JAIPUR l FRIDAY, APRIL 16, 2021 l Pages 12 l 3.00 RNI NO. RAJENG/2019/77764 l Vol 2 l Issue No. 308

RAJ REPORTS 6,658 NEW COVID-19 CASES, 33 DEATHS ON THURSDAYJaipur: Rajasthan reported 6,658 new COVID-19 cases and 33 fatalities on Thursday, taking the state’’s infec-tion tally to 3,87,950 and the death toll to 3,041. Four deaths each were reported from Bikaner and Kota, three each from Alwar, Jaipur, Jhalawar, Jodhpur and Udaipur, two each from Nagaur and Pali and one fatality each was registered in Ajmer, Baran, Chit-torgarh, Churu, Jalore and Sikar, according to an offi cial report. Jaipur reported the highest number of 848 new cases, followed 847 in Jodhpur and 711 in Udaipur. The number of active cases in the state stands at 49,276. P3

DELHI WORST-HIT! WEEKEND CURFEW imposed as 16,699 fresh cases reportedNew Delhi: The nation-al capital will shut down on weekends starting this Friday, the Delhi government announced. Restaurants, shopping malls and auditoriums will remain closed till further orders, even on weekdays, it added.

Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said stringent curbs have been reinstated to arrest the spread of Covid-19, which has put medical infrastructure and healthcare workers un-der tremendous strain. Gyms and spas will also remain shut, while cin-ema halls will be allowed to open with 30 per cent capacity.Home delivery and takeaway services will be allowed, and the movement of members of families that have marriages scheduled in the coming weekends will be allowed, Kejriwal said. Turn to P6

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal

2L new cases in 24 hrs; above 1,000 deaths

OVER 3.3 MN VAX GIVEN IN LAST 24 HRS

CONSIDER COVID-19 AS NATURAL CALAMITY: UDDHAV URGES CENTRE

New Delhi: As India’s trajectory of the cases of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) continues to witness an upward trend since the last month, the nation reported more than two lakh (2,00,739 ) new cases of Cov-id-19 in the last 24 hours, according to Union health ministry. The toll from the disease remained above 1,000 for the second day in a row. The total tally crossed the 14 million mark (14,074,564 to be exact) and the active cases too witnessed a massive jump of 106,173, taking the total caseload to 1471,877.

India has administered over 33 lakh vaccine doses in the last 24 hours, said Union Health Ministry on Thursday. As on day-89 of the vaccination drive (April 14, 2021), 33,13,848 doses were given.

Mumbai: Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray has written a letter to the Centre, urging

to consider the Covid-19 pandemic as natural calamity, so that the government can use the state disaster response fund (SDRF) to provide fi nancial assistance to the affected people. All State Disaster Management Acts have been formed as part of the central disaster management

law; hence the state needs the Union government’s permission to use the SDRF for helping the pandemic-hit people, a government offi cial said on Thursday.

must READIN A SURPRISE MOVE, NATWAR SINGH MEETS MODI

SENSEX JUMPS 260 PTS, NIFTY TOPS 14,550

Aditi Nagar

New Delhi: New Delhi’s power circles came alive on Thursday, when former bureau-crat-turned-foreign minister Natwar Singh met with none other than Prime Minister Narendra Modi at PMO. The 90- year- old bu-reaucratic and political veteran had a half an hour tete-a-tete with the current political champion of the nation - PM Modi. P8

Mumbai: Equity bench-mark Sensex ended 260 points higher after a volatile session on Thursday, tracking gains in index majors HDFC twins, TCS & ICICI Bank amid largely posi-tive cues from global markets. After gyrating 877 points during the day, the 30-share BSE index ended 259.62 points or 0.53% higher at 48,803.68. Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty advanced 76.65 points.

Gehlot Imposes Weekend Curfew!Lockdown: Fri 6 pm to Mon 5 am

Naresh Sharma

Jaipur: With record number of corona cases coming to light in Ra-jasthan each day, the state government de-cided to enforce ‘week-end lockdown’. In a high profile meeting called by Chief Minis-ter Ashok Gehlot late

on Thursday night, highly placed sources reveal, that the issue of weekend lockdown

came up and was dis-cussed at length. Ge-hlot, who has been warning of stringent

action to curb the coro-na spread in state, ac-cepted the suggestions made in the meeting. Lockdown will be en-forced from 6 pm on Fri-day till 5 am on Monday. As of now the state govt has decided to enforce weekend lockdown only for the coming weekend while decision for next week or onwards will be taken later. Moreo-ver, markets will be closed at 5 pm today and no one will be allowed to move around after 6

pm. Furthermore, only emergency services will be allowed to ply in the course of lockdown.

CM Gehlot took to Twitter saying, “Keep-ing in view the rising corona infection, cur-few will be enforced in state from Friday, 6 pm till Monday 5 am. I ap-peal to all to follow covid appropriate be-haviour during this time and cooperate with the state govern-ment in enforcing the curfew effectively.”

CM Ashok Gehlot

Just festive pretense: RaGa targets CentreNew Delhi: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi slammed the BJP-led government over the handling of the Cov-id-19 crisis in India on Thursday, and alleged that the “tika ustav” was just another sham by the government. He also alleged that there are no beds, ventilators or vaccines available.

Through his official Twitter handle, he tweeted, “There are no

tests, no beds in hospi-tals. There are no ven-tilators, no oxygen. There are no vaccines also. The utsav is a pretence”. Turn to P6

COVID UPDATE• WB polls: COVID positive Cong candidate dies at Kolkata hospital

• Odisha’s Pipili assem-bly by-poll postponed as Congress candidate dies of COVID-19

• Health Ministry issues regulatory pathways for foreign-produced COVID-19 vaccines

• Karnataka govt asks Kumbh returnees to isolate themselves

‘US-NATO troops Af pull out will raise concerns for India’Washington: In the af-termath of the US and the NATO withdrawing its troops from Afghani-stan, India will have tre-mendous concern on the resurgence of the Taliban and its territo-ry being used as a safe haven for terrorist, ex-perts said. US President Joe Biden on Wednes-day announced that all American troops would be withdrawn from Af-ghanistan by Septem-ber 11 this year and fol-lowing suit, the North Atlantic Treaty Organi-

sation will also pull out its troops from the war-torn country.

“Regional countries, especially India, will have tremendous con-cerns about the US pullout from Afghani-stan and the likelihood of a Taliban resurgence in the country,” Lisa Curtis, who was Deputy Assistant to the Presi-dent and NSC Senior Director for South and Central Asia from 2017-2021 under the previous Donald Trump admin-istration told PTI.

OUR EDITIONS: JAIPUR, AHMEDABAD

& LUCKNOW

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After Maharashtra imposed Section 144 across the state due to surge in Covid cas-es, migrants labourers were seen gathered at Lokmanya Tilak Terminus in Mumbai, to board the trains to their native places. These migrants were mainly from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand who came here to earn their livelihood and are now anxious about the lockdown and willing to go back to their native places as they have nothing to do here. “We do not have work to do. Everything here is closed due to the restrictions. But we are not getting tickets to go back & police are not allowing us inside the station without tickets,” a migrant worker said.

MAHA PANIC IN MIGRANTS

RR BEAT DC BY 3 WICKETS

Chris Morris & Jaydev Unadkat of Rajasthan Royals celebrate after win over Delhi Capitals during IPL match at Mumbai on Thursday.

CM: Bypoll process will be completely exempted from curfew restrictions

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Laxman Raghav 

Churu: Deputy Chief Whip Mahendra Chaud-hary on Thursday con-ducted campaigning in support of the Congress candidate in Sujangarh assembly constituency, Manoj Meghwal, and ap-pealed to voters to vote in favour of him.

On the last day of campaigning, he ad-

dressed a public gather-ing in Salasar and other nearby areas in the con-stituency. Highlighting the work done by Con-gress, he said that the govt’s covid manage-ment has been appreci-ated all over the country.

Targeting the opposi-tion BJP, he said that BJP only talks and it de-livers nothing.

At the same time,

Chaudhary also target-ed RLP chief Hanuman Beniwal. He said that Beniwal used to de-scribe the BJP’s rule as Popa Bai’s rule but later he contested the elec-tion with the support of the BJP. Kesar Devi, wife of the late minister Bhanwarlal Master, said that her husband served people of the constitu-ency for a long.

Chaudhary campaigns in support of Congress candidate in Sujangarh

Naveen Joshi 

Bhilwara: Health Minister Dr Raghu Sharma during a press conference DCC office in Bhilwara attacked the BJP saying that discipline which the party claims is no where to be seen. “If Vasund-hara Raje’s daugh-ter-in-law is ill, the party could have put her pictures in posters. Rajendra Rathore’s com-ment, “Forget who

has gone” is very dangerous com-ment,” he said. Congress leaders D h a r m e n d r a Rathore and Ram-pal Jat were also present.

Meanwhile state BJP president Sat-ish Poonia on Thursday held dis-cussions with MP CP Joshi and oth-ers in Bhilwara and sought votes for party’s candidate in Sahada on last day of campaign-ing on Thursday.

Dr Raghu Sharma, Satish Poonia woo voters in Sahada

Dr Raghu Sharma, Ramlal Jat, Dharmendra Rathod during a press conference at DCC offi ce in Bhilwara.

SARVA SAMAJ SEEKS KATARIA’S RESIGNATIONFirst India Bureau

Udaipur: Leader of Opposition Gulab-chand Kataria’s remarks on Maharana Pratap has been drawing ire from all sections of the community. An emer-gency meeting of Sarva Samaj was organized in Udaipur wherein a pro-posal for demanding the resignation of Gulabchand Kataria has been passed. Under this, a delegation of the ‘Sarv Samaj’, at the head of a rally, will reach Kataria’s house on April 18.

Yogesh Sharma 

Jaipur: After the recent statement of Sachin Pilot on Cabinet expansion and political ap-pointments, now his supporting leg-islators have also raised the matter.

The pro-pilot MLA Vedprakash Solanki has once again raised the is-sue of participation of SC-ST MLAs. On Thursday Solanki said, “SC-ST votes have played an im-portant role in the formation of the government. SC-ST MLAs should now be made ministers of strong depart-ments. Make SC-ST MLAs powerful by giving them strong departments relat-ed to the public. Making a nominal

representative will do nothing. SC-ST has many senior MLAs, who have won five times, they should be made ministers.”

Solanki said, “It has been two and a half years since the formation of the government, the workers whose hard work has resulted in formation of gov-ernment, they should now share power. There should be Cabinet expan-sion, political ap-pointments should also be made. De-centralization will benefit workers.”

SC-ST MLAs should be made ministers: Solanki

Ravi Sharma / Ashish 

Rajsamand: Congress leaders including trans-port minister Pratap Singh, mines minister Pramod Jain Bhaya, co-operative minister Udailal Anjana, TAD minister Arjun Bamni-ya and others conducted a grand roadshow in support of the party

candidate in Rajsamand constituency on the last day of campaigning on Thursday.

RCA president Vaib-hav Gehlot addressed a public rally and inter-acted with people in the constituency. Earlier, he met with the Speaker of Assembly constituency CP Joshi in Nathdwara and held discussions on

various issues.He also visited the

Shreenathji temple and offered prayers. On the other hand, ministers and other leaders organ-ised a mega roadshow in support of the party can-didate Tansukh Bohra. They sought votes for Bohra in the roadshow during which they were in an open jeep.

BJP & CONGRESS HOLD ROAD SHOWS BY-POLL CAMPAIGNING ENDS: Both ruling party & Oppn make last-ditch efforts to woo voters

(Left) Vaibhav Gehlot, Pramod Jain Bhaya during campaigning in Rajsamand on Thursday. (Right) Diya Kumari, Satish Poonia and Deepti Maheshwari campaigning on last day.

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3 escapees held in Phalodi jail breakJodhpur: Two prison-ers were recaptured from Jodhpur and Jais-almer districts on Thursday, almost 10 days after they escaped from the Phalodi jail here with their other inmates, police said. They were identified as Rajkumar Bishnoi, an accused under the NDPS Act, and Shaukat Ali, who is a murder ac-cused.

Police have also ar-rested Amre Khan for providing shelter to Shaukat Ali, who was caught near the India-Pak border in Jaisalm-er’s Mohangarh. Offi-cials said he was about to cross over to Paki-stan. SP (Jodhpur Ru-ral) Anil Kayal said Ra-jkumar Bishnoi and

Shaukat Ali were ar-rested after an untiring chase of over three days. Police had earlier arrested Mohan Ram Bishnoi in Bikaner, where he had been hid-ing at his brother’s farm, they said. Police said another person, identified as Manish Bishnoi, was arrested for allegedly coordinat-ing jailbreak. —PTI

COPS SUSPENDED

Suicide over land: MLA meets kin, assures helpDurgsingh Rajpurohit

Barmer: The protest after suicide of a man continued to Thursday outside mortuary of the district hospital. The family members and thousands of locals are demanding justice for Ganesh, who ended his life on Sunday due to harassment over a land dispute.

Jaisalmer MLA Ru-para assured support to his family. On Wednes-day, Jodhpur DC, range IG visited Barmer and took details from dis-trict collector & SP. A delegation of protes-tors also handed over a memorandum to offi-cials on Wednesday and warned that the situa-tion may worsen if he does not get justice.

Police bust gang in 2 loot & firing cases

Rakesh Gusain

Jaipur: The gang who looted businessmen in Jaipur by firing has been caught by police on Thursday. Police arrest-ed three vicious miscre-ants and detained main accused. ACP Ajay Pal Lamba said that on April 4, there was an in-cident of firing on busi-nessman Sachin Jain in the Ramnagaria police

station area. On April 11, the cold drink com-pany distributor Vipul Garg was fired in the Shyam Nagar area and Rs 7.50 lakh were robbed from him. Police arrest-ed Soyal, Mansoor Alam & Indrajit Singh, recov-ered a country pistol, a native katta & 3 live car-tridges. He told that leader Dinesh Dixit was convicted in Tihar Jail came out on parole.

Police arrests three accused and seize pistol, katta & 3 live cartridges.

2 electrocuted whilerepairing motor pipeKota: A 28-year-old man and his younger brother were electro-cuted after an iron pipe of tubewell motor they were repairing in neighbouring Baran district came in contact with a high-tension powerline, police said on Thursday. The inci-dent happened on W e d n e s d a y night in Khaldimal vil-lage under Na-hargarh area of Baran district. The deceased were identified as Dan-mal Meena (28) and his brother Naval Meena (25). Demanding com-pensation, family of the two brothers staged a protest with the bodies at the village and re-fused to go forward

with the cremation. While the two brothers were pulling out the motor from the tube-well, one end of the mo-tor’s iron pipe came in contact with a 11,000 KV powerline passing over-head that electrocuted the two brothers on the spot, he added. The two brothers were rushed to

hospital in Baran where they were de-clared dead, he

said. Choudhary, the owner of the agricul-ture field, was not at his house while his mobile has been switched off, ASI pointed out. SHOs of Nahargarh and Bha-wargarh police stations are trying to convince family to go ahead with funeral, he said. —PTI

ElectricalACCIDENT

Man rapes 12-yr-old hearing and speech impaired First India Bureau

Jhunjhunu: A 12 year old deaf and dumb girl was allegedly raped by a man in Jhunjhunu district on Wednesday.The girl was playing outside her house when the accused identified as Hoshiyar Singh lured her and took to a nearby deserted place where he allegedly raped her, police said.

Her mother lodged an FIR. The case is being probed by DSP SC/SC cell Devendra Singh.

OVER 5,000 OXYGEN CYLINDERSNEEDED IN STATE EVERYDAY

RAJ REPORTS 6,658 FRESH CASES & 33 FATALITIES IN A DAY; NEW COVID-19 GUIDELINES WILL ALSO BE IMPLEMENTED FROM TODAY; MAJOR TEMPLES ALSO SHUT TILL APRIL 30 IN VIEW OF SURGE IN CASES

Coronavirus outbreak is impacting people of all age groups as is evident from the long queue at the Sawai Man Singh hospital in Jaipur on Thursday.

Keeping pandemic scare at bay, many throng Ramganj Bazaar at around 7 pm in the Walled City area of Jaipur fl outing Covid-19 guidelines on Thursday.WILL WE EVER LEARN?

First India Bureau

Jaipur: As the Covid situation worsened with the rapid increase in positive cases across Ra-jasthan, the demand for oxygen has increased more than five times in the state in last 14 days.

With 49,276 active cases, increase in de-mand for oxygen cylin-ders is more than five-fold. Consumption of oxygen cylinders for Covid patients was 1,100-1,200 cylinders per day till March 31, which has crossed 5,200 cylinders/day.

RUHS ad-min said 60% beds have been occupied, there would be no bed available next week.

In Udaipur, EHCC & other Covid hospitals have no beds while 86% of beds of AIIMS & MDM hospital in Jodh-pur are full.

Sangeeta Beniwal, Ra-jasthan Child Rights Chief tested Corona pos-itive. Meanwhile, RTO Arvind Girwal died from Corona in Udaipur.

Guv Mishra gets 2nd jab, says 2nd wave is deadlyFirst India Bureau

Jaipur: Governor Kalraj Mishra on Thursday was adminis-tered the second dose of Covid-19 vaccine in the IDH centre at SMS Hos-pital. Governor was vaccinated by Dr. Su-dhir Bhandari, Princi-pal of SMS Medical Col-lege and Nurse Kaush-alya Rajawat under the supervision of the med-ical team.

After the jab, Mishra said that the second wave of corona is more deadly. ‘To avoid this, it is absolutely necessary to follow caution and Covid-19 protocol. All those who are eligible for vaccination accord-ing to their age, should get vaccinated. Also, do not be negligent even after being inoculated, wear a mask continu-ously, maintain social distancing and wash your hands with soap regularly,’ he said.

Governor Kalraj Mishra gets the second dose of Covid-19 vaccine as Dr Sudhir Bhandari looks on. —PHOTO BY SUMAN SARKAR

—PHOTOS BY SUM

AN SARKAR

COVID-19 UPDATE

TOTAL CASES

3,87,950 TOTAL DEATHS

3,041

NEW CASES

6,658NEW DEATHS

33RECOVERED 3,35,633ACTIVE CASES 49,276

JAIPUR 848JODHPUR 847

UDAIPUR 711KOTA 638

JJA CANCELS TWO-DAY ROUGH AND CUT SHOW

Being organised by the Jewellers Association

Jaipur, the two-day rough and cut show proposed from April 17 gets cancelled. The event was proposed to be held at Jan Upyogi Bhawan located in Adarsh Nagar, Jaipur. As-sociation President Ram-sharan Gupta said that the decision was taken citing the corona outbreak in Jaipur. Due to low sales from last one year owing to corona pandemic, a large number of associa-tion members showed in-terest in the show. In fact, entries were more than expected. However, under the current circumstances of pandemic, it cannot be organized. —Vimal Kothari 

AUTOS HIT STREETS TO SPREAD AWARENESS

Jaipur Municipal Corporation Heritage & Greater is being active in Corona mass awareness campaign in city. They

will hire 100 auto rickshaws each while other municipal cor-porations will hire 50 auto rickshaws each. Similarly, the City Council and Municipality will hire 25 and 5 auto-rickshaws, respectively. In every auto-rickshaw, two personnel of the department will sit and publicize the measures to prevent corona by the mike. Free masks will also be distributed to needy people. Daily monitoring of this awareness campaign has been started now. —Abhishek Srivastava 

GO FOR HRCT EVEN IF COVID-19 RT-PCR TEST IS -VE: BHANDARI

Dr Sudhir Bhandari, principal of SMS medical college said, that people with cold and cough should go for

HRCT even if Covid RT-PCR test is negative because the virus is causing severe damage without getting detected in the RT-PCR test. ‘Since treatment is not started due to lack of early diagnosis, it pneumonia & blood clot in lungs which leads to critical condition. It is alarming that people of young age are being infected rapidly,” he said. Top doc-tor said that medical infrastructure has been strengthened in leadership of CM Ashok Gehlot & capacity to test 70,000 tests/day has been developed in state. —Vikas Sharma 

DEMO IN PPE KIT DEMANDING CLOSURE OF COLLEGE IN KOTA

The student union president Vinay Raj Singh staged a demo demanding the

closure of the college. He locked the main gate, put a chair and sat on the gate wearing PPE kit. Ass Dir of College Raghuraj Parihar assured to resolve the demand soon. The college has 8 posi-tive teachers. Non-teaching staff is also vulnerable to infection. With increasing cases in college, neither it is being sanitized nor it is being closed.

COVID LOCK ON RELIGIOUS DOORS TILL APRIL 30

The increasing corona cases have led to shut

down of religious places. Moti Dungri Ganesh Temple has been closed till April 30. Mahant Kailash Sharma gave the information. Govind Devji temple will also remain closed till April 30. Devotees can do online darshan of the temple. In Sawai Mad-

hopur, Ganesh temple is closed from today

till April 30. Ajmer district admin has decided to ban entry of public to

the Khwaja Garib Nawaz from today.

Moreover, the Tilwara animal fair in Balotra has also been called off.

DR RAGHU WARNS OF STRICT ACTION IN VAX THEFT CASE

Health minister Dr Raghu Sharma on Thursday said that strict action will be taken against whoever is

guilty in the case of vaccine theft. Over 300 doses of the covid vaccine have been stolen from Kanwatia hospital. 'We have got only 4 lakh vaccines, we have capacity to administer 5 lakh vaccines. There is a continuous lack of vaccine,” he said. He said that the state has enough stock of Remdesivir injections. Talking to report-

ers in Bhilwara, Dr Sharma said that government was not in favor of imposing lock down because this will cause a lot of problems for common man. On question of Corona to BJP candidate Ratan Lal Jat, he said that politics on such matters is not good.

RISKY AFFAIR!

PERSPECTIVEJAIPUR | FRIDAY, APRIL 16, 2021

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� Vol 2 � Issue No. 308 � RNI NO. RAJENG/2019/77764. Printed and published by Anita Hada Sangwan on behalf of First Express Publishers. Printed at Bhaskar Printing Press, D.B. Corp Limited, Shivdaspura, Tonk Road, Jaipur. Published at 304, 3rd Floor, City Mall, Bhagwan Das Road, C-Scheme, Jaipur-302001, Rajasthan. Phone 0141-4920504. Editor-In-Chief: Jagdeesh Chandra. Editor: Anita Hada Sangwan responsible for selection of news under the PRB Act

s massive on-line platforms have given rise to numerous virtual market-

places, a gap has opened between the real and the digital economy. And by driving more people than ever online in search of goods, services, and em-ployment, the coronavirus pandemic is widening it. The risk now is that a new digital industrial complex will hamper market effi-ciency by imposing rents on real-economy players whose daily operations de-pend on technology.

The premise of the Fourth Industrial Revolu-tion (4IR) is that the tangi-ble and intangible elements of today’s economy can co-exist and create new pro-ductive synergies. The tan-gible side of the economy provides the infrastructure

upon which automation, manufacturing, and com-plex trade networks rest, and intangibles – logistics, communication, and other software and Big Data ap-plications – allow for these processes to achieve opti-mal efficiency.

More to the point, the tangible economy is a pre-requisite for the intangible economy. Through digitali-zation, tangibles can be-come intangibles and then overcome traditional limi-tations on scale and value creation. While heavily transactional and capital-intensive, this process hitherto has been a posi-tive mechanism for growth, providing some equity of opportunities for small and large countries alike.

But this standard ac-count of the 4IR omits the recent decoupling of the digital and real sectors of

the economy. Digitally na-tive companies that bene-fited from the suspension of traditional factors of production have been growing even faster than they did before COVID-19.

By the beginning of Sep-tember 2020, Facebook, Amazon, and Apple’s share prices had more than dou-bled since the start of the pandemic, with Apple be-coming the first company ever to achieve a $2 trillion valuation. And while

shares of Netflix and Al-phabet (Google) – the other so-called FAANG firms – hadn’t quite doubled, they were nonetheless trading at or near all-time highs. Meanwhile, ExxonMobil, the S&P 500’s oldest mem-ber and a former icon of the tangible economy, was driven out of the index by Apple’s decision to split its stock. Those who own and run the tech giants are making ever more money while the rest of the world

continues to experience economic devastation.

With real-economy as-sets being positioned far below digital financial as-sets, a K-shaped corporate recovery has emerged. Dig-ital firms can grow appar-ently without limit, where-as others’ growth remains circumscribed by the finite conditions under which they operate. This trend is not only challenging neo-liberal assumptions about the creation of value; it is also pushing us toward a scenario in which govern-ment policies to redistrib-ute value will no longer be plausible options.

The post-pandemic world will be characterized by a limping economy, a gener-alized fear for the future, and a growing realization of all the ways that econom-ic life has changed. Under the right conditions, tech-

nological diffusion, multi-stakeholder innovation, and digital protectionism could reduce people’s de-pendence on the multina-tionals that have been shap-ing the terms of technology for their own benefit, and with little consideration for the needs or values of spe-cific communities.

We are facing an acute crisis of technological op-portunity and access, ow-ing to an invasive business model that has proven in-capable of supporting eq-uity and inclusion. The stakes are high, and the market won’t fix the prob-lem. There are ways to en-sure that the digital revolu-tion benefits the many, not just a few; but they will re-quire that we rethink how we pursue innovation and create value in the twenty-first century.

SOURCE: PROJECT SYNDICATE

The digital revolution is eating its youngA

uarantines, lockdowns and self-imposed isolation have steamrolled millions around the world to work from home, accelerating a workplace ex-periment that had struggled to gain traction before COVID-19 hit. Now, well into the pandem-ic, the circumspections and the approbation of remote work are clearer. For years many worried over work-life balance as for thousands of workers, commuting requires a lot of time which they could spare and use the device fully in a preferred way. Pandemic has given rise to a thoughtful con-templation to consider a struc-tural shift in work-culture paradigms.

With increasing access to vaccination, people are encour-aged to return to work but the fear of new mutation and expe-rience of increasing productiv-ity in work while working re-motely indulge people in reflec-tion. For various corporates, especially the IT sector work-ing from home is not a far-reaching dream but there are work domains that could not work remotely at all. For exam-ple, medical care units. For cri-sis management, remote work-ing for some sectors can be performed but they are much more effectively done in per-son. These activities include coaching, counselling, and pro-viding advice and feedback; building customer and col-league relationships; bringing new employees into a company; negotiating and making criti-cal decisions; teaching and training; and work that bene-fits from collaboration, such as innovation, problem-solving, and creativity. Some of the jobs require collaborating with oth-ers or using specialized ma-chinery; other jobs, such as conducting CT scans, which must be done on location. If onboarding were to be done re-motely, for instance, it would require a significant rethink-ing of the activity to produce outcomes similar to those achieved in person which re-quires a huge shift in research

and is pain and time taking.Various studies have indi-

cated that amalgamation mod-els of remote work for some employees are here to stay. The virus has broken through tech-nological barriers that pre-vented remote work in the past, setting in motion a structural shift in where work takes place, at least for some people. A part of the workforce could work remotely three to five days a week as effectively as they could if working from an office. If this trend continues then this will have a lasting impact on urban economies, transpor-tation, and consumer spend-ing, among other things.

Remote work has raised awareness in the human re-source domain to invest more in training, employees to meet the upcoming and unforeseen challenges and increase effi-ciency to address issues such as critical data protection. Managers have tried creative ways to bring their staff to-gether. For their part, employ-ees are struggling to find the best home-work balance and equip themselves for working and collaborating remotely. If we consider the case of India although, India has earned reputation and recognition for its high-tech and financial ser-vices industries, still the vast majority of its workforce is em-

ployed in conservation do-mains of employment such as retail services and agriculture that cannot be done remotely.

Taking into perspective the women- workforce remote work is a bag of the mixed deal. It boosts flexibility—not need-ing to be physically co-located with fellow workers enables independent work and more flexible hours—as well as pro-ductivity, with less time wasted commuting. At the same time, home school children have cre-ated an unforeseen and parallel work pressure at home. The ad-ditional outcome can be that remote work may increase gen-der disparity in the workplace, exacerbating the regressive effects of COVID-19. The fe-male workforce in many econo-

mies is more highly concen-trated in occupational clusters like healthcare, food services, and customer service that have a relatively low potential for remote work. Apart from this, socio-cultural imperatives also play a crucial role in constant-ly challenging work patterns. The role woman plays in cer-tain social setups may increase the tangible stress on a woman who plays a significant role in this paradigm shift.

In developing countries, the resourceful workforce is privi-leged, and the other side of this employable population is still thriving to make the ends meet. These transformational dy-namics of the economy and new work environment may largely impact them.

Among all these dynamics of metamorphosis, a change of approach is quintessential. Since the arrival of the pan-demic, many people are work-ing longer and harder. And even with increased rates of vaccination, working remotely will continue to become the new perk of work culture. Em-ployers and the workforce should together ensure that it continues harmoniously and should not become a responsi-bility that rests entirely on one set of individuals.

THE VIEWS EXPRESSED BY

THE AUTHOR ARE PERSONAL

WORKING REMOTELY: STRUCTURAL SHIFT IN WORK CULTURE!

Q

With increasing access to vaccination, people are encouraged to return to work but the fear of new mutation and experience of increasing productivity in work while working remotely indulge people in reflection. For various corporates, especially the IT sector working from home is not a far-reaching dream but there are work domains that could not work remotely at all. For example, medical care units. For crisis management, remote working for some sectors can be performed but they are much more effectively done in person

REMOTE WORK HAS RAISED AWARENESS IN THE HUMAN RESOURCE

DOMAIN TO INVEST MORE IN TRAINING, EMPLOYEES TO MEET THE UPCOMING

AND UNFORESEEN CHALLENGES AND

INCREASE EFFICIENCY TO ADDRESS ISSUES SUCH

AS CRITICAL DATA PROTECTION

DR JYOTI JOSHI

The author is a soft skill trainer, business coach and English language instructor in Germany, Europe

IN-DEPTH

PANCHAYAT POLLS GET UNDERWAY

oting for the first phase of panchayat elec-tions in 18 districts of Uttar Pradesh was held on Thursday even as the State gov-ernment ordered the postponement of UP Board examinations for classes 10 and 12

till May 20. Schools up to class 12 were also ordered closed till May 15. The Board exams were slated to start from May 8 and their postponement by 12 days would not have pushed students out of the exam mode. It may have even given them time for further preparations. But is there a certainty, or even likeli-hood, of the Covid-19 wave receding by May 15? Go-ing by the surge and the failure of health and admin-istrative infrastructure, the situation is unlikely to improve, even if some babus in the government put up tin shades to stop the world from counting the burning pyres at Lucknow’s Bhainsakund.

Panchayat elections, it is feared, could add to the Covid crisis like the Kumbh has done in Uttara-khand. Being a religious festival no one is looking at it as a super-spreader even after Kapil Dev, the Mahamandaleshwar of Nirvani Akhada, report-edly succumbed to Covid-19 on Thursday. Panchay-at elections are not a religious event like Kumbh which is used by political parties to attract votes and like UP Board exams could have been deferred by 15-20 days.

As the polls are already underway, one can only hope that voters, candidates, and election officials will strictly adhere to Covid protocol and prevent the virus from spreading. As the government is struggling to face the second wave, it is for us to behave responsibly.

V

MARKAZ TO REOPEN FOR THE DEVOUT

n an important judgment, the Delhi High Court has allowed 50 Muslims to offer namaz at the Nizamuddin markaz of Delhi five times a day during Ramzan. Delhi Police and the Union government

were insisting that no gatherings should be al-lowed in view of Covid rules, although lakhs of sadhus thronged the ghats of Ganga in Haridwar for the Kumbh. In fact, the high court took note of the fact that no other religious place was closed. Justice Mukta Gupta remarked, “Situation is get-ting grim by (the) day. But since all religious plac-es are open, this also had to be opened,” as she took note of the Delhi Disaster Management Authori-ty’s April 10 notification in which there was no direction to close down places of worship. The markaz was closed down last year after a congrega-tion of tablighi jamaat. The tablighis were hound-ed and jailed all over the country after being brand-ed as super-spreaders of Covid-19 and marked the worst form of communal politics. The action against the tablighis was criticised in strong terms by the Bombay High Court which ordered the im-mediate release of a group of them lodged in jail on frivolous charges.

The Delhi Waqf Board pleaded that while all religious places outside of containment zones were allowed to be opened in Unlock 1, the markaz had remained closed since March last year. The plea was accepted by the court. The court’s order came after a flip flop by the Central government which first agreed to reopen the mosque for Ramzan but changed its stand the very next day to deny gatherings.

I

We must pay the most careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away. —Hebrews 2:1

SpiritualSPEAK

TopTWEET

Prakash Javadekar @PrakashJavdekarHappy to note that 21 of the Himalayan griffon vultures brought in critical condition were released back to the wild after being treated by the vets. Kudos to efforts towards the conservation of #vultures that have reduced by over 95 percent over recent decades.

Dharmendra Pradhan @dpradhanbjpWe are establishing greater synergies for the development of hydrogen ecosystems and also for integrating hydrogen with flagship schemes of @PetroleumMin and across a range of other sectors, including in chemicals,iron, steel, fertilisers, power, refining, transport, etc.#HED2021

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New Delhi: Union De-fence Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday con-gratulated Indian Air Force for its befitting response to the “sudden developments in East-ern Ladakh” and appre-ciated its focus on “re-orienting for the fu-ture”. He advised the Commanders to draw up long-term plans and strategies for capability enhancement to coun-ter future threats.

While addressing the biannual IAF Com-manders’ Conference (AFCC-21) at Air Head-quarters, he expressed

happiness that the con-ference coincides with the birth anniversary of the Marshal of the Air Force Arjan Singh, DFC. Speaking about the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Rajnath ap-preciated the role played

by the IAF in assisting other government agen-cies in their task, as per an official statement from the defence minis-try. Singh stressed on need to promote ‘at-manirbharta’ in defence infra. —ANI

Delhi worst-hit!...People attached with es-sential services have been kept out of the am-bit of the curbs, the CM added.

Only one weekly mar-ket per day per zone will be allowed, Kejriwal said, adding that spe-cific rules will soon be issued for the same.

Just festive...The Wayanad MP also took a dig at the Prime Minister asking what PM-CARES is doing, as huge donations were al-located to the fund for managing the Covid-19 situation.

Gandhi’s attack

comes in the wake of India reporting an un-precedented increase in Covid-19 cases with over 200,000 cases being reported on Thursday, the biggest single-day hike since the begin-ning of the pandemic.

The former Congress president has been crit-ical of the govern-ment’s way of handling the Covid-19 crisis since the pandemic spread. Last week, Gandhi raised questions over conducting the tika ustav when the country is facing a vaccine shortage and vaccina-tion centres are being shut down.

FROM PG 1

WILL PROVIDE A FILLIP TO TOTAL VACCINE AVAILABILITY IN THE COUNTRY

CENTRE ISSUES GUIDELINES FOR FOREIGN-MADE VAXThe decision has been taken amid surge in cases with over 2 lakh people infected in last 24 hours, claiming 1,73,123 lives so farNew Delhi: CDSCO shall prepare detailed guidelines specifying regulatory pathway for approval of foreign ap-proved Covid vaccines based on NEGVAC rec-ommendations.

These guidelines have since been prepared and posted by CDSCO on its website. CDSCO will take steps to widely dis-seminate these guide-lines to the concerned stakeholders. Appli-cants for grant of ap-proval for Restricted Use in the Emergency situa-tion may be submitted to CDSCO. Application can be made by the foreign manufacturer through its Indian subsidiary or through its authorized agent in India (in case it does not have an Indian subsidiary).

CDSCO will process such applications for Restricted Use in Emer-gency Situation and DCGI will consider and

make a decision within 03 working days from the date of submission of a complete applica-tion by the applicant.

DCGI will issue per-mission for Restricted Use in an Emergency situation with, inter-alia, the following con-ditions: Vaccine shall be used as per the guide-lines prescribed under

National Covid-19 Vac-cination Programme.

First 100 beneficiar-ies of such vaccines shall be assessed for 7 days for safety outcomes before it is rolled out for further Vaccination program. Applicant shall initiate conduct of post-approval bridging clinical trials within 30 days of such approval.

Applications for Re-stricted Use in an Emer-gency situation for such vaccines may be accom-panied by bridging trial protocol, application for an import registration certificate and applica-tion for an import li-cense. CDSCO will pro-cess applications for Registration Certificate (registration of overseas

manufacturing site and product: in this case Cov-id vaccine) and Import License, within 3 work-ing days from the date of approval of Restricted Use in Emergency. The applicant will use the Covid vaccine, after re-ceipt of CDL approval, initially only on 100 ben-eficiaries and submit the safety data to CDSCO.

Healthcare workers prepare beds at the Shehnai Banquet Hall in New Delhi, which has been temporarily converted into a Covid-19 ward.

STAFF MEMBERS OF SC JUDGE JUSTICE SHAH TEST POSITIVE FOR COVID-19New Delhi: All staff members of Supreme Court judge Justice M R Shah test positive for Covid-19, the judge said during the hearing of a case today. Justice Shah was sitting on the bench headed by Justice D Y Chandrachud and broke the news to the lawyers that all his staffers at the official residence have got the viral infection.

Earlier, SC had come

out with additional pre-cautionary measures for the entrants to its premises. —ANI

CDSCO PROTOCOL

Monuments under Central govt closed till May 15 New Delhi: Monu-ments & museums under the central government’s con-trol will be closed till May 15 because of the surge in coro-navirus cases, offi-cials said on Thurs-day. Daily caseload has doubled in 10 days, with a record 2 lakh new infec-tions logged Thurs-day as authorities grapple with short-ages of vaccines, treatments and hos-pital beds. Having let its guard down with mass religious festivals, political rallies and crowds at cricket matches, India is experienc-ing a vicious second wave, recording al-most 20 lakh fresh infections this month alone.

Rajnath lauds IAF on its response to China in Ladakh

Rajnath Singh addresses the IAF Commanders at the Air Force Commanders’ Conference in New Delhi on Thursday.

IN THE COURTYARD

‘Time for woman CJI; but women lawyers cite family responsibilities’, says CJI BobdeNew Delhi: Chief Jus-tice of India SA Bobde on Thursday said the chief justices of High Courts have often told him women lawyers re-fuse to take up judge-ship, citing domestic responsibilities, re-ported Bar and Bench.

Bobde, however, also said that it was high time for a woman to be-come the chief justice of India but the Colle-gium faces difficulties

in the appointments because they refuse to become judges. Bobde made the comments when a Supreme Court

bench was hearing a plea regarding the ap-pointment of judges to HCs. The SC Women Lawyers Association had filed an application to intervene in the plea before the court. The association’s applica-tion seeks to urgently consider elevating ex-perienced women law-yers from the Supreme Court as judges of High Courts as a measure to increase the number of

women judges.During the hearing,

advocate Shobha Gup-ta, representing the as-sociation, submitted that only 11% of judges were women, reported Live Law. Advocate Ka-lita, also appearing for the association, said that the Memorandum of Procedure for the appointment of judge has no mention regard-ing the representation of women.

MEA to HC on repatriation of Hindu man’s remains: Legal proceedings initiated in SaudiNew Delhi: The Saudi Arabian government has located the grave of a Hindu man who was buried there as per the Muslim rights and is considering repatri-ation of the remains, the Centre informed the Delhi High Court on Thursday. The Min-istry of External Af-fairs (MEA) also told the court that the Indi-an consulate in Jeddah

has initiated legal pro-ceedings in a Saudi court for bringing back the remains. The sub-missions were made before Justice Prathiba M Singh during hear-ing of a plea moved by the deceased’s widow seeking his remains to perform the last rites here. The mortal re-mains of the Hindu man were wrongly bur-ied in Saudi Arabia.

Plea in SC seeks direction to RBI for incentive packagesNew Delhi: A writ petition has been filed before the SC seeking a direction to the RBI to issue in-structions and guide-lines to initiate in-centive packages and interim relief for the commercial borrow-ers attached into small scale business in the wake of COV-ID-19. The petitioner, Amaltas Apparel and

Accessories Pvt Ltd, a small MSME regis-tered company, had moved the Apex Court through the lawyer, Vishal Ti-wari. The petitioner sought direction from the Top Court to the RBI & the banks to desist from impos-ing the Non-Perform-ing Assets norms for MSME units for a period of two years.

CJI Bobde

EC imposes 24-hr campaign ban on GhoshNew Delhi: Election Commission (EC) on Thursday imposed a 24-hour campaigning ban on BJP’s West Bengal unit president Dilip Ghosh over his “highly provocative” and “in-citeful” remarks about the CISF firing in Cooch Behar district during the fourth phase of poll-ing on April 10.

Ghosh cannot attend

rallies or any campaign-related gatherings start-ing from 7 pm Thursday

till 7 pm Friday.On Sunday, Ghosh

had said there would be similar incidents like the one in Cooch Be-har’s Sitalkuchi if “dus-tu chelera” (bad boys) do not behave in the up-coming election phases. He was referring to the violence witnessed on April 10 at a polling sta-tion in Sitalkuchi where voting was underway

for the fourth phase. Four persons, including an 18-year-old, were killed in firing by CISF personnel.

EC, in its order, ob-served that his com-ment, aside from violat-ing the Model Code of Conduct, had law and order implications and hence could adversely af-fect the election process in West Bengal. —Agencies

Dilip Ghosh

Didi getting disturbed despite giving respect: IraniNew Delhi: Union Min-ister Smriti Irani on Wednesday lashed out at West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee, say-ing that while she talks of ‘khela hobe’, the peo-ple of the state are say-ing there will be slogans for lotus.

Addressing a public gathering in Shikarpur, Irani said, “Didi is get-ting disturbed on being called ‘Didi’ and is stat-ing why PM is saying ‘Didi, o Didi’. She is get-ting disturbed. PM is giving her respect & she is insulting him. —ANI

MR SHAH

—PH

OTO

BY A

NI

New Delhi: In view of a spike in COVID cas-es, the National Eligi-bility-Cum-Entrance Test (PG), which was scheduled for April 18, has been postponed, Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan said on Thursday.

“In light of the surge in #COVID19 cases, GoI

has decided to postpone #NEETPG2021 exam which was earlier scheduled to be held on Apr 18. Next date to be decided later. Decision has been taken keeping wellbeing of our young medical students in mind,” Vardhan said in a tweet.

—ANI

NEET-PG POSTPONED IN VIEW OF RISING COVID-19 CASES: VARDHAN

Chennai: India will spend $200 million over the next five to seven years to promote the use of hydrogen, Indu Shekhar Chatur-vedi, the top bureau-crat at the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, said at a vir-tual industry event on Thursday.

India has asked its state-run oil and gas companies to set up seven hydrogen pilot plants by the end of this financial year, oil secretary Tarun Ka-

poor also said at the Hydrogen Economy - New Delhi Dialogue event.

Governments and energy companies around the world are betting on clean hydro-

gen playing a leading role in efforts to lower greenhouse gas emis-sions, though its fu-

ture uses and costs re-main uncertain.

Oil minister Dhar-mendra Pradhan said at the online confer-ence the government planned to scale up use of hydrogen blended with compressed natu-ral gas (H-CNG) as a transportation fuel.

“We are looking for-ward to introducing H-CNG as an intermittent technology in a big way for both automotive and domestic cooking applications,” Mr Prad-han said on Thursday.

India to spend $200 million in next 5-7 yearsTO PROMOTE HYDROGEN USE

India has asked its state-run oil

and gas companies to set up seven

hydrogen pilot plants by the

end of this financial

year

NEWSJAIPUR | FRIDAY, APRIL 16, 2021

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PM’s brother blasts Adani airport staff on parking feesOn return from Haridwar, Prahlad Modi was charged for parking but his car was not parked at airportFirst India Bureau

Ahmedabad: Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s elder brother Prahlad Modi has blast-ed the Ahmedabad air-port staff over parking charges. An argument broke out when he reached Ahmedabad from Haridwar and the parking staff demand-ed a car parking charge of Rs 90 from him.

The airport is being managed by Adani Air-ports and there have been several complaints of passengers and taxi driv-ers having to pay exorbi-tant parking charges.

Prahlad Modi argued that his car was not parked on the airport premises and he could not be charged for it. He said his driver was waiting in the car for him on the road outside the airport. Despite this, the airport’s park-ing staff asked for a parking charge.

Later, airport offi-cials reached the spot and asked Prahlad Modi claiming that it was the mistake of the employees.

Modi said he came out of the terminal and was walking towards his car, but the parking staff reached where his

driver was waiting with the car. Modi told the employees that since his car was not parked on the premises there could not be any charge.

He was reportedly told that every vehicle coming to the airport was charged a parking fee even if it was not parked on the premises. They even told him that his car would be seized if the parking charge was not paid.

Adani Group, which manages the Ahmedabad

Airport, had increased the parking charges from April 1 and also re-duced the parking time. Earlier a two-hour car parking cost Rs 80 but now the charge is Rs 90 for 30 minutes and Rs 150 for two hours. Two-wheeler parking for 30 minutes costs Rs 30 and Rs 80 for two hours.

Charges for 24-hour and monthly parking have also been revised. Those found parking in no-parking zones would be fined Rs 400 to Rs 1,000.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s elder brother Prahlad Modi at the Ahmedabad airport.

UNFAIR FEES!

MISSING!46 Tigers in RajMonitoring by forest department has completely

failed leading to the sorry state of affairs

Nirmal Tiwari

Jaipur: How irre-sponsible is the state forest department re-garding tigers can be gauged from the fact that the number of missing tigers in the state has reached close to 4 dozen. Ti-gers are disappear-ing continuously from Ranthambore National Park and Forest Department seems to be sitting idle.

Nearly 30 tigers in 10 years and 16 went missing in merely past 3-4 years in Ra-jasthan. The latest case is that of T72 Sultan who is miss-ing from Mandrayal range. Sultan used to roam from Ghantesh-war in Kailadevi in Karauli district to Sarmathura in Dhol-pur. Sultan is the son of T-24 Ustad, one of the few famous Ti-gers of Ranthambore.

Sultan was last traced in February 2021 and is currently missing, while his partner T-92 Sundari has also been missing for a year-and-a-half.F u r t h e r m o r e , Mukundara’s MT-1 has been missing for 8 months.

The list of tigers’ disappearance is get-ting longer, touching 50, but it seems that Forest Department is not taking these

things seriously.Monitoring has com-

pletely failed, with mal-functioning in anti poaching and survey-ing systems. After the anti poaching and sur-

vey scam, now the drone scam has come to light. Nothing is going right in the forest de-partment, and that is not an exaggeration. While the anti-poach-

ing and surveillance system worth Rs50 crore proved to be inef-ficient while many cam-eras & towers were closed or found defec-tive. Now, 5 drones

worth over Rs1 crore have become ineffi-cient.

Only five drones worth more than Rs1 crore were ordered from a Delhi-based company which are equipped with ther-mal cameras! While according to DGCA rules, drones with thermal cameras cannot be flown at night. Then why was the order given? These drones were purchased for Ranth-ambore, Sariska, Jhalana, Mukundra and Jawai. But now there is not a single drone in Jawai as it has been brought to Jhalana. A technical expert told on condi-tion of anonymity that the drone is not even fit to fly.

The drones of Ran-thambore & Mukun-dra are in a bad shape. Significantly, environmentalist Babu Lal Jaju has re-ported to the ACB regarding failure of anti-poaching and survey system and corruption in it.

These drones have also failed in their task to find tigers. They even failed to give correct results when they were de-ployed once to find a panther in Udaipur and also to trace a Lesser Florican in Sonkaliya area of Kishangarh.

An appeal to each one to stay masked and maintain social distance. Get vaccinated if

eligible and keep safe!—Jagdeesh Chandra, CEO & Editor-in-Chief, First India

JAIPUR | FRIDAY, APRIL 16, 2021www.fi rstindia.co.in I www.fi rstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefi rstindia I facebook.com/thefi rstindia I instagram.com/thefi rstindia082NDFRONT

POSTAL REG NO. JPC/010/2019-21

Aditi Nagar

New Delhi: Meetings between two political heavyweights always draws attention not just of their own party mem-bers and leaders, but of the general public as well. However, when two big-wigs, from two separate political eras and hailing from two parties with opposite ideologies - hold a meet-up, the development is bound to get the neces-sary notice.

New Delhi’s power circles came alive on Thursday, when for-mer bureaucrat turned foreign minister Nat-war Singh met with none other than Prime Minister Narendra Modi at PMO. The 90- year- old bureaucratic and political veteran had a half an hour tete-a-tete with the current political cham-pion of the nation - PM Modi. But what is the political aspect of this meeting?

Firstly, the meeting had been called at PM Modi’s initiation wherein, the PM spoke with Singh about his

health and expressed his worries on the ongo-ing Corona pandemic on which Singh said jokingly, “There is no

space in heaven since its crowded due to Co-rona. Let me stay in this world for a few days.”

The two men then

spoke at length over the national and inter-national issues in an extremely friendly and informal environment. However, PM Modi made an important point saying, “At pre-sent there isn’t a pow-erful opposition in the nation and it is not the right sign for India’s democracy since it is extremely important to have a powerful opposi-tion in a democracy.”

Apart from this, the duo also spoke infor-

mally on foreign policy issues pertaining to America’s withdrawl from Afghanistan, Rus-sia, China and Paki-stan were also dis-cussed. Interestingly, the duo did not speak of any issue related to Rajasthan.

However, political pandits believe that Modi-Singh meeting could also be a way of giving ‘message’ to the Congress party. Only few weeks back, Modi had shown his liking

and support for Con-gress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad, which had sent a ‘positive mes-sage’ about Modi in the Muslim community.

Perhaps, this time through Natwar Singh, Modi has tried to give a ‘message’ to the jat com-munity that holds con-siderable sway in Uttar Pradesh, which will go to poll next year. Mean-while, through his ‘ap-proach’ Modi continues to win hearts of ‘rebel Congressmen’.

First India Bureau

Jaipur: On the eve of Rajasthan Police Foun-dation Day, DGP ML Lather has extended his heartfelt greetings and best wishes to all police officers and jawans of the state. He expressed confidence that all offic-ers and jawans of Ra-jasthan Police, with their dignified conduct, will continue to dis-charge their responsi-bilities with impartial-ity and willingness.

It is noteworthy that

Rajasthan Police was es-tablished on April 16, 1949 by integrating the police forces of the for-mer princely states. The DGP said in his message that our mighty youth have established glori-ous traditions of sacri-

fice to protect the nation and society. Policemen have continued to carry forward their duties with utmost fervour. Lather also said that keeping in mind its mot-to, ‘Trust in common man & fear among crim-inals’ Rajasthan Police personnel are always ready to serve the citi-zens. Our state is affect-ed by Corona infection at present, he said, urg-ing the cops to follow all necessary protocols & motivate the common man to follow the same.

In a surprise move, Modi meets Natwar Singh, calls for a ‘powerful oppn’!

Cops will continue to discharge their duties impartially: Lather

WHEN STALWARTS MET...

New Delhi: Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla will chair a virtual meeting of the presiding officers of the legislative bodies in the country and oth-er leaders on the sub-ject ‘prevailing COV-ID-19 situation and the role and responsibility of public representa-tives’ on April 19.

Union Minister of Parliamentary Affairs Pralhad Joshi, among other leaders of Opposi-tion, will also attend the meeting. “Apart from the presiding officers of state legislatures, min-ister of parliamentary affairs, chief whips and leaders of Opposition in state legislatures will also join the virtual meeting,” as per an of-ficial statement.

India reported its highest-ever single-day spike of COVID-19 cases with over two lakh new infections on Wednes-day, according to the union health ministry.

With 2,00,739 new COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours, the coun-try’s total number of cases now stands at

1,40,74,564, including 14,71,877 active cases.

India also reported 1,038 fresh COVID-relat-

ed fatalities in the last 24 hours, taking the overall death toll to 1,73,123. —ANI

COVID-19: Om Birla to chair meet on April 19

Manoj Sharma

Tonk: Anti-Corruption Bureau has arrested a Public Prosecutor and an advocate, who acted as his middleman for taking a bribe of Rs 10,000 in Tonk district of Rajasthan.

The accused PP, Jugnu Sharma had demanded the bribe through his middleman, Basant Ku-mar Jain from the com-plainant for getting deci-sion in a land related matter in his favour from the district magistate

and for not filing an ap-peal against the order.

After receiving com-plaint, the ACB verified it and caught both of them red- handed while taking a bribe of Rs 10,000. On the other hand, advocates gathered at the Collectorate and opposed the ACB action.

TONK ACB NABS PUBLIC PROSECUTOR & HIS AIDE FOR TAKING `10K BRIBE

Say the truth, stop dubious claims: Gehlot to CentreNaresh Sharma

Jaipur: Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, who had spearheaded the corona vaccination campaign in Rajasthan making the state numero uno in inoculation, attacked Union Health Minister Dr Harshvardhan on Thursday for claiming that adequate vaccines were available with states and there was no shortage.

Taking to micro blog-ging site Twitter, Gehlot made scathing attacks at the BJP leader and said, “Following the guidelines of the Cen-tral Government, the Rajasthan government worked hard to increase the speed of vaccina-tion to 5.81 lakh vac-cines per day and reached the first posi-tion in the country. It was not expected from Union Health Minister Dr. Harshvardhan that he would make untrue statements like ‘ade-quate vaccine available

in the states’. It is total-ly wrong for the Health Minister to accuse states of mismanage-ment,” Gehlot said.

In a series of tweets, the Chief Minister said, “Initially, we were ap-prehensive about giving vaccine even to medical fraternity, but we have encouraged people to get vaccinated by creat-ing confidence within everyone and people

have come forward in large numbers. The Central government had allowed 10% vac-cine wastage, but in Ra-jasthan the percentage of vaccine wastage is only 7%. Rajasthan has the highest vaccination in the entire country.”

He further said, “There was no harm in assuming that the avail-ability of vaccine in the country is low and the

state governments should make a vaccina-tion programme accord-ingly. But the Central government has failed to provide a regular supply of vaccines in Ra-jasthan, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Pun-jab, Delhi, Jharkhand, Uttarakhand and As-sam, which has led to the closure of vaccination centres at many places in these states. I hope that the Union Minister will work in the interest of common people in-stead of making false statements on corona infection and vaccina-

tion. I also believe that instead of spreading misinformation about this, the Central Govern-ment should have offi-cially issued advisory saying that it will take some time for the vac-cine to become available so that people will not get confused in future and people will have con-fidence in the vaccine.”

CM RELEASES VIDEO, ASKS MASSES TO VOTE

GEHLOT CABINET TO MEET ON APRIL 17

EVE OF RAJ POLICE FOUNDATION DAY

Jaipur: CM Ashok Gehlot released a video on bypolls, say-ing, “With victory of 3 Congress candidates, state government will be further strength-ened. I cannot forget the work done by all states for Corona & this time too we have to work in similar fashion. LoP said the government will fall in 6 months. Those 6 months will be completed on April. 17. If Congress wins 3 bypolls, it will teach Delhi a lesson. We made tests free & solved problems faced by EWS, provided money to 35 lakh people in Corona times. We fulfi lled promises made in budget, & I have complete faith that people will ensure Congress’s victory.”

A meeting of the Gehlot cabinet will be convened from 12.30 PM onwards on Saturday, April 17. A notice in this regard was issued on Thursday.

First India Bureau

Jaipur: Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot has ap-proved to upgrade Mad-horajpura, Aandhi and Tunga Sub- Tehsil Of-fices in the Tehsil Office of Jaipur District.

With this decision, people will be able to get execution of revenue works of the Tehsil of-fice at the local level it-self. The new tehsil Madhorajpura will in-clude 6 land records in-spector circles, 22 pat-war divisions and 87 revenue villages. The Aandhi tehsil office will include 5 land records inspector circles, 21 pat-war mandals and 110 revenue villages. While Tunga Tehsil office will include 3 land records inspector circles, 13 Pat-

war divisions and 91 revenue villages.

It is noteworthy that CM Gehlot had an-nounced the opening of various new tehsil of-fices, promotion of sub-tehsils and opening of new sub-tehsil offices for the expansion and strengthening of ad-ministrative units in the state budget and in quick implementation of this announcement, the Chief Minister has given this approval.

Meanwhile, Gehlot has also given approval to upgrade the Bassi Sub-Tehsil office of Chittorgarh district to Tehsil office.

The new Tehsil Bassi will comprise 4 land re-cords inspector circles, 15 Patwar divisions and 108 revenue villages.

CM’s approval to upgrade sub-tehsils into tehsil offices

CM Ashok Gehlot

Dr Rituraj Sharma

Jaipur : The newly appointed Chairman of the State Finance Commission, Dr Pradyuman Singh, took charge on Thurs-day. Talking to the me-dia after taking the charge, he said that efforts will be made to find a middle path be-

tween the aspirations of the local bodies and the state’s constrained financial condition.

The Commission will make recommen-dations on the finan-cial support needed to strengthen Panchayati Raj institutions and urban bodies so that they can stand on their own feet. “There

is no doubt that the state’s financial condi-

tion has sifferred un-der Corona and in such a difficult time, I have been given the responsibility of the post of the Commis-sion’s Chairman. Like last time, this time too, we will work with reg-ular interactions with members and with mutual coordination,” Singh said, further

adding, “It will take about 1 month to set up office and organise all the work.” Singh said that the Centre has not paid the full amount of GST com-pensation and the situ-ation is also bad due to Corona. In such a situ-ation, the Commission will recommend a bet-ter route.

‘Will work in mutual coordination with members’

LS SPEAKER STARTS CORONA HELPLINE

Dr Pradyuman Singh

Om Birla

DGP ML Lather

Natwar SinghPM Narendra Modi

Ashok Gehlot @ashokgehlot51

I again appeal to the people of the state that let us all unite

as before to save the common man from the horrors of this second wave. As the central

government supplies the vaccine, the vaccine program

will continue.

116 NEW POSTS

It is totally wrong for Union Health Minister to accuse states of mismanagement: CM Gehlot made a scathing attack on Dr Harshvardhan

ast fashion is a buzz phrase in the sustaina-bility world. And as we continue to encourage the industry to move to-wards a more sustaina-ble and ethical future,

it’s helpful to know what we’re up against. But what does this term mean?Fast fashion can be defined

as trendy clothing that samples ideas from the catwalk or celeb-rity culture and turns them into garments in high street

stores at breakneck speed to meet consumer demand.

The desire for fresh looks at an

alarming rate or the in-dustry’s top players convinc-

ing us that we’re behind trends as soon as we see them being worn.

It’s hard to say, but there is no doubt that we thirst for the ‘next best thing’ every day of our con-sumer-driven lives.

Unfortunately, many people shy away from thrift stores because of the effort required to sort through the crowded racks of duds before finding treasure. Instead of being intimidated, think of it as a game. Set aside your Saturday so that you can take your time browsing through the racks, and go with a list of items you need in mind. Skip over flimsy polyester and instead look for clothes that were well-made with quality fabrics such as wool, suede, leather, and cotton. You’ll likely be able to find many sturdy wardrobe staples such as jeans, sweaters, and even coats and shoes for a fraction of their origi-nal cost.

Nowadays, fashion is bold and daring, and this reflects a nough-ties generation that is not afraid to say what they think or wear. Fash-ion is not just a means of clothing your body, it is the essence of your personality and beliefs.

Fast Fashion is a great thing for the masses but its dark underbelly means that for us the cons outweigh the pros. Next time you go to get a new outfit for the weekend, think, do I need that? Think of the bigger picture when it comes to fashion and not what you just look like!

MITALI DUSADmitalidusad01@gmail.com

F

JAIPUR, FRIDAYAPRIL 16, 2021

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HOP TO SHOP: FAST FASHION

Outfit repeating is a fashion faux pas and if you want to stay relevant, you have to sport th

e

latest looks as they happen. City First brings you the newest styles on the market!

10ETC

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FACE

OF TH

E DAY

MONICA FRANK, Blogger

LEOJULY 24 - AUGUST 23

Excellent opportunities may knock at your door. Professionals will be able to give their best in a new

situation. Financially, this day may prove lucky for you, so go ask for the raise that is keeping you on tenterhooks. Don’t take any chances with your health today.

LIBRA SEPT 24 - OCTOBER 22

Your desire for an exciting time on the social front is likely to be fulfi lled today. Those looking for buying a

house can get a good bargain. Appreciation is in store for some homemakers. A professional victory is yours if you play your cards well today.

ARIESMAR 21 - APR 20

Your performance at work will be commendable. Your own happiness is in your hands today. Spouse may

need her space, respect that. This is a favourable day for completing pending jobs. Financially, no problems are foreseen. It is best to avoid outside food.

SAGITTARIUS NOV 23 - DEC 22

Good performance on the academic front will help enhance your reputation at work. Some favourable

developments on the social front are foreseen. Buying new furniture or a major appliance is possible. With good networking, a prized posting can be yours.

GEMINIMAY 21 - JUNE 21

A family youngster is likely to do you proud. A business trip is indicated and will achieve much.

Your strategy to promote yourself on the professional front will bear fruits. You may need to speed up things on the academic front to remain ahead. Spend more time with family.

AQUARIUSJAN 21 - FEB 19

A new deal is likely to come through and give you a taste of success. Those fond of travelling may get their

chance soon. This is the time when you enjoy yourself with a new group of friends or colleagues. A change of job is likely to give you better salary and perks.

TAURUSAPR 21 - MAY 20

You may wait for someone’s invitation for a trip. Your professionalism in handling problem areas

will be appreciated. Tenant troubles are foreseen for some house owners. You will fi nd family life more than fulfi lling. A senior is likely to put in a good word for you to the higher ups.

CAPRICORNDEC 23 - JAN 20

You are likely to take up someone’s cause and earn appreciation from all quarters on the social

front. Remaining on the good side of those who matter on the academic front will help you achieve much. Good tidings of your well wishers will keep you going.

VIRGOAUG 24 - SEP 23

Getting into a favourable situation on the academic front is possible. Good luck promises to brighten your

day. Some positive changes can be expected on the home front. This seems a good day for job seekers. New avenues for earning open up as you get more determined.

CANCERJUNE 22 - JULY 23

Success is foretold on the academic front. Your reputation is likely to boost your image on the social

front. On the work front, you will manage to keep your superiors in good humour. This is an excellent day to spend time with family. Good planning will see you complete tasks.

PISCESFEB20 - MARCH 20

You will have to be more focussed on the academic front. You may get busy organising something on

the social front. You may need to put your ideas into action, if you want to prove yourself. A party may be thrown in your honour at work. Your good performance will be noticed.

SCORPIOOCT 23 - NOVEMBER 22

You will manage to achieve what you had aimed for on the academic front. A celebration can fi nd you in

your element today. Praise and honour are likely to greet you in something that you have managed to achieve. You will be a pillar of strength to a friend or associate.

YOUR DAY

Horoscope by Saurabbh Sachdeva

ahatma Gandhi wrote, “Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live for-ever.”- a thought

that one would believe to be just another adage in a sea of cliched words we read or hear when seeking motiva-tion and wisdom. However, to emulate this quote into an actual aspect of one’s life is a rarity. Such was the life of Dr Satyendra Chaturvedi. To the world, the erudite writer, editor, professor, journalist, think-er was a beacon of sage in-sight but to me, he was my grandfather. Today I eulo-gise a life, lived well and expansive, annotated by

agility, ideological girth, and abundant kindness.

Dr Satyendra Chaturve-di passed away 90-years young on April 8, 2021. He left behind a legacy that spoke volumes of the life he chose to live, one of in-tegrity, character, and mo-rality. A practising Gan-dhian, his body of work mirrored his life’s choices and decisions. Born to Pan-dit Yugal Kishore Chatur-vedi, and Smt. Priyamvada Chaturvedi, Dr Satyendra Chaturvedi, oldest in four siblings, brothers’ Late Som Chaturvedi, Bharat Bhushan Chaturvedi, Yagyesh Chaturvedi, and sister Indira Mayaram, grew up in an informed and passionate household. His father was a statesman, a fearless freedom fighter who went to jail countless times during the British rule in India for his politi-cal candour; he later went onto become a Minister,

and a Member of the Legis-lative Assembly in Ra-jasthan, before starting the Gandhian newsletter, Lok Shikshak. His mother, on the other hand, was the first woman chairperson of Bharatpur Municipal Corporation, she was a steadfast proponent of women empowerment, something that has been carried down generation after generation in the fam-ily. Naturally, my grandfa-ther was highly influenced by his parents, he believed in the ideals he grew up with and decided to chart a path honouring those.

He started his career as a professor in Jaipur’s Ma-haraja College, after which his tryst with education and knowledge took him to various cities across the

state of Rajasthan, eventu-ally retiring as a Principal of Government Arts Col-lege, Alwar. He was widely adored and respected as an educationist, and one con-versation with him would have you believe how true that statement ran. This culmination of his pursuit of knowledge manifested when he inherited Lok Shi-kshak from his father.

The newsletter, running strong even at present, was a collection of articles ded-icated to language, ideolo-gy, and Gandhian tenets. My grandfather put his soul into carrying not only a family legacy but also one that espoused strong prin-ciples. These principles were also commandeering status quo norms and nar-ratives that he vociferously

challenged. Whether through his fiction, he pub-lished 9 books, or his non-fiction, his writing, his pen – they were his mighty weapons.

He won umpteen acco-lades, such as ‘Amrit Sam-man’ by the Rajasthan Sa-hitya Akademi, the Lala Deshbandhu Gupta felici-tation by the Haryana Sahi-tya Samman, and many more, for his contribution to the Hindi language and literature. However, one would assume accolades suggest recognition and the fact that a person who has worked tirelessly all their life could settle down. That wasn’t my grandfa-ther; keeping aside acco-lades he continued to write. Up until, the very end, when his voice was feeble

due to being exhausted and unwell when he knew he couldn’t orally articulate all that he needed to say, he took upon his pen, his trusty clipboard and he wrote. He wrote all that he had to convey.

Dr Satyendra Chaturve-di leaves behind no void, no abyss, but learnings. A ca-

pacious, magnificent space devoted to learnings and ideals. He leaves behind these ideals in his family members, his wife, Raj Chaturvedi – who is also a writer and teacher, with a flair for poetry – to carry forward. His physical ab-sence will forever be com-pensated by his spiritual presence that rests in the hearts of whomever he met and spoke with.

LONG LIVETHAT PRESENCE

MSHIRALIE CHATURVEDIcityfirst@firstindia.co.in

Late Dr Satyendra Chaturvedi with his father Late Dr Satyendra Chaturvedi with his wife Raj Chaturvedi

The newsletter ‘Lok Shikshak’

Late Dr Satyendra Chaturvedi with his brothers, their wives andsister Indira Mayaram Raj Chaturvedi receiving award on his behalf from Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, Haryana

Late Dr Satyendra with grand daughter Shiralie Chaturvedi

CM Ashok Gehlot and Ved Vyas honouring Late Dr Satyendra Chaturvedi

Late Dr Satyendra Chaturvedi with his daughter Amita Chaturvedi

‘Bigg Boss 14’ sensation Jasmin Bhasin recently shot for the music video of the independent track ‘Pani di gal’ with Punjabi

singer Maninder Buttar. The romantic track is a part of ‘Jugni’, Buttar’s debut album. Along with lending his vocals to

the song with Asees Kaur, Buttar has penned

the lyrics. The music is com-

posed by Mix Singh.

—Agency

Trailer out

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11

One of the biggest stars in the young-er brigade of Bollywood, Kartik Aaryan is a man with many much-awaited films. Kartik is foraying in

the thriller genre with Ram Mad-havani directorial Dhamaka, which will be released on an OTT platform this year. Kartik captioned his recent pictures as, ‘Dub khatam, Lock-down shuru.’ He put the ‘#Dhamaka’ after the caption.

—Agency

Actor Ranbir Kapoor was in the headlines a few weeks back after he recovered from COVID 19. Post his recovery, he was spot-ted a couple of times when he visited his

clinic and on Thursday, the paparazzi caught him in the frame as he stepped out with mom Neetu Kapoor. . In the video, we can see Ranbir getting out of the car and asking photographers, “Aap Log Ka Lockdown Nahi Hai?” To this, the paps replied that their work was still on. To this, Ranbir asked, “Kyu? (Why?)” Post this, the actor urged everyone to maintain distance as he passed the paps and head-ed inside the clinic. —Agency

Over the past few weeks, the cas-es of COVID 19 have been on the rise and hence, several restrictions recently

were announced by many states in the country in-cluding Maharashtra. Malaika Arora shared her look for working from home as she urged all to stay indoors and keep their masks on amid the COVID 19 surge. The star has been spend-ing time at home over the past few days and working from home. —Agency

TAYYAR HO JAO!

ikki Bella and Brie Bella aka The Bella Twins’ legacy was cement-ed at this year’s WrestleMania as the siblings were deservedly in-ducted into the WWE Hall of Fame Class of 2020. However, Nikki’s IG post had fans ques-

tioning if the Total Bellas star was pregnant again after wel-coming her first child with Artem Chigvintsev, a baby boy named Matteo Chig-vintsev on July 31 of last year. Addressing the preg-nancy speculations in the comments section was Nik-ki herself who penned, “No lol. My dress was baggy.”

—Agency

Kate Winslet charmed our hearts and minds when she played Rose Dawson opposite Leonardo DiCaprio in Titanic. Speaking to Back-

stage in an in-depth interview, Kate said, “I miss that—the adrenaline of wanting some-thing that much when you go into a room for something. That’s a really important part of a young actor’s life because you learn your adrenaline levels, you learn how to calm your whole nervous system down.” —Agency

Fast & Furious 9th film will be releas-ing soon and we finally have a trailer! According to the recently released clip, F&F9 will be hitting theatres on

June 25, 2021. Apart from Vin Diesel, who is a must in the popular franchise, the film also stars Michelle Rodriguez, Tyrese Gib-son, Chris ‘Ludacris’ Bridges, Jordana Brewster, Nathalie Emmanuel, Sung Kang, Helen Mirren and Charlize Ther-on, and new joiners--John Cena, Michael Rooker, and Cardi B. —Agency

Last year, f a n s were all set to

feast their eyes upon Daniel Craig’s last outing as

James Bond in No Time To Die. Over the

past few years, several big names have cropped up when it comes to replacing

Craig as the next James Bond. An-other big name added to the mix is Loki star Tom Hiddles-ton, who many envision as the perfect James Bond candidate. —Agency

With Kim Kardashian and Kanye West’s ongoing divorce proceed-ings causing a stir in the Kar-dashian-Jenner family, the Keep-

ing Up With the Kardashians star is receiv-ing all the love and support from her mom-ager Kris Jenner. During a recent inter-view, a 65-year-old reality star revealed the valuable advice she gave her daughter, having been through two heartbreaking divorces herself; with the late Robert Kar-dashian in March 1991 and Caitlyn Jenner in March 2015. —Agency

Arjun Ka-poor is headed to Goa to

start shooting for ‘Ek Villain 2’. The actor says he has been dying to col-laborate with the film’s director Mo-hit Suri once again after ‘Half Girlfriend’.”I have been dying to col-laborate with Mo-hit again and we had an amazing time during ‘Half Girlfriend’ (which was) a very differ-ent film for me,” said Arjun.”

—Agency

Alia recovered

N

Fans of Alia Bhatt were overjoyed as the Brahmastra actress recently revealed that she recovered from COVID 19 and has tested negative. Being in-home

quarantine post-testing COVID 19, Alia kept sharing selfies on social media and treated them with a sneak peek from her isolation diaries. —Agency

Perfect candidate

Valuable advice

Big Revelation

SPILLS THE BEANS‘Aap log ka

lockdown nahi hai?’

Good old days

Dubbing Finished

Malaika Arora

...still from the trailer

Alia Bhatt

Ranbir Kapoor

Daniel Craig

Kris Jenner, Kim Kardashian and Kanye West

Arjun Kapoor

Kartik Aryan Kate Winslet

Jasmin Bhasin

Pregnant?

Nikki Bella

CITY FIRST

FICCI Ladies Or-ganisation, all the 17 chapters including Jaipur

Chapter, took a unit-ed oath nation-wide for standing firm for women empowerment on Thursday. It was the occasion of the Change of Guard ceremony where the outgoing

Chairperson tenure 2020-21, Wandana Par-nami gave her farewell speech. She thanked everyone and wel-comed Monika Kotha-ri Chairperson FLO

Jaipur 2021-22. Monika Kothari, director of Om

Towers and Revolv-ing Restaurants, is a Hotelier and restaura-teur by profession.

cityfirst@firstindia.co.in

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CITY BUZZGET VACCINATED

STAY MASKED

BIRTHDAY GREETINGS!

Jagdeesh Chandra greeted Ashish Sangwan on his birthday and wished him all the best.

Jagdeesh Chandra congratulated the newly engaged couple Shubham Gautam and Aayushi Sharma on their engagement ceremony held at Hotel Om Tower, Jaipur on Wednesday. Also seen here are (from left) Akanksha Bhalla and Monda Gautam.

Poornima University signed the ‘Skills Development Partnership Agreement’ with DeakinCo., a vertical of Deakin University Australia., one of the best universities in the world to enhance the skills and employability of its students by providing various opportunities at the global level.

CONGRATULATIONS!

MOU SINGED!

Registrations Open!First India ‘The Face of the Year 2021’ has moved a step ahead by declaring its registrations open on

Thursday. Girls can now register themselves and be a part of this prestigious beauty pageant!

a g d e e s h Chandra an-n o u n c e d r e g i s t r a -tions open for one of the most

awaited beauty pageants of the country- First India ‘The Face of the Year 2021’ and First India ‘The Teen Face of the Year 2021’ on Thursday, April 15 at his resi-dence. He also wished good luck to the whole team for this big project. Gaurav Gaur,

Akanksha Bhalla, Maulik Shah

from Elite Miss Rajasthan and the team of First India News were also present at the event.

This prestigious beauty pag-eant is an initiative by Jagdeesh Chandra to promote the talent of young girls from all over In-dia. The winner will be repre-senting India at an internation-al beauty pageant. Not only the cash prizes, but there will also be many other opportunities for the winners, runner ups and finalists. To be a part of this competition, a girl should

be a minimum of 5’5 tall, unmarried and a citizen of India. The auditions will be

held in the top 15 cities across India while online audi-tions will be held in all other major cities. The finale of this exciting event will be held on August 28 in Goa.

REGISTRATION PROCESS:Step 1: Visit the website www.

firstindiafaceoftheyear.com.Step 2: On the home page, you will

find two options under the icon ‘Register now’ i.e. First India ‘The Face of the Year 2021’ and First India ‘The Teen Face of the Year 2021’. According to your age, choose the appropriate option (Age 13-17 for The Teen Face of the Year and 17-23 for The Face of the Year).

Step 3: Fill the registration form and upload the URLs of three videos, which include ramp walk, introduction and talent.

Step 4: Upload the photos in close up, mid shot and full length.

Step 5: Upload the documents of your ID proof.

JMANSI BACHANIcityfirst@firstindia.co.in

—PHOTOS BY SANTOSH SHARM

A

GANGAUR CELEBRATIONS!

Shree Ram Vihar Mahila Mandal Jagatpur, Jaipurcelebrating Gangaur The Katta family performing Gangaur puja at Jhotwara, Jaipur Women celebrating Gangaur in Ajmer Women performing Gangaur puja at Jhotwara, Jaipur

Pet Pawlishers

CITY FIRST

The country’s first Pet Pawlishers Multispecialty Dog and Cat Hos-

pital has been set up in Jaipur to provide care and treatment-related facilities to pet animals. Pet Pawlishers at 1093, near Mansarovar Metro Sta-tion, Jaipur is not only a Multispecialty Dog and Cat Hospital, but there are facilities such as Pet

Accessories, Pet Food, Pet Day Care Centre, Pet Hostel among others. This hospital will start providing its services of pet care and treatment

from April 16.Dr Suman Rawat,

Director, Pet Pawl-ishers said that the

treatment of the pet will be done at the emer-gency after the regular timings and an ambu-lance facility for the pet will also be available.

cityfirst@firstindia.co.in

Campaign for VaccinationCITY FIRST

The school of Edu-cation com-menced a Cam-paign for Cov-

id-19 Vaccination un-der the aegis of the School of Education, Jaipur National Uni-versity and NSS on Tuesday. The Chancel-lor of the Jaipur Na-tional University, Dr Sandeep Bakshi launched this event to amplify Public awareness and

alertness during this period COV-ID-19 Pandemic.

With the guidance of Prof. KamlaVashisth, Director of, School of

Education, this cam-paign was organised by the Coordinator of NSS, Prof. Meenu Sin-gh.Prof. Rita Arora, Ad-ditional Director and Prof. Anshu Bhatia, Sr. Deputy Director also motivated the NSS vol-unteers to participate actively with a zeal for community services. NSS volunteers played a tremendous role in making this campaign meaningful and im-pactful.

cityfirst@firstindia.co.in

IAS Naveen Jain celebrated his birthday on Thursday, April 15. We wish him all the best!

HAPPY B’DAY! CHANGE OF GUARD

Vaccine campaignCITY FIRST

Jain Social Group under the aegis of Sangini Capi-tal organised a

free vaccination cam-paign at SMS Hospital, Jaipur on Thursday. The campaign was inaugurated by Dr Sudhir Bhandari. He appreciated the efforts of the entire team and assured that whenever the vaccina-tion camp of COVID-19 will be organised, their team will provide full

cooperation. Jaipur Collector Antar Singh Nehra and Former IAS officer NK Sethi also at-tended the camp and got their second dose.

Neeraj Gangwal, who was a special asso-ciate in the camp, along

with Dr PC Jain, Mahendra G. Gird-harwal, C. S. Jain, Rajendra K. Dabar-

ia, Ritu Kasliwal, Kiran Bhandari, Ajay Jain, Bharat Bhushan among others were pre-sent on the occasion. cityfirst@firstindia.co.in

Akanksha Bhalla Riya Sain

Jagdeesh Chandra with (from left) Shishir Awasthi, Gaurav Gaur, Maulik Shah,Akanksha Bhalla, Mansi Bachani, Karishma Gwalani and Mitali Dusad

During the vaccination campaign

Wandana Parnami

Monika Kothari

Suman Rawat and Silka Gupta

—PHOTOS BY SANTOSH SHARMA, MUKESH KIRADOO AND ANAND SHARMA

—PHOTO BY SANTOSH SHARM

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