KCR's challenge signals early poll - Daily Pioneer

RNI No. TELENG/2018/76469

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ANALYSIS 7HYDROCARBONS MAY GIVE

INDIA ENERGY FREEDOM

MONEY 8‘EQUATING SKILL GAMES WITH

GAMBLING AGAINST SC VERDICT’

SPORTS 12KOHLI’S QUALITY CAN’T BE

QUESTIONED: ROHIT

HYDERABAD, TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2022; PAGES 12 `3

14 CANDIDATES SCORE PERFECT 100 INENGINEERING ENTRANCE EXAM

Fourteen candidates have got the perfect score in theengineering entrance exam JEE-Main, results of whichwere announced on Monday, according to the National

Testing Agency (NTA). Maximum candidates bagging thetop score in the first edition of JEE-Main, 2022 are fromTelangana (4) followed by Andhra Pradesh (3). The topscorers from Telangana are Jasti Yashwanth VVS, RupeshBiyani, Aniket Chattopadhyay and Dheeraj Kurukunda.Koyayana Suhas, Penikalpati Ravi Kishore are PolisettyKarthikeya are the top scorers from Andhra Pradesh.

VIRTUAL SUMMIT OF 'I2U2' SET TO TAKEPLACE ON THURSDAY

The global food and energy crisis arising out of the Ukraineconflict is likely to figure prominently in the first virtualsummit of the four-nation grouping comprising India, Israel,

the US and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). US President JoeBiden is set to host the summit with Prime Minister NarendraModi, Israeli PM Yair Lapid and UAE President Mohammed binZayed Al Nahyan during his visit to Israel on July 14. Thegrouping is known as 'I2U2' with "I" standing for India and Israeland "U" for the US and the UAE. The US President will be on avisit to West Asia from July 13 to 16.

NEED HIGH FREQUENCY OBSERVATIONSFOR BETTER FORECASTS

Under fire for missing weather forecasts, EarthSciences Secretary M Ravichandran on Monday madea strong pitch for high frequency observations to

better understand cloud dynamics. The weather office hasmissed rainfall predictions for the national capital for thepast few weeks and even on Monday when it had forecastlittle rain till Saturday. Actually, we need more science. Weneed more high frequency observations for betterforecasts, particularly for regions such as Delhi,Ravichandran said.

RBI ANNOUNCES MEASURES FOR FOREIGN

TRADE SETTLEMENT IN RUPEES

The Reserve Bank on Monday asked banks to put in place additionalarrangements for export and import transactions in Indian rupeesin view of increasing interest of the global trading community in the

domestic currency. Before putting in place this mechanism, banks willrequire prior approval from the Foreign Exchange Department of theReserve Bank of India (RBI), the central bank said in a circular. "In orderto promote growth of global trade with emphasis on exports from Indiaand to support the increasing interest of global trading community inINR, it has been decided to put in place an additional arrangement forinvoicing, payment, and settlement of exports / imports in INR,"

ALMANAC

Updated: JULY 11, 2022 5:00 PM

Forecast: Rain

Temp: 22oc

Humidity: 100%

Sunrise: 5:49 AM

Sunset: 6:54 PM

Month & Paksham:

Tithi: Trayodashi: Jul 11 11:14 AMto Jul 12 07:46 AM

Chaturdashi: Jul 12 07:46 AMto Jul 13 04:01 AM

Purnima : Jul 13 04:01 AMto Jul 14 12:07 AM

Nakshatram: Moola: Jul 12 05:15 AM

to Jul 13 02:21 AMPurva Ashadha: Jul 13 02:21 AM

to Jul 13 11:18 PM

Rahukalam: 3:36 PM to 5:13 PM

Yamagandam: 9:07 AM to 10:44 AM

Varjyam: 10:44 AM to 12:08 PM

Gulika: 12:21 PM to 1:59 PM

Amritakalam: 08:48 PM to 10:12 PM

TTOODDAAYY

HYDERABAD WEATHER

NAVEENA GHANATE n HYDERABAD

Chief Minister K. ChandrasekharRao has ordered top officials of theIrrigation Department to releasethe water reaching the Sri RamSagar Project and other reservoirsin view of the heavy rains in theUpper Godavari basin of the stateincluding Maharashtra. KCRordered local ministers, MLAs,Collectors, officials and staff of all

departments to cancel other pro-grammes and be available to thepeople at the ground level and tobe alert as there are warnings fromIMD that there will be heavy rainsin many parts of the state for thenext two or three days.With heavyrains lashing the state, the high-level review meeting on Sundaycontinued at Pragathi Bhavan onMonday too for 12 hours.

SNCN ACHARYULUn HYDERABAD

The open challenge made by TRSsupremo Chief Minister K.Chandrasekhar Rao to the BJP onAssembly elections indicates earlyelections.

While BJP leaders are speakingabout their victory in the comingAssembly elections and about top-pling the TRS government, KCRhas dared to challenge the BJP onelections.

Political circles feel that therecent decision of KCR on thepaddy procurement issue indicatesthat he may go for early elections.KCR took the decision to purchasepaddy after demanding that theCentre should procure it.

KCR had also participated in adharna organised by the TRS inNew Delhi demanding that theCentre should purchase the paddy.But there was no positive responseto this from the BJP-led Centralgovernment.

After the dharna, KCR said thatif the Centre will not purchase thepaddy the state government willpurchase it in the interests of farm-ers. The aim of KCR was to estab-lish that the BJP-led CentralGovernment is against TS farmers.

Now on the Assembly electionsissue, KCR has challenged the BJPto fix the date for elections and heis ready to dissolve the Assembly.

So far the BJP is silent on the issue.In fact, election dates are not

decided by the Centre or the BJP.That is the job of the ElectionCommission. Once the Assemblyis dissolved the ElectionCommission will come into the pic-ture and will decide the electionschedule.

Release water fromSagar, other reservoirs

PNS n NEW DELHI

The Enforcement Directorate(ED) has asked Congress presi-dent Sonia Gandhi to deposebefore it on July 21 for question-ing in the National Herald news-paper-linked money-launderingcase, officials said on Monday.

Gandhi was issued a secondsummons for June 23 by theagency, but the 75-year-oldCongress leader could not keepthe date as she was "strictlyadvised to rest at home followingher hospitalisation on account ofCOVID-19 and a lung infec-tion".

Gandhi had sought postponingof the summons by four weeksand hence, she has been asked todepose before the agency on July21, the officials said.

PNS n UNITED NATIONS

India is projected to surpass Chinaas the world's most populous coun-try next year, according to a reportby the United Nations on Mondaywhich said that the world popula-tion is forecast to reach eight billionby mid-November 2022.

The World Population Prospects2022 by the United NationsDepartment of Economic andSocial Affairs, Population Division,said that the global population isprojected to reach eight billion onNovember 15, 2022.

The global population is grow-ing at its slowest rate since 1950,having fallen under one per cent in

2020.The latest projections by the

United Nations suggest that theworld's population could grow toaround 8.5 billion in 2030 and 9.7billion in 2050.

It is projected to reach a peak ofaround 10.4 billion people duringthe 2080s and to remain at that leveluntil 2100.

This year's World PopulationDay (July 11) falls during a mile-stone year, when we anticipate thebirth of the Earth's eight billionthinhabitant. This is an occasion tocelebrate our diversity, recogniseour common humanity, and mar-vel at advancements in health thathave extended lifespans and dra-

matically reduced maternal andchild mortality rates, UN Secretary-General Ant nio Guterres said.

At the same time, it is a reminderof our shared responsibility to carefor our planet and a moment toreflect on where we still fall shortof our commitments to one anoth-er, he added.

The report said that "India is pro-jected to surpass China as theworld's most populous countryduring 2023.

The world's two most populousregions in 2022 were Eastern andSouth-Eastern Asia, with 2.3 billionpeople, representing 29 per cent ofthe global population, and Centraland Southern Asia, with 2.1 billion,

representing 26 per cent of the totalworld population. China and Indiaaccounted for the largest popula-tions in these regions, with morethan 1.4 billion each in 2022.

More than half of the projected

increase in global population up to2050 will be concentrated in justeight countries of the DemocraticRepublic of the Congo, Egypt,Ethiopia, India, Nigeria, Pakistan,the Philippines and Tanzania.

m Political circles describe his comments as an indication of it

K VENKATESHWARLUn HYDERABAD

Politics turned red hot in the Stateafter Chief Minister K.Chandrasekhar Rao’s challengeto the opposition on Sunday todecide the election date as he isready to dissolve the Assembly

and face elections. The oppositionintensified the heat on Monday byasking the Chief Minister that hemust dissolve the Assembly if hehad the guts to go for early elec-tions. The BJP and the Congresshave made it clear that they areready for midterm elections. BJPleaders Bandi Sanjay Kumar, Dr K.

Laxman and Eatala Rajender chal-lenged the Chief Minister to dis-solve the Assembly if he had theguts. Sanjay said that the BJP isaccepting KCR’s challenge onearly elections and that the BJP isready for elections always.

Sanjay said KCR made themidterm election challenge tospark a debate across Telangana.He said that KCR has been tryingto make political gains by paint-ing the BJP a culprit.

m BJP, Congress accept poll challengeNow the ball is in KCR’s court

ED asks Sonia todepose before iton July 21st

NATIONAL HERALD CASE

India projected to surpass China during 2023: UN WORLD'S MOST POPULOUS COUNTRY

PNS n HYDERABAD

Ramgundam was recorded as the sec-ond rainiest place on earth on Mondaywith 238 mm of rain. Among the raini-est places on earth, Nizamabad came14th with 138 mm of rain.

Ramgundamsecond rainiestplace in world

PNS n HYDERABAD

Accepting that irregularities tookplace in issuing Mana Ooru-ManaBadi tenders, the Telangana gov-ernment has informed the HighCourt that it has cancelled the ten-ders. The State government gave anexplanation to the High Court,which heard the petition filedalleging that irregularities hadtaken place in inviting ManaOoru-Mana Badi tenders.Kendriya Bhandar, ZenithMetaplast Pvt Ltd, and V3Enterprises have filed a petitionsaying that irregularities had taken

place place in inviting Mana Ooru-Mana Badi tenders and includedthe School Education DepartmentSecretary, TSEWIDC chief engi-neer, and Elegant Methodex asrespondents. Kendriya Bhandar,Zenith Metaplast Pvt Ltd, and V3Enterprises have challenged, say-ing that the government had keptthem aside and gave the contract

to Elegant Methodex althoughthey had all the qualificationsmentioned in the guidelines of thetenders. Justice Vijaysen ReddyBench heard the petition. TheKendriya Bhandar, ZenithMetaplast Pvt Ltd, and V3Enterprises explained to the Courtsaying that the government didn’tinvite by not telling the reason.Theybrought to the court’s notice thefact that the government didn’treveal why it showed them as inel-igible contractors in the process. Inthe process, the governmentannounced that it had cancelledtenders.

PNS n HYDERABAD

Minister for industries K T Rama Raoinaugurated the Alpla India’s WorldClass Mould Shop & Dual EducationCentre in Pashamylaram. The Centrehas been set up in partnership with theDept. of Technical Education, Govt. ofTelangana and CII Telangana.

Addressing a gathering on Mondayafter inaugurating the facility,KTRsaid the decentralisation of industrialdevelopment was the key for overallgrowth in the State. KTR saidTelangana is destination of ease, peaceand quality of doing business as they

don’t harass the investors. Alpla is a highly respected global

company, headquartered in Austriawith presence in 47 countries. Thecompany has 177 plants worldwide andis a global leader in the business of plas-tic rigid packaging with a turnover ofEuro 4 billion+. KTR said, “It gives themuch needed industry exposure to stu-dents. Out of 400 applications received,only 11 are shortlisted for the maidenprogramme”.

Alpla India has invested Rs 60 croresin the tool room and Rs 10 crores inDual Education Center. With this,ALPLA’s investment in Pashamylaram,

Telangana has gone up to Rs. 600 crore,making it one of the top 15 plants outof 177 plants worldwide.

Diploma students in various poly-technic colleges can join the centre aftercompleting two years of their theoret-ical education in their colleges.

Alpla Global CEO Mr. PhilippLehner, Ambassador of the Republic ofAustria to India Katharina Wieserwere present on the occasion.Telangana Commissioner of Technical& Collegiate Education Navin Mittal,Telangana State Council of HigherEducation Vice Chairman Prof.Venkata Ramana were also present.

PNS n NEW DELHI

The Supreme Courton Monday sen-tenced Vijay Mallyato four months injail for contempt ofcourt, and directed the Centre tosecure the presence of the fugitivebusinessman who is in the UK since2016 to undergo the imprisonment.The top court said Mallya, 66,never showed any remorse nor ten-dered any apology for his conductand adequate punishment must beimposed to maintain the majesty ofthe law. A bench headed by JusticeU U Lalit also imposed a fine of Rs2,000 on Mallya, who was held guiltyof committing contempt of court bythe top court on May 9, 2017, fortransferring USD 40 million to hischildren in violation of court orders.

SC sentencesMallya to fourmonths in jail Asks Centre tosecure his presence

FOR EASE, PEACE AND QUALITY OF DOING BUSINESS

Telangana is the destination, asserts KTR

KCR’s challenge signals early poll

Govt cancels tenders ofMana Ooru-Mana Badi

BJP hits back at KCRover comments on ModiPNS n HYDERABAD

BJP on Monday hitback at TelanganaChief Minister KChandrasekhar Raoover his attack onPrime MinisterNarendra Modi, say-ing Rao has been an"habitual offender" in using foullanguage against the PrimeMinister.

Condemning the allegedly "irre-sponsible and provocative" com-ments by Rao in a press conferenceon Sunday, BJP general secretaryTarun Chugh took strong excep-

tion to the "objectionablelanguage" used againstModi, Uttar PradeshChief Minister YogiAdityanath and others.

It is "shameful" thatRao comments on thedress that YogiAdityanath wears, hesaid. Chugh, in charge of

BJP affairs in Telangana, said hisparty welcomes Rao's challenge togo for immediate elections.

"The Chief Minister wants theBJP to decide the dates, which isnot Constitutional.

IT raids at premises of 2 buildergroups in Hyderabad, BengaluruPNS n HYDERABAD

The Income Tax Department onMonday said it has carried outsearch and seizure operationsagainst two leading real estategroups in Bengaluru andHyderabad. The two groups areengaged in construction, sale, leas-ing of commercial and residentialspace, and in educational andhospitality services.

The IT department learnt thatthe two groups had undisclosedcapital estimated at more than Rs400 crore and were involved in taxevasion.

The searches covered more than40 premises located in Bengaluru,Hyderabad and Chennai. Severalincriminating documents and dig-ital evidence were seized.

The preliminary analysis of theseized evidence has revealed thatthe landowners had entered intoJoint Development Agreement(JDA) with a Bengaluru-baseddeveloper.

They received super built-uparea from the developer in lieu ofthe land given for the developmentof various projects.

PM Modi unveilsnational emblem

ON THE ROOF OF NEWPARLIAMENT

P5

Minister KTR addressing agathering after inauguratingAlpla India’s World Class MouldShop & Dual Education Centre

22

2

2

2 2

2

2

m CM KCR directs officials

CM KCR in discussions with officials on the flood situation on Monday

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hyderabad 02HYDERABAD | TUESDAY | JULY 12, 2022

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RATES

HYDERABAD 385

VIJAYAWADA 385

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RREETTAAIILL PPRRIICCEE `̀33..8855

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(IN HYDERABAD)

Former finance minis-ter late Arun Jaitleymentioned in his blog-

post 'My dream' that hewants to see a welfare statethat works for the poorestof the poor, down-troddensections and physicallychallenged. Such a welfarestate requires gathering ofresources on a large scale.This means mult iplesources of revenue shouldbe created. To improve rev-enues, economic develop-ment should be of the high-est order.

For registering signifi-cant economic growth, thenation should attractinvestments, industriesshould be established, busi-nesses should be encour-aged, and infrastructureshould be created on a largescale. Apart from increasinginvestments in the agricul-tural sector, farm produc-tivity should be improved.Proper marketing of agriproducts should beensured. The governmentof the day should create anatmospherethat is congenialfor rapid economic growth.

In line with Arun Jaitley'sdream, the Modi govern-ment, ever since it wasvoted to power in 2014, hasbeen working round theclock. The Modi govern-ment focused its attentionon dismantling the rottensystem that had impededdevelopment for decadesand building new systems,after doing away with out-dated laws and initiatingnew thought processes.Arun Jaitleyplayed a crucialrole in paving the way forthis.

Delivering the ArunJaitley CommemorativeLecture, Modi raised cer-tain pertinent questions: Isdevelopment feasible with-out the involvement of all?Is it feasible to involve allwithout proper develop-ment?"

Since Modi came topower, the larger questionthat has been discussed is:How can wealth be distrib-uted without creating it inthe first place? Modi saidthat the question reflectedthe challenges faced by ourp o l i c y m a k e r s .

Development does notmean populist measureslike distribution of free-bees to people as that wouldweaken the economic sys-tem. Modi made it clearthat he would not entertainpopulist measures underany circumstances. Hisobjective is to provide thecommon man and thedowntrodden sections theirdue,apart from what goes tothe wealthy and middleclasses. The fruits of devel-opment should reach allsections.

Without knowing thestrengths of the BJP gov-ernment's economic poli-

cies, criticism is beinghurled against theCentre'spolicies by non-BJP parties,regional parties, and cor-rupt czars.

Time is ripe for dis-cussing whether the eco-nomic policies of Modihave benefited all sectionsduring the past eight years.Don't distribution of LPGcylinders among 9 crorewomen, construction of toi-lets for 12 crore poor, open-ing of over 45-crore Jan-Dhan bank accounts, andconstruction of 3 crorepucca houses to the home-less poor constitute givingcommon people their due

share ind e v e l o p m e n t ? D o e s n ' tAyushman Bharat, aimed atproviding free medicaltreatment worth Rs 5 lakhto 50 crore people, consti-tute a part of Modi's dreamof welfare state?

During the past 7-8years, over 209 new medicalcolleges have been estab-lished, as against only 50prior to 2014. Besides, thenumber of seats in under-graduate medical educa-tion increased by 75 percent. Does it not constitutea part of the comprehensivedevelopment perspective of

Modi?Inclusion of

street ven-dors in PM'sS w a n i d h ischeme, focus-ing on developmentof model districtto achieve development ofbackward regions, provid-ing 6.5 crore tap connec-tions under Har Ghar Jalscheme, providing right toproperty to neglected sec-tions under Swamitrascheme, giving propertycards to over 80 lakh peo-ple and providing themloan facility, making airtravel accessible to all underUdaan scheme, establishingfive lakh common servicecenters to provide variousservices to people, provid-ing free medical consulta-tion to rural people undere-Sanjivani are some of thenotable governmentschemes. The objective ofthe Modi government is toimplement reforms withsincerity and dedication.Earlier, during the regimesof PV Narasimha Rao andManmohan Singh, reforms

were introducedunder intense inter-national pressure.The Modi govern-ment takes policy

decisions only afterfeeling the pulse of peo-

ple. For example, privatecompanies put unparalleledefforts in the manufactureof vaccine against Covid-19. Behind them, the gov-ernment machinery workedrelentlessly. It is a goodexample of efficient work-ing of private-public part-nership for the good ofpeople. How many peopleknow that India is one ofthe countries that providesmost modern space ser-vices in the world? Howmany know that the privatesector contributed signifi-cantly to this sphere ofactivity?When the govern-ment encourages the pri-vate sector as a partner indevelopment, where is thequestion of one gainingupper hand over the other?

During the past eightyears, the tourism sectorhas benefited from thecountry's developmentand

is providing employment tomillions. Promotion of cul-ture and tourism does notmean spending thousandsof crores on ancient struc-tures but grooming the his-toric structures as signifi-cant tourist attractions.This is one of the prioritiesof the Modi government.For example, the construc-tion of the tallest statue ofSardar Patel in Kevadia inGujarat helped turn theplace into a tourist attrac-tion. Thereby, the Adivasihabitats have witnesseddevelopment there.

The Modi regime hascompleted several railwayand tunnel projects, portsand airports that had beenpending since the Congressregime. As a result, millionsof people are gett ingemployment. Those whopractice narrow and selfishpolitics to fill the coffers offamily members find it dif-ficult to understand theline of thinking of PrimeMinister Narendra Modi.People are welcoming theBJP and Modi's policieswith open arms.

Y SATYA KUMAR

BJP National Secretary

TRULY

SPEAKING

Since Modi came to power, thelarger question that has beendiscussed is: How can wealthbe distributed without creatingit in the first place? Modi saidthat the question reflected thechallenges faced by ourpolicymakers.

Every section has place in Modi's idea of welfare state

PNS n HYDERABAD

The Godavari River reachedthe third-level flood warningat Bhadrachalam in Telanganaon Monday (July 11), prompt-ing authorities to sound analert across the course of theriver.

Following heavy rain in thecatchment areas in Telangana,Maharashtra andChhattisgarh, the water levelrose quickly at Bhadrachalamand reached 53 feet at 4 pmMonday, breaching the thirdflood warning level of 53 feet.

The Bhadrachalam Sub-Collector in a message to theBhadradri KothagudemCollector and BhadrachalamITDA (Integrated TribalDevelopment Agency) Project

Officer said that the forecastindicates a further rise inwater levels, and directed allflood duty officers to takeaction as per the Godavariflood manual.

Chief Minister K.Chandrasekhar Rao inquiredabout the flood situation in theGodavari, the river’s flow andthe flood situation in the trib-utaries of Godavari.

The BhadradriKothagudem district adminis-tration sounded an alert acrossthe course of the river, espe-cially in low-lying mandals.Some villages are already cutoff due to the submergence ofconnecting roads. The waterflow in Bhadrachalam was14,26,684 cusecs.

The Collector has asked

people in low-lying areas to goto relief camps. Five reliefcamps have so far beenopened. The river was in spatefrom Sri Ram Sagar toBhadrachalam due to heavyrains for the last three to fourdays in Maharashtra and theTelangana districts ofAdilabad, Karimnagar andNizamabad. Nine gates of theSri Ram Sagar project havebeen opened to release water.The water flow at the projectwas 99,850 cusecs while

41,000 cusecs were being letout on Monday morning. Thewater level was 1,087 feetagainst the full level of 1,091feet. The Sripada Yellampalliproject also continues toreceive heavy inflows.Irrigation officials have lifted27 gates to release water for theParvathi barrage under theKaleshwaram project.Saraswati and Lakshmi bar-rages under Kaleshwaramwere also receiving massiveinflows.

Godavari river in spatem Crosses third waring level

Shabbir lashes out atKCR's stand on defectionsPNS n HYDERABAD

Both Prime Minister NarendraModi and Chief Minister K.Chandrasekhar Rao do notrespect the Constitution andboth have encouraged defec-tions from other parties, for-mer minister Mohammed AliShabbir said on Monday.

“While Modi engineereddefections in States like Goa,Manipur, Madhya Pradesh,Karnataka and Maharashtra totopple elected governments,KCR gained strength inTelangana by encouragingdefections from 2014,” Shabbirsaid in a statement. Shabbirpointed out that KCR madefour MPs, 25 MLAs and 18MLCs of the Congress, theTDP and the BSP defect to theTRS during the first two yearsof power from June 2014. Heused the same tactic to weak-

en the Congress by engineer-ing the defection of 12 MLAsduring his second term,Shabbir said. “As KCR hatesDalits he never wanted an SCleader (Bhatti Vikramarka) tobecome the Leader of theOpposition. So he made 12Congress MLAs defect andjoin the TRS,” he said.

The Congress leader saidthat the then Assembly speak-er Madhusudan Chary andCouncil chairman SwamyGoud did not act on com-plaints seeking to disqualifyrebel MLAs and MLCs, hesaid. “KCR mocked democra-cy and the Constitution byinducting Talsani SrinivasYadav as a minister in his cab-inet without making himresign as a TDP MLA. As perrules, Talasani should have gotre-elected on a TRS ticketwithin six months.

Govt taking back triballands forcibly: UttamPNS n HYDERABAD

The TRS Government isforcibly taking back the landgiven by Congress govern-ments under the Forest RightsAct to tribal people, NalgondaCongress MP N. UttamKumar Reddy said onMonday.

He said that lakhs of tribalshave been cultivating 'Podu'lands for decades. But theTRS government is forciblytaking back those lands in thename of Haritha Haram orother reasons. He also con-demned the police excesses ontribals, especially women, toexpel the tribals from 'Podu'lands. Uttam was addressingthe All India Banjara Seminarheld at the VishweshwaraiahBhavan in Khairabad here onMonday as chief guest.

The seminar, organised byex-MLC Ramulu Naik, wasattended by leaders of theBanjara community from 15States. They included an MPfrom Karnataka, UmeshJadhav, and former Unionminister Balram Naik.

Uttam said the TRS govern-ment did not fulfil the promiseto give three acres to poor STfamilies. The TRS came topower in 2014 promising thatit would give three acres topoor SC and ST families.

“KCR is completely silentabout his promise and hisgovernment is using force totake back the lands given toSTs by Congress govern-ments,” Uttam said. TheCongress MP said that similar-ly the TRS government did notprovide double-bedroomhouses to poor ST families.

Dissolve Assembly in 4 days

PNS n HYDERABAD

TPCC president RevanthReddy has fixed a date for dis-solving the Assembly asdesired by the Chief MinisterK. Chandrasekhar Rao.Revanth Reddy said that he isgiving four days time to theCM to dissolve the Assemblyand order elections. He saidthat the people are ready to bidadieu to KCR.

It may be recalled that theChief Minister on Sundaydared the Opposition Parties tofix a date for early elections.

“KCR is afraid of uttering myname. The TRS political strate-gist gave a report to KCR. TheTRS can win only around 25seats and there will be a toughfight for 17 seats. The Congress

will win 32 seats and will givea tough fight in 23 constituen-cies. The report clearly statedthat the TRS graph has beenfalling and that the Congressgraph is rising. I will change my

name if the Congress gets evenone vote less than 90 lakhs,” hesaid. He said the Congressgraph jumped rapidly by threeper cent votes after theWarangal Declaration.

‘‘KKCCRR IISS TTHHEE GGOODDFFAATTHHEERR OOFF EEKKNNAATTHH SSHHIINNDDEEYY’’PNS n HYDERABAD

There is some truth in thewords of Chief Minister K.Chandrasekhar Rao that thereis a danger to democracy fromPrime Minister Modi. ButModi’s guru is none other thanKCR, TPCC President RevanthReddy said here on Monday.Revanth asked whether it is afact or not that KCR started theproduction of Eknath Shindeys

after Telangana formation. “Isit not a fact that KCR madeTalasani Srinivas Yadav, whowon on a TDP ticket a Ministerby inducting him into theTRS,” Revanth asked. “Isn’t it afact that KCR was creatingEknath Shindeys in Telanganain the form of ErrabelliDayakar Rao and Sabitha IndraReddy? KCR is suffering fromthe Eknath Shindey complex,”he said.

TPCC chief Revanth Reddy dares CM KCRKCR’s challenge signals early pollContinued from page 1

Everybody knows this. Inspite of that KCR challengedthe BJP to fix the date forAssembly elections and that heis ready to dissolve theAssembly.

In fact, since many daysthere are speculations aboutearly Assembly elections inTelangana. Perhaps KCR mighthave taken a decision to go forearly Assembly elections.Keeping this in mind KCR mayhave challenged the BJP onAssembly elections.

If there is no response fromthe BJP, KCR may announcethe dissolution of the Assemblysaying that the BJP has no gutsto accept his election challenge.

After the dissolution of theAssembly, KCR may giveanother challenge to the BJP to

defeat the TRS in the electionsif it is really confident on com-ing to power. He may also chal-lenge the BJP to prevent a hat-trick election victory for theTRS.

In fact, the main opposition

to the TRS is the Congress. Ifthe TRS cannot win, theCongress has a better chance tocome to power than the BJP.

KCR's plan behind chal-lenging the BJP is to create theimpression that the main fight

is between the TRS and the BJPand not with the Congress.

If anti-TRS votes get splitbetween the BJP and theCongress it will help the TRSto achieve a hat-trick victory inTS Assembly elections.

Continued from page 1

Sanjay said that nobodywill believe KCR’s challenges.

Rajya Sabha Member Dr K.Laxman asked KCR to dissolvethe Assembly as the people ofTelangana are ready to dumphim. He said the people aretired of KCR’s rule and arehoping for a change and achance to topple KCR.

Huzurabad MLA Eatala

Rajender threw a counterchallenge at KCR to dissolvethe Assembly if he had theguts. Eatala made it clear thathe is committed to contestingelections from Gajwel againstKCR.

He said the people ofTelangana will drive awayKCR like the Lankan peopledrove Rajapakshe away.

Eatala said that he will buryKCR and free Telangana of the

curse of KCR. KCR used themoney he got from IDL landsto defeat him in Huzurabad,he said.

TPCC Star CampaignerBhongir MP KomatireddyVenkat Reddy threw a chal-lenge at KCR to order elec-tions immediately if he had theguts.

He said the people are wait-ing to bid adieu to KCR asthey can no longer stomachhim and the corruption andatrocities of TRS ministersand MLAs.

Now the ball is in KCR’s...

Release water from Sagar...Continued from page 1

During the review meeting,KCR said the governmentmachinery should be ready toface any situation. He spoke toMinisters and public officialson the telephone and inquiredabout the rains and floods. Hespoke to the officials of the

flood-hit districts and assessedthe situation. The CMinquired about the situation inthe Godavari River, and theflow and flood situation in theGodavari’s tributaries. TheCM gave appropriate instruc-tions on the precautions to betaken after checking the infor-mation on the screen.

ED asks...Continued from page 1

The Congress presidentwas first issued the notice forappearance on June 8 butafter she reported positivefor Covid, the summons forJune 23 was issued.

Her son and Congress MPRahul Gandhi has beenquestioned by the agency inthe case for over 50 hours insessions spread across fivedays.

SC sentences...Ramgundam second rainiest...Continued from page 1

This is as per the data onEldorado Weather website inwhich Mahabaleshwar is atthe top with 338 mm of rain asof 6:30 pm IST. EldoradoWeather follows IMD’s record-ings.

The TSDPS said that theState’s average cumulative rain-fall from June 1 to July 11 was395.7 mm against the normalof 203.9 mm with a deviationof plus 94 per cent.

The State’s cumulative rain-fall in July as of Monday is245.1 mm which has alreadycrossed July’s monthly normalrainfall of 244.4 mm. TheGHMC area’s average cumula-tive rainfall from June 1 to July11 was 256.9 mm against thenormal of 156.1 mm with adeviation of 64.6 per cent.

The IMD had issued a redalert for Monday warning of

isolated heavy to very heavyand extremely heavy rain inNalgonda, Suryapet,Mahbubabad, Jangaon, andYadadri Bhuvanagiri districts.

Isolated heavy to very heavyrain is likely to occur inMancherial, Karimnagar,Peddapalli, JayashankarBhupalpally, Mulugu,Bhadradri Kothagudem,Khammam, Siddipet, RangaReddy, Vikarabad, Rangareddy,Medak, Kamareddy,Mahbubnagar, Narayanpet,Warangal Rural, and WarangalUrban districts. Isolated heavyrain is likely in the remainingdistricts of Telangana.

On Tuesday, isolated heavyto very heavy and extremelyheavy rain is likely to occur inSiddipet, Sangareddy, andMedak districts.

The IMD said there is water-logging in many low-lyingareas in Telangana, and disrup-

tion of rail and road transportin some districts. Electricitysupply was affected for a fewhours in some places. Theclogging of drainage lines,submersion of agriculturallands and crop damage werealso reported.

The IMD said thatHyderabad city will have a gen-erally cloudy sky with light tomoderate rain or thunder-showers. There is a possibilityof heavy rains too in the city.

The low-pressure area nowlies over the northwest Bay ofBengal off the Odisha coastwith an associated cyclonic cir-culation extending up to 7.6km above mean sea level. It isexpected to become moremarked in the next 48 hoursand will move west-northwestwards. Maximum tempera-tures are expected to rangefrom 28 degrees Celsius to 31degrees Celsius.

IT raids at premises of 2...Continued from page 1

However, the landownersfailed to declare the capitalgains accruing from the trans-action, though completioncertificates for the projectshave been obtained.

The amount of such undis-closed capital gains is estimat-ed at more than Rs 400 crore.

The analysis of the seizeddocuments has also revealedthat these groups have sup-

pressed income to the tune ofRs 90 crore in respect of therevenue recognizable from thesale of units in real estate.

"Both the groups haveindulged in tax evasion byinflation of expenses in theconstruction and developmentbusiness to the tune of Rs. 28crore, having claimed boguspurchases and resorted toover-invoicing of the con-struction material," the ITdepartment said.

Continued from page 1

As per the Contempt ofCourts Act, 1971, contempt ofcourt may be punished withsimple imprisonment of up tosix months, or with a fine up toRs 2,000, directed that Mallyaand the beneficiaries under thesaid transactions relating toUSD 40 million shall be boundto deposit the amount receivedalong with interest at the rateof eight per cent per annum.

BJP hits back at KCR over comments...Continued from page 1

The BJP demands the ChiefMinister to dissolve theAssembly and, if he has thecourage, call for elections toseek a fresh mandate," he saidin a statement here.

The Election Commission

would decide on the date andthe BJP is ready anytime,even if the elections are held15 days from now, he said.

Chugh claimed that Rao,popularly known as KCR, isnervous and shaky and rattledby the massive response to thepublic meeting of Modi on

July 3 at Parade Groundshere.

"The entire family hadwatched Modi's public meet-ing live. He (Rao) had heardthe enthusiastic chant ofModi, Modi' by lakhs of peo-ple assembled at the ParadeGrounds," he said.

Murmu’s tour toHyd cancelledPNS n HYDERABAD

The BJP-led NDA’s presiden-tial candidate DraupadiMurmu’s Telangana tour hasbeen cancelled. As per sched-ule, Murmu had come to theBegumpet Airport,Hyderabad, on Tuesday (July12) evening at 5.30 on a spe-cial flight. However, she can-celled her tour due to theheavy rains. However, Murmuwill come to Hyderabad onSaturday (July 16), it is learnt.Telangana BJP leaders gotupset by the cancellation ofMurmu’s tour to Hyderabad asthey had planned to conducta huge rally for her. TheTelangana BJP also planned toconduct a meeting with theintellectuals as part of her tourseeking votes of BJP MLAsand MPs.

hyderabad 03HYDERABAD | TUESDAY | JULY 12, 2022

DEEPIKA PASHAM

n HYDERABAD

For over two months Adivasigroups have begun walkingleaving their houses in searchof resources for livelihood.

In extreme poverty, findingnothing to feed the families,they have occupied the lands tocontinue podu culture. TheAdivasi groups ofKoyapochagudem inMancherial district, currentlyfacing many encroachmentcases, said that they will notleave the places as officialsmisguided them that they willprovide Mango and Guavaplantations. Then the Adivasisagreed to remove huts. Theforest fruits they sell have lostmarketing and purchasingpower.

Speaking to The Pioneer,Ramesh, one of the Adivasis

doing podu cultivation, said, "Ithas been 45 days that we havecome here to our lands. Wehave houses but our land issueis there. We have been doingcultivation since 2002, but we

had to face many problemswith legal cases. This time wewill not leave the land becausewe were trapped by forest andpolice officers. They did com-municate properly. They called

us for an interaction sessionand made an agreement by ask-ing what plants we would liketo cultivate. We sought Mangoand Guava." Initially, thedepartments held a review

meeting again to distribute theplants but they changed thetack, saying they cannot com-pletely distribute Mango,Guava but half portions ofwild fruits of forest plants andothers will be provided. Thegroups have agreed but the lastcommitment the officials askedfor was to remove their hutsand then the Adivasi groupsstepped back saying if plantsare allowed first then huts willbe removed immediately andclashes began between them.

The groups witnesseddecline in finding jobs of har-vesting crops. "Now that thereare machines we have noemployment. Since we areborn in forests, what is thesource for our livelihood? Inthe last meeting we got con-vinced and we no longer wantlands but the least they canallow is plantation."

PNS n HYDERABAD

The University of Hyderabad(UoH) and the National Instituteof Animal Biotechnology (NIAB)entered into an Memorandum ofUnderstanding (MoU) for a peri-od of five years to collaborate onfundamental areas of biologicalsciences. Faculty, researchers,scientists and visiting facultiesfrom both the institutions will col-laborate on animal biotechnologyor allied areas. Also on a mutual-

ly agreeable basis, NIAB scientistswould actively participate in teach-ing Masters programmes at UoHin specialised areas of AnimalBiology and Biotechnology and

offer students the chance to under-take project work in their labs.Scientists from the NIAB may beappointed as adjunct professors atthe University of Hyderabad and

vice versa, in compliance with therespective institutions' regulations.

The MoU was signed by DrDevesh Nigam, Registrar, UoHand Dr G Taru Sharma, Director,NIAB in the presence of Prof B JRao, Vice-Chancellor, UoH, ProfN Siva Kumar, Dean, School ofLife Sciences and Dr Nagendra RHegde, Scientist. Prof P JaganMohan Rao is the Coordinatorfrom UoH and Dr AnandSrivastava, Scientist D is theCoordinator from NIAB.

PNS n HYDERABAD

Hyderabad is called the surveil-lance capital of India as it is the12th most surveilled city in theworld. But some CCTV cam-eras in the city are not function-ing for the last few days due torains.

Asif Nagar police station inthe west zone of Hyderabad hasabout 114 CCTV camerasunder its limits. During the lastthree days of rain in the city,almost half of the CCTVsbecame offline.

On July 9, Ayush (20), wastravelling to Mehdipatnamwhen on the way he lost hisphone near the Mehdipatnamtraffic signal. Ayush tried find-ing the phone but was unableto do so. He later reached outto the traffic constables near thesignal. They advised him toimmediately go to Asif Nagarpolice station and check theCCTV recording as the camera

is placed right on the signal.Ayush then reached Asif Nagarpolice station and when he,along with the staff, went to theCCTV room, he witnessed thatalmost half of the CCTV feedwas offline. When asked thereason for that, the staff saidthat it is due to the rains and thefeed will come online when therain stops. Ayush asked, 'Whatis the point of having so manyCCTV cameras when theydon't work."In 2021, Telangana

Director General of Police(DGP) Mahender Reddy hadannounced that the city ofHyderabad has 36.52 camerasper 1,000 people. According tothe Bureau of Police Researchand Government under theMinistry of Home Affairs(MHA), as on January 2020,Telangana had 61% of all theCCTV cameras in India. Areport from AmnestyInternational revealed thatTelangana has about six lakhCCTV cameras, most of whichare in Hyderabad and with theupcoming Command andControl Centre (CCC), thesurveillance is going to increaseeven more.

When a reporter from thePioneer contacted the AsifNagar Police Station about theissue, the staff said that a few ofthe cameras are not workingdue to the rains and they are inthe process of getting themfixed.

SAITEJA BURRA

n HYDERABAD

Hyderabad is full of potholesand craters after rain. Thedeteriorated roads with hugepotholes are making daily lifedifficult for residents and com-muters during monsoons. Dueto recent heavy rains, the roadsin Hyderabad have becomeworse.

The motorists travelling onthe busy roads in parts ofKukatpally, Bharatnagar,KPHB, Bachupally, Erragadda,Sanath Nagar, Banjara Hillsand parts of Secunderabadare having hardships and fac-ing back pains caused by hugepotholes. Road experts saythat due to the potholes on theroad during the rainy season,there is a possibility that manypeople who go by bike will beaffected by accidents. Apartfrom that, when it rains, thereis waterlogging on the roadand it is not known where apothole is and where the

amanhole is.Most of the roads in

Pragathi Nagar in Bachupallyare dotted with several pot-holes resembling the surface ofthe moon, which has turnedout to be a nightmare for roadusers. Anil Yadav, a resident ofPragathinagar, said, "The roadsare bad everywhere in thecity. We face the same prob-lems every year during the

rainy season. When it rainsheavily, all the roads turn intosmall ponds and block themovement of motorists. Manymotorists face a miserableexperience daily as the roadsget worse during the monsoonseason with huge potholes."The Greater HyderabadMunicipal Corporation isunable to solve the problem ofpotholes on the roads, despite

carrying out constructions ofhuge flyovers, cable bridgesand many other constructions.Although strong polymermodified bitumen (PMB) andcrumb rubber bitumen(CRMB) are being used in theconstruction of roads to avoidthe problem of potholes, peo-ple are facing difficulties onroads that are getting perforat-ed by rain. The Telangana

High Court has recentlyordered the GHMC officialsthat investments will comeonly if the road facilities aregood, as the problems of theroads have not been resolvedeven after giving contracts toprivate agencies of bigger com-panies than to the GHMCengineers.

Meanwhile, one ofHyderabad's busiest BharatNagar bridge is now causingproblems for motorists, withmore craters on both sides ofthe bridge amid heavy rains, aPioneer correspondent hasfound.

As pothole-damaged roadsare causing inconvenience tomotorists, the HyderabadTraffic Police, along with theGHMC officials, visitedDhobighat and directed theofficials to fill the potholes forfree flow of traffic.

However, when contacted,the Deputy Commissioner ofKukatpally zone was unavail-able to comment on it.

PNS n HYDERABAD

Hyderabad-based vaccinemanufacturer, IndianImmunologicals Limited(IIL) inaugurated its newfacility Pristine BiologicalNZ Limited in New Zealandon Monday. IndianImmunologicals Limited, oneof the largest vaccine produc-ers in Asia, is a subsidiary ofNational Dairy DevelopmentBoard (NDDB), establishedin 1982. It has multiple man-ufacturing sites and exportsto over 50 countries. Pristinewas established in Dargaville,New Zealand for productionand supply of pharmaceuticalgrade bovine serum used toproduce many vaccines.Serum from Australia andNew Zealand has premiumvalue since those countriesare free from OIE listed dis-eases. Pristine has been ableto produce and supply sever-al hundred tonnes of qualityserum to IIL in India andother countries.

Speaking on the occasion,Meenesh Shah, Chairman,Indian ImmunologicalsLimited and National DairyDevelopment Board said, "Iam glad that an investmentmade overseas by IIL hascome good. The affordablevaccines made in Indiarequired a sustainable supplyof quality ingredients madeby Pristine."

PNS n HYDERABAD

The South Central Railways(SCR) on Monday cancelled 10trains and two other trains par-tially. Later, it has cancelled 34MMTS train services from July11to 13 due to heavy rainsalert.

The SCR officials reviewedmonsoon preparedness over itsnetwork. Cancellation of trainsfrom July 11 to 13 included,train no. 07077/07078Secunderabad to UmdanagarSecunderabad PassengerSpecial, train no. 07055Secunderabad to UmdanagarMEMU Special, train no. 07076Medchal to Umdanagar MEMUSpecial, train no. 07056Umdanagar to SecunderabadMEMU Special, train no. 07059/ 07060 Secunderabad toUmdanagar SecunderabadMEMU Special, train no. 07971/ 07970 HS Nanded to Medchal

HS Nanded Passenger Special ,train no. 07438 Secunderabad toMedchal MEMU Special, trainno. 07213 Medchal toSecunderabad MEMU Special,train no. 17267/17268 KakinadaPort to VisakhapatnamKakinada Port MEMU , trainno. 07978/07977 Vijayawada toBitragunta Vijayawada MEMU.

Arun Kumar Jain, GeneralManager (In-Charge), SCR, hasconducted a detailed reviewmeeting on monsoon prepared-ness in view of heavy rains

across the zone at Rail Nilayam,Secunderabad, along withPrincipal Heads ofDepartments. DivisionalRailway Managers (DRMs) ofall the six divisions such asVijayawada, Guntakal, Guntur,Secunderabad, Hyderabad andNanded Divisions also partici-pated in the meeting through aweb conference.

The General Managerinstructed officials to strength-en patrolling at all identifiedvulnerable sections such as

tracks, bridges and locationswith heavy rainfall to preventunsafe conditions. He alsoinformed the officials con-cerned to ensure cleaning andmaintenance of side waterdrains, catch water drains andwaterways to avoid flooding oftracks. He advised theDivisional Railway Managers tocheck the working ofAnemometers fixed at criticallocations and follow the guide-lines in ensuring safety.

The General Manageremphasized on strict vigilancewith regard to track mainte-nance during heavy rainfall;officials and supervisory staffshould monitor the situationkeenly during the night timealso. He advised the officials tomake continuous announce-ments at railway stations aboutany changes in train schedulesto keep the travelling publicupdated.

NAVEENA GHANATE

n HYDERABAD

Office space leasing was mainly dri-ven by engineering and manufactur-ing firms, having a share of about53%, followed by life sciences (16%)and BFSI (15%) firms in Hyderabad.

The city also witnesses a few majortransactions with Qualcomm leasing1.1 million sq. ft. in CommerZoneWing 1, PwC leasing about 0.35 mil-lion sq. ft. in My Home Twitza, andLegato leasing about 0.33 million sq.ft. in aVance Business Hub (H9).Renewals and renegotiations contin-ue to remain the preferred short-termportfolio strategies of occupiers.

CBRE South Asia Pvt. Ltd, India'sreal estate consulting firm, on

Monday announced the findings ofits latest office report, 'CBRE IndiaOffice Figures Q2 2022'. As per thereport, Hyderabad stood among thetop three cities in India, with officespace absorption at 2.6mn. sq. ft. inQ2 2022.The report findings alsohighlighted strong demand for officespace in India across major cities inQ2 2022, as leasing activity grew by61% Q-o-Q to touch the highest-everquarterly space absorption of 18.2million sq. ft. Bangalore, Delhi-NCRand Hyderabad will continue to drivetransaction activity in 2022. Marketssuch as Mumbai, Pune, and Chennaiwould also witness improved leasingvolumes.

Space take-up would be attribut-able to the release of pent-up demand

and expansion & consolidationrequirements of occupiers. Small-sized deals dominated the transactionactivity; 69% of the absorption dur-ing the quarter was recorded in SEZspaces, 22% in IT spaces and, 9% innon-IT spaces. On the supply side,project completions were dominatedby SEZ spaces having a share of 74%,followed by IT at 17% and non-IT at9%.

Among the major cities, on an H1basis, office absorption stood at ~29.5million sq. ft., recording a growth of157% (Y-o-Y). In H1 2022, about 26.1million sq. ft. of new completionswere witnessed - increasing by 26% Y-o-Y. Bangalore, Delhi-NCR, andHyderabad dominated absorptionduring the quarter, accounting for

almost two-thirds of the transactionactivity. Anshuman Magazine,Chairman & CEO - India, South-EastAsia, Middle East & Africa, CBRE,said, "The office sector in Indiareflected a strong recovery in H1 2022as occupier sentiments were uplifteddue to the relatively reduced severi-ty of the Omicron wave, the subse-quent relaxation of restrictions, andimproved economic activity. It is evi-dent from the leasing activity thatemployees are resuming office with aflexible approach. The supply additionin Hyderabad was particularlynotable, as the city's stock crossed 100million sq. ft. during the quarter, mak-ing it the fourth market in India afterBangalore, Mumbai, and Delhi-NCRto reach that milestone. CBRE's Asia

Pacific Leasing Sentiment Surveyrecorded a significant surge in leas-ing sentiments across most APACmarkets in June 2022, with the high-est rise witnessed in India. This alsosignifies that the outlook for annualspace absorption for 2022 is likely tobe higher than 2021." RamChandnani, Managing Director,Advisory & Transactions Services,CBRE India, said, "As the recoverymomentum remains upbeat, differen-tiated and high-quality institutionalsupply in core markets would contin-ue to draw flight-to-quality absorp-tion.

In line with the expected demand,new investment-grade supply lined upacross markets is expected to becomeoperational in the coming quarters."

Engineers & manufacturers lead leasing activity

Potholes and craters fill roads CCTV cameras go defunct in the city due to heavy rains

We will not leave the place, say Adivasis amid encroachment casesNo permission for commercial fruit plants: DFO

Forest officials claim that unauthorised groupsare encouraging the tribals that land can beacquired in the name of podu cultivation,

which they claim is false. "No, commercial fruitplants cannot be planted but what we can do iswild forest species fruit plantation. These arecollected by people also as tribals sell them inthe market. Why forest officials are exclusivelyresponsible for creating livelihood oremployment. If they are required they mustapproach the right authority. At the most, whatwe do is provide them with minor daily worksuch as involve them in our plantation work. Butthey have to be ready for taking it up. Livelihoodcan be provided by other rural departments alsobecause they work on various schemes butthese tribals are not at all ready for anything.They just want land. We are in continuousinteraction with the police department and noone is authorised to promise to allow cultivationof commercial plants," says Shivani Dongra,

District Forest Officer, Mancherial. "We arewaiting and steps will be taken accordingly if theyresist any such work. Although there are housesand lands in the village, some people areencroaching on Koyapochagudem with themalicious intention of encroaching on the wildland." She stated that tribals are encroachingforest lands in Dandepalli mandal, Makulapetpanchayat, Koyapochagudem in Mancherialdistrict and are obstructing the duties of forestofficials by attacking the forest officials who areobstructing them. Actually, there is no waste landin Koyapochagudem and there are no records ofpeople doing waste farming in the past. She saidthat it is an offence to send women there and tryto encroach forest lands in the name of wastelands. The forest officer said that if those whohave committed illegal activities in the waste landssincerely cooperate with the forest departmentofficials, they will be given employment in forestworks to be undertaken there.

PNS n HYDERABAD

Around 1,200 units of Telugu-English syllabus are combinedto be telecast on T-SAT; thetimings include 6 am to 10 amand 6 pm to 10 pm. CEORampuram Sailesh Reddy ofT.Sat-Softnet said that thegovernment is broadcasting T-SAT for Group-1 jobs. Thecurriculum is being broadcastfor one more hour. It hasbeen announced that everyday four hours-eight curricu-lum divided classes will bebroadcast.

After the release of notifica-tion for filling 503 Group-1posts under TSPSC, he saidthat the T-SAT teaching syl-labus has started broadcastingfrom May 1. As the prelimsexam date is finalised on July16, extra syllabus is to be

broadcast. To give more flex-ibility to the candidates writ-ing the exams, about 180 les-son episodes have alreadybeen telecast.

It has been decided tobroadcast 620 curricular com-ponents, along with Englishlanguage broadcasts. A total of1200 curricular parts will bebroadcast. With experiencedfaculty, candidates aspiringfor Group-1 competitiveexams will benefit from thecurriculum that is taught withmodern technology.

PNS n HYDERABAD

Telangana State Council ofHigher Education has informedthat in view of declaration ofthree days holidays for all edu-cational institutions from July 11to 13 in the State, the conduct ofTS ECET-2022 examinationscheduled on July 13 is post-poned and the rescheduled datewill be announced later. In thisconnection, a review meetingwas conducted with theChairman and Vice-Chairman,TSCHE, Vice-Chancellor,JNTUH, conveners of TS EAM-CET-2022, TS ECET-2022. Itwas decided that the TS EAM-CET-2022 examination would beconducted as per the schedulenotified earlier, from July 14onwards.

PNS n HYDERABAD

Children With Special Needs(CWSN) and their families con-stantly battle against their rightfuland judicious embracement andintegration into society. As part of'Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav', theIndian Army has undertaken anempowerment campaign for thesechildren under the slogan'Embracing Uniqueness'Telangana and Andhra Sub-Area(TASA), in collaboration withNational Institute for the

Empowerment of Persons withIntellectual Disabilities (NIEPID)from July 11 to July 16 atSecunderabad. The events com-menced with the inauguration ofEmpowerment Week at the her-itage structure Moti Mahal, (AOC

Records). Later, a seminar oninclusive education organised atthe famed Navdeep Hall of AOCCentre. The seminar was attend-ed by the principals of variousArmy schools and representa-tives of NGOs. It focused on cre-ating awareness and creating anatmosphere conducive to thegrowth of these children. TheIndian Army, through thisempowerment campaign, aims atcreating awareness and sensitisethe environment. with a platformto showcase their abilities.

Hyd-based IILopens facilityin New Zealand

UoH enters into MoU with NIAB Empowerment drive for kids with special needs

Additional one hour broadcastsfor Group-1 examinations

TS ECET putoff, dates to beintimated later

SCR cancels 10 trains; reviews monsoon preparedness

04HYDERABAD | TUESDAY | JULY 12, 2022

Minister for Civil Supplies Gangula Kamalakar holding a review meeting with officials in Karimnagar on Monday

PNS n KARIMNAGAR

Minister for Backward Classesand Civil supplies GangulaKamalakar on Monday put theofficial machinery in the districton the alert in view of incessantrains for the last three days. Heexpressed satisfaction over theprecautions taken by the offi-cials in preventing loss of life.

The Minister was holding areview meeting with the peo-ple's representatives and offi-cials on the measures taken andsteps to be taken in view of tor-rential rains lashing the districtfor the last four days. DistrictCollector R V Karnan,Karimnagar Municipal

Commissioner Seva Islavath,Additional Collector GarimaAgrawal, Mayor Y Sunil Rao,Deputy Mayor ChallaSwaruparani and other offi-cials attended the meeting.Kamalakar said that torrentialrains have been lashing thedistrict for the last three days.Low-lying areas have beeninundated and the tanks andponds are in spate. The officials,he said, have appreciated theneed to maintain a vigil toensure that there is no loss of lifeor loss of property. He compli-mented the MunicipalCorporation officials and thestaff for improving the drainagesystem and it helped avert the

inundation of roads withsewage water. Paddy crop hasbeen raised in 50 acres in thedistrict. In some areas, the cot-ton and green gram croopssuffered damage in some areas.He asked the officials to assessthe crop damage speedily tohelp the farmers secure com-pensation. He asked officials ofthe Electricity Department toreplace or repair the rusted elec-tric polls.

The officials told the Ministerthat all the check dams in thedistrict remained strong. TheDistrict Medical and Healthofficials are taking all mea-sures to prevent water-bornediseases.

PNS n KARIMNAGAR

BJP State unit president BandiSanjay Kumar on Mondayjoined the issue with ChiefMinister K Chandrashekar Raofor launching a campaignagainst the BJP government atthe Centre.

Speaking to the media here,Sanjay Kumar accused theChief Minister of 'shootingoff ' of his mouth and trying toshow his 'supremacy.' KCR, hesaid, has been trying to divertthe attention of people bylaunching 'verbal attacks' on hisopponents. The Chief Ministerpromised that he would visitthe agency areas and ensurethat pattas (land ownershipcertificates) are delivered to thetribal people. But he failed todo it, the BJP leader said. Hedemanded that the Chief

Minister resolve the problembeing faced by the people, par-ticularly the tribal people, dueto the malfunctioning of theDharani portal. He recalledthat the TRS has promised toresolve the issue of Podu lands.

Sanjaya Kumar held a one-day silent Deeksha on hisbirthday to highlight the Poduissue. State BJP unit vice-pres-ident G Manohar Reddy, for-mer MP Ravinder Naik, Alerformer MLA Budida Bikshaiah

Goud, party district unit pres-ident Gangadi Krishna Reddy,party Rajanna Sircilla districtunit president PratapaRamakrishna, city formermayor D Shankar and othersparticipated in the event. The

Chief Minister, he said, when-ever an issue was brought to hisnotice, used to say that hewould visit the place wherev-er there is a problem, 'sit in achair' there and find a solutionto it. The BJP leader claimedthat KCR behaved like a'Maharaja' and that was whythe Chief Minister wouldalways say that he would sit ina chair and solve the problems.

Sajaya Kumar felt that theDharani portal had createddisputes in villages. The portalwas causing misery for the peo-ple, he said. Those who soldaway their lands 40-50 yearsago were returning to theirplaces of origin and snatchingthe lands from the farmers, hesaid. The day when the peoplewould revolt against the gov-ernment is not far off, hewarned.

TORRENTIAL RAINS

Minister complimentsofficials for prompt actionGangula Kamalakar asked the officials to assess the croploss speedily so that the farmers can secure compensation

Sanjay joins issue with KCR for diatribe on BJP The BJP State unit president accuses the Chief Minister of going back on his promise to solve Podu issue

BJP State unit president Bandi Sanjay Kumar speaking at a media conference in Karimnagar on Monday

Sanjay's silent protest ‘an act of betrayal,' says GangulaPNS n KARIMNAGAR

Minister for Civil Supplies on Mondaydescribed the 'mouna deeksha' (silentprotest) launched by BJP State unitpresident Bandi Sanja Kumar as 'an actof betrayal.' He took strong objectionto arranging a chair at the venue of theprotest, saying it was meant for ChiefMinister K Chandrashekar Rao.

At a media conference here, theMinister came down heavily on theBJP leader for trying to mislead the

people by peddling lies. He chal-lenged Sanja Kumar to stage a protestin front of the office of Prime MinisterNarendra Modi for failing to bringback the black money stashed away inforeign banks and deposit Rs 15 lakhin each account. The Prime Ministerhad gone back on his promise to cre-ate 2 crore jobs every year. He askedwhether it was not necessary to protestbecause the BJP government hadfailed to create Rs 16 crore jobs in thelast eight years. He dared Sanjay

Kumar to criticise the BJP govern-ment at the Centre for increasing theprice of fuel and cooking gas. Heasked whether it was not necessaryto stage a sit-in outside the Centralgovernment offices to protest thehike in prices of fuel and cooking gas.

Kamalakar accused the Uniongovernment of privatising the pub-lic sector units, such Life InsuranceCorporation and others. He stressedthe need to stage protests in supportof the demand that the Centre

should not privatise the LIC, BSNLand others. The Minister wonderedwhy Sanjay Kumar, who won withthe votes cast by the BackwardClasses, failed to ask the PrimeMinister why the BJP government atthe Centre failed to provide reserva-tions for the Backward Classes in leg-islature bodies.

MLAs Rasamayi Balakrishna,Sunke Ravishankar, SUDA chairmanG V Ramakrishna Rao, Mayor SunilRao and others were present.

PNS n HYDERABAD

Some Telangana police officialsare behaving like Nizam'sRazakars and are committingheinous crimes against thepeople, senior BJP leaderGudur Narayana Reddy saidhere on Monday.

In a media statement, he saidthat some police personnel areraping women at gunpoint.They have become a disgraceto the Telangana Police whohad earlier earned the sobri-quet the Scotland Yard of India.

'Their crimes have spoiledthe image of the TelanganaPolice. They are denting themorale of honest officers andspoiling their reputation,' hesaid.

Narayana Reddy said thatthe recent incidents in which aCircle Inspector raped ahousewife at gunpoint andanother Sub-Inspector rapinga woman on the pretext of mar-riage have brought disgrace tothe police. He said that the

police personnel belonging toa particular community are act-ing in a highhanded mannerand committing crimes at will.It is a known fact that somepolice officials broker settle-ments, interfere in civil mattersand act as intermediaries.

He said that MaredpallyCircle Inspector Nageswar Raoraped a housewife at gunpointand is trying to escape the law.It seems that some powerfulpersons in the government are

trying to save him. "Mediareports suggest that the CI isblackmailing a top leader tosave his skin. This shows thatsome police officers have devel-oped criminal brains," Gudursaid.

He said that last yearMariamma, a Dalit woman,died in Adda Gudur PoliceStation. She and her son wereseverely tortured by the policeand she died due to seriousinjuries. He said that already

the state has witnessed manyatrocities on minor girls andwomen in the last few months.After the Disha incident, manysuch incidents have been sur-facing in Telangana. The secu-rity of women and girls is indanger.

The gangrape of a minor girlis a fine example of the deteri-orating law and order situationin the state. The incident hasput a question mark on thesecurity of women and girls, he

added. Narayana Reddy saidthe police are expected to pro-tect women and girls. Instead,they themselves are engaging inrapes, raising questions aboutthe security of women andgirls.

He said the inspector shouldhave been shot immediatelylike in the Disha case. He saidthe inspector not only engagedin rape but also violated thelaw. There are many com-plaints against him, Gudur

said. The BJP leader said thatduring the last year of Nizam'srule in erstwhile Hyderabadstate, Telangana witnessedatrocities and mass murders byRazakars, who were a law untothemselves.

The Razakars of the thenNizam government attackedthousands of villages, rapedwomen, looted houses andkilled thousands of men andwomen.

As the Telangana RashtraSamithi is pampering thepolice, some officials are engag-ing in illegal activities. Thepolice have been acting like theprivate army of the TRS and issuppressing the opposition andthe opponents of TRS leaders.

He made it clear that thepolice bosses and political boss-es of the state should take noteof this sorry state of affairs in thepolice department and shouldweed out officials who arebehaving like extra constitution-al authorities and instil confi-dence among the people.

Some police officials behaving like Razakars: GudurHe said that Maredpally CircleInspector Nageswar Rao raped ahousewife at gunpoint and istrying to escape the law. It seemsthat some powerful persons in thegovernment are trying to savehim. ‘Media reports suggest thatthe CI is blackmailing a top leaderto save his skin’

PNS n NAGARKURNOOL

Deputy Medical and HealthOfficer Venkata Das has advisedmarried couples to adopt fam-ily planning methods in the firstthree years of their marriage. Headvised them to have spacing ofthree years between the firstchild and the second child.

Flagging off the WorldPopulation Day rally here onMonday, he said that modern

family planning methods areavailable nowadays.

He said that the pills meantfor observing family planninglike Mala-N tablets and injec-tions are totally safe without anyside effects. Similarly, people canalso use Copper-T.

Muddanuru PHC medicalofficer Dr Narayana Swamyand other staff members, ASHAworkers and others were pre-sent.

Couples urged to adoptsmall family norm

Health workers taking out a rally to mark the World Population Day, in Nagarkurnool on Monday

PNS n BHUPALAPALLY

District Superintendent ofPolice J Surender Reddy hasasked the people to remain onthe alert in view of incessantrains that are lashing the districtfor the past three days.

The SP visited the confluenceof three rivers at Kaleswaram,Medigedda projects to inspectthe flood level in River Godavariand asked the police officials toput in place security measuresto save people from accidents.

He asked the police men andofficials to remain alert roundthe clock. He asked the peopleagainst undertaking journeysunless it is absolutely essential.He asked the policemen to keepan eye on the water level intanks, ponds and streams under

the limits of the police stations.He asked the police to coordi-nate their efforts with revenue,irrigation and electricity depart-ment officials. In case of roadsdevelop breaches, he asked thepolice to secure the area by plac-ing cones and road stopper

rope and other barricades andalert the people and local elect-ed people's representativesabout it. The police shouldupdate their information aboutthe flood level in their jurisdic-tion. The police men and offi-cials should not leave their

headquarters under any cir-cumstances. In case of anyproblem, people are asked tocall the police control room orthe local police. The peopleshould not go near electrictransformers and electric poleswhen it rains. The peopleshould remain indoors as theincidence of lightnings is like-ly when it rains. He asked thepeople, sheep grazers, fisher-men, cattle grazers living incatchment areas of RiverGodavari and fishermen shouldnot go near the river.

He advised the people againstgoing near the river for takingphotos and selfies.

Kataram DSP Bonala Kishan,Mahadevpur Circle InspectorKiran, SIs and others were pre-sent.

People, police asked to remain on alert

Jayashankar Bhupalapally Superintendent of Police J Surender Reddy visiting rain-affected areas in Jayashankar Bhupalapally disrict on Monday

PNS n MEDAK

District Special Officer RonaldRoss on Monday asked officialsof all government departments toremain on the alert. AddressingDistrict Collector S Harish,Superintendent of Police RohiniPriyadarsini and the officialsthrough video conference, heenquired about the location ofcheck dams in Narsapur,Toopran Revenue divisions in the

district and inflows into them Heasked the officials to ensure thatphone in control room (08452-223360) is in working orderround the clock. He asked themto inform him the rainfall infor-mation and identify old anddilapidated houses in the district.Additional Collectors Rameshand Pratima Singh, ZP CEOVenkata Sailesh, DPO TarunKumar, DSO Srinivas and otherswere present at the meeting.

Special Officer Ronald Ross addressing the officials of Medak district via video conference

Ronald Ross asks Medak districtmachinery to remain on alert

PNS n HYDERABAD

Describing Chief Minister K.Chandrasekhar Rao as a‘Dubai Shekar,’ BJP vice-pres-ident DK Aruna said thatthere is no need for PrimeMinister Modi to answer theTelangana CM.

She said that KCR conduct-ed a press meet only to deflectpublic attention from the prob-lems caused by the heavy rain.She said the days are nearingwhen the public will expel theKCR family from Telangana.Speaking to the media at the

Telangana BJP office here onMonday, Aruna said that KCR’sfall started the day he had spo-ken in a sarcastic mannerabout Jogulamba Ammavaru.She said that KCR spoke arro-gantly about Hindu goddesses.

How can KCR mock PrimeMinister Modi who remem-bered Bhadrakali andJogulamba Ammavaru respect-ing Telangana culture duringhis speech at the ParadeGrounds on July 3, she asked.KCR’s policy is to insult theHindu lifestyle and ridiculeHindu deities, she said.

NAVEENA GHANATE

n HYDERABAD

Due to the heavy rains, 23breaches were reported in canals,bunds and weirs acrossTelangana. In Nizamabad 3canals and 7 bunds werebreached while Mancherial wit-nessed 8 breaches.

Mulugu and Rajanna Siricillaalso reported breaches. FourBungas in Mancherial andMulugu were also breached. Thenumber of reaches necessary forthe execution of MissionKakatiya has significantlydeclined.

In the years 2009, 2010 and2013 when heavy rainfall wasrecorded before Mission Kakatiyabreaches were reported in 1,107,4,521 and 1,868 respectively.After the implementation ofMission Kakatiya, the number of

ponds that were breached due tothe heavy rains in 2016, 2019 and2020 was only 930, 100 and 386respectively.

The strengthening of pondsunder Mission Kakatiya resulted

in water bodies being able towithstand heavy rain. OnOctober 13, the rain that fell inHyderabad and Rangareddy dis-tricts for two days was the secondheaviest rainfall in the last 150

years. The ponds could withstand25-32 cm of rain. According tothe information collected by theIrrigation Department, the num-ber of ponds breached inMedchal, Vikarabad and

Rangareddy districts of the Musicatchment area is only 14. So farin 2020, the number of dams inthe Krishna Basin is 206, and 180in the Godavari Basin. The totalnumber of dams in the state is386. As per the official data, “Therain that fell in September 2016was a once in 100 years heavyrain. However, due to MissionKakatiya, and the strengtheningof bunds the number of river

bodies damaged by floods andother dams has declined signif-icantly. Thousands of dams thatwere prone to damage have beenreduced to hundreds.”

As of 2016, only two phases ofMission Kakatiya have beenimplemented. After that in 2019,there were heavy rains fromAugust 2020. It is noteworthythat the number of breaches hasfurther reduced as four phases ofthe pond rehabilitation havebeen completed by then. The twodays of October 13 and 14 shouldbe considered as the heaviest rainin the state. As per the officialnote from the government, “Theimplementation of MissionKakatiya can be said to be thereason why Telangana pondshave survived such heavy floods.They saved the city of Hyderabadand its suburbs from the threatof floods.”

Kakatiya Mission helps reduce breaches

In the years 2009,

2010 and 2013 when

heavy rainfall was

recorded before

Mission Kakatiya,

breaches were

reported in 1,107,

4,521 and 1,868

respectively

23 breaches are only reported due to rains now as against 1,868 in 2013

A rivulet in spate in kishan Nayak Thanda

Modi need not answerKCR, says Aruna

Rains wreak havoc inNagarkurnool district

Uprooted trees blocking the road in Nagarkurnool on Monday

PNS n NAGARKURNOOL

Rains have paralysed normal life,submerging standing crops infields, cutting off road commu-nications to several villages inlow-lying areas, breaching manytanks. People living in old hous-es and huts in rural and urbanareas have been experiencingsevere problems.

Officials have been cautioningpeople over rain-triggered floodsat several places. Meanwhile, thestate government has declaredthree days as holidays for edu-cational institutions. Rain water

caused flooding in several vil-lages, cutting off road commu-nications. Water from drainageis overflowing onto the roads inurban areas, making it difficultfor people to walk on them.Movement of vehicles has beenaffected as several trees wereuprooted and fell across theroads. Elected people's represen-tatives have been warning thepeople about the drinking waterpollution in villages. They havebeen asking people not to drinkcontaminated water comingfrom taps in villages as it couldcause damage to people's health.

nation 05HYDERABAD | TUESDAY | JULY 12, 2022

IND

IA C

OR

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R FIR sought against Aaditya Thackeray over kids joining ‘save Aarey' protest

The national child rights body has asked Mumbai Police to file an FIR against YuvaSena chief Aaditya Thackeray for "using" children during a 'Save Aarey' protest, anofficial said on Monday. The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights

(NCPCR) registrar Anu Chaudhary has written to Mumbai Police Commissioner VivekPhansalkar requesting the registration of an FIR. In her letter, she mentioned that theNCPCR had received a complaint fromDhrutiman Joshi alleging that AadityaThackeray used minor children in theprotest or political campaigns in so-called'save Aarey' protest. Joshi is the legal headof the Sahyadri Rights Forum, it said."Through the Twitter link, children are seenparticipating in the protest holdingplacards," Chaudhary stated. She said theNCPCR has taken cognisance of the matterand is of the view that such an act is primafacie in contravention of section 75 of theJuvenile Justice Act.

Rains lash Delhi, bring relief from sultry weather

Rains lashed the national capital on Monday afternoon bringing much needed respitefrom the muggy weather conditions that had been prevailing over the last few days.However, the downpour caused waterlogging at some places in the city leading to

traffic snarls. The Delhi Traffic Police took to twitter to inform and alert commuters aboutthe congestion and plan their journeys accordingly. "Traffic is affected on New RohtakRoad in both carriageways due towaterlogging at Anand Parbat T-Point.Kindly avoid the stretch," it said in atweet. In another tweet, the trafficpolice informed that the traffic washeavy at Najafgarh Firni road due towaterlogging and urged them to avoidthe stretch. Delhiites woke up to ahumid Monday morning and therelative humidity at 8.30 am was 75per cent. However, the sky becameovercast in the afternoon and rainsdescended from the dark clouds.

Churning in AIADMK gives DMKleverage, opens up new vistas for BJP

The ruling DMK in Tamil Nadu stands to electorally gain to a significant extent and the BJP,though now on the fringes, could aspire to get more electoral space in the wake of churn-ing in the AIADMK. Although a huge chunk of party workers and office-bearers are appar-

ently with the dominant leader Edappadi K Palaniswami, ousted figurehead O Panneerselvamdoes have a clout among sections of party workers in select regions of Tamil Nadu. At thesame time V K Sasikala, confidante of late partymatriarch J Jayalalithaa is staking claim to the lateleader's legacy. Dramatically, she declared that bothPanneerselvam and Palaniswami were mere 'shad-ows' while she is the 'truth', meaning she is the realleader. Her remark comes following the expulsionof Panneerselvam and the violence witnessed in theAIADMK headquarters.Narrating an anecdote to hersupporters in Pudukottai District, she in a veiledmanner hit out at both of them and said partyworkers rallied only behind her. Apparently, Sasikalahas underscored that she continues to be in therace to wrest the party's leadership.

India must be ready to faceupheaval due to AI: RajnathPNS n NEW DELHI

India needs to work onArtificial Intelligence (AI)mechanism "extremely care-fully" and be ready to face thelegal, ethical, political andeconomic upheaval that mayfollow the expansion of thistechnology, Defence MinisterRajnath Singh said onMonday.

He stressed that AI technol-ogy should not be dominatedby a country or a group, as hasbeen the case with nucleartechnology, and India needs tomake advancements in thefield. Singh was speaking afterinaugurating an event titled'AIDef (Artificial Intelligencein Defence)' here.

"We have to use artificialintelligence (AI) for humani-ty's progress and peace. Itshould not be the case that acountry or a group of coun-tries establish their domi-nance on this technology - justlike nuclear power - and theremaining countries are notable to enjoy the fruits of this

technology," the defence min-ister said.

He noted that AI's ethicsand possible dangers must beproperly thought-out.

"We cannot stop theprogress of artificial intelli-gence and we should not try tostop its progress. But we needto be careful about it," hementioned.

When a new technologybrings a huge change, its tran-sition period is also as big andserious, he said.

"Since AI is a technologythat can bring a massivechange, we must be ready toface the legal, ethical, politicaland economic upheaval thatmay follow," Singh noted.

"We need to work on AIextremely carefully so thatthis (technology) does not goout of our control in the com-ing times," he added.

The defence minister saidthe arrival of technology is justlike the movement of a clockbecause once it moves for-ward, it is not possible to turnit back.

Initial response to Amarnath flash floods kept death toll lowPNS n SRINAGAR

The efforts of the first respondersensured that the number ofdeaths in the flash floods nearthe holy cave shrine of Amarnathin south Kashmir Himalayas was"limited", a senior IAF officersaid on Monday.

Flash floods triggered by heavyrain struck near the shrine onJuly 8, leaving at least 16 peopledead and more than 30 missing.

The annual Amarnath Yatra,which began on June 30,resumed on Monday afterremaining suspended for a day

due to inclement weather."Basically, due to the initial

efforts which people put in onthe first day, the fatality rate andthe number of casualties werereally limited," Air CommodorePankaj Mittal told reporters here.

Asked about the scale of therescue and relief operations, hesaid,"As compared to a lot ofoperations we have seen (earlier),this was a bit on a smaller scale".

Air Commodore Mittal said amajor part of the rescue andrelief operations was over and thearea should be good enough tobe opened for normal activities

in the next two days."Major effort (of rescue and

relief operation) has alreadygone through and they havealready cleared the opening ofthe yatra again. I think in a dayor two, we will be able to clearthe area for anything else," headded.

The Indian Air Force (IAF)officer said weather was thebiggest challenge in the rescueand relief operations in the after-math of the incident.

"Weather was a major chal-lenge in mounting the rescue andrelief operations. The valley

(leading to the cave shrine) beingnarrow and due to clouding,choppers were finding it difficultto enter.

"There are some minimumparameters like visibility thatwe need to observe before fly-ing... even on 10th (July), wewere not able to operate formore than half the day till 2 pmdue to weather," he said.

The Air Commodore said, onthe day of the incident, theweather was inclement and "wethought it prudent to launchthe operations the next day ina coordinated manner".

PM unveils national emblem PNS n NEW DELHI

Prime Minister Narendra Modi onMonday unveiled the nationalemblem cast on the roof of the newParliament building here.

The inauguration of the emblem,which is made up of bronze with atotal weight of 9,500 kg and is 6.5metre in height, marks the first majormilestone ahead of the new building'sscheduled opening for later this year.

Authorities have maintained thatParliament's Winter session will beheld there.

Officials said the emblem has beencast at the top of the central foyer ofthe new Parliament building, and asupporting structure of steel weigh-ing around 6,500 kg has been con-structed to support it.

The concept sketch and process ofcasting of the national emblem on theroof of the new Parliament buildinghas gone through eight differentstages of preparation from clay mod-elling and computer graphics tobronze casting and polishing, theysaid.

Modi was joined by Lok SabhaSpeaker Om Birla, Rajya SabhaDeputy Chairman Harivansh andUrban Development MinisterHardeep Singh at the inauguration.He also attended a religious ceremo-ny at the site.

The prime minister also interact-ed with workers involved in thebuilding's construction and told themthat they should feel proud of theirwork. They are making a very bigcontribution to the nation's pride, hesaid.

PNS n NEW DELHI

Opposition parties on Monday slammed PrimeMinister Narendra Modi for unveiling the nationalemblem cast atop the new Parliament building, accus-ing him of "subverting" the principle constitutional sep-aration of powers. The Constitution separates powersof parliament, government & judiciary. As head of thegovernment, the Prime Minister should not haveunveiled the national emblem atop the new parliamentbuilding, All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen(AIMIM) president Asaduddin Owaisi said. TheSpeaker of Lok Sabha represents Lok Sabha whichisn't subordinate to the government. The prime minis-ter has violated all constitutional norms, said Owaisi,who is a Lok Sabha member from Hyderabad.

Opposition slams Modi

New Delhi: Ahead of the Monsoon Session of Parliament, DefenceMinister Rajnath Singh gave a presentation to the ParliamentaryConsultative Committee on Defence members on the "Agnipath"scheme for military recruitment on Monday, with some oppositionMPs demanding its immediate withdrawal. After the nearly-two-hourmeeting addressed by the defence minister and the three chiefs of thearmed forces, opposition MPs, including those from the Congress,the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and the Trinamool Congress(TMC), raised objections to the new recruitment scheme and said itshould be rolled back. Sources said Congress MP Shaktisinh Gohilcited the criticism of the scheme by experts and decorated soldiersand said it should be withdrawn as it would affect the morale of theforces and create confusion.

Defence minister briefs MPs on ‘Agnipath' scheme

Govt ‘failed' to restoreApril 2020 status at LAC in LadakhPNS n NEW DELHI

The Congress on Mondayasked Prime MinisterNarendra Modi to take thenation into confidence onthe Chinese transgressionsinto India and asked him toaddress the concerns onnational security, integrityand sovereignty.

Congress spokespersonGaurav Gogoi claimed thatthe recent talks betweenIndia's external affairs minis-ter and theChinese foreignminister have"failed" and didnot yield thedesired result ofmaintaining thestatus quo ante asin April 2020 atthe Line of ActualControl (LAC) inLadakh.

Gogoi alsodemanded a whitepaper on theissue, a two-daydebate inParliament and adedicated briefingto thePar l i am e nt a r yStanding Committee onDefence.

He alleged that the govern-ment's approach towardsChina has so far been "veryweak" and said it is time thatthe prime minister should

take the Chinese head-on."We demand that Prime

Minister Modi takes thenation into confidence aboutthe Chinese threat and takeaction by addressing a pressconference by the prime min-ister, defence minister andexternal affairs minister toexplain the current situationfollowed by a White Paper,"he told reporters.

Gogoi also said theCongress wants the earlyappointment of a full-time

Chief ofDefence Staff,noting that theposition hasbeen vacantfor sevenmonths dur-ing a criticalperiod fornational secu-rity.

The partyalso demand-ed the imme-diate with-drawal of theA g n i p a t hscheme, alleg-ing that itthreatens tod e m o r a l i s e

troops at a time of highnational security threat.

The Congress leader said"the prime minister shouldstop appeasing China to pro-tect his image and should actboldly and sternly".

Goa will set up dedicateddisaster response force: MinPNS n PANAJI

Goa will set up a dedicated disaster responseforce and a memorandum of understand-ing has been signed with the NationalDisaster Response Force based inMaharashtra's Pune district forthis, state revenue ministerAtanasio Monserratte said in theAssembly on Monday.

He was responding to a callingattention motion moved by oppo-sition MLAs Vijai Sardesai, SankalpAmonkar, Altone D'Costa and others.

These MLAs had raised apprehensions on thedisaster management mechanism in the coastal statein the backdrop of heavy rains witnessed last week.

"The Goa government is in the process of

raising a dedicated state disaster responseforce for which we have recently signed a MoUwith NDRF in Pune. This is for access to inven-

tory," Monserratte said.He told the House the State DisasterManagement Authority (SDMA) had

promptly responded to emergency sit-uations and had also taken severalmeasures since its inception to mit-igate such situations.

"A comprehensive disaster man-agement plan is in place at the state

and district levels. District collectorshave deputed talathis on the field round the

clock to assess the situation and take necessarymeasures. Moreover, each taluka mamlatdar(official) has identified shelter homes to shiftaffected persons," the minister added.

PNS n KOLKATA

Trinamool Congress is walkinga tightrope on the candidatureof NDA presidential nomineeDroupadi Murmu, as it fears thatgoing all guns blazing against hermight alienate the tribal votersin West Bengal ahead of the pan-chayat elections next year andthe 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

Tribals constitute 7-8 per centof the state's population, and area deciding factor in 47 assemblyseats and seven Lok Sabha con-stituencies spread across theJunglemahal districts of Purulia,Paschim Medinipur, Bankura

and Jhargram in southernBengal and Jalpaiguri andAlipurduar in the north.

The dilemma in the TMC,which was instrumental inbuilding a consensus amongnon-BJP parties in namingYashwant Sinha as the jointOpposition candidate, was evi-

dent as Chief Minister MamataBanerjee said that Murmu couldhave been a consensus nomineehad the NDA discussed with theOpposition before fielding her.

Banerjee said Murmu also hasbetter chances of winning withthe NDA's numbers bolsteredfollowing the change of guard inMaharashtra.

Although Banerjee's state-ment has stunned many in theOpposition camp, TMC insid-ers believe that the electoralarithmetic in tribal-dominatedJunglemahal region might haveprompted the party chief 'sremarks.

PNS n NEW DELHI

Over 100 artisans and craftsmen from var-ious parts of the country worked for overnine months to create the massive nationalemblem cast that was on Monday unveiledby Prime Minister Narendra Modi, officialssaid.

The installation of the "State Emblem ofIndia" made of "high-purity bronze" at thetop of the central foyer of the new Parliamentbuilding, currently under construction, itselfwas a challenge as it was 33 metre aboveground level, they said.

The State Emblem of India is an adapta-tion from the Sarnath Lion Capital ofEmperor Ashoka which is preserved in theSarnath Museum. The Lion Capital has fourlions mounted back to back on a circular aba-cus. The frieze of the abacus is adorned withsculptures in high relief of an elephant, a gal-loping horse, a bull and a lion separated byintervening Dharma Chakras.

The 6.5-metre installation, weighing16,000 kg including supporting structure(9,500 kg - national emblem, and 6500 kg -supporting structure), fully handcrafted byIndian artisans, is made of high-puritybronze, said a senior official in the UnionMinistry of Housing and Urban Affairs.

"There is no other similar depiction of theemblem, from the perspective of material andcraftsmanship, anywhere else in India. Over100 artisans from various parts of the coun-try tirelessly worked on the design, craftingand casting of the emblem for over ninemonths to bring out the quality that couldbe seen in the final installation," he said.

Over 100 artisansworked on NationalEmblem

TMC IN FIX OVERMURMU'S CANDIDATURE

“We demand thatPrime Minister

takes the nationinto confidence

about theChinese threatand take actionby addressing apress conference

by the PrimeMinister”

ON THE ROOF OF NEW PARLIAMENT

We’d urge the SriLankan Parliamentto approach thiswith a commitmentto the country’sbetterment.

US Secretary of State—Antony Blinken

Till now in India,people think it(doing intimatescenes) is a bigdeal. It’s sad!

Actor

—Esha Gupta

By this time, we all know that Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa willresign tomorrow since he is left with no more room to manoeuvre after angryprotesters stormed the presidential palace and the Prime Minister’s residence

and parked themselves there comfortably, vowing not to leave until both the lead-ers formally resign. Actually, the resignation of Mahinda Rajapaksa as the PrimeMinister in May was the beginning of the end of the Rajapaksas, and the Saturdaystorming “a natural outcome”. With incumbent Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghealso offering to resign, the Government in Colombo is in a state of turmoil. But themoot question is this: Are there any lessons for India to draw from these unfortu-nate developments? As for the island nation, everyone can see the extreme depri-vation caused to its people due to the absence of staple food at an affordable price

in markets and the shortage of petrol and diesel atthe fuel stations. Of course, there was a combina-tion of several factors (COVID, dwindling forexreserves, depreciated currency, over-dependenceon imports and the Russian invasion of Ukraine)that brought Lanka to this sorry juncture.

Also, the origins of the linguistic disenfranchise-ment of the Tamils owed partly to the appeasementof the Buddhist clergy, which is almost exclusive-ly Sinhala. It not only caused the alienation of theTamil-speaking population but led to the formationof the Tamil Tigers, and then a civil war. The TamilTigers were finally vanquished, but it took over two-and-a-half decades. Meanwhile, there was an exo-

dus of Tamils, the better-off leaving for the West and, those who could escape, head-ing for Tamil Nadu. While all uncertainty stalls investment, private investors wouldbe particularly reluctant to commit their money in a time of near anarchy; a Statepursuing a civil war can hardly make up for this through public investment as it isbound to be severely fund-constrained due to its military operations. Nor would ithave much time to address stress points that arise from time to time in any mar-ket economy, let alone plan for economic development. Sri Lanka’s woes are eco-nomic on the surface but stem from social strife that has been exacerbated by majori-tarian identity politics fanned by the State. As for India, it must learn from its neigh-bour’s misfortunes and step up domestic production across sectors.

The Narendra Modi Government wants to do away with the 10 per cent cap for indi-viduals holding shares in public sector banks (PSBs); this will go a long way inhelping their privatisation. The move will pave the path for the participation of pri-

vate equity (PE) firms to buy stakes in PSBs. According to a news report, the Governmentmay propose changes through the Banking Laws (Amendment) Bill that aims to changethe Banking Companies (Acquisition and Transfer of Undertakings) Act as well as theBanking Regulation Act. The condition of PSBs is such that only a doctrinaire socialistcan oppose their privatisation. PSBs have been tormenting the taxpayer who had to pay`310,997 crore for their recapitalisation in just four years, between 2016-17 and 2020-21. The resolve shown by the Government to tackle the problem of non-performing assets

(NPAs) or bad debts has done some good to the healthof PSBs. They earned a combined net profit of ̀ 31,820crore in 2020-21 after suffering collective losses forfive straight years. Just because the PSBs are in theblack doesn’t mean that they would soon be in thepink. Their main problem is structural: owned by theGovernment, they are run by politicians and bureau-crats, who are surely not the finest specimens ofmankind. Further, they are trained and expected to man-age administration, maintain law and order and ensurenational defence, not to run banks — or, for that mat-ter, other public sector enterprises.

If and when PSB privatisation begins, it will faceresistance from various quarters. Few want to see a

public sector entity become private. The administrative Ministries concerned lose con-trol over organisations with the potential to distribute favours. Unions don’t like privati-sation because private businesspersons are not as indulgent as Ministers and bureau-crats are. Leftists don’t like it because they anyway don’t like anything good happen-ing. Even the organisations run by the Sangh Parivar are suspicious of privatisation. Infolklore, it is akin to selling family silver — sab kuchh bech rahe hain yeh log. Againstthis backdrop, it would be very difficult to sell PSBs. The Air India sale was relativelyeasy because the airline had become junk; everyone knew that under the Governmentthe national carrier would remain a white elephant. But not many believe that banks havereached that stage, so there will be resistance from not just the professional revolution-aries and permanent naysayers but also from people at large. Another challenge theModi regime would face while selling PSBs would be regarding the nature of buyers.An Internal Working Group (IWG) of the Reserve Bank of India had favoured last yearthe grant of banking licences to big corporate houses. The Central bank, however, hasnot accepted the recommendation so far — and rightly so. The Government would beadvised to have a similar policy: it mustn’t allow major business houses to bid for PSBs.Otherwise, it could attract the allegation of cronyism.

Banking on privatisation

NEED TO REWRITE INDIAN HISTORYSir – Demands for rewriting history havedominated the Indian political discoursefor quite some time now. Unfortunately, likeevery other issue relevant to Indian soci-ety, this has too devolved into a politicaldispute, diverting people from genuineissues that merit attention. Indian historyneeds to be rewritten because it is Delhi-centric. Most history textbooks todayrevolve around Delhi and its neighbour-hood. Therefore, it is not surprising that allpeople remember today from their histo-ry lessons is the Delhi Sultanate, theMughal empire and the British Raj. Theaverage Indian barely knows anythingabout the great kings and kingdoms of theSouth.

Rajendra Chola, whose maritimeachievements remain unparalleled, is hard-ly known outside Tamil Nadu. EvenMarthanda Varma of Travancore, whodefeated the Dutch in the Battle of Colachel,finds no mention in textbooks. Some mayhave come across Krishnadevaraya in thewitty tales of Tenali Rama but that againconstitutes a micro-minority of people.This neglect is not limited to South India.The Northeast as well as other regions havebeen excluded from the ambit of textbooks.This regional imbalance in our curriculummust be rectified since history’s objectiveis to understand our past.

Nissim Aggarwal | Chandigarh

UDDHAV, BORIS IN SAME BOATSir – A lot of similarities are being noticedthese days between the ruling ConservativeParty of Britain and our Shiv Sena inMaharashtra. Rebellion is happeningthere, too. The only difference is that BorisJohnson did not want to resign at any cost,as long as possible. But Uddhav Thackerayhere had to leave the CM’s chair. No onehad ever thought that Johnson would getsuch a big blow from his own MPs. Afterthe departure of Finance Minister RishiSunak and Health Minister Sajid Javid, thefloodgates of Ministers’ resignationopened. Forty-four junior Ministers

resigned, expressing their no-confidencein Boris.

The question arising here is, after all,it had been only a few weeks when the no-confidence motion brought against Boriswas dropped. All the Ministers who havejust quit had voted in his favour. Then whathappened in these 10 days? Perhaps theConservative Party lost the seat of Tivertonand Honiton, a deeply Conservative partof south-west England, in two byelectionsheld there. This has raised fresh questionsover the party’s future and even the suc-cess of Brexit; that’s why the Tories havedecided to shun Boris.

Jang Bahadur Singh | Jamshedpur

CHINA’S APPROACH IS WRONGSir — The state of China is chaotic whenit said that its demography is in crisis. Ofcourse, it has to be because the country’sleadership allowed forced sterilisation andabortion. These were the norms in China’sheyday as it wanted to manage its burgeon-ing population by adopting cruel methods

and strict family planning. China is veryaggressive in its approach and now it wantsto return to the old norms of family plan-ning. We all know that China’s economicpersonal niche is because of the right util-isation of its demographic dividend.

Steeper growth and exuberant econom-ic revenue have led China to become theworld’s second most powerful economyafter the US. Now the Government is pro-viding lucrative benefits to promoteChinese women to have more babies is theonly economic mentality of Chinese lead-ers. In reality they don’t actually want todecline financially. Rather, they just want-ed to stick to the successful formula of‘more hands, more money’, which ultimate-ly results in more vibrant economic growth.China must come out of this stigma andmust not use women as machines to pro-duce more babies who will ultimately pro-duce more money.

Kirti Wadhawan | Kanpur

P A P E R W I T H P A S S I O N

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HYDERABAD | TUESDAY | JULY 12, 2022

06

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Drawing lessonsIndia will be wise to learn from the

misfortune that has befallen Sri Lanka

PICTALK

Pilgrims take part in the symbolic stoning of the Devil, the last rite of the annual Hajj, in Mecca, Saudi Arabia AP

LETTERS TO TTHE EDITOR

Will the move to allow private equity firms to buy stakes in PSBs act as panacea?

It has been reported that the All India BarAssociation (AIBA) has asked the ChiefJustice of India to reject pleas seeking

expunging of SC judges’ remarks againstNupur Sharma. This is a tall order by AIBAto the CJI. When petitions or letters cometo courts, it is their prerogative to consideror reject such petitions. AIBA chairmanand senior advocate Adish C Aggarwala haswelcomed the Supreme Court’s remarksagainst Nupur. As an individual, he has

every right to welcome or deplore a judg-ment. But as the AIBA chairman, his letter tothe CJI is overt interference in the function-ing of the top court.

He has taken dig at the remarks madeby Nupur while maintaining silence atMahua Moitra at the denigration of Hindugoddess Kali. Making noise at one andmaintaining silence at the other for similaroffences amounts to double standards.Agreeably, it is normal for the courts tomake observations. But, at the same time,Aggarwala needs to be reminded that ChiefJustice of India NV Ramana has recentlygiven a call to judges not to cross theLakshman Rekha. If the AIBA chairman feelsthat an oral remark cannot become a causeof action for a fresh petition, there isabsolutely no need for anybody to welcomeor reject such oral observations.

KV Seetharamaiah | Bengaluru

AIBA chief’s ‘interference’

SOUNDBITE

Russia, but its dependence onRussian natural gas has anoth-er story to tell. One of themost revered global figures —except by China — HisHoliness the Dalai Lama artic-ulates it succinctly: “However,we are so interdependent thatthe concept of war hasbecome outdated. When weface problems or disagree-ments today, we have to arriveat a solution through dialogue.Dialogue is the only appropri-ate method. One-sided victo-ry is no longer relevant. Wemust work to resolve conflictsin a spirit of reconciliation andalways keep in mind the inter-ests of others. We cannotdestroy our neighbours. Wecannot ignore their interests.Doing so would ultimatelycause us to suffer.” We allknow that everyone is aneighbour of everyone else.They are neighbours, but notnecessarily neighbourly!

Unfortunately, an analyti-cal perusal of the develop-ments of the last seven decadesgenerates little hope in inter-national organisations like theUN, UNSC and other bodiesthat were expected to min-imise — if not completelyabolish — violence, wars,exploitation and production oflethal nuclear weapons. Is it nota sad commentary that thenuclear race stands escalated asagainst the great expectations

that it would be totallybanned?

The views of Einstein,published in the New YorkTimes on August 16, 1948, sayit all: “We scientists, whosetragic destiny it has been tohelp make the methods ofannihilation ever more grue-some and more effective,must consider it our solemnand transcendent duty to doall in our power to preventthese weapons from beingused for the brutal purposefor which they were invented.What task could possibly bemore important to us? Whatsocial aim could be closer toour hearts?”

Human beings are blessedwith unfathomable power ofideas and imagination. It is thecuriosity that ignites the mindto explore, discover, innovateand utilise. Creativity kindlesacquisition of skills, ever opento refinement, and replaced bynewly discovered ones. It isthese human traits that lead tothe advancement of civilisa-tions and exploration of thesecrets of nature, leading tonew inventions and discover-ies in the realm of science andtechnology or, in the currentcontext, information and com-munication technology. One ofthe most significant humanachievements in science andtechnology was the first atom-ic explosion, some 210 miles

south of Los Alamos, NewMexico, on July 16, 1945.

The generation of enor-mous amounts of energy wasnow within man’s reach andcontrol. Obviously, scientistswere exploring how it couldhelp improve human lives,and how all concerns regard-ing energy availability couldindeed be resolved in the yearsahead. In the Indian tradition,any acquisition of knowledgeis of relevance only if it can beused to better the lives of allhumanity, with all its diversi-ty accepted and respected:‘Sarva bhut hite ratah’. Oneoften comes across referencesto Robert Oppenheimer refer-ring to the famous shloka ofGita: ‘Brighter than a thousandsuns’! But that was that; pow-ers that be were thinking aboutthe destructive possibilities ofthe new tool that scientists hadplaced at their disposal, andthey had no ethical qualmsthat could prevent disastrousapplications of atomic weaponsin Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Toprevent the recurrence, therehas to be sustained depen-dence on dialogue, discussionand deliberations. Any laxitywould mean devastation,destruction and disasters ofunfathomable measure.

(The author works in education, social cohesion andreligious amity. The viewsexpressed are personal.)

The pandemic-crippled world finds itself in the midst of another global crisiswhich can cause devastating loss to life, property and natural resources

WHAT DESTINY HAVEHUMAN BEINGS

CREATED FORTHEMSELVES, THE

ONE THAT INCLUDESTHEIR OWN

DESTRUCTION;NATIONS COMPETINGAMONG THEMSELVES

IN THE RACE TOPRODUCE MORE AND

MORE LETHALWEAPONS?

JS RAJPUT

Harnessing atomicpower for the good

Horizons of violence andwar are fast expanding.The Russian invasionof Ukraine lingers on

with no signs of victory or defeat,no possibility of a reconciliationor meditation by other nations. Itis inflicting inhuman sufferingsnot only on the people of Ukraineand Russia but on practicallyevery country, one way or anoth-er. At this juncture in history, waranywhere would no longerremain confined to two nations,but would drastically impact theplanet as a whole. Is it not reallyintriguing that a world devastat-ed by the pandemic for over twoyears finds itself in the midst ofanother global crisis which couldcause immeasurable loss to lifeand property, coupled with dev-astating wastage of naturalresources?

There are significant indica-tions that more war zones couldopen up any day. These couldinvolve Russia and Nato, or theChina-Taiwan-US. There is prac-tically no visible effort at the inter-national level to attempt a truce.On the contrary, the Nato nations,sitting on the fence, are supplyingarms and ammunition to Ukraineand publicising it as a great act of“help”. Obviously, it is a clear actof inspiring Ukraine to continuethe war. What destiny havehuman beings created for them-selves, the one that includes theirown destruction; nations compet-ing among themselves in therace to produce more and morelethal weapons? Enormous sumsare consumed in this race to pro-duce lethal weapons. This racethus becomes one of one-upman-ship, resulting in widely spreadvested business interests requir-ing promotion, use and sale togenerate rich dividends. Andthat would increase insecurity,apprehensions, distrust, violenceand wars.

Wars are often referred to asparts of history, which is factu-ally correct. However, it must beremembered that when nations,regions, principalities and evenvillage clusters were independentof each other, victory and defeathad a specific meaning. Notnow, when everyone is depen-dent on everyone else. Natomay impose sanctions against

When you do natural farming,you serve MotherEarth by protectingsoil quality, productivity.

Prime Minister—Narendra Modi

We have been

very supportive of

Sri Lanka. We are

trying to help (the

crisis-hit island).

External Affairs Minister

—S Jaishankar

I’m lost for wordsfor what this tournament, thistrophy means tome.

Wimbledon champion—Novak Djokovic

WE AIM FOR AN INTERIM GOVT OF ALL

PARTIES FOR A LIMITED PERIOD AND THEN GO

FOR PARLIAMENTARY POLLS.

—OPPOSITION SJB GENERAL SECRETARY

RANJITH MADDUMA BANDARA

GOTABAYA’S DECISION TO STEP DOWN

WAS TAKEN TO ENSURE A PEACEFUL

HANDOVER OF POWER.

—SRI LANKA PARLIAMENT SPEAKER

MAHINDA YAPA ABEYWARDENA

Sri Lanka is facing an unprecedented economic and political cri-sis. The economic crisis has been in the making for several years,and the recent geopolitical developments pushed the island nation

into chaos and the state of financial bankruptcy.The Sri Lankan leadership invited this crisis with reckless borrow-

ings, which even exceeded the GDP. The composition of this debt alsochanged over the years, as concessionary borrowings were replacedwith commercial loans, carrying higher interest rates and shorter matu-rity periods. Besides, the Sri Lankan government announced large tax-cuts in 2019 ahead of the Covid-19 breakout as part of populist mea-sures in the run up to the elections.

Tourism was the mainstay of the Sri Lankan economy, but it facedtwo major back-to-back blows in the forms of the Easter terror attackand the Covid-19 pandemic.

In India we may draw satisfaction from the better financial healthof the country. India has a forex reserve of close to $600 billion, suf-ficient to cover the merchandise imports of more than a year. As perRBI data from its last annual report, the foreign debt has increased from$409 billion in 2013 to $615 billion in December 2021. But, ‘ExternalDebt: GDP’ ratio has improved from 22.4 percent in 2013 to 20 per-cent in 2021. This has happened despite contraction in the GDP onaccount of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Managing inflation, yield on government borrowings, maintainingliquidity in the market and keeping an eye on the benchmark rates tosupport growth, stable exchange regime, etc., are important tasks ofthe Central bank. A moderate inflation till the fourth quarter of the pre-vious financial year was considered transitory, but the global scenariohas changed very fast. Geopolitical tensions have put three-fourth ofthe consumer price index at risk.

Manufacturing capacity utilization is still lower than 10-year aver-age due to the supply side constraints. There has been timely policyintervention like putting curbs on exports, reducing taxes on petrole-um products, controlling the money supply by increasing the bench-mark rates, etc., but they also carry risks. The World Bank, S&P, etc.,have cut the growth forecast of India primarily due to inflation relatedconcerns. The Government can take solace that India is still one of thefastest growing economies, while inflation remains a global concern.

Rupee depreciation against the dollar has been highlighted as a majorfailure but there are two important factors which need to be examined.The Indian Rupee has performed well against other currencies like GBP,EUR and a depreciating rupee has some benefits for exporters too. Acurrent account deficit and capital outflow due to rate hike by the USFederal Reserve is impacting fluctuation in the value of Rupee. Also,India has a federal structure and states are equally responsible for eco-nomic growth. However, there is a growing tendency to indulge in irre-sponsible announcements of freebies. This issue was highlighted a fewmonths back, but there is no deterrent for the power-hungry politicians.

Revenue guarantee to states was given under the goods and ser-vices tax (GST) for a period of five years. Some of the extravaganzaon the parts of the state administrations was funded out of the com-pensation which they received from the Centre. Now it must be under-stood that chief ministers can’t hold the bargain chip forever to pres-surize the Centre and enjoy a free lunch.

Lastly, self-sustainability is the key for developing nations. Someof the previously announced initiatives like Production Linked Incentives(PLIs) for the manufacturing sector and national monetization pipelinehave the potential to push the growth on a higher trajectory and thegovernment should stick to them.

(The author is a CA and policy analyst)

HYDERABAD | TUESDAY | JULY 12, 2022

07

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FIRSTCOLUMN

SRI LANKAN COLLAPSEHAS LESSONS FOR INDIA

POINTCOUNTERPOINT

Sri Lankan debt collapse calls for fiscal prudence

In an incident, which caughtthe national attention, anSUV on the Chhindwara-

Nagpur highway on June 11,2021, split into two parts, fol-lowing a crash, resulting in thedeath of three of the five pas-sengers. The speeding SUVrammed into a bridge, whilemaking an attempt to avoid acollision with a two-wheeler,leading to a structural split.

Interestingly, while theIndian model of this particularSUV received a mere three-starsafety rating in the Safer Carsfor India campaign under theGlobal New Car AssessmentProgram (GNCAP), itsAustralian counterpart has afive-star rating under theAustralian NCAP. As regardschild occupant safety, the for-mer received a meagre twostars. This is a jarring example

of the gap that exists betweenthe structural integrity of carmodels sold in India vis-a-visthose sold in other countries,especially developed nations.

Any road crash scenarioentails two main components.The first includes the reasonsbehind the crash, while the sec-ond deals with the causes forinjuries or deaths. This is whereessential safety equipment likeseatbelts, Child RestraintSystem (CRS), airbags and asecure, stable, crash-testedbody of the vehicle come intoplay. As components of the firstline of defence that safeguardagainst possible injuries andfatality, their absence or inferi-or quality can prove to be cat-astrophic. For instance, as wit-nessed in the SUV split case, aweak car frame, incapable ofsustaining the impact of a road

crash, is one that would beunable to ensure the safety ofoccupants.

Despite being home to onlyone percent of the world’s vehi-cles, India shoulders 11 percentof the global road crash fatali-ty burden. In 2020 alone, Indiareported 366,138 road crashesand 131,714 fatalities. As perthe National Crime RecordsBureau data, crashes causeddue to vehicular defects aloneclaimed over 6,000 lives in thelast three years. In India, 59deaths were recorded per100,000 registered passengerfour-wheelers in 2019. Thiscount was over six times high-er than the correspondingnumber for the United States,which witnessed nine deathsper 100,000 registered passen-ger four-wheelers.

Thus far, India did not

have a permanent car safetyassessment rating system andall new car models were testedunder the temporary Safer Carsof India campaign within theGlobal New Car AssessmentProgramme. In a historic move,on June 24, 2022 the Ministryof Road Transport andHighways (MoRTH) issued adraft notification, introducingthe Bharat New CarAssessment Programme(BNCAP). The program uses acombination of Indian andInternational parameters toassess the safety standards ofM1 category vehicles.Applicable from April 1, 2023onwards, this currently volun-tary assessment will be instru-mental towards engineering ashift in consumer behaviour byhelping assign a safety rating toboth manufactured and

imported M1 vehicles.The M1 category vehicles

used for the carriage of passen-gers and their luggage andcomprising no more than eightseats in addition to the driver'sseat would be assessed througha robust crash testing process.The assessment would includeside-impact, frontal impactand pole side-impact tests.Specifying different require-ments for adult and child occu-pants, the tests within this pro-posed assessment would alsotake into consideration poten-tial modifiers such as occupantsof different sizes or occupantsin different seating positions,among other similar aspects.

The BNCAP rating isexpected to assist and have anoverall positive impact on con-sumers, regulators as well as carmanufacturers. Consumer

behaviour studies in countriesthat have their own NCAPratings have indicated a signif-icant boost in demand for safervehicles. The rating is bound tomake a similar shift in con-sumer choices in India and thesubsequent manufacture andsupply of safer cars owing to thedemand-pull incentive. A directoutcome may be the reductionin road crash injuries and fatal-ities involving M1 categorypassenger vehicles.

A stable structure that pro-vides adequate protection whilelowering the probability of life-threatening injuries is the rightof every four-wheeler buyer.Irrespective of their geograph-ic locations, all individualshave the right to expect thesame high safety standardsenjoyed by others buying thesame model elsewhere. BNCAP

will aid in closing the safety rat-ing gap. BNCAP shouldmandatorily be applicable forall new M1 category vehicles.Eventually, like Euro NCAPand the U.S. NCAP, whereeven the M2 category vehicles(vans) are tested, in India too,the testing should be expand-ed. Many Indian car manufac-turers have already begun vol-untarily testing their four-wheelers with GNCAP. A fewmanufacturers, who are stilluncomfortable, should under-stand that both customers andinternational markets areincreasingly leaning towardssafer cars. Such assessmentwould also be highly beneficialin opening up the larger inter-national market for cars expor-ted from India, thereby provid-ing a significant boost to theMake in India campaign.

Disparity in ratings of vehicles sold in international and Indian markets is unjustifiable and it must end immediately

Global standard vehicle rating good for users, manufacturers

(Tewari is Founder & CEO of SaveLIFE

Foundation, while Shahi isSenior Manager at SLF.)

PIYUSH TEWARI

& PALLAVI SHAHI

SHASHANK SAURAV

Hydrocarbons may giveIndia energy freedom UTTAM GUPTA

FORIMMEDIATE

CHALLENGES,SHORT-TERM

MEASURESSUCH AS

IMPOSINGADDITIONALTAXES ANDSLAPPINGCESS MAY

WORK, AS ISTHE CASE

WITHDOMESTIC

PRODUCERSOF CRUDE,

BUT THEGOVERNMENT

MUST WORKFOR LONG

TERM VISIONAND

HYDROCARBONIS INDEED

FUEL OFFUTURE

Amid disruption in the global sup-ply chain and steep spike in theinternational crude prices, theUnion Cabinet last week took two

major decisions pertaining to the oil sec-tor—deregulation of the sale of domesti-cally-produced crude oil and imposing acess or windfall tax of Rs 23,250 per tonneon crude oil and a special additional exciseduty (SAED) of Rs 6 per litre, Rs 13 per litreand Rs 6 per litre on exports of petrol,diesel, and jet fuel respectively.

The Covid-19 pandemic and the ongo-ing Russia-Ukraine war have acutelyaffected the global supply chains, besidesgiving legs to the prices of the internatio-nal crude oil to run briskly.

The government hopes that theCabinet decision will spur domestic pro-duction of crude oil as it offers incentivesto exploration and production (E&P)companies like Oil India Limited (OIL) andOil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC),Cairn Oil and Gas, etc., thereby cuttingdown on imports of costly oil from glob-al suppliers. Additionally, the Cabinetdecision will help in curbing fuel shortagesin the domestic market.

Under the extant arrangements, acondition in Production Sharing Contracts(PSC) (every E&P company which isgiven right or license to explore oil froma field is required to sign a PSC that laysdown the terms and conditions for explo-ration, production and marketing ofthroughput) requires the operator to sellcrude oil to the government or its nomi-nee or government companies only.

This meant that domestically producedcrude could only be supplied to refineriesof Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL),Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited(HPCL), and Bharat PetroleumCorporation Limited (BPCL), which aremajority-owned and controlled by theGovernment. Effective from October 1,2022, this condition has been waived off,implying that E&P firms will have freedomto sell crude oil to whoever they want.

However, the freedom of marketing toE&P companies will be available only inrespect of sales in the domestic marketeven as exports shall continue to be prohibited.

In view of domestically producedcrude, constituting barely 15 percent ofIndia’s demand and public sector refineriessuch as IOCL/BPCL, etc., processing bulkof it, prima facie, E&P firms should havea readily available outlet for their through-put even if their sale is restricted to thesegovernment undertakings. But, such salesare generally hamstrung by bureaucraticred tape. Giving them freedom to sell,including to private refineries, willunshackle them, thereby removing a majorconstraint on increasing production.

The freedom to sell could be extrapo-lated to cover exports, while this wouldopen up infinite opportunities for the E&Pcompanies for selling their produce. But,

Windfall tax on oil firms is justified; a robust ecosystemfor hydrocarbons can give India the much-needed relief

The author is a policyanalyst

for a country (read: India) whichhas to import 85 percent of itsrequirement, this is a bizarre propo-sition. No sovereign Governmentwould ever permit it. Therefore,prohibition on export of cruderightly continues.

Currently, E&P firms areallowed to sell their crude at pari-ty with its international price with-out any restriction. The steepincrease in the international pricehas meant corresponding increasein the realization for these firms.

The resulting increase in theirprofits is due to the fortuitous cir-cumstances (read: Ukraine war), asa big slice of global crude supply gotdisrupted. These are ‘windfall gains’,a portion of which is being moppedup by levy of a windfall tax ondomestic crude. Against a realizationof around US$ 40 per barrel in nor-mal times, if today producers are get-ting upto US$ 80 per barrel more,the Government is justified in tak-ing away a portion of this bonanza- Rs 23,250 per tonne or US$ 40 perbarrel, this comes to 50 percent.

However, a stipulation that“no cess will be imposed on suchquantity of crude that is producedin excess of last year’s productionby a crude producer” was avoidable.It will prompt producers to showmore quantity under the ‘incre-mental’ head to escape levy of cess,thereby defeating the very purpose.

The freedom of selling crude byitself won’t galvanize E&P firms toboost domestic output. This isbecause the majority of the fieldsproduce both crude oil and natur-al gas (NG). The NG is subject tocontrols on pricing and selling.

The Government hands out at

least half-a-dozen prices. The NGflowing from fields given on nom-ination to ONGC and OIL underpre-NELP (New ExplorationLicensing Policy) and NELP is cov-ered under the administered pricemechanism. There is a premiumprice for gas extracted from deepand ultra-deep water fields. Thoughmarket determined, this price issubject to a cap; in effect, even thisis controlled.

Other categories include mar-ket-based price for fields givenunder the HydrocarbonExploration Licensing Policy(HELP) or Open Acreage LicensingPolicy (OALP); special price forunconventional stuff like shale gas,coal bed methane (CBM) fromfields given under NELP as well asHELP; and for small and margin-al fields whose ownership has beentransferred from ONGC/OIL toprivate firms.

Furthermore, marketing (whogets to sell how much gas and fromwhich field) is decided by an inter-ministerial committee, headed bysecretary, ministry of petroleumand natural gas (MPNG). It createsa fertile ground for intense lobby-ing by interest groups to get the bestdeal in terms of the price and quan-tity sold. This distracts attentionfrom maximizing production evenas E&P firms are focused more onmanaging the officials.

In view of above, for E&Pfirms to get enthused, alongsidecrude, it is also necessary to grantthem freedom for marketing andpricing of NG. The freedom shouldalso embrace companies engagedin refining and marketing of petro-leum products.

Although petrol and diesel arederegulated, de facto central pub-lic sector undertakings (CPSUs) viz.IOCL/BPCL/HPCL (they accountfor 90 percent of retail outlets) arenot free to fix their prices. TheseCPSUs receive tacit instructionsfrom their bosses to maintainprices at levels desired by the lat-ter. For instance, the current pumpprice of petrol in Delhi at Rs 97 perliter, Rs 13 per liter less than theinternational parity price.

This artificial suppression ofthe retail price by CPSUs hasprompted private refiners such asReliance Industries (RIL) andNayara Energy to cut supplies tothe domestic market as they can’tmatch the prices offered by the for-mer. In turn, this has led to fuelshortages in several states such asRajasthan, Madhya Pradesh andGujarat.

To alleviate shortage, theGovernment has come up with atax on export of these fuels. It alsowants exporters to supply 50 per-cent of the quantity of petrolexported during 2022-23 (30 per-cent in case of diesel) in thedomestic market. It is missing thewood for the trees. While domes-tic prices are artificially kept belowthe international prices and a pri-vate refiner stands to gain byexporting, merely imposing levy ofexport tax creates no deterrence,and there may be attempts tofudge data.

To conclude, instead of lookingfor short-term palliatives, the ModiGovernment should free up thehydrocarbon sector, covering theentire supply chain from E&P torefining and marketing.

HYDERABAD | TUESDAY | JULY 12, 2022 Money 08

MO

NE

Y M

AT

TE

RS

Agro-chemical firm GSP Crop Science Pvt Lt is looking to launch a Rs 500-crore IPO (InitialPublic Offering) by next year, according to its managing director Bhavesh Shah. The company,which needs funds for expansion of its business operation, plans to soon file a draft red herring

prospectus with capital markets regulator Sebi, he said. Established in 1985, Ahmedabad-based GSPCrop Science manufactures technical grade ingredients and formulates insecticides, fungicides andherbicides, intermediates, biopesticides, seed-treatment chemicals and public health products."We are in the beginning stage of IPO. About Rs500 crore funds will be raised through IPO," Shahsaid in an interview with PTI. The company intendsto launch new products and set up a newproduction line at Dahej in Gujarat. The fundsraised through initial share sale will be utilised forthis, he added. GSP Crop Science whole-timedirector Tirth Shah said the company's move tolaunch the IPO is mainly driven by improvement inits financial performance in last few years andexpansion plans.

Mercedes-Benz India on Monday reported its highest ever second-quarter salesat 7,573 units, registering a 56 per cent jump over the year-ago period. Thecompany had sold 4,857 units in the April-June period of 2021. The highest

ever Q2 sales were achieved on the back of new product launches, sustained demandfor existing products and services, and a unique omnichannel customer journeycreated through the Retail of theFuture initiative, Mercedes-Benz Indiasaid in a statement. "This salesrecord becomes even moresignificant against the backdrop ofcontinued supply-side challenges,triggered by global developments andalso local market challenges,"Mercedes-Benz India ManagingDirector and CEO Martin Schwenkstated. The company expects thesemiconductor shortage to continuein the coming months, he added.

Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) on Monday said it has commenced deliveries of the new RangeRover in the country. The model comes with a line-up of six and eight-cylinder powertrains,priced between Rs 2.38 crore and Rs 3.43 crore (ex-showroom). The new Range Rover

comes with 3 litre petrol and diesel engines, respectively. The model also features a bigger 4.4litre petrol powertrain. "The New RangeRover is the epitome of exclusivity andmodern luxury, that strikes the perfectbalance of peerless refinement withtechnological sophistication. It is truly, themost desirable vehicle meant for the mostdiscerning of customers," JLR Presidentand Managing Director Rohit Suri said in astatement. The new Range Rover comeswith five seats in both Standard (SWB)and Long Wheelbase (LWB) body designsand an option of a third row for extendedcomfort for up to seven adults in the LWB,the automaker stated.

GSP Crop Science plans Rs 500-crore IPO next year

Mercedes-Benz clocks highestever sales of 7,573 units in India

JLR commences deliveries of new Range Rover in India

PNS n NEW DELHI

Bank credit offtake is expect-ed to pick up following nor-malisation of economic activ-ities aided by the govern-ment thrust on public expen-diture in current fiscal year, areport said.

According to the Care Edgereport, the gross non-per-forming assets (GNPA) ratiohit a six-year low of 5.9 percent in FY22 but remainedabove the pre-asset qualityreview of 2015-16.

However, it said, India'sNPA ratio is one of the high-

est among the comparablecountries despite gradualdecline.

Non performing loans

eased in advanced economiesdue to continued deleverag-ing, and institutional and gov-ernment intervention, it said.

As the Indian economy hasnavigated the pandemic-induced shocks, it said, thebank credit growth by sched-uled commercial banks(SCBs) improved post-August2021 to reach 13.1 per cent inearly June 2022, a rate lastrecorded in March 2019.

Apart from retail, the majordrver of this growth has beenthe wholesale credit, whichreported double-digit growthafter witnessing a significantslowdown last year, it said.

After a modest creditgrowth in recent years, it said,"the outlook for bank credit

offtake is positive due to theeconomic expansion trackingnominal GDP growth, rise ingovernment and private cap-ital expenditure, rising com-modity prices, implementa-tion of the PLI scheme, theextension of ECLGS forMSME and retail credit push."

RBI in its latest FinancialStability Report said bad loansof banks are expected to fur-ther decline to 5.3 per cent oftotal advances by March 2023from a six-year low on theback of growth in credit anddeclining trend in the stock ofNPAs.

PNS n NEW DELHI

The highest GST rate of 28 percent is meant for things thatare considered "sinful con-sumption", and equatinggames of skill with gambling,betting and wagering will beagainst the spirit of SupremeCourt judgement, industrybody IAMAI said on Monday.

At present, the current rateof GST on this sector of onlineskill gaming industry is 18 percent on the Gross GamingRevenue (GGR) and 0 percent on Contest Entry Fee(CEF).

GST council has beenmulling to increase the tax ononline gaming to 28 per cent.

The Internet and MobileAssociation of India (IAMAI)has appealed to the govern-ment to maintain the statusquo on the online games of

skill industry at 18 per cent asimposition of a 28 per cent taxon gross gaming revenue willlead to increase of tax inci-dence to 55 per cent.

"In India, 28 per cent GSTis imposed on what is consid-ered "sinful consumption.However, the Supreme Courtof India...has clearly ruled

that games of skills are legiti-mate trades and, are therefore,protected under Articles -19(1)(g) and 14 of theConstitution. It would beagainst the letter and spirit ofthe Supreme Court's judge-ment to equate games of skillwith games of chance -- gam-bling, betting or wagering,"

IAMAI said in the statement.The industry body said thatonline skill games also providethe most transparent mecha-nism for accounting GST andthe nature of transactionsbeing completely digitalensures there is almost zeroleakage in revenue.

Online games have paid a

cumulative Rs 6,000 croreGST in the last four years andare likely to pay Rs 16,000crore between 2022-2025, itsaid.

"In addition, unfortunatelyif 28 per cent is imposed onthe CEF - the incidence ofGST shoots up nearly 10times. Thus, it is very likelythat the industry and GST rev-enue thereof will cease toexist," the statement said.

According to the associa-tion, the impact of anychanges in the current inci-dence of GST would meanthat many of the offline ser-vice providers will go under-ground leading to further rev-enue leakages on one hand,and on the other, for theonline games of skill it wouldtantamount to killing theproverbial goose that laysgolden eggs.

28 PC GST IS FOR SINFUL CONSUMPTION

At present, the

current rate of GST

on this sector of

online skill gaming

industry is 18 per

cent on the Gross

Gaming Revenue

(GGR) and 0 per

cent on Contest

Entry Fee (CEF)

PNS n MUMBAI

Private equity investments intodomestic companies fell 17 percent to USD 6.72 billion on anannual basis in the June quar-ter, according to a report.

During the same period, thenumber of Private Equity (PE)deals also declined 15 per centto 344 compared to the year-ago period.

In the year-ago period, thedeal value stood at USD 8.13billion.

The deal value declined by25.1 per cent in the threemonths ended June comparedto the 2022 March quarterwhen it stood at USD 8.97 bil-lion, deal tracker Refinitiv, aLondon Stock Exchange groupentity, said on Monday.

The steep quarterly declinein the deal value was due to a40 per cent fall in money flowsto the startups space.

Refinitiv said that PE invest-ments declined 17.3 per cent toUSD 6.72 billion in the Junequarter from the year-ago peri-od when the country attractedUSD 8.13 billion. This was

after a strong start in the firstquarter. However, the total PEinvestments in the first sixmonths of the year stood atUSD 15.7 billion, which is agrowth of 25.9 per cent growthcompared to the year-ago peri-od.

It also said that technologyspace continued to receivemajority of investments,accounting for 73.2 per cent orUSD 6.53 billion so far in thefirst six months of this year.

There is also substantial cap-ital waiting to be deployed as

India-based funds raised USD7 billion so far this year, whichis more than double of the year-ago period, Refinitiv said.

In terms of industries,Internet and computer softwarealong with transportation sawthe maximum investments.Tech space got 26 per cent moremoney from 257 deals. IT wasfollowed by computer softwaresector which saw inflows risingby 14.3 per cent, transportation(144.3 per cent), financials (5.1per cent) and consumer relat-ed sectors (84.5 per cent).

PE investments intodomestic cos fall to $6.72 bln

IOC, BPCL, HPCL may post Rs 10,700 cr loss in Q1: ReportPNS n NEW DELHI

Indian Oil Corporation (IOC),Bharat Petroleum andHindustan Petroleum may posta combined loss of Rs 10,700crore in June quarter on sellingpetrol and diesel at rates belowcost, a report said on Monday.While the raw material (crudeoil) prices soared in April-June, petrol and diesel prices

were not revised, leading tomarketing losses which offsetstrong refining margins, ICICISecurities said in the report.The three state-owned oil mar-keting companies -- IOC,BPCL and HPCL -- control 90per cent of the retail petrol anddiesel sales in the country.They also own refineries thatturn crude oil into fuel such aspetrol and diesel.

PNS n CHENNAI

TI Clean Mobility, part of thediversified conglomerateMurugappa Group, will unveil itselectric three-wheelers and trac-tors under its Montra brand thisyear, a top company official saidon Monday.

TI Clean Mobility is a wholly-owned subsidiary of TubeInvestments of India, aMurugappa Group company.

The company has earmarkedRs 200 crore for the new venture,

which will manufacture its prod-ucts locally to serve the domesticmarket initially, Tube Investmentsof India Executive ChairmanArun Murugappan said here.

"As Montra electric vehicles aresoon to be launched, the three-wheelers will be revolutionaryproducts, a portfolio with manycategories, distinctive and supe-rior performance, and customer-centric advanced technology. Ourcompany vision is to improve thequality of life through eco-friend-ly mobile solutions.

TI Clean Mobility to rollout electric three-wheeler

EKA RECEIVES CMVR NOD FOR

ITS E9 ELECTRIC BUSMUMBAI: Electric commercial vehicle maker EKA hasreceived the Central Motor Vehicle Rules certificationfor its E9 electric bus from the Automotive ResearchAssociation of India, the company announced onMonday. The certification is a critical step for the com-pany to start trials and sales of the 9-metre electric busin the coming months, EKA said in a statement.

‘Equating skill games withgambling against SC verdict’

Uber accepts past mistakes,says it is ‘different' nowPNS n NEW DELHI

As a leaked cache of confidential files illus-trated its potentially dubious and illegalmeans to push into markets around theworld, Uber said it will not make excuses forthe past but wanted to be judged by its actionsin the last five years.

A joint media investigation, dubbed the'Uber Files', found that Uber used "stealthtechnology" to fend off government inves-tigations. Reached for comments, an UberIndia spokesperson directed to a global state-ment the ride-sharing company had issued inresponse to the investigation.

In the statement, Uber acknowledged"mistakes" in the past and said that the com-pany under CEO Dara Khosrowshahi since2017, "is a different company."

"We have not and will not make excuses forpast behaviour that is clearly not in line withour present values. Instead, we ask the pub-lic to judge us by what we've done over thelast five years and what we will do in the yearsto come," the statement said.

While the investigation did not detail spe-cific transgression in India -- a market Uberhas been in since August 2013 -- theInternational Consortium of InvestigativeJournalists reported how Uber sought to skirttaxi regulations globally and leaned on sub-

sidised drivers and discounted fares thatundercut the taxi industry. It based theinvestigation on a cache of documents,including unvarnished text and emailexchanges between executives, with standoutsfrom co-founder and former chief executiveTravis Kalanick, who was forced to resign in2017 following accusations of brutal manage-ment practices. "There has been no shortageof reporting on Uber's mistakes prior to 2017.Thousands of stories have been published,multiple books have been written - there'seven been a TV series," the statement said.

Those "mistakes" five years ago culminat-ed in the termination of several senior exec-utives. "It's also exactly why Uber hired a newCEO, Dara Khosrowshahi, who was taskedwith transforming every aspect of how Uberoperates," it said.

Aided by push on public credit, growth to improve

Rupee falls 22 paise to record low of 79.48 against US dollarPNS n MUMBAI

The rupee depreciated by 22 paiseto close at a fresh lifetime low of79.48 (provisional) against the USdollar on Monday, tracking astrong greenback overseas andsubdued domestic equities.

However, receding crude oilprices in the international marketrestricted the rupee's loss, forextraders said. At the interbank forexmarket, the local unit openedweak at 79.30 against the greenback

and witnessed an intra-day high of79.24 and a low of 79.49. It final-

ly settled at 79.48 (provisional),down 22 paise over its previousclose of 79.26. The dollar index,which measures the greenback'sstrength against a basket of six cur-rencies, advanced 0.56 per cent to107.60. On the domestic equitymarket front, the BSE Sensexended 86.61 points or 0.16 per centlower at 54,395.23, while the broad-er NSE Nifty declined 4.60 pointsor per cent to 0.03. Brent crudefutures, the global oil benchmark,fell 1.43 per cent to USD 105.49 per

barrel. Foreign institutionalinvestors were net sellers in thecapital market on Friday as theysold shares worth Rs 109.31 crore,as per exchange data.

Foreign investors have pulled outover Rs 4,000 crore this month sofar amid steady appreciation of thedollar and rising interest rates inthe US.

However, the pace of selling byforeign portfolio investors (FPIs)has been declining over the last fewweeks.

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@TheDailyPioneer

facebook.com/dailypioneer

TuesdayJuly 12, 2022

rinking water is not in infinite supply onearth. It is in fact a fast-depleting resourceand a cause for global concern. Earth is71% water of which 97.5% is salt water andonly the remaining 2.5% is fresh. Only 1%of all available freshwater sources is acces-

sible and considerably exploited. 844 million peopleacross the planet lack access to a basic drinking watersource, either due to decreased water availability orcontamination. More than 50% of the planet's 37largest aquifers are being depleted due to climatechange and population growth

Global warming is causing glaciers to melt caus-ing sea levels to rise. The saline water flooding inlandcontaminates the delicate freshwater resourcesWarmer climate is causing more water to evaporatefrom water bodies. 7% more water evaporates for every1-degree rise in temperature.

Bringing a solution to all of these concerns, Ariabrings an ‘air to water’ technology, that plays a vitalpart in easing the global demands for fresh water bytapping into this virtually unused source of water inthe air. The perfect answer to the water crisis on earthand poor water quality is ‘up in the air’. Aria meansair in Italian, Persian and Sanskrit. Aria is the world'sfirst re-mineralised packaged atmospheric water, mak-ing water from the air, purifying it 5 times and addingminerals.

Speaking with us more about Aria, SachinVaddavalli, founder of Aria shares, “Not a single dropof groundwater has been used or wasted in thisprocess. 1 bottle of Aria LifeWater saves upto 3 bot-tles of groundwater. Aria has the highest mineral con-tent for health. Aria LifeWater pioneers and advocatessustainable and hydrating mineral water. I wasalways inclined towards environmental servicesbusinesses, my company in France works in this line,my idea to move to India was to work on water, asthis is essential and with growing population, econ-omy and groundwater depletion. I thought a sustain-able solution is needed desperately. Moving to Indiafrom France after 10yrs, my system was vulnerableand constantly had stomach acidity issues. Uponresearch, I realised that the water here is deficient ofessential minerals and hence the issues were aggra-vated combined with spicy food. Hence I wanted toensure Aria LifeWater has high essential minerals.Both passion and personal issues inspired me to comeup with water from air.”

On sharing about the need of this renewableresource of water, the founder says, “Groundwater isdepleting at an alarming rate. Existing bottled waterlacks essential minerals. Existing brands use RO tech-nology to purify, which removes all minerals andwastes 70% water. We address all these issues. Thispackaged water has high mineral content; high Ca,Mg, K, Na - this means proper hydration and essen-tial mineral intake. Directly linked to immunity, ner-vous system, bone strength and overall functionali-ty of the human system. The water undergoessophisticated 5-stage filtration to remove heavy par-ticles, odor, microorganisms and improve the taste.”

The packaged drinking water is re-mineralisedpackaged atmospheric water. They use the water fromthe perennial source- the atmosphere.

At present, the packed drinking water is availablein a few premium locations such as Fusion 9 groupof restaurants (Tom&Nori, F9, Glass onion),Aalankrita resorts, Taro, Brewdog, closed deals withfew star hotels groups. They are also available in storeslike Polimeraas, Q-mart and Pangea.

SHIKHA DUGGAL

BA Chaiwal, the name has been allover. Well, we were desperate toknow who he is? What does he doand why is he so famous?

Founded in 2017 by 21-year-old,Prafull Billore with three consecu-

tive failed attempts at the CAT examinationsand a lost dream to obtain an MBA degree, isthe brain behind MBA Chaiwala, an iconicchai outlet, growing exponentially in India.

Everywhere we look, people sip chai. Infact, chai consumption extends to foreignerstoo. It is not just a drink, but a ritual, a cele-bration and even a diversion from the regularmundane affairs and it is that inalienable partof our lives that most of us cannot do with-out. With this, the young man made a start-up out of it extravagant.

When we asked him whether he's on a mis-sion to become a serial entrepreneur, he says,“I may not be on a mission to become one,but certainly helping many others to becomesome serial entrepreneurs. Before being anentrepreneur, I was a normal student. Ibelonged to a middle-class family, we wereneither rich nor very poor. My parents want-ed me to pursue MBA but deep down Ialways had this yearning desire to do some-thing big and make my family proud.”

What started as a small ‘thela’ outside hisdream college has now exponentially grownup to have over twelve outlets across thecountry at different demographic locationsand is expanding more.

“I always wanted to be an entrepreneur andcreate my own identity. No matter what peo-ple would say, no matter what judgments theywill pass, I wanted to be an entrepreneur. Thisambition drove me to open my very first stall.

I always had a passion forworking hard, workingmore than my potential,and working morethan I am asked. Iwas convinced thatopening my ownstall is better thanworking undersomeone else'sshadow,” he adds.

What setsMBA Chaiwalaapart from otherfood chains is thatit is an entrepre-neurship develop-ment program thataims to empower everychai thela in creative ways.The idea behind this is thatevery chai wala should have the rightresources to run his thela the way he wants,just like every franchise owner has the rightto run his café as per local liking and taste.

He continued, “Youth are the buildingbricks of our country. That is why my biggestmotivation was to inspire the youth of mycountry into becoming atmanirbhar. Everystep I took from the very beginning was achallenge in itself. But if we talk about thebiggest challenge, it has to be the momentwhen I had to convince my parents. Being a

well-brought-up child from a mid-dle-class family, where my par-

ents had different dreams forme, the kind of dreams all

middle-class parents havefor their children, Ichose to leave all thatbehind and start a teastall just outside thecollege, that I wantedto get in. That wasindeed the biggestchallenge I faced butnow, we are onto bigger

and better things.” Prafull plans to expand

his business across all1900 pin codes and 4000

cities in India with a goal togrow worldwide and start his

own tea-leaf brand in the pipeline. He also mentions, “I don't believe in

luck. I trust luck is just a discount you get forthe hard work you do. There is no such thingcalled luck according to me. My vision for2022 and the coming years is to inspire theyouth of our country into creating their ownidentity. I want to educate people about theimportance and scope of entrepreneurshipand would love to see one start-up from eachhome in India. I also want to share my notionabout how India can become a five trillioneconomic nation.”

EK GARAM Chai is just nota drink, but an emotion

for many of us out there.TThhee PPiioonneeeerr brings to you thestory behind the well-knownMBA Chaiwala, who lost his

dream of getting an MBAdegree and ended up

bringing this iconic teaoutlet

Youth aare tthe bbuilding bbricks oof oour ccountry. TThat iis wwhy mmy bbiggest mmotivation wwas tto iinspire ttheyouth oof mmy ccountry iinto bbecoming aatmanirbhar. EEvery sstep II ttook ffrom tthe vvery bbeginning wwas aachallenge iin iitself. BBut iif wwe ttalk aabout tthe bbiggest cchallenge, iit hhas tto bbe tthe mmoment wwhen II hhad tto

convince mmy pparents. BBeing aa wwell-bbrought-uup cchild ffrom aa mmiddle-cclass ffamily, wwhere mmy pparents hhaddifferent ddreams ffor mme, tthe kkind oof ddreams aall mmiddle-cclass pparents hhave ffor ttheir cchildren, II cchose tto

leave aall tthat bbehind aand sstart aa ttea sstall jjust ooutside tthe ccollege, tthat II wwanted tto gget iin. TThat wwas iindeed tthe bbiggestchallenge II ffaced bbut nnow, wwe aare oonto bbigger aand bbetter tthings.

chai ki PyaaliM

Plants you should avoidIF YOU HAVE PETS AT HOME

A pet is a companion but it's also a huge responsibility. Pet ownersshould never take this responsibility lightly and should be cautious aboutthe environment they give their most precious family member.Sometimes unknowingly we forget to pet-proof our homes and this canbe hazardous to your furry friend's health. Plants, for example, mightseem harmless but they can prove to be dangerous for your pets. Indoorplants, plants in your garden, or even a bouquet of flowers, some ofthese could pose a serious threat to the pets in the house. Dr. VinodSharma, Head of Veterinary Services at DCC Animal Hospital, shared thelist of plants that should be avoided at home if you are having pets.

AMARYLLIS

Amaryllis has bright lily-like flowers and fascinating leaves; amaryllis isa stunning flower that can add the wow factor to any room duringwinter. But this beautiful flower is also extremely harmful to yourpets. In fact, it is toxic to all animals, not just dogs or cats. Thebulbs, leaves, and stems of this plant contain phenanthridinealkaloids, which cause an adverse reaction in your pets. If an animal

ingests any part of amaryllis, it could vomit or salivate excessively.Large amounts could cause diarrhoea and shake. Other symptoms

include a sore stomach and a drop in blood pressure.

DAFFODILS

Daffodils are another gorgeousplant that pose danger to yourpet. If you have a pet rabbit, itcould nibble on it and be fine.But, if you have a bird, cat, ordog - they may be at risk. The

reason why Daffodils aredangerous is that the plant

contains an alkaloid called lycorine.There are some other toxins called glycosides alsopresent in all parts of the plant and in concentratedquantities in the bulb. This could be especially bad forthe dogs who have a penchant for digging up the gardenbeds. Daffodil poisoning in pets causes severe diarrhoea,tremors, drooling, and vomiting. Cats and birdssometimes experience seizures. In birds, it could even befatal if ingested in excessive amounts. Cats can alsoexperience heart arrhythmia and breathing trouble. Dogs,in milder cases, may just experience the 'daffodil itch', areaction caused by coming into contact with the plant'ssap. Although dogs recover in a few days it's importantto monitor the symptoms.

LILIES

Lilies are a beautiful plan but they should be kept away from pets. All kindsof lilies have a bad effect on pets, especially birds and cats. Everything

about the plant is toxic to animals, even the water inside the vase.Depending on the type of lily ingested, the effects can be varied. Cats,

dogs, and birds experience irritation in the mouth and the digestive tract.If you see your pet pawing at its face and the lips are swollen you mayneed to check what they nibbled on. They could also be nauseous and

vomiting. But there are some lily types that are far more dangerous and canbe avoided completely, especially by cat owners. Easter lilies and Tiger lilies

could be fatal for your cat as any part of these plants could cause a sudden kidney failure.

MORNING GLORY

Morning glory is a great addition to gardens. Thevine looks exquisite with its vibrant colours. But theyare an absolute no-no for cats, dogs, and birds.There is a chemical present in this plant calledlysergic alkaloids. It can cause a severe reaction inpets like vomiting, tremors, dilated pupils, and evenliver failure in some cases. Another animal thatshould be kept away from morning glory is a horse.The lysergic alkaloids are most concentrated in theplant's seeds and are eerily similar to the chemicalsfound in LSD. If a bird or cat or even dog munch onthese seeds they could experience hallucinations,causing confusion and lethargy.

POINSETTIA

Poinsettia plants may not beas toxic as the others listedhere but they can still causemild irritation in certain pets.Cats and dogs mayexperience mild vomiting anddrool after ingesting theplant's sap. This milky saphas chemicals, diterpenoid EUphorbol esters, that causethese adverse effects. If yourcat or dog gets this sap on itsskin, it could becomeinflamed and itchy. Severepoinsettia poisoning is rare incats and dogs, but birds areaffected more severely.

AZALEA

Azaleas belong to the Rhododendron family and all plants from this gene pool are toxic topets. They are bitter in taste and that usually discourages the pets from munching on them

excessively and thus lessens the effects considerably. But if you have horses or anylivestock this flower could be trouble. Unfortunately, all parts of this plant are poisonous. Itcontains a toxin called grayanotoxins which are toxic to animals as well as humans. Azalea

poisoning symptoms include excessive drooling, vomiting, and diarrhoea. If they'reunphased by the bitterness of azaleas, their symptoms could be a lot worse. Watch out for

tremors, seizures and a loss of appetite.

CHRYSANTHEMUM

Chrysanthemums are toxic tocats, dogs, rabbits and many

other animals. The leaves andstems of this plant contain

pyrethrin which causevomiting, diarrhoea, drooling

and sometimes a loss inappetite if ingested.

HYDRANGEA

Hydrangeas are one of the mostcommon garden plants. Thevivid colors are super attractiveand enliven any space almostimmediately. But sadly, these

beautiful plants are not safe forpets. While the plant is not

particularly dangerous to some petslike cats and dogs, smaller pets could be at a greater risk.The smaller animals could become severely ill if they nibbleon the plant. Hydrangeas contain cyanogenic glycoside,which causes vomiting, diarrhoea and difficulty breathing forseveral pets. Cats could experience seizures and stiffnessand might become depressed and dogs could lose theirappetite, become fatigued and may even experience a fever.

MARIGOLDS

Marigolds are a favourite in Indian homes.They are in fact part of all celebrations.But, they are not so good for felinefriends. If your cat nibbles on the leavesof a marigold plant, it may get a sorestomach and an irritated mouth. It may

also experience drooling and diarrhoea.Marigold sap will also irritate your cat's skin.

Dogs are comparatively safer around marigolds butthe sap might irritate their skin too. It is always good to armyourself with the right knowledge about which plants could causeharm to your pets. Some plants have a milder reaction and somemay be extremely dangerous. It is pertinent that you make aninformed decision and if you suspect that your pet has ingested aharmful plant, you must seek medical help right away.

TULIPS

Tulips are one of the mostdangerous flowers for pets toingest. Tulips' toxins - lactonesand alkaloids are concentrated inthe bulb. If your pet has ingested

any part of the plant, especiallythe flower, you will see a variety of

symptoms like nausea, vomiting,diarrhoea, and excessive drooling. If you have a dog youmight see seizures, tremors, dizziness, and in some cases, itcould be fatal too. Tulip poisoning can cause death in birds,rabbits, and other smaller pets too. Horses may experiencedifferent symptoms, including colic, increased heart rate, andeven jaundice. It's safe to say that tulips need to be avoidedat all costs if you have a pet at home.

Bringing innovative ‘airto water' technology

d

10

Hyderabad Tuesday July 12, 2022 what’s brewing?

Ramesh Masthipuram, DIG of Police,Government of Telangana, along

with Varre Venkateswarlu, RTI Ex ChiefCommissioner, among other guestsgraced the award ceremony of NationWide Awards 2022, which was held atMercedes Benz Silver Star showroom in Banjara Hills, Hyderabad.

AWARDS NIGHT

Ph

oto

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ha

ry

l Aisha

l Sehrish Akram

PAR

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Former Congress MP, V HanumanthaRao, along with Member of Telangana

Legislative Council, Farooq Hussain,among the rest, graced their presence at the wedding of Sehrish Akram with Uzair Ahmed at King’s Palace,Mehdipatnam in Hyderabad.

SHAADI MUBARAK HO

l Uzair Ahmed

l Shagufta

l Kabeer Khan and Khan Atherl Mumtaz Ali Akram and Amena

l V.Hanmantha Raol Farooq Hussain and Abid Mohiuddin l Abdur Rahman and Mohib Mirza

l Swathi

l Sabista Khan l Manas Nagulapalli

l Vinay Kanth l Samhitha

lJA

.Cho

wda

ry a

nd R

adhi

ka R

eddy

FUN

ARCHIE

GARFIELDREALITY CHECK CROSSWORD

GINGER MEGGS

NANCY

Yesterday’s solution

CALVIN AND HOBBES

SPEED BUMP

SUDOKU

Rulesl Each row and column can

contain each number (1 to 9)exactly once.

l The sum of all numbers inany row or column mustequal 45.

11

Hyderabad | Tuesday July 12, 2022 tollywood

While the earlier released First Glimpseof Samantha's Yashoda created a hugebuzz all-over India, the movie team

wrapped up the shoot, except for a song. Withhuge expectations on its enthralling contentdirected by talented duo Hari-Harish, Seniorproducer Sivalenka Krishna Prasad is produc-ing it as Production No. 14 under the SrideviMovies banner. Speaking on the occasion, pro-ducer Sivalenka Krishna Prasad says“Wrapping up the shoot in 100 days, we'remaking Yashoda on uncompromised budget.With just one song left for the shoot, our CGwork is already in progress. As the dubbingworks will begin from July 15, we'll finishdubbing work for other languages simulta-neously. Also, we're planning to promotethis Pan-Indian film on a large scale.Keeping all this in mind, we've decided tomake the output of this edge-of-the-seatthriller perfectly ready for a Worldwiderelease. Samantha has shown sheer dedica-tion and commitment in playing theTitular role, especially in the high-octaneaction sequences. Aiming to release inTelugu, Tamil, Hindi, Malayalam, andKannada, teaser and songs are on the wayto raise the expectations.” BesidesSamantha, Varalaxmi Sarathkumar, UnniMukundan, Rao Ramesh, Murali Sharma,Sampath Raj, Shatru, Madhurima,Kalpika Ganesh, Divya Sripada, PriyankaSharma, and others are playing majorroles.

SSaammaanntthhaa’’ssYYaasshhooddaa

shoot rappedup, except for

a song

The promo of first single Akdi Pakdi from PanIndia star The Vijay Deverakonda’s crazy pro-ject Liger (Saala Crossbreed) directed by Path

Breaker Ace Director Puri Jagannadh has set theinternet on fire. It’s trending No 1 on YouTube andmusical charts with huge interactions. The country isawaiting the full song that is out now. Akdi Pakdi is aquintessential party track with massy beats. Thelyrics are very contemporary and easy to pick up. All the singers of differentlanguages have done a praiseworthy job in bringing the fun feelingto the track. The synths are fresh and blend well with the beats tobring out a thorough foot-tapping number. The hook line is bySunil Kashyap is as appealing as Vijay’s Liger step. Lijo George-Dj Chetas scored the number, while Vijay Deverakonda’smass and graceful dances are fun to watch. Ananya Pandeywho shook her leg alongside Vijay is equally imposing and isa stunner in the song. The settings look vibrant and visualsare grandeur. Everything about this song is so perfect tobecome party song of the year. Dev Negi, Pawni Pandeyand Lijo George crooned the Hindi version of the song forwhich lyrics were penned by Mohsin Shaikh and AzeemDayani. Choreography was done by Baba Bhaskar. InTelugu, Anurag Kulkarni and Ramya Behara togetherlent vocals, while Bhaskarabhatla Ravikumar providedthe lyrics. Written by Sagar, the Tamil version of thesong was sung by Sagar and Vaishnavi Kovvuri.

Vishnu Vardhan and Syama are the singers ofMalayalam, while lyrics are by Siju Thuravoor. SantoshVenky and Sangeetha Ravichandranath crooned theKannada version of the song written by VaradarajChikkaballapura. Sagar is south music administrator.Every promotional content from Liger is breakinginto the top records of the industry and is creatingmad buzz around the movie. While first look posterbecame most liked one, 1st glimpse clocked highestviews in 24 hours. While the promo is in top 3 list, thesong is set to break many previous records.

People are madly waiting for mass entertainers. Andthere’s huge anticipation for the film in the Pan India com-bination of Puri and Vijay. In association with Puri connects,the film is being produced jointly by Bollywood's leading pro-duction house Dharma Productions. Puri Jagannadh,Charmme Kaur, Karan Johar and Apoorva Mehta together arebankrolling the film on a grand scale. Vishnu Sarma is the cine-matographer, while Kecha from Thailand is the stunt director.

Being made in Hindi, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada and Malayalamlanguages, the Pan India Movie is scheduled for release in the-atres worldwide on 25th August, 2022.

Liger’s Akdi Pakdi

Pawan Kalyan to undertakea spiritual deeksha

Power Star Pawan Kalyan is currently trying to balance hisfilms and political commitments. It is known that Pawanhas films like Bhavadeeyudu Bhagat Singh, Hari Hara

Veera Mallu and project with Surender Reddy. He is also star-ring in the remake of Vinodhaya Sitham under the direction ofSamuthirakhani. Apart from it, Pawan is set to start his politi-cal tour. According to the latest updates, Pawan will be under-taking a spiritual Deeksha. It is known that Pawan Kalyanundertakes chaturmasya deeksha every year.

Pawan will be in the spiritual deeksha for around fourmonths. Mega family heroes are known for their spiritual feel-ings. While Pawan undertakes this Chaturmasya deekshaevery year, Mega Star Chiranjeevi and Ram Charan undertakesAyyappa deeksha every year. People are eagerly waiting to seehow Pawan Kalyan balances his films and politics along withhis spiritual deeksha.

The iconic star Allu Arjun has beenenjoying huge fan following. His fanand stardom had increased tremen-

dously after the film Pushpa.Be it the general public or the celebri-

ties, everyone have beenraving about him. Now, Shirley Setia who is romancing

Naga Shourya inthe romanticentertainerKrishnaVrindaVihari,interactingwith fans,has allpraises onAllu Arjun.

When askedabout Allu Arjun,Shirley Setia said, “What Charisma! Hugefan of Allu Arjun sir”. Fans of Allu Arjunare bowled by the new beauty raving aboutAllu Arjun. Shirley is not only popular asan actor but also as a singer. She made herdebut in Bollywood with Nikamma whichis the remake of the Tollywood film MCAstarring Nani.

Shirley who is known for her hot andcute looks is confident that she will getmore offers in Tollywood.

Shirley Setiain awe of Allu Arjun

Ram Pothineni is betting big on The Warrior, an action-packed massentertainer that presents Ram as an honest cop. The trailer and thesongs kept the bars of expectations high on the film. A grand pre-

release event of the film has been held last night in Hyderabad and thefilm is heading for a wide release in Telugu and Tamil languages on Friday.During the promotions, the film’s director N Lingusamy hinted about TheWarrior having a sequel. He said that the idea for the sequel is ready andmore details would be announced soon. The theatrical and the non-the-atrical rights of The Warrior are sold for record prices. Ram sounds superconfident on the film. Srinivasaa Chitturi is the producer and Krithi Shettyis the heroine. Devi Sri Prasad’s music album is trending all over and AadiPinisetty played the lead antagonist. After the release of The Warrior, Ramwill commence the shoot of Boyapati Srinu’s action entertainer.

The Warrior to have a sequel?

Bollywood warms up to Reeta Ramamurthy Gupta’s biography of

SANJEEV KUMARL

ate actor Sanjeev Kumars journey asan actor has inspired many to forayinto acting yet it is the least talked

about quest so far. Sanjeev Kumar, whodazzled with films like Mausam andAandhi has always been a common manssuperstar. The roles he played were wide-ly related to the masses. To throw light onthe enigmatic actor's life journey, hisnephew Uday Jariwala and author ReetaRamamurthy Gupta have cone togetherto present a biography 'Sanjeev Kumar-The Actor We All Loved’.

Some of the biggest names fromBollywood like Paresh Rawal, ShatrughanSinha, Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra,Tanuja, Pratik Gandhi, Sarita Joshi, AnjuMahendru and Sachin Pilgaonkar havesupported the effort and given their spe-cial inputs about Sanjeev Kumar in thebook.

Shatrughan Sinha posts, “Very happyto receive this book on one of the mostloved, admired actors as well my friend,philosopher and guide #SanjeevKumaron my wedding anniversary and hisbirthday which we always celebratedtogether. Shot by my son @luvsinha.”

Talking about the response the authorsare receiving from the film fraternity and

the readers, Reeta Ramamurthy Guptasays, “I am so grateful for the support thebook has received from actors and theveterans of the industry who knewHaribhai. And I am also elated that read-ers are enjoying Sanjeev Kumar's jour-ney. Most of all, I'm grateful to my co-

author Uday Jariwala, who was just 12years old when he performed Haribhai'slast rites. He has been the force behindthe book.”

Sanjeev Kumar - The Actor We AllLoved' was launched on the late actor'sbirth anniversary on July 9.

Vishnu Manchu’sfirst look fromGinna released

The makers of director Surya's upcoming film Ginna, fea-turing Vishnu Manchu in the lead, on Monday releasedthe first look of the actor in the film through a teaser.

While the makers are keeping the film's poster and otherpromotional material guarded, sources say Vishnu wanted todo something special for his fans who have stood behind himlike a rock.

Talking about the film and the first look, Vishnu said, “It isa film that is very dear to me. We wanted to surprise the audi-ence with a teaser look. I hope people like it. We had a ball ofa time making the film and it's the kind of entertainer thattakes its audience on a rollercoaster ride of emotions.”

The film boasts of a stellar cast that includes Payal Rajputand Sunny Leone amongst others.

Ginna, produced by Dr Mohan Babu under the banner AvaEntertainment, has dance stalwarts Prabhu Deva, RRR famePrem Rakshit and even Ganesh Acharya choreographing itsnumbers. The film promises to be an epic mass entertainerwhich has all the elements of thrill, comedy, action anddrama. The teaser reflects all the masala that the film holds.

Produced by Ava Entertainment and 24 Frames Factory,Ginna has music by Anup Rubens and cinematography bytwo-time National Award winner Chota K. Naidu. The storyis by G Nageswara Reddy and creative producer Kona Venkat.

Shooting of AishwaryaRajesh-starrer

Driver Jamuna concludes

The unit of director P. Kinslin'smuch-awaited action thriller,Driver Jamuna, featuring

actress Aishwarya Rajesh in thelead, has wrapped up the film'sshooting. Taking to Twitter, theactress posted a picture of theunit cutting a cake to mark thecompletion of the filmingprocess and said, “That's a wrap!Can't wait for you all to (see thefilm!) See you soon in theatres#driverjamuna.”She also posted a link to the trailer of the film,asking people to check it out if they hadn't watched it. AishwaryaRajesh, who is known to break sterotypes, seems to have played yetanother role in this film that may well be a first for an actress. Sheplays a cab driver in the film that's been directed by Kinslin, whoseearlier film, Vathikuchi, was a critically acclaimed box office success.The story takes place during a particular trip involving passengerswho opt for a shared drive. The trip Aishwarya undertakes in the filmis between Walajabad and East Coast Road. The gripping trailer givesa glimpse of how the cab driver gets caught in the crossfire betweena gang that is out to kill a man and the cops. The film hascinematography by Gokul Benoy, music by Ghibran and editing byRamar.

SONG TRENDS

sports 12HYDERABAD | TUESDAY | JULY 12, 2022

PTI n NOTTINGHAM

India skipper Rohit Sharma has hit backat "experts" who are questioning ViratKohli's place in the T20 side, saying the

star batter's "quality" is beyond doubt andthe team management will continue toback him.

Kohli, who has not scored a hundredacross formats since November 2019,failed to make an impact in the couple ofT20s against England.

While his form is being questioned inall formats of the games, Kohli was mak-ing a return to T20 Internationals after fivemonths.

The likes of Deepak Hooda gotopportunities in Kohli's absence and hemade the most of it. However, Hooda didnot find a spot in the playing eleven aftershowing sublime form against Ireland andthe series opener against England.

Experts, including World Cup win-ning captain Kapil Dev and formerEngland skipper Michael Vaughan, havespoken about Kohli's prolonged leanpatch.

Speaking to reporters after the thirdT20I on Sunday, Rohit said the expertsdon't know what is happening inside theteam.

"It's not difficult at all for us becausewe don't listen to outside noise. Also, Idon't know who these experts are and whythey're called experts. I don't get that,"Rohit said when asked about his thoughtson how the team is looking at Kohli's form.

While Kapil said players can't be

picked on reputation and one has to goby current form, Vaughan feels Kohlineeds a three-month sabbatical from thegame.

"They are seeing from outside, theydon't know what's happening inside theteam. We have a thought process, we makethe team, we debate and discuss it andthink a lot about it.

"The players we pick are backed, theyare given opportunities. People on the out-side don't know about it. So it's moreimportant about what's happening with-in our team, that's important for me," saidRohit in response to the growing criticismover Kohli's wretched run.

Kohli has 70 international hundredsto his name, only behind Ricky Ponting(71) and Sachin Tendulkar (100) in thegame and Rohit feels the star batter's qual-ity can't be questioned.

"Also, if you are talking about form,it goes up and down for everyone. Thequality of the player doesn't go bad. Weshould always keep in mind when suchcomments are passed around. We're back-ing that quality.

"It's happened with me, it's happenedwith XYZ. There's nothing new. When aplayer has done well so consistently, then1-2 bad series, his contribution shouldn'tbe forgotten.

"It might take time for some tounderstand. But for us, inside and runningthe team, we know the importance. I'llrequest those on the outside, yes you haveall the right to talk about it, but for us, itdoesn't matter a lot," added Rohit.

AP n GALLE

Dinesh Chandimal's double cen-tury and bowling heroics by

debutant Prabhat Jayasuriya led SriLanka to a series-levelling win overAustralia on Monday in a secondTest affected by protests and Covid.

The hosts hammered Australiaby an innings and 39 runs on thefourth day of the match, which hadwitnessed dramatic scenes outsidethe Galle stadium amid politicalunrest in the island nation.

But Chandimal brought thehome supporters joy two days laterwith an unbeaten 206 in Sri Lanka's554 all out, as the hosts managed afirst innings lead of 190.

Jayasuriya, a left-arm spinner,then took six wickets to improve hismatch haul to 12 and help dismissAustralia for 151 in the final sessionon day four as the hosts bouncedback from their opening loss to endthe series level at 1-1.

"We are here to bring smiles onpeople's faces," skipper DimuthKarunaratne told reporters, addingthat the players were there "to playcricket".

"I don't want to mention what weare going through," he said."Unfortunately it's what we are goingthrough."

The tourists posted 364, withSteve Smith hitting an unbeaten145 in the first innings, but their bat-ting faltered the second time around.

Off-spinner Ramesh Mendistrapped David Warner lbw for 24before tea and Jayasuriya soon tookover with his left-arm spin in thefinal session to send back UsmanKhawaja (29) and Steve Smith (0) inone over to rattle the opposition bat-ting.

The 30-year-old Jayasuriya, whoclaimed a six-for in the first innings,kept up the charge with another twin strike to expose the Australiantail.

Ramesh and debutant spinnerMaheesh Theekshana took two each,and Jayasuriya got the final wicket totrigger celebrations in the Sri Lankancamp and crowd.

Jayasuriya's match figures of 12-177 are the best ever by a Sri Lankanbowler on debut as he went one bet-ter than Praveen Jayawickrama, whotook 11 wickets in his first Test lastyear.

But it was Chandimal who set upvictory after he launched an assaulton the opposition bowlers with hisfinal 47 runs coming from just 28balls.

Chandimal, who recorded his13th Test hundred on Sunday, tookon the opposition bowlers after los-ing Jayasuriya for nought as he wentpast his previous best of 164.

The 32-year-old smashed left-arm quick Mitchell Starc for a fourand two sixes on consecutive balls togo past 200 as he leapt in joy amidraucous applause from the crowd.

AP n GUYANA

Spinner Mehidy Hasan andBangladesh exploited "ideal

conditions" to defeat the WestIndies by six wickets inSunday's rain-affected firstODI.

Shoriful Islam's haul offour for 34, his best in ODIs,limited the West Indies to 149for nine batting first in a fixturereduced to 41 overs-per-sidebefore Mahmudullah's unbeat-en 41 saw the visitors to the tar-get with more than nine oversto spare.

After 2-0 losses in both thepreceding Test and T20International series,Bangladesh's ninth consecutiveODI win over the West Indiesputs the pressure on the homeside going into the secondmatch at the same venue onWednesday.

Mehidy played his part ina disciplined bowling effortwith three wickets.

Senior pace bowlerMustafizur Rahman set thetone for the match when he dis-missed dangerous opener ShaiHope for a first ball duck afterBangladesh captain TamimIqbal put the home side in tobat.

Mehidy's victims includedWest Indies captain NicholasPooran and earned him theman of the match award.

"This is a really good resultfor us because rain preventedus from practising properlyfor the last few days," said thespinner.

"These were ideal condi-tions for us. I just tried to bowl

in the right areas and every-thing worked out well for us."

Shamarh Brooks top-scored with 33 for the hostswith the next best effort beingan unbeaten 19 from AndersonPhillip in an unbroken last-wicket partnership of 39 withJayden Seales (16 not out).

Shoriful went one betterthan Mustafizur in taking thewickets of Brandon King andBrooks in his opening overbefore adding the Guyanesepair of all-rounder RomarioShepherd and spinnerGudakesh Motie.

With the sun coming out toease the batting conditions,Bangladesh were alwaysfavoured to overhaul the targetand 37 from Najmul Hossaintogether with 33 by Tamim atthe top of the order set them ontheir way.

Tamim was run out andNajmul because the first wick-et of ODI debutant Motie,although those were mere stut-ters on the journey to victoryas wicketkeeper-batsmanNurul Hasan joinedMahmudullah in an unbrokenfifth-wicket stand of 40 to seetheir side to victory.

"In hindsight our totaltoday obviously wasn't enoughbut it was difficult to get morebatting first on that track,"was Pooran's frank assessmentof the conditions at the start ofthe match.

"Conditions improved lateron but having said that, weshould have pushed harder formore success at the start oftheir innings to give ourselvesa fighting chance."

PTI n LONDON

Senior India pacer Umesh Yadav will play for Middlesexfor the remainder of the English County season replac-

ing Pakistan speedster Shaheen Shah Afridi.The 34-year-old pacer has represented India in 52

Tests, 77 ODIS, and 7 T20Is and has scalped 273 inter-national wickets across all formats.

The county club sought Umesh's services as Afridi hasreturned home to join his national team for the tour ofSri Lanka.

"Middlesex Cricket is delighted to announce thatIndian international quick bowler Umesh Kumar Yadavhas signed terms with the Club and will join for theremainder of the 2022 season," the club said in a state-ment.

"This morning the Club received this confirmation,and confirmation that he is registered with the ECB, andYadav has, as a result, now been named as an addition toMiddlesex's squad for this weeks' game."

Middlesex further announced that Umesh will beavailable to represent the club in both CountyChampionship and Royal London Cup campaigns for therest of the season.

"He (Umesh) comes to us with a wealth of experi-ence. He is a proven world-class performer, and can notonly make a huge difference himself for the remainderof our Championship campaign and to our prospects inthe Royal London Cup but will also be a fantastic rolemodel for our younger bowlers to work alongside," saidAlex Coleman, Middlesex' Head of Men's PerformanceCricket.

"As a bowler, he offers a huge amount. He delivers theball from wide of the crease, can move the ball both ways,regularly tops 140 kph, and possesses a vicious short ball,so will be a real handful for opposition batters in Englishconditions," Coleman added.

Umesh is also the latest Indian to join veteran batterCheteshwar Pujara, and all-rounders Washington Sundarand Krunal Pandya in County cricket.

While Pujara plays for Sussex, Sundar and Krunal havesigned for Lancashire and Warwickshire respectively.

PTI n SINGAPORE

Indian shuttlers, led by two-timeOlympic medallist PV Sindhu and

in-form HS Prannoy, will look to hittop gear in the Singapore Super 500Tournament beginning here onTuesday.

Being the last tournament beforethe Commonwealth Games inBirmingham, starting later this month,the duo cannot afford to take it easy.

Sindhu (3) and Kidambi Srikanth(7), who are the only seeded Indiansin the main draw of the men's andwomen's singles competition, havebeen handed easy draws.

World No. 7 Sindhu, who will openher campaign against lowly-rankedLianne Tan of Belgium, is the onlyseeded player in her quarter.

Veteran shuttler Saina Nehwalwill begin her campaign against com-patriot Malvika Bansod and the win-ner of the clash could possibly face 2018Asian Games Silver medallist He BingJiao and former world championIntanon Ratchanok in the secondround and quarterfinals respectively.

Making a comeback after theIndonesia Open last month, Srikanthalso has an easy draw after the pulloutof world No. 1 and Olympic champi-

on Viktor Axelsen.Srikanth opens his campaign

against a qualifier and in the quar-terfinal he may run into fellowIndian and 2017 champion B SaiPraneeth.

Should he overcome Praneeth,Srikanth could play the semifinalagainst third seeded Chou TienChen of Chinese Taipei, who iscoming off a runners-up finish in theIndonesia Masters.

All eyes in the men's singleswould be on Prannoy who has been

in good form this year. With twosemifinal finishes in the past month— Malaysia Masters and IndonesiaOpen — he would be eager to go onestep further.

Placed in the second quarter ofthe draw, Prannoy opens his cam-paign against Thailand's SitthikomThammasin in the first round.

He finds himself in the same halfas third seed Chou and fifth seedJonatan Christie, who takes onParupalli Kashyap in the openinground.

PTI n TERASSA

The Indian women's hockey teamwas eliminated from the FIH

World Cup title race after losing 0-1to co-hosts Spain in a hard-foughtcrossover match here on Monday.

After a fiercely-contested threequarters, the Indian defence let in agoal just three minutes from the finalhooter when Marta Segu scored froma rebound to exit from the knock-outrounds.

As has been the case so far in thetournament, India fared poorly onceagain in converting penalty corners.

They earned four in the game againstSpain's three but all the chances wentin vain.

India captain Savita, in front of thegoal, showed why she has such highreputation as she pulled off saves timeand again to keep the deadlock intact.

India will next play Canada for theninth to 16th place classificationmatch here on Tuesday.

In the quarterfinals, New Zealandwill play Germany, another co-hostsNetherlands will be up againstBelgium, Australia will take on Spainand England will square off againstArgentina.

PTI n LONDON

India won't go ballistic from ball one butthe batters are expected to carry their

fearless approach from the shortest for-mat to the ODIs when the three-matchseries against England begins here onTuesday.

India's high-risk play helped themwin the series against England and con-sidering that the ODIs have become anextension of the shortest format, skipperRohit Sharma sees no reason why his teamshould back down from that approach.

England redefined the way ODIcricket was played and their dominant runculminated with the World Cup trophyback in 2019. It won't be an exaggerationto say that India's fresh outlook towardsthe shorter formats is inspired by theEnglish template.

These three games followed by as

many against West Indies will be the only50-over contests India will feature inbefore the T20 World Cup but Rohitasserted they still hold a lot of importance.

"All matches are important for us. Wecan't play thinking ODIs are not a prior-ity, but we have to keep in mind the work-load of each player. We will make changesbut our ultimate goal is to win matches.We will not leave that thought processbehind," said Rohit on Sunday after thethird T20 at Nottingham.

"For us, the aim is to understandwhite-ball cricket, how to play, new guysare playing. 50 over is an extension of T20.Maybe you take less risk in ODIs as com-pared to T20 cricket but you have to takeit." The team will have an optional train-ing session at The Oval with a quick turn-around time between the T20 and ODIseries.

For someone like Shikhar Dhawan,

who only plays only one format and willbe captaining the team in the West Indies,it will be a challenge to take on theEngland attack from the word go.

However, the southpaw has foundways to stay consistent, whether he is play-ing ODIs for India or the IPL.

The ODI series will be Buttler's firstsince taking over as white-ball skipperfrom Eoin Morgan. After the T20 disap-pointment, the hosts will be eager tobounce back strongly.

Buttler himself will be looking tomake the big scores he is known far, hav-ing failed in the T20s.

England will be bolstered with thereturn of their star players Ben Stokes, JoeRoot and Jonny Bairstow, the hero ofBirmingham Test win of the hosts.

While Root doesn't play T20s, Stokesand Bairstow were rested after the historictriumph in the rescheduled fifth Test.

Umesh to playfor Middlesex

India look to carry T20I template into ODIs

Mehidy stars in B’desh6-wicket win in 1st ODI

Sri Lanka thrash Australia to level series

India's WC dream endsafter 0-1 loss to Spain

Sindhu, HS Prannoy lead India'schallenge at Singapore Super 500

KOHLI’S QUALITY CAN’T BE QUESTIONED: ROHIT