JOURNALISM OF COURAGE

SINCE 1932

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DA ILY FROM: AHMEDABAD , CHAND IGARH , DELH I , JA IPUR , KOLKATA , LUCKNOW, MUMBAI , NAGPUR , PUNE , VADODARA

THURSDAY, JULY 16, 2020, NEW DELHI, LATE CITY, 18 PAGES `6.00 (`8 PATNA & RAIPUR, `12 SRINAGAR) WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMJOURNALISM OF COURAGE

SINCE 1932

EXPRESSNETWORK

U.S.REVERSESORDER,BACKTOFLEXIBLESTUDENTVISARULESOFFICER INCHARGEOFQUARANTINECENTRESDIESOFCOVID INBENGALPAGE 7

135DAYSSINCEPANDEMICBEGAN

KEYSTATESTOWATCH■Maharashtra■TamilNadu■Delhi■Karnataka■Telangana

7 DAYS EARLIER:

2.78NOW:

2.60

7 DAYS EARLIER:

7.09NOW:

7.54

DETECTED TODAY

29,429RECOVERED TODAY:

20,572

TOTALCASES2,67,6651,47,3241,15,34644,07737,745

DOUBLINGRATE**23.7222.8843.529.7915.77

SURGEIN24HOURS6,7414,5261,6062,4961,524

7-DAYAVGGROWTH*3.03%3.15%1.65%7.36%4.57%

TRACKING INDIA’SCOVIDCURVE

CASES:9,36,180TESTS: 1,24,12,664| DOUBLING RATE: 21.38**

RECOVERED:5,92,031DEATHS:24,309

*CompoundedDailyGrowthRateover last7days **Calculatedover7-daygrowth

DataasonJuly14, releasedbyUnionMinistryofHealth, ICMRandstates.Oftendailynumbers includedatafrompreviousdays.Assuch, trendsbasedondailynumbersare indicative,notdefinitive

CASE FATALITY RATIO

Deaths as a ratio ofpositive cases (in %);indicator of progressin averting deaths

Positives againstnumber tested

(in %); indicator ofthe spread of disease

Becoming sick vsrecovering; more

recoveries for 14 daysmay signal the peak

POSITIVITY RATE DAILY IN, DAILYOUT

AN EXPRESS INVESTIGATION —PART 2

RAVIKBHATTACHARYA&ATRIMITRAHOWRAH,SOUTH24PARGANAS, JULY15

ATKALINAGARgrampanchayatinWestBengal,thefinallistofbene-ficiariesclearedtogetcompensa-tionforhousesthatweredamagedby Cyclone Amphan reads likethis: Surajit Sadukhan (Father:Kalipodo Das), Dipali Mondol(Father:KalipodoDas),UttamBera(Father:KalipodoDas).Thelistgoeson.Butaninves-

tigationbyTheIndianExpressre-vealed that KalipodoDas existsonlyonpaperandthesebenefici-

ariesareallunrelated.Andallthethree own concrete houses thatwithstoodthecyclone.That's just one symptom of

the string of alleged irregulari-ties in the manner in whichthese listshavebeenprepared.Investigation of official

CONTINUEDONPAGE2

All of them cleared to get Amphan relief, allunrelated, all have same father — on paper

(Top)Meena,wifeof SurajitSadukhan;DipaliMondal;UttamBera.All threehaveconcretehouses. (Right)Jahirulwithaphotoofhisfather,abeneficiary,whodiedthreeyearsago.ParthaPaul

TOPICKUP7.7PERCENTSTAKE INJIOPLATFORMS

Readyfor5Gwhenspectrumisavailablenextyear:Ambani Amid China chill, US techgiants warm up to JioGEORGEMATHEW

MUMBAI, JULY15

AFTERINVESTMENTSbyaclutchof global tech giants includingFacebook, Google has signedupwith Jio Platforms, the digitalsubsidiaryofRelianceIndustriesLtd(RIL),toinvestRs33,737crore(or approximately $4.5 billion)fora7.7percentstake.Thestrate-gic dealwould likely lead toun-veilingof newtechnologyprod-uctsandsolutions in India.

Makingastringof announce-ments in thedigital and telecommarket at the company's virtualannual generalmeeting (AGM),

RIL ChairmanMukeshAmbanisaid Jio has designedanddevel-opedacomplete5Gsolutionthat’sready for launchas soonas spec-trumismadeavailablenextyear.Jio andGoogle have also en-

tered into a commercial agree-menttojointlydevelopanentry-level affordable smartphonewith optimisations to theAndroid operating system andthePlayStore,Ambani said.OnMonday, Google said it

has committed $10 billionCONTINUEDONPAGE2

PRANAVMUKULNEWDELHI, JULY15

GOOGLE’S INVEST-MENT of Rs 33,737crore,or$4.5billion, inJioPlatformstakesthetotal money pumpedintoIndia’slargesttele-com company by US-based in-vestors tomore than $16.7 bil-

lion—almosthalf ofwhat Indiareceived from the US as foreigndirect investment(FDI)overthe

last twodecades.Jio’sfundraisingspree

this yearhas also left be-hind the cumulative in-vestments made inIndia’stechnologysectorin the whole of 2019,

whichstoodat$9.36billion.CONTINUEDONPAGE2

Google to invest Rs 33,737 cr in Jio,to develop entry-level smartphone

Ambani,Pichai

SHUBHAJITROYNEWDELHI, JULY15

ADAY after Indian and ChineseCorpsCommandersheldexten-sivetalksoverdisengagementoftroopsalongtheLadakhfrontier,PrimeMinister NarendraModiWednesday briefed EuropeanCouncilpresidentCharlesMichelandEuropeanCommissionpres-ident Ursula von der Leyen onthesituationattheLineofActualControl, includingtheJune15in-cidentinGalwanValleyinwhich20 IndianArmypersonnelwerekilledinclasheswithPLAtroops.Speaking to reporters after

the 15th India-EU summit overvideo conference, Michel said,“We had the occasionwith thePrimeMinistertohavesomein-formationabout this incident.”He said they discussed the

developments along the LAC,and“weareinfavourofapeace-fulsolution”.HesaidtheEUsup-ports all efforts to find peacefulsolutions throughdialogue.Vikas Swarup, Secretary

CONTINUEDONPAGE2

PM briefsEU on LAC,gets backingfor talks

MANISHSAHUKANPUR, JULY15

THE FAMILY of PrabhatMishraaliasKartikey,killedinanallegedencounter as the Uttar PradeshPolicehuntedforgangsterVikasDubeyandhisaides,hasclaimedthathewasaminor.They said Kartikey had

cleared his Class 12 UttarPradesh school board examsonJune 29, 10 days before hewaskilled. His Class 10marksheetand an Aadhaar card record hisdate of birth as May 27, 2004,makinghim16yearsof age.Police had launched a hunt

for Dubey after his men killedeight of its personnel in ashootout at Kanpur’s Bikru vil-lageonJuly3,duringafailedraidto arrest him. Kartikey’s familylives next to Dubey’s home inBikru.Inspector General, Kanpur

range,MohitAgarwalsaidhehadnoinformationonKartikey’sage,and reiterated that theHaryanaPolicehadrecoveredpistolsusedin the Bikru shootout fromhimatthetimeofhisarrestonJuly8.The police in Faridabad, fromwhere he was held, had saidKartikeywas19. “Dubeyusedtohave youths in his gang. Hewouldinfluencethemjustaster-roristsdo,” saidAgarwal.According to the UP Police,

they were bringing KartikeyfromFaridabadtoKanpuronJuly9,whenhesnatchedthepistolofasub-inspectorandtriedtoflee.“TheencountertookplaceinthePankiareaofKanpur.Thepolicevehiclehadaflattyre.Takingad-vantage,Kartikeytriedtorun.He

CONTINUEDONPAGE2

Youth killedwas 16, justcleared 12th,says family

PMNarendraModiat theIndia-EUsummit.ANI

RITIKACHOPRANEWDELHI, JUNE15

ELECTION COMMISSIONERAshok Lavasa, whowas next inline to head the poll panel, hasbeen appointed by the AsianDevelopment Bank (ADB) asvice-president.Lavasastillhasovertwoyears

leftinhistermatthe ElectionCommission ofIndia. Hewouldhave retired asthe ChiefElectionCommissioner(CEC)inOctober2022.AsCEC,hewould haveconducted

Assembly elections in UttarPradesh, West Bengal,Uttarakhand, Punjab, ManipurandGoa, amongother states.According to sources,

Lavasa'sappointmenttotheADBwas finalisedwith the concur-renceof theUniongovernment.ADB spokesperson

RamoncitodelaCruzdidnot re-spond to this newspaper's

CONTINUEDONPAGE2

Slated to benext CEC,Lavasa nowheaded for ADB

AshokLavasa

MANOJCG&HAMZAKHANNEWDELHI, JAIPUR, JULY15

EVEN AS Rajasthan ChiefMinister Ashok GehlotWednesdaymade a frontal at-tack on Sachin Pilot, who hasbeenremovedasdeputyCMandstatepartypresident,theparty’scentral leadership is keeping itsdoors open for him. Pilot reiter-ated again onWednesday thathe isnot joining theBJP.In his first such remarks

against Pilot, withoutmention-inghimbyname,Gehlotsaidtheformer deputy CM was “in-volved”intheBJP’s“conspiracy”to topple his government andclaimedproofof“horse-trading”by him. He also said Pilot hadrisen in theparty rankswithoutthe kind of work leaders of hisgenerationhadput in.Late on Tuesday night,

Congress chief whip Mahesh

Joshi approached Speaker C PJoshi to disqualify Pilot and the18MLAswhohave stayedawayfrompartymeetingsandarebe-lieved tobesidingwithhim.Significantly,Gehlot’s attack

CONTINUEDONPAGE2

BUSINESS AS USUAL

BYUNNY

MOREREPORTSPAGES6, 12

RAJNATHMEETS ARMYCHIEF, HEADS TOLADAKH TOMORROWPAGE 7

Gehlot slams the door,but leadership keeps awindow open for Pilot

VIKASDUBEYCASE

New Delhi

US tech giantsBetweenApril2000andApril

2020, cumulative FDI inflowsfrom theUS stood at $29.78bil-lion, according toDepartmentofCommercedata(notincludingin-vestments byUS-based compa-nies routed throughother juris-dictionssuchasMauritius,BritishVirginIslandsetc.).WithGoogleonboard,Jionow

hasbusinessarrangementswithfive US technology giants —Facebook for apartnershipof itsmessaging platformWhatsAppwith Jio’s e-commerce ventureJioMart;Microsoft for its cloudcomputing platform Azure;Google for building anAndroid-basedsmartphoneoperatingsys-tem;andIntelandQualcommfordevelopingnewproducts.With the exception of

Microsoft, all other firmshave astake in Jio Platforms. In effect,27.61%of Jio isnowownedbyUSfirms. This assumes significancewhentheIndiangovernmenthassignalledcurbsonChinese tech-nologyinvestmentswhilebanning59 mobile apps with links toChinese Internetmajors suchasAlibaba–oneofthelargestChineseinvestorsinIndianstart-ups.The first one to step inwas

Facebookthatpurchaseda9.99%stake in Jio back in April for Rs43,573.62crore,or$5.7billion,be-coming the biggest minorityshareholderinthecompany.Thiswas followedbya series

of US-basedprivate equity firmslike TPG Capital, L Catterton,GeneralAtlantic, SilverLake,andWestAsian sovereign funds likeMubadala andADIA of theUAEandPIFofSaudiArabiapickingupminoritystakesinJioPlatforms.Reliance Industries, ofwhich

JioPlatformsisaunit,hassofardi-vested32.97%stakeinthetelecomcompanyforRs1.52lakhcrore.InadditiontoJio,otherlargecompa-niesinIndia’sInternetsectorhavealsobeenfloodedwithAmericanmoney. Seattle-basedAmazonhas invested $5 billion in India,withaplanof investinganaddi-tional$1billioninitsIndiaopera-tionsannouncedearlierthisyear.On Tuesday, US-based retail

behemothWalmart announcedfundingof$1.2billioninitsIndiane-commerce unit Flipkart, inwhichWalmartpurchasedama-joritystakein2018for$16billion.

Gehlot, PilotonPilotcamehoursafterAICCin-charge of Rajasthan AvinashPande saidCongressdoorswereopenforPilot.AfterGehlot’sstate-ment, Congress spokespersonRandeep Surjewala reiteratedthis, adding that Pilotwaswel-comebackprovidedhe left “theHaryanaBJPgovernment’shospi-tality(MLAsbackingPilotarestay-

inginhotelsinHaryana)”.Congresssourcesclaimedthe

party had learnt that Pilot had ameeting onWednesdaywith aBJP leaderwhohadplayedakeyrole in thedefectionof CongressMLAsinMadhyaPradesh.Asen-iorCongressleadersaidthepartyisintouchwithacoupleofMLAsin the Pilot campand that two-threeof themcouldswitchback.Whenaskedabout themat-

ter, Pilot laughed it away.ThecontrastbetweenGehlot

and Surjewala’s remarks wasstark.SourcessaidSurjewala,whoispartofthecentralteamsentbytheCongress to Jaipur,metwithGehlot after he attacked Pilot. Itwas conveyed tohim thatRahulGandhiwants to keep thedoorsopenforPilot.SourcessaidGehlottoldSurjewalahewasnotagainstthatbutPilotwouldhaveto“leavetheBJPcamp”.Sources in Delhi said both

RahulandPriyankaGandhiVadraare keen to accommodate Pilot,andthatAhmedPatelwastalkingtohim.AskedwhethertherewasachanceofPilotgettinghispostsback, a senior leader pointed toGehlot’s harshwords: “It is clearwhyhesaidthat…MaybeRahulwilltakehimoutofRajasthan.”Addressingmediapersons,

GehlotreferredtotherecentRajyaSabha elections, where he hadclaimed bid at horse-trading,which was denied by Pilot.“HamareyahanpardeputyCMho,PCCpresidentho,wohkhudhidealkar le logonse, ‘mobilenumberdi-jiye hamein, naamdijiye hamein’,shadyantrameinshaamilho.Wohsafai de rahe the…Arre tum tohkhud hi shadyantramain shamilthe (Here, the deputy CM, PCCchiefwashimselfmakingdeals,saying give me your number,names, hewasapart of theplot.Later, he claimednohorse-trad-ingwastakingplace).”Gehlot said hehad to secure

hisMLAsintoahotelaswhatwashappeningnowwouldhavehap-penedthenotherwise.“Thesamepeoplewerebeing lured thenat2atnight.”Heclaimed“proof”regarding

thoseheld“bandhak(hostage)”bytheBJP.“Thosewhohavetakenin-stalments… Money was of-fered…Manypeopledidnotac-cept…theyaresittingwithme.”At his press conference, re-

portedlyatRahul’surging,Surje-walasaidtheCongressleadershiphadgivenalotofopportunitiestoPilot, andhehadbecomeanMP,centralminister, PCC presidentand deputy CM in 14-15 years,“whichwas unheard of for anyleaderinCongressortheBJP”.Repeatedly referring to Pilot

as“young”,“promising”,andasa“familymember”,Surjewalasaid,“Inthelastfivedays,SoniaGandhiandRahulGandhi andCongress

leadership…witha liberalmindhavesaid that, even if amemberofthefamily(leaves)thehousebymistake,hestillremainsapartofthefamily.TheCongresstoplead-ershiphas spoken tohimhalf-a-dozen times, two seniormem-bers of theCWChave spoken tohimadozentimesandAICCgen-eral secretary, organisation, K CVenugopal hasmore than oncetoldhimthatheshouldplacebe-forethepartyhisviews.”OnPilot’s statement thathe

isnot joiningtheBJP,Surjewalasaid he should stop talkingthrough the media. He addedthat if Pilotwantedtoprovehisintentions, he should “comeoutof theManoharLalKhattargovernment’s security ring…leavethehotels inManesarandGurgaon… stop talking to BJPleaders”.Gehlot hinted that Pilot had

risen through the ranksunfairly.“Achchha English, Hindi bolna,achchhibytedena,wohsabkuchhnahinhotahai.Achchhihandsomepersonality… sab kuchh nahinhota hai (SpeakinggoodEnglish,Hindi, having a handsomeper-sonality, none of thismatters).What is important iswhat youfeelforthecountry,yourcommit-ment,ideology,policyandinten-tionwhenitcomestotheparty.”Gehlot said he himself has

been inpolitics for 40years, anditwaswrongtosaytheoldergen-eration in the Congresswas notletting theyoung rise. “This newgenerationwhichhas comeup...we love them. Tomorrow istheirs…RahulGandhilikesthem,SoniaGandhi likes them… Inkiragdai nahin hui thi, isliye ab tak-leefhotihai…Agarragdaihuihoti,aurachchhetareekesekaamkarte(Theyneversawstruggle,whichiswhytheyarefeelingthepainnow.If theyhad, theywouldhaveputinbetterwork)."

PM briefs EU(West)intheMinistryofExternalAffairs, said, “Aspart of a reviewof global and regional develop-ments, our relationswithChinadidcomeup.ThePrimeMinistershared our views on the India-Chinarelationshipingeneral,andthe current situation in thebor-derareas.”Indiahad alreadybriefedEU

partnersincludingGermanyandFrance, on the LAC standoff viadiplomaticchannelsandForeignMinister-levelconversations.Cautiousinhispublicremarks

since efforts are underway tolower the rhetoricwhile thedis-engagement process is on, thePM, inhisopening remarks, saidthe India-EUpartnership is use-ful for global peace and stability.This,hesaid,hasbecomeclearinthecurrentglobalsituation.The joint statement men-

tionedcooperationontheCovid-19pandemic,multilateral coop-eration at theWHO, UNSC andG-20, 5G, Artificial Intelligence,maritime security andnaval co-operationandconnectivityproj-ectsinthirdcountriesintheIndo-Pacificregion--allpointtoChina’spresenceintheseareas,andindi-cates growing convergence be-tweenDelhiandBrussels.Responding to questions,

Michelsaidtheyalsoraisedtheis-sue of the Citizenship (Amend-ment)Actduringtheirconversa-tionwiththePrimeMinister.“We trust Indian institutions.

WeunderstandthattheSupremeCourtwillhavearoletoplayinor-der toassess this legislation, andwe took the decision with theIndianauthoritiestocontinueadi-alogueonthequestionofhumanrights,whichissoimportantforusandforIndia,inordertoexchangegoodpractices, and to have thebestpossibleunderstandingabouthowwetackletheseimportantis-sues for India, and for theEuropeanUnion,”hesaid.Askedaboutthis,Swarupsaid

therewas a “glancing reference”totheissue.Theleadersadoptedthe“EU-

India Strategic Partnership: ARoadmapto2025”toguidecoop-

erationbetweentheEUandIndiaoverthenextfiveyears.

Lavasaspecificquestiononwhetherthegovernmentwas consulted. "Asper the ADB Charter, VicePresidents are appointedby the

BoardofDirectorsonrecommen-dationbyADBPresident.Theap-pointmentsaremeritbased,"thespokespersonsaidinanemail.Lavasa refused to comment

onthematter.Itisunclearifhehasresigned as ElectionCommissioner,astephewillneed

to take if he is to takeuphisnewrole. Cruz told The Indian Expressthat theADBexpects him to as-sumeofficeinSeptember.His premature exit from the

poll panel — a second in theElectionCommission’shistory—putshiscolleagueSushilChandra

next in the line of succession. In1973, Chief ElectionCommissionerNagender Singhhad resignedbefore completinghis term at the ElectionCommissiontobecomeajudgeoftheInternationalCourtofJustice.Lavasa hadmade headlines

duringtheLokSabhaelectionsin2019,whenheopposedthecleanchit given to Prime MinisterNarendraModi and former BJPpresidentAmit Shahon chargesof violating theModel Code ofConduct during the Lok Sabhaelections.Soonaftertheelections,three

membersoftheLavasafamily,in-cludinghiswife,hadcomeunderthe scanner of the Income TaxDepartmentforallegednon-dec-larationofincomeanddispropor-tionate assets. His son AbirLavasa’s company (NourishOrganic) andAshokLavasa’s sis-ter Shakuntala Lavasa, a paedia-trician,were also served incometaxnotices.ThefamilymembershavedeniedallegationsmadebytheITdepartment.

Youth killedopenedfireonthepolicemen,in-juringtwoconstables.Thepolice-menfiredathiminself-defence.”Speaking about the Bikru

shootout, Kartikey’s motherGeeta Mishra said they hadwokenpast1amonJuly3to thesoundoffiring.“Myhusbandwasnot in the village at the time, hehad gone to a relative’s home.Therewas onlymymother-in-law(Rajkali,72),Kartikeyandme.Afterthefiringstopped,Isteppedout of thehouse and sawall themenfleeingfearingpoliceaction.IaskedKartikeytoleavetooforafewdays.”ShesaidKartikeyhadhiscell-

phonewithhim.“Laterthatnightthe police came and took awaymycellphone.Ididn’trememberKartikey’s number and so couldnotcontacthimafterheleft.”Geetasaidshecametoknow

ofKartikey’sarreston July9, anddidnotknowthetwomenthepo-lice said werewith him at thetime. “Wedon’thave relatives inFaridabad. Hours later, I heardfrom themedia that police hadkilledmyson.It ismurder.”Geetasaidthepolicehadtold

her that itsmenhad been firedupononJuly3fromherterrace.“Idon’tknowthetruthbecauseIdidnot allow anyone to enter myhouse.Ithinkthepolicekilledmysonbecause the assailants usedmyterraceandnowIfear formyhusband’slife.”She added thatKartikey’s fa-

ther,RajendraKumarMishra,49,whoworks in a private firm inKanpur, hadn’t beenhomesincetheshootoutduetopolicefear.ShowingKartikey’s Class 10

marksheetwithmore than78%marks, the family said hewas agood student. In theClass 12ex-amsheclearedjustbeforehedied,he got 61% marks, they said.“Kartikeywas yet to collect hismarksheet fromhis school (ShriBajarang Higher SecondarySchool)…Hewanted to join theAir Force. The child with suchgoodmarkswould never takepartincriminalactivities.Thepo-lice are falsely blaming him,”Geetasaid.Kartikey’s elder sister

Himanshi,whoisagraduateandstudying for a Basic TrainingCertificate, said the policeweretryingto“frame”Kumartoo.“Wehave come to know that ShashiKant (aBikru residentwhosear-restfortheJuly3shootoutwasan-nounced by the police onTuesday),hassaidmyfatherwasalsoinvolved.”Himanshiwasatarelative’shouseatthetimeoftheJuly3incident.Additional DirectorGeneral,

Law&Order,PrashantKumarsaidShashiKanthadnamed"RajendraMishra",apartfromothers.Geeta said shehad removed

all government documents, in-cludingeducationalqualificationsof Kartikey andHimanshi, fromtheir house fearing the policemightdestroytheminasearch.According to UP Police, five

days after the Bikru shootout,Faridabad police had arrestedKartikeyalongwithtwootheral-legedDubeyaides, ShrawanandhissonAnkur.

FULLREPORTSONwww.indianexpress.com

THESECONDPAGE2 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHEINDIANEXPRESS,THURSDAY, JULY16,2020

FROMPAGEONE

records andvisits to homes inUluberiainHowrah,oneof theworsthitbythecyclone,showshowonemancametobelistedasthefatherofninebeneficiar-ies fromdifferent families anddifferent faiths in apanchayat;how what are dismissed as“typingerrors”hasleftentirevil-lages distressed; and, how thedeadcomebacktolifeonofficialrecordsforcompensation.Nearlytwomonthsafterthe

naturaldisasterleftthedistrictsof Howrah,North24Parganas,East Midnapore, South 24ParganasandSundarbansdev-astated,many of the affectedstruggletopickupthepieces.OnWednesday, The Indian

ExpressreportedhowrelativesofpoliticallypowerfulmembersofGramPanchayats,PanchayatSamitis and Zilla Parishads inthese districtswere approvedforcompensationevenifthere’snodamagetotheirhomeswhiledeservingapplicantswait. Andabout glaring irregularities inthewaymoneyhasbeenpaid--orclaimscleared.InUluberia's Kalinagar, it's

not justaboutonename. Inan-otherseriesofentriesontheof-ficiallistofbeneficiaries--fromMasiarRahamanMullicktoSKMatleb—TarunPramanik hasbeen listed as “father”. Also onthe list of recipients is SheikhNazrul, who died in October2017attheageof49.These are just some of the

errors, bizarre and baffling,which,Oppositionleaderspointout,providethecoverofdenia-bility to recipients in case of

scrutiny.“My fatherdied threeyears

ago.Idon'tknowhowhisnamecameinthelist.Wehavenotap-plied for compensation,” saysNazrul'ssonJahirul,pullingouthisfather’sdeathcertificate.Jahirul'smotherAjmirasays

her husband's passbookwas“withthebank”afterhisdeath.“After his name came up forcompensation, the panchayatmember'shusband tookmetothebankandIgotthepassbookback. But I am yet to get anymoney,”shesays.Twominutesaway,Khodeja

Begum is bewildered. “My sis-ter Suraiya Parvin has beenlistedasabeneficiaryatthisad-dress.Suraiyadied15yearsago.Sheusedtoliveatherhusband'shouse,thisisherpaternalhome.Idon'tknowwhatishappening.We have not applied for any-thingfromthegovernment.Askthe panchayat, theymade thelist,”saysBegum.Cyclone Amphan swept

through a slice ofWest BengalonMay20,andbythebeginningof June, the state governmenthad released relief and recon-structionfunds.ThisincludedRs2,400 crore in house-buildingassistanceto5lakhpeoplethatcovered Rs 20,000 in directtransfersandRs28,000perper-

sonaswagesequivalentto100dayswork.In villages acrossUluberia,

this has left residents dissatis-fied and triggered a politicalfirestorm.Claims former panchayat

member and Forward Blockleader, Jahirul AlamMullick:“Theseerrorsweredoneinten-tionallysothatnoonecaneasilyidentifythebeneficiaries.Therearenoanomaliesinthebankac-count numbers where themoneywent."Officialsareyettorelease the list of those whohavebeenpaid.The ruling party says it has

takennote."Thistypeofirregu-larityisnotacceptable.Thepartywill take stern action and rootout corruption," says RajibBanerjee, ForestMinister andHowrahdistrictTMCleader.The Block Development

Officer (BDO)wasnotavailablefor comment. According to anofficialattheBDO'soffice,whichprocessedthelistsreceivedfrompanchayats,themismatchwasaresult of “clerical and typo-graphical errors”. “We con-ducted reviews andpublishedfreshlists,”saystheofficial.Back inKalinagar, standing

outsideher two-storeyed con-crete house, Meena, wife ofSurajit Sadukhan, says: “My fa-ther-in-law's name is AnilSadukhan, not KalipodoDas. Idon’t know how that namecame up, andwe don't knowanypersonby that name. I amnotawarewhetheranymoneyhascomeintomyhusband’sac-count.”

Says another beneficiaryDipaliMondol,who is also theowner of a two-storeyed con-cretehouse:“Atinshadeontheroofwasdamagedandweap-plied for compensation but Ihave no idea howmy father’snamewas given as KalipodoDas.”Mondoldeclinedtorevealwhether she had received thecompensationmoney.“The asbestos roof got

damaged. But I did not applyfor compensation. The pan-chayatmember surveyed thearea andmay have givenmyname to the BDO office,” saysUttamBera,athirdbeneficiaryandownerofasingle-storeyedconcrete house. “My father'sname is Nemai Bera, notKalipodoDas,”he says.Infact, localresidentshave

put up posters of the pan-chayatmember and her rela-tives, claiming theywere thereal beneficiaries.“The panchayat member

camehereandtookpicturesofour house. She promised usthatwewillgetcompensation.But when the list was pub-lished, our names were notthere,” saysHosenaraBegum.Panchayat member

Mahrufa Begum was notavailable for comment.Speaking on her behalf, herhusband Dahijul Mollah di-rected all queries to the BDO.“There has been a small mis-take and the names of deadpeople have come up. But allgenuinepeoplehavegot theirnames in the compensationlist,” saysMollah.

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15.07.20,PAGE1

RESPONDINGTOthereport ‘Resentment inHindusonarrests, takecare: Special CP to probe teams’, Delhi Police PROMandeep SRandhawa haswritten, saying “Delhi Police is constantly fedwithinformation obtained through representations frommembers ofpublicandotherintelligenceinputsfromitsownintelligencewingsandotheragencies. Ithastotakenoteof theseinformationinanun-biasedmanner…Thenews itemconveniently ignores the spirit oftheorderwhere ithasbeenspecificallystatedthat ‘anyarrest’, irre-spectiveof anyclass, communityorreligiousgroup,bedoneonthebasis of evidence and not give an impression of being arbitrary…Thisletterwaswrittenonlytoinformtheinvestigatingofficersabouttherepresentationsbeingreceivedfromboththecommunitiesandtosensitiseandguidethemthroughtheinvestigationofthesecases...During the incidents of rioting inNorthEastDistrict of Delhi, DelhiPolicehasactedinanimpartialmannerasperprovisionsof lawandthevictimswere rescued irrespectiveof their casteandreligion.”

The IndianExpressreplies:The article accurately reports an order issued by Special

Commissioner of Police Praveer Ranjan to senior officers headingteams probing the Northeast Delhi riots. A detailed questionnairewas sent toSpecial CPRanjanandPRORandhawaseeking their re-sponse.Bothdeclined tocomment.TheDelhiPolice’scontentionintherejoinderthat“theletterwas

written only to inform investigating officers about the representa-tions being received from both communities” does not findmen-tion in theorder,which specificallyhighlights “resentment amongHinducommunity”overarrestsof “someHinduyouth”.The IndianExpress standsby its report.

TOMORROW:HAVESANDHAVE-NOTS: THEBETEL VINE TWIST

All of them cleared to get relief, all areunrelated, all have same father — on paper

investment in India in thenext5-7yearsforempoweringsmallbusinesses andbuildingprod-ucts suited to the country’sneeds.“Thepace and scale of digi-

tal transformation in India ishugelyinspiringforusandrein-forces our view that buildingproducts for India firsthelpsusbuild better products for userseverywhere,” Sundar Pichai,CEO of Google and Alphabet,saidinhismessagetotheshare-holdersattheAGM.“Webelievewe candesign

anentry-level4G…oreven5Gsmartphone fora fractionof itscurrentcost,”Ambanisaidwhileannouncing Google's invest-ments.RILChairmansaidits5Gtechnologywasdeveloped“us-ing 100 per cent home growntechnologies and solutions”.“ThisMade-in-India5Gsolutionwillbereadyfortrialsassoonas5Gspectrumisavailable…andcan be ready for field deploy-mentnextyear.”Ambanisaidthe4Gnetwork

caneasilybeupgradedto5Gbe-cause of Jio's converged, all-IPnetworkarchitecture.“OnceJio's5G solution is provenat India-scale,JioPlatformswouldbewellpositioned tobeanexporterof5G solutions to other telecomoperatorsglobally,asacompletemanagedservice,”hesaid.HealsoannouncedRIL’soil-

to-chemical(O2C)businesswillbehivedoffintoaseparatesub-sidiary to facilitate an equitypartnership opportunitywithSaudi Aramco,which is in theworks.However,Ambanididn’tmake any specific announce-

mentaboutlistingitsretailarmand JioPlatformsbut indicatedhe is looking for equity tie-upswithglobalplayersfortheretailarm. “Wehave received stronginterest from strategic and fi-nancial investors in RelianceRetail. Wewill induct globalpartners and investors inRelianceRetail in thenext fewquarters,”hesaid.The investment byGoogle

values Jio Platforms at Rs 4.36lakhcrore.Withthis,thetotalin-vestment from financial andstrategic investors into JioPlatformsstandsatRs1,52,056crore. The investment, RIL said,will build on Jio’s andGoogle’sexisting efforts to expand thebenefitsofdigitisationacrossthelengthandbreadthofIndia,be-yond the current500plusmil-

lionInternetusers.RIL has raised a total of Rs

2,12,809 crore througha rightsissue, the combined invest-ments in Jio Platforms and in-vestment by BP. “This is un-precedented in the history ofcapitalmarkets in India. Thiscapitalraiseissignificantlyinex-cess of our net debt of Rs1,61,035croreattheendofFY19-20,”hesaid.“Relianceisnowtrulyazero

netdebtcompany,wellaheadofmygoalofMarch2021,”Ambanisaid.HeindicatedthatJiowouldcollaboratewiththepartnerstobring out new solutions andtechnology.“Wewillworkwiththemtodevelopnewproductsfor IndiaandIndians. I lookfor-ward toworkingwith each ofthem in a collaborativeway to

buildonJioPlatforms'portfoliooftechnologyandsolutions,”hesaid.AttheAGMevent,Facebook

CEO Mark Zuckerberg said,“We're committing towork to-getheronsomecriticalprojectsthatwethinkwillopenupalotofopportunities for commerce inIndia. India is a specialplace forus, it'shometothelargestcom-munities around theworld onFacebook andWhatsApp, andtherearealotof talentedentre-preneurs.”Facebookacquireda9.9 per cent stake in Jio for Rs43,574croreinMaythisyear.On the Saudi Aramcodeal,

Ambani said the deal has notprogressed as per the originaltimelineduetounforeseencir-cumstancesintheenergymar-ket and theCovid-19 situation.“Ourequityrequirementshavealreadybeenmet.Wewill ap-proachNCLTwithourproposaltospinoffourO2Cbusinessintoaseparatesubsidiarytofacilitatethis partnership.Weexpect tocomplete this process by early2021,”hesaid.Jio Platforms, a majority-

owned subsidiary of RelianceIndustries,hasmadesignificantinvestments across its digitalecosystem,poweredbyleadingtechnologies spanning broad-band connectivity, smart de-vices, cloud andedge comput-ing, big data analytics, artificialintelligence, Internet of Things,augmented andmixed realityand blockchain. RIL shares onWednesdayfell3.71percenttoRs 1,845.60 on the stock ex-changesduetoprofit-takingaf-tertheAGMannouncements.

INVESTOR STAKE AMOUNT*(`CRORE)

Facebook 9.99% 43,573.62Google 7.73% 33,737.00KKR 2.32% 11,367.00VistaEquityPartners 2.32% 11,367.00SilverLake 2.08% 10,202.55GeneralAtlantic 1.34% 6,598.38TPGCapital 0.93% 4,546.80LCatterton 0.39% 1,894.50IntelCapital 0.39% 1,894.50Qualcomm 0.15% 730.00

OTHERINVESTORSINJIOPLATFORMSPIF 2.32% 11,367.00Mubadala 1.85% 9,093.60ADIA 1.16% 5,683.50

U.S. INVESTORS IN JIO PLATFORMS

Google to invest $4.5 bn for 7.7% stake in Jio Platforms

New Delhi

3WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHEINDIANEXPRESS,THURSDAY, JULY16,2020

New Delhi

ASTHASAXENANEWDELHI,JULY14

ABOUT55%of the total numberof patients admitted to MaxHealthcarehospitalsforCovid-19treatment hadno comorbiditieswhile the fatality rate amongthesepatientswas3%,revealsananalysisof4,900patientstreatedat various centres of the chainfromApril till July14.The data has been collated

from seven centres fromDelhiandMumbai,with themajorityof patients admitted to MaxSmartSuperSpecialtyHospitalinDelhi, and Nanavati SuperSpecialtyHospital inMumbai.Of the total patients, 3,900

havebeendischargedandaround700arestill admittedat thehos-pitals. Themortality rate amongthe patients under 45 yearswasaround1.7%,9.6%in45-59years,23%in60-74yearsand40%inthepatientsabove75years.“Comorbidconditionswerea

major risk factor in all the Covidpatients,withover30%mortalityinthosewithcomorbidities,com-pared to less than 1% in thosewithnone.Ofthetotalnumberofpatients, 56%hadnocomorbidi-ties.Thehighestmortalitywasinpatientswith comorbidities likecomplicated diabetes and respi-ratorydiseases,”saidDrSandeepBudhiraja, Group MedicalDirector,MaxHospital.The data shows that 30% of

patients require ICU admission.Ofthese,30%requirestraightad-missiontoICU,with82%ofthem

recovering from the illness. “If apatientdirectlygetsadmittedtotheICU,thenthemortalityrateishigher as either the patient hasreached thehospital in a criticalcondition or has reacted late tothe illness,”addedDrBudhiraja.The fatality rate of patients

whodidnotrequireoxygenwasfar lower at 5%. The fatality ratewassignificantlyhigher—uptosix times — in patients withshortnessofbreath.Thehighestmortality rate was reportedamongpatientswithsymptoms

of fever. As per data, 88% of thedeceasedweresymptomatic.For the last twoweeks, there

hasbeenadipinadmissions,butthepercentageofICUpatientshasremainedconsistent.“InthefirstweekofJune,around20%oftotalpatients were admitted to theICU. At present, the figure is at26%. The number of patients inthewardhasgonedownbutpa-tientsintheICUhavebeenalmostthe same,” said Dr Vinitaa Jha,senior vice-president, researchandacademics,Maxhealthcare.

CBSEBOARDRESULTSOUT

SUKRITABARUAHNEWDELHI, JULY15

IN A significant improvementfrom last year’s Class X CBSEBoardresults,Delhigovernmentschoolsincreasedtheirpassper-centage by over 10 percentagepointstocrossthe80%markthistime— fuelled possibly by a fo-custopushupthenumberofstu-dentspassing inmathematics.Last year, these schools had

registeredasoberingClassXre-sultwitha71.97%passpercent-age.Thisyear, ithasleapedupto81.39%forDelhiEastand84.89%forDelhiWest.Though Delhi government

schools continue to lag behindthe national pass percentage of91.46%, as well as that of otherDelhi schools such as privateones,KendriyaVidyalayas(KVs)and Jawahar NavodayaVidyalayas (JNVs), their im-proved performance is amongthe country’s most significantupward trends.Deputy Chief Minister and

Education Minister ManishSisodia acknowledged the im-provement, tweeting:“Ourchil-drenhavemadeusproudagain!After record breaking result ofClass 12, upward graph of DelhiEducation continues inClass10.Overjoyed that this year, resultimprovedto82.61%from71.58%lastyear.”Pass percentages of private

schools and KVs, meanwhile,dippedmarginallyfromlastyear.

Private schools went from93.18%in2019to91.29%inDelhiEast and 89.09% in DelhiWest;and KVs went from 99.80% to99.42% inDelhi East and99.31%inDelhiWest.Delhi’soverallpasspercentage

increasedbyalmostfivepercent-agepointsfrom80.97%to85.86%.Despitethis,Delhicontinuestobethe second lowest performingamongst CBSE’s 16 regions,withonlyGuwahatiregionregisteringalowerpasspercentage.An analysis of last year’s

board examination results byDelhi government schools hadshownthatof 1,66,167studentsfrom these schools who hadtaken the exam, 24,502 hadfailed inonlyMathematics.Following that, the govern-

ment’s education departmentfocused its attentiononhelpingmore students pass the subject.Apartfromextraclassesandrop-ing inprivate coaching for ‘low-performing schools’, one of thesignificant moves was ‘coun-selling’studentsweakinmathe-maticstoopt fortheCBSE’snew‘Basic Mathematics’ option,which was offered for the firsttime in the2020boardexam.The Indian Express had re-

ported on how almost 73% ofDelhigovernmentstudentshadopted for Basic Mathematics.Across all CBSE schools andabroad, this numberwasmuchlowerat33%.“Every year, the subject in

whichthehighestnumberofstu-dentscannotpasshasbeenmath-

ematics. However, this has de-creased andmy school actuallyhasmorechildrenwhocouldnotpass science this year. I think thebasicmaths option has helpedmanyof the childrenpass, and I

personallythink it’s a good thingbecause astudentwho scored92% in classXIIfrommyschoolthisyearinhu-manitieshadstruggledalotwithmathsinclassX,”saidtheheadof

agovernmentschoolinEastDelhi.“Last year, our pass percent-

agewasshortof72%butafterwecoached the students placed incompartment dedicatedly inmathsandscience,manyofthese

students passed the compart-ment exams and the pass per-centageincreasedtoaround81%.Primafacie,itappearsthatteach-erstooknoteof thisandfocusedon studentswhowereweak inthesesubjects,especiallymaths,which might account for therise...Wewillhavetoanalyseandstudytheresultsandthisisapre-liminary assessment,” saidShailendraSharma,principalad-visortotheDirectorofEducation.The head of a government

schoolwhichsawajumpofover30percentagepointsinthepasspercentage said that the optionof basic mathematics wassquarely responsible for this.“Last year, my school’s pass

percentage was in the 60s andmostofthestudentswhodidnotpass had failed in maths, andmanyhad also failed in science.This year, around 70% studentsfrommyschooltookbasicmathsandallof themhavepassed.Thefew students who have notpassedthisyearisbecauseofsci-ence,” theheadof school said.CBSE comptroller of exami-

nationsSanyamBharadwajsaidthat the board itself toowas yetto analyse the result and studytheeffectof ‘BasicMathematics’.“So far, we have not gone

through the results so deeply.However,weholdboth‘StandardMaths’and‘BasicMaths’onaparwitheachother.Asasubject,bothoptionsareofanequivalentvalue— therewas just a difference inthe way questions were de-signed,”hesaid.

For volunteer’s family, concerns about clearing loansSOURAVROYBARMANNEWDELHI, JULY 15

THE FAMILY of Arun Singh, acivil defence volunteer whotoiled forover threemonthsar-rangingfoodforthepoorduringthe lockdownanddiedofCovidon Monday, Wednesday saidthey were facing financial dis-tress owing to loans taken tomeet the expenses during hishospitalisation.Singh is survivedbyhiswife

andtwochildren—asoninclassIX and a daughter who clearedclass XII boards on the day hepassed away at Dwarka’sVenkateshwarHospital.Taking note of The Indian

Express reportonSingh’sdeath,

Chief Minister Arvind KejriwalWednesday tweeted: “ArunSingh ji succumbed to Covid inthe course of his duty, feedingthousands of people in the last3 months. I salute his sacrificeand offer my heartfelt condo-lencestohisgrievingfamily.Westandwiththemintheirhourofneed.”DwarkaMLA VinayMishra

tweetedthathewillspeaktotheCM andmake sure that Singh’sfamily gets financial assistanceand a job. SDM (Dwarka)ChanderShekharsaidhewasinthe process of putting up a filerelating to compensation toSingh’s family before the gov-ernment.M L Singh, Arun’s elder

brother, told The Indian Express

that the hospital bill had cometo over Rs 4 lakh. The 48-year-oldwas admitted to hospital intheearlyhoursof July4afterhe

complained of breathlessness,days after he tested positive forCovid-19.“The private hospital we

tookhimto is barely 2kmfromourhome.Sowehadnooption.Later,wewantedtoshifthimtoagovernmenthospitalbutweretoldbyhospitalauthorities thathewasinacriticalconditionandthat wewill have to undertakeany suchmoveatourownrisk.“Eventually, he stayed on at

theprivatehospital.Thebillkeptincreasingand wetookloanstomeettheexpenses.Thefinalbillwas over Rs 4 lakh,” M L Singh,whoisprivatelyemployed,said.“My primary concern is re-

garding the two children, oneof whom is still in school. Myniece just cleared her

boards...,” Singh said.TheDelhigovernmenthasan

honorarycompensationschemeof Rs one crore for the family ofemployees who die of coronawhileonCovid-19duty."Anyper-sonincludingdoctor,nurse,para-medicalstaff,security/sanitationstaff,oranyothergovernmentof-ficer/officialincludingpoliceoffi-cer/official, whether temporaryor permanent employee or con-tractual,ingovernmentorprivatesector,deployedforCOVID-19du-ties by Government of NCT ofDelhi,ifexpiresbycontractingthedisease, during discharge ofhis/herduty, his/her family shallbe compensatedwith ex-gratiaamountof Rsone crore, posthu-mously,” says a health depart-mentorderdatedApril19.

The IndianExpress reportdated July15.ArunSingh,a48-year-oldcivildefencevolunteer, is survivedbyhiswifeandtwoteenagechildren

ACROSSSEVENMAXHOSPITALSAGEGROUPOFADMITTEDPATIENTSBelow45 486(45%)45-59 312(29%)60-74 224(21%)75plus 48(4%)

CO-MORBIDITIES INPATIENTSNone 480(44%)Oneormore 620(56%)

MORTALITYRATEAMONGAGEGROUPSBelow45 1.7%45-59 9.6%60-74 23%75plus 40%

ABHINAVRAJPUTNEWDELHI, JULY15

DOCTORS AT North MCD'sHindu Rao hospital, which isnow a Covid facility, havewrit-ten to Lt-Governor Anil Baijalstatingthat theirsalariesareyetto be paid despite the court in-tervening in thematter.The Residents Doctors’

Associationsaidthishasbecomea trend inNorthMCDhospitals."Presently, salaries have notbeenpaid for threemonths andnow it is a basic violationof hu-man rights, Medical Council ofIndia norms along with con-temptof courtasper thecourt'sjudgement," the letter said.In ahearing lastmonth, tak-

ingnoteof instancesofnon-pay-ment of salary to doctors treat-ing Covid-19 patients, theSupreme Court told the Centrethatthecountrycannotaffordtohave dissatisfied soldiers in thewar against the pandemic, andaskedauthoritiestogotheextramile to raise funds for them.RDA president Abhimanyu

Sardanasaid,"Afterthecourtor-der,wewere expecting that thecomplete salarywill come in15days. Doctors are now sayingthey will have to resort to nowork, no pay. As last resort, wehavewritten toL-G."GeneralsecretarySagarDeep

said,"WeweregivensalariesforMarch and April after court or-

derbutthatofMay,JuneandJulyispending."Over the last few months,

healthcareworkersatHinduRaoand three other NorthMCD fa-cilities—RajanBabuTBHospital,KasturbaHospital, andGirdhariLal Maternity hospital — havestagedprotestsagainstthesalarydelay.NorthMCDMayorJaiPrakash

saidthecorporationhashaltedallexpenses,andisfocusingonlyonpayingsalaries:"TheCovidcrisishasledtoafundcrunchfromdif-ferent heads like property tax,parkingandotherresources.Wearetryingtogivethemmoneyassoonaspossibleandalsoincreaseavenuestoboostresources."NorthMCDemploys at least

1,000seniordoctors,500residentdoctors, and 1,500 nursing offi-cers across itsmedical facilities.Allof theirsalariesaredelayed.

Salary for 3 monthsnot paid, Hindu Raodocs approach L-G

AtaprotestbyHinduRaohospital staff lastmonth

IN DELHINoof studentsDelhiEast 1,94,141DelhiWest 1,26,842Overallpasspercentage:DelhiEast 85.79%DelhiWest 85.96%INSTITUTION-WISEGovtschoolsDelhiEast 81.39%DelhiWest 84.89%Govt-aidedschoolsDelhiEast 76.47%DelhiWest 75.92%PvtschoolsDelhiEast 91.29%DelhiWest 89.09%JNVDelhiEast 98.65%DelhiWest 100%KVDelhiEast 99.42%;DelhiWest 99.31%PasspercentofGirls 88.04%Boys 81.97%

NoofCWSNstudentsDelhiEast 1,400DelhiWest 817CWSNpasspercentageDelhiEast 91.79%DelhiWest 95.10%

ACROSS THECOUNTRY

%of studentsscoringAbove90% 9.84%Above95% 2.23%

PasspercentofBoys 90.14%Girls 93.31%

Noof students18,73,015

Overallpass%91.46%

Passpercent inDelhigovtschoolsovertheyears2019 80.97%2018 69.32%2017 92.44%2016 89.25%

HOWSTUDENTS FARED INDELHI, ACROSSTHECOUNTRY

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM

99.28%CHENNAI

98.95%BENGALURU

98.23%

TOP PERFORMINGREGIONS:

Jump in govt school students clearingClassX, crackingmaths seems to be key

Watchoutforcriminalentry:FaridabadCPGurgaon:FaridabadPolicechief O P SinghWednesdaydirectedthata closewatch be kept oncriminalsenteringthedis-trict fromother states, aweekafter a close aideofgangsterVikasDubeywasarrested fromFaridabad,with police discoveringthat Dubey himself washadhidtherebriefly .

PregnantwomenneednotgettestedforCovid:GovtNewDelhi:TheDelhigov-ernment Wednesdaysubmitted before theHCit is “notmandatory foreverypregnantwomantoundergoCovid-19testun-lessanduntilsheisacon-firmed”Covid“contactorsuspected”ofCovid.

TattooartistarrestedNewDelhi:A32-year-oldtattooartistwasarrestedfromEastPatelNagar forallegedly shooting at hisbrother-in-law andwifeto get custody of hischild,police said.ENS

BRIEFLY 55% of Covid patients atMax had no co-morbidities

At city’s Schools ofExcellence, tales ofbeating the oddsARANYASHANKARNEWDELHI, JULY15

IN THE CBSE Class XII board re-sults declaredMonday, three oftheDelhigovernment’spremierSchoolsofExcellenceregistereda100%passpercentage. Intheseupgraded schools, this was thefirst batch of students who ap-peared forclassXII exams.Among them is Tushar

Upadhyay, a commerce studentof the School of Excellence atKalkaji.WhilemoststudentstaketuitionstoscorewellintheirclassXIIboardexams,the17-year-oldpreparedbygivingtuitions.His daily routine involved

coming back from school in theafternoon and giving back-to-backtuitionstill9pmtoyoungerstudents, so he could earnmoney and support his finan-ciallyunstablefamily.Itwasonlyat night that he found the timeto study. “From 9 pm to 2 am.That iswhen I studied,”hesaid.OnMonday,whentheresults

were released, Tushar scored92.16%.“Heusedtostudyinapri-vateschoolbutoncemybusinessdwindled,Icouldn’taffordtosendhimtothatschoolwhichaskedRs3,500permonthasfee.SoinclassXI,weshiftedhimtotheSchoolofExcellence.Tusharwasalwaysin-terested in academics so I knewhe’d dowell. But to do so wellwhile spendingmost of his timegiving tuitions, andwithout tak-ing any tuitions himself, is atremendous feat,” saidhis fatherPradeepUpadhyay,whoworksina shop selling ceiling fans andearnsaroundRs15,000amonth.Tushar, who nowwants to

study Maths (Hons) fromHansraj College and ultimatelybecomeaCharteredAccountant,said: “I give tuitions to studentsfrom classes VIII-X, includingthose from private schools likeDonBosco. I like it but it is basi-cally to supportmyfamily.”Like him, Shameem Ansari

(17), a science student at theSchool of Excellence in Dwarkahad also studied diligently andexpected toscorearound85%.He figured that in the ab-

sence of tuitions and lack of re-

sourcesduetohisworking-classbackground, expecting moremarks would be unrealistic.Shameem,however,wasinforapleasantsurprisewhenhefoundouthehadscored94%.His daily schedule included

studyingforfour-fivehoursadayand dedicating the rest to play-ing puzzles online on a com-puterboughtbyhisparents.“ButI didn’t takemystudies lightly. Iwanted to study hard and dowell because it is my dream tobecome a computer engineer. Iwill apply for JEEandseewherethat takes me. I want to buy ahouse in Delhi somedaywheremy parents, brother and I canstayhappily,” saidShameem.His father is a piece-rated

workerata leather factory,whoearnsroughlyRs8,000amonth,andhismotherisahomemaker.Shameemscoredabove90%

in all subjects, except English.“Till classX, I studied inaHindi-medium school, so studyingeverything in English is still dif-ficult forme.That’swhyIcould-n't gethighmarks,”hesaid.Maitri Sharma (18), on the

otherhand, joinedtheSchoolofExcellence in Rohini as her for-mer school didn’t offer theHumanities stream. “I decidedon this school as they have thebestteachers.Ultimately,educa-tion isnotaboutgovernmentorprivate, it depends on studentsandteachers,” shesaid.Sharma scored 96%. “I want

to study Psychology at LSR col-legeordo law,” shesaid.

(Fromtopleft)TusharUpadhyay,ShameemAnsari,MaitriSharma

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI,JULY15

TWO NEW committees wereconstituted onWednesday towork towardsdevelopinganewstate education board for Delhi,aswellasforintroducingreformsinprimaryandelementaryedu-cationinthecapital.DeputyChiefMinisterManish

Sisodiahadannouncedthatthesecommitteeswouldbe formedinhis2020-2021budgetspeech.“Our government believes

that education should play aguiding role in society. This ispossible onlywhenwe connecteducationwith the contempo-raryneedsofsocietyandthepos-sibilities of tomorrow. For this,we will also have to makechanges in our curriculum andexamination system so that ourstudents can go beyond bookknowledge and gain practicalknowledge anduse it properly...TheaimofthenewBoardistoes-tablish such a systemof educa-tion and examination inwhichchildrenfocusonunderstandingand learning rather [than] scoremarks by rote learning so thattheyprepare themselves for thepossible challenges of the up-

comingworld,” he had said, oninstituting a separate boardwhilepresentingthebudget.He had also announced that

an ‘expert committee’ of expertscholars would prepare a newcurriculumforclassesfromnurs-erytoclassVIIofallDelhigovern-mentschools.Sisodiaannouncedthe creation of these two com-mitteesonWednesday.The committee for the cre-

ation of the framework for aDelhi State Education Board in-cludes IIM Ahmedabad facultyAnkur Sarin, director ASERCentreWilimaWadhwa,anddi-rector Alcohn group of schoolsAshokPandey.The committee for the cre-

ationofanewcurriculumforchil-drenupto the age of 14 includesprincipal Springdales SchoolAmeeta Wattal, CEO PrathamfoundationRukminiBanerji,andeducation advisor Step by StepSchoolAbhaAdams.

DeputyCMSisodiaannouncedthecreationof thecommitteesWednesday

NewDelhi:A23-year-oldconsta-ble,whowaspostedatTiharJail,was found dead at her home inSouthwestDelhi’sPalamvillageonWednesday. Police suspectPreeti Beniwal was allegedlykilledbyapersonknowntoher.Police said Beniwal joined

theforce in2018andwaswork-ingwiththe3rdBattalionof theDelhi Armed Police. She waspostedattheTiharJailcommandcentre as a daily diary entrywriter.HerfamilylivesinRewari.DCP (Southwest) Devender

Arya said: “A police teamwentto the spot and found her un-conscious on her bed. She hadligature marks on her body. Acase of murder has been regis-teredagainstunknownpersons.Weareawaitingtheautopsyre-port to ascertain the cause ofdeath.”An initial probe revealed she

hadshiftedtothehouserecentlyand someone had come to visither twodays ago. Police said heleftWednesday and locked thedoorfromtheoutside.ENS

23-year-old woman copfound dead at home

2 panels set up forreforms in education

THEINDIANEXPRESS,THURSDAY, JULY16,2020

THECITYWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

4

TashiTobgyal

0-50 Good

ANANDVIHARModerate

0 500

104AQI

Pollutant:OZONE

SIRIFORTModerate

0 500

SHADIPURModerate

0 500 500

51-100 Satisfactory 101-200 Moderate 201-300 Poor 301-400 VeryPoor 401-500 Severe

DWARKA- SECTOR8Moderate

0

149AQIPM:10

116AQIPM:10

129AQIPM:10

New Delhi

1,647NEWCASES2,643RECOVERIESONWEDNESDAY

MALLICAJOSHI&SOURAVROYBARMANNEWDELHI, JULY15

FORTHEpast twoweeks,Delhihasbeenonapathwithdeclin-ing active Covid-19 cases andhigher recoveries per day ascompared to new cases.Between July 2 and July 15,27,191 people contracted thediseasewhile35,707recoveredfromit,Delhigovernmentdatastates.Delhi Chief Minister Arvind

Kejriwal saidWednesday thatthe capital’s Covid-19 growthhasslowed, remainingwellbe-lowpreviousprojections,duetothe Delhi government’s deci-siontoworkintandemwiththeCentre, NGOs, spiritual organi-sations, and its policy of homeisolation.Addressing awebcast on the

city’sCovid-19situation,whichhesaidwas“undercontrol”,theCM,however, cautioned that therewasnoroomforcomplacency.“Wewereexpecting2.5 lakh

casesbyJuly15,aspertheCentre’sformula based on the previoustrendofCovidgrowth.Thereweresupposed to be 1.34 lakh active

cases,forwhich34,000bedswererequired.Butduetoclosecoordi-nationbetweenthelocaladminis-tration and theCentre,wehaveabout18,600activecasescurrently.Only4,000hospitalbedsareoccu-piedoutof15,000.Thesituationisundercontrolbutwecan’t affordtobecomplacentascasesmaygoupanytime,”Kejriwalsaid.OnWednesday, the city saw

1,647newCovidcasesand2,463recoveries. The total case countin Delhi so far is 1,16,993 and ofthese17,807areactive.The number of active cases,

too,hasbeendeclininginthecityoverthepasttwoweeks.Asmallincreasewasseenontwodays–July6andJuly7.Whilethenum-

berofactivecasestouched28,329onJune27–thehighestsofar–itdippedto17,807onWednesday.Active cases in the citywere be-low the 18,000mark in the firstweekof Junebeforethis.Lastmonth,thestategovern-

ment hadprojected thatDelhi’scasecountwouldbe1lakhbytheend of June, 2.5 lakh by July 15,and5.32lakhbyJuly31.Ithadalsosaid the citywill require at least15,000bedsbyJune30,33,000byJuly15,and80,000byJuly31.“Werealisedthatmanywere

not getting tested on time. Notenough ambulanceswere avail-able.Now,thereareenougham-bulancesandnodistresscallsarerejected.The lengthyproceduralformalitiesbeforehospitaladmis-sionswere also claiming lives.Now,wehavecreatedholdingar-eas in every hospitalwhere pa-tients are administered oxygenevenasformalitiestakeplace.Wehad 4,100 beds on June 1 and15,000bedsnow.Therewere300ICUs on June1whichhave risento2,100now,outofwhich1,000are occupied.We are also bank-ingonplasmatherapytillthevac-cinearrives,”Kejriwalsaid.Healso said that thenumber

of deathshad fallen significantly

from around a 100 a day in thebeginningofJunetoanaverageof30-35now.Heattributedthehighrateofdeathsrecordedpreviouslytodelayedtesting,shortageofam-bulances,andlengthyformalitiesbeforeadmissionsinhospitals.The Delhi government has

createdtwoplasmabanksintwohospitals, Institute of Liver andBiliarySciencesandLokNayak.Kejriwal also said LokNayak

hadmade a remarkable turn-around. “When thingswerego-ingwrong,everyonewaspoint-ing out faults. We did not getperturbed and tried to addressthe shortcomings. Today, LokNayak is being praised...We areinabetterpositionascomparedto June but that does notmeanwehavewonthewar,”hesaid.Kejriwalsaidthe‘Delhimodel’,

which has been “praised by thePrimeMinisteraswell”, isrootedin theprinciples of collective ap-proachandteamwork.“TheCentrehelpedusinstart-

ingrapidantigentests,increasingcapacity of testing. Home isola-tionisanotherpillaronwhichtheDelhimodel stands. Even today,inmanystates,testingisnotbeingdoneashomeisolationfacility isnotavailable,”hesaid.

PRITAMPALSINGHNEWDELHI, JULY15

THEDELHIPoliceWednesdayopposed tweets allegedly de-scribing them as “massiveHindutvamachinery” follow-ing thearrest of PinjraTodac-tivistDevanganaKalita,sayingthat“it isnothing,butdamagetoourcountry”.Referringtovarioustweets

onthesocialmedia,AdditionalSolicitor General (ASG) AmanLekhisubmittedbeforeJusticeVibhuBakhru:“Whattheyaresaying is that by prosecutingthem... themassive Hindutvamachinery is at stake for thepurpose of making criminalsof innocentpeople...”“Thisisreprehensible...Are

yougoingtocommunalisethepolice, by presenting in thismanner...,” Lekhi said, addingthat “whatever the opinionmay be, the comment has tobe civilised. This is an un-civilised comment in the ex-treme. It is nothing but dam-age toour country. Thishas tobecheckedbybothsides...”Justice Bakhru expressed

that“thisisnotagainstanyor-ganisation. They are sayingnarratives of Jihadis, feminist,communist conspiracies arepropagated by Hindutvama-chinery. They are not sayingpolice is thismachinery.”The ASG responded,

“Whatever issue may arise,fewthingswhich I feel shouldbe leftuntouched.”The judge said, “We are

also facing this issue. Socialmedia in one sense is a veryunruly horse. Youdon’t knowhow it picks up. It’s not thatanybody or everybody is tar-geted... But this is the animal,thesocialmediais.Itisnotonlytoyouragency,butotheragen-ciesaswell.”The ASG, accompanied by

advocates AmitMahajan andRajat Nair, however, submit-ted:“Itisnotourcase,asseemsto be, that there is any en-dorsementofmediatrial.Thatisabsolutelynotourcasetoo.Itis something,whichhas to beavoided.”Kalita,31,hadsoughtdirec-

tions to the police not to leakallegations about her to themediawhileinvestigationwaspending. As per her petition,Kalita is accused in four FIRs,including one for allegedlyparticipating in protests inDarya Ganj on December 20last year and two for her al-leged role in the anti-CAA

Jafrabad sit-in protest inFebruary.She has also sought direc-

tions to police to “forthwithwithdrawallallegations”con-tained in a June 2 “brief note”handedto themedia.ASG Lekhi submitted that

the reason for issuance of thepressnotewasnottoprejudiceher caseor toattackher repu-tation.Clarifying that itwas not a

selective leak as alleged, andwas sent to 480 personswhoare part of the WhatsAppgroup of the Delhi Police andmedia persons, the ASG fur-ther said that “the onlymoti-vation behind the issuance ofthepressnotewas theaware-ness...”He contended that “being

aninstitutionofsocialcontrol,there is an accountability,whichmandatesthatthetrustdeficitdoesnot inanyway in-tervene”.“Becausethis(DelhiPolice)

is a public body and a publicbody is accountable for its ac-tions...,” Lekhi said.Lekhi added that Kalita

never “dissociated” herselffromthe tweets.Justice Bakhru observed,

“Youcannotequate(tweetsre-latedtoherwith)Stateaction...Let us take at the worst, thatthe informationonsocialme-diaandthecampaignonsocialmedia is being run by the ac-cused or on their behalf. Youcan’t equate the two. It’s not adialogue that is to be playedout there. Presumption of in-nocence is not destroyed by apersonwho says that I am in-nocentandrunsacampaigntothateffect.Presumptionof in-nocence is sought to be de-stroyed when informationcontrarytothatisleakedinthemedia. So it is not on anequalfooting that you have joinedthe issue in the public do-main.”

Court-monitored probeplea by Pinjra Todmembers turned downANANDMOHANJNEWDELHI, JULY15

ADELHIcourthasrejectedtheapplicationofPinjraTodmem-bers, arrested in a NortheastDelhi riots case, seeking acourt-monitoredinvestigation.Rejecting the application,

Additional Sessions JudgeDharmender Rana observedthat accusedDevanganaKalitaandNatasha Narwal have an“undeniablefundamentalrightof fair trialwhich is essentiallyfounded upon the bedrock offair investigation.However, theapprehensionofaccusedintheinstantcaseseemsbasedmoreonanxietygeneratedbecauseofincarceration and less on anysubstantialbasisorsoundlogic”.Adit Pujari and Tusharika

Mattoo,counselfortheaccused,had argued that the investiga-tion is not in accordancewithacceptedtenetsofafairinvesti-

gation,“sinceitislikelythattheperpetratorsoftheoffencesandensuing riots arehand inglovewiththeinvestigatingagency”.The lawyers submitted to

thecourtthatthereweremul-tiplevideosof Jafrabadprotestsite whichwere taken by theinvestigating agency and re-porters,however“policeisde-liberatelywithholdingsuchanimportantpieceof evidence”.“Thereappearstobeadelib-

erateandwillfulfailuretoinves-tigatetheexistenceofpro-CAArallies andhateful statementsmade between 22.02.2020 to26.02.2020made by pro-CAApersonsandpro-CAAleadersofthearea...,”theysubmitted.“I find no valid grounds to

saddle the already overbur-dened investigating agencywith additional responsibilityin the nameofmonitoring in-vestigation. Prayer for callingbi-weekly reports stands re-jected,” theorderread.

Dadri toll plaza managerassaulted after tax row

PinjraTodactivistDevanganaKalita

Noida:Atollplazamanagerwasbeatenupallegedlybyagroupofmen in full public viewafterheaskedthemtopaytax.Thein-cidenttookplaceattheDadritollplazaon theEasternPeripheralExpresswayTuesdayevening.Police said Jitendra Singh

Pawarwasattheplazawhenagroup of men were asked topaytax for their four-wheeler.An argument took place,which escalated and themenallegedlyassaultedPawar.CCTVfootageoftheincident,

whichhasgone viral,showssixmen stepping out of a black

Scorpio, a fewmetres aheadofthetollplaza.Themenidentifyone person from the toll staffanddraghim.Theycanbeseenkickingandpunchinghimashetries to shieldhimself. Secondslater,themenreturntotheirve-hiclewithoutbeingstoppedbypassersby. The footage is beingexaminedbypolice.“Thevictimwasrushedtoa

local government hospital. AnFIR has been filed against onenamedandotherunnamedac-cused. Arrests will be madesoon,” said Akhilesh Dixit, SI,Dadripolicestation.ENS

THECITY 5WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHEINDIANEXPRESS,THURSDAY, JULY16,2020

CORONAVIRUS IN THECAPITAL

TOTAL CASES

1,16,993Total Vacant

HOSPITAL BEDS 15,353 11,476VENTILATORS 1,103 613

Dailycases Recoveries Deaths TestsJuly 14 1,606 1,924 35 21,063July 15 1,647 2,463 41 22,528Total 17,807* 95,699 3,487 7,36,436

4500

4000

3500

3000

2500

2000

1500

1000

500

0

1,647

3,947

2,463

2,711

749

4,027

June23

June25

June27

June29

July1

July3

July5

July7

July9

July11

July13

July15

CASES VSRECOVERIES■Dailycases ■Daily recoveries

2,084

*Total active cases

Tweets rile police,court says nottargeted at you

TheCMinsistedthat therewasnoroomforcomplacency

Trend continues ofmore recoveries thannewcases, CMsays under control but stay cautious

New Delhi

6THEINDIANEXPRESS,THURSDAY, JULY16,2020

GOVT&POLITICSWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

DELHICONFIDENTIAL

MEETING BUZZSENIORCONGRESSleaderRahulGandhi’sreportedremarksatanNSUImeeting onWednesday sent the party into a tizzy.Speaking tooffice-bearersof theparty’s studentswing,Rahulissaidtohaveobservedthatwhosoeverwantstoleavethepartywill leaveand theyshouldnotbeundulyworriedabout it.Hereportedlyaddedthatwhenabigleaderleavestheparty,itwillopendoorsforyouthslikethem.TheCongressimmediatelyde-niedhemadeanysuchremark,asitwasbeingreadinthecon-textof speculationthatSachinPilotcouldleavetheparty.

TURNING TO PRAYERWITHSIXNSCN-IMcadresgunneddownbysecurityforcesinArunachal Pradesh four days ago and peace talks with theIndian government having reached a stalemate, the NSCN-IMhas appealed toNagas across states to turn toprayer. ThegrouphasdeclaredJuly19asadayoffastingandprayerfortheCouncilofNagalimChurches. IthascalleduponNagastoprayfor the destruction of all spiritual forces that are “workingagainst” themandfor reconciliationsothatanearlysolutioncanbereached.

TALKING TIESRUSSIAISquiteactiveonthediplomaticchannelsasIndiaandChinaarelockedinaborderstandoffformorethannineweeksnow.OnWednesday,atelephoneconversationtookplacebe-tweenIndianambassadorDBalaVenkateshVarmaandDeputyForeignMinisterIgorMorgulov,inwhichbilateralandregionalissuesofmutualinterestwerediscussed.Adayearlier,DeputyForeignMinisterSergeyVershininmetambassadorVarmaandtheydiscussedcooperationatinternationalplatforms,includ-inginthecontextof India’selectiontotheUNSecurityCouncilin2021-2022asanon-permanentmember.

HAMZAKHAN&DEEPMUKHERJEEJAIPUR,JULY15

THE POLITICAL impasse inRajasthandraggedonforthefifthday,with Chief Minister AshokGehlot launchinga frontal attackon rebel Congress leader SachinPilot,accusinghimof“horsetrad-ing”,andtherivalcamprespond-ingbyquestioning theCM’salle-gations and saying he was“deludingthepublic”.Sources in the Congress also

claimed that the rebellion ledbySachinPilothadbeenbrewingforlongandthatthenoticeissuedtohim by the Special OperationsGroupoftheRajasthanPolice—inaprobeintoanallegedbidtotop-ple the state government—mayhave forcedhimtoplayhishandimmediately,withoutwaitingforthe required numbers to topplethegovernment.OnWednesday, Gehlot ac-

cused his former deputy of in-

dulging inhorse trading andbe-inginvolvedintheBJP’s“conspir-acy”totopplethegovernment.Responding to theCM’s alle-

gations,twoCongressMLAsfromthe Pilot camp,Murari Lal fromDausaconstituencyandRameshChandMeena fromSapotra, is-sued video statements onWednesday,citingtheirownpastwhen they had joined theCongressfromtheBSP.InavideopostedbyLokendra

Singh,whomanagesmediarela-tions for Pilot,Murari Lal is seenassaying,“Wearehurtatthewayhelevelledallegationsofcorrup-tion against us today. I want toask him:whenwe came to theCongressfromtheBSPduringhisprevious government’s tenure,howmuchmoney didwe takefrom him? Following that, heused to give speeches saying hehasn’t seen such honest peopleandMLAs.Thosewhowerehon-est then, howdid they becomecorrupt today.”In a similar video, this one

posted on Twitter,Meena,whowasremovedasCabinetministeron Tuesday, too, took onGehlotoverhishorse-tradingallegation.“Todayhetalksaboutcrores

of rupees being offered. I wantto ask the Chief Minister thatwhen we were in the BSP andjoinedtheCongress,howmuchmoney did we get,” he said,while accusing Gehlot of notpayingheedtotheirdemandsinCabinetmeetingsandbehavingina “dictatorial”way.AllegationsoftheBJPbeingin-

volvedinanallegedconspiracytotopplethegovernmenthadcomeupduring theRajya Sabha elec-tions lastmonth, whenGehlothadmoved swiftly to takepartyMLAstoaresortaheadofvoting.AftertheCongresswentonto

comfortablywin the twoRajyaSabhaseatsfromthestate,Gehlotwas accused bymany of cryingwolf, includingPilot,who said, “Ihad said it before the elections,which turned out to be right. Itmeansthatwhateverwassaid,be

itbyanyone,wasallbaseless.”OnWednesday, Gehlot said

thattheMLAs,whohaverebellednow, were being herded else-where aheadof theRajya Sabhaelections lastmonth: “(DuringRajyaSabhaelections)thesepeo-ple(rebelMLAs)werebeingsentat 2 am, andwhowas doing itandwhowas issuing clarifica-tions... that nothing is happen-ing?Thosewhowereinvolvedintheconspiracythemselvesweregivingclarifications.”Gehlot added that the pres-

entcrisiswouldhaveplayedoutduringtheRajyaSabhaelectionshadthepartynottakenitsMLAstoaresort.Tomaketheirpointthatthere

weresignsofarebellionoverthelast fewmonths, party sourcespointtotheopenconfrontationbyVishvendra Singh—one of theMLAs in thePilot campwhowasremoved as Tourismminister—withhisdepartmentofficials.Singh’s discord with

Department officials, including

ShreyaGuha, thenprincipal sec-retary,Tourism,wasknowntoall.“Departmentofficials are in-

differenttowardsachievinghightourismgrowthandintroducingnewproducts, despitemy con-stant prodding and initiatives...”Singh had tweeted on June 25.Earlier this month, Guha hadbeenreplaced.A source in theGehlot camp

said,“TheyhavebeenquestioningthecontentsoftheFIR.ButwhatismentionedintheFIRisnowplay-ing out in real, that’s the biggestauthenticationof thecontentsofthe FIR.”Headded that the raidsby the IT and the ED onGehlotaides only reinforced the claimsmadebyGehlotcamp.As Pilot counts his numbers,

BJP leaderGulab ChandKatariabacktracked fromhis demand,made a day earlier, of seeking afloor test. By evening, CongressleaderRandeepSinghSurjewalaclaimedthat“BJP’sconspiracyhasfailed”andthat ithas “laiddownitsarms.”

DEEPMUKHERJEEJAIPUR,JULY15

WITHTHECongresspushingfordisqualification of 19 partyMLAs, including formerRajasthandeputychiefministerSachinPilot,13Independentleg-islators in the Assembly are settoplayacrucial role.Without Pilot and the other

18MLAs,theCongress’sstrengthin the 200-member Housewillgodownfrom107 to88—or89with support of ally RLD. Andthis is where support of theIndependents becomes crucialin order to reach the majoritymarkof 101.TenoftheseIndependents,al-

ready‘associatedmembers’oftheCongress, areknowntobe in thecamp of Chief Minister AshokGehlot.Most of them, originallyfromCongress,contestedthe2018Assemblypolls as Independentsafter beingdenied aparty ticketgiventhepowerstrugglebetweenPilot andGehlot camps, and assucharemostlyGehlotloyalists.Inthepresentcrisis,theyhave

issued statements in support of

theCM.“I have been a three-time

CongressMLA andwas a stateminister earlier. In my con-stituency(Dudu,inJaipurdistrict),IamCongressparty.Iwasdeniedaticketin2018onlybecauseIama supporter of Ashok Gehlot,”Independent legislator BabulalNagarsaid.“I can never think of leaving

theCongress.ThegovernmentinRajasthanissecure.WewillnotletBJPdestabiliseit,”saidNagar,whodefeated official candidates ofbothBJP andCongress, andwonbyover14,500votes.Kanti Prasad, MLA from

Thanagazi, inAlwardistrict, alsosaidhehaspledgedhissupporttotheGehlot government. “After Iwasdeniedaticket(byCongress)for theAssembly polls, Iwon asIndependent. All 10 of us —Independents—arewiththegov-ernment.We are all staying atHotelFairmontinJaipur,”hesaid.Among other Independents

supporting Gehlot isMahadeoSingh, MLA from Khandela inSikardistrictandasix-timelegis-latorwhowasaUnionministerinthe UPA-2. The veteran

CongressmanwasdeniedaticketfromKhandela in 2018 and theCongress fielded SubhashMeel,YouthCongress’s then Sikar dis-trictpresident.Meelfinishedthirdinthepolls.Alok Beniwal, son of senior

Congress leader and formerGujaratgovernorKamlaBeniwal,won as Independent fromShahpura constituency after hewasdeniedaticketandisbelievedtobesupportingthegovernment.The other notable

IndependentMLAswhoareun-derstood to be supporting theCongress government includeSanyamLodha, once consideredclose to the Pilot campbut nowsaid to be firmly behindGehlot,LaxmanMeena,Ramkesh,andRajKumarGaur.Support frommost of these

IndependentMLAshadtiltedthepower equation for theCMpostin Gehlot’s favour after theAssemblypolls.Twelve of the 13

Independentsweremadeassoci-atedmembers of theCongress afewmonths after theAssemblypolls. FULLREPORTONwww.indianexpress.com

LIZMATHEWNEWDELHI,JULY15

FORMER RAJASTHAN deputychief minister and Congressleader Sachin Pilot’s reiterationthat joining BJP is not an optionfor him seems to have thrownthe saffron party in a fix, whichonWednesday went back to a“waitandwatch”mode.But thefight for the embattled AshokGehlot governmentmay not beover still, with Unionministerand senior BJP leader from thestateGajendraSinghShekhawatindicating that it has “not con-cludedyet”.Partyleadersmaintainedthat

theBJP,asthemainOppositioninRajasthan,willtake“everyactiontoseethattheGehlotgovernmentfailstoprove(its)majority”intheAssembly.According toBJP leaders, the

partyhasdiscussedseveralplansin case Pilot and RajasthanCongressMLAs backing himdonot vote for theGehlot govern-ment. “Butweneed toget a finalpictureonwhat Pilotwants, andwhat (kindof support)hehas,” apartyleadersaid.“Wearewaitingandwatching,

buttheBJPwillhelpthosewhoareleavingtheCongresscamp,”asen-iorBJPleadersaid.“Asanopposi-tionparty,wewillhavetoseethattheAshokGehlot government isdefeated(inafloortest).”WhilemanyintheBJPhadfelt

thatPilotwouldbeanassettotheparty if he leaves the Congresswith a bunch of legislators, andthattheBJPcouldtheninitiateac-tiontotoppletheGehlotgovern-ment,theformerPCCchief’sstandseemstohavedisappointedthem.OnWednesday, Pilot toldThe

Indian Express that joiningBJP isnot anoptionbeforehim,whichseemstohaveleftBJPleadersalit-tleconfused.Partyleadersarenowcriticis-

ingChiefMinisterAshokGehlotforhisremarkthathehad“proofthat horse-trading was beingcommitted”, and that the“deputy chief minister and PCCpresidenthimself(Pilot)wasdo-ingthedeal”.UnionministerandseniorBJP

leader from the state, GajendraSinghShekhawat, toldTheIndianExpress,“If theChiefMinisterhadproof that his deputy was in-volved inhorse-trading,whydidhe and theCongress blameBJP?Where did he get the proof?Heshouldmakeitpublicandapolo-gisetotheBJP.”Shekhawat said the BJP has

said“fromdayone”thatthiswasan internal issueof theCongress.“Wewerenowhereinthepicture.ButtheCongressblamedBJPforit(the crisis). Gehlot should speakout nowabout the allegationhemade,”hesaid.AskedwhethertheBJPwould

see that the government is de-feated in a floor test, Shekhawatsaid: “Wewish from the core ofour heart this corrupt govern-ment goes. As an oppositionparty,theBJPhasaroletoseethatthe anti-people government isthrownout.”AccordingtoaBJPleader,who

is a national office-bearer, theparty can get into action if Pilotbrings out at least 20-25MLAsfromtheCongress camp, includ-ingIndependents.

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEKOLKATA, JULY15

WEST BENGAL Chief MinisterMamata Banerjee onWednesday said that almost 99per cent beneficiaries had re-ceivedrelief forCycloneAmphanfromhergovernment.“Wehavenointentiontode-

prive anyone. Therewere somemistakesinthebeneficiarylistforAmphanbecauseitwasmadeina hurry. Some political partywants to politicise it. Someme-diaisalsocampaigningonthis.Itcreatespanic.Don’tcreatepanicamongthepeople,” shesaid.Speaking to themedia from

the state secretariat, Banerjeeannounced a tribute for thosewhohavediedwhileleadingthefight against Covid-19. She an-nouncedonegovernmentjobfortheir next of kin, apart from thestate insurance scheme underwhichRs10lakhwillbegiventothebereaved families.At least12peopleassociated

withthestategovernmenthavediedafterbeinginfectedbycoro-naviruswhileonduty.Banerjee also announced a

special gallantry award for all‘Covidwarriors’andacertificateacknowledgingtheirservice.The‘CMMedal for CovidWarriors'andacertificatewillbeawardedtoallfrontlineworkerswhohavetestedpositive forCovid-19andrecovered.Theawardwillbeex-tendedtoprivatefrontlinework-ers, too. The decisionwas takenatacabinetmeeting.“Wewanttosalutetheirspirit

and their service. So many ofthemgotinfectedandtheycameback to their jobs after gettingcured.TheCovidwarriorsaredo-ingthegreatestservicetothena-tion,”Banerjeesaid.

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEKOLKATA, JULY15

WEST BENGAL Chief MinisterMamataBanerjeehaswritten toPresident Ram Nath Kovind,claiming that the BJPmay havepresented“distortedfacts”tohimabout the death of anMLA andpartymemberinWestBengal.This comes a day after a BJP

delegation met the Presidentand sought a CBI probe into thedeath of Hemtabad MLADebendra Nath Ray, who wasfoundhangingnearhishomeinNorthDinajpurdistrictMonday.Ray won the Hemtabad (re-served) seat on a CPM ticket in2016but later joined theBJP.Hehad not resigned from theAssembly.Meanwhile, Nilay Singh, a

resident ofMalda,was arrestedonWednesday in connectionwith thecaseandproduced inacourt, which sent him to policecustody for10days.

The BJP delegation had toldthePresidentthatRay’s“murder”is another one in a long series of“politicalkillings”inthestateandsoughtdismissaloftheTrinamoolCongressgovernment.OnWednesday, aTrinamool

CongressdelegationledbyRajyaSabhaMPDerek O’Brien calledon thePresident and submittedthe letterbyBanerjee.TheChiefMinisterhassaidin

her letter that the “suspectedsuicide” by the BJP leader wasbeing wrongly portrayed as a“politicalcase”bytheoppositionparty.

Ex-Cong, 10 of 13 ‘kingmaker’Independents likely to back CM

RajasthanCMAshokGehlotaddresses themedia in JaipuronWednesday. PTI

BJP presented distortedfacts about MLA death,Mamata writes to Kovind

DerekO’BrienwiththePresidentatRashtrapatiBhavan. Twitter

DEEPMUKHERJEEJAIPUR, JULY15

IN PETITIONS filed to theSpeakerseekingdisqualificationofSachinPilotand18MLAsloyalto him, the Congress cited theirabsence from legislature party(CLP) meetings, and accusedthem of conspiring to bringdowntheparty’sgovernmentinRajasthan. Statementsmade bythe rebelMLAs to themedia in-dicate that theyhave“voluntar-ily given up themembership oftheCongress”,thepetitionssaid.Pilotwasremovedasdeputy

chief minister and president ofthe state Congress on Tuesday.Late in the night, the AssemblySecretariat issued notices to all19 MLAs after Congress ChiefWhipMahesh Joshi submitteddisqualification petitions toSpeakerCP Joshi.The notices were pasted at

the entrance to the rebelMLAs’homes. They were also sent tothe MLAs by email, SMS andWhatsApp,andtotheirlocalandpermanentaddresses.“...The individual inquestion

has,despiterequests,(i)deliber-ately absented himself from...two successivemeetings of theCongress Legislature Party, (ii)conspired to bring down theelected government... inRajasthan; (iii) conducted him-self inanopenlyhostileandprej-udicial manner to the interestsof INC and its Government ofRajasthan;(iv)remainedmyste-riouslyinaccessibleinpursuanceof this sinister objective for thelast few days; (v) not providedany reasons or explanation forhiscontinuedabsence;(vi)isad-mittedly part of a group that isseeking to destabilise the gov-

ernmentandmembersofwhichhave categorically declared thisintention... tothemediainthreeseparate statements made onthe evening of July 13th, 2020,”saidthepetitionseekingdisqual-ification of the MLA fromGudamalani in Barmer district,HemaramChoudhary.“Allof theseleadinescapably

to the conclusion that the indi-vidual has voluntarily given upmembership of the IndianNational Congress and the pro-visions of Para 2(1)(a) of theTenth Schedule are attracted todisqualify himwith immediateeffect,” the petition said. It saidChoudharyacted“inconcert, asa group headed by Shri SachinPilot, and in association with(the)otherMLAs”.“These are open challenges

to the authority of the partyleadershipandrepresenttheun-deniable expression of a mali-ciousrevoltagainstthepartyanditsideology.Theimmediatecon-clusion that flows from thesestatementsisthatShriHemaramChoudhary... along with thoseindividuals cited above have allvoluntarily given upmember-ship of the Indian NationalCongress party by conspiringagainst the party and by actingin a manner prejudicial andharmful to the interests of theparty and the RajasthanCongress government,” the pe-titionsaid.ThenoticestotherebelMLAs

sought their written submis-sionswithinthreedays,andsaidthe petitionswould be broughtbeforetheSpeakeronJuly17af-ternoon for appropriate action.If theMLAs failed to send theirremarksorsubmissions,thepe-titionwouldbedisposedofany-way, thenotices said.

LIZMATHEW&MANOJCGNEWDELHI,JULY15

WITHTHECentral governmenthaving invoked the DisasterManagementAct and EpidemicDiseases Act to fight the coron-aviruspandemic,aparliamentarypanel onWednesday asked thegovernment to see if there is anyoverlapbetweenthetwolawsanddecidedtoexplorewaystomakethemfuturistic, itwaslearnt.

The Standing Committee onHome Affairs chaired byCongress leaderAnandSharma,whichmetforthefirsttimesincethe lockdown began inMarch,also observed that a nationaldatabaseofmigrantworkersandlabour should be prepared im-mediatelysothattheyarenotleftout of government benefitswherever they are. A similararrangement for theurbanpoorwasalsotalkedabout.Thepanel asked thegovern-

menttofurnishdetailsaboutthenumberofshelterssetupformi-grants and the number of peo-pleaccommodated,itwaslearnt.On the overlap of laws, the

panel askedHomeMinistry offi-cials to get back to themon theprovisionsinbothlawsthatneedrevisiting.“ThememberswantedtoseeifthereisaneedtocorrelatethetwoActs.Theyalsowanttoex-plorethepossibilitiesofstrength-eningprovisions in the laws thatenable thegovernment to fighta

pandemic situation andmakethemfuturistic,” saidasource fa-miliarwiththedevelopments.Wednesday’smeetingwas

cordialandmembersappreciatedthe steps taken by the govern-ment, itwaslearnt.Themeetingwasscheduledin

June,butitwascancelledasmanyMPshadexpressedtheirinabilitytobepresent inthenationalcap-italduetotheCovidsituation.

FULLREPORTONwww.indianexpress.com

DisqualificationnoticeoutsidetheresidenceofViratnagarMLAIndrajGurjar,oneof thesupportersof SachinPilot, inJaipuronWednesday.Rohit JainParas

House panel to explore modernisationof legislation used to fight pandemic

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI, JULY15

THESUPREMECourtCollegiumhas approved proposals to ap-point nine additional judges aspermanent judges in HimachalPradesh, Calcutta and PunjabandHaryanaHighCourts.The Collegium headed by

Chief Justice of India S A BobdemethereonJuly14andagreedtoelevateJusticeJyotsnaRewalDua,Additional Judge of Himachal

PradeshHighCourt,asPermanentJudgeof thatHighCourt.It approved the name of

Justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay,Additional JudgeofCalcuttaHC,forappointmentasaPermanentJudgethere,accordingtoastate-ment. For Punjab and HaryanaHC, the Collegium approvedseven Additional Judges of theHC — Justices Manjari NehruKaul, Harsimran Singh Sethi,ArunMonga, Manoj Bajaj, LalitBatra, Arun Kumar Tyagi andHarnareshSinghGill.

In a fix afterPilot’s no tojoining BJP,saffron partysays game ‘notconcluded yet’

Cong says rebels conspired against Gehlotgovt, Speaker issues disqualification notices

SC Collegium nod fornine permanent judges

Partysourcessayrebellionwas in theworks,policenoticeonly forcedPilot toplayhishandearly

As Gehlot accuses Pilot of horse-trading, rebelcamp hits back: ‘How much did you pay us?’

MamataBanerjee

Bengal CM: Almost 99%beneficiaries got govtrelief for Amphan

New Delhi

7THEINDIANEXPRESS,THURSDAY, JULY16,2020

EXPRESSNETWORKWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

KARISHMAMEHROTRANEWDELHI, JULY15

LESSTHANaweekafterithadis-sued a directive saying interna-tionalstudentswithonline-onlyclasses would not be allowedvisastostayintheUS,theTrumpadministration onWednesdayreversedtheorder.Theturnaroundcameonthe

heelsofeightlawsuitsfromtop-tier US universities, technologycompanies and state govern-ments against the order.In a hearing that lasted less

thanfiveminutesonTuesdayUStime, a district judge inMassachusetts said the partieshad come to a resolution to re-scindthedirective. Itnowbringsback into effect a March guid-ance allowing flexible studentvisa requirements during thecoronaviruspandemic.The order passed by the US

Immigration and CustomsEnforcement (ICE) on July 6 re-quiredinternationalstudents inthe US to either shift to in-per-sonclassesor riskdeportation.Two days later, Harvard

UniversityandMITfiledalawsuitagainst the government agency.Subsequently,180education in-stitutionsfiledalegalbriefinsup-port, stating that they had in-vested heavily in planning inaccordancewiththeMarchguid-ance,andthat international stu-dents make substantial eco-nomic contributions. “Thequestion is whether these stu-dentswillpursuetheireducationin the United States, whereAmericacanreapthebenefits --orwhethertheywillattendover-seas, to theadvantageof foreignnations,” theamicusbrief said.TechgiantssuchasFacebook,

Google, and Twitter also lenttheir support to the legal chal-lengeonMonday,listingthecon-tributions of international stu-dents to the US economy andskilled research. They quoted areport by the NationalAssociation of Foreign StudentAdvisers,that,foreverysevenin-ternationalstudentslivingintheUS, “three jobs are supportedduetotheirpresence”.Aswellasa National Foundation forAmerican Policy research thathad found that “as of October2018, approximately one-quar-ter of the private billion-dollarstart-up businesses in the US

were founded by individualswho originally entered theUnitedStatesonanF-1visa”.LosAngeles,BostonandNew

Yorkmunicipalities filed briefsagainst thedirective,while law-suitswere also filed by state at-torney generals and other uni-versities. Even 15 HouseRepublicans wrote a letteragainst the ICEdirective.Reacting to the reversal, the

Massachusetts attorney generaltweeted:“Thisiswhywesue.Therulewas illegal and the TrumpAdministrationknewtheydidn’thaveachance.Theymaytry thisagain.Wewillbeready.”Not all reactionswere posi-

tive. “This, unfortunately, is yetanotherexampleoftheadminis-trationcaving to thepressureofthe business lobby and openbordersadvocateswhocontinuecraftingthenarrativethat inter-national studentsare somehowanythingmore than temporaryvisitors,” said theFederation forAmerican ImmigrationReform.Therewerearoundtwo lakh

Indian students in the US in2019, surpassed only by China,according toa report by theUS-based Institute of InternationalEducation. International stu-dents, often not on financialloans,contributearound$45bil-lion, it said, citing the USDepartmentof Commerce. ThissumhelpstheAmericangovern-mentsubsidisemuchof thefeesfor itsownstudents.Several students enrolled in

the US questioned the frequentchanges in policy by the Trumpgovernment.Athird-yearunder-graduateatUCBerkeleyAnkutaJainsaid:“ItwasanunnecessarypoliticalmovebytheTrumpad-ministration. It’s frustratingthatsomething they didn’t care tofight for caused somuch stressfor international students. But Ifelt supported by the academiccommunity.”

KRISHNKAUSHIK&DEEPTIMANTIWARYNEWDELHI, JULY15

A DAY after XIV CorpsCommanderLtGeneralHarinderSingh and South XinjiangMilitary Region CommanderMajor General Liu Lin held talksfornearly15hoursondisengage-mentof troops along the LineofActualControlinLadakh,sourcessaidthetwosideshadbeenableto“breaktheice”onthestandoffatPangongTso.A senior official of the secu-

rityestablishmenttoldTheIndianExpress Wednesday: “Earlier,ChinawasnotevenreadytotalkaboutPangongTso.Nowwehaveagreed todiscussnot just Finger4butFinger8tooaswell…thingswill be firmedup in subsequentmeetings.Thesignsofresolutionarevery,verypositive.”In Pangong Tso, Chinese

troops had come 8 kmwest ofFinger8whichIndiasaysmarksthe LAC.While the PLA has va-cated the Finger 4 base area, itstroops continue to occupy theridgeline there.In Beijing, Chinese Foreign

Ministry spokesperson HuaChunying said: “Chinese andIndian border troops held thefourth round of commander-leveltalksonJuly14.Buildingonthe common understandingreached at the previous threerounds of commander-level

talks and corresponding imple-mentationwork, the two sidesachievedprogressinfurtherdis-engagement between bordertroopsaswellaseasingthesitu-ationatthewesternsectoroftheChina-Indiaboundary.WehopeIndiawillworkwithChinatoim-plement our consensus withconcreteactionsandjointlysafe-guard peace and tranquility intheborderareas.”Army chief General MM

NaravanemetDefenceMinisterRajnath Singh onWednesdaymorning.While there was no official

statement from either the gov-ernment or the Army on thetalksinChushul,theChinaStudyGroup, the government’s apexadvisory body on China,met intheeveningfordeliberationsonthe futurecourseof action.The China Study Group,

which is headed by NationalSecurity Advisor Ajit Doval andhas top officials of the securityestablishment as its members,was to take up the outcome ofdiscussions between the CorpsCommanders. Ameeting of theWorking Mechanism forConsultation and Coordinationon India-China Border Affairs is

alsoexpectedshortlytotakethedisengagementprocessforward.RajnathSinghisscheduledto

visit Ladakh on July 17, and islikely to visit forward areas tomeet the troops.He is also likelyto conduct a detailed review ofthesituationattheheadquartersofXIVCorpsinLeh.SinghwillvisitJammuandKashmirthenextday.Earlierthismonth,hisvisitto

LadakhwasdeferredandPrimeMinister NarendraModimadeanunannouncedvisit on July3.On themeeting of the Corps

Commanders — this was theirfourthmeetingsincethestandoffbegantwomonthsago—sourcessaid thetalksbeganshortlyafter11amTuesdayandcontinuedun-til2amWednesday.Chinese troops are also

blocking Indian access to tradi-tional patrolling limits on theDepsangPlains,not far fromthestrategic Indian outpost atDaulat Beg Oldie near theKarakoramPass in thenorth.The patrolling limits have

beendecidedbytheChinaStudyGroup and Indian forces asserttheir presence by patrolling tillthesepoints.Meanwhile, the Defence

Minister also chaired a specialmeeting of the DefenceAcquisitionCouncil(DAC)toem-power the Army, Navy and AirForce tomake capital procure-mentuptoRs300crorewithoutapproaching the DAC, makingtheacquisitionprocessquicker.

SHUBHAJITROYNEWDELHI, JULY15

US SECRETARY of State MikePompeo said Wednesday hespoketoExternalAffairsMinisterSJaishankarandthattheytalkedabout “conflict” on the India-Chinaborderand“risks”emanat-ing from the Chinese telecom-munications infrastructure.Separately, US Assistant

Secretary in the Bureau of EastAsianandPacificAffairs,DavidRStilwell,saidChinesestateenter-prisesare “modern-dayequiva-lentsoftheEastIndiaCompany”.“These state-owned enter-

prises are PRC instruments ofabuse, andwe should highlighttheir improper behaviour,”Stilwell said. “We should alsoshinelightonhowthesecompa-niesoperatearoundtheworld...”Hesaid,“Inalloursocieties,cit-

izensdeservetoknowthediffer-encesbetweencommercialenter-prisesandinstrumentsofforeignstate power. These state enter-prises aremodern-day equiva-lentsof theEastIndiaCompany.”InWashington DC, Pompeo

describedIndiaasan“importantpartner”of theUSandsaid,“Wehave a great relationship withmyForeignMinistercounterpart

we talked frequently, about abroadrangeof issues.Wetalkedabout the conflict they had ontheirborderwithChina.Wehavetalked about the risks that em-anates to China from Chinesetelecommunicationsinfrastruc-ture there.”“You saw the decision they

madetobansomeseveraldozenChinesesoftwarefirmsfromop-erating... Ithinkthewholeworldis coalescing around the chal-lenge that we face and thedemocracies, the free nations oftheworldwillpushbackonthesechallengestogether,”hesaid.Stilwell,whowasspeakingat

avirtualconference,said,“WhenBeijing uses coercion, emptypromises, disinformation, con-tempt for rules, bad-faithdiplo-macy, and other underhandedtactics in theSouthChinaSea, itis drawing on aplaybook that itusesworldwide.Weseeit intheEast ChinaSea...Wesee it in theHimalayas, where Beijing re-centlytookaggressiveactiononits frontierswith India.”

LAC talks very positive, PLA readyto discuss Pangong, says official

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEKOLKATA, JULY15

ON MAY 5, the first ShramikSpecialtraintoWestBengal,car-rying 1,186 passengers fromAjmer, Rajasthan — most ofthem migrants — pulled intoDankuni Junction in WestBengal’s Hooghly district. FromthentoJuly1,whenshewentonleave after developing symp-toms of Covid, Debdatta Roy,Deputy Magistrate ofChandannagar in Hooghly dis-trict and the officer taskedwithoverseeingtheinflowofmigrantlabourers,hashadherhandsfull.On Monday morning, four

daysaftershetestedpositiveforCovid-19, the 38-year-old bu-reaucratdied,leavingbehindherfour-year-old son and husband,whohasalsotestedpositiveandis inhospital.Family members said Roy

underwent a Covid test at B NBose Memorial Hospital inBarrackpore,North24Parganasdistrict.Herreport,withthepos-itive status, came last Thursday.However, she chose to go in forhome quarantine. But onSunday, she developed breath-ingproblemsandwasadmittedto Shramajibi Hospital inSerampore,Hooghly,whereshewas put on oxygen support. OnMonday morning, she passedaway.Her colleagues remember

Roy as an officer who alwaystook the lead.“She took charge of manag-

ing everything at quarantinecentres meant for migrantlabourers.Shevisitedthecentresseveral times to ensure thatlabourers got food and all othersupport,” saidagovernmentof-ficial inHooghly.Chief Minister Mamata

Banerjee expressed her condo-lences to the familyandwrotealetter to Debdatta's husband,

calling her an “outstandingCovidwarrior”."In the forefront of our fight

against Covid-19, Debdattawasan outstanding warrior whofought this crisis with extremecourage and determination. Isaluteher great spirit and sacri-fice for the State," Banerjeewrote.A 2011 batch officer of the

West Bengal Civil Services,Debdatta was BlockDevelopment Officer at Puruliabefore she was moved toChandannagar as DeputyMagistrate.Hailing fromMotijhil areaof

DumDuminNorth24Parganasdistrict, Roy and her family hadbeen living in her governmentquarters in Hooghly. Her hus-bandPabitraisassociatedwithaconsulting firm.On Wednesday, Chief

MinisterMamata Banerjee an-nounced that familymembersof “Covidwarriors”whodiedoftheviruswouldbegivengovern-ment jobs and Rs 10 lakh in fi-nancial assistance.‘Covidwarriors’ includedoc-

tors, healthcare officials, policeandgovernmentemployees.TheChiefMinister informed

that 268 police personnel, 30doctors, 43 nurses and 62 gov-ernmentofficialsinthestatehadbeen infected with thecoronavirus.

ChandannagarDyMagistrateDebdattaRoywasputonventilatoronSundayanddiedthenextday. Facebook

DrMaryAnitha(left)withsix-month-oldElvinandhisparents inKochi. PTI

RajnathSingh

India isakeypartner:MikePompeo

Bengal officer in chargeof migrant quarantinecentres dies of Covid

SANTOSHSINGHPATNA, JULY15

THE BIHAR health departmentonWednesday allowed homeisolation for asymptomatic pa-tients amid a sudden spurt inCovid-19 cases, especially inPatna, Bhagalpur, EastChamparan,West ChamparanandBegusarai.Cases in Bihar have jumped

from10,250onJuly1to20,153onJuly15.Of these, 6,482areactive

cases.With 14deaths in the last24hours,includingthatofahomedepartmentunder secretary, thetollhasreached157.Therecoveryrate is down to67per cent from78percentafortnightago.Politicians and bureaucrats

continued to test positive, in-cluding Bihar BJP president DrSanjay Jaiswal and AdditionalChief Secretary (Home) AmirSubhani.Severaldepartmentsofthestatesecretariatweresealed.Covidpatientsreporteddiffi-

culty ingettingbedsinhospitals

andpeoplewerewaitingthreetofour days to get tested. WithPatnaandBhagalpurhaving1,113and555activecases,respectively,chaoticsceneswerewitnessedattwo leading Patna hospitals ---Nalanda Medical College andHospital (NMCH) and AIIMSPatna, both Covid hospitals.Relatives of several patientsmade videos of AIIMS Patna al-legedly not admitting patientsdespiteavailabilityofbeds.An AIIMS Patna doctor said:

“Wehave 1,067 Covid beds and

cannot admit all patients.Relatives have to understandthat it is aCovidhospital.”NMCH Medical

SuperintendentDrNKSinghtoldThe Indian Express: “We haveabout200sparebedsfromourto-tal capacity of 447 beds, butwehave been receiving several pa-tients now,mostly referral casesfromdistrict hospitals. In a pan-demic,wearetryingtorisetothechallenge.Thenumberofdeathshasbeengoingupinrecentdays.”The state's main concern is

that 10-11 per cent of samplesare testingpositiveasagainst5-7percentuntil a fortnightago.BiharHealthMinisterMangal

Pandeysaidhehadreviewedthesituationon increasing isolationbeds and oxygen cylinders. Thehealthdepartmenthasissuedanorder for home isolation forasymptomaticcases.Leader of Opposition

Tejashwi Yadav accused NDAleaders of spreading the coron-avirus by not following safetynorms.

SHAJUPHILIPTHIRUVANANTHAPURAM,JULY15

AKERALA doctor looked after asix-month-oldbabyforamonthafter his parents tested positiveforCovid-19andfearof infectionkept others from taking care ofthe infant.On Wednesday, Dr Mary

Anitha handed over Elvin to hisparents, who have completedtheir homequarantine after be-ingdischargedfromthehospital.Elvin’s parents, hailing from

Ernakulamdistrict,arenursesata healthcare facility inGurgaon.Lastmonth,hisfathertestedpos-itiveforCovid-19andthemotherreturnedwithElvintoKerala.After reaching Kochi, the

womanwasinhomequarantineduringwhichshetestedpositive.The district child welfare com-mittee lookedforpeople totakecare of Elvin, but the fear of in-fection scaredmany away. Thefamilies of the parents did notturnupeither.Mary said, “On June 14, the

child welfare committee ap-

proachedme... By the time theissue reachedme, the baby hadlivedwithhismotherforseveraldaysaftershetestedpositiveandhis chances of getting infectedwereveryhigh.”Aclinicalpsychologist,Mary

runs an organisation for differ-ently-abledchildren inKochi.Thedoctorsaidthatwithout

asecondthought, sheofferedtolook after the baby. “I discussedtheissuewithmyfamilyonlyaf-terexpressingmywillingnesstotakecareof thebaby.’’Maryhasthreechildrenofher

own.OnJune15,shewenttothe

hospital and took thebaby toanempty flat in her apartmentcomplex. Thereafter,herchildrenwouldtakemealstotheflatMaryandthebabywerestayinginandleavethefoodoutsidethedoor.The doctormade video calls

toElvin’sfatherandmother,whowere under treatment inGurgaonandKochi,respectively.Elvin’smothersaidtheywere

indebtedtothedoctor.“Thedoc-tor was a godsend. Nobodywouldcomeforwardtotakecareof ababyof aCovid-19patient. Irespectheraswellasher familywhosupportedherdecision.’’

US reversesorder, back toflexible rules forforeign students

Bihar allows home quarantine of asymptomatic patients

Thiruvananthapuram:ActinguponaPIL, a division benchofthe Kerala High Court has di-rected that political organisa-tions should not conductprotests ordharnas as suchac-tivities are against the restric-tionsonsocialgatheringsissuedbytheCentreandthestategov-ernmentsduringthelockdown.ThebenchofChief JusticeS

Manikumar said the generalprecautionary measures is-sued by the governments inthewakeofCovid-19areappli-cable to political parties aswell. Thecourtdirectivecamein a petition seeking derecog-nitionofpoliticalpartieswhichhold protestmarches, dharnsandprocessionsviolatinglock-downrestrictions.ENS

HC bars dharnas in lockdown

Doctor cares for baby for monthafter his parents test positive

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEPUNE, JULY15

ASMANY as 99 doctors acrossthe country have fallen to thecoronavirus while 1,302 havebeen infected, the IndianMedical Association saidWednesday as it declared a redalert formedicalpractitioners.Among those infected are

586practisingdoctors, 566 res-identdoctorsand150housesur-geons, according to a nationalCovid registry setupby IMA.Of the doctorswho died, 73

were above 50 years while 19were in the 35-50 age group.Sevenwereunder35.IMA national president Dr

RajanSharmasaiddoctorsneedtotakechargeofthesituationanden-surethesafetyofthemselves,theirfamilies,andtheircolleaguesandstaff.“Seniordoctorswhoaredeci-sionmakers for the institutionshave enhanced responsibility oftakingcareof their flock.Friendlyandscientificbatchpostingneedstobeimplemented,”Sharmasaid.Asking health workers to

raise their guard, the IMAstressed onmaintaining safetyand followingprotocol.“If Covidmortality has to be

lessened,ithastostartwithdoc-tors andhospitals. This requiresintense review and updating ofall administrative set ups in thehospitalsincludingtheinfectioncontrolprotocols...”theIMAsaid.

Panaji: Facedwith an alarmingrise in Covid-19 cases, the Goagovernment Wednesday an-nouncedthat itwould imposealockdown from Thursday nighttillMondaymorning,aswellasanight curfew till August 10, tocontrol thespirallingspread.The government has “no

choice left to instil discipline”among the people, Goa ChiefMinister Pramod Sawant said,addingthatthosewhoviolatethecurbswillbetakenintocustody.With the onset ofmonsoon,

Sawantsaidthegovernmenthadanestimateof a “possible surge”incases.“Wefeelthatpossiblywehave reached that estimate, thehighestspikeanticipated,”hesaid.The lockdownwill continue

till 6amonMonday (July20).The“nightjanatacurfew”will

bebetween8pmand6am.Onlythoseworkinginindustriesinsec-ondandthirdshifts,besidesthosewithmedicalemergencies,willbeallowedtostepout,CMsaid.ENS

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI, JULY15

THE SUPREME Court onWednesday asked the JammuandKashmir administration toexplain the detention of HighCourt Bar Association presidentMian Abdul Qayoomwhowasbooked under the Public SafetyAct,1978, inAugust2019follow-ing the revocation of the specialstatusof JammuandKashmir.“He is 73 years old.Wewant

toknowonwhatbasisyouwouldliketoretainhiminDelhi’sTihar,”a bench of Justices S KKaul andIndu Malhotra told SolicitorGeneralTusharMehta.Thecourtaddedthathisdetentionperiodasperorderisalsoabouttoexpire.Mehtasoughttimetoconsider

various aspects followingwhichthebenchfixedJuly23tohearthematternext.AppearingforQayoom,Senior

AdvocateDushyantDavesaidthedetentionorderwasfora limitedperiod,foraroundayear.Justice Kaul remarked that

wasthereasonthecourt issuedanoticeon thepleaon thepre-vious date of hearing. Davecontendedthat thematterwasnot listeddespitespecificdirec-tions by the court.MehtasaidQayoom’s ideol-

ogy “went against national in-terests”.“Hisdetentionperiodisabout

toexpire.Hisideologyremainsthesame,” Justice Kaul toldMehtaand asked, “In the current Covidscenario, would you still like tokeepthispending?”

99 doctors havedied of Covidacross country,says IMA

Apex court seeksJ&K reply on HCbar associationchief’s detention

Lockdown, nightcurfew in Goa

ChinaStudyGroupmeets,Rajnathheads toLadakhtomorrow

MILINDGHATWAIBHOPAL, JULY15

GUNA COLLECTORS Vishwanathan and SP TarunNayak were removed late onWednesday night and a probeorderedafteraDalitfarmercou-ple consumed pesticide toprotest against an anti-en-croachmentdrive,withpoliceal-legedly beating up a relative inresponse.Aphotographof thechildren

of Rajkumar Ahirwar andwifeSavitri, who are stable, cryingnext to their unconsciousmotheronTuesday, andavideoshowing police beating upAhirwar’s younger brother hadgoneviral.Chief Minister Shivraj Singh

Chouhan announced the actionagainst theCollectorandSP lateonWednesdaynight.Officials had arrivedwith a

bulldozer at the 45-bighaGunaland reserved for a governmentpost-graduate college, amajorchunkofwhichhasallegedlybeenencroacheduponbyAhirwar.Anattempt to clear it inNovemberlastyearhadbeenblockedbythefamily of Gappu Pardhi, whoclaimstoowntheland.Ahirwartoldtheofficialsthat

he had taken the land on leaseand raised loan to cultivate it,and the family would have nooption but to end their lives if

their cropwasdestroyed.After the couple consumed

pesticide,thepolicehadbookedthemaswellasothersfortryingto obstruct public officials onduty.Before he was removed,

CollectorVishwanathantoldTheIndianExpressthatthepolicehadtouseforceasAhirwar’srelativeswere not letting them take thecouple to hospital. He also saidthe government had sanctionedRs12croreforconstructionofthecollege, and any further delaycould have resulted in it beingshiftedtoanotherdistrict.The Collector said the

Ahirwarsmighthavebeeninsti-gated by someone to take thestep,tostoptheteamfromclear-ing theencroachment.Home Minister Narottam

MishrasaidseniorofficialsfromBhopal will probe the incidentandtakeactionagainstwhoeverwasresponsible.The Congress said the video

of police officers thrashingAhirwar’srelativesandbundlingthemintoavehicleshowedthatit was “jungle raj” in MadhyaPradesh. “If therewassomedis-puteabouttheland,itcouldhavebeen solved legally…Will thegovernment show similaralacrity in clearing encroach-ment on thousands of acres ofgovernment land by so-calledjansevaks (people’s servants)?”asked formerCMKamalNath.

Drive to clear land:After Dalit couplesuicide bid, GunaCollector, SP out

Chinese state-owned firmsnew East India Company,says top US official TheJuly6orderpassed

bytheUSImmigrationandCustomsEnforcementrequiredinternationalstudentsintheUStoeithershiftto in-personclassesorriskdeportation

New Delhi

II,, VedPrakashSharmaR/o-449,First-Floor,Sector-37,Faridabad-121003, Haryana,have changedmyminor son’sname,fromAdi Sharma toAditya Sharma, permanently.

0040541935-6

II AbhilashNair PuthenHouseS/oKunnathRamachandranNair R/oRadhakrishnaApartment, Rz-A/21C, KhNo-82/18, Gali no-03. MahavirEnclave 1, NewDelhi 110045,have changedmyname toAbhilashNair 0040541933-1

II Akshat S/o Jugender SinghR/o-1/7289Gali No.5 EastGorakhParkDelhi-110032havechangedmyname toAkshatRathor. 0040541935-3

II IshitaD/OShri RakeshKumarR/O12A,NavsenaAppartment,West Enclave, Pitampura, Delhi110034have changedmynameIshita to IshitaChowdhary forall futurepurposes.

0040541905-2

IIMeenakshiW/OShri RakeshKumarR/O12A,NavsenaAppartment,West Enclave,Pitampura, Delhi 110034havechangedmynameMeenakashi toMeenakashiChowdhary for all futurepurposes. 0040541905-1

IIMonaAroraw/oHarishHasijaR/O- 1201, gold course road,Baisel tower, Salcon verndas,Gurgaonhave changedmyname toMonaHasija.

0040541935-1

IIMujeebAhmedS/o LateNisarAhmedR/o 1442, 43 FayyazGanj, BaraHinduRao, BahadurGarhRoad, Delhi-6 haveChangedmyName FromMujeebAhmedShamshi toMujeebAhmed forAll FuturePurposes. 0040541921-1

II NehaW/O, TilakRaj R/oA1b/25b, KrishnaAppartment,PaschimVihar, NewDelhi havechangedmyname toNehaKhanna for all purposes.

0040541911-1

II NishaRaniW/o Jugender SinghRathorR/o-1/7289Gali.No.5EastGorakhParkDelhi-110032.have changedmynametoNishaRathor.

0040541935-4

II Rajasvi Pundhir D/O, CaptAshish SinghR/o Flat 001,Tower-24OrchidPetals, Sector-49,sohnaRoadGurgaon 122018have changedmyname toRajasvi SinghD.o.b 15./02/2002for all purposes.

0040541914-1

II SunitaMittal D/O, SatpalBansal R/oD-4MilapNagar,UttamNagar, NewDelhi havechangedmyname toSunitaBansal Agrwal byaffidavitdated 14-07-2020 swornbeforeNotaryNKVerma.

0040541935-8

II SweetyW/oSonupal SinghR/o3-AAyodhyaEnclave, Sec 13,Rohini Delhi have changedmyname toSweetywalia for allpurposes. 0040541935-9

II,, Sulabh Jain S/oSanjayKumarJainR/o-197/1C, Gali.No-12,BholanathNagar, Shahdara,Delhi-110032 haveChangedmyname toAadvik Jain.

0040541927-1

II,, Shivswriti JiMaharajD/O,AadishKumar JainR/o-D-1166,Gali No-6, Ashok-NagarDelhi-93,have changedmyname toSrishti Jain for allpurposes. 0040541935-7

II,, Sagar S/oUmedSingh, R/oH.no 171PandawalaKalanSouthWestDelhi-110043havechangedmyname toSagarYadav for all futurepurposes.

0070708674-1

II,, Sachin s/o Late , Sh.RohtashJindal r/oA-3/147, Sector-17,Rohini, NewDelhi havechangedmyname toSachinJindal permanently.

0070708691-1

II,, RythemAroraD/oRaj KumarAroraResident of F-4, Houseno. 127, Sector-16, Rohini,Delhi- 110089 have changedmyname toRhythm for all futurepurposes. 0040541940-8

II,, RITICASINGHAL, D/OMUKESHSINGHAL,. H.NO-S-22, PANDAV-NAGARDELHI-110092, changedmyname toRITIKASINGHAL,permanently. 0040541940-4

II,, POOJA W/O PARMODKUMARR/o-472, D.D.A-FLATKHIRKIMALVIYA-NAGARDELHI-110017.have changedmynameto POOJAKUMAR.

0040541935-5

II,, Nitin PrakashS/o late Sh. SriPrakashR/oHouseNo.4,JangpuraRoad,NewAriyaSamajMandir, Bhogal, NewDelhi-110014have changedmyname toNitin PrakashShergill.

0070708670-1

II,, N Biswas, S/o LateMr.NCBiswas,R/o 232/B/3, GT.RoadPO,Belurmath,Howrah,WB-711202,have changedmynamefromNBISWAS toNILABHBISWAS, vide-Affidavit No.IN-DL57764186852332S,dated-15/07/2020,atNewDelhi,forall,purpose. 0040541940-3

II,,Mahender Pal R/oH-13/75NearHealthPointHospital,RatiyaMarg, SangamViharNewDelhi-110062havechangedmyminor son’s namefromJacob toGaurang for allpurposes. 0040541912-1

II,, AMANS/OABDULHAQR/O-313/44B-22, INDERLOK,DELHI-35, have changedmyname toAMANQURESHI.

0040541940-2

II,, Joffin K JoyS/oPodiyanKaduvankal JoyR/o FlatNo.281, Pocket-4, Sec-2, Rohini,Delhi-85HaveChangedMyNameTo JoffinKaduvankal JoyForAllMyFutureReferences.

0040541935-10

II,, DhanenderKumarGuptaS/oGulshanKumarGuptaR/o-FlatNo.454,NeelkanthApartmentSector-13Rohini Delhi-110085,changedmyname toDhaninderKumarGupta.

0040541935-2

II,, AmarjeetD/o Jagtar SinghR/o-1231/52DDA-Flats, KalkajiDelhi-110019HaveChangedMyNameToAmarjeet Kaur,ForFuture. 0040541940-1

PPEERRSSOONNAALL

LLOOSSTT&&FFOOUUNNDD

ClassifiedsPUBLIC NOTICE

Public at large is hereby informed that myclient Smt. Meena Verma W/o Late Sh.Subhash Chander Verma is the lawful ownerand resident of H.No. 399-400, Gali MataWali, Teliwara, Delhi-110006 have severedall her relation with her son and daughter-in-law namely Mr. Nikhil Lodhi and Mrs.Bhawna, both presently residing at the abovesaid address from the date of this publicnotice. Now my client has no relation with herson and daughter-in-law. My client declarethat her abovesaid son and daughter-in-lawshall have no right, title or interestwhatsoever in any manner in the movableand immovable property of my client and ifanybody made dealing with them shall do attheir own risk, cost and consequences.

Sd/- (ROHIT ARORA)Advocate

CHAMBER NO. 550, LAWYERSCHAMBER BLOCK, SAKET COURT,

DELHI-110017

PUBLIC NOTICENotified that my client (1) SARI LAJPAT RAIARYA S/O LATE SH. THAKUR DASS, (2)SMT. SARLA ARYA W/O SH. LAJPAT RAIARYA BOTH R/O 332-A, SRI NAGAR, GALINo. 4, DELHI-110034, has/have severerelation from their son GAGANDEEP ARYAand their daughter-in-law SHINKU ARYA Dueto their cruel and harassing behavior towardsmy above named client. Now they have nodomestic relations with them and has/havedisowned them from their all movable &immovable properties.Any person dealing with his/her/him/them willdo at his/her/them own cost & risk and myclient's shall not be responsible for the same,if any.

Sd/-KAMAL SINGH (Advt.)

Enrl. No. D-748/14

PUBLIC NOTICEBe it known to all that our clientSurinder Pal Nagpal S/o Prithvi RajNagpal had purchased the second floorwith roof rights of property no. E-15 BaliNagar, New Delhi-110015 from oneSitaRam Kalra S/o Sukh Dayal Kalra byvirtue of sale deed dated 12.10.1998wherein our client was allowed toconstruct an independent staircasefrom the front side of the building for hisuse to access his second floor andterrace, whereas, the seller SitaRamKalra would use only the then existingstaircase in the rear of the building toaccess his 1st floor or the terrace forcarrying out any repairs to water tanksof ground and 1st floor kept on theterrace. Thereafter, our client has giftedthe terrace portion of his property to hisdaughter Ms. Poorvanshi Nagpal videregistered gift deed dated 22.12.2017.As a result of the above Gift Deed infavor of Poorvanshi Nagpal, the ownerof ground and 1st Floor of this propertyis now SitaRam Kalra, whereas, thesecond floor is owned by Surinder PalNagpal and the terrace is now Ownedby Poorvanshi Nagpal by Virtue of theabove mentioned Gift Deed. That it hasnow come to the Knowledge of ourclient that SitaRam Kalra is trying to sellof his Ground and 1st Floor to theprospective Buyers.Now, By this Public notice, all personsdesirous of purchasing the Ground flooror the 1st Floor or both the said floor ofthe above named property are herebywarned that they shall not have anyrights, interest, claim or demand overthe use of staircase in the front portionof the property and shall be entitled touse only the rear staircase built in therear portion of the property to accessthe First Floor or the terrace for carryingout any repairs to water tanks of groundand 1st floor kept on the terrace. Anyperson dealing with the present ownerof the ground floor or the 1st floor forpurchase of the said ground/ 1st floor orrenting the same by overlooking theabove said warning in respect ofusages of the stair case of front portionof this property i.e. E-15 Bali Nagar, ifmisguided by the Seller/ SitaRam Kalrathat they shall get the right to use theFront side staircase constructed by Ourclient for his use as per the sale deedour client had signed with SitaRamKalra in respect of purchase of 2nd floorand the Terrace by our client, shall doso illegally, wrongfully and shall do so athis or her own risk and peril.Clarification if any, may be addressed toSC Malhotra (Advocate) at 9654400398by WHATSAPP/SMS

Sd/-S.C. Malhotra

AdvocateDELHI HIGH COURT &

SUPREME COURTC-57A, 03RD FLOOR,

GANESH NAGAR,PANDAV NAGAR COMPLEX,

DELHI-110092

PUBLIC NOTICEGeneral Public is hereby informedthat my Clients Sh. Durjan Lal S/oLate Sh. Pragu Lal R/o A-51, StreetNo. 4, Madhu Vihar, Uttam Nagar,New Delhi has disowned debarredand disinherited his son Ajit Kumar,Daughter-in-law namely Aruna Deviand grandsons namely Mohit Kumarand Gaurav Kumar, from his allimmovable and movableassets/properties and have severedall his relations with them, as they aredisobedient, ill mannered, workingagainst my Client and his family andis not in control of my Clients. Anyonedealing with them in any manner shalldo so at his/her/their own risk, costand consequences.

Sd/-GURBACHAN SINGH (Advocate)

J-7/284, Gali No. 7, SardarColony, Sector-16, Rohini,

New Delhi-89

PUBLIC NOTICENotice is hereby given to public at large thatmy client Smt. Dipti Irani Wife of Shri JathaNand R/o B-57, Maharani Enclave,VikasNagar, Uttam Nagar, New Delhi hasdisowned and debarred her son ShriPurneet Daughter-in Law Smt. Bharti fromall his movable and immovable propertieswith immediate effect and severedrelations, because they are out of control ofmy client,misbehaveswith him.Any body dealing with them in any mannerwhatsoever will be doing so at his/her owncost, risk and responsibilities thereto andmy client shall be in no way responsible forany act, deeds and things done by them.

S.R-II,B Campus,Janakpuri, New Delhi-58Sd/- B. B. N. DEO, ADVOCATE

PUBLIC NOTICEIt is informed to the General Public that myclient Rahul Yadav S/o Sh. Azad Yadav R/oH.No. 166, Deep Chand Pradhan Mohalla,Rajokari, Delhi-110038, lodged a missingreport of original documents i.e. allotmentLetter dated 25.04.1999, Possession Letterdated 10.09.2000 and Conveyance Deeddated 04.03.2005 (the date wronglymentioned in NCR as 04.05.2009 instead of04.03.2005) of property No. Flat 154, BankVihar, CGHS Ltd. Plot No. 16, Sector-22,Dwarka, New Delhi vide LR No.332980/2020 dated 01.06.2020 throughonline. The Conveyance Deed dated04.03.2005 (the date wrongly mentioned inNCR as 04.05.2009 instead of 04.03.2005)has been found with laminated but otherdocuments i.e. allotment letter dated25.04.1999, possession letter dated10.09.2000 not found till date. My client hadalso intimated in respect of foundConveyance Deed dated 04.03.2005 to theS.H.O. P.S. Vasant Kunj, New Delhi on10.07.2020 vide Reference No.81710632001104 dated 10.07.2020.

Sd/- APRAJIT BOUDHADVOCATE

Chamber No. 198A Western Wing,Tis Hazari Court, Delhi-110054

PUBLIC NOTICEPublic at large is hereby informed byPrem Gupta S/o Sh. Khem ChandGupta (being lawful attorney of Smt.Sudesh Kansal), that my client Smt.Sudesh Kansal W/o S.h. R.S.Kansal, R/o: H.No. 543, Sector-29,NOIDA, Gautam Buddh Nagar,(U.P.) is the absolute & lawful ownerof the scheduled property, whichwas purchased by my client from itserstwhile owner on dt. 15/06/1995,who had executed all the saledocuments in favour of my client andalso handed over the entire chain ofprevious documents.My client has lodged an FIR bearingno. 071/2017 U/Section 420/467/468/471/448/120-B/34 of IPC PoliceStation SamayPur Badli qua thescheduled property which is stillpending investigation.My client has not sold the scheduledproperty or any part thereof toanyone and she is still absolute &lawful owner thereof, public at largeis warned not the deal with thescheduled property in any manner, ifanyone does so, he will do it at hisrisk, responsibilities, cost andconsequences.

Sd/-MANOJ KUMAR LOHAT

(ADVOCATE)OFFICE:- Ch. No.1022,

Lawyer's Chambers Block,Rohini Courts, New Delhi 110085

PUBLIC NOTICEIt is informed to the public at large that myclient Smt. Hanshi Sharma @ Hansli Deviw/o Late Bachhi Dutt Sharma R/o WZ-66-A, A- Block Ram Dutt Enclave UttamNagar, New Delhi-59 has withdrawn theearlier public Notice Dated 7.05.2014 ofdisowning her son Laxmi Dutt Sharma andhis wife Smt. Kheema vide publication in‘Indian Express Newspaper’ at Page No. 5and henceforth the Same shall be deemedto be Null and Void. Now the above saidLaxmi Dutt Sharma and his wife KheemaSharma are living peacefully and and areserving her with great love and affection.Hence the above said both person shalllive together in the house of my client andshall have all right title and interest in it.

Sd/- RAMBIR SINGHADVOCATE

Chamber No. C-10, C.L. Joseph BlockTis Hazari Courts, Delhi-110054

Notice Inviting Bid (NIB)The General Manager, SF Complex, Jagdalpur- 494001. invites separate sealed bids in theprescribed format from reputed firms for execution of following work at SF Complex, Jagdalpur.

The Bid document is to be downloaded from the DRDO website: WWW.eprocure.gov.in/epublish/app. The cost of EMD in the form of demand draft drawn in favour of GeneralManager, SF Complex, Jagdalpur-494001 payable at Jagdalpur, at the time of submission ofthe bid, failing which the bid would not be considered.The General Manger, SF Complex reserves the right to reject any or all bid without assigningany reason.

Sd/-General Manager

DAVP/10301/11/0030/2021 SF Complex Jagdalpur

Government of India, Ministry of Defence

Defence Research & Development Organization (DRDO)SF Complex, Airport Terminal Building, Jagdalpur-494001Tel : 07867-289461/62/63/64/65,Fax : 07867-289466,Email : mmgsfc@asl.drdo.in

Annexure- ‘A’

Sl.No.

Bid ReferenceNo.

Name of the Work EMD(Rs.)

Bid SubmissionEnd Date & Time

Bid OpeningDate & Time

01. SFC/MMG/MTD/D-015/2020-21

Double Acting hydraulic JackSystem 7,600/- 28/07/2020

12:30 PM28/07/202004:00 PM

02. SFC/MMG/WRK/D-016/2020-21

Workshop Tools, Accessories& Consumables

8,000/- 28/07/202012:30 PM

28/07/202004:00 PM

OFFICE OF THE DIRECTORDIRECTORATE OF TECHNICAL EDUCATION,VOCATIONAL AND INDUSTRIAL TRAINING

HIMACHAL PRADESH, SUNDER NAGARInvitation for Bids No.: 003/2020 Date: 14.07.2020Loan/Grant No. and Title: Loan No.: 3573-IND/Himachal Pradesh Skill Development Project.Deadline for Submission of Bids: 17.08.2020 upto 12.30 P.M.Contract Package (NCB) No. and Title: Supply of theInformation Technology and related equipment’s forIndustrial Training Institutes to enhance Technical and Vocational Skills among the youth of Himachal Pradeshunder following packages/lots:

1. India has receiveda loan from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) towards the cost of “Himachal PradeshSkill Development Project” and it intends to apply part of the proceeds of this financing to the payment underthe Contract Package named above. Bidding is open to Bidders from eligible source countries of ADB.

2. The “Directorate of Technical Education, Vocational and Industrial Training, Himachal Pradesh”, represent-ed by the Director (“The Purchaser”) invites sealed bids from eligible Bidders for the supply of variousequipment’s for Industrial Training Institutes.

3. National Competitive Bidding will be conducted in accordance with ADB’s Single-stage: Two-envelope bid-ding procedure and is open to all Bidders from eligible countries as described in the Bidding Document.

4. Only eligible Bidders with the following key qualifications should participate in this bidding:

However, for complete eligibility and qualification requirements, respective bid document should bereferred.

5. To obtain further information and inspect the bidding documents, Bidders should contact:Attention: The Director, Directorate of Technical Education, Vocationaland Industrial Training,Circular Road, Lalit Chowk, Sunder Nagar, District: Mandi, Himachal Pradesh, ZIP Code: 175018;Country: India. Telephone & Fax: 01907-266120; 266722, E-mail Address: techedu-hp@nic.in

6. To purchase the bidding documents in English language, eligible Bidders should write or visit at the officeof the Purchaser at address stated above and pay a non-refundable fee of INR 10,000 for each biddingdocument in the form of Bank Demand Draft.In case of written request, the document will be sent by post and no liability will be accepted, for loss orlate delivery.The bidders who wish to receive the bidding document by Post/Courier shall have to pay for each bid-ding document an additional amount of INR 3,000/- for delivery within India or USD 250 for delivery out-side India. The method of payment will be through Bank Demand Draft payable at Sundernagar, HimachalPradesh, India.The eligible bidders may otherwise download the bidding document for English language from the web-site: http://techedu.hp.gov.in/, such bidders shall be required to submit INR 10,000 with their bid for eachbidding document in the form of Bank Demand Draft in the name of the Director Technical Education,HP, Sundernagar towards cost of bidding document.

7. Deliver your bidto the address aboveOn or before the deadline:17.08.2020 at 12.30 P.M.together with a Bid Security as described in the Bidding Document.

5. Bids will be opened on 17.08.2020 at 12.30 P.M. in the presence of Bidders’ representatives who chooseto attend.

6. The Purchaser will not be responsible for any cost or expenses incurred by the bidder in connection withthe preparation or delivery of bids.

Sd/-Director1570/HP

Package No. TitleHPSDP-DOTE/02-R1 Information Technology and related equipment’s: Lot-1: Computers

Package LotNo. No.

HPSDP-DOTE/02-R1 Lot-1

Contractual Experience:Successful completion as mainsupplier within the last three (3)years, of at least One (1) contractwith nature and complexity similarto the scope of supply describedin Section 6 (Schedule of Supply).The contract value of Lot is indi-cated below:

INR 318.00 Lakhs

Average Annual Turnover:Minimum average annual turnoveras indicated below calculated astotal payments received by theBidder for contracts completed orunder execution over the last three(3) years. The Average AnnualTurnover of the Lot is indicatedbelow:

INR 794.00 Lakhs

II,, ShyamKishoreMishraS/oRamKripalMishra, Have LostMyOriginal-Property PaperGPA/ATSOfPlot.No-283Khasra.No-264,Gali.No-10LakhpatColony-1,MeethapurExtn. Badarpur,Delhi-110044,Finder contact-9958467266

0040541940-7

Contact for Advt. Booking: M/s Friends Publicity Service

23276901, 23282028 (M): 9212008155, 9212665841.

EXP E S EDU TIONR S CA

EXPRESSNETWORK8 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHEINDIANEXPRESS,THURSDAY, JULY16,2020

MILINDGHATWAIBHOPAL,JULY15

ANEWSPAPER ownerwho allegedly raped fourminor girls in Bhopal has been arrested fromSrinagar,thepolicesaid.AMadhyaPradeshPoliceteamthattravelledtoSrinagarislikelytobring68-year-oldPyareMiyantoBhopalonThursday.Bhopal ADG Upendra Jain told The Indian

Express that theMPPolicezeroedinonMiyanlateonTuesday, and in coordina-tionwith the local police,tookhimintocustody.On Sunday, a group of

girlswere found inan ine-briatedconditioninBhopalby a sub-inspector, andwhentheycouldnotsatis-factorily answer wherethey were headed, hecalledChildline.TheNGOspoketothematlengthandlatertookthemtoapolicestationwheretheyfiledanFIRnamingMiyan—whohasbeenbringingoutthedaily,Afkar,fromBhopalforseveralyears—asthemanwhoexploitedtheminhisflatsafterof-feringthemfoodanddrink.Beforethecasewasregistered,Miyanreached

the police station and claimed to be the grandfa-therofoneof thevictims.Laterhesaidhewasnotthelegalcustodianandgavethenameanddetailsof thegrandmotherofoneof thevictims.According to thepolice,whenMiyan realised

thepolicewerediggingdeeper, he fled to Indore,butturnedbackafterlearningthatthepolicewerelooking for him there too. His vehiclewas foundabandonedatAshta,betweenBhopalandIndore.HesaidtohavetakenanothervehicletoRajasthan.OnTuesday,police locatedhiminSrinagar.WhileMiyanmanagedtoescape,policearrested

a21-year-oldwoman,whowasanallegedassoci-ate.Thewomanlaterclaimedthatsheherselfwasavictim.ThreeotherswerearrestedTuesday.AccordingtoArchanaSahayofChildline,Miyan

wouldtaketheminorstohispropertiesonthepre-textof cleaning them.Thegrandmotherof oneof

the victimswas an alleged partner-in-crime.Meanwhile,thepolicesearchedMiyan’s

flat in aposh locality at Bhopal’s ShyamlaHillsandreportedlyfoundchildpornogra-phy,sextoys,antlersandexpensiveliquor.Byallaccounts,Miyanhasfourwives,

livedinotherflatsinthesameapartment.ThosefamiliarwithMiyansaidhestartedasacompositor ina leadingHindidaily.Inthelastfewyears,hisUrdudailyhad

negligible circulation, butMiyan’s clouthad grown immensely. He regularlybrought out an edition on Ijtema, an an-nualreligiousgatheringinBhopal.ChiefMinister Shivraj SinghChouhan

had releasedsome of thosespecialeditions,said sourcesposted in theCMHousepre-viously.Apart from

provisions ofPOCSO andrape and con-spiracy underIPC, Miyan hasbeen bookedunder SC/STAct becausetwovictimsbe-long to thosecommunities.

On the run after‘raping minors’in MP, owner ofdaily held in J&K

EXECUTIVE ENGINEERPD, P.W.D, Bulandshahr

E - Procurement Short Term Tender NoticeLetter No. 2523/1A Dated. 4/7/2020The E.E. Provincial Division, U.P.P.W.D., Bulandshahr on behalf of Governor of Uttar Pradesh invites the ercentage rate bidsonline from the eligible registered Tanker Owners/ Firms/ Transports from Date 04.08.2020 to 10.08.2020 upto 12.00 Noon.The Technical bids will be opened online on the same working day that is, on dated 10.08.2020 at 03:00 P.M. in the Office ofExecutive Engineer, PD, U.P.P.W.D. Bulandshahr if the office happens to be closed on the date of opening of the bids asspecified, the bids will be opened online on the next working day respectively, at the same time and validity of bid will beconsidered from the original date. The date and time of opening of the financial bid shall be notified on the website.

1. The Bid Security and Tender Document Fee must be deposited through Internet Banking & RTGS only.2. Terms & Conditions related to bids are available on https://etender.up.nic.in3. During execution of work Tanker Owners/ Firms/ Transports should ensure the all safety precautions for COVID-19

UPID No-153349 Date. 13/07/2020www.upgov.nic.in

Sd/-Assistant Engineer

P.D. P.W.D BULANDSHAHR

Sd/-Executive Engineer,

P.D. P.W.D BULANDSHAHR

Sl.No. Name of Work

Estimatedcost

(Rs. inLac)

BidSecurity(Rs. inLacs)

Time ofCompletion

work includingrainy season

Tender Cost(In Rs.)

Address ofExecutiveEngineer

Address ofSuperintending

Engineer

Address ofChief

Engineer

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

1

Carry of Bitumen fromMathura Refinary toDharpa Store inDistrict Bulandshahr.

10.00 1.00 12 Month

225+500 +18% GST

131.00 = Rs.856.00

ExecutiveEngineer P.D,

P.W.D.,Bulandshahr

SuperintendingEngineer, BSRCircle, P.W.D.,Bulandshahr

ChiefEngineer,

Meerut Zone,P.W.D., Meerut

PyareMiyan.

New Delhi

EXPRESSNETWORK 9WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHEINDIANEXPRESS,THURSDAY, JULY16,2020

THE HARYANA STATE COOPERATIVE SUPPLYAND MARKETING FEDERATION LIMITED

CORPORATE OFFICE. SECTOR 5, PANCHKULA HARYANA (INDIA)TEL: 2590520-24, FAX: 2590711 e-mail hafed@hry.nic.in, Website: www.hafed.gov.in

PUBLIC NOTICEEMPANELMENT OF PRIVATE ATTA CHAKKI MILLS/FLOUR MILLS, ON VOLUNTAR) BASIS, FOR PRODUCTIONOF FORTIFIED WHOLE WHEAT CHAKKI ATTA FOR SUPPLY UNDER PDS, lCDS AND MDM SCHEMES IN THEHARYANA STATE FOR THE PERIOD UPTO 31.03.2021.The Haryana State Cooperative Supply and Marketing Federation limited (HAFED) invites applications from reputed Private AttaChakki Mills/Flour Mills with Chakki situated in the State of Haryana, on voluntary basis, for empanelment for processing of wheatto get Fortified Whole Wheat Chakki Atta (Fortified Atta) with multiple micronutrients as per FSSAI norms for sale/distributionunder PDS, ICDS and MDM Schemes in the Haryana State for the period up to 31.03.2021 subject to fulfillment of the terms andconditions and agreeing to the price/rates given as under:

NOTE: The above mentioned rates are inclusive of all applicable and relevant expenses like unloading of wheat at Mill, cleaning& grinding of wheat, cost of premix, fortification using vitamins and minerals as per technical specification, packing material, pack-ing charges, storage at mill, loading of Fortified Atta at mill inclusive of all Govt. duties and taxes as applicable, public liabilityinsurance and all other incidental expenses.

The document containing eligibility criteria and detailed terms & conditions is available at Hafed's website www.hafed.gov.in.Theapplication can be submitted after deposit of Rs. 2000 (non-refundable) as application/professing fee and Rs. 2.00 Lakh as EarnestMoney Deposit (EMD). The applications complete in all respects along with the proof of deposit of requisite payment can be sub-mitted through email on hafedflourmills@gmail.com upto 02.00 P.M. on 24.07.2020 along with hard copy of the application to besubmitted upto 05.00 P.M. on 24.07.2020. After examination of the applications, the Mills of the technically qualified applicants willbe physically inspected by a Committee to verify the milling capacity, infrastructure and other equipments required as per the termsand conditions. Only those Mills will be considered for empanelment, which meet the infrastructural and other requirements as perthe terms and conditions. Hafed reserves the right to accept/reject any/all the applications without assigning any reason.

Managing Director,Hafed, Panchkula.

Sr.No.

1.

2.

3.

4.

81782/HRY

Rate for the complete operations as perthe complete scope of work and termsand conditions(in Rs. per quintal of wheat inclusive GST/taxes for Wheat supplied in Jute bag)

196

215

270

215

Size of different packing as perrequirement of different variantsl com-binations for PDS/ICDS//MDMSchemes

50 kg. bags

10 and 25 kg. bags

2, 4, 6, 8 and 10 kg. bags

5, 10, 15, 20 and 25 kg. bags

Rate for the complete operations as perthe complete scope of work and termsand conditions(in Rs. per quintal of wheat inclusive ofGST/taxes for Wheat supplied in HDPE bag)

210

233

275

233

No.1-47/Estt.I/15/529 Dated Aizawl, the 14th July, 2020

Applications are invited for filling up of various TeachingPosts in Mizoram University (Central University). Thedetails of vacant posts and other terms and conditionswill be uploaded in the website of Mizoram Universitywww.mzu.edu.in latest by 17th July, 2020. Subsequentaddendum/corrigendum in connection with theadvertisement shall be posted in the University websiteonly.

Sd/- Registrar

MIZORAM UNIVERSITY

SUKRITABARUAHNEWDELHI, JULY15

THECBSEannouncedresultsforits Class X board examinationsonWednesday afternoon, with91.46 per cent of 18,73,015 can-didatesclearing theexams.This year’s result reflects an

improvementof0.36percentagepoints from last year when theoverall pass percentage was91.10percent. Forthemostpart,students of Class X – barringthose fromNorth-east Delhi –did not have their exams inter-rupted as substantially as theClass XII students. Except forNorth-eastDelhistudents,ClassX students had answered alltheir major papers before the

board decided to halt pendingexams fromMarch19onwards.Therefore, the CBSE’smodi-

fiedmarking scheme formula oftakingaveragesofbestpapershasnotbeenappliedinawidespreadmanneramongClassXstudents.This formula had contributed to

highscores inClassXIIresults.ForstudentsfromNorth-east

Delhi who missed the examsdue to the riots in the area, thepaperswererescheduledforJuly1-15,butwerelatercancelledinviewof theCovid-19spread.Thenumberofstudentswho

have scored above 90 per centand 95 per cent this year is lessascompared to lastyear.This year, 41,804 students –

or2.23percentofthecandidates– scored above 95 per cent,which is a dip from last year’s3.25percent.Likewise,1,84,358–9.84percentof thecandidates—scoredabove90percent, sig-nificantly less than last year’s12.78percent.This timetoo,girls faredbet-

terthanboys—93.31percentof

girls who appeared for the ex-ams passed as compared to90.14percentofboys.78.95percent of transgender candidatescleared theexams.Whilestill farbehindprivate

schools,KendriyaVidyalayasandJawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas,state government schools haveimproved their performancesconsiderably.Though they are still behind

the national pass percentagewith80.91percent, this isasig-nificantincreasefromlastyear’s71.91percent.The three regions with the

highest pass percentages wereTrivandrum, Bengaluru andChennai with 99.28 per cent,98.95 per cent and 98.23 percent, respectively.

Ataschool inLudhianaonWednesday.GurmeetSingh

Srinagar: A BJP youth wingleader and the vice president ofaMunicipalCommitteeinNorthKashmir’sBaramulladistrictwaskidnappedbyunknownmenonWednesday morning. In theevening, police said they had“rescued” the leader.Police said Mehraj u Din

Mallah, a ward member inSopore’sWatergam,wasabductedbyunknownmenatMarazigundWednesdaymorning.SoporeSPJavidIqbaltoldThe

Indian ExpressMallahwas affili-atedwith BJP. “He had not ap-pliedforsecurity,buthadaccom-modation in Srinagar.We don’tknowif theyweremilitants, butas per our reports, few peoplewereinaSantrocar. Amanhuntwas launched,” Iqbal said.A relative of Mallah said

Mallah had been taken by un-knownmeninaprivatecar.ByWednesday evening, IGP

Kashmir Vijay Kumar said the“person whowas abducted inthemorninghasbeenrescued”.The police is yet tomake clearwho abductedMallah and howhewasrescued.ADILAKHZER

NewDelhi: The government onWednesdaychangedthecriteriafor invalid pensions for armedforces personnel, allowing it foreven under 10 years of qualify-ingservice.The Defence Ministry said

inastatement that the“Invalidpension is granted to theArmedForcesPersonnelwhoisinvalided out of service on ac-count of disabilitywhich is ac-cepted as Neither Attributableto Nor Aggravated (NANA) byMilitary Service”. But afterDefenceMinisterRajnathSinghapproved the proposal, thebenefit “will be available tothose Armed Forces Personnelwhowere in serviceonorafter04.01.2019”, it said.ENS

PRESSTRUSTOFINDIANEWDELHI, JULY15

THE SUPREME Court onWednesday said it would com-mence virtual day-to-day hear-ingsonabatchofpleaschalleng-ing Maharashtra’s Marathaquota fromJuly27.The top court, which re-

fusedtopassan interimstayonthe lawgranting reservation toMarathas in jobs and educa-tion, said the chances of physi-cal court seem remote due tothe Covid-19 pandemic.A bench of Justices L N Rao,

Hemant Gupta and S RavindraBhattsaidallpartiesshouldsitto-getheranddecideonthemodal-itiesof hearing, suchaswhowilltakehowmuch time, andon re-peatingarguments.Senior advocate Shyam

Divan,appearing forsomepeti-tioners, saidcasessuchas theseneed to be heard in a physicalcourt. Senior advocate KapilSibal said there is also an issueof 10 per cent reservationfor Economically WeakerSectionswhichalsoneedstobeheard, which the bench said itwould consider.

Maratha quota:SC to hold dailyvirtual hearingsfrom July 27

Baramulla BJPleader abducted,later rescued,says J-K police

CBSE Class X results out: Uptick in passpercentage, govt schools improve show

Criteria for invalidpensions in armedforces broadened

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICELUCKNOW, JULY 15

A 17-YEAR-OLD gangrape vic-timandhermotherwerekilledafteroneof her rapists ranoverthem with a tractor in UttarPradesh’s Kasganj district onTuesday, police said. The ac-cused,aged35,wasarrestedonWednesday and amurder casewas registeredagainsthimandhis younger brother, they said.TheKasganjSuperintendent

of Police said the murder wasthe fallout of a feud betweentwo families. The teen’s fatherwas jailed for allegedly killingthe accused’s father in 2016over a financial quarrel.

Around two months later,the son of the murdered manallegedly kidnapped this girl,whowas13atthetime.Shewasrescuedbythepoliceafewdayslater. In her statement, shehad alleged that three menrapedher.The police had then regis-

tered a gangrape case and sec-tions of the POCSO Act werealso invoked.Thethreeaccusedwere arrested and sent to jail.“Theaccusedwasoutonbail

andonTuesday evening,whenthemother and daughterwerereturning from the market, heallegedlycrushedbothtodeathby running them over with histractor...he fled on foot and leftthe tractorbehind,” said theSP.

Gangrape victim, mothermowed down by accusedin tractor, say UP police

Patna:Aguard at PatnaMedicalCollege and Hospital (PMCH)was arrested onWednesday onchargesofrapinga15-year-oldinthehospital's toilet,policesaid.The incident took place on

July 8 but the matter came tolightonWednesday,afterthevic-tims's statement under Section164ofCrPCwasrecorded.Government Railway Police

personnel had found the girl atBarhrailwaystation,nearPatna,on July 8 and had handed herovertoChildline.Shewasunwellandwas admitted to PMCH thesameday, thepolice said.Women'sPoliceStationSHO

official Aarti Jaiswal said, “Hermedical examination has beendone. We have arrested theguard,” Jaiswal said.ENS

Teen raped in Patna hospital toilet

New Delhi

10WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

BETTER LAID PLANSGovernmentshouldprepareacomprehensivepolicyon

privatisation,andamedium-termroadmap

THE SLOWDOWN IN economic activities has taken an increasing toll ongovernmentfinances.Whilethepaceofcontractioninrevenuecollectionappears tobeslowingdown—thecentralgovernment’sgross taxcollec-tionswere down 37 per cent inMay, after contracting by 44 per cent inApril—theCentrewill faceahugeshortfall inbothdirectandindirect tax

collectionsthisyear.Withnon-taxrevenuealsolikelytobeunderpressurethisyear—rev-enueaccruing frombothdividendsandtelecomfee isunlikely tomeetbudgetexpecta-tions— indications that thegovernment is exploringotheroptionsof raising resources,including thesaleof its stakes invariouspublic sector companies, arewelcome.This year the government had originally budgeted for an ambitious disinvestment

targetofRs2.1lakhcrore,withthesaleofstakeincompaniessuchasAirIndiaandLIContheagenda.However,withoutproperpreparationandplanning,achievingthis target inthecurrenteconomicenvironmentwillbedifficult. Inthepreviousfinancialyearaswell,asopposedtoanoriginaltargetofRs1.05lakhcrore,laterreviseddownwardstoRs65,000crore,disinvestmentproceedsendedupatonlyRs50,304crore.Infact,proceedsfromdis-investmenthaveremainedalmoststagnantat0.3percentofGDPoverthepastfiveyears.Achieving the ambitious target this year, and generatingmore revenue consistently,throughthisavenue,requiresacomprehensiveprivatisationprogrammealongthelinesofwhatwasannouncedbyFinanceMinisterNirmalaSitharamaninMay.Accordingtothebroadcontoursof thepolicypresented then, a listof strategic sectorswouldbenotified,which require thepresenceof public sector enterprises. Theprivate sectorwouldbeal-lowed in theseareas, butat leastoneenterprisewouldremainwith thepublic sector. Inallothersectors,publicsectorfirmswouldbeprivatised.Thiswasaboldannouncement.In addition to theefficiencygains that are likely tomaterialise fromprivatisation, doingso at this juncturewill help the government raise themuch needed resources. The re-sources raised through this avenue couldbe ring fencedandused to rampupspendingin infrastructure, especially in thehealthsector, toaid theeconomic recovery.Thedelayinannouncingthedetailsofsuchapolicyisperplexing.Thecostsofcontin-

uingwith loss-makingpublic sectorentities, especially those inhighlycompetitivesec-torssuchasaviationandtelecom,wherenopublicpurposeisserved,aretoohighfortheexchequer tobear. Thegovernment’s privatisationprogrammerequires amore consid-ered, thought out process, and better laid plans. The approach of viewing it solely as ameansofpluggingtherevenuegap,especiallytowardstheendofthefinancialyear,needstobediscarded. Thegovernmentwouldbenefit fromdrawingupamedium-termroadmap, listing out thepotential candidates, and indicating theperiod of disinvestment toprovidemoreclarity to investors.

ACT QUICKLYTheChabaharproject is important for India's regionalgoals,

and for its relationswith Iran

IRAN'SDECISIONTOdrop India fromaplan to build a rail link from the strategicChabahar port to Zahedanon theAfghanborder is awake-up call forDelhi. Thedevelopmentoftheport,andthelinkoverlandthroughIrantotheAfghanborder,wassupposedtobeIndia'sanswertoPakistan'sdenialofthetradingroutethroughWagahtoKhyberpass intoAfghanistanandbeyond, toCentralAsia.Delhi rightly

madethedecisiontobypassPakistanaltogetherbutappearstohavelostthestayingpowertoseetheplanthrough.Indiaplayeditspartindevelopingtheport,whichisfunctionalnow.FromKandlainGujarat,wheatandotherfoodgrainisbeingsenttoAfghanistanviaChabahar.Also,itwasIndia'sBorderRoadsOrganisationthathelpedbuildthe218kmRoute606inAfg-hanistan, knownotherwise as theDelaram-Zaranj highway, that cut road travel timebe-tweenAfghanistanandIran.ButIndiadraggeditsfeetonbuildingtheraillinkfromChabaharto Zahedan. First, the delayswere over contract disagreements, then the fear of US sanc-tions,andlater,aftertheUSprovideda“carve-out”toIndiaontheportandtherail link,thedifficultyunderthesanctionsregimeinfindinginternationalsuppliers formaterial.Chabaharwillnotbethefirsttimedelaysinthecompletionofambitiousinfrastructure

projectsundertakenbyIndiaintheregionhaveinflictedsetbacksonIndia'sstrategicgoals.FromNepal toMyanmar, Sri Lanka and Iran, Delhi hasmade commitments on buildingpowerprojects,highways,railways,andotherinfrastructure.Eachproceedsslowlyornotat all. The PancheshwarDamproject inNepal, for instance, has been hanging fire since1991.PrimeMinisterNarendraModipromisedtospeeditupwhenhevisitedKathmanduinAugust2014,butlittleprogresswasmade.Instead,Indiaisfirefightingtosalvagealong-standingrelationshipwithNepaloverclaimsof territory.Astill tobecompletedtrilateralhighwaybetweenIndia,MyanmarandThailandhasbeenovershadowedbyaChinese-builthighwaythathasboostedChina-Myanmarbordertrade.India'sbetterrecordinSriLankaisnotwithoutmissedopportunitiesthatwereonceagainsnappedupbyChina.Delhihasnochoicebut to findamoreefficientwayofgettingaroundthesedifficulties.Delhihas indicatedthat it continues tobepartof the therail linkproject in Iran. If so,

nowisthetimetogetonwithit,evenif Iran'smuchtouted25-yearstrategicpartnershipagreementwithBeijingisnotas imminentasTehranmakes itseem.TheChabaharproj-ect is important for India's regional goals, and for its relationswith Iran. That is reasonenoughtoactquickly.

ALL THAT GLITTERSOwnership issuesettled,SreePadmanabhaswamytemplecoulddowithamuseumtoshowcase its treasuresandhistory

THE LEGAL BATTLE over who owns the Thiruvananthapuram SreePadmanabhaswamytemple,oneof therichest shrines in theworld, con-cluded onMonday. The Supreme Court overturned a 2011 Kerala HighCourt order that had ruled against the Travancore royal family’s claimsover the shrine anddirected the state government to take over its assets

andmanagement.TheSCorderacceptedtherightsof theroyal familyandhasaskedforadministrative andadvisory committees,with representatives of theCentre, state gov-ernment, the royal family, tobeconstituted tomanage the templeand itsassets.TheSupremeCourt,however,didnotspeakonwhathastobedonewiththetemple’s

treasures— gold coins and ornaments, precious stones and crowns— stored in under-groundvaults away frompublic viewandvalued at over Rs 1 lakh crore. The SCmerelyasked for the preservation of “all treasures and properties endowed to SreePadmanabhaswamy and those belonging to the temple”, whereas the HC hadwantedthe treasures tobe“exhibited inamuseum”.Thecentralgovernmentofferedtosetupahigh-securityundergroundmuseum,buttheproposaldidnottakeoffbecausetheroyalfamily said the treasuresbelongedto thedeityandwerenot forexhibition.The SC appointed temple committee ought to revive theHC’s suggestion to set up a

museum. Unlike most other temples of similar antiquity, the eighth-century SreePadmanabhaswamytempleisintrinsicallylinkedtotheregion’spolitical,economicandsocialhistory.Amuseumthatcelebratesthetemple’suniquelegacywouldnotbeacom-mercial enterprise, buta spaceof knowledgeandacentreof learning.

Once, I was in the Congress

PradyotManikya BikramDebbarma

Ambitionisn’tabadwordandintrospectionwon’tdo.PartymustlistentovoicesoutsideDelhi

ITHASBEENoverayearsincethepresidentof theCongresspartyresignedaftertheelec-toral debacle, saying he felt let down bythose who did not stand by him. It is wellknown that Rahul Gandhi also wrote anopenletterwherehestatedthatseniorlead-ers, and possibly Congress chief ministers,weremore interested in getting their chil-drennominationsfortheLokSabhaandthiswas one of the reasons why he felt theCongress managed to get just 1 out of 54seats in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh,withKamalNath’ssonbeingthesolewinnerfromthese twostates.Today, seniors in the sameparty are ac-

cusingcertain “YoungTurks”of being “am-bitious”. I shudder to think what a partywould be if there was no ambition withinits leaders to fight it out. It is this lack ofhunger thathasreducedtheCongress to itspresent position. The party has one of theoldestdecision-makingbodies,barringper-haps the communists, the CongressWorkingCommittee, but a cultureof nom-inationhas ruined this apexbodyof theor-ganisation.Mostof theseleadersarelargelyDelhi-based with little or no relevance intheir own regions and yet they continue toenjoythepowertodecidethefuturecourseofactionwithintheparty.TheonlythingtheCWChas ensured is status quo so that theyremain relevant to the power mongerswithin the set-up.It is indeedsadthatwhenaseniorleader

likeMani Shankar Aiyar speaks of democ-racywithin the party (‘See you later, alliga-tor’, IE, July15),heneedstoberemindedthatthe same party suspended him before theGujarat electionwithout a show cause no-ticeandachanceforhimtoreply.Theleaderspeaks of ideology, but forgets we are inpower in Maharashtra with a party thatproudlyclaimedtobethefirsttobringdowntheBabriMasjid. It is sheerhypocrisywhenjustbeforeelectionsweropeinleaderswhoarecriminalandcorruptbecausetheycanfi-

nance theparty.I agree thatelectability isnecessary. But

atwhatcost?It isunderstoodthatmanyde-cisionsaredifficult but then in thisdayandagewe cannot hold themoral high groundwhen everything is in the public domain.Thedebatehasneverbeenaboutoldversusnew but about relevance — didn’t IndiraGandhibreakher father’s party to formtheCongress (Indira)? Didn’t Mani ShankarAiyar, like somany, alsopartwayswith theCongress during the ’90s and at one timejoined hands with Mamata Banerjee?Memories may fade but when someonestarts preaching to others they should alsoreflect on their ownactions.I was the Congress president in Tripura

and, perhaps because the Northeast is lesswrittenabout, letmeremindeveryone thatthe highest vote jump in the entire countryfor theCongresswas inour stateduring theLokSabhaelection.Buteverythingchangedafter Rahul Gandhi resigned abruptly, thesame general secretaries who wereamenable tonewideas suddenly felt other-wise.Mystateof Tripurahas thedistinctionof having seen the AICC General Secretaryvisit for about eight hours combined in thelast six years and yetwe have always beentold to take all decisions after getting it vet-ted by them. Are leaders like CP Joshi andLuizinho Faleiro even interested in theNortheastbecauseif theywerewewouldnothave lost state after state and created aCongressMuktNortheast.MyoppositiontotheCAAwastheturn-

ingpointwhenthegeneralsecretarystatedthatwehadtoconsiderthevotebankintheregion. Imaginethebetrayaltothepeopleofmystateandregionwhenwetakeone linein Assam and Meghalaya and another inTripura. I resigned but nevermoved to theBJP, because, fundamentally, I believe thatnational parties have stopped botheringabout our region, andespecially its indige-nous population. The resignation was not

because there were greener pastures butbecause I felt that if I did not stand theground for our people then I would neverbe forgiven for this betrayal of trust. I tookthe right decision and today I can say thatwe will be the principal opposition to theBJP in our state.ThiscountryneedsanOppositionwhich

has the hunger and stamina to fight it outwithoneofthemostaggressivepoliticalpar-ties to rule this nation.My simple questionis:Canitbedonebythosewhoaresittingatthe helm of affairs? There have been state-ments thatweshould fight itoutwithintheorganisationandnotquit,butmyfundamen-tal point is that a shipwithout apermanentcaptain is directionless and therein lies theproblem.Whereistheredressalmechanismwithin theorganisation?Therearemanywhowouldliketoseethe

Congress succeedbut for thisweneeda fulltime president and a complete overhaul.Sadly, for those who question the youngleaders leaving the party, an overhaul stopsat introspection (a termwe have all growntiredof).Peoplewillcomeandgo,whetheritis Jyotiraditya Scindia, Sachin Pilot, AjayKumar, Pradyot, Himanta Biswa Sarma orJaganReddy.Butitisimportanttolearnfromeveryvoiceof dissent.Adebatewithin theparty shouldnot be

seen as a duel and it should be across theboard.Many leave the party not for lure ofpowerandmoneybutbecausetheyfeelthattheyarehumiliated, as itwas inmycase.If the Congress has to reclaim its glory

days it must decentralise and hear voicesfrom across the country. The party whichused tohold swayacross the countryhas tobe lessDelhi centric. Finally, thepartymustaskitsseniorleaderswhythepastseemsfarprettier than the future.Wecould askManiShankarAiyar to introspect.

Thewriter is chairman,The IndigenousProgressiveRegionalAlliance

I was the Congress presidentin Tripura and, perhapsbecause the Northeast is lesswritten about, let me remindeveryone that the highestvote jump in the entirecountry for the Congresswas in our state during theLok Sabha election. Buteverything changed afterRahul Gandhi resignedabruptly, the same generalsecretaries who wereamenable to new ideassuddenly felt otherwise. Mystate of Tripura has thedistinction of having seenthe AICC General Secretaryvisit for about eight hourscombined in the last sixyears and yet we have alwaysbeen told to take alldecisions after getting itvetted by them. Are leaderslike CP Joshi and LuizinhoFaleiro even interested in theNortheast because if theywere we would not have loststate after state and created aCongress Mukt Northeast.

FOUNDED BY

RAMNATH GOENKA

B E C A U S E T H E T R U T H I N V O L V E S U S A L L

§ §

THEINDIANEXPRESS,THURSDAY, JULY16,2020WORDLYWISE

Templegoing is forthe purificationof the soul.

— MAHATMA GANDHITHEEDITORIALPAGE

Navneet Sharma

A FORCE FOR THE FUTUREANationalCurriculumFrameworkforpoliceeducationandtrainingisneeded

THE CUSTODIAL DEATHS in Thoothukudiandthekillingof eightpolicemen inanam-bushinUttarPradeshhasbroughtthecoun-try’spoliceforceunderscrutiny.ThestoryofVikas Dubey and his “encounter” killing al-most sounds likeaBollywood filmplot. Thepolice’s narrative — the car overturning,Dubey snatching the service pistol and at-tempting to run— does not seem convinc-ing.When the Hindi novelist, Ved PrakashSharmawroteVardiWalaGunda (AGoon inUniform),heprobablydidnotanticipatereallife events imitating fiction. The novel soldmorethan80millioncopies,bringingrespecttotheworldofpulpfiction.Theepithetusedby the novelist to describe the police ringstrue in light of the custodial deaths inThoothukudi and the Vikas Dubey en-counter.The killing of George Floyd in

Minneapolisledtoaseriesofprotestsagainstpolice atrocities in theUS, culminating intothe Black Lives Matter campaign. TheMinneapolis council, in fact, has drafted aplantoabolishthepoliceandreplaceitwithadepartmentof communitysafetyandvio-lenceprevention.Nosuchoutragehasbeenfelt in India. Somepeople justify police vio-lence in Kashmir and the Northeast as theonly solution to the insurgency. People, infact, rarelyobjectwhen they seepolicemenslappingpeopleoraskingthemtodosit-ups.Themaintenanceof lawandorderispri-

marilytheresponsibilityofthestates—Delhibeinganexception.However,policedepart-ments are headed by an IPS officer provid-

ingthesystemananchorattheCentrallevel.Theseofficersaretrainedat theLalBahadurShastri National Academy forAdministration, Mussorie and SardarVallabhbhai Patel National Police Academy(NPA)atHyderabad.Lower-levelofficialsandconstablesaretrainedatdifferentstatepoliceacademies.Therearealsotwopoliceuniver-sities in the countryand thehomeministryhas recently approved the creation of a na-tional police university. However, at thelower rungs, much of the force uses strongarmtacticsthatdatebacktothecolonialera.Oneneedstobeagraduatetobecomean

IPS officer. But for recruitment at the lowerlevelsof theforce,onlythephysicalagilityofthecandidateistested.AnIPSofficeristrainedfor about two years, an inspector-level offi-cer receives an year’s training and a consta-ble is trainedforninemonths.Thequalityoftrainingvariesaccordingtostate.But,byandlarge,officialsatthelowerrungsonlyreceivebasic training for field challenges—humanrightsissuesarenotanessentialpartof theirtraining.Thisisprobablywhyaremarkindis-sentbyJeyarajinThoothukudiledtothegrue-somepoliceviolenceagainsthim.While “depolicing society” is often dis-

cussed in the media and the issue oftencomesupinpolitical rhetoric, conversationsonitsnatureandscopelackacademicrigour.But such conversations are needed becauseasthesatiristHariShankarParsai showedinInspectorMatadinChandPar,policingde-hu-manisessociety—includingthepolice forceitself. The Bureau for Police Research and

Developmentwasestablishedin1970forthe“modernisation”ofpolice.Theinstitutionhasrarelyengagedwithhumanrights issues.Onlyafewstateshavein-servicetraining

forlowerlevelofficersandtheconstabulary.Police officials work 10 to 16 hours, sevendaysaweek,whichtakesatollonthehealthof several officers. The “Status of Policing inIndiaReport2019”pointsout that70policestations across 20 states do not havewire-less facilities and 214 police stations do nothave a telephone.More than 40 per cent ofpolice stations in the country cannot availthe help of forensic technology. All this isboundtoaffect thefunctioningof thepoliceandreflect inthewaystheyengagewiththepublic.It is high time thatweaddress the infra-

structuralandorganisationalissuesandcon-cerns related to the police. Moreover, thereis a need to evolve a National CurriculumFramework (NCF) for police education andtraining, like that for teachers, andmedicaland engineering services. The curriculummust be informed by discussions at differ-ent levels — universities, NPA and the soci-ety itself. A progressive and democratic so-cietyandanaspiringeconomicsuperpowercannotbepolicedbyaregressivesystem.AnNCF can help the police act according to itsmotto, “Withyou, Foryou,Always”.

Thewriter is faculty,DepartmentofEducation,CentralUniversityofHimachalPradesh,Dharamsala.Viewsexpressed

arepersonal

By and large, officials at thelower rungs only receivebasic training for fieldchallenges — human rightsissues are not an essentialpart of their training. This isprobably why a remark indissent by Jeyaraj inThoothukudi led to thegruesome police violenceagainst him.

INDO-PAK TALKSTALKSBETWEENINDIAandPakistanbeganwith the PrimeMinister suggesting to thevisiting Pakistan Foreign Minister AghaShahidthatPakistanshouldthinkof settingtheKashmirissuewithIndiapeacefullyandbilaterallyashadbeenprovidedintheSimlaAgreement. Indira Gandhi’s suggestionclearly impliedthat the Indiangovernmentwants Pakistan to give up raising theKashmir issue invariousworld forumsandinstead discuss it with India. It’s not clearwhat exactly Agha Shahi told PM IndiraGandhiontheKashmirissue.Butlater inhisbanquet speech, the Pakistan foreign said:“We are fully committed to the Simla

Agreement inall itsprovisionsandarecon-fident that the processwould be carried toits logicalconclusionwithajustandamica-ble settlementon JammuandKashmir.”

TWO MIZO LEADERSIN AN EFFORT to accommodate theMizoNationalFrontLeader,Laldenga,withouttop-pling the elected People’s ConferenceGovernment of Brigadier Sailo inMizoram,theUniongovernment is tryingtopersuadethe two tobury thehatchet. PrimeMinisterIndiraGandhiandHomeMinisterZailSinghare reported tohave told theMizoramgov-ernment that it can work together withLaldenga.Thissuggestionissaidtohavebeen

madewhen theMizoramFinanceMinister,Lalhmingthanga called on them. They as-sured theminister that the Centre has noplans to dismiss the elected government ofMizoram.

SUGAR PRICES CRASHSUGAR AND KHANDSARI prices crashedfollowing the reduction in the limits ofholdingstocksof these items. Inmostmar-kets, sugarprices tumbledby20percentto40percentandthatofkhandsaribyRs15toRs 50 a quintal. The steepest fall in sugarpriceswasinDelhiwhere it lostRs42whilethat of khandsari came down by Rs 50 aquintal in Bombay.

JULY 16, 1980, FORTYYEARSAGO

New Delhi

11THEINDIANEXPRESS,THURSDAY, JULY16,2020 WHATTHEOTHERSSAY

“UK's decision is obviously the result of heavy pressure from Washington.However, using Huawei or not is ultimately a matter of technology andeconomy.”

— GLOBALTIMES, CHINATHE IDEASPAGEWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

The Delhi government’sAmbedkar University hasalways followed a system ofcontinuous evaluation,which does not place anundue premium on end-semester examinations. Inthis vein, the Delhigovernment has alsodirected state universities toscrap exams for final-yearstudents, and devisealternate mechanisms toassess students. But the fateof lakhs of students acrossthe country studying incentral universities like DelhiUniversity, or in stateuniversities that have not yetcancelled exams, hangs in thebalance.

Let’s not fail the young Neighbourhoodchallenge

KAUTILYA’STHEORYofRajamandala—the“circles of kings” —may not be fully rele-vant in the present-day context. But itshouldalwaysbekeptinmindwhiledeal-ingwithneighbouringstates.TheMandalatheory suggests that therewill be 12 con-centric circles of neighbouring states anddescribeseachof themasa friendora foe.There is a possibility of the immediateneighbours being inimical, while theneighbourof theneighbour, in thesecondcircle, couldbea friend.TheMandala theory isaboutprobabil-

ity,notcertainty.Countriesthatrubshoul-derswitheachothershouldmakeanextraeffort to ensure goodwill and friendship.BetweenKautilya’speriodandnow,coun-tries havedeveloped the art of diplomacysufficiently to redefine neighbourly rela-tions.Yet, challenges remain, occasionallyreminding us that “your neighbour couldbecomeyourpotential adversary”.India, over centuries, has successfully

defiedthisdoctrinebyusingthesoftpowerof itsreligionandculture. Inoneof theear-liest attempts, it used Buddhism to cast a“Sanskritik mandala” or “cultural circle”arounditsgeography.TheBuddhistcircleofinfluence began during the reign ofEmperor Ashoka and included Ceylon,Burma, Nepal, Tibet, Central Asia, China,Japan and Indochinawhich accepted theBuddha’sMiddlePath.Renowned French Indologist and

SanskritistSylvainLevidescribedthisphe-nomenon beautifully: “India gave hermythologytoherneighbourswhowenttoteach it to thewholeworld.Motherof lawandphilosophy,shegavetothree-quartersof Asia a god, a religion, a doctrine, an art.She carriedher sacred language, her liter-ature,herinstitutionsintoIndonesia,tothelimitsof theknownworld…”It was much later, in the 1980s, that

JosephNye, the American political scien-tistcoinedthephrase“softpower”,denot-ing the ability of nations to influence oth-ers without using force. Nye’s concept isdying a slowdeath. Countries are becom-ing suspicious of eachother’s cultural, ac-ademic and even religious engagements.Thissuspicionislargelytheresultofcoun-trieslikeChinausingthe“power”aspectofsoft power as a tool to spread their domi-nance. China’s “thousand talents” pro-gramme,launchedin2008,tospotandat-tract talent from the world over, and XiJinping’scampaigncodenamed“foxhunt”,tolocateandneutraliseanti-CPCelementsintheChinesediaspora,haveledtoheight-enedsuspicionabout itssoftpower initia-tives.TheseincludetheConfuciusinstitutesandcollaborativeuniversityprogrammes.In theUS, theDonald Trumpadminis-

tration is going after them. “The Chinesegovernment isengagedinabroad,diversecampaign of theft andmalign influence,and itcanexecutethatcampaignwithau-thoritarian efficiency. They’re calculating.They’repersistent.Andtheyaren’tsubject

to the righteous constraints of an open,democratic society or the rule of law”,protested the FBI Director ChristopherWrayataHudsonInstituteeventrecently.TheChinesewillcontinuethemalicious

useof softpower.ConfuciusinstitutesareaconspicuouspresenceinIndia’sneighbour-hoodandMandarinhas found itsway intoschool curricula. But the limitations of softpower are bringing back the assertions ofhardpower.Astheculturalcirclesareweak-ening, Rajamandalas are returningwith adifference. Neighbours and neighbours’neighbourstooareposingchallenges.After Bangladesh’s decision last

September to hand over the constructionof itsfirstsubmarinebasenearCox’sBazarto China,which sold two submarines to itin2018,camethenewsof IrangoingaheadwiththeremainingworkontheChabaharport without India’s support. Iran’s deci-sionshouldalertIndiainthelightoftheon-goingdebateintheIranianparliamentoveraproposedsweepingeconomicandsecu-ritypartnershipagreementwithChina.TheNewYorkTimeswasthefirsttoreport

the details of the 18-page agreement be-tweenthetwocountries.AccordingtoNYT,theagreementwouldfacilitateChina’sdirectpresenceinIran’sstrategicsectorslikebank-ing,telecommunications,portsandrailways.Chinawould,inreturn,gethighly-subsidisedIranianoilover thenext25years.Of partic-ular concern to India could be themilitarycooperation embedded in this agreementthatwould facilitate “joint training andex-ercises, joint research andweaponsdevel-opmentandintelligencesharing”.Twoaspectsoftheproposedagreement

call for greater attention from India. First,thedecision tohandover twoports in theGulf of Oman to China for development,one of them at Jask just 200miles awayfromtheChabaharport.Second,theco-op-tionof theCentralAsianrepublicsintothisagreement.Thiscomesasadirectchallengeto not only India’s traditional ties withtheserepublicsbutalso to theUS-ledpro-gramme of C5+1 underwhich the US hasestablishedmultilateralprogrammeswithfiveCentralAsian republics.India traditionally has strong tieswith

IranthatwithstoodseveralpressuresfromtheWest. This time, the challenge comesfromtheeasternneighbour.“Neighbourhood First” has been the

sheet-anchor of India’s foreign policy atleast since the inception of the SAARC.Prime Minister Narendra Modi has in-vestedheavilyintheneighbourhoodinthelast six years to create strong diplomaticbonds. He has extensively used his softpower skills to generate enormous good-will for India and himself. That populargoodwill remainsagreatadvantage.However, soft power, which includes

culturalandcivilisationalbonding,contin-uestogivediminishingdividends.Nationsintheneighbourhoodaregrowinguncom-fortable over the over-emphasis of “one-ness”, as the urge for “uniqueness” is theflavourof theseason ineachcountry.ItistimeIndiaturnsmoretowardsModi’s

second principle — “togetherwe grow”.Proactivediplomacy togetherwith greaterattentiontosoftdevelopmentalneedsoftheneighbours like connectivity, education, fi-nanceandhealthcareistheneedofthehourforIndia’sforeignpolicymandarins.

Thewriter isnationalgeneral secretary,BJP,anddirector, India foundation

Astheystep intoanuncertain future,Centreneeds tostandwithyouth,notagainst them.UGCneeds torevisit itsguidelinesonfinal-yearexaminations immediately

ONE OF THE core duties of governmentsduring natural disasters like the ongoingcoronaviruspandemic is tosoften theblowof thecrisis. Thehardshipspeoplehaveun-dergoneasa resultof thepandemicareun-precedented.Governmentshave taken im-portant measures, ranging from issuing amoratoriumonEMIpaymentsanddelayingthedeadlineforfilingtaxreturns, toprovid-ingfreerationandfinancialassistancetotheunderprivilegedsectionsofsociety.Aclassofcitizens who have also borne a dispropor-tionate burden of this crisis is students incollegesanduniversities.Buttheydonotap-pear to have the ear of the Central govern-ment.With university and college classes be-

ingalmostcompletelywashedout,studentshave had a raw deal this year. The UnionMinistryofHumanResourceDevelopmentand the University Grants Commission(UGC) are bent on worsening their plight.Theworst-hitarefinal-yearstudents—whowould ordinarily graduate in June, but thisyear, they find themselves at themercy oftheUGC. In its latest guidelines, the centralbody for maintaining higher educationalstandards in thecountryhasmandated theconductingof finalyearexaminations,evenas it recommended the cancellation of in-termediate semester examinations. To cir-cumvent the impossibility of conducting aphysical exam during the COVID-19 pan-demic, the UGC first recommended onlineexams.Whenstudentspointedoutthestarkdigitaldivideinthecountry,theUGChasbe-gun advocating offline or “blended” onlineplusofflineexams.TheUGC’sdecisiontoenforceexamsfor

final-year students, while cancelling othersemester exams, betrays its poor under-standingof theChoiceBasedCreditSystem(CBCS) adopted by India’s universities.UndertheCBCS,theacademicyearsaresplitintosemestersthatcarrymoreorlessequalweightage towards awarding degrees tograduates. Every semester is equal and in-dependentofothersemesters.ButtheUGC’sguidelinesrevealthatitdoesnotunderstandthis simple truth. The Centre believes thatfinal semester examsare “exit” examsand,therefore, more important. Nothing couldbe further fromthetruth.Thebasis forcan-cellingintermediatesemesterexamsappliesjust asmuch to final semester exams.Technical arguments against exams

aside, the fundamental reason we shouldnot hold exams is straightforward.Universitiesprovideeducation to students,and based on this education, students areassessed through exams.When the coron-avirus disrupted the teaching-learningprocess, it negated thevery basis of exams.What will we test our students on? Doweexpectthemtohavedeepinsights intotheirfinal-semester syllabusbybirth?The coro-navirus pandemic is a once-in-a-centuryevent and if we do not rise to the occasionand respond to it appropriately, wewill be

failing our citizens. Extraordinary circum-stances call for extraordinarymeasures.It is not that examinations are the only

waytoassessstudents.Therelianceonwrit-ten,subjective-typeexamshasalreadystag-nated our university courses and the waytheyaretaughtatcolleges.Theworld’sfinesteducational institutionshavecancelledex-ams during the pandemic and chosen toconduct internal assessments. The IndianInstitutes of Technology (IITs) and theNationalLawUniversities(NLUs)areIndia’spremier centresof education.Theyhaveallcompletedtheirevaluationof final-yearstu-dents through internal assessments andgranted them degrees. The Delhi govern-ment’sAmbedkarUniversityhasalwaysfol-lowed a system of continuous evaluation,whichdoesnotplaceanunduepremiumonend-semester examinations.In this vein, the Delhi government has

also directed state universities to scrap ex-ams for final-year students, and devise al-ternatemechanismstoassessstudents.Butthefateof lakhsofstudentsacrossthecoun-trystudyingincentraluniversitieslikeDelhiUniversity, or in stateuniversities thathavenot yet cancelled exams, hangs in thebalance.TheUGCguidelines requireuniversities

tocompleteall final-semesterexamsbythe

endof September.This timeline iscruelatatimewhenapooreconomicoutlook, lackofjobs in themarketandaglobalhealthcrisisare already troubling the youth. Theywerelooking forward to receiving their degreesandmoving on from their student lives tolooking for jobs so they couldbegin to sup-port themselves and their households. Butnow, they will likely finish their exams inSeptember (fourmonths too late), receivedegrees by November and their lives willhavebeensetbackby severalmonths.It is a tragedy of our times that during a

historicglobalcrisis, theCentreistakinguni-lateral decisions on studentmatters with-out any concern for theirmental and emo-tional well-being. Students are feelingdisenfranchisedbytheutterdisconnectbe-tweentheirproblemsanddecision-makersintheCentralgovernment. Inthesedifficulttimes, as theystep intoanuncertain future,the Centre needs to standwith our youth,not against them. The UGC needs to revisitits guidelines immediately and take a hu-mane and rational approach in thismatter.If we force students to carry out this farce,wewill havemiserably failed our youngergeneration.

Thewriter is deputy chiefminister ofDelhiandalsoholds the educationportfolio

BIZARRE STATEMENT

THE BIZARRE STATEMENT of NepalPrimeMinisterKPOlithatShriRamwasborn in a village in eastNepal and thatourAyodhya isanartificial conceptcre-atedbyIndiaismind-boggling.Thisout-rageous statementwill have hurt thesentimentsofabillionHinduslivingnotonly in India andNepal but around theworld. The statement could have beendismissed as the gymnastics of a dis-tortedmind,exceptitcomesontheheelsofOli’sunfortunateunilateralactionre-garding a territorial disputewith India.Itwouldappearheistryingtodowhat-ever he can towiden the distance be-tweenNepal and India. Right-thinkingpeopleinbothcountriesshouldbeawareof thisominouspolicyanddowhateverpossibletorecreatethefriendly,age-oldtiesbetweenthetwocountries.

KaranSingh,Delhi

CONGRESS’S LOSSTHISREFERSTOthearticle,‘Seeyoulater,alligator’ (IE, July 15). Mani ShankarAiyar'ssubmissionthattheCongresscanonlyberunbya family is the reason fortheparty'scurrentwoes.Politicalpartiesthrivenotonpatronagebutonan ideo-logical base. By referring to themerit-based achievements of the two young

leadersinrebellion,hehasdemonstratedwhytheCongresshaslostboth.

AnimeshMohan,Ballia

THISREFERSTOthearticle,‘Seeyoulater,alligator’ (IE, July 15).While thewriterhasmadeaninterestingcomparisonbe-tweenSachinPilot’sdepartureand thosewho left the Congress since theNehruvian era, he fails to explainwhyyoung leaders are leaving theparty. Hewill dowell to question the top leader-shipratherthaninvokingKingLearandthepromiseof therosegarden.

SeshadriSrinivasan,Delhi

LETTER TO THEEDITOR

AMIDST MANOEUVRINGS of disengage-ment along the India-China border and themechanics of a “two front” war becomingvisible, it is vital to assess the China-Pakstrategic partnership that has a bearing onnational security beyondmilitarymatters.Despite being a key ally in the “War onTerror”, Pakistan has aligned itself closelywith Chinese interests, which are at oddswithUS/Westerninterests intheregionandbeyond.Thisposesseriousthreatstoregionalandglobal security.China’sassessmentofthethreatfromAf-

Pak has not changed for decades. The jointcommuniqué issued at the end of July 7China-Afghanistan-Pakistan TrilateralStrategic Dialogue states that, “The threesides agreed to continue to strengthencounter-terrorismandsecuritycooperation,combat the East Turkistan IslamicMovement (ETIM), and all other terroristforces and networks posing threats to ourcommon security”. China considers anybuild-up of Uzbek, Tajik andUighur terror-ist/extremistentities inCentralAsiaandAf-Pak as adirect threat. The threat of ISISnet-workstoChinaemanatesfromtheseforeignterroristfightersandtheircellsacrossCentralAsia,Af-Pak, SouthEastAsiaandEurope.China blames ETIM for the attacks in

Xinjiangbetween1990and2016.Hardlyanydomestic attacks have been reported since2016. Historically, ETIMhas been, and con-tinues tobe, apartof thealQaeda (AQ)net-

work, especially in Af-Pak, Central Asia andgreater Sham (Greater Syria). Most terrorgroupsinAf-PakarepartofAQ’sideological-logistical network, including the Taliban,state-backedPakistanigroupssuchasAQIS,LeT, JeM, Uzbek-Tajik dominated IMU/IJUandETIM. Inthisregion, theAQcorehasop-erated through local groups, selectively us-ingitsowncadres.Itispartofawell-thought-out strategyofAQforglobal jihad.AQ’s top leaders and ideologues like

Osama bin Laden, Ayman al Zawahiri andYahya al-Libi have figured prominently inETIMpropaganda.Inthepast,Pakistanicom-manders like Asmatullah Muawiya haveopenly advocated for East Turkistan.However, leaders like Muawiya have allcome“over-ground”followingdealswithISI.China has used its clout to get

Afghanistan,PakistanandCentralAsianna-tions to crack down on suspectedETIM/Uighur networks. However, Chinaneeds a “reliable” partner for a continuouscrackdown, directly or through proxies.Pakistanplaysboththeroles.Unsurprisingly,Taliban leaders have been visiting Chinasince2015.Whetherornotthepeaceprocessyieldspeace inAfghanistan, theTaliban-AQnetworkwouldcontinuetoposeachallenge,asthecombinecanpropupETIMandCentralAsiangroups “atwill”.In greater Sham, there is notmuch evi-

dence of any sizeable ETIM/Uighur cadreshaving shiftedallegiance to ISIS. Thousands

of ETIM cadres continue to train and fightwithintheAQnetworkinSyria—earlierasAlNusraFront(ANF),nowmorphedintoHayatTahrir al-sham (HTS) and Hurras al-Din(HaD). The AQ network in Syria is pittedagainsttheregimebackedbyRussiaandIran.In the region, Turkey is the principal actorwith a good degree of control and reachwithin the AQnetwork. Post-Caliphate, theAQ network has expanded its reach andstrength. Of late, HTS ideologues havebeenpraising the Taliban and Taliban socialme-diahasbeenshowcasingtheactivitiesof theAmirofHTS,Mohammadal-Joulani.In the past, China has accused Turkey of

supporting Uighur groups, including exilesandpoliticalentitiesallegedlylinkedtoETIM.Turkeywasalsoaccusedof issuingfakepass-ports to Uighur suspects for activities inSouth-East Asia and East Asia. However, inrecenttimes,thetwosideshavepipeddown.Pakistan has already used its close con-

nectionwithTurkeytogainafootholdforitsproxies in the Syria-Turkey theatre on thepretextofhumanitarianwork.Pakistan’sdi-rect reachandproxynetworksarealsouse-ful for chasingETIM/Uighurnetworks.Thus, for China, the close support of

Pakistanisnecessary,notonlyinAf-PakandCentral Asia but also in greater Sham. Thegroups that challenge Pakistan, namely theTTPnetworksandafewPunjabiTalibanandBalochgroupsare,bydefault,alsoathreattoCPEC,whichChinashowcasesasa “pilot for

the BRI”. Such groups also pose a threat totheGwadarport,whichiscriticalforChina’sglobal economic andmilitary domination.PakistanhasthusgainedChina’sfullsupportacross regional and international fora.While the US designated ETIM as a ter-

rorist outfit in 2002, theUSCountry Reportreleased in Junementions that “China’s CTefforts continue to focus primarily on ‘ex-tremists’ whomBeijing ascribes to the so-calledEastTurkistanIslamicMovement,de-spite a lack of independent evidence that agroupbythatnameisstillactive”.Thereportalso said the “Chinese government has de-tainedmorethanonemillionUighurs,ethnicKazakhs,andothermembersofMuslimmi-nority groups in internment camps in theXinjiangUyghurAutonomousRegion,usingcounterterrorismasapretext”.A new ColdWar is building up in every

theatreofconflict, ridingonrealorexagger-ated threats of terrorism and extremism.Hostilitiesbetween theUSand Iranand theChina-Iran deal will strengthen it. The du-plicitousroleofPakistanisgoingtocausefur-ther instability and violence in the region.Proxy groups may tear the Afghan PeaceProcessapart.TheriseofChina,coupledwithitsnear-naturalcounter-terrorismalignmentwithPakistan,hasenhancedthreatstoIndianinterests in the regionandbeyond.

Thewriter isan IPSofficer.Viewsarepersonal

Counter-terroralignmentofChina,PakistanposesathreattoIndia’s interests

Theatres of conflictAnjuGupta

IDEASONLINE

ONLY IN THE EXPRESS

●●LESSONSFORRAHULGANDHI:

FIROZBAKHTAHMED

●● EDUCATIONJANANDOLAN:AMITABHKANT

&SARAHIYPE

www.indianexpress.com

Manish Sisodia

RamMadhav

AsChinese influence,ambitionexpand intheregion,DelhimustaddPM’sprincipleof‘togetherwegrow’ to ‘neighbourhoodfirst’

CR Sasikumar

New Delhi

CORONAVIRUSDASHBOARD

936,181India

264,561Iran

311,486Mexico

293,469United Kingdom

319,493Chile

298,292South Africa

3,448,625US

1,926,824Brazil

333,867Peru

TOTAL CONFIRMED: 13,382,020 DEATHCOUNT:580,038Source: JohnsHopkinsUniversity,updatedat11pmonJuly14. JHU’sIndiatallyandHealth

Ministry’stally(below)maynotmatchiftheseareaccountedatdifferenttimes.

THEWORLD745,197Russia

TOP 10STATES

INDIA COUNT: 9,36,181 (24,309 DEATHS)

2,67,665Maharashtra

1,47,324Tamil Nadu

25,571Rajasthan

38,130 UP

1,15,346 Delhi

43,637Gujarat

32,838West Bengal

33,019Andhra Pradesh

39,724Telangana

Have a question on the COVID-19 outbreak andwhat you should/should not do?

Write to explained@indianexpress.com

44,077Karnataka

UnionHealthMinistryupdateasof11pm, July14.Somestatesmayhavereportedhighernumbers.Onlystates/UTswithatleastonecaselistedabove.5,92,032PATIENTSDISCHARGEDIN35STATESANDUNIONTERRITORIES

RESTOFINDIAAndamanandNicobarIslands 166ArunachalPradesh 462Assam 17807Bihar 19284Chandigarh 600Chhattisgarh 4379DadraandNagarHaveli 520Goa 2753Haryana 22628HimachalPradesh 1309JammuandKashmir 11173Jharkhand 4091Kerala 8930Ladakh 1093MadhyaPradesh 19005Manipur 1672Meghalaya 318Mizoram 238Nagaland 896Odisha 14280Puducherry 1531Punjab 8511Sikkim 209Tripura 2170Uttarakhand 3686

SCIENTISTSINGermanyhave reported a novelmethod for detectingSARS-CoV-2.Usingmassspectrometry on garglesolutionsofCovid-19pa-tients, pharmacists atMartinLutherUniversityHalle-Wittenberg(MLU)succeeded in detectingsmall amounts of thecoronavirus. The novelmethod is currently un-dergoing improvements; initial re-sults have been published in theJournal of Proteome Research. The re-searcherssuggeststhemethodmightsupplement conventional tests, andbe available as standard diagnostictool forCovid-19 in the future.Mass spectrometry allowsmole-

cules tobeprecisely identifiedbasedon their mass and charge. ProfessorAndreaSinz,amassspectrometryex-pert at the Institute of Pharmacy atMLU,andhercolleaguesdevelopedamethod to look for components ofSARS-CoV-2 viruses. Theymeasuredthe proteins of the virus, not the ge-neticmaterial.The experiments were done on

garglesolutionsof threeCovid-19pa-

tients. The researchgroup developed amethod to detect viruscomponents in thesehighly diluted samples.Thetest ishighlyspecificfor the virus since thecorresponding proteinsareonlypresentinSARS-CoV-2. In addition, thetest can be used in theearlystagesofthediseasewhenmany viruses are

present inthemouthandthroat.The test currently takes about 15

minutes.Theresearchgroupisnowtry-ingtofurtherreducetheanalysis timeusing artificially producedvirus com-ponents.Thenoveldiagnosticmethodrelying onmass spectrometrywill,however,notbeavailableimmediately.Sinzsaidinastatement:“Iaminclosecontactwith colleaguesworldwide,some of whomhave had a farworseexperience of the pandemic thanwehave.” Sheisalsoafoundingmemberof the COVID-19Mass SpectrometryCoalition, a research association thatreliesonmassspectrometryforabet-terunderstandingof thedisease.

Source:MartinLutherUniversityHalle-Wittenberg

PAPERCLIP

NEWRESEARCH

How to detect coronavirus indiluted gargle samples

KAUNAINSHERIFFMNEWDELHI, JULY15

INTHEhuntforavaccineagainstCovid-19,en-couraging news emerged about two candi-datesonWednesday.TheNewEnglandJournalofMedicinepublishedaninterimanalysisde-scribing an immune response generated inparticipantsofphase I clinical trials foracan-didatevaccine,developedbyUS-basedbiotechcompanyModerna.Meanwhile,ITVreportedthattherecouldbepositivenews,possiblybyThursday,oninitialtrialsofanothercandidatevaccine,fromtheUniversityofOxford.

Whatarethesetwocandidates?Modernawasthefirstcompanytobegin

ahumantrialforacandidatevaccineagainstCovid-19. CalledmRNA-1273, the vaccinewentintophaseItrialsonMarch16.Thevac-cineusesmRNAtechnology,whichinvolvesinjectinggeneticinstructionstohumancellsfor creating proteins to fight the virus. Thedetails of the phase I trial come twoweeksbeforeModernabeginsphase III on July27.OxfordUniversityhasdevelopeditscan-

didate vaccine, ChAdOx1 nCoV-19, in part-nershipwithglobalbiopharmaceuticalfirmAstraZeneca. It delivers a SARS-CoV-2 pro-teintoinduceanimmuneresponse.Thevac-cinehasalreadygoneintophaseIIItrials,buttheresultsofphaseIareyettobeannounced.During human clinical trials, three as-

pectsareassessed:reactogenicity(abilitytoproduce common, adverse reactions), im-munogenicity(abilitytoprovokeanimmuneresponse), andsafety.

Whataretheresultsof thephase I trialsonModerna’scandidatevaccine?The interim analysis found therewas a

vaccine-inducedimmuneresponseinall theparticipants. During phase I, 15 participantsreceiveda lowdoseof25micrograms,15re-ceivedamediumdoseof100micrograms,and15 received a high dose of 250micrograms.Twoshotsweregiven,onemonthapart.Thestudyfoundthatgreaterreactogenic-

ity followed the second vaccination, partic-ularly in the250-microgramgroup. Also, ofthe three doses evaluated, the 100-micro-

gram dose elicited high neutralisation re-sponsesandTcell responses, “coupledwitha reactogenicity profile that ismore favor-ablethanthatofthehigherdose”.InphaseIII,the participants will be administered the100-microgramdose.

Weretheresideeffects?Thestudyreportedfatigue,chills,headache,

myalgia,andpainattheinjectionsite,reportedinmore thanhalf theparticipants. It said thetwo-dosevaccineseries“wasgenerallywith-outserioustoxicity”.Systemicadverseeventsafterthefirstvaccination,whenreported,were“allgradedmildormoderate”.“After the firstvaccination, solicitedsys-

temicadverseeventswerereportedby5par-ticipants (33%) in the 25-microgramgroup,10(67%)inthe100-microgramgroup,and8(53%)inthe250-microgram group;allweremildormoderateinseverity,”thestudysaid.Adverseeventsweremorecommonafterthesecondvaccination,“andoccurredin7of13participants (54%) in the 25-microgramgroup, all 15 in the 100-microgram group,andall14inthe250-microgramgroup,with3 of those participants (21%) reporting oneormoresevereevents.”

What is thenewsabouttheUniversityof

Oxford’svaccinecandidate?“Iamhearingtherewillbepositivenews

soon (perhaps tomorrow)on initial trials ofthe Oxford Covid-19 vaccine that is backedbyAstraZenecaandsupportedbytensofmil-lionsofpoundsofgovernmentmoney,”ITV’spoliticaleditorRobertPestonwrote.“Thefirstdata isduebepublished in theLancet.”For phase I in April, 1,102 participants

wererecruited inmultiplestudysites in theUK.OnMay22,Oxfordannouncedthat1,000immunisations “have been completed andfollow-up is currently ongoing”. ProfessorAndrewPollard,headof theOxfordVaccineGroup,saidinastatement:“Theclinicalstud-iesareprogressingverywellandwearenowinitiating studies to evaluate howwell thevaccineinducesimmuneresponsesinolderadults,andtotestwhetheritcanprovidepro-tection in thewiderpopulation.”On June 27, Brazil began a phase III trial

of theOxfordcandidate,with5,000healthyvolunteerstargetedforenrolment.Trialswillbeconducted inSouthAfrica too.

Howsignificantarethefindingsofphase Iof atrial?PhaseIofaclinicaltrialonlyprovidesev-

idence of a vaccine’s safety and its ability togenerate an immune response. As such, it

gives an indicationofwhat is the ideal doserequired toadminister in thenext stage.Thecriticalquestion that remainsunan-

sweredinthisphase is:howlongdothean-tibodieslasttoprovideimmunityagainstthevirus?.Also,phaseIinvolvesasmallnumberof participants. In phase II, the age range ofparticipantsisexpandedtoseeif thereisvari-ationintheimmuneresponsebetweenolderpeopleandchildren.PhaseIII,whichinvolvesaverylargegroup,investigateshowwellthevaccineworks to prevent a larger commu-nity frombeing infected.

What is thestatusofothervaccinecandidates thathaveenteredphaseIII?Pfizer and its French partner BioEnTech,

whichusesthesamemRNAtechnologyastheModernacandidate,announcedaninterimre-port of early-stage trials on July 1. The study,whichhasnotbeenpeer-reviewed,foundneu-tralisingantibodiesonday21ofvaccination.Anothermajorplayer is theChinesebio-

pharmaceutical company Sinovac Biotech,whichhaspartneredwithBrazil’s ButantantodevelopCoronaVac,aninactivatedvaccinecandidate. The companyannouncedearlierthismonththatCoronaVacwasgrantedap-proval for the phase III trial by the BrazilianNationalRegulatoryAgency.Thetrialwillre-cruit 9,000 healthcare professionals fromCovid-19healthfacilitiesin12sitesinBrazil.Enrolmentisexpectedtostartthismonthaf-ter ethical approval is obtained from the 12selectedsites.Brazil’sapprovalcameonthebasisofpre-

liminaryresultsofphasesIandIIconductedin Jiangsu province beginning April 16, andannounced on June 13. The company saidthere has been no severe adverse event re-ported in either the phase I, which had 143healthy volunteers, or phase II trials, whichhad 600 healthy volunteers. “The phase IIclinicaltrialresultsshowthatthevaccinein-duces neutralising antibodies 14 days afterthevaccination…,” thecompanysaid.Thecompanysaiditwillbesubmittingthe

phase II study report and phase III clinicalstudyprotocoltotheChineseregulatorinthe“nearfuture”.“TheCompanyexpectstosharethefulldataonourclinicaltrialswiththepub-licthroughacademicpublications,” itsaid.

12WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

ANURADHAMASCARENHAS&KABIRFIRAQUEPUNE,NEWDELHI, JULY15

ANEWanalysispublishedinTheLancethasprojected that the world populationwillpeak much earlier than previously esti-mated. Itprojectsthepeakat9.73billionin2064,which is 36years earlier than the11billionpeakprojectedfor2100bylastyear’sUNreportWorldPopulationProspects.For2100, the new report projects a decline to8.79billion fromthe2064peak.ForIndia,thereportprojectsapeakpop-

ulation of 1.6 billion in 2048, up from1.38billion in 2017. By 2100, the population isprojected todeclineby32%to1.09billion.The study, led by a teamof researchers

at University ofWashington’s Institute forHealth Metrics and Evaluation (IHME),analysedpopulationtrendsin195countries.It used data from the Global Burden ofDisease Study2017 tomodel future popu-lation in various scenarios as a function offertility,migration, andmortality rates.

The broad takeawaysIHME director Dr ChristopherMurray,

who led the research, said the forecasts

highlighthugechallenges to theeconomicgrowth of a shrinkingworkforce, the highburden on health and social support sys-temsof anageingpopulation.The paper suggests that continued

trendsinfemaleeducationalattainmentandaccesstocontraceptionwillhastendeclinesin fertilityandslowpopulationgrowth.Foragenerationtoexactly replace itself,

thereplacement-leveltotalfertilityrate(TFR)is taken to be 2.1, representing the averagenumberofchildrenawomanwouldneedtohave.Inthestudy,theglobalTFRispredictedto steadilydecline from2.37 in2017 to1.66in2100.TheTFRisprojectedtofallbelow2.1in 183 countries. In 23 countries includingJapan,Thailand,ItalyandSpain,itisprojectedtoshrinkbymorethan50%.

Key numbers: India“Trends in India’s total population and

inthepopulationofworkingageadultswillfollow similar trends,” Stein Emil Vollset,one of the lead authors, told The IndianExpressbyemail. “Thetotalpopulationwillincreaseandpeakjustbeforemid-century,followed by significant declines. Similarly,the working-age population will also in-crease in the first half of the century, andthen decline in the second half. These de-

clinesaredrivenbyfertilityrates,whichweforecast will continue declining over thenext fewdecades,”Vollset said.

■ India’s TFRwas already below 2.1 in2019. The TFR is projected to have a con-tinue a steep decline until about 2040,

reaching1.29 in2100.■ The number of working-age adults

(20–64years)inIndiaisprojectedtofallfromaround 748million in 2017 to around 578million in 2100. However, thiswill be thelargestworking-agepopulationintheworldby2100.Inthemid-2020s,IndiaisexpectedtosurpassChina’sworkforcepopulation(950millionin2017,and357millionin2100).

■From2017 to2100, India isprojectedto rise up the list of countries with thelargestGDP, from7th to3rd.

■ India is projected to have the secondlargestnetimmigrationin2100,withanes-timated half amillionmore people immi-gratingtoIndiain2100thanemigratingout.

■Amongthe10countrieswiththelargestpopulationsin2017or2100,Indiaisprojectedto have one of the lowest life expectancies(79.3yearsin2100,upfrom69.1in2017).

The road aheadIn a commentary on the research,

Ibrahim Abubakar of University CollegeLondon’s Institute for Global Health,stresses the need for countries to addressthe potential catastrophic impact of ashrinking working-age population, andsuggestsmeasuressuchasincentivestoin-creaseTFR, andusingartificial intelligence

asapath towardsself-sufficiency.“Wealthy countries suchas theUKand

the USA could counteract the impact ofthese changes through net migration ofworking-ageadultsfromthecountrieswithgrowing populations. Unfortunately, theelectionofnationalistrulers,associatedde-clineinmultilateralism,andincreasinghos-tility tomigrationmakes this option un-likely in theshort term,”Abubakarwrote.Professor Usha Ram from the

DepartmentofPublicHealthandMortalityStudies at the International Institute forPopulationSciences,Mumbai,whowasnotinvolvedinthestudy,toodiscussedtheim-pactofmigrationwhencontacted.“Migration, rather liberal migration

policies…could be a solution but not per-manent.However,whatismoreimportantistolooktoinvestintechnologicaladvance-mentsthatcancompensateforthehumanshortages.Forexample,Japanhasmanagedtheneedsof itsgreyingpopulationwithvir-tuallynoemphasisonmigration,”shesaid.Shesaidtheeffectof fertilitydeclineon

women’s reproductivehealth rightshas tobeaccompaniedbygreatereconomicinde-pendence.“Thiswouldallowwomentone-gotiatewiththesystemontheirowntermsand forbetter support servicesaswell.”

Twin hopes on vaccine frontSIMPLYPUTQUESTION&ANSWER

ModernahasreportedtheimmuneresponseinparticipantsofphaseI trials for itscandidatevaccineagainstCovid-19.Oxfordwill reportedlypublish itsownresultssoon.Alookattheprogressmadesofar

APURVAVISHWANATHNEWDELHI, JULY15

RAJASTHANSpeakerCPJoshihasservedno-tices to 19 CongressMLAs including SachinPilot asking themwhy they should not bedisqualified.ThesituationinRajasthancouldinthecomingdaysdevelopinwayssimilartoKarnataka in2019andMPthisApril.

Whythenotice?The notice has been served under the

Tenth Schedule of the Constitution, popu-larly known as the anti-defection law. TheCongress has alleged that the rebel MLAswereattempting to jumpparties.

Musttherebelsreply?Yes, they are bound to reply before the

deadlineof July17. If theydon't, theSpeakercan proceed ex parte and disqualify themfromtheAssembly.

Cantheygotocourt?Courtshavebeenextremelyreluctant to

interferewiththepowersof theSpeakerun-der the Tenth Schedule. These are constitu-tionally granted powers – and evenwhenchallenged,asitwasinthecaseofKarnatakain 2019, the Speakerwas given time to de-cideonthepleas.In the landmark Kihoto Hollohan vs

Zachillhu And Others (1992) case, the courtupheld thesweepingdiscretionavailable tothe Speaker in deciding cases of disqualifi-cation of MLAs.While the Speaker’s deci-sions can be challenged subsequently, thecourt cannot stayorprevent theprocess.

CantheGovernor intervene?If the rebel MLAs tender their resigna-

tions to theGovernor, he can call for a trustvote if hedeems that theChiefMinisterhaslosttheconfidenceoftheHouse.InApril, theSupremeCourtclarifiedthisposition,rulingthat theGovernor, inextraordinarycircum-stances, can call for a floor test evenwhendisqualificationproceedingsarependingbe-foretheSpeaker, ifhe“objectivelyconsiders”thegovernment tobeonshakyground.Theupholding of the Governor’s call for a trust

vote inMadhyaPradesh led to the fall of theKamalNath-ledCongressgovernment.

Whathappensifatrialofstrengthisheld?Evenwith the disqualification process

pending,therebelCongressMLAswouldhavetoabidebythepartywhip–andcouldbesub-sequently disqualified if they vote against orabstain.However, their vote,whicheverwayitgoes,willbecountedasit iscast.If theMLAs resign, the strength of the

Housewill be reduced. Irrespective ofwhathappensinthetrustvoteinthesmallerHouse,theseMLAswillhavetocontestbypolls tore-entertheAssembly.InKarnataka,theCongressandJD(U)MLAswhoresignedcontestedagainonBJP tickets, Jyotiraditya Scindia's loyalistsarelikelytodothesameinMP.

UnderwhatcircumstancescantheMLAsbedisqualified?There are two conditions on which a

Speakercanserveananti-defectionnoticetoalegislator.Thefirstiswhenthelegislatorhasvoluntarily givenup themembershipof theparty;thesecondconditioniswhenalegisla-

torhasdisobeyedthewhipduringavote.Sincethestatelegislatureisnotinsession

andnoquestionhasbeenput tovoteontheflooroftheHouse,thesecondconditiondoesnot apply — even though Pilot defied hisparty and did not turn up at the legislaturepartymeeting. Defying awhip and attract-ingdisqualificationundertheTenthScheduletakesplaceonlyonthe floorof theHouse.Althoughthe19dissidentMLAshavenot

resigned from the Congress officially, theSpeaker can, under the law, gauge their ac-tivities.Anyactivitythatis inimical,prejudi-cial to the interests of the party would bedeemed as giving upmembership of theparty.This isthepointthattheCongresshasmade in itsdisqualificationpetitions.

DotheMLAshaveany legal recourseafterwards?TheSpeaker’sdecisioncanbechallengedin

courtonlytoalimitedextent.InKihotoHollohan,theSupremeCourtsaidonlyinfirmitiesbasedonviolationof constitutionalmandate,malafides,non-compliancewithrulesofnaturaljus-tice,andperversitycanbereviewed.

What next in Rajasthan political drama?

@ieExplained#ExpressExplainedIf there are questions of current or contemporary relevance that youwould likeexplained, pleasewrite to explained@indianexpress.comE EXPLAINED

THEINDIANEXPRESS,THURSDAY, JULY16,2020

2017 21001 1.4bChina India 1.09b 1

2 1.38b India Nigeria 791m 2

3 325mUSA China 732m 3

4 258m Indonesia USA336m 4

5 214mPakistan Pakistan248m 5

6 212mBrazil DRCongo246m 6

7 206mNigeria Indonesia229m 7

8 157mBangladesh Ethiopia223m 8

9 146mRussia Egypt 199m 9

10 128mJapan Tanzania 186m 10

------------------- ------------------

13 103mEthiopia Brazil 165m 13

14 96m Egypt Russia 106m 19

18 81mDRCongo Bangladesh81m 25

24 54mTanzania Japan60m 38

1950

1975

2000

2025

2050

2075

2100

India TFR: 1950-2010

SScceennaarriioo■SlowerMetNeedandEducation Pace■Referencewith95%UI■FasterMetNeedandEducationPace■FastestMetNeedandEducationPace■SDGMetNeedandEducationPace

6

4

2

Vollset,Gorenetal/TheLancet

POPULATIONSHIFTS, DECLINING FERTILITYTop ten countriesby population

Aparticipant inthephase I trial recieves theModernavaccine inSeattle.AP/File

What forecast of shrinking populationsmeans for India&world

New Delhi

13THEINDIANEXPRESS,THURSDAY, JULY16,2020

THEWORLDWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

MEANWHILE

NYTTOMOVEPARTOFHKOFFICETOSEOULThe New York Times said on Tuesday that it would relocate its Hong Kong-based digitalnews operation to Seoul, South Korea, a significant shift by an American news organisationas China has stepped up its efforts to impede the affairs of the Asian metropolis.

GERMANY

‘ForestRambo’eludespolice3daysintosearchTHECALL to theGermanpoliceonSunday seemeda bit odd but routine. Aman armed with a bowandarrowhadbeensquat-tingillegallyinasmallshedoutside the village ofOppenauinthefoothillsofthe Black Forest. Whenfour officers arrived, YvesEtienneRausch,31,greetedthemcalmlywhileseatedbehind a table in the redshed.Hehandedoverhisbow and arrow, and aspearthatwasbyhisside.Butwhenofficersaskedtosearchhim,hedrewagun,threatenedapolicemanatpointblankrangeandde-manded their weapons.Thenheran.Forthreedays,hehasevadedcapturede-spiteamanhuntinvolvingmore than1,500 officers.The tabloids refer toRauschas“ForestRambo”.

YvesEtienneRausch

TOPOFTHEWORLD

IRAN

SevenshipscatchfireatportofBushehrATLEASTsevenshipshavecaught fire at the IranianportofBushehr,theTasnimnews agency reported onWednesday, in what ap-peared tobe the latest in aseriesof unexplained inci-dents aroundnuclear andindustrial installationssince late June. No casual-tieshavebeenreported,theagency said. There havebeen several explosionsand fires around Iranianmilitary,nuclearandindus-trialfacilitiessincelateJune,includingafireatIran’sun-dergroundNatanznuclearfacility on July 2. Natanz isthecentrepieceofIran’sen-richment programme,which Tehran says is forpeacefulpurposes.

SOUTHKOREA

SeoultoprobeclaimsagainstdeadmayorSEOUL CITY Hall officialssaid onWednesday thattheywould create a jointfact-finding team withwomen’sgroupsandlegalandhuman rights expertsto investigate accusationsthatMayorParkWon-soonhadsexuallyabusedasec-retary for four years. Theteam’smemberswillhaveno power to subpoena orindict those theywant toquestionbecausePark,64,killedhimselfonThursday,a day after the secretaryfiled a complaint againsthim to the police. By law,the criminal case againstPark was automaticallycloseduponhisdeath.

REUTERSWASHINGTON, JULY15

PRESIDENTDONALD TrumponTuesdayorderedanendtoHongKong’s special status under USlawtopunishChina forwhathecalled “oppressive actions”againsttheformerBritishcolony,promptingBeijingtowarnofre-taliatorysanctions.CitingChina’sdecisiontoen-

act a newnational security lawforHongKong,Trumpsignedanexecutive order that he saidwouldend thepreferential eco-nomic treatment for thecity.“No special privileges, no

specialeconomictreatmentandnoexportof sensitive technolo-gies,”hetoldanewsconference.ActingonaTuesdaydeadline,

healsosignedaBillapprovedbythe US Congress to penalisebanks doing business withChinese officials who imple-ment thenewsecurity law.“Today I signed legislation,

and an executive order to holdChinaaccountableforitsaggres-siveactionsagainstthepeopleofHongKong,Trumpsaid.Undertheexecutiveorder,US

propertywouldbeblockedofanypersondeterminedtoberespon-sible for or complicit in “actionsorpoliciesthatunderminedem-ocratic processes or institutions

inHongKong”.China’s foreignministry said

BeijingwouldimposeretaliatorysanctionsagainstUSentitiesinre-sponsetothelawtargetingbanks,though the statement releasedthrough statemedia did not ref-erencetheexecutiveorder.“HongKongaffairsarepurely

China’s internal affairs and noforeign country has the right tointerfere,” theministry said.

Meanwhile, Secretary ofStateMike Pompeo said the USwould impose visa restrictionson Chinese companies likeHuawei,whichheaccusedof fa-cilitatinghumanrightviolations.He said the US would “im-

posevisarestrictionsonemploy-ees of Chinese companies thatprovide support to regimes en-gaging in human rights viola-tionsandabusesglobally”.

AFTERBEIJING IMPOSESSECURITYLAW

USPresidentDonaldTrumpatapressconference intheRoseGardenof theWhiteHouseonTuesday.AP

JEFFMASONWASHINGTON, JULY15

US PRESIDENT Donald Trumpused a White House event onChina to excoriate his expectedDemocraticpresidentialrival,JoeBiden, on Tuesday in a ramblingdiatribe that turned the RoseGarden setting into a substituterallyvenue,minushissupporters.The Republican President,

who trails Biden in nationalopinion polls, has chafed at hisinability to hold large politicalgatheringsbecauseofthecoron-aviruspandemic.His campaignpostponed an

outdoor rally scheduled for lastSaturday inNewHampshire, cit-ingastorm.Anindoorrallyheheldin Tulsa, Oklahoma, lastmonthfeaturedapartiallyemptyarena.So on a daywhenBiden un-

veiled a $2 trillion climate plan,Trumptooktoapodiumoutsidethe Oval Office and, after an-nouncingmovestopunishChinafor its treatment of Hong Kong,sought to drawadistinction be-tweentheirtwocandidacies.“Today, Joe Biden gave a

speech inwhichhe said that thecore of his economic agenda is ahard-left crusade againstAmericanenergy.HewantstokillAmericanenergy,”Trumpsaid.Biden’s plan, which would

seek to cut carbon emissionsfrom electrical power produc-tiontozeroin15years,signifiedamore aggressive approach onclimate policy than he adoptedduringtheDemocraticpresiden-tial nominating race in a nod toparty progressiveswho are de-mandingbolderaction.“WhenDonaldTrumpthinks

about climate change, the onlyword he canmuster is ‘hoax,’”Biden said. “When I think aboutclimatechange, thewordI thinkof is ‘jobs.’ Good-paying unionjobsthatputAmericanstowork.”Trump pulled the US out of

the Paris climate accord to fightclimate change. Biden plans tobring the countryback in if he iselected in November. “Yet onemore gift from Biden to theChinese Communist Party,”Trumpsaid.HeseestheaccordasfavourabletoBeijing.REUTERS

LALITKJHAWASHINGTON, JULY15

CHINAWILL lose “a big tool” ofespionage and surveillance ifAmerica and some westernEuropeancountriesbanChineseappslikeTikTokasdonebyIndia,US National Security AdvisorRobertO’Brienhassaid.India lastmonth banned 59

Chinese apps, including TikTokandUCBrowser.O’Brien toldFoxNewsRadio

in an interview that the Trumpadministrationwas “very seri-ously taking a look” at TikTok,WeChat and some other appscomingoutof China.“India has already banned

thoseapps, asyouknow.And ifthey lose India and the UnitedStates, they lose somewesternEuropean counLalit K Jhatries,that takes a big tool away fromthe espionagework or the sur-veillance work of the CCP(Chinese Communist Party),”he said in response to a ques-tion on the dangers posed byapps like TikTok.“The kids who are using

TikTok — and it can be a lot offun—buttherearea lotofothersocial media platforms theycould use. TikTok is getting fa-cial recognition on you,”O’Brien said.PTI

PROTESTER STATUE REPLACES TOPPLED SLAVE TRADERJenReid in frontof thenewblackresinandsteel statueportrayingherentitled“ASurgeofPower(JenReid)2020”byartistMarcQuinninBristol,England,onWednesday.Thestatuewaserectedontheemptyplinthof thetoppledstatueof17thcenturyslavetraderEdwardColston.Colston’s statuewaspulleddownduringaBlackLivesMatterprotestonJune7anddumpedintheRiverAvon.AP

COSTASKANTOURIS,VANESSAGERA&RODMCGUIRKPROMACHONAS, JULY15

COUNTRIESAROUNDtheworldare reimposing lockdowns andimplementing new healthchecks at their borders in an ef-fort to curb a resurgence of thecoronavirusbefore it spinsevenfurtheroutof control.StartingWednesday,alltrav-

elers arriving in Greece from aland borderwith Bulgariawererequired to carrynegative coro-navirustestresults issuedintheprevious72hoursandtranslatedinto English. The new rules,which follow an increase intourism-relatedCovid-19cases,triggered an immediate drop inarrivalscomparedtorecentdays.Residents of Australia’s sec-

ond-largest city, Melbourne,werewarned onWednesday tocomplywith lockdown regula-tionsorfacetougherrestrictions.Melbourne’s 5 million peopleandpart of the city’s semi-ruralsurroundings are aweek into anew,six-weeklockdowntocon-tainanewoutbreak there.“The time for warnings, the

time for cutting people slack, isover,” Victoria state Premier

DanielAndrewssaid.“Whereweareisinaveryseriousanddeadlyposition.”The developments come

withmorethan13millioncasesof coronavirus cases confirmedworldwide, and with over578,000 deaths, according to atally by Johns HopkinsUniversity.The actual numbers are

thoughttobefarhigherduetoanumber of reasons includinglimited testing.In Serbia,whichhasbeenhit

hardbyaspikeininfections,agov-ernment crisis teamexpandedabanongatheringsofmorethan10people fromBelgrade toencom-passtheentirecountry.AP

BHARATHAMALLAWARACHI&EMILYSCHMALLCOLOMBO,JULY15

FORMONTHShe’s been anony-mous, but now Prasad Dinesh,linkedbySriLankanauthoritiestonearlyhalf of thecountry’smorethan2,600 coronavirus cases, istryingtoclearhisname,andshedsomeofthestigmaofaheroinad-dictionattherootofhisordeal.When President Gotabaya

Rajapaksawas elected last year,a health unitwas created in theintelligence service that sprang

into actionwhen Covid-19 firstappeared, according to StateIntelligence Service AssistantDirectorParakramadeSilva.AfterDinesh, 33, testedposi-

tive for the virus in April, navy

sailors raidedhis village, forcinghis contacts intoquarantine. ButauthoritieshaveblamedameleethatensuedonDinesh—andsaidthe incident lead to at least 1,100additionalvirusinfections.Thesecases,theypubliclyde-

clared,wereall linkedlinkedtoasingle patient, who they call“Patient206”.“I can’t accept that I am re-

sponsible for infecting somany,includingthenavysailors,”Dineshsaid after hehad returnedhomefollowing his release from amonthlongstayatahospital.“Noonegivesa jobwhentheyrealisethatIamPatient206,”hesaid.AP

Blow toglobal businesshub

TRUMPSAIDhisex-ecutiveordermeans“HongKongwillnowbetreated thesameasmainlandChina”.Theorder revokes licenceexceptions forexports toHongKongandcancels spe-cial treatment toHongKongpassportholders. Therevo-

cationof special sta-tusalsomeans thatChinesegoodscom-ing to theUS fromHongKongwillno

longerbeable toavoid tar-iffs imposedbyWashington,dealingablowtoHongKong’s imageasglobalbusinesshub.

MOREWHITEPEOPLEKILLEDBYCOPS:TRUMPTRUMPPRAISEDpoliceanddownplayedpoliceviolenceagainstBlackpeople, saying“morewhitepeople”arekilledbypoliceofficers.HemadethecommentsduringaCBSNewsinterview.

Trump launches intorally-style onslaught onBiden from Rose Garden

Banning TikToktakes espionagetool away fromChina: US NSA

Virus resurgence forces manynations to reimpose restrictions

ACovid-19testatahospital inBarcelona.Latestcoronavirusoutbreaks inSpainhavepromptednewrestrictions.AP

Mongolian teendies of bubonicplague: ReportBeijing:A15-year-oldboyhasdiedinwesternMongolia of bubonicplague, the country’s nationalnewsagencyreported.TheHealthMinistrysaidlaboratorytestscon-firmedtheteenagerdiedofplaguethat he contracted from an in-fectedmarmot, according to theMontsame News Agency. ThecasepromptedthegovernmenttoimposeaquarantineonpartoftheprovinceofGobi-Altai.Montsamesaid 15peoplewhohad contactwiththeboywereisolated.AP

Patient 206: One man blamedfor nearly half Sri Lanka’s cases

PrasadDinesh AP

Appledoesnothavetopaybacktaxes,anEUcourtruled

Apple wins EUcourt case over$15 billion inclaimed taxes

RAFCASERTBRUSSELS, JULY15

A EUROPEAN Union court onWednesdaydeliveredahammerblow to the bloc’s attempts torein in sweetheart tax deals be-tweenmultinationals and indi-vidualmembercountrieswhenit ruled that technology giantApple does not have to pay 13billioneuros($15billion)inbacktaxes to Ireland.The EU Commission had

claimedin2016thatApplehadanillegal taxdealwith Irishauthori-tiesthatallowedittopaylowrates.But the EU’s General Court saidWednesdaythat”theCommissiondidnotsucceedinshowingtotherequisitelegalstandardthattherewasanadvantage.”“TheCommissionwaswrong

todeclare”thatApple“hadbeengrantedaselectiveeconomicad-vantageand,byextension, stateaid,”saidtheLuxembourg-basedcourt,whichisthesecond-high-estintheEU.Therulingcanonlybeappealedonpointsof law.The EUCommission had or-

deredApple topay for gross un-derpayment of tax on profitsacross the European bloc from2003 to 2014. The commissionsaidAppleusedtwoshellcompa-nies in Ireland to report itsEurope-wide profits at effectiverates well under 1%. In manycases, multinationals can paytaxesonthebulkoftheirrevenueacrosstheEU’s27countriesintheoneEUcountrywheretheyhavetheir regional headquarters. ForApple andmany other big techcompanies, that is Ireland.AP

MARIACRAMERJULY15

Itwas1amonJuly16,1945,whenJRobertOppenheimermetwithanArmylieutenantgeneral,LeslieGroves,intheparchedlandscapeof Jornada del Muerto —DeadMan’sJourney—aremotedesertinNewMexico.A group of engineers and

physicistswasabouttodetonateanatomicdevicepackedwith13pounds of plutonium, a nuclearweapon that the governmenthoped would bring an end to

WorldWar II.Some scientists on the proj-

ectworriedthattheywereaboutto light the entireworld on fire,accordingtoresearchers.Othersworried that the test would be“acompletedud.”Oppenheimer, who was

taskedwithdesigninganatomicbombfortheManhattanProject,had not slept. At 5.29 am localtime, the device explodedwitha power equivalent to 21,000tonsof TNTandset off a flashoflight thatwouldhavebeenvisi-ble fromMars, researchers said.Itwasthefirstnucleartest in

history.Less than amonth later, the

United States would drop anearly identical weapon on thecityofNagasaki in Japan.The bomb, named FatMan,

fell three days after Americansdroppedauraniumbomb,calledLittle Boy, on Hiroshima. Bothweapons immediately killedtens of thousands of Japanesepeople and forced Japan’s sur-render on Aug. 14, bringing anabruptendto thewar.Since theTrinity test75years

ago, at least eight countrieshaveconductedmore than2,000nu-

clear bomb tests, said JeniferMackby, a senior fellow at theFederationofAmericanScientists.Morethanhalfofthosetestshavebeen conducted by the US, alegacyof theTrinityexplosion,astheUSandseveralothercountrieshavecontinuedtorefusetoratifythe treaty prohibiting nuclearweapontestexplosions.“You could say it unleashed

thenuclear age, really,”Mackbysaid. “It unleashedawholenewclassof destruction.”Many of the scientists who

witnessed the blast quickly re-alised the “foul and awesome”

powertheyhadsetfree,accord-ing tohistorians.Oppenheimer said a Hindu

scripture ran through hismindat the sight of the explosion:“Now I am become Death, thedestroyerofworlds.”Kenneth T Bainbridge, the

test director, said, “Nowwe areall sonsof b*****s,”hesaid.Thegoalofthetestwastosee

if themilitarycouldharnessplu-tonium into a weapon thatwoulddestroywholecities,saidAlexWellerstein, a science his-torianat theStevens InstituteofTechnology in Hoboken, New

Jersey,whostudiesthehistoryofnuclearweapons.Officials did notwarn any of

the residents —many of themranchers, Navajos,Mexican set-tlers and their descendantswhoraisedcattleanddrankwaterfromcisterns—about the test. Shouldanyone ask about the blast, offi-cials hadproposed several coverstories, includingtellingthepub-licthataremoteammunitionsde-pot had exploded, ProfessorWellersteinsaid.“Theytooksomeeffort” to protect the public, hesaid. “Wouldweconsider it ade-quatetoday?No,notatall.” NYT

Anaerialviewof theaftermathof the firstatomicexplosionat theTrinity test site inNewMexico in1945.AP

TODAY MARKS THE 75TH ANNIVERSARY OF WHAT’S KNOWN AS THE TRINITY EXPLOSION

Now I am become Death: The legacy of the first nuclear bomb test

UStoimposevisacurbsonHuaweioverhumanrights

US ends preferentialstatus for HK, Chinathreatens retaliation

New Delhi

Subject : Supply of Trucks for Transportation of Goods.

Value of Contract : Approximate value Of Contract Rs. 40.00Core(s).

Period : 02 (two) years.

e-NIT No: : 01 of 2020-21 dated: 11-07-2020

For and on behalf of the Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and KashmirUnion Territory e-tenders in DOUBLE COVER SYSTEM are invitedthrough Director FCS&CA Kashmir from Reputed & Registered TransportFirms/Companies;1. The Bidding documents consisting of qualifying information, eligibity,Criteria, specification, bill of quantities(B.O.Q) Set of terms and conditionsof contract and other details can be seen/download from the Websitewww.jktenders.gov.in as per schedule of dates given below:-

Government of Union Territory of Jammu and KashmirDepartment of Food, Civil Supplies & Consumer

Affairs, Kashmir.

2. Instruction of bidders regarding e-tendering process :-

i. Bidders are advised to download bid submission manual from the“downloads” option as well as from“bidder Manual Kit” on websitewww.jktenders.gov.in to acquaint bid submission process;

ii. To participate in bidding process. Bidder has to get ` digital signa-ture Certificate (DSC). As per information technology Act-2000.Bidders can get digital certificate from any approved vendor;

iii. The bidder has to submit their bids online in electronic format withdigital signature .No bid will be accepted in physical form;

iv. Bids will be opened online as per the time schedule mentioned inPara-1;

v. Bidders must ensure to upload scanned copy of all necessarydocuments with the technical bid. Note:-Scan all the documentson 100 dpi with grey/coloured option;

3. The department will not be responsible for delay in online submissiondue to any reason;

4. Bidders are advised not to make any change in BOQ (bill of quanti-ties) contents .in any case they should attempt to create similar BOQmanually. The BOQ downloaded should be used for filling the itemrate inclusive of all taxes and it should be saved with the same nameas it contains;

5. Price escalation and Taxes:- The unit rates and prices shall be quot-ed by the bidder entirely in Indian Rupees and the rates quoted shallbe deemed to include Price escalation and all taxes up to completionof work, unless otherwise specified. Deduction on account of taxesshall be made from the bills of the contractor on gross amount of thebill as per the rates prevailing at the time of recovery.Bidders areadvised to use “My Documents” area in their user on e-tendering por-tal to store such documents as are required;

DirectorFCS & CA Deptt. Kashmir

No:- DFCS&CAK/ cctts/ Bgt/881-86 Dated: 11 -07-2020DIPK-2955

1 Date of issue of Tender Notice

2 Period of downloading of bid-ding documents

3. Bid Submission Start Date

4 Bid submission End Date

6. Date & time of opening ofTechnical Bid( online)

11th July 2020

11th July 2020 from 04 PM to 4thAugust 2020 upto 4:00 PM

12th July 2020 from 10 AM

04th August 2020 upto 04 PM

Technical Bid will be Opened on5th August 2020 at 11 AM in theOffice Directorate of Food, CivilSupplies & Consumer AffairsDepartment Shaheed Gunj,Srinagar. The date of opening ofFinancial Bid shall be declaredonline.At _______Pm on the samevenue.

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7796/HPBS

No. MESCOM/SEE(P)/EEE(P)/2020-21/ 4963 Date: 13.07.2020

MANGALORE ELECTRICITY SUPPLY COMPANY LIMITED(A Government of Karnataka undertaking)

Corporate Office, 2nd Floor, MESCOM Bhavana, Kavoor Cross Road,Bejai, Mangaluru - 575004. Ph: 0824-2885795 E-mail : sepmescom@rediffmail.com

TENDER NOTIFICATION (Through e-Procurement Portal Only)

ªÉĸÁÌA

MESCOM

CIN: U40109 KA 2002 SGC 030425

MESCOM invites tender for Supply of the following material:

Name of the Material proposed for Procurement Quantity

Sd/- Superintending Engineer (Ele.) (Proc.) MESCOM, Mangaluru

The interested eligible bidders may log on to :www.eproc.karnataka.gov.in on or after17.07.2020.

Universal Type Portable StandardReference Meter as per Technical

Specification5 Nos

Tender No.

MESCOM/2020-21/IND698

For Power Related Complaint & Assistance Call Toll Free Number 1912

KASHMIR POWER DISTRIBUTIONCORPORATION LTD

OFFICE OF THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICERIT & COMMUNICATION DIVISION

E-mail: ceo.rapdrp.a@gmail.comNIT No. CEO IT & C / 01 of 2020 Dated: 09/07/20201. INVITATION:

For and on behalf of the Lt. Governor, Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir,e-Tenders are hereby invited for Supply, Installation, testing &Commissioning of Two (2 No.) Battery Bank each bank comprising of 204No. 2 V/ 600 AH (VRLA ) sealed maintenance free batteries of Reputedbrand for UPS (Emerson Make 200 KVA) installed in DATACENTER at PDDComplex Bemina Srinagar , Kashmir with buy back of old batteries(Rocket make) from Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) or itsRegistered Suppliers/Distributors with onsite warranty of 5 Years.1. Bidders are advised to study the Bidding Document carefully. Submission

of e-Bid against this SBD shall be deemed to have been done after care-ful study and examination of the procedures, terms and conditions of theStandard Bidding Document with full understanding of its implications bythe bidder.

2. The tender document is available on website http://jktenders.gov.in.Interested bidders may view, download the e-Bid document, seek clarifi-cation and submit their e-Bid online upto the date and time mentioned inthe table below:

3. The bidders need to submit the proof/cost of e-Bid document as stated inthe above table through non-refundable Demand Draft (Any NationalizedBank or Scheduled Commercial Banks) pledged to Chief ExecutiveOfficer, Office of the Chief Executive Officer, IT & C division (KPDCL)and payable at Srinagar. The scanned copy of the Demand Draft mustbeen enclosed along with the e-Bids but the original Demand Draft shouldreach the office of Chief Executive Office, IT & CommunicationDivision Kashmir (Data Center), PDD Complex Bemina upto06.08.2020; 02.00 P.M.

4. All the e-Bids must be accompanied by the scanned copy of EMD in theform of CDR/FDR/Bank Guarantee only, pledged to the Chief ExecutiveOfficer, Office of the Chief Executive Officer, IT & C division (KPDCL)and payable at Srinagar. No Interest would be payable on EarnestMoney deposited with the Department.

a. Hard Copy of original instrument of EMD shall be submitted to the ChiefExecutive Officer, IT & Communication Division Kashmir (Data Center),PDD Complex Bemina upto 06.08.2020; 02.00 P.M.

b. The date and time of opening of Financial-Bids shall be notified On WebSite http://jktenders.gov.in. This shall be conveyed to the qualified biddersautomatically through an e-mail message on their e-mail address. TheFinancial- bids shall be opened accordingly online on the same Web Siteat the office of the Chief Executive Officer, IT & C Division (KPDCL)

5. The e-Bids will be electronically opened in the presence of bidder’s repre-sentatives, who choose to attend at the identified venue on indicated dateand time mentioned in the above table or any subsequent day to the con-venience of the Tender Opening Committee. An authority letter of bidder’srepresentative will be required to be produced.

6. The Department reserves the right to cancel any or all the e-Bids/ the e-Bid process without assigning any reason thereof. The decision of depart-ment will be final and binding.

7. In the event of date specified for e-Bids opening being declared a holi-day/closed day for department’s office then the due date for opening of e-Bids shall be the following working day at the appointed time and place.

8. All the required documents excluding Price Schedule/BOQ should beuploaded by the e-Bidder electronically in the PDF format, whereas PriceSchedule/BOQ should be uploaded electronically in the same BOQ sheetprovided with the SBD.

9. To participate in e-bidding process, bidders have to get ‘Digital SignatureCertificate (DSC)’ Class III (b) as per Information Technology Act-2000, toparticipate in online bidding.

10. Hard copy of Technical & Commercial bid documents (complete) must bedelivered to the office of Chief Executive Officer, IT & CommunicationDivision Kashmir (Datacenter), PDD Complex Bemina upto06.08.2020; 02.00 P.M. in sealed covers.The sealed cover shall be super scribed as “Technical & CommercialBid” against NIT No. CEO/IT & C/01 of 2020 Dated: 09.07.2020The name of the bidder and NIT No. shall be clearly written on thecover.It may be noted that the hard copy should be an exact replica of theuploaded offer documents. For evaluation purposes the uploadedoffer documents will be treated as authentic and final. The hardcopyshall be used only for reference purpose.

11. Other details can be found in the standard bidding document.

Sd/-Chief Executive OfficerIT & C Division KPDCL

No: CEO/IT & C/292-95Dated: 09.07.2020

DIPK-NB-1369

A Date of issue of Tender Notice 09.07.2020

B Date &Time of downloading of Standard 11.07.2020 04.00 P.M.Bidding Document

C Clarifications Start Date 11.07.2020; 04.30 P.M.

D Clarifications End Date 15.07.2020; 02.00 P.M.

E e-Bid submission (start) Date & Time 15.07.2020; 02.30 P.M.(Submission of e-Tender Fee, EMD and otherSupporting Documents in PDF/XLS

F e-Bid Submission (end) Date & Time 04.08.2020; 03.00 P.M.(Submission of e-Tender Fee, EMD andother Supporting Documents in PDF/XLS

G Online Technical e-Bid Opening date and Time 06.08.2020; 02.30 P.M.

H Venue of opening of technical Bids Office of the Chief ExecutiveOfficer, IT & C Division, KPDCL

I Online Financial e-Bid Opening date and Time Will be separately communicat-ed to the technically eligiblebidders

J Estimated Cost Rs. 56 Lakhs (Approx.)

K Cost of e-Bid document - Rs. 2,000.00 (Rupees TwoThousand only, Non-refund-able)

L Amount of Earnest Money Deposit - Rs.112000.00 (Rupees OneLac Twelve Thousand only)

M Last Date for Submission of Hard Copies 06.08.2020; 02.00 P.M.

N Address for submission of Hard Copies Office of the Chief ExecutiveOfficer IT & CommunicationDivision (Data Center) PDDComplex Bemina Kashmir

e-TenderTender No. 05/e-ITDA-PRJ/DEPT/I/2020-

PROJECT Date: 30 June 2020Selection of Service Provider for CCTV

Installations and Horizontal Connectivity forUdham Singh Nagar Police

CORRIGENDUM - IA Corrigendum has been uploaded on procurementportal https://www.uktenders.gov.in in regardingchanges in tender dates.All other terms and conditions will remain the sameas per ternder documents. DIRECTOR

Information TechnologyDevelopment Agency (ITDA)

Department of IT,Government of Uttarakhand

IT Bhawan, Plot No. IT-07, IT Park,Sahastradhara Road, Dehradun.

Ph : 0135-3051503 email: diritda-uk@nic.in

ITDA

DIPR/ 2626 /Tender/2020

Sl. No Tender Inviting Authority Specification No. Total1 CE/MM M.09, M.10 22 CE/MTPS-II (06 Due Date Extension) 1

TAMIL NADU TRANSMISSION CORPORATION LTD.3 SE/Transmission-II T-2156, T-2157 2

For details of works/Procurement/Due date of submission/opening, viewingand downloading of e-tenders, please visit websites : www.tangedco.gov.in,www.tantransco.gov.in, www.tenders.tn.gov.in, www.tntenders.gov.in nicgep/app

NOTICE INVITING TENDERS (E-TENDERING PROCESS)TAMIL NADU GENERATION AND DISTRIbUTION CORPORATION LTD.

14 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHEINDIANEXPRESS,THURSDAY, JULY16,2020

New Delhi

15WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHEINDIANEXPRESS,THURSDAY, JULY16,2020

NOTICE INVITING TENDERSOFFICE OF THE EXECUTIVE ENGINEER, RURAL WORKS DIVISION

TAWANG ARUNACHAL PRADESHPRESS RELEASE

Executive Engineer, Rural Works Division, Tawang invites on behalf of Governor of Arunachal Pradesh sealed item rate tendersfrom approved and eligible Contractors registered with CPWD/ PWD/NBC C etc domiciled within the territorial jurisdiction ofconstituency of Lumla,Tawang and Mukto Assembly constituency as per Arunachal Pradesh District Based territorial jurisdiction(Incentive, development & Promotional) Act 2015 for below mentioned works. Subject to availability of Fund from StateGovernment,

2. The bidders are required to pay the cost of bid document in the form of demand draft/cash towards the cost of bid documentdrawn in the favour of EE, RWD Tawang 790104, payable at SBI, Tawang for amount (non-refundable) as shown abovescheme.

3. Availability of Bid Document and mode of submission: The bid document is available at office of the Executive EngineerRural Works Division Tawang, PO+PS+Distt. -Tawang Arunachal Pradesh from 15/08/2020 10.30 A.M to 04/08/2020 till 4.30PM.

4. Submission of Original Documents: The bidders are required to submit (a) Original Earnest Money in approved form (b)original solvency certificate on the letter head from nationalized bank (c) original class Registration and (d) original affidavitregarding correctness of information furnished with bid document as per provisions of Clause 4.4 B.a (ii) of ITB (f) originaldocuments viz. RC book, invoice, sale deed, uptodate insurance premium paid receipt in support of owning road constructionmachinaries as stated in the SBD, (g) original certificate on the letter head from nationalized bank as evidence of access toline of credit, (h) original copy of power of attorney (POA) agreement in case project is executed by attorney holderto theSuperintending Engineer, Rural Works Circle, Rupa, Arunachal Pradesh , two working days before the opening of technicalBid, by hand, failing which the bids shall be declared non-responsive. After verification, original documents of roadmachinaries class registration certificate and power of attorney (POA) agreement shall be released and the rest documentsshall be retained.

5. The site for the work is available.6. The bids must be submitted physically in tender box marked for MODEL RESIDENTIAL SCHOOL, MOKTO, 2020-2021 at

Superintending Engineer, Rural Works Circle, Rupa. The technical qualification First cover of the bids will be opened at 1030Hours (time) on 08.08.2020 and if qualifies then Second cover Financial bid will be opened at 1030 Hours on 10.08.2020(date) by the authorized officers i.e.Chief Engineer(W/Z), Rural Works Department,Itanagar. If the office happens to be closedon the date of opening of the bids as specified, the bids will be opened on the next working day at the same time and venue.

7. The bid for the work shall remain valid for acceptance for a period of 90 (ninety) days from the date of opening of bids. Ifany bidder/ tenderer withdraws his bid before the said period the earnest money shall stand forfeited.

8. It is compulsory for the Bidder, at his own cost, responsibility and risk, to visit, examine and familiarize himself with the siteof works and its surroundings including source of principal materials, earth, water, sand, aggregates etc. before submittingthe bid.

9. Bidders may bid for any one or more of the works mentioned in the Table above. To qualify for a package of contracts madeup of this and other contracts for which bids are invited in the same SBD, the bidder must demonstrate having experienceand resources sufficient to meet the aggregate of the qualifying criteria for the individual contracts.

10. A bidder shall not be permitted to bid for works in the Circle responsible for award and execution of contracts in which hisor his spouse's near relative (defined as first blood relations, and their spouses) is posted as Divisional Accountant or as anofficer in any capacity between the grades of Superintending Engineer and Assistant Engineer (both inclusive).

11. No Engineer of Gazetted rank or other Gazetted officer employed in Engineering or Administrative duties in an EngineeringDepartment of the State Government is allowed to work as a Contractor for a period of two years after his retirement fromGovernment service, without Government permission. This contract is liable to be cancelled if either the Contractor or anyof his employees is found any time to be such a person who had not obtained the permission of the Government asaforesaid before submission of the tender or engagement in the Contractor's service.

12. Other details can be seen in the bidding documents. The Employer shall not be held liable for any delays due to systemfailure beyond its control. Even though the system will attempt to notify the bidders of any bid updates, The Employer shallnot be liable for any information not received by the bidder. It is the bidders' responsibility to verify the website for the latestinformation related to the tender.

13. The undersigned has right to extend or cancel the tender without declaring any reason.14. Any kind of tempering of BOQ by the bidder will cause his bid to be disqualified and rejected .

Name of workCost of

Construction** Earnest

Money

TimeAllowed forcompletion

Last Time/date for

submissionof bids

Time and date ofopening ofTechnical/

Financial Bid

Cost of BidDocument

(non-refundable)

Classof

cont-ractor

(1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8)C/o MODEL

RESIDENTIAL SCHOOLAT GOVT. SEC.

SCHOOL, MUKTO INMUKTO-BONGKAR

MCA TAWANG.

Rs.35,64,700,00.00

Rs.35,65,700,00

24months

04.08.20204.30 PM

08.08.2020,1030 Hrs &10.08.2020,

1030 Hrs

Rs.15000.00

Class-I

* To be filled by the authority inviting tender.** Earnest money is 1% of the estimated cost, rounded

to the nearest thousand for A PST Contractors.

Sd/-Executive Engineer

Rural Works DivisionTawang

Arunachal Pradeshfor and on behalf of

HE Governor of Arunachal PradeshDIPR/ARN-10583-85

OFFICE OF THESUPERINTENDING ENGINEERELECTRICAL CIRCLE (R&B)

NIRMAN SOUDHA BHUBANESWARE-mail seec.bbsr2010 @ gmail.com

Bid Identification No. S.E.E.C (R&B) 6/2020-21.No. 1254 /Date 06.07.2020

The Superintending Engineer, Electrical Circle (R&B) Odisha,Bhubaneswar on behalf of the Governor of Odisha invitespercentage rate bids VRF Air Conditioning system and Lift worksto be received in online bidding, double cover system as detailedin: https://tendersorissa.gov.in. The details of bid documents willbe available in the above website from 5.00 P.M. of 15.07.2020 to5:00 P.M. of 30.07.2020. The bidders must possess compatibleDigital Signature Certificate of Class II or III. Bids received onlineshall be opened at 11:30 A.M. of 31.07.2020 in the Office of theSuperintending Engineer, Electrical Circle (R&B) Odisha,Bhubaneswar. Further details can be seen from the e-procurement portal www.tendersorissa.gov.in.Addendum / Corrigendum, if required, will be available only in theWebsite.

Sd/-(Er. Gauranga Charan Sahu)

Superintending EngineerElectrical Circle (R&B) Odisha, BBSR

OIPR- 34006/11/0008/2021

B-148

RAJASTHAN STATE POLLUTIONCONTROL BOARD

4, Institutional Area, Paryavaran Marg, Jhalana Doongari, Jaipur - 302004 RajasthanPhone: + 91-0141 5159802, EPBAX 5159600, 5159699, FAX: + 91-0141 5159694-97

Website: http://www.rpcb.nic.in, email: member-secretary@rpcb.nic.inNIB NO. F-11(592) RSPCB/LAB/INSTRUMENTS/2020-21/01, Dated 09.07.2020

1. Online Bidsare invited by Rajasthan State Pollution Control Board, Jaipur frommanufacturers/authorized dealers in India and Abroad for the supply of Laboratory Instruments/ Equipments as mentioned below:-

2. Important Steps / Dates:-

i. The Member Secretary (Procuring Authority), RSPCB, Jaipur reserves the right to acceptor reject any Bid, and to cancel the bidding process and reject all Bids at any time priorto award of contract, without assigning any reasons.

ii. The detailed terms & conditions with specifications of equipmnets/instruments and biddocument may be down loaded from website. The provsions of RTPP Act, 2012 & Rules, 2013,there to shall be applicable for this procurement, further move, in case of any incosistency inany of the provision of this bidding documents with the RTPP Act, 2012, & Rules 2013, there tothe later shall prevail.

UBN PCB 2021 GLOB00014 Sd/-DIPR/C/5248/2021 Member Secretary

S. No Name of Items Qty1 Autoclave 122 Bacteriological Incubator 123 BOD Incubator 124 COD Digester with Air Condensers 145 Conductivity Meter (Bench Top Model) 126 Deep Freezer 167 Digital Portable Barometer 178 Dissolved Oxygen (DO) Meter 69 Filtration assembly with suction system for Suspended Solids 1110 Flame Photometer 611 Fume Hood 2112 Global Position System (GPS) 1713 Heating Mantle of 1 kW 3214 High Volume Air Sampler 3415 Hot Air Oven 1216 Hot Plate with Magnetic Stirrer 1717 Laminar Air Flow 618 Muffle Furnace 1119 Multi Parameter Water Quality Analyzer Kit 1620 Noise Level Meter 3221 Orsat Gas Apparatus 1722 pH meter Bench type 1323 Portal Petrol Engine Generator (3 KVA) 3224 Respirable Dust Samplers 4025 Semi Micro Balance 2326 Specific Ion Meter (Ion Analyzer) 627 Stack Monitoring Kit 2128 Total Kjeldahl Nitrogen Analyzer (TKN) 629 Turbidity Meter (Bench Top Model) 630 UV-Visible Spectrophotometer (PC Controlled) 731 Visible Spectrophotometer 1432 Water Bath (Thermostatic) 733 Water Double Distillation Unit 1134 Washer (Laboratory Glassware) 18

Total Quantity = 537 Nos.

S.No.

Particulars Date/Place/Amount in Rs.

1. Name and Address of Procuringentity

Member Secretary, Rajasthan State Pollution Control Board,4, Institutional Area, Paryavaran Marg, Jhalana Doongari,Jaipur - 302004

2. Title of Procurement Supply of Instrument / Equipments For Central and RegionalLaboratories of Rajasthan State Pollution Control Board.

3. Bid Procurement Single Stage:- Technical Bid in one cover / envelope andfinancial bid in the other cover / envelope.

4. Website for downloading biddingdocuments, corrigendum’s,addendums etc.

http://eproc.rajashtan.gov.in., https://sppp.rajasthan.gov.in/http://www.environment.rajasthan.gov.in. However, bid is to besubmitted only through the websitehttp://eproc.rajasthan.gov.in or https://sppp.rajasthan.gov.in.

5. Estimated Tender Cost 631.67 Lac

6. Amount in Rs of EMD in DD/PayOrder

12.64 Lac (Rounded)

7. Date of Availability of Bid DocumentOn Website

10.07.2020, 9:30 am

8.. Bid Submission Start Date 10.07.2020

9. Last Date of Submission of Bid 10.08.2020, 6:00 pm

10. Date of Submission of OriginalDemand Draft for Bid Security andProcessing Fees at RSPCB HO.

10.08.2020, 6:00 pm

11. Time/ Date/Place of Opening ofTechnical Bid

Date and Time:- 11.08.2020 at 3:00 pm

12. Time/ Date/Place of Opening ofFinancial Bid

Date and Time:- To be communicated later on only totechnically qualified bidders through e-mail only.

13. Place of Opening of TehnicalBid/Financial Bid

4, Institutional Area, Paryavaran Marg, Jhalana Doongari,Jaipur

14. Bid Validity 120 days from the bid submission deadline.

15. Bid Fee in Favour of MemberSecretary, RSPCB, Jaipur

Rs. 5000/-

16. Processing Fee in Favour of MD,RISL, Jaipur

Rs. 1000/-

TENDER DATE EXTENSION NOTICEThe Date of opening of tender specification no. PVVNL-MT/COM/01/20-21 for supply of 1500 nos.11 KV CTs (Different ratios) is hereby extended from 14.07.2020 to 13.08.2020. Time of openingtender and other terms & conditions shall remain unchanged.For detailed information please log on www.pvvnl.org & E-Tendering websitewww.etender.up.nic.in till the date of submission of bids. Superintending Engineer (Commercial)"Help line Number for Information of Theft of Electricity: "1800-180-3002 (Meerut) & 9412207451"Remark www.etender.up.nic.in

Sd/-Superintending Engineer (Commercial)

For Managing Director“SAVE ELECTRICITY IN THE INTEREST OF THE NATION”

´fÂffaI : 5858 dQ³ffaI : 15.7.20

Paschimanchal Vidyut Vitran Nigam Ltd.,Victoria Park, Meerut

Save Energy for theBenefit of Self and Nation

The date of sale and opening of tender for Supply, installation , testing andcommissioning of 50 kVA Diesel Generator set for (3x5.65 MW) AndhraPower House, Chirgaon, Distt. Shimla (H.P.) is hereby extended as per thefollowing schedule

HIMACHAL PRADESH STATE ELECTRICITY BOARD LIMITED

The detailed tender notification can be viewed/downloaded free of costfrom website: http://www.tenderwizard.com/hpsebl and tender documentcan be had after making prescribed payment. Any clarification/amendmentshall be uploaded on the above web site.

(Partap Thakur)Superintending Engineer(Designs)Power House Electrical,HPSEB Ltd. SundernagarDistt. Mandi (HP)-175019

(e-tendering Mode only)(“A State Govt. Undertaking”) CORRIGENDUM -2

Request/Issue for onlinetender documents

From 06.06.2020 (10.00Hrs.) to22.07.2020 (17.00Hrs)

Last date of submissionof online tender: Up to 24.07.2020 (11.00 Hrs)

Date of opening of Tender- 24.07.2020 (15.00 Hrs)

Tel/FAX :- 01907-262596 | Email – sedphel@gmail.com

MMRDA New Building, Bandra-Kurla Complex, Bandra (East),Mumbai- 400 051 Website : https://mmrda.maharashtra.gov.in

MUMBAI METROPOLITAN REGIONDEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY(A Government of Maharashtra Undertaking)

Date : 16/07/2020Place : Mumbai

Sd/-( R.A Rajeev )

Metropolitan CommissionerM.M.R.D.A.

Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority invitesapplication from eligible and experienced candidates for the postof “Chief, Transport & Communications” in the Pay MatrixLevel - S-29 Rs.131100-216600 on Selection basis. For detailedadvertisement viz. eligibility criteria, Terms & Conditions and otherinstructions, please visit https://mmrda.maharashtra.gov.in

Fulrani

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION KINDLY VISIT: www.haryanaeprocurement.gov.in or www.etenders.hry.nic.in

TENDER NOTICE

81775/HRY

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BY PUBLIC AUCTIONTwo Maruti Sx4 Vxi Car Make 2009 would besold by public auction at Armed ForcesTribunal (Principal Bench), West Block-8,Sector-1, Opp. Mohan Singh Market, R.K.Puram, New Delhi-110066 on 06th Aug, 2020(Thursday) at 1200 hrs.

Security Deposit - Rs. 5000/- per Car(Refundable).

Successful bidder shall deposit the full bidamount (including GST) immediately and takedelivery of the vehicle, on “as it is where it isbasis”.

T&C are available at www.aftdelhi@nic.in

Deputy Director (A)

TENDER DATE EXTENSION NOTICEThe Date of opening of tender specification no. PVVNL-MT/COM/20/19-20 for supply of 500 nos. 33KV TVM Cat-C Meter is hereby extended from 14.07.2020 to 29.07.2020. Time of opening tenderand other terms & conditions shall remain unchanged.For detailed information please log on www.pvvnl.org & E-Tendering websitewww.etender.up.nic.in till the date of submission of bids. Superintending Engineer (Commercial)"Help line Number for Information of Theft of Electricity: "1800-180-3002 (Meerut) & 9412207451"Remark www.etender.up.nic.in

Sd/-Superintending Engineer (Commercial)

For Managing Director“SAVE ELECTRICITY IN THE INTEREST OF THE NATION”

´fÂffaI : 5857 dQ³ffaI : 15.7.20

Paschimanchal Vidyut Vitran Nigam Ltd.,Victoria Park, Meerut

Government of Odisha“e” Procurement Notice

WORKS DEPARTMENTBid Identification No. S.E.K.C., Keonjhar No. 02/2020-21

e-mail: sekcpwd_keonjhar@yahoo.comLetter No. 1755 dt. 08.07.2020

1. No of the work:- 04 Nos Building Works2. Estimated cost:- Rs. 112.19 Lakhs to Rs. 451.84 Lakhs3. Period of completion:- 09 (Nine) Calendar Months to 11

(Eleven) Calendar Months4. Date and Time of availability of Bid document in the portal:-

From 11.00 Hours of 21.07.2020 to 16.00 Hours of 04.08.20205. Last date / Time for receipt of bids in the portal:- 16.00 Hours

of 04.08.2020.6. Date of opening of Bid from Portal:- 12.00 Hours on 05.08.20207. Name and address of the officer inviting Bid:- Superintending

Engineer, Keonjhar (R&B) Circle, Keonjhar- 758001.Further details can be seen from the e-procurement portal“http://tendersodisha.gov.in”

Superintending EngineerKeonjhar (R&B) Circle, Keonjhar

OIPR- 34033/11/0002/2021

B-152

New Delhi

16SENSEX: 36,051.81 ▲ 18.75 NIFTY: 10,618.20 ▲ 10.85 NIKKEI: 22,945.50 ▲ 358.49 HANG SENG: 25,481.58 ▲ 3.69 FTSE: 6,307.06 ▲ 127.31 DAX: 12,937.27 ▲ 239.91

THEINDIANEXPRESS,THURSDAY, JULY16,2020

ECONOMYWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

GOLD`50,230

RUPEE`75.15

OIL$43.47

SILVER`54,200

Note:Gold, silverratesatspotmarket inDelhi;goldper10g, silverper1kg;Brentcrudeasof2230 IST

Internationalmarketdatatill1900IST

ENSECONOMICBUREAUNEWDELHI,JULY15

INDIA’SLARGESTcommercial shipbuilderCochinShipyardLtd(CSL)WednesdaysaidithassignedcontractsforconstructionandsupplyoftwoautonomouselectricferriestoNorway-basedASKOMaritime,withanop-tiontobuildtwomoreidenticalvessels.CSL is already constructing 23hybrid

electricboatsforKochiWaterMetro. Itwonthisexportorderafterdetailedevaluationofvarious global shipyards andbasedon itsvalue proposition to the customer, theKochi-basedshipbuildersaidinarelease.ASKOMaritimeAS,thesubsidiarygroup

ofNorgesGruppenASA,isoneofthelargestplayersintheNorwegianretailsegment.Congratulating the company, Union

ShippingMinisterMansukhMandaviyatweeted, “Kudos toCSL for grabbing con-tract to buildworld’s first fully automaticelectricvesselforASKOMaritime,Norway&layinghistoricmilestoneinShipbuildingIndustry! Competingwth various globalshipyards, CSL grabbed contractwith itsgoodcredibility&history#MakeInIndia.”The project , partially funded by the

NorwegianGovernment, aimed at emis-sion-freetransportofgoodsacrosstheOslofjord, CSL said. The67meter-long vesselswill initially bedelivered as a full-electrictransportferry,poweredby1,846kWhca-pacity battery. After commissioning au-tonomous equipment and field trials inNorway, it will operate as a fully au-tonomousferryofASKOthatcantransport16 fully loadedStandardEUtrailers inonegoacrossthefjords,CSLsaid.WITHPTI

CSL to construct two autonomouselectric ferries for ASKO Maritime

ENSECONOMICBUREAUNEWDELHI,JULY15

RISINGBY20 lakh to reach52.1 crore, thetotalnumberofruraltelephonesubscribersinIndiaincreasedforthesecondmonthinarowinMarch,whilethenumberofurbantelephoneusersfellby50lakhto65.6croreduringthemonth,datareleasedbyTelecomRegulatoryAuthorityofIndia(Trai)showed.Overall,totalnumberoftelephonesub-

scribersinthecountryfell0.24percenton

monthto117.7croreusers,asperTraidata.In February, theurban telephone sub-

scriptionhaddeclined to66.1crore,whilerural telephone subscriber basehad risen1percentonmonthto51.9croreusers.The total number of 2G, 3G, and 4G

usersgainedduringFebruarywerenearlyparedinMarch.WhileFebruary2020sawtotal number of wireless users rise from115.6croreto116crore,Marchsawarever-salwith the total number of such2G, 3G,and4GusersdropbacktoJanuary30levelsof115.7crore.

Urban telephone subscriber base falls,rural rises for 2nd month running in Mar

BRIEFLYFinMinclarifiesonsanitizersNewDelhi: TheCentre saidsanitizers aredisinfectants,which attract 18 per centdutyunderGSTregime.

Moratoriumondutiesone-comNewDelhi:IndiaaskedWTOmembers to “urgently” re-consider continuation ofmoratoriumoncustomsdu-tiesone-commercetrade.

InfosysQ1netprofitup12.4%NewDelhi: Infosys’Q1 con-solidatednetprofitrose12.4percenttoRs4,272crore.

Maruti,ToyotarecallcarsNewDelhi:Maruti SuzukiandToyotaarerecallingover1.41 lakhunits of three carstoreplacefuelpumps. PTI

CentralBankcutsMCLRNewDelhi:Central Bank ofIndiahascutitsMCLRby10bpsacrossalltenors. ENS

Govt has chosen a staggeredapproach: Expenditure Secy onrelief measures, income support

‘Country of origin’ attribute mandatory forall your listings: Amazon India tells sellersNewDelhi:Movingtowardscom-plyingwith the go’s “country oforigin” proposal on private e-commerce sites, Amazon IndiaWednesdaytolditssellersthatitisintroducing“countryoforigin”asamandatoryattribute in itscate-gorylistings.Italsotoldsellersthatfailure to pro-vide the coun-tryoforiginat-

tributebyAugust10“mayleadtoenforcement action, includingsuppressionofyourlisting”.“Youwill be required topro-

vide information for “country oforigin”mandatorily for all yournewandexistinglistings.Weurgeyoutoprovideinformationonthe

otherlistingattributes(includingmandatorydeclarationsrequiredtobeprovidedbyyouunder ap-plicablelaw)sothatcustomersgetdetailed information about yourproductprior topurchase. the e-commerce company said on itssaidonitssellerdashboard. ENS

ENSECONOMICBUREAUNEWDELHI,JULY15

THECENTREhas chosen to pro-videincomesupportandotherre-liefmeasuresinastaggeredman-nerratherthangivingitinonego,as it is not clear forhow long theimpactof thepandemicwill last,TVSomanathan,ExpenditureSe-cretary,saidWednesday.Respon-dingtovarioussuggestionsduringapaneldiscussion,he said itwo-uld be amistake to overhaul theentirewelfare systemespeciallyduringthetimeof thepandemic.“Doyoumakeyourdecisions

in one big announcement or doyoumakeannouncementsininst-almentsasthesituationevolves?Wehavechosenthelatter,”hesaidat awebinarorganisedbyNatio-nal Council of AppliedEconomic

Research on learnings aboutIndia’ssafetynetduringthepan-demicandeconomicshutdown.Inavideomessageattheeve-

nt,Nobel LaureateAbhijitBaner-jeearguedthereisaneedtorethi-nk India’s entirewelfare systemandtoaddressissuesfacedbymi-grantworkers. He stressed thatthe incomesupport providedbythegovernmenttopoorneedstobe enhanced significantly. “Theamounts arewrong, theamountofreliefshouldbebigger,asit’sgo-ingtobealongandpainfulrecov-ery,”hesaid.FormerReserveBankof India

Governor RaghuramRajan saidtheCentreshouldnotconfusebe-tween relief, repair and stimuluswhichare required for the econ-omyatthisjuncture,whichneces-sitatesthatfiscalresponseshouldbelarger.

AANCHALMAGAZINENEWDELHI,JULY15

THECENTRALBoardof Trustees(CBT)oftheretirementfundbody,Employees’ Provident FundOrganisation (EPFO), is locked inan internal tussle. Severalmem-bershaveflaggedconcernsaboutthe inadequate sharingof infor-mation about the Fund’s invest-ments, delays inapproval for theinterestratefor2019-20,andalackofdisclosuresregardingafireinci-dent in thevigilancewingof theEPFOheadquarters inDelhi thattookplace inDecember last year,threeBoardmemberssaid.Asectionof themembersare

learnttohavedemandedawhitepaperfromtheEPFOheadquarterson the investmentpatternof theFundinthelastfewmonths,espe-cially to ascertain the impact ontheequity-linkedinvestmentsaf-ter theoutbreakof theCOVID-19pandemic.TheconcernsabouttheFund’searningsandsurplushavealso risenonaccountof thehugenumber of withdrawals by thesubscribers in the special facilitythatwas announcedby thegov-ernmentinMarch.Adetailedaction-takenreport

about the fire incident has alsobeensought,withoneoftheBoard

membershavingwrittena lettertotheEPFOheadquartersexpress-ing displeasure about the non-communication to the Boardmembersabouttheincident.“Manymembersoverthelast

fewmonthshavebeenaskingsev-eral questions from the EPFOheadquarters about the invest-ments,theinterestrate,thefirein-cidentandtheexpensesunderthePMGaribKalyanYojana. Butde-tails arenotbeing shared clearlywith theBoardmembers. This ispublicmoneyandsomebitofac-countability needs to be there,”oneoftheBoardmembersrepre-sentingemployeessaid.WiththeFinanceMinistrynot

ratifyingthe8.5percentEPFinter-estratefor2019-20,whichwasrec-ommendedbytheCBTinMarch,aratereviewisbeingworkedupon,

withtheratelikelytobecut,anof-ficial said. “TheFinanceMinistryhasnotratifiedthe8.5percentin-terest rate.Thereconsiderationoftheinterestraterequiresameetingof CBT. Due to the pandemic, ameeting couldnot be convenedearlier but will be held soon,whereinaratereviewdecisionwillbetaken,”theofficialsaid.Before the CBT meeting, a

meeting of the Finance,InvestmentandAuditCommittee(FIAC) has to take place and it islikely to happen soon, anotherBoardmemberrepresentingem-ployerssaid.Query sent by The Indian

Express to the EPFOwent unan-swered.Some of themembers have

also soughtdetails about theex-penditure under the PMGaribKalyanYojanaandwhethertheex-penseshavebeenreimbursedbythe government to the EPFO.Under the scheme, the EPFO isbearingthe24percentcontribu-tionforemployersandemployeesfor establishments having 100workerswith90percentofthemearningamonthly incomeof uptoRs15,000.AseniorgovernmentofficialsaidRs894crorehasbeendisbursed under the PMGaribKalyanYojana for themonthsofMarchandAprilsofar.

EPFO Board members raise redflags over lack of info on investmentreturns, files lost in December fire

GEORGEMATHEWMUMBAI,JULY15

THE COVID-19 pandemic ischanging the dynamics of thegeneral insurance industry,withhealth insurance overtaking themotor insurancebusiness forthefirst time ever to emerge as thelargest portfolio in the first twomonthsof thisfiscalyear.Thehealth segmenthas con-

tributed36percent(30percentinthe year-ago period) of the do-mestic general insurance pre-miumwithpremium incomeofRs 9,122 crore duringApril-Mayin 2020-21 as against Rs 8,484croreayearago,whilemotorport-folioatRs6,753crorehasseenitsmarketshareshrinkto26percent(37percentintheyearagoperiod)inthesameperiodfromRs10,511

crore last year, according todatafromGeneral InsuranceCouncil.This comes amid the lockdown-induced slide in car sales duringthis period,whichhas impactedfreshpremiuminflowsinthemo-torsegment.Duringfiscal2019-20,themo-

torbusinessgeneratedRs69,208crore of premium incomewhilehealthwas only Rs 51,637 crore.Vehiclesalesfellamassive75per

centintheApril-JuneperiodoftheFY21 due to the lockdown. Thehealthinsurancesegment,ontheotherhand,hasgrownintheJunequarter,mainlydue to increasedawareness level abouthealth in-suranceamidpandemic,andissetto grow faster in the comingmonths,saidaninsuranceofficial.Insurance regulator Irdai has

mandatedall the30general andhealthinsurerstostartofferingin-dividual COVID-19-specificstandard health policy called‘CoronaKavach’.As COVID-19haspushed the

saleofhealthcovers inthecoun-try, the role of six standalonehealthinsurersandgeneralinsur-ershasbeenprominent inmain-tainingthepremiumgrowth,bothfor themonthof Juneandfor theJunequarter.“Theseproductsaretimelyandwillmeettherequire-

mentsofall,especiallyofthevul-nerablepopulation,”saidShreerajDeshpande,COO,FutureGeneraliIndiaInsurance. Therecenttrendshave beenpositive as economicactivity restarted in several partsof thecountry.The domestic general insur-

anceindustry,ledbystate-ownedNew India Assurance (NIA), hasreturned topositive growth tra-jectory in premium income inJune,aftercontinuouslyrecordingnegative growth inMarch, AprilandMay.Junewitnessedmidandlargeprivatesectorcompanies—which had recorded a negativepremiumgrowthinthelastthreemonthsofMarch,April andMay— return to the positive growthpath.However,forthefirstquarterendedJune, the industrywith33playershasremainedintheneg-ativezoneinitspremiumincome.

Theindustryhasseenan8percentyear-on-year(y-o-y)growthin June (at Rs13,961 crore)mbuthas recordedadegrowthof 4.24percenty-o-y in Junequarter (atRs39,392crore),accordingtodatafromIrdai.LeadingPSUgeneralinsurers,

NIAandUnitedIndia,havegainedmarket share while the twolargest private sector general in-surershavelostthemarketshare.NIA has seen its market sharespurting to 19.11 per cent in theJunequarter (Q1) of FY2020-21from17.38percentintheyear-agoperiod, while ICICI LombardGeneralInsurance,thelargestpri-vatesectorcompany,hasseenitsmarketsharefallingfrom8.49percentinQ1FY2019-20to8.40percentinQ1FY2020-21.

Fullreportonwww.indianexpress.com

COVID-19 IMPACTONGENERAL INSURANCE INDUSTRY

Goyal, Rossdiscuss trade,cooperationENSECONOMICBUREAUNEWDELHI, JULY15

US COMMERCE SecretaryWilbur Ross discussed the po-tentialofcollaborationbetweenIndiaandtheUnitedStatesinar-easofpharmaceuticals,medicalequipmentandtheirassociatedsupply chains during the US-India CEOs Forum on Tuesday,chaired by CommerceMinisterPiyush Goyal and him, as per aMinistry release.Goyal emphasised the im-

portance of small businesses intheeconomiesofbothcountriesand the need to increase em-ploymentandskilling.Tata Sons chairman N

ChandrasekaranhighlightedtheneedforaFreeTradeAgreementbetween IndiaandtheUS.

ENSECONOMICBUREAUNEWDELHI,JULY15

FOR THE first time in a decade,Indiaclockedasurplusinitsmer-chandise trade, exporting $0.79billionmorethanithadimportedin June. Imports experienced asteeperdropthanexports,whichcontinued todecline during theongoingpandemic,asperMinistryofCommerceandIndustrydata.“Thisisthefirsttimeinthelast

decadethatIndiaisanetexporter,”statedtheMinistry.India’sgoodsexportsdeclined

12.41per cent to$21.91billion inJune from $25.01 billion in thesameperiodlastyearduetoadropinshipmentsofmajorcommodi-ties like engineering goods andgemsand jewellery. Imports, on

theotherhand,declined47.59percent to$21.11billion from$40.29billionoverthesameperiod.Imports of petroleum, crude

andtheirproductsdropped55.29per cent to $4.93 billion from$11.03 billion. Exports of com-modities likegemsandjewellerydropped 50.06 per cent, andreadymadegarmentsofalltextilesaround34.84percent.

PM: Mantra to stay relevantis to skill, re-skill & upskill

Air India to sendcertain employeeson leave withoutpay for up to 5 yrs

PRESSTRUSTOFINDIANEWDELHI, JULY15

AIR INDIA has started theprocess of identifying employ-ees,basedonvariousfactorslikeefficiency, health and redun-dancy,whowillbesentoncom-pulsoryleavewithoutpayforupto5years,asperanofficialorder.The airline’s board of direc-

tors have authorised its CMDRajiv Bansal to send employeeson LWP “for sixmonths or for aperiod of two years extendableuptofiveyears,dependinguponfactorslikesuitability,efficiency,andcompetence.

ENSECONOMICBUREAUNEWDELHI,JULY15

STATINGTHAT“skill,re-skill,andupskill”isthemantra to stay relevant in the rapidlychangingbusinessenvironmentandmarketconditions,PrimeMinisterNarendraModiWednesday said it hasbecomemore im-portantintimesoftheCOVID-19pandemic.Modi also said the portal tomap skilledworkers thathasbeen launched fewdaysagowouldhelpworkerstofindworkoppor-tunities, especially thosewhoreturned tovillagesfromcitiesrecently.“Several people askme that in today’s

time,business andmarkets changeso fastthattheydonotunderstandhowtoremainrelevant.Inthistimeofcorona,thisquestionhasbecomeevenmore important. I haveonlyoneanswer. Themantra to stay rele-vantis—skill,re-skillandupskill,”thePrimeMinister said,while addressing a virtual

event tomark five years of the Skill IndiaMission.Atthesameevent,MinisterforSkillDevelopment and EntrepreneurshipMahendraNathPandey said the govern-menthasapprovedthelaunchoftheinitialphaseofitsflagshipskillschemePMKVY-III,focusedon strengthening of district skillcommittees and creation of a demand-drivenecosystemfortargetedtraining.

Thehealthsegmenthascontributed36%of thedomesticgeneralinsurancepremiumwithpremiumincomeof `9,122croreduringApril-MayinFY21

Insurance:Healthovertakesmotorbiz■SomeofthemembershavesoughtdetailsabouttheexpenditureunderthePMGaribKalyanYojanaandwhethertheexpenseshavebeenreimbursedbythegovernmenttotheEPFO.

OTHERDEMANDS

E●EXPLAINED

THESTEEPdeclineinim-portofgoodsusedinmanufacturingactivitymayimpact industrialactivityhere.

Risktoindustrialactivity

Exports, imports fall for 4thmonth in June, but tradeturns surplus after a decade

PrimeMinisterNarendraModiaddressesadigital conclave inNewDelhionWednesday.PTIvideograb

New Delhi

THEINDIANEXPRESS,THURSDAY, JULY16,2020

SPORTWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

VolLXXXVIIINo.213 Regd.No.DL-21046/03-05

R.N.I.No.506/57. PrintedandPublishedbyR.C.Malhotraonbehalf of The IndianExpress (P) LimitedandPrintedatThe IndianExpress (P) LimitedPress,A-8, Sector-7,Noida -201301andPublishedatThe IndianExpress (P) Limited,MezzanineFloor, ExpressBuilding, 9&10,BahadurShahZafarMarg, NewDelhi-110002. Editorial office:The IndianExpress (P) Limited,MezzanineFloor, ExpressBuilding, 9&10,BahadurShahZafarMarg, NewDelhi-110002. Phone:0120-6651500.Advertisingoffice: The IndianExpress (P) Limited,B1/B, Sector -10,Noida -201301. Phone:0120-6651291.Chairmanof theBoard:ViveckGoenka,Chief Editor:RajKamal Jha, Editor:UnniRajenShanker, Editor (Delhi):RakeshSinha ** **Responsible for selectionofNewsunder thePRBAct. Copyright: The IndianExpress (P) Limited.All rights reserved.Reproduction inanymanner, electronicorotherwise, inwholeor inpart,withoutpriorwrittenpermission isprohibited. The IndianExpress®

17 SnehashishGanguly tests positive forCovid-19Snehasish Ganguly, Cricket Association of Bengal’s secretary and BCCI presidentSourav Ganguly’s elder brother, has tested positive for Covid-19. Snehasish’s swabwas tested at a private pathological laboratory in Kolkata on Wednesday and theresult has come positive. It is learnt that Sourav celebrated his birthday on July 8 withall his family members.

DEVENDRAPANDEYMUMBAI, JULY 15

ON ANY normal monsoon day, threeMumbai football coaches—PrasadBhosale,Siddhesh Srivastav, and Samrat Rana —would have been plottingwith kids how towin the next game at a school tournament.Instead, in themidst of the Covid-19 out-break,Bhosaleissellingvegetables,Srivastavismakingkebabsathome,whileRanaworksas a deliveryman for a restaurant. Thepan-demicmeans football academies don’t re-quire their services at least until the situa-tion normalises, and the three have beenforcedto fend for themselves inotherways.“When I sold vegetables, I did feel awk-

wardforthefirst fewdays. IamaMasters inPhysical Education, a double graduate, andselling vegetables now. But when yourstomach is empty and there aremorehun-gry people at home, you stop thinking allthat. Icarrygrainbagsandvegetablesonmyshoulders, fill my cart, and sell on thestreets,” Bhosale toldThe IndianExpress.Hewas told in March that his services

won’t be required and later his school laidoff the physical education (PE) teacher,dance teacher, and the music teacher.Bhosaleresortedtosellingvegetables intheMumbai suburbof Kandivali.Srivastavusedtocoachkidsattwoschools

inthedayandworkedwithaprivatefootballacademy in the eveningwhere heworkedwithmore children. Hewasworkingwith aBangalore-based companywhich providesfootballcoachestoschools.InJune,hewastoldthecompanycouldn’taffordtopaysalaries.“We were not paid for the last few

months,” Srivastav said. “Wewrote to thecompany a few times and they replied lastmonth that they can’t pay us salaries andhaveterminatedourcontracts.Myfather isretired and I have to take care ofmy family,sowedecided to sell kebabs.”Many school coaches approached

MumbaiSchoolSportsAssociation(MSSA)topersuadeschoolsnottolayoffcoaches,butitexpressed helplessness. Lawrence Bing, ahockey secretary atMSSA, said he had re-ceivedmanycallsfromcoachesacrossthecity.“TillMay,around60-70coacheswerere-

movedandbyJunethenumberrosetomorethanahundred.Assports iscompletelyshutand no outdoor sports looks possible in thecomingmonths, coaches’ livelihoods arebadlyhit,”Bingsaid.Ranawasheadoffootballacademy CSPI, which had nine centres inMumbai, and would also coach junior I-League teams.Hisyoungerbrotherwasalsoa school football coach but both have beenrendered joblessbythepandemic.“NowIhavebecomeadeliveryboy, Itried

popular companies like Zomato andSwiggybut therewasnovacancy. So, I becameade-liveryboyforanearbyrestaurant. Ihadsmallsavings andwas forced to sellmother’s gold.Mybrotheralsolosthisjob.Wehadninecen-tres and Iwas the overall head. I have threebrothers (oneplays football) and they are allintosports.Now,wehavetosupportourfam-iliesthroughothermeans.”

Pandemic forces football coachesto sell vegetables and kebabs

PrasadBhosale(right)hasbeensellingvegetables inKandivali forclosetoamonth.

CROSSWORD4171

ACROSS1 Theturnof the tide(5,5)

8 Ayounganimalhas it insomemeasure (5)

9 Strengthendispute inJapanesecurrency(7)

10 Screendepictingcolour inavarietyof rose (7)

11 Consumer itemsthatarecutandpolished(5)

12 Joinasilentorder(6)

14 Rigidhabitof themedievalages (6)

17 Employmentexchange?(5)

19 Quiteoutof order (7)21 Iusedtoknockabout in theopenair (7)

22 Uncommonpartof BritishParliament (5)

23 Churchassembly?(10)

DOWN2 Nomeanparty? (7)3 Nominally involved inacourtcase (5)

4 Mostsage is found intheWest(6)

5 Windingwind(7)

6 Stripa firearm?(5)

7 Ruinedbyhaving iceadded?(2,3,5)

8 An improvement indiscipline(10)

13 Thoughparticular, theplace isinamess(7)

15 AtRio?No,maybe inCanada(7)

16 Agree it’sof small accountandgive in(6)

18 Greekupperchamber?(5)

20 Soundsmuchtodistribute(5)

ARIES(Mar21-Apr20)Continuetobide timeanddon'tallowotherpeopletopressuriseintoanearlydecision.

Neithershouldyouallowthemtoscoffatyourideas.Aboveall,youmusthavethecourageofyourconvictions.Ifyoustandupforwhatisright, yourself-esteemcanonlyincrease.

TAURUS(Apr21-May21)Unlessa finalagreement isreachednow, itwillbesometimebefore

youarepreparedtore-opennegotiations,perhapsbecauseyour ideasno longerseemsowonderful.You’reenteringaperiodwhichcanbestbedescribedasoneofcontemplation,andyourmostinteresting ideaswillnotbe forpublicconsumption.

GEMINI (May22- June21)Whateveriscurrentlytakingplaceeitherathomeoratwork,rememberthatyou

mayberequiredtopayup.So,youshouldbeverycautiousandavoidallrashfinancialcommitments.Youmightnowbeagoodinfluenceonpeoplewhohavebrokentherulesoncetoooften.

CANCER(June22- July23)Somepersonalpressuresareeasing,butothersarewaiting in thewings.

Youfeelas if youshouldtakecontrol,but is that reallywise?If yougiveyourself as longasyouneedtoconsider theconsequences,you’lldecideonthebestcourseof action.Thinkthings through.

LEO(July24-Aug23)Youhavebecomeinvolvedinassociationswhichcouldbehelpingyour

self-confidence.Onlyonequestionisnowoutstanding,andthatiswhethercurrentrelationshipsarebasedongenuinehonestyandunderstanding.Asamatterofinterest, it’sasuitablemomentfortellingsomeonehowyoureallyfeelaboutthem-inapositivesense,ofcourse.

VIRGO(Aug24-Sep23)Youappeartobeonthefringesofarathercomplexemotionalsituation,forwhich

therenowseemtobetwopossibleoutcomes.Eitheritwillallblowover,oritwillberemovedfromyourhands.Onewayortheother,youcanaffordtobemorerelaxed.

LIBRA(Sep24-Oct23)Theonlywaytoformsuccessfulpartnershipsnowistodowhatyouhave

alwaysdonebest-compromiseandconsult.Plus,youcanleavepeopleatworktosortoutwhattheywantbeforeattemptingtoreachfirmdecisions.Afterall,iftheydon’tseeeye-to-eyethenjointplansareunlikelytogetfar.

SCORPIO(Oct24-Nov23)What isdifficult forotherpeoplecouldbeveryhelpful foryou.Therefore,

pleasedoconcentrateonmakingthemostof anyandeveryopportunitywhichcomesyourway,evenwhileyou’rehelpingpartnersoutof anydifficulty.Considersocialarrangementscarefully,becausebytomorrowyourneedswillhavechanged.

SAGITTARIUS(Nov24-Dec22)Youcanstillmakeheavyweatherofhomeandfamilymatters,perhaps

becauseyouhavebeenconfused,evendumb-struck,byrelatives’ changesofmoodoropinion. It isquiteacceptable topressonwithpracticalimprovementswithoutwaitingforpermission.

CAPRICORN(Dec23- Jan20)Mercury is soontoalter itspositionso, ifyou’vereachedafirmdecision,you

mayhaveto thinkagain,even ifonly toconfirmyouroriginalchoice.Thetimeforstraighttalkingwill returnverysoon,butuntil thenyoushouldconcentrateongettingthe factsstraight, andonclearingupmisunderstandings.

AQUARIUS(Jan21-Feb19)Maximumconfusionislikelyatworkandinallroutinechores,soifyoudrop,break

orlosevitalitems,you’llknowwhy:it’sallthankstothemuddlingeffectsof Neptune,delicatelyalignedwithVenusandMercury.Mindyou,it’safinemomentforartistsandlovers.

PISCES(Feb20-Mar20)You’vetakenontoomuch.Youmayhavenochoicebuttofulfilyourpromisesbut, in

future,youshouldlearntosay‘no’moreoftenthan‘yes’andsoavoidsuchtaxingandpotentiallyexpensiveconditions.Youmaybeabletoappealtoafriendforhelp,buttheymightwanttoknowhowyoucametorepeatanoldmistake.

SUDOKU4171

DifficultyLevel2sInstructionsTosolveaSudokupuzzle,everydigitfrom1to9mustappear ineachofthenineverticalcolumns, ineachoftheninehorizontalrowsandineachofthenineboxes.

DifficultyLevel1s=Veryeasy;2s=Easy;3s=Medium;4s=Hard;5s=VeryHard;6s=Genius

SOLU

TIONSUDOKU4170

Givenbelowarefour jumbledwords.Solvethejumblestomakeproperwordsandmovethemtotherespectivesquaresbelow.Selecttheletters intheshadedsquaresandjumblethemtogettheanswerforthegivenquip.Whendealingwiththe____,thebestmethodistopretendtobe__-HermanHesse(6,..,4)

SOLUTION:EATEN,ANISE,BANANA,SLOVENAnswer:Whendealingwiththeinsane,thebestmethodistopretendtobesane-HermanHesse

NTAEE AAABNN

ENAIS NOVELS

SolutionsCrossword4170:Across:1Trifle,4Lissom,9Measure,10Learn,11Emend,12Timelag,13Currentnews,18Provide,20Regal,22Clink,23Couples,24Denude,25Measly.Down:1Timber,2Irate,3Launder,5Islam,6Swallow,7Manage,8Restinpeace,14Utopian,15Nurture,16Spiced,17Flashy,19Irked,21Gales.

JUMBLEDWORDS

OVERTHEHEDGE byMichael Fry&TLewis

CALVIN&HOBBES byBillWatterson

MARVIN byTomArmstrong

DAYTODAY BYPETERVIDAL

SiddheshSrivastavused tocoachkidsatschoolinthedayandworkwithaprivatefootballacademyintheevening.Henowsellskebabs. Photos:Express

TillthemonthofMay,around60-70coacheswereremovedandbyJunethenumberrosetomorethanahundred.Assportsiscompletelyshutandnooutdoorsportslookspossibleinthecomingmonths,coaches’ livelihoodsarebadlyhit.”

LAWRENCEBING,MUMBAI SCHOOLSPORTSASSOCIATIONHOCKEYSECRETARY

Squaring offwith RootEnglandcaptainwilllooktobolsterhomebattinginsecondTestagainstWI’spacequartet

SANDIPGJULY15

BEFORE THE pandemic changed percep-tionsandprioritiesof lifeandsport, therag-ing debate in England cricketwaswhetherJoe Root should be unburdened off cap-taincy. Not that his batting had blacked-out—he averages a shadeunder 43 as skip-per, streets aheadof his teammates—butata timewhen England’s batting stocks haveworn the thinnest in two decades, theycouldill-affordtolosetheirbest-of-the-gen-erationbatsmantotherigoursof captaincy.NotthatRootwasn’tscoringruns,justthat

hecould’vescoredmanymoreifhewasfreeof responsibility. Post lockdown, they are innomoodtodebate.Aftermiddlingefforts inboth innings in Southampton, England arejust happy to see Root,whomissed the firstTestduetopaternitybreak,backagain. Inhisabsence burned the abjectness of his col-leagues’ ineptness. Everything from tech-nique to temperament was laid bare by aresurgentWest Indiespacequartet.AnymentionofWestIndiesandpacequar-

tet invokes equal dreadand romance, just asanyreferenceofEngland’sbattingcapitulationevokesirrepressiblejokesanddejavu.Forthreedecades,itwastheoft-repeatedtheme—fromthedayCliveLloydunleashed fourhorsemenandapocalypseon themto thedyingdaysofthatgreat fastbowlingtradition, fromthedayEnglandbatsmenstartedcoppingblowsandfearing for their lives to the time theybeganstacking a crewofworld-beating batsmenthemselves.Likeaviciouscycle,whenEnglandbattingimproved,WestIndiesfastbowlingre-gressed.Andviceversa.Awatered-downversion of the once-fa-

miliar narrative unfolded in Southampton,whereJasonHolderandCoranBenStokesandfriendsragged.TheEnglandbattingfirmisnotas abysmal as those they fielded in themid90s,justastheWestIndies’sfastbowlersaren'tquiteMichael Holding or Patrick Patterson.There are other protagonists, Englandmetronome James Anderson,who has col-lected almost asmanywickets as the fourCaribbeanquickscombined,andhisretuningfriendStuartBroad.WestIndies’sstonewallerKraigg Brathwaite could furnish England

counterparts a crash course onbatting time.Butinvariably,aftertheSouthamptonTest,thecentral theme couldn’t waver from theEnglandbatsmenversusWest Indies pacerstrope,whetherRoot-bolsteredEnglandcouldquellaHolder-inspiredWest Indies.

England’s Test-batting crisisThatEnglandhaveaTest-battingcrisishas

beenblowingforawhileandnowthreateningtoexplode intoa full-blownstorm. In the lasttwoyears,seventimeshavetheybeenbundledout for less than 150. Trent Boult and TimSoutheeswungthemoutfor58,KemarRoachandJasonHoldermedium-pacedthemfor77,Aussiequicksblastedthemfor67.EvenIrelandrolledthemupfor85.ThetourtoSouthAfricabroughtrelief.Some

youngsterscameofage—OlliePopestruckhismaidenTesthundred,DominicSibleyfaced774deliveries andRoryBurns showed crab-liketenacityinthefinetraditionofEnglandopen-ers.WiserthoughweresomeoftheEnglishcrit-icswhopointed that thepitcheswere largelyflat, Kagiso Rabadawasmostly off-colour,VernonPhilanderhadaged(andhedulyretiredaftertheseries)andthenewcropwasgrosslywayward.Theyweren’tscrutinisedlikeprede-cessorsintheSteyn-Morkelpomp.Sothesuc-cessesof theseyoungsterscamewithcaveats,andhence theEnglishmedia stayedguardedintheirassessment.After all, theirnumbers remainmiddling.

Burns averages33 in31 innings, his openingpartnerSibley’s correspondingnumbers read37in12,ZakCrawley’sis31ineight,JosButtler's

31 from75outings, thedashing ‘keeper-bats-manquickly runningoutof chancesandBenStokes’s36.Pope,with41, is theEnglandbats-manotherthanJoeRootwitha40-plusaverage.Theverdictwasreservedtillthehomesummer,whereWestIndiesandPakistanwoulddescendwithaphalanxofqualitybowlers.It’s not likeEnglandwereoblivious to the

Caribbeanthreat. Notaftertheywerewalloped2-1earlylastyearbythesamepersonnel.FouroftheEnglandbatsmenfeaturedinthatseries.Yet,theywereutterlyhelplessinchalkingplansto counter them. ForRoach,Holder, ShannonGabrielandAlzarriJoseph,itwasjustamatterofrepeatingthesameoldstrategies.Theyareabrilliantlydevastatingthanadev-

astatinglybrilliantunit, their successbuilt onpatienceandskillthanspeedandhostility.Theydon’tlooktointimidate—eventhemostimpos-ing of them all, Shannon Gabriel, doesn’tthreatenyour life.Theyseldomtargettheribsorheads,barelystrivingforblinkingpace.Whenthis groupdissembles, RoachandGabriel arealready into their 30s, theywouldnot be re-memberedwithasmuchasaweor romanceas theirheydaystalwarts.Butmoreashonestperformersofadifficulttrade.Andtheyarethebest to have flown out of the islands sinceAmbrose,WalshandIanBishop.This simplicitymakes themall themore

dangerous.Theawarenessthatyouknewwhattheycoulddobutcouldn’tpreventthemfromravagingyou.Gabriel andAlzarri hitting thedeck,RoachandHolder striving for seamandswing.Methodsoverlapping,thisiswhattheydo.It’slikegoingoutonacloudydaywithoutanumbrellaandgettingdrenched.TerrificastheWestIndiesbowled,England

batsmenshowedlittlepreparedness.It’swhereRootwouldmakethedifference.It’swhytheyfeel theyneedhimbattingwithheightenedclarity as in the past,why theywant him torightfully reenter thebracketofmodernbat-tinggreatsKaneWilliamson,SteveSmithandVirat Kohli. If Root doesn’t score runs andEnglandlosetheseries,thedebateswouldswirl.Rootaside, it’s timethenextgenerationof

Englandbatsmenstamped theirquality.Andnobetterachancethandousingthemostskil-ful quartet of Caribbeanbowlers to arrive inEnglandthiscentury.England vsWest Indies: (Live on Sony Six

from3.30pm)

EnglandcaptainJoeRootreturnsforthesecondTestafterapaternitybreak.

New Delhi

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