11 vivacity china-pak nexus to keep border hot: rajnath ... · 10/12/2020  · they were on their...

12
CAPSULE KUSHBOO JOINS BJP AFTER QUITTING CONG New Delhi: Actor-turned- politician Kushboo Sundar joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) here on Monday, hours after she quit the Congress. Speaking to reporters at the joining ceremony, the actor from Tamil Nadu said she had come to the understanding over a period of time that if the nation has to move forward, then someone like Prime Minister Narendra Modi is needed to take the country “in the right direction and to its glory”. INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION CONTRACTS 8% IN AUGUST New Delhi: Industrial production declined by 8 per cent in August, mainly due to lower output of manufacturing, mining and power generation sectors, official data showed on Monday. According to the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) data, manufacturing sector production registered a decline of 8.6 per cent, while the output of mining and power segments fell 9.8 per cent. PNS n NEW DELHI A s the eyeball-to-eyeball confrontation with China continues at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) and the Line of Control (LoC) with Pakistan remains hot, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday threw open 44 bridges, most- ly in border areas, including Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir and Uttarakhand, as part of India’s rapid enhance- ment of its military and infra- structure capabilities to counter any challenge from the two adversaries. This comes at a time when scientists have also been con- ducting successive missile tests for operational readiness in the last few weeks. Dedicating the strategical- ly important bridges in seven States, including eight perma- nent bridges in Ladakh, to the nation virtually, Rajnath Singh minced no words in saying that after Pakistan, China is also creating a dispute at the border with India as if it was part of a “mission”. India is not only facing the situations along the frontiers resolutely, but it is also bring- ing in major development, including in border areas. “You are well aware of the conditions created along our northern and eastern borders. First it was Pakistan, and now also by China, as if a border dispute is being created under a mission. We have a border of about 7,000 km with these countries where tension continues,” the Minister said. As regards the bridges, a majority of them is expected to significantly improve move- ment of troops in areas along the border with China in Ladakh, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh sectors, officials said. Rajnath said in the chal- lenging times of Covid-19 and despite the border tensions and disputes caused by Pakistan and China, the coun- try was not only resolutely facing them but also bringing about historical changes in all sectors of development. The Defence Minister also laid the foundation stone for Nechiphu Tunnel in Arunachal Pradesh. This 450 metre-long tunnel would ensure all-weath- er connectivity across Nechiphu pass. The bridges included 10 in J&K, eight in Ladakh, two in Himachal, four each in Punjab and Sikkim and eight each in Uttarakhand and Arunachal Pradesh. In his address, Singh com- plimented the BRO for their achievements in improving infrastructure in border areas and said that dedication of 44 bridges in one go in itself was a record. He said the annual budget of the BRO that varied from `3,300 crore to `4,600 crore in years between 2008 and 2016, saw a substantial rise and is pegged at over `11,000 crore in 2020-21. “There was no reduc- tion of this budget despite Covid-19,” he said. Underlining the signifi- cance of these projects, Rajnath said construction of the bridges will benefit both the civilian population as well as the mili- tary in the areas. “Our armed forces per- sonnel are deployed in large numbers in areas where trans- port is not available through- out the year,” he said, noting improvement in border infra- structure will significantly help armed forces. New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday announced a pay- ment of cash in lieu of LTC and `10,000 festival advance to government employees to stim- ulate consumer demand during the festival season and boost the economy. She also announced addi- tional capital spending and `12,000 crore, 50-year interest- free loan to States to boost the economy that has been battered by the pandemic and the result- ing lockdown. At a news conference, she said the Government will give its employees income-tax- exempt cash vouchers in lieu of their entitled travel allowances this year. This cash will have to be spent on buying goods that attract 12 per cent or more GST — a condition which eliminates the possibility of the cash being spent on food items. Central public sector enter- prises and banks will also fol- low the cue and give cash in place of leave travel concession (LTC) as travelling during the pandemic is near to impossible. Additionally, the govern- ment will as a one-time mea- sure give `10,000 salary loan to all its officers and employees as festival advance. These two measures are “expected to create a consumer demand of about `28,000 crore”, she said. The Government, which had in May announced a `20 lakh crore “Aatmanirbhar Bharat” stimulus, is pushing ahead with a full opening to try to boost the economy ahead of the usually high-spending fes- tival season. A tough lockdown imposed to stem the spread of coronavirus had resulted in the economy contracting by a record 23.9 per cent during April-June. Together with the loan to states and additional capital spending, Sitharaman said, “very rough estimate is that potential private sector spend- ing through LTC tax benefit will be at least equal to the gov- ernment employee-led demand of `28,000 crore and the total additional demand estimated to exceed ` 1 lakh crore”. She further said that the measures by the Government to stimulate demand must not burden the common citizen with future inflation and must not put Government debt on an unsustainable path. PNS n NEW DELHI I ndia is generating 150 tonnes or 1.50 lakh kilograms of Covid-19 biomedical waste daily. And Maharashtra — the worst-affected State — is con- tributing the maximum to it with 30 tonnes or 30,000 kg every day. According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), in the last four months, India generated over 18,000 tonnes of Covid-19 bio- medical waste, calling for urgent remedial steps to treat the menace. “Since June, all States and Union Territories have gener- ated 18,006 tonnes of Covid- 19-related biomedical waste which is being collected, treat- ed and disposed of by 198 com- mon biomedical waste treat- ment facilities (CBWTFs),” said the country’s top pollution reg- ulator body. Covid-19 biomedical waste includes PPE kits, masks, shoe covers, gloves, human tissues, body fluids like dressings, plas- ter casts, cotton swabs, bed- dings contaminated with blood or body fluid, blood bags, nee- dles and syringes. As per data, Maharashtra generated 3,587 tonnes of Covid-19 waste in four months since June, followed by Tamil Nadu (1,737 tonnes), Gujarat (1,638 tonnes), Kerala (1,516 tonnes), Uttar Pradesh (1,432 tonnes), Delhi (1,400 tonnes), Karnataka (1,380 tonnes) and West Bengal (1,000 tonnes). Around 5,490 tonnes of such waste was generated in September, with Gujarat con- tributing the maximum 622 tonnes, followed by Tamil Nadu (543 tonnes), Maharashtra (524 tonnes), Uttar Pradesh (507 tonnes) and Kerala (494 tonnes). Delhi generated 382 tonnes of Covid- 19 bio-medical waste in September, according to the CPCB data. As per CPCB guidelines, used PPEs like face shields, goggles, hazmat suits, plastic coverall, used masks, head cover, shoe cover etc generat- ed from Covid-19 isolation wards at healthcare facilities shall be segregated and sent to common facilities for disposal as per Bio-medical Waste Management Rules, 2016 (BMWM Rules). However, used PPEs like masks and gloves generated in common households, com- mercial establishments, insti- tutions, etc are required to store separately for a minimum 72 hours for disposal along with solid waste after cutting or shredding. The apex pollution body had in May developed the “Covid-19 BWM” mobile application to monitor coron- avirus-related biomedical waste and to compile the data through electronic manifest system. SAUGAR SENGUPTA n KOLKATA T he Prime Minister will for the first time in his seven- year-rule virtually address the Bengali population on October 22, the Maha Sashthi Day (sixth day of the pujas), the State BJP leadership said. “Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji will deliver a virtual address on the auspicious occa- sion of Durga Puja,” senior leader and party’s observer for the State Kailash Vijayvargiya said on Monday. Modi is like- ly to address the people of the State on October 22, he said. Home Minister Amit Shah too will reach out to the Bengali population, the senior leader said. “We do not have the dates as yet but we are trying to bring Amit Shah ji in Bengal before Durga Puja,” Vijayvargiya said, adding the Home Minister would visit North Bengal dur- ing this period. Detailed Report on P5 PTI n NEW DELHI T he Supreme Court on Monday sought response from the Centre on a batch of peti- tions challenging the constitutional validity of the newly enacted three contentious farm laws. A bench headed by Chief Justice SA Bobde issued notice to the Central Government and sought its reply within four weeks. The three laws — Farmers’ (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020; Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020 and The Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act 2020 — took effect from September 27. The bench, also comprising Justices AS Bopanna and V Ramasubramanian, was hear- ing pleas filed by Rashtriya Janta Dal lawmak- er from Rajya Sabha, Manoj Jha; Congress Lok Sabha MP from Kerala, TN Prathapan and DMK Rajya Sabha MP from Tamil Nadu, Tiruchi Siva, and a petition filed by Rakesh Vaishnav. The petitions alleged that the three farm laws passed by Parliament would dismantle the Agricultural Produce Market Committees sys- tem intended to ensure fair prices for farm products. PTI n NEW DELHI S even Indians, who were were kidnapped in Libya last month, have been released, the Ministry of External Affairs said on Monday. The Indian nationals, hailing from Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh, were kidnapped at Asshwerif on September 14 when they were on their way to the Tripoli airport to catch a flight to India. “We are happy to inform that the seven Indian nationals who had been abducted at Asshwerif in Libya on September 14 were final- ly released Sunday,” the MEA said. Last week, MEA Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said the Indians were working at a construction and Oil field supplies company. “Our Ambassador to Tunisia Puneet Roy Kundal spoke to them over phone after they were handed over by the abductors to the company Al Shola Al Mudia. All of them are in good health and are currently staying in the compa- ny’s premises in Brega. We are trying to com- plete requisite formalities to enable their return to India,” the MEA said. Following the kidnapping, the Indian embassy in Tunisia reached out to the Libyan government authorities as also the internation- al organisations present there, seeking help in rescuing the Indian nationals. TN RAGHUNATHA n MUMBAI L arge parts of the country’s commercial Capital, the neighbouring Thane, Palghar and Raigad districts in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) went without power for more than three and a half hours on Monday, following a combination of factors, includ- ing sudden tripping of three major transmission lines and two power generating units. The power supply to many parts of Mumbai, Thane, Navi Mumbai, Palghar and Panvel — all coming under the jurisdic- tion of MMR — snapped at around 10.03 am owing to host of factors, including trip- ping of main 400kv Kalwa- Padgha line-2, Mumbai’s 500 MW Tata Power Station and 250 MW Adani power unit at Dahanu. Following the power breakdown, the suburban ser- vices on the Western Railway and Central Railway — con- sidered the lifelines of Mumbai — came to a standstill, follow- ing the power breakdown in most parts of the metropolis and surrounding areas of MMR. “Mumbai-Thane-Kalyan power failure is being attend- ed to. Kalwa-Padgha trans- missions line got tripped, hence Thane-Palghar, Navi Mumbai power is off. Consequently, there was cascading effect in the form of power failure to Mumbai-Thane & Mumbai suburban city. It will be restored in approximately an hour,” Maharashtra Energy Minister Nitin Raut said. The power supply came to be restored in many parts of Mumbai and surrounding areas of Mumbai in stages from 12.15 pm to 1.30 pm. Taking serious cognisance of major power failure, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray — who held a meeting with State Energy Minister Nitin Raut, his deputy Prajkta Tanpure, State chief secretary Sanjay Kumar — ordered a comprehensive enquiry into the circumstances leading to the breakdown and also asked the authorities to take measures to ensure against recurrence of a similar power failure in the metropolis. China-Pak nexus to keep border hot: Rajnath Defence Minister inaugurates 44 bridges, mostly in border areas, to boost military infrastructure PNS n NEW DELHI I ndia and China on Monday failed to break the logjam even as they reiterated their resolve to hold a sustained dialogue to defuse tension at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Eastern Ladakh and refrain from sending more troops to the border. Both the sides also agreed to hold anoth- er round of military-level talks as soon as possible for disen- gagement and de-escalation. The two sides reaffirmed these commitments during the seventh round of Corps Commander-level talks in Chushul on the Indian side of the LAC in Ladakh. China insisted that India withdraw its troops from the south bank of Pangong Tso (lake) before it pulls back its troops. India was firm that China has to take the lead in disengaging and only then it will gradually start the with- drawal process from the con- frontation sites. Elaborating upon the talks, sources said here later India wanted China to show its intent in bringing down temperature at the volatile border. This firm message was conveyed by the Indian delegation led by 14 Corps chief Lt General Harinder Singh. The other officials included Lt General PK Menon who will replace Singh as the 14 Corps chief after Singh moves as the Indian Military Academy (IMA) chief next week. The Chinese dele- gation was led by Major General Liu Lin. Both the delegations included Foreign Ministry offi- cials thereby indicating keen- ness by both the countries to find a solution at the earliest. Naveen Srivastava represented the Indian Foreign Ministry in Monday’s talks, officials said. Reviewing the current sit- uation at the 1,700-km long LAC in Ladakh, both the commanders expressed satis- faction over relative calm pre- vailing at the border since September 10. ‘Who will blink first’ delays India-China peace resolution Both agree to refrain from sending more troops to border Cash in lieu of LTC, `10,000 advance to Govt staff, 50-year interest-free loan to States to boost eco 150 tn waste generated daily with worst-hit Maha contributing maximum 30 tn/day Modi to virtually address Bengal during Durga Puja Power outage stops Mumbai in its tracks Commercial Capital’s lifeline cut off for over 3 and a half hours SC notice to Centre on pleas against farm laws’ Constitutional validity 7 Indians kidnapped in Libya released India’s Covid-19 biomedical waste woes enormous Four among 44 bridges, built by BRO across seven States and UTs, which were dedicated to the nation by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday PTI Defence Minister Rajnath Singh dedicates 44 major permanent bridges to the nation from New Delhi on Monday PTI A train halts at a station as local train services were disrupted due to major power supply failure in Mumbai on Monday PTI Steps to create ` 1-L cr additional demand STATES TOTAL CASES DEATHS RECOVERED Maharashtra 15,35,315 40,514 12,81,896 Andhra Pradesh 7,58,951 6,256 7,08,712 Karnataka 7,17,915 10,036 5,92,084 Tamil Nadu 6,61,264 10,314 6,07,203 Uttar Pradesh 4,39,161 6,438 3,93,908 Delhi 3,11,188 5,809 2,84,844 West Bengal 2,98,389 5,682 2,62,103 Kerala 2,95,133 1,026 1,99,634 Odisha 2,54,662 1,063 2,30,192 Telangana 2,13,084 1,228 1,87,342 Bihar 1,97,000 955 1,85,593 Assam 1,95,304 826 1,66,036 Rajasthan 1,61,184 1,665 1,37,848 Gujarat 1,52,764 3,577 1,33,852 Madhya Pradesh 1,48,298 2,645 1,30,721 Haryana 1,43,221 1,592 1,31,228 CASES: 71,73,069 DEATHS: 1,09,892 RECOVERED: 62,24,262 ACTIVE: 8,37,820 Covid-19 IN INDIA TOTAL @TheDailyPioneer facebook.com/dailypioneer Follow us on: www.dailypioneer.com instagram.com/dailypioneer/ *Late City Vol. 14 Issue 283 *Air Surcharge Extra if Applicable Published From DELHI LUCKNOW BHOPAL BHUBANESWAR RANCHI RAIPUR CHANDIGARH DEHRADUN HYDERABAD VIJAYWADA Established 1864 RNI No. Regn. UTTENG/2007/22374, REGD. No. UA/DO/DDN/126/2016-2018 DEHRADUN, TUESDAY OCTOBER 13, 2020; PAGES 12 `2 } OPINION 6 CONSENSUS IS VITAL WORLD 8 US FORCES HIT TALIBAN WITH AIR STRIKES IN HELMAND STRUGGLE TEACHES A LOT: HONEY SINGH 11 VIVACITY } SPORT 12 ENGLAND BEAT BELGIUM 2-1

Upload: others

Post on 20-Oct-2020

0 views

Category:

Documents


0 download

TRANSCRIPT

  • CAPSULEKUSHBOO JOINS BJPAFTER QUITTING CONGNew Delhi: Actor-turned-politician Kushboo Sundarjoined the Bharatiya Janata Party(BJP) here on Monday, hoursafter she quit the Congress.Speaking to reporters at thejoining ceremony, the actor fromTamil Nadu said she had cometo the understanding over aperiod of time that if the nationhas to move forward, thensomeone like Prime MinisterNarendra Modi is needed to takethe country “in the rightdirection and to its glory”.

    INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTIONCONTRACTS 8% IN AUGUSTNew Delhi: Industrialproduction declined by 8 percent in August, mainly due tolower output of manufacturing,mining and power generationsectors, official data showed onMonday. According to the Indexof Industrial Production (IIP)data, manufacturing sectorproduction registered a declineof 8.6 per cent, while the outputof mining and power segmentsfell 9.8 per cent.

    PNS n NEW DELHI

    As the eyeball-to-eyeballconfrontation with Chinacontinues at the Line of ActualControl (LAC) and the Line ofControl (LoC) with Pakistanremains hot, Defence MinisterRajnath Singh on Mondaythrew open 44 bridges, most-ly in border areas, includingLadakh, Himachal Pradesh,Arunachal Pradesh, Jammu &Kashmir and Uttarakhand, aspart of India’s rapid enhance-ment of its military and infra-structure capabilities to counter

    any challenge from the twoadversaries.

    This comes at a time whenscientists have also been con-ducting successive missile testsfor operational readiness in thelast few weeks.

    Dedicating the strategical-ly important bridges in sevenStates, including eight perma-nent bridges in Ladakh, to thenation virtually, Rajnath Singhminced no words in saying thatafter Pakistan, China is alsocreating a dispute at the borderwith India as if it was part of a“mission”.

    India is not only facing thesituations along the frontiersresolutely, but it is also bring-ing in major development,including in border areas. “Youare well aware of the conditionscreated along our northernand eastern borders. First it wasPakistan, and now also byChina, as if a border dispute isbeing created under a mission.We have a border of about7,000 km with these countrieswhere tension continues,” theMinister said.

    As regards the bridges, amajority of them is expected to

    significantly improve move-ment of troops in areas alongthe border with China inLadakh, Sikkim and ArunachalPradesh sectors, officials said.

    Rajnath said in the chal-lenging times of Covid-19 anddespite the border tensionsand disputes caused byPakistan and China, the coun-try was not only resolutelyfacing them but also bringingabout historical changes in allsectors of development.

    The Defence Minister alsolaid the foundation stone forNechiphu Tunnel in ArunachalPradesh. This 450 metre-longtunnel would ensure all-weath-er connectivity acrossNechiphu pass. The bridgesincluded 10 in J&K, eight inLadakh, two in Himachal, foureach in Punjab and Sikkim andeight each in Uttarakhand andArunachal Pradesh.

    In his address, Singh com-plimented the BRO for theirachievements in improvinginfrastructure in border areasand said that dedication of 44bridges in one go in itself wasa record.

    He said the annual budgetof the BRO that varied from`3,300 crore to ̀ 4,600 crore inyears between 2008 and 2016,saw a substantial rise and ispegged at over `11,000 crore in2020-21. “There was no reduc-tion of this budget despiteCovid-19,” he said.

    Underlining the signifi-cance of these projects, Rajnath

    said construction of the bridgeswill benefit both the civilianpopulation as well as the mili-tary in the areas.

    “Our armed forces per-sonnel are deployed in largenumbers in areas where trans-port is not available through-out the year,” he said, notingimprovement in border infra-structure will significantly helparmed forces.

    New Delhi: Finance MinisterNirmala Sitharaman onMonday announced a pay-ment of cash in lieu of LTC and`10,000 festival advance togovernment employees to stim-ulate consumer demand duringthe festival season and boostthe economy.

    She also announced addi-tional capital spending and`12,000 crore, 50-year interest-free loan to States to boost theeconomy that has been batteredby the pandemic and the result-ing lockdown.

    At a news conference, shesaid the Government will giveits employees income-tax-exempt cash vouchers in lieu oftheir entitled travel allowancesthis year.

    This cash will have to bespent on buying goods thatattract 12 per cent or more GST— a condition which eliminatesthe possibility of the cash beingspent on food items.

    Central public sector enter-prises and banks will also fol-low the cue and give cash inplace of leave travel concession(LTC) as travelling during thepandemic is near to impossible.

    Additionally, the govern-ment will as a one-time mea-sure give ̀ 10,000 salary loan toall its officers and employees asfestival advance.

    These two measures are“expected to create a consumerdemand of about `28,000crore”, she said.

    The Government, whichhad in May announced a `20lakh crore “AatmanirbharBharat” stimulus, is pushingahead with a full opening to tryto boost the economy ahead ofthe usually high-spending fes-tival season. A tough lockdownimposed to stem the spread ofcoronavirus had resulted inthe economy contracting by arecord 23.9 per cent duringApril-June.

    Together with the loan tostates and additional capitalspending, Sitharaman said,“very rough estimate is thatpotential private sector spend-ing through LTC tax benefitwill be at least equal to the gov-ernment employee-led demandof `28,000 crore and the totaladditional demand estimatedto exceed `1 lakh crore”.

    She further said that themeasures by the Governmentto stimulate demand must notburden the common citizenwith future inflation and mustnot put Government debt onan unsustainable path.

    PNS n NEW DELHI

    India is generating 150 tonnesor 1.50 lakh kilograms ofCovid-19 biomedical wastedaily. And Maharashtra — theworst-affected State — is con-tributing the maximum to itwith 30 tonnes or 30,000 kgevery day. According to theCentral Pollution ControlBoard (CPCB), in the last four

    months, India generated over18,000 tonnes of Covid-19 bio-medical waste, calling forurgent remedial steps to treatthe menace.

    “Since June, all States andUnion Territories have gener-ated 18,006 tonnes of Covid-19-related biomedical wastewhich is being collected, treat-ed and disposed of by 198 com-mon biomedical waste treat-

    ment facilities (CBWTFs),” saidthe country’s top pollution reg-ulator body.

    Covid-19 biomedical wasteincludes PPE kits, masks, shoecovers, gloves, human tissues,body fluids like dressings, plas-ter casts, cotton swabs, bed-dings contaminated with bloodor body fluid, blood bags, nee-dles and syringes.

    As per data, Maharashtra

    generated 3,587 tonnes ofCovid-19 waste in four monthssince June, followed by TamilNadu (1,737 tonnes), Gujarat(1,638 tonnes), Kerala (1,516tonnes), Uttar Pradesh (1,432tonnes), Delhi (1,400 tonnes),Karnataka (1,380 tonnes) andWest Bengal (1,000 tonnes).

    Around 5,490 tonnes ofsuch waste was generated inSeptember, with Gujarat con-tributing the maximum 622tonnes, followed by TamilNadu (543 tonnes),Maharashtra (524 tonnes),Uttar Pradesh (507 tonnes)and Kerala (494 tonnes). Delhigenerated 382 tonnes of Covid-19 bio-medical waste inSeptember, according to theCPCB data.

    As per CPCB guidelines,used PPEs like face shields,goggles, hazmat suits, plastic

    coverall, used masks, headcover, shoe cover etc generat-ed from Covid-19 isolationwards at healthcare facilitiesshall be segregated and sent tocommon facilities for disposalas per Bio-medical WasteManagement Rules, 2016(BMWM Rules).

    However, used PPEs likemasks and gloves generated incommon households, com-mercial establishments, insti-tutions, etc are required tostore separately for a minimum72 hours for disposal alongwith solid waste after cutting orshredding.

    The apex pollution bodyhad in May developed the“Covid-19 BWM” mobileapplication to monitor coron-avirus-related biomedical wasteand to compile the datathrough electronic manifestsystem.

    SAUGAR SENGUPTA n KOLKATA

    The Prime Minister will forthe first time in his seven-year-rule virtually address theBengali population on October22, the Maha Sashthi Day(sixth day of the pujas), theState BJP leadership said.

    “Prime Minister NarendraModi ji will deliver a virtualaddress on the auspicious occa-sion of Durga Puja,” seniorleader and party’s observer forthe State Kailash Vijayvargiyasaid on Monday. Modi is like-ly to address the people of theState on October 22, he said.

    Home Minister Amit Shahtoo will reach out to the Bengalipopulation, the senior leadersaid. “We do not have the datesas yet but we are trying to bringAmit Shah ji in Bengal beforeDurga Puja,” Vijayvargiya said,adding the Home Ministerwould visit North Bengal dur-ing this period.

    Detailed Report on P5

    PTI n NEW DELHI

    The Supreme Court on Monday soughtresponse from the Centre on a batch of peti-tions challenging the constitutional validity ofthe newly enacted three contentious farm laws.

    A bench headed by Chief Justice SA Bobdeissued notice to the Central Government andsought its reply within four weeks.

    The three laws — Farmers’ (Empowermentand Protection) Agreement of Price Assuranceand Farm Services Act, 2020; Farmers’ ProduceTrade and Commerce (Promotion andFacilitation) Act, 2020 and The EssentialCommodities (Amendment) Act 2020 — tookeffect from September 27.

    The bench, also comprising Justices ASBopanna and V Ramasubramanian, was hear-ing pleas filed by Rashtriya Janta Dal lawmak-er from Rajya Sabha, Manoj Jha; Congress LokSabha MP from Kerala, TN Prathapan and DMKRajya Sabha MP from Tamil Nadu, Tiruchi Siva,and a petition filed by Rakesh Vaishnav.

    The petitions alleged that the three farm lawspassed by Parliament would dismantle theAgricultural Produce Market Committees sys-tem intended to ensure fair prices for farm products.

    PTI n NEW DELHI

    Seven Indians, who were were kidnapped inLibya last month, have been released, theMinistry of External Affairs said on Monday.The Indian nationals, hailing from AndhraPradesh, Bihar, Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh, werekidnapped at Asshwerif on September 14 whenthey were on their way to the Tripoli airport tocatch a flight to India.

    “We are happy to inform that the sevenIndian nationals who had been abducted atAsshwerif in Libya on September 14 were final-ly released Sunday,” the MEA said.

    Last week, MEA Spokesperson AnuragSrivastava said the Indians were working at aconstruction and Oil field supplies company.

    “Our Ambassador to Tunisia Puneet RoyKundal spoke to them over phone after they werehanded over by the abductors to the companyAl Shola Al Mudia. All of them are in goodhealth and are currently staying in the compa-ny’s premises in Brega. We are trying to com-plete requisite formalities to enable their returnto India,” the MEA said.

    Following the kidnapping, the Indianembassy in Tunisia reached out to the Libyangovernment authorities as also the internation-al organisations present there, seeking help inrescuing the Indian nationals.

    TN RAGHUNATHA n MUMBAI

    Large parts of the country’scommercial Capital, theneighbouring Thane, Palgharand Raigad districts in theMumbai Metropolitan Region(MMR) went without powerfor more than three and a halfhours on Monday, following acombination of factors, includ-ing sudden tripping of threemajor transmission lines andtwo power generating units.

    The power supply to manyparts of Mumbai, Thane, NaviMumbai, Palghar and Panvel —all coming under the jurisdic-tion of MMR — snapped ataround 10.03 am owing tohost of factors, including trip-

    ping of main 400kv Kalwa-Padgha line-2, Mumbai’s 500MW Tata Power Station and250 MW Adani power unit atDahanu.

    Following the powerbreakdown, the suburban ser-vices on the Western Railwayand Central Railway — con-

    sidered the lifelines of Mumbai— came to a standstill, follow-ing the power breakdown inmost parts of the metropolisand surrounding areas ofMMR.

    “Mumbai-Thane-Kalyanpower failure is being attend-ed to. Kalwa-Padgha trans-

    missions line got tripped, henceThane-Palghar, Navi Mumbaipower is off. Consequently,there was cascading effect inthe form of power failure toMumbai-Thane & Mumbaisuburban city. It will be restoredin approximately an hour,”Maharashtra Energy MinisterNitin Raut said.

    The power supply came tobe restored in many parts ofMumbai and surrounding areasof Mumbai in stages from12.15 pm to 1.30 pm.

    Taking serious cognisanceof major power failure,Maharashtra Chief MinisterUddhav Thackeray — whoheld a meeting with StateEnergy Minister Nitin Raut, hisdeputy Prajkta Tanpure, Statechief secretary Sanjay Kumar— ordered a comprehensiveenquiry into the circumstancesleading to the breakdown andalso asked the authorities totake measures to ensure againstrecurrence of a similar powerfailure in the metropolis.

    China-Pak nexus to keep border hot: RajnathDefence Minister inaugurates 44 bridges, mostly in border areas, to boost military infrastructure

    PNS n NEW DELHI

    India and China on Mondayfailed to break the logjameven as they reiterated theirresolve to hold a sustaineddialogue to defuse tension atthe Line of Actual Control(LAC) in Eastern Ladakh andrefrain from sending moretroops to the border. Both thesides also agreed to hold anoth-er round of military-level talksas soon as possible for disen-gagement and de-escalation.

    The two sides reaffirmedthese commitments during theseventh round of Corps

    Commander-level talks inChushul on the Indian side ofthe LAC in Ladakh.

    China insisted that Indiawithdraw its troops from thesouth bank of Pangong Tso(lake) before it pulls back itstroops. India was firm thatChina has to take the lead indisengaging and only then itwill gradually start the with-drawal process from the con-frontation sites.

    Elaborating upon the talks,sources said here later Indiawanted China to show its intentin bringing down temperatureat the volatile border. Thisfirm message was conveyed bythe Indian delegation led by 14Corps chief Lt GeneralHarinder Singh. The otherofficials included Lt General

    PK Menon who will replaceSingh as the 14 Corps chiefafter Singh moves as the IndianMilitary Academy (IMA) chiefnext week. The Chinese dele-gation was led by MajorGeneral Liu Lin.

    Both the delegationsincluded Foreign Ministry offi-cials thereby indicating keen-ness by both the countries tofind a solution at the earliest.Naveen Srivastava representedthe Indian Foreign Ministry inMonday’s talks, officials said.

    Reviewing the current sit-uation at the 1,700-km longLAC in Ladakh, both thecommanders expressed satis-faction over relative calm pre-vailing at the border sinceSeptember 10.

    ‘Who will blink first’ delaysIndia-China peace resolutionBoth agree to refrainfrom sending moretroops to border

    Cash in lieu of LTC,`10,000 advance toGovt staff, 50-yearinterest-free loan toStates to boost eco

    150 tn waste generated daily with worst-hit Maha contributing maximum 30 tn/day

    Modi to virtually address Bengal during Durga Puja

    Power outage stops Mumbai in its tracksCommercialCapital’s lifelinecut off for over 3and a half hours

    SC notice to Centre onpleas against farm laws’Constitutional validity

    7 Indians kidnappedin Libya released

    India’s Covid-19 biomedical waste woes enormous

    Four among 44 bridges, built by BRO across seven States and UTs, which were dedicated to the nation by Defence MinisterRajnath Singh on Monday PTI

    Defence Minister Rajnath Singh dedicates 44 major permanent bridges to thenation from New Delhi on Monday PTI

    A train halts at a station as local train services were disrupted due to major powersupply failure in Mumbai on Monday PTI

    Steps to create `1-L cradditional demand

    STATES TOTAL CASES DEATHS RECOVEREDMaharashtra 15,35,315 40,514 12,81,896Andhra Pradesh 7,58,951 6,256 7,08,712Karnataka 7,17,915 10,036 5,92,084Tamil Nadu 6,61,264 10,314 6,07,203Uttar Pradesh 4,39,161 6,438 3,93,908Delhi 3,11,188 5,809 2,84,844West Bengal 2,98,389 5,682 2,62,103Kerala 2,95,133 1,026 1,99,634Odisha 2,54,662 1,063 2,30,192Telangana 2,13,084 1,228 1,87,342Bihar 1,97,000 955 1,85,593Assam 1,95,304 826 1,66,036Rajasthan 1,61,184 1,665 1,37,848Gujarat 1,52,764 3,577 1,33,852Madhya Pradesh 1,48,298 2,645 1,30,721Haryana 1,43,221 1,592 1,31,228

    CASES: 71,73,069DEATHS: 1,09,892RECOVERED:62,24,262ACTIVE: 8,37,820

    Covid-19IN INDIATOTAL

    @TheDailyPioneer facebook.com/dailypioneerFollow us on:

    www.dailypioneer.com

    instagram.com/dailypioneer/

    *Late City Vol. 14 Issue 283*Air Surcharge Extra if Applicable

    Published FromDELHI LUCKNOW BHOPAL BHUBANESWAR

    RANCHI RAIPUR CHANDIGARHDEHRADUN HYDERABAD VIJAYWADA

    Established 1864RNI No. Regn. UTTENG/2007/22374, REGD. No. UA/DO/DDN/126/2016-2018

    DEHRADUN, TUESDAY OCTOBER 13, 2020; PAGES 12 `2

    }OPINION 6CONSENSUS

    IS VITAL

    WORLD 8US FORCES HIT TALIBAN WITH

    AIR STRIKES IN HELMAND

    STRUGGLETEACHES A LOT:HONEY SINGH11 VIVACITY }

    SPORT 12ENGLAND BEATBELGIUM 2-1

  • ���������������������� ��������������

    ����������������������������������

    ����������������������������� ��������������� ������������������������������������������ ��������������� �� ��������������� ������������������������������������������������������� ���������������������������������������������������������������������������� ���������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� ���������!����������������"��������������

    ��������������������������������������������������������������������

    ������������������������������������������#�������������������������������

    ����$���

    �%����&����������������������������������������������������������������'��������������������������������������������������"��������������������(�����������������������������

    ������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� ��!��"����#����$����#�������%�&'((���)(�*+%��,*�����-.(&+(+,,', ������������� ��������������������!�"#$�"%&'�����!(���")�����*�+������������,������� ���-����.�����/�����������+0� 0�1�02.��0��3�44.��/�������0�����5�����6��!����/���/7���/����$�����

    ������/5�(����$�������������/��������,����)�����/!��8�5�����2��

    5�6�� 5�������9����(�!�6,����"33444#� �����/433":4334:''�������������)�����/;"=44$:=%>>44����-��6)�����/:��;���������������(�������;�?

    �0������-��6"##8438�@���������/4'##"#

  • �������������������������� ��������������

    ���� �������

    While most of the jewellersexpect the possibility of ahike in the sale of gold jewelleryin the festive season, someexpect the sales to be dampeneddue to Covid-19 pandemic thisyear. As stated by a local jewellerSanjay Arora, people tend tospend money on buying differ-ent things during Diwali but inthe last few months, they haveseen a severe financial crisis.Hence, instead of investing inthings like cars, televisions orother types of machinery, peo-ple will think about investingtheir capital in assets like gold,stated Arora. Some also said thatsince people are not celebratingwedding functions lavishly, theyare investing the saved moneyin more gold jewellery. "Peoplehave a certain budget to spendon pieces of gold jewellery fora wedding. Now those whohad set money aside to spend on

    things like wedding halls, foodor relatives have extra moneydue to restraints in wedding cel-ebrations here. Thus the moneythey saved due to such restric-tions is being spent on buyinggold products as an invest-ment," informed the director ofMohanjee Jewellers, NakulKakkar. The owner of SamridhiJewellers, Satish Kumar Sainialso agreed that restrained wed-ding celebrations are allowingpeople to invest money fromtheir wedding budget in gold.Moreover, he said that the busi-ness of gold has been picking upgradually in the recent monthsand the sale will certainly getbetter in this festive season.

    On the other hand, theDehradun president ofUttarakhand Swarnkar Sanyukt,Pankaj Masson stated that thejewellers are doing only 10 percent of the business of the lastyear, so he is not sure about

    growth in the sale of gold dur-ing this festive season."Considering the financial cri-sis in the last six to sevenmonths, people are savingmoney for the hard times thatthey might have to face infuture. Shopping of gold jew-ellery is a secondary interest ofpeople and not a necessity thatthey will presently considerspending upon," opinedMasson. On the questionwhether the jewellers will givediscounts or offers to attractmore customers during Diwalithis year, Masson said that theyare hardly earning enough thisyear to pay their taxes so mostof the jewellers will probably notbe able to give huge discountslike in the past years. However,the jewellers added that this isthe best time to buy gold as theprices are presently quite stablebut there is a possibility of a hikein the prices of gold after theend of festivals.

    ���� �������

    Union Defence MinisterRajnath Singh inaugurat-ed 44 bridges constructed bythe Border Roads Organisation(BRO) in seven States andUnion Territories via video

    conference on Monday. Theseinclude eight bridges inUttarakhand, eight inArunachal Pradesh, two inHimachal Pradesh, 10 inJammu and Kashmir, eight inLadakh and four each inPunjab and Sikkim. The total

    span of the eight bridges inau-gurated in Uttarakhand is 390metres.

    Speaking on the occasion,inauguration of so manybridges and laying the founda-tion for a tunnel at one time isa big record. This will bring

    about a new era of connectiv-ity and development in the bor-der areas. India shares a con-siderable length of border withPakistan and China where ten-sions are not uncommon.Under Prime MinisterNarendra Modi’s leadership,

    these problems are being facedsuccessfully, he said. Singh fur-ther said that the BRO hasplayed an important role in thedefence and development ofborder areas. The constructionof the bridges inaugurated onMonday will help fulfil localaspirations while also assist

    the army in transporting essen-tial commodities. Appreciatingthe BRO, the union ministersaid that in the past four-fiveyears, the budgetary allocationto the organisation has beenincreased three folds and theresults of this change are alsobeing seen.

    Speaking on the occasion,the chief minister TrivendraSingh Rawat thanked the unionminister and congratulated theBRO personnel for construc-tion of 44 bridges in the bor-der regions. Apart from thestrategic importance of thesebridges, the locals will also ben-

    efit considerably from these.The bridges constructed inUttarakhand will also provehelpful for the tourists and thepilgrims under the KailashMansarovar Yatra. This devel-opment will also have a posi-tive impact on the economy ofthe region. The CM furthersaid that the demand forbridges in the Pithoragarhregion was a long standingdemand and seemed to be likea dream. Now this dream of thepeople in the region has beenfulfilled. Constructing highquality bridges in a short timein such difficult terrain showsthe commitment of the gov-ernment and the capabilities ofthe BRO, added Rawat.

    Union ministers JitendraSingh, Kiren Rijiju, MP AjayTamta, chief of defence staff,general Bipin Rawat, armychief general MM Naravane,BRO DGP Harpal Singh, chiefministers of the states con-cerned, lieutenant governors ofthe union territories and seniorofficials were also present onthe occasion.

    ���� �������

    Riding on increasing recovery andfewer number of fresh Covid-19cases, the recovery rate in Uttarakhandjumped past 85 percent mark onMonday. The Infection Rate (IR) whichis another important factor in gaugingthe contagion too is going down in thestate. The state now has a recovery rateof 85.47 and IR of 6.88 percent.However the disease is continuing toscare with its high fatality rate in thestate. On Monday death of 15 patientsof the disease was reported whichincreased the death toll to 762. On theday, 296 patients of the disease were

    reported by the state health departmentwhich increased the patient count to55347 in the state. The authorities dis-charged 664 patients from different hos-pitals of the state after their recoveryfrom the disease. A total of 47306patients have so far recovered from thedisease.

    At All India Institute of MedicalSciences (AIIMS) Rishikesh death offive patients of Covid-19 was reportedon Monday. Similarly death of fourpatients each was reported from SushilaTiwari Government Hospital, Haldwaniand Himalayan hospital, Dehradun.Two patients of Covid-19 succumbed todeath at CMI hospital Dehradun on theday.

    The health department reported108 fresh cases of Covid-19 fromDehradun, 31 each from Champawatand Nainital, 26 from Haridwar, 23 fromUttarkashi, 19 from Almora, 16 fromUdham Singh Nagar, 12 from Pauri, 10

    from Pithoragarh, ninefrom Chamoli, sixRudraprayag, four fromBageshwar and one fromTehri on Monday. The statenow has 6976 activepatients of the disease.Dehradun district with2059 active cases is at topof table while Haridwarwith 1183 active cases is onsecond spot. Nainital has720, Udham Singh Nagar536, Tehri 460, Pauri 451,Uttarkashi 408, Chamoli279, Pithoragarh 238,Rudraprayag 208,Champawat 173, andAlmora 133 active cases ofthe disease. With 128 activecases of Covid-19,Bageshwar now is at bot-tom of the table of activecases in Uttarakhand.

    ���� �������

    To promote pisciculture inUttarakhand, the depart-ment of fisheries is planning toimport trout variety of fishesfrom Denmark. Informationregarding this was provided bythe state minister for womenand child development andfisheries, Rekha Arya during areview of the department at heroffice in Vidhan Sabha onMonday. In the meeting theminister directed the officials toexpedite work in constructionof ‘ideal ponds’ for fish culturein the rural areas of the state.The minister said that underthe ‘Blue revolution’ scheme theworks like strengthening of

    ponds and hatcheries and pro-viding good quality seeds tofarmers should be undertaken.

    Reviewing the works ofthe department for the finan-cial year 2019-20, the ministersaid that all the districtsachieved the targets. She how-ever added that the department

    could not fulfill the completedemand of fish seeds duringthe Covid-19 pandemic. Theminister said that the depart-ment would provide benefits ofits schemes to all thosereturnees who want to adoptfish culture. She said that thebudget for the year 2020-21 has

    been received and directed theofficials to ensure its speedytransfer to the districts.

    The secretary R MeenakshiSundaram, officiating direc-tor, fisheries, H K Purohit andofficers of fisheries of all thedistricts were present on theoccasion.

    ���� �������

    The medical experts of AllIndia Institute of MedicalSciences (AIIMS) Rishikeshhave warned that ignoring thekidney stone pain can damageother parts of the body, whichcan be life threatening. Theypoint out that one of the mostcommonly ignored ailmentsin people is renal stone disease(nephrolithiasis).

    The Head, Department ofUrology, Dr Ankur Mittal saidthat renal stones affect all agesfrom infancy to the elderlypopulation and they are formeddue to the super saturation ofthe urine with substances suchas calcium, uric acid, cystineand oxalate. “In the initialphase these substances formcrystals and around them thereis further deposition and even-tually a kidney stone is formed.Stones can either pass throughthe urinary passage and beextruded in the urine or lie

    asymptomaticallyin the kidney. It iswhen they getobstructed in anypart of the kidneyor urinary tractthat symptomsdevelop,’’ he said.

    The symptomsof renal stone dis-ease include fluc-tuating and excru-ciating pain in theabdomen, groinand flank regionthat can lead to uri-nary tract infectionwith fever andchills, burning mic-turition and even passage ofblood in urine. “An expertshould be immediately con-tacted in case of excessiveunbearable pain in the flank orin the groin,’’ the doctor sug-gested.

    Dr Mittal said that oneshould drink more fluids toproduce at least two litres of

    urine per day and variousdietary modifications areadvised in the form of a saltrestricted diet, cutting backon the consumption of meatwith avoidance of caffeinateddrinks, nuts, foods that containfructose corn syrup to combatthe disease.

    The Director of AIIMS

    Rishikesh Ravikant said thatsoon an ‘Advanced UrologyCentre’ which is in its finalstage of completion would startfunctioning in the institute. Thecentre would have a worldclass 'Dornier lithotripsymachine', and a radiology suitefor urological interventions,he added.

    ���� ����

    In the public interest litigationfiled against encroachment ina reserved forest area alleged-ly by Chidanand Saraswati,advocate Vikas Singh who isalso the counsel for the familyof late actor Sushant SinghRajput, appeared for the defen-dant in the Uttarakhand highcourt on Monday. Singh soughtthat the affidavit filed by himbe heard but the court setNovember 2 as the next date forhearing. The court has alsodirected the state governmentto inform whether theencroachment has beenremoved or not.

    The petitioner hasinformed the court thatSaraswati had approached theSupreme Court against thehigh court’s order but the Apexcourt provided no relief andreferred the matter to the highcourt. The division bench ofacting chief justice RaviVijaykumar Malimath and jus-

    tice RC Khulbe heard the mat-ter.

    It will be recalled thatHaridwar resident ArchanaShukla had filed the PIL alleg-ing that Chidanand Saraswatihad encroached upon 35 bighaland in reserved forest area ofVirpur Khurd near Rishikeshwhere he had reportedly got 52rooms, one large hall and agaushala constructed. The peti-tioner has further averred that

    due to the influential connec-tions of the person, the forestdepartment and revenuedepartment had ignored theencroachment. As no actionhad been taken despite repeat-edly informing the authoritiesconcerned, she had to file thePIL in the high court. The peti-tioner has sought the land befreed of the encroachment andbe returned to the govern-ment.

    ���� �������

    The Municipal Corporation ofDehradun (MCD) and districtadministration will commence thedemolition of the encroachments inthe city from Tuesday. According tothe officials, the city is broadlydivided into the four zones for theremoval of encroachments and thecorporation will possibly start thework to demolish the establish-ments in the encroached area ofthese zones together.

    The Dehradun municipal com-missioner, Vinay Shankar Pandey isthe head of the anti-encroachmenttask force in the city. Talking aboutthis, Pandey said that all the arrange-ments have been made to remove theencroachments by the corporation.He said that the MCD already has allthe necessary information fordemolishing the structures includ-ing the survey records and details ofmarked encroached areas ofDehradun so the process of demo-

    lition would start without any has-sle on Tuesday.

    He further informed that thenews of demolition was also spreadthrough various means like audioannouncements in the city in themarked areas to make people awareof the situation. On the question ofthe removal of encroachments alongthe riverside areas like the con-structions along the Rispana andBindal rivers, Pandey said that thoseare slum areas and the demolitiontask will not disturb such areas.

    The task of removing encroach-ments will be carried out mainly inthe areas including Rajpur Road,Haridwar Road, Chakrata Road andSaharanpur Road, as per the officials.The officials informed that in the lastfew weeks, the complaints against theencroachments in the city, especial-ly in the marketplaces, also increasedin the corporation and demolition ofsuch structures will possibly providesome relaxation to the residents ofthe city.

    ������������������������������������������������

    �����������������

    '�$����������(���������)*+���������

    ���� �������

    The founder of SocialDevelopment for Communities(SDC) foundation, Anoop Nautiyalhas said that the Uttarakhandshould take a lesson from theKerala experience where the Covid-19 cases witnessed an increase of126 percent after the festival ofOnam and plan accordingly for the

    upcoming festival season. He said that with the festivals

    like Dussehra and Diwali round thecorner, there is no space for lower-ing the guard against the disease.Nautiyal said that the last few dayshave brought relief to the state interms of less number of Covid-19cases and higher recovery rate butthe state should now remain pre-pared for the next challenge to keepthe contagion under check in theupcoming festival season.

    “The Kerala experience andOnam case study should be kept inmind when we plan our upcomingfestival Corona management strat-egy in Uttarakhand. Citizens alsoneed to exercise self restraint dur-ing these days,’’ he said.

    �����!�"�#���#�#���������������� $����%����##����!&

    �����#���������������#�#�"��� ���

    ���������������������������������������

    '����$������(�� )��������"�#��"�����

    �������������������������(�������#�����

    ������#�����#��������#��������*+�����,��

    -����(������������������$������������������������������#������������

    ����������������������������������

    ���)�������������!����������'�%*����

    +�����������������������*��������'�����!��

  • �������-�������������� ��������������

    ���� ��������

    Researchers at Indian Institute ofTechnology (IIT), Madras, havedeveloped an environment-friendly anti-bacterial food wrapping material that isalso fit for consumption.

    According to the team, which hasalso filed a patent for the wrapper, itsproduct can tackle two major problems-- prevent packaged food contaminationby bacteria and reduce the plastic wastegenerated in the environment when dis-posing the wrappers.

    “We have developed a biodegradablewrapping material with in-built anti-bac-terial activity to prevent bacterial growthin stored food. It degrades at variousenvironmental conditions with the rateof degradation varying from 4 to 98 percent in 21 days, thus playing a major rolein plastic waste reduction,” said MukeshDoble, Professor, Department ofBiotechnology.

    The films developed by researcherswere made with polymeric blends con-taining starch, polyvinyl alcohol, cyclicbeta glycans (CBG). The compositionwas optimised to achieve the best filmwith a smooth texture, flexibility, uni-form thickness and good clarity.

    “Our anti-bacterial coated polymerwrapper was used for wrapping paneer,meat and chicken and its performancewas tested. Samples were placed in 4

    degrees Celsius and 30 degrees Celsiusfor 10 days and tested for the effect ofthe coating on reducing the bacterialgrowth with respect to the uncoatedwrapper,” said Puja Kumari, researchscholar at IIT Madras.

    “Our study found that 99.999 percent reduction in bacterial colonies wasobserved in food samples wrapped withour anti-bacterial wrap and stored at 30degrees Celsius for 10 days when com-pared with a plain wrapper. This studyalso suggests that our anti-microbialwrapper can, to some extent overcome,the reduced availability of cold storageunits,” she added.

    Packaging is projected to grow intoa US$72.6 billion industry in India by2020 from about US$31 billion in 2015,with a proportionate rise in waste vol-umes. According to a report by WorldEconomic Forum, if no immediate stepsare taken, oceans may have more plas-tic than fish (in terms of weight) by 2050.

    ���� ��������

    Reinforcing the need for goodpractices such as regular handwashing and cleaning surfaces, astudy has found that novel coron-avirus responsible for Covid-19may survive for up to 28 days oncommon surfaces, including ban-knotes, glass — such as that foundon smartphone screens — and stain-less steel. The laboratory study byAustralia’s national science agenciesis published in the Virology Journal.

    The research, undertaken at theAustralian Centre for DiseasePreparedness (ACDP), found thatSARS-CoV-2 survived longer atlower temperatures and on non-porous or smooth surfaces such asglass, stainless steel and vinyl, com-pared to porous complex surfacessuch as cotton.

    The researchers at CSIRO,Australia’s national science agency,also found that the novel coron-avirus survived longer on paper ban-knotes than plastic banknotes.

    “Establishing how long the virusreally remains viable on surfacesenables us to more accurately pre-dict and mitigate its spread, and doa better job of protecting our peo-ple,” said CSIRO Chief ExecutiveLarry Marshall.

    “At 20 degrees Celsius, which isabout room temperature, we foundthat the virus was extremely robust,surviving for 28 days on smooth sur-faces such as glass found on mobilephone screens and plastic banknotes,”Debbie Eagles, Deputy Director ofACDP added.

    For context, similar experi-ments for Influenza A have foundthat it survived on surfaces for 17days, which highlights just howresilient SARS-CoV-2 is, theresearchers said.

    The study involved drying thevirus in an artificial mucus on dif-ferent surfaces, at concentrationssimilar to those reported in samplesfrom infected patients and then re-isolating the virus over a month.

    Further experiments were car-

    ried out at 30 and 40 degreesCelsius, with survival times decreas-ing as the temperature increased.The study was also carried out in thedark, to remove the effect of UVlight as research has demonstrateddirect sunlight can rapidly inactivatethe virus.

    “While the precise role of sur-face transmission, the degree of sur-face contact and the amount of virusrequired for infection is yet to bedetermined, establishing how longthis virus remains viable on surfacesis critical for developing risk miti-gation strategies in high contactareas,” Eagles said.

    According to Professor TrevorDrew, Director of ACDP, manyviruses remained viable on surfacesoutside their host.

    ���� ��������

    Stepping up their attack on theUttar Pradesh Governmentover the Hathras case, Congressleaders Rahul Gandhi andPriyanka Gandhi Vadra onMonday accused it of beinginsensitive and unethical, andsaid authorities are indulging invictim-blaming instead ofputting criminals in jail. TheCongress also launched a socialmedia campaign, urging people,especially women, to speak upfor the Hathras victim.

    “The Government’s atti-tude in the Hathras incident isinhuman and unethical. Theyare engaged in protecting thecriminals rather than helpingthe victim’s family,” RahulGandhi said. “Let us take onestep towards change, let us raiseour voice against the injusticebeing done to women all overthe country,” he said in a tweetin Hindi, using the hashtag

    “SpeakUpForWomenSafety”. A19-year-old Dalit woman fromHathras district was allegedlyraped and attacked by fourmen, and she later succumbedto injuries at a Delhi hospital.

    The former Congress pres-ident said a few days ago,before he could reach Hathras,he was stopped by authorities.“I fail to understand, why wasI stopped and not allowed tomeet with the Hathras victim’sfamily,” he said.

    Rahul alleged that themoment he reached the victim’shouse and talked to her fami-

    ly, the government startedattacking the family. “It is notthe government’s job to helpand protect the perpetrators ofthe crime but send them to jailand help the victim get justice.The Uttar Pradesh govern-ment is not doing its job andthat is why I am being stopped,”he said in a nearly two-minutevideo attached with his tweet.The video clip alsoshows footage ofhis visit toHathras andhow he wasstopped.

    “I want totell theGovernment tostart doing its job ofsending the criminals to jailand protect the victims. This isnot the story of just onewoman, this is the story oflakhs of women in India. Lakhsof women are looking up to theGovernment, which is not

    doing its work,” he said.Priyanka said crimes against

    women are rising and instead of

    listening to the truth and thevoice of the victim women, alle-gations are levelled against them

    and they are defamed. “This isthe most shameful and coward-ly act,” she said.

    ���� ��������

    More than 52,000 voters, who are either senior cit-izens above 80 years of age orare people with disabilities, haveopted for postal ballot in the firstphase of Bihar elections to beheld on October 28.

    According to the ElectionCommission (EC), BoothLevel Officers (BLO) in 71constituencies spread across16 districts of the state had approached over four lakhvoters of the two categories.

    The remaining electors have preferred to visit thepolling booth to cast vote.

    Those who have opted for the facility would be pro-vided postal ballots on a pre-informed date by the con-cerned returning officers with proper security andvideography arrangements to ensure secrecy, safety, andtransparency in the process. Bypolls are to be held onNovember 3 and November 7. BLOs will visit homes ofapproximately 12 lakh such electors in Bihar in the nexttwo phases of elections to help them exercise the postalballot option.

    An official explained that this postal ballot facilityis different from the one extended to service voters.

    ���� ��������

    The DRDO on Monday launched the indige-nously designed and manufactured Nirbhaysubsonic cruise missile, with a range of 700 to 1,000km, but aborted the trial after it developed a tech-nical snag on Monday off Balasore integrated testrange, Odisha at about 10.30 am.

    Scientists are now analyzing the snag beforeconducting the next test shortly, sources said here.

    The DRDO has already carried out severalsuccessful trials of the ‘Nirbhay’ missile sinceOctober 2014. Some of these missiles along withBrahmos supersonic cruise missile and Akashare now deployed at some crucial sites close tothe LAC since the stand-offs with China beganin mid May.

    Powered by a solid rocket motor boosterdeveloped by the Advanced Systems Laboratory(ASL), the Nirbhay missile has an operationalrange of 1,000 km, officials said.

    In the last few weeks, India has test-fired anumber of missiles including a new version ofthe surface-to-surface supersonic cruise missileBrahMos and anti-radiation missile Rudram-1.India also carried out successful test-firing of alaser-guided anti-tank missile and nuclear-capable hypersonic missile ‘Shaurya’.

    The successful test firing of Rudram-1 isseen as a major milestone as it is India’s firstindigenously developed anti-radiation weapon.

    New Delhi: TheSupreme Court onMonday sought theCentre’s reply on aPIL seeking equalprotection in law totransgender peopleon the grounds thatthere was no penal provision which pro-tects them from offences of sexualassault. A Bench headed by ChiefJustice SA Bobde said it was a “goodcase” which needed hearing.

    The Bench, also comprising JusticesAS Bopanna and V Ramasubramanian,asked senior advocate Vikas Singh,representing petitioner lawyer ReepakKansal, to file details of cases where thecourt had passed orders in the absenceof laws to deal with issues.

    In a hearing conducted via videoconferencing, the bench referred to theframing of the Vishaka guidelines todeal with sexual harassment of womenat work places and the decriminalisationof consensual gay sex by the apex courtin the absence of laws. Singh said hewould be filing such details as asked bythe court. PTI

    ���� ���������

    The BJP on Monday con-demned former ChiefMinister and NationalConference head FarooqAbdullah and called his state-ment that he hoped Article 370will be restored in Jammu &Kashmir with China’s help, as“seditious”.

    “On September 24, FarooqAbdullah said that if you go toJammu and Kashmir and askpeople if they are Indians, thenpeople will say that we are notIndians. In the same state-ment, he also said it would begood if we could join China,”BJP National spokespersonSambit Patra said in a Press conference here describ-ing Abdullah as a “repeatoffender”.

    He said Abdullah’s state-ment is a reflection of hismindset. “In a way, FarooqAbdullah justifies China’s

    expansionist mindset in hisinterview. At the same time,another traitor comments thatif we get a chance in future, wewill bring Article 370 backwith China.”

    “Questioning the sover-eignty of the country, ques-tioning the independence ofthe country. Does it suit anMP? Aren’t these anti-nation-al things? The same FarooqAbdullah had asked whetherPoK belongs to India’s fatherthat it will take PoK, as ifPakistan had worn bangles,”Patra said adding, “The kind of

    softness Abdullah has shownfor Pakistan and China raisesa lot of questions.”

    The BJP spokesperson sawAbdullah and former Congresspresident Rahul Gandhi as “co-brothers” toeing the same line

    Attacking Rahul for ques-tioning India’s surgical strikesand air strikes on Pakistan,Patra said now Farooq Abdullahhas become a hero in China.

    He said Raul’s commentson J&K following abrogation ofArticle 370 were quoted byPakistan premier Imran Khan.

    “Only Farooq Abdullahsays this is not so, if you go intohistory and listen to the recentstatements of Rahul Gandhi,you will find that these are twosides of the same coin.”

    “This is the same RahulGandhi who said a week agothat the prime minister is acoward, the prime minister ishidden, scared,” the BJPspokesperson said.

    ���� ��������������

    Yesteryears’ actress KhushbuSundar, for whom fansbuilt a temple and an idli was named after her, ditchedthe Congress and joined theBJP on Monday.

    “The nation has to moveforward and we need some-body like our Prime MinisterNarendra Modi to take thecountry in the right direction.I am completely at service tothe BJP and I promise to do mybest and to the responsibilitiesthat will be given to me,” saidKhushbu after she was issuedprimary membership by CTRavi, national secretary of theBJP, at the party headquartersin Delhi. She later met BJPpresident JP Nadda.

    Earlier, she dispatched herletter of resignation from theCongress to party chief Sonia

    Gandhi saying: “Few elementsseated at a higher level withinthe party, people who have noconnectivity with the groundreality or public recognition aredictating terms and people likeme who wanted to work for theparty sincerely are beingpushed and suppressed.”

    Khushbu, known to behand-picked by formerCongress president RahulGandhi joins the list of otherparty spokespersons like TomVadakkan and PriyankaChaturvedi who quit to join theBJP and the Shiv Sena respec-tively. Another spokespersonSanjay Jha was suspended fromthe party recently.

    “I will work like any otherparty workers,” said the actresswho also worked in Hindifilms like Sunil Dutt-director-ial ‘Dard ka Rishta’ wherein sheplayed the role of his daughter.

    She was the nationalspokesperson of the Congresssince joining the party in 2014.During 2010 to 2014 she was inthe DMK as the blue-eyed girlof the then party supremo M

    Karunanidhi. “It will not have any impact

    on Tamil Nadu politics,”Dinesh Gundu Rao, theCongress’s in-charge for TamilNadu, said.

    Narayanan Thirupathi, BJPspokesman, said Khushbu’sjoining the party would makeit more acceptable to the peo-ple of the State because of herpopularity and acceptability.

    But Sam Rajappa, veterancommentator and columnist,said Khushbu joining the BJPwould not make any impact inTamil Nadu politics.

    The BJP in Tamil Nadu isfacing an identity crisis andKhushbu’s entry would notadd much fragrance or flavourto the party, according to RRangaraj, author and scribe.

    He pointed out that theAIADMK with which the BJPhas an alliance kept the latteraway from recent assembly by-elections in Tamil Nadu as theformer believes that the defeat in38 out of the 39 seats in the LokSabha election was due to ananti-BJP wave in Tamil Nadu.

    ������$�����������������������%&

    �������������������'����()������*���������������������������������������+�����������

    *.%///������������#�����������������0����#�!���������1�2

    ����������������������������������������

    2���������������������������.)��������$���������#$��

    ((.#����4���������#�����������#��4������������������

    �������������������������������!����������������"

    New Delhi: The SupremeCourt on Monday said it willhear after four weeks a plea ofjournalists’ organisation againstthe arrest of a scribe by UPPolice in Mathura while he wason way to Hathras, home to aDalit woman who died afterbeing allegedly gangraped byfour upper-caste men.

    A Bench headed by ChiefJustice SA Bobde asked thepetitioner to amend the peti-tion and observed that theyshould approach the AllahabadHigh Court for the relief.

    The Kerala Union of

    Working Journalists (KUWJ)had filed a habeas corpus peti-tion in the top court against thearrest of the journalist,Sidhique Kappan.

    Senior advocate Kapil Sibal,appearing for the petitioner,told the bench, also comprisingJustices AS Bopanna and VRamasubramanian, thatUnlawful Activities(Prevention) Act charges havebeen added in the case and nocourt in the State will give hisclient any relief.

    “UAPA has been invoked.No court will not give me bail

    and the case will go on foryears. This is a Habeas corpuspetition but we can file a freshpetition under Article 32 of theConstitution which came beentertained by this court,”Sibal said after the apex courtmentioned that the petitionersshould approach the Allahabadhigh court for relief.

    The apex court, however,said that habeas corpus peti-tion can be only filed by fam-ily members. Sibal then soughttime to amend the petitionafter which the matter wasadjourned. PTI

    �2���������������(���������������������&�����$�����������

    ./$�������0����2)���������������������

    ./$������������������/$�������������+�������������������������������������������������������3�����������!�56���������������������! $+7

  • �������.�������������� ��������������

    ���������� � ����

    Every single security person-nel including jawans of theIndian Army, who laid downtheir lives in the line of duty thisyear, went down only aftereliminating at least three ter-rorists in different anti terroristoperations across Kashmir val-ley.

    Director General of Jammu& Kashmir Police DilbaghSingh on Monday said, “a totalnumber of 180 terrorists, 20more than the previous yeartally of 160 have been neu-tralised till date in 75 success-ful operations while 55 securi-ty personnel including 15 armymen have sacrificed their livesin action”.

    He said a total number of 19jawans of Jammu and Kashmirpolice, 21 CRPF personnel and15 Indian Army soldiers havemade the supreme sacrifice sofar.

    On Monday, the joint teamof security forces gunned downtwo more Lashkar-e-Tayyeba(LeT) terrorists, including a

    top Pakistani commanderinvolved in targeted killing ofsecurity forces in the recentweeks. A total number of 18 ter-rorists have been gunned downin eight encounters in andaround Srinagar only.

    In the last five days thesecurity forces have flushed out10 terrorists in four differentoperations in the Sugan area ofShopian, Kulgam, Pulwama andSrinagar, he added while pattingthe back of the security per-sonnel for conducting success-ful operations without sufferingany collateral damage.

    Addressing a press confer-ence in Srinagar on Monday,Director General of PoliceDilbagh Singh said, “ a totalnumber of 10 terrorists havebeen neutralised in four differ-ent operations in the last fivedays in Kashmir valley”. Hesaid, the top LeT Commandergunned down in Rambagh areaof Srinagar on Monday hasbeen identified as Saifullah (aPakistani National) while hislocal associate has been identi-fied as Irshad Ahmed Dar @

    Abu Usama resident ofPulwama. Referring to totalarrests made so far DGP said,“180 terrorists and their asso-ciates/Over ground workershave been arrested while a totalnumber of 26 terrorists havejoined the mainstream afterlaying down their arms beforethe security forces.

    As per police records, theLeT Commander Saifullah infil-trated earlier this year and sincethe last two months had shift-ed his base from north to southKashmir. He was involved inplanning & executing severalmajor terror attacks on securi-ty forces which includes killingof a CRPF officer at Chadoora

    on 24/09/2020 and 02 CRPFpersonnel at Kandizal area ofPampore on 05/10/2020. He wasalso part of the group involvedin killing of two police person-nel at Nowgam Srinagar on14/08/2020. Besides, he wasalso involved in firing on con-voy on 21/09/2020 in Nowgamarea.

    New Delhi : CPI MP Binoy Viswam onMonday filed a writ petition in SupremeCourt challenging the constitutionalvalidity of the newly enacted three agri-culture laws. Urging the apex court tostrike down the laws as unconstitution-al, the MP in his petition alleged that thelegislations violate the federal structureof India's constitutional framework.

    “The challenge proceeds on two lev-els: At the first level, the petitionerclaims that the passage of two of the farm-ers' Bills in the Rajya Sabha by a voice votedeprived it of chance to properly delib-erate and vote on the statutes prior to its

    passing,” the Left leader said in a state-ment. According to Viswam, “this vio-lates Articles 100 and 107 of theConstitution of India, depriving theUpper House of proper consideration ofthe bill passed”. On the second level,Viswam challenges the statutes on vari-ous grounds as being in violation ofArticles 14, 19, and 21 of the Constitution.

    “The petitioner also charges parlia-ment to have no legislative competenceto enact the legislations as being in vio-lation of the division of subjects underSchedule VII of the Constitution,” thestatement said. PNS

    New Delhi: The Information TechnologyMinistry’s digital arm Common ServicesCenters (CSC) has partnered with IITBombay through its Spoken Tutorial initia-tive to provide various IT courses for youthin rural India to enhance their job readinessin IT and related sectors.

    The courses available as Free and OpenSoftware (FOSS) will be delivered throughCSC Academy centers at the block level acrossthe country in audio-visual mode. The audiolessons under the Spoken Tutorial are avail-able in all 22 official languages of India. Thecourse delivery is unique as the youth canstudy IT programming courses at the CSCAcademy centers. There will be trainedresources at each of the CSC Academy to sup-port the students in learning. Help Desk facil-ity will also be provided by IIT Bombay toaddress the queries of the students.

    “It has been our endeavour to providequality education to students and youth inrural areas to bridge the digital divide. Ourassociation with IIT Bombay is a significant

    step in that direction. Availability of coursesin 22 languages will increase its uptake amongthe youth in rural areas, contributing to anAtma Nirbhar Bharat. This will also supportin skilling the youth to meet the emergingtechnological challenges,” CEO CSC Dr.Dinesh Tyagi said.

    Elaborating on the partnership IITBombay Director Prof. Subhasis Chaudhurisaid with this ICT program we can bridge thedigital divide between rural and urban areas.“Language will not be a barrier for learningas this training program is available in 22 offi-cial languages of India.

    With proficiency certificate, youth fromrural areas will come up very strongly in thejob market and India will become AtmaNirbhar.” CSC Academy provides access toprofessional learning for learners of diversebackgrounds and educational needs. CSC hasplanned to set up 7,000 CSC Academy cen-tres (one in every block) across the country,out of which more than 5000 are in place. PNS

    CHENNAI/KOCHI: TheKerala Government has founda new method to bring downthe number of new patientsafflicted with Covid-19. OnMonday the State saw the num-ber of new cases diagnosedwith the pandemic getting lim-ited to 5,930 as per the pressrelease issued by theDepartment of Health. The daysaw authorities testing 38, 259samples.

    “There is some discrepan-cy in these numbers because itis not possible to bring down the

    number of new patients by halfwithin 24 hours. On Sunday, theState tested 9,347 new cases butthe number of samples testedwere 62,000,” said a seniorGovernment doctor who hasbeen cynical from the begin-ning about the figures releasedby the Government.

    Out of the 5,930 personsdiagnosed with Covid-19 onMonday, 4,767 contracted thepandemic through social con-tacts. The day also saw 195health workers getting afflictedwith Covid-19. PNS

    8�:;

  • The new farm laws mightnot be as disruptive astheir critics want us tobelieve. They are appar-ently as logical andtimely reforms as interventions likeState procurement and notifying ofMinimum Support Price (MSP)had been in the mid-1960s. Theruling and Opposition parties areengaged in a wholly avoidablefracas, both refusing to view thingsin totality. The Opposition isindulging in loathing and fear-mongering, reminiscent of thetimes when economic liberalisa-tion was introduced in 1991.Paradoxically, it was the Congress’Government then. The party nowis behaving differently when in theOpposition.

    The Government’s cavalier atti-tude to the Opposition parties’stance is equally uncharitable.Motives have been imputed to theirdecision. They are accused of hav-ing a vested interest in theAgricultural Produce MarketCommittee (APMC)-run mandis,besides being friendly towards themiddlemen who call the shots inthose market yards. Ironically, onthe National Agriculture Marketportal (eNAM), started by thepresent Government in 2016, therewere no less than 83, 958 commis-sion agents registered as on August31. Why is the Government pro-moting middlemen here?

    The fear that APMC-run man-dis would be abolished is largelyunfounded. The eNAM platformcan today boast of connectingabout a 1,000 of them across 18States and three Union Territories(UT). However, the passage of theBills was not preceded by any kindof consensus-building. There wasno dialogue with the farmers’unions, State Governments or theOpposition parties. The laws wererushed through the Ordinanceroute on June 5. This starkly con-trasts with the spirit of federalismand the consensus model thatmarked the implementation ofthe Goods and Services Tax (GST).The matters concerned with agri-culture being under the State list inSchedule VII of the Constitutioncalled for Centre-State consensus.

    The legislative competence ofParliament to discuss a Bill on asubject placed in the State list(Schedule VII of the Constitution)was questioned by some members.However, we have precedence ofthe Seeds Act, 1966, which is a

    Central legislation. It was one ofthe key legislations enactedduring the Green Revolutionera. Still, one is reminded of howthe Atal Bihari VajpayeeGovernment approached thecontentious subject of contractfarming. This was envisaged inthe National Agriculture Policy2000. Instead of bringing aCentral law, the Government in2003 circulated a ModelAgricultural Produce Marketing(Regulation) Act to the States foradoption in 2003. The ensuingUPA-I Government continuedthe policy. Contract farming wasincluded as an option in theNational Farmers Policy (2007).By August 2007, a total of 15States had brought amendmentsin the APMC (Regulation) Actsbased on the model legislation.

    Why did the four LabourCodes, recently enacted, did notbecome a source of disputedespite the presence of contro-versial provisions? This wasbecause the Codes, meant toreduce 29 existing labour lawsinto four legislations, were vet-ted by the department-relatedStanding Committee of the LokSabha. It was chaired byBhartruhari Mahtab of BijuJanata Dal. The Governmentagreed to several suggestions ofthe committee.

    How justified is the claim thatprevious governments had keptthe farmers in chains? Such aview stems from inadequateappreciation of facts. Definitepro-farmer measures were takenby Indian National Congresssince 1937 when it formed gov-

    ernments in coalition in sevenout of 11 provinces (underGovernment of India Act 1935).These included debt relief mea-sures, tenancy reforms andlicencing and regulation ofmoney lenders and so on. Butseparation from Burma (nowMyanmar) from the IndianUnion in 1937 stressed riceavailability in India.

    India’s agricultural policysince Independence was aimedat attaining food security. Withfragmented landholdings, inad-equate electricity supply, pitiableirrigation facilities and pooracreage, production was insuf-ficient. To bridge the require-ment and availability of foodgrains, India entered into anagreement with the US undertheir Public Law 480 on August29, 1956. It allowed India toobtain wheat, rice, cotton, dairyproducts and tobacco in Indianrupees. It could not, however, bedenied that import of foodgrains, in excess of the marketrequirement, de-incentivisedthe farmer to produce more.The production increased as theimports were brought down torealistic levels around 1966.However, the completion ofthe Bhakra-Nangal Dam onBeas-Sutlej (1963) was anachievement of the JawaharlalNehru Government, whichaccelerated the advent of theGreen Revolution.

    The current regime of MSPand Government procurementis a legacy of the short-lived LalBahadur Shastri Government(June 11, 1964 to January 10,

    1966). It had its origin in thedecline in wheat production,consecutively between 1962 to1964, and decline and margin-al recovery of rice productionduring the corresponding peri-od. This compelled theGovernment to revisit its openmarket policy for wheat andmodest control on transportand sale of rice. The severity ofthe food shortage could beunderstood from the sheernumber of speeches that Shastridelivered on the subject as thePrime Minister. His SelectedSpeeches, published by thePublications Division, Ministryof I&B (1972) categorises atotal of 10 under “FoodProblems.”

    The Shastri Governmentmoved in towards a regime ofgreater regulation and controlon sale, purchase and move-ment of food grains. On January1, 1965, two new organisationswere created, which becamethe hallmark of theGovernment’s intervention inthe agricultural sector. Thesewere Food Corporation of India(FCI) and Agricultural PricesCommission (now Commissionfor Agricultural Costs andPrices). The ambit ofGovernment procurement,which was limited to a few edi-ble items in the beginning, nowextends to 23 items (in additionto sugarcane).

    The developments since theGreen Revolution (1967) haveled to the growth in acreageand food surplus situation.Time is ripe for addressing the

    neglected problem of agricul-tural marketing. In pursuit ofdoubling the farmers’ incomeby 2022 (from the level of2016), the Narendra ModiGovernment formed a com-mittee led by Ashok Dalwai,IAS. The committee produceda 14-volume eminently read-able report. Though the deci-sion to “liberalise” the farm wasnot among its direct recom-mendations, one has to realisethat significant decisions arealways political rather thanbureaucratic in nature. Thefarmers must have better alter-natives for remunerative pric-ing with legal safeguards. Eventoday, there is no legal restric-tion on farmers selling his/herproduct in the open market.What cripples the farmer, how-ever, is not merely the logisti-cal problem but also theabsence of a legal architectureto protect his/her interests.

    A single line in these Acts,like “notwithstanding anythingcontained in the aforesaid sec-tions, no trade transactionsshould take place below thenotified MSP”, would haveallayed the misgivings of thefarmers. A line in time couldhave saved the Governmentfrom putting eight CabinetMinisters on ground (notincluding the Agriculture andFarmer Welfare MinisterNarendra Singh Tomar) to con-vince agitating agriculturists.

    (The writer is an author andindependent researcher based inNew Delhi. The views expressedhere are personal)

    #���)*)*����������������������������������#�����������+����,����(����������������+������-%����$������

    ��%���������������������.�������������������/������������������������������������������0��������������+����,�����0���%����$������� �����������������������(����������������������������������������������(�������������1���������������������(�����������/����������������2��������!���� �����������-3��������$������������-4����������"�������!���+���&��������)*��&�

    ������%����.�����������������������������������������50���������6��6�����7��������������� �����������������������������������������������������������������.���)**3&�8�������6���������������+�������������������������������$�����������

    ������������������������49����9-%����.�����������:�������������� �����������������(�����������������+��������������������������--�����������8�������)**;�����������������$�.������&�������-������������������������������������������������,��������"���������������2�����.��������&������������������������� ����������������������������%���������&�����������������������;-+������-��������/���1������������

    ������������)*)-�����

    ��������������������������������������-**+������-����������������������������������#�����������(���������������?�����+������������������������������ �����.��������&�����2����������>�����������������������&�������>����

    �����.�����������������������

    �����=�� �����>����������������������������

    ���@���� �����������������(�������������

    �������������������������������,��������������������������������������"���������"����������������������������������>���������������������#�������������������������������������)*)*������������������������������������

    /������������#������ ��������������(�������/����������&����������������������������������������������������

    ���������(�������6����&���������������������.���

    �(

    ����������������������������������������������������(���������������/�����

    ����������������6��������������������

    �������������6�����������������1?$����� ������ ��

    �� ���� ���� ���� �� ��

    ���������������������"��������������1����

    ������������������.��������#�����&�$������#���/��(��������5�����������/����7������(

    �����������������������������������������������6����������������������������5����7����/������������������#�����&� ���������������������(������5,�6����7������ �����������������������=�������������������

    ������������������6��������������������������������8���6���������������������������/�������������

    �����������������������(�����������������%�����������������������������������#�5,�6����7���������������%�����������&���������������������#����������������������������������������������(�������������1

    ���������������#��������������

    ��������������������������������������������������/�����/�������������������/������������������������������������@.�����������6������������������������������������������1�������������6����&�����(�����������������������������������������������������������������1�����!���/���������#����������������������������������#�������������������(

    ���������������������������������������������������-A����������������������������������/�������������������������������������������#���$�������������������������������(��(����������������#������

    �/�������#������������������B-*�����������������������������������������������������������������������������������=������������������2��������0�����������������������6���������&���������������������5��

    7/�������������������5�����

    �����76�������������������/������������������(����������������������������$�����������������������������������(����������������

    ����������������/����������������������������

    �����������������������������������������������1�����������������(���������������������������6����$������C�?������������������

    ������/�����#�%������������������������������������������������������/��������������������������������������6����������������#������0����6�������������5���������7���������������������������������������������������������������=����������������������������������������������-;4;����������������������������������������������������.����/�������������������������������������6�����������������

    2�������#������������������� ��������������������������������������(���������������������������������������������/������������-;--������������������6���������8�������������������&������������������#��������������������!��������6��������������6�����D��(���������������#�����������������������1���������6��������$������������/�������������������������������������������#�����������������������(����������������������������������:���������������������������������(��������������������������������������������������������(�(���6��������������

    �������������������������������#���������������������/���������(�������������������������#����������������������������6�����������

    �����������$�����������������#�����������������������������������(�����6������������������������"�����#������������������������������������������������������#�%�����������

    ��������������������(���������#�������������6������������/����������������#�����������(�������������������������������������������������#�����&������������������������������������������������������������������#�������������

    �������6����&�������������������������������������������������E������������������@.�������������?�����#���6�����������������/������������������������������������������������������������������������#����������5����������������������6����(/��������7/������/��������������#����������#���"������F ����������@.(�������������������F ������6������������������������������������������/�������������������������1������������������������������������������/�����������(��������������������������������������������1�����/����������������������������(������������������6�����/�����������������������������

    ������������������������������#��������#���������������������������������������

    6�����/������������������������"���������������

    ��������������

    ������������������Sir — The air quality index(AQI) in the capital remains“poor” as there has been a rise inthe concentration of both PM10and PM2.5 pollutants. Accordingto the System of Air Quality andWeather Forecasting AndResearch (SAFAR), PM10 pollu-tants are expected to reduce to238, a scale which falls under the“moderate” category, during thisweek while PM2.5 pollutants areexpected to reach 117, which fallsunder the “poor” category.SAFAR also estimated around448 stubble-burning fires onOctober 10. However, due to thetransport-level wind speed,which is not so calm, the highaccumulation of pollutants inDelhi is not happening. It is saidthat the impact of stubble fire islikely to reduce due to change inwind direction. This comes asgood news as high pollution lev-els coupled with the ongoingpandemic will be life-threaten-ing. The Government shouldtake strict measures to ensurethe AQI level doesn’t increase.Also, as the festive seasonapproaches, a blanket ban on firecrackers should be announced.

    Nihal Raj Noida

    ������������Sir — The Government had seta target of doubling farmers’income by the year 2022 butgiven the economic state of thecountry, this won’t be possibleany time soon. Adding to it, thethree farm Acts that were recent-ly passed by Parliament wouldlead to farmers being “reduced tofarmworkers” and big corpora-

    tions taking over “large swathesof land”. The Opposition needsto continue opposing the Actsand pressure the Centre for pro-farmer reforms that include theMinimum Support Price (MSP)guarantee. Farmers should befree from exploitation not onlyby intermediaries but also by cor-porate giants.

    Abdussalam Mumbai

    �����������������Sir — The Central Bureau ofInvestigation ( CBI ) has takenover the investigation of thegang-rape and murder case of the19-year-old Dalit woman ofHathras, Uttar Pradesh. Th