HYDERABAD, THURSDAY AUGUST 27, 2020; PAGES 12 `3

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RNI No. TELENG/2018/76469

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‘Proactivelyengaging withstates to promote exports’

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Govt must listento students onNEET-JEE, saysRahul Gandhi

Role of IITs in technical education in India

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HYDERABADWEATHER

Current Weather ConditionsUpdated August 26, 2020 5:00 PM

ALMANAC

TODAY

Month & Paksham:

Bhadrapada & Shukla Paksha

Panchangam

Tithi : Navami: 09:24 am

Nakshatram: Jyeshtha: 12:37 pm

Time to Avoid: (Bad time to start

any important work)

Rahukalam: 01:50 pm – 03:23 pm

Yamagandam: 06:04 am – 07:38 am

Varjyam: 08:37 pm – 10:13 pm,

11:03 am – 12:37 pm

Gulika: 09:11 am - 10:44 am

Good Time: (to start any important work)

Amritakalam: NIL

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FFoorreeccaasstt:: CloudyTemp: 29/23Humidity: 72%Sunrise: 06.01 amSunset: 06.33 pm

L VENKAT RAM REDDYn HYDERABAD

The Telangana State govern-ment, as part of its focusedefforts to augment revenuesamidst a dismal fiscal situation,is eyeing auction of not just gov-ernment lands but also govern-ment buildings in Hyderabad'sprime locations that commandhuge real estate value.

The Cabinet sub-committeeon resource moblisilation,headed by Finance Minister T.Harish Rao, has initiated theprocess of identifying govern-ment buildings that could beput up for sale over the nexttwo years, sources told ThePioneer.

The committee has ITMinister KT Rama Rao asmember, among other minis-ters.

The state government isconstructing a new integratedSecretariat complex at a cost ofover Rs 500 crore. The com-plex will house all the offices ofCommissionerates and

Directorates of various depart-ments.

At present, the offices ofCommissionerates andDirectorates are housed in var-ious government buildings thatare spread across the city. Thenew Secretariat complex isexpected to be completed in ayear. After shifting, the gov-ernment wants to put up thevacated government buildingsfor sale in an effort to raise

thousands of crores of rupeesfor the state exchequer.

The government is hopefulthat, given the huge demandfor government buildings,many of which are located inprime areas of city, each witha sizeable chunk of land, theproceeds of the sale would besubstantial.

After bifurcation of the unit-ed Andhra Pradesh in June2014, the government officebuildings in

Hyderabad -- the commoncapital Hyderabad for AP andTelangana -- were allotted torespective states in the ratio of52:48 between AP and TS.

Although the AP govern-ment has the option to func-tion from Hyderabad for 10years as per the APReorganisation Act, 2014, it theshifted entire administration toAmaravati within three years.The AP government laterhanded over the office build-ings in Hyderabad to theTelangana government.

With this, the Telanganagovernment came to possessabundant office space inHyderabad. This also came inhandy for the Telangana gov-ernment to accommodate inthe vacated buildings, on an adhoc basis, all the departments

in the Secretariat, pendingdemolition of the existingSecretariat and construc-tion of the new integratedSecretariat complex in itsplace.

GOVT BUILDINGS ALONGWITH LANDS FOR AUCTION PNS n HYDERABAD

Over 55,800 candidates inTelangana and 61,882 inAndhra Pradesh are going totake the National Eligibilitycum Entrance Test 2020(NEET) being conducted bythe National Testing Agency atfour centres in Telangana andsix in Andhra Pradesh.

In Telangana, the testingcentres are in Hyderabad,Karimnagar, Warangal andKhammam.

In AP, they are atVijayawada, Visakhapatnam,Guntur, Kurnool, Nellore andTirupati. Following the out-break of Covid-19, many of thestudents have gone to their

native places. Now, the NEETcandidates among them wouldhave to travel hundreds ofkilometres to reach the exam-ination centres.

In this backdrop, people say

that the state governmentshould extend RTC services sothat NEET candidates can getdown near the examinationcentres.

No NEET solution in place foraspirants reaching test centres

SPEED UP APPOINTMENT OF V-Cs, ORDERS CMHYDERABAD: Chief Minister KChandrashekhar Rao hasinstructed the officials concernedto speed up the process ofappointing Vice Chancellors ofuniversities. The Chief Ministersaid that since the appointmentof the Search Committeeswas over, the focus mustshift to the exercise of

appointing VCs. He accepted theview that there was some delay inthe process due to theCoronavirus pandemic. He

instructed the officials toexpedite the process withoutany further delay. The Chief

Minister also instructedChief SecretarySomesh Kumar to

monitor, supervise, and completethe appointment of VCs withoutany further delay. On Wednesday,the Chief Minister held meetingwith several MLAs at PragathiBhavan on the strategy to beadopted during the forthcomingAssembly session beginning on7th September.

PNS n HYDERABAD

The National HighwaysAuthority of India will executefive greenfield highways inTelangana and AndhraPradesh which will reducetravel distance between statesand will enable faster travel toNorthern India.

The NHAI plans to com-plete the projects by 2024-25.

The five greenfield express-ways proposed are Visakha-Raipur (Chattisgarh),Devarapal l i-Khammam-Suryapet, Vijayawada-nagpur,

Renigunta-Kadapa andChittoor-Tachchur (TamilNadu).

Under the expressway pro-jects, the NHAI would lay newexpressways irrespective ofexisting highways.

NHAI reveals plans of 5greenfield expressways

NAVEENA GHANATE n HYDERABAD

For netas, it is one thing to pon-tificate on the need for publiccooperation to fight Covid-19and quite another to follow, naylead by example, the very rulesand norms they enlist for pub-lic consumption.

The Telangana governmenthas been actively publicisingthe need for people to wearmask, follow hygiene, andadhere to social distancingnorms. Yet, many TRS leaders,including Ministers, normallytake these instructions with apinch of salt or 'mask' themwhenever the situation permits.

Minister Talasani Srinivas

Yadav has no regard for mask.He has never worn a mask andeven if he happens to have one,

it is never seen covering hismouth or nose. Over the pasttwo days, Deputy Speaker

Padma Rao and Minister SNiranjan Reddy too have notbeen seen wearing mask.

Ironically, the Deputy Speakerwas infected with Covid-19 andstill blatantly ignores the basicnorms to beat the virus.

While people are being finedfor not wearing masks, theauthorities are looking theother way in the case of lead-ers. Never was any Ministerseen wearing gloves.

Ministers flout mask rule and social distancing norms without a care

PNS n HYDERABAD

A 26-year-old woman wasallegedly raped by six peopleincluding two minors inNizamabad district, police saidon Wednesday.

According to a police offi-cial,the woman had come toNizamabad for her sister'streatment and the incidenthappened on August 24 mid-

night, when some people, onthe pretext of offering herfinancial help, asked her to

accompany them.They took her to a secluded

area where six of them, includ-ing the two minor boys,allegedly raped her, the officialtold PTI.

At around 1.30 am onTuesday, a police patrol teamspotted the group and whenthey stopped their vehicle, thesix fled,the official said.

6, including two minors, accusedof raping woman in Nizamabad

NAMRATA SRIVASTAVAn HYDERABAD

Even prior to the outbreak ofthe Covid-19 pandemic, theplastic waste that was generat-ed across the globe, especiallyfrom hospitals, was immenseand posed formidable chal-lenges to scientific effortsaimed at containing pollution.Unfortunately, since the out-break of the pandemic, one canfind several surgical masks,gloves and face shields beingcarelessly discarded on roads or

near water bodies. Several experts opine that

the plastic waste being gener-ated now is almost double ofwhat it used to be in pre-

COVID times. Shares Madhulika

Choudhary, CEO ofDhruvansh, an NGO focusedon environment, "The plastic

waste generation during theCOVID pandemic has almostdoubled. If this goesunchecked, it is bound to cre-ate several health-related issuesin the future.

I see so much waste, includ-ing used gloves, surgical masksetc being thrown in waterbodies, including HussainSagar.

The Mir Alam Tank is full offilth. Several hospitals in thecity used to dump their wastein the water bodies.

Plastic waste doubles with Covid in Telangana

TS prohibits registration of unapproved plots PNS n HYDERABAD

As part of efforts to preventsale of properties that do nothave required approvals, theTelangana government hasissued instructions barringregistration of unapprovedopen plots or structures in anyPanchayat, Municipality orMunicipal Corporation,including GHMC.

The Telangana Stamps andRegistration Departmentissued fresh instructions on theregistration of open plots andflats. Going forward, theseinstructions would be in accor-dance with the provisions of

the new Municipal andPanchayat Raj Acts on anvil.

According to TChiranjeevulu, Commissionerand Inspector General ofRegistration and Stamps, “Plots

in unauthorised layouts shallnot be registered even thoughthe same plot was registeredearlier. Authorised structuresonly shall be registered. Plot inapproved/authorised layouts

only shall be registered”.Houses, buildings, apart-

ments (flats) or any structuresshall be registered only if theyhave the approval or permis-sion from the competentauthority. Moreover, on theregistered document it shouldbe clearly mentioned that theregistration is in accordancewith the sanctioned buildingplan.

This move will stop develop-ers from selling plots to gulliblepeople without approvals of theauthorities. This decision willalso stop proliferation of suchlayouts.

State sees biggest single-day spike HYDERABAD: In the biggestsingle-day spike, Telangana onWednesday reported 3,018 newCovid-19 cases, taking thestate's tally to 1,11,688.

The death toll also rose to 780with 10 more peoplesuccumbing to the virus duringthe last 24 hours, officials said.

This is the first time since theoutbreak of the pandemic inMarch that the state hasregistered over 3,000 new casesin a single day. It came a dayafter the state saw the biggestjump of 2,579 new Covid cases.

Officials explained that thenumber of cases increased with

the ramping up of tests. Duringthe last 24 hours, the stateconducted 61,040 tests,breaking the previous day'srecord of 52,933 tests.

According to a media bulletinissued from the office of theDirector of Public Health andFamily Welfare, this has takenthe total number of tests doneso far to 10,82,094.

Under flak from variousquarters for its poor testing, theTelangana government doubledthe daily number of tests. Duringthe last four days, over 1.90 lakhtests were conducted.

n The Cabinet sub-committee on resourcemoblisilation, headedby Finance Minister T.Harish Rao, hasinitiated the process ofidentifying governmentbuildings that could beput up for sale over thenext two years

(file photo)

Experts opinethat the plasticwaste beinggenerated nowis double ofwhat it used tobe in pre-COVIDtimes

This move willstopdevelopersfrom sellingplots togullible peoplewithoutapprovals ofthe authorities

54 in a villageinfected duringpension distribution

PAGE 2

SPB stable,conscious:HospitalPNS n CHENNAI

Singer S PBalasubrahmanyam is sta-ble, conscious and continuesto be on ventilator andExtracorporeal MembraneOxygenation support, aheart-lung assistancemachine, the hospital treatinghim for COVID-19 infectionsaid here on Wednesday.

The veteran playbacksinger's "current clinical con-dition is stable.

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President Donald Trump has presided over a rare naturalisationceremony at the White House where five immigrants, including a

software developer from India, were sworn in as American citizens, asthe US leader welcomed them to the"magnificent nation" that is comprised ofevery race, religion and colour. Trumphosted the naturalisation ceremony atthe White House and the video of theceremony was played during the secondnight of the Republican NationalConvention on Tuesday.

INDIAN ENGINEER SWORN IN AS USCITIZEN IN RARE WHITE HOUSE EVENT

ACCENTURE TO LAY OFF AT LEAST 25KEMPLOYEES, INDIANS SET TO LOSE JOBS

Twenty-three MLAs and ministers in Punjabhave tested positive for coronavirus till today

and only two days are left for the assemblysession to start, Chief Minister Captain AmarinderSingh has said. "If this is the state of legislatorsand ministers, one can only imagine how gravethe situation on the ground is. The scenario is notconducive to holding physical examinations," Singhsaid, referring to the fierce debate on the centre'smove to allow all-India exams for engineering andmedical courses.

In the Sushant Singh Rajput case, the Narcotics Control Bureau hasstarted an investigation following fresh allegations linked to WhatsApp

chats reportedly recovered from Rhea Chakraborty's phone. TheNarcotics Control Bureau has initiated an inquiry undersections in the law related to possessing, purchasingand using Cannabis and "abetment and criminalconspiracy to commit an offence" under the anti-drugs law. Rhea Chakraborty's lawyer has said shehas "never consumed drugs in her life",responding to allegations that the 28-year-oldwas in touch with drug dealers.

DRUG PROBE AGAINST RHEACHAKRABORTY OVER PHONE CHATS

Global professional services company Accenture which has over 5lakh employees worldwide is to cut at least 5 per cent of its 'low-

performing workforce and thousands of Indians are set to lose jobsowing to the sluggish business the company is witnessing during theCovid-19 pandemic. A report in the AustralianFinancial Review (AFR) first reported this,citing an internal staff meeting by AccentureCEO Julie Sweet in mid-August. India, whichhas the largest Accenture employee base ofnearly 2 lakh employees, could see thousandsof workers being affected by the move.

23 PUNJAB MLAs TEST COVID +VE 2 DAYS BEFORE ASSEMBLY SESSION

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HYDERABAD | THURSDAY | AUGUST 27, 2020 hyderabad 02

PNS n SANGAREDDY

The industrial effluents beingreleased from industrial unitsat Bontapalli in Jinnaram man-dal of Sangareddy district areproving to be bane of fisher-men. Because of this, largequantities of fish perished inRayuni Cheruvu in Jinnarammandal. The fishermen whoare victims of the pollution ofRayuni Cheruvu felt that thePollution Control Board wouldintervene and force closure of14 polluting industrial units aswas done in Gandi Gudemtank case in Ameenpur man-dal. But, it was not the case tobe.

The Pollution Control Boardis accused of not taking any

action against polluting unitseven though cases were regis-tered against them. Takingadvantage of inaction, fish are

perishing in tanks as pollutingunits continue to release theirwaste into the water bodies.Fishermen lodged complaints

with the PCB about death offish in Mallam Cheruvu inKistayya Palli and AyyammaCheruvu in Gadda Potaram.

As per the rules, pollutingunits should not release theireffluents into water bodies.Not deterred by fines levied by

PCB and intervention of peo-ple's representatives are mak-ing the problem more complex.Past experiences have shownthat the government depart-ments are alleged to have sidedwith polluting industries.Fisheries Department has spec-ified that it would not releasefishlings in those water bodiesidentified as the most pollutedby the PCB. For the fault of thepolluting units, the fishermenare being victimised. The fish-ermen appeal to authoritiesthat the chemical industriesshould mend their ways. Whenfish die due to pollution, thegovernment and officials cre-ate a hue and cry over it andlater forget the problem conve-niently.

Industrial waste taking a toll on fish

As per the rules, polluting units should not release their effluents into water bodies

PNS n HYDERABAD

Public health groups alongwith doctors and economistsare urging the GST Council toincrease compensation cesson all tobacco products thatcan provide additional tax rev-enue of Rs 49,740 crore. Thisincreased revenue could signif-icantly contribute to theincreased need for compensa-tion by different states duringthe pandemic and to disbursethe dues already owed by theCentre.

As an extra-ordinary mea-sure, they all are appealing tothe GST Council to apply thecompensation cess on bidisand also increase the existingcompensation cess applied oncigarettes and smokeless tobac-co products during the upcom-ing meeting of the GST coun-cil. COVID-19 appears to beone of the biggest economicshockers India may have everexperienced. The GST rev-enue receipts of both centraland states governments havebeen severely affected due tothe Covid-19 pandemic and, asa result, the central govern-ment has not been able to dis-tribute the compensation cessdues to different state govern-

ments as guaranteed under theGST.

In addition, theGovernment of India hasannounced various fiscal andeconomic stimulus measuresto boost the economy andcompensate people affectedfrom the negative economicshock from the pandemic.According to experts, applyingcompensation cess on bidisand raising the existing com-pensation cess on cigarettesand smokeless tobacco prod-ucts can be a very effective pol-icy measures to address theimmediate need to raise thecompensation cess revenue bythe central government.

Dr Rijo John, Economist &Health Policy Analyst said,"Unprecedented financialresources will be needed for thecountry to recover from the

economic shock Covid-19 hascreated. Even though imposingadditional taxes on the gener-al public might not be a viablepolicy option when consump-tion needs to be boosted, com-pensation cess on tobacco,could be a win-win as it willdiscourage tobacco consump-tion while bringing in substan-tial revenue for the govern-ment. A Rs. 1 compensationcess per stick of bidis and sig-nificant cess increases on cig-arettes and smokeless tobaccoproducts are expected to gen-erate additional tax revenue tothe tune of Rs 50,000 crore.''

Increasing compensationcess on all tobacco products,including bidis, is a winningproposition for governmentas it will provide the muchneeded additional tax revenuefor Covid-19 stimulus package.

Increasingcompensationcess on tobaccoproducts is awinningproposition forgovernment

EGG

RATES

` 53,660 (10 gm)

` 3390

GOLD

` 65,550 (1kg)

` 550

HYDERABAD 382

VIJAYAWADA 412

VISAKHAPATNAM 435

RREETTAAIILL PPRRIICCEE `̀44..0055

SILVER

HYDERABAD

BULLION RATES

`̀//110000

CHICKEN

RATES

Dressed/With Skin `160

Without Skin `182

Broiler at Farm `110

`̀//KKGG

(IN HYDERABAD)

The PollutionControl Board isaccused of nottaking any actionagainst pollutingunits even thoughcases wereregistered againstthem

54 in one village infectedduring pension distributionPNS n WANAPARTY

A state government employeehas proved to be a superspreader, with 54 of the peopleto whom he had distributedpensions in Peddadagada vil-lage of Chinnambavi mandalsubsequently testing positivefor Covid-19.

When rapid antigen testswere conducted in the villagefor 250 persons on Monday, atleast 54 tested positive for thevirus. Five days ago, the persondistributed pensions amongthe villagers at a house in thevillage. Four days ago, a per-son belonging to the family ofthe person who had distrib-

uted pensions tested positivefor the virus. Subsequently, hisfamily members were testedfor the virus. Nine members ofthe family tested positive forthe virus.

All the villagers who testedpositive for the virus havebeen sent to a quarantine facil-ity.

Call to hike compensationcess on tobacco products

Continued from Page 1

Earlier, students used totake the exam in the citywhere they received coaching.Having left for their nativeplaces, students in Telugustates would now have totravel between 100-350 km toreach the examination centres.

In the Telugu states, theRTC has been running limit-ed bus services on the mainroutes.

The NEET exam com-mences at 11 am and lasts upto 5 pm. Slot system is beingimplemented. Candidates areallowed from 11 am onwardsinside the exam hall.

Continued from Page 1

The woman later narratedthe incident to police and acase was registered.She wassent for medical examination,police said.

While four were arrested,the minor boys were appre-hended and sent to a juvenilehome, the official added.

The woman was facingfinancial problems and toldpolice she was in need ofmoney for her sister's treat-ment.

Continued from Page 1

In the initial days of lock-down, even Health MinisterEatala Rajender did not wearmask. Subsequently, he hasbeen very cautious and takesall precautions. Apparently theTS Ministers initially had anotion that since all others(read janata) are wearingmasks, they need not wear.However, later as the viralspread became alarming, theystarted wearing masks. ManyMinisters have posed for pho-tos for social distancing norms.Almost the entire Cabinetposted pictures of themselveson social media with zeroregard for social distancing.

While it is imperative forpoliticians to be constantly intouch with public, Ministersand their team members crowdaround them for the sake of thephoto-ops. Minister V Srinivas

Goud, Malla Reddy, PuvvadaAjay and Talasani are alwaysseeing tampering with maskwhen they are among thecrowd. Except for K T RamaRao, every other Ministerremoves their mask whilespeaking or for photo-ops.

KTR was seen wearing a maskeven during the GaneshChaturthi puja at his residencewhere even his family membersdid not wear mask. The savinggrace is that Ministers wearmasks in the presence of theTRS working president.

Continued from Page 1

Once the integratedSecretariat complex is readynext year and all the offices ofCommissionerates andDirectorates are shifted there,many of these governmentbuildings will once again lievacant in Hyderabad.

The TS government, whichis grappling with severe short-age of resources to fund itsvarious welfare schemes anddevelopmental programmes,including those promised dur-ing the 2018 Assembly polls inthe TRS manifesto, is planningto auction these buildings aswell to augment funds.

The corona-induced lock-down and related losses havenegatively impacted thestate's delicate revenue posi-

tion.Although the government

has identified 5,000 acres instate for sale of land, the saleprocess may take time as theboom in land value has notreached the desired level.

In this backdrop, the gov-ernment feels that sale of gov-ernment buildings located inprime areas of the city wouldbe a safe bet to raise funds atthe earliest.

Continued from Page 1Furthermore, only the

plots in layouts approved asper law and plots which areregularised under LRSschemes can be registered.

The registering authorityshall not register any part of abuilding or structure beyondthe approved sanctioned plan.Previous registration of thestructure will not make it reg-isterable now. In the memoissued on Wednesday,Chiranjeevulu said, “Personsseeking registration of proper-ties shall be asked by theRegistering Authority to pro-duce relevant sanctionorders/approvals from the com-petent authority at the time ofpresentation of the documents.” Ministers flout mask rule and

social distancing norms ...

Continued from Page 1

Now that the plastic wastehas increased, several of themhave now dug up a hole intheir backyard and are dump-ing such waste there. I am notsure if the government is eveninterested in knowing what ishappening to the disposal ofthe increased plastic, in theform of PPE kits, face masksetc, and it seems like no onecares as well." While severalother places in India haveshown a reduction in pollutionduring the pandemic, waterbodies in and aroundHyderabad have shown nosigns of improvement, says

Subba Rao, a well-known envi-ronmentalist in the city. "At theearly stage of lockdown, wesaw that rivers, includingGanga and Yamuna, startedlooking cleaner. However, ourMusi remains as filthy as ever.The river and water bodiesaround the city continuedproducing toxic foamsthroughout the lockdown. Itwas a good time for the gov-ernment to clean up the waterbodies. But no such thing wasdone." Prof PurushottamReddy, a well-known envi-ronmentalist from the city, isof the view that the pandem-ic doesn't have much to dowith the waste disposal.

6, includingtwo minors,accused of...

Govt buildingsalong with lands...

Plastic waste doubleswith Covid in Telangana

State sees biggest single-day spikeContinued from Page 1

A total of 16 government and31 private laboratories areconducting RT-PCR/CBNAAT/TRUENAT types oftests while there are 1,076 rapidantigen test centres. However,the authorities have not beenproviding breakup of the type oftests conducted.

The samples tested per millionpopulation mounted to 29,146against a daily testing target of

5,600 per day as per the WorldHealth Organisation (WHO)benchmark of 140 per millionper day. The results of 1,176samples were awaited.

Health officials said the casefatality rate in the state camedown further to 0.69 per centagainst the national average of1.84 per cent. Out of the totalfatalities, 53.87 per cent hadcomorbidities. The number ofcases in the GHMC spiked withthe increase in overall numbers.

No NEET solutionin place for aspirants

Speed up appointmentof V-Cs, orders CMContinued from Page 1

The MLAs shared the issuesthat could be discussed in theHouse. They wanted a discus-sion on public utility pro-grammes.

Minister Puvvada Ajay

Kumar, Whips Ms GongadiSunitha, Rega Kantha Rao,former minister SriLaxmareddy, MLAs BajireddyGoverdhan, Challa DharmaReddy, Ganesh Gupta andSandra Venkata Veeraiah par-ticipated.

NHAI reveals plans of 5greenfield expresswaysContinued from Page 1

Care would be taken toensure that these have fewerturnings. These expresswaysare being designed to reducetravel distance to enable trav-ellers to reach their destinationdirectly. Only at some placesentry and exit facilities will beprovided so that vehicles fromvillages and towns can accessthe expressways.

The expressways will enablevehicles to travel at speedsranging between 100 kmph to120 kmph.

The total distance of theV i s a k h a p a t n a m - R a i p u rexpressway 464 km. It will bedeveloped as a six-laneexpressway. The existing two-lane highway is 567-km long.It would enable people fromVisakhapatnam to reachRaipur in Chattisgarh fasterwhile it reduces the travel dis-tance by 93 km. The 457-km-long Vijayawada-Nagpurexpressway will be developedas a four-lane expressway.Currently, one has to travel772 km to reach Nagpur viaSuryapet and Hyderabad.

TS prohibitsregistration...

SPB stable, conscious: HospitalContinued from Page 1

He is conscious and respon-sive and continues to be close-ly monitored by our multidis-ciplinary clinical team," MGMHealthcare said.

Balasubrahmanyam, admit-ted for COVID, "continues tobe on ventilator and ECMOsupport in the Intensive Care

Unit," the hospital's AssistantDirector of Medical Services,Dr Anuradha Baskaran said ina statement.

The 74-year old singer wasadmitted on August 5 after hetested positive for coronavirus.

Following a setback in hishealth, he was put on ventila-tor and then on ECMO sup-port.

The corona-induced lockdownand related losseshave negativelyimpacted thestate's delicaterevenue position

There is no doubt thatIndian Institutes ofTechnology (IITs) are

the gold standard of technicaleducation in India. However,due to various restrictionsand inward looking policies,IITs could not attain theirrightful place in the interna-tional rankings. Despite thisshortcoming, one thing is forsure - IITs alumni are secondto none in the world. Theyprovide the backbone of top-class technocrats not only forIndia but also are in a greatdemand internationally. Thus,IITs have played a criticalrole in providing world-classtechnical Human Resourcesfor India with global out-reach.

However, the brand valueseems to have somewhatdiminished after a suddenspurt in the number of IITsfrom six to 23 starting from2016. The new Institutes arementored by the establishedIITs. However, new IITs arelikely to take some time to get

established in terms of phys-ical and technical infrastruc-ture before making positivecontributions to the overallimage.

The increase in the numberof IITs and seats therein hassignificantly improved theavailability and quality oftechnocrats. It is a fact thatgetting admission in one ofthe IITs is a dream of mostyoungsters and their parentsseeking quality technical edu-cation. The Joint EntranceExamination (JEE) for gettingadmission into IITs is consid-ered as one of toughestentrance examinations.

Interestingly, there are as ofnow, 23 IITs operational inIndia. Most of the IITs estab-lished are greenfield exceptthree older institutions(University of Roorkee,Banaras Hindu University IIT

and the Indian School ofMines, Dhanbad), which werelater accorded the status ofIITs. During the expansionphase, six institutions startedin 2015-2016 were upgradedas IIT. The first greenfield IITwas established in Kharagpur,West Bengal in the year 1951.Next IITs were established inBombay (1958), Madras(1959), Kanpur (1959) andDelhi (1961).

But the oldest institution toget converted into an IIT in

2001 was the University ofRoorkee (earlier known asThomson College ofEngineering), the first engi-neering college in the Indiansubcontinent, rather the entireAsia, functional since 1847.

The IITs are autonomoustechnical and research institu-tions of national importancegoverned by the Institutes ofTechnology Act, 1961.

Each IIT is largely sup-ported by public funds andlinked to the others through

a common IIT Council head-ed by the Union EducationMinister. Each IIT has a sep-arate board of governors andthe Director is the ChiefExecutive officer of the insti-

tute. The National character ofIITs, for all practical purpos-es, distances them from localand regional politics. IITsBombay and Madras retaintheir original identities andhave not changed to IITsMumbai and Chennai.

The Institute song of IITBombay is the Bengali song"Antarman viksit karo" writ-ten by Gurudev RabindranathTagore. But everything is nothunky-dory. It led to contro-versy when IIT Madras stu-dents sung Sanskrit song'Maha Ganapathi ManasaSmarami', penned by poetMuthuswami Dikshityar asthe invocation song inFebruary 2018, it generatedcontroversy.

What is the differencebetween the ethos of IITs andother technical institutions?There are very good private

engineering colleges but incomparison to the IITs,expenses are very high.

This excludes a large num-ber of people from joiningthose private colleges. Otherengineering and technical col-leges in the public sector faceresource crunch and are thepolitical hotbeds.

The unique selling point ofIITs is enabling environmentand encouragement providedto students to inculcate later-al thinking. IIT System alsoallows taking a number ofcourses and combinationthereof based on the capabil-ities and interest of the stu-dents.

Standard instructions ofexamination in most of thecourses are, 'attempt as manyquestions as you can, consultas many books as you wishand take as much time as you

want'. Compare this withother technical institutionswith the standard questionpapers containing seven to 10questions and instructions toattempt any five questionswithin stipulated three hours.

A tougher examiner willmake one or two questionscompulsorily to be attemptedby all.

The threat to creativityrequired for the ecosystem ofIITs is mushrooming coachinginstitutions in different partsof the country preparing thestudents to crack JEE. Evenafter admission with thecrutches of coaching, some ofthe students find themselvesmisfit in the challenging envi-ronment of IITs.

On a positive side, stu-dents taking coaching becomeused to hard work. To controlthe menace of coaching is tocontinuously change the pat-tern of JEE.

Thanks to the visionaryleadership of the country forproviding the network of IITs.

SHAILENDRA KUMAR JOSHI

FORMER CHIEF SECRETARY

OF TELANGANA

ADVISOR OF TELANGANA

GOVERNMENT.

Role of IITs in technical education in IndiaThe increase in the number of IITs and

seats therein has significantly improved the

availability and quality of technocrats. It is

a fact that getting admission in one of

the IITs is a dream of most youngsters

and their parents seeking quality

technical education

HYDERABAD | THURSDAY | AUGUST 27, 2020 hyderabad 03

IN BRIEFIN BRIEF

Four start-ups from Hyderabadwith innovative offerings for the

healthcare and lifestyle sectorwalked away with top honours at theTiE woman regional finals, virtually hosted by TiE Hyderabad. Onewinner and 3 runners up were declared in a competition thatwitnessed over 16 women-led startups battle for top honours. Thewinner of the regional finals sapien biosciences, co-founded by DrJugnu Jain got the top prize for her bio-bank multi-disease screeningsolution idea. The first runner up position went to washable andreusable face mask and headgear creator Dibbu Solutions.

In a bid to help Covid-19 patients,Nocca Robotics Pvt Ltd has

launched a high-flow oxygentherapy device. The cutting-edgedevice is proven to be effective inthe treatment of Covid-19 patientsand is easy to use andcomfortable for the patients. High-flow oxygen therapy drasticallyreduces the chances of intubation.The Noccarc H210 addresses thepressing need for high flowoxygen therapy devices in the

country owing to the current pandemic and the rising cases ofCovid patients. The HFOT provides humidified oxygen-rich air to thepatients through nasal cannula, thus increasing the oxygen levelsupplied to the blood. HFOT provides easy oral suctioning andexpectoration.

Abstracts of Mardolu Vijay SandeepKumar, Zipporani Chanu and Nalluri

Anuhya, M.Sc. students at the Schoolof Medical sciences, University ofHyderabad (UoH) have been selectedfor the prestigious BCOVS conference-2020. This year the conference is goingto be held virtually on September 7 and8, 2020 in the UK. British Congress of Optometry and VisionScience (BCOVS) is a friendly, International Conference thatshowcases the excellent work that optometrists, orthoptists,ophthalmologists and vision scientists are doing across the UK.

Four startups clinch top honours at TiE Women

Oxygen therapy device to help Corona patients

UoH students' abstracts selected for BCOVS 2020

PNS n HYDERABAD

Several doctors, medical &health personnel, ambulancedrivers and paramedics havebeen playing with lives ofpeople by turning their healthcondition and fear towardsCoronavirus as a good busi-ness proposition.

They are referring Covidpatients to private and corpo-rate hospitals and earning aquick buck.

A doctor in Hyderabadwho owns a clinic earned Rs1.50 crore by referring 150Covid patients to corporateand private hospitals.Similarly, another doctor inWarangal earned Rs 1 crore byreferring patients to a few pri-vate hospitals in Hyderabad.

Right from doctors, med-ical & health personnel,ambulance drivers exploit theCovid patients treating themas cash cows, according tocomplaints received by themedical and health depart-ment. They are allegedly

hand-in-glove with clinics,nursing homes and some doc-tors refer cases to collect acommission of Rs 1 lakh foreach case. It may be recalledthat the government took dis-ciplinary action against a gov-ernment doctor fromJanagoan who secretly con-ducted the tests and referringthem to Hyderabad.

There are 170 private, cor-

porate and super-specialtyhospitals in state with total bedstrength of 9,058. Of them,4,061 beds were occupied and4,997 remained vacant. Of thevacant beds, 1,768 are in theICU. There are few beds vacantin popular private hospitals,which depend on referral sys-tem. The doctors and othermedical and health staff cashin on them.

The reputed hospitals keepbeds under reserved category.Some doctors and privatepractitioners are entering intoagreement with small hospi-tals as there are many vacantbeds in them. The PROsspeak to hospitals at districtlevel and get patients referredto them. Depending on thesituation, the hospitals offercommission of Rs 1 lakh andsome other doctors collectcommission from bothpatients and hospitals. Someambulance drivers also collectRs 30,000 to Rs 50,000 fromeach patient.

The hospitals are squeezingmoney from referral casescollecting Rs 1 lakh per dayfor keeping them on ventila-tor, Rs 75,000 per day forkeeping them in ordinaryward.

The patients are forced tosell their properties. Someothers, pledge and sell gold,while some others borrowmoney from others to raisemoney.

Doctors refer cases to privatehospitals, loot Covid patients

Patinets and attenders sit very close to each other without social distancing norms at NIMS

No Covid management at NIMSNAMRATA SRIVASTAVAn HYDERABAD

Nizam's Institute of MedicalSciences is one of the most vis-ited hospitals in the city.Looking at the current pan-demic situation, one mightassume that the hospital wouldtry to help as many OPDpatients in a day. But it seemslike NIMS management is notmuch bothered about peo-ple's safety. If you happen to goto NIMS for an OPD check-up,you will have to start your dayquite early, as there is a hugeline of about 400-500 patientswho stand outside the newly-built Millennium block to getscreened.

Says Vaibhav, who was at thelocation with his mother, "Mymother has not been well fora while. So, I got her here.However we got to know thatbefore going to the specialtyblock for consulting the doc-

tor, we will have to getscreened at the Millenniumblock, the line for which is verylong. So, we came here at 2 amto get an early space in theline."

Incidentally, the screeningbeing done at the hospital isnothing more than what wewould go through while enter-ing any mall in the city. Thepatients are made to wait forhours to be only checked byinfrared thermometer. What'ssurprising is that the securityonly checks the temperature ofthe patients and not the patientattenders.

Navneet S, who had come tothe hospital with his father,says, "There is a complete mis-management. These peopleare only checking patientsthrough temperature guns,what if the patient's attender isCovid positive? Also, whatthese people are doing atMillanium block can be easi-

ly arranged at other blocks,without harassing thepatients."

While the authorities havebeen shouting out instructionabout social distancing, NIMSseem to be very lax about thematter. Many people waiting tobe screened sit very close toeach other, while not wearingmasks. When this newspaperreporter asked a security guardwhy they were not asking peo-ple to wear a mask, he com-mented, "Nearly 400-500 peo-ple come to NIMS every dayand they first come toMillennium block for screen-ing. We initially would shoutwarning to wear masks, how-ever no one seems to care. Nomatter what we say, nearly 150-200 people come without maskor they lower their mask whilespeaking." Ironically, thereporter also witnessed sever-al security guards roamingaround without the mask.

NAVEENA GHANATE n HYDERABAD

An ICMR-National Institute ofNutrition (NIN) team onWednesday began the secondround of seroepidemiologicalsurvey to monitor the trans-mission of SARS-CoV-2 infec-tion in the general populationas part of the nation-wide sur-vey. This is a follow-up to thebaseline survey that was con-ducted in the month of May2020 in three districts ofTelangana i.e., Jangaon,Kamareddy and Nalgonda.

Conducting population-based serosurveillance forSARS-CoV-2 will estimate andmonitor the trend of infectionin the adult general population,

determine the socio-demo-graphic risk factors, and delin-eate the geographical spread ofthe infection. Such serosurveys

repeated at regular intervalscan also guide containmentmeasures in respective areas.

State-specific context of dis-

ease burden, priorities andresources should guide the useof multifarious surveillanceoptions for the current Covid-19 epidemic.

In the second round of thesurvey, 10 villages/wards are

being selected in each of thesedistricts and from each select-ed village 40 subjects. 10 yearsmales and females are beingrandomly covered for the sur-vey.

The state health depart-ment/district authorities of theTelangana Government areengaged in the survey processto ensure smooth operational-isation of the house-to-housesurvey in 30 villages acrossthree districts. The total sub-jects covered in this survey willbe about 1,200. It may be men-tioned here that in the earliersurvey, the data then collectedshowed only 2 positive cases inJangaon (0.49%) and 1 in eachin Kamareddy (0.25%) andNalgonda (0.25%).

The authoritiesare engaged insurvey process toensure smoothoperationalisationof the house-to-house survey in 30 villages acrossthree districts

E-governance, e-offices areneed of the hour: GovernorPNS n HYDERABAD

Governor Dr TamilisaiSoundararajan on Wednesdaycalled for the e-governance ande-offices at the every possiblelevel so as to offer transparent,effective and speedier servicesto the people.

The Governor said thatpaperless offices greatly pre-vent the cutting of trees andcontribute to the environmentprotection and ensure theaccountability at all levels. Thee-offices will also empower thepeople to get their rightfulworks and services done in acost-effective and less cumber-some process.

The Governor was speakingat a presentation programme

on e-office initiatives by theInformation and TechnologyDepartment of the state at theRaj Bhavan on Wednesday.

Calling for the expeditedimplementation of the e-officesproject, she stated that thePrime Minister NarendraModi's Digital India Mission

has given a fillip to the -gov-ernance, digital transactions,online classes and online shop-ping too.

"Even before pandemic,India was moving much aheadin the digital initiatives andthey proved very helpful dur-ing the pandemic," she added.

Governor Dr Tamilisai Soundararajan at a presentation programme on e-office initiatives at Raj Bhavan on Wednesday

Varsities told to explore services of alumni

"Universities and other educational institutions need to explore theservices of their alumni for the overall improvement of

infrastructure and other services offered to the students," saidGovernor Dr Tamilisai Soundararajan. She said that alumni are thebiggest untapped resource for any institution and it is high time thattheir services must be channelized in a systematic and organisedmanner. "Small contributions made by the alumni members wouldprove a great value to the students of those institutions. Everybodywill feel proud to be connected with their organisations and they cando their bit in many forms," Dr Tamilisai Soundararajan added.

Niloufer technician succumbs to CovidPNS n HYDERABAD

A 35-year-old woman techni-cian from Niloufer Hospitalhas passed away on Tuesdaylate night after being infectedwith Coronavirus.

The victim identified asMadhulatha was employed aselectroencephalogram tech-nician in the radiology wing ofNiloufer Hospital for over 10years.

She was admitted in GandhiHospital, despite efforts doc-tors couldn't save her. Her hus-band has also been infectedwith Covid-19 and is undergo-ing treatment. N Narasimha,President of TelanganaMedical Outsourcing StaffUnion said, "A compensationof Rs 1 crore should be provid-ed to the family ofMadhulatha. It includes Rs 50lakh medical insurance whichthe government has to provide

and grant Rs 50 lakh compen-sation as she died in the lineof duty".

Earlier two lab technicians,succumbed to Coronavirus inTelangana. Meanwhile front-line workers held a candle lightmarch at Koti hospital in sol-idarity of martyred warriors.

Worker at sweetshop murderedover womanPNS n HYDERABAD

A worker at a sweet shop inSR Nagar was murdered byhis colleague on Wednesday.

The incident happened atthe Siva Reddy sweet shop atMadhuranagar in SR Nagar.

According to the police,two employees of a sweetshop fought with each otherover a woman. During thebrawl, an employee Gouseindulged in fist-fighting withSrinivas resulting in the deathof Srinivas on the spot due tosome internal injuries.

PNS n HYDERABAD

As per the directions of theMinister KT Rama Rao,GHMC improved the cityroads to a large extent, saidMayor Dr Bonthu Rammohanhere on Wednesday.

The GHMC has rectifiedthe water-logging points anddesilting of nalas has alsodone, due to which there is nomajor inundation and waterstagnation this time, theMayor added.

To make Hyderabad globalcity, major works like con-structions of flyovers, under-pass, ROBs, RUBs, skyways,road widening works were

taken up to lessen the burdenon the main roads.

The Mayor along with MLASubash Reddy visited KapraCircle and laid foundationstone for CC road works withcost of Rs 34 lakhs in city.

Mayor lays foundation stone for CC road works

PNS n HYDERABAD

CBI booked a case against SriKrishna Agri Process IndiaLimited (SKAPIL) for cheatingIDBI Bank to a tune of Rs 51crores. CBI has named direc-tors of Sri Krishna AgriProcess India Limited - TKanna Rao, T Surendra, TVenkata Ramana and otherpublic servants s for divertingthe funds. The company,allegedly cheated the bank bysubmitting fake audit balancesheets, stock statements anddiverted the funds for otherpurposes thereby causedwrongful loss to the bank tothe tune of Rs 51 crores.

The firm in the name andstyle of Sri Krishna Traders inthe year 1999 over a period oftime since 2008 they availedloan of Rs 51 crores.

The company failed to repaythe loan amount. The forensicaudit of the company's accountrevealed that the companyfurnishing 'wrong' and 'over-stated stock statements' tomislead the bank and diver-sion of major portion of work-ing capital limits to its groupcompany, and routing of salesturnover with non lendingbanks.

Based on a complaint, CBIbooked a case for cheating,criminal conspiracy, forgeryand criminal conduct and fur-ther investigation is underway.

CBI books caseagainst SKAPIL

RS 51 CR BANK FRAUD

2 killed in separate incidentsPNS n HYDERABAD

Two people were killed includ-ing a woman in the city at dif-ferent places in the last 24hours under Hyderabad PoliceCommissionerate.

In the first case an alcoholichusband killed his eightmonths pregnant wife by slit-ting her wrist allegedly aftershe rejected to give money foralcohol. The victim identi-fied as Maha Lakshmi, 20, wasmarried to the accused Kumarand was blessed with 1-year-

old child. Later, the accusedblamed unknown persons forkilling his wife. The policetook him into custody forfurther investigation.

In another case two friendsstarted arguing with eachother after consuming alcohol.The heated argument snow-balled into fight. One personShaik Razak Ali, 26, was over-powered by accused Gouse.The accused killed Ali. TheBanjara Hills Police booked acase and further investigationis underway.

PNS n HYDERABAD

The Chandanagar Police havebooked a case on Tuesdayagainst a woman doctor forallegedly abusing and thrash-ing the watchman of anapartment in Reddy Colony.

In the video, the doctor,identified as Sri Lakshmi,30, is seen getting out of a carand beating up the watchmanMohammed Rafiq followingan argument. “We receivedcomplaint from Rafiq, watch-man of Godavari Apartmentagainst Sri Laxmi. The con-tents of the petition attractsSections 323 and 506 IPC,which are non- congizableSections." Earlier, Sri Lakshmihad a fight with her mother,who then told the watchmannot to allow her daughter intothe apartment. The watch-man was following her moth-er's orders.

Doc booked for thrashing watchman

CANDLE RALLY

Doctors across the state on

Wednesday took out a

candlelight rally and observed

two minutes of silence for the

frontline workers who have

died fighting the Coronavirus

on Wednesday.

PNS n HYDERABAD

MA&UD Minister KT RamaRao held a review meeting onthe status of dignity housingschemes in Hyderabad.

"The government will handover a total of 85 thousandhouses in GHMC limits byDecember 2020," said KTR.

During the meeting, theMinister instructed the officialsto finalise the beneficiaries listby mid-September. He alsoasked the officials to visit thedignity housing sites andinspect the construction works.The government has allocateda total of Rs 9,700 crores for theconstruction of these houses.

The government will con-struct 1 lakh houses in 24 con-stituencies of Hyderabad.

As construction works atmost of the sites are in the fin-ishing stage, he asked the offi-cials to also speed up develop-ment of infrastructure facilitiesincluding water supply, electric-ity, and other amenities.

Beginning from this monthuntil December, the govern-ment will be handing over thedignity houses to the beneficia-ries. The officials informed theMinister that a total of 75 thou-sand 2BHK dignity houses and10,000 dignity houses underJNNURM and Vambay will beready by the end of thisDecember. Minister asked theofficials to identify the benefi-ciaries who handed over theland for construction of 2 BHKdignity houses and update theirdetails at the earliest.

Will hand over 85,000houses by Dec: KTR

Minister KT Rama Rao in a review meeting with officials on Wednesday

Skilled womendefend frontlineCovid warriorsPNS n HYDERABAD

While the medical fraternityglobally is under variousstages of trials for Covid-19vaccines, preventing oneselffrom this virus, availability ofPPE, especially for the front-line warriors involved in sav-ing lives, is the need of hour.

Rising to the occasion,many non-governmentorganisations and founda-tions are contributing to pub-lic health by creating masksand other PPE as per the req-uisite safety guidelines at var-ious locations across thenation.

ICMR begins second round of sero surveillance

HYDERABAD | THURSDAY | AUGUST 27, 2020 hyderabad 04

PNS n SRISAILAM

Telangana state Transco, GencoCMD Devulapalli PrabhakarRao on Wednesday assuredthat more and more measureswould be taken for the protec-tion and security of Electricityorganisations employees toavert and prevent any in futureany untoward incident likethe fire accident that tookplace at the Srisailam PowerPlant. He called upon the elec-tricity employees not to enter-tain any insecure feelings andthat they should work withmore commitment to live up tothe faith and confidence peo-ple in Telangana State reposedin them.

On Wednesday, PrabhakarRao visited and examinedthe Srisailam undergroundHydel Power plant where theaccident took place. The CM

examined the Service Bay,six units of generators,Control Panels, Transformers,Indoor Gas Sub Station, andMain Control Room. He alsosaw the equipment and placesgutted in the fire. He observedthat the fire was originatedfrom the sixth unit and spreadto other units. The fourth unit

was totally destroyed in thefire. Prabhakar Rao also helddiscussions with departmen-tal inquiry committee teamheaded by SPDCL RaghumaReddy. Later, Prabhakar Raoaddressed about 200 employ-ees and staff who are on dutyat the Srisailam Plant.

"Most unfortunate accident

took place. It is painful to losesome of our colleagues in theaccident. When some of ourcolleagues die, naturally therewill be insecurity feeling forothers. I can understand this.I am also feeling very bad. Butwe have to work with morededication, calmness, confi-dence and determination.”

Prabhakar Rao assures moresafety measures at power plants

Kavitha demands Bharat Ratna for PVPNS n HYDERABAD

Telangana Jagruthi founderpresident and former MP KKavitha on Wednesdaydemanded Bharat Ratna forformer Prime Minister latePV Narasimha Rao. A panelled by her passed an unani-mous resolution in thisregard during ‘Telangana’sPride – Our PV’ programmeorganised in his honour hereas part of the year-long birthcentenary celebrations.

In her address, Kavithapraised Narasimha Rao forhis contribution in changingthe course of the nation’sdevelopment at regional,national and internationallevels. She recalled anotherformer Prime Minister lateAtal Bihari Vajpayee’s fond-ness and faith in NarasimhaRao’s vision for India and himstating that Rao was an iconfor generations to come. Shelauded the State governmentunder the leadership of KCRfor the decision to organiseyear-long centenary celebra-tions in memory of the lateformer Prime Minister.

Kavitha announced that

Telangana Jagruthi will pub-lish ‘Pracheena Pusthakam’and ‘Naveena Pusthakam’books every month to com-memorate Narasimha Rao’sliterature as part of the cen-tenary year celebrations. Sheurged the members ofTelangana Jagruthi across theworld to honour and com-memorate the legacy ofNarasimha Rao.

Rajya Sabha MP and PVNarasimha Rao CentenaryCelebrations Committeechairman K Keshava Raosaid Chandrashekhar Rao

was keen on building amemorial for the formerPrime Minister which will bea befitting one on the lines offormer President late APJAbdul Kalam inRameshwaram. He said theState government is likely tokickstart construction of thememorial soon and inaugu-rate it on June 28 next year,coinciding with NarasimhaRao’s birth centenary. He alsocommended the spirit ofTelangana Jagruthi as anorganisation that was consis-tently working towards

strengthening the culturalroots of Telangana society.

Narasimha Rao’s daughterVani Dayakar Rao thankedthe state government especial-ly KCR for an outstanding ini-tiative to celebrate the legacyof PV Narasimha Rao. Shefurther congratulated Kavithaand Telangana Jagruthi andsaid, Kavitha created anopportunity and throughTelangana Jagruthi she and themembers of the organisationhave contributed towards thenurturing the societal fabric.

DCC chiefswant Gandhisto lead CongPNS n HYDERABAD

Presidents of all DistrictCongress Committees(DCCs) met TelanganaPradesh CongressCommittee (TPCC)President and Nalgonda MPN Uttam Kumar Reddy atGandhi Bhavan onWednesday to submit a rep-resentation informing thatthey've passed a unanimousresolution passed by themstating that a Nehru-Gandhifamily member should headthe AICC. They alsodemanded that the ongoingelections for Youth Congressshould be postponed.

Warangal DCC PresidentRajender Reddy also gave abrief explanation on the reso-lution passed by all DCC pres-idents. He also condemned theleaders who wrote a letterdemanding change in leader-ship and demanded that dis-ciplinary action must be takenagainst those who leaked theletter in the media.

CMD Prabhakar Raovisited Srisailam Plantdespite his own brother's

death that happened onMonday. On Tuesday he hadparticipated in his brother'slast rites in Warangal andconsoled the family members.His schedule to visit SrisailamPlant, to review the inquiry onthe fire accident, Plant revivalworks, and other works wasfinalised for Wednesday, withthis, suppressing his ownemotions, he visited theSrisailam. He examined thesituation and spoke toemployees.

CMD on dutydespite personaltragedy

PNS n BHUPALPALLY

Standing crops including paddyand cotton were damaged in34,337 acres belonging to 17,798farmers in the recent rains in thedistrict, according to the prelimi-nary estimates. It is estimated thatthe crop damage was to the tuneof Rs 16.25 crore. The rains alsodamaged 1,124 houses partiallyand 104 houses fully. As many as62 tanks were also damaged in therains.

Meanwhile, District CollectorMohammed Abdul Azeem onWednesday inspected the damagedroad between Jamnagar andMinajipeta villages and also thecrop damage in Krishnapur villagein Mahamutharam mandal in thedistrict.

The District Collector directedthe irrigation DEE Sadaiah tovisit Narsingapur Reservoir andsend proposals for immediaterepairs to the water leak in the

reservoir and also to take up therenovation works. Later, he visit-ed Kananuur village where thelocal tribal people requested himto sanction double bedroom hous-es as they were facing hardshipsdue to leakage in the roofs of theirthatched houses.

PNS n HYDERABAD

Bus and Car OperatorsConfederation of India - (BOCI) &Bus Owners Associations of AndhraPradesh and Telangana, represent-ing private passenger transportoperators urged the state govern-ment to provide immediate relief tothe public transport sector which ison the brink due to lockdown in thewake of Covid-19 pandemic

The public transport sector hasrequested the government to con-sider waiver of taxes, deferment oftax payments, extension of vehicleinsurance validity and increase inprice/fare on tickets, extending theloan moratorium and Deferment ofEMI payments for next 6 to 12months and the Interest componentbe waived off for the deferred peri-od to save the business from col-lapsing.

The current fleet of vehiclesunder the private passenger servicesis approximately 1 lakh vehicles inTelangana and Andhra Pradesh.The lockdown has hit the sectorhard with many operators on theverge of bankruptcy. Around 2 lakhdirect employees like drivers, atten-ders, cleaners, office staff etc. and

over forty thousand indirectemployees including mechanics,painters, dhobis and other semi tounskilled workers are facing joblosses. Most of these workers aresole bread winners of their familiesfrom low-income strata and aretotally dependent on the transportindustry.

However, the governments ofAndhra Pradesh and Telangana haveasked the private bus, car and cabsowners to pay the tax for the quar-ters where the vehicles are undernonuse due to lockdown. The guide-lines of government did not allowoperators to carry passengers for pub-lic transportation other than essen-tial, emergency or Covid services.The Telangana State cabs and busoperators association president SyedNizamuddin along with his fellowbus owners brought their problemsto the notice of the state government.

Crisis-hit transport sectorseeks govt help to survive

Crops in 34,000 acresdamaged in Bhupalpally

HC declines nod for Muharram processionPNS n HYDERABAD

The Telangana High Court onWednesday declined to give permis-sion for the Muharram processionin the old city area. Relying on aSupreme Court order, a single judgebench of the HC Justice T VinodKumar rejected the plea of a civilsociety organisation Fathima Sevadalsociety seeking permission to takeout Muharram procession in the cityon August 31 of this month.

The HC said that any religious activ-ity which is confined within limits ofthe Mosque would not be interferedwith and added that any mind of pro-cessions were strictly banned. It madeit clear that the SC in its judgment deliv-ered recently refused to grant permis-sion to a similar plea of taking out thepossession and added that it can't alsogrant the permission for such proces-sions. It said that the ban on takingout any kind of public processionswould continue to be in force as perthe existing Covid-19 guidelines ofUnion Home Ministry.

Second year Intermediateclasses from September 1HYDERABAD: Telangana State Board of IntermediateEducation informed all the junior colleges that online classesfor second year intermediate students will commence onSeptember 1. The classes will be broadcasting with the aidof TV/T-SAT network. The authorities instructed the facultiesto attend college from August 27.

” Kavitha praisedNarasimha Rao for his contributionin changing thecourse of thenation’sdevelopment

” PV’s daughterthanks ChiefMinister KCR for an initiative tocelebrate thelegacy of PVNarasimha Rao

Telangana state Transco, Genco CMD Devulapalli Prabhakar Rao and others atthe Srisailam Power Plant on Wednesday

He called upon the

employees not to

entertain any

insecure feelings

and that they should

work with more

commitment to live

up to the faith and

confidence people in

Telangana State

reposed in them

The rains also damaged1,124 houses partiallyand 104 houses fully.As many as 62 tankswere also damaged inthe rains

HYDERABAD | THURSDAY | AUGUST 27, 2020 nation 05

SHORT READS

Phase II human trialof Oxford vaccinebegins in PunePUNE: The Phase II clinical trialof the Oxford COVID-19vaccine, being manufactured bythe city-based Serum Instituteof India (SII), began at amedical college and hospitalhere on Wednesday. Two malevolunteers were administeredthe vaccine at BhartiVidyapeeth's Medical Collegeand Hospital, a senior office-bearer of the hospital said. Thetrial began around 1 pm, hesaid. "Doctors at the hospitaladministered the first shot ofthe 'Covishield' vaccine to a 32-year-old man after his reportsof COVID-19 and antibodiestests came out negative,"Medical Director of BhartiVidyapeeth's Medical College,Hospital and Research Centre,Dr Sanjay Lalwani, said.Another 48-year-old malevolunteer was also given thevaccine, he added. While the 32year-old volunteer works for aprivate company, the other oneis associated with thehealthcare sector, he said.

Three FIRs againstjourno, five others forrape of minors

Odisha slashes schoolsyllabus by 30 pc

BHUBANESWAR: The Odishagovernment on Wednesdayannounced that school syllabusup to class 12 will be reducedby 30 per cent for the currentacademic session. The decisionwas taken as schools areclosed across the state due tothe COVID-19 pandemic, saidSchool and Mass EducationMinister Samir Ranjan Dash.The announcement was madebased on the recommendationof three committees set up forthe purpose, he said. The newsyllabus will be available on theofficial websites of the Board ofSecondary Education (BSE),Council of Higher SecondaryEducation (CHSE) and StateCouncil of EducationalResearch and Training(SCERT). Block EducationOfficers and District EducationOfficers will inform the schoolsabout the governmentsdecision, Dash said.

INDORE: The Madhya Pradeshpolice has registered three FIRsin Indore against six people,including 68-year-old owner ofa Bhopal-based newspaper, inconnection with alleged rape ofthree minor girls, an officialsaid on Wednesday. The FIRswere registered against PyareMiyan aka Abba and five of hisaccomplices on Tuesday underrelevant sections of the IPC,including 376 (rape), andPOCSO Act, said Vinod Dixit,in-charge of Palasia policestation. These FIRs have beenregistered in connection withthe allegations of sexualexploitation of three teenagedgirls in Indore at different timeson pretext of offering themjobs, the official said. "SeparateFIRs were registered earlier inBhopal for sexual exploitationof minor girls. Now three caseshave been sent to Indore policefor local investigation, which iswhy FIRs were formallyregistered here," he said.

PNS n JABALPUR

Congress veteran DigvijayaSingh on Wednesday took a dimview of the letter written by someleaders to interim presidentSonia Gandhi calling for "visibleand active" leadership, which setoff a storm in the grand old party.

He also said it would havebeen better had these leadersraised the issue in the CongressWorking Committee (CWC)forum instead of writing the let-ter and "leaking" it in the media.

"I am neither a member of theCWC nor have I seen the letter.But about five of the signatories(of the letter) are members of theCWC, and as per the Congress'constitution any member of theCWC can request for a discus-sion which can take place beforethe committee.

"But writing a letter and leak-ing it in the media is nor prop-er," the Rajya Sabha MP toldreporters in Jabalpur.

A controversy erupted recent-ly over the letter written by 23Congress leaders to SoniaGandhi in which they called forfar-reaching reforms within theparty, such as having a "fulltime, active and visible" leader-ship, devolution of powers tostate units and revamping theCWC in line with the party con-stitution. The letter was criticisedat the CWC meeting held onMonday where the party leadersurged Sonia Gandhi to contin-

ue to hold her post until anAICC session can be convened.

Meanwhile, Singh alsoappeared opposing scheduledNEET, JEE exams amidst theCOVID-19 pandemic.

"With the limited facility forcoronavirus tests in the countryand steady rise in the number ofcases, (I feel) one need toapproach the supreme court forreview of the decision on (hold-ing) these examination," he said.

As per the public noticesissued by the National TestingAgency (NTA), JEE (Main) April2020 is scheduled fromSeptember 1-6, while NEETUG 2020 exam is scheduled forSeptember 13. The SupremeCourt recently dismissed a pleaseeking postponement of JEE(Main) April 2020 and NEET-Undergraduate examinationsamid spurt in number ofCOVID-19 cases, saying pre-cious year of students "cannot bewasted" and life has to go on.

Gujarat tops Niti Aayog's ExportPreparedness Index 2020PNS n NEW DELHI

Gujarat has topped the NitiAayog's Export PreparednessIndex 2020 followed byMaharashtra and Tamil Naduin the second and third placerespectively, according to thegovernment think tank's reportreleased on Wednesday.

According to the report, sixof eight coastal states feature inthe top ten rankings, indicat-ing the presence of strongenabling and facilitating factorsto promote exports.

Among the landlockedstates, Rajasthan has per-formed the best, followed byTelangana and Haryana.

Among the Himalayanstates, Uttarakhand topped thechart, followed by Tripura andHimachal Pradesh, the reportsaid adding that across UnionTerritories, Delhi has per-formed the best, followed byGoa and Chandigarh.

The report noted thatChhattisgarh and Jharkhandare two landlocked states thathad initiated several measuresto promote exports.

Other states facing similarsocio-economic challenges canlook at the measures taken byChhattisgarh and Jharkhandand try to implement them togrow their exports, the reportnoted.

Speaking at the launch of thereport, Niti Aayog ViceChairman Rajiv Kumar saidexports are an integral part ofAatmanirbhar Bharat and thecountry will have to keep striv-ing to increase the share ofexports in GDP and worldtrade.

"We will try to double India'sshare in world trade in thecoming years," he said.

Govt must listen tostudents on NEET-JEE,says Rahul GandhiPNS n NEW DELHI

Batting for the students takingthe NEET-JEE exams,Congress leader Rahul Gandhion Wednesday urged the cen-tral government to listen totheir grievances and find anamicable solution.

The students have beendemanding postponement ofthe medical and engineeringentrance exams in view of therising number of COVID-19cases in the country.

Gandhi said the NEET-JEEaspirants are worried abouttheir health and future due toconcerns about coronavirusinfection and floods in Assamand Bihar.

"NEET-JEE aspirants areworried about their healthand future. They have genuineconcerns of: fear of Covid19infection, transport and lodg-

ing during pandemic andflood-mayhem in Assam andBihar," he said on Twitter.

"GOI must listen to allstakeholders and find anacceptable solution," he said.

The former Congress pres-ident also dubbed the Modigovernment as "anti-students"and used a hashtag in thisregard.

PNS n NEW DELHI

BJP MP and member ofParliamentary StandingCommittee on InformationTechnology Nishikant Dubey onWednesday appealed to thepanel's chairman and Congressleader Shashi Tharoor to cancela meeting on suspension ofInternet services in variousstates and Union Territories,including Jammu and Kashmir.

Dubey's letter came a day afterLok Sabha Speaker Om Birlaissued an advisory to chairmenof all parliamentary panels ask-ing them to strictly adhere torules and regulations while con-ducting committee meetings.

Birla issued the advisory fol-lowing a political slugfestbetween BJP and oppositionmembers of the parliamentarypanel on information technolo-gy over taking up the issue of sus-pension of Internet services inJammu and Kashmir and sum-

moning Facebook before thecommittee in its next meeting.

"Since this issue is presentlypending before the SupremeCourt of India, any furtherdeliberations on this wouldagain be a violation of the rele-vant rules/directions as well asdisregarding the recently issuedadvisory of the Lok SabhaSpeaker," Dubey wrote in his let-ter to Tharoor.

Tharoor has been underattack from BJP MPs who havedemanded his removal as thechairman of the panel.

Cancel parl panel meetingon Internet services in J-K: Dubey to Tharoor PNS n NEW DELHI

Chief Ministers belonging tovarious opposition parties onWednesday got together anddiscussed the issue of GSTcompensation to states, withCongress President SoniaGandhi saying the Centre'srefusal to reimburse the stateswas nothing short of betrayalof the people by the Modi gov-ernment.

Gandhi convened a virtualmeeting of chief ministers ofopposition-ruled states to discussthe key issues confronting them.

West Bengal Chief MinisterMamata Banerjee, MaharashtraCM Uddhav Thackeray,Jharkhand CM Hemant Sorenand chief ministers of Congress-ruled states Amarinder Singh,Ashok Gehlot, Bhupesh Bagheland V Narayanasamy attendedthe meeting. In her introducto-ry remarks, Sonia Gandhi saidshe agreed with Banerjee andThackeray that all opposition-ruled states should together fight

the Centre for their rights."We have to work together

and fight together against theCentral government," Gandhisaid at the meeting while endors-ing Banerjee and Thackeray.

"We should decide whetherwe have to fight or fear,"Thackeray said at the meeting.

Banerjee earlier said the situ-

ation was "very serious" andopposition-ruled states shouldfight unitedly. Gandhi termedthe draft Environmental ImpactAssessment (EIA) legislation as"anti-democratic" and allegedthat the laws to protect the envi-ronment and public health arebeing weakened by the Modigovernment.

Further delay in conducting JEE, NEETaffects academic year: IIT Delhi directorPNS n NEW DELHI

Any further delay in conductingentrance exams JEE and NEETwill have "serious repercussions"on not only the academic calen-dar but also career of bright stu-dents, IIT Delhi Director VRamgopal Rao said.

Rao's comments come in thewake of growing clamour forpostponing the two crucialexams in the wake of rise inCOVID-19 cases.

"The consequences of post-poning these exams any furthercan have serious repercussionson IIT academic calendars andfor candidates. I fail to see howwe can run two batches togeth-er. It will become a zero acade-mic year for lakhs of students.Our academic calendars are toopacked already and linked to toomany other things. The delays

can impact the careers of somany bright students. "We havealready lost six months. If weconduct the exams in September,we can at least start the sessionsin Indian Institutes of Technology(could be online) in December.Tinkering with the examinationpattern or admission processes inthese times will also be detrimen-

tal and unfair for everyone,"Rao said in a social media post.He said coronavirus is not goingto go away for at least a year andwe cannot be perpetually inlockdown mode, and appealed tothe students to "trust the institu-tions" and take the entrancetests while strictly following theCOVID-19 safety guidelines.

PNS n NEW DELHI

Rani Rampal never expectedthe Khel Ratna to be bestowed ona woman hockey player andthat's one reason why she couldnot hold back tears on beingnamed for it this year, calling thecountry's highest sporting hon-our a testament to her hard workand sacrifices.

In an unprecedented move,the Sports Ministry named fiveathletes -- cricketer RohitSharma, wrestler Vinesh Phogat,table tennis player Manika Batra,Rani and ParalympianThangavelu Mariyappan -- forthis year's Khel Ratna.

The 25-year-old Rani said shecouldn't stop herself from cryingwhen she first got to know ofbeing one among the chosen five,leaving her parents quite worriedbecause they, apparently, had no

idea about the magnitude of theaward and why it made theirdaughter so emotional.

"Honestly, being a womanhockey player I was not expect-ing that I will be awarded theKhel Ratna. When I found outabout the announcement, I wasextremely emotional and could

not hold back my tears," she toldPTI in an interview.

"I called my father first to givehim the good news...Since I wascrying on the call, he was wor-ried if everything was OK withme. My parents didn't reallyknow how significant it was toreceive this honour and when I

explained it to them, my fatherparticularly was very happy andgot emotional," she said.

Rani is a spectacular rags-to-riches story in Indian sport. Thedaughter of a cart-puller fromthat cradle of Indian hockey,Shahbad (Haryana), she rose toprominence as a 15-year-oldwhen she became the youngestplayer to make the nationalteam. Her next target is theOlympic medal that has eludedIndian hockey for decades now.

"While I do feel this award

comes as a recognition of myhard work, sacrifices and com-mitment to the sport over theyears, winning the Olympicmedal will remain the ultimategoal. We will work hard as a teamto achieve this goal in Tokyo nextyear," Rani said.

The Games have been delayedby a year thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic and Rani dedicat-ed her award to the doctors andother frontline workers, whoare fighting to save lives from thedreaded infection.

COULDN'T HOLD BACK TEARS

Over 4 lakh admit cardsdownloaded for NEETNEW DELHI: Over four lakh admitcards for medical entrance examNEET were downloaded withinthree hours on Wednesday,sources said. The National TestingAgency (NTA) released the admitcards for the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) at 12pm on Wednesday.

"Admit cards of NEET wereavailable for download at 12today. Over 4 lakh candidateshave downloaded in first 3hours," sources said. While theNEET is planned on September13, engineering entrance examJEE Main is scheduled fromSeptember 1-6. Around 9.53 lakh

candidates have registered forJEE-Mains and 15.97 lakhstudents have registered forNEET. Amid rising clamour forpostponement of the crucialexams in view of rising COVID-19cases, the Ministry of Education(MoE) officials had reiterated onTuesday that the exams will beconducted as per schedule inSeptember. Increasing thenumber of examination centres,alternate seating plan, fewercandidates per room andstaggered entry and exit areamong the steps the NTA will takefor safely conducting NEET andJEE next month.

Writing letter to Sonia Gandhiwas not proper: Digvijaya Singh

PNS n BENGALURU

Bengaluru BannerghattaBiological Park announced onWednesday that an elephantcalf will be named as 'Sudha' toacknowledge the contribution ofInfosys Foundation ChairpersonSudha Murthy towards the causeof wildlife conservation.

Executive Director of BBP,Vanashree Vipin Singh saidSudha Murthy has consented tothe proposal.

The elephant named'Suvarna', aged 45, gave birth tothe female calf on August 17,taking the elephant populationat BBP to 25.

Sudha Murthy, author, socialworker and wife of co- founderof Bengaluru-headquartered ITmajor Infosys Ltd, N R NarayanaMurthy, marked her 70th birthday on August 19.

Infosys Foundation is thephilanthropic and corporatesocial responsibility arm of thecompany. "In BBP, InfosysFoundation has contributedtowards execution of work of

Tiger enclosure, Zebra enclo-sure, Giraffe enclosure, borewelland addressing drinking waterstorage and staff welfare throughtheir resources," Vanashree said.

Sudha Murthy used to per-sonally visit BBP and monitorthe work, she said adding, itsstaff still remember her involve-ment.

Officials said many wildlifeconservation enthusiasts sug-gested to name the baby calf asSudha since Sudha Murthyextended the Foundation's help-ing hand for development ofBBP and Binkadakatti mini zoonear the district headquarterstown of Gadag in Karnataka.

B’luru zoo names elephantcalf after Sudha Murthy

Without salary, maths teachersells bags for livingPNS n NEW DELHI

Mohammad Faizi has notreceived his salary since Marchand is unable to pay school feeof his two daughters. Themathematics teacher has nowtaken to selling cloth bags at aweekly market in Delhi'sDilshad Garden.

Weekly markets in thenational capital, whichremained shut since March-end due to the coronaviruslockdown, reopened onMonday after the Delhi gov-ernment allowed it till August30 on a trial basis.

A resident of Shahdara, Faizilives in a two-room housewith his elderly parents, wifeand two daughters, aged fiveand 10.

The 30-year-old teachesmathematics to students ofclasses 6-8 at a private schooland has been taking online

classes but without any salarysince the lockdown started.

"My friends have helped mefinancially, but I cannot askthem for more," Faizi said. "Wehave been managing somehow.I could not pay the school feeof my daughters, so I amteaching them myself now."

Faizi, who took online class-es during the day, reached aweekly market in Dilshad

Garden on Tuesday evening tosell cloth bags made by one ofhis friends.

"My friends manufacturesthese bags. He suggested Icould sell them in the marketand keep the profits," he says,as he waits for customers.

Faizi says he can understandthe fact that the school wouldnot be able to pay his salary forsometime.

IYC stage protestdemanding JEE, NEETpostponementPNS n NEW DELHI

Members of the Congress'youth wing staged a protestnear the Shastri Bhawan here,demanding postponement ofthe JEE and NEET exams inview of the Covid pandemic.Several protesters, who tried toenter the Education ministry,housed at Shastri Bhawan, tosubmit a memorandum, weredetained and taken to MandirMarg police station, said IYCnational media coordinatorRahul Rao. The national pres-ident of IYC, Srinivas BV, saidthat keeping in mind the safe-ty of lakhs of students, theCentre should postpone theexams. "At a time when evenUnion ministers and chiefministers are getting infectedwith the coronavirus, it isunthinkable that the Centre isnot postponing the JEE andNEET examinations," he said.

Rani Rampal on becoming first womanhockey player to get Khel Ratna

We should together fight Centre forundermining states' rights: CMs

"I called my father first to give him the goodnews...Since I was crying on the call, he wasworried if everything was OK with me. Myparents didn't really know how significant itwas to receive this honour and when Iexplained it to them, my father particularly wasvery happy and got emotional," she said

India had to wait for a long time to geta new national policy on education.Thirty-four years are indeed a long gapfor a sector that is supposed to be ever-alert and dynamic in nature. In a

democratic set-up, with all of its contextu-al diversities, debate on any new policy isvery much expected. And criticism is notnecessarily always professional or objective.Ideological considerations and politicalinclinations do make their presence felt onsuch occasions. Having observed this phe-nomenon for over 50 years, this writer hasfound it to be highly educative. He faced itin full fury, being one of those responsiblefor preparing a new Curriculum Frameworkfor School Education(NCFSE) that wasreleased on November 14, 2000.

It was not just a comprehensive educa-tion policy document but had the potentialto bring about tangible and significantchanges in school education. By implicationand extension, it meant to transform theentire education scenario in India. TheNCFSE was prepared after a nationwideprocess of consultation in which every sec-tor was invited to participate. Strong voic-es emerged from across the country on theneed for a curriculum that is rooted inIndian soil, the country’s history, heritageand culture, one that is strongly committedto receiving and generating new knowledge.

After independence, India continuedwith the educational structure it had inher-ited, though with minor modifications. Theeducational framework then was transplant-ed by alien rulers, who had strategic objec-tives: One, destroy the indigenous educa-tion system. And two, delink Indians fromIndia. This, they thought, was the mostpotent strategy to subjugate India. Therewere clear cut evangelical objectives as well.Further, it was also implicit that once thenew education system took roots, the“souls of the savages” would be redeemedand there would be no idol worshippers leftin the country.

The British succeeded, probably evenbeyond their expectations. Their most cru-cial success was when India decided to con-tinue with the inherited legacy. We contin-ued with the Commonwealth link, totallyoblivious to the great tradition of knowledgequest, spirituality, astrophysics and so manyother areas of knowledge, philosophy andsciences. India stretched the education sys-tem, which was designed to educate a few,for the specific task to universalise it. As aresult, it was shattered and lost credibility.

The tradition of education in ancientIndia grew around the inherent human traitof curiosity, creativity, imagination, ideas,intuition, capacity to think and enjoyexploring the secrets of nature. It was notconfined to the external world. It preparedthe students to look within; to attempt tocomprehend the fuller and larger meaningof life on planet earth; and to think of beforelife and afterlife. And all these human

endeavours led to the evolutionof man’s relationship with him-self, with other men and nature.If people could correctly com-prehend the import of thesethree aspects, they would natu-rally be at peace. This wouldgive them greater opportunityand eligibility for more intensiveexplorations.

Logically, it led to the evo-lution of what was recognised asthe unique spiritual advance-ment of the ancient Indiancivilisation. When India gainedindependence, we were free toevolve, implement and developour own system of education,one that would be “rooted toculture and committed toprogress.” Apart from beinginheritors of a great tradition ofknowledge quest, our litera-ture and scriptures — in sever-al languages — were great trea-sures of wisdom and scholar-ship. In this sense, the new edu-cation policy offers hope.

It must be acknowledgedthat independent India paidscant attention to investment ineducation all along. Though itput a constitutional provision toprovide free and compulsoryeducation to all children “tillthey attain 14 years of age”, theepistemological base to create anindigenous system of educationwas not extricated. India had aunique, fulsome, advanced andwell-evolved comprehension ofthe real purpose of educationthat made Swami Vivekananda

teach us: Education is the man-ifestation of perfection alreadyin men. UNESCO accepts thisin the much-talked-aboutDelors Commission reporttitled, Learning: The TreasureWithin. How much India tradi-tionally values knowledge isknown to us for centuries in asubtle statement: YavadjeevaitAdhiyate Viprah (meaning, thewise continue to gain knowl-edge throughout life).

This reverberates globally aslife-long learning. WhenGandhiji said he would like edu-cation to bring the best out of“body, mind and spirit”, heintended to put the essence ofthe Indian approach to skilldevelopment, learning, acquisi-tion of knowledge and scholar-ship, personality development— all of which can help youngpeople prepare to plunge them-selves in service of one and all— sarve bhavantu sukhinah:sarve santu niramaya.

One would find that all ofthis fits perfectly well with glob-al thinking on education, asindicated in the well-knownDelors Commission report: “Inconfronting the many chal-lenges that the future holds instore, humankind sees in edu-cation an indispensable asset inits attempt to attain the ideals ofpeace, freedom and social jus-tice.” Concluding its work, thecommission affirms its beliefthat education has a fundamen-tal role to play in personal and

social development. The com-mission does not see educationas a miracle cure or a formulathat can open the door to aworld where all ideals will beattained but as one of the prin-cipal means available to foster adeeper and more harmoniousform of human developmentand, thereby, reduce poverty,exclusion, ignorance, oppressionand war. Education generateshope and spreads light in thedarkness.

Knowledge creation is acontinuous process, so is skillacquisition and its refinement.The capability to acquire andcreate knowledge and utilise itto enhance the quality of life dis-tinguishes human beings fromother living beings. We havelearnt from Bhagavad Gita thatthere is nothing else purer thangyaan. Over the last 100 years,the world has transitioned froman information society toknowledge society and theadvancement to wisdom societyhas begun. But is education allabout acquiring knowledgealone? Or is it about the creationof new knowledge? No. It ismuch more and this must besearched for critically in everynew policy document.

I would like to recallBertrand Russell here, who said,“Man has no chance of survivalif knowledge only remainsknowledge. But if we couldtransform knowledge into wis-dom, he/she would not only

survive but will be able toascend to greater and greaterheights of achievements.” Yes,we need to prepare young peo-ple who can think critically, havevibrant analytical skills andawareness.

They must understand thatknowledge is meaningless if itjust cannot be utilised for thewelfare of the larger humancommunity. Think of LosAlamos when on July 16, 1945,knowledge was at its peak.While scientists were exploringthe possible utilisation of atom-ic and nuclear energy in thebest interest of humanity — inareas like medicine, land use,clean energy and many others— those in power and author-ity had other ideas and decid-ed to bomb Hiroshima andNagasaki on August 6 and 9,1945. This remains one of thecruellest and shameful acts inhuman history.

Much before Hiroshima,Gandhiji had identified sevensocial sins, including knowledgewithout character. Educationhas no meaning if it does notbecome a vehicle for character-building. Swami Vivekanandahad already clarified: “The endof all education should be man-making. The end and aim of alltraining are to make the mangrow.” An education policymust prepare every person to“learn to learn more,” acquirethe skill to refine and renewthem and imbibe keenness forlife-long learning.

Education that relies onthe five eternal values of truth,peace, non-violence, dharmaand love can play a great sober-ing role in preparing generationswho are well equipped tobecome prominent contributorsin creating world peace, aworld that accepts and appreci-ates diversity and at the sametime becomes a votary of “uni-versal unity of all humanbeings.”

The newly-announced pol-icy on education has all theingredients that can pave theway for a truly transformedIndia. It could lead India to itsancient glory as an internation-al centre of scholarship andlearning that attracted learnersfrom practically every civilisedsociety in the heydays of Taxila,Nalanda, Vikramshila and oth-ers. It paves the way to move outof the clutches of a transplant-ed system that makes over eightlakh children go abroad forstudies, each incurring a loss ofaround 1.5 lakh every year.Competence, commitment andingenuity, displayed at theimplementation stage, can makeIndia a globally sought-aftereducational hub once again.

(The writer works in educa-tion and social cohesion)

Despite the Yogi Adityanath Government’sclaims of having “zero tolerance” for crim-inals, particularly rapists, crimes against

women in Uttar Pradesh are on the rise. TheNational Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) figurestill 2018 show that on an average 12women/girls were raped in the badlands daily.But going by the reports appearing in the mediasince the beginning of this year, that numberseems to have gone up. Even the pandemic isno deterrent as in March two sisters, aged nineand 10, were raped repeatedly for several days

by two men from their village in Mau district. Then a six-year-old girl was kid-napped and raped in Hapur district on August 6. Within a week, on August 14, a13-year-old girl was raped and killed in Lakhimpur Kheri and on Tuesday the muti-lated body of a 17-year-old girl was found in the same district. The teenager, abright student, who by her father’s own admission “was strong like a boy andwould have fought like anything”, was on her way to fill a scholarship form whenshe was abducted, raped and killed. So much for “Beti bachao, beti padhao.”

The result? Despite all the BJP Government’s tooting of its own horn that crim-inals are shaking in their boots and have either fled the State, gone undergroundor got their bails cancelled, they are still running amok. Only the actors and theirleanings have changed and the Yadav gangs have been replaced by the Thakurand Jat gangs with some even joining the BJP. What emboldens them even fur-ther is the fact that the SHOs at police stations are packed with Thakurs muchlike they were packed with Yadavs when the Samajwadi Party (SP) was in power.It is no secret that at 37 per cent, the BJP tops the list of the party with the mostcriminals-turned-netas in the UP Assembly. And that it has been unable to rein inits delinquent politicians is evident from the Kuldeep Sengar and Chinmayanandrape saga. It was only after a national uproar that the UP Government acted againstthe two Thakur leaders. So, as long as the criminal-neta nexus remains strong inUP, or in any other State, the goons will continue to rape and pillage with impuni-ty and keep getting away with it too. And the beti will continue to suffer silentlyand more often than not pay for it with her life.

Once again, a students’ protest movementhas come in handy for the Opposition totake on the Government and claim

some relevance, now that the pandemic-inducedcooperative federalism is on the wane. And giventhe benighted Congress a reason to put itselfat the forefront. As the Coronavirus continuesto spiral, students across the country are mount-ing massive pressure on the Government topostpone the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE)and the National Entrance Eligibility Test (NEET)exams. They are planning to protest from their

homes at an appointed hour — waving black flags, wearing black masks andchanging their profile photo to a black dot — challenging the Government’s deci-sion to hold the tests as scheduled. This is a bit double-edged, what with anxi-ety about exposing 28 lakh students to a potential hazard on one side and jeop-ardising their academic careers that are dependent on timely exams on the other.That’s why the Supreme Court had said that one could not play with students’lives on a mere threat perception and advised the National Testing Agency (NTA)to “move ahead with all safeguards.” It had further argued that “COVID may con-tinue for a year more. Are you going to wait another year?” But as cases contin-ue to surge, students and parents are a worried lot even though the Governmentclaimed that 80 per cent of admit cards had already been downloaded. Given thefinality of the schedule, students may have downloaded the forms but are not atall confident that safety protocols, even if followed meticulously, would be fool-proof. It is this collective youth anxiety and the Centre’s seeming insensitivity totheir concerns that Congress interim chief Sonia Gandhi acted upon, by conven-ing a meeting of Opposition Chief Ministers to take up cudgels on behalf of thestudents as a matter of national interest. While Congress CMs were expected toattend the virtual session, Sonia made sure that those of the party’s alliance part-ners, Maharashtra’s Uddhav Thackeray and Jharkhand’s Shibu Soren, were theretoo. But her biggest coup was getting Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congresschief Mamata Banerjee to co-initiate the campaign for putting exams on hold. Banerjeeled a collective call to file a review petition in the Supreme Court on what has becomean emotive issue for the youth, their middle class parents and society in gener-al. The challenges indeed are many. Most parents are facing financial distress andwould find bearing the costs of transportation, accommodation and the medicaltreatment of their wards appearing for the exam a burden. Besides, what aboutthe plight of lakhs of students belonging to the flood-affected States of Bihar, Assamand the North-east who would find it impossible to appear for the tests?

Sonia Gandhi, emerging from an intra-party crisis after loyalists questionedthe party’s future, seems eager to prove that she has acted on their concerns.First, she was fast to harness the swell of opinion against the Government on theexams and make it a new rallying cry of the entire Opposition. She dispelled con-cerns that the Congress leadership doesn’t seize the moment at the right time.Second, she heeded their advice that the party should try to reconnect with itsbreakaway units and forge an umbrella strategy. Since Mamata had already writ-ten to Prime Minister Narendra Modi twice, seeking deferment of exams, Soniaroped her in as a prime mover of a combined Opposition campaign. By doing so,Sonia also emphasised how she could reach out to other parties as a negotiator,though that cannot qualify as a Gandhi trait, her son failing miserably to establishsuch a connect. She had wanted Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on board,too, but had to bow to her state unit, which is the Opposition in the State. Shehad even invited Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal though the latter decided tostay away. Third, she dovetailed the 14 per cent GST compensation to States inthe agenda ahead of today’s GST council meeting to grill the Government on whyit could not default on payments. But question is will the Congress piggyback theJEE exams for its internal consumption or can it indeed convert it into a politicalcrusade? The Opposition strategy better be sharp as the Government has alreadybuilt its counter-argument. The BJP is citing examples of how Goa, Karnataka andKerala held exams for both classes X and XII with precaution and without any spread-er event. Despite misgivings, postponing JEE/NEET would compound the stresslevels of students, who have been preparing for them since Class X. Not holdingthem could also mean the loss of an academic year and would frustrate talent.So the Opposition should be specific about postponement within reasonable time-lines, list the difficulties in worst-hit States and suggest an alternative implementableplan. Or else it could just end up looking like a windbag attacking the BJP out ofold habit than feeling genuinely for students.

Opp backs students

Congress in a mess

Sir — This refers to the editori-al, “Cong still at crossroads”(August 25). By now it’s clear thatanyone who dares question theGandhis has to face the music.Kapil Sibal is the latest example.He had to withdraw a twitter poston the pretext that Rahul Gandhipersonally clarified issues withhim and did not attack him.

That said, the 23 leaders,who raised demands for a full-time president, did not intend toquestion Sonia Gandhi’s leader-ship at all. Being senior, experi-enced and loyalists who havestood by the party in every crisis,they had just submitted a propos-al/letter calling for a leadershipchange and organisational over-haul. That their plea was reject-ed smacks of an authoritarianmindset. Constant Modi-bait-ing, especially by Rahul Gandhi,has boomeranged. The result isthat the Congress has beenreduced to just 52 seats in the LokSabha, though this is up by eightseats from the 2014 general elec-tion. The same leadership hasfailed to inspire confidenceamong the masses. No party canremain a silent spectator when

there is an opportunity to dis-lodge a Government and form itsown. There needs to be a struc-tural and ideological revamp,right from the grassroots level.

KV SeetharamaiahHassan

Poverty alert

Sir — It is a matter of concern thattwo-thirds of the Indian popula-tion still live in poverty. TheIndian subcontinent is one of the

poorest countries in the world.Women and children, the weak-est members of society, are affect-ed the most. Poor hygiene condi-tions are the aggravators of dis-eases such as cholera, typhoid anddysentery. A tragedy unfolded in

Agra this weekend as a five-year-old girl of an impoverishedfamily from Nagla Vidhichandvillage died after her family hadgone without food for a month.

Poverty has indeed been oneof our biggest challenges.Coronavirus has deepened theabyss and worsened the pandem-ic of economic inequality, blight-ing our democracy even in post-colonial times. Policy interventionsfor the short-term, such as foodprovisions, are not enough. Weneed to up basic indices of life.

B AhsanullahDelhi

Expectations are high

Sir — This refers to the editorial,“Cong still at crossroads” (August25). In the present circumstances,everyone wishes for a strongOpposition party to emerge in thecountry and the Congress fits inwell for this. Is it then wise on thepart of Rahul Gandhi to alienateeven those who have stood by theparty through thick and thin?

RatnapriyaVia email

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 nionHYDERABAD | THURSDAY | AUGUST 27, 2020

06

Education maketh a man

JS RAJPUT

A teaching module that relies on eternal values of truth, peace, non-violence, dharma and love

can prepare generations to create world peace, one that accepts and appreciates diversity

The major difference I see isthat Dhoni used to depend alot on the spin bowlers tomake his strategies. Kohli, ina slight deviation, has shownmore faith in fast bowlers.

Former India fast bowler —Ajit Agarkar

It’s hard to maintain sanitythese days amid negativity thatsurrounds us. If one isn’t ableto handle online bullying, thenswitching off from social mediais the best way to deal with it.

Actor—Sandhya Mridul

Sri Lanka cannot afford,should not afford and will notafford any particular countryto use it as a staging area todo anything against anothercountry, especially so India.

Sri Lanka’s Foreign Secretary —Jayanath Colombage

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

Coronavirus tests India’s limits

Official figures put the total COVID-19 cases in Indiaat over three million, which makes us one of thehardest hit countries. The daily spike attests to the

rapid progression of the disease. Chronic poverty, pover-ty and health-related co-morbidities, population densi-ty, lack of scientific awareness and amenities, inabilityto maintain social distance and lack of access to health-care are key factors behind our vulnerability. This is alsohampering our efforts to contain the virus.

It is a proven fact that poverty correlates with greatervulnerability to infectious diseases. If the US currentlyoutnumbers other countries in infections and mortali-ties despite its affluence, it is explicable in terms of theTrump administration’s anti-scientific response toCOVID-19. Even there, those suffering severe social andeconomic disadvantage are bearing the brunt of the pan-demic disproportionately. India’s impoverished multitudesare now in a distressed situation due to the pandemic.Still, the Government shows no interest or will to ame-liorate their situation. Sad to say, we show a lax attitudetowards a science-based pandemic response; we jos-tle during religious festivals, come physically close toeach other at markets and other places and evince moreinterest in conducting UGC, JEE and NEET exams and

risk exposure to the virus than containing it. A vaccineis still at least some months away; manufacturing it inbulk and administering them to millions of people willbe a time-consuming process. WHO head TedrosAdhanom Ghebreyesus has said that the pandemic couldbe over within two years. On the other hand, British sci-entist Sir Mark Walport has said that Coronavirus willbe with us forever in some form or another. It is hardto tell what lies beyond. We face a very uncertain future.

G David MiltonMaruthancode

Send yyour ffeedback tto:letterstopioneer@gmail.com

UP rape graph When fighting for principlesin life, in politics, in law,amongst social activists, onsocial media platforms,opposition is often voluntary,support is often managed.

Congress leader—Kapil Sibal

Cong moves in to rally forces seeking deferment ofJEE/NEET exams. But does it have an alternative schedule?

As long as the criminal-neta nexus remains strong in the State,goons will run amok and keep getting away with it, too

Accounting gets a makeover

MORE THAN FORTUNE HUNTRESS RHEA CHAKRABORTY, I

MARVEL AT HER FATHER, AN EX-ARMY OFFICER, USING

HIS DAUGHTER AS SEX BAIT TO TRAP RICH MEN.

—WOMEN’S RIGHTS ACTIVIST

MADHU KISHWAR

IMAGINE THE DAY YOU WAKE UP ONE MORNING AND

YOU REALISE THAT THE BILE YOU’VE SPEWED WON’T

ALLOW YOU TO LOOK AT YOURSELF IN THE MIRROR.

—ACTRESS

KUBBRA SAIT

POINTCOUNTERPOINT

COVID-19 has underscored the fact that theonly thing constant in this world is change.Over the years, there has been a huge change

in how businesses work and the accounting profes-sion is no different. The transformation of account-ing from information management to strategy-mak-ing is tremendous, and an accountant who was moreof a back-end person has been catapulted to the front.

Technology is a significant contributor to thistransformation as it is credited with a number ofother changes in the current business trends and con-tinues to change industries. Various drivers have ledto this cultural shift towards adoption of technolo-gy in the accounting profession like improvementsin regulations, demands of clients, generationchange and so on. In fact, technology has led to dis-ruptions in the accounting profession that were hith-erto unknown and added the much-needed smartzing to it.

Automation, one of the key trends, and animportant aspect of technology, has made the sys-tems more efficient and effective and is alsoresponsible for the revolution in the accounting pro-fession. Transactional entries made manually are nowbeing completed by a software. It encompasses morethan just data entry and emphasises on the entirelifecycle of the accounting process, starting fromrecording, manoeuvring and inferring transaction-al data. This makes financial management a much-reorganised and simplified process and helps man-agers take faster decisions by making real-time dataaccessible.

Rising demand for the automation of account-ing services has boosted the accounting softwareindustry, currently valued at $12 billion. It is expect-ed to reach approximately $19.6 billion by 2025,clocking a growth rate of 8.5 per cent. Some of themajor accounting software companies includeOracle, Microsoft, Intuit, SAP, Sage and so on.

Most of this modern accounting software isbased on cloud technology. Gone are the days whenaccounting services were based locally, using soft-ware hosted on computers’ hard drives. Accountantsnow store and access data from the cloud insteadof a local computer system. So what is cloud any-way? It is nothing but another term for the inter-net. There are many benefits of using cloud-basedaccounting systems. Automation of accounting andbook-keeping processes improves efficiency by cut-ting down efforts on routine activities. Access to real-time data anytime and anywhere improves produc-tivity and decision-making abilities. It helps in reduc-tion of costs, creates a paperless environment andhelps in smooth integration with other cloud-basedsolutions. These benefits and many more are moti-vating businesses to shift to cloud-based account-ing services.

According to a survey conducted by theaccounting software firm, Sage, around 67 per centaccountants feel that cloud-based services have madetheir roles easier. But though cloud-based account-ing has a number of benefits, it is not devoid of draw-backs. One of the biggest risks is the vendor shut-ting shop. Over the years, it is a known fact that ven-dors can be here today and gone tomorrow. Thisleaves the organisations using their services in alurch. Second, in case of unavailability of an inter-net connection, the benefit of real-time access toaccounting data is lost. And finally, accounting data

on the internet is subject to securitybreaches. Notwithstanding these risks, theAsia-Pacific region is set to witness thehighest growth in the accounting softwaremarket as the adaptability of modern tech-nology is higher in this region.

An increase in investment in cloudtechnology and emergence of small busi-nesses are also the contributing factors.China is the largest user of cloud tech-nology in the region, followed by India.

The latest blockchain technologytoo, will have a major role in revolution-ising the profession, by freeing up accoun-tants from regular book-keeping activitiesand providing more clarity on resourcesand obligations of an organisation. The BigFour in the accounting industry — ErnstYoung, Price Waterhouse, KPMG andDeloitte — are leading the trend towardsunderstanding blockchain for accounting.

Social media marketing has becomea necessity in every industry and theaccounting profession is not immune toit. The influence of social media can bemeasured by the fact that 26 per cent ofpeople who click on Facebook ads buyfrom the same brand. It is crucial foraccounting firms to create their identityand develop their niche, establish them-selves as thought leaders and industryexperts. Social media can help achieve allthis for accounting firms and muchmore. It is one of the important ways ofpackaging one’s business and accountingfirms can create their brands online,improve visibility and awareness using thismedium, particularly in an industrywhere credibility and professionalism arethe most important aspects. As companiesare focussing on their core competenceareas, outsourcing functions like taxation,

salary management, training and payrollare becoming one of the fastest-growingareas for accounting firms.

Another important technologicalwave, Artificial Intelligence (AI), is hereto stay and grow by leaps and bounds inthe future as it can perform the most com-plex of functions, without an overhead ofmonthly salary. An overhaul of theaccounting department, leading to struc-tural changes, is a priority for any organ-isation wanting to embrace this technol-ogy as it improves performance andaccuracy and reduces expenses.

There are various ways in which AIcan help improve accounting function.First, the reconciliation process is fasterand devoid of mistakes as AI collects datafrom different departments, collates andmerges it in no time. Second, AI helps inpaperless procurements and better ven-dor management. Third, creditor/debtormanagement is simplified with the helpof digital workflow. In addition, digitisa-tion of accounting records means betteraccessibility and accuracy of the auditfunction. And lastly, expense managementis smooth with the help of AI, which canalso help solve some of the commonlyasked questions of users. A survey by Sageshows that 66 per cent of accountants werewilling to invest in AI.

So will computers replace accountantsin future? No. As automation takes awaythe routine and mundane job of data entry,the role of accountants would be morestrategic in nature and they would bedirectly involved in advising the firm’sleadership on critical decisions and shiftthe focus of accountants towards data ana-lytics in particular.

Data analysis and number crunching

will provide valuable and never beforeinsights into businesses, helping inimproving productivity and efficiency andmanage risks better.

For example, accountants can devel-op analytical models based on consumerbehaviour patterns in the market, whichcan help them produce higher profit mar-gins by identifying suitable investmentopportunities. Therefore, the future roleof accountants will be to use data analyt-ics and help businesses monitor andenhance business productivity, identifyand handle risks and enrich customerexperience.

Although automation makes life eas-ier, it is also susceptible to fraud and secu-rity concerns. So, accountants will alsohave to don an additional hat of an inter-nal auditor to check for data inaccuracies.With the advent of these technologicalinnovations, it has become possible foraccountants to work anytime, anywhere.Although this trend of remote workinghad started as early as 2018, the pandem-ic has started the trend of work fromhome. Accounting is one such professionwhich can produce the same excellentresults in the home environment as muchas in the office setting.

The profession of accountancy hascome a long way. It has always been con-sidered tedious and monotonous withoutmuch excitement and innovation. The lastinnovation in this profession was 500 yearsago when the double-entry book-keepingsystem was introduced. But with the rapiduse of technology, there has been a para-digm shift and accounting is at the fore-front of all technological innovations.

(The writer is Associate Professor,Amity University, Noida)

The transformation of the profession from one on information management to strategy-making istremendous. An accountant, who was more of a back-end person, has been catapulted to the front

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

Digitalwars

KUSHAN MITRA

The global system of trade has its rules fornation States but what happens now that the

internet is part of that trade?

HIMA BINDU KOTA

ACCOUNTANCY HASCOME A LONG WAY.

IT HAS ALWAYSBEEN CONSIDERED

TEDIOUS ANDMONOTONOUS

WITHOUT MUCHEXCITEMENT ANDINNOVATION. THE

LAST INNOVATION INTHIS PROFESSION

WAS 500 YEARSAGO WHEN THEDOUBLE-ENTRYBOOK-KEEPING

SYSTEM WASINTRODUCED.

BUT WITH THERAPID USE OFTECHNOLOGY,

THERE HAS BEEN APARADIGM SHIFT

There has been a lot written about India’s recent decision to bana host of Chinese-made smartphone applications in the after-math of a military confrontation in Ladakh. The legalities of the

ban might eventually wind up in Indian courts but this is not an iso-lated incident. India has barred applications before and not justChinese ones. Plus, it has the world’s highest rate of internet shut-downs. However, this column is not looking at the rights and wrongsof the current ban. Given the geopolitical situation, one could findmerit in the restriction but going forward, India must look at estab-lishing a proper regulatory environment based on legislation for theinternet and associated applications and content.

This is because trade as we know it has fundamentally changed.It is not just commerce in physical commodities but on the digitalplane. To use that horrible portmanteau, trade, like so many otherthings in the world today, is “phygital.” As a result, India, like everyother nation, will have to realise that legislation around digital accessand assets will be crucial going forward. The need to create a cadreof negotiators, regulators and judicial officers to deal with this dig-ital reality will be essential.

Most importantly, the Government as well as institutions willhave to brainstorm and lay down a formal digital policy. The cur-rent ad-hoc nature of bans, internet shutdowns as well as randomprosecution for ill-advised posts on social media and low-level policeand judicial requests for content takedowns cannot be allowed tocontinue. If we define data as the new oil as The Economist describedit, we also have to understand that the global petroleum industryhas a clearly established set of rules. And those who break the rulescan and are punished with punitive sanctions. The last two decadeshave seen a free-for-all, a landgrab of sorts never seen before inhumankind.

At the same time, as Samir Saran of the Observer ResearchFoundation recently argued, social media sites cannot be allowedto become arbiters of speech and acceptable political content. Whatis kosher in the US under their sweeping First Amendment rightscan often break laws in other countries. Also, the pervasive “can-cel culture” that is emerging across the globe cannot and shouldnot be allowed to stifle voices of dissent just like governments shouldnot be permitted to do so.

One principle of business is reciprocity, that is in exchange ofaccess to my market you give me admittance to yours. Of courseas we all know, life isn’t that simple and not every country has thesame access to natural and human resources. Some nations canproduce products far cheaper than others and can swamp out localmanufacturers. Thus countries use tariffs to try and level the play-ing field. That is why imported automobiles cost double in India.But tariffs also have a “best-by” date, like those on imported cars.India has created a vibrant local industry now, and that tariff struc-ture on cars does nothing but hurt demand. But that is another story.However, it is impossible to create tariff barriers on digital commerceand infrastructure. You can’t just say that all data coming from theUS should pay an “x” amount for access to India.

But you can create non-tariff barriers. There is, of course, theban on applications but there are also aspects like local sourcingfor e-commerce and content-streaming firms. And as we are see-ing, demands from the Indian Government asking service providersto host their data in the country pose another such barrier. We cango into the rights and wrongs of this later, but we should also lookat this from a business point of view.

For better or for worse, events in Ladakh have pushed Indiainto the arms of the US, and even if the US Administration changesnext January, trade between the two nations will be a major dis-cussion point and a hurdle. And the obstacle will not be around thehigh import duties that Harley-Davidson is being made to pay butaround access for the likes of Facebook and Twitter as well as thedigital data generated by US firms. It might be difficult for some towrap their heads around the concept that digital access and non-tariff barriers could create issues in physical trade or even the issuanceof the coveted H1-B visa, but that is the way it is going to be. Similarlyinternet shutdowns and application bans may not create an inter-national issue today and the fact is that China does not give India(or any other country) reciprocal access to its internet market. Butif the likes of Ola, Oyo and Zomato want to go global tomorrow,they will need the Indian Government to understand that trade rulesare fundamentally changing. If we want to create a “Digital India,”we have to be open for business for everyone. The time to createa closed internet market like China did has come and gone and dig-ital access and regulations will be the future of trade talks and glob-al geopolitics.

(The writer is Managing Editor, The Pioneer)

The Supreme Court (SC) is hear-ing the petition of telecom com-panies on the matter relating to

the Adjusted Gross Revenue (AGR).Though on August 24 the apex courtreserved its order, it is expected to con-clude the matter relating to the recov-ery of AGR dues from RJio and BhartiAirtel, which have entered into spec-trum-sharing and spectrum-tradingagreements.

The SC’s decision, whenever itcomes, is expected to cover the deferredpayment of AGR dues sought by Voda-Idea and Bharti Airtel. It is expected toclarify if the spectrum (i.e. right to use)held by a telecom firm can be trans-ferred under insolvency proceedings.This is relevant for RComm becausespectrum is its biggest asset and if it isnot allowed to be sold, then loan recov-ery of banks will go down. RJio, too, will

be hit because the firm is usingRComm’s spectrum to serve its cus-tomers.

The SC will also decide whetherpast dues of insolvent telcos can berecovered from existing firms whichhave entered into spectrum-sharing andspectrum-trading pacts with insolventtelcos. This will largely impact RJio andBharti Airtel, which have entered intopacts with RComm andVideocon/Aircel respectively.

There was a twist in the case whenthe SC asked the Centre to clarify itsposition on AGR dues of RComm,which is currently used by RJio. Earlierthe matter was focussed on allowingdeferred payment mechanism to tele-com firms, which got hit after the SC’sdecision in October 2019. The AGR ispaid in terms of clause 18 of the licenceagreement between telcos and theGovernment. This levy is in the natureof revenue-sharing between the telecomcompanies and the Government, whichwas calculated as per the definition ofthe AGR given in Clause 19 of thelicence agreement.

The Government’s intention was torecover the licence fee on the entire rev-enue of telecom companies except forthe specific exclusion provided in thesaid clause. However, telecom firms

contested this and took the view thatnon-telecom revenue, like revenuecoming from sale of passive infrastruc-ture and so on, should not be includ-ed in the computation of the AGR.

The matter reached the TelecomDispute Settlement and AppellateTribunal (TDSAT) which passed ordersin 2006 and 2007. In 2006, the TDSATruled in favour of telecom companiesand held that they were liable to paylicence fee only on that portion of rev-enue which is derived from activitiesrelated to telecom licence and not onthe entire earnings.

Subsequent to this, in 2007 theDepartment of Telecommunications(DoT) challenged the TDSAT’s juris-diction in the SC. The court dismissedthe DoT’s petition and directed it toraise its concerns with the TDSAT andthis order upheld the TDSAT’s 2006decision. After this, the CellularOperators Association of India filed areview petition with the TDSAT andthe tribunal gave its order on August30, 2007.

The DoT again moved the SCagainst the August 2007 order and thematter was finally decided by the apexcourt in October 2019 in which theGovernment’s view was upheld by thecourt. The demand for the AGR runs

into billions of dollars and it includesa substantial amount as interest andpenalty.

As a result, telecom companieshave requested the apex court to allow20 years’ moratorium for paying thisamount, similar to the way spectrumauction fee is paid over the years. It ispertinent to note that the AGR issuewas a substantial question of law whichwas decided by the apex court.Therefore, it would be unjust to imposea penalty on such an issue.

The Modi Government madesome reforms in the telecom sector in2015. Spectrum-sharing and spec-trum-trading were allowed vide theDoT’s guidelines issued in Septemberand October 2015 respectively. Thesenorms allowed telecom companies toget spectrum from another telecomcompany (either through the sharingmodel or purchase of spectrum held byothers), subject to the guidelines. In2016, RJio entered into two agreementswith RComm and its subsidiary forspectrum-sharing and spectrum-trad-ing. Subsequently, both the companiesmutually terminated the spectrum-trading agreement and continued withspectrum-sharing. All these facts weredisclosed in their annual reports.

RJio has rapidly expanded its oper-

ations and currently it is using a partof the spectrum held by RComm andits subsidiary to serve its customers.From a purely legal standpoint, RJiomay not be required to pay dues owedby RComm because it is not liable topay past dues as per the sharing guide-lines issued by the DoT. However, hadit been a spectrum-trading agreement,RJio would have had to pay the pend-ing past dues of RComm and perhapsthis could be one of the reasons behindthe termination of the trading pactwhich was entered in 2016.

Spectrum is a national resource andit belongs to the Government. A tele-com company can use the spectrum butit can’t own it. The licence agreementempowers the Government to revokethe licence and incidental rights if thelicencee doesn’t comply with the con-ditions. RComm has defaulted on pay-ment of licence fee and the insolvencyprocess of the company has also beeninitiated.

Now, the DoT has approached theNational Company Law Tribunal(NCLT) to put insolvency proceedingson hold because spectrum is the mainasset being put up for sale. This belongsto the Government and the companyonly has the right to use the spectrumas part of the licence agreement.

Existing telecom operators Airteland Voda-Idea have already been hit bythe AGR verdict but recent develop-ments are going to impact RJio, too.Though RJio may not be liable to payRComm’s dues under a spectrum-sharing agreement but in case it isdecided that RComm’s spectrumbelongs to the Government, then RJio’sbusiness operations may take a big hit.

If RComm’s spectrum is takenback by the DoT due to non-paymentof dues, then the spectrum-sharingagreement between RJio and RCommwill automatically come to an end.

Apart from this, lenders ofRComm will also take a hit becausespectrum is the main asset, which isexpected to be monetised under insol-vency proceedings.

The SC can decide the legality ofthe AGR issue but the executive powerlies with the Government and outsourc-ing executive decisions to the apex courtis akin to a policy paralysis.

The telecom sector is already grap-pling with a lot of issues and instead ofpassing the buck to the apex court, aquick decision by the Centre is need-ed to safeguard the interests of all stake-holders.

(The writer is a CharteredAccountant)

The curious case of sharing spectrumThe SC can decide the legality of the AGR issue but the executive power lies with the Govt. Outsourcing decisions is akin to policy paralysis

SHSHANK SAURAV

HYDERABAD | THURSDAY | AUGUST 27, 2020

www.dailypioneer.com

F O R E I G N E Y E

The ideal educated andemployed Pakistani womanis only a doll. She can saysentences that are expectedof her in any given situation.She provides polite answersto just about everything. Butwomen are not dolls andtheir inner lives cannot besuppressed forever. This, atleast, is what they must tellthemselves as they wait for apolitical and socialtransformation that is farmore elusive than even thecure for COVID-19. And alas,there is no vaccine formisogyny. (Dawn editorial)

NO VACCINE FOR

MISOGYNY

HYDERABAD | THURSDAY | AUGUST 27, 2020 money 08

CAPSULE

I-T refunds of Rs 95,853 cr issuedto taxpayers NEW DELHI: The Income Taxdepartment on Wednesdaysaid it has issued refundsworth Rs 95,853 crore to over25.55 lakh taxpayers in thecurrent fiscal.This includepersonal income tax refundsamounting to Rs 29,361 croreissued to 23.91 lakh taxpayersand corporate tax refundsamounting to Rs 66,493 croreto over 1.63 lakh taxpayersduring this period. "CBDTissues refunds of over Rs95,853 crore to more than25.55 lakh taxpayers between1st April, 2020 to 25th August,2020. Income tax refunds ofRs 29,361 crore have beenissued in 23,91,517 cases &corporate tax refunds of Rs66,493 crore have been issuedin 1,63,272 cases," the I-Tdepartment tweeted.

Infosys launches AI-driven solutionBENGALURU: Infosys Ltd onWednesday announced thelaunch of AI-driven 'CognitiveEmail Workbench' solution thatit said gives enterprises theability to augmentquery management and scaletheir help desk operations. Todevelop this solution, Infosyssaid it leveraged itspartnership with Blue Prism, arobotic processautomationprovider and astrategic partner. Bengaluru-headquartered Infosys and BluePrism joined hands in 2017 to"help enterprises driveintelligent automationcapabilities" across multipleindustries. Cognitive EmailWorkbench is an AI-basedassisted automation solutionthat allowsclients to eliminatemanual resolution and buildnear-touchless contact centres,the company said in astatement. It combines theintelligence of AI and NaturalLanguage Processing, withBlue Prisms intelligentautomation platform.

Honda drives innew Jazz; pricesstart at Rs 7.5 lakhNEW DELHI: Honda Cars IndiaLtd (HCIL) on Wednesday saidit has launched an updatedversion of its premiumhatchback Jazz with pricestarting at Rs 7.5 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi). The newversion comes with refreshedlooks, premium styling, a newflagship ZX trim along withother features, the Japaneseautomaker said in a statement."Besides giving the Honda Jazza stylish and sportiermakeover, the introduction ofsegment-exclusive sunroofwill add a new dimension tothe car and make it stand outin the segment," HCILPresident and CEO GakuNakanishi said. This is thecompany's fourth launch inthe last two months afterresumption of operations inthe unlock phase, includingnew launches.

PNS n MUMBAI

India's GDP needs to riseannually at 8-8.5 per cent tocreate opportunities in thepost COVID-19 era, and thecountry risks a decade of stag-nating incomes and quality oflife if urgent steps are nottaken to spur growth, says areport.

According to the report byMcKinsey Global Institute(MGI), the country will have toundertake a slew of reformmeasures over the next 12-18months with the aim ofincreasing productivity andcreating jobs.

Given the increasing urban-isation and population trends,there will be 90 million addi-tional workers in search ofnon-farm jobs by 2030 andIndia will have to triple job cre-ation to 12 million gainfulnon-farm jobs per year from

the 4 million achieved between2013 to 2018, it said.

The GDP, which is set tocontract by over 5 per cent asper some estimates in FY21,needs to go up to 8-8.5 per centper annum for the next decadeto create the opportunities, itsaid, warning of difficulties ifit is not achieved.

“Absent urgent steps to spur

growth, India risks a decade ofstagnating incomes and qual-ity of life,” MGI warned.

On the reforms front, itadvocated attention to manu-facturing, real estate, agricul-ture, healthcare, and retail sec-tors, unlocking land whichcan reduce prices by up to afourth, creating “flexible”labour markets, enabling effi-

cient power distribution toreduce tariffs for consumers byover 20 per cent and privatiz-ing 30 top state-run enterpris-es.

From a financial sector per-spective, it said reforms andstreamlining fiscal resourcescan deliver USD 2.4 trillion ininvestment while boostingentrepreneurship by loweringthe cost of capital for enterpris-es by about 3.5 percentagepoints and also pushed for cre-ation of a 'bad bank' to takecare of the dud assets.

A bulk 60 per cent of thereforms will have to be under-taken by states and the remain-ing 40 per cent by the Centre,it added.

The think tank pointed outthat the manufacturing and theconstruction sectors offer themost opportunities for eco-nomic growth and also forhigher employment.

PNS n NEW DELHI

The department of commerceis proactively engaging withstate governments to promoteexports, Commerce SecretaryAnup Wadhawan said onWednesday.

The secretary also request-ed state governments to extendtheir support to take forwardthe initiatives to boost coun-try's outbound shipments.

"We have been proactivelyengaging with states in termsof encouraging them to createexport policies, in terms ofallocating the export functionto a senior level, to a dedicat-ed department and to a dedi-cated officer," he said.

Wadhawan was speaking atthe release of the first editionof 'Export Preparedness Index,2020'.

Gujarat has topped thechart, followed by Maharashtraand Tamil Nadu.

"We are working with statesto not only have a state exportstrategy covering infrastruc-ture, logistics, incentives, allother facilitation and promo-tional measures but also hav-ing a decentralised strategycovering each and every dis-

trict," he added.Those issues "we are trying

to address" through exporterawareness by creating win-dows in the shipping bills andin the GSTN formats, "sothat right at the ground level,the source of the exports,right to the district level isaccurately captured and statesdo not have this grievancethat exports originating froma district in their state iswrongly attributed to someother state," he said.

There has been a para-digm shift in the incentivisa-tion regime for exports, headded. "You see as a compet-ing nation, competing withvarious countries includingnew entrants into the export

arena like Vietnam, we haveto match the global sought ofpackage which is available toinvestors," he said.

He added that India hasstarted moving in that direc-tion in the recent past, andthe entire approach to incen-tivising exports has seen aparadigm shift.

"We are moving away fromthe MEIS (MerchandiseExports from India Scheme)type of incentive to produc-tion linked incentives, toimprovement in the physicalenvironment in whichinvestors can start operatingin a plug and play manner,"Wadhawan said.

Export performance inquantitative and qualitativedimensions are key metricsfor assessing the health andprospects of an economy, headded.

Ex IOC Chairman SanjivSingh joins Reliance PNS n NEW DELHI

Former Indian Oil Corp(IOC) chairman Sanjiv Singhhas joined Reliance IndustriesLtd as Group President for bil-lionaire MukeshAmbani-run firm'soil-to-chemicalsbusiness.

A commu-nication byRIL ExecutiveDirector HitalR Meswani tothe companyemployees saidSingh, who super-annuated from India'slargest oil firm on June 30, willbe a member of the oil-to-chemicals(O2C) business lead-ership team.

RIL's O2C business consistsof group's twin oil refineries atJamnagar in Gujarat, petro-chemical plants, 51 per cent offuel retail and aviation fuelventure, and bulk wholesalemarketing businesses.

It does not include the firm'supstream oil and gas explo-ration assets that include 66.6

per cent interest in the easternoffshore KG-D6 block.

RIL is in the process ofcarving out the O2C businessinto a separate unit, calledReliance O2C Ltd, for a pos-

sible sale of a 20 per centinterest to Saudi

Aramco for anasking of USD15 billion.

The firm hadearlier this yearhired formerIOC chairman

Sarthak Behuria,68, as a senior

advisor to helpshape the firm's fuel

retail business."Sanjiv will lead and drive

the Group manufacturingservices (GMS) organisationwhich is the backbone of ouroil-to-chemicals business,"Meswani wrote.

The refining and market-ing business of RIL is head-ed by Meswani, and SurinderSani is the Group Presidentof the Refining Business,according to the company'slatest annual report.

PNS n COLOMBO

Sri Lanka will adopt an "Indiafirst approach" as its new for-eign policy plank and protectNew Delhi's strategic securityinterests, the country's ForeignSecretary Jayanath Colombagehas said as he sought to allayconcerns amid China's grow-ing presence in the islandnation.

Admiral Colombagebecame the first-ever foreignsecretary from a military back-ground when he was appoint-ed by President GotabayaRajapaksa to head the ForeignMinistry on August 14.

In an interview published byDaily Mirror on Wednesday,Colombage said Sri Lanka is toadopt an ‘India first approach'

as its new regional foreignpolicy plank.

"That means Sri Lanka willnot do anything harmful toIndia's strategic securityinterests," said Colombage,who was the chief of the SriLanka Navy between 2012-14and later became a foreignpolicy analyst mostly on the

Chinese initiatives in SriLanka and the immediateregion.

Colombage said thatPresident GotabayaRajapaksa would have anIndia first approach as thekey to strategic security.

“China is the second-largest economy and India isconsidered the sixth-largest.In 2018 India was the world'sfastest-growing economy.That means we are betweentwo economic giants,” hesaid.

"Sri Lanka cannot afford,should not afford and will notafford any particular countryto use it as a staging area todo anything against anothercountry – especially so India,"he said.

Sri Lanka will adopt ‘India firstapproach': Foreign Secretary

PNS n NEW DELHI

Gold prices declined Rs 210 toRs 51,963 per 10 gram in thenational capital on Wednesdayfollowing a weak trend in theglobal market and rupeeappreciation, according toHDFC Securities.

The precious metal hadclosed at Rs 52,173 per 10gram in the previous trade.

Silver prices also tanked Rs1,077 to Rs 65,178 per kg fromRs 66,255 per kg in the previ-ous trade. "Spot gold prices for24 carat in Delhi continued todecline, losing Rs 210 withselling in global prices andrupee appreciation," HDFCSecurities Senior Analyst(Commodities) Tapan Patelsaid.

The rupee settled 3 paisehigher at 74.30 (provisional)against the US dollar onWednesday, supported bypositive domestic equities andsustained foreign fundinflows.

Gold, silverdeclinetracking weakglobal trends Sensex

surges 230pts on fag-end buyingPNS n MUMBAI

Rising for the fourth consec-utive session, BSE bench-mark Sensex surged 230points on Wednesday fol-lowing gains in RelianceIndustries, Infosys and KotakBank amid persistent for-eign fund inflows.

After touching a high of39,111.55 during the day, theBSE Sensex ended 230.04points or 0.59 per cent high-er at 39,073.92. The NSENifty advanced 77.35 pointsor 0.67 per cent to finish at11,549.60. IndusInd Bankwas the top gainer in theSensex pack, rallying around6 per cent, followed byReliance Industries, AxisBank, Kotak Bank, Bajaj Autoand HCL Tech.

PNS n NEW DELHI

The commerce ministry'sinvestigation arm DGTR hasrecommended imposition ofanti-dumping duty for fiveyears on 'choline chloride', achemical imported fromChina, Malaysia and Vietnam,to guard domestic players fromcheap inbound shipments.

The Directorate General ofTrade Remedies (DGTR) hasrecommended duty in therange of USD 94 per tonne toUSD 315 per tonne after con-ducting a probe on alleged

dumping of Choline Chloridein all forms by these countries,following a complaint by adomestic manufacturer.

The finance ministry willtake the final call to imposethe levy. Jubilant Life Sciencesfiled an application for impo-

sition of anti-dumping dutyon the imports from thesethree countries.

"The authority recom-mends imposition of anti-dumping duty.. .so as toremove the injury to thedomestic industry," accordingto a notification of theDGTR.

It said the product hasbeen exported to India fromthese countries below its nor-mal value, resulting in dump-ing and due to this, thedomestic industry has suf-fered material injury.

PNS n NEW DELHI

Tata Starbucks will increase thenumber of coffee outlets acrossIndia and the business willemerge "much stronger" fromthe coronavirus pandemic asconsumers gravitate towardsmore trusted brands, accordingto Tata Consumer Products Ltd(TCPL).

A 50:50 joint venturebetween TCPL and StarbucksCorporation, Tata Starbucks,has so far reopened around 60per cent of its stores in Indiaafter the lifting of lockdowneven as it opened two stores-one in Delhi and one inMumbai - operated entirely bywomen, as part of its commit-

ment to create more opportu-nities for women and empow-er them.

"Tata Starbucks is a businesson a very strong footing, hav-ing delivered very stronggrowth and great financialimprovement year on the year

prior to the disruptions due toCOVID-19, and we remainfocused on expanding its pres-ence further," TCPL ManagingDirector & CEO Sunil D'Souzasaid.

"While the business has beenimpacted by COVID, around

60 per cent of stores have nowreopened. Alternative chan-nels such as delivery and take-away have been strengthenedto serve consumers effectively."

D'Souza said the coffee chainwill only emerge stronger fromthe health crisis as it focuses onstrengthening relationship withits customers.

"We also remain focused oncontinuing to build equity withour customer base, engagingthem through the digitalmedia, including hosting virtu-al coffee tasting competitions,running virtual challenges etcand remain confident that thebusiness will emerge muchstronger from this pandemic,especially as consumers grav-

itate to more trusted brands,"he said. Last fiscal, TCPL hadinvested Rs 53 crore in the JV,taking the total investment toRs 288.80 crore and added 39new stores.

"Our joint venture withStarbucks Corporation reflect-ed a growth of 21 per cent forthe year due to sales growth instores coupled with storeexpansion," TCPL had said inits annual report for 2019-20.

This month, Tata Starbuckshad announced, two of itsstores to be operated entirely bythe women staffs, as part of itsongoing commitment to pro-mote an inclusive and diverseworkforce by empoweringwomen leaders.

PNS n NEW DELHI

Global shares weremostly lowerWednesday asinvestors lookedahead to a muchanticipated speechby the chairmanof the US FederalReserve.

France's CAC 40 incheddown less than 0.1% in earlytrading to 5,006.48, whileGermany's DAX added 0.2%to 13,084.49. Britain's FTSE100 slipped 0.2% to 6,027.32.U.S. shares were set to bemixed with Dow futures at28,168.0, down 0.1%. S&P500 futures were up nearly0.1% at 3,445.88.

The market has meanderedrecently on snippets of newsabout the coronavirus, devel-opments on a potential vaccineand other concerns.

Data releases are givingmarkets “a mixed bag” of sig-

nals, such as relatively positiveU.S. home sales but a disap-pointing read on consumerconfidence, as fears of morewaves of COVID-19 infectionspersist, said Hayaki Narita, ofthe Asia & Oceania TreasuryDepartment at Mizuho Bank.

“Depending on your pointof view, data and develop-ments may be encouraging orgloomy,” he said. Japan'sbenchmark Nikkei 225 fin-ished at 23,290.86, down lessthan 0.1%. Australia'sS&P/ASX 200 lost 0.7% to6,116.40. South Korea's Kospifell 0.1% to 2,369.32.

PNS n NEW DELHI

For years Citigroup Inc. hasbeen an anomaly among bigbanks, relying on an obscurepiece of software it helpeddevelop to manage loan pay-ments. Just as the bank tried toreplace it, things went terriblywrong.

The saga began emerging incourt this week as the firmblamed human errors for mis-takenly sending $900 millionto a fleet of hedge funds reluc-tant to return it. But the back-drop, according to people withknowledge of what happened,is a tale of arcane technologystretching back to the 1990s. Itculminates with the bank'sdecision last year to replacesoftware with the industrystandard. That rollout is stillunderway, adding to upheavalat a time when employees areworking from home.

An internal review at thebank found humans manual-ly operating the old softwarewere ultimately at fault, andthat their remote locationsweren't the problem, one per-son said, asking not to benamed discussing confidential

matters. Yet a global pandem-ic is, at the least, an awkwardtime to embark on such a com-plex transition. "If you want toswitch from one provider toanother, it's a very big project,"said Marc Victory, manager inthe financial services practiceat the consultancy Sia Partners."Changes in providers are verycumbersome and very hard."

Backstop FailedThe incident happened at a

Citigroup unit that serves asthe administrative agent forloans, collecting and distribut-ing interest payments and pro-viding other housekeeping ser-vices. The borrower in thiscase, cosmetics giant Revlon

Inc., was locked in a battle withlenders who wanted theirmoney back.

After Revlon repurchasedpart of the debt, a Citigroupemployee was supposed tomanually adjust the share ofthe loan the remaining lendersstill owned ahead of interestpayments scheduled to be sentout this month. But theemployee didn't select the cor-rect system options — insteadallowing the loan to be repaidin full with interest. Colleagueswho are supposed to catchsuch errors didn't.

"Unfortunately, the manualchecks of that selection also failedto detect the mistake," Citigroupwrote in its court filing. Rupee settles

3 paise higheragainst USDPNS n MUMBAI

The rupee pared some of itsearly gains and settled 3paise higher at 74.30 (pro-visional) against the US dol-lar on Wednesday support-ed by positive domesticequities and sustained for-eign fund inflows.

At the interbank forexmarket, the domestic unitopened at 74.34, againstTuesday's closing of 74.33and finally ended at 74.30against the greenback, high-er by 3 paise over its previ-ous close.

During the day, the localunit witnessed an intra-dayhigh of 74.24 and a low of74.46 against the US dollar.

‘Tata Starbucks will emerge stronger from Covid’DGTR bats for anti-dumping duty onchemical imported from China, Vietnam

‘Proactively engaging withstates to promote exports’

The issues related towrong attribution ofexport numbers of

one state to other would beaddressed

ANUP WADHAWAN

Commerce Secretary

Global shares retreat

Citi's $900 mn mistake happenedin the middle Of A Software Switch

Belaz gets Rs 2,900 crCoal Indiacontract PNS n NEW DELHI

State-owned Coal India Ltdon Wednesday said it hasawarded a Rs 2,900 crore con-tract to Belarus-based miningequipment manufacturerBelaz for supply of 96dumpers of 240-tonnescapacity. The purchase pack-age includes the cost of thedumpers and spares for eightyears, including the one-yearwarranty period.

The amount for the pur-chase of the dumpers wouldbe met out of the company'sown finances, a companystatement said.

Dumpers are primarilyused in opencast mines andaid in the transport of bulkmaterials like over burden,which is an important perfor-mance criterion.

"Coal India Limited (CIL),for purchase of 96 dumpers of240-tonnes capacity, hasissued a letter of award of Rs2,900 crores to Belaz," thePSU said.

India INX to launch Gold Quanto, Silver Quanto PNS n NEW DELHI

BSE's India InternationalExchange (India INX) hasreceived regulatory approvalfor launching Gold Quantoand Silver Quanto futures con-tracts.

"Trading in these Quantofutures contracts at India INXwill commence from Monday,August 31, 2020," a release saidon Wednesday.

The underlying assets forGold Quanto futures is IndianGold spot purity 995 and for

Silver Quanto futures is IndianSilver spot purity 999.

According to the release,trading hours for these con-tracts would be from 4.30 amto 5 pm (session 1) and from5 pm to 2.30 am (Session 2).It would be from Monday to

Friday."The available contracts

for both Quanto futures con-tracts is twelve (12) serialmonthly contracts. BothQuanto futures contracts willbe settled in cash in USDollar," it added.

Slew of reform measuresneed of the hour, says report

he wonders ofbeing a vegan arecountless, manyhave been happilymarried to veganfood without com-

plaints and are looking for-ward to a ‘happily ever after’!However, veganism comeswith its own pros and cons.

Dr Apoorva Rawul, whohas commenced a movementto encourage people to turnvegan for better environmen-tal reasons in Hyderabad tellsus, “We are in the midst ofterrible ecological devasta-tion. Raising animals forfood purposes is the largestsource for land use, the num-ber one source of water pol-lution, and deforestation. Itwas very difficult for me toquit meat and coffee before.Initially, I didn’t set out tochange anybody but I’ve had

at least half-a-dozen friendsnow who excitedly tell meabout how they have quitmeat now. Apart from that,raising animals for food is asignificant contributor to airpollution, ocean dead zones,loss of habitat and extinctionof species. Veganism is prov-ing to be a good solution.”

A vegan herself, Apoorvapresents an argument on howswitching to a vegan dietreduces our ecological foot-print allowing you to treadlightly on the planet and becompassionate to its inhabi-tants. “With so many greatvegan options, eating greenhas never been more deli-cious. Whether you go vegan

for the environment, for yourhealth, or for animals, youhave the power to change theworld directly by changingwhat’s on your plate!Veganism is beyond food, avegan diet includes all grains,beans, legumes, vegetablesand fruits. Fermented foodsare also popular in a vegandiet. There’s no right orwrong way to do it, justremember why you’re choos-ing to adopt a vegan diet.”

If you need some motiva-tion to be a vegan, you canalso turn to red carpetactresses like Sadaf Syed whohas pledged to be vegan forlife! The Islamic form ofslaughtering animals moved

her to an extent where today,she refrains from monopolis-ing on poultry or beastiediets for worldly pleasures. “I can’t imagine a knife ram-ming into a lively creature’sheart anymore, I highly rec-ommend a shift to the vegandiet. Do good, be good andlook good. If I had to pickthe very best thing aboutbeing vegan, it’s my clearconscience! Being an actress,it was quite difficult for me toeradicate non vegan supple-ments from my dietary plansas they are the main sourcesof protein nevertheless I’verealised that the benefits ofeating plant-based foodsinclude feeling energetic and

succeeding to keep weight incontrol. If you keep gettingstrong urges to have a nonvegan meals, you can alwaysuse substitutes to relish yourtaste buds,” shares Sadaa,who has never had a cheatmeal to date and owns a purevegan cafe named EarthlingsCafe!

But how feasible is vegan-ism? Even though there is anincrease in food productsorientated towards veganism,the issue remains of priceand availability. Veganism isinfluencing our consumerhabits more than we realise.In a shocking turn of event,the medical practitioner hav-ing 13 years of experience

explains the reversible healtheffects of being a vegan as thepotential health benefitsalone inspire many to switch.“Diabetes, hypertension,hypothyroidism, obesity,PCOS and heart diseases canbe reversed if we follow aproper diet along with exer-cise and adequate sleep.Whatever your diet choice is,you have to know whichfoods to avoid and whichfoods to seek out. To have ahealthy diet of any kind, youneed important nutrients.Veganism doesn’t have to beall or nothing,” she adds.

Veganism isn’t about gain-ing or losing anything, it'sabout gaining peace within

yourself that comes fromembracing the welfare of ani-mals and refusing to indulge

in their exploitation, try itand who knows, you mightnever want to go back again!

T

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ThursdayAugust 27, 2020

CONSIDER GOING VEGAN,

BECAUSE WHY NOT?

Preventing theexploitation of

animals is not theonly reason for

becoming vegan,but for many it

remains the keyfactor in theirdecision to go

vegan and stayvegan. Veganism,

although not arecent fad, hasbecome one of

the most famousdiet choices bythe young and

old alike,SHIKHA

DUGGALexplains why one

should considergoing vegan and

more...

Sadaf Syed

Dr Apoorva Rawul

Azmi ke Alfaazinspiring several women

habana Azmi’srecent filmMeeRaqsam iscreating quite thewaves, all for theright event. The

actress, well known for hermulti-faceted personality andwork as a politician and asocial activist, was invited fora talk by YFLO ChairpersonApurva Jain. Gracing theevent was also JahnabiPhookan, the 37th NationalFICCI FLO President, anentrepreneur, a co-founder oftwo National TourismAward-winning companies:Jungle Travels India andAssam Bengal NavigationCompany under JTI Group,whose primary focus is onsustainable livelihood forwomen economic empower-ment.

The event had in atten-dance India’s most enterpris-ing and highly influentialwomen from all FICCI chap-ters. Moderating this highlydynamic session was the wellknown WOW magazine edi-tor and founder Ratna RaoShekhar.

Speaking about the rela-tionship Azmi shared withher father, the illustrious poetKaifi Azmi, the actress was inawe of her experiences withhim and spoke highly of howeach instance motivated her,taught her, left an everlastingimpression on her. Sheshared a very special rela-tionship with her mother aswell, who “embodied India’sspirit!”. “Our house was fullof trinkets, handloom, and Ihave developed my aestheticsand love for acting from her,”Azmi shared. She claimed“arth” to be her starting pointfor choosing to influence

women empowermentthrough her characters, and,also refused certain roles fortheir portrayal of women.She accepted that the worldis changing and women arebeing granted equality in allspheres, but still need to beactive and more decisive interms of their finance, theirfamily planning, their eco-nomic independence.

“The whole notion of mas-culinity needs to be rede-fined,” she explained by giv-ing instances from her recentrelease MeeRaqsam. The

story is based on her father’shometown Mijwan andbrought out the impact cul-ture has on all strata of soci-ety and the role it plays inbringing people together.

COVID and the sociallockdown has brought outthe unsung story of manywomen. Smart classes arebeing conducted for thewomen in the villages. Azmipersonally moved toKhandala for the pandemic,“I have focused on the hereand now instead of cribbingwhen will it get over. It hasbeen mostly meditative; Ihave understood the differ-ence between need and want.I am simplifying my life, andwe must give, we must givetill it hurts because we are allso deeply connected,” sheshared.

Azmi dazzled on thescreen with the same charmand grace that is synony-mous with her name. Hercalm demeanor, spirited con-versation, and relentless pur-suit of women empowermentleft the audience spellbound.

S

THE ACTRESSCLAIMED “ARTH”TO BE HERSTARTING POINTFOR CHOOSINGTO INFLUENCEWOMENEMPOWERMENTTHROUGH HERCHARACTERS

he Covid-19 pan-demic has com-pletely changed theway the weddingceremonies areheld in Hyderabad.

In this historic city known forbig fat weddings with a longlist of invitees, large number oflip-smacking dishes andnightlong celebrations, themarriages have become simpleand mostly a day affair.

The Covid-19 scare hastaken the sheen off the typicalHyderabadi marriages. Thesituation has forced the peopleto go for simple ceremonieswith limited numbers ofguests at smaller function hallsand that too during day time.This was something unimag-inable in the city a few monthsago as even the middle classfamilies used to vie with eachother in hosting the weddingceremonies at the biggest andmost popular function hallswith hundreds of invitees.

The city of nawabs isknown for ostentatious mar-riages and this was seen as asocial problem pushing manyfamilies into debt trap. Manyindividuals and organisationsworking for reforms andadvocating simple marriageshad failed in their efforts.

However, the Covid-19 out-break changed everything.The lockdown began inMarch when the marriage sea-son was at its peak. Followingthe government orders, themarriage halls were forced tocancel the bookings. Hund-reds of marriages had to bepostponed. After the easing oflockdown norms in May, mar-riages resumed in functionhalls but were subject to manyrestrictions like number ofguests, timing and physicaldistancing.

Unlike in the past wheneven the middle class familiesused to look for the most spa-cious function halls, theystarted hosting the weddingceremonies at smaller avenues.The night curfew and fewertransport options availablealso forced the families to go

for day ceremonies.“This is something

unprecedented in last 20-25years in Hyderabad becausealmost all Muslim families inthe city prefer weddings dur-ing night times,” said SyedAbdul Rauf, a senior citizen.

During the last few years,the marriages and Valima (thedinner hosted by the bride-groom a day or two after thewedding) had become a night-long affair. Late dinners hadbecome common and the sub-sequent ceremonies also usedto consume several hours.

The wedding and Valimadinners are an integral part ofthe social life in Hyderabad.

At the peak of the marriageseason, people get multipleinvitations in a single day.However, with the outbreak ofCovid-19 and resultant lock-down, many citizens startedmissing the lively eveningswith families and friends atthe function halls.

Initially, many familiespostponed the marriages inthe hope of an early end to thepandemic. However, with noend in sight even after sixmonths, the families are con-ducting the marriages with allthe restrictions.

The families of bride andbridegroom are spending har-dly a couple of hours at the

function halls. The Covid-19scare is also keeping the guestsaway.

“A family invited 200 guestsfor a wedding recently butonly 100 turned up,” said amanager of a function hall inthe Old City of Hyderabad.

Wearing the face masks, theinvitees are not spendingmuch time. Many are seen ina hurry to return after greetingbridegrooms and brides andtheir families.

Most of these weddings arehappening over lunch. One nolonger sees lavish menus. Maj-ority of the receptions are lim-ited to a couple of dishes andsweet. This is in total contrast

to the pre-Covid situationwhen multiple dishes at everywedding was a common sight.

Socio-religious organisa-tions and individuals, whohad been working to bringreforms in the society, arehappy to see the changes,albeit for different reasons.They hope that the communi-ty continues this new trend.

The record at TelanganaState Wakf Board shows thatthe number of marriages hascome down due to Covid.Every year around 60,000marriages are solemnised inthe state with more than 60per cent of them in Hydera-bad. This year, so far only30,000 marriages have beenperformed.

A couple of years ago, someorganisations had even calledfor a boycott of ostentatiousweddings in the community.They have been appealing tothe community to stop lavishexpenditure, huge dowry, un-Islamic rituals, music and fire-works at the marriages.

They had pointed out thatthe poor and middle-classfamilies are landing in a debttrap while trying to emulatethe rich by taking huge loansto pay for the expenditure.

One of these organisations,Tehreek-e-Muslim Shabbanhad launched a campaign withthe slogan ‘Ek khana, Ekmeetha’ (one dish, onedessert).

The Hyderabad chapter ofAll India Jamiat-ul-Quresh, abody of meat traders andexporters, has evenannounced that it will imposea fine of Rs 50,000 if any of itsmembers are found arrangingextravagant weddings.

The Muslim community inHyderabad spends severalhundreds of crores every yearon big fat weddings. It is esti-mated that lower middle-classand middle-class familiesspend anywhere between Rs5-15 lakh on weddings. Theexpenses on hiring the func-tion halls and food constituteabout 50 per cent of the totalexpenditure.

Covid turns big fatHyd weddings

simple, day affair

T

10

Hyderabad Thursday August 27 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

rt since timeimmemorial hasbeen a powerfulmedium of expres-sion and commu-nication to inspire

change and empower a voice.To commemorate GenderEquality Day (August 26) anew initiative aims to intro-duce a unique platform foryoung artists to inspire amore equal society.

Throughout human histo-ry, art has always been a sig-nificant tool to chronicle dif-ferent facets of culture andreact against inequalities andinjustice. ITC Vivel hasembarked on a unique cele-bratory and expressive initia-tive, Vivel Voice of Art, toweave a new-age narrative ofequality through art.

In a first, Vivel Voice ofArt brings together one ofIndia's largest collective ofyoung artists in an initiativeto give expression to andinspire a more equal society.The unique platform givesyoung artists the Voice ofArt. Together young artistswith celebrate equality thismonth, through their pas-sionate expressions againstpatriarchy — be it stereotyp-ing on the basis of gender orattire, highlighting pay gap orsocietal expectation set onthe basis of gender. Withmore than 400 art entriesreceived from artists acrossthe country sharing their

interpretation of a progres-sive and an equal society,Vivel Voice of Art is a begin-ning of a unique expressionthat encourages women tosay ‘Ab Samjhauta Nahin’ (Nomore compromise).

The brand has been relent-lessly working towardsempowering women to havean informed ‘Voice’, encour-aging them to challenge thestatus quo on gender-basedstereotypes and the prescrip-tive behavioural norms theyneed to conform to. It firmlybelieves that no one shouldhave to compromise on theirdignity or be discriminatedagainst.

Vivel Ab Samjhauta Nahinwith its unique Know YourRights initiative is working

extensively with collegesacross India to empowereveryone with the knowledgeof rights and build equalitychampions across the nation.More than 700 colleges haveexperienced the workshopco-created with one of themost renowned legal authori-ties in India, Ms. KarunaNundy and around 1 lakhstudents have actively partici-pated in the workshops thatbegan its outreach in 2019. Ithas also collaborated withAzad Foundation India tolaunch ‘Parvaz’ a feministleadership programme toempower women and trans-form communities. The pro-ject in its third year now hasalready introduced morethan 40 community leadersin the last two years whohave helped transform livesof more than 60,000 womenin big ways and small.

Sameer Satpathy,Divisional Chief Executive,Personal Care ProductsBusiness, ITC Limited, said,“Equality is a fundamentalright yet at times it has beenviolated by individuals...Voice of Art... seeks to inspirea collective of young peopleto express their independentvoice against patriarchy. It isvery encouraging to see thephenomenal response and webelieve this emerging expres-sion will help reframe mind-sets, as artists imagine a moreequal world.”

‘Voice of Art'on Gender Equality Day

ATHROUGHOUTHUMAN HISTORY,ART HAS ALWAYSBEEN A SIGNI-FICANT TOOL TOCHRONICLEDIFFERENTFACETS OFCULTURE ANDREACT AGAINSTINEQUALITIESAND INJUSTICE

ne of the most antici-pated Asian art auc-tions for the Fall seasonhas been announced.Aptly titled ‘Sacred andImperial: The James

and Marilynn Alsdorf Collection’the sale pays homage to theobjects the Alsdorfs spent theirlives supporting and collecting.

Christie’s announced finaldetails of the sale of the privatecollection of James and MarilynnAlsdorf, which will be sold acrosstwo sessions on September 24,with a complementary online auc-tion from September 4 to 29. Thecollection will be presented in anexhibition, open by appointment,starting September 16th duringAsian Art Week at Christie’s NewYork.

Known for their generosity ofspirit as significant arts patrons intheir hometown of Chicago, Jamesand Marilynn Alsdorf spent their38-year marriage building a wide-ranging collection marked by bothquality and diversity. For theAlsdorfs, collecting representedthe opportunity for exploration,adventure and pursuit of beauty,extending from the art-filledrooms of their Chicago residenceto China and India.

From the 1950s on, the Alsdorfswere especially ardent patrons ofThe Art Institute of Chicago, gift-ing or lending hundreds of worksto the museum, commencing intheir earliest days of collecting. Alongtime trustee, Mrs Alsdorfserved for a time as president ofthe museum’s Women’s Board,while Mr Alsdorf served asChairman from 1975 to 1978. In1997, Mrs Alsdorf presented theAIC with 400 works of Indian,Himalayan, and Southeast Asianart, a transformative bequest cele-brated by the landmark exhibition‘A Collecting Odyssey: Indian,Himalayan and Southeast AsianArt from the James and MarilynnAlsdorf Collection’. Less than adecade later, Mrs Alsdorf made yetanother monumental gift whenshe supported the Renzo Piano-designed renovation of what arenow the Alsdorf Galleries forIndian, Himalayan, and SoutheastAsian Art.

Tina Zonars, Co-Chairman ofAsian Art, Christie’s, remarks,“The Collection of James andMarilynn Alsdorf represents anotable achievement in the historyof American connoisseurship.

Steadily acquired throughout thelatter half of the 20th century bytwo of Chicago’s most importantcivic and cultural patrons, the col-lection is unparalleled in itsbreadth and quality, illuminatingthe remarkable feats of humanartistry across time and geography.This collection affords the rareopportunity to acquire museum-quality works with the esteemedprovenance of two of America’sleading collectors of Asian art.”

Bridget Alsdorf, the couple’sgranddaughter, recalls, “As a cou-ple, my grandparents were the pic-ture of elegance. They had impec-cable taste, but to their family andmany friends they were known fortheir warmth, wit, and humor.Studying and collecting art wastheir all-consuming passion, and ittook them all over the world.Their spirit of adventure wasunique; they went places that few

collectors at the time were curiousand confident enough to explore.They were not strategic in theircollecting, instead, they were guid-ed by what fascinated them andgave them pleasure, by knowledgeand instinct.”

THE ALSDORFS'COLLECTING HISTORY

Married in 1952, the couple quick-ly discovered a shared passion forcultural exploration and collecting,which for them was not a hobbybut a way of life. Together theyshared the odyssey of life-longglobal discovery through generouscontributions to the arts commu-nity of Chicago and beyond.During their first trip to India in1968, they met former PrimeMinister Indira Gandhi andMinister of Cultural Affairs, AndriMalraux, close friend of the dealerRobert Rousset, from whom theyhad acquired their first work of artin 1955. The Alsdorfs’ love ofIndian, Southeast Asian andHimalayan art informed theirearly collection in the 1960s.

After her husband’s passing in1990, Marilynn Alsdorf becameknown as “the queen of theChicago arts community”. In 1997,she donated 400 Indian,Himalayan, and Southeast Asianworks to the Art Institute ofChicago, and in 2006, a subse-quent donation made possible theRenzo Piano-designed renovationof what is now the AlsdorfGalleries for Indian, Himalayan,

and Southeast Asian Art.

PART I: MASTERPIECES OFASIAN ART (LOTS 801-823)

Part I offers a curated cross-sectionof 24 of the best examples acrossthe Alsdorfs’ most collected cate-gories spanning South Indianbronzes, Qing dynasty porcelain,Chinese painting, and Chinese andJapanese works of art. Featured lotsinclude A Rare and MagnificentBronze Figure of ShivaTripuravijaya, South India, TamilNadu, Chola Period, circa 1050($1,000,000-1,500,000); A VeryRare and Important Marble Headof Buddha, China, Sui Dynasty, AD550-618 ($500,000-700,000)

PART II: ASIAN ART ANDEUROPEAN DECORATIVEARTS (LOTS 825-1049)

Part II of the sale features Chineseworks of art, Chinese paintings,Indian, Himalayan, and SoutheastAsian works of Art, Japanese worksof art, and a selection of decorativearts. From among the Indian,Southeast Asian and Himalayanart, highlights include A Gilt-bronze Figure of AmoghapashaLokeshvara ($20,000-30,000).Highlights from the decorative artsinclude An Italian Gilt-Bronze,Porphyry, Lapis Lazuli andHardstone-Mounted Collector’sCabinet, 19th century ($8,000-12,000); and A Silk and MetallicThread ‘Phoenix’ Carpet, China,Qing Dynasty, ($2,000-3,000).

O

FROM THE 1950S ON,THE ALSDORFS WEREESPECIALLY ARDENTPATRONS OF THE ARTINSTITUTE OF CHICAGO,GIFTING OR LENDINGHUNDREDS OF WORKS TOTHE MUSEUM, COMMEN-CING IN THEIR EARLIESTDAYS OF COLLECTING

Most awaited Asian artauction announced for Fall

ctress Tamannaah Bhatiaon Wednesday revealedthat both her parents-father Santosh Bhatia andmother Rajani Bhatia-have tested positive for

novel coronavirus and are taking thenecessary precautions. She addedthat her staff and rest of the mem-bers in the family, including her havetested negative.

Taking to Twitter, Tamannaahwrote, “My parents were showingmild COVID 19 symptoms over theweekend and as a precautionarymeasure everyone at home under-went test immediately. The resultshave come in, unfortunately my par-ents have tested positive. The neces-sary authorities have been updatedof their situation and we are comply-ing with the precautionary guide-lines. The rest of the family mem-bers, including myself and the staff

have tested negative. By theGrace of God they are coping welland all your prayers and blessingswill put them on the road torecovery (sic).”

Immediately after thispost, her well-wishers andfriends from the film indus-try wished her family aspeedy recovery. “Prayingfor their quick recovery...Take care dear Tam,” wroteSamantha Akkineni. KajalAggarwal wrote in the com-ments, “Keeping aunty and unclein my prayers and hoping fortheir speedy recovery. Please takecare Tammy, calling you.”

On the work front, Tamannaahhas recently signed GurthundaSeethakalam, a remake ofKannada super hit Lock Mocktail.She is also the leading lady ofSeetimaarr, starring Gopichand.

11

A

Hyderabad Thursday August 27 2020tollywood

fter his maidenfilm BhamBholenath(2015), KarthikDandu, a self-taught film-

maker, felt the need togain more “practical expe-rience”. He was eyeingSukumar’s mentorship tohone his skills. He wrote ascript and somehow man-aged to pitch it to thewriting team of the Aryadirector. “They endorsedit and I later got a chanceto narrate it to Sukumarsir who was in the midstof filming Rangasthalamback then. He liked it andsuggested some changesin the screenplay, which Iagreed to attend to. At thesame time, he asked me ifI could wait for one year,to which I agreed. He saidhe will be involved withthe screenplay and thatthe project will moveahead only if he washappy with the overallscript. I had no issues atall. I went to him for adifferent reason and herewas sir who said he wouldnot just produce the filmbut chip in as a screenplaywriter. What more could Ihave asked for?” Karthiktells The Pioneer exclu-sively.

Admittedly, the stintwith Sukumar helped himto become a better writer.“When I’ve met with achange he proposed, heasked me to come withthree-four other alterna-

tives further. For one subplot, he made me writeeight versions, post whichhe told me to pick thebest scene from each ver-sion, arrange it and laterconnect the dots. It was anew style of writing forme but it was an enrich-ing experience. He tookthe best out of me. Also, Ienvisioned a Hollywood-kind approach to the plotbut he emphasised on theneed for drama to con-nect with our audiences.So, I’ve also learnt how toadopt dramatic valuesinto the story,” he pointsout, adding, “Sir wouldtell me, ‘You have a goodstory and you know howto make a film. What youneed is a good technicalcomposition and beforethat a water-tight script’.”

Karthik informs that itwas a collective decisionto approach Sai Tej tospearhead the project,which is set in a forestbackdrop, requiring theart department to build afictional village fromscratch. “I’ve narratedhim the story lastSeptember and it was aninstant yes from him. I’mexcited to team up withhim and the fact that hehas immense faith in thescript means that myresponsibility is greaterthan before,” the directordeclares.

This would be the firsttime that Sai, who untilnow was mostly seen in

commercial potboilers,will be fronting a mysticthriller. Stating that thefilm is based on thesuperstitious beliefs of thelate 70s, he promises topresent Sai in a completenew light. "Because of thegenre, his look wouldobviously change. Acting-wise though, I want topresent my lead charactertraits in his body lan-guage. I'm doing myhomework by observinghim closely on the sets ofSolo Brathuke So Better.Like how my guruSukumar presented RamCharan in Rangasthalam,I want to do the samewith Tej garu as well. I

took it as a challenge,” heshares.

He believes the film willgo in front of the camerasmostly by March nextyear. “It needs four-fivemonths of pre-productionand it has scope for com-puter graphics as well. I’mdoing pre-visualisationnow and by the time SaiTej garu wraps up DevaKatta’s film, I will be readyto proceed with the shoot. ProducerBapineedu garu too hasbeen of great support tillnow. He believes the storycan click big time with theaudiences and is fullybacking my vision,”Karthik ends.

FILM WITH SAI TEJis based on superstitious beliefsof the yore: Director Karthik

The filmmaker speaks to NAGARAJ GOUD about hisnext with Sai Dharam Tej, changes he made in thescreenplay, Sukumar's guidance and more...

A

ith films onhim on the risein the recentpast, it lookslike RamGopal Varma

has decided he is thebest person to tell hisown story on celluloid.Yes, you read it right.The director will besupervising a film,Ramu, based on his life.It will be made in threeparts, with each partrunning into twohours. Each part willtrace the various timeperiods and phases ofthe enfant terribledirector’s life.

Titled Ramu — The beginning of RamGopal Varma, the firstpart will narrate abouthis college days, hisfirst loves and hisinvolvement in thegang fights ofVijayawada, with a new

actor enacting thedirector. It will alsoshed light on the tacticshe employed to land hismaiden film, Shiva.

Part two, titled RamGopal Varma, willhighlight his life inMumbai with cops,girls, gangsters andAmitabh Bachchan. Adifferent actor to thatof the first part will beplaying this role.

Part three, RGV —The Intelligent Idiot,will lay focus on hisfailures, controversies,radical thoughts onGod, sex, society andalso his influence onvarious people.Interestingly, Varmahimself will be playingthis role.

Produced byBommaku Murali, thefilm will mark thedirectorial debut ofDorasai Teja.

W

RGV to supervisea biopic on him

V trailer is asneak peek intothe edge-of-the-seat thrillthat the moviepromises: Nani

ctor Nani sayshis upcomingfilm, V, is spe-cial becausethis will be his25th release.

“For any artist, it isan out-of-the-worldfeeling to see fansshower you with loveand appreciation. Themovie is special to me— since it marks my25th film. To havefound such an interest-ing way to honour allmy fans through thisunique reveal has beentruly exciting,” Nanisaid.

The trailer of thefilm was launched onWednesday. The filmdelves into the life of apolice officer (playedby Sudheer Babu) whofalls in love with acrime writer (NivethaThomas). His life takes

a turn when a killer(Nani) puts across achallenge to him witha puzzle to solve. Itthen leads to a good-versus-evil showdown.

“The trailer is asneak peek into theaction-packed, edge-of-the-seat thrill thatthe movie promises,”said Nani.

Written and directedby Mohana KrishnaIndraganti, the filmalso stars SudheerBabu, Nivetha Thomasand Aditi Rao Hydari.

For the trailerlaunch, Amazon PrimeVideo created a spe-cially-dedicated web-site, which featured aphoto mosaic movieposter that includedthe pictures of 6,45,543 fans acrossthe globe arranged tocreate the V symbol.

A

Prakash RajJOINS KGF:

CHAPTER 2

Coronavirus scare inTamannaah's family

fter Raveen Tandon, Rao Ramesh andSanjay Dutt, the world of KGF:Chapter 2, headlined by Yash, hasnow been bolstered further by theaddition of south heavyweightPrakash Raj. The actor, in fact, began

filming too on Wednesday in Bengaluru, where anew schedule has commenced. “Welcome onboard @prakashraaj sir. We resume shoot finallyfor #KGFCHAPTER2 Thank you everyone forall the love and excitement towards the movie.Wish us all the luck (sic),” posted film’s director

Prashanth Neel on Twitter.Dressed in a suit with a salt and pepper

hairdo, Prakash Raj tweeted that he was‘back to work’ and even shared a couple of

photographs from the set.The fresh schedule will witness the

filming coming to an end except forthe climax.

While the first part, whichreleased in 2018 December, con-

centrated on the rags to richesjourney of Rocky (Yash) andhis quest for power in theunderbelly of the Kolar GoldFields, the second installment,it is said, will focus on his

downfall. With the first part set-ting the box-office coffers ringing, the

expectations on the second part areexpectedly sky-high.

A

PTIn KARACHI

Pakistan’s head coach-cum-chiefselector Misbah-ul-Haq has called

on the England team to soon pay areturn visit to his country and assuredthat there will no compromise on secu-rity of players.

“Looking into the future, we wouldreally appreciate England visitingPakistan soon,” Misbah said in columnfor the Pakistan Cricket Board.

“A number of England players haveappeared in the Pakistan Super League2020, which was played at home. Then,we had Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and MCCin the 2019-20 season and before that,

the World XI and the West Indies in2017-18.”

International sides have avoidedtouring Pakistan for more than a decadesince the 2009 terrorist attack on the SriLankan team bus.

But Misbah vouched for the secu-rity situation in Pakistan.

“Players from all over the world nowknow about the levels of securityPakistan can provide and how much

they will be welcomed.“Pakistan cricket fans want to see

top players in the world performingright in front of them so everybody iswaiting for that visit,” he said.

“This is one way that everyone cansupport each other in difficult times.The whole cricket community needs tosupport each other — that’s the only wayto promote the game and bring joy tofans and cricket lovers.”

12HYDERABAD | THURSDAY | AUGUST 27, 2020

HARSHIT BISHT n NEW DELHI

New Zealand all-rounder Scott Kuggeleijn whorepresented Chennai Super Kings in 2019 edi-

tion of Indian Premier League hails now retiredformer Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni asone of the best players in the world.

Speaking to The Pioneer, the 28-year old right-arm fast-medium bowler who is currently repre-senting St Lucia Zouks in the Caribbean PremierLeague said, “One big thing you can take from MSis, he stays calm all the time. He’s always think-ing ahead it seems like and not thinking backabout what’s gone wrong or dwelling in the past.”

“He’s always having a solid and positive mind-set and unbelievable ability to pick his moments.And then I guess picking your moments well andgood, where you got to pull it off and he has donethat more often than not and that is why he is thebest in the world,” he said of the CSK captain.

Kuggeleijn came as a replacement for SouthAfrican pacer Lungi Ngidi and played two gamesfor Chennai before losing his place in the side.

Describing his experience of being part ofCSK, he said, “I got roped in as a replacement play-er for Chennai and playing for them was an awe-some experience. The team atmosphere was verycalm and the side works on good simple plans. Itwas good to watch just how some of the top-levelguys who are best in the world go about their busi-ness,” he said.

Speaking about theupcoming plans, Scott saidsecuring a place for theupcoming T20 World Cup inIndia next year is there in hismind, but he is not thinkingabout far too ahead and ismore focused on doingthe basics.

“Definitely, T20World Cup is backin the lot of people’smind. So I guess, Itoo think about ita little bit. But rightnow, I’m morefocused on justdoing the basics. Inthe last six monthsdoing things day byday and seeingwhere it takes me.The main focus is totry not to look farahead and do well atpresent,” he con-cluded.

PTI n SOUTHAMPTON

James Anderson is far frombeing done after becoming the

first pacer to amass 600 Testwickets and he sees no reasonwhy he can’t enter the 700-clubalongside Shane Warne andMuttiah Muralitharan eventhough he has hit 38.

Anderson is the fourth-highest wicket-taker in Testsand reached the 600-wicketmilestone by dismissingPakistan captain Azhar Ali inthe third Test at Ageas Bowl onTuesday. Indian spin great AnilKumble has 619 wickets tohis name behindMuralitharan (800) andWarne (708).

Speaking after thedrawn game, the 38-year-old made his intentions clear.

“I’ve chatted to Joe aboutthis a little bit and he has saidhe would like me to be inAustralia (for the Ashes nextyear). I don’t see any reason whyI can’t be. I’m working hard onmy fitness all the time. I’mworking hard on my game,” hewas quoted as saying byESPNcricinfo.

“I didn’t bowl as well as I’dhave liked for the whole sum-mer. But in this Test I was real-ly on it and I feel like I’ve stillgot stuff to offer this team. As

long as I still feel like that I thinkI’ll keep going. I don’t think I’vewon my last Test matches as anEngland cricketer yet. Can Ireach 700? Why not?”

Anderson claimed his 29thfive-wicket haul in the third Testand only the great RichardHadlee has more among seambowlers. He said his hunger toperform has not not diminished

and that is whatkeeps himgoing.

“We’re stillin the Test cham-

pionship. There are still seriesahead of us and Test matches towin. That’s all I’m really inter-ested in. I still love turning upevery day at training, putting inthe hard yards and being in thedressing room with the lads try-ing to forge a win for England.

“That’s all I’ve really everbothered about and what I’llkeep trying to do. I’ll keepworking hard in the gym andkeeping myself available forselection.

“There will be decisionsalong the way with the selectorsand coach and captain aroundhow the team moves forwardbut as long as they want mearound I’ll keep working hardand try to prove I’m goodenough to play in this team,” hesaid.

Talking about his 600 wick-ets, Anderson added: “I haveworked really hard with my

skills over the years and I amfortunate enough that I get

to do it at the top level play-ing for my country.

“Looking back to thatfirst Test (in 2003), I neverthought I would get any-where near 600 Testwickets. I just feel veryfortunate and privilegedthat I have been able todo that for a long period

of time.”

PTI n NEW DELHI

Chasing their maiden IPLtitle, Royal Challengers

Bangalore have all bases cov-ered heading into the league,including its achilles heel,the death bowling, reckon

members of its brand newcoaching staff, Mike Hessonand Simon Katich.

Tuning in from the con-fines of their hotel room inDubai, where they are near-ing the end of a six-day quar-antine, RCB director of crick-et Hesson and head coachKatich spoke about theirvision and plans for the sidewhich has made three IPL

finals but has been unable to

cross the final hurdle.RCB, led by their captain

Virat Kohli, has always been ateam full of stars but has notplayed to its potential. Afterreaching the final in 2016, it hashad three forgettable seasons.

As senior player YuzvendraChahal pointed out in a recentinterview, RCB lost 30 percent oftheir games due to their deathbowling over the past three sea-sons.

However, Hesson believes thatissue has been addressed withsignings of Chris Morris, IsuruUdana, Kane Richardson andDale Steyn, who was bought backat the auction after being released.

“We were very clear about ourdeath bowling and wanted to

make sure we got it covered. Wewent into the auction wanting tofix that,” said Hesson at the virtu-

al media interaction.“We have got Udana, Morris,

Richardson, Steyn. Navdeep Saini

has done the job nicely and ourspinners too will play a big part.We got Chahal who is exception-al bowler and a nice mix of spin-ners (Shahbaz Nadeem, PawanNegi, Moeen Ali).

“We think we are not somuch reliant on our batting andhave a balanced unit.”

In the batting department,their biggest buy in the Decemberauction was Australia’s limitedovers skipper Aaron Finch.

Katich said Finch’s presencewill benefit Kohli, who also hasgreats like AB de Villiers and Steynto turn to for help.

“We were looking for guys atthe top of their game in interna-tional cricket. Finch was high onthat list. As a player and captain,

he has done well for Australia. Heis a good player of spin andbrings leadership in the group.”

Hesson was asked about Steynand De Villiers, who have notplayed a lot over the past 12months.

“RCB got legends in Dale andABD. Both players took part in anexhibition match in South Africarecently, de Villiers was the standout player. It shows his quality.

“Steyn is another one. Whenwe saw him return (from injury)six months ago, he was in excep-tional form. He is developing hisT20 game and working on differ-ent deliveries. He is not ready toretire yet and keen to make a con-tribution,” said the former NewZealand coach.

PTI n NEW DELHI

Rani Rampal never expect-ed the Khel Ratna to be

bestowed on a woman hock-ey player and that’s one rea-son why she could not holdback tears on being namedfor it this year, calling thecountry’s highest sportinghonour a testament to herhard work and sacrifices.

The 25-year-old Ranisaid she couldn’t stop herselffrom crying when she firstgot to know of being oneamong the chosen five, leav-ing her parents quite worriedbecause they, apparently, hadno idea about the magnitudeof the award and why itmade their daughter so emo-tional.

“Honestly, being awoman hockey player I wasnot expecting that I will beawarded the Khel Ratna.When I found out about the

announcement, I wasextremely emotional andcould not hold back mytears,” she said.

“I called my father first togive him the goodnews...Since I was crying onthe call, he was worried ifeverything was OK with me.My parents didn’t really knowhow significant it was toreceive this honour and whenI explained it to them, myfather particularly was veryhappy and got emotional,”she said.

Rani is a spectacularrags-to-riches story in Indiansport. The daughter of a cart-puller from that cradle ofIndian hockey, Shahbad(Haryana), she rose to promi-nence as a 15-year-old whenshe became the youngestplayer to make the nationalteam.

Her next target is theOlympic medal that has elud-

ed Indian hockey for decadesnow.

“While I do feel thisaward comes as a recognitionof my hard work, sacrificesand commitment to the sportover the years, winning theOlympic medal will remainthe ultimate goal. We willwork hard as a team toachieve this goal in Tokyonext year,” Rani said.

Rani said the Khel Ratnarecognition will motivate herand her teammates to achievegreater laurels for the coun-try in future.

“It (the Khel Ratna) isextremely encouraging and abig boost to do well at theOlympic Games. Over thepast years, I am very happythat the Indian women’s teamis getting their due recogni-tion and this has only moti-vated us to do better and bet-ter at the international level,”she said.

Barca still hoping Messi will stayAPn BARCELONA

Barcelona hasn’t given up onLionel Messi just yet.

A day after the Argentinegreat told the club he wants toleave, Barcelona said its restruc-turing project still revolvesaround the player.

“We want to rebuild for thefuture together with the bestplayer in history,” Ramon Planes,the club’s technical director, saidon Wednesday. “We are notcontemplating any departure ona contractual level because wewant him to stay. We have toshow a huge respect for Messibecause he is the best player inthe world.”

Planes spoke as Barcelonaofficially introduced strikerFrancisco Trincão at an event thathad already been scheduledbefore Messi announced hisdesire to leave on Tuesday.

“We can’t make this a disputebetween Leo Messi andBarcelona because neitherdeserves it,” Planes said.

Barcelona is trying to avoidan abrupt ending to Messi’scareer at the club. His last matchwith a Barcelona jersey was theembarrassing 8-2 loss to BayernMunich in the quarterfinals ofthe Champions League, one ofthe worst defeats in the player’scareer and in the club’s history.

But Messi apparently hasalready made up his mind, andit seems only a matter of how

ugly the termination will get andif Barcelona will get any moneyout of it.

Manchester City, Paris Saint-Germain and Inter Milan areamong those to have been linkedto Messi, who is among the great-est players in history and haswages to match, with a reportedweekly salary of nearly a millioneuros.

ESPN reported that Messispoke last week with ManchesterCity manager Pep Guardiolaabout a possible move. ABarcelona-based Brazilian jour-nalist also said Messi wants toplay under his former Barcelona

coach. Dozens of fans protestedin front of the Camp Nou lateTuesday calling for the resigna-tion of team president JosepBartomeu. More protests by fanswere scheduled for Wednesday.

“The situation has beenuncomfortable for everybody,”Barcelona fan Oriol Aznar said.“This board of directors shouldhave resigned a long time ago.Bad results, bad management.Nothing positive about them.They are destroying the club. It’snormal that Messi wants toleave. They want to end the yearwith a decent financial balanceif they make money out of Messi

leaving. But this isn’t the rightway.”

Messi’s first contract with theclub was signed on a napkin aftera lunch between his representa-tives and club officials nearly 20years ago, but it was with a buro-fax — a certified communicationmethod commonly used inSpain, similar to a Telegram —that Messi told the club he wantsto leave. There was no phone callor meeting with club officials. Justthe burofax.

In it, Messi invoked a clausein his contract that allowed himto leave for free after the end ofthe season.

Can Anderson reach the 700-mark? He says why not?

Dhoni has unbelievable ability to pick his moments: Kuggeleijn

Misbah hopes Eng would soon tour PakistanNever thought of quitting as captain: AzharSOUTHAMPTON: Pakistan skipperAzhar Ali says he did feel pressurewhen he was struggling to score runsin the lost series against England butthe thought of quitting captaincynever crossed his mind.

Azhar faced criticism for his rundrought before scoring a hundred inthe first innings of the third Test.

“No, I remained focussed on thisseries. This consideration neverentered my mind. Yes there was pres-sure but I was focussed on my perfor-mances,” he told reporters when askedif he wanted to quit as captain duringthe series.

“After we lost the first Test, as cap-tain I had to bear the pressure and crit-icism. But I vowed to turn it aroundwith my performances and theamount of experience we had in ourteam management also helped us getover the first Test defeat and move on.”

England won their first Test seriesagainst Pakistan since 2010.

“We are disappointed at not beingable to win the series. We came hereto not only draw the series but to winit. We got our opportunity but missedit. Credit also goes to England; theytook advantage of opportunities,” hesaid. PTI

Couldn’t hold back tears, says

Rani after getting Khel Ratna

‘RCB have all bases covered including death bowling’

Ayoung woman who was declared dead at her suburban Detroithome opened her eyes at a funeral home as she was about to

be embalmed, a lawyer said. "They would have begun drainingher blood to be very, very frank about it," Geoffrey Fieger toldWXYZ-TV. The Southfield fire department acknowledged it wasinvolved in a bizarre set of events Sunday that began when amedical crew was summoned to a home where a 20-year-oldwoman was unresponsive. Paramedics tried to revive the womanfor 30 minutes and consulted an emergency room doctor, thedepartmentsaid. Thedoctor"pronouncedthe patientdeceasedbased uponmedicalinformationprovided"from the scene, the department said. The Oakland Countymedical examiner's office said the body could be released to thefamily without an autopsy, according to the fire department. Butthen came a startling discovery at the James H. Cole funeralhome in Detroit: The woman was still alive more than an hourlater. "Our staff confirmed she was breathing" and called aemergency medical crew, the funeral home said. Fieger, who washired by the family, identified the woman as Timesha Beauchamp.

3-yr-old saves friend fromdrowning, gets award

Woman declared deadopens eyes at funeral

Man solves Rubik’s cubesunderwater, sets record

An Indian solved six Rubik's cubes underwater in one go to seta Guinness World Record, and a video shows how he did it in

a little over two minutes while holding his breath. Chennai-based25-year-old Illayaram Sekar attempted to break the record of'Most Rubik's cubes solved underwater' earlier this month and ithas now been officially recognised as a world record. But thevideo shows how he not just solved the six cubes one after theother but managed to do it while holding his breath for 2 minutesand 17 seconds. According to Guinness World Records, Sekarbegan solvingRubik's cubes in2013 andpracticed for twoyears to breakthis record. Forthe officialattempt aparticipant mustremain fullysubmerged in water throughout, and in the video, Sekar is seencalmly sitting inside a glass box filled with water wearingswimming glasses. Sekar has said that he built his capacity tostay underwater for longer by doing yoga, and credited pranayamfor being able to hold his breath for so long. The Chennai residentsaid the record was an attempt to inspire his students. "Pandemicwill come and go but our mind and spirit should reach a higherlevel to face anything in life," Sekar said.

Aheroic 3-year-old boy in Brazil saved his best friend fromdrowning in a pool. The close call happened at a farm home

in Itaperuna, a city north of Rio de Janeiro when the childrenwere alone at the pool. Arthur de Oliveira was hailed a heroafter his mother shared a video of him saving his friendHenrique after he fell into the pool. The son of a caretaker atthe property, 3-year-old Henrique, reportedly sneaked out ofhis home without his mother noticing and made his way to thepool. The toddler was seen on home surveillance video,reaching for aninflatable swimring when heunexpectedly fellinto the pool.Realizing no isaround, Arthurreaches out tograb Henrique'shand and finallypulls his friendout of the pool."This video servesas an alert forthose who have apool at home and children," wrote Arthur's mom, PolianaConsole de Oliveira on her Facebook page. The surveillancevideo went viral and grabbed the attention of local Police.

Songbirds stop breedingto survive drought

NEW

S

MostRead S

ongbirds in tropical rainforests curtail their reproduction to helpthem survive droughts, according to a study Monday. Species

with longer lifespans were better able to cope with thisenvironmental volatility than previously thought, researchersfound. With more record hot spells gripping parts of the planetand biodiversity threatened by human encroachment on habitats, acrucial question is whether species can adapt to these ever-harsher conditions. Droughts-expected to become more commonbecause of climate change-confront birds with a trade-off betweenreproduction andtheir own survival,researchers said,because producingeggs and feedingchicks requiresadditional energyeven as foodbecomes scarcer.But the study,published in thejournal NatureClimate Change,found that insteadof trying to juggle the demands of new offspring and harshenvironmental conditions, most of the songbird species studied optedto reduce their reproduction during drought. The research used dataon 38 species in Venezuela and Malaysia from 17 years of fieldwork.

‘Pep could build Man City around Messi’Barcelona: Pep Guardiolacould rebuild his ManchesterCity team around Lionel Messiif the Argentine gets his wishand leaves Barcelona, accord-ing to former Nou Camp greatRivaldo.

“It will be a sad ending forMessi’s story with Barcelona ifthe things remain this way, butthis is football and sometimesthings don’t run according toour expectations.

“Manchester City could beMessi’s best option as his nextclub. He’s 33 but his quality andtalent are both unquestionableand I think he still has a fewmore years at the top.”

Rivaldo believesGuardiola, who enjoyed tro-phy-laden years as Barcelonamanager with Messi in his

pomp, would love to have theopportunity to work with himagain.

“He has deep knowledgeof Messi’s abilities and wouldfind a solution to quicklyincorporate him into the teamand get the best from him,”Brazilian Rivaldo, who was atBarcelona from 1997-2002,said. “I even imagineGuardiola building the rest ofhis team around Messi.

“His talent can make thedifference at any place and atany time, and I’m sure hecould produce match-win-ning performances in thePremier League.” AP