Vig Inspector held taking bribe PNS SAMBALPUR The Vigilance police on Friday caught a woman Vigilance Inspector and another person red-handed for accepting a bribe of Rs 10 lakh bribe for closure of a case. Official sources said that based on a complaint, the Internal Vigilance Unit of the department had laid a trap. When one Mukesh Sahoo was accepting Rs 10 lakh as bribe from the complainant on behalf of Vigilance Inspector Manasi Jena, the officials arrested Sahoo. During questioning, Sahoo admitted that he was taking the money on behalf of Jena, who is working as an Inspector in the Sambalpur Vigilance Division. The Inspector was accepting the bribe from a Government official for closure of a case against him. Later, searches were carried out at the houses of Jena and Sahoo. A day after the killing of a Kashmiri Pandit man Rahul Bhat by terrorists, Kashmiri Pandit Government employees held protests on Friday, demanding relocation to safer places outside the Valley. At the same time, secu- rity forces gunned down three terrorists in an encounter that broke out in Brar Aragam area of Bandipora on Friday. Sources said two of the three ultras were involved in the attack on Bhat. Protests erupted at the Sheikhpora camp, located in Budgam district of central Kashmir, where Kashmiri Pandit employees have been given makeshift accommoda- tions. The police used batons and tear gas shells to disperse the protestors who were march- ing towards the airport road, seeking an audience with Lieutenant-Governor Manoj Sinha. The migrant employees were moving peacefully in the area when local police request- ed them to disperse. When they refused to budge and kept marching on, police used force and lobbed tear gas shells. A sit- in protest also continued in Vessu, Qazigund area of Anantnag district on Friday where migrant employees offered mass resignations to register their protest against the failure of the Union Territory administration to protect them. Seething with anger the aggrieved employees also demanded speedy justice and the “severest” punishment for killers of Bhat. Meanwhile, in Jammu, the mortal remains of Rahul Bhat were consigned to flames after the body arrived from Kashmir in the wee hours. The entire neighbourhood in Durga Nagar area of Jammu had converged outside the resi- dence of Rahul to pay their homage and perform the last darshan. Meenakshi, who brought back the mortal remains of her husband after traveling during the night, wept inconsolably on reaching their Durga Nagar home in Jammu. “My husband used to say everyone behaves nicely with him and nobody can harm him. Yet nobody protected him, they (terrorists) must have asked someone about him, otherwise, how would they’ve known. I am left alone. He was everything for me,” she said. Rahul leaves behind a seven-year-old daughter and aging parents. Rahul’s father Bitta Jee Bhat retired from active police service years ago. Bitta Jee Bhat has also demanded a high-level inquiry to ascertain how the killers entered a Government office. I ndia on Friday brushed aside reports that it had stopped issuing visas in Sri Lanka and said there were some problems as the staff in the High Commission, mostly locals, were not able to attend office. Operations will resume soon and New Delhi is com- mitted to ease of travel for the Sri Lankans, it assured. In another development, Indian High Commissioner to Colombo Gopal Baglay called on newly-appointed Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and con- veyed greetings and good wishes. They discussed continued co-operation for economic recovery and stability in Sri Lanka through democratic processes. As regards the visa issue, the Indian High Commission said the disruption was caused by operational difficulties. P unjab Police on Friday claimed to have cracked Mohali’s Rocket-Propelled Grenade (RPG) attack case with the arrest of six people, including a woman. The State police chief VK Bhawra claimed that Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) was involved in the attack and the key conspira- tor is gangster Lakhbir Singh Landa from Tarn Taran, a close associate of Pakistan- based wanted terrorist Harvinder Singh Rinda. “Canada-based gangster Lakhbir Singh alias Landa has emerged as the key handler, who provided the RPG, AK- 47, and the local network of criminals for logistic sup- port to carry out the terror attack at Punjab Police Intelligence Headquarters in Mohali on Monday evening,” said the Director-General of Police (DGP) while address- ing the media at Punjab Police headquarters at Chandigarh. Thirty three-year-old Landa, who had fled to Canada in 2017, is a close aide of Harvinder Singh alias Rinda and had joined hands with Babbar Khalsa International (BKI). Rinda is close to BKI chief Wadhawa Singh and the ISI. C ongress president Sonia Gandhi on Friday called for urgent reforms in the party as “extraordinary situations demand extraordinary action” and also launched a blistering attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi accusing him of keeping the country in a state of permanent polarisation, “brutalising” minorities and “threatening” political oppo- nents. The party, which is holding a three-day Chintan Shivir in Udaipur also held discussions on enforcing the ‘One family, one ticket’ formula, granting exemption to only another family member who has been doing “exemplary work” for the party for a period of at least five years. This will leave scope for members of the Gandhi family to contest polls and allow other senior leaders to get their sons and daughters accommodated in the ticket list. Sending out a clear mes- sage to Congress ranks while launching the brainstorming conclave, Sonia said the party will have to change its style of functioning and urged them to keep the organisation above their personal ambi- tions and pay back their debt to the party as it had given a lot to everyone. She urged around 450 delegates to deliberate with an open mind but send out a single message of a strong organisation, resolve and unity. “In one way this (Congress transformation) is the most fundamental issue. Our revival is only possible through collective efforts. Such collective efforts will not be deferred. This Shivir is the start of the journey,” Sonia said. The three-day ‘Nav Sankalp Chintan Shivir’ is being held in the backdrop of a string of electoral defeats and dissent in the party for the past many years. T he Supreme Court on Friday refused to postpone the NEET-PG-2022 examina- tion on a plea of doctors, say- ing the delay would cause an unavailability of doctors and seriously affect patient care. A Bench of Justices DY Chandrachud and Surya Kant said postponement of the examination would create “chaos and uncertainty” and would affect the larger section of students, who have regis- tered for the test. “There are two categories of students -- one which is seeking postponement and the larger category of over two lakh six thousand candidates -- who would be affected by the post- ponement after having pre- pared for the examination”, the Bench said. The Judges noted that the Government was trying to bring the schedule of exami- nation back on time as it was affected due to the pandemic. “As the country gets back on the rails, which was derailed due to the pandemic, the time schedule laid down by this court must be adhered to”, said the Bench. On May 10, the top court had agreed to hear the plea of doctors seeking postponement of the NEET-PG 2022 which is scheduled to be held on May 21 on grounds that it will clash with the ongoing counselling for NEET-PG 2021. New Delhi: Tesla Inc has put on hold plans to sell electric cars in India, abandoned a search for showroom space and reassigned some of its domestic team after failing to secure lower import taxes, three people familiar with the matter told agencies. The decision caps more than a year of deadlocked talks with Government representa- tives as Tesla sought to first test demand by selling electric vehi- cles (EVs) imported from pro- duction hubs in the United States and China, at lower tar- iffs. But the Indian Government is pushing Tesla to commit to manufacturing locally before it will lower tar- iffs, as high as 100 per cent on imported vehicles. Tesla had set itself a dead- line of February 1, the day India unveils its budget and announces tax changes, to see if its lobbying brought results, the sources with knowledge of the company’s plan told Reuters. When Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Government did not offer a concession, Tesla put on hold the plans to import cars into India, added the sources. Detroit: Elon Musk said Friday that his plan to buy Twitter is “temporarily on hold” as he tries to pinpoint the exact number of spam and fake accounts on the social media platform, another twist amid signs of turmoil over the proposed $44 billion acquisition. Musk has been vocal about his desire to clean up Twitter’s problem with “spam bots” that mimic real people and appeared to question whether the com- pany was underreporting them. Detailed Report P10 MLA wants early completion of works PNS PURI I t seems BJP is divided over Shree Jagannath Corridor Project, which has turned out as a burn- ing issue in the State. While leaders of BJP went on to demand a halt in construction of the Heritage Corridor project works in Puri in the prohibited zone of Shree Jagannath Temple here for not having required per- mission from the ASI, local party MLA Jayant Sarangi on Thurs- day said the work should be com- pleted as soon as possible. Sarangi's statement in this re- gard came a day after BJP's na- tional spokesperson Sambit Patra demanded a halt to the ongoing work in the prohibited zone which he said was being carried out by the State Government without having the valid permission of the competent authority, the Archeo- logical Survey of India (ASI). Patra, who unsuccessfully contested from Puri Lok Sabha seat in 2019, on Wednesday strongly criticised the State 's BJD Government and accused it of undertaking heritage corridor project work in an "illegal" man- ner. He too blamed Puri's MP Pinaki Misra for making a "mis- leading" statement on the heri- tage corridor project in the Par- liament, a charge denied by the BJD law maker. Earlier, Bhubanesswar MP and senior BJP leader Aparajita Sarangi had also demanded an immediate stop to the work of the project after the ASI informed the Orissa High Court that it had not given any permission to undertake con- struction work in the restricted zone of the 12th century shrine. However, in a Press confer- ence here, Puri MLA Sarangi said he was not opposed to any devel- opment works. "It is better to complete the work without fur- ther delay. I also urge parties and people not to politicise the corri- dor project issue." Stating that he was first to raise the Heritage Corridor issue in the Assembly, the Puri MLA said a House Committee headed by the Assembly speaker has been formed to look into the matter. Besides, the matter is under con- sideration of the Orissa High Court, he added. Noting that ASI's stand on the Heritage Corridor has delayed the project, the MLA said: "If it is not completed before monsoon, people of the pilgrim town would face a lot of problems in their daily activities due to the deep pits dug up around the temple for con- struction of different facilities". Sarangi said that he was in sup- port of the project from the be- ginning. He appealed to both the State and Central Governments to work in Coordination with each other to complete the works before the rainy season. The BJP MLA has also sought Prime Min- ister Narendra Modi's interven- tion to save the temple. "What- ever has been damaged cannot be brought back to its original form. The Government must ensure there's no further dam- age to the structures". Asked whether he was sup- porting demolition of several mutts near the temple, Sarangi said: "What can I do when mutt heads and others came forward to donate the land for the project." However, Sarangi was confronted by the media for is- suing different statements dur- ing the last three days. On May 10, Sarangi said, "No one is happy with the Heritage Corridor project. All have parted their land for the project out of compulsion." Next day on May 11, he changed his version and said that the Prime Minister should inter- vene in the controversy and re- solve the row. Now on May 12, the same lawmaker said that he wanted the work to be completed soon. "I have replied to the media according to their questions in all the three days. From the be- ginning, I have been support- ing the project," he made his stand clear not notwithstanding what his senior party leaders de- manded. Sarangi claimed that after he was elected as Puri MLA, several developmental projects includ- ing two market complexes, Shri Jagannath Medical College, Siddha Mahavir railway overbridge, modernization of Swaragadwar, indoor stadium and town hall have been taken up in the last three years. How- ever, none of these projects has faced opposition from any quar- ters except the Puri Heritage Cor- ridor project, he told. BJP divided over Puri Corridor Project Heritage project Puri court issues notices Centre, Odisha ASI Superinten- dent visits spot Reception centre to be shifted outside prohib- ited zone PNS PURI The Puri Civil Judge Senior Division Court on Friday ac- cepted a petition filed by the Puri Lawyers’ Association and sent notices to multiple parties, including the Centre, the Na- tional Monuments Authority (NMA), the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and the Puri district Collector. Notices were also sent to the Puri Municipality, Tata Projects, Odisha Bridge and Construction Corporation (OBCC) and Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (STJA) Chief Administrator. The court directed to file re- sponses by June 26, the date of next hearing. Earlier in the day, ASI Su- perintendent Archaeologist Arun Mallick visited the Jagannath Temple to inspect the project site in the presence of SJTA Chief Administrator Vir Vikram Yadav. On Thursday, the Cultural Advisory Committee of the Shreemandir Parikrama Project took a decision to shift the proposed Shree Jagannath Reception Centre, a compo- nent of the project, to outside the 100-metre prohibited zone. The panel headed by Gajapati Maharaja Dibyasingha Deb decided that the reception centre would be established in the regulated zone (within 200 metre) of the temple. Earlier, it had been decided for construction of the recep- tion centre within 75 metre of the boundary wall of the temple. The ASI raised con- cern over the plan. Though digging of land has already started within the prohibited zone for the reception centre, the construction work was yet to commence. Notably, on May 9, the ASI had informed the Orissa High Court that no valid permission was given for the corridor project. While hearing a PIL, a division bench of the High Court headed by Chief Justice S Muralidhar directed the ASI to conduct a joint inspection of the site with the State Gov- ernment and submit a report to the court.
Welcome message from author
This document is posted to help you gain knowledge. Please leave a comment to let me know what you think about it! Share it to your friends and learn new things together.
Transcript
![Page 1: D`_ZR TR]]d W`c fcXV_e SZX eZT\Ve cVW`c^d Z_ 4`_X](https://reader039.cupdf.com/reader039/viewer/2023042614/6335580fb9085e0bf509719b/html5/page/1.jpg)
Vig Inspectorheld takingbribePNS ����� SAMBALPUR
The Vigilance police on Friday caught awoman Vigilance Inspector and anotherperson red-handed for accepting a bribeof Rs 10 lakh bribe for closure of a case.
Official sources said that based on acomplaint, the Internal Vigilance Unit ofthe department had laid a trap. When oneMukesh Sahoo was accepting Rs 10 lakhas bribe from the complainant on behalfof Vigilance Inspector Manasi Jena, theofficials arrested Sahoo.
During questioning, Sahoo admittedthat he was taking the money on behalf ofJena, who is working as an Inspector inthe Sambalpur Vigilance Division.
The Inspector was accepting the bribefrom a Government official for closure ofa case against him. Later, searches werecarried out at the houses of Jena and Sahoo.
������������� �������������������������������
������������� ���
Aday after the killing of aKashmiri Pandit manRahul Bhat by terrorists,
Kashmiri Pandit Governmentemployees held protests onFriday, demanding relocationto safer places outside theValley. At the same time, secu-rity forces gunned down threeterrorists in an encounter thatbroke out in Brar Aragam areaof Bandipora on Friday.Sources said two of the threeultras were involved in theattack on Bhat.
Protests erupted at theSheikhpora camp, located inBudgam district of centralKashmir, where KashmiriPandit employees have beengiven makeshift accommoda-tions. The police used batonsand tear gas shells to dispersethe protestors who were march-ing towards the airport road,seeking an audience withLieutenant-Governor ManojSinha. The migrant employeeswere moving peacefully in thearea when local police request-ed them to disperse. When theyrefused to budge and keptmarching on, police used force
and lobbed tear gas shells. A sit-in protest also continued inVessu, Qazigund area ofAnantnag district on Fridaywhere migrant employeesoffered mass resignations toregister their protest against thefailure of the Union Territoryadministration to protect them.
Seething with anger theaggrieved employees alsodemanded speedy justice andthe “severest” punishment forkillers of Bhat.
Meanwhile, in Jammu, themortal remains of Rahul Bhatwere consigned to flames afterthe body arrived from Kashmirin the wee hours. The entireneighbourhood in DurgaNagar area of Jammu hadconverged outside the resi-dence of Rahul to pay theirhomage and perform the lastdarshan.
Meenakshi, who broughtback the mortal remains of herhusband after traveling duringthe night, wept inconsolablyon reaching their Durga Nagarhome in Jammu.
“My husband used to sayeveryone behaves nicely withhim and nobody can harmhim. Yet nobody protectedhim, they (terrorists) musthave asked someone abouthim, otherwise, how wouldthey’ve known. I am leftalone. He was everything forme,” she said.
Rahul leaves behind aseven-year-old daughter andaging parents. Rahul’s fatherBitta Jee Bhat retired fromactive police service years ago.Bitta Jee Bhat has alsodemanded a high-level inquiryto ascertain how the killersentered a Government office.
���������������� ������������������������������
�������������������������� ������������ �
India on Friday brushed asidereports that it had stopped
issuing visas in Sri Lanka andsaid there were some problemsas the staff in the HighCommission, mostly locals,were not able to attend office.
Operations will resumesoon and New Delhi is com-mitted to ease of travel for theSri Lankans, it assured.
In another development,Indian High Commissionerto Colombo Gopal Baglaycalled on newly-appointedPrime Minister RanilWickremesinghe and con-veyed greetings and goodwishes.
They discussed continuedco-operation for economicrecovery and stability in SriLanka through democraticprocesses.
As regards the visa issue,the Indian High Commissionsaid the disruption was causedby operational difficulties.
���� ���������
Punjab Police on Fridayclaimed to have cracked
Mohali’s Rocket-PropelledGrenade (RPG) attack casewith the arrest of six people,including a woman.
The State police chief VKBhawra claimed that Pakistan’sInter-Services Intelligence(ISI) was involved in theattack and the key conspira-tor is gangster Lakhbir SinghLanda from Tarn Taran, aclose associate of Pakistan-based wanted terror istHar vinder Singh Rinda.
“Canada-based gangster
Lakhbir Singh alias Landa hasemerged as the key handler,who provided the RPG, AK-47, and the local network ofcriminals for logistic sup-port to carry out the terrorattack at Punjab Pol iceIntelligence Headquarters inMohali on Monday evening,”said the Director-General ofPolice (DGP) while address-
ing the media at Punjab Policeheadquarters at Chandigarh.
Thirty three-year-oldLanda, who had f led toCanada in 2017, is a close aideof Harvinder Singh aliasRinda and had joined handswith Babbar KhalsaInternational (BKI). Rinda isclose to BKI chief WadhawaSingh and the ISI.
�������������������������������������
Congress president SoniaGandhi on Friday called for
urgent reforms in the party as“extraordinary situationsdemand extraordinary action”and also launched a blisteringattack on Prime MinisterNarendra Modi accusing himof keeping the country in a stateof permanent polarisation,“brutalising” minorities and“threatening” political oppo-nents.
The party, which is holdinga three-day Chintan Shivir inUdaipur also held discussionson enforcing the ‘One family,one ticket’ formula, grantingexemption to only anotherfamily member who has beendoing “exemplary work” for theparty for a period of at leastfive years. This will leavescope for members of theGandhi family to contestpolls and allow other seniorleaders to get their sons anddaughters accommodated inthe ticket list.
Sending out a clear mes-sage to Congress ranks whilelaunching the brainstormingconclave, Sonia said the partywill have to change its style offunctioning and urged themto keep the organisation
above their personal ambi-tions and pay back their debtto the party as it had given alot to everyone.
She urged around 450delegates to deliberate withan open mind but send out asingle message of a strong
organisation, resolve andunity. “In one way this(Congress transformation) isthe most fundamental issue.Our revival is only possiblethrough collective efforts.Such collective efforts will notbe deferred. This Shivir is the
start of the journey,” Soniasaid.
The three-day ‘NavSankalp Chintan Shivir’ isbeing held in the backdrop ofa string of electoral defeatsand dissent in the party for thepast many years.
�������������������������������������������������������������������
���������������� �����������������������
�������������� �����!������"�#$�%���������
������������������������������������� ������������������������ ���!�"���#���$"�%���&������$&���� '� ��"�(�������#�)��& �%��*��"�������� �� +"���,-�.#�� &*$�"�/�&���'�&�0��#��!�"������"�*� ���!!�/��������-
!�������"�#$�� ������%�������������� &''( +�&"��������(�"�%������� ��12���#�"��� 3&"���(#� �������� '�"�$&��/�&'#�!�"��� �4��"���"����!�5�**&�� �4��#*�")������������"�/��� +"���,0��!!�/���������-�
��������������%%�����������%���������������� 6� ��"���6��!!�/�"���#��#�$$�"�#���$�� ����� �������#��/#��"��"�� ��!�#��� �"��� ��"���!�6�/� ��",��&/���� �7 6�8� ������9��:��$&"��&/"���/�"��#&!!����!!�/���$,��#��� �"��� �+"���,-�
�������)���������������������*!*��������������� .#��'�:�" *� �#���!�;����#�����&���"�/���!����#�"������ <=<�����/�0��#�&���"�� ���!��#�������"�/�$� �0��#�����!��#������� '��!��#�/�& �",)����"'����� �&"�"�� ��,��>-�
�����+�������������������������������������� .#��6&�"�*���&"�+"���,����,����#����� ����'#�&"���"��"���"�/�� '��#���"�/��"��� �"����!�����/�7���80 �#�"0�����"��&/��6�#�"��"�&��/#��!�6&$"������,�$�!�"����� ���,���� ���*����"���#����*��/�*�� �����!��#��"�&�(�"�� ���"��&" � '*� �,�����#��� :����"�-
�������
����������������� ����� �� ������������ ����������������������
������������������������������
The Supreme Court onFriday refused to postpone
the NEET-PG-2022 examina-tion on a plea of doctors, say-ing the delay would cause anunavailability of doctors andseriously affect patient care. ABench of Justices DYChandrachud and Surya Kantsaid postponement of theexamination would create“chaos and uncertainty” andwould affect the larger sectionof students, who have regis-tered for the test.
“There are two categoriesof students -- one which isseeking postponement and thelarger category of over two lakhsix thousand candidates -- whowould be affected by the post-ponement after having pre-pared for the examination”, theBench said.
The Judges noted that theGovernment was trying tobring the schedule of exami-nation back on time as it wasaffected due to the pandemic.
“As the country gets backon the rails, which was deraileddue to the pandemic, the timeschedule laid down by thiscourt must be adhered to”, saidthe Bench.
On May 10, the top courthad agreed to hear the plea ofdoctors seeking postponementof the NEET-PG 2022 which isscheduled to be held on May 21on grounds that it will clashwith the ongoing counsellingfor NEET-PG 2021.
New Delhi: Tesla Inc has puton hold plans to sell electriccars in India, abandoned asearch for showroom spaceand reassigned some of itsdomestic team after failing tosecure lower import taxes,three people familiar with thematter told agencies.
The decision caps morethan a year of deadlocked talkswith Government representa-tives as Tesla sought to first testdemand by selling electric vehi-cles (EVs) imported from pro-duction hubs in the UnitedStates and China, at lower tar-iffs.
But the IndianGovernment is pushing Tesla tocommit to manufacturinglocally before it will lower tar-iffs, as high as 100 per cent onimported vehicles.
Tesla had set itself a dead-line of February 1, the dayIndia unveils its budget andannounces tax changes, tosee if its lobbying broughtresults, the sources withknowledge of the company’splan told Reuters. When
Prime Minister NarendraModi’s Government did notoffer a concession, Tesla puton hold the plans to importcars into India, added thesources.
������������������� �������� ����������� �� ����
�&'�(���������������)**+,� ,-.--������/���������������!���
��� ������������������������������� ������������������������������������������������� ���������������� �!���"�������� �������#$�% ������������������������$&����'������� �(�
�����!�)���*+�,��-��&����� �-����)�����������������#�� �)�������������������*���������������&�������� �����������������!������������.������������� �������/����# ������������
���!��������������#��,����� �)���!����������� #������ ������������������������ ����������,��&����0��������/����#� �(�
Detroit: Elon Musk saidFriday that his plan to buyTwitter is “temporarily onhold” as he tries to pinpointthe exact number of spamand fake accounts on thesocial media platform,another twist amid signs ofturmoil over the proposed$44 billion acquisition.Musk has been vocal abouthis desire to clean upTwitter’s problem with“spam bots” that mimicreal people and appeared toquestion whether the com-pany was underreportingthem. Detailed Report P10
������������#&�����������������������!���������"�#����!������������!�0���!�������/�����/�������
������ ��
������ ����
���������
?.#�����,��� ��" !�/�$��%-/�*�����,��� ��"����� ���� � ���'"�*-/�*�����,��� ��"�
�������, �,�-�. �//(� �1<@��"�6&"/#�"'���;�"���!������/�$��
�&$���#���+"�*�����������4��� ������� �� ���6���
������������ ������������������ �A���� ���B�5�A����
�/0&1��/��2��.�!
���������������� �����������
%��%����"������+��+��!"�#$##3�������#��!
����������������.��9���4����������+���
���+�� �6���� ���1222���6.
��
�!"#�$����A�.��.��4���.�
��.��0�6�A6�C����64AA
�%&�&���'�����6)���������.���6.�� ��.�����.�.A
���� �������������
����������� �������������������
MLA wants earlycompletion ofworksPNS ����� PURI
It seems BJP is divided overShree Jagannath Corridor Project,which has turned out as a burn-ing issue in the State.
While leaders of BJP went onto demand a halt in constructionof the Heritage Corridor projectworks in Puri in the prohibitedzone of Shree Jagannath Templehere for not having required per-mission from the ASI, local partyMLA Jayant Sarangi on Thurs-day said the work should be com-pleted as soon as possible.
Sarangi's statement in this re-gard came a day after BJP's na-tional spokesperson Sambit Patra
demanded a halt to the ongoingwork in the prohibited zone whichhe said was being carried out bythe State Government withouthaving the valid permission of thecompetent authority, the Archeo-logical Survey of India (ASI).
Patra, who unsuccessfullycontested from Puri Lok Sabhaseat in 2019, on Wednesdaystrongly criticised the State 'sBJD Government and accused itof undertaking heritage corridorproject work in an "illegal" man-ner. He too blamed Puri's MPPinaki Misra for making a "mis-leading" statement on the heri-tage corridor project in the Par-liament, a charge denied by theBJD law maker. Earlier,Bhubanesswar MP and senior BJPleader Aparajita Sarangi had alsodemanded an immediate stop to
the work of the project after theASI informed the Orissa HighCourt that it had not given anypermission to undertake con-struction work in the restrictedzone of the 12th century shrine.
However, in a Press confer-ence here, Puri MLA Sarangi saidhe was not opposed to any devel-opment works. "It is better tocomplete the work without fur-ther delay. I also urge parties andpeople not to politicise the corri-dor project issue."
Stating that he was first toraise the Heritage Corridor issuein the Assembly, the Puri MLAsaid a House Committee headedby the Assembly speaker has beenformed to look into the matter.Besides, the matter is under con-sideration of the Orissa HighCourt, he added.
Noting that ASI's stand on theHeritage Corridor has delayed theproject, the MLA said: "If it is notcompleted before monsoon,people of the pilgrim town wouldface a lot of problems in their dailyactivities due to the deep pits dugup around the temple for con-struction of different facilities".
Sarangi said that he was in sup-port of the project from the be-ginning. He appealed to both theState and Central Governmentsto work in Coordination witheach other to complete the worksbefore the rainy season. The BJPMLA has also sought Prime Min-ister Narendra Modi's interven-tion to save the temple. "What-ever has been damaged cannotbe brought back to its originalform. The Government mustensure there's no further dam-
age to the structures". Asked whether he was sup-
porting demolition of severalmutts near the temple, Sarangisaid: "What can I do when muttheads and others came forwardto donate the land for theproject." However, Sarangi wasconfronted by the media for is-suing different statements dur-ing the last three days.
On May 10, Sarangi said, "Noone is happy with the HeritageCorridor project. All have partedtheir land for the project out ofcompulsion."
Next day on May 11, hechanged his version and said thatthe Prime Minister should inter-vene in the controversy and re-solve the row.
Now on May 12, the samelawmaker said that he wanted the
work to be completed soon. "I have replied to the media
according to their questions inall the three days. From the be-ginning, I have been support-ing the project," he made hisstand clear not notwithstandingwhat his senior party leaders de-manded.
Sarangi claimed that after hewas elected as Puri MLA, severaldevelopmental projects includ-ing two market complexes, ShriJagannath Medical College,Siddha Mahavir railwayoverbridge, modernization ofSwaragadwar, indoor stadiumand town hall have been takenup in the last three years. How-ever, none of these projects hasfaced opposition from any quar-ters except the Puri Heritage Cor-ridor project, he told.
BJP divided over Puri Corridor Project
Heritage project
Puri court issuesnotices Centre, OdishaASI Superinten-dent visits spotReception centreto be shiftedoutside prohib-ited zonePNS ����� PURI
The Puri Civil Judge SeniorDivision Court on Friday ac-cepted a petition filed by thePuri Lawyers’ Association andsent notices to multiple parties,including the Centre, the Na-tional Monuments Authority(NMA), the ArchaeologicalSurvey of India (ASI) and thePuri district Collector.
Notices were also sent to thePuri Municipality, TataProjects, Odisha Bridge andConstruction Corporation(OBCC) and Shree Jagannath
Temple Administration (STJA)Chief Administrator.
The court directed to file re-sponses by June 26, the date ofnext hearing.
Earlier in the day, ASI Su-perintendent ArchaeologistArun Mallick visited theJagannath Temple to inspectthe project site in the presenceof SJTA Chief AdministratorVir Vikram Yadav.
On Thursday, the CulturalAdvisory Committee of theShreemandir ParikramaProject took a decision to shiftthe proposed Shree JagannathReception Centre, a compo-nent of the project, to outsidethe 100-metre prohibited zone.
The panel headed byGajapati MaharajaDibyasingha Deb decided thatthe reception centre would beestablished in the regulated
zone (within 200 metre) of thetemple.
Earlier, it had been decidedfor construction of the recep-tion centre within 75 metreof the boundary wall of thetemple. The ASI raised con-cern over the plan. Thoughdigging of land has alreadystarted within the prohibitedzone for the reception centre,the construction work was yetto commence.
Notably, on May 9, the ASIhad informed the Orissa HighCourt that no valid permissionwas given for the corridorproject. While hearing a PIL,a division bench of the HighCourt headed by Chief JusticeS Muralidhar directed the ASIto conduct a joint inspectionof the site with the State Gov-ernment and submit a reportto the court.
![Page 2: D`_ZR TR]]d W`c fcXV_e SZX eZT\Ve cVW`c^d Z_ 4`_X](https://reader039.cupdf.com/reader039/viewer/2023042614/6335580fb9085e0bf509719b/html5/page/2.jpg)
BHUBANESWAR l SATURDAY l MAY 14, 2022 capital 02
ODIA PILOT KILLED IN COPTER CRASH AT RAIPUR
Bhubaneswar: Two pilots, including one from Odisha, werekilled as a helicopter crashed at Raipur's Swami VivekanandAirport on Friday morning. They were identified as CaptainGopal Krishna Panda of Baham village in Sambalpur districtand Captain AP Shrivastava of Chhattisgarh. The chopper wasbeing used for a routine training sortie. Initial indicationssuggested technical malfunction as the cause of crash.A detailed technical investigation at the behest of DGCA andState Government shall be undertaken to ascertain the exactcause.
BY-POLL TO A RS SEAT ON JUNE 13Bhubaneswar: The by-election to a Rajya Sabha seat fromOdisha would be held on June 13, said a notification issued bythe Election Commission of India (ECI) on Friday. The seathas fallen vacant after Subash Chandra Singh's resignationafter being elected as the Mayor of the Cuttack MunicipalCorporation (CMC) in March. The polling would be heldfrom 9 am to 4 pm. The counting of votes would take place at5 pm on the very day.
MLA SOUVIC GETS MARRIEDBhubaneswar: Choudwar-Cuttack BJD MLA SouvicBiswal tied the nuptial knotat the Lotus Resort on Puri-Konark Marine Drive Roadon Thursday night. Souvic,son of senior BJD leader andformer Choudwar-Cuttack MLA Pravat Ranjan Biswal, mar-ried Ananya Priyadarshini of Cuttack in the presence of hisfamily members, relatives and friends. Several BJD leadersalso attended the function.
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC ENVOY MEETS CMBhubaneswar: Ambassador of Domini-can Republic to India David EmmanuelPuig Buchel met Chief Minister NaveenPatnaik at the Naveen Niwas on Friday.
SHREEMANDIR ABHIYAN OPPOSES HERITAGE PROJECTBhubaneswar: The Shreemandir Suraksha Abhiyan has warnedto launch an agitation from block to State levels, a drive formass petition to the Prime Minister, the Chief Minister, intel-lectuals, Santh Sammilani and mobilisation of women powerif the Government fails to stop the Puri Heritage Corridorconstruction activities. The Abhiyan in a news conferenceexpressed deep concern over the ongoing constructions in theprohibited areas violating the ASI guidelines. Abhiyan leaderssaid that in the name of heritage development and beautifica-tion of the area surrounding the Jagannath Temple, the StateGovernment is pursuing the Heritage Corridor project by-passing legal provisions. The Government must respectpeople's sentiment.
ECoR CELEBRATES NURSES DAYBhubaneswar: All Sisters of the East Coast Railway CentralHospital at Mancheswar here celebrated International Nurses
Day. Hospital Medical Director Dr Ajay Sethi and AdditionalChief Health Director Dr Rita Dungdung complimented thenursing staffs for their dedication and devotion to their duty.
UTKAL TYCOONS AWARDS, BBSR RUNAWAY WEEK ON MAY 15Bhubaneswar: The Utkal Updates and the Addiction FashionManagement have announced the schedule of fashion festand Utkal Tycoons Awards along with Bhubaneswar RunwayWeek Season-6 to be held here on May 15 evening.Bhubaneswar Runway director John Ajay said the RunwayWeek Season-6 designers would showcase their designs and 30models would participate in the event. Utkal Updates founderSushree Sangita Sahu said many startups of Odisha are doingexcellent work in business field. Through Utkal TycoonsAwards, an attempt has been made to recognise their contri-butions. Ollywood celebrities Elina Samantray and Bhoomikawould grace the occasion.
INBRIEFIREDA to expand RE sector in State Bizman held for rape in city
Sensitising on sexual harassmentSensitising on sexual harassmentSensitising on sexual harassmentSensitising on sexual harassmentSensitising on sexual harassment
3-day training begins in city
Matric exam evaluation from May 21
1,280 cough syrup bottles seized in city
‘Temporarily stopHeritage Corridor work'
In cityIn cityIn cityIn cityIn city
Mystery shrouds pvt hosp doc's death
‘Bhor Motira Kanaphoola' release today
Guv praised for reading Odia
--1 heldPNS ����� BHUBANESWAR
The Special Task Force(STF) of the Crime with thehelp of the Commissioneratepolice on Friday seized asmany as 1,280 bottles of coughsyrup near Baramunda hereand arrested one person in thisconnection.
The accused was identifiedas Padmalabha Behera, aresident of the Puri district.
According to STF officials,on the basis of intelligenceinputs, a raid was conducted
by STF and police nearBaramunda in the morningand the accused was held withthe banned substance.
During search, 1,280 bottlesof illegal Eskuf cough syruphaving codeine phosphate andchlorpheniramine maleatewere seized.
The accused could notproduce any document orauthority for possession ofsuch prohibited manufactureddrugs, for which a case hasbeen registered at Bharatpurpolice station, the officialssaid..
PNS ����� BHUBANESWAR
Indian Renewable EnergyDevelopment Agency(IREDA) CMD Pradip KumarDas met State Chief SecretarySuresh Chandra Mahapatrahere on Friday and had adiscussion about the IREDA’sseveral efforts in last two yearsand future opportunities inOdisha.
Opportunities forpromoting the usage ofrenewable energy (RE) in theState were highlighted. InAugust 2021, the IREDAopened a branch office inBhubaneswar, following whichthe company sanctioned fivehydropower projects totalling80.5 MW and a 1.5-MWenergy access project andsanctioned loans of Rs 670crore and disbursed loans ofRs 348 crore.
Mahapatra praised the
IREDA’s efforts and assured theState Government’s completesupport for renewable energydevelopment. Das alsoinformed that several projectsfor Odisha relating to biomassand manufacturing are underconsideration.
The Chief Secretary said theIREDA should also encouragesolar rooftop, solar heating andsolar lighting systems forhousehold use in Odisha.“IREDA is keen to promotemore RE projects in Odisha,realising the immense green
energy potential in the State,”Das said. He also informedabout the future plans for theRE sector’s expansion in linewith the Government ofIndia’s target of a 50% share ofenergy from non-fossil fuelsby 2030.
PNS ����� BHUBANESWAR
The Pahala police on Fridayarrested a youth for allegedlyraping a girl at his house afterbefriending her at a bar inBhubaneswar.
The accused Kishan Agarwal(24) of Cuttack runs a businessestablishment in the capitalcity and resides in a rentedhouse at Pahala.
Kishan had on Thursdaynight gone to the bar, wherehe met the victim and
persuaded her to come withhim to his house, to which sheagreed. As the two went to thehouse, Kishan, who was drunk,raped the girl.
Later, the victim managedto escape and lodged acomplaint with the Pahalapolice. On the basis of thecomplaint, police registered acase against Kishan under therelevant sections of the IPCand arrested him.
Later, the accused wasforwarded to court.
PNS ����� BHUBANESWAR
The Utkal SammilaniMancheswar Industrial Estatebranch has praised GovernorProf Ganeshi Lal for readingOdia language.
On a recent visit to the RajBhavan, the Sammilanidelegates led by unit presidentDillip Dashsharma had
presented the book "UtkalPrabhat" and the UtkalSammilani newsletter to theGovernor. After receiving thebooks, Prof Lal read out theirnames.
It was a great gesture on thepart of the Governor forhaving become familiar withthe Odia alphabets, saidDashsharma.
PNS ����� BHUBANESWAR
To stop sexual harassmentat workplace and to sensitisepeople on equality for menand women, a three-daytraining began here onThursday where 40 membersacross the State joined.
Organised by AtmashaktiTrust, Odisha ShramajeebeeMancha and MahilaShramajeebee Mancha,Odisha, the training wasconducted by eminent socialactivist, gender expert andsecretary of Aaina SnehaMishra.
She will train participantson what is sexual harassment,myths and realities; nationaland State level landmarks in
the prevention of sexualharassment, role of InternalComplaint Committee andeffects of sexual harassment onorganisations.
"This will help employees tounderstand sexualharrassment, encourage themto report any questionablebehavior that makes them feel
uncomfortable, sensitisemanagers and higher-levelstaff on matters pertaining tosexual harassment," saidorganisers.
PNS ����� BHUBANESWAR
The evaluation of annualHigh School Certificate (HSC)examination conducted byBoard of Secondary Education(BSE), Odisha, for the year2022 will commence fromMay 21, BSE informed onFriday.
Total 481 chief evaluators,900 deputy evaluators and8,919 assistant evaluatorswould be deployed for theevaluation. Besides, the BSEhas appointed 930scrutinisers for theevaluation. The evaluation
would be made at 58 centresacross the State.
As per schedule, evaluatorswill reach by 10 am atevaluation centres on May 20.The evaluation will be madebetween 10 am and 12 am.
For the first time, theauthorities have decided toevaluate the examination forthe year 2022 adopting threedifferent methods. As per thedecision, the evaluation willbe done on the basis of scoresachieved in SummativeAssessment-I, SummativeAssessment-II and InternalAssessment.
Autobiography inOdia by JayantaMahapatraPNS ����� BHUBANESWAR
Renowned writer and poetJayanta Mahapatra'sautobiography 'Bhor MotiraKanaphoolaon' will be releasedon Saturday evening at thePress Club of Odisha,Bhubaneswar.
The occasion will be gracedby former Justice and writerArun Parichha as chief guest,Odia author, columnist andcritic Gourahari Das as chiefspeaker and author JayantaMahapatra, along with manyother dignitaries.
The autobiography in Odia
is of around 360 pages,published by the KetakiFoundation Trust and coversthe events in Mahapatra's lifeup to his present age. The bookis designed by Jyoti RanjanSwain of Third EyeCommunication, Odisha.
INTACH urgesCMPNS ����� BHUBANESWAR
Indian National Trust for Artand Cultural Heritage(INTACH) State ConvenerAmiya Bhusan Tripathy hasappealed to Chief MinisterNaveen Patnaik for temporarysuspension of all activities inthe excavated area of theHeritage Corridor at Puri.
In a letter to the CM,Tripathy has stated thatpending disposal of the matterin the Orissa High Court and
amid the political slugfest withrumours flying thick and fast,devotees of Lord Jagannath areconfused, apprehensive andhurt.
Tripathy has written,"INTACH is above all politicalpredilections and is in anunique position of feeling thepulse of the people through itstwelve chapters spread throughthe length and breadth of theState…Our feedback is thatpeople are hurt as their supremedeity Lord Jagannath's abode isin controversy which has goneto the highest court for adecision."
PNS ����� BHUBANESWAR
A newly-wed doctor diedunder mysteriouscircumstances at a privatehospital under the Bharatpurpolice station in the city onThursday night.
The deceased Sisir Sahoo ofJharsuguda was the AssociateProfessor of Orthopaedics. Hischamber was found lockedfrom inside for a long periodof time. Suspecting foul play,some staffers of the hospitalwent inside and found himlying on a bed in a critical
condition. He was immediatelyrushed to the ICU of thehospital, where he breathed hislast.
Reports said Sahoo, who gotmarried around 20 days ago,administered PotassiumChloride injection and laterTramadol. Later, police sent thebody for postmortem. Thereason behind the death of thedoctor was yet to be ascertained.It is expected that the autopsyreport would reveal the exactcause of the death. Police havestarted an investigation into theincident.
‘Community mgmt ofmalnutrition need of the hour’
‘TEDx KIIT University’6th edition held
White baby monkey at Nandankanan
State-levelroundtable onwasting heldPNS ����� BHUBANESWAR
The Coalition for Food andNutrition Security (CFNS), inpartnership with Centre forYouth and Social Develop-ment (CYSD), Odisha CSRForum and development part-ners, organised a Stateroundtable consultation onaddressing wasting in Odisha.
The speakers appreciated thecommitment of the Govern-ment of Odisha to the nutri-tion agenda and specificallyhighlighted reduction of wast-ing and severe wasting. Be-tween NFHS-4 (2015-16) andNFHS-5 (2020-21), Odisha hasdemonstrated reduction ofwasting and severe wastingfrom 20.4% to 18.1%.
Similarly, there is a decreasein severe wasting in children,from 6.4% to 6.1% betweenNFHS-4 and NFHS-5.
Given the Government ofOdisha’s commitment to thegood nutrition agenda, theparticipants were hopeful thatOdisha will achieve the visionfor a ‘Mission Wasting FreeOdisha’.
They recommended on im-proving dietary diversity andencouraging use of millets ascomplimentary food; Com-munity Management of AcuteMalnutrition (CMAM) as theonly way that many childrencan be treated and cared for inthe long term; strengtheningconvergence at village levelplatforms like the VillageHealth Nutrition and Sanita-tion Day (VHSND), Sector,Block and District conver-gence platforms; data and evi-dence-based programmingand IT-enabled monitoring,tracking of wasted and SAMchildren; social behaviourchange communication, espe-cially on interpersonal coun-seling, social mobilization andcampaigning.
Eminentspeakers fromnation, overseasjoinPNS ����� BHUBANESWAR
The 6th edition of theTEDxKIIT University wasorganised here on the theme‘Beauty of Ingenuity’ onSunday.
Founder, KIIT and KISS DrAchyuta Samanta graced theevent to acknowledge andinteract with the reveredspeakers while VC, KIITDeemed to be University ProfSasmita Samanta; RegistrarProf Jnyana Ranjan Mohanty;CEO, TEDxKIIT UniversityArushi Mishra and DeputyDirector Student Services DrShyam Sundar Behura alsograced the occasion. Somespeakers joined virtually fromoverseas.
Starting with the talentedactor, Shataf Figar, the
conference featured talksfrom other eminentpersonalities includingformer ISRO scientist, thepioneer of cryogenic rocketscience in India, and PadmaShri awardee Dr VasudevannGnanagandhi and wildlifeconservationist Dr ShailendraSingh. RenownedHollywood choreographerand dancer, James ComboMarino, enthralled theaudience, performing livefrom Los Angeles.Entrepreneur, Nidhi Pant andtextile designer andresearcher, Pankaja Sethidelivered inspiring talksabout their journey.Renowned physicist, DrMick Storr, educationist DrRanjit Sinh Disale,environmentalist PatrickKilonzo Mwalua, andmystical mentalist, JasonSuran, joined virtually todeliver talks. NamitaChoudhary enraptured theaudience with her singing.
PNS ����� BHUBANESWAR
A white baby monkey hasbecome a centre of attractionfor visitors at theNandankanan ZoologicalPark located on the outskirtsof Bhubaneswar.
In a video posted by the zooon its official Twitter handle,a stump-tailed macaque is seenholding her baby, which lookswhitish, in her arm at an en-closure in the zoo.
The distinctive baby mon-key is said to be a stump-tailedmacaque species. The infantsof this bear macaque speciesare born white and darkenwith age. The video was up-loaded one month after birth
of the baby.“The babies of this stump-
tailed macaque species are bornwhite naturally. They turnbrownish gradually with ad-vancement of age,” said a se-nior official in Nandankanan,informing that the baby mon-key is a second child of hermother.
The bear macaques orstump-tailed macaques havethick, long, dark brown furcovering their bodies and shorttails. They are covered withlong, shaggy furs, but theirshort tails and faces are hair-less and they go bald with age.The particular monkey speciesare found in northeast regionof the country.
![Page 3: D`_ZR TR]]d W`c fcXV_e SZX eZT\Ve cVW`c^d Z_ 4`_X](https://reader039.cupdf.com/reader039/viewer/2023042614/6335580fb9085e0bf509719b/html5/page/3.jpg)
capital 03BHUBANESWAR l SATURDAY l MAY 14, 2022
Clandestine deal?
Newborn in JSpur rescued from nurse’s custody ‘Upgrade VSSUT to nat'l standard'
Money demand
Woman killed by sonon Mother's Day
Scribe attacked by mobbefore Khariar PS
Int'l Nurses Day
‘Seva for needy yields self-satisfaction'
After raid byCWC KAHNU NANDA����� JAGATSINGHPUR
The Child Welfare Com-mittee [CWC], Jagatsinghpur,rescued a female newbornfrom Manijanga hospital un-der Tirtol block on Tuesday.
The infant was under thepossession of nurse SagarikaOjha who is working in thehospital.
After rescuing the baby, theCWC held its sitting and or-dered to shift the newborn toSpecial Newborn Care Unit[SNCU] at the District Head-quarters Hospital and directedthe Tirtol police station to
lodge a case against the nurseand her husband.
Meanwhile, the newborn’s
mother had approached theCWC to get back her childwho is undergoing treatment
at SNCU on Thursday. But adecision will be taken in thematter after holding a CWCmeeting, informed DistrictChild Protection Officer KCRout.
The report said that a preg-nant woman from Beheda vil-lage under Tirtol block wasadmitted to Manijanga hospi-tal for delivery. She had givenbirth to a female child onMonday night. The womanwho is a mother of two chil-dren had proposed to give thenewborn to her sister but thelatter was not interested to takethe child.
Later nurse Sagarika whohad assisted the delivery of thepregnant had offered to takethe newborn. After agreeing
with the nurse’s proposal thewoman and her husband hadhanded over the child to thenurse and returned village onTuesday night.
Acting on a tip-off, theCWC and Childline authorityhad raided nurse Sagarika’s resi-dence at Manijanga and res-cued the newborn from hercustody on Wednesday night.
Meanwhile, the parents ofthe newborn on Thursday re-vealed that no clandestine andfinancial transactions hadbeen done to hand over thebaby to nurse Sagarika. TheTirtol police visited nurseSagarika’s residence on Thurs-day and interrogated her. Thepolice will furnish its reportto the CWC on Saturday.
Ex-studentsdemand funds inline of OUTRPNS ����� SAMBALPUR
The old students of UCEBurla (present VSSUT) andthe elite citizens of the regionand the State cutting acrosslocalities have demandedupgradation of the VSSUT toan international standard in-stitution.
"Since it has produced engi-neers who have worked all overthe globe including ISRO andNASA, this age-old technicalinstitution needs upgradationat par with any other institu-tion of the country withoutany second thought," de-manded Sunil Kumar
Samataray of the Parents' As-sociation of VSSUT.
Ashesh Padhi, project headof Jindal of Barbil and Paradip,Sudhakar Patrai, former chiefengineer of State Water Re-sources Department andmany other old students ech-oed similar concern.
"The VSSUT is not the prideof the State, but of the entirecountry as it is one among theoldest technical institutions ofthe country and produced bril-liant engineers cum makers ofthe world and nation. But it isremaining neglected in spiteof so many demands beforeState and the Centre," la-mented many others includ-ing from Sambalpur andWestern Odisha.
They lamented that when
the State Government hassanctioned Rs 1,500 crore forOUTR, it has not made simi-lar sanction for UCE/VSSUTsuo-motto although demandswere placed much earlier forupgrading VSSUT.
Giving a comparison, theysaid that the VSSUT has morethan 200 acres of land with6,000+ students, whereasOUTR has 4,600 students withhalf of the land of VSSUT."Hence, priority should also begiven to Burla as OUTR," theyopined.
"We don't have any objec-tion to the upgradation ofOUTR and also allotment ofhuge funds to it. Our demandis to give similar priority andjustice to VSSUT also," theysuggested.
In Mayurbhanj
Woman, 2 children charred to death
In Bargarh
Woman beaten to death at daughter's weddingRAJESH BEHERA����� KENDRAPADA
A sexagenarian woman atKanapur under Rajkankikapolice station was killed by herson for not providing hermoney on the Mother's Day(May 8) night.
Rajkanika police onWednesday arrested main ac-cused Sajit Barik (36) and hisbrother in law Nirakar Nayakand forwarded them to court.Nirakar faced the music forhelping Sajit dispose of thebody, informed PattamundaiSDPO Sandhya Rani Behuria.
Sanjit used to stay inGujurat with his family. Hedemanded his 60-year- oldmother, Droupadi Barik, toprovide him money by sellinga parental property. Despite hispersistent demands, hismother did not pay any heedand did not sell a land. Sanjit
had returned to his village onMay 8. After an altercationbetween him and his mother,he got berserk and killed hismother by strangulating herneck and fled the spot.
On May 9, the locals andthe neighbours came acrossDroupadi lying dead andblood oozing from her earand nose. They informed toSanjit. Sanjit replied theneighbours that he wouldreach within 2 hours as he wasin Kharagpur. As a result,some locals smelt foul play,as some of them had seenSanjit in the village on May8 evening. Sanjit later re-turned to the village and hur-riedly conducted the funeralrites of her deceased motherwith the help of his brother-in-law Nirakar. However,during interrogation by po-lice, Sanjit confessed to thecrime, informed the SDPO.
PNS ����� BARGARH
A woman was beaten todeath by miscreants duringthe wedding ceremony of herdaughter at Salepalli villageunder the Melchhamundapolice station in Bargarh dis-trict on Thursday night.
The deceased was identi-fied as Kishori Rajhans ofSalepalli.
According to reports, the
wedding of Rashmi , daugh-ter of Jadumani and Kishoriwas being held, when thegroom of Badmal villagereached the wedding venue ina procession.
Sources said that some un-ruly youth of Salepali createdruckus during the processionwhen people from groom'sside were dancing to music.They attacked Kishori withsticks when she tried to inter-
vene. She died on the spot.On receiving informa-
tion, police reached the vil-lage and sent the body to theDistrict Headquarters Hospi-tal (DHH) for postmortemand are investigating intothe incident.
The accused targetedKishori over past enmity dueto some reason, alleged thedeceased woman's husbandJadumani.
PNS ����� BARIPADA
A woman and her two chil-dren were charred to death ina fire mishap in their house atUnchagaon village under theJharpokharia police stationMayurbhanj district on Thurs-day night.
The deceased were identi-
fied as Surukuni Marndi, herfive-year-old daughter Saritaand three-month-old son. Themishap took place in the mid-night when the victims weresleeping in the house.
Getting information, FireServices personnel fromSaraskana rushed to the villageand doused the flames. How-
ever, the trio were alreadycharred to death by then.
However, the woman's hus-band has come under the po-lice scanner as he escaped un-hurt in the mishap while he wasalso sleeping in the house.
Police have detained him forquestioning and started an in-vestigation into the incident.
PNS ����� BARIPADABARIPADA: A PratisthaUtsav of a Sriram Mandir, setup by the Bhgudakata TempleCharitable Trust, Baripada, washeld here on Thursday. BJPnational spokesperson andBhubaneswar MP AparajitaSarangi was chief guest.
Sarangi described Ram as theepitome of all human valuesand ideals and Ram and RamMandir as the uniting factorsfor the people of differentcastes and creeds.
Baripada MLA PrakashChandra Soren, chiefspeaker, exhorted theyounger generation to realisethe uniqueness of Indian cul-ture and values.
‘Neo-humanism, Rajadhiraja Yoga panacea for global ills’
While takingphotos of groupclashPNS ����� NUAPADA
A journalist of Nuapadadistrict working for "Sakala"was mercilessly beaten bysome miscreants in front ofthe Khariar police station onThursday morning when vic-tim Rabikanta Thela was com-ing out of the PS after takingsome visuals and photographsrelating to the death of awoman allegedly murdered byher husband. He said twogroups were fighting eachother when he started takingtheir pictures and they at-tacked him.
Ramesh Thandi and his wifeKhiramani of Tukula villagereportedly had a quarrel overdowry issue, following whichRamesh attacked Khiramani.As Khiramani fainted, Ramesh
took her to hospital, where shewas declared brought dead.
A police team under theleadership of Khariar SDPOSantak Jena apprehendedRamesh when he was escapingwith dead body and broughtthem to the police station.Tension erupted when sup-porters of the deceased whohad already gathered in the PSdemanded immediate actionagainst the culprit and foughtwith each other. JournalistsRabikanta and Rudraraj Baghstarted taking picture. Thisenraged the miscreants, whoattacked Rabikanta.
Journalists of the districtstaged a demonstration infront of the PS demandingarrest of the culprits. TheSDPO informed that sevenpersons have already been de-tained in the case. "We havetaken this case seriously, wewill arrest all culprits within avery short time" said he.
PNS ����� BHUBANESWAR
The Ganesh Institute ofHealth and Science atChandikhol observed the In-ternational Nurses Day to payhomage to the sacred soul ofFlorence Nightingale andrecognise the services ren-dered by the nurses in generaland during the Covid-19 pan-demic, in particular.
Chairman of Child andWomen Development SocietyMajor Dr Kalpana Das was thechief guest on the occasion.She hailed the selfless contri-bution of all nurses across theworld and highlighted the sac-rifices they made during thepandemic time, in wars andin conflict zones.
She insisted on three 'Ds'which are essential for a nurs-
ing trainee to be competentsuch as discipline, determina-tion and dedication. Seva isthe only way by which onecan help the needy and dis-tressed with self satisfaction,she said.
Among others, theinstitute's director was presenton the dais. The civil defencevolunteers demonstrated dif-ferent life survival techniques.
Birth Centenaryof AnandamurtiheldPNS ����� BHUBANESWAR
The Birth Centenary cel-ebration of Prabhat RanjanSarkar alias Shrii ShriiAnandmurti was solemnisedwith great fervor and gaietyhere on Wednesday.
More than 500 Margis in-cluding monks and nuns fromacross the country, dignitariesfrom different walks of life as
well as the followers from theOdisha were part of the event.Ananda Marga was foundedby PR Sarkar in the smalltownship at Jamalpur, Bihar in1955 with the twin objectivesof liberation of the self (atmamoksartham) and service tohumanity (Jagat hitayaca).
Former State InformationCommissioner and founder ofCYSD Jagadananda gracedthe occasion as chief guest andunderlined the pioneering roleof Ananda Marga as a socio-economic, cultural and spiri-
tual movement which hasplayed a catalyst role to awakenand guide people along thepath of rectitude.
Acharya SarbeswaranandaAvadhuta, the global educa-tion secretary, as guest ofgonour, underlined howGurudev was a true neo- hu-manist, sensitive to the plightof the marginalised, deprivedand exploited sections of hu-man society as well as the lifeof flora and fauna.
Priyakrishnanda Avadhuta,global relief scretary, attended
as special guest of the occasion.He highlighted the importanceof Rajadhiraja Yoga improvisedby Anandmurti for the holis-tic development of individualby which the decadence of val-ues in different walks of lifecan be addressed.
Prof Aditya KumarMohanty, Central University,Tripura, as chief speaker, ex-plained how human societystands at a crossroads, en-gulfed in the crisis of an un-precedented kind and thesocio-economic cultural blue-print given by Sarkar in formof neo- humanism andRajadhiraja Yoga would serveas the unfailing panacea for theglobal ills.
Global training secretary ofAnanda Marga AcharyaB i k a s h n a n d aAvadhuta presided. Souvenirsin English and Odia were re-leased by the chief guest andthe president. The occasionwas marked by culturalprogramme by artists ofRAWA Academy.
‘JSW believes in MSMEecosystem for women’
Sarangi earlier had beentaken to the temple site in agrand procession.
She addressed a Press con-ference criticising the StateGovernment for its "lack ofsincerity" for development of
Mayurbhanj.She also raised the issues of
grabbing and misusing ofDevottar lands, sense of inse-curity among mutt-mandirauthorities, Baripada RingRoad, Subarnarekha Irrigation
Project, supply of drinkingwater to every household, etc.She thanked Union Ministerand Mayurbhanj MPBishweswar Tudu for establish-ing 19 Ekalavya model resi-dential schools in the district.
Ram Mandir Utsav
Aparajita given big reception at BaripadaPNS ����� BHUBANESWAR
The JSW Steel has collabo-rated with the State Govern-ment to promote genderequality and create vibrantopportunity for women em-powerment.
The company is also ac-tively engaged in creating aholistic environment for thewomen in its workplace as wellas creating
platforms for livelihoodgeneration.
India’s first Women’s Busi-ness Mela, organised under thebanner of Indian Chamber ofCommerce (ICC) Women’sEntrepreneurship Council(IWEC) is an example of its
active participation in pro-moting women empower-ment.
COO of JSW Steel, Odisha,Ranjan Nayak said, “Women’scontribution to the Indianeconomy cannot be ignored.They play a vital role for thegrowth of the economy. JSWalso believes that a vibrantMSME ecosystem for womenled MSME and startups areimportant for the growth ofthe State.” The Mela is India’sfirst Women’s Business Meladedicated completely towomen entrepreneurs. Over150 stalls are set up by women-led businesses.
JSW Steel Project Head(Odisha) Ashesh Kumar Padhy,who was guest speaker in theevent, said, “Women are nowemerging out of the obscurityof the hearth and seizing lead-ership roles in fields that werepreviously thought to be en-tirely male domains. We havebeen witnessing examples offemale leaders transformingthe world with their knowl-edge and desire for progress.They have even showed theirexpertise in mining sector aswell.”
GM of CSR (JSW Founda-tion) Prasanta Biswal elabo-rated that the company is con-tinuously identifying skilledwomen from its direct impact
zone and hand holding themto grow in their respectivemicro and small business fortheir livelihood generation.
“As a responsible corporate,we try to increase our procure-ment from women entrepre-neurs. This would help womento have encouraging businessopportunities,” said Biswal.
Recently, Biswal also metAmbassador of Indonesia toIndia H Krishnamurthy for aformal discussion. Her visit toOdisha was to revive historicalbusiness ties between Indone-sia and Odisha and convert-ing that into business oppor-tunity from both sides.
Attack on transgender
K’pada SP urged toarrest all accusedPNS ����� KENDRAPADA
Rajya Kinnar SurakhyaParishad protesting the assaulton a transgender on May 10night at Kajala basti demandedimmediate arrest of all the ac-cused.
Hundreds of transgenderpersons led by Parishad Statepresident Pratap Sahu alsomet the SP of Kendrapada athis office.The membersthreatened to stage demon-stration in front of the SPoffice in the coming days ifthe police failed to arrest theaccused.
One Debika Barik, districtpresident of the Kinnar asso-ciation on Tuesday was start-
ing a house construction at aGovernment land in Kajalabasti when one Kuni Dasalong with some locals alleg-edly destroyed the construc-tion work and assaultedDebaki brutally.
The victim along with hiscommunity members filed anFIR at the Kendrapada Townpolice station later.Acting onthe FIR, Kendrapada Townpolice registered a case and ar-rested Kuni and three otherattackers and forwarded themto court the next day. How-ever, there were a few left tobe arrested in the case.
The SP assured the com-munity to arrest the remain-ing accused within three days.
![Page 4: D`_ZR TR]]d W`c fcXV_e SZX eZT\Ve cVW`c^d Z_ 4`_X](https://reader039.cupdf.com/reader039/viewer/2023042614/6335580fb9085e0bf509719b/html5/page/4.jpg)
�������������� ���� ����� �������� ��������
����� ���������
The Supreme Court onFriday refused to grant an
interim order of status quo onthe survey of the Gyanvapi-Shringar Gauri complex atVaranasi in Uttar Pradesh.The apex court agreed to con-sider listing the plea of aMuslim party against the sur-vey of the Gyanvapi premises,when mention was made.
The Bench comprisingChief Justice NV Ramana andjustices J K Maheswari andHima Kohli was told by senioradvocate Huzefa Ahmadi,appearing for the Muslim sidein the Gyanvapi mosque case,that a plea has been filedagainst the survey being con-ducted at the Varanasi site.
“We have filed in relationto a survey which has beendirected to be conducted inrelation to the Varanasi prop-erty. This (Gyanvapi) has
been a mosque since timeimmemorial and this is clear-ly interdicted by the Places ofWorship Act,” Ahmadi said.
He said the direction toconduct a survey has beenpassed and an order of statusquo be passed at the moment.“I do not know anything. Howcan I pass such an order? I willread. Let me see,” the CJIsaid. The Muslim side has
been referring to the Places ofWorship (Special Provisions)Act, 1991 and its section 4which bars filing of any suit orinitiating any other legal pro-ceeding for a conversion of thereligious character of any placeof worship, as existing onAugust 15, 1947.
A Varanasi local court onThursday rejected a plea toreplace the advocate commis-sioner it had appointed forconducting a videography sur-vey of the Gyanvapi-ShringarGauri complex here andordered the completion of thetask by May 17.
The district court alsoappointed two more lawyers tohelp the advocate commis-sioner carry out the survey atthe mosque, which is locatedclose to the iconic KashiVishwanath temple. It orderedthe police to register FIRs ifthere are attempts to scuttlethe exercise.
������������ �������� ������������������������� �� �����������
����� ���������
The Supreme Court onFriday sought a response
from the Centre, the Jammuand Kashmir administrationand the Election Commissionof India on a plea of twoKashmir residents challengingGovernment's decision to con-stitute the delimitation com-mission for redrawing theAssembly and Lok Sabha con-stituencies in the UT.
A bench of Justices SanjayKishan Kaul and MM Sundreshissued notice to the Centre andElection Commission of Indiaand sought their responses with-in six weeks and said the rejoin-der affidavit shall be filed in twoweeks thereafter. The bench said
the delimitation commissionwas formed sometime back andasked the petitioners, wherewere they during that time andwhy did not they challenge theConstitution of the commission.
The counsel said as per thedelimitation order, it is theElection Commission that isempowered to do any changes.
The bench told the counsel,who was making objectionablesubmissions, to choose hiswords properly and said thatKashmir was always part ofIndia and just a special provisionwas removed.
Solicitor General TusharMehta said effectively the plea istwo-fold and that delimitationcan be conducted only by theECI and not the delimitationcommission.
��� � ��������
Union Home Secretary AjayBhalla on Friday reviewed
the security preparedness forthe Amarnath Yatra scheduledto begin on June 30 after a gapof two years.
The Home Secretaryreviewed the security pre-paredness for the AmarnathYatra with top officials of para-military forces and the Jammuand Kashmir administration,officials said.
About 10,000 paramilitarypersonnel (100 companies) inaddition to Jammu andKashmir Police are expected tobe deployed along the two pil-grimage routes via Pahalgamand Baltal, they said. Aboutthree lakh pilgrims are likely to
take part in the yatra, which isexpected to end on August11.CRPF Director GeneralKuldiep Singh and BSF DGPankaj Singh, along with otherofficers, attended the meetingphysically, while Jammu andKashmir officials attended itthrough video conference.
The annual pilgrimage tothe cave shrine located in theupper reaches of southKashmir could not be carriedout in 2020 and 2021 due to thecoronavirus pandemic, while itwas cut short in 2019 justbefore the abrogation of Article370. Amarnath pilgrimage willbe a big security challenge forthe government as Jammu andKashmir has been witnessing anumber of targeted killings inrecent weeks.
����������� �� �������
Against the backdrop ofPrime Minister Narendra
Modi repeatedly hitting out atdynastic politics asserting itdeprived the common manhis rightful place to participatein the political process, theMumbai-based RSS-BJP-linked think tank RambhauMhalgi Prabodhini (RMP) istaking the discourse further.
Aday-long seminar to dis-cuss the impact of
"dynasty based political par-ties" on the health of democ-ratic process in the countryand “ways and means to reg-ulate” party formation will be
organised here on May19 and the recommen-dations will be submit-ted to the ElectionCommission of India forits consideration.
The seminar organ-ised at Nehru MemorialAuditorium will be inau-gurated by BJP presi-dent J P Nadda.According to RajyaSabha member VinaySahasrabuddhe, who isalso Vice Chairman ofthe RMP, the discussionwould cover aspects like“democratic deficit” due todynastic parties and “possibleregulatory framework for pre-venting mushrooming ofdynasty based political par-ties”. Besides Nadda, RMP
Chairman DevendraFadanvis, senior advocateMahesh Jethmalani as alsorepresentatives of “non-dynastic parties” like UnionMinister RCP Singh of JD (U),AIADMK’s M Thambiduraiand AGP’s Birdendra PrasadBaishya will share their viewson “dynasty-ism.”
Academics l ike Prof
Anand Ranganathan and ProfSandeep Shastri will alsospeak at this Seminar. JNUVice Chancellor SantishreePandit will be delivering thevaledictory address.
“ R e c o m m e n d a t i o n sevolved at the end of deliber-ations will be presented to theElection Commission of India,later,” said Sahasrabuddhe.
“Defining that dynasticparties are those that are con-trolled by a particular dynastyfor generation after genera-tion, and where not just thePresidentship is held by a
dynast but other keyoffice bearers also comefrom the same family,organisers of the semi-nar said that such prac-tices dilute democraticcredentials and cause aserious harm to theinstitution of politicalparties,” said a state-ment by the think-tankwithout naming anypolitical parties includ-ing Congress,Samajwadi Party,Rashtriya Janata Dal ,National Conference or
the DMK. The ‘anti-dynasty theme’
was recently also raised by theCivil Aviation MinisterJyotiraditya Scindia, (whoincidentally hails from theroyal Scindia family and hisaunt Vadsundhara Raje , ex-Rajasthan Chief Minter; toois in the party).
Last week he said,“Dynastic politics has no placein the BJP and the PrimeMinister believes that partyworkers be rewarded based ontheir work and not as per fam-ily affiliations”.
Sahasrabuddhe sought tosay that the total monopoly ofdynasties over political parties“serves as a death-knell tointernal democracy in parties”.
“Under the existingmechanism in such dynastydriven parties a single familycontrols practically every-thing, party finance, partymembership, party candidacy,and also decisions aboutalliances and political part-nerships. This serves as adeath-knell to internal democ-racy in Parties”, saidSahasrabuddhe.
“ A party giving candida-ture to sons and daughters ofits leaders is one thing and afamily acquiring total controlof a party is totally different.The latter is most detrimentalto the cause of democracy,” hesaid.
In India, out of th 50major political parties fromthe 2700 registered and recog-nised parties, at least 4/5th aredynasty based. This phenom-enon “seriously narrows downthe available choices for avoter as it afflicts the elementof competition,” he said.
���������� �� ���������������������� �������
����� ���������
The CBI has booked anArmy officer posted at Port
Blair for alleged corruptionand graft from different privatesuppliers in connivance withfield officers in procurement ofration and other materials forcanteen stores department.
It is alleged that Lt ColAbhishek Chandra, the thenStation Staff Officer SSO(Contract and Victualling) haddemanded bribes from differ-ent suppliers during 2018.
The CBI action came fol-lowing Government sanctionto the CBI to proceed with theprobe against the officer.
The FIR alleged thatChandra in 2018 entered intocriminal conspiracy withSubham Choudhary ofKolkata-based Rochak AgroFood Products Ltd and its rep-resentative Dayal Chandra Dasto "extend favours" in return forbribes.
Chandra allegedly misusedhis official position andensured award of the contractfor supply of food items includ-ing spices to Base VictuallingYard, Minnie Bay, Port Blair,Andaman without PriceNegotiation Committee (PNC)to Rochak Agro Food ProductsPvt Ltd., Kolkata and alsoextended favour in return ofbank guarantee of the saidcompany, deposited for theprevious contract with BVYard, Port Blair, it alleged.
In return for the favours,Chandra allegedly demandedand agreed to accept a bribe ofRs 75,000 from Choudharyeither in the form of twocheques issued from theaccount of anyone except thefavoured company or in theform of two gift vouchers ofjewellery brand Tanishq.
Choudhary could notarrange gift vouchers so
Chandra allegedly got theamount deposited in two bankaccounts in Bokaro(Jharkhand) through NEFT.
It was also alleged thatChandra had demanded abribe of Rs three lakh from arepresentative of another sup-plier based in Port Blair. OnJune 6, Muthu, the representa-
tive, allegedly tried to pay Rs 1lakh as part payment butChandra refused and demand-ed the full amount. Muthuthen used debit cards to with-draw money from the ATMand made a payment of Rs 2.5lakh to Chandra, the FIRalleged.
Chandra had also directedDas to negotiate with the offi-cers posted in BV Yard so thatthey "do not raise hue and cry"regarding late arrival of con-signment or discrepancy inmaterials ordered and sup-plied.
Das allegedly paid a bribeof Rs 10,000 in March 2018 toone Routh who was posted inBV Yard for not raising anyobjection with respect to thesupplies of Rochak AgroProducts.
����������� ��������������������������������������
��� � ��������
Aspecial CBI court inAhmedabad has sen-
tenced two retired and oneserving officers of the IndianAir Force (IAF) to life impris-onment for the custodial mur-der of a cook 27 years ago, offi-cials said here on Friday.
Girija Rawat, a cook at theair force station in Jamnagar,was tortured to death inNovember 1995 after it wassuspected that he stole liquorthe canteen.
The convicted officers areAnoop Sood, then a SquadronLeader at the Air Force-I inJamnagar, and then SergeantsAnil K N and Mahendra SinghSherawat.
Sood, who retired asGroup Captain, claims to be anorientation programme speak-er and a trained commandofrom the NSG on his socialmedia profile.
Anil also retired from theIAF, while Sehrawat was stillserving. The CBI had takenover the case on February 22,2012 on the orders of theGujarat High Court on a pleaof Rawat's wife.
"...It was further alleged
that on November 13, 1995,10-12 Air Force PoliceOfficials, including thenSquadron Leader AnoopSood, conducted searches atthe residence of Rawat andtook him with them
forcibly to confess aboutstealing of liquor from the AirForce Canteen," CBISpokesperson R C Joshi said.
He said Rawat's wife vis-ited the guard room in theevening seeking release of herhusband.
"She was told that herhusband would be releasedsoon. The accused allegedlytortured him which caused hisdeath. On November 14, 1995,she was informed about thedeath of her husband and wasasked to collect the body,"Joshi said.
After thorough investiga-tion, the CBI filed a chargesheet on July 30, 2013 againstthe accused on the charges ofcriminal conspiracy and mur-der, he said.
"The trial court found thesaid accused guilty and con-victed them (recently). Threeaccused were acquitted by thecourt and one accused expiredduring the trial," Joshi said.
� ������������������������ ������ ����������� ��������������������� ���
�� ��� ������ !"������#�������� ����������� ��������������� ���
��� � ��������
Senior IAS officer NidhiChibber has been appoint-
ed as the chairperson of theCentral Board of SecondaryEducation (CBSE) in a top-level bureaucratic reshuffleeffected by the Centre onFriday. Chibber, a 1994 batchIndian Administrative Serviceofficer of Chhattisgarh cadre, iscurrently Additional Secretary,Ministry of Heavy Industries.
Vivek Kumar Dewangen, a1993 batch IAS officer ofManipur cadre, has beennamed Chairman & ManagingDirector, REC Ltd., Ministry ofPower. He is currentlyAdditional Secretary in theMinistry of Power.
While S Gopalakrishnan,Additional Secretary in thePrime Minister's Office (PMO)has been appointed asAdditional Secretary,Department of Health andFamily Welfare, Rakesh Sarwal,Additional Secretary, NITI
Aayog will be ManagingDirector, National WaqfDevelopment Corporation Ltd.,Ministry of Minority Affairs,the order said.
Aditi Das Rout, JointSecretary, Ministry of Womenand Child Development hasbeen promoted as AdditionalSecretary in the same ministry.Shyam Bhagat Negi, JointSecretary, Ministry of Coalwill be Additional Secretary,Cabinet Secretariat.
Manisha Sinha, JointSecretary, Department ofEconomic Affairs, Ministry ofFinance has been appointed asAdditional Secretary, in thesame department and KumarAnugreh Prasad Sinha will beAdditional Secretary of theNational Disaster ManagementAuthority.
Sinha, a 1992 batch IASofficer, is currently working inhis cadre state Punjab. AmarNath, Additional Secretary inthe Ministry of Petroleum &Natural Gas, has been posted as
Additional Secretary,Department of AdministrativeReforms and PublicGrievances, Ministry ofPersonnel, Public Grievancesand Pensions.
Vikas Sheel, AdditionalSecretary, Department ofHealth and Family Welfare hasbeen named as AdditionalSecretary and Mission Director,Jal Jeevan Mission, Departmentof Drinking Water andSanitation while Alok Shekhar,who is presently working in hiscadre state Punjab, will beAdditional Secretary, Ministryof Statistics and ProgrammeImplementation.
Rakesh Kumar Singh, JointSecretary, Ministry of HomeAffairs will be AdditionalSecretary, Ministry of HomeAffairs and Surendra Singh,Joint Secretary, Department ofSocial Justice andEmpowerment has beenappointed as AdditionalSecretary in the same depart-ment. Pravir Pandey, a 1992
batch officer of Indian Auditand Accounts Service, has beenappointed as AdditionalSecretary and FinancialAdvisor, Ministry ofEnvironment, Forest andClimate Change.
Vandana Kumar, JointSecretary, Ministry of Newand Renewable Energy hasbeen named as AdditionalSecretary, Ministry of Newand Renewable Energy andAjay Tewari, currently JointSecretary in Ministry ofLabour & Employment will beAdditional Secretary, Ministryof Power.
Alka Nangia Arora, JointSecretary, Ministry of Micro,Small and Medium Enterpriseshas been named as JointSecretary and FinancialAdvisor, Department ofAgricultural Research andEducation by temporarilydowngrading the post ofAdditional Secretary andFinancial Advisor in thedepartment, the order said.
������ ����������������������������������������
����������������� �������������������������� ������������������� � ��������
Defence Minister RajnathSingh will on May 17
concurrently launch twoindigenously designed andbuilt warships at the MazgaonDocks Limited (MDL),Mumbai. The two ships aredestroyer ‘Surat’ and frigate‘Udaygiri.’
While the Surat is aProject 15-B destroyer,Udaygiri is a Project 17-Afrigate, officials said here onFriday. The Project 15B classof ships are the next genera-tion stealth guided missiledestroyers of the Indian Navybeing built at the MazgaonDocks .
‘Surat’ is the fourth ship ofProject 15B Destroyers whichheralds a significant makeoverof the P15A (Kolkata Class)destroyers and is named afterthe commercial capital of thestate of Gujarat and also thesecond largest commercial
hub of western India afterMumbai. Surat city has a richmaritime and ship buildinghistory and vessels built at thecity in the 16th and 18th cen-turies were known for theirlongevity (of more than 100years).
The ship ‘Surat’ has beenbuilt using the block con-struction methodology whichinvolved hull construction attwo different geographicallocations and has been joined
together at MDL. The firstship of this class was com-missioned in 2021. The secondand third ships have beenlaunched and are at differentstages of outfitting and trials.
‘Udaygiri,’ named after amountain range in AndhraPradesh, is the third ship ofProject 17-A Frigates. Theseare follow-on of the P-17Frigates (Shivalik Class) withimproved stealth features,advanced weapons and sensorsand platform managementsystems. _
‘Udaygiri’ is the reincar-nation of erstwhile ‘Udaygiri’,the Leander class anti-subma-rine warfare frigate, whichsaw numerous challengingoperations in its illustrious ser-vice to the country spanningover three decades from 1976to 2007.
Under the P-17A program,a total of seven ships, with fourat the MDL and three at theGarden Reach Shipbuilders
and Engineers, Kolkata areunder construction.
Various novel conceptsand technologies like inte-grated construction, megablock outsourcing, project datamanagement project lifecyclemanagement have been adopt-ed for the first time in indige-nous warship design and con-struction in this project. Thefirst two ships of P-17A pro-ject, were launched in 2019and 2020 at MDL and GRSErespectively.
Both P-15B and P-17Aships have been designed in-house by the Directorate ofNaval Design (DND), whichhas been the fountainhead forall warship design activities ofthe nation and during build-ing phase at Shipyard, around75% of orders for equipmentand systems have been placedon indigenous firms includingMSMEs which is a true testa-ment of ‘AatmaNirbharta’ inthe country.
��� � ��������
In the first ever visit by anIndian head of state,
President Ram Nath Kovindwill visit Jamaica and SaintVincent and the Grenadines(SVG) from May 15 to 21. Thisvisit to the two countries isreflective of a commitment toSmall Island Developing Statesand CarribeanCommunity(CARICOM).
Giving details of thePresident’s schedule,Secterary(East)Ministry ofExternal Affairs SaurabhKumar said here on Friday,Kovind will present cricketkits to aspiring Indian crick-eters during his visit to the twocountries including Jamaicaand St. Vincent and Grenadines
(SVG). The President will also
hold discussions with his coun-terpart Governor-GeneralSusan Dougan and will alsomeet Prime Minister RalphGonsalves. Kovind will addressthe Parliament of SVG. Kumarsaid the SVG has about 7,700people of Indian origin settledin the SVG.
As regards his itinerary inJamaica, the President will holddelegation-level talks with hiscounterpart Patrick Allen, theGovernor-General of Jamaica.Kovind will also meet PrimeMinister Andrew Holness. Hewill also address the JointSitting of the two Houses of theJamaican Parliament.
Jamaica and India havefriendly relations. Jamaica is
also one of the Girmitya coun-tries with a 70,000 strongIndian diaspora, who acts as aliving bridge with India,” theministry said. The visit comesat a significant milestone as2022 is the 60th anniversary ofestablishment of diplomaticrelations between India andJamaica, it added.
Jamaica and SVG are activemembers in the CaribbeanCommunity (CARICOM). Thefirst-ever Head of State visit tothese countries is a continua-tion of India’s high-levelengagement with the coun-tries in the Caribbean regionand emphasizes our continuedcommitment to work withSmall Island developing coun-tries, the external affairs min-istry had said a few days back.
����������������� ����������$��������%��
&�� ����"�������� � �����������'��������(�������� ����)���*���
�� �� ��������
South-west monsoon, con-sidered as the lifeline of
India's agri-based economy, islikely to bring first showers toKerala by May 27, five days ear-lier than the normal onsetdate, the weather officeannounced on Friday.
"This year, the onset ofsouthwest monsoon overKerala is likely to be earlierthan the normal date of onset.The monsoon onset overKerala is likely to be on May 27with a model error of fourdays," India MeteorologicalDepartment (ID) said.
In 2009, the south-westmonsoon had reached Keralaon May 23. Weather scientistsattribute the early onset ofsouthwest monsoon over
Kerala to the influence of theremnants of cyclone Asani thattriggered the cross-equatorialflow, a key factor for the sea-sonal rains. The early arrival ofthe south-west monsoon comesat a time when parts of north-west India were experiencingextremely high maximum tem-peratures.
On Thursday, the weatheroffice had forecast the onset ofsouth-west monsoon overAndaman & Nicobar islandson May 15, nearly a weekahead of schedule.
"In association withenhanced cross equatorialwinds, conditions are becom-ing favorable for the advance ofSouthwest Monsoon into SouthAndaman Sea, Nicobar Islandsand some parts of southeastBay of Bengal, around May 15,"
the IMD said in a statement.At the same time, the
weather office made it clear thatpast data suggest that there isno association of the date ofmonsoon advance over theAndaman Sea either with thedate of monsoon onset overKerala or with the seasonalmonsoon rainfall over thecountry.
The IMD said due tostrong westerly flow fromArabian Sea to south peninsu-lar India in lower tropospher-ic levels fairly widespreadlight/moderate rainfall withisolated thunderstorm/light-ning/gusty winds likely overKerala, Mahe, Tamil Nadu,Puducherry and Karaikal,south interior Karnataka andLakshadweep over the nextfive days.
����������������������������������������������� � �!
����������������������� ��������������������������������������������������������
![Page 5: D`_ZR TR]]d W`c fcXV_e SZX eZT\Ve cVW`c^d Z_ 4`_X](https://reader039.cupdf.com/reader039/viewer/2023042614/6335580fb9085e0bf509719b/html5/page/5.jpg)
�������������� ���� ����� �������� ��������"
���������������� ����
Awoman, a rape victim, triedto commit suicide by pour-
ing petrol on herself outside theDM's office. Meanwhile, theeyes of the security personnelfell on her. They surroundedher and caught her. Thiswoman was hurt due to the lackof action in the case of rape onthe pretext of a job.
As soon as the mattercame to the notice, the DMcalled the women's police sta-tion, after which a report wasfiled on behalf of the victimwoman against Dr. Saud Ali,former principal of AligarhMuslim University's TibiaCollege, on charges of rape and
cheating. The victim has been sent for medical exami-nation.
A 24-year-old woman res-ident of the metropolis reachedthe collectorate. On meetingDM Selva Kumari J, she toldthat in the year 2018, she got atemporary job as a ward atten-dant in Tibbia College andHospital, Aligarh. Dr. SaudAli, who was the principalduring that time, called her andsaid if you arrange five lakhrupees, then he will make thejob permanent. When shetalked about not having money,Dr. Saud Ali proposed to havea physical relationship and onher refusal, Dr. Said Ali start-ed harassing her.
����� ��������
The EnforcementDirectorate (ED) has filed
a Supplementary ProsecutionComplaint (charge sheet)against two leaders of thePopular Front of India (PFI)under the Prevention of MoneyLaundering Act (PMLA) beforethe Special PMLA Court,Lucknow with a prayer forawarding punishment to theaccused.
The Court has taken cog-nizance of the offence of moneylaundering against the duo.
Earlier, a ProsecutionComplaint had been filed bythe ED on February 6 last yearagainst five office bearers /members of PFI and its studentwing Campus Front of India.
The latest supplementaryprosecution complaint has
been filed against PFI leadersAbdul Razaq Peediyakkal aliasAbdul Razak BP and AsharafKhadir alias Ashraf MK who,in association with other PFIleaders and members associat-ed with overseas entities, weredeveloping a residential project- Munnar Villa Vista Project(MVVP) at Munnar, Kerala.
The motive of the accusedwas to launder money collect-ed from foreign countries aswell as within the country andto generate funds for PFI tofinance its radical activities, theED said in a statement.
“Investigation establishedthat ‘proceeds of crime’ in theform of unaccounted & unex-plained cash as well as foreignfunds were parked in MVVPand were projected as untaint-ed,” it said.
����� ��������
The EnforcementDirectorate (ED) has seized
Rs 88.30 lakh in cash after itsearched the premises of aman, whose name figured inthe Panama Paper leaks, inMadhya Pradesh and Goa aspart of money launderinginvestigation against him.
The ED has conductedsearches at four premises basedat Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh)and Goa in a money launder-ing case registered againstSanjay Vijay Shinde.
“Sanjay Vijay Shinde figuredin the Panama Paper Leaks,wherein, names of various indi-viduals were revealed who hadbeneficial interests in various off-shore entities.
Sanjay Vijay Shinde hadbeneficial interests in a BritishVirgin Islands based offshoreentity, in whose Singapore-basedbank account, more than Rs 31crore were deposited by variousoffshore entities,” the ED said ina statement.
The Income TaxDepartment filed a prosecutioncomplaint against Sanjay VijayShinde under provisions of
Black Money (UndisclosedForeign Income and Assets)and Imposition of Tax Act,2015. Subsequently, investiga-tion under provisions ofPrevention of MoneyLaundering Act (PMLA) wasinitiated by the ED.
Searches were conducted atthe four premises related toShinde, including the residen-tial premises at Goa andBhopal, the premises of histhen employer VS DempoHoldings Pvt Ltd, Goa and thepremises of RPM SonicAdventures and CaravanResorts at Bhopal.
It said a cash amount of Rs88.30 lakh and various incrim-
inating documents were recov-ered from the premises andfurther investigation is underprogress.
Dubbed 'Panama Papers',An investigation of a stock-
pile of records fromPanamanian legal firmMossack Fonseca by theW a s h i n g t o n - b a s e dInternational Consortium ofInvestigative Journalists (ICIJ)in 2016 was dubbed as ‘PanamaPapers’. It named several worldleaders and celebrities whoallegedly stashed money abroadin offshore companies.
As many as 426 India-linked cases figured in thePanama Papers.
����� ��������
Scientists from Wadia Institute of HimalayanGeology, Dehradun and a few other acade-
mic institutions including Panjab UniversityChandigarh and IIT, Ropar, have reportedsighting of the fossil of a Madtsoiidae snake fromthe molasse deposits of Ladakh Himalaya for thefirst time indicating their prevalence in the sub-continent for much longer time than previous-ly thought.
According to the scientists, Madtsoiidae isan extinct group of medium-sized to giganticsnakes, firstly appeared during the lateCretaceous and mostly distributed in theGondwanan landmasses, although theirCenozoic record is extremely scarce.
From the fossil record, the whole group dis-appeared in the mid-Paleogene across mostGondwanan continents except for Australiawhere it survived with its last known taxonWonambi till late Pleistocene.
The lucky team members included Dr.Ningthoujam Premjit Singh, Dr. Ramesh KumarSehgal, and Mr. Abhishek Pratap Singh fromWadia Institute of Himalayan Geology,Dehradun, India in association with Dr. RajeevPatnaik and Mr. Wasim Abass Wazir fromPanjab University Chandigarh; Dr. Navin Kumarand Piyush Uniyal from Indian Institute ofTechnology Ropar, and Dr. Andrej Cernanskýof Comenius University Slovakia.
The occurrence of Madtsoiidae from theOligocene of Ladakh indicates their continuityat least to the end of the Paleogene (geologicperiod and system that spans 43 million yearsfrom the end of the Cretaceous Period 66 mil-lion years ago). The research published inJournal of Vertebrate Paleontology shows thatthe members of this group were successful in thissubcontinent for much longer time than previ-ously thought.
The global climatic shifts and the prominentbiotic reorganization across the Eocene-Oligocene boundary (which correlates to theEuropean Grande Coupure), did not cause theextinction of this important group of snakes inIndia, said an official from the Science andTechnology Ministry.
He said that the newly described specimenis housed in the repository of the WadiaInstitute, an autonomous institute of theDepartment of Science and Technology.
����� ��������
On the occasion of the 4thNaturopathy Day celebra-
tion here, "Disease Free IndiaCampaign" has been launchedwith an aim to ensure betterwell being of the society amidstCovid-19 crisis.
Those present on the occa-sion included DrMahenderbhai Munjapara,Union Minister of State forAyush, Raju Bisht, Member ofParliament, Jayaprakash,Founder Surya Foundation,Dr. Ishwar Basavaraddy,Director, Morarji DesaiNational Institute of Yoga, Prof(Dr) K Satyalakshmi, Director, National Institute ofNaturopathy, Dr RaghvendraRao, Director, Central Councilfor Research in Yoga andNaturopathy among
others. On the occa-sion of 'Azadi kaAmrit Mahotsav'with the support ofNational Institute ofNaturopathy, UnionMinistry of Ayush topropagate theNaturopathy, INO-Surya Foundationhas organizedapproximately 500naturopathy campsin which more than 50 thou-sand people from rural andurban area of India have par-ticipated.
“Today, there is a need toexpand naturopathy scientifi-cally to common men as anoption to the costly allopathicsystem,” Dr. Anant Biradar,National President-INO said.
He added that in this direc-tion, INO-Surya Foundation
has been working for the last 25years. “More than one lakhyoga naturopathy doctors, stu-dents and other people havejoined this campaign from allover the country whose motiveis to realize the dream of SelfHealth Reliance of Father ofNation Mahatma Gandhi jiand to reduce the health bud-get of family and country,” hesaid.
�� �� �������� ����
Tamil Nadu HigherEducation Minister K
Ponmudy on Friday assertedthat the State Government willcontinue with the two-lan-guage formula as its policy, anddecried any attempts of allegedHindi imposition and ques-tioned claims that learning thelanguage will fetch jobs.
Taking a dig on those whoinsist jobs will be available forpeople learning Hindi, theMinister asked who are selling'pani puri' in the Coimbatorenow, an obvious reference tothe predominantly Hindi-speaking vendors involved inthe trade in the city. He, how-ever, later clarified his com-ments on pani puri sellers didnot amount to 'profiling.'
His comments came at the37th convocation of BharathiarUniversity in Coimbatore,presided over by stateGovernor R N Ravi, also thevarsity Chancellor, where theminister reiterated the ruling
DMK's stand against 'imposi-tion' of Hindi, a claim whichRavi sought to dismiss by say-ing "there is no question ofimposition of Hindi or anyother language on anyone."
Ponmudy said he used theplatform to highlight TamilNadu's sentiments over thelanguage issue as the Governorwould convey them to theCentre. He recalled thatEnglish and Tamil have been invogue in Tamil Nadu for longand that the same will contin-ue while students were notagainst learning other lan-guages, including Hindi.
"Many said you will getjobs if you learn Hindi. Is itso...Look here in Coimbatore,who is selling pani puri. It isthem (Hindi-speaking indi-viduals)," he said.
"If a cat can go through ahole, can't a rat," he askedcryptically. Ponmudi said stu-dents of the state were ready tolearn any language and thatthey were not against other lan-guages including Hindi.
Noting that the state gov-ernment was ready to adoptgood schemes in the NewEducation Policy (NEP 2020),the minister said there shouldnot be any imposition of Hindiand students can prefer anylanguage as the third option,but the state will follow the sys-tem prevailing now. AllegingHindi imposition through NEP2020, the Tamil Nadu govern-ment has already said the two-language policy, comprisingTamil and English, will con-tinue to remain in practice.
"We don't want to agitateagainst the good things inNEP. We are ready to followthem. But at the same time, inTamil Nadu we should haveour own language. India is aland of unity in diversity. InTamil Nadu we shoould followour own education system...We should follow certain goodpolicies from the NEP,"Ponmudy added.
#�������$����������$����������
�� �� ������������
Streets in many places inwestern Rajasthan bear a
deserted look during much ofthe day as if a lockdown is inplace, with people keepingindoors due to the heatwave.
Barmer recorded the high-est day temperature of 48.2degree Celsius on Thursdaywhile the mercury soared to47.2 in Jaisalmer.
The MeteorologicalDepartment has issued a redalert for Bikaner, Churu,Jaisalmer, Ganganagar,Hanumangarh, Jhunjhunu, andKota districts for May 14.
It said the situation is like-ly to continue for next twodays, after which some respitemay be expected.
Meanwhile, dust stormscoupled with heatwave in ruralareas have disrupted the rou-tine life.
"The heat is unbearable. Asthe day progresses, conditionsbecome tougher and itbecomes a challenge to go outin the afternoon," Sunil Kumar,a trader in Barmer, told PTI.
He said the sale of ACsand coolers has suddenly shotup and customers visit either inthe morning hours or in lateevening hours to avoid heat-stroke.
The heatwave persists tilllate in the night and beforesleeping on the roof, peoplesprinkle water to reduce theimpact of the heat.
Generally, people used totake bath in the evening butdue to the scorching sun, waterof the tanks kept on the roofturns too hot to use.
Be it Barmer or Jaisalmer,people start the day quite earlyand finish morning routinework by 8-9 am.
"The situation is such that
even the use of water fromtanks kept on the roof late inthe evening can scorch thebody. Even in the morning, wetry to take a bath before the sunrise," Barmer resident RamSuthar said.
Most business establish-ments lower their shutters androads remain almost empty.
To minimise the impact ofsunlight, shopkeepers inJaisalmer's Pokaran town usegreen nets.
"It is too hot and blister-ing heat has made all of us suf-fer. Roads remain almost emptyfrom 12 to 5 pm, and it feelslike a lockdown like situation,"Jai Bhati, a local vendor inJaisalmer said.
+��%��� %��� %� ���,�-./������ �� �����%�� ��
������� �������� �� ����!�������"����#��� ��
�� �� ����
An NCP youth wingleader on Friday
approached the cybercell of Mumbai policeseeking action againstthe BJP for uploadingan alleged edited ver-sion of Sharad Pawar'srecent speech in orderto portray him as a"Hindu hater".
T h e@BJP4Maharashtra onWednesday tweeted ashort video of the speech andclaimed that "atheist SharadPawar always hated Hindu reli-gion" and he would not haveachieved his political successwithout taking such a stand.However, some social mediausers pointed out it was an edit-ed video and Pawar, in thespeech made at an event onMay 9 in Satara, was in factreferring to a poem by JawaharRathod that deals with casteismand untouchability.
In his complaint to thepolice, Suraj Chavan, presi-dent of the state unit of the
NCP's youth wing, said, "Anattempt was made to create adivide in communities andcause law and order problemsby sharing such a temperedvideo on Twitter. Action mustbe taken against the Twitterhandle (of the BJP) as per sec-tions 499, 500, 66A and 66F."Pawar had told reporters onThursday that he was readingout lines from a poem thatdepicts the pain of the labourclass, but went to take a swipeat the BJP by saying thosewho wanted to spread disin-formation were free to do so.
�� ������������������������� ��� ���������������!"
������������������������������������������������
/ & ���� &�%�� ���������� ���0+��������1.2�& �� ����������
�����#����$�����$������%�$$�����������������������"�����
��������������� �����
Ajudicial panel instituted bythe Calcutta High Court to
look into an alleged West BengalSchool Service Commissionrecruitment scam has submitteda damaging report before thecourt that threatens to implicatea flock of senior Governmentstaff and Ministers, sources said.
Recommending criminalproceedings against four formerSSC officials and the then pres-ident of the autonomous insti-tution, Justice RK Bag (retd)committee on Friday submitteda report showing how 381 peo-ple were illegally appointed inGroup C posts circumventingthe panel of candidates who hadcleared the recruitment tests.The said 381 appointees had not
even appeared for the examina-tions. The report says that rec-ommendations for appointmentwere made by an advisory panelallegedly created during whenTMC General Secretary ParthoChatterjee was the EducationMinister. The advisory panelthus created by the ministry didnot have any legal validity as theSSC is an autonomous body —with its own time-tested recruit-ment procedures — the judicialcommittee has said.
According to sources anoth-er 222 successful candidates —whose names figured in thewaiting list — were givenappointments upon the recom-mendations of the advisorycommittee much after the dateof appointment had elapsed.
The report has also held the
then West Bengal Board ofSecondary Education and thefive-member advisory panelheaded by SP Sinha — createdby the Education Ministry tosupervise the appointment pro-cedures — responsible for therecruitment scam.
The Division Bench of jus-tices Subrata Talukdar andAnanda Kumar Mukherjeehearing the case would pass anorder on May 18.
The single Bench of JusticeAbhijit Gangopadhyay had ear-lier ordered a CBI investigationinto the matter asking the cen-tral agency to go to the extent ofarresting any one — even a min-ister. The ordered was stayed bythe Division Bench.
Similar recruitment casesinvolving hundreds of aspirants
for primary and secondaryteachers’ posts as well as GroupD staff are pending in the HighCourt while the aspirants whohad cleared the tests and whosenames appeared in the waitinglists were still holding dharnas.
According to sourcesappointments were made inlieu of crores of rupees.
“We have reports that any-where between Rs 5 and Rs 15lakh were accepted for Group Dand Group C and teachers’posts. According to Group Demployees who had earlier lostjobs following the order of thesingle Judge Bench “not only theTrinamool Congress but alsosome turncoat leaders fromEast Midnapore who are now inthe BJP had also accepted cashfor appointment…”
�� �� �������
Awoman was tied to a poleat a market place at Jowai
in Meghalaya and heckled foralleged pickpocketing prompt-ing police to initiate actionagainst those involved, officialssaid on Friday.
An undated video of theincident went viral on thesocial media on Friday.
It showed the woman beingtaken to a shed by unknownpeople during the daytime,asked questions and then beingtied to a pole amidst jeering byonlookers.
Children, young peopleand women present at the spot
were seen making fun of her. Her shawl and her bag,
which she was seen carrying tothe shed, could not be viewedin the video when she wasbeing tied to the pole or after-wards. A senior police officialtold PTI, “An officer and a teamfrom the women police stationin the area have been sent toinvestigate the matter. All thepeople seen in the video will becalled for questioning.”
He said, “Perpetrators willbe dealt with in accordancewith the law".
Meghalaya Police, whichwas tagged along with ChiefMinister Conrad K Sangma,said on Twitter, “Action has
been taken by @Jowai_Police inthis regard.” Details were, how-ever, not given.
The person who posted theimage of the woman tied to thepole said that the superinten-dent of police of West JaintiaHills district had beeninformed of the matter onThursday.
“I hope the perpetrators aredealt with and the woman issafe and rehabilitated,” he saidin his post. Women's rightsactivist Agnes Kharshiing con-demned the incident.
“We demand immediatearrest of all those involved intorturing the woman,” she toldPTI.
������������������������������������� �
�� �� ����
Officials of the CentralGoods and Services Tax
(CGST) have busted racketinvolved in generating fakeinput tax credit worth Rs 8crore and arrested the propri-etor of a firm dealing in trad-ing of construction material, anofficial said on Friday.
Acting on a specific input,the anti-evasion wing of theCGST Thane Commissionerateinitiated an investigationagainst J.J. Lime Depot, whichdeals in trading of constructionmaterial, he said.
The probe revealed that thefirm had fraudulently claimedinput tax credit of Rs 8.05
crore and had also issued bogusinvoices of more than Rs 40crore for passing on of this taxcredit, without any supply ofgoods, in gross violation of pro-visions of the CGST Act, 2017,the official said.
In his statement, recordedduring the investigation, theproprietor of the firm admittedthat he had issued fake invoic-es to many Mumbai-basedinfrastructure companies, forcommission, he said.
The firm's proprietor wasarrested on Thursday under theCGST Act, 2017 and has beenremanded to judicial custodyfor 14 days, the official added.
����� �� ����
Uttar Pradesh DirectorGeneral of Police
(Intelligence) Devendra SinghChauhan assumed the addi-tional charge of the State'sDGP on Friday, two days afterMukul Goel was removed fromthe top post. Chauhan is anIPS officer of the 1988-batch.
DGP (Intelligence)Chauhan on Friday assumedthe additional charge of theUttar Pradesh police chief atthe police headquarters here.
He will hold the addition-al charge till the appointmentof a permanent director generalof police (DGP), AdditionalChief Secretary (Home)Awanish Kumar Awasthi hadsaid on Thursday.
Following Goel's removalfrom the post on Wednesday,Additional Director General ofPolice (Law and Order)Prashant Kumar was given theadditional charge of the statepolice chief. The officer hadalso a courtesy meeting withChief Minister Yogi Adityanathduring the day.
"I thank the chief ministerfrom my heart for giving methe opportunity to serve thepublic as the (acting) DGP ofUttar Pradesh Police,” Chauhansaid in tweet on the officialTwitter handle of the UP DGP.
“The UP police will workwith complete integrity andhonesty according to the pri-orities of the government whilemaintaining team spirit like afamily," he added.
����&����$� ���������������'()���������*�����
! ��������������������������������"��������������
&�����&���� 3#4 ��5� �66789:�������� ��)&�(��
%$������&����'�(����)���**�������$+*��������������,��'���,�-./��������,��������'������������������0��$��������������$*������'���������������������
1�������'������������������**�����������$��*�������*
��������������������� ������������������
04� �� ������������������;��������
![Page 6: D`_ZR TR]]d W`c fcXV_e SZX eZT\Ve cVW`c^d Z_ 4`_X](https://reader039.cupdf.com/reader039/viewer/2023042614/6335580fb9085e0bf509719b/html5/page/6.jpg)
�������������� !"�# !$�� �%&���'#��� ��(�' �()'���*��)��)�+�)��,�#� �%��-�)�(��)����(.
�����/ �)'%����$
�'+����0$%�('��� ������1 �*'��#���)��0'((� !'*'%��-����)��1)��)'$�-'��� �2'%��.
���������������/ �'�� ��'�����
nism is the fourth sibling inthe Abrahamic family of reli-gions and shares their intoler-ance towards any other beliefsystem and like its siblings, hasno hesitation in turning uponits fellow siblings as well.
However, it must beadmitted that it is the Hinduswho have largely been at faultin first allowing the emergenceof a separate entity within thesovereign state of India after1947, and thereafter, notputting forth their point ofview eloquently and convinc-ingly enough. In fact, over thecenturies, they have not react-ed sufficiently for the Muslimsto know how badly they havehurt Hindu sentiments. Infact, more often than not,they have gathered aroundtheir destroyed edifices, weptand beaten their breasts. As aresult, when the Babri struc-ture at Ayodhya was broughtdown by Hindus, they hadsurprised the Muslims for thefirst time in centuries. Beingthe first such incident it couldbe taken as an exception thatproves the rule. Now, withdemands being raised for therestoration of Gyanvapi atVaranasi and the Idgah atMathura, there is amazement,albeit privately, as to what hascome over the Hindus.
Of equal consternation, ifnot greater, are the demands
for changes in the names ofroads named after medievalMuslim conquerors. Whilethere is much stomach-churning and hand-wringing,accompanied by a flurry ofattempts to turn the narra-tives in favour of the “secular-liberal” lobby, hardly anyonehas stopped to think, leavealone acknowledge that theinjuries were first inflicted byMahmud of Ghazni on thefamous Somnath Temple andsoon followed by his attack onthe Keshav Dev Mandir atMathura. Not long thereafter,were the unholy adventuresby Mohammed Ghori whenhe converted three templesinto one mosque at Ajmerand named it “Adhai Din KaJhopra”; the aggression wascompleted in 60 hours andhence the name. Barely a fewyears earlier, he had devastat-ed Kannauj, then consideredthe capital of India.Qutbuddin Aibak’s destruc-tion of 27 Jain temples atDelhi’s Meharauli and con-verting them into a mosquecalled “Quwwat-ul-Islam” orthe “might of Islam” was thenext chapter of deliberatehumiliation inflicted uponthe Hindus.
I suppose the type of sen-timents would differ fromperson to person. Even if weaccept this contention, it was
all supposedly settled with thepartition of the country onthe midnight of August 14,1947, when one-thirds ofHindu were given away toappease the progeny of thosemedieval conquerors, whosepolitical representatives haddeclared in unambiguousterms that they could not co-exist with the Hindus. Butsuch a settlement did notmaterialise and post-inde-pendent India allowed “astate within a state” to existand flourish. When VladimirLenin conquered the RussianEmpire for communism,most of the churches, syna-gogues and mosques wereconverted into municipaloffices, departmental stores orplaces of any other civil pur-pose. In 1973, I happened tovisit the sites of three suchconversions. These changeswere presumably acceptedon the morrow of the RussianRevolution.
Be that as it may, it wouldhave been much better if theHindus had found a sufficient-ly eloquent manner of express-ing their pain, the Muslimscould then have taken the cur-rent changes in their stride.
(The writer is a well-known columnist, anauthor and a former memberof the Rajya Sabha. The viewsexpressed are personal.)
��������� �����Sir—The killing of Al Jazeera journalistShireen Abu Akleh by the Israeli forces ina raid in Jenin in the occupied West Bankwas tragic. Documenting life under occu-pation was her sole crime. It was what ledto her targeted killing by the Israeli forces.The 51-year-old brave journalist did her jobin a place where her life was susceptible todanger. But undeterred by the prospect ofbeing killed, she discharged her duties. Shewas the epitome of a passionate and bravejournalist. She sympathised with thePalestinian cause.
She reflected in her work the pain andsuffering of the Palestinians living in occu-pied areas. She was affectionately called “adaughter of Palestine”. She keenly observedthe Israeli-Palestinian conflict; she chose tobe on the frontlines and at flashpoints totell the story – the Story of the stories of thePalestinians. Her face is familiar to all thosewho follow the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.Her unique way of telling the story won hermany admirers. Her voice conveyed thestrength of her feeling when she reportedthe systematic and structural oppressionand repression of the Palestinians on a dailybasis by the right-wing Israeli regime. TheIsraeli military stilled her voice, but her mar-tyrdom will inspire all those who cherishfreedom and justice.
G David Milton | Kanyakumari
������������ �������Sir— The retail inflation shoots up to a 95-month high in April, paving the way formore policy rate hikes by the central bank.Inflation has remained above the centralbank’s upper tolerance limit for four con-secutive months. The data released by theNational Statistical Office showed thefood inflation rate in April soared to 8.38per cent as prices of edible oils and vegeta-bles shot up by 17.3 per cent and 15.4 percent, respectively.
Fuel inflation also breached the dou-ble-digit mark at 10.8 per cent in April dueto rising retail prices of petrol, diesel, andcooking gas even as crude oil prices soft-ened from March. The second roundimpact of higher energy prices has become
visible with transport and communicationprices rising in double digits by 10.9 percent. The services sector inflation rate roseto a 115-month high at 8.03 per cent ashousehold goods and services (7.79 percent) and personal care (8.62 per cent)inched up. With this there is very heavy bur-den on the common people who are strug-gling for survival and the country is head-ing for a disastrous situation.
Bhagwan Thadani | Mumbai
������ ���� ����Sir—Recently, in Russia's neighbouringcountry Finland, a referendum was heldregarding joining the NATO. About 62 percent of people had given their consent tojoin the NATO. However, it is noteworthythat just before the Russian invasion ofUkraine, most people in Finland wanted toremain neutral. However, seeing the con-dition of the people of Ukraine, they felt thatjoining the NATO bloc would securetheir 13,00 kilometres border with Russia.Moreover, till 1917 Finland was a division
of Russia. Therefore, the vultures of Russiamay also have an eye on them. NATOSecretary-General Jens Stoltenberg hassaid he expects the membership process forSweden and Finland to be "quite quickly".
Jang Bahadur Singh | Jamshedpur
������ ���� � ����Sir—It is gut-wrenching to read the splitjudgment on marital rape by the Delhi HighCourt where one judge said it is not a crimeas the existing law. A husband has no rightto force himself on his wife. A rape is a rape,there is no exception.
The act of rape itself destroys the insti-tution of marriage. It was expected that boththe justices should have declared maritalrape as a crime. However, the only graceis that both the judges have allowed the par-ties to move the Supreme Court againsttheir split verdict on marital rape.
Vishal Mayur | Tumkur
$ % $ & ' � ( ) � � $ % � � ) * �
+����������+�$-'�����1.��+��'�$%0�� �����3 4�)��'�$%5�� �����3 � (�'!�'+.��+��'�$%0�� ����
�������������� ���� ����� ��������
�2
��������������<����3���������������������������
-��)���� �#(�)'��-�# ��'�(#--���� �$%��$�6#� ��+' ����-���0��((� !��)���0'� 7��)���#($�+(���#$���)� �)'8���'1� ��)���#��� ���)' !�(�� ��)����(�����
��������5�9���
�������������� ���:
���7������������������
���5�9������������������������������:��
���������9��������������:
���5�����9��� ��;������� ��<������:�����������
�������
3�44�& 45�446���! 45&
��"�,!!�05&�! �
�)���#0��+�� �#��=(� 8������� ��� (�'%� '$$0� �� !��'(�(7�'00�'$(�' ��0������� !(*��)���(0��������)���)'�!�(�-�'+���# ���
������ �>?@�A������� �$'*B�*'(�)�(������' ���#�'!��#(.� ���(�-��(��'--��'8���-�$�����-����)���#0��+�� �#��7��)�� � ��'$���8�� +� �)'��8���-���#($%���-� �����)��(������ �$'*7' ��'�!#����)'���)��>CD?�8��������-�'��� (��E�#��� ��� �)�� ����'���'�)��� !)�8(���'����-��)'���'(��#0)�$�� !���(�8'$����%�)'��*��)(����F�)����(���-���+�F�' �� ������ ������ (����E
'��� .���*�8��7��)����8�� +� ��-�$���' ��)E���'--��'8��7�*)���� ����('��7����)'��������������E��'+� ��' ������ (������)��(������ �$'*7' ��#�!����)��'0�����#������*'���-����)����8��*�%�'�F��+0��� ��-��#+F�' �����F ���� 8�(����+�F� �0������ (�-�$����%��)��������(&��#�$���-� ��'' ����)��(.��)����'+'����0�$����'$�8�$��E-'����-$�������)����(��+-�����-��)���#$� !��(�'�E$�()+� ��� �$�(� !��)��()'�0��$'*(��-��)����$�E �'$�$'*.
��)���'�$%�>CDG(7����'���'�)��� !)�*'((� �� ���������!���#(��+0��(� +� ��-���)�((0���)7�H�����$��8��� ��)'����8�$#��� 7�*)��)*�$$���+��' ��� ��)��-$'+�(��-�*)��)��)���'0E��'$�(�(7�I'+� �'�(�' �...�*�$$�������#������'()�(�' ��� ��)����'()�(�*�$$�����(�'�$�()��'�!�8�� +� ���-��)��0����' ���)����* ����E�� � 0��0$�� �-� ��'.J� ��'=(� -��(�� 5��+��� �(�����'*')'�$'$���)�#�)'��*' �������F!������ �-� ��� A������ � >?@B7F� ' �� �)�� $'��(��#0��+�� �#���8��������(�'��'%��-�)�0�.
���!�������"���| ��������
�������� !�"���
#����$�����������������������������
Afew people know whatSir Arnold Toynbeetold his Indian audi-ence when he came to
address them to commemorateMaulana Abul Kalam Azad.Toynbee had come at JawaharlalNehru’s special invitation in theearly 1960s. Arnold Toynbeesaid: “In the course of the firstRussian occupation of Warsaw,the Russians had built an EasternCathedral in the city that hadbeen the capital of the once inde-pendent Roman Catholic coun-try Poland. The Russians haddone this to give the Poles a con-tinuous ocular demonstrationthat the Russians were now themasters. After the re-establish-ment of Poland’s independencein 1918, the Poles pulled thiscathedral down. I do not blamethe Polish Government for hav-ing pulled down the Russianchurch. The purpose for whichthe Russians had built it had beennot religious but political, and thepurpose had also been intention-ally offensive.”
In the Abrahamic religioustradition, a church or mosque isa prayer hall. It is not unusual fora parish in Europe to sell formoney a church; say, for the rea-son it does not attract an ade-quate number of worshippers onSundays. I was present inEngland when such a sale wasmade in Leicester and the sold-off place was brought down to bereplaced with a temple. In WestAsia, including Saudi Arabia,mosques are brought down tostraighten or widen highways. Bysharp contrast, in the Hindubelief, a temple is the residenceof the divine. Therefore, it is veryimpious to meddle with its struc-ture. Contrast a prayer hall witha residence of God, and onewould know how deeply theHindu sentiment has been hurtfor centuries by the demolitionof temples by Islamic invadersand conquerors from West andCentral Asia; it is almost impos-sible for an Abrahamic person toimagine the extent of the psycho-logical injury thus caused.
Quite to the contrary, whenthe communists came to powerin Russia in 1917, they wentabout targeting all places of wor-ship. This is no surprise; commu-
���������������� ����������������������������������� ����������������������� �������������������������� ��������������� ��������������!� ������������������������������������ �������������� �������"�#��������$���������
�� ����������������������� ������������������������������ ������!"�%����������������!������ �� ������������� ���������������������������� ����������������!����������������������!����!�������������!����������!������������� �������
�������������������������� ������ �� ��!������������������������������&'������������!��� ������!���$��������������������"��(������������� ���� �������$� ���� ����� ���� �� ����� �� ���� �����!������"� ����� �� �� ������� ����� ���� ���������������$��� �)����� �� ���������������*���������!�������� ����������������������������������$����� !����������� ����� $���� ����!�����!������*����!������������+����"���������������������������� ����� ��������������������)����� �� ������� ���������������������� ������������������������������"�#�+������������� ����������������� ��������������,� � ���������$��+������������������� ������������
������!��������������������"�%�������������!����*����� ����������� $�������������������������������������������������������������������������!�����!�������!�������� ��������������������!������������������������!�������������"
����� �� �+���� ����������������� ���������������������������-.����� �������������������!�����������/$���������������������������������������������� �����"��������$��������������� ���������� ��������������������0��������������������������$������������������������-���������� ��1����������������$/��������� �������� �����������������!��������"�2���������������������� ����������������������������� �����"�#�+��������������������������������"������ �� ������������������ ������������������������������� ���������������������!������� ������ � �� � ����� ������������ ������$� ���� !� ������� � ���� ������� ������� ���������� ����� ������ ����������������� ���!������� ������ �� �!����$����$������������������������������0�����������������������!��������"�
%����!!�����!���������(���������� "�%������������ ������������� � ������������������!�������������!� ��������������"�%��������������������������������������!����� �����������������"�%������������!!�������� ���������
��������������� ������������� � ��������������������"�(������������!�������������������1����������������������������������������34� �������������5������ ���������������6�(���������������������������������$��������� ���1��� ����������$��� �����7������� ����� ������"�8������$������������� �!��������������������!������6�%���������������������� ����������������������������"������������������������� � ��� �������������"�(� �������������������������� �����������������!!�������"���������!!�������������!���������.28��� �!�� ��������!!������������������"�������������� ��� ������������ �������������������� � "�%�������������������������!� ������������"�)������������������������ �����7�����$��������!� �������$��� �������������$��������������� ��������������$�������������"�8������$���������������� ����������������$���������������������$��� �������������!���������������� ���������6
,�������� ������ ����� �����������������������������������������������������������������"%������������������������������� ����������� ��������"�������*���������� ������������������$�����������$��� �������������!��� ����� ���� ��������������������������!����� ��� �����������"� #�� ���� ����$� ���� ����������� ���������������� !��� ����� ������ �����$� ��������������$��� ��� ��������"�,�������������!���� ��������������������������������������������"��������������!!��������������"�%������������ �����������������������������!�����������
�� ���������!!���������������"�.��������������� �!���$�������������������!�7����������������"�%����������������� �����������������!������$�� �������������!�����������������������������������������"���$�������� �����������������������������������"�%���!�������� ������������������������������������!!��������� ����������������������������!���������!�����"���������!���������������������������������������������!���������������!���������� �����������������������7�����"�#����������������������������������������!����������$����� ����������������!��������� $������$������������ ��������������!�������$���������������1������� 1$�!���������� �����!�������������"�������$�����9�������5����,����������(������������ ������������� ������������������������������������������������!��������������$����������$��� ���������������������������"%���(�������1������� ����������������������������7���������������"�%��������������������������!!��� �����������������!!���!�������������� ���������!���� ��� �����������������������"�#�������������� ��������#� �������!������������������!���������"��������������"�
%�������+����+�� �
( ���"�� ������������������������%�������������������������������������%����&������%����&������
# �)"!-
&�������������������������������������������������4����$������<��� ��:�%��:�����/����� &=�
��%����&�����������������������'��������������������
&+�'�0$'%���$�8� !*��)�' �� ,#�%.��&(� ��)� !� �*.�&(�(�+��)� !�)'���(��)���7# -���# '��$%.
�����������/ �'-'�$��'�'$
�' %�('���%�#�*�$$�!���,��(��-�%�#$�'� ��� ��.�(���(�...���1�)����� ��+�'����7�*)��(�(�$$� !�0' �0#��.��� ��#����!$����������������
/ ��5� +#�%
SOUNDBITE
�+0������ �(%(��+� � ��'��(�*�$$��)� ����!����� !��# ����(�' ���� ���(����(��I���)�+�+� �#+��'�1.
��#����%����������������/ �' ��'!�����8'
![Page 7: D`_ZR TR]]d W`c fcXV_e SZX eZT\Ve cVW`c^d Z_ 4`_X](https://reader039.cupdf.com/reader039/viewer/2023042614/6335580fb9085e0bf509719b/html5/page/7.jpg)
as ‘sustainable’ when it ‘meets theneeds of the present without com-promising the ability of future gen-erations to meet their own needs’.There are three pillars of sustainabil-ity - environment, society andeconomy. Environmental sustain-ability is the most familiar conceptwhich emphasizes on not overusingnatural resources and focus ontheir sustainable management.Global actions are required to pro-tect natural ecosystems and biodi-versity, for ensuring clean water andair. Social sustainability has theobjective to ensure that everyone hasaccess to basic necessities like,clean, water, adequate food, health-care, shelter, and human rights. Italso means setting policies toencourage fair policies at workplaceso that there is no exploitation anddiscrimination. Economic sustain-ability has been defined as practicesthat support long-term economicgrowth without negatively impact-ing social, environmental and cul-tural aspects of the community.Multi-level collaboration is requiredto achieve sustainability and addressinterconnected problems by balanc-ing the needs of economic growthand resource conservation equally.We all should all take steps to incor-porate sustainability into everyaspect of our life. Our willingnessto think and act differently byputting economic development andenvironment on equal footing ascentral parts of the same equationwill help us resolve glaring problemslike, air pollution, food shortage andfood scarcity.
Entities can have positiveimpact on society and the economyby improving their sustainabilityperformance. Sustainability
Reporting is gaining momentumyear on year due to stakeholder’sever-rising demands for more trans-parent and better communicationregarding their sustainability prac-tices, initiatives and performance.Much like their global counterparts,Indian corporates too are leaningtowards the reporting frameworksto demonstrate their ability to cre-ate, preserve and grow value for adiverse stakeholder base.
The Institute of CharteredAccountants of India (ICAI) has astrong tradition of service to thecountry towards sustainable as wellas economic development. ICAIthrough Sustainability ReportingStandards Board (SRSB), has takenseveral initiatives in the sustainabil-ity domain and is working tostrengthen the sustainability report-ing ecosystem in the country.Witha view to strengthen sustainabilityreporting ecosystem in the country,important publications like,Background Material on BusinessResponsibility and SustainabilityReporting (BRSR) and Standard onAssurance Engagements (SAE) 3410“Assurance Engagements onGreenhouse Gas Statements” havebeen released. SustainabilityReporting Maturity Model (SRMM)Version 1.0, a comprehensive scor-ing tool, has been developedtomeasure their sustainability perfor-mance in terms of four levels ofmaturity of sustainability reportingnamely Level 1 to Level 4.Publication on “SustainableDevelopment Goals (SDGs) -Accountants Creating SustainableWorld - Part 1, 2 and 3” has beendeveloped to encourage all stake-holders to contribute towards theattainment of SDGs. ICAI
Sustainability Reporting Awards2020-21 and ICAI SustainabilityReporting Awards 2020-21 arebeing conducted to recognize,reward and encourage Excellence ofBusinesses in SustainabilityReporting and bring to light theiroutstanding contribution to the2030 Agenda for SustainableDevelopment. Capacity buildingof the chartered accountants in thisemerging area is being done by con-ducting online Certificate onBusiness Responsibility andSustainability Reporting. Awarenessinitiatives like, Carbon FootprintChallenge, ICAI SustainabilityLiteracy Drive, Corporate film onSimple Steps to make our PlanetSustainable, Champions of SDGsand SDG Videos have also beenundertaken.Contributing to theinitiatives of SEBI to create anecosystem via Social StockExchanges, ICAI is in the process ofdeveloping Social Audit Standardsand working on CertificationCourse for Social Auditors.
ICAI is partnering with stake-holders, government, regulators,and others to help maximize con-tribution to SDGs and also collab-orating with international bodies inadvancing sustainability agenda.ICAI also welcomes the announce-ment of formation of newInternational SustainabilityStandards Board (ISSB) by theIFRS Foundation (IFRSF) andextends full support towards conver-gence to a single set of sustainabil-ity reporting standards. New initia-tives have been planned in the areaof Sustainable Finance, GreenBonds, ESG rating and Climaterelated Financial Disclosures. ESGTalk show, sustainability awarenessquiz, training program for boardmembers on ESG, tree plantationdrive are other initiatives in pipeline.All these initiatives are focusedtowards promoting sustainableorganizations that create long-termvalue for investors and society.
A sustainable future requiresthat homo sapiens live within plan-etary boundaries in harmony withnature. Governments and policy-makers should work together toenhance national implementationand strengthen institutions toachieve the SustainableDevelopment Goals by the targetdate of 2030, leaving no one behind.As individuals, we all should con-tribute in addressing this global cri-sis by changing our mindset andhabits and adopting sustainablechoices in our day-to-day life. Ahealthy planet will thrive and nurture happy and safe survival forpresent and future generations.
����������� �(�����������������������
&'����(��� )*�+ ,����� �� �� ����-�)�� � ��,.� �� ��,���������) ������� � ��/�-��� ��0�� �� ���� ��� ���-���1���+ �� �� ��,-��� ���,.�23 ��4���� )���� -��)��)) ��,����������� ���
&�.�0����+ � ����-�� ����+).����- �������' )--�/-�+�����-�+-� ����-��� ���+ � � �
�-������� �)�������-������ ��23 ���� �����-/��� �)����
�-��0�.����5�����
������������������ �������������� ����������������������� !���� ������� ��� ����� ����� �������$� ���$� ���$����"%���������������������������:������+�����������!��
������� ����������&;43"�%�������$��������������� �����������������<����=����������� �������������������� ������$>� ��������$������������ $����� ����������������������"�%���������������������������������� ���������� ������������������������������)������������������������ ����������������5���,����$�?�� �������$����9���@����%����������������������������������� ��!�&''���������� �������<''������<���"�8������$������������!��� ����������������������������� ��������������������������� ��!�<>'�����$���������������� ������!�������� �����������������������A :������+�����"�#���������� ������>''�����������%����$����������� ��������������*���<�����"�)��������!���������!���������� �.��� �.���##$������������������ �������
�����!������������������� �$��� ������� ��������� ��!!���������� ���������$�������� ���������!������������������������������������������"�%����������!��������������������� � ���� �������� ��������������������������������������$��� ������!�������������$������������������������������ ����!��������� �!����������������4'�����"�%��� ����������$���������>&>�����������%������� ���������$��������!��������$�����������������!���*����������@�������$���0����$�9�����$��� �B�������������"�
?� ��������������������������� ���!������������3���$������� ����� ����������� ����<4'���"��������������*��������!��������$�����B���$��������$�8�����$�B�����$��� �8�����$��������������������������������� �����������������"�9��$�������������������7������� ��!�=''�����"�(����������������7������������$�*���������!�%����������$��������� ����������<''=$������������ �������������������� ���������������$����������������������������!�������������%��� ������!����&&���&>���������$� ����� $����������� !���������"� #�����$����� ���$�������!����������������!�8������,��������*���C">�����������)�.��$��� �������������!�%�����8���������!�>;=���$���������<>>4����������������������"������$�������������������������������$������������������������ ����������!������� ������������� ����������������!�%����"�(� �����������������������$��������$�����������������!�,����� �$������������������������ ����!������� �������� ��������������"����������$��������������� �������������������-������/�����������������������!� ���� #� �������������������������(��� ��� ��� �,����$����������3;<����*���������*��������������������������������������� ���������!��������� �D7���"#�� ���������� ������ ��������!��������������<����������������$�E��� $��������$�� �E� � ���$������F���������������������������#� �+�!��������������$�,����"�.�������������������������������� ��!�<>'����$�������������*�������!�������������������������������*���� ���������������� �������������������������������!�������������������� �!��������������$���������������� ������������������ � �����!����� ��"�%����������� ����� $��������� ��+������ ��� ����� ����� ����� �� ���� �������� ������������� !��� ����������������������� "�?�������������������$������������������������������������ � � �������$��� �����������"
�������������� �����������������������������������������������������������
�������������� ���� ����� ��������
�� +����������+�$ -'�����1.��+��'�$%0�� �����3 4�)��'�$%5�� �����3 � (�'!�'+.��+��'�$%0�� ����
FIRSTCOLUMN� &�,%$%�&�&� %-&�� &)'�.(&#//��**�� %-&�*0'�
POINTCOUNTERPOINT
("./��0� 706�3
#�+��������������������!������������������� �����G
������:�5���
�����������H����
5 : �����5� �J
55��K����9>.D�������2�7��� ������2���:
��K�7��:���������������: �
�:�5 : � ��
(The writer is a C.A. and Chairman,
Sustainability ReportingStandards Board.
The views expressed are personal.)
The importance of start-ups in an economy can-not be undermined as
they are technological revolu-tionaries, disruptors and cre-ators. They create new indus-tries, provide jobs, increaseincome levels, improve qualityof life and play a critical role inthe changing the image of anation. With as many as 50,000startups, of which a significantincrease is from tier-II andtier-III cities like Kochi,Ahmedabad and Pune, India isnow considered world’s 3rdlargest ecosystem, accordingto Startup India portal.
However, failure is theother side of Startup industry.In a study conducted by OxfordEconomics and IBM’s Instituteof Business Value, it was foundthat 90% of India’s startups faildue to lack of innovation. In
fact, according to KPMGreport, in 2020, revenue ofatleast 30 percent of Indian star-tups declined by about 80 per-cent, whereas 70 percent ofthem had the probability ofrunning for the next threemonths only.
Apart from business envi-ronment created by govern-ment and a robust banking net-work, a strong venture capitalindustry is one of the crucialrequirements to develop suc-cessful startups. Overall, thesuccess of start-ups is a collab-orative effort of both entrepre-neurs and venture capitalists.
Venture capitalists work ina highly competitive environ-ment and yet typically generatea mediocre return. Add to thisthe high failure rate of entrepre-neurs, a better working strate-gy is a critical need of the hour
for venture capitalists. The typeof financing provided by ven-ture capitalists is unique andvery different from that provid-ed by private equity funds orcommercial banks. These orga-nizations provide funds in theform of corporate lending tofirms that are established andhave a proven track record ofoperations and profitability.On the other hand, venture cap-italists provide funding to new,
high risk, technology-orientedcompanies that operate in a fastand volatile environment withconstantly changing paradigms.They work with entrepreneurswith an idea but fairly lessexperience about implementingthe idea, identifying and puttingtogether a competent team anddeveloping the customer base.The lack of experience and anestablished record of perfor-mance of startups make invest-ments in them extremely riskyand uncertain. According toHarvard Business School’sentrepreneurship professorShikhar Ghosh, about three-quarters of startups backed byventure capitalists are not suc-cessful enough to return cash totheir investors. Therefore, therole of venture capitals has to bemuch more than selecting agood business and provide
funding and should extend tovalue-creation. In addition toproviding strategic direction,most venture capitalists arealready extending their supportto various functional aspects ofstart-ups. Firstly, venture capi-talists help in team building instart-ups by identifying andrecruiting appropriate talent,which is the most importantasset of a start-up. Secondly,providing support to theadministrative activities likeaccounting, legal and otherroutine organizational respon-sibilities can free up founders’time which can be further usedfor growing business. Thirdly,venture capitalists help start-upsin building the right skills for allemployees and the leadershipteam. Fourthly, probably themost important, is providingstrategic focus by defining the
target market, underlining thescope of the product or service,identifying the competitiveadvantage and providing appro-priate strategic direction.Additionally, support to build-ing a customer base is an essen-tial encouragement. And last-ly, the most important aspect ofventure capitalist and entrepre-neur relation is access to its net-work. Venture capitalists alsoprovide performance metrics tostartups to monitor, measureand report their performance attheir early stage.
So, on what basis should aventure capital fund decide theextent of its involvement in astartup - at a very basic level, theparticipation is only financial;the next level is mentorship andguidance; and the advancedlevel is operational. The deci-sion is ought to be made by ana-
lyzing its assets and resources.The most common and impor-tant resource of a VC is cashthat represents the absoluteamount of funds available. If thecash resources are strong, VCswould invest in an administra-tive function that would addvalue to a startup, and in casethe cash resources are notstrong, VCs can introduce thestartups to their network whichcan meaningfully assist them.Brand resources are also veryimportant for a VC which canbe evaluated by the frequencyof their citing in print, electron-ic and social media. Networkresources are perhaps the mostcrucial of all contributionstowards the growth of startups.Introductions to members ofpersonal networks can helpstartups in either time-savingsor cost-savings or both.
�������������� ����������������������� ������������������������������� ����������������� ������������� ��������������� ����������
)�����������������������%��������������������������������
(The writer is AssociateProfessor at Amity
University, Noida. The viewsexpressed are personal.)
1 �"�2 .�,��54�
��3���6�&8� Mankind is facing the greatestthreat of climate emergencywhich is being termed as“Code red for humanity”.
Industrialization, urbanization andincreasing population has led to unprece-dented crisis catalysed by over exploitationof natural resources, and their contamina-tion with toxic chemicals and pollutants.There are far-reaching impacts of ever-increasing greenhouse gases on our plan-et. According to estimates of variousagencies like, Organization for EconomicCooperation and Development (OECD)this will result in rise of earth temperatureby 02 °C by 2050.
Global warming is giving rise to nat-ural calamities like, flood, drought, melt-ing of glaciers, etc. As per a UnitedNations report the human-caused rate ofextinction of species of both plants and ani-mals at present is hundreds of times high-er than the natural rate in the past and asthe situation is turning out it can be thou-sands of times higher in near future. Acrossthe world, people are facing challenge ofavailability of potable water, pure air tobreathe and also ever an alarming problemof land degradation.
“The Global Risks Report 2022” issuedby World Economic Forum states that overa 10-year horizon, the health of the planetdominates concerns: environmental risksare perceived to be the five most criticallong-term threats to the world as well as themost potentially damaging to people andplanet, with “climate action failure”, “extremeweather”, and “biodiversity loss” ranking asthe top three most severe risks. Human-induced climate change is causing danger-ous and widespread disruption in natureand affecting the lives of billions of peoplearound the world, despite efforts to reducethe risks. People and ecosystems least ableto cope are being hardest hit.Non-degrad-able wastes being generated is increasingevery minute and are the cause of conta-mination of natural resources and also caus-ing harm to the humans. As per a recentreport, a mass of plastic waste named as“Great Pacific Garbage Patch” approximate-ly 1.6 million km in size, twice the size ofTexas, is floating on the surface of PacificOcean.
This alarming situation is the majorattention area and it is the need of thehour that Governments and non-govern-ment organizations involving individuals,communities, countries, and the globe aswhole, aligns themselves with the basicprinciples of ‘sustainability’. Human soci-ety and economy are thriving on nature,and only harmonious existence will allowHomo sapiens to persist and thrive on this planet.
Sustainability emphasizes the need forsociety to conserve resources, protect nat-ural ecosystems, minimize pollution andpromote social equity. In 1987 the WorldCommission on Environment andDevelopment, also popularly known as theBrundtland Report, defined development
����������� �������*�������������������� ���������%����������������������������� �����������*�������������������������������+���
![Page 8: D`_ZR TR]]d W`c fcXV_e SZX eZT\Ve cVW`c^d Z_ 4`_X](https://reader039.cupdf.com/reader039/viewer/2023042614/6335580fb9085e0bf509719b/html5/page/8.jpg)
�������������� ���� ����� ��������1������.
�� �� �����������
India has said that it is exploring optionsto minimise the impact on the education
of Indian students in Ukrainian universities,as several of them, mostly studying at med-ical colleges, were worried about theirfuture after fleeing the war-torn EastEuropean country.
India's Deputy PermanentRepresentative at the UN Ambassador RRavindra, during a briefing on the human-
itarian situation in Ukraine at the UNSecurity Council, said the impact of the sit-uation on the education of children has beensevere and further aggravated the pandemic-related challenges that children were alreadyfacing.
He said that the situation hasaffected foreign students, including thosefrom India. India facilitated the safe returnof about 22,500 Indians, mostly students,from Ukraine after Russia launched a largescale military aggression against it.
"We are exploring options tominimise the impact on our students' edu-cation. We appreciate the relaxations madeby the Ukrainian Government for this aca-demic year in respect of medical students,"Ravindra said. Ravindra reiteratedthat India supports calls for guarantees ofsafe passage to deliver essential humani-tarian corridors. He also noted that the foodsecurity challenges emanating from the con-flict "requires us to respond by goingbeyond constraints that bind us presently.
���� �9;
The trial of a Russian sol-dier accused of killing aUkrainian civilian
opened Friday, the first warcrimes trial since Moscow'sinvasion of its neighbour.
Scores of journalistspacked inside a small court-room in the Ukrainian capitalwhere the suspect appeared ina small glass cage for the startof a trial that has drawn inter-national attention amid accu-sations of repeated atrocities byRussian forces.
Vadim Shyshimarin, 21, isaccused of shooting a 62-year-old Ukrainian man in the headin the northeastern village ofChupakhivka. He could getup to life in prison.
The killing occurred inthe early days of the war, whenRussian tanks advancing onKyiv were unexpectedly routedand tank crew retreated.
Shyshimarin, a member ofa tank unit that was capturedby Ukrainian forces, admittedthat he shot the civilian in avideo posted by the SecurityService of Ukraine.
"I was ordered to shoot,"said Shyshimarin, of the killingon Feb. 28. "I shot one (round)
at him. He falls. And we kepton going."
Shyshimarin's video state-ment is "one of the first con-fessions of the enemy invaders,"according to the Ukrainiansecurity service.
The trial comes as Russia'scampaign to take Ukraine'seast slowly grinds on - but itsinvasion has resulted in wide-spread repercussions beyondthe battlefield.
Two and a half monthsafter Russia's invasion ofUkraine sent a shiver of fearthrough Moscow's neighbors,Finland's president and primeminister announced Thursdaythat the Nordic country shouldapply right away for member-ship in NATO, the militarydefense pact founded in part tocounter the Soviet Union.
���� ����
Ukrainian PresidentVolodymyr Zelenskyy says
that he's ready to talk withRussian President VladimirPutin and that "we must find anagreement,'' but with no ulti-matum as a condition.
Zelenskyy also told ItalianRAI state TV in an interviewscheduled to be broadcast onThursday night that Ukrainewill never recognize Crimea aspart of Russia, which annexed
that part of southern Ukrainein 2014.
"Crimea has always had itsautonomy, it has its parlia-ment, but on the inside ofUkraine," Zelenskyy said, inexcerpts of the interview thatRAI released earlier onThursday.
The interviewer asked theUkrainian leader about a com-ment by French PresidentEmmanuel Macron cautioningagainst any humiliation ofPutin.
"We want the Russian armyto leave our land, we aren't onRussian soil, ' ' Zelenskyyreplied. "We won't save Putin'sface by paying with our terri-tory. That would be unjust."
In another comment,Zelenskyy sounded a forward-looking note. "We have to thinkof the future of Russia. I, aspresident of Ukraine, say theseare our neighbors. There will beother presidents, other presi-dents and other generations" ofRussia, Zelenskyy said.
���� �����������
The war in Ukraine is a"child rights crisis" where
education is under attack, near-ly 100 youngsters have beenkilled in just the last month,and millions more have beenforced to flee their homes, theUN children's agency saidThursday.
Omar Abdi, deputy execu-tive director of UNICEF, toldthe UN Security Council thatchildren are paying "an uncon-scionably high price" in thewar, with 239 confirmed killedand 355 wounded sinceRussia's invasion of Ukraine onFebrurary 24. He said the actu-al numbers are much higher.
"These attacks must stop,"he said. "Ultimately, childrenneed an end to this war -- theirfutures hang in the balance."
Abdi said the school yearcame to a standstill after Russiainvaded its smaller neighbour,and as of last week, at least 15of 89 UNICEF-supportedschools in the country's easthad been damaged ordestroyed in the fighting.
"Hundreds of schoolsacross the country are report-ed to have been hit by heavyartillery, airstrikes and otherexplosive weapons in populat-
ed areas, while other schoolsare being used as informationcentres, shelters, supply hubs orfor military purposes -- withlong-term impact on children'sreturn to education," Abdi said.
In mid-March, over 15,000schools resumed education inUkraine, mostly throughremote learning or in-personhybrid options, he said. "It isestimated that 3.7 million (37lakh) children in Ukraine andabroad are using online anddistance learning options," hesaid.But, Abdi said "enormousobstacles" to education remain,including school availability,resources, language barriersand movement of children andtheir families. Less than five percent of refugee pre-school chil-dren are estimated to beenrolled in public kinder-
gartens, he said.Abdi and many council
members spoke about what hecalled a "horrifying attack" ona school in the easternUkrainian town of Bilohorivkalast weekend, when a bomb hitwhile women and childrensheltered in the building.
US deputy ambassadorRichard Mills said the blastkilled as many as 60 people,many of them children. "Andreliable reports indicate thatwhen first responders arrivedat the school to assist victims ofthe bombing, Russia's forcesopened fire on them," headded.
Ukraine's UN ambassador,Sergiy Kyslytsya, said only 30civilians were rescued and theschool that had once beenfilled with joyful children "wasturned by a Russian pilot intoanother mass grave".
British AmbassadorBarbara Woodward said thereis evidence "that Russia is com-mitting four of the SecurityCouncil's six grave violationsagainst children in times ofwar" -- violations listed in a1999 council resolution thatcondemned the targeting ofchildren in conflict as well asrecruiting and using children assoldiers.
�� �� ��������
The United States continuesto be in close touch with
India about its efforts to rallythe world to stand up againstRussian aggression, the WhiteHouse said on Thursday.
"We continue to remainin close touch with Indiaabout our efforts to rally theworld to stand up againstRussian aggression. Thatmeans implementing andabiding by sanctions that havebeen put in place," WhiteHouse Press Secretary JenPsaki told reporters at herdaily news conference.
US Deputy Security
Advisor Dileep Singh recent-ly took a trip to India to havea conversation about that,she said.
"We continue to encour-age countries to speak outabout Russian aggression.And obviously on COVID-19,we have been an importantpartner with India in provid-ing supply and vaccines in
their times of need over thecourse of the last 15 monthsand certainly will continue towork with them on that,"Psaki said in response to aquestion.
Responding to anotherquestion, Psaki said she is surePresident Biden would trav-el to two Quad countries --India and Australia -- in thefuture. Biden is scheduled totravel to Japan and SouthKorea later this month.
"I am sure he will, in thefuture. But we have two for-eign trips we are still trying tofinalise at this point. And soI do not have any predictionsabout when," Psaki said.
���� �9;
Finland's leaders Thursdaycame out in favour of apply-
ing to join NATO, and Swedencould do the same within days,in a historic realignment on thecontinent two-and-a-halfmonths after Russian PresidentVladimir Putin's invasion ofUkraine sent a shiver of fearthrough Moscow's neighbours.
The Kremlin reacted bywarning it will be forced to takeretaliatory "military-technical"steps. On the ground, mean-while, Russian forces poundedareas in central, northern andeastern Ukraine, including the
last pocket of resistance inMariupol, as part its offensive totake the industrial Donbasregion, while Ukraine recap-tured some towns and villages inthe northeast.
The first war-crimes trial ofa Russian soldier since the start
of the conflict is set to openFriday in Kyiv. A 21-year-oldcaptured member of a tank unitis accused of shooting to deatha civilian on a bicycle during theopening week of the war.
Finland's president andprime minister announced thatthe Nordic country should applyright away for membership inNATO, the military defencepact founded in part to counterthe Soviet Union. "You (Russia)caused this. Look in the mirror,"Finnish President Sauli Niinistosaid this week. While the coun-try's Parliament still has toweigh in, the announcementmeans Finland is all but certain
to apply -- and gain admission-- though the process could takemonths to complete. Sweden,likewise, is considering puttingitself under NATO's protection.
That would represent amajor change in Europe's secu-rity landscape: Sweden hasavoided military alliances formore than 200 years, whileFinland adopted neutrality afterits defeat by the Soviets inWorld War II. Public opinion inboth nations shifted dramati-cally in favour of NATO mem-bership after the invasion, whichstirred fears in countries alongRussia's flank that they could benext.
���� �9;
Russia lost significant numbers of troops and impor-tant equipment when Ukrainian forces thwarted
their attempt to cross a river in the east, British offi-cials said Friday, another sign of Moscow's struggle towin decisive victories and salvage a war gone awry.
Ukrainian authorities, meanwhile, openedthe first war crimes trial of the conflict, in proceed-ings that will be closely watched by internationalobservers eager to ensure atrocities are fairly prosecuted.A Russian soldier stands accused of killing a Ukrainiancivilian in the early days of the war.
The trial gets underway as Russia's campaignin Ukraine's eastern industrial heartland of the Donbasmakes faltering progress.
Ukraine's airborne forces command hasreleased photos of what it said was a damaged Russianpontoon bridge over the Siversky Donets River and sev-eral destroyed or damaged Russian military vehiclesnearby. Ukrainian news reports said troops thwartedRussian passage across the river earlier this week, leav-ing dozens of tanks or military vehicles damaged or forc-ing troops to abandon them.
Britain's Defense Ministry said Friday thatRussia lost “significant” elements of at least one battaliontactical group — about 1,000 troops — as well as equip-ment used to quickly deploy a makeshift floating bridgewhile trying to cross the river.
“Conducting river crossings in a contestedenvironment is a highly risky maneuver and speaks tothe pressure the Russian commanders are under to makeprogress in their operations in eastern Ukraine,” theministry said in its daily intelligence update. They havestruggled to do so, even after diverting troops from otherparts of the country to the Donbas, the statement said.
���� ����������A�����9B
Moldova's foreign minister says the smalleastern European country is on alert for
any signs the conflict in neighboring Ukrainecould spill across the border.
Foreign Minister Nicu Popescu toldreporters Friday on the sidelines of a G-7 for-eign ministers' meeting in Germany that "thesituation is of course fragile, but it is nonethe-less relatively calm. We do not face an acutemilitary crisis today." At the same time the gov-ernment has been preparing for "the full spec-trum of options," he said. "Our interiorministry, defense ministry, intelligence servicesare on high alert," Popescu said, citing the pres-ence of Russian troops in the separatistMoldovan region of Transnistria.
Transnistria is a disputed, Russian-backed breakaway state that borders south-western Ukraine. Popescu said theMoldovan government was in regular contactwith the de facto authorities in Transnistria"because we all have a commitment and anobligation and a duty to keep peace in the entireMoldova, which includes the Transnistrianregion."
���� �����
Natural gas prices roseFriday after Russian state-
owned exporter Gazprom saidit would no longer send sup-plies to Europe via a pipeline inPoland, citing new sanctionsthat Moscow imposed onEuropean energy companies.The move doesn't immediate-ly block large amounts of nat-ural gas to Europe but intensi-fies fears that the war inUkraine will lead to wide-rang-ing cutoffs.
Gazprom said Thursdaythat it would ban the use of theYamal pipeline that reachesGermany through Poland.While that cuts off a supplyroute to Europe, the pipeline'sentry point to Germany has notbeen used in recent months.Plus, Gazprom has already cutoff gas to Poland for refusing tomeet Moscow's demand tomake payments in rubles.
"A ban is in place on mak-ing transactions with and pay-ments to persons under sanc-tions. In particular, forGazprom, this means a ban onthe use of a gas pipeline ownedby (the Polish company)EuRoPol GAZ to transportRussian gas through Poland,"Gazprom representative SergeyKupriyanov wrote in aTelegram post.
The fear is that gas disputesand cutoffs will keep escalatingamid the war in Ukraine. Lastmonth, Gazprom said it hadcompletely cut off natural gassupplies to Poland and Bulgariaover the rubles dispute.
On Tuesday, Ukraine'spipeline operator shut down apipeline that carries gas fromRussia to Europe, sayingRussian forces were interferingwith a compressor station inRussian-held territory anddiverting gas. It asked Gazprom
to move gas through anotherpipeline, which the companysaid it could not do. By itself, theshutdown was not expected tocut off major amounts of gas.
Energy tensions ramped upwhen Russia imposed sanctionsWednesday on GazpromGermania, a subsidiary of theRussian supplier that the Germangovernment took control of inApril.
German Vice ChancellorRobert Habeck said the loss ofgas from the Russian moves was"manageable" at around 10 mil-lion cubic meters per day andcould be made up from othersources.
The actions further roiledvolatile energy markets. Naturalgas traded Friday at 104 euros permegawatt hour, up from 94 eurosbefore the announcements.
"Moscow has fired a secondvolley of gas disruption atEurope, causing fresh uncer-tainty and spiking prices," saidKaushal Ramesh, senior analystat Rystad Energy.
European utilities and gov-ernments have scrambled torefill underground gas storagethat was depleted over the win-ter and have made enoughprogress to cover gas needs forthe year without Russian sup-plies. But they would face dif-ficulty in getting through theend of the upcoming winterwithout rationing. High natur-al gas prices have led to higherbills for home heating and elec-tricity generated by the fuel.
European governments aretrying to get off Russian ener-gy and the EU's executive com-mission has proposed mea-sures to reduce imports fromRussia by two-thirds by yearend. It remains to be seen if thatcan be achieved.
Before the war, Europe got40% of its natural gas and 25%of its oil from Russia.
�� �� ����������������;�
India abstained in the UN HumanRights Council on a resolution on
the deteriorating human rights situ-ation in Ukraine stemming from theRussian aggression, in which theCouncil reiterated its demand for animmediate cessation of military hos-tilities.
The Geneva-based Council onThursday closed its 34th special ses-sion after adopting the resolution. Theresolution was adopted by a vote of 33in favour, China and Eritrea votingagainst and 12 abstentions, includingIndia, Armenia, Bolivia, Cameroon,Cuba, Kazakhstan, Namibia, Pakistan,Senegal, Sudan, Uzbekistan andVenezuela.
Since January this year, India hasabstained on procedural votes anddraft resolutions in the UN SecurityCouncil, the General Assembly andthe Human Rights Council that
deplored Russian aggression againstUkraine.India's PermanentRepresentative to the UN and otherInternational Organisations inGeneva, Ambassador Indra ManiPandey, at the session said that India'sposition on the Ukraine conflict hasbeen steadfast and consistent.
"We remain deeply concerned atthe unfolding developments inUkraine. We have constantly called forimmediate cessation of violence andan urgent end to hostilities," he said,adding that Prime Minister NarendraModi has reiterated this in his inter-actions with global leaders, includingthe leaderships of Russia and Ukraine."India continues to believe that pur-suing the path of dialogue and diplo-macy is the only way out," he said.
In the resolution as orally revised,the Human Rights Council reiterat-ed its demand for an immediate ces-sation of military hostilities againstUkraine, to refrain from any human
rights violations and abuses in thecountry, refrain from any State-spon-sored disinformation, propagandafor war or advocacy of national,racial or religious hatred that consti-tutes incitement to discrimination,hostility or violence, related to theaggression against Ukraine.
The Council also requested theCommission of Inquiry to conduct aninquiry, consistent with its mandateand international standards, and incoordination with other national andinternational mechanisms, to addressthe events in the areas of Kyiv,Chernihiv, Kharkiv and Sumy regionsin late February and March 2022,including their gender dimension,with a view to hold to account thoseresponsible.
Pandey said that the impact of theUkraine situation is being felt beyondthe region as oil prices are skyrock-eting, there is shortage of food grainsand fertilisers in the world.
",-�"�������&�������������������&����������������
,� ������� � ���������������� ������������ ��
������>������������ ������� ��������,� ���%����� ���� ��������?�������������� ���
��� �6���6���,� -��
�������������������������������������������������
" ���������������&��������������������������������������������-�������#���
����������������$�,.1�3�������������������������$����������������������,4������
��$��8'��(�*'�%�'+��-�'�(�-�!)�� !�+'%�(0��'�
�#((�' ��)��'�(�0#()�:� $' ����*'��(�,�� � !�����
�1�'� ��0#�(��#((�' (�$�����'��#(����-�*'�����+�(�� ����'$
1�������� ��"�2�� ����� ���!�"�$���
Helsinki: Turkish PresidentRecep Tayyip Erdogan onFriday said his country is "notfavourable" toward Finlandand Sweden joining NATO,indicating that Turkey coulduse its status as a member of
the Western military alliance toveto moves to admit the twocountries. "We are followingdevelopments concerningSweden and Finland carefully,but we are not of a favourableopinion," Erdogan told
reporters. The Turkish leaderexplained his opposition by cit-ing Sweden and otherScandinavian countries' allegedsupport for Kurdish militantsand others whom Turkey con-siders to be terrorists. AP
=�����1 ���������� � ��������������%����-���2�=@
���� ������
The UK Government onFriday added further
names to its list of financialsanctions aimed at RussianPresident Vladimir Putin,including his former wife anda retired gymnast allegedly ina relationship with him, inreaction to the ongoing con-flict with Ukraine.
,-�����������5��6% �����������������������������������
![Page 9: D`_ZR TR]]d W`c fcXV_e SZX eZT\Ve cVW`c^d Z_ 4`_X](https://reader039.cupdf.com/reader039/viewer/2023042614/6335580fb9085e0bf509719b/html5/page/9.jpg)
�������������� ���� ����� �������� ,������9
�� �� ������
Most of the Opposition par-ties in Sri Lanka on Fridayannounced that they would
not become a part of Prime MinisterRanil Wickremesinghe's interimgovernment but would support itseconomic policies from outside tohelp the debt-ridden island nation'searly recovery.
The 73-year-old UnitedNational Party (UNP) leader wasappointed as Sri Lanka's 26th primeminister on Thursday as the coun-
try was without a government sinceMonday when President GotabayaRajapaksa's elder brother and primeminister Mahinda Rajapaksaresigned after violence erupted fol-lowing an attack on the anti-gov-ernment protesters by his support-ers. The attack triggered wide-spread violence against Rajapaksaloyalists, leaving nine people deadand wounding over 200 others.
"We cannot become a part ofthis Rajapaksa-Wickremesinghegovernment," Wimal Weerawansa,a legislator for the independentgroup from President GotabayaRajapaksa's SLPP said.
Former President MaithripalaSirisena's SLFP central committeehas also decided not to be part of thegovernment.
The Marxist Janatha VimukthiPeramuna (JVP) said they wouldalso not be part of the government
while the main Opposition SamagiJana Balavegaya (SJB) said UnitedNational Party (UNP) leader
Wickremesinghe has no legitimacyas he was not even elected in the2020 parliamentary election.
SJB general secretary RanjithMadduma Bandara said the partywould not accept ministerial posi-tions and called forWickremesinghe's resignation.
JVP leader Anura KumaraDissanayake said the decision takenby President Gotabaya Rajapaksa toappoint Wickremesinghe as PrimeMinister, is one that was madewith zero regard to the voice of thepeople. The JVP leader ridiculed thedecision, saying the appointmenthas no legitimacy and has no demo-cratic value.
"Wickremesinghe is a personwho held the post of Prime Minister,formed governments, and yet couldnot even win a single seat at the lastGeneral Election. He did not evenhave the required number of votesto enter parliament. If an election isused to measure the consent of thepeople, elections have shown that he
has no mandate, and that is why thepeople sent him packing," he said.
The interim government ideawas mooted by the powerfulBuddhist clergy and civil society asa means to find a solution for theongoing economic crisis. WithMahinda Rajapaksa's resignationon Monday, President GotabayaRajapaksa said he was talking topolitical parties to set up an inter-im government.
Wickremesinghe, who had beensworn in as the prime minister of SriLanka on five occasions before,said his primary task was to tacklethe worst economic crisis withassistance from all parties.
The new prime minister, whohas only his seat in the Parliament,said he commanded a majoritycoming from both sides.
Sri Lanka's worst economic cri-sis has provoked widespread protests
calling for political reform and theresignation of President GotabayaRajapaksa. On April 1, PresidentRajapaksa imposed a state of emer-gency, lifting it five days later. Thegovernment reimposed a state ofemergency on May 6 after policefired teargas and arrested studentsprotesting near parliament, whichwas adjourned until May 17.
Although the protests havebeen overwhelmingly peaceful, thepolice fatally shot a protester onApril 19, and on several occasionshave used teargas and water can-nons against protesters. The author-ities have made numerous arrestsand repeatedly imposed curfews.The political crisis was triggered inlate March when people hurt bylong hours of power cuts and essen-tial shortages took to the streetsdemanding the resignation of thegovernment.
*���� �������/ �� �������������� �����(���������+"������7����������������$�����#���������$�������
�� �� �����
China, one of the largestcreditors of Sri Lanka, on
Friday reacted warily to theappointment of RanilWickremesinghe as the coun-try's Prime Minister suc-ceeding pro-Beijing MahindaRajapaksa, saying it supportsthe government's efforts tosustain stability in the face ofchaos.
"As a traditional, friend-ly country to Sri Lanka, weclosely follow the latest devel-opments, and we also supportthe Sri Lanka government'seffort to sustain stability,"Chinese Foreign Ministryspokesman Zhao Lijian tolda media briefing here.
He was replying to ques-tions, seeking China's reac-tion to United National Party(UNP) leaderWickramasinghe's appoint-ment considering that he hada history of probing Chineseinvestments and whetherBeijing will offer debt relief toSri Lanka like India.
Zhao reiterated Beijing'searlier call to all politicalparties in Sri Lanka to main-tain solidarity, sustain stabil-ity, and overcome difficultiestogether but gave no indication whether Chinawill step in to help the debt-ridden island nation likeIndia which has committedmore than USD 3 billion inloans, credit l ines and credit swaps since Januarythis year.
)� '���'��(!#'����$%������1��+�(� !)�&('00�� �+� ��
���� �����
Amissile struck a Syrian mili-tary bus in the country's north
early on Friday, killing 10 soldiers,Syria's state-run media and anopposition monitor said.
It wasn't immediately clearwho was behind the attack, one ofthe deadliest since a truce dealreached more than two years ago.
The official news agencySANA said "terrorists" targeted thebus in the western countryside ofAleppo, in the Anjara area. Ninesoldiers were wounded in theattack, the report said.
There was no claim of respon-sibility. The area is dominated bythe al-Qaida-linked militantgroup, Hayaat Tahrir al-Sham.
The Britain-based SyrianObservatory for Human Rights -
a war-monitoring group with anetwork of activists on the ground- reported the attack but said thatSyrian opposition forces fired themissile and that the 10 killedwere government-allied fighters.
Most of Syria has returned togovernment control after a decadeof war, with the exception of the
opposition-held bastion of Idlib inthe northwest and nearby areas,and the oil-rich northeast, held byUS-backed Syrian Kurdish groups.
The violence has largelytapered off in most of the country,but few among the nearly sixmillion refugees scattered acrossthe globe have returned.
���� �����5�����A��B
Several people were injured after a large fightbroke out and shots were fired outside of an
Arkansas convention center where a graduationceremony had taken place, police said.
The shooting happened Thursday night out-side of the Hot Springs Convention Center,which had hosted a graduation ceremony for HotSprings World Class High School, The Sentinel-Record reported.
The fight and subsequent shooting happenedin a parking lot adjacent to the convention cen-ter, said Hot Springs Police Officer First ClassOmar Cervantes. He said "multiple people" wereinjured but did not have an exact number or thenature of their injuries.
The injured were taken to hospitals and theirconditions weren't immediately released. Noarrests have been announced.
)� ����������� �9������ ������ 3,����:;6554 70
��8��'$�)#���'-����()��(�-�����#�(�����1' ('(�!�'�#'���
���� �����
Six people have died and 350,000 have beentreated for a fever that has spread "explo-
sively" across North Korea, state media saidFriday, a day after the country acknowledgeda COVID-19 outbreak for the first time in thepandemic.
North Korea likely doesn't have sufficientCOVID-19 tests and said it didn't know thecause of the mass fevers. But a big coronavirusoutbreak could be devastating in a countrywith a broken health care system and anunvaccinated, malnourished population.
The North's Korean Central News Agencysaid of the 350,000 people who developedfevers since late April, 162,200 have recovered.It said 18,000 people were newly found withfever symptoms on Thursday alone, and187,800 are being isolated for treatment.
One of the six people who died wasinfected with the omicron variant, KCNAsaid. But it wasn't immediately clear howmany of the total illnesses were COVID-19.
North Korea imposed a lockdownThursday after acknowledging its firstCOVID-19 cases. Those reports said testsfrom an unspecified number of people cameback positive for the omicron variant.
It's unusual for isolated North Korea toadmit to the outbreak of any infectious dis-ease, let alone one as menacing as COVID-19, as it's intensely proud and sensitive to out-side perception about its self-described"socialist utopia."
While North Korean leader Kim Jong Unhad occasionally been candid about hisworsening economy and other problems, hehad repeatedly expressed confidence aboutpandemic response and wasn't seen wearinga mask in public until Thursday.
State TV showed Kim wearing a mask ashe entered what the broadcast described asthe country's headquarters of its pandemicresponse, which appeared to be Pyongyang'slandmark Koryo Hotel. He took off the maskand smoked a cigarette while talking with offi-cials.
KCNA said Kim criticized officials forfailing to prevent "a vulnerable point in theepidemic prevention system." He said the out-break was centered around the capital,Pyongyang, and stressed all work and resi-dential units should be isolated from oneanother while residents should be providedevery convenience during the lockdown.
"It is the most important challenge andsupreme tasks facing our party to reverse theimmediate public health crisis situation at anearly date, restore the stability of epidemicprevention and protect the health and well-being of our people," KCNA quoted Kim assaying.
The spread of the virus may have beenaccelerated by a massive military parade onApril 25, where Kim gave a speech and show-cased his army and weaponry in front of tensof thousands of people.
Cheong Seong-Chang, an analyst atSouth Korea's Sejong Institute, said the paceof the fever's spread suggests the crisis couldlast months and possibly into 2023, causingmajor disruption in the poorly equippedcountry.
According to the latest figures from theWorld Health Organization, North Koreareported to the U.N. Agency that it tested64,207 people for COVID-19 in 2020 throughMarch 22 this year, a small number that mayindicate insufficient tests for a population of26 million.
�� �� �����
Pakistan's former primeminister Imran Khan
has filed a review petitionin the Supreme Court,challenging the apexcourt's April 7 decision onthe ruling of the thenNational Assembly speak-er on the crucial vote ofno-confidence.
In a major blow toKhan, the Supreme Courthad struck down thenNational AssemblySpeaker Qasim Suri's con-troversial move to dis-miss a no-confidencemotion against the crick-eter-turned-politician.
Suri, who is associat-ed with Khan's PakistanTehreek-e-Insaf party, onApril 3 dismissed the no-confidence motion againstthe ex-premier, claimingthat it was linked with a"foreign conspiracy" totopple the governmentand hence was not main-tainable.
Minutes later,President Arif Alvi dis-solved the NationalAssembly on the advice ofKhan who had effectivelylost the majority.
The Express Tribunenewspaper reported onFriday that in his reviewpetition on Thursday,
Khan pleaded that Article248 of the Constitutionbarred any other institu-tion from interfering inthe affairs of Parliamentand Suri's ruling was inaccordance with Article 5,when he rejected the no-confidence motion.
The review petition,filed through ImtiazSiddiqui and ChaudhryFaisal Hussain, stated thatArticle 248 did not makethe applicant answerablefor exercising any consti-tutional powers before anycourt. It contended thatthe bench had erred toappreciate the provisionsof Articles 66, 67 and 69,
the report said."The Apex Court has
erred to appreciate themandate of theConstitution whichensures that Parliament, aswell as the members/offi-cers thereof, the Presidentas well as the PrimeMinister, are not answer-able in the exercise oftheir functions as well asdiscretionary powersbefore any Court," theplea said.
Also, their dischargeof constitutional obliga-tions could not be calledinto question before anycourt under theConstitution, it added.
���� ��������
The Biden administration is tak-ing the first steps to release USD
45 billion to ensure that every USresident has access to high-speedinternet by roughly 2028, invitinggovernors and other leaders onFriday to start the applicationprocess.
Commerce Secretary GinaRaimondo is overseeing the distri-bution and said that universal accessto broadband internet would be akinto the electrification of ruralAmerica during the 1930s, a recog-nition that the internet is a utilityneeded for US residents to functionin today's economy. "There's morethan 30 million Americans whodon't have internet," Raimondosaid."And in this day and age with-out high-speed internet, you can't goto school, can't go to the doctor,can't do simple things. Think of howmany times in a day you Googlesomething or go online."
The funding is part of the USD65 billion for broadband in the USD
1 trillion infrastructure packagethat President Joe Biden signedinto law last November.
That bipartisan package is oneof the policy achievements that theDemocratic president is trying tosell to voters ahead of the mid-termelections, though it's unclear howmuch the message will resonatewhen much of the country isfocused on high inflation, culturaldifferences and political identity.
Former President DonaldTrump has dismissed the infra-structure spending as "fake" eventhough the broadband spending wasone of his own priorities.
His Agriculture Departmentsaid in 2020 that it had investedUSD 744 million on rural internetconnectivity, a sum that was mean-ingful yet insufficient.
Raimondo is travelling toDurham, North Carolina. She'llannounce that governors can sendtheir letters of intent to receive thebroadband money, which comesfrom three programmes totallingUSD 45 billion. Each state wouldthen get USD 5 million to help itconsult with residents and write itsplan.The Commerce Departmentrecognises that internet needs varyby state. The money could be usedto lay fibre optic cable, build out Wi-Fi hotspots or even reduce month-ly charges in places where price isthe main challenge.
After the administration'sannouncement on Monday that itwould provide a USD 30 monthlysubsidy to low-income households,Raimondo noted that states coulduse the additional money fromthese programs to make the servicefree to some users.
�� �� �����
Pakistan has ruled outany imminent talks
with India due to theabsence of a proper "envi-ronment" for "a fruitful,constructive dialogue".
The remarks byForeign Office spokesmanAsim Iftikhar came inresponse to questions onties with India during aweekly briefing onThursday.
He was asked abouttalks in the context ofovertures by the new gov-ernment and the appoint-ment of a trade minister inDelhi.
Iftikhar said there wasa national consensus onthis issue and successivegovernments had pursuedthe same policy of seekingpeaceful settlement of dis-putes with India.
"In diplomacy, younever shut the doors," hesaid.
Iftikhar said thatn o t w i t h s t a n d i n gPakis-tan's desire for a
diplomatic resolution ofdisputes, "the environmentfor a fruitful, constructivedialogue is not there".India has repeatedly toldPakistan that it desiresnormal neighbourly rela-tions with Islamabad in anenvironment free of terror,hostility, and violence.India has said the onus ison Pakistan to create anenvironment free of terrorand hostility.
Hopes for the revivalof talks between the twocountries were rekindledafter Pakistan decided toappoint a trade minister atits High Commission inNew Delhi after more than
two years.However, the com-
merce ministry in a state-ment on Thursday ruledout any change in the tradepolicy toward India.
Pakistan PrimeMinister Sharif and hisIndian counterpartNarendra Modi hadexchanged messages afterthe former was elected asthe prime minister to suc-ceed Imran Khan. Soonafter he was elected asPakistan's PrimeMinister, Sharif in hisinaugural speech hadraised the issue of abroga-tion of Article 370 inKashmir.
2"��������� A���� ����������������B�C��<����
������������%��&�������� ��%��������� �������������������(�����������%���
Biden admin to release $45bn for nationwide internet
.���#���$�������������������������#�������� ���� �������������4������
�� �� ��������
Scientists have for the first timegrown plants in lunar soil
brought back to Earth by astro-nauts in the Apollo missions, astep towards producing foodand oxygen on the Moon or dur-ing future space missions.
The researchers at theUniversity of Florida (UF) in theUS showed that plants can suc-cessfully sprout and grow inlunar soil.
Their study, published in thejournal CommunicationsBiology, also investigated howplants respond biologically to theMoon's soil, also known as lunarregolith, which is very differentfrom soil found on Earth.
This research comes asNASA's Artemis Program plansto return humans to the Moon.
"Artemis will require a bet-ter understanding of how to
grow plants in space," said RobFerl, one of the study's authorsand a professor at UF Institute ofFood and Agricultural Sciences(UF/IFAS).
"For future, longer spacemissions, we may use the Moonas a hub or launching pad. Itmakes sense that we would wantto use the soil that is alreadythere to grow plants," Ferl said.
The researchers designed asimple experiment: plant seedsin lunar soil, add water, nutrientsand light, and record the results.
They only had 12 grammes-- just a few teaspoons -- of lunarsoil with which to do this exper-iment. On loan from NASA, thissoil was collected during theApollo 11, 12 and 17 missions tothe moon.
The researchers appliedthree times over the course of 11years for a chance to work withthe lunar regolith.
�����������&������������������������������������
![Page 10: D`_ZR TR]]d W`c fcXV_e SZX eZT\Ve cVW`c^d Z_ 4`_X](https://reader039.cupdf.com/reader039/viewer/2023042614/6335580fb9085e0bf509719b/html5/page/10.jpg)
�������������� ���� ����� �������� *�����/�
���� �������
Elon Musk said on Fridaythat his plan to buyTwitter for $ 44 billion is
“temporarily on hold” as hetries to pinpoint the exactnumber of spam and fakeaccounts on the social mediaplatform, another twist amidsigns of internal turmoil overthe proposed acquisition.
Musk, who has been vocalabout his desire to clean upTwitter's problem with “spambots” that mimic real people,appeared to question whetherthe company was under-reporting them.
In a tweet, the Tesla bil-lionaire linked to a Reutersstory from May 2 about aquarterly report from Twitterthat estimated false or spamaccounts made up fewer thanfive per cent of the company's“monetisable daily active users”in the first quarter.
“Twitter deal is temporari-ly on hold pending details sup-porting calculation thatspam/fake accounts do indeedrepresent less than five per centof users,” Musk said, indicating
he's sceptical that the number ofunauthentic accounts is that low.
It wasn't clear whether theissue could scuttle the deal.Stocks of both Twitter andTesla swung sharply in oppo-site directions, with Twitter'sstock tumbling 18 per cent, andshares of Tesla, which Muskhad proposed using to helpfund the Twitter deal, jumpingfive per cent.
Musk has already sold offmore than USD 8 billion worthof his Tesla shares to finance
the purchase.Wedbush analyst Dan Ives,
who follows both Tesla andTwitter, said Musk's “bizarre”tweet will lead Wall Street toeither think the deal is likelyfalling apart, Musk is attempt-ing to negotiate a lower dealprice, or he is simply walkingaway from the deal with a USD1 billion penalty.
“Many will view this asMusk using this Twitter fil-ing/spam accounts as a way toget out of this deal in a vastlychanging market,” Ives wrote.
He added that the Musk'suse of Twitter rather than afinancial filing to make theannouncement was troublingand “sends this whole dealinto a circus show with manyquestions and no concreteanswers as to the path of thisdeal going forward.”
Investors have had toweigh legal troubles for Musk,as well as the possibility thatacquiring Twitter could be adistraction from running theworld's most valuable auto-maker. PTI
�!������ ������� �������"���.� ��&������� �� �� ��������
Members of the WorldTrade Organization
(WTO) will hold intensivenegotiations from May 16-20 inGeneva to resolve contentiousissues related to the proposedglobal deal on curbing harm-ful fishing subsidies, ahead ofthe 12th MinisterialConference (MC12) nextmonth.
The chair of the negotia-tions, Ambassador SantiagoWills of Colombia, has said this'Fish Week' will be an oppor-tunity for members to work onfinalising the draft agreement,according to a WTO statement.
"WTO members on May16-20 will hold intensive nego-tiations aimed at resolvingremaining issues for a globaldeal to curb harmful fishingsubsidies ahead of the MC12next month," it said.
Members are negotiating aproposed fisheries subsidiesagreement. The objective is todiscipline subsidies for sus-tainable fishing and eliminateIUU (Illegal, Unreported andUnregulated) fishing subsidiesand prohibit them from con-tributing to overcapacity andoverfishing.
"MC12 is now scheduled tobegin on June 12 — that is onlyfour weeks away. So now is thetime to end decades of negoti-ations and conclude the WTOfisheries subsidies negotiationsso that the results can be adopt-ed by ministers," the chair saidin a video message.
The 12th ministerial con-ference, the highest decision-making body of the WTO, isscheduled to meet on June 12-15 in Geneva.
"Ultimately, we should notbe negotiating against eachother but against the unrelent-ing depletion of global fishstocks so vital for livelihoods,food security, and a healthy
planet," he said.The contentious issues
which ar yet to be resolvedinclude matters related to spe-cial and differential treatment,and non-specific fuel subsidies.
India has time and againemphasised that it is keen tofinalise an agreement on fish-eries subsidies in the WTO asirrational benefits and over-fishing by many countries arehurting domestic fishermenand their livelihood.
The country wants anequitable and balanced out-come as it provides support toits small and marginal fisher-men who depend on the sectorfor sustenance. PTI
New Delhi: The governmenthas fixed the issue price of LICshares at Rs 949 apiece, theupper end of the IPO priceband, ahead of the listing of thecountry's largest insurer onMay 17.
However, LIC policyhold-ers and retail investors have gotthe shares at a price of Rs 889and Rs 904 a piece, respective-ly.
The Initial Public Offering(IPO) of Life InsuranceCorporation (LIC) closed onMay 9 and shares were allo-cated to bidders on May 12.The government sold over22.13 crore shares or 3.5 percent stake in LIC through theIPO at a price band of Rs 902-949 a share.
The retail investors and eli-gible employees of LIC wereoffered a discount of Rs 45 perequity share over the issueprice, while policyholders got
a discount of Rs 60 per share.As per the prospectus
filed by LIC on May 12, theoffer price of the share sale hasbeen fixed at Rs 949 per equi-ty share.
Shares were allocated topolicyholders and retailinvestors after applying thediscount applicable to them.
The share sale fetched thegovernment around Rs 20,557crore. The LIC IPO -- India'slargest to date -- closed withnearly 3 times subscription,predominately lapped up byretail and institutional buyers,but foreign investor participa-tion remained muted.
So far, the amountmobilised from the IPO ofPaytm in 2021 was the largestever at Rs 18,300 crore, fol-lowed by Coal India (2010) atnearly Rs 15,500 crore andReliance Power (2008) at Rs11,700 crore. PTI
.�������������-��/0�������������%������ ����
New Delhi: The country'slargest carmaker Maruti SuzukiIndia (MSI) on Friday said itwill invest Rs 11,000 crore inthe first phase of its new man-ufacturing facility in Haryana.
The company on Fridaycompleted the process of allot-ment of an 800-acre site at IMTKharkhoda in Sonipat districtwith HSIIDC (Haryana StateIndustrial and InfrastructureDevelopment CorporationLimited), the auto major said ina regulatory filing.
The new plant's first phasewith a manufacturing capaci-ty of 2.5 lakh units per annumis expected to be commis-sioned by 2025, subject toadministrative approvals.
In the first phase, theinvestment would be over Rs11,000 crore, MSI said.
"The site will have spacefor capacity expansion toinclude more manufacturingplants in the future," MSInoted.
At present, MSI has acumulative production capac-ity of around 5.5 lakh units perquarter or about 22 lakh unitsper annum across its manu-facturing plants in Haryanaand Gujarat. PTI
�'�#���'$$��(�(���-��� �*��>>����+' #-'��#�� !-'��$��%�� ��'�%' '
New Delhi: Even as debt-rid-den telecom operator VodafoneIdea's financial performance inthe March 2022 quarter hasbeen in line with the industryexpectations, the long-pendingfundraise is crucial for thecompany to remain competi-tive, say analysts.
According to a JP Morganreport, high leverage makes thevalue of Vodafone Idea (VIL)equity complicated and verysensitive to small changes inassumptions, thus largelyunforecastable.
"We expect value tomigrate to debt holders, includ-ing the government of India,which is effectively the largestcreditor via spectrum obliga-tions including AGR dues,"the report said.
VIL expects the govern-ment to complete the conver-sion of around Rs 16,100 croredues into 33 per cent stake inthe company in the comingweeks, a top official of the firmsaid.
During the company'searnings call, Vodafone IdeaCEO Ravinder Takkar said aspart of the telecom reformspackage, the company hasopted for converting govern-ment dues into equity and itsproposal has been confirmedby the Department of Telecom(DoT).
Post the conversion, thegovernment will hold a 33 percent stake in the companywhile promoters' holding will
come down from 74.99 percent to 50 per cent, he said.
"We have already optedfor deferment of spectrum andAGR dues as well as conversionof interest arising from suchdeferment into equity.
"The net present value ofthe interest liability on mora-torium period amounting to Rs161.3 billion towards AGRdues and deferred spectrumliabilities have been confirmedwith the DoT. With this weexpect the conversion subprocess to conclude in thecoming weeks," Takkar said.
JP Morgan said that theMarch 2022 quarter was adecent one but fundraise stillremains critical for VIL's com-
petitiveness."The board has approved
another Rs 100 billion (Rs10,000 crore) of fundraise andthe company is in talks withinvestors and lenders. Webelieve fundraiser is critical toimprove competitiveness," thereport said.
VIL has reported narrow-ing of its consolidated losses toRs 6,563.1 crore for the fourthquarter ended March 2022compared to the same periodof the previous year, while itsAverage Revenue Per User(ARPU) improved sharply ona sequential basis aided by tar-iff hikes in November last year.
VIL's losses were at Rs7,022.8 crore a year ago,
according to a company filing.Its revenue from operations
rose 6.6 per cent year-on-yearto Rs 10,239.5 crore in Q4FY22. Seen sequentially, therevenue was up 5.4 per centsupported by tariff hikes effec-tive November 25, 2021, thecompany said in a statement.
The realisation per usermeasured in terms of ARPU -- a key metric for telcos -- roseto Rs 124 for the just-endedquarter from Rs 115 in the pre-ceding three-month period.This translated into a sequen-tial increase of 7.5 per cent inARPU, although the company'ssubscriber base declined to24.38 crore against 24.72 crorein Q3 FY22, primarily due tothe tariff hike.
Takkar also said the indus-try needs more tariff hikes.
"We would like to seeARPU going up to Rs 200 inthe short term and then furtherincrease to Rs 250 or higher inthe longer term," he said.
As on March 31, 2022, thetotal debt (including interestaccrued but not due) of thegroup was Rs 1,97,878.2 crore.
The company has aroundRs 8,160 crore of payments dueover the next 12 month.
An IIFL Securities reportsaid that the moratorium ongovernment payouts untilOctober 2025, refinancing ofmaturing debt bonds andrecent tariff hikes provide near-term relief. PTI
New Delhi: The country'slargest lender SBI on Fridayreported a 41 per cent surge instandalone net profit at Rs9,114 crore for the fourth quar-ter ended March 2022, helpedby decline in bad loans.
State Bank of India (SBI)had registered a profit of Rs6,451 crore during January-March period of 2020-21, thelender said in a regulatory fil-ing.
Total income of the bankduring the March quarterincreased marginally to Rs82,613 crore, from Rs 81,327crore in the same period of theprevious fiscal.
On a consolidated basis,the bank reported a 56 per cent
increase in net profit at Rs 9,549crore, compared to Rs 6,126crore in the fourth quarter ofthe previous fiscal.
With regard to asset qual-ity, gross non-performingassets (NPAs) of the bankdeclined to 3.97 per cent ofgross advances as on March 31,2022, as against 4.98 per centby the same period of 2021.
Net NPA or bad loans toocame down to 1.02 per cent ason March 31, 2022 from 1.50per cent in the year-ago peri-od. For the entire financial year2021-22, the bank reported a 55per cent rise in standaloneprofit at Rs 31,676 crore, fromRs 20,410 crore in the previousfinancial year. PTI
(2 �89���������$��9�:����;���9������������������ Mumbai: The comprehensive
trade agreement between Indiaand the UAE will help in cre-ating huge job opportunitiesand boost growth of thedomestic economy, Commerceand Industry Minister PiyushGoyal said on Friday.
The bilateral pact, official-ly dubbed as theComprehensive EconomicPartnership Agreement(CEPA) is expected to increasethe bilateral trade in goods toover USD 100 billion and tradein services to over USD 15 bil-lion within five years.
It came into effect fromMay 1. The agreement opensthe door for many sectors,particularly labour-intensiveones such as textiles, gem andjewellery, pharmaceuticals andagriculture, Goyal said whilebriefing the media along withthe UAE Minister for EconomyAbdullah Bin Touq Al Marrihere. The ministers launched'India-UAE Start-up Bridge' atthe India-UAE PartnershipSummit, organised by industrybody CII here.
"Clearly millions of jobswill be added if our exportswhich are now at about USD 36billion, which is about nearly Rs2.5 lakh crore, grows as we areplanning. And my own guessestimate is this partnership
can finally go up to aboutUSD 250 billion of bilateraltrade on both sides.
"So my sense is that thiswill give a big boost to eco-nomic growth, to jobs. And theopportunities it opens not onlyin the UAE, but in the largerground for the African region.(It) should significantly give abump up to the Indian econo-my as well," Goyal said.
He added that the pactwould not only open doors forIndian businesses to UAE butalso to other countries as UAEis a transit point for large partsof Africa, CIS (Commonwealthof Independent States) coun-tries, and the Gulf region.
CIS countries includeArmenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus,Georgia, Kazakhstan,Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia,and Tajikistan.
Further, Goyal said thatIndian pharma products willget immediate access to theUAE market and "we believe(bilateral) trade will grow to atleast to USD 100 billion in thenear future....Our own com-mitment is to take it to a muchhigher level".
According to the minister,the framework is expected toadd a million jobs in India andprovide opportunities to thestartup ecosystem in the coun-
try and has huge potential forengagement on skill develop-ment and education.
"We are looking at signifi-cant investments as the UAEhas committed over USD 100billion of investments intoIndia in manufacturing, infra-structure, (and) service (s). Sothe business will get a boostershot,” the minister said.
He informed that there area large number of startupswhich have emerged in the lastsix years, with more than65,000 registered with the min-istry. India also has over 100unicorns with the third largeststartup ecosystem in the world,he said.
The UAE minister said thepact will add 1.7 per cent GDPgrowth to their economy.
He also said the agree-ment is not just on productsand commodities but also intoservices, adding that there areother opportunities that cancome along.
"Now, the growth thatwe're looking at, that we wantto reach USD-100 billion dol-lars from USD 40 billion or sotoday, in the next decade...Our economic modellingshowed that this is an oppor-tunity of growth, it can actual-ly reach that number," theminister said. PTI
�����B?�#�����������������-�<���������� �<�� �������3(����
New Delhi: On-demand con-venience platform Swiggy onFriday said it has entered intoa definitive agreement withTimes Internet to acquire din-ing out and restaurant techplatform Dineout for an undis-closed sum.
Dineout, which serves din-ers across its network of 50,000restaurants in 20 cities, willcontinue to operate as an inde-pendent app post the acquisi-tion, Swiggy said in a state-ment. Founders of Dineout --Ankit Mehrotra, Nikhil Bakshi,Sahil Jain and Vivek Kapoor -- will join Swiggy once theacquisition is completed, itadded.
"The acquisition will allowSwiggy to explore synergies andoffer new experiences in ahigh-use category," SwiggyCEO Sriharsha Majety said.
Dineout co-founder & CEOAnkit Mehrotra said, "Westrongly feel that with Swiggy'sdeep understanding of theecosystem and our shared pas-sion for a superior consumer andrestaurant experience, our jointforces will help provide a holis-tic platform in this industry. PTI
New Delhi: Billionaire MukeshAmbani's Reliance IndustriesLtd climbed two spots to No. 53on Forbes' latest Global 2000list of public companies world-wide. Forbes Global 2000 ranksthe largest companies in theworld using four metrics: sales,profits, assets and market value,Forbes said releasing the 2022ranking of the world's top2,000 companies.
Reliance is the top-rankedIndian firm on the list, followedby State Bank of India at No.105, HDFC Bank at No. 153and ICICI Bank at No. 204.
Other top 10 Indian firmson the list include state-ownedOil and Natural Gas Corporation(ONGC) at 228 rank, HousingDevelopment FinanceCorporation Ltd (HDFC) at No.268, Indian Oil Corporation(IOC) at No.357, TataConsultancy Services Ltd (TCS)at No. 384, Tata Steel at No. 407and Axis Bank at No. 431.
"Energy and banking sec-tor corporations were amongthe highest-ranking Indiancompanies in Forbes' Global2000 list of public companiesthis year," the publication said.
Oil-to-telecom-to-retailconglomerate Reliance, which
recorded sales of USD 104.6 bil-lion between April 2021 andMarch 2022, became the firstIndian company to generateover USD 100 billion in annu-al revenue. "On the Global2000, Reliance climbed twospots to No. 53 among all pub-lic companies worldwide andranked first among Indian com-panies," it said. "Earlier this year,Forbes estimated Ambani's networth to be USD 90.7 billion,landing him at No. 10 on thisyear's billionaires list."
Mukesh's father Dhirubhailaunched the business in theearly 1960s, starting withimport and export licences fornylon, rayon and polyester.
Today, the company's busi-nesses include plastics andpetrochemicals, mobile tele-com services and retail.
With a market cap of USD56.12 billion, SBI grabbed theNo. 2 spot on the list of India'slargest. "The bank, headquar-tered in Mumbai, has 24,000branches and 62,617 ATMsacross the country. Private sec-tor banks ICICI and HDFC fol-lowed next on the Global 2000list of Indian companies, high-lighting the growth of the bank-ing sector in India." PTI
����������%���4�� ���������$��������'���<===����
New Delhi: US auto majorFord has shelved plans to man-ufacture electric vehicles inIndia for exports despite gettingapproval from the governmentfor production-linked incen-tives.
The company, which inSeptember last year hadannounced that it would stopvehicle production at its twoplants in the country as part ofa restructuring exercise, said itis exploring other alternativesfor its manufacturing facilitiesat Chennai and Sanand inGujarat.
As part of the ongoingbusiness restructuring in India,Ford has continued to explorepossible alternatives for itsmanufacturing facilities. Thisincluded applying for the pro-duction-linked incentivesscheme, which allowed us toexplore utilising one of theplants as a potential EV man-ufacturing base, a Ford Indiaspokesperson said.
"After careful review, wehave decided to no longer pur-sue EV manufacturing for
exports from any of the Indianplants.
We remain grateful to thegovernment for approving ourproposal under theProduction-Linked Incentivesand for being supportive whilewe continued our exploration,"the spokesperson added.
Ford was among the 20automotive firms, along withthe likes of Tata Motors, Suzuki,Hyundai, Kia and Mahindra &Mahindra, that got approval forthe Rs 25,938 croreProduction-Linked Incentive(PLI) scheme for the automo-bile industry in February thisyear.
On the future of the com-pany's two plants, thespokesperson said, "Ford India'spreviously announced businessrestructuring continues asplanned, including exploringother alternatives for our man-ufacturing facilities. We con-tinue to work closely withunions and other stakeholdersto deliver an equitable and bal-anced plan to mitigate theimpacts of restructuring." PTI
�������#���������$�4���0����� ����
(����>� :��� ���������CDC� ����.������������ ���������� �� ���� ����
'�������������<����������.������� ���������������������� � �������
,�''������<$���!����$�
![Page 11: D`_ZR TR]]d W`c fcXV_e SZX eZT\Ve cVW`c^d Z_ 4`_X](https://reader039.cupdf.com/reader039/viewer/2023042614/6335580fb9085e0bf509719b/html5/page/11.jpg)
�� �� 5���
Smarting from four straightlosses, Sunrisers Hyderabad
will need to sort out their bowl-ing issues when they face aninconsistent Kolkata KnightRiders, as both the teams lookto stay afloat in the IPL play-offsrace here on Saturday.
A series of losses after a five-match winning streak hasdragged SRH down to the sixthspot with 10 points and theywould need to win all theirremaining three games to har-bour any hopes of making it tothe play-offs.
KKR, however, are on thebrink of elimination and theirwoes were compounded withthe ruling out of pace spearheadPat Cummins owing to a hipinjury.
Shreyas Iyer's men havejust two more matches to go andwins in both will only take themto 14 points, which might not beenough with Rajasthan Royalsand Royal ChallengersBangalore already sitting pret-
ty in the top four with 14 pointsfrom 12 games.
One of the main reasonsbehind SRH's awful run in thelast few games is injuries tofrontline bowlers -- WashingtonSundar and T Natarajan -- andthe sudden loss of form ofspeedster Umran Malik.
It culminated in SRH con-ceding more than 190 plus runsin each of the last four games.
While Sundar had injuredhis bowling hand again, deathover specialist Natarajan hadpicked up a niggle. But coachTom Moody was hopeful of theduo's return against KKR.
Malik, who looked fast andfurious in the earlier gamesclocking 150kmph consistently,has gone wicket-less and con-ceded too many runs in the lastfew matches and his form willbe key for SRH.
Fazalhaq Farooqi andKarthik Tyagi were taken to thecleaners by RCB in their lastgame, adding to SRH's prob-lems.
In batting, SRH have the
quality but skipper KaneWilliamson will have to takemore responsibility as he hasjust one fifty to show for thisseason. Although AbhishekSharma has given them solidstarts, the youngster has notbeen able to anchor the innings.
Rahul Tripathi, NicholasPooran and Aiden Markram,too, have been among runs butSRH batters will need assistancefrom their bowlers, who willhave to ensure that they limittheir opposition to a reasonabletotal.
KKR, on the other hand, arepaying the price for makingconstant changes to their play-ing XI and are staring at elimi-nation after losing seven oftheir 12 games.
KKR, however, are cominginto the match after beatingMumbai Indians in their lastgame and they would look toend things on a high.
The 2021 finalists havestruggled in the power play thisseason but with Venkatesh Iyer,who was dropped due to hislean run, back in the mix, KKRproduced a good effort againstMI.
The seasoned Tim Southeeand Cummins produced a solideffort after returning to the XI,sharing four wickets againstMI. However, KKR were dealta massive blow as the teammanagement confirmed thatCummins has been ruled out ofthe remainder of the IPL witha mild hip injury and hasalready left for Australia forrehabilitation.
�������������� ���� ����� ��������
4�2�#:���)�++��21=��+@E2==+#==�:#2=++#++��EE�=+==+#//�=7EE#��&@"#��/@?=&&?==�2(++�)??&==+#@@,4#,//?==++#++��21=((,�//#4==+�=@@&&@,=?2�=$ = 6�7����57!
��# ���� � � � �� ��� ���/> 04�(?) >? C L G >M G.LND�> 30 >? M @ G >D G.LMO-> && >? N O G >@ G.??M> &�� >? N O G >@ EG.>>O"> !� >? D D G >? G.?>G2> &6 >> O D G >G EG.GL>�> ��& >? O N G >G EG.GON.> #�� >> O D G >G EG.?L>9> �� >? @ M G M EG.>M>/�> � >? L C G D EG.D>L
������table
3 45365 763
+�$�����meter
-4����#� 1��������!�#����$��&>=�$� ()��%'��$*'���4��&�(*'8
�� � ���� �� ��������
With nine wins in 12 match-es played so far, IPL debu-
tants and table-toppers GujaratTitans have confirmed theirplace in the Indian PremierLeague playoffs.
On the other hand, the twomost successful teams in thetournament's history, MumbaiIndians and Chennai SuperKings, are out of contention afterhaving a disastrous season.
But the remaining seventeams are still in the fray for thethree vacant spots, and the raceto reach the last four is all set togo down to the wire once again.
While the likes of RajasthanRoyals, Lucknow Super Giants,and Royal ChallengersBangalore are in a more com-fortable situation, one can't ruleout Delhi Capitals, SunrisersHyderabad, Kolkata KnightRiders, and Punjab Kings as well.
KL Rahul-led LucknowSuper Giants have a betterchance of making the playoffsthan the other six franchises.They are currently in secondplace with 16 points and needonly one more win to securetheir position.
Under the leadership ofSanju Samson, the RajasthanRoyals have lit up the 2022 edi-tion. And even though theJaipur-based side has failed inthe last few matches, they alsohave better chances of making itto the next round than the oth-ers. They have two more match-
es to play, and a win will beenough to get them through.
The same is the situationwith Royal ChallengersBangalore as well. They have 14points from 12 matches and twowins out of two will confirmtheir spot, while one win out oftwo will still give them an edgeunless the others pip them onnet run rate.
If Rajasthan Royals,Lucknow Super Giants, andRoyal Challengers Bangaloremanage to win all their remain-ing matches, then irrespective ofhow others perform, they won'tbe able to qualify for the last four.But if the three teams mentionedearlier slip at any point, then DC,SRH, Punjab Kings, and KKRcan sneak a chance.
For Delhi Capitals, theequation is simple; they need towin the remaining two match-es anyhow if they want to reachthe playoffs for the fourth con-secutive year.
Sunrisers Hyderabad willhave to work harder than otherteams to make it to the playoffsafter three consecutivedefeats. They have towin all the remain-ing three leaguestage matchesand also keeptheir net runrate betterthan the oth-ers.
T h esame is thestory with thePunjab Kingsas well. BothPBKS andSRH have 10points from 11matches. KKR canonly reach a maxi-mum of 14 pointsand they need favoursfrom other teams aswell if they are toadvance.
�� �� ��������
Umran Malik will surely play forIndia but to survive the rigours of
international cricket, raw pace alonewouldn't be enough and the young-ster will need to supplement his skillswith quality execution, star SouthAfrican pacer Anrich Nortje said onFriday.
Nortje, one of the fastest bowlersin world cricket and who has made acomeback in this IPL after a four-month lay-off due to a hip injury,spoke about the hardships related tohis return and missing his new ballpartner, Kagiso Rabada.
When asked about his assess-ment of India's new pace sensation,who is regularly hitting upwards of 90
miles per hour, Nortje sounded cau-tiously optimistic.
"I am sure Umran is going to beone of the key players for India in nearfuture. Luck will also have to play itspart. But most importantly, it's aboutthe quality of what you deliver as wehave seen fastest deliveries that arebeing awarded are going for bound-aries," Nortje said.
"It doesn't matter at what pace itis bowled. Pace is not the be-all andend-all.
"It is about the quality of execu-tion. And I believe he is improving onthat aspect of having control withpace. Also at Sunrisers Hyderabad,under Dale (Steyn, fast bowlingcoach), Umran is in good hands. Hehas a lot of senior and experienced
players around him, so he will certain-ly improve," the Proteas speed mer-chant said.
,-� ���0�,��/����)-��0���
The current season hasn't beenthe best for Nortje as he got picked inonly four of Delhi Capitals' 12 games,taking six wickets in them.
"It's been a long break but it's goodto be out there on the field with theteam and it was long time at home. Ineeded a break at the start (of myinjury) but got very long at the endnot knowing what's going on.
"It's really good feeling to getgoing again and obviously trying tobowl at level I was bowling," the 28-year-old .
�� �� ����
The responsibility of leadership has consider-ably mellowed down an otherwise fiery
Hardik Pandya, which has been the key recipefor Gujarat Titans' first-season success in theongoing IPL, feels senior pacer MohammedShami.
Shami has played a lot of international crick-et alongside Pandya and has always found theflamboyant all-rounder to have wore his heart onhis sleeve but in his first season as an IPL cap-tain, he has been able to keep his emotions undercheck.
"After he (Hardik) became captain, he hasbecome more normal, his reactions have beentempered (mellowed). I have advised him to con-trol his emotions on the field because the entireworld watches cricket," Shami told mediapersonson Friday.
"It is very important as a leader to be sensi-ble, understand situations and he has performedthat role to perfection," the veteran fast bowleradded. Titans are already in play-offs with 18points from 12 games and Shami does give Hardika lot of points for his captaincy.
"He has kept the team together. I have wit-nessed a lot of changes in him as a captain in com-parison to a player," said Shami, one of the star
performers for GT with 16 wickets from 12games. Having played under Mahendra SinghDhoni, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma in thenational team along with multiple captains in dif-ferent IPL teams, Shami knows that each one hashis unique style.
"Every captain has different temperament.Mahi (Dhoni) bhai was quiet, Virat was aggres-sive, Rohit leads according to match situations,so understanding Hardik's mindset is not a rock-et science."
�� �� ���������
Kolkata Knight Riders pace spearhead Pat Cummins will nottake part in the remainder of the IPL and has left for home
to recover from a minor hip injury.His franchise confirmed the development on Friday, few
hours after a report in cricket.com.au said that the AustralianTest captain, who was roped in by KKR for Rs 7.25 crore, isreturning to Sydney for his rehabilitation ahead of the nation-al team's tour of Sri Lanka next month.
"Pat Cummins has been ruled out of the remainder of theTATA Indian Premier League with a mild hip
injury and has returned to Australia for twoweeks of rest and rehabilitation," statedthe official release. Cummins' recovery isexpected to take a fortnight.
Before leaving for Australia,Cummins said, "I had an amazing timein India, and I would like to thank KKRfor taking care of my family and me. I
wish all the team members the best ofluck for the remainder of the tournament.
I will be watching the games and becheering on."
Following the match againstMumbai Indians on Tuesday,Cummins, who bagged 3-22
from his four overs, under-went an MRI on his righthip.
KKR, who will takeon SunRisersHyderabad in Pune onSaturday, has not askedfor any replacement forCummins.
Cummins playedonly five matches in the
IPL this year and picked upseven wickets at a strike
rate of 17.0.With the bat, he scored 63 runs,
which includes a blazing 14-ball 56not out against Mumbai Indians -- the joint fastest fifty in the histo-ry of the IPL — last month.
�� �� ����
Indian chess legendViswanathan Anand would
become the deputy presidentFIDE if the incumbent ArkadyDvorkovich is re-elected as thepresident in the elections sched-uled during the 44th chessOlympiad here in July-Augustthis year. Anand, a five-timeworld champion, has been nom-inated by Dvorkovich as part ofhis team to fight the forthcom-ing elections. "Hope to be partof a brighter and better future forChess. #SayChess#DvorkovichTeam2022," Anandtweeted after the announce-ment of Dvorkovich's presiden-tial team. Making the announce-ment about his team,Dvorkovich said, "DearColleagues and Chess Friends,On the way to FIDE Presidentialelections, I am happy to presentmy team: Arkady Dvorkovich —President; Viswanathan Anand— Deputy President; Zhu Chen— Treasurer; Joran Aulin-Jansson — Vice President; MahirMammedov — Vice President.
���� ������
World number one AkaneYamaguchi suffered a sec-
ond defeat in three days at theThomas and Uber Cup Finals inThailand on Friday as Japanwere dumped out in the semi-finals by South Korea.
An Se-young's battling winover Yamaguchi set the Koreanson their way to a 3-0 victory anda place in Saturday's final of thewomen's team championshipsagainst China.
Holders China defeatedhosts Thailand by the same 3-0
scoreline in Bangkok in theother semi-final.
Cheered on by her Japaneseteam-mates whacking drumsand shaking tambourines, worldchampion Yamaguchi dominat-ed the first game 21-15 againstthe world number four An.
She also looked in controlearly in the second game, but the20-year-old An was able to turnaround a six-point deficit.
A spate of unforced errorsfrom Yamaguchi also con-tributed to An's change of for-tune as she won the secondgame 21-18.
�#������11����������������%�%��
F��������>�������������������%����32��-� �������� �����������#����������������������-� ����
?�$����������������������/������ ���
FIDE prez nominatesAnand as part ofteam to fight polls
#++� (�$�'8�(�-���#(�������8���-��+�)�0�� ,#�%
�� �� ����
Jonny Bairstow's opening blitzkriegfound its ideal match in LiamLivingstone's finishing carnage as
Punjab Kings put up an imposing 209for 9 in a must-win IPL game againstRoyal Challengers Bangalore here onFriday.
While Bairstow laid the foundationwith a 29-ball-66, Livingstone wasequally good in his 42-ball-70 as theRCB bowlers had a day which theywould like to forget in a hurry.
Bairstow, who was rusty during the
earlier phase of the tournament, wasback in his element with as many asseven sixes and four boundaries dur-ing a knock where he literally went hellfor leather.
Such was his dominance that bythe time six overs of Powerplay ended,Bairstow had hit seven towering sixesand Shikhar Dhawan (21 off 15 balls)rubbed salt to the wound with anoth-er one which made it eight in all.
Punjab Kings, which had set thetemplate of blazing Powerplay starts,got 83 in six overs with Glenn Maxwell(1/17 in 2 overs), Josh Hazlewood (0/64
in 4 overs) and Mohammed Siraj(0/36 in 2 overs) being treated withutter disdain.
While Maxwell did manage to getDhawan, both Hazlewood and Sirajwere guilty of bowling short on a pitchoffering true bounce. Bairstow effort-lessly pulled and flicked them into thestands and by the time, deliveriespitched up, they landed in the standsas well.
It only helped that the boundary onone side was 66 metres only, which isa dream for any power-hitter.
Siraj had a forgettable first spell
$0�,%9#���*���%/&��
where he was hit for four sixes, whileHazlewood in his first over had gone for 22.The Australian had his worst IPL figures ever.
However post Powerplay, once WaninduHasaranga (2/15 in 4 overs) and ShahbazAhmed (1/40 in 4 overs) started operating,RCB stemmed the flow of runs with some tightwicket-to-wicket bowling.
Bengal left-arm spinner Shahbaz wasrewarded for his tight lines as Bairstow final-ly mistimed one and Siraj did well to pouchthe skier.
After 83 in the first six, there was a dras-tic dip in scoring as 22 came in between 7thand 10th overs.
Both Hasaranga and Shahbaz bowled wideoutside the off-stump not letting Livingstoneand Agarwal to charge down the track.
Still the Englishman managed a couple ofsixes and a reverse swept boundary to contin-ue his good form in the competition and thenmuscled into the stands towards the fag endeven as Harshal Patel (4/34 in 4 overs) wasexceptional at the death.
His fifty came off 35 balls and by the timehe was out, he had four out of those 14 sixesin the Punjab innings.
������2����������3���4/������5�6766���� ���8
![Page 12: D`_ZR TR]]d W`c fcXV_e SZX eZT\Ve cVW`c^d Z_ 4`_X](https://reader039.cupdf.com/reader039/viewer/2023042614/6335580fb9085e0bf509719b/html5/page/12.jpg)
�������������� ���� ����� �������� �������/�
���� 5��
Gianluigi Donnarumma haswarned Paris Saint-
Germain that they must choosebetween him and rival goal-keeper Keylor Navas next sea-son.
Italian Donnarummasigned from AC Milan lastsummer to join veteran Navas,35, who has been in the Frenchcapital since leaving RealMadrid in 2019.
Despite stressing his "verygood relationship" with Navas,Donnarumma insisted it wasout of the question to share thejob next season.
"No, I think it will surely nothappen like that, because Ithink the club will make choic-es," Donnarumma said.
"We're two good guys, weunderstand the situation, but itwas hard, and for him too, butlet's say that we managed itwell."
Donnarumma said "yes ofcourse" he wanted to stay nextseason with his contract run-ning until 2026.
The 23-year-old lifted hisfirst league title with PSG, whilefor Costa Rican Navas it was asecond in France to join the LaLiga trophy and threeChampions League trophies hewon in Spain.
"It's beautiful, it's my firstleague title, I'm very happy, andit's my first trophy with the ParisSaint-Germain shirt," said
Donnarumma."I'm very proud to belong to
a great, very ambitious club,always aiming higher."
Donnarumma arrived inFrance after being named thebest player in the Europeanchampionships which Italy won.
"The debut was not easy,because it was my first outsideItaly, in a new club, a new city(but) pressure, no," explainedDonnarumma, who had spentsix years in Milan.
"I feel a big family behindme, a big club, the welcome wasgreat, and after it was easier forme."
Donnarumma sid it hadn'tbeen an "easy" season, giving itseven out of 10.
"I know I can do more," hesaid. "I haven't played so manymatches, only half, that wasn'teasy. In the conditions I expe-rienced, I couldn't give themaximum, but I'm convincedthat I can give a lot more to thisteam and this club."
In addition to PSG'sChampions League exit to RealMadrid in the last 16,Donnarumma's Italy failed toqualify for a second straightWorld Cup.
"It was hard, very hard," hesighed.
"The following days werevery difficult, but there is nogoing back. What we did at theEuro will remain in history, wehave achieved somethingincredible.
���� ����
Stefanos Tsitsipas reached the semi-finals of the Italian Open on
Friday after beating local hero JannickSinner 7-6 (7/5) 6-2 in a match whichwas stopped for over 10 minutes atmatch point after a spectator fell ill.
World number five Tsitsipas hasalready won the Monte Carlo Mastersthis season and reached the last fourin impressive style against ItalianSinner, who was in his first ever Romequarter-final.
Next up Tsitsipas will faceAlexander Zverev, who made thesemis after comfortably seeing offCristian Garin, the only unseededplayer left in the tournament, 7-5, 6-2.
It will be the third time in thespace of a month that the Germanwill meet the Greek in the last four,with the pair sharing the honoursfrom clashes in Monte Carlo andMadrid.
The Greek finally took the open-ing set after breaking Sinner to take
the tie-break to 6-5 and from their hisopponent didn't recover.
The fervent atmosphere wasfinally dampened when Tsitsipasbroke Sinner in game three and worldnumber 13 Sinner had no reply, los-ing his serve again to love in gameseven.
Sinner's fate seem sealed but atmatch point for Tsitsipas someone inthe crowd appeared to collapse andplay was stopped amid loud whistlesdirected at the umpire who wantedto continue.
What seemed like an age passedbefore the spectator was stretcheredout of centre court and Tsitsipas couldfinally serve his match point, and asimple passing shot from Sinner'smiscalculated drop shot sent himthrough.
��0�)����+ ��Tsitsipas will take number four
spot in the world rankings onMonday after Rafael Nadal's shockthird-round exit at the hands of DenisShapovalov on Thursday night.
Shapovalov faces Casper Ruudknowing a win would give him a pos-sible semi-final against NovakDjokovic, who is in action in the day'sfinal match against Canada's FelixAuger-Aliassime.
Djkokovic needs to beat Canada'sAuger-Aliassime in order to maintaintop spot in the world rankings, a posi-tion he has held for a record 369weeks.
Aryna Sabalenka reached thewomen's semi-finals after beatingAmanda Anisimova 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 andsetting up a potential clash with worldnumber one Iga Swiatek.
Third seed Sabalenka beatAmerican Anisimova for the firsttime in five attempts and now awaitsthe result of Swiatek's last-eightmatch with Bianca Andreescu.
Anisimova had endedSabalenka's Madrid title defence inthe first round at the end of lastmonth. Swiatek, the reigning cham-pion in Rome, is on a run of 25straight wins and gunning for a fifthtournament victory in a row.
���� ������
Harry Kane scored twice asTottenham beat 10-man
Arsenal 3-0 on Thursday witha north London derby master-class that kept alive their hopesof finishing in the PremierLeague's top four.
Antonio Conte's sidewould have been eliminatedfrom the race to qualify for nextseason's Champions League ifthey had lost to their bitterrivals on Thursday.
But Kane tormentedArsenal once again as theTottenham striker opened thescoring with a controversialpenalty.
Crucially, Arsenal's RobHolding was sent off for twobookings in seven minutes.
Kane netted again beforethe interval and Son Heung-min bagged Tottenham's thirdgoal in the second half.
Instead of sealing a returnto the Champions League forthe first time since the 2016-17season, fourth-placed Arsenalnow face a nerve-jangling con-clusion to the top-four battle.
Arsenal still hold a slenderadvantage, but the end of theirfour-match winning run leavesthem just one point ahead offifth-placed Tottenham, withboth sides having two gamesleft.
Conte said several weeksago that it would be a "miracle"if Tottenham reached theChampions League given theirlowly position when hereplaced the sacked NunoEspirito Santo in November.
But their victory inarguably the biggest northLondon derby since Arsenalwon the league at White HartLane in 2004 ensured that mir-acle could still come true.
Conte believes finishingin the top four is "like winning
a title in another country, a bigachievement" given the depthof talent and wealth at the topof the Premier League.
To decide who takes thelucrative prize, Tottenham hoststruggling Burnley on Sundaythen travel to relegatedNorwich, while Mikel Arteta'smen visit Newcastle onMonday and entertain Everton.
Arteta's bewildered expres-sion throughout Arsenal'scapitulation suggested it is farfrom certain he will be able to
lift his players to finish the job.Third-placed Chelsea, five
points above Tottenham, willlikely need a draw from theirlast two games to be sure oftheir top-four place given theirvastly superior goal difference.
As well as the hugeEuropean stakes for both sides,Tottenham also felt lingeringresentment about Arsenal'ssuccessful appeal to have thisfixture postponed in Januarydue to Covid and injury prob-lems.
��������
Karim Benzema continuesto add his name to Real
Madrid's record books, scoringhis 323rd goal on Thursday todraw level with Raúl Gonzálezas the club's second-highestscorer behind CristianoRonaldo.
Benzema netted in the firsthalf of the team's 6-0 rout of last-place Levante in the Spanishleague, with Madrid havingsecured the title a few roundsago.
The result sealed Levante'srelegation after five consecutiveyears in the first division.
Vinícius Júnior, Benzema'strusted attacking partner allseason, scored a hat trick forMadrid as it continues to pre-
pare for the Champions Leaguefinal against Liverpool in Parison May 28, when it will try towin a record-extending 14thEuropean title. Benzema is now128 goals shy of the 451 scoredby Ronaldo, who played at theclub until 2018. Benzema's close-range header in the 19th minuteoff a cross by Vinícius gave theFrench striker his league-lead-ing 27th goal, which is nine bet-ter than any other player in thecompetition this season. He hasscored more than a third ofMadrid's 77 league goals so far.
It was the 20th goal in thelast 15 matches in all competi-tions for Benzema, who hasbeen key in the team's run to theChampions League final, scor-ing decisive goals in everyknockout round of the Europeantournament — including twohat tricks. He could have addedanother goal on Thursday butunselfishly fed Vinícius the ballfor the team's fifth after clearingthe goalkeeper inside the area.
���� ������
Liverpool will bid to keep theirquadruple chase alive in Saturday'sFA Cup final against a Chelsea
side hoping to welcome incomingowner Todd Boehly with victory atWembley.
Jurgen Klopp's men have fourmatches left in their historic attempt tobecome the first English team to winall four major trophies in one season.
They beat Chelsea to lift the LeagueCup in February and have reached thefinals of the FA Cup and ChampionsLeague, where they face Real Madridon May 28.
No English club has come this closeto such an incredible clean sweep, butLiverpool know their hopes of winningthe Premier League are starting to fade.
Manchester City moved threepoints clear of the second-placed Reds
with a 5-1 win at Wolves on Wednesdayand need four points from their last twogames against West Ham and AstonVilla to retain the crown.
If a second English title in three sea-sons proves beyond Liverpool despitetheir blistering form in the second halfof the season, then winning two morecup competitions would be a memo-rable consolation.
First up is a rematch with Chelsea,who fought gamely in an intenseLeague Cup final in February beforeLiverpool prevailed 11-10 in the shoot-out that followed a 0-0 draw.
Liverpool and Chelsea are the firstEnglish teams to meet in both domes-tic finals in the same year since Arsenaland Sheffield Wednesday in 1993.
Klopp's side will hope they emulateArsenal, who did the cup doubleagainst Wednesday that season.
But, in their 60th game this season,
fatigue could be a threat to Liverpool'shopes of a first FA Cup triumph since2006. In a bid to keep his stars fresh,Klopp made several changes inTuesday's win at Villa, yet still lost Brazilmidfielder Fabinho to an injury thatrules him out of the final.
The history chasers will be back onleague duty at Southampton on Tuesdayand, aware of the strain on the squad,Liverpool captain Jordan Hendersoncalled for one last push, starting atWembley.
"The more it goes on, the moreimportant and intense the games are.We are using all the squad and I thoughtthe boys that came in were brilliant(against Villa)," Henderson said.
"That's football and there's going tobe ups and downs in a game. You've gotto react in the right way. To be honest,the boys have done that for a long peri-od of time.
"The boys have been incredible.Stay together in important momentsand you get your rewards in the end.
Let's prepare now for a big game onSaturday."
Like Liverpool, Chelsea's seasonwill conclude with 63 games played, butit has been Thomas Tuchel's side whohave looked more drained in recentweeks.
Before Wednesday's 3-0 victory atLeeds consolidated their grip on thirdplace, the Blues had won just once infive league games as they struggled torecover from their painful CL quarter-final exit at Real Madrid.
�� , 7Robert Lewandowskihas opened the door to ahigh-profile transfer aftertelling Bayern Munich that hewill not be extending his con-tract beyond June 2023 whenit expires, German mediareported on Friday.
The 33-year-old Polandinternational forward hasscored 343 goals for Bayern
and twice picked up FIFA'sPlayer of the Year Awardsince joining from Dortmundin 2014. "Goal machineRobert Lewandowski willleave the club no later than thesummer of 2023," claimedthe daily Sport Bild.
"In recent weeks, FIFA's2021 Player of the Year toldhis bosses at Bayern that he
would not extend his contract,which is still valid for oneyear."
The Sport1 site, citing itsown sources, confirmed thisinformation.
According to severalreports, Lewandowski hasrecently been in contact withBarcelona. AP
It’s Liverpool vs Chelsea in FA Cup final
���� �������
Aston Villa completed the per-manent signing of Barcelona
playmaker Philippe Coutinho onThursday in a deal the La Liga clubsaid is worth 20 million euros.
The Brazilian has impressedsince arriving at Villa on loan inJanuary after struggling to make animpact at Barcelona.
Barca confirmed the transferincludes a 50 percent sell-on clause
if Coutinho leaves Villa.The former Liverpool star,
who has scored four times andcontributed three assists for Villa,has agreed a contract that runsuntil 2026.
"This is a brilliant signing forAston Villa," Villa boss StevenGerrard told the club's website.
"Phil is a model professionaland his impact on the group hasbeen very clear since he joined inJanuary."
������ ������
One of the most famousmoments in Premier League
history has been immortalizedoutside the Etihad Stadium inManchester.
To mark the 10-year anniver-sary of Sergio Aguero's title-clinch-ing goal against Queens ParkRangers in 2012, Manchester Cityunveiled a statue of the Argentinestriker celebrating his dramaticstrike.
"Truthfully, it is a very beauti-ful thing for me, to see myself 10years ago is very moving," Aguerosaid.
"In those 10 years, I was ableto win a lot of trophies and was ableto help the club become one of themost important in the world.
"I am very grateful to the clubfor making this statue in recogni-tion of my football career inManchester. It is something veryspecial."
�' � ��%�# 8��$!#����(�'�#�
������$$�������('�$�����������$��.�#�����6�������
����&���,�����5���������� /��5����G��� ,���; ,�������������
!� ��������� ��2�������6������
)�����������������(���������������$����$��
)�����������������������������������
Related Documents
![HG CANDIDATE TOOLKIT · bhbcR\b MaR QRbWU]RQ c^ O^^bc _aWeMcR _a^SWcb_ cVRh MZfMhb SMWZ c^\RRccVR]RRQb^ScVR_R^_ZR\FVMcpbfVhfR]RRQM:^\Rb 8dMaM]cRR\ $"/7"44&3 FVR_aWeMcR\MaYRcVMbSMWZRQc^\RRccVR]RRQb](https://static.cupdf.com/doc/110x72/5ffe77b3e5115e28954c58db/hg-candidate-toolkit-bhbcrb-mar-qrbwurq-c-obc-awemcr-aswcb-cvrh-mzfmhb.jpg)
