Return of the King - Sosin Classes

NEWDELHI,LATECITY

JANUARY2,202222 PAGES,`6.00

(`8 BIHAR&RAIPUR, ` 12 SRINAGAR)

WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMD A I L Y F R O M : A H M E D A B A D , C H A N D I G A R H , D E L H I , J A I P U R , K O L K A T A , L U C K N O W , M U M B A I , N A G P U R , P U N E , V A D O D A R A

A selection of short storiesto ring in the new year

PAGES 18, 19, 20

THE SUNDAY EXPRESS MAGAZINE

eyeReturn ofthe King

New Delhi

NEWDELHI,LATECITY

JANUARY2,202222 PAGES,`6.00




PAGES 18, 19, 20



New Delhi

CLASSIFIEDS&TENDERSWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

THE SUNDAY EXPRESS,JANUARY2,2022

E-Auctionareagain invitedonbehalf of CantonmentBoard,Agra fromtheeligible Individuals/Agencies/Organization/Firms etc. for e-auction for grant of license for improvement, development and operationof Cantt. Board's Panchwati Guest House on B.O.T. basis. Manual bids/ offers will not be accepted. Theinterested contractors/firms may look up the website (https://eauction.gov.in/eauction). Noconditional bid shall be accepted. The Board/CEO reserves the right to cancel or withdraw the bidwithout any notice and the Boards/CEO decision in this regardwill be final. Terms/Conditions, eligibilitycriteria and connected details can be seen in the auction document published in the website-(https://eauction.gov.in/eauction). Clarification needed, if any may be enquired/ clarified in pre-bidmeeting or from the office on any working day from the office of CB Agra telephonically (0562-2227379).

CANTONMENT BOARDAGRA

-SD-Chief Executive OfficerCantonment Board Agra(Vineet Kumar, I.D.E.S)

NOTICE INVITING E-AUCTION

Activity Date Time in IST

ii)

vii)viii)

Sl.No.Date of PublicationStart Date and Time for downloading of auction documentsSubmission Start date and timeSubmission End date and time

Auction Start DateAuction End Date

i)

iii)iv)

03.01.202203.01.202203.01.202224.01.2022

28.01.202228.01.2022

At 14:00 HRS

CANTONMENT BOARD AGRA

E-AUCTION FOR GRANT OF LICENSE FOR IMPROVEMENT,DEVELOPMENTANDOPERATION OF CANTT.BOARD'S PANCHWATI GUEST HOUSE ON B.O.T. BASIS.

v)vi)

Payment/Approval Start Date and timePayment/Approval End Date and time

24.01.202227.01.2022

At 16:00 HRSAt 13:00 HRSAt 14:00 HRSAt 17:00 HRSAt 10:00 HRSAt 17:00 HRS

The bidder may download the "Auction Document” and other terms and conditions as availableon thewebsite of agra.cantt.gov.in or https://eauction.gov.in/eauction/.

PR 260887 Water Resource(21-22)#D

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Residual Construction ofEarthwork , PCC Lining,Structure and WBM

Road in Angarpara MinorEx Km 3.94 of GaludihRight Main Canal .

WRD /IRR DivGaludih /SBD14/2021-22

fnukad%&31-12-2021

4,55,20,772.00 4,55,210.00 10000.00 365 fnu

SAINIK SCHOOL KAPURTHALA (PUNJAB)CBSE AFFILIATION NO 1680001, Phone No - 01822-230184

RECRUITMENT NOTICE1 Principal Sainik School Kapurthala invites applications for the following posts.

2 For detailed advertisement and application form, please visit the school website: www.sskapurthala.com.3 The school administration reserves the right to cancel all or any of the vacancies due to non-availability of suitable candidates or administrative/policy reasons.

Principal

Particulars

Reservation

Last date for submission ofapplication form

Pay

Essential Qualification

Age

Fees along with application form

01 x Quartermaster (Regular)

Un-reserved

31 Jan 2022

As per Cell 1 level 5 of 7th CPC pay matrix starting Rs. 29200/-

1. Essential Qualification(a) BA/B Com(b) At least five years experience as UDC (Stores) or as Quartermaster

or an ex-serviceman preferably a JCO with at least 10 years experi-ence in handling and accounting of stores.

2. Desirable Qualifications(a) Should have undergone a Quartermaster's course.(b) Should have adequate knowledge on procurement through GeM,

CPP etc.(c) Should have knowledge of GFR, DPM and DFPDS.(d) Should have sound knowledge of MS Office.

04 x General Employees (Contractual)

01-ST02-Unreserved01- OBC

Rs. 15,500/- (Consolidated)

1. Essential Qualification:Matriculation or equivalent.

2. Desirable Qualificationa) Skills in Plumbing, Electrical works,

Pump operator, carpentry, gardening,Safaiwala cooking, etc.

b) Selected candidates are to work as amulti task person (eg Cook / OfficeRunner / Waiter / Safai-Sewak /Grounds man and other sundry duties).

18-50 years of age with applicable relaxation

General/ OBC- Rs. 500/- SC/ST- Rs 250/-

E-Tender Notice No. PI(EP)/21-22/02 Phone No. 0172-2756469Tender applications are invited for purchase of various items against tender No. 1& 2 from the Manufacturers or their sole authorizeddistributors/agents. The bidders can place their bids as per terms & conditions contained on https://eprocure.gov.in/eprocure/app

POSTGRADUATE INSTITUTE OF MEDICAL EDUCATION & RESEARCH, CHANDIGARH

Tender document can also be downloaded from website www.pgimer.edu.in and can be applied on website www.eprocure.gov.in. Thetenders will be opened on the dates given above at 03:00 PM in the presence of the authorized intending tenderers. Tenders not sub-mitted on the prescribed form, not accompanied with Bid Security shall be summarily rejected.The undersigned reserves the right to accept or reject any or all the tenders received without assigning any reason thereof. “PRE-BIDCONFERENCE” WITH INTENDING BIDDERS FOR ITEM Sr. No. 2 shall be held on 05-01-2022 from 03:00 P.M. ONWARDS IN THEPI(EP), OFFICE, PGIMER, CHANDIGARH. The intending bidders are free to join Pre bid Conference through video conference. Formore details contact: 0172-2756469 at Procurement Branch (Import).NOTE 1. The terms and Conditions of the original Notice Inviting Tender (NIT) available on PGIMER Website will remain same. Howeveron switching over to e-tendering on e-Procurement, the bids will be received in electronic form on e-Procurement website and no bidwill be received in Physical form.NOTE 2. If any of the tender opening dates happens to be a holiday in PGIMER, Chandigarh, then the same shall be opened on nextfull working day.Additional Terms and Conditions.1. The Institute has adopted amended Notice Inviting Tenders (NIT) which is available on e-Procurement website

(https://eprocure.gov.in/eprocure/app) and Website: www.pgimer.edu.in. Therefore the bidders are requested to go through theInstructions Carefully before submitting bids.

2. The performance bank guarantee will be deposited @ 3% of the Contract value in compliance to the G.O.I. Letter No. F 9/4/2020-PPD dated 30.12.2021.

3. In case of item Sr. No. 2 above Exemption under Public Procurement (preference to Make in India) order 2017 has been grantedby the Competent Authority, therefore Para 5 of Annexure ‘A’ of NIT will not be applicable in this case.

PROFESSOR IN-CHARGE (EP)

Sr. Equipment/Item Name Quantity EMD Bid submission Bid Opening Deptt NameNo date Date

Non Pre Bid case

1. Liquid Nitrogen Based Cryogenic Storage System 01 No. 20,000/- 20-01-2022 21-01-2022 Endocrinology

Pre Bid case

2. Advanced Gynaecology Universal Applicator 01 No. 1,30,000/- 20-01-2022 21-01-2022 Radiotherapy

OFFICE OF THE ENGINEER IN CHIEFPUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT, NAVA RAIPUR, ATAL NAGAR

(CENTRAL TENDER CELL)

Main Portal:https://eproc.cgstate.gov.in

sd/-Chief Engineer

(Central Tender Cell)Office of Engineer In Chief

66379 P.W.D. Nava Raipur Atal Nagar

E-Procurement Tender Notice

OFFICE OF THE SUPERINTENDING ENGINEERCHHATTISGARH RURAL ROAD DEVELOPMENT

AGENCY PROJECT CIRCLE, DURG, DISTT. :DURG (C.G.)

NIT No. 38/SE/TECH./CGRRDA/2021 Dated 30/12/2021Superintending Engineer, Project Circle Durg on behalf of Governorof Chhattisgarh invites package wise bids in electronic tendering sys-tem for Repair & Maintenance under MMGSVY sanctioned forbelow mentioned district of the state as per B.O.Q. from the eligiblecontractors/Firms registered with unified registration system (e-reg-istration) for the works mentioned below. Date of release ofInvitation for Bids through e-procurement:S. NIT Work Name Amount (Rs. in Districts Rate invitedNo No. Lakhs)01 38 Repair & 137.07 Durg, Balod Percentage

Maintenance (I/c GST 12%) Bemetara, Rate SORwork Under Kabirdham 22.02.2018MMGSY issued by

CE, CGRRDARaipur

Detailed N.I.T. and other Details can be viewed on our websitehttps://eproc.cgstate.gov.in. on or after 03.01.2022. In future anyrelated corrigendum would be seen in the notice section of the web-site.

sd/-Superintending Engineer

Chhattisgarh Rural Road Development AgencyProject Circle, Durg,

Dist. :Durg (C.G.)30965 E-mail : [email protected]

E-Procurement Tender Notice (2nd Call)

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[email protected] Phone No. 07782-222827

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Sd./-(B.B. SHARMA)

Advocate

''IMPORTANT''Whilst care is taken prior toacceptance of advertisingcopy, it isnotpossible toverifyits contents. The IndianExpress (P) Limited cannot beheld responsible for suchcontents, nor for any loss ordamage incurredasaresultoftransactions with companies,associations or individualsadvertising in its newspapersor Publications. We thereforerecommend that readersmake necessary inquiriesbefore sending any monies orentering into any agreementswith advertisers or otherwiseacting on an advertisement inany manner whatsoever.

II,,VViippiinnKumar S/oShri NathipalR/o 227 1st Floor, VasundharaSector-1, Ghaziabad-201012, UPhavechangedmyname toVipinAggarwal. 0040597963-1

II,,SSoouurraabbhhKumar,S/oMadhuSudan,R/oH.No.202,PktD-11,Rohini Sector-7, New-Delhi-110085,have changedmynametoSourabhKumarMandlay.

0040597997-5

II,,SSaannjjaayyKumar,F/o-AnkurKumar,R/o-2184,KuchaAquilKhanBazar,SitaRam,Delhi-110006,inform that inmyson’sSchool-record(Ramjas SchoolPusaRoad,Delhi-110005)hisname&hisMother namehaswronlgywrittenasAnkur&Parul Rani insteadofAnkurKumar&Parul.

0040597997-7

II,,RRAAMMSSAAGGAARRRAUT,S/OBUCHAIRAUT,R/o-RC-1186,VANDANA-VIHAR, KHORA,GHAZIABAD,UTTARPRADESH-201309(UAN.NO-100302158860) (PFNO-17693)have changedmynametoSANTOSHKUMARRAUT,S/ORAGHUNATHRAUT,permanently. 0040597997-3

II,,PPuurraann Singh,Sonof Late Sh.Hiralal, H.No.11, Samman-Bazar, Jangpura, Bhogal,NewDelhi-110014,haveChangedmyname toPooranSingh,forall,futurepurposes.

0040598008-2

II,,PPOOOONNAAMM SHARMA,W/OLate,SANTOSHKUMARSHARMA,H.NO-62,MORNA-VILLAGE,SEC-35, NOIDA,GAUTAMBUDH-NAGAR,U.P-201301,havechangedmyname toREKHASHARMA, permanently.

0040597997-4

II,,KKaaiillaasshhChandNarula@KailashChand@KailashNarula S/o,AtmaRamNarulaR/o-X-4,Hans-Apartment, East-ArjunNagar, Delhi-110032,havechangedmyname toKailashNarula. 0040597997-10

II,,JJAAYYGOVINDMISHRA,S/OSHITLAPRASADMISHRA,R/o E-223A, 1st-Floor, Sector-11,Pratap-Vihar, Ghaziabad,UttarPradesh-201009,have changedmyname to JAIGOVINDMISHRA. 0040597997-2

II,,HHaarrddeeeepp SinghS/o,LateGurcharanSardar Singh,R/o-A-61, Second-Floor, Rampuri,Ghaziabad, U.P.-201011,havechangedmyname toHardeepSinghGill. 0040597997-9

II,,AAjjaayyKumarAggarwal S/oSharanBabuAggarwal R/o.D-173, 2nd-Floor, StreetNo.6,Laxmi-Nagar,Delhi-110092,have changedmyname toAjayAggarwal. 0040597997-1

II,,UzmaPraveen, R/oC-310/311,FlatNo.102, LotusApartment,Abul Fazal Enclave-2, Delhi-110025, have changedmynametoUzmaParveen. 70767397-1

II,,SatishKumar, S/oTej PalSingh, R/oT-7/906RpsSavana,RpsCity, Sector-88, Kheri Kalan(113), Faridabad,Haryana-121002, have changedmynameandshall hereafter be knownasSatishKumarChauhan.

0070767402-1

II,,PradeepKumar Singh, S/oChandrapal Singh, R/oHouseNo-A-104, 1st Floor BackSide,RamDutt Enclave, UttamNagar,WestDelhi-110059,Declare that nameofMinehasbeenwronglywrittenasPradeepSingh inmyminor SonAdityaSingh, agedabout 12Years, In his BirthCertificateRegistrationNo-NPPB201204386. TheactualnameofMine is PradeepKumarSingh,whichmaybeamendedaccordingly.

0070767401-1

II,,MamtaHemantKamboj,W/oHemantKamboj, R/oC8/8309,VasantKunj, NewDelhi-110070,have changedmynameandshall hereafter be knownasMamtaKamboj. 0070767395-1

II,, JasmeetKaurW/o-HardeepSinghGill R/o-A-61,Second-Floor,Rampuri, Ghaziabad,U.P.-201011, have changedmynameto JasmeetKaurGill.

0040597997-8

II,,Haseen Jaimal, R/oC-310/311,FlatNo.102, LotusApartment,Abul Fazal Enclave-2, Delhi-110025, have changedmynametoHaseen Jamal. 70767398-1

II,,Anil Kumar, S/oAnar Singh,R/o FlatNo.1904, Tower-G, RGResidency, Sector-120, NoidaU.P.-201301, have changedmyname toAnil KumarYadav forall futurepurposes.

0070767399-1

II,,AmarArora s/oPradeepKumarArora, r/o FlatNo.CNG-223, DLFCapital Greens,Midtown, 15, ShivajiMarg,MotiNagar, NewDelhi-110015, havechangednameofmyminor sonShauryaAmarArora toShauryaArora, for all purposes

0040597960-1

IIShoaibAkhtar S/o Iqrar KhanR/oA-76Gali No-2, Gokal Pur,NortheastDelhi-94. Thatmycorrect name is ShoaibKhanvideaffidavit IN-DL71247778154570T swornbeforenotarydated 29-DEC-2021 0050189730-1

IIArunBalaw/oNareshKumarNarula r/oTower 4 flat no.1002Valley viewestateGurgaonFaridabad roadgwal pahariGurgaonharyana 122003havechangedmyname toArunaNarula 0040597956-1

I,NidhiW/oSourabhKumarMandlayR/oH.No.202, PktD-11,Rohini Sector-7, New-Delhi-110085,have changedmynametoNidhiMandlay. 40597997-6

AAlllliiaannccee invited fromofficers ofAll India /Central/StateServices/Doctors /Engineers/Lawyers/ManagementProfessionals of Kshatriya/Rajput community forbeautiful BhriguvanshiKshatriya (Savarni gotra)girl,BA(Hons) philosophy fromMirandaHouse, Delhi andpursuing Law fromJaipur.28yrs/5.6 ht.Father Sr.IAS(ACSrank) Rajasthancadre.Interestedpersonsmaysendtheir biodataonemail:[email protected]

0110026651-1

LLaanndd for sale 36000sqft Rs12crnegotiable inGandhinagarBelgaumKarnatakaNALayout,NH4adjacentLandmarkHotel SankamContact 9845273435

0050189698-1

II Dimpal D/oSh. Sumer SinghW/oSh. Vijay SinghThalor R/oF-1206, HaweliaValenciaHomes,Sector-1, GreaterNoidaWest, GautamBudhNagar,U.P.-201306have changedmyname toDimpal Kumariw/oVijay SinghThalor for allpurposes. 0040597964-5

II AshaRani BhatiaR/o 104C, 2ndFloor,MIG Flat, Rajouri Garden,NewDelhi. I havemisplacedmyoriginal allotment letter,demand letter, Paymentsreceipts, offer of possessionletter, NOC for electricity&water, Site Possession letter. Ifanyone foundplease returnonaboveaddress. 0040597964-4

PUBLIC NOTICEWe, Sandeep Agrawal S/o RadheyShyam Agrawal & Nidhi AgrawalW/o Sandeep Agrawal both R/oB-1912, Gaur Global Village,Crossing Republik, Ghaziabad,UP have lost our OriginalPossession and Allotment Letterdated 30.01.2012 in Sector-60,Noida on 24/12/2021 of our FlatNo.1912, 19th Floor, Tower-B,Gaur Global Village, GH04,Crossing Republik, Dundahera,Ghaziabad, UP which was issuedto us by Gaursons India Pvt. Ltd.We had purchased the above flatvide Book No.1, Volume 9962 frompages 353 to 402 at SerialNo.5090 dated 01/06/2012 at theoffice of Sub-Registrar First,Ghaziabad. If found contact at8130136103.

Gaurav Kapoor (Advocate)47, Panchayat Bhawan, Distt Gurgaon (Hr)

PPUUBBLLIICC NNOOTTIICCEEBe it known to General Public at large thatmy client Shashi Bala W/o Suresh Kapoor& Suresh Kapoor S/o Late Sh. Gian ChandR/o-1121-22, Gali No.-6, Arjun Nagar,Gurugram, Haryana. My client debarred& disowned their son Sahil Kapoor and hiswife Akanksha Grover (entire family) fromall their movable/immovable properties dueto their disrespectful and cruel behaviorand out of control of my client.My client has also severed all their relationwith them, If anybody deals with them in anymanner, he/she shall do as it own risk, costand consequences. My Client & my clientfamily will not be responsible for any act fromabove named in any manner whatsoever.

New Delhi

NEWDELHI,LATECITY

JANUARY2,202222PAGES,`6.00




PAGES 18, 19, 20



SREENIVASJANYALA&HARISHDAMODARANHYDERABAD,NEWDELHI,JANUARY1

MOHAMMADALAMGIR, a six-acre potato grower fromKhandauli near Agra, is angrywithAsaduddinOwaisi.Notbe-causehisparty—theHyderabad-basedAllIndiaMajlis-e-IttehadulMuslimeen — is fighting the

comingUttarPradeshAssemblyelections. It has, instead, to dowith the party lending supportto the ruling dispensation inTelangana,which has “banned”importofpotatoes fromUP.“How can he (Owaisi) cam-

paignhere,whilebackingagov-ernment (of the TelanganaRashtra Samithi) that hasblocked entry of our potatoesthere (in Telangana)?” asksAlamgir,whoisalsogeneralsec-retaryof theAlooUtpadakKisanSamiti inAgra.Alamgirestimatesthatabout

100 trucks, each loaded with

some 500 50-kg bags of pota-toes, go from UP to Telanganaevery day. Out of that, 50-60trucks are from Agra alone.Maharashtra,Telangana,AndhraPradesh, Karnataka and TamilNadu together account forroughly three-fourths of the700-800trucksgoingdailyfromUP to various states.Telangana’s Agriculture

Minister S Niranjan Reddy hasdefended his government’smove. “The potatoes now com-ing fromUP are the produce oflastyear,keptincoldstores.Whyshouldwe consume this when

freshly harvested potatoesgrowninTelanganaarearrivingat the Rythu Bazar vegetablemarketshere?”heasked.UP farmers sowpotato from

mid-Octobertoearly-Novemberand harvest it by February 20-March10.Theytypicallysellonlyarounda fifthof thecropduringtheharvesttimeanddeposittheremainingproduceincoldstoresfor making staggered sales tillNovember-end. That is whenfreshpotatoes—growninstatessuch as Himachal Pradesh(mainlyUnadistrict),Punjab(theDoababelt), Karnataka (Hassan,

Kolar and Chikkaballapur),Maharashtra (Manchar) andeven UP (Farrukhabad andKannauj) — also hit themarket.This crop, of lesser 60-75 daysduration,isnotamenabletostor-ing at 2-4 degrees Celsius for 9-10months.“Last year,wehadabumper

cropduetowhich4-5%oftheto-tal produce (working out to 50-60 lakh bags) is still lying in ourcoldstores.IfTelanganaandoth-ers stopbuying,wewouldhavetothrowtheseontheroad,inor-der tomake space for the newpotatoes that farmerswill bring

from late-February,” saysDoongar Singh Chaudhary,ownerofVaidyajiSheetgrahPvt.Ltd, a coldstore inKhandauli.Telangana is seeking to pro-

moteextensivecultivationofpo-tato, as part of its cropdiversifi-cation plans. The state hasbecome India’s second largestcontributor of paddy to theCentral pool after Punjab, withprocurement soaring from amere23.57lakhtonnesin2015-16 to 141.09 lakh tonnes in the2020-21 marketing season(October-September).Telangana

CONTINUEDONPAGE6

PAGE1ANCHOR

In election heat, a hot potato: the Telangana ban on supplies from UP

16 INJURED INFIRST-EVERSTAMPEDEATSHRINE; PROBEORDERED

50,000visitors;scufflebetweentwogroupsnearshrine leads tothestampede

ARUNSHARMAKATRA(JAMMU), JANUARY1

AT LEAST 12 pilgrims died and16 were injured following astampedeatMataVaishnoDevishrine in Jammuat around2.15am on Saturday, officials said.This is the first such incident atthe shrine and raises questionsabout what officials have oftencalled a “foolproof system” tomanagepilgrims.At the time of the incident,

about50,000devoteeshadgath-eredinanewyearsurge,sourcesand eyewitnesses told TheSunday Express. The board thatmanagestheshrinesaidthatonly35,000peoplehadbeenallowedtoproceedduetoCovidcurbsforDecember31andJanuary1.Officials attributed the inci-

dent to a “scuffle” between twogroups on apathway leading tothe shrine complex. “Thepoliceand officials from the ShrineBoardwerequicktorespond,butthe damage had been done,” aseniorofficialsaid.Eyewitnessessaidthesituationescalatedafterpolicemen resorted to a mildlathichargetocontrolthecrowd.

J&K Lt Governor ManojSinha,whowasinformedaboutthestampedeat3am,orderedahigh-level inquiry into the inci-dent by a three-member team

CONTINUEDONPAGE6

INSIDE

FCRAREGISTRATIONLAPSES FOROXFAM,IMA, 5,9OONGOs4DEAD IN LANDSLIDEATHARYANAMINE,MANY TRAPPEDNOTAXONMUMBAIRESIDENTIAL UNITSUP TO500SQ FTPAGES 10, 11

SUNDAYSTORYPAGE 12

Gurgaon:Gated andWalled

Namaz row has takensheen off Gurgaon’scultivated apolitical

cosmopolitanism. Inits corporate offices,

condominiums, thereis growing alienation

ARUNSHARMAKATRA (JAMMU), JANUARY1

A TEENAGER fell unconsciousandwokeuptosee“manydeadbodies”.Acoupleclungtoapillarfor life, struggling to breathe inthecrush.Andafamilywatchedin dismay as parents in panic

pushed aside other children tosave theirown.The stampede that killed 12

pilgrims at the Mata VaishnoDevi shrine in J&K early onSaturdayalsoleft indeliblescarsin theminds of thosewho sur-vived thehorror.Seventeen-year-old Ayush

CONTINUEDONPAGE6

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICECHANDIGARH, JANUARY1

INTHEwakeof the rising casesof Covid-19 infections, includ-ing of the Omicron variant, theHaryana government Saturdayimposedfreshcurbs,especiallyin the five “high-risk” districtsofGurgaon,Faridabad,Ambala,Panchkula and Sonipat, effec-tive Sunday.As per the order, all cinema

halls, theatres,multiplexesandentertainment parks shall re-main closed in these five dis-tricts.Sportscomplexes, stadia,swimming pools will also re-main closed, except to be usedfortrainingof sportspersonsforparticipation in events, and forholdingsuchevents.Nospecta-tors or visitors will be allowedat these events. Exhibitions are

prohibited.Offices, government aswell

asprivate,exceptforemergencyor essential services, have beenadvised to functionwith 50 percent staff attendance.Malls andmarketswill shut

by5pm.Barsandrestaurantsareallowed to operate butwith 50percent seatingcapacity.Besides, the state govern-

ment said, only fully vaccinatedpersonsshallbeallowedinpub-lic places, such as sabzimandis,grainmarkets, parks, religiousplaces, bars, restaurants, hotels,departmental stores, shops,shoppingcomplexes, localmar-kets, petrol and CNG stations,

CONTINUEDONPAGE6

SHUBHAJITROYNEWDELHI, JANUARY1

FOR THE first time since KabulfelltotheTalibaninmid-August,India has sent 5 lakh doses ofCovaxintoAfghanistanasa“giftfor the people of Afghanistan”,the government said Saturday.Theywere taken from India toAfghanistanviaair.Earlythisyear,onFebruary7,

the first consignment of 5 lakhdoses of Covishieldwas sent toAfghanistan, followed by an-other 4.68 lakh doses throughthe Covax facility onMarch 6—thelatestconsignmenttakesthetotal to14.68 lakhdoses.Last month, India sent 1.6

metrictonnesofemergencylife-savingmedicines to Kabul for achildren’shospital in thecity.Thatandtoday’svaccinesare

seen as a renewed diplomaticpush. Thepolitical call to differ-entiate between the Talibanregime and the people ofAfghanistanwas taken awhileago: thatDelhiwill reach out tothe people of Afghanistanwithessential supplies through theUnitedNationsanditsagencies.

However, making the dis-tinction between the “govern-ment” and the “people” ofAfghanistan is easier said thandone.The consignment was

handed over Saturday to theIndira Gandhi Hospital, Kabul,but sources said NewDelhi haslittlecontroloverwhowillbead-ministeredtheseMade-in-Indiavaccines—whethermembersof

CONTINUEDONPAGE6

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEDEHRADUN, JANUARY1

THE UTTARAKHAND Police onSaturday added the names ofYati Narsinghanand and onemoreintheFIRregisteredincon-nectionwitha recent three-day‘Dharam Sansad’ held inHaridwar,whereaseriesofhatespeechestargetingMuslimsandcalling for violence and assassi-nationweremade.While theFIRwas lodgedon

December 22 on the complaint

of one Gulbahar Khan underSection153A(promotingenmitybetween different groups and

acts prejudicial to harmony) ofthe IPC, it only named formerShia Waqf Board chairmanWaseem Rizvi, who recentlyconverted to Hinduism andchanged his name to JitendraNarayan Tyagi. The names ofSaint DharamdasMaharaj andAnnapurnaMaawere added totheFIR lastweek.Haridwar city circle officer

(CO) Shekhar Suyal told TheSunday Express that they haveadded the names of YatiNarsinghanand, a controversial

CONTINUEDONPAGE6

Relatives lookforamissingdevoteeafter thestampede. PTI

Survivors relive horror:‘some fell, were run over’

Shots must, halls shut,mall hours curtailedin Gurgaon, Faridabad

MORECURBS,SCHOOLSSHUT INHARYANA

Stampedesite

VaishnoDeviBhawan

Sanjichhat (6200ft.)

Adhkawari(4,800ft)

Katra (2,800ft)

VaishnoDevishrine(5,200ft)

Aprotestagainst themeet inDehradunSaturday. PTI

Ata fieldnearFarrukhabad.Farmers fear losses. Express

TALIBANHASconveyedto India that itshumani-tarianaid ismore thanwelcome.Thevaccineconsignment, comingafter life-savingmedi-cinesupplies lastmonth,ispartofDelhi’sdiplo-matic strategy to remainengagedwithKabulwhilekeepinganarm’slength fromtheTalibanfornow.

Aiddiplomacy

Haridwar meet organiser Yati, 1more named in hate speech FIR

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI, JANUARY1

THE PROBE into last month’shelicopter crash in Tamil Naduthat killed the country’s firstChief of Defence Staff, GeneralBipin Rawat, and 13 others isclosetobeingcompleteandthefinal report is expected to besubmittedtotheAirForceChiefinJanuary,Defencesourcestold

The SundayExpress.Thereisnoofficialwordfrom

theAirForceontheprobe’sfind-ings so far. Sources suggestedthat the likely cause is not hu-manortechnicalerrorbutwhatis known as Controlled FlightintoTerrain(CIFT),whenthepi-lotunintentionallyhitsasurfaceorobject.CIFT means the helicopter

wasairworthyand thepilotwasnot at fault, sources said. In this

case,reducedvisibilitybecauseofbadweatherintheCoonoorarea,where the crashoccurred, couldbeoneof thecauses, theysaid.CIFTisoneofthemaincauses

of aircraft crashes globally. AndAir Force officials said the finalreportwill shed light on detailsof theaccident.The tri-services court of in-

quiry is headed by AirMarshalManvendra Singh, who is the

CONTINUEDONPAGE6

CDS copter crash: Report in Jan,unintentional error likely cause

NewYear tragedy at VaishnoDevi shrine:12 killed in rush, stampede in early hours

Ascene inthe latehours.ThestampedeoccurednearGateNo.3 leadinguptothesanctumsanctorum.PTI

5 lakh doses sent infirst vaccine aid afterKabul fell, more soon

2,716 CASES INDELHI, UP FROM1,796 PAGE 7

AtThanedistricthospital, a signboard informsabout thevaccinationdrive forminorsstartingMonday.Deepak Joshi

10-CRORETARGETPOPULATION

Registration forkids 15-18 beginsfor their first shotfrom tomorrowOver3 lakhregisterby lateSaturdaynight;activecase loadcrosses1 lakh

HARIKISHANSHARMANEWDELHI, JANUARY1

AS THE active Covid case loadnationwide crossed 1 lakhSaturday,theregistrationforvac-cinationforchildrenbetween15and18years,acrucialmilestoneinexpandingimmunitybeyondadults, gotunderway.Data on the Cowin dash-

boardshowed3,15,416registra-tions for this age group until11.30pmSaturday.Union Health Minister

MansukhMandaviya appealedtoparents to register their eligi-

ble children. “If the children aresafe,thenthefutureofthecoun-try is safe,”he tweeted.This began aweek after the

PrimeMinister'sannouncementthat Covid-19 vaccination willstart January3 for children.According to official esti-

mates,thereareanestimated10crore children in the 15-18 agegroup eligible for the vaccina-tion. TheUnionHealthMinistryhas announced that BharatBiotech'sCovaxinwillbetheonethatwill be administered to eli-giblechildren—intwodoses28daysapart.

CONTINUEDONPAGE6

MOREREPORTSPAGE14

New Delhi

THESECONDPAGE6 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHE SUNDAY EXPRESS,JANUARY2,2022

WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

Lookingbackat Indianpolitics in2021NEWEPISODEEVERYDAY

In thefirstpartof today’sepisode,ManojCGjoinhostSnigdhaSharmatodiscuss thehighsandlowsof Indianpolitics intheyeargoneby.

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Registration for15-18 begins,shots MondayThemove comes amid cau-

tionover the rapid spreadof theOmicronvariant.On Saturday, India reported

22,775 new cases in the last 24hours.Thecountry’sactivecase-load stood at 1,04,781.According to the HealthMinistry, out of 1431 Omicroncases, 488 cases have been ei-therdischargedorrecoveredormigrated. According to Cowin,India’s COVID-19 vaccinationcoverageexceeded145.46croreuntil late Saturday.Besidesvaccines forchildren,

the PrimeMinister had also an-nounced,inhisDecember25ad-dress to thenation, that health-careandfrontlineworkerswillgeta booster—he called it “precau-tiondose”—fromJanuary10.The“precaution dose” will also beavailablefromJanuary10forciti-zensabovetheageof60.He said that parents were

worriedaboutchildrenreturningtoschoolsandcolleges. "Thisde-cision (tovaccinate)will help re-ducetheirstress,”Modisaid.

Shots must, hallsshut, mall hourscurtailedLPG gas cylinder collection

centres, sugar mills, milkbooths, yogshalas, gym, fitnesscentres,governmentoffices,pri-vate and government sectorbanks.Publictransportservicessuch as buses and trains willalso impose this.The onus of ensuring it was

followedwill be on the ownersandmanagementof theseinsti-tutions, says theorder.Schools, colleges, polytech-

nics, ITIs, coaching institutions,libraries and training institutes(government and private), an-ganwadi centres and crechesshall remainclosed in thestate.In districts apart from the

five high-risk or Group A dis-tricts,permissionof thedeputycommissioners concernedwouldbeneededforgatheringsofmore than100. Cinemahalls(in malls and standalone),restaurants, bars, gyms, spasand club houseswould have tokeep their capacity to 50 percent.At funerals and weddings,

gatherings cannot includemorethan50and100people, respec-tively.Nightmovementrestrictions

are inplaceacross thestate from11pmto5am.Haryana saw552newCovid

cases Saturday, taking its activecases to 1,907, andnodeaths. ItsOmicroncountstandsat63,withnonedetectedSaturday.Ofthe63,40haverecovered.AsonSaturdayevening, 1,216 caseswereunder

homeisolationinthestate.Of the 552 newCovid cases

Saturday,more than half (298)wereinGurgaon,followedby107inFaridabad, 31 inSonipat, 26 inPanchkulaand32 inAmbala.OnFriday,427Covidcases,including26ofOmicron,hadbeenreportedinthestate.Thestate'sseconddosevacci-

nation coverage stands at 70%,while98%havegotthefirstdose.

5 lakh doses sentin vaccine aidafter Kabul felltheTalibanestablishmentor theAfghanpublic.Itisexpectedthatthevaccines

will be supplied tomanyhospi-tals in the country. The essentialmedicines sent lastmonthwerealsohandedovertothesamehos-pital through theWorldHealthOrganisation.Another batch of additional

500,000doseswouldbesuppliedincomingweeks.Incidentally,inAfghanistan,as

per theWHOdashboard, fromJanuary3,2020toDecember29,2021, there have been 1,57,998confirmedcasesofCovid-19with7,355deaths.AsofDecember26,2021,atotalof46.74lakhvaccinedoseshavebeenadministered.TheMEA added that in the

comingweeks,wheat andmoremedicalsupplieswouldbesent.

Unintentionalerror likely causein crashcountry’s tophelicopter pilot inthe armed forces. The Court ofInquirywas commissioned byChiefofAirStaff,AirChiefMarshalVRChaudhari.Beforesubmission,thefindingswillbelegallyvettedto ensure that all protocolswerefollowedintheprobe.Theblackboxof thehelicop-

terhadbeenrecoveredsoonafterthecrash,andtheprobeincludedgoing through the Flight DataRecorder(FDR)andCockpitVoiceRecorder(CVR).The13others in theMi-17v5

helicopter of the Air Force in-cludedRawat’swifeandmilitarypersonnel. The helicopter hadcrashedonDecember8as itwasdescending to land amid badweather. General Rawat washeaded to theDefence ServicesStaffCollegeinWellington.On December 9, Defence

Minister Rajnath Singh had in-formedParliament that theheli-copter had taken off from theSulurAirBaseat11.48amandwasexpectedtolandatWellingtonby12.15pm.

Haridwar meetorganiser Yati, 1more bookedHindutvaleaderwhohador-

ganisedtheHaridwarevent, andSagar SindhurajMaharaj from

Roorkeetothecriminalcasenow.“The FIR already had three

namesandonSaturdayweaddedtwo more names, taking the

numberofaccusedtofiveintotal.Thesenameswereaddedfollow-

ing investigation in the case. Asthe investigation is still goingon,more namesmight be added,”saidtheCO,addingthatnoarresthasbeenmadeinthecasesofar.Meanwhile,amassiveprotest

washeldoutsidetheUttarakhandpoliceheadquartersandtheStateSecretariathereSaturdayagainstthe ‘Dharam Sansad’. Thoseprotesting,mainly localsbelong-ingtotheMuslimcommunity,de-mandedimmediatearrestof theaccused in the case. Starting ataround11 am, the protestwenton forabout2-3hours followingwhich theprotestersweregivenassuranceaboutproper legal ac-tionagainstthosewhomadehatespeeches at theDharamSansadevencallingallegedlyforgenocideofminorities.Uttarakhand DGP said that

thoseprotestingoutside thepo-liceheadquarterswereagainsttheDharam Sansad and were de-manding action against the ac-cused. “Wehave assured themthat the law will take its owncourse and no culprit will bespared.Wealreadyhavenamedfive people in connection to theevent andproper actionwill betakenagainstthem,”hesaid.During the 17-19December

religiousconclave, repeatedcallswere allegedly given by severalspeakers towage awar againstMuslimsandreducetheirpopula-tioninIndia.Narsinghanand, who is al-

ready facing several FIRs in UP,calledfora“waragainstMuslims”and urged “Hindus to take upweapons” to ensure a “Muslimdidn’tbecomethePrimeMinisterin2029.”FormerDelhi BJP spokesper-

son Ashwini Upadhyay wasamong thosewho attended theconclave and presentedNarsinghanand a copy of theConstitution.“The only subject of this

Dharam Sansad is that in 2029thePrimeMinister of Indiawillbe aMuslim. This is not a base-lessthoughtandthosewhoun-derstand the demographicchange on ground understandthis — demographic changemeaningtheincreaseofMuslimpopulationratioanddecreaseofHindupopulationratio.ThewayMuslim population is increas-ing and our population is de-creasing, only in 7-8 years somuch will change that onlyMuslimswillbeseenonroads. Ihave been trying to tell this topeople for last 23 years,” YatiNarsinghanand had told theDharamSansad.“When the country has a

Muslim PM in 2029, given thehistoryof Islam,innext20years50percentHinduswillconvert,40 per cent Hindus will bekilled. Only 10 per cent Hinduswill remain, who will staysomewhereinAmerica,Canada,London and Europe or UNOrefugee camps in India. Therewill be no mutts, no temples

and all ourmothers and sisterswill be raped and sold inmar-ket. After capturing India, theIslamic jihad will be the mostpowerful and this jihad willreachtopersonofeverybelief,”healleged.Inhis speechat the conclave,

DharamdasMaharaj fromPatnasaid Indiawas “turning Islamic”evenwithHindus being 80 percentofthepopulation.Criticisingformer Prime Minister DrManmohan Singh's speech inParliamentthatminoritiesshouldhavethefirstrightoverresources,Dharamdas said: “When I readthatinnewspapers,IwishedIwasanMP,hadarevolverinhand,andhad turned into Nathuram. IwouldhaveemptiedallsixbulletsintoManmohanSingh.”Annapurna Maa,

Mahamandleshwarof NiranjaniAkhada, told the conclave that ifanyonewas a threat to SanatanDharmaandHindutva,shewouldnot think twicebefore takingupweapons even if she was “de-famedlike(Nathuram)Godse”.“IfIcanwieldaknife, Iwilltakeupaknife. If I canuse a sword, thenasword... If nothing, Iwill usemyclawslikealioness...Iwantyoutopromise that therewill not be aMuslimPMin2029.Ifwehavetofinish their population, we areready to kill and go to jail,”AnnapurnaMaasaid.SagarSindhurajMaharajfrom

Roorkee suggested that even ifonehastokeepamobilephoneofjust Rs 5,000, he should “buyweapons of at least Rs 1 lakh”.“Always keep swords and canesinyourhomeateverytime.Ifyouleave the house with yourweapon, there should be some-thinginthehousesothatifsome-onecomes,cannotleavealive,”hesaid.

In election heat, ahot potato: theTelangana banisalsoIndia’sthirdbiggestcottonproducer(afterMaharashtraandGujarat),toppinginprocurementby the Cotton Corporation ofIndia.Telangana is currently pro-

ducing potatoes in 3,500-4,000acres,mainly in theZaheerabadareaofSangareddydistrict.“Ourstateismostsuitableforgrowingpotatoes,particularlyaftertheir-rigationprojectswehaveunder-taken.There is scopeto increasethe area to one lakh acres ormore,whichwill,nodoubt, takesometime.Wearetargetingpro-duction andmarketing of freshpotatoes that can be consumedwithin4-5daysofharvest.Whenthere is demand for freshlygrownproduce,whydependoncold stores in Agra,” saysNiranjanReddy.That is clearlynotgoodnews

for UP potato farmers and coldstore owners like Alamgir andChaudhary.

FROMPAGEONE

12 killed in stampede at Vaishno Devi shrine

Survivors relive horror: ‘some fell, were run over’fromDelhiwas returning fromtheshrinewhenhesawpeopleahead,nearapolicecheckpoint,turn back and run. “I didn'tknowwhathadhappened,butIsawmanypeoplefallingdownnearme.Then, I felldownwithpeople stamping onme. Theonly thought inmymindwas Imay not survive. I fell uncon-scious,’’hesaid.“WhenIregainedmysenses,

I looked around to seemanydeadbodieslyingthere.Ifeltin-tensepaininmylegbutIstartedlookingformyelderbrotherandfound him lying unconsciousnearby.With thehelpof localsand somepilgrims, Imanagedto take him to a health facilitynearbywhere doctors gave usfirstaid.Wewerethentakentoahospital inKatra in anambu-lance,”saidAyush,whohadar-rivedforthepilgrimagewithhisbrotherandafriend.

The teenager said doctorsdischargedhimlater in thedaywhilehis brother is onventila-tor support. “Therewasnooneto control the crowd. No oneevencheckedouryatraslipsandCovidtestcertificates,”hesaid.RajatSharma,43,abusiness-

manfromDelhi’sVikaspuri,hadvisitedtheshrinealongwithhiswifeand17-year-oldsonhoursbeforethestampede.“Bas, jaanbach gayi (Our lives weresaved),”hesaid.BlamingtheShrineBoardfor

thetragedy,hesaid:“Theycouldhave at leastmade announce-mentsonthepublicaddresssys-tem, asking people to standwheretheyare.”Sharma recalled thatwhen

theyreachedtheshrine lateonFriday, “the first sightwas thehuge rush of pilgrims”. “A fewhours after darshan,we cameoutfromanotherroutemanned

byCRPF.Whenwenearedapo-licesecurityroom,agroupofun-ruly youthhit our son, injuringhisfoot,”Sharmasaid.“Beforewe could react,we

sawacrowdof300-400peoplerushing in our direction.Wetook refuge in thepolice room,which was already over-crowded. During the melee,manypeoplehandedovertheirchildrentousforsafety,”hesaid.Describing the scene,

Sharma said therewas “chaoseverywhere”. “Near theManokamna Bhawan in thecomplex,anothergroupof400-500peoplewaspushingothersaside to move forward.Suddenly, people started run-ninginalldirections.Therewasnoonetocontrol thecrowd.Assomefell,othersranoverthem,”hesaid.Mukesh,30,whohadcome

withhiswifeandchildrenfrom

Delhi, said theywere standingin queue when they saw acrowd surging forward frombothKatraandtheshrine.“Theywere pushing others aside tomove forward. Some minorchildrenwere standing there,andsomeparentswerepushingsomeofthemawaytosavetheirownchildrenfromgettingtram-pled,”hesaid.“This led to an altercation

and suddenly people startedrunning,”Mukesh said, addingthathetoofelldown.“Therewasnoonetohelp,except forsomelocalswhohelpedus reach thehealthfacilitynearby,”hesaid.Priyanka andher husband

Abhishek, fromDelhi,saidthey“caughtholdof apillarunderashed” to save themselves.“Pressedbetweenthepillarandthe crowd,wewere breathingwithdifficulty.We thoughtwemaynotsurvive,”Abhisheksaid.

led by Principal Secretary(Home), and including theDivisional Commissioner andAdditionalDGPof Jammu.Officials said the stampede

tookplace in theareabetweenGate No.3 and a junction ofpathways from the Sanjichhatside and the Ardhkuwari sidenear the shrine. The 16peopleinjured,includingatleastsevenseriously,weretakentotheShriMata VaishnoDevi NarayanaSuperspeciality Hospital inKatra. Nine of themwere dis-chargedfollowingtreatment.All the 12 deceased have

beenidentified:DheerajKumar(26), Shweta Singh (35), VinayKumar (24), SonuPandey (24),Mamta(38),DharamveerSingh(35),VineetKumar(38),DrArunPratap Singh (30), Akash (28),MonuSharma,MohinderSinghandNarinderKasyap. TheagesofSharma,MohinderSinghandKasyapareyettobeascertained.Dheeraj Kumar is from

Nowshera in J&K's Rajouri dis-trict,andtheothersfromDelhi,Haryana and UP. Ten bodieshave been sent to their home-towns and the twootherswillbe sent onSundaymorning, L-G Sinha said after visiting thehospital.Expressing condolences,

PrimeMinisterNarendraModisaid: “Anex-gratia of Rs 2 lakheach from PMNRF would begiventothenextofkinof thosewho lost their lives due to thestampedeatMataVaishnoDeviBhawan. The injuredwouldbe

givenRs50,000.”UnionHomeMinisterAmit

Shahsaidhehasspokentosen-ior J&Kofficialsandismonitor-ing thesituation.UnionMoS inthePMO,DrJitendraSingh,vis-itedKatratotakestockofthesit-uation,andmetsomeofthein-juredinhospital.LGGovernor Sinha,who is

also chairperson of the ShriMataVaishnoDeviShrineBoard(SMVDSB), announced an ex-gratia of Rs 10 lakheach to thenextof kinof thedeceasedandRs2lakheachfortheinjured.“Theunfortunate incident,

due to a scuffle between twogroups of pilgrims, resulted inthestampede.Inthisill-fatedin-cident,atotalof12pilgrimslosttheirlivesand16otherswerein-jured,” the SMVDSB said in astatement.Dheeraj Kumar from

Nowsherahadgotmarriedonlyayearagoandissurvivedbyhiswife,whoiseightmonthspreg-nant, andhis agedparents, po-lice sources said.Hehad cometo the shrine tomark the newyear,theysaid.Eyewitnesses told The

Indian Express that the stam-pedewasprecededbyasmallerincidentaboutfivehoursearlierat the old bathing ghat area,when“agroupof15-20pilgrimssuddenlycreatedacircle,push-ing other people, saying theyhad lost their phones”. “Somepeople,especiallychildren,wereinjured,” saidMukesh Singh, apilgrimfromUP'sBaghpat,who

waspresentattheghat.In 2017, theNationalGreen

Tribunalhadplacedadaily capof50,000pilgrimsattheshrine.In early 2020, the shrinewasshut for fivemonthsdue to thepandemic before being re-openedinAugustthatyearwithadailycapof2,000pilgrims.In freshCovidguidelines is-

suedearlyin2021,thedailycapwasraisedto25,000.InOctoberlastyear,theJ&Kadministrationmandated valid RT-PCR/RATtests takennot earlier than 72hours of arrival in Katra for allpilgrimsbutdidnotspecifyanychangeinthedailycap.TheSMVDSBstatementsaid

35,000pilgrimswere allowedfor the new year. “NationalGreenTribunal has capped thenormalcapacityofYatraperdayto50,000. Pertinently, keepinginviewtheCovid-19pandemic,35,000pilgrimswere allowedto proceed for yatra onDecember 31, 2021, and forJanuary1,2022,”thestatementsaid.Officials said the numbers

aremonitored through yatraslips that allowentry to avoidovercrowding along the tracksandtheshrinearea,andtofacil-itateinsurancecover.They said these slips are to

be checked at the entry of themain Banganga and Tarakoteroutes fromKatra townandat“two-threeplaces” along thesetracks by police and ShrineBoardstaff.Apart fromthis, thepilgrims are frisked and their

luggage scannedbyX-rayma-chines in view of a persistingthreatfromterroroutfits.“Yesterday, except for frisk-

ingatpolicecheckpoints,noonechecked the yatra slips or theCovidcertificatesonthewaytotheshrine,” saidMukeshSinghfromBaghpat. PraveenKumar,another pilgrim fromBaghpat,said: “Therewas such a hugecrowd that it was difficult toevenstandthere.”Officialssaidthatbeforethe

Covidoutbreak, the annual ya-trausedtodrawover10millionpilgrims,withnearly50,000ar-riving onDecember 31 alone.TheShrineBoardhas theofficeof the SDM, too, tomanage af-fairsatthecomplex.“Unlikethepast, it seems the staff did notalert Boardauthorities atKatraabout thehugecrowd,” saidanofficial.Baldev Sharma, the former

BJPMLAofReasi,whereKatraislocated,blamedtheincidenton“the total failure of the ShrineBoard”, which “neither re-strictedthenumberofpilgrimsbyfollowingtheCovidprotocolnorcheckedyatraslipsfrompil-grimsproceeding towards theshrine from Katra”. He de-manded the registration of acaseonmurderchargesagainstShrineBoardauthorities.LateronSaturday,aboutfive

hours after the stampede, theyatraresumedwithlongqueuesofupto2kminKatratownofpil-grimswaiting togetentry slipsfromtheShrineBoard.

Journalist files complaint on doctored online contentEXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI, JANUARY1

ADELHI-BASED journalist hasfiled a complaintwith the cybercell of south-east district police,allegingthatunidentifiedpersonsuploadeddoctoredphotosofheron awebpage alongside objec-tionablecomments“aimedatin-sultingMuslimwomen”.This comes sixmonths after po-liceinDelhiandNoidaregisteredcases in connectionwithphotosof Muslim women being up-loadedonaapp.Noarrestshavebeenmadeincon-nectionwiththatcomplaint.DCP(south-eastdistrict)Esha

Pandey confirmed theyhave re-ceivedacomplaint.“Wearelook-ingintoitandappropriatelegalac-tionwillbetaken,”shesaid.

Sources in the cyber cellclaimedtheyhadidentifiedsomeaccounts in connectionwith theobjectionalposts,whichwerede-activated following the policecomplaint.Policearetryingtogetfurtherdetails.Thecomplainantstates,“Iwas

shockedto findout thismorningthat awebsite... had a doctoredpictureofmeinanimproper,un-acceptableandclearly lewdcon-text.Iamoftenthetargetofonlinetrollsandthisseemstobethenextstep in such harassment. Thisneeds immediate action as thesameisclearlydesignedtoharassmeandothersimilarlysituatedin-dependentwomenand journal-ists.”Shefurtherwrote:“Thetermbulli-bai itself seemsdisrespect-fulandthecontentofthiswebsiteis clearly aimed at insultingMuslimwomenasthederogatory

termbuli is used exclusively forMuslimwomen and the entirewebsite seems tohavebeende-signedwith the intentof embar-rassing and insulting Muslimwomen.Thetermbulliofthedayfurtherobjectifiesanddehuman-iseswomen.”“Asalawabidingcitizenofthis

countryandasaMuslimwoman,I amdeeply disturbedby the al-legedtweet,whichisheadlinedas'yourbullibaioftheday'andisac-companiedbythedoctoredpho-tograph. Social media being aformofpublicexpressioncannotbeusedtodemeanandderogatewomen in general andMuslimwomen inparticular bymisogy-nist sections of society. This isnothing short of online harass-ment and the referred tweet forcriminalaction,”shestates.Thecontent“isviolent,threat-

ening and intending to create afeeling of fear and shame inmymind aswell as in theminds ofwomen in general, and theMuslim community, whosewomenarebeingtargetinginthishatefulmanner. Infact, thisweb-site has been targeting otherMuslimwomen aswell. It is in-deeddisappointingtoseetheim-punity with which such hatemongers continue to targetMuslimwomen,without fear ofany sanctionwhatsoever," shewrites.SherequestedtheDelhiPolice

tolodgeanFIRandactagainsttheinternethostingcompany.OnJuly7and8lastyear,police

inNoidaandDelhiregisteredsep-arate FIRs for creating an appwherephotosofwomenwereup-loadedwith an intention to de-fameandharassthem.

‘AIMEDAT INSULTINGMUSLIMWOMEN’

SUSHANTKULKARNIPUNE, JANUARY1

APUNEcourt,hearingthe2013murder case of rationalistNarendra Dabholkar, onSaturday questioned the de-fence lawyers for their line ofcross-examining the activist'ssonHamid.The cross-examination,

which began last month, in-cludedanewsreport from2010about the arrest of an activist -who was working forDabholkar's organizationAndhashraddha NirmoolanSamiti (MANS) - for allegedlinkswithMaoists.The defence lawyers asked

Hamid whether allegations

were made about MANS’Maoist links, to which the 46-year-old saidhewasnot awareof any such accusation.The court was irked by the

questionandobservedthat thenewsarticlecitedbythe lawyerreferred to an individual'sMaoist links,andnot thatof theorganisation.“In spite of requesting the

learned counsel not to ask thequestion, it was asked. Thecourt requests the counsel notto ask such questions to thewitness again,” the court said.The lawyersalsoquestioned

Hamid on issues related toDabholkar's anti-superstitionwork, including exposing vari-ouspeopleacrossMaharashtrawhoclaimedtohavesupernat-

ural powers and other busi-nesses based on superstitiousbeliefs.Hamid, a practicingpsychi-

atrist based in Satara, first ap-pearedbefore thespecial courtof additional sessions judgeSRNavandar onDecember 18 as awitness.Hewas initiallyexam-ined by CBI Special PublicProsecutor PrakashSurayvanshi, and later cross-examinedbya teamofdefencelawyers -- Prakash Salsingikar,Virendra Ichalkaranjikar andSuvarna Avhad Vast - who arerepresenting the five accused.The cross-examination

concluded on Saturday.Dabholkar (67) was shot

deadbytwopeopleonabridgein Pune onAugust 20, 2013.

Court raps defence lawyers onquestions to Dabholkar’s son

Bengal ministertests positive,hospitalised

PRESSTRUSTOFINDIAKOLKATA, JANUARY1

WEST BENGAL PowerMinisterAroop Biswaswas hospitalisedonSaturdayafterhe testedpos-itiveforCovid-19,anofficialsaid.Biswas, who exhibitedmild

symptoms, tested positive forthe infection andwas admittedtoahospitalinthesouthernpartof Kolkata,hesaid.“Hehasmildsymptomsand

he is being administered anti-bodies.Hisoxygenlevelsarebe-ingmonitored,andit isyet tobedecided whether to send hissamples for genome sequenc-ing,”theofficialtoldPTI.Doctorsare keeping Biswas under strictsurveillance,headded.

New Delhi

7THE SUNDAY EXPRESS,JANUARY2,2022

THECITYWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

31NEWOMICRONCASES INLAST24HRS


INYETanotherspike,dailyCovidcases shot past the 2,000-markin thecapital onSaturdaywhilethepositivityratecrossedthe3%mark.Delhi recorded 2,716 new

cases — up from Friday's figureof1,796—accordingtothedailyhealthbulletin. This is thehigh-est number of cases sinceMay21when the city had recorded3,009 caseswhile the devastat-ing second wave of the pan-demicwaswaning.Fresh cases have been in-

creasing sharply during theweek,withdailytallyincreasingfromlessthan500toover2,700in just fourdays.Thecurrent increase is likely

drivenby thenew,heavilymu-tated omicron variant. Delhi,which has been witnessing asharp uptick in omicron cases,recorded 31 of them in the last24 hours, taking the total tallyto 351.According to data shared by

the government, Delhi has thesecond-highestnumberofomi-

cron cases in the country afterMaharashtra, which has re-ported454cases.Along with the number of

omicroncases,whichhavenowenteredthestageofcommunitytransmission, thepositivity rate(proportionoftotalsamplesthatreturn positive) has also surgedto3.64% from2.44%adayago.The third phase of restric-

tions under the government'sgraded action response plan issupposed to kick in when thepositivity rate remains over 2%for two consecutive days.However, the government didnot implementthesecondlevelof restrictions keeping inmindmigrant workers; any furtherrestrictions will be imple-mented after a meeting of theDelhi Disaster ManagementAuthority.Theincreaseinpositivityrate

wasseendespiteahighnumberof testsbeingconducted.Morethan74,622testswere

conducted in the last 24 hours;

over 62,200 tests were con-ductedeachdayonaverageoverthe lastweek.Delhinowhasover6,000ac-

tive cases of which 247 are inhospitals."Keeping in view the ongo-

ing situation, more than 3,000beds have already been pre-paredforthechildren.Allhealth-care workers are being trainedandinstructedproperlyfortreat-ment of the virus," said HealthMinister Satyendar Jain onSaturday.He said that treatment and

preventionforomicronwerethesameandpeople needed to fol-lowmasking, social distancing,and handwashing: "People aredemanding the omicron(genome) test thesedays, this istoinformthemthatinformationonomicronisnecessaryonlyforthegovernmentandpolicymak-ers.Theomicronvariantisavari-antof the coronavirus itself andprotocol for its treatment andprevention is also the same asbefore."Healsosaidthegovernment

was fully prepared to vaccinatechildrenbetweentheagesof 15and18 fromMondayonwards.

SwabsamplesbeingcollectedatSarojiniNagarMetrostation.PraveenKhanna


THE DELHI governmentSaturdaysaiditwillprovide“freecustomisedonlineyogaclasses”forCovidpatientsinhomeisola-tion. Deputy Chief MinisterManish Sisodia said “immunitybooster yoga” alongwithmed-icaltreatmentwillhelpthemre-cover fast. He was interacting

withyoga instructorsof “DilliKiYogshala”Saturday.“At present, 61yoga instruc-

torsareconductingyogasessionsunder ‘Dilli Ki Yogshala’ at 65places across Delhi. These yogainstructorshavebeentrainedbyDelhi Pharmaceutical Sciencesand Research University,” thegovernmentsaidinastatement.“AssoonasaCovidcaseisre-

ported, the patientwill receivean SMS from the government

withalinktoregisterforclasses.Thereafter, links to the classeswill be sharedwith them regu-larly. Each classwill have about25-35people.Peoplecanchoosetheir slot,” it added.Sisodia said “Dilli ki

Yogashala” will bring a “yogarevolution” in the capital. Hesaid slots for the same will bereleased soon. “Many mightthink that yoga became an ac-tive part of society just a few

years back, but that is not true.Weneedtobreakthismythandteach people yoga in a se-quenced manner so that theybecomehealthy,” he said.At the event, a yoga instruc-

tor from the Vidhan Sabha saidstudentswere increasing everydayat their centre.“Currently, we have 86 stu-

dentsandareplanningtodividethemintomorebatches,”thein-structorsaid.

For Covid patients in home isolation, free online yoga class

ABHINAVRAJPUTNEWDELHI, JANUARY1

STATINGTHAT theNorthMCD-runRajanBabutuberculosishos-pitalwas found to be unsafe forhuman habitation, health andurban development ministerSatyendarJainSaturdayorderedthe Additional Chief Secretary(UrbanDevelopment)toimme-diately investigate “for vacationandsealing”of thepremises.“It has been brought to my

noticethatthebuildingofRajanBabu TB hospital run by theNorth MCD is in a dilapidatedstate. The MCD itself has de-clared the building unsafe forhumanhabitation...Despitethat,thehospital isbeingrunandthelivesof patients, attendantsandstaff are being put in danger. Itseemsthebuildingmaycollapseatanytime...Forthesafetyofhu-man lives... immediate enquirymay be conducted for vacationand sealing of the building,” anoteby theminister read.Jainsaidphotosshowingthe

dilapidated stateof thehospitalwere“disturbing”.Thematterwas highlighted

byAAPMLAAtishi,whomadeasurprise visit to the hospital onThursday, whichwas followedby a political slugfest betweenthe Delhi government and theBJP-ledcivicbody.“TheBJP-con-trolled North MCD’s hospitalbuilding is adisaster inwaiting;itcancollapseanytimeandtakenumerous lives,” shehadsaid.NorthMCDMayorRaja Iqbal

Singhhit out at Jain and said theorder “reflects the politically bi-asedattitudeofthegovernment...theminister shouldhavesoughtanadministrativereportfromthehospitaladministrationorNorthMCDcommissioneronthestatusofthebuilding.Buthechoosestobypassthelawfulsystem...”

The Mayor said under theDelhiMunicipal CorporationAct2012,onlyMCDshavethepowerto survey anddeclare anybuild-ingdangerousand,inthiscase,theNorthMCDhad already passednecessaryordersdeclaringapor-tionofthebuildinguninhabitable.Thecivicbodyhasordereda

structural safety audit of thebuilding. Standing committeechairperson of NorthMCD JogiRamJainsaidtheyhavesoughtareport from IIT-Roorkee on thesafety of the building, which isawaited:“Thecorporationispass-ing througha financial crisisduetowhich it has not been able toimmediately start repairs. Therearebarricadestoensurethatpeo-pledon’tventureoutfront.”Thedilapidatedblockvisited

by Atishi is situated separatelyon the campus, spread overmore than60acres,headded.

At the spotWith700beds, RajanBabu is

oneofthebiggesthospitalsundertheNorthMCDand it employs astaffofaround50doctors.Around100patientsareadmitted.Asoneenters thebuilding,at

least five boardswith the samewarning greet visitors: “Thisbuilding is dangerous, going

ahead is prohibited.” Each floorhasonetotwohalls,withpatientsin them. There is also a room formedicalstaffoneachfloor.On the top floor, an area has

beenmarkedasa‘noentryzone’and sports the same warningboard.Astaffmemberatthehos-pitalsaidplasterbeganfallingoutin one of the halls on this flooraroundtwomonthsago,follow-ingwhich itwasvacated.In the second hall on the

same floor, around 20 patientsare admitted. “We have beenhereforamonth,myrelativehasbeen admitted here for a lungproblem,”saidIslamuddin,wholives in Jahangirpuri.A staffer said at least three

complaints have been given inthepastyear: “Mostof theorig-inal construction inthehospitalis around 50 years old; it needstobedemolished insteadof be-ingrepaired fromtimeto time.”Asked about the warning

signagesinstalledinfrontof thestructure, Jain, the standingcommittee chairperson, said,“Yes, the boards have beenplaced, but a generic term isused,whetherabuildingis fullyor partially damaged.” He alsoclaimedthatAtishi“blewthingsoutof proportion”.

Thecivicbodyhasorderedastructural safetyauditof thebuilding.AmitMehra

MCD-run hospital is latestpolitical flashpoint as Delhigovt orders safety probe

DeputyChiefMinisterManishSisodia

4.0%

3.0%

2.0%

1.0%

0%

4000

3000

2000

1000

0

2,716

1,313

923

290

0.55

0.68

0.89

1.29 1.73

2.443.64

1,796

Dec26

Dec27

Dec28

Dec29

Dec30

Dec31

Jan1

Dec26 Dec27 Dec28 Dec29 Dec30 Dec31 Jan152,947 48,589 55,865 71,696 75,953 73,590 74,622

1 1 1 0 0 0 1

■Dailycases ■Positivityrate(in%) ■Deaths

OVERPASTWEEK

DAILYCOVIDTESTS

2,716 newcases, 3%positivity ratein city, no call yet onmore restrictions

Cases Recoveries Deaths TestsDec31 1,796 467 0 73,590Jan1 2,716 765 1 74,622Total 6,360* 14,19,459 25,108 3,27,99,557

Total VacantHOSPITAL BEDS 8,883 8,629ICU BEDS 2,776 2,716

CORONAVIRUSIN THECAPITAL *T

otalactivecases

VACCINATIONS INLAST24HOURS1,24,148

OMICRONCASES351

OXYGENSUPPORT

82

PATIENTS INHOSPITAL: 247VENTILATORSUPPORT

5

TOTALCASES14,50,927

New Delhi

8THE SUNDAY EXPRESS,JANUARY2,2022

THECITYWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

STARTINGTOMORROW

ANONNADUTTNEWDELHI, JANUARY1

THEDELHIgovernmentwill rollout the Covid vaccination driveforchildrenbetweentheagesof15and18yearsfrom159sitesingovernment hospitals, primaryhealthcare centres, andgovern-ment schools startingMonday.The drive will be expandedTuesday in a “campmode” atprivateschoolsifmorethan500childrenarereadytogettheshot.Almost all the sites thatwill

start immunising children onMonday are existing locationswhereCovaxin is administered.Thisisinadditiontopaidcentresatprivatehospitals.“TheexistingCovaxincentres

willbeusedforimmunisationofchildren. However, completelyseparate sessions (separatecounters)willbesetupforthem.Allcentreswillallowvaccinationthrough both online registra-tions as well as walk-in; ofcourse, those with online ap-pointmentswillbegivenprefer-ence,” saida seniorofficial fromNorthwestdistrict.In addition to the govern-

ment sites at thedistrict, campswillbesetup inat least twopri-vateschoolsfromTuesdaytoim-munisechildren there.Thereareatleast1.01million

children in the 15-18 age groupin Delhi who are eligible to gettheshot,accordingtodatasharedbytheCentralgovernment.Currently,Covaxinistheonly

vaccine approved for childrenavailable under the govern-ment’s immunisation pro-gramme.TheDNAvaccineman-ufactured by Zydus, calledZyCoV-D, also has emergencyuse authorisation for childrenover theageof 12years, but it isyet to become available underthegovernmentprogramme.Incaseswherecampsareset

up in schools, written consent

from parents or guardians willbeneeded toget theshot, saidaseniorDelhigovernmentofficial.“All children can get immu-

nisedatanygovernmentcentre.However, to reach the maxi-mum number of childrenquickly,wewillconduct immu-nisationdrives in a campmodein schools, including privateschools, later in the week. Thiswill happen in schools wherethereareover500childrenwhowish to get vaccinated. Thespace will be provided byschools and our team will gothereandconductthedrive.The

deputy director of educationhadameetingwiththeschools,”theofficial said.At the government centres,

the children have to be accom-paniedbyoneof theirparents.The slots for vaccination of

children on the government’sCoWIN platform opened up onSaturdaynoonandatleastsevencentres were booked out by 2pm,according to thewebsite.

Precautionary dosesPrecautionary doses for

healthcare workers, frontlineworkers, and those above the

ageof60yearswithcomorbidi-ties will also begin fromJanuary 10, according to theCentre’s direction. There areover3,80,000sucheligibleper-sons in the capital.Whether a person is eligible

for the shot will be shown onCoWINdepending on the nine-montheligibilitycriteria.“Thereis already a separate list ofhealthcareworkersandfrontlineworkers on CoWINwhichwillbe followed. For those frontlineandhealthcareworkerswhore-ceived the shot as part of thegeneralvaccination,theycangeta letter from their organisationto be prioritised for the precau-tionary dose after the nine-month interval,” said the seniorgovernmentofficial.Another district official said

the detailed guidelines for pre-cautionary doses are stillawaitedfromthestateimmuni-sationdepartment.

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEGURGAON,JANUARY1

DISTRICT HEALTH departmentofficials on Saturday said asmanyas87siteswillbesetupforinoculationof childrenagedbe-tween 15 and 18 years onJanuary3,whenthevaccinationis scheduled to begin. The slotson the CoWIN website wereopened for booking after 5 pmonSaturday, saidofficials.Officials said as per an esti-

mate, at least 1.75 lakh childrenbetween15and18yearsareeli-gibleforvaccinationinGurgaon.Dr M P Singh, district

immunisation officer, said,“Immunisation of children bornin 2007 or earlier would startfromJanuary3,forwhich39siteswillbesetupatschools,38sitesatgovernment institutions and 10atprivateplaces.Half of theslotsare available for online booking,while half will be reserved forwalk-ins across the city. Covaxinwill be used for this age group.Gurgaonhasover35,000Covaxindoses in stock andmorewill beprovidedbythestatedepartmentinthecomingdays.”Earlierthisweek,thedeputy

commissioner had held a taskforce meeting with the healthdepartmentandrepresentativesof hospitals to discuss arrange-ments.Officials had said children in

thisagegroupcanregisterthem-selves online or offline at thecentres. Fourpeoplecanbereg-isteredwithonemobilenumberand a school ID can be used forregistrationifAadhaarcardisnot

available.Meanwhile, Gurgaon on

Saturday reported 298 cases ofCovid, the highest single-dayspike in more than sevenmonths.Accordingtothedistricthealth bulletin, onMay 23, thedistricthadreported308cases.The total active cases are

1,149, of which nine are hospi-talisedand1,140areinhomeiso-lation.Atotalof5,962testswereconducted in the last24hours.On Saturday, 10,265 people

werevaccinatedwith3,389peo-ple being administered the firstdose and6,876 the seconddose.Over 4.27million people havebeenvaccinatedinGurgaonsofar.One omicron case was re-

ported, taking the tally to34.DrJaiPrakash,districtsurveil-

lanceofficer,Gurgaon,said,“Ofthe34casesofomicronvariant,sixareactivewhile the rest have all re-coveredandbeendischarged.”

159govt sites tovaccinate 15-18yearolds, campsatprivate schoolsnext

Four cops injured duringraid to nab ‘drug smuggler’ 159government

centresonMonday

■AppointmentsopenedonCoWINtoday

■Walk-inallowedatall centres

Numberof eligiblechildren10,14,00016private

centres

WHOISELIGIBLEChildrenbetween15and18years

THEDRIVE

WHERE:Covaxincentres inhospitals,dispensaries,andgovernmentschools

Currently,Covaxin is theonlyvaccineapprovedforchildren.AmitMehra

NEW YEAR AT PURANA QILAAcrowdofvisitorsatPuranaQilaonSaturday.PraveenKhanna

Rs 347 cr fake GST billing scam,across 11 firms, unearthed; 1 held

Denied parathas, twomen shoot dead ownerof food delivery serviceEXPRESSNEWSSERVICENOIDA, JANUARY1

THEOWNERofanonlinefoodde-liveryserviceinGreaterNoidawasshot dead allegedly by twomenforrefusingtoservethemfoodonSaturday. The accusedwere ar-restedfromAlpha2hourslater.According to police, the vic-

timhas been identified as Kapil(27),aresidentofHapur,whorananonlinekitchencalledSRFoods.Policesaidtheaccusedwerean-gry over being denied parathasafter therestaurantshut.“We received information

that a man has been shot inOmaxeArcadenearPariChowk.It was found during probe thatthevictimruns a food joint andhad denied food to customerspost1am.Hesustainedgunshotwoundsanddiedafterreachingthe nearest hospital. The ac-cused will be sent to judicial

custody,” said DCP GreaterNoida,AmitKumar.According to officials, post 1

am in the early hours ofSaturday, accused Aakash andYogendra came to the joint andaskedforparathas.Thetwohavebeen regular customers of thesame restaurant for the pastthreeyears, police said.Kapil told the accused that

the restaurant is shut and theywould not be able to providethem food. The accused had aheated argument followingwhich they left.Around 3.30 am, they came

backtoSRFoodswithagunandforced their way into the place.TheaccusedthenallegedlyshotKapilandfledfromthespot.Thevictim died during treatment,police said.An FIRwas filed against the

accused under IPC sections 302(murder), 34 (common inten-tion)atBeta2police station.


ENFORCEMENT OFFICIALS oftheDelhi stateGSTdepartmentsaid they had unearthed a fakeGSTbilling scamof Rs347crorespreadacross11 firms.According to officials, the

firms thathavebeenaccusedofevading taxeswere engaged incirculartradingandissuingfakebillstoclaimfraudulentinputtaxcredit toevade taxes.One accused, Mayank Jain,

hasalsobeenarrested.“The proprietor of Ms Super

Steel IndiaLtd.,MayankJain,be-lieved to be one of the kingpinsof thescamhasbeenarrestedbythedepartmentonSaturday,1st

January 2022. He has been re-manded to 14days judicial cus-tody by the judicial magistrate.More arrestsmay follow as theinvestigationunfolds,”anofficialstatement, issued by the Delhistate taxdepartment, said.According to officials, the

firms would issue fake or in-flatedinvoices,withoutsupply-inganygoods.All unaccountedtransactions were settled incash.“It was also discovered that

several of these 11 firmsbelongto only one person and couldhavebeensetupforthepurposeof creating long tax chains toavoid detection under tax laws.Throughacomplexdata-driveninvestigation, investigators un-covered that 4 of these 11 firms

had filed tax returns fromcom-puterswiththesameIPaddress.Also, 6 firms had the same con-tact number and 4were usingthe same email-id. Two otherfirms had the same bank ac-countnumber. Inasecretverifi-cationconductedbythedepart-ment inspectors, none of the 11firmswasfoundtobeexistingatitsregisteredaddress,”thestate-ment said.“Thefigurecouldgoupasthe

upstream and downstreamdealersofthesefirmsarefurtherscrutinised.Thedepartmentwillalso take up investigation ofother firms in the businesschainsof thesesuspiciousfirms,including those spread acrossother states outsideDelhi,” saidanofficial.


FOURPOLICEMENwereinjuredduring a raid to nab an allegeddrugsmuggler inWestdistrict’sInderpurionSaturdaymorning.Twoothers, one ofwhom iden-tifiedbypoliceasa criminal, re-ceivedbullet injuriesaswell.DCP (Outer-North district)

BrijendraKumarYadavsaid,“Theincident took place at 8.30 amwhen a narcotics team reachedInderpuri to arrest Dharamveeralias Palla and conducted a raidathishouse.However,hewasnotthere. As the police team cameout, Dharamveer arrived alongwith50-60peoplecarryingsticksandstones.Themobattackedthepoliceteamandpeltedstonesatthem.”In retaliation, the team fired

shots in the air. “Themob also

opened fire at the team. Duringthe exchange of gunfire, twofrom the group received bulletinjuries. Inanattempttodefendthepoliceteam,inspectorBrijpalopenedfirebyaimingatthefeetof theattackers,”Yadavsaid.Thetwoinjuredpersonshave

been identified as Amit andShoaib. Police said Amit, a rela-tiveofDharamveer,wasallegedlyinvolved in six criminal cases inthe past including robbery, da-coityandattempttomurder.“The injured have been ad-

mitted to the hospital, andShoaib is critical. Amit andShoaibwereanactivepartof themob that attacked the policeteam,”Yadavsaid.Thepolicepersonnelinjured

in the incident are Brijpal, ASIRajesh, and constables RinkuandVinod.Dharamveertookad-vantage of the chaos andman-aged to flee, saidpolice.

THEPLAN

87 sitesatschools,govt institutions,

pvtplaces

50% slotsavailable

onlineonCoWIN;50%reservedforwalk-insatvaccinationcentres

4peoplecanregisterwithonemobile

number

■Covaxinwillbeadministeredfor15-18agegroup

Gurgaon: 87 sites atgovt centres, schoolsto vaccinate kids

BRIEFLYAuthoritiesorder closureof two marketsover violationof Covid norms

PRESSTRUSTOFINDIANEWDELHI, JANUARY1

AUTHORITIESHAVEorderedtheclosure of twomarkets in Delhifrom4pmonSaturdaytill10amonSundayduetotheviolationofCovid-19guidelines,accordingtoanofficialorder.The order was issued on

Fridaybytheofficeofthesub-di-visional magistrate (SDM) ofKarawalNagar. SoniaViharPusta4 1/2 ShaniMarket Block-E andJohripur Shani Market Road,KarawalNagar,areorderedtore-main closed from 4 pm onJanuary1till10amonJanuary2or till further orders,whicheverisearlier, theorderstated.Itwas found that Covid con-

tainment guidelineswere being“contravened” in thesemarkets,whichcouldcause“super-spread-ing”ofthevirus,itsaid.Therestric-tions are applicable to all shops,except thosedealing in essentialgoodsandservices, itadded.

0-50 Good

ASHOKVIHARSevere

0 500

401AQIPM10

SIRIFORTVeryPoor

0 500

SHADIPURVeryPoor

0 500 500

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

IHBASVeryPoor

0

326AQIPM10

311AQIPM10

351AQIPM10

FORECAST: Jan2Mainlyclearsky.Shallow/moderate foginthemorning.

S K Y WA T C H

MAX: 211.4°Cbelownormal

MIN:43.2°C belownormal

CourtstaysorderdirectingFIRagainstcopsNew Delhi: A court hasstayed an order direct-ingregistrationofanFIRagainstseveralpoliceof-ficials over alleged cus-todial torture of a manarrested in a robberycase, molestation of hisfamily members, andstaging of a dog fight inhis house. AdditionalSessions Judge stayedthe December 22 orderon a revision petitionfiledbythreepolicecon-stables who claimedthat the robbery ac-cused cannot be said tobe trustworthy as thereare 13 criminalcases pending againsthim.PTI

ManheldforpostingpvtphotosofwomanNewDelhi:A33-year-oldmanwas arrested fromDwarka for allegedlyposting private picturesof a woman on socialmedia. “A complaintwas lodged at Dwarka(South) police stationwhereawomanallegedthat the accused wasstalking, blackmailingandthreateningher.Shefurther alleged that shecame in contact withhimthroughamatrimo-nial website. She methim a couple of timesand shared her privatephotographswith him,”a senior police officersaid.However, thewed-dingwas called off, fol-lowing which theaccusedallegedlystartedblackmailing andthreateningher,saidpo-lice.ENS

New Delhi

LALMANIVERMALUCKNOW,JANUARY1

TARGETTING THE SamajwadiParty (SP) in thehomedistrictofjailed party leader AzamKhan,ChiefMinisterYogiAdityanathonSaturday said “Rampur kachaaku”(Rampur'skhife) hadbe-comeaweapon to “capture theproperties of poor and Dalits”during the tenureof the SPgov-ernment. Adityanath was ad-dressingapublicmeetingafterin-augurating and laying thefoundationstoneofdevelopmentprojects worth Rs 95 crore.Adityanath also addressed theBJP’s 'JanVishwasYatra'ofwest-ernUP.Speaking about his govern-

ment's “onedistrict-oneproduct”scheme, Adityanath saidwhilesearching for products for theschemefromRampur,hethoughtof“Rampurkachaaku”.Thinkingabout the usage of that chaaku

(knife), reminded himof 'GuruParampara', the CM said.Adityanath pointed out that“Rampurka chaaku”wasearlierused for protection. “If shastra(weapon)is inthehandsofgoodpeople,theywilluseitforprotect-ingthecountryandreligionbutifitgoestothehandsof thewrongpeople,theymisuseitforlootingandillegallygrabbingtheproper-

tiesofpoor,”hesaid.Repeating BJP’s slogan “Farq

saafhai”,Adityanathsaidaccusedpersons inMuzaffarnagar andSaharanpur riots and “mafias”werefelicitatedbythestategov-ernment before 2017 (when SPwasinpowerinthestate)butaf-ter 2017, (when BJP came topower) farmers and youths arehonoured.

Adityanath said that undertheSPgovernment, fundswerenot provided for any religiousplaceandthepoorwerenotpro-videdhomes.Taking a jibe at SPpresident

Akhilesh Yadav’s promise onSaturdayof freeelectricityupto300unitstodomesticusersifSPis voted to power, Adityanathsaid, “When you (Akhilesh/SPgovernment)werenotprovidingelectricityitself,howcanyousayitwillbefree.Contrarytothat,youshould apologise formaking re-coveries…one-sided recoveriesthatweredonefromthepublic.”SPdidnot immediatelyreact

totheCM'sremarks.Adityanath claimed that his

governmenthasprovidedunin-terruptedpowersupplytoeverysectionofsocietywithoutanydis-criminationandhouseshavealsobeen provided to over 43 lakhpoorpeopleacross thestateand18,000inRampuralone.

9THESUNDAYEXPRESS,JANUARY2,2022

GOVT&POLITICSWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

RELEASES10TH INSTALMENTOFPM-KISAN

HARIKISHANSHARMANEWDELHI, JANUARY1

OBSERVING THAT many eco-nomic indicators are better thanthe pre-Covid times, PrimeMinister Narendra Modi onSaturdaysaidthatcoronavirushasposed challenges but it cannotstopIndia’space.The PrimeMinister also em-

phasised that the countryneedsto accelerate its pace further in2022.Earlier,Modi interactedwith

selectedmembersoftheFarmers’Producers Organisation fromPunjab,Uttar Pradesh, RajasthanandTamilNadu.Healsoreleasedthe10th installment of financialbenefit under PradhanMantriKisanSammanNidhi(PM-KISAN)schemeonSaturday.Speaking after releasing the

10th installment of PM-Kisan,Modisaid,“Aajbahutseeconomicindicators uss samay se bhiachchhakarraheyhainjabcoronahamarebeechnahin thha(todaymanyeconomicindicatorsaredo-ingbetter thanpre-Covid times).Today, the growth rate of oureconomyismorethan8%.Record

foreign investmenthas cometoIndia.Ourforeignexchangere-serveshavereachedrecordlevels.“Old records have been sur-

passedinGSTcollection.Wehavealsosetnewparadigmsincaseofexports,especiallyagriculture.”Inhisaddressthroughavideo

conference, Modi said thattransactions ofmore thanRs 70lakhcroreweredoneusingUPIin2021.Morethan50,000start-upsare operating in India, of which10,000were launched in the lastsixmonths,hesaid.“In 2022,wehave to acceler-

ateourpace(ofdevelopment)fur-ther,” he said. “Coronavirus hasposed challenges but it cannotstop our pace. India will fightagainst coronawithutmost cau-tionandwillalsofulfillitsnationalinterests,”Modisaid.ThePrimeMinister’sattempts

to reassure the country comesamid rising Covid-19 cases, andpredictionsofathirdwaveof thevirushittingthecountry,The Prime Minister also

mentioned the inauguration ofKashi Vishwanath Corridor andbeginning of RamMandir con-struction.Modibeganhis speechbyof-

fering condolences to families ofvictimsof the stampedeatMataVaishnoDevishrine.AccordingtotheMinistry of Agriculture, anamount of Rs 20,946 crorewastransferred into bank accountsof10.09crorefarmers inthelat-estroundofpaymentsunderthePM-Kisanscheme.According to theMinistry of

Agriculture, an amount of Rs20,946 crore was transferredintobankaccountsof10.09crorefarmers in the latest round ofpayments under the PM-Kisanscheme.

Manyeconomic indicatorsbettertoday thanpre-Covid times:PM

Free electricity tohouseholds, farmersif voted in: AkhileshLALMANIVERMALUCKNOW,JANUARY1

SAMAJWADI PARTY (SP) presi-dentAkhileshYadavonSaturdaypromisedtoprovide300unitsoffree electricity to domestic con-sumersandtofarmersfor irriga-tionifhispartyiselectedtopowerinupcomingassemblyelections."2022 will be a new year

with new light for a newUttarPradesh. Three hundred unitsof electricity for households(domestic consumers) will begiven for freeandelectricity forirrigation will be free," Yadavtweeted inHindi.Both the promises will be

included in SP’s manifesto forthe polls and as the electionswill come closer more prom-ises will be included in themanifesto, Akhilesh said laterwhile addressing the partyworkerswhohadassembledatpartyoffice towishhimonnewyear.Akhileshalsosaidthatpeople

shouldtrusthispromisesbecausetherewasnodifferencebetween “what SP people

say” and “what SP people do”.“ButBJPonlytell lies,”headded.Akhilesh also said that 2022

will be a newyear for SP people

onlywhen therewill be a newgovernmentinthestate.Targeting BJP rule, Akhilesh

saidthateversinceBJPhascometo power,maximum false caseshavebeenlodgedagainstSPlead-ers including AzamKhanwhohas been lodged in jail in a falsecase.Earlier, SP’s alliance partner,

Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) in itsmanifestohaspromisedapolicyof‘PuraaneBillMaaf,BijliDarHalf’(‘scrappingofoldbills,halvingofnewbills') for farmers.In September, the Aam

Aadmi Party (AAP), which rodetopowerinDelhipromisingfreeelectricityandwater,hadprom-ised that if voted to power inUttar Pradesh, the AAP govern-ment will provide 300 units offreeelectricity todomestic con-sumers, waive pending “in-flated”billsandensurea24-hourpower supply and free electric-ity to farmers for agriculturalpurposes.AAPchiefstatespokesperson

VaibhavMaheshwarisaid,“AfterAAP’spromiseof freeelectricity,other parties too are makingsame promises in a rush. Itshows that electricity is the realissue for public. But people alsoknow that onlyArvindKejriwalcanensure freeelectricity.”

Assam CM: Era oftribal insurgencyover, ULFA remainsthe ‘last hurdle’TORAAGARWALAGUWAHATI, JANUARY1

ASSAMCHIEFMinisterHimantaBiswaSarmaonSaturdaysaidthatwhileUnited Liberation Front ofAsom-Independent (ULFA-I) re-mained the “last hurdle” inachievingpeaceinAssam,effortswiththeoutfitover the lasteightmonthsmarkedthe“beginningoftheend”.“Theeraoftribalinsurgencyis

over. All militant groups havecomeforward ...our lasthurdle istheULFA-I,”saidSarma,address-ingapressconferenceonthefirstdayof thenewyear.He said the only “stumbling

block”was [ULFA's] demand forsovereignty.“But in the last eightmonths,

wehave both [government andULFA-I]takensteps.Itisadifficultand complicated situation but Idare to say, the beginningof theendhasbeenseen,”SarmasaidinGuwahati.In May, Sarma – in his first

pressconferenceaftertakingoathasCM–hadappealedtotheULFA-IchiefPareshBaruahtoshunvio-lence and return to the main-stream.After that the grouphaddeclaredathree-monthunilateralceasefire,which it has extendedtwice since. InAugust, thegroupbroke away from tradition andsaid itwillnotcall forabandhonIndependenceDay.In the past eight months,

Baruah’s ULFA-I has expressedthatthe outfitisnotaversetotalkswiththegovernment,butheldonto the demand that discussionshave tobe in linewith its objec-tive – sovereignty. CurrentlySarmaand theULFA-I are tryingtofinda“middleground”fortalkstobegin.“ULFA’s unilateral ceasefire is

apositivestep…eventhegovern-ment has not done anything todisrupt that peace. That iswhythere has been no direct con-frontationbetweenULFAandse-curity forces in the last sixmonths,”saidSarma,addingthatthefeedbackhehasreceivedfromBaruahhasbeen“verypositive”.“It isclearthathewantsane-

gotiated settlement…but theirdemandforsovereigntyisanon-negotiableposition.Wearework-ing towards breaking the dead-lock,”hesaid.

Speaking on militancy inAssam,Sarmareferredto2022asthe“yearofhope”.Heannouncedthat the yearwould see “somepositive movement” on theArmedForcesSpecialPowers(AF-SPA)inAssam.“Assamwillseesomerational-

isationofAFSPAin2022.Afterfourmonths, AFSPA is set to be re-newedandatthatstage,Assamisgoingtotakesomepragmaticde-cisionsregardingit,”Sarmasaid.Sarma’s statement comes af-

ter controversy over AFSPA fol-lowingtheArmy’sbotchedupop-erationinNagaland’sMondistrictthat led to the deaths of six coalminers.TheDecember4incidenttriggeredviolence,killinganothereightcivilians.The Assam CM said that

withregardtoNagaland,PrimeMinister Narendra Modi andUnion Home Minister Shah’sapproach was “very positive”since they had formed a com-mittee to review AFSPA (in thestate), with a deadline of 45days. “This is a very importantstepbytheCentreandwillhelpin addressing their [Naga] is-sues,” he said.

HimantaBiswaSarma

FORMEDIN1979,theULFAledanarmedseparatist insur-gency,seekingtoestablisha“sovereign”Assam.Whileafactionof theoutfit, ledbyfor-merULFAchairmanArabindaRajkhowa,joinedthepeaceprocessandcameovergroundin2011,theanti-talksULFA-Independent(ULFA-I) ledbyPareshBaruah,hasremainedunderground,steadfastlyholdingontothedemandforsovereignty.

ThesovereigntydemandE●EX

PLAINED

India, Pak exchange list of nuclear installations

SANSAD ADARSH GRAM YOJANA

PM’s adopted Varanasi village airs some grievancesLALMANIVERMAVARANASI, JANUARY1

THE “USTAD” (coach) ofKakrahiya village's 100-year-old“desi akhara” (rural wrestlingring), Ravindra Singhhadhopeditwillbetransformedintoawell-equipped indoorwrestling sta-diumforbuddingwrestlerswhenPrimeMinister NarendraModiadopted the village under theSansad Adarsh Gram Yojana(SAGY)in2017.Four years down the line,

Singh’shopeisyettoturnintore-ality, even as over three dozenyoungwrestlerslearnthefunda-mentalsofwrestlingonthesoilofhis poorly-equipped ring, doingsit-ups and push-ups, slidingalong a ropehanging fromabigtree, and practising grapplingtechniquesafterjoggingonacon-cretecementedroadnearby.“Young wrestlers practise

hereforthreehourseverymorn-ing.IneveningtheygotoSigrasta-

dium inVaranasi, around17kmhere,topractiseonmat.Theyalsopractise judo there.Wrestlingmakestheirbodystrongandjudohelps them in physical tests forqualifying for jobs in centralforces,” said Singh,whocoachesyoungwrestlersfree.To seekhiswrestling arena's

development into amodern in-doorstadium,Singhsaid,hehadmade the request to the rulingBJP’sGujaratMPCRPatil,whovis-itedthevillageseveraltimesafterthePMadoptedit.“Survey had been done by

government officials but due tolackof required areaof land, thedevelopment of an indoor sta-diumforwrestlingringcouldnotbedone,”saidRanjeetPatel,whowas villagepradhan in2017.Histenureendedin2021.PujaGond (22), a commerce

graduate, is the village's newpradhan.Shewaselectedafterthepradhan seat got reserved forScheduledTribewomen inApril2021.Her husbandSuraj Kumar

Gond(24)isherrepresentativeforherwork.Patelclaimsthatwhenhemet

thePMinDelhiin2016-17duringaconclaveofvillagepradhans,heappealedtohimtoadoptthevil-lage, expecting its “kayakalp”(transformation)aftergettingas-sociatedwithhim.Situated in theRohaniya as-

sembly segment of theVaranasiLokSabhaseat,Kakrahiyavillage,

known for its wrestlers andwrestlingarena,hasbaskedinthelimelight after beingadoptedbythe PM. It has a population of2,500people,mostofwhombe-longtotheOBCcommunities.Villagerssayeveryhousehold

gotawatertapandafreeelectric-ityconnectionwithinayearafterthe PM adopted Kakrahiya. “Itgave us relief from thedrinkingwaterproblem.Everyhousenow

haspowersupplyandtoilettoo,”Patel said. He said sewage pipelineswerealso laidbutvillagersnowcomplainalmosteverydayaboutthesepipesbeingchoked.A1,600-metreconcreteroad

was also built in the village,whereamajorityoftheresidentssurviveon farming. Someof thelocal youthswork inMumbaiandSurat. They returnedhomeduring thepandemic, butmostof themwentbacktoworkaftertheendof thelockdown.The “biggest change” the vil-

lage witnessed after beingadoptedby thePM is in the areaofeducation,saidRekhaYadav,ateacher in the village's govern-ment English Primary School.Social. A “nandbhawan” (playschool) was also set up in theschoolcampusforchildrenunder3years. Currently, 256 studentsareenrolledintheschool.Patelsaidinthefirstyearofits

adoption by the PM, Kakrahiyausedtoseeaflurryofvisitsbygov-ernmentofficers, politicians and

NGO functionaries. “ButwhenPM adopted another villageDomri after Kakrahiya, focusshiftedthere.Noonecomesherenow. Its result is, themain ap-proach roadof a railwayunder-pass is yet tobeconstructedandwhenitgetsfloodedinthemon-soonthevillagershavetotakeanalternate7kmroutetoreachmar-ket,”hesaid.Suraj Kumar Gond said the

nearest government hospital is20kmaway.Due tounavailabil-ity of the requiredGramSabhaland, theadministrationwasnotable to build an intermediateschool and so the local studentshavetotraversea12-kmdistancetoreachsuchaschooltostudyin10+2classes.BeforeKakrahiya,thePMhad

adoptedJayapurandNagepurvil-lages. In 2021, the PM adoptedtwomore villages, Pure Beriyarand Parampur, according tosourcesinthePM'sparliamentaryconstituency jan samparkoffice(publicrelationsoffice)here.

In Rampur, Adityanath targets SP:You grabbed properties of poor, Dalits

Maya hits out at BJP:Exchequer moneykeeping them warm

Anonlineclass inprogressatanupperprimaryschool inKakrahiyavillageofVaranasi.Express

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICELUCKNOW,JANUARY1

DAYSAFTERUnionhomemin-ster and seniorBharatiya JanataParty(BJP)leaderAmitShahtooka dig at Bahujan Samaj Party(BSP)chiefMayawatifornotcan-vassing ahead of the UttarPradeshassemblyelections, shetookaveiledjibeattheBJPlead-ers saying that “the exchequermoneywaskeepingthemwarmeven in the coldweather”. ShealsosaidtheBSPhasitsownstyleof functioning and it does notwantto"copyotherparties”."WhentheCongressandBJP

areinpower,beitattheCentreorin states, theymake announce-ments, foundation stone layingandinaugurationsandwiththatthey also hold election publicmeetingsoneaftertheotherjust

a couple of months before theelectionsinwhichtheyusepub-licmoney instead of the partyfund... All this is visible in poll-bound UP, Punjab andUttarakhand,”theBSPchiefsaid.Addressing a rally on

Thursday,Shahhadsaid,“Behenjiki to abhi thandhi nahi udi hai.Yehbhaibheethain.Behanjichu-navaagayathodabaharnikaliye.Baadmeyehnakehnakimainepracharnahikiya.(Behenji isyetto get relief fromcoldweather.She is fearing [defeat]. Behenji,stepoutaselectionshavecome.Later, don’t say thatyouhadnotcampaigned).”“Abyahan thandme jo inko

garmi chadhi hui hai yah sarkarkegaribonkekhajanekihigarmihai (Themoney in the govern-ment exchequer,meant for thepoor, is keeping themwarm),”shesaidonSaturday.

SPchiefAkhileshYadavgreetshis supportersat theparty’sLucknowofficeonSaturday.Vishal Srivastav FARMAID

Stateswith the highest number of PM-Kisanbeneficiaries

Rs 20,946 crTotal sumtransferredacross all states

10.09 crTotal number ofbeneficiaries

UttarPradesh 2,33,85,266Maharashtra 1,03,84,298MadhyaPradesh 83,43,390Bihar 81,23,446Rajasthan 70,25,125Gujarat 57,43,273AndhraPradesh 43,34,841WestBengal 37,94,729TamilNadu 36,68,729Telangana 36,00,773

State NumberofBeneficiaries

UPCMYogiAdityanathat the JanVishwasRally inRampur,onSaturday.PTI


INDIAANDPakistanonSaturdayexchanged a list of their nuclearinstallations that cannot be at-tacked in caseof anescalation inhostilities,aspartofanannualrit-ual that has been inpractice be-tween the two neighbours formorethanthreedecades.The two countries also ex-

changed listsofprisonersheld ineach other’s prisons, which in-cludecivilians,defencepersonneland fishermen, a statement re-leasedbytheMinistryofExternalAffairssaid.Thelistsofnuclearinstallation

and facilitieswere exchangedaspertheprovisionsoftheArticle-IIof theAgreementonProhibitionof Attacks against NuclearInstallationsandFacilities,signedonDecember31,1988andratified

on27 January1991.According tothis agreement, both countrieshave to informeachother of thenuclearfacilities.Theexchangeofthe lists cameamid strain in tiesbetween the two countries overtheKashmirissueaswellascross-borderterrorism.Thelistofnuclearinstallations

andfacilitiesinPakistanwasoffi-ciallyhandedovertoarepresenta-tive of the Indian HighCommission.Similarly,theIndian

MinistryofExternalAffairsinNewDelhihandedtheir listofnuclearinstallationsandfacilitiestoarep-resentative of the PakistanHighCommission.Pakistan also shared a list of

628 Indian prisoners, including51 civilians and 577 fishermen.Indiaalsosimultaneouslysharedthe list of 355 Pakistani prison-ers in India including 282 civil-iansand73fishermen,thestate-ment said.

New Delhi

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BEFORE DEBTS RECOVERY TRIBBUNAL – III,DELHI 4 TH FLOOR JEEVAN TARABUILDINGPARLIAMENT STREET , NEW DELHI: 110001

Notice under section 19(4) of the Recovery of Debts Due toBanks and Financial InstitutionAct. 1993 read with Rule 12 &13 of the Debts Recovery Tribunal (Procedure Rules) 1993.)In the matter ofOANO. 405/2020/DRT –III

M/S ICICI BANK LTD. Vs BABU &ANR.Applicant DefendantsToD-1 SH. BABU , S/O BHHOLE R/O VILLAGEAIMENABAD, KULESARA, GAUTAM BUDDHNAGAR, U.P.-201306D-2 SH BOBBY BHATI, S/O BEERA R/O 28,AIMANABAD, GREATER NOIDA KULSERA,GAUTAM BUDDHANAGAR, U.P.-201306Whereas the above named applicant hasinstituted a case against you and whereas it hasbeen shown to the satisfaction of the Tribunalthat it is not possible to serve you in ordinary way.Therefore, this notice is given by advertisementdirecting you to make appearance in thisTribunal on 10/01/2022 at 10.30 A.M.Take notice that in case of your failure toappear on the above mentioned day before thisTribunal, the case will be heard and decided inyour absence.Given under my hand and seal of this Tribunal onthis the 10 th day of December., 2021.

By Order of the Tribunal


GOVT&POLITICSWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM


REGISTRATIONOF 5,933 NGOsunder the Foreign ContributionRegulationAct(FCRA)lapsedonDecember 31, 2021, either forfailure to apply for renewal be-foretheduedateortheMinistryofHomeAffairs(MHA)rejectingtheir applications.OxfamIndiaTrustandIndian

Medical Association (IMA) areamongtheseorganisations.Sources said FCRA registra-

tionof5,789NGOslapsedduetotheirfailuretoapplyforrenewalbeforetheduedateofDecember31. The remaining, which hadapplied for renewal, were re-fused,asMHAfoundtheiroper-ationsoraccountstobeinviola-tionof FCRA, sources said."TheNGOswhichdidnotap-

ply for renewal had been sentmultiple remindersby themin-istry but they did not apply," anMHAofficial said.AccordingtosourcesinMHA,

12,989 NGOs applied for re-

newal of their registration be-tween September 30, 2020 andDecember31,2021."Ofthese,wehave rejected applications ofover170NGOsforvariousirreg-ularities," anMHA official said.ApplicationsofotherNGOswerebeingprocessed,theofficialsaid.Among NGOs whose re-

newal applications were re-jected byMHAareOxfam Indiaandthe IMA.Sources inOxfam India con-

firmedthattheyhadappliedforrenewal of their FCRA registra-tionbutMHAhadrejected it.DrJayeshLele,honorarygen-

eral secretaryof IMA, said, "IMAhas already applied for the re-newalofitsFCRAregistrationandwe have not received any com-munication on what has hap-penedabouttheapplication."The IMA's name, however,

remainsonMHA's listof associ-ationswhose FCRA registrationhas lapsed.Duringthesecondwaveofthe

pandemic, the IMAhadonmul-tipleoccasionscriticisedthegov-ernment'sallegedlackofaction.Due to a variety of reasons,

which included the pandemicand amendments brought into

FCRA by the government in2020, apart fromthe foreigners'division of MHA being short-staffed, the ministry has notbeenabletoprocessrenewalap-plications of NGOs at a satisfac-tory pace. In view of this, theministryhasthriceextendedva-lidityof expiredregistrations.It first extended the validity

ofNGOswhoseFCRAregistrationwasexpiringafterSeptember29,2020 until May 31, 2021. It wasthenextendedtoSeptember30,2021. Itwas further extended toDecember31,2021.On Friday, it was again ex-

tendeduntilMarch31,2022."These extensions are for

NGOswho have applied for re-newal before their registrationhas expired," an official said. AsforNGOswhichdonotapplyforrenewalbeforetheirregistrationisdue for expiry, "their registra-tionsaredeemedtohavelapsed"theofficial added.In all, FCRA registrations of

12,580 NGOs have lapsed overthe years due to either failure ofapplyinginduetimeorthemin-

istry rejecting their applications.FromDelhi alone, these includeOxfam India Trust; JamiaMiliaIslamia;TheTimesOfIndiaReliefFund;TimesFoundation;VishwaDharmayatan (founded byChandraswami); MaharishiAyurveda Pratishthan; IndianMedical Association; IndiraGandhiNationalCentreForArts;Medical Council Of India; IndiaIslamic Cultural Centre; NehruMemorial Museum& Library;Indian Institute Of Technology,Delhi;PressInstituteOfIndia;TheDelhiPublicSchoolSociety;JNU'sNuclear Science Centre; IndiaHabitat Centre; Lady Shri RamCollegeforWomen;DelhiCollegeof Engineering (Government ofNCT of Delhi); and The TehelkaFoundation,amongothers.On December 25, 2021, the

MHA refused to renew the reg-istration of Missionaries ofCharity under FCRA citing "ad-verse inputs. TheNGO, foundedbyMother Teresa, had appliedfor renewal before the due dateofOctober31,2021whenitsreg-istrationwasexpiring.

E●EXPLAINED

HowtheFCRAregistrationisgranted

FCRA registration is granted to associations for a period offiveyears. Beforeexpiryof registration,NGOsare supposedto apply for renewal of registration if theywish to continuereceivingforeignfunding.Evenafteranapplicationismade,theHomeMinistryreservestherighttorejecttheapplicationincase it finds theNGOconcernedviolatingFCRA.

FCRA registrations of over 5,900 NGOs lapse;Oxfam India, IMA among rejections by MHA

VISHWASWAGHMODEMUMBAI, JANUARY1

WITH ELECTIONS to theBrihanmumbai MunicipalCorporation(BMC)settobeheldthis year, Maharashtra ChiefMinister Uddhav Thackeray onSaturday announced completewaiver of property tax bills onresidential propertiesmeasur-ing up to 500 sq ft inMumbai.The Shiv Sena had made thepromisetoannouncethiswaiveraspartof itselectionpromisefor2017 BMC elections, inwhich itlater emerged as the largestparty. Thewaiverwill be effec-tivefromthenewfinancialyear.“ShivSenahasfulfilledmany

of itspromisesgivenin2017.ForMumbaikars, I had given thepromise after careful thinking.Today, we are fulfilling that im-portant promise. I promiseMumbaikars thatweareable totakecareofyourhealthandwellbeing, just continue to give usyour blessings,” said Thackeraywhile announcing the decisionthroughavirtualmeetingof of-ficialsoftheUrbanDevelopmentDepartmentonSaturday.Hefurtherinstructedthestate

administration toensure imme-diateimplementationofthedeci-sion. Themeetingwas attendedby Shiv Senaministers EknathShinde and Aaditya Thackeray,CongressMinisterAslamShaikhandseniorofficialsfromthestategovernmentandBMC.IS Chahal, BMC commis-

sioner, during themeeting, saidthatthereare16,14,000residen-tialpropertiesbelow500sqft inMumbaiandtheBMCwill incuran annual loss of revenue of Rs462 crore due to the decision.Thedecisionwillalsorequiretheamendment of the MumbaiMunicipalCorporationAct,1888,TheMaharashtraEducationandEmployment Guarantee (Cess)Act, 1962, andTheMaharashtra

(Urban Areas) Preservation ofTreesAct, 1975,headded.“The proposalwill be placed

beforethestatecabinetfortakingthe decision andmaking appro-priateamendmentstotheselaws.Then,anordinancewillbeissuedaccordingly. It (thedecision)willcome into effect from April 1,2022,forthefinancialyear2022-23,” said Mahesh Pathak,Principal Secretary of theUrbanDevelopmentDepartment.Following Shiv Senawin in

2017,theBMChadwaivedoffthegeneral tax component of theproperty tax in 2019, invitingcriticismforonlypartlyfulfillingits promise. Property tax com-priseseightcomponents,includ-ing general tax, water tax, sew-erage tax, education cess, treecess and water benefit taxamong others. The general taxconstitutesaround10percentto30percentof the total amount.Theissueofacompleteprop-

erty taxwaiverwas also raisedby theOpposition in thewintersession of the state legislature.“Only the general tax of thepropertytaxbillswaswaivedoffand not the entire property taxas promised by the then ShivSena chief and CM UddhavThackeray,”Devendra Fandavis,Leader of Opposition, had said,adding the state governmentshouldwaive itoff completely.Shinde,attheAssembly,had

said that thegovernment isalsoof thesameviewandadecisionintheregardwillbe takensoon.On Saturday, Shinde, the

Urban Development Minister,termed the decision as revolu-tionary and a New Year gift toMumbai residents.“This isarevolutionarydeci-

sion. No one has dared to takesuch a decision not only in thestate but also in the country.There is no need to tell anyoneabout the relationshipbetweenMumbai and Shiv Sena,” saidShinde.


THE INDIAN Army and China'sPeople's Liberation Army ex-changed new year greetingsalong the Line of Actual Control(LAC)onSaturday, amid theon-going military standoff in theeastern Ladakh sector and bor-der rowin theeasternsector.“Indian Army and PLA ex-

changed greetings and sweetsalong the LAC today,” IndianArmyofficials said.The exchange happened at

HotSprings inDemchokineast-ern Ladakh. This is not the HotSpringsareanearPatrollingPoint(PP) 15,which is one of the fric-tionspointsthathadcomeupinMay2020, fromwhereboth themilitariesareyet todisengage.In Demchok, officials in the

securityestablishmentsaidthatsome “so called civilians” havepitched tents on the Indian sideof the Charding Nala, whichmarkstheLineofActualControl,andrefuse tovacate.The armies also exchanged

greetings at Bottleneck area inDepsang Plains. PLA personnelhavebeenblockingIndiantroopsatBottleneck,fromaccessingthefivetraditionalpatrollingpoints,PP10,11,11A,12and13.So far, there have been 13

round of Corps Commanderleveltalks,thelastofwhichhap-pened on October 10 last year.Evenas Indiahadexpected thatanagreementtodisengagefromPP15would be achieved, Chinadidnotagree.Thereisnodateforthenext talksyet.TheIndiandelegationwasled

by Lt Gen PGK Menon, com-manderofXIVCorpsandalsoin-cludedLtGenAnindyaSengupta.IndianandChinesearmiesex-

changedgreetingsattenlocationsat LAC–KarakoramPass,DaulatBegOldi, Bottleneck inDepsangPlains, Kongka La, Chushul-Moldo,Hot Springs inDemchokin eastern Ladakh and at NathuLa,KongraLa,BumLaandWachaDamai intheeasternsector.The Indian Army also ex-

changedgreetingsandgiftswiththe Pakistan Army at four loca-tionsalong theLineof Control.

IndianandChinesetroopsexchangesweetsalongtheLACatDemochok. IndianArmy

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICECHENNAI, JANUARY1

TAMILNADUChiefMinisterMKStalinonSaturdaywrotetoUnionHomeMinister Amit Shah andurged theCentre to take steps torectifysome“lapses”onthepartoftheregionalwingoftheIndianMeteorological Department(IMD)inpredictingrainfall.Stalinpointedatthe“needfor

making additional investmentsinadvancedweatherpredictionmechanismandup-gradationoftechnologybeingusedin IMCs”.He also urged the Centre to

enhancecapacityof theweatherforecast centre inChennai toen-ableittomakepredictionsofhighalert situations and inform thestategovernmentwell intime.Stalin’sletterwasinthewake

of an alleged IMD failure inwarning the authorities aboutthe heavy showers that lashedChennaionThursday.StatinwrotethatanIMDbul-

letin issued on Thursday noonpredicted thunderstormwithmoderaterainfallatafewplacesover coastal Tamil Nadu, thun-derstormwithmoderate rain inVilluppuram, Cuddalore anddeltadistricts,andthunderstormwith light to moderate rain insomeareasof Chennai.“Later,at3.40pm,theIMDis-

suedaNowcastWarningstatingthat thunderstormwith light tomoderate rain would occur atisolated places over [a] fewdis-tricts... for the next 1-2 hours,”Stalin wrote. “Meanwhile, rainstarted lashing Chennai and itssuburbs from afternoon thatlasted till latenight.HewrotethatIMDis“unable

topredictredalertsituationsuf-ficiently in advance, givinghardlyany time”.

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICESRINAGAR, JANUARY1

THE JAMMU and Kashmir ad-ministrationSaturdaythwartedthe PAGD’s protest against thedelimitation draft proposed bytheDelimitationCommissionbyallegedly restricting the leadersathome.The People’s Alliance for

Gupkar Declaration, a main-streamcoalition,hadannounceda peaceful sit-in protest againstthedraft.Theprotestwasorgan-ised after three NationalConference(NC)MPs, includingDr Farooq Abdullah, met withthemembersofthecommissioninNewDelhionDecember20.The parties in the valley are

against the distribution of theseven new constituencies, ow-ing to an imbalance of seats infavourof Jammu.

On Saturday, NC vice-presi-dentOmarAbdullahaccusedtheadministration of being “terri-fied” of normal political activity.

TakingtoTwitterhewrote,“Goodmorning&welcome to 2022. Anewyearwith the same J&Kpo-lice illegally locking people intheirhomes&anadministrationsoterrifiedofnormaldemocraticactivity. Trucks parked outsideour gates to scuttle the peaceful@JKPAGD sit-in protest. Somethingsneverchange.”He added that the police

have even locked the internalgate connecting his father’shome to his sister’s. “Yet ourleadershavethecheektotelltheworld that India is the largestdemocracy,hah!!,”headded.PAGD vice-chairperson

MehboobaMufti tweeted, “GOItrumpetsscrappingArticle370&dismembering J&K throughoutthe country but is deeply para-

noid&intolerantwhenpeopleofJ&Kwanttoprotestagainstitsdis-empowerment. For theumpteenth time, we’ve beenplacedunderhousearrestfortry-ingtoorganiseapeacefulprotest.”Meanwhile,scoresofNCand

People’sDemocraticPartywork-ersprotestedindifferentpartsofSrinagar against the proposeddelimitationdraft aswell as thedetention of their party leader-shipaheadof thesit-in.Barring BJP, all political par-

tiesinthevalleyhavetermedthedelimitationdraftas“totallyun-acceptable”. The J&KReorganisationActprovidedforthe addition of seven new con-stituencies in J&K following thesplittingof the formerstate intotwounion territories.


PUNJAB CHIEF MinisterCharanjitSinghChanniSaturdaythreatened to stage a 'dharna'against Governor BanwarilalPurohit for withholding his as-senttoabillforregularisingserv-ices36,000contractualemploy-ees.ChannialsoaccusedPurohitofditheringonapprovingthebillunderpressure fromtheBJP.The Punjab Assembly had

passed 'the Punjab Protectionand Regularization ofContractual Employees Bill-2021' last November. This Billwas aimed at regularising36,000 employees working oncontractoronadhoc,temporaryordailybasisindifferentgovern-mentdepartments.Addressing the media on

completing 100 days in office,Channi said he will take hisCabinettomeetthegovernoronMonday.“Wehavealreadymethimlast

week.ButtheBillhasstillnotbeencleared.thegovernorhasstoppedthe file (relating to the bill) be-causeofsomepoliticalreasons...Ifhe still doesnot clear the file,wewill sit on a dharna outside thePunjabRajBhawan,”Channisaid.Thegovernorisyettogivehis

assent to 12 Bills passed by thePunjabVidhan Sabha during itslast session. TheBillspertainingto renegotiation of PowerPurchaseAgreements(PPAs)arealso lyingwith thegovernor.“It ishis(governor)responsi-

bility to clear the file. Earlier Ithought he was busy some-where.ButasIhavealreadymethimand the CS visited him, it isnow politics. Because there ispressurefromtheBJP,heshouldnotdopolitics,”Channi said.Meanwhile, Leadr of

Opposition in Punjab VidhanSabhaHarpalSinghCheemasaidwith his threat, Channi himselfhasexposedtherealityofthean-nouncement to regularise36,000 temporaryemployees.“CM had to publicly tell the

truth that 36,000 employeesweren’t regularized. We hadbeen saying since the day onethatnoemployeehasbeen reg-ularized,” theAAP leader said.

PRESSTRUSTOFINDIAPATNA, JANUARY1

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumarownsmovable and immovable as-sets worth Rs 75.36 lakh, while hisson Nishant is almost five timesricher thanhim.Asperdetailsofassetsofthechief

minister and his cabinet colleaguesuploaded on the Bihar government

websiteonDecember31, Kumarhas Rs29,385 incash andnearly Rs42,763de-posited inthe bank,while hissonNishanthas Rs16,549 incash andRs 1.28crore in

FixedDeposit(FD)ordepositsinvar-ious banks. Kumar hasmovable as-setsworthRs16.51lakhwhereasthetotalvalueofhisimmovableassetsisaroundRs 58.85 lakh. His son ownsmovable properties worth Rs 1.63croreandthevalueofhisimmovableassets isaroundRs1.98crore.The chief minister has one resi-

dential flat in a cooperative housingsocietyatDwarkainNewDelhi,whilehissonhasagricultural landandres-idential houses at Kalyan Bigha andHakikatpur(bothinNalandadistrict)andKankarbaghinPatna.As per the declaration, Nishant

has agricultural landat their ances-tralvillageKalyanBigha.Healsohasnon-agricultural land in the village.Thechiefministerhasalsodeclaredthat he owns 13 cows and ninecalvesworthRs1.45 lakh.The Nitish Kumar government

hadearliermadeitmandatoryforallcabinetministerstodisclosetheiras-sets and liabilities on the last dayofevery calendar year. Both deputychiefministers—TarkishorePrasadandRenuDevi—have declared thedetailsof their assetsand liabilities.

No propertytax on homesinMumbai upto 500 sq ft

CHENNAIRAIN

Stalin to Shah:Invest morein weatherforecast tech

Nitish’s son Nishant 5times richer than him

Governordelaying Bill,will protestoutside RajBhavan: Channi

PAGD leaders say ‘locked up’ at home before protest

Army, PLA exchange New Year greetings at LAC

AphotographtweetedbyOmarAbdullahonSaturday,showing“trucksparkedoutsideourgates toscuttle”protest.

New Delhi


EXPRESSNETWORKWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM


IN RECENT times, citizen jour-nalism has carved out a legiti-mate space for itself, highlight-ing problems and promptingsolutions.ThePrakashKardaleyMemorial Award for CivicJournalism has gone toChaitanya Marpakwar of theMumbaiMirror forhisextensivereportageonthecitizen-ledSaveAareymovement, an initiativeagainst the hacking of 3,000trees to build a Metro shed inMumbai’sAarey forest.The award, instituted in the

memory of The Indian Express’sformer Resident Editor in Pune,Prakash Kardaley, honours aprintjournalistwhosesustainedefforthighlightsacivicissueand

forces authorities to finda solu-tion for it.Marpakwar’s story reveals

how the government over-looked an environmental as-sessment report that hadwarnedthatconvertingthefor-est land at Aarey could lead to

floods at the MumbaiInternational Airport in theeventof heavy rains.Thestorytracksthedevelop-

ment from 2019 when theBrihanmumbai MunicipalCorporation (BMC) cleared thetree-fellingproposal in the run-upto theAssemblyelections.Marpakwar’s investigation

revealedthatthe1,000-pageen-vironmentalimpactassessmentreportwasgiventomembersoftheBMC’streeauthorityonly48hoursbeforethemeeting,givingthem no time to study it in de-tail.Hisstoryalsohighlightedtheobjectionsraisedbycivicdepart-ments like the Storm Water

Drainsdepartment.“Thebiggestchallengewhile

reportingwas getting access tothe environmental impact as-sessment report. Itwasdifficulttoget thefactsandgetthemoutwithout exaggeration or sugar-coating.Therewereabout1,500pages of documents about thiscarshedatAareyandtheyhadahistory of 10 years,” saysMarpakwar.Twomonths after the story

came out, the first thing thenewly-elected government inDecember 2019 did was stop-ping the construction of the carshed andmoving it to anotherlocation.

ChaitanyaMarpakwar

ChaitanyaMarpakwar’sstoryrevealshowthestateoverlookedanenvironmentalassessmentreport onthemetroshedproject

Civic journalism award for story on Aarey shed

DEBRAJDEBAGARTALA, JANUARY1

THEMizoramPoliceshotata40-year-oldman and his son, bothof whom are from Tripura’sNorth District, on Friday after-noonwho had crossed the bor-der into thestate.While Ramuhai Reang, 40,

managed to returnwithabulletinjuryinhisleg,hissonRathindrawas captured by theMizoramPolice and is learnt to have un-dergoneanoperationthere.Speaking to The Sunday

Express, North TripuraSuperintendent of PoliceBhanupada Chakraborty said itis still unclear why Reang andRathindra ventured intoMizoram.Hesaidacasewasreg-istered at Vangmun PoliceStationinNorthTripura,closetotheTripura-Mizoraminter-stateboundary.“Theinvestigatingofficerwill

travel to thespotof the incidentto assess and investigate. It hasnotbeenascertainedso farwhyor how they went toMizoramandunderwhatconditionstheywere shot at.We are looking atall theaspects,” theofficial said.

Ramuhai, who returned toTripuraafter the incident, isun-der treatment at Dharmanagardistrict hospital,wherehis con-dition is stable, the official in-formed. He sustained a singlebullet injury.Sources said a case had also

beenregisteredattheKawrthahPolice Station inMizoram overthe the incident. However, theMizoram Police had not com-municatedanythingonthecasewiththeTripuraPolice till latestreports came in.A Tripura official said the fa-

ther and menmight have en-teredMizoram from thebordervillage of Lungthir, and couldhave been on their way toKawrthah village. Sources saidtheymight have entered via akuchcha road to sell country-made liquor.“We are hearing they were

intercepted by the MizoramPolice on their way back andwere ordered to stop. They duotried to flee andwere shot,” theofficial, who didn’t wish to benamed, said.Mizoram’s Mamit District

Superintendent of Police couldnotbecontactedoverthephoneforacomment.


ATLEAST fourworkerswere re-ported dead and several otherssustained severe injuries afterthey got buried in a landslide atDadamminingzone, inToshamblock of Haryana’s Bhiwani dis-trict, onSaturdaymorning.With many workers still

feared trapped, fatalities areex-pected to rise, officials said.Confirming deaths of four

workers, Haryana HomeMinisterAnilVijsaidrescueoper-ationsareon,andteamsofNDRFfromGhaziabadinUttarPradeshand SDRF from Madhuban,Haryana,havebeencalledtoex-pedite therescueoperation.Vijsaid,“HelpfromtheArmy

hasbeensoughtandaunitfromHisar is likely to reach thesite.”The incident took place at

around8.30am.After the National Green

Tribunal (NGT)barredminingtoarrest increasingairpollutionintheNCR,miningwasrestoredinthestateonFriday.Large-scaleminingiscarried

out in the area, and stones fromthis belt is sold in other parts ofthestateandRajasthan.Accordingtoofficials,porce-

lainmachineswere being used

forminingwhen the landslideoccurred.Dumpers and trolleysstationed at the site also gottrapped in the landslide, theysaid.Tehsildar Ravinder Kumar

saidthreeofthefourbodieshavebeen identified. The victimswere from Rajasthan andChhattisgarh. “The identity ofthe fourthdeceased is beingas-

certained,”hesaid.Chief Medical Officer,

Bhiwani, Raghubir Shandilyasaidtherecouldbemorecasual-ties as many people are stilltrapped in thedebris.Kiran Choudhry, the MLA

fromToshamconstituency, toldThe Sunday Express, "The exactnumberofpeopletrappedisnotknown yet. Miningwas barred

in the area due to the NGT's or-der. The number of fatalitiescould go up, according to infor-mation I am getting from theground.”"Thedistrictadministrationis

also to be blamed for the laxitywithwhich they started the res-cue operation,” she said. “I wastryingtogetintouchwiththedis-trictadministration;theyreached

the site after much delay andstartedtherescueoperation.”Choudhry also alleged that

miningactivities inHaryanaarenotbeingcarriedoutasperper-missiblenorms,andthatresultsin such incidents.Earlier in the day, statemin-

isterJPDalalreachedthesiteandsaid, "According to theminingcontractor,morepeoplecouldbetrappedinside.Ateamofdoctorshave reached the site. We aremaking all efforts to save asmanylivesaswecan.Theentiredistrict administration and re-sources required for disastermanagement have been de-ployedat thesite.”In a condolencemessage is-

sued here, Chief MinisterManohar Lal Khattar expressedheartfelt condolences tothebe-reaved families and “prayed forspeedyrecoveryofthoseinjuredin theaccident”.“Over phone call, the Chief

Ministertookinformationaboutthe accident from the DeputyCommissioner, Bhiwani, Dr R SDhillonanddirectedthatcranes,fire brigade and othermachin-ery should be immediatelycalledfromadjoiningdistrictstoclear the debris so that peopleburied under it could be res-cued,”agovernmentspokesper-sonsaid.

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICESURAT, JANUARY1

THE INCOME Tax departmentconducted searches on thepremisesoftwofirmsrunbythefamily of Samajwadi Party (SP)MLCandKanpurperfumemer-chant Pushpraj Jain at SachinSpecialEconomicZone inSurat.The searches began Friday

andcontinuedSaturdayatSawaiFragrancesCompany,whichliststhe UP legislator as one of thefounders on its website, andFragomatrix Global Pvt Ltd, runbyhis family.Teams from Uttar Pradesh,

AhmedabadandSuratofficesofthe IT department conductedthesearches.SourcesintheI-Tdepartment

told this newspaper that SawaiFragrances and FragomatrixGlobal are owned by PushparajJainandhis threebrothers.According to sources, these

firmsareintomanufacturingnon-alcoholic perfumes that are ex-portedtoSwitzerland,France,theUAE, Turkey, andGermany fromtheSEZ,conduciveforexport-ori-entedunits. These factorieshavebeenoperatingoutofSachinSEZforthepasteightyears.The firms employ around

350peopleandoperateoutofanareaspreadaround2,000square

metres. Theofficials seized sev-eral documents related to im-ports and exports from bothfirms. "Several incriminatingdocuments have also beenseizedthatareyettobeverified,"sources said.The Indian Express had re-

ported on December 29 thatPushpraj Jain alsoownsapetrolpump and a cold storage unit,earns agricultural income, andhas a house and an office inMumbai.TheSPMLC’snameemerged

inthelimelightafterAkhileshre-ferred to the raids on PeeyushJain’spremiseslastweekandre-marked that the “wrong Jain”was raided by Central authori-ties. The SP’s Jain, he said, isPushpraj whose latest perfumehehadlaunchedlastmonth,call-ing it the “Samajwadi ittra”.

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICETHIRUVANANTHAPURAM,JANUARY1

The police in Kerala’s Kovalammadea foreign touristdrainouthisliquorbottlesbytheroadsideon New’s Year’s eve. A policesub-inspector was suspendedfollowing the incident.The police had asked the

Swedish national staying inbeach destination Kovalam toproduce a purchase bill for histhree liquorbottles.Whenhecouldn’t—thegov-

ernment outlet he bought itfrom had not given him a bill—thepolicemadehimemptyouttwo of the three bottles by theroadside.After StateTourismMinister

P A Muhammed Riyas took

strongexceptiontothepoliceac-tion, sub-inspector Shaji, wholed the police team,was placedunder suspension.“Police actionwas unfortu-

nateatatimewhenthegovern-ment is trying to attract moretouriststothestateafterthepan-demic. It does not match withgovernment policy. Tourism in-dustrywouldfacesetbacksfromsuchpoliceaction.Theissuehas

beenbroughttothenoticeofthechiefminister,’’ he said.Theactionagainstthesub-in-

spectorcameafterChiefMinisterPinarayiVijayan sought a reportfromDGPAnilKantontheissue.As per the rules in Kerala, a

person can carry three litres ofliquor sold in the state. The po-lice teamhad flagged down thetourist’s scooterafterhewasre-turning fromtheoutlet .


SUPREME COURT judge JusticeD Y Chandrachud on Saturdayunderlined the importance of achangeinmentalattitudesasthejudiciaryalignsmorewithtech-nologyandaimstogopaperless.“Oncewechangeourmental

attitude and perception, theother parts of technology willfollowsuit,” he said at the inau-guration of e-filingmodules forKeralaHighCourtandtheentirestate judiciary.Addressing the event virtu-

ally, Justice Chandrachud, whoalso heads the SupremeCourt’seCommittee, said theCommittee is in the process ofdevelopingmechanismfordigi-tisation of existing cases andmakingcourtspaperless.

“WehavepreparedStandardOperating Procedure (SOP) fordigitisationofcasesacrossIndia.The idea is to have a uniformprocess of digitisation….Pending cases can be digitiseddaily, whichwill ensure imme-diate relief,”hesaid.Speakingonelectronic filing

(e-filing) of cases, he said it hasnumerous benefits. It reducesburden of travel faced by liti-gants andmembers of the Bar,providingcomfortof filingthemfromhomesoroffices,thejudgepointedout.He said that e-filing also

makesitaccessibletothosewithvisual disabilities, as theymaynow be able to access themthrough screen reading soft-ware.E-filinghasmultiplebenefits

for the judiciary as well, sincethey can access documents on

theirlaptopsandwillnothavetorely onphysical files. “On aper-sonalnote,”JusticeChandrachudsaid,“Ihavestoppedusingphys-ical files sincevirtualhearing.”E-filing, he said, also help in

operationofsmoothhearingsincourts. Ifbothlawyerandjudgesare using the same e-file, itmakeshearingsmoreefficientasnavigation through documentsbecomeseasier,hesaid.JusticeChandrachud saidhe

ishopefulthatmembersof judi-ciarywillencouragemembersoftheBar toadopte-filingasstan-dardpractice,andtheywilldosobyadoptinge-files themselves.He emphasised that along

withintroductionofsuchmeas-ures,itisalsoimportanttoincen-tivise litigants and lawyers toutilise the facility.Trying to allay fears, he

soughttoassuremembersofthe

Bar thatadoptionof technologyis not intended to make theirlivesmorecomplexbuttomaketheir livessimpler.Hesaid, “Thehallmarkofmoderntechnologyis its simplicity.”JusticeChandrachudsaiditis

important for everyone to re-member that adoption of e-fil-ing should not be seen as stop-gap measure due to thepandemic, although that waswhat really precipitated themeasure. “This is an importantstepping stone for future of amodern Indian judiciary,” headded.Although some confusions

are bound to arise when suchchanges are made, he said it’simportant for the judiciary tolead from the front and quellsuch concerns, which he addedcanbedonebyconstantengage-mentwith theBar.

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEPUNE, JANUARY1

DRSHASHANK JOSHI,member,Maharashtra Covid Task Force,has been honoured with the‘IMASpecialAward’ for theyear2020-2021.The award is bestowed on

eminentmedicalprofessionalsbythe IndianMedical Association,New Delhi, for distinguishedachievementofthehighestorderduringaparticularyear.Dr Joshi received the award

during the 96th All IndiaMedical Conference held inPatnaonDecember27-28.“We are in the third wave

nowandwehavetocomeoutofthiswithresponsiblebehaviour.Our biggest challenge today isthat though the cases aremild,mostpeopleareasymptomatic.”hesaid.“So,Covidhastobecomeamanageable disease and wehavetogetoutof this inabetterway. We should not get over-whelmedbythe thirdwave.”

Mizoram cops shootat Tripura residentswho crossed border

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICECHENNAI, JANUARY1

FOURWORKERSdiedandeightsustained injuries in a blast at afirecrackerunit innearSivakasi,TamilNadu, on Saturdaymorn-ing,police said.“It is was an accident as per

the initial information. Thereseems to havemajor lapses intheway chemicals such as alu-minium powers were stored.The accident happened whenworkers were trying to mixchemicals. TheyhadcomeearlyonSaturdaytoconductsomerit-ualsforanauspiciousbeginningof operations in the NewYear,”said a senior police officerwhomonitored the rescue opera-tions, ” said a senior police offi-cer whomonitored the rescueoperations.“At least four structures in-

cludingastoreroomandseveralattached shedswere destroyedin the blast. The intensity of theblast was such that two dozenfirefighters had to struggle formorethanonehourtobringthefireundercontrol,”hesaid.S Kumar of Mettupatti, P

Periyasamy of Servaikaranpattiand S Veerakumar and MMurugesan of Paraipatti wereamongtheworkerswhodiedintheblastatRKVMfireworksfac-tory. All bodies were sent toSivakasi Government Hospitalfor post-mortem examination,the officer said. Police have reg-isteredacaseandfurther inves-tigation ison.EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE

NEWDELHI, JANUARY1

AMUSLIMorganisationhas ap-proached the Supreme Courtseeking action against hatespeeches against the commu-nity,sayingstateauthoritieshadfailed toactdespitecomplaints.The plea by Jamiat Ulama-i-

Hind, through its presidentMaulana SyedMahmood AsadMadani, said “such speeches gobeyondthelimitsofapermittedcritical denial of another’s be-liefs, and are certainly likely toincite religious intolerance...”.The plea stated that “insult-

ingProphetMohammad(PBUH)is akin to attacking the veryfoundationof Islam”Thepetition says “manyvio-

lentactshavetakenplaceinwhichmanypreciousliveshavebeenlostmostlyofthepeoplebelongingtotheweakersectionof thesociety,majorityofthembelongingtotheMuslimcommunity”.ThepetitionfiledbyAdvocate

MRShamshadsaidtheoutfitap-proachedtheSCafterwaitingfora“considerable”amountoftimeand giving the state authoritiestimetotakeappropriatestepsforremedial action aswell as pre-ventivemeasures."However,itappearsthatthe

state authorities have com-pletely failed in this regard," thepleaadded.

OnFriday, taxofficialsraidedthepremisesof JaininKanpur.PTI

4 workersdie in blastat Sivakasicracker unit

MaharashtraCovid task forcemember winsIMA award

I-T raids on 2 firms ofPushparaj Jain in Surat

MISHAPADAYAFTERMININGRESTORED INSTATE

Four killed in Haryanamine landslide

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEPANAJI, JANUARY1

POLICE SAID on Saturday theywill now investigate afresh thedeath of a 19-year-oldwoman,whosebodywasfoundatapop-ular beach in northGoa, as sus-pected murder instead ofdrowningaspreviouslybelieved.The body of the 19-year-old

womanwas foundatCalangutebeachonAugust12lastyear--adayaftershewasreportedmiss-ingbyher family.Itwas originally recorded as

“unnaturaldeath”, suspected tobe case of drowning and possi-ble suicideattempt.For the last fivemonths, the

woman’sfamily,activistsandsev-eral political leaders have de-mandedthatherdeathbetreatedasmurderasthebodywasfoundinastateofundress.Thewoman’sfather also gave awritten com-plainttothepolice,demandingamurderprobeintothematter.However, police had said

therewas no indication of sex-ual assault or violence in thepost-mortemreport.OnSaturday,superintendent

of police (North Goa) ShobhitSaksenaconfirmedthewoman’sdeathwill now be investigatedasacaseofmurder.Seniorpoliceofficialssaidthe

casewasreviewedbyanditwasdecidedtorelookattheevidenceandstartamurderinvestigation.AfreshFIRunderSection302

(murder) was registered in thecaseonDecember28,2021,anda team ledby thepolice inspec-tor of Calangute Police Stationwill carryout the robe.Thewoman’sdeathinAugust

triggered protests in the state.Days after her bodywas found,hundreds participated in a can-dlelight vigil in Aldona, southGoa,demanding justice forher.TheOpposition too targeted

theBJP-ledgovernmentover thelawandorderinthestate.GFPlegislationVijaiSardesai,

whohaspreviouslyraisedtheis-sue, reactedtotherecentdevel-opments, saying on Twitter:“The police should bemade ac-countable for this failure.”

Swedish tourist made to empty liquor bottles in Kerala

Counting benefits of digitisation, JusticeChandrachud calls for change in attitude

Woman’s body on Goabeach: 5 months on, caseto be probed as murder

Muslim groupmoves SC overhate speech

RescueworkatDadamminingareaofBhiwanidistrictonSaturday.PTI

Avigil thatwasheld for thewoman. File

New Delhi


SUNDAYSTORYWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

TAKE5VACCINE TEAM

KMEENAKSHIHEALTHASSISTANT,

KOODAPAKKAMPHC, PUDUCHERRY

Awarenesscampaignsmayhelp:Meenakshi(right).Express

‘We tell them thatthe unvaccinatedwill not be let intopublic places. Itusually works’Aman in Puducherry’sKonnerikuppam villagerecently climbed up a treeto avoid a Covidvaccination team. KMeenakshi, who is with theKoodapakkamPrimaryHealth Centre, says she hasstopped being surprised bysuch incidents now and thegovernment should domore to tackle vaccinehesitancy

JANARDHANKOUSHIK

1What is thevaccinationtarget theadministrationhasset foryourteam?Of the 11,546 peoplewho live

in the jurisdiction of theKoodapakkamPHC,8,700areeli-gible for the vaccines (age 18 andabove).Wehaveadministeredthefirstdosetoover98%of thebene-ficiaries, butmany of them havenotgot their seconddoseyet.

2Howdoyoudealwithpeoplewhoarehesitant to

takethevaccines?We try our best to convince

them that the vaccines are safe.Weevenhaveadoctorinourteamto talk to thosewho are not con-vinced.Theytellpeoplethatif theydon’t takethevaccines, theirchil-dren andwives and sisters whoare pregnant will suffer as theyhave lower immunity. But somepeoplearenotconvincedevenaf-ter all this. Someabuseus, askingif we have no otherwork, othersdon’tevenopentheirdoors.Ihaveeven been asked if I would paythemforgettingvaccinated.TheyalsosayIshouldprovideanassur-ance that I will take care of theirfamily if they fall ill after gettingvaccinated.

3Whyexplainsthishesitancy?People fear that if theyaread-

ministeredvaccines,theywilldie.Somepeopleclaimthattheirhandhurts after the injection and thattheydon’t feel thesameanymore—thatthevaccinesleavethemex-hausted and affects their work.Some ask us counter questions:‘Why shouldwe get vaccinated ifthe effect lasts only for sixmonths?’ Or ‘What if I get Covidevenaftergettingvaccinated?’.

4Howdoyourespondtothat?We talk to them patiently

about the benefits of the vaccine.Wetellthemthatif theydon’ttaketheir doses, theywill get infectedand end up in a hospital.We tellthemthatourGovernor(TamilisaiSoundararajan) has strictly saidthat people who are not vacci-natedwon’t be allowed to enterpublic places. This usuallyworksinmany places and people agreetogetvaccinated.

5Whatdoyouthinkthegovernmentcandoto

tacklethisvaccinehesitancy?Awareness campaignsmight

help in villages. We issue pam-phlets on the benefits of the vac-cine, butwe do that on our own.Thegovernmentcanprobablyfindawaytotargetpeoplewhoareun-lettered or who don’t listen tohealthcareworkers.

AT THE openmaidan next toGurgaon’sWestinHotel,whatis most noticeable is an ab-sence,asilence.AlongLeisureValley Road and a kilometre

awayfromtheKingdomofDreams,thecity’snod to Bollywood-styled extravaganza, themaidan is one of the few spots in GurgaondesignatedforFridayprayers.ButthisFriday,likemanyothers intherecentpast, theair isfraughtwith tension.“Yahanpekahansunogeazan,bhai.Namaz

bhi jaan jokhimmedaal deti hai (You expecttohear theazanhere? Justdoingnamaz isarisk),” saysAbdul, a 23-year-oldwhoworksasahairdresserata salon inanearbymall.Abdul had first gone to a park near the

KingdomOfDreams—tillrecently,agovern-ment-approved space for Friday namaz—butwas told by two constables that it was“no longer allowed” and that hemust go tothemaidannexttoWestin,akilometreaway.Between theCensusesof 2001and2011,

Gurgaon’s population grewby 74%. The in-fluxof labour—in theservices sector, ITandcommunications—has ledGurgaon,Delhi’sposhest suburb, to become the 56th largestcity in India by population and eighth bywealth. Its per capita income in 2020wasRs 4.6 lakh, nearly three times the nationalaverageofRs1.3lakh.Dottedwithskyscrap-ers,malls, condominiumsandbars, its land-scapeoffersapanoramicviewofthegoodlife.Buttherecentcontroversiesoverjummahna-mazorFridayprayershaveexposed,formanyresidents, the fragility of the carefully culti-vatedapoliticalcosmopolitanism.Intheposherparts—thecolonies inand

around Sushant Lok, Golf Course Road,HamiltonCourtandRegencyPark—thereis,atfirstglance,anindifferencetotheturmoil.But scratch the surface, and it’s evident thatthe sense of forebodinghas breached thesegatedcommunitiesaswell.AnilMehtaputs onabrave face. “Things

clearlyhaven’t reacheda tippingpoint yet,”saystherecentlyretiredCEOof IndiaShelter,a housing finance company with officesacross the country. Mehta lives in TheLaburnam, a condominium complex inSushant Lok. “What’s happening here, thedivisiveness, isgoingonalloverthecountry.But for a call centre or corporate employeeinGurgaon, thingshaven’t gotten thatbad.”Butthe33-year-oldmiddlemanagement

executive at amultinational tech and socialmedia firm, who has turned up for Fridayprayersat IFFCOchowk,woulddisagree.Ontheconditionofanonymity,heletshisangerpourout.“Ihavebrokenupwithmy(Hindu)girlfriend (out of fear), stopped speaking tofriendsandcolleaguesbecause theysay themostbigoted things,without thought.”Hesaysheisn’treligiousbutisparticular

about theFridayprayers. “It’s aboutsolidar-ity.” On the loudspeaker, a cleric asks devo-tees to offer namaz at their “homes, offices,factories, jhuggis”— this congregation is forpeople “whohavenootherchoice”.“Inmyoffice,”saysthe33-year-old,“Ican

playvideogames,taketimeoff foranxietyor

depression.Icaneventakeanafternoonoffto‘centre’myself.”Butheisafraidofthe“looks”,thepossiblecomplaintstoHR, ifhe“putsoutamat,putsonacapandfacesMecca”.“Whatif someone lets thegoons inonwhere I live?Whatif Iambeatenup?ForaMuslimyuppy,there is no safe place for namaz in office...Maybeit is timetomoveabroad.”ForTHussain, amason-turned-contrac-

torwho isworking on a renovation projectinanupmarketcondominium,goingabroadis not a choicehehas or seeks—Gurgaon ishis kingdom of dreams. “I came here fromWest Bengal over 25 years ago. Somany ofus have built a life here,mademoney, sup-ported our families. But over the last fewyears, police have been coming towhere Iliveandaskforkagoj(documentation),eventhoughIamfromMaldadistrictandhavethepapers (Aadhaarandvoter ID) toprove it.”While he stays on for work, Hussain

adds:“Nowadays, there’salwaysabitof fearwhenwe say we are going for namaz. Butthere are enoughgoodpeoplehere, peoplewework for.”Butthe“goodpeople”,therichandpow-

erful, areafraid tohelp.The fear isn’t entirely unfounded. The

GurgaonNagrikEktaManch, a citizens’ col-lective, conducted iftaars and protests, andhelpednegotiatespaces fornamazwiththelocaladministrationin2020,beforethepan-demic hit. “Covid hasmeant thatmobilisa-tionhasreduced,thoughwearestillveryac-tive on thenamaz issue,” saysAltaf Ahmad,co-founderoftheorganisation.Another,per-

hapsmorepressingfactor,hasbeentheDelhiriotsof2020.Thegroupwasalsoinvolvedinrelief work during the violence, andmanymembers have taken a back seat over fearsthat theycouldbeslappedwithcases.Aftab Ahmed, the Congress MLA from

NuhconstituencynearGurgaon,broughtuptheallegeddiscriminationagainstMuslimsin the Haryana Assembly. Chief MinisterManohar Lal Khattar replied that the rulesaboutpublicspacesandworshipshouldap-ply to all communities and “displaying ashowofstrengthwhichprovokessentimentsof anothercommunity isnotappropriate”.On theground, the relatively accommo-

dating attitude that the local Gurgaon ad-ministration displayed in 2020 has disap-peared. “The current furore about namaz isbeingmanufactured for the UP elections,”

saysAhmed,theCongressMLA.“Theadmin-istrationisundertremendouspressurefromtheBJPandRSS toheightenpolarisation.”MohammadAdeeb,formerIndependent

Rajya Sabha member and leader of theGurgaonMuslimCouncil, seemssubsumedby despondency. He has filed a contemptplea in the SupremeCourt against HaryanaChiefSecretarySanjeevKaushalandDGPPKAgrawal, citing the apex court’s 2018 judg-mentinTehseenSPoonawallavUnionofIndia,which puts forthmeasures to be taken topreventhatecrimes.Thecourt,hesays,istheonly hope because “none of the so-called‘secular’parties, includingandespeciallytheCongress,iswillingtotakeaprincipledstand.Only the CPI(M) actually showed up on thestreets in supportof thenamaz issue.”Somewhatironically,KuldeepYadav,BJP

councillor, sharesthis logic—thatexclusionis what electoral politics demand. Hewasamongthosepresentduringtheanti-namazprotestsinSector47.“Namazisnottheissue.Ifmyconstituents,theactualresidents,wanttostopsomething,Ihavetostandwiththem.Whyshould I support ‘outsiders’?”Acorporateleaderwhohasworkedwith

leadingIndianandglobalbankssaysthattillrecently,employersinplaceslikeHUDAparkwould ensure that they providedwater forwuzu (ritual ablutions before namaz), andspace for theirMuslim employees, at leastonFridays.Butthefearof reprisal from“cul-tural organisations” and the government’ssupportofthemhavemadeemployerswary.“Today, if someone asks me whether

Gurgaon is a good place to open an office,start a business — create jobs, basically — Iwould advise against it... Many people Iknow...arebuyingpropertyabroad,”hesays.The Sunday Express tried to get in touch

with leading corporateswith offices in andaroundGurgaon on the controversy and itsimpactontheir sizeableMuslimworkforce,butnoneresponded.“Themore youhave, themore youhave

to lose,” says a senior officerwith a leadingmultinationalFMCGbrand.“Thefactis, IndiaInchas thesamebiasesas society.”Thebankingsector leader ismoredirect.

“Ingeneral,inthelendingsector,Muslimsareemployed less and given fewer loans. Now,leadershipsincompanieshavenoqualmsinsayingtoHR,‘Don’thiremoreMuslims.That’smorehassle thanit isworth’.”Gurgaon District Magistrate Yash Garg,

BJPMP fromGurgaon andMinister of Statefor Statistics and ProgrammeImplementationRaoInderjitSingh,HaryanaBJP president O P Dhankar, as well as theparty’s MLA from the area, Sudhir Singla,nonerespondedtocallsormessagesaskingforacommentonthe issue.If theeliteareafraid,andthemarginalised

areatthemargins, istherenowaytoengagewith the authorities to ensure a better dia-logue, anopening?“We all have children abroad,” said a

Gurgaon old-timer. “If the son of TavleenSingh(acolumnistwiththisnewspaper)canhavehisOCI (OverseasCitizenof India) sta-tus revoked,whathopedowehave?”

Gated and walledIThub,Delhi’sposhsuburb,oneof thewealthiestcities in thecountry,Gurgaonhascarefullycultivatedanapolitical

cosmopolitanism.As thecontroversyoverFridaynamaztakes thesheenoff,AAKASHJOSHI findsasenseof fear, forebodingandalienation in thecity’s corporateofficesandcondominiums,andawideninggapwhich fewseemtobetryingtobridge

Dottedwithskyscrapers,malls, condiminiumsandbars,Gurgaon’s landscapeoffersapanoramic, if deceptive,viewof thegoodlife.Expressphotos

Aprotestagainstnamazbeingofferedintheopen.CMKhattarsaid“showsofstrengthcouldprovokeotherside”

ALETTER FROMGURGAON

HARYANA

MANISHSAHU

KANNAUJ IS used to fame as “the perfumecapital of India”; even somepolitical atten-tionastheconstituencyof formerchiefmin-isterAkhileshYadav.But this time, the fameand attentionmean Kannauj is not exactlycomingupsmellingofroses—thatmajorin-gredient the attar makers of this UttarPradeshcity,next to theGanga, swearby.InBadaBazaar,theheartof the‘Kannauji

Attar’market,thetalkisallabout“raids”andthe“crores”tumblingoutofcupboards,wallsand basements. And a growing concernaboutwhat itmay imply for an industry—goingbackatleast400years—thathasbeenonagrowthpath in recentyears.Therehavebeenat least threehigh-pro-

file raids amidst the growing heat of theAssemblyelection.Theonemostcuriouswasthat by GST authorities on the Kanpur andKannaujpremisesofalittle-knownperfumetrader, Peeyush Jain, claiming recovery ofover Rs 190 crore in cash alone. As doubtswere raised about whether the wrong “PJain”,withnopoliticallinks,hadbeenraided,IncomeTaxofficialslandedupattheKannaujpremisesofaleadingperfumebusinessman

with links to theSamajwadiParty, PushprajJain“Pampi”,aswellasaFauzanMalik.Bothareleadingperfumebusinessmenofthecity.In Bada Bazaar, no one believes that the

money recovered from Peeyush Jain, whoalso supplies rawmaterial to paanmasalamanufacturers,belongstohim.“If thereweresuch profits to bemade in perfume, thenKannaujwouldnotbesuchabackwardcity,”saysa local resident.Adds Pawan Trivedi, president of the

Attars and Perfumers Association ofKannauj:“Peoplemightthinkthereisahugemargin inperfumebusiness.Wearegettingcalls fromaroundtheworldtoaskwhygov-ernmentagenciesareconducting raids.”Theassociation,whichhascalledameet-

ing on Sunday to discuss the raids, and dis-trictadministrationputthevalueof theper-fume business in Kannauj at over Rs 1,200crore— not counting the outletsmany runoutside thecity.The perfumes are exported to interna-

tionalmarkets,especiallyintheMiddleEast.Nearly80%ofthecity’spopulationofover

10lakhisdirectlyorindirectlyassociatedwiththe industry, from farmers who cultivateflowers,tomanufacturersofattarbottlesandthosewhomakethestickersputonthem.

The transition to online has boosted themarket. “Weearlier soldtothosewhocametoour shops.Now,ourbusinesshasadirec-tion,” saysa localbusinessman.Shunningnewtechniques,Kannaujman-

ufacturers still prefer the traditional steam-distillationmethod. This, they say, is whatlends the Kannuaji Attar its unmatched fra-grance.SaysNikhilChaurasia:“Ourmanufac-turing skills are passed down generation togeneration.Theyarenotsharedwithanyone.”Apart fromsteam-distillation, they only

usecopperutensilsinthepreparationofper-fumes, says another dealer at Bada Bazaar,NishishTiwari.“It issaidthatperfumeflowsdown even the drains of Kannauj,” he says,addingthat theyhavebranchedout intoes-sential oils used tomake products such as

shampooandincensesticks,aswellas food.Kannauj’s brushwith the current politi-

cal row is believed to have begun withAkhilesh launching in November a‘Samajwadi Party Sugandh’, prepared byPushpraj Jain, apartyMLC.A local residentwho doesn’t want to be

named says: “It was a political stunt. Wedon’t even knowwhere those SamajwadiPartySugandhbottlesarenow.”However, there is only fondness for the

SP, particularly the 300-kmAgra-LucknowExpressway, inaugurated by the Akhileshgovernment in November 2016, that hasmadetraveltoandfromKannaujbotheasierand “safer”. “Since the travel time fromLucknowandAgrahasbeencutdown,manytraders have set up outlets in the two cities

while theirworkshops are still inKannauj,”saysashopkeeper.If returnedtopower,Akhileshhasprom-

ised to complete an International PerfumePark Project, whose foundation stonewaslaid by him in 2016 (a year before theAssembly elections), as well as a perfumemuseum.The SP has always seenKannauj district

as its bastion, withMulayam Singh Yadav,son Akhilesh and daughter-in-lawDimplewinning the Lok Sabha and Assembly con-stituencies among themselves for manyyears. In the 2019 parliamentary election,amidstaModiwave,DimplelosttotheBJP’sSubratPathak,butbyaclosemargin.SincetheBJPcametopower,atradersays,

crimeisdown.“UndertheSP,agroupofpeo-plewouldregularlytargetthebusinesscom-munityandharass them.”But there are other expectationswhich

remainunfulfilled, the foremost being for agas pipeline in Kannuaj. “We earlier usedwood for burning. Now, wood is not avail-able easily,” says a local unit owner.Dealersalso complain of earnings coming down tohalf since theCovid lockdown.Both Pushpraj Jain and Malik live and

runtheiroutlets fromJainStreet,atMandai,not very far from each other and fromwhere Peeyush Jain is said to also reside. Alocal dealer saysMalik runsoneof theold-estperfumebusinesses inthecity. “It issaidin Kannauj that almost all perfume busi-nessmen have been directly or directly, atsome period, been associated with Malikandhis family.”Like Peeyush Jain, the raid on him has

Kannauj perplexed. “I have never heard orseenFauzanandhisfamilyattendinganypo-litical function,” saysTrivedi.

Perfumeissaid to flowdowneventhedrainsofKannauj.But thesedays, thecity isengulfed inarisingstink:of raids,politics, andpouringcash

On the nose

TheBadaBazaar,heartofKannauj’sperfumemarket.Vishal Srivastav

New Delhi

FifthCOLUMNTAVLEENSINGHTwitter@tavleen_singh

IN THE wake of the terror attacks onMumbaicityinend-November2008,Iwasrequested tomove from theMinistry ofFinancetotheMinistryofHomeAffairs. Iconfess Iwas reluctant todosobecause IhadnurturedthehopethatIwillcompletefive years asMinister of Finance inMay2009.However, I quickly realised that itwasacalltodutythatIwasboundtoobey.ImovedonDecember1,2008.Very early inmy tenure, I was con-

frontedwith passionate pleas to lift theArmedForces (Special Powers)Act, 1958(AFSPA). Under theAct, the Central gov-ernmentmaydeclareanareatobea ‘dis-turbedarea’andapplytheActtothatarea.Similarly, in eight states, the Governor(readstategovernment)mayexercisethatpower. TheAct doesnot stipulate a timelimit for the continuance of thedeclara-tion.However, the SupremeCourt inter-venedandobligatedthegovernmentcon-cerned to review the declaration beforetheexpiryofsixmonths.That obligation gave little comfort to

rights’ activists becauseonce theActhadbeen applied, state governmentswereloathtoendthedeclaration.Forexample,Manipurhasperiodicallynotifiedandap-plied theAct since the1980s. Assamhasreviewed and renewed the declarationevery sixmonths since2017. TheCentralgovernmenthasregularlynotifiedthe‘dis-turbedareas’inNagaland(thewholestate)and inArunachalPradesh (threedistrictsplustwopolicestationareas).

INTENT IMMUNITY,EFFECT IMPUNITYTheState(Centralorstategovernment)

is beholden to the Armed Forces— theArmy,theAirForceandtheCentralArmedPoliceForces.Theyarethedecision-mak-ingpowers.WheretheArmyisdeployed,the real power is with the Army. I hadanalysedtheActinacolumninthesepages(TheIndianExpress,May3,2015).Thepow-ersenjoyedbytheArmedForcesundertheAct are, to put itmildly, draconian. Thepowers includethepowertodestroyanyshelter or structure, to arrestwithout awarrant,andtosearchandseizewithoutawarrant.Eachoneofthesepowersiscon-trary to the ordinary law— the Code ofCriminal Procedure—except undernar-rowandspecialcircumstances.Theharsh-estpoweristhepowerconferredonapo-lice officer, if he thinks it is necessary, tofire uponaperson in anassemblyof fiveormore,eventothecausingofdeath.ThecaseagainstAFSPA is thatArmed

Forces personnel donot pause to reflectwhether the use of force—often, lethalforce—isavoidable.Oncetheyareinasit-uationof conflict, theydonotweigh theoptions;theyusemaximumforce.Section6of theAct gives theArmedForces per-sonnelimmunityagainstprosecution.TherealityistheprovisionencouragesArmedForcespersonneltoactwithimpunity.It is amatter of commonknowledge

that evennormalpolicepowers aremis-

used. Quite often, suchmisuse is sanc-tionedbyStatepolicy—as,forexample,inUttarPradeshwhere‘encounters’areem-beddedinthelawenforcementpolicyandproudlyadvertised!Inastatewhichisde-clared as a ‘disturbed area’, the ArmedForcesfunctionunderextremestressandAFSPAbecomesaweapon.

STRONG CASEFOR REPEAL

Thedemand for repealof AFSPA is anold demand. In 2005, the Justice JeevanReddyCommittee recommended its re-peal. That viewwasendorsedby succes-sive commissions and committees. Thelastwas the Justice J SVermaCommitteethatunderlinedtheimminentneedtore-viewthecontinuanceofAFSPA.Inmyview, it is imperative to repeal

AFSPA. There are other, and subsequent,lawstodealwithmilitancyandterrorismsuch as the Unlawful Activities(Prevention) Act and the NationalInvestigationAct. In fact,withtheexperi-ence of implementing UAPA, there is acompellingcasetoreviewthatActtoo.TherepealofAFSPAislongoverdue.ThecaseofAssamisinstructive.In2017,

theMinistryofHomeAffairsaskedAssamtoremoveAFSPAaltogetherorreducetheareaswhere it applied.Assamrefused. In2018, theStandingCommitteeonHomeAffairsaskedAssamwhyitwasnecessary

that thewholestateshouldbedeclareda‘disturbedarea’ against theadviceof theMHA.Therewasnoconvincingexplanation.

AUTHORITARIANGOVERNMENT & LAW

After 13 civilians were killed onDecember4,2021(inacaseofmistakenidentity, forwhich the Armyhas apolo-gised), the chief ministers of Manipur,Nagaland and Meghalaya have de-mandedtherepealoftheAct.ThepleaofManipur is ludicrous: it is the state gov-ernment that has applied the Act andnothingpreventstheChiefMinisterfromrescindingthenotification.The fact is thatgovernmentshavebe-

comemoreauthoritariansince2014.Asaninevitableconsequence, thepolice—andtheArmedForceswhendeployedforinter-nalsecurity—havebecomemoreauthori-tarian.AFSPA, intendedtobeashield,hasbecomeaweapon.TherearevoiceswithintheArmedForces that support the repealofAFSPAbuttheyare,regrettably,silent.AsHomeMinister, I supported there-

pealof AFSPA.Alternatively, I pleaded foramendingtheAct. I failed, and Ihavenar-ratedthestory inmy2015column.Today,wehaveanauthoritariangovernment, anauthoritarianPrimeMinisterandanauthor-itarianHomeMinister. Thechancesof re-peal, or evenamendments, are zero. TheonlyrecourseistheConstitutionalCourts.

When law becomes aweapon

The fact is that governmentshave become more

authoritarian since 2014. Asan inevitable consequence,

the police — and the ArmedForces when deployed forinternal security — have

become more authoritarian.AFSPA, intended to be a

shield, has become a weapon.There are voices within theArmed Forces that support

the repeal of AFSPA but theyare, regrettably, silent

AcrossTHEAISLE

PCHIDAMBARAMWebsite:pchidambaram.inTwitter@Pchidambaram_IN

IHAVEaproblem.The‘fringe’ isclaimingmy family. Rapidly.Overthepast10yearsorso,the‘fringe’

has swirled in from the sides, cascadedfrom the top, and completely envelopedmyHinduupper-caste,middle-class,edu-catedfamily.AndI—asecular,liberal,fem-inist woman— findmyself increasinglymarooned,marginalised,andmaligned.My problem is this — because the

‘fringe’ now resides withinmy family, Isee how potent it is, how insidiously itworks. If it can fray familial ties, I amscaredofwhat it candoonawiderscale.My family has been radicalised—no,

thereisnopolitesubstitutefortheterm—onesocialmediapostatatime,tothepointwhereinteractionswiththemleavemeen-raged,heartbroken,andvery,verylonely.

I have tried arguing. Countering dis-informationwith facts, reasoning, cajol-ing, haranguing, emotional appeals, Ihave tried themall. But the ‘fringe’, pre-emptingme, has taught them that I aminvalid.Mypoliticalopinionscan’tbera-tional, I have been ‘brainwashed’. I, awoman, single at 30, with friends of allgenders, amtobepatronisedatbest, vil-ified at worst, to be viewedwith suspi-cionalways. That ishowpotent it is.Of course,my familyand their imme-

diateecosystemdidnotdiscover the reli-giousdivide in2014. As a child, I remem-ber conversations about how “onlyupper-casteHindus have no champions”among politicians; how “Hindus withsmall families pay taxes but those peoplewithsomanykidsgetsubsidies”.ButIalsorememberageneralfeelingthatbigotryisshameful,andinsteadofbeingoverlypre-occupiedwith religion, one should studywell, getgoodjobs,andgetonwith life.

Now, they swallow the most out-landishWhatsAppforwards,hotlydefendpuerileclaims,andconsiderfull-throatedbigotrya long-due identityassertion.Foryears,thesepeoplehavebeenfedadietofsocialmediapoststhatspoketothemlikeonly they ‘understood’ them.I have seen theWhatsApp window

transform the Overton window. From“Youhavelongfollowedwesternscience,nowconsiderindigenouswisdom”to“Doyou know the real history of SanatanDharma” to “This is how Hindus weretreatedbyXYZ” to “If youdon’t speakupnow, your childrenwill be forced to con-vert”,to“Yourtimehasfinallycomeinthelandof your forefathers”.Evenopencallsto bloodshed are defended as havingcomefromthosewho“gotcarriedaway”,anddidn’t “reallymeanwhat theysaid”!TheseWhatsAppmessagesgenerally

havesomekernelof truth,making themsound plausible. From there, they take

wild leaps of logic and wilder libertieswith truth, to seduce a well-groomed,but, of course, alsowilling,mass.Themegaidentitythesemessageshave

forged is powerful enough to sunderper-sonal bonds. Likeme,manyofmy friendsnowstayawayfromfamilies,visitinghomelessfrequently,smallargumentsflaringupquickly because of resentment left overfrompolitical conflicts. Unable to engageorexplain,wearecuttingourselvesoff,wellknowing that this is a failure, thatwe arecedinggroundtothepropagandists.WhilethisappliestobothHindumen

andwomen, for women, this, likemostother things, isworse.Well-meaningmalefriendsadviseme

to engagemore. What I am not alwaysable to explain to them is theheartbreakI feel when a once dearly loved uncledoesn’t meetmy eyeswhile refusing tocondemn Kathua or Hathras withoutwhataboutery.WhenIpointoutamisog-

ynistcommentfromacousinonShaheenBagh, andhe is sheepish for just one sec-ond, before aggressively defending it.Whenmy existence is used as a repri-mandtomymother,whogaveherdaugh-ter far toomuchfreedom.Whenanothercousincombsmysocialmediaprofilestocheckif somemanhas“turnedmyhead”,while sendingme ‘love jihad’posts.Nomatterhowmuchabloodrelation

disgustsyou,itishardtostoplovingthem.Which is why I, and others like me,

cannot afford to give up.We just have totryharder, andsomeday,maybe,wecanconvince our familieswearen’t ill-man-nered ingrateswhoargue for the sakeofit, but peoplewho love them, and so ex-pectthemtocontributetocreatingalessviolent country, which is safer for all ofus.After all, only love can fighthate.

National Editor Shalini Langer curatesthe ‘She Said’ column

When the fringe enters [email protected]

THE YEAR just endedwas so filledwithbadtimesthatitishardtomournitspass-ing. Especiallynot in IndiaandespeciallynotnowthatthepandemicseemsbackasanewvariantrevivinghorriblememoriesofhowunpreparedwewerefortheDeltavariant last summer. Arewe indanger ofthis happening again with Omicron?Therearedisquietingsimilarities. Justlikelasttime,thePrimeMinisterandmanyofhis seniorministers are busywith elec-tions and addressing vast rallies of un-masked people.While at the same timeordering you andme to be careful aboutnot breaking Covid protocols. Arewe tobelieve that thevirus candistinguishbe-tweenordinarypeopleandpolitical lead-ers? The Election Commission says thatall political parties want these electionstogoahead,butdoesnotexplainwhyral-liescannotbemadecompulsorilyvirtual.Withpoliticalleadersotherwiseoccu-

pied, it is left in the hands of officials tostopthespreadofOmicron.Thesearethesame officials who failed us last time, soit seemsverymuch as if the year 2022 isgoing to begin badly. These gentlemenpromised us that every Indianwould befully vaccinated before the end of 2021.Thisdidnothappen. If vaccinesareeasilyavailable,whyhasitnothappened?Whyhavewe delayed boosters so long?Whyare newvaccines taking so long to be al-lowed into India? If Omicronputshalf asmuch stress on the health services asDeltadid,weneedtobeprepared foran-other year in which disease and deathloomovereverythingelse.Wemusthopethattheyoungdoctorswhoarecurrentlyonstrikearepersuadedtogobacktoworkbecause this time, as they havewarnedmorethanonce, thebigproblemisgoingtobeagrimshortageof doctors.It was not just Covid thatmade 2021

suchahorribleyear. Initslastdayswebe-gan to see the consequences of the de-monisationofsecularism.Thisprocessbe-gan in Narendra Modi’s first term asIndia’s PrimeMinister, and it beganwiththe ‘intellectuals’whobelieve inaHinduRashtradistortingthewordandcalling it‘sickularism’.Thisbecamethefulcrumofa propaganda blitzkrieg that also de-monisedelitismand thosewho theybe-lievedhadlivedneedlesslyprivilegedlivesin ‘Lootyens’ Delhi.WhenModiwon hissecond term, he added fuel to the fire byspeaking out against what he called the‘KhanMarketgang’.Thiswasneveralargeganginthefirst

place, so it was easy to replace it with anew‘gang’.ThinkersofRSSmindsetwhowore their Hindutva credentials as abadge of honour andwhomade it clearthat they hated Islam andMuslims, sothe eventswe sawhappen inHaridwar,Agra and Ambala were inevitable. InHaridwar a gang of saffron-robed ‘holymen’ announced their versionof a ‘finalsolution’ to our Muslim problem.Genocide, they said, was the answer.Apparently, nobodyhas informed theselunatics that there are more than 200million Indian Muslims, and if a geno-cide really began, the world would notsit backquietly andwatch.Meanwhile, on Christmas Day, their

brothers-in-armsburnedeffigiesofSantaClaus in Agra, and in Ambala, they van-dalisedachurchandbeheadedastatueofJesus. Throughout these ugly events thePrimeMinisterhasremainedsilent.Why?In searching for a reason, I rememberedhimsayingtomeoncethathedidnotcon-demn the horrific lynching ofMohammadAkhlaq because somethingawful happens in India everyday andhedidnotbelieveitpossibletoalwayscom-ment. So, it is left to BJP spokesmen tospeak for the Government of India onprime time shows and usually they endupdoinga terrible job.If in2021therehadbeenamiraculous

economic turnaround it would in somemeasure have compensated for the at-mosphereofhatredandviolencethathasbeen created. Alas, this did not happenandforyoungIndians,unemploymentre-mains a huge problem. Figures from thefirst threemonths of last year from theNational Statistical Office put the unem-ployment rate at 9.3%. In coming years,unemployability could become a biggerproblemsincemillionsof Indianchildrenhaveforgottenhowtoreadandwritebe-cause schools have been closed for twoyears. A survey by LIRNEasia lastNovember foundthatonly20percentofchildrenformallyenrolledinschoolshadcontinued their studies during the pan-demic and that most of these childrenlived incitiesandtowns.Wasthereanythingthathappenedin

2021thatwecancelebrateasanachieve-ment? Farmers ended their long agita-tion against the farm laws when thePrime Minister backed down. This isgood.Thereisafinetemplebeingbuilt inAyodhya and the Vishwanath Templecorridor was inaugurated in Benares. InDelhi, theCentralVistaprojectproceedsat a spanking pace as does work on thenewParliamentbuilding.NewIndiawillnot be short of new buildings. For thosewhobelievethat IndiashouldbeaHinduRashtra there is sufficient evidence thatwork on this project continued through2021at a furiouspace. As someonewhois not enamoured by any of these proj-ects, I shall stick with saying that 2021wasahorribleyear.

Goodbye,2021

DEFINING MOMENTS:20212021WILL be best remembered for twoevents. The deadly impact of the coron-avirus and the long-drawn-out, disrup-tive farmers’ agitation.The secondwave of Covid-19 in the

middle of the yearwas one of theworsttragediestobefallIndiainthelast50years.Thereweredesperatecriesforhelpinse-curing hospital beds, oxygen cylindersand vital medicines Each day broughtfreshbadnews, friendsstrugglingtosur-viveorslippingaway.Anunnaturallyhighnumberofcelebritydeathsindicatedthatthis was a viruswhich did not discrimi-nate between the powerful and thedowntrodden.Someof thoseinchargeofcontrolling

the pandemicwere foundwanting.Wefaced a severe shortfall of vaccines formonths.TheElectionCommissiondidnotprohibit holding mass rallies in poll-boundstates.Politicianssettheworstex-ample by encouraging super-spreaderevents.With Omicron cases on the rise,onehopessomelessonshavebeenlearntfromlastyear’smistakes.

MODI RETREATSLast year’s other big story was the

farmers’ agitation, for thewithdrawal oftheModi government’s three new farmlaws. The government insisted the newlegislation was designed to empowersmall farmers to sell and purchase grainoutsidemandisandacrossstates.Farmersapprehendedthatbigprivatecompanieswouldsqueezethemoutandthatthelawscould end theMSP-based procurementsystem.Thewell-organisedfarmerscameready for the long haul and camped formonths on the highwaywith their trac-tors holding up traffic. On Republic Day,therewasanear riotoutsideRedFort.In Lakhimpur Kheri, UP, a convoy of

cars, includingoneownedbyaBJPminis-ter,moweddownfourfarmersandtheag-itators retaliated,killing twoBJPworkersandthedriverofoneof thevehicles.Forayearthegovernmentrefusedtorelentde-spiteroadblocks,violence,ralliesandhos-tile public opinion both in India andabroad.Finally,inNovember,thenormallyunyieldingModibacktrackedandagreedtowithdrawthe threecontentious laws.

On thepolitical front, theyearwasde-fined by four events:Mamata Banerjee’sdecisive victory in the West BengalAssemblyelections;thefurtherweakeningof the Congress still controlled by theGandhis,whopresideoverarapidlydeclin-ingempire;theemergence,underthewilyguidance of Prashant Kishor, of otherclaimants to the Opposition leadershipmantle;andfinallythegrowinguncertaintyin theBJP as towhooccupies thenumbertwoslotintheparty.

MAMATA’S MIGHTAfteritsspectacularsuccessinthe2019

LokSabhaelectionsinWestBengal,theBJPentered theAssemblyelection campaignwith cocky confidence and all guns blaz-ing.Butdespiteitshigh-powercampaign,led by PrimeMinisterModi, the BJP jug-gernaut met a roadblock in the feistyBanerjee. The ruling party at the Centremiscalculatedinnotprojectingstate-levelleaders. Its polarising campaign, crudebarbs atMamata and themishandling ofthe second Covidwave did not go downwellwith the voter.Modi’s jibe of “Didi oDidi”wasperceivedasundignified.Emboldenedbyher success inBengal,

Banerjeenowdreamsofemergingasanal-ternativeoppositionleadertotheGandhisatthenational level.ShehasbeenwooingdisgruntledCongressleadersinotherpartsof the country. AAP and theNCP are alsocuttingintotheCongressvoteshare.

LEADERSHIP LACUNAMany in the Opposition, and even

within the Congress, apprehend that thedefactoCongresspresident,whostillshiesaway fromaformalcoronation, isnot thebest candidate to take on a campaign-savvyModi in2024.RahulGandhi’spoorchoices, frequent trips abroadand failureascommander-in-chiefarereflectedintheparty’s diminishing prospects in oncesure-firewinningstatessuchasPunjab.

WHO’S NO. 2?TheBJPhasalsoseenitsfortunesslide

this year, though not as precipitously asthe Congress. In 2019, after its spectacu-lar win in the general elections, theNarendra Modi-Amit Shah team ap-peared invincible. Shah, as anall-power-ful HomeMinisterwho tabled the reso-lutioninParliamenttorevokeArticle370in JammuandKashmirandcontinuedtohaveamajorsayintheBJPevenaftergiv-ing up the president’s post, was the un-doubtedNo.2. But in 2021 the hierarchyisno longer so clear-cut.Withall eyesontheUPAssemblypolls,ChiefMinisterYogiAdityanathhasemergedasa risingstar.

insideTRACKCOOMIKAPOOR

[email protected]

MASSIVE. BREATHTAKING.Magnificent.Awesome. Ancient India’s gift to worldheritage. The Sun Temple of Konark isabout 750years of history and120yearsof conservation. It represents the culmi-nation of Odisha’s temple architecture.Eveninitspresentdisrepair, itisoneofthemost stunningexamplesof religiousart.TheArchaeologicalSurveyof Indiain-

siststhatKonarkisamongthebestlookedaftermonuments;however, itsconserva-tionhistory isuneventosay the least.Amarvellousmetaphor of time and

space,theancienttempleisdecaying,vic-timtoadvancingstoneerosionandweath-ering,whichhavealreadybluntedthefine-nessofthecarvedfigurinesandtakentheirtollonthesoftstone.Saltaction,wind,hu-midity, algae and fungal growth have allcontributed to thedamage. Fissureshaveappeared,stoneslabsarebreakingoffandthe figures, as theyerode,have lostmuchof theirpristinebeauty.In was in December 1900, after Lt

Governor Sir JohnWoodburn visited theplace, thateffortsweretakentorestore itto itsgrandeur.ByApril1901, thearchae-ological Surveyor TBlochhadunearthedthemammoth structure and the sheersizeandsplendourof itsstructureandin-tricatecarvingswereonceagainseen.In 1924, the Earl of Ronaldshay pro-

claimedthenewly-revealedtempletobe“oneof themoststupendousbuildingsinIndia,whichrearsitselfaloft,apileofover-whelminggrandeureven in itsdecay”.More than 11 reports were prepared

bydifferentauthorities indifferenttimesafterthis.Mostofthemjustgathereddust.The first report, prepared by BishanSwarup, an engineerwhoworked at thesite from1901-04, stated that theedificefaced collapse and had it filled upwithsand. Swaruphadgivendetailed sugges-tions for the further upkeep of the tem-ple,but thesewere just forgotten.Thenext committee, formed in1950,

waschairedbyChiefMinisterBiswanathDas and had on its panel CMMaster, aneminentarchitect fromBombay.Noneofthe recommendationswasput inplace.The third committee was formed in

1953, this toounder thechairmanshipofDas, and the recommendation for erec-tionof scaffoldingwas implemented.In1978,theASIconstitutedtheKonark

Expert Committee where, for the firsttime, a serious view of the problemwas

taken.ThecommitteewaschairedbytheDG of the ASI. After the collapse of fivestoneblocksfromthemaintemple,struc-tural conservationwas undertaken be-tween1985-90.Basedonthis,scaffoldingof somevulnerable sectionswasdone.In 1979, the UNESCO Experts

Recommendation on Conservation ofKonarkwas given to the Government ofIndia. After declaring it aWorld heritageSite, UNESCO once again appointed acommittee headed by experts Sir B MFieldenandPBeckman in1987. Theyde-scribed the state of the temple as alarm-ingandadvised immediatemeasures.The Italian expert Prof Ing Giorgio

Croci made a Structural Analysis of theJagamohanin1997.Thecommittee’srec-ommendations included removing thesand.Oneof thesuggestionswastodrillaholeandsendendoscopiccameras toas-sessthestateof theinteriorof thetemple.NooneknowsforsurewhytheKonark

temple disintegrated so rapidly in such arelatively short time. Various theoriesabound,somescholarsthinkthatthemaintemplewasnevercompleted.Thecollapsemayalsohavebeenduetobadfoundationand settlement, or natural catastropheslikecyclones, lightning,earthquake.The temple was originally nearer to

theseashoreanditsblackpagodawasvis-ibleformiles.Infacttheancientmariners’maps used it as a navigation point. Thestandingcornerof the towerwas furtherrecordedbyJamesFergussonin1837C.E.,

who estimated its height as 140 to 150feet, and Kittoe in 1838 C.E., who esti-mated its height as 80 or 100 feet . ThissolitaryremnantofthemaintemplefellinOctober1848due toastronggale.Rajendra LalMitra, while visiting the

temple in 1868,mentioned it as only an“enormousmass of stones studdedwitha fewpeepal treeshereandthere”.In 1906 large-scale plantation of ca-

suarina andpoonang treeswas takenupinthedirectionoftheseainordertocheckthemovement of sand-ladenwinds andtherebyminimise their abrasive action.These tall treeswere all destroyed in thesupercycloneof 1999.The authorities then planted cashew

nuttrees,whichdonotgrowhighandof-fer little protection from the sand parti-clescarriedbythewind.Thishasacceler-atedtheerosion.Furthermore, theentirecompoundwaspavedwithstoneblocks,whichstopped thenatural sandpercola-tion of rainwater, resulting inwater log-gingof the templeeveryyear.Betweenaccusationsandcounter-ac-

cusations, theconditionof thestructurecontinues to weaken. Acquiring a her-itage tag is not sufficient in itself; it en-tails and imposes greater responsibilityandcultural accountability. Butour sys-tem in place is hardly responsive to theneeds of culture.

Thewriter isProjectCoordinator,INTACHOdisha

Shifting sands, creepingshadows on Sun Temple

Advancingstoneerosionandweatheringhavebluntedthefinenessof thecarvedfigurinesandtakentheir tollonthesoft stone.Express

13WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHE SUNDAY EXPRESS, JANUARY2,2022 OPINION

New Delhi

EXPRESSNETWORK14 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHE SUNDAY EXPRESS,JANUARY2,2022

VAISHNODEVISTAMPEDE

MANISHSAHULUCKNOW,JANUARY1

AMONG THE pilgrims whodied in a stampede at MataVaishno Devi shrine in Jammuand Kashmir on Saturday wasa 30-year-old ayurveda doctorfromGorakhpurwho gotmar-ried only 30 days ago.Arun Pratap Singh, who

completed Bachelor ofAyurvedic Medicine andSurgery (BAMS) degree from acollege in Khurja inBulandshahr, was running ahospital inGorakhpur.On December 29, Arun

along with his wife ArchanaSingh, also a doctor by profes-sion, leftGorakhpur forVaishnoDevi. Arun’s friends, AjayKumar and Dr AnugrahNarayanSingh,alongwiththeirwives had also gonewith him.AnugrahNarayanisapartnerattheGorakhpur hospital.“The three couples renteda

car and left for Jammu andKashmir on December 29. Ispoke toArunonThursdayandhe said he reached Jalandhar.Arun asked about thewell-be-ing of his mother, Tara Devi,”said Arun's father SatyaPrakash, a farmer.Hailing fromRampurBhurj

village inChauriChauraareaofGorakhpur, Arun Pratap wasthe only son of Satya PrakashSingh and Tara Devi. Hisyounger sister Priyanka Singhismarried.

“Arunwasthe firstdoctor inour family. He was an inspira-tion for his relatives and localresidents. Everyone in the vil-lage was proud of him. At hishospital–Hindhospital–Arunusedtoneverchargehighratesfrom patients,” added SatyaPrakash, a former pradhan ofRampur Bhurj village.SatyaPrakash’sfamilyiscon-

sideredamongthosewell-offthearea. Satya Prakash also used torunabrickklinbut shut itdownduetopersonal reasons.According toSatyaPrakash,

he came to knowabout the in-cidentwhenthenewsbrokeontelevision channels. “Minuteslater, themedia starting show-ing names of the deceased, in-cluding my son’s name,” saidSatya Prakash.He called Arun’s cellphone

but could not contact him. Hetheninformedrelatives, includ-inghisdaughter, andrequestedthem to verify the news.“Officially, I got to know

about thedeathwhentwogov-ernment officials – lekhpal –visited my residence onSaturday morning and in-formed me. The governmentofficials took my youngerbrothertocollect thebodyfromLucknowwhere it was sched-uled to reach by afternoon,”said the father, adding thatArchanaSinghandothers,whotravelledwithhis son, are safe.“Arun married Archana, ofKushninagar, on December 1,2021,” added Satya Prakash.

‘He was 1st doctor inour family; marriedjust 30 days ago’ARANYASHANKAR

NEWDELHI, JANUARY1

VINAY KUMAR’S mother hadtriedherbesttodissuadehersonfrom visiting theMata VaishnoDevi shrine in Jammu. It wouldbetoocoldandcrowded,shehadsaid. But he resisted. “This is thelasttimeIcango.OnceIgetajobin the army, therewon’t be anytime. Ineedtogonow.”On December 29, the 21-

year-oldarmyaspirantleftfortheshrine on a night train fromFaridabad,planningtoreturnbyJanuary2.OnSaturday,Kumar’sfamilywokeuptothenewsthathewas among the 12who diedinthestampedelateFridaynight.ItwasKumar’s thirdtripthere.“Vinaywasamong12people

fromour localitywhohad goneto the shrine. They were ingroups of two.Wemade franticcallstotheotherswhowerewithhim.Oneof them,Kapil, toldushehadbeen injured, but thathewasletgofromthehospitalafterfirst-aid.HetoldusVinaywasstilladmitted. A littlewhile laterwewere told he’s no more,” saidMahesh Chand, Kumar’s incon-solable father and a Delhi JalBoard(DJB)employee.The family resides at

Molarband Extension inBadarpur.Barely 100meters away, in

another lane, the Pandey familywasmourning the loss of theirloved one. Sonu Pandey, 24, anemployee at a pen-drivemanu-facturerinOkhla,alsolosthislifeinthesamemishap.Hegotmar-ried justsevenmonthsago.His grief-stricken mother

sat covered in a blanket, inter-mittently crying between longsilences.“A couple of months ago he

hadcuthisringfingerbadlydur-ingwork,whichtookalotoftimetorecuperate.Once ithealed,hesaidheneededtovisittheshrinetothankgod.ButGodtookawaymyson.Hewasmysupportsys-teminmyoldage.Whatwillwedonow?”saidNarendraPandey,his father.“WegothimmarriedonMay

24lastyear.Mydaughter-in-lawAartihasbeenmostlylivingwithherparentsinGhazipur,UPsincemarriagesinceshe’scompletingher BSc third year. Just recentlywerentedathird-floor roomforthem, because shewas tomoveback home and live here. Nowtheroomisindisarrayandevery-thingseems lost.All throughhislife,mywifeneverlefthimalonefor long durations andnowhe’sgone,completelyalone,”hesaid.At Kumar’s household, his

family recalled his passion forjoiningthearmy.“He had just sat for the

exam for the sepoy rank about10-15 days back, andwas keenon going to Vaishno Devi topray that he clears it.Weare in

such shock and pain, that wehaven’t even toldmywife thathe’s no more. She already suf-fers from kidney infection andnerve damage; she won’t beable to take it,” said Chand.His daughter Geetanjali, 19,

said she had last spoken to herbrother at around 6:30 pm. “Atthattimehewasjuststartingthechadhayi (climb) and told methathewouldvideocallmeoncehe reaches there. But I never re-ceivedthatcall.Iwasworriedbutthoughtitcouldbeanetworkis-sue.We tried again early in themorning but in vain. I knewsomething was wrong but Inever thought this would hap-pen. This negligence on part ofthe government and we havesuffered.My brotherwill nevercomebacknow,”shesaid.Pandey,meanwhile, said no

amount of compensation couldbringbackhisson,butaddedthatthe government should do itsduty. “Weare apoor family, andhe was the breadwinner. I’vebeen staying unwell; I don’tknowhowlongIcankeepwork-ing.Wedon’twantanysuchun-toward incident like this tohap-pen again. The governmentshouldensurethis,”hesaid.

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEGURGAON,JANUARY1

THIRTYEIGHT-YEAR-OLDMamtahadpostponedherpilgrimagetotheVaishnoDevishrineinJammuandKashmir lastyearbecauseofthepandemic.Afteralongwait,Mamtawent

totheshrinewithher19-year-oldson thisweek, and on Saturday,she was among the 12 peoplekilledinastampedethere.

“Wereceived informationoftheincidentwhenweheardthenewsandthencontactedourrel-atives. Her son Aditya told usover the phone that a group ofpeople suddenly started push-ing themnear a pathway at theshrine complex. In the chaos,theywereseparated,Mamtafellandwas crushed in the crowd,”Satbir, her brother-in-law, tellsThe Sunday Express from theirhometownBeri inHaryana.“Mamta and her sonAditya

had gone for the pilgrimage onDecember30. Shewanted togototheshrineearlierthisyear,butthen Covid struck, so she hadpostponed her trip,” Satbir, 51,says, adding: “We are all in astateof shock.”A homemaker,Mamta lived

with her son and youngerdaughter in Beri, Jhajjar district.Her husband Surinder was anelectrician,anddiedofhealthis-sues fiveyearsago.Satbir saysMamtawas living

on state pension of Rs 2,250permonth, and other familymem-bersused tohelp themout. “Theextendedfamilyusedtohelpherout inmanaging household ex-penses.Thechildrenareorphansnow.Whilewewill take care ofthem,wehope that the govern-mentcangiveherchildrenjobsoncompassionategrounds,”hesays.Her last ritesareexpected to

be carried out on Sunday afterherbodyreachesherhometownBeriovernight,hesays.

Devoteesat theDarshaniDeodiof theMataVaishnoDevi shrine,onSaturday.PTI

Homemaker leaves behind two teenagers

Army aspirant, newly-wed: Twoof Delhi locality among dead

MAJORSTAMPEDESSINCE2000

AUGUST27,2003:39peoplewerekilledand140injured inastampededuringholybathat theKumbhMela inMaha-rashtra’sNashikdistrict

JANUARY25,2005:Over340devoteesweretrampledtodeathduringapilgrimageatMandhardevitempleinMaharashtra'sSataradistrict.

AUGUST3,2008:162deadinstampedetriggeredbyrumoursofrockslidesatNainaDevitemple inBilaspurdistrictofHimachalPradesh

SEPTEMBER30,2008:Nearly250devoteeskilledinstampedetriggeredbyrumoursofbombblastatChamundaDevi temple inRajasthan’s Jodhpurcity.

MARCH4,2010:63diedinastampedeatRamJankiTempleofKripaluMaharajinUP’sPratapgarhdistrictaspeoplegatheredtocollectfreeclothesandfood.

OCTOBER13,2013:115werekilledinastampededuringNavratrifestivitiesnearRatangarhtempleinMP’sDatia.

OCTOBER3,2014:32peoplewerekilled inastampedeatGandhiMaidaninPatna, shortlyafter theDussehracelebrationsended.

‘Finallyacopanswered...confirmedworst fears’

VAIBHAVJHAAHMEDABAD, JANUARY1

LASTTHURSDAY, aGandhinagarsessions court grantedbail to 55GujaratAamAadmiParty (AAP)leadersandactivistsaftertheyhadbeenlodgedinSabarmatiCentralPrison for 11 days for holding aprotest outside the rulingBharatiyaJanataParty(BJP)’sstateheadquartersinGandhinagar.Asmanyas93AAPmembers,

including10collegestudentsand28womenactivists,werearrestedandputintheAhmedabad-basedjail on20December for protest-ingoutside theBJPoffice againstthealleged leakof aquestionpa-perintheGujaratclericalstaffre-cruitmentexamination.The arrested AAPmembers

included virtually all the seniorleadersoftheparty’sGujaratunit,includingitsstatepresidentGopalItalia. Theywerebookedonvari-ouschargesunder22IPCsections,includingcriminalconspiracy,andsectionsoftheEpidemicDiseasesActandthePreventionofDamagetoPublicPropertyAct.This was the first time in

Gujaratindecadesthattheentiretopbrass of a political partywas

arrestedonsuchstringentchargesand jailed for holding a protest.AAP,however,succeededinmak-ing an impact by raking up thequestionpaper leak scandal: theGujaratpolicewasforcedtolodgeanFIRandmakearrestsinthecasefollowingwhichthestategovern-mentcancelledtheexam.Forthepastseveralyearsnow,

the AAP has been making at-tempts to make inroads inGujaratpoliticsdominatedbytheBJPandtheOppositionCongressparty.TheAAPhadcontestedthestate’s all 26 Lok Sabha con-stituencies in the 2014 generalelections,but losteverywhere. Itcontested29ofthetotal182seatsin the 2017Assembly polls, butlost itsdeposits inallof them.Stepping up attempts to

make its mark in Gujarat, theAAP appointed the 32-year-oldfirebrand activist Gopal Italia asitsstateunitchief in2020.Afor-mer police constable, Italia hadhit theheadlines inMarch2017when he threw a shoe at thenstate homeminister PradipsinhJadejaallegingthegovernment’sfailure inenforcingprohibition.While expanding its organi-

sational base in the state, theAAP subsequently inducted a

slew of prominent faces fromdifferent fields, includingpopu-lar TV anchor Isudan Gadhvi,youth leader Yuvrajsinh Jadeja,farmer activist Sagar Rabari,Patidar youth leader NikhilSavani, and noted industrialistMaheshSavaniamongothers.InFebruary2021,theAAPcon-

tested theurban local bodyelec-tionsacrossGujaratandsprangasurprisebywinning27seatsintheSurat Municipal Corporation(SMC)polls.TheBJPagainwontheSMC,evenastheCongressdrewablank,therebyvacatingtheprinci-pal Opposition’s space there forthenewplayer.FollowingtheAAP’sSMCvic-

tory, top leaders fromDelhi, in-cludingpartysupremoandDelhichiefministerArvindKejriwalandhisdeputyManishSisodia,startedmakingfrequentvisitstoGujarat,sensinganopportunitytoexpandtheparty’s footprint in the state.TheyhavesincedeclaredthattheAAPwillcontestalltheseatsinthestateAssemblyelectionsslatedforDecemberthisyear.InOctober2021electiontothe

Gandhinagar MunicipalCorporation(GMC),theAAPwononly 1 seat but in the three-cor-nered fight the Congress lost a

number of seats. The Congress,whichhadwon16 seats in2015polls,managedtowinonly2ofthetotal44GMCseatsduetosplittingofvotesagainstthewinnerBJP.“Themannerinwhichweper-

formedinGandhinagarelectionshasmadeBJPnervous,” claimedSagar Rabari. “Initially, theythought thatAAP is here to onlycuttheCongressvotes.However,asourvotepercentagekeepsris-ing election after election, they(BJP) are now scared…PuttingourleadersinjailunderstringentsectionsshowstheBJP’sfear.”Seekingtoreachouttoyouths

andconnectwithpeopleinurbanareasofGujarat,theAAPhasbeenraising issues like employment,education and various scams,aimingtocarveitspositionintheanti-BJPspacewiththeCongressfailing to dislodge the BJP frompowerfor25yearsnow.Gujaratpoliticshastradition-

ally been a two-party affair,where power has oscillated be-tweentheCongressandtheBJP,with the latter ruling the statecontinuously since1990s.The Gujarat BJP, however,

dismisses that it may face anychallenge from the AAP in the“near future”.

SonuPandey VinayKumar

AMILBHATNAGARGHAZIABAD, JANUARY1

SHWETA SINGH, 30, wasamong several people fromGhaziabad's Vartalok colonywhowerevisitingVaishnoDevifor a darshan on New Year’sDay.While celebrationskickedoff across the country at mid-night, for Shweta’s family, theNew Year's Eve will remain atragedy.Shweta left forVaishnoDevi

from Ghaziabad on December27withagroupof people fromVartalok colony, where sheresided. The group was joinedby a few others on the way.The travellers decided tomakethe climb towards the templeon Friday.The family estimates that

Shweta reached the vicinity ofthe sanctum sanctorum aftermidnight. Due to return homeon Saturday, Shweta was theonly one from among thosewhowent fromthecolonywhowill never return."We received a panic call at

around2.45 am fromShweta'ssister, saying that she (Shweta)is nowhere to be found. She(the sister) herself was injuredbadly,” said Sangeeta Singh, arelative. “We kept calling onShweta'sphonebutnoonean-swered. At around 4 am, a po-

liceman finally picked up thephone and confirmed ourworst fears.”According to her family,

Shweta and her sister werenearGateNumber3of thetem-ple, surroundedbyhundredsofpeople. Within seconds, thecrowd grew aggressive andtherewasastampede-likesitu-ation, a familymember said atherGhaziabad home."Sarita told us that Shweta

kept saying, 'don't let go of myhand', but it was impossible tokeep balance,” Sangeeta said.“Saritawas pushed off to a dif-ferentplaceby therushof peo-ple; Shweta could not be seenanywhere…”Originally from

Muzaffarpur, Shweta workedas an architect at a company inDelhi’s Connaught Place. Herhusband, Rustom Singh, is aMerchant Navy officer, cur-rently in Indonesia.They were married five

years ago.The family believes the ad-

ministration is tobeblamedforthetragedy."Theadministrationissued yatra tickets to somanypeople. The stampede meanstherewasnosocialdistancing,”Sangeetasaid.“It isanimportantreligious site.Why did they letsomanypeople in if they couldnot control the crowd?... Ourloss is irreparable.”

RUPSACHAKRABORTYMUMBAI, JANUARY1

MUMBAIRECORDED6,180newCovid-19 caseswith apositivityrate of nearly 13% on Saturday.Thecitycontributedtoalmost67percentoftotal9,170Covidcasesrecorded inMaharashtrawhichreported seven deaths and sixnewOmicron cases, taking thetotal tally of Omicron infectionin thestate to460.The spike in Covid-19 cases

in the last fewdayshasseentheactive cases inMumbai rise to22,334, leadingtoanincrease inhospitalisation in the city. Bedoccupancy in Mumbai has in-creased by 51% from 1,960recordedonDecember27,2021to2,961on January1.OnDecember1,2021,thecity

had only 1,922 active Covid-19cases.Now,69.3%ofthestate’sto-talactiveCovid-19cases--32,225--arefromthestatecapital,whichhas turned into the epicentre oftheapparentthirdwaveamidthespreadofOmicron.Out of the6,180 cases identi-

fied on January 1, 5,712 wereasymptomatic.Asmanyas389ofthecasesrequiredhospitalisation.Omicronhasafasterincuba-

tion period -- the time gap be-tweensomeonegettingexposedto thevirusandshowingsymp-toms -- than the Delta variant.However, reports across theglobe show that hospitalisationrates for Omicron are less ascomparedwiththeDeltavariant.Duration of hospital stay is alsoshorter and need for supple-mentaloxygentherapyis lower,the reportsadded.“Omicronwill spread faster

and dominate over the Deltavariants. But as seen so far, thefatality will be minimal as theseverityofOmicronis less,”said

Dr Shashank Joshi, member ofCovid-19 task force.Anticipating more active

Covid-19 cases, BMC has in-creasedthetotalbedstrengthinMumbai.OnDecember27,2021,the city had 14,887 beds, ofwhich 1,960 were occupied,while 12,927 (87%) of themwere vacant. On January 1, thetotalbedstrengthhasbeendou-bled to 32,064, of which, 2,961bedsareoccupied.Atotalof248patients are on ventilator sup-port inMumbai. However, 90%(29,103) of the beds in the cityare still vacant, providing a sil-ver lining.“At present, as we have ob-

served, hospitalisation is beingcaused both by Omicron andDeltavariants.Asmallportionofpatients,whoarerequiringoxy-gen or ICU, aremostly infectedwithDelta,whichismoreseverethanOmicron,” saidDrGautamBhansali, in-charge of privateCovid-19beds.

VACCINATIONSTotal: 1,45,16,24,150(Last24hrs:58,11,487)

FirstdoseTotal: 84,48,57,733(Last24hrs:13,61,014)

SeconddoseTotal: 60,67,66,417(Last24hrs:44,50,473)

INFECTIONSLast24hrs: 22,775

POSITIVITYRATEDaily: 2.05%(Note:Asof7am)

JAN 1: CASES&SHOTS

Mumbai reports6,180 new Covid-19cases, positivityrate nears 13 per cent

RAVIKBHATTACHARYA&ATRIMITRAKOLKATA, JANUARY1

WITHTHE state capital seeing amajorspikeinCovid-19cases,theKolkataMunicipal Corporation(KMC) has identified 11microcontainmentzones.Accordingtosources, the process of contain-mentwillstartonJanuary3.The city civic body has also

decidedtoreopensafehomesinthecity fromnextweek.Over the pastweek, Kolkata

hasseenasurgeincases.Whilethecases stoodat382onDecember28,thenumbershotupto540onDecember29,doubledto1,090onDecember 30 before touching1,954onNewYear’sEve.Chairingarecentadministra-

tivemeetinginSouth24Parganas,ChiefMinisterMamataBanerjeesaidthestategovernmentwasre-viewing the situation andmicrocontainmentzoneswerelikelyto

beidentifiedsoon.On Friday, Mayor Firhad

HakimpresidedoverameetingoftheKMC thatwas also attendedbyMMIC (health) Atin Ghosh.OfficersofKolkataPolicewerealsopresentatthemeeting.“At the meeting, we were

told not to leave any stone un-turnedwithregardtoCovidpre-paredness as the situation islikelytogetworse,”saidaseniorKMCofficial.

Kolkata civic body picks 11micro-containment zones,to open safe homes again

Visitors lineupoutsideaparkinKolkataonSunday.AP

CHANDANHAYGUNDEPUNE,JANUARY1

ANEVENTtomarkthe204than-niversary of the Battle of BhimaKoregaon at the Jaystambh inPerne village in Punedistrict re-mainedpeacefulonSaturday.Butas a large number of visitorsturnedupat the 'militarymonu-ment', social distancingwasnotmaintained and the Covid-pre-ventionnorms laiddownby thegovernmentwentforatoss.Theeventtookplacefouryears

after violencehadbrokenout inthearea, leadingtothedeathof ayouth. January 1, 2018,was the200th anniversary of the battle,andlakhsofpeoplehadvisitedthemonument topay their respects.Manypeople,includingpoliceper-sonnel,wereinjuredinthesubse-quent clashes while propertyworthcroreswasdamaged.Everyyearsincethen,thepo-

lice and district administrationhavemadesecurityarrangementstomaintainlawandorderduringthe January 1 gathering. Nearly5,000policepersonnelwerede-ployedinPerne,KoregaonBhima,VadhuBudruk and surroundingareasthisyear.DeputyChiefMinisteranddis-

trictGuardianMinisterAjitPawar,Minister for Social JusticeDhananjayMunde, stateEnergyMinisterNitinRaut, seniorDalitleader Prakash Ambedkar ofVanchitBahujanAghadi,AnandrajAmbedkar of Republican Sena,UnionMinisterRamdasAthavale,and Bhim Army chiefChandrashekharAzadaliasRavanwereamongthosewhovisitedtheJaystambhtopaytheirrespects.Pawar, citing the risingnum-

ber of Covid-19 cases, hadurgedcitizens to followthe restrictionslaid down by the government.However, as thenumber of visi-torsattheJaystambhswelled,pre-

cautionarymeasures like socialdistancing were not followed.Whilethedistrictadministrationdistributedfacemasksatthespot,manyvisitorswere seenmovingaroundtheareawithoutmasks.Citing the threat of the

Omicron variant of coronavirus,the stateHomeDepartmenthadpassedanorderonDecember29to banpublicmeetings, protestsandevenbookstallsatJaystambhandsurroundingareasonJanuary1.While nopublic programmestookplaceintheareaonSaturday,stallssellingtoysandbooksweresetupatcertainplaces.The district administration

had made special parkingarrangements at different loca-tions and PMPML buses werearranged to take visitors fromparkinglotstoPerne.TheJaystambhwaserectedby

theBritishgovernmentin1821inmemory of its soldiers whofought against the Peshwas atKoregaon Bhima on January 1,1818. As per a Dalit narrative, aBritishArmycomprising500sol-diers fromtheDalitMahar com-munitydefeateda28,000-strongforce of Peshwas (who wereBrahmins) in thebattle. Lakhsofpeople, mainly from theAmbedkariteMaharcommunity,visit the Jaystambhon January1everyyeartopaytributetothesol-dierswho, theybelieve, fought awar for freedomagainst the al-legedcasteismofthePeshwas.Lastyear,due to theCovid-19

pandemic,a'symbolic'programmewasheldasthegovernmenthadis-suedanorderprohibitingpeoplefromvisitingtheJaystambh.Butthisyear,accordingtogov-

ernment sources, nearly two tothree lakh visitors, mainlyAmbedkarites from differentparts of Maharashtra and alsofromotherstates,startedgather-ingatJaystambhfromthenightofDec31till lateeveningonJan1.

Thecrowdnear JaystambhonSaturday. AshishKale

Event to mark Bhima Koregaon battle anniversaryremains peaceful, but Covid norms go for a toss

With eye on Gujarat Opposition space,AAP reaches out to youth, urban belts

New Delhi


ECONOMYWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

Oil WatchBIGGESTANNUALGAINSINCE2016New York: Oil prices fell Friday but closed to post the biggest annualgains since at least 2016, amid global economic recovery. Brent ended2021 up 50.5% at $77.78, its biggest gain since 2016, while WTI rose55.5% to reach $75.21, its strongest performance since 2009. REUTERS

SERVICESSECTOR,ANTI-EVASIONSTEPSDRIVEDECCOLLECTIONSTO`1.29LCR

ENSECONOMICBUREAUNEWDELHI,JANUARY1

GROSSGOODSandServices Tax(GST) revenue collections inDecember(forsalesinNovember)rose13per centyear-on-year (y-o-y)toRs1.29lakhcrore,datare-leasedbytheFinanceMinistryonSaturdayshowed.Anti-evasionmeasures cou-

pledwithapickupintheservicessector contributed to the rise inGSTrevenuesdespiteadropine-waybillsduringthemonth.GSTrevenuesinDecemberare

lowerthantheRs1.31-lakhcroremop-upinNovember.They,arehowever,26percent

higher thanpre-pandemic levelof December 2019 andmarkedthe sixthmonth in a rowof thecollectionscrossingtheRs1-lakhcroremark.MSMani, partner, Deloitte

India,saidtheGSTcollectionsap-pear to have nowestablished aconsistenttrendoverthepastfew

months. “TheGSTcollectionsarehighdespiteareductioninthee-way bill generation during thesameperiodpossiblyahighercol-lectionfromtheservicessectorac-companiedbyacontinuingfocusonimplementationoftechnologybasedantievasionmeasures.”State-wise breakup showed

somestates likeGujarat, AndhraPradesh,Madhya Pradesh andTamilNadu,Rajasthanrecordeda

declineinGSTcollectedinthere-gionsduringthemonth.The averagemonthly gross

GSTcollection for the thirdquar-ter(October-December)oftheon-going financial year has beenRs1.30lakhcroreagainsttheaveragemonthlycollectionofRs1.10lakhcrore and Rs 1.15 lakh crorerecorded in the first and secondquarters,respectively.“Coupledwith economic re-

covery,anti-evasionactivities,es-peciallyactionagainstfakebillershavebeencontributingtotheen-hancedGST.Theimprovementinrevenuehasalsobeenduetovar-iousraterationalisationmeasuresundertakenbytheCounciltocor-rect inverteddutystructure,” theFinanceMinistrysaid.There has been a17per cent

reductioninthenumberofe-waybillsgeneratedinNovember2021at 6.1 crore as compared to 7.4crore inOctober2021due to im-provedtaxcomplianceandbettertaxadministrationbythecentralandstatetaxauthorities,itadded.“Theimprovementinrevenue

has alsobeendue tovarious raterationalisationmeasuresunder-takenbytheCounciltocorrectin-verted duty structure. It is ex-pected that thepositive trend intherevenueswillcontinueinthelastquarteraswell,”itfurthersaid.Icra chief economist Aditi

NayarsaidtheGSTcollectionsforDecember are impressive in ab-solute terms aswell as the year-

on-year growth, given the se-quential drop inGST e-waybillsthathadbeenseenduringthefes-tivemonthofNovember.Outof theoverallRs1.29lakh

crore revenue, Central GST(CGST)— the tax levied on IntraState supplies of both goods andservices by the CentralGovernment—isRs22,578crore,StateGST (SGST)— the tax leviedon Intra State supplies of bothgoodsandservicesbythestates—isRs28,658crore, IntegratedGST(IGST)— tax levied on all Inter-State suppliesof goodsandserv-ices— isRs69,155 crore (includ-ing Rs 37,527 crore collected onimport of goods), and cess is Rs9,389crore(includingRs614crorecollectedonimportofgoods).ThegovernmenthassettledRs

25,568croretoCGSTandRs21,102crore to SGST from IGSTas regu-lar settlement. The total revenueof Centre and the states inDecemberaftersettlementsisRs48,146 crore for CGST and Rs49,760croreforSGST.

BRIEFLYFY21ITRfilingNewDelhi:Nearly5.89croreincometaxreturnsforFY21havebeen filedon thenewe-filingportaltillDecember31deadline, the I-Tdepart-mentsaidSaturday.

FRLdefaultNew Delhi: Future Retail(FRL) said it hasmissed theduedate for paymentof Rs3,494.56croretobanksandlendersasitcouldnotsellas-setsduetoitslitigationwithAmazon,impactingitsmon-etisationplans.

DCMdefaultNewDelhi:DCMLtd said ithasdefaultedover thepay-mentof interestandrepay-ment of principal amounton loans taken frombanksand financial institutions.The total default amount isRs56lakh,asperafiling.PTI

ENSECONOMICBUREAUMUMBAI,JANUARY1

SUPPLY SIDE constraints due tothe ongoing semiconductorshortage impacted auto sales oftopvehiclemanufacturersMarutiSuzukiandHyundai,whichsawadouble-digitdeclineinwholesaledespatches during December2021,thefourthmonthinarow.Thefall inautosalesnumbers

was somewhat expectedas chipshortagecontinuestoimpactsup-plychainofautomakersglobally.Also,productioncutsannouncedby companies sincemid of lastyearisresultinginlowdespatches.On Saturday, only four auto-

mobilemanufacturers—MarutiSuzuki, Hyundai India Motor,MahindraandMahindra (M&M)andTataMotors—-declaredtheirsales numbers. Amongst two-wheeler manufacturers, HeroMotoCorpreleaseditsnumbers.Maruti Suzuki sold 1,26,031

units inDecember, registering adecline of 14per cent on a year-on-year (y-o-y) basis. It againmissed its traditional averagemonthly sales of 1.5 lakh units.However,thesalesrecoveredoverNovember andwereup11.5percentmonth-on-month(m-o-m).Maruti said onSaturday that

the semiconductor shortagepri-marilyaffectedtheproductionofvehiclessoldinthedomesticmar-ket, though it took all possiblemeasurestominimisetheimpact.Hyundai Motor India’s do-

mesticsalesdeclinedbynearly32per cent y-o-y to 32,312 units,which it attributed to the chipshortage. Thiswasmuchsteeperthan the 24.2 per cent y-o-y de-clineinwholesaledespatcheswit-nessedinNovember.However, TataMotors’ total

domesticwholesaleswereup24percenty-o-yto66,307unitsdur-ingDecember,whichweresome-whatequallydistributedbetweenpassengerandcommercial vehi-cles. Passenger vehicle (PV) sales

wereupasharp50percenty-o-yat35,299units—mostinadecade—whilecommercialvehicle(CV)saleswereupamere4percentona y-o-y basis. In November, thecompany had reported 21 percent y-o-y rise in auto sales at58,073units.Further,ithadposted2021calendaryearsaleof3,31,178units, the highest ever since theinceptionof itsPVbusiness.M&Mclocked total domestic

salesof36,140unitsinDecember,an increaseof 9.6per cent y-o-y.However, on am-o-mbasis, thesalesdeclinedby2.32percent.PVsales lastmonthwereup10percenty-o-y to17,722units.VeejayNakra,CEO(automotivedivision),M&M,said,“Wehaveseengrowthin business segments, includingpassenger vehicles, commercialvehiclesandinternationalopera-tions, owing to continued strongdemandacrosstheproductport-folio.Theissuesaroundsemi-con-ductor relatedparts continue tobeachallengefortheindustryandremainsamajorfocusareaforus.”Tractor sales atM&Mcontin-

uedintheslowlaneinDecember,sufferinga21percenty-o-yfallto

16,687 units. Thiswas sharperthanthey-o-yfallof17percentinNovember. The companyhas at-tributed this to last year’s highbaseand incessant rains insomestates. Hemant Sikka, president(farmequipment sector),M&M,said,“De-growthinDecemberhasbeenonaccountofacombinationof factors, includinghighbaseoflast year and both delayed andveryheavyrainfall insomegeog-raphies.Weexpectmomentumtorecover in thecomingmonthson account of good progress ofKharifprocurementbringingliq-uidityinthehandsoffarmersandRabi acreage showing signs ofgrowthoverlastyear.”HeroMotoCorpsold3,74,485

motorcycles and scooters in thedomestic market last month,whichwasadeclineof nearly12per cent on a y-o-y basis, but anincreaseofnearly14percentonam-o-mbasis.Thecompanysaiditcontinues to monitor the on-ground situation, although lo-calised restrictions imposed bycertainstatesinthewakeofrisingOmicroncaseswillcontinuetore-strictcustomermovement. FE


VISTARAONSaturday said thatVinod Kannan took over as thechiefexecutiveofficer(CEO)oftheairlineonSaturday. According toastatementbythecarrier,KannanreplacedLeslieThngwhowastheCEO from July 16, 2017 toDecember31,2021.ItaddedthatDeepakRajawat

hasbeenelevated to takeup theroleofVistara’schiefcommercialofficer fromSaturday. “KannanstartedhisstintwithVistaraastheChiefStrategyOfficerinJune2019and took over as Chief

Commercial Officer in January2020with responsibility for de-veloping,executing,andsustain-ing Vistara’s corporate strategyand ensuring the airline’s com-mercialsuccess,” itmentioned.Vistara,isa51:49jointventure

betweenTataSonsPrivateLimitedandSingaporeAirlines(SIA).Kannan spent over two

decadesworkingwithSIAandhasheldseveralseniorpositionsintheairline’s headoffice in Singaporeaswellasoverseas.HeholdsaMa-ster’sdegreeinBusinessAdminis-tration fromtheNationalUnive-rsityof SingaporeandUniversityof California, Los Angeles, thestatementsaid.WITHPTI

NewDelhi:PunjabNationalBank(PNB) on Saturday said AtulKumarGoel has taken charge asan ‘officeronspecialduty’ (OSD),beforetakingoveras itsnewMDandCEOnextmonth.Pursuant to theDepartment

of Financial Services,Ministry ofFinance, Government of IndiaNotificationdatedDecember28,2021, Atul Kumar Goel has as-sumedofficeasOfficeronSpecialDuty in Punjab National Bank,witheffect fromJanuary1, 2022,PNBsaidinafiling. ENS,WITHPTI

REUTERSBENGALURU,JANUARY1

CESWILL nowend aday earlierthanplanned,theorganizeroftheglobal technology and gadgetshow said, after companies in-cluding Amazon.com Inc andGeneralMotorsCodroppedoutof

attending the LasVegas event inpersonduetoOmicronconcerns.“Thestepwastakenasanad-

ditionalsafetymeasuretothecur-rent health protocols that havebeen put in place for CES,” theevent organizer ConsumerTechnologyAssociation(CTA)saidon Friday, announcing the eventwillnowendonJanuary7.

NewDelhi:FoodaggregatorslikeSwiggyandZomatowillhave to collect and deposittaxat5percentratestartingSaturday, amove thatwillwiden the tax base as foodvendorswho are currentlyoutside the GST thresholdwill become liable to GSTwhen provided throughtheseonlineplatforms. PTI

Food aggregatorsto collect 5% GST

NewDelhi:TataMotors’elec-tric vehicle (EV) sales touc-hed10,000units in the firstninemonthsof theongoingfiscal and crossed the2,000monthly sales landmark forthe first time inDecember2021at2,255units,ShaileshChandra,president(passen-ger vehicles business unit),said.Meanwhile, thehivingoff andtransferofTataMot-ors’entirepassengervehicleundertaking to TataMotorsPassengerVehiclesLtdcameintoeffectfromSaturday,thecompanysaid. PTI

Tata MotorsEV sales cross2,000 landmark

Vinod Kannan takesover as Vistara CEO

DESPITEA17percent fallinnumberof e-waybillsgenerated, theoverallGSTcollectionsmain-tained their consistenttrendof stayingabovetheRs1-lakhcroremarkfor thesixthstraightmonth inDecember.

MaintainconsistenttrendE●EX

PLAINED

REUTERSBEIJING,JANUARY1

CHINAWILLcutsubsidiesonnewenergy vehicles (NEVs), such aselectric cars, by 30 per cent in2022 andwithdraw themalto-gether at the endof theyear, theFinanceMinistrysaidonitsweb-siteonFriday.TheministryhadsaidinApril

2020thatNEVsubsidieswouldbecut from2020 to2022by10percent,20percentand30percent,respectively. ForNEVs for publictransport,subsidieswouldbecutby10per cent in2021andby20per cent in 2022. China, thebiggestautomarket,hassetatar-getforNEVs,includingplug-inhy-bridsandhydrogenfuelcellvehi-cles, tomake up 20 per cent ofautosalesby2025.Global automakers such as

VolkswagenAG,GeneralMotorsCo, ToyotaMotor Corp andTesla

Inc are rampingupelectric vehi-cleproductioninChina.NIOsaidonFridaythatbuyers

of its ES8, ES6 and EC6 vehicleswhohadpaidadepositonorbe-foreDecember 31, 2021, and aretakingdeliveryoftheirpurchasesbeforeMarch31,2022,canstillen-joy the subsidiesunder the2021plan.Anyshortfallunderthe2022policy would be borne by theShanghai-basedfirm,itsaid.Theministry also said China

would tightenup supervisionofNEVsafetyissuestopreventacci-dents. Industry body ChinaAssociation of AutomobileManufacturers estimatedearlierinDecemberthatsalesofNEVsinChinawouldgrowby47percentto5millionin2021.


THE NATION’S power con-sumptionrecordedat4.5percent rise in December at110.34billionunits(BU),overthe year-agomonth, as perPower Ministry data. InDecember 2020, consump-tionwas 105.62 BU, against101.08BUinDecember2019.Experts are of the view

that power consumption aswellasdemandhasgrownata steady pace in Decemberwith improvement in eco-nomic activities across thecountry.However, theyexpressed

concerns over rising cases ofCOVID-19 in the countrywhichmay compel states toimpose local lockdown re-strictions, that may affectcommercial and industrialpower demand as well asconsumption as had hap-penedafter thesecondwavehit thecountry inApril2021.Peakpowerdemandmet

orhighestsupplyinadayroseto 183.39 GW in December2021comparedto182.78GWin December 2020 and170.49 GW in December2019.InNovemberthisyear,the

powerconsumptiongrewby2.6per cent to99.37BU. Lastyear in November, powerconsumption stood at 96.88BUandinthesamemonthin2019, itwasat93.94BU.Thecountry’spowercon-

sumption had grown by 3.3per cent inOctober this yearto 112.79 BU, compared to109.17BUinthesamemonthlastyear.Manystateshadimposed

lockdown restrictions afterthe secondwave of the pan-demic hit the nation in Aprilthis year andaffected the re-coveryincommercialandin-dustrial power demand asstates started imposing re-strictions in the latter part ofthemonth.Curbsweregrad-ually lifted as the number ofCOVIDcases fell.Power consumptionwit-

nessed 6.6 per cent year-on-yeargrowth inMaythisyearat 108.80 BU, despite a lowbaseof102.08BUinthesamemonthof2020.In June, it grew nearly 9

per cent to 114.48 BU, com-pared to 105.08 BU in thesamemonthlastyear. InJuly,it rose to 123.72 BU from112.14BUinthesamemonthayearago. WITHPTI

SECTORWATCHELECTRICITY

CHIPSHORTAGES,OUTPUTCUTSSLOWWHOLESALEDESPATCHES

■Thenation’spowerconsumptionrecordedat4.5percentrise inDecemberat110.34billionunits (BU),overtheyear-agomonth,asperPowerMinistrydata

AT 110.3 BILLIONUNITS IN DEC

China to reduce new energyvehicle subsidies by 30% in 2022


MUKESHAMBANI-LEDRelianceIndustries Ltd (RIL) on Saturdaysaiditwillraiseupto$5billioninforeign currency-denominated

bondsandusetheproceedstore-tireexistingborrowings.Thebondsale ispoisedtobe-

comethesingle largestsuchbor-rowingbyanIndiancompany.Asperastockexchange filing

bytheconglomerate,theFinanceCommitteeofthecompanyboard,

at itsmeeting, on Saturday ap-proveda“proposalforissuanceofsenior unsecuredUSDollar-de-nominatedfixed-ratenotesfromtime to time, for an aggregateamountuptoUSD5billion,inoneormoretranches”.“The proceeds from the is-

suanceoftheNoteswillbeutilisedprimarilyforrefinancingofexist-ing borrowings, in accordancewiththeapplicablelaw,”itadded.WhileRILdidnotdivulgede-

tailsofthetimingorthepricingofthebonds, it is likely that the10-yeardebtmaybeofferedatabout

110to130basispointsovertheUSTreasurybenchmark,andthe30-yeardebtmaybeat130to140ba-sis points over similar-maturityTreasuries. On Friday, RIL armReliance NewEnergy Solar LtdinkedadealtobuyUK-based bat-terytechfirmFaradion.WITHPTI

RIL to raise $5 bn via bonds to retire existing borrowings

GSTmop-uprises13%:Revenuestop`1-lakhcroredespitefall ine-waybills

TheCEStechshowinLasVegasin2020.TheannualCESgadgetconventionwillbethreedaysthisyear,insteadoffour. APfile

Uptick in economicactivity charges uppower consumption

Beijing: Chinawill extendpreferentialincometaxpoli-ciesforforeignersresidinginthecountrytoDecember31,2023, the FinanceMinistrysaid on Friday, as part ofmeasurestoeasetheburdenon taxpayers. Previously,China said benefits and al-lowances for foreigners in-cludinghousing rental andeducation for their childrenwould cease to be incometax-exemptstartingJanuary1,2022.In recent days, the gov-

ernmenthaspledgedtofur-ther cut taxes and fees in2022 to support strugglingbusinesses. REUTERS

Preferential taxpolicies extendedfor foreigners

AtulKumarGoel (right), thenextMD-CEO. viaANI

MarutiSuzuki1,46,4801,26,031

HyundaiMotor India47,40032,312

M&M32,97736,140

TataMotors53,43066,307

HeroMotoCorp4,25,0333,74,485

REPORTCARD■Dec2020 ■Dec2021■%Changey-o-y (units)

14

32

12

9.6

24

Dec sales: Maruti, Hyundai fallbehind; Tata, M&M gather pace

TECHTONIC

Tech startups raise $38 bn in2021; social, food cos getmostTechnology startups and platforms in the country raised atotal of $38 billion in 2021 through 2,055 funding rounds,of which nearly a thirdwere Series A and later rounds,according to data provided by Tracxn. This compares toaround $15 billion raised in 2020

TOTALEQUITYFUNDINGRAISEDBYSTARTUPS (in $ mn)

Note:Data includesonly technology startups Source: Tracxn

City 2016-18 MktShare 2019-21 MktShareDelhi-NCR 9,953 36% 18,699 30%Bengaluru 12,502 45% 30,721 49%Mumbai 2,983 11% 8,667 14%Hyderabad 368 1% 898 1%Pune 780 3% 1,985 3%Chennai 1,031 4% 1,069 2%Kolkata 30 0% 67 0%Ahmedabad 210 1% 208 0%Jaipur 113 0% 630 1%Indore 7 0% 37 0%

Singapore-based Temasek was the top private equity investorfunding Indian tech startups, with around 20 investments,followed byWestBridge Capital, London-headquarteredLightrock, CDCGroup and Dragoneer Investment Group

1,145 first-time investors wereseen in 2021 in Indian techstartup ecosystem, against708 in 2020 and 691 in 2019

Amongvarioustechsegments,‘SocialPlatforms’ likeShareChat,VerSe,JetSynthesis,and ‘FoodTech’companies likeSwiggy,ZomatoandRebelFoods raisedthemost funds in2021at$1.4billionand$1.3billion,respectively

Thiswasfollowedby‘K-12EdTech’firms likeByju’s,UnacademyandVedantuat$1.1billion—theamountalsoraisedby ‘Payments’verticalcompanies likePaytm,One97CommunicationsandPineLabsduringtheyear

‘SportsTech’companies likeDream11,MPL,Collectabillia,while raisingonlyaround$500millionduringtheyear, recordeda6,997%increase infundraisesover2020

Amongventurecapital (VC)fundsbacking Indiantechstartups,SequoiaCapital ledthewaywithnearly60investmentsduringtheyear,mostofwhichwereSeriesCorlater rounds.ThiswasfollowedbyNewYork-basedTigerGlobalManagement,Accel,TitanCapitalandBlumeVentures

Compiled by: ENSEconomic Bureau

TotakeovernextmonthasMD-CEO

Goel takescharge as‘OSD’ in PNB

Mumbai: Personal care-focusede-commerce platformHonasaConsumer,which sells its prod-ucts under the labels ofMamaearth, TheDermaCo andHouse of Brands, on Saturdaysaid it has raised $52million inthe latest funding round led bySequoia,valuingitat$1.2billion,thusbecoming the first unicornin thenewyear.Thenew funding roundalso

had participation by Belgium-based investment fund SofinaVentures and the UAE-basedIndia-focused fund EvolvenceCapital, saidtheGurgaon-basedfirm. The company had earlierraised funds from FiresideVentures and Stellaris VenturePartners.The latest round has also

givenitsemployeesanopportu-nity to monetise their vestedESOPs (employee stock optionplans). PTI

Honasa turns‘first unicornof new year’

NewDelhi:Oil andNatural GasCorporation(ONGC)onSaturdaybecameacompanywithnoCMDafter incumbentSubhashKumarsuperannuated and the govern-mentdidnot immediatelynamehisreplacement.Kumar, whowas Director—

Finance of ONGC and has beensinceApril last year holding theadditional charge of ChairmanandManagingDirector (CMD),superannuatedonDecember31,2021,thestate-runcompanysaidinastockexchangefiling.“Anurag Sharma, Director

(Onshore) has been entrustedwith an additional charge of thepostofDirector(Finance)withef-fect from January 1, 2022,” thecompanysaid,citingaDecember28, 2021, orderof theMinistryofPetroleumandNaturalGastothiseffect. PTI

ONGC CMDretires, govtyet to namesuccessor

CES to end a day earlieras Omicron cases surge

Thesubsidieswillbewithdrawnaltogetherattheendoftheyear

New Delhi


THEWORLDWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

USACOLORADO FIRESDESTROYHOMESIttookonlyafewhoursfortheflamestocutanunimaginablepathofdestructionacrossthedrought-starvedneighbourhoodsbetweenDenverandBoulderinColorado.ByFriday,assmokefromthemostdamagingwildfire instatehistorycleared,morethan500homesarebelievedtohavebeendestroyed.Nodeathswerereported.

USA

EricAdamstakesofficeas NYC’s110thmayorERIC LEROY Adams wassworn in as the 110thmayor of New York Cityearly Saturday in a festivebutpared-downceremony,a signal of the formidabletaskbeforehimashebeginshistermwhilecoronaviruscases are surging anew.Adams, 61, the son of ahouse cleanerwhowas aNewYorkCitypolice cap-tainbeforeenteringpolitics,has calledhimself “the fu-ture of the DemocraticParty,” andpledged to ad-dressinequitiesasthecity’s“first blue-collarmayor,”while simultaneouslyem-bracing thebusiness com-munity.Yetnotsince2002,whenMichaelBloombergtookofficeshortlyaftertheSept 11 attacks, has an in-comingmayor confrontedsuchdauntingchallengesinNewYorkCity. NYT

EricAdamswassworninonSaturday.NYT

TOPOFTHEWORLD

BRITAIN

TonyBlair,DanielCraig joinscientistsonHonorsListSCIENTISTSANDmedicalchiefs who have ledBritain’s response to thepandemicwere awardedknighthoodsFriday in thecountry’sannualNewYearHonors List,which recog-nizedtheachievementsofhundreds of people fromJames Bond star DanielCraigtoteenagetennisstarEmmaRaducanu. QueenElizabethIIalsomadefor-mer PrimeMinister TonyBlairaKnightCompanionoftheMostNobleOrderoftheGarter, the oldest andmost senior British orderofchivalry. AP

USA

MassivesewagespillclosesCaliforniabeachesA MASSIVE spill of rawsewage in California onFriday forced the city ofLong Beach to close allswimmingareasatnearbybeaches, officials said.Between7.6million to15millionlitresofrawsewageleakedintotheDominguezChannel, which emptiesintotheLosAngelesharbor,it was discovered onThursday, according to apressreleasefromtheCityofLongBeach.Theleakoc-curredinthecityofCarsonandwascausedbythefail-ure of a 48-inch sewermain line, the releasestated. Itwasnotimmedi-ately clear why the linefailed. REUTERS

SOMINISENGUPTASALARDEATACAMA,JANUARY1

RARELY DOES a country get achance to lay out its ideals as anation andwrite a new consti-tution for itself. Almost neverdoes the climate and ecologicalcrisisplayacentral role.That is, until now, in Chile,

where a national reinvention isunderway. After months ofprotestsoversocialandenviron-mentalgrievances,155Chileanshavebeenelectedtowriteanewconstitution amid what theyhave declared a “climate andecological emergency”.Their work will not only

shape how this country of 19million is governed. It will alsodetermine the future of a soft,lustrousmetal—lithium—lurk-ing in the salt waters beneaththis vast ethereal desert besidetheAndesMountains.Lithium is an essential com-

ponent of batteries. And as theglobal economy seeks alterna-tivestofossil fuelstoslowdownclimatechange,lithiumdemand—andprices—aresoaring.Mining companies in Chile,

the world’s second-largestlithiumproducerafterAustralia,arekeentoincreaseproduction,as are politicianswho seemin-ing as crucial to national pros-perity. They facemounting op-

position, though, fromChileanswho argue that the country’sveryeconomicmodel, basedonextraction of natural resources,hasexactedtoohighanenviron-mental costandfailedtospreadthe benefits to all citizens, in-cluding its Indigenouspeople.And so it falls to the

ConstitutionalConventiontode-cidewhat kind of country Chilewants to be. Conventionmem-berswilldecidemanythings, in-cluding:Howshouldminingberegulated, and what voiceshould local communities haveovermining?ShouldChileretaina presidential system? Shouldnature have rights? How aboutfuturegenerations?

Around the world, nationsface similar dilemmas— in theforestsofcentralAfrica, inNative

Americanterritories intheUS—as they try to tackle the climatecrisis without repeating past

mistakes. For Chile, the issuenow stands to shape the na-tional charter. “We have to as-sume that human activitycauses damage, so howmuchdamage dowewant to cause?”saidCristinaDoradorOrtiz,ami-crobiologistwhostudiesthesaltflatsandis intheConstitutionalConvention. “What is enoughdamage to livewell?”Then there is water. Amid a

cripplingdroughtsuperchargedby climate change, theConvention will decide whoowns Chile’s water. It will alsoweigh something more basic:Whatexactly iswater?Chile’s current constitution

waswritten in 1980 by people

hand-pickedbyitsthenmilitaryruler, Augusto Pinochet. Itopened the country tomininginvestments andallowedwaterrights tobeboughtandsold.Chile prospered by exploit-

ingitsnaturalriches:copperandcoal, salmon and avocados. Buteven as it became one of LatinAmerica’s richest nations, frus-trationsmounted over inequal-ity. Mineral-rich areas becameknownas“sacrificezones”ofen-vironmentaldegradation.Riversbegandryingup.Anger boiled over into huge

protests starting in 2019. A na-tional referendum followed,electing a diverse panel torewrite theconstitution.

On December 19 came an-other turning point. VoterselectedGabrielBoric, a35-year-old former student activist, aspresident. He had campaignedto expand the social safety net,increase mining royalties andtaxes, and create a nationallithiumcompany.Themorningafterhisvictory,

the stock price of the country’sbiggest lithium producer,Sociedad Química yMinera deChile, orSQM, fell 15%.One-fifth of the world’s

lithium is produced by SQM,mostof it intheAtacamaDesertin the shadowof ancient volca-noes, including the oldest andstill activeone, Lascar. NYT

ANGER OVER POWERFUL MINING INTERESTS, A WATER CRISIS AND INEQUALITY HAS DRIVEN CHILE TO RETHINK HOW IT DEFINES ITSELF

Chile rewrites its constitution, confronting climate change head-on

President-electGabrielBoricmetmembersofChile’sConstitutionalConventionthismonth.NYT

OMICRONDAMPENSGLOBALNEWYEARCELEBRATIONS

REUTERSJANUARY1

AUSTRALIASTARTED2022witharecordnumber of newCovid-19cases,astheOmicroncoronavirusvariantdampenedNewYearfes-tivitiesaroundmuchoftheworld,withPariscancellingitsfireworksshow,Londonrelegatingitstotel-evision, andNewYorkCity scal-ingdownitsfamousballdropcel-ebrationinTimesSquare.NewSouthWales,Australia’s

most populous state, andVictoriabothposteddailyrecordcase numbers of 22,577 and7,442 respectively on Saturday,thecountry’shealthdepartmentfigures showed.IncludingcasesinQueensland,

Tasmania and the AustralianCapitalTerritory,Saturdayhadal-ready set a national record of33,161casesevenbeforenumbersfrom South Australia,WesternAustralia and the NorthernTerritorywerereleased.FrenchPresident Emmanuel

Macronsaidthenextfewweekswouldbedifficultasthecountryheaded into subduedNewYearcelebrations after registering232,200newCovid-19casesoverthelast24hours,itshighest-everrecordedtotal.“Theweeks to comewill be

difficult, we all know that”,Macronsaid inabroadcastNewYearaddress.MidnightpassedinPariswith-

outaplannedfireworksdisplayorDJ sets, as city officials cancelled

events plannedon theChamps-Elysees following the advice of ascientificpanelthatdeclaredmassgatheringswouldbetoorisky.InNewYork,theilluminated

ball made of Waterford crystalpanels slid down its poll at themidnighthour inTimesSquare,butonly15,000spectatorswereallowedintotheofficialviewingareainsteadof theusual58,000.

Elsewhere around theglobe,eventswere scaledbackor can-celledoutright, suchaswith thetraditional fireworks over thePetronasTowersinKualaLumpur.Ayearago,thenewlyavailable

vaccine offered hope that theCovid-19pandemicmaybeundercontrol by the start of 2022.Instead, the sudden arrival ofOmicronhas brought a surge in

coronaviruscasesacrosstheglobe.Worldwide infections hit a

recordhighover thepast seven-dayperiod,withanaverageofjustoveramillioncasesdetectedadaybetweenDec24and30,upsome100,000 on the previous peakpostedonWednesday,accordingtoReutersdata.Deaths,however,have not risen in kind, bringinghopethenewvariantislesslethal.

Covid-19 surge: Australia sees recordcases, France faces ‘difficult’weeks

AUDRADSBURCH,STEPHANIESAUL,EDGARSANDOVAL&MITCHSMITHJANUARY1

INTWOshortweeks,astheyearclosedout, theOmicronvariantdrovecoronaviruscasecountstorecordlevelsintheUS,upendedairtravelandleftgapingstaffingholesatpolicedepartments,fire-housesandhospitals.Andthatwasata timemany

peoplewere off for the holidayseason. Now comes Monday,withmillionsofAmericanshav-

ing travelledbackhome to startschool andwork again, and noone is sureofwhatcomesnext.Most of the nation’s largest

school districts have decided toforgeaheadandremainopen,atleast for the time being, citingthetollthatremotelearninghastakenonstudents’mentalhealthandacademic success.Butthehighlycontagiousvari-

antisstillracingacrossthecountry,and teachers, parents andwork-placesarebracingfortheimpact.Thespikingcasecountshave

flummoxed the companies thatsent their employees to workfrom home in March 2020, asCovid was first sweeping thecountry.Someofficesthathadre-opened advisedworkers to stayhome. Others, includingmajorcompanies like Apple andGoogle, have extended theirwork-from-homearrangements.In schools, the spread of

Covid-19 has been limited, butOmicron has renewed somefears just as a senseof normalcyseemedwithinreach. NYT

JOSHSMITHSEOUL, JANUARY1

NORTHKOREANleaderKimJongUn capped off his 10th year inpowerwith a speech thatmademorementionoftractorfactoriesand school uniforms than nu-clear weapons or the UnitedStates, according to summariesbystatemediaonSaturday.NorthKorea’smain goals for

2022will be jump starting eco-nomicdevelopmentandimprov-ingpeople’slivesasitfacesa“greatlife-and-deathstruggle”,KimsaidinaspeechonFridayattheendofthe4thPlenaryMeetingofthe8thCentral Committee of theWorkers' Party of Korea (WPK),whichbeganonMonday.Themeetingscoincidedwith

the 10-year anniversary of Kimeffectivelyassuming leadershipof thecountryafter thedeathofhis father in2011.Kim has used previous

speeches around the NewYeartomakemajorpolicyannounce-ments, including launching sig-nificant diplomatic engage-mentswithSouthKoreaandtheUnitedStates.Butsummariesofhisspeech

publishedinNorthKoreanstatemediamadenospecificmentionof theUnitedStates,withonlyapassingreferencetounspecifieddiscussionsof inter-Koreanrela-tionsand"external affairs."The domestic focus of the

speech underscored the eco-nomic problems Kim faces athome,whereself-imposedanti-pandemic border lockdownshave left North Koreamore iso-lated than ever before, with in-ternational aid organisationswarning of possible food short-agesandahumanitariancrisis.“The main task facing our

Party andpeople next year is to

provide a sure guarantee for theimplementationof the five-yearplanandbringaboutaremarkablechange in thestatedevelopmentand thepeople’s standardof liv-ing,”Kimwasquotedassaying.Kimspent themajorityof his

speechdetailingdomesticissues,fromaplanforruraldevelopmenttopeople’sdiets,schooluniformsand the need to crack down on“non-socialistpractices”.Thebigfocusonruraldevelop-

ment is likely apopulist strategy,saidChadO’Carroll,founderofNKNews,aSeoul-basedwebsitethattracksNorthKorea. REUTERS

RICHARDSEVERO&PETERKEEPNEWSJANUARY1

BETTYWHITE,whocreatedtwoof themostmemorable charac-ters in sitcom history, thenymphomaniacal Sue AnnNivens on TheMary TylerMooreShowandthesweetbutdimRoseNylundonTheGoldenGirls—andwhocappedherlongcareerwitha comeback that included a tri-umphantappearanceasthehostof SaturdayNight Live at the ageof 88—died Friday at her homeinLosAngeles.Shewas99.Her death, less than three

weeksbeforeher100thbirthday,wasconfirmedbyJeffWitjas,herlongtime friendandagent.White won five Primetime

Emmys and one competitiveDaytimeEmmy—aswellasalife-time achievement DaytimeEmmyin2015andaLosAngelesregionalEmmyin1952—inatel-evisioncareerthatspannedsevendecades,andthatthe2014editionof“GuinnessWorldRecords”cer-tified as the longest for a femaleentertainer.Butherbreakthroughcamerelativelylateinlife,withherwork on TheMary Tyler Moore

Showfrom1973to1977,forwhichshewontwoofherEmmys.She won another Emmy in

1986 for an entirely differentkindofcharacter:thenaive,scat-terbrained Rose on The GoldenGirls,whichrevolvedaroundthelives of four olderwomen shar-ing a house inMiami.WhereasSueAnnkneweverything therewas to know about getting aman into bed, Rose got to thesame place innocently, and bybeing justaweebitoff center.Whitewas the last surviving

memberoftheshow’sfourstars.Estelle Getty died in 2008, BeaArthur in 2009 and RueMcClanahan in2010.WhitewonherfinalEmmyin

2010asoutstandingguestactressinacomedyseriesforhostingtheMother’sDayepisodeofSNL.NYT

Adisplayof lightsandlasersmarksthestartof theyear2022,bytheMillenniumBridgegoingover theRiverThames, inLondon, intheearlyhoursof Saturday.TheusualNewYear’sEveLondonfireworkdisplaywascancelled for thesecondyearrunningtostopcrowdsgatheringamidrisingcasesofCovid-19.AP

Americans brace for return to school, work

Mostof thebigUSschooldistrictshavedecidednot tomovetoremote learningyet

KimJongUn

Betty White, a TV fixture in USfor seven decades, dies at 99

BettyWhite

ANDREWMELDRUMCAPETOWN,JANUARY1

ANGLICAN ARCHBISHOPEmeritusDesmondTutuwas re-memberedathisfuneralSaturdayforhisNobelPeacePrize-earningrole in ending South Africa’sapartheidregimeofracialoppres-sion and for championing therightsofLGBTQpeople.“Whenwewere in the dark,

hebroughtlight,”ArchbishopofCanterbury Justin Welby, theheadof theworldwideAnglicanchurch, said in a videomessageshown at a requiemMass cele-brated for Tutu at St. George’sCathedral inCapeTown.Tutu died last Sunday at age

90.Hissmallplainpinecoffin,thecheapest available at his requesttoavoidanyostentatiousdisplays,was the center of the service,which also is featuring Africanchoirs,prayersandincense.

“ArchbishopDesmondTutuhas been our moral compassandnationalconscience,”SouthAfrican President CyrilRamaphosa,whodelivered thefuneraleulogy, said. “Evenaftertheadventofdemocracy,hedidnot hesitate to draw attention,oftenharshly, toourshortcom-ings as leaders of the demo-cratic state.”Ramaphosa handed a na-

tionalflagtoTutu’swidow,Leah,as shesat inawheelchair. AP

Desmond Tutu laid to rest

PallbearerscarrythecasketofArchbishopDesmondTutu,inCapeTownonSaturday.AP

KEEPINGTHEfocusondo-mesticmattersinthespeechunderscoresthemassiveeco-nomicchallengesthattheNorthKoreanleaderisfacing.Alreadyoneofthemostiso-latedcountriesintheworldamidcripplingsanctionsim-posedbytheWest,NorthKoreahassufferedfurthereco-nomicdamageinthepastcou-pleofyearsduetopandemicrestrictionsanddestructivefloods.Aidgroupshavewarnedoffoodshortagesandthepotentialforalarge-scalehumanitariancrisis.

FacingmajoreconomicworriesE●EX

PLAINED

North Korean leaderKim talks food,not nukes for 2022

UK planning to offercheaper, easier visasto clinch trade dealwith India: reportADITIKHANNALONDON, JANUARY1

THEUK is planning to relax im-migration rules by offeringcheaper and easier visas forIndian tourists, students andprofessionals, in an attempt toclinch a trade deal with India, amedia report saidonSaturday.UK International Trade

SecretaryAnne-MarieTrevelyanis expected to travel to NewDelhi thismonth, when formalnegotiations on a proposedIndia-UK free trade agreement(FTA)areexpected tobegin.Trevelyan is expected to use

thisvisit toopentheprospectofrelaxing immigration rules forIndian citizens, a key demandfrom New Delhi, The Timesnewspaper reported.While shehas thebackingof

Liz Truss, the Foreign Secretary,whohasput securing closer tieswith India on topof the govern-ment's agenda to counter thegrowinginfluenceofChina,HomeSecretaryPritiPatelisopposedtothismove,thereportsaid.In May last year, Patel had

signeda“bespoke”andrecipro-

cal Migration and MobilityPartnership (MMP) withExternal Affairs MinisterS Jaishankar to have around3,000 students and profession-als a year access work experi-encebenefits ineither country.Under theMMP, both sides

have agreed towork towards anApril 2022 timeline to bring thenewsystem inplace,withworkunderway in theHighCommis-sion in Londonand theMinistryofExternalAffairsinNewDelhi.However, under further im-

migrationplansreportedlyintheworks, one option being lookedat is a scheme similar to thatagreed as part of the UK’s FTAwith Australia, whichwould al-lowyoungIndiansthechancetocomeandwork in theUK foruptothreeyears.Another optionwould be to

cutvisafeesforstudents,therebyallowing them to stay in theUKfor a period after they graduate,possibly building upon theGraduate Route visa under thepoints-based immigration rulescurrentlyinplace,thereportsaid.There could also be reduc-

tions in the fees for work andtourismvisas. PTI

New restrictionswould be a lastresort, says UKhealth ministerLondon: New restrictions inEngland to slow the spread ofCovid-19willonlybeintroducedas a last resort, HealthMinisterSajidJavidsaid,stressingthatal-thoughhospitalisationswereris-ing,thenumberofpatientsinin-tensivecarewasstable.The rapid spread of the

OmicronvariantacrosstheUnitedKingdomhas sent infections torecordhighs,withcloseto190,000newcasesreportedonFriday.Britain has not brought in

newrulesforEngland,whichac-countsformorethan80percentof theUKpopulation.Scotland,WalesandNorthern

Ireland have all imposed curbssuch as limits on numbers al-lowed to gather, nightclub clo-suresandsocialdistancingmeas-ures inpubs. REUTERS

New Delhi

WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHE SUNDAY EXPRESS,JANUARY2,2022 Rural Enterprise Acceleration Project (REAP)

Uttarakhand Gramya Vikas Samiti (UGVS)-Rural Development Department, Uttarakhand

216, PanditWari _II, Dehradun, 248007, Ph:- 0135-2774800

Letter No: 10 /REAP/HR/RFP/2021-22/001 Date : 01.01.2022

Request for Proposals (RFP) for engaging professional human resource through HumanResource Agency (HRA) in Planning and Implementation of Rural Enterprise AccelerationProject (REAP) funded by IFAD

Uttarakhand Gramya Vikas Samiti (UGVS) is an implementing agency under Rural Development Department

Government of Uttarakhand for implementation of Rural EnterpriseAcceleration Project (REAP).

UGVS requires expert professional staff in various field for implementation of the project. UGVS wishes to hire

these staff through reputed outsourcing Human ResourceAgency.

UGVS invites proposals online through website:www.uktenders.gov.in from eligible Human Resource

Agencies.

The important dates are as under:

Publication of RFP

documents on

www.uktenders.gov.in

Download start Date of Download end Proposal

date and time pre bid Date and time submission

end date

04-01-2022 04-01-2022 15-01-2022 04-02- 2022 04-02- 2022

5 PM 5 PM 11:00AM 01:00 PM 11:00 PM

Sd/-

Chief Project Director, UGVS

E-auction Sale Notice for Sale of Immovable Assets under the Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcementof Security Interest Act, 2002 read with proviso to Rule 8(6) of the Security Interest (Enforcement) Rules, 2002.

Notice is hereby given to the public in general and in particular to the Borrower(s) and Guarantor(s) that the below described immovable propertymortgaged/charged to the Secured Creditor, the SYMBOLIC POSSESSION of which have been taken by the Authorised Officer of State Bank ofIndia, the Secured Creditor, will be sold on “As is Where is”, As is What is” and “Whatever there is” basis on 20.01.2022 (Thursday). Otherdetials of the e-auction are as under:

2nd Floor, Patna Main Branch Building, West Gandhi Maidan, Patna- 800001Ph. No. (Office): 0612-2219043, 2219385, Fax: 0612-2219385, E-mail: [email protected]

STRESSEDASSETSRECOVERYBRANCH

AUTHORISED OFFICERSTATE BANK OF INDIA, SARB, PATNA

Date : 28.12.2021Place : Patna

Sl.No.

Name ofBorrower(s)

Amount ofDemand (asper SARFAESI

notice) Description of the property

Name ofMortgagor/Guarantor

Reserve Pricebelow whichthe propertywill not be sold

EMDBid IncrementAmount

1. M/s S.H.IndustriesProp.-Kumari MalaSinha

`14,21,094.80as on 29.04.2016with furtherInterest from

30.04.2016 plusother charges,costs etc.

Lease Deed (BIADAProperty) measuring an area of 7000 Sqft and locatedat Devnah Barauni Industrial Plot & survey 105 P, Khata No.38,27, Thana-BRC, Thana No.-535, District-Begusarai, Bihar. This property is alloted inthe name of M/s S.H. Industries through Kumari Mala Sinha W/o Sri AnjaniKumar vide Lease Deed No.5712 dated 12/07/2013. Boundary: North-Survey Khesra 312,302, South-Survey Khesra 302,312, East-SurveyKhesra 302, West-Survey Khesra 312.

M/s S.H.Industriesthrough KumariMala SinhaW/o Sri AnjaniKumar

`9,50,000/-`95,000/-`10,000/-

2. Sri SunilKumarThakur &Smt. RupamKumari

`25,73,106.00as on 04.05.2017with furtherInterest from

05.05.2017 plusother charges,costs etc.

Equitable Mortgage of residential landed property, measuring an area of01 Katha and located at Mouza-Panhas, Tauzi No.-603, Thana-Begusarai,Thana No.355, Khata No.-160, Khesra No.-1344, District-Begusarai,Bihar. This property is registered in the name of Smt. Rupam Kumari W/oSri Sunil Kumar Thakur vide Sale Deed No.1729 dated 24.03.2014. Theboundaries of this property are: North-Gaya Singh, South-Smt. IndumatiJha, East-Purnima Singh, West-Rasta Kachhi 10 Feet.

Smt. RupamKumari W/o SriSunil KumarThakur

`28,00,000/-`2,80,000/-`10,000/-

E-AUCTION SALE NOTICE FOR SALE OF IMMOVABLE PROPERTIES

E-auction Terms and Condition1. Date & Time of e-auction: 20.01.2022 (Thursday); Time: 120 Minutes. From 12:00 Noon to 02:00 P.M. with unlimited extension of10 Minutes each.

2. The auction sale will be "online through e-auction". The intending Bidders/Purchasers are required to participate in the e-Auction process ate-Auction Service Provider's website https://mstcecommerce.com/auctionhome/ibapi/index.jsp.

3. The intending Bidders/Purchasers are requested to register on portal (https://mstcecommerce.com/auctionhome/ibapi/index.jsp) using theirmobile number and email-id. Further, they are requested to upload requisite KYC documents. Once the KYC documents are verified by e-auctionservice provider (may take 2 working days), the intending Bidders/Purchasers have to transfer the EMD amount using online mode in his GlobalEMD Wallet before the e-Auction Date and time in the portal. The registration, verification of KYC documents and transfer of EMD in wallet mustbe completed well in advance, before the auction.

4. Earnest Money Deposit (EMD) amount as mentioned above shall be paid online through NEFT/Transfer after generation of Challan from(https://mstcecommerce.com/auctionhome/ibapi/index.jsp) in bidders Global EMD Wallet. NEFT transfer can be done from any ScheduledCommercial Bank, however for Transfer the bidder has to visit Indian Bank Branch. Payment of EMD by any other mode such as Cheques, etcwill not be accepted. Bidders, not depositing the required EMD online will not be allowed to participate in the e-auction. The Earnest MoneyDeposited shall not bear any interest.

5. MSTC Central Helpdesk Number (for any technical help): 033-40645207, 40609118, 40645316, 40602403, 40067351, 40628253. SBI contactno. (for property related enquirey): 7808098080.

6. The General Terms and Conditions of e-auction sale is available on the website: https://sbi.co.in/web/sbi-in-the-news/auction-notices/sarfaesi-and-others.

7. To the best of knowledge and information of the Authorised Officer, there is no encumbrance on the property/ies. However, the intending biddersshould make their own independent inquiries regarding the encumbrances, title of property/ies put on auction and claims/rights/dues/affectingthe property, prior to submitting their bid. The e-Auction advertisement does not constitute and will not be deemed to constitute any commitmentor any representation of the bank. The property is being sold will all the existing and future encumbrances whether known or unkwon to the bank.The Authorised Officer/Secured Creditior shall not be responsible in any way for any third party claims/rights/dues. Subject to final outcome ofCWJC No.25655/2019, P.H.C. The sale shall be subject to rules/conditions prescribed under the Securitisation and Reconstruction of FinancialAssets and Enforcement of security Interest Act, 2002.

This publication is also a 15 days notice to all the borrower/guarantors require under Rule 8(6) of Security Interest Enforcement Rules, 2002.NB: 15 days Sale Notice to Borrower/Guarantors has already been sent by Regd. Post at their last known address. In case they do not receivethe said notice then this E-auction sale Notice may be treated as substituted mode of service. The other terms and conditions of the e-Auction arepublished in the following websites. https://sbi.co.in/web/sbi-in-the-news/auction-notices/sarfaesi-and-others

BEFORE DEBTS RECOVERY TRIBBUNAL – III,DELHI 4 TH FLOOR JEEVAN TARABUILDINGPARLIAMENT STREET , NEW DELHI: 110001

Notice under section 19(4) of the Recovery of DebtsDue to Banks and Financial Institution Act. 1993read with Rule 12 & 13 of the Debts RecoveryTribunal (Procedure Rules) 1993.)In the matter ofOANO. 159/2021/DRT –IIIICICI BANK LTD. Vs SAMEER SINGH &ANR.Applicant DefendantsToD-1 SAMEER SINGH, S/O SH. LALLAN SINGH, R/O HOUSENO. 47, HARGOVIND ENCLAVE, OPP-HARGOBINDGURUDWARA, DELHI-110092D-2 B SONS (INDIA) PVT. LTD. THROUGH ITS DIRECTOR,MR. SAMEER SINGH HAVING ITS OFFICE, AT: 47, F/F,HARGOBIND ENCLAVE, KARKARDOOMA, DELHI-110092Whereas the above named applicant has instituted a caseagainst you and whereas it has been shown to the satisfactionof the Tribunal that it is not possible to serve you in ordinaryway. Therefore, this notice is given by advertisement directingyou to make appearance in this Tribunal on 11/01/2022 at10.30 A.M. Take notice that in case of your failure to appearon the abovementioned day before this Tribunal, the case willbe heard and decided in your absence.Given under my hand and seal of this Tribunal on this the 10th day of December., 2021.

By Order of the Tribunal

Rural Enterprise Acceleration Project (REAP)Uttarakhand Gramya Vikas Samiti (UGVS)-

Rural Development Department, Uttarakhand216, PanditWari _II, Dehradun, 248007, Ph:- 0135-2774800

Letter No: 11 /REAP/MCF/RFP/2021-22/002 Date : 01.01.2022

Request for Proposals (RFP) for Hiring of a Management Consulting Firm for strategicplanning and implementation of Rural Enterprise Acceleration Project (REAP) funded byIFAD

Uttarakhand Gramya Vikas Samiti (UGVS) is an implementing agency under Rural Development

Department Government of Uttarakhand for implementation of Rural Enterprise Acceleration Project

(REAP).

UGVS requires a Management Consulting Firm for strategic planning and implementation ofRural

Enterprise Acceleration Project (REAP) and now UGVS invites proposals online through

website:www.uktenders.gov.in from eligible Management consultant firms

The important dates are as under:

Publication of RFP

documents on

www.uktenders.gov.in

Download start Date of Download end Proposal

date and time pre bid Date and time submission

end date

04-01-2022 04-01-2022 15-01-2022 04-02- 2022 04-02- 2022

5 PM 5 PM 3:00 PM 01:00 PM 1:00 PM

Sd/-

Chief Project Director, UGVS

Technical Committee appointed by the Hon'ble Supreme Court ofIndia (by order dated 27.10.2021 in WP (Crl) No. 314/2021 &

connected matters)TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERNThe Hon'ble Supreme Court of India, vide the order dated Oct 27, 2021 in Writ Petition (Crl.) No. 314of 2021 and connected matters, has constituted a Technical Committee to enquire, investigate anddetermine the following in regard to Pegasus spyware:(i) Whether the Pegasus suite of spyware was used on phones or other devices of the citizens of

India to access stored data, eavesdrop on conversations, intercept information and/or for anyother purposes not explicitly stated herein?

(ii) The details of the victims and/or persons affected by such a spyware attack(iii) What steps/actions have been taken by the Respondent-Union of India after reports were

published in the year 2019 about backing of WhatsApp accounts of Indian citizens, using thePegasus site of spyware.

(iv) Whether any Pegasus suite of spyware was acquired by the Respondent-Union of India, or anyState Government, or any central or state agency for use against the citizens of India?

(v) If any government agency has used the Pegasus suite of spyware on the citizens of this country,under what law, rule, guideline, protocol or lawful procedure was such deployment made?

(vi) If any domestic entity/person has used the spyware on the citizens of this country, then is sucha use authorised.

(vii) Any other matter or aspect which may be connected, ancillary or incidental to the above terms ofreference, which the Committee may deem fit and proper to investigate.

The Hon'ble Supreme Court has also directed that the Technical Committee is authorised to (a) deviseits own procedure to effectively implement and answer the Terms of Reference; (b) hold such enquiryor investigation as it deems fit; and (c) take statements of any person in connection with the enquiryand call for the records of any authority or individual.This public notice is issued to request any citizen of India who may have felt her/his mobiledevice/instrument that may have been infected by Pegasus malware.The Committee requests any citizen of India who has reasonable cause to suspect that her/his mobilehas been compromised due to specific usage of NSO group Israel's Pegasus software to contact theTechnical Committee appointed by the Hon’ble Supreme Court of India with reasons as to why youbelieve your device may have been infected with Pegasus malware, and whether you would bein a position to allow the Technical Committee to examine your device. Such person who suspectsher/his device is infected should send the Technical Committee an email to [email protected] before noon of Jan 7, 2022.In case the committee feels your reasons for suspicion of the device being infected with the malwarecompel a further investigation, then the committee shall request you to allow examination of yourdevice.The Committee will give an acknowledgment for having received the instrument and also make andgive you a digital phone image for your records. The collection point would be in New Delhi. Themobile instrument collected from you will be delivered back on completion of the tests/investigation.Sincerely,Technical Committee appointed by the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India in WP 314 of 2021 andconnected matters.

davp 06101/11/0019/2122

17

New Delhi

T H E S U N D A Y E X P R E S S M A G A Z I N EJANUARY 2, 2022 | WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM | PAGE 18

THE YOUNGMAN ANDTHE SEA

Laranse was the sortof man that wantedto be buried at sea.Not only was he

proud of his craft, hewas also, mind, body

and soul, in love,love, love with

the ocean

eye ALSOREAD

Doll DiariesScreenwriter and director Alankrita Shrivastava,whose Bombay Begums was a critically-acclaimed

OTT show in 2021, on the death of a dream

INSIDE

Our Gods and GoddessesUK-based writer Sandeep Raina narrates a taleof faith across communities — ties that ought tobind rather than isolate us

Lindsay Pereira

K ARTHIKCARESSEDthefab-ricas if itwerethecheekofa loved one. He used theback of his palm, allowingtheclothtomoveof itsownvolition, pulling his hand

awayguiltilywhenhenoticedthegrimebe-neathhisfingernails.Sheathedinplastic,theoutfit hung at the back of an olive-greenGodrejcupboard,tuckedtotherightandoutof sight.Hehopeditstillglimmeredthewayithad

when he set eyes on it a decade ago atChagganlal Dresswallah’s store. It had costmore than his monthly salary at the time,andhe remembered the salesmanstifling abored smile as he handed over the clothesandpointedtoacashier.Whatcouldadark-skinned boy possibly want with an ElvisPresleycostume?If that smirking salesmanwere tomeet

himtoday,hewouldfinallyhaveananswer.Movingtheoutfitasideashereachedfor

aplaidshirt,Karthikthought,asheoftendid,aboutthefirst timeheheardtheKing. ItwasLoveMeTender,asongprobablyrequestedbysome teenager on the radio show SaturdayDate. He rememberedhowcrisp it soundedintheirone-roomapartment,pouringoutofanewMurphysetthatgloweddimlyunderatubelight. Thatwaswhenhis fatherwasstillaround,months before he disappeared intothe dusty sands of Bahrain, lost either to anindustrial accident or the arms of anotherwoman.Karthikwouldneverknowbecausehismother nevermentioned her husbandagain. All that remained of himwere twosweaters—hisotherclothinglongexchangedfor utensils — and a fadedwedding photo-graph placedwithin the folds of her nicestsari,oneshewouldneverwearagain.Othermemories rose gently to the sur-

faceasKarthikbuttoneduphis shirt: talentcompetitionsatschool,Diwalipartiesattheoffice, his armswirling inan imaginary cir-clewhilehewentdownononekneecroon-ingPresley’shitsandmisses.Thelyricstofa-moussongslikeHoundDogcameunbiddento hismind, alongwithmore obscure oneslike Promised Land. Theywere followed bythe reactions his impressions elicited, ex-pressions of astonishment giving way to

laughter andderision.He stoppeddressingfor a second and sighed. Elvis Presley haddiedin1977andnoonecouldstandtheideaof himbeing resurrected by a South Indianman.Now, on the cusp of 2022, Karthik in-tended to change that.Outside, the sounds of Kalina rushed in

as if a windowwere suddenly flung open.Realisinghewouldbe late again if hedidn’tbathe quickly, he cursed himself for day-dreaming.Therewasnothinginthepastbutdesolation, he reminded himself, shuttingthecupboard.Walking into the office at Parel an hour

later, he felt his shoulders droop in a famil-iar fashion. They fell in stepwith how timealwaysappearedtoslowdownwithinthesepremises, takingonthetextureofmolasses.

Moving into his cubicle, he turned on hiscomputeranddouble-clickedtheday’s firstExcelsheet.Aroundhim,conversationebbedandflowed,brokennowandagainbyaloud

remark.Karthikdidn’t lookup.Hehadnoil-lusionsofhowdispensablehisroleintheac-countsdepartmentwas,butitwasallhehadknown. Thiswaswhere he hadworked foralmostthreedecadesnow,thefirstcompanyhehadappliedtoaftergraduatingwithade-greeincommerce.Itwasthejobthatallowedhis mother to finally stop running a tiffinservicetopayforhiseducation.Hehadspentyears with his eyes firmly on columns androws. Colleagues who had longmoved tobetter jobswould askhimabout girlfriendsor an arrangedmarriage, then stopped jok-ing about his sexualitywhen it became ap-

parent that hewashappy tooccupya roomwith justhismotherandmusic collection.Tenminutesbefore5pm,Karthikwalked

intothemanager’sofficetoannouncehisres-ignation.Therewassurprisebecausehehadoffered nowarning signs. Hewas suppos-edly as reliable as the furniture, ablind spotmeanttostayuntilretirementbeforefadingawaywith an engravedwatch and LIC pol-icy.Hegavenoreasons,andpolitelyrefusedto reconsider.Noneof the sights or sounds on the ride

homeregisteredashethoughtabouttherestof his evening. It had been three monthssince his mother passed away, snatchedawaycruellyalongwithmillionsofothersbya virus that laughed in the faces of those itleft behind. His had always been a darkworld, but the gloom seemed deeper. Theonly bright thing left to him lay in his cup-board,waiting tobeset free.Unlockingthedoor,Karthikslowlyundid

hisshirt.HethoughtaboutearlyrumoursofElvisbeingaliveandhowtheyhadquieteneddownyearsago.Therehadneverbeenares-urrection reported fromAsia. Stepping outof his trousers, he walked in his socks to-wards the cupboard, his upper lip curlingslowly upwards. “Wise men say,” hehummed, “only fools rush in...”Openingthecupboard,hereachedforthe

outfitandremoveditscoveringsheet.Theshirtandtrouserswerewhite,withgoldsequinsoneveryinch.Theydidn’tshineasbrightlyasherememberedthemdoingbuttwinkledinthefading light anddistracted him into silence.Shutting the cupboard, he put themonandstoodbefore themirror, tying the cape. Thedark glasses could comeon later, alongwithmascaraandhispreferredwhiteningcream.Turningtohisstereosystemthatstoodin

a corner, Karthik reached for a cassette fromthetopofapile.Slidingitin,heturnedupthevolume andwent back to stand before themirror. He imagined thousands of lights go-ing downand a spotlightwaiting for him inthe centre of his room. Stepping into it, hethrewup one hand. This could be the yearKarthikwoulddie.ButElvisPresleywouldlive.

LindsayPereira isaMumbai-basedwriter.HisdebutnovelGodsandEnds (PenguinRandomHouse)wasshortlistedfor theJCBPrizeforLiterature2021andTataLitLiveFirstBook

Prize(fiction)

Krupa Ge

1. Mary woke up with the broadest ofsmiles thismorning.2. If you knowMary, you’ll knowwhy

Laranse is suspiciousof her smile.

MARYHADspentallofherchildhooddream-ingofgettingthehelloutofthelittlebigfish-ingvillage,onethathousedtheisland’smostancient inhabitants. Its proud men andwomen,wore it likeabadgeofhonour, theirownership of both land and sea. No otherpeople could claimwhat they could, theycould bend the laws of amost powerful na-tionthathadinitspossessionnolessthannu-clearweapons. Them, they had done it. Nocoastal laws meant for others applied tothem; they had established first claim overtheseas,andhersands,andtheproudnationhad tucked its tail between its legs and al-lowed themtoclaim it, even if sometimes itlooked the other way when the not-so-friendlyneighbouringnation’snavyshottheirmendownfortrespassing indisputedwaters.Mary thoughwanted to live as far away

fromwateraspossible;wantedtowashthatwettrailoffherskin,herhair,herverybeing.She was sure of one thing, she would notmarry amanwho sailed. Shewouldmarryamanwitharegularjob.Anyjobthatdidnotinvolvewakingupbeforethesunandcrash-ingintothewaves.Thatdidnotinvolvesomedaynever returning fromtheocean,wolfeddown by the vast empty blue, as had hap-pened to her father; the neighbour’s navalvesselhadrammedintohistinymechanisedboatanddrownedhiminpieces.Laransewasthesortofmanthatwanted

tobeburiedatsea.Notonlywasheproudof

hiscraft,hewasalsomind,bodyandsoul, inlove, love, lovewith the ocean. Shewas theonlywomanhebowedto,hesaid,he’dheardthecheesydialogueinadubbedmovie.Aboutdeath, likehis father,hedidnotgiveadamn,butwhenhediditwasonlytosay:WhenIdie,I want to be cremated, not buried. I wantmyashes in the sea. So I can become onewith theocean. So I canbecome theocean.Hisdaybe-gan not when he opened his eyes in themorning,butwhenhepushedhisboat,windwhippinghisnear-nakedbody,hisfeetgrainywithsaltandsand.Anditendedwithamealof theoceaninhismouth.Theirs was amatchmade in thewrong

sort of heavens. When his mother camehometoaskforMary’shand,she’dsaidthather son would give up sailing altogether.She’d also said he had a big job in theElectricityBoardcoming.Youcanmoveout, fartherinland,wheremy

brother-in-lawhasahouse, she lied.You lying, bull-headed old thing, Mary

launchedintocurses, lookingnorthwardstoheaven, each morning, hugging herself,kneelingonthefloor.Thatpoorwomanhadhadnochoicebut to lie forher son.Laransehadcomehomeonenighthaving

spotted this angel of a girlwith a greennosepin,ontheshore.Shewasplumpwithgrace,drapedinayellowhalfsari,herhairinasinglelongplait,afewstraystrandsframingherface.Fromadistance,standingonhisboathe’dseenher. Like thatKanyakumariwhosenose studguidedthelosttotheshore,MaryhadbroughtLaranse home.He told hismother hewouldgivehernoheirsiftheyweren’ttocomefromMary’swomb. After arranging themarriageasifoncue,hismotherhadpassedon,tojoinherhusbandandaccordingtoMarywatchthefunfromadistanceas thefireworkswenton

inthat littlehome.Laranse bore the brunt of Mary’s disap-

pointmenttheverydayafterhiswedding.Assheranout,ignoringbutalsosmuglysmilingat the innuendos the rowdy virginal neigh-bourhood girls —who’d stayed up all nightlisteningtothesoundsof theirconjugalbliss—weremaking, he came out behind her,smokingacigarette,lookingdapper,histightt-shirt hugging hismuscular torso and theshorts, a tad shorter than she liked, snugaroundhisspectacularthighs.She’dassumedher newhusband had come to see her andwalkedtowardshimonlytostopmidwayashe lunged forward into the sea, pushing hisboat in. That’s when she noticed the othermenwith Laranse. They’d all filed out to-gether. Laranse looked happy, singing, talk-

ing to the ocean, as if shewere themistresswhosearmshecouldn’twaittoreturnto;thatpreciousmistress,Marywanted to scream,wassuretokillhimoneday,likeshehaddoneto otherwomen’smen. Cyclones could bat-terthemtodeathasgovernmentsstoodtherewringing their hands, unable to even bringhomebodies lost to the gulf; thatwretchedblackwalloftsunamicouldcomeevenwhenallseemedcalm;let’ssaytheylearned,astheyhad for thousands of years, towork aroundrains, winds and faraway earthquakes too,howwouldtheyeverpredictthewaysofbul-lets?Theseaonlymadeheranxiousandovertheyears,everyhappymemoryhadbeenre-placed by thoughts of death,morbid, crueldeaththatcameridingthewaves,furiouslikeatruckwithnobrakes.Hernewhusbandun-

awareofhismother’spromiseshadgoneintoworkforthedayandwhenhereturnedwithhiscatch,Maryrefusedtogooutandsell.You lied tome. I’ll havemyrevengewhen I

die. Youwait and see, she said lookingnorth,onherknees,huggingherself,overandoveragain. Shewould not show him her anger,shehadn’tfiguredoutifhewasthekindthathit yet, it was too early. And so she soughtrefuge in these imaginary scoldings. Hismotherwasnotgoingtocomebackfromthegrave todefendherself anyway. Laransedidnot come to hismother’s rescue either. Hewas happy in away, that he didn’t have todealwith themess she’dmade.

3. Soyouknownow,whyLaranse is sus-piciousofhisnewwife’snewmirth.Hehas-n’tevengoneintosea.He’ssatalldaybytheboat, smokinganddrinking toddy.Couldshe?Wouldshe?hewondered.That

damn oracle has ruinedmy head, he kickedthesand.Hewas alone by the shore one day that

week,waitingforcloudstopass.Andthereshehadcomeoutofnowhere,thatwomanwithawandinhand,herhair inabun,giant reddotonherforehead,herfaceglowingagoldenyel-low,asifshe’dbathedinmorningrays,drapedinadeepredsari.Topredicthisfuture.You are a fine youngman, you are. Amma

tellsmeyouareagoodhusband.Afaithfulman,indeed. Amma also predicts someone whohatesyoualldayandallnight livescloseby.Becareful...Donotbelieveher,yes,Ammatellsmeit is a woman. Do not trust your life with thiswoman. She is out to get you boy, you cannotwinwithher. Stay out of harm’sway, stay outofherway.With that and twomackerels for pay-

ment, she’dwalkedoff.

KrupaGeisawriterbased inMadras.She istheauthorofWhatWeKnowAboutHer (Context),

whichwas longlistedfortheJCBPrizeforLiterature2021,andRiversRemember (Context)

RETURN OF THE KINGTheir work was a bright spot, making it to literary-award lists and creating standout OTT shows and theatrical productions in the bleak

pandemic year that went past. From writers to filmmakers to theatre directors, in this special fiction issue, we bring you a selection ofshort stories to ring in the new year

Amma

GETTYIMAGES

GETTYIMAGES

● ● ●

Ten minutes before 5 pm, Karthik walked into themanager’s office to announce his resignation. There was

surprise because he had offered no warning signs● ● ●

New Delhi

SMALL TALKOur home was too

small but we neededher to be close for mydaughter, Ruki, andfor us. A narrow lane

runs between thetwo buildings and

Mum-mum and herbaandor (monkey)

granddaughter spentlong afternoons

WHERE FRAILTY AND POWER CONVERGEThe ancient city of Pushkar was spread around a serene lake, temple bells and incense filled its streets, and the fragrance of roses swirled in its air

P O I N T O F V I E W 19EYE , THE SUNDAY EXPRESS MAGAZINE

JANUARY 2, 2022

It’s AllAbout SpunkWith spring-loaded reflexes andformidable swoops, the animal worldproves that size doesn’t matter

RanjitLalRanjit Lal isanauthor,environmentalist andbirdwatcher

DOWNINJUNGLELAND

IT’SALLverywell toweighfivetonsandshowabitof attitude, toswaggeraround,but frankly that’snotterribly impressive.What is impressive iswhenyou’rearound15milligram,maybe,andshowthe

sameaggressionasthebehemoth. I’vediscoveredthatsomeofmyfavouritecreaturesaretheserelative tiny-totswhopunchwayabovetheirweight,oftenregardlessof theconsequences.Take jumpingspiders, for instance.They’reminiscule,

just1to25mmlong,andarehugelysuccessful,withover6,000speciesso faraccountedfor.Theyhaveawon-derfulupright,alertposture,andbig jewel-likeeyes,usu-allyeightof themthat look liketheheadlampsonarallycar.Theoutermostonesgivewide-anglevision,whilethe innermostpair is telephoto.Whetheronawall, atwig,or leaf orwherever, theypostureandfeint fiercely(someof them,withtheirbushymoustache-like facesal-waysremindmeofAsterix!), readytotakeonall comers.Theyactuallyclimbdownastalk,andthenupanotherone,onwhichtheyhadspottedtheir target—andwhichwastoofar fora leapfromtheiroriginalposition:howexactly they figuredtodothis,puzzlesresearchers.Andthen,zap, theyvanish, landingsquarelyonthevictim(aflyoranant,maybe) intheblinkof aneye, sinkingtheirjaws into itandinjecting itwithvenom.They leaptokill,they leaptoescapebeingkilled.But they’renotstupid:theyalwaystether themselveswithadragline: incasethe leapfails, they’ll just swingonthesafelyanchoredsilkenlineandclimbrightbackup.Theirsheerspunkel-evateyourspirits, likebubbles inaglassof champagne!Andtheyreallydohavebeautiful, glowingeyes—obsid-ianblack,electricblueanddarkemerald!Youalsocan’thelpbutrespectsomething,maybesix

toamaximumof13cmlongthatdares tochargeatyourepeatedly, caringadamnabout theconsequences.Adragonfly (harmless tohumans)onceobjectedto

myinvasionof itsairspacethus, repeatedlyheadingstraightatmeandthenturningaround,goingupits flightcorridorandchargingbackatme.

Dragonflieshavedownsized, thankstothereductionintheamountof atmosphericoxygenover themillennia(downto20percentnowfrom35percentearlier),butseemtohaveforgottenthat theynolongerpossessa75cmwingspan,withwhichtoterroriseus!They’restill re-gardedasthemost formidableaerialpredators inthe in-sectkingdom,andequippedwitharound30,000 lensesineachenormousglobulareye; theycanseeprettymuchallaround.Evenas larvae, theyare fearsome, lurkingfor(maybetwoorthree)yearsonthebedsof streams, ter-rorisingtadpolesandsmall fishwiththeirgrappling ironjaws,whichtheywhipout likeanunfolding jack-knife.Underwater,however,oneof thetopcontendershas

got tobethemantisshrimp.Onevarietyof thismulti-huedcreatureboastshavingthemostpowerfulpunchintheentireanimalkingdom—itpunchessohardwith itscalcified“clubs” that itactuallycausesanunderwaterex-plosionasairbubblescollapse(it’s calledcavitation), theshockwaveof theblowcausingmoredamagethantheimpact itself.Raptorsareadmiredbymostpeople,but it’sall too

easytohaveafanclub if you’reagoldeneagle. It’s thediminutivehawksthat impressmemore,apersonalfavouritebeingtheshikra.Smaller thanacrow, this fiercelittlehawk,hasglaringgolden-orangeeyes,dodgesdeftlythroughthickets inpursuitof birdsandemitsadefiant (ifhigh-pitched)ki-kee!call,whichputs the localbirdsonanall-pointsalert.Ononeoccasion, Ihadtohastilyduckasashikrazoomedoutof thetrees, straightatme, itseyesblazing!Onanother, Iwatchedonetakedownapied-starling inmid-air: thesuddennessof itsattackwastrulystunning.Amongmammals, theratelorhoney-badger isan-

otherdefiantdiehard, thatwill single-handedlyeventakeonaprideof lions, if needbe.Set lowtotheground(just22-28cmtall), itwearsasilverygreycapeandisbrownish-blackbeneathandexplodeswithaggression.It isarmedwithpowerfulclawswithwhichtoslashyoutoribbons(anddigoutprey fromburrows),andjawsthatarepermanentlyagape!I’veneverbeenaverybig fanof themongoose,but

hatsoff for thewayitgoesabouttacklingcobras—if onlywehadthesamekindof spring-loadedreflexes.Ohyes, itmaybepartially immunetosnakevenom,but thatdoes-n’t takeawayfromitsaccomplishment—tokill (andeat)acreaturethat iscapableof takingdownabullelephantwithasinglebite!It’squiteclear then:Sizedoesn’tmatter.

IN THE BLINK OF AN EYEA jumping spider stands poised

RANJITLAL

Sandeep Raina

THE CITY of Naples sprawled bytheMediterranean, lively withChristmas,bustlingwithlife.Thesun gleamed on its cobbledstreets,theorangesshonebright

on the trees, and its sea sparkled. ThiswasadayafterChristmas,andwewereonourfirstfamilyholidayabroad,aftertwoyearsofbe-ing lockedup inourhome inEngland.We drove to nearby Pompeii, a city that

was buried for 1,700 years under volcanicash.Wheremen, women and children haddied a slow death in their homes. Like us,theseancientpeople,too,hadhadnoblesandordinarymen,thevirtuousandtheimmoral,the rich and the poor. And gods and god-desses.Wewalked down the empty stone-pavedstreetswhich, thousandsofyearsagowouldhavebustledwith life, likeNaplesto-day. An old guide, Antonio, took us aroundand said, “Pompeii’s gods and goddesseswerenotdifferentfromthoseoftheHindus.”Heshowedusa templeofVenus,withmar-blemosaic floors and frescoesmade fromvegetablepigments,depictingscenesof love.“Youknow,theydugoutastatueofgoddessLaxmi in Pompeii a fewdecades ago. Venusis the same as Laxmi, you know?” he said. Iwasn’t too sure about Venus’ connectionwith Laxmi but let himcarry on. In anotherstreet,Antonioshowedusasmallstonetem-pleof fertility,andsaid,“Look,the lingam, theHindusymbolof creation.”Outside the Pompeii ruins, the streets

werefullofChristmasfestivities,brightstreetdecorations, andMaradona souvenirs.Westeppedintoa tabacchi,asmalltobaccoshopthathad statues fromnativity scenes. A rowofbabyJesuseslayintheircradles,tinyhandsraised as if in blessing, looking up from theglassshelfwheretheywereplaced.Theyre-mindedmeof thedoe-eyedbabyKrishna ina basket, sucking a toe. There is somethinghelplessaboutanewborn.Andsomethingdi-

vine. I recalled a church inCairomanyyearsago,whereMaryhadhidden thebaby JesusfromKingHerod’smen, in a little cave.Howsadforamothertohideherinfantfromthosewhohadotherbeliefs.Howsadforachildtoknow that theywould be persecutedwhentheygrewup.Later, inLuxor,aMuslimguidehad told us that ancient Egyptians wor-shippedablue-skinnedgodAmun,thatmanybelieved to be the same as the Hindu godKrishna. Iwondered if the Catholic guide inPompeii (who thought that Venus, the god-dessof love,wasLaxmi, thegoddessofpros-perity) and theMuslimguide inLuxor (whosaid Amun, the god of air, was Krishna, thegodof love)wereverywrong?Nearly 20 years ago, I

met an AmericanwhoseIndiangirlfriendhadtoldhimthatIndiansbelievedinmanythings.Shewentto Hindu temples, Sikhtemples, mosques, andchurches.Over theyears,I had begun to like thisidea. Two years ago, mywifeandIvisitedtheholycity of Pushkar inRajasthan. The ancient city was spreadaround a serene lake, temple bells and in-cense filled its streets, and the fragrance ofroses swirled in its air. At the lake, Brahma,theHindu creator god, had held a large ha-van, a holy ritual, thousands of years ago. Ayoung priest placed red rose petals in ourpalms and chantedmantras for our familypeace.Menandwomentookdipsinthelake,a saffron flag fluttered gently in the breeze,and I felt an immense calmwash overme.Thepriest ended thepuja ritual by applyingtilak, saffron powder, on our foreheads, andtyingmauli, a red and yellow thread, on ourwrists. Brahma’s temple overlooked fromahillock,with colourful pillars and an elabo-ratelycarvedsilverfront.Thepriestgaveusasmallredclothbag,whichcontainedprasad,offerings, fromthetemple.

Neel Chaudhuri

SHEHASdrawnlineson thephotograph.“Ruki,whyhaveyouplacedMum-mum

behindbars?”“No. She’soutsideawindow.”Itakeastepbackandconsidermymother

(1998, Darjeeling, “Don’t get my double-chin”).Mybrotherhadquicklytakenthispic-ture of a photo from an album, and a smallpartof theimageactuallyhadhisshadowonit. Itfallsononesideofherforeheadandhair.Itmakes themlookdarker.“Why is sheoutside thewindow?”“Why,because, okay,next toher chhobi is

thatwindow,therealwindow,right?Andei-ther I have to drawMum-mumon thewin-dowor I have to—understand?—draw thewindowonMum-mum. I currently do nothavethegoodlytomakeagoodMum-mum.”“Goodly” is sort of a family code for tal-

ent or skill becausemy parents never likedtheway thosewordswereemployed. Todogoodlyinsomethingortohavethegoodlytodosomething(itwasbothadverbandnoun)wasnotnecessarily todo itwell, but todo itwithconfidenceand joy.Chhobi (picture/photograph) is also the

family code for a dead person. “Accha— soyou said tomeBuluKakawasnowa chhobiandthentherehewasonFacebook,atDona’slivewedding telecast, aliveandkicking.”“I thoughthe’dbecomeachhobi,Ma,but

maybe that’sGomiKaka.”“Checkproperlynext time. I almost sent

Jontymycondolencestheotherday,canyouimagine!”Seven years agomymothermoved into

thehousenextdoor.Ourhomewastoosmallbutweneededhertobecloseformydaugh-ter, Ruki, and for us. A narrow lane runs be-tween the two buildings andMum-mumand her baandor (monkey) granddaughterspent longafternoonsspeakingacross theiradjacentwindows.“Whydon’tyou just comeover,Ma?”“Na, re, doopoor (afternoons) is a sacred

time. You all should rest a bit because youworkso late into thenight.”“Well, it’s impossible to get awinkwith

Ruki speaking so loudly (“Mum-mumcan’thearmeotherwise”) so…”“Can’t meet her school friends, to.

Baandorhasabitof surplusenergy.”The baandor’s predilection for drawing

onthingsisrecent.Shehasadozencanvasesofvaryingsizesstackedunderneathherbedand onewaiting expectantly, blankly, (“thepaintingmustcometoit”)onaneasel inherbedroom. Her online art class at school hasbeenineffectual,withherteacherinlowspir-its over how “the colours are all wrong andthe figures too small onZoom”. For thepastfewmonths,shehasbeenpractisingsketch-ingwithMir, thesonofourneighbourswhohasusedthecurrentcircumstancestotellhisparentsthatthepursuitofanMBAisoutside

of hisartisticethos.“Can I showthepicture toMir?”“No,youcan’t…youshouldn’t takeitoff

thewall,Ruki.Andyouneedtowipethelinesoff the frame.”“Mirda toldmethat if I amgoodly, then,

I can make anything in the house asmycanvas.”“Yes,IknowandIhavespokentohimabout

that(“thereisagiantredrabbitorkangaroo—Ican’ttell—onmyfridgedoor,Mir!”).”Myfocusshifts fromthewindowdrawn

onthechhobitotheonebesideitandthentotheoneinmymother’shomeacrossthelane.Thecurtainsaredrawnopen. I can look intoherapartmentandseeTina,ourhelp, in thecorridor, inbetweenrooms,andinbetweenthe routines that she performs there toconvince herself (and us) that it is still a

livinghome.Thedaymymotherdiedwasalsotheday

TinawasduetotakeaflighttoAssam,toseeher family after fifteenmonths.Mir andhisfather offered todriveher to theairport butwhentheyreturnedshewasstill intheback-seatof thecar.“Aunty, she said that shewasnot able to

do it. I didn’t believe the reason she gave(“scaredof flying”) so Imadea tattoowithamarkerof therealreason(“G.R.I.E.F.”)onmyarm here because I thought it sometimeshelps to put a word out there. I thought Icouldshowit toRukibut it’s smudged…”I’dstoppedlisteningbutstoodtherelong

enough forMir to finishhis sentences.“Ma, could you see if…Mum-mum’s

thingsthattheybroughtback…Istherethedrawing of the Baagaan bhooth (gardenghost)thatwemadetogetherbecause—TinasaysthatMum-mumtookittothehospital?”“Idon’tthinkso,Ruki,becausetheyhadto

get ridof everything,becauseof thevirus, soherclothes,her,youknow,slippersandtooth-brushandcream,andthepersonalthings…”IstopspeakingbecauseRukihasnodded

and lookedatme inawaythatmakes itun-necessarytosimplifythetruth,totreadgen-tlyaroundtheG.R.I.E.F.“IcanmakeanewonebutMum-mum—

she is more goodly with eyes and fingersandtoes.”My darling mother is a chhobi but for

Ruki,thispictureofherbehindawindowhaskept her in the present tense. That seemsenough for themoment. Forher. Forus.

NeelChaudhuri isaplaywrightandtheatredirectorbased inDelhi

On the same day, we went to nearbyAjmer to visit the shrine of KhwajaMoinuddinChishti,aMuslimsaintfromthe13th century. We walked past shops thatsold velvet chadars, large cloths and prayerbeads, and an aroma of sweet rice floatedinto the air. We bought red roses and agreen-sequinnedchadar forthesaint’stomb.ThevalleyofPushkar is famousfor itsroses,cultivatedbytheMughalstomakeperfumesandwines, centuriesago.Theshrine’s largemarbledomewithgolden floral trimmingswasresplendent intheafternoonsun, likeatemple’s.Weenteredthroughanelaboratelycarved silver front, with beautiful glassfanoos, chandeliers.Akhadim, anattendant,

threw a large blackchadar over us andprayed. I stood in thedarkness of the chadarbeside my wife, and aprofoundwarmth over-cameme. Tears came tomy eyes. The peace I feltby the shimmering lakewasnodifferent towhatI felt in the darkness ofthe chadar. I tied amauli

tothelatticedwallsof theshrineandwishedforourfamily’shealthandpeace.Aqawwal,adevotionalsinger,begantosingnearacov-eredverandawithgoldenarchesandtaper-ing pillars, on which were finely paintedflowers and sweeping calligraphy. Thekhadimgaveus tabarruk,offerings, fromtheshrine. On return to England, when I un-packed, the red clothbag spilledout apackof smallsugarballsandapackof rocksugar.I couldn’t remember whether they werefromtheshrineor thetemple.But itdidnotmatter.On our second day in Naples, wewere

readytoclimbMountVesuvius, fromwhichjetsofgasandashhadburiedPompeii.Aswewaited for thetaxi, theTVinthehotel lobbyshowedscenesofCatholicchurchesinIndiadesecrated,worshippersterrorised,andidols

of Jesus broken. In Italian I read twowords,“Estremisti Indu.” Istopped.Ididnotlikethis.Ididnotwanttohearthis. Ihadneverheardthisphrase inmychildhood. Ihadnotheardit20yearsagowhentheAmericanhadspo-ken about his Indian girlfriend’s liberal be-liefs.What was this? The hotel bellboy, anold man, tapped me on the shoulder. Istarted. I have lived away from India for 20years, yet Iwasembarrassed. Imadeapolo-getic gestureswithmy hands. The oldmanshrugged his shoulders. He calmly showedmeout to thewaiting taxi.IclimbedtothetopofMountVesuvius,a

steep incline, my thoughts in a whirl. Thecrater on the top opened its widemouth,tellingmethat in itsunpredictability laythehumanvulnerability.That itcouldthrowuptons of rocks and fire, smoke and ash, anymoment. Thatwewere fragile. Despite ourVenusandLaxmi,ZeusandShiva,AmunandKrishna. Themountain gas had caught thepeople of Pompeii unawares beside theircoolwater fountains,bytheirurnsandpots,intheirsculptedhomesandfrescoedbroth-els, in their bustling streets and quiet tem-ples.Sleeping,thinking,talking,walking.Thecrater laughedas I stared into itsdepths.Whywerewebreakingplacesof loveand

hopeandpeace, it asked?A sulphury steam rose from the crater’s

darkdepths,swirlinglanguorouslynearme.Itssteamytendrilswhisperedinmyearthattheinvisiblecouldstrikeustoo,lockusdownin our homes, bring our lives to a standstill,turn our bustling cities into ghost cities. Itaskedmeif I knewwhathumanswanted? Irepliedthatweneededpeaceandhealthandlove.We needed our gods and goddesses.Whether thosecameasamaulionawrist, avelvet chadar in a tomb, a puja by a lake, orthesmileof anewborn Jesus.

SandeepRaina isanUK-basedwriter.Hisdebutnovel,ABitofEverything (Context),was

shortlistedfortheTataLitLiveFirstBookPrize(fiction)2021

OUR GODS AND GODDESSES

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GETTYIMAGES

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The crater on the top opened its widemouth, telling me that in its

unpredictability lay thehuman vulnerability

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CHHOBI

New Delhi

WEB OFCONNECTIONSWhen he removed it

from its case, theheavy rectangle feltcold against his skinand he wondered if

he had done the rightthing by indulging in

this extravagance

F I C T I O N S P E C I A L 20EYE , THE SUNDAY EXPRESS MAGAZINE

JANUARY 2, 2022

Alankrita Shrivastava

IOPENEDMYeyes inared-and-whitestocking. I was Ruhi’s Christmas giftfromRuhi’sPapa.Ruhididn’t lovemeimmediately. In fact, she just threwmeintoabasketwithabunchofother

toys thesamenight.Imadeawish...thatRuhitakestome.And

that we become inseparable. I had heardaboutwishes inthetoystore, fromtheFairyDoll. I didn’t knowhowbadly Iwould needthewish.Nightafterdayafternight, Iwasstuck in

the basket.While the other toys grumbledorwerehopeless, Iknewinmyheartthatmywishwould be granted. I was on top of thebasket andwheneverRuhipassedby I triedtogivehermybrightest smile.One day, Ruhi’s Papa pickedme up and

placedme on Ruhi’s baby desk. But in theevening, Ruhi, without a second look, justthrewmeback into thebasket.Was I sougly?WhydidRuhihatemeso

much? I felt so alone.Was I not worthy oflove? The other toys in the basket laughedat me, even as I cried myself to sleep; mytears, invisible.ButthenextmorningIdecidedImustbe-

lieve thingswill getbetter,nomatterwhat.A fewmonths later, something called

“The Country”went into something called“lockdown.” Because there was a “pan-demic.” Apparently, some viruswas infect-inghumans. Everyonehad towearmasks ifthey stepped outside. And Ruhi had to stopgoingtoschool.Andherparentshadtostopgoingtotheoffice.Ruhiwasnotevenallowedtogodownstairs toplaywithher friends.BecauseRuhiwasstuckathome,mostly

in her room, is howwemade a connection.Finally,mywishwasgranted!Itwasahotafternoon.Theairconditioner

was not working. Nomechanics were al-lowed into the house, so it was just the fanwhirring. Ruhiwas bored. Therewas noth-ingtodo.Herparentswereworking.Shewasplayingagamewhereshewascreatingazooonherbed.She needed someone to play visitor and

tookmeoutofthebasket.Asshesetmedownonthebed,shestrokedandstraightenedmyhair, and I gave her thewarmest hug. I justneeded her to really “see”me. I knew if shedidthat,shewouldneverletmego.Insteadofthrowingmebackintothebasket,sheleftmeonherbedside table. Iwas thrilled. Thiswasthemostspecialmomentofmylife.The “pandemic” had made my wish

come true. Soon, Ruhi and I became BFFs. Isat around even while she did her onlineclasses.While the teacher droned on, Ruhiand Ihadourowngameson.Wechattedendlesslyafterthelightswere

out. We listened to songs together. Wedanced. I readher thoughts.And I think shereadmine, too.Ruhi’s Papawas happy to see Ruhi and

mebefriends.Butnow, often,thereseemedtobealotoftensioninthehouse.Papa’sbusi-ness was in shambles andMummy had totakeapaycut.Therewereargumentsabouteverything,especiallyaboutthehousework

loadandmoney.Ruhi’s Papa decided he had to fix things

for his business. For that, hehad to travel assoonas itwasallowed.Ruhi’sMamawasnowaloneinthehouse

withRuhiandme.Andtherestof the toys.BecauseRuhiandIweresoclosenow,the

other toys were quite unhappy with me.Teddy, who was now no longer Ruhi’sfavourite, was espe-cially jealous. He hadbeen moved to thebottom of the shelf.Andhecouldoftenbemean. Sometimes, Iwishedforallthetoysto be moved fromRuhi’sroom,andsentto the orphanage.Sending old toys tothe orphanagewas abigfamilytradition. Itwasaconstantlurkingthreatinourlives.Butbecause of the pan-demic, thistraditionwasnotbeingfollowed.Andmywishwasnotstrongenough.The

toysall remained.One day, Ruhi’s older cousins, two boys

aged8and10,hadcometoplay. Afteralongtime, others had been allowed into thehouse. I don’t knowwhy theolder onekeptliftingmydressandbringingmyunderwear

down, the younger onewould slapmybot-tom.And theywouldboth laugh. Thiswenton forever. I don’t likebeing touched. I triedto will them to stop but they didn’t. Ruhistartedcryingwhentheydidthat.Iknowsheunderstoodmydiscomfort. And then therewasabigdiscussionwiththeadultsandtheboyswere forced to returnmetoRuhi.That night, Ruhi heldme so close to her

heart.ItriedtotellherI’m fine. But sheknewhowtraumaticithadbeen.The other toys

had laughed and didnothelpout. I triedtonot be upset withthem. Maybe theywere not mean-hearted, just jealous.After this, Ruhi

and I became morelike sisters. She waseverything to me.AndIwaseverything

toher.Shedidn’teveneatwithoutmebeingthere. Iwould sit inside the bathroomevenwhile shebrushedher teeth.Every night I would countmy blessings

andhope for thehappiness tocontinue.Butoneweekend,Ruhi’sPapacameback

homewith a bit of a sore throat.When hedidn’t recover for two days, hewas locked

into his room. No onewas allowed tomeethim. Itwas likea jail. Ruhi’sMummywouldleave food forhimoutside.Itwas all very confusing. Ruhi’s Papahad

gotthevirusandhehadtobetakentothehos-pital.His“oxygen”wastoolow.Butatthattimetherewerenohospital beds available. Ruhi’sMummytriedbutcouldnotgethimadmitted.ThedayRuhi’sPapadied, I tried todomy

best forRuhi.Ruhi’sMummywasfrozenlikeastatue.Shewasnotallowedtogoforthecre-mation. Because she could get the virus andalsodie.Somepeoplecametospraythehousetokill anyvirus thatmaybe floating around.Ruhi’seyeswereburning. Ormaybeshewascrying.HerMummydidn’tshedatearthough.Norelativescametothehouse. Ruhitried

tofeedherMummy.Itwasquiteheartbreak-ing considering Ruhi is not even six. Sincethen Ihavebeen trying mybest tokeep thefamilygoing.Now Ruhi sleeps in the bed with her

Mummy.Isleepnexttoher.Ruhiwetsherselfoften. I get soiled too.Ruhi’sNaniji,whohascometovisit,callsmea“stinkyolddoll.”IamscaredNanijiwillgetridofme. AndRuhiandIwill beseparated forever.Ruhi’sMummyonly doesherwork. She

has stopped talking completely. Ruhi nowseems hooked to the iPad She doesn’t feellike playingwithme anymore. But at nightshestillcan’tsleepwithoutholdingontome.Naniji has started putting me into the

washingmachine every few days. The firsttimeitwasverypainful.NowIhavebecomestoic. Butwith everywashmy hair is thin-ning, my clothes fading, my fabric body iscomingapart.Ruhi has been allowed to go and play

downstairs. I watch from thewindow. Sheseems happywith her human friends. I tryto not feel jealous, but it hurts sometimes.I’m not sure I can bring her the same com-fortand joyanymore.One daywhile Ruhiwas playing down-

stairs, Ruhi’sMummy heldme and cried. Iguess becauseRuhi’s Papahadboughtme. Itriedtowipehertearsandgivehersomelove.Thatday, I feltabitreassuredthatmaybe

Nanijiwillnotbeabletogetridofmesoeas-ily. And since that day Ruhi’s Mummy hasstarted talking a little bit again. Maybemylovedid reachherheart.It’sChristmasagain.Twoyearshavepassed

andtheysaythevirusisback, inanewavatar.I saw Ruhi’s wishlist for Santa. She has

asked for a dog. I feel bad. Am I not givingRuhi enough love?Do I need to try harder?Ormaybemyjobisdone.Andourfriendshipisendingslowly.I’m old and faded now, and all I want is

for Ruhi to love me forever. I’m scared tomake that wish again. Last time when Iwished, the virus attacked humans.Sometimes I feelguilty,did Imakeaterriblewish?Was I selfish?IhopeI’mnotsenttotheorphanage.But

if I am, I hope I’ll find another friendwholovesme like Ruhi does. Till then, I’m okaywithmystatus. Teddy,by theway, isnowintheboxbed!

AlankritaShrivastava isaMumbai-baseddirectorandscreenwriter

Doll Diaries

Daribha Lyndem

OUT OF the smoothmatte cardboard boxPhukan gingerly picked up the coldmetalslabwith the shiny glass screen. He turneditinhishandsandhisreflectionstaredathim.With his thumbhe pressed the side buttonandhisfaceglowedgreenasthephoneread“Welcome”.Hetappedonthescreenandhismovementsbeliedanunsuretythatperme-atedeveryaspectof his life.Healwayshesi-tated, even at work, when he laid brick onthegooeygreyslush,amechanicaloperationhehadbeenconducting for10years.Hefol-lowed the instructions, marvelling at howthisphonewasdifferentfromtheclunkyqw-ertykeymobilephonehehadbeenusing.“Getreadyandcomemeetusinthefield,”

thesmsread.“Ok,”hereplied,slingingafreshgamchaon

his shoulder, the cloth crunchy after havingbeendriedinthesun.Hewaitedforareply.“Ihavetogetbackearly,”hetextedagain,

the letters clickingunderhis fingers.All his friends rarely replied to his texts

anditbotheredhimthathismessageswentunanswered. He always replied to eachunansweredtextwitharejoinder,hopingtogeta reaction.Whenhe got to the field, his friendBora

fromtwohousesdownwasalreadywaiting,hishandraised,shieldinghisfacefromthesun.ItwasNovemberandthesunhadbeguntosetbyfiveintheevening.Thehumiditythattheycouldnevergetusedtohaddissipatedandthewindblewacool breeze fromthehills to thenorth.Theywantedtoconductthesearchbe-foreitgottoodarkunderthecustodyof light.“Whenwillyougetanewphone?Icould

have sent you a picture of the guy so youwouldn’thaveanydoubt.Thisclunkyphoneofyourscanonlyreceivesmses.Nooneusesthose to communicate anymore,” he saidpointingathisphoneasPhukandrewnear.“WhatcouldItellfromapicture?Iwould

have had to come anyway,” he grunted astheywaitedfor therestof thementoarrive.PhukanwenttoGuwahatitopickitupbe-

causehedidnot trust the local stores tostockgenuinephones.Malick,hisnextdoorneigh-bour, had had his phone fail on him after aweek’s use. He did not know if thatwas be-causeofMalick’sinabilitytosaynotohischil-drenwhen they asked for his phone, or be-causethephonewasafake,eitherwayhewasnotriskingit.HetookBorawithhim.Bora,whohadgothis touchscreenphonethreemonthsearlier,knewathingortwoaboutphonesandhadbeentalkinghimintoanupgrade.HehadhopedthatPhukanwouldgetanewphonebe-fore hewould. Hedid not like to be the firstwhodid things.Theelderof twobrothers,hehadalwaysbeenabletoconvincehisyoungerbrother to take the first leap into thepond,oreat the strangemushroom.But he couldnotcontendwithPhukan’sindecisiveness.Bora had Facebook and all the photos

he tookwerenot grainy like theonesonhisownphone.“Have you decided about the phone?”

Bora askedevery evening, blue light illumi-natinghis face.“I am saving up, don't worry. All that is

leftisconvincingNita.YouknowIhadtohelpmymother out when her house washedaway thismonsoon,” Phukan said, not tak-inghiseyesoff thescreen.— “That is why I am luckymy parents

aredead.”—“Oh,also,Nitaisworriedabouttheex-

pensebecauselastyearDaslosthisphoneinthe floods twodaysafterhehadbought it.”— “Yourwife is alwaysworried. How is

thata reason?”—“Floodsandwater, riceandfish, that is

all sheworriesabout.”—“Therearebiggerthingstoworryabout

these days. I hope youmake sure your kidsdon’t go out after dark. OneofMalick’s kidsis missing. Been gone for two days now.Anyway,yougetthephoneandIwilltellyou

whatapps todownload.”“Comelet’sgo,”hecalledtohissonswho

hadbegunrunninginconcentriccircles,theirarmsoutstretched,theirnecksbentupwardstowardsthedarkeningsky.“Terimerigallahogayamashoor,” they sang, their throats get-tingcaughtastheytriedtosingandswallow.“You take themhome soon. It gets dark

too soon and you cannot be too sure thesedays,”Borasays.Husbandandwifereachedanagreement

thathewouldonlybuythephoneafterBihuinJanuary.Till then,PhukanwatchedvideosintheeveningswithBora,andplayedSnakeonhisownphonebeforebed.The days got longer and the nights

shorter,andhehadsavedupenoughmoneyto buy the phone. Themosquito nets cameoutof storageand the fans ranat full speed.Workcontinuedforlongerasthelightlastedand the children only came home at seven.Bora’syoungerchildgotbittenbyasnakeanddied that summer. The hospital was too farfromwheretheylivedandhecouldnotsavehisson.Morethantwochildrenwere lost tothevillage thatyear.“I cannot come with you tonight to

Guwahati,” Bora said, the evening they hadsetaside for their trip.—“What?Why?”

—“Areyweheardabout sometrouble inthenextvillage.”—“Whydidnoonecallme?”— “No time. It was on the WhatsApp

group.Anyway, comenow.Bringyourdau.”— “That bad? Again, are they sure this

time?Iwentlasttimeanditwasalotofwalk-ingaroundinthedarkandstayingquietandbeingsuckedonby leeches.”—“Idon’tknow.ButI’mgoing.Weallcan-

notuseexcuses likeMalick.”So Phukan’s excursion was postponed

andhewas not able to go outwith Bora ei-ther becausehis sonhad fever andhiswifewasworried itwasdengue.WhenBoragotback, Phukan was outside smoking in thedark,andBoraonlygruntedatthelitbidi, ashehobbledhome.Threedayslater,asombreBoraandexcited

Phukan took a bus toGuwahati. There Boratook Phukan inside the lowest floor of theFancyMarket,deeperinsidethesubterraneanshoppingarea, past the stores sellingmobileaccessories,phonecasesthatpresentedthem-selvesfromtheirclearpaperplasticencasingdanglingfromshopfrontsandslappingthemontheirwaypastcrowds.TheystoppedatoneofthestoreswhereBoragreetedajocundmanwhoslappedhimonhis forearmashedrewhiminforahug.HeintroducedPhukan,who

made thepurchaseand left the storeas con-fusedashewaswhenhegot in.Borawantedtostartusingthephoneonce

theywereoutbutPhukanwasscaredaboutopening it anywhere else except onhis bed,where themattresscouldcatchthephone ifit slid off his hands. The cardboard boxwasstillinitsplasticpackingandapartofPhukanwantedittoremaininthispristinecondition,unsoiledandinastateofperpetualnewness.Borawasfinallyabletoconvincehimtoopenit outside the stall once they got back to thevillage.Whenheremoveditfromitscase,theheavyrectanglefeltcoldagainsthisskinandhewondered if he had done the right thingbyindulginginthisextravagance.Hehadlit-tletimetothinkbecauseBora,whosephonewasnowthree-monthsold,wasalreadyen-thralledbythenewonebeforehim.He taught himhowtodownload the in-

stantmessagingapplicationsandaddedhimtoagroup.Thegroupcontainedall themenin thevillage.“Hello Phukanhere, this ismynumber,”

Phukanmessaged thegroup.Everyonewelcomedhim.Two minutes later as they sat and

drank their third cup of tea, their phonesbeepedsimultaneously.“Look at this,” Bora said as he showed

Phukan a picture he had just received onthegroup.“God! They look so strange.Whywould

anyone put rings like that on his face?”Phukancontinued.— “The other guy has red hair and look

howhehas tied it!”— “Theseones lookdifferent. A lotmore

frightening than the lastones.”— “The messages say they were seen

closeby.”“Everyoneisheadingtothefieldnow,let

us get this over with,” Phukan said, as heplacedhisnewphone insidehispocket andwalked toward thedirectionof thecrowd.

DaribhaLyndemisawriterandcivil servantfromShillong.HerdebutnovelNamePlaceAnimal

Thing (Zubaan)wasshortlistedfor theJCBPrizeforLiterature2021.ShecurrentlyworkswiththeIndianRevenueServiceasadeputycommissioner

of indirecttaxes

The Purchase

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After this, Ruhi and Ibecame more like sisters.

She was everything to me.And I was everything toher. She didn’t even eatwithout me being there

● ● ●

GETTYIMAGES

New Delhi

MIHIRVASAVDAMUMBAI,JANUARY1

MANPREETSINGHwas too young tounder-standtheintricacies.Butherememberswak-ingupinthemiddleofthenightafteraknockonthedoor,hismotherandtwobrothersgin-gerly opening it, and watching his fatherstandingoutside, expressionless and impas-sive.“Dadworked as a carpenter in Dubai,”

Manpreet says. “I don’t knowwhathadhap-penedbut onenight,without anynotice, hecamebackwearingtherugged,dustyclotheshe’dworntowork.”Life,asheknewit,hadtakenatragictwist.

His father, the family’s sole breadwinner,slipped into depression. “Butwedidn't havemoney to take him to a good doctor. It wastough to see him in that condition. It hurt alot,”Manpreetsays.Astheyoungestof threebrothers,hewas

somewhat shielded from the struggles thatfollowed.Butthatnightinstilledasenseofre-sponsibility in him. “You think about eventsin life that shapeyouasaperson,”Manpreetsays.“Forme,thatwasthemoment.”His voice quivers and thosemischievous

eyes turnmoist. A couple ofminutes later, aglowingsmilereturnsonhisface.“Everybodyhassacrificedsomethingtoreachthisfar,notjustme.So,it’sokay,”Manpreetsays,typicalofthemanwhowearshissuccesses,failuresandstruggles lightly.

■ ■ ■

Inaway,Manpreet isanoutlier.Unlike the captains of the Indian cricket

and football teams, his popularity still hasn’ttranscendedhissport.AViratKohlioraSunilChhetri are followed bymillions, chased bybrandsandaresuperstarsoftheirgames.Whyjust cricketers or footballers, even some ofIndia’s hockey stars have gainedacclaimbe-yondthesport,acrossgenerations.ButthemanwholedIndia’smarchtothe

Olympic podiumafter 41 yearsmaintains amysteriously lowprofile, perhaps, sympto-maticofasystemwhereitisfrownedupontohaveindividualvoicesandidentities.Whenhespeaksonofficialplatforms,the

jovial and quick-witted 29-year-old is care-ful and cautious, rattling off the clichés andsticking to the script, rather than delvingdeep. It’s in stark contrast tohis personalityontheturf,whereheisspontaneous,speedyand daring. And because he doesn’t scoregoals in every match, rarely indulges insomething flashy, isn’t a hypnotising drib-bler like Dhanraj Pillay, or blessedwith thevision and simplicity of Sardar Singh,Manpreet rarelygets thedueattention.Yet, it’snotacoincidencethatthestoryof

Indianhockey’sresurgenceisinterwovenwithManpreet’semergence.

■ ■ ■

When ‘Korean’ burst onto the scene in

2011,Indianhockeywasstilltryingtobouncebackfromits lowestebb–thefailuretoqual-ify fortheBeijingOlympics.Inhindsight,2011wasalsotheyearIndia’s

10-year project – it cannowbe called that –began.Itremainedinaperennialstateof tur-moil. Butas coachescameandwent,playersmadedebuts,gotaxed,andretired, theteammadetinystepsforward.Michael Nobbs andDavid John changed

thedefinitionofatypicalIndianplayerbyput-ting fitness at the centre of their idea. TerryWalsh added structural discipline, RoelantOltmans brought stability, SjoerdMarijnetaught them to think independently and ontheir feet and Harendra Singh –who gaveManpreetthefirstbreakafteradvicefromfor-merdrag-flickerJugrajSingh–gavethemthefreedomonfield.Amidst the constant churning in the na-

tional team, theHockey India League (HIL)made the young Indian players technicallystronger and fearless. Manpreet and PRSreejesh,oneofthefinestIndiangoalkeepersever, are the only twoplayers from the cur-rentlotwhohavebeenthroughandsurvivedall this.Manpreet’suniqueness,though,liesinthe

fact that he can’t be bracketed into any onetypeofplayer.Heisasumtotalofallthosetinystepstakeninthelastdecade.

His speedwas one of the reasons he gotcalled‘Korean’atthestartofhiscareer,anick-name that has stuck since. By playing in theHIL, and under half-a-dozen coaches, headdeddifferentdimensionstohisgame,mak-inghimanall-roundplayer.Manpreet is strong on the ball, making

him a valuable centre-half, given most ofthe moves pass through this position. Hisquick thinking makes him the point per-son for transitions fromdefence-to-attack,andviceversa.Hepossessesahigh levelofgame intelligence, which enables him tocommunicate effectively on-field and co-ordinate themovementsofhis teammates.Hescoresanoccasionalgoal, actsasastop-per in attacking penalty corners and canperformthedutyof a first-rusher indefen-sive PCs.

It hasn’t always been smooth sailing.Manpreet’sleadershipabilitieshavebeenputunderthemagnifyingglass,especiallyafterastringofbelow-parperformancesin2018–attheCommonwealthGames,AsianGamesandWorldCup.Thosewerethemonthsof realcrisisand

at that moment, a podium finish at theOlympics looked like a distant dream. Butthen came Graham Reid, who was ap-pointed India’s new coach in mid-2019.Andapart fromhis tactical genius,Reid in-troduced something very valuable to achaotic group: a sense of calmness.

■ ■ ■

Bythetime2020came, India lookedpre-paredfortheOlympics.Buttheextrayear,fol-lowing the postponement of the Olympicsduetothepandemic,gavethemtimetoworkon an intangible value: “Togetherness,”Manpreetsays.“Ithinkitisthemostimportantthing if youwant to achieve anything as ateam.”Manpreet iswiserwith experience. The

storiesaboutdivideddressingroomshavebe-comeapart of Indianhockey folklore.Whatwasalwayswhisperedwithinhockeycircleswasbroughtout in theopenbyNobbs,who,inhisLondonGamesreport,wroteaboutthe

‘clique’culturethatheldbacktheteam.Nobbs,in fact, had specificallymentioned that thecliqueswithintheplayinggrouphadaffectedManpreet’s performances at the 2012Olympics, themidfielder’smaidenGames.So,whentheentiresquadgotstuckinside

theSportsAuthorityofIndiaBangaloreCentreduring the lockdown, they used the time toget toknoweachotherbetter. “The ideawastounderstandeachother’sbackgroundsandthe kind of sacrifices their familiesmade tohelp them reach so far. This helped teambondingalot,”Manpreetsays.Thisisn’ttosuggestitwasanallbrothers-

in-armskindofanatmosphere.Buttherewasbonhomieand,attheOlympics,itwasvisiblethatallplayershadeachothers’backs.Manpreet read about the journeys of the

earliergenerations.Hegotinspiredbythesto-ries of defendersAmitRohidas andBirendraLakra,whocomefromnondescriptvillagesinOdisha. “Theyhadno electricity; their fami-lies had to struggle even for two propermeals...”Manpreetsays.He marvelled at the resilience shown

byVivekSagarPrasad,whoovercamealife-threatening injury to become the second-youngest player ever to play for India. Theadmiration ismutual–Prasad,whoplays inthesamepositionasManpreet, is inaweofthe way his captain carries the team to-

gether, especially during toughmoments.Therewas one player’s story, however,

whichManpreetcouldrelatetostraightaway–SVSunil’s. The speedy forwardhad losthisfatherwhilehewasinMalaysiafortheSultanAzlan Shah Cup in 2009. Seven years later,Manpreetwas playing in the same tourna-mentwhen he received the news of his fa-ther’sdemise.“Iflewbacktobewithmyfamily.Butonce

allritualswerecompleted,mymotherinsistedthatIjoinedtheteam.Thewaytheentireteamsupportedmeduringthosedays... it’shardtoforget.So, itwasmyresponsibilitytobewiththematanimportanttournament.”

■ ■ ■

His teammatesdescribehimas ‘progres-sive’and‘open-minded’,traitsManpreetsaysheinheritsfromhismother,Manjeet.“Shehasplayed a huge role inmakingmewhat I amtoday,”hesays.Afterhisfather,Baljit,returnedfromDubai,

hewasn’t inapositiontoworkbecauseofhiscondition. Neitherwere the three brothers,whowere still studying – the eldest brotherwas18whileManpreet,theyoungest,was10.So,Manjeettookovertheresponsibility.“She did tailoring and stitching and

worked incredibly hard,”Manpreet says. “Itmust have been so tough but she never putany restrictions onus, koi bandish nahi. Sheencouragedustodowhatevermadeushappy.EvenwhenImetIlli, shejusttoldmetolistentomy heart and notworry about anythingelse.”‘Illi’ – Illi Najwa Saddique– isManpreet’s

long-time girlfriend turnedwife. Theirs is asweetlittlestory–ManpreetwasplayingtheSultanofJohorCupinMalaysiain2012whenafter amatch, Illi – aMalaysian of Pakistanidescent–walkeduptotheplayersforpictures.There, shemetManpreet, who asked theteam’s liaisonofficer forhernumber.“Everything happened quickly andwe

went on our first date. Right after that,Manpreet mustered up his courage andtold mymum he intended to marry me,”Illi wrote for social media platform IndiaLove Project.Afteryearsofalong-distancerelationship,

theygotmarriedlastDecember.Religionbe-came a point of contention for someon theoutside – it became a burning issue inMalaysia, with the Johor Islamic ReligiousDepartmentinitiatingan‘investigation’–butwithin the families, there was never anydoubt.“Mymotherisveryopen-minded.Shedid-

n'thaveanyproblemwithreligion,”Manpreetsays.Hismotherhadonlyonebitofadviceforhim. “’Whatever happens, don’t break any-one’sheart,’”Manpreetsays.Hismommight aswell have been refer-

ringtogenerationsofIndianhockeyfans,whohave endured many a heartbreak. UntilManpreetralliedhistroopsonasunnyAugustmorning inTokyo to reclaim India’splaceontheOlympicpodiumandusherinaneweraofhope.

The barometerIt isnocoincidencethat thestoryof India’s resurgenceatTokyois interwovenwithcaptainManpreetSingh’semergence

SPORTLINE

21WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHE SUNDAY EXPRESS,JANUARY2,2022 SPORT/CALENDAR

ThemanwholedIndia’smarchtotheOlympicpodiumafter41yearsmaintainsamysteriouslylowprofile,perhaps,symptomaticof asystemwhereit is frownedupontohaveindividualvoicesandidentities

Sunday January2Youmaynothaveforgottenthethingswhichwentwrong,butothershave,sosetyourself freefromthepastandyou'llpreparethegroundforatremendousfeelingof reliefandliberation.

Monday January 3Thinkaheadandstartpreparingnowfornextweek'scriticalplanetaryangles. Seeto it thatall relationshipswithclosepartnersareharmonious .

Tuesday January 4Mars is pounding its way through yourchart, upping your energy level andgenerally lending you that extra bit ofoomph necessary if you are to succeed.

Wednesday January5TheMoonbeginsanewpatternverysoon,continuing its empowering role in yourlife.Youarethereforesetforafullfairshareof emotional warmth and domesticcontentment. You deserve it.

Thursday January 6You'll be ready tomake themost of yourmanygiftsandtalents,butyouhavetobepreparedtostripawaydeadwood, ifonlytomake space for the next year's offers.

Friday January 7Now is one of those classic times whenyoushouldbe true toyourdeepernatureanddoonlywhatyouknowtoberightandproper.

Saturday January8Life is looking good. Your emotional tiesare about to go through a decisive phasewithresultswhich,veryhappily,willturnout tobetotallypositive.

If it’s yourBirthday

SUDOKU470

2

DifficultyLevel2sInstructionsTosolveaSudokupuzzle,everydigitfrom1to9mustappear ineachofthenineverticalcolumns, ineachoftheninehorizontalrowsandineachofthenineboxes.

DifficultyLevel1s=Veryeasy;2s=Easy;3s=Medium;4s=Hard;5s=VeryHard;6s=Genius S

OLU

TIONSUDOKU470

1

Givenbelowarefour jumbledwords.Solvethejumblestomakeproperwordsandmovethemtotherespectivesquaresbelow.Selecttheletters intheshadedsquaresandjumblethemtogettheanswerforthegivenquip.AllGodwantsofmanisa___heart.-MeisterEckhart(8)

SOLUTION:PENCE,SCALD,LOCKUP,PACIFYAnswer:AllGodwantsofmanisapeacefulheart.-MeisterEckhart

CNPEE KLOPCU

CLADS ACIYFP

JUMBLEDWORDS

ARIES(Mar21-Apr20)Theimplicationsofthisweek'sSun-Moonalignmentswillbewithyouuntil

themiddleofnextmonth,strengtheningyourreflectivemood,makingyoulesswillingtodealwithargumentativefriends.Sociallythiscouldberatheraconservativetime,you'llprefertraditionalentertainmentsandyoucouldevenrelishadoseofnostalgia.

TAURUS(Apr21-May21)Makethemostofsuperbplanetarypatterns.Already,theadventurousandprincipledcelestial

aspectswhichhaveexertedsuchaninfluenceonyouarefading.Thebestindicationforahappylife isthatVenusisstillencouragingyourpartnerstotakeagenerousline, justaslongasyouagreethatthey'reright.

GEMINI(May22-June21)CareerprospectsaregrowingstrongerforallyouambitiousGeminians.Even

thoseofyouwithoutpaidemploymentwillbemakingyourmark,perhapsthroughavoluntaryenterprise.Personalcontactswhichwillhelpyoualongineverysphereof life. It'swhoyouknow,notwhatyouknow,thatcounts.

CANCER(June22-July23)It'saweekfordiscipline.Thatmaynotsoundlikefun,butjustthinkofall

you'regoingtoaccomplishoverthenextsevendays.Attimeslikethese,patienceisavirtue.Accepthelpwhenit isgiven,anddon’tletyourpridegetintheway.

LEO(July24-Aug23)AsMercuryceasesone intenseaspect toyoursign, soVenus ismoving intoanother.

Youmustnowputyoursocialandromanticplans intoaction:thetimefor talk isoverandyoumayfollowyour instincts.Atthesametime,might Iadvisethatyourecognise thevirtuesofhardworkandrealise thatyouwon'tget something fornothing?

VIRGO(Aug24-Sep23)Someofyoumayhave beenapplyingforjobsrecently.Nowyouwillbegintosee

thebenefits inyourrelationships.Romanticindicationsaregoodandimproving. It'sapositivephasesocially,sogooutandcreatethoselonged-foropportunities.

LIBRA(Sep24-Oct23)ThebigchangecomesasaresultofVenus'movedeeperintosupportive

regions, justasMercurystirsupyourpassions.Closeromanticandfamilyrelationshipswillsoonbecomemuchmoreenjoyable,andyoucouldbegintoappreciateanewunion.Untilthen,youshouldpressaheadwithcurrentengagements,realisingthatpunctualityisvital.

SCORPIO(Oct24-Nov23)Youremotionalplanetsofferyouamuch-neededshotinthearm.Nowisthe

timetoputforwardyourveryindividualScorpionicideaswiththeself-assurancethatresultsfrombeingright.Oneverypersonalproposalwillcomeyourway..

SAGITTARIUS(Nov24-Dec23)It'sallgoonthefamilyfront.Youmaystillnotbeclearaboutwhat

improvementsareneeded,butthereisnoharminpressingaheadandfindingthisoutbytheusualprocessof trialanderror.Jupiter,yourplanetaryruler, isnowmovingerratically,raisingyourmoraleandboostingyourspirits.

CAPRICORN(Dec.23-Jan.20)Fromthisweek,youwillhavetorelyonpracticaltalentsinadditiontoyour

socialskills.Plus, fromnowon, itwillbepersonalcontactsthatoilthewheelsofsuccessandhappiness.Ontheotherhand,haveyoueverconsideredthefactthatwhatyounormallyconsidertobesuccessmaynotbewhatyoureallyneed?

AQUARIUS(Jan.21-Feb.19)BeingbornunderAquarius,theWaterCarrier,meansthatyoutendtocarry

otherpeople’sburdensonyourshoulders. It'stimetogetinvolvedincharitableactivities.Don'tbeconcernedbytheoccasionaldelay, forapostponementmightgiveyouthechanceforasecondlook.

PISCES(Feb20-Mar20)You'reabouttogainenormousadvantagefromtheamazingnewSun-Moon

patterns. It's fullsteamaheadforall fortunatePisceans.Makingwayforthefuturemaymean,however, thatyouhavetowavegoodbyetoanemotionaltiewhichhasbeenkeepingyouinthepast.But, then,sometimesitfeelsgoodtomoveon,

YOURWEEKAHEADBRIDGE

Southopened1NTandNorthdecidednottouseStaymanwithhis4-3-3-3hand. North's balanced shape suggests notrumpas the best contractandjumpingto3NTdoesnotgivetheopponentsanyextrainformation.WestmadehisnormalleadofthefourofspadesandEastplayedhisking.ShouldyoutakethistrickorholdupinordertocutcommunicationbetweenEastandWest?

NORTH♠ J 983❤A K 7 2♦ 54♣863SOUTH (you)

♠ Q❤Q J 106543♦ A J♣AQ4

NORTH♠ 8 76❤ A K96♦ A62♣7 5 4

SOUTH (YOU)♠ AQ92❤J 3 2♦ KQ9♣ A 102

SOUTH WEST NORTH EAST1NT

Pass 3NT Pass PassPass

SUNDAY CROSSWORD 2354QUICKCLUESACROSS1. Englishqueen(8)5. Confirmorpreserve,defend(6)10. Awaken(5)11. Plentiful (9)12. Givingclearproof of (9)13. Pulsate (5)14. Fromthatplace(6)15. Fooledordeceived(7)18. Cuttingwoodalongthegrain (7)20. Nominate, selectorprefer (6)22. Smalldog(5)24. Religiouscommunity (9)25. Hi-fi component (9)26. Musefor thepoets? (5)27. Onewhodies for thecause(6)28. Flowers (8)DOWN1. Relating toSpring(6)2. Wooing(9)3. Excessivereactiontostimulus (15)4. Conceive (7)6. Attentiveness toall rulesandetiquette (15)7. Willowtree (5)8. All-purposesidekick (8)9. Ranslowly (6)16. Recklessbandit (9)17. Announce(8)19. Ploy(6)20. Command(7)21. Structures foroverheadwires (6)23. Less rawormoremature (5)

CRYPTICCLUESACROSS1. Sadwhenthrowntotheground(4-4)

5. Silveringaroundendof life?! (6)10. Itbrings tears toyoureyesonnoone's return(5)

11. Phraserestoringnurserystandingisencouragement for floralgrowth(3-1-5)

12. Givenan introduction?(9)13. Whateverperson isneedingWorldHealthOrganisation's love (5)

14. Woodworkerslicermeat (6)15. Saidtorefinemagicpotion(7)18. Putupabar for theopening(7)20. Gorgeousplacewithacavernousinterior (6)

22. Vetogirl's instrument (5)24. Whatapoorboxer, for instance,may lead(1,4,4)

25. Camebackonadietanewandwastedaway(9)

26. Constellation,orparticle (5)27. Showpreference forasimplebuilding(4-2)

28. 'DryOcean'possiblyusedwaxsticks (8)

DOWN:1. Declinesorabandonswithnothinginside(6)

2. Willie's lawless lobbyof theGovernment (9)

3. Victoriannotesupset thegreenie(15)

4. Itmaybeputuptoapply theclosure (7)

6. Fail anexam, itwillberemembered(2,4,2,7)

7. Something I saidas Ienter? (2,1,2)8. Yourpegsarehammered-andtheseattached(3-5)

9. Americandupecollapsed,exhausted(4,2)

16. If I can'tact, I canperhapsplanmoves (9)

17. Stupidringer that'semployedbyaboxer? (4-4)

19. Theybeatacompletesuit (6)20. Tidydescriptionof a friar? (2,5)21. Howtheprisonerwrote (6)23. Manyasafari includes thisoldAfrican lake(5)

QUICKCLUESAcross: 1Breadandbutter,10Isaac,11Narcissus,12Wayward,13Chennai,14Maori,16Recession,19Troubling,20Lunar,22Envious,25Instead,27Eucalypti,28Copse,29Forgoodmeasure.Down:2Readytogo,3Accra,4Annadurai,5Doric,6Universal,7Tyson,8Russian,9Wigwam,15Imbroglio,17Cognitive,18Innkeeper,19Thereof,21Redeem,23Vicar,24Sapid,26Sects.CRYPTICCLUESAcross:1Elizabethtudor,10Dubai,11Orchidist,12Sealegs,13Stoodin,14Primp,16Emmenthal,19Wentinfor,20Siren,22Lacteal,25Opposer,27Pianosolo,28Looks,29Getoffscotfree.Down:2Librarian,3Zaire,4Book-shelf,5Tacks,6Tricornes,7Dried,8Retinol,9Addsup,15Pairedoff,17MarcoPolo,18Horoscope,19Wildpig,21Norest,23Chart,24Loops,26Pilaf.

Solutionsto2353

Westleadsthekingofspadesandswitchestothetenofdiamonds. East'squeenforcesyourace,leavingyouwithadiamondloserandtwopossibleclublosers. Given thatWest has the king of clubs from thebidding, is there awaytomaketentricks?TheWestHand: S-AK106 H-8 D-109863 C-KJ5TheEastHand: S-7542 H-9 D-KQ72 C-10972Icangiveyousomeencouragement. 4Hisvirtuallycold. Allyouhavetodoisopentherightdoors intherightorder.Thefirstspadetrickusedupthekingandyourqueen. YouhavetheJ98indummyandtheonlytwomissingspadesofvaluearetheaceandten. Gotodummywithaheartandleadoneofthespadesfromdummy. AssumingEastplayslow,discardyourjackofdiamonds.Westtakeshistenandcontinuesdiamonds,whichyouruff.Do it again. Go to dummywith a heart and lead another spade, this timediscardingaclub. Westwinsandthat isall for thedefense. Youstill haveanentrytodummyandthereisagoodspadewaiting. Youcandiscardyourqueenofclubsonitandtheplayends.Makingtentricks.Yourproblemfortheweek:Dlr:South Vulnerable:EastWest

WEST NORTH EAST SOUTH1❤

Dbl 2NT pass 4❤pass pass pass

Attimes,itpaystobeanoptimistonbridgetable.Whenyouacertainlayoutforyourcontracttosucceed,justassumeitisthereandplanyourplayaccordingly.Dlr:South Vulnerable:Both

New Delhi

POLLARD NAMED IN SQUADKieron Pollard is back from injury to captain West Indies for theupcoming Twenty20 cricket series against England. West Indiesplays England in five T20 internationals at Kensington Oval inBarbados from Jan. 22-30. Ahead of the England series, WestIndies hosts Ireland in three ODIs and a T20 between Jan. 8-16. AP

ConwayhitscenturyonreturnfrominjuryWellington: Devon Conway cele-brated his return from injurywith asparkling 122 on Saturday to propelNew Zealand to 258-5 againstBangladeshontheopeningdayof thefirst test in Mount Maunganui.Bangladeshclaimedthreewickets inthefinalsessionbutworldtestcham-pionsNewZealandwillbeconfidentof a 300-plus score when HenryNicholls resumes on 32with RachinRavindra joining him on Sunday."Itmight deteriorate over time but Ithinktomorrowthewicketwouldbereallynicetobaton,"Conwaytoldre-portersaftertheday'splay."Hopefullywe as a teamcan capitalise on that."Electing to field, Bangladesh got anearly breakthrough when ShorifulIslamdismissedTomLatham,whoisleadingNewZealand in the absenceof injured regular skipper KaneWilliamson, in the fourth over.Conway, who had been sidelinedwith a hand injury suffered duringlast year's Twenty20 World Cup,helped the hosts weather the trickymorning session with his 138-runstandwithWillYoung."Thetwoofusdecided thatweneeded to be as pa-tient as possible and identify theBangladeshbowlerswhowerebowl-ing really well in that period,"Conwaysaid.REUTERSBRIEF SCORES:New Zealand 258/5(Devon Conway 122,Will Young 52;Shoriful Islam2/53)vsBangladesh

FantroubleafterCitybeatArsenalLondon:Arsenal fans hurled plasticbottles and toilet rolls atManchesterCity's celebrating players after Rodriscoredastoppage-timewinnerattheEmirates StadiumonSaturday. City'scomeback towin 2-1 and secure an11th straight Premier League victorywascompletedinthethirdminuteofstoppagetime,promptingRodritoripoffhisjerseyandslideacrossthefieldrightinfrontofthehomeArsenalsup-port. City had been trailing throughBukayo Saka's goal. But the gameshifted in City's favor during a two-minute spell after the break. GranitXhaka conceded a penalty for bring-ingdownBernardoSilvawitha trail-inglegandRiyadMahrezleveledfromthe spot in the 57th minute.Whatproved as costly for Arsenal wasGabriel getting booked for trying toscuff thepenaltyspotbeforeMahrez'skick. Within a minute, Arsenal didhave an immediate chance to regainthe lead.AP

Covid:KlopptomissChelseagameLondon: Liverpool manager JurgenKloppwill miss the Premier Leaguematch at Chelsea on Sunday afterwhattheclubcalledasuspectedpos-itivecoronavirustest.Klopphasmildsymptoms and is now isolating,Liverpool said. Assistant managerPepijn Lijnderswill be on the touch-line leading the team at StamfordBridge but three other members ofthebackroomstaffhavealsoreportedsuspectedCOVID-19infections.Kloppannounced Friday that three un-named players had tested positive.Meanwhile, sevenMonaco playershave tested positive for the coron-avirus, the club said Saturday on theeveof itsFrenchCupgame.Thematchat second-tier Quevilly-Rouen is stillset togoaheadonSunday.AP

BRIEFLY

VolXXNo.42Regd.No.DL-21046/03-05 R.N.I.No.506/57. PrintedandPublishedbyR.C.Malhotraonbehalf of The IndianExpress (P) LimitedandPrintedatThe IndianExpress (P) LimitedPress,A-8, Sector-7,Noida -201301andDBCorpLtd,DainikBhaskarVillageUnanTola,NearDanapurCantt, ShivylyaRoad,PostKhagaul, Shahpur, Patna (Bihar) andPublishedatThe IndianExpress (P) Limited,MezzanineFloor, ExpressBuilding,9&10,BahadurShahZafarMarg,NewDelhi110002.Editorial office:The IndianExpress (P) Limited,MezzanineFloor,ExpressBuilding,9&10,BahadurShahZafarMarg,NewDelhi-110002.Phone:0120-6651500.Advertisingoffice:The IndianExpress (P) Limited,B1/B, Sector-10,Noida-201301.Phone:01206651291.Chairmanof theBoard:ViveckGoenka,Chief Editor:RajKamal Jha, Editor:UnniRajenShanker, Editor (Delhi):RakeshSinha** **Responsible for selectionofNewsunder thePRBAct.Copyright:The IndianExpress (P) Limited.All rights reserved.Reproduction inanymanner, electronicorotherwise, inwholeor inpart,withoutpriorwrittenpermission ispro-

hibited.The IndianExpress®

SRIRAMVEERAJANUARY1

“CANWEmeetfordinner,tonight?”Justliketheoldtimes,butDavidMathiassensedthatmessagefromhisbestfriendKLRahulwasabitdifferent. Itwas2019,Rahulwasdroppedfromthe Indian team, feeling “mostuselessandnegativehehadeverfelt inlife”(Rahul’swords),andlifeneededtobeturnedaround.Thefriendsmetanddecidedtofindaway

to beat negativity and fall back in lovewiththegame.Cricketinanonymity,withfriends,wasdecidedas theway togo. Theydecidedon the ground near the Bangalore airportwhereafriendTejasSubramaniamrunsJustCricket Academy. Every day, early in themorning, for thenext 10days or so, a groupof friends, all cricketers, would drive awayfromthecity.Itdidn’t takelongforMathiastospotthe

problem in Rahul’s batting. In 2018, inEngland,Rahulhadbeenstuckat thecreaseand playing all around the front pad.Problemswith the incomingball. Problemswith identifying the off stump. Problemswithhittingtheballtoohard.Problemswiththe hands, head, and feet. It had looked in-surmountable, almost.Not to the friends.“Icouldseethathewashavingproblems

with the incomingball and that thebatwastoo far away from the body and headwasfalling, “Mathias tells The Indian Express. “Ifeltthathandswereawayfromthebodyandsince the bat tends to be heavy, it gets to bedraggedeven further away.When theheadisn’t in a great position, thenyour bat does-n’t travel in a straight path.When the ballcomes in there is a gap to go through. Andtop-class bowlers can exploit it easily, andtheydid.“That’swhat I felt. I justsawitandsaidit.

Imusthave said10otheruseless thingsbutthat one landed home! I didn’t realise thatwouldmakesuchalargedifferenceeventu-ally inhisbatting.”Twodismissalsscreamedabouttheprob-

lemfromthat2018Testseries.ChrisWoakesandBen Stokes had cut the ball in to clatterthestumpsandthepad.Thebatwouldcomefromawiderarcand

by the time thedownward swingwouldbeinmotion, the ball would be cutting in to-wards danger that Rahulwould try to yankhis bat down even quicker. It would comedownall crooked.Theheadwouldfalloutsidethelineofthe

off-stump.Hewasasittingducktoboththenipbackersandthestraighteners.As the 10 days wore on, and since the

problemwas spotted very early on in thepiece, Rahul started to relax and startedfalling in lovewithbattingagain.“Itwasacalmrelaxedenvironment.Even

the academy boysweren’t there then. Andthecoachesaretheonesweallhaveworkedwithfromchildhood.Nojudgement.Noten-sion.Justfriends,bowlingandhittingtheballaround forhoursandhours.”They recorded his batting too, checked

with the old videos, and realised that it hadallbeguntosyncin.Rahulwashappythathewasn’t going too hard at the ball once thehandsandhead fell inplace.

■■■

“It comes from good hardwork on bal-ance in the stance. The alignment at thecrease,”Mathiassays.Thatbalanceisthekeyfor Rahul. “He doesn’t commit to any oneshot.He is in averyneutral but strongposi-tion. It sounds very simple but under pres-sure,it’shardtodoit.Becauseofthatbalance,you can access areas in grounds leaving ashortmargintobowlers toerr.Thepressureisnowonthem.”Rahul stands, right toepointing towards

pointbutdoesn’tgettooclosedintoaside-on

stance too early. The front shoulder nowpointstowardsthenon-strikerormid-onattimes and hemakes tiny stepswith his leftfootasthebowlerapproachesthecreaseandloadsup.Mosttimes,it’stwosteps—andtheclosingof theopen-ness occurs by the timetheballreleases.Sortof.Theleftfoot’smove-mentsarenotonlyshortbutalsolightsteps.Ready to spring into action, on his toes. Hedoesn’t stretch forward toomuch anyway.But these days, during front foot drives, thefrontfootdoesskipfurtherthanitusedtoinhisbaddays.

“That’s purely down to confidence butalso from the balance and alignment,”Mathias says.Theback leg toobegins to inchsideways

andonly rarelydoes it get stuck.When thathappens,troublecanpeepin.Likeinthesec-ond innings of the Centurion. The front legwasdoingallthemovementandbythetimehearrestedthat,retreatedeven,thedamagewasdone.Hewascrampedinhiscutandtheball flewoff theedge to theslips.Hehadtriedasimilar shot in the first in-

nings - back then, the back foot had been

dragged sideways towards off, the weightshifttobackfootwassmoother,andheflayedtheshortishball overgully.Or against Shaheen Afridi in the T20

world cup game. The left foot had strayedacross, theheadhadbeguntofalloutsideoffstumpandfromthere,itwasalltoomuchforhimtogetbackinlinetothatwonderfulnip-backer.Similarly,awkwardbat-anglecanbeseen

in the2018Woakesdismissal too.“Justashisstanceisneutral,soishismind

now,” says Mathias. “He is tremendouslystrongmentally. Once the technique thingkicked in - as in felt comfortable with thehead position and the bat flow, thatwas it.Hewouldsay, 'Istaystillandif Iaminagoodposition and balance, I will have an answerwherever the bowler bowls’. That’s his rea-soning.Andit’sabsolutelyspoton.That’stheimpression I always getwhen he is battingwell.He isdoing that regularlynow.”

■■■

ThetwometataU-13zonaltournament.MathiasfromBangalore,RahulfromtheportcityofMangalore.Mathiasnowrunsawell-

ness pharmacywith plans to enter preven-tive care and an eventual tie-up with thesportsworldbutbackthenwasaslightlyan-noyedkidwhofelt therunsweren’tcomingasmuch as they should. “Sowhen I got to afifty in that semi-final game, I celebrated abittoomuch.Wild.”Andwhenhetookguardagain, Rahul, the wicketkeeper, piped upfrombehind the stumps. “Haven’t you everscored a fifty before?!” “And I laughed.Wegelled from then on. Andwould spend 2-3monthstogethereverycricketsummerfromthenallthewaytillwemadetoRanjiTrophysquad.”"ThereisnogoodplaceinBangalorethat

we haven’t gone.” And occasionally to themovies.“Batman!TheDarkKnightreturnsinparticular. I remember we saw that threetimes in the theatre.Wewere so taken upthatwepulledouttheotherBatmanmoviesandsawallof them,”Mathias laughs.The Batmanwould get inked onRahul’s

flesh too. “Hehassomanytattoos that I toldhimtoinsurewhateverlittleemptyspaceonhisbodyandget it sponsoredbysomeskin-carecompany.Hehasahabitofgettingatat-toodone ineverycountryhevisits.“Of all the tattoos, hewasmost excited

andproud to show that Batman tattoo”. Hehas inscribed a line from Batman Rises -“Deshi Basara”! “Itmeans “Rise” and it wassuchacool scene too,”Mathias says.That itwas. In thatscene, it’sestablished

that only adrenaline could boost the body’sabilities beyond the normal that Batmanneeds to escape the really high pit. He usesthe fear of dying topumpuphis adrenalineasheleapsandclimbsoutof thatpittodeaf-eningcriesof ‘DeshiBasara’ fromtheprison-ershuddledbelow.Inhis real life, Rahulprefers toclimbout

ofbattingpitsthroughhiscalmandcompo-sure.“That’showhehasbeenallhis life.Youshould see his parents - solid, intelligent(both professors) and calmer than Rahuleven.Hegets it fromthem.Doesn’t get flus-teredmuchatall.”Evenduring theaftermathof thatKaran

Johar show?“Ohyes then too. I remember Imet him

thedayafter that.Wedidn’t chat about it atall.Wehaveanunfilteredrelationship-shareeverything really that upsets or excites us.Thatdidn’t featuremuch. Theonly thingKLtoldmeisfromnowonifanyoneasksyoutorecountanyfunnystoriesaboutme,tellthemyouhaveplentybutnone toshare.”

■■■

Thewhispers in the cricketing commu-nity in Bangalore when Rahul was youngcentred around howmuch he resemblesRahulDravid in compactness of his batting.Soliddefence.Correcttechnique.Theversionthathaseventuallyoffloadedonusinthelastfew years has been filledwith outrageousshots - the lap-flick over square-leg to pac-ers,theaerialhitsovermid-offandcoverandthepowerfulbiffs against spin."Thewayhewenttoworktoincreasehis

repertoirewassomething.Wherehewoulddrive theball say tomid-off, nowhestartedto lookhowhecanpunch itover theregion.Still purist andcorrect, but the final flourishwasdifferent. Themindsetwasdifferent.”Inmanyways, in Tests, it has been a re-

turn tochildhood.The compactness is back. The hands are

nowheld close to the body, the downwardpath of the bat is straighter, the head does-n’t fall, and the feet listen tohis instinct.“Hehasputhisentirebeing intohisbat-

ting.Hewon’t let itgonow.Andif itdips,hewillgotoworkagaintorebuild it,”Mathiassays. “The ability to underplay his successand not crumble when he is doing bad -that's the thing it will make him great. Hewill end up as a great, I have no doubtsabout it.”

System upgrade for KLClose friendandformerKarnatakabowlingallrounderDavidMathiasshareshowRahul rectifiederrorsandregainedconfidence

(Top)This imagewhenChrisWoakesdismissedhimin2018 showsRahul’shandsgoingwider, theheadbeginningto falloutsidethe lineofoff-stump, thebatcomingdownfromawiderangleandlate. Screengrabs

(Below): ImagefromtheCenturionTest, showsRahul’shandsbeingcloser,headstill andthebatstraighter.

(Above)KLRahulwithformerKarnatakabowlingallrounderDavidMathias. (Left)Rahulunfurlsaneleganton-the-updrive inCenturion.

He is tremendously strongmentally. Once the technique thingkicked in - as in felt comfortablewith theheadposition and thebat flow, thatwas it. Hewould say, 'I stay still and if I am in a

goodposition andbalance, Iwill have ananswerwherever thebowlerbowls’. That’s his reasoning.And it’s absolutely spot on.

DAVIDMATHIASFORMERKARNATAKABOWLINGALLROUNDERANDFRIEND

POST-IMPLOSION

Latest Ashes debacle prompts fresh round of Pietersen-Strauss feudEXPRESSNEWSSERVICEMUMBAI, JANUARY1

KEVINPIETERSENhas reignitedhisoldbat-tlewithhisformercaptainAndrewStraussinhissupportforcurrentbeleagueredEnglandcaptain JoeRoot.“IfeeldreadfullysorryforJoeRoot.He’scap-

tainingaformofthegamethatStrauss&coru-ined in2015!Test Cricket shouldbe thepin-nacle but Strauss/Morgan are somehow thehero’s..?Like Ikeepsaying, thesystemisbro-ken&soarethejournoswhoarediscreditingJoe!There’samuchbiggerpictureheretoo.Joeiscaptainingplayersforlongerperiodsoftimeunderthemoststrictestbubbles.Thepressurein Testsmentally is waymore,” PietersentweetedinthewakeofEngland’sthirdstraightcomprehensive defeat DownUnder to endtheirhopesofreclaimingtheAshes.Inhis columnforBetway Insider,he then

detailed out his plan to resuscitate Englishcricket.Hearguedfora“eight-teamfranchisecricket for red ball” and urged England andWales Cricket Board (ECB) tomonitor thepitchessothattheyare“notbowler-friendly”,andurgedthemtopaytwooverseasplayers

“bigbucks”toplayfullseasonandensurethebest cricketers in the country play againsteachother.“WhenImade355*againstLeicestershire

in2015,Iwouldhavemade250withoutpadson.ItwasamomentwhenIrealisedjusthowfar county cricket had fallen,” he wrote.“Things aren’t going to change by pluckingthenextbatterfromcountycricketandstick-inghimuptoopenthebatting. It’s failed too

manytimesnow.Thisfranchisecompetitionwouldbeafantasticopportunityto improvethestandardofred-ballcricket,makedomes-ticcricketinterestingtothemassesagain(likethey didwith The Hundred), and I’m surecommercially, in termsof sponsorships andbroadcastrights,itwouldbegoodnews,too.”The Pietersen vs Strauss sagadates back

to the 2012 Test series against South Africa,afterPietersen,whohadalreadylostthecap-taincy after run-inswith the ECB, had senttextmessages to SouthAfrican players thatallegedly insulted Strauss. Pietersen wasdropped after the ‘Text-gate’ scandal andthough hewas later reintegrated into theside,hiscareercametoahaltafterthe2013-14 Ashes which England lost 0-5 underAlastairCook.

LastApril, inaSkySportspodcast,Straussadmitted he hadmade a “mistake” in han-dling Pietersen,while also layinghis side ofthestory.“I probably didn’t do enoughworkwith

KP.Therecameatimewhensomeofthepeo-ple hewas closewith in the teamretiredorgotdropped.Therewasanopportunitythere,not necessarily to bring him in, but spend alotmore timewith him andmake sure hisviewswerevaluedandconsidered,”Strausssaid.“IthinkinsteadIjustletKPbeKP.Inret-rospect, thatwas amistake andmight havesowedtheseedsforwhatwastocomedownthe track.”In his autobiography in 2014, Pietersen

hadallegedthattherewasabullyingculturewithintheteam.Hehadallegedthatwicket-keeper Matt Prior and seniors like JamesAnderson, StuartBroadandGraemeSwannwould force team-mates to apologise formisfields and dropped catches duringmatches.HisclaimsweredeniedbyPriorandSwann.Former South Africa captain Graeme

Smith had jumped to Pietersen’s defence.“Having played against them, we alwaysusedtosayifwecouldgetawinorgetahead,

theywould turn on each other. A lot of thestuffthathe’stouchedoninhisbook,thebul-lyingstuff,youcertainlydidexperiencesomeof itwhenyouplayedagainst themandyou

knew you could use it as an asset to get ontheother sideof them.”In his version last year, Strauss talked

about how Pietersen had slowly started todrift away fromhis team-mates. “Often, KPwanted tobe theguywhowas slightly sep-aratefromtheteam.Onanygivenday,itdid-n’t feel likean issuebutover time itbecamean issue…At times, though, whatworkedfor KP almost underminedwhat the teamwas trying to do. It felt like therewere twocompletelyseparateagendasthereandthatbecame a problem for me, the rest of theteamand[thenheadcoach]AndyFlower.”One of the contentious issues was

Pietersen’s involvement in the IndianPremier League. He wanted to play butStrauss thought it interferedwithEngland’scricketingschedule.“ButIthoughtitwasin-credibly dangerous to allowplayers tomissTest cricket toplay in the IPL. Iwassaying toKPat the time, ‘listenmate, this is the situa-tion. You can’t opt in or out of internationalcricket.You’vegotobligationstoEnglandandhopefullytherearegapswhereyoucanplayin the IPLaswell,’” Strauss said.The oldwounds clearly haven’t healed,

withPietersen firing freshsalvosnow.

“When Imade355*againstLeicestershire in2015, Iwouldhavemade250without padson. Itwas amomentwhen I realised justhow far county cricket had fallen.”

KEVINPIETERSENSOUTHAFRICA-BORNFORMERENGLANDBATTER

London:Englishcricketersshouldnotmissdutyattheexpenseofplayinginthe IPL, former England captainMichaelAthertonhassaidinthewakeof the team's disastrous Ashes cam-paign.“Playersshouldnotmissinter-nationaldutytoplayintheIPL,norberested and rotated to allow them toplay elsewhere. The carry-on duringthe winter, and at the start of theEnglish summer, should not happenagain,"Athertonwrote inhiscolumnforTheTimes."Theleadingmulti-for-mat players are paid seven-figuresums,but, incredibly,theECBwashesits hands of them for twomonths oftheyearduring IPL.” PTI

‘Don’t put IPL overinternational duty’


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