Imran under fIre for gIvIng Jadhav legal optIon Islamabad: The Imran Khan government in Pakistan is facing an uproar for facilitating legal remedies for alleged Indian spy Kulbhushan Jadhav, with the op-position parties slamming it for bringing in a “National Reconcili-ation Ordinance”. The session of the National Assembly saw a heated debate on the matter after Pakistan People Party (PPP) chief Bilawal Bhutto Zardari cited out quorum to prevent the government from laying down an ordinance pertaining to granting foreign citizens an opportunity to file a review appeal. The Op-position blamed the government for trying to get a rubber stamp from the parliament on what it called “facilitating a terrorist, who had confessed to his role in promoting unrest and terrorism in Pakistan”.

uK and IndIa call for deeper tradIng relatIons London: The United Kingdom and India on Friday agreed to explore opportunities for expand-ing and deepening bilateral trade relationships between each other, including an enhanced trading partnership as the first step on a wider roadmap for a Free Trade Agreement (FTA). During the 14th Joint Economic and Trade Committee (JETCO), today, chaired by UK’s Interna-tional Trade Secretary Liz Truss and Minister Piyush Goyal, both countries agreed to work towards removing additional barriers and to work together to ensure both countries maximise the potential of their digital economies includ-ing on data regulation.

hope governor wIll convene assembly soon: cm gehlotJaipur: Hours after meeting Ra-jasthan Governor Kalraj Mishra, Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Friday said he hopes that the Governor will not come under

“any pressure” and that an Assem-bly session shall be called soon. Addressing the media, Gehlot said, “I am sure that Governor will not come under any pressure and he will make a decision on Assembly session soon. We hope the session begins soon.”

25 july 2020 | Issue 80 | new delhi

Alarmed by the success of Indian security forces’ anti-terror operations,

the ISI and the Pakistan Army have asked terrorists in the Kashmir Valley to change their strategy vis-à-vis over-ground workers (OGWs). They have di-rected terror outfits like Lashkar-e-Tayyeba and Jaish-e-Moham-

mad to not use the appointed OGWs for some time and instead train new workers. They have also asked them to include more female underground workers in their outfits and activate them as much as possible; the ISI’s handlers believe that most male underground workers have been identified by the security forces and are on the radar of the police.

Among the commanders who have been instructed by the ISI

are Hizbul in-charge Saifullah Mir aka Ghazi Haider, Hizbul’s Mohammad Ashraf Khan aka Ashraf Molvi and Mohammad Abbas Sheikh aka Turabi Molvi, Jaahid Jargar aka Umar Afghani and Faisal of Jaish, and Shakur of Lashkar. These are the com-manders who have been includ-ed in the list of 10 most-wanted commanders by the security forces and it is noteworthy that a high-level meeting of the secu-

rity forces was held last week re-garding the status of these top-10 commanders in the Valley. In the meeting, there was a detailed dis-cussion on the strategy to elimi-nate them.

On the other hand, the terror-ists in the Valley have also been instructed to activate the eco-nomically weaker women un-derground workers from now on and provide them monthly “sal-ary”. Apart from this, it has also

been instructed on behalf of the terrorist outfits that the terrorists should stay with the economi-cally weaker people even at night time as at present the police have very little access to them.

A senior Home Ministry offi-cial told The Daily Guardian that OGWs were people who helped terrorists one way or another and many of them also provided funding and weapons for ter-rorists. They are generally local

citizens who are also considered the backbone of terrorists in Kashmir. Without their help, it would have been difficult for ter-rorists to carry out operations in Kashmir.

The ISI has also asked the ter-rorists in the Valley to choose small families for their overnight stays and have been given clear instructions to stop use of mobile phones with immediate effect. The foreign terrorists who have

been changing their hideout for more than a day have now been told not to move together, and only one or two foreign terror-ists are asked to stay together in a squad. 

More than 135 terrorists have been eliminated since January this year and the Pakistani intelli-gence agency is constantly chang-ing its strategy in this regard. The terrorists have been clearly asked

IsI changes Its J&K terror strategy, tells let, hIzbul to recruIt women

lonely in the market

A homeless child carrying another child walks on the deserted street of Fancy Bazaar, in Guwahati on Friday. ANI

exclusIve

sales down

reportraJasthan crIsIs no respIte

Anti-China sentiments hit Chinese smartphones hard

The recent successes of Indian security forces compel Pakistan intelligence agency to direct terror outfits operating in Kashmir Valley to enlist female underground workers and activate them.

After the recent India-Chi-na standoff in the Galwan Valley in eastern Ladakh, followed by India’s digital strike on 59 Chinese apps, the fortunes of the Chinese smartphone giants took a tailspin when their shares in the Indian smartphone mar-ket dropped to 72% in Q2 of 2020. According to a report published by Counterpoint Research, the Dragon’s firm grip which controlled 81% of the Indian smartphones market in the first quarter of 2020 suffered a huge jolt. Meanwhile, South Korea’s Samsung gained most from the situation and captured the second spot in the smart-phone market with 26% share, reaching its highest share in the past two years. However, Xiaomi led the Indian smartphone market with 29% shares.“The contribution of Chi-

nese brands fell to 72% in Q2 2020 from 81% in Q1 2020. This was mainly due to the mixture of stuttering sup-ply for some major Chinese brands such as OPPO, Vivo and Realme, and growing anti-China sentiment that was compounded by strin-gent actions taken by the government to ban 59 apps of Chinese origin and delay the import of goods from China amid extra scrutiny. This all resulted from the India-China border dispute during June,” said Shilpi Jain, Research Analyst at Coun-terpoint Research.

The Covid-19 pandemic wiped-out almost 40 days of production as well as the sales of smartphones due to the nationwide lockdown. During May, the govern-ment allowed shops to open and online channel deliver-ies for non-essential items. As a result, the market wit-nessed a surge in sales as the lockdown restrictions were

slowly lifted. “On the supply side, the factories were shut down in April and started operating in May, which re-sulted in supply shortages for some manufacturers. Some brands maintained the supply of their products by importing fully assem-bled handsets. Additionally, the last week of the quarter saw components being held up at customs, which also impacted the supply chain,” said Prachir Singh, Senior Research Analyst at Coun-terpoint Research.

Despite supply constraints and rising negative con-sumer sentiment towards China, Xiaomi continued to lead the Indian smartphone market in Q2 2020. Models like Redmi 8A dual, Redmi Note 8 Pro, and Redmi Note 8 continue to attract consumers’ interest due to competitive pricing, strong value propositions, and good channel reach.

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Amid raging criticism from the international community over the coronavirus issue, China and Pakistan have entered into a secret 3-year pact to advance bio-warfare capabilities including deadly anthrax bacteria against In-dia and their Western rivals, a report said.

According to the secret agreement between the two countries, there have been talks of increasing the num-ber of biological weapons to research dangerous viruses like anthrax. According to

Klaxon, the claim has been made by quoting informa-tion from several intelligence sources. China is funding and for this and has entered into a confidential agreement for three years with the De-fence Science and Technol-ogy Organization (DESTO) of the Pakistan Army.

China›s secret agreement with Pakistan has raised se-rious concerns. The Dragon wants to test biological weap-ons outside its border, taking lessons from the global cloud over the coronavirus issue. It also wants to project such schemes outside its borders to avoid targeting from the

international community. Wuhan Lab has also given fi-nancial and scientific reports and has given the goods and now China is fully funding another dangerous program as well. Sources in the intelli-gence agencies have said that research would be carried out on the dual use of anthrax un-der the project regarding con-fidential biological weapons. The dangerous thing is that there are no arrangements in the lab of Pakistan to pre-vent a virus outbreak. China wants to use Pakistan as an ally against its new rival—India. Pakistan and India

The Rajasthan High Court has ordered status quo to be maintained in the disquali-fication case against former Deputy CM Sachin Pilot and 18 Congress rebel MLAs. No action can be taken against Pilot and other rebel Con-gress leaders for now since Assembly Speaker C.P. Joshi can’t act on disqualification notices issued on 14 July.

The High Court also agreed to Pilot camp MLA Prithviraj Meena’s request to include the Centre as a party to the case since the 10th Schedule’s constitu-tional validity was under

challenge and no order could possibly be passed without hearing the Cen-tre.

The High Court has point-ed out 13 questions which will have to be decided in the case now. This came a day af-ter the after Supreme Court allowed the High Court to pass orders. However, the top court had clarified that the judgment passed by HC will remain subject to final orders of the top court. It will not be implemented till the top court decides on the Speaker’s query: Can courts interfere with the disqualifi-cation proceedings initiated by the Speaker at an interim

India saw a record single-day spike of 49,310 Covid-19 cases, taking the total num-ber over 13 lakh. The death count has now mounted to 30,601 with 740 new fatali-ties in last 24 hours. India is now the sixth most-affected country worldwide, death-wise, behind the US, Brazil, Britain, Mexico and Italy. The total tally of Covid-19 cases reported in India so far is13,06,002, with Maharash-tra leading with 3,47,502 cas-es, followed by Tamil Nadu with 1,99,749 and Delhi with 1,28,389 cases. 

At least 9,615 fresh cases of

Covid-19 and 278 deaths were reported in Maharashtra in the last twenty-four hours. On the brighter side, over 5,714 pa-tients across the state were dis-charged after recovery. Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray said that his administration was aiming for zero mortality due to Covid-19 in the state. Meanwhile, Tamil Nadu reported 6,785 new cases in last twenty-four hours, with 53,132 active cases currently in the state. While 88 more people lost their lives taking the death tally to 3,320, 6,504 patients also got discharged from hospitals, adding up to a total of 1,43,297 discharged cases in TN. Delhi recorded

chIna, paK In a secret deal to expand bIo-weapons agaInst IndIa and west

Relief for Pilot as HC orders status quo on disqualification notices

India overtakes France as Covid deaths cross 30,000 mark

P2

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2bJp to organIse events to celebrate one year of artIcle 370, trIple talaQ

13root faIls agaIn, england lose four wIcKts for 258 runs agaInst wIndIes

9don’t let your guard down, covId can return: aIIms dIrector

IsI changes Its J&K terror strategy, tells let, hIzbul to recruIt women

exclusIve sales down

report

dIsQualIfIcatIon case petItIon dIsmIssed

raJasthan crIsIs no respIte

new revelatIons annIversary celebratIons

pressure tactIc

Anti-China sentiments hit Chinese smartphones hard

2 news t h e da i ly gua r d i a n2 5 j u ly 2 0 2 0n ew d e l h i

New revelations have sur-faced about V. Kota Reddy, managing director of major

realty firm, Sri Aditya Homes Pvt Ltd. Reddy has been in the news al-ready for allegedly cheating former cricketer Sachin Tendulkar and oth-ers by selling them lake lands near Raviryal pond which are not meant for real estate development. The

news had been brought to light by his brother-in-law and director of Sri Aditya Homes, Sudheer Reddy.

Sudheer Reddy has now come for-ward with document claiming that Kota Reddy has also bought 16 acres of land adjacent to the historic Gol-conda Fort. According to his claims, Kota Reddy had planned the con-struction of luxury villas next to the fort, which would cause a part of the area to be shut down. Even though the government has refused permis-

sion for this reason, Kota Reddy has been apparently influencing authori-ties to allow him to go ahead.

Owing to the Golconda Fort’s herit-age status, building new properties and demolishing existing structures are restricted. “Kota Reddy has purchased acres of land behind the Golconda Fort. If he is permitted to build, then the Golconda Fort’s Fateh Darwaza will be closed. The path has been there for centuries, along with some historic mosques,”

Sudheer Reddy told The Daily Guard-ian. “I request the government not to permit Kota Reddy to build houses there. PILs have been filed in the High Court already but Kota Reddy is still trying to influence authorities to bend the rules. Only the courts can save this now,” appealed Sud-heer Reddy.

Heritage experts have also said that building multi-storied structures in the area would endanger the historic site.

Realtor who cheated Sachin Tendulkar plans construction near Golconda Fort, PILs filedloKeswaRa RaoHyDERABAD

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Kapil Sibal slams Rajasthan HC ruling in Pilot case

Allahabad HC junks plea against Ram temple Bhoomi Pujan on 5 August

Relief for Pilot as HC orders status quo on disqualification notices

India overtakes France as Covid deaths cross 30,000 mark

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has decided to or-ganise events to celebrate one-year anniversary of the Modi government’s key decisions like abrogation of Article 370 in Kashmir and abolition of Triple Talaq. The party has written to all its state presidents to sched-ule events from 28 July to 3 August.

The BJP state units have been directed to connect with people in their regional languages and hold a rally. A virtual rally has also been planned by the party at the national level. According to a letter written by Arun Sin-gh, BJP National General Secretary, programmes that are going to be held on 5 Au-

gust in Jammu, Srinagar, and Ladakh, will be attended by a national office bearer of the party. The party has also asked its workers to hold events in both union territories and inform peo-ple about the achievements of the Centre and the two governments over the last one year.

Five video conferences in big states and two video conferences in other states will be held by the BJP in order to discuss develop-ment works with fifty social workers, intellectuals and other learned people in each district. A press conference is also planned in this re-gard in all state capitals. The BJP will also be running the ‘#EkBharatEkatmaBharat’ campaign from 28 July- 3 August.

Last year on 1 August, the President of India Ram Nath Kovind also signed the Muslim Women (Protec-tion of Rights on Marriage), Bill 2019, which became an Act after his approval. It criminalizes instant ‹›triple talaq›› among Muslims and a punishment of three years of impropriety for the hus-band. Thus, the party has also asked its women and minority wings to interact with Muslim women on the abolition of the heinous act. The state units of the party have been directed to inter-act with at least 100 Muslim intellectual women. Arun Singh mentioned that justice was served to Muslim wom-en after the formation of this Act and now there has been a drop of 80 per cent in triple talaq cases.

The RSS-affiliated Bharati-ya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS) is observing a week-long demonstration “Sarkar Jagao Saptah” across the nation till 30 July. The aim is to solve problems of the country’s workforce at the national, state, industry and local levels.

The National Office Bear-ers of the BMS, in its vir-tual meeting held on 7 July, decided to host sector-wise demonstrations at state cap-itals, district headquarters, tehsil/block centres and all big industrial estates. The e-meeting was presided over by BMS national president C.K. Saji Narayanan and

convened by general secre-tary Virjesh Upadhyay.

The labour union, during the seven days, would put pressure on the government to ensure national register for migrant workers, jobs and wages during the ongo-ing lockdown, withdrawal of orders by states to increase working hours from 8 to 12 hours per day and immedi-ately end the privatisation of defence and railways.

“As a part of Sarkar Jagao Saptah, BMS activists will contact grassroots level workers/employees of each sector and educate them about the central as well as state govts’ latest policies and their severe impact on labour. It will also expose the anti-workers ordinances

brought by four state govts and increase of working hours from 8 to 12 hours by 12 by state govts,” the union said in a statement.

It added, “Each day work-ers belonging to one particu-lar sector will conduct pro-cessions and street-corner meeting/public meeting/hall meeting as per the local situations by following all the Covid-19 norms.”

BMS activists have also contacted MPs from differ-ent parties to raise their voice in favour of labour rights in both houses. The BMS has also directed all its units to contact independent unions and other independent in-dustrial federations to seek their participation in the demonstrations.

bJp to organIse events to celebrate one year of artIcle 370, trIple talaQ

RSS-affiliated labour body holds nationwide protests till 30 July

Senior Congress leader and lawyer Kapil Sibal expressed his dissatisfaction over Ra-jasthan High Court ruling in the disqualification case of Sachin Pilot and his 18 other MLAs.

The Rajasthan High Court on Friday said that no ac-tion could be taken against Sachin Pilot and his sup-porting MLAs, providing in-terim relief to the Pilot camp against disqualification.

“Maybe it is time that law-yers will have to take off their robes as when High Courts are not following Supreme Court judgments and go to the public, while adhering to non-violence”, Sibal said.

Criticising the High Court for interfering in the Speak-er’s office, he said that even Governors are not acting as protectors of the Constitu-tion. “We know what hap-pened in Maharashtra as in the wee hours the Governor administered the oath and President rule was revoked. In Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh the same thing happened; MLAs were lured and lodged somewhere else and later the elected govern-ment collapsed”, the former Union law and justice minis-ter added.

Sibal, who moved the Su-preme Court on behalf of Ra-jasthan Assembly Speaker

C.P. Joshi had argued that the High Court’s decision to hear Pilot and his group’s plea against the disqualifi-cation notices goes against the Supreme Court ruling of 1992. Apart from legal is-sues, Sibal also slammed Ra-jasthan’s former Deputy CM and advised him not to make “tamasha” of the Congress in public. He said, “I want to ask Sachin, do you want to become Chief Minister? Tell us. Why protest? If you say you are not joining the BJP, then why are you sitting in Haryana? Why didn›t you attend Congress meetings? Do you want to form your own party? Whatever it is, come out and speak. Don›t sit inside a hotel.”

The Allahabad High Court has dismissed a petition seeking a stay on the Bhoo-mi Pujan ceremony for Ayo-dhya’s Ram Mandir. The HC observed: “At present, we expect the organisers and the government of UP would ensure all the proto-col applicable for social and physical distancing.”

Delhi-based lawyer Saket Gokhale had filed a peti-tion in court, stating that the event was violative of Cen-tre’s Unlock 2.0 guidelines since around 200 people were likely to attend the 5 August event. He claimed that the religious gather-ing will increase the risk of spread of coronavirus.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will come to Ayodhya on 5 August for the Bhoomi Pujan of the Ram temple. PM Modi will be in Ayod-hya from 11 am to 1:10 pm. During this time, prayers and other rituals related to Bhoomi Pujan ceremony will start 8 am onwards at the site of Ram temple in Ayo-

dhya. Few days back, Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth KshetraTrust had proposed 3-5 August to the PM’s Of-fice as the possible dates for Bhoomi Pujan, which will be conducted by priests from Kashi. Apart from the Prime Minister, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath will also attend the ceremony.

In the presence of the Prime Minister, the foun-dation of the temple will be laid in the Abhijit Muhurat of Sarvartha Siddhi Yoga. The PM will install a copper urn as part of foundation worship of Ram temple in accordance with Vedic tra-dition. Copper urn which is

used for foundation worship of the temple, where water, 5 diamond gems, sarvausha-dhi, emeralds, rubies, gold and brass will be kept along with Ganga water contain-ing holy articles from vari-ous pilgrimage spots. Idols of sheshnag (silver serpent), Kurma avatar (tortoise rein-carnation of Lord Vishnu) will also be installed in the foundation. According to Vedic rituals, five rocks named Nanda, Bhadra, Jaya, Rikta and Poorna are to be worshiped after establish-ing the Kalash (sacred water vessel), which should pre-cede formal construction of the temple by installing all needed materials in the foundation.

t o c a r r y out IED as well as fidayeen attacks on the security

forces.Under the influence of

over-ground workers, more than 100 jihadi elements have become terrorists in South Kashmir over the last three years. Now that the se-curity forces have launched a campaign to bring such youths back into the main-

stream, the picture is chang-ing. According to sources, now terror elements have shifted their focus from South Kashmir to North Kashmir.

According to a report of the intelligence agency, August 5 will mark the one-year anni-versary of scrapping of Arti-cle 370 and hence, the ISI is planning to make a big attack on security and government establishments.

Samsung recov-ered fastest as it reached 94% of pre-Covid levels becoming the second

largest brand in Q2 2020. The brand closely followed Xiaomi, increasing its share to 26% in Q2 2020 from 16% during the last quarter. Vivo was also able to man-age post lockdown demand well as it exited the quarter with 60% pre-Covid levels. Realme maintained the fourth spot, though its share declined to 11% as it faced manufac-

turing constraints due to the shut-down of the factory for almost all of May. However, its newly launched Narzo series performed well in the budget segment and it will look forward to further capitalising on momentum in this segment.

OPPO struggled during the quarter due to supply constraints, it managed to gain mind-share by entering the ultra-premium seg-ment (more than Rs 45,000) with the launch of its 5G flagship ‘Find X2’ series. OnePlus regained its

top position in the premium mar-ket (more than Rs 30,000) with its newly launched OnePlus 8 series, which also comes with 5G.

Apple remains the leading brand in the ultra-premium segment (more than Rs 45,000) driven by iPhone 11 shipments, though it lost some share to OnePlus in Q2.“The India-China border stand-off has led to a strong anti-China sentiment across consumers,” said Harsh Talwar, Founder & CEO, CASH FOR PHONE. He

however added that India needed to move from being just an assem-bler of mobile phone components to a large-scale manufacturer of the same. “There are three critical components of manufacturing a smartphone—the memory, display and chipset. Two of these three (chipset & memory) are technol-ogy driven products that require skilled manpower and uninter-rupted electricity. Currently, India imports all three components from China, Korea & Taiwan.”

“The government needs to incen-tivise local and foreign players to manufacture in India. Some meas-ures have already been taken and the results are reassuring. Sam-sung opened the world’s largest mobile manufacturing factory in Noida in 2018. Xiaomi now has seven smartphone manufactur-ing facilities in the country. The company claims that over 99% of products sold in the country are manufactured domestically” Tal-war concluded.

stage be-fore a deci-

sion is taken?From Monday,

the apex court will begin day-to-day hear-ing on the Speaker’s plea questioning Rajasthan HC’s jurisdiction and the ancil-lary question of silencing dissent with disqualifica-tion.

 Rajasthan HC was hearing a petition filed by former Deputy CM Sachin Pilot and 18 Congress rebel MLAs against the disqualification notice issued by Joshi to dis-

qualify them as MLAs. The petition stated, “None

of the petitioners herein have either by expressed conduct or implied conduct, indicated to the members of their constituencies and/or the public at large of their intention to leave or voluntary give up the membership of Indian N a t i o n a l C o n g r e s s . ” The petition junked the allegations as baseless and said that the petitioners had no intention to voluntarily give up Congress party membership.

have been involved in bor-der disputes over Kashmir and have

accused each other of cease-fire violations and sponsor-ing terrorism on its land.

This report comes at a time when the coronavirus which originated from China is

causing havoc in the world. Millions of people have been killed. There is speculation that the virus originated from the Wuhan Institute of Virology. US President Donald Trump has also repeatedly alleged that the coronavirus originated from Wuhan›s lab.

1,025 new Covid-19 cases and 32 fatalities in the last twenty-four hours. The number of active cases now

stands at 13,681 in the capital, with 3,777 deaths so far. 

In the neighbouring state of Uttar Pradesh, 2712 fresh cases were recorded in the last 24 hours. The tally of confirmed Covid-19 cases in India’s most populous state now stands at 21,711. The number includes 37,712 recoveries and 1348 casualties to date.  Haryana also recorded 780 new cases of Covid-19 in the past 24 hours. With this, Haryana›s tally of confirmed Covid-19 cases shot to 29,755, with 6,420 active cases. The virus has al-ready claimed 382 lives in the state. On

the other hand, Punjab has reported 482 new cases in the last twenty-four hours. The total number of cases now stands at 12,216, including 3,838 active cases, 8,096 discharged cases and 282 deaths. Jammu and Kashmir reported 353 new cases and 14 more Covid-re-lated deaths within the last 24 hours, as the tally rose to 16,782. However, au-thorities also recorded 508 recoveries in the state.

Rajasthan reported 375 new cases and four deaths in the last 24 hours. The to-tal number of cases in the state stands at 33,595 presently, which includes 9,125 active cases and 598 deaths. Meanwhile, Gujarat›s tally of confirmed corona cas-es has climbed up to 53,631 with 1068 new cases. The state also recorded 26

more deaths pushing its toll to 2283. At present, there are 12,518 active cases in the state. However, a total of 38,830 patients have been discharged from hospitals across the state post-recovery.

In the south, Karnataka reported 5,007 new coronavirus-positive cases and 110 deaths in the past twenty-four hours, taking the total number of cases in the state to 85,870. This number also takes into account 52,791 active cases and 1,724 deaths. Andhra Pradesh re-ported 8,147 new Covid-19 cases while 49 people died due to the deadly virus. 2,380 patients were also discharged in the last 24 hours. The total number of positive cases in the state has now reached 80,858 with 39,935 discharged patients and 933 deaths so far.  

Senior Congress leader and lawyer Kapil Sibal.

3newsthe daily guardian25 july 2020

new delhi

More than 7 lakh people have been affected across 10 districts in Bihar due to incessant rains and rising floods. The Gandak river breached its main embankment late on Thursday night, causing massive flooding.

The river breached its embankment at three places in Go-palganj and Motihari districts, causing floodwater to inun-date villages. Saran, Barauli, Manjha and Baikunthapur were among the most affected areas. Chhapra and Siwan also faced the wrath of the swelling Gandak. On the other hand, a constant rise in the water levels of Bagmati and Ad-hwara rivers has also been recorded, leading to floods in several parts of Sheohar and Sitamarhi.

Roadways and transport routes have also suffered a hit due to the widespread flooding. The Gandak in Motihari caused traffic to come to a halt on NH 28, leaving people stranded along the highway. Seepage was detected on NH 74 near Sangrampur, Champaran. The main road between Bairgania and Riga in Sitamarhi has also submerged com-pletely, cutting off dozens of villages from reaching the dis-trict headquarters.

On Friday, train services for Darbhanga-Samastipur were also suspended at 7.05 am after floodwater reached the girder bridge near Hayaghat. Meanwhile, NDRF and SDRF teams have been called for service and close to 36,000 peo-ple have been moved to safer locations.

The flood situation in Bihar does not seem to be subsiding soon as rivers have shown an upward trend in water levels. Thousands of hectares of standing crop and hundreds of villages in the state have been affected badly. Other districts which are suffering due to the floods include Kishanganj, Khagaria, Supaul, East and West Champaran, Darbhanga, and Muzaffarpur.

The Central Bureau of In-vestigation has plunged into action on the High Court’s order to probe the murder of Y.S. Vivekananda Reddy, former MP and uncle of Andhra Pradesh Chief Min-ister Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy. The CBI’s technical team did scene reconstruction in Vive-

kananda Reddy’s house in Kadapa district of Andhra Pradesh.

CBI officials questioned watchman Rangaiah and the team examined Vivekanan-da’s bed and bathrooms. They had spoken to his wife, Saub-hagyamma, a couple of days ago and took measurements of his house. The accused Erram Gangi Reddy, Viveka Reddy’s PA Krishna Reddy

and driver Prasad were called by the CBI for interrogation. Watchman Rangaih was taken to the scene to sought details on what exactly hap-pened on that fateful day.

The CBI officials have been staying in Kadapa for some days.

They want to question everyone involved in this case and seek details. Vive-kananda was murdered at

his residence in Kadapa on 15 March 2019 with axes and sharp objects. It became a sensational case during the last general elections. Later, then TDP government con-stituted Special Investigation Teams (SIT).

But his daughter Suneetha Reddy was not satisfied with the SIT probe and moved the HC appealing the case to be transferred to CBI.

Bihar floods: 7 lakh people in 10 districts badly affected

CBI speeds up proBe Into the Brutal murder of Jagan’s unCle

shoCkIng InCIdentgrIm sItuatIon

ex-dgp senkumar’s appoIntee JaIled In gold smugglIng Case200 kg gold was smuggled in through the diplomatic channels.

In a shocking develop-ment, police have arrest-ed Kerala’s former DGP

T.P. Senkumar’s appointee in a gold smuggling case at the UAE Consulate. The accused gunman S.R. Jayaghosh told NIA officers that he often col-lected the diplomatic baggage with smuggled gold from the international airport. Now, it is being alleged that former DGP violated the process specified in the Kerala Gov-ernment Home Department (Secret Section A) Order in selecting gunman Jayaghosh for the Consulate position and his involvement in the smuggling case has stunned the public.

It has been found out that an estimate of at least 200 kg gold was smuggled in mul-tiple consignments through the diplomatic channels at the Thiruvananthapuram airport, all destined for the UAE Consulate. Jayaghosh including his partners Swap-na Suresh, Sarith and cargo agent Sandeep Nair have confessed that jewellery shop owners who were having branches in the Middle-East were involved in smuggling through diplomatic baggage and were making profits (nearly 100 percent includ-ing taxes and duties) from the huge cost differences in gold prices between India and

Dubai. The smuggled gold was concealed in steel packs and were claimed as food items. The smugglers spent Rs 8 crore for gold in Dubai and ultimately its price was almost doubled at Rs 15 crore when it reached Thiruvanan-thapuram.

Diplomatic baggage is not checked, unless there is per-mission from the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA). Because of advanced imag-ing technology, however, the Customs Officers can see what is coming through the baggage scanner, and in this case, that is apparently what happened, and permission was indeed granted by MEA to open the luggage.

Former Kerala Home Min-ister Ramesh Chennithala who appointed Senkumar to the post of DGP has con-fessed that it was his “big-gest mistake”. At the time, Senkumar was seen as a loyalist of Chennithala. Post-retirement, Kumar switched to the BJP.

Senkumar was one of the police officers implicated in the proven false allegations case against legendary ISRO cryogenic rocket engine head Nambi Narayanan, who re-ceived the Padma Bhushan from the Government of India and Rs 1 crore from the Kerala government as compensation for all the in-dignities (including alleged torture) he had to suffer

from the fake case designed to thwart India’s progress in liquid propulsion systems.

Thereafter, Senkumar had been making multiple allega-tions against the Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute of Medical Sciences and Technology (SCT) and its director, Prof Asha Kishore, an interna-tionally acclaimed move-ment disorder specialist in Neurology. SCT is among the top institutions that have been given autonomous na-tional importance status by Parliament, specifically for ensuring excellence. Under Prof Asha Kishore, it has achieved great recognition for path-breaking anti-Covid technologies achieved at a re-cord speed.

Ex-DGP Senkumar, with no scientific background, is nonetheless on boards

of the high science institu-tion SCT, an appointment courtesy the Central govern-ment. His post-retirement foray into “politics” has been controversial, with it being characterised as one of fits and starts. Earlier this year, Kumar had a verbal alterca-tion at his own press confer-ence with a journalist over a question he did not like, and had the journalist physically removed from the press con-ference — not something any astute politician would do. Thereafter, Senkumar lodged a case against the same journalist which was investigated by the police and found to be false and so the case was thrown out.

In a poignant scene vividly described in the book Ready to Fire Nambi Narayanan re-counts how sadness, anger,

sleepless nights, and feelings of helplessness over the false allegations and the despi-cable coverage by a section of the media came to a point when he decided to commit suicide. He asked his lawyer friend to prepare his will without telling him why.

However, a few days later, his daughter Geetha picked up the phone when his law-yer friend told her to convey that Nambi’s will was ready to be collected, she instantly understood what was hap-pening. She and Nambi’s son Sankar confronted Nambi. “So, you want to commit sui-cide?” Getting no response, she shouted at him, “You have decided, eh? What happened to my strong-willed Appa? I thought you will fight and prove to the world your innocence, show the world what you are, ex-pose the people behind this controversy. If not any of that, just answer this. Do you want us to live as a trai-tor’s children? Do you want your grandchildren and the coming generations to live with such a tag?” It took that much for Nambi to realise what he ought to do rather than quitting, and he apolo-gised to his children and re-solved to live and fight.

But why should any scien-tist have to go through such agony just to prove his/her right to work peacefully and with dignity without having

to confront false and manu-factured allegations every day? Shouldn’t India build systems to protect its scien-tists working at breakneck speed and under horren-dous constraints, financial, administrative and organ-isational?

In a sign of the anguish that motivated charges against top SCT officials is causing, faculty at SCT’s biomedical wing and clinical faculty have sent representations to Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan and President of SCT, Dr V.K. Saraswat who is Member, NITI Aayog, ex-pressing confidence in the institution’s Director and President, and complaining about comments made by former DGP Senkumar to the media disparaging the institution, its breakthrough research and development ranging from India’s first heart valve to now anti-Co-vid-19 technologies, its ad-vanced tertiary healthcare and public health interven-tions and training, while be-ing on its Boards.

The scientific community believes that India under PM Modi should build credible systems to protect its scien-tific excellence from abusive and malicious behaviour. Perhaps Padma Bhushan scientist Nambi Narayanan, himself a victim of fake alle-gations, can lead a committee to ensure that.

Special correSpondentKottayam

In one of the biggest crackdowns on the supply of pharmaceutical opioids across the country, the Punjab Police has busted an inter-state drug cartel operating in more than 50 districts of the country spread across 11 states.

DGP Dinkar Gupta in-

formed that 20 persons have already been arrest-ed and 27,62,137 intoxicat-ing tablets, capsules, in-jections and syrup bottles have been seized from them, along with drug

proceeds money of Rs 70 lakh.

Giving further details, the DGP said that the drug cartel, known as the ‘Agra Gang’, was pushing pharmaceutical opioids

(drugs) into the markets all across the country by diverting drugs in huge quantities from the drug manufacturers, suppli-ers, wholesalers and re-tail chemists spread out across the country. Of the 20 people arrested so far, 16 are from Punjab, 2 from UP and one each from Haryana and Delhi, he added.

The Duke of Cambridge Prince William and his wife Kate Middleton have expressed concern over the flood devastation in As-sam’s Kaziranga National

Park, that claimed lives of many animals, officials said.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have written to the park’s Director P Si-vakumar, saying that they were heartbroken to hear about the appalling dev-

astation at the Kaziranga National Park and among its wildlife caused by very heavy monsoon flooding.

“We have the happiest memories of our visit to Ka-ziranga in April 2016 and are shocked by what has happened,” Prince William

wrote in the letter, which was made available to the press by the park authori-ties on Friday.

The deaths of so many animals, including the one- horned rhino, is deeply up-setting, he said.

“We know from our visit

how dedicated all the staff in Kaziranga are in caring for the park’s wildlife, and can only begin to imagine what a difficult time this must be,” William said.

The park has been hit by three waves of floods so far this year with 92 per cent of

its area submerged in water and 123 animals, includ-ing 12 rhinos, dead. Prince William with his spouse Duchess Catherine, spent a memorable time in the park in 2016 enjoying the flora and fauna and its sce-nic beauty. WIth IANS INputS

BIg suCCess

InvestIgatIon

Punjab Police busts inter-state drug cartel, 20 arrested

Prince William expresses shock over Kaziranga flood

anil bharadwajchandigarh

correSpondentnew delhi

assam deluge

Shiv pujan jhapatna

lokeSwara raohyderabad

3rd death anniverSary

Capt amarInder sIngh rememBers mother chandigarh: punjab chief minister captain amarinder Singh on Friday remembered his mother late rajmata mohinder Kaur on her 3rd death anniversary. while remembering his mother, captain amarinder Singh shared an old photograph with an emotional note on his official facebook page and twitter.

he wrote, “my late mother has been a great source of inspiration since childhood. i vividly recall the work she did for the punjabi refugees during partition. today on her death anniversary, i remember her for all her unconditional love and the values she instilled in me.”. ANIl bhArdWAj

to curb viruS Spread

CsIo develops new Corona teChnologIes chandigarh: the central Scientific instruments organisation (cSio) has developed two new technologies to slow down the spread of coronavirus through contaminated objects.

the first product is a ‘contactless automated hand sanitiser dispenser’, manufactured by a gurugram-based firm, Sukriti lifesciences private limited, while the other is an ‘ultraviolet-c based disinfection system’ that will be produced by dicci Sahayog enterprises private limited, pune. dr paromita guha, Kailash chand and g.d. bansal claim that the contactless sanitiser dispenser is different from the existing products as it is resistant to fire.

the ultraviolet system has been developed by Kota Srinivas and dr robert Sam. it has the capability to produce accurate intensity of UV for effectiveness. it has four different models depending on the size of the objects to be disinfected. SoumItrA prIyAderShI

plaSma clinic

relIef for CovId patIents of north haryanachandigarh: haryana opened its fifth plasma center in panchkula. assembly Speaker gian chand gupta inaugurated the center on Friday. gupta said that the number of covid-19 patients has increased in panchkula district since the last few days. Significantly, plasma therapy has proved to be the most effective system yet in the treatment of covid 19. Severe cases are treated with this therapy. it has been proved by medical research that when a person gets infected with covid 19, the body automatically makes antibodies.

preventive meaSureS

haryana govt to ensure InspeCtIons of flood Channels and Canals chandigarh: i haryana power and new and renewable energy minister, ranjit Singh said that during the monsoon there is a possibility of flooding of the canals and flood channels. in such a situation, the officials should regularly inspect these channels and check for repairs.

ranjit Singh inspected the mallewala canal, the bridge on Sahuwala-Karmgarh road, the bridge on Khuiyan-bhagsar road, rattakheda Kharif channel, auto head and chamal head. during the inspection, he also interacted with the farmers and listened to their problems.

ranjit Singh also took stock of the under construc-tion ghaggar-bani-Sahadeva-mammadkheda link channel head and directed the officials to expedite the construction work and complete it within the stipulated time frame. he also took stock of the qual-ity of construction materials. Subsequently, while interacting with the farmers during the visit, ranjit Singh said that the state government is making efforts to ensure that the benefits of these schemes are handed down to the last eligible person in line. he said, “we made sure that during the lockdown, crop procurement was done in a systematic manner and farmers did not face any kind of difficulties. the payments for crops were also made in time. in addi-tion, the time electricity supply of the sowing season was also extended.”correSpoNdeNt

NdrF personnel rescue villagers from flood-affected areas, in patna on Friday. ANI photo

File photo of Kerala’s former dGp t.p. Senkumar.

Giving further details, the DGP said that the drug cartel, known as the ‘Agra Gang’, was pushing pharmaceutical opioids.

The techie, who was kidnapped on 22 June in Kanpur, was murdered on 26-27 June by his friends and his body was thrown into the Pandu river, said police on Friday. SSP Dinesh Kumar Prabhu said that the information about the murder of Sanjeet Yadav, a lab techni-cian, was received from five persons who had been detained by the police.

Among those detained are two of Sanjeet’s friends. The motive behind the kidnapping and murder is still not known. The body of the victim has also not been recovered as yet.

The Kanpur police had landed in a major controversy after it asked the family of a kidnapped man to pay the ransom money to the kidnappers. The

family arranged for the money, Rs 30 lakh, and went to the designated spot on the Gujaini railway track on 13 July.

The police were apparently waiting in the wings to swoop down on the kidnapper. However, the entire plan went awry when the kidnapper fled with the money and there was no sign of the victim.

According to reports, Sandeep, son of Chaman Singh who worked at a local pathology lab, was kidnapped on 22 June. The kidnappers called up the family and demanded Rs 30 lakh as ransom. Subsequently, Chaman Singh lodged a complaint and a FIR was registered at the Barra police station. On the advice of the police, Chaman Singh managed to arrange the ransom amount and, as asked by the police, he handed it over to the kidnapper.

Kidnapped Kanpur lab techie Killed, search for body continuesOUR CORRESPONDENTKANPUR

Award-winning luxe wedding planner and designer, and

founder of A-Cube, Am-bika Gupta, spoke to NewsX in an exclusive interview about her endeavours. She’s been called the “Queen of the South” and for good rea-sons. Over the last 8 years, she has made an immense contribution to the wedding planning industry, and has helped it evolve. Be it in-corporating often ignored south Indian customs into her art, or being the first woman wedding designer to charge a design fee, Ambika Gupta has consistently been a trailblazer.

“I was different in the sense that I hadn’t worked with anyone previously, didn’t have any big back-ing, so to say. The fact that I’ve been able to take my designs pan-India and an international level, I think I’ve helped some budding young designers and plan-ners to see that there’s hope for them as well, and that good work can come from anywhere,” Gupta said.

Expounding how the In-dian wedding scene has changed over the years, Gupta said, “Eight years

ago, was a struggle to say that you are a wedding de-signer. Weddings, if you go back just 20 years ago, used to just be organized by family members, like the uncles and aunts.”

According to Ambika, wedding design has more complexity and depth, than usually given credit for. It contains three sepa-rate disciplines; wedding design, wedding planning, and wedding production.

“We’ve got architects, in-terior designers, we need a lot of technical know-how, and we present everything on 3-D. Everything’s on 3-D, made to scale; we’re basically like an architec-ture firm.” According to her, a wedding designer “is someone who manages the look and feel of the venue, and how it resonates on the day. They make it all come together. It’s a rigorous process,” she said

The pandemic has af-fected the wedding indus-try, according to her, but it hasn’t stopped it. “It’s all about adapting”, says Gup-ta, “We’ve got to implement all kinds of equipment now like UGC tents, and utilize a lot of technology to en-sure the health and safety of our clients. I think sani-tation is going to become a

protocol during and after this pandemic”

Ambika Gupta is a firm believer in universal en-ergy and feels blessed to have been able to work with many different types of people. “Some people want to go all-out on their wedding day now since they’re not paying for ho-tels that much. I’ve worked with pan-India clients, NRI clients as well. We’re doing some really interesting weddings; one is inspired by Van Gogh, one by Mon-et,” she said.

We asked her about her plans, and how she hopes to expand her horizons,

to which she replied, “You know, I don’t want to just be sucked into one thing, like last year, I started my brand A-Cube, for furni-ture rentals, which grew out of the need for using such furniture and not having it available here in Chennai.

A-Cube is now serving all of south India.”

One of the most impor-tant factors in her suc-cess, she feels has been the “global language” that her designs speak. They’re not in any way limited to a cer-tain group or community. “Anybody sitting in the U.S or London, where we have

a lot of clients, can resonate with our Instagram page and our designs. Our work is tailor-made to everyone’s personal stories,” she said.

Ambika plans to open and flower and bake shop, something she says is “fluid into her design do-main.” She’s got a lot of international projects on the horizon, along with various other endeavors. Ultimately though, at the end of the day, the design is her primary goal and ambition. “I want to leave a legacy with design, and I hope that people remem-ber us for the designs and the smiles we create.”

Wedding design a ‘global’ language: ambiKa gupta

brutal murderintervieW

OUR CORRESPONDENTNEW DELHI

news plus the daily guardian25 july 2020new delhi4

‘Eight years ago, it was a struggle to say that you are a wedding designer. Things have changed now,’ says the award-winning wedding planner.

Well-known wedding planner Ambika Gupta.

Prime Minister Nar-endra Modi’s clarion call for Aatmanirb-

har Bharat has encouraged Indians to embark upon the challenging journey of self-reliance. As the country gears up for the long haul, there are certain choices to be made for achieving the desired goals.

India had been doing ro-bust business with China prior to the Ladakh misad-venture. Souring of ties had a fallout and India banned more than 59 Chinese apps; now the government is con-sidering snapping more business ties. A couple of days ago, the government took a strategic decision of banning Chinese compa-nies from bidding for work contracts in bordering areas.

All these decisions are go-ing to hit hard Chinese busi-ness interests. The flip side is that India will also have to chart its way forward. The good news is PM Modi’s bonding with US Presi-dent Donald Trump has now matured into a strong friendship. From a defence perspective India tends to gain from this friendship. The new-found friendship puts India on a strong foot-ing in the emerging precari-ous geopolitical scenario.

Eventually India will have to look at safeguarding its business interests as well. While the country prepares

to do away with the crutch-es of China for its business needs, the question is: Will it be a good idea to increase its dependence on the US for its business needs as well? Es-pecially given the fact that the business profile of the two countries is quite differ-ent. It is indeed difficult for the US to replace China for India’s business needs.

India has been heavily dependent on China for im-porting cheap raw materials to keep the machines mov-ing. This understanding suited both India and China. Chinese imports at reason-able rates saved India the efforts and money for R&D and it could concentrate on manufacturing.

India, being a democratic country, cannot indulge in the kind of labour exploita-tion rampant in China. In a democratic country, deci-sions and their implemen-tation take time, unlike in communist China.

We now have to come to terms with reality post-Ladakh and Covid-19 sce-narios. As things appear today, India will have to look for alternatives for gen-erating economic growth. Prime Minister Modi made a strong US pitch in a key-note address at the India Ideas Summit 2020. He had welcomed US companies to come and invest in India -- a natural, trustworthy partner with huge resources.

However, will the US prove to be a trustworthy partner in business as well, has been an issue of discussion in ev-ery household. There have been some serious aberra-tions with the US, such as the recent decision by the Trump administration on H1B visa.

The bonhomie between PM Modi and President

Trump has been much talk-ed about. However, there is a view that with the excep-tion of China and Pakistan, India should remain equi-distant from every nation and fallback on historic and cultural relations with them. This is important keeping in mind the country’s business interests.

Circumstances though have brought both India and the US closer. PM Modi in his address said that this is a good time when the friendship between the two nations is strong. US firms must make the most of the opportunity for the mutual growth of the two countries. India offers a perfect combi-nation of openness, opportu-nities and options.

“When markets are open, when opportunity is high and options are many, can optimism be far behind,” PM Modi said. His state-ment makes perfect sense. India has improved in the ease of doing business rat-ing of the World Bank. In-dia has made many efforts to make the economy more open and reform-oriented. The reforms have ensured increased competitiveness, enhanced transparency, ex-panded digitisation, greater innovation and more policy stability.

The Prime Minister also made a reference to India reaching record high in for-eign direct investment. FDI inflows in India in 2019-20 were $74 billion. This is an increase of 20 per cent from the previous year. During corona times India has wit-nessed an investment of $20 billion.

However, if India has to fo-cus on overall growth then this phenomenon has to be evenly spread in other sec-tors, and not just telecom. India has a great potential in the pharmaceutical sector. It is known as the pharmacy of the developing world; people in developing countries rely on affordable generic medi-cines made in India. But In-dia has been a target of the multinational pharmaceuti-cal industry. The US and EU companies have been trying hard to stamp out generic

competition from India. So if India has to sustain

growth of its pharmaceuti-cal industry, it has to look for new avenues. India imports almost 70 per cent Agents Pharmaceutical Ingredients from China. Since it is more economical and saves In-dian companies the efforts and money in APIs R&D. Imports of APIs from the US or European countries would increase the manu-facturing costs and the com-petitive prices advantage will go away. Should India stop import of APIs from China, then it has to think of alter-native sources.

According to a FICCI re-port, India needs to extend export incentives, easier duty structures, build con-centrated pharma parks and cities to give a push to the pharmaceutical sec-tor. There is a need to bring transparency on regulatory

approvals required and sin-gle-window clearances. In-terestingly, the government has already started working towards expediting these ef-forts.

In the agriculture sector, the government has brought in some reforms. But there is a need for out-of-the-box ideas; for example, the gov-ernment could think on the lines of working out a mech-anism to convert farmers’ small land-holdings into a profitable business. This could be done through gov-ernment and private play-ers doing agreements with farmers for taking up small land-holdings on lease and merging it into big agricul-tural areas for extensive farming.

This could save the farm-ers from the woes of tiling their small piece of land and incurring losses year after year. Either government or

private players could take their land on rent for a par-ticular span of time and use it for farming on a large scale, using far better technology. Agriculture is one sector where India is self-suffi-cient and it could be further strengthened.

The landowning farm-ers could be employed on their own land. Large-scale agriculture would ensure implementation of ongoing scientific methods such as soil testing and use of bet-ter technology. The US is a leader in extensive agricul-ture; India could use exper-tise of American companies in this regard. This proposi-tion will lead to generation of employment and also have a positive effect on the food processing industry.

A comparison between India and China in pharma-ceuticals, telecom, aviation, automobiles and power sec-

tors shows India’s depen-dence on Chinese imports is quite high in comparison with China, which is self-sufficient in all these sectors.

Our economy is dependent on China for raw materials and semi-finished goods in the sectors mentioned ear-lier. Chinese imports make the cost of Indian finished goods competitive and if we opt to replace China with the US or the EU as source of our semi-finished goods or raw material, the Indian finished products will not remain cost competitive.

Aatmanirbhar Bharat re-quires a complete overhaul of Indian industry from its current state. Not only we have to make finished goods but we also have to indig-enously develop raw mate-rial and intermediary goods to keep our products cost competitive. Therefore India getting closer to the US is not

a replacement to China.The success of Aatmanirb-

har Bharat lies in develop-ment of indigenous tech-nology, raw material and all phases of intermediary goods. A good example is 5G technology. India was forced to go for Chinese equipment due to their cost effectiveness than any other country. Now, if India ousts Huawei as 5G technology partner, then it has to devel-op an indigenous partner, it has to develop indigenous equipment which keeps the cost reasonable for Indian consumers. India has seen growth in the telecom sec-tor. While India was a late entrant into 2G, 3G and 4G technologies, it has to ensure that it doesn’t miss the bus of 5G technology.

Fortunately, advancement made by Jio and its part-nership with technology giants like Google provide a solution to the technol-ogy frontier. However, the equipment development in 5G still remains a challenge due to high cost and it will pose a challenge to techno-logical capabilities of the Indian telecom industry in near future.

There is a need to bring about more reforms to make invitation to US and other foreign companies more attractive. India’s market quality also needs significant improvement in consumer behaviour. Indian consum-ers need to be empowered with more purchasing pow-er for quality product pro-duction and consumption.

Simultaneously India will have to bring revolutionary reforms to make up for the shortfall of raw material and manufactured goods from China. Complete self-reli-ance for India is still a distant dream, but the country has to be realistic in identifying its strengths. India needs to focus on certain potential sectors to excel in the world market.

Aatmanirbhar Bharat is the best choice but it would require at least a decade to fructify. In the meanwhile, people should be prepared for hardships which the commitment requires.

Can US replace China for India’s economic needs?Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s call for Aatmanirbhar Bharat is the ultimate choice provided Indians are prepared for hardships which the commitment requires.

Tough choice

Suddenly, Sushant Singh Rajput’s “apparent” suicide is all over the news again. Partly because of his last film being released, but also because of the uncer-tainty surrounding his death. During an exclusive interview to NewsX, Dr Subramanian Swamy very interestingly highlighted several loopholes in the Su-shant Singh suicide theory. To paraphrase him, he first highlighted the fact that Rajput’s body had been taken to the Cooper hospi-tal for post-mortem. This, says Dr Swamy, surprised him as it is usually run-of-the-mill road accidents that are taken there and not high-profile celebrity sui-cides. Second, he claimed

that while the post-mortem report stating that this was a suicide was only a “pro-visional” one, the body was handed over for cremation. Dr Swamy also wondered why Sushant’s flat had not been sealed and found a couple of other loopholes in the suicide theory such as the fact that the cloth used as a rope was not strong enough to hang a body and that the distance between the bed and the ceiling was not enough to allow a body to hang. All in all, he has asked for a CBI probe.

Why CBI? Doesn’t he trust the state authorities to do a comprehensive inves-tigation? Dr Swamy’s reply was nuanced and equally intriguing. He commented

that while he had no doubt that the Maharashtra CM would agree to a CBI in-

quiry, he was intrigued as to why the state Home Minister (from the NCP)

was opposing it.Dr Swamy also talks

about the Bollywood-

Dubai nexus. And adds significantly that this also includes politicians. Dr

Swamy’s legal team — Ishkaran Bhandari — has also offered legal support to Kangana Ranaut. How-ever Kangana’s case is slightly different from Dr Swamy’s, for she seems to not so much question the suicide itself as the fact as to what drove him to suicide. Her allegations of nepotism in the film industry seem to hit a chord, for suddenly this has become the debate of the day with other voices joining in. Chetan Bhagat has also tweeted about his case, as have others. Sud-denly, Bollywood is divid-ed against those who agree with Ranaut and those who don’t. Shocking tales have come out of careers being manipulated, films being

delayed just to promote a rival, roles being denied… and a lot more.

Cartels and cliques do exist in almost every field, from politics, media to business. In any field the “Outsider” is looked upon with suspicion. Of course, with Bollywood being more glamorous than most other professions, this does get more headlines. Inter-estingly within Bollywood and with the Dubai angle being brought up, there is speculation about a larger game at play. Dr Swamy certainly seems to think so. And once he brings in the role of the politician, the headlines get all the more interesting.Priya Sahgal

perspectiveSuicide or murder?

The curious case of sushanT singh rajpuT

5comment & analysisthe daily guardian25 july 2020

new delhi

opinionAtir KhAn

Cartels and cliques do exist in almost every field, from politics, media to business. in any field the ‘Outsider’ is looked upon with suspicion. Of course, with Bollywood being more glamorous than most other professions, this does get more headlines.

In the agriculture sector, the government has brought in some reforms. But there is a need for out-of-the-box ideas; for example, the government could think on the lines of working out a mechanism to convert farmers’ small land-holdings into a profitable business. This could be done through government and private players doing agreements with farmers for taking up small land-holdings on lease and merging it into big agricultural areas for extensive farming.

Prime Minister narendra Modi.

Actor Sushant Singh rajput.

Before proceedings further, let us consid-er two foreign judg-

ments first:

1. French courtCase title: De Zorzi v. Attor-ney General Appeal Court of Paris, France

Citation: [2019] EWHC 2062 (Admin)

Facts: Ms. Zorzi was fac-ing a trial in the district court of France. Pending decision, she was released on 15 July 2000 under ‘ju-dicial supervision’. She was told that she was free to leave France but would have to return the following year. She was required to re-spond to summonses issued by the French court and to inform the court of any change of address. She was living in the Netherlands. The district French court were able to write to her on 30 October 2000 at her Dutch address, therefore, she was not, during that pe-riod, unlawfully at large nor was she a fugitive. She was required to attend the court in France on 28 June 2001 and she did so. She was ul-timately convicted but was informed of it when she had already returned to the Netherlands after appear-ance on 28 June 2001. After her conviction, the district judge of the French court declared her as fugitive for four reasons: First, she ac-quired this status because she was informed in writ-ing of the conviction and sentence not long after they were decided although the intimation was served to her in the Netherlands. Second, she appealed conviction and sentence through her lawyers. Third, she chose not to surrender herself to the French prison authori-ties when required to do so. Fourth, she was aware that her return was sought when she was subject to the extradition proceedings in the Netherlands. This dec-laration of status as fugitive was overturned by the ap-peal court. The appeal court held that firstly there was no clear evidence that she fled to Holland to avoid be-ing told the outcome of the trial; instead she was simply returning home. The ap-peal court opined that mere receipt of a document from a foreign court by a per-son in the country of their residence informing them of their conviction in that foreign state and requiring their return does not make them a fugitive. It cannot be

said that that person know-ingly placed herself beyond the reach of a legal process when they were already be-yond its reach. Secondly, her appealing a sentence does not amount to her know-ingly placing herself beyond the reach of a legal process; on the contrary she is en-gaging in the legal process, albeit at a distance and by means of her lawyers’ rep-resentations. Thirdly, to sur-render herself to the French prison authorities would have amounted to abandon-ing her resistance to extra-dition, and resisting extra-dition does not render an individual a fugitive. In any event, declining to surren-der herself to the request-ing state does not constitute knowingly placing herself beyond the reach of a legal process. It amounts instead to declining to place herself within the reach of that pro-cess. She was not obliged to place herself within the reach of a legal process in-stituted in another country and to leave and give up her home and lawful residence. Fourthly, the fact that she was aware that her return was sought when she was subject to the extradition proceedings in the Nether-lands is of no consequence.

2. uK: the high court oF JusticeCase title: Marianne Pillar-Neumann & Public Pros-ecutor’s Office

Citation: [2017] EWHC 3371 (Admin)

Facts: District Judge found appellant fugitive on the ground that in 2004 the appellant became aware that a domestic warrant for her arrest had been issued in Austria and that by fail-ing to leave her home in the UK and to go to Austria, so that she could be arrested pursuant to that warrant, she was evading arrest and was therefore a fugitive. The High Court rejected this finding and opined that even if she was aware of the domestic warrant, lawfully remaining in her estab-lished country of residence does not mean she was evading arrest or was a fugi-tive. The court held that she was not fleeing the country or concealing her where-abouts. She was not taking any positive steps to evade or avoid arrest. She was sim-ply carrying on living in her country of residence, as she was lawfully entitled to do. The High Court added that she was not knowingly plac-ing herself beyond the reach of a legal process. There is no case in which it has been found or even suggested that failing to give up home and lawful residence in or-der to place within the legal process instituted in anoth-er country makes someone a fugitive. The High Court, in fact noted that “fugitive” is not a statutory term but a concept developed in the

case law. To declare a per-son’s status as a fugitive, it must be established to the criminal standard. In this case, the district judge was wrong to find to the crimi-nal standard that the appel-lant was a fugitive.

In this backdrop, let’s consider a situation in In-dia. An individual, a citizen of India, acquires citizen-ship of another country after clearance by Indian authori-ties (thereby automatically ceases to be an Indian citizen) and permanently shifts to the other country and starts living there law-fully. Subsequently, Fugitive Economic Offender Act is enacted and proceedings commenced against that individual who is a lawful citizen of another country. A notice is served upon him asking him to surrender to face prosecution or else be declared a fugitive. A fun-damental question arises. Does that individual, a for-eign national, not have right to decline placing himself within the reach of process issued by Indian court un-der the FEO Act and instead exercise his rights to resist extradition? The answer, in my opinion, is yes. He has right to decline surrender and right to resist extradi-tion during which time he cannot be declared a fugi-tive. But, the law as it stands in India, FEO Act declares an individual fugitive even if that individual lawfully ac-quired citizenship of anoth-er country much before the enactment and commence-ment of proceedings under FEO Act. Things would have been different had there been a clear evidence to criminal standard that the individual possessed knowledge of the FEO pro-ceedings while he was in India and he knowingly fled to another country to intentionally place himself beyond the reach of process. But to declare an individual fugitive who has already left India and its citizenship is not only a retrospective ac-tion but also amounts to making him abandon resis-tance to extradition, which is his basic legal right.

The ‘statement of objects and reasons’ of the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act (herein after referred to as FEO Act) is as under: -

“There have been several instances of economic offend-ers fleeing the jurisdiction of Indian courts anticipating the commencement of criminal proceedings or sometimes dur-ing the pendency of such pro-ceedings. The absence of such offenders from Indian courts has several deleterious conse-quences, such as, it obstructs investigation in criminal cases, it wastes precious time of courts and it undermines the rule of law in India. Further, most of such cases of economic offences involve non-repayment of bank loans thereby worsening the financial health of the banking sector in India. The existing civil and criminal provisions in law are inadequate to deal with the severity of the problem. In order to address the said prob-lem and lay down measures to deter economic offenders from evading the process of Indian law by remaining outside the ju-risdiction of Indian courts, it is proposed to enact a legislation, namely, the Fugitive Economic

Offenders Bill, 2018 to ensure that fugitive economic offenders return to India to face the action in accordance with law.”

The words, “...to ensure that fugitive economic offenders re-turn to India to face the action in accordance with law.” are of utmost importance.

Similarly, section 2(f) of the FEO Act states “fugitive economic offender means any individual against whom a warrant for arrest in relation to a Scheduled Offence has been issued by any Court in India, who— (i) has left India so as to avoid criminal prosecution; or (ii) being abroad, refuses to return to India to face criminal prosecution”

Likewise, when a notice is issued under section 10 (3) of the FEO Act, it requires the individual to appear in person at a specified place and time and failure to ap-pear shall result in decla-ration of the individual as fugitive economic offender. After issuance of notice, sec-tion 11 of the FEO Act states that if the individual ‘ap-pears in person’, the special court may terminate the fu-gitive proceedings.

Words, “...to ensure that fugitive economic offend-ers return to India to face the action in accordance with law...” used in the statement of objects and rea-sons of the FEO Act togeth-er with the words “..being abroad, refuses to return to India to face criminal prosecution” appearing in section 2(f) and words “ap-pear in person” used in sec-tion 10 and 11, leads to an in-evitable conclusion that the intent and the objective of the FEO Act is to bring back the accused to face pros-ecution or else confiscate his properties.

Now, the question that arises is whether an individ-ual, who is lawfully residing in his country of residence, even if he is aware of the do-mestic warrant issued in the requesting state, be declared fugitive, if the individual de-clines to place himself with-in the reach of that process?

The answer, in my per-sonal opinion, as well as in terms of decisions passed by the foreign courts is no.

Let us now analyse FEO Act from an international perspective.

new ZealandUnited Kingdom enacted Fugitive Offenders Act on 27th August 1881. In 1881, New Zealand had been a “self-governing colony” of the United Kingdom with the Parliament of the United

Kingdom retaining the pow-er to legislate for the colony. Thus the 1881 Fugitive Of-fenders Act had applied to New Zealand. In 1947 the New Zealand Parliament enacted the Statute of West-minister Adoption Act by virtue of which it acquired full power “to make laws having extra-territorial op-eration. Subsequent repeals of relevant sections of the New Zealand Constitution Act 1952 by the New Zea-land Constitution Amend-ment Act 1970 completed the process in the evolution of New Zealand as an inde-pendent State. Consequent-ly, in 1976, when the United Kingdom repealed and re-placed the 1881 Act with a new Act, its application was not extended to New Zea-land. The Parliament of the United Kingdom replaced 1881 Act with an up-to-date one but in New Zealand 1881 Act still subsisted like an unburied corpse. It was then that the Government noted that it should decide whether to ask Parliament to replace 1881 Act with a functional statute with re-spect to the United King-dom “or” whether, if United Kingdom be regarded as a ‘foreign country’, to invoke the provisions of the New Zealand’s Extradition Act 1965 by concluding an ap-propriate treaty. Ultimately, the government of New Zea-land enacted the Fugitive Offenders Amendment Act 1976, which amended the 1881 Act.

The aforesaid underlined portion is of utmost impor-tance. After New Zealand became independent State, the Government had to decide whether to regard United Kingdom as a ‘for-eign country’ to invoke New Zealand’s Extradition Act 1965 or to have a new func-tional statute replacing 1881 Fugitive Act. Therefore, the government could choose one and not both.

But India, on the contrary, has enacted two statutes for the same purpose.

Further, under the fugi-tive act 1976 of New Zealand there are various safeguards available to the accused in sec. 29A -

“29A. (1) Notwithstanding anything in this Act, a fugi-tive or a person accused of an offence shall not be returned under this Act from New Zea-land to another Commonwealth country if the offence in respect of which his return is sought is an offence of a political charac-ter.”

“(2) Notwithstanding any-

thing in this Act, fugitive or a person accused of an offence shall not be returned under this Act from New Zealand to an-other Commonwealth country if – (a) In any case to which Part I of this Act applies, it appears to the Minister of Justice, or to any court before which the fugi-tive is brought, or to any court or Judge on an application for a writ of habeas corpus; or (b) In any case to which Part II of this Act applies, it appears to any court before which the accused person is brought, or to any court or Judge on an applica-tion for a writ of habeas corpus – that – (c) The return of fugi-tive or accused person, although purporting to have been sought in respect of an offence for which, but for this subsection, he would be liable to be returned, was sought for the purpose of – (i) Prosecuting or punishing him for an offence of a political character; or (ii) Prosecuting or punishing him on account of his race, religion, nationality, or political opinions; or (d) If the fugitive of the accused person is returned, he may be preju-diced at his trial, or punished, detained or restricted in his personal liberty, by reason of his race, religion, nationality, or political opinions.”

But, the FEO Act of 2018 has no safeguards.

canada In a case, Germany sought extradition of a Canadian citizen residing in Canada.

Sec. 6(1) of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Free-doms reads - “6(1) Every citizen of Canada has the right to enter, remain in and leave Canada.”

Section 52(1) of the Ca-nadian Constitution reads “The Constitution of Canada is the supreme law of Canada, and any law that is inconsis-tent with the provisions of the Constitution is, to the extent of the inconsistency, of no force or effect.”

Section 1 of the Canadian Charter reads “The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms guarantees the rights and free-doms set out in it subject only to such reasonable limits pre-scribed by law as can be demon-strably justified in a free and democratic society.”

A joint reading of all these provisions, the Chief Justice of the High Court while ac-cepting that extradition is ‘prima facie’ an infringe-ment on the s. 6 mobility rights of a citizen concluded that the Requesting State had established that ex-tradition is a procedure prescribed by law and is a reasonable limitation on one’s guaranteed rights and

freedoms which can be de-monstrably justified in our society.

In this case, when the Dep-uty Minister of Justice was questioned about exile and deportation with relation to s.6, the Minister replied as follows: -

“Perhaps I might mention that we do not see Clause 6 as being an absolute right. I will give you an example of a situation where a citizen would, in effect lose his right to remain in the country, that would be by virtue of an order under the Extradition Act; if someone committed an offence in another country and he is sought in this country, he could be surrendered to the other country. The same thing would apply in the case of coun-tries belonging to the Common-wealth to which the Extradition Act does not apply, but the Fu-gitive Offenders Act does apply. In that situation a Canadian would not have the right to re-main in the country by virtue of the offences he might have com-mitted in another country and for which he is sought so that justice could be applied. Under the Extradition Act there is a process to which the person is entitled before that extradition order can in fact be finalised.”

The above paragraph clearly shows that a person’s freedom of movement can be restricted only by extra-dition Act and if extradition Act is not applicable to a cer-tain country (for example commonwealth country as mentioned above) then Fu-gitive Offenders Act shall apply.

But India, on the contrary, applies both Extradition as well as FEO Act on an indi-vidual at the same time.

united KingdomExtradition Acts 1870 was in force until it was repealed by Fugitive Offenders Act 1881, which was repealed by Fugitive Offenders Act 1967, which was then repealed by Extradition Act 1989, which was in turn repealed by Extradition Act 2003. Under all these Acts includ-ing UK’s Fugitive Offenders Act, an accused/fugitive had in-built safeguards.

Safeguards provided un-der the then UK’s Fugitive Offenders Act 1967:

“Sec. 4(1) – A person shall not be returned under this Act to a designated Commonwealth country or committed to or kept in custody for the purpose of such return, if it appears to the Secretary of State, to the court of committal or to the High Court ... on an application for habeas corpus or for review of the order of committal -

(a) that the offence of which that person is accused or was convicted is an offence of a po-litical character;

(b) that the request for his re-turn (though purporting to be made on account of a relevant offence) is in fact made for the purpose of prosecuting or pun-ishing him on account of his race, religion, nationality, or political opinions; or

(c) that he might, if returned, by prejudiced at his trial or punished, detailed or restricted in his personal liberty by reason of his race, religion, nationality, or political opinions.”

In UK, Fugitive Offend-ers Acts of 1881 & 1967 were used for extradition. Under these Acts extradi-tion was prohibited for po-litical offences. Under the UK’s Extradition Act 1870, the Fugitive Offenders Act 1881, 1967, and the Extradi-tion Act 1989, the Secretary of State possessed a general discretion whether or not to surrender the fugitive to the requesting State.

The Fugitive Offenders Acts enacted by countries from time to time had in-built safeguards such as dual criminality, require-ment that a prima facie case be made out, the principle of speciality, prohibition on extradition on grounds of race, religion, nationality, or political opinions, prohi-bition if accused is likely to face prejudice, unjust deten-tion etc but there is no such safeguard available to the accused under the FEO Act of India.

Consider a situation where there is an extradition trea-ty/arrangement between India and a foreign State. The question of law that needs attention is whether inspite of having an extra-dition arrangement/treaty containing safeguards, if the government of India sought return of the accused un-der FEO Act failing which confiscate his properties, will it not amount to denial of justice to the accused by forcing him to abandon his resistance to extradition, who otherwise could have legally resisted extradi-tion. If the accused chooses to resist extradition, his properties are confiscated under the FEO Act and if the accused surrenders un-der the FEO Act in order to save his properties, he is automatically deprived and abandoned of the legitimate resistance to extradition. Is this not equivalent to forcing an accused to give up one of his two constitutional rights i.e right to equality before law or constitutional right to property? Is this not arbi-trary and unreasonable?

Keeping in mind how the Fugitive Offenders Act de-veloped in the western coun-tries and how the foreign courts dealt with the term ‘fugitive’, it is to be seen how fairly, justly, and reasonably the FEO Act is amended and applied especially to the dis-putes relating to Nirav Modi, Vijay Mallya, Mehul Choksi etc. In my personal opinion, the law as it stands now, is unconstitutional for the rea-sons stated above.Adv. Rohan Garg is Part-ner, Fox Mondal & Co. He is a LL.M (Utrecht University) D-1926/2005

Fugitive Economic Offenders Act, 2018 vis-à-vis extradition: A viewpointAnalysing the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act, 2018 (FEO Act) with regards to extradition.

policy & economic law

opinionRohan GaRG

legally speaking the daily guardian25 july 2020new delhi6

Lt Gen P.R. ShankaR (Retd.)

aShiSh SinGhNew Delhi

aShiSh SinGhNew Delhi

AnAlysis

Close relAtions CommAnders’ ConferenCe

7defence t h e da i ly gua r d i a n2 5 j u ly 2 0 2 0

n ew d e l h i

In an article on 5G, I out-lined how China is wag-ing multi-domain war-

fare (MDW) with Huawei as one of its Trojan Horses. It evoked great response. It also evoked great concerns from some right-thinking people as well:

I agree with the threat posed and China’s game. My appre-hensions….it will be ‘back to business as usual’ once the situ-ation normalises. In the ICT sector nothing gets done which is not made in China, or has Chi-nese parts. Who will fight the L1?

While the PLA has a finger in everything, we do not even have control over the DRDO, HAL, Ordnance Factories or even the MES or the Cantonment Boards.

5G allows China to hide in plain sight. The borders are moving to our homes and smartphones. 5G and IOT allow Chinese to trigger cyber-attacks from millions of vulnerabilities.

I share their concerns. My worry is also “back to business as usual”. At the first whiff of normalcy, the bureaucracy will start the familiar game of snakes and ladders. One step forward and many backwards. The Chinese believe in two steps forward and one step back. Some contrasting similar-ity! Even our PM is said to have remarked that he will not allow our bureaucrats to waste his second term. Tell-ing thoughts.

However, the Virus and Galwan have changed the “usual”. Everyone under-stands the virus. It threat-ens our lives and lifestyle. So change is forced to a new normal. However the Chinese threat has seeped under the carpet. Galwan has exposed the poison underneath. What is hap-pening in Ladakh is only a trailer. There is a sinisterly dark multidimensional war being waged against India.

This will not abate. After the US, India threatens Chinese superpower dreams. That is why China is in military con-flict with one and heading into war with another. China will initiate conflict and war despite sleeping in our bed to make trade and commercial profit. Curtailing India will be one of its key national objectives. It will be aggres-sive and assertive. Whether the assertiveness stems from opportunism, imperious-ness, reactivity or insecurity is immaterial. Hence under-standing the MDW concept and its Chinese manifesta-tion is important to move to the new “unusual”.

Multi-DoMain Warfare: overvieWThe Concept: The Chinese practice the concept of ‘Un-restricted Warfare’. This led the US Army to adopt the Multi-Domain Operations (MDO) approach. However MDO is operational and too narrow when applied at a national/international level. A wider understand-able concept like MDW is needed to encapsulate the dark approaches of China in conducting war. Clause-witz’s dictum that “war is politics by other means” and conversely “politics is war by other means” encapsulates the MDW spectrum. It can be defined as conventional and/or non-conventional war carried out by state, non-state or state sponsored actors using hard and soft power during war, conflict or peace situations by day or night for specified na-tional outcomes in various interacting and overlapping domains. These multiple do-mains are represented in the graphic. Military Civil Fusion: A leading tool for execution of MDW is “Military-Civil Fu-sion,” (MCF). The colonial system gave birth to MCF. It was refined by USA. How-ever China has taken it to a sinister level. The CCP is at the apex of MCF. The troika underneath — Government, PLA and Civilian firms are meshed seamlessly. They front each other inter-changeably assisting the CCP in retention or capture

of power. Barriers between China’s civilian industry and military — in research, development and trade have been eliminated. Firms like Huawei, ZTE and Byted-ance are Trojan Horses of CCP. Their State-Owned Enterprises and Financial system are the main actors. MCF focuses on dual use technologies like quantum computing, big data, semi-conductors, 5G, advanced nuclear technology, aero-space technology, and AI. The technologies are devel-oped/acquired legally or il-legally. Chinese methods in-clude investment in private industries, talent recruit-ment programs, academic and research collaboration, forced technology transfer, intelligence gathering, and outright theft. State financ-ing and subsidies are heavy. The core dual use areas are Artificial Intelligence to give them an asymmetrical ad-vantage in warfare, New Ma-terials for high-value indus-tries like aerospace, Energy Storage which is an essen-tial ingredient of battlefield stamina. (China controls the global Li Ion battery chain), Communication which is the lifeblood of societies and mil-itaries and Nuclear Power to control the future nuclear export markets. MCF vastly expands the Chinese eco-nomic basket, converts PLA into a technologically ad-vanced military and enables China to conduct a ceaseless MDW. Let us now see as to how China is waging a dark all pervasive Multi Domain Warfare against India.

Conventional DoMainsPremeditated expansionist aggression through conven-tional Air, Land and Sea do-mains is manifest in Ladakh and South China Sea. This will continue. India must be prepared for direct Chinese aggression in future also. Simultaneously India needs to prepare for indirect and insidious moves through Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar, and Bangladesh. Pakistan and Nepal will re-main willing catspaws of China. Sri Lanka (Hamban-tota), Pakistan (Gwadar) and

Myanmar (Kyaukpyu) are the seaborne manifestations in waiting.

Disruptive teChnology DoMainsThe disruptive technology domains are now coming to fore. Military strategists and Government ‘Pundits’ need to understand it better to de-velop counter strategies. Space: Space technology is an investment. A lot of space exploration is the search for liquid hydrogen to power fuel cells and attain energy dominance. The quest for new materials must be seen in this context. The ability to have a vibrant military and civilian aerospace ecol-ogy is an enterprise activity. China’s MCF plays a huge part in this enterprise. The spinoffs are dual use Satel-lite and Anti-Satellite tech-nologies. In Ladakh, space technology supported their influence ops to beam a Chi-nese map on Pangong Tso into our bedrooms. Dicey. Cyberspace and Electro-magnetic Spectrum: Chi-nese exploitation of these in-teractive and interdependent domains is well established. It has carried out numerous cyber-attacks against India, USA and Australia. Its quest for AI, Communication and ICT technologies through MCF has multiple contexts. Unbridled Profits. Control over governments through communication and social media surveillance. Intel-ligence collection. Military prowess. These two key domains underpin Chinese domination in other do-mains.

Nuclear Domain: The nu-clear domain is not confined to nuclear war. It extends to proliferation for geopolitical control through Pakistan, N Korea and now probably Iran. A dangerous nuclear grouping. It is also about use and denial of nuclear energy. Chinese efforts to block In-dia from Nuclear Suppliers Group is essentially denial of nuclear raw material. It de-lays India’s efforts at achiev-ing critical mass in the Tho-rium cycle, which is our path to strategic independence.

Dark poWer DoMainsChinese ‘Three war’ strat-egies of Public Opinion, Legal and Influence ops are dark power domains. They exploit the power of information and data in a continuum. The CCP con-veys political intent through these domains and prepares ground for other domains to succeed. Public Opinion: China weaponises public opinion by manipulation, misinfor-mation, sowing dissent, and discord in democratic socie-ties. It shapes domestic and international public opinion blatantly through media, military experts, and politi-cal parties. A halo is built to make the Chinese look ‘Ten Feet Tall’ and invincible. Legal Status: China always portraying itself as a victim while blatantly violating the international rules-based order. Legal justification, through mythical history, is standard. Others are ac-cused of breaking rules. Most importantly, the legal loopholes of democracies

are exploited. Target coun-tries are left with no choice but to accept the Chinese fait accompli. Influence Operations: Chi-nese narratives are being built through pliant politi-cians, media, and officials. Think tanks, academic institutions, workers un-ions, industry, and even the government is penetrated to influence thought and de-cision. It will continuously exploit Indian plurality and fissures in the political and bureaucratic firmaments. China will ensure that either a wrong decision or one that favors it is taken.

traDitional DoMainsEconomy, Diplomacy and Politics/ Geopolitics are tra-ditional domains. Energy and resource exploitation are historical endeavors by expansionist nations. As China heads into isolation we need to remember — an isolated and poor China was always troublesome and ex-pansionist. A rich and am-bitious China will be even more so. Political: China is a political bully eternally threatening and coercing everyone. This will continue. PLA’s intru-sion when Xi Jinping was visiting India was a premedi-tated hostile political move. The current military ag-gression in Ladakh is also a well-planned political move. A nation which can declare Dalai Lama as a terrorist and support Masood Azhar displays political perversion. Expect a politically hostile China which will interfere in our internal affairs at every

turn. The Pakistani threat is peanuts in comparison. Economy: China makes countries economically in-tertwined and dependent upon it. Thereafter it coerces and threatens them to defer to its political requirement. Many countries are subject to such threats including the US. China undermines the International financial system to debt trap weaker nations. India’s commercial dependency on China can be weaponised any day now. That will definitely force In-dia into the next “unusual”. Diplomacy: The Chinese ‘Wolf Warrior’ diplomacy has been loutish to say the least. It seeks to undermine the target country’s sover-eignty unambiguously. It happened in Australia re-cently and we could expect it to happen anytime. Energy and Resource Ex-ploitation: A rising China is thirsty for resources and energy. It is sucking out mineral and oil resources from Africa through the BRI and debt traps. India must expect trouble. We have spurned all their schemes.

health DoMainChina has weaponized health through the Wuhan Virus. It let the virus out deliberately. Mask Diplomacy was used to threaten countries which did not toe its line. The recently launched Health Silk Road as an alternative to the BRI is a new front.

the neW unusualChina is waging a 360-de-gree MDW systematically against India. This will continue whether China be-comes a superpower or not. China’s comprehensive na-tional power outweighs In-dia’s. We therefore have two choices. We partner with China or not. Partnering China means that we will be-come Pakistan Mark 2 even-tually. That is not acceptable to any self-respecting Indi-an. Hence, we must contest China comprehensively. Re-sultantly India must build its strength across all domains. Business as usual is no more an option. India must move to business as unusual.

India can thwart China

presently. However it can-not contain China on its own. As per our national policy we cannot be part of an alli-ance. Hence, we must be part of a strategic partnership. It could be the Quad or Quad plus or any other with a fo-cused geopolitical, military, and economic agenda. Part-ners need not even come to each other’s direct aid except in dire emergency. A differ-entiated but synergistic ap-proach based on common intelligence, capacities, and purpose is good enough.

An economic revival neces-sitates grasping opportuni-ties. We are strong in ICT and auto sectors. We can attract relocation in these sectors and build around them. If tech companies are quitting Hong Kong, they should be attracted here. Similarly in other sectors. Reforms are needed for attracting reloca-tion and for Atma Nirbharta to take off. China respects strength. Hence the need to strengthen our Armed Forces in certain core areas is paramount. We need to start our own version of MCF. Communication, AI, Cyber-space, aerospace, space, and energy are starters. All in all, business as unusual must be the order of the day. If Gov-ernment functionaries dither and prevaricate, then India lies exposed. Simple as that.

Lastly, the Chinese Com-munist Party is an ideology. It cannot be defeated by ki-netic means. It must be de-feated by counter ideas and ideology — religion, democ-racy, or ethnicity. Mythologi-cally, Ravan’s empire started collapsing after Hanuman carried the battle across to Lanka and set it afire. China has four Lankas — Tibet, Xinjiang, Taiwan, and Hong Kong. Time to set some or all of them on fire.

Lt Gen PR Shankar was India’s DG Artillery. He is highly deco-rated and qualified with vast operational experience. He con-tributed significantly to the mod-ernisation and indigenisation of Artillery. He is now a Professor in the Aerospace Dept of IIT Ma-dras and is involved in applied research for defence technology. His other articles can be read on his blog www.gunnersshot.com.

the dArk world of ChinA’s multi-domAin wArfAre India must build its strength across all domains. Business as usual is no more an option. It’s time the country moved to business as unusual, especially with its relations with China.

Amid LAC tension, India and Israel discuss defence ties

IAF reviews preparedness and strategies for next decade 

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh had a telephonic conversation with Defence Minister of Israel Lt Gen Benjamin Gantz on Fri-day. Both the Ministers expressed satisfaction at the progress of strategic co-operation between the two countries and discussed possibilities of further strengthening the defence engagements. They also expressed satisfaction at the ongoing collaboration in research and develop-ment in fighting pandemic Covid-19 which will not only benefit the two coun-tries but also aid the larger humanitarian cause. The Defence Minister invited

greater participation of Is-raeli defence companies under the new liberalised

foreign direct investment (FDI) regime in defence manufacturing.

The two ministers ex-changed views on regional developments. The Defence Minister of Israel respond-ed positively to an invitation from Rajnath Singh to visit India at the earliest oppor-tunity. One of the sources aware of the discussion in-formed The Daily Guardian, on the condition of anonym-ity, “The emergency pur-chase of weapons, especially few missiles and air defence system for the Indian Army and the Air Force was the key agenda of the telephone conversation.” It must be noted that Israel and India share best of the relations in all domains and Israel has always stood by India in providing quick defence purchases whenever India needed it.

The Indian Air Force (IAF) concluded its three-day Air Force Command-ers’ Conference (AFCC) after a series of discussions and reviews on opera-tional preparedness and strategies for countering security threats envisaged across the entire spectrum. They dis-cussed the current situation and there-after carried out a thorough review of the IAF’s transformation roadmap for the next decade. Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Bipin Rawat, Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS), Admiral Kar-ambir Singh and Chief of the Army Staff (COAS), General M.M. Naravane addressed the Conference and inter-acted with the Commanders as well as the Principal Staff Officers (PSOs) at Air HQ on matters of jointness and integrated warfighting. The Chief of the Air Staff (CAS) reviewed the status and issues related to all Commands as well

as branches at Air HQ.In his closing address, the CAS ar-

ticulated Vision 2030 laying down the milestones for transformation of IAF in the coming decade. He stated that it was important to recognize the nature of emerging threats in a rapidly changing world. He also emphasised on the need for rapid capacity building, increase in serviceability of all assets and dedicated work towards effective integration of

new technologies in the shortest time-frames. He reiterated that the IAF’s long term goals for sustainable capability mandate the acquisition and employ-ment of niche technologies and devel-opment of indigenous platforms and weapons. The Chief stated that since human resources was the most valuable asset of the IAF, recruitment, training and motivation strategies should keep pace with the changing times.

defence Minister Rajnath Singh

the indian air Force’s three-day Commanders’ Conference.

Around 24 per cent of Rajya Sabha MP’s have declared

criminal cases against them, states a research done by the Association of Democratic Reforms. But in my reason-able career of covering policy and politics I have felt that we must not be uncharitable to politicians but putting them all in one basket, hence, we must make a distinguish between political and non-political cases.

Political cases are which almost every politician faces while taking part in protests as a part of political life, then there are other cases like obstructing a government servant from doing duty, that many politicians face, some are even hauled up for charges like violating sec-tion 144 CrPC where three of more people cannot gath-er. Frankly, such laws were devised by the British when India was under the colonial rule, but now times have changed. But then there are other set of politicians who are facing serious charges like rape and murder, which clearly belong to a different category. Though this writ-er believes one must not assume a politician to be guilty because he has been charged for heinous crime,

but public awareness and scrutiny by civil society for such cases needs to be en-hanced.

Rajya Sabha has 233 seats of which 3 seats are vacant. National Election Watch and Association for Demo-cratic Reforms (ADR) have analysed the self-sworn af-fidavits of 229 out of 230 sit-ting Rajya Sabha MPs. Out of the 229 Rajya Sabha MPs analysed, 54 or 24 per cent Rajya Sabha MPs have de-clared criminal cases against themselves. 28 or 12 per cent Rajya Sabha MPs have declared serious criminal cases. One Rajya Sabha MP namely Bhonsle Shrimant Chh. Udayanraje Prataps-inghmaharaj (BJP) from Ma-harashtra has declared cases related to murder (IPC sec-tion 302) while four Rajya Sabha MPs have declared cases related to attempt to murder (IPC Section 307). Four Rajya Sabha MPs have declared cases related to crimes against women. Out of 4 MPs, One Rajya Sabha MP namely K.C. Venugo-pal (INC) from Rajasthan has declared case related to rape (IPC Section-376).

Party-wise rajya sabha MPs with criMinal cases

14 or 18 per cent   out of 7 7 R aj ya S ab h a M Ps from  BJP,  8 or 20 per

cent out of 40 Rajya Sabha MPs from INC, 2 or 15 per cent  out of 13 Rajya Sabha

MPs from AITC, 3 or 33 per cent   out of 9 Rajya Sabha MPs from BJD, 3 or 50 per cent out of 6 Rajya Sabha MPs from YSRCP and 2 oor 25 per cent out of 8 Rajya Sabha MPs from SP have declared criminal cases against themselves in their affidavits.

         Party wise Rajya Sabha MPs with serious criminal cases:

    5 or 6% per cent   out of 77 Rajya Sabha MPs from  BJP,  6 or 15% per

cent out of 40 Rajya Sabha MPs from INC, 1 (8%)   out of 13 Rajya Sabha MPs from   AITC, 1 or 11 per cent   out of 9 Rajya Sabha MPs from BJD, 3 or 50 per cent   out of 6 Rajya Sabha MPs from YSRCP and 3 or 60 per cent out of 5 Rajya Sabha MPs from  RJD have declared serious criminal cases against themselves in their affidavits.Top three Rajya Sabha MPs with highest declared assets. (See Tabe 1).

Home loan inter-est rates hover at 6.85% - the lowest

in decades. 66% of unsold homes are priced under Rs 80 lakh, and unheard-of deals are available and 5-year rental outgo for tenants liv-ing within city limits equals 27-52% of total property cost in peripheries of top cities.

 At this point, does it make more sense to buy or rent a home? Many Indians who migrate to the urban centres ask themselves this question at some point. There are arguments for and against either option, but the debate has attained newer heights in the post-Covid-19 landscape.

Property supplements, real estate portals and oth-ers with ‘skin in the game’ espouse the benefits of buy-ing - only to be dismissed by those who claim that in an uncertain job environment, homebuying sentiment can-not possibly be a serious compulsion. 

Yet, homes are selling. As sales figures clearly indicate, people are quietly closing deals in a marketplace which has, counter-intuitively, been enabled by the Covid-19 crisis.

Covid-19 has polarised opinions on real estate like never before. As before, pro-renting advocates em-phasise the arguments of flexibility, freedom of choice and reduced financial com-mitment. In the current time, they also add that renting is

seen as the only choice for those who have lost their jobs or are in danger of do-ing so.

Curiously, there is almost no discussion about people whose jobs are secure, who have always wanted to own a home, and whose previous equivalence has now been eliminated by the pandemic. Many now choose not to face the future with such uncer-tainty again. If they were ambivalent about buying a home before, their minds are now made up, and they are acting.  

While those who already own their homes in Co-vid-19 times are indeed for-tunate, the pandemic also brings unique advantages for those seeking to secure the ultimate asset in the cur-rent time:

Pandemic deals:   The lockdowns have impacted sales and developers want to make up for the lost time and clear inventory. It is clear that the unheard-of deals available now are because of pandemic market conditions. As such, they will vanish once the crisis blows over.

Calculations favour buy-ing: The buyers on the mar-ket now have done their homework. The 5-year rental outgo for city living amounts to 27-52% of the cost of a home in the suburbs of MMR, NCR and Bengaluru. This is a strong financial ra-tionale for suburban home-ownership *

The need for autonomy: In the current context, people

need homes that they can adapt to their requirements - and rented homes don’t offer this flexibility. From a work-from-home perspective, the onus is no longer on small rented homes in the city centres whose landlords will not permit to be altered - it is on larger homes which can be adapted at a will.

Rock-bottom home loan rates:   Homebuyers were hoping for lower home loan interest rates. The economic compulsions of pandemic-reduced consumption have pressed interest rates down to as low as 6.85% - the best rates in decades. The repo rate to which home loan rates are linked is at a 20-year low:

The price is right: While inferior projects have seen distress-related price cor-rection, it is now clear that developers of quality hous-ing will hold on to prices that are already trimmed as low as they can get. When prices do not reduce even in a pandemic slowdown, they are evidently at their low-est best. Average residential real estate prices across the top 7 cities have been range-bound for the past 5-6 years, and 66% of unsold homes are priced under Rs 80 lakh.*

No new launches:  New launches increase supply and thereby cause prices to reduce. However, there will be very few new proj-ect launches now as develop-ers will focus on clearing ex-isting inventory. The market will thus attain equilibrium

in a few quarters and then become more developer-favouring. This means that prices will harden.

Hard asset in uncertain times: The Covid-19 pan-demic has caused everyone to take a hard look at what they can fall back on when things go south. An owned home is freedom from rent, while rent is a recurring expense which does noth-ing but push the stop-watch ahead a month at a time.

I n v e s t m e n t r a t i o -nale: Living on rent does not help to create an asset, while homeownership does. Simultaneously, other popular investment asset classes such as stocks and gold are volatile and unpredictable in pandemic times. Housing retains its intrinsic value in uncertain

t imes and eventual ly appreciates when times improve. Also, home loans come with attractive tax benefits. Rental housing doesn›t.

The first Covid-19 case in India was recorded on 30th Jan 2020. Since then, many investment indicators de-picted a sharp decline for the next few months, erod-ing a significant amount of invested capital.

Those who are buying now homes are aware of these benefits, many of which are strictly time-bound. The Covid-19 pandemic is a once-in-a-lifetime event and the advantages it brings for homebuyers will not be repeated. The renting popu-lation will not thin out - it is clear that the pandemic has had many financial fatalities. For many, renting may be the only choice.

However, those with op-tions are now playing for the long-term. Regardless of what else may happen in the future, home and hearth need to be secured while the odds are so unprecedentedly favourable.

* Considering the total annual rental outgo for 5 years + 3.5% annual rental appreciation. E.g. in MMR, the average monthly rental outgo in city-limit areas is Rs 45,800. For five years, this equals nearly Rs 28.66 lakh (including standard rental escalation for this period). This is almost 52% of the total aver-age cost of a property in MMR›s peripheral areas.Santhosh Kumar is Vice Chair-man of ANAROCK.

24% of sitting Rajya Sabha MPs have declared criminal cases

Real estate: Covid-19’s response to the buy versus rent conundrum

Need to distinguish between political and non-political cases.

Property supplements, real estate portals and others with ‘skin in the game’ espouse the benefits of buying—only to be dismissed by those who claim that in an uncertain job environment, homebuying sentiment cannot possibly be a serious compulsion. 

analysis

property & policy

opinionTarun nangia

policy & politics the daily guardian25 july 2020new delhi8

indicator

Value or Price

30th Jan 202024th Mar 2020

(lockdown announcement)

% Change

BSE Sensex 40,913.82 points 26,674.03 points -35%

inr vs uSD 71.32 76.47 7% (depreciation)

Curiously, there is almost no discussion about people whose jobs are secure, who have always wanted to own a home, and whose previous equivalence has now been eliminated by the pandemic. Many now choose not to face the future with such uncertainty again.

TaBlE 3: ThE SharE of wEalTh amongST SiTTing rajya SaBha mPS aS followS:

Value of assets (rs) number of rajya Sabha mPs

Percentage of rajya Sabha mPs

Rs.10 crores and above 86 37%

Rs.5 crores to Rs.10 crores 36 16%

Rs.1 crore to Rs.5 crores 81 35%

Rs.20 lakhs to Rs.1 crore 22 10%

less than Rs.20 lakhs 4 2%

TaBlE 1: ThE ToP ThrEE rajya SaBha mPS wiTh high aSSETS arE giVEn BElow:

S.no. name State/uT Party name movable assets (rs) immovable as-sets (rs) Total assets (rs) Pan given

1 Mahendra Prasad Bihar JD(U) 40,43,48,19,318 34,92,41,000 40,78,40,60,318 4078 Crore+ Y

2 Alla Ayodhya Rami Reddy Andhra Pradesh YSRCP 25,18,44,63,030 59,31,16,150 25,77,75,79,180 2577 Crore+ Y

3 Bachchan Jaya Amitabh Uttar Pradesh SP 5,38,83,66,566 4,62,80,25,000 10,01,63,91,566 1001 Crore+ Y

TaBlE 2: rajya SaBha mPS wiTh lowEST aSSETS haVE ThEir aSSETS ValuED lESS Than rS 20 lakhS, anD ThEir DETailS arE aS followS:

S.no. name State/uT Party movable assets (rs) immovable as-sets (rs)

Total assets (rs) Pan given

1 Maharaja Sanajaoba Leish-emba

Manipur BJP 1,98,594 3,50,000 5,48,594 5 Lacs+

Y

2 Sanjay Singh NCT of Delhi AAP 6,60,513 0 6,60,513 6 Lacs+

Y

3 Samir Oraon Jharkhand BJP 18,69,000 0 18,69,000 18 Lacs+

Y

santhosh KuMar

Do you think infection rate has come down in Delhi?

A. Infection rate is coming down in Delhi and in few other cities as well. It’s pos-sibly increasing in smaller cities as in few cities like in Patna and Guwahati, cases are increasing. So, there are different areas where cases are peaking and flattening at different times. I think certain larger cities have started peaking and flatten-ing but smaller cities are now showing an increase in cases and will peak in a few days.Q. Serological survey shows infection rate is high in Delhi. What does it mean?A. It shows there are cer-tain numbers of people who have mild symptoms or are

asymptomatic but they had Covid-19 infection. It means that a significant number of people have mild infection as compared to serious in-fection. We have to continue the protective measures like social distancing, masks, testing, tracking and isolat-ing. If we will not follow such precautionary measures then again people have to face a spike.Q. Do you think if migrants will return then the cases will rise again? As you said earlier that case would spike again in the month of September?A. We have to be very careful how to manage when people return back to Delhi or other cities. Monitoring people closely in case of infection and they have to be properly isolated as well. If we are not careful, then there will be a rise in cases.

Q. What is herd immunity? How does it work? Do you think India can get herd-immunity?A. In case of herd immunity, it has to be 60 percent of pos-itive cases then only it works. We have just 23 percent posi-tive cases, meaning it is go-

ing to be difficult to achieve herd immunity; another way to get herd immunity is vac-cination. It will help people become immune because this will break the chain and will reduce the number of cases. This virus takes time

to make antibodies. In most countries, infection rate is less and for herd immunity infection rate should be high.Q. Have you seen the mutation of this virus? If there is mutation then it’s going to make the virus more virulent, or does it make

it more infectious in increasing cases?A. A lot of research is go-ing on virus mutation. If it happens then there will always be a mild mutation but till now, we don’t have much data that the virus has changed so much that it’s spreading very rapidly as compared to the past or causing more deaths. Some people have a hypo-thetical reason that there is less mortality in India or Asia because the virus may have mutated when it came to this part of the world, causing less mortality, but there is now scientific data to support this.Q. Do you think there is commu-nity spread in India?A. According to the sero survey, there is no com-munity spread. Earlier Bengaluru was doing very

well but people started go-ing to the bars, gatherings and the virus again came back. Even now in Delhi cases are coming down sig-nificantly. Earlier there were 4,000 cases in a single day but it’s decreased. But on the other hand, the sero survey says that 77 percent of the population is still susceptible therefore you can’t let your guard down and you have to be cautious in terms of social distancing, mask wearing. In Karnataka, they opened up too quickly which led to an increase in the number of cases. It’s also happened in

some states of the US.Q. Do you think Covid-19 can

become worse if pollution level is high?A. There is no conclu-

sive study. I don’t think it’s true. During lock-

down pollution came down significantly, but vi-ruses didn’t come down.Q. What do you think about school opening for children?A. It depends on the situa-tion in that particular city. We have to be very careful because if children go to the schools, they won’t be able to maintain social distanc-ing. There may be a certain spread in the school but they might not know that. Chil-dren can get the infection and they can take it to their grandparents who can get a very serious infection and that can also lead to a higher chance of death.

Don’t let your guard down, Covid can return: AIIMS Director

EXCLUSIVE

PrESCrIPtIon

Dr Randeep Guleria, Director, All India Institutes of Medical Sciences, Delhi, says there has been no community spread in India yet, but corona cases can spike if precautionary guidelines are not followed.

medically speakingthe daily guardian25 july 2020

new delhi 9

Shalini BhardwajNew Delhi

dr arun SharmaNew Delhi

Dr Randeep Guleria, Director, All India Institutes of Medical Sciences, Delhi.

In the time of coronavirus pandemic, our physical ac-tivities have become restrict-ed while work from home has increased for many. The time spent on mobile phones, social media, tel-evision and computers have also considerably extended. This has consequently led to strained back and neck. Nowadays, neck pain is emerging as one of the com-mon problems among the people visiting clinics.

The new technologies, namely computers/mobile phones, have taken a toll on our neck and back health. Our spine is made of a col-umn of bones. It has 33 verte-brae which are connected to each other with joints. Each vertebral segment creates a bony circle, known as the spinal canal that protects the spinal cord and nerves.

The aching neck and back leads to inefficiency and wastage of productive time and have accelerated de-generative changes in our spine. The sedentary spine ages early. Popping an over-the-counter painkiller tablet

and helping yourself with temporary relief from pain are a wrong habit. Its regular intake is detrimental to our spine and health.

Neck muscle stiffness is usually caused by incorrect posture, sitting and work-ing for too long without changing posture, sleep-ing with the neck in a bad posture and jerking of the neck by barbers. Our cur-rent lifestyle has taken a toll on the neck. Watching television for a long time in lying down posture and using laptops and mobile phones for a long duration are few of the after-effects of the pandemic. Our activi-ties have made the mobile neck immobile.

Pain in the lower back is quite annoying. It is through improved posture and ergo-nomics that further injury to the spine can be prevented. Making certain changes in your lifestyle is also benefi-cial in reducing lower back pain. Some of the major lifestyle changes that must be incorporated include quitting smoking, improved posture and ergonomics, activity modifications and weight loss.

Your back muscles and your stomach should be strong and in good shape. It is crucial that the right-back exercises are performed eve-ry day for a few minutes to improve the strength of ab-

dominal and back muscles. Injury to the back can be prevented by exercises that stretch and strengthen the muscles. The best and sim-ple preventive treatment for providing relief from back pain is regular exercise.

Consult a doctor when there is persistent numb-ness, tingling and weakness of hands or legs; severe neck pain; the ache radiates down the shoulders/hands/legs or continues for several days.  Dos:•Maintain proper posture

while sitting and lying down

•Regular exercise and yoga•Give rest to the neck and do

exercises frequently, while using computers for a very long duration. Stretching exercise for neck and back while continuously using mobile phones and com-puters for over 30 minutes

•Keep your computer/lap-top screen at eye level

Don’ts:•Use very thick pillows•Continuously spending

time on mobile phones and computers for over 30 minutes

•Excessive use of mobile phones and tucking the phone between the ear and shoulder

•Smoking

The writer is a Consultant Neurosurgeon at Indian Spinal Injuries Centre in New Delhi.

Q. What kind of response have you seen in phase 1 and 2 of the clinical trials? When will the Serum Institute conduct trials in India?A. The phase 1 and 2 trials have been successful in proving the vaccine immunogenic. With that

we are now progressing towards the next phase of trials. We seek to apply for licensure tri-als in a week’s time in India. With the government fast-tracking eve-rything, we are hoping to get ap-provals soon. After that we will begin phase 3 (human trials) here in India with 4,000-5,000 people. Q. How will this vaccine work? How helpful will it be in stopping the rise of Covid-19 cases?A. The vaccine, branded as Cov-

ishield, is a viral vector type that uses a harmless virus to deliver the genetic material of a pathogen into cells, which is then supposed to create an immune response against the original pathogen. A chimpanzee adenovirus (a com-mon cold virus) has been used by Gilbert and his team to be the car-rier. To trick the immune system to

fight back Covid-19, the harmless virus was inserted with the SARS- CoV-2 virus’ genetic material.  We can only comment on the effi-cacy of the vaccine once it clears all the requisite tests and trials. Hav-ing said that, so far, the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine is one of the vaccines which is showing promis-ing results based on ongoing trials and has been cleared for the final phase! Q. What should be the target and deliv-

ery procedure after getting the vaccine? A. In the initial phase, it will be a government-administered vac-cine programme. It is important to ensure that the vaccine reaches the most vulnerable sections and remotest corners of the country. I feel that the vaccine should be given to vulnerable groups to start with, such as healthcare work-ers, frontline staff, children and elderly people with weak immune systems. Healthy young adults can get it later. It must be a collective effort amongst all the stakeholders involved. Q. What would be the price of the vac-cine in India? A. It is too early to comment on the pricing, but we would like to keep it under Rs 1,000 initially. Howev-

er, we are certain that it will be af-fordable, and hopefully, procured and distributed by governments free of charge in the beginning. Q. How many doses have you planned to supply? By when will it reach the masses?A. Once we get the necessary reg-ulatory approvals, we will start manufacturing large volumes. We will manufacture about 60-70 mil-lion doses per month (which might stretch to 100 million doses later). With this, we are looking to man-ufacture around 300-400 mil-lion doses by the end of this year. I believe by the first quarter of the next year it will start reaching the masses.  Q. How do you plan to manage the manufacturing? Do you have enough capacity to manufacture the Covid-19 vaccine?  A. Our facility is well-equipped with state-of-the-art technol-ogy to manufacture the Covid-19 vaccine. We have dedicated two facilities within our premises to ensure maximum production ca-pacity for the Oxford-AstraZen-eca Covid-19 vaccine. We plan to start production post regulatory approvals. Q. When are the human trials going to begin in collaboration with Codagenix?A. The Codagenix candidate is in its pre-trial phase and it is expect-ed to progress to the human trial phase towards the end of this year.

IntErVIEw

IndIa to gEt CoVId VaCCInE by EarLy 2021, frontLInE workErS wILL bE fIrSt PrIorIty: adar PoonawaLaThe Serum institute of india CeO, in an exclusive interview, says the company plans to manufacture 300-400 million doses of Covishield by the end of the year, and would like to keep its price under Rs 1,000 initially.

Shalini BhardwajNew Delhi

Adar Poonawalla, CEO, Serum Institute of India.

The Director-General of Health Services, Ministry of Health, in a letter to all states and Union Ter-ritories have warned against the “use of N95 masks”, especially the use of valved respirator, as

these masks do not prevent the spread of the virus and is detri-mental to the measures adopted.

Dr Nikhil Modi, Pulmonologist Specialist, Apollo Hospital, said, “People who wear N95 masks are safe but due to virus when he/she exhales out then the open valve can infect another person because the air which comes out isn’t safe. If a person who is wear-ing a mask is positive then his virus particles are in the air and due to this another person can get infected and thus it becomes dif-ficult to control the virus.”

“We have been already tell-ing people to avoid masks with valves, three-ply surgical masks

or N-95 without valves should be used,” Dr. Nikhil stressed.

“If you are at high risk or a healthcare worker, then you can use N-95 mask but if you are using it for pollution then mask with valve can be used and at home, N-95 mask can be

used with social distancing,” said former IMA president Dr K.K. Aggarwal.COVaXin trialS at aiimSAccording to the latest report, five volunteers have been vacci-nated as a part of the first phase of human clinical trials of COV-

AXIN at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi. The phase 1 trial in AIIMS will involve 50-100 healthy people after do-ing all the screening tests.

 AIIMS Director Dr Randeep Guleria said, “Initially 5-10 volunteers will receive the vaccine and their report will be reviewed by the institute’s Ethics Committee for safety,

after which others will be vac-cinated.”

As per guidelines and safety measures, 50 types of tests have been conducted as part of screen-ing to ensure that the subject is healthy with no comorbid medi-cal complications. COrOna warriOrS under CriSiSIn the time of Covid-19 pandem-ic, doctors and other healthcare workers in MCD hospitals, Delhi, are not getting their salaries from the last four months. Most doc-tors working in Kasturba Gandhi and Bara Hindu Rao hospital are forced to leave their jobs. 

According to the sources, clean-

liness in hospitals is very poor and unhygienic, basic facilities like food are also not given prop-erly to the patients, and wash-rooms are filthy. The hospitals are contaminated and most of the patients avoid getting their treatment in these hospitals. Bara Hindu Rao hospital is treating Covid-19 patients but less than 20 percent of hospital beds are occupied.

 Recently, few Covid-19 patients had left the hospital without completing their quarantine pe-riod. The doctors who are under quarantine after the exposure to Covid-19 positive patients are also facing delays in their salaries.

MEdICaL nEwS

How to overcome back and neck pain during pandemic

Health Ministry warns against the use of N-95 masks

Shalini BhardwajNew Delhi

The scientific world-view is that there is time, space, matter

and energy, and conscious-ness somehow arises out of those four things. Science does not explain conscious-ness. Science is created on the basis of consciousness but consciousness is not explained by science. It is a huge paradox. But in quan-tum mechanics, by going deep into the subtlety of matter they have reached the point where spiritual-ity begins — the point of connection between matter and consciousness, physical energy and metaphysical energy.

We remember the struc-ture of the atom from our school days: there is a nu-cleus with electrons spin-ning around it. More than 99.99 per cent of an atom is empty space. There is very little that is substantial, and even the substantial part is made up of sub-atomic par-ticles. The particles produce vibrations. Human souls also produce vibrations ac-cording to the quality of their consciousness, and it is through these vibrations that consciousness affects matter.

That empty space in atoms is what we call ether, which

is one of the five elements, the other four being fire, earth, water and air. Quan-tum physicists now say that matter forms because of the information present in the empty space. What puts the information there? It is con-sciousness.

Time, space, energy, mat-ter and consciousness are all interconnected, and con-sciousness affects the other four. We souls are shaping the world around us, which comes out of our conscious-ness, which puts informa-tion into the empty space. We don’t create matter, but we shape it. We shape our relationships and matter ac-cording to how we are, indi-vidually and collectively.

So, when I am interacting with the world and I face an obstacle, that obstacle is my creation, the result of my consciousness.

To understand this and see things as they are, with-out any colouring by my mind, I have to be really de-tached. Attachment makes me see things as I am. I can understand what has value and what does not only if I am detached.

Is the world I am produc-ing around myself a pure world? How is my interac-tion with time, space and matter? When souls are pure, things happen in the right place, at the right time, in the right man-ner. When they are less pure, they have to try to make things happen, and when they become impure, things happen to them.

If you are easy, nice and natural, the world around you will be like that. To be like that you have to be de-tached and see the whole

picture. But our perception is limited by our conscious-ness. Just as icebergs are 10 per cent visible and 90 per cent under water, hu-mans are just 0.1 per cent ‘visible’, and if I think that I know people from the 0.1 per cent I can see, it is un-realistic.

This narrow perspec-tive is like our physical vi-sion, which is limited but we think we can see every-

thing. We see only three per cent of the electromagnetic spectrum: we can’t see any-thing after violet or any-thing before red — we can’t see gamma rays, X-rays or microwaves.

Similarly, we think we know people, but when we don’t know even ourselves how can we know some-one else? How can I define someone else — that this person is like this? If I really

want to be detached and see things and people as they are, I have to go to my in-ternal gallery where I have people and things classified and labelled and I have to remove all the labels. Only then can I start to create a better world.Ken O’Donnell, an author and international consultant on strategy and leadership, is the director of Brahma Kumaris’ services in South America.

spiritually speaking the daily guardian25 july 2020new delhi10

Science vS Spirituality covid challengeS

Ken O’DOnnell

How consciousness affects our reality

At the time of writing, July 2020, the world has become a very different place. Hu-man beings, creatures of sociability and conviviality, have been locked in their homes — some with their families and some totally alone. The reason for this is that a life-threatening virus, on a par with a medieval plague, has raced across the globe, killing thousands and spreading fear and anxiety on an unparalleled scale. For once we can all relate to what is happening everywhere. It’s not happening out there somewhere, in some coun-try we have no identification with — it’s happening here, it’s happening now and it’s happening for everyone.

Who’s to blame? No one and everyone. Why has it happened? The answer is at the same time very simple but also requires some sub-tlety of thought. We are be-ings of thought. Most of us do not realise how powerful our thoughts are. In actuality, all that is happening around me is a product of my thought processes over a long period of time. Most of the world in the last little while has been chasing after wealth as some kind of security, and in so doing may have ignored the importance of honesty, kind-ness and truth in our busi-ness dealings and with our employees, and even within our families. The result has been great wealth and even greater poverty, universal suffering, sorrow and often despair. The suffering gen-erates anger; anger at the injustice, anger at the inabil-

ity to do anything. Research shows there is a connection between anger and stress and pulmonary function. So, from worldwide anger and stress to a virus that at-tacks the lungs, is not too big a stretch of the imagination. Our thoughts, uncontrolled and uncontrollable as they may have been, have brought about our current reality.

If we continue to think as we have been doing until now, then we will continue to live the lives we are living now. It’s time to think in a to-tally different way. We need to make our lives those of honesty and integrity — no matter what provocation, kindness even in the face of cruelty, peace even in the face of anger.  We know, deep down in our hearts, that it is the only way to think and behave. Putting that into our practical reality is not an easy thing to do, despite the desire to do so. However, with un-derstanding and help from a powerful source, it is possi-ble. It is possible for ordinary human beings to transform into human beings that are so completely in harmony with themselves, with nature, and with others that the world in which they live is also trans-formed completely. A world where sorrow is not known, viruses do not exist and there is only joy.

We start with the under-standing that although we are living in a physical di-mension or world, we are not only physical. We are human, yes, but we are also beings. If we were only phys-ical, why do we all do differ-

ent things, have different be-liefs, think in different ways, have different ideas? Those beliefs and thoughts come from the being. The being is spiritual, not physical. The being is subtle, not gross. The being is light, not dense. It is the being that thinks. The reason that all of us beings want to have justice, health, peace, love and happiness is because those qualities are the very essence of our being — and every single one of us desires them, no matter how we pursue them.

This understanding leads to a further awareness — that there is not a single human being on the planet who can bring about such a world. For such a total transformation, an outside power is needed. Power from a being who is totally benevolent, who is outside of what is going on and going wrong, who can, with love, orchestrate this transformation.

When there is the un-derstanding that through thought a human being can connect their mind and heart to that Super Being, then transformation can begin; because as I think, I become; as I become, I behave; as I behave, my world is formed. In this way, through a loving connection with a supreme being, an ordinary human being can transform into what could be termed as a divine human being, an ex-traordinary human being — for these extraordinary times.Jane Kay is a university teach-ing fellow in the UK, and a Ra-jyoga teacher.

extraordinary timeS require extraordinary people

Quantum physicists now say that matter forms because of the information present in the empty space. What puts the information there? It is consciousness.

mind matterS

Self-aware

It is said that the quality of our life is determined by our mind. It is also said that it is difficult to focus or control the mind. The scriptures tell us that capitulation to the mind brings defeat and mas-tery over the mind brings victory. One who conquers the mind can conquer the world, they say.

The mind has been made out to be such a strong force that people believe it is very difficult to control it. But thinking like this is not the way to master the mind. We cannot just say that the mind is mercurial and leave it to its own devices.

The first step to controlling the mind is to understand that I, the soul, am the mas-ter and the mind is my ser-

vant and it has to function according to my directions.

To control the mind, we need to pay attention to the quantity, quality and direc-tion of our thoughts.

Scientific research has found that a person has, on average, one thought ev-ery two seconds, or 30-35 thoughts in a minute. This speed increases consider-ably when we are under stress, whether it is because of a tough situation, a dif-ficult relationship, or our own desires. The mind then repeatedly thinks of what-ever is causing the stress. The high volume of thoughts has an effect on the body, in-creasing our heart rate and blood pressure. Over time, this can result in serious ail-ments.

When the quantity of thoughts shoots up, we need to raise the quality of our thinking to calm the mind. For that we first need to imbibe quality information and knowledge that is up-lifting, especially spiritual knowledge, which helps me to know myself and my relationship with God. That knowledge provides the

raw material for creating positive, elevated thoughts, and when the quality of our thinking improves, the number of thoughts arising in the mind begins to drop. The higher the quality of my thinking, the fewer thoughts I will have.

The third factor is the di-rection of our thoughts. Our mind is attracted by what

we are attached to, be it our family, work, or posses-sions. The more the mind is scattered among these, the weaker our thoughts be-come, as our mental energy is diverted to many different channels. The moment we find our mind going off in a new direction, we need to stop that thought and focus again on one thing. When

the mind is stable in one thought, all our mental en-ergy goes into that thought, making it powerful, and the power of that thought sets in motion the process of creat-ing a new reality for us.B.K. Mohan Singhal is Chair-person of the Scientists & En-gineers Wing of the Brahma Kumaris’ Rajyoga Education & Research Foundation.

Concentration and the way to control the mind hold the key to quality life

B.K. MOhan Singhal

Jane Kay

Just as it is important to know God, it is important to know the self, the soul. To know means to accept. What happens when we ac-cept ourselves as we are? We become free from the bond-age of actions even while per-forming actions — we are not influenced by their results.

When we clearly know and accept ourselves, we naturally follow the spiritual disciplines of right conduct. We will not have to think whether something is right

or not. Those who have sta-bilised themselves in the awareness of being a soul will think, speak and act ac-curately.

When we are aware of the spiritual self, all our actions are disciplined. Just as the captain of a ship or the pilot of an aircraft has his or her route plan in front of them, by which they know where they have to go, one who knows the self will have a clear understanding of what to do in any situation.

Initially, one has to make ef-fort: one has to think at every step whether something is right or wrong. But when one begins to remain constantly in the awareness of being a soul, right conduct becomes natural and there is no need to think about it.

In addition, one needs to have complete faith in the self, just as some people have

100 per cent faith in God. If a train is running on the right track at the right time, there is the faith that it will reach its destination on time, and the loco pilot drives it free of worry. In the same way, if one has the right awareness of the self, then one’s mind is on the right track and one can-not perform actions or have thoughts that are wrong.

Such an elevated state of mind will not give rise to arrogance. The more one is aware of being a soul, the more humility there will be. Moreover, when one knows the self and has faith in the self, success in one’s task is guaranteed. Whatever action such souls perform, they will have the faith that it will ulti-mately be beneficial.B.K. Geeta is a senior Rajyoga teacher at the Brahma Kumaris headquarters in Abu Road, Ra-jasthan.

the benefitS of knowing the SelfB.K. geeta

Time, space, energy, matter and consciousness are all interconnected, and consciousness affects the other four.

11t h e da i ly gua r d i a n2 5 j u ly 2 0 2 0

n ew d e l h i

Anshu KhAnnANew Delhi

Anshu KhAnnANew Delhi

lifestyle

Working from home is now a long-term re-ality for many people, owing to the global pandemic. There are many advantages

to working from home, which include the time saved from travelling to office and back, the ability to spread out a day’s tasks as per personal convenience, and the opportunity to work while wearing comfortable home clothes. However, for online meetings, it is important to maintain decorum and dress professionally, as you would for a regular meeting in office.

Last week, we covered some basic tips for professional yet subtle makeup applications for Zoom calls, webinars and workshops. In today’s post, we will discuss the ba-sic items for dressing up professionally while staying comfortable.

 1. DITCH THE SUITS AND TIESThough it is indeed important to look professional, working from home gives you the leeway to do away with your formal suits and ties. Even the Delhi High Court has dispensed with black coats for lawyers, when they appear in front of judges to argue cases online. This move will save you some dry-cleaning money and allow you to stay comfortable at home.

 2. SHIRTS AND SIMPLE ETHNIC WEAR WORK BESTThough you can skip the outward layer of professional clothing, it is advisable to wear professional basics like collared shirts and simple ethnic wear, including sal-war kameez, kurtis or cotton saris. These silhouettes can be worn for work meetings as well as for performing household chores.

 3. WEAR LOOSE AND COMFORTABLE BOTTOMSThe best part of online meetings is that the bottoms are not usually visible. Hence, even if you are dressed pro-fessionally on top, you can wear loose and comfortable bottoms. If the bottoms do not match the top you are wearing, make sure not to stand in the middle of the meeting, or turn off the video if you need to get up.

4. TRY NOT TO WEAR PYJAMASEven if you are sorely tempted to live in your pyjamas all day, I highly recommend changing your clothes for meetings. Invest in 2-3 black track pants, leggings or similar items of clothing that could pass off as being formal, even if they are not. It will ensure that no fash-ion faux pas is made by showing your printed pyjamas during a formal meeting. This simple act also forces you to mentally change gears and focus on your professional tasks as opposed to the ‘lounging-at-home’ mindset.

 5. SIMPLE & ELEGANT JEWELLERY WORKS WELLChoose a pair of dainty earrings to compliment your look. Pearl studs, small diamonds and basic metal-lic hoops work well with any outfit. You can also pair them with an elegant yet unobtrusive necklace to make it look like you put in a lot of effort, even if in reality, you did not.

 6. SELECT SUBTLE PATTERNS OR PLEASING COLOURSAnother way to make a statement, is to be mindful of the patterns and colours you choose to wear. A pat-terned shirt or top of any kind will grab attention in a multi-person call.It may also help you to speak up confidently if you struggle with having your voice heard during busy online sessions. If you are not keen on wearing patterns, then choose a bold colour that is pleasing to the eyes. It is sure to have the same effect as a patterned shirt.

 7. CHOOSE A WELL-LIT AREA IN YOUR HOME The place where you conduct your meetings is as impor-tant as your physical appearance. Make sure you sit in a well-lit area of your house and face natural light for the best effect. If your meeting is in the evening or at night, make sure it takes place in a well-lit room. Ensure the disturbances are minimised by turning off noisy appli-ances, and sit in front of a neutral background such as a plain wall or a shelf of books.

These simple and easy to follow tips will allow you to make a strong impact in any meeting with your col-leagues or fellow Zoom call or webinar attendees, while also ensuring that you stay comfortable and relaxed at home.

 The writer is a lawyer who pens lifestyle articles on her suc-cessful blog www.nooranandchawla.com. She can be found on Instagram @nooranandchawla.

snippets of LifeNoor ANAND ChAwlA 

COvID-19: HOW TO DRESS PROFESSIONALLY, YET STAY COMFORTABLE AT HOME

There is something totally be-guiling about a design story brought to life by a self-made couturier. A design stamp that even in the first few years of its birth is so strong that it can be identified: Just as you can recognise a Burberry check from a mile or Versace’s Medusa.

Except this story has its head, like the proverbial os-trich, dug deep into the sand of time. It gleefully traverses into history, celebrating the glorious era when handcrafts were a way of life and Indians ‘lived bespoke’ sans elevating it to the level of luxurious in-accessibility.

Karan Torani, a young de-signer has shown how far one can go in their fame, simply by honing their craft fable and celebrating it in every which way they can. A young gradu-ate from Pearl Academy, he confesses that, “The first few years of my life were about working 20 hours out of 24

and doing multiple assign-ments. I simply wanted to absorb every aspect of fashion first hand.”

As a child he had seen his mother, “Save up to buy a Kalamkari sari from a weav-er from Telangana.” Or his grandmother, a resident of the Lake City Bhopal, taking immense pride in her Chan-deris. “I remember spend-ing long afternoons around her house and watching her do the regular household chores draped in a crisp, simple Chanderi sari which is what got me obsessed with the classic beauty of Indian handlooms.”

Karan, an Instagram rage, has ever since remained true to his roots, hand-picking chintz art from Telangana as his innate inspiration. To which he adds embroidery traditions of Sindh, his an-cestral land and touches of vintage memorabilia. Like the sarson and saleti stripes he renders on his odhnas or the classic Sindhi angarkha and koti that he keeps adding to his silhouette. “I connect Indian looms and hand crafts to the notion of travelling through the country to find a similar sense of comfort in heritage and tradition.”

His latest collection, created

just before the pandemic, de-fines his depth. He names it ‘Sindhu’, or the river Indus that cascades from the Him-alayas, passing through the land of Sindh now lost to Pa-kistan. “Rivers have shaped history, culture, traditions and faith... and nowhere is it as palpable as in India. This collection is inspired by the 7 holy rivers of India, fa-mously known as the Saptha

Sindhu.”A sheer, highly sensual,

white on white collection, which he layers with his famed chintz prints in chan-deri and Muslin, Sindhu celebrates the chain stitch that was immortalised by the tribes of Sindh. Except he deprives it of all color and makes it a white on white textural story to celebrate a summer we all lost indoors

this pandemic and ring in a winter that will be marked by celebrations as subdued as this collection.

Karan, however, was lucky to have shot in the mystical water bodies that dot Kera-la. He informs, “In the early weeks of March this year we were in Kerala shooting ‘Shuddhi’, our new 2020-21 campaign, with a crew of over 30 people within the deep ends of Kerela’s water bodies... It was the toughest and most challenging produc-tion I managed till date.” But worth it, because if you go on his page you will see that so many rooted Indians are iden-tifying with it and comment-ing on it from Dallas to Delhi and Brisbane to Bombay.

INTERvIEW

CELEBRATING PAST

ONE SOUL, MANY LIvESA poet, a tarot reader, a filmmaker, director of the Dalmia Group and above all a writer—Laxmana Dalmia is all this and much more.

She is a woman of many tal-ents; many lives lived within the span of one. A poet, a tarot reader, a filmmaker, director of the Dalmia Group and above all a writer who looks at words as imaginary paintings that reside within our souls. Hence her recent work where she compiled all per prose in one book, One Soul Many Lives, was a com-ing together of her works and art from a hundred leading maestros of India.

Laxmana Dalmia is always lost with the threads of her thought, expressing them through verses and words. We meet her in one of the most distinguished old have-lis of Delhi, driving down the long, very long drive-way of the Dalmia residence in Del-hi. One of the many splen-dorous old homes where the far branched-out Dalmia family lives. Given that the grand patriarch of this fam-ily, Ramakrishna Dalmia married six times and had more than a dozen children. A typical manor built in the early 19th century, the house is majestically perched and to date remains preserved in its original form.

Laxmana Dalmia, the qui-etest amongst the Dalmia scions, is also the introspec-tive daughter who grew up trying to catch “my father’s much distracted eye on silly little me even if it were for a Nano of a warm moment”. At the same time basking in the deep reservoir of her moth-er’s love. Laxmana Dalmia, born to the last and sixth wife Durgesh Nandini, is an author, poetess, filmmaker and activist who simply traced her mother’s footsteps

and began walking in them.“My mother, who was a

renowned writer in Hindi, introduced me to the world of literature. She would ask me to read aloud whatever she had written and then write it neatly as none could read her handwriting. My first attempt at serious writ-ing was when I edited her biographical novels. Encour-aged by my mother, I started writing when I was 13. Once I started I haven’t stopped,” smiles Laxmana dressed in a rich Bandhej sari.

A quest for words recently led her to launch her debut book, One Soul Many Lives, a compilation of verses that capture emotions in myriad hues. Free-wheeling in style and simply written from the heart, the poems take you

on a walk called life. Life as Laxmana sees it. She talks of love beyond titles and bonds. The kind she has shared with famed theatre actor Aziz Qureishi who stood by her side from the moment they met at college in the 1970s. Ever since they are together as true soul mates.

She writes on the dichot-omy of today’s world that builds walls and divides while offering lip service to egalitarianism. A sense of equality amongst people that IPTA introduced to In-dia a few decades back and

Laxmana as active member and treasurer of the organisa-tion strives hard to keep alive. “IPTA is the reflection of my core values. I feel we have to not just feel equal but be truly equal as a nation.”

Then in another poem she is a caring grandmother to her adopted son Rudra Dalmia’s children. A single woman who preferred to

live in love, she doted on her two adopted son’s family. Laxmana Dalmia is an en-trepreneur, with many years of experience in the world of multimedia. She has been ac-tively involved in production, writing and direction for TV, radio and theatre.

In tone and tenor her poems are like her heart speaking out loud. “When I read them now, I find that I have writ-ten more than I knew I was writing. If someone asked me what kind of poems I have written — I wouldn’t know how to typecast them. They are just my interpretations of a host of experiences. Life has made me run through an en-tire gamut of emotions rang-ing from fear, insecurity, frus-tration, jealousy, hatred and anger to love, comprehen-sion, compassion, balance and then perhaps spirituality.

A filmmaker and theatre person Laxmana thinks

visually and hence invited leading artists like Anjolie Ela Menon, Jayashree Bur-man, Raghu Rai, George Martin, Pooja Iranna, Benoy Verghese to match visuals to her verses. “It was such a fluid way of allowing two creative realms to co-exist together. Right from the spectacular launch to the book itself, I think we were able to weld the words with art very well,” says Ashwini Bahadur, the one who put it all together.

Agreeing with her is artist Jayashree Barman. “Poetry is an aesthetic representation of reality... it is ornamented with the choicest of words, the mu-sic of rhymes and the art of brevity. So yes, poems I have grown up with do crop up in my mind when I paint. I was pleased to paint Laxmana›s words and found the mean-ings of the verse translated into my palette.” Anjolie too, whose art is like poetry, found the inherent simplicity in Laxmana’s work endear-ing. Joining in on an exclusive shoot she felt that art is art, in any form.

George Martin, the intense artist who expresses through colour, created a special piece for Laxmana’s book. He says, “My work reflects the transi-tion between conscious and subconscious states, investi-gating the tension between the natural and manmade situations. I often connect myself with time and space or images and memory, psy-chedelic outburst of colours. Laxmana’s poem Shadow or Substance — I transformed to visual poetry. Here imag-es and shadows give a third meaning to the viewer.”

Pooja Iranna, who painted the poem titled “Nostalgia”, found an instant vibration

with the words. “Yes, I be-lieve that art is fluid. It is a downpour of expression and many times easily and effortlessly flows. My whole work revolves around this very beautiful poem. It’s a set of five works with dark backgrounds signifying thick dark nights with bright incor-porated structures signify-ing nostalgia and memories of moments spent in them.” For the curator, this was a unique show, both in real in-stallations and the book. “At the art show I tried to create a fairy-tale setting which felt as if you were walking through an exaggerated book,” says George.

And to sum it all, Laxmana recites one of her favourite poems, The Devil and the Divine. For me, the boat filled with people, gliding in the foreground, represents peo-ple who have been victorious in eliminating the ‘devil’ and have climbed the bandwagon towards ‘divine’ salvation. The second boat with two figures, I imagine, is like the lone person making a clan-destine, ignominious pact with the devil. The flautist playing ‘His’ tune is equally energising and encouraging — almost like a salutation to those who have risen above the odds and challenges life has thrown at them! “

The poem and photograph by Raghu Rai are individu-ally and collectively com-posed with cognitive and emotional elements that can be juxtaposed to create a real-ity every human faces, almost every day. Each word that is written in the poem and every nuance captured in the photograph say at least these two same things: “Don’t ever let the devil win!”, “Forgive, Forget and move on!”

Dalmia’s recent work, where she compiled all per prose in one book, ‘One Soul Many Lives’, was a coming together of her works and art from a hundred leading maestros of India.

Laxmana Dalmia.

Karan Torani and his work.

Karan Torani: Creating a timeless design story

12 t h e da i ly gua r d i a n2 5 j u ly 2 0 2 0n ew d e l h i

CorrespondentMuMbai

entertainment

Deepika’s ‘Taboo’ Trick To kill lockDown boreDom

MuMbai: Deepika Padukone has revealed how she is killing lockdown boredom along with family members. The actress took to Instagram to give a sneak peek into an intense Taboo game session that she played with husband Ranveer

Singh and her in-laws. “TPL -- Taboo Premiere League. With everyone bringing their A-Game to the TaBoo Table I must say it is getting extremely competitive,” Deepika wrote. Along with it, she shared a photograph of the Taboo board game. Taboo is a popular word game where participants take turns describing

a word or a phrase on a drawn card to their partner, who then has to guess the word or phrase.On the work front,

Deepika recently announced her collaboration with Prabhas on an upcoming Telugu biggie. She co-

stars with Siddhant Chaturvedi and Ananya Panday in an untitled upcoming film,

and has a role in 83 starring hubby Ranveer.

on The beaT

Music is woven into the fabric of our lives in multitude of ways. It works as a form of entertainment,

something to share between friends or just a way to unwind after a long day at work. Unfortunately, due to long and hectic days, even during a pandemic, we barely pay at-tention to the latest trends without them be-ing listed in a column, or chart which can be checked regularly. That being said, this column aims to bring you recommendations ranging from the latest trending songs from mainstream genres to underrated artists and music from older period such as jazz and blues era.

We all have surely listened to the current trending songs; artists such as Juice Wrld, DaBaby and RodyRichh are dominating the industry with songs on top five of the Bill-board Hot 100. Currently, DaBaby’s “Rock-

star” featuring RoddyRichh is at number one and has been at the top spot from last 13 weeks. This is followed by the track “Come & Go”, a collaboration consisting of Juice Wrld and Marshmello, on World’s posthu-mous Album, “Legends Never Die”. Juice Wrld’s track “Wishing Well” is also on 5th

spot, along with other tracks of the album in the top 10 rank.

For those who like to go back in time, some songs have remained popular since they were first released in the 1920s and 1930s era. “Misty” by Ella Fitzgerald, and “Sum-mertime” by George Gershwin are the per-fect addition to the album. Both the songs will capture the listener’s imagination with their soulful renditions.

Moving from what is widely heard, there are indeed underrated artists who have some wonderful music out on streaming platforms. My recommendations would include FRVRFRIDAY and Norman Perry who are proving their mastery in Hip Hop and RnB. “Got It” and “Alive” are just two examples from a wide range of choice from both the artists.

For those who wish to savour a taste of the country, the all-time favourite love song “Tennessee Whiskey” by Chris Stapleton is sure to hit the spot. To keep those feet tap-ping, “Wipe Out”, the iconic instrumental offering from The Surfaris will keep those spirits up, especially when one needs a pickup at the end of the day! “Music of the Night” is the last but not the least of my rec-ommendations. The opening lines “Night-time sharpens, heightens each sensation …Darkness stirs and wakes imagination …” will draw you into the genius that is Andrew Lloyd Webber and leave you wanting more.

We are currently living in an altered real-ity. One of the greatest advantages of tech-nology during this time is having the ability to access music instantly. You can easily find all my recommendations on your favourite streaming platforms and tune into the mu-sic of your choice. Happy listening!A vocalist and composer, Jaiveer works on a range of music, including hip-hop, RnB, Indie, pop and alternative genres.

see you soon: sanjana To sushanT on ‘Dil

bechara’ release DayMuMbai: Actress Sanjana Sanghi has a spe-

cial message for her late co-star Sushant Singh Rajput on the day of release of his last film. Sushant and Sanjana co-star in Dil Bechara, which digitally premieres worldwide on Fri-day evening. Hours before the film launched, Sanjana paid a tribute to Sushant.Referring to Sushant as Manny, his screen

name in the film, Sanjana wrote on her verified Instagram account: “My Manny, I hope you’re

looking over us, blessing us, and smiling upon us as we are, looking up at you, searching for you,

in equal parts awe and disbelief.”She added, “The day apparently has come. It’s Dil

Bechara day. Here’s praying for peace, positivity and calm to each and everyone. Milte hain. Jald. (See you soon),” shared the actress. — Correspondent

Monthly recoMMendations by Jaiveer Misra

Actor Ishaan Khatter says he doesnt mind being recognised as the brother of Bollywood star Sha-hid Kapoor. “I do not feel irked by the fact that I am often recognised as his brother. I came into the public eye at a young age of 15 and have been as-sociated with him since then. That image has lived longer than the independent actor that I am now,” Ishaan said.

Talking about his bond with Shahid, Ishaan said: “Initially, I would always be discussing with him his choices of films and his roles, just to get a per-spective and learn. It’s because of the fact that we are passionate about the same thing, I find myself very fortunate to go up to him, sit with him and learn from his experiences.”

“I have learnt a plethora of things from him. He has a lot of strong qualities that I really look up to and really admire. He has held up to a certain value system that has made him the person he is today. He is focused,” added Ishaan.

He also opened up about his working relation-ship with co-actors Janhvi Kapoor and Ananya Panday. “Ananya truly enjoys exploring herself as a performer and is a very honest person. On the other hand, Janhvi is extremely sincere and is al-ways committed to the cause of doing a lot of good work. She is very curious, an explorer and tries to get it done to perfection in the first take itself,” he said. Ishaan’s piece of advice for himself is: “It’s important to keep my mind intact and focused at all times. It helps me to inculcate a sense of respon-sibility and a thirst and hunger to learn. Overall this has made me more curious and driven.”

noT irkeD To be recogniseD as shahiD’s broTher: ishaan

Chris Stapleton

Sport is a valuable asset that could lead our surround-ings to become a better and healthier place for living.  Sports when regarded in the best form, can do wonders in a society. Sports make the practitioners healthy and when practiced well, gifts the nation, the state, or the town with a gem which en-hances their social reputa-tion with their performance and achievements. Sports facilities, when implement-ed properly, generate em-ployment opportunities, in-crease tourism of the area, boost revenue generation, and goes without saying that it makes the area flourish in

terms of infrastructure. All these benefits and the only thing that it takes to make these happen is ‘Sports Development’

Introduction to sports changes one’s journey and gives great opportunities and successes in life. The nation will progress faster if its sports sector is devel-oped, as the entire world speaks the same language when it comes to sports

and this, in turn, will be a great ground to set our foot in as a strong nation to give the world a similar mes-sage about us. But before anything else, the conditions of sports infrastructure and facilities need to be altered for better in the nation.

Sports need to be suc-cessful and all the Na-tional Federations, Sports Associations, NGOs, and stakeholders involved with the sports development business need to come together and put in their one hundred percent in making this growth happen. The Union government and State governments need to take this sector seriously and provide the stakeholders with adequate funds.

At stumps, which was declared early on Day 1 due to bad light, England were 258/4 following an unbeaten 136-run partner-ship between Buttler and Pope.

Buttler and Pope took advantage of the situation as they scored at a brisk rate. The 100-run partner-ship between the two came off just 175 balls. The West Indies took the second new ball, but the umpires had

to call the players off just after three overs due to bad light.

Earlier, the West Indies were in the driver’s seat throughout the first two sessions as they kept England on a tight leash with regular wickets. Hosts captain Joe Root was dis-missed just before Lunch, and in the second session, talismanic all-rounder Ben Stokes was bowled by Kemar Roach.

The three-Test series is currently level at 1-1.

Brief scores: England 258/4 (Ollie Pope 91 not out, Rory Burns 57; Roach 2/56)’.

GrowinG alonG with sport

root Fails aGain, EnGlanD losE Four wickts For 258 runs aGainst winDiEs

PIYUSH SACHDEVA NEW DELHI

OUR CORRESPOnDEntMANCHESTER

Q. What does your lockdown routine look like?A. I am in my hometown vil-lage in Rohtak for most of the time. I am fortunate that my coach resides in a nearby village. So I’ve been continu-ously seeking his guidance and remaining in training. I have been practicing regu-larly, even on Sundays.

I can say I am in perfect shape. I am focusing and training hard. The lockdown has affected me but little in my quest for a medal in To-kyo. Q. Why did you prefer lighter weight categories for your ca-reer?A. First I tried to shift in a 59 kg bracket. But that was not an Olympic division. So I fo-cused on 52 kg. It also suits me as I am not too tall.  I could avoid taller boxers of upper weight divisions in 52kg. So I stuck with it. Q. Tell us something about the earlier phases of your sporting life?A. It was in 2009 when I earned a bronze in the state sub-junior boxing champi-onship. In the next edition, I upgraded it to Gold. In the National sub-junior, I pro-

duced the same result. I was bursting with confidence. But feud among officials erupted and I could not do anything praiseworthy. In the 2016 National champi-onship, I stood first. Q. During the Asian Games in Jakarta, You were up against World number one, Rio Olym-pic gold medalist Hasanboy Dusmatov of Uzbekistan. Tell us something about that.   A. I had already lost twice against him. I knew that he was a bazooka pugilist. His USP is his jumping left hook. I soaked his robust anger and produced a fitting reply

whenever required. The in-out strategy also worked. I am still thrilled that I earned the gold medal for the nation. Even next year in Bangkok, I outpunched him again at a stronger note. In the Quarter Finals of Asian champion-ship the score was better, 4-1 [smiles]. Q. What went wrong in the finals of the World Boxing Champion-ship?A. I and my team are still clueless. I fought well, land-ed aggressive blows, and connected the punches with finesse. Still, the score-line of 5-0 baffles me. We watched

the video again and again but still have no answer for that decision by the jury. Q. You beat Carlo Paalam for a ticket to Tokyo. That was your 3rd win over the Filipino. Please share your experience?A. It was at Jordan that I achieved this feat. I am de-lighted that I qualified for the biggest sporting stage in the world. Though it has been shifted I am waiting eagerly for it.  Q.  What would you love to do when you are not inside the ring?A. I love to be among friends. I also like my family. This lockdown provided me am-

ple time for it. Q. How do you see the immediate future of Indian Boxing?A. The boxers are highly motivated. Already a record number of boxers has quali-fied for Tokyo. As a team, I expect 3-4 medals from the Olympic arena. Moreover, I feel they will be of the first or second position. I am work-ing hard for a medal.  Q. Would you tell our readers something about your family?A. Well, I am from an agrar-ian background. My father Vijender Singh is a farmer. My elder brother Ajay is my mentor for boxing. He was a boxer in his days. Taking a lot of cues from him, I started pursuing the sport from the age of 12. Q. What are your expectations from the government?A. I want the efforts of my coach to be recognised. I want to see him winning the Dronacharya award first. Af-ter that, I would want to win more medals and awards in my career. I also want my coach to accompany me to the Olympics. Q.  You are a hero for many. Any message you want to give to youth?A. Few but important words. Set a target and practice more and more and more to achieve it.

Lockdown didn’t hinder my quests, says Panghal

nEcEssitY

thirD tEst

intErViEw

Amit Panghal, India’s ace boxer, talks to The Daily Guardian about his life in and outside the ring, and how Covid-19 has impacted him and his game.

File photo of boxer Amit Panghal during one of his bouts.

England cricketer Joe Root.

VIJAY AnAnDNEW DELHI

sportsthe daily guardian25 july 2020

new delhi 13

Before anything else, the conditions of sports infrastructure and facilities need to be changed for the better in the nation.