#ˇ% · 2019. 12. 3. · rier ins vikrant (iac-i), now under construction at cochin shipyard, will...

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For both USA space agencyNASA and India’s ISRO

finding Chandrayaan-2’s elu-sive Vikram lander, which hadcrash-landed on the lunar sur-face on September 7 minutesbefore it was expected to softland on Moon, was an impos-sible task until Indian amateurspace scientist ShanmugaSubramanian located it by scouring through the imagesfrom the ISRO’s Moon orbitingspacecraft.

Thirty-three-year-oldSubramanian’s effort in locat-ing the site of the debris wasacknowledged by NASA.

Madurai-born mechanicalengineer and app developer,Subramanian, tweeted, “NASA has credited me forfinding Vikram Lander onMoon’s surface.”

Subramanian, who worksas an IT engineer in a Chennaicompany, said he spent hoursgoing through the images takenby NASA’s Moon orbitingLunar Reconnaissance Orbiter

(LRO), monitoring them ontwo computers in his “lab”.

Subramanian, who has alsokeen interest in weather mon-itoring, said he spent four to sixhours a day over the last cou-ple of month closely analysingthe images.

“While I was initially notsure where to look, later Ifound the intended landingsite of Vikram Lander andstarted looking in the adjacent squares for differ-ences,” he said.

The data and informationhe had collected from multiplesources that the crash landingmust have happened to thenorth of the intended landingsite came handy for his probe.This led him to further narrowdown the area of search andultimately pinpoint the spot where the debris fromVikram fell down.

The images were of rough-

ly 1.5 GB size and had a reso-lution of 1.25 square metre perpixel. There were vertical andhorizontal lines with eachsquare marking an area of onesquare kilometre.

Subramanian zeroed in onthe exact spot where the landerended up after getting out ofcontrol and identified thedebris of Vikram from the dif-ferences in the two picturesprovided by the NASA, onebefore the crash-land and theother after it got disintegratedand fell on the lunar surface.

The images of NASA weretaken by its LunarReconnaissance Orbiter (LRO)that flew over the area whereVikram was expected to makeits landing. “LRO flew over thearea on September 17 andNASA released the imagesthrough a blog on September29,” said Subramanian.

The NASA in apprecia-

tion of the service rendered bySubramanian tweeted onTuesday morning about hiscontribution. “The LunarReconnaissance OrbiterCamera team released the firstmosaic (acquired Sept. 17) ofthe site on Sept. 26 and many people have downloadedthe mosaic to search for signsof Vikram.

“Subramanian contactedthe LRO project with a positiveidentification of debris. Afterreceiving this tip, the LROCteam confirmed the identifica-tion by comparing before andafter images. When the imagesfor the first mosaic wereacquired the impact point waspoorly illuminated and thus noteasily identifiable. Two subse-quent image sequences wereacquired on October 14 and 15,and November 11. The LROCteam scoured the surroundingarea in these new mosaics and

found the impact site(70.8810°S, 22.7840°E, 834 melevation) and associated debrisfield. The November mosaichad the best pixel scale (0.7meter) and lighting conditions(72° incidence angle),” theNASA said.

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Expressing concern over theshrinking budget of the

Navy over the years and itsimpact on modernisation andacquisitions, Navy chiefAdmiral Karambir Singh saidhere on Tuesday the force hasapproached the Governmentand “hope to get some money”so that maritime interest of thenation was not compromised.

Making this assertion dur-

ing the annual Press conferenceon the eve of the Navy Day, hesaid the Navy’s budget hascome down from 18 per cent ofthe overall defence allocation in2012-13 to below 13 per cent inthe current fiscal. The capitalallocation for the Navy is now�23,156.43 crore while the IAFgot the highest amount totaling�39,302.64 crore followed bythe Army �29,461.25 crore.

On how the Navy plans toget over the resource crunchgiven the state of economy,

Singh said, “Our planning isdone keeping our requirementsand funds in mind. We will pri-otise our requirements.”

In August also, Singh hadlamented over the reducedallocation and said long-termbudgetary support was a mustto build naval capacities andcapabilities.

Despite resource crunch,the first indigenously designedand manufactured aircraft car-rier INS Vikrant (IAC-I), nowunder construction at Cochinshipyard, will be operational by2022, Singh said.

He also said as the Navychief he was convinced thatIndia needed at least three air-

craft carriers with two of themalways operational. At present,India has only one such carri-er, INS Vikramaditya. Whilehopeful that INS Vikrant willbe operational by 2022, healso advocated for a secondindigenously designed andmanufactured aircraft carrier.

Singh said they are prepar-ing the case and finalising therequirements after which theywould go to the Governmentfor Acceptance of Necessity(AoN) after which design con-sultancy would be taken up todecide the exact contours. As ofnow the Navy envisaged theproposed carrier to be 65,000tonnes with Catapult Assisted

Take Off But ArrestedRecovery (CATOBAR) and fullelectric propulsion.

He also said the DefenceResearch DevelopmentOrganisation (DRDO) hasoffered to develop a new twinengine deck based fighter forthe Navy based on the experi-ence of the Naval Light CombatAircraft (LCA) and it should beready by 2026, he said.

“The QualitativeRequirements (QR) are beingmade. They said they should beable to push it out by 2026. Ifit meets our time and QRrequirements we will definite-ly take it,” he said.

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Days after Congress leaderPriyanka Gandhi suffered

a security breach at her Delhiresidence, Home Minister AmitShah on Tuesday said a high-level enquiry has been orderedinto the matter and three secu-rity men have already beensuspended.

Speaking about the inci-dent during a debate on theSpecial Protection Group(SPG) Amendment Bill in theRajya Sabha, Shah said thesecurity breach at PriyankaGandhi’s residence was an“unlikely coincidence” as thepersonnel there were informedthat her brother, Rahul Gandhi,would be visiting in a black“Tata Safari” SUV.

Instead, a few Congressworkers from Meerut in UttarPradesh came in a similar vehi-cle and were allowed into thehouse, he said.

Shah sought to clarify onwhat the Congress called amassive security breach, whenon November 25 a car with afamily drove into PriyankaGandhi’s home in Delhi with-out being stopped.

The Congress walked outof the Rajya Sabha saying it isdissatisfied with the HomeMinister’s reply on theamendment to the SPG Act.The Bill was passed by the LokSabha on November 27.

According to the HomeMinister, Rahul was scheduledto visit his sister Priyanka at thetime, and when a black TataSafari drove in no one stoppedit. “The car had Congressworker Sharda Tyagi and threeothers in it, instead of RahulGandhi,” Shah said.

“So the car got in withoutsecurity checks. This kind ofcoincidence never happens butstill we ordered an enquiry andsuspended three officers whowere on duty. We did not wanteven a 0.001 per cent chance,”said the Home Minister.

Shah said changes in theSPG Act were not meant to tar-get one family. “We are not

opposing the parivaar (family),but parivaar-vaad (nepotism).India’s democracy cannot runlike this. Why talk of only thesecurity of the Gandhi family?The security of 130 croreIndians, including the Gandhifamily, is the Government’sresponsibility,” he said.

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Senior advocate RajeevDhavan, who represented

Muslim parties in the RamJanmabhoomi-Babri Masjidtitle dispute case, on Tuesdaysaid he has been sacked fromfurther appearance and is nolonger involved in the plea fora review of the November 9Supreme Court verdict.

Dhavan took to Facebookto disclose that he has beenremoved from participation inthe Ayodhya case on the “non-sensical” ground that he isunwell. “Just been sacked fromthe Babri case by AOR(Advocate on Record) EjazMaqbool who was representingthe Jamiat. Have sent formalletter accepting the “sacking”without demur. No longerinvolved in the review or thecase,” he wrote.

“I have been informed thatMr Madani has indicated thatI was removed from the casebecause I was unwell. This istotal nonsense. He has a rightto instruct his lawyer AOR EjazMaqbool to sack me which hedid on instructions. But thereason being floated is mali-cious and untrue,” Dhavan saidon the social networking site.Arshad Madani is president ofthe Jamiat Ulama-e-Hind.

Continued on Page 4

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Cautious over China’s grow-ing military prowess and

its Navy making forays into theIndian Ocean, India has notinvited its eastern neighbourfor a mega international navalexercise “Milan” next year.Navy chief Admiral KarambirSingh said here on Tuesdaythat only like-minded nationsare invited for the event.

He also said the IndianNavy recently asked a Chineseresearch vessel to leave after itwas found in the Indian watersnear Port Blair, Andaman andNicobar Islands. “Our stand isthat if you have to work in ourExclusive Economic Zone(EEZ) then you have to takeour permission,” Singh said.

The Chinese ship sailed awayfrom the Indian EEZ after theNavy’s warning.

Asked if the Chinese shipShi Yan I was on a spying mis-sion in the Indian Oceanregion, Singh said the Chineseships carry out deep sea min-ing in certain areas and are alsoengaged in research and satel-lite launch operations. “At leastseven to eight ships are alwayspresent in the Indian Oceanregion for anti-piracy opera-tions,” he said, while address-ing the annual Press confer-ence on the eve of the NavyDay on Wednesday.

Like India, China also ispart of the international effort to check sea piracy in theGulf of Aden.

Continued on Page 4

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In line with a similar indica-tion given by Chief Minister

Uddhav Thackeray two daysago, senior NCP MinisterJayant Patil said here onTuesday that the Maha VikasAghadi (MVA) Governmentwas examining the need to puton hold some mega projects,including the Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet train pro-ject, in view of the staggering�6.71 lakh crore debt burdenon the State exchequer.

Talking to mediapersonsahead of a meeting called by theChief Minister to review theviability of go-ahead with megainfrastructure projects, Patil,who is tipped to be the FinanceMinister in the MVAGovernment, said, “I have hada cursory look at the State’sfinances. I see the StateGovernment has debt of �4.71crore. In addition, the StateGovernment has an obligationto clear loans amounting to �2lakh taken by it to execute var-ious infrastructure projects”.

“We will have to see as towhat will be the viability of var-ious projects taken up by theState Government and whatkind of responsibility that theState Government will take to

repay loans taken for the newprojects. Later, today, we will bereviewing the whole thing. Wewould like to ascertain thestages of implementation ofvarious projects, whetherinvestments have been madeproperly and if loans could beobtained at lower rate of inter-ests,” Patil said.

“Some big projects areneeded in the larger interests ofMaharashtra. On the otherhand, we are considering if wecan put on hold some projectslike Bullet train,” Patil said.

Charging that the previousBJP-led Devendra FadnavisGovernment did not imple-ment farm loan waiver schemeproperly, Patil said, “The farm-ers across the State are feelingthat they were taken for a rideby the previous Government.We in the new Governmenthave gauged the sentiments ofthe farmers in this regard. Weare looking at ways to extensiverelief to farmers affected byunseasonal rain and conse-quent floods in the State. Theprevious Government hadgiven assurances to the farm-ers without considering factsand figures. That’s why wewould like to review everythingand take proper measures.”

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Ahead of the defenceexpo next year, theUttar Pradesh govern-

ment on Tuesday decided toprovide 25 per cent subsidyand 100 per cent stamp dutywaiver for setting up defenceindustry in the state.

The decision was taken ata cabinet meeting chaired byChief Minister YogiAdityanath.

“The cabinet has amend-ed the UP Defence,Aerospace Unit andEmployment PromotionPolicy-2018 with provision ofproviding 25 per cent subsidyand 100 per cent stamp dutywaiver for setting up defenceindustr y in the state ,”Industr ia l DevelopmentMinister Satish Mahanatold reporters in the state cap-ital. Now, companies whichset up defence industries willbe provided all facilitiesincluding power, road andfencing of land, the ministeradded.

PETROL PUMPS: Inanother decision, the govern-ment made rules for setting upof petrol stations and decidedto impose registration fee. The

new rules say that a new petrolstation would be set up only1,000 metres away from statehighways, 600 metres awayfrom district roads and 300metres away from village roads.

The stations have to beconstructed on 35 x35 metrearea. While ��3 lakh has beenfixed for petrol stations onstate highways, the rest willhave to pay ��2 lakh as regis-tration.

SCHOOLS: The UP gov-ernment also decided to amendthe rule of aided governmentrecognized primary schools inthe state by making severalnorms for quality education.

The government has nowmade it mandatory for assistantteachers to be graduate with 50per cent marks, besides beingBEd and TET pass. The newlaw has banned appointment oftemporary teachers and themaximum age for recruitmentwill be 40 years. Presently, therecruitment age start from 21years but there was no maxi-mum limit. A Governmentspokesperson said that the newrule would empower the gov-ernment to withdraw recog-nition anytime if it violated anynorms.

The government also

changed the academic sessionof primary school from April 1to March 31 from the existingJuly 1 to June 30 every year.

RELIEF FOR BUILDERS,HOMe BUYERS: The stategovernment on Tuesdaydecided to excuse buildersfrom penal interest and otherdues for the period their pro-ject is stalled due to litigation,if they pass on this benefit tothe home buyers.

The benefit will apply tobuilders who are set to pro-vide homes to buyers by Jun2021, Industrial DevelopmentMinister Satish Mahana toldreporters. The state govern-ment expected one lakh newhomes to be constructed bythat time.

The builders wil l beexempted from shelling outthe penal interest and otherdues if the housing project isstalled due to litigation,National Green Tribunaldirections or a delayed deedexecution.

Meanwhile, the state gov-ernment on Tuesdayapproved the construction ofan extension line of theNoida-Greater Noida Metroat a cost of � 2,682 crore, offi-cials said.

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Uttar Pradesh Raj Bhawan onTuesday got a letter threat-

ening to blow it up if theGovernor does not leave the placein 10 days time. A Raj Bhawanstatement said the letter wasfrom “TSPC Jharkhand”, anapparent reference to the Maoistgroup Tritya Sammelan PrastutiCommittee.

The letter threatened to blowup the Raj Bhawan with dyna-mite. The matter is being takenseriously, the statement added.Hemath Rao, additional chiefsecretary to GovernorAnandiben Patel, has sent the let-ter to the state’s home depart-

ment, it said. Before taking oathas the Uttar Pradesh Governor,Patel was the Governor ofMadhya Pradesh and brieflyheld the additional charge ofneighbouring Chhattisgarh, aNaxal-affected state.

Uttar Pradesh AdditionalChief Secretary Awanish KumarAwasthi said the HomeDepartment has taken the mat-ter “very seriously”. “The HomeDepartment has taken the mat-ter very seriously and written tothe DGP and DG Intelligenceand ADG Security to investigateimmediately and report byWednesday after a full assessmentof the situation and to take mea-sures as necessary,” he said.

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NOTICE

I, Lalchandama. A/No-4368967-Y Rank-HAVPresently residing at village -Vengthar Sesawng. P.O.-Zemabawk. P.S. BawngkawnTehsil-Aizawl. Dist-Aizawl.State-Mizoram. Pin-796017.have Changed my name fromLalchhandama toLalchandama.

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Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said thatdevelopment was the only source of

happiness as it helped in fulfilling thedreams of people by bringing them into themainstream.

“The BJP government is working tire-lessly to bring smiles on the faces of peo-ple as this government takes pride in mak-ing the lives of people easy,” Yogi said afterinaugurating a bridge over Rapti river inBan (Badhaya Thathar) village on Pipiganj-Mehandaval road of Campierganj tehsil inGorakhpur on Tuesday.

On the occasion, Yogi also inaugurat-ed and laid the foundation stone of 14 pro-jects worth over Rs 17,920 lakh inGorakhpur and Sant Kakbir Nagar.

In his address, the CM said that theresidents of Gorakhpur and Sant KabirNagar had been demanding Thatharbridge for a long time. “Today, the dreamsof the people of both districts have beenfulfilled,” he said.

Yogi further said, “The cabinet todaydecided to convert Belhar Kala and BelharKhurd gram panchayats of Sant KabirNagar to nagar panchayats. The numberof nagar panchayats will be increased inthe coming days and the limits of munic-ipal corporations and municipal councilswill also be expanded to ensure better basicfacilities to residents here,” he said.

The Chief Minister said that PrimeMinister Narendra Modi had promoted theidea of development without discrimina-tion and Adarsh Village and Smart Citywere part of the plan. “Our governmenteliminated difference between villagesand cities. Now, all districts and citizensare important,” he said.

Commenting on power supply, Yogisaid that only a few districts got power sup-ply till 30 months back. “Thousands of vil-lages did not receive power supply afterIndependence. Our government ensuredpower supply to 1.80 crore houses, openedpaddy purchase centres, paid cane pricesand opened closed sugar mills,” he point-ed out.

Attacking the previous SP-BSPregimes, the Chief Minister said that theyprovided benefits of welfare scheme on thebasis of caste and religion. “In the presentregime, the only standard is eligibility,” Yogiasserted.

The Chief Minister also said that ear-lier, Uttar Pradesh was known for riots andanarchy, but now it is known for good gov-ernance, progress and law & order.

Claiming improved health services, theChief Minister said there were only 12medical colleges in the state from 1947 to2016 while the present government set up15 medical colleges between 2016 and2019, and 14 more medical colleges wouldbe approved this year, taking the tally to29 in three years. “Medicos have to fill abond so that they can offer their servicesin rural areas for at least two years,” the CMsaid. Yogi also said that routes connectingother states and Nepal would be four-laneroads. Along with this, district headquar-

ters, tehsil and development blocks will beconnected with four-lane and two-laneroads. The CM said that the constructionof Purvanchal Expressway had been expe-dited. “Besides, the construction work ofBundelkhand Expressway is on while thecountry’s largest Ganga Expressway con-necting Meerut to Prayagraj is also beingbuilt,” Yogi said.

“The construction of Jewar Airportwill be completed by 2023, and will gen-erate a revenue of more than Rs one lakhcrore. Once the Jewar Airport becomesoperational and all three expressways areopened for public, employment opportu-nities and income of people will alsoincrease,” the Chief Minister said.

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All-India Muslim personalLaw Board (AIMPLB)

regretted the decision of JamiatUlama-e-Hind to sack RajivDhawan as its counsel for fil-ing a review petition in theSupreme Court against itsjudgement on Ayodhya titlesuit. Dhawan had representedall the seven Muslim litigantsin the apex court.

Hafiz Mohammed Siddiquiwas one of the original litigantsin Ayodhya case but after hisdeath, Jamiat general secretaryMaulana Arshad Madanibecame the litigant. Jamiat isone of the seven litigants in theBabri case.

Two litigants — UP SunniCentral Waqf Board and IqbalAnsari — have alreadyannounced that they will notfile a review petition. However,AIMPLB will retain Dhawan asits counsel and the board is rep-resenting four other litigants inthe petition.

The latest fissures in theMuslim side surfaced days afterthe UP Sunni Waqf Board saidit would not be filing a reviewpetition to challenge the

Ayodhya verdict that gave thedisputed land in Ayodhya toHindus for the construction ofRam temple. The board is yetto decide on accepting the 5-acre land.

“It was a collective decisionof all the litigants from theBabri Masjid side that RajivDhawan would be our counselfor filing the review petition inthe Supreme Court. It’s anunfortunate decision by JamiatUlama-e-Hind to disengage anoted lawyer like Dhawan andwe regret the mistake,” AIM-PLB secretary Zafaryab Jilanisaid in Delhi on Tuesday.

Jilani further said, “Thedraft of review petition is readyand as soon as its approved byRajiv Dhawan, the petitionwill be filed in the SupremeCourt.’’

Asked whether the Muslimside was divided over the issue,Jilani said: “Media reportsabout incidents of Muslim sidehiring different lawyers do cre-ate doubts among the commonpeople and those who are notdirectly involved feel thatsomething is wrong amongthe Muslim litigants.’’

The AIMPLB said, “It’s the

greatness of Rajiv Dhawan thathe has not disassociated him-self from the cause of BabriMasjid. Dhawan has been theresince 1993 and during the 40-day hearing in the SupremeCourt in September/October,he took up no other case andcharged no fee.”

Hours after Dhavan’sannouncement, AIMPLB,which will file review pleas onbehalf of other individualMuslim litigants in Ayodhyacase, tweeted that it wouldcontinue to fight underDhavan’s leadership.

“Rajeev Dhavan has alwaysbeen a symbol of justice andunity. AIMPLB will continue itsefforts in Supreme Court underhis esteemed leadership,”spokesperson Maulana KhalidSaifullah Rahmani said.

Meanwhile, AIMPLB gen-eral secretary Maulana WaliRahmani said the contributionof Dhawan in the case had beenextraordinary. He said that theway he argued in SupremeCourt was excellent and praise-worthy despite him beingabused by a section of peopleand a filthy campaign beingcarried out on social media.

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The Winter Session of UP Assemblywill be convened from December 17.

The brief session is expected to have sixsitting from December 17 to 24. InOctober, a 36-hour special session of boththe Houses of UP Legislature was held tocommemorate the 150th anniversary ofMahatma Gandhi and for a debate onsustainable development goals set by theUNO. It was followed by another specialsession on November 26 to celebrateConstitution Day as the ConstitutionAssembly approved the final draft ofIndian Constitution on that day.

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The state government claimedthat with greater involvement of

private healthcare providers, thenotification of TB cases rose by 38per cent from 2.96 lakh in 2017 to 4.1lakh in 2018.

State TB officer Dr SantoshGupta said that during a sensitisationworkshop in Lucknow on Tuesday,notifications from private healthcareproviders in the state had improvedsignificantly. “Around 25.6 per centof total TB cases (1,05,387 out of4,10,360) were notified by the privatesector in 2018 as compared to 19.1

per cent in 2017,” he said. “With increased notification of

TB patients by private players andgreater treatment reporting by privatedoctors, the government can moni-tor the treatment outcomes amongprivately-treated patients and ensuretheir completion,” he said.

Dr Santosh Gupta also spokeabout initiatives taken to furtherstrengthen inter-departmental coor-dination to improve services to TBpatients across the state.

The workshop was alsoaddressed by chairperson of StateTask Force for TuberculosisElimination (UP) Dr Surya Kant,

who elaborated the role of medicalcolleges in TB elimination strategy.

Dr Surya Kant also said that ear-lier this year, the Medical Council ofIndia mandated that all new medicalcolleges applying for recognitionhad to provide free diagnosis andtreatment to all TB patients, includ-ing those with drug-resistant TB.

Dr Surya Kant also emphasisedthat the increase in notificationcould be attributed to NikshayPoshan Yojana, a direct benefit trans-fer (DBT) scheme for TB patients.Under the scheme, each patientreceives Rs 500 every month for theentire duration of treatment.

Since its launch in April 2018,more than 3,90,298 patients havereceived benefits under the schemein Uttar Pradesh, amounting toapproximately Rs 81.8 crore.

President-elect of LucknowAcademy of Paediatrics, Dr ShrishBhatnagar spoke on the role of pedi-atricians and Indian Academy ofPaediatrics in eliminating TB. IAPhas recently signed a memorandumof understanding (MoU) with theCentral TB Division to conduct 300workshops for their members acrossthe country to train over 18,000members and 2,000 governmentmedical officers.

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The mystery shrouding thedeath of a student of

Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya inMainpuri deepened withexperts buttressing the suspi-cion of victim’s parents that shewas sexually assaulted beforebeing murdered.

After taking cognisance ofthe negligence of local author-ities in the investigation seri-ously, Chief Minister YogiAdityanath not just shunted outboth the DM and SP ofMainpuri but also set up athree-member SpecialInvestigation Team (SIT) underthe IG (Kanpur Range) tobring the culprits to the books.

Sources said that in theirreport, forensic experts submit-ted to Mainpuri police onNovember 15 that the JNV stu-dent was raped. Surprisingly,the Mainpuri police did notincorporate the fact and triedto sweep the facts under thecarpet to save some bigwigsallegedly involved in the killing.

After initiating the probe,the SIT has brought two teach-ers and three students toLucknow for polygraphy test. Areminder was also sent to theUnion government to handover the probe to CentralBureau of Investigation (CBI)

sleuths. The government swung

into action after Congress gen-eral secretary Priyanka VadraGandhi wrote to Chief Ministerrequesting him to expedite theprobe to unravel the mystery.

On September 16, the vic-tim, a student of Class XI,allegedly committed suicide ina hostel and left a note claimingthat she was being harassed byfellow hostellers. Her fatherhad lodged a complaint againstthe principal, hostel wardenand a boy after which the policeregistered a case of murder andrape under POCSO Act. Acomplaint was also made withthe school administration. Thefamily also claimed that the girldied after being brutallyattacked as some injury markswere found on her body.

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With over a dozen officialsof Home Guards depart-

ment already behind the barsin the muster roll scam, the axefinally fell on director general(DG) GL Meena. He wasshunted out by the state gov-ernment and attached with theDGP headquarters on Tuesday.

As per an official commu-niqué, Meena was removedfrom his post and DG (Prisonsand Jail Reforms) AnandKumar was given additionalcharge of the Home Guarddepartment.

Meanwhile, the state gov-ernment also shifted 12 IPSofficers, including the SP ofUnnao, who was accused ofordering cane-charge on agitat-ing farmers. SP Rural(Lucknow) Vikrant Veer wastransferred to Unnao to replaceMadhav Prasad Verma, whowill now join as Dial-112 SP inLucknow.

SP in Kanpur South,Raveena Tyagi was sent to theCB-CID in the same capacitywhile SP (SB-CID)Kamleshwari Chand was madethe new SP at Police TrainingSchool, Meerut.

Additional SP (Traffic) ofSaharanpur Aparna Gupta willnow be the new SP of KanpurSouth. Assistant SP in Meerut,Ankur Agarwal was trans-ferred to Gautam Buddh Nagar(Noida) as Additional SP.

SP of Jaunpur RavishankarChhavi was made the SP ofWomen Power Line 1090 inLucknow while SP, RegionalIntelligence, Ashok Kumar (III)was transferred as SP Jaunpurreplacing Chhavi.

SP of AmbedkarnagarVirendra Kumar Mishra wastransferred to Lucknow as SP,Vigilance, while SP of HardoiAlok Priyadarshi was madethe new police chief ofAmbedkarnagar.

SP (STF) in Varanasi AmitKumar (I) was made thenew SP of Hardoi. AdditionalSP of Moradabad AdityaLangeh was sent to Lucknow asSP (Rural).

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Predators had a field day acrossUttar Pradesh as five cases of

rape and murder were reportedfrom Chitrakoot, Mirzapur,Pratapgarh, Fatehpur, andSonbhadra in the last 24 hours.

In Chitrakoot, the body of anunknown 22-year-old womanwas found on Jhansi-MirzapurNational Highway in BargarhGhati area on Tuesday morning.The victim was presumablygang-raped and later shot deadby unknown assailants and herbody was later dumped in apolice outpost campus.

The body was sent for autop-sy and further investigationswere on.

In Pratapgarh, bodies of twosisters were fished out of Sai riveron the fringes of Deum village onTuesday. The police were quickto dismiss the case as a suicide.

CO, Lalganj, RameshChandra said, “The bodies of twoDalit girls — Shivani (17) and hersister Anjali (14) — were spottedin Sai river in Deum village.Their hands were tied and theyappeared to have committedsuicide by jumping into the river.They were studying in a schoolin Ashthabhuja Nagar and theirfather works as a labourer. Theyhad strained relations with theirstep-mother.”

The relatives, however, sus-pected that the sister duo weremurdered and claimed that thegirls left for school but did notreturn home after which theiruncle Arvind lodged a policecomplaint.

In another sensational inci-dent in Mirzapur, a 15-year-oldgirl of Haliya locality studying inHigh School was kidnapped andgang-raped on Monday evening.A boy called the girl and shecame out. Four miscreants bun-dled her into a four-wheeler andsped off.

The accused took her tonearby forest cover and gang-raped her. While they werereturning, locals spotted thevehicle and intercepted it. Theynabbed the four accused andfound the girl unconscious. Theaccused were identified as JaiPrakash Maurya, LavkushKumar Pal, Mahendra KumarYadav and Ganesh PrasadBind. The girl said that therapists included the son of aDeputy Jailor and a CRPF per-sonnel.

In Fatehpur, a widow resid-ing in Sultanpur Ghosh areawas gang-raped by unknownmiscreants on Monday evening.The accused barged inside herhouse and raped her one afteranother. The police refused toregister a case in this regard.

Additional SP, Chakresh Mishra,however, said that they receiveda complaint and further investi-gations were underway.

Meanwhile, a breakthroughmade by the Azamgarh police inconnection with a triple murderrevealed sensational facts onhow the accused raped a woman,her 10-year-old daughter andalso killed three persons inprocess. The police claimed thatthe accused arrested on Mondaywas a sex maniac and anecrophile.

A week ago, a couple andtheir infant son were found mur-dered and two other childrenwere seriously injured in theirhome in Mubarakpur area.

The accused, Nasiruddin,revealed that he had committedsimilar crimes in Haryana, Delhiand West Bengal.

During interrogation,Nasiruddin confessed to havekilled the 30-year-old woman,her husband and four-month-oldson before having sex with hercorpse and then raping her 10-year-old daughter.

In another incident inSonbhadra, a man was arrestedfor raping a 70-year-old woman.The 27-year-old accused assault-ed the woman when she washome alone last Sunday. He wasarrested and sent to jail onTuesday.

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In yet another instance of negligence in midday meal dis-tribution, a dead rat was found in the food served in a

school here on Tuesday, following which an inquiry hasbeen ordered by the district administration.

Additional District Magistrate Amit Kumar Singh saidthat eight students and a teacher of Janata Inter-Collegein Mustafabad Panchenda village were taken ill and sentto hospital after the rat was found in one of the platesthough no one had eaten the food at that time.

NGO Janklyan Samiti of Hapur had supplied the mid-day meal to the school. An inquiry has been ordered intothe incident and strict action will be taken against thosefound guilty of negligence, Singh said. District authoritieshave ordered lodging of an FIR against the mid-day mealsupplier, the official said. The students and the teacher com-plained of vomiting after they saw the rat and were takento hospital, he said. Last week, another case of apathy hadcome to light when a video showed that a litre of milk wasallegedly diluted with a bucket of water so that 81 chil-dren could be served during their midday meal at a gov-ernment school in Sonbhadra district of Uttar Pradesh,following which a teacher was suspended.

Two months earlier a similar shocking video hademerged from Siyur Primary School in Mirzapur districtshowing a woman distributing rotis and another givingsalt to children in the midday meal. The National HumanRights Commission (NHRC) had taken note of theMirzapur incident and sent a notice to the Uttar Pradeshchief secretary following which two teachers were sus-pended. According to a NHRC statement, the commis-sion had also sought a detailed report about the status ofthe midday meal scheme across the state within four weeks.

The state government had lodged an FIR against thejournalist who recorded the video of schoolchildren beingserved salt and roti in their midday meal.

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Kavi Pradeep, who haspenned classics such as

‘Aye mere watan ke logon’ thatbrought tears in the eyes ofPandit Jawaharlal Nehru,‘Nanhe munne bachche terimutthi mein kya hai’ was a for-mer student of LucknowUniversity’s Hindi department.

Former head of Hindidepartment Surya Prasad Dixit,while talking to The Pioneer,said he had mentored his stu-dent Dinesh Chandra Awasthiwho wrote a thesis on the poetin 1988.

Surya Prasad Dixit servedas the head of LU’s Hindidepartment from 1986-1999.Dixit said that LucknowUniversity provided Pradeepwith admirers who were a setof intellectuals that gave himimmense encouragement andit helped him make a mark inthe film industry.

“It is very important to getencouragement from the peersand gurus, and LucknowUniversity held several‘mushairas’ and ‘kavi samme-lans’ at that time. To be laud-

ed by your gurus gives youimmense confidence and hencethe poet responded whenMumbai beckoned him.Pradeep left for Mumbai soonafter completing graduationfrom LU,” Dixit said.

The thesis on Pradeep waspublished in the form of abook. “The real name of KaviPradeep was Ram ChandraNarayan Dwivedi. He becamepopular by his pen name,”Dixit said.

He said Pradeep complet-ed Bachelor of Arts in 1938 andwas one of the most prolificspeakers at the university pro-grammes where ‘kavi samme-lans’ were organised very fre-quently. “Pradeep came toLucknow and joined the uni-versity because his brother wasediting the first encyclopaediaat the Vishwa Bharti. He orig-inally belonged to Ujjain andhad done his schooling fromAllahabad before he came toLucknow,” Dixit said.

He pointed out that the allhis songs carried a literarytouch whether it was ‘Yehipaigham hamara’, ‘Kitna badalgaya insaan’, ‘Hum laye hain

toofan se kashti nikaal ke’, ‘Chalchal re naujawan’, and he wroteover 200 songs.

“He was a great orator andsinger, and it has been statedthat many a times that hewould ask the music directorsto compose the song in a par-ticular manner,” he said. Theformer head of the department

said that he got the thesis donebecause he felt that the poet’ssongs which he had composedfor the films had a literarytouch. “I have always felt thatfilms have played a major rolein giving publicity to Hindi. Iwas criticised for what wascalled a populist approach butI felt that a research was

required on the 200 songspenned by Pradeep,” Dixitrecalled. He said Pradeep wasinvited for reciting his poemseven after he joined the filmindustry. “He had a huge fanfollowing in ‘kavi sammelans’which were organised in thecity. He created a profoundimpact on the audience withhis recitations. He had a specialconnection with LucknowUniversity and attended all theprogrammes which wereorganised there,” Dixit said.

He said most of his poetrywas set in nationalistic tonesand he wrote songs such as‘Door raho aye duniya walo’and the gem like ‘Jahan daaldaal par sone ki chidiya kartihai basera’

He left for Mumbai soonafter in 1939. He is creditedwith laying the foundation ofFilmistan studio along withAshok Kumar. He died onDecember 11, 1998. Theresearch work carried out alsohas a detailed insight into the200 songs which Pradeepwrote. “The thesis is now in theform of a book which I have,”he added.

��

Congress general secretaryPriyanka Gandhi Vadra is

likely to visit Lucknow by week-end to look into the prepara-tions for ensuring the success of‘Bharat Bachao Rally’ in NewDelhi on December 14. Partysources said assessing that UPCongress chief Ajay KumarLallu was facing resistance fromdissidents while preparing forthe rally, Priyanka decided tocamp in Lucknow for two daysand sort out differences and actagainst those keeping them-selves aloof from the rally, ifneed be. During her visit,Priyanka will meet with partyleaders from different regionsand review preparedness.

The UPCC is also finalisingsome slogans and publicitymaterial to attract attention forthe rally. However, the final callon publicity material and slo-gans will be taken by Priyankaherself. Earlier, ten seniorCongress leaders were expelledby Lallu after only a handful ofleaders turned up at a meeting

called by him to chalk out astrategy for the Delhi rally.

The Congress has called fora mega rally to raise issuesrelated to agrarian crisis andeconomic slowdown along withfarmers’ issues at Ramlila

Maidan in Delhi on December14. Congress workers have start-ed gearing up for the rally withwall paintings, posters, hoard-ings etc. Some local leadersentrusted with the task of bring-ing people to the rally from theirrespective constituencies havestarted booking buses and trainsfor the purpose. Lallu said onTuesday that about 100 peoplefrom each Assembly segmentwere expected to reach Delhi forthe rally on December 14.“UPCC officials are workinghard for the rally and ‘nukkadsabhas’ are being organised toinform people about the eco-nomic slowdown and farmers’issues,” he said.

A volunteer force has alsobeen set up for the rally andmobilisation from the state willbe monitored with the help ofa dedicated control room. A callcentre will also be set up by thevolunteer force which will helpin mobilisation of party work-ers for the rally. Sources said thataudio and video messages fromGandhi will also be released toinvite more people to the rally.

��

Samajwadi Party chiefAkhilesh Yadav alleged that

the country was passingthrough a difficult period as theruling BJP was aggressivelypursuing a divisive agenda onthe lines of caste and religion.

Addressing a meeting oflawyers at the state SP office onthe occasion of the birthanniversary of India’s firstPresident Dr Rajendra Prasad,Akhilesh expressed concernover the situation in Kashmir.

“The people of Kashmirhave been facing lockdown forthe last four months, yet the BJPis presenting the abrogation ofArticle 370 as one of its achieve-ments in the campaign forJharkhand Assembly elections,”he said.

Targeting the YogiAdityanath government, theformer Chief Minister said thethe BJP government had failedin discharging its basic duties.He said that despite announce-ments by the Chief Minister,

sweaters had not been distrib-uted among children of state-run primary schools and onelitre of milk was being distrib-uted among 81 children inmid-day meal.

“In one school, salt and rotiwas being served to childrenwhile the journalist who report-ed the matter was sent behindthe bars,” the SP chief alleged.

Akhilesh said that againstthe tall claims of eradicatingpoverty by the BJP regime, theeconomy has collapsed.“Business establishments areclosing down due to slowdownin economy while PrimeMinister Narendra Modi andhis cabinet colleagues remain indenial mode and are hiding thedata on different sectors ofeconomy like unemploymentand job losses,” he said.

Referring to the statementof industrialist Rahul Bajaj, theSP chief said: “There is an omi-nous atmosphere in the coun-try and it will go only after thatperson is dislodged from powerwho created the fear psychosis.’’

��

The birth anniversary of for-mer President of India Dr

Rajendra Prasad was celebrat-ed with enthusiasm and fer-vour on Tuesday. Programmeswere organised by Central BarAssociation, Akhil BharatiyaBhojpuri Samaj and NBFGRand tributes were paid to DrRajendra Prasad.

NBFGR (National Bureauof Fishes Genetic Research) cel-ebrated Agriculture EducationDay on Tuesday to commem-orate the birth anniversary ofDr Rajendra Prasad, who wasalso the first AgricultureMinister of India. The instituteinvited students and teachersfrom government-aided andpublic schools to participate inpainting and essay writingcompetitions. The thematicareas for painting and drawingcompetitions were ‘Plastics andEnvironmental Health’ for upto Class 6 and ‘EmpoweredWomen for EmpoweredSociety’ for Classes 7-12. Thethemes of competitions weretaken to address the thirdSustainable DevelopmentGoals (SDGs) of United

Nations to create awarenessamong the children for ensur-ing healthy lives and promot-ing well-being for all at allstages, and to address the 5thSDG to make students aware ofgender equality and empowerall women and girls.

A total of 32 students fromeight reputed schools and col-

leges participated in the com-petition and awareness pro-grams. Winners will be award-ed during the ICAR-NBFGRFoundation Day celebrationon December 11-12. A comple-mentary visit to the GangaAquarium was also arrangedfor the participating childrenand their associated teachers.

��

Abusinessman dealing inmedicines on Tuesday

lodged a case of fraud againsta Mumbai-based trader forduping him of Rs 10 lakh in thename of giving him distributor-ship. The Krishna Nagar policeregistered a case and startedinvestigations.

The complainant, PawanKumar Kesarwani of Gopalpurilocality in Krishna Nagaralleged that he had a businessagreement with Mahesh KDadhiya of Mumbai, who is theowner of a company dealing inmedicines.

“Mahesh promised tomake me Uttar Pradesh’s agentof his company and for thedeal, I paid him the cash bor-rowing it from some of my rel-atives in 2015. It later surfacedthat Mahesh had given thework to another person. Idemanded an explanation fromhim but he did not give any sat-isfactory reply,” Pawan alleged.

He said he kept callingMahesh who later agreed toreturn his money. “I had given

the cash through RTGS and Ihave the proof of transaction.Mahesh agreed to pay back buthe did not make the payment.He kept procrastinating whichforced me to lodge a complaintagainst him,” he said.

Meanwhile, a Bakshi-Ka-Talab resident was sent to jailfor burning stubble in his fieldon Tuesday. SSP KalanidhiNaithani said those burningstubble would be sent to jail. “Afarmer identified as Vishramwas sent to jail for burningstubble in his field on Tuesday.Village guard informed thepolice about Vishram’s act anda case was registered under sec-tion 188/278. He was alsobooked under Preservation ofEnvironment Act,” the SSPsaid. He added that the actionwas being taken in compliancewith the government’s orderand police station officers hadbeen issued instructions tokeep a tab on offenders.

The SSP also conducted asurprise checking of BKTpolice station and instructedthe cops to work with dedication.

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Phool Mandi, which hasbeen shifted from the old

city to Kisan Bazaar, has madea profit of 15-20 per centsince then. Secretary, MandiParishad, Sachin Singh saidthey were registering sales ofover 25-30 quintals of flowersworth Rs 15-20 lakh on a dailybasis. The market was shiftedfrom the old city where itexisted for over 80 years. “Wehave 63 licence holders ofboth marigold and cut-flow-ers, and all the licence hold-ers of cut-flowers have madea shift from the old venue and40 per cent of the licenceholders of marigold flowerswill be shifted soon,” he said.

Singh said the advantageof the shift has gone to the

farmers because they are nowbeing able to sell directlywithout middlemen. “At theprevious mandi, there was acaucus of people and hencethis area has liberated them.They can dictate their terms asfar as the cost of flowers isconcerned. Stems of gerberawhich cost Rs 4 per stem isselling at Rs 8-10 per stem,” hepointed out.

He said farmers werecoming from all places such asGorakhpur, Maharajganj, RaeBareli, Sultanpur and all thedistricts of Uttar Pradesh andfor selling their flowers. “Thebest-selling flowers includegerbera, rose, marigold of twovarieties with one being fromMadhya Pradesh and gladioli.There are over 45 varieties offlowers being sold at the

mandi which operates from3.30 am to 11 am,” he added.

Asked about the wastageof flowers, he said they weremulling to join hands with afirm from Delhi that wouldbuy the flowers going waste.

A visit to the flower, how-ever, revealed that some of thetraders were disgruntled. Oneof the traders, on the condi-tion of anonymity, said thatfarmers were facing a toughtime because commuting tothe new venue was not easy.

“In the old part of the city,the farmers could get a mini-truck or some other con-veyance, which is not possiblehere. Besides, there is no placeto store flowers which leads towastage,” he pointed out. Yetanother trader said that theyhad been running into losses.

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Lucknow (PNS): TheUrban Development andHousing department hasagreed to sanction funds to thetune of Rs 700 crore to the LDAadministration for constructionof sewage treatment plants inVrindavan project and housingschemes on Sultanpur road,Sitapur road and Rae Bareliroad. The treatment plants willbe designed and developed byUP Jal Nigam and land for theproject will be provided by theLDA administration.

The LDA administration issaid to have earmarked a landmeasuring 7,000 square metresfor the project in sector-N ofthe Vrindavan housing project.

The LDA officials handedover the documents regardingthe transfer of the land to JalNigam authorities last week.LDA chief engineer IS Singhsaid the civil work on the pro-posed site would begin by nextmonth. Officers of the depart-ment realised the need to installthe latest STPs in its upcoming

residential colonies as the num-ber of inhabitants is expectedto go up manifold in days tocome. The four residentialcolonies are likely to come upwithin six months. Possessionwill be handed over to home-buyers immediately after theircompletion.

Presently, the residents ofthe Vrindavan scheme com-plain of waterlogging and otherproblems when the populationis 10,000. The number willincrease manifold in nearfuture. A survey conducted byLDA recently stated that thepopulation would go up to 10lakh within two years once thehousing schemes spread on1200 acres were ready.

The fund for the specialtreatment plants will bereleased in installments,depending on the progress ofthe work. A technical team ofthe state government will makephysical inspection of the siteand the fund will be released onthe basis of its report.

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The department ofSociology, Lucknow University,in collaboration with theInternational SociologicalAssociation, IndianSociological Society, andEthnographic and Folk CultureSociety, inaugurated an inter-national conference on ‘Leisureand Social Development inthe Post-Modern Era:Contemporary Issues andChallenges’. The conferencewas inaugurated by formerLokayukta of Uttar PradeshJustice SC Verma, who said thatsocial development is essentialfor individual and society.“Social service is the need forthe country. Through such ser-vices, we can attain holisticdevelopment in India,” he said.Organising secretary of theconference SK Chaudhury saidthat social development holdsthe key to human development.“For social development totake place, human beingsrequire proper periodic leisureand it is through leisure onecan easily reduce stress and ten-sion,” he said. The keynoteaddress was delivered by ProfKenneth Roberts from theUniversity of Liverpool, UK.He said that Sociology ofLeisure is a great discipline andhe observed three rules,“Desisting from definitions ofleisure that are meant to beapplied all times and spaces,

addressing big leisure which isdifferent than little leisure andfocusing on changes in leisurethrough globalisation.” Vice-Chancellor of Dr RamManohar Lohia AwadhUniversity (Ayodhya) ManojDixit said leisure has been tra-ditionally a western culture,which has now become popu-lar throughout the world.“Today with developed trans-port and communication sys-tem, the number of tourists has

increased manifold. Peopleare spending more time inleisure activities,” he pointed out.

�� The alumni of Mount

Carmel College will gather inthe campus on December 7 tocatch up with their old friends,teachers and staff. A largenumber of outstation alumniare likely to attend the annualget-together which is expectedto be a gala affair with lots of

games, music and fun. Theevent is being organised byLucknow Carmel AlumniAssociation under the patron-age of principal Sister Sylvieand president of the associa-tion Vinita Singh.

� �� General manager of

Northern Railway TP Singhsaid they were making allefforts to improve passengeramenities and train operations

besides providing safety to pas-sengers. In city for the inspec-tion of Sultanpur-Lucknowtrack, he was accompanied bysenior officials of the Lucknowdivision of Northern Railway.He asked the officials about thecurrent status of ongoing pro-jects in a meeting which washeld after the inspection.

��Abdul Kalam Technical

University secured first place inthe entire country in theSwachh Campus Rankings2019 of Higher EducationalInstitutions. AKTU campushouses administrative, academ-ic and digital library buildings.Media spokesperson AshishMishra said that the campuswas inaugurated by PrimeMinister Narendra Modi onJune 20, 2017. “To keep theuniversity clean and greenfrom the first day, the cleaningwork has been on the prioritylist. As a result, AKTU hassecured the first position in theSwachh Campus Rankings2019 across the country,” hesaid.

��%�%��'��&�%�&Several programmes

marked World Disability Dayon Tuesday. A programme wasorganised by the Disabilitydepartment at Indira GandhiPratishthan where the differ-ently-abled were felicitated. Aprogramme was also organisedat KGMU.

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��%A group of children from

Kidzee Play School had aLucknow Metro ride alongwith their teachers on Tuesday.Throughout their journey, theexcited children couldn’t taketheir eyes off the bird’s eye viewof the city that the ride offered.The children took a two-wayride between Krishna Nagarand Hazratganj stations. Thechildren were all smiles as theyposed for pictures in front ofthe photo point installed atHazratganj station and wentaround the vibrant concourse.

�� /�� 0() *The 4-day International

World Unity and World PeaceFestival ‘Confluence-2019’,organised by City MontessoriSchool’s Indira Nagar campuswill be inaugurated onWednesday at Kanpur Roadauditorium. Minister forHousing and Urban PlanningGirish Chandra Yadav will bethe chief guest on the occasion.CMS students will presentcolourful educational-culturalitems and teams from Indiaand abroad will be participat-ing in the event. Teams from

India and abroad continued toreach CMS and were accordeda warm welcome. Teams fromUganda, Nepal, Sri Lanka andvarious states of India reachedLucknow on Tuesday.

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Under financial distress, a45-year-old man, his wife

and another woman allegedlyjumped to their death from theeighth floor of their building inIndirapuram after the couplekilled their teenage son anddaughter, police said onTuesday. The man identified asbusinessman GulshanVasudeva, his wife Praveenand their manager (work part-ner) Sanjana jumped to theirdeath in the early hours ofTuesday. “The couple killedtheir son Hritik (14) anddaughter Hritika (17) by inject-ing them with poisonous sub-stance on Monday night. Theyalso killed their pet rabbit,” saidManeesh Mishra, GhaziabadCity Superintendent of Police(SP).

Police said Hritika waspursuing a fashion designingcourse while Hritik was study-ing in Class IX. “The incidenttook place after an altercationbetween the man, his wife andmanager (working partner)over a monetary dispute involv-ing more than �2 crore,” saidthe SP. “During initial inves-

tigation, it was revealed thatSanjana lived with the coupleand a possibility of a quarrelover an extramarital affair can-not be ruled out. Though ini-tial probe suggest that Sanjanawas second wife of Gulshan buttheir family members deniedit,” said a senior police official.

“Police has recovered a

suicide note. They also founda few lines written on the wallsby the children. The family hasheld Rakesh Verma, brother-in-law, responsible for theextreme step. The family hadalso pasted �500 notes on thewall and wrote that they allshould be cremated together.The room has been sealed forforensic examination. The man,his wife and the other womanwere admitted to hospitalwhere they were declaredbrought dead,” said the SP.

Police said Gulshan facedfinancial problems as Rakesh,a resident of Shalimar Gardenin Sahibabad, had taken �2crore from him to invest in realestate but failed to hand overthe property. Police said when-ever Gulshan asked him for themoney, he would give chequesto him which would bounce.

Gulshan had also lodgedan FIR in 2015 against Rakeshat Sahibabad Police Stationafter which he along with hismother were jailed, said the SP.

“The prime suspect,Rakesh, is absconding. Policeteams have been formed totrace the suspect,” said thepolice officer.

Meanwhile, a police officialprivy to investigation told ThePioneer that the family hadplanned to commit suicidedays before the incident tookplace. “On Monday theycleared dues of their housemaid, stating to her that theyare leaving this rented accom-modation. The family also dis-tributed their clothes to thepoor people in the area beforecommitting suicide on Tuesdaymorning,” said the police official.

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%�� 1��%��A plea seeking review of

the Ayodhya verdict was filedin the apex court on Mondayby Maulana Syed AshhadRashidi, legal heir of originallitigant M Siddiq and also theUttar Pradesh president of theJamiat Ulama-e-Hind. It stat-ed that “complete justice”could only be done by order-ing reconstruction of the BabriMasjid. The mosque wasdemolished on December 6,1992 by kar sewaks triggeringcommunal riots.

As Dhavan later said hedidn’t want to divide theMuslim parties, the All IndiaMuslim Personal Law Board(AIMPLB) said it was hopefulthat the veteran lawyer willrepresent the body when itfiles a review petition. In atweet, AIMPLB spokesmanKhalid Saifullah Rahmani said,“Rajeev Dhavan has alwaysbeen a symbol of justice andunity. @AIMPLB_Official willcontinue its efforts in theSupreme Court under hisesteemed leadership.”

The AIMPLB has assertedthat 99 per cent of Muslims inthe country want a review ofthe Ayodhya verdict. In anoth-er tweet, Maulana Umrain,an office bearer of the Boardsaid, “We are indebted to the

senior advocate Mr RajeevDhavan for his sincere excep-tional and incomparable effortin the #babrimasjidcase. Wehope that he would representus again when the review peti-tion is filed.”

The board’s general secre-tary Md Wali Rahmani in astatement said a team of senioradvocates and advocates onrecord is busy in drafting thereview petition which willthen be settled by Dhawan.

“I have argued the case forall the Muslim parties in aunited manner and would likethe same way. The Muslimparties should sort out theirdifferences first,” Dhavan toldPTI. He said he expressed hisopinion on Facebook onlyafter Ejaz Maqbool went pub-lic about him being sackedbecause he is unwell.

“If I am unwell, then howcome I am appearing in courtsin other cases,” Dhavan said.

“I am committed to thecause and to the Muslim par-ties but making such a state-ment is completely wrong,” headded. In a separate December2 letter addressed to Maqbool,the AOR in the review peti-tion, Dhavan narrated thesequence of events related todrafting of the review plea inthe case. “As promised, I am

responding to your call at10.14 AM today when I was atthe doctors, informing methat I have been sacked fromfurther involvement in theBabri case on behalf of yourclient. We were in agreementthat the correct term was‘sacked’ and you explainedyou had no choice in the mat-ter. With humility and respectand the norms of my profes-sion, I accept the sacking with-out demur,” Dhavan said in hisletter.

��&��/��The Naval LCA recently

successfully completed takeoff and landing trials on theShore Based Test Facility(SBTF) in Goa. Stating that thecurrent LCA Mk-1 is a tech-nology demonstrator, the Navychief said it will be further putto carrier compatibility testsand whatever lessons theyhave learnt, DRDO wants toplough back into the twinengine deck based fighter. Onthe INS Vikrant, Singh said allship build issues “are over” andtrials would begin now. “Weare almost certain that we willtake delivery by February-March 2021, he stated andadded that aviation trialswould take a year after that.“We should have a fully oper-

ational carrier by 2022.”Asked about his expecta-

tions on the soon to be creat-ed post of Chief of DefenceStaff (CDS), Singh said theviews of the Services havebeen taken care of by theChairman Chiefs of StaffCommittee (COSC), who thenbecame part of theImplementation Committee.The committee has submittedits report to the Government.It should be an empoweredCDS which will be able tomake a difference, he said. “Ihope the CDS is suitablyempowered to carry out all theresponsibilities that he isgiven.”

��0�� %%��Ships of both the countries

are engaged in anti-piracyoperations. On not invitingChina for the “Milan” series ofexercises where more than 41countries, including the US,UK, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Israel,France, Kuwait, Australia,Indonesia, Singapore, Bahrainand Sri Lanka, will take part inMarch next year offVisakhapatnam, Singh said“like-minded” nations wereinvited for the event.

When asked to elaborate,the Navy chief said the IndianNavy has over the years carried

out exercises with many coun-tries who will participate in themega event held every twoyears.

To another question aboutPrime Minister NarendraModi and President XiJingping calling for closernaval cooperation and thepossibility of a joint exercisebetween India and China,Singh replied in lighter vein,“the question is above my paygrade.” Incidentally, the twocountries will hold the eighthjoint army exercise “Hand inHand” in Meghalaya later thismonth. Sources in the securi-ty establishment later saidChina was not invited to Milanexercise as India did not wantto legitimise its presence in theIndian Ocean region as Chinacan later claim that it has par-ticipated in exercises in theregion. Milan is held every twoyears off Port Blair since 1995when less than a dozen naviesof the Indian Ocean regiontook part. Since then, the pres-tigious event has grown instature and 41 nations will nowcome together for the exerciseat Visakhapatnam. The Navychief said the venue was shift-ed to this city given the biggermagnitude of the event. Theeastern seaboard providedmore space and depth for car-

rying out exercise at a big scaleas compared to seas off PortBlair.

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Uddhav had said on Sundaythat he had asked updates onvarious ongoing major pro-jects, including cost estimates,hurdles and deadlines. “Oncewe have the status report withus, we will decide on whatneeds to be done on priority.We will also look at whethersome projects are needed atthis juncture. We will not actin a vindictive manner. But, wewill definitely review projectslike bullet train,” the ChiefMinister had said.

The MVA Governmenthas announced that it wouldtable a White Paper on theState’s economy during theWinter Session of the StateLegislature beginning atNagpur on December 16.

A brainchild of PrimeMinister Narendra Modi, theBullet Train project is beingexecuted at a cost of aroundRs.1.10 lakh-crore, of which 81per cent is to be fundedthrough on a 50-year soft loanof 0.1 percent by the JapanInternational CooperationAgency (JICA).

The Nationalist High

Speed Rail Corporation(NHSRC) is the executingagency for the project.Maharashtra and Gujarat willcontribute fund Rs.5,000 croreeach as equity for the project,while the Centre will pitch inRs.10,000 crore for the project.

Currently, the bullet trainproject is in the land acquisi-tion stage, with opposition inparts of Palghar in the State,with the project slated to becompleted by 2023.

Responding to what hecalled “baseless” and “false”made by the fellow BJP leaderfrom Karnataka that he hadreturned Rs 40,000 crore to theCentre, former Chief MinisterDevendra Fadnavis had said,“We have not retuned evennaya paisa to the Centre. Infact, the State Governmenthas not received even on nayapaisa from the Centre”.

“For implementing theBullet Train project, a CentralGovernment-run companyhas been set up. Whatevermoney that the Centre releas-es for the project will go direct-ly to this company. The ques-tion of money coming to theMaharashtra does not arise.Because, the MaharashtraGovernment’s role is limited tothe acquisition of land for theproject,” Fadnavis had said.

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In second big disclosure intwo days, NCP chief Sharad

Pawar on Tuesday said he was aware that party leader Ajit Pawar was in touch withDevendra Fadnavis even as hedistanced himself from hisnephew’s sudden political moveto join hands with the BJP on November 23. Pawar had onMonday said that PrimeMinister Narendra Modi hadproposed “working together”but he rejected the offer.

Fadnavis and Ajit Pawartook oath on November 23morning as chief minister anddeputy chief minister, respective-ly, even though the Shiv Sena,NCP and Congress had almostfinalised their alliance andnamed Uddhav Thackeray as thechief ministerial candidate.

However, Ajit resigned onNovember 26, following whichFadnavis also threw in the towel,resulting into collapse of the gov-ernment that lasted for only 80hours. “I knew DevendraFadnavis and Ajit Pawar were intalks, but the speculation that Iwas aware of Ajit’s political moveis wrong,” Pawar told NDTV inan interview. Pawar, however,appeared softening his stand

vis-a-vis Ajit, saying the latterwas unhappy over pace ofdiscussions with Congressleaders for government forma-tion and the “tussle” for shar-ing power. The former Unionminister also said that he hadnever thought of aligning withthe Sena, which wearsHindutva on sleeve.

“We knew that seriousdifferences cropped betweenthe two pre-poll alliance part-ners (Shiv Sena and BJP afterthe Maharashtra poll resultson October 24) and an under-standing was not honoured.Sena was unhappy and wewere watching the develop-ments,” he said. Pawar, howev-er, didn’t clarify on which“understanding” he was refer-ring to. Sena president UddhavThackeray had accusedFadnavis and BJP of not hon-ouring the “promise” made tohis party on sharing the chiefminister’s post in new govern-ment. “There were no talkswith the Sena before elec-tions. We were fighting againstthe Sena and the BJP. Therewas no question ofassociatingwith them,” Pawar said.

Pawar said he didn’texpect Ajit to act like the wayhe did. “But there is a back-groundto this development.There was a heated discussionbetween myself and Congressleaders from Delhi at theNehru Centre on certainissues. For a moment, Ithought I would notassociatewith this discussion and thatI should not be involved intalks. Ajit was unhappy tooand spoke to my colleagues onhow we are going towork...There was a tussle overpower sharing,” he said. OnAjit’s likely induction intoUddhav Thackeray-ledMaharashtra Vikas Aghadi(MVA) government, Pawarsaid the NCP would take a callafter conclusion of upcomingwinter session of the statelegislature. To a query, hesaid, “the MVA governmentwill last for the entire fiveyears. There is no tussle overportfolios,” he added. Pawarsaid the state government willrun as per the CommonMinimum Programme (CMP)and not on any ideology.

Coimbatore: A day after 17people were killed in a com-pound wall collapse near here,the owner of the house aroundwhich the structure had beenbuilt was arrested on Tuesdayon charges of causing death bynegligence. Amid demands foraction under the SC and ST Actsince the victims were Dalits,Tamil Nadu Chief Minister KPalaniswami met the bereavedfamilies at Nadur, over 50 kmfrom here, and described theincident as ‘painful’ and assuredaction against the owner inaccordance with law based onproper inquiry. Concedingother demands, he announcedenhancement of the solatium

from � 4 lakh to � ten lakh andsaid orders had been issued toprovide suitable jobs to the nextof the kin of the deceased. Healso said concrete houses will beconstructed to replace the tiledroof structures in the Dalit set-tlement. Sivasubramanian, whohad been ‘absconding’ since themishap, was arrested inMettupalayam, about 45 kmfrom here, police said addingthey were interrogating him.

A portion of the over 15-foot high compound wall camecrashing down on the adjoiningfour tiled-roof houses in theDalit settlement in Naduraround 5 am on Monday, killing17 persons. PTI

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Ademand to exhume andbring back remains of

Maharajah Duleep Singh, thelast ruler of the Sikh empire,from his grave in the Englishcountryside, was made in RajyaSabha on Tuesday.

Raising the matter througha Zero Hour mention, PratapSingh Bajwa of the Congresssaid the issue is close to entirePunjab and "history should becorrected."

Duleep Singh was born inLahore in 1838 to powerfulruler Ranjit Singh. At the age offive the boy prince sat on thethrone of the Sikh kingdom, hesaid, adding Punjab wasannexed to British India after thesecond Anglo-Sikh war in 1849.Duleep Singh was removedfrom the throne and separatedfrom his mother Maharani JindKaur, who was imprisoned.

Bajwa said he was taken toEngland and converted toChristianity at the age of 16 and

lived in England under thepatronage of Queen Victoria.After 13 years of separationfrom his mother, he was reunit-ed with her and upon learningof the history and Sikh identi-ty, he decided to reconvertand gave away British pension.

In 1886, Duleep Singh setsail for India along with hisfamily but fearing mutiny, theBritish detained him andplaced him under hour arrest,he said, adding his grave is inthe English countrysideElveden. Bajwa demanded thatthe Maharajah's body beexhumed and brought to

Amritsar where his last ritesshould be performed as perSikh traditions.

Dona Sen of the TMCsought installing a portrait ofNandalal Bose, one of the pio-neers of modern Indian art anda key figure of ContextualModernism, in the CentralHall of Parliament

Chairman M VenkaiahNaidu said a parliamentarycommittee on installationsseems to have decided that nomore portraits will be installedbut he allowed Sen to raise theissue because it is the birthanniversary of Bose.

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Home Minister Amit Shahon Tuesday rejected the

Opposition’s charge of politicalvendetta in the amendments inSPG Bill. The Rajya Sabhapassed the Bill to amend theAct governing the elite-SPGwith Congress walking out ofthe House saying it was dis-satisfied with the HomeMinister's reply.

"The Gandhi family has thesame security as the DefenceMinister, Home Minister, VicePresident and President. Theyhave been given personnel whohave been in the SPG, Shahsaid, adding, "SPG is now onlyfor the Prime Minister of thecountry.

"If the time comes, even(Prime Minister Narendra)Modi-ji won't be entitled toSPG after five years. He isentitled only to five years ofSPG after his term ends," saidAmit Shah, defending the moveto replace the Gandhis' eliteSPG cover with Z-plus secu-rity. Shah also pointed therewas no discussion when secu-rity cover reviews with respectto former Prime Ministers

including PV Narasimha Rao,IK Gujral, Chandra Shekhar,HD Deve Gowda and recentlyManmohan Singh were under-taken.

Replying to the Left'scharge of BJP acting with polit-ical vendetta, he said 120 work-ers of BJP and RSS have beenkilled in Kerala.

The passage of the amend-ments to the SPG Act will pavethe way for only the PrimeMinister and his "immediate

family residing with him at hisofficial residence", as well asany former Prime Ministerand members of his immediatefamily "residing with him at theresidence allotted to him for aperiod of five years, from thedate he ceases to hold theoffice of Prime Minister" to begiven SPG cover.

Participating in the debate,Congress MP Vivek Tankhasaid everyone wants theGandhi family to be protected

and there should not be "aparty politics" on it. However,BJP MP Neeraj Shekhar, whohimself was a SPG protectee for11 years, being the son for for-mer Prime Minister ChandraShekhar, said there was noneed for such a cover for thefamily of ex-prime ministers.

While A NavaneethaKrishnan of AIDMK support-ed the bill, saying a reasonabledecision has been taken by theCentre, SP's Ram Gopal Yadavsaid the definition of securitythreats changes with the changeof government.

"People should not feelthat this has been done for vin-dictive politics," said Yadav,adding that the home ministershould "use his conscience"before deciding on threat per-ceptions.

Introducing the SpecialProtection Group(Amendment) Bill, 2019,Union Minister of State forHome G Kishan Reddy said itwas raised to protect the primeminister and his immediatefamily members only and waslater extended to relatives of theformer Prime Ministersthrough amendments.

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Congress leader PriyankaGandhi Vadra’s husband

Robert Vadra on Tuesdaydescribed as a "very big" secu-rity lapse the incident ofunidentified people drivingup to the porch of their homelast week, and alleged that theremoval of the Gandhi fami-ly's SPG cover was a "political"move. Congress general sec-retary's office has taken up theissue of the November 26security breach with theCentral Reserve Police Force.

"Our security is notimportant as much as thesecurity of the women in thecountry. The Governmentshould think about it at thenational and State level. Oursecurity and of our children ison second level, we have tothink about the security ofwomen first," Robert Vadratold reporters.

Asked about the securitybreach at their residence, he

said it was a "very big lapse",but he would like to emphasisemore on the safety of womenin the country. "TheGovernment would know whythey took the call to removethe SPG cover. Whatever theydo we will face it. People of thecountry are with us and theywill give us security," he said.

Several senior Congressleaders also expressed concernover the alleged securitybreach with AICC generalsecretary, organisation, K C

Venugopal saying theGovernment should not putsomeone's life in danger for"settling cheap political scores"."The massive security breachat the residence of PriyankaGandhi Vadra proves that withthe withdrawal of SPG pro-tection, Modi and Shahtogether have put the lives ofour leaders at risk," he said ina tweet.

On whether there was anyresponse from the HomeMinistry over the security

breach at their home, RobertVadra answered in the negativeand said "whatever they wantto do, they do". The threat per-ception everyone knows isvery sensitive but nobody islooking at it, he alleged.

Earlier, in a Facebook post,Robert Vadra claimed thatsecurity throughout the coun-try is compromised. "It is notabout the security forPriyanka, my daughter andson or me or the Gandhi fam-ily. It's about keeping our cit-izens especially the women ofour country, safe and secure,"he said.

"Security throughout thecountry is compromised. Girlsare being molested/raped,What society are we creating?" he asked, adding that thesecurity of every citizen is theGovernment's responsibility."If we are not safe in our owncountry, our homes, not safeon roads, not safe in the day orat night, where and when arewe safe," he asked.

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Lok Sabha on Tuesday wit-nessed sparring between

BJP and Congress overCongress Leader Adhir RanjanChowdhury terming FinanceMinister Nirmala Sitaramanas "Nirbala" a day ago.

Many BJP MPs includingMinister's demanded apologyfrom Chowdhury. ButPoonam Mahajan created stirby terming Congress MPs as"Nirbals" who were only con-cerned about serving SoniaGandhi's family affairs ratherthan serving the Country'saffairs.

Rejecting BJP's demandfor apology, Chowdhury wenton citing weak economic situ-ation and mismanagement incontrolling prices of essentialcommodities.

Participating in the dis-cussion on Taxation Laws(Amendment) Bill,Chowdhury had on Mondaysaid that the Finance Ministerhas become weak and calledher 'Nirbala Sitharaman'. AsBJP members protested againsthis comment, Speaker OmBirla had ruled that any unpar-liamentary remark would beremoved from records.

When Zero Hour startedon Tuesday, includingParliamentary Affairs MinisterArjun Meghwal demandedapology from Chowdhury forhis "continuous use of deroga-tory" words including terming

Prime Minister Narendra Modiand Home Minister Amit Shahas "ghuspetiyas" (infiltrators)from Gujarat to Delhi.

After the chaos, whenChowdhury rose to speak ononion prices, Mahajan referredto a rule to slam the Congressleader for his remarks. "Dada,You are nirbal (weak) as youstand for one family. You areweak as you call the PrimeMinister an infiltrator," shesaid amid noisy protests by BJPmembers including womenMPs of the party.

Amidst slogan shouting,Chowdhury said thisGovernment is anti-poor andanti-farmer as it is hardly doinganything when the prices ofonion have crossed �100 perkg. The Government is unableto check prices of essentialcommodities, he said, and leadthe walk out of Congress MP.

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The Indian Council ofMedical Research (ICMR)

and Delhi-based All India insti-tute of Medical Sciences(AIIMS) are jointly working ona technique for postmortemwithout dissecting the body.This is likely to be functionalwithin the next six months, theGovernment told the RajyaSabha on Tuesday.

India is the first country tostart "virtual autopsy" in thesouth east Asian region, saidUnion Health Minister DrHarsh Vardhan.

It is an established practicein many western countries, forexample Switzerland.

"The All India Institute ofMedical Science (AIIMS), NewDelhi and Indian Council ofMedical Research (ICMR) are

working together on a tech-nique for postmortem withoutincising/dissecting the body.This technique is likely tobecome functional in the nextsix months," said the Minister.

The ICMR and AIIMShave studied global practicesand taken up this project for"dignified management of deadbody", Vardhan said, addingfamily members of the deceasedfeel uncomfortable with thetraditional way of postmortem,

He said all records will bedigitally stored for review.

Vardhan said the virtualautopsy will be cost and timeeffective as it would take only30 minutes to complete oneautopsy as against two-and-halfhour in normal postmortem.

The new technique willfacilitate and ensure that thereis no delay, he added.

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The Income Tax (IT)Department has issued a

notice to the Congress seekingan explanation over the partyallegedly receiving funds tothe tune of �170 crore from aHyderabad-based firm as partof its tax evasion probe in a �3,300-crore hawala racket case,officials said on Tuesday.

Officials said the noticewas issued to the party to takethe probe forward in the casethat came to light last monthafter multiple raids, with linksto "leading corporate houses" inthe infrastructure sector, wereconducted in Delhi, Mumbaiand Hyderabad.

According to the officials,the funds to the Congress weresent by Hyderabad-basedMegha Infrastructure andEngineering. Some func-tionaries of the Congress andan Andhra Pradesh-basedpolitical party are also underthe scanner of the taxman inthis case, they said.

The Central Board ofDirect Taxes, which makespolicy for the Income TaxDepartment, had said in astatement in November thatraids to unearth the large taxevasion nexus were conductedin the first week of the month.

The raids were conductedon 42 premises in Delhi,Mumbai, Hyderabad, Erode,Pune, Agra and Goa on agroup of people issuing bogusbills and conducting hawalatransactions, the statement hadsaid. Raids resulted in bustingof a "major racket of cash gen-eration" by leading corporatehouses in the infrastructuresector through bogus contractsand bills, it added.

According to CBDT, fundsmeant for public infrastructureprojects were siphoned offthrough entry operators, lob-byists and hawala dealers in thiscase. The companies involved insiphoning of funds were said tobe mostly located in theNational Capital Region andMumbai.

"The projects involved inbogus billing are major infra-structure and EWS (economi-cally weaker section) projectslocated in south India."Evidence of cash payment ofmore than �150 crore to aprominent person in AndhraPradesh has also beenunearthed during the search,"the CBDT had said."Unexplained cash of �4.19crore and jewellery worth inexcess of �3.2 crore was alsoseized during the search oper-ation," it had said.

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Almost four years after Indiagot its first indigenously

made Rotavac vaccine to com-bat severe diarrhoea causingrotavirus, Vice President MVenkaiah Naidu on Tuesdaylaunched vaccine's newer vari-ant, Rotavac 5D, a smallerdosage and low cost cold chainfootprint form of its earlier oralimmunisation shot.

Globally, Rotavirus diseaseburden is estimated at 200,000deaths and about 2 million hos-pitalizations annually, mostly inlow-income countries. Whilechild deaths from rotavirushave more than halved since2000, almost half of the deathseach year occur in just fourcountries: India, Pakistan,

Nigeria and the DemocraticRepublic of Congo, accordingto the WHO.

Sharing the details of thenew variant at a press confer-ence here, Bharat BiotechChairman Dr Krishna Ellasaid that available in a 0.5 mldosage, Rotavac 5D can bestored at 2-8 degree Celsius forup to 24 months, and can beadministered in five drops.

Rotavac 5D is also stable at37 degree Celsius for sevendays. In contrast, the earlierversion, Rotavac is available in2.5 ml vial per dose and has tobe stored at -20 degree Celsius,he said.

"During clinical trials, werealized that nearly 20 per centof the children were not able toswallow an entire of 2-2.5 ml,

and they spit it out. The nurs-es were in a quandary so as to

whether the dose should be re-administered or not. We

advised the nurses againstdelivering double doses.Eventually we packed the dosein a smaller quantity," said DrElla on the need to have a newversion.

A baby requires three dosesof the vaccine at sixth, tenthand fourteenth week after birth.In the private set-ups bothRotavac and Rotavac 5D areexpected to cost between Rs900-Rs 1100 per dose, tentimes higher than what is beingmade available to theGovernments.

Dr Ella said that Rotavac5D is now available for sale,having received commerciallicense in India where it plansto tap private hospitals forsupply of the vaccines, as wellas export to countries in Africa

and Asia. However, Rotavac 5D, will

not be part of the Indianimmunization scheme. "TheGovernment has said it hasenough storage at -20 degreeCelsius and does not need vac-cines at a relatively higher tem-perature as of now", Dr Ellasaid. The company has sup-plied over 100 million doses ofRotavac globally since itslaunch. The original Rotavacwas made part of the Indianimmunization program in 2016after it received regulatoryapproval in 2014.

The company had investedUSD 20 million for the devel-opment of Rotavac, over andabove the USD165 million itinvested for the original ver-sion.

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Lok Sabha membersdemanded on Tuesday that

the Bill seeking to regulateship-breaking in India be dis-cussed in detail to ensure it hasadequate measures to reducethe impact on the environment,saying that India should not adumping area of foreign ship-ping companies. Participatingin the debate on Recycling ofShips Bill, 2019, many MPsdemanded that theGovernment ensure adequatemeasures are taken to mitigatethe impact of ship-breaking onthe environment.

"Do not make India adumping ground," NCP mem-ber Supriya Sule said, express-ing apprehensions that 'Makein India' could become 'Dumpin India.' BSP's Danish Alistressed that safety of workersshould not be compromised inthe name of generatingemployment. He also said'Make in India' should notbecome 'Dump in India' or

'Break in India'.RSP's NK Premachandran

said that the Governmentshould study environmentalimplication of old ships fromother countries landing in Indiafor recycling. Suggesting thatthe bill needs to discussed indetail as it has implications onthe environment, K

Veeraswamy (DMK) said about3,000 ships are broken everyyear and the bulk of them indeveloping nations such asBangladesh and Turkey andIndia. A Samanta (BJD) saidship-breaking is a dangerousoccupation and hence shouldbe subject to strict safety guide-lines.

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India and Sweden on Tuesdayjoined hands to combat air

pollution and climate changeand deliberated on varioustechnological solutions toreduce industrial emissions.

India''s Principal ScientificAdvisor V K Raghavan andofficials from the Ministries ofEnvironment, Agriculture andRenewable Energy discussedthese issues with the visitingSwedish delegation headed byKing of Sweden Carl XVIGustaf.

Gustaf spoke of the impor-tance to work on improving thequality of forests and acknowl-edged that the discussion at theroundtable made him feel pos-itive that many different stake-holders are committed to work-ing on conservation and cli-mate change.

"Today, we looked at solu-tions for air pollution. Thereare three different componentsthat the government is address-ing. One is attitude change inour industries and institutions

so that they emit less pollution-causing materials. The secondis whatever pollutants there are,we try to measure what is hap-pening everywhere. Sensorsare very important. Thirdly,this information needs to begiven to decision-making sys-tems," Raghavan said.

Sweden's Minister ofBusiness, Innovation andEnterprise Ibrahim Baylan,said, "Air pollution and climate

change are essentially two sidesof the same coin.

Now we have a global cli-mate accord and in most of thecountries vibrant debates aretaking place about how topromote a more sustainabledevelopment. We have to doeverything we can across allsectors."

He said Sweden is workingtowards innovation in makingcarbon-free steel and carbon-

neutral cement by 2030.Talking about waste man-

agement, Baylan said Swedenrecycles 99 per cent of its wasteand even imports it.

"You have to be very prag-matic about it. Sweden used tobe heavily oil-dependent earli-er but by using waste asresources, we are now import-ing waste from countries likeItaly, Great Britain andNorway," he said.

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Transgenders took out amarch to the Raj Bhavan

here on Tuesday protestingagainst the TransgenderPersons (Protection of Rights)bill 2019.

They urged the PresidentRam Nath Kovind to withholdhis assent to it. The bill waspassed in the Rajya Sabha onNovember 26. Raising slogans,the members of theTransgenders Collective Forumsaid the bill had been passedamid protests and resistancefrom them, whose rights itclaims to protect. “We strong-ly resent the passing of this billand condemn the members ofParliament who voted in itsfavour. The bill was passedwithout any change or amend-ment during the deliberations”,they said.

The forum also urgedPresident not to sign the bill asthey said it would be, if he does,a gross violation of his duty as

a representative of the publicand the head of the state, andto revert the bill to the RajyaSabha. On November 26, theRajya Sabha passed the bill onprotection of rights of trans-genders after a motion to referit to a select committee of theUpper House was defeated.

The Lok Sabha had passedthe bill on August 5.

The Transgender Persons(Protection of Rights) Bill,2019, seeks to provide a mech-anism for social, economicand educational empowermentof transgenders and was movedfor consideration and passagein the Rajya Sabha by SocialJustice and Empowerment

Minister Thawar Chand Gehloton November 20.

Replying to a discussion forfurther consideration of the bill,Gehlot had said efforts wouldbe made to incorporate thesuggestions presented by mem-bers while framing the rules.

He had said a clause relat-ed to medical examination bya panel for a district magistrate(DM) or collector to certify aperson as a transgender whichwas earlier part of the bill, hasbeen done away with, afterreservations were expressed bymembers in this regard.

However, in case of a child,his or her parents can fileapplication for issuance of anidentification certificate.

Elaborating on the provi-sions of the bill, the Ministerhad said it is aimed at elimi-nating discrimination againsttransgenders and theGovernment would form anational council for its imple-mentation after the legislationis brought into effect.

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Facing the brunt of ‘strong’retaliation by the Indian

Army, the Pakistan Army onTuesday targeted several civil-ian areas along the line of con-trol in Poonch sector in whicha 12th class student and awoman were both killed whileseven others received injuries.

According to groundreports, around two dozen for-ward Indian villages of Shahpurand Kirni sectors were affect-ed in the heavy mortar shellingby the Pakistan Army. Inresponse, the Indian Armygave them a befitting reply.

Local villagers claimed,mortar shells landed in villageswhich were around 10 kmsaway from the line of control.Panic stricken residentsclaimed,”We had never wit-nessed shelling in the areaeven at the peak of hostilitiesduring 1999 Kargil war andeven during 1965-1971 wars”.

To prevent further loss oflives, several villagers had takenshelter inside bunkers. Tensionprevailed along the LoC evenas heavy mortar shelling wasstill going on in the area till thetime of filing the report.

Deputy Commissioner ofPoonch, Rahul Yadav said, “a 12th class student identified asShoaib and 35 year old Woman,identified as Gulnaz were bothkilled in mortar shelling byPakistan army in BandiChichian area while seven oth-ers received injuries”.

Rahul Yadav said, out ofseven injured, two seriouslyinjured villagers were referredto Government Medical collegehospital in Jammu while five of

them were undergoing treat-ment in district hospital,Poonch.

Since August 2019 thisyear, around 1000 incidents ofceasefire violations have beenreported along the line of con-trol and International border across Jammu &Kashmir.

Meanwhile, alert Armyjawans on Tuesday appre-hended an intruder from PoKwhile he was trying to sneakinside the Indian territory inNowshera sector of Rajouri.

Senior Superintendent ofPolice, Rajouri, Yougal Manhassaid, “ On Tuesday afternoonalert army troops guarding theline of control noticed a manwho was trying to sneak insidethe Indian territory. Afternabbing him the intruder washanded over by the armyauthorities to local police fornecessary formalities.

According to police, anintruder from Pok has beenidentified as Tariq Mahmoodson of Fazal Rehman residentof Chai Nalla village ofSamahani Tehsil in District

Bhimber of Pakistan OccupiedKashmir.

Senior Superintendent ofPolice Rajouri Yougal Manhassaid that cognizance into thematter under relevant sectionsof law has been taken andaccused is under questioning.

He, however, added that noweapon or any such incrimi-nating material has been recov-ered from the intruder. On theother hand, Northern ArmyCommander, Lt-Gen RanbirSingh reviewed overall securi-ty situation in the Kashmir val-ley.

Defence Spokesman, ColRajesh Kalia in Srinagar said,“Accompanied by ChinarCorps Commander, Lt GenKJS Dhillon, the Army com-mander visited the formationsand units in the hinterland inSouth Kashmir on Tuesday”. Hesaid, Lt-Gen Ranbir Singh wasbriefed by commanders onground regarding the opera-tional and logistic prepared-ness. Interacting with thetroops, Lt-Gen Singh stressedupon the need to maintain vigiland defeat terrorist design.

Kolkata: A day after UnionHome Minister Amit Shah set2024 as the deadline forimplementing NRC acrossthe country, West BengalChief Minister MamataBanerjee on Tuesday termedthe citizens register as “BJP’spolitical rhetoric”.

She said a pan India citizens’ register can never be areality on the basis of caste and religion as all persons liv-ing in the country are its legal citizens.

A citizens’ register would be a blunder as it would facebacklash across the country, she said.

“We will not allow the National Register of Citizens(NRC), it will never happen in West Bengal. You cannotimplement NRC on the basis of caste and religion,” she toldreporters in the premises of the State Assembly.

“NRC is a political rhetoric of BJP. It can never be areality. They (BJP) are busy using political rhetoric but weshould not fall into their trap. All people living in this coun-try are its legal citizens and no one can take away their cit-izenship,” Banerjee, who is a staunch critic of the saffronparty, said.

The TMC supremo said her opposition to NRC is notdriven only by politics but also on humanitarian grounds.

“A person who is living in the country for last so manydecades, how can you just announce him foreigner all ofa sudden ? This is completely unacceptable. Pan India NRCwill never be a reality,” Banerjee said.Her comments comea day after BJP chief Amit Shah at an election rally inJharkhand on Monday set 2024 as the deadline for imple-menting the hugely divisive NRC across the country.

He asserted that “each and every” infiltrator will beidentified and expelled before the next general election.

The omission of a large number of Hindu Bengalis fromthe final NRC list in BJP-ruled Assam has apparently cre-ated panic among the people in West Bengal and hasallegedly led to 11 deaths in the state so far. PTI

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The ongoing tensionbetween the Mamata

Banerjee Government andGovernor Jagdeep Dhankharhad extraordinary fallouts withState Assembly Speaker BimanBanerjee on Wednesday takingan unprecedented decision toadjourn the House for twodays following a delay by theRaj Bhavan in signing threebills.

Though there was no offi-cial statement from theGovernment or the Governor’sHouse on the bizarre develop-ment inside sources said, theinordinate delay by theGovernor in signing the billswas an upshot of growing dif-ferences between ChiefMinister Mamata Banerjee andthe Governor who has repeat-edly complained against theState Ministers and even theChief Minister for beingincourteous to him.

The Speaker announcedthat the House will remainadjourned till December 5. Hesaid “the House will beadjourned for two days. Thebills which were scheduled tobe placed won’t be tabled asthey are yet to receive the nodof the Governor …We had sentthose bills for printing but

can’t place them in theAssembly as they are yet to getthe nod.”

While Opposition Left andCongress jointly questionedthe logic behind the adjourn-ment as “there are a host ofother issues to be discussed —from rising cases of dengue torising prices of eatables,” StateBJP president Dilip Ghosh saidthe Governor was not a puppetin the hands of theGovernment and he was notbound to sign all the billsmaking it clear that there was“some politics behind his notsigning the bills as is thenorm.”

While there was no state-ment from the Governor’sHouse Ghosh said “Governoris not bound to sign every billsent by the Government justbecause it is in majority.” Heaccused the Government of“getting passed all the billswithout it being scrutinised.”

He said “I was in theAssembly for three years and I

saw how sometimes bills weresent to the Governor at the lasthour so that he had no time togo through it… Maybe thistime he is taking time to gothrough the bill… this gov-ernment runs the house in apeculiar manner. The bill thatis discussed sometimes is notthe one that gets signed. So ifthe Governor is taking time toread it between the lines he isnot doing any wrong.”

The State has sent threebills including SC/STCommission bill, sources said.

Dhankhar is at loggerheadswith the TMC Government ona number of issues. The coldwar peaked on the ConstitutionDay celebrations last week.The Chief Minister and theGovernor who were present atthe State Assembly would notexchange pleasantries.Subsequently Dhankharaccused Banerjee for “humili-ating” him “on every occasion”and not briefing himregularly.

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The Kolkata Police suspect-ed Delhi and Romania

links in Tuesday’s KolkataAutomated Teller Machinefrauds that have allegedlyduped customers of lakhs.

Police said the number ofpeople defrauded had crossed50 on Monday with video clip-pings procured from DelhiPolice showed masked fraud-sters withdrawing cash fromthe Capital’s Laxmi Nagar areaon most of the occasions.

Senior IPS officerMurlidhar Sharma on Mondaysaid “two FIRs have beenlodged in two places in Kolkataand accordingly we have start-ed investigation,” adding thepolice would soon go to theCapital to further investigatethe case.

He said Romanian andTurkish gangs could be behindthe frauds and were beingprobed. Last year similar fraudstook place and 8 people ofRomanian gang were arrested.

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Rajasthan ChiefMinister Ashok

Gehlot on Tuesdaysaid the Congress’proposed rally inNew Delhi against“anti-people” poli-cies of the NDAGovernment willshatter its “arro-gance”.

The Congresshas called for a rallyat the Ramlila Maidan againstthe alleged “anti-people poli-cies” of the Prime MinisterNarendra Modi ledGovernment.

“On December 14, therewill be a demonstration atRamlila Maidan in Delhi andthousands of Congress workersfrom all over the country willparticipate,” the CM said here.

He said there had been dis-trict level protests against the

Modi Government byCongress workers across the country.

“This rally will prove to beeffective in shattering the arro-gance of the central govern-ment,” Gehlot said.

When asked about hisviews on the removal of theSPG cover of the Gandhi fam-ily, he said the reasons cited forremoving the security coverwere “ridiculous”.

Srinagar: Barring the clamp-down on internet services, nor-malcy is slowly returning to theKashmir Valley almost fourmonths after the Centreannounced abrogation ofArticle 370 of the Constitution that gave special status to Jammu &Kashmir.

Shops, schools and busi-ness establishments opened onTuesday morning and markets remained open tillaround 1 PM, in comparison toa few weeks earlier when shopswould down their shuttersmuch before noon, officialssaid.

As per the ‘new normal’,students have started going toschools though without wear-ing uniforms. Schools haveasked their pupils to attend

classes in casual clothes forsecurity reasons.

Officials said that the situ-ation across the Valley hasremained peaceful with nountoward incident beingreported from anywhere.

However, there has beenno official word on the restora-tion of internet services whichwere snapped from all plat-forms on August 5 when UnionHome Minister Amit Shahannounced the abrogation ofArticle 370 and bifurcation ofthe state of Jammu & Kashmir into two UnionTerritories.

Besides severely affectinglocal businesses and educationof the region’s youth, the working of journalists has beenhampered due to lack of internet services. PTI

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Jammu: Dozens of panches andsarpanches on Tuesday began aweek-long hunger strike here insupport of their various demands,including the clearance of ��1,000crore liabilities under the Centre’sf lagship MGNERGA scheme.

The hunger strike under thebanner of the All Jammu &Kashmir Panchayat Conference(AJKPC) was also to press forsecurity cover to all sarpanchesand panches in the vulnerableareas and enhancement of month-ly honorarium given at the rate of� 2,500 to sarpanches and ��1,000to panches.

“We are forced to go for thehunger strike in support of ourdemands because of the insensi-tive approach of the administra-tion. Our round-the-clock hungerstrike will continue till December10 but if the administration comesforward and addresses our issues,we are ready to call off the strikeanytime,” AJKPC president AnilSharma told reporters.

He said the AJKPC hadserved an ultimatum of 15 days tothe UT Government for clearingthe mounting liabilities of ��1,000crore under the MGNREGAscheme.

“The poor labourers, includ-ing skilled and unskilled, have notbeen paid their meagre wages for

years together. It was highly unfor-tunate that the Government hasbecome insensitive to the miseriesof poor labourers,” Sharma, whois leading the protest, said.

He said sarpanches andpanches from all the districts ofJammu & Kashmir are taking partin the protest.

He alleged that the successiveGovernments of the erstwhile J &K State and now the UT admin-istration have been violating theMGNREGA guidelines withregard to the payment of wages toworkers with “impunity”.

“The MGNREGA guidelinessuggest that workers should bepaid their wages within 15 days ofthe work done but the situation isquite grim in the UT where theworkers who executed worksfrom 2015 to March 2019 have notbeen paid their wages till date.This is the worst example ofhuman rights violation,” said theleader of the AJKPC, which is afrontline body of the elected pan-chayat members.

Referring to the killing of asarpanch and a Government official in a terror attack at Hakuravillage in Anantnag district onNovember 26 during the ‘back tothe village’ programme, he saidthe security of the panches andsarpanches is a major issue andneeds to be dealt on priority. PTI

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The Economic OffencesWing (EOW) of Mumbai

Police arrested three formerdirectors of the Punjab &Maharashtra Cooperative(PMC) Bank Ltd late onTuesday evening, in connectionwith the ��4,355 crore scam.

The police identified thethree arrested former directorsof the PMC Bank as JagdishMookhey, Mukti Bavisi andTrupti Bane.

While Mookhey was amember of the AuditCommittee from 2005 to 2020,Bavisi was member of the loansand advances committeebetween 2011 and 2020. Banewas on the Bank’s recoverycommittee from 2015 to2020.

Ahead of their formalarrested, the three formerdirectors were questioned inconnection with the loans andfacilities extended to the HDILGroup and the status of theirlong-pending recoveries. Theyfailed to provide satisfactoryreplies to the investigators,prompting their arrest.

The investigators will pro-duce the three arrested formerdirectors of the bank before a

city court on Wednesdaymorning and seek theirremand.

With the latest arrests, thetotal number of arrests in thePMC Bank scam has gone upto eleven.

Earlier on November 16,the police had arrested SardarRanjeet Singh, son of a city BJPleader and former MLA fromMulund Sardar Tara Singh.

Among those arrested sofar include: two promoters ofthe Housing Development andInfrastructure Limited (HDIL)Sarang Kumar Wadhawan andRakesh Wadhawan

The PMC Bank’s exposureto the HDIL group was nearly73 per cent of its total loanbook size of ��8,880 crore as ofSeptember 19, 2019.

The EOW suspects a nexusbetween some of the accusedand realty group HDIL, whosemammoth loan defaults aresaid to have caused a liquiditycrisis at the bank, leading toappointment of administratorand restrictions on withdraw-al of funds.

The bank’s former chair-man Waryam Singh, managingdirector Joy Thomas and othersenior officials, along with the

directors of HDIL SarangWadhwan and RakeshWadhawan, have been namedin the FIR.

HDIL’s promoters hadallegedly colluded with thebank management, to drawloans from the bank’s Bhandupbranch.

During the course of theinvestigations, it has come tolight that the PMC Bank cre-ated more than 21,000 fakeaccounts to hide the variousloans.

In a “confession” made tothe RBI through a letter, PMCBank’s suspended ManagingDirector Joy Thomas had ear-lier admitted to have givenloans to HDIL and its relatedentity to the tune of Rs 6,500crore without informing allthe board members.

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Bollywood actor RiteishDeshmukh and elder his

brother-Congress MLA AmitDeshmukh, sons ofMaharashtra’s late ChiefMinister Vilasrao Deshmukh,on Tuesday vehemently con-tested the messages floatingaround in the social media thatthey had sought loan waivers tothe tune of � 4.75 crore fromthe Maharashtra Government.

Responding to a tweet putout by academic and chairper-son of Indian Council of SocialScience Research (ICSSR)Madhu Kishwar, Riteish tweet-ed: “Dear @madhukishwar Ji,The said paper in circulation iswith malafide motive. Neitherme nor my brother@AmitV_Deshmukh haveavailed any loan as mentionedin the paper posted by you.Hence, there is no question ofany loan waiver whatsoever.Please don’t be misled. Thankyou”. Interestingly enough, theoriginal tweet put by Kishwarwent missing from the twitter,after Riteish’s tweet.

On her part, Kishwar gra-ciously admitted she had been

“misled” into putting the tweetand expressed regret.“@Riteishdji, an otherwise reli-able Mumbai friend sent methat info. Knowingly,I neverpublish misleading info evenagainst someone I may hate.Sorry, in this case I was misled.From now on, won’t trust evengood friends on SM matters.Sincere apologies.BTW Iadmire your acting,” Kishwartweeted.

“I am also deeplyimpressed by the graciousmanner in which@Riteishdpointed out my mis-take. Thank you Riteish, thatone tweet of yours carriedmany valuable lessons,” sheadded in another tweet.

As per a purportedly“fake” document datedFebruary 2, 2019 from Laturfloating around in the socialmedia, Amit Deshmukh andRiteish Deshmukh hadallegedly availed a huge farmloan of around �4.75 croreand also reportedly applied tothe Government for its waiv-er.

The indication of the doc-ument being a fake one can beseen from the fact that it bearshand-written noting that

Deshmukhs allegedly owedfarm loan amounting to � 4,70,64,195 and it carriesanother remark— all pennedwith a yellow marker-pen:“Advise, how to waive off theloan”. In a detailed clarification,Congress MLA AmitDeshmukh said: “This kind ofmessages have been floatingaround in social media sincethe run-up to the Lok Sabha.We had then issued a clarifi-cation. The messages onceagain resurfaced during theState Assembly elections held

in October”. “We have a reason to

believe that some vested inter-ests are behind this mischief.We are lodging a police com-plaint now to thoroughly inves-tigate the entire matter andarrest those peddling thesefake messages in social media,”Amit said.

To substantiate the thedocument circulating in thesocial media was “fake”, Amitcame out with the latest copyof a genuine documentreceived from the local revenue

department on November 29,2019 which has no figures ofany alleged outstanding loandue from Deshmukhs nor doesit make a mention that they hadsought a loan waiver.

In normal course,Deshmukhs — being the land-holding farmers — are not eli-gible for are not eligible forbenefits under the StateGovernment’s loan waiverscheme, a fact that theDevendra FadnavisGovernment had made itknown it announced the �� 34,022 crore loan waiverscheme “Chhatrapati ShivajiMaharaj Krishi SammanYojana” on June 4 2017.

Deshmukhs believe thattheir political rivals might havebeen behind the whole thing.“If the fake document hasresurfaced again in the socialmedia, Amit Deshmukh’s rivalsmay be trying to deny himministerial berth in the UddhavThackeray Government.

This is because he was aMinister for a brief time in theearlier Congress-NCP alliancegovernment and is now a min-isterial aspirant,” a Congressleader close to the Deshmukhfamily said.

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Bengaluru: Alleging that theruling BJP, fearing defeat in theDecember 5 bypolls, has triedto contact some of its MLAswith an intention to engineerdefections, the Congress inKarnataka Monday warned thesaffron party of a backlashfrom the party and people ifthey went about it.

The principal Oppositionparty also claimed that BJP wasspending about � 1,000 crore“corrupt money” for thebypoll.

“I want to tell one thing toBJP- some of their leaders haveclaimed that Congress MLAsare ready to join them...Imwarning them not to againindulge in Operation Kamala(poaching of oppositionMLAs),” KPCC PresidentDinesh Gundu Rao toldreporters here.

“...In fact, they are alreadymaking phone calls to ourMLAs, already called a few ofthem. If it repeats, we will notspare you... If it (poaching)repeats, we will not spare you.They (BJP) know they willlose in the bypolls...

If they indulge inOperation Kamala again, leavealone Congress, people willchase and beat them. Dontindulge in such undemocratic

things, he added.Clarifying that Congress

would not indulge in such“operations”, Rao said disqual-ified Congress legislators likeByrathi Basavaraj, S TSomashekar and Munirathna-who are now BJP candidates,had in fact said they wanted tore-join the party, a requestwhich was turned down.

The bypolls were necessi-tated after the resignation andabsence of 17 Congress-JD(S)legislators during the trustvote, leading to the collapse ofthe coalition government andpaving the way for BJP tocome to power.

The 17 legislators weresubsequently disqualified bythe then Speaker K R RameshKumar under anti defectionlaw. However, the SupremeCourt that heard the MLA’spetition challenging the thenSpeakers decision had lastmonth allowed them to contestthe bypolls, but upheld theirdisqualification.

Expressing confidence thatvoters would favour Congress,Rao said people would defeatthe disqualified legislators, whoare BJP candidates, thus ensu-ing the “cleansing” of politics inthe state.

“Which party forms the

government or not is notimportant. The result shoulduphold the pride of the state..Voters should send a messagethat they will not tolerate suchfilthy politics,by rejecting anddefeating disqualified, he said.

BJP needs to win at least sixseats in the bypolls to 15 con-stituencies to remain in amajority in the 224-memberassembly, which will still havetwo vacant seats — Maski andR R Nagar.

On the possibility ofCongress again joining handswith JD(S) to form a govern-ment after the bypolls if BJP fellshort of a majority, Rao saidtheir primary focus was todefeat BJP and the defectors.

“What happens after thatwe will discuss and decide asand when the situation arises,”he said. Among the 15 con-stituencies going to the bypolls,12 were held by Congress andthree by JD(S), whose coalitiongovernment collapsed due torebellion by the disqualifiedMLAs.

With winning a majority ofthe seats being crucial for thegovernment’s survival, BJP hasfielded 13 of the 16 disqualifiedlegislators who joined the partyas its candidates from theirrespective constituencies.

Bengaluru: The high-octanecampaign for the December 5bypolls in Karnataka that willdetermine the future of the BJPGovernment in the State ended on Tuesday, withleaders of political parties mak-ing a last bid to woo voters.

The by-elections to 15Assembly constituencies sawBJP seeking votes for “stabili-ty”, while the Congress and JD(S) urged theelectorate to defeat the dis-qualified legislators responsiblefor the collapse of their coali-tion government, who are nowthe ruling party candidates. PTI

Bengaluru: Senior Congressleader K Siddaramaiah onTuesday said the party leader-ship would take a call on pos-sible tie-up with JD(S) to forma government in case the rul-ing BJP fails to retain its major-ity following the December 5assembly bypolls in Karnataka.’His statement came even asseveral of his party colleaguesmaintained that they were notaverse to possibility of a postby-poll alliance.

“No, no such things, highcommand will discuss anddecide about it,” Siddaramaiahtold reporters in Hunsur inresponse to a query on discus-

sions on alliance with JD(S).Earlier speaking to

reporters in Mysuru, he said,there was no internal under-standing between Congressand JD(S) during the bypolls,and both parties were serious-ly fighting against each other. PTIPTI

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Breaking her silence overthe intense speculation

about her quitting the BJP,former Minister and seniorparty leader Pankaja Mundesaid here on Tuesday that herFacebook post, in which shehad indicated she would decideon her “future journey” onDecember 12, had been “mis-interpreted” and she had noplans to quit the party.

Talking to media persons aday after her Sunday’s Facebookpost and subsequent removal ofthe BJP’s name from her twit-ter handle sparked intense spec-ulation that she might quit theBJP on December 12, Pankajasaid: “I had not put theFacebook post to indulge inpressure tactics within the party.I am a loyal party worker.Rebellion is not in my blood.My Facebook post has beenmisinterpreted. I am upset withmisleading news reports. I amvery committed to the BJP.Rumours are being spread tosuggest that I am leaving theBJP”.

Earlier in the day, formerMinisters Vinod Tawade,Babarao Lonikar and RamShinde met Pankaja at herMumbai residence and request-ed her not to take any extremestep of quitting the BJP. Talkingto media persons after hismeeting with Pankaja, Tawadesaid: “Every year Pankajataiputs out such posts onFacebook. But, this year, herpolitical rivals misinterpretedher post. She is upset becauseof this”. Informed sources in theBJP said that former chief min-ister and senior BJP leaderDevendra Fadnavis spoke toPankaja over telephone andreportedly prevailed upon hernot to quit the party. “Both theleaders discussed the currentpolitical situation in the state,”sources said.

Notwithstanding Pankaja’sdenial about her quitting theBJP on December 12, the birthanniversary of her father lateGopinath Munde, sources closeto her said that she was plan-ning to make to make a majorannouncement on December12, while not disclosing as what

it could be.On Monday, the

Maharashtra BJP had gone intoa tizzy, after Pankaja —througha Facebook post put out onSunday and subsequentremoval of the BJP’s name fromher twitter handle on Monday— hinted at the possibility ofher quitting the parent partyand joining another party.

As Pankaja was incommu-nicado all through Mondayafter she removed the BJP’sname from her twitter handle,the BJP had gone into a dam-age control mode and deniedthat she had any plans to bequit the party, as was beinginterpreted by the politicalobservers from Sunday’sFacebook post and her decisionto remove the party’s namefrom her twitter handle.

Forty year-old Pankaja isthe daughter late BJP leaderGopinath Munde. Pankaja hadtaken over the legacy of herfather Gopinath Munde afterthe latter died in a road acci-dent in the national capital onJune 3, 2014. A former minis-ter in the previous BJP-led saf-fron alliance Government inthe state, she was defeated byher cousin Dhananjay Mundein the October 21 StateAssembly polls by a margin of30.701 votes in their homeconstituency of Parli in Beeddistrict of Marathwada.

Shiv Sena spokespersonSanjay Raut had added fuel toongoing speculation thatPankaja might join the ShivSena, through his crypticremarks made during his inter-actions with media persons atNashik. Asked if it was truethat Pankaja would be joiningthe Shiv Sena, Raut said: “Manyprominent BJP leaders have

expressed their willingness tojoin the BJP. If you are talkingabout Pankaja Munde, you willget know about her plans onDecember 12”.

Talking to media persons,Maharashtra BJP presidentsaid: “At a time we have an acci-dental Government in the state.It is but natural that we get tosee the ruling front leadersindulge in this kind of wishfulthinking. There is absolutetruth in the rumours thatPankajatai would quit the BJP.Many of us have spokenPankajatai. I don’t think thereis any possibility of her takingsuch a step(of quitting theBJP)”.

“To put an end to this kindof rumours, as the state BJPpresident I am issuing an offi-cial statement that Pankajataiwill not quit the BJP,” Patil said.

In a crucial sentence inhere Facebook post, Pankjainvited her supporters for ameeting called on December12 her late Munde’s birthanniversar y and wrote:“Considering the changes thatchanges in political situationin the stat and also the respon-sibility before me, we need todecide our future course ofaction”.

“You are asking me timefor meeting you. I will give youall time after eight to ten days. During the eight to ten days,let me introspect. I want todecide on what should I donext? Which way should I go?.What can I give to people?What’s my strength? What dopeople expect from me? Afterdeliberating on all these ques-tions, I will come before you onDecember 12,” Pankaja told hersupporters through herFacebook post.

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Who would have ever imag-ined that effigies of PrimeMinister Narendra Modi,who had conquered thehearts and minds of most

Nepalese in 2014, would be burnt acrossNepal? (There’s some consolation though thatwhile the Red Star is over Nepal, ChinesePresident Xi Jinping’s effigies, too, were seton fire in that country last month). Theprovocation was the first political map ofIndia that was released last month, whichdepicted the reorganised Union Territoriesof Jammu & Kashmir with Pakistan-occu-pied Kashmir shown in Jammu & Kashmirand Gilgit-Baltistan in Ladakh.

The map reportedly depicts the highly-emotive issue in Kathmandu, the disputedKalapani territory, in India. An Indian for-eign office official said, “The new map hasin no manner revised our boundary withNepal.” The Chinese have allegedlyencroached into four to five areas, usurpingmore than 25 hectares of land. The pan-Nepal revival of Kalapani has stirred the potof anti-India sentiment that was settlingdown after the 53-day economic blockadeof 2015, which catapulted the NepalCommunist Party (NCP) into unprecedent-ed political power.

The Kalapani dispute has, as is usual, aNepali and Indian version. The formerclaims that the Kali river originates atLipulekh whereas the latter contends that itssource is at Kalapani. The tri-junctionbetween China, India and Nepal is also con-tested: Tinker-Lipu versus Lipulekh. Indiasays Nepal and China have bilaterally shift-ed it about 6 km north. Indian posts atKalapani and Navidang routinely patrol tillLipulekh. The Kalapani dispute is ancientand a sensitive issue for the Nepalese.Joint/boundary working groups and techni-cal committees have failed to resolve the dis-pute. According to Nepal’s Foreign Ministry,“The two foreign secretaries were tasked toresolve border-related issues with con-cerned technicians.” I have been travellingin Nepal for the last two weeks. The by-elec-tions held on Saturday to elect 52 represen-tatives were not the only reason whyKalapani has become a hot potato andrequires early resolution.

Xi’s landmark visit to Kathmandu, thefirst by a Chinese leader in 23 years, was welltimed though it raised the hackles in NewDelhi. The concurrent rise of China and thecommunist parties of Nepal in South Asiais a fundamental shift in negating India’s pri-macy in Nepal (and the region) by reduc-ing Kathmandu’s dependence on India.New Nepal is secular, democratic, federal anda republic. Monarchy, which unified Nepal250 years ago, was abolished due to the 10-year-long Maoist insurgency and 19 days ofstreet protest in 2006. Globalisation hasaffected Nepal in a big way. Around 25 percent of its population is abroad. Connectivityand urbanisation have changed social con-

tours and nationalism is at an all-time high though economicprosperity has not matched theaspirations of the people.

For India, Nepal isgeostrategically the most impor-tant country in the neighbour-hood. That is why PrimeMinister Modi visited it for anunprecedented four times dur-ing his first term. No IndianPrime Minister had been therefor the past 17 years.

India has lately beenfocussed on Nepal’s develop-ment agenda, dovetailed with astable Nepal and a prosperousone. Emphasis is on trade, hydelpower projects, business,tourism and substantialimprovement of border infra-structure. Dozens of my reportsin the 1970s and 1980s to theGovernment, urging better bor-der connectivity, went unauc-tioned when the Nepali side wasgetting roads ahead. The bottomline for India is to deliver pro-jects on time with quality per-fection so as to match and bet-ter China.

Of Nepal’s total trade of$13.5 billion in 2017-18, 65 percent was with India and just 14per cent with China. The Indianembassy in Kathmandu has pre-pared a handbook for Indianinvestors in Nepal. It is not easydoing business in Kathmandu,

which is expectedly a highly-protected economy thoughOYO, which entered Nepal in2017, has now established 120outlets. As far as tourism is con-cerned, Indians remain thenumber one though inKathmandu, a fading Shangri-Lais competing with Bangkok andDubai. Border trade hasimmense scope but has notbeen exploited due to roads stillrotting on the border. India’s aidto Nepal increased by 73 percent — from �375 crore in2017-18 to �650 crore in 2018-19 — but we are yet in no posi-tion to match China’s deeppockets. Beijing pledged around$500 of development aid for thenext two years during Xi’s visit.Another $23 million have beengiven for military stores.

The numbers of integratedcheckposts are being expanded— one at Kakarbhitta and theother at Biratnagar — which isto be inaugurated shortly byPrime Ministers Oli and Modi.A new bridge has been built overMechi river near Kakarbhitta,which will expedite movementinto east India. India has alreadysubmitted to Nepal a projectreport on the 113-km Raxaul-Kathmandu railway line. Theother rail line from Jayanagar toJanakpur has been completedand is being extended to

Bardibas in Nepal. The Motihari-Amlekhgunj

oil pipeline was constructed sixmonths ahead of schedule, mak-ing petrol �2 per litre cheaper inNepal. Of the nation’s 28 mil-lion population, 25 per cent isabroad, looking for greener pas-tures. Around six to eight mil-lion people reside in India andare gainfully employed.

Chinese-aided/constructedprojects are grouped broadlyinto two categories: The Belt andRoad Initiative (BRI) projects,estimated to cost $8 billion,which include the TransHimalayan ConnectivityNetwork and three north-southcorridors. Another is a basket of35 projects worth $10 billionunder consideration or projectreview. China has opened acommercial office inKathmandu from which Nepal,as a member of the AsianInfrastructure Investment Bank,can secure loans. Unsurprisingly,there is little transparency on thegrants and loan components andinterest rates. China’s trackrecord in supporting infrastruc-tural development is suspectedand can lead to a debt trap.

Nepal ideally wants a trian-gular economic growth model,maximising its dividend fromthe two fastest-growingeconomies of India and China,

but New Delhi prefers a bilater-al relationship unlike Beijing,which promotes India-Chinaplus one which Prachanda, theexecutive Chairman of the NepalCommunist Party, rejected lastweek. Neither Kathmandu norBeijing has taken New Delhi intoconfidence about China’s trans-Himalayan connectivity net-work. Nor is there any clarity onthe Raxaul-Kathmandu railway.Both railway lines are huge geo-logical and ecological challengeswith costs outweighing benefits.

The extension of theChinese railway line to Lumbiniwill breach an old Indian red linefor Chinese projects in the Terai.Deeper military cooperationbetween the People’s LiberationArmy (PLA) and the NepalArmy is another troublingthreshold for the Indian Army.Nepal’s “Look North” policycontains the seeds of serioussecurity challenges for India. Butthe immediate concern must beto resolve, for mutual satisfac-tion, the long-festering Kalapanidispute through high-level dia-logue and arrest the anti-Indiasentiment.

(The writer, a retired MajorGeneral, was Commander IPKFSouth, Sri Lanka and foundermember of the Defence PlanningStaff, currently the IntegratedDefence Staff.)�� '��!

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Sir — The Central Crime Branchwing of the Bengaluru city policemust be lauded for busting aninternational drug racket andseizing contraband worth over �1crore. The force exposed the drugmafia on the basis of a tip-off fromthe parent of an addict. The oper-ators used the dark web to smug-gle narcotics from Canada byusing Amazon’s courier services.

This incident should act as aneye-opener. A large number of theyouth in Bengaluru are prone todrug abuse. Young professionalswith disposable incomes oftenbecome the prime targets of drugpeddlers. Drug addiction is cur-rently one of the most serious illsplaguing our society. Its effects aredevastating and can destroy lives.

It is time to address thisissue seriously. Unless theNarcotics Control Bureau, alongwith other agencies, cracks downon smugglers and peddlers acrossthe country and brings to justicethe kingpins who hide beyond theborders, it will be difficult toeffectively tackle the problem ofsubstance abuse.

Ramesh G JethwaniBengaluru

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Sir — A WhatsApp forward,used as campaign material in theKarnataka bypolls, has proveddamaging for the MaharashtraBJP and former Chief MinisterDevendra Fadnavis’ credibility.

BJP MP from Karnataka

Anant Kumar Hegde hasclaimed that Fadnavis was swornin as Maharashtra ChiefMinister to prevent Centralfunds worth �40,000 crore frombeing misused.

Hegde must be having atrack record of making controver-sial statements but if his claim —

the “drama” to support a “minor-ity” Government was scripted andplayed out only to “appropriate”the funds — is true, though it isyet to be corroborated, ques-tions will definitely arise about thecurrent status of these funds andhow they were repatriated byFadnavis within a couple of days.

Surely, this must have embar-rassed the State BJP and Fadnavisbut it would help in creating aperception that the Modi-Shahdispensation knew what it wasdoing all this while by proppingup a “minority” Government andnot playing into NationalistCongress Party (NCP) chiefSharad Pawar’s hands.

KS Jayatheertha Bengaluru

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Sir — This refers to the editori-al, “Crying shame” (December 2).Though expeditious steps havebeen taken by the TelanganaGovernment to hunt down theculprits, all accused have notbeen apprehended.

That the accused in the 2012Delhi gangrape are yet to under-go punishment proves that thewheels of justice move slowly inour country. Quick action againstthe rapist alone can impact theculture of impunity and pushback the crime rate.

Nimai Charan SwainBhubaneswar

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Millions of people (including many unde-serving ones) are getting a variety of sub-sidies from the Central Government and

States. These cost crores, impairing the ability ofthe Centre and States to rein in fiscal deficit(excess of total expenditure over total revenue)within the range mandated under the FiscalResponsibility and Budget Management (FRBM)Act. These subsidies are administered in an “ad-hoc” and “arbitrary” manner and this leads to mis-allocation of resources, promotes inefficiency inproduction, distribution and use, encourages mis-use and diversion of funds and makes way for con-trols.

Successive Governments, led by parties of allhues across the political spectrum, have reiterat-ed their unflinching commitment to rationaliseand streamline subsidies with a view to reduceand give them only to the deserving. The thenUnion Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjeeunder the UPA regime had even fixed a specifictarget in the 2012-13 Budget for reduction of sub-sidies as percentage of the Gross DomesticProduct (GDP) in as much the same way as thetarget for pruning fiscal deficit.

Yet, grants have continued to increase and thesubsidy given by the Central Government onfood, fertilisers and fuel alone exceeds �300,000crore annually. That this is imposing an unsus-tainable burden on the Budget can be gauged froma recent decision of the Government to increasethe “authorised capital” of the Food Corporationof India (FCI) — as food subsidy is routed throughit — from the existing �3,500 crore to �10,000crore, so that the FCI is able to raise more moneyfrom the market (with this, it will be eligible toborrow �100,000 crore) even as the Governmentis unable to pay.

In case of fertilisers, where subsidy is rout-ed through manufacturers, the ruling dispensa-tions have innovated a variety of mechanisms suchas issue of “fertiliser bonds” in lieu of pendingsubsidy payments (as during 2007-08 and 2008-09) or special banking arrangement (SBA) underwhich the Central Government directs public sec-tor banks (PSBs) to give loans to manufacturersbacked by sovereign guarantee (2014-15 to2016-17) to mitigate the adverse impact on theBudget and prevent fiscal slippage.

During 2007-08 to 2009-10, the Governmentissued oil bonds to public sector oil marketingcompanies (OMCs) like the Indian OilCorporation (IOCL), Bharat PetroleumCorporation (BPCL) and Hindustan PetroleumCorporation (HPCL) against outstanding subsidydues on sale of petrol, diesel, LPG and kerosene.Further, during 2004-05 to 2013-14, it also tookrecourse to directing upstream oil and gas PSUslike Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC)and Oil India Limited (OIL) to give discount onsale of domestic crude to IOCL/BPCL/HPCL.ONGC alone gave a cumulative discount of over�300,000 crore during this period to ease the sub-sidy burden on the Centre.

Why then, have subsidy payments continuedto increase unabated? In a fundamental sense, thishas to do with a two-fold strategy followed by suc-cessive regimes. First, the Government orders saleof fertilisers, food and fuel at a low price, unre-

lated to the cost of production/procure-ment, handling and distribution whichis higher. Second, since no manufactur-er or agency can sustain operations byselling at the low (albeit controlled)price, the Government reimburses to itexcess of the cost-over-price as subsidy.Both the components of the strategy areseriously flawed.

The supply of a product at low pricestops the consumer from recognising itstrue value and often leads to its indis-criminate and excessive use or even mis-use. For instance, the low MaximumRetail Price (MRP) of urea, which cur-rently is a mere 10 per cent higher thanit was two decades ago, has led to itsexcessive use, causing an imbalance infertiliser use, stagnating crop yield, soildegradation and an adverse environ-mental impact. It has also led to large-scale diversion to chemical industries(30 per cent of the total supply).

In food also, diversion of sub-sidised cereals from the PublicDistribution System (PDS) is rampantand could be as high as 50 per cent insome States. When, under the NationalFood Security Act (NFSA), food grainsare available at a throwaway price of�1/2/3 per kg for coarse grains, wheatand rice respectively, as against themuch-higher market price, surveil-lance can’t stop diversion.

In oil too, there are instances galoreof subsidised kerosene being divertedfor adulterating diesel; or rampantmisuse of subsidised LPG until theGovernment brought it under theDirect Benefit Transfer scheme fromJanuary, 2015. The other pitfall has todo with giving the benefit of subsidy toeven those who don’t deserve it. When,urea is available at a “uniform” low MRPto all farmers (without any ceiling on the

quantity bought), even a rich farmermerrily enjoys the subsidy. Likewise,undeserving farmers are also enjoyingsubsidy on other inputs like power, irri-gation and credit.

Coming to the second component,when, a fertiliser manufacturer knowsthat the Government will reimburse inexcess of the cost of production and dis-tribution over the MRP, he/she won’tmake efforts to improve efficiency andreduce cost. Further, even suppliers ofraw materials such as LNG, phosphor-ic acid, ammonia and potash used inproducing fertilisers get away withcharging a high price, as they tooknow that input costs are “passed-through” under the subsidy regime.

In food, the FCI gets paid for itsexpenses on procurement, handling anddistribution on “actual” basis. Thisallows cover up for its inefficiencies, costpadding and even for quantities whichoften disappear from the warehouses.

Similarly, oil firms get reimburse-ment on sale of subsidised LPG andkerosene based on inflated price whichis a mix of import parity and export par-ity in 80:20 ratio.

Several committees from time totime have recommended measures toaddress these flaws. But, no political dis-pensation ever picked up the courage toact on their recommendations. Theoverarching reason behind this wassheer votebank politics. Some eventsfrom the 1990s and the 2000s will bestillustrate this. In the early 90s, whenunder pressure from the InternationalMonetary Fund (IMF) and the WorldBank and based on recommendationsof the Joint Parliamentary Committee,the then Government under PVNarasimha Rao decontrolled all phos-phate and potash fertilisers and with-

drew subsidy from August 25, 1992, itnot only retained controls and subsidyon urea but also reduced its MRP by 10per cent. Further, even on phosphateand potash fertilisers, within five weeksof withdrawal it resurrected subsidyunder a new incarnation called “ad-hocconcession.”

Since then, successive Governmentshave continued with subsidy on bothurea and non-urea fertilisers with muchhigher subsidy on the former. In 1998under the then NDA Government ledby AB Vajpayee, the then FinanceMinister, Yashwant Sinha while present-ing the Budget had proposed an increaseof �1,000 per ton in the MRP of ureawith a view to bring about some reduc-tion in subsidy. In a bid to camouflageits harshness, in his speech, Sinha pre-sented this as an “increase of �1 per kg”(thinking that this might pass muster).But the Minister was caught napping asall parliamentarians — cutting acrossparty lines — protested, forcing him toroll back 50 per cent of the hike the verynext day and the remaining within afortnight.

These events clearly demonstratethe power of the vote bank, which issynonymous with supplying cheap fer-tilisers, food, fuel, power and so on. Insharp contrast, meaningful subsidyreform — at its very core — requiresabandonment of a populist approach.But then politics always has an upperhand even as reforms take the back seat.

Given the incessant exhortations ofour political class that all agriculturalinputs and essential items of consump-tion are available at throwaway pricesor even free, it is most unlikely that sub-sidy reforms will ever take off.

(The writer is a New Delhi-based policy analyst)

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All is not well with the BJP’sallies. Murmurs of dissentfrom the alliance partners are

getting louder, more so after therecent rift between the Shiv Sena andthe BJP which led to the former quit-ting the NDA and finally breaking uptheir alliance in Maharashtra.

However, the BJP is not worriedas it has absolute majority in the LokSabha, though Prime MinisterNarendra Modi chose to include therepresentatives of the alliance partnersin his Cabinet in 2014 and continuedthe same practice after improving theBJP’s tally in the 2019 elections.Modi is on record saying that hebelieves that coalitions are necessaryfor Indian democracy and hisGovernment would combine nation-al ambition and regional aspirations.

Unlike the Vajpayee Government,which faced constant troubles fromNDA allies, Modi has had smoothsailing for the last five years. The NDAis no longer the same as the positionof the partners has weakened. In thelast five years, many allies have eitherquit the alliance or are at odds withthe Modi Government. Even thosewho have declared that they standfirm with the BJP — the ShiromaniAkali Dal (SAD) and the Janata Dal-United (JD-U) — are disturbed by thetreatment meted out to partners.

The BJP had five major allies.They were the SAD, the TeluguDesam Party (TDP), the Shiv Sena,the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)and the JD-U. Out of these, the TDPleft the BJP in 2018, while the ShivSena parted company with the NDArecently and the BJP itself dumpedthe Mehbooba Mufti led-PDP.

The Sena is the BJP’s only ideo-logical ally while the Akalis are theonly ones whose social base couplesperfectly with the BJP’s. All of theNDA partners have been protectingtheir turfs in their respective States.

However, the big question is,does the BJP need allies? Of the 543

LS seats, the BJP has no need forthem — except for smaller partnersas in Uttar Pradesh — in 331 seats.Of the 212 seats where the BJP isdependent on allies, Bihar andMaharashtra are the only Stateswhere an ally is either the senior orequal partner. The BJP’s decision tohang on to the allies could bebecause the party is yet to attainmajority in the Rajya Sabha (RS).When the BJP came to power in2014, it had 43 MPs in the UpperHouse out of a total strength of 245.Today, that number has almost dou-bled to 78. Along with its allies, theBJP has 115 MPs in the RS now. It

needs the cooperation of a fewsmaller parties to push its agenda inthe House. The NDA allies are obvi-ously dissatisfied with the presentarrangement as they feel that unlikeVajpayee’s time, there is hardly anyconsultation among the partnersnow. They want a chairman and con-vener for the NDA, which used to bethe case earlier. While the BJP leaderwas the chairman, the convener waschosen from among the partners.The Modi era has seen no sucharrangement and this demand hasbeen voiced many times. In fact, justbefore the current Winter Session ofthe Parliament, the Lok Janshakti

Party’s (LJP) national presidentChirag Paswan pointed out that theappointment of a convener or con-stitution of a coordination commit-tee would ensure the exchange ofideas across alliance partners.

SAD leader and Rajya Sabha MPNaresh Gujral also said, “There wasa time when no one was in alliancewith the BJP and at that time too, theShiv Sena and the SAD stood withthem. It doesn’t mean that when youget absolute majority you start treat-ing your allies as lesser partners.”

The Apna Dal, JD-U and a fewother allies made similar remarks.The NDA has 16 allies, of which theBJP is the only national party. Therelations with the partners in theModi era have not been that cordial.This is because of their tussle forvotes. The BJP is ambitious andwants to expand while the allies wantto protect their turf. This was the rea-son why the Shiv Sena left thealliance last month. Also Modi doesnot succumb to their arm twisting.

The BJP has a new strategy tobuild the NDA. Modi has said thatthe doors of the BJP are always openfor old and new partners. For

instance, the TDP is said to be inch-ing closer to the BJP again. Shiv Senacould come back any time. The BJPhas also got new allies; particularlyin the North-East and several moreare in the making, like the All IndiaAnna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam(AIADMK), Telangana RashtraSamithi (TRS), the Yuvajana SramikaRythu Congress Party (YSRCP) andother smaller parties.

The BJP has expanded its baseand has become the richest andbiggest party, overtaking theCongress even in the RS. It has majorpresence in most big States, and isnow eyeing the South and the North-East for expansion. The saffronparty has replaced the Left in Tripuraand edged the Congress out in WestBengal and Odisha as the chal-lenger to the ruling party. Its winningspree continues as it hasGovernments in 17 States. Modi is ina strong position right now and it isthe allies who need the party and notthe BJP which needs the partners, asin the past. There was a time whenthe saffron party was considered anuntouchable but it is not so anymore.

(The writer is a senior journalist)

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The government on Tuesdayassured the Rajya Sabha

that merger of 10 public sectorbanks will not lead to any joblosses and employees’ interestwill be protected.

In August, the governmentannounced a mega plan tomerge 10 public sector banksinto four with a view to creat-ing fewer and stronger global-sized lenders with robust bal-ance sheets that can be used toboost credit and spur growth.

During the Question Hour,Minister of State for FinanceAnurag Singh Thakur saidlending and other banking ser-vices to eastern states will beimproved after two Kolkata-based banks are merged.

While United Bank ofIndia (UBI) will be merged

with Punjab National Bank,Allahabad Bank will be amal-gamated with Indian Bank.These two banks are head-quartered in Kolkata.

“Merger of banks willstrengthen the lending capaci-ty. It has been ensured that noperson loses job. The employ-ees of merging banks will ben-efit the maximum. Merger isbeing done keeping their inter-est in mind,” he said.

“We have taken enoughprecaution,” he said, addingthat Narasimham Committee in1998 and Leeladhar Committeein 2008 recommended amalga-mation of the banks.

“Amalgamating banks wasadvised to duly factor in anddraw road maps for convergingIT systems and HR and to putin place institutional arrange-ments to ensure expeditious

integration,” Thakur said.After due consideration by

their respective boards, thebanks have informed that multi-level coordination and integra-tion committees have been setup to ensure faster integrationacross functionalities, he added.

The minister was respond-ing to a query from TrinamoolCongress member ManishGupta who said that about50,000 employees will be joblessby next year due to the merger.

To another query on bank-ing services likely to be affect-ed in eastern states due to themerger, the minister said thereach and lending capacity willbe “much larger and better” withthe amalgamation.

“In today’s time of compe-tition, I think expansion ofthese banks is very impor-tant...It was our government

which went for asset qualityreview of bank loans givenbetween 2004 and 2014. Weadopted an approach for betterfunctioning of the banks andrecapitalised them with over �2.35 lakh crore for betterstrengthening and function-ing,” he said.

As far as lending to easternstates is concerned, the minis-ter said, “Let me assure themember there would not be anyshortage or shortfall of ser-vices.”

Responding to anotherquery from TrinamoolCongress member ManasRanjan Bhunia on reasons formerger of UBI with PNB, theminister said, “I think the over-all intention was to create astrong and competitive bankthat may serve as catalyst ofgrowth with improved risk pro-

file of the bank. As far as theinterest of the employees areconcerned, pay allowances wereless favourable overall.”

He said UBI’s total businesssize is � 2,08,000 crore, where-as that of PNB is � 11,82,224crore.

With the merger, total busi-ness size will be � 17,94,526crore, making it the secondlargest bank in the country.

“What we have kept inmind is the software ‘CoreBanking System’ being used bythem. All these banks which areusing similar kind of softwarehave been merged accordinglyso that there would not be anydifficulty for the employees,” hesaid.

As far as the sentiment ofeastern states or Kolkata is con-cerned, that will be taken careof, Thakur added.

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The Securities AppellateTribunal (SAT) on Tuesday

suspended further transfer ofinvestors securities that KarvyStock Broking Ltd had pledgedwith lenders. The move comesa day after the market regulatorSebi’s directive to NSDL to trans-fer the investors’ securities, heldby Karvy Stock Broking Ltd(KSBL), in their respectiveaccounts.

The decision resulted innearly 83,000 investors getting

back their securities that were ille-gally transferred by the broker toits own account and were evenpledged without any authorisa-tion. With this transfer byNational Securities DepositoryLtd (NSDL), nearly 90 per centinvestors received their securities.

Karvy has taken loans to thetune of Rs 600 crore by pledgingsecurities worth more than �2,300 crore of 95,000 clientswith lenders, including BajajFinance.

Of these, 95,000 clients, near-ly 83,000 of them have got back

their securities, which were wereillegally transferred by KSBL toits own account.

The latest ruling came fol-lowing an appeal by Bajaj Finace,which has given given loans tothe tune of � 345 crore to Karvyagainst pledged securities.

Bajaj Finance moved thetribunal against a Sebi orderpassed on November 22, whichprohibited transfer of securitiesfrom an account of KSBL withimmediate effect, saying due tothis directive the non-bankingfinance company could not

invoke the pledge.The regulator, through an

order passed on November 22,had barred KSBL from takingnew clients in respect of its stockbroking activities and also pre-vented it from using the powerof attorney (PoA) given by clientsafter the broker was found tohave allegedly misused clients’securities. The order was a resultof a preliminary report forward-ed by the NSE on the non-com-pliances observed with respect topledging/misuse of client secu-rities by Karvy. “In the interim

further transfer of securities shallremain suspended from DPaccount...named Karvy StockBroking Ltd (BSE),” the tribunalsaid in an order.

The SAT has asked the reg-ulator to hear “the appellant(Bajaj Finance) on the basis oftheir representation datedNovember 23, 2019 and or anyother additional representationwhich they may like to make. Ifthe appellant is desirous to makeany additional representation itshall be made latest by December4, 2019”.

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Benchmark stock indicesSensex and Nifty on

Tuesday fell in line with sub-dued Asian markets after the USdecision to slap tariffs onimports from Brazil andArgentina opened a new frontin global trade war.

The 30-share BSE gauge set-tled at 40,675.45, down 0.31 percent or 126.72 points. The indexswung between a high of40,885.03 and a low of 40,554.04during the day.

The broader NSE Nifty set-tled at 11,994.20, showing a dipof 0.45 per cent or 54 points.

In view of fresh tussle inglobal trade, metal stocks cameunder pressure. Besides, bank-ing stocks saw selling pressureas investors took a cautiousstance ahead of the RBI mone-tary policy meet outcome onDecember 5.

On the Sensex chart, YesBank was the worst hit with 7.81per cent decline. It was followedby Tata Steel, Vedanta, M&M,IndusInd Bank and Tata Motors— shedding as much as 5.07 percent.

On the other hand, BajajAuto, TCS, Kotak Bank, Infosysand HDFC were among themajor gainers.

Sectorally, metal index borethe brunt of global trade tussle

and tumbled 2.67 per cent.Other top losers were basicmaterials (1.94 per cent), tele-com (1.76 per cent), industrials(1.53 per cent), utilities (1.24 percent), capital goods (1.18 percent), oil & gas (0.86 per cent)and FMCG (0.68 per cent).

On the other hand, realtyindex tops the gainers’ chartwith 1.36 per cent rise, followedby IT (0.59 per cent), con-sumer durables (0.09 per cent)and teck (0.16 per cent).

Of the 19 sectoral indices,15 closed in the red and 4 endedin the green.

In the broader market, largecap, small cap and midcapindices underperformed thebenchmark Sensex.

Midcap index dropped 0.95per cent, smallcap 0.74 per centand largecap 0.51 per cent.

“Domestic marketsremained muted on account ofdownbeat global sentimentsafter US reinstated tariffs onArgentina and Brazil and threat-ened even harsher penalties ondozens of popular French prod-ucts” said Paras Bothra,President of Equity Research,Ashika Stock Broking.

Stoking more worries,China announced sanctionsagainst several US non-gov-ernment organisations forencouraging protesters to“engage in extremist, violent and

criminal acts” and said it wouldnow allow US military ships andaircraft to visit Hong Kong, hesaid.

These developments arelikely to have a negative impacton chances of a fruitful dialoguebetween the US and Chinaover trade deal.

Back home, the ReserveBank of India (RBI) is expect-ed to cut interest rates onDecember 5, experts believe.

On the currency front, theIndian rupee ended almost flatagainst the US dollar.

Foreign institutionalinvestors sold shares worth Rs1,731.33 crore in the capitalmarket in the previous session,while domestic institutionalinvestors bought equities worth753.99 crore, data available withstock exchange showed.

Brent futures, the global oilbenchmark, surged 0.54 percent to USD 61.25 per barrel.

Asian markets slipped onTuesday as global trade tensionsresurfaced after the US decisionto reimposed tariffs on the twoSouth American countries.

Bourses in Hong Kong,Tokyo and Seoul settled in thenegative terrain, while Shanghaifinished with marginal gains.

In early trade, Londonslipped 0.1 per cent, whileFrankfurt was up 0.7 per centand Paris rose 0.2 per cent.

Script Open High Low LTPCROMPTON 260.00 267.25 245.05 246.20TCS 2025.10 2061.80 2011.00 2050.40YESBANK 64.10 65.35 59.00 59.50IBULHSGFIN 306.50 312.00 284.10 290.95RELIANCE 1591.00 1593.35 1573.10 1578.85ZEEL 296.00 299.00 271.20 279.65IDEA 7.90 7.94 6.72 7.05JINDALSTEL 159.40 159.40 142.00 149.55BHARTIARTL 459.10 465.00 445.50 458.95RBLBANK 380.50 380.75 355.90 365.95SBIN 340.20 342.75 333.50 336.20INFRATEL 270.50 270.50 237.00 248.15BANKBARODA 104.50 104.90 100.60 101.20TATASTEEL 418.90 419.40 396.70 399.45ASIANPAINT 1741.95 1750.00 1724.95 1737.10MARUTI 7149.00 7233.00 7066.05 7141.90INFY 695.80 699.40 689.00 698.35HDFC 2305.00 2325.00 2287.75 2320.40ICICIBANK 508.00 511.25 504.80 509.00KOTAKBANK 1635.00 1650.00 1632.00 1646.45BIOCON 299.70 299.70 283.05 285.90BAJFINANCE 3950.00 3993.55 3897.50 3967.35TATAMOTORS 162.70 162.95 157.45 158.15HDFCAMC 3405.00 3486.75 3376.30 3441.45BAJAJ-AUTO 3161.00 3269.00 3161.00 3261.35POWERGRID 191.45 191.90 189.10 189.40NCC 58.05 58.55 54.50 55.20LT 1336.10 1336.10 1310.20 1313.55DLF 219.20 222.70 215.55 218.80BATAINDIA 1626.80 1685.40 1626.00 1678.55JUBLFOOD 1597.70 1629.00 1573.65 1578.25JSWSTEEL 269.00 269.00 254.75 256.95INDUSINDBK 1575.25 1580.00 1533.30 1544.90HINDUNILVR 2058.20 2058.20 2021.00 2028.85JUSTDIAL 539.50 555.55 527.45 543.80VEDL 145.00 145.00 139.20 139.70ADANIPORTS 377.20 378.90 359.75 361.95EICHERMOT 21727.00 21982.00 21220.00 21359.65BEML 1048.10 1055.00 1017.00 1025.25SUNPHARMA 439.10 442.30 430.40 433.95PEL 1791.00 1837.50 1697.55 1724.20BAJAJFINSV 8950.00 9126.25 8926.20 9077.05ESCORTS 662.85 662.85 619.05 622.85UPL 570.00 572.85 562.75 569.80L&TFH 120.05 120.30 116.00 116.95DISHTV 13.28 13.31 11.36 12.24GRASIM 810.90 810.90 779.45 783.10AXISBANK 745.90 745.90 730.95 733.25INDIGO 1423.00 1442.00 1390.00 1399.00HDFCBANK 1265.00 1267.60 1253.30 1255.65CANBK 226.30 227.40 216.45 217.10ULTRACEMCO 4280.00 4290.35 4174.90 4211.30GPPL 88.75 91.85 87.70 88.30ADANIENT 208.80 209.90 203.70 207.70HDFCLIFE 572.95 586.60 572.05 584.85MFSL 510.00 529.00 504.40 526.90TITAN 1160.00 1170.45 1150.65 1159.25GRAPHITE 300.90 303.35 294.25 296.50BALKRISIND 923.90 931.95 912.10 916.80BHEL 52.50 52.50 49.80 50.00ASHOKLEY 80.10 80.10 77.10 77.65ITC 245.35 245.75 242.65 244.10SBILIFE 944.00 966.00 944.00 961.85UNIONBANK 62.40 62.60 58.85 59.15BANDHANBNK 571.00 588.50 571.00 578.50RNAM 353.10 363.90 353.10 354.95PNB 65.75 66.00 62.75 62.90NMDC 105.00 109.30 101.70 108.15HINDALCO 201.00 201.00 194.70 195.95LICHSGFIN 466.70 466.75 442.55 447.40PRESTIGE 330.30 363.95 323.90 352.00BPCL 504.00 504.00 493.50 494.35NBCC 37.15 38.00 35.80 35.95ADANIPOWER 62.45 62.45 59.55 59.75IDFCFIRSTB 46.70 46.95 44.95 45.10SAIL 39.10 39.20 37.60 38.05MOTHERSUMI 130.50 132.30 130.05 131.25M&M 537.00 537.00 522.05 522.85HCLTECH 1132.00 1132.00 1121.00 1124.60COLPAL 1456.80 1466.00 1442.00 1448.80ACC 1536.10 1536.15 1504.30 1507.95DELTACORP 220.50 223.00 215.15 220.75AAVAS 1745.00 1789.60 1738.00 1766.55MGL 1033.00 1039.50 1023.25 1027.30PGHH 11300.00 11345.00 11276.00 11298.05HAVELLS 670.00 675.00 665.50 670.25ABCAPITAL 106.30 107.60 102.90 103.75APOLLOHOSP 1427.40 1427.85 1399.35 1403.60TECHM 748.90 755.95 743.25 746.25TATAMTRDVR 71.60 71.60 66.25 66.75RAYMOND 719.95 727.60 703.20 708.30SUVEN 269.70 279.35 267.70 269.60UJJIVAN 342.45 344.65 330.75 335.60OMAXE 181.90 182.65 179.70 180.70SPICEJET 104.10 104.20 100.10 102.75BRITANNIA 3065.50 3115.75 3033.00 3046.35BEL 102.90 103.30 100.50 101.00FEDERALBNK 87.40 87.45 85.60 86.15AMARAJABAT 752.25 764.95 742.00 747.20HINDPETRO 281.95 283.80 271.70 274.40RECLTD 136.85 137.20 130.30 130.70GODFRYPHLP 1363.00 1428.00 1357.65 1401.40BERGEPAINT 499.05 504.30 491.15 500.75AUROPHARMA 453.80 453.80 441.25 445.20STAR 382.35 384.85 375.10 377.15ADANIGAS 164.00 165.00 153.95 155.15SRTRANSFIN 1110.00 1110.00 1075.55 1090.70GICRE 272.90 279.55 262.55 265.90

GLENMARK 332.05 341.00 325.80 326.95PETRONET 277.90 283.25 275.15 276.05PFIZER 4218.35 4390.00 4213.05 4343.35ICICIPRULI 500.00 506.00 498.10 504.75HEROMOTOCO 2407.00 2435.00 2402.35 2420.95SRF 3223.75 3245.55 3192.25 3205.05ONGC 128.50 128.50 126.05 127.40VENKYS 1786.65 1786.65 1664.75 1729.60WIPRO 238.80 238.80 235.55 236.75RAJESHEXPO 679.00 679.00 670.80 673.15CADILAHC 257.65 262.10 254.25 259.80TATAGLOBAL 320.00 320.00 310.40 314.50HEG 1071.25 1072.00 1036.00 1041.75BHARATFORG 467.25 468.10 444.20 448.00TATAELXSI 791.35 795.00 778.50 787.55PIDILITIND 1339.95 1339.95 1315.05 1321.40MCX 1155.00 1174.20 1145.00 1171.80IOC 129.00 129.45 127.70 128.50DMART 1845.45 1847.00 1818.90 1834.05POLYCAB 939.60 978.70 936.90 971.55SUNTV 479.00 479.00 462.90 464.75EQUITAS 105.10 107.25 101.55 102.35IGL 417.30 422.40 416.80 419.95MUTHOOTFIN 680.40 686.35 661.35 667.40SPARC 157.10 157.80 150.30 152.35M&MFIN 346.00 349.60 337.80 343.35NESTLEIND 14563.10 14563.10 14300.15 14337.50OBEROIRLTY 514.75 554.00 511.25 533.80DIVISLAB 1787.00 1799.75 1782.00 1796.65MANAPPURAM 158.00 159.10 152.50 154.60TRIDENT 71.55 74.50 70.25 72.00KTKBANK 77.25 77.35 74.85 75.30MARICO 357.95 357.95 345.45 348.10GODREJCP 731.35 733.80 713.30 714.95BLISSGVS 145.80 145.80 141.90 143.80IDBI 37.20 37.55 35.90 36.00DRREDDY 2871.00 2887.80 2854.00 2859.05CIPLA 464.50 466.00 460.50 464.70ADANITRANS 334.50 334.50 310.60 314.25TVSMOTOR 464.80 467.60 452.05 455.65GAIL 126.80 126.80 123.10 123.55WOCKPHARMA 254.60 255.65 248.20 249.55AVANTI 498.95 520.00 498.00 515.35PFC 112.25 114.30 112.25 113.70RPOWER 3.35 3.41 3.27 3.29TATAPOWER 56.75 56.75 55.05 55.50DABUR 453.90 454.55 449.90 451.05WHIRLPOOL 2176.00 2287.10 2171.30 2225.75SIEMENS 1460.00 1491.25 1460.00 1475.90STARCEMENT 92.70 93.15 90.25 91.00TORNTPHARM 1886.00 1939.95 1881.95 1934.25AMBUJACEM 209.50 210.45 201.50 202.05TATACOFFEE 93.65 97.00 93.35 95.40COALINDIA 206.20 206.50 203.95 205.60INDIACEM 78.55 79.20 76.85 77.20PCJEWELLER 28.60 28.80 27.20 27.75PNBHOUSING 514.00 518.10 505.15 513.05CONCOR 573.40 573.50 555.70 560.30GLAXO 1668.60 1727.00 1668.60 1687.40BANKINDIA 74.60 75.20 70.85 71.35SUNTECK 404.00 404.00 386.40 398.50NATIONALUM 43.50 43.65 42.45 43.25MINDTREE 705.00 720.00 702.70 716.95NAUKRI 2553.05 2560.50 2510.90 2549.75BOMDYEING 81.10 81.20 78.30 78.70JAICORPLTD 94.55 94.75 89.40 90.05LUPIN 795.85 797.05 784.50 786.15ADANIGREEN 132.90 132.90 124.70 124.70JUBILANT 511.60 511.95 497.00 500.15BBTC 1087.85 1122.05 1081.65 1091.75MRF 62746.00 62950.00 61900.00 62009.85PVR 1822.45 1827.00 1797.10 1804.30STRTECH 125.10 125.25 121.60 122.25GUJGAS 217.05 218.15 210.05 213.40JKCEMENT 1158.65 1158.65 1148.50 1151.10ICICIGI 1375.30 1398.00 1358.75 1386.85HEXAWARE 336.00 337.00 323.55 326.50VOLTAS 695.00 701.75 687.10 689.35JKTYRE 71.50 71.65 69.70 70.90GODREJPROP 905.00 908.00 889.00 898.80NTPC 115.60 115.75 114.35 114.55APOLLOTYRE 173.50 173.50 164.55 166.10LALPATHLAB 1610.00 1658.90 1594.50 1640.45ASTRAZEN 2840.00 2867.10 2762.00 2788.30ORIENTBANK 57.60 58.10 55.10 55.30INDIANB 124.20 126.75 121.50 122.95GMRINFRA 21.55 21.55 20.65 20.85NIITTECH 1450.00 1468.70 1441.70 1444.85SCI 59.45 59.50 58.20 58.50TATACHEM 676.00 676.00 657.25 660.60TORNTPOWER 278.15 278.55 270.20 271.35

INFIBEAM 50.45 51.45 50.20 50.65IDFC 36.00 36.00 34.45 34.55PAGEIND 22107.25 22330.40 21739.85 21862.75CASTROLIND 138.85 138.85 135.10 135.70CHOLAFIN 308.55 308.55 299.25 302.25INOXWIND 42.50 48.20 41.75 45.65EXIDEIND 194.00 194.80 190.35 191.45DEEPAKNI 339.50 344.00 325.55 338.95EMAMILTD 319.00 336.00 318.30 324.30HFCL 19.50 19.55 17.70 17.90IBVENTURES 171.00 175.90 166.80 167.95COROMANDEL 482.50 492.50 481.20 487.20GRANULES 124.80 128.50 123.20 127.90MAGMA 57.20 57.20 51.80 53.30MAXINDIA 77.80 84.80 75.60 80.40ABB 1479.00 1479.00 1455.85 1461.20CUMMINSIND 539.15 541.50 527.80 532.60SWANENERGY 102.20 102.90 101.10 101.50NOCIL 102.10 102.10 100.00 100.25IBREALEST 64.80 66.35 63.35 64.05UBL 1289.00 1289.00 1243.50 1245.00BOSCHLTD 15873.05 15996.00 15634.65 15653.55NIACL 150.30 153.95 147.30 148.05PARAGMILK 146.50 148.90 142.55 145.80IRB 74.30 74.30 71.40 72.05AUBANK 833.00 838.00 807.50 810.65SUZLON 2.33 2.33 2.24 2.29IFCI 7.49 7.65 7.06 7.11CANFINHOME 396.00 396.00 384.80 388.15ITDC 345.80 353.80 342.65 344.15CAPPL 315.40 321.00 303.00 310.55ITI 92.70 92.70 89.00 89.40SHREECEM 20811.90 20990.00 20328.00 20504.30THOMASCOOK 160.00 162.00 153.95 155.55IIFL 171.15 172.45 155.35 156.30INOXLEISUR 368.50 369.30 361.00 363.05JINDALSAW 80.35 80.40 76.50 77.00HINDZINC 213.85 215.70 210.60 210.90LTI 1638.00 1659.00 1590.60 1620.65WELCORP 140.65 140.80 137.50 139.05MOTILALOFS 752.40 769.05 748.55 753.05PIIND 1509.30 1509.30 1472.00 1478.00VBL 729.30 729.75 715.30 718.75TV18BRDCST 23.15 23.15 21.95 22.20MPHASIS 860.00 863.20 840.30 847.95ABBOTINDIA 12655.00 12830.00 12633.55 12796.05JBCHEPHARM 403.00 405.70 399.00 403.35JPASSOCIAT 2.80 2.80 2.69 2.80PHILIPCARB 124.05 124.05 120.80 121.05RAMCOCEM 795.05 797.75 784.00 785.25CUB 229.75 229.75 226.20 226.95RVNL 23.90 23.95 23.60 23.70EDELWEISS 117.90 117.90 111.60 111.65SUDARSCHEM 391.05 399.90 391.05 395.85IRCON 411.10 412.80 403.80 405.20DBL 404.60 405.35 395.25 397.30RELCAPITAL 14.40 14.40 13.70 13.70CREDITACC 825.00 832.50 800.00 808.95PRSMJOHNSN 67.70 68.85 67.55 68.25RELAXO 610.00 610.00 575.00 576.90LTTS 1482.25 1482.60 1450.90 1462.25SANOFI 7175.00 7200.00 7014.65 7042.75HONAUT 26806.00 27309.80 26806.00 27300.00ECLERX 514.65 524.25 500.00 501.15LAKSHVILAS 19.40 19.95 19.10 19.95CEATLTD 928.90 934.70 921.90 929.05VGUARD 228.00 233.00 228.00 229.85ABFRL 226.50 226.50 219.20 220.15AJANTPHARM 989.00 992.00 973.00 982.15HINDCOPPER 40.45 40.85 39.25 39.45JSWENERGY 77.20 77.20 74.60 75.40BALRAMCHIN 155.60 155.80 153.55 155.20SUNDRMFAST 463.80 478.50 463.80 470.40CENTRALBK 21.00 21.40 20.55 21.00SOMANYCERA 209.20 232.00 209.20 225.35METROPOLIS 1383.00 1402.10 1378.00 1390.10ALBK 23.70 23.70 22.65 22.75ISEC 337.50 345.00 333.75 344.60FORCEMOT 1005.00 1038.45 1005.00 1011.05DCBBANK 178.30 179.60 175.50 178.30RAIN 103.85 103.85 100.30 100.65RITES 280.30 281.50 279.20 279.70PTC 55.80 55.80 55.05 55.25OIL 154.00 154.30 151.40 152.25GNFC 189.00 190.00 186.00 186.60GODREJAGRO 485.00 488.00 482.70 486.00ATUL 4030.00 4074.00 4019.00 4029.85JMFINANCIL 87.30 88.25 82.25 82.80ENGINERSIN 104.50 104.55 102.75 103.20COFFEEDAY 51.80 51.80 48.45 48.70JAGRAN 59.40 60.85 59.25 60.35QUESS 520.40 526.55 518.90 519.45RCF 48.00 48.40 47.00 47.25TRENT 530.00 530.00 519.55 520.55PHOENIXLTD 750.05 752.00 740.00 748.75KAJARIACER 521.95 522.35 511.00 512.80ASHOKA 95.00 95.40 92.35 92.80KANSAINER 523.30 524.00 512.00 514.60EIHOTEL 154.85 161.65 154.10 159.65FRETAIL 344.15 346.00 333.60 341.05CORPBANK 24.10 24.40 23.20 23.80SOBHA 406.10 408.45 397.00 399.10GILLETTE 6870.00 6871.20 6800.00 6814.45HSCL 64.05 64.10 61.35 61.60DHFL 18.75 19.15 18.75 18.75COCHINSHIP 405.00 407.00 399.60 401.25TIMKEN 832.00 903.60 832.00 898.30CYIENT 402.00 402.25 395.00 396.80FSL 41.95 41.95 40.10 40.70

GSPL 215.45 218.50 215.15 217.40BLUESTARCO 794.50 815.00 792.15 796.05ASTRAL 1110.00 1135.00 1110.00 1132.45NILKAMAL 1302.00 1303.75 1277.00 1280.05GODREJIND 434.15 436.80 430.00 433.65NAVINFLUOR 860.30 867.15 850.75 860.25MEGH 51.25 51.80 50.10 50.30GSKCONS 8878.00 8890.50 8738.10 8786.70GESHIP 307.15 319.10 304.00 312.00SOUTHBANK 11.03 11.15 10.85 10.92SYNGENE 321.00 323.95 308.10 309.05REDINGTON 113.20 113.50 108.75 109.80GAYAPROJ 73.35 75.90 68.90 69.70TIINDIA 493.00 502.00 475.00 489.00PGHL 4340.00 4375.00 4272.00 4289.20DALBHARAT 875.00 875.00 855.25 862.85HAL 791.25 791.85 772.50 774.80IPCALAB 1133.90 1145.35 1117.00 1141.80SJVN 24.75 24.95 24.65 24.85IEX 139.15 145.00 139.05 141.50WABAG 175.30 175.95 169.05 169.95GICHSGFIN 164.20 165.45 157.00 159.60BIRLACORPN 652.65 659.05 644.40 648.25RALLIS 183.40 185.90 181.20 185.30PERSISTENT 679.40 679.40 670.75 675.80WELSPUNIND 53.00 53.00 50.80 50.95KEC 279.65 280.05 270.55 272.20KPRMILL 669.00 676.15 658.05 658.40FCONSUMER 26.65 26.80 25.70 26.45HUDCO 40.85 40.90 40.15 40.20TVTODAY 276.75 282.75 266.00 268.50VINATIORGA 1982.55 1998.00 1939.85 1948.45BALMLAWRIE 196.35 197.00 192.10 192.45VIPIND 426.15 433.50 426.05 429.60KEI 517.40 521.70 514.00 514.60UCOBANK 17.65 17.65 16.90 17.10ALKEM 2033.00 2060.00 2017.40 2043.25CHOLAHLDNG 480.00 486.90 473.00 483.50LINDEINDIA 657.55 667.90 644.45 647.80INTELLECT 151.75 154.30 150.40 152.10INDHOTEL 149.20 150.20 148.40 148.70TEJASNET 98.85 98.85 93.00 93.35MAHSCOOTER 4650.85 4655.00 4600.00 4615.45FORTIS 138.55 138.55 137.20 138.00GALAXYSURF 1464.00 1464.00 1420.10 1438.90RADICO 320.05 320.45 311.85 312.25TTKPRESTIG 5649.45 5715.15 5609.50 5642.70UFLEX 197.40 199.00 195.05 195.55DCAL 126.60 127.70 122.60 123.40J&KBANK 33.10 33.15 31.55 31.65FINEORG 1783.10 1810.00 1780.00 1789.00HEIDELBERG 187.25 188.00 184.50 184.95LAXMIMACH 3425.05 3432.00 3333.00 3390.95KNRCON 227.85 235.75 226.80 231.70JAMNAAUTO 44.25 44.30 43.40 43.90NHPC 24.00 24.05 23.80 23.85NETWORK18 28.40 28.50 27.65 27.80TEAMLEASE 2450.00 2450.00 2385.35 2398.35BAJAJELEC 334.00 334.00 320.50 323.95GREAVESCOT 135.85 136.30 132.20 133.20APLAPOLLO 1620.05 1620.05 1525.95 1563.70JYOTHYLAB 173.00 173.00 163.45 164.80BDL 333.65 336.60 323.10 325.10EIDPARRY 180.60 180.90 177.80 178.65CGPOWER 13.79 13.79 12.60 12.61JISLJALEQS 10.00 10.15 9.50 9.50

NATCOPHARM 586.00 591.00 579.50 582.45SHOPERSTOP 357.45 383.10 346.00 363.35FINCABLES 365.15 367.45 360.75 364.05ORIENTELEC 208.00 208.80 199.00 202.80CHAMBLFERT 149.65 150.40 146.50 146.90REPCOHOME 296.60 299.10 289.05 296.80PNCINFRA 196.20 201.15 189.15 193.35RELINFRA 24.10 24.10 24.10 24.10MOIL 136.65 137.40 135.10 135.90WESTLIFE 368.00 377.00 362.45 369.10ITDCEM 62.10 62.20 58.95 58.95GSFC 71.50 71.50 70.00 70.15CCL 202.00 202.50 199.00 199.85CRISIL 1633.50 1650.25 1632.40 1645.20LUXIND 1348.55 1381.40 1341.00 1347.05MINDAIND 348.55 357.20 340.00 352.25THYROCARE 544.00 550.00 541.65 547.50

NBVENTURES 70.05 71.00 67.20 69.30TATAMETALI 587.00 591.80 569.00 583.55MINDACORP 88.50 93.95 88.45 90.15BAJAJHLDNG 3539.00 3539.00 3475.00 3485.80THERMAX 1005.00 1017.90 999.00 999.50ERIS 444.45 450.20 432.00 433.90SYNDIBANK 29.60 29.75 27.90 28.203MINDIA 22170.60 22400.00 22146.10 22294.40BAYERCROP 3787.00 3787.00 3651.75 3679.90DCMSHRIRAM 337.50 341.80 331.70 334.20CARBORUNIV 331.00 331.00 328.05 329.95KRBL 204.45 206.50 201.25 201.65DEEPAKFERT 94.75 95.10 91.90 92.95APLLTD 559.15 571.50 557.00 561.50MAHINDCIE 146.00 146.90 143.00 143.70NLCINDIA 54.75 54.75 53.90 54.30NESCO 609.85 612.95 607.00 609.20GEPIL 718.80 738.95 701.45 734.50SONATSOFTW 305.60 305.60 298.90 301.30LAURUSLABS 343.90 346.15 338.50 339.35ASTERDM 157.90 157.90 152.40 155.35KALPATPOWR 448.65 451.00 440.20 449.15JSL 38.90 39.15 37.25 37.45VSTIND 4200.00 4206.25 4106.00 4151.00CHENNPETRO 122.00 122.10 120.20 121.40MAHABANK 12.26 12.41 12.01 12.17MMTC 18.00 18.20 17.65 17.75OFSS 2958.75 2980.00 2957.55 2964.05MAHLOG 385.90 399.90 371.05 395.70GHCL 199.95 201.40 196.00 197.40CARERATING 472.25 480.00 472.10 479.35ALLCARGO 93.20 93.60 92.10 92.20GUJALKALI 402.00 403.00 397.00 399.80ESSELPRO 152.70 153.80 146.00 146.95ZYDUSWELL 1431.25 1470.00 1431.00 1447.60BAJAJCON 243.55 244.95 241.25 241.75ENDURANCE 1095.85 1102.00 1078.90 1093.40EVEREADY 55.00 55.00 53.00 53.40AIAENG 1625.90 1663.60 1619.00 1641.80SREINFRA 9.05 9.05 8.60 8.61FINOLEXIND 584.50 588.85 580.10 586.70ADVENZYMES 167.00 167.20 164.45 164.85SCHAEFFLER 4319.00 4376.10 4277.00 4313.30MRPL 47.20 47.25 46.30 46.45JCHAC 1961.00 2052.45 1945.85 1997.15HIMATSEIDE 130.30 131.30 129.25 130.25INDOSTAR 190.00 190.45 185.15 186.75IOB 10.57 10.57 10.27 10.31SYMPHONY 1132.00 1134.00 1112.50 1116.80ANDHRABANK 18.70 18.80 18.25 18.30AKZOINDIA 1918.40 1940.00 1918.40 1929.85TIMETECHNO 51.05 51.30 50.15 50.35SHK 113.00 114.25 109.10 110.25LEMONTREE 60.50 60.75 59.45 60.10AEGISLOG 194.00 195.00 193.00 193.50DBCORP 139.00 140.50 138.05 138.65FDC 194.00 197.95 190.80 196.20CENTURYPLY 175.95 177.20 172.90 173.75MHRIL 211.40 212.15 209.95 210.90SHANKARA 305.60 308.00 300.90 301.70NH 300.05 300.05 293.30 297.75MAHSEAMLES 366.90 374.85 365.00 369.75GET&D 156.00 158.00 153.95 155.75FLFL 400.00 411.95 400.00 402.50SIS 944.95 944.95 871.00 918.30TAKE 97.00 97.00 96.05 96.45SUPREMEIND 1134.90 1136.95 1127.00 1134.65GDL 99.30 99.30 96.65 97.55UNITEDBNK 8.95 9.00 8.80 8.85SCHNEIDER 65.60 68.95 65.50 67.95SHRIRAMCIT 1349.45 1437.20 1349.45 1368.10CENTRUM 22.75 23.00 22.50 22.95GMDCLTD 57.35 57.45 56.15 56.35VARROC 440.45 440.45 430.00 431.15BASF 994.50 994.50 981.05 984.35JSLHISAR 70.95 71.15 69.10 69.50IBULISL 78.95 78.95 78.95 78.95ZENSARTECH 189.00 189.00 184.25 184.80ORIENTCEM 75.00 75.00 74.40 74.40MAHLIFE 383.00 385.25 376.30 377.25CERA 2492.00 2522.80 2470.00 2509.15JKLAKSHMI 288.00 288.00 281.20 283.55SADBHAV 130.00 130.75 128.00 130.45MASFIN 715.00 719.95 711.00 717.50BLUEDART 2056.05 2082.20 2051.00 2071.05WABCOINDIA 6225.10 6237.65 6201.00 6201.35TNPL 179.05 179.05 176.05 177.25JSWHL 2417.15 2417.15 2390.00 2397.05SKFINDIA 2121.70 2155.05 2121.70 2149.45LAOPALA 139.25 140.15 137.20 139.45TCNSBRANDS 702.55 715.00 702.55 714.50TATAINVEST 837.00 837.90 829.50 833.00SUPRAJIT 177.65 177.75 172.20 173.70VTL 905.00 905.00 901.10 901.10DHANUKA 292.55 294.60 290.10 291.65HATHWAY 20.00 20.10 19.80 19.85IFBIND 641.20 654.60 636.00 637.55SOLARINDS 1060.00 1067.05 1055.00 1061.60GULFOILLUB 803.25 805.00 795.00 795.80TRITURBINE 94.75 95.00 92.10 92.90RCOM 0.89 0.89 0.89 0.89CHALET 345.10 357.95 340.05 354.70TVSSRICHAK 1748.55 1762.15 1748.50 1750.00SHILPAMED 290.55 293.20 290.00 290.00SFL 1310.35 1324.00 1310.35 1324.00RATNAMANI 990.00 990.00 981.15 984.90GRINDWELL 579.00 579.00 572.00 573.60VMART 1714.75 1738.45 1714.05 1728.70HERITGFOOD 345.00 345.45 342.65 345.20

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SCRIP OPEN HIgh LOW LTP CHANGENIFTY 50 12067.65 12068.60 11956.40 11994.20 -54.00BAJAJ-AUTO 3167.00 3270.00 3167.00 3258.00 98.75BAJAJFINSV 8975.00 9127.30 8926.50 9100.00 151.70TCS 2027.70 2062.00 2010.00 2052.95 31.90KOTAKBANK 1634.50 1650.00 1631.45 1649.95 16.95INFY 692.70 699.70 688.55 699.00 6.30HDFC 2310.95 2325.00 2287.05 2321.90 15.30HEROMOTOCO2402.00 2434.90 2400.00 2420.00 13.05BHARTIARTL 462.80 465.05 445.25 460.85 2.25BAJFINANCE 3939.95 3995.00 3886.50 3965.00 14.55CIPLA 465.00 465.85 460.00 465.50 1.50TITAN 1155.00 1170.00 1150.10 1157.00 3.20ICICIBANK 509.75 511.25 504.65 510.75 -0.15HCLTECH 1129.95 1131.00 1121.00 1124.60 -0.70MARUTI 7142.65 7240.00 7060.00 7127.50 -11.85ITC 244.95 245.80 242.65 244.40 -0.55UPL 570.20 573.45 562.40 568.80 -1.45RELIANCE 1592.75 1594.00 1572.60 1582.00 -4.50TECHM 748.05 756.70 743.30 746.00 -2.45WIPRO 238.50 238.50 235.40 237.80 -0.80COALINDIA 206.50 206.70 204.00 205.15 -0.70IOC 128.95 129.50 127.65 128.20 -0.45DRREDDY 2879.00 2887.35 2851.65 2856.00 -15.70ASIANPAINT 1740.00 1750.95 1725.00 1728.00 -10.25SBIN 341.00 342.95 333.35 336.50 -2.00NTPC 115.10 115.80 114.40 114.60 -0.70ONGC 128.10 128.40 126.00 127.25 -0.85POWERGRID 192.10 192.10 189.10 189.85 -1.55HDFCBANK 1268.20 1269.00 1253.80 1255.10 -10.65HINDUNILVR 2041.00 2053.10 2020.15 2026.00 -17.20BRITANNIA 3069.70 3116.00 3027.15 3038.55 -31.15BPCL 502.00 502.40 493.30 494.15 -5.90ULTRACEMCO 4288.90 4296.00 4171.70 4220.00 -56.25SUNPHARMA 441.40 442.20 430.50 433.60 -6.40LT 1333.45 1333.45 1310.00 1313.40 -19.95NESTLEIND 14553.30 14553.30 14305.80 14334.00 -223.65AXISBANK 744.95 744.95 730.65 732.85 -11.45TATAMOTORS 162.95 162.95 157.40 158.50 -2.55EICHERMOT 21713.00 21991.95 21222.00 21325.00 -388.10HINDALCO 200.10 200.50 194.60 197.00 -3.80M&M 537.25 537.25 522.00 522.90 -11.25INDUSINDBK 1579.20 1580.00 1532.90 1542.15 -33.85GAIL 126.10 126.55 123.00 123.60 -3.00VEDL 144.50 144.50 139.20 140.15 -4.55GRASIM 805.00 805.00 779.05 781.05 -26.20JSWSTEEL 267.25 267.50 254.50 258.25 -10.05ZEEL 297.00 299.00 271.10 280.00 -12.80ADANIPORTS 380.00 380.00 359.55 359.70 -18.05TATASTEEL 418.00 418.55 396.40 398.95 -21.90INFRATEL 269.65 269.65 237.10 250.00 -15.50YESBANK 64.10 65.25 59.00 59.20 -4.85

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SCRIP OPEN HIgh LOW LTP CHANGENIFTY NEXT 50 28608.45 28611.35 28265.15 28333.20 -206.25NMDC 105.75 109.50 101.75 108.20 2.70HDFCLIFE 572.60 586.45 571.50 583.40 14.00SBILIFE 946.10 966.00 946.10 962.00 18.15BANDHANBNK 572.00 588.50 571.00 578.10 9.70ICICIPRULI 500.80 506.30 498.00 505.00 6.45HDFCAMC 3389.00 3488.00 3370.00 3441.00 38.45CADILAHC 256.85 262.30 254.40 261.00 2.80BERGEPAINT 494.05 504.50 490.65 499.00 4.20ICICIGI 1379.00 1398.00 1358.00 1378.90 8.40DIVISLAB 1795.00 1799.90 1779.95 1795.25 10.20DLF 218.00 222.80 215.50 219.15 1.05NIACL 149.40 153.80 147.35 147.55 0.30OFSS 2971.50 2985.00 2950.00 2966.50 0.55PIDILITIND 1325.40 1331.00 1315.55 1320.00 -0.25COLPAL 1458.95 1465.70 1440.50 1450.00 -1.50DABUR 453.60 454.80 449.70 453.00 -0.75PFC 112.75 114.35 112.35 113.40 -0.20UBL 1254.00 1264.95 1242.05 1245.00 -3.30PGHH 11307.40 11374.90 11297.75 11300.00 -34.55SIEMENS 1478.10 1493.50 1466.00 1477.30 -5.40HAVELLS 670.00 675.60 665.35 668.00 -3.35BIOCON 299.00 299.00 282.85 284.15 -1.65NHPC 24.05 24.10 23.75 23.80 -0.15PETRONET 278.15 283.25 275.20 276.20 -1.95SRTRANSFIN 1095.00 1102.85 1075.45 1088.00 -9.40GICRE 274.20 279.60 262.10 263.50 -2.35DMART 1849.70 1849.70 1818.90 1827.00 -19.70MOTHERSUMI 130.70 132.40 129.95 131.60 -1.45BAJAJHLDNG 3516.05 3547.60 3475.00 3478.00 -39.45HINDZINC 213.50 216.80 210.25 210.70 -2.80LUPIN 796.05 798.65 783.60 785.50 -10.55GODREJCP 729.70 734.10 713.10 717.30 -11.40AUROPHARMA 451.00 452.00 441.15 443.10 -7.05BOSCHLTD 15870.00 15996.30 15632.00 15632.00 -250.40PAGEIND 22315.40 22315.40 21800.00 21800.00 -376.80ACC 1540.80 1541.95 1500.10 1505.10 -26.20MCDOWELL-N 607.90 609.35 592.20 593.05 -10.85MARICO 353.00 353.15 345.50 347.40 -6.45SHREECEM 20910.00 21089.00 20320.00 20520.00 -398.00L&TFH 120.35 120.35 116.05 117.20 -2.80ASHOKLEY 79.75 80.10 77.05 77.70 -1.90CONCOR 575.00 575.00 555.20 558.10 -13.90HINDPETRO 282.95 283.90 271.65 273.40 -8.40BANKBARODA 104.40 105.00 100.55 100.95 -3.45AMBUJACEM 210.45 210.85 201.45 202.30 -7.55INDIGO 1438.00 1444.85 1390.20 1396.25 -55.95IBULHSGFIN 306.05 312.00 284.00 291.90 -12.25PNB 66.00 66.00 62.75 62.80 -2.95PEL 1820.00 1825.00 1695.85 1706.10 -114.05IDEA 7.90 7.95 6.70 7.20 -0.60

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This decade is set to be thehottest in history, the

United Nations said Tuesday inan annual assessment outliningthe ways in which climatechange is outpacing humanity’sability to adapt to it.

The World MeterologicalOrganization said global tem-peratures so far this year were1.1 degrees Celsius (twodegrees Farenheit) above thepre-industrial average, putting2019 on course to be in the topthree warmest years everrecorded.

Manmade emissions fromburning fossil fuels, buildinginfrastructure, growing cropsand transporting goods mean2019 is set to break the recordfor atmospheric carbon con-centrations, locking in furtherwarming, the WMO said.

Oceans, which absorb 90percent of the excess heat pro-

duced by greenhouse gases, arenow at their highest recordedtemperatures.

The world’s seas are now aquarter more acidic than 150years ago, threatening vitalmarine ecosystems upon whichbillions of people rely for foodand jobs. In October, the glob-al mean sea level reached itshighest on record, fuelled bythe 329 billion tonnes of ice lostfrom the Greenland ice sheet in12 months. Each of the last fourdecades has been hotter thanthe last.

And far from climatechange being a phenomenonfor future generations to con-front, the effects of humanity’sinsatiable, growth-at-any costconsumption means millionsare already counting the dam-age.

The report said more than10 million people were inter-nally displaced in the first halfof 2019 — seven million direct-

ly due to extreme weatherevents such as storms, floodingand drought.

By the end of the year, theWMO said new displacementsdue to weather extremes couldreach 22 million.

“Once again in 2019

weather and climate relatedrisks hit hard,” said WMOSecretary-General PetteriTaalas.

“Heatwaves and floodswhich used to be ‘once in a cen-tury’ events are becoming moreregular occurences.” At just

1C hotter than pre-industrialtimes, 2019 has already seendeadly heatwaves in Europe,Australia and Japan, super-storms devastate southeastAfrica, and wildfires rage out ofcontrol in Australia andCalifornia. Nations are cur-

rently in crucial talks in Madridaimed at finalising rules for the2015 Paris climate accord,which enjoins countries towork to limit global tempera-ture rises to “well below” 2C.

The IntergovernmentalPanel on Climate Change

(IPCC) last year outlined howvital it was for mankind to aimfor a safer cap of 1.5C — ide-ally by slashing greenhousegas emissions and retooling theglobal economy towardsrenewable energy.

The UN said last week inits annual “emissions gap”assessment that the worldneeded to cut carbon emissionsby 7.6 percent each year, everyyear, until 2030 to hit 1.5C.

Instead, emissions are ris-ing.

And while governmentsspend hundreds of billions ofdollars subsidising fossil fuels,there appears to be no con-sensus in Madrid over howcountries already dealing withclimate-related catastrophe canfund efforts to adapt to the newreality. “Our economic activi-ties continue to use the atmos-phere as a waste dump forgreenhouse gases,” said JoeriRogelj, Grantham Lecturer in

Climate Change at ImperialCollege London.

“The increasing tempera-tures, the warming oceans,ocean acidification and otherindicators are the logical con-sequence of this inaction andthis should worry us deeply.”Even if all Paris pledges werehonoured, Earth is still oncourse to be more than 3Cwarmer by the end of the cen-tury.

Part of the discussions inMadrid is aimed at gettingcountries to increase their cli-mate action ambition ahead ofa deadline next year.

Friederike Otto, deputydirector of the University ofOxford’s EnvironmentalChange Institute, said theWMO report “highlights thatwe are not even adapted to 1.1degree of warming.” “And thereis no doubt that this 1.1 degreeis due to the burning of fossilfuels,” he said.

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Sri Lankan President GotabayaRajapaksa has prorogued the

parliament for one month andfixed January 3, 2020 for the com-mencement of the next session.

The parliament should havemet on Tuesday, according to theschedule. President GotabayaRajapaksa issued a special gazettenotification effective at midnightMonday noticing that parlia-ment would be reconvened onJanuary 3.

“The President is constitu-tionally empowered to do so,”officials said.

He is expected to make a cer-

emonial address at the reopeningon January 3, during which hewill outline his new govern-ment’s policies, they added.

Gotabaya Rajapaksa wassworn in as Sri Lanka’s seventhPresident on November 18 afterhe defeated the ruling party can-didate Sajith Premadasa by morethan 13 lakh votes, marking thereturn of the powerful Rajapaksadynasty known for its pro-Chinatilt. His party lacks the workingmajority in the 225-memberassembly and ending the sessionwill give him freedom to rulewithout opposition from law-makers.

Gotabhaya Rajapaksa named

his elder brother and formerstrongman Mahinda Rajapaksaas the new prime minister afterincumbent RanilWickremesinghe resigned fromthe post following the electiondebacle. The 74-year-old leaderwill function as the prime min-ister of the caretaker cabinetuntil the general election inAugust 2020.

Wickremesinghe and hisallies, who command majority inthe House, are not expected tochallenge the government andthey would continue until thenext parliamentary electionwhich can be held anytime afterend of February.

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Australia would cease allbilateral aid to Pakistan,

including support to pro-grammes helping poor womenand girls, as the funds werebeing redirected to meet newcommitments in the Pacific,according to the latestDepartment of Foreign Affairsand Trade (DFAT) report.

The report titled ‘AidProgram Performance report2018-19 on Pakistan’ saidPakistan bilateral aid pro-gramme will be reduced to 19million Australian dollars in2019-20, and will fully phaseout during 2020-21.

“However aid to Pakistanwill continue through DFAT’sregionally and globally fundedprograms, including Australia

Awards scholarships,” it added.“Against this backdrop, the

aid program will focus on con-solidating the achievements ofAustralia’s 70 year history ofdevelopment assistance toPakistan. Our modest ongoingaid footprint, drawing on fundsfrom our regional and globalprograms, will centre on asmall number of areas whereAustralia can make the mostdifference in Pakistan,” thereport noted.

The key objective ofAustralia’s aid to Pakistan hasbeen assisting women and girlswith a focus on education,increased access to qualityreproductive health and gen-der-based anti-violence ser-vices.

The report said thatAustralia’s development prior-

ities had changed and that theaid funding was being redi-rected to meet new commit-ments in the Pacific.

“We have commencedresponsible wind down plan-ning, focusing on consolidatinggains and ensuring the sus-tainability of results. Australiawill continue to deliver aid inPakistan through regional andglobal programs, such as theAustralia Awards.

“We will focus on areaswhere Australia’s technicalexpertise and policy experiencecan add the most value toaddressing Pakistan’s long-termdevelopment needs. Thisincludes aid investments andpolicy engagement in genderequality, water resources man-agement and humanitarianissues,” it added.

Pakistan is one of the poor-est countries in Asia and wasplaced 150 out of 178 nationson the most recent UnitedNations Human DevelopmentIndex, which ranks countriesaccording to health, educationand income. Australia’s overallforeign aid budget has beenslashed by 27 per cent in realterms since 2013 and nowmakes up just 0.82 per cent offederal government spending,an all-time low.

Australia “will continue towork with Pakistan on areas ofshared interest, includingthrough trade and investment,community links, defencecooperation, human rights andgender equality, and regionalsecurity,” a spokesman for theDepartment of Foreign Affairsand Trade was quoted as say-

ing by the Sydney MorningHerald newspaper.

The report described thesecurity situation in Pakistan as“volatile” and said tensionbetween Pakistan and Indiaover Kashmir culminating inmilitary exchanges in February2019 were high.

“There were reductions inviolence in Punjab and Sindhprovinces, but an increase interrorist activity in KhyberPakhtunkhwa and Balochistanwhere a number of Australianfunded aid programs operate,”it said. Pakistan was moved tothe Financial Action Task Force(FATF) ‘grey list’ in February2018 and needs to showprogress on its action plan toavoid a potentially damaging‘black-listing’ in October 2019,it added.

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Pakistan’s former militarydictator General (retd)

Pervez Musharraf was admit-ted to a hospital on Monday inDubai after he developed“heart- and blood pressure-related” complications, accord-ing to media reports.

The 76-year-old formerpresident, who is living inDubai in self-exile, was admit-ted to the Dubai AmericanHospital on a stretcher, citing“emergency treatment require-ment” which was later con-firmed by sources in his AllPakistan Muslim League(APML) party, Dawn Newsreported.

“He has some serioushealth issues and lately hadbeen complaining of some painin the chest, and anxiety,” saidthe party’s spokesman.

“The doctors visited himat his place of stay and recom-mended immediate admissionto avoid any further complica-tions. The former president hasundergone a few tests whichwill help determine the state ofhis health,” he said.

Dr Muhammad Amjad,Musharraf ’s close aide and theex-chairperson of the APML,said that the former presidentwas rapidly becoming weakerdue to an unknown disease,which is why he was unable toreturn to Pakistan to face thetreason case, Geo News report-

ed.In May, Musharraf ’s health

deteriorated and he was rushedto a hospital in Dubai. Beforethat in January also he wasshifted to a hospital when hefell sick. The previous PakistanMuslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government had filed thetreason case against the formerpresident in 2013 over theimposition of extra-constitu-tional emergency in 2007.

Musharraf, who has beenliving in Dubai since March2016, is facing treason chargesfor suspending theConstitution in 2007, a pun-ishable offence for which hewas indicted in 2014.

The former army chief leftfor Dubai for medical treat-ment and has not returnedsince, citing security and healthreasons.

Musharraf becamePakistan’s first army chief to becharged with treason when hewas indicted on March 31,2014. He pleaded not guilty tofive charges and dismissedthem as being politically moti-vated.

A special court onNovember 19 concluded thetrial proceedings in the caseagainst Musharraf for declaringa state of emergency onNovember 3, 2007, and hadsaid that a verdict would beannounced on November 28.

However, the IslamabadHigh Court stopped the specialcourt from announcing itsjudgement on November 28.

The special court inIslamabad had ordered the for-mer military ruler to record hisstatement in the case byDecember 5.

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Pakistan’s former presidentAsif Ali Zardari on Tuesday

approached the IslamabadHigh Court seeking bail onmedical grounds in the twocorruption cases, days afterjailed former prime ministerNawaz Sharif was allowed totravel abroad for better treat-ment on a bail plea.

Zardari, 64, was arrested inJune after his bail applicationwas rejected in connection tothe fake bank accounts case.The case pertains to a massivemoney laundering scam thatwas previously being probed bythe Federal InvestigationAgency.

He has submitted two sep-arate requests in the Park Laneand money laundering casesagainst him. The petitionargues that Zardari should begiven bail till the completion ofthe trial against him.

The bail plea was filed aday after his son Bilawal andtwo daughters – Bakhtawar anAseefa – met him and per-suaded him to seek bail due tofrail health.

Zardari is currently undertreatment at the premierPakistan Institute of MedicalSciences (PIMS).

His son and PakistanPeoples Party (PPP) chairmanBilawal Bhutto Zardari flanked

by two sisters told the media onMonday after meeting Zardariat the IMS that they convincedhim to seek bail.

“(Former) presidentZardari had stopped us fromfiling the bail petition whichwas a difficult situation for us,my sisters and the whole fam-ily. Now he has acceptedAseefa’s request and the PPPwill apply for the bail on med-ical grounds,” he said onMonday.

Zardari has told theaccountability court that he isdiabetic and suffers from car-diac ailments and needs med-ical care.

His sister Faryal Talpurwas also arrested and she is stillin custody. She has submitteda request too. She has arguedthat she is the mother of a childwith disabilities and has totake care of her daughter.

Zardari, who was presidentof Pakistan from 2008 to 2013,was arrested in June after hisbail application was rejected inconnection to the fake bankaccounts case.

Pakistan’s former primeminister Sharif, who is servinga prison sentence for corrup-tion, left the country last monthto receive medical treatment inLondon.

Sharif, 69, has an immunesystem disorder and otherhealth problems.

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Dozens of protesters carry-ing banners and chanting

slogans against a Pakistaninewspaper tried to storm itsoffices in Islamabad, enragedover the leading daily’s newsreport in which the LondonBridge attacker was identifiedas a “man of Pakistani origin”.

The Dawn newspaper inits headline had identifiedUsman Khan, a convictedIslamist terrorist fromPakistan-occupied Kashmirwho stabbed two people todeath in a terror attack onLondon Bridge last week, as“UK national of Pakistani ori-gin, unlike many other localdailies which said he wasborn and brought up in

Britain and had no link withPakistan.

A few dozen unidentifiedpeople on Monday staged aprotest outside Dawn officesin Islamabad over publicationof a news report regarding theethnicity of the LondonBridge attacker of last week,the paper reported onTuesday. They were apparentlyangered by the headline ofnewspaper last week in whichit identified Khan as a man ofPakistani origin.

The angry mob, carryingbanners and chanting slogansagainst the newspaper,remained outside the officebuilding for nearly threehours, besieging the premisesand making the staffershostage, the report said.

They prevented theemployees from entering orleaving the building anddemanded a written apology.Some of the protesters alsomisbehaved with the newspa-per as well as Dawn TVemployees when they arrivedat the office.

Security guards at themedia house had to lock thegates to prevent the protestersfrom entering the premisesbefore police and officers ofthe capital administrationarrived.

After lengthy negotiationswith the newspaper manage-ment in the presence of anassistant commissioner, theprotesters finally agreed todisperse after hurling warn-ings. The incident was wide-

ly condemned by leaders ofvarious political parties, par-liamentarians and journalistbodies.

Pakistan Peoples Party(PPP) Chairman BilawalBhutto-Zardari in a statementcondemned the incident, say-ing that “no one should beallowed to attack media out-lets in the name of protest”.

He demanded “actionagainst the crowd whichattacked the newspaper officeand vowed to side with thejournalist fraternity”.

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) InformationSecretar y MarriyumAurangzeb called for a high-level investigation into theincident to punish the perpe-trators.

“Such actions are unac-ceptable in any civilised soci-ety,” she said, pledging that thepeople, politicians and themedia will join hands in thefight against such elements.

Office-bearers of thePakistan Federal Union ofJournalists (PFUJ) and theNational Press Club (NPC)also condemned the incident.

Newly-elected presidentof the PFUJ ShehzadaZulfiqar, and secretary gener-al Nasir Zaidi demanded aninquiry.

NPC President ShakilQarar, in a statement, saidworking journalists would notallow curbs on press free-dom, and asked the govern-ment to take steps for the pro-tection of media persons.

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Former Malaysian leaderNajib Razak took the

stand to defend his conductin the 1MDB scandalTuesday, as the first of sever-al trials linked to the multi-billion-dollar fraud entered acrucial stage.

Huge sums were stolenfrom sovereign wealth fund1Malaysia DevelopmentBerhad, allegedly by the ex-prime minister and hiscronies, and spent on every-thing from high-end realestate to artwork.

His coalition was oustedat the polls last year after sixdecades in power, largely dueto public anger over the scan-dal, and he has since beenarrested and hit with dozensof charges linked to the loot-ing of the investment vehicle.

The 66-year-old went ontrial in April over the con-troversy, in a case centring onthe transfer of 42 millionringgit ($10.1 million) froma former 1MDB unit into hisbank accounts. Najib deniesany wrongdoing.

The High Court ruledthe trial should proceed onthe strength of the prosecu-tion case, with Najib’s teamnow set to present his side ofthe story.

Defence proceedingsbegan with the former leadergiving testimony under oath.

His performance may be keyin determining whether hecan persuade the judge of hisinnocence.

He will also face cross-examination from prosecu-tors and is expected to be onthe witness stand for aroundfour days.

Najib arrived at the courtin a blue suit and held a briefMuslim prayer with support-ers at the building’s steps.

“I am as prepared as I canbe,” he told AFP.

He began his testimonyreading from a 243-pagestatement, recalling his longcareer in politics and minis-terial posts he held since1978, including the post offinance minister.

Answering quest ionsfrom his lawyer MuhammadShafee Abdullah, Najib saidhe was not the architect of1MDB, which was formed in2009 after the governmenttook over the TerengganuInvestment Agency andrenamed it.

Naj ib had said in aFacebook post last monththat his testimony “willenable me to give a true pic-ture of events and prove thatI am not guilty” and “anopportunity to clear my namein court”.

He is facing four chargesof corruption and threecounts of money-launderingin the trial over former

1MDB subsidiar y SRCInternational.

Prosecutors have arguedthat Najib wielded hugeinfluence over the unit andknew that stolen money wasbeing funnelled from it intohis accounts.

But in an opening state-ment in court before Najibtook the stand, his lawyerShafee said they will provethat Najib “did not misap-propriate funds.. . eitherdirectly or indirectly” and“did not act dishonestly”.

The amount transferredto his account “was donewithout his knowledge orinvolvement” as the transac-tions “were being manipulat-ed by third parties withouthis knowledge and approval,”Shafee said.

“Ult imately, we wi l lpray for an order that

(Najib) be acquitted and dis-charged of all seven charges,”he said.

The case is one of sever-al 1MDB-linked trials inves-tigating Najib’s conduct. Thebiggest opened in August,centring on allegations heillicitly obtained over $500million from the fund.

US authorities, who arealso investigating the fraud asmoney was allegedly laun-dered through the Americanfinancial system, believe $4.5billion was looted from thefund.

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AHindu lawmaker of theruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-

Insaf (PTI) party on Tuesdayslammed the reappointment ofFayyazul Hassan Chohan,sacked over his anti-Hinduremarks in March, as Punjab’sInformation Minister and saidthe move will convey a “nega-tive message”.

Punjab province ChiefMinister Usman Buzdar onMonday reappointed Chohanas his Information Minister,nine months after he wassacked over his anti-Hinduremarks that invited intensecriticism from senior partyleaders and the minority com-munity.

PTI lawmaker Dr Ramesh

Kumar, who had stronglyprotested over Chohan’s con-troversial remarks, said that aperson with a “negative atti-tude” should not be given thepost. “His role as the informationminister previously was verynegative and his remarks werenot acceptable to any goodhuman being, it is the preroga-tive of the Prime Minister, butthis will convey a negative mes-sage,” Kumar was quoted as say-ing by The News.

The move “testing an alreadytested person” shows that at themoment the party lacks peoplewho are better suited for theoffice, he added.

According to a notificationon Monday, Chohan will headthe information departmentalong with his current portfolio

of Colonies Department.Chohan had come under

severe criticism from seniormembers of his party, ministersand social media users for hiscontroversial remarks whileaddressing a gathering onFebruary 24 in the aftermath ofthe Pulwama terror attack inJammu and Kashmir.

He had apologised for hisremarks following intense criti-cism, saying he was addressingIndian Prime Minister NarendraModi, Indian armed forces andtheir media not the Hindu com-munity in Pakistan.

Prime Minister Imran Khantook serious notice of Chohan’s‘anti-Hindu’ remarks and direct-ed Punjab Chief Minister Buzdarto remove him forthwith, partysources said at the time.

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NATO leaders gatherTuesday for a summit to

mark the alliance’s 70thanniversary but with leadersfeuding and name-calling overmoney and strategy, the moodis far from festive.

The 29 allies will descendon London ready to lock hornsover spending and how to dealwith Russia in a major test ofunity as NATO seeks to assertits relevance.

US President DonaldTrump arrived in London keento see evidence of Europeancountries boosting their mili-tary spending, after repeated-ly lambasting them for what heconsiders freeloading onAmerica for their defence.

NATO officials hope amanaged series of spendingannouncements by SecretaryGeneral Jens Stoltenberg lastweek will appease Trump, whoturned the 2018 summit on itshead with furious rants atEuropean partners.

Stoltenberg pointed out onFriday that by next year, non-US allies will have increasedtheir defence spending by USD130 billion since 2016.

En route, Trump boastedthat he had convincedEuropean allies to boost theirdefence spending, tweeting:“Since I took office, the num-ber of NATO allies fulfillingtheir obligations more thanDOUBLED.” There was alsomuch fanfare around a billion-dollar contract signed last weekwith US planemaker Boeing toupgrade the organisation’sAWACS reconnaissance planes.

NATO members have alsoagreed to lower the cap on UScontributions to the alliance’srelatively small USD 2.5 billionoperating budget, meaningGermany and other Europeancountries - but not France - willpay more.

Trump will have thechance to discuss the measureswith Stoltenberg when theymeet for breakfast on Tuesday,before he talks with French

President Emmanuel Macronahead of an evening receptionat Buckingham Palace.

If Trump’s refrain aboutspending is a familiar one, amore dramatic row blew up inrecent weeks after Macrondespaired of the club’s strate-gic direction, saying it is suf-fering “brain death”.

The comments riled otherleaders and drew a rare pub-lic rebuke from GermanChancellor Angela Merkel.

And on Friday Turkey’sPresident Recep TayyipErdogan, furious at Westerncriticism of his military oper-ation in northern Syria againstthe Kurds, hit back with a per-sonal attack on Macron.

“First of all, have yourown brain death checked.These statements are suitableonly to people like you whoare in a state of brain death,”Erdogan declared, insistinghe would say the same again atNATO.

French officials sum-moned the Turkish envoy in

Paris to complain while a USadministration official pre-dicted that many memberswould tackle Turkey over itspurchase of a Russian S-400 airdefence system.

Macron and Erdogan willcome face to face on Tuesdayin a four-way meeting withMerkel and British PrimeMinister Boris Johnson, whosespokesman said he would beemphasising the need forNATO to be united.

“We can see this as likelythe tale of three egos,” saidAmanda Sloat, a former seniordiplomat and a fellow of theBrookings Institution, warningthat Trump, Macron andErdogan were the figures towatch.

The summit also comes atan unexpectedly awkwardmoment for Johnson, withBritain in the midst of a fre-netic election campaign.

Normally a summit likethis would give the PM of theday a boost but with Trumpdeeply unpopular among

many British voters, his visit isa potential banana skin forJohnson.

The substance of themeeting is thin, with only onethree-hour session planned,where leaders are expected tosign off on a set of decisionsalready taken by NATO for-eign and defence ministers.

These include makingspace a full domain of conflict— alongside land, sea, air andcyber space — as well as a newreport on how the allianceshould approach China and itsgrowing internationalassertiveness.

What is likely to be moresignificant in the longer run isthe fallout from Macron’sbroadside, in which he com-plained NATO talks too muchabout money and not enoughabout strategic priorities.

In response, Germany hassuggested setting up an expertpanel to look at how NATOcan be adapted to addresspolitical questions more effec-tively.

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At least 208 people in Iranhave been killed amid

protests over sharply risinggasoline prices and a subse-quent crackdown by securityforces, Amnesty Internationalhas said, as one governmentofficial acknowledged tellingpolice to shoot demonstrators.

Iran has yet to release anynationwide statistics over theunrest that gripped the IslamicRepublic beginning November15 with minimum prices forgovernment-subsidized gaso-line rising by 50 per cent. Iran’smission to the United Nationsdisputed Amnesty’s findingsearly Tuesday, though it offeredno evidence to support itsclaim. Iran shut down internetaccess amid the unrest, block-ing those inside the countryfrom sharing their videos andinformation, as well as limitingthe outside world from know-ing the scale of the protests andviolence. The restoration ofthe internet in recent daysacross much of the country hasseen other videos surface.

“We’ve seen over 200 peo-ple killed in a very swift time,in under a week,” saidMansoureh Mills, an Iran

researcher at Amnesty. “It’ssomething pretty unprece-dented event in the history ofthe human rights violations inthe Islamic Republic.”

While not drawing asmany Iranians into the streetsas those protesting the disput-ed 2009 presidential election,the gasoline price demonstra-tions rapidly turned violentfaster than any previous rallies.

That shows the widespreadeconomic discontent grippingthe country since May 2018,when President Donald Trumpimposed crushing sanctionsafter unilaterally withdrawingfrom Tehran’s nuclear deal withworld powers.

Since the summer, ten-sions across the Mideast havespiked with attacks the USblames on Tehran. Iran, mean-while, began to break the deal’scentrifuges, enrichment andstockpile limitations with hopesof pressuring Europe to offer ita way to sell crude oil abroaddespite Washington’s sanctions.

In a statement Monday,Amnesty said there had been“dozens of deaths” in theTehran suburb of Shahriar,likely one of the areas with thehighest toll of those killed inthe unrest. Shahriar had seen

heavy protests.Amnesty offered no break-

down for the deaths elsewherein the country, though it said“the real figure is likely to behigher.”

Mills said there was a “gen-eral environment of fear insideof Iran at the moment.” “Theauthorities have been threat-ening families, some have beenforced to sign undertakingsthat they won’t speak to themedia,” she said.

“Families have been forcedto bury their loved ones atnight under heavy securitypresence.” Authorities also havebeen visiting hospitals, lookingfor patients with gunshotwounds or other injuries fromthe unrest, Mills said. Shealleged authorities then imme-diately detain those with thesuspicious wounds.

Iran’s UN mission in NewYork called Amnesty’s findings“unsubstantiated,” withoutelaborating. “A number of exilegroups (and media networks)have either taken credit forinstigating both ordinary peo-ple to protest and riots, or haveencouraged lawlessness andvandalism, or both,” saidAlireza Miryousefi, aspokesman at the mission.

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The Trump Administrationhas determined that the

French Digital Tax is discrim-inatory against American com-panies and as such has pro-posed tariffs of up to 100 percent on USD 2.4 billion ofFrench products. The US TradeRepresentative announced thison Monday after it completedthe first segment of its investi-gation under section 301 of theTrade Act of 1974.

The investigations, it said,concluded that France’s DigitalServices Tax or DST discrimi-nates against US companies, isinconsistent with prevailingprinciples of international taxpolicy, and is unusually bur-densome for affected US com-panies.

Specifically, USTR’s inves-tigation found that the FrenchDST discriminates against USdigital companies, such asGoogle, Apple, Facebook, andAmazon.

In addition, the FrenchDST is inconsistent with pre-

vailing tax principles onaccount of its retroactivity, itsapplication to revenue ratherthan income, its extraterritor-ial application, and its purposeof penalizing particular UStechnology companies, USTRsaid.

The decision sends a clearsignal that the US will takeaction against digital taxregimes that discriminate orotherwise impose undue bur-dens on its companies, USTrade Representative RobertLighthizer said.

“Indeed, USTR is exploringwhether to open Section 301investigations into the digitalservices taxes of Austria, Italy,and Turkey. The USTR isfocused on countering thegrowing protectionism of EUmember states, which unfairlytargets US companies, whetherthrough digital services taxes orother efforts that target leadingUS digital services companies,”he said.

USTR said that it is issuinga Federal Register noticeexplaining that the French DST

is unreasonable, discriminato-ry, and burdens US commerce.

The notice solicits com-ments from the public onUSTR’s proposed action, whichincludes additional duties of upto 100 per cent on certainFrench products. The noticealso seeks comment on theoption of imposing fees orrestrictions on French services.

The list of French productssubject to potential dutiesincludes 63 tariff subheadingswith an approximate tradevalue of USD 2.4 billion.

The value of any US actionthrough either duties or feesmay take into account the levelof harm to the US economyresulting from the DST, it said.

In a joint statement, SenateFinance Committee ChairmanChuck Grassley and RankingMember Ron Wyden support-ed the decision.

“The French digital ser-vices tax is unreasonable, pro-tectionist and discriminatory,”Grassley and Wyden said.

“Taking premature actionthat will adversely and dispro-

portionately affect anotherOECD member state is con-trary to the organisation’s goalsand shouldn’t stand. We wel-come this step from USTR onbehalf of US companies beingunfairly targeted and harmedby the French tax,” they said.

“We encourage othermember states consideringsimilar actions to work withinthe OECD framework towarda comprehensive solution. Welook forward to reviewing thereport’s findings in full,” the twolawmakers said. US Chambersof Commerce supported themove.

“The US Chamber strong-ly opposes France’s DST, whichdiscriminates against US com-panies. In our view, the pathforward is for all parties toredouble efforts to devise amultilateral solution to the taxchallenges posed by digitaliza-tion of the global economy inthe negotiations now underwayat the OECD,” said MarjorieChorlins, US Chamber’s seniorvice president for EuropeanAffairs.

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An American woman whoclaims she was trafficked

by Jeffrey Epstein to have sexwith Prince Andrew criticisedthe “ridiculous excuses” fromthe royal’s side in an interviewaired on Monday.

The interview was record-ed before Andrew’s own BBCinterview, which prompted himto stand down from publicduties because of a backlash athis defence of his friendshipwith Epstein.

But Virginia Giuffre calledon the British public to supporther as she dismissed claims ini-tially made by the prince’sbackers that a photographapparently showing him withhis arm around her might notbe genuine.

“The people on the insideare going to keep coming upwith these ridiculous excuses

like his arm was elongated orthe photo was doctored,” shetold the BBC’s Panorama pro-gramme.

“I’m calling BS (bullshit) onthis. He knows what happened,I know what happened. Andthere’s only one of us telling thetruth,” she said.

“It’s a real photo. I’ve givenit to the FBI for their investi-gation.” Andrew himself doubt-ed the authenticity of the pho-tograph during his badlyreceived interview, saying“nobody can prove whether ornot that photograph has beendoctored.”

Giuffre has alleged she wastrafficked to have sex withfriends of Epstein when she was17. Epstein was found dead ina New York prison in Augustawaiting trial on sex traffickingcharges.

She described how Epsteinpreyed on her once he knew she

came from a vulnerable back-ground, having already suf-fered sexual abuse.

The financier initially luredher with an offer of a job as amasseuse, but soon began abus-ing her, according to Giuffre.

She accused Epstein ofbringing her to London in2001, where she was intro-duced to Andrew and Epstein’ssocialite girlfriend GhislaineMaxwell.

The prince asked her for adance at a nightclub, sherecalled, telling Panorama hewas “the most hideous dancerI’ve ever seen in my life”.

“His sweat was like it wasraining basically everywhere,”she added.

“I was just like grossed outfrom it but I knew I had to keephim happy because that’s whatJeffrey and Ghislaine wouldhave expected from me.”

The prince told the BBC he

was unable to sweat at the timedue to a medical condition hedeveloped after serving as ahelicopter pilot in the FalklandsWar in 1982.

After the nightclub, Giuffre— then known as Roberts —said that Maxwell told her: “Ihave to do for Andrew what Ido for Jeffrey and that just mademe sick.” She and QueenElizabeth II’s second son laterhad sex at Maxwell’s house incentral London, she alleged.

“It was disgusting,” she said.“He said ‘thanks’ and walkedout.” Andrew, 59, said he didnot remember meeting Giuffreand that he “absolutely and cat-egorically” did not have sexwith her.

But an email discovered byPanorama appeared to showAndrew writing to Maxwell in2015 with “specific questions toask you about Virginia Roberts”.

She replied “have some

info — call me when you havea moment”, according to theBBC investigation.

Giuffre admitted to havinga “foggy memory” over datesand places when she was askedabout inconsistencies in herstory.

“I might be wrong on dates,I might be wrong on placessometimes, but one thing Ican tell you is you never forgetthe face of someone who hasheaved over you.”

She added: “I implore thepeople in the UK to stand upbeside me, to help me fight thisfight, to not accept this asbeing OK.

“This is not some sordidsex story. This is a story of beingtrafficked, This is a story ofabuse and this is a story of yourguy’s royalty.” Panorama report-ed that Andrew could be servedwith subpoenas if he returns tothe US, with lawyers for five of

Epstein’s victims demandingthat the prince testify in theircourt cases abut how he wit-nessed people being given mas-sages.

After his BBC interview,Andrew issued a statement inwhich he said “I... unequivo-cally regret my ill-judged asso-ciation with Jeffrey Epstein”and “deeply sympathise witheveryone who has been affect-ed and wants some form of clo-sure”.

A statement fromBuckingham Palace said they“emphatically denied that TheDuke of York (Andrew) hadany form of sexual contact orrelationship with VirginiaRoberts.” Panorama also inter-viewed another of Epstein’s vic-tims, who made further allega-tions against Maxwell.

Sarah Ransome told theprogramme that she “controlledthe girls... like the madam”.

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Chile launched a massive$5.5 billion stimulus pack-

age after data showed its econ-omy contracted 3.4 per cent inOctober — the largest year-on-year drop in a decade — aswidespread social unrest con-tinues.

The package unveiled byFinance Minister IgnacioBriones on Monday includesboosting 2020 public spendingby $3.03 billion, to supportsmall, medium and large busi-nesses.

Another $525 million areearmarked for other initiativeslike the renovation of the metrosystem in Santiago, which hassustained serious damage sinceprotests erupted on October 18.

“Estimates show that thisagenda will generate 100,000new jobs next year,” Brionessaid.

But the measures willmean a real increase in pub-lic spending next year of 9.8percent as compared to 2019,pushing the fiscal deficit up

to 4.4 per cent of grossdomestic product.

“Like any Chilean house-hold that faces unforeseentrouble, we will turn to our sav-ings and our borrowing capac-ity, while remaining aware thatboth have limits that cannot beexceeded,” Briones said.

The governmentannounced the stimulus mea-sures after the central bankreported the worrisome GDPfigures for October.

The 3.4 per cent drop wasfar greater than the one percentdecrease anticipated in officialestimates, and represented theeconomy’s worst performancesince 2009 at the height of theglobal economic crisis.

“Economic activity duringthe month was affected by thedrop in services, commerceand manufacturing,” the centralbank said.

Mining activity — Chileaccounts for nearly a third ofthe world’s copper production— grew by two percent, butnon-mining sectors contractedby four per cent, the bank said.

The government’s plan“loses meaning if we do notmanage to isolate the vandals,looters, narcos and all thosewho threaten our democracy,”said interior minister GonzaloBlumel.

Protests broke out acrossthe country Monday night, the46th consecutive day ofdemonstrations. In Santiago,protesters gathered in the PlazaItalia, a main hub for the city’srallies, and dozens of youngpeople broke into differentmetro stations.

A 12-year-old boy wasarrested during a demonstra-tion in the southern city ofConcepcion for stealing glass-es from an optician, policetold local media. He was placedin the custody of an adultsince he was too young to becharged, they said.

Protests initially erupted inmid-October over metro farehikes but quickly escalated intothe most severe outbreak ofsocial unrest since the end ofthe dictatorship of AugustoPinochet in 1990.

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Iran’s judiciary on Tuesdayrejected as “utter lies” unof-

ficial casualty figures given forstreet violence that eruptedlast month during demonstra-tions against fuel price hikes.

“I explicitly announce thatthe numbers and figures thatare being given by hostilegroups are utter lies and the sta-tistics have serious differenceswith what they announced,”judiciary spokesmanGholamhossein Esmaili said.

“They announced somenumbers as well as somenames... Their claimed num-bers are shear lies and fabri-cated,” he said, in remarksaired on state television. “Thenames they have given are alsolies,” Esmaili said, adding thatthey included people who werestill alive and others whopassed away normally.

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North Korea on Tuesdayrepeated its assertions the

Trump administration is run-ning out of time to salvagenuclear negotiations, saying it’sentirely up to the United Statesto choose what “Christmas gift”it gets from the North.

The statement attributed toa senior diplomat came as NorthKorea continues to dial up pres-sure on Washington and Seoulahead of leader Kim Jong Un’send-of-year deadline for theUS to offer mutually acceptableterms for a deal.

Negotiations have falteredsince a February summitbetween Kim and PresidentDonald Trump broke downafter the US rejected NorthKorean demands for broad sanc-tions relief in exchange for a par-tial surrender of its nuclearcapabilities.

Working-level talks held inSweden in October broke downover what the North Koreansdescribed as the Americans’“old stance and attitude.”

Ri Thae Song, a vice foreign

minister handling US affairs,accused Washington of repeat-ing talk offers aimed at buyingtime without offering real solu-tions. Ri reiterated earlier NorthKorean statements that thecountry has no intentions tocontinue the nuclear diplomacyunless it gets something sub-stantial in return.

“The dialogue touted bythe US is, in essence, nothing buta foolish trick hatched to keepthe DPRK bound to dialogueand use it in favor of the politi-cal situation and election in theUS” Ri’s comments in statemedia referred to North Koreaby its formal name, theDemocratic People’s Republic of

Korea.“What is left to be done now

is the US option and it is entire-ly up to the US what Christmasgift it will select to get.” Kim hassaid he would seek a “new path”if the United States persists withsanctions and pressure.

The North has tested aseries of new solid-fuel missilesystems in recent months, whichexperts say potentially expandsits ability to strike targets inSouth Korea and Japan. It hasalso threatened to lift a self-imposed moratorium on nuclearand long-range missile tests andresume launches over Japan.

Kim and Trump exchangedcrude insults and war threatsamid a provocative run in NorthKorean nuclear and missile testsin 2017, but both leaders havedescribed their personal rela-tionship as good since theybegan their high-stakes nuclearsummitry in 2018.

After the North tested itsfirst intercontinental ballisticmissile in July 2017, Kim calledthe missile a “package of gifts”to the Americans for theirFourth of July holiday.

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President Donald Trump’scampaign said Monday it

was banning journalists fromBloomberg News from itselectoral events, claiming“bias” by the media groupowned by presidential rivalMichael Bloomberg.

Brad Parscale, the Trump2020 campaign manager, saidthe decision was made afterBloomberg News announcedit would not investigate thecompany boss or hisDemocrat competitors.

“As President Trump’scampaign, we are accustomedto unfair reporting practices,but most news organizationsdon’t announce their biasesso publicly,” Parscale said ina statement. The Trump cam-paign will no longer creden-t ia l representat ives ofBloomberg News for rallies orother campaign events, andwill decide “whether toengage with individualreporters or answer inquiriesfrom Bloomberg News on acase-by-case basis,” Parscale

added. Bloomberg News edi-tor-in-chief JohnMicklethwait said inresponse: “The accusation ofbias couldn’t be further fromthe truth. We have coveredDonald Trump fairly and inan unbiased way since hebecame a candidate in 2015and will continue to do sodespite the restr ic t ionsimposed by the Trump cam-paign.” Trump took to Twitterto blast “Mini Mike”Bloomberg for the newsorganization’s coverage deci-sion.

“Mini Mike Bloomberghas instructed his third ratenews organization not toinvest igate him or anyDemocrat, but to go afterPresident Trump, only,” thepresident wrote.

“The Failing New YorkTimes thinks that is OK,because their hatred & bias isso great they can’t even seestraight. It’s not OK!” headded in a swipe at the news-paper after its executive edi-tor condemned the Trumpcampaign’s decision.

)1''��!��'��##'�!��"�+��'!��+#��'Moscow (AFP): Russian

President Vladimir Putinhas signed a law a requiring allsmartphones and computerssold in the country to comepre-installed with Russian soft-ware.

The legislation, which willtake effect in July 2020, isaimed at promoting Russian-made software. But it has beendubbed the “anti-Apple” lawbecause it would force the UStech giant to pre-install non-Apple software on its products.

The Russian governmentwill now draw up a list of prod-ucts affected by the law, pub-lished and signed by Putin onMonday, as well as a list of

applications that would need tobe pre-installed.

It comes amid a slew ofmeasures taken by Russianofficials to control the tech sec-tor, including a law that tookeffect on November 1 requir-ing local internet providers toinstall devices provided byauthorities to enable centralisedcontrol of traffic.

Apple last week appearedto bow to government pressureand began showing theannexed Crimea peninsula aspart of Russia on maps andweather apps in the country.After the move sparked outragein Ukraine, Apple said it might“adjust its approach”.

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"�� $��The IP university organised the Annual

Convocation 2019 on December 3,2019 at its Dwarka campus. Chief Ministerof Delhi, Arvind Kejriwal was the chief guestat the occassion. Manish Sisodia, DeputyChief Minister was the guest of honour atthe event. Anil Baijal, the LG of Delhipresided over the function. Prof Samir KBrahmchari, Founder DG, CSIR deliveredthe convocation address.

The university presented total 68,662degrees for the last three academic years of2016-2017, 2017-2018 and 2018-2019 includ-ing 108 PhDs, 11,683 master degrees, 55,367bachelor degrees, 542 MBBS degrees, 108 BDSdegrees, 656 MD/MS degrees, 122 DM/MCHdegrees and 76 MPhil degrees.

Apart from it, 258 first rank holders were

honoured with Gold medals and 16 exem-plary performance holders were also reward-ed with plaques on the occassion.

In a world of multi tasking, cre-ativity and spontaneous think-

ing provides an upper niche tothose capable of tapping intotheir creative mind. To foster thetalent of lateral and diversethinking for the future genera-tion, JP International School,Sector Omega 1, Greater Noidahave added another feather intheir cap and hosted the fouthedition of ‘STEAM 2K19 HandsOn Minds On’ on November 30,2019 at its school campus in asso-ciation with Creative ThinkersFoundation & Odyssey of MindIndia.

STEAM stands for Science,Technology, Engineering, Artsand Mathematics. It is a fusionof Science and Art required toenhance overall creativity, tofacilitate nurturing the problemsolving abilities and also skillslike team work and communi-cation. A total of 11 schools fromDelhi NCR participated in theevent comprising of 210 students.

The event challenged thestudents of various age groups tothink out of the box and findsolutions to various challengesgiven to them. In this competi-tion the students were divided

into teams under three divi-sions — Division I (eight to 12yrs), Division II (12-15 yrs) andDivision III (15 -18 yrs). The stu-dents displayed best of theircreativity and innovation in thetasks given to them.

Amit Saxena, Vice Presidentof Sparsh Group and JPInternational School said: “Weare happy to see the creative bendof mind of the new generation.We shall continue to give simi-lar exposure to our students andshall implement STEAM fromClass I itself to give students awider platform to perform.”

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Group of Institutions wasawarded the Most PromisingSchool with AcademicExcellence Awards at the IndoArab Leaders Summit andAwards 2019 in Dubai. Theaward was given by MarketResearch Company, WorldwideAchiever for outstanding con-tributions in the field of edu-cation. Ryan Pinto, CEO ofRyan International Group ofInstitutions received the award.

On this occasion, HE DrMohammad Saeed Al-Kindi(Former Minister,Environment and Water,

United Arab Emirates), Vipul(Consul General of India,Dubai) and Asian Games Goldmedallist wrestler Padma ShriBajrang Punia were present asthe chief guests.

While addressing the audi-ence Vipul said: “Technologyhas become a part of our life.Through these investments,both countries can be benefi-cial for each other. Technologyis evolving in the field of teach-ing as well, online learning appsare the best example of it.Nowadays, students are alsotaking the help of technologyfor studying”.

'��/�%��, JK Lakshmipat University

invites applications for admis-sions to its Bachelor of Designprogramme for the year 2020-2021.

The programme isdesigned by experts from high-er education, managementstudies, business and industrywith an aim to bring about afresh, new approach to Designeducation, that is collaborativein nature and integrative inprocess. It is both unique andrelevant for the neo-designer,somebody who is at-ease work-ing in the studios, experiment-ing at the labs and in present-ing at board room.

Duration: Four yearsEligibility: Minimum 50

per cent aggregate marks (45per cent for SC/ST Candidates),with minimum 50 per centmarks from a recognised cen-tral/State board/universityexamination in India or in anyforeign country recognised asequivalent to Class XII systemby the Association of IndianUniversities (AIU).

Students appearing in thefinal examination of Class XIImay also apply.

The applicants are requiredto appear in one of the nation-al level design admission tests,such as UCEED or NID DATheld in 2019. In case the can-didate has not appeared for anynational level design tests, theywill have to appear in the JKLUDesign Entrance Test (DET) toqualify for the programme.

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& Finance invites applicationsfor its postgraduate diploma inBanking and Finance for thecoming academic session forPG diploma in programmeBanking & Finance. This makesit worlds only PG Diplomacourse in Banking & Financethat prepares the candidates forsimultaneously for public sec-tor & private sector banks.

Duration: One yearEligibility: Minimum qual-

ification for securing admissionto the course is graduate in anystream with 50 per cent marks,students awaiting final yearresults may also apply.

This programme starts byproviding fundamental clarityand then advances to exposethe participants to all essentialsof banking & finance.

How to apply: Log on towww.tkwsibf.edu.in or theadmission forms can beobtained by filling the institute’sapplication by paying anamount of �1,000 throughdemand draft in favour ofTKWs Delhi.

Last date to apply:December 22, 2019.

��,��The University of Sheffield,

UK invites applications foradmissions to its new MScCivil Engineering &Management course.

Duration: One yearEligibility: Holders of a

three year bachelor degree witha minimum of 60 per cent orfirst class (BEng, MEng, BSc)in Civil and StructuralEngineering or other appro-priate engineering or sciencesubject from a reputable insti-tute.

Overall IELTS score of 6.5with a minimum of 6.0 in eachcomponent, or equivalent

Fee: £23, 750 for interna-tional students.

How to apply: Log on tohttps://www.sheffield.ac.uk/post-g r a d u a t e / t a u g h t / c o u r s -es/2020/civil-engineering-and-management-msc.

The raising of a young personis serious business. Teachers

and parents need to work in tan-dem to bring up a child andensure that he lives limitless andexcels in a chosen field. Ongoingdiscussions between parents andteachers can enhance theachievement and happiness ofyoung learners, both inside theclassroom as well as outside.

An open line of communica-tion between parents and teachersand engagement of parents inschool activities facilitates a betterunderstanding of expectations ofthe various stakeholders. This inturn can be used to improve theoverall experience for the stu-dents while they are learning, cre-ating or playing during their grow-ing up years.

Professional developmentalprogrammes are being initiated indifferent schools and universitiesacross the world to improve theassociation between these twovital stakeholders. The idea is toprovide training to teachers onhow to engage with the parents oftheir students.

According to mentors, a closeconnection between parents andteachers can instill discipline in stu-

dents, highlight achievements, andidentify weaknesses; without it, stu-dents are not able to grow to theirfull potential and achieve all thedreams in their lives.

One could say that the teacheris a school parent; he is responsi-ble for the student at school. A par-ent can talk to a teacher andexpect to get a comprehensivereport on the behavior as well asperformance of the student atschool. Such kind of a dialogue asis evident in a parent teachermeeting builds a strong relation-ship between the two groups andworks really well for the overalldevelopment of the student.

Why it is important?A bond between parents and a

teacher translates into a betterrelationship between the studentand the teacher as well. Studentscan place their trust and faith onthe teacher and have someone onwhom they can depend in school.The teacher can channelise theenergies and behavior of theirstudents towards productive activ-ities.

A strong connection betweenparents and teachers triggers aca-demic excellence as the work of theyoung one is monitored closely by

both the groups. When a parent isinvolved, it creates a positive atti-tude in the child towards school-work. In such a context, the youngchild becomes more interested toattend school regularly. It ignites apassion for learning in youngminds.

It is also important the teach-ers understand the psychology ofthe children and try and help theparents to sort out issues at hometo ensure the complete wellbeingof the little ones.

If the teacher witnesses poten-tial in a child, he should ideallyinform the parents so that all ofthem can work together to nurturethe talent in the little one.

How can such a connection bemaintained?

A solid partnership betweenthe parents and teachers can bemaintained through technologytools, email, social media, andalso over telephone calls. Moreover,one-on-one meeting can be usedto share information pertaining to

overall growth and improvementof the child in the classrooms.

With improved technologiesand software programmes, stu-dents, parents and teachers cancommunicate openly with eachother. The use of such technologysaves time as the parents are notrequired to visit the schools phys-ically while also being able to talkto the teachers and monitor theacademic progress, discipline, andother activities of their children.

What should be the frequen-cy of communication?

Ideally, the communicationbetween the parents and teachersshould be on daily basis. It is notadvisable for one of the parties toleave the entire responsibility of thechild to the other. A consistent andopen dialogue between the twoparties can steer the students in theright direction and motivate themto make correct choices in theirlives.

For a school going child, theparents as well as the teacher arethe mentors and guiding souls whocan shape their lives for the betterwith concerted efforts every day.

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Infrastructure is the bedrock ofstructures, services, and systems thatare required for any operation.

Infrastructure is the main driver forGDP growth. This is the foundation onwhich the nation is built. Some of thesectors in infrastructure are: railways,roads, highways, expressway, powerlines and power projects (solar, hydro,nuclear, coal). Similarly, infrastruc-ture that shapes organisations across theglobe can be termed as business andtechnology infrastructure. These couldinclude operating systems, securitysystems, and communication lines,data centres or upgrading existingconsumer management systems.

With the facet of infrastructurebeing classified broadly into differentsectors, with all of them bearingnumerous similarities, it is quintes-sential for one to understand thatthere are considerable differencesamong the three too. For example, aproject in technological infrastructurecould follow the software developmentlife cycle along with implementing anagile approach, both of which areunlikely to be used across economic orbusiness infrastructure projects.

Owing to these varied categories,it is imperative for individuals wishing

to pursue an MBA in InfrastructureDevelopment Management to choosethe category they would like to spe-cialise in. By pursuing a specialised cat-egory, individuals develop project plan-ning, execution and monitoring skills.Their ability to resolve issues, manag-ing stakeholder expectations lead to asuccessful project: within time budgetand delivering required results.

Over the last few years, India hasseen tremendous growth in infra-structure. According to a World Bank(World bank annual report, 2018 for theperiod July 2017 to June 2018): WorldBank Group committed almost $ 67 bil-lion in investments, investments andguarantees, MIGA (MultilateralInvestment Guarantee Agency)financed $ 17.9 billion and IDA(International Development Agency)provided $24 billion to poorest coun-tries. This is a fair indication of sup-port provided by World Bank to pro-jects in developing nations. This helpsimprovements in project executionleading to significant savings and willimpact the world economy. Hence, thistopic is of significance for projectmanagement profession in general andin particular for developing economieslike India, where any savings in project

costs, both in terms of through put timeand money, can be employed usefullyelsewhere. With such massive invest-ments, the sector is in dire need of adeptleaders with specialised expertise todrive this motion forward. Leaders whounderstand strategic planning, social,legal and environmental issues, publicpolicies along with their designated spe-cialisation to hold a steady command.Through the MBA in InfrastructureDevelopment Management, individu-

als can build leadership, learn the abil-ity to adapt to change, develop a strongbusiness acumen that is crucial for deci-sion making, understand scientificand data-driven facets to understandbusiness risks and recognise emergingtrends in the infrastructure develop-ment sector. The course also deals withexperiential learning through real-lifesituations, along with showcasing piv-otal aspects of digital transformationand public-private partnerships andunderstanding the holistic infrastruc-ture ecosystem.

While the magnitude of infra-structure development cannot beemphasised enough, the infrastructur-al development in the country both interms of quality and quantity has notmatched up to the standards or therequirements.

Governments do not have thefinancial capacity to build infrastruc-ture on their own. Private enterprisesare invited to be a part of the process.Public Private Partnership (PPP) modelof infrastructure development is, now,way forward. This results in employ-ment opportunities in private sector. Inaddition to opportunities, PPP projectsthrow up challenges. This course enablethe students to study the ‘how’ of lead-

ing a PPP project to success. In addi-tion, the course identifies the enablersthat ensures effective contract man-agement, stakeholder engagement toname a few.

India expects 300 million newurban occupants constantly to the pre-viously existing base of 377 millionurban inhabitants. The administrationof such an extraordinary size of the pop-ulace in urban zones is a test whichincludes adapting to the disintegratingurban framework, urban transporta-tion, financial constraints faced by localbodies, administration issues and astress on existing infrastructure. Thechallenge lies in maintaining existinginfrastructure and adding new to meetthe continuously increased demand.

The MBA InfrastructureDevelopment and Management pro-gramme prepares the students to:structure projects technically, com-mercially, socially and environmental-ly feasible projects within regulatoryframework, ensure projects are com-pleted within given constraints of timeand money and manage contractualand stakeholder relationships.

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The name of a person or any brandor any company plays a significant

role in the life. The different alphabetspresent in a name vibrate with definitefrequencies. In a most successfulname, most of the alphabets which arepresent in the name of a person orcompany will also be friendly and inharmony with each other.

In any person’s life, 30 per cent roleor weightage is given to the name.While selecting or giving the name ofa person or business, one should try toensure that the name vibrations shouldbe in harmony with the date of birthof the person who is planning to launchthe business.

In the date of birth of any person,we come across two things: PsychicNumber (Driver number) and DestinyNumber (Conductor number).

Psychic number (Driver number)refers to actual date of birth.

Destiny number (Conductor num-ber)refers to the sum total of date,month and year.

The efforts should be made thatthe number of the name of a person orbrand should vibrate in harmony withPsychic number and Destiny number.When these three things i.e. NameNumber, Psychic Number and DestinyNumber vibrate in harmony with eachother, the take-off will be successful,growth will be fast and best results canbe seen.

If you want to plan your businessthen following things should be keptin mind:

�Whatever name you havethought of, for the business or brand,it should vibrate harmoniously withyour date of birth.

�The brand name should alsovibrate harmoniously with the name ofthe person, who is launching the busi-ness.

�Address where business is to belaunched i.e. number of the shop orhouse or wherever starting is planned,should be harmonious with his DestinyNumber.

�The date on which business is tobe launched should be in harmonywith the Personal year numberi.e.chronological age (actual age num-ber) of the person as well as withDestiny Number.

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Liverpool midfielder AlexOxlade-Chamberlain says

the Premier League leaders aregoing into every game believingthey can win after racking up 13victories in 14 games.

Jurgen Klopp’s unbeatenside have dropped just twopoints this season and estab-lished an eight-point advantageover second-placed Leicester.

But even the pressure ofmaintaining their winning run,which appears to grow withevery game for a club searchingfor their first league title since1990, has not affected the men-tality within the club, accordingto Oxlade-Chamberlain.

“I’m going into it (a game)with the mindset that we’regoing to win. I think that’s howwe all feel,” the England inter-national told the PA newsagency.

“We’re going into the gamesexpecting ourselves to win andanything else we’re disappoint-ed with.”

He added: “I think that’s thementality you need to be suc-cessful, to have those high stan-dards that nothing else is accept-able. Then you’ve got to let his-tory take its course.”

Liverpool are firmfavourites to end their title

drought but midfielder Oxlade-Chamberlain said they neededto remain mentally strong.

“You’ve got to just keepgoing out and churning outresults,” he said. “There might bea time where results don’t go sowell and people maybe close thegap a little bit.

“We’ve got to be also readyfor those moments mentally asa team to just keep going and seewhat happens.”

Liverpool’s next match isthe Merseyside derby at hometo struggling Everton today,with the Reds unbeaten againsttheir local rivals at Anfieldsince 1999.

But Klopp’s side have notkept a clean sheet at home allseason and are without sus-pended first-choice goalkeeperAlisson Becker.

“I don’t think we’re leakingloads of goals but probably justa few little silly mistakes hereand there all over the pitch,” saidOxlade-Chamberlain.

“But even when we havebeen conceding, we’re still find-ing a way to come up with thegoods and most of the time atthe minute it’s been winning thegame.”

�/�� 8��(��)

Jose Mourinho says his time atManchester United is “a closedchapter” and he is only interested

in beating them when he takes his in-form side to Old Trafford today.

It is the new Tottenham manag-er’s first return to the touchline atUnited’s home ground since his sack-ing by the club last December.

“This is a closed chapter for me,”said Mourinho, who has won allthree of his matches in charge ofSpurs. “I left the club, I took mytime to process everythingthat happened, I took mytime to prepare myself forthe next challenge.

“Honestly, United forme is in my book of experi-ences, it’s in my historybook.”

United are strugglingunder Mourinho’s succes-sor, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer,but go into the game

just two points behind fifth-placedSpurs.

“It is not for me to analyse Unitednow,” Mourinho said at his pre-

match press conference. “I analyse them as an oppo-

nent, how they play. How can webeat them? How can they beat

us? For me that is the importantthing.”

Mourinho is excitedabout the prospect of return-ing to Old Trafford.

He said: “I feelgood, I like to play bigmatches, I like to playagainst the best teams

and go back to a placewhere I was happy.

“I have a great relation-ship with the ManchesterUnited supporters. I went backas a pundit and I was humbledby such a beautiful reception.

“Tomorrow I go back as thecoach of the team that will try andbeat Manchester United.

“I understand that what theywant is the exact opposite of what Iwant. Of course during the match Iexpect them to forget me.”

�� Ole Gunnar Solskjaer says he

does not fear for his future asManchester United manager despite aspate of Premier League sackings as heprepares to face his predecessor Jose

Mourinho.Spurs turned to Mourinho

after dismissing MauricioPochettino last month, whileArsenal and Watford havesubsequently sacked UnaiEmery and Quique Sanchez

Flores.Solskjaer is under

increasing pressure, withUnited ninth in the PremierLeague, 22 points behind

leaders Liverpool and eight off a top-four spot as they prepare for today’smatch against Tottenham.

“No, it doesn’t make me more con-cerned,” Solskjaer said at his pre-matchpress conference on Tuesday. “I’m justfocusing on my job and that’s just

doing as well as I can, and look forwardto the next game, and look long-term,plan things with board.

“It’s that time of year. It’s never niceto see your colleagues lose your jobs— three in a very short space of time.

“It’s a game of margins,” he added.“Sometimes you have luck, sometimesyou don’t, but it doesn’t make me anymore concerned that it’s December.

“I’m good, absolutely no problem.Sometimes you laugh when you readstories about what I’ve said and stuff,at least I know the sources are justmade up, blatant lies.”

The United boss bemoaned histeam’s failure to turn draws into wins,saying they were not getting theresults their football deserved.

The club are winless in threegames and Solskjaer’s job will not getany easier with a derby againstManchester City on Saturday to followthe game against Mourinho’s Spursside.

The Norwegian, though, dis-missed any need for crisis talks withthe United board.

“Three days or four days are notgoing to change a whole lot, but thesetwo games are great chances for us toprove things and prove to ourselvesthat we can continue in the vein wehave had against some of the bettersides,” he said.

Solskjaer expects Mourinho toreceive a warm welcome when hereturns to Old Trafford a year afterbeing sacked, having won the LeagueCup and Europa League during histime in charge.

“We know we have to improve, weare working hard to do that right andwhen you change a manager halfwaythrough the season (it) isn’t where itis supposed to be,” said the Norwegian.

“I don’t think whoever the man-ager of the opposition team is willchange their motivation (of the play-ers),” he said.

“They are motivated to do well forMan Utd, because they know it’sabout improving every day in trainingand every time you step on that pitchit’s a chance to prove you can be partof this long term. That has always beenthe case at Man Utd.”

United will still be without theinjured Paul Pogba but ScottMcTominay and Nemanja Matic willbe assessed as Solskjaer looks at hismidfield options.

��

Odisha FC would look to break their string ofdraws with a victory when they host defend-

ing champions Bengaluru FC at the ShivChhatrapati Sports Complex here today.

Josep Gombau’s side come into this tie afterplaying out three successive draws, two goal-lessresults against ATK and Kerala Blasters, followedby a 2-2 draw away to Chennaiyin FC.

The pattern of play in allthese matches have been similar.They dominated the ball with slickmovement and passing, but failedto take their chances and converttheir dominance into results.

As Gombau seeks to deliver results, he facesa tough challenge in Bengaluru FC. The Bluesare undefeated in the league so far and boast awater-tight defence which has conceded only twogoals in six matches.

Odisha will bank on Aridane Santana, whohas scored four goals so far, to help breach theBengaluru backline. But much will depend onplaymaker Xisco Hernandez who has the abili-ty to carve open any defence. He has also shownhis eye for goals, having scored three so far.

The Spaniard will be pumped up for the bat-tle against his former team and is expected to playa huge role in the outcome of today’s encounter.

Much will also depend on the midfield bat-tle as two technically-gifted sets of players go upagainst each other. The likes of Marcos Tebar,

Vinit Rai and Xisco Hernandez love to get on theball and dictate play. But so do Bengaluru mid-fielders Erik Paartalu, Dimas Delgado andRaphael Augusto.

Bengaluru come into this game after a gut-wrenching 1-1 draw in Hyderabad where aninjury-time equaliser from Robin Singh deniedthem a win. Cuadrat’s team were all overHyderabad FC throughout the game and shouldhave scored more goals to put the tie to bed.

Lack of goals have been a worry for the Bluesdespite Sunil Chhetri’s recent scoring run. The

injured Michael Onwu and Ashique Kuruniyanare yet to open their accounts for the season whileUdanta Singh has just one goal to his name sofar.

“Most of the games we were dominating. Wehave to finish those games well. We have not beengood enough in certain aspects, and we have towork on that. I am not worried about not get-ting goals. Sunil is an experienced player. He isgiving us solutions. Ashique and Udanta areyoung players and they are improving,” Cuadratsaid.

�� *��

Last edition runners-up sideEast Bengal will begin their

I-League campaign against RealKashmir Football Club heretoday.

A title eluded East Bengallast season as, in spite of defeat-ing Gokulam Kerala 2-1 on thelast day of competitions, theyfell one point shy of eventualchampions Chennai City FC.

Under the guidance ofhead coach AlejandroMenendez, the red-and-goldbrigade drew with RealKashmir at home and scored avictory in Srinagar last seasonand this will give them a psy-chological advantage beforethey start their season.

The Kalyani MunicipalityStadium will serve as thehome venue of both EastBengal and MohunBagan except for thetwo derby matches.

Speaking before the match,Menendez said, “Real Kashmirare a very solid and strong side,their defence is very compact.We are very well aware that

they are a very competitive out-fit. The onus now lies on us, weneed to be really accurate and

sharp whenever wehave the chance toattack.

“We need to per-form well in this

match to enhance our chancesand to get success in the league.Otherwise, things can gettricky towards the end of theseason. I believe it is going to

be a very tough game,” headded.

Real Kashmir, on the otherhand, had a dream season lastyear. They became the first-ever team from Kashmir toplay in the I-League and weretitle contenders at one point oftime. Real Kashmir finally fin-

ished third with 37 pointsfrom 20 games.

All eyes will be on the mar-quee player and head coachDavid Robertson’s son, MasonLee Robertson who possessesthe ability to play in differentpositions.

The Srinagar-based team isalso bolstered with the inclu-sion of former NEROCA FCstriker Singham Subash Singhand winger Kallum MichaelHigginbotham, the fresh trans-fer from ScottishChampionship sideDunfermline Athletic FootballClub.

Coach Robertson said,“Last season, we had a goodseason and defended well andhad a very good defensiverecord. This season we haveadded more firepower andhope to score more goals thisseason.

“East Bengal are a verytough side to play against theyare stronger than last seasonalso. I think they will be one ofthe strongest teams this seasonand one who can win thechampionship.”

�/��

Freddie Ljungberg intends to tap intothe knowledge of Arsene Wenger

and Sven-Goran Eriksson as he pre-pares for his second game in charge ofArsenal.

The 42-year-old interim managertook over from Unai Emery at theEmirates last week after the Spaniardwas sacked, with Arsenal languishingin mid-table in the Premier League.

Ljungberg said Wenger, whobrought the Swede to Arsenal as a play-er back in 1998, and Eriksson couldoffer valuable experience as he looks tobuild his own career.

Asked if he had spoken to formerArsenal boss Wenger, he replied: "No(not yet).

"I would really like to speak to him.I'm in contact with him but I haven'tspoke to him because it's been a bit hec-tic, but it's on my list to do so.

"He was here for 22 years as thecoach so he has a lot of experience. Andhe probably has some things that hethinks are important that he can sharewith me and make me a better coach.That's what I wanted to ask."

While Ljungberg never played

under his Swedish compatriot Eriksson,he admitted he heard good things aboutthe former England manager.

"Sven is intelligent," he said. "I spoketo him a lot when he was the managerof England because he was watchingour games.

"I know in the past some stories ofhow he treated players and how hemade them feel good and things likethat.

"I have stolen a little bit of thoseideas. He's a great coach, it's been a longtime, and I hope I can speak to himsoon."

�, ��

Liverpool have beendrawn at home to

Merseyside rivalsEverton in the FA Cupthird round, while hold-ers Manchester City willstart the defence of theirtitle at home to third-tier Port Vale. The Toffees face Jurgen Klopp’s sidetoday in the Premier League and will make theshort trip to Anfield for a second time this seasonduring the first week of January.

Pep Guardiola’s City thumped Watford 6-0 inlast season’s final and have been given a favourabledraw to kick-start their 2019-20 campaign, withJohn Askey’s League Two side pitching up at the Etihad Stadium.

Manchester United face a difficult away tie against PremierLeague rivals Wolves, who knocked them out of the competi-tion last season’s quarter-finals, while Arsenal welcomeChampionship leaders Leeds United to the Emirates Stadium.

New Tottenham boss Jose Mourinho takes his side toMiddlesbrough, managed by former Spurs defender JonathanWoodgate, and Chelsea host Nottingham Forest.

Ties will take place between January 3 and 6.Also in an important announcement, the start of games in

the third round of the FA Cup will be delayed by one minuteto raise awareness of mental health issues.

Most games in the third round of the cup will start at 3:01pm on Saturday, Jan 4.

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Lionel Messi said he hoped tocarry on undimmed by ageafter claiming a record sixth

men’s Ballon d’Or award at the ageof 32 in Paris on Monday, while USAWorld Cup superstar MeganRapinoe took the women’s prize.

Rapinoe was not at the ChateletTheatre in the French capital, unableto make the trip back to the coun-try where she led the USA to victo-ry in July.

However, Messi was there withhis wife, Antonella Roccuzzo, andtwo of their children. It is Messi’s firstBallon d’Or since 2015 and his sixthoverall as he moves one ahead of oldrival Cristiano Ronaldo.

“It is 10 years since I won myfirst Ballon d’Or here in Paris and Iremember coming here with mythree brothers, I was 22 and it wasall unthinkable for me what I wasgoing through,” Messi said on stageafter receiving the award from lastyear’s winner Luka Modric.

“I hope I have several years leftto keep enjoying my football. I amaware of the age I have and thesemoments are all the more enjoyablebecause the moment when I have toretire is getting closer and that is dif-ficult.

“All going well I’ll have severalyears left but at the moment timeseems to be flying and everything ishappening very quickly.

“I hope to keep enjoying myfootball, my family, facing my rivalsand all of this life that I have.”

��The Barcelona number 10 won

this year’s prize — organised byFrance Football magazine and votedfor by a panel of journalists fromaround the world — ahead ofLiverpool defender Virgil van Dijk,with Ronaldo third.

It is the first time since 2010 thatRonaldo has failed to rank in the toptwo.

Having starred in the Liverpoolteam that won the ChampionsLeague, Van Dijk finished second toMessi just as he did in the voting forFIFA’s equivalent prize, The Best, inSeptember.

“Unfortunately there are a cou-ple of players like him who are a bitunnatural. Six times Ballon d’Or —you need to respect greatness aswell,” said Van Dijk.

Van Dijk was one of fourLiverpool players in the top 10, withSadio Mane fourth, Mohamed Salahfifth and goalkeeper Alisson seventh.

The latter won a new prize for thegoalkeeper of the year, named afterformer USSR icon Lev Yashin.

Messi has scored 46 goals in 54matches so far in 2019, and netted36 times in total in 34 La Liga match-es last season as Barcelona won thetitle.

He did not enjoy a successfulCopa America with Argentina butwas also the top scorer in last sea-son’s Champions League with 12goals.

As if any reminder of his bril-liance were required, on Sunday hescored a wonderful late winner forBarcelona against Atletico Madrid.

�� This is just the second year that

a women’s Ballon d’Or — voted forby 48 journalists — has been award-ed, with Rapinoe succeedingNorway’s Ada Hegerberg.

Rapinoe was the star of theWomen’s World Cup on, and off, thefield, winning the Golden Boot fortop scorer, with six goals, and GoldenBall for best player.

She scored the opening goal asthe USA beat the Netherlands 2-0 inthe final. But the 34-year-old femi-nist icon made headlines with heroutspoken criticism of US PresidentDonald Trump during the tourna-

ment and has led calls for her teamto be paid the same as their malecounterparts.

“It’s been an incredible year,” saidRapinoe in a recorded video message.

“I want to say a huge thank youto my team-mates, the coaches, theUS Soccer Federation, for all of thesupport to allow me to be who I amand do what I do on the field but alsobe the person who I am off the field.”

Rapinoe was one of four mem-bers of the US side that lifted theWorld Cup to be nominated for theprize, along with Tobin Heath, RoseLavelle and Alex Morgan, who fin-ished third on Monday. England’sLucy Bronze came second.

Dutch defender Matthijs de Ligt,the ex-Ajax star now at Juventus, suc-ceeded Kylian Mbappe as the winnerof the Kopa Trophy for the best play-er aged under 21.

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Australia heavily hinted onTuesday they will field the

same XI for their opening Testagainst New Zealand to the onethat thrashed Pakistan, withselectors keen to build a coregroup of players.

Tim Paine’s men haveproven to far more consistentin recent months, havingretained the Ashes in Englandbefore a 2-0 series sweep

against Pakistan.Tough opposition awaits

with the arrival this month ofNew Zealand for three Tests —in Perth, Melbourne andSydney — and selectors namedan unchanged 13-man squad.

“As we said prior to thePakistan series we are strivingto maintain a core group ofplayers,” said national selectorTrevor Hohns.

“The performance of theteam against Pakistan was very

impressive across all areas.”The only omission from thesquad was spare batsmanCameron Bancroft, who was onstandby but did not play againstPakistan.

That means the same bat-ting line-up will start againstNew Zealand in Perth onDecember 12, spearheaded byDavid Warner who made amonumental 335 not out inAdelaide, ably supported byMarnus Labuschagne who hita second successive century.

“David Warner has been inexceptional form with the bat.The support he received fromJoe Burns in Brisbane andMarnus Labuschagne inAdelaide was exactly what wehad been asking for from thetop order,” said Hohns.

“They delivered, settingup both matches in what wasan outstanding all-round per-formance. We are backing thecurrent batting line-up to con-tinue their form across the nextthree Tests.”

A fiery six-wicket haulfrom Mitchell Starc in Adelaideall but ensured he will start inPerth alongside JoshHazlewood, Pat Cummins andNathan Lyon with Hohns say-ing squad members MichaelNeser and James Pattinson“will continue as cover”.

�/�� 8��

Centuries from KaneWilliamson and Ross

Taylor ensured New Zealanddrew the rain-hit secondTest against England inHamilton on Tuesday, seal-ing a 1-0 series win.

New Zealand batted thefinal day needing a substan-tial innings to avoid defeatand were helped by sloppyEngland fielding.

Williamson, who hadthree lives including ahowler of a dropped catch byJoe Denly, described it as a“good effort” to end up witha draw.

“A lot of hard work hadto go into saving the matchwhen time didn’t allow us anopportunity to win it,” hesaid.

However, England cap-tain Joe Root felt the Testwas always heading for a

draw, saying even if theweather and fielding hadgone England’s way “we stillcouldn’t have forced a result.”

Heavy rain arrived soonafter lunch to end play onthe fifth day when NewZealand were 241 for two intheir second innings, 140ahead with Taylor on 105and Williamson on 104.

It ensured the spoilswent to New Zealand aftertheir innings victory in thefirst Test, and improvedtheir record to eight wins, adraw and one loss to SouthAfrica in their past 10 Testseries.

Williamson brought uphis 21st Test century with afour off Joe Root in the third

over after lunch, whileTaylor reached centurynumber 19 with a flourish inRoot’s next over when hesmacked a four and twosixes in consecutive balls.

Two balls after Taylorhad raised his bat and pokedhis tongue out in his signa-ture celebration, the rainarrived to wash outEngland’s faint hopes.

��

Riding on his runners-up finish at the SyedModi International, Indian shuttler

Sourabh Verma on Tuesday achieved acareer-best ranking of world No 29 in the lat-est BWF ranking.

The 26-year-old from Madhya Pradesh,who had reached world No 30 in 2012, hada decent season in which he claimed two BWFSuper 100 titles at Hyderabad and Vietnamand also won the Slovenia Internationalseries in May.

On Sunday, Sourabh, a three-time nation-al champion, entered his maiden final of aSuper 300 event at Lucknow before losing toChinese Taipei’s Wang Tzu Wei.

However, his progress to the summit clashsaw him jump seven places and grab the 29thspot.

India thus became the only country tohave six shuttlers inside the top 30. China isnext best with five players inside the top 30.

Among others, young woman shuttlerAshmita Chaliha also made a massive jumpof 18 places to break into the top 100.

There was no change in the ranking of topplayers P V Sindhu (World No 6) and SainaNehwal (world No 10), who had skipped theSyed Modi International.

Kidambi Srikanth and B Sai Praneeth,who lost in the quarters and second round lastweek, also remained static at world No 12 and11 respectively.

��

All-rounder Vijay Shankarwas named captain of the

Tamil Nadu team for the RanjiTrophy 2019-20 season, begin-ning on December 9.

The team announced by theState Selection Committeeofthe Tamil Nadu CricketAssociation includes Test starRAshwin and out of favouropener M Vijay.

Batsman Baba Aparajithhas been named vice-captain ofthe squad.

The team was selected forthe first two RanjiTrophymatches againstKarnataka and HimachalPradesh.

Tamil Nadu opens its cam-paign in Group B againstKarnataka at Dindigul.

M S Washington Sundarwill join the team for the secondmatch and K Mukunth will bereleased from the squad.

Young left-arm spinner MSiddharth, who made his debutin the recent Syed Mushtaq AliTrophy and impressed in thematches he played, has beenchosen along with leggieMurugan Ashwin.

Lanky left-arm spinner RSai Kishore is part of the spincombination that also includesthe hugely experienced RAshwin.

T Natarajan, K Vigneshand S Abhishek Tanwar formthe pace attack.Squad: Vijay Shankar (Captain),B Aparajith (Vice- Captain), MVijay, Abhinav Mukund, KDinesh Karthik, N Jagadeesan,R Ashwin, R Sai Kishore, TNatarajan, K Vignesh, AbhishekTanwar, M Ashwin, MSiddharth, Shahrukh Khan,KMukunth.

�� '��1�Test specialist AjinkyaRahane and young opener

Prithvi Shaw were on Tuesdaynamed in the 15- memberMumbai trophy squad for theirlung opener against Baroda.

The two made to the 15-member squad, which waspicked by the Milind Rege-ledad-hoc selection panel onMonday itself, but the officialannouncement was made by thecricket body on Tuesday.

Mumbai, the 41-timedomestic champions, play theirfirst game of the 2019-20 seasonagainst Baroda in Vadodarafrom December 9.

The squad is being led bybatsman Suryakumar Yadav,with experienced wicket-keep-er Aditya Tare as his deputy.

Shreyas Iyer and all-rounder Shivam Dube have notbeen picked in the squad as theyare in the national team.

Rahane, India’s test spe-cialist, will get good game prac-tice as India now play Tests onlyin New Zealand after twomonths.

The game would also be anopportunity for Shaw, whoreturned to competitive cricketafter serving an eight-monthdoping ban to redeem himself.

The Mumbai squad other-wise looks more or less balanced.

Regulars Jay Bista, ShubhamRanjane, Shams Mulani, andpacers Shardul Thakur andDhawal Kulkarni are part of thesquad.

According to sources,Mumbai’s crisis man SiddeshLad will not be available for firstgame as he is set to get marriedthis Friday.Squad: Suryakumar Yadav(Captain), Aditya Tare (ViceCaptain), Ajinkya Rahane,Prithvi Shaw, Jay Bista, ShubhamRanjane, Akash Parkar, SarfarazKhan, Shams Mulani, VinayakBhoir, Shashank Attarde,Shardul Thakur, TusharDeshpande, Dhawal Kulkarniand Eknath Kerkar.

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Virgil van Dijk said that seeingfour Liverpool players finish

in the top 10 in the ranking for thisyear’s Ballon d’Or can be an extrasource of motivation for theAnfield club in their quest formore on-field success this season.

“Obviously the season we hadwas outstanding. We had evenmore players than that on the totalshortlist so everyone can be proudof the achievement,” said VanDijk after coming second behindLionel Messi at the awards ceremo-ny.

Sadio Mane finished fourth,Mohamed Salah was fifth, andgoalkeeper Alisson Becker cameseventh in the voting by journal-ists from around the world for theprize organised by France Footballmagazine.

Roberto Firmino, TrentAlexander-Arnold and GeorginioWijanldum had also been nomi-nated after starring as JurgenKlopp’s side won the ChampionsLeague last season.

“I think we could have evenhave had a couple more players init, but we had a fantastic season lastyear and it should help motivateus to keep doing what we aredoing, working even harder andtry to achieve even more than wedid last year,” added Van Dijk.

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;�/�"�� +#�"#$�#"� ��#$�$ �!��$�#"�,$ /�F�/��((�#��(�� /��'�� 1� New Zealandcricket team has beenbestowed with theChristopher Martin-Jenkins Spirit of Cricketaward for its exemplaryshow of sportsmanshipduring the epic final of theICC World Cup at Lord’sin July, which it lost undercontroversial circum-stances.

The New Zealandteam was presented theaward, during the drawnsecond Test againstEngland at Hamilton’sSeddon Park.

MCC President

Kumar Sangakkara com-mended the Blackcaps,saying: “The New Zealandteam are worthy winnersof this award. In the heatof battle, they displayed alevel of sportsmanship thatwas fitting for such a fan-tastic final, and indeedtournament.

“It is a testament totheir squad that even aftera match that will live longin the memory for thecricket that was played, weare still talking about theSpirit of Cricket. Theiractions deserve this recog-nition.” PTI

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