CHINNAM PRADEEP KUMAR n VIJAYAWADA

Andhra Pradesh registered itssharpest ever spike of Covid-19 cases on Monday, withthree people succumbing to theinfection and 75 others testingpositive for the deadly conta-gion, taking the total past the700 mark to 722 on Monday.

So far, the infection hastaken the lives of 20 people inthe state alone. Also, 27patients have been cured anddischarged from hospitals, tak-ing the number of the fortunateones to 92, according to thebulletin issued by the state gov-ernment.

A woman sub-inspector ofpolice and seven other front-line government staff of differ-ent departments contractedthe virus in temple townSrikalahasthi of Chittoor dis-trict, official sources said.

Health Department author-ities confirmed that communi-ty transmission of the virus hasset in as over 40 such cases

w e r edetected in different districts sofar. In Anantapur district, anassistant sub-inspector ofpolice succumbed to coron-avirus.

Chittoor district witnessed asudden spurt in COVID-19cases, registering 25 in a singleday and taking the total to 53.

The Srikalahasthi cases sentthe entire district administra-

tion into a tizzy as it turned outto be a case of "one sourceinfecting many people".

Guntur district, a majorhotspot, added 20 new cases toits list to touch 149 overall.

Kurnool district continuedto be the hotbed in the state,topping with 174 cases.

Apart from 16 new cases inthe last 24 hours ending 9 am,one more death was reported

from the district, taking thecount to five.

Krishna district too record-ed one more death and nowtops the state in toll, with a totalof six.

The COVID-19 bulletin said3,775 samples were tested inthe last 24 hours of which 75turned positive and theremaining negative.

The cumulative number oftests in the state crossed 30,733till date, of which 30,011 werenegative, according to theCOVID-19 dashboard.

State Special Chief Secretary(Health) Jawahar Reddy hadearlier announced that thegovernment intends to rampup testing as much as possible,aiming to conduct up to 5,000tests per day, and eventuallyscale up to 10,000-15,000 testsper day. He said that increasedtesting is needed to ascertainthe extent of infection at thecommunity level within redzones.

PNS n VIJAYAWADA

Chief Minister YSJaganmohan Reddy onMonday announced that allmosques, templesand churches inthe statewould begiven Rs 5,000assistance.

He made thisannouncement during avideo conference with theDistrict Collectors andMuslim religious leaders onthe measures being taken tocontain Covid-19. The ChiefMinister thanked the reli-gious leaders for accepting hisrequest to urge the commu-nity to offer prayers at homesduring the holy month ofRamzan.

Jagan said despite thefinancial constraints — loss ofRs 150 crore revenue a day -- due to the Covid-19 pan-demic and the lockdown, thegovernment would provideRs 5,000 to every mosque,covered during Ramadan lastyear. The mosques not cov-ered last year, and churchesand temples would also beprovided the aid, he said.

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PM says Indiawill stand byMaldives in this crisis

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Current Weather ConditionsUpdated April 16, 2020 5:00 PM

ALMANACTODAY

Month & Paksham:Chaitra & Shukla PakshaPanchangam:Tithi: Chaturdashi: 05:36 am (Next Day)Nakshatram: Uttara Bhadrapada: 10:22 amTime to Avoid: (Bad time to start

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3 deaths, 75 new cases in AP Test kits price row to hurtYSRCP govt in long term PNS n VIJAYAWADA

The controversy over price ofthe rapid test kits (RTKs)imported by AP Governmentto ramp up Covid-19 testing isspiralling out of control, withpoliticians of all hues startingto air their views on the issue.

The controversy couldn’thave come at a worse time forthe ruling YSRCP. The lack ofmuch activity, political or oth-erwise, due to the lockdownalso means that the people arenoticing every word spoken onthe controversy, and drawingtheir own inferences.

Earlier, the Government ofAP had issued purchase orderto Sandor Medicaids Pvt Ltdfor supply of two lakh RTKs,each

priced at Rs 730, excludingGST. The kits duly arrived inthe state and were launched byChief Minister YS JaganmohanReddy from his camp office.Jagan also volunteered for atest for Covid-19, and 10 min-utes later, was declared nega-tive for the infection.

Next day, a tweet byChhattisgarh health ministerTS Singh Deo said: “We areprocuring 75,000 high qualityrapid testing kits at a bench-mark price of ?337 + GST froma South Korean companybased in India, which hasproven to be the lowest bidder.The rate we have been able toclose at is the lowest in India”.

Naturally, the tweet waspicked up by the Oppositionthat started questioning the

difference in pricing. Alarmed, the Andhra

Pradesh Medical Services andInfrastructure (APMSIDC)wrote to Sandor Medicaidssaying that it would be revis-ing the price and would paythe same as Chhattisgarh, thatis Rs 337 + GST, per kit. Todrive home its point, the APM-SIDC pointed out a clause inthe purchase order.

Herbal remedies no magic bullet in Corona timesNAVEENA GHANATEn HYDERABAD

Herbal remedies and othersuch pieces of advice offeredonline via social media incorona times, crediting themwith properties to boost immu-nity, are no magic bullet andcould in fact trigger healthissues.

Since the outbreak of Covid-19, people are being bombard-ed with ‘tips’in the form ofremedies and recipes forimmunity- boosting foods,potions and beverages thatpromise us robust health.While some of them are mis-

leading outright, others need tobe taken with a pinch of salt as'one solution, doesn't fit all'.

Prime Minister NarendraModi too has gone on recordthat people should follow offi-

cial guidance to use a particu-lar herbal combination knownas "kadha" which will "increaseimmunity”. So, people areasked to drink hot water andkadha frequently.

Sixty-five-year-old Sheik Valitook kadha based on the adviceof the Prime Minister, butended up falling sick. He isnow suffering from diarrhoea.

When contacted, Dr GAbhishek said, “It is possiblethat the patient can face issueslike diarrhoea, but we cannotpinpoint the cause. There arespices in the concoction, and itis summer as well. The ingre-dients (in kadha) include gin-

ger, black pepper, cinnamonwhich can cause gastric irrita-tion when taken on emptystomach. Also, there is a pos-sibility that the water used forcooking is different from theone used for drinking. Peopleshould be aware of whichingredients cause them allergyor bowel irritation, and avoidsuch ingredients in times ofpandemic and lockdown.”

Unsolicited advisories askingpeople to avoid eating foodsuch as ice-cream and chickenhave also been doing the rounds for over twomonths now.

TS, AP lag behind in openingdoors to firms leaving ChinaL VENKAT RAM REDDYn HYDERABAD

Several states in the countrysee the Covid-19 outbreak notjust as an pandemic but also asan opportunity to woo foreigncompanies in China who wantto move their base out of thatcountry. However, TeluguStates are yet to wake up to tapthis huge investment potential.

Companies belonging toUS, Japan etc working in Chinaare either planning to moveout of that country or havedecided not to go for expan-sion plans but divert theirinvestments to other coun-tries.

States such as Uttar Pradesh,Madhya Pradesh, Haryana,

Punjab etc are competing tooffer sops and special packagesto companies which want toshift out of China owing toCovid-19 outbreak. But thegovernments of the Telugu

States are yet to recognise thispotential, let alone comingout with plans offering sopsand special packages.

PNS n VIJAYAWADA

Tension prevailed inSattenapalli town of Gunturdistrict on Monday when aman died, after being alleged-ly manhandled by police offi-cers for venturing out duringlockdown.

The deceased was identifiedas Mohammed Ghouse (35).

The incident took place ataround 8 am; people in thetown are allowed to step out foressentials between 6 am and 9

am. Furthermore, Ghouse wasout well within the designatedtime period, he was alsoreportedly buying medicines,which is allowed through theday. Videos showed a largecrowd gathering around thevehicle taking the body ofGhouse away, even as thepolice attempted to stop itfrom moving forward. Angrylocals were seen pushing twopolice officers aside, beforethe vehicle moves forward.

Centre’s taxdevolutionboost for AP, TS PNS n HYDERABAD

In a major relief to the cash-strapped Telugu States, theCentre on Monday sanc-tioned funds towards thedevolution of states' share incentral taxes and duties forApril. The Centre sanctionedRs 1,892.64 crore for AndhraPradesh and Rs 982 crore forTelangana.

The Union FinanceMinistry released the funds tothis effect.

The funds were released toassist the states effectivelyaddress the situation arisingout of Covid-19 pandemic asa special dispensation.

No YSRCP colourson govt offices: HCPNS n VIJAYAWADA

The AP High Court onMonday gave three weeks to theState Government to removeYSRCP colours on panchayatoffice buildings.

The HC gave the order afterthe advocate general soughtthree weeks to to remove theYSRCP colours on panchayatoffice buildings.

Earlier, the High Court madeit clear that government build-ings are public property and nopolitical party or governmenthas the power to paint them inparty colours.

In its earlier ruling, the HighCourt said since the electionsfor gram panchayats in AndhraPradesh are scheduled to be

held soon, the YSRCP colourson panchayat office buildingsshould be removed immediate-ly. The court directed the StateElection Commission to takesteps in this regard immediate-ly and ensure that the partycolours are removed.

Last week, the High Courtnoted that the manner in whichentire the issue is being dealtwith by the state governmentcompels the court to think andobserve that the state govern-ment was not removing thecolours associated with the rul-ing YSRCP, from the walls ofpanchayat offices and othergovernment buildings with aneye on the elections to civicbodies.

Govt to relaunch ‘0 pc’loan scheme for SHGsPNS n VIJAYAWADA

The Andhra Pradesh gov-ernment will relaunch thezero-interest loans schemefor Self Helping Groups(SHGs) from April 24 ben-efiting 93 lakh women.

In a release, the govern-ment said that despite thef inanc ia l c r i s i s , C hie fMinister YS JaganmohanReddy will relaunch thescheme on April 24.

According to the release,Rs 1,400 crore will be cred-

ited into SHG accounts for b enef i t ing 93 lak hwomen.

The scheme will cover8.78 lakh SHGs, of which6.95 lakh in rural areas willget Rs 975 crore and 1.83lakh in the urban areas willget Rs 425 crore.

The scheme was halted in June 2016, during theprevious Telugu Desamgovernment due to non-payment of the amount.

AP govt to give Rs 5,000to all places of worship

HC gives govt till April 24 tomake its point on SEC removal ADivision Bench of the Andhra Pradesh High Court, comprising

Chief Justice J K Maheswari and Justice Ninala Jayasurya, onMonday announced that it would hear a petition regarding the stategovernment’s ordinance cutting short the tenure of the State ElectionCommissioner to three years and to amend the Panchayat Raj Act. Advocate General S Sriram stated that he had submitted onlypreliminary counter-affidavit and the government would like tosubmit full-fledged counter-affidavits. The Division Benchconcurring with the plea of the Advocate General and instructed himto file the full-fledged counter affidavit by April 24.

Man dies, cops accused of manhandling

722 61092

20

Total positivecases

Active cases

l Officials fear community transmission as 40 cases detected in different districts

DischargedDeaths

KERALA IS MORE SAFE, SAYS ITALIANTOURIST CURED OF CORONAVIRUS

PREZ EXPRESSES GRATITUDE TO POLICEPERSONNEL FOR ENSURING LOCKDOWN President Ram Nath Kovind on Monday expressed gratitude to police forces for

ensuring the ongoing lockdown to combat the coronavirus with sensitivityand professionalism. Kovind took to Twitter to thank fellow citizens, NGOs, socialworkers, religious and charitable organisations, Red Cross and manyothers who are serving the nation in different ways. "I commend theirspirit. I am confident of their sustained contribution in ensuringvictory against COVID-19," he said. The president said, "Mythoughts are with all those serving the nation in the fight againstCOVID-19, despite grave risks to themselves and their families" andasked all to express gratitude to our police, armed forces andsecurity personnel for their courage and determination.

The Haryana government on Monday ordered a probe after four samplesreported positive for coronavirus by a private laboratory tested negative

in confirmation tests done at the government centres. No samples will begiven for testing to the private lab, pending outcome of the probe,Health Minister Anil Vij said. Vij said an auxiliary nurse midwife(ANM), who worked in a containment zone in Ambala, hadtested positive for the infection on Saturday. Three otherpeople too, all members of a family from Sahjadpur villagenear Ambala city, had also tested positive on Sunday.The samples of all the four were sent to the privatelaboratory for testing, he said.

PROBE ON POSITIVE CASES OF PVT LABSTHAT TURNED NEGATIVE IN GOVT TEST

‘Kerala is more safe’ were the parting words of an Italian tourist who testedpositive for COVID-19 and was discharged on Monday from a hospital

here after after making a full recovery. Roberto Tonizzo, in hisforties, tested positive on March 13 while on a visit to nearbyVarkala. The results came out negative on March 26 and wasunder quarantine at the General Hospital here. "I am so happy.I thank everybody, all doctors and other staff. Onceeverything is over, I would like to come back. Keralais like my home. It's more safe here. Now Ihave to go back to my country, but I willcome back," Tonizzo told media.

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Gene Deitch,the man

who madeour child-

hood awe-some thecreator of

Tom & Jerryleft the

world onMonday at

the age of 95

CM urges Shah for action againstcommunal twist to lynching

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VIJAYAWADA | TUESDAY | APRIL 21, 2020 vijayawada 02

Soon after coming topower in 2014, PrimeMinister Narendra Modi,

speaking at a DRDO pro-gramme, called for setting upof five laboratories in defencesector and taking in young sci-entists. He advocated full free-dom these young scientists toundertake research and devel-opment activities.

True to his character, Modiplaced the DRDO in thehands of Satish Reddy, whorose to the position of defenceadviser at a young age. Modiused to advise Satish Reddy onDRDO laboratories.

DRDO laboratories are setup in Bengaluru, Mumbai,Chennai, Kolkata andHyderabad as desired byModi, who wants India to topthe charts in terms of techno-logical research and innova-tions.

Experiments were conduct-ed on Artificial Intelligence,quantum technology, cogni-tive technology and smartmaterials. Young researcherswere appointed on a largescale in 52-odd DRDO labo-ratories. Research on cyber

security, electronic warfare,underground systems andother relevant subjects is goingon in them.

On June 2, 2019, Modi ded-icated the laboratories to thenation in the presence ofSatish Reddy. He remarkedthat the DRDO scientists arenot aware of their capabilitiesa la Lord Hanuman. He toldthem to conduct research andinnovate freely without hin-drance and offered them nec-essary support, drawing loudcheers from the ecstatic scien-tists.

Not just atomic warheadscarrying missiles, the DRDOis also capable of developingCoronavirus-resistant suits,ventilators needed by patients,masks and sanitisers on alarge scale.

The credit for developingPPEs at a low price for med-ical personnel using materialmeant for parachutes and thesubmarine suits goes to theDRDO. It transferred the rel-

evant technology to industriesto produce 20,000 suits perweek. It is also able to produceventilators for simultaneoususe of four to eight patients.

The success story of theDRDO demonstrates thePrime Minister’s line of think-ing, his vision and his under-standing of the capabilities ofthe youth.

In fact, 65 per cent of thecountry’s population is young,aged below 35 years. Modibelieved in words of SwamiVivekananda who visualisedmain role for youth in nationbuilding. That is why, the PMis putting untiring efforts tofulfil the youth’s aims and aspi-

rations and motivating them tounveil modern prototypes.

The image of the country isenhanced in the eyes of theworld. This is attributed to thenation’s youth power. Let usput it to good use, said Modiwhile speaking at the 125thbirth anniversary of SwamiVivekananda.

The country is geared up tomeet the challenge ofCoronavirus, as the country isbeing groomed as per thethinking pattern of Modi.

Sharing his views with oth-ers in the social media plat-form of Linkedin, Modi calledthe home the office andInternet the conference hall.

He observed, “I am able tomeet people of various sec-tions of society from home.”

He lucidly explained howtechnology is collapsing thewalls of inequalities in thecountry. Technology facilitat-ed undertaking digital trans-actions, eliminating bureau-cratic hurdles and middlemen,delivering benefits directly tothe people.

Demonetisation led to adigital revolution inthe countr y.Seeding of JanDhan bankaccount num-bers withmobile phonenumbers was doneafter Modi came to powerand this checked corruption,expectations of somethingin return for services ren-dered and cut down bureau-cratic delays. By press of aswitch, crores derive benefitswithout having to makerounds to governmentoffices. Administration cameto the doorstep of the people.The digital revolution, trig-gered by the PM, became a model for all states to emu-late.

The technology is not onlyuseful to beneficiaries, it helpsexperts teach online besidesmaking availability of booksand vast other resources topeople. Digital payments and

online transactions have rev-olutionised the global busi-

ness sector. The PM wants

more business mod-els to come to the

fore on the heels ofCovid-19 and wants the

youth to grab the opportuni-ties and create a new work cul-ture.

In medical sector, Modiopines that the country hasscope for evolving many moremodels through experimentsin telemedicine.

The most pertinent ques-tion today is the amount ofefforts put in, not how manyhours are spent in office. Thisis why Modi advocates pro-ductivity, order of priorityand evolving models that canaccomplish a task in the giventime.

There is good future fordevelopment of technicalknow-how and practices foraccomplishing works withoutstepping onto the streets.

Roads and ports are also nec-essary. If the country can con-trol global supply of goods andservices from home, the coun-try will emerge as a crucialentity at global level.

Modi was aware of themight of technology when hewas the BJP secretary. Noother government exploitedtechnology a la Modi to mon-itor developments in health,education and agriculture sec-tors. Sending SMSes to croresof farmers, linking farmers tovarious agricultural markets,using My Government Portaland mobile apps, Modi part-nered people in government’sadministration and decision-making process.

Modi is well aware ofexploiting technology for pub-lic good.

That is why he is trying tovisualise converting post-Covid-19 problems intoopportunities. We are fortu-nate to have a leader likeNarendra Modi who is ready

Y SATYA KUMAR BJP National Secretary

TRULY SPEAKING

Post-Covid, Modi wants India to harness tech powerModi was aware of the might of technologywhen he was the BJP secretary. No othergovernment exploited technology a la Modi to monitor developments in health, educationand agriculture sectors

PNS n VISAKHAPATNAM

To overcome transportationconstraints of essential com-modities during the lockdown,Waltair Division of East CoastRailway (ECoR) is runningspecial parcel express trains inaddition to goods trains.

With the onset of mangoseason, mango growers andtraders are concerned aboutthe transportation. Every year,the Division operates mangoexporting trains fromVizianagaram, the nodal pointfor north coastal AndhraPradesh, to Adarsh Nagar,New Delhi. As the lockdown isin force, mango growers areworried about transportationof ripe mangoes.

Railway authorities took ini-tiative in coordination with thecivil administration andmango traders to address theirneeds. With the approval ofcompetent authority, railwaysarranged special parcel traincomprising six parcel vanswith two second class cum lug-gage coaches to carry mangoeson April 19 and 21 fromVizianagaram and on April 20and 22 from Adarsh Nagar. OnSunday, the special parcel trainleft for Adarsh Nagar loaded

with 140 tonnes of mangoes.The Division is ready to oper-ate as many trains as neededdepending on the demandfrom mango merchants.

Apart from this, theDivision has transported 1,010rakes of essential commoditiesacross the country till date tocontinue the supply chain.The Division ferried 282 rakesof coal, 92 rakes of container

traffic, 35 rakes of food grains,44 rakes of steel and fertilizers.Parcel express trains are beingoperated as special serviceduring Covid-19 emergency.Medicines, medical equip-ment, groceries, eggs, vegeta-bles, fruits, green mangoes,coconuts, milk powder etc areamong the important com-modities transported in theseparcel special trains.

Making face masks helpSHG women earn livilihoodPNS n VIJAYAWADA

Self-help women’s groups aresurging ahead not only in emer-gency services but also in sup-porting their families as part ofthe government’s efforts incombating the Covid-19. Theyare earning over Rs 500 per dayby making masks at the rate ofRs 3.5 per mask as per the direc-tive of Chief Minister YSJaganmohan Reddy.

The masks being manufac-tured by women are distributedin Red Zones and will sooncater to the needs of others also.Women’s groups have prepared7.28 lakh masks by Sundayevening. They plan to increasethe output to 30 lakh per day infour to five days.

This is as part of the ChiefMinister’s decision to supply 16crore masks in the State forcurbing the spread of the virus,with three masks per head.The masks made by womenwere handed over to the ChiefMinister under the aegis of

Mefma. The cloth needed forthe masks will be supplied byAPPCO and it was estimatedthat 1.5 crore metres of cloth isrequired to make 16 crore

masks. So far, the APPCO hassupplied over 20 lakh metres ofcloth for the purpose.

Nearly, 40,000 women tailorsfrom among the self-help

groups have been selected andthe work of making masks hastaken up on a war-footing anddetails are being uploaded on tothe realtime data.

Thanks to special trains, mangoexports to begin from today

PNS n KOLKATA

A mathematical model devel-oped by four senior researchers,including two from the IndianStatistical Institute, predictedthat a localised lockdown ofaround 29 days in a communi-ty of 43 to 68 people can tem-porarily halt the spread ofCoronavirus and help eradicatethe contagion in two to threeyears in the country.

Indranil Mukhopadhay,senior ISI professor and head ofthe Human Genetics Unit, saidon Monday while the temporaryeradication of the ‘spread time’of the virus could be around 29days, the time taken for totalextinction can be around two tothree years with the virusexpected to make a comebacklater but losing its sting to be apandemic any more. "Covid-19

being an entirely new disease,complete data for any definitiveprediction is not there. Hence,the figures in our model canvary - say the 29 days limit fortemporary eradication can be 39days but probably won't be 200days," Mukhopadhay, said,pointing out that it was a math-

ematical model made with theavailable data.

The model was based ondata collected from the monthof March to April 1, he said inreply to a question.Underscoring the need for totallocalised lockdown, theresearcher said that the lock-

down, in its true sense, may notbe totally enforceable in a vastand diverse country like Indiawith such a high density of pop-ulation.

A focused approach where ahigh-risk population in a certainlocality is put under intensivescreening for over four weeks ismore advisable to prevent grouptransmission that will result inzero infection at one point, hesaid.

If the number of high risk

population in a locality is a bithigh, there can be clusters pos-sibly having around 50 people ineach group, which is called ‘crit-ical community size’ (CCS).

There can be more than onesuch cluster in the pocketdepending on the high riskpopulation number in that area,Mukhopadhay said. The modelwas based on four parameters -'susceptible', 'infected', 'exposed'and 'recovery', he said.

"In our future study, we have

to keep in mind the susceptibil-ity of vegetable vendors and fishsellers in markets who are pre-sent every day instead of buyerswho can come once in a weekor fortnight, and find outwhether curtailing regular mar-ket hours will be better forthem," he said. Asked about thepossibility of the virus makinga comeback after two to threeyears losing its lethal nature,Mukhopadhyay said, even ifone infected person is identified,the local quarantine policy willbe in force, where a group ofpeople, the maximum beingCCS, may stay together in clus-ters.

The other researchers includeBandana Sen, a seniorresearcher with the All IndiaInstitute of Hygiene and PublicHealth and Sarmistha Das, asenior researcher at ISI.

MATHEMATICAL MODEL PREDICTION

Localised lockdown can temporarily halt Corona spreadYSR Telemedicineevokes good responsePNS n VIJAYAWADA

Dr YSR Telemedicine pro-gramme has been receivinggood response from all sectionsof people across the State. In aspan of four days, as many as8,243 members have made callsand 4,732 of them have availedmedical assistance from doctorsregarding ailments.

It may be recalled that ChiefMinister YS JaganmohanReddy has launched this initia-tive in order to provide medicalassistance by connecting pub-lic with doctors. As of now, 286doctors of varying specialtieshave registered with YSRTelemedicine services.

For availing telemedicineservices, public are advised togive a missed call to 14410 anddoctors onboard will get back

to callers either through voiceor video calls.

During the lockdown,telemedicine services havebecome handy to a majority ofpeople, including those non-symptomatic patients of Covid-19. Under medical assistance,people with symptoms of thepandemic or those who are suf-fering from other health disor-ders will get prescription andmedication, while healthcarestaff will door deliver medicinesto the patients.

l Railway authorities took initiative in coordinationwith the civil administration and mango traders toaddress their needs. With the approval ofcompetent authority, railways arranged special parceltrain comprising six parcel vans with two secondclass cum luggage coaches to carry mangoes

Indranil Mukhopadhay, senior ISI professor and headof the Human Genetics Unit, said on Monday whilethe temporary eradication of the ‘spread time’ of thevirus could be around 29 days, the time taken fortotal extinction can be around two to three years withthe virus expected to make a comeback later butlosing its sting to be a pandemic any more

‘NGOs gainprecedenceover YSRCP inserving people’PNS n VISAKHAPATNAM

TDP MLA Vasupalli GaneshKumar has opined that theservices being rendered forpeople of the city by volun-tary organisations are morecompared to those renderedby the ruling YSRCP.

There are no proper facil-ities to diagnose Coronapatients. People are living inthe grip of fear, he saidterming the kits being used totest patients are not genuine.

Moreover, doctors treatingthe patients are functioninglike the YSRCP activists, hesaid. The State governmenthas a ploy to relocate the cap-ital to Visakhapatnam givingthe impression that theCorona cases are almost nil inthe city.

Had the governmentopened Anna canteens, theywould have been lot usefulfor people under the prevail-ing situation, he opined.

A chicken trader was test-ed positive for theCoronavirus. Did the govern-ment officials subject thetrader’s customers to testing,he questioned.

PNS n VISAKHAPATNAM

The world came to a standstillwith the outbreak of pandemicCoronavirus. To combat thespread of the virus, the Centralgovernment has announced thelockdown and there after pas-senger trains were stopped.

Had the Central governmentnot announced the lockdownand cancellation of trains, theviral infection could have spreadat a rapid pace due to the masshuman contact. Hence, socialdistancing is an important con-tainment measure to fightagainst the novel Coronavirus.

Inspired by the measurestaken to maintain social distanceby drawing circles on the floorto curb the Coronavirus spread

by the Central government,Waltair Division of East CoastRailway has started implement-ing the same over its jurisdiction.As per the directive of DivisionalRailway Manager ChetanKumar Shrivastava, social dis-tancing circles have been drawnat important locations in the rail-way stations where public inter-face is more, like booking coun-

ters, reservation offices, enquiry,food courts etc. This move isadopted to check the crowd con-trol, as a precautionary measure,when the passenger carryingtrain services begin. Queue lineswill also be placed where crowd-ing is expected. Measures havealso been taken to create aware-ness among public to follow thesocial distancing.

Social distancing circles to stay at railway stations

l The masks beingmanufactured bywomen aredistributed in RedZones and will sooncater to the needs ofothers also. Women’sgroups haveprepared 7.28 lakhmasks by Sundayevening. They plan toincrease the output to30 lakh per day infour to five days

l The cloth needed for the masks will be suppliedby APPCO and it was estimated that 1.5 croremetres of cloth is required to make 16 crore masks.So far, the APPCO has supplied over 20 lakh metresof cloth for the purpose

l This is as part of the ChiefMinister’s decision to supply 16

crore masks in the State forcurbing the spread of the virus,

with three masks per head

PNS n KOLKATA

Prosperity is a great teacher,adversity even greater. Andadversity in times of the lock-down has brought out the bestin Subrata Pati who, unlikemost other professionals, isn'tworking from home.

A history teacher, he worksfrom a nest perched on a neemtree, giving lessons to his stu-dents on events of seminalimportance that shaped civi-lizations and obliterated them,conquests by kings and gener-als, and horrors of war andpestilence, as the epoch-mak-ing Coronavirus disease sav-ages the world.

Taking classes online is abattle for Pati, who teaches at

two educational institutes inKolkata, is fighting from hisnative Ahanda village in WestBengal's Bankura district,where his cell phone screenblipped to life one moment andlay dead frozen the next.

Exasperated, just as he wasabout to give up, he was struck

by the thought of climbing atree to see if getting a few yardscloser to sky made any differ-ence. And it did.

Now, every morning, the 35-year-old man climbs up theneem tree next to his houseand parks himself on amakeshift wooden platform

tied to its branches and receivesuninterrupted signals on hiscell phone he uses to teach hispupils.

Having set up the DIY (do-it-yourself) marvel with somehelp from his friends, the his-tory teacher at AdamasUniversity and RICEEducation in the city doesn'tfind the chore tiring.

"I have temporarily shiftedfrom my Kolkata residence toAhanda, which is a part of thestate's Jangalmalal area, to bewith my family in the midst ofthe Covid-19 crisis. That done,I couldn't have shrugged off myresponsibility as a teacher. TheInternet network here is most-ly patchy, so I had to look fora solution," he said.

l Now, every morning,Subrata Pati climbs up theneem tree next to his houseand parks himself on amakeshift wooden platformtied to its branches andreceives uninterruptedsignals on his cell phone he uses to teach his pupils

Teacher teaches from tree to beat Internet hurdle

Jelimals’ songto createawarenesson Covid-19PNS n VIJAYAWADA

Jelimals, a confectionery brandfrom ITC, has come forwardwith a unique initiative tocreate awareness among chil-dren about five steps to pre-vent the spread of Covid-19 asrecommended by the WHO.

The current Covid-19 crisisis proving to be especiallyhard on kids and it is imper-ative that the young ones beeducated on the safeguardsagainst the pandemic. As abrand that enjoys a loyal fol-lowing amongst kids, Jelimalswanted to do its bit to conveythe message.Following is thelink to the ‘Do the 5’ song -https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cicuwpBVobY.

VIJAYAWADA | TUESDAY | APRIL 21, 2020 vijayawada 03

Lockdown to be relaxed in37 mandals of Krishna distPNS n VIJAYAWADA

District Collector Md Imtiaz onMonday said that Sub-Collectors, RDOs andTahsildars have been appoint-ed as Incident Commanders tomonitor the lockdown ruleseffectively and they would havethe power to implement thelockdown relaxation in GreenZone mandals and municipal-ities in Krishna district.

The Collector informed thatthe Central government hasissued a few guidelines toimplement relaxation duringthe lockdown period for theconvenience of people till May3.

He said that Red Zones weredeclared within three km dis-tance from where the positivecases were identified, bufferzones within five km radius inurban areas and seven kmbuffer zone in rural areas.About 16 mandals and 10municipalities were declared asRed Zones in the district andIncident Commanders shouldimplement the guidelines inthese areas strictly by restrict-

ing the movement of people, hesaid.

Vijayawada West, Central,East, North and rural areabesides Machilipatnam, Nuzvid,Jaggaiahpet, Nandigama,Vatsavai, Penugranchiprolu,Penamaluru, Kankipadu andChandarlapadu, Kaikaluru weredeclared as Red Zones.

The following have beenidentified as Red Zones-Vijayawada MunicipalCorporation andMachilipatnam MunicipalCorporation; Nuzvid,Jaggaiahpet, Nandigama,

Vuyyuru, Pedana, Kondapalli,Tiruvuru and Gudivada, too,come under Red Zone.

About 37 mandals are beingidentified which comes underGreen Zone in the district andpartial relaxation of lockdownwill be implemented till May 3,hospitals, nursing homes andclinics will be open besidesdiagnostic centres, medicalshops and veterinary hospitalswill function as usual, he said.

Relaxation will be given foragriculture works besides aquafarming. Aqua feed and medicineshops will remain open in Green

Zone mandals. Oil, gas, petrol,diesel, CNG, LPG and PNGcounters will be open and postoffices will function as usual.

PNS n VISAKHAPATNAM

The city police have begunsending lockdown violators toshelters or quarantine centresfor 14 days so that it sendsstrong message to others plan-ning to venture out.

Police were baffled onMonday when hundreds of peo-ple came out of their homes allover the city presuming relax-ation of lockdown period. Theywere ignorant of guidelinesissued by the Central and Stategovernments. Police houndedthem back to their homes.

“We blame the social mediafor spreading fake news. Takingthe news seriously, people cameout in large numbers and wehad hard time in convincingthem,’’ said deputy commission-er of police S Ranga Reddy.

He said police are ratherimposing more restrictions aftera positive case was registered onSunday evening. While mea-sures are being taken to imple-menting the lockdown strictly,these messages brought outpeople on Monday morning.

“In order to instill a disciplineamong them, we started send-ing people roaming on roads

without work either to sheltersor quarantine centres for 14days,’’ the DCP said.

He said on Sunday, policefound 20 persons at theVMRDA Arena near KailasagiriHill walking in the park. Theywere all aware of guidelines and

the seriousness of the situation.When they were questionedthey began arguing with police.Police on instructions fromhigher officials bundled theminto vans to quarantine centrewhere they would remain for 14days, the DCP said.

LOCKDOWN

Over 23% venturingout in Srikakulam distPNS n VISAKHAPATNAM

Over 23 per cent of people arecoming out on an average in thedistrict, according to joint col-lector K Srinivasulu, who con-ducted a survey recently.

The joint collector made asurprise visit to Gunnapalem inSrikakulam to town on Mondayto observe the way the mobileRythu Bazaars were selling veg-etables and the number of peo-ple gathering around the vehi-cle. The district getting credit fornot reporting a single positivecase; so far the district admin-istration has introduced sever-al measures to avoid the gather-ing of people. In addition toRythu Bazaars, essentials werealso being delivered at home, thejoint collector said.

Talking about his sample, thejoint collector said in a particu-

lar area out of 3,167 people in906 families only 738 persons areventuring out for differentworks. And of them, 60% of thethem are coming out for pur-chase of vegetables, 10 per centfor hospital works, six per centfor marketing of essential items,12% for regular duties, three percent for purchase of groceries, sixper cent for milk and 2.5 per centfor drawing money from ATMs.

“Based on the survey, we areplanning for measures to controlthe gathering of people forstrictly implementing the lock-down conditions,’’ the joint col-lector said. He said even afterdelivering medicines, vegeta-bles and groceries to homes,people are coming out for noreasons. Action would be initi-ated against this category, whokeep coming out of homeswithout any work.

PNS n VIJAYAWADA

Coming down heavily onBJP State president KannaLakshminarayana, YSRCPRajya Sabha MP V VijayasaiReddy on Monday took thetwitter handle and launcheda scathing attack saying“Kanna has sold himself outto Chandrababu Naidu andYS Chowdary.”

“Despite Narendra Modi’simage going up by manynotches across the country,the BJP is still far from evolv-ing into a formidable force inAndhra Pradesh. Leaders likeKanna is solely responsiblefor this sorry state of affairs,”tweeted Vijaysai. He alsocame up with a piece ofadvice for the saffron party.“The old-timers in the StateBJP should get rid of leaderslike Kanna,” he commented.

Old-timersshould get rid ofKanna: Vijayasai

PNS n ANANTAPUR

BJP leader VishnuvardhanReddy on Monday chargedVijayasai Reddy with levellingallegations against BJP Stateunit president KannaLakshminarayana for ques-tioning the corruption thegovernment on corruption.

Allegations are aimed atdiverting the main issue, hesaid criticising VijayasaiReddy of making denigratingremarks against KannaLakshminarayana.

Vishnuvardhan Reddyfound fault with senior lead-ers in the government for vio-lating the lockdown rules,hence, they are responsiblefor spreading of the virus.

The State government isbeing negligent in releasinghealth bulletins, he said.

Vijayasai Reddytargeted Kannafor questioninggovt, says BJP

Non-stop music to fight virusPNS n VISAKHAPATNAM

Prof and Head of theDepartment of Music at SriPadmavathi Mahila ViswaVidyalayam Dwaram Lakshmicame out with a novel idea ofsimultaneous singing of devo-tional songs for 24 hours todefeat the deadly Coronavirus.

Calling it a ‘AkhandaSangitha Swaraarchana’ as ahumble effort from the musi-cians side to relieve the Coronapandemic with continuous,she appealed musicians fromacross the world go for‘Swaracharana’ from Tuesdaysinging devotional songs fromtheir homes.

Starting with Sri PadmavathiWomen's University MusicAlumni Association, now thereare several groups participat-ing in this singing programmeworldwide, uninterrupted.

Singers are rendering songs ofvarious composers. Renownedartists Chaganti KoteshwaraRao, Tanikella Bharani,

renowned musicians LalgudiGJR Krsihnan, AnnavarupuRamaswamy, Prof JamunaDuvvuru, Vice-Chancellor ofthe Vedic UniversitySannidhanam SudarshanaSharma and several others laud-ed the untiring musical yagambeing performed around theworld under the guidance ofProf Dwaram Lakshmi.

From children to scholars,

several musicians are activelyparticipating in this uniqueattempt through mellifluousrendering of music. ChagantiKoteshwara Rao said that therewere several instances whengreat singers like Thyagaraja,Shyma Shastry andMuthuswami Dikshitar andothers who composed andsang keerthanas won thedivine grace of Almighty.

Guv condolesdeath of UPCM’s fatherPNS n VIJAYAWADA

Governor Biswa BushanHarichandan condoled thesudden demise of AnandSingh Bisht, father of UttarPradesh Chief Minister YogiAdityanath, while undergoingtreatment at AIIMS in NewDelhi on Monday. TheGovernor conveyed his sym-pathies and heartfelt condo-lences to the bereaved family.

Civic chief warnslockdown violatorsPNS n VIJAYAWADA

VMC Commissioner VPrasanna Venkatesh onMonday made a surprise visitto shops in the city andchecked if shop owners areselling essentials as per gov-ernment prescribed rates.

The Commissioner, alongwith other officials, visited afew shops at Patamata area andchecked if people are follow-ing the guidelines put forth tocontain the virus, like main-taining social distancing andwearing masks and alsochecked if shop owners aremaintaining cleanliness andhygiene.

They visited a few muttonand chicken shops and mon-itored if sellers are wearingmasks and selling healthy stuffto customers.

On the occasion, theCommissioner said that while

buying essentials peopleshould maintain at least one-metre distance and shop own-ers should maintain cleanli-ness. Mutton shops shouldsell mutton only after gettingthe clearance from officialsand people are advised not tobuy stuff from roadside ven-dors.

On observing people ingroups at a shop, theCommissioner warned themto maintain social distancingand also told the trader to sellessentials to buyers, who fol-low the guidelines and main-tain social distancing.Meanwhile, customers weretold to complain against shopowners, who sell more thanthe prescribed price.

Shop owners are also told tosell essentials as per the pricesprescribed by the governmentfailing which the shop will beseized.

n Relaxation will be givenfor agriculture worksbesides aqua farming.Aqua feed and medicineshops will remain openin Green Zone mandals

n Oil, gas, petrol, diesel,CNG, LPG and PNGcounters will be openand post offices willfunction as usual

n Sub-Collectors, RDOsand Tahsildars havebeen appointed asIncident Commanders tomonitor the lockdownrules effectively and theywould have the power toimplement the lockdownrelaxation in Green Zonemandals andmunicipalities in Krishnadistrict

Lockdown violators beingsent to quarantine centres

“Police found 20 persons at the VMRDA Arenanear Kailasagiri Hill walking in the park. They wereall aware of guidelines and the seriousness of thesituation. When they were questioned they beganarguing with police. Police on instructions fromhigher officials bundled them into vans to quaran-tine centre where they would remain for 14 days,”deputy commissioner of police S Ranga Reddy

Continued from Page 1

In all, the Centre has sanc-tioned Rs 46,038 crore for thedevolution of states' share inCentral taxes and duties forApril for 28 states in the coun-try.

In a tweet, the ministry saidto assist states effectivelyaddress

situation arising out ofCOVID-19 pandemic, as aspecial dispensation, the calcu-

lation of net proceeds of share-able taxes has been keptunchanged as per Budget2020-21. The Budget had pro-jected the share of the states intaxes at Rs 7.84 lakh crore for2020-21.

The 15th FinanceCommission had recommend-ed the share of states at 41 per-cent of the divisible pool and1 percent for the newly-creat-ed Union Territories of Jammuand Kashmir, and Ladakh.

Centre’s tax devolution...Continued from Page 1

In another instance,cam-phor is being suggested as analternative. In new drugs totarget SARS CoV-2 andCOVID-19, one of the com-pounds apparently identified iscamphor.

Even Telangana GovernorTamilisaiSoundararajan hassuggested that people shouldpray with camphor or make

Chakkarai Pongal withPacchaiKarpooram, alongwith a word of caution thatthese are part of experimen-tal studies in labs and notmeant for oral consumptiondirectly till approved byauthorities.

A doctor said that camphorif taken orally could causeburning sensation in mouth,nausea. A large amount ofcamphor can cause renal fail-

ures too.Although many remedies

have been promoted by theUnion Ministry of AYUSH tospecifically ward off coron-avirus, there is no scientific evi-dence that these are effective.Another claim is that sub-stances commonly found intea, known as ‘methylxan-thines’, can decrease the impactof coronavirus. This again is afalse claim.

Herbal remedies no magic bullet...

3 deaths, 75new cases in AP

Continued from Page 1

The state governmentclaimed to have set a recordon Saturday by conducting5,508 Covid-19 tests in aday, without using the rapidtesting kits which are nowavailable in the state.

The state has tested a totalof 30,733 samples so far. Thegovernment recently import-ed one lakh antibody rapidtesting kits to scale-up testing.The kits are to be distributedto district level authorities.

Krishna district collectorMd Imtiaz on Sunday saidthat the district was expect-ing 8,500 test kits to arrive onMonday, of which 1,500 willbe used to conduct tests onhealth workers.

Test kits price row to hurt YSRCP govt in long term Continued from Page 1

As per the clause, if SandorMedicaids, either on its own orthrough its subsidiaries, suppliesthe RTKs to any other customerat a price lowre than that wasquoted to AP, it would be com-pelled to supply the kits to AP atthis lower price.

However, the APMSIDC’sterse communication resulted inmore questions being raised.

The Government of APplaced the purchase order withthe Sandor Medicaids, but the of

kits were supplied toChhattisgarh by SD BiosensorHealthcare Pvt Ltd.

While APMSIDC cited theclause in the purchase order toget Sandor Medicaids to lowerthe price, there is no clarity if SDBiosensor has any relationshipwith Sandor Biotech (remember,the clause in the purchase orderis applicable only if Sandor or itssubsidiaries supply kits at a lowerprice).

Also, there is no paper trail inpublic of the AP governmentinviting short tenders for supply

of the kits. The AP governmentmight do so later, but at themoment, the question howSandor was chosen as the suppli-er remains unanswered.

South Korea-based SDBiosensors has been operationalin India since the past sevenyears, but the AP governmentchose Sandor Medicaids for itsorder. A release from the CMOwent on record stating thatManaging

Director of RandomMedicaids Rajiv Sindhi anddirector

Muralidhar delivered the kitsto Chief Minister YS

Jaganmohan Reddy. There isno clarity how RandomMedicaids came into the picture.

While YSRCP MP V. VijayaSai Reddy in a tweeted messagesaid that the price of each kit wasRs 730, Special Chief Secretary(Health) Jawahar Reddy quotedthe price per kit as Rs 630 whilespeaking to media.

Till such time the StateGovernment clarifies thesedoubts, the Opposition partieswill continue to corner it.

Man dies, cops accusedof manhandling

Continued from Page 1

Sattenapalle MLA AmbatiRambabu as well as district policeauthorities have acknowledgedthe incident and stated that aninquiry will be conducted andstrict action will be taken againstthose who are found responsible.

In a statement after the protestsbroke out, Guntur RangeInspector General of PolicePrabhakar Rao said, "After 20new cases were reported inNarasaraopet town nearby, policevigilance was increased and theroads to Narasaraopet were strict-ly blocked."

The senior official said thatGhouse, a resident ofVenkatapathi Nagar colony wasriding his two-wheeler when hewas stopped at the check post. “Ashe didn't give a clear explanation,the local sub-inspector took awaythe keys to the vehicle. Ghouse

then began to sweat and wasmade to sit down nearby," he said.

He added that as Ghouseseemed to faint, his relativearrived and shifted him to a hos-pital, where he passed away.

"Since allegations have sur-faced, we are conducting aninquiry and action will be takenagainst those found guilty. A caseof unnatural death was registered.The S-I, Ramesh Babu has beensuspended for now," the policeofficer said.

However, he made no mentionof Ghouse being manhandled.

Stating that Ghouse’s death isextremely upsetting, AmbatiRambabu said that there are noCovid-19 deaths in Sattenapalletown so far. Guntur AdditionalSuperintendent of Police alsosaid that an inquiry into the inci-dent has begun and action will betaken against the S-I or consta-ble if they are found guilty.

TS, AP lag behind in openingdoors to firms leaving China

Continued from Page 1

The government of UttarPradesh is the frontrunner inwooing

the companies planning tomove their base from China.

UP Chief Minister YogiAdityanath has directed offi-cials to work out the package,which could be offered toinvestors in addition to theexisting incentives. UP’sindustries and MSME depart-ments have also been asked tocome up with a package.

Yogi has directed his min-isters and senior officials todiscuss the matter with theembassies of different coun-tries and make all-out effortsto take advantage of thisopportunity.

He has entrusted his eco-nomic advisor KV Raju and

former Chief Secretary AnupChandra Pande to draft aplan for this.

Similarly, the Punjab gov-ernment is taking the help ofeminent

economist and former vicechairman of erstwhilePlanning CommissionMontek Singh Ahluwalia toattract manufacturers plan-ning to move out of China.

The governments ofMadhya Pradesh andHaryana have also startedmaking efforts to tap thisinvestment potential.

A few American andJapanese companies in theelectronics and chemicals sec-tors have already evincedinterest to shift their base totheir states while other sectorsin which investments couldbe sought are being explored

vigorously by those state gov-ernments.

Ironically, the governmentsof Telangana and AndhraPradesh are sailing in thesame boat. They are yet toeven identify this potential letalone making efforts to woocompanies from China.

The higher officials fromindustries department in bothTS and AP are clueless onhow to proceed on the mat-ter since there has been noinitiative either from theindustries minister or theChief Minister of the TeluguStates.

Official sources said as ofnow, the CMs of both AP andTS are solely focused on lock-down enforcement issues andnot giving any thought toissues like industries andinvestments.

Govt torelaunch ‘0 pc’loan schemefor SHGs

Continued from Page 1

The YSRCP governmenthas released Rs 765.19crore to the Society forElimination of RuralPoverty (SERP) and theremaining funds havealready released to SERPand the Mission forElimination of Poverty inMunicipal Areas(MEPMA).

Finance department spe-cial Secretary KVVSatyanarayana on Sundayissued a GO, allocating Rs765.19 crore to implementthe zero-interest loanscheme for SHGs. Furtherguidelines for the imple-mentation of the schemewill be released soon, therelease said.

Andhra to give Rs 5,000to all placesof worship

Continued from Page 1

The Chief Ministersaid his governmentbelonged to all sec-tions of people andhad been implement-ing schemes for thewelfare of people irre-spective of religion,caste and region. Hesaid despite the finan-cial issues the govern-ment had given Rs1,000 to each familyand providing rationthrice a month.

No YSRCP colours on govt...Continued from Page 1

The advocate general soughtthree months time and informedthe High Court that the colourscan be removed only once thelockdown was completely liftedand that the government willinform the court time needed toremove the party colours in thenext hearing. Refusing to givethree months time, the HCpulled up the government fordragging its feet on the issue.

“We will give three monthstime with a condition that thestate government will not holdelections till that time,” the HighCourt observed.

The Chief Justice finallyadjourned hearing for Mondayafter the

advocate general said that he

would take the opinion of theofficials concerned about thetime required for changingcolours. On Monday, the advo-

cate general sought three weeksfor the state administration toremove the colours from thegovernment buildings.

HC gives govt till April 24...Continued from Page 1

The division bench also directedthe petitioners who filed writs onthe same subject to submit theirobjections to the government'sfull-fledged counter affidavit byApril 27. The Division Bench madeit clear that it would hear the finalarguments on April 28 and noextension would be given. It maybe recalled that the former StateElection Commissioner N RameshKumar has already filed a petition

regarding his removal from thepost. Meanwhile, counsel forRamesh Kumar appealed to thecourt to give instructions to thenew State Election Eommissionernot to take any decisions regardingelections to the local bodies in theinterim period. The Division Benchobserved that since the SupremeCourt concurred with the proposalby the former station SEC to deferthe elections to the local bodies forsix weeks, the question of passingan any order before that does notarise.

VIJAYAWADA | TUESDAY | APRIL 21, 2020 nation 04SHORT READS

Ladakh MP seeks helpfrom Centre for fairdistribution of groceriesLEH: Ladakh MP JamyangTsering Namgyal has soughtthe Centre's help for sufficientand fair distribution ofgroceries and financialassistance to the poor in theUnion territory during thenationwide lockdown imposedamid the coronaviruspandemic. In a letter to LadakhLt Governor R K Mathur andthe Union Home Ministry,Namgyal expressed concernsover the various problemsfaced by the people in hisconstituency. He said he wasreceiving a lot of calls andmessages from people seekingevacuation of patients,students, pilgrims and workersof Ladakh stuck in variousparts of India and abroad.People are also raisingdemands of financial assistanceto the most needy speciallylabourers and bread earners ofvery poor families to pay theirroom rents, electricity bills,school fees and other expen-ses, Namgyal said in his letter.

86K Assamese peoplestranded in otherstates get Rs 2K each

FIR against UP hotelowner for forciblyevicting medical teamSAMBHAL (UP): A hotel ownerallegedly evicted ninemembers of a medical team onduty to control COVID-19 in thedistrict following which an FIRhas been lodged against him,police said on Monday.According to the complaintgiven to Sambhal Kotwali, theowner of the hotel, which hadbeen taken over by the localauthorities for using it as aquarantine centre for themedical staff, on Sundayforcibly got the premisesvacated. "When we returnedafter duty on Sunday, theowner asked us to vacate it andthreatened to throw ourbelongings out. He later got thehotel vacated forcibly," one ofthe doctors in the team, DrTanvir said The medical teamcomprised three doctors andsix pharmacist andparamedical staff. Circle officerSambhal, Siddharth Kumar,said that based on thecomplaint by the doctors, anFIR has been lodged againstthe Madhuban hotel andinvestigations are on.

GUWAHATI: The Assam govern-ment on Monday deposited Rs2,000 each to the accounts of86,000 people who are nowstranded in other states due tothe ongoing nationwidelockdown imposed to containthe coronavirus outbreak.Addressing a press conferencehere, state Finance MinisterHimanta Biswa Sarma said thedecision to provide financialsupport to the needy people,who are stuck at different placesin other states, was taken by CMSarbananda Sonowal during areview meeting on Sunday. "Wehave identified 99,758 people toprovide this assistance. Eighty-six thousand of them got themoney today. Others will get itwithin the next few days," hesaid. "This is the first instalmentof support to the needy peoplefrom Assam, who are nowstranded outside. The secondinstalment will be releasedbefore the lockdown is lifted,"Sarma said.

Flight restrictions to be liftedwhen COVID-19 is controlledPNS n NEW DELHI

Restrictions on domestic andinternational flights will be lift-ed when the government is con-fident that spread of coron-avirus has been controlled, andposes no danger to Indians,Civil Aviation Minister HardeepSingh Puri said on Monday,amidst reports of some airlinesdoing open bookings.

In a series of tweets, theminister also said a directivewas issued on Sunday to air-lines, restraining them fromdoing open bookings sincethey did not heed to govern-ment's advice in the matter.

"I want to once again say thatflight restrictions that are inplace as a result of India'sfight against COVID-19 will belifted once we are confidentthat spread of the virus hasbeen controlled and it poses nodanger to our country and peo-ple," he tweeted.

The minister said,"sincesome airlines did not heed ouradvisory and opened bookings,

and started collecting moneyfrom flyers, a directive wasissued to them on 19th Aprilrestraining them from doingso. They were also informedthat they will be given suffi-cient notice and time to com-mence bookings."

While government-run AirIndia stopped the bookingsafter the government's adviso-ry, private carriers ignored it andcontinued taking bookings fortravel after May 3, promptingthe aviation regulator DGCA to

issue a circular on Sunday."All airlines are hereby

directed to refrain from book-ing tickets... Further, the air-lines may note that they shallbe given sufficient notice andtime for restarting operations,"the circular said.

All domestic and internation-al commercial passenger flightshave been suspended for thelockdown period. However,cargo flights and special flights,permitted by the DGCA, can flyduring the duration of the lock-

down. Meanwhile, several passengers have post-

ed their complaints on socialmedia against Indian airlines fornot refunding booking amountsfor flights cancelled due to thecoronavirus lockdown, andinstead issuing credit vouchersfor future travel. On April 16, theaviation ministry said that pas-sengers can ask airlines for fullrefunds if the bookings weredone during the first phase oflockdown for travel up to May 3.

Activists, outfits condemnPalghar mob lynching casePNS n MUMBAI

Social activists and religiousorganisations have con-demned the lynching of threepeople by a mob in a villagein neighbouring Palghar dis-trict on Thursday night whileon their way to attend afuneral in Surat in neigh-bouring Gujarat.

The incident happened nearGadchinchale village on theDhabadi-Khanvel road underKasa police station limits.

Three people fromKandivali in Mumbai, identi-fied as Chikne MaharajKalpavrukshagiri (70),Sushilgiri Maharaj (35) anddriver Nilesh Telgade (30),were pulled out of their carand beaten to death in thepresence of a police teamthat had rushed to the site tosave them.

Vishwa Hindu Parishadnational spokesperson ShrirajNair called a it a barbaricincident and demanded aprobe by the Central Bureau ofInvestigation, adding that itwas a failure of the police.

He also took a swipe at"activists and actors who areeager to pounce on issues ofmob lynching when it comesto a particular community".

Social activist AnjaliDamania said the "NCP- con-trolled state Home depart-ment was engaging in goon-daraj", and cited other inci-dents like a man being beatenup by police staff guardingstate minister Jitendra Awhadas well as the arrest of a newsreporter in connection with amigrant mob assembling dur-ing lockdown on April 14 in

Bandra in the metropolis.Former IPS officer YP Singh

demanded a through probeand said police could not beblamed entirely as some foreststaff seen in the assault videoshould also have intervened tosave the victims.

Former Mumbai BJP chiefAshish Shelar blamed the localsuperintendent of police andsaid the latter's teams were yetto arrest those who spreadrumours that led to the lynch-ing. Over 100 people havebeen arrested so far in the case,officials have said.

PNS n KOLKATA

The West Bengal governmenthas alleged that the Covid-19testing kits supplied by theNICED, ICMR's nodal agencyin the state, a fortnight ago, are"apparently defective" as theyshow "inconclusive results"leading to repeated confirma-tory tests and delaying diagno-sis of the disease.

The ICMR-NICED authori-ties said it could be possiblybecause the kits "have not beenstandardized" and it is consider-ing the matter "very seriously".

West Bengal has reported 12deaths and 276 cases ofCOVID-19 affliction.

"The apparently defective testkits supplied by ICMR-NICED,Kolkata, have started to throw upa large number of inconclusiveresults, necessitating a repeat/con-firmatory test run, thereby caus-

ing a delay in the generation of thefinal test report," the West Bengaldepartment of health and fami-ly welfare has tweeted.

The "high number of repeat/confirmatory tests are causingdelays and other attendantproblems at a time when we arebattling a pandemic," it said,adding the Incian Council ofMedical Research needs tolook into it immediately.

The department claimed thatthe problem of defective kits hasbeen faced not just by govern-ment labs in the state but othertesting labs in the country.

The state health departmenthad faced no such problemwhen the testing kits weresupplied directly by theNational Institute of Virology(NIV), Pune, it said.

Recently, the supplies to gov-

ernment laboratories in WestBengal have been routedthrough ICMR-NICED, Kolkata,the department tweeted.

When contacted, NICEDDirector Shanta Dutta said,"Itis unfortunate that test kits havenot been standardised to yieldappropriate results. It is difficultfor each medical college tostandardise them, because ofwhich there were different and

inconclusive results."She said the matter was

"very seriously considered" bythe ICMR.

"Initial NIV kit was an assem-bled one where the NIV hadprocured the primer and probesfrom the US, standardised thekit in their laboratory withother reagents and controls,and distributed it directly toother VRDLs (Virus Researchand Diagnostic Laboratory).

"When demand for the kiticreased, it was difficult for theNIV to cope up with it. ThenICMR started procuring ready-made kits and supplied toVRDLs through 16 depotsacross the country," she said.

West Bengal on Sundayreceived 10,000 rapid antibodytesting kits from ICMR and isexpected to start using themsoon in areas with a highnumber of COVID-19 patients.

Covid-19 kits supplied by ICMR-NICED defective

PALGHAR LYNCHING

Two cops suspendedfor negligence in dutyPNS n PALGHAR

Two policemen were suspend-ed on Monday for allegeddereliction of duty in the wakeof lynching of three men inMaharashtra's Palghar dis-trict, an official said.

The incident took place onApril 16 when the three menfrom Kandivali in Mumbai weregoing in a car towards Surat inGujarat to attend a funeral.

Their vehicle was stoppednear a village in Palghar. Thethree were dragged out oftheir car and beaten to deathwith sticks by a mob on sus-picion that they were thieves.

Palghar Collector Dr KailasShinde earlier said the role ofpolice on the day of the inci-dent was being probed, and itwas also being examined howthe three men travelled fromMumbai during the lockdown.

Following the probe,Palghar Superintendent of

Police Gaurav Singh orderedsuspension of Kasa police sta-tion's assistant police inspec-tor Anandrao Kale and sub-inspector Sudhir Katare foralleged dereliction of duty, apolice source said.

The Kasa police have regis-tered three FIRs in connectionwith the incident and arrest-ed 101 people, who havebeenremanded in police custody tillApril 30, a police spokesper-son said.

PM says India will standby Maldives in this crisisPNS n NEW DELHI

Prime Minister Narendra Modion Monday spoke withMaldivian President IbrahimMohamed Solih on the "healthand economic challenges" theCOVID-19 pandemic poses forthe island nation. "The specialbond between India andMaldives strengthens our resolveto fight this common enemytogether," the prime ministertweeted.

India will stand by its closemaritime neighbour and friendin this challenging time, hesaid. Noting the special chal-lenges that the pandemic posesfor a tourism-dependent econ-omy like the Maldives, the primeminister assured the MaldivianPresident of continued Indiansupport for minimising thehealth and economic impact ofCOVID-19, an official statementlater said.

The leaders updated eachother about the current state ofCOVID-19 infections in their

countries. They expressed satis-faction that the coordinationmodalities agreed amongSAARC countries were beingimplemented actively.

Prime Minister Modi washappy to hear that the Indianmedical team sent earlier toMaldives, and the essential med-icines gifted by India, had con-tributed towards controlling thespread of the infection in theislands. The two leaders agreedthat their officials would remainin touch on issues arising out ofthe present health crisis, as wellas other aspects of bilateralcooperation.

Arrests in Jamia violence case made afteranalysis of forensic evidence: PolicePNS n NEW DELHI

Investigations into the JamiaMillia Islamia violence andNortheast Delhi riot cases weredone impartially, and arrestswere made after analysis offorensic evidence, the DelhiPolice said on Monday.

The police's reaction cameafter over 20 film personalities,including Anurag Kashyap,Vishal Bhardwaj, Mahesh Bhattand Ratna Pathak Shah, onSunday released a statement,raising their voice against thearrest of students and activists byDelhi Police for protestingagainst the CitizenshipAmendment Act and alsodemanded their release.

A civil rights group - HumBharat Ke Log - had last weekcondemned the arrest of two JMIstudents in connection with theDelhi riots and accused thepolice of "abusing the COVID-19 lockdown to silence thosewho oppose government poli-cies".

A group of lawyers had also

written to chief justice of DelhiHigh Court over the issue ofdetention and arrest of people inconnection with northeast Delhiviolence during the lockdownperiod. "While investigatingJamia and northeast (Delhi) riotcases, Delhi Police has done itsjob sincerely and impartially," theDelhi Police tweeted.

"All the arrests made havebeen based on analysis of scien-tific and forensic evidence,including video footage, techni-cal and other footprints," it said.

Last year in December, policehad allegedly entered the Jamia

Millia Islamia campus afterprotests over the CAA, beingheld a few metres away from thevarsity, turned violent. The DelhiPolice is committed to uphold-ing the rule of law and bringingconspirators, abettors and cul-prits of the Northeast Delhiriots to book and secure justiceto victims, the police said.

Two Jamia Millia Islamia stu-dents — Meeran Haider andSafoora Zargar — were arrestedfor allegedly instigating commu-nal violence in northeast Delhi inFebruary that had claimed 53 livesand over 200 people were injured.

8 COVID-19 related IIT-KGP projects approvedPNS n KOLKATA

The Council of IndianInstitutes of Technology, thegoverning body of all the IITs,has approved eight COVID-19related projects submitted bythe IIT Kharagpur and the firstphase of the projects is expect-ed to start immediately after thelockdown is relaxed. Resear-chers would be working on sev-eral projects such as designingand developing bodysuit forCOVID-19 patients, personalprotective equipment (PPE)for healthcare workers, rapiddiagnostic kit, and portableshredder integrated with ster-ilizer, the statement said.

Other projects approved bythe IIT Council included real-time PCR (Polymerase chainreaction) machine, suit withforced purified and cooled aircirculation for medical profes-sionals, bootstrapping ambu-bag as automated ventilator,

telemedicine for fighting aviral pandemic, large scale pro-duction of recombinant pro-teins for vaccine and testing.

"IIT Kharagpur has set upresearch funding for R&Dwork related to COVID-19.The Institute submitted a listof projects to the IIT Councilof which 8 projects have beenselected. An amount of Rs 50Lakh has been allotted forphase I of 8 projects towardsdevelopment of prototypes," astatement issued by the IIT-KGP said on Monday.

PNS n BANDA

A woman healthcare workerwas injured, while her hus-band and 10-year-old sondied after their motorcyclewas hit by a truck in UttarPradesh's Fatehpur district,police said on Monday.

Sushma, along with herhusband and son, was goingto a community health cen-tre in Bulandshahr district asshe had received the finalnotice to resume duty, SHOof Aung Police Station N KNagar said.

The accident took place atKeechakpur village onSunday, he said.

Sushma sustained injuries,while her husband AkhileshSingh (34) and son Adityadied, the SHO said.

The truck was impoundedand a case was registeredagainst its driver, police said.

PNS n NEW DELHI

The National Commissionfor Women (NCW) has writ-ten to the Union HealthMinistry asking it to conductan immediate inquiry intothe alleged suicide attempt bya woman doctor at the AIIMShere apparently over casteand gender based discrimina-tion and harassment.

The Resident DoctorsAssociation (RDA) of AIIMShad written to Union HealthMinister Harsh Vardhan onSunday about the administra-tion's "inaction" on the allegedharassment of the residentdoctor on the basis of casteand gender by the faculty atthe premier hospital.

The female doctorattempted suicide on Friday,one of her colleagues at theAll India Institute of MedicalSciences (AIIMS) here said.

PNS n NEW DELHI

The Delhi High Court hasdirected the Centre and theAAP government here to holdtop-level meeting to deliberateon measures to curb domesticviolence and protect the victimsduring the coronavirus lock-down. A bench of Justices J RMidha and Jyoti Singh furtherdirected that a decision betaken in three days and stepsrequired to protect victims ofdomestic abuse be immediate-ly implemented. The April 18order, came on an NGO's pleaseeking measures to safeguardvictims of domestic violenceand child abuse amidst thecoronavirus or COVID-19lockdown. The court issuednotice to the Centre, the Delhigovernment and the Nationaland Delhi women commissionsseeking their stand on the peti-tion by April 24.

PNS n NEW DELHI

Delhi SC/ST MinisterRajendra Pal Gautam onMonday urged Union HealthMinister Harsh Vardhan toensure stern action againstalleged harassment of awoman resident doctor atAIIMS on the basis of casteand gender. T h ewoman doctor had attemptedsuicide on Friday, according toreports quoting her colleague.

"Cases of atrocities againstScheduled Castes andScheduled Tribes continue toincrease. Nothing has changedunder the BJP and Congressgovernments (at the Centre).There is no difference. Whyare such cases not taken seri-ously?" the minister tweeted inHindi.

Tagging a report on thealleged harassment of the doc-tor, Gautam urged the Prime

Minister's Office and theUnion health minister toensure strict action in thecase.

The Resident Doctors'Association of AIIMS hadalso written to Vardhan alleg-ing inaction on the part of theadministration in this regard.

Terming it a serious case ofcaste and gender-based dis-crimination, the RDA claimedthat the resident doctor hadmade repeated appeals to theAIIMS administration, buttheir inaction prompted her to"take the drastic step".

PNS n NEW DELHI

The Enforcement Directorate(ED) has attached 124 immov-able properties worth morethan Rs 175 crore of a WestBengal-based company inconnection with a moneylaundering probe linked to analleged bank fraud case, theagency said on Monday.

It said a provisional orderfor attachment of the assets ofPrakash Vanijya PrivateLimited has been issued underthe Prevention of MoneyLaundering Act (PMLA), itsdirector Mannoj Kumar Jainand others for allegedly cheat-ing the Central Bank of Indiaof Rs 234 crore loan amount.

Of the 124 propertiesattached by the ED, 11 are inChhattisgarh, 10 in WestBengal's capital Kolkata andthree in Jalpaiguri. The totalvalue of the properties is Rs175.29 crore, the ED said in astatement.

‘Implement stepsto curb domesticviolence duringCOVID-19’

NCW seekinquiry overAIIMS docsuicide attempt

UP healthcare workerinjured, husband andson die after truckhits their motorcycle

AIIMS DOC HARASSMENT CASE:

Delhi minister urges HarshVardhan to take strict action

BANK LOAN FRAUD:

ED attaches over hundredassets worth Rs 175 cr

The ICMR-NICEDauthorities said itcould be possiblybecause the kits"have not beenstandardized" andit is consideringthe matter "veryseriously"

"All airlines arehereby directed torefrain frombooking tickets...Further, the airlinesmay note that theyshall be givensufficient noticeand time forrestartingoperations," thecircular said

Goa govtbegins easingrestrictons onindustriesPNS n PANAJI

The Goa government onMonday began easing lock-down restrictions on someindustries, and the thestate 's Chamber ofCommerce and Industrystated that a majority ofunits would apply to GoaIndustrial DevelopmentCorporation for permissionto resume operations.

Earlier, Chief MinisterPramod Sawant had desig-nated GIDC as the nodalagency for permission toindustrial units to resumeoperations in the secondphase of lockdown for thecoronavirus outbreak.

VIJAYAWADA | TUESDAY | APRIL 21, 2020 nation 05SHORT READS

BJP playing politics atdisturbing moment inhistory: CongressNEW DELHI: The Congress onMonday accused the BJP ofplaying politics on the Palgharincident in which three personswere lynched by a violent mobon the suspicion that they werethieves. "I think the BJP isplaying politics at a very verydisturbing moment in oursociety's history," seniorCongress leader Jairam Rameshsaid, commenting on theincident of lynching. On thenight of April 16, three Mumbairesidents who were on their wayto Surat in Gujarat were lynchedby local residents in Gadakchi-nchale village in Maharashtra'sPalghar district on the suspicionthat they were thieves.

Army trainee foundhanging

20-year-old man diesof fever, sparks offtension

Gujarat COVID-19cases rise to 1,851

ERODE: The death of a 20-year-old man at the ErodeGovernment HeadquartersHospital sparked off protestsfrom villagers in front of thehospital as they said the manmay have died of coronavirus,police said on Monday. Theman belonging to Nambiyurvillage near Gobichettipalayamwas admitted to the isolationward with high fever somedays ago and died on Sundaynight. He was tested negativefor COVID-19 and his body washanded over to his relatives. Allarrangements were made forburying the body in Nambiyur,but the villagers raisedobjection and said he may havedied of coronavirus andprotested, saying they wouldnot allow the burial.

AHMEDABAD: The number ofcoronavirus cases in Gujaratrose to 1,851 after 108 morepeople tested positive for thedisease on Monday, a healthofficial said. The state alsoreported four more deaths,taking the COVID-19 toll to 67.Among the new patients, 91were reported from Ahmeda-bad, six from Aravalli district,two each from Kutch, Mahi-sagar, Panchmahal, Rajkot andSurat, and one each fromVadodara and Mehsana, princi-pal secretary (health) JayantiRavi said. Out of the four latestdeaths, two each were reportedfrom Ahmedabad and Surat.

UDHAGAMANDALAM: A 22-year-old trainee in the ArmyTraining Centre in Wellingtonnear here was found hangingdead from a tree on thecentre's campus in the earlyhours of Monday, police said. Afew trainees noticed the bodyof Sampathkumar, hailing fromMadurai and informed seniorofficials, the police said.Sampathkumar had joinedtraining four months ago. Thereason for the alleged suicidewas yet to be ascertained andthe body was kept at themortuary in Coonoor, they said.

CM urges Shah for action againstcommunal twist to lynchingPNS n MUMBAI

Maharashtra Chief MinisterUddhav Thackeray on Mondayurged Union Home MinisterAmit Shah to take actionagainst those giving communalcolour to the lynching of threemen by a mob in Palghar dis-trict.

The state government hasalready ordered a high-levelinquiry into the incident thattook place on April 16.

State Home Minister AnilDeshmukh earlier warnedagainst giving any communalcolour to the incident, as twoof the three deceased werebelieved to be seers.

In a video message,Thackeray said he received acall on Monday from AmitShah who himself said there isno communal angle to thePalghar mob lynching incident.

"I have urged him to initiateaction against those who aregiving a communal twist to thePalghar mob lynching, whichis factually incorrect. I also

informed him that my govern-ment is definitely going totake action against the perpe-trators," Thackeray said.

The chief minister earliersaid stern action will be takenagainst those involved in thelynching of the three men.

"The Palghar incident hasbeen acted upon. The policehas arrested all those accusedwho attacked the 2 sadhus, 1driver and the police person-nel, on the day of the crimeitself," Thackeray tweeted late

Sunday night."Nobody guilty in this

heinous crime and shamefulact will be spared and they willbe brought to justice in thestrongest way possible," headded.

Deshmukh said those whoattacked and who died in thePalghar mob killings are notfrom different religions.

"I have ordered Maharashtrapolice and @MahaCyber1 totake action against anyoneinstigating communal hatred

in the society or on socialmedia," he said in a tweet onSunday. "Police have detained101 people involved into thekilling of three Surat boundpeople in Palghar. I have alsoordered high level inquiry intothis killings," he said.

Deshmukh said police arekeeping an eye on those whowanted to use the incident tocreate a rift in society.

TASTE OF INDIAN CULTURE DURING LOCKDOWN

Union Min appeals to artistesto take their art onlinePNS n NEW DELHI

In an effort to give the world ataste of Indian culture during theglobal lockdown, CultureMinister Prahlad Patel hasappealed to artistes to uploadtheir performances online andurged his ministerial colleaguesto post photographs of them-selves in traditional attires typi-cal of their regions on social net-working sites.

He thanked all the artistes whohave already put up videos ofthemselves performing at homeon social media for the generalpublic and lauded their efforts tocreate awareness towards thecoronavirus pandemic.

"Firstly, I am immensely grate-ful for those artistes who haverecorded their videos and putthem up on social media plat-forms. Even when people cannotcome out of their homes to seethem perform, this is a great wayto reach out. It also promotes ourculture.

"I appeal to artists to recordtheir art forms and put it up on

sites so that people from acrossthe globe can enjoy them," hesaid.

Patel who is spearheadingthe Culture Ministry's efforts topromote Indian culture evenwhen virtually the entire worldin under lockdown, has alreadystarted a webinar where theheritage of cities are being show-cased. He has also launchedViraasat Setu, a virtual tour ofheritage sites across the country.

He has appealed to all his col-leagues in the Union Council ofMinisters to put up images fromtheir respective states highlight-

ing its heritage sites as well as itstraditional attires.

"I have requested my col-leagues for cooperation and theyhave responded positively. Manyof them have already put up suchimages and I am very happy thata small initiative of mine is beingtaken up so positively," Patel said.

Arjun Ram Meghwal, UnionMinister of State for Parliamen-tary Affairs and Heavy Industries& Public Enterprises, TripuraChief Minister Biplab KumarDeb, Sports Minister KirrenRijiju among others have pledgedtheir support to the initiative.

Robots help in social distancing inBulandshahr, give food, medicines to patientsPNS n BULANDSHAHR (UP)

Robots are helping peoplemaintain social distancing andminimise spread of coronavirusby dispensing sanitiser to peo-ple at the district collectorateand giving food and medi-cines to patients at the COVID-19 designated hospital here.

Fitted with sensors, a brightred robot at the collectoratedetects human presence anddispenses sanitiser.

"We have deployed a robot,made by local engineering stu-dents, at COVID-19 controlroom at the collectorate. Therobot is used for giving sanitis-ers to employees and visitors,thereby avoiding humaninvolvement in the job,"District Magistrate,Bulandshahr, Ravindra Kumartold PTI.

A similar robot has beendeployed in the COVID-19hospital in the district on

Monday for giving food, waterand medicines to patients tohelp reduce contact betweenhealthcare workers and positivecases, the DM said.

The robot, which has thecapability to walk, can work for

one to one-and-a-half hours ata stretch after which its batteryneeds to be recharged.

"Now we have two robots.But, we are facilitating themakers to buy spare parts sothat they can deliver more. We

have started using their servicesof robot for giving food, waterand medicines to patients inCOVID hospital," the DM said.

These robots will not onlyhelp doctors and staff but alsoprevent them from direct con-tact, thus avoiding infections,he stressed.

He said credit for the robotgoes to local techies - NishantSharma and Atul Kumar -both pursuing engineeringcourses at separate privateinstitutions in Noida.

Sharma said, "When wecame to know about the diseaseand the way it spreads, wethought of doing something.We made this robot after toil-ing for over a month.

"We named it 'Delta 3.0'. Ithas sensors and as one comesnear, the gadget pours sanitis-er in the hand of the person,"he explained.

The robot has a display andspeaker through which it cangive instructions to patientsand display the fed message orslogans, Sharma said.

It is controlled through amobile application, he said,adding that it costs over Rs 1lakh but if supported by thegovernment the price could bebrought down.

PNS n PANAJI

Goa Health MinisterVishwajit Rane on Sundaysaid it was too early to termthe state as a "green zone"despite it having no activeCOVID-19 case at themoment.

The state government, onSunday, said all seven patientshad recovered from the infec-tion after treatment.

"It is too early to tag ourstate a green zone. It istime to intensify testing,and we are now drawing upprotocol for random test-ing, testing of migrantworkers, industrial work-ers," he said. Rane saidsmart kiosks would be setup at the borders, airport,port etc to broaden thescope of testing.

COVID-19: Tooearly for greenzone tag to Goa,says minister

PNS n LUCKNOW/NEW DELHI

Uttar Pradesh Chief MinisterYogi Adityanath's father AnandBisht died on Monday and willbe cremated in Haridwar at afuneral which will not beattended by the CM, who saidhe is duty-bound to stay in hisstate.

Bisht, 89, was admitted tothe gastroenterology depart-ment of the AIIMS after hishealth deteriorated. His condi-tion was critical, sources at thehospital said.

He died at 10.44 am, accord-ing to Additional ChiefSecretary (Home) AwanishAwasthi. Bisht's last rites willtake place in Haridwar inUttarakhand on April 21, MediaAdvisor to the Chief MinisterMrityunjay Kumar said

In a statement, the chiefminister said, "I had the ardentwish to get a glimpse of him atthe final moment. However,following a sense of duty

towards the state's 23 crorepeople during the COVID-19pandemic, I could not do so."

"For the success of the lock-down and the strategy to defeatthe novel coronavirus pan-demic, I will be unable toattend the last rites on April21," Adityanath said.

"I am deeply saddened by thedemise of my respected father.He instilled in me the values ofhonesty, hardwork and selflessservice for public welfare inchildhood itself," he said.

Even as the news of hisfather's demise reached,Adityanath continued with ameeting with officials, whomhe directed to ensure that thestudents of Uttar Pradesh whohave returned from coachinghub Kota are quarantined attheir homes.

Adityanath appealed to hismother and acquaintances tofollow lockdown norms andsaid a small number of peopleshould attend his father's thelast rites.

RS secretariat resumesnormal functioningPNS n CHENNAI

The Rajya Sabha secretariat onMonday partially resumed itsfunctioning on the 27th day ofthe nationwide lockdown amidsafeguards against COVID-19.As partial relaxations came intoeffect, Rajya Sabha SecretaryGeneral Desh Deepak Vermafirmed up plans of work agenda.

The Rajya Sabha secretariatwas shut in the last week ofMarch due to the COVID-19outbreak. Sanitisation of all vehi-cles entering the ParliamentHouse complex, including theannexe, temperature screening ofall employees and checking num-ber of incumbents in each vehi-cle were among the safeguardsundertaken on the first day ofresumption of work. Accordingto the RS secretariat, this will con-tinue as a norm till the lockdownrestrictions are in force.

All officials and staff attend-ed office wearing masks andmany even wore gloves, besidescarrying their own water bottlesand lunch boxes. They stood inearmarked circles waiting for liftsto maintain social distancing.Rajya Sabha Secretary GeneralDesh Deepak Verma firmed upthe agenda of work for thelockdown period through videoconferencing with 17 seniorofficials of the rank of joint sec-retary and above. He also pre-pared a plan of action for reduc-ing expenditure in the UpperHouse. The issues discussedincluded oath-taking by newly-elected members of Rajya Sabha,orientation programme for suchmembers, including preparationof 10 updated booklets in thisregard for use of members,firming up action plans furtherto decisions taken earlier regard-ing major issues.

K'taka Pollution Board to studywater quality of all rivers in StatePNS n BENGALURU

The Karnataka State PollutionControl Board has started thestudy of polluted river stetch-es and lakes in Karnataka, anofficial said.

"We have given a directionduring the COVID-19 relatedlockdown to assess the waterquality. We have asked ourResearch Scientists, chief envi-ronment officers and envi-ronment officers of all thedistricts including Bengaluruto furnish lab analysis reportbefore the lockdown is over,"KSPCB member secretaryBasavaraj Patil said.

The KSPCB has identified17 river stretches as pollutedand want to study them.

"We have 17 polluted riverstretches, which areTungabhadra, Cauvery, Kabini(Kapila), Krishna, Bhadra,Ghataprabha, Malaprabha,Arkavati, Shimsa, Bhima,Hemavati, Lakshman Teertha,Kaali, Netravati, Manjira,

Kumaradhara and Kagina,"the officer added.

According to Patil, the waterquality has improved in therivers flowing in the state.

However, the KSPCB want-ed to analyse the extent ofimprovement of water quality.

The officers in all the dis-tricts have been asked to col-lect water sample of all therivers and furnish the reportbefore the lockdown is lifted.

In Bengaluru, the officerswill collect water sample in

three lakes such as Bellandur,Agara and Varthur usingPersonal Protective Equipment.

The water bodies inBengaluru are highly contam-inated. Bellandur lake, thebiggest water body inBengaluru is so polluted that ithad caught fire due to chemi-cal reaction drawing nationalattention. In its latest study onthe lockdown effect on airquality, the KSPCB found thatthe pollution level has comedown by 65 to 70 per cent.

PNS n PANAJI

The Goa-based CSIR-NationalInstitute of Oceanography(NIO) and other units areexploring the possibility ofusing marine derived bioactivemolecules in the treatment ofCOVID-19, and a conceptnote in this connection hasbeen submitted to CSIR, NewDelhi, a senior official said onMonday. Director of CSIR-NIO Sunil Kumar Singh toldPTI the research is aimed atfinding whether moleculesextracted from the depth of theocean can cure COVID-19.

"Molecules having anti-viral and anti-malarial prop-erties have been extracted byCSIR-NIO scientists andthese molecules will bescreened for COVID-19 inhi-bition," Singh said.

PNS n NEW DELHI

Prominent Muslim bodyJamiat Ulema-e-Hind hasappealed to Muslims to adhereto all the guidelines of the lock-down and perform all religiousrituals during Ramzan, start-ing later this week, stayinginside their homes.

Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind gen-eral secretary MahmoodMadani also appealed to thecommunity to help the poorand ensure 'sehri' (meal beforestart of fasting) and 'iftar'(meal at breaking of fast) ismade available for the needy.

"It is an appeal to theMuslims in India that theyadhere to the lockdown guide-lines completely. They shouldnot leave their homes withoutreason," the Jamiat appeal said.

It also asked Muslims to per-form prayers and other reli-gious rituals inside their homes

and adhere to the lockdownguidelines during Ramzanwhich is to start from April 24or 25.

The nationwide lockdown,which was from March 25 tillApril 14, has been extended toMay 3 by the government toprevent the spread of the novel

coronavirus.Minority Affairs Minister

Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi onThursday had directed statewaqf boards to ensure strictimplementation of the lock-down and social distancingguidelines during the holymonth of Ramzan.

Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind appeals toMuslims to follow lockdown norms

Govt must deposit Rs 7500in bank accounts of poor;revive MSME sectorPNS n NEW DELHI

A key Congress panel headed byformer Prime MinisterManmohan Singh on Mondaymet for the first time and dis-cussed significant issues beforethe country such as revival of theMSME sector, smooth cropprocurement and migrant issuesamid the nationwide lockdown.

The Congress will soon pre-pare a detailed plan for revivalof Micro, Small and MediumEnterprises (MSMEs) togetherwith steps to ensure smoothcrop procurement and resolvingmigrants' issues and will put itbefore the central government,senior Congress leader JairamRamesh said.

Ramesh, who is a member ofthe party's consultative group onCOVID-19 headed by Singh,

said the Congress has urged thegovernment to submit throughdirect benefit transfers Rs 7500in all Jan Dhan accounts, all pen-sion accounts and those underthe PM-Kisan scheme. Rameshalso said the former prime min-ister and Rahul Gandhi, whoalso participated in the meeting,stressed that priority be given tothe MSME sector because of itssocial and economic impor-tance as it is one of the largest jobproviders in the country.

CSIR-NIO STUDY Role of oceanmolecules inCOVID-19 cure

Adityanath's father dies; CM says can't attend funeralPolitical leaders condoledeath of Yogi's father PNS n DEHRADUN

Condolences poured in fromdifferent quarters here onMonday on the death of UttarPradesh Chief Minister YogiAdityanath's father AnandSingh Bisht.

"Stricken with grief over thedeath of Yogi Ji's father.Whenever I met him during histreatment he wore a smile andnever let me feel he would leaveso early," Uttarakhand ChiefMinister Trivendra Singh Rawatsaid condoling his death.

Yogi's father, who hailedfrom a village in Pauri districtof Uttarakhand, passed away atAIIMS, New Delhi, on Monday.

Governor Baby Rani Mauryaalso expressed grief at his deathand prayed for peace to thedeparted soul.

Uttarakhand BJP presidentBansidhar Bhagat alsoexpressed deep grief at thedeath of the UP chief minister'sfather saying he was constant-ly engaged in social work afterhis retirement. "His death is anirretrievable loss to society," hesaid and prayed for strength tohis family to bear the loss.

Former chief minister HarishRawat said he was shocked tohear of his sudden demise. Hehad dedicated his life to socialservice after retirement, theCongress leader said.

"Now we have tworobots. But, we arefacilitating themakers to buy spareparts so that theycan deliver more.We have started us-ing their services ofrobot for giving food,water and medi-cines to patients inCOVID hospital," theDM said

"I appeal toartists to recordtheir art formsand put it up onsites so thatpeople fromacross the globecan enjoy them,"he said.

"I have urged him toinitiate actionagainst those whoare giving acommunal twist tothe Palghar moblynching, which isfactually incorrect. Ialso informed himthat my governmentis definitely going totake action againstthe perpetrators,"Thackeray said.

Novelist and activist Arundhati Roytold Deutsche Welle (DW),Germany’s public broadcaster, recent-

ly that the situation in India was “approach-ing genocidal.” The novelist claimed thatMuslims were being stigmatised because ofCOVID-19 and that the Narendra ModiGovernment was exploiting the pandemic“to ramp up its suppression of Muslims.”Shockingly, she compared the Government’stactics to the one used by the Nazis duringthe holocaust to use the outbreak of typhusto stigmatise the Jews. Finally, came this hor-rendous charge: “Indian mainstream mediais genocidal — TV anchors are like single-member lynch mobs.” This is probably themost reprehensible statement made by any-one with regard to India, the biggest and themost vibrant democracy as also the mostdiverse nation in the world. No individual,who wishes to be taken seriously, wouldbandy the “G” word so recklessly.

Equally shocking is the decision ofGermany’s public broadcaster to lend itselfto such invidious propaganda against theworld’s largest democracy. We all know thatas a nation, Germany is well acquainted withthe dreadful consequences of a genocide.This nation has struggled for 75 years to livedown that terrible past and build a robustdemocracy. Likewise, senior editorial staffand news anchors in DW, who take editor-ial decisions, would certainly be acquaint-ed with India’s glorious struggle for freedomand the secular, liberal and democraticConstitution that has been guiding its des-tiny since 1947. It is, therefore, inexplicablethat Germany’s public broadcaster shouldtake such liberties while talking aboutIndia.

Needless to say that Roy’s allegations arebaseless. The truth is that currently in Indiaa Muslim organisation — the TablighiJamaat — is in the news for its act of irre-sponsibility last month. It flouted StateGovernment orders and went ahead with aconference in the heart of the nation’s cap-ital, which was attended by people fromMalaysia and Indonesia among others.Hundreds of delegates have since got infect-ed with COVID-19 and are being treated inhospitals across the country. They havefanned out to various States and become thesuper-spreaders of COVID-19. The UnionGovernment and Governments in 28 Statesare working overtime to trace the unfortu-nate victims and treat them. Misled by someclerics and by individuals like Roy, many ofthese patients are attacking healthcare work-ers and resisting treatment, thus endanger-ing themselves, their family members, theentire Indian population and humanity itself.Indian newspapers and television newschannels are full of stories of the attacks ondoctors and nurses by these patients andtheir relatives, many of whom have been hos-pitalised. And this, according to Roy is “geno-cide!” It is unfortunate that DW did not evenmake rudimentary checks before running an

interview that was full of blatant-ly false assertions.

We shall now turn to theBritish Broadcasting Corporation(BBC). On April 14, it ran a storyon how India was “underreport-ing” the Coronavirus outbreak.What was the basis for thisreport? Two faceless, anony-mous doctors, who are too will-ing to air their views but lack thespine to identify themselves.

The BBC said “the reality isfar more grim than what statis-tics show.” One doctor claimedthat six patients with respirato-ry problems were brought indead but they were not tested,implying that they were allprobably COVID-19 victims.This is a serious allegation. Thedoctor must now identify him-self and publicly make thisclaim so that the health author-ities can verify and initiate suit-able action. Otherwise, he willopen himself to the charge ofabetting the spread of the virus.

Ever since the epidemic hitIndia, television news channelsback home have been talking totop doctors and heads of med-ical research in the country.These experts are just a phonecall away and deem it their dutyto keep the people informed butall that the BBC could find weretwo anonymous doctors. Itclaimed that one of the doctors,

who works in Maharashtra,wanted anonymity because hefeared “reprisal from theGovernment.” WhichGovernment?

One fact that is hiddenfrom readers and viewers acrossWestern media platforms,including DW and the BBC, isthat India is a federation and alarge number of political partiesrun the federal Governmentand the 28 States. It is indeed apolitical kaleidoscope, with overtwo dozen political partiesengaged in governance at justthese two levels. But this fact ishidden so that whenever thereis an insinuation that democra-tic traditions are flouted, a fin-ger can easily be pointed atPrime Minister Narendra Modi,as if he heads a nation ruled bya single party.

The question one must poseto the BBC is: How responsibleare you when you withholdsuch basic information aboutIndia’s democratic system? Also,all that you could get to furtheryour unprofessional assump-tions were two anonymous bytesin this nation of 1.3 billion peo-ple with top class experts in thefield of medical science?

In the days ahead, onehopes the BBC will turn its spe-cial focus to the human tragedythat is unravelling in thousands

of care homes in the UK inwhich hundreds of elderly citi-zens are dying every day ofCOVID-19 for want of adequateGovernment support.

Then you have the NewYork Times, which is doing itsbest to paint India’s decision togo in for a complete lockdownin dark shades. Its correspon-dents in New Delhi are claimingthat India’s “already fragile econ-omy will collapse” because of thelockdown. Meanwhile, therehave been two developments,which show how motivated andbiased these assertions are. TheInternational Monetary Fund(IMF) and other internationalfinancial institutions are unan-imously declaring that Indiawill have the highest real GrossDomestic Product (GDP)growth in 2020-21 among all theG-20 nations. India’s GDP isexpected to grow at 1.9 per centas against minus 5.9 of the US,minus 6.5 of the UK etc.Obviously, India is doing some-thing right? Also, an OxfordUniversity study has declaredthat India is one of those coun-tries where the lockdown wasthe strictest.

The time has come to scru-tinise every report put out bythese media corporations and tocall out prejudice. Obviously,there is more to it than just irre-

sponsible journalism. There is adeliberate attempt to run downthe world’s largest democracy,which, despite under develop-ment, social and economicissues and political diversity ofthe kind that no other nation hasexperienced, has displayed phe-nomenal unity, confidence anddiscipline to tackle the pandem-ic. These reports constitute anaffront to the 1.3 billion citizensof India.

In recent years, there havebeen incidents of violenceagainst the immigrant Turks inGermany and the GermanInterior Ministry has reportedthat there are 26,000 radicalRight-wing extremists inGermany, of whom 6,000 areneo-Nazis. The Islamic HumanRights Commission has said thatthe “British Government isresponsible for the alarmingrise of Islamophobia.”

But let us not say that thefascists are back in Germany, orthat Britain, the cradle of mod-ern democratic traditions, hasforgotten all that has happenedsince the days of the MagnaCarta and is now seeking solacein its medieval practices. Wemust behave responsibly.

(The writer is an author specialising in democracy studies. Views expressed are per-sonal.)

Traffic on the roads of Mumbai, contra-dictory orders in Kerala, social distanc-ing a casualty...the first day of the new

week, one when things were supposed to geta bit more organised, as some people wouldbe allowed back to work because of theGovernment’s decision to partially lift therestrictions for select sectors, highlights thechallenges before both the Central as well asState Governments. There is no doubt that peo-ple are desperate to get back to work and sois the Government. State and CentralGovernments are facing huge revenue pres-

sures and only getting the economy rolling can help ease this anxiety. Companiesare desperate to restart work so that they can help their employees pay the bills.The partial resumption of work will help the workers get payments. Those self-employed, too, will be able to get back their source of income. Most important-ly, the partial exit will come as a relief to the farmers. With the Rabi season reach-ing its peak this month, the free flow of labourers and transport system will meanthey will at least be able to sell their produce and not incur losses. While all ofthis sounds good, the exit formula has to be well-planned for the spread of thevirus in our country is still high; its scale cannot be ascertained yet. DifferentStates cannot have separate sets of norms. For example, many people need ahaircut but without putting into place safeguards, salons cannot be allowed toopen. There needs to be a proper, deliberate nationwide procedure in place beforesalons, restaurants, bars and even large-scale public and private transport areallowed to re-open. Also, who will monitor compliances?

The continued lockdown till May 3 did at least establish that this country, asmany others in the world, decided to keep the needs of public health before theeconomy. This is despite the fact that millions of Indians will probably lapse intopoverty and destitution. In fact, many more might die from poverty than will actu-ally directly be killed by the disease. Balancing this fact with the inevitability thatIndia’s already overwhelmed public healthcare system will be brought to its kneesby the Coronavirus is not something that any Government, either at the Centreor in any of the State capitals, would have ever thought they would have had todeal with. Despite the public clamouring for plans and the media criticising theway they have been put together, it would be correct to acknowledge that theseare unprecedented times for administrators across the world. But that will notexcuse a detailed set of codes to lift the lockdown, whatever it might be. Theconfusion of the initial days of the lockdown and the continuing stories of eco-nomic migrants, mainly from the eastern States stuck in industrialised parts ofthe country with little or no food or money, should entail that at least there is auniform exit code.The chaos in the streets in some parts of the country todayis an indication that an unplanned lifting of the lockdown will lead to an unmit-igated disaster for the country, both on the public health front and on the eco-nomic front, and would have defeated the purpose of the past four weeks. Thepopulation is getting desperate but is still following rules to a large degree. Withoutproper planning and rules written down on paper, we should be aware of whatis coming next.

When Uddhav Thackeray became ChiefMinister of Maharashtra after a polit-ical drama last November, one which

saw Shiv Sena snap ties with the BJP andhelped him emerge as the consensus choiceof the alternative coalition he engineered withSharad Pawar and the Congress, he had notbargained for the thorns in his way. First, theBJP, the ideological anchor of the SanghParivar, was extremely upset with its junior part-ner for stealing the thunder on the basis of itsimproved performance and negotiating chief

ministership with the Opposition. It was but expected that it would place hur-dles along the way of a coalition that was more about convenience of numbersthan conviction of purpose, that was about power play than about a legacy ofgovernance. If there was any legacy at all, it was only about Sena supremo BalThackeray’s wish of seeing a Sainik as Chief Minister. In his first administrativerole, Uddhav had no time to settle in as the State recorded its first COVID-19case on March 9, posing a severe challenge to the State’s healthcare system.And before he could get a grip on it, Maharashtra became the State with thehighest number of COVID-19 patients across India. Then the exodus of migrantlabourers caught him by surprise, a fact played up by the BJP as an exampleof his administrative ineptitude and poor foresight. Still, Uddhav did not lose hiscool and went in for aggressive containment, testing and medical protocols asAsia’s biggest slum, Dharavi, has put him on trial. But he can clear that test pro-vided he is allowed to. His major worry now is retaining the chair of the ChiefMinister as his six months are almost up and he is yet to get nominated or elect-ed to the House. In this grim scenario, he would have to resign his post.

Since he had not contested the Assembly election, according to Article 164of the Constitution, he has to be elected as a legislator within six months fromthe date of appointment as CM. Uddhav will be completing six months on May28. And though he could have been elected to the legislative council, polls forwhich had been scheduled for March 26 along with the Rajya Sabha election,the outbreak stalled everything. Assembly is no option either with the ElectionCommission suspending operations till further notice. Of course, the MaharashtraCabinet resorted to the last strategy, recommending that Uddhav be nominat-ed to the legislative council on the Governor’s quota. But BJP Governor Koshiyari,who technically cannot overturn a State Cabinet proposal, is yet to act on it andcan by delaying, give the Chief Minister some anxious moments. According toArticle 171 of the Constitution, the Governor can use his quota to nominate one-sixth of the total strength to the legislative councils, and can nominate Uddhavtoo. However, there is no timeline mentioned. This is so not desirable at a momentof crisis but if the time period lapses, then the Governor would have to againinvite Uddhav and administer an oath. That would be not just a procedural night-mare in times of COVID but also politically, make Uddhav eat humble pie. Wouldthe BJP let him know of its upper hand in the matter? Koshiyari had acted againstUddhav before, too, hurriedly administering the oath to Devendra Fadnavis andAjit Pawar as Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister before Uddhav could stakehis claim. But political posturing now, at the State’s gravest hour of crisis, wouldnot show Raj Bhavan in a good light. The Sena is already whipping up a cam-paign against the delay. But one thing is clear, the BJP and Shiv Sena are notgoing to let each other rest easy going forward.

Needed, exit codes

Shameful act

Sir — Stone-pelting at COVID-19warriors has become more a normthan an exception. Such cases havecome down drastically in J&K butare now being reported fromsome of the virus-affected areas. InBareilly, a nurse was attacked. InMeerut, a doctor suffered murder-ous attack from a stone-peltinggang. Even policemen are notspared. Video clips showed womenattacking policemen. This was aplanned attack considering thatthere was a stockpile of stones andbricks on a rooftop.

That the Coronavirus war-riors are being systematicallyattacked is a disturbing trend. Itis ironical that security personnelthemselves need security. Stonepelters must be identified andeach of them should be jailed fora long period. It is unfortunatethat leaders of various groups areinstigating their followers toindulge in such criminal acts.Such leaders and their followersneed exemplary punishment forwaging a war against the nationand for being instrumental inspreading the virus.

KV Seetharamaiah Hassan

Save the warriors

Sir — It was appalling to readabout the incident where two res-ident doctors in Delhi, who hadstepped out to buy fruits and veg-etables, were assaulted by a man

who accused them of “spreading”the Coronavirus in the GautamNagar area of the national capi-tal. The attacker was their neigh-bour. The incident has, quiterightly, infuriated many people.

In times when the COVID-

19 pandemic has been claimingmultiple lives, countless doctors,nurses and medical staff haveemerged as our greatest hope tobeat the disease. They are endan-gering their own lives for us. Inspite of this, there are citizens who

are unleashing violence on doc-tors and accusing them of spread-ing the very sickness that they arefighting relentlessly to stop. Whathas happened to our humanity?And why is the Governmentdragging its feet over taking swiftand strict action in such cases?

AMS NadwiLucknow

Addiction in COVID times

Sir — Amid the Coronavirus-imposed lockdown, there hasbeen an obvious surge in dataconsumption. In one way, tech-nology has helped us in overcom-ing loneliness and social dis-tancing while maintaining phys-ical distance but this luxury hascome at a cost. The technology weconsume is easily accessible, hasvast content and is highly irre-sistible that seduces us to besuperfluously dependent on it,thus leading to unhealthy addic-tion. Once succumbed to technol-ogy, breaking the shackles ofaddiction will be daunting.

Shubham SinghDelhi

P A P E R W I T H P A S S I O N

www.dailypioneer.comfacebook.com/dailypioneer | @TheDailyPioneer | instagram.com/dailypioneer/

op nionVIJAYAWADA | TUESDAY | APRIL 21, 2020

06

Set the record straight

A SURYA PRAKASH

When we are fighting one of the deadliest viruses, nations must act responsibly. It’s time toscrutinise every Western media report that has run down India for its handling of the crisis

It could have been stopped inChina before it started and itwasn’t. The whole world is suf-fering because of it. China shouldface consequences if it is foundto be knowingly responsible.

US President—Donald Trump

I understand that we’re tenseand bored but I think we shouldalso understand the gravity ofthe situation and take inspira-tion from our past experiencesor from what we see around us.

Actor—Manisha Koirala

On the subject of minorities, it(Pakistan) would be well advisedto address the concerns of itsown dwindling minority communities, which have been discriminated against.

MEA spokesperson—Anurag Srivastava

S O U N D B I T E

L E T T E R S T O TT H E E D I T O R

A false choice in America

The story of the COVID-19 in the US is co-authoredby its people and President. It stemmed from theiroverconfidence, bordering on arrogance and the sur-

prising attitude to the deadly intruder. The novel virusbegan its murderous journey from Wuhan in Decemberlast year. On January 22, when nudged to respond,President Donald Trump quipped, “It’s one person com-ing in from China and we have it under control.” He fur-ther said, “It’s going to be just fine.” A few days later,he shared an article from the One America News Networkthat claimed that Johnson & Johnson was working ona vaccine, which turned out to be an incorrect asser-tion. He maintained, “The risk of infection for Americansremains low.” February began, his administration wasstill mulling if it should begin testing as recommendedby the World Health Organisation (WHO). Meanwhile,to greet the ecstatic crowds and embrace his best friend,he landed in Ahmedabad on February 24. Four days later,he assured America, the virus would “disappear” like a“miracle.” In fact, the “common flu,” as it was dubbeddismissively, was infecting thousands during that time.Finally, marking a shift in perception, he declared, “therecould be between 1,00,000 and 2,40,000 deaths.” Herevised that figure to 65,000. From one infection and zero

death, COVID-19 cases rose to 7.58 lakh and 40,000deaths in record time; it hardly shows any letup.

As is the king, so are the people (yatha raja, thathapraja). The Washington Post (April 18) reported, pro-testers had gathered in the streets in Michigan,Minnesota and Virginia to oppose the policies that calledfor non-essential businesses and schools to be closed,restaurants limited to carry out service and people tostay largely in their homes except for emergencies.Clearly, for Trump, the materialistic Republican, the econ-omy mattered more, the human lives not much.

Haridasan RajanKozhikode

Send yyour ffeedback tto:letterstopioneer@gmail.com

Double trouble

India has been reasonablysuccessful in its efforts tocontain the spread of the virusand with the cooperation ofthe people, the nation shall be able to defeat the virus.

Lok Sabha Speaker—Om Birla

As States relax restrictions, recklessness among Indians is nota good sign for the time when lockdown is completely lifted

If COVID-19 wasn’t enough, Uddhav’s chair is at risk as heis yet to be nominated to the Legislative Council

Avoidable health apocalypse

(GAUTAM GAMBHIR) AND HIS ATTITUDE PROBLEM.HE BEHAVES LIKE HE IS A CROSS BETWEEN

DON BRADMAN AND JAMES BOND. —FORMER PAKISTANI CRICKETER

SHAHID AFRIDI

FOR SOMEONE WHO DOESN'T REMEMBER HIS AGE,HOW WILL HE REMEMBER MY RECORDS? YES, I HAVEAN ATTITUDE TOWARDS LIARS AND OPPORTUNISTS.—FORMER INDIAN CRICKETER GAUTAM GAMBHIR

POINTCOUNTERPOINT

Late last year, when the doctors in the city ofWuhan, China, reported that they were treat-ing multiple adult patients having pneumonia

with an undetermined cause, the world could nothave gauged that there was a pandemic in the mak-ing. However, soon the situation turned alarming,as human to human transmission was confirmedand other countries confirmed cases. Indians con-tinued to live in psychological denial; ignoring thescientific evidence about something that was pro-gressing with alarming speed, fooling themselves intothinking that the virus would not touch us. The air-ports had screening processes in place, so that thepeople who screened positive could be quarantinedor asked to self-isolate but it soon became appar-ent that asymptomatic transmission was occurring,too. By the first week of March, Delhi, Agra andJaipur had confirmed cases.

For over three months, the virus has wreakedhavoc on the planet, gripping around 213 countriesand territories. This has put the spotlight on India’salready crumbling healthcare system. The positivecases have increased exponentially since the coun-try reported its first case on January 30. In Marchinfections were reported pan-India. Now, with closeto 17,500 people already infected and the death tollcrossing 500, it comes into question whether theIndian healthcare system can successfully avert a“health apocalypse.” If the virus can spread at light-ning speed and can overwhelm the healthcare sys-tems of Italy, France and the US, then it’s only fairto assume that with the current state of the econo-my and public health status, India is a sitting duck.

As a measure to control the spread of the virus,the country went into a complete 21-day lockdown,which now stands extended. It has disrupted all eco-nomic activities and threatens the already fragileeconomy. The population of 1.38 billion alsocomes as a bane in this time of turmoil and socialas well as economic distress. This lockdown has leftmillions of people struggling to make ends meet, outof which, a majority are migrant, daily-wage work-ers who have been left stranded, without a job,money or a home. This has led them to travel backto their native villages, in search of a safe haven andhas also caused several of them to die on the jour-ney home. This is a glaring evidence of our underpreparedness in the face of the pandemic and howthe current measures have taken a toll on vulnera-ble groups.

As speculated by healthcare and economicexperts, India is severely inadequately equipped tohandle an outbreak. Decades of low investments andinsufficient fund allocation to the health sector haverendered people unable to receive care and they aredependent on out-of-pocket expenditure. Kerala isthe only State that has tested extensively and report-ed comparatively higher number of cases which fur-ther highlights the inadequacy of other States indoing so. As soon as the initial cases were report-ed, Kerala took stringent steps towards quarantiningthe patients while the Centre delayed in announc-ing any such measures. It has also reported the high-est numbers of recoveries. The State employedaggressive testing measures, intensively tracing thecontact history, increasing the duration of quaran-tine and arranging shelters and camps for migrantworkers. All these have collectively led to a signif-icant fall in Kerala’s cases, while the other States lag

in terms of testing itself.One plausible explanation for India’s

poor testing ratio is its insufficiency interms of medical infrastructure and thenumber of frontline healthcare workers.

In contrast with China, which has 4.2beds per 1,000 inhabitants, India only has0.7, with some States such as Bihar onlyhaving 0.11 beds per 1,000 people. As perthe latest trend, infrastructure develop-ment has been privatised to such an extentthat less than a third of cases of disease arenow treated by public services.

The unwelcoming attitude of the gen-eral public towards services like healthinsurance cover also cripples people andleaves them unable to receive the requiredtreatment in most instances. India spentbarely 1.28 per cent of its GDP on healthservices in 2017-18, as per the figuresreleased by the Government.

As testing is vital to check the spreadof the virus, India is importing testing kitsfrom other countries, which has delayedthe country’s efforts to follow the Keralamodel nationwide. The testing laborato-ries are unable to cater to the needs of theentire population, without which, sever-al hundreds of cases might go undetect-ed and the lack of preventive measures willfurther overwhelm the system. Not justtesting, isolation wards where the patientsare admitted are unsanitary. TheGovernment has also been struggling withthe availability of quarantine facilities. Asper experts, the lack of testing and isola-tion measures also lays India open to thedanger of “community transmission.”

Had its health services been good,India could have opted for the isolationand treatment strategy. But, except in themetropolitan and big cities, the patient tobed ratio and doctor to patient ratio arefar below the national average.

As far as estimations go, if the worst

case scenario prevails, India will seearound 2.2 million cases by mid-May, outof which, around five to 10 per cent of thepopulation will need life support. Only anestimated amount of around 70,000 ICUbeds and 17,000 to 25,000 ventilators areavailable in India, so clearly the system lagsseverely. Although the Government hasbeen able to curb the spread of infectionsto a significant extent by implementing“behavioural interventions” such as handwashing, social distancing, self-isolatingwhen sick and others, the country is stillprone to the spread of infection in highpopulation density areas with poor sup-ply of water, food and sanitary provisions.The alarming spread of cases in Dharavi,South Asia’s largest slum, has already gotthe Government of Maharashtra on itstoes to prevent the further spread of dis-ease. As per the latest data, Kerala is lead-ing the nation in terms of curbing the ill-ness, while Maharashtra is leading in termsof the spread of infections.

The district of Bhilwara in the Stateof Rajasthan is a commendable exampleof how an inevitable large-scaleCoronavirus outbreak has been success-fully contained due to vigilant and ruth-less containment measures. Immediatecase mapping, contact tracing, clustermapping, tracing secondary contacts andimposing a curfew in the entire districtwere some of the intelligent measures thatmade Bhilwara emerge triumphant inavoiding the havoc that an outbreakcould have caused.

If India’s healthcare infrastructure hadbeen strong, the Government could haveadopted the Singapore model, as perwhich, the city-State has not shut any ofits operations and its people do not wearmasks. The authorities are still keepingtheir defences up against the virus byimplementing constant monitoring and

testing and isolating confirmed casesimmediately. It is safe to assume thatThailand and Taiwan’s previous experienceof battling a similar virus in 2003 has alsohelped their governments. Thailand iskeeping cases under control by employ-ing aggressive public health campaigns andonly 47 total deaths have been reported.The Taiwanese model of tackling the pan-demic utilises a combination of vigilance,proactive decisions and maintainingtransparency. This has led to only 422cases reported and six deaths.

All three countries have relied on ITand a strongly geared medical system. Thesame measures could have been imple-mented in India if the healthcare systemhad been dependable and the country didnot already have a crippling economy. Thenation’s under-preparedness and its strug-gle towards curbing the spread of the dis-ease, while also compromising the state ofits economy, is a testament to the veryfoundations of our inefficient economyand how a multi-fold increase in focus isrequired for the healthcare sector.

The pandemic has rendered oureconomy non-functional and incapable ofrecovering the loss it has already under-gone any time soon. Had the healthcareexperts been prepared and had theGovernment paid more attention to thesector, the curve could have been flattenedfairly easily. India could have easilydodged the destruction caused by the pan-demic and utilised this as an opportuni-ty to surpass China in the global econom-ic arena. But with the current scenario, allthis seems far-fetched and the countryonly has more restrictions to look forwardto in the future.

(John is faculty member of PublicHealth and Hospital ManagementDepartment, Jamia Hamdard and Kukrejais research assistant)

Had the healthcare experts been prepared and had the Government paid moreattention to the sector, the curve could have been flattened fairly easily

analysis 07F I R S T C O L U M N

Innovationduring a crisis

SONAM CHANDWANI

The countrywide lockdown has catapulted an archaicindustry such as law to adopt technology

at a never-seen-before pace

SAKHIJOHN

AKSHITA KUKREJA

INDIA COULD HAVE EASILYDODGED THE

DESTRUCTIONCAUSED BY THE

PANDEMIC AND UTILISED

THIS AS ANOPPORTUNITY TOSURPASS CHINAIN THE GLOBAL

ECONOMICARENA. BUT WITH

THE CURRENTSCENARIO,

ALL THIS SEEMS FAR-FETCHED AND

THE COUNTRYONLY HAS MORE

RESTRICTIONS TOLOOK FORWARD

TO IN THE FUTURE

With the country being in the midst of an extended lockdown,businesses and individuals are feeling the anxiety and stressbrought on by uncertainty regarding the future. Though India

Inc. plans a partial exit strategy but to jumpstart a stalled economy isan onerous task. It is, therefore, a valid assumption that economic dis-ruptions caused due to a nationwide lockdown might give a two-foldrise to disputes. The closure of courts and tribunals to curb the spreadof the virus has understandably delayed justice to companies and indi-viduals alike. Although the Supreme Court is hearing important casesvia videoconferencing, lower courts lack the infrastructure to keep upwith these advancements. Therefore, in such times, traditional relianceon litigation is a far from optimal way of dealing with conflict.

Desperate times call for desperate measures. Fortunately,Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADS) is at last beginning to emerge asa response to conflict in its myriad forms and to the challenge of build-ing a more peaceful world. ADS mechanisms prescribed by the CivilProcedure Code (CPI) under Section 89(1)-(2) include arbitration, medi-ation, conciliation, judicial settlement, judicial settlement through LookAdalats (people’s courts). ADS, being an informal process, providesquick, interim solutions to parties of a dispute, thereby mitigating con-flicts by large. The arbitral institutes can broker an agreement betweenthe parties in two or three successive meetings. In comparison to this,the other dispute resolution methods would take several months, if notyears. At the outset, if time is on the claimant’s side, a well thoughtout, well-crafted demand with factual statements and even detailedlegal analysis may help the client avoid the prolonged stress of litiga-tion dispute escalation and yield an early influx of settlement funds.Some of the most compelling reasons for choosing ADS are high lit-igation expenses, time-consuming adjudication and most important-ly, an appropriate method of carrying out dispute resolution whilst fol-lowing social distancing amid the pandemic.

Though it started with trying to resolve disputes via e-mail, it wenton to incubate an online dispute resolution (ODR) platform, known asthe Centre of ADS Excellence. This method of dispute resolution wasmade a reality by marrying ADS mechanisms with technology. Typically,an ADS meeting or conference can be called at a short notice and ifboth parties are in agreement with the arbitration rules, an arbiter isappointed and time-stamped intimations are sent via e-mails,WhatsApp messages and SMSs (Short Messaging Services). This plat-form facilitates communication via video calls and eliminates the needfor face-to-face communication. The question of its legality can be putto test by going through Section 19 of the Arbitration and ConciliationAct, 1996 which states that the tribunal is not bound by provisions ofthe Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) and the Indian Evidence Act (IEA)and may decide upon the procedure to be followed in conduct of suchproceedings, thereby making online or live conduct well within the legaldomain. No one can challenge such proceedings merely on the groundof being an online resolution proceeding. International CommercialArbitration rules, which serve as a guideline to arbitration institutionsaround the globe and have been adopted by the India Council ofArbitration, also mandate that arbitration tribunals have the power toconduct proceedings via videoconference, telephone or any such othermeans of communication as may be deemed fit. This transposed theconcept of ADS towards a highly advanced and a far more cost-effec-tive method of ODR. The ODR also helps overcome jurisdictional issues,eliminate geographical barriers, automate administrative tasks,improve productivity of professionals, promote eco-friendly process-es and finally, deliver a quick, economical and effective solution to dis-putes. The need for use of modern technology in courts was empha-sised by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and the Supreme Court inthe matter of Meters and Instruments Pvt. Ltd. and Anr. v. KanchanMehta while hearing a petition on expeditious settlement of cases, espe-cially those relating to business like the Negotiable Instrument Act.

The question of time-bound proceedings had already been answeredby the Supreme Court vide its order dated March 23, by freezing thelimitation period from March 15 until further orders. For instance, Section29A of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 stipulates passingof award within 12 months of commencement of proceeding, whichmay be extended by six months upon agreement of parties to the dis-pute.

It is necessary that technologies be effectively implemented in reg-ular course of business and move away from the Supreme Court’s“urgent only” requirement for using videoconferencing and delve intofull swing application of online proceedings for all cases and promoteODR, wherever applicable. The COVID-19 crisis has catapulted an archa-ic industry such as law to adopt technology at a never-seen-beforepace and is believed by many to be the way forward.

(The writer is Managing Partner, KS Legal and Associates)

The countrywide lockdownnecessitated by the Coronaviruspandemic has had a huge

impact on the economy, robbing mil-lions of people of livelihoods and alsorequiring additional expenditure onhealthcare. However, amid this gloomand doom, there is a silver lining forthe fiscal situation. This is the time totake advantage of the world oil pricescenario to strengthen India’s positionand fiscal parameters later. The petro-leum sector is the single most impor-tant one in terms of revenue andexpenditure for both the Centre andthe States.

India spends about 30 per cent ofits import bill on fuel sources and amajority of it is petroleum or crude oil.As per the all-India report submitted

to the Delhi-based PetroleumPlanning and Analysis Cell (PPAC), 70per cent of diesel and 99.6 per cent ofpetrol are consumed in the transportsector alone. Hence, the slightestchange in the global oil market willimpact our current account signifi-cantly. According to the PPAC, adecline of crude oil price by $1/bblimproves the current account by ̀ 965crore and if the rupee strengthens byone against the dollar, it improves theoil bill by ̀ 553 crore. On the revenueside, petroleum has generated a whop-ping ̀ 5.7 lakh crore in 2018-19 for theCentre and States.

The price of oil is hovering around$20/bbl and its major consumers (US(20 per cent), China (14 per cent),Japan (four per cent), just like India,are currently battling the pandemicand not likely to push prices soon.Some projections suggest that crudeoil price could hit $12/bbl in the com-ing months. Today, the US benchmark,West Texas Intermediate, has fallen to$15 for the first time in 21 years dueto falling crude demand. To add tothis, global oil storage is reaching itslimits. The situation is so dire, in fact,that the Department of Energy is con-

sidering paying domestic oil produc-ers to keep crude in the ground.

The US Energy InformationAdministration (EIA) and theInternational Energy Association(IEA) predict similar trends for crude.Its lower price bound is hoveringaround $20/bbl and other predictivevalues lie between $30/bbl to $40/bbl.

Now, let us look at three scenar-ios to see how India’s fiscal situationcan improve, banking on this fall in oilprices. For the sake of our argument,we will consider only two petroleumproducts i.e. petrol and diesel, whichare a major source of revenue for theGovernment in the petroleum seg-ment. We are assuming one financialyear (FY) i.e. April 1, 2020 to March31, 2021 for our calculation.

Back to normal but less activity:To simulate this scenario, we will useoil consumption data of 2016-17, orthe demonetisation year data. The rea-son for taking the demonetisationdemand and not last year’s is that eco-nomic activity will return to the levelof a bad financial year. Under this sce-nario, India will enjoy a huge priceadvantage. The price of crude is hov-ering around $20/barrel and accord-

ing to sources, it is expected to remainat that level for the next six months.Thus we assume an oil price of$20/barrel for six months and $30 forthe rest of the year. In this scenario,additional oil revenue generated forthe Government could be `1.4 lakhcrore.

Slow and staggered normalcy:Under this situation, India will slow-ly recover and go back to normal eco-nomic activity. To simulate, we assumeonly 10 per cent activity in the first twomonths, 30 per cent activity in the nexttwo months, 50 per cent in the follow-ing two months and business as usualin the remaining six months. The pricesituation would be the same as in sce-nario one. In this situation, theGovernment can get an additional rev-enue of up to `90 thousand crore.

India lags in controllingCOVID-19 and the US recovers: Thepandemic has hurt the US the worst.Significantly, the US is also the largestconsumer of crude oil. If the USrecovers quickly from the current pan-demic and resumes normal econom-ic activity it will make the crude oilprice shoot to $30 for the first threemonths, i.e. April to June, then $40 for

the next three months and $50 for therest of the year. In India’s case thedemand situation will be slow inrecovering and experience a staggeredimprovement, like in the second sce-nario. In this situation, theGovernment can raise an additional`23,104 crore over the FY.

Our calculations show that India’sadvantage varies from ̀ 1.4 lakh croreto a few thousand crores. This showshow current actions can shape up ourfiscal situation in the next year and so.

Conclusion: The three scenariosdescribed above suggest that startingeconomic activity before the EuropeanUnion and the US will give India acomparative advantage international-ly and more importantly in domesticbusiness. It will also provide a windowof opportunity for the Government toimprove its fiscal situation.

India can use this opportunity toimprove its current account deficit(CAD) position and exchange rate.Less pressure on imports and hugeexport opportunities in the healthcare-related sectors should strengthen therupee and improve the CAD.

On the employment front, returnto normalcy can create huge job

opportunities in the petroleum sector.A few other sectors, like business ser-vices, education services and pharmacan also give comparative wage advan-tage to India, which according to eco-nomic researchers Dingel andNeiman, can completely shift to thework from home (WFH) mode. Theyused two Occupational InformationNetwork surveys to estimate share ofjobs that can be done at home in eachoccupation type. Combining thesefacts and adding information into thesocial accounting matrix (SAM)framework can observe an addition-al 11 lakh employment opportunities.SAM is a comprehensive accountingframework within which the full cir-cular flow of income — from produc-tion, to factor income, to householdincome to household demand andback to production — is captured.These estimates show that petroleum,pharma and the business service sec-tor can add 6,89,616 and 81,092 and4,04,630 new jobs respectively post-Coronavirus. These estimations arebased on moderate expectation of fiveper cent growth in exports in these sec-tors.

For all these to happen, India

needs to start some economic activi-ty as soon as possible, preferably byMay 3, even if partially. Hotspots canbe identified and locked down till thespread is contained. The Governmentshould not shy away from providingrelief to vulnerable sections. Theimportant thing is that as soon as Indiacan get back to normalcy it can reapthe advantages of a slack in globaldemand in a number of sectors.Petroleum is the prominent one butthere are sectors like pharma and ser-vices which will have a comparativeadvantage in the post-lockdown peri-od. The need of the hour is to identi-fy such domains and quick-start thoseactivities.

Again, in a nutshell, India’s strat-egy should be to get back to normalas quickly as possible by using moreresources; spending entire resourceson the hotspots (tests, tracking and iso-lation); providing wage-coupons todaily wagers to contain them in thehotspots; inter-sectoral transformableskilling; identifying potential sectorsand encouraging start-ups to harnessWFH advantage to boost exports.

(The writer is Fellow, IndiaDevelopment Foundation)

COVID can grease the Indian economyThis is the time for the country to take advantage of the falling world oil prices due to reduced demand

in order to strengthen its position and fiscal parameters later

ARIJIT DAS

VIJAYAWADA | TUESDAY | APRIL 21, 2020

www.dailypioneer.com

VIJAYAWADA | TUESDAY | APRIL 21, 2020 money 08

CAPSULE

AirAsia cuts staffsalaries by up to 20pc for AprilMUMBAI: AirAsia India hascut the April salary of its staffby up to 20 per cent to tacklethe airline's finances amid thesuspension of all commercialservices till May 3 due to thelockdown, a source has said.Those drawing Rs 50,000 permonth or less have beenspared from the wage cut. TheBengaluru-headquarteredbudget carrier is the latest tojoin the other domestic airlinessuch as IndiGo, SpiceJet andVistara, who have alreadytaken similar measures to cutfixed cost amid grounding oftheir fleet. "AirAsia India hascut the April salary of itsemployees by up to 20 percent. The senior managementwill take a pay cut of 20 percent while the wages of theexecutives falling in otherscategories have been reducedby 17 per cent, 13 per centand 7 per cent, respectively,"the source who is privy to thedevelopment said.

Vijay Mallya losesUK HC appeal inextradition caseLONDON: Embattled Liquortycoon Vijay Mallya onMonday lost his High Courtappeal against his extraditionorder to India in relation tocharges of fraud and moneylaundering amounting to analleged Rs 9,000 crores. The64-year-old former KingfisherAirlines boss had appealed tothe High Court against hisextradition to India at ahearing in February this year.Lord Justice Stephen Irwinand Justice Elisabeth Laing,the two-member bench at theRoyal Courts of Justice inLondon presiding over theappeal, dismissed the appealin a judgment handed downremotely due to the currentcoronavirus lockdown.

Wockhardt getsQIDP designationfrom USFDA NEW DELHI: Drug firmWockhardt on Monday said ithas received QualifiedInfectious Disease Product(QIDP) designation from theUS health regulator for itscombination antibiotic, WCK6777. The QIDP status isgranted to drugs that areeffective against a set of multi-drug resistant pathogensidentified by the Centre forDisease Control, USA, whichhave a high degree of unmetneed in the treatment ofpatients infected by suchpathogens, Wockhardt said ina filing to the BSE. The statusprovides fast track clinicaldevelopment and review of thedrug application by US FDAfor approval. The drug is alsoentitled for five-year extensionof market exclusivity, it added.

PNS n BHUBANESWAR

Hoteliers in Odisha havesought a slew of relief measuresincluding waiver of taxes fromthe state government to tideover the crisis arising out of theongoing nationwide lockdown,an official said on Monday.

The Reserve Bank of India'sannouncement for three-month moratorium on loanrepayments in the wake of thecoronavirus outbreak is "not atall adequate" for the hospital-ity sector in the state, Hotel andRestaurant Association ofOdisha chairman J K Mohantysaid. "Hoteliers have submitteda memorandum to the stategovernment seeking a numberof measures for the survival ofthe hospitality and travel sec-tors, which are severely hit bythe lockdown.

"State tourism secretaryVishal Dev has also held a tele-conference with us," Mohantytold PTI. The hotel industryneeds moratorium on repay-ments of all working capitalloans and overdrafts for at

least one year, he said."There should be collateral

and interest free loans up to 5years for SMEs in tourismsector which will help themsustain and rebuild," Mohantysaid, adding that the statefinance department wasexpected to write to all thebanks for extending the reliefurgently to the sector.

The hoteliers have alsourged the government to waivestate GST until the situation

becomes normal. "We want acomplete GST holiday for thetourism, travel and hospitalityindustry for the next twelvemonths," he said. There shouldalso be waiver of fees forlicences or renewals for thehospitality and travel industryin the state for the time being,Mohanty said.

The hoteliers, in their peti-tion, also said the urban devel-opment department shouldprovide 50 per cent discount in

payment of all statutory fees forgetting approval of the tourismprojects from the planningauthorities. "The taxes, whichhave been collected or yet to belevied during the COVID 19period, bar licence, groundwater and electricity feesshould be waived for threemonths, " he said.

The industry body said thewage bills for salary paymentsto staff account for 25-30 percent of the revenue of a hotel,and the government has madea "request" to all hoteliers toensure that there should be "nosalary cut or no retrench-ment". "Under such circum-stances, the HRAO urged thegovernment to considerextending interest-free finan-cial assistance to the stakehold-ers for payment of salary,wages, and ESIC from theOdisha Labour Welfare Fundfor at least six months,"Mohanty said. This apart, thegovernment should declare atourism policy with incentivesto boost infrastructure of thestate, he added.

Hit by lockdown, hoteliersseek government help PNS n NEW DELHI

The country's second-largestIT services player Infosys onMonday reported a 6.3 percent rise in consolidated netprofit to Rs 4,335 crore forMarch 2020 quarter, and saidit is unable to provide revenueoutlook for FY21 due to busi-ness uncertainty amidCOVID-19 outbreak.

The company had posted anet profit of Rs 4,078 crore inthe year-ago period as perIFRS accounting norms,Infosys said in a BSE filing.

Its revenue grew 8 per centto Rs 23,267 crore in the quar-ter under review from Rs21,539 crore in the corre-sponding period last fiscal, itadded.

"Considering the businessuncertainty emanating fromCOVID-19, the company isunable to provide guidance onrevenues and margins for FY21at this stage. The company willprovide guidance after visibil-ity improves," the filing said.

Infosys CEO and MD SalilParekh said Infosys team has

achieved 93 per cent remoteworking on Monday andensuring consistent servicedelivery for clients in thisrapidly changing environment.

"While the immediate short-term will be challenging, look-ing ahead, we can see that thereis a strong interest to consoli-

date with partners with high-quality and agile service deliv-ery and strong financialresilience. I am confident wewill emerge from this stronger,"he added.

Infosys COO Pravin Raosaid the impact caused byCOVID-19 since last fewweeks of March has led to "sig-nificant displacement" in theoperating model while severe-ly testing business continuityplans of companies.

Infosys FY20 net profit wasup 8 per cent to Rs 16,639crore, while revenue up 9.8 percent to Rs 90,791 crore fromlast fiscal. The company hasdeclared a final dividend of Rs9.50 per share.

PNS n NEW DELHI

Electric vehicles sales, exclud-ing e-rickshaws, in India grewby 20 per cent at 1.56 lakh unitsin 2019-20 driven by two-wheelers, Society ofManufacturers of ElectricVehicles (SMEV) said onMonday.

In 2018-19, total EV sales inIndia stood at 1.3 lakh units,SMEV said in a statement.

Out of the total sales inFY20, 1.52 lakh units were two-wheelers, 3,400 cars and 600buses. The corresponding salefor the 2018-19 was 1.26 two-wheelers, 3,600 cars andaround 400 buses, it added.

"This figure does not includee-rickshaws which is still large-ly with the unorganized sectorwith a reported sale of around

90,000 units. The correspond-ing figures of the e-ricks soldin the previous year have notbeen documented," SMEVsaid.

SMEV said the growth of EVsales in India was driven by theelectric two-wheeler (E2W)

segment. "In the E2Ws sold inFY2019-20, 97 per cent wereelectric scooters and a verysmall volume of motorcyclesand electric cycles filled the restof 3 per cent. Low-speed scoot-ers that go at a max speed of25km/hr and do not need reg-

istration with the transportauthorities constituted a whop-ping 90 per cent of all theE2Ws sold," it added.

In the electric four-wheelersegment, 3,400 units were soldin FY20 compared to 3,600units in the previous fiscalyear. The decrease in numbersis attributed mainly due tolack of bulk purchase of e-cars

in FY19-20 and discontinua-tion of one of the leading carmodels, it added.

SMEV said,"the acceptabil-ity of electric cars in the premi-um segment in the secondhalf of the year was a positivesignal of a quantum jump of amuch higher volume of e-carsin FY 20-21." The e-taxi seg-ment is also beginning to getsome traction, though therange of e-cars and lack ofcharging spots in enough den-sity are a deterrent in thegrowth of e-taxi segment, itadded. Commenting on thesales performance, SMEVDirector General Sohinder Gillsaid, “the EV industry is takingshape and we believe thatdespite the COVID-19, FY20-21 will be a defining year for allthe EV segments."

Infosys Q4 net up 6.3%, suspendsFY21 guidance citing uncertainty

PNS n NEW DELHI

The auto components indus-try is in preparatory modeand resumption of produc-tion will depend on whetherthe factories are in greenzones or permissible areas ornot, and if their customersresume operations, ACMAsaid on Monday.

Under the new guidelinesissued by the Ministry ofHome Affairs (MHA) for theextended lockdown periodup to May 3, the government,private industries and indus-trial establishments operatingin rural areas, outside the lim-its of municipal corporationsand municipalities, have beenallowed to operate from April20. Moreover, manufacturing,industrial units with accesscontrol in SEZs, export ori-ented units, industrial estates,industrial townships havealso been allowed. "Thecomponents industry is inpreparatory mode, depend-ing upon whether their fac-tories are in green zones/ per-missible areas and if theircustomer is resuming or not,"ACMA Director GeneralVinnie Mehta said.

PNS n ISLAMABAD

The Pakistan government hasgranted permission for theresumption of Afghan TransitTrade (ATT) activities throughthe Gwadar Port amid thenovel coronavirus pandemic,according to a media report.

According to a notificationof the Ministry of Commerce,the bulk cargo arriving at theGwadar Port would be sent toAfghanistan in line with theinternational standards, TheExpress Tribune reported.

“The trucks leaving theGwadar Port for Afghanistanunder the ATT Agreement,

would be completely sealed,”the notification reads.

“The trucks would beallowed to ferry wheat, sugarand manure as well as have atracking system installed inthem.”

The permission was grant-ed on the requests of theFederation of PakistanChambers of Commerce andIndustry, Pak-Afghan JointChamber of Commerce andIndustry and other institutionsconcerned, the report said.

The port was opened fortransit trade in the beginningof October 2019 and the firstship arrived on October 8.

PNS n NEW DELHI

Airtel has decided to pay thebasic income for April to near-ly 25,000 employees of its dis-tribution partners and retailfranchisee network to helpthem tide over the unprece-dented situation arising out ofthe ongoing lockdown to con-tain the spread of Covid-19.

In a letter addressed to dis-tribution partners in DelhiNCR, Airtel said it is “acutelysensitive that this sudden lock-down has also reduced your(distribution partners) opera-tions and returns during April.

“In order to help you tideover this tough time, we planto extend a onetime supportfor the month of April. This isdone with an endeavour toensure that your FSE (field ser-vice executive) and otherfrontline colleagues get theirbasic income."

Similar letters have gone outfrom various circle CEOs todistributors, and retail fran-chisees network in other loca-tions.

While sources said that themove is expected to benefitabout 25,000 employees of

Airtel's distribution partners,the total monetary outgo forthe company on this countcould not be ascertained.

Bharti Airtel has said it isextending validity of 30 mil-lion low-income prepaid cus-tomers till May 3. These cus-tomers will now be able toreceive incoming calls on theirnumbers even after the valid-ity of their plan.

PNS n NEW DELHI

Non-profit body The AkshayaPatra Foundation on Mondaysaid it has already served over2 crore meals to vulnerablecommunities like migrantworkers and homeless peopleaffected due to the lockdownimposed to contain theCOVID-19 outbreak.

As on April 17, theFoundation has cumulativelyserved 2,19,44,385 meals whichinclude 93,57,839 freshlycooked meals and 3,02,541food relief kits (1,25,86,546meal servings) to people inneed in various locationsacross India, an official state-

ment said.The relief feeding endeavour

has been initiated in AndhraPradesh, Assam, Chhattisgarh,Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Delhi

and NCR, Gujarat, Karnataka,Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra,Odisha, Rajasthan, TamilNadu, Telangana, Tripura,Uttar Pradesh and

Uttarakhand."We have been able to serve

over 2 crore meals to people inneed during these difficulttimes due to the collaborativeefforts of everyone involved,"The Akshaya Patra FoundationChairman Madhu Pandi Dasasaid and thanked everyone forthe donation. The Foundationsaid it is using its kitchen net-work to prepare the meals anddeliver them to the centresassigned by the authorities.Simultaneously, packaging cen-tres have been set up in vari-ous locations across the coun-try where food relief kits arepacked with essential groceriesbased on the local palate.

Akshaya Patra serves over 2 cr mealsto lockdown-hit vulnerable people

Gwadar Port gets nodfor Afghan transit trade

Airtel to pay salaries of25,000 staff employedby distributors

PNS n NEW DELHI

ICICI Bank on Monday said ithas launched voice assistance-based banking services for itscustomers and they can checkbalance, seek credit card detailsas well as ask other queriesamong others through thisapplication.

The bank said it has inte-grated its AI powered multi-channel chatbot iPal withAmazon Alexa and GoogleAssistant through which itsretail banking customers canundertake host of bankingservices through voice com-mands. This novel facilityoffers customers yet anotherway to connect with their

bank from home at a timewhen they are advised to stayindoors in the wake of thenationwide lockdown, ICICIBank said in a release.

The private sector lendersaid the voice-based facilitycomes close on the heels of itsnew digital initiatives such asWhatsApp chat-basedICICIStack aimed at providinguninterrupted banking ser-

vices for both retail and busi-ness customers. It said theWhatsApp-based ICICIStackoffers nearly 500 services thatcovers almost all bankingrequirements.

To get the benefit of thevoice banking offering, cus-tomers need to download theAlexa/Google Assistant andlink their ICICI Bank accountthrough a secure two factorauthentication process.

Anup Bagchi, ExecutiveDirector, ICICI Bank said, thelender recently rolled outICICIStack to facilitate croresof customers to continue alltheir banking, digitally andfrom a remote location, with-out visiting a bank branch.

BMW IndiaCEO RudratejSingh passesawayPNS n NEW DELHI

BMW Group President andCEO Rudratej Singh passedaway on Monday morningfollowing a cardiac arrest.

"BMW Group India, withprofound sorrow, announcesthe demise of Rudratej Singh(46), President and ChiefExecutive Officer on April 20,2020," the automaker said ina statement.

The cause behind the sud-den and unexpected demiseis yet to be ascertained, thecompany said, but sourcesconfirmed that Singh suffereda massive cardiac arrest.

"Our prayers are with hisfamily and loved ones duringthis difficult period. He willalways be remembered as aninspiring and compassionatehuman being," BMW GroupIndia said in the statement.

His demise comes at acrucial junction when thecompany was in midst ofimplementing strategic mea-sures for strengthening thedealer network across India,the automaker said. Singh had joined BMWGroup in August 2019.

Bharti Airtel hassaid it is extendingvalidity of 30million low-incomeprepaid customerstill May 3

The company hadposted a net profitof Rs 4,078 crorein the year-agoperiod as per IFRSaccounting norms,Infosys said in aBSE filing

PNS n DUBAI

The UAE government onMonday announced to operatespecial repatriation flightsfrom four Indian cities tobring back its nationals stuckin the country due to therestrictions on air travel amidstthe coronavirus pandemic,media reports said.

Sharjah-headquartered bud-get carrier Air Arabia willoperate the repatriation flightsfrom Mumbai, Delhi, Kochiand Hyderabad, Khaleej Timesreported.

While the special flightsfrom Mumbai and Delhi willoperate on Monday, thosefrom Cochin and Hyderabadwill operate on Tuesday, itsaid.

"Air Arabia remains com-mitted to bring stranded citi-zens back home as well as sup-porting requests to operaterepatriation flights and isworking closely with UAEauthorities in this regard. Theairline announced earlier thatit's operating a mix of repatri-ation flights as well as cargo

flights during the month ofApril to multiple destinations,"it said in a statement onMonday.

Further information aboutthe repatriation and cargoflights is available on the web-site or can be obtained by con-tacting the Air Arabia callcentre on 06 5580000, it said.

UAE to operate flights to bringback Emiratis from India

In 2018-19, totalEV sales in Indiastood at 1.3 lakhunits. Out of thetotal sales in FY20, 1.52 lakhunits were two-wheelers

ICICI launches voice services onAmazon Alexa, Google Assistant

Electric vehicle sales up 20 pc in 2019-20

Auto industryin preparatorymode toresume ops

Rupee settles14 paise lowerat 76.53 PNS n MUMBAI

The Indian rupee declined by14 paise to settle at 76.53(provisional) against the USdollar on Monday, amidstrengthening of the Americancurrency overseas and a sharprise in coronavirus cases in thecountry. Forex traders said afirm US dollar weighed on thelocal unit. Besides, investorsentiment remain fragile amidconcerns over the impact ofcoronavirus outbreak on thedomestic as well as globaleconomy. At the interbankforeign exchange, the rupeeopened strong at 76.43, butsoon lost ground and finallysettled at 76.53, registering afall of 14 paise over its previ-ous close.

During the session, therupee witnessed high volatil-ity and touched a high of 76.43and a low of 76.68 against theUS dollar. On Friday, therupee had settled at 76.39against the greenback.

Domestic bourses weretrading on a positive note onMonday with benchmarkindices Sensex trading 126.92points higher at 31,715.64 andNifty up by 25.20 points at9,291.95.

he number ofCoronavirus posi-tive cases areincreasing everyday. Most of thesecases have found to

be due to community spread. Despite the call for a lock-

down, few have refused tostay indoors and are ventur-ing out for the silliest of rea-sons. Even though police offi-

cials are working hard toenforce strict measures ofsocial distancing among peo-ple to contain the spread ofthe virus, some have defiedrules of the lockdown.

To tackle this, Chittoorpolice decided to createawareness about the impor-tance of maintaining socialdistance in a unique way.Chittoor police made a quin-tal weight Coronavirus ballusing iron and colours.They’re now touring ruralareas of Palamaneru with it,to help people understand thecurrent crisis. Along with theIron Corona ball, the police isalso playing songs aboutCoronavirus sung by starsfrom the film industry. Thesongs are being played usinghuge loud speakers to ensureeveryone understands theneed to stay home. This, theysay, has proven to be effective.

Speaking to The Pioneer, MSrinivasulu, ReserveInspector, ChittoorHeadquarters says, “It’s almost

been a month since the lock-down has been called butpeople have been coming outof their homes for unneces-sary reasons. Some don't evenfear challans, vehicle seizuresand being beaten black andblue. All they care about, is toget out of their houses. That’swhen we struck upon the ideaof educating people about thedangers of the pandemic andmade an iron ball in the shapeof the Coronavirus. We aretouring many areas in the dis-trict to garner attention of the

people and then spreadingawareness in red zone areaslike Palamaneru.”

He adds, “The giantCorona ball is about six ft. inits height. We placed it on topof the vehicle. We believe peo-ple would understand better ifthey see something big anddangerous that could affecttheir lives. We are carryingout this campaign with theco-ordination of municipaland healthcare departments.Our SP Senthil Kumar, DSPArifullah and CI Sridhar are

encouraging us to carry outvarious other awareness activ-ities to educate people aboutthe Corona crisis.”

Palamaneru is one of thered zones and has reportedquite a few Corona positivecases. “Palamaneru has beendeclared as a red zone and weare taking care of the area24/7. We are explaining rulesand restrictions to the localsand are advising them to doexercise regularly and practiceyoga for better immunity sys-tem,” M Srinivasulu informs.

hatsAppis, nodoubt,one ofthemost

sought-after messagingapps. There are thousands

of WhatsApp chat groupsfor every whim and fancy

with no seriousnessaccorded to them. But

here is one WhatsAppgroup that is bound

to change yourperception.

‘Brothers forFun’, a

WhatsAppchat group

set up bysome

ofthe

members of Freemasonscommunity in Telangana inthe year 2014 has come upwith a novel idea. The groupcomprising of 220 membersfrom different walks of soci-ety, initiated ‘Project Bun’, aninitiative to distribute 500Buns and Bananas, to beginwith, for breakfast till May3rd to GHMC sweepers andworkers, migrant labors,slum, and street dwellers.From ‘Brothers for Fun’ itrechristened itself to ‘Brothersfor Bun’.

Project Bun commencedon 17th April. Buns andBananas are being distrib-uted every morning at 7 amat Victory Play Goundmnear Chaderghat. “Theresponse has been over-whelming and scores of peo-ple have come forward tocontribute to the cause,” saysMadan MohalLal. “In thenext few days, (till the lock-

down ends) Project Bunaims to distribute over

20,000 numbers of bunsand bananas,” he adds.

“Bread is a whole-some food and a

good source ofproteins, miner-

als, and carbo-hydrates. It is

nutritious,easy to

pack anddistrib-

ute. Italso

has along

shelf life,” informs one of thegroup admins.

Srinivasan, who createdthe group in the year 2014,adds that he knows no otherWhatsApp group that is tak-ing up service projects asbig as what ‘Brother for Bun’has undertaken.

“Not only fromFreemasons, but we alsoreceived a positive responsefrom non-members too,who have generously con-tributed to ‘Project Bun’,”informs P. Veerabhadruduwho, along with PrafulSahgal, Nitin Sinha, S. P.Chandu, and G. AshokKumar, oversees distributionevery day. “We plan toincrease the current numberfrom 500 to 1000 a day, asthe need goes up. We don’teven mind going beyond20,000 on the whole, till thepresent lockdown ends,” headds.

Project Bun was born outof a problem the memberscame across during the dis-tribution of cooked food tothe poor and the needy dur-ing the lockdown period.They observed that peoplewere collecting more food.When enquired, they got toknow that people were sav-ing it for dinner, as most ofthe NGOs and others servedfood only during the day-time. There was scarce or nofood at night due to theclampdown. But, due to thesummer heat, most of thefood they kept aside gotspoilt and was unfit for con-sumption at dinnertime,forcing people to forgo theirdinner and go to sleep on anempty stomach.

D. Ramchandram, who isa member of the WhatsAppgroup says, "we realised thatbun was ideal as it is easy tostore, has nutritional valueand a longer shelf-life."

Small promotional videosand posts on the subjecthelped raise contributionsfrom Freemasons inTelangana. “Telangana hasabout 23 FreemasonicLodges(Clubs). Non-Freemason members com-prised of their friends, fami-ly members, relatives, busi-ness associates, etc.,”informs Madan Mohan,another member.

All in all, it is pleasantlysurprising to see aWhatsApp group of like-minded people, who joinedfor a cause of fun, take upsuch a novel service projectcosting few lakhs.

here have beenchanges in theway food bloggerslive, eat, andwork. The highlypromoted blog-

gers are changing their habitsto cooking amid the pan-demic.

They’re indeed struggling,but their small efforts tokeep themselves refurbishedis admirable.

Shweta Parihar aka‘bornfoodiehyderabad’amid lockdown is postingcooking recipes forbeginners on herInstagram stories with

the sole purpose ofentertaining her fol-

lowers. Sheadamantly

believes in thenotion that

Hyderabadi food bloggersaren’t following any trendsrather they are the ones set-ting it. “Our cooking videosare garnering an enormousresponse and the lockdown isone of the contributing fac-tors. We are emerging as ter-rific chefs,” says Parihar, whois an equity analyst by profes-sion.

The highly visible trend offood bloggers cooking ismajorly focused on easyrecipes with limitedresources. They are experi-menting with flavours andare adding their twist to it.The world is politically andeconomically leaning towardspreconceived notions butwhen it comes to food, thedeep co-operation about din-ing has become flaming.

Shagun Segan aka ‘eat-tripclick’ has a contradictingidea about what’s happeningfollowing the extension of thelockdown. This, since theirmajoritarian business, ismore with the outside world.

Hence the easiest thing todo at present is prac-

ticing the skill ofcooking and

sharing that with viewers,regards this top-rated foodblogger. “The latest trends,for instance, dalgona coffeeor dalgona dal-chawal aresome of the newly tried com-binations by food bloggers.Apart from this, some haveeven taken to baking, whichis a sort of detox for our bod-ies as eating outside was alsobecoming a compulsion,”adds Shagun.

The preparation of regionalcuisines is another trendthat’s calling everyone’s atten-tion by replicating street foodinto their versions to treat thetaste buds. Rameez Siddiqui,who has also won a DIAGourmet Influencer of theYear award, believes the activ-ity of food bloggers has cometo a standstill. With theabsence of brand new con-tent, he tells us that he is tak-ing this adverse situation as achallenge. “Many of the foodbloggers have come up withinnovative ideas of postinghome-cooked uploads untilthe lockdown is lifted, to keepthe viewers engaged. To mysurprise, viewership hasexceeded beyond my expec-tations and I’m elated,” he

says.

Truly it’s an elucidatedchange for the bloggers rightnow as many of their liveli-hoods are dependent on theenterprise of food blogging.There is a loss of income aswell, but there’s also anincrease in viewership. Mohd.Zubair Ali, who featured inYahoo, NDTV Food, NewsMinute, Provoke, etc., isthrilled to see food bloggers,amateur chefs, bakers andprofessionals spending moretime in their kitchen andsharing numerous recipes,kitchen hacks and cookingtips on their social mediaplatforms. “Social media canmake the simplest lookingthing turn very interestingthat everyone would want totry, obtaining a lot of reac-tions and making it viral —Case in point: #dalgonacoffee.Bloggers are getting creativewith their recipes becausethere’s no choice of going outand dining,” he tells us.

On competition amongstthe food blogging communi-ty, Shweta Parihar tellsThe Pioneer that foodbloggers havecome to acon-

sensus expressing immensesupport for one another intimes of crisis. Shwetarealises that everyone'srowing in the same boatand they are tryingtheir best to makeample use of theavailable resourcesfor an amazingoutcome to pre-sent the best totheir respec-tive audi-ences.

Diningoutside has

become a nightmare forfood bloggers currently due

to the onset of the Coronaviruspandemic. SHIKHA DUGGALtalks various food bloggers from

the city to find out what'skeeping them busyduring this time of

lockdown

COOKINGDURING

LOCKDOWNT

Many oofthe ffoodbloggers hhavecome uup wwithinnovative iideas oofposting hhome-ccookeduploads uuntil tthhelockdown iis llifted, ttokeep tthe vviewersengaged. TTo mmysurprise, vviewership hhasexceeded bbeyond mmyyexpectations aand II'melated

— RRAMEEZ SSIDDIQUI

Brothersfor bun

Cops' unique way ofCREATING AWARENESS

The Chittoorpolice is

working hardto eduacte

locals aboutsocial

distancing andstaying indoors

by means ofconducting

variousawareness

activities,reports

V SATEESHREDDY

TCHITTOORPOLICE MADEA QUINTALWEIGHTCORONAVIRUSBALL USINGIRON ANDCOLOURS TOCREATEAWARENESS

W

TuesdayApril 21, 2020

Follow us on

@TheDailyPioneer

facebook.com/

dailypioneer

ging of the skin iscaused due tolack of moisture,hard water, windand reduction inthe formation of

new cells.Exposure to the sun and

cold, smoking, lack of exer-cise, poor diet, stress, chemi-cals, excessive bathing, andanxiety are some of the fac-tors that too caused aging.

Dermatitis, Eczema,Psoriasis and Seborrhea arealso responsible for aging ofyour skin. Here are a fewanti-aging masks specificallydesigned to reduce theappearance of wrinkles, finelines, and sagging skin credit-ed to Dr. Bharti Magoo,Aesthetician and an Anti-aging physician. Magoo istwo-time winner of Anti-Aging & Beauty Trophy forthe Best Clinical Case inNutritional Medicine atPalais de Congres- Paris,France.

HONEY PACKThe best way to deal with

aging is to obtain the purestform of bee's honey. Honeyhelps to keep your bodyhydrated by retaining themoisture. It also moisturizesthe skin parts and preventsthe formation of acne.

INGREDIENTS:

o 1-2 tablespoons organichoney

o Saffron

METHOD:

o Apply honey generouslyon the face and neck.Massage for a minute ortwo.

o Put 2-3 strands of saf-fron, it gives brightnessand youthful appearance.

o Leave it on for 15-20minutes and then rinsewith water.

o You can repeat this everyday or every alternate dayfor half an hour.

YOGURT PACKYogurt is rich in wrinkle-

preventing nutrients such asvitamins, minerals, enzymes,and fats which keep the skinfresh and hydrated. The lacticacid in yogurt will help dis-solve dead skin and tightenpores. Yogurt naturallyreduces fine lines and wrin-kles.

INGREDIENTS:

o 2 teaspoons yogurt

o 1 teaspoon honeyo 1 teaspoon fresh lemon

juiceo 1 vitamin E capsuleo A pinch of turmeric

METHOD:

o Mix the yogurt, lemonjuice, honey, and turmer-ic together.

o Carefully cut the vitaminE capsule from its tip andgently pour the oil pre-sent inside into the pack.Mix well.

o Apply this all over theface.

o Leave it for 10-15 min-utes and rinse off withwarm water.

o You can do this 2-3 timesa week.

ALMOND AND MILK PACKAlmonds are rich in vita-

min E, proteins and mineralswhich rejuvenate and hydratethe skin. This keeps the skinin optimum health and pre-vents it from developingwrinkles and sagging. Milkprevents your skin from dry-ing, which is one of the mostcommon reasons for signs of

aging to show on your skin.Badam (Almond) face pack isan age-old beauty recipe, andwomen have always relied onalmond powder for face andalmond paste for face to revi-talise their skin. Any almondface pack comes with thebenefits of reducing the signsof ageing, lightening andnourishing.

INGREDIENTS:

o 8-10 almondso Milk

METHOD:

o Add enough milk to thealmonds so that they arethoroughly soaked and

leave it aside for thenight.

o Grind the almonds alongwith the same milk andapply on the face.

o Leave it on for 20 min-utes before rinsing thepack off.

o You can do this once ortwice a week.

SANDALWOOD MASKOlive oil is a natural

moisturizer. Olive oil soothes the skin and keepsit hydrated and in turn

reducing the fine lines andwrinkles. Sandalwood pow-der is the best and most reli-able of home remedies forface and all types of skinconditions. It has

Anti-tanning Property, Anti-

aging Property and also usedfor Pimple and AcneTreatment and SkinSoftening Effect.

FACE MASK 1INGREDIENTS:

o Sandalwood Powdero Rosewater

METHOD 1

Make a paste of sandal-wood powder and rose waterand apply it on your face.Wash after 15 minutes.

Face Mask 2INGREDIENTS:

o Sandalwood Oilo Milk Powder

METHOD

Make a smooth paste usingthree teaspoons each of san-dalwood oil and milk pow-der, and a teaspoon of rosewater.

Apply this paste on yourface and let it be for around15-20 minutes, and thenwash it off with normal water

GRAM FLOUR ANDLENTIL FACE MASK

Gram flour (Besan) andLentil (Masoor Dal) help inremoving black spots andreduces wrinkles. This willalso help in tightening thepores on the face.

INGREDIENTS:

o ½ cup gram flour (besan)o ½ cup lentil (masoor dal)

METHOD:

o Grind lentil in a mixer-grinder and add besan toit.

o Add water to the mixtureand make a paste.

o Apply the paste over yourskin and let it dry for awhile.

o Rinse off the pack withcold water.

APPLE FACE MASK FORWRINKLES

As apples are rich in vita-mins, they help in fightingagainst the wrinkles and willgive you a wrinkle-free face.Once wrinkles start appear-ing, it is difficult to get rid ofthem. You can use this packdaily.

INGREDIENTS:

o 1 Apple

METHOD:

o Take an apple and boil itin water.

o Let it cool, then removethe seeds from it, andmash the apple.

o Now add one teaspoonfulof milk powder and oneteaspoonful of honey init.

o Keep it on your face for15 minutes and thenrinse it off.

ANTI-AGEING SKINCARE TIPS

o Do not forget CTM thatis Cleansing, toning,moisturizing.

o Massage the face withghee and coconut oilbefore bedtime as it revi-talizes your skin.

o Use 1 tablespoon of oliveoil mixed with 1 drop ofpeppermint oil massageon your face and applyfor 45mins and thenrinse it off. It is good forsensitive skin and yourskin will feel relaxedimmediately.

o Grated cucumber is alsorecommended as a facepack that lightens skindiscolouration.

o The application of lemonjuice on the face is agood anti-ageing treat-ment.

o Use milk as a cleanser, ithelps in removing deadskin cells from the face.

o Take a grind carrot andmix one tsp of honey toit. Apply the paste on theface and leave it for 15minutes to get the differ-ence.

o Keep yourself away fromanger and distress asthese show a negativeimpact on the skin.

o Limit the consumption ofprocessed food and sugar.

o Always apply sunscreeneven when you are athome.

o Avoid repetitive facialexpressions.

10

Vijayawada Tuesday April 21 2020 what’s brewing

FUN

Rules

ARCHIE

GARFIELD

SUDOKU

REALITY CHECK SPEED BUMP CROSSWORD

GINGER MEGGS

NANCY

CALVIN AND HOBBES

l Each row and column cancontain each number (1 to 9)exactly once.

l The sum of all numbers inany row or column mustequal 45.

Yesterday’s solution

A SKIN CARE duringlockdown

Almonds are rich in vitamin E, proteins and mineralswhich rejuvenate and hydrate the skin. This keeps theskin in optimum health and prevents it from developingwrinkles and sagging. Milk prevents your skin fromdrying, which is one of the most common reasons forsigns of aging to show on your skin.

sport 11VIJAYAWADA | TUESDAY | APRIL 21, 2020

MILAN: UEFA presidentAleksander Ceferin on Mondaysaid that leagues across Europeare ready to return to actionbehind closed doors in a bid tolimit the damage caused bycoronavirus.

Football leagues have beensuspended since mid-Marchdue to the global pandemic.

But the head of Europeanfootball believes that playingwould be an important steptowards a return to normal lifeand avoid heavy financial loss-es for leagues.

“I believe there are optionsthat can allow us to restart cupchampionships and to com-plete them,” Ceferin said in aninterview with Italian dailyCorriere della Sera.

“We may have to resumewithout spectators, but the mostimportant thing, I think, is play-ing games.

“It is early to say that we can-not complete the season. Theimpact would be terrible for clubsand leagues. Better to play behindclosed doors than not at all.

“In such hard times it wouldbring happiness to people and a

certain sense of normality evenif the games can only be seen onTV.

“All activities are beingorganised to start again, every-one needs to find their lives.

“If safety measures arerespected and if the authoritiesgive the green light, the trainingcould resume like the rest.

“Further consent will beneeded for matches.”

Ceferin said that if leaguesreturned “soon enough” thenChampions League and EuropaLeague matches could “beplayed in parallel” with no datelimit for the finals.

The Slovenian said he wasnot in favour of the seasongoing into September andOctober as it “would have aheavy impact” on the 2020-2021campaign.

“We can finish, but we mustrespect the decisions taken byauthorities,” he continued.

“The priority is the health offans, players and coaches.”

As for countries who havedecided not to finish the season,Ceferin said that UEFA “willreview the cases”. AFP

AFP n BERLIN

Germany’s top-flight foot-ball matches couldresume from May 9,

regional leaders of the country’sbiggest states said Monday,although games can only takeplace without spectators to pre-vent coronavirus contagion.

Markus Soeder, state pre-mier of Bavaria, said it remains“completely unimaginable tohave spectators” in the stadi-ums given the need for socialdistancing to slow the virusspread.

But “we could perhapsfrom May 9 play such a roundof ghost games,” Soeder toldBild, using the German termGeisterspiele for matches playedin empty stadiums.

“A weekend with football is

much more bearable than aweekend without football,” headded.

Likewise, Armin Laschet,premier of North Rhine-Westphalia state which is home

to Borussia Dortmund, said theleague could resume “on con-dition that there is a thor-oughly thought-out concept”.

The German FootballLeague (DFL) has presented

“safeguards” in recent days,said Laschet, adding that he“can imagine us returning toghost games”.

The backing of the twostate premiers could prove to becrucial to the league as it mullsa resumption of the Bundesliga.

A decision is imminentwith a video conference due tobe held on Thursday betweenthe DFL and 36 clubs in thefirst and second divisions.

While Germany began eas-ing curbs and allowing small-er shops to open from Monday,large public events have beenscrapped through to August 31.

The DFL is desperate forthe season to be finished byJune 30 to secure an instalmentof television money, reported-ly worth around 300 millioneuros ($326 million).

PTI n KARACHI

Former Pakistan head coach,Mickey Arthur says leaving out

pacer Mohammad Amir from T20World Cup squad would be detrimen-tal to team’s title chances.

Amir had quit Test cricket lastyear, a decision which did not go downwell with the team management.

It led to speculations that the pacermay be ignored when the squad ispicked for the World Cup, scheduledto be held in Australia later this year.

“I wouldn’t imagine Pakistangoing to the World T20 withoutAmir. He is a match-winner. If youleave him out of the fray you poten-tially are sacrificing chances of win-ning the tournament,” Arthur said inan interview on a YouTube channel.

“Amir spoke to me about it and hekept me in the loop on his decision.We discussed it many times. Butmaybe I was too hard on him playinghim in every Test I could. I could seehe was losing his hunger for Test crick-et and his body was not able to han-dle the pressure of three formats.”

“Amir is a top class bowler and amatch-winner. I love to watch himbowl. But by deciding to leave Testcricket I think he has given himself achance of extending his white ballcareer.”

About Wahab he said the experi-enced bowler had also taken theright decision.

Pakistan cricket reacted angrily tothe announcements by Aamir andWahab last year that they were notavailable for red ball cricket. Headcoach and chief selector, Misbah-ul-Haq and bowling coach, Waqar Younishad said they let down Pakistancricket.

There have been doubts overwhether Misbah would allow both inthe national team even for white ballcricket but Arthur who coachedPakistan from 2016 to 2019 till last

year’s World Cup said it would be a bigmistake not selecting Aamir.

Arthur described coaching thePakistan team as a fulfilling period ofhis career.

“The thing about Pakistan crick-et is that the people are so emotion-ally attached to the game. Either youare king or you are down there.There is no middle way. I loved andhated that facet of Pakistan cricket.But I think people need to be patientyou can’t get instant results. You needto give chances to new players to findtheir feet.”

He said the only way forward forPakistan cricket was to rely and devel-op on the group of young players hehad spotted and tried to groom in histenure.

“Pakistan has some wonderfulyoung players, Fakhar Zaman, Imamul Haq, Haris Sohail, Shaheen ShahAfridi, Shadab Khan, Faheem Ashrafand of course Babar Azam. I think thisis the core of players Misbah shoulddepend on to carry Pakistan cricketforward.”

PTI n NEW DELHI

The ICC’s Chief ExecutivesCommittee (CEC) will discussthe financial implications of

the COVID-19 pandemic over a con-ference call on Thursday in which theWorld Test Championship and theODI league schedule will also comeup for deliberation.

The ODI league was to start inJune but the first series under it —South Africa’s away three-matchrubber against Sri Lanka in the firstweek of June — was cancelled onMonday due to the pandemic.

ICC Chief Executive ManuSawhney said: “This meeting is thefirst step of a collective process as weassess the impact of this ongoingglobal pandemic and work togetherso the sport can emerge from it in astrong position.

“We need to share knowledgeand start to build a deep understand-ing of what it will take to resumeinternational cricket.”

It is clear that no concrete deci-sion can be taken unless the ICC isable to figure out how many eventsit will lose due to the global lock-down.

“We are almost at the halfwaypoint of the World TestChampionship, and the SuperLeague is yet to commence so wewill consider a range of options foreach with our Members. But it’s stillsome way to go before,” a seniorICC Board member said.

Sawhney admitted that theyhave a tough road ahead in uncer-tain times.

“The scale of this task shouldnot be underestimated and willencompass a myriad of factorsuntil the public health situation hasimproved to a point that it is safefor our players, our employees, ourfans and in a way that will notimpact the public health situationadversely.

“Countries will start to reopenat different stages and in differentways and we will need to respectthat and have a holistic view of thisto enable us to take well-informeddecisions that mitigate the variousrisks as much as possible,” the ICCChief Executive added.

Sawhney said that ICC is tak-ing advice from Australian govern-ment with regards to hosting theWorld T20 in October.

“...We will continue to takeadvice from experts and authorities,including the Australian govern-ment. We will utilize all of the dataand information available to us toensure we can take responsibledecisions around all competitionsat an appropriate time that are in thebest interests of our sport.”

The senior official, who hasattended a number of ICC boardmeetings, made it clear that cancel-lation of another couple of Test

series could heavily impact theWTC calendar.

“Look, we had to finish theleague phase by March 2021 withfinal at Lord’s in June, 2021. India aremore secured as they don’t have anycancelled series till now and theirnext Test series in Australia starts endof November,” the official said.

“But England already have lostone against Sri Lanka. Also you don’tknow if West Indies and Pakistan cantour England this summer,” headded.

Although everyone is tight-lipped, an option of extending thecalendar for the WTC might beexplored where teams get to completetheir bilateral Test engagements.

Add to that, the 13-team ODIleague with points system, whereeach team has to play eight bilateral50-over series (three-match series).

The ODI league will continue tillMarch, 2022.

As per points table as on March,2022, India as hosts (automatic qual-ification) and seven other teams willqualify directly to the World Cup.

The bottom five will play aQualifier with five associates and toptwo from there will complete the 10-team World Cup in 2023.

“At this time CEC will discuss thecollective process to consider impactof COVID-19 on the sport. Themembers would like to get an under-standing from each other as to whencricket might restart in their respec-tive regions and under what condi-tions,” a CEC member said.

It has also been learnt that as ofnow, the ICC won’t tinker with theexisting World T20 schedule inOctober-November as save Big Three— India, Australia and England —the smaller nations might find it dif-ficult to sustain without the event isexpected to generate.

In case the World T20 is shifted,

the revenue stream, especially cash-flow will be severely affected.

India will be represented at theCEC meet by BCCI secretary JayShah.

AFP n LONDON

Lewis Hamilton hashailed Mercedes as his

“dream team” as the worldchampion made it clear hehas no plans to leave whenhis contract expires afterthe 2020 season.

The British driver waslinked with a move toFerrari after the six-timeworld title winner revealedin January he had yet toopen talks over a newdeal with Mercedes.

Ferrari chief execu-tive officer Louis CareyCamilleri said inDecember that he was“flattered” that Hamiltonhad agreed to discuss hisfuture in conversations

with the team’s chairmanJohn Elkann.

But the 35-year-old

appeared to end talk of aswitch on Monday whenhe said his future remainswith British-basedMercedes.

“There is no dream ofanother team. I am withmy dream team,”Hamilton said onInstagram.

“There’s not a thing inmy way, as I’m not tryingto move. I’m with the peo-ple who have cared fromday one.”

Hamilton, who addedthat Mercedes were “thebest team”, will have beenaware that any opportuni-ty to join Ferrari would bequashed if reports thatSebastian Vettel is movingtowards a new contract are

confirmed.Four-time world

champion Vettel, likeHamilton, is out of con-tract at the end of the sea-son, while the German’steam-mate Charles Leclerchas a contract with theItalian team until the endof 2024.

Vettel last week saidhe had made it clear hewanted to stay at Ferraribeyond the end of this sea-son.

“Whatever the dealwill be like, it is whateverI and the team will becomfortable with. In termsof duration, normally thecontracts I had in the pastwere all a three-year deal,”Vettel said.

AFP n MANCHESTER

Manchester Unitedcaptain Harry

Maguire believes the RedDevils are on the righttrack towards contend-ing for the PremierLeague title again.

United havenot won theleague sinceAlex Fergusonretired as managerin 2013 and were amammoth 37points behind lead-ers Liverpool whenthe Premier Leagueseason was put onhold due to coron-avirus last month.

However, Ole

Gunnar Solskjaer’s menwere on an 11-matchunbeaten run before theshutdown with Maguireand Aaron Wan-Bissakabeginning to repay the

lavish sums spent onthem last summer

and Januarysigning Bruno

F e r n a n d e smaking animmediateimpact.

“I knew whenI first came toManchester Unitedthat Ole said to meloads and loads it’sa building processbut we’ll be wherewe want to be.”Maguire told Sky

Sports.“There are plenty of

aspects we need toimprove to get to the topof where we want to be.We don’t want to be chal-lenging for thisChampions League spot,we want to be challeng-ing for titles.

“We know there’s stilla lot of improvement toget there, but we’re on theright track and I’m sureeventually we will getthere.”

United sat fifth inthe table when matcheswere suspended and stillin the running for silver-ware in the FA Cup andEuropa League.

PTI n KARACHI

With the country underlockdown because of the

COVID-19 pandemic, thePakistan Cricket Board (PCB)on Monday started online fitnesstests for its centrally contractedplayers.

The PCB went ahead withthe online tests despite batsmanSohaib Maqsood suffering a leginjury during a similar exerciselast week.

A PCB statement said thatfitness assessments of HarisSohail, Hasan Ali, MuhammadAbbas, Asad Shafiq, SarfarazAhmed, Imad Wasim andShadab Khan were conductedon Monday while remainingplayers will appear for theirtests on Tuesday.

The board also started tak-ing fitness tests of its contract-ed domestic players last week,where Maqsood sustained the

leg injury. The PCB said strengthand conditioning coach of thenational team, Yasir Malik haddesigned the online tests andwas supervising them with headcoach and chief selector Misbah-ul-Haq.

Misbah had already empha-sised that players need to remainin top physical shape and beready for challenges wheneverintentional cricket resumes postthe pandemic.

Pakistan’s next assignment istours to Holland, Ireland andEngland for T20, ODIs andTests which is scheduled to startfrom early July but uncertaintylooms large over these serieswith the deadly disease showingno signs of relenting across theglobe.

The England and WalesCricket Board has apparently setMay 15 deadline to decidewhether Pakistan’s tour canmaterialise.

NEW DELHI: Bowlers using sali-va to shine the ball is commonsight in cricket but in a postCOVID-19 world, they mighthave to reconsider the practice,making their lives tougher inwhat, many believe, has alreadybecome a batsman’s game.

In the wake of the 2018 ball-tampering scandal, the scrutinyon ball maintenance has onlyincreased but using sweat andsaliva on it remains legal.

Given the worseningCOVID-19 situation, it is unlike-ly that cricket will resume any-time soon and when it finallydoes, former players, includingVenkatesh Prasad, PraveenKumar & Jason Gillespie, feel thegame’s custodians might have tosuspend the use of saliva.

“When the action resumes,they should use only sweat forsome time as safety of the play-ers is paramount,” former pacerPrasad, who played 33 Tests and161 ODIs for India said.

He reckons it will be toughfor the bowlers to stop using sali-va to work up the ball but it isthe need of the hour.

“When you are in the thickof things, you tend to forget it.

You have to get the upper handover the batsmen as you can’t useanything else besides sweat andsaliva.

“The question is what doyou do when the batsman is

pulping you? You need to swingthe ball and what helps swing theball is the aerodynamics,” the 50-year-old explained.

Without saliva, sweatremains the only other legalsource to shine the ball but thatcan be tricky, according toPrasad.

“Because not everybodysweats. In that case, you have tokeep throwing the ball to some-one who sweats. I am someonewho doesn’t sweat that muchwhereas Rahul Dravid does,” herecalled.

Praveen Kumar, known forhis prodigious swing, saidputting the right amount ofsaliva on the ball aided his artimmensely.

“For the first few monthsafter action resumes, they willhave to ban the use of saliva. Asbowlers, we will have to look forsome other source,” he saidwith a laugh.

“...It is very important for the

fast bowlers, also for the spin-ners, as it helps them generatedrift. For an off-spinner, theshiny side on the left will driftthe ball away in the air beforecoming back. It tests the bats-man,” he reasoned.

“For me, saliva was of greathelp while opening the bowlingas well as reversing the oldball,” said Kumar, who took afive-wicket haul at Lord’s in2011.

The world will never be thesame even when it is able toovercome the current crisis. Insuch a scenario, the way thegame is played is also likely tochange.

Former Aussie bowler JasonGillespie said time has come toreconsider the use of saliva in thegame. “I don’t think it’s a quirkyquestion. It’s an actual genuinething to be considered,”Gillespie, who took 259 Testwickets, told ABC Grandstand.

“I don’t think anything is off

the table. It could be a pointwhere at the end of each over,the umpires allow the players toshine the ball in front of thembut you can only do it then. Idon’t know. Is it just sweat? Canyou only use sweat?

“I don’t have an answer tothat but it certainly will be a con-versation that will be had. If youthink about it, it is pretty gross,”said the cricketer-turned-coach.

Prasad reiterated that theuse of saliva should be stoppedeven though it would be difficultfor the bowlers to let go of apractice they are so used to.

“For everyone’s safety, itshould be suspended but if youare getting smashed, you willsub-consciously try to do yourbest to swing the ball and thatmight include (using) saliva.

“If you are not able toswing the ball like you used to,you risk getting dropped. Howdo you address that?” Prasadasked. PTI

Former India captain and current BCCI President Sourav Ganguly wasreminded of the glorious days alongside stalwarts Sachin Tendulkar,Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman through a picture uploaded on socialmedia by Wisden India. The special photograph had India's fabulous fourside-by-side, with the caption: ‘Name aa mmore iiconic qquartet, wwe'll wwait.’

The Lord’s Cricket Ground in London is scheduled to host the final of ICC World Test Championship in June 2021 Home of Cricket/Twitter

Can’t imagine Pak going intoT20 WC without Amir: Arthur

Mohd Amir celebrates after taking wicket ICC

Bowlers face saliva conundrum in post COVID-19 scenario PCB start online fitnesstests for its cricketers

Leagues ready to play behindclosed doors: UEFA Prez

Bundesliga to resume without fans from May 9

Hamilton ready to stick with Mercedes ‘dream team'ManU on course to compete for titles again

ICC to discuss WTC schedule, ODI league in CEC meet Proteas postponeSri Lanka tourPTI n JOHANNESBURG

South Africa’s tour of Sri Lanka inJune was on Monday postponed

due to the COVID-19 pandemicwhich is still not under control.

South Africa were set to playthree ODI and three T20Is duringtheir short trip of the island nationin the first half of June, CricketSouth Africa stated.

“Our Proteas would not havebeen able to prepare properly tak-ing our own lockdown situationinto account and, more important-ly, health considerations for ourplayers, which are always para-mount, were the over-riding factor,”CSA's Acting Chief ExecutiveJacques Faul said.

The ODI leg would have beenSouth Africa’s first commitment inthe ICC’s new one-day league.

“It is very sad that we have beenforced to take this step and we willre-schedule the tour as soon ascricket returns to a sense of normal-ity and our international fixture listallows,” Faul said.

He admitted that the postpone-ment of the tour will hamperSouth Africa’s preparations for theT20 World Cup to be held inOctober-November in Australiathis year.

“It is very frustrating for theplayers who want to build on thegood form they showed at the back-end of our home summer againstAustralia,” Faul concluded.

Lewis Hamilton celebrates after winduring 2019 F1 Grand Prix AP

Portraits of fans of German Bundesliga club Borussia Moenchengladbach are set onthe supporters tribune in the stadium AP

t a time when all onehears in the news arestories of death, dis-ease and despair,here’s a song that issure to lift your

mood.Tollywood actor Manchu

Manoj took it upon himselfto spread the message ofhope in times like this. TitledAntha Baaguntaamra (We’llall be fine), the song is full ofpositivity. Through the song,the actor thanked healthcareworkers, the police, farmersand others who have beenworking tirelessly to keep the

virus as bay. What’s interest-ing is that towards the end ofthe video, you also seeLakshmi Manchu’s daughterVidya Nirvana and ManchuAnand joining Manoj.

The song was launched byTelangana IT minister KTRon his Twitter account saying“This song brings hope to usthat this darkness won’t lastlong and light will shinebright soon.” The ministeralso praised actor Manoj say-ing, “The song breathes posi-tivity and peace into ourhearts. Kudos!”The actor thanked

KTR for his kinds words onthe microblogging site.

The song AnthaBaaguntaamra waswritten by KasarlaShyam, composed byAcchu Rajamani, nar-rated by Srikanth NReddy, videographedby Sunny Kurapati,edited by Vara andproduced created byMM Arts.

ilmmaker SS Rajamoulihas posted a video ofhim cleaning the houseafter being challengedby Arjun Reddy direc-tor Sandeep Reddy

Vanga. The ace filmmaker took toTwitter to add that it was impor-tant to shares the burden.

Accepting Sandeep’s challenge,Rajamouli said, “Challengeaccepted, Sandeep! It is importantwe share the work load at homeand I will post my home workouttomorrow... #BetheREALMAN.”He retweeted a video post bySandeep whichshows the directordoing a chunk ofhousehold workincluding washingutensils, vacuum-

ing the floor, mopping it anddoing dusting.

Further challenging Tarak andRam Charan, the director tweet-ed, “Task done, @imvan-gasandeep. Throwing the chal-lenge to @tarak9999 and@AlwaysRamCharan And letshave some moooreee fun.. Amalso challenging @Shobu_ garu,sukku @aryasukku and peddanna@mmkeeravaani.. Smiling facewith hornsSmiling face withhorns #BetheREALMAN and@AlwaysRamCharan.. And letshave some moooreee fun.. (sic)”.

n some goodnews to cheerfans in times ofCOVID-19,MegatsarChiranjeevi is in

talks with filmmakersMeher Ramesh and KSBobby, for his next projects.

The

actor confirmed the newsduring an online interviewwith a popular TV newschannel on Monday.

He said, “To make surethat my new films will beidentified by present gener-ation youths as their own,I’m working with youngdirectors. After Koratala’sAcharya, I’ve movies linedup with Saaho fame Sujith(Lucifer remake), KSRavindra aka Bobby (VenkyMama fame) and MeherRamesh as well. All thesemovies will make me clos-er to youths.”

After the announce-ment, netizens have been aworried lot as Meher

Ramesh’s last two films —Shakti and Shadow — havebeen washouts. He hasn’tdirected a film in the lastfive years. However, heenjoys clout in the industry.It is to be seen if Meher willtaste success with the helpof Megastar.

On the other hand,Meher Ramesh is the onewho is taking care of the

charity and dis-tribution activi-ties related toCorona CrisisCharity (an ini-tiative of Chir-anjeevi Chari-table Trust)along with direc-tors N Shankarand TammareddyBharadwaja.

In the past twoyears, Meher hasalso been movingclosely withMahesh, travellingwith the actor onhis promotionalassignments insideand outside the state.

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Vijayawada Tuesday April 21 2020tollywood

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next with MeherRamesh and Bobby

CHIRU'S

Rajamouli doesthe housechores

THE DIRECTOR FURTHERCHALLENGED RAM CHARAN,TARAK, MM KEERAVANI ANDSUKUMAR

Manoj croons hope intimes of COVID-19

ayal Ghosh has opened up onexperiencing panic attacks a cou-ple of years ago and how the med-icines led to weight gain. Theactress has also shared how shesuccessfully battled the situation,

regained shape and feels much fit-ter now.

Sharing a throwback photo and acurrent one on Instagram, Payalwrote: “From here, pic 1 to here,pic 2 talking to you all about losingweight by choosing a healthylifestyle. Two years ago, I weighed72. As I was getting Panickattacks frequently so kept under

anti-depressant that causedweight gain, also I was not

able to exercise as I wasscared that I would die ifmy heart beats go up.”

The actress in her post,also revealed how she bat-tled her fears and foughtback to regain shape.

“After I started feelingwell, I made a resolution to

do whatever I needed to doin order to become healthy.

I told my friends, I’m goingto lose the weight. People

wished me well, but I’m surethey had their doubts. I triedexercising for hours, did yoga,kick boxing etc but nothingworked, then I started dietingand only walk ... today is the8th month and I’m 55 kg now..wearing my old clothes whichare sized small.”

The actress feels the ongoinglockdown is a great opportunity

to workout and lose weight sincewe all are at home and have ampletime in hand.

She shared: “I request you all toutilise this lockdown by eatinghealthy and exercising, those whowant to lose weight, this is theright time.. love you all ... #stay-healthy #stayhome #stayhomesave-lives #stayhomestaysafe.”

Payal is also utilising the quar-antine time brooming her gardenand taking care of plants whichshe feels is a “relaxing way to getin touch with nature”.

Payal Ghoshopens up onweight woes

and panicattacks

PNIDHHI AGERWALtakes online acting course

ctress NidhhiAgerwal whowas last seen inPuri Jagannad’siSmart Shankaris trying to

focus on her actingskills amidst lockdown.Although her journeyin T town was not verysweet, she is testing herluck in B town now.Since she is on a breaknow during lockdown,the Mr Majnu actress isfocusing on her actingprowess and hon-ing up heracting

skills. Nidhhi is takingan online acting courseat the prestigious NewYork Film Academy-NYFA.

According to thelatest update, NidhhiAgerwal is in herthird session atNYFA. The actressis also learning ascript writingcourseon

Master Class, from anAmerican online educa-tion platform. ThusiSmart Shankar girl isutilizing this lockdownperiod.

On work front, shewill be seen alongsideJayam Ravi in Bhoomi.She is also a part ofPuneeth Rajkumar’James.

In Tollywood, theactress is paired oppo-site Ashok Galla, in

his debut movie.

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AFTER KORATALA’SACHARYA, CHIRUHAS MOVIES LINEDUP WITH SUJITHBOBBY AND MEHER

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