ˆ!...Minister of State for Home Dibya Shankar Mishra tabled the action-taken report (ATR) on the...

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T he Commission of Inquiry of the Kunduli gangrape case has reported that the fam- ily members of the victim were not satisfied with the investi- gation due to reasons best known to them; and, instead of being cooperative, they levelled frivolous allegations against the investigators. Minister of State for Home Dibya Shankar Mishra tabled the action-taken report (ATR) on the case in the Assembly on Saturday. The State Government had in January 2018 appointed the District Judge, Koraput as Commission of Inquiry. The Commission had submitted its report to the State Government on September 20, 2018. The Minister stated that delay (in tabling the action report) has occurred due to processing and examining the report at various stages and on account of taking action and printing of the report. As per the recommenda- tions of the commission, the State Police Headquarters has been requested to issue strict instructions to all the investi- gating agencies to take all nec- essary steps during investiga- tion to hide the identity of the victim of sexual assault as required under law. Turn to Page 4 E ven as Opposition BJP and Congress members on Saturday alleged in the State Assembly that the quality of primary and secondary educa- tion in the State has worsened during the last 20 years, School and Mass Education Minister Samir Ranjan Dash termed the charges baseless and claimed that all efforts have been made to provide quality education to children. Participating in the debate on an Adjournment Motion, BJP Chief Whip Mohan Charan Majhi said the primary and secondary education has been made directionless in the State. He slammed the Government for 40,955 schools having no rooms for each classroom. There are 30,299 sanctioned teacher posts lying vacant. Fifty- eight students studying in Class V are unable to work out sums of Class II like division, multi- plication, addition and subtrac- tion. Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan money is being misutilised by district Collectors. He alleged that the Government lifted the Best Tenth list from High School Certificate Examinations as Saraswati Viday Mandirs out- did Government high schools in results every year. Mahii further alleged that child labourers are increasing in the State due to the rise in drop outs in schools. He wanted to know why the Government is not spending more funds for development in the primary and secondary education sector when it claims that Odisha has become a revenue surplus State. Turn to Page 4 T he Cuttack-based spinal injuries centre would be merged with the Orthopaedic Department of SCB Medical College Hospital and made fully functional, said Health and Family Welfare Minister Naba Kishore Das after a meet- ing held here to review the development of the SCB Hospital on Saturday. Later, the trauma care unit would also be merged with it and it would be named as Odisha Trauma Care and Spinal Injuries Centre. Besides, steps would be taken for the required human resource for the trauma care centre, Das said. Measures would be taken to carry out liver transplant in the hospital and an MoU for the purpose would be signed within a week, said the Minister. He also directed the offi- cials to expedite the work for construction of the G+7 Bhawan. C ongress Legislature Party Leader Narasingha Mishra and BJP Legislature Party Deputy Leader Bishnu Charan Sethi continued raising accusing fin- gers at each other’s party, with- out naming them, in the State Assembly on Saturday. During the Zero Hour, refer- ring to the Leader of Opposition (BJP) Pradipta Naik’s remark on Congress vis-à-vis utterances of Vande Mataram and Bharat Mataki Jay, Mishra said the Congress doesn’t hesitate utter- ing these two patriotic expres- sions. He too uttered the expres- sions in the House. Mishra too raised the issue of an MP from Madhya Pradesh terming Mahatma Gandhi’s killer Nathuram Godse as a god and true patri- ot and demanded that the MP and others who do so should be reprimanded in the House. In reaction, Sethi alleged that the issue of Godse should not be discussed and the time of the House is unnecessarily being killed. He gave some examples of Mahatma Gandhi meeting RSS founder Keshav Baliram Hedgewar and praising activities of the Sangha. Similarly, he said former Prime Minister had invit- ed RSS volunteers to conduct a parade on a Republic Day. Besides, Sethi wanted to know why the chief of a party (Congress) asked former President Pranab Mukherjee not to address a gathering of RSS activists. C ongress member Mohammad Moquim on Saturday demanded in the State Assembly that the Government take early steps for availing Geographical Indication (GI) tag to the silver filigree of the millennium city Cuttack. “Cuttack is famous for the silver filigree works. Artisans have been making filigree works for hundreds of years. Now, it has recognition in the country and abroad. We usually present filigree works to guests coming from the outside. The filigree works are now being sold with West Bengal levels. If we will not avail the GI tag, the neighbouring State would steal away it,” said the Cuttack- Barabati MLA. He urged Speaker SN Patro to direct the Government to take the matter with the Geographical Indication Registry with strong evidences to avail the GI tag at the earliest. T he 16th Odisha Legislative Assembly was adjourned sine die with its first session ending ahead of five scheduled days on Saturday. The Budget Session was held from June 25 to July 2 in the first phase. The second phase, which began on July 12, was to continue till August 8. R epulsing a surprise attack by the Border Action Team (BAT), comprising Pakistan Army regulars and heavily armed terrorists, alert jawans of the Indian Army have neu- tralised at least 5-7 Pakistan Army regulars or terrorists in Keran sector of frontier Kupwara district in the last 36 hours. According to Srinagar- based Defence spokesman Col Rajesh Kalia, “BAT of Pakistan attempted surprise attack on one of the forward posts in Keran sector. The BAT attack was foiled by alert troops resulting in neutralising of 5 to 7 Pakistan regulars or terrorists in last 36 hours.” “Dead bodies of these heavily armed infiltrators were seen lying on the LoC but the same could not be retrieved due to heavy firing in the area,” official sources said. The Indian Army has released pictures of dead bodies of infiltrators lying on the LoC to expose the con- nivance of the Pakistan Army behind pushing trained ter- rorists inside the Indian terri- tory. Meanwhile, fresh exchange of cross LoC firing, including heavy mortar shelling, was reported from Balakote area of Mendhar in Poonch late on Saturday. The Indian Army retaliated strongly and effec- tively. A large number of local residents were stuck in their houses during the firing. The Defence Spokesman added, “The Pakistan Army made several attempts to dis- turb peace in Kashmir Valley by targeting Amarnath Yatra in the last 36 hours. On Saturday, four Jaish-e-Mohammad ter- rorists were eliminated in two separate encounters in Sopore and Shopian.” Meanwhile in the last one month, the LoC has become “hotter” soon after Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan returned from the US, embold- ened with resumption of mil- itary aid and Pakistan getting a breather for three months from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). July alone has witnessed 280-odd ceasefire violations with more 1,600 such incidents reported so far since the start of the year. The all-powerful Pakistan Army is now violating ceasefire agreement on the LoC relent- lessly firing on Indian Army posts and civilian ham- lets as it tries enabling militants to infiltrate into the Kashmir Valley. Nearly 18 terror camps are now active and security forces are bracing for a nearly two- month-long relentless effort from across the border to stoke violence in the State. The Paris-based FATF in June said Pakistan failed to curb terror financing and warned that the country may be blacklisted if it does not comply with its commitment to stop terro financing by October end. T he massive troop mobilisa- tion in Jammu & Kashmir comes amid multiple inputs suggesting synchronised attacks on sarpanchs, besides the Amarnath pilgrims and security forces by Pakistan- based terror groups Jaish-e- Mohammad (JeM)and Lashkar-e-Tayyeba (LeT). The additional security forces are expected to fortify vulnerable points, especially in the rural pockets of the Valley and also take care of any law and order situation arising due to any such hits. This apart, intelligence agencies have alerted about the threat of an action by Border Action Team of the Pakistan Army on for- ward Indian troops and also about the presence of 15 JeM terrorists in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (POK) ready to infil- trate into the Valley. Sarpanchs have been on the radar of the Pakistani ter- ror groups as their elections last year is seen as a move to strengthen grassroots democ- racy which has the potential to wean away the youths from the jehadi narrative. A team of three JeM oper- atives is reported to have been stationed at a terror launch pad in Nezapir in POK and are under the direct control of Ibrahim Azhar, brother of Jaish boss Masood Azhar. They are being command- ed by Pakistan Army’s Special Service Group, also known as Maroon Berets. Sources have not ruled out lone wolf attacks by suicide bombers and long-range sniper attacks, besides mine explo- sions and IED blasts on tourists and pilgrims as also on convoys of security forces. A day after the Amarnath Yatra was called off, the Jammu & Kashmir adminis- tration on Saturday suspended the ongoing 43-day-long Machail Mata (Goddess Durga) Yatra that was to con- tinue till September 5 in Kishtwar citing security rea- sons. And while security forces killed four terrorists in the Valley, Governor Satya Pal Malik informed a delegation led by former State Chief Minister Omar Abdullah that the “State has no knowledge of any changes to constitutional provisions” with troops’ move- ment being in view of height- ened terror threat to the Amarnath Yatra. Omar, how- ever, urged the Centre to clar- ify things in Parliament. In Delhi, the Congress demanded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi should make a statement in Parliament on the current situation in Jammu & Kashmir and cautioned it against “any misadventure” in the State.

Transcript of ˆ!...Minister of State for Home Dibya Shankar Mishra tabled the action-taken report (ATR) on the...

Page 1: ˆ!...Minister of State for Home Dibya Shankar Mishra tabled the action-taken report (ATR) on the case in the Assembly on Saturday. The State Government had in January 2018 appointed

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The Commission of Inquiryof the Kunduli gangrape

case has reported that the fam-ily members of the victim werenot satisfied with the investi-gation due to reasons bestknown to them; and, instead ofbeing cooperative, they levelledfrivolous allegations againstthe investigators.

Minister of State for HomeDibya Shankar Mishra tabledthe action-taken report (ATR)on the case in the Assembly on Saturday.

The State Government hadin January 2018 appointed theDistrict Judge, Koraput asCommission of Inquiry. The

Commission had submitted itsreport to the State Governmenton September 20, 2018.

The Minister stated thatdelay (in tabling the actionreport) has occurred due toprocessing and examining thereport at various stages and onaccount of taking action andprinting of the report.

As per the recommenda-tions of the commission, theState Police Headquarters hasbeen requested to issue strictinstructions to all the investi-gating agencies to take all nec-essary steps during investiga-tion to hide the identity of thevictim of sexual assault asrequired under law.

Turn to Page 4

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Even as Opposition BJP andCongress members on

Saturday alleged in the StateAssembly that the quality ofprimary and secondary educa-tion in the State has worsenedduring the last 20 years, Schooland Mass Education MinisterSamir Ranjan Dash termedthe charges baseless andclaimed that all efforts havebeen made to provide qualityeducation to children.

Participating in the debateon an Adjournment Motion,

BJP Chief Whip Mohan CharanMajhi said the primary andsecondary education has beenmade directionless in the State.He slammed the Governmentfor 40,955 schools having norooms for each classroom.There are 30,299 sanctionedteacher posts lying vacant. Fifty-eight students studying in ClassV are unable to work out sumsof Class II like division, multi-plication, addition and subtrac-tion. Sarva Shiksha Abhiyanmoney is being misutilised bydistrict Collectors.

He alleged that the

Government lifted the BestTenth list from High SchoolCertificate Examinations asSaraswati Viday Mandirs out-did Government high schoolsin results every year.

Mahii further alleged thatchild labourers are increasing inthe State due to the rise in dropouts in schools. He wanted toknow why the Government isnot spending more funds fordevelopment in the primary andsecondary education sectorwhen it claims that Odisha hasbecome a revenue surplus State.

Turn to Page 4

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The Cuttack-based spinalinjuries centre would be

merged with the OrthopaedicDepartment of SCB MedicalCollege Hospital and madefully functional, said Healthand Family Welfare MinisterNaba Kishore Das after a meet-ing held here to review thedevelopment of the SCBHospital on Saturday.

Later, the trauma care unitwould also be merged with itand it would be named asOdisha Trauma Care andSpinal Injuries Centre.

Besides, steps would betaken for the required humanresource for the trauma carecentre, Das said.

Measures would be takento carry out liver transplant inthe hospital and an MoU forthe purpose would be signedwithin a week, said theMinister.

He also directed the offi-cials to expedite the work forconstruction of the G+7Bhawan.

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Congress Legislature PartyLeader Narasingha Mishra

and BJP Legislature Party DeputyLeader Bishnu Charan Sethicontinued raising accusing fin-gers at each other’s party, with-out naming them, in the StateAssembly on Saturday.

During the Zero Hour, refer-ring to the Leader of Opposition(BJP) Pradipta Naik’s remark onCongress vis-à-vis utterances ofVande Mataram and BharatMataki Jay, Mishra said theCongress doesn’t hesitate utter-ing these two patriotic expres-sions. He too uttered the expres-sions in the House.

Mishra too raised the issueof an MP from MadhyaPradesh terming MahatmaGandhi’s killer NathuramGodse as a god and true patri-ot and demanded that the MPand others who do so should be

reprimanded in the House.In reaction, Sethi alleged that

the issue of Godse should not bediscussed and the time of theHouse is unnecessarily beingkilled. He gave some examples ofMahatma Gandhi meeting RSSfounder Keshav BaliramHedgewar and praising activitiesof the Sangha. Similarly, he saidformer Prime Minister had invit-ed RSS volunteers to conduct aparade on a Republic Day.

Besides, Sethi wanted toknow why the chief of a party(Congress) asked formerPresident Pranab Mukherjee notto address a gathering of RSSactivists.

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Congress memberMohammad Moquim on

Saturday demanded in the StateAssembly that the Governmenttake early steps for availingGeographical Indication (GI)tag to the silver filigree of themillennium city Cuttack.

“Cuttack is famous for thesilver filigree works. Artisanshave been making filigreeworks for hundreds of years.Now, it has recognition in thecountry and abroad. We usuallypresent filigree works to guestscoming from the outside. Thefiligree works are now beingsold with West Bengal levels. Ifwe will not avail the GI tag, theneighbouring State would stealaway it,” said the Cuttack-Barabati MLA.

He urged Speaker SN Patroto direct the Government totake the matter with theGeographical IndicationRegistry with strong evidencesto avail the GI tag at the earliest.

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The 16th Odisha Legislative Assembly was adjourned sine diewith its first session ending ahead of five scheduled days on

Saturday. The Budget Session was held from June 25 to July 2in the first phase. The second phase, which began on July 12,was to continue till August 8.

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Repulsing a surprise attackby the Border Action Team

(BAT), comprising PakistanArmy regulars and heavilyarmed terrorists, alert jawans ofthe Indian Army have neu-tralised at least 5-7 PakistanArmy regulars or terrorists inKeran sector of frontierKupwara district in the last 36hours.

According to Srinagar-based Defence spokesman ColRajesh Kalia, “BAT of Pakistanattempted surprise attack onone of the forward posts inKeran sector. The BAT attackwas foiled by alert troopsresulting in neutralising of 5 to7 Pakistan regulars or terroristsin last 36 hours.”

“Dead bodies of theseheavily armed infiltrators wereseen lying on the LoC but thesame could not be retrieveddue to heavy firing in the area,”official sources said. The IndianArmy has released pictures ofdead bodies of infiltrators lyingon the LoC to expose the con-nivance of the Pakistan Armybehind pushing trained ter-rorists inside the Indian terri-tory.

Meanwhile, fresh exchangeof cross LoC firing, includingheavy mortar shelling, wasreported from Balakote area of

Mendhar in Poonch late onSaturday. The Indian Armyretaliated strongly and effec-tively. A large number of localresidents were stuck in theirhouses during the firing.

The Defence Spokesmanadded, “The Pakistan Armymade several attempts to dis-turb peace in Kashmir Valleyby targeting Amarnath Yatra inthe last 36 hours. On Saturday,four Jaish-e-Mohammad ter-rorists were eliminated in twoseparate encounters in Soporeand Shopian.”

Meanwhile in the last onemonth, the LoC has become“hotter” soon after PakistanPrime Minister Imran Khanreturned from the US, embold-ened with resumption of mil-itary aid and Pakistan gettinga breather for three monthsfrom the Financial Action TaskForce (FATF). July alone haswitnessed 280-odd ceasefireviolations with more 1,600such incidents reported so farsince the start of the year.

The all-powerful PakistanArmy is now violating ceasefireagreement on the LoC relent-lessly firing on Indian Army posts and civilian ham-lets as it tries enabling militantsto infiltrate into the Kashmir Valley.

Nearly 18 terror camps arenow active and security forcesare bracing for a nearly two-

month-long relentless effortfrom across the border to stokeviolence in the State.

The Paris-based FATF inJune said Pakistan failed tocurb terror financing andwarned that the country maybe blacklisted if it does notcomply with its commitment tostop terro financing by Octoberend.

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The massive troop mobilisa-tion in Jammu & Kashmir

comes amid multiple inputssuggesting synchronisedattacks on sarpanchs, besidesthe Amarnath pilgrims andsecurity forces by Pakistan-based terror groups Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM)andLashkar-e-Tayyeba (LeT).

The additional securityforces are expected to fortifyvulnerable points, especiallyin the rural pockets of theValley and also take care of anylaw and order situation arisingdue to any such hits. Thisapart, intelligence agencies havealerted about the threat of anaction by Border Action Teamof the Pakistan Army on for-ward Indian troops and alsoabout the presence of 15 JeMterrorists in Pakistan OccupiedKashmir (POK) ready to infil-trate into the Valley.

Sarpanchs have been onthe radar of the Pakistani ter-ror groups as their elections lastyear is seen as a move tostrengthen grassroots democ-racy which has the potential towean away the youths from thejehadi narrative.

A team of three JeM oper-atives is reported to have beenstationed at a terror launch padin Nezapir in POK and areunder the direct control of

Ibrahim Azhar, brother of Jaishboss Masood Azhar.

They are being command-ed by Pakistan Army’s SpecialService Group, also known asMaroon Berets.

Sources have not ruled outlone wolf attacks by suicidebombers and long-range sniperattacks, besides mine explo-sions and IED blasts on touristsand pilgrims as also on convoysof security forces.

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Aday after the AmarnathYatra was called off, the

Jammu & Kashmir adminis-tration on Saturday suspendedthe ongoing 43-day-longMachail Mata (GoddessDurga) Yatra that was to con-tinue till September 5 inKishtwar citing security rea-sons. And while security forceskilled four terrorists in theValley, Governor Satya PalMalik informed a delegationled by former State ChiefMinister Omar Abdullah thatthe “State has no knowledge of

any changes to constitutionalprovisions” with troops’ move-ment being in view of height-ened terror threat to theAmarnath Yatra. Omar, how-ever, urged the Centre to clar-ify things in Parliament.

In Delhi, the Congressdemanded that Prime MinisterNarendra Modi should make astatement in Parliament on thecurrent situation in Jammu &Kashmir and cautioned it against“any misadventure” in the State.

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Page 2: ˆ!...Minister of State for Home Dibya Shankar Mishra tabled the action-taken report (ATR) on the case in the Assembly on Saturday. The State Government had in January 2018 appointed

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It is a no brainer that a movie thatstars Dwayne Johnson aka the Rockand Jason Statham is going to be

action-packed. And not just any kindof action will do. It has to be OTT andthen some more. The adrenalinepumping action will keep you on edge— not story wise but due to the roller-coaster ride that the duo undertakeand drag you with it.

Besides the state-of-the-artweaponry and what one can do withtechnology, it is the sheer brute forceRock and Statham unleash that willleave one wanting more. In this regard,director David Leitch doesn’t disappoint.

It is a take off on Fast and Furiousseries. Fancy cars with chases andbrilliant driving skills have to be part

and parcel of this movie. The good isthat the best chase is at the climax.

Add to this are the quick repertoiresthat Rock and Statham indulge in.More than the exchange of blows thetwo come to, it is the insults they hurlat each other that are more entertaining.One wished that Leitch had spent moretime on frames where the two areengaged verbally than fighting thebaddie played by Idris Elba who isreferred to as the Black Superman —nothing to do with the fact that he is analien and everything to do with thepowers that he has.

References to some of the charactersfrom the F&F franchise like Mr Nobodymakes you realise that there is noDom. Not that Hobbs and Shaw needany rescuing but it just feels that theteam is incomplete.

Even though Leitch has spent moretime on the action and its treatmentrather than the script, it still providesplenty of entertainment.

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�What is your character in ChotiSarrdaarni about?

I play Sarabjit Singh Gill, anAgriculture Minister. He is a singleparent to Param. He is discliplined,honest and loving. He is full of positivityand loves taking care of people.�How tough was it to play this role?

It was tough to get into the skin of apolitician because I have never playedsuch a character before. But, as forlearning Punjabi, wasn’t a task because Iam a Punjabi. I am from Chandigarh. �What made you say yes?

I was offered two shows at that sametime. The reason I chose this was becausethrough this role I was getting a chanceto wear turban. Also, it was a leadcharacter. There was no reason to turndown the offer because I was waiting forsuch an offer from a long time.�What do you like about this show?

The concept of the show is strong. It’sabout a girl who faces the harsh realitiesof life and protects her family from allthe hardships that come their way. She isconsidered as the saviour of the family.This is a good example of womenempowerment. The message that theshow gives is what I love the most aboutit. �Which role came close to you?

Sarabjit Singh Gill comes close to mebecause I am able to relate with thecharacter. My family also loves seeing mewearing a turban and have this look.Though, I like all the characters that I haveplayed, this is the one I love the most.�Why made you choose to be an actor?

I wanted to show my acting skills tothe world. Earlier, my passion wasdancing. It came naturally to me. I was apart of few dance groups. Then, somehowacting happened. I don’t remember howbut it just happened.�Is there anything that you had takenfrom your previous show — Tu Sooraj,Main Saanjh Piyaji?

Every show is different, everycharacter is different. When you leave ashow, you leave the character. You can’t

stick to characters that you have playedin your career. If you do that then youcan’t play other characters. You have todetach yourself from the shows you havedone in the past. This is what we aretaught to do during our acting classes.�You have constantly experimentedwith genres. Has that been a consciousdecision?

It’s not always my choice to choosebetween genres. It’s like when you feel thatthe story is good and engaging, you justgo for it. You can’t say no to somethinggood that have come your way.

Fortunately, I have done everything thatfell into my lap. I grab opportunities andtry not to play the same kind of charactertwice. I love to experiment withcharacters. My first show was Chhal —Sheh Aur Maat. There, I played KabirJaiswal. Then I did Madhubala — Ek IshqEk Junoon and played a gangster — SultanKundra. Then, in Tu Sooraj, Main SaanjhPiyaji, I played a simple, honest andreligious guy — Uma Toshniwal. And,now I am playing a Punjabi guy. I amfortunate enough that I have got to playso many versatile characters.

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The good is that Bollywood has startedmaking films on subjects that were taboo —sex education being one of them. After Vicky

Donor, people too are appreciative of such movies.In this sense, Khandaani Shafakhana touches upona relevant subject. More so, when statistics saysthat the incidence of ED increases from about 6per cent in the age group 20-29 years, to 50-70per cent in the age group 40-79 years. There aremany people out there who balk at the verythought of uttering the word ‘sex’ let aloneacknowledge that men face problems when itcomes to performance in bed.

The problem with Khandaani Shafakhana is notthe subject but the way it has been dealt with. First,Sonakshi Sinha is no Ayushmann Khurrana.Second, an attempt to recreate the magic of VickyDonor by roping in Annu Kapoor who plays alawyers fails to recreate that magic. Third, there wasno need to reiterate that the shopkeepers aroundthe shafakhana are not happy that a clinic that dealswith sex problems is up and running that too by awoman. But, obviously director Shilpi Dasguptathought otherwise. Why? One is unable to fathomthis. Fourth, the film fails to say beyond — baat tohkaro. Fifth, it fails to entertain. Finally, there is a lotof melodrama that could have been avoided.

However, not all is lost. Sonkashi Sinha as BabyBedi manages to emote well. Her expressions fit thesituation to a T. It was good to see Nadira Babbaron the silver screen after such a long time even ifshe spends most of her time feeling sorry for herself.

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������>������#� ��$Ashnoor Kaur who is

seen playing the sweetyet impactful character

of Mini in SonyEntertainment Television’sshow — Patiala Babes recentlywent to a police station for fewpersonal verifications but,much to her surprise she didn’tneed one. The police officerwho was on duty recognisedher and shared that he and hisfamily watched the show dailyand really l ike all thecharacters but love Ashnoor’scharacter of Mini in the show.He was very thrilled and gladto meet a strong-headed girlwho is always seen fightingagainst the wrongdoings of thesociety and is a foreversupporter and cheerleader ofher Babes, Babita(played byParidhi Sharma).

The police off icerappreciated her for hercharacter and told her how sheis being idolised by manypeople around him because ofthe strong no-nonsense girlshe is playing in the show. Heshared that the out of the box

storyline is very fascinatingand her relationship with herbabes is delightful. This is notthe only incident whereAshnoor was appreciated forher character. Another suchincident that Ashnoorencountered was when afemale police officer who wasassigned in the area near theset of Patiala Babes, came onthe sets looking for Mini withher two daughters to makethem especial ly meetAshnoor. Her daughters werevery glad to meet Mini. Theyexpressed Mini was aninspiration for them in manyways, they adored hercharacter. The female officeralso called Ashnoor her thirddaughter and told her to bethe bold and strongpersonality she is andeveryone is supporting her tothe fullest.

When we reached out toAshnoor to gather herexperience of the two recentincidents, she shared, “I wasextremely touched to see howmuch my character of Mini

and our show is being loved.When I met the police officersof the city, it made me morethan happy. They knew meand they appreciated mywork. Inspector ma’am, whoworks with the crime branchgot her two daughters alongwith her, one of which hadrecently got operated. Sheshared her love andadmiration of the show and itmade me happy. Another timewhen I had gone for personalwork to a police station, theinspector immediately cameto me to meet me as soon ashe recognised me. He sharedthat his family watches theshow religiously and lovesMini and her relationshipwith her Babes Babita. Suchbeautiful encounters are thereasons that add excitementand dedication in me towardsmy work and I am trulygrateful to everyone whosupports me and our show.”

In the upcoming episodes,audiences will get to see adifferent side of Mini, Babitaan Hanuman Singh.

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Superstar Singer, the kids singingreality show has become one of

Indian television’s favourite non-fiction show with the immenselytalented young artists who aspireto become household names in theIndian music industry. The showalso has a lot of star power withthe judges of the being musicindustry icons Alka Yagnik,Himesh Reshammiya, Javed Aliand their list of celebrity gueststars such as Kumar Sanu and UditNarayan. The latest additions tothe list are the Oonchi Hai Building

composer Anu Malik and Dil NeYeh Kaha Hai Dil Se lyricistSameer Anjaan.

In the show, the composer-lyricist duo will be seen mouldingthe young singers to become thebest artist that they are meant tobe. Salman Ali and his team willbe seen performing Anu Malik’sfamous song Tumse Mil Ke Dil Kaas a qawwali , to which thecomposer applauds by climbingonto the highest point on the set.Later, Sameer Anjan reveals abouthis crush on Alka Yagnik.

������/��It’s that time of the year again when all you want to

do is sit by the window with a steamy hot cuppa,watching the rain. Monsoons are surely nature’s wayof telling us to take it easy and that is exactly what theseTV actors are doing this rainy season.

“I love monsoon. Whenever it’s raining and I havea holiday, I prefer to spend the whole day at home withmy friends, with some chai and pakodas, and yes, someendless conversations. In monsoon, my best getawayis indeed by home. I don’t like to go out in the rains.I love listening to music too, specially the popularmonsoon numbers. Rimjhim Gire Sawan and SawanAaya Hai unplugged by Neha Kakkar are myfavourites.”

— Rehaan Roy“Monsoons are truly blissful! If I am not shooting,

I generally go for a long drive. I put on some soothingmusic in the car and often ask my friends of family toaccompany me. There are so many small waterfalls,lakes and dams around Maharashtra and all of themare magnificent in the monsoons. I am a foodie andmy favourite monsoon snacks include vada pav andbhajis, which I just cannot be missed during rains.Sipping some yummy adarak masala tea in mybalcony is the perfect thing for a good rainy evening.”

— Sachin ParikhThe best way to enjoy the monsoons is to just sit

at home. You can make bhajiyas and vada pav, sit inyour balcony and enjoy these with tea. There was a timewhen all my friends used to go to Lonavala or Matheranto chill. But the situation has changed now and it getsunsafe to be out for long, especially when it’s beenraining continuously.

— Rahuol Lohani

Page 3: ˆ!...Minister of State for Home Dibya Shankar Mishra tabled the action-taken report (ATR) on the case in the Assembly on Saturday. The State Government had in January 2018 appointed

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Rattled with a series ofcrimes in the capital in

which gold jewelleries and cashworth lakhs of rupees werelooted and four persons wereleft injured on Thursday, theCommissionerate police onFriday night decided on thelethal ‘remedy’ of encounter to

tame the criminals.Two wanted criminals

involved in a series of loot and robbery cases in thecity were nabbed following anencounter with police nearTankapani Road.

The duo, identified asArun Mallick alias Poda andVivekananda Nayak aliasVivek, received bullet injuriesin their legs during theencounter.

The duo was initiallyrushed to the Capital Hospitaland later shifted to the SCBMedical College Hospital in

Cuttack as their conditionsdeteriorated.

Acting on a tipoff, a specialsquad of police had intercept-ed Poda and Vivek nearTankapani Road while theywere waiting along with threeof their associates in a car toexecute a dacoity in the area.

In a bid to escape from thespot, Poda and Vivek openedfire at the cops. In retaliation,the police also returned fireinjuring the duo. Police alsoseized a gun from their pos-session. But three of their asso-ciates managed to give the

cops a slip. Police said as manyas ten cases of loot; snatchingand robbery are pendingagainst Poda and Vivek at dif-ferent police stations of the city.

Police CommissionerSatyajit Mohanty said the duowas involved in the looting ofa car dealer on Puri-CuttackRoad and a hotel owner atRasulgarh. After the incidents,police were keeping a watch onthem; and after getting infor-mation about their movement,confronted them. Police are onthe lookout for the othersmembers of the gang.

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BHUBANESWAR: Four moreplanetariums would be set upin the State, said Science &Technology Minister AshokChandra Panda in theAssembly on Saturday.

The four new planetariumswould come up at Baripda,Rayagada, Keonjhar andGopalpur at a total cost of Rs 30crore, he informed. Earlier, threeplanetariums were proposed inGopalpur, Rayagada andBaripada. Now, the Governmentis planning to set up another onein Keonjhar, he said.

Currently, the State hastwo planetariums, one inBhubaneswar and the other atSambalpur. In 2017, ChiefMinister Naveen Patnaik hadinaugurated the second plane-tarium in Sambalpur, whichhas been named after latePresident and scientist APJAbdul Kalam. Besides, the StateGovernment would open sci-ence centres in 10 districts forpromotion of science, theMinister said. PNS

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The venue for the State-levelIndependence Day parade

in the capital is likely to bechanged this year.

DGP RP Sharma alongwith other senior police offi-cials on Saturday visited three alternate venuesfor the parade and conductedinspection.

The three alternate venuesare the Exhibition Ground, theJanata Maidan and the KalingaStadium.

The DGP also had a dis-cussion with other police offi-cials on security arrangementsand traffic management inaccordance with the changedlocation.

Notably, the State-levelparades for the IndependenceDay and the Republic Day areso far held at Gandhi Marg infront of the State Assemblyevery year.

Elaborate arrangements aremade for security and smoothmanagement of traffic to theparade venue.

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Acase of a major dacoity wasreported from the

Sakhigopal area in Puri districtlate on Friday night with cashand jewelleries worth lakhs ofrupees being looted from anelderly couple.

About 10 dacoits bargedinto the ground floor of a two-storied building owned by elder-ly person, Jadab Nayak, ataround 2.00 am and tied tenantGadadhar Rath and his wifeKalyani with rope after awaken-ing them from sleep. They brokeopen a cupboard and looted cashof Rs 40,000 and more than 40grams of gold jewelleries.

The criminals then movedup to the first floor where thehouse owner and his familywere sleeping. They lootedaround 200 grams of gold and500 grams of silver ornamentsand some cash. The loot oper-ation lasted around 40 minutesat gunpoint. A daughter of thehouse owner said, “While the

looters were approaching thetop floor, we tried to call police.After they broke the maindoor, I threw my mobile phonefrom our balcony to the gardenout of fear. They managed tocapture us and threatened to

kill our parents and children.”“Two of the miscreants were

speaking in Odia and the otherswere talking in Hindi but notfluently. We appealed to them totake away everything but spareus. They tied everyone with

rope, thrashed me and looted allthe gold jewelleries that I hadworn and from my bag,” shesaid. Being informed, policereached the house and initiatedinvestigation into the incident onSaturday morning.

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The students of the NatarajSangeet Mahavidyala of

Dhenkanal performed on theoccasion of a Odishi dance andmusic programme organisedby the Odisha Sangeet NatakAkademy (OSNA) at theBhanja Kala Mandap here ear-lier this week.

Culture DepartmentCommissioner-cum-SecretaryManoranjan Panigrahi whileinaugurating the programme

said that his department hasinitiated a proposal for ‘GItag’ for Odishi dance and music.

OSNA secretary Bijay Jenasaid the aim of organising theprogramme was to promote

different forms of classicaldance and music.

Apart from Nataraj stu-dents, Rasabihary Nath ofDhenkanal and Matru PrsadDas of Baleswar recited soloOdishi songs.

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An under-trial prisoner(UTP) on Saturday man-

aged to escape from the sub-jailhere for a second time in a spanof three months.

Tapan Rout, arrested onthe charge of raping a minorgirl, had fled from the prisonfor the first time on May 10.Following this, a jail official wassuspended while police man-

aged to nab him the very nextday.

Rout again gave the jailofficials a slip on Saturday. Asper reports, several inmates ofthe jail were engaged in clean-ing work in view of the visit ofthe District Judge.

Taking advantage of the sit-uation, Rout managed toescape from the jail.

But Jail SuperintendentSarada Prasanna Rout blamed

the Public Works Departmentfor the incident.

He said the jail adminis-tration had earlier urged PWDofficials to increase the heightof the prison’s boundary wall.But the work is yet to beundertaken.

The Superintendent fur-ther said that efforts were on to again nab the fugi-tive, who hails from Fatehgarh.

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The Mahanadi CoalfieldsLimited (MCL) on

Saturday alerted its safety setupto plan for quick and structur-al inspection of safety condi-tions of mines in view of pro-longed obstruction during thismonsoon, as local villagers’agitation stalling all works in

eight mines in Talcher enteredthe eleventh day.

The MCL, which has inplace a five-layered safetymechanism to ensure incident-free mining operations, wouldallow movement of men andmachinery to resume opera-tions only after clearance fromthe statutory authorities ofrespective mining units.

It has been observed thatthe illegal stoppage has madevulnerable the mining condi-tions at Talcher coalfields as the

daily safety assessments bymines authorities have notbeen allowed by some locals,following an accident due tostrata failure in a mine underBharatpur area on July 23.

While the company isexploring all possibilities toresume mining operations atthe earliest, the forceful stop-page of safety teams to inspectmines, transport roads androad worthiness of vehicles inTalcher coalfields makes minesfurther vulnerable to coal

catching internal combustion,water logging and dumpsslides, electricity breakdownsbesides fuel-filled miningmachines getting damaged dueto no periodic maintenance.

Meanwhile, in addition toinquiry being conducted by theDirector General Mines Safety(DGMS) and Internal SafetyOrganisation (ISO), the MCLhas appointed the CentralInstitute of Mining and FuelResearch (CIMFR), Dhanbadto submit its report.

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The Inner Wheel Club(IWC) here organised a

rally on Saturday as a part ofthe “Miracles Mission Yojana”and “Mission Mamata Week.”

The rally was organisedjointly in collaboration with theMarwadi Mahila Samaj and theAcademy of Techno Crafts andModern Girls Gala. Hundredsof women with placards inhand started their processionfrom the Khallikote Collegeground to the Giri Marketchanting slogans.

SK Routray of BeMC whowas the chief guest hailed theefforts of the IWC in creatingawareness to end orphanhoodin India. This is a noble endeav-our which everyone shouldparticipate and render moralsupport to the organization, headded.

Speaking to mediapersons,PRO of the Inner Wheel ClubRatnamai Cotton said the basicobjectives of the rally is, amongother things, to create aware-ness, encourage adoption, fos-

ter care, guardianship, etc.Among others, president of

IWC Sonali Hazra, secretaryAmita Das, IPP Sarita and ISOof the IWC Bandita Tripathywere present.

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Atwo-lane railway over-bridge (ROB) would soon

be constructed at theMatiapada level crossing onNH-316 near the GundichaTemple here.

The project, a longstandingdemand of locals, has beenapproved by the UnionMinistry of Road Transportand Highways, informed PuriMP Pinaki Misra on his Twitterhandle on Saturday.

The district administrationwould soon begin land acquisi-tion process for the 63.84-metre-long bridge, the estimates forwhich would be prepared forapproval of the competentauthorities soon, Misra said.Chief Minister Naveen Patnaikalso Twitted, “The promise madeto the people of Puri will soon befulfilled. Construction of theROB will help improve com-munication and solve varioustraffic woes affecting locals in thepilgrim town since long.”

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The Child Welfare Committee(CWC) and other child

security agencies on Saturdayinitiated prompt action after avideo went viral in social mediadepicting a woman in her mid-

fifties brutally thrashing her 7-year-old grandson in her house.

The shocking incidentoccurred at Gangadharpur vil-lage under Basta block and theaccused was identified asBrundabati Chand. In the videopurportedly shot by a relative,the woman can be seen show-ering kicks and torturing herown grandson.

CWC Chairman BhagrathiBarik informed, “Taking cog-nizance of the viral video, we ini-tiated action soon

The child was rescued bylocal Childline members andboth the victim and the accusedwere brought to Baleswar forinterrogation. We would behanding over the accused to theBasta police after completion ofour investigation.” Barik addedthat report from the DistrictChild Protection Officer on thematter has been also sought andthe child would be kept in shortstay home till his parents arrive.

According to sources, boththe father and mother of the

victim child are working aslabourers in Mumbai. Theyhad left the child at the custodyof his grandmother , Chand, tolook after him.

Although the exact reasonas to why she was treating theminor harshly is yet to beknown, it is believed that thechild might have enraged her bydoing some mischief.

Yet local sources said theaccused reportedly assaulted theminor when the latter refused toread and take milk.

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Amarried SOG commandowas arrested and forward-

ed to court by Sundargarhpolice on Friday eveningallegedly for raping a marriedwoman of Sundargarh andlater sending her obscene videoto her relatives.

The accused has been iden-tified as Viku Kujur (30), anative of Tedengamohan underSadar police station ofSundargarh district.

He is working as SOGcommando at Koraput since2011. He resides with his wifeand a 11-year-old son atDengibadi in Sundargarh.

During his stay at his nativevillage, Viku had known a girl,who later got married and was

staying with her husband in avillage under Sadar police station.

Viku was staying alone atKoraput and his wife and sonwere staying at Sundargarh.

Recently, the marriedwoman lodged a complaint inthe Sadat police station thatViku had taken her to a lodge in Koraput andraped her there.

Subsequently, when Vikucalled her to Koraput but wasopposed by her, Viku alleged-ly sent the obscene video of thewoman to the mobiles of her relatives.

The police, after registeringa case against Viku, startedsearching for him.

On Friday, he was nabbedat Sundargarh.

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Aspecial POCSO Court hereon Saturday sentenced a

35-year-old man to 10 years’rigorous imprisonment (RI)for raping a minor girl twoyears ago.

Additional District andSessions Judge Pranati Saha,

presiding over the court, pro-nounced the punishment to theconvict Kartik Mallick. Besidesthe RI, the court imposed a fineof Rs 10,000 on Mallick, whobelongs to Taladapa villageunder the Tihidi police stationin the district.

Notably, on May 20, 2017,Mallick had forcibly taken the

girl of the same village to a near-by field while she was returninghome from a neighbour’s houseafter watching television.

He raped her in night. Thegirl’s father filed a complaintwith the Tihidi police. Mallickwas arrested and tried underSections 376, 506 of IPC andSection 6 of POCSO Act.

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The Union Ministry of Human ResourceDevelopment has granted ‘Institute of

Eminence’ (IoE) tag to the KIIT University.Five top public universities including Delhi

University, IIT Madras, IIT Kharagpur, Universityof Hyderabad and the Benaras Hindu Universityhave got this status while the Kalinga Institute ofIndustrial Technology (KIIT) University) is amongseven prominent private universities to get the dis-tinction.

The KIIT University is the only institute inOdisha to get such a prestigious tag. For this, KIITfounder Dr Achyuta Samanta has given the cred-it to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union HRDMinister Ramesh Pokhariyal Nishank and ChiefMinister Naveen Patnaik.

It is a matter of pride for Odisha that the KIITis accorded such a prestigious tag as the only insti-tute of the State, he said.

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Congress member Santosh Singh Saluja onSaturday moved a Motion of Privilege

against Minister of Social Security andEmpowerment of Persons with Disabilities(SSEPD) Ashok Chandra Panda for submit-ting ‘untrue’ information in response to aquestion put by him on July 22, 2019.

“I have not got replies to my UD ques-tion number 2288 put on July 7, 2019. WhenI asked for information relating to social secu-rity block-wise, the Minister furnished datedistrict-wise. Similarly, information relatingto vacancy of posts and beneficiaries are nottrue,” said Saluja.

In response, Speaker Surjya NarayanPatro said he would examine the motionmoved by Saluja.

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Page 4: ˆ!...Minister of State for Home Dibya Shankar Mishra tabled the action-taken report (ATR) on the case in the Assembly on Saturday. The State Government had in January 2018 appointed

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Police have a responsibility tocreate a secure environ-

ment for the citizens. The Statepolice should take prompt,effective and exemplary actionagainst anti-socials and crim-inals, said Chief MinisterNaveen Patnaik at the nation-al workshop on consultationsby stakeholders on “Safety ofWomen and Children,” organ-ised by the National PoliceFoundation and Institute and

the UNICEF here on Saturday.Patnaik said, “I am glad to

learn that the 15-day socialawareness campaign againstchild sexual abuse — “PareePaain Kathatiye” was a phe-nomenal success in bringingawareness on the roles andresponsibilities of parents, rel-atives, and members of thecommunity and also sensitisingpolice personnel in preventionof sexual offences againstminor children, especiallyminor girls.”

Hope that such noble ini-tiatives by the Odisha policewould continue in future in thenext phase of Paree Campaignto help address various socialevils and heinous crimes

against women and girl chil-dren, he added. HomeSecretary Asit Tripathy reiter-

ated the support ofGovernment for the initiativestaken by Odisha police for

prevention, detection and pros-ecution of offences againstwomen and children. DGP Dr

RP Sharma said the Odishapolice are taking sincere stepsto prevent, detect and prosecuteeffectively the cases againstwomen and children. On theoccasion, Patnaik released acoffee table book on the ‘PareePaine Kathatiye.’

The CM also felicitatedAngul SP MitrabhanuMahapatra, Special PublicProsecutor Saro Kumar Patnaikand Angul Town PS IICRamesh Chandra Bisoi for suc-cessful investigation and pros-ecution in a case of rape andmurder of a minor girl inwhich the trial was completedin a record time and theaccused was sentenced to cap-ital punishment.

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Unilaterally converting 44existing Labour Acts to

four Labour Codes withoutthe consent of labourers willonly lead to growth of militanttrade union movement again inIndia, said former Rajya SabhaMP, INTUC national vice-president and Odisha unit president Dr RamaChandra Khuntia.

“Wage Code has alreadybeen passed in Lok Sabha andHealth and Safety Code intro-duced in the Parliament. TheNDA Government wants topass all Labour Codes withoutthe consent of stakeholders

and without ParliamentCommittees’ scrutiny,” allegedKhuntia, adding that, “If any-body is pushed to the wall, heor she would have no optionbut to struggle for the survival.”

After 1991 when Indiaenter in to market economygradually and slowly tradeunion militancy was goingdown, bilateral discussion, tri-partite negotiation and depen-dences on law and court wereincreasing.

But in view of the arbitrarydecision to throw all existinglaws to dustbin and bring fourLabour Codes to the advan-tages of industrialists andinvestors only is not acceptable

to the workers, said Khuntia.He was addressing a joint

trade union rally on Saturdayat Jantar Mantar, New Delhi.

Many workers belonging toconstruction, media, mining,beedi, iron ore, dolomite, plan-tation, rubber, cinema sector where workers were get-ting already social security willbe affected if the Social Security Code is passed in theParliament, Khuntia observed.

He called upon theGovernment not to hurriedlypass all Labour Codes withoutconsulting the stakeholdersand without Parliament’sscrutiny.

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The word “examination” cre-ates great trepidation in

students’ mind as it is one of themajor parameters to judgetheir academic standard in aschool curriculum.

It is worth analysing that 24hours in a day is same foreveryone; yet, some students cancreate history of excellence byworking meticulously withinthe stipulated time whereassome others fail to do so. Whyis it so? Simply because they donot know how to manage timein an effective way and that is theroot cause of examination stress.

If we try to unfold the var-ious causes of this burningissue of examination stress,then definitely, in the very firstplace will come our mark-cen-tric examination system that

encourages the students forrote learning. Today, studentsare focusing more on remem-bering than understanding.Moreover, our existing educa-tion system is more informa-tion oriented than knowledge-oriented. But due to heavy syl-labus especially in senior sec-ondary level, it becomes diffi-cult on the part of the studentsto cover the whole syllabus ofall subjects by mugging up thetext and appear an examinationof tight competition.

Lack of understanding alsomakes learning not a fun but apressure. The desire to securehigh score in examination andfulfil various expectations ofparents, teachers and peergroups causes stress in themind of the students when theyapprehend that it is difficult ontheir part to achieve.

Most of the schools con-duct internal examinationsfrom time to time, which is,indeed, a good system to get thestudents connected with the syl-labus, question pattern andscheme of valuation. But, trulyspeaking, most of the studentsfail to understand its signifi-

cance. They respond the class-room teaching in a casual man-ner and often neglect to act asper the teachers’ recommenda-tions regarding preparation ofnotes and maintenance of a dis-ciplined life which are secrets ofscoring good marks in anyexamination. Instead of making

systematic notes in every sub-ject, they become more depen-dent on sample papers or inter-net, as a result, they do less writ-ing and more reading.Moreover, huge no of studentsin schools and colleges, stereo-typed teaching methods, morefocus on timely syllabus com-pletion than imparting knowl-edge, high expectations fromchildren and technologicaldistractions are some otherreasons of the examinationstress among the students.

Stress caused from exami-nation exerts negative reper-cussion on the youth. Whenthey go to the examination hallwith too full of pressure andunsystematic preparation, theycannot show a brilliant perfor-mance which further leads toanxiety, loss of concentration,loss of self-esteem, depression,

aggression, etc. Somefeel somuch over-burdened that theyare even addicted to intoxica-tion. They start losing a healthylife and develop fear and ner-vousness towards examinations.

The DAV Public School,Chandrasekhrpur is a brand inthe field of quality education.Every year it is setting newmilestones by dint of the stu-dents’ scintillating performancein Board and Entrance exami-nations. The secret behind thissuccess is its attempts and effortsto create a stress-free environ-ment. The school believes thatstress management is a uniqueart that demands major contri-butions from the students them-selves though the role of teach-ers and parents cannot also beignored. The DAVians are taughtto manage their time effective-ly and work on priority basis

keeping study at the apex andtaking right decision at righttime. Importance on variousstress management techniqueslike music, yoga, meditation,sports and recreation also makethem disciplined, self-reliant,calm and composed.

Teachers of the school haveraised their teaching standardfrom traditional lecture methodto fun-filled activity-based newmethods using smart boardsthat make their teaching quiteappealing. They are talentedenough to allow the students toexplore things themselves andanalyse different concepts crit-ically. They play the role of facil-itators and give due credit to thecreativity of the students andaward marks by going beyondthe marking scheme.

It is always advisable for theparents not to suffocate their

wards by imposing too much ofrestrictions and regulations onthem, rather try to understandtheir feelings, strengths andweaknesses and accordinglymotivate and counsel them toset their goals. They are expect-ed to be immensely supportive,cooperative and act as a beaconlight in the desperate world oftheir wards.

It is their primary respon-sibility to keep their wards freefrom mental torture and tur-moil. All these efforts and reme-dial measures will hopefullyenable the students to preparemeticulously for various exam-inations and ultimately removestress and anxiety from them.

(The writer is a senior fac-ulty at DAV Public School,C h a n d r a s e k h a r p u r ,Bhubaneswar)

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BHUBANESWAR: ThePrerana on Friday submitted amemorandum to Governor ProfGaneshi Lal addressed to thePresident, Prime Minister,Union HRD Minister andUnion Forest and EnvironmentMinister demanding opening ofgreen arm in schools, colleges,universities, apart from theNCC, NSS, Scouts and RedCross units.

In the memorandum, theorganisation mentioned thatthe Philippines has passed a newlaw which requires all highschool and college students toplant at least 10 trees if they wantto graduate school or college.

Prerana Green Arm com-mander Dr Dillip Srichandansaid that the same should beimplemented in India to savethe environment. He alsodemanded to make environ-ment studies mandatory in thesyllabus of schools, colleges anduniversities.

Besides, Srichandandemanded to open Green Armin schools, colleges and univer-sities too. Prakash Srichandan,Prof Baldev Maharatha, SanjayPatnaik, Rushi Patnaik andactress Archita Sahu apart fromDr Srichandan met theGovernor. PNS

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Ayoung techie from Odishahas once again won the

Microsoft’s 2019 AI for Good Idea Challenge prize forhis innovative smartphoneapplication.

Meet Pratik Mohapatra, acomputer science engineeringstudent at RV College ofEngineering in Bengaluru, whohas come up with an artificialintelligence (AI) poweredapplication that connects organdonors with people waiting

for transplant. The appOrganSecure has bagged thirdprize in Good Idea Challenge.

Earlier, he had won the2018 Imagine Cup world cham-pionship in Redmond,Washington with his DrugSafeapp — a drug authentication app.

With OrganSecure, theyoung developer hopes to tack-le the two biggest challenges inthe organ donation ecosys-tem—getting more people tobecome organ donors andensuring people in need get theorgans at the right time.

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Acarcass of a ratel(Gadabhalu) was retrieved

at Mangalajodi in the Chilikalake recently. Members of theSri Sri Mahavir PakshiSurakshya Samiti (SSMPSS)during their regular patrollingactivity found the dead animal.

The ratel, most probablykilled, had come down forprey, like snakes, rodents, etc.

Notably, the SSMPSS con-ducts regular patrols in Chilka

waters in and aroundMangalajodi, along with theWild Orissa. Recently, anotherratel was found dead in the areawhen it was hit by a vehicle.

Wild Orissa vice chairper-son Nanda Kishore Bhujabalhanded over the body to thelocal forest officials.

Meanwhile, the WildOrissa has demanded that thetotal area of Chilka fallingwithin the monsoon water lim-its of the Chilika lake be noti-fied as ‘Eco Sensitive Zone.’

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Kandhamal district admin-istration officials on Friday

rescued as many as 71 childrenfrom two hostels which werebeing run illegally. Policedetained a couple in this con-nection.

Following a tipoff from areliable source, the DistrictChild Protection Officer raid-ed the two hostels at Brahmani

and Gadapur villages in theDaringbadi area. While 53children were rescued fromBrahmani, 18 were rescuedfrom Gadapur. Among the res-cued children, 61 are boys and10 are girls. It may be notedthat the local administrationhad issued a notice as far backas in 2016 to close the hostel atBrahmani. But the hostelauthorities were running it bychanging its name.

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The Jai Bheem Ghasi Samaj(JBGS) and the Jagran

Manch including other organ-isations here called a 12-hourbandh on Saturday demanding24x7 medical service in the oldbuilding of the JharsuugudaDistrict Headquarters Hospitalat Mangalbazar.

The protestors picketed atvarious strategic places in thetown. Shops, business estab-lishments and majority of theschools of the town remainedclosed while attendance in

Government offices was normal.Public transport remained

off the roads in most parts ofthe town. A number of loadedtrucks, including ones withperishable goods, remainedstranded in the major junctionsdue to the bandh.

Commuters have beenbadly affected as all the meansof transport came to a halt.

“In spite of assurances bythe District Administrationand the Health Department tomake the DHH operationalfrom its old buildings atMangalbazar, nothing has been

done. On the other hand, poorpatients and their relatives arefacing difficulties after the hos-pital was shifted to a newseven storied building atMalimunda,” said JBGS presi-dent Umesh Behera.

Police said three platoonswere deployed and 93 protesterswere arrested. Apart from a fewstray incidents, no untowardincident was reported from anypart of Jharsuuguda, the SDPOsaid, adding that the adminis-tration had made elaboratearrangements to ensure securi-ty of people during the bandh.

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From Page 1It has been instructed to

all concerned that any Districtor State Authority should notmake the progress of investi-gation public in front ofmedia before the investigationis over, especially in cases ofsexual assault.

The commission has rec-ommended that identity ofvictim should be kept hidden,progress of probe should not be disclosed tomedia before its completionand statue of the vict im girl should beremoved.

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He suggested to theGovernment to enact rules formaking students of allGovernment officers, MLAs andMinisters to read in Governmentschools.

Congress member SantoshSingh Saluja wanted to know whythe Plus Two education fold wasbrought to the School and MassEducation fold and made thedepartment over-burdened.Referring to School and MassEducation Minister Samir RanjanDash’s information that 56,23,474out of 56,33,690 children in theage group of 6-14 years are study-ing in various schools, Salujawanted to know what the balance10,226 children go. He expressedconcern that there are no toiletsfor girls in 441 schools while theincidents of minor girl rapes onrise. He alleged that a racket tomisappropriate Mid-Day Mealscheme funds is very active inBalangir district.

In his reply, the Minister said

that State Open Schools havebeen opened at 344 places inorder to provide education todrop outs. By 2018-19, 32,931 stu-dents have passed through theopen schools. As many as 8,666children belonging to migrantworkers have been kept in 2,229hostels and taught in schools.

The drop out of SC studentshas declined from 57.55 per centin 2002-03 to 8.35 per cent in2018-19. Similarly, the dropout ofST children has declined fron72.57 per cent to 8.95 per cent dur-ing the period. As many as 18,400girls are being taught in 182Kasturaba Gandhi Girls Schools.

The ‘Mo School Abhiyan’ hasbeen introduced to enhance thequality of primary education in theState, he said.

On the occasion, heannounced that a Mass EducationAdvisory Council would be con-stituted with educationists as itsmembers for enhancing qualityeducation in the sector. He saidclosed schools can be reopened ifconcerned district Collectorssubmits proposals in that regard.

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Acargo ship from Gujarat ran aground offthe Vangaon village Dahanu taluka of

Palghar district in costal Konkan region onSaturday morning, after it hit the rocks andwent adrift on Friday night.

The 1478-tonne merchant ship MVNanda Aparna, admeasuring around 78meter in length and five meter width, hadrammed into a hard rock off the Palghar coaston Friday night. It was spotted near Vanganivillage by the local fisher folk on Saturdaymorning.

According to captain of the ship VVPillai, MV Nanda Aparna had sailed fromHazira in Gujarat to Alibaug in Raigad dis-trict in Maharashtra last week with a cargoof steel. After unloading the cargo at Alibaug,the ship was returning to Hazira on Fridaynight when the mishap happened.

“While we were on our return journeyamid heavy rains, high tides and zero visi-bility, our vessel the rocky shores off Palghar

coast. In the early hours of the morning, werealised that we had run aground off Vanganivillage,” Pillai said.

“All crew members are safe. There’s suf-ficient food and water on board. We areawaiting help from the owners of the Ship,”Pillai said. The ship is owned by M/s. EcoPronch Logistics Pvt. Ltd, Surat.

After it hit the rocks, one of the ship’spropellers has been badly damaged.

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Page 5: ˆ!...Minister of State for Home Dibya Shankar Mishra tabled the action-taken report (ATR) on the case in the Assembly on Saturday. The State Government had in January 2018 appointed

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The greenhorns and the vet-erans together on Saturday

attended classes of top BJP“teachers” including PrimeMinister Narendra Modi, whoasked them to keep the studentin them alive even though theyare now lawmakers orMinisters. He said the BJP is an“organic entity and not an“assembled” one and hasachieved its present growthon account of its ideology.

The two-day training pro-gramme, “Abhyas Varga”, isbeing organised at Parliamentand issues like the party’s ide-ology and Parliamentary pro-cedures are being discussed atlength with debutant MPs find-ing their feet in the party andits ideological moorings. Theattendance to the programmehas been made compulsorywhich showed results withMPs trooping in the conferenceroom before time in the morn-ing.

The BJP is an “organic”enti-ty and not an “assembled”enti-ty, Modi told his party’s law-makers as he asked them to

remain active as ground work-ers even after becoming min-isters or legislators.

“The has reached herebecause of its ideology andthoughts not because of one

family’s legacy,”Modi told theBJP MPs in an apparent hit atthe Congress.

“The party worker in youshould remain alive alwayseven if you become a minister

or an MP. Irrespective of yourage, always remain a student sothat learning process goeson,”Modi was quoted as sayingby Parliamentary AffairsMinister Pralhad Joshi.

The classes were given inseveral sessions with the firstday having nine of them. BJPPresident Amit Shah has hadhis say on “We, Our organi-zation and our work culture“with Party’s workingPresident J P Nadda expressedhimself on the topic of “Ourthoughts and concept of NewIndia”.

The MPs were giving ori-entations on how to deal withlegislative business and askquestions relating to their con-stituencies. Party’s IT cell isgiving classes to the MPs ashow best to use the NaMo Appand communicate with partyworkers and connect with thepublic.

An exclusive session onWest Bengal is also plannedwith the MPs of the state.

Prime Minister will giveconcluding address on Sunday.Besides Shah and Nadda ,Defence Minister RajnathSingh, Union ParliamentaryMinister Arjun Meghwal, BJPGeneral Secretary BhupendraYadav and IT Celll head AmitMalvia would have sessionwith the MPs.

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The prestigious IndianInstitutes of Technology

(IITs) have notched up a first.There is no seat vacant in anyof these premier institutes thisyear.

“There have been a total of13,604 undergraduate admis-sions in IITs this year with nilvacant seats. This is the firsttime ever to fill all seats in allIITs leaving no vacant seatswhich has been achieved byproactive cooperation of allIITs,” HRD Higher EducationSecretary R Subrahmanyamsaid.

Last year, 118 seats in all 23IITs were vacant.

Then HRD MinisterPrakash Javadekar had attrib-uted the vacant seats to stu-dents not showing interest incertain disciplines.

Noticing the number ofseats lying vacant in the pre-mium institutes as rising trendin the five years, except in 2014,the HRD ministry had in 2017set up a panel which made sev-eral recommendations to

address the issue.According to the Ministry

data, of the nearly 11,000 seatsacross the IITs, a total of 274seats remained vacant from2013 with IIT BHU recordingmaximum vacancies.

The Indian School ofMines (which was upgraded tothe status of an IIT in 2016)recorded 23 vacancies each in2016 and 2017. The IIT-Kanpur and the IIT-Hyderabadhad all their seats takenbetween 2013 and 2017, while

the IIT-Delhi recorded zerovacancies between 2013 and2015.

In 2016 and 2017, the IIT-Delhi had two seats vacant ineach year. As far as IIT-Bombayis concerned, it had all its seatsfilled in 2013, 2014 and 2015,while had two vacancies in2016 and one in 2017.

“In order to minimise thevacancies in IITs, NITs andother Centrally-FundedTechnical institutions (CFTIs),the HRD ministry had consti-tuted a committee to recom-mend suitable measures,”asenior ministry official said.

The committee recom-mended the institutions mayreview seats in each disciplinebased on employment oppor-tunities, national requirement,available infrastructure andscope for future.

“The committee also sug-gested streamlining the coun-selling process by having mul-tiple rounds as well as takingother pro-active measures suchas launching helpline to facil-itate students in making choic-es,”the official said.

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Two years after the contro-versy, the Reliance

Industries-backed Jio Instituteyet again figures in the list ofInstitute of Eminence cate-gorised by the HRD Ministry.The decision was taken fol-lowing a meeting of theUniversity Grants Commission(UGC) where the report of theEmpowered Expert Committee(EEC) was considered to tag 10each institution in Governmentand private category.

The private institutionswhich have made it to the listfor issuing of Letter of Intentinclude Amrita Vidyapeetham,VIT Vellore, Jamia Hamdard,Kalinga Institute of IndustrialTechnology, Shiv NadarUniversity and OP JindalUniversity. In the greenfieldcategory (institutions whichare yet to be established) JioInstitute and Bharti Institute ofSatya Bharti foundation havebeen recommended,”said asenior HRD Ministry official.

The official said Greenfieldinstitutions would get three-year period to establish andoperationalise the institution,and thereafter, EEC will con-sider giving IoE status to suchinstitutions. The move is partof a scheme of the HRDMinistry being from last twoyears to select 20 IoEs — 10public and 10 private —thatwill enjoy complete academicand administrative autonomy.

UGC also recommendedgranting of Institution ofEminence (IoE) status to DelhiUniversity, HyderabadUniversity, BHU and IITMadras and Kharagpur. Whilethe recommendation for

Jadhavpur University inKolkata and Anna University inChennai has been subjected toconsultation with the respectivestate governments, six othershave been recommended forissue of Letter of Intent (LoI)for the eminence status.Among the universities thathave failed to make it to the listof top 10 Government institu-tions are Aligarh MuslimUniversity.

“The expert committed hadshortlisted 15 public institutionsand as many private institutionsfor eminence status. As thescheme has only provided for10 institutions in each catego-ry, the UGC was of the opinionthat since the thrust of thescheme is to prepare institutionsfor the global rankings, noexisting institution which hasnot figured in any of the glob-al or national rankings shall berecommended for the IoE sta-tus. Wherever there was a tie,UGC used the QS-2019 IndiaRankings as a tie-breaker,”saida HRD Ministry official.

Last year, the governmenthad granted the IoE status toIIT-Delhi, IIT-Bombay and theBengaluru-based IndianInstitute of Science (IISc) in thepublic sector, and ManipalAcademy of Higher Educationand BITS Pilani in the privatesector, while the Jio Institute byReliance Foundation was giventhe tag in greenfield category.

While government willprovide funding to public insti-tutions with IoE tag, in case ofthe private institutions pro-posed as IoE, there will be nofinancial support, but they willbe entitled for more autonomyas a special category DeemedUniversity.

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International wildlife expertshave lauded India’s latest tiger

census, the largest centrallycoordinated survey of its kindin the world, saying that itshould be expanded for count-ing other iconic, charismaticspecies across the countries.

Recognizing the role offrontline staff such as forestguards in tiger conservation,they noted that, it was alsoimportant that their workingconditions were reviewed tomaintain motivation and effec-tiveness and to insure thefuture protection of tigers in thewild.

As per the survey releasedby Prime Minister NarendraModi recently tiger numbershave increased to 2967 in 2018,up from 2226 in 2014.

Dr. Chris Carbone, SeniorResearch Fellow, DoctoralProgrammes Coordinator,Institute of Zoology, who waspart of the process to assessIndia’s tiger population duringvarious estimations since 2006said that this (fourth cycle of allIndia tiger estimation 2018) isthe largest centrally coordinat-ed survey of its kind in theworld and represents an

immense achievement provid-ing invaluable information onthe status of not only big cats,but a wide range of coexistingmammals in tiger habitats.

Carbone recalled that therehave also been impressiveimprovements since the origi-nal survey in 2006 due, in part,to general technologicaladvances (e.g. camera-traps,mobile phones and GPS etc.),but also due to the efforts ofWildlife Institute of India (WII)and partners to develop soft-ware tools to automate the datarecording and processing,including the use of M-STrIPES(phone app for all types of on-field data entry) and data analy-sis (Extract Compare (tiger ID)and CATRAT (species ID)).

Increase in number oftigers is a welcome news, but itis “essential therefore that tigercore areas and key habitat cor-ridors continue to be main-tained and protected againstthreats of development.”

Dr. Matt HaywardAssociate Professor ofConservation, School ofEnvironmental and LifeSciences University ofNewcastle, Callaghan added,“deriving a population esti-mate for any rare and elusive

species is a challenging task, butto do so for dozens of tigerpopulations across the entiresub-continent of India isimmense.

The numbers alone arephenomenal - 44,000 field staff,600,000 person-days, 523,000km of walked transects,318,000 habitat surveys, 26,800camera trap locations across anarea of 381,000 km yielding 35million photographs of India’swildlife including 76,523 pho-tos of tigers. Yet these effortswould be redundant withoutusing robust methods toanalyse them.

This project warrantsexpansion and should be imple-mented on a suite of iconicspecies around the world.

Dr. Joseph Bump AssociateProfessor, University ofMinnesota and Director of

Graduate Studies, GullionEndowed Chair in ForestWildlife Research & Educationtoo was in all praise for India’seffort to estimate its tiger pop-ulation, which he said, wasunprecedented globally andcommendable in scale and sci-entific sophistication.

“Those responsible forleading tiger estimation inIndia wholly embrace that thescientific process of peer reviewand publication in high-qual-ity journals should guide thechoice of appropriate methodsfor monitoring tigers and theirprey. Sensitivity analyses wouldadd to the robustness of theprocess and help address war-ranted and unwarranted cri-tiques, thereby building confi-dence in the assessment. “

While noting that the vol-untary village relocation pro-

gram is a major step towardsproviding tigers needed space,he cautioned that “care shouldbe taken to ensure that villagesare truly returned to wildlifehabitat and not used for admin-istrative expansion.”

Investment in the well-being and working conditionsof forest guards is an invest-ment in the front line of tigerconservation in India. To theextent that impacts to tiger cor-ridors are minimized thehealthy future of tigers is max-imized, said Dr Bump.

The census was carried outin four phases. Phases 1 and 2covered forest beats, generallyspread over 15 sq km each, byForest Departments, to collectsigns of tiger presence like scatand pugmarks. Enumeratorswalked paths called line tran-sects to estimate the abun-dance of prey. This was fol-lowed by sampling of plotsalong the transects to assesshabitat characteristics, humanimpact, and prey dung density.

In phase 3, the informationwas plotted on the forest mapprepared with remote-sensingand GIS application. Sampleareas were divided in 2-sq-kmparcels, and trap cameras werelaid in these grids.

In the last phase, data wereextrapolated to areas wherecameras could not be deployed.

The tiger bearing habitatswere divided into five land-scape regions-Shivalik-Gangetic plains, Central Indiaand the Eastern Ghats, WesternGhats, North Eastern Hills andBrahmaputra Flood Plains andthe Sundarbans.

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Area sown for almost allkharif (summer) crops is

lagging so far due to deficit rainand floods, with rice acreage atonly 223.5 lakh hectare andpulses at 105.14 lakh hectare.As per the AgricultureMinistry’s latest data, rice —the main kharif crop — hasbeen planted in 223.53 lakhhectare so far in the currentkharif season of the 2019-20crop year (July-June), downfrom 255.48 lakh hectare a yearago. Sowing of kharif cropsbegin with the onset of south-west monsoon and harvestingfrom October onwards.

Similarly, acreage of puls-es was down at 105.14 lakhhectare as against 113.74 lakhhectare, while that of coarsecereals at 136.17 lakh hectare asagainst 145.16 lakh hectare inthe said period.

The coverage of oilseedswas also less so far as 149.49lakh hectare was covered so farthis kharif season when com-pared with 157.39 lakh hectarea year ago.

Among cash crops, areaunder sugarcane and juteremained lower, while cotton

acreage remained higher so far.Area planted to sugarcane

was at 52.30 lakh hectare asagainst 55.45 lakh hectare,while that of jute at 6.83 lakhhectare as against 7.19 lakhhectare in the said period.

Total acreage under allkharif crops was down at788.52 lakh hectare so far inthis season, as against 844.20lakh hectare in the same seasonlast year.

Experts are of the view thatsowing activities were delayedbecause of late arrival of mon-soon and later coverage couldnot pick up in some pocketsbecause of 9 per cent deficit inrains till July-end.

According to the IndianMeteorological Department(IMD), there was 9 per centdeficit in cumulative monsoonin the last two months.

There was rainfall deficitreported is states such asManipur, Nagaland, WestBegnal, Jharkhand, UttarPradesh, Uttarakhand,Haryana, Delhi, Punjab,Himachal Pradesh, Odisha,Gujarat, Chhatisgarh, AndhraPradesh, Telangana, TamilNadu, Karnataka and Kerala, itsaid in its report.

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Two accused in the BatlaHouse encounter case have

moved the Delhi High Courtseeking a stay on the release ofthe film based on the incidentin Delhi in 2008.

The plea, filed by Ariz Khanand Shehzad Ahmad, bothaccused in the Batla Houseencounter case, is likely to comeup for hearing next week. Thepetition sought a direction to theCentre to conduct a pre-screen-ing of the film ‘Batla House’.

The plea further statedthat the poster and promo-tional videos of the movieclaim that the sequence of

events in the movie are inspiredby true events, which createsthe impression the film depictsa true account of events in theBatla House encounter.

“Although the courts dis-charge their duties in a free andfair manner and are not likelyto be affected by events por-trayed in a movie...the releaseof such a movie would preju-dice the outcome of thetrial,”the plea said.

“The events portrayed inthe film will prejudice the trialespecially as there has been aneffort to connect the two inci-dents i.e. Batla House and theDelhi serial blasts,” the pleaadded.

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New Delhi: A Delhi court onSaturday issued productionwarrant against Unnao rapeaccused former BharatiyaJanata Party (BJP) lawmakerKuldeep Singh Sengar and hisaide Shashi Singh in connec-tion with the case.

The hearing will resume onMonday before District JudgeDinesh Sharma of the TisHazari Court, here.

The Supreme Court onThursday ordered transfer of allcases relating to the said mat-

ter outside Uttar Pradesh. ABench, presided over by ChiefJustice of India (CJI) RanjanGogoi, had transferred the caseto Delhi before District JudgeSharma.

The case relates to the rapeof a minor girl allegedly bySengar at his residence inUnnao on June 4, 2017, whereshe had gone to seek a job.

Sengar is lodged in Sitapurdistrict jail. Shashi Singh hadallegedly lured the victim toSengar’s residence. IANS

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Page 6: ˆ!...Minister of State for Home Dibya Shankar Mishra tabled the action-taken report (ATR) on the case in the Assembly on Saturday. The State Government had in January 2018 appointed

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New Delhi: India has toldChina that the proposed megafree trade agreement RCEPshould address the causes ofhigh trade imbalances amongthe member countries, theCommerce Ministry said onSaturday.

The matter was among theissues raised by CommerceSecretary Anup Wadhawan inhis meeting with WangShouwen, the Vice Minister ofChina's Commerce Ministry,on the sidelines of RCEP inter-sessional ministerial meeting inBeijing on Friday.

In his meeting, the secre-tary "emphasised on the impor-tance of an RCEP agreementthat would duly address thecauses of existing trade imbal-ances," the Commerce andIndustry Ministry said in astatement.

RCEP bloc comprises 10ASEAN group members(Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia,Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore,Thailand, the Philippines, Laos

and Vietnam), and their tradepartners India, China, Japan,South Korea, Australia andNew Zealand.

India has registered a tradedeficit in 2018-19 with as manyas 11 RCEP member countries— including China, SouthKorea and Australia — out ofthe grouping of 16 nationsthat are negotiating a megatrade pact since November2012.

In 2018-19, India's tradedeficit with China stood at$50.2 billion.

Wadhawan is in Beijing forthe eighth RCEP inter-ses-sional ministerial meeting.

"India's concerns regardingmarket access and other issuesleading to imbalanced tradebetween some of the partnercountries was specificallyflagged during the meetings,"the ministry said.

The secretary also raisedbilateral trade issues with theChinese minister.

India has sought greater

market access from China forits products like sugar, rice andpharmaceuticals to narrow thehigh trade deficit.

He also pushed for greatermarket access to other itemssuch as milk and milk prod-ucts, pomegranate, soybeanmeal, and okra.

Besides, he asked for eas-ing of the business visa regimeby China for Indians.

In his meeting withBoonyarit Kalayanamit,Permanent Secretary ofThailand, the Secretaryrequested Thailand to improveits offer in goods and servicesunder RCEP.

With Chan Chun Sing,Minister for Trade andIndustry of Singapore,Wadhawan requested to sup-port the operationalisation ofthe mutual recognition agree-ment on nursing as agreed inthe 2nd CECA, a kind of freetrade agreement, review andwork towards speedy progresson the 3rd CECA review. PTI

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Mumbai: The lenders to thedefunct Jet Airways on Saturdaydecided to extend the deadlinefor submitting expression ofinterest by a week to August 10.

Late last month, the reso-lution professional AshishChhawchharia had floated EoIsfor selling stake in the airlinethat stopped flying mid-April.

Today was the deadlineputting in the EoIs and have sofar received preliminary inter-est from four parties.

"On the basis of the requestsreceived from credible interest-ed resolution applicants forsome additional time, the dead-line for submission of EoI isbeen provisionally extended bya week to August 10," thelenders said in a regulatory fil-ing.

The extension is to ensurethe objectives of the IBC areachieved and also to maximisethe value of assets of the debtor,it said.

"The revised deadline forsubmission stands at 4 pm,August 10," it added.

Earlier this week, the leadbanker to the airline State Bankof India had approved a �10crore interim funding and other

banks are also in the process ofapproving the same.

This was after the NCLThad on July 23 asked the RP todiscuss the salary concerns withthe lenders.

The tribunal said even if100 per cent cannot be paid tothe employees a portion of thesalary has to keeping the humaninterest in mind.

The lenders, who own theairline since March 25 with 51percent stake, had on June 17sent the airline, which stoppedflying on April 17, to the NCLTas they could not get a buyer.

As of July 4, the RP hadreceived claims worth over�25,500 crore, including over�200 crore from founder NareshGoyal, submitted by the holdingcompany of the airline JetAir,but was rejected.

State Bank has made a

claim of �1,644 crore, includingcash credit inclusive of interest,term loans and bank guarantees,followed by Yes Bank with aclaim of �1,084 crore, PNB at�963 crore and IDBI Bank at�594 crore.

Operational creditorsexcluding workmen andemployees have claimed �12,372crore, with the entire amountbeing under verification, whilethe workmen and employeessought to recover �443 crorewhich is also under verification.

Apart from this, autho-rised representatives of work-men and employees have made11,965 claims worth �735 crore,he said, adding other creditors,including other financial cred-itors and operational credi-tors, are seeking to recover�1,105 crore through 121claims. PTI

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Kolkata: Securities andExchange Board of India(SEBI) on Saturday expressedconcern over related partytransactions, a method "fre-quently" employed by corpo-rates for diversion of funds.

The capital markets reg-ulator also said anothermeans of such diversion wasextension of loans.

"Related party transac-tions are being frequentlyused for diversion of funds bycorporates. Another instanceis extension of loans of com-panies to related parties. Thelist is endless. This reallybothers the regulator", SEBI'sExecutive Director AmarjeetSingh said.

Speaking at the FinancialMarket Conclave organisedby CII here, he said thesepractices should be discon-tinued in the interest of list-ed companies, promoters andrelated parties.

Singh said fraudulentrelated party transactionswere being used for "siphon-ing of funds". PTI

New Delhi: Despite the flightof over �20,500 crore worth offoreign funds from the coun-try's stock market, theGovernment seems adamantto implement the taxation sur-charge on the super-rich cat-egory which has spookedForeign Portfolio Investors(FPIs).

The carnage at the indicesbegan since July 5, when theBudget proposed a levy of anadditional surcharge on indi-viduals and trusts earningmore than �2 crore and �5crore, respectively.

However, FinanceMinister Nirmala Sitharamanin Parliament made it clearthat the super-rich tax washere to stay. She also gave asolution to the FPIs by advis-ing them to register as com-panies to be out of the ambitof the surcharge.

In a recent panel discus-sion which was organised by

ET, the then Finance SecretarySubhash Chandra Garg, whois now the Power Secretary,was quoted as saying: "So FPI,I'd also mentioned it, was notin the frame in the surchargethat was raised. It's a little col-lateral kind of consequence.

"They are quite vocal. TheFPIs basically make invest-ments in the secondary mar-ket. They don't make it the pri-mary market. If you were tolook at the economic andfinancial consequences of whattheir behaviour might be withour share markets actuallybeing in very high PE ratios,it's not in the economic disin-terest of the country if slightexit takes place.

"It also doesn't affect thereal investment in the econo-my. But still there was anattempt on how we can find away out to sort of at least takeout both FPIs, which representsmaller investors, don't repre-

sent the cash rich. It becomesvery messy. It has not beenpossible to find a way out.Then the conclusion is, whichI also read, and the FinanceMinister also had very clearlyspoken - I don't think anythingis going to be done for them inthis year."

Notwithstanding, the FPIscontinue to be on a sellingspree ever since the budget wasannounced.

Retail traders grouse thatover �12 lakh crore in marketcap has been eroded and thatFPIs have over 50 countriesapart from India to put in theirinvestments.

Nonetheless, stock mar-kets participants fear that onceimplemented, this move mayadversely impact FPIs whichare set up as non-corporatevehicles. Typically, FPIs are setup as trusts or limited part-nerships in their home juris-dictions. IANS

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Washington: US PresidentDonald Trump defendedSaturday his hardline tradepolicy against China, arguingthat the tariffs he imposed arebringing in "billions" from theBeijing government.

"Things are going alongvery well with China. They arepaying us Tens of Billions ofDollars, made possible by theirmonetary devaluations andpumping in massive amounts ofcash to keep their systemgoing," Trump wrote on Twitter.

Trump often argues thattariffs imposed on Chinesegoods are paid by China whenin fact they are covered by mid-dlemen for US importers and inmost cases end up being paid byUS consumers who buy thosegoods.

Trump also said that othercountries, fearful of being pun-ished with US levies like Chinais, are clamouring to reachtrade deals with the United

States."Countries are coming to us

wanting to negotiate REALtrade deals, not the one sidedhorror show deals made by pastadministrations. They don'twant to be targeted for Tariffsby the US," Trump tweetedwithout saying which countrieswant such accords.

On Thursday Trumpannounced plans to imposetariffs on another USD 300 bil-lion in Chinese goods inSeptember. The threat joltedglobal stock markets.

Trump's announcementcame a day after US andChinese trade negotiatorsrevived talks aimed at endingthe year-long dispute.

The new plan means vir-tually all of the $660 billion inannual two-way trade betweenthe world's two biggesteconomies will have tariffs onit. China on Friday threatenedto retaliate. PTI

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Page 7: ˆ!...Minister of State for Home Dibya Shankar Mishra tabled the action-taken report (ATR) on the case in the Assembly on Saturday. The State Government had in January 2018 appointed

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Pro-democracy protesters inHong Kong erected barri-

cades in a popular tourist dis-trict and briefly blocked amajor tunnel on Saturdayevening, defying increasinglystern warnings from Chinaover weeks-long unrest that hasplunged the city into criis.

The semi-autonomoussouthern Chinese financial hubhas seen two months of protestsand clashes triggered by oppo-sition to a planned extraditionlaw that quickly evolved into awider movement for democra-tic reforms.

Authorities in Hong Kongand Beijing this week signalleda hardening stance, includingwith the arrests of dozens ofprotesters, and the Chinesemilitary saying it was ready toquell the "intolerable" unrest ifrequested.

But protesters haveremained unyielding, vowingto hold multiple occupationsand rallies into next week,sending tensions soaring oncemore. On Saturday theyembraced their mantra "bewater" — a philosophy ofunpredictability espoused bylocal martial arts legend BruceLee — in a bid to keep policeguessing.

Throughout the eveningthey put up makeshift barri-cades across multiple roads inTsim Sha Tsui, a popular shop-ping and tourist district on theharbourfront, where many lux-ury malls and hotels shut theirdoors.

They also blocked one ofthe three cross-harbour tunnelsconnecting to the main island,causing widespread trafficchaos, before disappearing afterhalf an hour.

"We will fight as guerrillastoday and be water," a maskedand helmeted 19-year-old, whogave her surname Lee, toldAFP. In a statement, policecalled on protesters to "stoptheir illegal acts" and toldmembers of the public to avoidthe area. Many of the chantsand graffiti tags that werethrown up called for residentsto join a planned strike onMonday.

"The more the governmentsuppresses us, the more we willcome out until the Governmentresponds to our demands," protester Ah Kit, 36,told AFP.

Two marches are alsoplanned for Sunday — one onHong Kong island and theother in the Tseung Kwan Odistrict — as well as a city-widestrike on Monday and rallies inseven locations.

The call for strike actionappears to be gaining moretraction than previous walk-outs, with a host of organisa-tions and unions vowing tojoin. Hong Kong has witnessed

eight consecutive weekends ofhuge rallies — often followedby violent clashes betweenpolice and small groups ofhardcore protesters.

Under the terms of the1997 handover deal withBritain, the city has rights andliberties unseen on the Chinesemainland, including an inde-pendent judiciary and free-dom of speech.

But many say those rightsare being curtailed, citing thedisappearance into mainlandcustody of dissident book-sellers, the disqualification ofprominent politicians and thejailing of pro-democracy

protest leaders.Public anger has been com-

pounded by rising inequalityand the perception that thecity's distinct language andculture are being threatened byever-closer integration withthe Chinese mainland.

On Saturday evening, pro-testers tore down the Chineseflag from a pole on the water-front and threw it in the har-bour.

The past two weekendshave seen a surge in violenceused by both protesters and

police, who have repeatedlyfired rubber bullets and tear gasto disperse projectile-throwingcrowds.

A mob of pro-governmentthugs also attacked demon-strators, putting 45 people inhospital.

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Hong Kong protestersremoved a Chinese

national flag from its pole andflung it into the city's iconicVictoria Harbour on Saturdayafter a pro-democracy rallyonce again continued into theevening despite police warn-ings to stick to a short, pre-approved route.

Tens of thousands of black-clad protesters filled a majorroad in a usually bustling mar-ket district where shop ownershad shuttered their storefrontsin anticipation of a prolongeddemonstration.

They also blocked a tunneland surrounded police sta-tions where non-emergencyservices were suspended.

The protest was the latestin a summer-long pro-democ-racy movement in Hong Kong,a semi-autonomous Chineseterritory. While the rallies havebeen largely peaceful, they

have increasingly devolved intoskirmishes with police aftersome protesters refused to dis-perse at assigned times.

Since the rallies began inearly June, protesters have van-dalised buildings and thrownbricks, while police have firedtear gas and rubber bullets.

In a separate demonstra-tion on Saturday, thousands ofpeople dressed in white gath-ered at a Hong Kong park to

express their support for thepolice. They held up signs thatread "Give Peace a Chance."

Pro-democracy demon-strators began setting up first aidstations and handing out hel-mets a few hours into their rally.When one group reached theharbour near a luxury shoppingcenter and high-end hotels,some protesters climbed up acluster of flag poles and removedthe Chinese national flag.

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Police detained hundreds ofprotesters at an unautho-

rised opposition gathering inMoscow on Saturday, asauthorities upped the pressureon top Kremlin critic AlexeiNavalny by launching a crim-inal probe into his anti-graftgroup. Crowds of peoplemarched in the capital's centralboulevards for a protest "stroll"over the refusal by officials tolet a number of oppositioncandidates run in Septemberpolls for city parliament seats.

Most of those candidatesand opposition leaders, includ-ing Navalny, are being held bypolice following a protest rallylast weekend, in which 1,400demonstrators were detained— one of the biggest crack-downs in years.

On Saturday, riot policewere deployed in large num-bers in central Moscow, someshops and cafes were shut,metal barriers were erectedand the mobile internet wasdown for several hours.

At least 300 people weredetained by police about twohours into the rally, accordingto OVD-Info, a non-govern-mental organisation that oper-ates a hotline for detainees.

AFP correspondents alsoobserved dozens of arrestsalong the route of the protest,as lines of police attempted to

break up the flow of the crowdby blocking it with a humanchain and grabbing peopleindiscriminately.

Lyubov Sobol, currentlythree weeks into a hungerstrike after being barred fromtaking part in the local pollsand an ally of key oppositionleader Navalny, was draggedfrom a taxi and detainedSaturday as she set off for therally.

Many opposition leaderswho attempted to run in thepolls next month argue that theauthorities have arbitrarilydeclared signatures they gath-ered to qualify invalid.

People in the crowd onSaturday said they just want theopposition to have a chance to

run."I want there to be big

changes... Now there is anatmosphere of total control,"Varvara, a 22-year-old artist,told AFP.

"I believe everyone shouldhave a right to take part" in thepolls," 39-year-old Robert said.

Riot police appeared tooutnumber small groups ofprotesters who were walkingalong stretches of the leafyBoulevard Ring.

Authorities have launchedinvestigations into last week-end's "mass riots" and "violenceagainst police", echoing similarprobes into protests againstPresident Vladimir Putin in2012 which saw several peoplejailed.

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Protest leaders reached "fullagreement" with Sudan's

ruling generals Saturday on ahard-won constitutional dec-laration, the African Unionsaid, paving the way for apromised transition to civilianrule.

Thousands of jubilantSudanese took to the streets ofthe capital Khartoum when thedeal was announced beforedawn to celebrate the prospectof a civilian government.

The declaration builds ona landmark power-sharing dealsigned on July 17 and providesfor a joint civilian-military rul-ing body to oversee the for-mation of a transitional civiliangovernment and parliament togovern for a three-year transi-tion period.

The deal is the fruit of dif-ficult negotiations between theleaders of the mass protestswhich erupted last Decemberagainst the three-decade rule ofpresident Omar al-Bashir andthe generals who eventuallyousted him in April.

"I am announcing to theSudanese, African and inter-national public opinion that thetwo delegations have fullyagreed on the constitutionaldeclaration," AU mediatorMohamed El Hacen Lebatt

told reporters.He said further meetings

would be held to work out thetechnical details of the deal anddiscuss the signing ceremony.

An initial inking of theagreement is expected to takeplace on Sunday, protest lead-ers said, ahead of a formal sign-ing in front of foreign digni-taries.

The talks between theprotest movement and the gen-erals had been repeatedly inter-rupted by deadly violenceagainst demonstrators.

They were suspended forweeks after men in militaryuniform broke up a long-run-ning protest camp outside armyheadquarters in Khartoum onJune 3, killing at least 127 peo-ple according to doctors closeto the protest movement.

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The Trump administrationhas decided to exempt avi-

ation safety and space explo-ration technology from newsanctions it has levied againstRussia in connection with thepoisoning of a former Russianspy and his daughter in Britain.

The State Department saidlate Friday that products relat-ed to those sectors will not beautomatically subjected to anexport ban that was announcedby President Donald Trumpthis week. The sanctions doinclude a presumption of denialfor export licenses for itemsthat could be used in the pro-duction of chemical and bio-logical weapons.

They also mean the US willoppose loans or other assis-tance to Russia by internation-al financial institutions likethe World Bank andInternational Monetary Fundand bar US banks from par-ticipating in non-ruble Russiandebt financing. The export ban

and financing restrictions arepart of a package of sanctionsimposed on Russia over theMarch 2018 poisoning of SergeiSkripal, a former Russian mil-itary intelligence officer turneddouble agent for Britain, andhis visiting daughter, Yulia.

The pair were foundunconscious on a park benchin the British town of Salisburyafter being exposed to thenerve agent Novichok.

They spent weeks in criti-cal condition but recovered.

The new US sanctions willtake effect in September andwill remain in place for atleast a year.

They can only be liftedafter that yearlong period if theadministration certifies toCongress that Russia has pro-vided reliable assurances that itis not making preparations touse chemical weapons, willnot use chemical weapons inthe future, has allowed inter-national inspectors to verifythose assurances, and has paidrestitution to the victims of the

Doha: Washington is hopingfor a breakthrough as talksbetween the US and the Talibanresumed in Doha on Saturdayin a bid to end 18 years of warin Afghanistan. The US, whichinvaded Afghanistan and top-pled the Taliban in 2001, wantsto withdraw thousands oftroops and draw down itslongest ever war.

But it would first seekassurances from the insurgentsthat they would renounce Al-Qaeda and stop other militantslike the Islamic State groupusing the country as a haven.

Washington is hoping tostrike a peace deal with theTaliban by September 1 —ahead of Afghan polls due thesame month. US PresidentDonald Trump told reporters atthe White House on Friday that"we've made a lot of progress.We're talking".

A coalition led byWashington ousted the Talibanaccusing it of harbouring Al-Qaeda jihadists who claimedthe September 11, 2001 attacksagainst the US that killedalmost 3,000 people. AFP

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At least seven people diedand 31 others were rescued

when three ferry boats sepa-rately capsized in bad weatherSaturday between two centralPhilippine island provinces,the coast guard said.

Police said at least sevenpeople were missing after theinter-island ferries eitherturned over or sank in roughseas, wind and rain betweenGuimaras and Iloilo provinces.A search by the coast guard,police and villagers was under-way.

The dead included sixwomen and a man, coast guardspokesman Armand Balilosaid, adding that one of theferry boats, M/B Chichi, wascarrying at least 42 passengers.Another boat, M/B Keizha,reportedly had four crewmenon board, while the third ferry,M/B Jenny, carried an unspec-ified number of people whowere rescued and brought onboard a coast guard ship, hesaid.

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Sri Lankan PresidentMaithripala Sirisena has

highlighted the importance ofimposing capital punishmentto prevent crime, saying thateven US President DonaldTrump has reintroduced thedeath penalty to execute thoseconvicted of rape and childabuse, according to a mediareport.

Sirisena in June signed the

death warrants to hang fourdrug convicts, ending a four-decade-long moratorium onthe capital punishment in thecountry.

He drew flak from hiscountrymen as well as theinternational community sincehe passed the order despite SriLanka having become a partyto the UN moratorium ondeath penalty and voting infavour of the moratorium justsix months back.

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Washington wants toquickly deploy new inter-

mediate-range missiles in Asia,to counter the rise of China inthe region, new US DefenceSecretary Mark Esper said.

"Yes I would like to," Espersaid when asked if the US wasconsidering deploying newmedium-range conventionalweapons in Asia nowWashington is no longer boundby the Intermediate-RangeNuclear Forces (INF) treaty.

"We would like to deploy acapability sooner rather thanlater," Esper told reporters ona plane to Sydney at the start ofa week-long tour of Asia. "Iwould prefer months ... Butthese things tend to take longerthan you expect." The newPentagon chief did not specifywhere the US intended todeploy these weapons.

"I would not speculatebecause those things dependon plans, it's those things youalways discuss with your allies,"he said.

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North Korea said Saturdayits leader Kim Jong Un

supervised another test-firingof a new multiple rocketlauncher system that couldpotentially enhance the coun-try's ability to strike targets inSouth Korea and US militarybases there. The report byPyongyang's official KoreanCentral News Agency came aday after South Korea's militarysaid it detected North Koreafiring projectiles twice into thesea off its eastern coast in itsthird round of weapons tests injust over a week.

Experts say the North'sincreased testing activity isaimed at ramping up pressureon Washington and Seoul overstalled nuclear negotiationswith the United States andplanned U.S.-South Korea mil-itary exercises, and that itsweapons displays could inten-sify in the coming months ifprogress in talks isn't made.

North Korea has said Kimsupervised the first test of the

same rocket artillery system onWednesday. KCNA said Kimexpressed "great satisfaction"over Friday's tests, which it saidconfirmed the system's "altitudecontrol level flight performance,track changing capability, accu-racy of hitting a target and war-head explosion power of theguided ordnance rocket."

The report didn't includeany direct mention of theUnited States or South Korea.

South Korea's presidentialoffice had said the U.S. AndSouth Korean militaries sharedan assessment that Friday'slaunches were likely of short-range ballistic missiles.

South Korea's military hadalso concluded the weaponsNorth Korea tested onWednesday are ballistic missilesand maintained its assessmenteven after the North describedthem as a newly developed"large-caliber multiple launchguided rocket system."

South Korea's Joint Chiefsof Staff said Friday's launcheswere conducted at 2:59 am.And 3:23 am.

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��:�������:� ����"������������+�������������� Washington: US President

Donald Trump invited Iran'sforeign minister to the WhiteHouse last month at the heightof tensions between the twocountries, a magazine reports.The invitation, extended bySenator Rand Paul with per-mission from the president,was turned down for now, TheNew Yorker reported Friday.

The minister, MohammadJavad Zarif, said it was up toTehran to decide on acceptingit. Neither the White House northe State Department respond-ed to AFP requests for com-ment on the report, whichquoted US and Iranian sourcesand what the magazine calleda well-placed diplomat.

Zarif told the magazine hewould not want a White Housemeeting that yielded just aphoto op and a two page state-ment afterwards, The NewYorker said. Trump has saidpublicly several times that he iswilling to hold talks with theIranians even as he lambastsTehran as a corrupt, incompe-tent and dangerous regimethat is a threat to regionalsecurity and US interests.AFP

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Three-time Grand Slamchampion Andy Murray

moved closer to a singles returnsix months after right hipsurgery while Greece’s StefanosTsitsipas rolled into the world’stop five Friday at the ATPWashington Open.

Britain’s Murray and hisbrother Jamie, in their first dou-bles event since the 2016 RioOlympics, lost to New Zealand’sMichael Venus and SouthAfrican Raven Klaasen 6-7 (3/7),7-6 (8/6), 10-7 in a quarter-finalat the US Open tuneup event.

Murray has practiced singlesthis week to improve his condi-tioning after the long layoff.

“I feel fine,” Murray said.“Practice has been fine. Noissues physically. So progressingwell. Just keep practicing thenext 10 days or so and see whathappens.”

Top seed Tsitsipas beatFrench 10th seed Benoit Paire 7-5, 6-0 to reach the semi-finalsand ensure he will overtakeGermany’s Alexander Zverevto crack the world rankings topfive on Monday.

“Once you’re in a certainposition for a long time, youreally crave for more,” Tsitsipassaid.

“This one position differ-ence might not feel a lot for somepeople but for me it reallymeans a lot because there hasbeen a lot of hard work behindit, just a lot of suffering in gen-eral.

“I feel I deserve this posi-tion. It means a lot for sure.”

The 20-year-old Australian

Open semi-finalist, who lost toZverev in last year’s Washingtonsemis, booked a semi-finalagainst Australia’s Nick Kyrgios,who ousted Slovakian luckyloser Norbert Gombos 6-3, 6-3.

“I’m excited to play him,”Kyrgios said of Tsitsipas. “He’sone of the best players in theworld right now.”

Murray, who feared hiscareer might be over after theJanuary operation, hasn’t playedsingles since the AustralianOpen but says he might returnat the ATP Cincinnati Mastersstarting August 12.

“If I feel like I’m ready, I’llgive it a go. If not, I’ll wait prob-ably until after New York. Butso far it has been fine.”

Murray, set to play doublesnext week at Montreal along-side Spaniard Feliciano Lopez,doesn’t want his first singlesmatches back to be the best-of-five-set variety offered in GrandSlams.

He ruled out playing inWinston-Salem the week beforeNew York, figuring he would bebetter off practicing for a post-US Open return.

Russian third seed DaniilMedvedev advanced to thesemi-finals by defeatingCroatian sixth seed and 2014US Open champion MarinCilic 6-4, 7-6 (9/7).

Medvedev, chasing his fifthcareer ATP title, took the onlybreak at the start and neverfaced a break point.

Next up for Medvedev willbe 122nd-ranked German luckyloser Peter Gojowczyk, whooutlasted British 13th seed KyleEdmund 6-3, 4-6, 6-3.

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Satwiksairaj Rankireddy andChirag Shetty on Saturdaybecame the first Indian

men’s doubles pair to enter thesummit clash of a BWF Super500 tournament with a three-game win in the Thailand Opensemifinals, here.

The world number 16Indian duo prevailed 22-20,22-24, 21-9 against the 19th-ranked Korean team of KoSung Hyun and Shin BaekCheol after battling hard for 63minutes.

It is first final of the 2019season for Rankireddy andShetty, the men’s doubles Silvermedallist at 2018Commonwealth Games.

The unseeded India com-bination will face third seeds LiJun Hui and Liu Yu Chen ofChina in the summit clashtoday.

Rankireddy and Shetty wereslow off the blocks as the Koreanpair had the better share ofexchanges in the first game tolead 3-0 and then 11-10 at thebreak. But after the break, theIndians lifted their game anddrew parity at 13 apiece beforesurging ahead 20-18. But Hyunand Cheol pocketed two con-secutive points to draw level at20-20.

The Indians kept their com-posure and earned two crucialpoints to take the first game.

It was the other way roundin the second game as theRankireddy and Shetty cameout positive to take a 3-0 leadinitially.

The Koreans,however, foughtback with somesmart play at thenet and overheadsmashes to lead11-9 at the break, which theylater extended to 19-12.

But the Indian looked in nomood to surrender as theyclawed back to make it 20-all.The two pairs fought tooth and

nail before the Koreans even-tually pocketed the secondgame 24-22 to stretch thematch into the decider.

In the final game, it was acakewalk for the Indians astheir Korean rivals failed to sus-

tain the tempo.Rankireddy

and Shetty start-ed aggressivelyin the deciderand easily sealedthe match.

Shetty attributed their suc-cess to a calm and composedapproach.

“Well I feel that both of usbecame a lot more calmer andthat was the major improve-

ment,” he said after the win.“We missed two match

points in the second game. Butwe were able to win the deciderquite comfortably because wewere calm. We weren’t eager toscore points. Whenever wehad chances we went for them.We didn’t rush and that’s whywe didn’t commit mistakes.

“The highlight of thematch was obviously the lastpoint as it was simply amazingto win a semifinal matchagainst Hyun and Cheol as wehave looked up to them in thepast. So it was special,” Shettyadded.

Rankireddy said the willtry to make the country proudtoday.

“Well we are pretty happywith our performances. Playingwith a calm and positive mind-set is helping us a lot. We areconfident of pulling off thematch tomorrow,” he said.

“We won’t be doing any-thing different in the finals. Weare very excited about our firstfinals and will give our best andmake India proud.”

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Max Verstappen celebratedhis long-awaited maiden

pole position with record-break-ing speed on Saturday when hetopped the times for Red Bull ina tense and closely-fought qual-ifying session at the HungarianGrand Prix.

In doing so, he became the100th different pole sitter inFormula One, doing so at thesame Hungaroring track wherehis father Jos had claimed hisfirst podium for Benetton 25years earlier in 1994.

The 21-year-oldDutchman’s first pole came at his94th Grand Prix and after he haswon seven.

Verstappen’s success sparkedrowdy celebrations among hislarge following of Dutch fans inthe open grandstands after hehad out-paced the two Mercedesdrivers Valtteri Bottas and LewisHamilton in a breathless finish.

Verstappen’s best lap in oneminute and 14.572 seconds wasjust 0.018 beyond the reach ofBottas with Hamilton a closethird — ahead of Ferrari’sCharles Leclerc and SebastianVettel. Pierre Gasly was sixth inthe second Red Bull ahead of

British rookie Lando Norrisand his resurgent McLarenteam-mate Carlos Sainz withKimi Raikkonen ninth for AlfaRomeo ahead of RomainGrosjean.

“It’s incredible,” saidVerstappen.

“I am very happy! There’sstill a race to do and at the endof the day, it is the most impor-tant, but it’s very nice and it isgreat for all the team.”

A disappointed Bottas said:“It’s obviously very close withMax. They’ve (Red Bull) beenvery quick, but as always, thereis still the race to come.”

Hamilton, who lost time inthe first section of his final lap,said: “Max did a great job and sodid Valtteri, but we’re in a greatposition to win — and I amalways up for a fight.”

The session began in warmconditions with an air temper-ature of 24 degrees and the trackat 45 degrees Celsius, near per-fect for a big crowd boosted byvisitors from Finland, theNetherlands and Poland.

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Pep Guardiola has urgedManchester City to prepare

for the “incredible challenge” ofbattling Liverpool for the PremierLeague title by landing an earlyblow against their rivals in today’sCommunity Shield.

Guardiola’s side pippedLiverpool to the Premier Leagueby one point last season after athrilling title race went down tothe last day.

The two clubs renew theirgrowing rivalry when they meetat Wembley in the annual cur-tain-raiser to the English top-flight season this weekend.

While City won an unprece-dented English treble of PremierLeague, FA Cup and League Cuplast term, and are the bookmak-ers’ favourites to win the title fora third successive year, Guardiolais well aware of the challenge like-ly to be posed by Liverpool.

Jurgen Klopp’s men lost onlyonce in the league last season —at City — and erased the frus-tration of failing to catchGuardiola’s team by beatingTottenham to win the club’s sixthEuropean Cup in June.

Despite a spat between thepair this week when Guardiola hitback at Klopp’s jibe over City’s bigspending on transfers in recentyears, the Spaniard remains ahuge admirer of the Liverpoolboss and the team he has built atAnfield.

“He inspires me in manythings. He is a class manager, atop manager. He’s so good and itis an incredible challenge for meevery time I face his teams,”Guardiola said.

Guardiola’s irritation atKlopp’s suggestion that City areone of a handful of clubs who livein a transfer “fantasy land” lit thefuse on what promises to be a fas-cinating 10-month battle forsupremacy between City and

Liverpool.With City yet to win the

Champions League andLiverpool without an Englishtitle since 1990, it is possible theywould gladly settle for a trophy-swap this season.

But Guardiola knowsCommunity Shield holders Citycould become the first team towin three consecutive PremierLeague titles since ManchesterUnited between 2006 and 2009,so he won’t settle for only target-ing European glory.

“We won almost every tro-phy; not all of them. It was quiteremarkable,” he said of last sea-son.

“We start from zero now —we start again — but we are readyto accept the challenge.”

For Liverpool, the glamourfriendly represents a chance tofine-tune their preparations afteran uneven pre-season.

Three defeats and somelethargic displays sparked fearsthat Liverpool were suffering aChampions League hangover.

Sadio Mane is still restingafter the Africa Cup of Nations,but with Roberto Firmino,Alisson Becker and MohamedSalah back in the fold after inter-national commitments, Kloppexpects a more cohesive displayat Wembley.

“When you are tired, you aretired, and it’s quite difficult to thenplay your best football. Now it’sgetting better. The quality of theboys who came back, of course ithelps,” said Klopp, whose club lastwon the Community Shield in2006.

“Because the training was onsuch a high intensity level in thegames sometimes we were real-ly done. “Unfortunately, we playin public so everybody could seethat. But the Lyon game helped.We were not in doubt about thatbut it’s nice to get the proof aswell.”

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Two-time winnerRatchanok Intanon edged

a thriller against compatriotPornpawee Chochuwong toreach the final on home soil.

Former world championRatchanok, 24, cutPornpawee’s rousing come-back short as she won in threegames 23-21, 17-21, 21-19 infront of a packed home crowd.

In today’s final she will faceChinese top seed Chen Yufei,

who is yet to drop a game afterbeating Sayaka Takahashi 21-16, 21-19.

Ratchanok faced unseed-ed Pornpawee in a boisterousatmosphere at the IndoorStadium Huamark as the for-mer world number one con-tinued her quest for a third titlein Bangkok.

Victory was sheer jubila-tion for the third-seededRatchanok, who had to digdeep as she found herself trail-ing in the third game before

recovering aggressively.Elsewhere, Chou Tien-

chen of Taiwan beat Malaysia’sLee Zii Jia in straight games toreach the men’s final where hewill play Hong Kong’s AngusNg, who upset reigning cham-pion Kanta Tsuneyama 21-9,23-21.

The women’s final willsee Du Yue and Li Yinhui, theeighth seeds from China, playJapanese seventh seeds ShihoTanaka and KoharuYonemoto.

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Probably half the world thinks theyare fat. And this day and age, whenvanity scores over everything else, afeeling such as this may weigh heavi-ly on many bodies and mind. We live

in an image-heavy society — online and inperson — where social media, advertisementsin magazines, newspapers, billboards, shop-ping windows, and everything around usensures that focus on appearance is strongerthan ever. And because our society loves thin,be it in print ads, movies, music videos, pic-tures etc., seeing something different isn’t con-sidered fashionable. Often, not meeting thecriteria induces inadequacy among people,especially the youth and now even middle-age.

So rampant is the negativity arising fromthe ‘perceived’ faulty body size that it worksboth ways. People too thin are feeling thepain as well. The greetings these days arepunctuated with a comment (and scrutiny)on one’s ‘weight’. And that does not apply tothe ones getting married! The modern Indianobsession of “when are you getting married?”is now replaced with “What are you doingwith your weight?”.

������������������ ��������Let’s accept it, body shaming is of two types:direct (criticising overweight people), andindirect (both subtle and blatant messagesthat the society throws via environmentalcues and via media — visualise toothpickthin models here?).

Even the “well wishers” tend to go wronghere. More often than not, body shamingstarts at home — a sister shaming her brotherinto lose weight so he can score a good-look-ing girlfriend; a father packing off her 24-year-old daughter who has just finished hermedicine studies for a strict three month ‘getthin’ programme at a health farm, as heintends to find her a match soon; a friendpoking fun of someone’s losing battle withweight in public or a colleague sniggering atsomeone going for a second helping of thedessert… These are all real life instances thatone has encountered in one’s practice as anutritionist. The effect on a person’s bodyimage and self esteem is an instant negative.

Contrary to what that “well wisher” maybelieve, fat shaming does not help peoplestop and reconsider their lifestyle patterns.On the contrary, it makes them eat evenmore and throws them in a vortex of hope-less diets, which actually worsens the situa-tion. Studies suggest that there is a profound

psychological impact (harm) of the condi-tion. It can induce severe stress in the body,cause depression, eating disorders, reducedself-esteem and raise the risk of all sorts ofmental problems.

Alexia Michel knows this all too well. ThisFrench national corporate stalwart quit herlucrative job to start a foundation ‘I am not myanorexia’ recently. Michel struggled withanorexia all through her growing years, tillrecently when she managed to leave her disor-der behind with the help of yoga and tran-scendental meditation. Through her founda-tion, she is now working to help others suffer-ing from an eating disorder. The foundationextends help to support recovery and preventthese disorders via a natural, holistic andempowering programme, both online andoffline. To this effect, she recently organisedher first knowledge sharing seminar atMaharishi hospital in Delhi and has a retreatplanned in Delhi and Rishikesh in October.

��������������Then of course there are the market forcesthat stand to gain from this insecurity. Whilefat to fit may be a good mantra for leading ahealthy lifestyle. Fit is being deliberatelyreplaced by thin. The paranoia to gain a cer-tain figure or size is causing wellness, fitnessand aesthetic industry to grow. Conceded notall institutions falling under these heads followdubious processes, but there are some thatpush people into spending by playing withtheir insecurities.

Trisha Khanna was referred to a leadingdermatologist in the city by a physician for thetreatment of alopeacia. The dermatologist, asshe discovered, also runs a swanky aestheticand wellness centre in an upmarket locality.“To my surprise, before I could even utter aword, the doctor had suggested I could shedoff excess weight around my waist, chin andarms using one of their fancy machine treat-ments and gave me a fat quote! She was noteven interested to find out my medical condi-tion or the real reason why I was there in thefirst place,” shares Khanna. The facility, sheadds, was buzzing with women of all agebooking for treatments including fillers andbody sculpting procedures. Khanna wenthome with a shampoo and conditioner worthRs 10,000 and is hoping that her conditionwill get treated soon.

“A lot of people want to lose weight quickwithout putting any effort,” says Dr PriyankaTyagi, a Delhi-based dermatologist and aes-

thetician. “Obesity is a condition and whatwould work for someone suffering from anacute condition is definitely not recommendedfor someone who is otherwise healthy but hasa few fat pockets that the body has cultivatedto fight toxins and other conditions. Sameapplies to their skin. The race to get that flaw-less skin is often tempting people to use prod-ucts that are otherwise meant to treat seriousinfections.”

As a nutritionist and weight managementconsultant, I have personally treated caseswhere perfectly healthy patients have beensuffering emotional trauma and feeling ofworthlessness due to a certain shape of bodythat they may own.

������� ������Because we all need to understand that we arenot defined by just our weight alone. We walkand live as ‘us’ which is a sum of a lot of ourfacets — our personality, our achievements,our disposition and the vibe we emit.Definitely, how we look is a part of this pack-age. Only, we seem to have made it our com-plete being.

For starters, this is what you must do —keep your weight and appearance aside, andflaunt your other assets and plus points, andsee how others pick up on that. You’d beamazed to see the how a chain of positivity istriggered.

Two, there is a big misconception aboutthe thought process. There is a big section ofpeople who believe that by being super criticalof their bodies, they might be able to pushthemselves into losing weight. Called ‘bodyhate’, it is now acknowledged by the experts asa mental epidemic. A lot of these people endup hurting themselves as a result of faultydiets, extreme exercises, stringent detoxes andnegative self talk. It actually works the otherway around. The weight actually piles up,instead of shedding. Even worse, their mindgets trapped in an eating disorder (likeanorexia, bulimia or binge eating). The moreyou chain yourself in stringency, the more themind and the body will rebel. Train your mindto think healthy and work on your lifestyleand see the change.

���������������Body positive is a movement. And this is notto be confused with encouraging anunhealthy lifestyle. There are people likeShuchi Singh Kalra who are writing againstbody shaming. Kalra’s 2016 book ‘I am Big.

So What!?’ is about a plus-sized girl and herjourney from an insecure teen to a confidentyoung woman. Her story explores bodyimage and self-esteem issues, and how shenavigates the society at different stages of herlife, wearing her size proudly on her sleeve.

Incidentally, Kalra herself was the inspira-tion for the book. “Having been at the receiv-ing end of it, as several of my friends and peo-ple I know, it was my voice to the plus sizedgirls,” she shares. True, plus-sized girls havebeen severely under-represented in Indianmainstream fiction, but writers like Kalra aremaking sure that the pattern is broken.

‘Body Respect’ by Linda Bacon and LucyAphramor speaks of body insecurity and howit is time to overcome the shame and distresssurrounding it. And to show everybodyrespect. Another book, ‘The Gifts ofImperfection’ by Brené Brown holds powerfulmessages surrounding body image.

Written word has an impact, both nega-tive as well as positive. Kalra shares that shewas most touched by an email from a fatherwho bought the book as a gift for his daugh-ter who lacked confidence because of herweight. It shows that the thought pattern ischanging and people are reaching out tothose affected.

��������������Women magazines with photoshoppedwomen on cover, celebs talking about their‘diets’ and pursuit for thin-ness, fitness arti-cles taking about the latest fad diets, moviesshowing heroes falling for thin, pretty girls,all leave a mark on developing psyches ofchildren and teenagers.

Amidst this seemingly popular content,celebs talking about their struggles lend aninsight into real situations. Actor RichaChadha deserves kudos for coming out as abulimic in 2016 (bulimia is a disorder whenpeople purge out the food via vomiting or byusing laxatives in an attempt to not gainweight) when no one expected her to, simplybecause she wanted to help remove the stigmathe eating disorders face in our society. Shedisclosed details of her battle with the disorderand how she alternated between feeling guiltyabout being hungry, then staying hungry forlong hours and breaking off only to binge onprotein bars. Not everyone is that strongthough. She is now writing a book on it.

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AI or Artificial Intelligence is suddenly the global trend.It took almost six decades for AI to become a revo-lution but it seems it is here to stay. What will then

be left of HI or Human Intelligence? A big question thatneeds to be pondered over. Let us also consider if AI willactually bring the “Robocalypse” as coined by someone tooapprehensive of the growing trend of robotisation along withcorporatisation and mathematicisation that is becoming anobsession world over. There are two distinct schools ofthought on the subject. One school opines that AI will makeHI redundant and will replace humans in a big way or rathercompletely in the long run. The other school, however, theconservative one, believes that the AI is being overhypedand humans will remain in charge. But between these over-enthusiasts and conservatives, there is a reasonable band ofopinion which is closer to the truth. AI can only do certainthings and not all. Yes the computational ability of AI is muchmore than the human mind. For that matter even a 500 rupeepocket calculator is much more sophisticated than humanmind as far as calculations are concerned. But are humanbeings only for calculations? Coming to deep learning, ithas a much wider band of functions and has the ability torecognise patterns and provide solutions. It is being arguedthat they can be much better than human beings in mak-ing decisions based on interpretation of those patterns.Similarly, they can be much better at taking decisions becausethey can store, manipulate, infer and disseminate astronom-ically large quantum of data which is an impossibility forhumans. Now comes the crucial question. Do humans takedecisions only on be basis of data? Human decisions are acombination of information, emotion and values or else itwould have been impossible for the Pandavas to kill Bhishmain the battlefield of Kurukshetra. And for some who maybe sceptical about the Mahabharata, there is this story fromthe Silicon Valley. It was at the Bay Area LeadershipConference at San Francisco on June 15 that this colum-nist had an opportunity to interact with John Thomson, theChairman of Microsoft, which is on the forefront of the cur-rent AI revolution. In his deliberations John had talked aboutthe qualities that made him recommend Satya Nadella asCEO of Microsoft. But those qualities were not technicalor computational skills. They were empathy, sensitivity andthe emotional ability. On asking whether those qualitiescould be engineered in AI, John very candidly replied inthe negative. Human nature is beyond the scope of even themost advanced of the algorithms to replicate. In the Indianphilosophical thought the supreme quality of humans is theblend of Intelligence Quotient, Emotional Quotient andMorality Quotient. The one word in which this quality canbe summed up in Hindi is viveka. Human sensitivities aredeveloped through a long chain of evolution that is a resultof a complex interaction of the Biological, the Psychologicaland the Sociology factors. Interestingly, none of these canbe inculcated into the machine through AI. Deep learning,contrary to the popular assumption then, is not all that deep.

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We, human beings, have beendesigned to go through fivestages to reach the top level.

These stages are annamaya, ie state of achild, when we are content to be fed.Then comes pranamaya, that is the stateof manual labour, who is content to bealive. The third stage is the manomaya,when our minds become active. This iswhen we need plenty of answers andguidance. If we don’t get them webecome anxious, fearful and generallynegative. The fourth stage is gyanamaya,when some answers are available, andone can be somewhat peaceful andhappy, because he has received someknowledge that addresses his prob-lems. The last and the topmost is that ofvigyanamaya, in which one is connect-ed with God and gets everything herequires. However, crossing frommanomaya to vigyanamaya stage takessome doing, even to gyanamaya frommanomaya. The first two stages are auto-matic, and the third belongs to educat-ed persons, who do white-collar jobs, orare not menial workers.

This is the reality of the cosmicdesign. Human existence can be classi-fied in two levels. There is normal liv-ing and there is special existence. Toreach the later level and gain all kindsof benefits like peace, security, support,sukha (genuine happiness), guidance,help, etc, one must connect with God,who is all in all of the entire creation, ashas been indicated in the verse # 7.19 ofthe Geeta. I am giving a brief descrip-tion of God. He is omniscient, that is Heknows everything. God is omnipotent,that is he has the complete power. Thisis not a theoretical concept dreamt bysomeone. This can be experienced.How do I do it? When I need guidance

on something which is not straightfor-ward like the need to charge a cellphone,I pray to God for guidance, and Heinvariably responds, as only God can.Similarly, when I need some help whichis beyond my reach, God helps; He findsa medium to make it available. All these

have happened countless times and can-not be treated as coincidences.

Therefore, if someone, who is in themanomaya stage and most important-ly in the gyanamaya stage, he must seekGod’s help. This is possible by doingtapasya or sadhana to deserve all that

God can give. To cite my own example,I disseminate God’s messages/ instruc-tions by writing articles and books. It isanother matter that God empowers meto do this. Then, I visit various temples.I try to spend some time in the compa-ny of the Lord and soak the spiritualatmosphere in these holy places.

I spend considerable time during theday in the company of God in His photoform — a sort of meditation. I read spir-itual texts regularly. Of course myfavourite is the Geeta. I chant regularlyon beads. I am proud to state that I havebeen doing so for more than threedecades. I have a devotee friend withwhom I discuss spiritual topics on a dailybasis. This is not only pleasing but alsohighly informative. God is never far awayfrom my mind; I remember Him whensomething good or bad transpires.Lastly, we have a pooja ghar in our homewhere we worship Shri Laddu Gopal inHis deity form regularly. This has alsobeen going on for many decades.

All of the above has given me enor-mous benefits over the years. I regular-ly get guidance from God. He invariablyhelps when I need that. I am gettingincreasingly more peaceful. I also expe-rience sukha — a sort of bliss occasion-ally. I feel secure and know that God willalways support me. He gives me shakti(strength) in various ways such as tol-erance. And I seek God’s forgiveness formistakes made.

Therefore I strongly recommendthat everyone from manomaya stageonwards should try to please God in theway it suits. Gone will be the days of neg-ativity, fear and anxiety.

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August 15, 2019 is caught ina rare paradox. As usual,it is the acclaimed day ofIndia’s freedom from for-eign rule but at the same

time it is a day of “Bandhan” that isRaksha Bandhan. While the publicknows well about the former, I wouldlike to throw some light on the latter.Although it is called Raksha Bandhanthere is no bandhan or bondage of theusual kind. This is a bandhan of lovemostly celebrated between brothersand sisters. Thanks to the innovativetouch offered by Rabindranath Tagoreto this event due to which it is also cel-ebrated as exchange of good wishesbetween any two individuals formal-ly tying a “Rakhi” as a symbol of pro-pitiousness.

However, one of the legends nar-rates the origin of the event. As weknow in great historic epicMahabharata there is description ofthe Rajasuya Yajnya performed byemperor of the world, YudhistirMaharaj. When the time came todeclare the chief personality of theYajnya Yudhistir declared LordKrishna as impeccable person for thepurpose. While everyone agreed joy-ously for the proposal Lord Krishna’scousin Shishupal vehemently opposed

it. Not only did he oppose but alsostarted abusing the supreme person-ality of Godhead, Krishna. Everyonewas enraged and ready to pounce onthe envious reprobate but Krishnawith his glance withheld them. AfterShishupal crossed his concessionallimit of blasphemy, Krishna sum-moned Sudarshan and dexterouslychopped his head off without spillingeven a drop of blood in the sacredarena.

Krishna, who is supreme person-ality of Godhead having a spiritualbody unlike us, just to enhance hispastime managed to cut his own fin-ger while dislodging the disc weapon.Everyone was hysterically searchingfor a bandage to apply while Draupadi,a great devotee of Lord without a sec-ond thought tore a piece from hersaree and tied on Krishna’s lotus fin-ger. Krishna very much gratified bythis gesture of love promised to repayback at right time. Later, whenDraupadi was being disrobed byKauravas in the assembly, Lord repaidher love by appearing as ceaseless sareeand protecting her.

This is believed to be the originof Raksha Bandhan where sisters tierakhi to brothers while brothers bringvaluable gifts for sisters and promise

to give them protection. At manyplaces, mothers, friends, relatives alsotie rakhi to their loved ones. Now itis no longer restricted to a celebrationof brothers and sisters. It is a gestureof peace, harmony and love betweentwo individuals.

While the event is cherished forthe harmonious message it emits, wemust understand it is incompletewithout God in centre. A person whois a perfect moralist may drive his caron the road following all the trafficrules perfectly but if he is unaware ofthe destination, he is simply wastinghis time. Being a peace-loving personand just wishing well for everyonewithout actual knowledge is an eye-wash. If someone is lodged in the lux-urious prison for a certain crime, hewill certainly experience misery dueto his abridged freedom. Even if he isgiven the best facilities there, it maymake him comfortable but not happyfor sure. He is comfortably miserablein the first-class prison. For him to behappy he needs complete freedom,which is outside the prison.

To make the world peaceful andharmonious place is good but gettingout of this world and going to ouroriginal place, kingdom of God is best.

This world is described by

Krishna in Bhagavad Gita as tempo-rary and miserable. One may try tomake this world a better place but donot try to settle here permanently. AsJesus Christ rightly said, “Don’t try tomake your residence on a bridge”.Bridge is meant for crossing not forsettling perpetually. Even if one triesto transform this place into paradise,the harsh realities will surely surfacemore than often. One cannot changethe harsh realities of life. As onephilosopher said, “One who thinks theworld needs reformation himselfneeds reformation.”

I remember my childhood dayswhen we would visit our sisters stay-ing at distant places on the RakshaBandhan day. There would be greatjoy and celebrations. Sisters would tierakhi and pray for the brothers’ well-being while the brothers would offergifts to sisters and promise to protectthem. Now so many years havepassed, and I have lost touch with mysisters. They have gone their way andme on my way. There is no news ofthem what to speak of protecting themfrom dangers. This is the onerousreality of life.

Time and space make a differencein the material relationships of thisworld. I may wish well for my lovedones but that doesn’t change thevicious nature of material world. I maypromise to protect my loved ones, butthe fact is I cannot even protect myself.Ultimate shelter for everyone is theKrishna, the supreme personality ofGodhead. He is our real well-wisher,friend and protector waiting fervent-ly for us at our original home. So, letus celebrate Raksha Bandhan by tyingrakhi to our loved ones and prayingfor their well-being while alwaysbeing conscious of our real goal of lifeof going back to the Godhead.

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Taapsee Pannu, an actorknown for her selec-tion of intelligent roles

(her role as an undercoveroperative in Baby had theaudiences floored), is veryclear on the subject. Duringan interview on how she gother new svelte self, she con-fessed to being unaffectedby any of the drama sur-rounding fitness and doingher own thing. “How canyou let others decidewhether you are thin or fat,pretty or ugly? These aresubjective terms and hardlyimportant. Ideally, weshould aim to feel healthyfrom within, and active andenergetic throughout theday. That is the only thingthat is important,” she says.

���������� The process of weight cor-rection cannot and shouldnot be stressful. In fact tobe successful, it has to befar from that. And bodyshaming (leading to pun-ishing diets and self inflict-ed pain) works in exactlythe opposite direction.While good and correctinformation is important,no one needs a sermon inself-improvement (eat well,sleep well, exercise rightetc). What works best is tobegin a journey on the pathof improvement, slowly butsurely by informing oneselfright. Sedentary lifestyle isthe biggest bane of all andmain culprit behind failinghealth. Correct your

lifestyle patterns. Work onnutrition rather than diet.Set your own goals, yourown pace with the onlycondition being not to falloff the path. And make ithappen.

Most important, changeyour thought process — theway you look at people,what you consider healthy.Stand up for a friend who isbeing picked on for her (bigor small) size, stay clear ofbusinesses that body shameand sell “ideal body type” topeople. There is no idealbody type. Just that you areeither healthy or not.

— The writer is weightmanagement consultant,

nutritionist and author

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Boko Haram, Nigeria’s dead-liest Islamist group, com-

pleted a decade of ghastly ter-ror activities in July. As BokoHaram’s terror campaign hasleft 30,000 people dead andanother two million internal-ly displaced, the most populouscountry of the African conti-nent has miserably failed tostop the marauding monster.

The Islamist group, basedin Nigeria’s North-East, wasfounded in Maiduguri in 2002by Mohammed Yusuf, a pop-ular Islamic cleric from thecountry’s Borno State. An off-shoot of the Salafi Movement,Boko Haram’s overarching goalis to set up a fundamentalistIslamic regime in Nigeria, withSharia criminal courts. BokoHaram followers, known asYusuffiya (after the name of itsfounder), are mainly com-posed of northern Islamic stu-dents, scholars and unem-ployed professionals. It wasofficially known as the“Association of the Sunnis forthe propagation of Islam andfor the Jehad”, but it is popu-larly known as Boko Harammeaning, “Western educationis abomination or forbidden”.

In its formative years,Yusuf criticised the northern-ers, specially the Muslims, forsupporting what he widelyregarded as the non-Islamicand illegitimate Government.The group started radicalisa-tion amid widespread clashesbetween the Muslims and theChristians in the country. Whatdrew many towards Yusuf ’sfold was harsher tactics adopt-ed by the Nigerian militarytowards suspected militants inthe North-East. In 2009, whenYusuf was murdered in policecustody, the movement turnedinto a full-scale armed struggleagainst the Government in theregion. After Yusuf ’s death,Abubakar Shekau took up thereins of the main faction andvowed to fight the NigerianGovernment. The other factionis led by Yusuf ’s son AbuMusab al-Barnawi. BokoHaram had in 2015 declared itsallegiance to the Islamic Stateof Iraq and Syria (ISIS), rechris-tening itself as the IslamicState of West Africa Province.

While rediscovering theroots of Boko Haram, one caneasily conclude that the centreof its struggle lies in poverty,corruption, and a very strongsense of localism and religion.

Booming commercial cap-ital “Lagos” can’t offer a solu-tion to the resource-rich nationafflicted with great economicinequality across the nation. Inthe north of Nigeria, morethan 70 per cent of the peoplelive in poverty as compared to27 per cent in the south andnearly 34 per cent in the Niger

Delta. As per Goldman report,Nigeria is a very big and diversecountry which has a particularsource of wealth that has ben-efited some areas more thanothers. The north has been left behind and is more impov-erished.

In April 2019, Africa’s rich-est man Alhaji Aliko Dangote,while speaking at the KadunaInvestment Summit (KadInvest4.0) in Kaduna (north-westernNigeria), expressed concernover the underdevelopment ofNorthern Nigeria, especiallynorth-west and North-Eastpart of the country. To him,Northern Nigeria will contin-ue to remain poor unlessNigeria’s provincialGovernments collaborate withthe private sector to createinvestments and bridge devel-opment gaps in the region. 19northern States which accountfor over 54 per cent of Nigeria’spopulation and 70 per cent ofits landmass collectively gen-erated only 21 per cent of thetotal sub-national InternallyGenerated Revenue in 2017.Therefore it is required that theregional Governments alongwith the central Government

must create conducive envi-ronment to attract massivecapital inflow to that part of thecountry so as to generateemployment and charter aroute for faster development.

Historical trend indicatesthat the north region hadenjoyed the fruits of Islamiccivilisation for centuries. But by19th century, the Sultanates ofthe region succumbed to jehadby Shehu Usuman Dan Fodio.Eventually, he created a unifiedcaliphate that became thebiggest pre-colonial state inAfrica. And it consisted ofswaths of what is today knownas Northern Nigeria, Nigerand Southern Cameroon. Theirony is that though the regimeimposed a strict interpretationof Islam, it is open for a cultureof poetry and scholarship.

The current jehadlaunched by the followers ofYusuf is an example of a sort ofreligious rebellion in NorthernNigeria. At the same time,Nigeria is roughly divided intoMuslim-dominated North andChristian-dominated South.Even for decades, both themajor groups have made aninformal arrangement of abid-

ing by a system of rotationalpresidency. But political fric-tion between the two remainsat the centre of this conflict inthe North-East. Further,Nigeria’s entrenched politicalcorruption and vivid socio-economic inequality have alsocontributed to the rise of thismalaise in the region. Thus,Boko Haram is not a cause, butit is an impact of long-festeringextremist impulses that reflectsin the socio-economic realitiesof this neglected States of theNorth-East.

In fact, AlexanderThurston in a seminal work,written in 2017 (Boko Haram:The History of an AfricanJihadist Movement, PrincetonUniversity Press), highlightedthat “Boko Haram representsan ugly paradox: its ideas havelimited appeal, but significantstaying power. The group canbe crushed militarily, yet Stateviolence fuels its narrative ofvictimhood”.

Since, 2002, the radicalmovement spread more terror,and established almost an insti-tutionalised structure throughwhich it has been continuous-ly fighting the Nigerian state.

Further it has become a seriousrisk for bordering nationsaround Nigeria. Over the years,it has fuelled instability acrossthe Lake Chad Basin. Besidesdisplacing millions, BokoHaram has pushed these vul-nerable people into starvation,and jeopardised some of thebasic human rights such aseducation and most impor-tantly, the health care. And, thismess has fast led to the stallingof global aid activities and cut-ting of federal Governmentservices to many of the areaswherein the group is active.Due to the presence andmacabre style of operation ofthese Islamists, gradually manyof the international investorsbacked away, indicating moretrouble for the North, despiteAbuja’s constant military inter-vention against the group.

The Nigerian securityforces have made consider-able gains against the insurgentgroup, with the help of neigh-bouring countries such asCameroon, Chad and Niger.These nations along with theNigerian security forces haveformed a multi-national force,as authorised by the African

Union in 2015, to stamp outthe rebels of Boko Haram. Thecoalition forces have been ableto help the Nigerian military toretake much of the areas con-trolled by rebels and reducedviolence to what was seenbefore 2014. Back in 2013, theUS Administration had desig-nated Boko Haram as a terrororganisation, but at timesWashington has suspendedmilitary assistance out of con-cern over Nigeria’s allegedhuman rights abuses and coun-terterrorism strategy. But fol-lowing the abduction ofChibok girls and uproar overthe issue worldwide, the UK,France and the US pledgedadditional assistance, includingintelligence for Nigeria. Byearly 2018, US PresidentDonald Trump sealed a dealworth $600 million to sell adozen Super Tucano aircraft toNigeria to support its massivecounterterrorism efforts. Whenit comes to the UN, its SecurityCouncil imposed economicsanctions and an armed embar-go over Boko Haram way backin 2014. Critics say that thismove of the top global body issimply symbolic as the finan-

cial transactions and move-ments of the insurgents areextremely difficult to track atany time. However, theseefforts on the part of the inter-national community and con-cerned developed nations,along with constant supportfrom the African Union, mayhelp Abuja to contain theexpansion of the Islamists, ifnot rooting it out altogether.

Today, the problem at theheart of Boko Haram insur-gency is that it is fast becom-ing a full-scale security chal-lenge for the central govern-ment in North-East of Nigeria.The communities in the Statesof Borno, Adamawa and Yobeare still at loggerheads despiteattenuation in violence pro-pelled by Boko Haram inrecent days. Nigerians in gen-eral, and those in North-East inparticular, must be cognizant ofthis entrapment and end thisinternecine war. It is simplydeepening the crisis, pushingthe impoverished region tothe brink of a permanent boil-ing point.

(The writer is an expert oninternational affairs)

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�*�*����(����������� �������:�����*����Leaders of Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS)

are aiming to consolidate and create condi-tions for an “eventual resurgence in its Iraqi andSyrian heartlands”, experts have told the UnitedNations’ Security Council (UNSC) in a newreport. The panel of experts said that the processof ISIS consolidation is more advanced in Iraq,where ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi andmost of the terrorist group’s leadership are nowbased following the fall of the so-called“caliphate” that he declared in the two neigh-boring countries.

In Syria, where the last ISIS stronghold wastoppled in March, 2019, the ISIS covert networkis spreading and sleeper cells are being estab-lished at the provincial level, mirroring what hasbeen happening in Iraq since 2017, the expertssaid.

As for al-Qaida, the report said the extrem-ist group “remains resilient” though its imme-diate global threat is not clear, with its leader,Ayman al-Zawahiri, “reported to be in poorhealth and doubts as to how the group will man-age the succession.”

“The most striking international develop-ments” during the first six months of 2019include “the growing ambition and reach of ter-rorist groups in the Sahel and West Africa,”where fighters from ISIS and al-Qaida are col-laborating to undermine fragile countries.“The number of regional states threatened withcontagion from insurgencies in the Sahel andNigeria has increased,” said the experts, whomonitor UN sanctions against both extremistgroups.

In a video message in late April, al-

Baghdadi claimed that ISIS “still aspires to haveglobal relevance and expects to achieve this bycontinuing to carry out international attacks,”the panel said. The experts said ISIS is currentlydependent on attacks that it inspires like theEaster Sunday church bombings in Sri Lanka.Al-Baghdadi mentioned the bombings but thepanel said ISIS leaders “clearly knew nothing”in advance. Whether or not the Sri Lankanattacks were motivated by a previous attack onMuslims at mosques in Christchurch, NewZealand, in March, “the narrative of interfaithconflict is concerning,” the panel added.

Looking ahead, the experts said ISIS “willreinvest in the capacity to direct and facilitatecomplex international attacks when it has thesecure space and time to do so.” The paneladded, “The current abatement of such attacks,therefore, may not last long, possibly not evenuntil the end of 2019.”

The panel said up to 30,000 foreign fight-ers and others who traveled to the so-called“caliphate” that ISIS established in parts of Iraqand Syria may still be alive, “and their futureprospects will be of international concern forthe foreseeable future.”

Outside Syria and Iraq, the experts said, ISISand al-Qaida are contending “for dominanceand international relevance.” They said that inAfghanistan, concerns remain about short-termand long-term threats posed by groups affiliatedwith both ISIS and al-Qaida as well as “foreignterrorist fighters who have established them-selves on Afghan territory.”

Here are the experts’ assessments of threatsposed by ISIS and al-Qaida in other regions:

ARABIAN PENINSULA — Regional mem-ber states say the temporary strategy of al-Qaidain the Arabian Peninsula is to prioritise the fightagainst the ISIS affiliate in Yemen to maintainits dominant position, rather than fight HouthiShia rebels who are in a war with theGovernment, which is backed by a Saudi-ledcoalition. An unidentified country reported thatal-Qaida has been unable to establish itself inSaudi Arabia.

AFRICA — ISIS activity in southern Libyagained momentum as a result of preoccupationwith fighting around the capital of Tripoli, andthe extremist group is assessed to have sub-stantial financial resources seized when it con-trolled the city of Sirte. A sharp rise in violenceand recruitment efforts in West Africa, moti-vated by ISIS or al-Qaida affiliates, has beenexacerbated “by porous borders and authoritiesill-equipped to confront the growing threat.” InSomalia, al-Qaida affiliate al-Shabab has shift-ed from high-impact attacks to sustained, fre-quent and eventually daily multiple attacks.

EUROPE — Online propaganda encour-aging low-tech, ISIS-inspired attacks is still avail-able but member states report a reduced inci-dence of successful attacks. Nonetheless,European countries “assess that the risk remainshigh.”

ASIA — Countries in central Asia see thegreatest threat from their nationals returningfrom Iraq and Syria, and to a lesser extent fromAfghanistan. In Southeast Asia, a series of suc-cessful and thwarted attacks attributed to ISIS-affiliated groups “underscores the persistentnature of the threat in the region.” AP

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Picking up threads from the previ-ous issue, let us now see how LordShiva, engages with multitude of

existences forming his entourage, eachunique and at variance with others. He,despite evolutionary barrier of incom-municability amongst them, remains inaccord with all of them at the sametime. Overlooking their individualisticvagaries, he engages with all of them oneven terms. It’s not that he is unaware oftheir individual limitations. He ratherpurposely ignores them, as would hishalf-open and half-closed eyes imply.For, he knows that all creatures, bythemselves, are imperfect, and incapableof meeting even the existential needs bythemselves. But all put together, com-plement and supplement each other tomake a self-sufficient world. If each oneof them is bound by individual limita-tions, simultaneously they are alsoarmed with such virtues, as would benecessary to nourish and sustain thecollective existence.

Lord Shiva is aware that every exis-tence in this world is there to serve adesignated purpose, vital to sustenanceof the living world. Take the case of atrivial looking termite, which otherwise

spoils wood, paper, and if left unattend-ed even crops. But then, the termite digholes deep inside the soil structure tofacilitate the entry of oxygen and acti-vate creative potential of the earth mass.In the process, the termite eats earthmass, and to digest it, its body releasesnecessary enzymes. It consumes a smallpart needed for its own sustenance, andexcretes the rest, and that being rich inenzyme, further adds to the fertility ofthe soil. But the termite has to meet itsend before the crop comes up, but notbefore serving the cause of larger exis-tence. Similarly, bacteria in a drain or asewer pit treats the night soil, but forwhich, life will become inhabitable. Infact, all the creatures form a food chain,which together sustain the existentialorder, made out in a way that doesn’tallow them to grow beyond due andmaintain biodiversity balance.

Lord Shiva, in order to get the bestout of one and all and facilitate smoothrun of the worldly order, purposelyignores their individual limitations. Itdoesn’t, however, come about easy. Hehas to absorb their negativity as his poi-son-fed blue neck would imply. He doesthat in the larger interest of the existen-

tial order, but for which life will becomeunbearable. Individually also, nothingcomes about easy in life as no move-ment takes place without being metwith resistance. Should we get stuck upin the hang of all the negatives experi-ences that we encounter, we would notbe able to put in our whole towards ourpriority preferences.

Serving as provider, Lord Shivanourishes the living order with all hisresources in hand — the cosmic energydrawn through lunar crescent, waterstream of river Ganges. Remember, weplunder the earth in a bid to secure oursurvival. The earth on its part, however,bears with it kindly, and still keeps sup-porting us with all provisions — thefood it produces or water bodies it holdsin its womb, vital to our existence. We,knowingly or inadvertently, vitiate eventhe atmosphere, which could disturbecological balance, evidently detrimen-tal to our healthy existence. Nature,however, on its part has been kindenough to make provisions for absorb-ing them all, but for which our veryexistence would be at stake.

The message that emerges loud andclear is that the living world happens tobe a unified organism, premised on theconcept of “Unity in diversity”.

Accordingly, a harmonious coexistenceof all is called for. In this scheme ofthings, multitude of species and objectsin existence are to discharge theirassigned roles towards essential suste-nance and smooth run of the livingorder. The interdependence of theirexistence needs to be underlined here.For, it is their efforts in togethernessthat could take care of the existentialneeds of the living order. Lord Shiva,therefore, wishes to hold them togetherto ensure smooth run of the worldlyorder, as his mount, the bull keeps mov-ing unprovoked at an even pace.

This existential truth needs to bedrilled in every human mind. Mere aca-demic awareness would not suffice. It isthrough continued self-reflection thatthe sense of all-inclusiveness may getabsorbed in the inner realms of mind,before it reflects in our day-to-day con-duct. Hence, a month-long exercise tobecome Shiva like in our approach tolife.

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