7 - : 7B>-C>=?D6 =@ B · “While Meerut Expressway or NH 24/NH-9 has a segrega-tion problem across...

16
P rime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday announced the country has reached the 100 per cent rural electrification target after Leisang, a remote village in Manipur, became the last vil- lage of India to get electricity connection. According to Government officials, all 597,464 villages in India, as per the Census, have been electri- fied 12 days ahead of the dead- line set by the Prime Minister. The news of total rural electrification comes in the backdrop of Modi’s mega announcement during his Independence Day speech of 2015 when he promised that all villages where electricity was yet to reach, will have power within 1,000 days. Later, the Government announced a new scheme called Deendayal Upadhyay Gram Jyoti Yojana to create basic power infrastruc- ture and connectivity. PM Modi on Sunday laud- ed the efforts by the Ministry of Power in a series of tweets while terming the achievement as historic. “Leisang village in Manipur, like the thousands of other villages across India, has been powered and empow- ered! This news will make every Indian proud and delighted,” Modi tweeted. “The 28th April 2018 will be remembered as a historic day in the development journey of India. Yesterday, we fulfilled a commitment due to which the lives of several Indians will be transformed forever! I am delighted that every single vil- lage of India now has access to electricity,” he added. “I salute the efforts of all those who worked tirelessly on the ground, including the team of officials, the technical staff and all others, to make this dream of a #PowerfulIndia a reality. Their efforts today will help generations of Indians in the coming years,” he further said. A village is considered elec- trified if it has basic electrical infrastructure such as distribu- tion transformer and distribu- tion lines in the inhabited local- ity and at least 10 per cent of its households and all public places — including schools, panchay- at office and health centre, dis- pensaries, community centres, — have electricity. With electricity reaching every village, the real chal- lenge for the Government now is to ensure power supply to every household which remains a daunting task. In a bid to pro- vide electricity to every house- hold the Government had announced a new scheme -- the Pradhan Mantri Sahaj Bijli Har Ghar Yojana or Saubhagya Scheme. B JP president Amit Shah has described the ‘Jan Aakrosh’ rally organsied by the Congress a ‘Parivar Aakrosh’ rally that tried to distract attention from the fact that people’s anger is indeed directed toward the Congress which has lost one State after another in elections. If the Congress wants to see ‘Jan Akrosh’ (people’s anger), they should see the results of election after election, where it has been comprehen- sively defeated across the length and breadth of India, Shah said in a tweet. In a series of tweets, Shah said, “A dynasty and their courtiers, who were sent out of State after State by “Jan Aadesh” now pretend to represent ‘Jan Akrosh.” “Today’s Congress rally is nothing but a ‘Parivar Akrosh Rally’ which highlights their increasing irrelevance,” he said. Shah also took a dig at Congress chief Rahul Gandhi and hoped that Gandhi would apologise to the nation for his party’s efforts to trample over every possible institution in the country just because of its “power hungry” nature. The country is tired of these “neg- ative” and “arm-twisting” tac- tics of the Congress, he said. During the rally, Shah said, “abject India-hatred” would be on display as the Congress cannot digest that 125 crore Indians have seen through their “anti-development and highly divisive politics” and it efforts to create divisions are fully exposed. “People are not tolerating Congress’ lies, empty promises, corruption and com- munalism,” he said. Continued on Page 4 T he much-hyped commis- sioning of the ambitious Eastern Peripheral Expressway (EPE) and Delhi leg of the Meerut Expressway could not take place on Sunday. The fifth such failure to meet the dead- line came after the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) point- ed to non-completion of some civil and beautification works. Prime Minister Narendra Modi was scheduled to commission to Expressways on Sunday. Sources in the Road Transport and Highways Ministry said the PMO report- edly declined to give the nod citing incomplete works on both the stretches. “While Meerut Expressway or NH 24/NH-9 has a segrega- tion problem across the Pandav Nagar in East Delhi, a Rail Over Bridge (RoB) over the EPE in Meerut is yet to be completed and handed over technically. The Ministry had thought to get both the Expressways inaugu- rated by the Prime Minister simultaneously,” sources in the Ministry said. Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari early this month had announced that the Prime Minister would inaugurate the Eastern Peripheral Expressway and Delhi-Dasna Meerut Expressway on April 29. Gadkari had also announced that the Delhi-Meerut Expressway inau- guration would be done through a roadshow. After making the big announcement, the Minister had inspected both the Expressways along with top Road Ministry and NHAI offi- cials and the concessionaries of the project, which has been in news for many years. Gadkari has personally taken stock of works on both the projects and visiting the sites almost four times in the last few months. The PMO has already taken cognizance of the slow pace of progress of the National Highways (NHs) projects. As against the Centre’s target of 15,000 km construction of NHs, only 7,589 km could be com- pleted till the end of March 2018. The 135-km-long EPE envisages signal-free connec- tivity between Ghaziabad, Faridabad, Gautam Budh Nagar (Greater Noida) and Palwal and ultimately decongest the nation- al Capital. Under phase-II of the Meerut Expressway a stretch of about 20 km from Delhi border to Dasna would be developed, while Phase-III will involve six- laning of NH-24 for 22.27 km Dasna to Hapur. Phase-IV will be for 31.70 km of new green- field alignment from Dasna to Meerut. On completion Chambal Expressway would be connected to this Delhi- Mumbai Expressway to benefit States like Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan via Gurugram. Continued on Page 4 T he Uttar Pradesh Government will not be able to reclaim Wakf properties, including mosques and madrasas, registered with the Sunni or Shia Waqf Board. The Supreme Court has stayed a two-month-old order of the Allahabad High Court, which had virtually sounded the death knell for these mosques and madrasas that either stood on agricultural land or stood transferred as Waqf property by tenure holders having no actu- al ownership over the lands in question. The Allahabad High Court verdict of February 23, 2018 directly affected the property owned by Waqf Board in the State. The UP Sunni Waqf Board and the Jamait Ulema- e-Hind approached the apex court with a prayer for staying the directions. The High Court even directed the State to act on its orders and report compli- ance in three months, latest by May 28, 2018. The Bench of Justices Kurian Joseph, M Mohan Shantanagouder and Navin Sinha of the apex court stayed the operative portions of the judgment that had asked State authorities to proceed against the erring mosques and madrasas. The court felt the order had serious ramifica- tions and hence required to be heard at length. In the High Court, the issue came up with regard to a madrasa situated in Fatehpur where a man named Mahmood Hussain started a makeshift mosque and sought permission to offer prayers. The local vil- lagers had complained to the authorities on the use of loud- speaker following which the District Magistrate denied him permission to offer namaz and azan. Against this order passed on September 6, 2017, Hussain approached High Court. The land in question was agricultural land and Hussain was one out of four persons who were joint tenure holders having only Bhoomidari rights with no actual ownership over the land in question. Continued on Page 4 A bomb exploded on Sunday at the office of a hydro- electricity project being devel- oped with Indian assistance in eastern Nepal, an official said, weeks before its inauguration by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The compound wall of the 900 MW Arun III Hydroelectric Power Plant’s office in Tumlingtar area, near- ly 500 km from here, was dam- aged in the explosion, said Siva Raj Joshi, Chief District Officer of the Sankhuwasabha district. The project is slated to come into operation by 2020. The blast comes at a time when preparations are going on for laying stone of the project by Modi during his official visit to Nepal on May 11. No one was injured in the blast and an investigation has been launched, he said. Continued on Page 4 A fter so many deaths in sewer pits in the recent past, it seems no lessons were learnt and civic agencies con- tinue to exploit the poor man- ual scavenging workers. Five men got nearly killed after they inhaled toxic gases while checking the sewage plant at the Taj Vivanta Hotel near Khan Market on Sunday morn- ing. Three of them are critical. DCP (New Delhi) Madhur Verma said, “We received information on Sunday that around 11.30 am, five persons got trapped in the sewage treat- ment plant of Taj Vivanta Hotel where poisonous methane or hydrocarbon gas got leaked. The victims have been identi- fied as 51-year-old Nityanand, plumbing staff at the hotel, 40- year-old Ravindra, who works as a maintenance staff in sewer treatment plant (STP) of Eco Pollutech Engineers company which runs this plant and 26- year-old Vikram, contractual security guard of Taj Vivanta Hotel who went to rescue them. These three injured per- sons are admitted in the ICU of the Moolchand Hospital and at present are critical. The other two victims are Kamdev Patra and Gaurav Sukheja. Kamdev Patra (58) works as a contractual maintenance staff employee of Eco Pollutech Engineers. He was admitted in the ICU of the LNJP. He was later shifted to BLK Hospital while Gaurav Sukheja (34), the deputy chief engineer of Taj Vivanta, who also went to see the incident felt unconscious and was taken to RML Hospital. Continued on Page 4 C ongress president Rahul Gandhi on Sunday launched a frontal attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Government and urged the people to overthrow the present regime in the next year’s general elections. Addressing his party’s “Jan Aakrosh” rally, Rahul virtually sounded the poll bugle for the Lok Sabha polls next year. Calling Congress workers “sher ke bacche (cubs of lions)”, Rahul exuded confidence that his party will emerge victorious in Karnataka, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh Assembly polls and defeat the BJP in the 2019 general polls. “Every Congress worker is a lion’s cub. We will win in 2019. Go to Assam and Punjab and ask how many Congress workers have given their lives for the country. The Congress workers have given their lives for the truth. We will show them in 2019. Narendra Modi is worried now. He is hiding behind power,” he said. With an eye on elections, a combative Rahul tried to reach out to various sections of the society. For good measures, he highlighted incidents of attack on dalit and minorities and also slammed the Modi Government over unemploy- ment and plight of the farmers. Persisting with his soft- Hindutava line that has seen him going from temple to tem- ple and seer to seer in the poll- bound Karnataka, Rahul also talked about undertaking a pilgrimage to Kailash Mansarovar after the Karnataka polls. Comparing the BJP with the Congress, Rahul said while there was no scope for dissent in the BJP, the Congress gave enough scope for liberal debate and differences. He referred to Salman Khurshid’s recent con- troversial remarks on roles of Congress in riots, and said that he backed Khurshid’s right to have a different view point. “I want to say, I will be the first one to protect Salman Khurshid. But when we are fighting RSS, we have to be united,” said Rahul, adding, “However, in Prime Minister Modi’s party, there is only one viewpoint that is allowed: that of Narendra Modi and Amit Shah. This is the difference between them and us,” the Congress president said.” While former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh sought support for the Congress, saying the democ- racy is in danger with the Modi Government consistent- ly undermining its Constitutional institutions, for- mer Congress president Sonia Gandhi too mounted a sharp attack on the Modi Government charging that the roots of corruption have become stronger in the NDA regime. The party also raised the case of judge BH Loya and agrarian distress. “Prime Minister Modi gave unemployment, ‘Gabbar Singh Tax’ (the term the Congress coined for the Goods and Services Tax to target the Government), BJP MLA inflicted atrocities on women (Unnao rape case) in his tenure. Continued on Page 4 A head of much-awaited Cabinet reshuffle , J&K Deputy Chief Ministet Prof Nirmal Singh on Sunday submitted his resignation to the State BJP chief. In his place sitting Speaker of the State Assembly Kavinder Gupta is tipped to be the new Deputy Chief Minister. The sudden development created ripples in the corridors of power as party legislators were not anticipating that the senior most party leader in the State Government would be shown the exit gate. Inside reports suggested top brass of the party was not happy with the party position. The image of the party was also dented in the wake of Kathua rape and murder case. Two Cabinet Ministers Lal Singh and Chander Prakash Ganga had earlier sub- mitted their resignations after pressure was mount- ed on them because of their presence in the protest rally organised in support of accused in the rape case. The reshuffle is scheduled to take place in Jammu on Monday. The BJP may drop some sitting Ministers as well to shore up party image in the eyes of the elec- torate. Party general secretary Ram Madhav is expected to attend the swearing-in ceremony.

Transcript of 7 - : 7B>-C>=?D6 =@ B · “While Meerut Expressway or NH 24/NH-9 has a segrega-tion problem across...

Page 1: 7 - : 7B>-C>=?D6 =@ B · “While Meerut Expressway or NH 24/NH-9 has a segrega-tion problem across the Pandav Nagar in East Delhi, a Rail Over Bridge (RoB) over the EPE in Meerut

����� ��������

Prime Minister NarendraModi on Sunday

announced the country hasreached the 100 per cent ruralelectrification target afterLeisang, a remote village inManipur, became the last vil-lage of India to get electricityconnection. According toGovernment officials, all597,464 villages in India, as perthe Census, have been electri-fied 12 days ahead of the dead-line set by the Prime Minister.

The news of total ruralelectrification comes in thebackdrop of Modi’s megaannouncement during hisIndependence Day speech of2015 when he promised that allvillages where electricity wasyet to reach, will have powerwithin 1,000 days. Later, theGovernment announced a newscheme called DeendayalUpadhyay Gram Jyoti Yojana tocreate basic power infrastruc-ture and connectivity.

PM Modi on Sunday laud-ed the efforts by the Ministryof Power in a series of tweetswhile terming the achievementas historic. “Leisang village inManipur, like the thousands ofother villages across India, hasbeen powered and empow-ered! This news will makeevery Indian proud anddelighted,” Modi tweeted.

“The 28th April 2018 willbe remembered as a historic dayin the development journey ofIndia. Yesterday, we fulfilled acommitment due to which thelives of several Indians will betransformed forever! I amdelighted that every single vil-lage of India now has access toelectricity,” he added.

“I salute the efforts of allthose who worked tirelessly on

the ground, including the teamof officials, the technical staffand all others, to make thisdream of a #PowerfulIndia areality. Their efforts today willhelp generations of Indians inthe coming years,” he furthersaid.

A village is considered elec-trified if it has basic electricalinfrastructure such as distribu-tion transformer and distribu-tion lines in the inhabited local-ity and at least 10 per cent of itshouseholds and all public places— including schools, panchay-at office and health centre, dis-pensaries, community centres,— have electricity.

With electricity reachingevery village, the real chal-lenge for the Government nowis to ensure power supply toevery household which remainsa daunting task. In a bid to pro-vide electricity to every house-hold the Government hadannounced a new scheme -- thePradhan Mantri Sahaj Bijli HarGhar Yojana or SaubhagyaScheme.

����� ��������

BJP president Amit Shah hasdescribed the ‘Jan Aakrosh’

rally organsied by the Congressa ‘Parivar Aakrosh’ rally thattried to distract attention fromthe fact that people’s anger isindeed directed toward theCongress which has lost oneState after another in elections.

If the Congress wants tosee ‘Jan Akrosh’ (people’sanger), they should see theresults of election after election,where it has been comprehen-sively defeated across the lengthand breadth of India, Shah saidin a tweet. In a series of tweets,Shah said, “A dynasty and theircourtiers, who were sent out ofState after State by “Jan Aadesh”now pretend to represent ‘JanAkrosh.”

“Today’s Congress rally isnothing but a ‘Parivar AkroshRally’ which highlights theirincreasing irrelevance,” he said.

Shah also took a dig atCongress chief Rahul Gandhiand hoped that Gandhi wouldapologise to the nation for hisparty’s efforts to trample overevery possible institution in thecountry just because of its“power hungry” nature. Thecountry is tired of these “neg-ative” and “arm-twisting” tac-tics of the Congress, he said.

During the rally, Shah said,“abject India-hatred” would beon display as the Congresscannot digest that 125 croreIndians have seen throughtheir “anti-development andhighly divisive politics” and itefforts to create divisions arefully exposed. “People are nottolerating Congress’ lies, emptypromises, corruption and com-munalism,” he said.

Continued on Page 4

���������� ������������

The much-hyped commis-sioning of the ambitious

Eastern Peripheral Expressway(EPE) and Delhi leg of theMeerut Expressway could nottake place on Sunday. The fifthsuch failure to meet the dead-line came after the PrimeMinister’s Office (PMO) point-ed to non-completion of somecivil and beautification works.Prime Minister Narendra Modiwas scheduled to commissionto Expressways on Sunday.

Sources in the RoadTransport and HighwaysMinistry said the PMO report-edly declined to give the nod

citing incomplete works onboth the stretches.

“While Meerut Expresswayor NH 24/NH-9 has a segrega-tion problem across the PandavNagar in East Delhi, a Rail OverBridge (RoB) over the EPE inMeerut is yet to be completedand handed over technically.The Ministry had thought to getboth the Expressways inaugu-rated by the Prime Ministersimultaneously,” sources in theMinistry said.

Road Transport andHighways Minister NitinGadkari early this month hadannounced that the PrimeMinister would inaugurate theEastern Peripheral Expresswayand Delhi-Dasna Meerut

Expressway on April 29. Gadkarihad also announced that theDelhi-Meerut Expressway inau-guration would be done througha roadshow. After making thebig announcement, theMinister had inspected boththe Expressways along with topRoad Ministry and NHAI offi-cials and the concessionaries ofthe project, which has been innews for many years. Gadkarihas personally taken stock ofworks on both the projects andvisiting the sites almost fourtimes in the last few months.

The PMO has already takencognizance of the slow pace ofprogress of the NationalHighways (NHs) projects. Asagainst the Centre’s target of

15,000 km construction of NHs,only 7,589 km could be com-pleted till the end of March 2018.

The 135-km-long EPEenvisages signal-free connec-tivity between Ghaziabad,Faridabad, Gautam Budh Nagar(Greater Noida) and Palwal andultimately decongest the nation-al Capital.

Under phase-II of theMeerut Expressway a stretch ofabout 20 km from Delhi borderto Dasna would be developed,while Phase-III will involve six-laning of NH-24 for 22.27 kmDasna to Hapur. Phase-IV willbe for 31.70 km of new green-field alignment from Dasna toMeerut. On completionChambal Expressway would beconnected to this Delhi-Mumbai Expressway to benefitStates like Madhya Pradesh andRajasthan via Gurugram.

Continued on Page 4

������������������������

The Uttar PradeshGovernment will not be

able to reclaim Wakf properties,including mosques andmadrasas, registered with theSunni or Shia Waqf Board. TheSupreme Court has stayed atwo-month-old order of theAllahabad High Court, whichhad virtually sounded the deathknell for these mosques andmadrasas that either stood onagricultural land or stoodtransferred as Waqf property bytenure holders having no actu-al ownership over the lands inquestion.

The Allahabad High Courtverdict of February 23, 2018

directly affected the propertyowned by Waqf Board in theState. The UP Sunni WaqfBoard and the Jamait Ulema-e-Hind approached the apexcourt with a prayer for stayingthe directions. The High Courteven directed the State to act onits orders and report compli-ance in three months, latest byMay 28, 2018.

The Bench of JusticesKurian Joseph, M MohanShantanagouder and NavinSinha of the apex court stayedthe operative portions of thejudgment that had asked State

authorities to proceed againstthe erring mosques andmadrasas. The court felt theorder had serious ramifica-tions and hence required to beheard at length.

In the High Court, theissue came up with regard to amadrasa situated in Fatehpurwhere a man named MahmoodHussain started a makeshiftmosque and sought permissionto offer prayers. The local vil-lagers had complained to theauthorities on the use of loud-speaker following which theDistrict Magistrate denied himpermission to offer namaz andazan. Against this order passedon September 6, 2017, Hussainapproached High Court.

The land in question wasagricultural land and Hussainwas one out of four personswho were joint tenure holdershaving only Bhoomidari rightswith no actual ownership overthe land in question.

Continued on Page 4

������������ ���������� ��� ��������

����� ��� ����

Abomb exploded on Sundayat the office of a hydro-

electricity project being devel-oped with Indian assistance ineastern Nepal, an official said,weeks before its inaugurationby Prime Minister NarendraModi.

The compound wall of the900 MW Arun IIIHydroelectric Power Plant’soffice in Tumlingtar area, near-ly 500 km from here, was dam-aged in the explosion, said SivaRaj Joshi, Chief District Officerof the Sankhuwasabha district.

The project is slated tocome into operation by 2020.

The blast comes at a timewhen preparations are going onfor laying stone of the projectby Modi during his official visitto Nepal on May 11.

No one was injured in theblast and an investigation hasbeen launched, he said.

Continued on Page 4

���������������� ��������

After so many deaths insewer pits in the recent

past, it seems no lessons werelearnt and civic agencies con-tinue to exploit the poor man-ual scavenging workers.

Five men got nearly killedafter they inhaled toxic gaseswhile checking the sewage plantat the Taj Vivanta Hotel nearKhan Market on Sunday morn-ing. Three of them are critical.

DCP (New Delhi) MadhurVerma said, “We receivedinformation on Sunday thataround 11.30 am, five personsgot trapped in the sewage treat-ment plant of Taj Vivanta Hotelwhere poisonous methane orhydrocarbon gas got leaked.The victims have been identi-fied as 51-year-old Nityanand,plumbing staff at the hotel, 40-year-old Ravindra, who worksas a maintenance staff in sewer

treatment plant (STP) of EcoPollutech Engineers companywhich runs this plant and 26-year-old Vikram, contractualsecurity guard of Taj VivantaHotel who went to rescue them.

These three injured per-sons are admitted in the ICU ofthe Moolchand Hospital and atpresent are critical. The othertwo victims are Kamdev Patraand Gaurav Sukheja.

Kamdev Patra (58) worksas a contractual maintenancestaff employee of Eco PollutechEngineers. He was admitted inthe ICU of the LNJP. He waslater shifted to BLK Hospitalwhile Gaurav Sukheja (34), thedeputy chief engineer of TajVivanta, who also went to seethe incident felt unconsciousand was taken to RML Hospital.

Continued on Page 4

������������ ������������ ���������������������������

����������������������������� ������������ �� �

�������������� ������������������

������������� �������� ������� ��������������� ������������ ��!���������"�" ���#��� ����� ������� �$��%���������!�� "���&��

��������������������������

����������������������������

��������������������� ! �"��# "�$�! �� ��%� ! ��� �&����"���"���'"���"���"�����! �# "�$�"���'� �(�����') ��#������ ����� !�"��%�"�����!'"�� ��%��������''�% �����*����"���������%�� ����$ ��%������� �(���� �%����� +������*"� �� ����"��,�%�������''�% �����# ���) ����(((-��''���"��"����"�$������$ !�������"�,��� ���!���

���������������� "!����!�" !�-%���% ! �� ��������*����� �*� !����� �#��+ ������ ��,���%�! � ������! �! � ���+ ����)!���(,������,��&��$! ��!�''��"������"�$�#�����+��!".�!��)!������''�,�%�"���"$�'"$������ "!�"��! ��"�$"!! ' .���

/�������� � ��������"�0",���'�$���+��)����$�-����)��� ����$�,�1%��'�������) �#!"# �-���!�' ������� ������2����� �!������*���!!���"�����. �# ��� � � !���� !��"��%����3�4��!��''��*��-��� ������!��"������"�$���!��$���� ��"�". ����� �����% �� �������) �"�� !"���'�(������"��%�����%�������� ''�������! ��"���' !�

5 ����������"�$� 5 ��"������5 ���"��6����"

������ �����-������������� �����7��8����������77�� %�� '�"9 ���������������������������������������������� �!����"���#$���%����"���"$�� �%� ��"� & ���� ����'$��������( !� #� ����������������"�� �)"�� ���*+���������"�� ���"$���� �,�

&����&�������&�7:�����������������;�7������� %�� '�"9 ��"�� ���"�� �� � -$�!��� �+'�.��"��"! ����"��������%��� �� ���� ������������#���/��� *���� �0"� ��# ���"���� ������%��# ����"����� ��"�� �"���� ���*�$����� �+ ������*%�!"��"� ��( �$���*�' ��� ��&! ����$� ��$�����"���$�����1��������$��$� ��������� ���"�������""!���"�������������,�

&���������6�9��������6�<�����������=-=>>�&����#�"9 ��� ����� ���"#��� "!!"����"��"� ��� ��*������������������"����# ����"����"!���#�1 ���*�! ������� �����������0"������� ���"�1�� �2�233���"� ��"���$������"������� �� &��� ����*������"�����������,�4�)�*�$#������ �!�����!��� �� ���*���1���$��$� �������"�($���*���������$#�"���2�233��"� ������� �� � �� ������� �"#��1�� �,

����� ��������

Congress president RahulGandhi on Sunday

launched a frontal attack onPrime Minister Narendra Modiand his Government and urgedthe people to overthrow thepresent regime in the nextyear’s general elections.

Addressing his party’s “JanAakrosh” rally, Rahul virtuallysounded the poll bugle for theLok Sabha polls next year.Calling Congress workers “sherke bacche (cubs of lions)”,Rahul exuded confidence thathis party will emerge victoriousin Karnataka, Rajasthan,Madhya Pradesh andChhattisgarh Assembly pollsand defeat the BJP in the 2019general polls.

“Every Congress worker isa lion’s cub. We will win in2019. Go to Assam and Punjaband ask how many Congressworkers have given their livesfor the country. The Congressworkers have given their livesfor the truth. We will showthem in 2019. Narendra Modiis worried now. He is hidingbehind power,” he said.

With an eye on elections, acombative Rahul tried to reachout to various sections of the

society. For good measures, hehighlighted incidents of attackon dalit and minorities and alsoslammed the ModiGovernment over unemploy-ment and plight of the farmers.Persisting with his soft-Hindutava line that has seenhim going from temple to tem-ple and seer to seer in the poll-bound Karnataka, Rahul alsotalked about undertaking apilgrimage to KailashMansarovar after the Karnatakapolls.

Comparing the BJP withthe Congress, Rahul said whilethere was no scope for dissentin the BJP, the Congress gaveenough scope for liberal debateand differences. He referred toSalman Khurshid’s recent con-troversial remarks on roles ofCongress in riots, and saidthat he backed Khurshid’s rightto have a different view point.

“I want to say, I will be thefirst one to protect SalmanKhurshid. But when we arefighting RSS, we have to beunited,” said Rahul, adding,“However, in Prime MinisterModi’s party, there is only oneviewpoint that is allowed: thatof Narendra Modi and AmitShah. This is the differencebetween them and us,” the

Congress president said.”While former Prime

Minister Manmohan Singhsought support for theCongress, saying the democ-racy is in danger with theModi Government consistent-ly undermining itsConstitutional institutions, for-mer Congress president SoniaGandhi too mounted a sharpattack on the ModiGovernment charging that theroots of corruption havebecome stronger in the NDAregime. The party also raisedthe case of judge BH Loya andagrarian distress.

“Prime Minister Modi gaveunemployment, ‘Gabbar SinghTax’ (the term the Congresscoined for the Goods andServices Tax to target theGovernment), BJP MLAinflicted atrocities on women(Unnao rape case) in his tenure.

Continued on Page 4

'�"�����������("��� �)����%���� ������!���� �� ��� ������������������"����� �*�%" ������������

��������!�"���� �������#

$%���������!��&��'#()���������������������������������*�������� �����+�����������,������-��������� ��.�����!����������/�.�������!����"�����������,�0����.������������������������1

� �������������������������������

������������������������������������������������������������������������������� !����� ����������"���#�$�%�������������� �&�

�����!�"����!�������� ��������� ������������ ������2�34���� ����3564�������������������������������������������"��� ����-���������7����,8�������#����������������������������������������"�����"����7���������������������������"��2

������������������� �+,����(��� ���������

'� ��������������(����$���)���������*

���������� ��� ������������������� ����������������

� !�"�#$������5�.�+��

(���'��0(�����

������������ ��������������� ���������� ���������������� ����!"���#$%���

��������� ������������������ ������

����������� ���������������������������������

6��� �+��* <�'(�78����� 2286����($�����1 ��&��������!!������

����#'"�� ��=?@A

��/���7��-������:�����7�B>-�C>=?D���6���=@���B

!"��#$��% !&��

����������������� �!"#��! �$%&��'#'( #���

%!�&'�#( �5..�'(��5�+�5(��

��+���'���(��(����� �9

! )�)!��*���'�/5'�

5�(��'��'(��:

��������������� ;� �

Ahead of much-awaited Cabinet reshuffle , J&KDeputy Chief Ministet Prof Nirmal Singh on

Sunday submitted his resignation to the State BJPchief. In his place sitting Speaker of the StateAssembly Kavinder Gupta is tipped to be the newDeputy Chief Minister.

The sudden development created ripples in thecorridors of power as party legislators were notanticipating that the senior most party leader in theState Government would be shown the exit gate.

Inside reports suggested top brass of the partywas not happy with the party position. The imageof the party was also dented in the wake of Kathuarape and murder case. Two Cabinet Ministers LalSingh and Chander Prakash Ganga had earlier sub-mitted their resignations after pressure was mount-ed on them because of their presence in the protestrally organised in support of accused in the rape case.

The reshuffle is scheduled to take place in Jammuon Monday. The BJP may drop some sitting Ministersas well to shore up party image in the eyes of the elec-torate. Party general secretary Ram Madhav isexpected to attend the swearing-in ceremony.

#���������+�������!,-%���.������������������

Page 2: 7 - : 7B>-C>=?D6 =@ B · “While Meerut Expressway or NH 24/NH-9 has a segrega-tion problem across the Pandav Nagar in East Delhi, a Rail Over Bridge (RoB) over the EPE in Meerut

����������'�(����) '������ *+,�-+./ �� �����53

����������� ������ ����������������� ������������������������������������������ !����"��#����$�%�&'����())***�� ����������+$������������������������� �������������������,�����-����������./0"10��.02,������**,��-�������0�����!�� ���&��%����-���3���-��4 �5.�4�� �"����-����� ��!�$����5�������������-��6�����'���� 7���������-,�.!8(9*:;9)**�� :;;�:)(:9�<=:)� 9�:)�������&>�����-9��������"��"������$���������? �0���������&(��@*)@�7���������-*;��(� 9@99 �� 9@999�� 9@99;�

���������� �������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� ������������������������������������� ��������������������������������������� ��������������� �� ���������������������������������������������������������� ������������ ����� ��������������� ��������������������������������������������������� ����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� �������� �!����������������"���������� ���������������������������� �������������������� ���� ��������������������������������� �����������������������������#��������������������������� ���� ����$����%����&�������������������������� ��������������� �����������������������'����������������������������������� ���������������"��������������������(�����������������������������

���������������� ��������

In a bid to ensure cleanlinessand basic hygiene in slums, the

Delhi Urban ShelterImprovement Board (DUSIB)has decided to maintain 620 toi-let complexes in slum clustersthrough private agencies. DelhiGovernment official said thattenders have been floated andtoilet maintenance agencies willbe appointed by the June thisyear.

Chief Minister ArvindKejriwal chaired the board meet-ing of DUSIB, which had inJanuary in which the decision towaive off user charge in toiletswere taken.

As per the official, current-ly , more than 10 Lakh people areusing around 620 toilet com-plexes thath comprise of 19000seats in jhuggi — jhopri (JJ) clus-ters of Delhi," the official added.

"The rationale behind themove is to ensure better clean-liness, maintenance, monitoringof toilet complexes besides avail-ability of round-the-clock facil-ity, a Government official said.

The official further addedthat 620 toilet complexes will bedivided into clusters to be main-tained by around two-three pri-vate agencies. "The DUSIB willpay these agencies for their ser-vices. We hope that toilet main-tenance agencies will be appoint-ed by June this year," anotherofficial said.

There are around 680 JJ clus-ters in the national capital, where

the DUSIB has constructed toi-let complexes for people livingthere. There are three types oftoilets in Delhi — individual,which is constructed by differentagencies, community — whichare in slums and maintained bythe DUSIB and public toilets —which are managed by civicbodies.

In its report tabled in theDelhi Assembly earliest thismonth, the Comptroller andAuditor General (CAG) hadsaid that not a single toilet wasconstructed in the city since theinception of the Swachh BharatMission two-and-half years ago,with funds to the tune of �40.31crore for this purpose lying"idle".

The AAP-led cityGovernment did not allocate themission funds to implementingagencies as per their require-ments, the report had said.

"��������� ��������������+��������$(,����+�������� ���������������� ��������

The Delhi MinoritiesCommission has sent a

query to the Union Ministry ofHome Affairs (MHA) seekingclarification over a provisionthat allows the Muslim employ-ees of the Government attendthe Friday Namaz during workhours.

The move came after adelegation of Muslim teachersin Delhi met the CommissionChairman Zafarul Islam Khanand sought his help in this issue.The delegation of teachers fromschools run by the DelhiGovernment and civic bodiessaid on Fridays, they faced dif-ficulty in attending the Namazas they needed to reach theirrespective schools 15 minutesbefore 1 am which clashes withtheir prayer time, Khan said.

"The teachers cited anMHA order of 1954 that saidMuslim Government employ-

ees have the right to offerFriday prayer but a deductionfrom their salary could bemade for the working timeused in it. "Last week a querywas sent to the Union homesecretary seeking to know if the1954 order still exists and thecurrent status on the issue. Areply is awaited, " Khan said.

The Commission alsosought clarification over theissue from the DelhiGovernment's Directorate ofEducation (DoE) and the

municipal corporation."The Directorate of

Education said that no suchrelaxation is possible as it willhurt the interests of the stu-dents. The commission is yet toreceive a reply to its notice fromMCD," he said.

The commission will for-mally approach the DelhiGovernment and seek inter-vention of Deputy CM ManishSisodia, who is incharge of theEducation department, if need-ed, he said.

���������������� ��������

Leader of Opposition ( LoP )in Delhi Assembly Vijender

Gupta has complained toLieutenant Governor Anil Baijalon "non allocation" of funds bythe Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) toMunicipal Corporations forurban development and trans-port.

In a written communicationto L-G, Gupta alleged that theKejriwal government was "crip-pling" the municipal corpora-tions financially due to politicalreasons.

"The Kejriwal Governmenthas not allocated funds to thethree municipal corporations infinancial year 2018-19, for urbandevelopment and transport,thereby financially crippling

them," the BJP leader alleged.He requested the Lt

Governor to direct the KejriwalGovernment to reallocate fundsto the municipal bodies so thatthey can provide civic servicesto the people of Delhi.

"The AAP government isusing the Budget as a weapon toseek revenge from BJP-ruledmunicipal corporations, after

defeat of its party in the civicbody elections last year," Guptaalleged.

The municipal corporationsof East, North and South Delhiwere allocated a total of �1,154for urban development in the2017-18 budget, but no moneywas alocated to them for thepurpose in this Budget, heclaimed, adding the municipalcorporations will not be able totake up any developmentalworks due to this.

����� 0��<�4��

AFirst Information Report(FIR) has been lodged here

against two television newschannels for allegedly broad-casting false stories following acomplaint by the GhaziabadDevelopment Authority(GDA).

GDA has alleged that theHindi news channels had airedstories, levelling charges of �2crore bribery against its vicechairperson, based on one-sided version.

However, the channels —Samachar Plus and News 1India — have refuted the alle-gations, saying they had triedto reach out to the GDA chair-person Ritu Maheshwari butshe was not available immedi-ately for comments.

One Trilok Agarwal hadmade a complaint to the UttarPradesh Chief Minister'sOffice, alleging that he hadpaid �50 lakh to the GDASecretary and the sameamount to enforcementdepartment as bribe to stop thesealing action launched by theauthority against illegal con-struction at the site of a builder,Anil Jain.

This news story was thenbroadcast by news channelsSamachar Plus and News 1India, Senior Superintendentof Police Vaibhav Krishna said.

The FIR — naming thechief editors and the local cor-respondents of the news chan-nels — has been lodged atSihani gate police station undervarious IPC sections, the SSPsaid.

GDA Vice-ChairpersonRitu Maheswari said that newsaired by the channels showstheir "blackmailing mentality"and is a "criminal act".

The Executive Editor ofSamachar Plus, Praveen Sahni,said the story is based on thecompliant of the victim and thechannel had sought the version

of GDA vice chairperson butshe did not attend their call.

"The complaint (as men-tioned in the story) was sent tothe Prime Minister's Officerand the UP Chief Minister'sOffice also," he added.

The Editor-in-Chief onNews 1 India, AnuragChaddha, said the story hischannel aired was based on thevictim's complaint.

"It was not false or gossip.Our local correspondent hadtried to contact Maheshwaribut she was not available," hesaid. Meanwhile, builder AnilJain has made a complaint tothe district magistrate againstTrilok Agarwal and his wifeShalini Agarwal, alleged extor-tion attempt.

An FIR on Jain's comp-plaint has been lodged at KaviNagar police station.

Jain also contradicted theallegations levelled in the com-plaint of Agarwal and saidthat he has not paid anyamount to any official to getundue favour from the GDA.

Investigations in both caseshave been initiated, SSPKrishna said.

Lalit Kumar a veteran jour-nalist while condemned theapplication of such serioussections said that there may beirregularity in airing news forwhich news broadcasters asso-ciation of India is an appro-priate forum.

(With agency inputs)

���������������� ��������

Launching an all-out attackon the Central

Government, former PrimeMinister Manmohan Singhsaid that it has failed to fulfil-lall its promises made beforeassuming power and it's thetime it should provide anaccount of its works to the peo-ple of the country.

Singh sought support forthe party and its presidentRahul Gandhi to save thedemocracy of the country asthe Modi Government consis-tently undermining itsConstitutional institutions.

He was addressing the'Jan Aakrosh' rally organisedby the party in the nationalcapital. The rally, which wasalso addressed by SoniaGandhi and Congress presi-dent Rahul Gandhi, saw theCongress outlined the failuresof the BJP-led Government at

Centre.The former Prime

Minister also highlighted thatless unemployment opportu-nities has left the youth wor-ried. The anger among allsections of the society hasrisen up in the last four yearsdue to the increasing threat tothe safety and security of the

people, he said.Pointing out the increasing

fuel prices, Singh said that thepeople are facing immenseproblems due to the skyrock-eting fuel prices despite thefalling prices of crude oil ininternational market.

The former PrimeMinister also said the price of

crude oil across the worldwas falling while in India theprices of petrol and dieselwere constantly rising.

Talking about unemploy-ment, he said it was on the riseas the Modi Government hasnot created the much-promised two crore job oppor-tunities, leaving youths andstudents, who had taken studyloans, a worried lot in absenceof jobs, he said.

Thousands of party work-ers attended the rally. Also,party's bigwigs such as AjayMaken, Sheela Dixit, andRandeep Singh Surjewala alsoattended it.

United ProgressiveAlliance (UPA) Chairpersonand former Congress presidentSonia Gandhi also launched atirade against the CentralGovernment, alleging that theroots of corruption havebecome stronger in theNational Democratic Alliance

(NDA) regime. In her address she alleged

that the Government has leftno stone unturned in under-mining institutions and tar-geting political rivals by mis-using central agencies. Shealso accused the Governmentof dividing communities forelectoral benefit.

What happened to Modiji's slogan 'Na khaunga, nakhane dunga', even the rootsof corruption have becomedeeper under his watch," shesaid.

Urging people to uniteunder Rahul Gandhi's leader-ship, the Congress leader said"Our country is going througha difficult time. We must allunite and stay alert to fightagainst this regime. She alsosaid that it is saddening to seethat our society is sufferingfrom unprecedented violenceand hatred and people aresuffering.

���������������� ��������

The Delhi Traffic Police onSunday issued a traffic

advisory regarding the con-struction of a grade separatorat Rani Jhansi Road.

The press advisory read,"General public is advised toavoid the affected segment ofRani Jhansi Road and takealternative routes. Trafficrestrictions for heavy com-mercial vehicles will be effect-ed from May 1 from 09.00 PMto 07.00 AM till the completionof the Grade Separator project."

The traffic police said thattraffic coming from Rani JhansiRoad, Faiz Road, Idgah Road,Karol Bagh will be diverted atIdgah round about towardsNew Rohtak road-Kaml T-Point-Shastri Nagar MetroStation-Chowki No. 2 Gulabi

Bagh-Nagia Park-Shakti Nagar.Other alternative routes include-Traffic coming from BoulevardRoad, Zorawar marg, Dr.Karnwal Marg will be divertedat Barafkhana Chowk towardsRoshanara Road T-Point-oldG T Karnal Road-Ghanta GharChowk-Shakti Nagar. Lastly,the traffic coming from OldDelhi Railway Station ShyamaPrasad Mukherjee Marg will bediverted at Pul Mithai towardsKhanna Market ISBT RingRoad and the Traffic comingfrom Inderlok towards AzadMarket Chowk will be divertedat Shastri Nagar Metro Stationtowards Kamal T-Point, ChowkiNo. 2 Gulabi Bagh, Nagia Park,Shakti Nagar.

The traffic cops haveadvised commuters to avoidcoming on Azad Market chowkand use alternative routes.

NEW DELHI: In a major anti-encroachment drive, SouthDelhi Municipal Corporationhas removed 275 structuresillegally constructed on bothsides of roads.

The drive was jointly con-ducted by the South ZoneLicensing Branch, Traffic Policeand Delhi Police. A seniorSDMC official said that actionwas initiated in all its zones andwill be continued. In the drive,vendors, hawkers, building vio-lators and Health trade licenseviolators, semi -permanent andpermanent structures were tar-geted, he said. The official fur-ther informed that 400 items, 43four wheelers, 19 two wheelers,five autos seized. "20 jhuggisalso demolished in the drive,"he said. STAFF REPORTER

���������������� ��������

East Delhi MunicipalCorporation (EDMC) has

told the National GreenTribunal that a meeting withShahdara MLA Ram NiwasGoel would be held for iden-tifying a suitable site for shift-ing an existing 'dhalao'(garbage dump) near a schoolin the locality.

A bench headed by JusticeRaghuvendra Rathore direct-ed the municipal corporationto place on record the detailsof the minutes of the meeting.

"The counsel for EDMCsubmits that another meetingof all the stakeholders as wellas the MLA will be heldregarding the alternative siteetc before the next date ofhearing.

The tribunal had earlierasked the AAP leader to par-ticipate in the process andmake serious efforts to findout a solution to the problem.The matter will be heard nexton May 22.

���������������� ��������

In yet another scuffle overproperty between brothers, a

South Delhi-based orthopedicdoctor was injured when hisbrother opened fire at him out-side his residence in SouthDelhi's Fatehpur Beri area.While the injured doctor sus-pects the role of his two broth-ers behind the firing, police areyet to reach a conclusion.

In retaliation to the two tothree rounds, the injured doctor,identified as Dr Hans U Nagarfired 12 -13 rounds at his broth-ers, leaving them criticallyinjured.

Confirming the incident,Romil Baaniya, DeputyCommissioner of Police (South)

said, “On April 29, at around1:05am, we received a PCR callabout firing at Gadaipur. Onreaching the spot, the injured, DrHans Nagar stated that hereceived gunshot injuries after hewas attacked by around three tofour people. He suspected thatboth of his brothers (John andRon) and four others are behindplanning of this attack.”

The DCP further said,"There is a long standing prop-erty dispute between the victimand his brothers over a proper-

ty in Gurgaon. He is under treat-ment and is reported to be con-scious and stable. TheOrthopedic doctor further stat-ed that he also retaliated by fir-ing 12- 13 rounds back from hislicensed pistol in which hebelieves that one or two of theattackers have got injured.Approximately 22 empty car-tridges and 2 live rounds of9mm and .0.32 bore have beenfound at the spot."

"We have registered a caseunder sections of attempt tomurder, punishment for crim-inal conspiracy and relevantsections of the Arms Act on thestatement of Dr Hans nagar atthe Fatehpur Beri police sta-tion. Suspects are being inter-rogated," added Baaniya.

���<������������0�'�0'�

Taking cognizance on trafficchaos in old Gurguram, the

Gurugram Metropolitan Dev-elopment Authority(GMDA)will construct an underpassalong with Foot Over Bridge(FOB) at Mahavir Chowk and aflyover at Gurudwara road .

"We are preparing thedesign of the underpass alongwith flyover. In the first phase,we will build an underpass. Afinal call on the project will betaken place in a meeting head-ed by PWD Minister. In themeeting, we will finalize the pro-ject and we will soon call fortenders, Chief Executive Officer(CEO) of GurugramMetropolitan DevelopmentAuthority (GMDA), VUmashankar, said.

Detailing about project, hefurther added that Rs 56 crorewill be spent for Underpassalong with FOB at MahavirChowk and Rs 62 Crore for aflyover at Gurudwara Road.

While Mahavir Chowk and

Gurudwara Road are oftendogged by traffic problems, withautos parked on the stretchgrabbing a lot of road space, theflyover and underpass is a needof the hour to ease traffic move-ment in millennium city.

The area near the civil hos-pital, bus terminal and SadarBazaar sees long traffic snarlsevery day.

Despite actions like creatinga dedicated lane for autos andclosing existing gaps in themedian, the traffic police havenot been able to prevent the traf-fic woes.

Similarly, thousands ofpatients, who visit the district'sbiggest government hospital,Vegetable Market and Bus Standfind it difficult to cross the busy

Mahavir Chowk andGurudwara Road.

"We are preparing thedesign of the underpass alongwith flyover. In the first phase,we will build an underpass. Afinal call on the project will betaken place in a meeting head-ed by PWD Minister. In themeeting, we will finalize the pro-ject and we will soon call for ten-ders, Chief Executive Officer(CEO) of GurugramMetropolitan DevelopmentAuthority (GMDA), VUmashankar, said.

It may be noted that theGMDA has long been planningto decongest Old Gurugram'straffic which includes under-passes, foot over bridges and fly-overs at several stretches on busyroads.

"The flyover, underpass andFOB would bring relief to tensof lakhs of commuters whostruggle currently throughunending traffic jams on thesestretches which traffic cops finddifficult to manage," saidSubhash Singla, a councillorfrom the area.

()���������*���+�,�� *���-� ��.�� +��-���/*�����*�� �*�)����0*�

$��%������ ����������������!-���������� �. ��/�0�

/ ��7����7� �&9�::7���/;7��98

���������������� ���������

It was a warm Sunday morn-ing in the national Capital

with the maximum tempera-ture touched 40 degrees Celsius.The minimum temperaturewas recorded four degreesabove normal for the season at27.6 degrees Celsius, said aMeT department official."Partlycloudy skies in later half of theday are forecast. The maximumtemperature will hover around40 degrees Celsius," he said. Therelative humidity was 66 percent at 8.30 AM.

The MeT in his weeklyweather forecast has mentionedthat there are chances of rainand thunderstorm activities onMay 3, 4.

%���/�/���������������.���������0(1�.

��������������������������������/���$������������.�����.�����������������!���� ������������#�$�%������������� �&�

2�������������/�����3�������������.�%������������������4������41�

�� �����0"� ��# �����$���1��� �4$�1 ������� �!"���"�� �� � �1 ���"#�4;�%�$� �#$����!����"�!"����"��

$��� �( ��%� ���%����� ����� �� ��� ��1���2" ��

'$!)� ������,3������������ "�����

-����������.� ����������+ ��������/,��������.

�������������������������0'�.�������+����������&1

�.%�����3����������"���������"256������/����������������� %/��;���<

����� �����9���������������������������������������������������$����.������!

���������'��������$������������'

����������� ������������/�����/�����������$�������//����������$�����/�������$�������/ ����%���1������0(����$��"�������������������7�&$��������������������//���� �&�

8�&9�/��������3�� ������ �� ����$�������%�������

Page 3: 7 - : 7B>-C>=?D6 =@ B · “While Meerut Expressway or NH 24/NH-9 has a segrega-tion problem across the Pandav Nagar in East Delhi, a Rail Over Bridge (RoB) over the EPE in Meerut

��������� � ��� ���� � �� �� � ���� �������� 5=

Page 4: 7 - : 7B>-C>=?D6 =@ B · “While Meerut Expressway or NH 24/NH-9 has a segrega-tion problem across the Pandav Nagar in East Delhi, a Rail Over Bridge (RoB) over the EPE in Meerut

����5>����������'�(����) '������ *+,�-+./

From Page 1However, no one has

claimed responsibility of theblast, he added.

A Project DevelopmentAgreement (PDA) for Arun IIIwas signed with India’s state-owned Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam(SJVN) on November 25, 2014in the presence of the thenPrime Minister Sushil Koiralaand visiting Indian PrimeMinister Modi.

This is the second blastwithin a month in Indian prop-erties in Nepal. On April 17, apressure cooker bomb went offnear the Indian Embassy fieldoffice in Biratnagar damaging thewalls of the premises. Nepal iscurrently facing shortage ofpower and the production ofhydropower from the project willmainly serve its domesticdemands. The project is expect-ed to bring in USD 1.5 billionforeign direct investment intoNepal and create jobs for thou-sands of people.

From Page 1The Prime Minister had

laid the foundation stone ofthe �7,566-crore MeerutExpressway on December 31,2015, and thereafter, he hasbeen personally monitoringthe project and it had alsocost the job of a NHAIChairman on the reasons ofdelay.

In a zeal to decongest

Delhi, the Centre has outlined10 projects costing �35,600crore which include the EPEand Western PeripheralExpressways around Delhi.A signal-free corridor fromDhaula Kuan to Airport hasjust been awarded at a cost of�260 crore while an eight-laneful ly access-control ledDwarka Expressway is too bedeveloped in four packages.

From Page 1“If the Congress really wants

to know why there is ‘JanAakrosh’, they should answerwhy they disallowed Parliamentto function and why it has pre-

vented the formation of an OBCcommission that gives justice tobackward sections,” Shah said.

The BJP president also post-ed the link of a story, which saidall villages in the country have

now been electrified, andclaimed that while the entirenation is celebrating power forevery single village, the Congressis “mourning” the loss of powerfor one family.

From Page 1Also, prior to constructing the

madrasa, Hussain had to change theagricultural user of the land, whichhe failed to do. Simply by register-ing the property with the WaqfBoard, he disputed the authority ofState over the land and sought pro-tection of his Fundamental Right topractise religion. He further arguedto be extended similar treatment asmeted out to scores of othermosques and madrasas that stood onthe same footing.

The HC Bench of Justices SudhirAgarwal and Ajit Kumar held thatbeing agricultural land, the samewould be governed by provisions ofthe Uttar Pradesh ZamindariAbolition and Land Reforms Act,1950 where the land vests with theState. It said, “We have no mannerof doubt that creation of such Waqfsand construction of mosques onagricultural land in past severaldecades, as claimed by petitioner isclearly illegal and unauthorised. Ifthis is factually correct, we have nohesitation in observing that the rev-enue authorities are bound andunder law obliged to take account ofthe situation and pass appropriateorders to restore the nature of agri-

cultural land and take appropriateaction.”

It further held that no valid Waqfcan be created by such a “Waqif ”who has no ownership in the prop-erty in dispute. “If a tenure-holderhas illegally attempted to create aWaqf on an agricultural land with-out any declaration under Section143 of 1950 Act, Collector canvalidly refuse to recognise suchWaqf and restrain the person(s) con-cerned from using the land in amanner not permitted by the Act asagricultural land,” the HC noted.Such a land’s registration with WaqfBoard cannot save it from beingdeclared illegal and unauthorised, itadded.

From Page 1He was admitted in the

ICU and later shifted to theBLK hospital. Following thisincident, we have registered anFIR under Section 308 of theIPC against officials of the EcoPollutech engineers and holdHotel Taj Vivanta responsiblefor this incident.”

According to its 2014order, the Supreme Court pro-hibits manual scavenging. ABill seeking to prohibit employ-ment of individuals as manualscavengers by prescribing strin-gent punishment, includingimprisonment up to five years,was passed by Parliament inSeptember 2013. It has provi-sions for rehabilitation of man-ual scavengers and their fami-ly members as well.

Manual scavenging is a vio-lation of this Act but it is ram-pant in almost all institutions.

On July 15, four labourershad died after they fell uncon-scious after inhaling toxic gas

inside a tank in South Delhi’sGhitorni area. The tank, whichwas originally meant for har-vesting rain water, was filledwith filth and sewage whichhadn’t been cleaned for long,Delhi Police had then said.

However, not less than amonth passed that three sani-tation workers died whileanother remained critical whenthey went inside a sewer pipeto clean it in Southeast Delhi’sLajpat Nagar area on August 6.“Three men - Joginder (32),Annu (28) and a 25-year-oldman, yet to be identified - weredeclared brought dead at theAIIMS.”

On August 12, two broth-ers died of suffocation whilecleaning a sewage tank of ashopping mall in VishwasNagar in East Delhi’s AnandVihar on Saturday afternoon. Acase has been registered againstthe mall management. A seniorpolice officer had said that thefather of the deceased, who was

working with them inside thesewer, and a fireman, whowent to rescue them, havebeen admitted to hospital afterthey too complained of suffo-cation and are currently underobservation.

“50-year-old Yusuf and hissons Jahangir (24) and Izaz(22), went to clean a sewageplant at the Aggarwal Fun CityMall in Anand Vihar. The inci-dent happened around 1 pmand by the time, the workerswere rushed to a nearby hos-pital where Jahangir wasdeclared brought dead whileIzaz died later during treat-ment.

All these deaths could havebeen averted if the contractorshad used laid down securityprecautions and provided gasmasks to the sanitation work-ers before asking them to entersewage lines, said a DJB officialpleading anonymity.

The official also said thatcontractors hired sanitation

workers on daily wage basisand do not provide them phys-ical protection despite knowingit fully well that sewage linescontain highly poisonous gasesthat kill choke people to deathwithin minutes.

On August 20, a 48-year-old labourer hired by a privatecontractor died while he wentinside the sewer pit at theGovernment-run LNJPHospital. The death indicates acomplete disregard by con-tractors towards the lives of thesanitation workers.

This has been happeningunabated despite Delhi DeputyChief Minister Manish Sisodiacastigating Delhi Jal Board(DJB) contractors and officialsfor not using machines to cleanthe sewage. Death of the man-ual scavengers had led to anuproar in the Delhi Assemblywhere the Deputy CM hadquestioned about why manualscavenging still continues in theCapital.

From Page 1Modi ji did not speak a single

word on Doklam during his visit toChina. What kind of Prime Ministeris he?” Rahul said addressing thewell-attended rally at the RamiliaMaidan.

In the presence of ManmohanSingh and Sonia, he sought to com-pare the performance of theGovernments led by his party withthat of the Modi dispensation at theCentre. He claimed the Congressunited all sections of society unlikethe BJP, which spread hatred anddivision.

Rahul charged that farmers wereunder stress, but their loans were notwritten off by the Government,which, he added, waived of debts ofcorporate houses.

Rahul also hailed Congressworkers, saying they have laid theirlives for “truth and the country” anddescribed them as “sher ke bachhe”(lion’s cubs).

Referring to the incident inwhich aircraft carrying him toKarnataka’s Hubballi nosedivedbefore landing safely, Rahul said hethought of God at that time andadded he will undertake KailashMansarovar Yatra after the Karnatakapolls. Rahul also slammed theModi Government over Kathua andUnnao rape cases and said, “For thefirst time, an Indian PM has beenasked to protect woman of the coun-try on foreign soil. People haveurged Modi to safeguard women inIndia.”

Launching an all-out attack onthe Government, former PMManmohan Singh said it has failedto fulfil all its promises it made beforecoming to the power and it’s the time

it should give an account of its worksto the people of the country.

Manmohan claimed the angeramong all sections of the society hasshot up in the last four years due tothe rising threat to the safety andsecurity of the people and the van-ishing employment opportunities,which has left the youths worried.

“The manner in which the Modigovernment is functioning, it canalso pose a threat to democracy inthe country. In the last few days, whathappened in Indian Parliament isbefore the people of the country (tosee),” he said addressing the ‘JanAkrosh Rally’.

Accusing the Modi Governmentof thwarting the Opposition’s ‘NoConfidence Motion’ in Parliament,Manmohan said it did everythingpossible and conspired to stop it frombeing taken up in Parliament.

The former Prime Minister saidwhat has happened in the bankingsector with Nirav Modi and MehulChoksi having taken thousands ofcrores of loans and run away fromthe country, is for everybody to see.“This is affecting the health of ourbanks,” he said.

He said the price of crude oilacross the world was falling while inIndia the prices of petrol and dieselwere constantly rising. He asked whythis Government was not workingtowards reducing the oil prices,which have put common man ingreat distress. “The time has comethat we support Rahul Gandhi inmaking this country a better place,”he said.

In her address to the ‘Jan AkroshRally’, Sonia alleged that theGovernment has left no stoneunturned in undermining institu-

tions and targeting political rivals bymisusing central agencies. She alsomade a reference to the “serious cri-sis” that had gripped the top judi-ciary, saying it had never happenedbefore.

In her 10-minute address, theUPA chairperson said unlike truthprevailing in the past, today false-hood, hatred and violence were rul-ing the roost. “What happened toModi ji’s slogan ‘Na khaunga, nakhane dunga’ (would not take bribes,nor let anyone do so) as the roots ofcorruption have become deeperunder his watch,” she said.

Sonia Gandhi charged the gov-ernment with muzzling dissentingvoices and dividing communitieswith an eye on elec-toral gains. “I am con-fident that the voiceraised at the rally atthe historic RamlilaMaidan will resonateacross every house-hold and our fightwill be successful inthe days to come.”

Urging people tounite under RahulGandhi’s leadership,Sonia Gandhi said,“We will fight Modi jiand his colleagueswho are weakeningthe foundations of theConstitution for theirpersonal interests. Wewill fight those whoare imposing theirwill and not the law ofthe land. We will fightthose who want toannihilate our Ganga-Jamuni culture.”

����������������������222

����������� ��������444

�!5� ��"��������������������444

���������������������������444 �����222

�������������� ��������777

����� ��������

The UPA Government hadcleared the controversial

1750 MW Demwe LowerProject proposed in the Lohitdistrict in Arunanchal Pradeshin 2011, even though no envi-ronmental impact study wascarried out by the project pro-ponents — Athena EnergyVentures and the StateGovernment.

This was disclosed by DrHS Singh, Member of theEnvironment Ministry’sStanding Committee of theNational Board of Wildlife(NBWL) in a recent meeting,March 27 to be precise, of theBoard. The project site is 8.5kilometers away from theKamlang Wildlife Sanctuary in

the State.An Environmental Impact

Study (EIS) is used to providea sufficient level of detail todemonstrate that a proposeddevelopment will have no neg-ative impacts on the naturalfeatures or ecological func-tions of the subject and sur-rounding (“adjacent”) lands.An EIS does not ensure thatdevelopment proposals will beapproved.

Now the StandingCommittee of the Board whichis headed by UnionEnvironment Minister HarshVardhan has asked theDehradun-based WildlifeInstitute of India (WII) tocarry out hydrology / ecologystudy and submit the report tothe Ministry in three months.

The wildlife activists andlocals in the State had beenopposing the project tooth andnail since it was planned andthe protest got louder soonafter it got the clearance fromthe Environment Ministryunder the UPA regime.

Based on a complaint, lastOctober, the National GreenTribunal (NGT ) had sus-

pended the forest clearance ofthe proposed project whichenvisaged construction of163.12 metre-high dam acrossRiver Lohit, a major tributaryof the Brahmaputra inArunachal Pradesh.

For this project, the state'sDepartment of Environmentand Forest had granted per-mission to divert 1415.92hectares (1408.30 hectares sur-face land + 7.62 hectaresunderground land) of forestland on August 26, 2013.

The main ground for thesuspension of the forest clear-ance, according to RitwickDutta, the counsel for theappellants was that the clear-ance was not given after due

procedure. “According to aSupreme Court order, all pro-jects within10 kms of nationalparks and sanctuaries needclearance from the standingcommittee of the NationalBoard for Wildlife (NBWL),”Dutta said.

“In case of this project,eight non-official members ofthe 12 members NBWL stand-ing committee rejected theproposal. The four officialmembers did not commenton the proposal during themeeting. But finally the clear-ance was given by the minister,Jayanthi Natarajan,” Duttaadded. Of the three approvalsneeded, the dam project hasalready received the environ-

mental one, while the ForestAdvisory Committee is delib-erating on the forest clear-ance.

The majority of theStanding Committee of theNational Board of Wildlife(SC-NBWL) strongly recom-mended against giving the pro-ject wildlife clearance, andNatarajan has disregarded itsobjections.

Lower Demwe is to belocated where the Lohit plum-mets from the hills to theplains, near a site calledParasuram Kund. Such geo-graphical transitional zones arecritical ecological locations.

Jagdish Krishnaswamy, ahydrologist at the Ashoka Trustfor Research in Ecology andEnvironment, an NGO felt thatcapturing water in the reservoirfor several hours a day willleave the water level so low thatthe river “will become inhos-pitable” for the Ganges dolphin,a critically endangered species.

The people of Assamdownstream of the dam tooopposed the proposed con-struction, fearing their liveli-hoods will be severely affected.

(������������ �����#������������#����?��������%�����&�������*?%&�+���� �������������������������

������� �� ���� ��-�����������"��!�����������������6@=,63

�����<��!�����������9�"��������#����-�������������������(����� ������

���������������

����������������� ��������/�����������:�/��/�����/����� ����"���'����!���*/"'�'"* �����"�� ������!��$'�! ���� �� ���$�"���$"."�$��� ��!�0 ��%"'�'"* ��' �!���

����� ;� �

Three CRPF personnel weresuspended and an FIR reg-

istered after a 24-year-oldwoman alleged she was wrong-fully confined and then rapedby one of them inside a camphere, officials said on Sunday.

The woman alleged thataccused filmed the sexualassault and threatened torelease the video on socialmedia if she disclosed the inci-dent to police or someone else,they added.

The woman, who hailsfrom the Poonch district, hadlodged a written complaint atDomana police station yester-day, alleging she was takeninside the camp by a group ofthree CRPF men, and raped byone of them on March 10, apolice official said.

“I had alighted from a busaround 7.30 pm and was on myway to a relative's home. I lostmy way and was intercepted bythree personnel in uniform

outside their camp half an hourlater. They took me inside onthe pretext of helping me butthen one of them raped me,” thewoman alleged in her com-plaint according to the official.

The official said a caseunder relevant sections of theRanbir Penal Code, includingcharges of rape and wrongfulconfinement, was registeredagainst unidentified personneland an investigation initiated.

Based on the outcome ofthe investigation, more charges,including those under theInformation Technology Act,would be added, he said.

Reacting to the develop-ment, CRPF spokespersonAshish Kumar Jha said threeaccused CRPF personnel wereplaced under suspension andthe force was rendering fullcooperation to the police in theprobe.

“On March 10 at around2200 hours, a girl along withtwo CRPF personnel was foundinside Group Centre, CRPF,

Bantalab Campus which primafacie seemed to be a case ofsecurity breach. Accordingly,the matter was informed tolocal police who also examinedthe woman and CRPF person-nel as molestation was alleged,"Jha said.

Two CRPF personnel weresuspended, nevertheless, as itappeared to be a security lapse,he added.

A video of the episode wascirculated on social media afterwhich the woman lodged thecomplaint alleging outraging ofher modesty by CRPF person-nel, Jha said.

“The CRPF personnel whocirculated the video have alsobeen suspended by superiorauthorities. The matter is beinginvestigated by the police,” Jhasaid.

The CRPF is a very disci-plined and professional forceand does not tolerate any act byits personnel that could malignits image, the spokespersonsaid.

3�.� ��+������ �����������+������������� �

��������/�����('��0�'

Aruling Bharatiya JanataParty (BJP) activisit was

shot at and critically injures byhitmen in uptowan Srinagarlate on Sunday evening, offi-cials said.

They said gunmen firedupon Zubair Majeed Parray(30) from point blank range athis crockery shop in

Allochibagh area of uptownSrinagar.

Parray was shifted to SriMaharaja Hari Singh Hospitalin serious conditions

Sources said that Parraywas associated with BJP andhad participated in the electioncampaign in 2014 Assemblypolls. He had quit a job withpolice department before join-ing the ruling party.

SSP Srinagar Imtiaz

Ismaiel Parray said that policehave launched a hunt to nabthe assailants.

This is sexoms attack onruling BJP workers in Kashmirin a week’s time. Last weekgunmen opened fire on seniorpolitical activist Ghulam NabiPatel on Rajpora area of southKashmir. Patel had joined theBJP after remaining affilaiteswith Congress and PDP foemore than two decades.

()������"�����������������������������!��

Page 5: 7 - : 7B>-C>=?D6 =@ B · “While Meerut Expressway or NH 24/NH-9 has a segrega-tion problem across the Pandav Nagar in East Delhi, a Rail Over Bridge (RoB) over the EPE in Meerut

�������5A����������'�(����) '������ *+,�-+./

����� ��������

Prime Minister NarendraModi on Sunday asked

youngsters to join the‘Swachchh Bharat SummerInternship 2018’ launched byhis Government andannounced incentives, includ-ing credit point by the UGC,for participants, saying it is anopportunity for those whowant to make a change in thesociety.

In his monthly ‘Mann kiBaat’ broadcast, Modi alsopitched for water conserva-tion, saying it should be every-one’s responsibility and assert-ed that his Government hasspent �32,000 crore annuallyoutside the MNREGA(Mahatma Gandhi NationalRural Employment GuaranteeAct) Budget and 150 lakh acreland have benefitted from it inthe last three years.

In his over 30-minuteaddress, Modi touched on anumber of topics, includingIndian athletes’, especiallywomen’s, achievement in theCommonwealth Games, peo-ple’s response to his call for fit-ness and also paid tributes to

Prophet Mohammad and LordBuddha ahead of the month ofRamzan and ‘Buddha Purnima’respectively.

Noting that India had car-ried out nuclear tests on BuddhaPurnima on May 11 in 1998,when BJP stalwart Atal BihariVajpayee was prime minister,Modi said youths need toimbibe Vajpayee’s mantra of‘Jai Vigyan’ (hail science) tomake India modern and strong.Giving a call to students to jointhe ‘Swachchh Bharat’ cam-paign during their summervacation, he said three min-istries of his Government have

launched an internship pro-gramme and it is an opportunityfor those who want to work forthe society, contribute positive-ly and bring about a change.

“The best of the internswho have strived in schools andcolleges with excellent workwill be rewarded with recog-nition at the national level. Notjust that, those interns whoaccomplish their tasks wellwill be awarded two creditpoints each by the UGC ,” Modisaid. It will also boost thecleanliness campaign, a signa-ture project of his Government,those who participate in it willfeel “a sense of fulfillment”when the country celebrates thebirth anniversary of MahatmaGandhi, he said.

Turning to water conser-vation, he said India has tradi-tionally done it and cited exam-ples of many temples and otherhistoric places that have doneso and noted that some riversin states like Kerala and UttarPradesh have been revivedrecently. “(We are) Leaving nostone unturned for water con-servation,” he said. Modi alsohailed the performance theIndian squad in the

Commonwealth Games, sayingthey made every Indian proudand especially lauded womanathletes for their show. Many ofthem have come from smalltowns and overcome to sever-al hurdles to reach where theyare today, he said.

He also asked people tothink about ways to make theYoga Day on June 21 memo-rable. The Prime Minister drewfrom the teachings of ProphetMohammad and said hebelieved in knowledge andcompassion. His life taughtpeople to walk the path ofequality and brotherhood,Modi said.

India is developing infra-structure to boost Buddhismtourism, he said, and workingto connect easily with theBuddhist countries of the southeast Asia. Bhim Rao Ambedkarwas also inspired by Buddha inhis work for empowering themarginalised sections of soci-ety, he said.

Modi also paid tributes toRabindranath Tagore, whosebirth anniversary falls on May7, and said he would regularlylisten to ‘Rabindra Sangeet’when he was a child.

��??�B7�(��&

45.������������������������������������ ����� ��������

After being allocated atransponder from the

South Asia Satellite,Afghanistan has requestedIndia for another one which itcould use for Direct-to-Hometelevision services, an officialfrom the Department of Spacehas said.

However, unlike the SouthAsia Satellite or G SAT-9, whichwas a "gift" from India to itsneighbours and one transpon-der was allocated to the par-ticipating SAARC countriesfor free, Afghanistan may haveto pay for the services this time,the official said.

"They have asked foranother transponder and weare looking into it. Unlike in thecase of the South Asia Satellite,Afghanistan may be chargedfor the second transponder.However, no decision has beenmade in this regard," the offi-cial said, requesting anonymi-ty.

The second transpondermay not be from the South AsiaSatellite. In 2014, Afghanistan

had launched its satelliteAFGHANSAT-1 for wide-ranging services includingDTH, broadcasting and inter-net services. The satellite waslaunched by a French compa-ny. But as demand increases, itlooks to augment its supplyside. A transponder is a devicethat receives and transmits sig-nals. It is essential for Direct-To-Home (DTH) services.

India and Afghanistanshare a robust space coopera-tion. Last year, after a meetingbetween External AffairsSushma Swaraj and her Afghancounterpart SalahuddinRabbani, it was decided thatNew Delhi will extend assis-tance to Kabul in the area ofremote-sensing.

During the 2014 SAARCSummit in Kathmandu, PrimeMinister Narendra Modi hadannounced India would belaunching a satellite as a gift toits SAARC (South AsianAssociation for RegionalCooperation) neighbours.

Pakistan did not join theproject, stating it was workingon its own satellite. It offered

monetary and technical sup-port though for the project,which was rejected by India.

The Indian Space ResearchOrganisation (ISRO) launchedthe South Asia Satellite in 2017.The 2,230-kg communicationspacecraft, with a mission lifeof 12 years, will support effec-tive communication, broad-casting and internet services ina region that is geographicallychallenging, economically lag-ging and has limited techno-logical resources.

The satellite provides sig-nificant capability to each of theparticipating countries in termsof DTH (direct-to-home) ser-vices, besides linking the coun-tries for disaster informationtransfer.

The satellite has 12 Kuband transponders which thesix nations — Afghanistan,Maldives, Sri Lanka,Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan— can utilise to enhance com-munications. Each South Asiancountry will get access to onetransponder through which itwill be able to beam its ownprogramming.

*("�����������%� �6����� ������� ��� �$�-��� ����

����� ��������

Come September, India andPakistan will be part of a

multi-nation counter-terrorexercise in Russia under theframework of ShanghaiCooperation Organisation.This is the first time the twoneighbouring countries will becoming together for counterterrorism exercise, even thoughsoldiers of India and Pakistanwork together under theumbrella of United NationsPeacekeeping Forces.

The military drill will beheld in the Ural mountains of

Russia and almost all SCOmember countries — China,Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyztan,Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and thenew members India andPakistan — will be part of it.

Sources said the main aimof the exercise, Peace Mission,will be to enhance counter-ter-ror cooperation among theeight SCO member countries.

The officials said India’sparticipation at the exercise wasconfirmed by Defence Minister

Nirmala Sitharaman during ameeting of SCO DefenceMinisters’ meeting in Beijinglast week.

India feels that as an SCOmember, it will be able to playa major role in addressing thethreat of terrorism in theregion.

It is also keen on deepen-ing its security-related coop-eration with the SCO and itsRegional Anti-TerrorismStructure (RATS) which specif-ically deals with issues relatingto security and defence. Indiahas been holding military exer-cise with China and Russia.

# ���/�����*��1�� �� �$+��0 *��2*���������*������+�

����� ��������

The India and Nepal Inter-Government Committee

(IGC) on Trade, Transit andCooperation held talks lastweek to control unauthorisedtrade between the two coun-tries and work out ways to easemovement of cargo througheach other’s territory.

The IGC led by theCommerce Secretaries of thetwo Governments functionsunder the India-Nepal Treaty ofTrade and India-Nepal Treatyof Transit, and provides plat-form for discussing and review-ing bilateral trade and transitrelated issues.

The Indian delegation wasled by Commerce SecretaryRita Teaotia while her coun-

terpart Chandra KumarGhimire headed the Nepalidelegation. According to IndianHigh Commission inKathmandu, the two sides held“extensive and productive dis-cussions” on a variety of issuesconcerning bilateral trade, tran-sit and economic relations.“The meeting concluded withseveral landmark decisionsaimed at boosting the bilater-

al trade and investment ties sig-nificantly,” the embassy said ina statement.

Both countries agreed toinitiate a comprehensive reviewof the bilateral ‘Treaty of Trade’by July 2018. This Treaty waslast revised in 2009.Amendments to the bilateral`Treaty of Transit', signed in1999, was also discussed to fur-ther facilitate transit move-

ment of Nepal's trade withthird countries by expandingtransit points, simplification ofprocedures, electronic cargotracking and also enablingmovement of Indian cargothrough Nepali territory.Officials said both sides aim toconsolidate all earlier amend-ments to the Treaty of Transit,within a month.

Since most bilateral tradetakes place through land cus-toms stations across the borderbetween India and Nepal, thetwo countries also agreed onsynchronised development ofborder trade infrastructure toensure timely utilisation of theinvestment in border infra-structure. In order to enhancethe volume of trade, the twocountries emphasised the need

for bilateral harmonisation ofstandards and expeditingprogress on MoUs betweenconcerned agencies includingBIS and FSSAI from the Indianside. The two sides furtheragreed to work towards mutu-al recognition of each other'stesting and certifications.

In order to ensure regularinputs from business andinvestors, both sides had earli-er agreed to constitute India-Nepal Joint Business Forumconsisting of industry repre-sentatives from the two coun-tries that will function as aninstitutional B2B mechanismfor providing policy level inputson trade and investment. Bothcountries are aiming at holdingthe first meeting of the Forumshortly.

����� ��������

The Supreme Court hasagreed to examine a plea

challenging an order of theAllahadbad High Court bywhich it quashed criminal pro-ceedings against Noida-basedreal estate builders.

A bench of justices ArunMishra and U U Lalit issuednotice on a plea filed by a buyer,named Ashish Gupta, whoclaimed that the High Courterred in quashing the pro-ceedings in a criminal caseagainst the builders, and that itwas an utter violation of naturaljustice.

Advocate J P Singh,appearing for Gupta, said thatit is "serious abuse of authori-ty" and the High Court cannotquash the proceedings in acriminal matter on the groundof existence of arbitrationclause.

"Criminal prosecution can-not be quashed under the garbof arbitration Clause. The crim-inal proceedings are indepen-dent proceedings and they can-

not be wiped out on the falsepretext of arbitration clause,"Singh said.

He alleged that local policewere hand-in-gloves with thepower real estate builders andhad refused to lodge a FIR fol-lowing which the petitionerhad to approach to court forlodging the case of cheating,forgery and criminal conspir-acy.

Singh said that the accusedbuilder Satinder Singh Bhasinand others moved theAllahabad High Court, whichordered stay on arrest of thebuilders, without giving anopportunity to the petitioner(property buyer).

Gupta in his plea said thaton December 13, 2017, thehigh court had quashed thecharge-sheet, cognizance orderand the entire criminal pro-

ceedings under various sectionsof IPC on the false pretext ofarbitration clause.

Gupta in his plea said thatin 2012, managing directorSatinder Singh Bhasin andMohinder Singh Ahluwalia ofM/s Mist Avenue Pvt Ltd pub-lished false, fake and mislead-ing multiple advertisements inprint and electronic media toinduce the homebuyers of theproject at Noida.

He deposited money for aretail shop booked onNovember 21, 2012, to earnlivelihood and the delivery ofpossession was promised to begiven of the same within twoyears.

"Even after lapse of morethan six years the constructionof the project is at initial stage.Now the construction has com-pletely been stopped and pro-ject is lying in a dilapidatedcondition," the plea said.

He claimed that till now hehas paid Rs 32,43,840 throughcheques to the Mist Avenuebuilders but possession of theproperty has not been given.

New Delhi: An Indian Navyaircraft, which is in Russia fora mid-life upgradation, madean emergency landing at theZhukovsky airfield outsideMoscow after its chassis mal-functioned, Russian mediareported today.

An Indian Navy officialsaid the IL-38 aircraft was oninitial test flight and that theextent of damage to the plane inthe incident is being ascer-tained. The Russian-built IL-38is an anti-submarine warfareaircraft. "The aircraft is in Russiafor Overhaul (OH) and Mid-Life Upgradation (MLU). NoIndian Navy crew was onboardduring the sortie though theyare present in Russia. The air-craft was on initial test flightwith all Russian crew," the offi-cial said. The incident hadtaken place yesterday.

According to Russia Today,the plane, which was bracingfor the emergency landing,emitted quite dense smoke andwas seemingly dumping fuel inorder to reduce the chances ofcatching fire. PTI

)��������6��)&73*���������+�����+������������������������

��&����� :����� ��������

If you thought that it’s onlyhuman beings, who plan

timing of a baby birth, thenthink again.

Wildlife researchers haverecorded that Nicobar long-tailed macaque (Macaca fasci-cularis umbrosus), endemic tothe islands in the Bay of Bengal,choose to deliver infants dur-ing monsoon season whenplenty of food is available forthe lactating mothers.

A study published in thelatest edition of the CurrentScience notes that althoughbirths occurred throughoutthe year, 71 per cent of thebirths were recorded in the wetseason. This is perhaps becauseof higher availability of foodresources in the wet seasonwhich may support lactation infemales and provide food forthe weaned infants, opined theresearchers.

A total 69 births wererecorded in the four mainstudy groups of the macaques,of which 25 were males and 44were females. The study was

carried out from January 2013to December 2015 in the GreatNicobar Biosphere Reserve,Great Nicobar Island.

Around 13.04 per cent ofthe births were recorded in Julyand November, whereas 3.26per cent were recorded inFebruary. But highest at 71 percent were recorded during themonsoon months.

This is the first ever studyto document and describe thegroup structure, demographyand birth seasonality in theNicobar long-tailed macaques, which are found on three ofthe Nicobar Islands-GreatNicobar, Little Nicobar andKatchal.

Lead author, HonnavalliN Kumara from Coimbatorebased Sálim Ali Centre forOrnithology and NaturalHistory pointed out that incontrast, another sub species Mf fascicularis showed a May-July birth peak in peninsularMalaysia, whereas the popula-tion in northern Sumatrashowed two birth peaks inJuly, and September-October.

In frugivorous macaques,breeding pattern stronglydepends on seasonal fruit peakwhich is directly dependent onseasonal rainfall. Hence, phe-nology of fruiting trees (timingof fruit) of different geograph-ical regions with even similarvegetal characteristics may dif-fer with rainfall variation ofthat region, which can explainthe variation in birth pattern inlong-tailed macaques.

Despite their name, crab-eating macaques typically donot consume crabs as theirmain food source; rather, theyare opportunistic omnivores,eating a variety of animals andplants. Although fruits andseeds make up 60 - 90 per cent

of their diet, they also eatleaves, flowers, roots, and bark.

Yet another study con-ducted on the habit of themacaques in the Indian island,the researchers noted that theprimates mostly showed pref-erences for slimy, hairy andthorny food, so to removethese coatings from food, theyeither wash it in puddles orwrap it in leaves and rub thecoating off.

M f umbrosus in the islandfaces both anthropogenic pres-sures like habitat fragmentationand habitat loss, and naturaldisturbances like tsunami,cyclones, El Nino events, all ofwhich have a negative impacton their existence.

Their conservation statusas documented by the IUCNRed List is listed as 'vulnerable'.

The other researchers wereArijit Pal and Avadhoot DVelankari from Sálim AliCentre for Ornithology andNatural History, Partha SarathiMishra and Mewa Singh fromBiopsychology Laboratory andInstitution of Excellence,University of Mysore, Mysuru.

�������(����������/����������;�����+�������/�����������3�����

����"�#��������/��/ ���/��3��������"������/������������

:���������������������!����������������������

&���7����������!����������������������������������9����&����������������������� �����������B����%������������������?� ���

����!�����,���������!����7��������!�������������B�������#�����������������C������"������ ������"��������D

�����"����������������������!����������������

&��������������������������"�����"��������������������!�������������������.�������������������������!�������������

�����������"��,�?���-�����#��������������������� ������������.������������������������������� �����������������%�#�����������������?������������

#/�3������1��������/�+��

'����#/�3����/�+����������������������3�3��

2��������

Page 6: 7 - : 7B>-C>=?D6 =@ B · “While Meerut Expressway or NH 24/NH-9 has a segrega-tion problem across the Pandav Nagar in East Delhi, a Rail Over Bridge (RoB) over the EPE in Meerut

�������5@����������'�(����) '������ *+,�-+./

�����<����� 4��0���'�

The Asia’s biggest cocoonmarket at Ramanagara is the

epicentre of Vokkaliga(Gowda)politics in Karnataka.

This market which pro-duces high quality cocoon withbuzzling activity is witnessinglot of churning over the ensu-ing Assembly polls inKarnataka.

The town which is alsocalled Ramghad after thefamous film Sholay was shotsurrounds rocky terrain is nowfully active in the politics whichmight decide the next ChiefMinister of the State.

This agrarian place linkspast and the present to elect aperson who answers all theiragrarian crisis. The entire areadepends on sericulture and hadwitnessed many farmers sui-cides in the recent past whichhas pushed them to helpless-ness.

The anger against the pre-sent Government led by ChiefMinister Siddaramaiah is verymuch visible and openly thefarmers say they support HDKumaraswamy of the JDs whois contesting from this place.Kumaraswamy is also contest-ing from neighboring con-stituency Chennapatna andfinds a smooth sail in both theplaces.

Kumaraswamy said “ I am

going to win in both the con-stituencies and we will form thegovernment on our own. Boththe national parties Congressand BJP are corrupt and theyhave failed the aspirations of thepeople of Karnataka,”.

The Cocoon market with atransactions of over 700 croresper annum with hundreds ofsilk growing farmers and reel-ers apart from their cocoonbusiness are also witnessing ahectic political activities aroundthem. One can witness polari-sation of castes and Vokkaligasin large number have in realitythis time supportingKumaraswamy who is bettingbig on this place to cherish hisambition to become ChiefMinister again.

Kumaraswamy is emotion-ally appealing to them to electhim to address their problemswhich include bringing stabili-ty to cocoon market. He hopesa metamorphosis and thinksRamanagara will make him thenext Chief Minister of the State.The cocoon farmers and tradersmost of them are vokkaligas andMuslims respectively at themarket say that they need toelect a person who understandtheir plight.

Chandranna a farmer isvery vocal and said “ we havebeen facing lot of crisis overfalling prices of cocoon and noone so far has addressed over

plight. We feel Kumaraswamywill help us and certainly we willelect him this time.”

Congress has fielded IqbalHussain, a local candidate tosplit the Muslim votes. TheBJP has nominated H Leelavthi.The political analysts feel thatthe Vokkaliga concentration atthis constituency is to theadvantage of Kumaraswamywho is fighting a real battle tocome to relevance.Kumaraswamy a vokkaliga andhas been getting elected fromthis place .

Ramanagara has a histori-cal relevance where 18th cen-tury ruler Tipu Sultan broughtsilk to this place. This place wasearlier known as Shamserabad(during Tipu’s time ), then Britishcalled the town as Closepetand post independent it becameRamanagara based on mythol-ogy Ramayana. The Cocoonfarmers and Silk traders are thedeciding factors in this electiontoo.

Another reeler A. Pashawho is the reeler associationpresident at Ramanagaracocoon market says need aleader who helps farmers andtraders who are suffering. Hesays there is a wave towards JDSand Kumaraswamy.

May 12th election is crucialfor both the Congress and theBJP. However many survey pre-dict JDs led by HDKumaraswamy will decide thepolitical course of the state.Taking no chancesKumaraswamy has contested intwo constituencies and givingtough fight to Congress and BJPin many constituencies.

���� �#�1���� ��� � &��+ �"����������

����� 4��0���'�

Karnataka Chief MinisterSiddaramaiah on Sunday

attacked the Modi-ledGovernment for “not fulfilling”its several poll promises andsaid the State Assembly elec-tions among other things willalso be about “broken promis-es” of the BJP.

The Assembly elections inKarnataka are scheduled onMay 12 while the counting ofvotes is to be taken up on May15. “This election is also aboutbroken promises of the @naren-dramodi Govt. 1 Black moneydidn’t become white. 2 Peopledidn’t get Rs 15 lakh in theiraccounts. 3 People’s money lostvalue due to demonetisation.They were made to stand in lineto get their own money,” he saidin a series of tweets.

“Modi also failed to provideemployment and asked job aspi-rants to sell pakodas and checkincrease in fuel prices despiteinternational crude oil pricesplummeting,” Siddaramaiah said.

“4 Unemployed are asked tosell Pakodas 5 Internationalcrude oil prices have fallen dras-tically but petrol/diesel priceskeep increasing. 6 Corruptionfree Govt was promised, but

Banks are being looted,” he fur-ther tweeted.

The mission in this electionis also to defeat anti-develop-ment and communal BJP,besides opportunist JD(S), whoare working together and alsoto protect the IndianConstitution from BJP whohave plans to change it, thechief minister said. “This#KarnatakaElection2018 themission is to defeat anti-Development & communalBJP & opportunist JDS, whoare working together. This elec-tion is also about protecting ourConstitution from BJP whosedeclared intention it is tochange the Constitution,” hetweeted.

Siddaramaiah said his gov-ernment is fighting the electionfor ‘your mandate’ to continue itsgood work in the last five yearsand wants to make the statenumber one in all major sectors.

“We are also fighting thisElection for your mandate tocontinue our good work in thelast 5 years. We have madeKarnataka No1 in many sectors.We will now make KarnatakaNo1 in all major sectors. We willspecially focus on sustainableJobs & infrastructure,” he tweeted.

(������#��������*� "���0"����"���"��$�������1�!�"#�� �

<�� �:��� �� 5+�

As campaigning has inten-sified once again in Kerala’s

Chengannur Assembly con-stituency where polling for aby-election is to be held on May28, the CPI(M)-led ruling LDF,which had won the seat in the2016 election, is finding thegoing tough, thanks mainly tothe lapses of the HomeDepartment looked after by theChief Minister himself. TheElection Commission hadannounced the bypoll scheduleon Thursday.

At the time of stepping upits preparations last month forthe by-election, necessitatedby the death of sitting CPI(M)member KK RamachandranNair on January 14, the front’sleaders and campaign leadershad hoped of a comparativelyeasy victory in Chengannur butsources in the CPI(M) nowadmit – though not openly –that they had lost that advan-tage following recent incidentsof alleged atrocities from andlapses on the part of the police.

“Varappuzha is near Kochiand is over a hundred kilome-ters away from Chengannurbut a custodial murder thereseems to be powerful enoughto cause serious changes in theelectorate’s mood,” said aCPI(M) leader in the con-stituency referring to the death

in police custody of Sreejith(26) of Varappuzha on April 9for which four police officialshave been arrested.

The Ernakulam districtleadership of the CPI(M) isnow facing the charge that thepolice had arrested Sreejith byfalsely implicating him in a caserelating to the suicide of aneighbour and subjected himto third degree torture methodsin their custody leading to hisdeath as per instructions issuedby it. The Government ischarged with efforts to protectthe actual culprits.

The Congress-led UDF andthe BJP-headed NDA havealready made the custodial mur-der a big campaign point in theconstituency and are using it toconvince the people that Keralahas already slipped into fascistrule under Marxist CM PinarayiVijayan and that a Left victory inChengannur would mean anendorsement for its alleged“tyranny”.

The controversies sur-rounding the manner in whichthe police had handled thecase of disappearance and mur-der of Latvian woman LigaSkromane (33) at Kovalam,Thiruvananthapuram also havegenerated negative feelingsabout the LDF Governmentand its Home Departmentamong the Chengannur elec-torate, the leader says.

“At least 16 custodial deathshave occurred since the LDFcame to power less than twoyears ago. That is a record. Atleast 17 political murders havetaken place during the sameperiod. Atrocities against Dalitsand women are on the rise. Thepolice are under the CPI(M)’scell rule. Shouldn’t we makethese our campaign issues?”asked a Congress leader.

Added to this is the feudwithin the LDF pertaining to theCPI(M)’s plan to seek the sup-port of the former Congress ally,Kerala Congress (M) of KMMani, who was forced to resignas minister in the previousCongress-led UDF governmentover the allegation that he hadtaken Rs 1-crore bribe from theState’s bar owners.

CPI, the second biggestLDF partner, has already pub-licly aired its objections to theCPI(M) plan to woo theKC(M) and this has led to a warof words between the State sec-retaries of the two parties whileMani is allegedly trying tospoil the situation further forthe Left by accusing the CPI oftrying to defeat LDF candidateSaji Cherian of the CPI(M).

Observers are of the opin-ion that the LDF has reasons toworry in Chengannur espe-cially because the constituencyis witnessing an extremelytough triangular contest.

7�����������"�%���*� ��(�����

����� 5����

Once a formidable force inBengal politics, the

CPI(M) is now just a shadowof its past as it struggles to holdon to its ground with the BJPfast replacing it as the mainopposition to the ruling TMC.

The CPI(M) led Left Front,known as the main architect ofthe Panchayati Raj system sinceits inception in 1978, used toregister hands down victory inmost of the zila parishads of thestate. But this time it has beenstruggling to find candidates tofile nominations in severalseats.

“It is true that in most ofthe places we have not beenable to file nominations. One ofthe reasons is violence by theTrinamool Congress but thereare several places where we hada tough time in finding candi-dates,” a senior CPI(M) leadertold PTI on condition ofanonymity.

According to the list ofnominations filed by various

parties for the panchayat polls,the TMC is way ahead of itsrivals in all the three segmentsof the panchayat polls -- grampanchayat, panchayat samitiand zila parishad.

But to utter surprise of sev-eral political observers, theBJP had outnumbered theCongress and the CPI(M) toemerge as the second largestparty after the ruling TMC inthe number of nominationsfiled for the upcoming pan-chayat polls.

The Left leadership doesnot have a proper explanationon the BJP filing more nomi-nations than them except thetheory of “tacit understandingbetween BJP and TMC”.

CPI(M) politburo memberand MP Mohammed Salimsaid the number of party can-didates should not be measuredonly in terms of nominationsfiled, as the CPI(M) is fightingas a Left Front constituent andin several seats it has extendedsupport to secular and demo-cratic independent candidates.

But several top CPI(M)leaders agreed that the partyneeds to stop living in denial bycoming up with “lame excus-es of tacit understandingbetween the BJP and the TMC”and pull up it socks to ensurethat the BJP doesn’t replace theLeft as the main opposition inthe state.

“We have lost our massbase, our vote share hasdecreased. But instead of fixingit up, we are blaming others.We should learn lessons beforeits too late. Time is runningout,” a senior CPI(M) leader

told PTI.A few days back, former

chief minister and seniorCPI(M) leader BuddhadebBhattacharya had called fordefeating the TMC and the BJPin the rural polls.

Another leader said it didnot send the right message tothe people that the top brass ofthe state unit was busy debat-ing the party’s political line atthe Hyderabad Party Congresswhen the cadres faced the heatto file nominations.The singlephase polls will be held at48,650 seats in 3,358 grampanchayats, 9,217 seats in 341panchayat samitis and 825 seatsin 20 zilla parishads on May 14.

The TMC has filed 1,000nominations for the zilaparishads, followed by the BJPwith 782 nominations. TheCPI(M) and the Congress havefiled 537 and 407 nomina-tions respectively after scruti-ny.

For the panchayat samitis,the TMC has filed 12,590 nom-inations, followed again by the

BJP, which has filed 6,149nominations. The figures forthe CPI(M) and the Congressare 4,400 and 1,740 respectivelyafter scrutiny.

The picture is the same inthe case of gram panchayats forwhich the TMC has filed58,978 nominations, BJP27,935, CPI(M) 17,319 andthe Congress 7,313 respective-ly.

State BJP president DilipGhosh said the figures itselfstates that BJP has emerged asthe only alternative to the“TMC’s misrule in the state.The Left is a spent force”.

TMC Secretary GeneralPartha Chatterjee said the partyis not bothered about the BJP’srise and said the Left shoulddecide whether they are seriousabout fighting the BJP or not.

“On one hand the CPI(M)is saying it is against the BJP butat the same time we are seeingthat CPI(M) cadres are joiningthe BJP to fight us. It onlyexposes the double standards ofthe CPI(M),” Chatterjee said.

����� ��+�5�

Politics indeed makes strangebedfellows as two non-BJP

parties— the SP and the BSP -that halted the saffron party’sjuggernaut in Gorakhpur andPhulpur, are no more ‘friends’ inKarnataka and going separate-ly there.

The two parties had recent-ly joined hands in Uttar PradeshLok Sabha bypolls to ensuredefeat of BJP candidates at ChiefMinister Yogi Adityanath’s hometurf Gorakhpur, and Phulpurrepresented by deputy ChiefMinister Keshav Prasad Maurya.

But when it came to con-testing Karnataka Assemblypolls, the two parties decided togo solo.

The SP and the BSP had alsocontested the recent GujaratAssembly polls separately. In theUP civic polls too these two par-ties had contested separately.

Similarly, during the 2017Assembly elections, the SP andthe Congress had formed anelectoral alliance.

But, the tie up appeared tohave withered away during otherelections that followed theAssembly polls, especially civicbody polls, followed by by-elec-tions to the two Lok Sabhaseats and Rajya Sabha andLegislative Council biennialelections.

“Our tie-up was only for theUP Lok Sabha by polls forGorakhpur and Phulpur.Nothing has been finalised yetfor an understanding in otherstates. We Samajwadis, howev-er, want all secular forces to

unite..”, SP spokesman RajendraChowdhury said.

BSP supremo Mayawati,whose party has entered into apact with former prime minis-er HD Deve Gowda’s JD(S), hasalready started working in theState and had held rallies inMysuru and Chitradurga andwill be holding rallies in Belagaviand Bidar on May 5-6 respec-tively.

The BSP is contesting on 20seats in Karnataka and is hop-ing to open an account therewith the JD(S) support.

While Akhilesh Yadav, whowas scheduled to address ralliesin favour of party candidates inKarnataka is still in dilemma.

“Nothing has yet beenfinalised. He (Akhilesh) mightnot campaign in Karnataka,”Chowdhury said.

SP Karnataka StatePresident Robin Mathews toldPTI that party is contesting on27 seats in the state claiming that“party would get success inpolls”.

When asked about theparty’s campaigning strategy forpolls, Mathews said all party

leaders will be campaigninghere. All top leaders will be cam-paigning here in support ofparty candidates” he said exud-ing confidence that ‘partyPresident Akhilesh Yadav will besurely coming for their support.

UP Chief MinisterAdityanath will be seen in actionaddressing as many as 35 ralliesand road shows the saffronparty has organised for him asthe Nath sect, to which hebelongs, wields considerableclout in coastal Karnataka, BJPsources said.

Polling will be held in a sin-gle phase on May 12 for all the224-Assembly seats in Congress-ruled state, including 36 reservedfor the Scheduled Castes and 15for Scheduled Tribes.

����� � 4�

The MaharashtraGovernment’s decision to

unlock more land for the hous-ing sector in its DevelopmentPlan (DP) 2034 for Mumbaihas evoked mixed reactionamong citizen groups and envi-ronmentalists.

Some of the groups criti-cised the decision to releasevast tracts of land now fallingunder ‘No Development Zones’for affordable housing andincrease the floor space index(FSI), saying these measureswill only help realtors.

Environmentalists warnedthe DP will have “disastrous”impact on the city’s alreadycrumbling infrastructure.

However, some NGOshave come out in support of themuch-awaited DP for Mumbaiunveiled on April 25.

Mitesh Prajapati of theCitizen Civic SolutionsFoundation, that had suggest-ed changes in the draft DP, saidthe FSI alloted for commercialproperties in the name ofaffordable housing andemployment generation will, inreality, only benefit builders.

“We strongly oppose thedecision to grant an FSI of 5 forcommercial properties and willapproach the court once wereceive the final copy of the DP.Only builders will benefit fromthis move.

“This has happened inthe past where many builderstook advantage of higher FSIin the name of constructing ITcentres. Many buildings were

built but IT centres have notcome up till date,” Prajapati,the foundation’s spokesperson,said.

FSI is the ratio of the totalbuilt-up area to the total areaof a plot. It is basically a toolthat defines the extent of con-struction permissible on aplot.Prajapati, whose NGO wasinvited by Minister of State forUrban Development RanjitPatil for consultation, said theyhad advised against givingadditional FSI to commercialproperties in residential areasbut the government did not payheed to their suggestion.

“We have not yet receiveda final copy of DP plan. Weshall wait for this and thenapproach the court,” he said.

Debi Goenka, ExecutiveTrustee, the ConservationAction Trust, an NGO formedto protect the environment,said Mumbai’s infrastructure isalready at a breaking point,and it cannot support anyincrease in FSI or expansion inresidential and commercialareas.

“There is inadequate watersupply, air is not fit to breathe,and there is no place to treat oursewage and dump our garbage.The roads are congested and 10-15 train commuters die everyday (due to overcrowding). Thesanctioned DP is a disaster inthe making,” he said.

Goenka said an addition-al area of 14.96 square km, pro-posed to be added to openspaces, is actually stretches ofmangrove created because ofsiltation of the Thane creek. ����� 4��0���'�

JD(S) state president HDKumaraswamy on Sunday said

he would not be a “kingmaker”and instead people of the statewould bless him as “king” in theMay 12 Karnataka Assemblypolls, which he conceded was a“battle for survival” for his party.

Expressing confidence aboutthe JD(S) coming to power on itsown, the former chief ministersaid, he is asking people to givethe party a “chance”, having seenthe performance of both the BJPand the Congress.

“I’m completely confidentabout bringing in a governmentwith majority, I don’t have an iotaof doubt,” Kumaraswamy toldPTI. Pre-poll surveys on the elec-tions to the 225-memberKarnataka House, that includesone nominated member, haveprojected a hung assembly withthe JD(S) emerging as king-maker.

Kumaraswamy said his tar-get was 113 seats.

“I’m targeting 113, I havemade preparations strategically,required to reach 113. So in myopinion ultimately I will succeedin reaching my goal. People willmake me succeed, I have thisconfidence,” he said.

To a query, Kumaraswamysaid, as per his current calcula-

tions, the JD(S) would comfort-ably reach the 97-105 mark andit is now working towards mak-ing up the remaining seats.

“I’m confident that we willnot fall short... According to mycalculation 97-105 comfortablyI’m going to reach this time,another 7-8 seats I may fallshort. For that I’m working outand I’m sure we will make it up,”he said.

Asked if he would not needsupport of other parties to makeup for the numbers, he replied inthe negative. Ruling out anyprospect of a hung assembly, hesaid, “It (situation) is not goingto arise, I’m confident.”

Dismissing pre-poll surveyswhich predicted a hung assem-bly and projected the JD(S) as“kingmaker”, he said only afterpolls can such surveys havesome clarity and “not at thisstage.” “Not kingmaker, peoplewill bless me as a king, that fullconfidence is there,” he said, ashe claimed that there is an“undercurrent” in favour of the

JD(S) across the state and peo-ple have “lost faith” in the BJPand Congress.Kumaraswamy said he is askingpeople for a “chance” for goodgovernance, to address theirproblems or issues.

“You have given chance toboth Congress and BJP, youhave seen their work, and youhave experienced it. Give me onechance; I’m going with this mes-sage,” he added.

Conceding that the comingassembly elections were a “bat-tle for survival” for the JD(S),Kumaraswamy said, it is becausefor the last 10 years “we havebeen out of power.” He said,“all our workers are working veryhard even without power. Thistime they want us to somehowreach the goal, for that they aresincerely working. Even I’m alsoworking very hard to come backto power.”

“We want to come to powernot for our selfishness. There areseveral problems created by BJPand Congress in last ten years, Iwant to clean it. For thatKarnataka very badly needsgood governance...,” he added.Responding to CongressPresident Rahul Gandhi’s alle-gation that JD(S) is the “B team”of the BJP, Kumaraswamy said inhis opinion Siddaramaiah isBJP’s ‘B’ team.

��2���� �*�3���� �+$� �4�� �*���

.��3��%������������������ ����(�����/���

'����9�+��+

'6����/���������������.��������$������������� �7 *��' �� !��"��� ��������. ��

�!�� !� E�'����"������� �� ��*"'"�$���! ���"���"���������� �� E� ����� �� �!���*�4���"���� !�����"�$

# �% ��� ��������&

%���������������6������!������/���3��������6������������������� �&��

����4(��(+5���(��0�5��73(���(����'���������(��5��0��55��������++5������'���������;�=(>�(���5'�

*"� ����8�6������(�9����� �����9������� �

��+������������������8��������

Page 7: 7 - : 7B>-C>=?D6 =@ B · “While Meerut Expressway or NH 24/NH-9 has a segrega-tion problem across the Pandav Nagar in East Delhi, a Rail Over Bridge (RoB) over the EPE in Meerut

����������'�(����) '������ *+,�-+./ �������5E

����� � 4�

Under fire from theOpposition over delay in

financial aid to farmers forcrops damaged by pests, theMaharashtra Government isset to release �1,100 crore forcultivators in the next fewdays, an official said.

Bijay Kumar, the principalsecretary, agriculture, said onSunday that a sum of �1,100crore will be released in thecoming week to provide reliefto the affected farmers.

The details will beannounced soon as April 30 andMay 1 are Government holidaysand banks would not be func-tioning on those days, he said.

“The State Governmenthas prepared a detailed list ofthe beneficiary farmers andtheir bank accounts. Themoney will be disbursed into

their accounts only,” a seniorofficial from the State relief andrehabilitation department said.

As per the StateGovernment’s primary survey,the pink bollworm and otherpests last year affected cottoncrop on 34 lakh hectares of landas against the total cultivationon 43 lakh hectares.

Many of the areas in east-ern parts of Vidarbha wereaffected by other pests whichdamaged the rice and otherkharif crops. This prompted theGovernment to increase itscoverage of compensation.

Subsequently, on March17, the State Government madechanges into its compensationpolicy and submitted a pro-posal of �3,373 crore to the

Centre, and is awaitingresponse.

“The State Government,however, decided to go aheadand disburse its share in thefinancial assistance to farmers,instead of waiting for theCentre to release its contribu-tion. The State is going to dis-burse �1,100 crore to farmers,”the relief and rehabilitationdepartment official said.

The funds will be given todistrict collectors who will fur-ther transfer the amount intothe accounts of farmers, hesaid. The beneficiary farmers’land records, cultivation cropentries on revenue documentand bank accounts will be ver-ified before the transfer offunds, the official added.

�����������������������#9#,,�������������+���(� !���#���"�1�� �"#! �����"��"����"!��"�����! ���������

����������F�� �9��'�4��

The Telangana Governmenthas come out with a new

initiative to help the NRIs fromthe State caught in distress inany country.

Chief Minister KChandrasekhar Rao hasannounced setting up a specialcell with a fund of �50 crore tohelp NRIs in case of any need.The cell will be headed by anIAS officer. A committee com-prising the representatives ofTelugu NRIs from all the coun-tries will assist the cell.

According to an officialPress release, Chief Ministerdirected the State Minister forNRI Affairs K Taraka RamaRao and Nizamabad MP KKavita to prepare guidelines forboth the cell and the commit-tee to enable them to come upwith solutions for the problemsof NRIs.

Of the budgetary alloca-tion of Rs 100 crore for theNRI welfare, half amount willbe transferred to the proposedto the proposed cell. “If needbe the Government was readyto give more funds to the NRIcell and the company”, ChiefMinister said.

The announcement came

at Chief Minister ‘s meetingwith the representatives ofNRIs from several countries.

Chief Minister urged theTelangana NRIs to launch adebate and discussions abroadon the qualitative changesthat he is speaking of andmaking attempts in thenational politics. He soughtNRIs’ help and support inbringing a qualitative changein the country the way theyhad supported in achievingTelangana state.

State Ministers KT RamaRao, Nayani Narasimha Reddy,MP K Kavita, LegislatorsErrabelli Dayakar Rao, GaneshGupta, Srinivas Goud,Prashanth Reddy also attend-ed the meeting.

“When we think of ourState as part of the country, wefeel happy and contended.We are doing well, when com-pared to other states. But as anation we are not doing well.When compared to othercountries, we are very back-ward in our position. There isavailability of 70,000 TMC ofwater but yet we are strugglingto give water for agricultureand drinking water purposes.If we utilise 40,000 TMC ofwater, we can provide water to

40 Crore acres of cultivablelands”, the Chief Ministeradded.

KCR also expressed hisunhappiness over the lack offunds for the developmentactivities in he country.

“Centre’s Budget is �24.47lakh Crores. Of this �8.70 LakhCrore is spent on debt servic-ing. Another �10 Lakh crore isspent on employees’ salariesand pensions. Another �5 to 6Lakh Crore is spent onCentrally Sponsored Schemes.What is left with is about twoto three lakh Crores. What kindof development works can betaken in a vastly populatedcountry like us with thismoney”.

He rued that the countrywas suffering from severe dis-affection and there were clash-

es in the name of religion andcastes. He asked the NRIs tothink how these problems canbe solved.

He blamed both theCongress and the BJP respon-sible for the state of affairs.

“If there is an oppositionagainst Narendra Modi, thenRahul Gandhi will become thePM. What difference it willmake to the country and whatbenefit it will have? If we getangry with one person, weelect the other. Whoever wins,there will not be any seachange. There is a need tobeing in qualitative change inthe countr y’s polit ics. People’ agenda should beformed,” he said.

He said he was preparingan agenda for the people andthe whole country will adopt it.

��)!��"������:� ��� �/;6����������� ������������������� ������ �?��<��������7�����

����� � 4�

The engine troubles hitbudget carrier IndiGo

again with the airline forcedto ground two of its AirbusA320 Neo planes due to tech-nical glitches, according to asource.

The two Pratt & Whitneyengine-powered A320 Neoplanes were taken out of oper-ations on Friday, the sourcesaid.

IndiGo, which had toground 11 A320 Neosbetween February and Marchthis year due to safety con-cerns, confirmed that it hadpulled out two of its planesfrom the service.The airlinefurther said that the twoplanes are back into opera-tions now.

Significantly, the airlinehad earlier this month said allits aircraft, which had beentaken out of service followingdirectives of the Europeanaviation safety regulator Easaand India’s DirectorateGeneral of Civil Aviation(DGCA), were back into fly-ing after the change of enginesby the US engine supplierPratt & Whitney.

��1�� �1����� �������"����0"�?73�� "!��� ���1����

����� ����

Former Maharashtra HomeMinister Jayant Patil was on

Sunday elected as the newpresident of the StateNationalist Congress Party(NCP) unit, ahead of the 2019State and Lok Sabha polls.

He replaced incumbentSunil Tatkare. Patil’s namewas announced at the NCPworking committee meetingheld at the residence of theparty supremo Sharad Pawarhere as part of the party’sinternal polls.

Besides Patil, names of for-mer Maharashtra AssemblySpeaker Dilip Walse Patil,Leader of the Opposition in theLegislative Council DhananjayMunde, Shashikant Shindewere doing rounds ahead of thecrucial meeting.

Patil, a trusted lieutenant ofPawar, was elected unani-

mously. His name was formal-ly announced by Walse Patilwho worked as the electionofficer at the meeting.

Patil had served as financeminister of the state fromOctober 17, 1999 to December6, 2008, and as Home Ministerfrom December 8, 2008 toNovember 9, 2009 in the erst-while Congress-led UPAGovernment.

He has been representingIslampur constituency in Sanglidistrict of western Maharashtrasince 1990.

Unlikely the outgoing stateunit chief Sunil Tatkare, whohas been facing allegations inan irrigation scam under hiswatch as a minister in theUPA government, Patil isknown for his clean image.

Tatkare, a former WaterResources Minister, becamepresident of the state NCPunit in June 2014.

)����������������������������������������?��

����� ��'�/���������'�

The ‘appam’ and ‘aravana’,the sweet ball and jaggery

dessert, which are sold asprasadam (offering) at thefamed Lord Ayyappa temple inthe State, are set to get amakeover from the next pil-grim season.

The Central FoodTechnological ResearchInstitute (CFTRI), which pro-vides guidance for making deli-cious ‘laddu’ and ‘pancham-rutham,’ offered at the famedTirumala Tirupati temple andLord Muruga’s shrine in Palanirespectively, are now gearing upto give a new touch to theprasadam of Sabarimala temple.

The Travancore DevaswomBoard (TDB), which managesthe hillock Ayyappa Temple,has roped in the CFTRI toenhance the quality, taste andshelf-life of the ‘appam’ and ‘ara-vana,’” which has large numberof takers.

Located atop holy hills ofSabarimala in Pathanamthittadistrict, the Lord Ayyappashrine draws lakhs of pilgrimsfrom and outside the countryincluding foreigners during theannual pilgrim season fromNovember to January.

TDB President, APadmakumar said the templewould open for the monthlypooja on May 15 and an MoUbetween the Board and theCFTRI is expected to be signedon the next day.

A team of TDB officialsrecently visited the govern-ment-run CFTRI’s Mysorecampus to evaluate its produc-tion mechanism.

“As CFTRI is aGovernment agency, we have todecide and finalise the termsand conditions. We hope to signthe MoU with them on May16,” Padmakumar told PTI.

“The CFTRI experts wouldalso impart training to thetemple staff who prepare theprasadams during their visit, hesaid.

If everything goes asplanned, the ‘appam’ and ‘ara-vana,’ with the ‘CFTRI touch’,would be made available todevotees from the next pilgrimseason, he said.

The TDB, however, has noplans to increase the price of thepacked prasadams.

“The ‘Sabarimala Appam’ isa hard but sweet ball made ofrice, kadalippazham (a varietyof banana), ghee and so on,while ‘Aravana’ is a thick sweetdessert made of jaggery.

Detailing the changes to bemade to the prasadams,Padmakumar said there maynot be much changes in theingredients, but the overalltaste would be enhanced.

“At present, appam has ahard texture. It will becomesofter and sweeter. The thick-ness of aravana will be reduced.And the amount of jaggery, itsmain ingredient, will bereduced to 30-40 per cent,” he

said.” The method of preparation

and packing would be changedunder the guidance of CFTRIexperts, who follow vacuumtechnology.

The TDB is also mullingentrusting CFTRI with themaking of prasadams at alltemples under its management,to ensure the quality and taste.

A final decision in thisregard would be taken aftersigning the MoU in connectionwith Sabarimala, the TDB pres-ident added.

“ The CFTRI is one of the40 national research laborato-ries in India, set up under theaegis of the Council of Scientificand Industrial Research (CSIR).

�������������+�����*��,�*3�����)��$�5�*�� "�-#�*�0���

������������ 0������

Perturbed by the recent con-troversies by statements of

Tripura Chief Minister BiplabKumar Deb, the BJP top brasshas summoned Deb to thenational Capital.

Sources in the BJP onSunday said that the top brasshas summoned the TripuraChief Minister on May 2 toNew Delhi.

While the newly-electedChief Minister had last weekstated that internet and satel-lite communication existedduring the Mahabharata era,he also questioned the crown-ing of Diana Hayden as Missworld in 1997.

Trailing the controversies,Deb has recently advised theeducated youth in his State to“set up paan shops instead ofrunning after political partiesfor several years to getGovernment jobs and wastevital time of their life.”

“A bank balance of �5 lakhwould have been a reality bynow for them,” said Deb recent-ly.

“The party is embarrasseddue to the series of contro-versies triggered by Deb. TheBJP came to power in Tripurawith lots of hope and peoplehas lots of aspirations’” said asenior BJP leader in the Stateadding that Amit Shah andother party top brass will meetDeb on May 2.

.�������������������: ��� ;����������++��"�� ����.�

��:�����<��� 0������0�'

Gujarat Chief MinisterVijaybhai Rupani said that

a Statewide campaign ‘SujalamSufalam Jal Abhiyan - 2018’ willbe launched during the GujaratFoundation Day on May 1,which aims at involving peoplein water conservation.

Addressing a Press con-ference, Rupani said that thecampaign intended to build‘Powerful Gujarat’ whichwould pave a way for thenation to follow. The campaignis aimed at connecting JanShakti (People Power) with JalShakti (Water Power) thatwould turn into festival, theChief Minister added.

“Saving water is savinglife,” he said adding that duringthe monthlong campaign start-ing from Tuesday at Bharuchthe State Government wouldtake forward Prime MinisterNarendra Modi’s initiative ofwater conservation in the Statewhich he had taken when hewas Gujarat Chief Minister.

“As part of the missionmore than 13,000 lakes acrossthe State would be deepened,de-silting work of canals andcheck-dams and 32 rivers toowill be rejuvenated duringthe period. We have madecommitment to conserve rainwater worth 11,000 lakh cubicfeet water during comingmonsoon through the mis-

sion. Total more than 10,570works related to water con-servation would be complet-ed,” said CM Rupani.

Meanwhile Deputy CMNitin Patel informed that thecampaign would commencelake deepening works atKosamdi village ofAnkleshwar taluka in Bharuchdistrict. As a part of the cam-paign, the members of coun-cil of ministers, union minis-ters, chairmen of boards’ andnigams’, MPs, and other dig-nitaries would launch thewater works programmes invarious parts of the state.

During this period over4,000 JCB Hitachi and Pokland,and over 8,000 tractors anddumpers would also be pressed

into the service. This would becovering all the 33 districts ofthe State with deepening of6,260 lakes and check-dams,construction of 886 check-

dams, 567 Pala (earthen walls),gabion walls and others. For theproper implementation of theentire campaign, a state levelcommittee has been formed,under the chairmanship ofChief Secretary. The committeewould make time to timereviews of the entire campaign.

The state level GujaratFoundation Day function willbe held at Bharuch on May 1 inthe presence of governor O PKohli and chief minister VijayRupani. Every year GujaratFoundation Day is celebrated indifferent districts. Rupani willalso join ‘Clean Narmada’ cam-paign at Shukla pilgrimagenear Bharuch and also planttrees on the banks of riverNarmada.

����������F�� �9��'�4��

With the main OppositionCongress party raising

serious questions about the“luxurious” lifestyle of ChiefMinister K ChandrasekharRao and his family membersand splurging of public moneyon his official residence, rul-ing Telangana Rashtra Samitihas lashed back by taking theissue to the streets.

Several Ministers, legislatorsand other party leaders ledprotest demonstrations inHyderabad and other places inTelangana and burnt the effigyof State Congress presidentUttam Kumar Reddy for mak-ing allegations against the ChiefMinister and his family.

It all started with UttamKumar Reddy going hammerand tongs against the ChiefMinister for leading a luxuriouslife at the cost of public exche-quer.

Stung by the criticism ChiefMinister K Chandrasekhar Raoretorted by challenging UttamKumar Reddy’s claim that hisofficial residence had more than50 rooms. “If you prove PragatiBhavan has more than 15 roomsI will resign”, KCR said.

Uttam Kumar Reddy onhis part denied saying the offi-cial residence of CM had 50rooms. “What I had said was anamount of Rs 50 to 60 crore wasspent to build a 100,000 square

foot house on public land worthRs 400 to Rs 500 crore. I standby this”, he said rejecting theattacks by the Chief Minister inhim.

He demanded ChiefMinister to respond whether hisofficial residence had bulletproof bathrooms and bedrooms.

He said Congress as anopposition party was doing itsduty of keeping a check on howthe public money was beingspent.

Reddy alleged that no otherChief Minister in the countrylived in such a big house. “EvenPrime Minister’s residence is notso luxurious”, he said. He alsocriticised the Chief Ministerand his family members for trav-elling in luxurious cars and pri-vate chartered aircrafts. “Theonly family to benefit inTelangana is of the ChiefMinister”, Uttam Kumar Reddysaid.

But the TRS has not takenthe criticism lightly. Alleging thatUttam Kumar Reddy had usedobjectionable language againstthe Chief Minister the party hasdemanded an unconditionalapology from him.

Defending the ChiefMinister TRS leaders includingMinister Talasari Srinivas Yadavand Hyderabad Mayor BonthuRammohan said that the housebuilt was not Chief Minister’spersonal property but an officialresidence.

�'(��������� ���"� �+"�1� ������ 1���"��

��'����F�97�����7: �&8�

����� ��+�5�

With an aim to improve thehealth care facilities in

Uttar Pradesh, the YogiGovernment is planning toconstruct around 1,000 hospi-tals with modern contraptionsunder public-private-partner-ship (PPP) model and the pro-ject is likely to start fromNovember this year.

Leading consulting firmErnst & Young has been asked toprepare a detailed project report.

Health Minister SidharthNath Singh said that theGovernment will identify twocommunity health centres ineach district. The land, aboutthree acres each, will be givenon a long-term lease to privatecompany which will constructa 100-bedded hospital, alongwith an operation theatre anddiagnostic centre, he said.

This proposal is yet to getCabinet approval. The HealthMinister said once they get theapproval from the consultingfirm, the blue print will be pro-duced before the Cabinet. “TheCabinet approval will not be aproblem as it will be an exten-sion of the CentralGovernment’s AyushmanBharat scheme,” Singh said.

2�333�#"� ���"�!�������"�� �"����$�� ��$�� �����#"� �������

'����/������������������:����������$

�����!���*��� �"��"�����! �����=B->>>�'�) ����!����� ����� �%��'��# � � � �-�� 8�"'�"�$%�!)��*�����'������� �)8���������BC�!". !��%"''�#

! 0�. ��� ����!"�$�� �� !"��

� �� ��������"� �� ����"#4"����=��4>��������#���1 ��� �����"����**�!!��� #!� ������"! ������� �+.�'��"� ����� �� �-$����*������ ������� ��%��� �"��� �@�!!�#A�����@��������AB�������������1 ��$#� ��"���� ��

� ��4�!� ��� ���������#��$#��������� �� #!� ��"$���"! ���"��� �#"����*�!"")��"�� �*�2C������� "��� �� ���� �4"��������� �+.�'���� &! �� ���"�� ��1� ��"���� �� &����*

� �� � �*����1�1" �����!���� ���� �@�!!�#A�����@��������A������� �@+.�'��"$��A���"$���� #�� ��������� ��"�� �"� ����"#�� �� &��!��1��#�� ��"�D � ��� �

� + ���� �� ���� �(��� � ����� ���"���'����������"�!� !�� ��1$�� ��� ���"���"����� �� �������� ��"##��� ��"� ���� ��� #��"�"# �$!�������"�$��"����"���� !�"�� #��"���'�

� ��� ��� ��� �0"� ��# ������� ��*��"�1�� �#"� ��$�����"��� �'�� ��������� ��"#!��*D+

� +�� �� ����� ��$�1 ���� � ���1�����'���"���$������ ��� ���������$���"������"��"���� �-$�������� �����1 ������� �����! ����1�"������#����1��� #!�������� �����"����!"������

;7)�8�9���?7

Page 8: 7 - : 7B>-C>=?D6 =@ B · “While Meerut Expressway or NH 24/NH-9 has a segrega-tion problem across the Pandav Nagar in East Delhi, a Rail Over Bridge (RoB) over the EPE in Meerut

The coach of England’s ArsenalFootball Club Arsené Wengerhad become so synonymouswith the club, and not justbecause of the similarities of

their names, that he had become MrArsenal. Over a two decade long career, hedelivered a lot of silverware to the club,nurtured the careers of tens of playersincluding greats like Thierry Henry as wellas coaching other greats like PatrickVieira and Dennis Bergkamp. He coachedthe team to what will always be known asone of the greatest seasons in domesticleague history when his ‘Invincibles’remained unbeaten the entire 38 games ofthe season. This was a team that includ-ed greats like Henry, Bergkamp, Vieira, SolCampbell, Freddy Ljungberg, Robert Pires,Jens Lehmann and the list goes on. Noother team has managed such a feat inmodern football history in a large foot-balling nation, few other teams havecome close to such a feat in any sport,although some teams in US sports havecome close.

The greatest prize in European ClubFootball, the UEFA Champions Leaguealways eluded him, despite Arsenal hav-ing a fair crack at Barcelona in the 2006finals, however that to many Arsenal fansincluding your columnist, colloquiallycalling themselves ‘Gunners’ or ‘Gooners’after the cannon on the Arsenal club crestwas the high-water mark for the club.

Almost a decade passed before the clubwas to lift any other silverware when theywon the Football Association Cup, anEnglish football knockout competitionthree times in four years from 2014onwards. This was a horribly lean spell, andwhile many fans of the club were incred-ibly patient, believing in ‘Arsené’s Way'which could be described as developingyoung talent and nuturing them, with theadvent of global superclubs fuelled byRussian oligarchs such as Chelsea, petro-dollars such as Manchester City and ParisSt.Germain and the complete corruptionof the banking and television rights sys-tem as in Spain where a comfortable duop-oly exists between Barcelona and RealMadrid, Arsenal found itself in a strangeplace. Primarily because the man whocame from once-contested region ofAlsace-Lorraine on the Franco-Germanborder was a committed socialist in adecidedly capitalist age.

Arsenal Football Club built one of themost modern stadia in the world for their fansat Ashburton Grove near Islington in NorthLondon. The Stadium which came to beknown as ‘The Emirates’ after the Dubaibased airline became the title sponsor of thestadium and the club was one of the mostexpensive modern stadiums built. Anddespite Arsenal having a lot of rich suitors

willing and able to buy the club, Wengerensured that the club financed the stadiumby themselves and kept on serving their debt.This extremely ethical way of doing businessand not chasing after quick and easy becauseits provenance is unheard of in today's greedytime where everyone is there just to make afast buck or to con others, Wenger was deter-mined that the club will not lose its soul ina Faustian deal.

That was an honourable thought butleads to the obvious question? Is this a timefor honour and good men when eventhieves don’t have any honour left. Becauseto fund the stadium, Arsenal did not juststart milking their own supporters by hav-ing some of the most expensive tickets ofany football club in the world, althoughbeing in one of the wealthiest catchmentareas in the world helped, they alsoinvested less and less on players.

Indeed, this lower level of investmentin talent led to some of the existing talentto leave. Some of them were sold to gaina profit on them and others like ThierryHenry, Ashley Cole, Robin van Persie, CescFabergas and even more recently AlexisSanchez left the club because they (right-ly) wanted to win trophies and Arsenal wasnot competing for the Premier League andfrankly in an era of clubs bankrolled byimmense amounts of money, Arsenalfound themselves unable to compete.

Even though majority ownership of theclub moved to American sports businessmanStan Kroenke, someone personally vetted byWenger, it found itself moving down theEnglish Premier League table with

Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspursrising again with fresh investments in play-ers, stadiums and managers.

This was not necessarily ArsenéWenger’s fault, he dedication and hardwork and investment in players such asMesut Özil ensured that the club never leftthe top half of the league, an unprecedent-ed level of success. Yet, clubs like manches-ter United, Chelsea and Manchester Cityhave been dominating the Premier Leagueand Arsenal find themselves at the bottomof the high table among the big clubs.

Wenger’s style which was revolutionarywhen he arrived at London from NagoyaGrampus 8 in Japan where he introduced themodern techniques of personalised exerciseand diet routines which are now standard notjust in football but even in sports like crick-et. And his style of play that took the toughand burly English style to a more evolved leveland he inspired future coaches like PepGuardiola and Jürgen Klopp as well as hispeers like Sir Alex Ferguson had now start-ed to evolve too fast for him. One could arguethat Wenger, the one-time revolutionary, hadbecome a conservative with age. Which,oddly enough is a typical human property.

And the last few years even if they haveseen three FA Cups have been painful towatch for many Arsenal fans. Some, whobacked Wenger through some of the darkdays found their support waning everypassing weekend, particularly after consistent-ly inconsistent performances. And whileWenger had complained that the atmosphereamong the clubs fans was one reason he left,the fact is that a long period without success,

rather a long period without the promise ofany potential future success on the horizonwas becoming very hard for the fans to bear.That is why the constant shouts of#WengerOut on social media platforms,something that did not exist when Wengerstarted out at Arsenal.

For better or for worse, we do live inan age of instant gratification and Arsenalfans were sick and tired of seeing the smugfaces of rival fans, particularly those ofarch-rivals Tottenham who have some ofthe greatest English players in their squadnow. Even Liverpool, who are likely tomake the Champions League finals wererising while Arsenal’s current trajectorywas decidedly downwards. Even if Wengercouldn't see the writing on the wall, everyArsenal fan could.

Yes, Arsené Wenger revolutionisedEnglish and world football, and his namewill go down in history as one of the greatmodern managers, and any Arsenal fandoes feel sad that he has decided to stepdown at the end of the season. It hurts, butfrankly it was time. Yes, the possibilityexists that Arsenal might endure a coupleof seasons of managerial musical chairs likemanchester United did after Sir AlexFerguson quit, but some of Wenger’s oldwards are doing very well in the manage-rial game right now such as Patrick Vieirain New York. Wenger’s legacy will be agreat club and a fabulous stadium, it is nowtime for it to be taken to new heights. Asshould happen in any sports team.

(The writer is Managing Editor, ThePioneer)

�""������ � � �����# � ����� �� "��A��� ��$� �"��!���*�#"�"�#"$����������1��� #�"��"� ��"���� �����"�������� #������"�� ���1�"���� ������$�"$�������"��!�"��� ������ �"��� �# �����������!"$��� ������� ���� �"�������"�,�.������� � ����������

���� ���+�� �� ����� ��9"1������*�����������1��11�� � ��! "!� �����!�� ����"������%�� �����"��� ������������%���""�������"�����"����"���"���"�����"$����� ���� ��������1 �������� "����!�"� ��,��� ���� � ��������!$���+�� �� ����� ��4�!����� ����"�!���� ��������*��'��������� !��"# �"��������� �$�*��"���*�"���� � �����"������"������� �$����1��"����"%���� ����������*� ��������$�-$����� ��#���"��!�"!! ��$!��*�� �� ���"�# ����1�����,�4"����"��"��� �"�1��"��� �����1 ����������� ��#����� ����� �#���""��4;�E���$��� *����� ������������� ����������!$��,�9"1�����"����������#"��������"#%!����"������ #!���*������ ��"# ������"��"��0"����!$�����"$���� # #� ������������1 �*���"����1������� ������� �"� � &�� # �� ����"���"��!"!$������1 ��������$������"�������� ��"�� �� ���������� ������ �*,���$ ����*�!"!$��������"�� ���� �"# ���"�� ���"�"!!"����"�� !���� �����"���)���� �� � �1 ���,� 4$��9"1�� ��"$��� � ���� � ����� � � ��� �����#��������"���������������$�1��1�����"�� ���"� ���� ������ ������ ����"�����""�����

�������!��#��*�����,�'��� ��������"##�� �����1��������

�����#�E���#��� ��������*��1��"����#���1�*�"������� ��11����� ��#��� ������� ����*�#!�*��1��� �!�"� ����� � �#"����� ������"���!"���� "$�,�����������"� �#���� !�� �� ����� ���� ������ ����"�������� ���"�1� ��"���������*��"$�� ��"�� ���� ������"�� � #� � ��* �� ���� � � ���� ,(�#�����*�� �����"��� �� �����$�"� ��"��"�1���# ��1"����������� #����������� ��� �� �� &��� �� ��� �� � �1 � "�� �� ��������������"$���!�"����*��"�$# ���� ���"� ���������������� ������ � �"!���"�# ����#��$����$���1����$���*����� ������!�����1��"�# �� �����"����,��" �� �� ���� ��������� ���"����*�"��$���� ��"�%

���*�� ��!! �� ����������!�����1���������������*���1���������$��*������F�5������������ ��"1�� ���1���# ��"���"# �� #!"� �# �������� ����������� �� # ���"����!��*��#��"1*�����#�)"�����������"�� ��������� ��"� �������$��� �"� F������# ���1 ��" ��� �+�� �� ����� �����"��"! ���"�#�� �������������+����������� �� #�"�� � �������"# �� ��� ���*�!�����1���"����� ���1��"�� !���"��� �$�*��1������ ����"�� �F

4"���9"1������� ���� �� �����9"$�1��$�������"��� ��"!��1��"� # �1 �����#�����"��� "���� 1��*������ ������$��$�����11�"# ����"��"��*"$��,�9 ���*���""���1��� ��#"$����"������ *���� ��"��"��*��� �� ���� ���!�"�� #���"�� "����$��#"����"��*��1%�*�!�") �� ���� #� �� ��$��"���� ��������� �����1 ���"�*"$��"$���������� !��#������!""����� ���"��� � ��,������� ��#����� �������� ��*% � �� ��� �� ���"��#��� ����� *��"$���� ���� ���������� �#�����!��������$� �!"�������������$� ��������� ��� ���������$���%��1�$�1$�� ��#����� �,���$���*���� ����� ������*"$��� � �*"$�� ���� &! �����,��� �4;���"$����"��"# ���� ������ �����������""��������"��� �/�)!�* �* ��������� ��"���������"���*�� �� ����!�! ��"��� ���"����"�� �"������� � ���������$�1�� �� ��,�� � �� ���"������ � �� ��������$����1�� �$� ��"��� ����# � ����� �����"������"�#�� �� ��%��� ����� # ���������!�"����� �"� �,�� ���!��4;�E�� �� ���� �# ����#���1 # ���� ����"$����"��$����"����"!��"���� �����"��!"!$�����"##$������"���"���"����$��� �� #���%���# ��,

�� ���#����� ���"$1�����"$�����2GC?��"��"���1���� �� ��� ��*��� �+"##$������"�� �"���� ��"���������� ��(%���� ���"�� ��"���� �("$�����"$1����"������� ���"� ������� �"� ���������$��� ��$� ��"������ ���"$���� � ���1� �"�����"�#���! ��

�� ��*���� ���"�"� ������ �� ��������*�� ����������"��HC�* �����"�,��� �# ���1������#$�)"#�"���� �("$���"� ������ �"���� �� �� ��� ���� �� �� ���"����"� ��� �� ���#�;"�1%$������("$���"� ����� ��� ��� ""��;� %������ � �"� ����-$�� ��$1 ��#!"��,�����1������� �!"��������*�"�����"�#���! �� ��� ��*�� ��1���1� ��� �� ��� ���"�"� ������������* �������� !������ ��� ��"! �"����$���� ��"� ������ ���# �����������1� ���������"��"���"������ ���������"�%�""%��������!"��������� ��$�$� ,�."���� �"�������1 � ���������������������!�����$������� �����"�����������$##���� �� ���� ���"� �� ����"������ �!"�� ����"����#"� �� �!"����� ��*"�1*��1�� ���!�"� ��"������1�$�� ��I#����� �#�&�#������!"����"��,

�� � �����"�� �*��1��� ��������"� � ���������#��"������ ��� ���"���"�,���������� ����� ��������� ������1�������� ��� �"� ���#������� ����"�$� ��$� ��"�����"�������������� ������!� ��*�#$����"������� ��������� ���� �#""������� ����#,����$���1�����1��"������*��"��� �#""���������� � ,��������������"%���� ��@)"� E��� ��� �# ���� ��� ��

""��"��.����*����*��1������� ������ ��$� �� ����� ���" ��E����� ������� !�����$�� � ���*������ �#"����1��"��$����"�# ���1�"���� �����"����( �$���*�+"$������ ��$� "���� ��"���E��� � ��� ���������� �� ���1#����� %� ����"� �� �� �!����28�#"������ ���*���"����#���"����������1�����1!"� ������ ��� ��,�."����"� �� �! �����*! �� �������"��� ��""���1�$!"���������!%!�"�� # �����������"� %���� ���$ ����� �����#���"�� "%�"�� ������ ����"�������������� ��� ����"�����;���$#!E����� ���������$�� ����� ���"$1����#��"��� �� 1"%������1����� ���������"������ �����1�������� �"����"� ���������"���������#"� ���� �*�"���� �� ������$ �� ���������� ����"��"� &� �����!$�!"�� �������"��! �� ��"

�� �("$����*�4 �)��1E��� ���������"��"������1 "����� 1���!��"���� ���������*�"�� �����%�"�,�+�������� �"��*�#�)"��!"� �������� & ���� ���"# ��"���"��"� ���#����������� �� ��"��#"� ����� ���� ��"��"������"��"��J��;��!��1E���$� ��"# �������*�#����1���#�� � ���� ���1�"#E��#"���!"� ��$���$� ������ � �"��� ���"����1�# ��"������*��"� ��� ����!$� ���������������� � ��1 ������� �!�����1������������������ �! �����*��� ��(������������ ������� � &!�����1�����#������*�!"� ������$���1� ����������1�"� �� ������ �������$�����1��� �� �"���!��� �"������ �"�"#���1�"����!$�������"# ,

�� ��$�1 ��"��"����"� ����������� #!���*�4 �)��1���"����1�����"�� ����"������1 &� ���������*"�1*��1���"��"����K ��� ����!$� �����!$����� �"� ����"��"���"$���� ������ � �� ������� ����*�����"$��1 ����1����"�� ��"� ���*���� ��,�������!!�"������������"!��*�� �����"#�4 �)��1E��!"����"���� ������� ��(���������"�� ��#�)"�����*������ �� 1�"��;�!������*���������$ �� ��� ���� ���"��"��( "$�E��!"���*�� ��$� ����1�� ���� �+��� � ������*���"%"$���� %!"� �%���"�� # ������ �"����1$# ��,��� ��� ��� ""��#$���� �%�����*� �1�1 �������#,�4$��� ���"$���� !�����!"�� ����*,

8�+���������������������%��*� ���������"��%������

������ <���%�������)%��<�����

� ������54����������'�(����) '������ *+,�-+./

�"� ���� �!�����" �� ���=

%���������+����>?���%�"��� �������%����"���������������� ��%���"�%����"��"�������������

��������������

Sir — This refers to the editorial,“Justice delayed” (April 28). TheUnion Government’s case againstJustice KM Joseph is not convinc-ing. The Law Minister’s reasons forsending back Justice Joseph’s recom-mendations do not carry real weight.Remember, Justice Joseph had upsetthe Union Government’s plans whilereinstating the Harish RawatGovernment after President’s Rulewas declared. After all, Judges areexpected to decide matters on meritand Governments cannot expectfavourable rulings merely becauseboth judiciary and executive are thearms of the state.

It is also surprising to seeseniority being invoked suddenly inthis case. There are numerous exam-ples where Judges of High Courtswere elevated to the Supreme Courtdespite not being the senior-most asper all-India seniority. The mannerand context in which the collegium’srecommendation has been treatedby the executive raises a real andimmediate threat for the indepen-dence of the judiciary.

P ArihanthSecunderabad

����������

Sir — This refers to the editorial,“Justice is done” (April 26). AsaramBapu, once an all-powerful cultleader, is the latest in a long list ofholy fraudsters to be convicted forcrimes of a sexual nature. Jodhpurlawyer PC Solanki and his teammust be applauded for their doggedfight for nearly five years against themight of his dark empire. Fake spir-itual gurus are backed by politicians

who, in turn, seek help to garnervotes for them.

Asaram joins the long list ofimposters who ‘trapped’ vulnerabledevotees in the garb of providingthem spiritual solace and, thus,reaping benefits in many ways,including wealth. This should be awake-up call for people havingblind faith in gurus. Interestingly,sexual depravity in the name of reli-gion is not restricted to Hinduism.The sinister underbelly of cults andorganised religion has been laid bareeven in Christian missionaries andMuslim organisations.

J AkshayBengaluru

���������

This refers to the article, “The fateof a visionary diplomat” (April 26)by Claude Arpi. Thanks to hisefforts, we are reminded of our firstPrime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru’s‘historic blunders’ vis-a-vis Chinaand its invasion and occupation ofTibet, contemptuously disregardingour ‘visionary’, Lhasa-based diplo-mat’s serious warnings about thedouble-faced policy of China’s gen-erals to grab Tibet. Being an impul-sive, fundamentalist architect ofHindi Chini Bhai Bhai, Nehru couldnot see the expansionist agenda ofChina until its occupation of Indianterritory in the North-East inOctober 1962. This Chinese betray-al was a deep shock to him. We haveto be friendly with our next-doorneighbour. At the same time, wecannot afford to lower our guard.

M RatanVia email

555������� �������

� � � � � � � � � � � � � � �

���������������3�/ ������' �� !����"�� !G$��"'(����

���?/(7&

���*��+���+���� ������*����# ����������

# ���� �� �����)� 6����-����� ��4��+� �5����� �0,������*��+�6����-���7+����*���

��1��*�)��5�+�*���0���-��

-�1���

8 �� ���� �+*��9-�1 �*���� ,�

�(����)"�1

����<�'�����$�������������������=������1��/���$�������������$���������/������7�>������+������������"������������������3���������������=������13�����������������$���?

�� ��� ��# ������)��� ���*��������� ��+

�0*�*���:0�� �+0���*5�+� �*��������*�����++� ,�*��+��+���������++0�+�

�� �+��))���"����, ���� �+*���94� ,�;0� �0

���������������+��������+��������< �������

������ � ����"� ���"������L9 ����"�� ��)"��B�=�!����7M>,��������� �����"�*��"���"��� ��"##$� ���"���� �����"����+�!�������"�$� ��� �� ���� �"���� �# ��",�(�1�����������"!������� ����!������� ���#"�*�"�����$�%

������������� �� ����# ��"���� ������* ��,��"��"!����$!���� �� � ���*����"$�� �# ��"�!�����1���� ���� ������������ �������� ����"#� �*�2�������"��*�#�� ! "!� ��"�� ���� �� ������ ����1��*�# ��"����������� �"!��"����*#"� ,�� ���� ������ ����1���C3�! ��� ������� �� ����"������� � �����������# �����#"� �#"�������� ���� �# ��"���� ���� ,�

� �� ��� ���*���"$��!""������������!"����"�� ������*��� �� �������,��� � ����"��"$���������� ��� ���� ��"�'����+"�!"����"��=� '+>������� ���1���"� ����#"� *�"������ &! ����$� ��$��������� �"# ���� ��"� �"�) ���� �"��� ���"! ����"����� ������ ���*�� �� ���� ���"� �!$�!"� �"�������1����������"��!$�������������$��$� ����!��� ,�

5��"� ��������� �0"� ��# ���������! "!� ��"�$� �!$����������!"�����#$������!"����� �����"���� �"�� ���������� ����1�� �"# ���$������$1 �$�� ��"���� ���!"�� ����� � �������$1 �����"�� ���� �� ��0"� ��# ������� '+,������� �� ���"������� �"�� ���������������$����������$ ������ ������!$����1��$����"����$"$���$�� ��"��!$����,�

��'�6�."������

� && 9���5��������5'������������/��0����0 *2��5 ���+���,0 ��:�����,�� ,�*��������.��<�)��2 �� *�� �4�� �*�������� � ,��++���+��+*�� �%=+*�*���++�������*�� +�!�5/��*+�4�� �*���7+�*0� ��

�.������+��� *9(��*�����

:���� ,�� ���� +*������++���5��*�+*��++�0/��0* �*�� ��>��*�+� +���������+�� �0 +���� ���������� ������ +*���������*��*�#��� �*��� �����

(�*��9-����� �����

Page 9: 7 - : 7B>-C>=?D6 =@ B · “While Meerut Expressway or NH 24/NH-9 has a segrega-tion problem across the Pandav Nagar in East Delhi, a Rail Over Bridge (RoB) over the EPE in Meerut

What makes Lingayatsthink that they haveeverything to gain and

nothing to lose by being recognisedas a religious minority? There aremany who argue that India is adangerous place for minorities.Such voices became more stridentafter the Narendra ModiGovernment assumed power fouryears ago. Is it not a risky propo-sition for the Lingayats to paintthemselves in a corner? Will theynot risk losing sympathy of thelarger Hindu society?

In India’s neighbourhood viz,Pakistan, situation of the Ahmadishas steadily deteriorated since1974 when they were declared anon-Muslim community by the ZA

Bhutto Government under pres-sure from extremist forces. Let ustry to figure out what makes Indiadifferent.

In Pakistan, the Ahmadis neverwanted to be reduced to a minor-ity status. They saw themselves asequal partners in the newly formedIslamic Republic. But situationbegan to turn ominous for them inthe very first year of Independence.On August 11, 1948, Ahmadiyyamilitary officer Major Mahmudwas brutally lynched. He diedpainfully due to an internal haem-orrhage resulting from grievouswounds on body. The murderouscrowd formed audience of aMuslim Railway EmployeesAssociation’s meeting which wasbeing addressed by severalmaulavis, all of whom chose todilate upon the concept of Khatm-e-nubuwwat (Muhammad as thelast Prophet).

They chose to heap cursesupon the founder of Ahmadi andQadiani sect Mirza GhulamAhmad because he had threatened

the concept of Khatm-e-nubuwwatby claiming that he had receivedilham or revelation from Allah in1882. Major Mahmud, who woreshort beard characteristic of theAhmadis, became a target of themaddened crowd. His curiosity tostop his jeep near the meetingbecame fatal for him.

The campaign against theAhmadis was led by fundamental-ist group Majlis-e-Ahrar-ul-Islamwho took a dim view even ofMuhammad Ali Jinnah. Theydubbed the Quaid-i-Azam asKafir-e-Azam because Jinnah hadmarried a Parsi lady, RattanbaiPetit. Things came to a boilingpoint after the All-PakistanMuslim Parties Convention inKarachi between January 16 and18, 1953, demanded theGovernment to announceAhmadis as non-Muslims. TheMuttahida Majlis-e-Amal, createdby the Convention, sent an ultima-tum to Prime Minsiter Khawaja-Nazim-Ud-Din that if the Ahmadiswere not declared non-Muslims,

and the ones holding keyGovernment post includingForeign Minister Chaudhr yZafarullah Khan, were notremoved, the Majlis would resortto direct action (rast iqdam).

As the Prime Minister reject-ed the ultimatum and gave reasonsfor the same, he also ordered theulama behind those demands to bearrested. To this, all hell brokeloose on March 5. Pakistan wasgripped by sectarian violence.Military had to be called in. InLahore, martial law was pro-claimed that remained in force tillmid-May. In Lahore alone, 11were killed, 49 were wounded insuppressing violence. There weresignificant casualties in othertowns as well.

Now compare this with thecondition of Lingyats in India, par-ticularly Karnataka. Did they faceany discrimination or persecu-tion in modern times in the handsof the Hindu society that formeda majority? Karnataka has seenseveral Lingayat Chief Ministers

like BD Jatti, S Nijalingappa, SRBommai, SR Kanthi, VeerendraPatil, JH Patel, BS Yeddyurappaand Jagadish Shettar. Did any sec-tion of Hindu ask for their removalbecause they did not believe in theVedas?

It is thus a proof of Hinducatholicity which Lingayat ideasabout mainstream Hinduism cannot explain. If one went by theManusmriti, then every Hindu, letalone much maligned Brahmins,should be a votar y of untouchability. But when Article17 of the Indian Constitution abolished untouchability, did anysection of the Hindu oppose it?Did one section of the society turnupon the other as it happened inthe US, leading to Civil War (1861-65) when Abraham Lincolnshowed the courage to abolish theslavery system?

‘Lingayatism’ arose in the 12thcentury Karnataka as a protestantcreed. Its Vachana literature, orig-inally in Kannada, provides a mys-tic orientation to life and action. It

challenged the religion-politicalpower structure of the society,working for the benefit of a fewand to a detriment of many,through a series of innovativeintervention. The rejection of theVedas, Brahminic superiority, useof Kannada language in place ofSanskrit, equal status for all castes,helping inter-caste marriages couldbe considered progressive steps forits time. But can one still beat withthe Hindu society with these sticksin the 21st century?

Rather nursing grievancesagainst the Hindu society for thosereasons would mean a mindset thatis still stuck in the 12th century,when Basava founded the Lingayatorder. While the religious minor-ity tag might appeal to the Lingayatcommunity, the scheduled castesamong them find it discomforting.This because they are not Hindus,Buddhists, or Sikhs and stand tolose the benefit of reservation ineducation and jobs by renouncingHindu fold.

Though Lingayats speak of

casteless society, they have around99 castes and sub-castes amongstthem. While minority status mightbenefit a few mutts who run edu-cational institutions, there is littlethat a common Lingayat mighthope to gain.

Rather in case, a Lingayat fam-ily is affected by the problem of thelove jihad, reportedly a growingproblem in Karnataka, theapproach of Hindu organisationsare l ikely to be muted.‘Lingayatism’ indeed has a messagefor the rest of the Hindu society.

That is about shunning preten-tion and leading a sincere and spir-itual life while staying engagedwith the world. That is why the restof the Hindu society of Karnatakatreated ‘Lingaytism’ as a heritagerather than its opponent. TheHindu society has never beenaverse to reforms from Buddha toAmbedkar though they might havebeen critics of Hinduism.

(The author is an independentresearcher. Views expressed aboveare personal)

5��;���������������)����������<�

����������'�(����) '������ *+,�-+./

9�����������������������������������!������������!������������B������.�,���

���������������������� �����!,��G()�� �.� ����

���(7&���&9�

7�����������.����������*()�+������������.��"����,�0������������"��������������� ��������!��1G���!���������9�) ;����B��

��#!����?& 9��#!��

India eagerly awaits its new nation-al education policy. The educationsector is faced with numerous chal-lenges. While it can claim hugeadvances in terms of increasing

numbers of institutions and enrolmentsat each stage, it still has much to accom-plish in terms of quality of products, theirsuitability for the job market and also thelevel of entrepreneurial skills acquiredbefore they enter life. The most signif-icant challenge could be comprehend-ed in the query: Is the Indian educationequipped enough to prepare its youngpersons to take advantage of the much-hyped ‘demographic dividend’ asthe ‘nation of the young’?

Even in this arena, several othercountries are ready with their well-edu-cated and skilled young persons to offera tough competition to Indians. Withinthe country, it is ironical that practical-ly every sector of governance — frompersonnel in security forces to teachersin schools — suffer manpower deficien-cy, millions of young persons are wait-ing to get jobs. Are our educated youths,who enter various sectors, fully equippedwith the nuances of national agenda ofinclusive growth and development? Dowe prepare them to comprehend theinternational scenario in their sector ofactivity and initiatives; and their rele-vance to the Indian situation?

One often finds that not manyteachers are really familiar even with the‘Sustainable Development Goals’ (SDG)identified by the UN General Assemblyin 2017 to be achieved by 2030. Four ofthese SDGs relate to education: “Ensureinclusive and equitable quality educationand promote lifelong learning opportu-nities for all.” Our education systemneeds to make them well-versed withspecific national needs to bring the ‘lastman in the line’ in the centrality of theirthought and action. They must under-stand the importance of one per centlucky individuals owning 73 per centwealth of the country and that this can-not be an example of an evenly balancedstrategy of growth and development.

The new national education poli-cy needs to respond to national needsand also the global scenario. No doubt,young Indians have established theircredibility, right from NASA to theSilicon Valley, but lowering standards oflearning in Indian education across thespectrum has certainly dented credibil-ity, rather globally.

Apart from national concerns thatare well-known, the new educationpolicy also has to gel appropriately withglobal concerns and initiatives that arebeing pursued via international collab-oration. Another issue of paramountimportance is the very survival of theplanet Earth that is under unprecedent-ed threat after the resulting out of wanton exploitation of natural resources,leading to irreversible damage to the sensitive man-nature bond.

The core global concern is to tracethe path of sustainable development. In2015, the UN General Assembly recog-nised UNESCO as the leading agency“to continue to provide coordination forthe implementation of the Global ActionPlan (GAP) on Education for SustainableDevelopment (ESD) — in cooperationwith partners, advocate for adequateresources for ESD, support memberstates in building capacity, promote thesharing of knowledge and bet practices,and assess progress towards the achieve-ments of ESD”.

The 17 SDGs are an expression ofa global resolve to create a better worldby 2030. Goal IV has specific relevanceto education policy formulation. It is anexpression of the belief “that educationis one of the most powerful and provenvehicles for sustainable development”.There are high expectations: That allboys and girls shall complete primaryand secondary education by 2030; thatthere would be equal access to ‘afford-able vocational training’; and that gen-der and economic family disparities shallno longer remain a hindrance in the ‘aimof achieving universal access to qualityhigher education’. Impetus is new andtimely but the criticality of the role ofeducation in progress and developmentis certainly not a new idea. The factremains that adequate synchronisationof the content and process of educationwith the delineated goals of developmenthas not received adequate attention ofour policy-makers.

This could be a consequence of lackof vision, ignorance or absence of nec-essary professional support within thenations. In fact, it is now widely recog-nised that one of the toughest crisisbefore the newly independent nations

during the last half of the 20th centurywas to arrive at the proper delineationof the “ideology of progress” suitable tothe specific needs and requirements ofa particular nation.

Borrowed policies and action plansfrom developed nations have oftendone greater damage than assistingappropriately in the path of progress.However, there has been a global con-vergence on the idea of extending edu-cation to one and all as the critical meansof inclusive growth and development.The Jomtien Declaration of March1990, emerging out of the “WorldConference on Education for All”,promising to universalise elementaryeducation by the end of the century, wasa great historic landmark in focusing onextending the outreach of education tothe toughest groups as well. It certain-ly expedited towards universalising ele-mentary education, though the goal isyet to be achieved fully. Total enrolmentrate in developing countries reached 91per cent in 2015. Worldwide, the num-ber of out-of-school children hasdropped almost by half.

Universal enrolments are necessarybut equally important are participationand attainments to effectively achieve theaims of universalising quality education.The SDGs identified also include simul-taneous action in other sectors thatwould make life better and worth living.These include removal of poverty,hunger and gender bias; provision ofhealth care, clean water, clean power,opportunities for economic growth,promotion of sustainable economicgrowth, full and productive employment,decent work, reduction and inequality,combat climate change, ensure sustain-able consumption patterns, and other

related concerns.Indian systems are working on

all of these aspects, though theprogress may warrant not only addi-tional resources but also a change ofwork culture. It is the pace withwhich initiatives are launched andimplemented that would count. Theclimate of confidence and self-assurance that was created in 2014needs not only to be sustained, butalso inspired, motivated and wher-ever necessary, reignited. Non-util-isation of the power of youth wouldbe a sin. Hence, every effort must bemade to give them proper educationand adequate levels of skill acquisi-tion. The creation of the Ministry ofSki l l Development andEntrepreneurship raised high hopesamongst the youth. It is, however,being felt that its plans and pro-gramme implementation strategiesrequire more vigour and vitality.

Similarly, colleges and universitiesmust respond to the criticism of 70-80 per cent graduates being found defi-cient in the job market. Professionaland academic leadership in educationmust rise to the occasion, fix their owntargets of quality improvement, cur-riculum renewal and delineate thecoordination of intensive emphasis onquality improvement and personalitydevelopment. Further, to achieve theglobal targets of the SDG 4 national-ly, India must primarily focus on itsteacher education institutions. Thequality of manpower in every sectoris dependent on the quality of teachereducation institutions. Fresh assertionin this direction is necessary.

(The writer is former Director,NCERT, and an educationist)

;��%����������� �������"���� �7������

-�+�**� ,�# ���2 �� ��*��+

�� ��� ����������%������� �6������������"������������"��������� �� ���������%����(���� ����������������4�7��� ����� �������� �����%���� �������������6������ ���(�����

&�%'( ) �%�*+�%�� ,�-���$-''%'(�./���'�%�'� '��#� �%'(� ��%'0�/�� '���.%/%�- #�#%1��2$%#���� )%'(��'( (���2%�$��$��2�/#���3%'�-���0%��)�$ �'�4�/�,��'� 4�/������/�1�/*��5�1/�*�6-��$ ����7*,��8 /���$�-($��$�)�*%($��$ 4��,��'�0/%�%0���1�3%'�-%�*�� ##�$ 4��,��'�2�#0�*��

:���1: 4"

�'9���'(�'4""1

����!!�"�� # ��������+���������"�� �� ��������E����� � ����$����������"�� �� ���� ������#$�$���$�� ��������1�������#������ �!"�� �

��/�'(����'5� ���(��'���+�((�'9�4��

�N����9 �5'������'�

��'�+���5���������� ���(��5

�..�+�/��9�+��/������� (5.���/�'(��(�0

N����9���+��5�,����(�0(�����.����(5��+����( ������5�(�+�5����5���'(�+�5'(�����

�5���� ����.�4����'������5'��

�/�0

�� ��"� �1��!"���*� ��������%# ������� ��� ����� �! %�����*����"��������� &! ���

� ����1������+������� �#����1�"���� �� ����1�"��@� � �E��$��"�� �� �� �� � ��"� �"$���� �,� �!�� ����� � �� ��"� �����$ ���� �����E��# #� ����!��"��� �$�� ���($!!�� ���0�"$!���� ������1�"�� ��""���K���������1�"����� ��"�������� �+��+�������� ���1���� �� ������������������� �M?%��*��"�1��"���#������"��������"�� ����� �� ���"��"��@�"��!"���E��������%+������ ����"��,��"��%�"���#��� ���# %��� ����� �� ���!!�� ��� &!� ���"����"#�������"�!$���� ������ ����� ��%��"���"��������������#"� �@���� � ������$������ �� ��"���E��� !��1���#������ � &�����1�!"� ��1�!,�� �!�� ��� � � ��"�����#$�$����� �����!! ��"�������� � �����* ����� ��$��#����1���*��"����� E���"�#���# ���1E� �� ���� �� �� ����!�"���"����"$���� �,�

��������"$!� �"��#"���������$#� ��"����1�%� � ������������ ���� �!��� �� �� ���"����� ��"$���� �,�� �� ���"���"����"$���� ��� �� ���% ������� ���# ���1����������������J��# ����������� � �� ��#$����"�� ����"� ���"�� �"# ������!$� ,���� � #� ��732M��/�� �+����#��"���������*"1�'�)���$#�������� ��+������"��"�������� ���������������+����E�� ����1������%�������� �� � �"!# ���' � �����+ �� ��"���� �(��� �+"$����,������"��"� ����#����� ���"#�������."� �1��( �� ���*�/�)�*�0"���� ��"���� ���$����"���� ���"�� !����*���"#�@������9"$�����E� � ���� ��1�"�1���� ���*��� ���� ����0"� ��# ������ &�� ,���� ��"���+��� � ."� �1�� ����� �����1�9������� ���������� ����������� ������������"���( �$���*������ ���)����"�����""������ ��+����,� $���� � ���*���� ������"���&� ������������� ����� ��($��#��(����)� �"���� ����� �(���1���+""! ����"��5�1�������"�� ����� ������$##��������$�� -$ ���*��� ������"��� � �� � ����� �����#����(�����#����"�+������� ������ ���# ���� �%��"�,��� �# ���1�� �� ���� ���"�� � �� � ����� �������$�� ���� ��� ��"������� ����#������*� & ���� �@����%��%����E�� �� ���� ���"��"$�%��� �������� #��� ���$�! �� ��1�� ���� ������"��������* ��,�

���� �1�� ���"�� &������!� � ������$���"��"������%+������ ����"����� �-$ ���"��"��� ����1��� �@� � ���$��"�E�#$���� �$�� ���""�������#$��!��1#����#,����� ��"# ��� ����� ���� �!� � ��� ��"�������@�"�� ���� # ��$� �E��"�����$�� �+��� � ��"�� ����"� ������E������� 1���!�"&%�#��*��"��� ��(���"# �� �� ����!"������������"��� �������"���� �!����"��� �0"� ��# ����"���"�����*��������� %"�������� ��"#��1�#"����,���"������ ����� �!� � ��� ��"����#�� ���@# ����1�$����� E��"������������������"���"�1�������$� ��#���� ���� �"��@����� 1����$�"�"#*E�����@! �� %�$���"�� �����E��������� *��"� �1��!"���*�"�) ���� ,������"�� ����"�� � ���"��#$����� � �� � �"!# ����#�� �$!��"��� � ����1�"��#$�$%����� ��� �� �����������+����,�."�� &�#!� ���� ��������1�"��� �$ ���"#� ��� �����"������#������#�����1�H3%* ���� � �����"��"����������#�E����������"������������ ������#��$� �!� � �� �"��� ��"��+���� �� ����� ��"���� � � �����"����� �!"����������#�����"���"������� & ���� ,��

"� "� ���"���� ��"�� �����$ ���� ������ ����� �����-$����*�"�������%1� ���"���*��� �+��� � ������ �����"�� ����"������������$���1�� !���1�+�$#���������"���#,��������!! � ���� ���"����� ���� ��� � ����%��1��"���������1�%� � ��������O� � ���� �����# � ����� ����� ����� "������+��� � ��� ��� ���J��;��!��1���� �# ����������* ���,�+ ������*����#$������"�� ���� !� �������� �!�� ����� � �� ��"������"$�����$ ����"���"$���� ����� ���"������ � ����"���""! ����"������"# �� ��"��,�+����!��* ����� �!��1�������"����������1� *%������1��������������� �.������������"�������."�� �# ���1�"��� ��"����������1,�' � ���*��+���������������� �������� ������$���"����"�)"����*�$� ��� ���� � ��1 ����"���!��� �� 1"%�����"��,���������"����"����� ��"$���� ���� ������1��""! ����"�����1�"�%������#�� �����1 �� 1"�����"��,

�"��� � ������*� � �*�+��� � �!��������"�� �$�� ���""�������� ��% ���"�������������������#"� ���� �*��"�� ����� ���*��"# ������!"����%�������� �"�"#����"#!$���"��,�(�#�����*������E������ ����*���"#��"�1% �������� ��@����� 1���� ��� �� E����� ��� ���*�����#"� ���!�����"�����"� ���1�"����!"������������"���1������+����,� "��E��� � ����������"�+�����"�����@���"�#���# ���1E�������J���#$���� �"� ��� ���� �$� ��(+5�$##������N��1��"����;$� ���� ���*��! ����"$������ �����1����������"���"$���� ���� ��"�� �� ����"$��#$�$����� �,����� �#$���"���� � ���1�%� � ����������� �!� %!���� ������"����������� ��$����# ���1�� �� ���1� �� ��$�1 ��*������ �� ��"�� �1�1 # ����� ��"�� �� �������� �# ������#���� ��"��� ����$���$���������� ����� ����"��,��� ���"�� ��% �����������7P��"$���������&�# ���1������ � 1���"��� � ������"� %�"%"� ������������$����1����$ ����� ����� ������� 1���#������*�� ����"�����"$���#����"�� ��� 1�"�������$ �,����� !"�� ����"���� �� ��� ���"##"����� ��"��� ��"���#�������� �*��""! ����"����� �"�"#���!�") ���"����1��������,(�����1������ ���# ��"���"���� ��������� �����$������"���� �� ���� ��% ��� ���"��! �� ��!�"�! ���*������� � �"!# ��,�#!� ���� �*�� "���$�� �%��"� ���� ��#!"����� �"��! "!� %�"%! "!� ��"������� �� ����������+������*��"����1��� ��� ��"��@(�'��0��E��������#�� ���"���!����$��%��*O��������"������� ������� ���"�"1*O�� ����"����!O� �� �����# ��O����$� �"�� �����"�O�1�# �O��"$���#������ ����,�

�� �� *������ �1 �� �"� ��� �@� � �E� & ���� �� �� ���"����� �� ��% ����!��������������"$����"��� �� �������� ��������� ��,����� � �"!%# �����$11 ����"�@)"�������� # ��E������� �*��"�� � &! �� ����� ���� �$�����$##��,��� �!� % #!��� ����!��*�"�� &! �����"����"$������ #�� ��� �����*����"���$##��������@K �"��$#�1�# E�#"� ���� ����1� �! ���� �1����,�'��� ����� ��$##������1 �*��"�$� ��"����"�� ���1 �%���� !��1����#������ ���"! ��"��!"����� � �1�1 # ���������""! �%���"������$�$� ,��� � ����1�*���� ��$�� ���"��� � ����1�#$�$����� �����%�"��� �������$� ���"���*��! �������� !�"��"�) ���� ,��� ���!!�"�� # �������+���������"�� �� ���������E����� � ����$�������"�� �� ���� �������� �#$�$���$�� ��������1�������#������ �!"�� �,�

��� � ��� �� ������ ���� ����� ����� ����� ���� ��� �� � ����� ��� ����� �! ���"����� ��#

�4�(�� �1"1 ��)�5-

=������5H

Page 10: 7 - : 7B>-C>=?D6 =@ B · “While Meerut Expressway or NH 24/NH-9 has a segrega-tion problem across the Pandav Nagar in East Delhi, a Rail Over Bridge (RoB) over the EPE in Meerut

����������'�(����) '������ *+,�-+./ ������65

7������!!������������ ������������������������!���������������-������,�7��7�������.������������������7���������������������.�� ����������"������#��� ��������.��#�����������������������������#������������������������������!��������������G��������������%��!# �����������������������

&����!��������.����������������������������,���������.��������I����������<���#���������.����������� ������� ����,,,�8�����J�����������������* �����+�������

!�"������� �����������������.���#��������.����������

������������G 9��������#�&9�7��7 :

<�'�-!��!�"-���8??

����� ��������

Trai has asserted that itsrecommendation of allo-

cating the ‘backhaul’ spectrumbands without auction willhelp enhance mobile phonesignal carrying capacitybetween two towers, reduce calldrops and improve voice anddata quality.

The Telecom Commission(TC), the highest-decisionmaking body of the TelecomDepartment, is likely to meeton May 1 to decide on alloca-tion of spectrum in V-band andE-bands.

The Telecom RegulatoryAuthority of India (Trai), onwhose recommendation allo-cation of the highly valuablespectrum is done, said spec-trum in V-band and E-bandeven in the most advancedeconomies is done withoutauction as these airwaves areused as backhaul and not forcarrying access signals to con-sumers.

Reached for comments,Trai Chairman RS Sharma saidthe regulator had given its rec-ommendation on allocation ofspectrum in V and E bandsway back in August 2014 afterconsulting with all stakehold-ers.

While all airwaves used fortransmitting signals to mobilephones, called access spec-trum, is and will be auctioned,the backhaul spectrum for aug-menting signals betweenmobile towers is not, he said.

“The usage of backhaul isdifferent from the access.

Access is like a cloud… it isarea-wise, while backhaul isfrom point to point,” Sharmasaid, adding that backhaulspectrum of between 11 and 20GHz is, even today, given onadministered price only as itcannot be auctioned.

On the use of the contro-versial 'first-come, first-serve'(FCFS) method, which wasstruck down by the SupremeCourt in allocation of 2G spec-trum under the UPA-II regime,Sharma said there is a clear dif-ference between access spec-trum like 2G and the backhaulspectrum.

Backhaul spectrum “is aprerequisite for even offeringaccess” and its auction is “notpossible”.

“You can't auction theaccess (spectrum) unless yougive them promise to offerbackhaul, and backhaul cannotbe auctioned,” Sharma said.

“You cannot have auctionof backhaul spectrum, by itsvery nature. The nature is veryhigh attenuation in access whilebackhaul involves point-to-point pencil beams…these arethe reasons for not giving itthrough auction,” he added.

He further argued thatbackhaul radiowaves cannotbe used by any operator asaccess spectrum as this spec-trum has very low propagationproperty.

“That low propagation canbe used for wifi, so we have alsorecommended that V band

should be used in a geograph-ical mode for providing indoorand outdoor wifi. That is basi-cally free…We are talking ofmillions of wifi hotspots thatare being currently supportedon two key bands -- 2.4 and 5.8GHz… this will be an addi-tional resource available toanybody in the country whichcan actually use this spectrumfor providing wifi services,”Sharma noted.

Mobile towers typicallyshould be connected to fibreoptic but considering the rightof the way and other adminis-trative issues only 25 per centof the towers are connectedthrough fibre today. Therefore,to enhance connectivity tobackhaul, especially in the light

of exponential growth inmobile data traffic, backhaulspectrum is needed, he said.

“The current availablechannels for backhaul are notadequate, so we need to givemore spectrum which cancarry higher bandwidth andthey are called fibre-in-the-air,which means they can providehigh throughput pencil beams,”Sharma said.

Trai had recommendedthat there should be light touchregulation, like many othercounties in the world havedone. E band should becharged at Rs 10,000 perannum per link of 250Mhz andit has also prescribed a chargeof Rs 1,000 per annum per linkof 50Mhz each for V band car-riers.

“Even developed marketshave not done an auction ofthis spectrum in E and V bandbecause it is not feasible. Andwe said since the availability istoo high, it should be given onadministrative (cost route),”Sharma said, adding Trai hastherefore set per annum perlink cost for E and V bandspectrum.

Asked about the govern-ment stand post 2G scam thatall spectrum would be onlyauctioned henceforth, he said:“That is for government toanswer the question. But as faras we are concerned, our viewis that in this band, auction isjust not feasible… in this caseit is not feasible because of thenature of usage which is pointof point, this is not area spe-cific”.

����� ��������

The national telecom policyin works will focus on

complete transition of thecountry from physical to digi-tal infrastructure, with normsto push availability of highspeed and uninterruptedbroadband services in missionmode, according to govern-ment sources.

The Draft NationalTelecom Policy 2018, slated forrelease on May 1, is likely tocome up with framework forindigenisation of all the tech-nologies in the broadbandecosystem to be used in thecountry and create 40 lakh newjobs in the sector.

The policy in works is like-ly to propose higher weightageto products and equipmentsthat have been developed andmanufactured locally withintellectual property rightsresiding in India for public pro-curement purposes.

“The NTP 2018 is beingdrafted to implement DigitalIndia vision of the PrimeMinister (Narendra Modi) intotality. The policy will seemassive transition of the coun-try from use of physical infra-structure to digital. There isproposal to have NationalBroadband Mission (NBM)with objective to put India atpar with developed nation inICT development index,” anofficial source said.

India at present is ranked134th in information and

communications technology(ICT) development index.

“NBM will focus on pro-viding high speed broadbandconnectivity for all with massiveoptical fibre network across thecountry. All social economicinstitutions like police stations,hospitals, schools etc in ruralarea will be connected by gov-ernment under new NTP. Thepolicy is being designed toleverage potential of telecomsector as a key enabler for otherinfrastructure sector includinghealth, education, railways,roads etc,” the source said.

The officer added thatTelecom Minister Manoj Sinhawants roll out of 5G in coun-try at par with other countries.

“Therefore the NTP 2018 isproposed to have enablingguidelines to create entireecosystem to support 5G. NBMwill chart out roadmap todevelop uninterrupted broad-band service for mission criti-cal application like roboticsurgery in rural area. There willbe proposals to encourage useof big data, artificial intelli-

gence, machine-to-machinecommunication in the draft,”the source said.

The officer said that spec-trum harmonisation across sev-eral bands will be proposed fordeployment of wireless broad-band, and satellite connectivi-ty will be used for connectinglocations with tough terrains.

Globally commercial 5Gservices area expected to berolled out in countries likeSouth Korea and US by end of2019 or mid-2020.

“There will be focus onindigenisation of technologies.Phase ManufacturingProgramme will be extended fortelecom equipments and prod-ucts. Also, products having IPRresiding in India and manufac-tured indigenously after researchand development activity carriedout locally will be given weigh-tage,” the source said.

The NTP proposes tostrengthen public sector unitslike BSNL, MTNL, ITI, TCILby giving them larger role topay in achieving objectivesenvisaged under it.

“There are proposalsaround further enhancing ofease of business in the telecomsector,” the officer said withoutdisclosing further details.

Both Sinha and telecomsecretary Aruna Sundararajanhave said earlier that the gov-ernment will look at position-ing the telecom sector primar-ily as an enabler to boost theeconomy rather than a revenueearner under the new NTP.

New Delhi: The primary mar-ket emerged as a money spin-ner for investors in 2017-18,with 65 per cent of the newlylisted companies trading wellabove their issue prices, givingreturns of up to three times.

Out of 41 companies thatmade their debut in the past fis-cal, 27 are trading above theirissue prices fixed after theirIPOs. The remaining 14 firms,however, have failed to attractinvestors and are quoting belowtheir issue price, an analysis ofthe new entrants on the NSEshowed.

These 27 firms haverewarded investors with returnsin the range of 1-325 per cent,with six of them reaching over100 per cent till the last trad-ing date (April 27). PTI

����� ��������

Brushing aside concerns ofslowdown in the reforms

process ahead of elections,Economic Affairs SecretarySubhash Chandra Garg said thepace of reform is reasonablyintact and there are no signs of‘de-reform’ in the system.

“I would suggest still theprocess of reforms is continu-ing in reasonably major way. IfI can talk about sectors whichI directly deal with like port-folio investment, capital mar-kets, whether it is the assets cre-ation, all of those areas are stillseeing lot of reforms,” he toldin an interview.

Last week, the ReserveBank of India (RBI) in consul-tation with the governmentannounced a slew of measuresto raise exposure of ForeignPortfolio Investors (FPI) in G-Secs to 30 per cent from theearlier level of 20 per cent.

Besides, the RBI furtherliberalised ExternalCommercial Borrowing (ECB)norms by including more sec-tors in a bid to facilitate cheap-er access of overseas funds to

corporates. “The kind of major struc-

tural and fundamental reformsundertaken in the country sofar are truly global, they arereally big,” he said, givingexamples like the Goods and

Services Tax (GST) and theInsolvency and BankruptcyCode (IBC).

Consolidation process con-tinues, he said, pointing outthat GST stabilisation contin-ues and IBC is also stabilising.

“We need to respond to thechanges required...Changescoming in the GST... In IBCsome more measures beingtaken up.

“My judgement is that eventhough this is an election yearnow, the pace of reform both interms of consolidation as wellas continuing story is reason-ably intact,” he said.

Asked if the last year of thepresent government would haltthe pace of reform, Garg saidthere is no such sign.

“What you don't see are thekind of populist measureswhich you expect many gov-ernments to take in electionyear, if I can call them a kindof de-reform, de-reform is notat all in the system,” he said.

Garg further said India“deserves” a rating upgrade onthe strength of the major struc-tural and fundamental reformsundertaken by the government.

=����7�����+��������+9�����+�����������������

���������!����.���� ������"������<���������������� ��"����"����K�����L�&���������

#&�������/���������������������/���������������

����� ��������

Even as its revival options arebeing mulled, loss-making

MTNL, in a bold move, hasapproached the Governmentseeking allotment of 4G spec-trum in two bands and offeredits equity in return.

Mahanagar TelephoneNigam Ltd (MTNL) CMD P KPurwar said the firm has writ-ten to the Telecom Departmentseeking spectrum in the 1800and 2100 MHz bands to launch4G services in order tostrengthen its service portfolioin a fiercely-competitive tele-com market.

“To survive in the mobiletelephony market, 4G pres-ence is a must. MTNL has sub-mitted a proposal to theDepartment of Telecom (DoT)for allotment of 4G spectrumrecently,” Purwar told PTI.

The state-owned corpora-tion is seeking 4G radiowavesin both Delhi and Mumbai ser-vice areas (also called circles)where it operates.

“In the market, over 85 percent downloads are takingplace in data in 4G. In thiscompetitive landscape everysingle operator has to havepresence in 4G. To competeeffectively, MTNL also requires4G services in its portfolio,” hesaid.

MTNL is seeking 10MHzin Delhi in the 1800 band and5MHz in Mumbai in 2100band, and is keen to start its 4Gservices in the current financialyear.

The corporation currentlyhas spectrum in the 900, 1800and 2100 MHz bands, he said,adding that it has 2.2 MHz in1800 band and 5 MHz in 2100bands used for 3G services.

“We have said that gov-ernment has two roles -- one aslicensor and another as a pro-moter of MTNL. As a licensorthey are duty-bound to taketheir financial charges for allo-cation of spectrum. MTNLhas requested that paymentshould be taken by the gov-ernment in the form of equity.As per our initial assessment,the spectrum block shouldcost roughly �6,500 crore,”Purwar said.

MTNL, he added, is readyto issue equity shares to thegovernment as per market ratein lieu of spectrum allocated.This, he said, will ensure thatMTNL is not burdened withadditional debt.

The government currentlyholds 56 per cent stake inMTNL, while Life InsuranceCorporation has about 19 percent. The rest is with the pub-

lic.MTNL's debt stands at a

staggering �17,000 crore, andits annual interest burden isclose to �1,450 crore. Bruisedby a fierce competition fromprivate sector players, MTNL'slosses stood at �2,893 crore in2014-15, �2,005 crore in 2015-16, and �2,970 crore in 2016-17.

Telecom Minister ManojSinha, in a written reply to theLok Sabha in February, hadpointed out that both BSNL(Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd)and MTNL have been incur-ring losses for a number ofyears, and therefore, have beendeclared as incipient sick as perDepartment of PublicEnterprises (DPE) guidelines.

Sinha had also said thatthe revival plan of MTNL pre-pared by its consultant “isunder consideration” by DoT.

����� ��������

The country's largest car-maker Maruti Suzuki India

(MSI) aims to expand its salesnetwork, including dealershipsof its LCV Super Carry, by atleast 10 per cent this fiscal,according to a top companyofficial.

The company, which cur-rently has a network of around2,625 dealerships across thecountry, is also aiming for adouble digit growth in the cur-rent fiscal.

“We are continuouslyincreasing our sales network.This fiscal we plan to increasethe number of outlets by at least10 per cent,” MSI SeniorExecutive Director, Marketingand Sales, RS Kalsi told PTI.

The company addedaround 350 sales outlets in2017-18, he added.

The company would addoutlets under its various retailchannels like Nexa and Arena,besides enhancing the networkfor its light commercial vehicleSuper Carry, Kalsi said.

The company sold over

10,000 units of its LCV SuperCarry from over 100 outlets lastyear.

Kalsi said Super Carry saleswould be even better this fiscalwith network in place acrossthe country.

Commenting on the salesoutlook for the current fiscal,Kalsi said that with variousmacro economic factors in thepositive zone, the companyexpects to again achieve a dou-ble digit growth this fiscal.

“Macro economic factorsseem to be positive, GDPgrowth forecast is on the high-er side and there are expecta-tions of a good monsoon, so allthese factors will be contribut-ing positively towards the mar-ket sentiment and we are con-fident that we will be able to dodouble digit growth this fiscalas well,” he added.

The company sold a totalof 16,53,500 units in 2017-18,a growth of 14.5 per cent over2016-17.

On new product launcheshe said the company wouldintroduce 5 new products overthe next 2 years.

����� ��������

India has registered a 2.46 percent rise in crude steel pro-

duction to 26.363 milliontonnes (MT) in the last quar-ter of 2017-18, as per officialdata.

The country had produced25.729 MT during the January-March period of 2016-17, saidthe Joint Plant Committee(JPC).

In January 2018, India'scrude steel output stood at8.778 MT as against 8.811 MTduring the same month a yearago. In the following month, theproduction was at 8.506 MT,compared to 8.154 MT inFebruary 2017. During lastmonth, the output stood at9.079 MT, higher from 8.764

MT in the same month previ-ous fiscal, according to JPC data.

Empowered by Ministry ofSteel, Joint Plant Committee(JPC) is the only institutionwhich collects data on theIndian iron and steel industry.

India has set a productiontarget of 300 MT by the year2030.

In this regard, the Cabinetlast year approved the NationalSteel Policy (NSP) that aims toachieve steel making capacity of300 MT by 2030 with an addi-tional investment of Rs 10 lakhcrore. It also approved a poli-cy for providing preference todomestically manufacturediron and steel products in pro-curement by the governmentand its agencies.

India's production of hot

metal during January-March2017-18 grew by 3.27 per centto 17.047 MT from 16.506 MTin the year-ago quarter.

The output of pig iron fellby 6 per cent to 2.498 MT dur-ing the last quarter from 2.661MT in same period previousfiscal.

Pig iron is produced bysmelting iron ore in blast fur-naces or by smelting ilmenitein electric furnaces.

According to World SteelOrganisation (worldsteel),India outstripped Asian indus-trial giant Japan to become thesecond largest steel producer asits steel output grew 3.43 percent to 8.43 MT in Februaryagainst 8.29 MT of the latter.

China is the biggest ironore producer in the world.

����� ��������

Showing urgency in dealingwith absconding loan

defaulters, the government hascome out with series of rules tooperationalise the fugitive eco-nomic offenders law, for whichan ordinance was promulgatedby the President last week.

The Fugitive EconomicOffenders Ordinance, 2018, isaimed at deterring economicoffenders from evading theprocess of law by remainingoutside the jurisdiction ofIndian courts.

The law seeks to expediterecovery of losses incurred bybanks and other entities byconfiscating their properties.

The fugitive economicoffenders law comes in thebackdrop of alleged fraudsterslike Nirav Modi running awayfrom the country after cheatingPunjab National Bank to thetune of about USD 2 billion.

The notifications regardingrules, issued by the financeministry, spell out the processfor declaration of fugitive eco-nomic offender, issuance ofattachment order, and man-agement of confiscated prop-erties, among others.

As per one of the notifica-tions, only officers of the rank ofAssistant Directors or above inthe Enforcement Directoratecould exercise the power tosearch and seize record/proper-ty which may be useful for pro-ceedings under the fugitive law.

Special Directors ofEnforcement of ED's regionaloffices will function as admin-istrator of confiscated proper-ties, said another notification.

On management of con-fiscated property, the rules saidthat the administrator willarrange for the proper mainte-nance and custody of theimmovable properties.

In case, the property con-fiscated consists of cash, gov-ernment or other securities,

bullion, jewellery or other valu-ables, the administrator woulddeposit them for safe custodyin the nearest government trea-sury or a branch of the RBI orSBI or any authorised bank.

The ordinance, which gotnod of the President on April21, makes provisions for SpecialCourt under the Prevention ofMoney-laundering Act, 2002 todeclare a person as a FugitiveEconomic Offender.

“A Fugitive EconomicOffender is a person againstwhom an arrest warrant hasbeen issued in respect of ascheduled offence and whohas left India so as to avoidcriminal prosecution, or beingabroad, refuses to return toIndia to face criminal prose-cution,” said a finance ministrystatement.

However, only cases offrauds, cheque dishonour orloan default of over �200 crorewill come under this ordinance.

The Government expectsthe new law will help the banksand other financial institutionsto achieve higher recovery fromfinancial defaults committed byfugitive economic offenders,improving the financial healthof such institutions.

���������������������������������������/����/������������$

.&#4������/��������������������@�����/���

���0*�����+�����%@A� ����+��� �+��+ �*5����� �"�%B

6���<�� "����������"��"�� ����,@����,A�!�����?�&!

��������:����<���������&�D�@HI��/����������6�<�������������

��(����������'�(�'/��4���5.

����='4>��+5�(�����5�

�������05/�'� ������5��+����

(����5. ��(�'�(��5

'�(���J�5(�'��5..5'�0���5'�.5�5�/�(�5'(�=.�>��0%(�+(��5�?3���'+����.'5 ������'��'���/���5.

73���'�+���

&���������.����� ���������"������

�����������������.����

��������������������������!������

�� �����

&���?&�� �� ���������!����

����������������.��(�?�#��&?�#7&7#�&�7�����!�"��!��������!���������� �����������"��!

��-����"���"��!����������

Page 11: 7 - : 7B>-C>=?D6 =@ B · “While Meerut Expressway or NH 24/NH-9 has a segrega-tion problem across the Pandav Nagar in East Delhi, a Rail Over Bridge (RoB) over the EPE in Meerut

����������'�(����) '������ *+,�-+./ ������66

����� ��������

The Indian economy is wit-nessing a ‘cyclical upswing’

and the country is likely clocka GDP growth of 7.5 per centthis financial year, says aDeutsche Bank research report.

“Our current growth fore-cast for 2018-19 is 7.5 per cent(RBI estimate is 7.4 per cent),which will mark an improve-ment from the 6.7 per cent like-ly outturn in 2017-18,” theglobal financial services majorsaid.

The Reserve Bank expectsIndia's economic growth rate tostrengthen to 7.4 per cent in thecurrent fiscal, from 6.6 per centin 2017-18, on account ofrevival in investment activity.

The report, however, notedthat higher global oil prices,risk of an earlier than antici-pated rate hike cycle from theRBI and the potential negativeimpact of the banking sectorfrauds on credit and overallgrowth are some of the factorsthat pose downside risk to itsbaseline GDP estimate.

Brent crude prices are cur-rently hovering around USD 75a barrel, which is up 12 per centfrom end December 2017 lev-els.

According to the DeutscheBank research report, a USD 10increase in oil prices can shave

off growth by about 10 bpswhile other factors pose about15-20 bps additional downsiderisks.

Notwithstanding the factthat higher oil prices can poten-tially slow the pace of recovery,economic momentum will con-tinue to improve “sequentiallyin 2018-19 and beyond”, thereport noted.

“Capacity utilisation hasstarted to improve, whichshould incentivise private sec-tor capex recovery with a lag,GST collections have picked upthanks to the implementationof e-way bill, NPA resolution isunderway and the governmentis likely to remain focused onpushing infrastructure invest-ment, which should bode wellfor the growth outlook goingforward,” the report added.

����� ��������

Foreign investors have pulledout more than �15,500

crore from the Indian capitalmarkets so far this month dueto weak rupee, surge in globalcrude prices and uncertaintyover US-China trade relations.

This comes following aninflow of �11,654 crore inequities last month and anoutflow of over �9,000 crorefrom the debt markets.

Prior to that, foreign port-folio investors (FPIs) hadpulled out over �11,674 crorefrom the country's capital mar-kets (equity and debt) inFebruary.

According to the latestdepository data, FPIs with-drew a net sum of �5,552 crorefrom equities and another�10,036 crore from the debtmarkets during April 2-27,taking the total to �15,588crore (USD 2.4 billion).

Market experts believe thatweak rupee, uncertainty overglobal crude prices as well asUS-China trade relations haveaffected sentiment among for-eign investors.

“There is considerablevolatility in global markets onaccount of the ongoing tradenegotiations and firming up ofbond yields. Domestic politicaldevelopments, high valuationsand application of long term

capital gains tax on equitieshave further dampened senti-ment in India,” said AshishShanker, head investment advi-sory at Motilal Oswal PrivateWealth Management.

“This has led to FPIs with-drawing from equities in India.However, this is too short atime to arrive at a conclusionaround this. One will have towait and watch as to whetherthis trend sustains,” he added.

Ajay Bodke, CEO and chiefportfolio manager - PMS, atPrabhudas Lilladher, said theIndian equity market is in waitand watch mode as the fourthquarter earnings season startsand turbulence in global equi-ties leads to a cautionary stanceon emerging markets (Indiabeing no exception) on the partof FPI investor.

“However, strong revival incorporate earnings in 2018-19,strengthening industrial growthas evidenced in latest IIP num-bers, benign CPI print and accel-eration in aggregate demandafter overcoming the twin head-winds of demonetisation and rollout of GST will limit any down-side for Indian equities and leadto medium-term outperfor-mance vis-a-vis other emergingmarkets,” he added.

So far this year, FPIs haveput in �8,460 crore in equitiesand withdrew �10,810 crorefrom the debt markets.

����� +�����

Increase in investor aware-ness and confidence in

mutual funds have contributedto a 92 per cent rise in regis-trations of new SystematicInvestment Plan in the lastfinancial year, a top official ofCAMS Asset ManagementServices said.

A Systematic InvestmentPlan allows customers to investin mutual funds, creatingwealth over a long period oftime.

“Retail investors took toSIP route as the preferredoption, leading to 1.15 crorenew SIP registrations inFY2018, nearly 92 per centincrease over the previousyear,” city-based CAMS AssetManagement Services, DeputyCEO, Anuj Kumar, said.

“During the last threeyears, the Mutual Fund SIPgrowth has been noteworthy,”he said in an interaction.

Elaborating, Kumar saidmonthly SIPs contributiondoubled to over Rs 7,000 crorein March 2018 as against Rs3,000 crore registered in April2017.

“We also saw a healthypick-up in the ticket size fromabout �3,546 two years ago to�3,850 (currently),” he said.

The contribution to SIPfrom Tier II to III cities wasabout 45 per cent,offering ahuge market opportunity, hesaid.

About the reasons for therise in SIP registrations, theCAMS deputy CEO attrib-uted it to the increasinginvestor awareness and confi-dence in mutual funds.

“The mutual funds (indus-try), Association of MutualFund India and the interme-diaries have all contributed tobuild the awareness. SIP is asuperior way to get the bestreturns from the volatile equi-ty asset class,” he said.

����� � 4�

Morocco, which is plan-ning to set up a tourism

office in New Delhi in two-three months to tap the grow-ing market, expects to morethan double the tourist outflowfrom the country by 2019.

“We received 21,850Indians and people of Indianorigin in 2017. We expect tomore than double this numberby 2019. For this we are takinga number of steps,”Ambassador of the Kingdom ofMorocco Mohamed Maliki toldPTI here.

He said the first steptowards promotion of Moroccoas a desired tourist destinationfor Indians is to set up the afull-fledged Moroccan NationalTourism Office in New Delhi.

“We hope the office will beset up in 2-3 months. This willhelp us in planning variousstrategic promotional andawareness programmes to tapthe robust tourism sector inIndia,” he added.

The Kingdom of Morocco,in partnership with Cox andKings Global Services (CKGS),is also setting up 12 visa appli-cation centres in India, ofwhich nine are already opera-tional.

Currently, there are visaapplication centres in Delhi,Mumbai, Chennai, KolkataAhmedabad, Pune, Goa,Indore and Bengaluru.

CKGS is set to open a newMorocco Visa Application andInformation Centre (MVAIC)in Hyderabad in June 2018.

This, he said, will encour-age more and more Indians toconsider travelling to the NorthAfrican country.

“Foreseeing the growth inthe number of Indians travel-ling to Morocco, we needed tocreate a seamless experience forIndian travellers in applying forvisas.

“The Embassy of theKingdom of Morocco is glad toentrust the responsibility toCKGS by appointing them asour representatives to open

visa application centres inIndia,” he added.

Maliki further said the tiesbetween Morocco and India goback over several centuriesand both the counties haveenjoyed cordial relations overthe years.

The Indian governmentand Morocco have agreed on anewly revised air service agree-ment which will have a positiveimpact on facilitating and boost-ing tourist movement betweenthe two countries, he added.

Currently, there arenumerous connecting flightsfrom India to Morocco via theMiddle East or Europe.

Morocco is witnessinggrowing interest in Bollywood,wedding, meetings, incentives,conferences, events (MICE)segments, he said.

“We are eyeing people ofall purse strings as we have allrange of hotels and activities.We have the lowest visa fees(about Rs 3,000 per person) inthe world which is refundableif it is not issued,” he added.

����� 4��0��5'�

Honda Cars India, the wholly ownedarm of Japan's auto major Honda, is

betting on its three new models to belaunched this fiscal to beat the marketgrowth.

The company, which posted 8 per centgrowth in 2017-18 with 1,70,026 units, willbe launching the all-new version of itscompact sedan Amaze next month to kickstart its product offensive for the year.

The company had sold 1,57,313 unitsin 2016-17.

“We have lined up three new modelsfor this fiscal. We are very much geared upand determined to beat the market growthin terms of our sales plans for this fiscal,”Honda Cars India (HCIL) Senior Vice-President and Director Sales, Rajesh Goel

told PTI here.Later in the second half of the year, the

company will launch the all-new versionof its premium SUV CR-V and the Civicsedan which will make a comeback in Indiawith the 10th generation of the model.

Commenting on the upcoming all-new Amaze which will hit the market nextmonth, Goel said, “As far as Amaze is con-cerned, we believe that it'll do better thanthe first generation”.

The first generation Amaze launchedin 2013 had a cumulative sales of over 2.5lakh units.

The new generation of Amaze is on acompletely new platform developed basi-cally for the Indian market, he added.

“This will be a game changer for boost-ing our sales and enhancing technologythat we offer in our products,” Goel said.

The compact sedan, which will beavailable in both petrol and diesel options,will be the first model in Honda's portfo-lio globally to have CVT automatic trans-mission in diesel option.

HCIL had already opened bookingsfor the sedan and the company is “seriouslyconsidering” offering introductory pricefor the first 20,000 customers, he said.

When asked if the all-new Amaze willbe exported, Goel said, “My anticipationbased on the almost overwhelming book-ings of the new Amaze, we would have ourhands full with the domestic market.

“But in terms of exports we have beenhistorically exporting to neighbouringcountries and South Africa and somecountries around South Africa. Dependingon demand from the markets there wewould be open to the markets there.”

����� ��������

Several leading foreign bro-kerages have evinced inter-

est in setting up operations ininternational financial servicescentre (IFSC) at Gift City,stock exchange officials said.

However, none of themhave so far received marketsregulator Sebi's go-ahead, theyadded.

India InternationalExchange (INX), a subsidiaryof BSE, has started operationsin January last year. TheNational Stock Exchangelaunched its own operationfive months later.

These exchanges allowsforeign investors to trade usingdollars in Indian equity and

commodity derivatives.Besides, they provide com-

petitive advantage in terms oftax structure and supportiveregulatory framework. Theseinclude benefits in securitytransaction tax, commoditytransaction tax, dividend dis-tribution tax and long-termcapital gain tax waivers and noincome tax.

According to a senior offi-cial of stock exchange, manyforeign brokerages have showninterest to participate in IFSC,however, the Securities andExchange Board of India (Sebi)has not given approval to a sin-gle overseas brokerage.

Currently, close to 50Indian stock brokers are tradingon these exchanges and around

100 have already received “No-objection” certificate from themarkets regulator.

A senior official of a for-eign brokerage houses saidthat they are interested in set-ting-up shops in the countrybut there are lack of clarity overregulatory front.

He further said Sebi hasallowed registered as well asnon-registered foreign portfo-lio investors FPIs to trade inIFSCs under eligible foreigninvestor (EFI) category, how-ever, it is not possible practically.

In case EFIs try to opentheir account with a bank thathas its operations in Gift(Gujarat International FinanceTech) City, they are unable todo the same as RBI guidelines

do not allow them to open anaccount for trading purposes,he added.

Some of the market par-ticipants believe that interna-tional brokerages are in 'waitand watch' mode due to theupcoming general election asthey want to see if there is con-sistency on the policy and reg-ulatory fronts before investingin the country.

The Gift City, establishedin Gujarat, has been set-upwith the idea of India's answerto Hong Kong or Singapore orDubai, wherein foreigninvestors can transact Indiansecurities with minimal taxand bureaucracy, and fordomestic companies to raisefunding in foreign currencies.

����� ��������

Consumers in India areincreasingly becoming

receptive to technology-basedexperiences and showing apreference for automation andnon-human interactions withbrands, says a study.

According to Adobe'sExperience Index 2018, con-sumer expectation scores inIndia barely cross 50 per cent,indicating significant room forbrands to improve customerexperiences.

“The country's digitalnative population has higherstandards for their experienceswith brands than others. Whileolder Indian consumers areincreasingly relying on digitaltechnology to cut down ontime wasted on daily tasks,”said Mickey Mericle, VicePresident, Marketing &Customer Insights, Adobe.

The study noted that con-sumers in India are mostimpressed by new innovationsthat help them interact with a

brand, and are open to busi-nesses implementing new waysto automate such interactions.

As per the study, customerservice and lack of informationfrom businesses are still someof the biggest pain-points forconsumers. However, millen-nials are more likely to vocalisenegative experiences with abrand than older consumers,

who may have given up onexpecting anything more.

Interestingly, in the agegroup of over 50 years, 94 percent of respondents wereextremely positive about tech-nology's role in improving thequality of life, implying that asconsumers in India age, theyappreciate technology more.

The index found thatIndia's millennials are moreinterested in personalised ser-vices and fully automated inter-actions, owing to greater appre-ciation for saving time.

“Lower than other agegroups, only 45 per cent of peo-ple over 50 indicated a prefer-ence for human interactions.Clearly, brands need to recog-nise that consumers in Indiadon't see human interaction asa necessary component to agood experience, especially asthey age. Across all age groups,what stands out in theExperience Index 2018 is thepropensity of Indian con-sumers for all things automat-ed,” Mericle said.

����� ��������

After fetching USD 1.6 billion to its kitty,the Government is eying more than

USD 2 billion by placing two more bun-dles of road projects under hammer nextmonth, a top official has said.

“We will be bringing the next twotranches of highway projects for moneti-sation under TOT (toll, operate and trans-fer) in May,” NHAI Chairman DeepakKumar told PTI.

Kumar said about 18 to 20 highwayprojects will be auctioned under TOT nextmonth in two tranches that are expectedto fetch over USD 2 billion.

“For the entire year, we have fixed atarget of about four tranches,” he added.

The first bundle for monetisation,released by NHAI in October 2017 covered9 stretches — five highways running acrossAndhra Pradesh and four in Gujarat.

An official had earlier said detailedproject reports (DPRs) are being formu-lated for about 25 more highway projects.

To make the projects more lucrative,the government is assessing the asset con-dition through drone videos and networksurvey vehicles and will provide detaileddatabase to the investors.

On a cumulative basis about about1,000 km will be bid out in the second andthird tranches in May, while the govenr-ment has plans to put the remaining about640 km in the fourth tranche likely in Juneor July.

The projects to be auctioned, the offi-cials said, are scattered in nine states.Highway stretches in Odisha and WestBengal are being prepared to be placedunder auction in the second tranche, fol-

lowed by stretches in Rajasthan, Gujarat,Tamil Nadu and Telangana in third phase.

The fourth tranche projects will befrom Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand.

Road Transport and HighwaysMinister Nitin Gadkari had said earlier thatgovernment will monetise 105 highwayprojects in phases that could fetch aboutRs 1.5 trillion.

The Cabinet in 2016 had authorisedNHAI to monetise public funded NationalHighway projects. 75 operational NHprojects completed under public fundinghad been identified for potential moneti-sation, using the TOT Model.

TOT model in India has been devel-oped to encourage private participation inthe highways sector.

The TOT model has the concession-aire paying a one-time concession fee

upfront (lump sum), which then enablesthe concessionaire to operate and toll theproject stretch for the pre-determined 30year concession period. This model isapplicable to EPC and BOT (Annuity)highway projects, which have completedat least 2 years since date of completion.

The model, as per officials, addressesthe risks associated with such a long con-cession contract and there are multipleprovisions in the model concession agree-ment, which are designed to take care ofeventualities like roadway expansion, hightoll traffic variation etc to ensure that con-cessionaires are not exposed to undue risks.

As per the Economic Survey, India willneed about USD 4.5 trillion in the next 25years for infrastructure development, ofwhich it will be able to garner only aboutUSD 3.9 trillion.

5�������+��������(�+����;��������������� ����������������-1)

������ � 4�

Healthy earnings in thefourth quarter of 2017-18

lifted the benchmark equityindices during the week endedFriday.

Indices logged gains infour of the five trading sessionsas both — the S&P BSE Sensexand the NSE Nifty50 — settledat their highest closing levels inover three months.

On a weekly basis, thebarometer 30-scrip SensitiveIndex (Sensex) of the BSE roseby 554.12 points or 1.61 percent to close at 34,969.70points.

The wider Nifty50 of theNational Stock Exchange(NSE) closed trade at 10,692.30points — up 128.25 points or1.21 per cent from its previousweek's close.

“Markets surged higherextending winning streak tofifth consecutive week on pos-itive sentiment...,” said PrateekJain, Director, Hem Securities.

“Good roll-over of long-position in the May Series ofderivative contract, continuousbuying by domestic institu-tional investors also boostedsentiment,” Jain told IANS.

Rahul Sharma, SeniorResearch Analyst at Equity99said: “Better than expectedquarterly earnings led the rallyin the April series. Traders pre-ferred to ignore major on-going concerns like risingcrude oil prices, rising bondyields and weaker rupee.”

According to DKAggarwal, Chairman and MDof SMC Investments andAdvisors, the stock marketsremained volatile amid corpo-rate earnings and ahead of itsexpiry of April futures andoptions contracts.

“As expected, the EuropeanCentral Bank left interest ratesand its bond-buying programunchanged after a meetingThursday. Keeping inflationtarget at close to two percent,Bank of Japan (BoJ) left mon-etary policy unchanged,”Aggarwal told IANS.

On the currency front, therupee weakened by 54 paise toclose at 66.67 against the dol-lar from its previous week'sclose at 66.13.

Aggarwal further said:“Domestic currency continuedto get hammered, and is head-ed for its third straight week oflosses as outflows increasefrom stock market and bondsamid rising US yields.”

On the investment front,provisional figures from thestock exchanges showed thatforeign institutional investorssold scrips worth Rs 3,060.41crore, while the domestic insti-tutional investors purchasedstocks worth Rs 2,649.61 croreduring the week.

Figures from the NationalSecurities Depository (NSDL)revealed that foreign portfolioinvestors (FPIs) divested equi-ties worth Rs 1,028.83 crore, or$155.20 million, during April23-27.

������ ��������

Expressing surprise over theFortis Healthcare Board's

decision to allow a re-bid toacquire a stake in the compa-ny, two earlier joint bidders saidon Sunday that equal oppor-tunity should be given to allbidders in the auction.

Sunil Kant Munjal-ledHero Enterprise Investmentand the Burmans of DaburGroup had earlier made thejoint bid for a stake in FortisHealthcare.

Fortis on Saturday saidthat its board will meet on May10 to consider recommenda-tions by its expert advisorycommittee (EAC) set up toevaluate all binding proposalsfor fund infusion.

“With regard to Fortis, wehad assumed that the finalbids have been submitted andonly review to choose the bestoffer was pending. We were abit surprised to learn thateveryone has one more chanceto bid/re-bid,” said a state-ment issued by the Munjals andBurmans after the board meet-ing on the Fortis bid.

“We still welcome theboard move. However, westrongly believe that thereshould be equal opportunity toall bidders without unfairadvantage to any one party,” itsaid.

In a stock exchange filingon Saturday, Fortis had said:“The EAC will only considerevaluating all binding bids(whether current or improvised

or modified or new) receivedby the company till noon (IST)on May 1.”

“In line with the obliga-tions towards Manipal andTPG consortium, if any new ormodified binding bids arereceived anytime till noon onMay 1; Manipal and TPG con-sortium have the ability torevise their offer till May 6.”

Earlier this month, Fortisannounced that it had receivedan improved binding offerfrom Hero EnterpriseInvestment Office and BurmanFamily Office to invest Rs1,500 crore directly in thecompany.

“Our offer is already withthe company; it's the best onewhich is in the larger interestof Fortis Healthcare, and allthose connected with the com-pany's ecosystem,” the Munjalsand Burmans said.

Besides, Fortis alsoreceived offers for infusion offunds from other suitors suchas Fosun Health Holdings,IHH Healthcare Berhad,Manipal Hospital Enterprisesand Radiant Life Care.

������ �������/��/ A7B��/���$����2>CD��%����/���6��

"�#+�5�*����5�C�=�D�� � �,������0��������/8�2 �� ��*�����5��

��;����>���������������� �����>����������������

!"�2�� �>" ������ ��"������ �"����������.� ����(���� �

2�����3� ���������/��������������������������2��

E� ����� �+�� �&� �5�����+�*����*������*�,��5*��� �# ����*��+���+��

� ��(��� 1�������"���$!�G7Q����.928R�+� (��� �� ���1 # ��

.����+�������� ������������+���������������������;�������� ���

.��//����� ��������3���������������������������3��8ECD

�����B������-��<��������� ���� ���7�"��������������(��������/���%�� ���������������������-����������������.����

:���������������

��������!��������J

� ��������7����3564#��������� ����������������7���������������A5

�������#���������!

�!��������������������������� ��"�������

�� �������

&���9���"��(��.�� ����7����J���������!�����������������!�������E,>� ��������������������������#�����@,@� ����������356E<64#���

������������"�"�������"������

����"���

Page 12: 7 - : 7B>-C>=?D6 =@ B · “While Meerut Expressway or NH 24/NH-9 has a segrega-tion problem across the Pandav Nagar in East Delhi, a Rail Over Bridge (RoB) over the EPE in Meerut

����������'�(����) '������ *+,�-+./ ������63

&9�&&7?%&9�&&7?%%��( �

B��77����������:&��������7�����6�7���7�����$ ' �9 ���� �*�����������"���1 � ������� ������ �! "!� � ���������� �"�� ������������*��)$� �,��$��"���� ����*���"� ���� ���"���� ��"��(��$���*���("$����"����1 � �������$�������"���# �,�5�����������*����������������������������$�������� � !�"�"$�� ��� �������� ��� � ,��� �"�� ��! "!� �����$���1��������� � ���� ���"��� ���"�!������������������"�����"�,�

�����������<���������67������&�E,����J�!9 �����( �$���*+"$������ � 1���"����������� ����4��1��� ����"�������'"���1*�� �$1 ���#!����������$����� �������������"����"��������,��� �������"# ���#����� �� ��* �� !�������"��"���"# �M�33�333'"���1*�� $���#�� �$1 ����"��� ���"�4��1��� �����"#� *��#����"� ���! �#������*%� ����"� �� ,��� �� �#����� ������� ��"�������"���"�+"&A��4�K���"��($���*,�

7��������K�6�����������:����ABC����������&�'��#�9 (������������ ��� �� ������!����(���� ���1���� ��#� ��*��"�P?7�!���"� ���"�($���*������ ��"��/ ����� ������� � ���� ���*��� �4$������������ ��"$���*�����!"� �#���� � �����"��($���*,�� !���# ���"�����"���(!"� �#�����$�����!$�� ��*���"���$���� � ���1 ��*��� ��� ��� ���1���� ��#� ��*��"���� �!���"� ���"����� ��"��#��"��"�� �� �,�� ��!"� �#���������� *�� � � ������7G�!���"�������� ��"$���*,

����� (�5��

North Korea promised toclose its atomic test site

next month and invite USweapons experts to the coun-try, Seoul said on Sunday, as USPresident Donald Trumpexpressed optimism aboutsecuring a Nuclear deal withthe secretive regime.

The reported pledge fromKim Jong Un follows weeks ofwhirlwind diplomacy that sawthe leaders of North and SouthKorea agree to pursue thecomplete denuclearisation ofthe Korean peninsula during ahistoric summit between Kimand the South’s PresidentMoon Jae-in on Friday.

“Kim said, during thesummit with President Moon,that he would carry out theclosing of the Nuclear test sitein May, and would soon inviteexperts of South Korea and theUS as well as journalists to dis-close the process to the inter-national community withtransparency,” Seoul’s presi-dential spokesman YoonYoung-chan said.

“Kim said the US feelsrepulsive about us, but once wetalk, they will realise that I amnot a person who will fire aNuclear weapon to the South orthe US or target the US,”according to Yoon.

“If we meet often (with theUS), build trust, end the warand eventually are promised noinvasion, why would we livewith the Nuclear weapons?

The remarks are likely to beseen as a sweetener ahead ofTrump’s own planned summitwith Kim, which the US leadersaid would take place “in thenext three or four weeks”.

Trump vowed to do “theworld a big favour” by achiev-ing a Nuclear deal with theregime at a campaign-stylerally in Michigan to cheers andchants of “Nobel! Nobel!”.

Trump has been eager toplay up his role in achievinga breakthrough withPyongyang through what theWhite House has called a“Maximum PressureCampaign” consisting oftough rhetoric, strengthenedglobal sanctions and diplo-matic efforts to further isolatethe authoritarian regime.

“If we would have saidwhere we are today from threeor four months — monthsago, do you remember whatthey were saying? ‘He’s going to

get us into nuclear war, theysaid,” Trump told supporters inWashington Township, northof Detroit.

He added: “No, strength isgoing to keep us out of nuclearwar, not going to get us in!” Buthe also sounded a note of cau-tion, saying he was prepared towalk away if US demands forNorth Korea to relinquish itsatomic arsenal were not met.

His remarks came asextracts from an interview withhis new Secretary of State MikePompeo were released.

Washington’s chief diplo-mat told ABC News he had a“good conversation” with Kimduring his secret visit toPyongyang over the Easterweekend, adding that the NorthKorean leader was “preparedto... Lay out a map that wouldhelp us achieve” denuclearisa-tion. Trump held phone callson Saturday with both Moonand Japan’s Prime MinisterShinzo Abe, declaring “thingsare going very well”, as CBSNews reported that Mongoliaand Singapore are the final twosites under consideration forhis meeting with Kim.

It was unclear whetherNorth Korea would host USexperts at its Punggye-ri under-ground testing site before orafter the summit.

Kim slammed speculationduring his meeting with Moonthat the test site was alreadyunusable after Pyongyang con-ducted its largest ever nucleartest there last September.

����� ��(��0�5�

The US has an “obligation” topursue a diplomatic solu-

tion with North Korea and finda peaceful solution so thatAmericans aren’t held at risk byits leader Kim Jong-un and hisnuclear arsenal, US Secretary ofState Mike Pompeo said onSunday.

The Secretary of State whotill last week was the CIADirector had quietly travelledto North Korea early thismonth and had a meeting withKim. “I was there (in NorthKorea) on a mission. I was aim-ing to achieve the goals that thepresident set forward to me, itbecame clear that I was goingto get the chance to meet withKim Jong-un to discuss someof the details, but most impor-tantly to take a read on whetherthere was an opportunity herefor our two countries to achievethis,” Pompeo was quoted assaying by ABC News

“We have a mission set, wehave an obligation to engage indiplomatic discourse to tryand find a peaceful solution sothat Americans aren’t held atrisk by Kim Jong-un and hisnuclear arsenal. That’s the mis-sion. That’s the goal. Only time

will tell if we’re going to be ableto achieve it,” said Pompeo.

Responding to a question,Pompeo said that anytime oneget a chance to meet face-to-face with someone, one gets abetter read about what they’rethinking, whether they’re real-ly prepared to do somethingthat is historic and different.

“We have got a long histo-ry of negotiating with NorthKorea. Repeatedly, they havetaken actions only to find thatthose promises proved false orunworthy or they were inca-pable of achieving them. Mygoal was to try and identify ifthere was a real opportunitythere. I believe there is. Whoknows how the ultimate dis-cussions will go,” he said

Pompeo hoped that theproposed meeting betweenTrump and Kim Jong un couldbe achieved. “I talked about get-ting the release of the Americandetainees. Then we talked agreat deal about what it mightlook like, what this complete,verifiable, irreversible mecha-nism might look like,” he said.“When the two leaders, theonly people that can make thosedecisions, will be in a roomtogether, they can set the course,they can chart the outcome.

�'�%���(������������" �"��������������"��������%/� �%�*� � �����������

���� '9���

US Secretary of State MikePompeo is using the West

Asia leg of his first trip abroadas America’s top diplomat tocall for concerted internation-al action to punish Iran for itsmissile programmes.

He’s also urging SaudiArabia and its neighbours toresolve a long-festering disputewith Qatar that US officials sayIran is exploiting to boost itsinfluence in the region, includ-ing in Yemen and Syria.

Pompeo met on Sundaywith Saudi King Salman, whosecountry, along with Bahrain,Egypt and the United ArabEmirates, is embroiled in a rowwith Qatar that had hobbledGulf Arab unity and frustratedthe US as it seeks to bluntgrowing Iranian assertiveness.

The ex-CIA chief hadarrived in Riyadh a day earli-er, shortly after Iranian-backedHouthi rebels in Yemen firedmissiles at Saudi Arabia’s south-ern city of Jizan, killing oneperson and underscoring whatUS officials said is a growingthreat emanating from Iran.

Senior US officials travel-

ing with Pompeo blamed Iranfor smuggling the missiles intoYemen.

They said the incidenthighlighted the importance ofthe Trump administration’spush to counter Iran in theregion. Iran has also providedcrucial support to SyrianPresident Bashar Assad.

“Iran destabilizes this entireregion,” Pompeo said in briefremarks to journalists withSaudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir, taking no questions.

While not mentioningQatar by name, Pompeo alsostressed that Gulf unity was“essential.” Al-Jubeir said thekingdom “supports the policyof the Trump administrationagainst Iran and to improve theterms of the nuclear agreementwith Iran.”

Senior US officials, whowere not authorized to previewPompeo’s discussions with theSaudi leadership and spoke oncondition of anonymity, said hewould make it clear to theSaudis that the dispute withQatar must end.

Mediation efforts led byKuwait and supported by theUS, including former Secretary

of State Rex Tillerson, whoTrump fired last month, haveproven unsuccessful.

The split gives Iran “roomto play” and hampers cooper-ation on a wide array of otherissues, including combattingviolent extremism from theIslamic State and other groups,the officials said.

The officials said Pompeowould call on other nations toimpose tougher sanctionsagainst Iranian individuals,businesses and governmentagencies involved in missiledevelopment. They said he’dalso stress the US commitmentto the defense of Saudi Arabia,Israel and other friends andpartners in the region. Pompeowill also press the Saudis oncontributing more to stabiliza-tion efforts in territory in Syriarecently liberated from theIslamic State group, the officialssaid.

Pompeo’s meetings inSaudi Arabia, which will be fol-lowed by discussions in Israeland Jordan, come just weeksahead of several key dates thatcould bring further volatility tothe region.

������"����������3�"���� �������������"������������ ����� �'�+�

Two terrorists who had beensentenced to death in a ter-

ror attack case were acquittedon Sunday by a Pakistani anti-terrorism court in anotherattack on a private school in2013 in Karachi.

The judge acquitted SaadAziz alias Tin Tin and TahirHussain Minhas alias Saeen in acase in which they were accusedof throwing hand grenades at aschool in North Nazimabadhere in March, 2013.

Saad and Tahir who werestudents at a prestigious uni-versity here have already beensentenced to death in theSafoora case when they werefound guilty of being part of aneight-member gang whichstormed a passenger bus inSafoora Goth on May 13, 2015,and gunned down 46 membersof the minority Shia Ismailicommunity including women.

The two death row convictsand three other members oftheir group have appealedagainst their death sentences inthe Supreme Court.

The judge said the prose-cution had failed to provebeyond a reasonable doubtthat the two were also involvedin the school bombing.

�� ��������������$��������/+��������/���������/ �/���

����� (�� �4��

Pakistan is set to launch anambitious space pro-

gramme during the next fiscalyear with an aim to keep aneye on the Indian side andreduce its dependence on for-eign satellites for civil and mil-itary purposes, according to amedia report.

Several projects will be ini-tiated to develop self-reliancecapacity and reduce depen-dence on foreign satellites,mainly the US and Frenchsatellites for civil and militarycommunications.

The Budget of the Spaceand Upper AtmosphereResearch Organisation(Suparco) for the upcoming fis-cal year 2018-19 is �4.70 billionwhich includes �2.55 billion forthree new projects, Dawn Newsreported. Suparco has beenregularly conducting activitieseach year to increase awarenessof space technology and to pro-mote its peaceful usageamongst students and themasses in Pakistan since 2005.

The funding includes allo-cation of �1.35 billion forPakistan Multi-Mission

Satellite (PakSat- MM1) andthe country is also planning toestablish Pakistan Space Centrein Karachi, Lahore andIslamabad with the allocationof Rs 1 billion.

The third project is estab-lishment of Space ApplicationResearch Centre in Karachiwith the budget of Rs 200 mil-lion in 2018-19, the reportsaid. The total cost of PakSat-MM1 is �27.57 billion andthat of the space centres is�26.91 billion, it added.

Advanced space pro-gramme is the need of time notonly due to growing demandfrom the civil communica-tions, including the GPS,mobile telephony and the inter-net but due to changing sce-nario in the region also, ana-lysts have said.

“There are two unusualdevelopments in the regioneffecting the strategic situation- first of all Pakistan has to keepan eye on Indian side and pre-viously their programme hadlimited quality advancementsbut now the US has activecooperation with the Indiansatellite programme,” MariaSultan, a defence analyst said.

�� ������������/�����/������������ �����������������������������

����� �5��5�I��(��0�5�

US President DonaldTrump has renewed his

criticism of the new USembassy here, describing thesouth London location as“lousy” and “horrible”, threemonths after the mission wasthrown open to public.

In January, Trump can-celled a “working visit” to theUK planned to officially launchthe new US embassy inVauxhall, blaming a “bad deal”struck by the previous Obama-administration to relocate thebase from central London to an“off location”.

He had criticised the deci-sion to move the embassyfrom Grosvenor Square inthe posh Mayfair area of thecity to Nine Elms, south of the Thames, in a $1.2 bil-lion project.

The President describedthe south London location as“lousy” and “horrible”, BBCsaid in a report.

Trump is scheduled to visitthe UK in July.

Speaking at a rally inMichigan, the president said:“In the UK, in London, we hadthe best site in all of London.The best site.

“Well, some genius said:‘We’re gonna sell the site and

then we’re going to take themoney and build a newembassy’”.

“That sounds good right,but you’ve got to have moneyleft over if you do that, right?By the way, they wanted me tocut the ribbon on the embassy(in January) and I said: ‘I’m notgoing. I don’t wanna do it’”,BBC quoted Trump as saying.

The building on theMayfair site was never ownedoutright by the United States.It owned a 999-year leasehold,but the freehold is owned byGrosvenor Estates, the reportsaid.

The new embassy inVauxhall was opened onJanuary 16. It cost $1 billion(730 million pound) and holds800 members of staff.

Trump said he thought —but would have to check — thatofficials sold the previous sitefor $250 million (181 millionpounds), the report added.

� "������ �������������'��(�������7����� ����� ����

Philippine President RodrigoDuterte on Sunday said the

temporary ban on Filipinosgoing to work in Kuwait is nowpermanent, intensifying adiplomatic standoff over thetreatment of migrant workersin the Gulf nation.

Duterte in Februaryimposed a prohibition onworkers heading to Kuwait fol-lowing the murder of a Filipinamaid whose body was foundstuffed in a freezer in theGulf state.

The crisis deepened afterKuwaiti authorities last weekordered Manila’s envoy to leavethe country over videos ofPhilippine embassy staff help-ing workers in Kuwait fleeallegedly abusive employers.

The two nations had beennegotiating a labour deal thatPhilippine officials said couldresult in the lifting of the banbut the recent escalation intensions has put an agree-ment in doubt.

“The ban stays perma-nently. There will be no morerecruitment for especiallydomestic helpers. No more,”Duterte told reporters in hishometown in the southern cityof Davao.

Around 2,62,000 Filipinoswork in Kuwait, nearly 60 per-cent of them domestic workers,according to the Philippines’foreign department.

Last week the Philippinesapologised over the rescuevideos but Kuwaiti officialsannounced they were expellingManila’s ambassador and recall-ing their own envoy from theSoutheast Asian nation.

Duterte on Sundaydescribed the situation inKuwait as a “calamity”.

He said he would bringhome Filipina maids who suf-fered abuse as he appealed toworkers who wanted to stay inthe oil-rich state.

“I would like to address totheir patriotism: come home.

No matter how poor we are, wewill survive. The economy isdoing good and we are short ofour workers,” he said.

About 10 million Filipinoswork abroad to seek high-pay-ing jobs they were unable tofind at home, and their remit-tances are a major pillar of thePhilippine economy.

Duterte said workersreturning from Kuwait couldfind employment as Englishteachers in China, citingimproved ties with Beijing.

Describing China as a “truefriend”, he said he would useChinese aid to fund the work-ers’ repatriation.

Duterte added that he wasnot after “vengeance” againstKuwait and did not “nurturehate”.

“But if my people are con-sidered a burden to some ofthem, to some Governmentmandated to protect them anduphold their rights, then wewill do our part,” he said.

������� �+$��0*��*����+405��*�5������ �3����� � *$

Colombo: The new Cabinet ofSri Lanka’s unity Governmentwill be sworn in on Tuesday,President Maithripala Sirisenaannounced on Sunday, weeksafter he had suspendedParliament in the backdrop ofthe ongoing political turmoil inthe country.

The unity Government ofthe Sri Lanka Freedom Party(SLFP) and the United NationalParty (UNP) was thrown into acrisis after former presidentMahinda Rajapaksa’s new partypulled off a stunning victory inFebruary’s local elections seen asa referendum on the rulingalliance.

Early this month, Sirisenawas forced to face a vote of noconfidence in Parliamentmoved by the Joint Oppositionwhich has the backing ofRajapaksa.

Wickremesinghe won thevote convincingly even aftersome of the unity Government’sSirisena loyalists voted for hisouster — among them were sixMinisters of the Cabinet.Wickremesinghe’s party urgedthat those who voted againsthim need sacking from theGovernment. Acting ministers

were appointed to cover for sixof them after they resigned.

Sirisena, on April 12, madethe decision to prorogueParliament by virtue of thepowers vested in him by Article70 of the Constitution.

A group of 16 Sirisena loy-alists is to sit in Parliament asa separate opposition group.

Buoyed by the positiveoutcome of the local polls, theRajapaksa camp now pushesfor a snap parliamentary elec-tion ahead of the scheduledAugust 2020. However the nextelection due is the presidentialelection which must be calledby November 2019.

The country had plungedinto a political crisis after theunity Government’s parties lostthe local council elections to Raj-apaksa’s Sri Lanka People’s Front.

Sirisena immediately urgedthe resignation ofWickremesinghe but he resist-ed. Sirisena in 2015 quit thethen Rajapaksa government tojoin hands withWickremesinghe, the thenmain opposition leader, todefeat Rajapaksa in the presi-dential election ending hisnearly 10-year rule. PTI

����4���(��9(��' ������9,����'�����4���5� 5'�'�+'�� ����.5'

�(��+���9�5 �(�+������'(,�5� 5'�R�����'��

����� 4�'��

Rare clashes broke outSunday between Syrian

regime forces and a US-backedalliance in the east of the coun-try, killing six alliance fighters,the Syrian Observatory forHuman Rights monitor said.

State news agency SANAsaid the Army seized control offour villages from the US-backed Syrian DemocraticForces in Deir Ezzor province,where the Kurdish-led alliancehas been fighting the IslamicState jihadist group.

The SDF and Russian-backed Syrian Governmentforces are conducting parallelbut separate offensives againstIS in the oil-rich province.

But both sides have large-ly avoided running into eachother and a deconfliction lineexists to avoid such incidents.

The Kurdish-led alliance ispresent on the eastern side ofthe Euphrates River that cutsacross Deir Ezzor province,while regime forces hold terri-tory on the river’s westernbank, including the provincialcapital of the same name.

Incidents between bothsides have occurred in thepast, but Observatory headRami Abdel Rahman said itwas the first time the regimehad launched an operation toseize territory from the SDF.

“The regime’s aim is to pro-tect Deir Ezzor city by pushingback SDF fighters from theeastern bank” of the Euphrates,

Abdel Rahman said. SDFspokesman Mustefa Balireported “exchange of gun-fire” between both sides.

“The Syrian regime armyalong with its militias started toattack our forces in Deir Ezzorcountryside along theEuphrates River,” the alliancesaid in a statement.

In February, the US-ledcoalition backing the SDF car-ried out air strikes in DeirEzzor province that killed atleast 100 pro-regime fighters.

Washington said the strikeswere in retaliation for an attackon its own personnel and SDFforces.

In September last year, theSDF accused Russia of killingone of its fighters in strikes ona gas facility newly retakenfrom IS. IS jihadists have lostmost of the self-proclaimed“caliphate” they once con-trolled in large parts of Syriaand neighbouring Iraq since2014.

Today, the jihadists holdless than four percent of Syria,the Observatory says.

This includes desert pock-ets in Deir Ezzor provinceand parts of southernDamascus where they areunder attack by regime forces.

More than 3,50,000 peoplehave been killed in Syria’s warsince it started in 2011 with abrutal crackdown on anti-Government protests.

It has since spiralled into acomplex conflict involvingworld powers and jihadists.

'� �� ����� ��'&(����� ��������������%��

����� �4��

Afghanistan is airdroppingleaflets as it steps up efforts

to boost the low number ofvoter registrations for upcom-ing legislative elections, amidconcerns that a poor turnoutwill undermine the credibilityof the poll.

A series of attacks on voterregistration centres across thewar-torn country, including asuicide bomb in Kabul a weekago, has deterred manyAfghans from signing up toparticipate in the October 20ballot. Just over 650,000 adultshad registered by Saturday, afortnight after the two-monthlong process began, data com-piled by the IndependentElection Commission (IEC)showed. The IEC, which isoverseeing preparations for thelong-delayed parliamentaryand district council vote, hopesto register up to 14 millionadults at more than 7,000polling centres.

But if the current trendwere to continue, fewer thanthree million people would beregistered by the mid-Junedeadline.

“We are concerned aboutthe low turnout,” IECspokesman Shafi Jalali toldAFP on Sunday, adding theprocess may be extended to liftnumbers.

1�������������������� ���;���������������������������������

��?�����������&����������.�;��������;������������+������

8�+��������������������������������������������� (�5��

North Korean leader KimJong Un is ready for dia-

logue with Japan “any time”,Seoul’s presidential office saidon Sunday, as concerns grow inTokyo that it is being sidelinedfrom the reconciliation drivewith Pyongyang.

Kim met South KoreanPresident Moon Jae-in for ahistoric summit on Friday atthe border truce village ofPanmunjom — becoming thefirst leader from the North toset foot in the South after the1950-53 Korean War.

The summit — only thethird-ever between the leadersof the two neighbours — cameahead of Kim’s planned meet-ing with US President DonaldTrump after months of tensionssparked by North Korea’snuclear and long-range missiletests last year.

Japan — a key US ally inAsia — has long maintained ahardline position on negotia-tions with Pyongyang, but hasfound itself left on the sidelinesof the recent whirlwind diplo-matic activity.

Hawkish Japanese PrimeMinister Shinzo Abe had ear-lier informed Seoul of hisintention for talks with theNorth — a message Moon

relayed at Friday’s summit withKim, the South Korean presi-dent’s spokesman said.

“President Moon told Kimthat Prime Minister Abe had anintention talk to the Northand... Normalise diplomaticties between the North andJapan,” Kim Eui-kyeom toldreporters.

“And Kim said that theNorth was willing to talk toJapan any time,” he said, addingthat Moon told Abe about theNorth Korean leader’s responsein a phone conversationSunday morning.

Abe said Tokyo would seekto create “an opportunity to talkto the North”, with Moon’shelp if necessary, and theSouth’s leader said he would be“happy to build a bridge”between the two nations,according to the spokesmanKim. The Japanese premierhad cautiously welcomed theinter-Korea summit but urgedPyongyang to take “concreteaction” toward nuclear disar-mament.

Tokyo had also earliercalled for Seoul to address atthe inter-Korea summit theissue of Japanese citizens kid-napped by the North — amajor domestic issue in Japan— but Moon’s office did notmention the topic on Sunday.

4���5�� ,�*��*���*�.��� �3� �*���$F����0

Page 13: 7 - : 7B>-C>=?D6 =@ B · “While Meerut Expressway or NH 24/NH-9 has a segrega-tion problem across the Pandav Nagar in East Delhi, a Rail Over Bridge (RoB) over the EPE in Meerut

� ���� �������������������'���"��<�&:�����7����"���1 ����1�$!��"���� � � �� �"�������"���%�"#��1����#�%��&!�"�$� ���*�����;"����������������� ���##�� �����"� �������"#�*"$����*��L�� �#�"��"����"��� B,L��� ������ ��"�"����������#=�����;"���>,�� ��*"$�1 ����"!!"��$���*�"��"������1""����#����� �%��&���� �! �����*��""���*"$���"���� �� ��"��"�������1""����##�� ����� ������1��"��"�������*"$,�� ���� 1"������#�K��1� �!"�� ,�������*�� �1"���"# ����1��"$���?3�#����"��� ����"���� �� �� �����������"��*��������� ����1����������� ��(������"$!� �"��"�� ��"$���� ������ ��,���������� ���*�! �����#"# ����"��# B,

����������&�&�������������������� �!��*��1����� �%�"��$"����'()�����*��,���"����1��"��"$�� ���� ��$"���"������"$��""�� ����"���� � ������ ��� ��"$� ,�� �0$)��������"��"��� ����""�� �������� �"$� ,�L� �0$)�����E���"�E����� �� �������"��� ����1��""�� ������� ��� ��"$� ,�("������ ��� #��"��"��� �����*��""�� ���B��*���# ���(�$���,

����������'�(����) '������ *+,�-+./ "�"������6=

$�����!����������J

$7��������.���� �������������������������� ������������������!�!�������������#

.���B��,�&���������������,0�������������������!����������-����!����� ������������������� ,������������������������������#����������.����� ���������������!�����'G���� &�;8��

(��1 ���77:�&7����� ��*�� ����$1�� ��'�� ����������L�"��*B������� ����� �����1��"����� �� ����� %* ��%"��,�� �?H%* ��%"���#$������������'�� �� �����"�!$���� ����1%���� ���"$%��� �"��� ����"%* ��%"����"�� ��' #��1�"����$��� �*"$�1 ��"� �����"������� ����1����1����,L(� �='�� �>��"� ��#*����� ���"$�������#*���� ����# ���������������� ��E�������� ��������� E����� ���� ���"�������$�����1E,=�� �>�� E���!$���' #*�"���������������� � ��"�E����1$� ����"$����� ��"������� �������1������"��� ���"���� �1�"$��F�L� ������)$����$���"�!$����� ������E#���� ��E����FE� ������ ���� ���E0����� E��1"���1 ��"�� ������� E��1"���������!$����1�����������"��1���$���E������� ����*����������� ���"�� ����� ��������!! � �,��E������� ���� "����� ��������$!��"��*"$�� �������"�E���$���! "!� ,B

�What is the overarchingtheme for this year’s editionof Kala Yatra, considering itis also your 75th birthday?

Kala Yatra means a jour-ney of the arts that never ends.Last year, my dance founda-tion completed over 40 yearsin Indian classical arts. It wasthen that we decided to do ashow every year, to keep theflow going. This edition isspecial because it’s my 75thbirthday and my centre wasestablished and registered onthis day. There are many per-sonal milestones that havebeen woven together.

And all this is because ofthe grace of Ma, the shakti.The theme is Devi, whoresides within us. Did youknow that our chief guest isalways Goddess KamakhyaDevi? The priest of the shak-ti peeth comes with a chadar,which we place on the chairand then begin the proceed-ings. Students will then per-form a dance drama based onthe Devi shree stuti.

�You have representedwomen’s issues through yourperformances. Now whenthere is so much talk aboutwomen’s empowerment,how is contemporary reali-ty being reflected in yourwork?

I remember doing panchkanya, a series on women ofcontemporary relevance. Ihad presented Bhikaiji Camaas part of it. Though there isa road named after her inDelhi, few know of her, won-dering whether she is a manor a woman. A philanthropistand freedom fighter, she notonly crusaded for humanrights, equality and freedomfrom Britain but also raised anawareness about gender par-ity and justice. In 1907, sheattended the second SocialistCongress at Stuttgart,Germany, where she unfurledwhat she called the “Flag ofIndian Independence,” andwhich later became one of thetemplates of our national flag.Yet her spirit has a contempo-rary resonance. My aim hasalways been to connect withthe audience throughmetaphors and stories that arerelatable in the current con-text. The symbolism is in ourchoice of stories and interpre-tative performances.

Having said that, we areinvoking the Devi Mahatma,which in Sanskrit means agender-neutral magnanimity,high-mindedness and majestyof the soul. She is presentedas the soul, as the power toknow, the power to will andthe power to act. She is con-sciousness of all living beings,she is intelligence, she is mat-ter and she is all that is formor emotion. The navarasas tointerpret it came to my mindyears ago. Now I have trans-lated the Sanskrit lines intoHindi which go somethinglike this: “I am a woman, god-dess, wife, mother and the

slayer of the evil and I will nottolerate any nonsensewhether it be my father, hus-band or son.” This justamazed me; our ancestorshave given us the answers andit is sad to see that we disre-gard a study of our culturaltexts labelling it as revision-ism.

�The metaphors in thePuranas are timeless in theirappeal. How do we dissem-inate our traditional cul-tural knowledge systemswithout making it a subjectof political debate?

You’ve hit the nail on thehead. You see, there is a lot ofnoise and buzz of the socialmedia; the mad cacophonydulls your brain so much thatyou are as good as anunthinking creature. Themore platforms for informa-tion, there is a flood of opin-ions and viewpoints, all ofwhich are boxed in ratherthan being processed. Thegentler way of communica-tion is lost. As artistes, we stillbelieve strong messages canbe conveyed through danceand music. Arts is anuntouched space becausethere is no agenda beyondpresenting beauty, harmonyand a universal balance.

I would like to say at thispoint more and more peopleare agreeing with me thatthere’s a disturbing imbalancebetween masculinity andfemininity. There seems to bea very masculine atmosphereprevailing where few womenare ministers and governorsand only considered in termsof statistics. Achievementsare still minuscule consider-ing that overall, the positionof women has actually gonedown, the injustices againstthem have become fiercer. Yetwomen are the ones who arecontinuing the cultures.

I think there is a deficit ofbasic respect, affection andregard for humankind. Still, Iwouldn’t say mankind isbeyond rescue. My thinkingis different from the Westerntemplate. In my civilisation,everyone is equal and bal-anced. Sati and Shiva, Radhaand Krishna exist on equalterms. There is a balance ofprakriti and purush, not agame of one-upmanship.Maryada plays a vital role in

art and culture. You cannotcross it on the grounds of free-dom of expression.

� I think you said some-where that Krishna begs forRadha’s love and that shecounter-balances the mascu-line order of our divine trin-ity.

Yes, I was speaking in thecontext of the Gita Govinda.We are reading but not under-standing these texts which laydown the grounds for equal-ity pretty strongly. I always tellhusbands and would-be hus-bands in my audience to takenote of the harmony thatboth men and women cancreate. It is for this reason thatI do not like the term women’sempowerment, as if it is grantof a largesse. I find it verypatronising. Is it a donationfrom someone? Like dayakar ke chalo inko empowerkaro. Women don’t needempowerment, it is the menwho need to empower theirthinking and awaken tothings as they are meant to be.

�Why does this civilisation-al reality not get translatedinto other forms of popularcommunication?

That’s because nobodywants us to share these beliefsand ideas on accessible medialike TV. They have boxed mein as a dancer and don’t thinkthat I’m worthy of making asocial comment. But in my 75years, I have experienced asociety in transition. So thearts and performances are theonly voice I have.

The media is so strongtoday that it dominates everyfacet of an average individ-ual’s life. It has an outreachthat is unimaginable. A lot ofpeople tell me that we love tohear you talk. We learn somuch more. Sometimes youare disheartened. I am proudof my country but some-times, even while I was grow-ing up, it seemed meaninglessto give back. Because youcan’t stand for those whoneed it and even if you domanage to stand forthem, it doesn’tlast. I have neverseen so muchaggression as I donow. Be it about asocial issue or some-thing as

mundane as parking yourcar rightly in the parkingbay. I have been drivingsince 1965 and yettoday I encounter

young drivers who insinuatethat I don’t know how tomanoeuver. Every man, irre-spective of where he comesfrom, feels entitled to labeland judge women.

I have been living alonein Delhi since decades but Ihave started feeling scared inthe last three years. Becausewe have an army of literateswithout the real educationthat comes from social evolu-tion, understanding or tem-pering.

When you get out ofyour house and look at peo-ple on the pavements androads, their eyes are like glass.They do not move away andlook at you like you are theone out-of-place. Some seemto say, “You bloody driveyour car, I will walk on theroad itself.” They are notbothered and usually pluggedinto their earphones, existingin an alternate universe. Ioften say that this technolog-ical addiction, the demise ofcommon sense and sensibil-ity due to the overuse ofmobiles and smart devices are

dehumanising us and dead-ening our possibilities. Thereis a self-culture promoted bytechnology that makes oneimmune to the needs andfeelings of others. And thatscares me.

�Talking about the continu-ity of classical disciplines, doyou think the younger gen-eration can take it forwardwith as much passion asyours?

We all have to try. Andhaving worked with SPIC-MACAY in the early years, Ican say this that there is nodearth of intent or talent. Butthey want fast results and arenot patient about the pursuit.That’s a problem that is com-mon to all disciplines. Takethe case of Jahanvi here. (Herstudent joins the conversa-tion).

Jahnvi: As guruji says, mygeneration wants instantresults. And to fill up thespaces between abhyas, sheteaches us other things, helpsus become a better version ofourselves. She will tell yougeneral things like how weshould walk on the street, bealert and aware of our sur-roundings, not use phonescallously and not to talk to

strangers. Being with her is alesson in personality develop-ment. She is with us in ourups and downs.

Sonal: The media isclearly failing in its socialresponsibility. So what can anindividual do? I have eventried social media but a dis-cussion about artforms doesnot get hits and perishes in theface of banal and self-indul-gent posts of Bollywoodsuperstars. Even when itcomes to performance videos,classical dances do not makeit to the top of the list onyoutube. And you cannotrefresh videos of dance movesevery day. TV still can giveyou that space for the arts butapart from the public broad-caster Doordarshan, no pri-vate channel wants to devotetime slots for cultural content,fearing they won’t get TRPs.Perhaps they should consid-er promoting it as part ofCSR. Television talk showsrevolve around Bollywoodor cricket celebrities and isnever about men of letters orartistes. Had they kept a bal-ance from Day 1, the audiencewould have grown on a dietof some sane voices. Thoda sato socho. Don’t be blind.

���������� �:�-���

Actor Pulkit Samrat is honest to him-self. Which is why despite a string

of failures and somewhat pyrrhic suc-cesses of the Fukrey franchise, he keepsgoing. “Success doesn’t go to my headand failure never reaches my heart. Ijust want to keep doing my best in eachand every project.” Right now he ishopeful about Fukrey 3. “Filmmakersare working on the content. CurrentlyI am shooting for two other films andwaiting for the respective announce-ments to be made by the producers”, hetells us during a brand launch.

Pulkit does not endorse a brand forpromotions but actually believes in itwith his heart. He uses a lot of khakiduring summers with kurtis, sherwanis,blazers, jackets, shirts and trousers asthe fabric is extremely comfortable and

cool. Calling khaki anintegral part of men’swardrobes, he says,“The smart casual col-lection can be worn atwork and while travel-ling. Khaki goes withevery colour and car-ries an edge whichmakes an individuallook sharp and focussed.Comfort, ease and lightnessare the USP. Khaki is one ofthe few alluring materials thatcan be worn for a festive occa-sion or during some qualitytime with friends. It goes wellwith pre and post weddingcelebrations.”

The actor also had a fewsummer tips: “Hydrate your-self and eat a lot of season-al fruits like watermelons,melons and berries.”

���������� �:�-���

�%�����������������(� ��$����MC��"��*��$���������!��1���*������ ���� �����28����������$�����*���"#�� ���"# ��"�4��1��"� ��"����� ��!����"������ ������ ,��� ��� �# ������ $� �(5��� ��(�0������ ��� � �� �+"�"�*��"# ���� �����$�*!"���1�"� ����������"���������"��� ����1���"���"��1����"�� � ���� ��� � ��������# ���"��� ������ ����� #*,�� ����� �����"$��#�� ��"� ��"������������D�! ��"���������������!�*������������ ��!����$��,�� ���� ����� ��� ������������� ��� ����$�����1����� � �����1��� �� � �1*���� ���"$������ ���� ���1,�(� ��" ��A��� �� � �����""���1�����O���� ������������ 1��� ����"������*��1��"�����1 ��� ��"������"$���� �,��&� �!�����"#�� ���"�� �����"�������'�� 0�5(�

$&���"��������.������"��"�

�����(�����������

����.��������������������"�����������������������������,���������.� ���������������/���6#����

��������������"��!������������������������"����'

'"���������������������%��������" ������ � �%�����%� � ������� ���7*6�'�!;��4�>���#�! B6B�

�F4-�&�-00����&��5F#%0%�'�&;�-;�-�

1�5-1��%01@0�

%���-�����-�����$����������$����������#��������������������

��3�3���� �������� ��������$���3���

����������������$� �:�/ ��

���$�����/����������������������������

��:���� ������/���$������������������$� ��������������/ �����$���������GG���������������

&�����������������

���������$$���������������$$�����

3���GG����33������������������������������33����������$$���//���������������/������������

���

� ��1� ����<�� 1�� �� &"�������� ����� ������

Page 14: 7 - : 7B>-C>=?D6 =@ B · “While Meerut Expressway or NH 24/NH-9 has a segrega-tion problem across the Pandav Nagar in East Delhi, a Rail Over Bridge (RoB) over the EPE in Meerut

�!"0)���!���0""0��%0)5-"�.!�"�!&

8��������������"�������!������������G�?�����)��

&!%�1&.!-!&�.!�"0�"��!�.0�� 0! &0�"!�'�)�8������ ����*�"��� ����� � � ���� ����� ���1�� ���� � ����"����!�� �� �#����*%��!!��1� ����"$������� $�"�"1����� ��$����"���� ���*���"� �� ��������"$����"# �� *���"�� �!��1��� �� �������� �����1$ ,(��""��"���$����1�����������!�"� ��"��J��"! �1�;�����!�����!������ ���1��"��;���1�"�1���$������ ����*�"�� ���*��������� ����� � �� ������� �� ����"����!� �� ���� !������"1����"�,�L��*��# ���!!��1���-$�� ��"���"� ����������� ����� ��(��� �,���� �� ���$��$� ���� �#"�"!�������� !�!��� �������"���� � ���#��� ��"��������#��$����"��B�;������,�L��+��������# �"����!!��1�����$�������"��� �!"��%�$������� �$� ��"�#��*���$��������"���� ����1��������$� ����������""��,B;�� &!���� ��������� � ���"� �� ����#�*� &! �� �� �#!��� ��� $�"�"1����� ��$����"�,

�������������� ���� �����!�%-A�'!�.-)&'�0��"1""&0B�� ��*"$�1������� ��� ��! ����$� ����#���� *�"�� ������ ��"������ 1�� �,�4$����*��"������ ������� F���� ��("����� � �"!# �����$�*�� � �������� � ���� �������� ������"��� ���# ���"���������1� ���"����� *������ ���"$�����"� �� � ������� �*�� ��$� ��������1�#�*�� �����*��"������� ���"� ��"�� ��"�#��"��"�� ���������$��� �!#���������""! ����"�,��� �� � ������� ���� ����1���"���*�*"$�1������� ������� ��������� ������� ##�,L+����� �E���������1����"�� ���� � ��������$�� ������ � ����"$�,�4$������ ����$�� ���"# �����$#����� ���������1��������"�� �� ����� ��� �� ������������ �� �"1��� ��#!"�������"������"�#������������� *���� �"$1����"$����"� ��"�#���"���*�����#�� ��$� �����"�� ����"��"���� #����� ��,�����������"���"�# ��"�� # ������1 � ����*�� �������!"����� ��"�� ,

��� ������� ������ �� ������"� ��������"�"����� �1���#�*���� �� ��� ��"�����#"$���"�����"�"�����������"��$# �����"����1��"�����$�*�!$����� ������� �)"$������ ������*��"�"1*,����"�"������� �������� ����1���$� �"����� �� ����!� #��$� �� �����"�������� �������1�"����*,�' �$���1�"��$#!��"��"�����"�"�������!$����� �����!��"���*����#��*��"$���� �,�L."��"� ����� �1������"�"��!�"�$�����"� �$� ��"��$#!��"����"��$# �������� ���"�� � ����� #����!��� �"�� -$���"�$# ��"����1� ����� �1���!�"�$����B��*����� ������/����) ������"#��� ���� ����*�"��+�#����1 ,�L��� ����1��"� ����� �1������"�"�#�*��"$������ ���1""���� �������� ��"$��1 ��! "!� ��"����������������$��"$����$�*��$11 �������#�*�!����"&�����*� ��"$��1 ! "!� ��"�������#"� �B���*����"� ��"���� � ��� ��� �$�� ��"���$��"��������� ��"��"���� �4 ����"$������� ����' � ���������,

���"����1��"�� ��� � ������"� � ��"# ������!"�*�*�����"���*��*���"# �=�+5(>�#�*�� ���� ��"�#!�"� ��� ���� �����"$��""���������!�����$����* �)"*��� ��"�#�"���� ��!*R�� 1$����� ���"���������"��$�,��� �� � ������"$���������"����1�������"���$�� � ������# ��! ��� ���"����"�#"������ �$�������#!�"� ��# ��$� ��"������"����$����� ������ � �����������1 �������������$ ����"�� ���#!�"� # ����$11 ���� �"����� �$� �������"����� � ��"��"�� ��# ���"������"�� ��,��+5(����������� ���"� ����23��"# ��"�������� ����1��1 ��������"#!� & ��"���� ����"�� ��"�� ��#��� ���*����"�#��# ����$����*�� �����1��� ��"�� �"� �� � ��������*���"�#���"��"���� �"���� �,���������"���� ��������� ������*���"�1���������� �� �������"��"� ���*�������� � �,�� ��� &!"�$� ���$� ���� ��"�*��"����� �� !�"� ������"������� �����"���!�"� ���,�

����������'�(����) '������ *+,�-+./

We all dream of a betterworld where there is

peace, happiness and har-mony. However, when welook at the present worldscenario, we come to theconclusion that certainthings have gone wrongand we feel that somethingis definitely amiss. We inferthat there have occurredsome lapses on our part thathave led us to our presentstate of increasing mess. Itis either our ignorance ofthe principles of happy liv-ing that holds us away fromour cherished goals or it isa willful violation of certainbasic laws of life and livingin a society that has led intothis sorry state of affairs.Else, how would we explainwhy we are sinking everdeeper into the marshlandof poverty and pollution orinto the morass of corrup-tion and crime? Inspite of achievingthe highest-everlevel of scientificand technologicaldevelopment, yet agood percentage ofour people are stillliving in a state oftrauma, tension, aturmoil of poverty,squalor and disease. Realhappiness has only illusoryexistence in our life anddeep and lasting peace hasbecome a thing of the hoarypast which finds mention insome of our legends onlyand in tales of yore.

Our managerial skillshave become so sophisticat-ed that we can runmega-industries and multi-national corporations andyet we are unable to manageourselves, as a result, we findour families and our societycontinuously struggling fortheir existence. We cancommand very large armiesand administer vast popu-lace in ever-expanding citiesbecause our administrativeskills have now attained astate of the art and yet wecannot control our senseorgans, our volitions andimpulses and organise ourown mind. Billions of ourpeople live on alcohol, nar-cotics, sleeping pills, pallia-tives or pain-killers.

We have achieved agreat fund of knowledgeand learnt methods ofhuman resource develop-ment and yet we find thatthere is a steep downfall incivil life and deterioration inhuman relations and thereis only make-believe loveand showy cooperation withexpectations of return. Inshort, there is increasingenvironmental deteriora-tion, economic stagnationin advanced countries andunemployment, inflationand misery in less devel-oped countries, hunger andmalnutrition in many partsof the world and urbandeterioration and crime rise

everywhere. The media andthe investigating agenciesare daily uncovering mind-boggling cases of corrup-tion. Do these things notpoint in the direction ofeither our ignorance of basiclaws of happy living or tosuch actions on our partthat contradict certainessential principles of life?Else, how can we explainour present predicament?

It should not be difficultto understand that there arecertain laws that governour mutual relationships orhuman behaviour in gener-al. These are known asmoral laws or ethical prin-ciples. Based on these, arecertain norms, codes ofconduct or rules and regu-lations to be followed in lifein an organised society. If wefollow these laws, the qual-ity and quantity of happi-ness in our life is enhancedand if we violate these, thenwe have to face so manyproblems and disturbances.The observance of thesemoral norms is of greatvalue if we wish to be happywith ourselves and wish tobuild a society which isfree from friction in humanrelations and tensions inday-to-day life. These are,

therefore, calledvalues. Our presentsorry state is theresult of neglect orviolation of thosevalues. We havegradually lost thehuman aspect ofour life and havebecome more orless like machines,

as a result of which there isno spirit of friendship, fel-low-feeling and love in ourlife.

Our knowledge of sci-ence, technology, commu-nication skills, managerialskills, et al has not been ableto bring inner happinessbecause our level of honesty,sincerity, cordiality, fellow-feeling, fair dealing duty, dis-cipline and mutual trustare fast falling. In otherwords, there has been arapid erosion of social,moral and family values. Itis not that science and tech-nology or managementskills have caused our pre-sent sufferings. On the otherhand, it is a fall in the stan-dards of morality that hasprevented even science andtechnology and manage-ment or administrative abil-ity also from giving us theirfull fruits. Moreover, it is notthat people do not knowthat moral values are neces-sary to build a happy andpeaceful society. Peoplewish to have moral qualitiesin their life but they do nothave that spiritual knowl-edge that should enablethem to follow successfullythese values in their life nordo they know that kind ofmeditation which shouldmake the values stay inthem and should give thema deep experience of peaceand happiness. Thus, needof the hour is that we createa mass awareness amongpeople for values like toler-ance, humility, mutualrespect in order to realiseour dream of a world wherethere is peace, happinessand harmony.

' �����!!�� ������"��*����$�"�*� &��� �� ���"$����� ������ !����������1�! �� ����� �"# �������1�"���� �"��*�!�������*�'�;950 4'�� �� �'���; ;

"�"������0��%�$"&1�6>

"��#�����$���%&����� �"�!�"

$ ������(���� ��� ��

��� ���*�� #������ �� ��"���������� � ��� �� �!! ����1�����$�����"��' �� ���������� �������"��$#��1�!�"� ����$!!� # ���������# ����#�*� �#"� � �� ���� ����!�"#"���1�� �1����"���"�������"��$#��1��$!!� # ����� �� ��# ��������$�����"��"���1���� ������� �������1�� 1�# �,���"� ���$!!� # ������ ��������� ���� ��*%�"%�������!"�� � ������"�����"�#������� �#��� � ���"����� � ���"$��"# ���$������ �1���1������ �1����"������� �1���#���1 # ��,���"� ���$!!� # ����� ��1� ���"��$1# ���� �1���1����"��$!!"���� �1�����������*��� �!�"#"� ���"��"��$#!��"��� �� ��# ���,���"� ���$!!� # ���� ��� �������# ����"�����# ��� !��� # ������ �"�� ��� �"## �� ���"���1 ���"���"�!�"#"� �� �1����"��,��� �� �$���!�"��� ��"� �����"�#���"�,�

In today’s busy life when women have dualresponsibility of taking care of home and their

career, it has become difficult for them to takeout time for themselves.

Deep breathing for five minutes: It’s basicpranayam and one can do this while driving acar or travelling to office. Try to breath in freshair rather than sitting in office and doing thisexercise. This will energise the aura and makean individual feel rejuvenated while taking offthe negativity from the mind. After performingdeep breathing exercises, there is a sense of calm-ness and a relaxed state of mind. Deep breath-ing can release stress and one can see noticeablehealth benefits. It treats anxiety disorders, sleepproblems and general body aches and pains.

Use lavender : If you are having disturbedsleep and feel restless at night, put a few dropsof lavender essential oil on the pillow.

The fragrance of lavender will help one relaxand sleep comfortably so that they wake up freshto face another hectic day. It also improves mem-ory, mood and overall cognitive function.Studies have shown that the consuming the pur-ple flower as tea can help digestive issues suchas vomiting, nausea, intestinal gas, upset stom-ach and abdominal swelling. Lavender hasshown promising results to alleviate premenstru-al emotional symptoms.

Place Amethyst ball at your working table:Semi precious crystal amethyst has positive vibra-tions to create balance and harmony. Place aAmethyst ball at your working table to have asmooth and balanced work at your office.

Mudra for low energy: A short cut to solvethe low energy issue is an easy hand mudra whichwill help you regain energy. Touch both hand’smiddle fingers with your thumbs, keep the eyesclosed and breathe deeply for 3-5 minutes. Youwill see a remarkable difference in your energylevels. Mudras have the potential to curb vari-ous disorders that are caused by day-to-day stress

in the fast paced life, we are living in.

Cinnamon for weight loss: If you are upsetwith excess weight and not finding time for workouts or yoga, cinnamon can help you.

Keep some pieces of cinnamon in your bag,and keep chewing them 4-5 times a day. It willtake care of your false hunger pangs and sugarcravings. With time, one will start losing weight.Cinnamon can be consumed with juices, proteinshakes, smoothies, coffee, oatmeal and Indiancuisine.

Get enough sleep: One can’t cheat on theirsleep cycle and not have it affect their life. Beingtired actually makes it harder to be happy. Lackof sleep means that one is more likely to get sick.Getting good sleep improves decision making.Lack of sleep can make one more likely to behaveunethically and get irritated, frustrated or angryeasily.

Power naps are great too. They tend toincrease alertness and performance on the job,enhance learning ability and can make one getrid of negative emotions while enhancing posi-tive ones.

Laughter: People who use humour to copewith work-related stress have better immune sys-tems, reduced risk of heart attack and stroke,experience less pain during dental work and livelonger according to studies.

Laughter should be like a daily vitamin andis the cheapest therapy. Just reminiscing aboutfunny moments can improve your performanceat work. Humour has many benefits indeed.

Optimism: Optimism can make one health-ier, happier and extend their life. The army teach-es it in order to increase mental toughness in sol-diers. Being confident and optimistic improveswork life.

So dear newgen woman, follow these smalltips to keep your mind , body and heart healthyand peaceful.

(The author is a mind, body and soul expert)

Preschool is the first placein a child’s life where s/heis away from parental care

and comfort for the very firsttime. It is where children learnto explore their senses, interactwith peers and start gainingvaluable life lessons. Preschoolsplay an important role in earlychildhood development andhelps in the process of buildinga strong foundation for therest of their lives. From devel-oping a positive learning atti-tude to helping them read,write, speak and comprehend,preschools give children a goodhead-start for lifelong learning.The training that children gainin a preschool becomes thefoundation for their growthand success.

In traditional preschools,the teacher-pupil ratio is about1:25 and the curriculum iswell-structured. The child isguided through various con-cepts, which are explained bythe teacher. There is, however,little support for sensory devel-opment. As a result, the childmay face difficulties in compre-hending lessons and may geteasily distracted. This is a major

pitfall of our structured learn-ing approach.

Nurturing the social andemotional development inchildren is just as impor-tant for their overalldevelopment as well ascognitive development.New-age preschools areaware of the evolvingneeds of today’s younglearners and are trans-forming educationthrough innovation toensure holistic growth of thetiny tots. To improve the over-all learning and development ofthe wards, parents can imple-ment a few activities.

Teaching through play-activity boxes: Apart from toys,children should be given edu-cational activity boxes to playwith. These play-based educa-tional activities enable kids tocreate new things, find differ-ent ways of solving challengesand learn their lessons by per-forming certain tasks. Thisform of unstructured play andexperiential learning, designedto enrich and stimulate youngminds, promotes early child-

hood devel-opment in a fun and engagingmanner.

Teaching through anexternal environment:Learning shouldn’t be confinedwithin the four walls of a class-room. It should be linked to thereal world in a way that allowschildren to grasp their lessonsbetter. Infusing real-worldlearning or organising fieldtrips with nature can help sparkstudents’ interest and makethem more involved in their

academic endeavours.Some lessons — likethose about animals,birds, colours, vegeta-bles are best taughtoutside the school tocultivate curiosity andinterest amongst stu-dents.

Building EQ asimportant as IQ:

Emotional Quotient (EQ) isthe ability to recognise, under-stand and manage emotions.According to studies, poor EQskills can result in aggression,anxiety, depression and pooracademic performance.

Therefore, while teacherstake lessons to developIntelligence Quotient (IQ), theyshould also give adequateimportance to EQ, as it allowschildren to manage their emo-tions and improves education-al outcomes, while reducinganxiety and behavioural prob-lems.

DIYs for kids: From mak-

ing paper dolls to turning oldbottles into toy cars or makingkaleidoscopes, children shouldbe given the opportunity tounleash their creative energies.They should be given simplematerials to produce some-thing out of it. DIYs are greatto inspire kids and keep themengaged which assists in theoverall growth and develop-ment of these young learners.

Role play: Role play can beone of the most effective andexciting activities. Role playsencourage learning, improveconcentration and enhanceimagination.

Children are able to learnversatile skills and express theirfeelings better during role plays.It enables them to step into theshoes of fictional charactersand act out as per their obser-vation and understanding. Roleplay is a fun way to teach kidsabout real-life situations, sea-sonal events and occupations.

(The author is an educationist)

� �%�1 �!� ���""����� ����� �"���� � �"����1� ���"���"��*A��� ��� ��������� �������"�#��1 �$����"�����"$1�����"����"���"� ��$� ��"������1�"����"�����*��"������*���'���'�(�� ��'�'�;

�4�"4�0"-0��!!"��

�(��������#�$; !�$-� *5�6C� ���� � �������������� �������������" ��� ����������� ���&� �����������(����

���'��0(�5����A��4�

+5�.������������.5�'�����(5.���+��(('55 ,

��(�5����4�������5����

'�����5'��������9��������5�(

+���'����50'�(�����'

��((5�(�4����'

�������"����� ����������������"����

���������������������������<��<�����������������< ��������#����������"��!���

Page 15: 7 - : 7B>-C>=?D6 =@ B · “While Meerut Expressway or NH 24/NH-9 has a segrega-tion problem across the Pandav Nagar in East Delhi, a Rail Over Bridge (RoB) over the EPE in Meerut

����������'�(����) '������ *+,�-+./ ����6A

������������&�����������������7�����6���9 ;�!��E�� ��"� "#"��� ��"�� �5�*#!���0"��%# ��������+� ���"�1��"�� ���"�� ����#���"�E�����������#!�"�� �������$����1�$!� �"�� ($���*,� �� � �"���� �$#� �� 2M� ���� � � �!� ��"$��*� �"�� �� 1�# � �1������ +� ��� �$�� � ��""� ���� ����"�1�+��� � ����"$��� �72%2M��72%2?����� �4��#���"�������+��#!�"����!������$���, "#"���� �� �"#!���� � ��%���� ��� ����+� �� ���#�*"�� �� � ����� �""�� ��� � � � � �� "��� � � �� �����1��!"������"���������� ����� ����"� ��"$���� ���� ��"����$#� ����� �� �� �,� "#"����� ��� �����������������$#!���������� ���� �;�!������1 �"���������1� ���� �� ���� ����"�*�� ������ �"��"��� ���� �����1��%� �����#������"�� ���*�����1� ���� �+�"�1�� ������� � #�%������,� �� � 7?%* ��%"��E�� �� �����"$1��"��"������� ��*���� �$!��� �������1��������"# ���� �� �"$�� !� ��"$�� � � ���� �"� +� ��� �� ��"%��# �"�������#!�"�,

�������������=C������&���6/����������6�/&��/���7��9���������""� ����� ��������������� # �E�� �� �� �"#! ����"�� ��� �� � �"$���*� ������ �27��� ��� �� � * ��E�� � �"��� ((.� �"���� +$!'��� I����"�I(�"�1$�����1 ����+���1�"���"� ��"�($���*,�(� ��K�(� �������"�������"��PG�"$��C3�"�!��� �22������ ���� ���������*�"��-$���������"���"�(��$���*����"���"$����"��7?��77�����7P�"��($���*�"� �������� �7?���!��� ����������"� �"��228,���""�� �� ������� ��� �� � ���*� (#��� (��1�� ���� ��1��4�)�����"����"� ��"��22H� �����"��������?M������P?��� � �! ���� �*,� � 5��*� �� � �"!� ��&� �#"�1� 82��""� �������� ����*�-$����� ���"���� ������������272���� �� � ������ -$����*��1� ��"� ,� �(�E�� /��� ������"�������"$�� �5�*#!���������� ���# ��"������#!�"��� � ��� � �1���1� 5�*#!��� ���#!�"�0���� � �'"�� ���� "�� ���*� �"����� �� �# �E�� �� �0"���"���� ��"���$���1���*�"���� � � ��,�(���K��'�K��E�� (��� �� ��� �� � 23#� # �E�� ���� !���"��"#! ����"��� �! ��������������27�������� �# ��������*�� � ,�

����-�������������6�7�������76�������;��6��/���7��9��� ����%�1�����$"�"��($#���(��1���=G2�1>������������<�� ��=C2�1>������#"�1��� ��� � 0"��%# ��������� ��� ����E�� ��$! ��"$���#!��1������� �CH���4 �1��� ��� �����"����4"&��1�"$���# ��� ���( ����,���#����$�(���#��=PG�1>���"�� � �� ����1 ���E�� "��## ���"$�� 1�C%3������� ������ �"$������� �� � ������ �"!� �!"�� ������ �� "�(��$���*���1����������� �� ���� ��"$���# ���������� �0"������� �(��� ��������� �4�"�K �# �����������,+"����$��1�������� ��"# �������"#�����������)$�*�($#���� ��� ������ (��� �%# ��������� � � �� ���$��"�E�� +������"� �"�� �� ��� �� $����#"$�� C%3� ������ �"� ����#� �� � * ��"��# ���,� � ."�# �� )$��"��"���� ���#!�"�� �������� ���"� � �$����1� �"� ����"���� ��� �"� ���1���"#�����"$�� ����)$�*���"��� ��$!�� C%3� ���� "� �� 0� � E�� "$��" "�1"!"$�"$����� ������"�!����$!���#"��� %�""����1�0"��,

����������������������8=H����&������������ ��69 0"��1�"��������� %�!� ��"�������� � ���(�$��������(���#�� ��� ����C%$�� ��HM������� �������"���� �� ����"���������%2C�������� �/"��"�+����5! ��� � �"��($���*,��� �72%* ��%"��������� ����27%$�� ��7MH��� ����#"�1����������������� ����*,� �������&������ ������ �"���� #����������"$���"� ���"�� �� ��� � ������,� (���#��� ��"� � ���� �� � ������"$�E�� �������� �"�� �$#����*� '�����1�� ��� ���"� �"���� ����� ��� ������#!�"����������' ��"��� �'�� ��"��$�����������1�,��#"�1�"�� �����������)$�� ������ =M2>� ���� �%?7���� 0�1��) �� 4�$�������"����"� ����1 ��"� ��"��%7� ���� �� ����� �� �� �� ���%H?������ �(�����!$��=M2>������%HH����������;"����=MG>������%H8, ��������

� 7 ? % � �

���� ��+��(��'

Arsene Wenger enduredmore agony at OldTrafford as his depleted

Arsenal side conceded an injury-time goal by Marouane Fellainito lose 2-1 to Manchester Unitedin the Premier League onSunday.

Fellaini headed in AshleyYoung's inswinging cross in thefirst minute of added-on time todeny Wenger a point in his finaltrip to United's stadium beforehe leaves Arsenal after morethan 21 years in charge.

This was nothing like the 8-2 loss in 2011 or the 6-1 defeathere in 2001, but it was painfulnevertheless for Wenger on a dayhe was honored with a glass vasebefore kickoff by former Unitedmanager Alex Ferguson andembraced by the current one,long-time foe Jose Mourinho.

Mourinho had the last laughagainst Wenger, as he has sooften, and the win movedUnited five points clear in sec-ond place, virtually guarantee-ing second place behind cham-pion Manchester City.

Henrikh Mkhitaryanmarked his return to OldTrafford with an equalizing goalas Arsenal - fielding a largelysecond-string team in view ofthe Europa League semifinalsecond leg on Thursday -responded well to conceding a16th-minute goal from PaulPogba.

The Armenia midfielderbarely celebrated when he scoredin the 51st minute. Sanchez setup Pogba's goal by headingagainst the post.

Wenger gave a senior debutto 20-year-old Greek defenderKonstantinos Mavropanos andalso started Ainsley Maitland-Niles, 20, and Reiss Nelson, 18,in a severely weakened lineupthat might have been expectedto cave in after conceding early.

Romelu Lukaku crossed tothe far post where Sanchezplanted his header - via the bootof Hector Bellerin - against thepost. The ball rebounded out toPogba, who sidefooted a volleyinto an empty net.

Arsenal didn't collapse,though. The visitors were givena boost when Lukaku hobbledoff in the 49th after being on thereceiving end of a kick byMavropanos, and then equal-ized.

Almost inevitably, it wasMkhitaryan who collected theball from Granit Xhaka afterUnited lost possession in mid-field, advanced as the homedefense backed off, andslammed a low shot into the farcorner from the edge of the area.

Marcus Rashford had a goalruled out for offside momentsbefore Fellaini glanced Young'scross into the corner.

&��:���������=>>��6��7�Manchester City passed the

100-goal mark in the PremierLeague by beating relegation-threatened West Ham 4-1 onSunday, leaving the newlycrowned champions in sight ofa slew of records.

After goals by Leroy Sane,Gabriel Jesus and Fernandinho,as well as an own-goal by for-mer City player Pablo Zabaleta,Pep Guardiola's side moved to102 goals for the campaign - oneoff the team record held byChelsea in 2009-10.

City also moved to 30 winsfor the season, matching therecord number of Chelsea fromlast season.

With three games still toplay, City on 93 points alsoneeds just three more points topost the most outright in aPremier League campaign.Those games are against rele-gation-threatened teamsHuddersfield, Brighton andSouthampton. BeatingSouthampton away would giveCity 16 wins on the road, anoth-

er Premier League record.Patrice Evra stuck his head

out to block Sane's effort fromoutside the area and only suc-ceeded in sending the ball intohis own net past flat-footedgoalkeeper Adrian in the 13thminute.

The second goal alsoarrived courtesy of a deflection,two in fact. Kevin De Bruyne'slow cross was palmed into theleg of Declan Rice by Adrian,only for the ball to hit Zabaletaand bobble into the net in the27th.

Aaron Cresswell curled afree kick into the corner fromthe edge of the area on thestroke of halftime to bring WestHam back into the game, butthe second half was all City.

Raheem Sterling slipped inJesus to take one touch and side-foot home in the 53rd for hisfourth goal in as many games,then passed the ball across forFernandinho to slot in a first-time shot in the 64th.

���� 4�'+��5��

Rafael Nadal continues to make win-ning on clay look all too easy.Nadal extended his dominance on the

surface with a 6-2, 6-1 win over 19-year-old Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas on Sunday towin his 11th Barcelona Open title.

Nadal, who also won his 11th MonteCarlos Masters title last week, was neverseriously challenged on his way to a 19thstraight victory on clay.

The top-ranked Spaniard has won 46straight sets on clay, extending his ownrecord. He hasn't lost on clay since fac-ing Dominic Thiem in Rome last year.

It was the 77th title overall for Nadal,tying him with John McEnroe for fourthbest in the Open Era. Only JimmyConnors, Roger Federer and Ivan Lendlare ahead.

Nadal, who won his 400th match onclay in Saturday's semifinal, needed thevictory in Barcelona to secure his No 1ranking.

"It's hard for anybody to imagine allthe feelings and emotions I have when Iplay here," Nadal said. "Hopefully I cankeep coming back for many more yearsto come."

Nadal was out of action earlier thisyear because of a lingering right hip injurysustained in the Australian Open quar-terfinals. He returned to help Spaindefeat Germany in the Davis Cup quar-terfinals and then went on to win inMonte Carlo.

"I've had two fantastic weeks but we

were coming off difficult months becauseof the injuries," Nadal said.

The 63rd-ranked Tsitsipas was tryingto become the first Greek to win an ATPTour title. He was the first Greek to makeit to an ATP final since NicholasKalogeropoulos in 1973.

Tsitsipas was the youngest finalist inBarcelona since 2005 and was looking tobecome the first unseeded champion inthe tournament since Gaston Gaudio in2002.

Tsitsipas had 23 unforced errors in the77-minute loss on the Rafa Nadal court,with brief rain interruptions.

The Greek is expected to move to44th in the rankings after his performancein Barcelona.

����� 4��

Defending world champion Lewis Hamilton claimed his first win of 2018 on Sundayand took over as leader of the title race when he triumphed in a dramatic, crash-

strewn Azerbaijan Grand Prix.The 33-year-old Briton, who had struggled for outright pace, managed to steer

his Mercedes through a chaotic race and capitalize on others' misfortunes to regis-ter his first victory in seven races and the 63rd of his career.

Sebastian Vettel of Ferrari looked set to turn pole position into a victory until asecond Safety Car intervention left him lunging to pass Valtteri Bottas and lockedup and ran off. Bottas then seemed sure to win, but suffered a sudden right rear punc-ture on his Mercedes after running over metal debris on the straight.

Hamilton flew past to return to the top of the podium "That was quite an emo-tional race, to be honest," said Hamilton, who now leads the championship by fourpoints from Vettel.

"Valtteri deserved to have the win and also Sebastian did a great job. I was veryfortunate today so it feels a bit odd to me to be here."

Vettel managed to continue and finish fourth ahead of his teammate KimiRaikkonen and Mexican Sergio Perez of Force India.

Carlos Sainz finishing fifth for Renault and Charles Leclerc sixth for Sauber, hisfirst points finish.

Fernando Alonso finished seventh for McLaren ahead of Canadian Lance Strollof Williams, Stoffel Vandoorne in the second McLaren and New Zealand's BrendonHartley of Toro Rosso who scored his first point in F1.

The race was heavily punctuated by accidents which included one in which thetwo Red Bulls of Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen collided while fighting forfourth place in the closing stages, the pair having banged wheels and battled for posi-tions throughout the race. They ended up among the seven retirements on a chal-lenging day on the second-longest circuit on the calendar.

4�)"0'�� !)&%0�50�����1�0%0&&��� �. �������1"���� �!��' ��� ������ 1��� ��7%2�����"�*

��������$�� ���"�22�������

-�+����������������;�����

����=���������#�����������$����������������$���������6�/������5���� ��

.��/������F����=��.�������2�����"�����"�/���3�����������/����������=����/�������������������������������� ��

Page 16: 7 - : 7B>-C>=?D6 =@ B · “While Meerut Expressway or NH 24/NH-9 has a segrega-tion problem across the Pandav Nagar in East Delhi, a Rail Over Bridge (RoB) over the EPE in Meerut

��������������� ��������

On the back of a resounding vic-tory, Delhi Daredevils will be

keen to keep that momentumgoing when they lock horns againsta mighty Chennai Super Kings atMaharashtra Cricket Associationstadium in Pune on Monday.

Following the poor start in thisyear's campaign, Delhi made asharp comeback in their secondhome game and defeated KolkataKnight Riders by a massive 55 runsto keep their hopes alive of mak-ing into the playoffs.

After Gautam Gambhirstepped down as the skipper,Shreyas Iyer was elevated to thatposition to change the team's for-tune.

The 23- year-old Mumbaiplayer, who made his debut forIndia last November against NewZealand, quickly made an impres-sion and guided Delhi to a mam-moth total of 219 runs.

Iyer led from the front, with anunbeaten 93 of 40 balls with threefours and 10 sixes. He is also theteam's leading run-scorer with244 runs from seven games at anaverage of 61.00.

His Mumbai team-mate andIndian U-19 captain Prithvi Shawquickly got into the stride, making62 of 44 balls in only his second IPLstart.

Among others, T20 biggiesColin Munro and Glenn Maxwelllooked in good touch against KKRwith short but impactful innings.However, both are yet to make a bigcontribution and will hopeMonday is there day.

Delhi will also be expectingRishabh Pant to bounce back, fol-lowing his golden duck in the lastgame. Pant was retained by DDand had a good tournament so farwith 227 runs from seven games.

It'll be interesting to see if Delhishuffles the team's winning com-bination. If it doesn't, then former

captain Gautam Gambhir has to sitin the dugout again.

In the bowling front Kiwipacer Trent Boult is going well. Heis the team's leading wicket takerwith 11 scalps from seven games.He is supported well by LiamPlunkett and Avesh Khan.

Delhi is currently placed at thebottom of the table with 4 pointsin seven games.

On the other side, MahendraSingh Dhoni led Chennai SuperKings have been ruthless this sea-son, securing 10 points from sevengames.

After winning their first twogames in the final over, CSK lostto Kings XI Punjab by four runs intheir subsequent clash.

But, they made a quick recov-ery and won the next three gameson the bounce against RajasthanRoyals, Sunrisers Hyderabad andRoyal Challengers Bangalore.

However, the eight-wicket lossagainst Mumbai Indians in theirlast game on Saturday will be a set-back for the side, which has dom-inated the tournament so far withpower packed performance.

In the batting front, Orange

cap holder Ambati Rayudu isenjoying the form of his life with329 runs from seven games. Whilecaptain MS Dhoni, Suresh Rainaand Shane Watson are also goinggood with the bat and have scored235, 204 and 203 runs respective-ly.

The biggest concern lies in thebowling department. ShardulThakur, Deepak Chahar and spintrio of Ravindra Jadeja, HarbhajanSingh and Imran Tahir have failedto stop the run flow, causing a bigheadache for Dhoni. The teamlacks a proper death bowler whocan finish off the things.

Considering the wicket at theMCA stadium, English pacerDavid Willey, who came as areplacement for injured KedarJadhav, might replace injuredDeepak Chahar, who is out for aweek with an injury.

����������'�(����) '������ *+,�-+./

&�������9���������-�������������M��!,&������"��!����������������G ; ?B�&���&�89�)��� +A

/� CD3

$� /#(

������������

% ) � � ) � 5 � 4 � 4 � 0 E "

F 4 ! " 0 4 � F 4 ! " 0

���� ��� ���������

�F#0

.�8 �� ''

5���9 S 8R33��

HEADTO

HEAD��=@&�'(���)

� 4 0 � - ) " �

����� ;���'

Sunrisers Hyderabadbowlers' impressivedefence of modest totals

continued as the visitorspulled off a 11-run win overRajasthan Royals on a trickypitch to claim the top spot inthe Indian Premier League(IPL) here on Sunday.

Electing to bat,Hyderabad posted 151 forseven, built around captainKane Williamson's 63-runknock, his fourth fifty of theseason, and his 92-run part-nership with Englishman AlexHales (45) , playing his firstgame of this edition.

They set up the platformfor a kill towards the end, butonce they were dismissed,none of the following batsmencould make a substantial con-tribution.

For the hosts, Jofra Archer(3/26) was once again impres-sive with his pace and consis-tent execution of yorkers,while spinner KrishnappaGowtham provided vitalbreakthroughs, concedingonly 18 runs in his four overs.

Home captain AjinkyaRahane (65 not out, 53 balls)showed patience and SanjuSamson hit a 30-ball 40 butthey left too much for the end.Hyderabad pace duo ofSandeep Sharma (1/15) andSiddarth Kaul (2/23) werevery effective in drying up theruns.

The hosts required 27from the last two overs butSiddarth Kual conceded onlysix runs and also removedlocal boy Mahipal Lomror(11).

Krishnappa Gowtham (8)could not recreate the magiche had managed against

Mumbai Indians when hehad blasted a 11-ball 33 to pulloff a sensational win as BasilThampi (/126 in 2 overs) didbowl an impressive final over.

Hyderabad now lead thetable with 12 points and arefollowed by Chennai SuperKings (10) and Kings XIPunjab (10).

Earlier, Hales, playing hisfirst game of the season, builtthe innings patiently with hiscaptain after Gowthamensured that ShikharDhawan's (6) string of lowscores continued as the left-hander dragged one on to hisstumps.

The ball was too close to

the body as Dhawan attempt-ed to steer it past slips. Hissequence of scores in the lastfour matches read: 11, 5, 0(retired hurt) and 7.

Hales though played somegood cuts and drives.Williamson was dropped on11 by Rahul Tripathi in slipcordon off Archer, immedi-ately after the batsman had hita bowler's back drive.

Home captain Rahaneused his resources smartly,using as many as sevenbowlers, making frequentbowling changes. The spinduo of Gowtham and IshSodhi (1/25) was very effectivein keeping the batsmen in a

tight leash.The pacers were disci-

plined and also swung the ball,never letting Hales andWilliamson go after them.

The two batsmen thoughsteadily built the innings evenas Hales was dropped on anindividual score of 26 by BenStokes off leg-spinner IshSodhi. The two batsmenmostly relied on working theball around.

The Kiwi captain chancedhis arms against JaydevUnadkat, plundering 21 runsin the 12th over and com-pleted his half-century, hisfourth in this edition.

Williamson then

launched into a half-volleyfrom Archer depositing it tothe stands, giving the ran-ratesome necessary push. Rahanebrought back Gowtham andhe broke the partnership bygetting rid of the Englandbatsman.

Sodhi had Williamsoncaught behind off a ball thatbounced very low, took afaint edge and was taken byJos Buttler behind the stumps.

Young West Indies bornpacer Archer then dismissedShakib Al Hasan (6) andYusuf Pathan (2) in the 18thover. The consistent wicketsmeant that visitors failed tofinish with a flourish.

��� � 4��0���'�

Riding on yet another excel-lent performance by their

batting unit, Kolkata KnightRiders beat Royal ChallengersBangalore by 6 wickets in theIndian Premier League matchhere on Sunday.

Chasing the target of 175runs, Kolkata Knight Ridersmanaged to reach the total in19.1 overs with the loss of fourwickets.

Australian opener ChrisLynn was the side's top scorerwith 62 runs from 52 balls.While Robin Uthappa andSunil Narine contributed 36and 27 runs respectively.

In the dying minutes of thematch skipper Dinesh Karthikmade another short butimpactful contribution of 23runs from 10 balls to reducepressure from Chris Lynn andtake KKR home.

The match was interrupt-ed by rain during KnightRiders innings but luckily itdidn't last long.

Earlier, Skipper Virat Kohliwas once again the stand-outperformer with an unbeaten44-ball-68 as RoyalChallengers Bengaluru man-

aged a below-par 175 for 4against Kolkata Knight Ridersin an IPL encounter, here onSunday.

It was a patchy battingperformance from the hometeam and Indian captain'sfourth half-century of the sea-son ensured that they hadsome kind of a total on board.

Kohli's innings comprisedof five fours and three sixeswhile Brendon McCullumcontributed 38 off 28 balls.

Two of the three sixesstruck by Kohli were puredelight. Both were hit offAndre Russell. With mini-mum backlift, Kohli whippedone on the blockhole into thelong-on stands while the otherwas a flick into the deep mid-wicket stand.

The final six came off thelast delivery of the innings ashe dispatched one into themid-wicket stands.

RCB's first 10 overs wasn'tas productive as they lost threewickets for 75 runs. It was pri-marily due to Kohli that theymanaged another 100 runs inthe back-10.

The slow start by RCBwas one of the reasons for notgetting the par-score of 200 as

the Powerplay overs producedonly 40 runs.

Put into bat, openersMcCullum and Quinton deKock (29 off 27 balls) put on67 runs but consumed eightovers in the process.

The South African 'keep-er-batsman was scalped byKuldeep Yadav with his firstball after the strategic break.De Kock's inside out loftedshot was pouched in the deepby Shubman Gill.

RCB lost next two back-to-back wickets in the 10th overwhen McCullum was caughtoff Russell and Manan Vohra(0) made a hash of a low full-toss.

Mandeep Singh (19)became Russell's third victim.A slower delivery on off-stump, Mandeep swung anddid not get the elevation heneeded and Shivam Mavi tookthe catch at deep midwicket.

Earlier, Sunil Naraine wasgreeted by de Kock with twoconsecutive boundaries of hisfirst over. First he swept onetowards short fine leg and thena cross-batted shot towardsdeep midwicket fence. De Kockalso hit a six off MitchellJohnson's first over.

������ ����

Mumbai Indians skip-per Rohit Sharma

believes their eight-wicketwin over Chennai SuperKings will boost his side'sconfidence for the remain-ing Indian Premier League(IPL) matches.

After suffering manynarrow losses this season,Mumbai registered theirsecond win after chasingdown a 170-run target withtwo balls to spare againstCSK.

"Today we batted well, bowledwell, fielded well. If I look back at it,except the Sunrisers game where we bat-ted poorly, the rest of the games we puton 190-plus," Rohit said after thematch.

"This game will give us confidencegoing forward," the Mumbai skipperadded.

Rohit said that his side badly need-ed a win.

"Wanted this win desperately. Indesperation, we didn't want to take deci-sions that won't go well. Wanted to stay

calm. We've played goodcricket. But that finishingtouch wasn't happening,"said the 30-year-old.

Commenting on notincluding Keiron Pollard inthe playing eleven, Rohitsaid, "Tough leaving outPollard. He's done so manygood things for us."

"Going forward, don'twant to dismiss him com-pletely. He'll still be ourmatch winner," Rohitadded.

On the other side, CSKskipper Dhoni said that another 10-15runs in their total would have troubledthe visitors.

"I think it is important to realisewhat went wrong. And in the leaguestage, you will lose," said Dhoni adding,"This was one game where we wereshort by 10-15 runs."

The Ranchi stumper added that thedefeat will help his side to know theareas where they need improvement.

"A loss makes you humble. It teststhe other batsmen and bowlers. Also,if you keep winning you don't knowwhat area you need to work on."

����� ����

Robbed off home advantage for theentire 2018 season, Chennai Super

Kings will have to work hard in theiradopted home venue here to be a forceto reckon with in the ongoing IndianPremier League, said the team's headcoach Stephen Fleming.

Back into the IPL family afterserving a two-year suspension, CSKlost their home advantage after justone game in Chennai as the IPLorgainsers decided to shift its remain-ing home games to Pune in the wakeof protests related to Cauvery issueand threats to disrupt more fixtures.

Fleming rued the fact that hisplayers will need time to get used tothe Pune pitch.

"We are going to be careful thatwe don't get carried away by the loss.The biggest thing for us is to get toknow the pitch here, it is not Chennai.We picked the side which was goingto be Chennai-based so we are learn-ing as much as anyone," said Fleming

after CSK lost by eight wickets toMumbai Indians here on Saturdaynight.

"We have to work extra hard to gethome advantage. We have learnt a lit-tle bit again today and we have onlygot a day to make sure we try and get

the right combination," he added.Fleming said they were probably

10-15 runs short of what could havebeen a winning total.

"We were in the fight. But wereprobably 10 runs , may be 15 runsshort with the bat. But we hung in

pretty well and created opportunities,"Fleming said.

CSK suffered its first defeat at its'adopted home' in Pune and overall itssecond in the tournament so far.

"A score of 190 was a possibility,so for them (Mumbai) to bowl welland drag us back to 170 was goodcricket. Another 10 (runs) wouldhave been nice for us," the formerNew Zealand skipper said.

"He (Rohit ) responded well in the19th over and you are not going towin every game in the IPL. It wasgood game," Fleming added.

Rohit turned the tables around inthe 19th over after he hit pacerShardul Thakur for four boundaries.

Fleming also informed that pacerDeepak Chahar, who suffered a ham-string injury, would be out for a cou-ple of weeks.

"He (Chahar) has had hamstringinjuries in the past so he has a goodidea when he is in trouble. He willprobably take a couple of weeks,which is a bit of blow to us," he said.

����� � 4�

Impressed with leg-spinner Mayank Markhande's bowling for Mumbai Indiansin the IPL, former India spinner Venkatapathy Raju praised him and termed

control as the rookie's strongest point. Punjab-born Markande has been the find for defending champions MI this

Indian Premier League (IPL) season and has bowled well in all games after mak-ing a fantastic debut picking three wickets, which included the prize scalp ofMahendra Singh Dhoni, albeit in a losing causein the lung-opener against Chennai SuperKings.

"Markande, the main thing is (his) first year(and the) first match and they (MI) made himplay which itself shows the talent he has. Youhave seen a lot of youngsters come in and theysit (out) for a year, then they are put in," Rajusaid during an interaction.

"That's why Markande, Mujeeb (Ur Rahmanof Kings XI Punjab) and all - straightaway theyare making them play - that means they are spe-cial," the 48-year-old former spinner said.

"(MI captain) Rohit Sharma is using him asa strike bowler and he has been picked up (cho-sen) to pick wickets and he has been doing that.And that's the talent we have and (it) is goingto be a headache for the (national or state) selec-tors, which is fantastic headache," he said.

"This season we have seen a lot of leg spin-ners, wrist spinners coming in, which is a hugerevelation. They will be hit once a while, but you can't just take them away andthey are coming back strongly. Wrist spinners are wicket-taking bowlers," Rajusaid.

Asked about Markande's stock delivery, he said, "The strongest point for himis control at that age. Showing no fear seeing who the opponent is or who the bats-man is, he is just going about his bowling and that little variation. The speed andlength of what he is bowling is amazing."

�!%&0�� �)GG&0 )� :1) 4�($���� ����*� ������� � ���2C2��"�� ���'�)��������*�22��$��

���"����B�����������!����//

44- ��8! ��( 4�#!����6�

@� ���"��"���������"���"# ��������1 A

"������������������������������������

96�� ���������%�! �����

%����%�������=�&����6���������������3�������������������/���3��������$/ �����-�� ����-���������=�%�����-��� ������������4�&8E����/����#�$�%���� ��

.���� �.� ��������������/���

����������������������

������������-����/��/����������2���������� ����������������/������/������������ ����

�������;����3����������/���3�������������������:������������1������6������ ��������/ ���������4����/�����!�������������� ����

-�� ����-��������������4����������������������4 ���/��3��$������6�����-�� �������������� ����