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Centre's surveyshould serve as eye-opener for

Hyderabad

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Opted for continuity in tax

devolution: NK Singh

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FARMERS BLOCK HIGHWAY, MARK‘BLACK DAY' ON 100-DAY MILESTONE

Flapping and swaying tents have made way for morepermanent structures. Air conditioners and coolers beingset up indicate the approaching summer has been

accounted for. At the many makeshift townships that havesprung up along Delhi's border points in thepast three months or more, the crowd maybe thinning, but not the resolve by thelooks of it. In any case, the farmersneutralised lingering doubts by marking'Black Day' today - the 100th day of theirprotest. As part of the proceedings, theKundli-Manesar Palwal Expressway willbe blocked for five hours between 11 amand 4 pm.

RAPED 27 YEARS AGO, WOMAN FILESCASE AFTER SON ASKS DAD'S NAME

Raped on several occasions by two men at the age of 12 about27 years ago, the victim, who had become a mother, has nowlodged a case against the accused on court orders after her

son enquired about his father's name. About 27 years ago, the vic-tim was living in the city with her sister and broth-er-in-law. One Naki Hasan of her locality hadentered the house when she was alone andallegedly raped her, Superintendent of Police(City) Sanjay Kumar told PTI on Saturday.Referring to the police report lodged on thebasis of the woman's complaint, Mr Kumarsaid after the accused, his younger brotherGuddu also raped her.

ARVIND KEJRIWAL SAYS DELHI TO HAVEITS OWN SCHOOL EDUCATION BOARD

Delhi will have its own school education board like other states,Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal announced today. The stategovernment approved the formation of the Delhi Board of

School Education during a cabinet meet. The capital has 1,000government schools and 1,700 private schools. Allgovernment schools and most private schoolsare affiliated to the CBSE, the Chief Ministersaid. 20 to 25 government schools will bemade part of the new state education boardin the coming academic year and theirCBSE affiliation will be scrapped, he said.The schools that will be brought under thestate board will be decided after discussionswith school principals, teachers and parents.

GUJARAT MAN INFECTED WITH COVIDAFTER TAKING 2ND DOSE OF VACCINE

Ahealth official in Gujarat has tested positive for coron-avirus days after taking the second dose of the vaccineagainst the infection, officials said Saturday. The man, a

health officer in Gandhinagar's Dehgam taluka, had taken thefirst dose on January 16 and the secondone on February 15. He had fever andand his samples were examined,which detected the COVID-19 infec-tion on February 20 saidGandhinagar's Chief Health OfficerDr MH Solanki. "He is in home isola-tion as his symptoms are mild. Hehas told me that he is fit to join workfrom Monday," Solanki added.

OBTUSE ANGLE

PNS n NEW DELHI

Agriculture MinisterNarendra Singh Tomar onSaturday said the governmentis ready to amend three newfarm laws to respect the sen-timents of protesting farmers,even as he attacked oppositionparties for doing politics onthis issue at the cost of agricul-ture economy and by hurtingfarmers' interest.

Addressing the 5th nation-al convention of Agrivisionhere, the Union minister saidthe government has held 11rounds of talks with farmerunions and has even offered toamend these laws.

Thousands of farmers,mainly from Punjab, Haryanaand Western Uttar Pradesh,are protesting at Delhi bor-ders for over three months,seeking a repeal of thesethree legislations and a legalguarantee of the minimumsupport price (MSP).

Eleven rounds of talksbetween the Centre and 41protesting farmer unions haveso far remained deadlocked.The government has offeredconcessions including sus-pension of the legislationsfor 12-18 months and settingup a joint panel to find solu-tions, but the unions have

rejected.Tomar said the government

has passed these three laws toboost investment in the farmsector and give freedom tofarmers to sell their producewherever they want and atprice determined by them.

The laws, which werepassed by Parliament in

September last year, wouldalso enable to grow thosecrops that can fetch moreprices in the market, he added.

Referring to the ongoingfarmers' agitation, Tomarwondered how this agitationwas going to benefit farmers.

Farmer leaders firm on the repealas agitation completes 100 days

Farmer leaders on Saturday said the protesting unions standfirm on their demand of a complete repeal of the three agri

laws and asserted that they are ready for talks with thegovernment, but that should be held without any condition.Earlier in the day, thousands of farmers blocked the KundliManesar Palwal (KMP) Expressway at some places in Haryana tomark the completion of 100 days of their agitation at the Delhiborders. Darshan Pal, a senior member of the Samkyukta KisanMorcha which is spearheading the going protest, said farmer unionsstand firm on the demand of repeal of three agri laws. "Since thebeginning of our agitation, our demand remains the samewhich is the repeal of three new agricultural laws.

Govt ready to amend newagri laws: Narendra Tomar

TS must fix encroachmentson lake beds, nalas: Niti AayogML MELLY MAITREYI n HYDERABAD

The devastation caused by thefloods of October, 2020 hascome to haunt the Telanganagovernment in the thick offierce political campaigningfor the MLC elections to theGraduates constituencies.

Rampant encroachments oflake beds and nalas have comeinto focus again, with the lat-est NITI Aayog's report blam-ing the October deluge ofHyderabad on the encroach-ments on water bodies.

The Committee Constitutedby NITI Aayog forFormulation of Strategy forFlood Management Works inEntire Country and RiverManagement Activities andWorks Related to Border Areas

(2021-26) has looked at devas-tating floods in various States,including Telangana.

The report has pinpointedconstruction over lake bedsand encroachments ondrainage channels as prob-lems that had exacerbatedflooding and inundation inHyderabad. States have tomove from the current para-digm of post-disaster response

to taking proactive measures tobreak the disaster cycle, itinsisted.

It highlighted the failure ofsuccessive governments in theundivided Andhra Pradeshand the TRS government inthe last six years to preventencroachments on lakes andnalas.

PNS n HYDERABAD

TS Finance Minister T HarishRao has expressed his apprehen-sions over attempts being madeto amend the Constitution, say-ing the changes contemplatedare intended to trample uponpeople's rights and take thecountry backward by at least a100 years.

He was addressing graduateshere on Saturday in connection

with the Hyderabad-Rangareddy-Mahabubnagardistricts Graduates' constituen-cy polls to the LegislativeCouncil. He appealed to vot-ers to think and decide beforethey exercise their right to vote.

Referring to the Centre'smove to privatise PSUs, Harishpointed out that a ministry hadbeen created to wind up manyPSUs.

Modi’s ‘baath karodon ke…kaam pakodon ke’: KTR

‘None should mistake TRS leaders' silence as weakness'K VENKATESHWARLUn HYDERABAD

TRS working president KTRama Rao, giving measure formeasure in response to TS BJPleaders' ridicule of TRS supre-mo and Chief Minister KChandrasekhar Rao, suggest-ed on Saturday that PrimeMinister Narendra Moditalked much but did little,saying Modi "ka baath karo-donke, kaam pakodonke".

None should mistake thesilence of TRS leaders as weak-

ness, he warned cryptically,while addressing a meeting ofthe pink party's student wing atTelangana Bhavan here onSaturday.

Some persons had been mak-ing derogatory remarks againstKCR without giving respecteven to his position as ChiefMinister of the State. KCR,who began his political journeyalone for the state of Telanganahad built a strong cadre- basedparty involving lakhs of people,he pointed out.

Ex-Ranji cricketer posing asKTR’s PA cheats firms, held PNS n HYDERABAD

Police on Saturday arrested anex-Ranji cricketer in AndhraPradesh, who allegedly imper-sonated as a personal secretaryto Telangana IT Minister K TRama Rao and cheated nineestablishments, including cor-porate firms. B Nagaraju, whoplayed in Ranji matches for APduring 2014-16, allegedly calledcompanies, corporate hospitals,educational institutions andrealtors and introduced himselfas PS to Rama Rao, a policerelease said.

Claiming that Rama Raowould be taking oath as CM, hedemanded money from them

for erecting hoardings at the LBStadium here and issuingadvertisements in media inconnection with the swearing-in ceremony, it said.

Using this modus operandi,he cheated firms and collectedan amount of Rs 39,22,400, therelease said. Sleuths ofCommissioner's Task Force,North Zone Team apprehend-ed him on Saturday.

He was arrested in 10 casesearlier and was released on bail,buthe did not change his attitudeafter coming out of prison, itadded. Rama Rao, son ofTelangana Chief Minister KChandrasekhar Rao, is the work-ing president of the ruling TRS.

SUMIT ONKA n VISAKHAPATNAM

In the last seven days, AndhraPradesh and Telangana havereported the second most andfourth highest number of for-est fires respectively in thecountry after neighbouringOdisha and Madhya Pradesh.

While Telangana reported5,060 forest fires, AP record-ed 3,548 from February 27 toMarch 6, according to thenear real-time forest firereports captured by a satellite

and monitored by the ForestSurvey of India (FSI).

In 2020-21, Telangana wasamong the top five states inthe number of fire alerts. Asmany as 7,500 fire points werespotted in the state.

Forest fire is among themajor causes of degradation offorests in the country. Preciousforest resources and carbon islost and this has an impact onthe flow of goods and servicesfrom the forest areas.

FSI has been alerting StateForest Departments and other

registered uses of forest firelocations detected by the

MODIS sensor onboard Aquaand Terra Satellites of NASA

since 2004.Man-made incidents cou-

pled with prolonged dry spells,wind and the heat-waves haveupped the risk of forest firesover the years in AP. Also,March happens to be themonth in which the highestnumbers of fire incidents arereported.

Andhra Pradesh has most-ly dry deciduous forests andtrees start drying up fromJanuary – February.

AP, TS report most forest fires in last 7 days

India fix Lord's date: Kohliand co thrash EnglandPNS n AHMEDABAD

Axar Patel and RavichandranAshwin once again made amockery of an eternally con-fused English batting line-upas India cantered into theinaugural World TestChampionship final with aresounding innings and 25 runvictory on the third after-noon of the fourth and final

Test here on Saturday.All India needed was a draw

to book a Lord's date in Junewith Kane Williamson's NewZealand but Patel (24-6-48-5),in company of Ashwin (22.5-4-47-5), literally blew Englandaway in a session and half fora paltry 135 in 54.5 overs tocomplete a 3-1 rout,

PNS n VISAKHAPATNAM

Known for his short temper,Hindupur MLA and Teluguactor NandamuriBalakrishna was again inthe news for the wrong rea-son on Saturday.

Earlier, the actor hadslapped a fan simply becausehe insisted for a selfie withthe MLA. On Saturday,Balakrishna, or Balayya ashe is also known, slapped hisfan twice for recording hisvideo without his permis-sion.

In a video that has goneviral, Balakrishna is seenhitting a man asking him todelete his pictures. It appearsthat the Hindupur MLA justcannot keep his temper incheck.

10-day TSbudget sessionlikely fromMarch 15PNS n HYDERABAD

A 10-day Budget session ofthe State Assembly is likely tocommence on March 15.Telangana State's Budget for2021-22, perhaps with anoutlay of Rs 2 lakh crore, willbe presented during the ses-sion by Finance MinisterHarish Rao.

Chief Minister KChandrasekhar Rao held ahigh-level meeting on budgetproposals and estimates atPragathi Bhavan on Saturday.Significantly, after years ofHarish-less Finance Ministrymeetings,

Centre warns8 States, UTson Covid surgePNS n NEW DELHI

The effective strategy of "test,track and treat" has yieldedresults at the height of thenovel coronavirus pandemic,the centre said today in areminder to the states that arewitnessing a high active case-load. Eight states and unionterritories - Haryana, AndhraPradesh, Odisha, Goa,Himachal Pradesh,Uttarakhand and union ter-ritories of Delhi andChandigarh - have been toldto increase testing, contacttracing and accelerate vacci-nation for priority groups inthe worst-hit districts.

Sixty-three districts in theeight states and union terri-tories "continue to be of con-cern as these districts are see-ing a decrease in total testsbeing conducted, low share ofRT-PCR tests,

Slapped byBalayya, fansays he is‘honoured’

Conspiracy to do away withreservations: Harish Rao

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(IN HYDERABAD)

The 'Ease of living' surveyfor 2020 released by theCentre has come as quite

an embarrassment for theTelangana Rashtra Samithigovernment as it has bustedthe myth that Hyderabad is themost liveable city in India.Every citizen of the twin citieswould wish this were true, butthe perception expressed by92,000 respondents in the sur-vey does not fully bear this out.

Barely three years ago,another survey by JLL rankedHyderabad first, followed byBangalore (2nd) and Pune(4th) out of the top 30 globalshort-term growth cities; inother words, cities with short-term momentum relating tourban economies and realestate markets. A more recentsurvey by the same agencydescribed Hyderabad's formaleconomy as one of the 'most

resilient' in urban India and itsreal estate growth in 2019among the strongest.

The survey by the UnionMinistry of Housing andUrban Affairs has rankedHyderabad 24thon the Ease ofLiving Index among 49 citieswith one million-plus popula-tion triggering angry reac-tions from the StateGovernment that the surveywas subjective and not trans-parent. On the economic front,over which there was a lot ofsong and dance earlier,Hyderabad has been ranked11th by this survey.

Expectedly, doubts ariseabout the fairness of boththese surveys because of thewide disparity in their out-comes. Those familiar with theworking of rating agencies sayJLL's niche area is real estateservices, whereas Mercer,whose survey is being quotedto counter the Centre's, is anHR-related consulting compa-

ny. They have rated Hyderabadon other parameters that arebeing touted by others as a cer-tificate for Hyderabad as beingthe most liveable city.

The Centre's survey is dis-tinct from them because of itscomprehensiveness. It evalu-ates the performance of awhopping 111 cities that vol-unteered and the report runsinto 234 pages. It is based ondiverse sources, particularlysurveys by Karvy Insights andis authored by a team from theInstitute of Competitivenessled by Amit Kapoor. It is notjust a certificate of merit. It is

meant to be a report on whichaction needs to be taken by theagencies concerned to achievethe Centre's SustainableDevelopment Goals unlike theMercer report, which focuseson issues like the availability ofconsumables, clean drinkingwater, and traffic congestion.

Much of the outrage bypoliticians against Hyderabad'spoor ranking stems from thehype that TRS leaders had cre-ated around the city throughunkept promises of developingit on par with other moderncities across the globe. Notonly has it not happened, but

haphazard growth and mush-rooming of illegal buildingshave attracted the ire of theHigh Court of Telangana.

The last drop of publicitywas milked from the DurgamCheruvu hanging bridge aheadof the GHMC elections lastNovember, but it yielded lim-ited political dividends. Suchprojects do not add much tothe quality of life when viewed

in the backdrop of poor mobil-ity (public transport) and roadinfrastructure besides highrate of accidents. These factorspulled down Hyderabad to34th rank in the quality of liv-ing against Bangalore's 3rdrank.

Also, Hyderabad is notranked by the fame ofCharminar, the beauty of itspearls or the mouth-wateringbiryani however much somemay wish. These are good formarketing Hyderabad as atourist destination. Rankingsare based on lived reality as inthe case of Chennai (4th rank),a city of aspirations for almostevery Tamilian.

Broadly, the survey givesweightage of 35 % to quality oflife, 30 percent to citizen per-ception, 20% to sustainabilityand 15% to economic ability.Quality of life is broken downinto categories like education,water, sanitation and SwachhBharat but Hyderabad, one of

the most prosperous municipalcorporations, does not do wellhere either with a rank of 34.

The city was ranked 41st inthe Citizen Perception Survey,despite people being far moregenerous that the actual per-formance of the metropolis.Overall, 32 lakh citizens weresurveyed across the country, ofwhom 92,000, almost 89,000through online, answeredquestions about Hyderabad. Inthe category of sustainability,it fared poorly in environmentprotection, though it scoredhigh in greenery.

A controversy is raging overthe Centre shelving theInformation TechnologyInvestment Region (ITIR) pro-ject in Hyderabad with ITMinister K. T. Rama Rao tar-geting the Centre for turninga Nelson's eye towards devel-opment of the city, which hasemerged as an internationalhub for software, warehousingand retail. But the survey

ranks Hyderabad 31st in eco-nomic development, though ata healthy third when it comesto economic opportunities.

The criticism of the surveyby KTR and the new Mayor ofHyderabad GadwalVijayalakshmi, is nothing new.Other State governments didthe same in 2019 and 2020when their cities were rankedpoorly. But, a deeper studywould show that Hyderabadfell behind due to its poorscores on quality of life and cit-izen perception, areas in whichthese leaders might have towork harder.

Hyderabad must brace forworse in the Ease of Livingreport for 2021 when a lot ofnew factors, principally thedevastating floods in Octoberwill kick in and may spoil thecopybook further due to poorhandling of rescue and reliefoperations. It will reveal theextent to which the quality oflife has suffered.

S NAGESH KUMARFormer Resident Editor,

The Hindu

Much of the outrage by politicians against

Hyderabad's poor ranking stems from the

hype that TRS leaders created around the

city through unkept promises of developing

it on par with other modern cities. Not only

has it not happened, but haphazard growth

has attracted the ire of the High Court

‘ALL ANDSUNDRY’

Centre's survey should serve as eye-opener for Hyderabad

ML MELLY MAITREYI

n HYDERABAD

Chief Minister KChandrasekhar Rao hintedthat the budget outlay forecastfor the next financial year2021-22 will be optimistic andpriority for welfare and devel-opment schemes will contin-ue in the next fiscal given theturnaround in revenue gener-ation from Decemberonwards.

The 10-day budget sessionis likely to commence onMarch 15 after the MLCelections. The Chief Ministerconvened a high- level meet-ing on the budget proposalsand estimates at PragathiBhavan here on Saturdayand examined the financialreports submitted by officialsand the department-wisebudget estimates.

He reportedly soughtdetails about the depart-ment-wise revenue, recoveryin the State’s economy, the

GSDP growth and felt thatthe scenario seemed reason-ably optimistic withimprovement in revenuemonth on month.

He said that along with theseveral welfare and develop-ment schemes, the sheepdistribution scheme wouldalso, be continued and pro-posals for another three lakhunits of sheep would beincluded in the next budgetas it was helping Yadav andKurma communities earngood income.

The sheep distributionscheme would be continuedas it also won praise from theCentre and the State was inthe forefront with a highsheep population in thecountry. Similarly, the fish-eries scheme that was alsogiving good results would becontinued, he said.

He said that due to theCovid pandemic, there wasa shortfall of about Rs 50,000crore to the State exchequer

and the year may close witha shortfall of Rs 40,000 croreto Rs 45,000 crore. Howeverpost Covid, economic activ-ities in the State have recov-ered and improving everymonth and there was a risein revenue in various sectors.“Thus the allocations in thenext budget are likely to behigher,” he said.

He, however, expressedconcern that in the light ofCentre withdrawing alloca-tions to some of its schemes,particularly to SHG groups,and asked officials how tomobilise resources for them.

The Saturday’s meetingfinalised the guidelines forbudget estimates and alloca-

tions. From Sunday onwards,Finance Minister Harish Raowould hold meetings withR&B, Panchayat Raj,Municipal Administration,Education, Irrigation andother departments in coor-dination with the FinanceDepartment, he said in themeeting.

Once the budget prepara-tory exercise was completedwith all the departments,the final meeting would beheld under the chairmanshipof the Chief Minister with allthe departments to give fin-ishing touches to the budgetfor 2021-22 soon.

Finance Minister HarishRao, Chief Advisor toGovernment Rajiv Sharma,Chief Secretary SomeshKumar, Principal Secretary SNarsing Rao, FinanceDepartment PrincipalSecretary Ramakrishna Rao,Advisor GR Reddy, CMOofficials and others attendedthe meeting.

n Expresses satisfactionover improvement inrevenue since December

n Priority to continue forwelfare anddevelopment schemes

CM hints at optimisticbudgetary allocations Continued from Page 1

"Main ye manta hoon, lok-tantra mein asahmati ka apnasthan hai, virodh ka bhi apnasthan hai, matbhed ke bhi apnemahatva hai. Lekin kya virodhis keemat par kiya jaana chahiye,jo desh ka nuksan kare (Thereis a place for disagreement indemocracy and so is for oppo-sition and difference of opinion,but should there be any oppo-sition that can harm thenation)," he said. No one is readyto talk on how these protests canbe in the interest of farmers, theminister said.

Tomar regretted that farmerunions as well as the Oppositionparties have failed to point outfaults in provisions of theselaws.

"Loktantra hai toh rajneetikarne ki swatantra sabko hai.Lekin kya kisan ko markarrajneeti ki jayegi, kisan ka ahitkarke rajneeti ki jaayegi, desh kekrishi ki arthvybastha ko tilan-jali dekar apne mansoobon kopura kiya jayega, is par nischitroop se naye phidi ko vichar

karne ki zaroorat hai (Everyoneis free to have any politicalview in democracy, but the newgeneration must think, shouldthere be any politics by sacrific-ing farmers or by hurting farm-ers' interest or at the cost of theagriculture economy)," he asked.

Tomar stressed that the gov-

ernment's proposal to amendlaws does not mean that therewere any deficiencies in thesereform laws.

He said the government hasmade a proposal to amendthese laws as farmers continueto be the face of this ongoingprotest.

Farmer leaders firm on therepeal as agitation ...

Govt ready to amend new agrilaws: Narendra Tomar

Continued from Page 1

We are ready to resume talkswith the government, but itshould be held without anyprecondition," Pal told PTI.InJanuary, the government hadproposed to suspend the threecontentious farm laws for 1-1.5years and set up a jointcommittee to find an amicablesolution in the interest of thefarming community, which theprotesting unions had thenrejected it. Another senior farmerleader Kulwant Singh Sandhu

said farm unions have never said"no" to talks with the centralgovernment, adding that theirstand on talks as well asdemands have been the samefrom the beginning.

He said the Samkyukta KisanMorcha has called a meeting onMarch 9 to decide the nextcourse of action to intensify theirongoing agitation. "Everyday,more people are joining thefarmers' protest. There are over1.25 lakh people at the fourborder points here in the capitalitself," Sandhu claimed.

Continued from Page 1

Citing the analysis of theCentre for Science andEnvironment in 2016, thereport revealed that 3,245hectares of water bodies werelost in Hyderabad between1989 and 2001.

Of an estimated one lakhwater bodies in the GreaterHyderabad Capital Region,the number dwindled to 185lakes; and out of 185, for 75lakes the surplus weirs andcourses were completelyclosed. These lakes used towork as flood sink of the city.As a result, the city is morevulnerable to any natural dis-aster. What is worse, the reportnoted, neither the GHMCnor the Telangana State hasdisaster management plans."They are also not utilizing thedoppler radar which can giveadvance and precise warnings.The focus is on disasterresponse even while allowing

unplanned growth," it said.Interestingly in the current

election campaign, particular-ly in Hyderabad-Ranga Reddyand Mahbubnagar Graduateconstituencies, neither the rul-ing nor the opposition partiesraised the issue of illegalencroachments on lakes ,nalas, storm water drains sofar. The loss of 33 lives inOctober, 2020 floods in thecity and huge economic lossestimated at over Rs.650 croreby the State Government wasapparently put on the back-burner after the elections tothe Greater HyderabadMunicipal Corporation inwhich the ruling party paid aprice with lesser tally of seats.

Congress leader ShravanDasoju said even after TRScame to power in the newlyformed Telangana State in2014, on one of the keypromises; that is, to protectwater bodies in the city andState, nothing had been done.

In fact, many new encroach-ments came up in lakes likeSalkum, Bathukamma kuntaetc. The extent of lakes likeDurgam cherevu furthershrank with heavy concretiza-tion and Durgam Cheruvunow looks like a mere pond, hesaid. Many TRS leaders them-selves and their supportersfrom AIMIM had beenencroaching on lake beds withimpunity. The Suram lake hasbeen encroached by a privateschool, he alleged.

The Telangana governmenthad been allowing new mallsand huge complexes inBanjara Hills, Jubilee Hills,Gachibowli and FinancialDistricts areas even whenthere was no drainage andcivic infrastructure to supportnew complexes. The HighCourt also made seriousobservations recently aboutrampant illegal constructionscoming up every where in thecity, he said.

TS must fix encroachments ... Continued from Page 1

"The credit for creating theministry goes to the BJP," hesaid sarcastically.

Injustice would be done toSCs and STs should the PSUsand LIC be privatised. Therewere many PSUs which couldbe called heritage structures;yet, the BJP Government at theCentre was bent on disposingthem, he said, while reasoningthat it could be a conspiracy towind up quota for various cat-egories of people.

The spirit of Dr BRAmbedkar was being dealt ablow, he said and appealed tograduates to think about itonce.

He claimed credit for pass-ing GO Ms No 59 in Telanganaon the directions of ChiefMinister K ChandrasekharRao. The GO deals with allot-ment of work on the basis ofpopulation to the working

agencies. Chief Minister K

Chandrasekhar Rao alwaysgave priority to education. TheTRS government had launchedOverseas Education Schememeant for SCs and STs, andextended financial assistance tothe tune of Rs 20 lakh to eachstudent pursuing educationoverseas. Nowhere else such ascheme was being implement-ed, he asserted.

Harish asked graduates tothink about the Centre's poli-cies and work as perAmbedkar's philosophy of'being educated, be organisedand being agitated'. He askedthem not to be misled by theprovocative statements of BJP.The TRS government wasinstrumental in implement-ing quota for the SCs and STs.Two women went on tobecome chairpersons of mar-ket committees in Telangana,he added.

Conspiracy to do...

Continued from Page 1

KCR invited Harish Rao tothe review on Saturday. KCRindicated at the meeting thatthe Budget outlay forecast forthe next financial year wouldbe optimistic and priority forwelfare and developmentalschemes would continue inthe next fiscal, given theturnaround in revenue gen-eration from December 2020onwards.

Continued from Page 1

Increase in weekly positivityand low number of contact trac-ing of the COVID positivecases," the Union HealthMinistry said in a statement."These together can pose highrisk of transmission to theneighbouring states and unionterritories," the Health Ministrysaid. Of those identified by thegovernment, nine districts arein Delhi, 15 are in Haryana, 10in Andhra Pradesh, 10 inOdisha, nine in HimachalPradesh, seven in Uttarakhand,two in Goa, and one inChandigarh.

An average close contacttracing "of minimum of 20 per-sons per positive case," shouldbe conducted, the governmenthas said in a suggested actionplan that also stresses onimproved overall testing and anactive monitoring of "super-spreader events". "Make opti-mal use of the vaccine doses andcollaborate with the privatehospitals to open up vaccinationtime-table for a minimum of 15days, the states were told.

Continued from Page 1

ensuring that the AnthonyDe Mello Trophy will stay atthe Cricket Centre in Mumbai.

It was another two and halfdays finish but even the mostpartisan England experts liketheir former skipper MichaelVaughan have admitted thatthe 22-yard strip had almostnothing to do with their side'sabject surrender.

A case in point could beIndia's first innings score of365 and a lead of 160 on thesame track where Englandcould cumulatively manageonly 340 runs across twoinnings.

"The comeback in Chennaipleased me the most. The firstgame was an aberration andEngland outplayed us," saidIndia skipper Virat Kohli at thepost-match presentation."Every team in internationalcricket is a quality side and weneed to work hard to beatthem, even at home. Keepingthat intensity going is mostimportant and is the hallmarkof our team."

Atrocious application andunbelievably poor mindset

while playing spinners cost theEnglishmen dearly during thelast three Tests and skipper JoeRoot had little to offer interms of explanation.

"We haven't matched Indiain the last three, and we needto keep learning and keep get-ting better for this experienceand this series, and we need tokeep evolving and move for-ward," admitted Root.

This was one Test matchwhere Indians, even before aball being bowled, created anillusion of a turning track. Itwas a ploy of playing with theminds of a team that wasalready in a negative zone.

There wasn't much turn butenough to ensure that the vis-itors wilted under pressure asPatel's series tally stood athighest for a newcomer (27)while man of the series Ashwinwas peerless as ever with 32scalps in his kitty.

A lot of credit for this victo-ry should go to theindomitable Rishabh Pant,who played the enforcer on thesecond day with a magnificenthundred, and WashingtonSundar, who notched up achiselled 96.

Continued from Page 1

The most severely forest-fire affected areas in theState are Visakhapatnam,and Rajahmundry circlesand parts of SrisailamProject Tiger reserve for-est, says the departmentanalysis.

Forest officials say theyare mobilising village com-munities, VSS membersand farmer associations tokeep tabs on the forestf i res . Awareness pro-

grammes are also beingconducted on forest firesfor the ignorant andunaware tribal youths.

From 2017, FSI has alsostar ted disseminat ingaler ts obtained f romSNPP-VIIRS sensor, whichhas a better resolution (375m X 375 m) compared toMODIS (1 km X 1 km).Alerts are disseminated upto beat-level in the case of10 states including AndhraPradesh and Telangana.

Continued from Page 1

Soon after the video wentviral, the man, whom theTDP leader slapped at leasttwice, has ‘clarified’ by releas-ing a video of his own, inwhich he says that he is a “die-hard Balakrishna fan” and is“honoured” to have been“touched” by the actor.

Balakrishna has a history ofmaking physical and verbalabuses against fans and sup-porters.

Saturday’s incident occurredwhen he had visited a house inhis Assembly constituency,campaigning for the upcom-ing municipal elections.

There he noticed his fanrecording his video withoutpermission and could notcontrol himself. As soon asBalakrishna slapped the fan,people requested him to stoprecording. However,Balakrishna went ahead andslapped him again, insistingthat the video footage record-ed thus far be deleted.

Continued from Page 1

"A weapon hung on the walldoes not make any noise, butone would know its power at theright time," KTR said, whilecharting the impressive journeyof TRS party.

The TRS working presidentsaid the party would completetwo decades of its existence onApril 27. KCR started the partyin his mid-forties when theGrand Old Party was a formi-dable force and the TeluguDesam Party was a powerfulorganization under the leader-ship of N.Chandrababu Naidu.Several movements waged pre-viously for separate Telanganahad failed. KCR had no moneyor muscle power or mediabacking and he was known onlyto the people of Medak district.Yet, despite the challenging cir-

cumstances, KCR launched hispolitical journey with unwaver-ing determination to achieveTelangana State to fulfil people'saspirations. Today, the TRS hadtaken shape of a strong andpowerful army with lakhs ofcommitted party cadre, he toldthe party's students' wing.

KTR recalled that at a timewhen many had heckled thevery idea of separate Telangana,KCR did not feel discouragedand went ahead with his mis-sion, sacrificing his posts at theCentre several times to give con-fidence to people. While stu-dents were studying inOsmania, Kakatiya universi-ties, BJP leaders were learningthe art of telling lies in 'WhatsApp' university, he remarked,taking a dig at the saffron party.

KCR had created several

opportunities for Telanganastudents and youth in educationas well as employment andincreased residential schoolsand colleges manifold, while theBJP did nothing to strengthenthe education sector and did noteven sanction NavodayaVidyalayas to the State, KTRsaid.

Although the Centre sanc-tioned medical colleges, IIMs,IITs, IIITs and universities acrossthe nation, it failed to allot a sin-gle one of them to TelanganaState. The Centre did not alloteven Navodaya Schools, hepointed out. On what basisshould one vote for BJP, he ques-tioned. The Centre, which wasbent on privatizing Vizag SteelPlant, could not be expected tosanction Bayyaram Steel Plant,though it was an assurance in

the State Reorganisation Act,2014. Modi would not flinch toshow a roadside snack seller toclaim that his government cre-ated livelihood for people.Students should go to graduatevoters and explain the achieve-ments of TRS, while sheddinglight on empty words of BJPleaders "to teach that party a les-son", KTR told the students.

Modi announced Rs.20 lakhcrore AtmaNirbhar package,but did anyone get anythingfrom it, he asked. KTR warnedTS BJP leaders, saying the TRSwould pay back the saffronparty's leaders chiding TRSleaders with interest. He warnedthem not to underestimate thesilence of the Chief Minister KChandrasekhar Rao. "We willsee the end of 'bafoons whenneed arises", he warned.

Modi’s ‘baath karodonke…

India fix Lord's date: Kohliand co thrash England

Centre warns8 States, UTson Covid surge

Slapped byBalayya, fansays he is‘honoured’

TS budgetsession... AP, TS report most...

PNS n HYDERABAD

Cyberabad Commissioner VCSajjanar on Saturday launched ahelp desk for transgenders inGachibowli Police Station to solvetheir problems

Speaking on the occasion, he said:"Today is a historic day. For the firsttime a transgender desk has been setup in a police station in the historyof the world."

The help desk would kick offchange in the perception of the peo-ple of the country towards the trans-genders. He expressed concern overtransgenders not availing of thebenefits under government schemes.The help desk will provide manyfacilities to the community, he added.

He assured them of allotting 2BHKhouses and extended support totransgenders taking part in jobmelas. The police would be at theforefront to support them, but the lawwould take its own course of action,

if transgenders resort to anti-socialactivities, he warned.

The transgenders should initiatechange in their community. Headvocated making a documentary onthe transgenders in the state to edu-cate people on their plight.

The discrimination against themwould not go in a single day, he said.

Prajjwala founder Dr SunitaKrishnan was also present on theoccasion.

Sajjanar said that many changes havebeen effected in the community andassured them of protection and jobplacements and many more facilities.

HYDERABAD | SUNDAY | MARCH 7, 2021 hyderabad 03

World Glaucoma Weekbegins with the theme'The world is bright,

save your sight'Centre for Sight launchesstate-of-the patient friendlytreatment for Glaucoma -'Endoscopic lasercyclophoto-coagulation surgery', at Banjara Hills Center. Hyderabad.Centre for Sight, Hyderabad, is organising various awarenessinitiatives for ophthalmologists, medical community and public tosensitise them on this permanently blinding eye disease on theoccasion of World Glaucoma Week scheduled for March 7. On WorldGlaucoma Day, Centre for Sight hosted a webinar with internationalwith the topic 'Indian dilemmas: Global Perspectives'. Centre for Sighthas also launched a state-of-the-art patient-friendly treatment forGlaucoma, the endoscopic laser cyclophotocoagulation surgery, theonly such facility in this part of the country at Banjara Hills.

CITY LIGHTS

On the occasion of InternationalWomen's Day, YashodaHospital's announced a special

offer 'Free Women Wellness HealthPackage' as a complementaryexclusively for Covid frontlinewarriors - women police and womendoctors in Hyderabad. Director of Yashoda Hospitals Group DrPavan Gorukanti said: "This year, the theme for InternationalWomen's Day is 'Women in leadership: Achieving an equal future ina Covid world'. We are celebrating the efforts put in by women andgirls around the world today in shaping a more equal future andrecovery from the pandemic. We have to always rememberwomen's full and effective participation, leadership and sacrifices inall areas of life that will drive progress for everyone in the world." Inthis modern and challenging world, women are mostly busy in theirrespective fields leading the most stressful lives. Women takecomplete responsibility of their families and other's health also. But,unfortunately women always ignore their own health, he observed.

SLG Hospitals onSaturday launched'Sakhi', an

empowerment initiative forhealth and wellbeing ofwomen as part of thecelebrations of InternationalWomen's Day. The initiativewill focus on helping women in the city to perform self-assessmentto evaluate health conditions like breast cancer, anemia, menstrualproblems and any other complications. Nizampet Mayor KolanNeela Gopal Reddy launched the initiative in the presence of DanduSiva Rama Raju, CMD and DVS Soma Raju, Executive Director ofSLG Hospitals. The training to be provided under this initiative willhelp women in residential societies in the region will be able toconduct much-needed self-analysis before reaching out to a doctorfor further evaluation. The Mayor said, "I personally consider this asa brilliant programme which will help women who find it difficult toseek timely medical advice to their health problems.”

SLG Hospitals launch 'Sakhi'for wellbeing of women

L&T Metro Rail (Hyderabad) Limited (LTMRHL) won the first prizeunder the category 'Social Media for PR and Branding' inprestigious Public Relations Society of India (PRSI) National

Award - 2020. The award ceremony was hosted virtually in presenceof the Governor of Uttarakhand, Srimati Baby Rani Maurya, UnionEducation Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal and Dr. Ajit Pathak, President,PRSI on February 21, 2021. The esteemed jury of the awardsappreciated the diligent efforts of Hyderabad Metro Rail towardsupholding a strong brand presence through Social Media. KVBReddy, MD & CEO, LTMRHL, stated, “We are really delighted toreceive prestigious PRSI National Award. I would like to congratulateour Corporate Communications team for their innovative and uniquecampaigns to connect with the commuters using our social mediaplatforms and also the entire LTMRHL team to build, as well asstrengthen our commuters’ faith in Hyderabad Metro Rail. I wouldthank the jury members for recognising our efforts.”

Centre for Sight holds webinarson World Glaucoma Week

LTMRHL bags PRSI nationalaward

PNS n HYDERABAD

The Corrugated box industry isreeling under the twin blows ofsharp cost increases in a shortspan of a few months and rawmaterial supply disruptions.

The total cost increase for boxmakers has already crossed 70 percent cumulatively on account ofpaper alone and the increase isunrelenting. The industry is bleed-ing on account of unprecedentedhikes in the cost of its main rawmaterial kraft paper.

Kraft paper mills attribute therising prices of imported anddomestic waste paper to Covidlockdowns and international logis-tics disruptions for the reducedavailability.

On the demand side, they aretaking advantage of the lucrativeopportunity to export kraft paperin the form of recycled kraftpaper pulp rolls to China to fill thesupply gap as mills in China facethe impact of an import ban of allsolid waste including waste paper

with effect from January 1, 2021onwards.

Sandeep Wadhwa, president,Indian Corrugated CaseManufacturers' Association(ICCMA), a pan India body,stated that the demand gap andattractive pricing in China isdiverting the output of Indiankraft paper from the domesticmarket and driving up theprices of finished paper andrecycled fibre.

Exports of recycled kraft paperpulp rolls by Indian kraft paper

mills would touch about 2 milliontonnes this year, roughly 20 percent of total domestic kraft paperproduction in India. This devel-opment, on the base of zeroexport prior to 2018, is a game-changer in supply-side dynamicsgoing forward.

In addition to the increase inthe costs of kraft paper, all otherinputs namely manpower costs,starch, freight & other overheadshave also witnessed a hugeincrease in the range of 60 to 70per cent over last few years. The

Corrugated Box Industry in thecountry with 350+ automatic cor-rugators and more than 10,000semi-automatic units, mostly inMSME sector, is facing immensestress on account of these unprece-dented cost increases.

Harish Madan, vice-president ofICCMA said that this is an eco-friendly industry that consumesabout 7.5 million MT per year ofrecycled kraft paper and pro-duces 100 per cent recyclablecorrugated boxes to constitute amarket of Rs 27,000 crore.

Double whammy for corrugated box industry Sharp rise inprices of rawmaterials withina short span anddisruptions insupply pushesindustry to thebrink of closure

MLC Kalvakuntla

Kavitha poses for a

selfie with students

while participating in

International Women's

Day celebrations held at

Telangana Social

Welfare Residential

Institution in Ghatkesar

on Saturday.

PNS n HYDERABAD

Housing and Urban AffairsSecretary Durga ShankerMishra on Saturday appreciat-ed the TRS government in thestate for the successful imple-mentation of the PradhanMantri Street Vendors' AtmaNirbhar Nidhi and Atal Mi-ssion for Rejuvenation andUrban Transformation.

He was reviewing the imple-mentation of the AMRUT,Smart City Mission, SwachchBharat Mission, PM SVANidhi,Housing for All and progress ofthe scheme at a meeting withofficials in BRK Bhavan.

The meeting also took stockof the achievements made bythe state government in imple-

menting the National UrbanLivelihood Mission programme.

Senior officials of themunicipal department made apower-point presentation onurban development schemesbeing implemented in the city.

Later, Durga ShankarMishra travelled on MetroRail from Lakdikapul to LBNagar and also visited theAnimal Welfare Centre at

Fatullahguda and 2BHK hous-es built in Vanasthalipuram forthe homeless poor.

CS Somesh Kumar, R&B andHousing principal secretarySunil Sarma, MA&UD principalsecretary Arvind Kumar, Unionjoint secretary Sunil Sarma,HMWSSB MD Dana Kishore,GHMC commissioner LokeshKumar and others were presentat the review meeting.

PNS n HYDERABAD

Engineering colleges set up onthe outskirts of twin citieslong ago with sprawling cam-puses measuring over 20 to 30acres have been indulging inreal estate business selling thevacant site as many of the col-leges have been closed due tolack of demand for seats fromstudents.

The Hi-Point EngineeringCollege at one point was abuzzwith academic activity withover 5,000 students pursuingeducation. However, therehave been no takers for the col-lege seats over a period of time.The admissions dropped to nilfive years ago. The collegemanagement has been sellingplots developing the collegecampus into a real estate lay-out.

Currently, the demand forhouse sites has increased manyfolds. Some colleges turnedtheir campuses into realty ven-tures, while some others haverented out their buildings torun hostels.

In Moinabad and Ghatkesarareas, the buildings of collegeswith zero admissions havebeen pulled down and thecampuses are converted intoreal estate ventures. In

Ibrahimpatnam and Keesaraareas, six engineering collegeshave been closed down. Thebuildings are rented out tosome other organisations torun hostels.

During the past five years, atleast 72 engineering college onthe outskirts of twin citiesfaced closure. In Chevellamandal alone, 12 engineeringcolleges have been closed.Most of the colleges that wereclosed belong to the minorityeducational institutions cate-gory.

Under the purview of theJNTU, at least 16 engineeringcolleges have been closeddown last year.

On the city outskirts, espe-cially in Moinabad, Chevella,A b d u l l a h p u r m e t ,Ibrahimpatnam, Ghatkesar,Medchal, Keesara, Narsingiand Patancheru, engineeringcolleges have been set up 15 to20 years ago in large numbers.

Then there were many tak-ers for seats in the engineeringcolleges. Over a period oftime, the number of seats inalmost all colleges hadincreased. Those who wish totake seats in the colleges whichare not so reputed have comedown gradually over a periodof time.

Some political leaders haveset up engineering colleges in

the name of their relativeswith an eye to derive benefitunder the tuition fee reim-bursement programme.Afterwards, the situationturned for the worse as thedues of fees reimbursementpayable by the government tocolleges increased. Therefore,the colleges were not able topay salaries to the teachingstaff. The teachers have leftthese colleges for greener pas-tures. Ultimately, the collegeshave no option to but to shutshop.

According to TelanganaEngineering and ProfessionalColleges Association chair-man N Gautam Rao, the suc-cessive governments in thepast allowed establishment ofengineering colleges in ruralareas. Therefore, many collegeshave been set up. Subsequently,students showed interest topursue education in the col-leges located in the city, lead-ing to diminishing of admis-sions in rural colleges.

Delay in government reim-bursing the tuition fees to thecolleges, teaching staff desert-ed these colleges. Finding thecolleges economically unvi-able, the managements arenot able to run them forcingthe closure of the colleges.

Yashoda Hospitals announcespecial package for women

Housing sect lauds TRS govt

CELEBRATINGWOMEN’S

DAY

PNS n HYDERABAD

The total number ofCoronavirus cumulative casesin Telangana rose to 2,99,742till date with 170 new Covidcases registered on Friday.

The state reported one freshfatality due to Covid in the last24 hours taking the death tollto 1,640 so far translating a casefatality rate of 0.54 per cent asagainst the country-wide mor-tality of 1.4 per cent, accordingto a state health departmentbulletin here on Saturday.

A total of 196 people haverecovered from Coronavirusstate-wide in a span of 24hours pushing the cumulativenumber of recoveries thus farto 2,96,166 constituting arecovery rate of 98.80 percent while the National recov-ery rate was 97 per cent.

The state now has 1,936

active cases including 812individuals in home or insti-tutional isolation.

About 40,712 swab sampleshave been tested in the state todetect the contagious virusand out of which the reportsof 568 swab samples are await-ed. Cumulatively, more than89.24 lakh Covid tests havebeen carried out in the state sofar since the outbreak of theCoronavirus pandemic.

The worst-hit GHMC con-tinued to be the main con-tributor of the infection byreporting 28 freshCoronavirus cases.

Covid: TS records 170new cases, one fatality

PNS n HYDERABAD

The Economic Offences Wing(EOW), Cyberabad Commiss-ionerate, have busted multilevel marketing scheme (mon-ey circulation scheme) by theIndus viva Health SciencesPrivate Limited who cheated10 lakh people to the tune ofRs 1,500 crore. Police arrested24 persons in this connectionincluding company CEO andCOO and also frozen the bankaccounts of Rs 20 crore.

Based on a complaint,Cyberabad EOW arrestedAbhilash Thomas, 40, CEO ofIndus Viva Health SciencesPrivate Limited, Shobha City,Tannirendra main Road,Bengaluru, Prem Kumar, 39,Chief Operating Officer(COO) Indus viva, OakyardApartments, East End, D MainRoad, IX Block, Jayanagar,Bangalore and 22 others for theoffence, a police release heresaid on Saturday.

The complainant lodged acomplaint in Gachibowli PoliceStation against Indus VivaCompany on February 20, 2021stating that he was cheated by thecompany inducing to promotethe company products offeringattractive income etc and intro-duced about four to five productslike coffee, juice etc.

The complainant attracted

towards the schemes andinvested Rs12,500 in IndusViva company through hispromoters Hari Prasad,Rajabanoth. After investment,the complainant didn't receiveany commission on his invest-ment as promised by pro-moters.

Then the complainant con-tacted the promoters for hiscommission but he did notreceive any response fromthem. Thereafter, he enquiredand came to know that thisbusiness is multilevel market-ing business and the incomewill be earned by joining themembers in a chain system orbinary method. Then the com-plainant requested for neces-sary action as per law againstthe above company and itsdirectors.

The investigation revealedthat Indus Viva HealthSciences Private Limited func-

tioning from Bangalore. Thescheme of the company is toearn money by enrolling mem-bers in Indus Viva Plan andCompensation Plan. Tobecome a member has to payRs 12,500 and buy their prod-ucts then they will get 100Point Value.

Then he/she will be issued auser ID and password for con-tinuing the scheme. Thus themember has to enroll/joinothers in down line to him byjoining one person to the leftand one person to the right bypaying Rs.12500 each then hewould earn Rs woo as bonus.

In order to get these bene-fits the member (who alreadyjoined the companyscheme/business) has to enrolltwo other members in thescheme within a week he canget Rswoo as additional bonus.Thus the member has to enrollmore members to earn money.

PNS n HYDERABAD

The Telangana StateSouthern PowerDistribution CompanyLimited on Saturdayplaced TelanganaVidyut Workers' Unionstate president GamboNagaraju under sus-pension on the chargesof spreading rumours.

Nagaraju servednotices to the manage-ment demanding thatthe Electricity ServiceBoard rules be appliedto the artisans, besidesresolving the problemsof electricity employ-ees.

It is pertinent to notethat Nagaraju formedthe first of the tradeunions to unite theTelangana employeesand played active rolein Telangana statehoodmovement. DuringTelangana movement,he worked shoulder toshoulder with ChiefMinister KChandrasekhar Raoand Minister T HarishRao.

TS Vidyutworkers'presidentsuspended

Rural engg college campusesturn into real estate ventures

Transgenders’ helpdesk at Gachibowli PS

Cyberabad police busts MLM network; 24 arrested

SUCCESSFUL IMPLEMENTATION OF AMRUT, PM SVANIDHI

hyderabad 04HYDERABAD | SUNDAY | MARCH 7, 2021

K VENKATESHWARLU

n HYDERABAD

The contestants of the twoGraduate MLC constituen-cies-- Hyderabad-Rangareddy-Mahabubnagarand Nalgonda-Khammam-Warangal-- have been reducedto numbers now. This,because of the presence ofmany independent candi-dates, who do not have aparty symbol. While 93 can-didates are in the fray inHyderabad-Rangareddy-Mahabubnagar constituencyand 71 candidates are contest-ing in Nalgonda-Khammam-Warangal constituency.

With the presence of a hugenumber of contestants, theballot paper is likely to be ina booklet form and the serialnumber has become moreimportant than the names ofthe contesting candidates.Some of the independent can-didates’ followers, who areparticipating in the electioncampaign, are seeking votesstressing the serial number.The Graduate MLC electionsballot papers would have can-didates’ photos instead ofparty symbols. Some cam-paigners are seeking votes inthe name of the serial number

instead of the names of thecandidates.

The campaigners (readactivists of Left parties) areseeking votes for an indepen-

dent candidate in the fray in theHyderabad-Rangareddy-Mahabubnagar Graduate MLCconstituency, Prof K Nageshwar,laying emphasis on his serialnumber 53 again and again.One of the campaigners forNageshwar from the CPIinformed The Pioneer that thevoters were surprisingly hookedon to ‘53’. Both the Left par-ties—CPM and CPI are extend-ing their support to Nageshwar,who won from this constituen-cy two times consecutively inthe past by contesting as anindependent candidate.Analysts state that Nageshwar isgiving a tough fight to the can-didates of main political parties--the TRS, BJP and Congress.

The doubt is whether theHyderabad-Rangareddy-Mahbubnagar graduate voterswould cast their vote search-ing for the numbers. For therecord, Dharma Biksham ofthe CPI had won theNalgonda Lok Sabha con-stituency in the past when hewas allotted a serial number,384, in the election ballotbecause the Jala SadhanaSamithi candidates were in thefray in huge numbers then.One has to wait to find outwhat will happen in the num-ber game this time.

BALLOT IN BOOKLET FORM IN GRADUATE MLC POLLS

Problem of plentyworries party leaders

n With the presence of a huge number ofcontestants, the ballotpaper is likely to be in abooklet format and theserial number hasbecome more importantthan the names of thecontesting candidates

n The Graduate MLCelections ballot paperswould have candidates’photos instead of partysymbols. Somecampaigners are seekingvotes in the name of aserial number instead ofthe names of thecandidates

PNS n HYDERABAD

The TRS has intensified theGraduate MLC elect ioncampaign in two constituen-cies. Party working presidentand IT Minister KT RamaRao has been conductingback to back meetings withvarious wings like lawyers,students, doctors, journalistsand others seeking theirsupport to the TRS candi-dates Palla Rajeshwar Reddyand Surabhi Vani Devi, whoare in the fray from theN a l g o n d a - K h a m m a m -Warangal and Hyderabad-Rangareddy-Mahabubnagarconstituencies.

Already, KTR had meet-ings with lawyers, students,doctors and will meet jour-nalists on Sunday. Besidesthese meetings, the in-charges are conducting sev-eral meetings in their allot-ted constituencies and dis-tricts every day.

The in-charge ministersare busy with their cam-paigning in their allotteddistricts. On the other hand,the party activists are meet-ing the graduate votersdirectly and stressing theneed of voting to TRS can-didates.

The party activists aremeet ing in Hyderabad-Rangareddy-Mahabubnagarconstituency. Each in-charge

has to meet 50 voters in theirallotted area. More than10,000 party activists aremeeting the 5,17,883 votersin Hyderabad-Rangareddy-Mahbubnagar constituencyone after the other. However,the process is somewhats low in Nalgonda-

Khammam-Warangal con-stituency.

According to par tysources , the vic tor y inN a l g o n d a - K h a m m a m -Warangal constituency is acakewalk for the party asthey are no strong oppo-nents. The party leaders areassessing the voters’ pulsethrough the field-level in-charges in the constituency.

Based on this, the partywil l further change thestrategies in the constituen-cy. The party is hoping thatit will win in this constituen-cy through first priorityvotes as the par ty hasenrolled the new voters.

However, the party is fac-ing a tough fight from theBJP, Congress and an inde-pendent in Hyderabad-Rangareddy-Mahbubnagarconstituency. The party con-centrated on Hyderabad-Rangareddy-Mahbubnagarconstituency as it took theelection as prestigious. Theparty activists are meetingvoters directly and seekingtheir votes for the TRS can-didate S Vani Devi besidesconducting meetings withlawyers, students, doctorsand others. The party lead-ers opine that the candidate’sclean image and party lead-ers’ hard work will ensurethe victory of Vani Devi inthis constituency.

TRS intensifies campaignfor Graduate MLC polls

RISING UNEMPLOYMENT IN STATE

PNS n HYDERABAD

Telangana Pradesh CongressCommittee (TPCC) presidentand MP N Uttam Kumar Reddyhas questioned the stoic silencebeing maintained by both TRSand BJP leaders over the issue ofrising unemployment in theState. He alleged that both theparties were indulging in blamegame to divert people's attentionfrom the failures of their govern-ments in the State and at theCentre.

He was addressing a series ofmeetings on Saturday as part ofMLC elections campaign infavour of Congress candidatefrom Warangal-Khammam-Nalgonda Graduates constituen-cy Sabavath Ramulu Naik. Headdressed a meeting with partyworkers in Miryalaguda. Later,he had an interactive session withadvocates in Miryalaguda court.He also addressed a meetingwith rice millers in Miryalagudaand a Youth Congress meetingin the Nagarjunasagar con-stituency.

Speaking on the occasion,Uttam Kumar Reddy said thatboth TRS and BJP leaders havebeen enacting new dramas ofpolitical rivalry every day todivert people's attention from themost important issues. "ChiefMinister K Chandrasekhar Raomust break his silence over theissue of rising unemployment inTelangana. He should explainhow he proposes to provideemployment to nearly 30 lakhjobless youth of Telangana. Hecannot wash off his hands byclaiming that the State govern-ment has provided a few thou-sand jobs," he said.

Referring to the growth fig-ures reportedly furnished bythe Directorate of Economicsand Statistics to the Centre

claiming 1.35% GSDP growth in2020-21, Uttam Kumar Reddyhas cautioned the TRS govern-ment against using inflated fig-ures to claim economic growth.

He said that the Comptrollerand Auditor General of India(CAG) and the 15th FinanceCommission have revealed intheir reports that the Telanganagovernment has committeddeliberate accounting errors toinflate figures of revenue andgrowth. He said such fake claimsof the State's economy doing bet-ter than the national averagewere used to raise huge loans athigh-interest rates from variousagencies.

Those amounts were utilisedon projects, which fetch TRSleaders huge kickbacks and com-missions. He said that the TRSgovernment has so far bor-rowed over Rs. 3 lakh crore push-ing Telangana into a huge debtcrisis. He said thousands ofcrores of taxpayers’ moneywould be wasted on payment ofexorbitant interest for nearly

two decades due to the wrongeconomic policies of the KCRgovernment.

Uttam Kumar Reddy saidthat the Chief Minister mustpresent a realistic budget thisyear and he should proposespecific solutions to deal withthe problems of unemploy-ment. Furthermore, he saidthat the Chief Minister mustallocate sufficient funds forthe implementation of Rs 3,016monthly allowance to all job-less youth with retrospectiveeffect from December 2018. Hesaid provisions should also bemade to provide fitment of notless than 43% to the govern-ment employees.

Meanwhile, Uttam KumarReddy, MLC Candidate RamuluNaik, AICC ST departmentvice-chairman Bellya Naik, DCCpresident Shankar Naik andothers paid last respects to mor-tal remains of Army jawanPagilla Venkanna inMiryalaguda who died nearPathankot on Indo-Pak border.

‘TRS, BJP indulge in blame game to divert people’s attention’

TPCC chief Uttam Kumar Reddy and others paying tributes to mortal remains ofArmy jawan Pagilla Venkanna (in Miryalaguda) who died near Pathankot onIndo- Pak border

PNS n PEDDAPALLI

Sunil Kumar, CGM-NTPC,underlined the importance ofeffective communication,which is the building block ofa successful organisation, whiledelivering the keynote addressat the communication work-shop organised by the NTPC-Ramagundam for senior exec-utives through virtual mode onSaturday.

Echoing a similar view, headof HR Vijaya Lakshmi M inher welcome address said thatin a competitive world, withthe explosion of informationand changing media scenario,the importance of communi-cation has further multiplied.PK Laad, GM (TS) and

Prasenjit Pal, GM (project)were present in the openingsession.

During the morning session,TS Sudhir, an independentcolumnist and political analyst,

spoke on media relations inchanging world, MGopalakrishna, IAS (retd), ex-chairman of REC and SCOPEdelivered the lecture on‘Leadership communication’.

In the afternoon session,Dr Anjuman Borah, assistantprofessor, JournalismDepartment, TezpurUniversity, spoke on the signif-icance of effective communica-tion in organizations, followedby the lecture on media rela-tions in changing the worldwith thrust on print and socialmedia by Joe A Scaria, a seniorjournalist.

Earlier, C Elbert, DGM (cor-porate communication),SRHQ stressed the importanceof internal and external com-munication with a major thruston media engagement. Senioremployees from Ramagundamand Telangana Project attend-ed the programme in largenumbers.

NTPC CGM underlines importance of effective of communication

Sunil Kumar, CGM-NTPC, addressing a workshop on effective communication inRamagundam on Saturday

PNS n JAYASHANKAR

BHUPALAPALLY

District Collector KrishnaAditya directed the medicalhealth officials to make arrange-ments for corporate level med-ical services at the district hos-pital. The Collector inspected thedistrict hospital building onSaturday.

He said immediate arrange-ments should be made to pro-vide government medical ser-vices at the corporate level to thepeople of the district through thenewly constructed district hos-pital at Bhupalapally.

Steps should be taken torecruit general physician, gener-al surgeon, gynecologist, staff

nurse, pharmacist, lab technicianand other medical personnel inthe district hospital, he said.

The hospital is currently pro-

viding medical services on a trialbasis and will soon take steps fora full-scale inauguration. Theywant to buy and keep all kinds

of medicines ready so that thereis no shortage of medicines. Hesaid sanitation should be carriedout at the corporate hospital leveland 24-hour security should beprovided. He also said thatBhupalapally and KataramPHCs should be equipped withdigital X-Ray machines atMahadevpur CHC and OP anddiagnostic tests should be avail-able in all hospitals.

District Medical HealthOfficer Dr Sudhar Singh, DCHSDr Tirupati, programme officersDr Umadevi, Dr MamataDevi, DPO Chiranjeevi, epi-demiologist Dr Bhashya Nayak,senior staff nurse Rani anddrugs stores in-charge BhaskaraRao were present.

Provide medical services at corporatelevel in govt hospitals: Collector

Collector Krishna Aditya going around the hospital building in JayashankarBhupalapally district on Saturday

PNS n HYDERABAD

Expressing his displeasure overthe sorry state of affairs in theState, Union Minister of State forHome Affairs G Kishan Reddyon Saturday alleged that ChiefMinister K Chandrasekhar Raoweakened the universities,which are focal points for move-ments.

KCR also weakened theArogyasri scheme and did noth-ing to the unemployed youth, healleged. TRS leaders have noright to criticise Prime MinisterNarendra Modi, he said.

He alleged that sand and landmafia are ruling the roost in theState, but the TRS government

had failed to initiate actionagainst them. He reminded theBJP’s resounding victory in theDubbak bypoll and the GHMC.He said that the people ofTelangana were against the KCRfamily and they want a changeand it is possible with the BJP.

Addressing the GraduateMLC election campaign atHanmakonda on behalf of theirparty candidate GujjulaPremender Reddy contestingfrom Nalgonda-Khammam-Warangal constituency, KishanReddy said that the Centregranted railway overhaulingindustry in 2016, however, theproject was stalled as the Stategovernment had failed to allot

160 acres of land.He alleged that the State gov-

ernment failed to allot land forthe Bibi Nagar Medical College.Even the State government hadfailed to pay its share of Rs 30crore to the super specialtyhospital in Warangal.

He said that the BJP ledCentral government gave a fer-tilizer factory in Ramagundamwith Rs 6,000 crore and PrimeMinister Narendra Modi willinaugurate it very soon.

He alleged that KCR didn’tconstruct a single super special-

ty hospital in any district and heobstructed the implementationof the Ayushman BharathScheme assuming that the BJPwill get name and fame.

He called upon the graduatevoters not to believe in TRSleaders' words. KCR assured thathe will construct double bed-room houses in Warangal, butwhere were those houses, heasked. He alleged that theTelangana betrayers are atPragathi Bhavan whereas pro-tagonists are on roads. KCR isthe Chief Minister, who didn'tcome to the Secretariat. Healleged that the Chief Ministeris not giving priority to otherplaces except his native place.

KCR weakened universities: Kishan Reddyn TRS leaders have

no right to flay PM

n Telangana betrayers at Pragathi Bhavanwhereas protagonists are on roads, allegedUnion Minister of State for Home Affairs

n KTR had meetingswith lawyers, students, doctors and will meetjournalists on Sunday. Besides these meetings, the in-charges areconducting severalmeetings in theirallotted constituenciesand districts every day

PNS n HYDERABAD

BJP State unit chief BandiSanjay Kumar warned theMinisters stating that theBJP will not keep mum ifthey threaten employees,graduates, pensioners andothers for votes. He allegedthat the TRS leaders areencroaching lands in NagarKurnool district.

Addressing the GraduateMLC election campaign inNagar Kurnool district onSaturday, Bandi Sanjay saidthat the government is dis-playing the photos of KCRwhile taking every paisa fromthe Centre. He said that theState government has noguts to release the whitepaper on the schemes it isimplementing without takingCentre’s funds.

He termed the BJP as the

party, which wages a fight forthe rights of employees andPRC, however, the TRS is theparty that encroaches thelands of tribals. The BJPactivists are not scared of ille-gal cases filed by the policeas they are waging a fight fora cause.

He said that the TRS field-ed former Prime Ministerlate PV Narasimha Rao’sdaughter S Vani Devi in theconstituency where TRS willnot win. He asked Vani Devito tell as to why she was con-testing the elections from theTRS, which is in alliance withthe MIM, which stated thatit will destroy the PV Ghat.He said that the PRC will beout if the TRS wins the elec-tion. What is the need to casttheir votes to the TRS whereKCR is not urging for votes,he questioned?

Mend your ways,Bandi Sanjaywarns Ministers

PNS n HYDERABAD

CLP leader Mallu BhattiVikramarka will campaign forthe Graduate MLC elections ona bicycle from March 7. He hasdecided to campaign in a novelway in protest against the hikein petrol anddiesel prices.C o n g r e s sMLC T JeevanReddy, too,will join BhattiVikramarka inthe campaignin Khammamand Mahabubabad constituen-cies.

Speaking to the media onSaturday at the Assembly MediaPoint, Bhatti alleged that boththe BJP and TRS left the ITIRproject to the wind. He urgedthe graduate voters to teach alesson to the TRS and BJP in theMLC elections.

He alleged that the Centrewas destroying the backbone ofthe middle class by hiking theprices of petrol and diesel. He

demanded that the electionofficials initiate action againstthe Ministers for violating theelection code.

Jeevan Reddy alleged thatboth the BJP and TRS has anequal share in water downingthe ITIR project given by the

then UPA gov-ernment. TheTRS became aB-Team to theBJP. ChiefMinister KChandrasekharRao had sup-ported Prime

Minister Narendra Modi for hisselfish ends. KCR has beenextending support to Modi toshield his corruption, healleged.

He said that the Congressmade PV as the Prime Minister,however, it is painful that PV'sdaughter S Vani Devi is contest-ing on the TRS ticket, whichcriticised PV. He urged theElection Commission to initi-ate action against the Ministerfor violating the election code.

PNS n KARIMNAGAR

District Collector K Shashankaordered officials to chalk outan action plan for buyinggrains from farmers during theRabi season.

He convened a review meet-ing at the Collectorate here onSaturday for the works to betaken up at Grain PurchasingCentres.

"Last year, the governmenthas collected 360 metric tonnesof grains through the GrainPurchasing Centres inKarimnagar district and thisyear we are expecting 420metric tonnes of grains out of5,930 metric tonnes cultivatedin 2,55,153 acres,” he said.

With the increase in grainproduction in the State com-pared to last year, officialsplanning to increase the GrainPurchasing Centres at marketyards in the district.

In all, eight market yards arelocated in the district and the

Collector ordered officials toappoint a special officer, cen-tre in-charge and other staff atevery yard to maintain recordsand other activities.

He asked the AEOs to allota date for all farmers andinform them before coming tothe centres and asked officials

to utilise 1,200 lorries presentin the district for disbursingcollected grains to the mills.

Additional Collector ShyamPrasadlal, district agricultureofficer Sridhar, marketingdeputy director Padmavathi,rice millers and others werepresent.

Chalk out action plan to buygrains from farmers: Collector

Collector K Shashanka addressing a review meeting in Karimnagar on Saturday

Bhatti, Jeevan to campaignon bicycle for MLC polls

HYDERABAD | SUNDAY | MARCH 7, 2021 nation 05

Former Trinamool CongressMP Dinesh Trivedi joined theBJP on Saturday, weeks

after he announced quitting hisRajya Sabha membership onthe floor of the House deploring"violence" in poll-bound WestBengal. He joined the BJPin the presence of its presidentJ P Nadda, and Union MinistersPiyush Goyal and Dharmendra Pradhan besides other leaders. Lauding Trivedi as a principled politician, Nadda said he was earlier aright person in the wrong party and was now in the right party. Trivedi said he had been waiting for this "golden moment" and addedthat family is supreme in some parties but it is people who are supremein the BJP. He also praised the Modi government for its handling ofthe COVID-19 pandemic and the issues involving neighbouringcountries. A number of TMC leaders have quit the party in recentmonths to join the BJP as the saffron party mounts an aggressive all-out campaign to end Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's 10-year-oldreign in the state. Trivedi (70) was once a close confidant of TMCpresident Banerjee and was her choice for holding the important railwayministry portfolio in the Union Cabinet during the UPA government.

INDIA CORNER

The CBI has issued alookout notice against BijayMishra, brother of

Trinamool Congress (TMC)leader Binay Mishra and a closeconfidante of party MPAbhishek Banerjee, in a cattle-smuggling case, officials saidon Saturday. The agency is alsocontemplating to approach theInterpol to get a Red CornerNotice issued against BinayMishra, who has not joined the probe, they said. The agency hassummoned two senior officers of the West Bengal police -- an inspectorgeneral and a superintendent of police -- on Monday for questioning inconnection with the case, the officials said.The Central Bureau ofInvestigation (CBI) named Binay Mishra as a co-accused in itssupplementary chargesheet filed in the cattle-smuggling case lastmonth. Binay Mishra is believed to be very close to West Bengal ChiefMinister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee's nephew, AbhishekBanerjee, the officials said. In its chargesheet filed before a special CBIcourt in West Bengal's Asansol, the agency has already shown BinayMishra as absconding.On February 18, the CBI filed a chargesheet inthe case against Border Security Force (BSF) Commandant SatishKumar and six others for their alleged involvement in a cattle-smugglingracket operating at the India-Bangladesh border.

Cattle-smuggling:CBI issues lookout notice

Former TMC MP DineshTrivedi joins BJP

The Supreme Court,which is hearingcases through video-

conferencing since Marchlast year due to theCOVID-19 pandemic, willcommence hybridphysical hearing fromMarch 15. The apex court hasissued the standardoperating procedure(SOP) for the hybrid physical hearings. The top court has beenhearing cases through video-conferencing since March last yeardue to the pandemic and several bar bodies and lawyers have beenemanding that physical hearings should resume immediately. "Onan experimental basis, and as a pilot scheme, the finalhearings/regular matters listed on Tuesdays, Wednesdays andThursdays may be heard in the hybrid mode, as may be decidedby the bench, considering the number of parties in a matter aswell as the limited capacity of the courtrooms; all other matters,including those listed on Mondays and Fridays, shall continue tobe heard through video/tele-conferencing mode," said the SOPissued by the apex court. "The hybrid physical hearings are tocommence with effect from March 15, 2021," it added. It saidunless otherwise directed by a bench, the final hearings or regularmatters where the number of lawyers for the parties is higher thanthe average working capacity of the courtrooms according toCOVID-19 norms, that is 20 per courtroom at any given time, shallinvariably be listed for hearing through the video or tele-conferencing mode.

SC to commence hybrid physicalhearing of cases from March 15

PNS n KOLKATA

Six BJP activists were injured,two of them critically, in analleged bomb attack by therival TMC workers in WestBengals South 24 Parganas dis-trict, police said on Saturday.

Family members of thoseinjured alleged that a fewmembers of the localTrinamool Congress hurledbombs at them while theywere returning home inGosaba area of the districtfrom a marriage ceremonylate Friday night.

Police, however, claimedthat the accident happenedinside the house of a BJPactivist where the crude bombs

which were being manufac-tured went off accidently."We have listened to the claimsof the family members of

those injured but it seemsthat they were manufacturingbombs when it exploded.

"We are investigating the

matter and talking to thelocals," the officer said when

contacted over the phone.Unconfirmed reports said

that on Friday night, Gosabawitnessed clashes between

TMC-BJP activists whenbombs were hurled at eachother, leaving six injured.

Nobody has been arrestedin connection with theblast,the police officer added.

The injured are undergoingtreatment at Canning Sub-Divisional Hospital, he said.

A huge number of police-men have been deployed thereas sleuths of the bomb squadand forensic departmentreached the spot, the officersaid.

Six BJP activists injuredin bomb attack in Bengal PNS/Kolkata : Trinamool

Congress and Left candi-dates kick-started their cam-paigns for the West Bengalelections on Saturday.

While the TMCannounced the list of candi-dates for 291 seats on Friday,the Left named nomineesfor 39 seats that aregoing topolls in the first phase.

TMC's Ashokenagar can-didate Dhiman Roy begandoor-to- door campaigningin the morning. The party'sJadavpur candidateDebabrata Majumdar alsovisited the voters in thearea.CPI(M)'s Jhargramnominee Madhuja Sen Royalso campaigned in her con-stituency.

In Behala, TMC support-ers were seen busy painting

wallgraffitis in the support ofthe party's two candidatesfrom the area -- ParthaChatterjee (Behala West)and Ratha Chatterjee(Behala East).

Ratna, who has beenfielded by the TMC from theconstituency of herestranged husband and BJPleader Sovan Chatterjee,began her campaigning byoffering puja at herParnasree home.

"I will give my best effortsto win this seat. We allareworking to make MamataBanerjee our chief ministerfor the third time," she said.

Exuding confidence,TMC's Labhpur candidateAbhijit Singha said itappeared that there was noopponent against him.

TMC, Left begin campaigningfor West Bengal elections

Howrah : Upset over notbeing nominated this time,TMC's Shibpur MLA JatuLahiri announced onSaturday that he has resignedfrom the party.

Talking to reporters, Lahirisaid that despite being a "loyalsoldier" of the TMC he was

ignored by Chief MinisterMamata Banerjee.

"More than not getting thenomination, I am hurt thatanoutsider having no links withthe electorate has got thenom-ination just days after beinginducted into the party. Itseems we are not required by

the TMC anymore. I am leav-ing the organisation," he said.

TMC has nominated for-mer cricketer Manoj Tiwaryfrom the Shibpur seat inHowrah.

Lahiri, a veteran politi-cian, also hinted that he mayjoin the BJP. However, BJP

sources said that there was noinformation about Lahirijoining the party.

Lahiri is one of the sever-al TMC MLAs and leaderswho have voiced theiranguish over being droppedfrom the party's candidate listfor the upcoming assembly

elections. Among them areSatgachia MLA Sonali Guha,BasirhatDakshin MLADipendu Biswas, SingurMLA RabindranathBhattacharjee, formerBhangar MLA Arabul Islamand Barrackpore civic bodychief Uttam Das.

TMC's ShibpurMLA quitsparty fordenying ticket

PNS n KOCHI

Declaring a war against the BJP-led central government over theCustoms investigation against itstop leaders in connection withdollar smuggling in poll-boundKerala, the ruling LDF onSaturday organised protestmarches towards the offices of thecentral agency in the state.

Taking a serious note of theCPI(M)-led alliance's movetotarget it politically, the Customsalleged that a political party wastrying to intimidate the investiga-tion agency but made it clear thatit will not work. "A political

party trying intimidation, will notwork,"Customs (Preventive)Commissioner Sumit Kumarwrote on his Facebook page.

He also shared the notices ofthe LDF announcing march

towards Customs offices in thestate.

A political battle erupted in thestate a day after the Customs,probing the gold smuggling case,claimed primeV accused SwapnaSuresh has made 'shocking rev-elations' against Chief MinisterPinarayi Vijayan, assemblySpeaker P Sreeramakrishnan andsome ministers on dollar 'smug-gling' involving UAE consulateofficials.

LDF takes outrally to Customsoffices in Kerala

PNS nMUMBAI

“With all our love to all thehaters”, filmmaker AnuragKashyap said on Saturday in amessage on Instagram toannounce that shooting of hisfilm “Dobaaraa” with TaapseePannu had resumed.

This was Kashyap's first com-ment since March 3 when theIncome Tax Departmentsearched his properties as well asthose of Pannu and his partnerswho launched the now shutteredproduction house PhantomFilms.

The director took to the socialmedia platform to share an on-set picture with Pannu and saidthey have restarted filming ontheir second project together.Both Pannu and Kashyap are

known for their outspoken viewson a range of issues. “And werestart #DoBaaraa .. with all ourlove to all the haters," he cap-tioned the photograph,refrainingfrom directly mentioning the I-T raids. Earlier in the day, Pannuposted a three-point statementon Twitter on an “alleged bunga-low” in Paris, the “alleged receipt”

of Rs 5 crore and her “memoryof 2013 raid”.The searches target-ing Pannu and Kashyap are partof a tax evasion probe againstPhantom Films.

Pannu also took a dig atFinance Minister NirmalaSitharaman's statement that theactor was raided in 2013 as well.

Besides the actor-director duo,

the IT department conductedsearches at RelianceEntertainment group CEOShibhasish Sarkar and someexecutives of celebrity and talentmanagement companies KWANand Exceed, premises.

The others searched includedsome employees of PhantomFilms, which was dissolved in2018, and its then promotersKashyap, director-producerVikramaditya Motwane, pro-ducer Vikas Bahl and producer-distributor Madhu Mantena.

The Income Tax Departmenthas detected financial irregular-ities of over Rs 650 crore after itraided two film production com-panies, two talent managementcompanies and a leading actress,the Central Board of DirectTaxes has claimed.

Kashyap resumes shooting of ‘Dobara’

PNS n MUMBAI

Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut onSaturday said it was importantfor the "image" and "prestige"of the Maharashtra govern-ment to uncover the truthbehind the mysterious death ofHiren Mansukh, who was saidto be the owner of the vehiclewith explosives found nearindustrialist Mukesh Ambani'sresidence.

Mansukh, around 45 yearsold, was found dead on the-banks of a creek along theMumbra-Reti Bunder roadinneighboring Thane on Fridaymorning, police had said.

Talking to reporters, Rautsaid the mysterious death ofMansukh, whose Scorpio vehi-cle was used to keep explosivesnear Ambani's residence, was"shocking and unfortunate".

"It is wrong to politicise hisdeath and put the governmentin the dock. There are doubtswhether Mansukh's death wasa suicide or murder. He was animportant witness in the case,"he said. "The home department

should unearth the truth at theearliest. It is important for theprestige and image of the MahaVikas Aghadi (MVA) govern-ment," he said.

On Friday, state HomeMinister Anil Deshmukh hadannounced that the probe intothe case has been handed overfrom Mumbai Crime Branch tothe state Anti-Terrorism Squad(ATS).

Talking about it, Raut saidthat the opposition BJP'sdemand is to hand over thecase to the NationalInvestigation Agency (NIA).

"But it (giving the investiga-tion to NIA) does not mean thecase would be solved immedi-ately.

Uncover truth behindMansukh's death: Sena

PNS n BENGALURU

sions judge seeking injunction,and the order is likely today.

The Ministers are LabourMinister Shivaram Hebbar,Agriculture Minister B C Patil,Cooperation Minister S TSomashekar, Health andFamily Welfare, and MedicalEducation minister KSudhakar, Youth Empowerment and Sports Minister K CNarayana Gowda and UrbanDevelopment MinisterBhyrathi Basavaraj.

Health Minister Sudhakaralleged that there seems to bea big political conspiracy todefame them by misusing themedia, and that they haveapproached court to preventthis hit-and-run smear cam-paign.

Pointing to the conspiracy totarnish the image of individu-als and destroy the goodwillgained from years of goodwork, he told reporters herethat it was necessary to put anend to it and the governmentis also mulling bringing a lawto check this kind of mischief.

Both mainstream media andsocial media platforms arebeing misused to broadcastmisinformation and fake news.

He further said if there istruth in the allegations, noone

can be protected, culprits mustbe punished, but smear cam-paign to tarnish image andgoodwill is not acceptable.

Cooperation Minister S TSomashekar said we have cometo know from our old friendsin the assembly about the con-spiracy to target us with anintent to defame and make usresign.

"There is a conspiracy totarget during the assemblysession with an intent todefame us, so as a precaution-ary measure we haveapproached the court, six of ushave gone, today another sixmay go, totally 15-16 of us whohave come to (BJP) as there isapprehension about attempt todefame us, so we have soughtcourt protection," he told themedia.

Approached court to preventsmear campaign: K'taka Ministers

PNS n GUWAHATI

The NIA has filed achargesheet before a specialcourt here against three Bodomilitants for their allegedinvolvement in carrying out anambush in which two people,including an additional super-intendent of police, were killedin 2014, an official said onSaturday.

Bishnu Narzary, NitulDaimary and RuniluishDaimary have been chargedunder provisions of theUnlawful Activities(Prevention) Act (UAPA), theIndian Penal Code (IPC) andthe Arms Act, he added.

The chargesheet was filedbefore the Special NIA Courtin Guwahati on Friday.

The case relates to anambush that resulted in thedeath of Gulzar Hussain, thethen AdditionalSuperintendent of Police,Sonitpur, and a civilian,Anlark Basumatary, andinjuries to several police per-sonnel in Assam's Sonitpurdistrict.

The National InvestigationAgency (NIA), which tookover the probe in the case inAugust 2019, said members ofthe National Democratic Frontof Bodoland (NDFB-S) hadlaid the ambush.

NIA charge sheets3 Bodo militants

PNS n NEW DELHI

Nearly 15 lakh people wereinoculated against coronaviruson March 5, the highest in a dayso far, taking the total numberof vaccine doses administered inthe country to over 1.94 crore,official sources said on Saturday.

The countrywide COVID-19vaccination drive was rolledout on January 16 with health-care workers (HCWs) gettinginoculated. The vaccination offrontline workers (FLWs) hadstarted from February 2.

Administering of seconddose of COVID-19 vaccinestarted on February 13 for thosebeneficiaries who had com-pleted 28 days after receipt of thefirst dose.

The next phase of COVID-19 vaccination drive com-menced from March 1 forthose above 60 years of ageand for people aged 45 yearsand above with specified co-morbid conditions. As onDay 49 (March 5) of the vac-

cination drive, a total of14,92,201 COVID-19 vaccinedoses were given. Out ofwhich, 11,99,848 beneficiarieswere vaccinated across 18,333sessions for the first dose(HCWs and FLWs), and2,92,353 HCWs and FLWsreceived the second dose ofCOVID-19 vaccine, healthministry said.

These beneficiaries(11,99,848) include 1,10,857individuals, aged between 45-60 years, having specifiedcomorbidities, and 7,61,355people aged above 60 years.

More than 1.94 crore(1,94,97,704) vaccine doseshave been administeredthrough 3,57,478 sessions, asper the provisional report tillSaturday 7 am.

These include 69,15,661HCWs (first dose), 33,56,830HCWs (second dose),63,55,989 FLWs (first dose)and 1,44,191 FLWs (seconddose), 3,46,758 beneficiariesaged more than 45 years withspecific co-morbidities (firstdose) and 23,78,275 beneficia-ries aged more than 60 years,it said.

15 lakh vaccinated onMarch 5, highest in a day

PNS n JABALPUR

President Ram NathKovind on Saturdayappealed to judicial acade-mies in states to providetraining to quasi-judicialstaff along with judges indistrict courts for thespeedy disposal of cases.

"The academies shouldset up a permanent plat-form for the exchange oflegal knowledge and infor-mation to discuss on sim-plifying court legal proce-dures for the speedy dispos-al of cases," he said.

Train stafffor quickdisposal ofcases: Prez

PNS n NEW DELHI

The Centre has rushed high-level multi-disciplinary pub-lic health teams toMaharashtra and Punjab inview of the increase in num-ber of daily Covid casesbeing reported by thesestates. The teams are beingdeployed to assist StateHealth Departments inCoronavirus surveillance,control and containmentmeasures, the Union healthministry said. The high-level team to Maharashtrawill be led by P Ravindran,Sr CMO, DisasterManagement Cell. Whilethe public health team toPunjab will be led by SKSingh, Director, NationalCentre for Disease Control(NCDC), New Delhi.

Govt sendshealth teams to Maha, Punjab

PNS nNEW DELHI

India's COVID-19 tally rose to1,11,92,088 with over 18,000fresh cases being reported in aspan of 24 hours in the coun-try after 36 days, while activecases registered an increase forthe fourth consecutive day onSaturday and were recorded at1,80,304, according to theUnion Health Ministry.

The death toll reached1,57,656 with 108 more fatali-ties, while a total of 18,327 newcases were registered in a day,the ministry's data showed.On January 29, 18,855 newinfections were recorded in aspan of 24 hours after which thedaily rise in fresh casesremained below 18,000.

The number of people whohave recuperated from the dis-ease surged to 1,08,54,128which translates to a nationalCovid recovery rate of 96.98 per

cent, while the case fatalityrate stands at 1.41 per cent. TheCovid active caseload hasincreased to 1,80,304 whichnow comprises 1.61 per cent ofthe total infections.Maharashtra, Kerala, Punjab,Karnataka and Tamil Naduhave reported a high number ofCovid daily new cases, cumu-latively accounting for 82 percent of the new cases reportedin a span of 24 hours, the min-istry said.

According to the ICMR,22,06,92,677 samples have beentested up to March 5 with7,51,935 samples being testedon Friday.

India records 18,327 new Covidinfections, active cases rise again

DOLLAR SMUGGLING CASE

HYDERABAD | SUNDAY | MARCH 7, 2021 money 06

MONEY MATTERS

Two-wheeler and three-wheeler RPTthree-wheeler manufacturer TVS

Motor Company on Saturdayannounced that ithad extended freeCOVID-19 vaccination for allemployees and their immediate familymembers. This vaccination drive is inline with the ongoing Government

guidelines and will cover 35,000 direct and indirect company employeesacross the country, the company said in a statement. Executive VicePresident Human Resources, TVS Motor Company, R AnandaKrishnansaid the company has strived to provide complete support to itsemployees and their extended family members through the pandemic,ranging from apps for emergency requirements, doctor-on-call, COVID-19 awareness communication and mental wellness programmes."With this vaccination drive, we continue our endeavour to prioritise thehealth and safety ofallour employeesand their families", he said. In theinitial phase, the vaccine will be made available to all employees and theirfamilies above the age of 60 and 45 years or older suffering from certainmedical conditions, it was stated.

TVS Motor Company to providefree Covid vaccination to all

The Maharashtra steel industry hasurged the state government toresume power subsidies forenterprises and provide a higherbudgetary allocation of Rs 1,800crore for this to support industries inbackward regions such asMarathwada and Vidarbha. Steel Manufacturers Association ofMaharashtra President YogeshMandhani said that the per-unit costof electricity had come down to 5

from 8 earlier due to the subsidy provided by the government . To boostindustry in backward regions in the state, the state government hadintroduced subsidy on power tariff for industries in Marathwada, Vidarbhaand Khandesh regions in line with the recommendations of the Vijay Kelkarcommittee. Initially, no caping was done but later, the government budgetedthis subsidy to 1,200 crore a year. The government had allocated Rs 1,200crore for paying subsidy via Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Co Ltd(MSEDCL) but the amount was exhausted in December 2020. As a result ofthis, industries are now paying the power bill at full rate. The steel industry,among all others, used to get subsidies in the range of 5-7 per cent onelectricity bill based on their performance but now, all these industries arepaying more cost per unit.The issue was raised by MLA Kailash Gorantyal, who demanded that thegovernment should increase the annual subsidy from Rs 1,200 crore to Rs1,800 crore from this current financial year itself.

Maha: Steel industry wantsresumption of power subsidies

Indian-origin Naureen Hassanbecomes first VP, COO of Fed

An Indian-origin veteran of thefinancial services industry has been

appointed as the first vice president andchief operating officer of the FederalReserve Bank of New York. NaureenHassan has been appointed by theboard of directors of the FederalReserve Bank of New York as the firstvice president and chief operatingofficer, effective from March 15. Theappointment was approved by the

Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Federal Reserve Bankof New York said in a statement. As the first vice president, Hassan will bethe New York Fed's second ranking officer as well as an alternate votingmember of the Federal Open Market Committee. Hassan, whose parents hadimmigrated from India, is a 25-year veteran of the financial services industrywith expertise in strategy, digital transformation, cybersecurity andregulatory/risk management. She was, most recently, the Chief Digital Officerfor Morgan Stanley Wealth Management (MSWM).President and ChiefExecutive Officer of the New York Fed John Williams said Hassan's leadershipbackground, deep commitment to fostering diverse teams, and extensivetechnology and financial experience will be critical to her role as a Bank leader.Denise Scott, executive vice president of the Local Initiatives SupportCorporation (LISC) and chair of the New York Fed's board of directors, saidHassan's leadership experience and operational expertise are "fully aligned”with what the search committee and he envisioned for this role. Scott saidHassan will be taking on the role that is critical to advancing the Bank'smission and strategic priorities.The statement added that Hassan has servedin various capacities in the financial services industry, focusing primarily ondigital and business process transformation.

PNS n NEW DELHI

The 15th Finance Commissionopted for continuity and pre-dictability and hence retainedthe share of tax devolution tostates at 41 per cent of the totalpool, its chairman N K Singhsaid on Saturday.

Speaking at a webinar organ-ised by the Centre for PolicyResearch (CPR), Singh saideach Finance Commission inthe past has somewhatincreased the total amount ofdevolution to states, but the15th Finance Commissionweighed all the options consid-ering that the fiscal space ofboth states and the Centre hasshrunk on account of theCOVID-19 pandemic.

Rajya Sabha MP SushilKumar Modi highlighted thatthe share of divisible pool isslowly shrinking as the 'cessand surcharge' component inGross Tax revenue is increas-ing.

The 15th FinanceCommission has recommend-ed that states be given 41 percent of the divisible tax pool of

the Centre during the period2021-22 to 2025-26, which is atthe same level as was recom-mended by the 14th FinanceCommission.

Finance Commission is aconstitutional body that givessuggestions on Centre-statefinancial relations.

As per the Commission, thegross tax revenue (GTR) forthe 5-year period is expected tobe Rs 135.2 lakh crore. Out ofthat, divisible pool (afterdeducting cesses and sur-charges and cost of collec-

tion) is estimated to be Rs 103lakh crore.

States' share at 41 per cent ofdivisible pool comes to Rs42.2 lakh crore for 2021-26period.

The report of the 15thFinance Commission wastabled in Parliament onFebruary 2.

Singh said each FinanceCommission has somewhatincreased the total amount ofdevolution as percentage ofdivisible pool.

"We had an option of contin-

uing this trajectory, we had anoption of enhancing this devo-lution to somewhat higher fig-ure. We had the option ofsomewhat recalibrating down-wards looking at the con-straints on the fiscal space ofthe central government.

"Finance Commission is notan encounter with shock andawe, Finance Commission hasa legacy which believes in sta-bility, continuity and pre-dictability. We opted for con-tinuity and predictability," hesaid.

Modi, in his speech, said cessand surcharge which was 10.4per cent of GTR in 2011-12,has increased to 20.2 per cent.Even after deducting GSTcompensation cess, it is 15 percent.

"The share of divisible pool isslowly shrinking. .. So one of theissues which states are raising (is)because under the Constitution,cess and surcharge is not underdivisible pool... But slowly divis-ible pool size is shrinking andcess and surcharge increasing,"said Modi, who is also the formerdeputy chief minister of Bihar.

Opted for continuity in tax devolution: NK Singh

PNS n WASHINGTON

Four top Republican senatorshave urged US President JoeBiden not to accept a propos-al by India and South Africa tothe WTO to waive anti-Covidvaccine patents, saying thatwaiving all rights to intellectu-al property would end theinnovation pipeline and stopthe development of new vac-cines or boosters to addressvariants in the virus.

Mike Lee, Tom Cotton, JoniErnst and Todd Young, in a let-ter to President Biden, urgedhim to reject the upcomingproposal at the World TradeOrganisation (WTO).

“India, South Africa andother countries are presentinga proposal at the World TradeOrganisation to waive all intel-lectual property rights for anyinnovation related to COVID-19," the senators said.

“The proponents of thisscheme argue that if we justdestroy the intellectual proper-ty developed by Americancompanies, we will suddenlyhave more manufacturers pro-ducing COVID-19 vaccines,”they said.

“But the opposite is true. Bydestroying the intellectualproperty of every American

company that has worked onCOVID-19 vaccines and treat-ments, we would be ending theprogress -- started underOperation Warp Speed -- thatled to the fastest developmentof life-saving vaccines in his-tory," the senators wrote.

They alleged that somecountries believe that theywould benefit from seizingAmerica's intellectual prop-erty, but this is a mistake.

The WTO Agreement onTrade-Related Aspects ofIntellectual Property Rights(TRIPS) requires countries toprovide lengthy monopolyprotections for medicines, testsand technologies used to pro-duce them.

“Waiving all rights to intel-lectual property would endthe innovation pipeline andstop the development of newvaccines or boosters to address

variants in the virus. It alsowouldn't increase the supply ofvaccines because of the tremen-dous time and resources need-ed to build new manufacturingplants and acquire theknowhow to produce thesecomplex medicines.

“Even if the waiver maytemporarily result in a fewcopycats attempting to producewhat American companiesdeveloped, it would introducemajor quality control prob-lems,” the senators said.

As a global leader and aforce for good, the US could doa lot to help other countriesovercome the virus, they said.

“But destroying our rights tointellectual property wouldn'tadvance our mission of fight-ing the virus -- it would makethe problem worse, forAmerica and for the world,”they wrote.

“The end of this pandemicis in sight. More than 50 mil-lion Americans have been vac-cinated, and cases havedeclined by more than 75 percent from their recent high. Westand ready to work with youto bring an end to this deadlycrisis and urge you to take astrong stand against thisscheme that would halt ourprogress,” the senators said.

Biden urged not to acceptIndia, SA's proposal at WTO

PNS n LONDON

Some mutations in the novelcoronavirus may not onlyenable it to evade antibodies,but also make the virusunrecognisable to the immunesystem's T-killer cells, says anew study which could aid inthe further development ofvaccines.

While antibodies dockdirectly onto viruses to neu-tralise them, the scientists,including those from theMedical University of Viennain Austria, said the T-killercells recognise viral proteinfragments on infected cells andsubsequently kill them to stopvirus production.

In the current study, pub-lished in the journal CellImmunology, the researchers

sequenced 750 genomes ofthe novel coronavirus frominfected individuals andanalysed mutations for theirpotential to alter T cell epi-topes.

These are regions on thevirus recognised by the body'sT cells.

"Our results show that manymutations in SARS-CoV-2 areindeed capable of doing this,"said study co-author AndreasBergthaler.

"With the help of bioinfor-matic and biochemical inves-tigations as well as laboratoryexperiments with blood cellsfrom COVID-19 patients, wewere able to show that mutat-ed viruses can no longer berecognized by T-killer cells inthese regions," Bergthaleradded.

PNS n BHUBANESWAR

Odisha Chief Minister NaveenPatnaik has said his govern-

ment will engage with micro,small and medium enterpris-es (MSMEs) in the state tofacilitate recovery of the sectorwhich was affected by theCOVID-19 pandemic.

The state government hasbeen working closely with mil-lions of small units in the formof 'Mission Shakti' groups anda five-day MSME trade fair,which commenced on Friday,will help entrepreneurs show-case their products, he said.

"Our government hadannounced a special packageto support the MSME sector.We will continue to engagewith the micro, small andmedium enterprises and

ensure that the COVID impacton them gets minimised," thechief minister said.

The government hasannounced a package of Rs 289crore to provide financialassistance to MSMEs which arefacing challenges due to thecoronavirus crisis, IndustriesMinister DS Mishra said.

In a bid to provide marketaccess to entrepreneurs, the

Odisha MSME InternationalTrade Fair has been organisedevery year since 2013.

This year's trade fair is goingon at IDCO ExhibitionGround (Unit-III) in the city.

MSME Secretary SatyabrataSahu said the event is anendeavour of the state govern-ment to bring potential buyersand sellers to a platform toboost trade and harness newtechnologies and products.

The government is com-mitted to strengthen the start-up ecosystem in the state andis constructing an incubation

centre, known as O-Hub,Patnaik said on Friday.

"My government will alwaysgo an extra mile to encourageMSMEs to participate in theefforts of making Odisha avibrant state," he added.

Will facilitate recovery ofMSMEs, vows Odisha CM

PNS n LONDON

Britain's royal family and tele-vision have a complicated rela-tionship.

The medium has helpeddefine the modern monarchy:The 1953 coronation of QueenElizabeth II was Britain's firstmass TV spectacle. Since then,rare interviews have given aglimpse behind palace curtainsat the all-too-human familywithin.

The fictionalised take ofNetflix hit “The Crown” hasmolded views of the monarchyfor a new generation, though inways the powerful, image-con-scious royal family can't control.

“The story of the royal fam-ily is a constructed narrative,just like any other story,” saidPhil Harrison, author of “TheAge of Static: How TVExplains Modern Britain.”

And it's a story that haschanged as Britain movedfrom an age of deference to anera of modern social moresand ubiquitous social media.

“The royals, particularly theyounger royals, have movedfrom the realm of state appa-

ratus to the realm of celebrityculture in recent decades,”Harrison said.

“That's worked well forthem up to a point — butcelebrity culture takes as well asgives and is notoriously fickle.”

So anticipation and appre-hension are both high ahead ofOprah Winfrey's interviewwith Prince Harry and hiswife, Meghan — the Duke andDuchess of Sussex — a yearafter they walked away fromofficial royal life, citing whatthey described as the intru-sions and racist attitudes of theBritish media toward theduchess, who is biracial.

A clip released by CBSahead of Sunday's broadcastshows Meghan, a former TVstar, appearing to suggest the

royal family was “perpetuatingfalsehoods” about her andHarry.

A look at some other majorroyal television moments, andtheir impact: PRINCESS DIANA

The 1981 wedding of 32-year-old Prince Charles and20-year-old Lady DianaSpencer at St. Paul's Cathedralwas a fairy-tale spectaclewatched by an estimated 750million people around theworld.

But the relationship soonsoured. The couple separatedin 1992, and in 1995 Dianagave a candid interview to theBBC's Martin Bashir, dis-cussing the pressure of mediascrutiny and the breakdown ofher marriage.

Royalty TV: UK monarchy andtelevision have complex ties

PNS n MILAN

The virus swept through anursery school and an adja-cent elementary school inthe Milan suburb of Bollatewith amazing speed. In amatter of just days, 45 chil-dren and 14 staff membershad tested positive.

Genetic analysis con-firmed what officialsalready suspected: Thehighly contagious coron-avirus variant first identifiedin England was racingthrough the community, adensely packed city of near-ly 40,000 with a chemicalplant and Pirelli bicycle tirefactory a 15-minute drivefrom the heart of Milan.

“This is the demonstra-tion that the virus has a sortof intelligence, even if it isa single-cell organism,''lamented Bollate MayorFrancesco Vassallo.

Bollate was the first cityin Lombardy, the northernregion that has been theepicenter in each of Italy'sthree surges, to be sealed offfrom neighbours because ofmutant versions that theWHO says are now power-ing another uptick in infec-tions across Europe.

Covid: Speedyvariant virussweeps Europe

PNS n SRINAGAR

An organization of fruitand vegetable growersfrom hilly states andunion territories onSaturday demandedimposition of 100 percent duty on applesimported from Iran andother countries viaAfghanistan under theSouth Asian Free TradeAgreement (SAFTA).

"To safeguard the inter-ests of the domesticgrowers and associates,the import duty on appleshould be levied 100% onrealistic basis and importshould be fixed.Otherwise, this underval-uation of duty will resultin losses of revenue to the

PNS n BRUSSELS

Brussels, Mar 5 (AP) In a signof goodwill to rebuild trans-Atlantic relations, the EuropeanUnion and the United Stateshave decided to suspend tariffsused in the longstandingAirbus-Boeing dispute, the EUCommission president saidFriday.

Ursula von der Leyen saidafter remote talks with U.S.President Joe Biden that bothsides committed to focus onresolving our aircraft disputes,based on the work of ourrespective trade representa-tives."

The suspension will last for

an initial period of four months.Von der Leyen called it a very

positive signal for our eco-nomic cooperation in the yearsto come.

"This is excellent news forbusinesses and industries onboth sides of the Atlantic, shesaid.

The EU is using the earlymonths of the Biden adminis-tration to reset relations withthe U.S. after four years oftrans-Atlantic acrimony underformer President DonaldTrump.

With the initiative to ease theaircraft fight that long weighedon trade relations, the 27-nation bloc is seeking to rekin-

dle the spirit of cooperationbetween Washington andEurope that has long definedglobal diplomacy.

Von der Leyen said she invit-ed Biden to a global healthsummit in Rome on May 21 to

streamline the fight againstCOVID-19, the commonenemy that has killed over amillion people in the EU andU.S. combined.

Only last November, the EUimposed tariffs on up to 4 bil-

lion worth of U.S. goods andservices over illegal aid forplane maker Boeing, eventhough the 27 EU nationsalready held out hope relationswould improve under Biden.

The move came only a few

weeks after international arbi-trators gave the EU the greenlight for such punitive action.The World Trade Organizationhad deemed illegal some U.S.support for Boeing which is abitter rival to Europe's Airbusand said the EU could make upfor that with a limited amountof penalties on U.S. trade.

The WTO had ruled thatBoeing was given an unfairedge over Airbus by tax breaksfrom Washington state, whereBoeing once had headquarters.But after the WTO decision, thestate repealed the tax breaks,making the EU's complaintobsolete in the view of U.S. offi-cials.

EU, US agree to suspend tariffs over Airbus-Boeing dispute

PNS n NEW DELHI

M G George Muthoot, large-ly credited for making theMuthoot Finance a pan-India and the largest goldloan NBFC, passed awayon Friday evening.

As a chairman of thecompany, he played a pivotalrole in taking MuthootFinance to new heights,expanding its reach acrossthe country and even over-seas especially to the MiddleEast.

The 71-year-old Muthootwas for long based in theNational Capital eventhough his diversified groupthat runs over 20 business-es from gold loans to secu-rities, realty estate to infra-structure, hospitals to hospi-tality and education, is head-quartered in Kochi makingit one of the largest businesshouses in the state.

“M G George Muthoot'ssudden and unexpecteddemise will be an irrepara-ble loss to the Company,

employees, all stakeholders,family, and friends. Alldirectors and employees ofthe Company convey deepsympathy, sorrow and con-dolences to his family,” theMuthoot Finance said in aregulatory filing on Saturdaywithout giving reason for thecause of death.

He was responsible forscaling up the MuthootGroup's presence beyondthe southern region byexpanding its branch pres-ence across north, east andwest and thereby transform-ing the company into a panIndia organization, it said.

He was instrumental inmaking the gold loanfinance into an organisedbusiness.

Muthoot chief MGGeorge dies at 71

PNS n NEW DELHI

Country's largest iron oreminer NMDC has left theprice of lump oreunchanged at Rs 5,100per tonne and Rs 4,210per tonne for fines in itslatest price revisionannounced on Saturday.

Iron ore is the key rawmaterial used in steel mak-ing. Any change in itsprices has a direct impacton the rates of steel. In a fil-ing to the BSE, NMDCsaid it fixed the price oflumps or high-grade ironore at Rs 5,100 per tonne,and that of iron ore fines orinferior grade ore at Rs4,210 a tonne.

The revised prices areeffective from March 6,2021 and exclude royalty,District Mineral Fund,National MineralExploration Trust, cess, for-est permit fee, and othertaxes, the company said.

NMDCleaves ironore ratesunchanged

100% duty onapple importssought

15TH FINANCE COMMISSION

Mutations may helpit evade T-killer cells

CORONAVIRUS

sundaymagazine

98The power of attention

F R O M T H E I N S I D E

I think that an actoris more likely to be

forgiven in thepublic’s eye than an

actress— Mila Kunis

harvest of hope

HYDERABAD, March 7, 2021

There are some who believe in going with the flow and there areothers who take the road less travelled.

Originating from Sanskrit, the word‘Peetha’ means ‘seat, altar, shrineor dwelling’. In the case of theShakti Peethas, it is very specific.It is the sacred space where the

Supreme Goddess rakes a strong, well-foundedsear on Earth. Each of the Peethas have beenturned into shrines for the Goddess by the verypeople who believe in the absolute power ofthe feminine. Each site where the 51 bodyparts of Sati fell, came to be known as a ShaktiPeetha.

A teertha is a crossing. As with mostSanskrit words, there are multiple meanings ofthis too. Teertha is also the passing of theatman to the parmatman the crossing from thephysical world to the metaphysical world.These 51 sacred sites are also linked by theolo-gists and scholars to the 51 alphabets of theSanskrit language. In each of the Peethas alsoresides Kaalbhairava, which is another name ofShiva. Most of the Shakti Peetha shrines con-tain a naturally appearing stone whichbecomes the object of worship around whichthe temple shrine is built.

Vindhyavasini is an additional ShaktiPeetha, which I have deliberately not includedin the 51 Peethas. While a powerful dwelling ofShakti, Vindhyavasini is not the abode ofShakti as Sati’s body parts. It is, however, thepreferred choice and home of Yogamaya, thesister of Krishna, who escaped from Kamsa’sprison at Mathura.

Kalika Purana indicates that there are fourAdi Shakti Peethas, which is further affirmedin the commentary and text of Brihat Samhita.It lists the names of the location at variousplaces in India such as Vimla temple, Odisha,where her feet fell, Tara Tarini temple inBehrampur, Odisha, where her breasts fell,Kamakhya temple in Guwahati, Assam, whereher yoni or vagina fell and lastly, the Kalighattemple in West Bengal, where her right toe fell.

THE ICONOGRAPHY OF THE DEVI

Since antiquity, Goddess worship has beenpart of the Indic tradition of India. In fact, theGoddess is even more popular than Shiva andVishnu. All the manifestations, avataras orappearances of the many forms of Devi belongto the pantheon of the Shakti cult. The SupremeGoddess can be a gentle life-giver as in the caseof Lakshmi, Saraswati or Parvati, or as the mis-tress of death in the form of Durga, Kali andChamunda. She is a fascinating juxtaposition,both life-perpetuating and potently destructive.In her life-giving form, Shakti can be represent-ed as beautiful, benevolent, maternal, knowl-edgeable, compassionate and even desirable tothe best. She invigorates, cheers and brightensthe entire universe. She is represented anddescribed as an idealized woman who is imbuedwith beauty, virtue and righteousness, andadorned with jewels. In fact, her iconography isdrawn from the pre-modern depictions of thesalabanjikas, apsaras and surasundaris. In thisform, Shakti embraces and enlivens all aspectsof reality. As the goddess of destruction and dis-ease, she takes on rather unattractive and repul-sive forms. As Sitala Devi Manasa, or Kali, theDevi is shown as haggard, ugly, unkempt andemaciated. However, whatever the form, it isalways powerful.

I have dipped into both Puranic andShakta texts to read the many interpretationsand mythologies associated with the iconogra-phy, rituals of worship, devotion and represen-tation of the Shakti Peetha as sites of immensepower and energy. Each devotee enters the siteof the Peetha through their own path of wor-ship, through their respective understanding ofthe Great Goddess. The wama panthis or Shaktworshippers, for whom Shakti/Devi issupreme, enter through the tantric path, whichis a sectarian movement.

The 51 Peethas have their own singulariconography and their own specific modes ofrituals, worship and even prasada, with somestandard common offerings like flowers, sweetsand vermilion.

RITUALS OF PRAYER AND DARSHAN

While the Shakti Peethas were specific tothe body parts of Sati, the rituals of adoration,prayer and worship differed from region to

region, given the culture and history of theplace. Over time, the Peethas became linked totheir respective regions. The local people tookownership of them and started claiming rightsover the teerthas and sites. Naturally, the localfood and religious and cultural traditions start-ed getting preference over the stated Puranic orstandard Sanatan dharmashastras.

In the temples, the daily rituals of worshipwere similar to the presiding deity, who wasnormally male, i.e. Vishnu or Shiva, and thefeminine was worshipped in the form of theirconsorts. However, in the Shakti Peethas, thepresiding deity was a body part, which whilehaving its own specific service or prayer, wasenfolded in the larger narrative of the worshipof Shakti in the form of Devi.

The purpose of puja (prayer) is to appease,soothe and mollify the powerful Goddess andembrace the divine energy expressed as lifeforce. The life force itself has many variations,from auspiciousness, health, desire for chil-dren, wealth and success, gaining power overintellectual and artistic skill, even victory overenemies. The ritual of puja is heavily investedin darshan. While doing puja, the concept ofmaking eye contact with the deity is the key.Darshan is a two-way concept where the devo-tee sees the divinity and in turn, the divinitysees the devotee. The concept of darshan cross-es all spaces, from intimate puja corners athome in domestic spaces to large public tem-ples including the 51 Shakti Peethas.

The very act of darshan/view is the crucialkey that creates the iconic moment where thedevotee and the divine are in complete sync.This is the reason why ‘Shakt’ worshippersmake long and arduous journeys to the Shakti

Peethas. The idea is to take the energy of theSupreme Goddess while receiving her bless-ings. The religious rites have three distinctclassifications: Nitya, which is daily, normallydone at home; Naimittika, which are importantdays of the deity, and particular festivals (somespecial to the ishta deva at home or to the pre-siding deity of the temple); and finallyKamya, which are optional, but a highlydesired teertha being one of them.

The ritual of prayer to Shakti is also vestedin the panchbhootas, where the five jnanain-driyas, or senses, are included in the aspect ofpuja:

Panchbhoota Jnanndriya Sense Puja

Akash Space Ear Hear Pushpam

Vayu Air Skin Touch Dhoopam

Agni Fire Eye Vision Lamp

Jal Water Tongue Taste Water/Ghee

Bhoomi Earth Nose Smell Chandan

PRASADA

Prasada is both an offering and a blessing. Itis offered by the devotee when he/she begins theritual of puja. In domestic spaces, the devoteeperforms the puja at an individual, intimatelevel, often making prasada or an offering offruits, and a rice and milk pudding with saffronstrands and sprinkled with mewa/ nuts, particu-larly almonds and raisins. What I have observedin the offerings by the devotees, is that forShakti, it is a bali, or animal sacrifice, normallya lamb and sometimes even a buffalo. The verybasic prasada for Shakti is meat, alcohol forBhairava, and a sweet, normally a rice pudding.Since the Shakti Peethas have been appropriated

by the devotees of the region, naturally theprasada of the Peetha also acquires a localflavour. In Eastern India, it is primarily khichdiand kheer with poori and potato curry; in SouthIndia, it is a variation of the local rice, i.e. puli-hora; in Andhra Pradesh, a jaggery laddoo; andin Western India, at the Amba temple inBanaskantha, a delicious sweet made of chick-pea flour, the mohanthal, is offered along withsindoor, and makhanas, or dried lotus seeds. Inthis way, almost every region brings in itsregional flavour and speciality as part of theprasada offered at the Shakti Peethas.

Meat as prasada is served in the templecommunity kitchens only on special occasionswhen specific sacrifices are conducted. Holdingwater in the palm of their hands, or achaman,the devotee asks for forgiveness and blessingsbefore beginning their prayer. In the large publictemples, it is the priest who becomes the con-duit of devotion and reverence. He is the inter-mediary who while performing the ritual acts,offers food and flowers to the presiding deity ofthe temple. Worship in a temple begins by cir-cumambulating the temple and the garbhagrihawhere the deity lives.

The myth of Sati and the 5l Peethas is animportant myth in the worship of the SupremeGoddess. It lays down the template for all thosewho believe in the Absolute Power of theMother Goddess, crossing borders from Tantrato Mantra, from Devi Bhagwat Purana to YoginiHridya Tantra, right down to the popularGrama Devi in a village to the Kula Devi of aRajput clan.

SINCE ANTIQUITY, GODDESSWORSHIP HAS BEEN PART OF

THE INDIC TRADITION OF INDIA.IN FACT, THE GODDESS IS EVEN

MORE POPULAR THAN SHIVAAND VISHNU. ALL THE

MANIFESTATIONS, AVATARAS ORAPPEARANCES OF THE MANY

FORMS OF DEVI BELONG TO THEPANTHEON OF THE SHAKTI CULT

The connection to God is not hard tomake. It is just a matter of making thechoice that this is what we want to do

MAPPING THE SACREDDWELLINGS OF SHAKTI

Cre

ativ

e C

omm

ons/

Abr

ar A

lam

Kha

n

Kottari Devi (Hinglaj Mata) Temple, Pakistan

Renowned writer and historian DR ALKA PANDE narrates that while the Shakti Peethas represent asingle philosophical fold, they are a testament to the diverse legends of Shakti. An edited excerpt:

>> p2

sundaymagazine

spirituality 8HYDERABAD, March 7, 2021

REALISE DEEPLY THAT THEPRESENT MOMENT IS ALL YOU

EVER HAVE. MAKE THE NOW THEPRIMARY FOCUS OF YOUR LIFE

— ECKHART TOLLE

HIDDENSOULSPRAMOD PATHAK

We are at our wits end as no end to the pandemicappears to be in sight. Return to normalcy appearsto be a shifting goal post something like a mirage

on the highways in a hot summer afternoon. The society iswitnessing all kinds of negative emotions reigning overhuman thinking. Depression is on the rise. Aggression is onthe rise. Fear and anxiety are on the rise. Human responseis completely clueless. With jobs disappearing, careers jeop-ardised and businesses vanishing, talks of positive thinkingappear hollow. Rather a gimmick of a few who have the sup-port system to hold the fort. But can something be done aboutit. No not about Corona. That will take its own course andhopefully it has covered most of its journey. In the times ofdistress, frustration can take many forms, from most unde-sirable behaviours too weird responses. However, thesource of all this is not Corona. Coronavirus is what it is.The problem is how we perceive corona and its consequences.It is the perceived world that is the real world and the prob-lem lies in how we perceive Corona. So tempering the per-ception is the answer. But the source of this perception isthe mind which is giving all kinds of warning signals andanxious moments. We can take a cue from the definition ofBhram or illusion as described in Indian philosophy. Thefamous rope and snake illusion. If you see a snake and believeit’s a rope your response will be as if it’s a rope. On the otherhand if you see a rope and believe it’s a snake you will behavelike you do when you see a snake. To sum it up then the per-ception of Corona is like that. For some it is like snake sothey are over anxious and for some it is a rope, not to be both-ered at all. Both these positions are erroneous and the truthis somewhere in between. The solution lies in mind man-agement. But mind management is easier said than done.It is both a science and an art. In fact it is a practice and oneneeds a lot of training to do it. It is important to understandthe science first. We must realise that mind generates thou-sands of thoughts everyday, more distressful then the pleas-ant ones. The way out is to control that. One of the most pop-ular idioms explain the way to control the mind very sim-ply. An empty mind is a devils workshop. So the way out isengaging the mind constructively. That calls for the art. Thishas to be developed. By doing, by training. That is why prac-tice is important. Experience of calmness or agitation dependson the mind. To train the mind there is a need to reorientthe thought process. The greatest problem is in our assump-tion that we are entitled to a certain way of life. This is a con-ditioned state as we have taken many things for granted. Soeven the slightest disruption throws us out of gear. That wayCorona has become a major disruption. Naturally we arecompletely off balance. The mind needs to be reassured. Ourprevious generations have gone through even more difficulttimes, and the world did not come to an end. This time alsoit won’t. Just keep on counselling the mind to take things inits stride and think of ways to cope with the disruption. Itworks.

Pathak is a professor of management, writer, and an acclaimed public speaker. He can be reached at ppathak.ism@gmail.com

In the sixteenth chapter of theBhagavad Gita, Lord Krishna statesthat there are two types of persons

in this world. These either possessdivine qualities or demonic qualities.Every person will have predominanceof either of the two. (16.6) We knowwhat divine qualities are: these are non-violence, truthfulness, not given toanger, modesty, etc. (16.2) The demon-ic qualities are: deceitful behaviour,arrogance, anger, etc. (16.4) Demons,having little intelligence, take birth tocause harm to the world. (16.9)

So, we, having divine qualities,must protect ourselves from thesedemonic characters. Consider whathappened during the Mahabharat era.Evil forces led by Duryodhan and com-pany came to power. Pandavas — therightful occupants of the throne wereousted. In the same period, Kansa —a demon was wrecking havoc on goodpeople and there was no check on him.God incarnated as Lord Krishna andset the matter right. However, Goddoes not incarnate so frequently. Then,what are we to do? In the present times,many despots have managed to takecontrol of their nations. What shouldtheir citizens do? Good people in thesecountries must come together to pro-tect themselves, and, if possible, bringchange in the government as and whenthere is a opportune moment.

Let me explain this philosophy ofcoming together. I will cite my ownexample. I don’t like many things whichhappen in the country, but that doesnot prevent me from protecting myselffrom evil forces. I try to associate withmostly good people. Fortunately forme, my family consists of really goodsouls; I couldn’t have asked for better.As far as relatives go, I am very care-

ful in choosing with whom I associate.I try to maintain close relationshipswith only the really good ones. For oth-ers, my rule is to be strictly formal withthem, i.e. what is the minimumrequired. Going further, I worship“Shanideva”, as advised by myastrologer, and I do so quite serious-ly. Gaining favour of gods and goddess-es is also important for me. I worship“Durga Ma” by chanting a particularmantra suggested by my spiritualfriend. All these getting together withgood people, “grahas” and gods andgoddesses is very satisfactory. However,I still felt a lot of vacuum.

Over a period of many decades, Ihave realised that this vacuum can onlybe filled by God. Only He, the omnipo-tent, can help in certain circum-stances; only He, the omniscient, canguide me in the most difficult situa-tions; only He, the omnipresent, can beavailable to me at all times; and onlyHe, the Master of the universe, can pro-

vide whatever I need, whenever I need. Additionally, I have realised that

God is forever watching all of us; hear-ing whatever we say; and being awareof what we are thinking. And the pur-pose is simply to help, guide andreward in order to encourage us goodpeople; the task of punishing is with thedivine authorities. It took me quitesome time to fully realise the fact thatGod, who is everything (7.19) hastaken this duty upon Himself. This istrue as realised by many. Due to thisfact, I can live peacefully; I feel securein spite of presence of many negativeforces. I am so gratified that I spendfifteen minutes daily prior to going tosleep thanking the Lord for variousthings. The underlying emotion is:God, we have you. Without your pres-ence I or anyone cannot gain peace,bliss or sense of security. Thank Godthat you are very much with us.Bishnoi is a spiritual writer and can be reached

at spiritual@ajitbishnoi.com

Asoul is sent to a life in thehuman body for a certainperiod of time. When thesoul inhabits a body, thesoul is still a part of God

and is still one with God. The soul,however, is now overpowered by pow-erful forces, such as the mind, the bodyand the outer world, which cause thesoul, over time, to forget itself. The soulslowly begins to identify itself with thebody and mind and world outside. Itsuddenly begins to think that it canonly receive information from theouter world through the senses. Thusthe soul has become attuned to onlyone channel — the channel of theworld.

If we think about our life aswatching a television programme, wehave multiple choices as to what towatch. Just as there are a dozen net-work stations and then dozens if nothundreds of cable stations from whichto choose, so, too, there are many activ-ities in this world that we can engagein.

Now, let us take a look at the otherchoices available to us. This physicalplanet is not a separate offshoot from

all of creation and God. Most religionsbelieve that there are higher regions orexistence to which the soul goes afterit dies. Scientists and doctors have triedto verify this by documenting accountsof people who were declared clinical-ly dead but had near-death experiencesand described something beyond thisworld. The question is, where are theserealms? They are not zones in outerspace delineated by borders. All theserealms exist concurrently with this one.The reason we are not aware of themis because they operate on a differentfrequency or vibration.

The saints and mystics tell us thatwe have the choice to either stay tunedto this physical world, or to tune intothe channels of God. God wants us towatch God’s programming. God isavailable twenty-four hours of the day,three hundred sixty five days of a year.God’s programming does not turn offat three a.m. like some networks do.It is a free station broadcasting all thetime without any cable fees. We onlyneed to know how to tune into God’sstation.

The connection to God is nothard. It is just a matter of making the

choice that this is what we want to do.The steps to do this are simple. ” Step one is to stop identifying withthe body, mind, and world outside, andidentify with the soul. ” Step two requires that when we iden-tify with our soul that we shift ourattention to the frequency or thehigher realms and ultimately to God.

That is all we have to do. God didnot make it hard for us to becomeaware of our true Home. It is we whohave made it complicated.

So how do we accomplish step oneand step two? To accomplish step one,we must withdraw our attention fromour body, mind, and the world outside.We must decide to turn off the outerprogramming. When that program-ming is in the off mode, then in thesilence we will experience ourselves assoul. That is the step that we call self-knowledge.

Once we identify with the soul, wewill be able to pick up frequencies thatthe soul is capable of receiving. We canmake a gradual shift in which we gofrom the consciousness of one regionto consciousness of the spiritualrealms.

In this process we are not goinganywhere physically; we are merelyshifting our attention from one stateof consciousness to the other. Theother state of consciousness does notexist in time or space. They are oper-ating concurrently. We are simultane-ously in the other realms and in Godat the same time but we are not awareof it because our attention is onlyfocused on one region-the physical.

So, for step one, if we meditateaccurately we will experience ourselvesas soul. Once we identify with the soul,then we will also be aware of the innerLight and Sound that is the radianceand vibratory sound of God within us.If we absorb ourselves in the Light andSound within, we can then attain steptwo. We can shift our attention into theLight and Sound, which attracts oursoul to higher levels of vibration.

It is simply a matter of choosingwhere we want to put our attention.This is the simplicity of spirituality.God did not make things complicat-ed. It is simple, we just have to chooseto transplant the flower of our atten-tion from the world into God’s garden.

The writer is a spiritual leader

Best to mindyour mind

THE POWER OF ATTENTION

Thank God, we have youWe all have divine qualities that help us protect ourselves from thedemons within us and outside, writes AJIT KUMAR BISHNOI

The connection to God is not hard to make. It is just a matter of making thechoice that this is what we want to do, writes SANT RAJINDER SINGH

SHAKTI AND HER BHAIRAVAA typical feature in each

Shakti Peetha is the presence ofa manifestation of Shiva in theform of Bhairava. Sati, whosebody parts create the ShaktiPeethas, is married to the pri-mordial god, Shiva. However,the Shakti Peethas are complet-ed with a Bhairava shrine with-in the complex.

In each of the 51 ShaktiPeethas, Shiva meditates asBhairava. Each of the Bhairavashave their own unique iconog-raphy and indicators. Tounderstand the cult of Bhairavaand the different forms ofBhairavas, it is important tounderstand the origin, markers,manifestations, representationsand expressions of theBhairavas.

The fierce form of Shiva isBhairava, who himself hasmany manifestations. He iseven present in Buddhist andJaina iconographies. InVajrayana Buddhism, he isknown as the BodhisattvaMajushri, Heruka,Vajrabhairava and Yamantaka.

Bhairava is also known asthe wandering form of Shiva-the fearful form who is theannihilator. As MahakaalBhairava, he is the keeper oftime. As Dandapani, he holds adanda/rod to punish the sin-ners. And as Swaswas, he is onewhose mount or vehicle is adog.

Bhairava moves into therealm of the tantric and withhis consort Bhairavi. In this,he is prayed to at midnightduring which time, the couplegive darshan to their faithfuldevotees. It is believed thatthere are 64 Bhairavas, whoare divided into eight cate-gories, known asAstabhairavas, the guardiansof the eight directions. Theyare Asithaanga Bhairava, RuruBhairava, Chanda Bhairava,Krodha Bhairava, UnmatthaBhairava, Kapaala Bhairava,

Bheeshana Bhairava andSamhaara Bhairava.

The Bhairavas are ruled andcontrolled by the MahaKaalbhairava, or Kaalbhairava,who as per the Shaivite tantrictexts, is also the supreme ruler ofthe world. In the Trikha system,Bhairava as Para Brahman isalso the supreme reality.

Along with Ganesha andHanuman, the two most populargods of the Hindu pantheon, theMother Goddess or Maa is pre-sent in every home in the formof the domestic mother herself. I

would like to end with a shlokafrom Devi Upanishad where thecomplement of man and womanin the form of Shiv and Shakti isexpressed, which is also the baseof the Samkhya Philosophy:

‘It is only when Shiva uniteswith thee, O Shakti, that hebecomes the all-powerful Lord.Left to himself, he lacks even thestrength to raise his little finger.’

Excerpted with permissionfrom Shakti: 51 Sacred Peethasof the Goddess by Alka Pande,

Rupa, `295

MAPPING THE SACRED

DWELLINGS OF SHAKTI

ONCE WE IDENTIFYWITH THE SOUL, WE

WILL BE ABLE TOPICK UP

FREQUENCIES THATTHE SOUL ISCAPABLE OF

RECEIVING. WE CANMAKE A GRADUAL

SHIFT IN WHICH WEGO FROM THE

CONSCIOUSNESS OFONE REGION TO

CONSCIOUSNESS OFTHE SPIRITUAL

REALMS

F R O M P A G E 1

Kamakhya Temple

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Kun

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special 09HYDERABAD | SUNDAY | MARCH 7, 2021

It was October. Economic activitieshave started. The hum of themachines in factories is back allacross the country. There was a senseof hope. Amid this euphoria many

migrant labourers in a nondescript villageof Nibi, in the rugged Banda district inBundelkhand, decided not to go back tofactories in Vapi in Gujarat. They wereworking in a cloth factory before lockdownwas announced and had returned homeduring lockdown. Phula Devi, one of them,decided to stay back in her village. Theagony and humiliation which she and herfamily faced during lockdown was fresh inher memory.

She communicated her decision to thewomen of the group who had returnedwith her to the village. “My resolve was tostay back and try to earn my living in myown village. I was not ready to face thehumiliation yet again of being treated asan outsider. There was a fear that if any-thing ‘bad’ happens it will push the fam-ily to the brink of starvation yet again,” shetold this reporter in her village compoundwhich was surrounded by other women,men and small children.

She had no idea what she would do.She was a landless farmer. Majority of thevillagers who had shifted to Vaapi with herwere landless too and were forced to moveout of the village to eke out their earningbecause of the deprivation they faced in thevillage.

The Covid pandemic and the subse-quent lockdown announced to arrest thespread of Coronavirus pushed them to thesame crossroads of deprivation. The fac-tory was closed in March. Devi along witharound two dozen village-mates includingrelatives, who were working as labourers,preferred to stay put with a hope that thesituation will improve and they will findwork in the city.

The situation deteriorated with everypassing day. The owner of the factoryrefused to help them. He even did not pay`8000 as a salary which was due saying hedoes not have money. They were thenforced to dig deep into their savings. Whenthe Gujarat Government announced relief,they were treated as outsiders and weredeprived of the Government benefits.Once they exhausted their savings theywere left with no option but to return totheir village.

It was last week of June. With nomoney in their pockets they decided towalk down over 1300 km distance on footfrom Vaapi to Banda. They were a groupof 19 people including five children. Fora day and a half they walked bravingscorching sun. They tried to hitch a ridebut the truck drivers asked exorbitant fareof `3,000 per person. They preferred towalk. They survived on the food and waterwhich some NGOs provided them enroute.

They reached Nashik where they gota train that brought them to Jhansi andfrom there they came to Banda.

“It was a second life for us. We foughthunger, frustration and exhaustion toreach our village so that we can live again.And when people started talking aboutgoing back after the situation improved,old images started flashing in my mind andI decided not to leave the village again,”Devi tells you.

Her friend Kusuma too agreed to stayback. But the big question staring at theirface was what will they do in the villageas there are not enough employmentopportunities there. The constructionwork in the village and adjoining Attarrablock was limited. The work underMahatma Gandhi National RuralEmployment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA)was not easily available. The villagers com-plained that the Pradhan of the GramSabha, who is from upper caste, ignoredthe residents of the Nibi village becausemajority of them were from the dalit com-munity.

The social barriers which are welldefined by caste, proved an impedimentin Devi’s entrepreneurial dream. Themajority of the farmers were landless andbelonged to marginalised communities.The village is dominated by upper caste,followed by backward and intermediarycaste people. They have the ownership ofthe majority of the land. The dalits, wholike Hindu caste hierarchy, are at the bot-tom of the resources available in the vil-lage.

The gram sabha record shows that thevillage has around 400 households thatshare 1500 hectare of agricultural landbetween them. The ownership of land isvery skewed. The record says that 15 percent of the population (which is around 60households) owns around 60 per cent(around 900 hectares) of land. These areall upper caste people.

There are 140 households of theBackward Community who own almost600 hectare of land. The rest of thehouseholds are dalits and they are landless.

Interestingly, Jai Kumar Chaturvediowns around 100 hectare of land in thatvillage which they give to the landlessfarmers of the village on sharecropping. Inrural India share cropping is a commonpractice where a landless villager takes theland for tillage for a year on an agreed termand after harvest both can share the crop.

In UP the process in local parlance is called‘Batohi’.

Devi decided to go for farming.“Initially, surviving was not an issue. Wegot a free ration from the Yogi Governmentand once got `1,000 too. Then the localNGO Vidya Dham Samiti provided us helpas and when required and so we decidedto take this risk,” she tells you.

As they did not have land she decid-ed to take one on batohi. “It was a riskworth taking. I know the area is waterscarce but this is also a fact that duringgood monsoon we can have bumpercrops here,” she explains.

She met Raman Chaturvedi, son of JaiKumar Chaturvedi and asked for a pieceof land where they can do farming. “He

looked at us with disbelief because previ-ously we were not in talking terms.‘Hamara jhagda ho gaya tha’ (we had quar-reled),” she tells you sheepishly.

Chaturvedi was perplexed when hesaw a group of women come one finemorning and ask land for sharecropping.“I was a bit surprised because it is gener-ally men who come to us to discuss theterms and conditions of share cropping.But when I was told these women who arepravasi mazdoor want to stay back in thevillage, we decided to give a small portionof land to them,” he tells you.

Raman agreed to give six bigha of landon a 50-50 sharing basis, thus meaning thathe will share the cost of agriculture inputand will take 50 per cent of the grain pro-duced.

The word spread in the village like firethat Devi was planning farming. Otherwomen like Vimla, Koiri, Murri andKusuma too joined her. Devi went aroundthe village advising women of the migrantfamilies, who were planning to go back toVaapi, to stay back. “We had faith in Phula.We had seen the worst in Vaapi and wereready to give new resolve shown by Phulaa try,” Murri Devi tells you.

Rajani nods her head in affirmation.“I and my husband had made up ourminds to go back and work in a factory.We postponed our visit for a few days tosee how things shape up in the village. Itis three months since then and have decid-ed to stay back,” she tells you with a smile.

The initial skepticism turned to selfbelief when villagers saw Devi and Kusumaworking in fields. Devi sowed wheat andvegetables while Kusuma opted for vegeta-bles. In between the words spread aboutthe death of Ram Dayal, a villager fromNibi, in Vaapi and how the contractorforced his wife and son to work in the fac-tory to repay a loan Dayal had taken fromhim.

Slowly the courtyard of Devi’s housebecame the meeting point for the villagers.Women used to come and sit with Phuladiscussing the nitty-gritty of farming.This all started with whisper but soon thewomen became vocal and the resolve tostay back started gathering momentum.

“I am illiterate. I don’t know anythingabout farming. Initially, I was a labourerand then when I was shifted to Vaapi mywork was to sift soiled cloth pieces fromfresh ones. So, my knowledge about farm-ing was almost zero,” she says.

Her relative Raju came to her rescue.He provided all the basic information likewhich seed and fertilizer to use andwhen. Fortunately, the rains were normaland it came as a big relief.

The heads started turning whenKusuma had a good harvest of vegetableslike cabbage, potato, cauliflower and other

seasonal vegetables. She opened a smallmakeshift shop inside her house and soldvegetables. “I earn anything between `125and `150 per day. Some days, I even earnedclose to `250,” Kusuma tells you with asmile.

Kusuma, with her husband, ShivAvtaar, have even repaired a defunct wellnear the field which they had taken forbatohi. “Irrigation is not a big issue nowfor us as we get water from the well whichhas been neglected for many decades,”Avtaar says.

More and more women are now readyto take farming. “Phula motivated us.Kusuma showed us the way and now wehave dropped the idea of going back to thefactory,” Koili says. Many in the group nod-ded in unison as a mark of confirmationof what Koili said.

The women of this non-descript vil-lage have become entrepreneurial. Whenthey realized individually they do nothave enough money, they joined hands todo farming. Four friends — Phula, Bimla,Koili and Murri — have entered into theirown contract farming where they willshare the agricultural input as well as theprofit.

All of them have chipped in with`3,000 each and the money collected isused for irrigation, seeds and fertilizers.They have grown varieties of vegetables,onion and wheat. “We will give half of thecrop to the land owner and share the restamong ourselves. This will be enough forus,” Bimla tells you.

The words have spread around thatwomen in Nibi village have brought a rev-olution. Around 20 families, all pravasimazdoor, have not gone back despite acall from thekedar (contractor). Evenpeople in a village Bhujyari purwan,around 20 kms from Nibi, narrate howsome have brought a social change in thevillage. “We have heard that some womenin nearby villages have opted for farm-ing rather than going back to work in fac-tories. People are talking about the rev-olution brewing in the villages of Attara,”Vinod Singh, a resident of BhujyariPurwan said.

Singh, in his early 20s, is also a landowner and gives their land on sharecrop-ping. “Now in villages too women arecoming forward and taking decisionsthemselves,” he says in a sarcastic tone.

“Generally, at this time of the yearpadlocks could be seen at doors and adeadly silence drapes the Nibi village.This year it is different. The sounds oflaughter, cries and chatter emanatesfrom all the houses because the villagershave stayed back. Thanks to the women,life is back in the villages,” Raja Bhaiyaof Vidya Dham samiti, an NGO thatworks in the region, says.

HARVEST OF HOPEThere are some who believe in going with the flow and there are others who take the road less travelled.

To mark the International Women’s Day, BISWAJEET BANERJEE brings you one such story of a rebel

who brushed aside toughest of circumstances to eke out a living

The decision to opt for farmingwas not easy for the women.The primary reason being the

region is water scarce. So, whenKusuma opted to grow vegetables thefirst thought that came to her mindwas from where to get water for irri-gation.

This time her caste came to herrescue. Being a dalit her house was atthe corner of the village. There wasa well at one corner of the field whichwas lying defunct for many years. Thewell was built by upper caste peopleof the village but they stopped usingit after they installed pumps in theirhouses.

“This well was in very bad shape.One day sitting at the base of the wellmy husband and I discussed if we caninstall a pump then withdrawingwater from the well would be easy.This way we will be able to solve theirrigation problem too,” Kusuma tellsyou.

Initially, the husband-wife duohad used a bucket to pull water andthen irrigated the vegetable with amug. This was a tedious and timeconsuming job.

Shiv Avtaar, husband of Kusuma,had a little bit of knowledge ofmachines as he had helped electri-cians in the factory in Vapi. They tooka little loan from a private moneylen-der and installed a pump.

“The water problem is solved toa large extent. After success in thevegetable business I am looking fordiversification. My husband is look-ing for avenues in fisheries and poul-try,” she tells you.

Fightingwater woes

Lending a hand

The decision women took to stayback in the village after unlockwas not easy. They needed sup-

port from the Government and thelocal society at every step. The localNGO Vidya Dham Samiti came totheir rescue.

“We were there just as a supportgroup. The Vidya Dham Samiti (VDS)extended all possible help including thetechnical know-how and sometimeswe helped these women with money.But the credit goes to these womenwho showed a resolve to fight backadversities and turned the crisis intoan opportunity,” Raja Bhaiya of VDStells you.

The Samiti works with the margin-alised section of the society in Bandaand adjoining regions.

Raja Bhaiya tells you that he hasseen the plight of migrant workers dur-ing lockdown. They came back to vil-lages empty stomach and practicallyhad nothing with them. “Condition ofPhula and her relatives was no differ-ent. Our Samiti helped them initiallyand later supported them when theydecided to stay back despite gettingcalls from the factory,” he says.

Regular meetings are heldbetween Samiti members and vil-lagers. “I saw the seeds of womenempowerment sowing in the adversecondition of Covid pandemic. Thesewomen were coming out of the shad-ow of their husbands. We allowedthese women to spread their wingsand now the result is for everyone tosee,” Raja Bhaiya tells you.

I AM ILLITERATE. I DON'TKNOW ANYTHING ABOUT

FARMING. INITIALLY, I WAS ALABOURER AND THEN WHEN

I WAS SHIFTED TO VAAPI,MY WORK WAS TO SIFT

SOILED CLOTH PIECES FROMFRESH ONES. SO, MYKNOWLEDGE ABOUT

FARMING WAS ALMOST ZERO

— PHULA DEVI

Kusuma at the well

Raja Bhaiya with women at Nibi village

Bimla, Koila, Bhuri and Phula, friends who gave new meaning to contract farming by sharing agri inputs as well as profits

The creator of McAfee computersecurity software was facingcharges Friday that he cashed in

on a "pump-and-dump" scheme, bypromoting cryptocurrencies onTwitter to drive up their value.John McAfee, founder of the antivirusfirm that bears his name, and Jimmy

Watson face charges of conspiracy,fraud, and money laundering inconnection with schemes to trickcryptocurrency investors, accordingto an indictment unsealed by the USDepartment of Justice."McAfee and Watson exploited awidely used social media platform

and enthusiasm among

investors in the emergingcryptocurrency market to makemillions through lies and deception,"US attorney Audrey Strauss said in arelease.McAfee, Watson, and other membersof their "cryptocurrency team"allegedly "raked in more than $13million from investors they victimizedwith their fraudulent schemes,"according to Strauss.Pump-and-dump schemes typicallyinvolve over-hyping the value ofstocks or, in this case cryptocurrency,by holders so that they can be sold atartificially high prices."McAfee and Watson used socialmedia to perpetrate an age-old pump-and-dump scheme," FBI assistantdirector William Sweeney said."When engaging in illegal activity,simply finding new ways to carry outold tricks won't produce differentresults."McAfee and Watson also used Twitterto promote digital tokens on behalf ofinitial coin offerings withoutdisclosing they were being paid fortheir efforts by the startups,according to theindictment.

More than 20,000 U.S.organizations have

been compromised througha back door installed viarecently patched flaws inMicrosoft Corp’s email soft-ware, a person familiar withthe U.S. government’sresponse said on Friday. Thehacking has already reachedmore places than all of thetainted code downloadedfrom SolarWinds Corp, thecompany at the heart ofanother massive hackingspree uncovered inDecember.

The latest hack has leftchannels for remote accessspread among credit unions,town governments andsmall businesses, accordingto records from the U.S.investigation.

Tens of thousands oforganizations in Asia andEurope are also affected, therecords show.

The hacks are continuingdespite emergency patchesissued by Microsoft onTuesday.

Microsoft, which had ini-tially said the hacks consist-ed of “limited and targetedattacks,” declined to com-ment on the scale of theproblem on Friday but saidit was working with govern-ment agencies and securitycompanies to providehelp to customers.

It added,

“impacted customers shouldcontact our support teamsfor additional help andresources.”

One scan of connecteddevices showed only 10% ofthose vulnerable hadinstalled the patches byFriday, though the numberwas rising.

Because installing thepatch does not get rid of theback doors, U.S. officials areracing to figure out how tonotify all the victims andguide them in their hunt.

All of those affectedappear to run Web versionsof email client Outlook andhost them on their ownmachines, instead of relyingon cloud providers. Thatmay have spared many ofthe biggest companies andfederal government agen-cies, the records suggest.

The federalCybersecurity andInfrastructureSecurityAgencydid

not respond to a request forcomment.

Earlier on Friday, WhiteHouse press secretary JenPsaki told reporters that thevulnerabilities found inMicrosoft’s widely usedExchange servers were “sig-nificant,” and “could havefar-reaching impacts.”

“We’re concerned thatthere are a large number ofvictims,” Psaki said.

Microsoft and the personworking with the U.S.response blamed theinitial wave of attackson a Chinese gov-ernment-backedactor. AChinesegovern-ment

spokesman said thecountry was not behindthe intrusions.

What started as a con-trolled attack late last yearagainst a few classic espi-onage targets grew lastmonth to a widespreadcampaign.

The Mail On Sunday, partof a UK newspaper

group that lost a high-profileprivacy case brought byMeghan Markle, must printa front-page statementacknowledging her legal vic-tory, a judge ruled on Friday.

High Court judge MarkWarby also ordered

AssociatedNewspapers, whichowns the Mail On

Sunday andMailOnline web-

site, to publish anotice on page three

of the paper statingthat it had "infringed her

copyright".Warby in February

upheld Meghan's claimthat AssociatedNewspapers had breached

her privacy and copyright bypublishing parts of a 2018letter she sent to her fatherThomas Markle.

The letter to her estrangedfather was written a fewmonths after she marriedQueen Elizabeth II's grand-son, Prince Harry, and askedhim to stop talking totabloids and making falseclaims about her in inter-views.

Warby has alreadyordered AssociatedNewspapers to make an"interim payment" of GBP450,000 ($627,000) to coverlegal costs for the Duchess ofSussex, as Meghan is formal-ly known.

On Friday he also formal-ly refused its appeal bid, say-ing the newspaper grouphad "no real prospect" ofsuccess.

In his written ruling, thejudge said the front- andthird-page statements aboutMeghan's successful copy-right claim would have "gen-uine utility".

The Mars rover Perseverancehas successfully conducted

its first test drive on the RedPlanet, the US space agencyNASA said Friday.

The six-wheeled rover trav-elled about 6.5 meters (21.3feet) in 33 minutes onThursday, NASA said.

It drove four meters for-ward, turned in place 150degrees to the left, and thenbacked up 2.5 meters, leavingtire tracks in the Martiandust.

"This was our first chanceto 'kick the tires' and takePerseverance out for a spin,"said Anais Zarifian,Perseverance mobility test bedengineer at NASA's JetPropulsion Laboratory inPasadena, California.

Zarifian said the test drivewent "incredibly well" and rep-resented a "huge milestone forthe mission andthe mobilityteam."

"We're goingto do somelonger drives,"she added. "Thisis just the begin-ning." NASAengineers said

they were studying possibleroutes for longer rover voyageson the surface of Mars.

A slightly longer trip wasplanned for Friday, and per-haps another Saturday if allgoes well, NASA said.

The rover can cover 200meters per Martian day, whichis slightly longer than a day onEarth.

And it goes five times fasterthan Curiosity, its predecessor,which is still functioning eightyears after landing on Mars.

Perseverance deputy missionmanager Robert Hogg saidengineers were also preparingfor the first flight of a heli-copter drone carried by therover.

Hogg said the rover teamwas working out flight zonesand hoped to conduct the firstflight in late spring or earlysummer.

‘First drive went incredibly well’:

NASA on Mars Rover

Just setting up my twttr" - the firstever tweet on the platform is up for

sale after Twitter boss Jack Dorseylisted his famous post as a unique dig-ital signature on a website for sellingtweets as non-fungible tokens (NFTs).

The post, sent from Dorsey'saccount in March of 2006, receivedoffers on Friday that went as high as$88,888.88 within minutes of theTwitter co-founder tweeting a link tothe listing on 'Valuables by Cent' - atweets marketplace.

Old offers for the tweet suggest thatit was put for sale in December, butthe listing gained more attention afterDorsey's tweet on Friday.

NFTs are digital files that serve asdigital signatures to certify who ownsphotos, videos and other onlinemedia.

Dorsey's 15-year old tweet is one ofthe most famous tweets ever on theplatform and could attract bidders topay a high price for the digital memo-rabilia. The highest bid for the tweetstood at $100,000 at 0125 GMT onSaturday.

Launched three months ago,Valuables compares the buying oftweets with buying an auto-graphed baseball card. "There is

only one unique signed versionof the tweet, and if the creatoragrees to sell, you can own itforever."

A tweet's buyer will get anautographed digital certifi-

cate, signed using cryp-tography, that will

include metadata ofthe original tweet,according to theValuables website.The tweet will con-tinue to be available

on the Twitterwebsite.

California healthofficials set newrules on Friday that

would allow Disneylandand other theme parks, sta-diums and outdoor enter-tainment venues to reopenas early as April 1, after aclosure of nearly a year dueto the coronavirus pandemic.

But the return of MickeyMouse to the “HappiestPlace on Earth” and livespectators to the Californiaball parks of America’sfavorite pastime still comewith major caveats.

Theme andamusement

parks wouldbe permitted

to restarton April

1 with severely limitedcapacity, but only if thecounties where they operateare removed from the “pur-ple” tier of California’s color-coded COVID-19 restric-tions, the system’s most strin-gent classification.

Masks and other safetymeasures would still berequired, and the parks ini-tially would be open only tostate residents. Attendancewould range from 15% to35% of normal capacity.

Outdoor stadiums, ballparks and performance are-nas would also be allowed towelcome back live audiencesstarting April 1, though at afraction of maximum seating

and subjectto the

same tiered system of con-straints.

Opening day turnouts forMajor League Baseball gameswould be muted affairs inSouthern California, with nomore than 100 spectatorsallowed in venues located inpurple-zoned counties.

That would include thestadiums of the Los AngelesDodgers, the San DiegoPadres and the AnaheimAngels. San Francisco andOakland, home of theGiants and the Athletics,respectively, are currentlydesignated red, whichwould limit seatingto 20% capacity.

HYDERABAD | SUNDAY | MARCH 7, 2021

scopekaleid

DISNEYLAND, other California theme parks,stadiums could reopen April 1

Jack Dorsey'sfirst tweet,15-year-old,is up for sale

20,000 US organisations compromisedthrough Microsoft flaw: Source

backpage

UK paper told to printfront-page notice on

Meghan Markle's legal win

China to build‘Passageway' to South Asia

through Tibet: Report

The draft outline of the 14th Five-Year Plan has beensubmitted to the NPC for formal approval.

China has included building of an important "passageway"connecting Tibet with South Asia in the 14th Five Yearplan which is due to commence from this year, the

official media reported on Friday. China will support Tibet inbuilding the passageway to South Asia, state-run Xinhuanews agency reported, quoting the 14th Plan documentwhich was submitted to the National People's Congress,(NPC), China's Parliament. The annual session of the NPCbegan in Beijing on Friday. "China's Tibet AutonomousRegion will be supported to build an important passagewayopening to South Asia," state-run Xinhua news agencyreported briefly. The draft outline of the 14th Five-Year Plan(2021-2025) for national economic and social developmentand the long-range objectives through the year 2035, whichwere cleared by the ruling Communist Party of China (CPC)have been submitted to the NPC for formal approval.Though the Xinhua report has not mentioned, China hasbeen planning for a long time to build the Trans-HimalayanMulti-Dimensional Connectivity Network through Tibet andNepal. It was regarded as a part of the Belt and RoadInitiative (BRI) cooperation between China and Nepal.

Great apes at SanDiego zoo receivefirst Covid vaccinesN

ine great apes at San Diego Zoo have become the firstnon-human primates given Covid-19 vaccinations,

officials at the California zoo said Friday. Four orangutansand five bonobos were given two doses each of anexperimental vaccine created specifically for animals by aveterinary pharmaceutical company. The inoculationswere carried out after eight gorillas at the same world-famous zoo contracted the virus from human staff inJanuary. "After a troop of eight western lowland gorillasgot sick in January, San Diego Zoo staff receivedexperimental COVID-19 vaccines to give to great apes intheir care," tweeted Zoetis, the pharmaceutical company.San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance on Friday called it a "winfor science." Nadine Lamberski, a conservation andwildlife health officer at San Diego Zoo Global, toldNational Geographic that the use of an experimentalvaccine on the zoo's animals at this stage "isn't the norm.""In my career, I haven't had access to an experimentalvaccine this early in the process and haven't had such anoverwhelming desire to want to use one," she said.

Software icon JohnMcAfee charged incryptocurrency scam