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JOURNALISM OF COURAGESINCE 1932

MIRROR,MIRROR,ONTHEWALL

PAGE 16, 17, 18

THE SUNDAY EXPRESS MAGAZ INE

In this pandemic-riddenworld, is dressing up a

thing of the past?

eyeeyeNEWDELHI,LATECITY

JULY26,202020PAGES,`6.00

(`8 PATNA&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

ALAKASAHANIMUMBAI, JULY25

THEMOVIEChhal (2019)openswith the murder of PramodPandey’s character by his ma-nipulatingwife. In theTVshowTujh SeHai Raabtahe is a judge,while in horror series Laal Ishqheisakind-heartedgrandfatherwho is spared by killer ghosts.Hissmartquipastheownerofawomen’s underwear shop inweb-series Apharan is now apopularmeme.

Aftermakingblink-and-missappearances in about 80 serialsandfivemovies,PandeyrecentlyturnedpetitionerintheBombayHigh Court, challenging theguidelines issued by theMaharashtra government pro-hibiting those over 65 years ofage from shooting due to thecoronavirus pandemic. “Eventhough I am senior by age, I amstill a struggler,” says Pandey,whoturns70onAugust23.Shooting has gathered pace

inMaharashtra after remainingshutsincemid-Marchduetothe

threat of the pandemic. PandeyexpectedtoreturntothesetsforaseriescalledEkMahanayak:DrBRAmbedkar.Hewaspromisedaround five days of work in amonth. But then the actors’ co-ordinator asked for a copy ofPandey’sAadhaarcard,requiredfor health insurance as per thenewguidelines,andrealisedthatPandeywasabovethepermissi-bleageof 65.Earlier thismonth, theAgra-

bornactorfiledapetitioncallingtheMaharashtra government’sage restriction on sets as “dis-

crimination”. “Imposing such aruleisunconstitutionalanditvi-olates our fundamental rights.Now, the characters played by65+ actors in serials are eitherbeing erased or replaced byyounger actors. In some cases,the storyline is being changed.So, Iamfightingforjustice,”saysPandey.Whenheisclean-shavenand

his hair is dyed, Pandey says, hepassesoffassomeoneinhis late50s and is offered roles as such.Pandey’slastactingjobwasthatof an aggrieved secretary of a

housing society in Yeh HainChahateinonMarch12.Hearing the case on Friday,

theBombayHighCourtdirectedthe state to file a reply elaborat-ing the grounds on which theageguidelinewas imposed.Thenexthearingwill beon July29.This is Pandey’s second stint

in theworld of entertainment.Back in1973, hehadapplied forboth acting and directioncourses at the Film andTelevisionInstituteofIndia(FTII),Pune,aftergraduatinginbiology

CONTINUEDONPAGE2

69-yr-old actor in HC over Covid curbs: I’m in the game still

THEWORLD INSIDE

USSAYSNEWFOREIGNSTUDENTSCAN’TENTERIFCOURSESONLINEPAGE 15

SHIVRAJCHOUHANTESTSCOVID POSITIVE,HOSPITALISEDPAGE 8

THE COUNTDOWNUttarPradeshCMYogiAdityanathat theHanumanGarhi temple inAyodhyaonSaturday.Hereviewedarrangements for theAugust5bhoomipujanfor theRamtemple. AvaneeshMishra

DON’TSEEANISSUE:L-G

NAVEEDIQBAL&PVAIDYANATHANIYERSRINAGAR, JULY25

THEUNIONTerritoryof JammuandKashmirhastoldtheUnionMinistry of HomeAffairs that itdid not have any objection inrestoring 4G internet services,and that high-speed Net con-nectivity would not pose anyproblem.“We have beenmaking (a)

representation for this… I feelthat 4Gwill not be a problem. Iam not afraid how people willuse this. Pakistan will do itspropaganda,whether it is 2Gor4G. Itwill alwaysbethere…ButI don’t see an issue,” LieutenantGovernor G CMurmu told TheSundayExpresshereFriday.This isachangeintheearlier

positiontakenbytheJ&Kadmin-istrationtwomonthsagoinMay.In an affidavit filed on

ThursdayintheSupremeCourt,theCentrehadsaidthataspecialcommitteesetuptoexaminethedemands for restoring 4G serv-ices, following the orders of thecourt onMay 11, hadmet twiceonMay 15 and June 10, and ar-rived at a decision that “no fur-therrelaxationoftherestrictionson Internet services, including4Gservices,wouldbecarriedoutatpresent”.Thespecialcommitteecom-

prises the Union HomeSecretary, Department ofTelecommunications SecretaryandtheChief Secretaryof J&K.

OnMay11, the J&Kadminis-trationhadsoughtthedismissalof a plea by the Foundation forMedia Professionals at theSupreme Court by pointing outthat high-speed internetwouldenable the spread of fake news/rumours, and transfer of heavyaudio/videofiles,whichcouldbeused by terror outfits for incite-mentasalsoinplanningattacks.To another question on the

J&K Information Department’sMedia Policy 2020, which em-powerstheDIPR(DepartmentofInformationandPublicRelations)

CONTINUEDONPAGE2

‘Pakwilldo itspropaganda,whether it is2Gor4G’

KRISHNKAUSHIK&AVANEESHMISHRANEWDELHI,AYODHYA,JULY25

PRIME MINISTER NarendraModiwillattendthe bhoomi pu-jan at the site for the proposedRam temple in Ayodhya onAugust5andthiswillbetelecastlive by public broadcasterDoordarshan.Sharingdetailsoftheupcom-

ing event, the Shri RamJanmbhoomiTeerthKshetra,theTrust constituted tooversee thetemple construction, took toTwitter Saturday: “The day PM@narendramodi ji will be inAyodhya to inaugurate the con-struction of Shri RamJanmbhoomiMandir, it will bethemosthistoricmomentinthehistory of independent India.TheeventwillbetelecastLIVEonDoordarshan. Other channelswillalsobroadcastthetelecast.”SourcesinPrasarBharatisaid

theeventwillbecoveredlikeanyother event of the PrimeMinister.Vishwa Hindu Parishad na-

tional spokesperson VinodBansal, in a press statementtweetedSaturday,saidthePrimeMinister will be in Ayodhyaon August 5 and will be “wor-shipping with revered saints,scholars, trustees and otherdignitaries for the grand

Janmabhoomi temple ofBhagwanShriRam”.AlsoSaturday,UttarPradesh

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanathvisited Ayodhya and inspectedarrangements ahead of thebhoomipujan.Announcing that the Prime

Minister will be visitingAyodhya,hedirectedauthoritiesto run special cleanlinessdrivesuntilAugust3,andtoconsiderita Swachhta Abhiyan beforeDeepawali.HealsodirectedthatallCovidprotocolsbe followed.

CONTINUEDONPAGE2

Riot murder accuseddeleted phone data,can’t find weapon:Delhi Police to courtVHPoffice-bearerquestionedbypolice in thecasesayscomplainedtotheL-Gabout ‘falsecases’onHindus

SHYAMLALYADAV&KAUNAINSHERIFFMNEWDELHI, JULY25

■SectionofArmsActdropped■ All accused deleted mobilephone data of days when riotsunfolded■ CCTV footage of incident notfound

THESE ARE some of the revela-tionsmadebyDelhi Police in itschargesheet on themurder ofParvez (48),who succumbed toa gunshot injury on the rightchest,onFebruary25duringtheriots in North-East Delhi. Thechargesheet names 16 peoplechargedwithmurderandrioting.While police, in the

chargesheet filedonJune15be-fore the Chief MetropolitanMagistrate of Karkardooma,have said forensic experts aretryingto“retrieve” lostdataandCCTV footage of the incidentfromtwoshops,anoffice-bearerof the Vishwa Hindu Parishad,amongthosequestionedbypo-

lice regarding the case, haslodged a formal complaint that“falsecases”arebeingfoistedon“innocentHindus”.On April 9, DeveshMishra,

VHP vice-president of YamunaVihar Vibhaag, was among 22peoplesummonedbytheCrimeBranchofDelhiPoliceinconnec-tion with the probe into themurderof Parvez.The samenight, sixof them,

includingMishra,wereallowedto leave. Mishra claims hewascalledforquestioningontheba-sisofa“falsecomplaint”filedbythe victim’s son Sahil Parvez,stating thatMishrawas leadingthemob.“Myphonerecorddetails,and

theCCTVshowIwasnotpresentin Delhi. The police seizedmyphone, checked my CDR, andthenletmeoff,”Mishrasaid.The remaining 16were ar-

rested: Sushil Kumar (40), JaibirSingh(57),SupremeMaheshwari(26),AtulChauhan(37),VirenderChauhan(40),PawanKumar(44),Suresh Pandit (50), Amit Kumar

CONTINUEDONPAGE2

MANOJCG&HAMZAKHANNEWDELHI, JAIPUR, JULY25

A DAY after Ashok Gehlot andthe MLAs in his camp sat on aprotest on the lawns of the RajBhawan, the Rajasthan ChiefMinister on Saturday warnedthat if Governor Kalraj Mishrastill does not agree to their de-mand for a session of the stateAssembly, thepartywill take its

protest to Prime MinisterNarendra Modi’s residence inNewDelhi.Gehlot was addressing a

meeting of the CongressLegislature Party (CLP) atFairmontHotel,wherethepartyiskeeping itsMLAs.Thispushforasessionof the

state Assembly is in line withtheCongress leadership’sdeci-sion to focus its energies onwaging a political battle inRajasthan since its legal ma-

noeuvres so far havehit awall.Gehlot has conveyed to the

leadershipthatheisconfidentofthe numbers and the partywillnow insist on a floor test in theAssemblyratherthanfightitoutincourts.Sources in the party said

someoftheleaderswereinitiallynot infavourof takingthebattletotheSupremeCourtbutagreedwhen Assembly SpeakerC P Joshi strongly felt that the

CONTINUEDONPAGE2

DIPANKARGHOSEBHAGALPUR, JULY25

ITWAS over a month ago, butAnilSinghrememberstheangerlike it was yesterday, coursingthrough his veins. Singh and agroup of 70 men had paid

Rs3,500eachtoatruckdrivertoget home to Bihar from Delhi,travellingwithout foodandwa-ter, cramped in the dark in thebackofthevehicle,likecriminals.One time, Singh recalls, the

truck driver told them to get offand hide as a Delhi Police vehi-cle cruisednearby. “Iwas soan-gry at Modi, at Nitish Kumar,”Singh says. “Who gives fourhours before shutting down acountry, leavingthepoortofendfor themselves?Whobars peo-ple saying theymight be carry-

ing the coronavirus? Hum logkeedemakaudehainkya (Areweinsects)?”Sincereturningtohisvillage

of Mehesleti, Singh, whoworked as a rajmistri in Delhi,has had no job and is runningoutofmoney.Hisangerstillsim-mers, but is now directed asmuch at the Opposition.“Everybody has abandoned us.Havetheycometohelpus?HastheMLAcome?Theyareall thesame,” Singhsays.

CONTINUEDONPAGE2

India offers 11Afghan Sikhsvisa: man whowas abductedto girl rescuedDIVYAGOYALLUDHIANA, JULY25

FOURMONTHSafter an IslamicState-backed attack at a gurd-wara in Kabul’s Shor Bazaarkilledatleast25membersofthecommunity, and amid allega-tions of abductions and forcedmarriage, 11 Sikhs fromAfghanistan have been grantedshort-term visas by the IndianEmbassy inKabul.They are expected to reach

DelhiSunday.ChhabolSingh,acommunity

leader inKabul, toldThe SundayExpress that among those whoreceived the visas Saturday in-clude Nidan Singh Sachdeva,whowasabductedfromagurd-wara in Paktia province lastmonth, and a 15-year old girlwho was recently “rescued”

CONTINUEDONPAGE2

India forincrementalprogress,status quoante at LACSUSHANTSINGHNEWDELHI, JULY25

INDIA AND China are expectedto schedule the fifth round oftalks at the Corps Commanderlevelnextweektoresolvethesit-uation along the Line of ActualControl (LAC) inLadakh.New Delhi has decided to

sticktoitsstrategyof“incremen-tal change despite slowprogress”whilepressing for theend-goal, the restoration of sta-tusquoanteasofApril—beforethestartof themilitarystandoff.It has also ruledout applica-

tionofanykindofmilitarypres-sure against China as an option,soastoavoidanyinadvertentes-calation.A government official told

The Sunday Express that bothsides have agreed to hold thetalks at the level of the CorpsCommanderduringthemeetingFriday of the WorkingMechanism for Consultation &Coordination on India-China

CONTINUEDONPAGE2

WITHTHETalibanjockey-ingforpower,SikhsandHindusinAfghanistanhavebeenfeelingthreat-ened.Whilemakingacaseforthevulnerablepositionof theminoritiesunderaTalibanregime,thehintofofferingthemshelterthroughtheCitizenshipAmendmentAct(CAA)helpsthegov-ernmentmakeapoliticalcaseathome.

Talibanback,govtwatchesE●EX

PLAINED

J&KONEYEARAFTER

AUGUST5AN EXPRESS SERIES

Before lockdown,andafter.Whenhehasshavedandhishairisdyed,hecanpassoff as inhis late50s, saysPramodPandey

SUNDAYSTORYPAGE 13

AYODHYA2.0.2.0

From the drawingboard to the temple site

— catching up withAyodhya as it dresses

up for the big day

ASADISTRICTUNLOCKS

ANEXPRESS SERIES

Cong feels House test best bet,Gehlot ready to take battle to PM

CongressMLAscheerasCMGehlotspeaksatameetingatFairmontHotel in JaipurSaturday.ChiefMinister’sOffice

Change in stand: 4Gwon’t be a problem,J&K toHomeMinistryMediapolicywillbe ‘re-checked’, InformationDeptcan’tdecidewhatcontent is fake,anti-national, saysMurmu

145DAYSSINCEPANDEMICBEGAN

KEYSTATESTOWATCH■Maharashtra■Delhi■TamilNadu■Karnataka■AndhraPradesh

7 DAYS EARLIER:

2.53NOW:

2.35

7 DAYS EARLIER:

7.73NOW:

8.43

DETECTED TODAY

48,916RECOVERED TODAY:

32,223

TOTALCASES3,57,1171,28,3891,99,74985,87080,858

DOUBLINGRATE**24.9375.2222.9511.016.97

SURGEIN24HOURS9,6151,0256,7855,0078,147

7-DAYAVGGROWTH*2.89%0.96%3.14%6.54%10.32%

TRACKING INDIA’SCOVIDCURVE

CASES:13,36,860TESTS: 1,58,49,068 | DOUBLING RATE: 19.62**

RECOVERED:8,49,431DEATHS:31,358

*CompoundedDailyGrowthRateover last 7days **Calculatedover7-daygrowth

DataasonJuly24, releasedbyUnionMinistryofHealth, ICMRandstates.Oftendailynumbers includedatafrompreviousdays.Assuch, trendsbasedondailynumbersare indicative,notdefinitive

CASE FATALITYRATIO

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

Positives againstnumber tested

(in %); indicator ofthe spread of disease

Becoming sick vsrecovering; more

recoveries for 14 daysmay signal the peak

POSITIVITY RATE DAILY IN, DAILYOUT

Forsaken after Covid, Bhagalpursays, ‘This is no time for elections’

KARGIL VIJAY DIWAS

Ayodhya, Aug 5: PMat Ram temple eventwill be live on DD

New Delhi

THESECONDPAGE2 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHE SUNDAY EXPRESS,JULY26,2020

WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

TheCiscocaseandhowIndians tookcastediscriminationtoUSNEWEPISODEEVERYDAY

Inthisepisodeof theSandipRoyShow,DalitactivistThenmozhiSoundararajantalksabouthowtheCiscocasehighlightstheproblemofcastediscriminationintheUS.

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LACBorder Affairs, but the agendafor the talks is yet to be ap-proved.Thedateforthetalkswillbe

finalized only after the agendais approved, and can be ex-pected to be held towards theendof nextweek.“It isaveryinstitutionalized

process. Before every CorpsCommandertalks,theagendaisapproved in Delhi. There is ameeting of the China StudyGroupwhichsitsdownandap-proves what the commandercan propose and agree to. He isaninstrumentintheprocess,notthedecision-makingauthority,”thegovernmentofficial said.After the last round of talks

at the level of the CorpsCommander on July 14 whichfailed to break the deadlock,there was a view within thegovernment that there was aneed to keep the Chinese off-balance in the next round oftalks, as Beijing seemed to becomfortable with the new sta-tusquoon theborder.This viewwas based on the

argument that if military op-tions are ruled out and India ispreparedforaprolongedstand-off and winter deployment, itshould not accept any half-measures or proposals for par-tial disengagement on the LACat this stage.“There was a view that we

shouldadopt a strongand rigidposture on our demands forrestorationofstatusquoante.Atthis stage, we should showourstubbornness,weneed to keepthe Chinese off-balance, notcomfort them,” an official toldThe SundayExpress.Theconsensusinthegovern-

ment, however, seems to haveveeredaroundthecontinuationof itsexistingstrategyofthepast12weeksof thestandoff. Itrulesout any use of military options,eitherasaquidproquoactionorin any other form of militaryleverage, while focusing on theendgoalofrestorationofthesta-tusquoante.“Our end goal is restoration

of the status quo ante, in asmanystepsasit takes.Anythingwhichfacilitatesthestatedout-come is important for the endgoal.Yes, theprogresshasbeenveryslowbuttherehasbeenin-cremental changedespite slowprogressontheground. Imean,without going into specifics,there has been some thinningoutof troopseveninthelastfewdays and there will be somepositive results to show beforethe next talks between com-manders,” a second govern-mentofficial said.“The Armywill remain de-

ployedforthelonghaul,andlo-gistics preparations have al-ready started for that. Ifrequired, there can be even apermanentdeployment.That iscrystal clear,” theofficial said.On the lack of discussion

about the situation in DepsangPlains,where the Chinese havedeniedtheIndiansideaccesstofivepatrollingpoints,theofficialsaid“ouraimisforresolutioninthe entire eastern Ladakh. Butthe current focus is onPangong.”A senior Army officer con-

firmedthegovernmentofficial’sstance on status quo ante andprolongedstand-offbypointingto a television interview givenbyNorthernArmyCommander,Lt General YK Joshi to CNN-News18onSaturday.“What I can tell you in sim-

ple words is that we shall con-tinue all efforts to restore thestatusquoante along LAC. I be-lieve the negotiations andprocess of disengagement andthe commitment of both sidesto adhere to the laid downmethodologywoulddictatethetimelines of the stand-off,” LtGeneral Joshi told the newschannel.Asreportedearlier, therehas

been limitedprogress indisen-gagement on the ground, leav-ing the situation tense on atleastthreeof thefrictionpoints:PP17A in Gogra, Pangong areaand Depsang Plains. As per in-telligence sources, a sustainedstrength of 2,000 PLA soldiershasbeenblockingIndianpatrolsinDepsang for10weeksnow.In the assessment of intelli-

gence agencies, China is at-tempting tomake the KugrangTsangporiverasthenewLACatPP15 and PP17A in the HotSpringssector. Ithasalsonotre-moved its posts on the forwardslopeofFinger4atPangongTso,andhasfurtherstrengtheneditsdeployment close to Finger 6,sources said.

Delhi riots(42), Naresh Tyagi (50), UttamTyagi (46), Deepanshu Gupta(30), Rajpal Singh (48), AkhilChaudhary (23), Uttam ChandMishra (49), Hari OmMishra(55), SandeepChawla (44).AccordingtoDeveshMishra,

hesentaletteronApril21tothegovernment,allegingthatDelhiPolice is conducting an impar-tial probe and filing false casesagainst Hindus. “We sent theletter through an email to theLieutenant Governor. We re-ceivedamessagethatourcom-plaint has been received,” hesaid.Mishra claimshe receiveda call in June from the localCrime Branch office inSeelampur regarding the com-plainthehad filed.“On the basis of the com-

plaint Ihadsent, I receivedacallfrom Seelampur Crime Branchoffice. They askedme if I haveany evidence in support of theaccusedwho I have said are in-nocent. I said I don't have anyevidence and that is the reasonwhy I havemade a demand fora re-investigation,”he said.While he says he does not

have evidence to back hischarge, his letter titled‘ComplaintagainsttheDelhipo-lice registering false casesagainst the Hindus and arrest-ing them’,made these claims:

■ That he was in Etawah,from February 23 till February27,visitinghis sister; and itwasthe complainant (Sahil) whoclaimedhewas inDelhi.

■ He claims accusedSubhashTyagiwasathis“work-place on February 24” at a gov-ernment dispensary and on“medical leave from February25 to 28”; similarly, accusedRajpalTyagi,ateacher,was“alsopresent at his institution onFebruary24”.Mishraclaims“basedonthe

falsecomplaint”bySahil,othershavebeensenttojail,whilethey“themselves are riot victims”.“Hari OmMishra’s dhaba wasset on fire by Muslim rioters;Jaiveer Tomar’s medical shopwassetonfire;UmeshMishra'selectrical shopwas set on fire,”he claims.Hari Om Mishra’s son

Manishsaidhisfather“hasbeenassociated with the Sangh’sshakhaatYamunaPark”.The police, in the

chargesheet, said: “As per theCDR analysis, all accused per-sons were present at the placeof occurrenceat the timeof thecommissionof theoffence.”“As per the statement u/s

161CrPCof Sahil Parvez (sonofdeceased Parvez), and inde-pendent eyewitness, all the ac-cused personswere part of themob that were rioting and hisfather was shot dead by SushilKumar,” police said.“Location of their mobile

phone numbers were at theplaceofoccurrenceontherele-vant date and time. As per onevideo, behaviour of one ac-cused, Sushil Kumar, was ag-gressiveandwasinvolvedintheriot,” police said.Police have also named

threeprotectedwitnesses,whoareindependentwitnesses,and

have identifiedall theaccused.“Due to safety and security

of Public witness No. 1, Publicwitness No. 2 and Public wit-nessNo.3, their identityarebe-ingkeptsecret.Theirstatement,identificationmemoetc.arebe-ingkeptseparatelyinsealeden-velope,”police said.But there are discrepancies

regarding the key evidence.Consider these:

■Policehavenot recoveredtheweaponused to kill Parvez.The Arms Act section has beendropped, even before the startof trial. “After sincere efforts,weapon of offence (firearms)couldnotbe recovered. So, sec-tion 25 Arms Act has been re-moved...During thePCremandof accused Sushil Kumar, all ef-forts weremade to recovery offirearms (pistol), but it did notget,” police said.

■ Police have said no CCTVfootage related to the incidenthas been found: “Every effortwasmade to obtain footage ofDelhi Government and privateCCTVcamerasinstalledaroundthesceneof theincident,butnoCCTVfootagerelatedtotheinci-dent could be found. Because,the rioters sabotaged the CCTVCamera before the incident i.e.on24.02.2020andafter.”“However, 2 DVR of CCTV

cameras from the 2 shops(Pawan Electronics and BigBazarshop,MainYamunaViharRoad,NorthGonda)nearby theplace of occurrence have beenseized and deposited to FSLRohini to retrieve the data,” itsaid.

■“Relevantdataof therele-vant period i.e. 23, 24&25 Feb,2020 from themobile phoneshave been deleted by the ac-cusedpersons,” police said.“All exhibits have been de-

posited in FSL Rohini... for re-trieving the data. Accused per-sonshavedeletedintentionally,therelevantdataof therelevantperiod i.e.23,24&25Feb,2020fromtheirmobilephones,” po-lice said.

BhagalpurAs Bihar heads for low-key

Assembly elections, modifiedsuitably for the coronaviruspandemic, questions likeSinghraises couldbeadeterminant.Bhagalpur, the focusof a se-

riesbyTheIndianExpresstoun-derstandtheeffectsonadistrictofCovid-19andthesubsequentlockdown, has the trappings ofthe rest of Bihar. There is a

steeplyrisingcoronaviruscurve,complicatedbyhighpovertyin-dicators in Bhagalpur's 1,500villages, thousandsofmigrantswhohavereturnedandarenowunemployed,andthespectreoffloods.While there are no signs of

an election, what dominatesconversationsisallof theabove-- thepandemic, itseffects, andthepolitical response to it.Local BJP leaders in

Bhagalpur admit that in Mayand June, there was palpableanger against the ruling NDA,both at Prime MinisterNarendra Modi and ChiefMinister Nitish Kumar. "Whenwe set up the equipment fordigital rallies (held byBJP lead-ers, including Amit Shah), theyaskedifwecouldnothelptheminstead. The party told us tokeepmeetingpeople,ask themwhat they wanted from theirleaders," a former deputymayor of Bhagalpur says,adding, "Who could have dealtwith a worldwide pandemicbetter than Modi and Nitish,symbols of good governance?Now people realise that thispain is everywhere, in everystate."However, the BJP leader

feels, it will eventually comedown to the candidates. "If youdidn’t stand with the people,coweredinsideyourhouse,youwill get votedagainst."In Govindpur, Naugacchia,

washed away by the overflow-ingKosiRiver, theyouthdismissthe current lot of politicians as“media neta”. “People had towalk thousands of kilometres,died on theway. Saywhat youwant about Lalu Prasad, if hewas out of jail, you think hewouldsit inTVstudiosandgivelectures? He would be in themiddle of the people, protest-ing. The parties all say we dis-tributed this relief, that relief.Come to the ground and see.Gareebkaawaazuthao,hamaresaath khade ho. Lalu utna tohkarta (Speak up for the poor,stand with them. Lalu wouldhavedone that at least).How isthe Opposition better than thegovernment?” asks RaghuRishidev.Even if the elections come

back to caste combinations,many believe the RJD-led al-liancewill struggle beyond the30%Muslim-Yadavvote.SharanDev Singh, a veteran JD(U)workeratCharaBadgaonvillageinBhulni,says,“WewillremindpeoplewhattheLaluyearswere

like, how the Yadavs ruledeverything.”An RJD worker sitting

nearby admits, "Our leadersshould have done more."However,hehopesthat the lin-gering anger over "abandon-ment" following the lockdownwill help the RJD. "It may havebecome quieter, but it doesn'tjustdisappear... (Besides) inthepast five years, especially afterhe joined hands with the BJP,Nitishhasdonenothing.Peoplewill vote on anti-incumbencytoo. Let us campaign, the elec-tions haven’t even begun,” headds.Sanjay Kumar Prasun of

Mehesleti believes another is-sue might queer the pitch. Aworker of the UpendraKushwaha-led Rashtriya LokSamata Party that has partedways with the BJP, Prasun is aself-professed “Modi fan”.“Peopleofmycommunityiden-tifiedwithhim,thatherewasanOBC who had made it big...However, now, the communitysenses a problem. They (theCentre) are considering chang-ingOBCreservation, increasingcreamy layer limit."Prasun says that given the

size of the OBC vote bank, theOppositioncouldusethis,com-bined with the anger over thelockdown.However,heisprag-maticenoughtoadmitanotherfactor:"Theprospectof aYadavChief Minister again is a prob-lem."Of issues resonating in dis-

tant Delhi now, such as ChinaandtheRamMandir,Bhagalpurhas little time.Apart fromthepandemic, if

there is a broad consensus --from villages to traders sittingoutside their locked stores inKhalifabagh market -- it is onsomethingelse.Saysonetraderat a shuttered cloth store, “Ourbusiness isdown80%,casesarerising, deaths are happening,people have no income, andnow floods. This is no time foranelection."

Afghan visasfrom an alleged attempt atforcedconversionandmarriage.“We have received six-

month visas for 11 persons, in-cludingNidanSinghwhoisstillunwell after being tortured incaptivity. He will be accompa-nied by a relative. The familiesof the two brothers, whowerekilled in the Kabul attack, willalso leave. The daughter of one

of themwas recently rescuedafter an attempt to marry herforcefully,” said Chhabol Singh,whoisamemberof themanag-ingcommitteeof theGurdwaraDashmeshPitaSriGuruGobindSingh jiDarbarKarteParwaninKabul.ManjinderSinghSirsa,pres-

ident, Delhi Sikh GurdwaraManagement Committee, saidthey had arranged tickets andaccommodationforthe11whowill reach the National CapitalSunday on a KamAir flight un-der theVandeBharatmission.The move comes after the

AfghanSikhcommunity,whichnumbers less than 700, mademultiple appeals to theEmbassy and wrote to HomeMinisterAmitShahseekingim-mediateevacuationandrescueafter the attack onMarch 25 atthe Guru Har Rai Sahib gurd-wara. The process got stalledduetothecoronavirusoutbreakand grounding of internationalflights.AnAfghannational living in

Delhi on a long-term visa,Sachdeva (55) had gone toPatkiatoperformsewawhenhewas abducted on June 17. HewasreleasedlastSaturday,withtheMinistry of External Affairshintingthathecouldutilise theCitizenship (Amendment) Acttoget Indiancitizenship.OnJuly17,theminorgirlwas

allegedly “taken away” fromGurdwara Baba Sri Chand inKabul and rescued three dayslater. Her family claimed that alocal youth had “brainwashed”her and that she was rescuedfroma“forcedmarriage”.Gurnam Singh, president,

Gurdwara Dashmesh Pita SriGuru Gobind Singh ji DarbarKarte Parwan, confirmed thatthosewhoreceivedthevisasin-cludethefamilyof thebrotherswho died in the gurdwara at-tack.Apart from their mother,

they include theson,daughter-in-lawandthreegrandchildrenof one brother, and the minordaughter, son and wife of theother, Singh said."Ourplanis to firstevacuate

the families of those who lostoneormorefamilymembersinthe terror attack. Our first listhasnearly150people.Morewillfollow. No one from the Sikhcommunitywantsto livehere,"Singh said.Speaking to The Indian

Express, a familymemberof theslain brothers said: “It is verysad and painful. Whowants to

leave one’s own country thiswaybut there isnothing left forus.Wearehopingforanewbe-ginning in India.”

Taliban & the CAAWith the Taliban jockeying

for power, the future of Sikhsand Hindus in Afghanistan hascome under a cloud. India hashighlighted the situation towarn the world of the threatthatminorities would face un-der Taliban rule. The situationhasalsohelpedthegovernmentmakeapoliticalcasewithinthecountry on the controversialCitizenship (Amendment)Act.

RajasthanRajasthan High Court’s orderlast Tuesday -- requesting himnottoactonthedisqualificationnoticesagainstSachinPilotand18 rebel CongressMLAs beforeFriday, June 24 -- was an in-fringement of the rights andpowers of the Speaker undertheConstitution.But themoveyieldedno re-

sult as the Supreme Court didnot stay theHighCourt’s direc-tion. The High Court then di-rected Friday that statusquoasof July14bemaintainedonno-tices sent by the Speaker. Thedominant view in the partynow, sources said,was that theHigh Court’s order need not bechallenged immediately in theSupremeCourt.“TheHighCourt’s Fridayor-

derneednotbechallenged im-mediately… Anyway, we have90 days to appeal,” a seniorleadersaid.Someof theleadersfelt the special leave petition(SLP) filed by Joshi in theSupreme Court should also bewithdrawnsincetheHighCourthas alreadygiven its order.Whilethepartyisunlikelyto

challenge the High Court’sFriday order in the SupremeCourt Monday, it is divided onwithdrawing the SLP. Sourcessaid senior leader Kapil Sibal,who appeared for the SpeakerintheSupremeCourt, iskeentopursuethecase.ThematterwillcomeuponMonday.AskedwhethertheCongress

will file an appeal challengingtheHighCourt order, AbhishekSinghvisaid,“Thefighthastobeon the floor of theHouse. Legalfights canonlybe subsidiary.”So, the party will nowwait

to hear from the Governor onthe Gehlot Cabinet’s recom-mendationforanAssemblyses-sion.OnFriday, theCMhadtaken

MLAs from his camp to RajBhawan, demanding anAssemblysessionbecalled.TheMLAshadcalledoff theirprotestaftertheGovernorgavethemanassurance and later sought aclarificationonsixpointsontheCabinet note. The Gehlot gov-ernment then held a Cabinetmeet lateonFridayanddrafteda response to the six pointsraisedby theGovernor.Among the six points raised

byMishrawasthat“noreasonhasbeenprovidedforcallingtheses-siononashortnoticeandneitheranagendahasbeenproposed.”Apartyleaderpresentinthe

CLPmeeting on Saturday said,“TheCMsaidthequeriesraisedby theGovernor have been ad-dressed, but that he can’t raisethosequeriesoraskforagenda,or the reason for urgency... thishas never happened before... Ifan Assembly session is notcalled,we’llmeet thePresidentifneeded,orsitonadharnaout-side the residence of PrimeMinisterNarendraModi.”At the CLP, Congress com-

munications in-charge,Randeep Singh Surjewala, islearnt to have said that underArticle 174 of the IndianConstitution, the Governor hasnorighttostoptheCabinetfromwanting to proceedwith a ses-sionof theAssembly.Sayingtheparty has the support of 102MLAsinanAssemblyof200,he

said, "Itwill be remembered infuturehow102peopledefeatedattempts to crush theConstitution."OnPilot,CongressRajasthan

in-charge Avinash Pande saidthe “high command gave fullopportunity that if a familymember has complaints, thesecan be kept before it.Unfortunately, they have be-come a puppet in the hands oftheBJPandIdon’tthinkareturnispossible anymore.”TheCMisalsolearnttohave

asked theMLAs to be ready forthe long haul, saying theymayhave to spend another 21 daysin the resort.In a statement on Saturday,

AICC general secretary K CVenugopal accused the BJP ofworking to "destabilise electedgovernments...”. He said thepartyhasdecidedto launchna-tionwideprotests infrontofRajBhavans onMonday. The partywill also hold an online cam-paign, "Speak Up forDemocracy", onSunday.

69-yr-old actorfrom Agra College. However,during his FTII interview,Pandey says, he got into an ar-gument with editor-directorHrishikesh Mukherjee, andnever got in. Soon after, he au-ditioned for the FilmalayaAcademy of Cine Art andTelevision, setupby filmmakerSashadhar Mukherjee inMumbai, and joined it in Junethat year.He completed his acting

course in 1975, and landed arole in amovie titled BhookhaNangaInsaan.Butthefilmnevertook off. Then, Pandeywas se-lected as a junior artiste forKhoonPasina (1977).However,afterhehadwaitedout15daysduringa schedule inPahalgam,Kashmir, hewas told therewasno role for him. He got the fullpayment though,he says.Pandeyeventuallymadehis

first on-screen appearance in1979, in thehorror filmShaitanMujrim (1979). It was a one-sceneappearance, as adoctor.That particular stint of

Pandey inMumbai came to anend when he was stabbed 14times by some goons after heandsometenantsofaGoregaonbuilding complained against ahike in rent. On February 14,1980, once he was of hospital,he leftMumbai.In 2017, with his siblings

married, some of them nolongerlivinginAgra,andhispar-ents dead, Pandey decided togiveMumbai another shot. Hesayshecould take the riskashehadsavedupenoughfrommak-ingadfilms,corporatefilmsandrunninganactingschoolinAgra2008 onwards. “Luckily, I wasnot married. So, followingmyheartwaseasier,”saystheactor.This time, with the TV and

Internet boom in play, Pandeymanaged bit roles in televisionshows andweb-series. He gotoffered a range of characters --doctor, shopkeeper, lawyer, fa-ther, grandfather. He even ap-pearedinawhiskeycommercialfeaturingcricketerMSDhoni .The money was not much,

aroundRs 25,000 amonth, butwith filmmaker Anil Sharmaletting him stay at his Versovaoffice, hegotby, Pandey says.Since he filed the petition,

Pandeyclaims tohave receivedcalls of appreciation from vet-eranactorssuchasRazaMurad,Virendra Saxena, KanwaljitSingh and his Filmalaya acad-emyclassmateAvatarGill.Theydubbedhimthe“black

sheep”of thefamily,Pandeyre-calls.Havingfoughtsofar, forsolong, he is not ready to give upjustyet. “I’mreallyenjoyingmylife anddoingwhat Iwanted todo. It’s never too late toachievestardom. Jab takmaidanmeinhoon,haaranahinhoon(Aslongas I am in the field, I am in thegame)."

FROMPAGEONE

4G won’t be a problem: J&K to Centre

PM at Ram temple event will be live on DD

to examinemedia content forfake news, plagiarismandun-ethical or anti-national activi-ties,LtGovernorMurmusaid,“Iwill check this, this is not re-quired. There are relevant IPC/CrPCandother lawsforthis.”The policy, implemented

by the InformationDepartment onMay15, 2020,said, “DIPR shall examine thecontentof theprint,electronicand other forms of media forfakenews,plagiarism,unethi-cal or anti-national activities.”Any individual or group in-

dulginginthisshallbede-em-panelled, it said.“A suitable mechanism

with specific ToRs (terms ofreference)shallbesetupbytheDIPRformonitoringtheaboveandensuringadherencetotheguidelines,” it said.Murmu said the policy

was primarily revised to givespacetotheelectronicandso-cial media. “Advertisementswere given only to print andlocal media – patronage.Peoplehaven’tdoneanythingfor electronic and social me-

dia,” he said.He emphasised that other

things in the policywere nor-mal. “If you see the govern-ment of India or other states’,the accreditation policy de-pends on circulation, reader-ship,etc.Thepolicyfollowsthesamethings…thereisnothingdiscriminatory,”hesaid.The Lieutenant Governor

saidthattheDIPRdidnothavethecapacitytodecidewhetheranews is “anti-national.”“This obviously, only the

agencies can check. We can

delete this also (from the re-vised media policy). They(DIPR) only have to do thechecks required for accredita-tion, but not facts… if there issuchasituation,theywillgetitchecked from agencies.Whatis ‘anti-national’ isaparameterof law… the Supreme Courthas given judgements on thisfrom time to time… Again,agencies or policewill have todo (look into this),”hesaid.“I have already told the

InformationDepartmenttore-checkall this,”Murmusaid.

SayingsuchanoccasionforAyodhya has come “after 500years”,heurgedpeopletocon-duct continuous recitation oftheAkhandRamayaninall lo-cal temples. He said everyhousehold and temple inAyodhya must celebrateDeepotsava by lighting oillamps on the night of August4and5.On July 22, Swami Govind

DevGiri, treasurerof theTrust,toldmedia persons that they

hadinvitedthePrimeMinisterto the “bhoomi pujan” and hehad accepted it andwould bereachingAyodhyaonAugust5.He said the “bhoomi pu-

jan” would be around noonand before that, the PrimeMinister would offer prayersat Hanuman Garhi and themakeshifttempleof theidolofRamlalla.Keeping inmind the social

distancingrequirement,atotalof200peopleincluding150in-

viteeswouldbeallowedforthe“bhoomipujan”,hesaid.Incidentally, August 5will

mark one year of the abroga-tion of Article 370 and the bi-furcationoftheStateof Jammu& Kashmir into two UnionTerritories.Article 370 and the Ram

temple were two ideologicalissuesthattheBJP,intheNDA’searlieravatarunderAtalBihariVajpayee, had been forced toplaceonthebackburnerdueto

coalitioncompulsions.In November 2019, three

monthsaftertheabrogationofArticle 370, a five-judgeConstitution Bench of theSupremeCourt,while settlingadecades-oldtitlesuitoverthedisputed Ram Janmabhoomi-BabriMasjidsite,directedthatit be handed over to a Centre-appointed Trust for construc-tion of a temple andMuslimsbe given an alternate 5-acresite foramosque.

New Delhi

ASTHASAXENA&PRITAMPALSINGHNEWDELHI, JULY25

ON SATURDAY, Delhi HealthMinister Satyendar Jain saidthatwhile thenationalpositiv-ity rate has gone up in the last10days, thepositivityrate inthecapital has come down. “Therewas a timewhen the positivityrate in Delhi was 30% or morebut now it has come down to5%,” he said.Delhi reported 1,142 new

casesand29deathsduetoCovidon Saturday, taking the totalnumberofcasesandfatalitiesto1,29,531and3,806respectively.At present, the city has 12,657active cases, while the numberof people who have recoveredfrom the illness has reached

1,13,068.Therecoveryrateinthecapital is87.3%.Inastatusreportfiledbefore

the Delhi High Court, the statehealthdepartmentsaidthatbe-tween June 18 and July 24, thecity conducted 4,04,141 rapidantigen tests, out of which24,501 (6%) people tested posi-

tive. A follow-up RT-PCR wasconducted on 2,818 patients, inwhich404(14.35%) testedposi-tive.Recently, while addressing

concerns about the accuracy ofthe rapid antigen test, HealthMinistry officials had also con-firmed that almost 15% of the

people who had undergonerapid antigen tests and werefound to be symptomatic evenaftertestingnegative,hadturnedout tobepositive ina follow-upRT-PCRtest.TheRT-PCRtestisconsidered

to be the gold standard for test-ingwhile the rapid antigen testprovides resultswithin30min-utes. If a person tests positive inarapidantigentest, thennosec-ondtest is required.But if aper-son tests negative, then an RT-PCR test is performed to checkthepresenceof thevirus.Onthecapital’sCovid-19sit-

uation, Delhi Chief MinisterArvindKejriwaltweeted:“Delhihas reached 8th position intermsofnumberofactivecases.Situationwasbadtill a fewdaysback.Wewere at 2nd position.However, there is no room for

complacency. Take precautionsandstaysafe.”As per the state health bul-

letin on Saturday the city con-ducted 5,690 RT-PCR/CBNAAT/TrueNat tests and 14,819rapidantigen tests in the last24hours. At present, Delhi is test-ing 48,907 permillion popula-tion and the total number oftestshave touched9,29,244.Of the total 15,301beds ear-

marked for Covid-19 patients,12,444 beds are lying vacant. Atotal of 7,339 patients are avail-ing treatment under home iso-lation and over 1,000 patientsareadmittedtotheCovidhealth-carecentres.Speaking to thereporterson

Saturday, Jainalsosaidthatonly20% of the beds in the city hos-pitals are occupied at themo-ment.

1,142CASES,29DEATHSONSATURDAY

Rs 10,500 forplasma at newbank in Noida

SOMYALAKHANINEWDELHI,JULY25

ONTHURSDAY,53-year-oldDelhiPolice head constable SatyaNarayan had a short video callwithhiswifeandtheir twosons,fromhisbedatLokNayakhospi-tal, inwhichhenoddedhisheadafewtimes,andbarelymanagedto say yeswhen asked if hewasokay. Thatwas the last call theyshared;NarayandiedofCovid-19at6.30amFriday.Hehad joinedDelhi Police in

1993, and was posted at EastDelhi’sMadhuVihar police sta-tion for the last sixmonths. Thelast conversationwithhis fatherkeeps playing in 22-year-oldPriyanshu’shead,ashemanagesa bevy of calls, messages andsome visitors. “The phone net-workinthewardispoor.Thoughwespoketohimviavideocallonhisphoneatleastthreetimesdur-ing his stay at LokNayak, itwasalwaystoughtoget in touch.Wewereworried if hewas gettingproper treatment... Thereweremanyunansweredquestions.Wereliedon awardboywhowouldtakeourcallsandupdateus,”saidPriyanshu,who finishedhis B.Sc

fromDUrecently.“Theremustbeawayforfamiliestoproperlystayin touchwith their lovedones inhospital...Patientsneedtheirfam-ilies at a time like this to derivewill-power,”hesaid.Narayan suffered fromdia-

betes, hypertension and had astent inhisheart.On June26, hetook leave as he had diarrhoea.“Hehadalotofweakness.OnJuly13, he left home to go toMadhuVihar police station so he couldapply for a longer leave. Hewassenttoahospitalwherehisrapidantigentestwasdoneanditcamepositive,”saidPriyanshu. Hiscol-league, head constable Rehman,saidNarayanwastakentoaCovidcarecentre firstandthenmovedto Lok Nayak Hospital. “OnThursday, he was also givenplasmatherapy,” saidDCP(East)JasmeetSingh.Sincetheoutbreak,Priyanshu

saidhisfamilyhadbeenworriedsickaboutNarayangoingonduty,andprecautionswere being fol-lowed at home: “I kept readingabout frontlineworkers fallingsick, but my father was onduty...Employersmust take careof their employees' safety, espe-ciallyvulnerableoneslikemyfa-ther.”

AMILBHATNAGARNOIDA,JULY25

THE FIRST plasmabank inUttarPradesh was set up in Noida'sSector31Saturday.Thebankwassanctioned by the governmentandwill operate fromtheprem-isesofRotaryBloodBank.Officialssaid peoplewill have to pay Rs10,500togetplasmafortheirkin.Theprice is Rs 4,500 for govern-ment employees of the regionandwillbechargedbythehospi-tal directly. “The cost of plasmahas beenwaived for pregnantwomen and those with BPLcards,”saidSuhasLY,DMGautamBudhNagar.

ASHNABUTANINEWDELHI, JULY25

AFTERARUNKumarSingh,a48-year-oldcivildefencevolunteer,diedofCovidonJuly13,hisfam-ilywasworried about cripplingdebt because of hospital bills,and the future of his two chil-dren — a son in Class IX and adaughterwhojustclearedClassXII.On Saturday evening, Chief

MinisterArvindKejriwalvisitedthe family to pay homage toSingh,andalsohandedovertwocheques — one to his wife andanother to his father. The totalamountwasRs1crore.“Hedidandsawmanythings

in life, but his only unaccom-plished dreamwas to educatehischildren.Thedayourdaugh-ter's board results came out, hepassedaway...wecouldnoteveninformhimthatshepassedwithflying colours,” his wife Indusaid.For the last few months,

Singhhadbeentoilingforhourseveryday, handing over packetsof foodalongserpentinequeues.OnApril 20,heworked throughthe day, but stayed on throughtheeveningandsingle-handedlymanagedfoodatshortnoticeforover1,000labourersstrandedatSector 25, Dwarka, the projectsiteof aconstructioncompany.HisdaughterAnjali(18)said,

“Hewantedme to go into civilservices.AndIwanttomakethatdream a reality. My plan is tostudy B.Sc Agriculture fromDelhi University and then pre-pare for civil services.”Indusaidthatfromthecom-

pensationreceived,shewantstoensureherchildrenarewell ed-ucated, just like their fatherhoped.Theirsonwantstofollowinhisfather'sfootstepsandwork

incivil defence.Outside Singh's residence in

Rajapuri,Kejriwalsaid,“Civilde-fencevolunteersworkdayinanddayouttohelpothers.Arunwasoneofthem.Sadly,hecontractedcoronaviruswhiledoinghis job.I have spoken to the family andassured them thatwewill helpthem in anywaypossible. I toldthemnot tocompromiseontheeducationof his children.”After the CM left, the family

recalled how Arun put othersfirst. His eldest brother,Sudarshan Singh (60), said, “Hehelped anyone he could… Formonths,he fed thousands.”

His wife said: “When hestarted displaying Covid symp-toms, he did not come close toanyone.Hewascoughingbuthestilltookthebikealoneandwentto the dispensary to get a testdone. Then he got admitted tothe nearest hospital himselfwhenthetestcamebackonJuly5;hedidnotwant to infectany-oneelse.”“When we saw him on a

videocall daysbeforehisdeath,he asked about us and barelyspokeabouthimself.Hewasal-waysthereforpeople,butwhenhe needed us, none of us couldbephysically there forhim.”The active civil defence vol-

unteersattachedwith theDelhigovernment,numberingaround13,000, take home around Rs18,000amonth.“Hewasamongour most valuable staffers. Heput in extraordinary efforts.Singh excelled at any and everytaskwe entrusted himwith. Beit distribution of food at thehunger points or work insidecontainment zones, he gave his100 per cent,” Sub-DivisionalMagistrate (Dwarka) ChanderShekharhadearlier said.

CRPF man shoots senior,then turns gun on himself

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI, JULY25

ACENTRALReservePoliceForce(CRPF) sub-inspector allegedlyshot dead his senior officer be-forekillinghimself inNewDelhi’sLodhiEstateareaonFridaynight.Police said the incident tookplaceat61,LodhiEstate,whichisallottedto theUnionMinistryofHomeAffairs.Police said that following an

argument with inspectorDashrathSingh(56),sub-inspec-torKarnail Singh(55)killedhimwithhis serviceweapon, anAK-47,beforeshootinghimself.SI Karnail hailed from

Udhampur in Jammu andKashmir, while inspectorDashrath was from Rohtak inHaryana.Theyweredeployedat

Lodhi Estate for the last threemonthsandsharedaroom.DCP(NewDelhi)EishSinghal

said, “There were no eyewit-nesses... Itwasdifficult to ascer-tain the gunshot wounds be-causetherewasbloodalloverthevictim’s body. Entry and exitwounds of the deceasedwill beascertained once the post-mortemreport isout.”ACRPFofficialsaidtheinspec-

torwas founddead in his room,withhis foodlaidout.TheSIwasfoundlyingneartheguardroom,nearthebungalow’smaingate.MDhinkaran,DIG,CRPF,said,

“The incident is an aberrationwhichseemstohavebeencom-mitted at the spur of the mo-ment. An enquiry has been or-dered...”DelhiPolicesaiditwill inves-

tigate thematter.


BRINGINGMUCH-NEEDED re-lief to the Northwest district, aDelhi government hospital atBurari was inaugurated by CMArvindKejriwalonSaturday.Of theproposed700bedca-

pacityof thehospital,450areal-readyinplaceandhavebeenre-served for Covid patients atpresent. The hospital was com-missionedby theCongressgov-ernmentasa200-bedfacility. In2015,whenAAPcametopowerforthesecondtime,thecapacitywas increased toover700beds.Theworkwasexpectedtobe

completeinAugustlastyearbutit was delayed. Delhi govern-ment officials said 125 beds atthe hospital will have oxygensupply and this numberwill in-creaseover thenext fewdays.Forseveralyears,residentsof

nearby areas havehadonly onegovernment hospital to cater toa fast-growingpopulation.Kejriwal, who inaugurated

thehospital throughvideocon-ferencing, said, “The opening ofthis hospital will add 450morebedstothehealthinfrastructure

ofDelhi.ThetwocrorepeopleofDelhi,alongwiththecentralandthe state governments, have at-tainedvictoryovercoronavirus,butitwouldnotbecorrecttosaythat the fight isover.”He credited the improve-

menttohealthcareworkersandpeopleofthecity.“Iwanttocon-gratulateall thedoctors,nurses,paramedic staff, officials, andwhoever has worked hard toachieve thisgoal.”Delhi Health Minister

Satyendar Jain said, “Due to thepandemic and some pendingenvironment clearances, someworkonthehospitalwasputonhold. For now,we are starting itas a Covid hospital and serviceswill beexpanded lateron.”

Patchy video callslast communicationbetween cop and kin

450bedsat thehospital arereserved forCovidpatientsatpresent. AmitMehra

3THESUNDAYEXPRESS,JULY26,2020

THECITYWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

0-50 Good

ANANDVIHARSatisfactory

0 500

73AQI

Pollutant:OZONE

SIRIFORTSatisfactory

0 500

SHADIPURSatisfactory

0 500 500

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

DWARKA- SECTOR8Satisfactory

0

67AQIPM:10

76AQIPM:10

74AQIPM:10

ChiefMinisterArvindKejriwalwiththefamilyofArunKumarSinghonSaturday. PTI

The Indian Express reportdated July15

Familyof civildefencevolunteerwhodiedofCovidgetsRs1cr fromDelhigovt;sonwantstofollowinhis footsteps

‘His dream was to ensurebest education for our kids’

For Burari, hospitalfor Covid will serve amuch larger purpose

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FASTACTIONFORMULACapsule & Tube

20YearsTrusted Brand

Helpline No:098141-75205

*Total active cases

CORONAVIRUS IN THECAPITAL

TOTAL CASES

1,29,531Total Vacant

HOSPITAL BEDS 15,301 12,444VENTILATORS 1,188 780

Dailycases Recoveries Deaths TestsJuly 24 1,025 1,866 32 19,138July 25 1,142 2,137 29 20,509Total 12,567* 1,13,068 3,806 9,29,244

Capital’s positivity rate had crossed30%, but at 5%now, says Jain

New Delhi

What Chandni Chowk willlook like by November

Woman abandonedby family finds anunlikely new home

No vaccine for lossof education: Sisodiato parents, teachers

At least175redsandstoneplanters, rowofbollards,willbeplacedtomimicMughalarchitecturalaesthetic;bothsidesof thestretchwillbe linedwith250Moulsari trees

SOMYALAKHANINEWDELHI, JULY25

A 1.3-KM stretch between theRed Fort and the FatehpuriMasjidisbeingturnedintoacar-free zone, and beautified keep-ingtheMughal-eraarchitecturalstyle inmind.Themeshofover-head wires has gone under-ground, fire hydrants are beingsetup,redsandstoneseatsbeingplaced,andtoiletsbeingbuilt.Atleast175redsandstoneplanters,alongwitharowofbollards,willbe placed tomimic theMughalarchitecturalaesthetic,andbothsides of the stretchwill be linedwith250Moulsari trees.LED street lighting is also a

part of the plan. The Delhi JalBoard has done rehabilitationwork of the ancient sewer linethat runs underground. Thestretchwill be accessible to thedifferently-abled as well. Non-motorisedvehiclessuchasrick-shawswillplyonthestretch,andbyNovember, it will be open tothe public, said Chief MinisterArvind Kejriwal on Thursday ashe inspected the project site,alongwithUrbanDevelopmentMinister Satyendar Jain. As ofnow,beautificationofa400-me-trestretchof the1.3-kmiscom-plete, butworkbyDJBandBSESisbeing finished.

Forhowlonghastheredevelopmentprojectbeenintheworks?Sixteen years, to be precise.

The idea of the ambitious re-vamp of Chandni Chowk firstcame up in 2004. In 2008, thethen Chief Minister of Delhi,Sheila Dikshit, set up theShahjahanabadRedevelopmentCorporation(SRDC)buttheplandidnottakeoff till2018—whenDelhi’s Deputy CM ManishSisodia launched the project. It

was a toughproject as there aremany stakeholders — traders,trader unions, residents, headsof religious structures on thestretch,andtheDelhiUrbanArtsCommission.In 2017, veteran architect

Pradeep Sachdeva, who spe-cialisesinstreets,joinedtheproj-ect as chief architect. In August2019, a 12-metre stretch of theentire 1.3 kmwas readied as asample in front of the CentralBaptist Church. At the time,SachdevatoldTheIndianExpress,“What do the Mall Road inShimla,MGRoad inGangtok ortheareaneartheGoldenTemplein Amritsar have in common?They are car-free zones. I thinkthisisthemostimportantaspectof the redevelopment ofChandniChowk.”While explaining the blue-

print, Sachdeva had said thattherewill be a 5.4-metre-widefootpath, next to it a 5.5-metre-widecarriagewayforcycle rick-shaws,followedbya3.5-metre-widecentralvergewithplantersandbollards.Nexttothiswillbethesecond5.5-metre-widecar-riagewayand thena5.4-metre-wide footpath. He had said thelane meant for rickshaws canalso be used for emergency ve-hicles such as ambulances andfire tenders. Sachdeva—who iscredited for building Dilli HaatandtheGardenofFiveSenses—passedawayMay-endattheageof 63.Theprojectwassupposedto

be open to the public byMarch2020 but it was delayed due tothe lockdown in the wake ofCovid-19.

Whatarethechallengesthattheprojecthas facedsince2018?When the idea that the

stretch will be a car-free zonewasfloated,themainconcernof

traders was loading and off-loadingof goods. This issuewassolved and it was decided thatthe stretch will be a non-mo-torised zone from9amto9pmonly.Post9pm, loadingandoff-loading of goods in motorisedvehicles is allowed.Anotherissuethatwasraised

by traders was that if vehiclesaren’tallowed,thefootfallmightsuffer, and parkingmight be anissue. This toowas resolvedandthe North MCD is building amulti-level parking facility atChandni Chowk’s GandhiMaidan to accommodate over2,300 cars. It will have eightfloors and three undergroundlevels.In 2019, another problem

emergedwhen DUAC objectedtotheplacementof the19trans-formers on the central verge asitwouldruintheview.Meetingswith BSES, SRDC, DUAC andSachdeva were held to resolvethematter.

What is thestoryofChandniChowk?Chandni Chowk or ‘Moonlit

Square’ was built in the 17thCentury by Mughal emperorShah Jahan’s daughter JahanaraBegum. In front of the Bibi kaSerai in Shahjahanabad was awater tank, surrounded bybuildings,andonmoonlitnights,the buildingswould get illumi-natedasthemoonlightreflectedonthemfromthetank—andsothe name Chandni Chowkemerged.It’sinterestingtonotethattill

before1857, itwas alwaysmen-tionedasa“square,”includinginMirza Sangin Beg’s Sair-ul-Manazil, written in the 1820s,and in Asar-us-SanadidwrittenbyscholarreformistSyedAhmedKhan in1847.After theRevolt of1857,ChandniChowkfindsmen-tion inamapasa“street.”

Beautificationwork in progressatChandniChowkonFriday.PraveenKhanna

SOURAVROYBARMANNEWDELHI, JULY25

THESTORYofanelderlywoman,clutching on to a packet of bis-cuit and a cloth bag, as shewaited to catch a ‘shramik spe-cial’ to Delhi from Mumbai’sBandra railway station, hadmovedmany inearly June.Abandoned by her son,

Leelavati Devi, 70, was amongthousands strandedacross Indiaascitiesandtownswerebroughttoahalttocontainthepandemic.Almost twomonths on, she

has found a home in Delhi’sNorthAvenue, justmetres fromtheRashtrapatiBhavan,afterbe-ingtakeninbyanunlikelybene-factor — AAP’s Rajya SabhaMPSanjaySingh.“She will be with us from

nowon.Thiswillbeherperma-nent home,” Singh, flanked byhis wife Anita Devi, told TheIndianExpress lastmonth.After returning, Devi had

testedpositiveforCovidandspenttwoweeks at the Rajiv GandhiSuper Speciality hospital, Singhsaid. ADelhi family initially tookher in,butcouldnotkeepher forunspecified reasons, followingwhichSinghdecidedtoadopther.“The entire episode shows

the erosion inmoral values andhumanvaluesinoursociety.Andthatworriesme,”Singhsaid.Devi said she moved to

Mumbaibeforethelockdowntolookafterhereldestson,anautodriver, who was unwell. “Hestayswithhiswifeandchildren.Over time, hishealth improved.When Iwasno longer needed, Iwas thrownout," shesaid.Her two other sons live in

Delhi.“Mytravailsstartedaftermyhusband passed away.My chil-drenthink Iammentallyunwell.Noonewantstokeepme.”She said only her elder

daughterhasmethersofar:“Shetoldme I look unwell, I told hernot toworry.”At his official residence in

North Avenue, Singh stayswithhis wife, two children and hisparents.“Leelavatimostlyspendstime chatting with the family.Herelderdaughterdidreachoutafewtimes;nooneelsehas.Howcanwe send her back to peoplewhoill-treatedher?Sheisapartofthefamilynow,”saidAjitTyagi,acloseaideof theAAPleader.


DEPUTYCHIEFMinisterManishSisodia interactedwith parentsand teachers of two Delhi gov-ernmentschoolsonSaturdayforfeedbackonwhathetermedthe“semi-online” mode of educa-tioncurrently inplace.Hesaid,“Otherlossescaused

by the lockdownwill be com-pensated, but the loss of educa-tion is irreparable,which iswhyclasseswiththesupportof tech-nologyaretheneedofthehour.”Sisodiaalsosaid,“Soonthere

will be avaccine to cure corona,buttherecannotbeavaccineforthe lossof education.”Heaskedparentstogivetheir

feedbackontheongoingtechnol-ogy-supportedteaching-learningactivitiesandalsosoughtsugges-tions to improve online educa-tion.HealsosuggestedthatPTMsbeheldonlineaswell. The inter-action was held at SarvodayaKanyaVidyalaya Prashant ViharandGBSSS/GGSSSPitampura.Teachers of SKV Prashant

Vihar said 96 per cent studentsof the school were enrolled inonline classes and attemptswerebeingmade to contact theremainingchildren.As per Delhi government’s

neweducationmodel,“Childrenup to class 10 are given work-sheets every week through

WhatsApp and childrenwhoseparents do not have smart-phones are invited to the schoolto collectprintoutof theweeklyworksheets.” For class 12 stu-dentsliveonlineclassesarecon-ductedbyteachersin12subjects.“Therewas a timewhen ac-

cesstoeducationwasbasedonre-ligionandcasteandlateronfinan-cialstatus.Itcreatedadivideinthesociety,”saidSisodia.“Webridgedthatbyrebuild-

ing our government schoolswith world-class facilities. Butnow,anewdivideshouldnotbecreated among thosewhohaveaccess to digital devices andthose who do not. That is whywehave adopted a semi-onlineapproach,”headded.“Wedidnotthinkthatwetoo

would provide educationthroughsocialmedia.Buttoday,undercompulsion,welaunchedthis experiment,which has sig-nificantly reduced educationalloss,”hesaid.

SanjaySingh,hiswifeAnitaDevi, andLeelavatiDevi

Sisodiaattheinteraction

FIR against JNU student aftercomplaint of post critical of Army

ARANYASHANKARNEWDELHI, JULY25

ST STEPHEN’S College issued anoticeonSaturdaysaying itwillchargeRs100perday fromstu-dentswhohavetheirbelongingsinhostel roomsandare “unabletovacate”them.Thechargeswillbe levied from August 7.Residence charges, includingroomrent,werelastpaidbystu-dents inMarch thisyear.The Students’ Union Society

(SUS) haswritten to the princi-

pal asking for the decision to berevoked, arguing thatmost stu-dents had returned to theirhometowns andwould have torisktheirhealthbytravellingdur-ing theCovid-19pandemic, andnotbeingabletodosowouldaddfinancial strainontheir families.The notice signed by

Associate Dean (Residence)Chinkhanlun Guite onMondaysaid, “Considering the ongoingpandemic, and the many re-questssubmittedbytheresidentjuniormembers, studentswhoareunabletovacatetheirrooms

will be allowed to retain theirroomswithamodestroomrentchargeofRs100perdaystartingfromAugust7.”“Residentjuniormembersare

alsonotifiedthat,ifandwhenthegovernmentgivespermission toreopentheresidencefacilities,allbelongings and luggagewill bemovedaweekpriortothedateofresidence reopening to facilitatenecessary cleaning and renova-tions. On such an occasion, thecollegewillnotberesponsibleforlossordamages,” itsaid.The lockdowndue toCovid-

19begansoonafter theonsetofmid-semesterbreak,andasare-sult, many students who hadgonebackhomeforvacationre-mained stuck there, with theirbelongings still incollege.The college has been charg-

ing around Rs 1,400 permonthas room rent, which studentspaid till March, when the lock-downwas declared.With stu-dentsbeingasked topayRs100perday, theywill enduppayingbetweenRs3,000andRs3,100.On June23, theDean’soffice

had issued a notice saying “all

residentstudentsarerequiredtovacate their rooms and removetheir belongings from collegeresidencewithinfivedaysbegin-ning fromJune29”.However,studentssaidofthe

roughly300residents, less than20couldvacate their rooms lastmonth. “I am in Kolkata. Had Icome to clear my belongingsthat time, I would have had tofirstbequarantinedinDelhiandthen again when I got backhome.Also, itwouldrequiremeto book flight tickets at exorbi-tantpricesonsuchshortnotice.

Most students don’t even havelocalguardianstocollectbelong-ings in just an hour. The Rs 100per day fee is not at all modest.WeareusuallychargedRs1,400per month as room rent. Thiswould amount to more thandouble,”hesaid.When contacted, Associate

Dean (Residence) ChinkhanlunGuite said he did not want tocomment. Dean (Residence)Monodeep Daniel asked forqueriestobeaddressedtoprinci-pal JohnVarghese.Theprincipaldidnotrespondtocallsandtexts.

St. Stephen’swill levythenewcharges fromAugust7.Archive

STUDENTS’ UNION OPPOSES MOVE

St Stephen’s to charge Rs 100 per day from hostelers yet to vacate rooms

VEHICLETRACED,NOARRESTMADESOFAR

JIGNASASINHANEWDELHI, JULY25

DRAGGINGHIScousin’s scooteralong the side of the road, a 16-year-oldboywasmoweddownbyaspeedingAudiSUV,withthedriver getting out of the car, butthen fleeing in the vehicle de-spite seeing the teen on theverge of death. He is yet to betraced. The incident took placein Rohini’s Sector 23 around 11pmWednesday.According to police, the

scootertoppledandcrashedintotheroaddivider,withthevictim,

Ajar Mehra, suffering severehead injuries.Inhiscomplainttothepolice,

Mehra’s cousin Harshit (22), asoftwareengineer,saidthemandriving thevehicle “stoppedhiscar for amoment and steppedout, and thenwent back insideandspedaway fromthespot”.Mehra was rushed to a

nearby hospital, where hewasdeclareddeadonarrival.“We went out to roam

around and were on our wayback when the scooter brokedown. I told him to drag thescooter to our society’s maingate.Iwaswalkingneartheroad

divider,whilehewasholdingthescooter’s handle. I looked backandsawtheAudi.Thedriverwasspeedinganddrivingrashly.Igotscared and jumped on the di-vider to savemyself, but the carhit the scooter andmy cousinsustained severe injuries,” saidHarshit inhis complaint.Mehralived with Harshit’s family inBegumpur.Hisfatherdiedafewyears ago and his mother liveswithher sister’s family.A district crime team was

sent to the spot, and they foundtheAudi’s logo and thenumberplate on the ground. Police saidit fell off thecarduring theacci-

dent.Acasehasbeenregisteredunder IPC sections 279 (rashdriving) and 304 A (death bynegligence)againsttheaccused,who isyet tobe identified.Police said the car, an Audi

Q5, was registered under thenameofaTelangana-basedcon-structioncompany.DCP (Rohini)PKMishrasaid,“Duringinvesti-gation, it came to light that thecarwassoldtosomeoneelse.WearescanningCCTVcamerasnearthespot.”Police said the vehicle was

seized late Saturday night,thoughthedriver isyet tobear-rested.

SUV hits 16-year-old, driver getsout, sees victim and flees the spot

PolicesaidthevehiclewasseizedSaturdaynight

A LONG SHIFTHealthworkerscollect samples inamobile testingvannearGBPanthospital. PraveenKhanna

NewDelhi:Delhi Police has reg-istered an FIR against a studentof Jawaharlal Nehru Universityforallegedlypostinganoffensivecommentagainst theArmy.Police said a social worker,

Tajinder Yadav, had filed an FIRat Kapashera police station onJuly 8 claiming the JNU studenthad tweeted that the IndianArmy operation against terror-ists inKashmirwas “wrongandagainst thecountry”.

“HealsolinkedthistotheRSSand termed the outfit anti-na-tional. This is an insult to theIndian Army and the RSS,” thecomplainantalleged.An FIR has been registered

against the student under IPCsection 504 (intentional insultwithintenttoprovokebreachofthepeace)andsection153(per-sonswhoindulgeinwantonvil-ificationorattacksuponthereli-gion, race, place of birth,

residence, language). DCP(Southwest)DevenderAryasaid,"Further investigationsareon."Thestudentiscurrentlypur-

suinghisPhDfromtheCentreforSocialMedicineandCommunityHealth. He is also the nationalpresidentoftheCampusFrontofIndia (CFI), the studentwing ofthePopularFrontof India.In a statement, the CFI said

the FIRwas a "ploy to stifle dis-sent".ENS

ACP killed inhit-and-runNewDelhi:AseniorDelhiTraffic Police personnel,ACPSanketKaushik,whowasondutynearRajokriFlyover in SouthwestDelhi,diedafteravehiclerammedintohimaround7.45pmonSaturday.ACPKaushik (58) wasman-ning traffic at theRajokriflyover, confirmed DCP(Southwest) DevenderArya. Hewasintheserv-ice lane when the inci-dent took place. So far, itappears to be a case ofhit-and-run, police said,adding that nobody hasbeen arrested so far.Kaushik was rushed tothe All India Institute OfMedical Sciences,wherehewasdeclareddeadonarrival.

ManheldforimpersonatingArmyofficerNewDelhi:A23-year-oldmanwas arrested for al-legedly posing as anIndian Army officer toevade arrest, police saidSaturday. Suraj Tiwari,whowascaughtinacaseof violenceandwrongfulrestraint, allegedlyshowedafakeIDandsaidthathewasaMajorintheArmy andwas posted atDelhi Cantt. “The ID carddidn’t look genuine. Itlooked like it wasmadeonsomecheappaper.TheIOquestionedTiwariandhe confessed that the IDwasfake,”saidanofficer.

Childdiesafter fatherflingsherduringquarrelNoida:A28-year-oldmanhas been arrested for al-legedly flinging his two-year-olddaughterduringaquarrelwithhiswife,re-sultinginherdeath.Policesaidtheincidentoccurredat JJ Colony in Noida’sSector 22 on Friday. Theaccusedhas been sent tojudicial custody and anFIR has been registeredunder Section302 (mur-der) at Sector 24 PoliceStation.ENS

BRIEFLY

4THE SUNDAY EXPRESS,JULY26,2020

THECITYWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

New Delhi

5WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHE SUNDAY EXPRESS,JULY26,2020

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ON THE occasion of Kargil Vijay Divas, India salutes it'soccasion of Kargil Vijay Divas, India salutes it's defenders, our armed forces. Atmanirbhar Bharat is thedefenders, our armed forces. Atmanirbhar Bharat is the logical next step in the same direction, working towardslogical next step in the same direction, working towards economic freedom. The defence forces' action on Kargil haseconomic freedom. The defence forces' action on Kargil hasbeen an inspiring saga of dedication and love for the nation.Webeen an inspiring saga of dedication and love for the nation.Wecommemorate the valour shown by our warriors.We salute andcommemorate the valour shown by our warriors.We salute andpay tribute to all brave-hearts, Martyrs for the Nation, andpay tribute to all brave-hearts, Martyrs for the Nation, andpledge to take forward the dream withAtmanirbhar Bharat aspledge to take forward the dream with Atmanirbhar Bharat asour next goal. Jai Hind!

Dr. Niranjan Hiranandani,Dr. Niranjan Hiranandani,President (National) NAREDCO and AssochamPresident (National) NAREDCO and Assocham

ON JULY 26 every year, India cel-ebrates ‘Kargil Diwas’ to com-memorate its brave soldierswho laid down their lives in

the quest for victory against Pakistanduring the famous Operation Vijay in1999.This date has a remarkable placein Indian military history, and this is pre-cisely why the event is observed acrossthe country with great fervour.

To go back in time, it is worth recallinghow tension between India and Pak-istan started to escalate and finally led tothe ‘Kargil War’. Relations between theneighbouring countries had worsenedafter the two successfully tested nuclearweapons in 1998.To resolve the ongoingstalemate,both the countries signed theLahore agreement of 1999, promisingto hammer out a peaceful and bilateralsolution to the Kashmir conflict.

However, during the winter of 1998,Pakistani troops, in the guise of mili-tants, had begun infiltrating into the In-dian side of the Line of Control (LoC) aspart of Operation Badr, hoping to cut offIndian troops in Siachen and force themto retreat. On May 3, 1999, these Pak-istani intruders in Kargil were spottedby local shepherds. However, by thattime, the Pakistani troops had managedto capture a region spread over 130-200 square kilometres.

As per reports, “The aim of the Pak-istani incursion was to sever the link be-tween Kashmir and Ladakh and causeIndian forces to withdraw from theSiachen Glacier, thus forcing India to ne-gotiate a settlement of the broaderKashmir dispute. Pakistan also believed

that any tension in the region would in-ternationalise the Kashmir issue, help-ing it to secure a speedy resolution.”

As soon as the Indian armed forcesrealised the scale of the attack andfound more intrusions elsewhere on theLOC, the Government of India launchedOperation Vijay. The famous OperationVijay saw the mobilisation of about2,00,000 Indian troops to recapture allthe previously lost posts and force thePakistani troops to retreat.

Subsequently, Operation SafedSagar was launched by the Indian AirForce on May 26 to help the IndianArmy achieve the objective. With theArmy and IAF already in operation, the

Indian Navy strategically mounted pres-sure on Pakistan through OperationTalwar, which included aggressive pa-trolling off the Pakistani coasts.

“Kargil was a unique instance of two

nuclear-capable powers facing off inconventional warfare. Not anticipatingsuch a fierce retaliation from India, Pak-istan movedAmerica to seek help in de-escalating the border tensions.The thenUS President Bill Clinton, however, re-fused to intervene until Pakistan with-drew its forces from the Indian side ofthe LOC.”

On July 26 in 1999, “the Kargil Warbetween India and Pakistan came to anend after the Indian soldiers recapturedthe mountain heights successfully,which had been taken over by the Pak-istani intruders. It is believed that Pak-istan had started planning the attack ayear in advance. More so, Nawaz Sharif

had claimed that he had no knowledgeof the attack till he got a call from AtalBihariVajpayee.”

As per reports, “More than 520 In-dian soldiers sacrificed their lives dur-ing one of the toughest wars foughtagainst Pakistan at Kargil, Drass andBatalik sectors of Jammu and Kashmirstate.” After the war, July 26 was de-clared ‘Kargil Diwas’ in memory of thefallen Indian soldiers. Another remark-able achievement for India was thatwhile its Armed Forces fought the warwith aggression, the same did not esca-late into a nuclear conflict.This feat hasbeen acclaimed the world over andgoes to show the grit and endurance ofourArmed Forces.

This saga of supreme sacrifice on thepart of ourArmed Forces will forever re-main etched in our memories. On thisday, several programmes are organisedby the Central Government and variousstate governments to pay homage tothe brave servicemen of the armedforces who laid down their lives in theline of duty. The family members of themartyrs are felicitated on the occasion.

The celebrations on ‘Kargil Diwas’ in-clude a pipe band and brass band dis-play which is followed by a beating re-treat ceremony. The army holds amemorial service at the Kargil WarMemorial which is followed by lightingof lamps and a wreath-laying ceremony.The day is celebrated with great enthu-siasm and zeal by military personnel inthe Drass-Kargil sector and at AmarJawan Jyoti, India Gate, in the NationalCapital.

Remembering our BraveheartsKargil Diwas is celebrated every year on July 26 to mark India's victory against Pakistan's misadventure

in 1998-99 and commemorate the gallant Indian soldiers who laid down their lives in the line of duty

THIS SAGA OFSUPREME SACRIFICEON THE PART OF OURARMED FORCES WILLFOREVER REMAINETCHED IN OURMEMORIES

New Delhi


GOVT&POLITICSWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

HARIKISHANSHARMANEWDELHI,JULY25

AT LEAST 12 districts have ex-ceeded their annual job creationtargetsbygeneratingsubstantiallyhighernumbers of person-days’workbetweenApril1andJuly21,goingover their projected figurefor the entire financial year. Thisshows a rise in demand for un-skilledworkunderMGNREGAinthe wake of the Covid-19pandemic.Fromcoastal areas tohinter-

lands, and fromagricultural re-gionstoindustrialbelt, thesedis-trictsarespreadacrossfourstates.Barring Mirzapur, in UttarPradesh,noneof thesedistrictsisincluded in the official govern-ment list of 116districts that re-ceivedmost returningmigrantworkers during the lockdown,andwhere the government hadlaunched the Prime MinisterGaribKalyanRojgarAbhiyaanonJune20.AnanalysisofMGNREGAdata

of 693districts showsat least 12districts have generated signifi-cantly higher person-days untilJuly 21 in the ongoing financialyearthantheirprojectedfigureforthe entire fiscal. These districtsare: Vizianagaram (AndhraPradesh);Bhavnagar,DahodandGir Somnath (Gujarat);Wanaparthy,Karimnagar,YadadriBhuvanagiri,Warangal (Urban)andMedchal (Telangana); and

Mirzapur, Bulandshahr andHathras(UttarPradesh)Bhavnagar, for instance, has

generated18.15lakhperson-days,86per centmore than9.76 lakhdaysplannedfortheentirefinan-cial year in the district’s labourbudget. Similarly, other districtsalsoexceededtheplannedperson-daysfigurebyasignificantmarginin less than fourmonths of the2020-21 financial year:Medchal(56.49%), Bulandshahr (56.18%),Dahod (16.32%), Karimnagar(10.20%)andGirSomnath(10.04%)[seechartfordetails].Amongtheothersixdistricts,

Wanaparthy in Telangana hadprojected24,11,780person-daysforthewholeof2020-21andgen-erated26,14,470byJuly21,shoot-ing past the target by 8.40%);Mirzapur in UP (projection36,74,608;generation38,34,536;overshot by 4.35%); YadadriBhuvanagiri (Telangana; projec-tion 20,57,647; generation21,42,991; overshot by 4.15%);Warangal-Urban(Telangana;pro-jection 8,89,067; generation9,25,244; overshot by 4.07%);Vizianagaram (Andhra Pradesh;projection2,11,33,854;generation2,19,81,966; overshot by 4.01%);and Hathras in UP (projection9,50,000person-days;generation9,65,921;andovershotby1.68%).Hathras districtmagistrate

PraveenKumar Laxkar told TheSunday Express over the phone:“Our district has a populationof19.5 lakhandweusedtohavean

annual labour budget of about 8lakh person-days. In normaltimes, thatwassufficient, asa lotofpeoplefromthedistrictusedtogotoworkinDelhiandNoida.”

But this year, he said,most ofthosepeoplehavereturnedhomefollowing the coronavirus out-break.“Sowehaveseenahighde-mand forwork under NREGA,”

Laxkarsaid.“Tomeetthehighdemandwe

have focusedonNREGAconver-gencewithotherschemes.Weareeffectivelymonitoringimplemen-tation of the scheme to ensurethatat leastoneortwo(typesof)workremainsopenacross474vil-lage panchayats of the district,”hesaid.Overall,693districtshavegen-

erated145.10 crore person-daysuntilJuly21duringthecurrentfi-nancial year, against their pro-jectedperson-dayfigureof280.71crorebytheendofMarch2021.The demand for unskilled

workunderMGNREGAduringthecurrentfinancialyearhasreachedanewhigh.Until July21, over68lakh new job cards have beenaddedundertheruraljobguaran-teeschemeduring thecurrent fi-nancial year,which ismore thanthe 63.85 lakh new job cardsaddedintheentirepreviousfiscal.So far, over 5.13 crore house-

holdsandmorethan7.25crorein-dividualshaveavailedMGNREGA,thedatashow.Over3lakhhouse-holds have completed their 100days ofwork till date in the cur-rentfinancialyear.Itisexpectedthatthenumber

ofdistrictsexceedingtheirannuallabourbudgettargetmaybedou-bledbytheendof thismonth.However,MGNREGA is ade-

mand-driven program and thegovernment has to provide abudget if there is demand forthework.

RISE INDEMANDFORUNSKILLEDWORKDURINGPANDEMIC

Medchal(Telangana)

Bulandshahr(UttarPradesh)

Dahod(Gujarat)

Karimnagar(Telangana)

GirSomnath(Gujarat)

9,76,168

51,578

80,713

2,55,6443,99,269

17,07,45818,81,660

5,65,7476,22,556

47,94,66555,91,733

18,15,76686.01

56.49

56.18

16.62

10.20

10.04

■Projectedperson-daysexceededby%

■Person-daysworkprojectedfor2020-21

■Person-daysworkgenerateduntilJuly21,2020

TOP6DISTS THATOVERSHOTPROJECTIONBhavnagar(Gujarat)

Source:RuralDevelopmentMinistrydata

AmanworksunderMGNREGA schemeinKolkata.PTI

12distsgopastwhole year’sNREGAworkgenerationbudget in4months

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEMUMBAI, JULY25

INAUGURATING THE country’sfirst e-GovernanceCentreat thedistrict court inNashik throughavideo-conferenceonSaturday,JusticeDYChandrachud, seniorjudgeof theSupremeCourt andchairman of its e-Committee,saidthatthesettingupofvirtualcourts during the lockdownen-sured access to justice with asmanyas18lakhpleasfiledacrossIndiabetweenMarchandJuly.Inhis inauguraladdress, also

attended virtually by BombayHighCourtChiefJusticeDipankarDattaandothermembersof thejudiciary, Justice Chandrachud

said, “Over 18 lakh cases werefiled across India during Covid-19 period. As a result of virtualcourts,whichwereputintoplaceall over the country, we haveavoided a shutdown.We havepreventedaccesstojusticebeinglocked down during the periodof thecrisis.Ourcourtsareopenandabletofunctionandwehavebeenenabled topreventanout-break of infection in the courtsystemandbeyond.”Various services have been

providedtolitigantsandlawyersunder thee-courtsproject.However, Justice

Chandrachudsaidvirtualcourtssetupunderexceptionalcircum-stances are not here to stay andphysicalcourtswouldgradually

startfunctioningagainoncenor-malcy returns.“The joy, confidence and

power of the open court hear-ings can never be replaced. Buttechnology has given us some

insightonhowinthe future,wecancombinehybridsystemsus-ing technology, where opencourt hearings can be supple-mented. These are intended tobe special measures set up un-der very very exceptional cir-cumstances and gradually wewill go back to physical courthearingsguidedbypublichealthexperts,” he said, adding that e-Seva Kendras or e-GovernanceCentreswill be set up in all dis-tricts,coveringlawyersattalukaandother subordinatecourts.TheSCjudgesaidthatduring

the lockdown betweenMarch24 and July 24, a total of18,03,327caseswere registeredacross India, of which 7,90,112weredisposedof.Hesaid61,986

of the total 2,22,431 cases filedin district courts acrossMaharashtra have been dis-posed of despite the shadowofthepandemic.“Virtualcourtsystemhasput

all lawyersonanevenplatform,especially junior lawyers whoget recognised by judges,”hesaid.Referring to representations

made by lawyers of the HighCourtseekingahybridsysteminthe court’s functioning, ChiefJustice Datta said that most oftheHighCourts had to suspendphysical functioning due to theoutbreak after resuming thesame.“Drawingfromtheirexpe-riences, any knee-jerk reactionshouldbeavoided,”hesaid.


A SEVEN-JUDGE Committee ofthe SupremeCourt has decidedtowait for twomoreweeks be-fore taking a final call on re-sumptionofphysicalhearingsinthecourt,whichhasbeenhear-ing cases through videoconfer-encingsince the lockdown.The Committee, headed by

JusticeNVRamana,who is alsothesecondmost senior judgeofthecourt, conveyedthesametorepresentatives of the Bar at ameetingonFridayevening.The Committee, also com-

prisingJusticesArunMishra,RFNariman, U U Lalit, A MKhanwilkar, D Y Chandrachud

and L N Rao, held discussionsover videoconferencing withDushyantDave,SeniorAdvocateand President of the SupremeCourt Bar Association, ShivajiJadhav, Advocate and Presidentof the SC Advocates on RecordAssociation, andManan KumarMishra,AdvocateandChairmanof theBarCouncil of India.The Secretary General read

out theminutesof themeeting,whereitwasdecidedagainstre-sumingphysicalhearingsforthetimebeing inviewof theadvicefrom medical experts,sources said.The Bar representatives ap-

prisedtheCommitteeonthedif-ficulties faced by lawyers andurged that physical functioningshould resume as soon as

possible.TheCommitteesaidtheyare

“fullyconsciousanddeeplycon-cerned” about the difficultiesfacedby lawyersandanxious togradually restore normalcy inthe physical functioning. But a“decisionwillhave tobeguidedby a holistic assessment of thesituationonthebasisofmedicaladvice” and considering thesafety of all stakeholders, theCommitteesaid.Saying that itwill reconvene

aftertwoweeks,theCommitteeaskedtheBarrepresentativestodiscuss with the SecretaryGeneral and other Registrarsabout the type of cases that canbe listed forhearing if itdecidesto reopen the court at least par-tially.

PRESSTRUSTOFINDIAJAIPUR, JULY25

IN THEIR search for MLABhanwarlal Sharma, who hasbeen accused of attempting totoppletheCongressgovernmentin the state, the SpecialOperations Group of RajasthanPolice has sought CCTV footageandtheguestlistfromaManesarhotel to trace the legislator.TheSOGhasregisteredanFIR

against Bhanwarlal Sharma,Gajendra Singh and one SanjayJain on the basis of a complaintlodged by Congress ChiefWhipMahesh Joshi,whohadsubmit-ted audio clips as evidence ofthemallegedlyplotting tobringdowntheAshokGehlotgovern-ment in thestate.“We sent the requisition a

couple of days ago to the hotelbut there has been no responseso far.We have asked for CCTVfootageanddetailsofguestslist,”aseniorofficialof SOGsaidhereonSaturday.Days ago, the Special

Operations Group (SOG) wassent to the hotel in BJP-ruledHaryana’sManesar to seek thedissidentMLA’s version in con-nectionwithanFIR lodgedovertheaudioclips.The teamwas stopped out-

side the hotel for about anhourby Haryana policemen. TheRajasthanpolicewereletinlater,buttoldatthereceptionthatthe

MLAwas not staying there, andthey returned, the unit’sAdditional Director GeneralAshokRathorehadsaid.The Congress had cited two

audio clips on socialmedia anddemanded the arrest of Unionminister Gajendra Shekhawat,alleging that hewas heard dur-ing a conversation about a plottobringdowntheCongressgov-ernment in thestate.In an FIR lodged with the

Rajasthan Police, the party hadalso alleged that BhanwarlalSharmawas heard in the audioclip. The complaint by Congresschief whipMahesh Joshimen-tioned “Gajendra Singh” butstoppedshortof identifyinghimastheUnionminister.Shekhawat and Bhanwarlal

Sharmahaverejectedtheallega-tions. Sanjay Jain, the thirdmanmentionedintheaudioclips,hasbeenarrested.


FORMERENVIRONMENTminis-ter JairamRamesh on Saturdaywrote to Union MinisterEnvironment, Forests andClimate Change PrakashJavadekar, “strongly objecting”to the proposed EnvironmentImpactAssessmentDraft2020.TheMinistry has called for

suggestions and objections byAugust 10, afterwhich thedraftistobenotified.TheEIAisastudycarriedoutbeforetheimplemen-tation of a proposed project ordevelopmenttoassessitsimpactontheenvironment.Ramesh said that as the

Chairman of the StandingCommittee on Science andTechnology,Environment,Forestsand Climate Change, "it is myduty to place on record mystrongestobjections”andthatthedraftreflects“amindsetthatseesenvironmentalregulationasun-necessaryregulatoryburdenandnotasanessentialobligation”forthe “health andwelfare of ourpeopleandforensuringdevelop-mentthat issustainable”.

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEVADODARA, JULY25

BHARATIYA TRIBAL Party (BTP)supremoandGujaratMLAfromJhagadiaAssemblyConstituencyin Bharuch district, ChhotuVasava, has started a campaignto support the three alleged‘Pathalgadimovement’workersfrom Jharkhand arrested by theAnti-Terrorist Squad. The ATShad arrested Samu Oreya andBirsaOreya fromKhuntidistrictof Jharkhand,fromVyarainTapidistrict and Babita Kachhap ofRanchi in Jharkhand fromMahisagardistrictonFriday.They were booked under

IndianPenalCodeSections124A(sedition),153A(promotingen-mity between groups), 120B(criminal conspiracy) and 121A(conspiracytocommitoffence).LateSaturdaynight,Vasava,on

hisofficialTwitterhandle,startedacampaigntosupport Kachhap.Earlier on Saturday, Vasava

putoutaseriesoftweetswiththehashtag “Naxali ki paribhashabatao” (Tell us the definition ofnaxalites), stating, “Thosewhohaveraisedafingeratadaughterof a tribal and called her a nax-alite,mustalsotelluswhatisthedefinitionofNaxalites.”Whencontacted, Vasava ex-

plained that the campaignwasagainst“allthosegovernmentsthathave”violatedtheConstitutionfordestroying tribal communities inthenameofNaxalism.Butnoneofthe governments have defined

whatNaxalismis.LettheCongressandBJP leadersnot take thisdis-cussiononadifferenttangent.Wewantadefinitionof the term,”hesaid,addingthatthegovernmentswereusing the lawagainst thosewhowerefightingfortherightsofthe tribal communitiesandseek-ing the implementation of theSchedule V of the Constitutionalong with the Panchayats(ExtensiontotheScheduledAreas(PESA)Act.Vasava,who, alongwith his

son,abstainedfromvoting intheGujaratRajyaSabhapollsinJune,seekinganundertakingfromtheBJP and the Congress about theimplementationofthetwoprovi-sions, has also announced a‘Pathalgadi movement’ in thestate earlier in June. The an-nouncementhad comeafter theSardar SarovarNarmadaNigamLtd (SSNNL)began fencing landsof thetribalvillages,whichithadacquiredin1961fortheconstruc-tion of the Narmada Dam. Thefencinghadresultedinmuchten-sionandviolentclasheswith thepolice providing protection toSSNNLofficials.

LAXMANSINGHMUMBAI, JULY25

THE AMBITIOUS multi-croreGoregaon-Mulund Link Road(GMLR)islikelytobethefirstbigticketinfrastructureprojectthatwillbeaffectedbythenewrulesbroughtinbytheCentretokeepChinese firmsout.Civicofficialssaidthatfollow-

ing the recent restriction im-posedbytheFinanceMinistryonprocurementof goodsandserv-ices from bidders of countriesthat share a land border withIndia, the BMC will makechangesintheglobalRequestforQualification (RFQ) of GMLRproject, which currently allowsanyfirmtoparticipateintenders.Accordingtocivicofficialsas-

sociated with the project, onThursday, the FinanceMinistrymade amendments to GeneralFinancialRules(GFR),2017,underwhichbiddersfrombordercoun-trieswillbeeligibleonlyiftheyareregisteredwith theRegistrationCommittee constituted by theDepartment for Promotion ofIndustryandInternalTrade.Also,political and security clearancefrom the External Affairs andHomeministrieswill bemanda-tory.Thechangeshavebeenmadeongroundsofnationalsecurity.A senior official from the

Bridgesdepartmentsaidoncon-dition of anonymity, “The newruleswill affectChinesepartici-pationintheproject.Soon,aswereceive the FinanceMinistry’s

rules,wewill changethetenderclauseaccordinglyandarevisedRFQwillbeputonthewebsite.”In 2019, when the BMC had

invited global Expression ofInterest (EOI) for ‘Design andConstructionofTwinTunnelin-cludingapproachesandboxtun-nels forGMLRproject’, 30 firmshad participated, including acoupleofcompaniesfromChina.Apartfromthat,companiesfromJapan and Korea had attendedmeetings, expressing theirwill-ingness toexecute theproject.“Last year, twoChinese firms

had shown their interest in theproject and their representativeshad attended a few meetings.Since the project involves con-structionoftunnels,themarketfortunnelboringmachines,akeyre-quirementfortheproject,isdom-inatedbyChinesefirms,”saidan-otherseniorofficialfromtheBMC.The BMC has planned the

13.65-kmGMLRtoeasetrafficonMumbai’seast-westconnectors.Theestimatedcostoftheproject,whichincludes4.7-kmtwintun-nels and an elevated road, is Rs4,770 crore and thedeadline forthework is five years from thedaythecontract isawarded.Officials acknowledge that

theprojectmaynowbedelayed.“Wewillhavetofindoutother

options for TBMs... But for noweverythingisonholdasCovid-19has affected international traveland industries.Also, staff is busywithCovid-19duties,”saidSanjayDarade, Deputy MunicipalCommissioner(Infrastructure).

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEJAMMU,JULY25

THE FAMED saffron grown inKashmirValleyhasreceivedtheCentre’sGeographicalIndicationtag, a Jammu and Kashmir offi-cial saidSaturday.The certification essentially

denotes that a product comesfromaspecificareaandpossessescertain distinguishing qualitiesduetothegeographicalorigin.GI certificationwill help put

an end to adulteration ofKashmiri saffron and the au-thenticated product will fetchbetter prices, said Navin KChoudhary, Principal Secretaryof the Agriculture ProductionDepartment.Hesaid thesaffronproduced

intheValleyistheonlyoneintheworld tobegrownat analtitudeof 1,600 metres. This gives itdefiningcharacteristics—alongerand thicker stigma, a naturaldeep-red colour, strong aroma,andbitterflavor—thatdifferenti-

ate it fromothervarieties.Lieutenant-Governor G C

Murmu said this was the “firstmajor step” to put Kashmir saf-fronontheworldmap.“WithGItag,Kashmirsaffronwillacquiremore prominence in the exportmarket and itwould help farm-ers get the best remunerativeprice.’’Thismeasure,andaswellas theexpectedcompletionandinauguration of a Spice Park inPampore nextmonth, will be agame changer for Kashmir saf-fron,headded.

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICELUCKNOW,JULY25

THEUPgovernmentonSaturdaytransferred15IPSofficers,includ-ingKanpurSSPDineshKumarP.Thereshufflecomesatatime

when Opposition parties havederidedthestategovernmentfor“deteriorating” lawandorder.Dinesh Kumar P has been

madetheJhansiSSPandreplacedbyAligarhRangeDIGPreetinderSingh.AmethiSPKhyatiGarghasbeenmadetheLucknowDCP,andwill be replaced in Amethi byDinesh Singh, who was theLucknow DCP. Chitrakoot DIGDeepak Kumar has beenmadeDIGofAyodhya,replacingAshishTiwari,who is nowthe Jhansi SP(Railways).SatyaNarayan,whowasona

waiting list after returning fromdeputation, has been madeInspector General (IG) ofChitrakootDhamwhileAshutoshKumar,whowasIGofBasti,isnowthenewIG ofPACheadquartersinLucknow.DeepakRatan,IGoftraf-fic, has beenmade IGof AligarhrangewhileSP,EconomicOffencesWing,SatendraKumarisnowthenewSPofLakhimpurKheri.Commandant, StateDisaster

Response Fund (Lucknow),Yashveer Singh has replacedJalaunSPSatishKumar.JhansiSSPDPradeepKumarhasbeenaskedto join as SP of EOW (Varanasi)while Lakhimpur Kheri SPPoonamwill take charge as thenewCommandantof15BattalionPAC,Agra.

Can use hybrid systems to supplement opencourt hearings in future: Justice Chandrachud

‘Over18 lakhpleas filedduring lockdown’

Stronglyobject to EIAdraft: Jairamto Javadekar

HOUSE MEETS UNDER TREEPuducherryCMVNarayanasamywithSpeakerSivakozhunduandother leadersontheAssemblypremisesonSaturday.TheHousehelditsBudgetsessionunderaneemtreeasthemainhallwasshutforsanitisationfollowingoppositionAINRCMLANSJ Jayabal testingpositiveforthevirusandbeinghospitalised.TheHousewasadjournedsinedieafterapprovingbudgetaryallocationstothetuneofRs9,000crorewithoutdiscussion.PTI

Kashmiri saffron gets GI tag

JairamRamesh,PrakashJavadekar

BTP chief startscampaign to support‘Pathalgadi workers’

SC panel to decide on physicalhearings after two weeks

Link road project likelyto be hit by new rulesto keep Chinese out

MUMBAI

In search of MLA,Rajasthan SOG seeksCCTV footage,guest list from hotel

BhanwarlalSharmahasbeenaccusedof tryingtotopple theCongressgovt

ChhotuVasava

UP: KanpurSSP among 15IPS officerstransferred

New Delhi


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A Saga of Supreme SacrificeKargil Diwas is a memorable day in the Indian military history and commemorates the

sacrifices of our courageous soldiers and martyrs with great fervour and recognition across the country

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the quest for victory against Pakistan dur-ing the famous Operation Vijay in 1999.This date has a remarkable place in the In-dian military history, and this is preciselywhy the event is observed across the coun-try with great fervour and vigour.

Going back in time, it is worth remem-bering how the tensions between the twoarch-rivals started to escalate and finallyled to the ‘Kargil War’.After both the rivalcountries successfully created and testednuclear weapons in 1998, it led to an in-creasingly belligerent atmosphere in bothIndia and Pakistan.To resolve the ongoingstalemate, both the two countries signedthe Lahore agreement of 1999, promisingto provide a peaceful and bilateral solu-tion to the Kashmir conflict.

However, during the winter of 1998 un-der Operation Badr, Pakistani troops, in theguise of militants, began infiltrating to-wards the Indian side of the Line of Control(LoC), hoping to cut off Indian troops inSiachen and force them to retreat. On May3, 1999, Pakistani intruders in Kargil werespotted by local shepherds. However, bythat time, the Pakistani troops had man-aged to capture a region between 130 to

200 square kilometres.As per reports,“The aim of the Pakistani

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As soon Indian Armed forces realisedthe scale of the attack and found more in-trusions elsewhere on the LOC, the Gov-ernment of India responded with Opera-tion Vijay.The famous Operation Vijay sawthe mobilisation of about 2,00,000 Indiantroops to recapture all the previously lost

posts and force the Pakistani troops tomake a run for it.

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“The Kargil was a unique instance oftwo nuclear-capable powers facing eachother off in a conventional warfare. Notanticipating such a fierce retaliation fromIndia, Pakistan moved to America to seekhelp in de-escalate the border tensions.

The then US President Bill Clinton, how-ever, refused to intervene until Pakistanwithdrew its forces from the Indian side ofthe LOC.”

On this day in 1999,“the Kargil War be-tween India and Pakistan had come to anend after the Indian soldiers had recap-tured the mountain heights successfully,which were taken over by the Pakistani in-truders. It is believed that Pakistan hadstarted planning the attack a year in ad-vance. More so, Nawaz Sharif had claimedthat he had no knowledge of the attack tillhe got a call from Atal Bihari Vajpayee.”

As per reports, “More than 520 Indiansoldiers sacrificed their lives during one of

the toughest wars fought against Pakistanat Kargil, Drass and Batalik sectors ofJammu and Kashmir state.”After the war,July 26 was declared as ‘Kargil Diwas’ inmemory of our brave and fearless soldiers.Another remarkable achievement is thatour Indian Armed Forces fought the warand tried to ensure that it did not escalateinto a nuclear conflict. This feat has beenacclaimed the world over and goes on toshow the grit and endurance of our ArmedForces.

This saga of supreme sacrifice on partof our Armed Forces will forever remainetched in our memories. On this day, sev-eral programmes are planned by the Cen-tral Government and various state gov-ernments to pay homage and respect tothe brave servicemen of the armed forceswho laid down their lives in the line ofduty. The family members of martyrs arefelicitated during this memorable day.

The celebrations on ‘Kargil Diwas’ in-clude pipe band and brass band displaywhich is followed by a beating retreat cer-emony.The army holds a memorial serviceat the Kargil War Memorial which is fol-lowed by lighting of lamps and wreath-laying ceremony. The day is celebratedwith great enthusiasm and zeal by militarypersonnel at Drass-Kargil sector and thenational capital New Delhi at Amar JawanJyoti, India Gate.

This saga ofsupreme sacrificeon part of ourArmed Forces willforever remainetched in ourmemories.

The army holds amemorial service atthe Kargil WarMemorial which isfollowed by lightingof lamps andwreath-layingceremony.

Kargil War Memorial

The Kargil war killed more than 500 Indian and nearly 400 Pakistani soldiers

New Delhi

KARISHMAMEHROTRANEWDELHI, JULY25

CITINGAbanby theUSgovern-ment, Central Drugs StandardControl Organisation (CDSCO),under the country's apex drugsregulatorDCGI,hascanceledkitimport licences of three firmsand suspended those of 15 oth-ers.Whilemostlicenceswerefor

Chinese rapid antibody test kitsthat never entered the country,at least two others have beensold in the Indianmarket.OneisanELISAantibodytest

kit (different from rapid anti-body test kit) owned byMumbai-basedTransasia,whichsaid they have sold 3 lakh kitssince Junetodifferenthospitals.Deals for 5 lakhmore are cur-rently in the pipeline, the com-panysaid.In addition, 1 lakh supply of

asuspendedrapidantibodytestkit made by South Korean SDBiosensor was sold to AndhraPradeshinApril,acompanyrep-resentative told The SundayExpress.OnJuly17,CDSCOsent these

18 companies a showcause no-ticestating that “aspernotifica-tion by the US Food and DrugAdministration (USFDA)the...producthasbeenremovedwithdirectionthat it shouldnotbedistributed”. Itgavethefirmstimeuntil July20 to respond.On July 21, CDSCO said their

responsestotheshowcausewasnot “satisfactory”.The cancelled licenceswere

of MDAAC International, CadilaHealthcare,andN.W.OVERSEAS.Thesuspendedlicenceswere

held by Aracion Technology,DiaSys Diagnostic, Jettalabs,Saffron Naturele Products,Cosmic Scientific Technologies,Inbios India, VishramDistributors, SD Biosensor,Transasia, Accurex, BiohouseSolutions, V S Yarns, RaymedTrading Group, Sowar, and

Trivitron.Barring Transasia and SD

Biosensor, all these firmswereapproved to import a set ofseven Chinese antibody testkits that were banned by USFDAin June.TheSundayExpressspoke to seven of these Indiancompanies, all of whom saidthey had not imported thesekits since rapid antibody testkits fell out of governmentstrategy aroundMay.Transasia owns California-

basedCalbiotech,whichmanu-factures the kit called ErbaLisa.AsoneofthefirstELISAantibodytest kits to be approved in thecountry, it remains on themostrecentIndianCouncilofMedicalResearch (ICMR) validation listof July22.Calbiotech’s responsetoCD-

SCO on July 20, seen by TheSunday Express, included anICMR-National Institute ofVirology validation approval onJune3, amongothers.Calbiotech and Transasia

stated that the USFDA decisionshouldnotstopexportof thekit

to India, that the US FDA’s re-movalwas not due to perform-ance issues but apolicy change,that the company’s applicationis awaiting a reply from the USagency, and it never claimedUSFDA approval in their valida-tionprocess in India.Suresh Vazirani, Transasia’s

MD, said he plans to file a legalcomplaint in Delhi High Court.He said USFDA has not reachedout to the company about theirremoval.DrArvindLal, chairmanand

MD of Lal PathLabs, said thistestkit failed their internalval-idation three weeks ago.Thyrocare chairman and MDArokiaswamy Velumani saidthey had used 20,000 of theseELISA test kits nationwide upuntil 10 days ago.ICMR's senior scientist

Nivedita Gupta answeredqueriesonJuly18bystatingthat"pertinent actionwill be takenbyCDSCO/DCGI".CDSCO, which sits under

DCGI, did not respond to re-peatedattemptsat comment.

THEOUTBREAK8 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHE SUNDAY EXPRESS,JULY26,2020

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MILINDGHATWAIBHOPAL, JULY25

FOUR MONTHS after he tookcharge as Chief Minister ofMadhyaPradeshfollowingthecol-lapseoftheCongressgovernmentjust before thenationwide lock-downwasimposed,ShivrajSinghChouhanwasadmittedtoadedi-cated Covid hospital in BhopalSaturdayaftertestingpositive.Chouhan,whois61andadi-

abetic, latertweetedthathehadundergone all tests and washealthy. He also posted that hehad been reviewing the Covidsituation in the state everyevening since March 25 andwouldtrytocontinueviavideo-conferencing. Officials said theChiefMinister'sfamilymemberswill be tested.Three days ago, Minister

Arvind Bhadoriya, who had at-tended a Cabinet meetingchairedbyChouhan, had testedpositive. The previous day,BhadoriyahadtravelledwiththeChiefMinistertoLucknowtoat-tendthefuneralof lateGovernorLalji Tandon.Chouhan's announcement

came after a new 10-day lock-downwas imposed in Bhopalfrom8amFriday to contain theoutbreak. And while wishinghim a speedy recovery,OppositionCongressleadersac-cused him and the BJP govern-mentofnottakingthepandemicseriouslyearlier.

“Iwassaddenedtoknowthatyou have contracted the coron-avirus infection. Ipraytogodforyourearlyrecovery.Theonlyre-gret is thatwhenwewere seri-ous about COVID 19, you calledit 'drama’,ridiculeditas 'darona'anddubbed it aweapon topro-tect the government,’’ said atweetposted inHindiby theof-ficeof formerCMKamalNath.Nathwasreferringtothepe-

riod of political uncertainty inthe run-up to the fall of his gov-ernmentonMarch20.OnMarch16,thethenAssemblyspeakerNP Prajapati had adjourned theHouseby10dayscitingthepan-demic. The BJP, then in theOpposition, had criticised themoveasanattempttoavoidthefloor test ordered by theGovernor.On March 20, the state re-

porteditsfirstCovidcase.Onthesame day, Nath submitted hisresignation after the SupremeCourtordereda floor test.“Hadyounotmade funof it,

takendueprecautions,followed

all guidelines you would haveprobably not got the infection,’’the tweetbyNath'soffice said.Former CMandRajya Sabha

member Digvijaya Singh alsowished Chouhan a speedy re-coveryinatweetinHindi. Inthetweet, he also wrote: “Youshould havemaintained socialdistancing but you didn't. Thepolice had registered an FIRagainstme (for violating Covidguidelines) but how could theyhavedone that against you. Youtakecareof yourself.’’Earlier, before leavinghisof-

ficial residence for the hospital,Chouhanhad tweeted: “Coronapatientsshouldnotinsistonget-tingquarantinedathomeornotgoingtohospital.Weshouldfol-lowdoctors’ advice.”He had also assigned the

workof reviewingtheCovidsit-uation to Home MinisterNarottam Mishra, UrbanDevelopment MinisterBhupendra Singh, HealthMinisterPrabhuramChaudharyandMedicalEducationMinisterVishwasSarang.Chouhan also said that he

gavehissamplesfortestingafterdeveloping symptoms, andasked peoplewho had come incontact with him to get testedand those close to him to go inquarantine.Otherministerswhoattended the Cabinet meetinglast week, and BJP leaders likestatepresidentVDSharma,havegiven their samples for testing.Sharmahas testednegative.

4MONTHSAFTERTAKINGCHARGE INMP

Chouhan tests Covidpositive, hospitalised

ShivrajSinghChouhan

TheUltadangaflyover inKolkataonSaturday.ParthaPaul

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEKOLKATA, JULY25

STREETSWOREadesertedlook,commercial establishmentswere shut, and public and pri-vate vehicles remained off theroads as theWest Bengal gov-ernment imposed a strict bi-weekly lockdown across thestate on Saturday amid a surgeinCovid-19 cases.In Kolkata, policewere seen

manning all major crossings,checkinglanesandbylanesforanyunnecessarymovement.Thefewwhodared to stepoutwithout avalidreasonwereforcedtoreturn

after a baton charge or chase bythemen in uniform. Police per-sonnelwere seen carrying outawarenessdriveswithloudspeak-ers in congested areas such asKolkata,Howrah,Hooghly,NorthandSouth24Parganas.Kolkata police said that till

noon,204peoplewerearrestedfor violation of lockdown, 182booked for notwearing amaskand20 faced action for spittinginpublic.Therewasno activity at the

Kolkata and Bagdogra airportsas the Airports Authority ofIndia suspended all flights forthe lockdown after a requestfrom the state government.

They will be suspended againwhenthe lockdownis imposednextweek onWednesday.“We arrived fromBangalore

lastnight.WehaveaconnectingflighttoAssamtomorrowmorn-ing. Todaynothing is flying inorout.Wehave to spend thenighthere,”saidMasukAhmed(21),aresident of Assam who wasamong a dozen people whowerestrandedneartheNSCBoseairport inKolkata. “Wehaveor-dered foodandwill have to findsomeplace tosleepatnight.”Public and private offices

wereclosedandseveraltrainsatHowrah and Sealdah stationswerealsocancelled.

Bengal’s bi-weekly lockdown:Streets deserted, flights suspended


ON A day that the state wit-nessed the highest single-dayjump in coronavirus caseswith2,984cases, thegovernmentonSaturday removed Lucknowchief medical officer (CMO)NareshAgarwal.Thecapitalcityon Saturday recorded a total of429freshcaseswithitbeingtheworsthit byCovid-19witha to-tal of 3,337 active cases – thehighest in thestate.ThedistrictsbehindLucknow

intermsofactivecasesisKanpurNagarwith1,662activecasesfol-lowedbyVaranasiwith1,188ac-tivecasesJhansiwith953cases.DrAgarwalhasbeenreplaced

byDrRajendraPrasadSingh,whowas posted as Chief MedicalSuperintendent of BhauraoDevrasCivilHospital,Mahanagar.Agarwal, meanwhile, has beenpostedasseniorconsultantatLokBandhuRajNarayanHospital inLucknow. Lucknow has wit-nessed a steep rise in COVID-19casesinthepasttwoweeks.Thestatehastillnowhadato-

talof63,742casesofcoronaviruswith 39,903 people being dis-chargedaftertreatment.Thestatehaswitnessed 39 deaths in thelast24hoursonSaturday.Amongthe districts with highest freshdeathswere Kanpur Nagar andVaranasi with five people suc-cumbingtothevirus,followedbyGorakhpurwithfourdeaths.

ALMOST FIVEmonths after theCovid-19 pandemic began,Maharashtrahasrecordedover3lakh cases.Over a lakhare activeinfections. As focus shifts fromMumbaitoMumbaiMetropolitanRegionandPune,HealthSecretaryDrPRADEEPVYAS says the statehas becomewiser and is betterequipped to control fatality.Excerpts froman interviewwithTABASSUMBARNAGARWALA.

MaharashtracontinuestohavethemostcasesinIndia.Althoughitdoesnothavethelargestpopulation,itcontinuestodrivethecountry'scurve.Whyisthat?Weneednotbeconcernedby

rise inpositive cases. If cases aredetectedintime,fatalitycanbeaslowas1-2%.Topickpeopleearly,weneed to testmore and that’swhy we have high numbers.Maharashtra is testing 13,848people permillion population,UttarPradeshisonlytesting7,113permillion,Bihar is testing3,423permillion.Thesestateshavelesscasesbecausetheyaretestingless.TherewerenocasesinTelanganaandAndhraPradeshatthebegin-ning. Itwaspointedoutthattheywerenottestingenough.Nowyouseethatcasegrowthisattherateof5-7%inTelanganaandAndhraPradeshishigh.

TheWHOnotifiedthefirstCovid-19caseonDecember31,2019.Sowedidhavetwomonthsinhandtopreparebeforethefirstcase.To prepare we need some

knowledge.WHOdeclared it apandemicinmid-January.Webe-gan screening from January 18,everyday16,000-18000peoplewerescreened.Itwasanunknownenemy.Whatcouldwehavepre-paredforinthosetwomonths?

KeralaandTelanganahaveadmittedtolocaltransmission.InMaharashtra,

mostcasesnowhavenoindexcasetotracebackto.WhyisMaharashtrasilentoncommunitytransmission?I cannot comment yes or no.

WehadanacademicdiscussionwithGoIteam.Theymadeanob-servation,wehavestillnotreachedapointwhereanyrandompersonpickedcomespositive forCovid-19.Untilthathappens,wecan’tsaythereiscommunitytransmission.Thepositivityrateintestingisonly20percent.Intracingacase,aper-sonhastorecallandgiveentirein-formation. Initiallywehadveryfewcases,wewereabletogetday-wisehistoryof cases.Ascases in-creased,extractinghistorybecamedifficult. Thisdoesn’tmeancasescan’tbetraced.ICMRhastotakeacalloncommunitytransmission.

Butwehavemorethan3lakhCovid-19cases,andoveralakhactiveinfections.Andstillnocommunitytransmission?It is not under ourdomain to

decide this. Every state is follow-ingICMRprotocol.

FULLINTERVIEWONwww.indianexpress.com

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEPUNE,JULY25

RESEARCHERSAT IIT-KharagpurSaturday announced a portablediagnosticdevice that candetectCovid-19inabout60minutesforacostof lessthanRs400pertest.Inastatement,theresearchers

said each portable unit can beused for a largenumber of tests,and the only thing that needs tobereplacedisadisposablepaperstrip used for chemical analysisandvisualisationof theresultsofeachtest.Theyfurthersaidthede-vicehadaccuracyandsensitivitycomparable to standardRT-PCRtests. The results from this newtechnologyhavebeenstrictlyval-idatedbyfollowingallestablishedlaboratory controls against thebenchmarked results obtainedfromRT-PCRmachine,usingsyn-

theticviralRNA,statedtherelease.The test is non-invasive and

worksonextractedRNAfromapa-tient'ssalivasample.IthasacostoflessthanRs400/pertestaftertak-ingallthecomponentsofexpensesandabusinessmodelintoaccount,saidProfessorSumanChakrabortyfromtheMechanicalEngineeringDepartment,IITKharagpur,andDrArindamMondalfromtheSchoolofBioScience,IITKharagpur.Thenewdevicehasbeende-

signedtobeusableatlocationswithextremelypoorresources,thestate-mentsaid.Itfurthersaidthedevicecanbeoperatedbypeoplewithminimaltraining. Theequipmentwill cost aboutRs2,000 if a pilotfacilityisused.Useofalarge-scalecommercialfacilitywillfurtherre-duce the pricewith increase inthe production scale, the state-mentsaid. WITHINPUTSFROM

ENS,KOLKATA

Mumbai: Inan interviewtoShivSena mouthpiece Saamana,Chief Minister UddhavThackerayonSaturdayindicatedthat hewas not ready to lift theprevailinglockdownthestateinone go and said curbing Covid-19 cases while allowing eco-nomic activities to resumewasa tightropewalk.“Iwillneversaythatthelock-

downwill be lifted completely.But Ihavestartedreopeningtheactivities one by one graduallyandmyattemptistoensurethatonce the activities resume, itshouldn’tbeshutagain.Weneed

toworryabout[people’s]healthand the economy, and need tomaintainabalancebetweenthetwo. It is like walking atightrope,”Thackeraysaid.The chief minister further

said thatmanypeoplewereop-posingthelockdownasitwasaf-fecting the economy. “I want totell thesepeoplethat Iamreadytoliftthelockdown,butwilltheytake responsibility if thepeopledie due to it? I am aware of theeconomic concerns… I am not[the US President Donald]Trump. I cannot see people dy-ing in frontofmyeyes…”ENS

THE EXPRESS

INTERVIEWWITH

PRADEEPVYASHEALTHSECRETARY,

MAHARASHTRA

‘We need to testmore, that’s whyMaharashtra hashigh numbers’

IIT-Kharagpur developsportable, low-cost devicefor coronavirus testing

Kit import licence of 3 firms cancelled, 15suspended; order based on ban by USFDA

Need to balance health,economic activity: Uddhav

UP recordsbiggest jump incases, LucknowCMO replaced

New Delhi


New Delhi

CLASSIFIEDS&TENDERS10 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHE SUNDAY EXPRESS,JULY26,2020

MATRIMONIAL

PPEERRSSOONNAALL

LLOOSSTT&&FFOOUUNNDD

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CASTENOBAR

SSuuiittaabblleeMatch for handsomeKashyapRajputUnmarriedBoyB.TechMBA1984 5’6workingDelhi, Senior Executive 5lacCNB9711885595

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SSuuiittaabblleematch for beautiful girlBA , B.ED. 5’-2”may83 caste nobar contact 9814186640,9876194273

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II,, GaneshGaurava sonof ShriRamSarekhSinghResident ofJ-423, Basement, NewRajinderNagar, NewDelhi-110060havechangedmyname fromGaneshGaurava toGaneshGauravSingh for all intents&Purposes. 0040542882-1

BBEE ITKNOWNTOALLCONCERNED that I,KuldeepMauryaS/oSh.ShivPrasad,R/o:H.No.15,Zamrudpur,NewDelhi have changedmyreligionon17.02.22020 fromHindu toMuslimand I havealso changedmyname fromKuldeepMaurya toMohd.Sameer Sheikh for allpurposesand intends in allrespect i.e. formal or informal.

0040542923-9

II ChandreKantVaish s/oKrishanKantVaish changetherename toRavi KumarVaish for futureCorrepondence.

0130016130-1

II InderDevTiwari s/o SH.Jagdish Tiwari R/OHouseno.E-682, DDAFlat, Pocket-3,Bindapur, NewDelhi-110059.Have changed thenameofMyminor sonYashDevTiwari,DOB is 28.07.2007 toAdityaVarddhanTiwari, DOB is28.07.2007 for all purposes.

0040542899-1

II,, ArunKumar S/o,NiwasRamR/o-735A,T-Huts,C-5/35,Kirtinagar,N.Delhi-15,thatTarunKumarandArunKumarbothareoneandsameperson.LICPolicy-No.331275756. 0040542923-7

II,, LuckyKakkarW/oSh. RajeshKakkarR/o 151, 3rd Floor,Engineers Enclave, PitampuraDelhi-34. have changedmyname fromLucky to LuckyKakkar for all futurepurposes.

0040542902-1

II,,Mahir Bhalla S/oSh. DevenderBhalla R/o- B-220, JawaharPark, Deoli RoadKhanpur,Delhi- 110062,have changedmyname toMAHIRSINGHBHALLA,for all purposes.

0040542860-1

II,,MeenuVargheseW/oAbrahamR/o-J-5/13, RajouriGarden, NewDelhi-110027havechangedmyname toSminuVarghesepermanently.

0040542923-5

II,, AAKANSHPARJAPATI S/OPHOOLCHANDR/OM-721, JJCOLONY, SHAKURPUR, DELHI-110034. HAVECHANGEDMYNAMETOAKANSH.

0040542923-1

II,,MurgehsonS/oMutthuSwamyR/o-E-195, J.J.Colony,BudhNagar, Inderpuri, NewDelhi-110012 have changedmyname toMurugeshanpermanently. 0040542923-6

II,, NITINANANDS/OSURENDERANANDR/O J-3/89,SECOND-FLOORLEFTSIDERAJOURIGARDEN, DELHI-110027.CHANGEDMYNAMETONITINKUMARANAND.

0040542923-2

II,, RajeshKakkar S/oSh. ParhladChandR/o 151, 3rd Floor,Engineers Enclave, PitampuraDelhi-34. have changedmyname fromRajesh toRajeshKakkar for all futurepurposes.

0040542901-1

II,, YogeshSolanki s/oBilasRaiSolanki r/oA-100, ShaktiApartment, Sector-9, Rohini,Delhi-110085have changedmyminor son’s nameZidaneAliSolanki / ZidaneSolanki, aged7years andhe shall hereafterbe knownasKABIRSOLANKI.

0040542862-1

II,, SANGITARAJARAMGHANDADE,alias SANGITAPRAKASHPATKARW/O-JITENDRASHANKARRAOJADHAV,R/o.L-167,TYPE-2GOVT-QUARTERSARAM-BAGHCHITRA-GUPTA-ROAD,PAHARGANJ,DELHI-110055,have changedmynametoSANGITA JITENDRA JADHAV.

0040542923-3

PUBLIC NOTICEGeneral Public is hereby inform that myclients namely (1) Sh. Satyadev SharmaS/o Late Sh. Mam Chand Sharma, and(2) Snit. Sarla Devi Sharma W/o Sh.Satyadev Sharma, both R/o 161-A, GaliNo.8, Deepak Vihar, Najafgarh, N. Delhi-43 have severed all their relations, hencedisowned & debarred their son namelyAvinash Sharma @ Mintu, his wife IshaD/o Sh. Ramesh Chander and grand-sonSrihaan from them, in respect of myclients all moveable and immoveableproperties with immediate effect becauseabove named are out of control of myclients and causing unnecessaryharassment. Anyone dealing with themmay do so at his/her own risks, costs andconsequences.

Sd/-(HARISH K MALHOTRA)

AdvocateLawyers Chamber No. 558

Dwarka Court Complex New Delhi-75.M: 9971998111

h 3 5h k (5)

PUBLIC NOTICEIt is hereby informed that my client Sh.Prem Chand S/o Late Sh. Paltu SinghR/o RZ-564, Gali No. 22, Sadh Nagar,Part-II, Palam Colony, New Delhi-110045has neither sold nor any personauthorized to sell his House No. RZ-564,Gali No. 22, Sadh Nagar, Part-II, PalamColony, New Delhi-110045 to any person.If any person deals for the sale of abovementioned property, shall be deem asillegal and he/she doing so at his own riskand costs and my client shall not beresponsible for any act or deed.

Sd/-Satisn Kumar Tomar.

(Advocate)Chamber No. : 511, Western Wing,

Tis Hazari Court, Delhi-54

PUBLIC NOTICE“MY CLIENT SHRI BANSI LAL SON OFLATE SHRI BIHARI RESIDENT OFC-163, CAMP No. 2, NANGLOI,DELHI-110041, DOES HEREBYDISOWN AND DISINHERIT HISDAUGHTER SHRIMATI RANI WIFEOF SHRI RATTAN LAL AND ALL HERLEGAL HEIRS FROM ALL HISPROPERTIES MOVABLE ORIMMOVABLE MY CLIENT SHALL NOTBE RESPONSIBLE OR LIABLE FORANY ACTS, DEEDS OR THINGSDONE BY THE SAID RANI.”

Sd/-DEVRAJ SINGH

AdvocateEnrolment No. D-101/1978

Chamber No. 121, Western Wing,Tis Hazari Court Delhi-54

PUBLIC NOTICEBe it known to the public at large that my clientsSmt. Joginder and Sh. Mohan Lal S/o Sh. Ram LalR/o H. No. 3367, Ranjeet Nagar, South PatelNagar, Delhi-110008 declares that they havedisowned and debarred their son Deepak, his wifeSmt. Kavita and their daughter Ridhi all residentsof Room No. 2138, Gali No. 9, Transit Camp,Anand Parbat, Delhi-110005 from all their movableand immovable assets and ceased all relationswith them with immediate effect due to their dailybellicose behavior towards both of us and ifanyone deals with them in future, shall do at hisown risk and cost and my clients shall not beresponsible for the same in any manner,whatsoever.

Sd/-Shiv Ram Sharma

AdvocateE.No. D-3004/2015Chamber No. 531,

IInd Floor Western WingTis Hazari Court, Delhi-110054

Mob. : 9717822711

PUBLIC NOTICEMy client Karanvir Singh S/o Late Sh.C.P. Singh R/o E-301 Ansal EleganceAvantika Phase-II Ghaziabad, hassevered all his relations from his sonNitin Chaudhary his wife Preeti andtheir infant male baby due to theirhostile and disrepute behaviour. Myclient also disowned/ debarred themfrom inheriting his all movable/immovable properties with immediateeffect. My client shall not beresponsible for their any act in future.

Sd/-(BRIJESH KUMAR KASHYAP)

AdvocateCh. No. T-13, Tehsil Lane,

Tis Hazari Courts,Delhi-54

PUBLIC NOTICEThis is to certify/inform that my client Sh.Ram Niwas, R/o H.No. Rz-13 B, J Block, OldRoshan Pura, Najafgarh, South West Delhi-110043 has debarred and disowned his sonSh. Amit Kumar and Smt. Priyanka@Sonia(W/o Sh. Amit Kumar) from immediate effectfrom all his movable and immovableproperties due to their mis-conducts,disrespectful behavior and being out ofcontrol. Furthermore my client has severed allhis relations with Sh. Amit Kumar and Smt.Priyanka @ Sonia and my client would haveno concern with both of them in any manner.If anybody deals with them in any mannerhe/she shall do at his/her own risks andconsequences. My client shall not be liable orresponsible for the same in any manner.

Sd/-ARJUN SHARMA

AdvocateCh. No. 837, Laywer’s Chambers Block,

Dwarka District Court, New Delhi-75Mob.: 9711011153

LOST & FOUNDLost Original Will Deed Dated15/01/1993, Reg. No. 1421,Book No. 3, Vol. No. 615 PageNo. 18 executed by RaghuvirSingh Tyagi favouring Smt.Santosh Tyagi W/o Jaivir SinghTyagi of property No. E-1 Area83.33 Sq. Yds, out of Rect. No.10 Killa No. 17 & 18 Gali No. 3Chander Nagar Illaqa ShahdaraDelhi, founder may inform MaltiTyagi C/o Jagvir Singh TyagiH.No. E-1, Gali No. 3 EastChander Nagar, Delhi-51

PUBLIC NOTICEMy clients Smt. Maharani Gupta W/oLate Devender Gupta R/o C-49, GaliNo. 2, West Chander Nagar, Delhi-51published debar Notice in the HinduNews Paper on 6 April 2011. Now myclients have normal relation with hisyounger son Vikas Gupta & his wifeGeeta Gupta @ Geeta Sharma. Nowthey have legally right in my clientsmoveable immoveable property. Nowthere is not any dispute between themand my clients.

Sd/-Raghvendra Shukla

AdvocateCh.No. B-139, B, GS Block,

Tis Hazari Delhi

LOST AND FOUNDGeneral Public is informedthat 13 original Fixed DepositsReceipts issued by M/s 3FIndustries Limited having itsoffice at PB-15, Tanuku Road,Tadepalliqudem, WestGodawari District, 534102Andhra Pradesh for acumulative value of Rs1,00,00,000/- (Rs One Crore)approx. in the name of SmtAmbika Goenka W/o TapeshGoenka, Ms Apurva GoenkaD/o Tapesh Goenka, BharatKumar Goenka (HUF) throughits Karta, Smt Bimla GoenkaW/o Sh Bharat KumarGoenka, Sh KushagraGoenka S/o Sh TapeshGoenka, Sh Tapesh GoenkaS/o Sh Bharat Kumar Goenkaand in the name of TapeshKumar Goenka (HUF) throughTapesh Kumar Goenka Kartaall residents of B-304, NewFriends Colony, New Delhi-110065 has beenmisplaced/lost and the sameare not traceable despite bestefforts.Police Complaint in this regardhas already been lodged withCrime Branch Office, DelhiPolice. Any person mis-usingthe original FDR(s) shall beliable to face criminalprosecution as per law.Further any person finding thesame shall inform [email protected] the person shall besuitably rewarded.

II,, NawalGuptaS/o Late. Sh.J.D.GuptaR/o IA-38B, AshokVihar, Phase-I, Delhi-110052have lost documents ofpropertyD-2/182 Sec-11,Rohini, Delhi. (DemandLetter,BankChallan,Map,WillProperty, NOC for Electric&WaterConnection, SitePossessionSlip). Findersplease informmeatmyaboveresidenceaddress.

0040542863-1

II,, VaibhavKumar ,S/o Sh. ArvindKumar ,R/OHN343 StNo-5Durgapuri Extn. Delhi-93. HaveLostmyOriginalMarksheet&Certificates of Class 10thRollNo-3548Year 2015-16 issuedbyCBSE. FinderMayCont:9968755047. 0040542861-1

LLoosstt all Original Propertiedocuments for Property-No.2A/6, 3rd Floor, Ramesh-Nagar, NewDelhi-110015favouringAmarjit KaurW/olate.DilbagSingh.FIR LodgeVide LR.No.423542/2020Dated:18/07/2020. Founderinformat aboveaddressorPh.No-8802606560.

0040542900-1

II,, Ankit PandeyS/oArunPandeyhave lostmyFirst Year BtechMarksheet Roll no. 1419200020,Dr. APJAbdul KalamUniversity.If FoundContact: 8800624117

0060075417-1

II,, TarunS/oRamdittaR/oT-15-1502, Exotica-Dreamville,Sector-16C, GreaterNoida,GautambuddhaNagar, U.P.-201318have changedmynametoTarunWadhwa.

0040542923-4

II,, Rohit DeranS/oRajeshKumarR/o:-A-708, J.J.Colony, UttamNagar, NewDelhi-59, HaveChangedMyName toRohit.

0040542894-1

NOTICE INVITING e-TENDERSThe Executive Engineer, Mechanical Division No. II, Irrigation & FloodControl Department, Govt. of NCT of Delhi, I&FC Wing, Vikas Bhawan-II,Civil Lines, Delhi-110054. Invites on behalf of the president of India, onlinetender from approved specialized agencies or eligible contractors of I&FC,M.E.S., Railways, CPWD & Deptt. of Central/State Govt. (whose registrationdetails have been verified by the I&FC Deptt.) dealing with similar nature ofwork for the following works:N.O.W:- R/M of H/M Draglines TWL 101ME (Heavy Earth Moving Machinesfor the year 2020-21.Sub Work:- Operation and Preventive Maintenance of 2 Nos HM DraglinesTWL 101 ME (Heavy Earth Moving Machines) for a period of 12 months fromthe date of commencement of work/Job.(H.O.A:- MH 2711 (NON PLAN)Estimated Cost: Rs. 37,91,568/- Earnest Money: Rs. 75,831/- Period ofcompletion : (365) Days, Last date & time of submission of tender: upto 3:00p.m on 28/07/2020. (Tender I.D 2020_IFC_192829_1)Note 1) The Tender forms and other details can be obtained from thewebsite http://govtprocurement.delhi.gov.in

DIP/SHABDARTA/0176/20-21

DIPR/2793/Tender/2020

TAMIL NADU NEWSPRINT AND PAPERS LIMITED

NOTICE INVITING BIDSFor Procurement of Packages for Mill Expansion Plan at TNPL Unit-II

TNPL - Maker of bagasse based eco-friendly Paper

Kagithapuram - 639 136, Karur District, Tamil Nadu,Phone No. 04324-277001 (10 lines), Extn. 4278/4206/4404/4402 Fax :04324-277027

S. No. Description Bid Issue Date1. Erection of Plant &Machinery in Chemical

Recovery Area 03.08.2020

2. Supply of Steam Pipes & Fittings (IBR) 28.07.20203. DNCG & CNCG Collection System in Recovery Island

06.08.20204. Fabrication and Erection of Steel Chimney5. Application of Thermal Insulation6. Supply of Instrumentation Cables 27.07.2020

Mail - S. No : 1, 2 & 3 - [email protected], S.No : 4 & 5 - [email protected]& S.No. 6 - [email protected] terms & condition, tender fee, EMD etc., may be viewed inwebsites : www.tnpl.com/www.tenders.tn.gov.in

Delhi Transport Infrastructure DevelopmentCorporation Ltd.

An Enterprises of Govt. of NCT of Delhi.

ISBT Kashmere Gate Delhi-110006

NOTICE INVITING TENDERThe Executive Engineer, DTIDC invite tenders on behalf of MD, DTIDCLtd for the following work through e procurement solution only.

The Tender forms and other detail can be obtained from the website:https://govtprocurement.delhi.gov.in/

Sd/-Executive Engineer

DTIDC Ltd. ISBTDIP/Shabdarth/0177/20-21 Kashmere Gate, Delhi

NIT No. : 14/2020-21Tender ID No. : 2020_DTIDC_192865_1Name of work : Development of existing website and

development of software modules of DTIDC.Estimated Cost : Rs. 17,53,472/-Earnest Money : Rs. 87,674/-Time Allowed : 60 DaysLast date of receiptof tenders

: 14/08/2020

MISSION DIRECTOR, NATIONAL HEALTH MISSION, J&KJammu Office: Regional Institute of Health & Family Welfare, Nagrota, Jammu-181221Fax: 0191-2674114; Telephone: 2674244; e-mail: [email protected] Office: Block ‘A’, Ground Floor, Old Secretariat, Srinagar Pin: 190001

Fax: 0194-2470486; 2477309; Telephone: 2477337; e-mail: [email protected] Help Line for Jammu Division: 18001800104; Kashmir Division: 18001800102

Notice Inviting On-line Proposal(s) from ICMR approved Labs for under-taking RT-PCR Testing, alongwith reporting as per ICMR Testing Protocols

of Samples from J&K for COVID-19 on ‘As & When Required Basis’For and on behalf of the Lt. Governor of Jammu & Kashmir, online proposals

are invited for on-line proposal(s) are invited from ICMR approved Labs forundertaking RT-PCR Testing, and Reporting, of samples from J&K for COVID-19, in time-bound manner, on ‘As & When Required Basis’, as per the terms& conditions mentioned in the Notice Inviting Proposals available on the web-site(s) www.jktenders.gov.in and www.jknhm.com

Sd/-Mission Director

National Health Mission, Jammu

No: SHS/NHM/J&K/COVID-19/6619-25Dated: 23.07.2020DIP/J-1054-P/20

S. No. Particulars Date/Time

1 Date of Publishing SBD 24.07.2020 at 1000 Hrs

2 Start Date of Downloading SBD 24.07.2020 from 1000 Hrsfrom Website

3 Websites for Downloading SBD www.jktenders.gov.in, www.jknhm.com

4 Last Date of Downloading SBD 29.07.2020 upto 1400 Hrsfrom Website

5 Seek Clarification Start Date 24.07.2020 from 1000 Hrs

6 Seek Clarification End Date 28.07.2020 upto 1600 Hrs

7 Pre-Bid Meeting No

8 Website for Submission of Bids www.jktenders.gov.in(Technical as well as Financial)

9 Start Date for Submission of Online Bids 24.07.2020 from 1000 Hrs

10 Last Date for Submission of Online Bids 29.07.2020 upto 1600 Hrs

11 Date of Opening of Technical Bids 30.07.2020 at 1100 Hrs

12 Place of Opening of Technical Bids State Health Society, NHM, Regional Institute ofHealth & Family Welfare, Near Sainik School,Kandoli Nagrota, Jammu-181221 (J&K)

13 Date of Opening of Financial Bids 30.07.2020 at 1500 Hrs

14 Place of Opening of Financial Bids State Health Society, NHM, Regional Institute ofHealth & Family Welfare, Near Sainik School,Kandoli Nagrota, Jammu-181221 (J&K)

ALL INDIA INSTITUTE OF AYURVEDA (AIIA)(An Autonomous Organization under the Ministry of

AYUSH Govt. of India)Gautampuri, Sarita Vihar, Mathura Road, New Delhi-110076

E-mail: [email protected]: 011-26950401/02, Fax: 011-29948660

Notice Inviting TenderSealed EOI and Tender are invited for Supply, installation,commissioning & intergration of various IT infrastructure items withexiting IT infrastructure and Compreshensive Annual MaintenanceContract (CAMC) of various IT infrastructure equipment and Servicesrespectively as mentioned below.

TenderRef. No.

Description Last date ofsubmission of

tender

Date & time ofopening of

technical bidF.No. G-19004/6/1/2018-

AIIA

Supply, installation,commissioning andintegration of various ITinfrastructure items withexiting IT infrastructure

06.08.2020 at1.00 PM

06.08.2020at 3.00 PM

F.No. G-17001/9/4/2019-

AIIA

Comprehensive AnnualMaintenance Contract(CAMC) of various ITinfrastructure equipmentand Services

07.08.2020 at1.00 PM

07.08.2020at 3.00 PM

The document containing terms and conditions can be downloadedfrom website www.aiia.gov.in. CPP portal or collected by hand onpayment of tender fee of Rs. 1000/- (Rupees One thousand only) (non-refundable) by DD/Pay order in favour of Director, AIIA New Delhi.

davp 17219/11/0002/2021 Director

No: HESCOM/SEE-IT&MT/EEIT1/AEEIT1/2020-21/cys-1305Date : 24.07.2020

HUBLI ELECTRICITY SUPPLY COMPANY LIMITED(Wholly Owned Govt. of Karnataka Undertaking)

Corporate Office, Navanager, P.B. Road, Hubli-580 025Tel. No. 0836-2222535, Fax No. 0836-2324307

Website: www.hescom.co.in E-mail ID: [email protected]@hescom.co.in CIN : U31401KA2002SGC030437

Sl.No. Bid Indent No. Tender DescriptionImplementation of web based TotalRevenueManagement (TRM) systemin Non RAPDRP areas of HESCOM

Sd/- Superintending Engineer (El)(IT&MT), HESCOM, Hubballi.

For detailed notification regarding the bid enquiry can beobtained by logging in to the websitewww.eproc.karnataka.gov.in. on or after 27-07-2020 @16.00 Hrs.No.DIPR/DWD/2020-21/224/MCA

HESCOM/SEE(IT&MT)/EEIT-1/TRM/2020-21

1

TENDER NOTIFICATION

The Superintending Engineer (Ele), IT & MT, HESCOM,Hubballi invites tender in two parts (Part –I: Techno-Commercial Bid and Part-II : Price Bid) through e-procurementportal for the following works

(Through E procurement portal only)

New Delhi


NETAJI SUBHAS UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY(NSUT)

(Formerly Netaji Subhas Institute of Technology (NSIT)Govt. of NCT of Delhi, Azad Hind Fauz MargSec-3, Dwarka, New Delhi-110078

Netaji Subhas University of Technology (NSUT), New Delhi has been established asState University by the Government of NCT of Delhi and is regarded as one of thepremier Technical Universities of India. NSUT was upgraded from “Netaji SubhasInstitute of Technology” (NSIT) in 2018, tracing back 37 years of glorious history ofnurturing some of the finest minds in the country.NSUT invites online applications for admission to four-year Bachelor of FashionTechnology (B.F Tech.) programme under the Department of Design.For detailed information about Eligibility Criteria, Reservation, Admission Procedure,Counselling Schedule, Application Process etc. Visit University website.

Online Application Process:• Candidates will have to register online at www.nsut.ac.in or

https://imsnsit.org/imsnsit/elearn_ftechregistration.php as per the instructionsgiven on the website

• All candidates are required to pay a non -refundable registration fee of Rs. 1000/-ONLINE using Credit Card/Debit Card/Net-Banking

Important Dates:

ADMISSION NOTICE

BACHELOR OF FASHION TECHNOLOGY, 2020-21

1 Start Date for on-line registration. July 27, 2020 (Monday)

2 Last Date for submission of Application form. Aug. 14, 2020 (Friday)

DIP/Shabdarth/0174/20-21 Chairman Admission Committee

i) Ph.D. degree

B. Scale of Pay: As prescribed by the UGC, Goa University and Directorate of HigherEducation,Govt. of Goa from time to time.

D. (i)Arelaxation of 5% may be provided at the Graduate and Masters level for the ScheduledCastes/ Scheduled Tribes/ Differently-abled (physically and visually differently-abled)/Other Backward Classes (OBC) (Non-creamy layer) categories for the purpose of eligibilityand forassessinggoodacademic recordsduringdirect recruitment to teachingpositions.

A. Minimumqualifications andexperience:

ii) Professor/Associate Professor with a total service/ experience of at least fifteen yearsof teaching/research inUniversities,Collegesandother institutionsofhighereducation.

iv) Aminimum of 110ResearchScoreRequirements:

ii) Knowledgeof Konkani.Additionally, knowledge ofMarathi shall be desirable.

(iii) A relaxation of 5% shall be provided, from 55% to 50% of the marks to the Ph.D. Degreeholders, who have obtained their Master's Degree prior to 19September, 1991.

i) Minimum of 15 years of Residence in Goa.

C. Tenure: The term of appointment of Principal shall be for five years, extendable foranother term of five years on the basis of performance assessment by a Committeeappointed by theUniversity, constituted as per these Statutes.

iii) A minimum of 10 research publications in peer reviewed journal as approved by GoaUniversity from time to time or UGC-listed journals out of which at least two should be inScopus / Web of Science Journal.

E. Applications should contain following information: full name, address, age with date ofbirth, educational qualifications with marks andpercentage, teaching experience etc.

(ii) The eligibility marks of 55% marks (or an equivalent grade in a point scale wherevergrading system is followed) and the relaxation of 5% to the categories mentioned aboveare permissible, based on only the qualifying marks without including any grace markprocedures.

(iv) Arelevant grade, which is regarded as equivalent of 55% wherever the grading systemis followedby a recognized university, shall also be considered eligible.

Applications, along with certified photocopies of relevant documents should reachwithin 20 days from the date of publication of advertisement to the Vice President,Chowgule Education Society, Chowgule House, Mormugao Harbour, Goa 403803.Applicants should bring Original Certificates and relevant documents at the time ofinterview. Interviewsmay beheld through video conferencing also.

VICE PRESIDENT

CHOWGULE EDUCATION SOCIETYinvites applications for the post of

PRINCIPALfor Parvatibai Chowgule College of Arts and Science, Autonomous, Margao, Goa

Date : 24.07.2020

GOVERNMENT OF INDIAMINISTRY OF HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE

COMBINED ANM ENTRANCE EXAMINATION 2020-22RURAL HEALTH TRAINING CENTRE,

NAJAFGARH, NEW DELHI-110043AND

LADY READING HEALTH SCHOOL,BARA HINDU RAO, DELHI-110 006

Online application are invited for Diploma in ANMTraining Course 2020-2022 for female candidates,who are bonafide resident of Delhi. The applicationmust be submitted from 26th July 2020 to 05thSeptember 2020 (up to 12.00 Midnight) through websitewww.rhtcnajafgarh.inThe detailed information is available on the website.

davp 17103/11/0001/2021

EXPRESSNETWORK

SANTOSHSINGHPATNA, JULY25

OBSERVINGTHATforjustice,tobesocial, it “cannot be limitedonlyto subserve interest of the afflu-ent,therichandtheempowered”,thePatnaHighCourthastakense-rious exception to vacancy of5,674postsofdoctorsinrural,re-moteanddifficult-to-accessareasinBihar.The court ordered the state

ChiefSecretaryto“ensurethatva-cancies in rural/remote/difficultareas are filled up to themaxi-mumextent possible, either bytransferorexpeditingtheprocessof recruitment”, once the pan-demicsituationnormalises.Thecourt'sobservationscame

ontheBihargovernment’sinabil-

itytofillpendingvacancyof8,768doctors,outof11,645sanctionedposts.Ofthese,5,647vacanciesareinruralorremoteareas.The direction of the division

benchofChiefJusticeSanjayKaroland Justice Sanjay Kumar camewhile hearing a Letter of PatentAppeal onMay28.A copyof theorder, given in a virtual hearing,hasnowbeenreleased.OnFriday,whilehearingaPIL

thatsoughtdirectionstothestateontacklingthepandemic,thedi-visionbenchdirected theHealthDepartmenttosubmitareportonhowithasbeenfightingCovid-19.Thebenchsaid: “It isbrought

to our notice thatmost patientsare either being referred or arecomingbytheirownatPatna.Isitforthereasonthatthereisnofacil-ity at the district/sub-divisional

level, or is it that none is inform-ing/appraising of availability ofsuchfacility?”The court asked the depart-

menttofiledetailsbeforethenextdateofhearingonAugust7.Onthecourt'sMay28order,a

seniorHealthDepartmentofficialsaid,“Sanctionedpostsofdoctorsinclude about 1,000 specialists.But no appointment has beenmadesofar...”The court noted that the

HealthDepartment optednot togrant “incentive ofweightage inmarks tobeadded incomputingthemerit”onthebasisofNationalEligibility-cum-Entrance Test todoctorspostedinremoteareas.Observingthat5,674outofto-

tal8,768vacancies“fallonlyindif-ficult/remote/rural areas”, thebenchstated:“Canawelfarestate

adoptsuchastand,moresointheabsenceofanypleaormaterialtoindicate absence of doctors orhigher percentage of vacancy inurbanareas....Ifonlysuchbenefitsareaccorded,woulddoctorsvol-untaryopt to serve thepoor...liv-ing in the remotest corner of thestate?” The court said social jus-tice is adynamicdevice to “miti-gatesufferingsof thepoor,weak,Dalits, tribals anddeprived sec-tionsof thesociety...”.Itsaid,“Righttogoodhealthis

nowa facet of right to life underArticle 21, andwhenwe talk ofjusticewhichissocial,itwouldin-cludeopportunitiesofavailingfa-cilities and infrastructure in thehealthsector.”Itsaid,“Socialsecurity,justand

humaneconditionsofwork, andleisuretoworkmanarepartofhis

meaningful right to life and toachieveself-expressionofhisper-sonality and enjoy the lifewithdignity...”While discussing the state

government’sstandonpostingofdoctors in rural areas, the courtobserved: “Shockingly,we findthe State to have breached itsdharmaof acting inpublic inter-estforthebenefitofteamingmil-lionslivinginruralareas,butalsonotmaintaining its neutrality, inaccomplishmentofconstitutionalgoalsanddeterminationofrightsinter se [among] private parties.The stand taken is both immoralandillegal.Infact,wefindthede-partmenttohaveadoptedaparti-san approach, ensuring that themostmarginalisedanddeprivedonesarenotbenefittedofmedical... facilitiesinruralparts.”


A DAY after an eight-year-oldboy was kidnapped for a Rs 4crore ransom by two youthsposing as health workers inGonda district, the local policeand Special Task Force onSaturday rescued him and ar-rested five people, including awoman, followinganexchangeof fire.PrashantKumar,Additional

Director General (Law andOrder), saidtheyreceivedinfor-mation that the kidnapperswere taking theboy to adiffer-ent location in a car from Paravillage inGonda.Apolice team,which was sent to the spot,came under fire. In retaliatoryfire, two men, identified asUmesh Yadav and DeepuKashyap, sustained bullet in-juries on their legs and are un-dergoing treatment at a hospi-tal, said Kumar. The otherarrested persons have beenidentified as Suraj Pandey, hiswife Chabbi Pandey andyounger brother Raja Pandey.All the accused are aged be-tween 19 and23 and residentsof Gonda. Raja Pandey runs amakeshift shop, police said.“We have rescued the boy

and he is in good health,”Kumar said.Circle Officer, Colonelganj,

Kripa Shanker Kannaujia saidtheyhavenot found anyprevi-ous criminal case against theaccused.Police have recovered a car,

allegedlyused inthecrime,andthree pistols from the accused.“Combing operations are

underway in the area. The ac-cused are being interrogatedandactionwillbe takenagainstthose involved in the conspir-acy,” said Kannaujia.

TORAAGARWALAGUWAHATI, JULY25

THE RHINO is about thirty feetfrom the bathroom, settled in aspot by the pond in NripenNath's backyard. As it chews onhis gourd vine, grunting occa-sionally, the47-year-oldandhistwodaughterswatchsilently,in-trigued. “I am not scared,” saysNath,whoworksasatourguide.“I loveanimals.”The same cannot be said for

his agedparents,who, too, havebeen sharing this “Assam-type”cottageonthefringesofPobitoraWildlife Sanctuarywith the en-dangeredanimalforoveraweeknow as it takes refuge from thefloods.“'Chaseitaway,therearechil-

dren in the house’,” Nath recallshisfathersaying,whentherhinoambledinlastFriday.Butthean-imalhasshownnosignsofbudg-ing, except to forage for grass inthe backyard, and on one occa-sion,destroyhisbambooshed.InRajamayongvillage,itisnot

onlyNath’shomethat iswitnessto such a curious sight. Sleepingin the courtyard of 70-year-oldRadhikaDevi’shouseareafemale

rhinoandhercalf, forcingtheoc-cupantstostayindoorsfromsun-downevery day. “We can’t evenuse the bathroom [located out-side the house] at night,” says adisgruntledDevioverthephone.Rhinos straying out of

Pobitora—located on the flood-plains of the Brahmaputra inMorigaon district, and sur-roundedbyat least27villages—isnotnew,especiallyduring theannual floods when food be-comesscantinsidethesanctuary.However, this year’s unusu-

ally prolonged deluge—whichhas taken 97 lives and affectednearly 40 lakh people—has re-sulted in a serious shortage offoodforcingtheanimalstomoveout of the sanctuary for suchlongstretches for the first time.“Itisaveryseriousproblem,”

says MK Yadava, AdditionalPrincipal Chief Conservator ofForests (Wildlife) and ChiefWildlife Warden, Assam. “Forthe first time, we have had toprovide them with grass andfodder fromoutside.”As of Saturday, ninety per

cent of the tinywildlife sanctu-ary,which has the highest den-sity of rhino population in thetheworld, remains submerged.

InJulyalone,multiplewavesof floodshavesubmergedit,giv-ingtheanimals little timetoad-just. “In twentydays, therehavebeen three waves,” says DrBibhab Talukdar, rhino expertandsecretarygeneralofwildlifeNGOAaranyak. “Usually floodshappenincyclesfromJuneuntilmid September, waters recedefor about two-threeweeks be-foreanotherwavehitsthesanc-tuary. But this time, while onewave has barely receded, an-otherwavehits.”OnFriday, tworhinosvisited

the sanctuary’s range office insearchoffood.Sincethen,MukulTamuly, RangeOfficer, Pobitora,has left the gates of his officeopen so the rhinos can comefeed themselves as they please.“Wehavealsocutstacksofgrassand left it out in the open forthem,”hesays.Currently,fiverhinosaretak-

ing refuge in three homes inRajamayong village. “We arepatrolling, creating awarenessamong people so they don’tchaseitaway.Wewillcompen-sate any damage to theirhomes,” saysTamuly.

FULLSTORYONwww.indianexpress.com

Assam: Amid prolongedfloods, rhinos of Pobitoraseek shelter in houses

Kidnappedboy rescuedafter shootout,five arrested:UP Police

GARGIVERMARAIPUR, JULY25

FORTY-FIVE cows were onSaturdaymorningfounddead,al-legedly due to suffocation, afterover50bovineswerelockedupinan old grampanchayat room inMedhpal village of Bilaspur dis-trictaspartofRoka-Cheka,anage-oldtraditionwhichhasnowbeenmadeagovernment scheme, ac-cordingtosources.During Roka-Cheka, village

elders decide how to stop cattlefromentering farmlandsby tak-ingthemtoa ‘gothan’(shelter).The incident, which comes

days after the state governmentlaunched the Godhan NyayaYojana,hastriggeredstrongreac-tionsfromtheBJP.

Officials arewaiting for thepostmortem report to ascertainthecauseof deathandare inves-tigatingwhowasresponsible forstuffing all the animals inside asmallroom.On Saturday morning, vil-

lagers living near the old grampanchayatbhawancomplainedofastrangesmellfromthebuilding,sourcessaid.“Therewere 50 animals, out

of which 45 died.We have re-moved the bodies and we arewaiting for the postmortem. AcasehasbeenregisteredagainstunknownpersonsunderSection429(mischiefbykillingormaim-ing cattle, etc.) of the IPC andSection13(destructionofsuffer-inganimals)ofthePreventionofCrueltytoAnimalsAct,”BilaspurIGDipanshuKabrasaid.

Social justicecan’t serve interestsofonly the rich, PatnaHC tells stategovt

Locked up in ritual, 45cows suffocate to death

KAMALDEEPSINGHBRARAMRITSAR, JULY25

A10-YEAR-OLDDalitgirlwhohadto flee her home after beingbooked for sacrilege by theSangrur police late lastmonthmayfinallygettoreturn,withthepolice planning to move theJuvenileJusticeBoardtoquashthecase.Sangrur SSP SandeepKumar

Gargsaidpoliceare investigatingthematter. A police officer said,“WewillmovetheJuvenileJusticeBoardforthecancellationofFIRinadayortwo.Ourinvestigationhasfoundthattheincidenthappenedbymistake.”Itwason June28that the the

policebookedthegirlfromapoorfamilyforallegedlytearingoffthepagesoftheGuruGranthSahibata village gurdwara. She wasbookedunderSection295(a)fol-lowingacomplaintbymembersof thegurdwaramanaging com-mittee who claimed they hadseen the deed on the CCTVfootagefromtheshrine.Followingthecase, thegirl,herparentsand7-year-old brotherwere kept inpolicecustodyforfivedaysbeforethegirlwasgivenbailbythecourt.Ever since, shehas been stayingwitharelative.Sacrilegeisanincendiaryissue

in the state. An incident of sacri-lege at Burj Jawahar SinghWalavillage inBargari, and the subse-quent firing on protesters atBehbalKalanin2015continuestocastashadowonitspolitics.On Saturday, the village

sarpanch said: “Villagers havegiven it inwriting to theSangrurpolicethattheyhavenoobjectionto thegirl’s acquittal if thepolicehave foundher innocent in theirprobe.”Arshbir Singh Johal, legal-

cum-probation officer,DepartmentofWomenandChild

Development, said the FIR itselfwas illegal. “No FIR canbe regis-teredagainstajuvenileunderanysectionwithaprisontermof lessthansevenyears.”

Inconclusive videoItwasonJune26thatagurud-

wara priest found torn pages oftheholy book and informed themanaging committeepresident.“TheCCTVcameras showed thegirl tearing the pages.We askedherandsheconfessedtothecrimethough shedidnot give any rea-sons. Thenwe informed someSikh organisations and police,”claimedthecommitteechief.Thesarpanchsaidtheytriedto

resolve thematter locally but asthe news spread, the issue spi-ralledoutofcontrol.“Itwasasen-sitivematter andpolicewas alsounderpressuretotakeactionbuteveryone here believes that thegirltorethepagesbymistake.HergrandfatherisabaptisedSikh.Shemay not have even known themeaning of sacrilege,” theSarpanchadded.TheCCTV footage The Indian

Express does not show the girltearingpages.Itsimplyshowsherpickingupacalendar,andthenre-moving the rumala (cloth) fromtheGuruGranthSahib.Whatshedoesafterthisisnotclearfromthefootage.The girl’smother said: “We

pleadedwiththemnottotakeanyaction,butnobodylistenedtous.Ialongwithmyhusband,daugh-ter and son,who is seven,weretakentopolicestation,wherewewerekeptforfivedaysbeforebe-ingproducedincourt.Mydaugh-terwas grantedbail. Thenpolicetoldusnottoreturntothevillage.”Theparents arenowwaryof

bringing her back. “Nobodyhassaid aword tous sincewecameback,but,sometimes, ithurtsthewaypeople lookatusnow,” saidthemother.

After booking minorfor sacrilege, policeset to move JuvenileBoard, cancel FIR

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICECHENNAI, JULY25

THECHENNAIpoliceonSaturdaybookedABVPnationalpresidentDrSubbiahShanmugaminacaseof allegedly harassing awoman.However, the student outfit, lateat night, issued a statement say-ing the complainant, BalajiVijayaraghavan, the woman’snephew, has withdrawn thecomplaint.“Misunderstandingsbetween

two families now stand clearedand all issues between the twoparties have now resolved,” theABVPstated.Vijayaraghavansaidthecom-

plaint has not beenwithdrawntechnically, even if thereweretalks to this effect on Saturday.“An FIR has been filed and legalprocedures have to follow,” hesaid. “Wewant police to look at

evidencewhichwere portrayedasfalsebytheaccused.Duringtheprocess,wemayreconsiderwith-drawingthecomplaintforthefactthat the accused is a doctor andhisservicemaybevital...”Earlierintheday,apoliceoffi-

cersaidShanmugamwasbookedunder under IPC Sections 271(knowinglydisobeyingrule)and427 (mischief causing damage),asalsounderTamilNaduWomenHarassment(Prevention)Act.Theofficersaidhewillbesummonedfor inquirysoon.The casewas registered on

Saturday evening on a petitionfiled by a 62-year-oldwomanatAdambakkam police station.AlthoughthecomplaintwasfiledonJuly11byVijayaraghavan,thepolice had only issued a receiptanddelayedregistrationofFIR.The incident reportedly fol-

lowedadisagreementoverpark-ingslotsattheirhousingsociety.

Rhinosoutsidetheofficeof thePobitora forest rangeofficer.Express

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEJAMMU,JULY25

ALOCALleaderof theAnjuman-e-IslamiainJammuandKashmirwasSaturdaychargedwithsedi-tionandotheroffencesafterde-livering a speech in which hecalled forpeople tocontinueof-fering prayers atmosques, dis-missing any threat from thecoronavirus.Parvaiz Ahmed Sheikh,

president of the Bhaderwahunit of the organisation, hasbeen booked under provisionsof section124A(sedition), sec-tion 153 A (promoting enmity

between different groups ongrounds of religion, race, placeofbirth), sections505Band188IPC (disobedience to orderdully promulgated by publicservant), besides the EpidemicDiseases Act.He has not been arrested so

far, Bhaderwah SP Raj SinghGoria said.During Friday prayers at

Bhaderwah, Parvaiz reportedlyasked people continur offeringEidprayersatmosquesasusual,saying that the coronavirusposednodanger.Healsoreport-edlyclaimedthatMuslimswerefacingatrocitiesduring thedur-ing lockdown.

Anjuman-e-Islamia leaderbooked on sedition charges

ABVP president booked inharassment case, outfitsays complaint withdrawn

VACANCYOFDOCTORS INRURAL,REMOTEAREAS

ESHAROYNEWDELHI, JULY25

THEREHAVEbeen76majorcoalash pond accidents across thecountry in the last 10 years, ac-cordingtoastudycarriedoutbytheHealthEnergyInitiativeIndiaand the CommunityEnvironmentalMonitoring.Besides deaths and loss of

property, the accidents also re-sulted in extensive pollution ofnearbywater resources, air andsoil, thestudynotes.Thestudy, titled“CoalAshin

India – A compendium ofDisasters, Environmental andHealth Risks”, reports thatJharsusguda in Odisha has hadsixmajor coal fly-ash accidentsfromvariouspowerplantssince2010. Among other places inOdisha, it states Sambalpur hashadfoursuchaccidents,Talcherthree, Rourkela, Angul,Dhenkanal and Khaliapali havehadoneaccidenteach.Korba coal and power plant

beltinChhattisgarhhashadninemajor accidents in these years,andRaigarh in thestate three.Other stateswhere such ac-

cidents have taken place are

Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh,Madhya Pradesh,Maharasthra,West Bengal, Jharkhand, TamilNaduandPunjab.Coal ash is finegrainedpar-

ticulatematter—a remnant af-ter pulverised coal is burnt,alongwith carbon dioxide andother gases. Coal ash includesfly-ash,bottom-ashandscrub-ber sludge, which are mixedwith water and sent to retain-ing ponds close to powerplants.While the study detailsma-

jor accidents, it says there aremany“routine”minoraccidentstake place continually in thesecoal andpowerplantbelts.According to Shweta

Narayan, coordinator ofHealthyEnergy Initiative India:“While mining and coal burn-ing have received their fairshare of attention, dangers ofcoal ash, and the impacts of itsdisposal, are still under theradar.Publicoutrageassociatedwithcoalashpollutionremainslimited to big disasters. Theslowpoisoningof communitieslivingaroundashcontainmentponds goes unnoticed.”

FULLREPORTONwww.indianexpress.com

76 mishaps in 10 yrs, coalash a danger flying underradar in India, finds study

PUNJABGIRLFORCEDTOFLEEHOME

CHHATTISGARH

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEPUNE, JULY25

A17-YEAR-OLDgirlwhohadal-leged harassment by a localyouth was allegedly killed byhim and two accomplices inKhed taluka of Pune district onFriday.A murder case has been

lodged at a local police station,and the three youthshavebeenbooked. The police said thatabout six months ago, the girlhad told her parents that themainaccusedwasharassingher,after which her parents filed apolicecomplaint.The police suspect that the

accused and his accomplicesaroundallegedlyinterceptedthegirl at avillage inKhed talukaataround3pmonFriday.Theyat-tacked herwith a sharp object,saidpolice.The girl suffered a serious

head injury and died. The ac-cuseddumpedherbodyinsomebushesbefore fleeing.

Girl who allegedharassmentkilled in Pune

Complainantsayshasn’ttechnicallywithdrawnit

New Delhi

CERC plans to ease norms for renewableenergy projects to get ISTS connectivity

THESUNDAYEXPRESS,JULY26,2020

ECONOMYWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

Crude WatchOILUPONSTRONGECONOMICDATANew York: Oil prices rose on Friday, lifted by some supportive economicdata, but tensions between the US and China limited gains.Brentcrude futures rose 3 cents to settle at $43.34 a barrel. US West TexasIntermediate crude futures rose 22 cents at $41.29 a barrel.REUTERS

MOVETOENSUREFINANCIALSTABILITYOF ISLANDNATION,BADLYHITBYCOVID

ENSECONOMICBUREAUMUMBAI,JULY25

THERESERVEBankof India(RBI)has signedanagreement for ex-tendinga$400-million currencyswapfacilitytoSriLankatoboosttheforeignreservesandensurefi-nancial stability of the country,which is badlyhit by theCOVID-19pandemic.TheIndianHighCommission

in Colombo said the currencyswap arrangementwill remainavailabletillNovember2022.SriLanka in April said it was set toenterintoanagreementwiththeRBI for a currency swapworth$400million under the SouthAsian Association for RegionalCooperation (SAARC) frame-work. Sri Lankan PresidentGotabaya Rajapaksa hadmadeanadditionalrequesttoIndiafor

a special $1.1-billion currencyswapfacility inMay.“Reserve Bank of India signs

document for $400million cur-rencyswapfacilitytoSriLankatillNov 2022,” the IndianMissiontweeted. “After debt repaymentreschedulingdiscussionsyester-

day,thisdevelopmentisanotherexample of India’s strong com-mitment to workwith #lka inpost #COVID19SL economic re-covery,” it said.WhileSriLanka’sforexreserveswereat$6.7billionin June 2020, India’s forex re-serveswere at a recordhighof $

517.63billionasof July17.In the swap arrangement, a

countryprovidesdollarstoafor-eign central bank,which, at thesame time, provides the equiva-lent funds in its currency to theformer, basedon themarket ex-change rate at the time of thetransaction. Theparties agree toswap back these quantities oftheirtwocurrenciesataspecifieddateinthefuture,whichcouldbethe next day or even two yearslater, using the same exchangerate as in the first transaction. InSri Lanka’s case, it’s more thantwoyears.The RBI also offers similar

swaplinestocentralbanksintheSAARC regionwithin a total cor-pusof$2billion.Undertheframe-work for 2019-22, the RBI willcontinuetoofferaswaparrange-mentwithintheoverallcorpusof$2 billion. Other countries can

withdraw funds in theUSdollar,theeuro,ortheIndianrupee.Thisfacilityoriginallycameintooper-ation onNovember 15, 2012 toprovideabackstoplineoffundingfor short-term foreign exchangeliquidityrequirementsorbalanceof payment crises until longertermarrangementsweremade.Indiaalreadyhasa$75billion

bilateralcurrencyswaplinewithJapan,whichhasthesecondhigh-estdollarreservesafterChina.These swapoperations carry

noexchangerateorothermarketrisks,astransactiontermsaresetinadvance.Theabsenceofanex-changerateriskisthemajorben-efit of such a facility. This facilityprovidesthecountry,whichisget-tingthedollars,withtheflexibilitytouse these reserves at any timeinordertomaintainanappropri-ate level of balance of paymentsorshort-termliquidity.

ENSECONOMICBUREAUMUMBAI, JULY25

AIDED BY profits from stakesales in subsidiaries, privatelender ICICI Bank on Saturdayreported a36per cent increasein standalone net profit at Rs2,599 crore for the quarterended June 30, 2020 as againsta net profit of Rs 1,908 crore inthe year-agoperiod.Total income during the

quarter rose to Rs 26,066 crorefrom Rs 21,405.50 crore a yearearlier, the bank said. The banksoldequitysharesrepresenting3.96 per cent in ICICI LombardGeneral Insurance and1.50percent in ICICI Prudential LifeInsurance for a total considera-tion of Rs 3,092.93 crore.According to the bank, the

impact of the COVID-19 pan-demicon thebank is highlyun-certain andwill depend on theongoingspreadofCOVID-19,theeffectiveness of current and fu-turestepstakenbygovernmentsandcentralbankstomitigatetheeconomicimpact,stepstakenbythebankandthetimeittakesforeconomic activities to return topre-pandemic levels.“The bank’s capital and liq-

uidity position is strong and

would continue to be the focusareaforthebankduringthispe-riod.DuringtheJunequarter,thebank has made an additionalCOVID-19-related provisionamounting toRs5,550crore.Asof June 30, 2020, the bank heldCOVID-19-related provision ofRs8,275crore,” it said.The bank’s gross non-per-

forming assets were at Rs40,386crore,or5.46percentofadvances, as of June 2020, asagainstRs45,763crore, or6.49per cent, a year ago.“The year-on-year growth

in domestic advances was 10per cent as of June 2020. Thegrowth in the retail loan port-folio was 11 per cent year-on-year as of June 2020, includingnon-fund outstanding, retailwas 54.4 per cent of the totalportfolio,” it said.

ENSECONOMICBUREAUNEWDELHI,JULY25

THE CENTRAL ElectricityRegulatory Commission (CERC)haseasedtherequirementsforre-newable energy projects to getconnectivity to the Inter-StateTransmission System (ISTS), ac-cording tonewdraft proceduresreleasedonthismatter.According to the new

DetailedProcedure for“GrantofConnectivitytoProjectsBasedonRenewableSourcestoInter-StateTransmissionSystem”,anentityissued theLetterof Awardby, orin aPowerPurchaseAgreement(PPA)with, a Renewable EnergyImplementing Agency or distri-bution licensee consequent totariff basedcompetitivebiddingwill be eligible for Stage-II con-nectivity.

Thebankguarantee(ConnBG)forStage-IIconnectivityhasbeenreduced toRs50 lakh (ConnBG-1)andRs3crore(ConnBG-2) forconnectivityquantumsof132kVto 330 kV. The bank guaranteeamount for quantumsup to300kVearlierwasRs5crore.For400kV, ConnBG-1will beRs50 lakhandConnBG-2Rs6crore.Depending onwhether the

entitysatisfiescertaincriteria,thegrantee for Stage-II connectivitywill be required to complete thededicatedtransmissionlinesandpooling substations onorbeforethescheduleddateofcommercialoperationof thegenerationproj-ectorsixmonthsafterthesched-uled date of commercial opera-tion. The connectivity shall berevoked and Conn-BG1 andConn-BG2encashedintheeventthat the grantee is unable to ad-heretothetimelines.

On the specific request of theconnectivity grantee, and for thepurposeof optimal utilisationoftransmission infrastructure, theCentralTransmissionUtility(CTU)may, after consultationwith theconnectivity grantee(s) con-cerned, carryout rearrangementor shifting of the connectivityacrossdifferentbay(s)ofthesamesubstation,accordingtothedraftamendments.AStage-Iconnectivitygrantee

orapplicantsseekingStage-IandStage-II connectivity simultane-ouslymayalsobeable to shareatransmission linewith anotherStage-IIconnectivitygrantee,pro-videdthereisadulysignedagree-mentbetweenthetwotodoso.CERChas invited comments,

suggestions andobjections fromstakeholders on the provisionsproposed to be amended on orbeforeAugust16,2020.

New public procurement restrictions: Howthey target China & what are the exceptions?AANCHALMAGAZINE&SUNNYVERMANEWDELHI,JULY25

AFTERAseriesofmeasurestopre-vent influx of Chinese productsand investments into India, thegovernment has nowamendedtheGeneralFinancialRules,2017to impose curbs on public pro-curement frombidders of coun-trieswhich share a land borderwithIndia.Thislatestmovebythegovernment, on grounds of de-fenceandnationalsecurity, isex-pected to affectmainly Chineseentitiesascountriestowhichlinesof credit or development assis-tancehasbeenextendedare ex-empted from the fresh restric-tions.

Whatistheneworder?Any bidder from countries

which share land borderswithIndiawillbeeligibleonlyifitisreg-istered with the RegistrationCommittee constituted by theDepartment for Promotion ofIndustry and Internal Trade(DPIIT)andwillberequiredtotakemandatorypolitical andsecurityclearance from theMinistries ofExternal andHomeAffairs, re-spectively. The central govern-menthasalsodirectedstategov-ernmentstoimplementthisorderforallpublicprocurement.Apart from attached min-

istriesanddepartmentsandsub-ordinate bodies, this neworderwill be applicable to all au-tonomous bodies, public sectorbanks and financial institutions,central public sector enterprises,publicprivatepartnershipsreceiv-ing financial support from thegovernmentorpublic sectorun-dertakings, union territories andNational CapitalTerritory (NCT) ofDelhi and the linkedagencies.

Whataretheexceptionstotheorder?Relaxationwillbe

provided for procurement ofmedicalsuppliesforcontainmentofCOVID-19globalpandemic tillDecember 31. Also, the order forpriorregistrationwillnotapplyforcountries to which theGovernment of India extendslines of credit or provides devel-opment assistance, even if itsharesalandborderwithIndia.India shares its borderwith

China, Nepal, Bhutan, Pakistan,BangladeshandMyanmar.Asperofficial data, out of these land-bordersharingcountries,thegov-ernment has extended lines ofcredit to Bangladesh, Nepal,Myanmar,exemptingthemfromthis new order. India has ex-tended lines of credit totalling$30.59 billionwith 64 countries

—including41fromAfrica.This orderwill alsonot apply

to caseswhereordershavebeenplacedor contracthasbeencon-cludedorletterofacceptancehasbeenissued,butnewtenderswillbecoveredunderthisorder.Also,if the first stage of evaluation ofqualificationshasnotbeencom-pleted in thealready invited ten-

ders,biddersnotreg-istered under thenew order will betreated as not quali-fied.

Whatarethepreviousanti-Chinameasures?

Thegovernmenthasbeentak-ingaseriesinrecentmonthstore-stricttheinflowofChineseinvest-ments and products in thecountry.On June 23, the government

made itmandatory for sellersontheGovernment e-Marketplace(GeM)portal to clarify the coun-tryof originof their goodswhenregistering new products. TheGeMportalnowallowsbuyerstoreserveabid forClass I local sup-pliers,orsuppliersofthosegoodswithmore than50percent localcontent. For bids belowRs 200crore, only Class I and Class II(thosewithmorethan20percentlocalcontent)areeligible.Thegovernmenthadalsoan-

nounced an interim ban on 59

appswithChineselinksincludingTikTok, ShareIt, UC Browser,CamScanner andWeChat citing“emergent threats” to the coun-try’ssovereigntyandnationalse-curity.Following the clashes be-

tweenIndianandChinesetroopsinGalwanValley on June15, thegovernmenthadalsopushed for“Atmanirbhar Bharat”, whichprompted several governmentdepartments to launchanoffen-sive against imports fromChina.At$70.32billionin2018-19and$62.38billionbetweenApril 2019and February 2020, China ac-countsforthehighestproportionof goods imported into India(around14percentin2019-2020sofar).Earlier in April, the govern-

menthadamendedtheFDIrulesmandatingprior approval for in-vestmentbyentities incountriesthatsharelandborderswithIndia.ThemovecamedaysafterChina’scentralbank,thePeople’sBankofChina(PBoC),raiseditssharehold-ing in Housing DevelopmentFinance Corporation (HDFC) tooveronepercent.The government stated that

prior approvalwas compulsoryfor foreign investments fromallthe countries sharing borderswith India to prevent “oppor-tunistic takeovers” of domesticfirms following the COVID-19pandemic.

ICICI Bank profit rises 36%on stake sales in subsidiaries

12

BRIEFLYStressedHFCs,NBFCsseek`14KcrsupportNew Delhi: Financing re-questsof close toRs14,000crorehavebeenreceivedun-dertheRs30,000-crorespe-cial liquidity scheme forstressed NBFCs and HFCswhosefinancialhealthdete-riorated further due to theCOVID-19crisis,theFinanceMinistry said. The schemewaslaunchedonJuly1.

MindspaceBusinessParksREITNew Delhi: MindspaceBusinessParksREIT, ownedby K Raheja group andBlackstone, has raised Rs2,644crorefromanchorandstrategic investors aheadofits public issue thatwill hitthe capital market onMonday. Mindspace hasproposed to raise up to Rs4,500crore fromthepublicissue.PTI

‘Japan,Britaintoprotectencryption’Tokyo:JapanandBritainhaveagreednottoforcetheircom-paniestodisclosealgorithmsorsetuplocaldataservers,aspartoftalksaimedatabilat-eraltradedeal,theNikkeisaidSaturday.REUTERS

Shibulalfamilysells85lakhInfysharesBengaluru:Familymembersof Infosys co-founder SDShibulal have sold 85 lakhshares of the companyworthRs777crore, accord-ingtoregulatorydocuments.Aseparatestatementissuedby Shibulal’s family officesaid the proceeds will beutilisedforphilanthropicandinvestment activities.Shibulal’s son Shreyas sold40lakhshares,“representing0.09per cent of Infosys Ltdbywayof sale on the plat-formof the stockexchangeonJuly22,23and24,2020,”asperexchangefiling.PTI

■TheIndianHighCommission inColombosaidthecurrencyswaparrangementwill remainavailable tillNovember2022.■SriLanka inApril said itwasset toenter intoanagreementwiththeRBI foracurrencyswapworth$400millionundertheSouthAsianAssociationfor

RegionalCooperation(SAARC) framework.LankanPresidentGotabayaRajapaksahadmadeanadditional request to Indiaforaspecial$1.1billioncurrencyswapfacility inMay.■TheRBIalsoofferssimilarswaplines tocentralbanksintheSAARCregionwithinatotalcorpusof $2billion.

AVAILABLE TILL NOVEMBER2022

RBIsigns$400mncurrencyswapwithSriLanka

COVID-19 IMPACT

‘Consumers cautious aboutspending amid pandemic’Consumers are cautious about spending amid thepandemic, with 78 per cent of respondents claiming toreduce discretionary spending, as per a KPMG survey

51%OFRESPONDENTSFEELTHATTHEIMPACTOFCOVID-19WILLBESHORT-LIVEDANDNORMALCYISNOTFAR

78%OFRESPONDENTSCLAIMTOREDUCEONDISCRETIONARYSPENDING.TIER-II, -IIICITIESAREMOREPOSITIVE

Consumers intier-II andtier-IIIcitieswerealmost two-timesmoreoptimisticonspendinghabits than those in tier-I

22% consumers in tier-II and30per cent consumers in tier-III feel that their spendingwilleither increase or remain thesame as prior toCOVID-19

49% respondents, in the nextthreemonths, intend to spend

up toRs5,000, acrosscategorieswhichmakes thisthemost popular basket value

Consumers in tier-III citieswere 1.4 timesmore inclinedtowards spending on apparelthan those in tier-I cities forspendingmore thanRs5,000

SHIFTTOONLINE:■Preferencefore-channelssaw1.6timesgrowth Source:KPMG/PTI

The20-30age band ismore optimistic on discretionaryspending,while spending habits reduced considerably amongbothmale (76per cent) and female (82per cent) consumers

Males intend to splurgemore than females in thespending range of over Rs 5,000with 60 per cent of malesintending to shell out up to Rs 5,000 in skin care and cosmetics

KARUNJITSINGHNEWDELHI,JULY25

DOOR-TO-DOOR DELIVERY ofdiesel is set to expand signifi-cantly,withleadingstate-ownedoilmarketingcompanies(OMCs)Indian Oil Corporation (IOC),Bharat PetroleumCorporationLtd (BPCL) and HindustanPetroleum Corporation Ltd(HPCL)seekingapplicationsfromstartups to provide this service.The threeOMCs have called forexpressionsofinterest(EoIs)fromstartups recognised by theDepartment for Promotion ofIndustry and Internal Trade(DPIIT) to apply for agreementsfordoor-to-doordeliveryofdieselusingmobilepetrolpumps.Industry sources told The

Sunday Express that the govern-ment “nudged” the state-ownedOMCs to restrict the eligibility tostartups to boost entrepreneur-shipinthecountry.OMCsexpectthat agreementswith startupswill push thenumber ofmobile

petrolpumps in India togrowbyfour-five times to 1,000-1,500pumpswithinayearfromthees-timated200-300pumpsatpres-ent. IOCstarteddoor-to-doorde-liveryofdieselinPunein2018.ThethreeOMCs hadplanned to ex-pand the size of their mobiledieseldeliveryfleetto500mobilepetrol pumpsacross the countrybyFY20-end.“There is an estimated latent

demandof around300-400TKL(thousandkilolitre)permonthfordoor todoordeliveryofdieseloraround5percentof thetotalde-mand,”saidanofficialatamajorOMC.Door-to-door diesel deliv-erywill benefit users of station-aryequipmentlikegeneratorsets,mobile towers, users of earthmoving equipment and heavymachinery.

Patient groups allege lack of enforcement onCOVID rate caps at Delhi hospitals, write to CMPRABHARAGHAVANNEWDELHI,JULY25

LACKOFtransparencyintheDelhigovernment’s enforcementof itsratecapsonCOVID-19treatmenthasleftpatientsrunningfrompil-lar topost toget their grievancesrelatedtooverchargingaddressed.RelativesofatleastfiveCOVID-

19patientstreatedinprivatehos-pitals in thenational capital afterthe Delhi Health and FamilyWelfare Department notifiedmaximum treatment packageratesforCovidrelatedtreatmentsclaimed, during a virtual pressbriefingonSaturday,thattheyhadbeenovercharged. In addition tothis,therelativesdetaileddifficul-tieswithgettingtheircomplaints

addressed by the government,with someeven stating they re-sorted to relyingonmembersofpoliticalpartiestohelpthemraisetheir issueswiththegovernmentor thehospital.While all fivepa-tients have lodged complaintswith the hospitals and govern-mentauthorities, only twoof thefivehavebeenresolved“afteralotofeffort”,saidMaliniAisolaofpa-tientactivistgroupAll IndiaDrugActionNetwork,whohas aidedseveralpatientsinaddressingcon-cernsrelatedtooverchargingdur-ingthistime.Around20civilsocietygroups

onSaturdaywrote toDelhiChiefMinisterArvindKejriwal seekingnot only action on such patientcomplaints,butalsotheestablish-mentof amechanismtoaddress

patientcomplaintsandproactivestepstoauditprivatefacilities.“Thegovernmentmust insti-

tutea formalgrievance redressalmechanismfortimelyredressalofformalcomplaintsagainstprivatehospitals,” stated the groups intheirletter.Ithasalsosoughtalivedatabasethatispubliclyavailableandprovidesdetailsofcomplaintsfiled, includingdate, nameof thehospitalanddetailsofactiontaken.One of the reasons that pa-

tients havehad to strugglewithovercharging is because there iscurrentlynomechanisminplacefor grievance redressal towhichtheycandirect complaints aboutbeingovercharged,saidAisola.“Evencivil societybodies like

ourshavehadtodoa lotof guessworkinfindingoutwhothesepa-

tientscansubmittheircomplaintsto.Pleasetellmewhythepatientsarehavingtodealdirectlywiththehospitalswithoutanygovernmen-tal intervention? In every singlecase,thefamilyisrunningaround,”shesaid.Emailedqueries toDelhiHealthMinisterSatyendarJainandPrincipalHealthSecretaryVikramDev Dutt on Saturday eveningabouttheseissuesremainedunan-sweredbypresstime.“Becausepatientsareoftenun-

successfulatdealingwithpower-fulhospitalsorhaveconstraintsinpursuingcomplaintswhenthepa-tientisadmittedorcriticallyill,thegovernmentmustproactivelyen-forcesuchasthroughaudits,issu-ingofwarning letters andpenal-isinghospitalsfortransgressions,”saidAisola.

‘Boeing to delay777X as demanddrops for big jets’REUTERSSEATTLE/PARIS, JULY25

BOEINGCOispreparingtodelayits all-new 777X jet by severalmonths or up to a year, threepeople familiarwith themattersaid, as the COVID-19 crisis ex-acerbates a drop in demand forthe industry’s largest jetliners.Boeinghopestobringthejet

to market as passenger travel0rebounds after a downturncaused by the pandemic. Itwouldalsohopeforadetenteina trade war betweenWashington andBeijing,whichhas sidelined crucial Chineseaircraftbuyers.DelaycouldalsocauseproblemsinBoeing’ssup-ply chain.

TOTAL INCOME

■Total incomeduringthequarterrose toRs26,066crorefromRs21,405.50croreayearearlier, thebanksaid.

`26,066cr

India, UK ‘affirmcommitment’to FTA, EarlyHarvest deals instaged manner

PRESSTRUSTOFINDIANEWDELHI,JULY25

INDIAANDtheUKhaveaffirmedtheir commitment tonegotiateafreetradeagreement(FTA)withaview to further strengthen eco-nomic ties, the CommerceMinistrysaidonSaturday.Theissuewasdiscussedinthe

14th Joint Economic and TradeCommitteemeetingbetweenthecountriesFriday.Itwasco-chairedby Commerce and IndustryMinister Piyush Goyal and UKSecretaryofStateforInternationalTradeElizabethTruss. Theywereassisted byMinister of State forCommerceandIndustryHardeepSinghPuriandhisUKcounterpart,RanilJayawardena.GoyalandTruss“affirmedtheir

sharedcommitmenttoanFTAandtowardsthat,EarlyHarvestdealsina stagedmanner,” theMinistrysaid.ItaddedPuriandJayawardenawillhavemonthlymeetingstoin-tensifythedialogue.Itwasalsode-cidedthatameeting ledbyGoyalandTrusswillbeheld inAutumn2020tocarryforwardthedialogue.In an FTA, two trading partnerseliminateorreduceimportdutieson the maximum number ofgoodstradedbetweenthem.

Central trade unions seekPresident intervention inproviding relief to workersENSECONOMICBUREAUNEWDELHI,JULY25

TENCENTRAL tradeunionshavewritten to President RamNathKovindtodirectCentreandstatestoundertakemeasures forwork-ersincludingprovidingfreerationandagrantofRs7,500permonthfor sixmonths toall non-incometaxpayers,toissueAadhaar-linkedidentificationcardstoallworkersfor social security benefits alongwithputtingonhold any labourlawamendmentsthroughexecu-tiveordersandordinances.In a letter dated July 24, the

unions — INTUC, AITUC, HMS,CITU,AIUTUC,TUCC, SEWA,AIC-CTU,LPF,UTUC—havestatedthatthe “suddenandunplannedna-tional lockdown”imposedbythegovernment affected workingpeople,withthemigrantworkersbeing theworst affected amongthem,addingthatthedependent’sof thosemigrantworkersdue tothe sudden lockdown inMarchneed tobe adequately compen-sated.Theyhavealsoraisedtheis-sue of non-payment of dues toASHAworkers.Theunionshaveaskedforcre-

ationofaRs10,000-crorefundforimplementing social securitymeasuresundertheprovisionsofUnorganised Sector Workers’Social Security Act alongwith

suggestingpaymentstoworkerswho are in the non-income taxpaying category. “To pay everynon-incometaxpayingpersonRs7,500permonth for thenext sixmonthsandpensionof Rs3,000permonthlinkedtocostof livingto all above 60 years of age,” thelettersaid.Theunionsfurtheraskedtoin-

creaseBudgetaryallocationforim-plementation of National RuralEmploymentGuaranteeAct,2005,andthedailywageshouldbeen-hanced fromRs 202 to Rs 500.Someoftheotherdemandsoftheunions includedemand for can-cellationofprivatisationof trans-port, LIC, banks, insurance, coal,BPCL,Air India, airports, telecom,ports and dock and municipalservices alongwith demandingwithdrawalofthemoveforcorpo-ratisationof railwayproductionunits andhandingover 109 rail-way routes toprivate sector andprivatizationof railway stations,andput onhold any labour lawamendmentsthroughcodificationofalllabourlawsintofourcodes.

Theunionshavealsoaskedforcreationofa`10,000crorefundforimplementingsocialsecuritymeasures

■OMCsexpectthatagreementswithstartupswillpushthenumberofmobilepetrolpumpsinIndiatogrowbyfour-fivetimesto1,000-1,500pumpswithinayearfromtheestimated200-300pumpsatpresent.

NUMBEROFPETROLPUMPSSETTORISE

Door-to-door diesel delivery push: Startupsto submit applications to state-run OMCs

New Delhi


SUNDAYSTORYWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

LEENAMISRA

SOMETIMEIN1990,ChandrakantSompura first visited Ayodhyawith then chief of the VishwaHindu Parishad (VHP), AshokSinghal. Sompura,whowas 47

andbelongstoafamilyoftemplearchitects,recalls how thedisputed site resembled a“militarycamp”.“Ihadtogoinsidewithoutanymeasuringinstruments,andtakethedi-mensionofthesanctumsanctorumcount-ingmyfootsteps,”hesays.Thatwas the first time“a templeat the

birthplaceofLordRam”—bythenasymbolat thecentreof amovementthatwouldgoontoredefineIndianpolitics—tookshapeinhishead,Sompurasays.“Thatplacecertainlyhadsomevibration…,”hesays,now77andthepatriarchofthefamily-runAhmedabad-basedfirm‘CBSompura,TempleArchitects’,whichishelmingtheRamtempleproject.After decades of tumult, including the

destruction of the BabriMasjid and pro-tractedcourtbattles,inNovemberlastyear,theSupremeCourtruledthattheentiredis-puted landbehandedover to a trust to beconstituted for the construction of a Ramtemple.Thetrialinthedemolitioncasecon-tinuestobeheardinaspecialCBIcourt.Withthetempleprojectsettobeinaugu-

ratedwithabhoomipujanonAugust5,withanexpected200people in attendance, in-cludingPrimeMinisterNarendraModi,theSompurasadmittoasenseof“relief”—that“thingsarefinallymoving”.

■ ■ ■

AttheSompuras’officeinacommercialpart of Ahmedabad, a coupleofmenworkona3Ddesignon their computer. It is thedesignof thenew,“bigger”RamMandir.Thenewdesignwasfinalisedatameet-

ingoftheRamJanmabhoomiTeerthKshetraTrust,thebodyformedtofacilitateconstruc-tionof theRamtemple,onJuly18.AhugebustofPrabhashankarSompura,

Sompura’sgrandfatherwhoiscreditedwithbuilding the Somnath temple at PrabhasPatan,greetsvisitorsatthereception.Sitting in his cabin, Sompura’s son

Ashish,49,whohandlesthesiteplanofthetempleprojectandwasattheJuly18meet-ingof theTrust, says thatwhen the familybeganworkingonthetemplesoonafterhisfather’svisit to thesite in1990,asa templeproject commissioned by theVHP, itwasmuchsmallerinambitionandscale.Admitting that theproject pickedpace

after theBabridemolition,hesays, “Heighttabaayajabdhanchagira(thepeakcameaf-ter themosque fell onDecember6, 1992).Thepublicity…(themovementgot)...that’swhenwerealisedit’sabigdeal.”Between1992and1996,workwenton

infullswingattheworkshopinAyodhyarunby theVHP-affiliated Ram JanmabhoomiNyas.ButthentheVHPranoutoffundsandgotboggeddownwiththecases,saysAshish,and,asaresult,worksloweddown.Trained in architecture at theBCPatel

School of Architecture in Anand, it wasAshishwhomoved the Sompuradrawingboardoutside of their home inNaranpuraareaofAhmedabadforthefirsttime.“Whenwewere growing up, the Ram

templewasjustanotherofthevariousproj-ectsmyfatherhaddesigned,notsuchabigdeal,” says Ashish. “Clientswould drop inlatebecausetheyknewhewouldbethere.AshokSinghaljionceremarked,‘Sompuraji,howmany templesmust you have builtfromthis10x12feetroom!’,”hesays,addingthat the senior Sompura still does the de-signandtakesthefinalcall.Sompuraseniorclaims tohavepicked

his architecture skills from his ancestors“whoweretaughttheartof templebuild-ingbythedivineVishwakarma”.His sonsandgrandchildren thoughhave relied onmoreformaltraining.Ashutosh,28,sonofSompura’selder sonNikhil, is acivil engi-neerandnowin the familybusiness.Sompura remembers the late prime

ministerPVNarasimhaRaooncecallinghimtoaskifaRamtemplecouldbebuiltwithoutdestroyingthemosque,whichwasthestandof theCongressgovernmentof thetime.SaysSompura,“Wemadeamodel,with

thethreedomesofthemosqueintact,andthetempleontheside.Devoteescouldof-fer prayers at the janmasthan on the dis-

puted site and then come to the temple,likeinMathura.ButtheVHParguedthatabirthplace is just a6’x3’ space. If the tem-ple is not built at the actual site, it doesn’tmattertouswhetheritisbuiltonthebanksof theSarayuor inAhmedabad.”That their project will take shape

where theBabrioncestood, that itsdem-olitionsetoff communalviolenceandledtolossof livesacrossthecountry,thatear-lierBJPgovernmentswereforcedtoshelveitcitingcoalitiondharma—theSompurastrynot tobotherwithall thatmuch.“The violence inwhich somany lives

were lost, should not havehappened,” hesayswhenaskedaboutit.“Butitisalsoafactthat foreigners invadedus, destroyed ourhomes(ancienttemples)andtriedtospreadtheir religion.Thatwasalsowrong.LookathowmanytimesSomnathwasdestroyed....”

■ ■ ■

The senior Sompura then sits down totalkaboutthenewversionof thetemple—“so grand that I have forgotten theoldde-sign”—one thatwill be built in theNagarshaili (style),with a temple towerover thesanctumsanctorum.Sompura saysAshishhasbeeninvitedtoAyodhyaonAugust5tomakeapresentationonthetempleplan.In the newdesign, three domes have

beenadded—one in front, and twoat thesides;thenumberofcolumnshavegoneupfromabout160to366;andthewidthofthestairwayhasbeenexpandedfrom6feet to16 feet. Theheight of the templehas beenincreasedfrom141to161feet.Thesanctumsanctorumwillbeoctago-

nal inkeepingwiththedesignbythe shas-tras fortemplesdedicatedtoLordVishnu.Four other shrines dedicated to Sita,

Lakshman, Ganesh and Hanuman, andotherdeities,willbepartof thecomplex.While the original designwouldhave

usedupto3lakhcubicfeetofsandstone,thatwillnowhavetobedoubled,saysAshish.While theSompuras estimate the con-

struction tobe completed in three-and-a-halfyears,theyfearthepandemicwillpushthe deadline back by another six-eightmonths.TheVHPhadoutsourcedthebuild-ingof thetempletothreecontractors,whohavenowbeenreplacedbyLarsen&Toubro.Ashishsaysthatwhenhelastvisitedthe

siteon July18,L&Thadalreadyevenedouttheland.While the temple is undoubtedly the

mosthigh-profileof the200-oddtemplesthattheSompurashavebuilt,theysaythatfor them, emotionally, theSomnath tem-ple is as special. “Our family is connectedwith both these temples. For us as a fam-ily, that is thebiggest sourceof happinessandpride,” saysAshish.

THEBHOOMIPujanatAyodhyamarks the layingof the firstbrickamidstanalteredpolitical realityin India.Comingas itdoesafteraprotracted legalbattle thatendedin theSupremeCourthandingover thedisputed landto theHinduside,will thismark theendof oneof themost turbulent chap-ters in Indianpolitics?Ordoes itlayopennewinsecurities?

Thelongroad AVANEESHMISHRA

BABULALTailorsisasmallhole-in-the-wallshopwithtwonoisysewingmachines and a shinycloth strung fromclotheslines.Yet, in a low-business season

amidstthecoronaviruspandemic,BhagwatPrasadPahadi, 55, andhisyoungerbrotherShankar Lal, 50, are among the busiest inAyodhya.Theyare,afterall,theLord’stailors—andnow,theyhaveadeadline.WiththeAugust5bhoomipujandatefor

the construction of the Ram temple ap-proaching, they have to ensure RamLallaandother deities at themakeshift templehavetheirattireready.InAyodhya,atowncatapultedtothecen-

tre of India’s politics with the RamJanmabhoomimovement, thedemolitionof theBabriMasjid and the long, legal bat-tleincourts,lifehaslargelyrevolvedaroundthemakeshift temple site, a stringof othersmall temples, and the shops sellingdevo-tionalcassettesandpujaparaphernalia.TheCovidpandemicbroughtthiseconomytoahalt,withthetourists,whousedtonumber60-70,000 a day, now reduced to about ahundred.TheAugust5datehasnowbrieflyliftedspirits.“Fordecades,wehavebeenwaiting for

thisday. It’sfinallyhere,”saysBhagwat.He says the deities’ attire is ritually

changedeveryday,withcoloursassignedforspecificdaysof theweek.WithAugust5 a Wednesday, the deities are to be

clothedingreen.Asetofclothesforallthedeities , including the cloth onwhich theidolisplacedandthecurtainbehind,costsbetween Rs 2,500 and Rs 5,100, saysBhagwat. This year, they have been paidbyoneRamaDalTrust, aprivate religiousorganisationthatisamongseveraljoiningin thecelebrations.Despite the enthusiasmamong small-

timeorganisations,theRamJanmabhoomiTeerthKshetra Trust itself is tight-lipped,onlylettingoutthatatotalof200people,in-cluding150invitees,willbeallowedfortheceremony,with the “muhurat” lasting 32secondsstarting12.15pm.“PrimeMinister Modi will be given

chandan and prasad and if he wishes to

worship at the temple, wewill help himdo sowith flowers to be offered to RamLalla,” sayschief priestSatyendraDas.With themakeshift temple site being

levelled, theRamLalla idolhasmoved toaspotaround300metresaway.Theidolitselfnowsits in a cabinofwoodandglass—anupgradefromthetentitwasinfordecades.“We have been told therewill be 200

people.Wewillhave toensure that socialdistancingnormsarefollowed,”saysasen-iorofficial in thedistrict administration.Around a kilometre away, at the

karyashala(workshop)oftheVHP-affiliatedShriRamJanambhoomiNyas,wherework-ers have been chiselling away since the1990s, themoss-coveredbricks and sand-stonepillarsarebeingmovedaround,pos-siblyforthefirsttimeinyears.Whileateamofrestorationexpertsfrom

the Delhi-based KLA ConstructionTechnologieshasbeenworkingatthesitefor40days,anotherteamhasarrivedfromSurat.Says Sanjay Jadia, ProjectManager of

KLA,“Wehavetousedifferentchemicalsde-pendingontheextentof damage—itmaytakeafewhoursorevensix-sevendays.”KameshwarChaupal, amemberof the

Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trustsaysitwasrecentlydecidedthatthetemplewouldbegranderandbiggerthanoriginallyplanned— from the earlier planned con-structedareaof27,000sqftto52,442sqft.Walking on the empty road leading to

HanumanGarhi temple,AbhishekPandey,16, a tourist guide, says thepandemic hasbeen“terrible”forAyodhya’seconomy.AsonJuly24,thedistricthadrecorded

743 Covid cases, with 524 recoveries andninecasualties.Thedistrictrecentlyestab-lishedanIntegratedCovidCommandandControlCentre.Wearingagreenmaskthathangsloosely

aroundhischin,Pandeysays,“Yatohcoronasemarengeyabhookhse(Oneofthetwowillgetme—coronaorhunger).Beforethepan-demic I used to find around10-15 touristgroupsandearnRs3,000toRs4,500aday.NowIcan’tevenearnRs100,”saysPandey.On either side of this road, there are

shopswith no customers. Here,with theAugust5dateapproaching,thereisanotherdeepunease:thattheplanforabiggertem-plewillpushthemout.“Wehear authoritieswillwiden roads.

If that happens, our shopswill have to go.MyshopisallIhave,”says VijayDubey,whosellsreligioustexts.An official in the district administra-

tionsaid therearenosuchordersyet.ButMahantRajkumarDas,whoheads

theRamBallabhaKunj, a religious institu-tion, believeswideningof roadswill be in-evitable.“ThestreetsinAyodhyaaresonar-rowthatevenwith20,000visitors, there isno space towalk.Whatwill happenwhendevoteesarriveinlakhs?”hewonders.Says Chaupal of the temple Trust, “We

expect3.5croredevoteeseveryyearat thetemple.Wearenotgoingtocompromiseonthegrandeurof thetemple,”hesays.Among theMuslimsof Ayodhya, how-

ever,thereisnosuchgrandstanding.Whenaskedabout theAugust 5 event,

IqbalAnsari,oneofthemainlitigantsintheAyodhyacase,says,“WhatdoIsay?Notjustme,noMusliminIndiahasanythingleft tosay.Thetempleiscomingup...good.”Around30kmshortofAyodhyatownis

Dhannipur village. The five acres that thestategovernmenthandedovertotheSunniCentralWaqfBoardtobuildamosqueinlieuof thedisputedsiteliehere.There is nothing on the land to signify

thatstatus.ThestateagriculturedepartmentcontinuestogrowwheatandriceandinthemiddleofthefieldsisashrinetoaSufisaint.Thevillage isnowmostly identifiedas

acontainmentzone—afteronecase.Adis-trict official said nearby Lakhauri villagehas13casesand isagrowinghotspot.InDhannipur,whereMuslimsmakeup

60%per cent of the population, locals saythey last heardof theproposedmosque inFebruarywhenofficialsof the revenuede-partmentcametomeasuretheland.InFebruaryandthenearlierthismonth,

theUttarPradeshSunniCentralWaqfBoardhad confirmed that it had accepted the 5acresallocatedtoitandwouldsetupatrusttobuildamosque.Whencontacted,Boardmemberssaidtherehasbeennosignificantdevelopmentsincethen.TheAugust5bhoomipujandatetriggers

fewresponsesinDhannipur;evenreactionstotheproposedmosquearetepid.Amongthefewwhohaveanopinionis

ShabanKhan,a34-year-oldelectricalengi-neerwhosaysheworkedbriefly in theUS.“Thereareenoughmosquesinthevillage.Ifitisjustaboutalternativeland,whynotbuildadiplomacollegeorahospital?”

TEMPLE TIMELINE

NOV9,2019:SCdeliversverdictinRamtemplecase

FEB5,2020:UnionCabinetclears formationof templeTrust

FEB5:Govtallots fiveacresoflandforconstructionof amosque inAyodhya’sDhannipur

FEB24:UttarPradeshSunniCentralWaqfBoardaccepts landallottedbygovernment

MARCH25:RamLalla idolshiftedtoatemporary locationinthepresenceofUttarPradeshChiefMinisterYogiAdityanath

JULY22:TrustsaysbhoomipujanonAug5,expectedtobeattendedbyPMModi

TheRamtemplehasbeenonChandrakantSompura’sdrawingboardforcloseto30years.Astheplanbeginstotakeshape,withabhoomipujanplannedforAug5,TheSundayExpressmeetstheAhmedabad-basedarchitectandvisitsAyodhya,atowndressingupforthebigday

AYODHYA 2.0.2.0

Thesite inDhannipurnearAyodhyaforamosquehasseen littlemovement.MorethanAug5, thevillage’seyesarefixedonrisingCovidcases.AvaneeshMishra

Acomputerised3Dviewof theRamtemple

Withdesignsfor“200temples”beweenthem,it’sall inthefamilyfortheAhmedabad-basedSompuras, ledbypatriarchChandrakant(centre). JavedRaja

‘Bigger temple,3 domes, doublethe sandstone’

In town, waitingfor tourists asmuch as temple

New Delhi

14 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHE SUNDAY EXPRESS,JULY26,2020OPINION

POLITICAL RANCOUR can spring forthmanyways, at times to signal the start ofa power tussle, at other times, its culmi-nationwithapartingofways.And it’sondisplay inRajasthan.Always careful with words, Chief

Minister Ashok Gehlot, veteran of manybattles in Jaipur andDelhi, finally turnedto name-calling. He dug deep to find aword for party rival Sachin Pilot:Nikamma, theuseless.Thatwashiswayof sayingitwasover

betweenthem.But that choice of wordwould have

madetwoformerprimeministers situp.Becausenikammawasthewordrivalshadpicked,11yearsapart, to targetHDDeveGowdaandManmohanSinghduringat-tempts tounseat themfrompower.DeveGowdacouldn’tsavehisgovern-

ment in 1997 while Singhmanaged torustleupnumbers in2008.Hurt, both Deve Gowda and Singh

gave it back — the first to Sitaram Kesriwho, as president of the Congress sup-porting the United Front government,pulled the plug, and the second to thenleaderofopposition,LKAdvaniof theBJP,following Left withdrawal of support totheUPA-Igovernment.The remarks of the twoprimeminis-

ters are part of Lok Sabha records on themotion of confidence eachmoved in theHouse.Savedforposterity,thedebatesof-fer a glimpse of an Indiawhen coalitionwasthenormandgovernmentsreliedonexternal support.In1997, at the11thhourof 11thApril,

the11thPrimeMinisterof Indiamovedamotion of confidence in the 11th LokSabha. The fate of his 11-month govern-ment was sealed 11 days ago when hefound out that Kesri hadmoved to bringhim down. Deve Gowda decided to godownfighting.Other thanhim, 25memberspartici-

pated in thedebate, among themRajeshPilot, the MP from Dausa and father ofSachinPilot.GehlotwasthentheCongressMPfromJodhpur.Replying to the debate, Deve Gowda

singled out Kesri for calling him anikamma. “Today, I would like to tell thenation,throughthisHouse,whatthelan-guage used by the Hon. president of theCongress(I)whoisaspiringtobecometheLeaderwas…I amunable tounderstandthe meaning of the Hindi word,‘nikamma’.Hesaid:Youare foolish, cow-ard and powerless. Just come into theopenand letus seewho ispowerful.”

“HehasquotedinHindi…Thismanisnot only incompetent, but he is alsocommunal.”“…Sir, a foolish and an incompetent

primeminister,at least, triedtodosome-thingfor thenation…There isnoneedofanycertificatefromthepresentpresidentof the Congress (I)… As long as ShriNarasimhaRaowaspresident, therewasnoproblem.OnthedayShriSitaramKesribecamepresidentof theCongressparty, Icalled him for lunch…But on the fourthday, when one of my chief ministers, DrFarooq Abdullah… went to see ShriSitaramKesri, hewas told not to join theUnitedFrontgovernmentbecausehewasgoing towithdrawsupport.”“The charge levelled againstmewas

that I had neglected Shri Sitaram Kesriafterhebecamepresident. It isnotbasedon truth, but based on something else.There isaheadlinewhichcorrectlysays,‘India’s old man in a hurry: Now orNever.'Thiswasnotwrittenbyanyof theIndian papers. It had appeared in theLondon Times.”DeveGowda’sold-man-in-a-hurryre-

markhadtheCongressprotestingandPJKurien,MP fromMavelikara, sought theSpeaker’s ruling. His objection wasoverruled.Theprimeministertoorefusedtoback

down.“It isnotaquestionofattackinganindividual…Ihavegotthehighestregardforyou,Kurienji.Butwhatisthisnikammaorakamma?”hesaid.Afterhecompletedhis reply, themo-

tion of confidencewasput to vote. Ayes-158, Noes 292. Motion negatived. DeveGowdaandhisgovernment fell.Eleven years later, it was the turn of

Manmohan Singh tomove amotion ofconfidenceintheLokSabhaaftertheLeft,protesting against the Indo-US nucleardeal,withdrewsupport.The debate began on July 21, 2008,

and continued the next day. The PrimeMinister’sreplywasmarredbyinterrup-tionsandtheSpeakertoldhim:“Youmaylay your speech on the Table oftheHouse.”Singh did that. He did not just record

his objection to theword nikamma, butalsotookaswipeatAdvani—verysimilarto Gowda’s old-man-in-a-hurry remarkaboutKesri.This is what Singh placed on record:

“Theleaderofopposition,ShriLKAdvani,has chosen to use all manner of abusiveobjectives to describemy performance.He has described me as the weakestprimeminister, a nikamma PM, and ofhavingdevalued theofficeof PM.”“To fulfil his ambitions, he hasmade

at least threeattemptstotoppleourgov-ernment. But on each occasion, his as-trologershavemisledhim. Thispattern,I am sure, will be repeated today. At hisripe old age, I do not expect Shri Advanito change his thinking. But for his sakeand India’s sake, I urge him at least tochange his astrologers so that he getsmore accurate predictions of thingsto come.”

ANIMPORTANTanniversarywentunno-ticedlastweek.Iwouldhavemisseditmy-self if I hadnot spottedonTwitterablackandwhite photograph of DrManmohanSinghmakingthatBudgetspeechin1991thatbegantheendoftheLicenceRaj.And,saved India frombecoming an economicbasketcase.Abovethepicturewerethesewordsfromhisspeech.“Afterfourdecadesof planning for industrialisation,wehavenow reached a stage of developmentwherewe shouldwelcome, rather thanfear, foreign investment.”ItwasaseminalmomentinIndia’seco-

nomic history. Especially, for people likemewho believe that India would havebeenarichcountryifwehadnotadoptedaneconomicmodelthatgaveofficialdomdraconianpowers to crushprivate enter-prise.IrememberwellwhatadismalplaceIndiawasintheSeventieswhenIbecamea journalist. Everythingwas in short sup-ply and the goodswe producedwere soshoddy that nobodywanted them. Thewhole country had a shabby, decayingqualityabout it, as if ithademerged fromlong years of war. Almost everyonewaspoororalmostpoor.But,wewereisolatedfrom the big changes and events of theworld,sowedidnotknowthatintheeast,smallcountriesthathadoncebeenbehindushadstreakedahead.Or thatChinahaddumpedMarxisteconomicsforfreemar-ketsandforeign investment.By the timewise old P V Narasimha

Rao realised that it was time for India tostartcatchingup,wehadbeenleft farbe-hind bymost Southeast Asian countries.But, that one Budget brought such dra-maticeconomicchangethatbytheendofthe Nineties, India, where the only jobsavailableoncewerethosebestowedbythegovernment,wascreatingmillionsof jobsintheprivatesector.Today,morethan45%of our population is middle class. Wewould today be progressing faster still ifNarendraModihad livedup tohisprom-ise of taking India in a neweconomic di-rection.Itisourtragedythathegotscaredinto returning to theNehruvian socialistpathbyRahulGandhi’sfoolishtauntabout‘suit-bootki sarkar’.Since the pandemic, Modi seems to

have rediscovered thatheneeds tomakean economic course correction. So lastweekheurged foreign investors to comeand invest in India. ‘TherehasneverbeenabettertimetoinvestinIndia,’hesaid.Hethen boasted of howmany reforms hisgovernmenthadmadetomakeiteasiertodo business. He sounded as if hemeantwhathesaidandthisworriedmebecauseitmademerealisethathehasnotnoticedthat since he became PrimeMinister aninspector raj has been unleashed thatwould drive away themost intrepid in-vestors. The government’s own InvestIndiaarmhasidentified767pre-operationlicences that an investor is obliged to getfrom 35 ministries before startingabusiness.ThePrimeMinisterhaschosentowork

in a cocoon since he first took the job sixyearsago.So,thosepeoplehavebeenkeptat a distancewho could tell himhowof-ten andhow recklessly his officialsmakeregulations thatmake it harder and noteasiertodobusiness.ThosewhowouldbeabletotellhimhowmanyfineIndiancom-panies face bankruptcy, only because hisgovernment refuses to honour its con-tracts, are kept even further away. Sincethepandemic, thewallsofModi’scocoonhavebeenfortifiedsoheworksinacham-berthattotally insulateshimfromreality.The biggest political problemModi is

likelytofaceinthenearfutureistheecon-omy, so it is time thathe started listeningtothosewhocanreallytellhimhowdiffi-cult it remainstodobusiness inIndia. It isnot justbiginvestorswhoarehoundedatevery step by inspectors and regulators,evenmodestinvestorsfindithardtogrowtheirbusinessesintoday’sIndia.So,itisnosurprisethattheeconomyhasnotseentheboomthateveryonethoughtwouldhap-pen, just like that one thatwe saw in theNineties.Allthathasbeenachievedinthepast six years is that the socialistwelfareStatehasworkedmoreefficientlyandwithless corruption. This is whyModiwon asecondterm.The Chinese virus and international

disenchantmentwithChinaofferModi asecondchancetochangecourse,andmakethe administrative changes that are nec-essary if India is tomove frompoverty toprosperity. He could begin by asking hisofficetofindoutwhichinspectorsandreg-ulationscanbethrownforthwithintothenearestgarbagebin.And,oncethisisdone,heshouldstepoutofhiscocoonandstartlistening to thosewho are already doingbusiness in India and try andunderstandwhatitisthatpreventsthemfromdoingitmoreeasily.Whatwe need todaymore than ever

isanothermomentliketheonethatcameinthisweek30yearsagowhenoneBudgetchangedIndianeconomicandpoliticalhis-tory.OnapersonalnotemayIreiteratethatI becameaModi ‘bhakt’mostly because Ibelieved he knew that for India tomovefrom the limited goal of poverty allevia-tion, to a grander goal of real prosperity,wewould have to change our economicdirection.Hehasasecondchanceto fulfilthispromise.

Hard truthsabout theeconomy

FifthCOLUMNTAVLEENSINGHTwitter@tavleen_singh

THECONSTITUTION is one document onwhich there is perhaps the largestmeas-ure of agreement across political parties,regions, andpeople.Not everyoneknowsthedetailsandlawyershavefunandmakemoneyarguingoversubtlepoints.Butthenational flag and national anthemapart,nothingelsecommandsall-Indiarespect.Yet, which Constitution? Is it the

Constitution handed over by theConstituentAssembly inNovember1949or the presentmuch amended one? DopeopleknowthatIndiaistheonlycountry

withfreedemocraticelectionswhereeverycandidatehastodeclarehis/heradherenceto socialism? Is this consistentwith free-domofspeechandexpression?Intoxicatedbyhis largemajority in the1984election,Rajiv Gandhi passed the Tenth Scheduleandblithely tookaway freedomof all leg-islators forever.Nogovernmentsincehasdared to challenge or change thismon-strous denial of freedom. The founders ofthe Constitution had never intended tomake India a Socialist Republic. It wasIndiraGandhiduringtheEmergencywhodeclared India to be a Socialist country.Obviously,nooneseriouslybelievesintheDeclaration theyneed tomake to be abletocontestelections.

Many people still complain that thechargeoftreasonislaidagainstpoliticaldis-sidents too lightly. It suitsOppositionpar-ties toblamethegovernment.But theBJPhas been in a ruling capacity, off and on,only since 1996. The treason charge hasbeenonbookseversince1951.AsIhavere-marked before, it was Jawaharlal Nehruwho drafted and piloted the FirstAmendment inMay1951,15months intothe life of the youngRepublic, andmodi-fied or negated every fundamental rightcreated in the Constitution. These rightswere not available to a colonised people.AnindependentRepublicalonecouldgrantthese rights. But the rulers of new Indiacould not risk the people enjoying such

rights.SoqualificationswerelegislatedbythebelovedLeaderofNewIndiawhichputcitizensbackinthesamelegalpositionvis-a-vis the State as they had under Britishrule. So the Indian Penal Code, ThomasBabingtonMacaulay’sgifttoIndia,remainsthe guard dog of the fetters put onNewIndiabyJawaharlalNehru.The current dispute in Rajasthan is a

legacypartlyofSchedule10,whichwantedtodiscouragedefections.Obviouslyjustbe-causeyouareanelectedlegislator,youcan-not be free to choose which party youshouldjoinorquit.Sowehavethecharadeof Speakers sending notices to legislatorsimprisoned in five-star hotels, far awayfromtheirbaseetc.Asitis,theselegislators

donotenjoyfreedomofspeechunlesstheyparrotthepartyline.Whybothertospeak?Politicalpartiesaretoohappywiththe

fettersof theamendedConstitutiontotryto change it. There is no reasonwhy citi-zensshouldnot takeupthetaskofdebat-ingConstitutionalreform.Anon-partypo-litical citizens’movement could unearththesorryhistoryofthespoilageoftheorig-inal1949Constitutionandstartacampaignfortheremovalof thebadelementsintro-duced.It istherightanddutyofcitizenstoreclaimtheiroriginalfreedomsasitismorethanunlikelythatgovernmentsofanypo-liticalpartywhichbenefitfromtheirpowerovercitizenswillrenouncetheirprivilege.If citizensdon’t,nooneelsewill.

Jaipur crisis: Need for citizen campaignOut ofMYMINDMEGHNADDESAI

IF YOU search the Internet for informa-tion on The Spider’s Web, you will findwhatisdescribedas ‘Sixsurprisingfactsaboutspiderwebs’.Readon,andyouwillfind that1. Spidershaveadesignsense,2. Spiderwebs don’t intercept prey;

theyattract them,3. Spiderwebsareshiny fora reason,4. Spidersare sneaky,5. Spiders thinkbig, and6. Spiders often replace their web

everyday.If you are thinking likeme, youwill

say “howappropriate!”. Theyseemap-propriatetothegravelyuncertainsitua-tion on the India-China border. Theyseemappropriatetothelosingbattlewearewagingagainstthecoronavirus.Theyseemappropriate to thedespair amongordinarypeople facingarapidlysinkingeconomy and joblessness. And theyseemappropriatetotheluxurytussle inRajasthan that the two principal politi-calpartiesare locked in.

RAJASTHANMrSachin Pilot is a youngmanwith

bigambitions.Nothingwrongwiththat,except the timing of his strike hasWRONGwrittenallover.Thenation, in-cludingRajasthan, is facingatriplechal-lenge of the kind it has never faced be-fore.TheBJP,bothpartyandgovernment,have thrown in the towel as far as theeconomy and the pandemic are con-cerned. Against the Chinese threat, the

government is floundering and not re-vealing the truesituationontheborder.The government’s spokespersons havean unenviable task explaining the con-tradictions.IwouldbesurprisedifMrLavAgarwal (the Union Health Secretary)understandswhatMrAnuragSrivastava(theMEAspokesperson)saysorifeitherof themhasnoticedthegreenshootstheFinanceMinister seeseveryweek.MrPilotisnotcutfromthesamecloth

astheBJPis,orsowebelieved.Heshouldhave channelled all his energies to helpthepeoplefightthepandemicaswellasget the state’s economybackon its feet.He had before him the example of theunflappableMohanLalSukhadia(hebe-cametheRajasthanChiefMinisterattheage of 38, and remained the CM for 17years).MrPilotshouldhavepreparedtorun themarathon— and he could havebeen chief minister for as long asSukhadia was. Uncharacteristically, hedidn’t have a design sense and he triedto intercept his prey. As a result, he is inmid-sea not knowing toward whichshoreheshould rowhisboat.

THE ECONOMYLookat theeconomyorwhat is leftof

thewreck.Weareinforadeeperandmoreprolonged recession thanwasestimatedearlier.Thefirstquarterisgone,yetthereisnosignofafiscalstimulusoranyefforttoboost consumer demand for goods andservices. The only oneswho think thatmonetarymeasureswill be sufficient to

revive economic growthareMsNirmalaSitharaman,MrKVSubramanian,MrRajivKumar and the PrimeMinister’s speechwriter. There is still one finger left on ahand, and there is nobodywhowants tobecountedwiththequartet.Everyfeeblemeasurewill amount to nothing if ourrulersdonothaveasenseofdesignaboutre-constructing the economy that haspracticallycollapsed.

CORONAVIRUSThe virus sharesmany—not all—of

the characteristics of the spider. It hassneakedintoeverycountryand,inacoun-try as large as India, into every state andeverydistrict. It hasadapted to thevastlydifferentconditionsofeverycountry—de-mographics, climate, people’s habits,health infrastructure, income levels, pre-parednessandthegovernment’sadminis-trative capacity.When the Indianpeoplewere assured that the battle against theviruswouldbewonin21daysbynolessaperson than the PrimeMinister— whocompared it to the 18-dayMahabharatawar— little did they know that itwas afalse promise based onneithermedicalsciencenormedievalbeliefs.Wehavenowlearned that there is noweapon againstthe virus until a vaccine is discovered,provedanddistributed. Thepeoplehavegivenuponthegovernments,Centralandstate.Thosewhocanaffordtodoso,haveisolated themselves; thosewho cannot,have shed fear. Lifewill return to a new‘normal’thatwillincludeacertaincasefa-

talityratio.Thejoker inthepackistheto-tally useless ‘lock-unlock’ epileptic fits ofgovernments.Nomatter howoftengov-ernments change their web, they canmakenodifferencewhatsoever.

CHINAChinaisthearchetypalspider.Itshares

allthecharacteristicsofaspider.Aboveall,itthinksbigandattractsitsprey.EighteenmeetingswithChina’sleaderinsixyears,includingaStatevisitandthreeSummits,canflatteranyascetic.MrNarendraModiis no ascetic, he has a big ego (all primeministershave)andbiggerdesignsforhisparty. Mr Xi Jinping took an accuratemeasure ofMrModi, flatteredhimwitha High-Level Economic and TradeDialogue,offeredtoencouragemutualin-vestments, and promised him aworld-sized stage in 2020declared as the ‘Yearof India-China Cultural and People-to-PeopleExchanges’. TheninJanuary2020,hegavethego-aheadtothePLAtoinvadeIndia. For China, India is just another firethatMrXi started alongwith other fireslikeHongKong,Taiwan,SouthChinaSea,Belt-and-RoadinitiativeandanincipientQuadwithPakistan,TurkeyandIran.Ifthefiresingessome,sobeit,Chinawillpow-erfully rise. Ask yourself, whichworldleader except the unpredictable MrDonald Trump has condemned theChineseaggressionagainstIndia?IfChinaisthespider, Indiaisthepreythatwasat-tractedtothespider’sweb.Spidersnever rest.

The spider’sweb

Mr Pilot is not cut from thesame cloth as the BJP is, or sowe believed. He should havechannelled all his energies to

help the people fight thepandemic as well as get thestate’s economy back on itsfeet. He had before him theexample of the unflappable

Mohan Lal Sukhadia.Mr Pilot should haveprepared to run the

marathon — and he couldhave been chief ministerfor as long as Mohanlal

Sukhadia was

AcrossTHEAISLE

PCHIDAMBARAMWebsite:pchidambaram.inTwitter@Pchidambaram_IN

[email protected]

There’s a familiarring to nikamma

Gowda(extremeleft),Kesri(extremeright)atRashtrapatiBhavanin1996.Archive

INDIA AS a nation owes a huge debt toDalits — uponwhose backs its civilisa-tionalcolumnshavebeenraised.Dalittal-ent, skill and staminamake India one ofthemostdesirableplacesforoutsiders,in-cluding theBritish.Variousart forms, lit-erature,music,poetryoriginate fromtheDalit,Adivasi andShudraworlds. In theirinventive genius and performative zeal,theDalits havehymnedandhummed totherhythmsof their tragedies,preservedtheir culture amidst the torture of un-touchability.Theyhavecriedandprayed,protested

and fought back. In all of this, they havepaved thepath fornewformsof sensorialexperiences.Almostallthe‘classical’Indianartforms

haveDalit origins. There are examples ofDalitartbeingstolenandBrahminised.AndtostoptheDalitsfromreclaimingthesame,theywerebarredfrompractisingandpar-ticipatinginmanyof thearts.This eliminatedany competitive edge

thatDalit talentmighthaveposed. That iswhy,eventoday,manyclassical arteventsarebereftofDalitparticipation.Even in other innovations, the Dalits

havehelpedscienceflourishandrational-ism take precedence. In their spiritualpractices and prayers, the belief in theAlmighty is rooted in the essence of en-lightenment.Howthendowereconcileourpastmis-

takesofmurderingtheDalitexistencesoastoremedythesituationforfuturework?Onepossiblewayistothinkaboutrepa-

rations, “making amends for thewrongsonehasdone, bypayingmoney tooroth-erwise helping those who have beenwronged”. It isoneof themeanstocorrectthe past and on-going injustices.Reparations can be categorised in threebroadtypes:Moralreparation:Acknowledgement

ofpastmistakesandseekingforgivenesstoestablishahealingprocessforthewoundedsoulsandtraumatisedminds.Spiritualreparation:Givingleadership

and respect to communitieswhose at-temptsatspiritualityweredeclaredacrime.Conditionalreparation:Thisisarepa-

ration in the formofmoney andmaterial

reimbursements. It flows from the socialandeconomicfactorsthatstoletheland,la-borandvalueofanentirecommunity.Reparations are an international de-

mandof colonisedcountries. TheLancetCommission on Reparations was set upat Harvard’s Medical School to examinethe “moral, legal, economic, historical,and political evidence for various globalclaims to reparations and redistributivejustice”.AlongsidetheAfricanAmericans,Roma, Caribbean Slavery, victims ofIndia’s caste systemwere also given ahearing. The Indian case was presentedby theeconomists SukhadeoThorat andAmitThorat.Reparation facilitates an occasion for

thecountrytocometogethertoreflectontheenormousweightofunpaidlabourbytheDalits,whoputtheirsweatandbloodto raise thenation’s economy, from farmtoindustries.Thesoulof thecountrycon-tinuestobetorn.Tostitchitbackweneedredistributive justice and reparations topiece it together.Redistributive justice inthe form of land redistribution and tak-ingintoaccountthetoilofDalitwomen’swombs.In the fiestas of protests and justice

movements, theDalits havenot yet comearound demanding reparations. It is achancetoshowamirrortothesocietythatcontinuestoseeanti-Dalitviolenceandha-tredduetoitsownintrinsicinsecurities.Theseinsecuritieshavebeenbuiltover

generations. Reparations are anopportu-nityforustocometogetherasanationandhelp rebuild the broken promise thatIndependenceheldout.Each institution in this country is im-

plicitinthiscrimeofDalitviolence.Thishaseasily transfused into the structures thatholdthiscountrytogether.Representationthroughreservationisjust

onewaytorender justice to theoppressedcasteswhose labouranddignitywere re-ducedtonothingbytherulingcastesofIndia.Asanation,weneedtobeabletogrieve

collectively toovercome.This country canmournforthevictimsoftheNazigenocide,even the victims of the India-PakistanPartition,butitbecomeshardasstoneatthemerementionofatrocitiesagainstDalits.Tochangethisblatantapathy,weneed

tostartanew.Theconstitutionalpromisesthrough reservations and land reformswereoneof the fewways for us to get to-gether. But these remainhotly contested.Reparation is oneof themost viablewaystosecurejusticeforall.

SurajYengde,authorofCasteMatters,curatesthefortnightly ‘Dalitality’column

DalitalitySURAJYENGDETwitter@Surajyengde

It’s time India paidreparations to its Dalits

New Delhi


THEWORLDWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

MEANWHILE

EPSTEINMANSIONSUP FORSALEAT$110MNThe palatial mansions in New York City and Florida owned by Jeffrey Epstein, wherethe notorious financier was accused of running an elaborate sex-trafficking scheme in-volving underage girls, will be listed for sale for a combined $110 million.

SWEDEN

FemalepriestsoutnumbermalesinChurchofSwedenTHECHURCHof Swedenhas more female thanmale priests for the firsttime, according to num-bers released thismonth,a sign of huge strides forgender equality sincewomenwerefirstallowedtobeordainedin1960.TheLutheran institution,which was the officialSwedish state churchun-til2000,nowcounts1,533womenserving aspriestsand 1,527men. Its arch-bishopandseveralbishopsarealsowomen.“It’samir-rorofthesociety,inaway,”the Rev Elisabeth ObergHansensaidaftergivingasermon in a small churchinStockholm.

RevElisabethObergHansenwithastudentinStockholm.AP

TOPOFTHEWORLD

ASIA

Vietnambanswildlife imports,marketsVIETNAMANNOUNCEDFridaythatitwasbanningwildlife imports andwouldclosewildlifemar-kets in response to re-newed concerns aboutthe threat from diseasesthat can jump from ani-mals to humans, such asthe virus that causesCovid-19.Anordersignedby Prime MinisterNguyen Xuan Phuc bansall imports of wildlifedeadoraliveandincludeseggs and larvae. It alsomerits tougher penaltiesfor crimes involving thetrade inwildlife.

USA

CohenleavesprisonforhomeconfinementUS PRESIDENT DonaldTrump’s former personallawyerMichaelCohenleftprison on Friday to finishhis criminal sentence athome, an attorney forCohen said, a day after ajudge found hewas sentback behind bars twoweeks ago as retaliationforplanstopublishabookaboutTrump.Cohenwaspicked up at a prison inOtisville,NewYork,about110kmnorthwestofNewYork City, about 1 pmbyhis son and his brother,the attorney, Jeffrey KLevine, said. Cohenwasexpected to be fitted foran ankle monitor andthen be driven to hisManhattanapartment.

BENJAMINNOVAK&MARCSANTORABUDAPEST, JULY25

HUNGARY’SMOSTwidely readnewssitewas thrownintodisar-ray thisweekafter theorganiza-tion’seditor-in-chiefwasfiredandscoresofjournalistsquitinprotestas thegovernmentmovedclosertonear-completecontroloverthecountry’smedialandscape.Adecade intoPrimeMinister

ViktorOrban’squesttotransformHungaryintoan“illiberal”nation,wherehecontrolsnearlyallleversof the state and uses them tomaintain his grip on power, the

takeoverofIndex.hu’sadvertisingunitbyanOrbanallywaspartofabroader effort to limit dissentingvoicesandsilencecritics.Thepotentiallossofthenews

siteasacheckonthegovernmentwasaparticularlypainfulblowtothesmallbutdeterminedcoterieof independent journalists leftworkinginthecountry.The sitewas oneofmany in-

dependentmediaoutlets incen-tralEuropethathavecomeundersustained financial andpoliticalpressurefromgovernmentsbentoncontrollingpublicdiscourse.More than half the staff at

Index, some 70 employees, an-nounced their resignations

Fridayafter the firingof theedi-tor, SzabolcsDull.“We have emphasised for

years thatwehave two require-mentsforIndextocontinueoper-atingindependently:thattherebe

nooutsideinterferenceinIndex’scontent or in the compositionorstructure of Index’s staff,” thegroupsaidinastatement.“Thefir-ing of SzabolcsDull violated thelatter of these requirements.Hisdismissalwasaclearinterferenceinthecompositionof thestaff.”The steady decline of inde-

pendent news outlets is part ofthe slide toward autocratic rulein Hungary and, to a lesser ex-tent, inPoland.Earlier thismonth, Poland’s

President, Andrzej Duda, nar-rowlywonreelectionafteracam-paign inwhich themediawas afrequent target. Duda accusedGermanyoftryingtoinfluencethe

result through media outletsownedbyGermancompanies.After the election, Jaroslaw

Kaczynski, the leaderof the rul-ingparty, vowed topress aheadwith plans to limitmedia own-ershipby foreigncompanies.ThePolishgovernmenthasof-

tenfollowedthepathsetbyOrban,whohas transformed themedialandscapeinHungarydespiteEUpressuretochangecourse.Hungary’s Constitutional

Courthasbeenstackedandlowercourts overhauled, publicmediaandmostofthecountry’sprivatemediahavecomeunderthecon-trolof thePM’sallies.Inlate2018,hundredsofme-

diaoutletscontrolledbythePM’salliesweregiventoanotherfoun-dationcontrolledbyOrban’scon-fidants. Regulatorswere barredfromscrutinisingthetransactionson grounds that the ownershipchangeswere of “strategic na-tional interest”.But Indexhad largelyweath-

eredmanypolitical stormsoverthe past decade. It has reportedcriticallyof Orban’s government,featuringstoriesofRussianmed-dlinginHungary,allegedgraftin-volving individuals close toOrban’sinnercircle,andbychron-iclingother governmentpolicieswidelycondemnedasassaultsondemocraticinstitutions.NYT

SzabolcsDull,was firedas theeditor inchief of Index,Hungary’smain independentwebsite.Reuters

JANEWARDELLJULY25

ALMOST 40 countries have re-portedrecordsingle-dayincreasesincoronavirusinfectionsoverthepast week, around double thenumber thatdid so thepreviousweek,accordingtoaReuterstallyshowing a pick-up in the pan-demicineveryregionoftheworld.Therateof caseshasbeenin-

creasingnotonlyincountriesliketheUnitedStates,BrazilandIndia,which have dominated globalheadlineswith large outbreaks,but in Australia, Japan, HongKong, Bolivia, Sudan, Ethiopia,Bulgaria, Belgium, UzbekistanandIsrael,amongothers.Many countries, especially

thosewhereofficials easedear-liersocialdistancinglockdowns,are experiencing a second peakmorethanamonthafterrecord-ing their first.“Wewillnotbegoingbackto

the ‘old normal’. The pandemichasalreadychangedthewaywelive our lives,” World HealthOrganisation (WHO) Director-General Tedros AdhanomGhebreyesus said this week.“We’re asking everyone to treatthe decisions aboutwhere they

go, what they do andwho theymeetwithas life-and-deathde-cisions–because theyare.”The Reuters data, compiled

from official reports, shows asteadyriseinthenumberofcoun-tries reporting record daily in-creases in the virus that causesCovid-19overthepastmonth.Atleast seven countries recordedsuch increases threeweeks ago,risingtoat least13countriestwoweeksagotoatleast20lastweekandto37countriesthisweek.The true numbers of both

casesanddeathsarealmostcer-tainly underreported, particu-larly in countries with poorer

health care systems, health ex-pertsandofficialssay.Forthisre-port, the Reuters data was re-strictedtocountriesthatprovideregulardailynumbers.A surge in cases usually pre-

cedes a rise in deaths by a cou-pleofweeks.Meanwhile,Britain’sgovern-

ment will require all travellersfrom Spain arriving after mid-night on Saturday to spend twoweeksinquarantine,theSundayTimesnewspaperreported.Thiswould deal a heavy blow toSpain,which is trying to recoupits tourism after the Covid-en-forced lockdown.

Record numbers of Covid-19cases in every global region COLLINBINKLEY

JULY25

AWEEKafterrevokingsweepingnewrestrictionsoninternationalstudents,federalimmigrationof-ficials onFridayannounced thatnew foreign students will bebarredfromenteringtheUnitedStates if they plan to take theirclassesentirelyonlinethis fall.Inamemotocollegeofficials,

US Immigration and CustomsEnforcement said new studentswhowerenotalreadyenrolledasofMarch9will“likelynotbeableto obtain” visas if they intend totakecoursesentirelyonline.Theannouncementprimarilyaffectsnewstudentshopingtoenrollatuniversities that will provideclassesentirelyonline.International studentswho

are already in the US or are re-turningfromabroadandalreadyhavevisaswill stillbeallowedtotake classes entirely online, ac-cordingtotheupdate,eveniftheybegin instruction in-person buttheirschoolsmoveonline.The neworderwas released

Friday as a clarification to earlierguidance fromMarch9 that sus-pendedexistinglimitsaroundon-line education for internationalstudents. TheMarch guidancewasmeanttoprovideflexibilityasschoolsclosedcampusesamidthepandemic, but universities hadsaiditwasunclearwhetheritex-tendedtonewstudents.AP

LALITKJHAWASHINGTON, JULY25

AUScourthasrejectedthe$1.5-million bail application ofPakistani-origin Canadian busi-nessman Tahawwur Rana,whohas been declared a fugitive byIndia for his involvement in the2008Mumbaiterrorattackcase,describinghima flight risk.Rana, 59, a childhood friend

of David ColemanHeadley,wasre-arrested on June 10 in LosAngeles on an extradition re-quest by India for his involve-ment in the 2008Mumbai ter-ror attack. He has been adeclared fugitive in India.USDistrictCourtJudgeinLos

Angeles, JacquelineChooljian,inher24-pageorderdated July21,deniedbail toRanaarguingthathewasa flight risk.Describing Rana as a flight

risk,theUSgovernmentopposedhisreleaseonbail,arguingthat ifheweretofleetoCanada,hemayescape the possibility of a deathsentenceinIndia.“Given the stakes, an al-

lowance of bail in any amountwould not guarantee Rana’spresence incourt.Grantingbailwould invite the possibility ofembarrassing theUnitedStatesin the conduct of its foreign af-fairs, straining its relationshipwith India,” Assistant USAttorney John J Lulejian hadtold the court.PTI

POLES RALLY TO KEEP PACT AGAINST DOMESTIC VIOLENCEDemonstrators,dressedas theHandmaids fromthedystopiannovelTheHandmaid’sTale, atananti-domesticviolenceprotest inWarsaw,Poland.ThousandsofpeopleprotestedFridayagainstplansbytheconservativegovernmenttowithdrawfromEurope’s IstanbulConventionagainstdomesticviolenceandviolenceagainstwomenandchildren.ThegovernmentandothercriticscontendtheconventiongoesagainstPoland’sConstitutionandRomanCatholic family traditions.AP

LALITKJHAWASHINGTON, JULY25

AN INDIANwoman has filed alawsuitagainsttheUSCitizenshipand ImmigrationServices over adelayinissuingworkpermits,ac-cusingtheauthoritiesofsittingona backlog of at least 75,000 un-printed EmploymentAuthorisationDocuments.RanjithaSubramanya,whois

on anH-4 dependent visawithher husbandVinod Sinha on anH-1Bworkvisa, inalawsuitfiledbefore a federal court in Ohiosaid that while her applicationto extend her H-4 status andEmployment AuthorisationDocument (EAD)wasapprovedonApril7,shedidnotreceivetheworkauthorisationcard.Asaresult, shewas forcedto

stopworking for her employerafter her initial EAD expired onJune7,2020.An H-4 visa is a visa issued

by the US Citizenship andImmigrationServices(USCIS)totheimmediatefamilymembersof the H-1B visa holders.Spouses on anH-4 visa can ap-ply for anEAD.PTI

REUTERSKUALALUMPUR, JULY25

MALAYSIA ARRESTED aBangladeshinationalwhocrit-icised the government over itstreatment of migrant workersinanewsreportbybroadcasterAl Jazeera, thegovernmentsaidSaturday.TheJuly3reportonMalaysia’s

treatmentofundocumentedfor-eignworkersduringtheCovid-19pandemic sparked a backlash inthe Southeast Asia nation,withseveralofficialsdescribingthere-portasbeinginaccurate.Al Jazeera journalists were

calledinforquestioningbypolice.Anarrestwarrantwasissued

for Md Rayhan Kabir, theBangladeshi worker quoted inthe news report as saying thegovernment discriminatedagainst undocumented foreignworkersbyarrestingand jailingthemduring thepandemic.RayhanwasarrestedonFriday

and will be expelled from thecountry, Immigration DirectorGeneral Khairul DzaimeeDaudsaid in a statement on Saturday.Hedidnot saywhyRayhanwasarrestedorwhetherhewas sus-pectedofcommittingacrime.

SEEMAHAKHUKACHRU&KJMVARMAHOUSTON,BEIJING, JULY25

USFEDERALagentsand lawen-forcement officers entered theChineseconsulatecompoundinHouston,alongwithlocksmiths,afterthemissionwasshutdown,amidst spiralling tensions be-tweenWashingtonandBeijing.The Trump Administration

ramped up its confrontationwith China this week, orderingBeijing’sconsulateinHoustontoclose over concerns about eco-nomicespionage.The consulate closed on

Fridayeveningasthedeadlinesetby the Trumpadministration toshutdownthemissionexpired.After theChinesediplomatic

staffvacatedthebuilding,anum-berofblackSUVs,twowhitevansandalocksmith’svanenteredthecompound,CNNreported.InBeijing,theChineseforeign

expressed strongdissatisfactionandoppositiontotheUSlawen-forcementofficers’“forcedentry”into the consulate and lodged adiplomaticprotest.“Chinawillmakeaproperand

necessaryresponseinthisregard,”theministry said in a statement.The consulate inHouston is thebuilding of the diplomatic con-sulateandisalsoChina’snationalproperty, itsaid.PTI

Treatdecisionsaboutwhere togo,whotomeetas life-and-deathcalls:WHO

40COUNTRIESREPORTRECORDSINGLE-DAY INCREASES

ThousandsofFilipinoswerecrammedintoabaseballstadiuminManilaonSaturdaydespiteCovid-19fearsafterpeoplewantingtoreturntotheirhomeprovincesoverwhelmedagovernmenttransportationprogramme.Reuters

SaoPaulo:BrazilianPresidentJairBolsonarosaidonSaturday thathe has tested negative for thenovel coronavirus after weeksquarantinedinhisresidenceduetoan infection.In a photo posted to social

media,Bolsonaroappearedwithaboxofhydroxychloroquine,ananti-malarial drug he creditedforhis recoverydespitea lackofscientific evidence about its ef-fectiveness. Inanaccompanyingtext, he said his RT-PCR test forSars-Cov2wasnegative.Hedidnot saywhenhetook

the test nor did he provide anyfurtherdetails.Bolsonaro reported testing

positive three times thismonth, including an initial di-agnosis on July 7 for Covid-19,the illness caused by the newcoronavirus.REUTERS

ICE: New foreignstudents can’t enterUS if courses online

All new DACAapplications putin ‘pending’bucket: Lawyer

ASTRIDGALVANPHOENIX, JULY25

THEUSgovernment said Fridaythatit’sputtingnewDACAappli-cations in a “pending” bucketwhileofficialsdecidewhethertoagaintry toendtheprogramforyoung immigrants, keeping en-rollmentstalledeventhoughtheSupremeCourtruledlastmonththat itwas improperlyended.Thelatestcameduringatele-

phonic federal court hearing inMaryland by US District JudgePaulWGrimm,who last weekruledthattheDeferredActionforChildhoodArrivals programmemust be restored to its originalform, before President DonaldTrumptriedtoenditinSept2017.Immigrant advocates who

sued thegovernmentover its at-tempt to endDACAsaynewrul-ingsinthecase,includingtheoneby theSupremeCourt,mean thegovernmentmustresumeaccept-ingandconsideringfirst-timeap-plications. US Citizenship andImmigration Services had onlybeenacceptingrenewalsforDACArecipientswhowere alreadyen-rolledbySept.5,2017.AP

US courtrejects bailplea of 26/11accused Rana

Federalofficialsanda locksmithworktoopenadoorat thevacatedConsulateGeneralofChinabuilding inHouston.AP

US agents enter Chinaconsulate in Houston

Feds push into Portland streets, fire teargasMIKEBAKER,THOMASFULLER&SERGIOOLMOSPORTLAND, JULY25

AFTER FLOODING the streetsaroundthefederalcourthouseinPortland with tear gas duringFriday’s early morning hours,dozensoffederalofficersincam-ouflageandtacticalgearstoodinformation around the front ofthebuilding.Then,asoneprotesterblareda

soundtrackofTheImperialMarch,the officers started advancing.

Throughtheacridhaze,theycon-tinued to fire flashgrenades andwelt-inducingmarble-size ballsfilledwithchemicals.TheymoveddownMainStreetandcontinuedupthehill,whereoneoftheagentsannouncedover a loudspeaker:“Thisisanunlawfulassembly.”

By the time the securityforces halted their advance, thefederal courthouse they hadbeen sent to protect was out ofsight—twoblocksbehindthem.The aggressive incursion of

federalofficersintoPortlandhasbeen stretching the legal limitsof federal law enforcement, asagentswithbatonsandriotgearrange deep into the streets of acitywhoseleadershiphasmadeit clear theyarenotwelcome.“I think it’s absolutely im-

proper,”Oregon’s attorneygen-eral,EllenRosenblum,saidinan

interview on Friday. “It’s ab-solutelybeyondtheirauthority.”Thestate lost itsbidonFriday

forarestrainingorderagainstfourfederal agencies on the groundsthat the state attorney generallackedstanding,butseveralotherchallengesarestillongoing.Federal officerswho arrived

this month to help controlprotests over racial injustice andpoliceviolencehavemadeover40arrests forfederalcrimes, includ-ingassaultsonfederalofficersandfailing to complywith law en-forcementcommands.NYT

Oregonlost itsbidonFridayforarestrainingorderagainst fourfederalagencies

Indian womanfiles case againstUS for delay inwork permits

Malaysia arrestsBangladeshi manafter he criticisesgovt on Al Jazeera

STEADY DECLINE OF INDEPENDENT NEWS OUTLETS IS PART OF THE SLIDE TOWARDS AUTOCRATIC RULE IN HUNGARY

Scores of journalists quit in Hungary as Orban tightens grip on media

CHINAHASdenouncedtheUSactionofenteringitscon-sulatebuildinginHoustononFridayasillegal.Byinterna-tional law,acountryhassov-ereigntyoverthelandonwhichitsconsulatestands.ButtheUSwouldarguethatthebuildinginHoustonwasnolongertheChinesecon-sulatewhenagentsentereditafterWashingtonorderedBeijingtoshutitdown.However,Chineseexpertshavebeenquotedassayingthatsincetheconsulatecom-poundstillbelongedtotheChinesegovernment, itwasinfactillegalforAmericanagentstobreakintoit.

Questionof legality

Bolsonaro saystested negativefor coronavirus

BrazilPresidentJairBolsonaro

New Delhi

Vatsala Mamgain

SOWEstandtogether—allofhumanity,plusthealienswhoconveneandattendwebinars—inthedarkbellyof2020,wonderinghowtogetoutof this toiletbowlof ayear. It remindsmeofasimilartimeinhistory,whenitseemedlikeallhopewaslost,andMahatmaGandhifa-mouslysaid,“Thissucks.IwantmyMummy.”The father of the nationwas, as always,

bangonthemoney.There isnosituation, in-cluding a global pandemic,where the addi-tionofMummyisn’tlikelytomakethingsbet-ter. Or, if not better, then same; exceptwithcake.Whichistheverydefinitionofbetter.Butthereareafewthingsthatarethemo-

lecularoppositeofMummy,thatwon’tmakethetimesanybetter.Here’sthenot-Mummylistof objects, thevestigialorgansof ourpre-COVID,pre-lockdownexistence, that are ab-solutelyuselesstousinlockdown:

●Watches: It’s ironic because the onethingthat this lockdownhasgiftedus isvasttractsoftime.Timeearlierspentoncommut-ing and competitive consumption is nowspentmeaningfully— squinting 27.3 hourseverydayat screens and the remaining27.3hours attempting to redistribute domesticdirt. As awiseman calledAnonymous oncesaid, there’s no time like the present; but ifthe present doesn’t feel like a gift, the lastthingyouneedisawatch.

●Bras: The single biggestwinner of the

lockdown (ok, double biggestwinners) havebeenwomen’s breasts, taking advantage ofself-isolationtothrowofftheunderwiredyokeofoppression.Thefewtimesinlockdownthathave necessitatedwearing one have beengreetedbymostwomenwiththepuppy-likeenthusiasmthatcondemnedprisonersreserveforjailersescortingthemtothenoose.It’sdone,it’sdusted,thepostmortemwillmakeitofficial,

but theswabtestswillprovebeyondadoubtthatCOVIDkilledthebra.

● Laptop bags: Lockdownhas revealedthetruepurposeoflaptopbags,whichistoliearound,trappingallthedustbunniesthatin-expertjhadooscannot.Atthispoint,alllaptopbags have been seized and hauled off to aplanet called Somewhere Out Of theWay.Thingsnevereverfindtheirwayoutof there,

soit’sdefinitelytata,goodbye.●Belts: It’s a scientific fact that calories

consumedwearingcomfytrackpantsarefourtimesmore likely to attach themselves lov-ingly to your body. Aftermonths of this joy-ousunion,it’snowonderthatmostofushavebeenthankingourstarsthatwhateverCOVID-relatedbelt tighteningwemayhavetodo,atleastitwon’tbewiththeactual,physicalbelt.

● Lunchboxes: I have never evermet alunchboxIdidn’tlike,so,forme,thisisahugeblow.Lockdownhasmeant that the lifecycleoffoodhassimplyskippedthelunchboxstage.It isnowtransferredstraight fromthepantothemouth,withoutastopatthelunchboxsta-tion.Whatasadlossforthepanting,drooling,anticipationindustry.

●Heels/ sandals/dressshoes:Likepedi-greed pets sixmonths after adoption, theyhavebeencompletelyabandoned.Giventhatformost of us, our exercise routine has con-sistedofsittingslack-jawedinfrontofascreen,allowingthefatcellsinourthighstomateandhave huge litters, we have had no need forshoes.Atbest,wehavewalkedtothefridgeto

get a snack,which, strenuous as it is after awholedayofthighbreeding,requiresjustonepairof flip-flops.Essentialworkersandthosewho needed towalk homewill, of course,haveneededrelief for theirsoles,butoverall,in2020,themorewell-heeledyouare,thelesswell-heeledyouhaveneededtobe.

●Suitcases:Themostutterly,completely,supremely useless objects of 2020 have allbeen put away, packed to bursting withmetro passes, ties, sunglasses, razors,makeup, dinner jackets, trousers, contactlenses, perfumes and swimsuits. Stuffedsomewherebetweentheseareremnantsofwhat life felt likepre-COVID—memoriesofdark bars and dinner parties, swimmingpools,airportlounges,schoolsportsdays,af-fectionatehugsanddreamsofhaircuts,mas-sagesandholidays.WhetherornotIclaimanythingelsefrom

thedetritus of this year, those are the thingsthat Ican’twait toretrieve.You?

VatsalaMamgainisaglutton,cook,runner,treelover,shopper, readerandtalker

T H E S U N D A Y E X P R E S S M A G A Z I N EJULY 26, 2020 | WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM | PAGE 16

So Long, FarewellThings that COVID-19 has forced us to give up on

Leher Kala

THESE DAYS, it is with alarmthat I view myself in a full-lengthmirrorbeforesteppingout for some tedious chore.Ray-Bans to covermy eyes, acaptocoverwispsofgreyhair

andtheubiquitousmaskstretchinguncom-fortablybehindmyears,itfeelslikeIhavedis-appeared and somebody unrecognisable isstaring back atme.My androgynous outfitgives nothing away either. Loose, casualclothes,thekindthatsixmonthsagoIwouldhave considered unfit for death by suicide.2020 is thewrite-off year wherewemustimaginewearefugitivesindisguisewhoneedtoperpetuallyduck fromadeviousassassin.Among the randomthoughts floating inmyhead,Isuddenlyfeelgratitudethatfateplacedmein India. I couldhavebeenbornonsomeremotemountainsideinAfghanistan,wheredisassociationfromone’sappearanceisman-dated by law. I think about how somuch oftheworldfunctionspermanentlyswathedindrabreligiousgarb,letuspresume,willingly.This is what a face veil must feel like, onlymoreclaustrophobic,becauseunlikeamaskitcoverstheentireheadleavingonlyslits foreyes. MyfacegetshotterandhotterinDelhi’ssearinghumidityandmybreath fogsupmyshades.Thediscomfort frustratesme.

■ ■ ■

Itseemsalmostincrediblethatitwasonlysixmonths ago that I was scrolling downInstagramadmiringarangeofflawlessly-con-toured selfies.Overnight, thosevacation im-ages on exotic beaches or people posing atglamorous art soirées havemagically van-ished.FOMOisnolongerathingwhenevery-one’smissingout.If IthinkaboutwhatIreallymiss during COVID-19, it’s the trivial bits ofkhabar that would come my way aboutfriends, family and situations. Especially, be-causenowallconversationsveerrightbacktothecoronavirus.Nobodycantalkofanythingelse. Besides, no partiesmeanno gossip. Nomorewho-wore-what.Icouldkilltodiscussadressrightnow.Alas,atthismoment,thefearissoheightened,postingapartypicturecouldprovoke amalicious backlash.Howpatheticlifehasbecomecanbeseeninwhatpassesforscandal these days. Therewas a timewhenconversationsconductedinhushedwhispersrevolved around who was sleeping withwhom. In the post-COVIDworld, the newadulteryiswhoissocialisingwithwhom,andhowmuch.Or,who isdumbenough to con-cealameetingwithsomeonewhotestedpos-itive. Calling out peoplewith a cavalier atti-tude to COVID is the latest in armchairactivism. It’snowonderthatupscalehousingsocieties inGurgaonshamemembers foundviolatinghomequarantinerulesandtheyareroundly applauded for it. Everyone’s suspi-ciously sizinguphoweveryoneelse is living,perhapstoreassurethemselvesthattheFearOfGoingOut(FOGO)isjustified,and,so,theyarestill, insomesense,winning.Whilethisnoveltimeisindeedtriggering,

it is also a time for introspection.Mainly, tothink about howhistory’s biggest disasterscouldhavesuchbanalorigins.Ofallthepan-demic-inducedupheavals, fromcareers im-ploding to terrifying confinement, there’sbeen no time to analyse the impact of the

bizarrevisualspectacleconfrontingusontherareoccasionweleaveourhomes.It’ssurrealseeing bodies behind a steeringwheel or agrocerylinebutnotbeingabletogaugetheirexpressions. AsOscarWilde noted, the truemysteryoftheworldisthevisible,notthein-visible.We’re deprived of using a primal in-stincthonedovermillenniumtomakesnap

judgmentsaboutpeople,basedonasmileorafrown.Intheabsenceof facialfeatures,per-sonal aesthetics— fashion and jewellery forinstance,haveceasedtomatter.Considertheirony that COVID-19 has been the greatequaliserbetweenthegood-lookingandthenot-sogoodlooking,andbetweentheshabbyandtrendy.However liberalone’snotionsof

beautyandsophistication,COVID, inonefellswoop, has relegated everyone equally un-appealing,masked.Thecumulativeeffectofthisabruptdismantlingofstylewillhavepro-foundimplications—onbeautynorms,howwe consume andwhat a future cool couldlook like.Last week, a meme titled “Week 20 of

lockdown”was floating aroundWhatsApp.It showed an adorably large and furrowedSaintBernard,itsdroopingdoggyearssweep-ing the floor. The caption read, “When theBotoxbegins towearoff.” Pointbeing, it’s sodangerous to step out thatwe’re better offslidingback toourold,wrinkled, real selves.It’s never beenattractive, admitting towanttoenhanceone’s looks,and, inthemidstofapandemic, it’s downrightunacceptable. Thenarcissismofourtimeshasbeenasubjectofsomanycriticalthink-pieces,thateveryoneisanxiously projecting a perfect version ofthemselves.Sincecountryaftercountrywentinto shutdownmode,what is essential andwhat isn’t has been debated endlessly. Onerightlysupposesifakidneytransplantcanbepostponedsocancosmeticsurgery.However,to state the obvious,what’s necessary is al-wayssubjective.Tosome,thenumberoflikesand retweets is meaningless. To others, itmeans everything.Whenwe appraise ourlives, itwould bedishonest not to recognisethatweall strive tomeetourownstandardsofdesirability.Thejoyof lookinggood—andtherebyfeelinggood—throughnewclothes,new lips or new shoes,cannot be underesti-mated.Showingoffourbest selves is a centralneed,avitalcogthatal-lows us to pass on ourDNAto thenextgener-ation.Asa friendput it,as if coming out ofCOVID broke and job-less isn’t bad enough,most people will alsogain weight and havelower levels of confi-dencethanbefore.Therecordsofprevi-

ous generations tell usold habits die hard, es-pecially onesweneverwantedtogiveupinthefirst place. Womenbought lipstick andstockings in the GreatDepression as well.“This timenext year allof this will be a hazymemory,”predictsRashiBhimani,atrousseauconsultantbasedinGurugram.Itcertainlyap-pearssowhenoneconsiderstheBBCimagesof humungous crowdsoutsideLondonpubsondayoneofreopening.Bhimanihelpsbridesconnectwith fashion designers and choosetherightassortmentof outfits for the family.Three of theweddings shewasworking onwerecancelledbetweenMarchandMay.Oneof the brides decided to go aheadwith thewedding, scaled down to 30 people. But in-steadofherheavybridallehnga,sheoptedtowearaBanarasisari,moreappropriateforanintimatecelebration.This isa legitimate fear,that if people stop spending for anextendedperiodoftime,theymaystopfindingvalueinflauntingwealthonoriginalcreations,forever.Ican’tcounthowmanytimesI’veheardlatelymyfriendsconstantlymarvellingat thestar-tlingdiscoveryofhowlittletheyactuallyneed.Besides, inthelastfiveyears,therehavebeena growing number of prominent climate-changeactivistsandvegansonthescene,whohavemade conspicuous consumption lookdecidedlyuncool.

■ ■ ■

Itdoesseemhardtobelievethatthepan-demic is the end of the road for grandiosewedding extravaganzas, valued at overRs 100,000 crores, considering India’smostinfluential trendsetters have quite recentlyflowndownBeyoncéandtheCirqueduSoleilto entertain their guests. Fashion designerRahulMishra,40,whoshowedatParisHauteCoutureWeek’s online show recently, re-mainsquietlyoptimisticofaslowbutsteadyrecovery, though the pandemic has robbedhis clients of the in-store shopping experi-ence. It was an essential part of the ritual,holding familymeetingswith the designer,discussingembroideriesandcolourthemes,to arrive at the dreamweddingwardrobe.MishrawasquicktoadapttoWhatsAppandInstagrammarketing,wherehepoststrendyshort videos describing India’s intricateweavesandhowtheyfithisdesignvision.Helaunched an e-commerce platform in Juneandheforeseesitbeingwaymoreimportantthat his flagship store five years fromnow.“When I comparemy accounts of July 2019andJuly2020,theydon’tlookverydifferent,”saysMishra. “Inmyopinion, clientswill be-

comemore discerningandwill investmore inunderstanding crafts-manship and the storybehindabrand.”Indeed, evenabrief

re-evaluation of con-sumerist values willcreate havoc in everyindustry,notjustforthelakhsemployedinfash-ion and celebrationbusinesses. Some cor-rections were longoverdue. It’s also truethat memories areshort.Whilemorepeo-ple are questioning ifeverything we did toself-optimisemattered,it’sonlybecausethelastfewmonths have beensodiscombobulating.Adecade from now,when academics haveanalysed all the

changes COVIDwrought upon us, perhaps,onewill be that fine linesandwhitehair areacceptable imperfections. Itmust be notedthatdespitethepallofgloom,it’snotlikepeo-pleareokaywithstayinghome,hairyandun-kempt.Amazonandotheronlinestoreshavenoted the rise in demand of do-it-yourselfhomebeautykits.Whilesalesoflipstickshavecrashed, nail-polish brands are doing verywell. Eyemakeup tutorials on YouTube arenotchinguplakhsofhits.There’s somethingto be said for thewell-known contradictionthatSaudiArabiahasalwaysbeenfamousfor— howevermodestly covered thewomenmay be, they are the largest consumers ofmakeup in the world. No doubt there is apause in normal lifewhile people considerwhattheywanttorenderobsolete,andbringback.Iseealotofspiritualmetaphorsaroundthatthiscatastropheismeanttoforceusintonewbeginnings.Morepertinently, it is a re-minder thatwethriveonthesharedexperi-ence, and community is preciselywhat thiscapriciousvirustearsapart.

LeherKala isdirector,HutkayFilms,andacolumnistwithTheIndianExpress

GOING, GOING, GONE(From left) Watches, lunchboxes and belts

eyeMirror, Mirror, On the Wall

In this pandemic-ridden world, we live hermetic lives now. So, is dressing up and going out a thing of the past ?

VANITY FARE(Above) Actor Sonam Kapoor in a Rohit Bal design at a fashion week in Delhi; a model wearing a creation by Rahul Mishra

EXPRESSARCHIVE

PHOTOS:GETTYIMAGES

COURTESY:RAHULMISHRA

THEWAYWELIVE

Small is BeautifulThe big, fat Indian wedding is shrinking.At least, till the pandemic is around

SPOTLIGHT

The New Trees of DelhiPradip Krishen on what the central vista

makeover can mean for the national capital’sgreen spaces

New Delhi

17JULY 26, 2020

SMALL ISBEAUTIFUL(Top) Sanitisers,

masks and a weddingin Delhi; and a

preparations for areligious ceremony at

a Sikh wedding inDelhi

EYE , THE SUNDAY EXPRESS MAGAZINE

Surbhi Gupta

DELHI-BASED digitalmarketerChaitali Puri and herChandigarh-basedfiancéNitinArora had started planningtheir engagement and wed-

ding in December last year. Theywanted a“big fat Punjabiwedding”, says Puri, a two-day event onMay1 and2,whichwould in-clude pheras at sunset followed by a partythatwould last thewholenight. Thecouplegot engaged onMarch 16, but aweek later,everythinglookeduncertain,asthecountrylockeddownonMarch22in response to the COVID-19pandemic.A wedding takes

months, sometimes evenyears,toplan.Eachdetail isagonised over, from coor-dinating outfits with thedecor, to creating sangeetplaylists, researching des-tinationvenues, and sam-pling lavishmenus. Mostemergencies are factoredinto the plans, but howcould anyone plan for anunprecedented globalcalamity? Puri and Aroraare among themany cou-pleswhosenuptial planswere foiledby thelockdown.Whilesomedecidedtopostponetheir weddings, others decided to foregogrand events, opting, instead, for intimatefunctions at home, as soon as the govern-ment allowed weddings with up to 50guests, beginningMay4.“This isn’t the time for the big fat Indian

weddingatall;intimateweddingsandhomeceremonies are the way forward,” saysAanchal Tuli, who runs The MillennialBridesmaid, awedding-planning companyin Gurugram. She had twoweddings to or-

ganise in April and two in June. One familywas particular about themuhurat, so theywent aheadwith a ceremony including 10people, at home. Others have postponedtheirplans indefinitely. “Twoofmycouplesareabroad,sothereisnowaytheycancometo Indiaany timesoon,” shesays.Puri andArora finally did getmarried in

anintimateceremonyathome,afterthelat-ter’s father suggested onMay 1 that theycouldstillgoaheadasplannedthenextday.“What followedwere 12hours of completemadness,”Purisays.ThepermissionsfortheweddingandtravelfromChandigarhtoDelhiweremanagedby5pmonMay1andapan-

dit to officiate the cere-mony was finalised by 7pm.Theweddingfeastwascooked at home, and thecelebrantsallworemasks,maintaining proper dis-tance from each other.Sanitiser bottles wereplaced all over the house,says Puri, who wore hermother’s sari, alongwithhergrandmother'svintagegoldchoker, insteadof theelaborate lehngawhichshehadn’tbeenable tocollectfromthedesigner.Shafiqullah Dar, a 30-

year-oldteacher incentralKashmir’sBudgamdistrict,too,hadplannedto have a grandwedding onMay 31, withover300peopleinattendance.“Mysistergotmarriedlastyearand600peoplehadgracedthe occasion, and we had served a full-fledgedwazwan,” he says. InKashmir,wed-dingsaresynonymouswithwazwan, a feastcomprising 15 to 35 dishes. So important isthewazwanthatweddingdatesarefixedforwhenthewaza,thecook,isavailable.Guestssit in groups of four around a traami— aroundcopperplatterthatisheapedwithriceandloadedwithdishessuchasseekhkebabs

andmethikorma.Therewasnoneof thisforDar’s wedding. The guest list was trimmeddownto20,andcomprisedonlyimmediatefamily. “We savoured a home-cookedmealserved on individual plates and themenuwasalso limited,”hesays. “Everyonewassoamusedtoseeabaraat,theywerecallingmeaCOVIDdulha,”hesays.“Alotofweddings inKashmirhappenin

June and go on till October. We had somebookingsbeforeRamzanandsomeafter,butnowdue to the pandemic,most are gettingcancelled andwe are being asked to returntheadvance,” says JavedAhmedBhatt,whorunsHamdardTentHouse inAnantnagdis-trict. “We’ve lived through unrest and cur-fews in2008, 2010 and2016, butweddingsused to takeplace, even if fewer innumber.But during the pandemic, there have beenalmost noweddings,” says Bhatt. The fewthatdohappen featurewhat is being calledthe “pandemicwazwan”,with fewerdishescookedandservedbywazasinPPEsuitsand,likeatDar’swedding,eatenbyguestson in-dividualmini traamis.One of the biggest challenges is prepar-

ing the guest list, says Namrata Rajgarhia,owner-founderofTwoFatLadies,aMumbai-basedwedding planning company. Besides

organising two to three different events fordifferent groups of 50 people each, they’veinstitutedastrict RSVPsystem.AccordingtoTuli,peoplenolongerwant

to spend huge sums onweddings, and nei-ther do theywant large, elaborately deco-rated venues, where the paucity of guestswillonlymakethecontrastwithweddingsinpre-COVIDtimesappearstarker.Foodmenushave changed because guest lists haveshrunk and buffets are being avoided be-causeof hygieneconcerns.Theintimateartofbridalmake-upisone

of thepeculiarchallengesofweddingsrightnow. Delhi-based make-up artist LeenaBhushanensuresthatshe’saloneintheroomwiththebrideandoneassistantwhenwork-ing. “We’re sanitising our products beforeand after themake-up, washing our handsconstantlyanddoingtemperaturechecksofthe brides, apart fromwearingmasks, faceshieldsandPPEsuits. I’mcoveredfromheadtotoe,”shesays,“Butitistakingusfourhoursinstead of twowith one bride, so ourworkhasonly increased,” shesays.Weddingsplanners arenowrequired to

sourcemasks and sanitisers as well. Goodqualitymasksareboughtandmadetomatchthe themeof theoccasion. “Every tablewillhaveasanitiserandentryandexitwillhavethe standing sanitising unit,” says Tuli.Wedding planning teams have also shrunkinsize.“Weusedtoworkwithfull-timeem-ployees and freelancers, but nowwe’ll onlyworkwith employeeswhose backgroundswe’re sureof,” shesays.Still, weddings, like other celebrations,

areaboutfamiliesandcommunitiescomingtogether and social distancing remains achallenge. “It’s such a social event, you enduphuggingpeople, touchingthe feetof eld-ers,ordancingwithfriends,”Rajgarhiasays.Herrecommendationisthatherclientspost-pone their plans, if they can. “Those whowanttodoitnowshouldoptforhomecere-monies,withabiggercelebration later.”

ALLHUMANS, includingrefugeeswhohavebeendispossessedof theirbirthplace,areofa certain ethnicity.Wemight choose to benomads,ormigrantsorliveinalandfarawayfromourhomeland,butourethnicityneverchanges.Weareborntoit,anddiebeingof it.At 20, I foundmyself inManhattan, the

financial,culturalandurbanepicentreof theUnited States. Often called “The City” bythosewhohavevisited,livedin,ordonebusi-nessthere.Withitshighenergy,endlessop-portunities, and rare ability to help peoplerealise theirdreams, it is incomparablycos-mopolitananduniquelyecumenical.My arrival in New York City mademe

awareofmyethnicity for the first time. As acollege-goer in India, I was routinely con-frontedwith the question, “What are you?”WhenIanswered“Iamahumanchild”,Ipro-voked disgust atmynaïveté. And, then, im-patienceatmyunwillingness toacceptsuchquestions and their expected answers ascommonplace. My questioners, mostlyMaharashtrians,were quick to considermePunjabi or Kashmiri. Some even assumed Iwas “mixed breed”. Many had no qualmsabout callingme chikna, code for someone

fair,smoothandsoft,orevenfeminine,pretty,or gay. It further needledmy questionerswhen I refused to givemy last name. ThosefamiliarwithpopularAmericanmusicwouldaccuse me of fashioning myself afterMadonna. Truth be told, I was a student ofHindustaniclassicalvocalmusic.Notevenre-motelyafanofMadonna. Iwasalsonotafanofbeingboxedintostereotypesand“isms”.Isawlifethroughaprismofmyownmak-

ing.Monochromaticlifeboredme.Ipreferredacolourfulwayof thinking, livingandbeing.Mumbaiwas,tomylateteensensibilities,theManhattanof India.Yet itwasNewYorkCitywhere I wanted to study, come of age, andchart thecourseofmylife’s journey.Visitingitinmymid-teens,Isawfirsthandthepoten-tialofthepeerlesslybrilliantcity.I leftithun-gryformore.Leavingbehindbitsandbobsofmewaitingtoreunitewithmysoul.Yearningforasenseofhomeandbelonging.ManhattanwaseverythingIwanteditto

beandthensome.ThepeopleofManhattananditsboroughswereauniqueandinterest-inglotofhumanity.Apoolandcreedofpeo-pleforwhomallthatmatteredwastheirloveof a richly diverse city, the plurality driving

them to greater heights and keeping themrestlessinthepursuitofwhateveritwasthatmade themtick.Manhattan had visitors likeme coming

to it fromall around theworld. The touristsfrom lands afar had sensibilities similar tomyown.With these foreigners, I hadacon-cordance.Discordance—accompaniedbyavisceralugliness—camemostlyfromsmall-townAmericans.Thesewerethepeoplewhoasked aboutmy ethnicity andmy religiousbeliefs. They wanted to place me into astereotypical, formulaiccategory. Intimesofcommunal tensions like9/11, theywere theoneswho spat onme, calledme racial epi-thets, andevenstruckme.Thankfully, thesewererareoccasions,aboutadozenmomentsin27years.As Imakemyhome inDelhi at 47, I find

myself inacityverydifferentfromwhatIleftat18.Delhi isacityof incrediblebeautyandshockingchallengesthatcomewithaboom-ingurbansprawlandindustrialgrowth.Iseethe hustle and bustle thatwasNewYork in1993,butnowherenearascomfortablewithurbanisation as NYC of 2020. I see the glitzand glamour, and I see heart-wrenchingpoverty. I see cacophonous traffic, and sec-tionsofthecountrystillcomingofage,strug-gles similar to the rural outpostwhere I setupafarminNewYorkState.Townsandpeo-ples ignoredby fellowcitizens andcountry,leftbehind in the19thcentury.I am shocked to find the food I grew up

eating, the regional attire, the architectural

sensibilities, the decorative arts — thosethings fromthepast that connectme tomybirthplace — now considered “ethnic”.Commodities brought into themotherlandfromnations far, far away are accorded ac-coladesandpricepoints thatdeify theirbe-ing.CelebratedfortheirNorthernEuropeanprovenance, these things are called “food”,“design”,“art”,and“dress”.WhilewhatI leftbehindandreturnedcravingtobecomeonewithagainisnowlabeledas“ethnic”—“eth-nicclothing”,“ethnicfood”,“ethnicart”,“eth-nicdress”.Colonisers long gone, colonies as we

knewthemdonewith,thenormsof thepastought to be fading away and replacedwithhappily acceptable and accepted old waysandtraditions.WhenwewillinglysuccumbtoStockholmSyndromeandbrandourownsocial and cultural identity as “ethnic”, weare playing right into the hands of the op-pressors. In thismoment, onewe own andinfluence,wearefurtheringthestereotypesanddeepeningthedividesthatdamageourhumancollective.Whenhateisperpetuatedandperpetrated, itendsuphatingthehaterin theend.I amhoping to seeadaywhen Iamsim-

ply Suvir. A human being. A daywhenmyfood, clothing, art, style and language aresimplynouns,withnobelittlingadjective. Atime when they are not reduced to some“ethnic” version of the “norm”, but have aplace of pride in their own homeland. Thebeginningof homelandsecurity.

SuvirSaranSuvir Saran isachef, author, educatorand

world traveller

SLICEOFLIFE

The Wedding Must Go OnThe pandemic and social distancing are shrinking the big, fat Indian wedding —

at least till the virus is around

● ● ●

Planners say peopledo not want to

spend huge sums onweddings, nor dothey want large,

elaboratelydecorated venues

● ● ●

● ● ●

I am shocked to find thefood I grew up eating, theregional attire, and the

decorative arts now beingconsidered ‘ethnic’

● ● ●

Homeland InsecurityCan we ever be seen for who we are, and not what we are?

SUVIRSARAN

PHOTO:CREATIFFILMSBYSAHILARORA

PHOTO:DIPAKSTUDIOS

T H E W A Y W E L I V E

All OurYesterdaysand Todays

EYE SPYEVERYFORTNIGHT,WEPICK,YOUWATCH

Shubhra Gupta

INGROUNDHOGDAY (1993), the film’smiddle-agedleadingman,playedbyBillMurray, is stuck inaper-plexing,never-endinggroove:whatwouldyoudoifeverydaywasexactly thesame,andyouwerestuck

inoneplace,andnothingthatyoudidmattered?AyoungwomaninGeetha J’s100-minutedebut fea-

ture,RunKalyani (2019), couldwellbeaskingherself thatquestion.Kalyani’sdaysseemtobethesame:wakingupinanattic-likeroom,comingdownthesteps,greetingher frail,bed-riddenperiamma (aunt),makingmorningcoffeeandgettingreadyfor theday.Sheworksasacookinacoupleofhomes,at somedistancefromherownmodestdwelling,which is indangerofbeingtakenawayfromher.Debtsarepilingup.Rent is longoverdue.Theaunt’shealth is failing.Everything inKalyani’syounglife(sheappears tobe inherearly20s)seemstobeteeteringonthebrink:wherewill shegofromhere?Theevocative, thought-provokingfilmfollows

Kalyani, asshe letsherself inandoutof thehomessheworks in, clockingtheemotional temperatureof theirresidents, temporarilyapartof theeddy-and-swirloftheir rhythms.Observantviewerswill soonbeginnotic-ingthevariations inthepattern.Nothing isexactly thesame.Therearesubtleshiftseveryday.And,onthefourthday,amomentouseventchangesher life forgood.Geetha J,writer,producer,director,whoshuttlesbe-

tweentheUKandherhometownThiruvananthapuram,beganas journalistandcritic, andsoonmovedintothedocumentaryandexperimental filmspace.Her2005documentary,WomanWithAVideoCamera,wasthefirstof itskind,withwhichshebeganexploringthe livesofordinary,working-classwomen.Howdoestheordinarybecomeextraordinary? It’sall todowiththepoint-of-view,andinRunKalyani,weseethatgazerestuponitsprotagonist, asshemoves fromonedaytoanother.In thewaysheopenshereyes, stretchesandbecomes

awareofhersurroundings,youknowit’sanewday.Doesbeingalonealsomeanbeing lonely?Notwhenyouhaveagood-lookingpartnerwhosharesyourspaceandfeedsyourdreams, readingout lyrical lines fromgreat literarytexts. Ishereal?Oranimaginarycompanion?ThoseofuswhodonotunderstandMalayalamwill

missthebeautyof someof thepoetryandtheliterature,whichlayersthefilm.Agentle,wordlessromancebe-tweenamiddle-agedmanandanabusedwomaniscon-ductedthroughthedeviceofhand-writtenletters(inthisdigital-heavyage, justthethoughtof someoneactuallypickingupapenissheerromance);youseethebeautifulpenmanship,andyoureadthesubtitles,wishingyoucouldunderstandmore.Butwhenitcomestothefeelingsbetweenthetwo,nothinginlost intranslation.Freedomisthesameineverylanguage,asrelayedbyKalyani’smo-bile face,playedbeautifullybyGarggiAnanthan.Thefilmopenedthe20thedition(virtual)of theNew

York IndianFilmFestivalonFriday( July24). It canbewatchedonmoviesaints.com,NYIFF’sscreeningpartner,tillAugust2.

Geetha J’s debut feature is adelightful meditation on tediumand solitude

INSIDE HER WORLDA still from Run Kalyani

New Delhi

TREE FOR JOYAn old rai jamun in

Delhi; (above)Pradip Krishen

BEING HUMANFrancesco Lotoro

S P O T L I G H T18EYE , THE SUNDAY EXPRESS MAGAZINE

JULY 26, 2020

Taking FlightThe fascinating flying and landingtechniques evolved by birds

RanjitLalRanjit Lal isanauthor,environmentalistandbirdwatcher

DOWNINJUNGLELAND

THINKOFthis:vultures,amongst theheaviestofbirds—someweighing inat15kg —arealsothehighest flyingof allbirds, reachingheightsof11,000m,andexpendingscarcelyacalorie in

energywhileupthere.Yes, it takesa lotofmightywing-beatingtogetoff theground,butoncethey’re inthe“zone”, theycanflyhundredsofkilometerswithnaryawing-beat.Hummingbirds, the lightestofbirds,averag-ingaround4g,burnupfuelso fast that theyhavetobeconstantlyrefuellingonthewing,bytaking intheirownbodyweight inhigh-octanenectar.Otherwise, theymight justdropdead.Atnight, theygointoastupor,withheartandrespiratoryratesdroppingdrastically.Asair-craftengineersknow, the lighter theaircraft, theeasier itis togetoff thegroundandsavefuel.Sowhat’swiththesevulturesandhummingbirds?All

birdsarereallydesignedtobeaslightaspossible—theyhavehollowbones—andhavearespiratorysystemthatensuresaconstantsupplyofoxygentotheirmuscles, re-gardlessof inhalationorexhalationofair.They’realsostreamlined,withsmoothoutlinesandaerofoil-shapedwingsoverwhich airpassesassmoothlyaspossible,gen-eratingthemaximumliftandkeepingthatenemyofflight—drag—atbay.Forthis,a fewdesigntweaksarenecessary.Vulturesandpelicansmusthavebroadwingsinordertosupporttheirweight;thelargerthesurfaceareaof thewing, themorelift itcangenerate.Theprob-lemhappensatthewingtip.Duetothepressurediffer-encesatthetopandbottomsurfaceof thewing,eddiesorminitornadoesofairrolloff theedgeof thewingfromthebottomtothetop,creatingturbulenceanddrag.Sothebirds(likeothers)havesolvedthisproblembyhavingsplayedwingtips—withthefeathersattheend—calledtheprimaryfeathers—deeplyslottedandupturned,sothattheaircanpassthroughthemwithoutgettingtooag-itatedandcausingdrag.Tofacilitateslowflight—say,while landing—manybirdshaveatuftof featherscalledthe“alula”orbastardwing,whichpopsupinfrontof theirwingstosmoothentheturbulentairflowastheairspeeddecreases(youcanclearlyseethis inblue-rockdoves).Vulturesalsoattaintheireconomical fuelconsumptionfiguresbyhitchingridesonthermals,columnsofwarmairrisingfromtheground.Manynestonprecariousclifffaces,sonolaborioustake-off isnecessary.Thewingsofbirds likealbatrossesandothersea-

birdsarevery longandnarrowwhichreducestheturbu-lenceat thewingtipsbecauseof the lowsurfacearea.Albatrossesuseanothertrick: theytackbackandforthlowoverthewavesovervastdistances, takingadvantageof thedifference inwind-speedprevailingclosetothewavesandhigherup(It’s slowernear thesurfaceof thewavesdueto friction).Thehummingbirdhassolved itsproblembybeing

lightandbyflyingmore likean insect.Normally,abird’swinggenerates liftonlyonthedown-stroke; theup-stroke ismoreareloadingmove.Butwith insects (andthehummingbird) lift iscreatedbybothstrokes.Evenso,thehummingbird’swingsmayblurat20beatspersec-ond,while itsheart thrumsat1,000beatsperminutetogetenoughoxygenaround,anditmusthovertosuck inenoughfuel frommaybe1,000to2,000bloomsperday.Ithasrecentlybeendiscoveredthateventhepere-

grine falconhasaspecial tuftof featherswhichpopsupwhenit’s screamingdownat389kmphtodampentur-bulencethatcouldsenditoutof control.Valves inthenostrilsalsoensureasteadysupplyof air—andnotagaleblowingthroughthematthatspeed—andtheeyesareprotectedbyanictitatingmembranewhichslidesoverbefore impactwiththeprey.Owlsareequippedwithspecial sound-dampeningfeatherssotheycanapproachpreysoundlessly: Ionceobservedagroupof fourbarnowlsdemonstrate this inanaviary—itwastrulyeerie.Ground-dwellingpartridges,pheasantsandjunglefowl

burnthecarbohydrateglycogeninexplosiveburstswhenpanicked,whichdoesn’tneedasupplyofoxygen,butinwhichwasteproductsbuildupquickly,tiringthebird.Long-distanceenduranceflierslikeducksandgeeseburnfat,whichneedaconstantsupplyofoxygentobeprovidedbytheblood—hencetheirmeatis“dark”.Flyingtechniqueshavealsoevolvedtoenablebirds to

escapepredators,perhapsthemostcelebratedbeingthe“murmuration”of starlings,whereinmassive flocksgiveabreathtakingdisplayof synchronisedflyingthatcom-pletelybamboozlesanypredator.Tightlybunched, theytwistandswirl likeeddiesof smoke,eachbirdkeepinganeyeonitssevenclosestneighbours,ensuring itmain-tains“safedistance”.Onthe lookout for theslightestchange indirection, itandtheotherswill followsuit im-mediately. Long-distance fliers, likeducksandgeese flyinthefamousV-formation,whereinthewake leftbyonebird’swingtipsareusedbythebird followingtoassist lift,witha10percentenergysaving.Tothinkwestuff thesemagnificentcreatures incages.

GETTYIMAGES

Shiny Varghese

PRADIP KRISHEN’S books Trees ofDelhi (Penguin Books, 2006) andJungle Trees of Central India(Penguin Books, 2013) have notjusttunedoureyestolookatflow-

ers,leavesandbranchesmoreclosely,butalsorevealed the “man-made” choices that cre-ate our wilderness. As the Central VistaRedevelopment leads to a plan to replantLutyens’ Delhi, the naturalist reminds usaboutthemisstepsthatcolonialrulersmadein 1912, andwhy our natural biodiversity issounderutilised.Excerptsfromaninterview:

What’syouropinionaboutthe latesthorticultureplanfortheCentralVistaRedevelopment?Allwehavetogobyisthearticlethatap-

peared in The Indian Express on July 19 (“InCentralVistarevamp,firmtofocusontreesthatrestore Lutyens era look”). It’s veryworryingfor several reasons. The firm HCP Design,whichisexecutingthedesignfortheCentralVista ‘revamp’, says it wants to stick to theoriginal ‘palette’of treesthatEdwinLutyensplanted,andalsosaiditwasgoingtoreplantonespeciesthathasalifespanofabouta100years.Exceptthat,firstofall, theydon’tseemtoknowwhat the ‘originalpalette’ is—theymention jamun, banyan and peepal and anastonishing entity they call a ‘forest ficus’.Now, firstof all,banyansandpeepalsarede-cidedly not part of any original palette oftrees on the Central Vista. Next, they don’tseemtoknowwhat thethirdkindof ficus is—thisinitself isalarming.Furthermore,theycompletelyignoreseveralothertreeslikethechir (cheed) pine,maulshri and bistendu,whichareadistinctivepartof thelandscapearoundVijayChowk.

Whataretheydoingwrong?Iremembertalkingtoanold jamun-seller

nearIndiaGate.Itwashewhofirstalertedmeto the fact that the jamuns around CentralVistawere rai jamuns that ripen in bhaadon(August-September), distinct from thesmaller jamoa that ripen in aashaadh (June-July).Thedifferencecorrespondstoaspeciesdifferencebetween SyzygiumnervosumandSyzygium cumini. They’re distinct trees, notjust in the timeof ripeningof their fruit, butalso in their form. The big, spreading, shadytrees that growalong theCentral Vista are aspecialkindof jamun,notjustanyold jamun.Dotheyknowthisandwilltheybothertofindout? Don’t you think that if you’re plantingup a grand, ceremonial avenue, youneed toknowexactlywhatyou’redoing?

You’vesaidbeforethatNewDelhi’s treesareaBritish legacy.Couldyouelaborate?The area chosen to be imperial Delhi —

whichcametobeknownas ‘Lutyens’Delhi’— was a tabula rasa, pretty much a blankslate. Starting with the Imperial CapitalCommittee’sReportin1912,Britishplanners

and arboriculturists chose which treesshouldflankeachavenueinthenewcapital.Lutyens himself andWilliamMustoe, whowas superintendent,GovernmentGardens,inNewDelhi,aresaidtohavedecidedwhichtree should be plantedwhere, all this overbreakfasteverymorninginaLutyens’bunga-lowon(I think)SunehriBaghroad.

Whatwasuniqueabouttheirplan?Theywanted to choose particular trees

thattheythoughtwouldbeexactlytherightsize and shape to ‘frame’ monuments orotherfeaturesthatcouldbeseenattheendsoftheseroads.Inthatfirstreportof1912,theyidentified eight species for this purpose.That’sareallytinynumberforwhatwasup-wards of 40 roads and streets. Slowly, thisnumberswelledto12or13butwhat’smostinteresting iswhy they chose theparticularspecies that they did. Several trees, whichwerefavouriteavenuetreesof theMughals,treeslikeshisham,banyanandmango,forex-ample, found no place in their scheme. I’vetriedtopiecetogetherthebiasesandcriteriathatmighthave influenceddecisions aboutwhichtreestoplant. It’sacomplicatedstory,but to simplify, these trees had tomeet thefollowing criteria: (a) they had to be ever-green (b) they shouldnot be ‘common’ and(c) they had to be the ‘right’ size for the av-enueswhere theywere tobeplanted.LutyenswasnotfamiliarwithIndiantrees.

HewouldhavereliedhugelyonMustoe’sex-perience of being in Punjab formany yearsbeforehewas called in toDelhi. But, forme,themostcuriouscriterionisevergreen-ness.TreesthatarewelladaptedtoDelhi’snaturalecology are not evergreen. An environmentthat has only twomonths of rain concen-trated inonebigpulse cannot support ever-greentrees.Foratreetosurviveinamonsoonclimate,ithastoshutdownandbecomedor-mant in the longdry season in order to sur-vive. So, in effect, choosing evergreen treesforDelhi isnotsuchasmart idea.

So,whathasworkedandwhathasn’t in

themanyavenuesofCentralVista?Thiswas their biggestmistake—opting

forevergreenspecies,treeslikearjunand ja-munandsoon.Quiteapart fromtheecolog-ical misunderstanding that underlies thisthinking,whywouldyoueffectively‘cutout’one of themost beautiful events that hap-pen indeciduous forests— the flushof newleaves in spring? I don’t deny thatmany ofour avenues inNewDelhi lookverybeauti-ful. But at somepoint, I thinkwe’regoing tohave to do an environmental audit of theirperformance. Are they excessively thirsty?Howmuchwaterdotheyconsume?Canweafford to go onwatering them at that rate?These questions are going to becomemoreandmoreurgentas timegoeson.Whichtreeshave‘worked’inmyopinion?

IhaveafavouritetreeinLutyens’Delhi—onethat is not verywell known. It’s calledanjan(Hardwickia binata) and its home is in rockyhillsidesstartingwiththeSatpurasandthengoingallthewaydowntheEasternGhats.TheBritish planted it sparingly in NewDelhi,probably because theyweren’t very sure ofhowwell itwoulddo inDelhi. Theyhedgedtheir bets by interplanting it with neem onPandaraRoad.Theyplanteditonfourround-aboutsoneithersideof theCentralVista. It’sa beautiful tree, and it’s looking particularlylovelyatthismomentatthestartofourrains.Gooutandlookat itnow.

Whathavebeentheconsequencesof theBritishcuratingour jungles?When the British decided to ‘manage’

India’s forests in themid-19th century, theyhadnoschoolsofscientificforestryinBritain.France andGermanywere the pioneers inEurope, and youwouldn’t catch the EnglishaskingtheFrenchforafavour.SotheybroughtinGermanforesterstoteachtheIndianForestService how to manage our forests. TheGermansbelievedinakindofforestmanage-mentthatforegroundedhumanneeds.Allthetreesthatwereofnodirectuseastimberwereregardedasrubbishtoberemoved.Theiridealforestwasserriedranksofeven-agedtreesofasinglespecies,harvestedatregularintervals.I was surprised to discover that German

forestry still works on similar principles.NinetypercentofGermany’sforeststodayismadeupofonly11treespecies.Someofthemare exotic. They tried to do this in India, too.When I was writing my book on centralIndian jungles, I’d followa trail that I’d havereadaboutfromanaccountin,say,the1880s.I was looking for the richest, most diversepatches of forest in the region. All gone. Allplantedupwithteak.Andit’sstillhappening.We have upwards of 260 species of na-

tive trees in our country. We use — in ourplanted landscapes —maybe 50 or 60 ofthese species. That’s about two per cent ofour natural biodiversity in trees. Don’t youthink that’s shocking?

Suanshu Khurana

IN 1941, Polish violinist Józef Kropinskiwassent to Auschwitz, located in southernPoland (then occupied by Nazi forces).Kropinski’s crime: hewas involved in pub-lishinganundergroundnewspaper.Oncein-sidetheconcentrationcamp,herealisedthatif he were to survive the medical experi-mentsandtheback-breakinglabour,hehadtoholdontomusic.Kropinski, then 26, joined the camp or-

chestra. Hemanaged towrite 10 composi-tionsinAuschwitz,accordingtohisson,evenashiscomradesdiedeveryday.Inearly1945,hewassenttoBuchenwald,anotherconcen-tration camp in east-central Germany. Hewouldhideatnight,inaroompiledwithhu-man cadavers, andwritemusic by the lightof a single candle. Kropinski stayed atBuchenwald till theendof thewar, anddiedinBreslauin1970.Hedidn’tlivelongenoughtoseeanyofhismusicperformed.Can a person with nothing left in the

world, finda redemptive sparkor joyof anykind? “Yes,” says 55-year-old Italian pianistFranceso Lotoro in a Skype conversation.Since 1988, Lotorohas beenona journey tofind the forgottenmusic of concentrationcamps.“Itistheverynotionofresistance,notallowing yourself to be completely beaten

bypeoplewhowantyourphysicalandintel-lectualdeath…Musickeptthemalive.Itwasto preserve and assert their humanity,”Lotoro says in TheMaestro: In Search of theLastMusic(2017),adocumentaryfilmonhisquestmadebyFranco-ArgentinefilmmakerAlexandreValenti.Lotoro lives inBarletta,a little townhug-

gingtheAdriaticSeainItaly.Thirtyyearsago,he gave up a career as an active concert pi-anist to find,archiveandrecordmusiccom-posedbyinmatesinthe“deathcamps”.“It ismy duty as amusicologist, researcher andmusiciantorestorethisconcentrationarylit-erature,” saysLotoro.A handful of musicologists had already

done somework on this, including PolishmusicianAleksanderKulisiewicz,whospentfiveyearsintheSachsenhausencamp.Jewishmusic and Jewish classicalmusicians play-ing in conservatories were banned in theGermanReichbuttheywereallowedtoplayinsidethecamps“incontrolledconditions”.In 1988, Lotoro began a search formusic

made by Jews in the Nazi concentrationcamps.“Thefirstfour-fiveyearsIonlydidthat.ThenamusicologistinPraguesuggestedthatIexpandmyresearch.Yes,Jewswrotealotofmusic in thecampsbut therearemanypeo-plewhoweredeportedorwhowereinternedin these camps — Christians, Bahai, Sufi,Gypsies,Spaniards (refugeesof Spanishcivil

war),Roma,thedisabled,homosexualorpo-litical dissidents. Therewere also the politi-cal andwarprisoners inAmerica, JapanandIndia,incarceratedbyvariousregimes.Soon,it became the onlymission of my life,” saysLotoro,whose current collection ofmusicalscores is about8,000and includesmelodieswritten in concentrationcampsand inmili-tarycaptivitybetween1933and1953.Overthesedecades,Lotorohasmetmany

survivors and their families. A lot of the in-terviewsbeganwithphonecalls.Thesewere

tough conversations as they didn’t want toberemindedofthattraumatictime,“butthemusic needed to be freed”. “The lives couldnot be restored or fully healed. But this iswhat Ineed todo,” saysLotoro.On one such visit to Prague, in 1990,

Lotoro discovered a five-act opera, an opti-mistic and joyous composition titled ThreeHairs of theWise OldMan, created by CzechcomposerRudolfKarel,whowasassociatedwithanti-Naziresistanceandlatercapturedby the Gestapo in 1943. He was held atTerezín concentration camp, in CzechRepublic,whereprisonerswerekeptbeforetheyweresent forextermination.Thescorewaswrittenonvariouspiecesof toiletpaperwith charcoal provided by awarden in thehospital section, who also helped smuggleoutthemusicandkeptthemhiddenwithhisdaughter’s homework. Karel died in 1945.Buthismusicmadeitout.“Irecordeditwithanorchestra forposterity,” saysLotoro.Inthelonglistofmusicianshemet,there

was famed Israeli pianist Alexander Tamir,originally a Lithuanian Jewwho composedShtiller Shtiller (Quiet, quiet), a song inYiddish,foramusiccompetitionintheVilnaghetto operated by Nazis in Lithuania. Thesongwritten by Tamir’s father spoke of thedespair of his people butwas sungas a lull-abysothattheNazisdidn’tunderstandwhatitmeant.TamirsurvivedtheVilnaghettoandlived in JerusalemuntilAugust2019.LotorowasbornaChristianbutconverted

to Judaism in 2004 alongwith hiswife. Thecollection of catalogues, symphonies andrecordings are going to be housed in a“citadel”forwhichtheItaliangovernmentre-cently provided himwith the site of an oldbrandy distillery in Barletta. The spacewillincludeamuseum, a library, a theatreandacafe, andwill be constructed over the nextfouryears.“Inallthebrutality,therewasmu-sic, thesevennotesthatallowedthemtoex-press the human in them, a yearning to befree, sometimes just to get past the day.Mylife’sworkis justasmalleffort ingivingtheirmusic thevoicetheydeserve,”saysLotoro.

UP IN THE AIRCanada Geese flying in formation

A Melody fromthe Pits of Hell

Why an Italian pianist has been archivingmusic composed by prisoners in World War II

concentration camps

Pradip Krishen onwhat the CentralVista makeovercould mean for thenational capital’sgreen spaces

The New Trees of Delhi

PRADIPKRISHEN

EXPRESSARCHIVE

GIUSEPPEMARCHISELLA

New Delhi

Vol.XIXNo.19Regd.No.DL-21046/03-05R.N.I.No.DELENG/2002/10884.PrintedandPublishedbyR.C.Malhotraonbehalf of The IndianExpress (P) LimitedandPrintedatThe IndianExpress (P) LimitedPress,A-8, Sector-7,Noida -201301andPublishedatThe IndianExpress (P) Limited,MezzanineFloor, Express

Building,9&10,BahadurShahZafarMarg, NewDelhi-110002.Editorialoffice: The IndianExpress (P) Limited,MezzanineFloor, ExpressBuilding,9&10,BahadurShahZafarMarg, NewDelhi-110002.Phone:0120-6651500.Advertisingoffice:The IndianExpress (P) Limited,B1/B, Sector -10,Noida -201301.Phone:0120-6651291.Chairmanof theBoard:ViveckGoenka,Chief Editor:RajKamal Jha, Editor:UnniRajenShanker, Editor (Delhi):RakeshSinha** **Responsible for selectionofNewsunder thePRBAct. Copyright: The IndianExpress (P)

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THESUNDAYEXPRESS,JULY26,2020

19 SPORTHARYANATOHOSTKHELO INDIAHaryana will host the fourth edition of the Khelo IndiaYouth Games after the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, the state'schief minister Manohar Lal Khattar and union sportsminister Kiren Rijiju announced on Saturday. TheGames will be held in Panchkula.

SANDIPGJULY25

THE JOY is back on Stuart Broad’s face.Snubbed for the firstTesta fortnightago,hewasgrumpyandpubliclyexpressedhisdis-pleasure.Butsincereturningtotheteam,hehas enjoyed a terrific run of form. If his sixwicketswere crucial in setting up a series-levellingwin, his all-round produce on thesecond day of the decider has put Englandoncourseof reclaiming theWisdenTrophy.First,heturnedthegamearoundwithhis

bat, his exciting cameo (62 off 45 balls) jet-setting England to a stiff total of 369 afterstriding into themiddlemuch earlier thanexpected following the loss of fourwicketsfor18runs in22balls. Laterwiththeball,hehelped England tighten the grip over thematch, seeing off the stubborn KraiggBrathwaite and the reliable Roston Chase.Subsequently,WestIndiesstumbledto137/6whenbad light stoppedplay.Broad is no longer the batsman he once

promisedtobe—his lonehundredhasnowattained a standoffish cult status. Even hispropensitytoproducetheoddcameohasdi-minished,andhisbattingbarelysneaksintopub-tables,forgetcoffeehouses.Butheillus-trated that while his techniquemay neveragainstanduptothescrutinyofaproperTestinnings,hiseyeremainsasexcellentasever.Hebattedwithsuchnonchalancethathe

seemed to bemocking at conclusions thathe is awalkingwicket to short-pitched de-liveries. Rather, he has devised amethod tonullify his weakness. It’s not foolproof orpretty, but it was ridiculously effective andfrustratedtheWestIndiespacers.Assoonasthebowlerisabouttoreleasetheball,Broadwould start opening uphis stance, clear hisfrontlegandmanufactureroomtoswinghisshoulders.Dependingonwheretheballwaspitched, he would cream them over mid-wicket,clubthempastsquareleg,blastthemdown the ground or slash themover point.Several times he swiped the air, but he alsolashedthemto the fences.Roach,whosemorningspellwasas inci-

siveasitwashostile,wassmackedovermid-wicket,anunalloyedattackingstrokebeyondthe decorum of mainstream batsmen. Hethen filleted through the least expensive of

West Indies’ bowlers, Jason Holder. In thespaceof14balls,thecaptainwasbludgeonedforsevenfours, thelastofwhichbroughtuphisfiftyfrom33balls,thirdjoint-fastesthalf-century for an Englishman. He added 12more runsbeforemiscueing a low full-toss,butby the timehadalreadyyielded76runswith his stout partner DomBess and takenthematchaway fromthevisitors.It was Broad’s first Test fifty since the

Boxing Day Test of December 2017 and hishighestscorein125inningsdatingbacktoascore of 65 against Australia at Trent Bridgein2013.Itwouldn’thavebeentimelier,whenEnglandhad crumbled from246 for four to280 for eight in the face of a heavy secondnew-ball onslaught from Shannon Gabrieland Roach. Forget 350, even 300 seemed asweat. But then intervened Broad, and hehardly seemedtobreakasweat.Anhour later, he intervenedagain, pick-

ing out Brathwaite,West Indies’s best hopeofputtingonareasonabletotalonboard.Butthe hope lasted only four balls into his first

over,whenhemadeonenibbleoff theseamandbrushedhisoutsideedgetothefirstslip.Brathwaitewaswaiting for the nip-backer,but Broad dialled his old friend, the away-swinger. Laterintheday,atthebackendofabelligerent second spell, he summoned thenip-backer topinRostonChase in front.With Chase’s predilection to thrust the

front legandbring thebataround it, hewasalwaysgoingtobefodderforBroad.Betweenthese strikes, James Anderson bagged abrace,aninch-perfectout-swingerfollowedby a razor-sharp in-swinger while JofraArcher bounced out John Campbell with aripping lifter. ChrisWoakes later chimed inwith Jermaine Blackwood’swicket to leavethe visitors tottering and Broadwheelingaway in joy.

BRIEF SCORES: England 369 in 111.5 ovs(Rory Burns 57, Jos Buttler 67, Ollie Pope 91,StuartBroad62;KemarRoach4/72)vsWestIndies 137 for 6 in 47.1 ovs (John Campbell32;Broad2/17, JamesAnderson2/17)

Aquickfire62off 45and2for17giveshosts themomentum;WI137for6

StuartBroadboostedEngland’s totalbeforestrikingwiththeball. Reuters

Broad smile on English facesWITH 37 games completed,LiverpoolandManchesterCitystand first and second respec-tively on the table and haveguaranteed a ChampionsLeague spot for themselvesnextseason.Andthencomesathree-way race betweenManchester United, Chelseaand Leicester City that has ca-reenedintothefinaldayof theseasonwith the Foxes hostingthe Red Devils at King PowerStadium.

£50MNWINDFALLManchester Utd currently

standthirdonthetablewith63pointsandhavea+28goaldif-ferential.AfranticpacekeptbyOle Gunnar Solskjaer’s youngteamafterChristmasandavitalsigning in Bruno Fernandes –coupledwith a disastrous re-turn to football by Leicester inthe post-Covid 19 session ofPremier League football, hasseenUnitedstaywithintouch-ing distance of reaching theChampionsLeague.Awin or a draw tomorrow

not only guarantees United’scoffers go up £50 million inprize money and broadcastrevenue but also ensures thattheir Adidas sponsorship dealdoesn’tgetaffected. Signedona10-yeardealfor£75millionayear, there is a clause in theAdidascontractthatstatesthatif United fail to qualify for theChampions League, then theyincura£22.5milliondeduction–acostlypropositionevenforaclub likeUnited.

LEICESTER SLIPManchester United face a

Leicester side that was chal-

lenging for the title atChristmas and are now ar-guably the worst placedamong the three clubs in themix for Champions Leaguequalification.One point behind United

on62andonthesamegoaldif-ference as the 20-time cham-pions, Leicester have theirworkcutout.A disastrous run of form

hasseenthemwinonlytwooftheir eight Premier Leaguegamesonreturnandtheirbesthope on Sunday seems to benot them, but the tired legs of

theiropposition.Leicester go up against a

Unitedteamthathasbeenrunto the ground and a defeat toChelsea in the FA Cup com-binedwithanarrow1-1drawto West Ham United onWednesday for United onlyimproves thechances that theFoxeshaveathome.

BLUES SURGEChelsea’s first full season

underFrankLampardhasseenthem on the cusp of aChampionsLeaguespotandan

opportunity to finishwith anFACup.Theyarealsointhemixwith the Champions LeaguebutfaceaBayernMunichteamthathashadalongerperiodtorest after completing theirBundesliga triumphpromptlyafter the restart inGermany.The Blues face a Wolves

team that are on their ownjourney to get to the EuropaLeague.Chelseaneedasolitarypoint from this fixture or re-quireUnited tobeatLeicester.

SURPRISE ENTRANTSThetalkisrevolvingaround

Manchester United, LeicesterandChelseafightingitoutforaUCL spot but theymight verywellbeindangerofmissingoutif theWolves rise to the chal-lenge.Still a part of the Europa

League,awininthesecond-tiercontinentalcompetitionwouldguarantee thema ChampionsLeague spot. Chelsea are in asimilar position as they are incontention to win theChampions League and thusguaranteeaspotinthecompe-titionnextyear.If ChelseaandWolvesboth

wintheChampionsLeagueandEuropa League respectively,and neither finish in the topfour, thenbothof themwouldbe a part of next season’s UCLand the team that finishedfourthintheleaguewouldhaveto contend with a EuropaLeaguespot instead.

SHASHANKNAIR

ON THE TUBE : Chelsea vsWolves8:30PMIST;LeicesterCity vs Manchester United8:30 PM IST (on Star SportsNetworkandHotstar).

Europe’s final countdownLiverpool’s first-ever Premier League trophy, won at a canter, ended any hopes of the last day of the league

becoming a frantic climb for the top spot. But such is the financial pull that come this weekend, three teams gothrough the gauntlet, with two coming out of it ensuring a spot among Europe’s elite and a roundabout of

£50million. Even thatmay not be enough if the Europa League throws a few surprises.

WHAT THESE THREE TEAMS NEED TO DO:CHELSEA:NeedawinoradrawagainstWolvesorneedManUtdtobeatLeicester

MANCHESTERUNITED:NeedtowinordrawagainstLeicester.OrneedChelseato

losetheirmatchagainstWolves.

LEICESTERCITY:NeedtobeatManUtdorneedtodrawandthenhopethatChelsea loseagainstWolves.

Solskjaer’sUnitedneedawinoradrawagainstLeicestertoguaranteeaChampionsLeaguespot. File

SundayJuly26Apersonal commitmentwhich is offerednow can be relied upon, even if it comesfromsomeoneyouhaveknownforashorttime. It’sallabouttrustingthefuture.

Monday July27Family and friendsmay notwant to hearwhat you have to say. Your dilemma iswhether to speak the truth nowor later?The priority is to dowhat you can to helplovedones.

Tuesday July28Passionscouldrunhigh,whichis justhowyou like it. You’ll soonbe looking farafieldfor your thrills. The year holds out theprospect of two newdevelopments. Onefindsyousearchingforadventure,theotherforpersonalfulfillment.

Wednesday July 29You’re pulled by a sense of free-flowingromantic possibilities on one hand, and asenseof dutyon theother.You’ll combineimaginationwithself-disciplineforawin.

Thursday July30It’saperfectdayforloverstowhispersweetnothingsineachother’searsandyoumighthear someunexpectedlywelcomewordsinreply.Andthathastobegoodnews.

Friday July31Saturnine alignments are advising you tobe sensible in everyway. According to allcurrentindications,youwillbepursuingapractical path in the coming year, withexcellentresults.

SaturdayAugust1Passions could runhigh,which is justhowyoulikeit.Mindyou,you’llsoonbelookingfarafieldforyourthrills.Thecomingyearholdsouttheprospectoftwonewdevelopments.Onefindsyousearchingforadventure.

If it’s yourBirthday

SUDOKU418

1

DifficultyLevel4sInstructionsTosolveaSudokupuzzle,everydigitfrom1to9mustappear ineachofthenineverticalcolumns, ineachoftheninehorizontalrowsandineachofthenineboxes.

DifficultyLevel1s=Veryeasy;2s=Easy;3s=Medium;4s=Hard;5s=VeryHard;6s=Genius

SOLU

TIONSUDOKU418

0

Givenbelowarefour jumbledwords.Solvethejumblestomakeproperwordsandmovethemtotherespectivesquaresbelow.Selecttheletters intheshadedsquaresandjumblethemtogettheanswerforthegivenquip.AsfarasI’mconcerned, ’___’ isawordthatwasinventedtomakeeveryonesoundlikea____.-CalvinTrillin(4,..,6)

SOLUTION:GROPE,BLUNT,HUMBLE,BOWWOWAnswer:AsfarasI’mconcerned,’whom’isawordthatwasinventedtomakeeveryonesoundlikeabutler.-CalvinTrillin

GPEOR BELUHM

BNLTU OOWWBW

JUMBLEDWORDS

ARIES(MAR21-APR20)Youhaveaninklingofhowyourlifeisabouttochange,hopefullyforthebetter,butthe

whyandwhereforeisallstillrathervague.Yourplanets,yousee,areofferingclaritywithonehandandambiguitywiththeother.That’ssotypical.Along-lostfriendmaygetintouch,bytheway,sowelcomethembackintothefold.

TAURUS(APR21-MAY21)Youaretalentedthanyou imagine.Astoundcompetitorsandcolleagues,notto

mentionfriendsandallies,withyourbusinessflair.Theentirefinancialsituationissomewhatcomplexatthemoment,butifyoubringyourimpeccablesenseoftastetotheforeyoucouldpulloffamajorcoup.Therecouldbebargainsgalore.

GEMINI(MAY22-JUNE21)Yourstarsarelookingmorepowerfulthanformanyweeks.Mars,theplanetofenergy

andaggression,isencouragingyoutofeelagreatdealmoreintensethanusual.Thisispreciselywhyyoumustnowreviewallpersonalobligationsandprofessionalties.Youmayhavemadeapromisewhichyouwillfinditimpossibletokeep.

CANCER(JUNE22-JULY23)TheSun’srelationshipwithJupiterhasoneveryspecificmeaning-

largepayrisesforallwhoseincomehassufferedorhasnotreflectedtheirbestefforts. Inanyevent,emotionalrichesareintheoffing,soonewayoranotheryou’reboundtobenefit.Yourheartismoreimportantthanyourbank-balance,sokeepaproperbalanceinyouraffairs.

LEO(July24-Aug23)Somewhatchallengingplanetarypatternsstillrelatebothtoyourfamily

sceneandeventswhichmayhavetakenplaceaverylongtimeagoindeed.Yet,ifbyanychanceyouhavemovedbeyondcertainpeople,don’tletthemdragyouback.Quiteasidefromwhich,yourromanticstarsareshiningbrightly.

VIRGO(AUG24-SEP23)Pleasurableplanetsaresuretoplaytheirpart.Homeentertainingand

joyfulfamilygatheringsarestronglysignifiedbymidweekstars.Thereisasuspicionthatsomethingmaybearrangedwithoutyourknowledge.You’llbedoingyourbittohelptheneedy,muchtoyourcredit.

LIBRA(Sep24-Oct23)It’sagoodmomenttoturnyourbackonthepastandfocusonthefuture.Ifyouwantto

getallyourdomesticchoresoverindouble-quicktime,tryaspotoflateralthinking,takeariskandturneverythingonitshead.Ifyou’retravelling,shortjourneysseemtofarebetterthanlong.

SCORPIO(Oct24-Nov23)It’stimetoturnyourgazeoutwards.Ifpersonalaffairsarejusttoomuch,how

abouthavinganothercrackatsomepublicambitionorworldlyenterprisethatyouhaveignoredorforgotten?Ifshoppingspreesarelinedup,you’llprobablyfindthatluxuriesareamuchbetterbetthannecessities.

SAGITTARIUS(Nov24-Dec23)Remarkableopportunitiestoenhanceyourreputationare

highlightedbyasuperbseriesofrelationshipsinvolvingplanetssuchastheSun,SaturnandJupiter.Foreignandlong-distanceconnectionscouldcomeuptrumps,althoughyoushouldbeverycarefultoavoidlegalcomplications,unlessyou’vegotthebenefitof impeccableadvice.

CAPRICORN(Dec23-Jan20)It’sallchangeinthecelestialspheres.Mercury,thatmostlivelyofplanets,is

nowsettingtheagenda,hopefullywiththeverybestofresults.Withintheweekyouareliabletoreceiveaflashofinspirationthatcouldhelpyoucompletelyremodelandrearrangeyouraffairs.First,though,takealonglookatthepast.

AQUARIUS(Jan21-Feb.19)Youmaystillbecaughtinthecrossfire. JupiterandPlutoaredefinitelyat

oddsandyouareteeteringontheedgeof far-reachingchangesbothonthehomefrontandatwork.Midweekmaybringtheliveliest familyinfluences,withmuchpleasuretobefoundinthecompanyofchildren.

PISCES(Feb20-Mar20)Excellentambitiousstarswillbenefitthoseofyouwhoarenotinfull-time

employmentasmuchasthosewhoare.AllPisceansshouldmoveforwardtotakeanewplaceintheworld,eventuallyacceptingtheappreciationofthecommunity.There’llbetimeenoughforprivatematterswhenyouhavemadeyourmarkontheworldstage.

YOURWEEKAHEADBRIDGE

Needing just one good card frompartner, South didwell to overcall 4S–Northwasnevergoingtoacceptagametry.WestleadstheDK,followedbytheDQ.Northhasprovidedtwousefulcards–howdoyouplanto takead-vantageofthem?

NORTH♠ 1087❤932♦ AKQ76♣73SOUTH♠ A43❤A87♦ 32♣A6542

NORTH♠ 843❤ J98♦ 743♣J843

SOUTH♠ AKQJ92❤Q10♦ J♣ AQ102

WEST NORTH EAST SOUTH2♦ 4♠Pass Pass Pass

SUNDAY CROSSWORD 2279QUICKCLUESACROSS1. Ancestors (12)10. Seizeandkeep(7)11. Aportablerocket-launcher (7)12. Onewhoissobbing?(5)13. Practical, viableorworkable (8)15. Scienceofmetals (10)16. Germancount (4)18. Resound(4)20. Equabledisposition(4-6)22. Drivingtoanger (8)24. Churchsingers (5)26. Pancake likebreadof India (7)27. Dope(7)28. Retractedwhatonehadsaid(3,4,5)

DOWN2. Publishagain, inaway-"rent rip"anagram?(7)

3. Musical signof suspense(4,4)4. Musical conclusion(4)5. Sinking(10)6. Seeps(5)7. Drool,drivel (7)8. Perimeter (13)9. Dupedor fooled;gypped(5,3,1,4)14. Furnishingof relief (10)17. Romeo’s friend,kinsman(8)19. North Indianstate (7)21. Move forward(7)23. Hostile look(5)25. Kindofnewts (4)

CRYPTICCLUESACROSS1. Gigglingdrunkenly? (6,6)10. Translatorgainsprofitbyhardgraft (7)

11. Build-upof talkover thewater inFrance(7)

12. Catnoises in the forest (5)13. Mr.Porteremploysshowyflowers(8)

15. Inwhichahostuses loverevitalized(4,6)

16. Couplesoundingtrim(4)18. Informersupplies thecourse foranoldvessel (4)

20. Guiding labourer, say,beforeimposingacurfewatcollege (10)

22. Thewordonthestreet,Bill, isyou’renotontimetomakethe list(8)

24. Bitof oatmeal loaf baked inScotland(5)

26. ArrivesonhorsebackwithapurseI’dmislaid (5,2)

27. Tobeblunt,half one’swealth is

underone’sbelt (7)28. Last thinganAmericancanbetwith?(6,6)

DOWN2. They’re inclinedtogiveemphasisto theprintedworld(7)

3. What troubleamongex-drinkersaftergreetingapoetryman(8)

4. There’sa fearful lotof it,by thesoundof it (4)

5. Eventualaimis tokeepoldwomaninthePacific islands (10)

6. Quench inasmallpoolofwater(5)

7. Strangelywhenthere’smore thanonetheybecomehigh(4-3)

8. Thatcouldbetheconditionof theenvironment-quitebare.(5,2,6)

9. First correctyourclangers,otherwise justaquick look(7,6)

14. Finish-asentencemaybe(3,1,4,2)

17. Oneof thosethatnevermeet (8)19. Cockneyboozerhasproblemwithaname(3-1-3)

21. Off-colouranddelicateup inancientAdriaticcountry (7)

23. Hecomposedthe last letter in thecatalogue(5)

25. Jack thepaper-makerhavingretired.... (4)

QUICKCLUESAcross:1Forehead,5Stepup,9Leaflets,10Oracle,11Obituary,12Manage,14Malevolent,18Enactments,22Epinal,23Pedantic,24Equity,25Redesign,26Dining,27Strategy.Down:1Falcon,2Roadie,3Helium,4Alternates,6Tarragon,7Packages,8Presents,13Settlement,15Reverend,16Taciturn,17Straiten,19Zareba,20Stride,21Scanty.CRYPTICCLUESAcross:1Lamppost,5Clover,9Muttered,10Scared,11Nineties,12Unripe,14No-man’sland,18Attheready,22Dearie,23River-man,24Mahout,25Rent-free,26Nether,27Assessed.Down:1Lemons,2Meting,3Pretty,4Stevedores,6LochNess,7Vertical,8Redheads,13Hard-liners,15Landsman,16Straw-hat,17Pedicure,19Beatle,20Smarts,21Intend.

Solutionsto2278

West leadstheCK.Howdoyouplantotakeseventricks?TheWestHand:S-K92H-10654 D-84 C-KQJ10TheEastHand:S-QJ65H-KQJD-J1095 C-98

Youhavesixwinners, soyouneedto findonemore.Fromtheopening leaditseemsthatclubsarenotsplitting3-3sothediamondsuitistheonlypos-siblesourceofextratricks.Notethattherearenoentriestodummyoutsidediamonds.Thatisaproblem.YoucanplaytheDAKQ,andifthediamondssplit3-3youwillmakefivediamondtricksandeighttricksinall.However iftheydonotsplitevenlyyouwillonlymakethreediamondtricksandsix inall.Thechanceofa3-3splitisonly36%.Canyoudobetter?Howwillyouproceed?

Thefirstthingtodecideiswhethertoduckthefirsttrick.ItisnormaltoduckthefirsttrickortwoinnotrumpbecauseWesthasprobably ledfromalongsuit,andinthatcaseduckingwillexhaustEastinthatsuit.However,onthishandyoushouldnotduck,becausetheymayswitchtoanothersuitinwhichyouhaveevenfewercards.Clubsarerelativelynon-threatening–themostWestcanhaveisfive,andinthatcaseEasthasalreadyrunoutofclubs.SotaketheCAandthenplayondiamonds.ThecorrectwayistoplaytheD2fromhandandtheD6fromdummy.Theopponentswillwinthetrickbutyouwillstillhaveanentrytotheremainingdiamondsindummy.Thisway if thediamonds are split 3-3or4-2 youwillmake four diamondtricksandyourcontract.Thechancethatthediamondsaresplit3-3is36%,so if you are greedy and try tomake five diamond tricks, youwill be disap-pointedmost of the time. The chance that the diamonds are split 4-2 is48%,sothechanceofa3-3or4-2split is36%+48%=84%.Here,Eaststill hasaclub,sohewillwinthefirstdiamondandcashWest’sthreeclubtricks,butyouwillmakeyourcontract.Ifthediamondsweresplit5-1or6-0therewasnothingyoucouldhavedoneabout itanyway.

YouareSouth,declarer in4S.

WEST NORTH EAST SOUTH1♣Pass 1♦ Pass 1NTPass Pass Pass

Don’tbeafraidtogiveupatrickearly.Sometimesit istheonlywaytomakeyourcontract.YouareSouth,declarer in1NT.

New Delhi

*ADVERTORIAL An initiative by

* ( READ. ENGAGE. DELIVER.) IS THE MARKETING SOLUTIONS TEAM OF THE INDIAN EXPRESS GROUP

T HE bravehearts ofIndia, we are veryproud of you and

salute you for your extraor-dinary spirit, valour, sacri-fice and love towards ourmotherland. DEMA Manu-facturer’s Association (for-merly known as DefenceEquipment Manufacturer’s

Association) is an association ofover 50 member industries.

The DEMA members are quali-fied technocrats and have experi-ence of more than 25 years inproduct development. Indigenous design, de-velopment, manufacturer and supply of engi-

neered products for defence useis a complex task involving highlyspecialised engineering knowl-edge and professional skills.

We have members who haveworked on projects like missile launcher con-trollers and Missile check-out systems, fuses

for various rockets, servo-controlled platformsfor rockets and guns,UAVS, and aero products,climatic test chambers, sensors, and manymore. The equipment and systems manufac-tured by DEMA members are ruggedised andcomply with JSS-55555 standards as well asEMI/EMC 461 E standards.

DEMA members have shown exceptionalcommitment by supporting defence projectsof high national importance for a long period ofmore than 10 years.

The cooperative spirit among DEMA mem-bers should be a tremendous asset to makecollaborations with indigenous and interna-tional defence product and project develop-ment and manufacturing organisations.

DEMA believes in the consortium concept

and it has been successfully implemented byits members in many multidisciplinary engi-neering defence projects.

With the honourable Prime Minister’s ap-peal for being“Atmanirbhar”,DEMA membersare fully geared and charged up to undertakeany challenge offered to them in the hi-tech-nology field.And behind all this is a strong be-lief in India’s progress and self-reliance.

Jai hind. Bharat mata ki jai.

DEMA: Making quality defence equipmentKARGIL VIJAY DIWASKARGIL VIJAY DIWAS

Shirish DeshmukhPresident, DEMA

20 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHE SUNDAY EXPRESS,JULY26,2020

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