that
In December, falls in the price indices for sugar, vegetable of means of telecommuni- construct a fence along the The Assembly also re- tion. CAA notification The no- eastern states; It also shows the BJP leaders even moved
oils and meat “more than offset increases in dairy products cations, including landlines, entire 1643-kilometer-long solved to appeal to the Union tification of the contentious change in India’s target to Calcutta High Court
and cereal” according to the organisation. For December, and severe scarcity of essen- Indo-Myanmar border. To fa- government to work out “reg- Citizenship Amendment Act group of enemies. with an appeal to consider
the index of food-commodity prices was 1.5 per cent lower tial commodities, all Indian cilitate better surveillance, a ulations for movement of 2019 (CAA) rules on March Instead of Pakistanand Af- Sandesh Khali incidence par-
from a month ago. Meanwhile, Indian annual retail inflation citizens are advised not to patrol track along the border people across the boundary 11, has triggered sporad- ghanistan-centred terrorist allel to the prolonged com-
in February rose at a faster-than-expected pace due to ele- travel to the Rakhine state of will also be paved. Out of the in consultation with the peo- ic protests in Assam. It is groups, India is now focusing munal riots in Manipur!
vated food prices, recent government data showed. Myanmar. total border length, a 10 km ple inhabiting the border ar- reported that a conglomer- more on Rohingya terrorists However, the honourable
Annual retail inflation eased slightly to 5.09 per cent in Those Indian citizens who stretch in Moreh, Manipur, eas, and for suitably bringing ation of 16 opposition par- based in the Rakhine district Judge did not entertain the
February from 5.10 per cent in January but was higher than are already in Rakhine state has already been fenced. Fur- in the village council author- ties in the state, led by the of Myanmar and among the allegation. North-eastern In-
the 5.02 per cent forecast by a ‘Reuters’ poll of 42 econo- are advised to leave the thermore, two pilot projects ities concerned in the entire Congress, United Opposition refugees’ camps in Bangla- dia, which shares strong cul-
mists. Food inflation, which accounts for nearly half of the state immediately.” Next day, of fencing through a Hybrid system of regulations.” v On Forum (UOF) and around 30 desh. After a deadly arm tural ties with various indig-
overall consumer price basket, rose 8.66 per cent in Febru- The Hindu, quoting a senior Surveillance System (HSS) February 28 , the 40-mem- different groups including attack on Rohingyas in Ra- enous groups of Myanmar,
ary, compared with an 8.30 per cent rise in January. Despite political figure of Myanmar, are under execution. They ber Mizoram Assembly ad- the influential All Assam khine state of Myanmar in China and Bangladesh, has
retail inflation being within the mandated band of 2 per reported that the Kaladan will fence a stretch of 1 km opted a resolution against Students Union (AASU), have 2017, more than 960,000 a long history of pro-auton-
cent-6 per cent, uncertainties in food prices have worried MultiModal Transit Transport each in Arunachal Pradesh the Indian government’s announced the launch of a people have found safety in omy movement. Any wrong
policymakers. Last month, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Project (KMTTP) had “almost and Manipur. Additionally, decision to fence the In- series of protests against Bangladesh with a majority step by the state will revive
left its rates unchanged and signalled it would not lower in- died” after the rebel Arakan fence works covering approx. dia-Myanmar border and the legislation, starting with living in the Cox Bazar’s re- the dormant anti-Indian sen-
terest rates until it achieves inflation of 4 per cent on a dura- Army (AA) captured the Pal- 20 km in Manipur have also scrap the Free Movement burning of copies of CAA on gion — home to the world’s timent which might lead to
ble basis. It expects inflation of 5.4 per cent for the current etwa township near Mizoram been approved, and the work Regime (FMR) agreement Tuesday. largest refugee camp. a prolonged civil war in the
fiscal year that ends on March 31 and has projected 4.5 per border in January. will start soon.” with the civil war-torn neigh- It may be recalled that the The battle field has been region. Burning Manipur is a
cent for the next fiscal year. “There is no way that any On February 8, India also bouring country. final draft of NRC for Assam, shifted from the north-west case in point.
Lucknow News (English Daily) Lucknow, Monday, 18 March 2024 3

In direct fight, AAP-Cong seek to end

InBrief
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BJP all-seat winning streak in New Delhi

OUR CORRESPONDENT
NEW DELHI: It will be a di-
rect fight between the AAP-
Congress alliance and the
BJP on the seven Lok Sabha
seats in the national capital.
The BJP, which won all the
seats in the 2019 as well as
the 2014 polls, is optimistic
of repeating the feat, despite
the INDIA bloc partners com-
ing together in an attempt to
end its streak.
Of the parliamentary con-
stituencies here, New Del-
hi and South Delhi are the
seats to watch out. In the
past these have sent prom-
inent leaders from both the
Congress and the BJP to the
Lok Sabha, including former
prime minister Atal Bihari Va-
jpayee, former deputy prime
minister LK Advani, Madan
Lal Khurana, Sushma Swaraj
and Lalit Makan.
The North East Delhi seat
will see BJP’s Manoj Tiwari
trying to retain it for a third
time in a row. He is the only
sitting MP that the party has
repeated here for the polls.
The other Lok Sabha seats
are Chandni Chowk, East
Delhi, North West Delhi and
West Delhi.
The Arvind Kejriwal-led
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is
contesting four constituen-
cies and the Congress three
as part of a seat-sharing ar-
rangement between them.
Here is a brief profile of the
key Lok Sabha constituen-
cies of Delhi: NEW DELHI: It
is the oldest parliamentary
constituency of the capital
city, and has been a bastion
both for the Congress and
the BJP.
There are 14.81 lakh vot-
ers, including 8,08,721 men
and 6,72,544 women, in the
constituency -- all the 10 As-
sembly segments of which
were won by the AAP in the
last polls.
Chief Minister Kejriwal is
an MLA from the New Delhi
assembly segment, while
two of his ministers -- Sau-
rabh Bhardwaj and Raaj Ku-
mar Anand -- are legislators
from Greater Kailash and
Patel Nagar falling under this
constituency.
New Delhi’s Lutyens’ Delhi
area is known for its tree-cov-
ered wide streets and sprawl-
ing bungalows of central
ministers, MPs, members of
the judiciary and high-rank-
ing military and government
officials, besides the Parlia-
ment, the President’s House
and the India Gate, among
other structures.
The constituency also has
many central government
residential colonies. SOUTH
DELHI: It is the fourth largest
Lok Sabha constituency in
the national capital in terms
of number of voters after
West Delhi, North West Delhi
and North East Delhi.
Its around 22.21 lakh vot-
ers, including 12.34 lakh
men and 9.86 lakh women,
live mostly in villages and un-
authorised colonies. It was
last won by the Congress in
the 2009 Lok Sabha polls.
NORTH EAST DELHI: With
nearly 23.81 lakh voters, in-
cluding 12.87 lakh men and
10.93 lakh women, the third
largest constituency in the
national capital has a large
population of migrants from
Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and
Jharkhand.
The BJP has repeated its
sitting MP Manoj Tiwari, a
popular Bhojpuri singer and
actor, from the seat, particu-
larly for his connect with the
majority Bhojpuri-speaking
Purvanchali people of the
area.
Voting in Delhi’s seven Lok
Sabha seats will take place
on May 25, the sixth phase
of the general elections, with
1.47 crore people eligible for
exercising their franchise, ac-
cording to the poll schedule
announced by the Election
Commission on Saturday.
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Rahul Gandhi concludes Bharat Indian Wells: Sakkari

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outlasts Gauff in
Jodo Nyay Yatra by reading Preamble
of thousands of earnest students
in India. Produced by Arbaaz Khan

OUR CORRESPONDENT
MUMBAI: Congress leader
Rahul Gandhi concluded
his 63-day-old Bharat Jodo
Nyay Yatra here by paying
tributes to Dr B R Ambedkar
at his memorial Chaityab-
hoomi in central Mumbai
and reading the Preamble
of the Constitution.
The former Congress pres-
ident was accompanied by
his sister and party general
secretary Priyanka Gandhi
Vadra. He paid tributes to Dr
Ambedkar, the architect of
the Indian Constitution, and
read its preamble.
The yatra, which com-
menced from strife-torn
Manipur on January 14, en-
tered Mumbai from neigh-
bouring Thane on the 63rd
day on Saturday. Gandhi will
undertake a ‘Nyay Sankalp
Padyatra’ from Mani Bha-
van to August Kranti Maidan
in Mumbai on Sunday morn-
ing.
On Sunday, the opposition
INDIA bloc will hold a rally
in a show of strength. Tam-
il Nadu Chief Minister MK
in the event. Earlier on Sat-
urday, addressing a public
meeting in the Dharavi area,
Gandhi reiterated the Con-
gress’ promise of caste cen-
sus and asserted that poor
women would get Rs 1 lakh
every year in their bank ac-
counts if his party returned
to power.
“Dharavi is yours and
should remain yours. Your
skills should be honoured
and this place should be-
come a manufacturing hub
of the country,” he said and
targeted the Adani Group,
which has been awarded
the project to redevelop the
slum sprawl. The country’s
wealth is being given to cer-
to acquire it through dalals’
(agents).
Police force is being used
to throw out the residents
for the Dharavi redevelop-
ment project,” he alleged.
Dharavi is Make in India’ in
the real sense and should
be made India’s manufac-
turing hub, he said.
Meanwhile, Adani’s Dhar-
avi Redevelopment Project
Private Limited (DRPPL) re-
jected Gandhi’s allegations
concerning it. Contrary to
the claims of favouritism,
the selection was based
entirely on merit, with the
Adani Group submitting the
highest bid in a tender that
was open to national and
terms and conditions were
finalised during the previous
Maha Vikas Aghadi govern-
ment, of which Congress
was a part.
The allegations of “selling
all of Mumbai to Adani” are
preposterous, malicious,
and unfounded, it said in a
statement. “They are made
with the intention of detract-
ing from the critical conver-
sation about improving the
lives of millions of Dhara-
vikars.
For decades, the people
of Dharavi have lived in the
hope of a better future. Now
that decisive steps have
been taken, we need to
work together to make this
vision a reality without politi-
cising the redevelopment,”
said the business house
led by industrialist Gautam
Adani.
“We categorically refute
the assertion that all ten-
ements of Dharavi will be
displaced. The project guar-
antees a minimum of 350
sq ft homes to all eligible
tenement residents, setting
a new standard for hous-
3 sets of semi-final
OUR CORRESPONDENT
CALIFORNIA (USA): Maria
Sakkari outlasted Coco
Gauff 6-4, 6-7 (5), 6-2 after
blowing three match points
in the second set of their
rain-delayed semi-final Fri-
day night to reach the BNP
Paribas Open final.
Sakkari will play top-
ranked Iga Swiatek in Sun-
day’s final. Swiatek routed
Marta Kostyuk 6-2, 6-1 to
improve to 19-2 this year,
with her match wins leading
the WTA Tour. Swiatek has
beaten Sakkari in three of
their five meetings.
There were delays of 20
minutes and two hours
during the semifinal be-
tween thirdseeded Gauff
and ninth-seeded Sakkari.
Sakkari broke Gauff twice in
taking a 5-2 lead in the sec-
ond set. But, Gauff won four
straight games and fought
off three match points in
the 10th game to take a 6-5
lead. Sakkari held to force
the tiebreaker in which she
fell behind 6-2 before Gauff
2022 tournament as part of
a 37-match winning streak.
She had advanced to the
semis when Caroline Wozni-
acki retired trailing 6-4, 1-0
in their quarterfinal. Swi-
atek has lost just 17 games
through the semis. Kostyuk
hit 17 winners to 14 for Swi-
atek in the match.
But, Swiatek was better in
nearly every other facet and
didn’t face a break point.
Swiatek connected on 74
per cent of her first serves
and won 83 per cent of her
firstserve points and 50 per
cent of her second-serve
points on a cool and windy
evening in the Southern
California desert. “It was
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Dravid hopes
Stalin, RJD leader Tejashwi tain corporates, he alleged. international participants, ing under Slum Rehabilita- won it, 7-5. the cleanest match I played
Yadav and SP chief Akhilesh “Dharavi is your own land said the business conglom- tion Authority projects,” the There were break points in here,” Swiatek said in an on-
are scheduled to take part but the government is trying erate. It said the tender’s statement said. each of the first six games court interview. “I didn’t real-

Jaypee Hospital surpasses 1000 Kidney transplants

OUR CORRESPONDENT
LUCKNOW: Delhi-NCR, Jay-
pee Hospital a Noida based
multi super specialty med-
ical institution, a leader in
Transplantation Medicine
and having a prominent
position in North India, has
achieved a proud milestone
by performing more than
1000 successful kidney
transplants and the special
thing is that in the entire Del-
hi-NCR Organ transplanta-
tion is done at Jaypee Hospi-
tal at very reasonable prices.
The hospital has earned a
respectable place in foreign
countries by successfully
performing kidney trans-
plants on patients from all
over the world.
Addressing journalists on
his achievement, Dr. Amit
Delhi court sends BRS leader Kavitha to ED custody till March 23
OUR CORRESPONDENT
NEW DELHI: BRS lead-
er K Kavitha, allegedly a
key member of the ‘South
Group’, which has been ac-
cused of paying the ruling
AAP kickbacks of Rs 100
crore in return for a big share
of liquor licences in the na-
tional capital, was on Satur-
k. Devra, Director and Coor-
dinator, Department of Urol-
ogy and Kidney Transplant,
Jaypee Hospital, said, “More
than 12,000 kidney trans-
plants are being done every
year in India and most of the
people are suffering from
kidney problems due to poor
lifestyle. Transplant is a suc-
cessful process and with the
day remanded in ED custo-
dy till March 23 in a money
laundering case linked to the
Delhi excise policy “scam”.
Kavitha, a member of the
Telangana Legislative Coun-
cil and daughter of former
state chief minister K Chan-
drashekar Rao, was pro-
duced before Special Judge
for ED cases M K Nagpal,
help of transplant, new life is
provided to the patients but
still it is seen that there is a
lack of awareness among
the people regarding kidney
donation due to which many
people put their lives at stake.
When the kidney function is
reduced to only 10 per cent,
then that condition is called
kidney failure and in such a
who sent her to the custo-
dy of the federal anti-mon-
ey laundering agency for a
week.
The ED had sought her cus-
tody for 10 days. Kavitha, 46,
was arrested from her Ban-
jara Hills residence on Fri-
day amid protests by Bharat
Rashtra Samithi (BRS) sup-
porters. While sending her
situation, the only option left
for the patients is dialysis or
transplant.
Patients no longer need
to worry much about kid-
ney transplant because
kidney transplant is being
done with the most modern
methods in Jaypee Hospital.
By this method, the do-
nor's kidney is removed
from the body through a
laparoscope, the biggest ad-
vantage of which is that the
donor suffers very little pain
and is quickly discharged
from the hospital. Along
with this, there are donors
with multiple vessels (more
veins in the kidney), kidney
transplant of children, trans-
plant between unmatched
blood group (ABO incom-
patible) and imbalance in
immunity.
to ED custody, the judge
said the need for her custo-
dial interrogation was felt to
be there as it has been ob-
served that investigation has
come to a halt because of
her alleged nonco operation.
“The involvement of accused
in commission of the alleged
offence of money laundering
and the crucial role played.
of the third. After drop-
ping serve to open the set,
Sakkari twice broke Gauff
and then held for a 4-1 lead.
She held again to go up 5-2
and then one hour and 10
minutes after her first three
match points, Sakkari hit a
forehand winner to set up
her fourth. She closed out
the match on Gauff’s fore-
hand error. Swiatek won the
AAP welcomes LS polls announcement
OUR CORRESPONDENT
NEW DELHI:AAP chief Arvind
Kejriwal on Saturday ap-
pealed to the public to vote
against “dictatorship and
hooliganism” as his party
said people had been “des-
perately” waiting for the gen-
eral elections. Welcoming
the announcement of Lok
Sabha poll dates, the AAP
also accused the BJP of vi-
olating the Constitution and
trying to crush democracy
during its 10-year rule. In a
post in Hindi on X, Delhi Chief
Minister Kejriwal appealed to
the people to vote for AAP
candidates. “The dates of
Lok Sabha polls in the coun-
try have been declared. It’s a
great festival of democracy. I
appeal to all the countrymen
to vote this time against dic-
tatorship and hooliganism,”
he said. “The AAP works for
ly have any moment today
in the match where I didn’t
feel confident.”
In the men’s doubles fi-
nal, Nikola Mektic of Croa-
tia and Wesley Koolhof of
the Netherlands defeated
fifth-seeded Marcel Granol-
lers of Spain and Horacio
Zeballos of Argentina, 7-6
(2), 7-6 (4). The winning pair
split $447,300.
real issues of the people and
facilitates them. Strength-
en our hands by voting on
‘jhaadu (broom, the AAP’s
election symbol)’ wherever
our candidates are contest-
ing the polls, so that we can
work for you with more ener-
gy,” Kejriwal, the party’s na-
tional convenor, added.
Lok Sabha polls will be held
across the country in seven
phases, beginning April 19.
The counting of votes will
take place on June 4 for the
world’s biggest election exer-
cise in which Prime Minister
Narendra Modi will bid for a
third consecutive term.
During a press conference
earlier, Gopal Rai -- the AAP’s
Delhi unit convenor -- said his
party and the Indian Nation-
al Developmental Inclusive
Alliance (INDIA) are ready
to fight the Lok Sabha polls
with full strength.
Ashwin doesn’t call it
quits anytime soon
OUR CORRESPONDENT
CHENNAI: Rahul Dravid
hopes that he doesn’t call
it quits anytime soon. Ravi
Shastri would like to see him
harass batters for at least
two more years while Anil
Kumble finds it perplexing
that he isn’t a regular in In-
dia’s overseas fixtures.
If ever Ravichandran Ash-
win needed validation for
being a rare talent, three na-
tional coaches — one current
and two former — provided it
heartily on the same evening,
at the same platform and al-
most at the same time.
“I hope he is not finished.
He has moved the craft of
spin bowling through his hard
work, dedication and innova-
tion. That’s a great legacy to
have. Fantastic! Well done
and inspired a whole genera-
tion of young spinners,” Dra-
vid said during a felicitation
function organised by the
Tamil Nadu Cricket Associa-
tion (TNCA) to celebrate Ash-
win crossing the 500-wicket
mark and completing 100
Tests. “He always has the
desire to contribute to the
team’s success. Have re-
ally enjoyed my time with
him,” ‘The Wall’ added. What
stands out for Dravid is Ash-
win’s quest for excellence
and being ever inquisitive
about the game of glorious
uncertainties, which he finds
challenging as a coach. “The
good thing about him is that
he challenges you, and as a
coach, you want that.
Looking forward to more
such memories with him. He
is one of a kind.” Dravid’s im-
mediate predecessor Shas-
tri, in his inimitable baritone,
urged Ashwin to continue
playing with the minds of the
batters for a few more years.
“Achievements of gigantic
proportions. It’s no joke.
Wish you the best. I believe
you still have a lot of cricket
left. Spinners mature with
each passing age.
4 Lucknow, Monday, 18 March 2024 Lucknow News (English Daily)

LS polls from April 19 in 7 phases Voting in Delhi’s 7 LS seats

ANDHRA VOTES ON MAY 13, ODISHA POLLING IN 4 PHASES, ARUNACHAL, SIKKIM ON APRIL 19
OUR CORRESPONDENT
NEW DELHI: Lok Sabha
elections will be held in sev-
en phases, beginning April
19 and ending on June 1.
Counting of votes for all elec-
tions, including by-elections,
Assembly elections in four
states and general elections
will take place on June 4, the
Election Commission of In-
dia announced on Saturday.
Other phases of polling will
be held on April 26, May 7,
13, 20 and 25, Chief Election
Commissioner Rajiv Kumar
said at a press conference
here.
The world’s biggest exer-
cise will witness an electoral
battle stretching to a period
of nearly two months. The
term of the current govern-
ment, led by Prime Minister
Narendra Modi, is ending
on June 16 and under his
leadership the ruling BJP is
seeking a third consecutive
term in office. The CEC said
there are 96.8 crore people
who are eligible to cast their
votes in the upcoming polls
of which nearly 47.1 crore
are women voters. As com-
pared to 2019, the number
of registered voters is up by
six per cent from 91.2 crore.
Assembly elections in
Arunachal Pradesh and Sik-
kim will be held on April 19,
and in Andhra Pradesh on
May 13. Elections to Odisha
Assembly will be held in four
phases on May 13, May 20,
May 25 and June 1. Bypolls
will also be held for 26 As-
sembly constituencies, the
CEC said at a press confer-
ence flanked by two newly
appointed Election Commis-
sioners Gyanesh Kumar and
Sukhbir Singh Sandhu.
Three states — Bihar, West
Bengal and Uttar Pradesh —
will have polling spread over
all the seven phases. In the
first phase on April 19, voting
will take place in 102 con-
stituencies spread over 21
states/UTs, with 10 states/
UTs completing the poll pro-
cess in this phase. Voting
will take place in 89 constit-
uencies across 13 states/
UTs in the second phase on
April 26, Kumar said, adding
that the poll process would
be completed in four more
states/UTs. Third phase of
polling on May 7 will take
place in 94 constituencies
spread across 12 states/
UTs.
With this, polling will
be completed in six more
states/UTs. In the fourth
phase on May 13, as many
as 96 constituencies spread
across 10 states UTs would
vote. With this, three more
states/UTs would have com-
pleted voting.
In the fifth phase on May
20, as many as 49 constitu-
encies spread across eight
states/ UTs will vote. This
phase will see voting com-
pleted in three more states/
UTs.
In the sixth phase on May
25, voting will take place in
57 constituencies spread
across seven states/UTs.
Polling in two more states/
UTs would be completed with
this phase. The seventh and
final phase will take place on
June 1 in 57 constituencies
spread across eight states/
UTs, completing the polling
process in eight states/UTs.
Led by Prime Minister
Modi, a buoyed BJP, which
swept the November Assem-
bly elections in Rajasthan,
Madhya Pradesh and Chhat-
tisgarh, will take on the op-
position parties which have
been trying to put up a joint
front under the umbrella of
the INDIA bloc, with limited
success confined to some
states.
The CEC said the Com-
mission is fully prepared to
counter the challenges of
four M’s muscle power, mon-
ey power, misinformation
and Model Code of Conduct
violations.
to take place on May 25
OUR CORRESPONDENT
NEW DELHI: Voting in Del-
hi’s seven Lok Sabha seats
will take place on May 25,
the sixth phase of the gen-
eral elections, with 1.47
crore people eligible for ex-
ercising their franchise, ac-
cording to the poll schedule
announced by the Election
Commission on Saturday.
The notification will be is- of the national Capital since dates.
sued on April 29 and the last 2014. Sitting North East Delhi
date for filing nominations The AAP has already field- MP Manoj Tiwari is the only
is May 6. The last date for ed its candidates for East one retained by the party
withdrawal of candidature Delhi, South Delhi, New Del- to contest from the seat
is May 9. The city has 1.47 hi and West Delhi seats. third time in a row. West
crore voters, including 79.98 The Congress is yet to Delhi Lok Sabha seat is the
lakh males and 67.42 lakh name its candidates for its largest among the seven in
females. share of the national cap- terms of number of voters.
With the AAP and the ital’s three seats -- Chand- The constituency has
Congress having entered a ni Chowk, North East and 24.93 lakh voters followed
seat-sharing agreement for North West. On the other by North West Delhi, the
Delhi this time, the city is hand, the BJP has declared only reserved constituency
set to witness a direct con- its candidates for all the par- in Delhi, having 24.76 lakh
test between the alliance liamentary seats of the city. voters. The New Delhi seat
and the BJP which holds all It has replaced six sitting is the smallest with 14.83
the seven Lok Sabha seats MPs and fielded new candi- lakh voters.

ED summons case: Court grants bail to Kejriwal Over 1 cr households registered

OUR CORRESPONDENT
NEW DELHI: A Delhi court
on Saturday granted bail to
Chief Minister Arvind Kejri-
wal in two complaints filed
by the Enforcement Direc-
torate against him for skip-
ping summons in a money
laundering case linked to the
alleged Delhi excise policy
case.
The court of Additional Chief
Metropolitan Magistrate
Divya Malhotra also allowed
Kejriwal to leave the court-
room.
“Offence being bailable,
accused Arvind Kejriwal is
admitted to bail,” it said. The
court further directed the
ED to hand over documents
related to the complaints to
Kejriwal. The Enforcement
Directorate (ED) has filed two
complaints before the mag-
isterial court, seeking Kejriw-
al’s prosecution for skipping
multiple summonses issued
to him in the case.
The latest complaint per-
tains to the Aam Aadmi Par-
ty (AAP) national convenor
not honouring summonses
no. 4 to 8 sent by the federal
probe agency under Section
50 of the Prevention of Mon-
ey Laundering Act (PMLA).
The ED had earlier moved
the magisterial court seek-
ing Kejriwal’s prosecution for
not attending the first three
summonses issued to him in
the money laundering case
linked to the now-scrapped
Delhi excise policy.
under rooftop solar scheme: PM
OUR CORRESPONDENT
NEW DELHI: Prime Minister
Narendra Modi on Saturday
said more than one crore
households have already
registered under the roof-
top solar scheme ‘PM-Surya
Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana’, and
lauded it as “outstanding
news”.

Noted Bollywood singer Anuradha joins BJP;

“Registrations have been
PATENT OFFICE GRANTS pouring in from all parts of
1L PATENTS IN PAST the nation. Assam, Bihar, “In about a month since it al Portal and can also select

ex-MP Jithender Reddy quits BJP, joins Cong

YEAR
NEW DELHI: Indian patent
office has granted over 1
lakh patents in the past year
on account of steps taken
by the government to fur-
ther strengthen the intellec-
tual property rights ecosys-
tem, an official statement
said on Saturday. It also said
that there has been a nota-
ble surge in Geographical
Indication (GI) registrations,
demonstrating a threefold
increase compared to the
previous year. As on date,
573 GIs are registered in
India. In 2023-24, 98 new
GIs have been registered
and another 62 will be regis-
tered by March 31 this year.
Similarly, so far this fiscal,
copyright and design regis-
trations totalled at 36,378
and 27,819 respectively.
“Every 6 minutes one tech-
nology is seeking IP protec-
OUR CORRESPONDENT
NEW DELHI: Noted Bolly-
wood singer Anuradha Paud-
wal, who is also known for
singing devotional songs,
joined the BJP here on Satur-
day ahead of the Lok Sabha
elections.
Addressing a joint press
conference with BJP leaders
at the party’s headquarters,
Paudwal praised Prime Min-
ister Narendra Modi and said
she was happy to join the
party led by him. She also
sang ‘Sarva Mangal Mang-
alye’ and paid obeisance to
Adi Shakti.
“I am very happy that I am
joining those people and
their government who have
a very deep connection with
Sanatan. I have only been
great fortune that I am join-
ing you (BJP),” she added.
Former Bharatiya Jana-
ta Party (BJP) leader AP Ji-
thender Reddy and his son
Mithun Reddy joined the
Congress party. Jithender
Reddy who was hoping to
contest from Mahabubnagar
parliamentary constituency
was denied a ticket by the
Deepa Das Munshi. Paudwal
hailed Prime Minister Modi
for taking the country “in the
right direction”.
The singer also said that
she was fortunate to get an
opportunity to sing a devo-
tional song in Ayodhya on
the occasion consecration of
Lord Ram’s idol in Ram tem-
ple on January 22. “It was my
tional general secretary Arun
Singh and chief spokesper-
son Anil Baluni.
Welcoming her to the BJP
fold, Singh said Paudwal has
joined the party after being
impressed by the work done
in the area of “culture and
spirituality” under Prime Min-
ister Modi’s leadership. She
was also impressed by the
BJP’s policies, he said.
Singh said Prime Minister
Modi’s leadership in fostering
cultural and spiritual pride is
evident in the implementa-
tion of the Kashi-Vishwanath
corridor project, Mahakal
Corridor project in Ujjain and
construction of Ram temple
in Ayodhya.
All the work that have been
done at various pilgrimage
sites under the leadership of
Gujarat, Maharashtra, Odi-
sha, Tamil Nadu and Uttar
Pradesh have seen over 5
lakh regulations,” he said in
a post on ‘X’.
The prime minister also
asked those who have not
yet registered to do so at
the earliest, noting that the
initiative promises substan-
tial reductions in electricity
expenses for households
along with ensuring energy
production. “It’s poised to
encourage Lifestyle for En-
vironment (LiFE) on a grand
scale, contributing to a bet-
ter planet,” he said.
The Union Cabinet,
chaired by the prime minis-
ter, last month approved the
scheme with a total outlay
of Rs 75,021 crore for in-
stalling rooftop solar panels
and providing free electricity
up to 300 units every month
for one crore households.
was launched, over 1 crore
households have already
registered themselves for
the PM-Surya Ghar: Muft
Bijli Yojana...Those who ha-
ven’t registered yet should
also do so at the earliest,”
Modi said on ‘X’.
The prime minister had
launched the scheme on
February 13, 2024. The
scheme provides a central
financial assistance (CFA) of
60 per cent of system cost
for 2 kW systems and 40 per
cent of additional system
cost for systems between 2
kW to 3 kW capacity.
The CFA will be capped
at 3 kW. At current bench-
mark prices, this will mean
Rs 30,000 subsidy for 1 kW
system, Rs 60,000 for 2 kW
systems and Rs 78,000 for
3 kW systems or higher. The
households can apply for
subsidy through the Nation-
a suitable vendor for install-
ing rooftop solar.
The National Portal is as-
sisting the households in
their decisionmaking pro-
cess by providing relevant
information like appropriate
system sizes, benefits calcu-
lator, vendor rating etc.
Households will be able to
access collateral-free low-in-
terest loan products of
around 7 per cent at present
for installation of residential
RTS (rooftop solar) systems
up to 3 kW. Other Features
of the scheme include a
Model Solar Village to be
developed in each district to
act as a role model for the
adoption of rooftop solar in
rural areas. Besides, urban
local bodies and Panchayati
Raj institutions will also ben-
efit from incentives for pro-
moting rooftop solar (RTS)
installations in their areas.

tion in India. In 2023, an all-
time high of 90,300 patent
applications were received.
Patent office granted over
one lakh patents in the last
singing devotional songs for
the last 35 years after years
of playback singing in the
film industry,” Paudwal told
reporters.
BJP.
The party instead nominat-
ed BJP national vice-presi-
dent DK Aruna. The former
MP was welcomed into the
life-long dream,” she added.
Paudwal, who is recipient
of a number of prestigious
awards and was conferred
the Padma Shri, the coun-
Prime Minister Modi will be
written in “golden words” in
the country’s history, he said.
“Today, the BJP and Prime
Minister Modi’s family has
Round 14 of India-UK
DDA ALLOTS 1,396
FLATS TO RESIDENTS
FTA talks close ahead OF 3 JJ CLUSTERS IN
JAILORWALA BAGH

one year (15-Mar-2023 to
14-Mar-2024). Every work-
ing day, 250 patents were
granted,” the Commerce
“Many times I wondered
whether I did the right thing
or not. Today, I feel that I am
at the right place. It is my
Congress in the presence
of Chief Minister A Revanth
Reddy and All India Con-
gress Committee in-charge
try’s fourth-highest civilian
award in 2017, joined the
BJP in the presence of its
senior leaders, including na-
further expanded. The BJP
will become stronger after
her joining the party,” Singh
told reporters.
of election schedule
NEW DELHI: The Delhi
Development Authority
(DDA) allotted 1,396 flats
OUR CORRESPONDENT to residents of the three

Kejriwal government notifies Delhi Solar Policy

ministry said.
AIR INDIA LAYS OFF
OVER 180 NON-FLYING
STAFF IN RECENT
WEEKS, SAY SOURCES
NEW DELHI: Air India has
laid off more than 180 non-
flying staff in recent weeks,
sources said while the air-
line maintained that the
affected people were not
able to utilise the voluntary
retirement schemes and
reskilling opportunities.
The loss-making Air India
was taken over by the Tata
Group in January 2022
and since then, efforts are
being made to streamline
the business model. An Air
India spokesperson on Fri-
day said that as part of the
fitment process, employees
in non-flying functions have
been assigned roles based
on organisational needs
and individual merit.
OUR CORRESPONDENT
NEW DELHI: The Arvind
Kejriwal government has
notified Delhi Solar Policy,
2023, that will help the con-
sumers with monthly use of
over 400 units to get zero
bills through rooftop solar
plants, a statement on Sat-
urday said.
Under the policy, the con-
sumers who do not get sub-
sidy for using more than
400 units per month can
now install rooftop solar
panels and get zero bills.
The power bills of com-
mercial users will be halved
if they go for rooftop plants,
said the statement of Delhi
government. Currently, do-
mestic consumers receive
zero bills up to 200 units
monthly consumption while
monthly consumption 50
percent subsidy is given for
201-400 units.
The Delhi Solar Policy,
2023, was announced by
Chief Minister Arvind Kejri-
wal on January 29. The Del-
hi government will spend Rs
570 crores towards the im-
plementation of the policy,
it said. It provides for gen-
eration-based incentives’
to solar panel installers,
allowing for additional earn-
ings of up to Rs 900 per
month. Expenses incurred
for installing solar panels
under the new policy will be
recovered within four years,
according to the policy.
This policy will not only
reduce electricity bills for
Delhiites but also help in
reducing pollution, Power
Minister Atishi said. She
said the Kejriwal govern-
ment aims to have 50 per
cent of Delhi’s total electric-
ity usage from solar energy
by 2027.
The Delhi govt will depos-
it Rs 3 per unit of electricity
generated into the bank ac-
count of the consumer. For
3 to 10 kilowatts, money
will be deposited at the rate
of Rs 2 per unit. The govern-
ment will continue to pro-
vide this generationbased
incentive for five years.
The amount under GBI
will be adjusted against the
monthly electricity bill of
the consumer. Any excess
amount will be deposited
into the consumer’s bank
account by the discom con-
cerned every month.
Earlier, GBI amount was
transferred only twice a
year. A solar portal is being
created to make all the in-
formation about the Delhi
Solar Policy available in one
place. All the relevant infor-
mation related to the policy
will be provided. The policy
also stipulates installation
of rooftop solar plants on
all government buildings
with rooftop surface area of
500 square meters.
JJ clusters at Jailorwala
LONDON: The 14th round of the free trade agreement Bagh in Ashok Vihar, North
(FTA) negotiations between India and the UK has now Delhi. The flats are allotted
closed, with formal negotiations being put on hold as India to the eligible dwellers for
heads into election campaign mode as the general elec- Rs 1.41 lakh as beneficia-
tion schedule is announced on Saturday. ry contribution under the
According to UK officials familiar with the discussions, a in situ rehabilitation, “Ja-
lot of progress has been made but the teams are not in a han Jhuggi Wahin Makan
position to conclude an agreement which led to the Round Scheme”.
14 closing on Friday. The
next round of formal trade Owner, Publisher,
talks can commence only Printer Jamil Ahmad, 5,
after the Lok Sabha polls Shahanajaf Road (Bheri
have concluded. wali Kothi) Lucknow.
The India-UK FTA nego- Printed at National
tiations, which opened in Art Press 207, New
January 2022, are aimed Hyderabad, Lucknow.
at securing an “ambitious” Published from 5,
outcome for bilateral trade Shahnajaf Road (Bheri wali
currently worth around GBP 38.1 billion a year as per of- Kothi) Lucknow.
ficial statistics from last month. “We anticipate that while Editor
some talks might happen between rounds, the next round Shabana
of negotiations will take place after the Indian elections,”
official sources in the UK said. “Neither side is walking Mobile: 9450364562
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