JOURNALISM OF COURAGE

SINCE 1932

DA ILY FROM: AHMEDABAD , CHAND IGARH , DELH I , JA IPUR , KOLKATA , LUCKNOW, MUMBAI , NAGPUR , PUNE , VADODARA ● REG .NO . MCS/067/2018 - 20 RN I REGN . NO . 1543/57

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 3, 2020, MUMBAI, LATE CITY, 14 PAGES `5.00, WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMJOURNALISM OF COURAGE

SINCE 1932

`̀ 130 per kilo

`̀ 158 per kilo

`̀ 197 per kilo

`̀ 50 per Dozen

SANJANABHALERAOMUMBAI, JUNE2

WITH CYCLONE Nisarga ex-pected tomake landfall close toAlibag – just over 100 kmsouthof Mumbai in Maharashtra'sRaigaddistrict – onWednesdayafternoon, Mumbai, Thane,Palghar, Raigad, Dhule,Nandurbar andNashik districtsareonredalert,withtheMetde-partment forecasting strongwindsofupto110kmphandex-tremely heavy rain at someplaces.This is the second timesince

1902 that a cyclone has devel-oped over the Arabian Sea inJuneintwoconsecutiveyears. InJune 2019, Cyclone Vayu hadformed in the Arabian Sea be-tween June10 and17. Vayuwasexpected to make landfall inGujarat but moved away fromthe coast. This is the first timethatMumbai andMaharashtrawill experienceacyclone.According to the India

Meteorological Department's(IMD) 8.20 pmbulletin, the cy-clone lay about 280 kmwest-northwestofPanjiminGoa,300km southsouthwest of Alibag,350 km south-southwest ofMumbai and 560 km south-southwestof Surat inGujarat.Afterlandfall,“theseverecy-

clonic storm is very likely tomaintain its cyclonic storm in-tensityforaboutsixhours,whilemoving north-northeast wardsacross north MadhyaMaharashtra," the IMDsaid in alatenightbulletin.

At landfall, Nisarga could beblowing at 100 to 110 kmph,gustingto120kmph.Asitmoves

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All hands on deck as Nisarga set tomake landfall near Alibag in afternoon

AtGirgaonChowpatty inMumbaionTuesday.GaneshShirsekar

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEMUMBAI, JUNE2

WITH CYCLONE Nisarga ex-pected to make landfall onWednesday afternoon,Maharashtra Chief MinisterUddhav Thackeray on Tuesdayannounced that ‘Mission BeginAgain’ will be deferred, andaskedpeopletoremainindoors,and offices and industries to re-mainshut till June5.Under the government's

scheduled lockdown exit plan,

Mumbai was to reopen fromWednesday for peoplewishingtogooutdoorsforwalksorruns,or anyother formof non-groupexercise.“We had decided to launch

'MissionBeginAgain' on June 3.Butlookingattheimpendingcy-clone, thenext twodays are im-portantforthecoastalbeltanditis better to stay indoors. Officesandindustries,whichmighthavestarted,will remainshut tomor-rowanddayafter.Nobodyshouldventureoutoftheirhomes,”said

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Uddhav defers ‘MissionBegin Again’ till June 5

ABANTIKAGHOSHNEWDELHI, JUNE2

ASTHEtotalCovid-19casecountnears the 2-lakhmark, IndianCouncil of Medical Research(ICMR) scientist Dr NiveditaGupta said on Tuesday that thecountry is still “very far awayfromthepeak”.

In an infectious disease, apeaksignifies thepointatwhichthe daily case countwill start tofall. Over the last fewdays, over8,000 new cases have been re-ported fromacross the countrydaily.“We are very far away from

the peak. Our preventivemeas-ureshavebeenveryeffective.Weareinamuchbetterpositionvis-

a-visothercountriesandyouwillseethedatasoon,”DrGuptasaid.This is in line with several

statementsbytopgovernmentof-ficials, includingfromNITIAayogandAIIMS,thattheworstmonthsarelikelytobeJuneandJuly.With 8,171 new cases and

204 deaths being reported inthe

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INSIDE

GRAPPLINGWITHVIRUS, VILLAGERSIN PALGHARRELUCTANT TOSHIFTTOGOVTSHELTERSPAGE3

LOCKDOWNDAY

70

CONCERNHARYANA: Almostdoubled the cases inlast one week. Oneof the fastestgrowing states.

CAUTIONTRIPURA:A

sudden surge.Morethan 100 casesdetected on

Monday. Total 418

A GLIMMERMAHARASHTRA:For third straightday, growth rate

falls below nationalaverage

KEYSTATESTOWATCH■Maharashtra■Gujarat■Kerala■TamilNadu■Bihar■WestBengal

TOTALCASES70,01317,2171,32623,4953,9455,772

DOUBLINGRATE**17.3528.6112.5015.4513.4311.82

SURGEIN24HRS2,358423571,162138271

7-DAYAVG.GROWTH*

4.15%2.52%5.76%4.66%5.36%6.09%

TRACKING INDIA’SCOVIDCURVE

CASES:1,98,706

RECOVERED:95,526 |DEATHS:5,598TESTS:39,66,075 |DOUBLINGRATE: 15.77**

*CompoundedDailyGrowthRateover last 7days **Calculatedover7-daygrowth

BasedondailydatabyCentre, ICMR, stategovernments

BYBRINGINGGenerals tothetable, IndiaandChinaare indicatingtheirwill-ingness toagreetodisen-gage.Thesituation inLadakhisdifferent fromDoklam,anda lotde-pendsonhowGeneralsonthegroundanddiplo-matsworkingthe lineswithBeijingnegotiateanagreementtode-escalate.

SignallingeachotherE●EX

PLAINED

LINEOFACTUALCONTROLTALKSONTWINTRACKS;NEXTROUNDJUNE6

DefenceMinister saysdonewhatneeds tobedone In break from past, Delhisays Modi, Trump discussedIndia-China border situation

KRISHNKAUSHIK&SUSHANTSINGHNEWDELHI, JUNE2

STEPPINGUPeffortstode-escalatethe situation along the Line ofActual Control (LAC) in Ladakh,India andChinawill start a freshroundofmilitary talkson June6,bringing senior commanders tothetable.Army sources indicated this

even as Defence MinisterRajnath Singh said he had beeninformed about the talks, andthattheChinesepresencealong

the LAC was in “achhi khasisankhya” (sizeablenumbers).The next meeting, sources

said,willbebetweenLtGeneral-level officers from both sides,withtheIndiandelegationbeingledby theCorpsCommanderoftheLeh-basedXIVCorps.Rajnath Singh told News18

TV:“Intoday’ssituation,militarytalks are going on, and possiblyonJune6,talksaregoingtohap-penatthelevelofseniormilitaryofficers. I spoke to the (Army)chief andothers today,andtheyhave informedme.”On the situation in Ladakh,

Singh said the problem stemsfromthedifferent LACclaimsofthe twosides.“Therecentincident,itistrue,

the Chinese on the border…their claim is up to a particularpointandIndia’sclaimisuptoaparticularpoint.Andduetothis,

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SHUBHAJITROYNEWDELHI, JUNE2

IN A departure fromprecedent,New Delhi Tuesday said USPresident Donald Trump andPrimeMinister NarendraModidiscussed the “situation on theIndia-Chinaborder”.The Ministry of External

Affairs, in a statement, said the

border situation figured in thephone conversation betweenthe two leaders when TrumpcalledupModi,twodaysafterhesaid he would like to includeIndia in theexpandedG7.InvitingModi to thenextG7

Summit to beheld in theUS, heconveyed his desire to “expandthe ambit of the grouping be-yondtheexistingmembership,

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Lt Generals to leadmilitary talks on Ladakh,Rajnath confirms large Chinese presence

‘Workingaspermechanism’

Maharashtra’s Covidgrowth rate falls belowIndia’s for the first timeAMITABHSINHAPUNE, JUNE2

AS THE Covid count increasesacross the country, touching the2-lakhfigureTuesday,asmallsil-ver lining has emerged. For thefirst time innearly twomonths,the growth rate of infections inMaharashtrahasslowedtofallbe-lowthatofthecountryasawhole.Theseven-daycompounded

daily growth rate (CDGR) forMaharashtra has remained be-low the national average forthreeconsecutivedaysnow.

Thistrendmaynotendureasthe spread gets wider but it issignificant. For, the rate inMaharashtrahasbeendecliningforovertwoweeksnow.Andbe-cause the state accounts formorethanathirdof thenationalcaseload inthecountry, thishasslowed down the nationalgrowthrateaswell.On June 1,Maharashtra’s 7-

dayCDGRwas4.15percentwhilethatofthecountryasawholewas4.74percent.Asaresult, thecur-rent doubling time of cases inMaharashtra is 17.35 days,

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ENSECONOMICBUREAUNEWDELHI, JUNE2

STRESSINGONtheneedforself-relianceandastronger focusonmanufacturinglocallybyenter-prises,PrimeMinisterNarendraModi Tuesday said the govern-ment’s highest priority is tostrengthentheeconomyagainstthe impact of coronavirus andget the country back on thegrowthtrack.Callingindustrytorise to the occasion, Modi saidthere is a need to build

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BUSINESS AS USUAL

BYUNNY

India will get itsgrowth back, needto be self reliant: PM

HARIKISHANSHARMANEWDELHI, JUNE2

WITH THE lockdown sendinglakhsofmigrant labourers backto their villages, over 2.19 crorehouseholdsutilisedtheruraljobguaranteeschemeinMay,whichis the highest for themonth inthelasteightyears,accordingtoofficialdata.Ananalysisofdatainthiscat-

egory—availablecurrentlyfrom2013-14 on theMGNREGApor-tal — shows that the number ofhouseholds thatworked inMaywas 7.10 lakh higher than the

2.12 crore during the samemonth lastyear.Sources in the Ministry of

Rural Development told TheIndian Express that jobs addingup toover41 croreperson-dayswere generated inMay 2020 asagainst about 36.95 crore in thesamemonth lastyear.Theseareprovisionalfigures,

whicharelikelytoberevisedup-wards as themuster rolls of lastweekareupdatedinthecomingfortnight, theysaid.“On an average, about 2.5

crorepersonswereoffered jobsdaily in May as against about1.45 crore in the same monthlastyear. For the last10days,onanaverage,over3crorepersons

were offered jobs daily,”sources said.Thenumbersareexpectedto

go up as data over the yearsshow demand peaking usuallyinJune,aftertheharvestingsea-son. For instance, 2.15 crorehouseholds got work for themonth in 2019-20, 1.93 crore in2018-19, 2.28 crore in 2017-18and2.46crore in2016-17.TheMay spike is significant

as therewas a dip during April2020,andreflectsthelockdown'simpact. InApril,about1.06crorehouseholdsworkedunderMGN-REGA, which is substantiallylower than the 1.70 crore in thesamemonth lastyear.At least 19 states and Union

Territories, mostly destinationsCONTINUEDONPAGE2

PAGE1ANCHOR

State May ’19-’20 May ’20-’21 Increase (%)UP 11,34,249 33,22,663 21,88,414(192.94%)WestBengal 79,38,97 17,85,622 9,91,725(124.92%)Chhattisgarh 12,02,083 19,43,164 7,41,081(61.65%)MP 12,93,735 17,91,275 4,97,540(38.46%)Odisha 5,55,089 8,66,742 3,11,653(56.14%)

STATESREPORTINGHIGHEST INCREASE INMAY

NREGA May demand is highest formonth in 8 years: 2.19 cr households

Covid case count nears 2-lakh mark,ICMR says still ‘far away from peak’

THESECONDPAGE2 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY, JUNE3,2020

Case countlast24hours,thetotalcasecountis now1,98,706, including5,598deaths and 95,526 cured/ dis-charged.Whether there is a single

peak,multipleones,orwaves,ex-pertssaythatwhenaninfectiousdisease hits a peak, it may notmean theoutbreak is over but itusuallymeans that theworst isover.However,therecouldbean-otherwave or peak later.WithCovid-19beinganewpandemic,nobody knows how itwill panout.On the issue of community

transmission,DrGupta said: “Inaninfectiousdisease...theimpor-tant thing is the extent of thespread.Insteadofusingthewordcommunitytransmission,itisim-portanttounderstandthespreadand where we stand vis-a-visothercountries.Tothatend,ICMRhas started a sero-surveyunderwhichcloseto34,000peoplewillbecovered.Theresultswillbe inpublic domainby the endof theweek.”This comes days after three

medical organisations, repre-sentedbyexpertsfromAIIMSandICMR’sownresearchgroups,saidcommunitytransmissionhassetin.According to thehealthmin-

istry'sanalysis,ofthetotaldeathsso far, 50% were aged over 60years, and73%had co-morbidi-ties.ThisisthefirsttimethatICMR

was representedbyDrGupta atthe briefing. Both Dr BalramBhargava, ICMRDG, andDr RRGangakhedkar,headofepidemi-ologyandinfectiousdiseases,areinself-quarantinefollowingcon-tactwithapositivecaselastweek.Health Ministry Joint

SecretaryLavAgarwalconfirmedthatstateshavebeenaskedtoreq-uisitionallpossibleplaceswhichcan be converted into facilitieswherepatientscanbehoused.“Covidisknowntoaffectoxy-

gen saturation levels. However,ourexperiencehasbeenthatveryfewpatients need ventilator orICUsupport, so stateshavebeenasked to concentrate onmoreoxygenbeds,”hesaid.TillMay 30, therewere 942

dedicated Covid hospitalswith1,58,908 isolation beds, 20,608ICUbedsand69,384oxygen-sup-ported beds; 2,380 dedicatedCovid health centres with1,33,678isolationbeds,10,916ICUbeds and 45,750 oxygen-sup-ported beds; 7,304 Covid carecentreswith6,64,330beds; and10,541quarantinecentres.Agarwalsaidapprovalforuse

of remdesivir in case of emer-gency has been given as per es-tablished procedures. On Indiabeing ranked alongside othercountriesintermsofitsCovid-19numbers, he said: “It is not a faircomparisontosayweareinsuchand such position. You have totakeintoaccountthepopulationof thosecountriesandourpopu-lation.”Meanwhile, the healthmin-

istryhasshotavideofeaturingac-torAkshayKumar in anattemptto address the public fear overCovid-19.

Growth backrobustlocalsupplychainsandfo-cusonMakeInIndia.Addressing the CII Annual

Session2020throughavideolink,the PrimeMinster pointed outthattherampingupofmanufac-turing of personal protectiveequipment (PPE) over the lastthreemonthswasapositivestep.Effortsarebeingmadetoreduceimport dependence in sectorssuch as mobile anddefencemanufacturing,hesaid.“Itisaboutcreatingstrongen-

terprisesinIndia.Enterprisesthatcan become global forces. It isaboutgeneratingemployment.Itisaboutempoweringourpeopleto come out andcreate solutions that can definethe future of our country,”Modisaid.Thewaystoreduceimports

have to be identified alongwithsettingtargetstoincreaseproduc-tivityinvarioussectors,hesaid.The PrimeMinister said the

world’s expectations from Indiahas increased, and thecorporatesectormusttakeadvantageofthetrustthatIndiahasgainedacrosstheworldduringthecoronaviruscrisis. “India helped over 150countrieswithmedical suppliesduring the corona crisis. Theworldislookingforatrustedandreliablepartner.Indiahasthepo-tential, strength and ability toemergeasone,”hesaid.There’s aneed for “intent, in-

clusion, investment, infrastruc-ture, and innovation” togetbackon the path of growth, he said.Terming CII as ‘Champions ofIndigenous Inspirations’, Modisaiddomestic industries have tofacilitaterecoveryandassistinthenextlevelofgrowth.“Wewill definitely get our

growth back. India will get itsgrowthback,”hesaid,addingthatIndia has left lockdownbehindandentered intoUnlockPhase1andmuchofthesectorswillopenafter June 8. He said theAtmaNirbhar package an-nouncedby thegovernmentnotonlyprovideimmediatesupporttoMSMEsandneedysectionsofthesociety,butalsocontainslongtermreforms—suchasopeningupofthecoalandminingsectors—tohelpindustrialactivity.India’sGDPgrowthslippedto

an11-year lowof 4.2per cent in2019-20, andmost economistsexpect it to contract this year.Rating agencyCRISIL in a recentreportpredictedIndia’sgrowthtofalloff thecliff andcontract5percentinfiscal2021,andgoingbacktopre-pandemicgrowthrates inthe next 3 years doesn’t seemlikely. In thepast 69 years, Indiahasseenarecessiononlythrice–in1958,1966and1980.Modisaidthegovernmenthas

made a host of sectors “futureready”,withsystematic,plannedand integrated reforms. ThePrimeMinister urged industryleaders to “think big” and come

upwithadetailedstudyofeverysectorandbuildconsensusonre-forms.Thegovernmentwill takeupmore structural reforms thatwill change the course of thiscountry. “AsPrimeMinister, I as-sureyouIamstandingwithyou,”hesaid.The governmenthas tried to

support Micro, Small andMedium Enterprises throughchange in their definition. Lakhsof units of MSME are like eco-nomicengineofourcountryandtheir contribution to GDP isaround30per cent, he said. TheUnionCabinetTuesdayapprovedan expanded definition ofMSMEs,aRs50,000croreFundofFunds toprovide equity supportto growth-orientedMSMEs, andRs20,000crore fundingsupporttodistressedcompaniesthroughprovisionofpartialcreditguaran-tee. It also decided that exportturnoverofcompanieswillnotbecounted inthe limitsof turnoverforanycategoryofMSME.

Break from pasttoincludeotherimportantcoun-triesincludingIndia”.Lastweek,Trumpclaimedhe

had spoken toModi about theIndia-Chinaborder,butsourcesinNewDelhi said there had been“norecent contact”between thetwoleaders. Inatweetearlier,hehad called the LAC situation a“ragingborderdispute”.Tuesday’sphonecallwastheir

firstconversationinthebackdropof the tensions along the LAC. Itfollowed the call between USSecretaryofDefenseMarkEsperand DefenceMinister RajnathSinghlastweek.This Indo-USexchangeatthe

highestlevelcomesamidabruis-ing war of words betweenWashington and Beijing on arange of issues — from HongKong’s autonomytoTaiwan, ori-ginsoftheCovid-19virustoSouthChina Sea tensions and a tradewar.Referring to talks on theG7

expansion proposal, the MEAsaid:“PrimeMinisterModicom-

mendedPresidentTrumpforhiscreativeandfar-sightedapproach,acknowledgingthefactthatsuchanexpanded forumwouldbe inkeepingwiththeemergingreali-tiesofthepost-COVIDworld.ThePrimeMinister said that IndiawouldbehappytoworkwiththeUSandothercountriestoensurethe success of the proposedSummit.”ItsaidthePrimeMinister“ex-

pressed concern regarding theongoingcivil disturbances in theUS,andconveyedhisbestwishesforanearlyresolutionofthesitu-ation”.Thetwoleaders,theMEAsaid,

also “exchanged viewsonothertopicalissues,suchastheCOVID-19situationinthetwocountries,the situationon the India-Chinaborder, andtheneed for reformsin the World HealthOrganisation”.“PresidentTrumpwarmlyre-

calledhisvisittoIndiainFebruarythis year. PrimeMinisterModisaidthatthevisithadbeenmem-orable andhistoric onmany ac-counts, andhadalso addednewdynamism to the bilateral rela-tionship.Theexceptionalwarmthandcandourof theconversationreflectedthespecialnatureoftheIndo-USties,aswellasthefriend-shipandmutualesteembetweenbothleaders,”theMEAsaid.Following the phone call,

Modi, in a tweet, said: “Had awarmandproductive conversa-tionwithmy friend President@realDonaldTrump. We dis-cussed his plans for the USPresidencyof G-7, theCOVID-19pandemic,andmanyotherissues.The richness anddepthof India-US consultationswill remain animportant pillar of the post-COVIDglobalarchitecture.”Meanwhile,thespokesperson

for theRussian ForeignMinistrysaid: “The idea of an expanded#G7summitisingeneralastepinthe right direction, but does notreallymeanatruerepresentation.Forinstance,itisobviousthatitishardlypossibletoimplementse-rious global initiativeswithout

#China”. The statement wastweetedbytheRussianembassyinIndia.

NREGAof returningmigrants, have re-portedanincreaseinthenumberofhouseholdsprovidedemploy-mentinMay.Uttar Pradesh reported the

highest increase of 21.88 lakh(33.22 lakh inMay2020against11.34lakhinMay2019).Thestatewas followed by West Bengal(9.91 lakh), Chhattisgarh (7.14lakh),MadhyaPradesh(4.97lakh)andOdisha(3.11lakh).However, over adozenother

states andUTs reported a dip inMay, compared to the samemonthlastyear.ThesharpestfallwasrecordedbyTelangana(18.21lakh) followed by Tamil Nadu(13.29 lakh), Rajasthan (10.21lakh), Assam (2.90 lakh) andKerala(1.55lakh).Telanganareportedonly3,884

householdsundertheschemeinMay,which ismuch lower thanthe18.25 lakh in themonth lastyear.In all, 2.47 crore households

have beenprovidedwork so farunderMGNREGAduring 2020-21. During 2019-20, 5.48 crorehouseholdsworked under thescheme, which is the highestsince2010-11(5.5crore).In the last financial year, the

number of individuals whoworkedundertheschemesoaredto7.89crore,whichisthehighestsince2012-13(7.97crore).

Nisarganorth,thegalewindwillslow

to 60 to 70 kmph, gusting to 80kmph over Pune andAhmadnagar,and55to65kmph,gusting to75kmphover adjoin-ingBeed,NashikandAurangabaddistricts.The IMDhas issued a storm

surge warning in the sea offMumbai, with consequentialfloodingonland.“Stormsurgeof1to2maboveastronomical tideis very likely to inundate low-ly-ing areas ofMumbai during the

timeof landfall,” itstated.Theweatherdepartmenthas

issuedwarnings that thewindmay cause damage to kachchahouses, roads,powersupplyandcommunicationlines,andtrees.Thousands of people were

evacuated inMaharashtra andGujarat,twostatesthatarehittheworstbytheCovid-19pandemic.InMaharashtra,morethan21,000peoplewereevacuatedinPalghardistrict, andaequalnumberwillbeshiftedtosafetyonWendesdaymorning.In Mumbai, Municipal

CommissionerIqbalSinghChahalsaidpeoplelivinginlow-lyingar-eas, including along theMithiriver –which runs through themetropolis,andthosenear land-slide-prone areas – are beingshiftedtoshelterhomes.All24as-sistantmunicipalcommissionershavebeenaskedtomakearrange-ments of shelters in theirwardsforpeople living in low-lying ar-eas,headded.People living along theWorli

seashore in the fishermen'scolonywereaskedbypoliceandcivicofficialstotemporarilymoveoutoftheirhomes.However,withtheCovid-19 cases on rise in thecity,manyresidentspreferred toshift to their relatives' places in-steadof shelterhomes innearbymunicipalschools.“Worli Koliwadawas sealed

for the last twomonths (aftercoronavirus cases emergedthere).Whenthepoliceaskedusto evacuate, I arranged formyfamily's stay at my brother'shouse -- he lives inWorli but isaway from the seashore," SatishPatil, a fisherman from the area,said.Nearly250Covid-19patients

were shifted from Mumbai'sBandra Kurla Complex (BKC), alow-lyingarea,totheCovidcentreat NSCI Centre in Worli onTuesday.WhiletheBKCfacilityisafieldhospitalthathasbeenbuiltunderatent,theNSCIfacilityisatanindoorstadium.Therewas intermittent driz-

zleinseveralpartsofMumbaionTuesday evening. Areas likeBorivali, Dadar, Bandra, AndheriWest,Parel,Mulund,LowerParelandGoregaonexperienced lightrainfall.TheBMChasaskedallhospi-

talstokeepgeneratorsonstandbyto tacklepossible powerdisrup-tions.Asmanyas93lifeguards(intwoshifts)willguardsixbeaches– Girgaum, Dadar, Juhu, Aksa,Versova andGorai. Around 150flood rescue members of theMumbai Fire brigadehavebeenstationedacross10firestationsinthecity.Chhatrapati ShivajiMaharaj

InternationalAirportwill beop-erating only 12 arrival flights onJune3.TheflightswillbeoperatedbyAirAsia India,Air India,GoAirandSpiceJetto10sectors.

UddhavUddhav while addressing thestatethroughawebcast.InMumbai,policehaveissued

prohibitoryordersunderSection144oftheCrPCfrommidnightonTuesday.Itwillremaininforceun-til June4midnight.Uddhav further said that the

Army, Navy and Air force havebeen alerted. National DisasterResponse Forcehasdeployed15teams and the State DisasterResponseForcehasdeployedfourteams.Additionalfiveteamshavebeenkeptonstandby,headded.UdddhavsaidPrimeMinister

NarendraModicalledhimtoex-tendsupport.Uddhav further said that

though the cyclone is likely tomake landfall Alibag in Raigad,those living in Mumbai,SindhudurgandPalgharneed tobecautious.“Thegovernmentau-thorities have contacted all thefishermenonthecoastalbeltandtheyhave returnedhome. Somefishermencouldnotbecontactedtillafternoonbutnowcontacthasbeenestablishedwith themandour efforts are on to bring thembackintime,”hesaid.

FROMPAGEONE

Lt Gens to lead military talks, Rajnathconfirms large Chinese presence

Maharashtra’s Covid growth ratefalls below India’s for the first time

there has been disagreement.AndtheChinesehavecomeinsizeable numbers (achhi khasisankhya). Butwhatever needsto be done, India has alsodone,”hesaid.Singh said India andChina

“have a mechanism to solvetheproblemandwearework-ing as per thatmechanism…What canbebetter if it canberesolvedthroughtalks…Beas-sured.”Sources told The Indian

Express that a meeting be-tweenMajorGeneral-levelof-ficers from both armies hadtakenplaceTuesday,wheretheIndiansidewasrepresentedbythe GOC of Leh-based 3MountainDivision.The next meeting on

SaturdaywillbeheldbetweenLt General-level officers frombothsides,withtheIndiandel-egation being led by the LehCorpsCommander.Thepurposeofthesemeet-

ings, sources said, is to find away to amicably end all ongo-ingmilitaryactivity inthecon-tested portions of the LAC,whichhavewitnessedaheavymilitary build-up from bothcountriesinthepastfewweeks.Describing theareaswhich

fall between the Chinese andIndian"perceptions"oftheLACas“greyareas,”sourcessaidtheagenda for discussion in themeetings of military com-mandersis“toformulateamu-

tually-agreedway to ensurethat both sides do not under-takeanymilitaryactivitythere”.The detailed contours of a

possible solutionwill be dis-cussed in the next meeting,and sources said they “arehopeful”.Thetwomajorareaswhere

theIndianandChinesesoldiersaredeployedinstrengthontheLAC in eastern Ladakh are inPangong Tso and the GalwanNala.

comfortablylongerthan15.18days for Indiaasawhole.Around mid-May,

Maharashtra was growingbetween 6.5 and 7 per centeveryday,while thenationalgrowth rate was about onepercent lower thanthat.Thetwo growth rates have beencoming down steadily sincethen.If this trend holds, there

couldbeafurtherdropinthegrowth rate at the nationallevel.Thatwouldnot,however,meanareduction in thenum-berofcasesdetectedeveryday.That numberwould continueto rise but it would rise at aslower rate.Asofnow,forthelastthree

to four days, India is addingaround8,000casesdaily. If the

growthratewasstable,andnotslowing down, this numberwould keep increasing everyday. Instead, the number ofnew cases each day remainswithinasmall range foraboutaweekor so, before rising toanewlevel.Alongwith the slowing of

thegrowthrate,Maharashtra’s

contribution to the nationalcaseload is also showing ade-creasing trend. BetweenMay15 andMay 25, Maharashtrawas, almost every day, con-tributing more than 40 percentofallthecasesdetectedinIndia.This wasmuchmore than

what itwas doing on an aver-

age during the months ofMarchandAprilandfirsthalfof May when the state wasaccounting for 25 to 35 percent of the daily increase inthecountry’scaseload. Inthelastoneweek, thesamelevelisbeingachievedonceagain.This could either be be-

cause of the slowdown inMaharashtra, or a fastergrowth inrestof India. In thelastfewdays,amajorsurgeincases has happened in stateswithrelativelysmallcaseloadsas of now – Haryana, Assam,Bihar, Odisha, apart fromsmaller states likeUttarakhand,ChhattisgarhandTripura. In absolute terms,therefore,theircontributiontothe national caseload has notincreasedsubstantially.

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MAHARASHTRA INDIAGrowthRate DoublingTime GrowthRate DoublingTime(inpercent) (indays) (inpercent) (indays)

May1 7.76% 9.27 6.24% 11.53May15 6.23% 11.56 5.31% 13.56May30 4.72% 15.26 4.79% 15.02June1 4.15% 17.35 4.74% 15.18

BOTHDECLINING,MAHARASHTRA FASTER

UN report says LeT, JeMactive in Afghanistan,MEA expresses concernEXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI, JUNE2

INDIA ON Tuesday expressed“serious concern” at a UnitedNationsreportwhichsaidalargenumberofforeignterroristfight-ers, including up to 6,500Pakistannationals,areoperatinginAfghanistan.AreportsubmittedbytheUN

Security Council’s AnalyticalSupport and SanctionsMonitoringTeamconcerningin-dividualsandentitiesconstitut-ingathreattothepeace,stabilityandsecurityofAfghanistan,alsosaidthatUN-designatedentitieslikeLashkar-e-TaibaandJaish-e-Mohammed, operating fromPakistan-controlled territories,are facilitating trafficking andimparting training to other ter-rorists inAfghanistan.The Ministry of External

Affairs spokesperson AnuragSrivastava said, “We note withseriousconcernreferenceintheReport to the continued pres-ence of the senior leadership ofthe UN designated terrorist or-ganisationAlQaidaand its affil-iates inAfghanistan;aswellasalarge number of foreign terror-istfighters, includingupto6500Pakistan nationals, operating inAfghanistan. Besides, UNdesig-

nated entities like Lashkar-e-TayyibaandJaish-i-Mohammed,operating from Pakistan con-trolledterritoriesfacilitatingtraf-fickingandimpartingtrainingtoother terrorists inAfghanistan.”He said this “vindicates

India’s long standing positionthat Pakistan remains the epi-centre of international terror-ism”.“Thatproscribedterroristen-

titiesandindividualscontinuetoenjoy safe havens and recruit,train, arm, finance and operatewith impunity from Pakistanwith state support. They inflictviolenceandspreadterrorismintheregionandotherpartsof theworld,”hesaid.“Pakistanhas failed infulfill-

ing its internationalobligations,including under relevant UNSCresolutions and the FinancialActionTask Force, toput anendtosupporttoterrorismemanat-ing from territories under itscontrol. The international com-munityshouldholdPakistanac-countable and seek sustained,verifiableandirreversibleactionby Pakistan against terrorism,”theMEAspokespersonsaid.India will continue to con-

tributeandsupportalleffortsto-wards securing peace, securityand stability in Afghanistan, hesaid.

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICELUCKNOW,JUNE2

TWOMONTHS after his releasefrom jail in a case of circulating“objectionable” pictures of awoman, a 24-year-old studentwasonMondaykilledandsetonfire allegedly by her father anduncle at a village in UP’sPratapgarhdistrict.Hispartiallyburnt bodywas found tied to atree inavillage thicket.Police on Tuesday arrested

thewoman’s50-year-oldfatheranduncle,andacourtsentthemto judicial custody, saidPratapgarh Circle Officer AtulAnjaanTripathi.The24-year-oldwasarrested

inMarch this year for allegedlyteasing and circulating objec-tionable photographs of hisneighbouringwoman.Tripathisaidthepreliminary

investigationsuggestedthatthemurder was fallout of a caselodged against the youth inMarch. Thewoman had joinedpolice force as a constable andwas posted in Kanpur, saidTripathi. “The youth and thewomanwerereportedly inare-lationship. After she was se-lected as a constable, shestopped answering his calls.Irkedoverthis,hesharedherob-

jectionablephotosonsocialme-dia,”hesaid.“The roleof otherpersons in

themurder isbeingprobed.Weareyettoreceivetheautopsyre-port,whichwill tellus theexactcauseofdeath,”saidthecircleof-ficer.Themurdercametolightaf-

ter police was informed by vil-lagers about a burnt body at 8pmonMonday.Accordingtothevillagers, the youth onMondaystepped out of his housewith-outinforminganyoneandwhenhe did not return, his familysearchedforhim.Policereachedthe spot, which is around 300metre fromyouth’shouse.On seeing a police team, a

mob, angry over the murder,startedpeltingitwithstonesandset twopolice jeeps on fire. Thesituation came under controlwhenmore policemen arrivedandthemobwasdispersed.Theyouth’s father lodgedan

FIR against three persons, in-cludingthefatherofthewoman,on charges of murder and de-structionof evidence.OnMarch1, thewoman’s fa-

ther lodged an FIR against theyouth on charges of sexual ha-rassmentandothercharges.Theyouthwas arrested and sent tojail. On April 1, he got releasedfromjail onbail, saidTripathi.

Man jailed for sharingwoman’s photos killed byher father in Pratapgarh

HC contempt notice to MP govtfor action against liquor contractors

MILINDGHATWAIBHOPAL, JUNE2

AMID AN ongoing tussle be-tweenthestategovernmentandliquorcontractorswhohavenotopenedtheirshops,theMadhyaPradeshHighCourtTuesdayre-strained the government fromtaking any coercive actionagainstliquorcontractorsandis-sued notices on a contempt ofcourtplea.Nearly 70 per cent liquor

shopsinthestatehavenotopenedbecausethecontractorswantre-vision of license terms, arguing

that theywill incurhuge losses iftheyopen shops as the situationhas changed drastically due tolockdownrestrictions.Inabidtopersuadecontrac-

tors to open shops, the cash-strapped government relaxedtimings and increased thepriceof liquor by 10 per cent.However,thecontractorsdidnotrelent, initially arguing thatopeningshopswillcausethein-fection to spread, and latermoved the High Court seekingre-auction of the shops or revi-sionoftheoriginallicenseterms.

FULLREPORTONwww.indianexpress.com

3THEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY, JUNE3,2020

THECITYWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

NEERAJTIWARIPALGHAR,JUNE2

GANESH KUMAR had justenough time Tuesday to packsomeessentialsbeforehisfam-ily of fourwas shifted to the StMary’s School building atDahanuinPalghardistrictalongwithothervillagersonTuesday.Forthenext40hours,theyhavetostayputinsidethebuilding,aconcretesafehouse,as‘CycloneNisarga’ surges through thewesterncoastlineofthestate—afirst inthispartof thecoast.“In the last 67 days, I have

notearnedasinglepaisaduetothe coronavirus and the lock-down.Now, I have to leavemyhouse and take refuge in theschoolwithmytwodaughtersandwife,”Kumar,abeachpho-tographeratSattiPadhavillage,said, adding hewas unsure ifshiftingtoacommunityshelterwasagoodidea inthetimesofthepandemic.Alreadygrapplingwith the

coronavirus outbreak and thelockdown, Palghar villagershave reluctant to shift to shel-tersevenas‘CycloneNisarga’isexpected tomake landfall atAlibaug, around105kmsouthofMumbai, onWednesdayaf-ternoonbeforecrossingovertoGujarat.While thedistrict ad-ministrationhas claimed thatmore than 80 shelters havebeensetuptoensuresocialdis-tancingcanbemaintainedatallcosts, several villagers wereseen shifting to the houses oftheir relatives inneighbouringdistrictstoavoidsharingclosedplaceswithothers.ThePalghardistricthas,sofar,reported952coronavirus cases and 32deaths.Currently,thereare521active cases while 399 havebeendischarged.On Tuesday, District

Collector, Kailash Shinde, saidmore than21,000people from22 villages of Palghar districthave been evacuated. “Ourmaintaskwastomakesurethatvillagers didnot live in kacchahouses near the coastline.Wehadsetup86centersacrossthedistricttoaccommodate6,10,00people.”

Near Kumar’s Satti Padhavillage, a 20-strong team ofNDRFwasdeployedonDahanubeach to aid the evacuationprocesswhile ensuring socialdistancing, essential to flattenthe curve,wasmaintained byvillagers.SauravKatiyar,thesub-dis-

trictmagistrateofDahanu,said,“In Dahanu taluka, arrange-mentforaround2,000villagershas beenmade at six centers,each ofwhich can accommo-dateover800people.Thiswasdone to ensure all Covid-19guidelines are followed.” Fiveother shelterswere set upatKL Ponda School, A J MhatreSchool, Lohana Samaj hall, agovernmenthostelatBordi,andamarriagehall inDahanu.While announcements

werealsomadeat eachvillagethatallprecautionswerebeingtaken against Covid-19 at theshelters, Katiyar said, “Till 7.50pmTuesday,only20villagersofSattiPadahadreachedStMary’sSchool.”Rahul Sarang, tehsildar of

Dahanu taluka, saidmost vil-lagers had made their ownarrangementsandmovestothehouses of their relatives awayfromthecoastlineandclosertothe highway. “Many villagerscouldbeseenleavingintemposandautorickshaws. Some saidtheywould go to the shelterslater at night, as therewas noprovisionforfood,”hesaid.Seventeen-year-oldMehul

GaneshPagdhare,aresidentofDahanuvillage, saidheandhisfamily of four were ready toshifttohisuncle’shouselocatednear Mumbai-AhmedabadHighway.“Theyarenotprovid-ing food, andhave askedus tocarry a tiffin box for thenight.Onlysnackswillbearrangedforthemorning.Whyshouldwegoto these centerswhenwe cango to a better place,” Ganeshsaid.The IMD has issued a red

alert for Mumbai, Thane,Palghar, Raigad, Dhule,NandurbarandNashikdistricts,as‘CycloneNisarga’isexpectedto turn into a “severe cyclonicstorm”workingupwindspeedof100-110km/hour.

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEMUMBAI,PUNE,JUNE2

WITH ‘CYCLONE Nisarga’ ex-pected tomake landfall just 105kmnorthof thecityWednesday,Mumbai Policehas issuedapro-hibitory order restricting anymovementofmorethanapersonalongthecoastline.The order, signed byDeputy

CommissionerofPolice(DCP,op-erations) PranayaAshok, states,“Withaviewtopreventdangertohuman life, health or safety, doherebypromulgate anorderun-dersection144CRPCintheareasunder the control ofCommissioner of Police, GreaterMumbai, prohibiting any pres-enceormovementofoneormoreperson inpublicplacesalongthecoast, like beaches, promenade,parksandothersuchplacesnearthe coastline,wherepeoplemaygather, toprevent loss of life andproperty in the areas under thecontrol of the Commissioner ofPolice,GreaterMumbai.”Theor-der will remain in effect onWednesdayandThursday.TheIndianNavyandNational

Disaster Response Force (NDRF)have alsomadepreemptive de-ployment and laid the ground-work for the imminent cyclonicstormNisarga in coastal districtsofMaharashtra andGujarat, andalsoforpossiblesituationsduetoonsetofmonsoonalongthewest-erncoast.TillTuesday,15teamsofthe NDRF were deployed incoastal areas ofMaharashtra, in-cludingMumbai.Fivemoreteamsare being airlifted fromVisakhapatnam for deploymentinMaharashtra.TheNavyhasmo-biliseditsrescueanddivingteams,which have been deployed innavalareasofMaharashtra.Anupam Srivastava,thecom-

mandant of 5th Battalion of theNDRF,whichisheadquarteredatSudumbareinPune,said,“Fifteenteams from our battalion havebeendeployedincoastalareasofMaharashtra till now. These in-clude three inMumbai, four inRaigad, two each in Palghar,Ratnagiri,andThaneandoneeachinSindhudurgandNaviMumbai.Fivemoreteamsarebeingairliftedfrom a battalion inVisakhapatnam for deploymentinMaharashtracoastalarea.Eachteamcomprises30to35persons.”NDRF andNavy officials

said theyarekeepinga closewatch on the situation inRaigad,becauseof thepossi-ble landfall of Nisarga nearAlibag,andalsoinMumbaitomakesurethatthereisaswiftresponse. NDRF teamshavealreadyundertaken surveysof theirrespectiveareas.Mumbai-headquartered

WesternNaval Command iscoordinating theNavy's re-sponseduringmonsoonandCyclone Nisarga. TheCommandhasmobilisedad-equateresourcesforfloodre-

lief, rescue, anddivingassistancein the event of excessive rainfallandflooding.InMumbai, theMaharashtra

Naval Area will be on standbywith five flood rescue teamsandthree diving teams throughoutthemonsoonseason.Theseteamsare stationedat variousnaval ar-easacrossthecitytoenableearlyresponseoveralargerareaandarefullyequippedandtrainedforres-cue operations. Recce of knownflood-prone areas has been un-dertaken,officialssaid.

TABASSUMBARNAGARWALAMUMBAI,JUNE2

IN A decision set to speed upCovid-19 testing, BMC onTuesday decided to remove thecompulsion of producing a doc-tor’s prescription for high-riskcontacts–evenasymptomatic–toundergotests.Until now, BMC's testing

guidelines allowed a personshowing symptoms to undergoCovid-19 swab test if the personhad a doctor’s prescription rec-ommendingit.Ahigh-riskcontact,meaning

a close familymember of a pa-tient, could only get tested afterthefifthdayofquarantineifheorshe developed symptoms. Evenforthat,aprescriptionfromadoc-torwasmandatory.Withoutpre-scription, only symptomatichealth and frontline workers

wereallowedtobetested.Additional Municipal

Commissioner Suresh Kakanisaid,“Ahigh-riskcontact,withorwithoutsymptoms,has togiveaself-declaration to a laboratorythat his close contact has testedpositive and that he requires atest.Thisdeclarationisenoughfortesting.”Forthosewhodevelopsymp-

toms,buthavenocontacthistory

withapatient,adoctor’sconsul-tation is, however, necessary.Kakani said several peoplewithviral infectionmaymistake it forCovid-19andundergoaswabtestunnecessarily.“Adoctorwillbeabetterjudgewhetherornottheyneed a test. In such cases, a pre-scriptionisnecessary,”headded.The decisionwas taken after

laboratoriesanddoctorsreportedhurdles in testingmechanismleading to delay in detection ofcases. Mumbai has witnessedflip-flops in its testing protocolsincetwomonthswhenthefirstcasewasrecordedonMarch11.Currently,ittakestwotothree

daysforapatienttogetaCovid-19test done. The results take an-otheronetotwodaystoarrive.Dr Chetan Velani, a general

physician,said,“Thenewprocesswillbeeasyonpatients.Inthelastfewdays,BMChasalsoallocatedcertainlabsforcertainwards,thiswillalsomakeprocessfaster.”

PALGHAR

Grappling withvirus, villagersreluctant to shiftto govt shelters

As cyclone approaches, 3 NDRF teams onalert in Mumbai, 2 each in Palghar & Thane

TeamsdeployedtopatrolGirgaonChowpatty.GaneshShirsekar

Nisarga 2nd consecutiveJune cyclone since 1902ANJALIMARARPUNE,JUNE2

THE FORMATION of CycloneNisarga on Tuesday is only thesecondtimesince1902thatacy-clone has developed over theArabian Sea in June in two con-secutiveyears.In June 2019, Cyclone Vayu

had formed in the Arabian SeabetweenJune10and17.As of 5.30 pm Tuesday,

CycloneNisargawaslocated380kmsouth-southwestofMumbai.It is expected tomake landfallnearAlibagonWednesdayafter-noon.According to IMD’s cyclonedatarecords, the only other instancewhen two consecutive cyclonesintheArabianSeawerereportedin themonthwere in 1902 and1903. IMD classifies a cyclonewhenthemaximumwindspeedis35knots(70–80kmphgustingto90kmph)ormore.

According to the IMD’s cy-clonedatarecordsofthelast129years, there have been 26 cy-clonicstormsthatformedhereinJune.Exceptionally, June1907and

June2007recordedtwocyclonicstorms in the samemonth. Inboth instances, one cyclone ineachyear later intensified into aSevereCyclonicStorm(SCS).Thecyclones in Junewere recordedin 1895, 1902, 1903, 1907 (2),1917, 1920, 1930, 1935, 1946,1948, 1959, 1961, 1964, 1973,1977, 1979, 1992, 1994, 1996,1998, 2007 (2), 2015, 2019 andthe latestbeingNisarga.Sea conditions are often un-

favourabletothedevelopmentofcyclones in June because of thecoolerseasurfacetemperatures,which isoneof themaindriversof cyclone formation, and its co-incidencewiththeonsetofmon-soon,meteorologists said. ThisexplainswhycyclonesinJunearefewer innumber.

MOVETOSPEEDUPCORONAVIRUSDETECTION

Nodoctor’s prescriptionneeded for high-riskcontacts toundergo test

Civicofficialscollectbloodsamples foraCovid-19antibodytest inMumbai. File

SUSHANTKULKARNIPUNE, JUNE2

ASAdeterrent for lockdownvi-olators, Maharashtra Police hasstartedfilingcasesunderIndian

PenalCodeSection188 for 'dis-obedienceoforderpromulgatedbypublicofficer'. So far, over1.2lakh FIRs have been filed acrossthe state, the highest numberbeing fromPune.Whilepolicebelieve that fil-ingtheseoffencesisnecessaryfor stringent implementationofthelockdown,theactiondidcomewith its pitfalls – a largenumber of cases, legal doubtsandapprehensionof bias.Following the announce-

ment of the nationwide lock-down inMarch, the 44 policejurisdictions inMaharashtrahad issued prohibitory ordersintheirrespectivejurisdictions.Since then, these prohibitoryorders have been renewed,

with changes as per the chang-ingnatureandrulesof the lock-downs. At the same time, theEpidemic Diseases Act andDisasterManagementActwerealsoinvoked,whichempoweredgovernment authorities to putrestrictions, includingclosureofdistrict and state boundaries,andmakingmasks compulsoryinpublicplaces.Maharashtra Home

Minister Anil Deshmukhtweeted onMonday, "Asmanyas 1,21,075 offences have beenregisteredunderSection188ofIPCsince the lockdownleadingto23,641arrestsandseizureof76,883 vehicles. Rs 6,11,93,848hasbeencollected in fines fromoffenders."

TThhee IInnddiiaann EXPRESS

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CHANGE OF NAME

I have changed my name fromSARFRAJ SHAH / MOHDSARFRAZ / SARAFARAJSHAH / SARFRAZ toSARFRAZ SHAH as perAFFIDAVIT Dated30.05.2020. 70705908

4THEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY, JUNE3,2020

THEOUTBREAK Maharashtra

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EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEMUMBAI, JUNE2

INAfreshstand-off,MaharashtraGovernorBhagatSinghKoshyarihas termed Chief MinisterUddhav Thackeray's decision tocancel final-year university ex-amswithout consulting him as"unprecedented"and"arbitrary".Inastronglywordedletterto

Thackeray,theGovernortermedthedecisionas"unprecedented"and made "without any pro-found thinking on the legalrepercussions". The decision ifimplementedwould jeopardisethe future of students, hepointedout.The Governor said that the

Chancellor of Universities hasthe final authority over allmat-ters of universities under theMaharashtraPublicUniversitiesAct. Koshyari conveyed toThackeraythatdecisiononhold-ingexamsforfinal-yearstudents"shall be taken in consonancewith theprovisionsof theAct".While expressing his disap-

pointment at not being con-sulted, the Governor said, "Thearbitrary decision has violated

thebasicprinciplethattoobtainanidenticaldegree,therecannotbe two sets of criteria, onewhohas to give an examination andfor others who has obtainedmarksonaverage.Theexamina-tioncannotbemadeoptional.""The students of medicine,

architecture,lawetcneedtoreg-ister themselves with their re-spective professionalbodies/councilsaftercompletionof professional courses so as togettheirlicencestopractice,"hestressed,addingthatthesebod-ies may not be able to registerthe studentswithout them be-ingevaluatedonestablishedpa-

rameters.The Union HomeMinistry

had given approval and issuedguidelines to conduct exams tovarious state boards and thatCBSEandICSEareintheprocessof conducting their exams inspite of Covid-19 pandemic. Ifotherboardscanconductexamsfor younger students why can-not Maharashtra universitiesholdtheexamsaswell,heasked.According to the Governor,

theUGCand central authoritiesareoftheviewthatfinal-yearex-amsmaynotbedispensedwithand,therefore, thestategovern-ment should abide by the UGCguidelinesalongwiththeprovi-sions of the MaharashtraUniversitiesAct, 2017.Koshyari reminded the CM

that he had clearly mentionedthat theChancellor'sofficeshallgive further directions after ac-ceptingtherecommendationsofthe committee partially or fullyoncethereportwasreceivedonconducting exams. He said thatduring his video-conferencewithViceChancellorsofallstateuniversities,theyhadexpressedtheirpreparednessforconduct-ingexams.

In his letter to Thackeray,Koshyarisaid,"Iwassurprisedtolearn frommedia reports thatthe former (CM) had declaredthat no exams shall be con-ducted this year, while I wasawaitingaresponsetoanearlierletter to theCMonthematter."The Governor pointed out

thateventhoughthecommitteeof VCs constituted by themin-istryof higherandtechnicaled-ucation to analyse the situationand to explore various optionsavailable to conduct the examshadgivenitsreporttothesecre-tary, higher and technical edu-cation department, on May 6,the report had not been pre-sented tohimtill date.The row between the

Governor and the state govern-ment has not gone downwellwith the ruling coalition. A sen-ior NCP minister, requestinganonymity, said, "On suchmat-terstherearealwayswaystorec-oncile the situation even if hedisliked the CM's suomotu de-cision." Theminister said, "Wecannot comment against theGovernor in public. But it is be-coming evident that there is apower tussle."

Council of Architectureurges state govt tohold final exams onlineABHAGORADIAMUMBAI, JUNE2

COUNCIL OF Architecture, thenodal body for architecture col-legesinIndia,hasurgedthestategovernmenttoconsiderholdingonline exams for final semesterarchitecture students. Not con-ducting exams is a violation oftheArchitectsAct,1972,itsaidina letter to Chief Secretary AjoyMehta.The final semester for five-

year Bachelor of Architecture(B.Arch)involvesthesissubmis-sions and related activities can-not be overlooked or omitted,the council said in its letter.According to the Architects Act,1972, thesis, assessment, juriesandexamsareavitalcomponentin the curriculum of B.Archcourse leading towards award-ingof thedegree.

Maharashtra Association ofSchools of Architecturehas alsodraftedalettertoMehtareiterat-ing thecouncil's request."Allthestudentsof final-year

architecture are equippedwithtechnical knowhow and use ofnecessary computer software.Mostof themhaveinternetcon-nections. Thus, conducting on-linevivavoceof their final proj-ectwon'tbeaproblem.Evenifafewstudentscomplainaboutin-ternetconnectivityissues,alter-natesolutionscanbeworkedoutfor them," MASA president DrUjwalaChakradeohasstated.Chakradeo said, "We are yet

to post the letter butwewill begoing forwardwith it. The gen-eralconsensusamongeveryonein the field is that examsshouldbe conducted." There are over8,000 architecture students inMaharashtra, with nearly 100colleges, saidChakradeo.

BhagatSinghKoshyari;UddhavThackeray

In fresh stand-off, Governor termsCMmoveto cancel exams ‘unprecedented’, ‘arbitrary’

SRINATHRAOMUMBAI, JUNE2

FACEDWITHasteadyincreaseinCovid-19 cases among its front-line personnel, police units inMaharashtrahavebegunsettinguptheirownCovidCareCentres(CCCs) to house and monitorasymptomaticpersonnel.The CCCs are being devel-

oped as per a StandardOperating Procedure (SOP) de-veloped by the Navi MumbaiPolice for an "exclusive quaran-tinecentreforpoliceofficers,po-licemen/policewomen". TheSOP, which was sent to police

units across the state lastweek,makesitclearwhythepolicede-partment needs to develop itsownquarantinecentres."Since asking for priority in

treatment in government-runhospitalscreatesunnecessaryill-willamonggovernmentdepart-ments, an exclusive arrange-ment for the police force isthoughtof," states theSOP.Navi Mumbai Police

Commissioner Sanjay Kumarsaid that the death of a policeconstableinAprilafterbeingre-fused admission by two hospi-tals, citing a lack of beds,promptedhimtosetuphisownCCCs. Kumar identified three

buildings in the citywhere sus-pectedandasymptomaticCovidpersonnel could be housed andmonitored,soasnottooverbur-den government and privatehospitals."Theother concernwas that

in the twodays it takes fora testresult to be known, our peoplecanalsoinfecttheirfamilieswholive in 650 sq ft homes in policequarters, andothers,"hesaid.At present, a three-storey

buildingwith40bedshouses26suspectedandasymptomaticin-dividuals.Male and femaleper-sonnelwhohavetestedpositiveare housed on separate floorsand those with symptoms

awaitingtestresultsonanother.Sofar, therehasbeennoneedtoutilise theother twobuildings.Doctors from the Navi

MumbaiMunicipalCorporationcheckonthepatientsdailywhilea private caterer has been en-gaged to supply nutritious foodto thepatients.Kumar added thatwhile the

Thane and Raigad districtCollectorsfundedsettingupthecentres, the police departmentused its welfare funds to pur-chase food for its quarantinedpersonnel.Forpolicepersonnelwithse-

rious infections, thepolice havealso reserved25bedsat theDY

Patil Hospital in Nerul, saidKumar. "Since setting up theCCCs,wehavemanagedtoavoidconflictswiththemunicipalcor-poration and hospitals over ad-mitting our people for treat-ment,"Kumaradded.Similar CCCs have also been

setupbytheMumbaiPoliceandState Reserve Police Force unitsinHingoli, JalnaandNagpur.A seniorMaharashtra Police

officer said that being quaran-tined in centres run by the de-partmentalsoputsinfectedper-sonnelatease."Our people feel that they

willbebettertakencareofatourowncentres.Otherinstitutional

quarantine centres canbequiteimpersonal.Atpolice-runCCCs,our people are in quarantinewith their colleagues," said theofficial.InMumbai,CCCsweresetup

last month at the PoliceGymkhanaatMarineDrive andbuildings at the Local Arms de-partmentcomplexinMarolandat a building in Kalina, whichwasbuiltasaccommodationforpolicepersonnel and their fam-ilies.AseniorMumbaiPoliceof-ficer said that since the last 15days,noinfectedpersonnelweresenttoquarantinecentresrunbytheBMC."We have 850 beds in the

three buildings. The BMC hasbeen of great support to us inproviding us with doctors andnurses to work at the centres,"hesaid.Senior police officials in

Mumbai, where police person-nelincriticalconditionhavealsobeen turned away by hospitals,denied that there was any "ill-will" towards the BMC and pri-vate hospitals as a result. Of theMaharashtra Police's tally ofmore than 2,560 infected per-sonnel, theMumbai Police ac-countsformorethan1,500.AsofTuesday, 1,479policepersonnelinthestatehadactiveinfectionswhile28havedied.

Police units in Maharashtra build own Covid Care Centres

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEMUMBAI, JUNE2

TWO MORE Mumbai police-men,includinganassistantsub-inspector (ASI), died due toCovid-19onTuesday, takingthetotal number of police person-nelhavingsuccumbedtothevi-ralinfectioninMumbaito18andthestate to28.So far, more than 1,500

Mumbaipolicemenhavetestedpositive for the infection ofwhom533 have recovered and1,758othershavebeenaskedtoobservehomequarantine.AssistantSub-Inspector(ASI)

Gajanan Koli, 53, posted atSantacruz station, was on pa-trolling duty when showedsymptoms for the virus onMay28, officials said. “Hewas pres-entondutyonMay27,however,the next day as he started havebreathing problems and was

subsequently admitted at Sionhospital,” a police officer said,adding that the resident of SionKoliwada was tested positivelater.“Hewasbeing treatedat the

hospital when his healthwors-enedMondayafternoonandhedied,” the officer added. Koli'swifeanddaughterhavebeenputunderquarantine.A49-year-oldpolice consta-

ble, Vikram Jadhav, posted atMalad traffic division also suc-cumbed to the infectionMonday. TheNaviMumbai res-ident was on home quarantineafter one of his relatives hadtestedpositiveforCovid-19.“OnMay 15, Jadhav, too, startedshowing symptomsandunder-went a test. Hewas undergoingtreatment at a nursing home inNavi Mumbai, but on May 21,whenhisreportsconfirmedhimtobepositiveforthecoronavirus,JadhavwasshiftedtoSevenHills

hospital in Andheri,” an officersaid.“On Monday, his health

starteddeterioratingandat6.20pmhewas declared dead,” theofficer added. The constable issurvived by his wife and twochildren.Whiletherehasbeenaspike

inthenumberofCovid-19casesamong policemen, several ofthemhavealsorecuperatedandresumedwork aswell, a seniorIPS officer said. JJ Marg andDharavipolicestations, theoffi-cer said, are the twoworst-af-fectedpolicestationsinthestatewhere44and32policemen, re-spectively, have tested positivefor the infection. “At least 42fromJJMargpolice stationhaverecovered of whom30have re-joinedwork.AtDharavi station,31 policemen have recoveredand 16 of them have also re-sumed service,” the officeradded.

Two more Mumbai policemendie of Covid, toll climbs to 18

Preparations for ‘unlockdown’atMarineDrive inMumbai,onTuesday.GaneshShirsekar

15000

12000

9000

6000

3000

0May1 May15 May31

55.7 40.5 27.9

NUMBEROFCOVID TESTSPERFORMED

■Maharashtra ■Mumbai■Mumbai’s%share

7327

4087

4176

405310

291

14504

Fadnavis opposesBMC tie-up withPFI to facilitateburial of MuslimCovid-19 victimsPuneMunicipalCorporationcancels‘arrangementwithPFI’ forburials

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEMUMBAI, JUNE2

STRONGLYOBJECTING to an or-der of the BrihanmumbaiMunicipalCorporation(BMC)al-lowingthePopularFrontof India(PFI) to facilitate the burial ofMuslimvictimsof Covid-19, for-merchiefministerandLeaderofthe Opposition DevendraFadnavis on Tuesday sought toknowtheUddhavThackeraygov-ernment'sstandonthedecision.Fadnavis also tweeted the

BMC order entrusting the PFIwith the task, which states,"Whenever there is a suspectedCovid-19deathof aMuslimper-son all hospitals should informthe coordinators of the PFI. TaskforceteamofthePFIwillfacilitateburialofMuslimdeadbodies.""DoesChiefMinisterUddhav

Thackeray agreewith the deci-sion…," Fadnavis asked in histweet. "If theCMisnot in favourof promoting anti-national or-ganisations, he should immedi-atelymake his stand clear andinitiatestrongaction,"headded.Around the same time

Fadnavisputoutthetweet,PuneMunicipal Corporation (PMC)decidedto"canceltheirarrange-ments" of burial it hadwith thePFI. PFI volunteers were aidingthe PMC in burying Covid-19bodies sinceApril.Agroupofvolunteersaffiliated

tothePFIhasbeenworkingwithcivicbodiesacrossthestatetohelpwith the burial of Covid-19 pa-tients,especiallyasMuslimfami-lies are facing opposition fromcommunitygraveyardstoburials.AcrossMaharashtra, the grouphas helped bury 200 bodies,thoughnoneyet inMumbai.TheBMCconfirmedthatithasautho-risedhospitalstoco-ordinatewiththePFIvolunteersforburials."The PFI is accused of anti-

national and anti-social activi-ties," Fadnavis said in a video."The demonstrations and vio-lence over the citizenship ActsawthePFI playingamajor roleand using foreign funds.The Enforcement Directoratehas established links betweenbanks andmoney routes to thePFI. The NIA is investigating itsactivities," Fadnavis said.Stating that while other

states have taken strong actionagainst the organisation,Fadnavis said theMaharashtragovernment was legitimisingthecontroversialorganisationbyallowingittofacilitatetheburial

ofMuslimvictimsof the coron-avirus.Volunteersattachedwiththe

PFI said the BJP-ruled PuneMunicipal Corporationwas theearliesttoropetheminforburialsof Covid-19 patients. "In Aprilthey askedus to helpwith buri-als.Wewanted to help, as therewere a lot of problems aroundMuslims' burials. In Pune alonewehaveburied103bodies,"saidSaeedChoudhary,aPFIvolunteer.InMumbai, Choudhary said

hewroteamail toBMCofferinghelp.AmeetingwasheldinearlyMaywithBMCexecutivehealthofficerDrPadmajaKeskar.WhileKeskardidnotrespond

tocalls,ChoudharysaidBMCof-ficialswere short-staffed for thedisposalofthedead,andneededassistance. "They agreed to pro-vide personal protective equip-mentandmasks,andwehave29volunteerswhoarereadytopro-videdignifiedfinalritestoCovid-19deceased,"hesaid.InMumbai,burialshavebeen

rendered more complex by aBMC rule that says no Covid-19body,irrespectiveofreligion,canbe buried unless the graveyardsarelargeandthecommunityliv-ingaroundtheburialgrounddoesnot raise objections. The BMC'spreferredmode of disposal ofbodiesofallfaithsiscremationatelectric crematoria.MuslimandChristianfamilieshavefaceddif-ficultiesbecauseof this.The BMC letter's onMay 18,

accessedbyThe IndianExpress,asks hospitals to inform sus-pected or confirmed Covid-19deaths to four coordinators ofthePFIapart frominforming lo-calpoliceandlocalmedicaloffi-cer.Butsofar,noneof thehospi-tals have had to approach thedesignated co-oordinators forhelpwithburials.SureshKakani,additionalmu-

nicipalcommissioner,said,"Theyapproachedustooffertheirhelp.Why shouldwe doubt their in-tention?Relativesarenotwillingto touch the body. Bodieswerepiling up in themortuary.Weneedhelpindisposingbodies."MLA Rais Shaikh said it is

"unethical for politicians topoliticise issues related to pan-demic". "Thesepeople are step-ping forward and doing goodwork.Therewasnoneedtoraisethis issue," Shaikhsaid.BMC corporator Ashraf

Azmi said, "It is a risk these PFIvolunteers are taking in bury-ing dead bodies. Theymust beappreciated."

State records103Coviddeaths, casecountnow72,300

Tope visits 4 pvt hospitalsin Mumbai, issues notices

TABASSUMBARNAGARWALAMUMBAI, JUNE2

MAHARASHTRA RECORDED103deathsdue toCovid-19 tak-ing the toll to2,465onTuesday.On Monday night Health

Minister Rajesh Tope paid sur-prisevisitstofourprivatehospi-tals -- Bombay hospital, Jaslok,Hinduja and Lilavati -- to checkwhether the hospitals had re-served 80 per cent beds andwhethertheywerechargingpa-tientsonsubsidisedrates.Officials who accompanied

himsaidhewasshockedto findlow compliance of governmentorders in thesehospitals.OnTuesday,thestategovern-

ment issued a show-cause no-tice to all four hospitals askingwhytheywerenotworkingat50per cent of their capacity, whynewratechartwasnotdisplayedforpatients,andwhymorethan90percentofbedsundercharitywerevacant."Many suspected Covid-19

patientswerewaitingforadmis-

sion due to improper allocationofCovidbedsamong80percentbeds,"thenoticetothehospitalsstated.Thestategovernment issued

twonotifications,oneonApril30andsecondonMay21,askingpri-vatehospitalsandnursinghomesto reserve 80 per cent beds forgovernment allocated patients.Thehospitalswere also asked tochargelowerpackagesasperthestategovernmentrate-card.Statehealth officials said none of thefour hospitals that Tope visitedwerefollowingtheorder."The state of Maharashtra

looksuptoyouasstateof theartfacilitycentreswhichcanprovideaffordable quality healthcare tothe maximum needy citizensamidstCovid-19pandemic,"theshow-causenoticesaid.When contacted Hinduja

hospital spokesperson replied,"We are in adherence to all theprovisionslaiddownbythestatehealth regulators and are inprocessof replyingtothenoticeissued."Dr Gautam Bhansali, from

Bombay hospital, said, "In the

visit, theminister said beds forCovid,non-CovidandsuspectedCovid patients must be dis-played on a list. Wemade thatlisttoday."Whenaskedwhetherthe hospital was following thenewratechart,hesaidthehospi-talhas reduced itspackages.Meanwhile on Tuesday,

Mumbai recorded 1,117 newcases, it now has 42,216 Covid-19infectedcases,of them17,213have recovered. InMaharashtra2,287 new caseswere detectedonTuesday, takingthecaseloadto72,300.Thenumberofdeathsclimbed in Mira-Bhayanderwhere 10 people succumbed tocoronavirus.Thecorporationhas29 deaths in all. InMumbai, 49deathswerereportedtakingthedeath toll in the city to 1,368deaths.Other deaths occurred in

Navi Mumbai (4), Panvel (4),Raigad (6), Thane91), Akola (3),Sangli(3),Pune(10),Solapur(5),Satara (6), Nashik (1) andAhmednagar (1). Currentlywhile 35097 people remain ininstitutionalquarantine,5.7lakhare inhomequarantine.

Over1.2lakhcasesfiledfor lockdownviolations

MAHARASHTRA 5WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY, JUNE3,2020

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEMUMBAI, JUNE2

ARESIDENTdoctor inKEMhos-pital on Tuesdaymade a videopublic, narratinghowheandhiscolleagues are struggling tohan-dlethehugeloadofCovid-19pa-tientsinthegovernmenthospital.The video shows a ward in

KEM hospital, with the doctorsayingthattherewerenonursesorwardboystohelphimandhistwo colleagues. There were noattendants to help the patientsusethebathroomorbringthemfood,headded.“Fordaysnow,wedon’thave

nurses,classIVworkersandser-vants to help patients. None ofpatients have relatives withthem, none of them have anymeans to go to the washroom,none of them have means tofeed(themselves),”thedoctorisheard saying. He added thatthreedoctorsweremanaging35patientsall by themselves.Another resident doctor in

thevideosaid,“Iamfeelinghelp-less right now. I can’t do any-thing,Ican’t lethim(patient)dieinfrontofmyeyes. Ihavenoonetohelpme.”AKEMhospitalofficial,how-

ever, said the videowas shot inbetweenshiftswhennursesandclass IVworkers take over fromthestaffersof theearliershift.“Ittakes time forworkers in anewshift towear theirpersonalpro-tective equipment,” the officialadded.The BMC, in a statement is-

sued on Tuesday night, said thevideowas shot when a shift ofnurses and ward boys hadended.“Thevideowasdistorted,as itwasshotduringthechangeofduty,”saidKEMhospitalDean

DrHemantDeshmukh.The civic bodymaintained

thatstaffersareworkinginthreeshifts,andarehandlingpatientssmoothly.Theimmediate falloutof the

videowasthatBMChealthcom-mittee chairman Amey Gholereached out to MaharashtraAssociationof ResidentDoctors(MARD)onTuesday,andsched-uledameetingbetweentheres-ident doctors, the hospital ad-ministration and the healthworkersonThursdaytoaddressthestaff problem.AdoctorfromMARDtoldThe

IndianExpressthatseniorlectur-ers and professors hardly visitisolationwards. “A colleague ofmine changed diapers of a pa-tientatNairhospital. Lastweek,my colleague sealed a body inKEMHospital.We are request-ing the government to only en-sure that apersonperforms thejob assigned to him or her.Resident doctors are handlingmostof thework,”hesaid.PradeepNarkar, secretary of

MunicipalMazdoorUnion, saidshortage of nurses and class IVemployeeswasanissueevenbe-fore the Covid-19 pandemic.“After the outbreak, several re-mainunderquarantineorarein-fected, so the shortage has be-comeacute,”headded.A resident doctor from the

ENTdepartmentatKEMhospitalagreed.“Weneedwardboysbuttheyaresolessinnumberthatitis impossible to keep thewardsclean.Nursesaresupposedtoin-jectpatientsorput themon(in-tra-veinous) saline. Since theyarefew,residentdoctorsaredo-ing that job.”In the video, a resident doc-

tor saidhehad topreparemed-icine, intubate and inject a pa-tient. “He is critical, if I don’t doit, hewilldie,”headded.At Sion hospital, where 70

resident doctors are infectedwithCovid-19,aresidentdoctorsaid: “The situation is gettingworse. Doctors are testingposi-tive andwe are short onman-power.”

SADAFMODAKMUMBAI, JUNE2

LASTWEEK,twoShramikSpecialtrains fromKalyan ferried a 28-year-old commercial sexworkerand 11 of her colleagues toJharkhand. Under the control oftheirbrothelownersandwithnoeasyaccesstoregisterthemselveswith theauthorities toboard thetrains,thejourneyhomewasnotaneasyone for these12womenwhoworkedintheredlightareasofBhiwandi.“Wewereunabletoleaveour

homes and registerwith thepo-lice to board the trains.Weearnenoughonlytobeabletofeedour-selves fromoneday to the next.Afterthelockdown,workcametoa complete stop. Therewere noclientsandwewerealsoscared...whatifsomeonewhomwemeetwas infected?” the 28-year-oldwomansaidoverthephonefrom

herhomeinJharkhand.“Wewerebeingprovided ra-

tionbutdidnothave themoneytobuygascylinderstocook,”sheadded.Towards the endofMay, the

womanreachedouttooneofthenetworks thatmany likeher relyonformedicalassistance.DrYogaNambiar, founder director ofGlobal Rights Founder,workingwithgroups including transgen-derpersons,said:“Oncethelock-downwasimposed,weknewwehad to reach out to transgenderpersons,whohadlosttheirliveli-hood and also thosewho haveHIV,whowouldcontinuetoneedassistance for their treatment.Through them,we also realisedmanysexworkerswerealsostuckinBhiwandi andwere inneedofration. Subsequently,when thelockdownwas extended, theywantedtogohome.”Itwas throughNambiar that

the28yearoldand11othersman-

aged to board a train, arrangedwiththehelpofPune-basedNGOMashal. Nambiar said the groupof women had to be “rescued”fromthebrothelowners incoor-dinationwiththepolice.“It was one of the happiest

days of my life when I finallyreachedhomeonThursday,” the28 year old said. “I do not knowwhetherIwillreturn.Tillthepan-demicishere,howcanwegobacktoworkingnormally?Wearingamaskisnotgoingtohelpus.”Organisationsworkingwith

commercialsexworkerssaidthatthe women have been facingmany issuessince the lockdown.InGrantRoad,somebrothelown-ershadallegedlyaskedsexwork-ers to vacate their rooms. Theyweresubsequentlyhelpedbyoth-erswithinthecommunity.Manyothers eitherdonothavehomestogobacktoorfeelthatreturningisnotanoption,sincebackhome,therewillbenosourceof income

either.Somewithsmartphoneshave

switchedtoofferingtheirservicesthroughaudio andvideo calls aswellaschats,andacceptingonlinepayments.Seema Sayyed, manager of

Aastha Parivaar, said manywomenhave approached themforworkinotherfields.“Theysaythat evenwhen the lockdownends, therewill be an impact ontheirwork since the fear of thepandemicwillcontinue.Theyaremakinginquiriesregardingwork-ing inpackagingunitsorareask-ingustolookforsimilaroptions,”shesaid,addingthat thegapcre-ated by the exodus of migrantworkers employed in suchunitsmaybefilledthisway.Sayyed,however,saidthatcre-

atingtheselinkageswillbeachal-lengesincethesewomenremainstigmatised andmay thereforenotbeabletoreachouttoauthor-itiesontheirownforassistance.

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEMUMBAI, JUNE2

CHIEF MINISTER UddhavThackeray on Tuesday said thatprivate hospitals must strictlycomply with the governmentdecisionofreserving80percentof theirbeds forpatients suffer-ing from both Covid-19 andotherailments.“TheBMCshouldappointof-

ficerstomonitoritandtoensurethatpatientsdonot suffer,” saidUddhav, during a discussion inthe state Cabinet on themeas-urestakentotacklethespreadofCovid-19, sources said.Sourcesaddedthat themin-

isters also suggested that thegovernmentshouldacquirepri-vateambulancessothattheyareavailable immediately for thosein need. “Theministers furthersaid that the governmentmustfollow-upwith the Union gov-ernment to resumeMumbai'ssuburban local trains to make

thecommuteeasierforemploy-ees involved in essential serv-ices,” saidanofficial.The Cabinet, meanwhile,

gave post facto approval to thedecision to offer free treatmenttoallCovid-19patientsinprivatehospitals under the MahatmaPhule Jan Aarogya Yojana. “Atpresent, 85 per cent people arecoveredunderthescheme.Now,theremaining15percentwillbecovered under the scheme.Districthealthofficialswillbere-sponsible for monitoring thesupply of PPE kits and N95masks to the private hospitals,”anofficial said.The Cabinet also approved

theappointmentof administra-tors for gram panchayats thathaveeithercompletedtheirfive-year tenureor are likely todo soin the comingmonths. Sourcessaid since it is difficult to holdelections under the circum-stances,thegovernmenthasde-cided to appoint administratorsforover12,000grampanchayats.

OMKARGOKHALEMUMBAI, JUNE2

THEMAHARASHTRA govern-ment on Tuesday informed theBombay High Court that non-availabilityofCovid-19testingfa-cilitiesinalldistrictsisnotaffect-ing the quality of tests withadequatesamplecollectioncen-tres available in every locality. Italso said that the outbreak islargely concentrated in urbanand semi-urban areas wheretesting facilities are scaledupasper the requirements and avail-abilityof resources.In an affidavit filed in court,

the government also stated,“Thereareseriousconstraintsontheavailabilityof skilled techni-cians and sophisticated equip-ment.” The replywas submittedbefore a division bench of ChiefJusticeDipankarDattaandJusticeA A Sayed, which is hearingthrough videoconference a plea

filed by a fisherman seekingproper testing facilities inRatnagiri, a non-red zone, andotherdistrictsinthelightofthou-sandsofstrandedmigrantwork-ers returning to thedistrict fromred zones, such asMumbai andPune.In his petition, filed through

advocate Rakesh Bhatkar, 58-year-old Khalil AhmadHasanmiyaWasta claimed thatif migrant workers, returningfromredzonestoRatnagiri,werenottestedduetolackoffacilities,itwouldendangerthelivesof lo-cal residents there.DirectorofHealthServicesDr

SadhanaTayadesubmittedanaf-fidavit in replyonTuesday, aftertheHConMay29hadexpresseddispleasureoverthestate’sstandthat it was not possible to havefull-fledgedCovid-19facilitiesinallthedistrictsandthatithadful-filled the Indian Council ofMedicalResearch(ICMR)guide-lines prescribing testing lab

within250km.Moreover, the state govern-

ment had informed the courtthatatestingfacilityhadbeenes-tablished at the Civil Hospital atRatnagiri as per a governmentresolution and samewould befunctionalwithineightdays.The response filed by the

health authority stated, “Thesamples are strictly collected inviewoftheICMRtestingstrategyandguidelinesarecompliedwithduringcollectionofsamplesandalso for packaging and trans-portation.Presently, theaveragetestingtimeis48-72hoursfromthe collection of samples due tolargenumberofinfectionsinsev-eralareas.Thenon-availabilityoftestingfacilitiesineachdistrictisnot affecting the quality of thetests. Such non availability alsodoesnotaffecttheinterestofcit-izens as long as adequate num-ber of sample collection centresaresetupatreasonabledistanceinevery locality.”

OMKARGOKHALEMUMBAI,JUNE2

THE BOMBAY High Court onTuesday asked DirectorateGeneral of Civil Aviation (DGCA)andAir India to provide data ofIndians,whowere not infectedwhiletheyboardedspecialflightsunder theVandeBharatMission,buttestedpositiveforCovid-19af-terlandinginIndia.A bench of Justice S J

KathawallaandJusticeSPTavadewas hearing a plea filed by AirIndiapilotDevenKanani,whoal-legedthatthenationalcarrierhadviolated social distancingnormswhile evacuating Indiansstranded abroad on the specialflights.ThepleawasfiledthroughadvocateAbhilashPanickar.Solicitor General of India

TusharMehta,representingDGCAand Air India, said the specialflightshadfollowedallsafetyandsocialdistancingnormstoprevent

Covid-19 spread. He added thatAirIndia,MinistryofCivilAviationandDGCAhad taken all precau-tionsforpassengersseatedinthemiddle seats. Alongwith three-layeredmasks, passengerswerealso provided other protectiveequipment like face shields,Mehtatoldthecourt.Following aMay25order by

the Supreme Court, DGCA hadasked carriers to try to keep themiddle seats on flights vacant or

provide“wrap-aroundgowns”topassengerswhoareallottedsuchseats. During the earlier hearingin HC, lawyers AbhinavChandrachud, ArshMishra andKavitaAnchan–representingAirIndia–hadarguedthattheDGCAcircularwasnotapplicableforun-scheduledcommercialflightsandtherefore, thepleawasnot validin the case of Vande BharatMission. On Tuesday, theUniongovernment, throughAdditionalSolicitor General Anil Singh,sought that theMinistry of CivilAviation bemade a party to thecase.Tothis, thecourtsaid that itwoulddecideafterhearinganap-plicationfromtheministry.The court,while directing all

parties to file theirwritten argu-ments byWednesday evening,posted further hearing onThursday.Italsoaskedtheauthor-ities to place before it details re-gardingdatapertainingtoevacu-atedpassengers, during thenexthearing.

IRAMSIDDIQUEMUMBAI, JUNE2

RAILWAY PROTECTION Force(RPF) personnel, deputed asfrontline workers in the fightagainst Covid-19 across India,will be administeredHydroxychloroquine (HCQ) asprophylaxisunderstrictmedicalsupervision.In a letter addressed to

Principal Chief SecurityCommissioners (PCSCs) of allzones, Director General (DG) ofRPF, Arun Kumar, said theMinistryofRailwayhadtakenupthe issue of the use of HCQ. “Ithas now been decided thatRPF/RPSFpersonnelinthefront-

line fight against Covid-19maybe prescribed HCQ as prophy-laxisagainstcorona(virus)infec-tion,” the letter stated. It addedthe drug would be done onlywiththeinformedconsentofthepersonnel.In the letter, RPFDGhas fur-

ther advised that the personnelusingHCQwillhavetoapproachmedicalpractitionersif theyde-velopanyothersymptoms,apartfromthoseof Covid-19.Thedecision touseHCQasa

prophylactic was taken after ajointmonitoringcommitteeun-derthechairmanshipofDirectorGeneral of Health Services(DGHS) reviewed its use for ex-panding it to healthcare andother frontline workers de-

ployed in Covid-19 and non-Covidwork.The RPF has been deployed

forsecurityinsidetrainsandalsoentrusted with screening pas-sengersatrailwaystationsalongwith distributing food amongthemigrants and the destitute.So far,250RPFpersonnelacrossIndia have been tested positivefor the coronavirus, while 700othershavebeenputonquaran-tine. There are 75,000 RPF and20,000 Railway ProtectionSpecial Forcepersonnel.An official from the RPF, re-

questing anonymity, said, “Weare awaiting further guidelineson how to go about it. But con-sidering that there has to be in-formed consent undermedical

supervision, the RPF personnelwill be encouraged to approachtherailwayhealthunits.”In Mumbai, RPF personnel

willbeaskedtoreporttorailwayhospitals for consultationwithphysiciansandonlythosefoundto be medically fit will be al-lowedtogoaheadwithit.“Therewillbenoblanketapprovalforit.Itwillvaryoncasetocasebasis,”saidanotherRPFofficial.Until now, RPF personnel

were administered two home-opathymedicines: Arsenicumalbum 30 and Camphora 1 m.Theywere also asked to followthe advice of the AYUSHMinistry and include a diet richin vitamin C for improving im-munity.

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEAHMEDABAD,VADODARA,JUNE2

THENATIONALISTCongressParty(NCP) has replaced its Gujaratstate unit president and formerchief minister ShankersinhVaghelaaheadoftheRajyaSabhaelection and appointed formerMLAJayantPatel,aliasBoskey.Former MLA of Umreth in

Anand district, Patel, said, “Theparty has sent the order for thechangeofguard.Iwilltakecharge(fromShankarsinhVaghela) to-morrow.”Theleadershipchangecomes

days before the crucial RajyaSabhaelectionon June19wherefourseats—threeheldbytheBJPandonebytheCongress—willgotopolls.TheNCPhas oneMLA in the

Gujarat assembly — KandhalJadeja. NCP is an ally of theCongress inMaharashtra alongwith the Shiv Sena and it is notclearwhether Jadejawould sup-port theCongress in theRSelec-tions.DifferencesaresaidtohavecroppedupbetweenVaghelaandtheNCPleadershipoverthisissueaftertheBJPputupathirdcandi-date, former Congress leaderNarhariAmin, inspiteofnothav-ingenoughnumberstowinthreeseatswithoutacontest.SpeakingtoTheIndianExpress,

Vaghelasaid,“Icontinuetobethenational general secretary of theNCP.Iplantoholdapressconfer-ence day after tomorrow(Thursday). Till then Idon'twant

tosayanything.”On the reason behind the

party's decision to changeguardinthestate,Patelsaidthepartyde-cidedto“dissolve”Vaghela'slead-ership. He has held the post foroverone-and-a-halfyears.SourcessaidthatVaghela,had

strongreservationsabouttheNCPsupportingBJPintheRajyaSabhaelections. The elections, earlierscheduledonMarch26,hadtobepostponed due to the Covid-19pandemic.TheCongressthathadlostfiveMLAs,hadtaken68of itslegislatorstoaresortinJaipur.At present, the Congress has

68 MLAs and its candidates,ShaktisinhGohil andBharatsinhSolanki,need36voteseachtowin.Five Congress MLAs —

SomabhaiPatel(Surendranagar),PradhyumansinhJadeja(Abdasa,Kutch),MangalGavit (Dang), J VKakadiya (Dhari, Amreli) andPravinMaru (Bhavnagar)— re-signed in support of the BJP inMarch.Ofthefive,Patel,JadejaandKakadiyawerewith theBJP ear-lier.TheywereallsuspendedfromtheBJP.Rebellion broke out in the

CongressrankssoonaftertheBJPannounced thenameof its thirdcandidate,NarhariAmin,whoisaformer Congress veteran and aPatidar. Theother twoBJPcandi-dates are Ramilaben Bara andAbhayBharadwaj.In theGujarat assembly, the

BJPhas103members, one inde-pendent, oneNCPand two fromtheBharatiya Tribal Party (BTP).Each candidatewould need atleast36votestowin.

Ahead of RS polls,NCP replacesVaghela as itsGujarat unit chief

Nonurses, class IVstaff tohelppatients: KEMdoctors in video

MUMBAI 80%BEDSRESERVED

BMC should appointofficers to monitorprivate hospitals: CMat Cabinet meeting

RPF personnel deputed in Covidfight to be administered HCQ

READYTO‘UNLOCK’:Staffersatahair salon inPuneusePPEkits,disposable towelsandnapkins,anddisinfectants,astheypreparetoopenthebranchafter June8. ArulHorizon

VANDEBHARATMISSION

How many passengers tested positiveafter arrival in India, HC asks Centre

PETITIONFORTESTINGFACILITIES INALLDISTRICTS

Lack of testing facilities in all dists notaffecting quality of tests: Govt to HC

FollowingaMay25orderbytheSupremeCourt,DGCAhadaskedcarriers totrytokeepthemiddleseatsonflightsvacantorprovide“wrap-aroundgowns”topassengersallottedsuchseats

Among those set off homeward,sex workers from Bhiwandi

AAP state unit demands exemptionon electricity bills for up to 200 unitsPune: The Aam Aadmi Party’sMaharashtra unit will hold astate-wide protest onWednesday to demand an ex-emption on electricity bills forup to 200 units, officials said.“Anappealwill bepresented tothe collector and tehsildar as a

demand before the state gov-ernment.Videosthatdepictthesentiments of electricity con-sumers in the state will beshared on social media plat-forms...” said Mukund Kirdat,cityunit Chief of AAP.

-ENS

Inthevideo,aresidentdoctorsaidhehadtopreparemedicine,intubateandinjectapatient

WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COMTHEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY, JUNE3,2020

OFFICE OF THESUPERINTENDING ENGINEERELECTRICAL CIRCLE (R&B)

NIRMAN SOUDHA, BHUBANESWARE-mail seec.bbsr2010@gmail.com

Bid Identification No. S.E.E.C (R&B) 1/2020-21No. 806/ Date 26.5.2020

The Superintending Engineer, Electrical Circle (R&B) Odisha,Bhubaneswar on behalf of the Governor of Odisha invitespercentage rate bids for Lift, Sound, Video Projection and Stagelighting System & A/C works to be received in online bidding,double cover system as detailed in: https://tendersorissa.gov.in.The details of bid documents will be available in the above websitefrom 5.00 PM of 03.06.2020 to 5:00 PM of 18.06.2020. Thebidders must possess compatible Digital Signature Certificate ofClass II or III. Bids received online shall be opened at 11:30 AM of19.06.2020 in the Office of the Superintending Engineer, ElectricalCircle (R&B) Odisha, Bhubaneswar. Further details can be seenfrom the e-procurement portal www.tendersorissa.gov.in.Addendum / Corrigendum, if required, will be available only in theWebsite.

Sd/-Superintending Engineer

Electrical Circle (R&B) Odisha, BBSROIPR-34006/11/0001/2021

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GLOBAL NOTICE INVITING BIDS (GNIB)For Design, Manufacture, Supply, Erection and Commissioningof SO Solution preparation plant and auxiliaries in chemical

preparation area for pulp mill for TNPL UNIT-II MEPBidders may request the tender document at the above addressby post/mail. Detailed GNIB may be viewed in websites:www.tenders.tn.gov.in/www.tnpl.comDate of Issue of Bid Document: 3rd June, 2020Due date for submission: 24th June, 2020

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2

EXPRESSNETWORK6Covid test shouldtrack viral loadtoo, says newICMR studyKARISHMAMEHROTRANEWDELHI, JUNE2

ONLYSEVENpercentofcoronavirussampleshavea“highviral load”—meaningthesepeoplewould,onaverage,transmittheinfectionto6.25otherpeo-ple.The vastmajority (84%) have a low infectious-ness, transmitting to only 0.8 persons on average.Ninepercenthaveamoderateviral load.Viral loadreferstothequantityofavirus inan

organism and is a reflection of how quickly thevirus is replicating.These are new findings by ICMR’s National

Institute of Occupational Health (NIOH),Ahmedabad, basedona studyof over 1,000 sam-ples collected in thestate inApril andMay.The re-sultswill be submitted to ICMR’s Indian Journal ofMedical Research (IJMR) thisweek andunderlinetheneedtoincludeviralloadfiguresinCovidtestre-ports.This assumes significance given that many

whotestpositiveareasymptomatic.Said a top official of the institute: “With the

burdenwe are seeing in Gujarat, we should testfor viral load and quarantine the ‘super-spread-ers’. We have observed that viral load is a verystrongdeterminingfactor.Fewpeoplespreadmostinfectionsandmostpeoplespreadveryfewinfec-tions -- thishasbeenobserved inourstudy.”Oneindicatorofviral loadis“Ctvalue”orcycle

threshold.RT-PCR tests for Coviduse fluorescent signals

to detect nucleic acids. Ct value is the number ofcyclesrequiredinthemachineforthefluorescentsignalling to cross the base level of themachine.Alowvalue,therefore,meansahighviralloadandviceversa.“RT-PCR results as of now give positive and

negatives butwe also should report the Ct (cyclethreshold)value.Withthatvalue,wecanidentifyhigh,moderate, or low viral load. It is automati-callygivenintheRT-PCRtestanyway,butweneedto change our testing policy so this value is alsocollectedby the testing labs.”An official told The Indian Express that ICMR

isseeingCtvaluesbetween23to40forCovidtest-ing. Below 35 is positive, above 35 negative, and35wouldrequirea repeat testing.Some experts have cautioned that irregulari-

tiesinswab-takingcouldmuddleviralloadresults.However, with standardised swab practices, thereportingwouldallowfora“dose-responsecurve”fortheinfection,whichcouldmapviralquantitieswith illness severityand infectiousness.NIOHresearchersdidnotintegrateclinicaldata

to observe correlations between viral loads andage, underlying conditions, or severity of illness.However, the official said that people who aremoreimmuno-compromisedandlessresistanttotheviruscouldhavehigherviral loads.Theofficial also said that research trendsout-

side India show a correlation between viral loadandseverityof illness.Oneexampleofthisearlyre-search is aLancetpaperinMarch fromChina thatfound severe patients have viral loads thatweresixty timesasmuchasmild formsof thevirus.Saidtheofficial:“Forexample,whyarewesee-

ingdoctorsgettinginfectedatsuchrates?Theyareprobablymore exposed to patientswith high vi-ral loads.”Theresearchisstillcontested.Apre-printarti-

cle from Lombardy in March as well as a NewEnglandJournalofMedicinearticleinMarchfoundnodifference inviral loadbetween symptomaticand asymptomatic patients. This would signalsimilar transmissibility between asymptomaticandsymptomaticpeople.

RITIKACHOPRANEWDELHI, JUNE2

FACEDWITH the challenge of ensur-ing physical distancing in crowdedhostelsuponreopening, the IITshavesoughtayear's extension to the2021deadlinesetbythegovernmenttoaddnewseats for accommodating the10per cent Economically WeakerSections (EWS) quota, The IndianExpresshas learnt.The23premierengineering insti-

tutes collectively approached theCentre with the request last month,citing theCovid lockdown.Government sources said theHRD

Ministrywill refer the request to theMinistry of Social Justice andEmpowerment,whichhadmovedthe

EWSquotaproposal thatwas laterap-provedbytheUnionCabinetearly lastyear. The IITs have to collectively in-crease their student intake for under-graduate,masters and research pro-grammes by roughly 6,700 seats. Ofthis,approximately2,300seats—about500forBtech—wereaddedin2019-20.The remaining 4,400 seats — about1,300 forBtech—wereexpected tobeaddedthisyear.Althoughtheyare the first toseek

suchanextension, theIITsarenottheonlycentrallyfundedinstitutionsfac-inginfrastructuralconstraints.Thesit-uationintheNITs(NationalInstitutesofTechnology)issaidtobe“thesame”or “evenworse”.All centrally funded educational

institutions, including IITs,NITs, IIMs,central universities, IISERs and IIITs,have to increase their overall studentstrength by 25 per cent, over twoyears, to accommodate the quota --and ensure that existing number ofseatsforSC,ST,OBCandgeneralcate-gorystudentsdoesnot facecuts.This would effectivelymean the

creation of an additional 2 lakh seatsacrossallcentrallyfundedinstitutions.TheIITs, intheircollectiverequest,

have pointed to the delay caused bythe lockdown in the construction ofhostels. "Many IITs were either ex-panding or renovating their class-rooms and hostels to accommodatethenewstudentsaddedunderthesu-pernumerary seats created last yeartoincreasefemaleenrollmentandtheadditional seats to implement theEWSquota. Thisworkwas disruptedbecause of the lockdown and is un-likely to finish by the time they re-open,"saidanIITdirector,whodidnotwish tobe identified.The NITs, however, haven't yet

placed a request for a similar exten-sion. "The accommodation situationintheNITs is thesameorevenworse.If we have tomaintain physical dis-tanceofonemetrebetweenstudentsin classrooms and in hostel rooms,then the existing infrastructure isclearlynot enough," said thedirectorof anNIT in north India, who did notwish tobe identified.

IITs ask govt for extra year to fit EWS quota

AMILBHATNAGARNOIDA, JUNE2

A YEAR after a woman’s semi-nude body, withthe head and left cut off and right hand muti-lated, was discovered in a Meerut field, policehave arrested six people in connectionwithhermurder.Policesaidthe19-year-oldvictimhailedfrom

Ludhiana and had travelled toMeerutwith oneSaqib, where they lived together in a rented ac-commodation.However,Saqibeyedthegoldjewelryshehad

broughtalongtofurtherhisbusiness,policesaid,and conspiredwithhis familymembers andas-sociates toplot hermurder.Police said that on the day of the murder,

Saqib and his alleged co-conspirators laced thevictim’scolddrinkwithasubstancewhichmadeher unconscious.They then proceeded to decapitate her and

cut off her left hand —where she had a tattoowithhisname—whilemutilatingtherighthand.The body was then buried and salt was pouredon the earth to decompose it faster, police said.The followingday, adog sniffedout apart of thebody,which led to its discovery.“We had found the (body) in a field in

Meerut’s Daurala on June 13th (2019)... We in-tensifiedoursearchandtracedsomemeninthearea who had traveled to Punjab. Through thislead,wecircledinonthewoman’s identitywhichledustoSaqib ... Theaccusedwillbetakenonre-mand...” saidMeerut SSPAjay Sahni.OnMonday, when Saqibwas being taken to

the spot where he allegedly buried thevictim’s head, he tried to escape and was shotthreetimes.He iscurrentlyreceivingtreatment,police said.

Year after woman’sdecapitated bodyfound in Meerut,six arrested

Thebodywasthenburiedandsaltwaspouredontheearthtodecompose it faster,policesaid

7THEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY, JUNE3,2020

THEOUTBREAK MigrantsOnTheRoad

WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

UTTARPRADESH9,987 369 116

Foreignentrants:None

TAMILNADU11,094 1,091 55

Foreignentrants:3

RAJASTHAN15,605 273 61

Foreignentrants:NA

KERALA2,089 86 26

Foreignentrants:46

ANDHRAPRADESH12,613 115 33

Foreignentrants:None

KARNATAKA14,812 388 367

Foreignentrants:None

PUNJAB4,404 41 9

Foreignentrants: 6

■Samplestested

■Positivecases■ Migrants

A look at howCovid-19 case counts in statesare changing asmigrants return home

CASECOUNT: THECHANGINGPICTURE

States’ data for last 24hours, updatedup to9pmon June2

Migrantworkersandfamiliesonthelastlegof theirjourneyhomefromotherstates.ShashiGhosh

AtChhatrapatiShivajiMaharajTerminus,allpackedandreadytoleaveforOdisha.GaneshShirsekar

UPROOTED

Jobless,unable topayrentandsubsistingonrationdonations,Satpalandhis family fromUP’sHardoi finallygotsomegoodnews:aShramiktrainwas leavingonTuesday.Theyvacatedtheir roomandrushedtoGuruNanakDevStadiumonlytohear that trainswouldbearrangedlater.Theyhavenowsettledopposite thestadium.GurmeetSingh

BARASAT:12:00PM

MUMBAI:2:40PM

Machineoperatorsatafirmuntilrecently,theygatheroutsidethestationtoboardatraintoAllahabad.ArulHorizon

Homewardbound:agroupof35migrantssetsoff forJharkhandonTuesday.PremNathPandey

GHAZIABAD:4:00PM

PUNE:3.16PM

LUDHIANA:12:49PM

KAUNAINSHERIFFMNEWDELHI, JUNE2

AS STATES began phased re-opening of most activities onMonday, which could result inanupsurgeofcoronaviruscases,theAndhraPradeshgovernmenthas passed an order to test 290peopleeverydayineachdistrictto track prevalence of infectionin thecommunity.Fromconstructionworkersto

agricultural labourers, and veg-etable vendors to shopkeepers,thereare15categoriesof peoplewhowill be tested every day ineachdistrictaspartofthesentinelsurveillancetotrackthespreadofthe virus in the community, thestateHealthMedical andFamilyWelfareDepartmenthasordered.“A sentinel surveillance sys-

tem to understand prevalenceinfectioninthecommunityshallbe taken up and such personsidentifiedhavetobetestedeveryday. Every district shall test 290persons every day in thisman-ner,” theorder stated.Thestategovernmenthasor-

dered that each district wouldtest100fevercasesand25cases

ofsevereacuterespiratoryinfec-tion(SARI)/influenza-likeillness(ILI) and acute respiratory dis-tress syndrome (ARDS). Eachdistricthasalsobeenorderedtotest20peopleeach in fourcate-gories: people who have re-turnedtovillagesbypassingen-try points; those aged 60 yearsandabove;peoplewithco-mor-bidties; and those returningfromoutside thestate in trains.The government has asked

districts to test 10 cases eachamongeightcategoriesofpeople:those suspected tobe coming inclose proximity of people re-portedCovid-positiveonArogyaSetu app, people in wholesalemarkets, shopkeepers, construc-tionsworkersatonesite,agricul-turallabourersinonelocality,veg-etable and fruitmarket vendors,industrialworkers in one indus-tryandhealthcareworkersorgov-ernmentofficialsonCOVIDduties.It alsoordered testingof five

market yardworkers at a singlemarketyard ineachdistrict.Thegovernmenthastolddis-

trict magistrates that barringthose with fever, SARI and co-morbidity, all other categoriesshouldberandomlyselected.

SANTOSHSINGHCHHAPKI(BEGUSARAI),JUNE2

SITTINGONtheverandahatherhomeinBegusarai’s“vegetablevil-lage”ofChhapki,RupamKumari,aclassVstudentataprivateschool,is busy solving amathematicsproblemashermotherwatchesfromacorner.Shesaidshehas torelyonself-learningthesedaysastherearehardlyanyonlineclassesatherschool.Nearly all the villagers grow

vegetablesinChhapki,whichhasapopulationofaround1,300andnearly400school-goingchildren.Over350childrenareenrolled

at the onlymiddle school in thevillage, butmost of themeitherdon'ttakeclassesorareadmittedto private schools at the same

time.While the average incomeofavegetablefarmerisanywherearoundRs10,000-15,000,90percentoffamilieshaveenrolledtheirchildreninprivateschools.PrinceKumar,aclassIXstudent

ataprivateschool,said,“Therehavebeenonlineclassesbutnotasksaregiven.Thereisnoreplacementforclassroomteaching.”For ITI teacherAshishKumar,

“onlineclassesarelikelemonchoos

(placebo),which taste sweet buthavelesscontent”.RatanKumar,anotherstudent,

saidtherewasrivalryamongsib-lings ina family thathas justonesmartphone.SudhanshuKumar, a class IX

student,saidhisschoolimpartedonline classes between12noonand4pm.“Parentsarenowpart-ingwith phones readily.Mobilephoneisthenewschool,”hesaid.However, Shyamnandan

Mahto, a villager, saidmost par-ents cannot afford smartphonesandfrequentdatarecharges.“Poornet connectivity in the village isyetanotherissue,”hesaid.UmakantMahto, aveterinary

doctor,saidhistwodaughtersdidwell at their government school.Butnowhesendshissontoapri-vateschoolasgovernmentschools

are still stuckwithDoordarshanclasses“whenprivateschoolsareofferingonlineclasses”.Bihar Secondary School

AssociationGeneralSecretaryandBegusarai-basedacademicianDrSureshRaisaid,“Thegovernmenthas to provide better infrastruc-tureandteacherstowinbacktheconfidence of guardians.Governmentschoolsshouldhavemore smart classes andhave tocompetewithprivateschools.”Bihar EducationProject state

coordinator Sanjay Kumar said,“Wehavebeenrunningclassesonthe Unnayan Bihar model onDoorshan.We are also trying toimprove content. There areFacebook live classes too.Guardians are also being in-formed about Doordarshanclassesschedule.”

VIVEKDESHPANDENAGPUR, JUNE2

THE NAGPUR bench of theBombayHigh Court has issuednotices to the Union of Indiathroughtheprincipalsecretariesof Finance, Home and Defenceministriesintheircapacityasex-officio members of the PMCARESfund,onaPILbyaNagpur-based lawyer seeking, amongotherprayers,detailsofthefundscollectedso far to fightCovid-19and its audit by theComptrollerandAuditorGeneralof India.Thenoticeswere issuedbya

division bench comprisingJustice Sunil Shukre and JusticeAnilKilloronTuesdayonthePILfiled by lawyer ArvindWaghmare in his capacity as a“citizen of India and a donor to

the fund”. Rejecting AdditionalSolicitor General of India AnilSingh’sargumentthatthePILbedismissedinlightoftheSupremeCourt already having dismissedtwopetitionsonthematterear-lier, the bench said the issuesraised in the PILwere differentandhenceitwasissuingnotices.Thecourtgavetwoweeksto

therespondentstoreply.Thepe-titionerhassought“appropriatedirectionstocompulsorilyauditthe PMCARES Fund”, which hesaidwasapubliccharitabletrust,“bytheComptrollerandAuditorGeneralof Indiainsteadof inde-pendent auditors as decided bytheconcernedboardof trusteesof the fund in order to honourand respect trustworthiness ofthe topmost institute of thecountry created by theConstitutionof India.”

“Also, the respondentsbedi-rected to immediatelyappoint/nominate other threetrustees on thepublic trust,” thepetitioner has said. He also de-manded appointment/nomina-tion of at least two of thosetrusteesfrommembersofoppo-sitionpartiesintheLokSabhaandRajya Sabha in order to haveproper check and balance, andalsotostrengthentheconfidenceof general public and for trans-parencyaboutthefund.Thepetitionerhassoughtim-

mediatelymakingpublic“theen-tire funds received as on date,whether domestically or fromoverseas i.e. fromNRIs and for-eign nationals and/or organisa-tion,ontheofficialwebsitesofthefund”and“alsogivedirectionstoupdate the donations receivedandexpenditureincurred”.

Gujarat relaxes curbson testing; relief forsome patient groupsEXPRESSNEWSSERVICEAHMEDABAD, JUNE2

THEGUJARATgovernment Tues-dayrelaxedthecurbsontestingforCovid-19andallowed life-savingprocedurestobecarriedoutwith-outwaitingforCovid-19tests.The move follows Gujarat

HighCourt’s(HC)observationonMay 29 that approval from thegovernment officer concernedneednotbeinsisteduponbeforetesting for “certaincategoriesofpatients” forCovid-19.Theguidelinesissuedbyaddi-

tionaldirector,healthdepartment,PrakashVaghela, stated that allemergencyandlife-savingproce-duresmaybe carriedout “with-outwaitingforCovid-19testinginthebestinterestofpatients”.Thenotificationalsoallowsfor

five categories of patients to betestedataprivateoragovernmentlaboratoryfollowingprescriptionbyaprivatemedicalpractitioner.These include symptomatic pa-tientswith clinical suspicion ofCovid-19, patients undergoingsurgery or any other procedureand patients receiving cancerchemotherapy,radiotherapyandplannedhaemodialysis.

Forthesecategories,adoctor'sprescriptionrecommendingtest-ing shall suffice and the patientwouldnotrequire“anykindofap-provalinadvance”.Privatedoctors and laborato-

rieswillhavetointimatethechiefdistrict health officer of their ju-risdictionwith the patient's de-tails via email, followingwhichthegovernmentshalluploadthedetails on amobile application,thenotificationstated.Amodificationmentionsthat

“all pregnantwomen admittedto hospitals located in contain-mentareasfordeliveryshouldbetestedinthebestinterestofnew-borns”.AsperaMay17notifica-tion, pregnantwomen, regard-less of the area they werehospitalised in, could be testedseven days prior to their ex-pectedduedateofdelivery.Another point in the fresh

guidelines is that “everysympto-matic healthcareworker shouldbe testedonrecommendationofaconsultant”.Thenotificationaddedthatfor

thosewhodonotfulfileithercri-teria, approval fromgovernmentauthority concerned is requiredand it has to beprovidedwithin24hours.

DIPANKARGHOSENEWDELHI, JUNE2

AN EXERCISE to determine thehealth status of frontlinework-ers at a district in Chhattisgarhhas thrownupresults that indi-cate that about 30 per cent ofstaff have co-morbidities theywerenotawareof.Senior officials inBastar dis-

trict said that of 240municipaland police personnel checkedacrossMay25,26and27,atleast74 have symptoms of sugar orhigh bloodpressure thatwouldplace them at various stages ofrisk as frontline workers. Thestate health department said itwas now looking to expand theexercise toalldistricts.Ayyaj Tamboli, then district

magistrateof Bastar, said reportsaboutdeathsoffrontlineworkers

suchascleanersandpolicemeninMumbai and Pune promptedthem to carry out the exercise.“Wewanted to check for hyper-tension,diabetes,andcardiacdis-ease,particularlytocheckthroughECG. To ensure that prophylaxisthroughHydroxychloroquine issafe.Sothatwecanprotectthosethatwillwork inhospitals, quar-antine centres or containmentzones.Wefoundthatclearlysomepercentagehadsomeconditionsthat they were not aware of,”Tambolisaid.A senior Chhattisgarh gov-

ernment official said this was adisturbing revelation that hadfar-reaching implications.Chhattisgarh Health

Secretary Niharika Barik said,“ThiswasanexercisecarriedoutbytheBastardistrict.Wenowin-tendtoscaleup thispolicy toallotherdistricts.”

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEBENGALURU,JUNE2

THE HEAD of the PublicAccounts Committee (PAC) inKarnataka legislature andCongress MLA, H K Patil, haswrittentotheAssemblySpeaker,seeking a clearance to investi-gate government purchases intheCovid-19 fight.Patil’slettercomesagainstthe

backdropof theofficeofSpeakerVishweshwarHegdeKaggeriask-inglegislativecommitteesnottoconduct inspections or visits in-volving public interactions inviewof theCovid-19spread.In the letter datedMay 28,

Patil has stated that thePACwasprevented from beginning in-quiries into complaints of dis-

crepanciesinthepurchaseofPPEkits, sanitisersandventilatorsbya letter from the office of theSpeaker. “The committee is em-poweredbysection264(1)oftherulesofprocedureandconductofbusinessinthelegislativeassem-bly to examine issues and thisshould not be obstructed,'' thePACchairmanhassaid.Earlier, ahead of the PAC’s

plans to carry out inspections atpublic quarantine centres anddesignatedCovid-19hospitals,theofficeof theSpeakerhadwrittento legislative committees. “Thecommittees of the legislativecouncilandassemblyarelikelytomeetofficialsandmembersofthepublic...itisnecessarytomaintainsocialdistancing...theyshouldnotconductanyvisitsandinspectionsuntil furtherorders.''

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICELUCKNOW,JUNE2

INAsubmissiontotheAllahabadHigh Court, the Uttar Pradeshgovernment has stated thatthereisnoTablighiJamaatmem-ber at anyof its quarantine cen-tres in the state, and all havebeenreleasedandsenthome.The government furnished

the details on a PIL filed by alawyer, Shaad Anwar, who hadsoughtthecourt’sinterventioninseeking the release of TablighiJamaatmemberswhohadvisitedtheNizamuddinMarkazinDelhithatemergedasaCovidcluster.AdditionalAdvocateGeneral

ManishGoyal,whorepresentedthe government, said the courtwas informed a total of 3,001Tablighi Jamaatmemberswerequarantined inUP, out ofwhich21weresenttojailforallegedvi-olationof visa laws and spread-ing of the viral disease, while,2,979weresenthome.Asper thegovernment's sub-

mission, a total of 325 foreignTablighi Jamaatmemberswerequarantined in the state. Out ofwhich,46weresentbacktotheircountries,while279arelodgedinjail, it said. “One IndiannationalTablighiJamaatmemberisstillun-dergoing treatment for Covid atthedistricthospital inMirzapur,”thedocumentthatwassubmittedtothecourtonMay30added.The Bench of Justice Shashi

KantGupta and Justice SaurabhShyam Shamshery observedthat all people should be re-leased fromquarantine centres“as soonas their quarantinepe-riodgetsover”.

ABANTIKAGHOSHNEWDELHI,JUNE2

INDIANSCIENTISTShave identi-fied aunique trait in the geneticmake-upinthenovelcoronaviruscirculating in India,which is dif-ferentfromthevirusthatispreva-lentinotherpartsof theworld.Besides,otherthings,thispar-

ticulartraitcouldpotentiallymakethevirusweaker,oneofthescien-tistsinvolvedinthestudysaid.This particular genetic differ-

ence, named ‘Clade I/A3i’, wasfound in 41 per cent of thegenome sequences done on thevirus collected from Indian pa-tients.Globally, only 3.5 per cent of

allthegenomesequencesdoneonthisvirushasthisparticulartrait.A‘clade’ isataxonomicgroup

oforganismsthatareclassifiedto-getheronthebasisofhomologousfeaturesthataretracedtoacom-monancestor. Inlaymanterms,acladecanbeunderstoodasastrainof thevirus.On Monday, the Centre for

CellularandMolecularBiologyofthe Council of Scientific and

IndustrialResearch(CSIR-CCMB)postedalinkonTwittertoafresh,non-peer reviewedpreprint onthegenomeanalysisoftheSARS-CoV-2inIndia.“The results show that a dis-

tinct cluster of virus population,uncharacterizedthusfar,whichisprevalent in India — called theCladeA3i,”thetweetsaid.“This cluster seems to have

originated from an outbreak inFebruary 2020, and spreadthrough India. This comprises41% of all SARS-CoV-2 genomesfromIndiansamples,and3.5%ofglobal genomes submitted intopublicdomain.”The researchers, who se-

quenced64genomes (the com-plete set of genetic material)linked the Clade I/A3i cluster tothe predominant SARS-CoV-2strain circulating in TamilNadu,Telangana, Maharashtra, andDelhi.TheIndianCouncilofMedical

Research(ICMR)hassofarmain-tainedthattherearethreeprinci-palvariants inIndiaof theSARS-CoV-2 virus: those that camefromWuhan,theUS,andEuropeviaair travellers.AccordingtoICMR,therehas

been very littlemutation in theimportant areas of the viralgenome.“Epidemiologicalassessments

suggestthatthecommonancestoremergedinthemonthofFebruary2020andpossibly resulted inanoutbreakfollowedbycountrywidespread,asevidencedbythelowdi-vergence of the genomes fromacrossthecountry,”theresearcherssaidinthepreprint,‘Adistinctphy-logenetic clusterof IndianSARS-CoV-2isolates’.“Tothebestofourknowledge,

this is the first comprehensivestudy characterizing thedistinctandpredominantclusterofSARS-

CoV-2inIndia.”Asked about the significance

ofidentifyingthenewcluster,oneof the authors of the paper toldTheIndianExpress:“TheA3icladeseemstobethecladeresponsiblefortheinitialoutbreakacrossthecountry.Youcantellitapartfromtheothercladesbasedonfourdif-ferencesinitssequence.“Atthispointit'sinconclusive

to say what those differencesmean, but one of themcould bepotentially making the virusweaker. Also, itmutates slowercompared to the other clade(A2a)whichisprevalentinIndia,which is often disadvantageousfor the virus. Only timewill tellwhich clades will prevail andwhichoneswon't.”The researchers concluded

thatCladeI/A3iwasrepresentedin most states from whichgenomesareavailable.“Membersof theClade I /A3i

formedthepredominantclassofisolates fromthe states of TamilNadu,Telangana,Maharashtra,andDelhi, and the second largest inmembership inBihar,Karnataka,UP,WestBengal,Gujarat,andMP,”theresearcherssaid.

HC notice to Centre over pleaseeking PM CARES details

PAC chief seeks Speakernod to probe Karnatakapurchases in Covid fight

No Tablighimembers inquarantinecentres, UPtells High Court

RupamKumariatherhomeinChhapki,Begusarai. Express

Bihar village struggles to adapt to online classes

To check communityspread, Andhra asksdists to test 290 daily

30% frontline workers inBastar have comorbiditiesthey didn’t know of: officials

CSIR research identifiesunique trait in virus in India

Atamobileswabcollectioncentre inVijayawada. PTI

8THEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY, JUNE3,2020

EXPRESSNETWORKWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

Row at Goa airport asreturnees from Dubairefuse to be quarantined

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEPANAJI, JUNE2

GOA’S DABOLIM airport wit-nessed unruly scenes late onMonday night when a sectionof 155 passengers back fromDubai on a Vande Bharat flightrefused to go into mandatoryinstitutional quarantine for “14 days.This was the first Vande

Bharat flight to land inGoa.State Health Secretary Nila

Mohanan called the episode“avoidable” and in violation ofguidelines laid down byMHA,MEA and the DisasterManagementActprotocol.Mostpassengersontheflight

were fromGoa and a few fromMaharashtraandKarnataka.Theflightarrivedpostmidnight,butthe passengers remained at theairportforlong,refusingtomoveto thequarantine facilities.“A very unfortunate set of

eventshappenedattheDabolimairportpastmidnightwhen theVande Bharat flight fromDubailanded. It had passengersmostofwhomwerefromGoa,wehadpassengers fromMaharashtraandKarnataka too... around155passengers in total,” Mohanantoldreporters.“NowwhenthesepassengersreachedDabolimair-port they immediately raised a

hueandcrythattheywillnotgotopaid institutionalquarantine.Theysaidtheywanttogototheirhomes,” sheadded.“Thiscreatedavery,veryun-

pleasantsituationattheairport...It is very regrettable that thiskindofbehaviourwasexhibitedbyourbrothers and sisterswhocamebackfromDubai,”shesaid.The episode, she said, impactedtheswabcollectionexerciseandother protocols that were inplaceat theairport.Mohanan pointed out that

before boarding Vande Bharatflights, passengers sign a docu-ment inwhich they agree to goto paid institutional quarantineaspergovernmentguidelines.“Wewere here towelcome

andreceivethembuttheywentback on their commitmentwhich they had duly signedandgivenat the timeof board-ing the flight. The reasonswhywe feel saddened by this is be-cause there were pregnantladies in thatgroup, therewerechildren in that group,” sheadded.She pointed out that each

passengerhadchosenthequar-antine facilityof their likingandbuses were arranged accord-ingly.Laterinthenight,thepassen-

gerseventuallyagreedandweresent to thequarantine facilities.

Residentsat thesiteof a landslide inKarimganj.DasarathDeka

TORAAGARWALAGUWAHATI, JUNE2

ASERIESof landslides,triggeredby incessant rainfall, killed 21people in Assam’s Barak Valleyon Tuesdaymorning. The land-slidescomeontheheelsofdam-agingfloodswhichhaveaffectedthestateover thepastweek.The Assam government has

dispatchedteamsforrescueandrelief operations. ChiefMinisterSarbananda Sonowal tweeted,“Deeplyanguishedat the lossoflivesdue to landslides triggeredbyincessantraininBarakvalley.I have directed Cachar,Hailakandi&Karimganj districtadministrations and SDRF tostepuprescue, relief operationsand facilitate all possible helpneededto thoseaffected.”TheCMalsodirected the re-

spectivedistrictadministrationstoimmediatelyreleaseex-gratiato thenextof kin.Later in the day, President

RamNathKovindtweeted,“Theloss of lives due to heavy rainsand landslides in Barak valley,Assamistragic.Localauthoritiesare undertaking rescue and re-lief efforts. Condolences to thebereaved families. Prayers foreveryone’s safety andwell-being.”As per officials at the Assam

State Disaster ManagementAuthority,Cachardistricthasre-ported 7 deaths (4 children, 3adults), Karimganj district has

reported 6 deaths (3 children, 3adults) and Hailakandi districthas reported 8 deaths (2 chil-dren,6adults).A Hailakandi district official

said, “Most of the houses weremake-shift and located near ahillock.We have beenwitness-ingcontinuousrainfall inthelast3-4daysbutlastnightitwaspar-ticularlyheavy...”In Cachar district too, the

houses were located under ahillock.“Therainscausedthesoilto loosen and resulted in land-slides which destroyed thehouses,” saidanofficial.

ARUNSHARMAJAMMU,JUNE2

THEJAMMUandKashmiradmin-istrationonTuesday approved aMediaPolicy-2020,sayingit“aimsto put in place a StandardOperatingProcedureforreachingout to thepeople in situationsofcrisis likehealth issuesandnatu-raldisasters”.A statement issued by the

Department of Information andPublic Relations (DIPR) said thepolicywillhelpcreateasustainednarrativeonthefunctioningofthegovernment in themedia andpromote thehighest standardofjournalismintheUnionTerritory.Itpointedoutthat“finallythe

policy attempts to thwartmisin-formation,fakenewsanddevelopamechanismthatwillraisealarmagainstanyattempttousemediatovitiatepublicpeace,sovereigntyandintegrityof thecountry”.“Withtheapprovaloftheme-

diapolicy,governmentwillbeinabetter position to carry themes-sageofwelfare,developmentandprogresstothepeopleinaneffec-tivemanner,besidesenablingtheDepartment of Information &PublicRelationsJ&Ktokeeppacewith the demands of themediaand reposition itself as a profes-

sionalorganisation,”itsaid.Thepolicyincludesestablish-

ment of amedia academy/insti-tute/chairinreputablenationalin-stitutes in JammuandKashmirsuch as IIMC, IIM thatwill pro-motethehigheststandardofjour-nalism,andcoordinatestudyandresearchinthefield,thestatementsaid. It includes the institutionofmedia awards to be given eachyeartotwooutstandingmediaorcommunicationprofessionals.The statement said, “For the

first time, theMedia Policy laysdown theguidelines for empan-elment of audio-visual andelec-tronicmedia such as FM, radio,satelliteandcableTVchannelssoas to streamline their interfacewithDIPR.”The policy envisages that all

department will nominate anodal officer to liaisewithDIPR.Toensurehealthyinteractionwiththe public online and on socialmedia, thepolicy laysdownset-tingupofaSocialMediaCellinthedepartment.Thedirector, Informationand

Public Relations, hasbeendesig-nated chairperson of theEmpanelment Committee andthe administrative head ofInformation Department willchairtheReviewCommitteecon-stitutedunderthepolicy.

ARUNSHARMAJAMMU,JUNE2

ADAYafterhisdeathinLeh,sam-plescollectedfromformerUnionministerandthree-timeCongressMP from Ladakh, P Namgyaltested positive for Covid-19 onTuesday. TheUnionTerritoryad-ministrationhasnowsetuptwocommitteestolookintonon-ad-herence of protocol laid downfor containing the outbreak.Namgyal, 83, returned fromDelhi recently and was underhome quarantine. After feelingunwell onMondaymorning, hewas rushed to a hospital wherehe died. This happens to be thefirst Covid related death inLadakh.LehDistrictMagistrateSachin

KumarVaishyasaidtwocommit-

teeshavebeensetuptoprobethelapsesandaddedthatactionwillbe takenagainst those found re-sponsible. He said Namgyal’shouse and the surrounding areaisundercontainmentandcontacttracingofallwhocameincontactwithhis familymembers ison.The crew and passengers of

theflightinwhichhetravelledonMay28havebeencontactedandasked toquarantine themselves,theDistrictMagistratesaid.

NewDelhi:EssentialsuppliesinstateslikeTripura,ManipurandMizoram,alongwithpas-sengertraffic,willbeimpactedforatleastaweek,witha170-metre railway track in theLumding-Silchar hill sectioninAssamcollapsingdue to alandslide. An initial assess-mentsays itmighttakethreeweekstogetthelineworking.Sanjive Roy, GeneralManager of NortheastFrontierRailwaysaid,“Asfarasessentialsuppliesof food-grains are concerned, wehave already suppliedenough quantities all thiswhile. So states will not beimpactedonthatfront.”ENS

ESSENTIAL SUPPLIES,TRAINS AFFECTED

J&K nod to media policy‘to reach out to people’

Ladakh’s Cong veterantests positive after death

PNamgyal

DEEPTIMANTIWARYNEWDELHI, JUNE2

THEOFFICERwhohadpreparedthe list of productsmeant to bebanned for sale through can-teens of Central Armed PoliceForces (CAPFs) is likely to be re-moved fromhis post and repa-triated to his parent cadre,sources toldThe IndianExpress.Thelistwaswithdrawnbythe

governmentonMondayamidup-roarover itemsof various Indiancompaniesbeingincludedinit.TheMinistryofHomeAffairs

(MHA),sourcessaid,isnowwork-ing with the Ministry ofCommerce and Industry, thenodalministryresponsiblefortheMakeinIndiainitiative,toprepareanewlistof itemstobeclassifiedas “purely imported”. ThesewillbekeptoffCAPFcanteenshelves.DIGRMMeena, chief execu-

tive officer (CEO) of KendriyaPolice Kalyan Bhandar (KPKB),

which runs CAPF canteens, islikely tobesentback toCRPF,hisparentforce,sourcessaid.Meena, when contacted,

said, “I have not received anysuchordersyet.”While orders to sell only

swadeshiitems,andkeep“purelyimported” items off the shelvesof CAPF canteens, were issuedwithMHA’sconcurrence,Meenahad prepared the list of 1,026itemsonMay29,sourcessaid.“TheMHAbrasshastakenthe

matter seriously and the KPKBCEO,responsibleforpreparingthelist,willbesentbacktohisparentcadre.An inquiryonhowthe listcametoincludethoseitemsison,”aseniorgovernmentofficialsaid.“Anewlistwillbepreparedsoonafterconsultationwithnodalau-thoritiesforMakeInIndia.”Whiletheorderwithdrawing

the listwas issued byCRPFD-GAPMaheshwariinhiscapacityaschairman of the Welfare andRehabilitationBoardoftheCAPFs,

sourcessaidKPKBisgoverneddi-rectlybytheMHA.“Itdrawsoffi-cers fromvariousCAPFsondep-utation. The CAPFs do not haveany administrative control overthefunctioningofKPKB.”Asourcesaidthelistprepared

byDIGMeenawasbasedondec-larationsmadebythecompaniesthemselves.AftertheMHA'sMay13 order to sell only“Swadeshi/MadeinIndia”prod-ucts fromCAPF canteens begin-ningJune1,thesourcesaid,KPKBaskedallcompaniessupplyingtocanteenstogivedetailsofmanu-facturingof theirproducts.“The items which were

bannedhadbeen listedby thesecompanies as purely imported,andonlyrepackagedandbrandedin India,” another official said.“That iswhy theKPKBmanage-mentputtheminthelistof'purelyimported’ items, effectively tak-ing themoff the shelves. It’s notthat all products of Dabur andBajajhavebeendelisted,”

The order to ban over 1,000“imported”productsbytheman-agement of CAPF canteens cre-atedaflutteronMonday.Theor-der had banned products fromcompanies such asDabur India,BajajElectricals,VIP,HUL,Wipro,Bluestar, Havells and EurekaForbes,amongothers.Withapotentialtosparkpanic

in the industry—given that theMay 29 order came fromMHA,andcouldbeinterpretedasasig-nalofofficialpolicyinfuture—thegovernment quicklywithdrewthelistofproductsannexedwiththeorder.Theorder,though,con-tinuestoremaininforce.“This is clarified that the list

issuedbyKendriyaPoliceKalyanBhandar on 29thMay 2020 re-gardingdelistingofcertainprod-uctshasbeenerroneouslyissuedat the level of CEO. The list hasbeen withdrawn and action isbeinginitiatedforthelapse,”ac-cording to a statement fromCRPFD-GMaheshwari.

DIGMeena,who listed1,026 ‘imported’ items, likely toberepatriatedtoCRPF

Officerwhobarred items fromCAPFcanteenssaid tobeshifted

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI, JUNE2

THESUPREMECourtonTuesdaystayed the proceedings beforetheDelhiHighCourt in connec-tionwithabail application filedby activist Gautam Navlakha,who is facing charges underUnlawful Activities PreventionAct (UAPA) for alleged Maoistlinks following the violence inBhimaKoregaon.Hearing a plea by the

National Investigation Agency(NIA)challengingtheDelhiHighCourt order seeking records ofjudicialproceedingsbeforespe-cialcourtsinthenationalcapitaland Mumbai in the BhimaKoregaon case, a bench ofJustices ArunMishra, S AbdulNazeer and Indira Banerjee is-suednoticeandlisteditforhear-ingafter15days.TheNIA challenged theMay

27orderbyasinglebenchof theHC,which observed that primafacie it appeared that the NIAacted in “unseemly haste” and“frantic hurry” in “whiskingaway” Navlakha to Mumbaiwhile his bail application waspendingbefore it.Navlakha,whowaslodgedin

Tiharjail,wasshiftedtoMumbaionMay25for further investiga-tion in the FIR pending inMumbai.TheNIAsaidthesinglejudge

could not have entertained theinterimbailapplicationofanac-cusedwho is charged by an au-thorityoutsidetheterritorial ju-risdiction of the Delhi HC andwho is currently in judicial cus-tody vide a valid jurisdictionalremand order passed by theSpecialJudge,NIA,Mumbai,out-sidetheHC’s territorial jurisdic-tion. It pointed out that the SC

had already rejected his prayerfor interim bail on medicalgrounds.Theplea said an interimbail

or bail concerning theUAPA of-fence canbeheardonlybyaHCdivision bench in appeal fromtheordersof thespecial judges.

The NIA submitted thatwhen the bail application wasfirst listedbeforetheHConMay22, it had “categorically in-formed” the single judge that“theinvestigationinthepresentcase is pending with the NIA,Mumbai and therefore, the in-vestigating agency plans totransfertheaccusedtoMumbai,step for which is likely to betakensooninviewofopeningupof the air travel, after obtainingnecessaryorders fromthecom-petentcourt”.“Therefore,theimpugnedin-

terim order dated 27.05.2020,thattheNIAactedinan“evidenthaste” in “whisking away” theRespondent/accusedtoMumbaiisnotonlyunwarranted,butalsoagainsttherecordof thecase”, itsaid,andtermedthe“finding”oftheHC“startling”.Navlakha alongwith others

werebooked for allegedMaoistlinks and other charges follow-ing the violence at KoregaonBhimavillageonJanuary1,2018.The accused denied the allega-tions.a

GautamNavlakha

SC stays Delhi HCproceedings overNavlakha’s bail plea

TORAAGARWALAGUWAHATI, JUNE2

WITHTHEnaturalgasleakfroman oil well in Assam’s Tinsukiadistrict continuing for the sev-enth day on Tuesday, govern-ment-owned Oil India Limited(OIL), which owns the rig, saidthat ithadreachedout toglobalexperts tocontrol theblowout.The blowout — an uncon-

trolled release of natural gas —wasreportedonWednesdaylastweekwhenaproducingwellun-der Baghjan Oilfield unexpect-edlybecame“active”duringop-erations.On Tuesday, Chief Minister

Sarbananda Sonowal calledUnionMinister for Petroleumand Natural Gas DharmendraPradhan for the second time inthe week requesting help, in-cluding announcing adequate

compensation for the victims.The Joint Secretary from theUnion PetroleumMinistry hasbeendirected to rush to the siteto takestockof thesituation.OIL’scommunicationsman-

ager, Tridiv Hazarika, said onTuesday all the necessary per-missionshadbeenexpedited tocall inaSingapore-basedexpertteam if the leak cannot beplugged by Thursday. TheSingapore-based team is sup-posed to reachonWednesday.“This is a huge exercise,

which requires a lot of prepara-tion andwe are doingwhatwecan.30-40peopleareonthesiteatanygivenpoint.Thisisnotlikea house catches fire which wecaneasilydouse. It ismorecom-plicated thanthat,”headded.Even as OIL described the

current status of the well as“flowinggasuncontrollably”, sofar,2,500peoplefromabout650

families fromnearbyareashavebeenevacuatedandputinthreerelief camps set up at schools.OIL said that they have alsoarranged another camp onstandbyincasestheyneedtoac-commodate more people.Accordingtolocalresidents,con-densate— the residue from gascondensingaftercomingincon-tactwithwater— can be foundupto 5km from the site. ImonAbedin, a studentwhose homeis roughly 1.5 km from the site,said, “We can smell the gas butthosewhoarenearbyaresayingthat their eyes constantly burnandareevencomplainingofres-piratory issues.”Thedelayisalsoaffectingthe

region's biodiversity. The rig islocated right next to the Dibru-Saikhowa National Park.Tinsukia's divisional forest offi-cer's (Wildlife), Rajendra SinghBharti, said that the leak had a

considerable impact and that ateam of scientists from theWildlife Institute of India werecarrying out a survey from fourdays to gauge the effect of theleak in theregion.“They are collecting water

samples, fish and also doing asurvey of the vegetation...” headded. AssamPollutionControlBoard chairman, YSuryanarayana, said hewas onhisway to the site to assess thesituation.A statement fromOIL said it

was “awaiting the observationsand findings of the DistrictAdministration, Forest depart-ment,PollutionControlBoardsothat all necessary steps can betaken.” On Tuesday, OILalso is-suedashowcausenoticetoM/sJohn Energy Pvt Limited — theGujarat-based firmwhichwascarryingoutactivitiesinthewellwhentheblowouthappened.

Theblowoutat BaghjanOilfieldwasreportedlastweekwhenaproducingwellunexpectedlybecame‘active’. ImonAbedin

ASSAMNATURALGASLEAK

OIL reaches out to global expertsas gas leaks for seventh day

Court grants PinjraTod member bailin Dec protest caseANANDMOHANJNEWDELHI, JUNE2

ADELHIcourthasgrantedbailtoPinjra Tod activist DevanganaKalita (30),whowasarrestedbytheDelhiPoliceforallegedlypar-ticipating in protests in DaryaGanj onDecember 20 last year,which turned violent towardstheevening.Metropolitan Magistrate

Abhinav Pandey granted bail toDevangana on furnishing asurety in the sum of Rs 30,000withtwolocal sureties.Thecourtwhilegrantingbail

observed that from the investi-gationcarriedouttillnow,"nodi-rectevidenceattributable to theaccusedhasbeenfoundtobringher for the offences under 325(punishment for voluntarilycausing grievous hurt)/353 (as-sault or criminal force to deterpublicservant fromdischargeofhisduty)of IPC".Devanganawasproducedaf-

terher three-daypolice custodyexpired. The IO in the case hadmoved an application seekingDevangana's14-dayjudicialcus-tody.Shewasrepresentedbyherlawyer,AditSPujari,whoarguedthattheaccusedwasreadytoco-

operate with the investigationand undertake to complywithany conditions imposed by thecourt.The court noted that the in-

vestigation was conducted onthe basis of MLCs conducted ofinjured persons and as per thecall detail records obtained, theaccusedwasfoundpresentatthesceneatthetimeofcommissionofoffence."CCTVfootagealsore-portedly does not specificallyshowtheaccusedtobeinvolvedinanyviolentactivity.Disclosurestatementmade before the po-liceandinjuriesofthepersonac-cused reflected in the MLC,which got conducted by the ac-cused on her own accord, is notsufficienttomakeastrongprimafaciecaseagainst theaccusedsoastodenybail," theorderread.The court also noted that no

incriminatingmaterial was re-coveredfromthephoneandlap-top seized fromtheaccused. "Insuch a situation, the inferencewhether the accused incited orparticipatedinthemobviolenceorhadintendedtoparticipateina peaceful protest only whichlateronacquiredaviolentnature,canonlybereacheduponappre-ciation of evidence in course oftrial," theorderread.

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICENEWDELHI, JUNE2

NewDelhi:Asmanyas1,298freshCovid-19caseswere reported inDelhi Tuesday, taking the totalnumberof confirmedcases inthecapital to22,132.Thecityreported33moreCovid-19deaths,with11reported in the last24hours.ThetotalnumberofdeathsinDelhihasreached556.Thereare12,573ac-tive cases in thecapital, ofwhich7,461 are in home isolation and2,819areadmitted todesignatedCovid-19hospitals.A total of 497people have recovered/dis-charged/migratedinaday.There-covery rate inDelhi is about42%,lower than thenational average,whichisaround48%.Thedoublingrateis12.8days

andDelhi'stestratepermillionis

11,180, as compared to the na-tional averageof 2,838 tests permillion. Delhi is third when itcomes to Covid-19 cases, afterMaharashtraandTamilNadu.Inthelastoneweek,Delhihas

added over 2,000 beds in totalandmore than 600 beds withoxygensupportforthetreatmentof Covid-19patients. In a reviewmeeting with the LieutenantGovernor Anil Baijal, the healthdepartment informed there are6,476hospital beds, at least 432ICU beds, 342 ventilators bedsand3,233 oxygen-support bedsinCovidhospitals.Recently,threemoregovernmenthospitalshavebeen earmarkedwith an addi-tional 1,900 beds for Covid pa-tients.A 450-bedhospital in Burari

is expected to be operational bythesecondweekof June.

Delhi sees 1,298 newcoronavirus cases

Incessant rainfalltriggers landslidesin Assam, 21 killed

ASTUDYbytheUniversityofMichiganhas looked at how theCovid-19pan-demicmayhave impacted theeatinghabitsofolderpeople.Theresearchisbased on a poll of Americans in their50sandolder.Thepollwasconductedbefore the outbreak; the Universityhasnowreleasedareportonthepan-demic’spotentialimpactonolderpeo-ple’seatinghabits.Thenational poll found thatmost

people in their 50s and olderwerecapable home cooksjust before Covid-19strucktheUS.Thecook-ing skills that enabledhalf of older adults toeat dinner at home sixor seven days a weekmayhave served themwell during the heightof the pandemic, thepoll suggests.However, the poll

also found that only5%of these older peoplehadorderedgroceriesonlinebeforetheoutbreak. This suggests that theymayneedaddedsupport forgroceryshop-ping as the pandemic continues andolderadultsseektoavoidCovid-19.The poll also shows vulnerability

formanyolderadults.Oneinfoursaidthey already atemost or all of theirmealsalone,evenbeforethepandemicledtosocial-distancingrules.Solodin-ers reported less healthy diets thanthosewhorarelyorneveratealone.Inaddition,11%ofolderadultsate

fast foodthreetimesaweekormore.Thisgroupwas less likely tocall theiroveralldiethealthy.TheNationalPollonHealthyAging

was carried out by the University ofMichigan Institute for HealthcarePolicy and Innovationwith supportfromAARP andMichiganMedicine,U-M’sacademicmedicalcenter. It in-volvedanationalsampleofmorethan2,000adultsaged50to80.

“Publichealthguidancetoavoidinfectionwill continueto alter food-buyinghabits for many olderpeople and thosewithhealth conditions, sofurther support forthemmay be neededto ensure healthyhabits continue,” JuliaWolfson,assistantpro-fessor of HealthManagement andPolicyattheUniversityof Michigan School of

PublicHealth, said inastatement.The temporary closure of restau-

rantswouldhaveaffectedhalfofthosepolled,whosaidtheydinedoutatleastonceaweekbeforetheytookthepoll.Cindy Leung, assistant professor ofNutritionalSciences,saidinthestate-ment: “Restaurants could help sup-porthealthyeatingbymakingsureaf-fordablehealthyoptionsareavailableonmenusandmaking surenutritioninformation is... easilyavailable.”

Source:UniversityofMichigan

PAPERCLIP

NEWRESEARCH

The impact of Covid-19 on theeating habits of older adults

TABASSUMBARNAGARWALAMUMBAI, JUNE2

AHOMOEOPATHICdrug,Arsenicumalbum30,hasbecomeasubjectofdebateaftersev-eralstatesrecommendedit forprophylactic(preventive) use against Covid-19. Thiswasafter theMinistry of AYUSH listed the drugamong“preventiveandprophylacticsimpleremedies”againstCovid-19.Thedebatestemsfromthefactthatthere

isnoscientificevidence that thedrugworksagainst Covid-19, a fact stressed not only bymedicalscientistsbutalsobysomehomoeo-pathicpractitioners themselves.Arsenicum album30 has been recom-

mended by the state governments inRajasthan, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, AndhraPradesh andKerala.While theMaharashtragovernment is yet to take a formal decision,Mumbaicivicauthoritieshavebeendistribut-ingthedrugtohigh-riskpopulationsinatleasttwowards.TheHaryanaprisonsdepartmentandMumbai police too are also distributingthedrugtoprisonersandofficersrespectively.Eveninstatesthathavenoprotocolforus-

ing the drug against Covid-19, there havebeenreportsaboutpeopleflockingtohome-opathic clinics to buy Arsenicum album,sometimes at triple the cost. Even localchemistshavestartedstockingthismedicine.

The drugArsenicumalbumismadebyheatingar-

senicwithdistilledwater,aprocessrepeatedseveraltimesoverthreedays.Thehealthhaz-ards of arsenic contamination inwater arewell known: long-term exposure to themetalcancauseskincancer,pulmonaryandcardiovasculardiseases. Thehomoeopathicdrughaslessthan1%arsenic,saidDrAmrishVijayakarof PredictiveHomoeopathyClinicinMumbai.“Arsenicumalbum is considered to cor-

rectinflammationinbody.Ittakescareofdi-arrhoea,coughandcold,”hesaid.Asmallbot-tlewithonecoursecostsRs20-30.ProfessorGVithoulkaswrites inanarticle

published by the International AcademyofClassicalHomeopathythatArsenicumalbumisusedcommonlybyhomeopathstotreatanx-iety, restlessness, cold, ulcerations, burningpains.Itistakeninpowderformorasatablet.

The Covid-19 contextOn January 28, at its 64thmeeting, the

Scientific Advisory Board of the CentralCouncilforResearchinHomoeopathy(CCRH)opined that “Arsenicumalbum30 could betaken as prophylactic medicine againstCoronavirusinfections”.TheCCRHreleasedafactsheetstatingthismedicineisonlya“pos-sible prevention” against flu. The followingday, theAyushMinistry recommended tak-ing themedicine for threedaysonanemptystomachandrepeatingthedoseafteramonthif anoutbreakcontinueslocally.OnMarch6, bywhen Indiahad recorded

fiveCovid-19cases,RajeshKotecha,SecretaryintheAyushMinistry,wrotetoallchiefsecre-taries listingoutpreventive andprophylacticmeasures. His letter recommended a three-daydoseofArsenicumalbum30asaprophy-lactic.Thefollowingday,theMinistryreleasedanothernotificationwith“preventiveandpro-phylacticsimpleremedies”againstCovid-19-likeillnessandlistedArsenicumalbum30asahomeopathicsolution.

“Arsenicumalbum30,dailyonceinemptystomachforthreedays.Thedoseshouldbere-peatedafteronemonthbyfollowingthesamescheduletillCoronavirusinfectionsprevalentinthecommunity,”thelettersaid.For symptommanagement, the letter

listedArsenicumalbumamongvarioushome-opathic treatments, including Bryonia alba,Rhus toxico dendron, Belladona andGelmesium. “Homeopathy has reportedlybeenusedforpreventionduringtheepidemicofcholera,Spanishinfluenza,yellowfever,scar-letfever,diphtheria, typhoid,etc,” itsaid.The letter saidduring the2014Ebolaout-

break,anexpertcommitteeintheWorldHealthOrganization(WHO)recommended“itiseth-icaltoofferunproveninterventionswithasyetunknownefficacyandadverseeffects, aspo-tential treatment onprevention keeping inviewnovaccineoranti-viralswereavailable”.Following theMinistry’s recommenda-

tions,variousstategovernmentsanddistrictauthorities have started distributing themedicine, in somecases free.

The Central Drug Standard ControlOrganisation lastmonth issuedanotificationallowingprivate practitioners to try alterna-tive remedies likeAyurvedaandhomoeopa-thytotreatCovid-19.

Where’s the science?DrBalramBhargava,directoroftheIndian

Council ofMedical Research told The IndianExpress,“Wehaveissuednoguidelinesregard-ingthemedicine.”The WHO has no guidelines on using

ArsenicumalbumasaCovid-19treatmentei-ther. “Noevidence that itworks,”WHOchiefscientist Dr Soumya Swaminathan told TheIndianExpress.TheMaharashtragovernmenthassetupa

task-forcetoevaluatethehomoeopathicdruganddecidewhetheritshouldbeusedagainstCovid-19. Itsmembers said they remainun-decided.DrArchanaPatil, jointdirectorinthePublicHealthDepartment,saidMaharashtraisallowing the drug’s use as an immunitybooster,likevitaminCtablets,butnotencour-aging it as aprophylactic. “There is no scien-tificevidencethatitworksasprophylactic.So,wearenotencouragingituniversallyforevery-one,”shesaid.Mumbai corporatorAlpa Jadhav remem-

bered seeing locals roamingaroundher areaoneday,althoughthelockdownwasineffect.“Theysaid theyhadtakenArsenicumalbum.Itwas scary; they believe thismedicine cansavethemfromcoronavirus.”

Concernswithin the fieldWithnoclinical trialor large-scalestudy

havingbeenundertakenanywheretoscien-tificallyvalidatetheuseofArsenicumalbum30 as a preventivemedication, themassivedemandhasworriedsomehomeopaths,too.DrVijayakarsaidtheirorganisationhaswrit-tentotheAyushMinistryaskingwhynotrialhasbeenconductedtoassessitsefficacybe-fore recommending it.TheAyushMinistryhas based its recom-

mendationonexistinguseofthemedicineforrespiratory illness and influenza. Severalhomeopathshavepointedoutthateachindi-vidualreactsdifferentlytohomeopathicmed-icinesandonemedicinecannotbeuniversallyheldasaprophylactic for all. “It canonlybeapartofthetreatment,ifatall,”saidDrBahubaliShah,ahomeopathypractitioner.

9WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

KAMAALSAIYEDSURAT,JUNE2

INTHEemptydiamondandtextilefactoriesof SuratCity, aCovid-19hotspotwith1,659cases and 73 deaths until Tuesday, lies athrowback to an earliermigrant exodus—duringtheplagueof1994.Today, 6.89 lakhmigrantworkers have

left Surat on431ShramikSpecial trains fortheirhomesinUttarPradesh,Odisha,Bihar,Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh. Another 1.71lakh have left by bus to various districtswithinGujarat. As the lockdown eases, in-dustriesarestrugglingtoreopenwithade-pletedworkforce.In September 1994when the plague

struck killing 49 persons, at least two lakhmigrant workers fromOdisha fled Surat,thenacityof25 lakhpeopleamongwhom1,391wereinfected.Then,too,factorieshad

struggledtoreopenaftertheplagueended.Andspecialtrainshadtobedeployed—buttobringbackmigrantworkers.

Plague and exodusTheChhabildasMehta-ledCongressgov-

ernmentwas inpower inGujaratwhile PVNarasimhaRaowasthePrimeMinisterintheCongress-ledcentralgovernment.ProfessorGhanshyamShah, thendirec-

torofCentre forSocialStudies inSurat,whohasresearchedtheplague,says,“Withsuchalargenumberofdeathsinjustfewdays,peo-plewerescared;thisledtomigration.Thosewhomigrated includedprivatepractitionerdoctors, engineers, textile businessmenofother states, andmost important... a largenumberof labourersworking in textile fac-tories.Themigrationofaround2lakhlabour-erswas from Surat to Odisha…After onemonththetransmissionwasbroughtundercontrol,cleaningactivitiesstarted,andslowly

thecitywasreturningtonormal.”Althoughthecitywasdisinfectedwithin

15daysoftheoutbreak,industriescouldnotreopen as their workforce was missing.Textile industry leaders including the lateArunJariwala(ex-chairmanofFederationofIndianArt SilkManufacturerAssociations),Surajram Bachkaniwala, BaghwandasJariwala, Vrajlal Dhamanwala, KamalTulsiyan, Jitubhai Vakharia and others ap-proached Surat City BJP president FakirChauhanforhelp.

Special trainsFakirChauhanrecalled,“WewenttoBJP

MPofSurat,thelateKashiramRana,andre-questedhishelptotraveltoOdishaandbringbackworkers.InthemeetingitwasdecidedthatadelegationofBJPledbyKashiramRanawould leave Surat forOdisha andmake anattempttobringbackthemigrantworkers.”Rana,accompaniedbyBJPslumcellpres-

ident Purshotam Tripathi (hailing fromOdisha), Abhimanyu Sahoo (general secre-tary of BJP slumcell and also fromOdisha),Surat City BJP vice-president PratapTamakuwala, and state BJP vice presidentArvindGodiwala, left inmid-October 1994forGanjamdistrict,hometomostofthemi-grantworkers inSurat.Sahoo,now65,theonlysurvivingmem-

ber of the delegation, himself hails fromGanjam. “Tripathi and I coordinatedwithcommunity leaders inGanjamdistrict.Ourteam stayed in Odisha for 15 days duringwhichwevisiteddifferenttalukas.Beforeourvisit, we had contacted village sarpanchesandlocalleaders...Wevisited30talukasandheldmeetingswith village heads and as-sured them that Surat City had returned tonormalcy.Wealsotoldthemthattheirjour-neybackwouldbefree.”RanasoughthelpfromMPsinOdishato

helpconvincetheworkers.Sahoosaid:“We

could talk to them inOdia and that helped.Everythingwentwell. At village level andtalukalevel,teamsnoteddownnamesofmi-grantworkerswillingtoreturn.WereturnedtoSurattomakearrangementsfortrains.”ChauhansaidBJPleadersmaderepresen-

tations to thestategovernmentwhileRanaapproached the central government, fortrains to bring back the workers. TheRailwayseventuallydeployed three specialtrainsdailyfromOdishatoSurat.Thetripwasfreefortheworkers.Fortendays,suchtrainswere run andmostmigrant workers re-turned to Surat. The industry resumedop-erationsbymid-December1994.

Then andnowPandesaraIndustrialCooperativeSociety

presidentKamalVijayTulsian,70,ownerofJ P Dyeing and Printing Mill, recalled:“Duringtheplague, theSurat textile indus-try had a largenumber of Odiaworkers, of

whomaround40-45%migrated.But todaydue to Covid-19, themigration is between65%and70%.Wehavestartedour factoriesbut are running only day shifts, with astrengthof 25workers against a total forceof 400.Wehavewitnessed both instancesof migration but this time it is critical as alargernumberofmigrantshave gonebackto their home states. We feel that like in1994,freetrainsshouldberunfromOdisha,UP, Biharetc, tobringback the workers af-ter thesituationbecomesnormal.”Industry sources said the textile indus-

tryemploysaround15 lakhmigrantwork-ers while the diamond industry employsaroundsixlakh. Unlikeearlier,todaythemi-grant workforce hails from a number ofstates — Rajasthan, UP, Bihar, Jharkhand,Uttarakhand, Odisha, Telangana andMaharashtra states. Themajority of thelabour force in the diamond factories hailfromSaurashtra inGujarat.

Debate over a homoeo drugSIMPLYPUT

TOTALRECALL

FollowinganAYUSHMinistryadvisory,severalstateshaverecommendedArsenicumalbum30asapreventiveagainstCovid,althoughthere isnoevidencethat itworks.Alookatthedrug,andthedebate

KABIRFIRAQUENEWDELHI, JUNE2

CANYOUkill thenovelcoronaviruswithul-traviolet light? Yes, you can, but the hurdlefor suchanapproach lies in findingadevicethatwouldemitsufficientamountsofultra-violetlightwhilebeing,atthesametime,en-ergy-efficientandportable.Now,researchershave reported that such a device is feasible—personal,handheld,andbuiltfromanewlydiscoveredclassofconductors.Theyhavere-ported their findings in the Nature GroupjournalPhysicsCommunications.

Ultraviolet lightInthebroadspectrumofelectromagnetic

radiation that comes from the sun, andwhich is transmitted inwaves or particles,visiblelightisjustoneofseveralregionsthataredefinedbasedonthewavelengthandfre-quency of these waves or particles.Whenthese regions are arranged according towavelength,ultravioletlightcomesbetweenvisible light and X-rays— that is, thewave-lengthofUVlight issmaller thanthatofvis-iblelightandgreaterthanthatofX-rays.Thewavelength of ultraviolet radiation is be-tween10nanometres and400nanometres

(1nanometre isabillionthpartof ametre).Ultraviolet radiation in the 200-300

nanometre range is known to destroy thevirus,makingitincapableofreproducingandinfecting, according to Pennsylvania StateUniversity, whichwas involved in the newresearch. Ultraviolet radiation is one of twomethodsforsanitisinganddisinfectingpub-lic spaces from bacteria and viruses — theotherbeingchemicals.Bothchemicalsandultraviolet radiation

aremeanttodisinfectpublicspacesonly,nothuman skin. As the World HealthOrganization points out: “Ultra-violet (UV)lampsshouldnotbeusedtodisinfecthands

orotherareasof yourskin.UVradiationcancauseskinirritationanddamageyoureyes.”

The hurdlesTo disinfect areas from the coronavirus

withUVradiation,oneneedssourcesthatemitsufficientlyhighdosesofUVlight.Suchdevicesdoexist, butasPennsylvaniaStateUniversitypoints out, these radiation sources are “typi-callyanexpensivemercury-containinggasdis-chargelamp,whichrequireshighpower,hasarelativelyshortlifetime,andisbulky”.ThesolutionistodevelopUVlight-emit-

tingdiodes(LEDs),whichwouldbeportableandenergy-efficient.Diodesare,simplyput,

specialised conductors that transmit elec-tricity in one direction. LEDs that emit UVlight, too, exist. But again, “applying a cur-renttothemforlightemissioniscomplicatedby the fact that the electrodematerial alsohas tobe transparent toUV light”.Thechallengewastofindsuchamaterial.

The solutionThePennsylvania StateUniversity team,

in collaboration with materials theoristsfrom the University of Minnesota, figuredthat the solution to this challenge could liein a recently discovered new class of trans-parentconductorsthatuseamaterialcalledstrontiumniobate. Indeed, theoretical pre-dictionspointed to thematerial.The researchers reachedout to Japanese

collaboratorstoobtainstrontiumniobatefilms,andtestedtheirperformanceasUVtranspar-entconductors.“Weimmediatelytriedtogrowthese films using the standard film-growthtechniquewidely adopted in industry, calledsputtering,Weweresuccessful,”JosephRoth,a doctoral candidate at Pennsylvania StateUniversity,saidinastatement.The researchers said this is a critical step

towardstechnologymaturationwhichmakesitpossibletointegratethisnewmaterialintoUVLEDsat lowcostandhighquantity.

In Surat, reminders of 1994 plague: worker exodus, empty units, spl trains

@ieExplained#ExpressExplainedIf there are questions of current or contemporary relevance that youwould likeexplained, pleasewrite to explained@indianexpress.comE EXPLAINED

THEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY, JUNE3,2020

TOP 10STATES

INDIA COUNT: 198,706 (5,598 DEATHS)

70,013Maharashtra

23,495Tamil Nadu

8,980Rajasthan

8,283MP

8,075 UP

20,834 Delhi

17,200Gujarat

5,772West Bengal

3,926Bihar

Have a question on the COVID-19 outbreak andwhat you should/should not do?

Write to explained@indianexpress.com

3,783Andhra Pradesh

UnionHealthMinistryupdateasof11pm,June2.Somestatesmayhavereportedhighernumbers.Onlystates/UTswithatleastonecaselistedabove.95,527PATIENTSDISCHARGEDIN33STATESANDUNIONTERRITORIES

RESTOFINDIAAndamanandNicobarIslands 33ArunachalPradesh 22Assam 1390Chandigarh 294Chhattisgarh 547DadarNagarHaveli 3Goa 71Haryana 2356HimachalPradesh 340JammuandKashmir 2601Jharkhand 659Karnataka 3408Kerala 1326Ladakh 77Manipur 83Meghalaya 27Mizoram 1Nagaland 43Odisha 2104Puducherry 74Punjab 2301Sikkim 1Telangana 2792Tripura 420Uttarakhand 958

ArsenicumAlbumisprescribedforvariouscommonillnesses. PradipDas

CORONAVIRUSDASHBOARD

205,147India

233,515Italy

183,879Germany

277,738United Kingdom

189,348France

239,932Spain

1,817,785US

526,447Brazil

170,039Peru

TOTAL CONFIRMED:6,318,040 DEATHCOUNT:376,885Source: JohnsHopkinsUniversity,updatedat11pmonJune2. JHU’sIndiatallyandHealth

Ministry’stally(below)maynotmatchastheseareaccountedatdifferenttimes.

THEWORLD423,186Russia

UV LIGHTDISINFECTION

CHEMICAL DISINFECTION

Public spacescanbedisinfectedwithchemicalsorUVlight.PennStateUniversity

Can a handheld device kill virus with UV light?

10WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

I CAN’T BREATHEDeathofGeorgeFloydmayormaynotbeaturningpoint forAmerica.Butprotests showwoundhascutdeeperandwider

IT IS 28 years since fourwhite police officerswere acquitted of beating RodneyKingtodeathinLosAngeles,triggeringraceriotsinseveralcitiesacrosstheUnitedStates. In thesenearly threedecades, theUShaschanged inmanyways,partic-ularly for the outsideworld. In a post-ColdWarworld order, it rose as the onlyglobal super power. As a victim of one of theworst acts of terrorism, it fought

warsonforeignshorestoprotectitself fromthosewhothreatenedthe“Americanwayoflife”,anddeclareditwouldreconstructthosecountriesthatborethebruntinitsownim-age, by taking to them its own “democratic values”. It policed theworld, pronouncingjudgementon the lackof freedoms in countries it didnot see eye toeyewith, threaten-ingthemwithsanctionsorworse.Throughitall,however, therewas,andthere is,muchto admire about America, its founding ideals, its freedoms and itswealth. Itmade newfriends, andnationsacross theworldwere flatteredwhen itbestowedonthemthe titleof ally. But as it changed, its deepest internal fault line remainedunhealed, anderuptedrepeatedly — Cincinnati, 2001; Ferguson, 2014; Baltimore, 2015; Charlotte, 2016 andcountless times inbetween.Eachracist incident,withitsattendantimpunity,wasawarningthattherewouldbea

GeorgeFloydwhowouldcomeupagainstapolicemannamedDerekChauvin.Theelec-tionof BarackObamaas the firstblackpresidentof theUnitedStates servedboth tohidetheuglypersistenceof racismaswellas toaggravate it to thepointwherea“whiteback-lash”handedover thekeysof theWhiteHouse toDonaldTrump.Nowbidding fora sec-ond term, President Trump,whose popularitymay be at a lowpoint for his botched re-sponsetotheCOVID-19pandemic,hasthoughtnothingofusingawhitesupremacisttrope—notthefirsttimehehasdonethis—toportraytheviolencesweepingthroughthecoun-tryasblack lawlessness inorder topolariseAmericans,andplaytohisownvoterbase.Themanner inwhichAmericanracismhasendured, subverting thecountry'sdeep-

estdemocraticinstitutionsintheprocess, itmaybetoooptimistictoviewthepresentmo-mentasa turningpoint.But it isnotwithoutaglimmerofhope.Notall theangererupt-ingacrossAmericantodayatthehorrificmannerinwhichFloyddied,helplesslypleadingtobeallowedtobreathe, is justblackanger. Theparticipation in theprotests showsthatthewoundhascutdeeperandwiderthistime,acrossraciallines.PerhapsevenonTrump’ssideof the fence, itmay turnout tobe theproverbial strawon thecamel's back that canforceAmericatoconfronttherealityof thedistanceithasstill tocover—tofulfil thepos-sibilitiesof itsownadmirabledemocratic ideals.

THE SLOWDOWNRatingdowngradebyMoody’sunderlinessombreeconomic

outlook, thepressingchallengeahead

INNOVEMBER 2017,Moody’s Investors Service had upgraded India’s rating toBaa2 on expectations that the then progress on reformswould, over time, en-hance India'sgrowthpotential. Ithadbelievedthat the“implementationofkeyreformswouldstrengthenthesovereign'screditprofilethroughagradualbutper-sistent improvement in economic, institutional and fiscal strength”. However,

as the country’s economic data indicates, these expectations have since beenbelied, asthe implementationof the reformshas been “relativelyweak”. Acknowledging this, onMonday,theratingagencydowngradedIndia’sforeign-currencyandlocal-currencylong-termissuer ratings toBaa3fromBaa2.While themarketsmaywellhave factored inthismove—Moody’sratingisnowinlinewiththatofbothStandard&Poor’sandFitch—thedowngrade,nonetheless, underlines thegrimeconomic reality.Theratingagencycitedmultiplereasonsto justify itsaction:Challenges inthe imple-

mentation of policies to help offset the risks of lowgrowth, deterioration in the generalgovernment fiscal position, and stress in the financial sector. It also emphasised that thedecisiontodowngradeIndiawasnotdrivenbytheimpactoftheCOVIDpandemic.Rather,thepandemic,andthenationallockdowntocontainitsspread,haveexacerbatedtheecon-omy’svulnerabilities,whichhadbeenbuildingupprior tothevirusshock.Thisviewis inlinewithwhattherecenteconomicdataindicates.EconomicactivityinIndiahasbeenonasteadydeclineoverthepastfewyears—slowingdownfrom7.1percentinthefirstquar-ter of 2018-19 to 3.1 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2019-20. These headline numbersmasktheunderlyingweaknessasgrowthiscurrentlybeingdrivenonlybyagricultureandgovernment spending. The situation is likely tohaveworsened in the first quarter of thecurrent financialyearwhenthefulleffectsof thenational lockdownplayedout.Asisevident,thelockdownisalsogoingtotakeatollongovernmentfinances.Moody’s

expects thegeneralgovernment(Centreandstates)debt torise from72percentofGDPin2019toaround84percentin2020.Whatisespeciallyworryingisthattheratingagencybelieves that the economywill struggle to recover, and that depressednominal growthwill inturnaffectthegovernment’sabilitytoloweritsdebtburden—itnotesthatIndia'sdebtburdencouldrisewellbeyond85percentofGDP.This isaworryingprognosis.Thedecisiontoretainthenegativeoutlookdoesleavethedooropenforfurtherratingactiondownthe line. It is alsoconceivable thatother ratingagencieswill followsuit.

NO, THANKSThewebinarhasbecomeubiquitousandannoying.

It’sokaynot toattend

HERE'STHETHINGabout “talks” thatweredeliveredat seminarsevenbefore thepandemichit. Theaudience—oftendisingenuouslycalledparticipants—was irrelevant. The ideawas to findagroupofpeople tohold forth to,usually there tobeseenrather than to listen,toaid theself-aggrandisementof thepanelists.Manyof those forced

into theseevents sawinCOVID-19asilver lining, apossible liberation.Unfortunately,theydidn't factor in the“webinar”.Aswithall idioticjargon,thewebinarhasbecomeubiquitous.Andlikeothertermsin

its class— “ideate”, “synergy”, “thought leader”— it has become increasingly devoid ofmeaningandexponentiallyannoying.HRdepartmentsacrosscompaniesinsistonsum-moning employees, afraid and uncertain of their economic future in light of the pan-demic, towaste their time listening to soliloquies on scintillating topics like “work-lifebalancewhenworkingfromhome”(thereisn'tone).EveryonehasaviewonhowtodealwithCOVID-19,anditseemslikeallof themwanttosummontheircolleagues, subordi-nates, friendsand family towatch themhold forth.Undernormal circumstances, back in thedaysof the seminar, itwaseasyenough to

makeanexcusetogetoutofgoing.Now,aspeoplearemoreorlesshousebound,honestyseemsliketheonlyrecourse.Yet,milddishonesty—thewhiteliesthatformthebedrockof excuses—arewhat keep the fabric of society, and social class, intact. After all, askinginane questions as people ideate around creating synergies is the essence of network-ing.Buttherearetoomanyvirtualpanelsandmeetingsproliferatingandtherearemuchbetterthingstobinge-watchontheinternetthanself-styled“thoughtleaders”.Theworldis incrisis.Next timeyou'reasked tosign in toawebinar, feel free tosayno.

Getting away with murder

AshutoshVarshney

It isnotsimplythedeathofablackman,butyetanothermomentof truthforAmerica

AMERICAISBURNINGagain: Inpart literally,asviolencebreaksout,copsandtheirvehiclesareattacked,andshopsandofficesaresetonfire; and inpart figuratively, asmassivenon-violentprotestssweepacrossdozensofcities.Asof thiswriting, at least75citieshave seenprotests.BlackAmericansareleadingtheag-itation, but the protests are unquestionablyinter-racial,withhugeparticipationofwhiteyouth.Ithasalreadybecomethemostmam-mothdisplayofangerandfrustrationagainstthe systemsince the 1960s,when anonvio-lentcivilrightsmovement,ledbyaMahatmaGandhi-inspiredMartin Luther King, con-vulsed thenation, leading to civil andvotingrightsforblackAmericans.AllofthisishappeningduringaCOVID-19

pandemic. The US has sufferedmore than1,00,000deaths, the largest anywhere,withblackpeopledyingdisproportionately.Asocialdistancing advisory is still in place, but thesense of injustice and revulsion against theMay25killingofGeorgeFloyd,ablackman,byDerek Chauvin, a white police officer, inMinneapolis,Minnesota,issogreatthatthou-sands, taking the risk of perilous infections,havecomeoutonthestreets.Invideosrecordedbybystandersontheir

cell phones, released on social media andwatchedbymillions, Chauvin, in police uni-form, is seen choking Floyd’s neckwith hiskneefornearlynineminutes.Floydisbeggingformercy—“please,please…Ican’tbreathe”—butChauvin, supportedbythreeotherpo-liceofficers,doesnotletgo.Anhourlater,Floydwaspronounceddead.So what is at stake?Why are somany

protesting?It is not simply the death of a blackman,

butyetanothermomentoftruthforAmerica’sconstitutional soul, a profoundly agonisingplunge into the nation’s foundingprinciplesand contradictions. A haunting question ofAmericanhistory has returned. In a countryclaiming to be the first in the world to befounded on equality, why have black livesbeensocheap?CanblackAmericanseverbetreatedwith equality anddignity, instead ofbeingbrutalised?Americawas bornwith the promise of

equalityandfreedom,apromiseenshrinedinits Constitution. But except for twoperiods,1865-1877and1964-65tillnow,blackAmericahasneverbeenlegallyequaltowhiteAmerica.

Rather,Americanpoliticsandlaws,formostofUShistory,haverepresentedwhatthepoliticalscientist Rogers Smith calls “the ascriptivewhitesuperiority”,manifestedin“passionatebeliefsthatAmerica…(is)awhitenation”.Consider the historical evidence.

AccordingtotheUSCensusBureau, in1790,ayearafter thebirthof theUSConstitution,19.3percentofAmericawasblack.Butnei-ther free nor equal, black Americans wereslaves. Owned by their white masters asproperty, they were bought and sold ascommodities inthemarket,enjoyingnocit-izenship rights.After the Civil War, in which at least

6,00,000 Americans were killed, the 13thConstitutional Amendment ended slaveryin 1865. And over the next five years, the14thand15thConstitutionalAmendmentsalso granted equal citizenship and votingrights to blacks. Between 1866 and 1876,blackvoterregistrationsoaredto85-90percent, andmany freed blacks held politicaloffice, not only in local governments butalso intheUSHouseofRepresentativesandUSSenate.This period of reform collapsed in 1877.

Thereafter,thesouthernstatestookawaythevotingrightsofmostblacks.Blackcivilrights,includingwheretheycouldlive,pray,eatanddrink,howtheycommutedandtraveled,wereracially reformulated. And in Plessy vs.Ferguson (1896), the SupremeCourt arguedthatblacksandwhites,beingraciallydissim-ilar,haddrasticallydifferenttraits,whichjus-tifiedracialsegregation.As if thiswasnotenough, the lynchingof

blackAmericans— for crossing racially per-missible boundaries of conduct— acquireddeadly proportions. “Lynchingsweremorethanexecutions,”writesthehistorianRichardWhite.“Theywerepublicspectaclesthatoftentook place before large crowds.Whitementortured blackmen, dismembering, castrat-ing,andburningthem.Photographersmemo-rialisedthemurders.Thephotographs,turnedintopostcards,soldwidely.”Afterdecadesofracialsubordination,these

inequitieswerelegallyremovedbetweenthemid-1950stomid-1960s.Butthelegalreformsnotwithstanding, economic gaps have re-mained awfullywide.Most of all, anti-blackviolencehasnotdisappeared.Lynchmobsdonot lynchwith abandon anymore, and old-

styleriotsandpogromshavealsodisappeared,butpoliceviolenceagainstAfricanAmericanshasbeenendemic,andblackincarcerationhasalarmingly increased.Blacksmakeup12percent of America today, but constitute 38percentoftheimprisonedpopulation.Criminalityis fartooeasilyassociatedwithblacks.Racial violence by a largelywhite police

force has also repeatedly gone unpunished.Policeunionshavebeenstrong,andprosecu-torsandjurieshaveoftengiventhebenefitofthedoubttopoliceofficers,acceptingtooread-ilytheirargumentsabouttheirlastminutede-cisiontopull thetrigger.In this interminable history of violence

andsuffering, the frightfulkillingofGeorgeFloydhasbecomea tippingpoint. ToquoteClaudine Gay, a leading scholar of US racerelations: “We have been here before, toomany times, and that familiarity is part oftheheartbreakandoutrageof thismoment.…we are confronted again by old hatredsand the enduring legacies of anti-blackracismand inequality.”Justwhereisthecountryheaded?Instead

of calming anxiety, President Trumphas in-tervenedinahugelypartisanandprovocativemanner.When the right-wingmilitia, bran-dishingguns,enteredMichigan’sstatelegisla-ture lastmonth, he called them “good peo-ple”.When some in the current agitationburned property, he called them “thugs’,threateningviolenceagainstallprotestors.Hedraws no distinction between the manypeacefulprotestorsandthefewviolentusersof theprotest.Afterarecentspeech inwhichhesaidhewouldusethemilitaryifstategov-ernmentsfailedto“dominatethestreets”,hewalkedtoachurchnext to theWhiteHouse,holdingtheBibleinhishand. Insteadofsooth-ing the grievingblack community, Trump ineffecthaslaunchedhisre-electioncampaignwiththeapparentcalculationthatracialpolar-isation, deepened by violence, and the sup-portofevangelicalChristianswillfacilitatehisre-election.GunsandtheBiblewilldefinetheelectioncampaign.TheUSseemstobeheadedforatoughand

violent summer. And thepandemic, insteadofwaning,mightalsojustrageon.

Thewriter isSolGoldmanProfessorofInternationalStudiesandProfessorofPoliticalScienceatBrownUniversity,Providence,USA

A haunting question ofAmerican history hasreturned. In a countryclaiming to be the first in theworld to be founded onequality, why have black livesbeen so cheap? Can blackAmericans ever be treatedwith equality and dignity,instead of beingbrutalised?America wasborn with the promise ofequality and freedom, apromise enshrined in itsConstitution. But except fortwo periods, 1865-1877 and1964-65 till now, blackAmerica has never beenlegally equal to whiteAmerica.

FOUNDED BY

RAMNATH GOENKA

B E C A U S E T H E T R U T H I N V O L V E S U S A L L

§ §

THEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY, JUNE3,2020 WORDLYWISERacism is amuchmoreclandestine...phenomenon, butatthe sametime it'sperhaps farmoreterrible.— ANGELA DAVISTHEEDITORIALPAGE

RaghunathMashelkar

A NEW FRONTIERSpace techstart-upsneedmoregovernmentnurturing, resources

ON MAY 16, Finance Minister NirmalaSitharaman announced a ground-breakinginitiativebyopeningupspaceandatomicen-ergy to private players, referring to themas“fellow travellers”. And, onMay 30, historywascreatedbySpaceXwhenNASAastronautswere launched into orbit by the first-evercommercially-built rocket and spacecraft.“NewSpace”isarapidlygrowingmarketthatwill beworthhundreds of billions of dollarsinthenextdecade.CanIndiatakeadvantage?Thewelcome reformsannouncedby the

FM include the levelling of the playing fieldfor private companies in satellites, launchesand space-based services by introducing apredictable policy and regulatory environ-menttoprivateplayersandprovidingaccessto geospatial data and facilities of the IndianSpaceResearchOrganisation(ISRO).Manydoorsofopportunityareopeningin

thissector.Reportedly,morethan17,000smallsatelliteswillbe launchedinLowEarthOrbitby2030. Exciting Indian space-tech startupsareemerginginthisarea.Forinstance,Prixxels,foundedbytwoBITS

Pilanigraduates, isbuildingaconstellationofnano-satellites to provide global, real-timeand affordable satellite imagery services.Bengaluru-basedstartup,BellatrixAerospaceoffers novel “electric propulsion” systems,whichhave applications in the field of nanoandmicro-satellitepropulsion.AndMumbai-

basedstartupManastuSpacehasdevelopeda“greenpropulsion”systemusinghydrogenperoxide as fuel. So,what canwedo to helpsuchyoung“co-travellers”?First,thecrucialissueoffunding.Wemust

trust and support early-stage innovationsthrough “adventure” capital, not just risk-averseventurecapital.Wealsoneed“patient”capital,astheleadtimesarelonginthissector.The government can be the provider of

such adventure andpatient capital. It did soin2000,whenweatCSIRlaunchedthe NewMillennium Indian Technology LeadershipInitiative. CSIR gave very low-interest softloans to early-stage startups,who exploredradical ideas.Afterproof of concept, other fi-nancial instruments, includingventurecapi-tal, became available. So, the public-privatepartnershipthattheFMisreferringtoshouldbeinfinancingtoo,not just indevelopment.Second, startups need ahead start in the

market and the current public procurementsystem is heavily loaded against them. Thelowest-cost-selectionapproachmustchangeto lowertotalcostofownership. PathAhead:Transformative Ideas for India, edited byAmitabhKant,carriesmychapteroncreatingan innovative public procurement policy forstartups.Perhaps, it isworthrevisiting.Third, we need to create a robust space

tech-startupnational innovation ecosystemcomprising incubators,accelerators, scalera-

torsandmentors.ISROhasapivotalroleinan-choring this initiative. Just as importantwillbe the synergywith the government’s flag-shipprogrammessuchasDigitalIndia,StartupIndia,MakeinIndia,SmartCitiesMission,etc.Fourth,weurgentlyneedalawthatallows

privateplayerstoparticipateacrossthespacevaluechain,notjustbitsof it,asisthecaseto-day.ThedraftSpaceActivitiesBill,introducedin2017, has lapsed. This is anopportunity torewrite itwithaboldperspective.Fifth, thenationneedsanewmantra.On

May26, in an interviewabout actioning therecent initiatives announced by the financeminister,ChiefofDefenceStaffGeneralBipinRawat,offeredit.Referringtotheprincipalideafrommy recent book on the subject, he saidthat wemust move our aspirations fromleapfrogging to pole vaulting. Can India polevaulttoa10percentshareoftheglobalspaceeconomywithinadecade?Yes, we can. PrimeMinister Narendra

Modi has given us an inspiring agenda ofAtmanirbharBharatAbhiyan.Toachievethis,we need “aatmavishwas”— self-belief, andtrust. Ifwebuildthisatmavishwaswithboldpolicies coupledwith determined actions,thenwecancertainlypolevaulttoagreatnewfuture,andsoonerratherthanlater.

Thewriter is formerDG,CouncilofScientific&IndustrialResearch

Bengaluru-based startup,Bellatrix Aerospace offersnovel “electric propulsion”systems, which hasapplications in the field ofnano and micro-satellitepropulsion. And Mumbai-based startup ManastuSpace has developed a “greenpropulsion” system usinghydrogen peroxide as fuel.So what can we do to helpsuch young “co-travellers”realise their fullpotential? Here is a five-point national agenda.

ASSAM MEDIATIONTOPGOVERNMENTOFFICIALSindicatedthatmediation efforts now underway for re-sumptionoftalkswiththeagitatingstudentsinAssamweremakingprogress,butsaidthatitwastooprematuretopredictanysuccess-ful outcome.Amediationproposal submit-ted by the Gandhi Peace Foundation emis-saries,BGVergheseandRadhakrishnan,wasbeing assiduously studied by the govern-ment and the student leaders, the officialssaid. Sources close to the government andthe agitation leaders hinted that themainhurdle lay in deciding the fate of foreignerswhoenteredAssambetween1961and1971.Therewas discord on the deportation of all

foreignerswhocameafter1971,theyadded.

CONG (I) VICTORYHAVINGSECUREDTWO-THIRDSmajorityinGujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh andOrissa, the Congress (I) was racing towardsasimilargoalinUttarPradesh.Ithadsecuredabsolutemajority inMaharashtra andwasleading other parties in Bihar, havingwon125 out of 244 seats, results for which hadbeen declared so far. The party has alreadywonabsolutemajorityinPunjab,bagging63out of a total of 117 seats. The Congress (I) ,however, failed in Tamil Nadu where theAIADMK-led alliancehadwona two-thirdsmajority inaHouseof 234.

MILITARY TAKEOVERSouth Korea's military rulers further for-malised their control of government affairsas a “standing committee” of generals andbureaucrats began to take shape as the realpower centre in Seoul. Lt-Gen Chun Doo-hwan,thecountry'sreigningmilitarystrong-man,hasbeendesignatedaschairmanofthenew body, which is expected to formulateand carry out most key policy decisions.Whenfinallyorganisedofficialsourcesaaid,the “standing committee” may be evenlarger — up to 30members— than the 25-member“specialcommitteefornationalse-curity measures” whose activities it istoguide.

JUNE 3, 1980, FORTYYEARSAGO

11THEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY, JUNE3,2020

WHATTHEOTHERSSAY‘‘The dispensation that currently rules India is averse to peace with Pakistanand will find even the slightest excuse to cut or limit ties with this country.’’

— DAWNTHE IDEASPAGEWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

According to the NationalInfrastructure Pipeline, theCentre’s budgetarycontribution toinfrastructure is estimated at1.25 per cent of GDP on anannual basis. This is lessthan 18 per cent of theestimated fiscal deficit of theCentre in 2020-21, indicatinga very poor quality of fiscaldeficit. One dimension ofexpenditure restructuringshould be to frontloadinfrastructure spending,including that on healthinfrastructure, therebytaking advantage of thehigher multiplier effectsassociated with capitalexpenditures. Investmentaugmentation is alsodemand supporting andemployment and incomegenerating.

The contours of recovery Shoring upIndo-Pacific

Covidcrisisurgesus todevelopregion’smultilateraldimension, focusonblueeconomy

andenvironmentalprotection

ATATIMEwhen the focusof the interna-tionalcommunity isonpublichealthandtheeconomicresponsetothecoronaviruspandemic— and rightly so—one shouldalsocontinuereflectingontheconceptofthe Indo-Pacific and see how it can bestserveregionalstabilityatatimeofheight-enedtensions. Itappearsthatournationalsecurity depends not only on traditionalsecuritypoliciesbut alsoonourability tofostermultilateralism aswell as the blueeconomy and environmental protection.These convictionswill continue to guideFrance’spolicy intheIndo-Pacific, inclosecoordinationwith India.Traditionalsecuritypolicies, including

theexchangeof informationandmilitarycooperation against traditional and non-traditional threats, have in no way losttheir relevance in a COVID-19world. Thecurrent crisishas, in fact, revealed theas-sertion of power politics. This is likely tohave a negative impact on territorial dis-putesandinternational law,as therecenttensions in the South China Sea haveshown. Moreover, the tensions betweentheUnitedStatesandChinahavebeenre-vived,accentuatingregional faultlinesandurgingcountries totakesides.Thiswouldgo against the objective of a multipolarAsia in amultipolarworld. In this tumul-tuouscontext,FranceandIndia,astwona-tions that cherish their strategic auton-omy, are committed to deepening theirpartnership. And they have actually up-graded their naval interoperabilitythroughtheorganisation,earlierthisyear,of the first-ever joint patrol off ReunionIsland and theMozambiqueChannel.Thatbeingsaid,ourpoliciesintheIndo-

Pacificmust be enriched by amultilateraldimension and an emphasis on the blueeconomyandenvironmentalprotection.Multilateralism, including in its re-

gional dimension, regionalism, is all themore necessary since the Indo-Pacific ischaracterisedbylimitedpolitical integra-tion,andmore intenselycompeting ideo-logical narratives in thewakeof thepub-lic health crisis. In these circumstances,multilateralism is a tool that can helpcountriesdefusetensionsandbuildcom-monunderstandingsof sharedchallenges.It is,moreover,anunequaledmechanismtopromoteinternationalnormsandprin-ciples and to facilitate their implementa-tion by increasing the cost of unilateralpolicies. It representsamultiplying—notundermining—factorofnationalpolicies.That iswhyjoiningandsupportingre-

gional organisations andmechanisms isa pillar of France’s Indo-Pacific strategy.France is a candidate for full-fledgedmembership of the IORA, it supports the

centrality of the ASEAN, and is commit-tedtoseizingtheopportunitiesofferedbyothermultilateral frameworks,suchastheAsia-EuropeMeeting,ortheIndianOceanNavalSymposium,whichFrance ischair-ing for a two-year term. Besides this,France welcomes the admission of Indiaas an observer in the Indian OceanCommission, decided in March 2020 bythe five-member sub-regional grouping,and sees it as an opportunity to increaseregional cooperation.Theblueeconomyandenvironmental

protection should also be at the centre ofour Indo-Pacific strategies. This was oneof the key messages of PresidentEmmanuel Macron at the “Choose LaRéunion Summit” on October 23, 2019,whichwasattendedbyIndia’sMinisterofState for External Affairs VMuraleedharan,andIndianbusinessrep-resentatives. This conviction is derivedfrom our diagnosis that inequalitieswithinsocieties,marginalisationof somecoastal populations, and vulnerability toclimatechangemaywellbeaggravatedinthe Indo-Pacific by short- and long-termfactors, rangingfromtheCOVID-19crisis,uncooperative appropriation of naturalresources, as well as climate change,which creates environmental insecurity.These factors have the potential to dam-age the social fabric of thepeople.Against this risk, protecting biodiver-

sity and promoting a sustainablemarineeconomy involves developing new eco-nomic sectors, facilitating local job cre-ation,preventingthepredationof certainprojects when necessary, and upgradingtheir resilience to climate change. Thiswould, for example, involve developingsustainable fishing industries thatbenefitthe local people and abide by the law.Thesearetruecomponentsofa long-termagenda for the Indo-Pacific and, to quoteMinister of External Affairs S Jaishankar,they demonstrate thatwe act “for some-thing andnot against somebody”. Franceis committed to working in this field insynergywith India’s Indo-Pacific OceansInitiative, including through further co-operation in the blue economy, buildingon its economic, scientific and academicassets inReunion Island.Asan illustrationof thisapproach, the

French Development Agency (AFD)signedaMemorandumofUnderstanding,in March with the Indian Ocean RimAssociation for “Strengthening theCapacities of IORA in Promoting the BlueEconomy and Fisheries Management”.The partnership will support the imple-mentation of the IORA Action Plan withan allocation of one million euros overthreeyears,offerexpertiseandtrainingtodecision-makers, as well as capacitybuilding for the IORASecretariat.Inconclusion, far fromquestioningthe

relevanceof the Indo-Pacificconcept, thecurrent crisis urges us rather to developits multilateral dimension and focus onblueeconomyandenvironmentalprotec-tion.Onlyonthisconditioncanweensureboth national security and shared stabil-ity in our region.

Thewriter is France’s ambassador to India

THEFIGHTAGAINSTthecoronavirusgoeson.Inthemeanwhile,theeconomicproblemsaremultiplying.With factories closedor nearlyclosed, workers arewithout jobs and pay.Stimulusorsimilareffortswillshowanimpactonlywhen factories resumework.Banks canprovidecreditonlywhenthewheelsof com-merceandindustrystartmoving.Theproblemofmigrantworkers,whomaybebetterreferredtoasguestworkers,canalsoberesolvedifpro-ductionofgoodsandservicesisresumed.Thentheirincentivetogohomewillbeweaker.Theabilitytohandletheproblemsonhand

will depend, among other factors, on thegrowthrateinthecurrentyear2020-21.ManyanalystshaverecentlypredictedacontractionfortheIndianeconomy.GoldmanSachs/ICRAandNomura,intheirrecentassessments,haveforecasted India’sgrowthtocontractby(-)5.0percentand(-)5.2percent,respectively.EventheRBIassessesthatgrowthinthecurrentyearmaybeinthenegativezonealthoughithasnotgiven a specific number.Wehad earlier as-sessedaGVAgrowthrateof2.9percentforthecurrent year. Thiswasbasedondividing thevarioussectorsof theeconomyintofourcate-gories.Thesecategoriesrangedfromthosemin-imallyaffectedtothoseseverelyaffected.Itwasassumedthatthelockdownwilllastforoneoroneandahalfmonths.Nowithasalreadyex-tendedbeyondtwomonths.Undertherevisedsetofcircumstances,theexpectedgrowthratemayneed tobebroughtdowncloser to2percent.TheWorldBankhaspredictedgrowthintherangeof1.5to2.8percent.InordertorelatebudgetarymagnitudestoGDP,wealsoneedanideaofthemagnitudeofnominalGDPgrowth.Inthecurrentyear,thisisexpectedtobeatleast4percentpointslessthantherateofgrowthat10percentasassumedinthe2020-21budget.Onemisunderstandingabout the “stimu-

lus”mustalsobecleared.Anyincreaseingov-ernmentexpenditureoverandabovethebaselevel acts as stimulus. This is the traditionalKeynesianapproach.Itmadenodistinctionbe-tweendifferenttypesofexpenditures.Itisonlylaterstudies thatmadeadistinctionbasedonthesizeoffiscalmultipliers.TheCentrehasalreadyannouncedan in-

creaseingrossborrowingfor2020-21fromINR7.8lakhcroretoRS12lakhcrore.Thismayleadtoa fiscaldeficitof about5.7 to5.8percentofGDP. Thismayonlybeenough toprovide fortheconsiderableshortfall in thebudgetedtaxandnon-taxrevenuesandnon-debtcapitalre-ceipts,whichisalsobeingestimatedbyanum-berof analysts tobe in therangeofRs18 lakhcrore,implyingashortfallofRs4.45lakhcrore.This shortfall is 2.08 per cent of GDP. TheCentre’sfiscaldeficitwillhavetobefurtherin-creased toaccommodate theadditional bur-denonthe2020-21budgetarisingonaccountofthestimuluspackage.Theseriesofmeasuresannouncedby the

FMareamixofalreadybudgetedexpenditure,additionalexpenditure,extensionofcreditfa-cilitywithgovernmentguarantee for certainselect sectors andahost of reformmeasuresthat are indeedwelcome. Perhaps, itwouldhavebeenuseful if amoreanalytical distinc-tion of expenditures had been given.

Analytically,theoverallstimuluspackageofRs20.97lakhcrorecanbedividedintoabudget-aryandanon-budgetarypart.Thenon-budg-etarypart,accountingfornearly85percentoftheoverallpackage,consistsmainlyofliquidityenhancingmeasures for banks andNBFCswhichmayfacilitatethefinancialsectorinplay-ing a key role to kickstart the economy. Thecreditguaranteeprovidedbythegovernmentunderthevariousschemesannouncedrecentlyisofcentral importanceinthiscontext. Infact,forcertainschemes,thegovernmenthascomeforward to provide 100per cent guarantee,whichshouldquickenthepaceofcreditsanc-tionanddeliverybybanks.Productionofgoodsandservicesisinter-relatedinaneconomicsys-tem.Onceproductionstarts, different sectorswillbemutuallysupportingsincedifferentin-dustriesandserviceprovidersarelockedinaninput-outputsystem.Thebudgetarypartamountsonlytoabout

15percentof theoverallpackage.Thiscanbefurtherdivided intogovernmentexpenditurewhichwas alreadybudgeted in the2020-21budgetandexpendituresconstitutinggenuineadditionality.The lattercomponent isonly10percentofthepackageequivalentto1percentofGDP.Addingthistotheenhancedlevelof5.7percentofGDP, theCentre’s fiscaldeficitmaybecloseto6.7-7percentofGDP.Thiswillmain-tain the level of budgetedexpenditurewhileproviding for the additional cost of the an-nouncedfiscalstimulus.Infact,thefiscaldeficitwillbeevenhigherif thecurrentyear’sGDPislowerthanthatofthepreviousyear.With thishigh fiscal deficit, the composi-

tionofgovernmentexpenditurebecomescrit-ical. Someof theestablishmentexpendituresandsubsidies,especiallythoselinkedtopetro-leumprices like fertiliser andpetroleumsub-sidies,maybe reducedwhileexpenditureonhealth-related itemsmaybe increased. ThecentralgovernmenthasannouncedfreezingofincrementsofDAanddearness relief compo-nents in the caseof salaries andpensions re-spectively. In fact, thegovernment shouldbedoingmuchmore to relieve theplightofmi-grantworkers. Thepicturesweseeare remi-niscentofPartition.Hungerneedstobefoughtasvigorouslyasthevirus.According to theNational Infrastructure

Pipeline, theCentre’s budgetary contributiontoinfrastructureisestimatedat1.25percentofGDPonanannualbasis.Thisislessthan18percentoftheestimatedfiscaldeficitoftheCentrein2020-21,indicatingaverypoorqualityoffis-cal deficit.Onedimensionof expenditure re-structuring shouldbe to frontload infrastruc-ture spending, including that on health

infrastructure,therebytakingadvantageofthehighermultipliereffectsassociatedwithcapi-talexpenditures. Investmentaugmentationisalsodemandsupportingandemploymentandincomegenerating.Supporttodemandwillcomenotonlyfrom

theCentrebutalsofromthestatesandthepub-lic sector undertakings. States havebeenal-lowed toborrowanadditional 2 per cent oftheirrespectiveGSDPssubjecttocertaincondi-tions.Infact,atthepresentjuncture,thesecon-ditionsarenotrequiredsincetheenhancementoftheborrowinglimitisforonetimewhilethereformslinkedtoconditionsarepermanentinnature. In any case, states shouldbeencour-agedtosupportdemandbygoinguptothefullextentoftheenhancedlimit.Inthisscenario,thecombinedfiscaldeficit

of theCentreandstatesalonemayamounttocloseto12percentofGDPin2020-21.Besides,thetotalpublicsectorborrowingalsoincludestheborrowingbycentralandstatepublicsec-torundertakings.Thus, the totalPublicSectorBorrowingRequirementmaywellexceedavail-able sourcesof financing consistingof the fi-nancial savingsof thehousehold sector, sav-ingsofthepublicsectorandnetcapitalinflows.In this context,monetisingdebthasbecomeunavoidable.TheCentremustbeforthcomingontheseissueswhilerecognisingthatextraor-dinary situations call for extraordinary solu-tions.Wemust consider the shape of the next

roundof reformswhichwouldpave thewayfor sustainedgrowth in thepost-COVIDera.However, in the case of reforms, we havereachedanewstage.General reformscuttingacrossindustriesandsectorshavebeencriticalin theearly stages. Theearlier regimeof con-trolsandpermitshadtobebroughttoaclose.Butnowreformshavetofocusonspecificsec-tors.Applyingthegeneralprinciplesofliberal-isationtosectorssuchasagricultureand,moreparticularly,agriculturalmarketing,powersec-tor, and telecomhaveassumed importance.Labourmarket reformsareneededacross allthe states. But labour reformsare introducedbetterwhen theeconomy is in theupswing.Consensusbuildingiscriticalbeforeintroduc-ing labour reforms. Landmarketsneed tobefreedupconsistentwiththeconcernsofsmallandmarginalfarmers.

RangarajanisformerChairman,PrimeMinister’sEconomicAdvisoryCouncilandFormerGovernor,ReserveBankofIndia.

SrivastavaisChiefPolicyAdvisor,EYIndiaandformerDirectorMadrasSchoolofEconomics.

Viewsarepersonal

PHONEY SENTINELS

THIS REFERS TO the article, ’AnAmerican tragedy’(IE, June 2). Thetragedy of American politics is that itsactors try to show themselves as sen-tinels of equality, freedom of speech,libertyanddemocracy.Yet, theseprin-ciplesareeasilyabandonedwhentheirpolitical interests are jeopardised as aresultof their actions.

TarsemSingh,Mahilpur

OTHER SYMPTOMSTHIS REFERS TO the editorial, ‘Unlockwithcare’(IE,June2).Caution,ofcourse,istheneedof thehourasthelockdowniseased.Butequallyimportantistoad-dress the growing stigma aroundCOVID-19 and to stop theuse of termslike “social distancing”, which in thecontextof India, carries veryproblem-atic—socialdistanceistherootofcasteprejudice.

BishwadeepChatterjee,Delhi

COURT’S TESTTHIS REFERS TO the editorial, ‘Judgingwisely in tough times’ (IE, June 2).Extraordinary times demand extraor-dinary courage andwisdom from theguardiansofourConstitution.Thecourthas to exercise restraint but that re-straint shouldn't be so tight as to pre-vent the judiciary from exercising itsmain functions. After all, in testing

times,wewill come toknowif it is theSupremeCourtof IndiaortheSupremeCourt for Indians.

DivyaSingla,Patiala

TALK IT OUTTHIS REFERS TO the article ‘Interestbasedandnotspecial interest’ (IE, June2). Over the years, anti-Indianism haspercolated deep in Nepalese societyand has become a rallying point formany political forces to consolidatetheirelectoralgains.Regainingthe losttrust would require intensive engage-mentanddialogue.

TusharChaudhary,Meerut

LETTER TO THEEDITOR

THEPEOPLEOFDelhiandbeyondoweahugedebt of love and respect to an architectwhowasaloveroflife,people,andtheaestheticsofpublicspaces.PradeepSachdeva,whopassedaway on Sunday, had takenDelhi, its build-ings,itspathwaysandparks,streets,andmar-ketplaces tohis heart.Hegently encouragedcitizenstorespectandhonourtheirsurround-ingsbyoffering themsomethingbetter thanthe general squalor inmost public environ-ments.Thearrivalofaclean,gleamingmetrosystem stopped passengers from shouting,spitting,eating,andsullyingthestationsandcompartmentsbecauseitwaspresentedasamuch-improvedfacilityfortheuseofpeople.Pradeephaddecidedhewoulddedicatehim-self to cultivating a similar attitude amongstpeople towards asmanypublic spaces as hecould.Hediddesignprivatehousesand lux-uryspotsliketheSamoderesortinRajasthan,buthisheartwassetonprojectsforthelargergood.Wehappenedtomeet in theearly1990s,

whenDilliHaatwasbrewinginmyheadasaconceptheadingtowardsrealisation.Thisde-velopedintooneofthemostvaluablefriend-shipsanyonecouldwishfor.Wefeltinstantlycomfortablewitheachother’sapproachesandvaluesystemsandsharedthespiritofservicebeforeself.Acraftsmarketplacewasthusde-

signedonthelinesofaruralweekly—ordaily—market,comfortableandunobtrusive.Itwasprimarily planned as a space that kept thecraftspersons’needsandinterestsasitsprior-itywhilebeingalargeaestheticpublicspace.Nothing like this had been tried before. DilliHaatwastobebuiltoverastormwaterdrain,and therewas joint triumphwhen itwas in-augurated onMarch 28, 1994. ItwasDelhi’sfirstspaceforshoppingforhand-madetreas-uresdirectlyfromthemakersthatcombinedopen-airbutseatedeatingspaces.Therewerealso spaces for cultural events andpleasant,safesurroundingsthathadacalmingimpact.Theatmosphereenabledtheincomeofru-

ralcraftspeopletoriseexponentiallyovertheyearsandeveryone,frominfantstoeldersonwheelchairs, enjoyed theDilli Haat experi-ence. Itbecamea“coolplacetohangout” forall generations. Pradeepwas particularlyproudofbeingoneofthefirstarchitectsinthecountrytoprovidearampforthephysically-challenge,forwhich,amongotherthings,DilliHaatgot thePATATourismaward.Materials,design sensibilities, signage andmanyotheraspects of Dilli Haatwere Indian and local.Later,alsowithDelhiTourism,PradeepaddedanelegantbutsimplemuseumatoneendofthehaattohonourAPJAbdulKalam.Lastyear,we prepared and presented a plan for Dilli

Haat’s renovation at the behest of Delhi’sDeputyChiefMinister,ManishSisodia.Delhi TourismacknowledgedSachdeva’s

honesty, sincerity and talent. He created theGardenofFiveSensesatSaid-ul-AjaibneartheQutubMinar. It included huge ceramic andterracotta craft installations. Delhi saw con-temporarypublicartforthefirsttime.Heim-proved pavements and other sections ofConnaughtPlaceaestheticallyandwaswork-ingonthegiganticandambitioustaskofre-or-deringandpedestrianisingthecentralspineofChandniChowk.Pradeepwasthemostgenial,welcoming,

and generous friend to allwhomet him.Henever said no to anyone seeking assistance,andneversaidanunkindwordagainstthosewhotroubledhimdeeply. Itwasparticularlyagonisingtowatchhispain,strugglingtoworkontheChandniChowkprojectfacingendlessgovernmentmeetings and court cases filedbyconservationarchitectswhoseargumentshecouldnotunderstand.Heonlysaid,“It’ssopainful, Jaya because these people aremyfriends, but they don’t understand the reali-tiesoftoday”.Hislastreferenceonthisprojectto me was that they had progressed farenough for us to nowwork together on ourplantohandpaintandupgradetherickshawsintheareasotheywouldbecomeacomfort-

able transport system in the small lanes, butwith the added attraction of flaunting tradi-tionalartists’worksdepictingDelhi.Creating beautifully hand-crafted furni-

turewas Pradeep’s accompanying passion.They are always on display at his calm andwelcomingPDSAshowroomandworkplaceatAyanagar inSouthDelhi.Despitehisdedicationtothedevelopment

ofbetterurbanspaces,helovedsmallprojectsinthehillsordistantvillages.Anardentgiverofhand-craftedwoodengiftsonDiwalimadeat hisworkshop, he once sent us a note say-ing, “There is this small school for rural kidswehavebuilt. Itneedssupport.Doyoumindif Iuse themoney I spendonsendinggifts tofriendstowardstheschoolinsteadandcountitasifit’sfromyou?”.Whocouldhavethoughtof suchabeautifulwayofnotgivingagift!Artisans,streetchildren,themosaicmistri

whodecoratedtheareasaroundthePM’sres-idence,mentors and students, all lovedhimequally, for his imagination, innovative aes-thetics,humour,smile,andaboveall,anhon-estcommitmenttohisprofessionandfriends.Thegracewithwhichhe livedand shared inhisworkwillnowbeembracedbythegreat-estpublicspaceofall—theinfinitecosmos.

Thewriter is formerpresident,SamataParty

PradeepSachdevanudgedcapital’scitizenstorespecttheirsurroundings

Creator of graceful spacesJaya Jaitly

IDEASONLINE

ONLY IN THE EXPRESS

●●SG’SOUTBURST:REKHASHARMA

●●LESSONSFROMTELANGANA:DIYAUDAYAND

BHARGAVIZAVERI

www.indianexpress.com

Emmanuel Lenain

C. Rangarajan,D.K. Srivastava

CR Sasikumar

Centremustbe forthcoming,while recognisingthatextraordinarysituationscallforextraordinarysolutions.Now, reformshaveto focusonspecific sectors

12THEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY, JUNE3,2020

THEWORLDWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

USA

Bidenlookstoformallyclinchnominationas7states,DCvoteMontclair: Joe Bidencould seize the numberof delegates needed toformally clinch theDemocrats' presidentialnomination on Tuesdayas seven states and theDistrict of Columbiapush through a pan-demic and explodingracial tensions to hostthe largest slate of pri-maryelections inalmostthreemonths.Voterswillbeaskedtonavigatecur-fews, health concernsand a sharp increase inmail balloting as elec-tions take place fromMaryland to Montana.Four states were origi-nally scheduled to voteinAprilbutdelayedtheircontests because of thecoronavirus outbreak.

TOPOFTHEWORLD

FRANCE

Pariscafes,restaurantspartiallyreopenParis:Parisianswhohavebeen cooped up formonths with takeoutfood and coffee will beable to savor their steakstartareinthefreshairandcobbled streets of theCityofLightoncemore—albeit in smaller num-bers. The city, famed forits vibrant cafe societyand coffee culture, willget some of its pre-lock-down life back as cafesand restaurants partiallyreopen Tuesday. TheParisCityHallauthorisedthe opening of outsideseatingareas,butindoorswillremainclosedtocus-tomersuntilat least June22.Dampeningthemoodof new freedom, socialdistancing of onemeterbetween tables will beobligatoryanddrasticallyreduce thenumbers.

JAPAN

Tokyoissuesalertamidfearof2ndviruswaveTokyo: The governor ofTokyohas issueda coro-navirus alert for theJapanese capital amidworries of a resurgenceof infectionsonlyaweekafter a state of emer-gency ended. GovernorYuriko Koike issued a“Tokyoalert”onTuesdayafter 34 new caseswereconfirmed in the city,where confirmed infec-tions had slowed to afew per day in late May.Koike said: “The alert isto precisely inform thepeople of the status ofinfections and to advisecaution.”

THENEWYORKTIMESJUNE2

STORES ALONG some ofManhattan’smost prized shop-pingstreetswereransacked,bro-ken glass littered Fifth Avenue,and boarded-up windows atMacy’sflagshipstoretestifiedtothelootingofthenightbefore.InLos Angeles, residents werewarned overnight to avoidHollywood because of looting“on footandviacaravans.”AcrosstheUS,policearrested

hundredsofpeople,andscoresofprotesters and officers reportedbeinginjuredinclashes.Thatwashow a seventh day of largelypeacefulprotestsoverthedeathof George Floyddescended intoanother night of chaosmarkedbyviolenceanddestruction.Anationthatwasalreadyreel-

ing from a pandemic that hasclaimedmorethan100,000lives,sent the economy into a tailspinnot seen since the GreatDepressionandforcedmillionstoshelterathomeformonthsisnowconfrontingthemostwidespreadcivilunrestinhalfacentury.Therewere reports of more

than six police officers shot andinjured in incidents around thecountry overnight, including

four officers in St. Louis. Scoresmoreofficerswereinjuredwhendrivers plowed into their ranks,with some of the violence cap-

turedonvideo.

Protesters teargassedfor Trumpphoto op

USPresidentDonaldTrump,in his first extended public re-marksontheunrest,threatenedtodeploythemilitaryifstateandcity officials did not quash thelootingandotherviolence.Hisdeclaration, anextraordi-

nary exertionof federal powers,cameasthepoliceusedteargastodispersepeacefulprotesterssothePresident could visit a nearbychurchandposeforphotographswithaBible.Washington’smayorcalledthe

use of force “shameful,” andBishopMariannEdgar Buddeofthe Episcopal Diocese ofWashington said shewas “out-raged” thePresidenthadgone tothechurch“afterhethreatenedtobasicallyraindownmilitaryforce.”Democraticpresidential can-

didate Joe Biden on TuesdayvowedinaspeechtotrytohealtheracialdivideintheUSandblastedTrump’sresponsetotheprotests.Speaking in Philadelphia – a

cityrockedbysometimesviolentdemonstrationsinrecentdays–theformervicepresidentsoughttodrawavividcontrastbetweenhimself and Trump, whom hewill face in the Nov. 3 generalelection. “The country is cryingout for leadership, leadershipthat can unite us,” Biden said inhis firstmajoraddress inweeks.

THEASSOCIATEDPRESSJUNE2

THROUGHOUT JANUARY, theWorldHealthOrganisationpub-licly praised China for what itcalled a speedy response to thenew coronavirus. It repeatedlythanked the Chinese govern-ment for sharing the geneticmapof thevirus“immediately,”and said its work and commit-menttotransparencywere“veryimpressive,andbeyondwords.”Butbehindthescenes, itwas

a much different story, one ofsignificant delays by China andconsiderable frustrationamongWHO officials over not gettingthe information they needed tofight the spread of the deadlyvirus, The Associated Press hasfound.Despitetheplaudits,Chinain

fact sat on releasing the geneticmap, or genome, of the virus formorethanaweekafterthreedif-ferentgovernmentlabshadfullydecoded the information. Tightcontrolsoninformationandcom-petitionwithintheChinesepub-lic health systemwere toblame,accordingtodozensofinterviewsandinternaldocuments.Chinese government labs

only released the genome afteranotherlabpublisheditaheadofauthorities on a virologistweb-site on Jan. 11. Even then, Chinastalled for at least two weeksmore on providingWHOwithdetailed data on patients andcases,accordingtorecordingsofinternalmeetingsheldbytheUNhealth agency through January— all at a time when the out-breakarguablymighthavebeendramatically slowed.WHO officials were lauding

China in public because they

wanted to coaxmore informa-tion out of the government, therecordings obtained by the APsuggest. Privately, they com-plainedinmeetingstheweekofJan.6thatChinawasnotsharingenoughdatatoassesshoweffec-tively the virus spread betweenpeople or what risk it posed tothe rest of the world, costingvaluable time.“We’re going on verymini-

malinformation,”saidAmericanepidemiologist Maria VanKerkhove,nowWHO’stechnicallead for COVID-19, in one inter-nal meeting. “It’s clearly notenough for you to do properplanning.”

SAJJADHUSSAINISLAMABAD, JUNE2

CHINAUNDERthemulti-billion-dollar CPECwill set up a 1,124-megawatt power project inPakistan-occupiedKashmir de-spite India’s objection to it, ac-cording to a media report onTuesday.Thedetails of theKohalahy-

dropowerprojectwaspresentedin the 127th meeting of thePrivatePowerandInfrastructureBoard (PPIB) chaired by EnergyMinisterOmarAyubonMonday.TheExpress Tribune reported

that themeetingwas informedthat a tripartite agreement hasbeen finalised among China'sThree Gorges Corporation, theauthoritiesinPakistan-occupiedKashmir (PoK) and the PPIB toimplementthe1,124-megawattKohala hydroelectric powerproject under the China-

Pakistan Economic Corridor(CPEC) framework.The project will be built on

theJhelumRiverandaimsatan-nuallyprovidingmore than fivebillion units of clean and low-costelectricity forconsumers inPakistan.The paper further reported

thatthismarksoneofthelargestinvestmentsof $2.4billion inanindependentpowerproducerinthe region.The 3,000-km-long CEPC is

aimed at connecting China andPakistanwithrail,road,pipelinesandopticalcablefibernetworks.ItconnectsChina’sXinjiangwithPakistanGwadarport,providingaccesstoChinatotheArabianSea.Last month, India had

protestedPakistan’sawardingofamega contract to build a daminGilgit-Baltistan, sayingcarry-ing out of suchprojects in terri-toriesunderPakistan’sillegaloc-cupationwasnotproper.PTI

LORNECOOK&RICKRYCROFTBRUSSELS, JUNE2

WORLD OUTRAGE at GeorgeFloyd’sdeathintheUSwasgrow-ing Tuesday as the EuropeanUnion’stopdiplomatsaidtheblocwas“shockedandappalled”byitand thousands marched inAustralia’s largestcity.In France, protests were

planned for theevening inParisandacrossthecountryaftercallsfromthefamilyofaFrenchblackmanwho died shortly after hewasarrestedbypolicein2016.Aprotestwas alsoplanned inTheHague,Netherlands.

Floyddied lastweekafterhewaspinned to thepavementbya white police officer inMinneapolis who put his kneeon the handcuffed blackman’sneckuntilhestoppedbreathing.His death set off protests thatspreadacrossAmerica.EU foreignpolicychief Josep

Borrell’s remarks in Brusselswerethestrongestsofartocomeoutof the27-nationbloc,sayingFloyd’s deathwas a result of anabuseof power.Borrell told reporters that

“like the people of the UnitedStates, we are shocked and ap-palled by the death of GeorgeFloyd.” He underlined thatEuropeans “support the right to

peaceful protest, and also wecondemnviolenceandracismofanykind,andforsure,wecallforade-escalationof tensions.”Protesters around theworld

have expressed solidarity withAmericans demonstratingagainstFloyd’sdeath.Thousandsmarchedthrough

downtownSydney on Tuesday.Theprotesters,whoappeared tonumber around3,000,marchedfromHydeParktotheNewSouthWales state Parliament, withplans to continue to the USConsulate.Around2,000demon-strators also gathered in the cityofPerthonMondaynight.AP

GEORGEFLOYDPROTESTS

Duringaprotest inStLouis,Missouri.Reuters

Hundredsheld, scoresof protestersandpolice injured;BidenslamsPresident

TrumpwalkspastgraffitiduringatovisitSt. John’sEpiscopalChurchacross fromtheWhiteHouse.Reuters

CNN’sChristianeAmanpourinterviewsHoustonpolicechiefArtAcevedo

Houston policechief’s advice toTrump: Keepyour mouth shut

AGENCIESJUNE2

IN A clip of an interview thathas since been widely sharedon social media, the city ofHouston’spolicechief criticisedUSPresidentDonaldTrumpforhis handling of the ongoingprotests over the killing ofGeorge Floyd and advised himto “keephismouth shut”.In an interview with CNN

anchor Christiane Amanpour,Art Acevedo was asked to re-spond to a leaked call fromTrump to state governors inwhichheurged themto“dom-inate” over ongoing protests.“Let me just say this to the

President of the United States,onbehalf of thepolicechiefsofthis country: please, if youdon’t have something con-structive to say, keep yourmouth shut,” Acevedo said.The police chief said that it

wasn’t about dominance, asTrumphadsuggested,butaboutwinninghearts andminds.He requested the President

not to put young people’s livesat risk.Asprotests and incidentsof

looting were reported fromseveral parts of the country,Trump threatened to deploythe US military if the statesfail to contain unruly demon-strations.GeorgeFloyd, a46-year-old

African-Americanwaskilledon25May after he was pinned atthe neck by a Minneapolispolice officer.

World outrage grows;EU ‘shocked, appalled’

Ataprotest rally inPerth,Australia,Monday.AP

Beijing: The Chinese cityof Wuhan, where thenovel coronavirus out-break first emerged,found no new cases ofCOVID-19 and 300asymptomaticcarriersaf-ter testingmost of its 11million residents, cityof-ficials said on Tuesday.Authorities launched theambitious,city-widetest-ingcampaignonMay14,and reached 9.9millionpeople, after a cluster ofnewcasesraisedfearsofasecond wave of infec-tions. But they found nonew cases of COVID-19,thediseasecausedbythecoronavirus in the cam-paign, that ranuntil June1,officialssaid.REUTERS

China’s Wuhanfinds no newCovid-19 cases

TedrosAdhanom,directorgeneralof theWHO,withChinesePresidentXi JinpinginBeijinginJanuary.AP

Under CPEC, China tobuild 1,124-megawattpower project in PoK

IF THE APP FINDS THAT QUARANTINED PATIENTS HAVE LEFT THEIR HOMES, THEY ARE AUTOMATICALLY FINED AROUND $56 EACH TIME

Russia’s coronavirus-tracking app angers thousands in Moscow with finesDARIALITVINOVAMOSCOW,JUNE2

WHENNURSEMariaAlexeyevacaughtcoronavirusatwork,sheisolatedherself athomeandfol-lowed the rules set down byMoscow authorities: Shechecked in with doctors regu-larly,didn’t leaveherapartmentanddownloadedasmartphoneapprequiredbythecity tokeeptabs onquarantinedpatients.The Social Monitoring app

tracks users via GPS and sendsthemrandomnotifications de-manding a selfie to provethey’restillathome. If itdetectsthey’ve left homeor they fail toprovideaphoto, theyfacea fineof about $56 each time.But soon the app became a

nightmare for Alexeyeva. Itcrashedwhen she tried to takea photo.Weakwith illness, shestruggledwith thesoftware fordays, sometimes on hold forhours with technical support.And when her quarantine

ended, she discovered she hadaccumulated 11 fines totaling$620.“That’s more than my

monthlywage,”Alexeyeva toldTheAssociatedPress. “Thisquar-antine has been hard on me.AndnowIhavetodealwiththison topof it.”Thousands of Muscovites

also complain they have beenwrongfully finedbythequaran-tine app. In slightly over amonth,authorities issuedsome54,000fines, totaling$3million

among its nearly 70,000 regis-teredusers.Authorities insist the fines

were justified, issued to thosewho repeatedly violated quar-antine. But the app’s users sayit has glitches and flaws, some-times demanding selfies in themiddle of the night, addingthat the fines were dished outarbitrarily.Moscow has been Russia’s

biggesthotspotduringthepan-demic, recording nearly half ofthe country’s more than

414,000 cases. As the city of 12million struggled to containthe outbreak, it used technol-ogythat laterdrewwidespreadcriticism.After two virus cases were

reported in February, MayorSergei Sobyanin authorised fa-cial recognition software totrack Chinese citizens in thecapital, drawing complaintsfrom rights groups. When thecity introduced digital passesfor commuters in April, tightlypackedcrowdsformedatMetro

stations as police checkedsmartphones individually.But the biggest complaints

focus on the Social Monitoringapp, which was rolled out inearly April andwasmandatoryforthoseinfectedwiththevirusor suspectedof having it.Patients had to sign a form

requiringthemtoinstall theappaspartof theirquarantinenoti-fications, although they saidthey were not told how to usethe app orwhat actionswouldlead to fines.AP

TheSocialMonitoringappisdesignedtotrackMoscow'squarantinedCovid-19patientsandwasrolledout inApril

Trumpcould invokeInsurrectionAct

AUSPresidentde-ploying themilitaryonto thestreetsofAmericancities is arareoccurrence,but itdoeshaveprecedentandcanbedonesoby the invocationof the InsurrectionAct. TheAct,whichhas itsorigins intheearly1800s, allows the

President todeploythemilitary toquelldomestic insurrec-tionsevenwithout theconsentof thegover-

norof thestate inwhichtroopsare tobedeployed. Ithasbeensparinglyusedsince the1960s, andwas lastused in1992.

China delayedreleasing virus info,WHO papers show

Trump threatens to deploymilitaryon streets as tumult gripsUScities

Acquitted Of Stealing State SecretsZARIF: IRANIAN ‘HOSTAGE’LEAVESUSAnIranianprofessorimprisonedintheUSafterbeingacquittedofsteal-ingtradesecrets isonhiswayhome,Iran’sForeignMinisterJavadZarifsaid.“Goodnews.DrSirousAsgari is intheaironaflightbacktoIran...,”saidZarif,whohadearlierdescribedAsgariasahostageheldbytheUS.

SENSEX: 33,825.53 ▲ 522.01 NIFTY: 9,979.10 ▲ 152.95 NIKKEI: 22,325.61 ▲ 263.22 HANG SENG: 23,995.94 ▲ 263.42 FTSE: 6,232.06▲ 65.64 DAX: 12,019.72 ▼ 432.87

THEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY, JUNE3,2020

ECONOMYWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

Internationalmarketdatatill1900IST

RUPEE`75.36

OIL$39.36

Brentcrudeasof1800IST

AASHISHARYANNEWDELHI,JUNE2

NEARLY A week after theMinistry of Electronics andInformation Technology(MeitY) released the sourcecodeforAarogyaSetuapponcodesourcesharingplatformGitHub, software developersand cyber-security expertshaveallegedthatthegovern-mentwas not responding tothe changes being suggestedbythemontheplatform.“Tillnow,developershave

not been able to access thecode and there have beenmore than100pull requests,which denote that there ishuge interest in understand-ing theworking of the app.Thereisnoactiveengagementfrom owners of the app,”KazimRizvi,founderofpolicythink-tankTheDialogue,said.The government, how-

ever, said changes suggestedby the software developersmust follow the correctprocess for it to be accepted,and that just suggesting thechangeonGitHubwasnottherightprocedure.“Youhavetoreadtheguidelinesofthebugbounty programalongwiththe GitHub link.Whateversuggestionsaregiven,theyareexamined by the technicalteam as towhich have to beaccepted, and then it is builtin. They have to submitchangesinthewayithasbeenprescribed inthebugbountyprogram,”MeitY spokesper-son and CEO of MyGov,AbhishekSingh,said.Someof thesoftwarede-

velopers The Indian Expresstalked to also claimed thatthe code uploaded to theopensourcerepositoryisdif-ferentfromtheonelivecoderunning the app on GooglePlaystore.“It is not the same code.

PlayStoreisrunning1.1.3ver-sion,this(theoneonGitHub)is running 1.2.0, which is aversionforthefuture.Wecanalso see that frompast com-mits that some of the func-tionalities have either beenremovedorchanged,includ-ing for example, the PMCares- UPI integration, fromthe released code,” AnivarAravind, founder-executivedirectorof IndicProject,who

has also analysed the codesonGitHub,said.The government had on

May 27 released the sourcecodeofitscontacttracingappAarogyaSetuandannouncedcashprizesforthosewhofindabugorvulnerability init.Whenaskedaboutthede-

lay inreleasingthecodeaftersignificant calls from India’sdeveloper community, ITSecretary Ajay PrakashSawhney told The IndianExpress:“Eventhebestdevel-opers don’t document theircodewhen they are rushingtomake it functional. Now,they have properly cleanedthecode.Weevenplantore-lease the code for the serverfunction so that other coun-triescanpickitupandusethisappintheircountryaswell.”Software developers,

however, argue that sinceMay 27, there has been noengagement from the gov-ernment’ssideorfromanyofthe volunteers who wrotethecode.“When youmake an app

or code open source, youmake your code repositorypublicly accessible via serv-ices likeGitHubandtheidealpractice is that all the pushandpull functions aswell aschangesaremade fromfromthat repository, so that allchangesareloggedandevery-one can monitor thosechanges. It seems that thegovernment is keepingapri-vate repository,hascreatedacopyof itandmadethesamepublic,” a Chennai-based cy-ber-securityexpertsaid.Pushandpullrequestsare

featuresonGitHubwhichal-lowssoftwaredevelopersandtheownerofthecodetointer-actwith each other and takenote of the various changessuggestedinthesourcecode.AccordingtoGitHub,apullre-questallowsadevelopertoletothers,includingtheownerofthecodeknowthattheyhavesuggested certain changes inthecoderepository.AsofMonday, therewere

122 pending pull requestsmadebysoftwaredevelopersto the code, and asmany as235major andminor issueshad been flagged. There hadbeenno action taken on anyof the issues on the publicrepository.

COVID-19WATCHAAROGYA SETU

Open source code:Experts, IT Ministryspar over suggestionson changes & process

Importers move SC on violation ofgovt norms pertaining to port charges

Moody’s cuts ratings of severalfirms, including TCS, HDFC BankENSECONOMICBUREAUMUMBAI,JUNE2

MOODY’S INVESTORSServiceonTuesdaycut ratingsof eightnon-financial companies, includingInfosys, TCS, ONGC, and threebanksSBI,HDFCBankandEXIM.It alsodowngradedseven Indianinfrastructure issuers, includingNTPC,NHAI,GAILandAdaniGreenEnergyRestrictedGroup, byonenotch. Issuer ratings of IRFCandHUDCOhavebeenlowered.Moody’s said the economic

disruption causedby the coron-aviruspandemic and thedown-

gradeof the sovereign ratingarethekeydrivers for Tuesday’s rat-ingactions.On Monday, Moody’s had

downgradedIndia’ssovereignrat-ingforthefirsttimein22yearsbyanotchto‘Baa3’,whichisthelow-estinvestmentgrade--justanotchabove junkstatus. The long-termissuer ratingsof eightnon-finan-cial companies—Oil andNaturalGas Corporation, HindustanPetroleumCorporation,Oil India,Indian Oil Corporation, BharatPetroleumCorporation, PetronetLNG, Tata Consultancy Services(TCS) and Infosys— have beendowngraded.

EXPRESSNEWSSERVICEMUMBAI,JUNE2

THE MATERIAL RecyclingAssociation of India (MRAI) hasmovedtheSupremeCourtforim-plementationof governmentor-ders,directingshipping linesandcontainerfreightstations(CFS)towaive off detention charges,groundrentanddemurragedur-ingthelockdownperiod.Between March and April

2020,theMinistryofShippingandtheFinanceMinistry issued sev-eralordersandcircularsdirectingthe shipping lines, CFSsand ICDstonot levypenal charges on im-porters during theperiodof thelockdown,toeasetheproblembe-ingfacedbyimporters inmovinggoodsfromtheportsduringlock-down.TheMRAIhasclaimedthatdespite thegovernmentnotifica-

tiononwaiver of penal charges,CFS, the shipping lines and theICDshaveeitherbeenpartiallyorfullylevyingpenaltyonimportersfordelay in takingdeliveryof thegoods. So far the importershavealreadypaidaboutRs15000croreto the shipping lines andCFS inpenaltiesforthelockdownperiod.This,accordingtoMRAIpresi-

dentSanjayMehta,haspushedtherecycling industry intoaprecari-ous financial condition. “Huge fi-nanciallossesarebeingcausedtothe importers community on a

dailybasis.About1,000importersaresufferingcumulativelossestothetuneofalmostRs150croreperday. Inmany cases, the amountpenalty exceeds thevalueof thegoodsimported,”saidMehta.InitspetitionbeforetheSC,the

MRAIhasalsosoughtanextensionofwaiverofpenalcharges for theentire lockdownperiod. Thewritpetition said the members ofMRAIandotherimportersshouldbe “permitted to takedeliveryoftheirgoodswithouthavingtopayanypenal chargesduring theen-tiretyofthelockdownperiod”.Theapexcourtislikelytohear

thecaseonJune4,saidsources.ApartfromMRAIseveralother

importers have individuallymovedvarioushighcourts in thecountrycitingviolationofgovern-mentwaiver rules pertaining tothelockdownperiodbytheship-pinglinesandCFS.

13

ENSECONOMICBUREAUMUMBAI,JUNE2

STOCKMARKETSonTuesday ig-nored the rating downgrade byMoody’sandrallied1.57percentevenasPrimeMinisterNarendraModimaintainedthatthecountrywillgetbackitseconomicgrowthandpledged toundertakemorestructuralreforms.With theglobalmarkets also

making stronggainson thebackof easingof lockdowncurbs, theSensexrosebyanother522pointsto 33,825.53 and theNSENiftyIndexgained153pointsat9,979.10despite the rising number ofCOVID infections.With this gain,the Sensex has shot up 3,200pointsinthelastsixsessions.

NiftyclosedatitshighestlevelsinceMarch11. Volumes on theNSEwere higher than normal.Financials andmedia stocks didwellwhilePSUstocksfell.

PRABHARAGHAVAN&AASHISHARYANNEWDELHI,JUNE2

WHILETHE Indian industryhasbeenasked tosetnewtargets to-wardsbuildingself-relianceinfur-niture,footwearandaircondition-ers,thegovernmenthasparallellybegun laying thegroundwork toachievethis inat least10promis-ingsectors.Here, theemphasis isontargetingthequalityofdomes-ticallymadeproductssothat“un-necessary”importscanbereducedinthesesectorsandthenationcanfindstronger footing in theglobalvaluechain.Sectors already identifiedby

theDepartmentof Promotion forIndustryandInternalTrade(DPIIT)in consultationwithothermin-istries include capital goods andmachinery,mobileandelectron-ics, gemsand jewellery,pharma-ceuticals, textiles andgarments.Indiahas anatural advantage inthese sectors,whichcangrowtobecomeastrengthforthecountry,according to DPIIT SecretaryGuruprasadMohapatra.“A lotofworkhas tobedone.

Importdependencehas tobe re-ducedtothegreatestextentpossi-bleanddomesticmanufacturinghastoberampedup,whileexportpotential intheseareashavetobe

explored,” said a senior govern-ment official on condition ofanonymity.“Thisworkhasalreadybegun.Ministries are looking atbringingmore investment andmakingIndiaamajormanufactur-ingdestination for their sectors,”theofficialsaid.PrimeMinisterNarendraModi

onTuesdayhad raised concernswith India’s dependenceon im-ports,specificallyhighlightingtheover30percentimportsintheairconditionerssector.“Wehavetore-duceitfast,”hesaid.TheIndianACindustry,withan

estimatedRs12,000croremarketandsalesofover5.5millionunits,is largelydependenton importedcompressors—whichaccountsfor60-65percentof anAC’sproduc-tionvalue.

Anexecutivetrackingthemar-ket said that in thepremiumseg-ment,especially thesplitACcate-gory, several Japanesecompaniesthataremarketleadershavebeenimporting from Thailand andVietnambytakingadvantageoftheconcessionaltariffsavailableunderthe India-ASEANtradepactorbi-lateral Free Trade Agreementssignedwiththesecountries.Thisisespecially so incaseof thenewer‘inverter’ categoryof ACs,wherethecompressorspecificationsandbuilt-inelectronicsaredifferent.Ministriesarelearnttoalready

befocussingonraisingqualitycon-trols tomake Indiaglobally com-petitive. “Thequalityistoimprove,so there isaneed forqualitycon-trol orders andeveryministry isidentifyingtheorderstobeissued.If necessary, then raising importdutiesmayalsobe considered,”DPIIT’sMohapatrahadearliertoldTheIndianExpress.“Wehavetoem-phasiseIndianproductionofacer-tainscale, certainqualityandcer-tainstandards.Thenonlycanyourproductmatchuptothebestintheworld,”hehadsaid.“Whileimple-mentingmeasureslikeincreasingimport duties, we will need tomakesurewearenotcrossingtheWTOboundrates,” said tradeex-pert Biswajit Dhar, professor atJNU’sCentreforEconomicStudiesandPlanning.

“WithAtmaNirbhar Bharat,thereisadangerofIndiagoingbacktoan import substitution frame-workwhichmaynotbequiteap-propriate in the 21st century.Taking this pathwould also bequitedaunting,asthefinancialandtechnological resources requiredwouldbeveryhigh,”hesaid.“We need to be strategic in

termsof the choice of sectors inwhichwewant tobeself-reliant.Thereshouldbeaverystrongcasefor increasingdomesticvaluead-dition,besidesconsideringaspectsofconsumersafetyandnationalse-curity,”headded.However,here,measures like

thehomeministry’s intent to re-move importedproducts fromitscentralpolicecanteens,whiledis-criminatory,will not clashwithIndia’sinternationaltradecommit-ments.“Forgovernmentprocure-ment, there is an exception.Countriesareallowed tobend infavourof theirproducers,” saidatradeeconomist.Various schemesare already

geared towardsmaking India amajorplayer in sectors likemed-ical devices, APIs, according toMohapatra. In some cases, theschemesarerepackagedversionsof older attemptsby theNDAorUPAgovernment topromotedo-mesticproductionintheseareas.For instance, thegovernment

onJune2invitedapplicationsfromcompaniestoinvestinIndiaunderthesecondphaseof theelectron-icsmanufacturingscheme,whichhas a capital outlay of up to Rs50,000crore.Anearlierversionof a similar

electronics manufacturingscheme, called the ModifiedSpecialIncentivePackageSchemehadbeennotifiedbythepreviousUPAgovernment in July 2012. Itprovideda capital subsidyof 20percenttounitsinsidespecialeco-nomiczones(SEZ)engagedinelec-tronicsmanufacturing,and25per-centtounitsoutsideSEZs.Theschemesawlimitedsuc-

cess, followingwhich thesecondversion of the schemewas ap-provedby theCabinet inMarch2020andnotifiedonApril1.Inad-dition toplanningmobilemanu-facturingunits,itplanstosubsidiseandprovide incentives toperiph-eral deviceunits suchas chargerandphonecovermanufacturingunits.AsperCommerceMinistry,India imported $467.2 billionworthof commodities betweenAprilandMarch2019-2020.Ofthis,leatherandleatherproductswere$1.01billion,pearls, preciousandsemi-preciousstoneswereabout$22.4 billion and electrical andnon-electricalmachinerywere$37.7billion,whilemachine toolimportswereabout$4.2billion.

BUILDINGSELF-RELIANCE

Paytm parent claims telcos not preventingphishing; HC seeks Centre, Trai response

INTERVIEWWITHMARUTISUZUKICHAIRMAN

BANKSANDNBFCsshouldnotbe“undulyriskaverse”intheirlend-ingpolicies andpass on interestcuts by the central bank to cus-tomers,RCBHARGAVA,chairmanofMaruti Suzuki, toldKARUNJITSINGH. Bhargava also said thatwhilesalesofMarutiSuzukicarswouldbe lower this year than inthepreviousfiscal,itwasimpossi-bletorealisticallyforecasttheper-formanceofMarutiSuzukiortheautoindustryaswholeforFY21atthisstage.Editedexcerpts:

HowhastheCOVID-19pandemicandthesubsequentlockdown,affectedtheoperationsofyourcompanyanditspersonnel?Like the rest of industry in

India,MarutiSuzukishutdownallitsmanufacturingoperations,andsales, in accordancewiththeordersissuedby the central andstate governments.Productionand saleshaverecentlystarted,againstrictlyinaccor-dancewith govern-ment regulationsandguidelines.MarutiSuzukicontinuedtopayitsemployeesduringtheperiodthattherewasnowork.

Whatwouldbethethreebasicaspectsonwhichgovernment

cansupportyourcompanyandtheindustryinthesetimes?Thesaleofcarsverymuchde-

pendson theextentof economicactivityinthecountry.Atthisstagethemost important requirementis that the spread of the virus

shouldbecontrolled,sothatbothproduc-tionofcarsaswellasother economic ac-tivitiescanmoveto-wards normalcy.Customers need fi-nancing tobuy cars

andtheratecutsmadebytheRBIshould be passed on the cus-tomers.The banks and NBFCsshouldnotgetundulyriskaverseintheirlendingpolicies.Workers who have moved

awaytotheirvillageswillneedto

comebackasproductionof ven-dorsandtheindustryincreases.

Whatareyourexpectationsontheperformanceofyourcompanyandtheindustryinthecurrentfinancialyear?Since production and sales

have only recently started, andthere aremanyuncertainties onhowthediseaseandtheeconomywill progress in the comingmonths, it isreallynotpossibletomakeanyreasonablyrealisticfore-cast at this stage, both for theCompanyaswellasfortheindus-try. Saleof carsbyMaruti Suzukithis yearwill be lower than lastyear, and theproductmix couldalsochange.Itispossiblethattherecouldbegreaterclarityaftersayacoupleofmonths.

INDIAINC

SPEAKS

INDIAINC

SPEAKS

Cellphones, jewellery, textiles:Govtidentifies 10sectors tocut imports

PrimeMinisterNarendraModiaddressestheannualsessionoftheCIITuesday.PTI RCBhargava, chairmanofMarutiSuzuki

‘Virus should be controlled ...Rate cuts made by RBI shouldbe passed on to customers’

BRIEFLYBankscutsavingsdepositratesMumbai:SBIhasreducedin-terest rate on savings bankdepositsby5basispointsto2.70 per cent per annum.ICICI Bank has cut interestrateonsavingdepositsby25basispoints.PTI

ChoudhurynameddirectoratRECNewDelhi:REC Ltdhas ap-pointedAjoyChoudhurydi-rector (finance)with effectfromJune1.ENS

UdayKotaksells2.83%stakeinKMBMumbai:BankerUdayKotakTuesdaysold2.83percentofthepromotergroup’shold-ingin KotakMahindraBankforRs6,944crore.

Sen,Satyarthi,otherstocallforresponseplanUnitedNations:Nobellaure-atesAmartya Sen andKai-lashSatyarthiandeconomistKaushikBasuareamongtheover225globalleaderswhohavecalled forameetingofG20nationstoagreetoa$2.5trillionrecoveryplan.PTI

E●EXPLAINED

MARKETSSHRUGGEDoffnewsregardingMoody’screditratingdowngrade,whichwastrumpedbytheexpectationof theeconomyopeningup.Inspiteofmanypossiblenegativetriggers,aposi-tivesentimentstilldrivesthemarkets.

Stocksrisingonsentiment

Markets ignore Moody’sdowngrade, Sensex rises3,200 points in 6 sessions

PRANAVMUKULNEWDELHI,JUNE2

TRAVELRESTRICTIONSandasub-sequent lockdownondomesticandinternationalair travel intheJanuary-MarchperiodpulledthebottomlineofInterGlobeAviation,which runs India’s largest airlineIndiGo,intothered.ThecompanypostedanetlossofRs870.8crorefortheMarch-quarter,comparedwithaRs595.8-croreprofit aftertaxsameperiodlastyear.Thefreecashflowofthecom-

pany,whichistheonlycash-pos-itive airline in India, depleted toRs 8,928.1 crore as ofMarch 31,comparedwith Rs 9,412.8 croreasofDecember31,2019.Notably,thelastsevendaysoftheJanuary-March quarter, no passengerflightswere operated by IndiGoon either domestic or interna-tionalroutes.

“Closure of flight operationsduringnational lockdownonac-count of COVID-19 significantlyimpactedrevenueforthequarter,”thecompanysaid inaregulatoryfiling.Domesticflightservicesre-mained suspended for twomonthsfromMarch25whenthelockdownwasimposedtocontaintheCOVID-19outbreak.Whiledo-mesticflightswereallowedtore-sume onMay 25, internationalflightsareyettorecommence.Speakingtoanalystsafterde-

claring the results, IndiGo’s CEORonojoyDuttasaidthatwhilethecompany’s revenuepositionhasbeen stronger after resumptionof domestic flights, it could bemainlyonaccountofpent-upde-mand.Going ahead, he said thattheairlineindustrywaswitness-ing various factors that woulddampendemandforair travel.“Letmestateclearlythatthere

isadampeningeffectontherev-

enue.Thereisacustomerfear,weall knowhow strong that is. Ontopof that theeconomyisweak.Even if the customers wouldwant to travel, the economywouldhave depressed demand.Thenthereisanuncertaintyofre-strictions—whatwillKarnatakaallow,whatwillKeralaallow.Allthose three things are hugelydampeningfortraffic,”Duttasaid,addingthatinthelongertermairtravelwould grow as the econ-omyrecovers.In the threemonths ended

March,totalincomeincreasedtoRs8,634.6crore, comparedwithRs 8,259.7 crore in the year-agoperiod.RevenuefromoperationsincreasedtoRs8,299.1crore.Evenso, a significant rise in total ex-pensesprovedtobeadragonthecompany’s financials. Total ex-penses shot up30per cent toRs9,924.4 crore in the quarter-endedMarch31.

IndiGo parent posts `870.8 croreloss as costs rise, pandemic hits biz

ENSECONOMICBUREAUNEWDELHI,JUNE2

THEDELHIHighCourtonTuesdayagreed tohear digital paymentsfirm Paytm’s parent companyOne97 Communications’ pleathatthedomestictelcoswerenotdoing much to stop phishingwhichwas takingplace throughtheir networks. The court hassoughtresponsesfromthecentralgovernment, the TelecomRegulatoryAuthorityofIndia,andtelcos, inthematter.In its petition, One97

Communicationshasallegedthatthe telecomcompanies such asBharatSancharNigamLtd,BhartiAirtel,VodafoneIdea,andRelianceJio Infocomm, were not doingenough to check and verify theidentity of telemarketers beforegrantingthemaccesstothedata-base.Phishingisaformofinternetfraudinwhichapersonfalselypre-tending tobea representativeofthe organisation calls up a cus-tomerinordertoextractpersonalandprivatedatafromtheindivid-ual. The details, often obtainedthroughacodeora linkare thenused towithdrawmoney from

theirbankaccounts.This phishingwasultimately

impactingPaytm’scustomersanddenting the trust theyhad in thedigital payments platform, thecompany claimed. Fraudsters,Paytm’s parent company hasclaimed,registerthemselveswiththe telcos and get “headers andcontenttemplates”,whichare“de-ceptivelysimilartotheofficialandauthorized”headersandcontenttemplates. Paytmsaid in itspeti-tionunregistered telemarketerswereallowedbytelcostooperateandengage inunsolicitedphonecallspretendingtobePaytmstaff.

In itspetitionbeforetheSC, theMRAIhasalsosoughtanextensionofwaiverofpenalcharges for theentire lockdownperiod

‘Moody’s downgrade expected,India unlikely to slip to junk status’

WhatdidMoody’s do?Moody’s Investors Service onMonday downgraded thecountry’s rating by one notchto ‘Baa3’, the lowest in theinvestment grade,with anegative outlook onworriesover growth and fiscal risks

Wayout:Economists atBank ofAmerica (BofA)Securitiespitched for the country tocontinuewith the fiscal

OUTLOOK:ThebrokeragesaidIndiashouldnotfearafurtherdowngradeintheratingsintothenon-investmentgradecategory

Reasonsforgrowthworries:■ExcessivetighteningofratesbytheRBI in2018■Real lendingshockduetofall inwholesaleprice inflationin2019■GlobalCOVID-19shock

FactorsprotectingIndiafromafurtherdowngrade:■Highquantumofforexreserves■Expectedrecapitalisationofstate-ownedbanksthroughissuanceofdedicatedbondsorusingRBI’s$127billionrevaluationreserves■Prospectofagoodfarmharvests

Cyclical slowdown: Terming the slowdown in growth cyclical and notstructural, the brokerage said 2020-21 growth will be 9 percentagepoints lower than the potential, which necessitates fiscal support

Source:BankofAmerica/PTI

India’s sovereign credit rating downgrade byMoody’swasexpected and factors like high quantumof forex reserves andprospects of a good farmharvestwould prevent a furtherslip to the non-investment grade, Bank of America said

stimulusmeasures because ofthe impact of the coronaviruspandemic

14THEINDIANEXPRESS,WEDNESDAY,JUNE3,2020

SPORTWWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM

Disclosure is figmentof imagination, saysChawla’s advocate

Vol. LXIVNo.130Printed for theproprietors, The IndianExpress (P) LtdbyMsVaidehiThakaratThe IndianExpressPress, PlotNo.EL-208,TTC IndustrialArea,Mahape,NaviMumbai -400710andpublished from 1st floor, ExpressTowers,NarimanPoint,Mumbai -400021.Editorial&AdministrativeOffices:ExpressTowers,NarimanPoint,Mumbai -400021.Phone:22022627/67440000. Fax:022-22835726.Chairmanof theBoard:ViveckGoenka,Chief Editor:RajKamal Jha,Editor:UnniRajenShanker, Editor (Mumbai):NirupamaSubramanian.* (*Responsible for selectionofNewsunder thePRBAct)

Additional air surchargeof `1 .00 -Goa.Copyright: The IndianExpress (P) Ltd.All rights reserved.Reproduction inanymanner, electronicorotherwise, inwholeor inpart,withoutpriorwrittenpermission isprohibited. The IndianExpress®

F1will startwith2 races at theAustrianGP in JulyFormula One will finally get underway with back-to-back races at the AustrianGrand Prix in July as part of an eight-race European swing. The Red Bull Ring inSpielberg will host races on July 5 and 12, governing body FIA said in a statement.

Sammy urgescricket fraternityto speak upagainst racismPRESSTRUSTOFINDIAKINGSTON,JUNE2

WESTINDIES’WorldCup-winningformercap-tainDarrenSammyonTuesdayurgedtheICCandtheentirecricketingfraternitytoraisetheirvoiceagainstracismorelsebereadytobecon-sidered “a part of the problem”. The all-rounder’scommentscameinthewakeof thedeathof46-year-oldGeorgeFloyd,anAfrican-Americanwhowas left gasping forbreathaf-ter awhitepoliceofficerpressedhis kneeonthehandcuffedman’sneckinUSAlastweek.In a series of socialmedia posts, Sammy

wroteaboutthesufferingsofblacksacrosstheworld.“Rightnowifthecricketworldnotstand-ingagainsttheinjusticeagainstpeopleofcolorafterseeingthatlastvideoofthatfootdownthenextofmybrotheryouarealsopartoftheprob-lem,”Sammytweeted.Theall-rounderpointedout that racismis

notjustlimitedtoAmericabutblacksallacrosstheworldhavetodealwiththesocialevilonadailybasis. “@ICCandall theotherboardsareyouguysnot seeingwhat’shappening toppllikeme?Areyounotgonnaspeakagainst thesocialinjusticeagainstmykind?’heasked.“ThisisnotonlyaboutAmerica.Thishap-

penseveryday#BlackLivesMatternowisnotthetimetobesilent.Iwannahearu,”Sammytweeted.“Fortoolongblackpeoplehavesuf-fered. I'mallthewayinStLuciaandI’mfrus-tratedIfyouseemeasateammatethenyousee #GeorgeFloyd Can you be part of thechange by showing your support.#BlackLivesMatter,” he added. OnMonday,starWest Indies batsman Chris Gayle hadalsoexpressedsolidaritywiththecampaignwhileallegingthathewassubjectedtoracistremarks inhis career.

This is not only aboutAmerica.This happens everyday#BlackLivesMatter now is not thetime tobe silent. Iwannahear u,”

DARRENSAMMY,FORMERWINDIESCAPTAIN

PRITAMPALSINGHNEWDELHI, JUNE2

THEADVOCATErepresentingSanjeevChawla,primeaccusedinthe2000cricketmatch-fix-ing scandal, has called his client’s disclosurestatement, that ispartof the supplementarychargesheetsubmittedtothecourt,“afigmentof imaginationof thepolice”.“The statement purportedly given by

SanjeevChawla on14/02/2020 is a figmentof imaginationof thepolice.Thisdocumentwasnever showntohim, thus therewasnoquestionofrefusingtosign.Hesawthisdoc-ument for the first timewhen the copy ofsupplementary chargesheetwas served onhim,” senior advocate VikasPahwatoldTheIndianExpress.In the said statement

Chawla had allegedly men-tioned the role of the under-world mafia in widespreadcricket corruption. The state-ment said that no cricketgamewas “fairly played” andthe fixed gameswere akin to“movieswhicharealreadybe-ing directed by someone”.ChawlaisalsosaidtohavetoldDelhi Police that the “syndi-cate” had on its target DCP (Crime Branch)DrGRamGopalNaikandthathislifetoowasunder threat.Pahwa said his client had said no such

thing. “He has no knowledge of any syndi-cate or underworld mafia which is men-tioned in this absurddocument. There isnothreat tohimor anybody else”. He also saidthat“…He(Chawla)hascategoricallydeniedhavinganyknowledgeorinvolvementinanykind ofmatch-fixing or ever being a cricketbookie.”Delhi Police’s in its chargesheet says

Chawla“remainednon-cooperativeanddidnotdivulge anydetailwith regard to theof-

fences committed by him…even after hewas confrontedwith the evidences… thisclearlyprovehisinvolvementinthiscase…”.It also says that the accused didn’t sign thedisclosure statement “even after reading itcarefully”. Pahwa says his client’s “denial ofallfalseallegationshasbeenconstruedashisguiltwhich ispreposterous.”The senior advocate also stressed that

Chawlahasfullycooperatedwiththeinves-tigators. “When the FIR was registered inApril 2000,hewasnoteven in India.Hehasnever absconded. During the period of in-vestigation for 14 years, hewas never con-tacted by Delhi Police, except for one lettertohis solicitorswrittenbyScotlandYard.”Hefurtherstated,“Afterhisrelease,hehas

givenhishandwriting for ex-amination.Heofferedhimselffor voice samples, but thesamehavenotbeentakentillnow. He has full faith in theIndianjudicialsystem.Posthisrelease, he is stayingwithhisfamily inDelhi”.Commenting on the na-

tureofcase,Pahwasaid,“Thiscase is difficult to stand in acourt of law as no offence ofcheating ismadeout…hereisanendeavourtomalignthe

gameofcricketduetosomevestedreasons.”When contacted,DCP(CrimeBranch)Dr

G RamGopal Naik said: “We have alreadysubmitted supplementary chargesheetagainsthim.Thematter is sub-judice.”Chawla, in the first week of May, had

walked out of Tihar jail in the absence of aHigh Court stay on the trial court’s April 30bail order.Following this relief, Delhi Police ap-

proached the Supreme Court on May 13,challenging theHighCourtorder.Thematterwill come before the Patiala

HouseCourt on July 4where arguments onthechargeswill beheard.

For fans starved of stadium action,IIT couple offers hope and a headsetGAURAVBHATTNEWDELHI, JUNE2

THE Olympic Games, Euro 2020,Wimbledon, NBA, IPL... With all big sport-ing actiononhold across theworld, thebigquestionthat'shauntingfansisthis: intheseCovidtimes,whenwilltheyevergettorelivethe stadiumexperienceagain?Theymightsoonfindtheanswerintheir

own living rooms.AcouplefromWestBengal isdrivingthe

advancement of Virtual Reality (VR) insports that holds the key to the future ofbroadcasting in thepost-pandemicage.SankarJayaram,whogrewupinKolkata,

metUmafromDurgapuratIIT-Kharagpurinthe 1980s. He was pursuing a degree inMechanicalEngineering,andshewasthefirstwomantobeadmittedtothedepartment.Theywentontocomplete theirPHDsat

Virginia Tech and in 1994, established aVRlab at Washington State University.Somewhere during that timeline, SankarmissedaSeattleSeahawksNFLgame,whichmade himwish he “could be at home, puton a headset and feel as if I were in a sta-dium”.VRprovided the solution.Three decades later, the Jayarams, who

workfortopleaguesintheUSlikeNFL,NBAand the PGA Tour, have their hands full asVR is expected to bridge the Covid gap be-tween fansand the stadium.“Anydisruption isalsoanopportunity,”

saysSankar. “Fanswillmissgoingtothesta-dium. In a VR headset, they can be im-mersed in the game, get a courtside seat,whichisusuallyreservedforVIPs,andgetapartial feelof beingat thegameandalmost'in' the game.”The Jayarams founded VOKE, a Silicon

ValleycompanythatwasacquiredbyIntel in2016.AtVOKE,theyworkedonthetechnol-ogy to create and stream VR 360 media.Special, semi-hemispherical cameras, thathad lenses pointing in all directions, wereinstalled at key locations in a stadium. Thevideosfromthesecameraswouldbesimul-taneously captured, and stitched togethertoproduceanalmostseamlessexperienceofavideo that goes all theway left to right.Users can then put on a headset and

choosetheirviewingpositions.SitcourtsidenexttoHollywoodA-listersorintheowners'box. Choose to go under the basket for adunk, or behind the glass. Or look at quickreplaysor live statistics.Sankar and Uma also produced VR

streams from the 2018Winter OlympicswithIntel,whichhadbigplansfortheTokyoGames before theywere postponed by thepandemic.Workinginthefieldsincethe90s,when

itwas still largely a thing of science-fictionandmarketing gimmicks, Sankar has seenVirtualReality evolve.“Thecomputerweneededtodriveasin-

gle VR headset cost Washington State

University$500,000in1997!Wehavemul-tiples of that capability on our phones to-day,” saysSankar,whorecently lefthispostas the Chief Technical Officer at Intel to es-tablishhisnext startup,Quintar.Then, there was the headset. The team

had to build its own device to get thingsstarted. It weighed 2.7kg and had counter-weightson theback toallowsomecomfortwhilewearingit.Theyaremuchlighternow,but the bulky nature of headsets still re-mainsVR's biggest challenge.“There are several challenges with the

headsetstoday.Size,weightandpriceaside,therearealsolimitationsinheatdissipation,field of view, resolution and battery life.Outside of these tech issues, there is the is-sue of isolation. Sports and entertainmentexperiences are typically social and beingisolated inaVRheadsetorseeingavatarsoffriends isnot very appealing.”According to Sankar, the advent of

AugmentedReality (AR) andMixedReality(MR) couldalleviate theseproblems.“There is significant development hap-

peninginARglasses,whichareprojectedtobelikeslightlybulkysunglassesandareex-pectedinthenext3-4years.Onekeyaspectof all this is that VR/AR/MR/XR (extendedreality)—whatevernameyouwant to giveit—will reallytakeoffonlythere isareasonforacommonperson tohave it andexperi-ence something they cannot dowithout,”he says.

Covid-19 a shot in the arm“Covid-19 couldbea shot in the arm for

these remote but immersive experiencesandassportstartsbackupacross theworldwithemptystadia, this isanopportunityforthe XR community and the leagues, teamsand rights holders, to engage fans in newanduniqueways.”Whennotworkingonways tobring the

stadiumstothefans,Sankarlamentstheab-senceof livesports.HisadoptedhometeamsofWashingtonStateCougarsandtheSeattleSeahawksarehis favourites, buthe isquickto serve remindersof his roots.“I grew up playing cricket and hockey. I

stillwatchcricketandammissingwatchingall these sports and also playing competi-tive cricket.”

SiliconValley-based Jayaramsat theforefrontofVRinsports.

SanjeevChawlawasextraditedfromtheUnitedKingdom. Express

TheJayarams,whoworkfortopleagues intheUSlikeNFL,NBAandthePGATour,havetheirhandsfullasVRisexpectedtobridgetheCovidgapbetweenfansandthestadium.

CROSSWORD4134

ACROSS1 Wellbeforesummer(6)4 Goodfellows leftonboard(6)9 Changeroundatdomedbuilding (7)

10 Native lovecall inanewarrangement (5)

11 OddreasontohavenoarticleinScandinavian language(5)

12 Understatement inT.S.Eliotplay (7)

13 Hazel’s caseepitomised?(2,1,8)

18 Possiblynoticespartof amilitary formation(7)

20 Nitreperhapsput into theground(5)

22 Notallhonourablemendotheright thing (5)

23 Thebee inone’sbonnet?(7)

24 TheFrenchraveaboutgrubs(6)

25 Monstership foramonstrouslady(6)

DOWN1 Maroonthread(6)2 Acarengineneeds itontheflatorgoingdownhill (5)

3 Girlmeetsboycarryingeasterncloth (7)

5 He leadsone intoconspiracy(5)

6 Articleaboutaconcert (7)7 Excitementcreatedbythecomingdownof anastronaut(6)

8 Bat,netand linesputout foragame(5,6)

14 Anexplosive typeof reaction(7)

15 Orderingataxiwhentheweather isbad(7)

16 Alsoseen in theguiseof adandy(2,4)

17 Theyboreadoctorwithailments (6)

19 Theendof Forster’spassage(5)

21 The initial ceremony is toooftenrepeated(5)

ARIES(Mar21-Apr20)Today’splanetarypicture isbestviewedas neithergoodnorbad,but

neutral,bringingaturningpoint inyourcreativeandromanticaffairs.Whichwayyoumove isentirelyuptoyou,so thinkahead.But if you’regoingtomake itatworkyoumusthaveyourcolleagues’full support.

TAURUS(Apr21-May21)Ihavespokenbeforeabout thepotentialfor substantialimprovements in

yourhome,personalandfamilyaffairs.Today's starsbringamajorshift forward,andyoumaysoonbeset free fromapressingresponsibility.Andthat justhas tobewelcomenews.

GEMINI (May22- June21)Keepaneyeoutformistakeninstructionsandlostdirections.Interviewsand

discussionscouldbemuddled,shortjourneyscouldleadtounexpecteddestinations.Treadcarefullyaroundalllegaldelicaciesandmakesurethatyouexplainyourselfproperly.Theneverythingwillworkoutjustfine.

CANCER(June22- July23)Today’s thedaytosowfertile seeds forfutureprosperity. Ifyoudon’t findany

loosechange inthestreet, atleastyoucangearyourinvestmentsupfora futurebreakthrough.Don’tputallyoureggs in thesamebasket, though,oryourisklosingeverything.

LEO(July24-Aug23)It’s been a fewyearssincewe sawplanetaryalignments like the

ones that are buildingupnow.Youmaybebuffeted bycelestial storms, but that’s allthemore reason youneed towrapupwell,metaphoricallyspeaking, before you goout.Themoreprotected you are,the better.

VIRGO(Aug24-Sep23)Onlythehigheststandardswilldo,and Imustaskyoutobeasaint.Thestars

are threateningtoundermineyourconfidence,but if youaresincere, loving,dutifulandself-sacrificing,youwilldodgeallnegativeplanetarypatterns,attract respectandenhanceyourreputation.

LIBRA(Sep24-Oct23)Youhave your shareof responsibilitybut, if youwish,youmaymake

personal pleasure and creativesatisfaction your principlepriority. It’s all amatterof seeing that partners takeresponsibility for themselves,anddon’t expect you towait on themhandand foot.

SCORPIO(Oct24-Nov23)Youmayswitch intotopgearatworkandkeepyoureyeontheroadahead.Watch

out forcul-de-sacsandblindalleys,otherwiseyou’llwasteagreatdealof timeandsquanderyourenergy.Keepoutof theway if partnersare inachina-smashingmood.

SAGITTARIUS(Nov24-Dec22)Overseas and long-distance influencesare growingstronger. This is

obviously significant if you’retravelling, for youmaymeetmuchmore than you’vebargained for. And ifyou’re at home, theremuststill be someway to bring anadventurous angle intoyour life.

CAPRICORN(Dec23- Jan20)Material securitydoesseemtobeacrucial issue,althoughperhaps

notasmuchas itwillbeafteranother twomonthshavepassed. It allboilsdowntotheneedto increaseyourcash-flow,butalso tobecertain thatyoumakethebestpossibleuseof yourassets.

AQUARIUS(Jan21-Feb19)It’s a day ofextremes and it’sdifficult to seewhether youwill

achieve amajor romanticbreakthroughor runheadlonginto an emotional conflict.Youmust pick and choose yourcompanionswith greatcare, anddon’t let anyoneelsemakeupyourmindfor you.

PISCES(Feb20-Mar20)Venus, planet oflove, is nowyourally. Youmaythereforemove into

a commandingposition in allemotional and romanticaffairs. Keep aweather eyeopen for hysterical colleaguesatwork, by theway, andusethe same soothing charmson themas youwouldwith friends.

SUDOKU4128

DifficultyLevel1sInstructionsTosolveaSudokupuzzle,everydigitfrom1to9mustappear ineachofthenineverticalcolumns, ineachoftheninehorizontalrowsandineachofthenineboxes.

DifficultyLevel1s=Veryeasy;2s=Easy;3s=Medium;4s=Hard;5s=VeryHard;6s=Genius S

OLU

TIONSUDOKU4127

Givenbelowarefour jumbledwords.Solvethejumblestomakeproperwordsandmovethemtotherespectivesquaresbelow.Selecttheletters intheshadedsquaresandjumblethemtogettheanswerforthegivenquip.Thenicethingabout____isthattherearesomanyofthemtochoosefrom-AndrewS.Tanenbaum(9)

SOLUTION:AORTA,GUSSY,JENNET,REDDENAnswer:Thenicethingaboutstandardsisthattherearesomanyofthemtochoosefrom-AndrewS.Tanenbaum

OTAAR EEJNNT

GUYSS EENRDD

SolutionsCrossword4133:Across:1Topping,5Scour,8Whitefeathers,9Lithe,10Sponsor,11Manage,12Scrape,15Lapland,17Leech,19Steeringwheel,20Arson,21Sprites.Down:1Towel,2Printingpress,3Iceberg,4Grease,5Set-to,6Overstatement,7Reserve,11Melissa,13Coldwar,14Adonis,16Aaron,18Hills.

JUMBLEDWORDS

OVERTHEHEDGE byMichael Fry&TLewis

CALVIN&HOBBES byBillWatterson

MARVIN byTomArmstrong

DAYTODAY BYPETERVIDAL