RNI No. TELENG/2018/76469

Established 1864Published From

HYDERABAD DELHI LUCKNOWBHOPAL RAIPUR CHANDIGARH

BHUBANESWAR RANCHIDEHRADUN VIJAYAWADA

*LATE CITY VOL. 4 ISSUE 251

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ANALYSIS 7WTO MC-12: DEFT HAN-

DLING BY INDIA

MONEY 8SEBI FORMS ADVISORY

COMMITTEE ON HYBRID SECURITIES

SPORTS 12KARTHIK OPENS UP LOT OF OPTIONSGOING INTO T20 WORLD CUP: DRAVID

HYDERABAD, TUESDAY, JUNE 21, 2022; PAGES 12 `3

I FOCUSED ON MY ACT-

ING AND THEN EVERY-

THING WAS SORTED:

ROHAN

ALMANAC

Updated: JUNE 20, 2022 5:00 PM

Forecast: Mostly cloudy

Temp: 33oc

Humidity: 42%

Sunrise: 5:46 AM

Sunset: 6:48 PM

Month & Paksham:

Tithi: Ashtami: Jun 20 09:01 PMto Jun 21 08:31 PM

Navami: Jun 21 08:31 PMto Jun 22 08:45 PM

Nakshatram: Uttara Bhadrapada: Jun 21 04:35 AM

to Jun 22 05:03 AMRevati: Jun 22 05:03 AM

to Jun 23 06:14 AM

Rahukalam: 3:33 PM to 5:11 AM

Yamagandam: 9:02 AM to 10:40 AM

Varjyam: 05:39 PM to 07:19 PM

Gulika: 12:17 PM to 1:55 PM

TTOODDAAYY

HYDERABAD WEATHER

Govt paid Rs 80,002 cr aspensions to retired babus

PNS n HYDERABAD

The Telangana government spentRs 80,002 crore to pay pensions toits retired employees in the lastseven years. The average pensionpaid to a retired state governmentemployee in Telangana is Rs 33,539per month.

The lowest pension paid is Rs9,500, while the highest paid to apensioner is Rs 1,03,834. In FY2021-22, about Rs 13,966 crore waspaid as pensions to governmentemployees. There are 2,63,204retired state government employ-ees as of May 2022 after the dele-tion of dead retired employees pen-sions and transfer of PPOs toother states. Since 2014, around59,046 employees have retired. Asper an RTI query filed by RajeshAllati, in 2015-16, Rs 9,463 crorewas paid as pensions, in 2016-17it was Rs 10,245 crore, in 2017-18it went up to Rs 11,424, in 2018-

19 it was Rs 11,557 crore, in 2019-20 it was Rs 11,891 crore, and in2020-21 around Rs 11,453 crorewas paid. Rajesh said that waysshould be found to reduce theexpenditure on pensions. It may berecalled that 36,05,341 beneficiar-ies are receiving Aasara pensions.

As per official statistics of theSociety for Elimination of RuralPoverty (SERP) about 3,78,117applications have been receivedand are pending for Aasara pen-sions.

PNS n HYDERABAD

The Agnipath scheme introduced bythe Centre could be a diversion tac-tic of the BJP Government, TelanganaMinister KT Rama Rao said onMonday. In a tweet KTR said, “Wasthe Agnipath Scheme announced asa ruse to divert India’s attentionfrom Sri Lanka’s allegations about the

Modi–Adani nexus? Just asking.” Heridiculed the statements being madeby BJP leaders to defend the scheme.

In another tweet, KTR said, “ACabinet Minister of the NDA govern-ment says the Agnipath Scheme canresult in youth getting employmentas drivers, electricians, barbers andwashermen. Another BJP leader sayshe will employ Agniveers as securi-

ty guards. And you blame the youththat they don’t understand youModiji?” Meanwhile, KTR re-tweet-ed tweets by TRS members on SriLanka. Krishank Manne tweeted, “Aminister of Sri Lanka says theGovernment of India recommendedAdani for the project. Modiji youmust answer!”

A tweet by a handle named

Ground Zero which KTR re-tweet-ed said, “CEB Chairman Ferdinandotalks about wrongful project alloca-tion to Adani due to Modi’s pressure.Documented letter explains the same.Sri Lankan MP talks about it inParliament. Sri Lankan Minister ofEnergy confirms the same. Yet, Modiis silent? Nation wants to know thetruth! (sic).”

PNS n NEW DELHI

Demand for co-working officespace jumped over two-fold in thelast fiscal year at 90,200 desksacross seven major cities as flexibleworkspaces rose in prominenceafter the second wave of theCOVID pandemic, according to ajoint report by JLL India andQdesq.

Over 37,300 seats were leased outin the 2020-21 financial year acrossthe seven cities.

The total demand for flexibleseats stood at 2,432 in Kolkata,8,284 in Hyderabad, 11,312 inChennai, 12,500 in Mumbai, 14,900desks in Delhi-NCR, 15,659 desksin Pune and 25,130 in Bengaluru.

In its report 'India's office mar-ket Recalibrating with flex', real

estate consultant JLL India and co-working marketplace Qdesq attrib-uted the growth in demand of co-working space to many factors,including flexibility for corporatesand other occupiers to expand orcontract on-demand.

Shorter lease tenures, fully serv-iced, amenity-rich offices are fewother factors.

Out of the total flexible seatsleased out in 2021-22, 62 per centaccounted for managed office space.In the preceding year, the share was

52 per cent."An increasing number of enter-

prises are expanding their usage offlex space in tandem with transfor-mational changes with respect toremote work, mobility and flexibil-ity," the report said.

More than half of the total flexseats leased in FY 2021-22 were inthe form of significant-sized trans-actions of 300 or more seats.Bengaluru, Pune and Delhi-NCRtogether accounted for more than60 per cent of the total seats leasedout in this period.

On pricing part, the report men-tioned that the average price for adedicated seat ranges from Rs6,300 to Rs 14,300 per month.

However, the pricing for premi-um flex centres in prime businessdistricts and marquee office proj-

ects in cities such as Mumbai andDelhi go up to Rs 50,000 per seatper month and Rs 25,000-45,000per seat per month, respectively.

The price in Tier 2 cities is in therange of Rs 4,000-6,800 per seat permonth, which is similar to the flexseat costs in peripheral locations insome metro cities.

Giving details about the total sizeof the co-working segment, thereport also highlighted that thecountry has nearly 3,000 co-work-ing facilities across Tier 1 and 2cities. There are now over 2,300 flexcentres operational across the topseven cities, including smaller,unorganised players and mom-and-pop co-working facilities andfitted-out spaces being offered asflex options.

Bengaluru leads in terms of such

centres, followed by Mumbai, Delhiand Pune.

Of the total operational flex cen-tres in Tier 1 cities, 49 per cent areaccounted for by mid to large-sizedoperators with at least three oper-ational centres and a current cumu-lative footprint of 10,000 sq ft ormore.

In fact, just the top 10 operators(based on total number of opera-tional seats in Tier 1 cities), interms of their space footprint,cumulatively have over 380 oper-ational centres across the Tier 1cities.

There are around 650 co-work-ing centres in Tier-II cities such asKanpur, Goa, Raipur, Bhopal,Visakhapatnam, Kochi,Chandigarh, Patna, Lucknow,Jaipur, Indore and Ahmedabad.

Agnipath could be diversion tactic: KTR

Demand for flexible workspace jumps over two-fold

Army issues notification forAgnipath scheme

PNS n NEW DELHI/PATNA

Road and rail traffic was partiallyaffected in some regions onMonday during a 'Bharat bandh'called against the Agnipath militaryrecruitment scheme, while protestsappeared to taper off in manystates, with authorities stepping upsecurity and imposing curbs afterdays of unrest. The Army issued anotification for compulsory online reg-istration of all Agnipath job aspirantsfrom July, as the Centre appeared firmon implementing the scheme despitethe Congress and other opposition par-ties upping the ante against the Modigovernment and the BJP.

AMID PROTESTS

PNS n HYDERABAD

With only one more week left forthis quarter to end, Telangana hasonly one chance to go for openmarket borrowings.

For the first time in this quarter,the RBI had allowed the TelanganaGovernment to participate in theauction for open market borrow-ings scheduled on June 7 and thestate raised Rs 4,000 crore.

As per the loan calendar,Telangana didn’t get permission toraise loans during the auction heldon June 14. The final auction is onJune 28 where as per the loan cal-endar Telangana should raise Rs1,000 crore. Even if the RBI givesthe nod, the state could reach only30 per cent of the targeted Rs15,000 crore for this quarter. So far26.7 per cent of the target has beenraised. Sources indicated that thechances of getting a nod are bleak

due to the recent RBI reports onsubsidy and the note cautioningbanks about lending to state gov-ernment entities. It may be men-tioned here that the RBI has askedStates including Telangana to repri-oritise their expenditure on subsi-dies being given for achieving

long-term gains by ensuring thatbeneficiaries get empowered per-manently and foregoes benefits.

“For example, Jharkhand, Kerala,Odisha, Telangana and UttarPradesh are the top five States withthe largest rise in subsidies over thelast three years,” the report said.

Earlier this week, the RBI cautionedbanks on lending to government-owned entities. This will weakenthe Telangana government’s off-budget borrowings. Last week ithad said that it found banks flout-ing norms regarding loans for gov-ernment-owned entities and soughtstrict adherence to regulatoryguidelines.

m In the entire quarter, only once Telangana got approval to raise money

OPEN MARKET BORROWINGS AND THE LAST QUARTER

Only one chance left for TSThe final auction is onJune28 where as perloan calendarTelangana shouldraise Rs1000crore.Even if RBI gives anod, the state couldonly reach 30% of thetarget Rs15000crorefor this quarter.

Agriculture, allied sectors seesignificant growth in TelanganaPNS n HYDERABAD

Fisheries, dairy and other sectorsallied to agriculture have achievedsignificant progress in Telanganasince its formation in 2014, theState government said onMonday.

Chief Minister K Chandra

sekhar Rao, who often stresses onthe importance of agriculture, hadallocated thousands of crores ofrupees in the budget during thelast eight years for the develop-ment of livestock, an officialrelease said.

Average monthly pension is Rs33,539

Prez poll: Non-BJP parties mulling YashwantSinha as possible joint opposition candidatePNS n KOLKATA

Non-BJP parties are mulling put-ting up former union ministerYashwant Sinha as a possible jointcandidate for the upcoming presi-dential election, a senior TrinamoolCongress leader said on Monday.

The name of the former BJPleader who joined the TMC lastyear has been proposed as a pres-idential poll candidate by a fewopposition parties and three to fourhave seconded it, he said.

West Bengal Chief Minister andTMC supremo Mamata Banerjeehas received phone calls suggestingthe 85-year-old veteran leader'sname and she too is now pitchingfor Sinha as the joint oppositionnominee, he said.

Earlier, the names of NCP chiefSharad Pawar, National Conferenceleader Farooq Abdullah and formerWest Bengal governor Gopal

Krishna Gandhi were proposed butall of them declined to stand for thetop job.

The NDA which has over 48 percent of the vote share in the elec-toral college which votes in aPresident, is likely to also be ableto garner support from some small-er parties including the BJD andmay finally muster over 52 per centvotes.

However, the stature of the oppo-sition candidate can ensure a closefight and give some uneasymoments to the ruling camp.

Analysts said putting up Sinha,a former Minister and close confi-dante of late Prime Minister AtalBehari Vajpayee who still enjoys alot of prestige in political circles,was a strategic move to underlinethe differences in functioning stylesof the BJP government underVajpayee and that under PrimeMinister Narendra Modi.

Sinha, a former IAS who joinedpolitics in 1984 to join the JanataDal, was finance minister in theshort-lived Chandra Shekhar gov-ernment in 1990-91. He later joinedthe BJP to be a Minister for Financeand later Minister for ExternalAffairs in the Vajpayee governmentwhich ruled between 1989-2004.

Yashwant Sinha is a TMC leadernow. So, we don't want any confu-

sion that the proposal has gonefrom us. As of now, three to fourparties have agreed on his name.Now let others decide, the seniorTMC leader said.

Sinha's name will be discussed ata meeting of major oppositionparties convened by NCP chiefSharad Pawar in New Delhi to builda consensus on fielding a joint can-didate against the BJP-led NDA onTuesday.

TMC national general secretaryand MP Abhishek Banerjee willrepresent the party at the meeting.

Mamata Banerjee had calledsuch a meeting of 22 non-BJP par-ties last week in the national capi-tal. Seventeen of them attended it.

Banerjee proposed Pawar,Abdullah and Gandhi as possiblejoint opposition candidate in thepresidential election but all ofthem eventually turned down therequest to stand for election.

PNS n BENGALURU/MYSURU

Prime Minister Narendra Modi onMonday said decisions andreforms may be unpleasant tem-porarily but with time the countrywould experience their benefits.

Modi's comments assume signif-icance in the backdrop of wide-spread protests against 'Agnipath,'the new army recruitment scheme,announced by the Centre. He,however, made no direct referenceto the agitation against 'Agnipath'.

Modi has maintained silenceon the violent protests. OnSunday too, while speaking at anevent, he said, "It is our country'smisfortune that many good thingsbrought with good intentions gettrapped in political colours.Media also gets dragged into itdue to its TRP compulsions."Highlighting the achievement ofthe "double-engine" governmentand the pace of developmentunder it, he today sought the

blessings of the people of the Statefor it, calling it "the biggeststrength".

The term "double-engine" isused by BJP leaders to refer to theparty being in power at theCentre as well as in a State and thePrime Minister's repeated refer-ence to it at the programmes bothin Bengaluru and Mysuru gainssignificance as the State is slatedto go for Assembly polls next year,where the J P Nadda-led partyaims to regain power.

Review wildlifemanagement plan

PNS n MUMBAI

Aviation safety regulator DGCA onMonday asked airport operators inthe country to review their wildlifemanagement plan for any gaps andensure strict implementation of thestrategies on the issue, a day aftertwo aircraft returned to their airportof origin due to a bird hit. In a com-munication to all authorities con-cerned across airports , theDirectorate General of Civil Aviation(DGCA) also directed them toensure frequent runway inspectionfor bird activities and regular dispos-al of garbage in the area, among oth-ers. The communication has beenmarked to the Chairman AirportsAuthority of India (AAI), its mem-ber of operations, directors of allAAI-run airports and the CEOs ofDelhi, Mumbai, Cochin Bangaloreand Hyderabad Airports. "Duringthe monsoon season wildlife activ-ity increases in and around airports,and the presence of the birds andanimals in the aerodrome vicinityposes a serious threat to operationalsafety. All airports are requested toreview their wildlife managementplan for any gap and ensure strictimplementation of strategies forwildlife hazard management withinand also outside airfields," theDGCA said in the letter, a copy ofwhich was seen by PTI.

BJP to organise yoga events at 75,000 places on Yoga DayPNS n NEW DELHI

The BJP will mark the eighthInternational Yoga Day on Tuesdayby organising yoga sessions at75,000 places across the countrywith Prime Minister NarendraModi leading the mega exercise ata yoga event in Mysuru inKarnataka where over 15,000 peo-ple are likely to participate.

Addressing a press conference,BJP spokesperson SudhanshuTrivedi said on Monday that Unionministers and chief ministers of theparty, its elected representatives likeMPs and MLAs besides the organ-isation's office-bearers will attendyoga programmes.

With COVID-19 stalling anymajor public event on the yogaday for the last two years, the

party has decided to hold theexercise in a big way this year, hesaid.

BJP president J P Nadda willattend a yoga session in Noidawhile Home Minister Amit Shahwill be in the national capital.

As the country is celebrating'Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, anongoing exercise to mark the 75thyear of India's Independence,

the party will organise yogaevents at 75,000 places, Trivedisaid.

He asserted that the globalacceptance of yoga since theUnited Nations declared June 21as the International Yoga Day inDecember 2014 following theproposal from the Modi govern-ment, symbolises the rise ofIndia's cultural power.

DGCA asksairport operators

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Justice Ranjana Prakash Desaiassumes charge as PCI chiefPNS n NEW DELHI

Retired Supreme Court judgeRanjana Prakash Desai on Mondayassumed charge as the chairpersonof the Press Council of India(PCI).

She is the first woman chairper-

son of the print media watchdogwith the government appointingher to the post after her name wascleared by a committee compris-ing Vice President M VenkaiahNaidu, Lok Sabha Speaker OmBirla and PCI member PrakashDubey recently.

Reforms temporarily unpleasant,but beneficial over time, says PM

Continued from page 1

A plea has also been filed in theSupreme Court against theAgnipath scheme alleging that thegovernment has contravened con-stitutional provisions and actedwithout having parliamentaryapproval.

The plea, filed by advocateM L Sharma, referred to theprotests as it sought quashingof the relevant notification.

The Railways cancelled 587trains on Monday while 10others were affected,with oper-ations again disrupted byprotests.

The worst-affected zone wasthe East Central Railway,which is headquartered atHajipur, as around 350 trainsremain cancelled.

Authorities said that thebandh call was given on socialmedia and did not name theorganisations behind it.

Massive traffic jams werewitnessed on Delhi roads asrestrictions were in place due

to the bandh and theSatyagraha protest by Congressover the Centre's Agnipathscheme and the questioning ofRahul Gandhi by theEnforcement Directorate.

Rajasthan Chief MinisterAshok Gehlot, party's leader inthe Lok Sabha Adir RanjanChowdhury, senior leadersSachin Pilot, Salman Khurshid,Mallikarjun Kharge and KCVenugopal took part in theprotest at the Jantar Mantar.

Indian Youth Congressworkers stopped a train at theShivaji Bridge railway stationnear Connaught Place. Sixteenprotesters were detained andthe track was cleared by secu-rity personnel after about halfan hour, sources said.

Commuters from Noida andGurugram were left hassled asthey battled traffic snarls whiledriving into the city whereasinside the capital, Lutyens'Delhi, which was the epicentreof protests, remained chock-a-block.

While the strike call chokedtraffic on several arterial roads,no impact was seen in the city'smarkets where it was businessas usual.

In view of the bandh call, theDelhi Police had tightenedsecurity across the nationalcapital and its bordering areasand warned of strict actionagainst those trying to disruptthe law and order situation

Other states like Bihar,Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh,Kerala, Assam and Rajasthanhad also heightened securityand imposed prohibitoryorders in some districts tothwart possible protests andviolence during the strike.

There was a heavy deploy-ment of police at railway sta-tions, including those inAmbala, Rewari and Sonipatin Haryana and Ludhiana,Jalandhar and Amritsar inPunjab to prevent any unto-ward incident, they said.

Protests were reported insome parts of Haryana,

Punjab and Jammu."Bharat Bandh call was

given on social media thoughno group had owned it. Thepolice were on alert sinceMonday morning with elabo-rate arrangements being madewith vast deployment of theforce," Uttar PradeshAdditional Director Generalof Police (law and order)Prashant Kumar said.

As many as 151 companiesof state and central paramili-tary besides the civil policewere deployed, he said addingthat no untoward incidenthas been reported from any-where.

"There has been no impactof the Bharat Bandh call any-where in the state," he said.

More than 5000 securitypersonnel were deployed inJharkhand and schoolsremained shut across the statein view of the bandh call.

There was no report of anyuntoward incident from any-where in the state so far dur-ing the day, Jharkhand Policespokesperson and IG(Operations) Amol V Homkartold PTI.

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hyderabad 02HYDERABAD | TUESDAY | JUNE 21, 2022

EGG RATES

VIJAYAWADA 477

HYDERABAD 484

VISAKHAPATNAM 477

RREETTAAIILL PPRRIICCEE `̀44..8844

`̀//110000

CHICKEN RATES

Dressed/With Skin `225

Without Skin `235

Broiler at Farm `200

`̀//KKGG

(IN VIJAYAWADA)

Increasing the mili-tary prowess of Indiain line with modern

defence needs is centralto the nation's policy. Adebate has been ragingfor long as to whetherthe Indian defence sys-tem is in tune withmodern military needsin the face of the chang-ing international mili-tary atmosphere andclashes occurring withn e i g hb ou r s l i kePakistan and China.

The average age of anIndian soldier is rela-tively high. Efficientand active soldiers inthe ranks of Indian mil-itary are on the wane.Non-combatant defencepersonnel are on therise. The number ofobese soldiers and notbattle-worthy soldiersis increasing. There areat least 8,829 such per-sons in each division, asagainst only 2,307 inPakistan Army and only1,000 in China's Army.

The Indian Army'ssize increased from 2

lakh to 8.5 lakh between1963 and 1967. Duringt h e 1 9 7 1 w ar w i t hPakistan, youth demon-strated their exuberancea n d h an d e d d ow ndefeat to Pakistan. TheIndian Army has moremiddle-aged personst h an t h e yout h .Moreover, the numberof s o l d i e r s re t i r i ngannually has increased,i n c re as i ng f i n an c i a lburden on the Centre topay pension to them.Over 17,000 defencepersonnel are opting forvoluntary retirement.Till 1965, soldiers wereenrolled for seven years.Now, it is increased to17 years. In 1985, it wasproposed that thosewho engaged in combatunits should work forseven years ti l l theyattain the age of 25years and those whohave other technicaland other skil ls canwork up to 55 years.After seven years of ser-vice, the soldiers incombat units should be

deployed in partial skillprofessions like drivers,radio operators and soon. Because of vote-bank politics the pro-posal had been shelved.The main objective ofPM Narendra Modi is toinject young blood intothe army. In China,youth in the age of 18-20 years will be givencompulsor y mi l itar ytraining. They will betrained for 40 days,after which they shouldwork in military for twoyears. In France, youthshould work either forone year or between 3

and 5 years in militaryas per contract. Theywill be given 12-weekmilitary training beforeenrol l ing in defenceforces . In the USA,there are opportunitiesfor the youth to enrollin the active militaryservice for four years. InBritain also, there isoption for the youth towork in defence forcesup to four years. Theyare eligible to get pen-sion if they work for 12years. It is also the samecase with Israel, wheremales should work inmilitary for 32 months

an d fe m a l e s s h ou l dwork 24 months in mil-itary actively. In Russia,there is a compulsorymilitary service for theyouth ranging betweensix months to two yearson contract system.

Agnipath system hasbeen introduced in thecountry after studyingv a r i o u s p o l i c i e s i nvogue in other coun-tries. India, comparedto other nations, hasmore youth. Infact, 40per cent of the coun-try's population is inthe age of 13 and 35

years. About47% of thepeople areaged below2 5 y e a r s .The averageof age of popula-tion of India is25 years too. To exploiti t t o t h e h i l t , t h eGovernment of Indiah a s f or mu l at e dAgnipath. The idea is todeploy youth in the agegroup of 17.5 and 21years in the defenceforces af ter trainingthem for six months.They are entit led toearn Rs 4.76 lakh perannum in the first year.By the time they com-plete four years, theywould have earned Rs6.92 lakh per annumtowards salary. Uponretirement, they will getRs 11.71 lakh packagefrom Seva Nidhi. TheGovernment insures thelives of the each defencepersonnel for Rs 48lakh. In fact, 10 percent of the posts inPSUs and Union Home

M i n i s t r y a rere s e r v e d forAgniveers com-ing out of them i l i t a r y .

Moreover, theyalso get priority in

jobs in the private sec-tor. Agniveers comingout of military at 21y e a r s o f a g e w o u l de nj oy c on s i d e r a b l yhigher financial inde-pendence to prepare forCivil Services and toe s t a b l i s h t h e i r ow nunits. They will get pri-ority in universities andother organizations. Onthe grounds of efficien-cy, only 25 per cent ofthe Agniveers would beenrolled in militar y.The decision is sound.Serving military is ser-vice to nation. Insteadof pr a i s i n g t h eAgnipath scheme, theOpposition is provok-ing youth against it.The Congress, which isfull of aged leaders, isundertaking fast claim-ing to protect the inter-e s t s o f t h e y o ut h .

Te l a n g a n a C h i e fM i n i s t e rKChandrasekhar Rao,who came to powerpromising jobs to OUstudents, played withthe future of the stu-dents. KCR, who can-not step into OU cam-pus, is speaking aboutAgnipath. How ridicu-l o u s ! A P C h i e fMinister JaganmohanReddy, unable to givejobs to youth, is payingRs 5,000 to volunteersper month. When askedto pay full salary, he issaying that it is not aregular job for publicser vice. Ever s inceModi came to power,t h e O p p o s i t i on h a sbeen provoking peopleon one issue or theother to serve its selfishgoals. But people havebeen re jec t ing theirdesigns and encourag-i n g t h e B J P w i t hrenewed zeal. The peo-ple wi l l unders t andMo d i ' s c om m it m e nteven in the matter ofAgnipath.

Y SATYA KUMAR

BJP National Secretary

TRULY

SPEAKING

Till 1965, soldiers were enrolled forseven years. Now, it is increasedto 17 years. In 1985, it wasproposed that those who engagedin combat units should work forseven years till they attain the ageof 25 years and those who haveother technical and other skills canwork up to 55 years.

Modi wants to inject young blood into the army

CM’s wifeundergoesknee surgeryPNS n HYDERABAD

Chief Minister K.Chandrasekhar Rao's wifeShobha is undergoing treat-ment at the YashodaHospital.

Shobha had been sufferingfrom knee pain since a fewdays and was admitted toSomajiguda YashodaHospital on Sunday eveningas the pain became severe.

Doctors suggested surgeryas the pain was severe. Thedoctors of Yashoda Hospitalperformed knee surgery onShobha with the consent ofthe CM's family. Her condi-tion is being monitored bydoctors.

KCR took stock of the sit-uation along with doctorsand returned to PragathiBhavan on Monday.Ministers Srinivas Goud andMLC Palla Rajeshwar Reddywent along with the CM.

PNS n AURANGABAD

All India Majlis-E-IttehadulMuslimeen (AIMIM) onMonday it will attend a meet-ing of major opposition par-ties to deliberate on a consen-sus candidate for the nextmonth's presidential election.

The AIMIM saidNationalist Congress Party(NCP) president Sharad Pawarhas invited the Hyderabad-based outfit for the meetingand the party's Maharashtraunit chief, Imtiaz Jaleel, willattend the gathering.

The next meeting of majoropposition parties to deliber-ate on a consensus candidate

for the presidential poll islikely to be held on Tuesday inNew Delhi. A similar meeting,attended by 17 oppositionparties, was convened lastweek in the national capital.

The AIMIM's officialTwitter account posted thatthe party will attend the latestmeeting of opposition partieson the presidential electionand Jaleel, the Member ofParliament from Aurangabad,will represent it at the meet.

When contacted, Jaleel said,"NCP chief Sharad Pawar hadpersonally called AIMIM pres-ident Asaduddin Owaisi andI will attend the meeting onmy party's behalf.

PNS n NEW DELHI

The Enforcement DirectorateMonday made some startlingrevelations in Supreme Courtagainst master conman SukeshChandrashekhar that heindulged in money launder-ing, extortion, impersonationof public officials includingthat of those holding constitu-tional posts, and opposed hisplea for prison transfer outsideDelhi.

The probe agency sought tointervene in a plea ofChandrashekhar, who islodged in Tihar jail on chargesof money laundering and dup-ing several people, and his wifeseeking their transfer to aprison outside Delhi allegingthreat to their lives from jailstaff.

A vacation bench of JusticesCT Ravi Kumar andSudhanshu Dhulia was told bySolicitor General TusharMehta that ED would like tointervene in the plea as it is theinvestigating agency that isprobing the money launderingcharges against the accused.

Mehta said that the ED hasto say something about theconduct of the petitioners.

The bench agreed to list theplea on Tuesday. In its inter-vention application, the EDsaid Chandrashekhar hasrepeatedly committed offencesincluding that of money laun-dering during his incarcera-tion in the jail by subvertingthe legal system and prisonrules with the help of hisknowledge of technology andhis abilities to con people.

Solve Basara IIIT students' problemsPNS n HYDERABAD

TPCC chief Revanth Reddy hassent a letter to Chief Minister K.Chandrasekhar Rao on Mondayasking him to solve the problemsof Basara IIIT students immedi-ately. He asked the CM to visitBasara IIIT campus immediate-ly.

In his letter, Revanth criti-cised IT Minister KT Ramarao.“KTR will not go to Basara tolearn about the problems of stu-dents. KTR makes the policearrest opposition leaders if theytry to visit Basara IIIT campus.The police are arresting opposi-tion leaders as they have started

from Hyderabad for Basara. TheEducation Minister said theproblems of the students aresilly. Five days have gone by afterKTR tweeted that the govern-ment will solve the problems ofthe students but there is noresult. The government has failedto bring new educational institu-tions to TS in the last eightyears. How can the studentsequip themselves for the jobmarket if they are unable tostudy?” he said.

Revanth said that the protestsof IIIT students have reached theseventh day. The students arecontinuing their protests at themain gate of the IIIT.

The Heads of Departments(HoDs) are now threatening thestudents that they will not begiven food if the protest contin-ues. Forest Minister IndrakaranReddy tried to divert attentionfrom the problem by saying thatdiscussions with the studentshave succeeded and that the stu-dents will attend classes fromMonday.

Revanth said that KCR hastime to discuss for hours mattersconcerning the BRS sitting in ACrooms or discuss with politicalstrategist Prashant Kishor how tosuppress the opposition. But theCM has no time to discuss theproblems of students, he said.

AIMIM to attend Oppnmeeting on Prez election

Army issues notification for.. Agriculture,

allied sectors..Continued from page 1

The livestock wealth wasworth Rs 24,878 crore in2013 and it rose to Rs94,400 crore by 2021-22, itsaid.

In sheep-rearing, thenumber of sheep increasedfrom 1.28 crore in 2012 to1.91 crore in 2019.

Milk production grewfrom 42.07 lakh tonnes in2013-14 to 60.99 lakhtonnes in 2021-22.

Production of meat was4.46 lakh tonne in 2013-14 and it increased to10.15 lakh tonne in 2021-22. Similarly, the expendi-ture on fish productionrose from Rs 2,479 crorein 2013-14 to Rs 5,859crore in 2021-22.

While 1,006 crore eggswere produced in 2013-14, it was 1,725 crore in2021-22, the releaseadded.

Govt paid Rs 80,002..Continued from page 1

Meanwhile, as per datareleased on Monday,across India, subscribers ofthe two flagship pensionschemes administered bythe Pension FundRegulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA)rose by over 24 per centfrom a year ago to 5.32crore as on May 31, 2022.

“The number of sub-scribers under variousschemes of the NationalPension System (NPS)rose to 531.73 lakh byend-May 2022 from428.56 lakh in May 2021showing an increase of24.07 per cent,” thePension Fund Regulatoryand DevelopmentAuthority (PFRDA) saidin a release. The AtalPension Yojana (APY) –the highest contributor tothe subscriber base – reg-istered a growth of 31.6

per cent to 3.72 crores bythe end of May in this fis-cal.

The number of sub-scribers in the NPS forCentral Governmentemployees rose by 5.28per cent to 22.97 lakh,while that for state govern-ments grew by 7.70 percent to 56.40 lakh. In thecorporate sector, the num-ber of NPS subscribersincreased by 26.83 percent to 14.69 lakh, whilesubscribers in the citizens’category jumped by 39.11per cent to 23.61 lakh bythe end of May. Under theNPS Lite category, inwhich no fresh registra-tion is permitted fromApril 2015, subscribersfell by 2.7 per cent to41.85 lakh.The total AssetsUnder Management(AUM) under the twoschemes grew by 21.5 percent to cross Rs 7.38 lakhcrore as of May 31, 2022.

BJP boardlikely to meettodayPNS n NEW DELHI

BJP's parliamentary board,its top decision-makingbody, is likely to meet onTuesday to discuss thepresidential candidate,sources said.

The BJP has alreadyformed a 14-member man-agement committee com-prising several Union min-isters, the party's three gen-eral secretaries, and otherleaders.

On Sunday, BJP presi-dent J P Nadda had held ameeting with the commit-tee which is being con-vened by Union MinisterGajendra Shekhawat.

The party's parliamen-tary board meet is likely tobe held in the evening atthe party headquarters, andis expected to be attendedby Prime MinisterNarendra Modi, sourcessaid.

ED makes startling revelationsagainst conman in SC

Centre holds awareness programmeabout pension rules, proceduresPNS n NEW DELHI

The Centre on Monday starteda two-day programme inRajasthan's Udaipur to informcentral government pensionersabout various rules and proce-dures of disbursement of pen-sion. It will also update the fieldfunctionaries about the changesthat take place from time to timethrough various amendments inthe policy and procedures.

"The Department of Pensionand Pensioners' Welfare(DoPPW), under the UnionMinistry of Personnel, PublicGrievances and Pensions, hasstarted a series of awareness pro-gramme for central pensionprocessing centres and fieldfunctionaries handling pensionrelated work in the bank," anofficial statement said. Since

the major pension disbursingauthorities are banks, the firstsuch programme in the series isbeing held for officers of StateBank of India (SBI) on June 20and 21 June at Udaipur, cover-ing the northern region of coun-try, said the statement issued bythe Personnel Ministry.

"The objective of these pro-grammes is to spread awarenessof the various rules and proce-dures regarding disbursement ofpension to central governmentpensioners as well as to updatethe field functionaries aboutthe changes that take place fromtime to time through variousamendments in the policy andprocedures," the statement said.

The purpose of the pro-gramme is also to understandissues faced by bank officials inhandling these processes and

pensioners' grievances, it said.There have been a number of

amendments in the pensionrules and several clarificatoryorders and instructions havebeen issued during the last 50years and these have been com-piled and brought out as CentralCivil Service (Pension) Rules,2021 in December, 2021, accord-ing to the statement. Secretary,V Srinivas stressed on providingseamless experience to pen-sioners through creation ofArtificial Intelligence (AI) andMachine Learning (ML) enabledintegrated pensioners portal,linkage of Department ofPension & Pensioners Welfareportal Bhavishya and SBI por-tals, creation of chat bot toensure seamless interactionbetween pensioners, govern-ment and banker.

‘Extend plasticban deadline’PNS n NEW DELHI

Manufacturers of small pack-aged fruit juices and dairyproducts such as Parle Agro,Dabur and Mother Dairy areresorting to imported paperstraws despite higher costs tocontinue selling their prod-ucts as the deadline for imple-menting the ban on plasticstraws from July 1 drawscloser. The manufacturers,however, want the govern-ment to extend the imple-mentation date of the ban tillproper infrastructure for pro-ducing paper straws locally isdeveloped, saying importingsuch straws is not economi-cally viable. "There is noinfrastructure at present inIndia to be able to producethe quantum of strawsrequired for the industry.

I-T dept detectsover Rs 400-crtax evasion in TNPNS n NEW DELHI

The Income Tax depart-ment ng and hospitality, theCBDT said on Monday. Theraids were launched on June15 and more than 40premises in cities such asChennai, Viluppuram,Coimbatore, and Hyderabadwere covered. "Undisclosedcash of Rs 3 crore and unac-counted gold jewelleryworth Rs 2.5 crore havebeen seized so far," theCBDT said in a statement.

The Central Board ofDirect Taxes (CBDT) framespolicy for the tax depart-ment.

PREZ POLL

RAIDS ON LIQUOR,HOSPITALITY GROUP

m TPCC Chief Revanth Reddy asks CM KCR to take immediate action

hyderabad 03HYDERABAD | TUESDAY | JUNE 21, 2022

PNS n RANGAREDDY

On account of the crisis intransport sector, it has becomean uphill task for the lorryowners and workers to sur-vive, according to Shad NagarAssembly Constituency LorryOwners' Association presi-dent Syed Sadiq. Lorry own-ers on Monay took out a rallyand laid siege to the MotorVehicles' Inspector office atShad Nagar as part of "ChaloShad Nagar MVI office"protest programme. Membersof the association took part inthe protest programme inlarge numbers and laid siege tothe MVI office and submitteda memorandum to the MotorVehicles' Inspector Balu Naikhighlighting their demands.

Addressing the demonstra-tors, Syed Sadiq demandedthe government to withdrawthe MV Act-2019 with imme-

diate effect. He wanted thegovernment to revert to oldsystem instead of collecting apenalty of Rs 50 per day forlorries not having fitness. Heasked them to withdraw thehike in tax payable quarterly.

Similarly, he wanted theauthorities to do away with thegreen tax and other penalties.Further, he demanding bring-ing the petrol and diesel prices

under the GST regime. Hesought the government toissue a counter-signature sin-gle permit for lorries touringTelugu states. Lorry Owners'Assoiation vice-presidentMohammad Nawaz Gory,general secretary PulimamidiVenkatesh Goud and othersoffice -bearers of the associa-tion were present on the occa-sion.

Lorry owners lay siege to MVI office,submit memo highlighting demands

PNS n HYDERABAD

At least 60-70 governmentschools in Hyderabad districtare flooded with requisition toallot seats beyond their capac-ity, thanks to the developmentof schools by headmasters andteachers with the support ofparents.

Moreover, some charitablefoundations and companieshave been providing all ameni-ties in government schools aspart of corporate social respon-sibility.

In fact, there are libraries anddigital classrooms in some ofthe government schools. Someother civil society organisationshave been adopting schools fordevelopment.

The government schoolsprovide free education. Rightfrom uniform to mid-daymeals, everything is given free

of cost to students. Moreover,textbooks are given free tostudents.

As a result, the demand forseats in government schoolshas gone up manifold. Parentswho faced financial problemsduring the Covid-19 periodhave been looking for goodgovernment schools that haveall the amenities to enrol theirwards unable to bear with thehigh cost of tuition fees.Starting English Medium ofEducation seems to be one ofthe reasons for parentsenrolling their wards.

Further, this year, the privateschools have revised theirtuition fees by 20-30 per cent.Parents feel that admitting stu-dents in private schools is ago-nising, let alone the brightfuture of the students.

A mechanic belonging toFilm Nagar, Mallesam, who ini-

tially thought of sending hischildren to a private school, hasnow changed his mind to sendthem to government schools, ashe is not able to afford the costof education of his two grown-up children. At many places,teachers and head masters areshowing initiative to ensure thegrowth of the institution and toencourage more and moreadmissions in government

schools. As part of the exercise, they

regularly hold parent-teachermeetings and incorporate var-ious changes after discussing itwith parents. The contribu-tions from various corporateorganizations and NGOs arehighly encouraging. As thegovernment schools have manyamenities like tables, benches,classroom furniture, comput-

er labs, digital classes, manyparents are coming forward toadmit their wards in govern-ment schools. Governmentschools at Borabanda, FilmNagar, Raj Bhavan, Bholakpur

, Lalapet, Sitaphal Mandi,Mudfort, Nallagutta and someother areas enjoy good demandfor admissions. The teachersand staff of Government HighSchool at Borabanda say thatthe existing strength of 2000 isgoing to increase further thisyear. The management of FilmNagar government schoolsfeels that the school's existingstrength of 1800 will go up to2000 this year. The admis-sions at Government PrimarySchool at Bholakpur have beendeclared full. The total studentstrength at the school is 200.The school has digital class-rooms and has an Englishmedium of instruction.

Demand for seats in govt schools in Hyd district rises

PNS n HYDERABAD

The Telangana Fiber GridCorporation Ltd (T-Fiber) hasreceived an award from theKnowledge Chamber ofCommerce & Industry (KCCI)under the category ‘ICTTransformation under DigitalIndia’ during their 5th annualmeet and Business ExcellenceAwards 2022.

KCCI is emerging as one ofthe most rapidly growing apexbusiness organisations and oneof India’s youngest chambers ofcommerce and industry.KCCIstarted its journey fromGujarat, working towardsIndia's overall growth, focusingon small-scale industries, skilldevelopment, cluster develop-ment, promoting next-genbusiness, sustainability, cor-porate social responsibility,women empowerment, cybersecurity, digital technology,

efficient governance and com-plete transparency.KCCI hasinvited nominations fromindustry for deciding awardsfor multiple categories, andthe IBI group of Delhi nomi-nated T-Fiber under the ICTcategory.

After due diligence aboutother nominations, KCCI con-sidered the T-Fiber’s uniquearchitecture, its end-to-endOFC network connecting gov-ernment institutions, homesand business enterprises inrural Telangana and selected T-Fiber for the award.

Sujai Karampuri, the MD ofT-Fiber, received the awardfrom Purshottam Rupala, theUnion Minister of Fisheries,Animal Husbandry andDairying along with theHonorary Secretary General,Bharat Patel of the KCCI, andspecial guest Ameesha Patel(Bollywood actress and model).

T-Fiber bags awardinstituted by KCCI

Need for cordial relations betweenofficials and contractors stressedPNS n HYDERABAD

Telangana State PlanningBoard Vice-Chairman BVinod Kumar on Mondaystressed the need for cordialrelations between the offi-cials and the contractors.There is a need for trans-parency also, he pointed.

Participating as chief guestat the Telangana and AndhraPradesh State Engineers andContractors' conference atVishweshavarayya Bhavanhere, he said the contractorswere playing a critical role innation building. There was ascope for conflict if there wasno proper understandingbetween the contractors andofficials of the engineeringdepartments.

The contractors were play-ing a major role in con-structing projects, buildings,roads and bridges.

The developmental worksshould be implementedsmoothly.

He told the contractorsthat the construction sector

was the second largestemployer in the country afteragriculture sector. Disputes,estimated to be Rs 1 lakhcrore in monetary terms,were pending in courtsacross the country, he said.

He assured the contractorsthat the government wouldextend all help to them infinding a solution to theproblems, if any, and pro-mote cordial relat ionsbetween the officials and

the contractors. The confer-ence was attended byInstitute of Engineers (India)Telangana State PresidentBrahmareddy, SecretaryVenkata Subbayya,Kaleshwaram (Irrigation)E n g i n e e r - i n - C h i e fVenkateshwarlu, IndianInstitution of TechnicalArbitrators Telugu StatesChairman Sridhar Mote,Secretary Pradeep Reddyand others.

State Planning Board Vice-Chairman B Vinod Kumar speaking at the Engineersand Contractors conference in Hyderabad on Monday

PNS n HYDERABAD

The Indian MeteorologicalDepartment (IMD) has issueda yellow alert Tuesday. TheIMD has forecast heavy rainsin several districts of the State.It has warned that the intensi-ty of rainfall will increase in thenext three days.

According to the IMDreport, heavy rain is likely to

occur at isolated places in thedistricts, like Adilabad,Komaram Bheem Asifabad,M a n c h e r i a l ,Nirmal,Nizamabad,Jagityal,Rajanna Sirsilla, Karimnagar,Peddapalli, JayashankarBhupalapally, Mulugu,Warangal (Rural),Warangal(Urban),Janagaon andKamareddy. Thunderstormsand lightning are likely to

occur in isolated places inTelangana.

IMD also forecasted that

the districts like Karimnagar,Sircilla, Warangal, Mulugu,Nirmal, Asifabad, Peddapalliand other districts in Telanganawill experience heavy rainsand thunderstorms onMonday. Heavy and heavyrains lashed northern and east-ern Telangana districts onMonday. Apart from that, therewere moderate thunderstormsin the central and southern dis-

tricts of Telangana, includingHyderabad.

Meanwhile, the Telanganacapital has witnessed light tomoderate rain or thunder-showers in parts of the city.Surface winds were westerlieswith wind speeds around 08-12 kmph. The maximum andminimum temperatures werearound 34oC and 24oC respec-tively.

IMD issues yellow alert for Telangana

PNS n HYDERABAD

Hyderabad MetropolitanDevelopment Authority offi-cials said that the HMDAofficials held a pre-bid meet-ing on Monday to enable thesale of 148 plots at the Thorrurlay-out site. There has been agood response to the ThorrurHMDA layout second pre-bid meeting under theTurkayamjal Municipality.

According to a press notereleased by HMDA officials,nearly a hundred interestedbuyers attended the pre-bidmeeting. Enthusiasts, whohave already purchased plots

in Thorrur layout are interest-ed in buying plots in the sec-ond phase.

In the second phase,HMDA will sell 148 plots inThorrur Venture throughonline auction (e-auction).

Meanwhile, HMDA EstateOfficer Gangadhar explainedthe priority of the venture andthe infrastructure to be set up.Chief Planning Officer (CPO)Gangadhar explained aboutthe construction work permitsin the venture.

A powerpoint presentationwas given by a representativeof MSTC, a Central PublicSector Undertaking.

HMDA to e-auction 148 plots in Thorrur

HCU students protestagainst Agnipath SchemePNS n HYDERABAD

Protests against the Agnipathscheme continued inHyderabad. The students ofSFI-Hyderabad CentralUniversity protested againstthe Agnipath scheme onMonday on the HCU campus.

The students protested say-ing that they were unhappywith the new scheme whichwill affect the Army recruit-ment process and will onlyrecruit people aged between 17and 21. They believe that thisscheme will destroy the futureof young people aged between17 and 21.

The students protestedagainst the Agnipath Scheme,the BJP government, PM Modiand Home Minister AmitShah.Take the Agnipathscheme back, Shame on youModi Government, InquilabZindabad, stop messing withthe future of youth, and BJPmurdabad were some of theslogans heard at the protest.

Shiva Durga Rao, theSecretary of SFI-HCU said,

“The BJP government'sschemes have always been fail-ures, be it demonetization orGST. Now this government hascome up with another policy,the Agnipath. The govern-ment is recruiting people forfour years which will createmassive unemployment.”

Vivek, a Secretariat membersaid, “50–60,000 people retirefrom the Army every year. In2021, 87 recruitment rallieswere scheduled, but only fourtook place. These openingsshould be filled using normalprocedures. The Agnipathscheme does not touch officersand targets only soldiers.Moreover, after four years inthe military, the soldiers willnot have any new opportuni-ties. They will not have thequalifications to apply in theprivate sector. This policy canlead to the formation of privatearmies and gangs manned byformer soldiers.”

A protesting student said,“Our country is not a freeeconomy. It cannot functionthe way the US functions. You

cannot just take students fromClass 11 and tell them that theywill become part of the militaryfor the next four years and thenput them back into society.They cannot do anything elseexcept work in governmentorganisations. The PSUs mayoffer them jobs, but what if theperson wants to return to aca-demics or work in the privatesector. Integrating into societyis difficult.

Even if the person wants toapply for a job he does not havea degree certificate. I do notthink people will have a lifeafter this. That is why I amprotesting.”

Khairtabad Ganesh idol willbe made of clay this yearSIDDHARTH KUMAR SINGH

n HYDERABAD

This year, the 50 feetKhairtabad Ganesh idol will bemade completely from clay.

The Greater HyderabadMunicipal Corporation(GHMC), HyderabadMetropolitan DevelopmentAuthority (HMDA), StatePollution Control Board andthe BC Welfare Departmentare motivating idol makers touse clay for making Ganeshidols. The HMDA andPollution Control Board aredistributing over 5 lakh clayidols of Ganesha free to the res-idents of Hyderabad.

Over 3 lakh Ganesha idolsare immersed in Hyderabadevery year. The GHMC hasbuilt around 30 immersionponds in the city amid con-cerns by environmentalists thatPOP statues are causing waterpollution.

In 2021, about 70,000

Ganesh idols were immersed inthese ponds. With this, the pol-lution in the cities’ water bod-ies had started to come down.

The state government hadearlier announced that theHussain Sagar Lake would becompletely cleaned andrestored. Accordingly, pollu-tion control measures are beingtaken by the HMDA.

Meanwhile, the High Courthas issued clear directions thatthe immersion of PoP idolsshould be allowed in any pond,including Hussain Sagar. TheHC had issued similar direc-tions last year as well but dueto last-minute pressure, POPidols were allowed to beimmersed in ponds.

About 3 lakh Ganesh man-

dals are set up in Hyderabadevery year. About 90 per centof the idols are made from PoP.When these idols areimmersed in water bodies likeHussain Sagar, the gypsumand chemical dyes used in themaking of the idols mix in thewater and increase their toxi-city level.

This makes it impossiblefor the survival of any livingthing, including fish. Stategovernment officials recentlyheld a high-level meeting onthe Ganesh immersion pro-gramme which will be held inSeptember 2022. As a result ofthe meeting, many manufac-turers have already shifted toclay from Plaster of Paris(POP).

The GHMC appealed topeople from all sections ofsociety to celebrate the festivalin an eco-friendly manner,which will make the city ofHyderabad a beacon for thewhole country.

Family members ofundertrials crowdChenchalguda jailPNS n HYDERABAD

Parents and family membersof youth arrested in connec-tion with violence at theSecunderabad Railway Stationarrived at Chanchalguda Jailin Hyderabad on Monday.The parents blamed the policefor foisting false cases ontheir children. The youth,they said, were not at allinvolved in the violence wit-nessed at the railway station.

The prison officialsrevealed that as many as 300people had sought permissionto meet their family membersincarcerated in the jail. Parentshad had a hard time since June17 tracing the whereabouts oftheir children.

A parent said, 'Ever sincewe got to know about the inci-dent, we have been calling outchildren on their phones reg-ularly, but there was noresponse. Their phonesremained switched off sinceSunday. Through friends ourchildren, we came to knowthat our child had been arrest-ed.

PNS n HYDERABAD

Telangana on Mondayreported 246 Covid-19 pos-itive cases. As many as 185cases were reported fromareas under GHMC, 19 fromRanga Reddy and 14 fromMedchal-Malkajgiri districts.

The total num-ber of deaths

due to Covid-19 hasremained at4,111, while

the numberof active cases

on Monday reached2,117. A total of 155 individ-uals have recovered onMonday, the Covid healthbulletin said.The HealthDepartment conducted20,507 Covid-19 rapid testsout of which results of 541samples are awaited. Overall,so far Health Departmentconducted 3,53,41,017Covid-19 tests.

TS logs 246 newCovid-19 cases

orry Owners Association members submitting a memorandum to Balu Naikin Shadnagar on Monday

The studentsprotested againstthe AgnipathScheme, the BJPgovernment, PMModi and HomeMinister AmitShah.

PNS n HYDERABAD

A two-judge bench, compris-ing Chief Justice SatishChandra Sharma and JusticeAbhinand Kumar Shavili ofTelangana High Court issueda notice to the State govern-ment and Greater HyderabadMunicipal Corporation onMonday in a suo moto PublicInterest Litigation (PIL).

The PIL related to the col-lection of steep parking fee bycertain hospitals, malls andcinema theatres, among othercommercial establishmentsunder the guise of mainte-nance and security.

It argued that these estab-lishments are mandated toprovide free parking to con-sumers. It further explainedthat the levying of a parkingfee has caused financial loss forcertain consumers. The casewas adjourned to August 2.

The bench dismissed a writappeal filed by Naveen S

Garewal, a journalist, againstthe orders of a single judge ofthe High Court directingnotice in a writ petition filedchallenging the disciplinaryproceedings initiated againsthim by the Tribune Trust.

The panel, while seekingexplanation from the peti-tioner as to how a writ petitionwas maintainable against anewspaper, opined that therewas no illegality in ordering anotice in such matter. Thepanel reasoned that mereissuance of a notice by the sin-gle judge does not amount toadjudicating the matter andtherefore the writ appeal wasmisconceived.

High Court issues notice to govtover steep hike in parking fee

04HYDERABAD | TUESDAY | JUNE 21, 2022

Students presented awardsfor excelling in competitions

PNS n MAHABUBNAGAR

District Collector S VenkataRao on Monday promised toensure that those who buyopen plots in Rajig SwagruhaSarika Township will not faceany difficulty while register-ing for a title deed. The town-ship is just a stone's throwaway from the DistrictCollectorate complex.

The auction for open plotsin the township will be heldat Appannapalle on June 25.The Collector will participatein the event as chief guest.

The district administrationhad held an auction for plots.The auction for the plots willbe held for a second timebetween June 20 and 25. Theauction of 348 plots will beheld this time, the Collectorsaid. The township has beenequipped with all amenitieslike underground drainage,electricity, drinking water and

others. He promised to seethat more facilities would beprovided if necessary.

Venkata Rao said that ahelp desk would be set up inthe District Collectorate forthe convenience of bidders ofthe plots. The help deskwould also guide the bidderswho need bank loans to buy

the plots. He asked the gov-ernment employees to bringto his notice any difficulty inobtaining bank loans for buy-ing plots.

Additional Collector(Revenue) K Seetharama Rao,Rajiv Swagruha general man-ager Narender Reddy, andothers were present.

Auction for plots in Rajiv Swagruhatownship to be held on June 25

District Collector S Venkata Rao explaining the procedure to be adopted inauctioning the plots in Rajiv Swagruha Township, in Mahbubnagar on Monday

PNS n HYDERABAD

Telangana Congress leaderV. Hanumantha Rao filed acomplaint with the BegumBazaar Police Station onMonday seeking actionagainst BJP General SecretaryKailash Vijayvargiya for say-ing that retired military per-sonnel will be given jobs inBJP offices.VH said the BJP'sstatement that it will employsoldiers as security guards inits offices is objectionableand an insult to the nation asthe soldiers are selflesslyworking for the nation.

Speaking to the media, VHsaid that there was violenceacross the nation against theAgnipath scheme. But theBJP-led NDA government issaying that it will not roll back

the scheme.Moreover, BJP leaders are

saying that ex-soldiers canwork in BJP offices as secu-rity personnel. He said thatthe BJP General Secretary’scomments insulted soldiers.

He asked Prime MinisterNarendra Modi to take theopinion of former PM DrManmohan Singh in impor-tant matters. VH said thepolice must arrest KailashVijayvargiya for makingdemeaning comments aboutsoldiers.He said the BJP hasbeen engaged in sentimentpolitics to divert the attentionof people from problems.The BJP leaders are also mak-ing provocative statementsinstead of fulfilling thepromises given to the people,VH added.

BJP will hold public meeting evenif TRS govt blocks it: SanjayPNS n HYDERABAD

BJP leader Bandi Sanjay Kumarsaid that the BJP will organise ahuge public meeting even if theTRS government tries to blockit.He said that everything isready to hold the BJP NationalExecutive Committee (NEC)meetings on July 2 and 3.Sanjaysaid that Prime MinisterNarendra Modi, UnionMinisters, the Chief Ministers of18 BJP-ruled states, BJP presi-dents of all states and party lead-ers will stay in Hyderabad for twodays. He said that 300 delegateswould attend the NEC.

Speaking to the media afterchecking out the arrangementsat the HICC Novotel Hotel onMonday, Sanjay said that theyhad appointed 35 committees toensure the smooth conduct ofthe NEC. He said that theTelangana BJP thinks that con-ducting the NEC here in the Stateis fortunate.

Sanjay made it clear that the

BJP will organise the publicmeeting on a grand note evenif the TRS government createshurdles. He said the NECwould be organised in a man-ner that it will instil confidenceamong the people ofTelangana.

He said that they are readyto hold a public meeting of 10lakh people. “We will moveahead even if the governmenttroubles us in any manner,” hesaid.

Arrest BJP Gen Secy Vijayvargiyafor insulting soldiers: VH PNS n MAHABUBNAGAR

BJP national leader PMuralidhar Rao has felt thatthe political outfits banking onfamily rule should rejected.

Addressing the BJP SaktiKendra in-charges atSudarshan Conventio Hallhere on Monday, he said thatpolitical outfits banking onfamily rule mushroomed allover the country during theregime of Congress and notedthat BJP came to power in2014 with a slogan of'Congress-free India.'

After Narendra Modibecame the Prime Minister,the Congress had almost dis-appeared from the country, hesaid, adding that the BJPwould stand by what itpromised to the people.

He quoted the examples ofannulment of Article 370which gave special status to

Jammu and Kashmir, resolvingthe age-old Ram Mandir rowin Ayodhya, withdrawingtriple talaq benefiting Muslimwomen to prove his point.

To end the TRS party's fam-ily rule in Telangana, heappealed to the people to givetheir vote to the BJP. He wascritical of Chief Minister K

Chandrashekar Rao andMinister for MunicipalAdministration K T RamaRao for heaping abuses onModi. It will prove to be detri-

mental to their interests, hesaid.

It is time to end corruptionand irregularities and fakepromises made to the peopleby the TRS, he said.

He exuded confidence thatthe saffron flag will flutter atopGolkonda Fort. The BJPNational Executive is going tobe held in Hyderabad on July2 and 3, he added.

As a prelude to it, prepara-tory meetings would be heldin districts. Out of the 1,200political outfits in the country,BJP is the party whose activistshave an ideology, he said.

After Karnataka, the BJPhas a strong hold in Telanganain South, he said giving reasonfor the choice of Hyderabadvenue to hold its meetings.

After July 3, a historicchange would take place in thestate, he said.

Responding to doubts

expressed in some quartersthat the BJP has no singleMLAs in Telangana who hasgood financial support andmass appeal, he said thateverything is possible if thepeople decided to bring BJP topower. Leaders would be bornfrom the ranks of the people,he said.

There is a strong beliefamong the people that the BJPalone is capable of coming topower drubbing the TRS at thehustings, he said exuding con-fidence that it will becometrue. National vice president DK Aruna, state treasurer of theBJP Bandari Santi Kumar andothers took part.

State General SecretaryPradip Kumar Goud, NaguraoNamaji, Katta SudhakarReddy, T Achary Kondaiahand several other party lead-ers took part in the pro-gramme.

BJP calls upon people to reject family-based political parties

BJP national leader P Muralidhar Rao speaking at a meeting in Mahabubngar on Monday

PNS n NALGONDA

The TSRTC is accused of notproviding basic amenities inmany bus stations and it isonly interested in revisingthe fare three times in threemonths.

On the pretext of hike infuel prices, increase in cessand due to shortage of smallchange the TSRTC has hikedthe fares, leaving the com-muters to their fate.

After appointing V CSajjanar as MD of the TSRTC,everyone felt that the RTCwould be back on rails. Butthat was not the case. Peoplefelt that he would be able torevive the RTC without bur-dening the people.

Strangely, within sixmonths of him assuming thetop job in the RTC he revisedthe fares four times, but failedto create amenities requiredby commuters.

Minimum amenities likedrinking water, fans andchairs are absent in manybus stations. The people are

dreading the word RTC.Moreover, buses should becleaned daily, but they are notbeing cleaned at least once ina week, it is alleged.

In the limits of undividedNalgonda district, there areseven bus depots. There areover 30 bus stations - bothsmall and big - under the lim-its of these depots. Therewere chairs and benches forthe commuters to sit. Even ifthere are chairs and benches,they are full of dust and not

fit enough for one to sit onthem.

Nalgonda bus station,which is used by many toreach destinations in neigh-bouring AP, has no benchesand fans making the com-muters suffer. The people areforced to buy drinking wateras there is no drinking waterfacility in the bus station.There is also problem withtoilets in the bus station too.

The locals have been ques-tioning the officials, who

revise the wages for everyminor problem, that whostopped them to provide com-muter amenities in the busstation.Non-stop deluxe busfare from Nalgonda toHyderabad was Rs 120 perhead in January this year.But, the fare has been revisedto Rs 170. Similarly, the farefor Suryapet from Nalgondahas been revised from Rs 60to Rs 90. The RTC officialssay that the fare is likely to berevised further.

TSRTC fails to provide basic amenities at bus stations

Nalgonda bus station lacks basic amenities

PNS n HYDERABAD

The Srisailam Left BankCanal (SLBC) project wouldhave been built years ago ifformer chief minister, thelate YS Rajashekar Reddy,was alive, YSRTP president YSSharmila said on Monday.

Sharmila said that YSRcame to Nalgonda district 33times as Chief Minister buthow many times has KCRcome to Nalgonda. KCR willcome to Nalgonda only ifthere are by-elections or elsehe will sleep in his farmhouse,she said.

Participating in a publicmeeting in Kodad town onMonday to mark the comple-tion of 100 days of her PrajaPrasthanam Padayatra duringwhich she walked 1,350 km,Sharmila said that YSR hadplans to eliminate the fluorideproblem permanently fromNalgonda district and hadlaunched SLBC tunnel worksfor that.

She said the SLBC worksstopped after KCR came topower. The SLBC would havebeen completed if Rs 2,000crore had been allotted.However, KCR stopped work

on SLBC tunnel and concen-trated on the Kaleshwaramproject, she said.

KCR received Rs 70,000crore by enhancing the finan-cial estimation for thePranahitha Project from Rs33,000 crore to Rs 1.50 lakhcrore, she pointed out andadded that KCR has beensending the pumped water tothe sea.

Sharmila said theKaleshwaram Project is use-ful only for tourism andphoto sessions. But YSR didseveral useful things for thepeople of Nalgonda. He con-structed the NIMS Medical

College for Rs 200 crore andexecuted the Madhava Reddyproject. But KCR has donenothing for Nalgonda. Hehas failed to meet even thebasic needs of Nalgonda dis-trict, she said.

The Kodad MLA is dictat-ing terms regarding the liquormafia, the real estate businessand everything else with theonly objective of earningmoney, she said.

YSR constructed theMahatma Gandhi Universityin Nalgonda district but KCRhas failed to sanction even apolytechnic and a degree col-lege for Kodad, she said.

Sharmila completes 100 daysof padayatra, walks 1,350 km

PNS n HYDERABAD

The Agnipath scheme wasoriginally proposed in 1999 bythe Congress government,Union Tourism Minister G.Kishan Reddy said on Monday.

He asked opposition partiesnot to politicise Agnipathunnecessarily and requestedeveryone to extend their coop-eration to Agnipath.

Kishan expressed anger say-ing that some people wereprovoking youth wilfully. Hesaid that one will get confi-dence if one works as anAgniveer at least once.

He said that the nationstands to gain from Agnipathand nobody will have to sufferloss. Companies like Mahindrahave come forward to employAgniveers and there will beopportunities for Agniveersin education and in employ-ment, Kishan added.

Examining arrangementsfor Yoga Day celebrations atthe Parade Grounds, Kishansaid that yoga is a must forhealth. Nowadays people arespending 30 per cent of theirincomes on healthcare.Everyone must adopt yoga

and it must be made must inschools, Kishan said.

The Minister said that 200nations across the globe areorganising Yoga Day celebra-tions on June 21 and thatVice-President M. VenkaiahNaidu would be the chief guest

at the Yoga Day celebrations inParade Grounds.

He said that Prime MinisterNarendra Modi and DefenceMinister Rajnath Singh wouldattend the Yoga day celebra-tions in Mysore and inCoimbatore respectively.

‘Agnipath was proposedin 1999 by Congress govt’

Kishan expressed anger saying that

some people were provoking youth

wilfully. He said that one will get

confidence if one works as an

Agniveer at least once.

K. VENKATESHWARLU

n HYDERABAD

The Telangana BJP hasappointed Prabharies (in-charges) in the 119 Assemblyconstituencies in Telangana tomobilise people and to makecadres donate money forPrime Minister Modi’s publicmeeting and the party’sNational ExecutiveCommittee (NEC) meetingsbeing held on July 2 and 3.

The Prabharies main con-sideration now is how to acti-vate party cadres and leadersin Assembly constituenciesother than their own withinthe short time left as thetime remaining is just 10days.The Prabharies have tomake local BJP leaders tomobilise 10,000 people for thePM’s public meeting and alsocollect donations for thesame.

After the review of Sanjayand NEC in-charge ArvindMenon held on Sunday, oneof the Prabharies said thatappointing Prabharies toother constituencies was afoolish decision.

“It is easy to do an assignedjob in my own constituency.Appointing a person as aPrabhari in another con-stituency would be a time-

consuming thing as it is noteasy to communicate withlocal leaders and do theassigned job as everyone therewould be new to me,” hesaid.

However, some leaders whodidn’t get an opportunity tobecome Prabharies at thetime the party was conduct-ing the NEC in Hyderabad,also expressed their unhappi-ness with Sanjay for missingthe opportunity.

One of the leaders saidthat not getting an opportu-nity to work for the BJP dur-ing the NEC and PM’s meet-ings is definitely painful. Hesaid that he had sacrificed alot for the party but was notgiven priority while appoint-ing Prabharies. However,everyone will not get a chanceat a time as the constituenciesnumber only 119 and leadersare more, he said.

‘Prabharies’ sore over Sanjay’smove to send them to far-off places

PNS n RAJANNA SIRICILLA

District Collector AnuragJayanti on Monday presentedawards the students whoexcelled at the State andnational level competitions.The Inspire Manak Awards-2020-2021 were presented tothe students who excelled atState and national level inJawaharlal Nehru Nationalscience, Mathematics andEnvironment Exhibition(JNEESMEE)-2022. Awardswere presented to guide teach-ers too.

Speaking on the occasion,Anurag Jayanti made it clearthat teachers should play acentral role in the education-al process which is designed to

develop creativity in school-age children. The Collectorappreciated the students forexcelling at the State andnational level in the competi-tion.

He complimented theDistrict Education Officer andscience teachers for encourag-ing the children. The Collectorstressed the need to developscientific temper in students.He advised the teachers tomake use of science laborato-ries in schools and AtalTinkering Labs. It will helpdevelop children' interest inscience.

District Education OfficerD Radhakrishan, DistrictScience Officer V Anjaneyuluand others were present.

Rajanna Sircilla District Collector Anurag Jayanti presenting awards to childrenin Sircilla on Monday

Fraudster detainedunder PreventiveDetention ActPNS n WARANGAL

The police invoked PreventiveDetention Act against analleged fraudster for cheatingsome persons by promising tosecure government jobs forthem.

Police Commissioner TarunJoshi issued orders invokingthe PD Act against theaccused. The accused, identi-fied as Bhanot Raj Kumarbelonging to Ansanpalli vil-lage, Malahar Mandal ofBhupalapally district, washanded over a copy of thenotice indicating that PD Acthas been invoked against him.He was lodged in CherlapallyCentral Jail. He collected lakhsof rupees from the unem-ployed people promising jobsin Kazipet under the limits ofthe Warangal PoliceCommissionerate. Rajkumarwas a CISF head constable forsome time.

PNS n HYDERABAD

BJP leaders have been meetingthe party’s national leadersone after the other.

Huzurabad MLA EatalaRajender met Union HomeMinister Amit Shah onSunday. BJP OBC MorchaPresident and newly electedRajya Sabha Member K.Laxman also met Amit Shahon Monday at New Delhi.

Telangana BJP chief BandiSanjay Kumar said that thereis nothing wrong in EatalaRajender meeting Amit Shah.Harbouring misunderstand-ings on the Amit Shah-Eatalameeting is not right, he said.

Sanjay said that BJP leadershave the freedom to meettheir national leaders. BJP isnot KCR’s TRS and there is nodictatorship in the BJP like inthe TRS. The BJP leaders havethe freedom to meet anyleader, he said.The BJP’s aim isto topple the corrupt TRS. TheTRS leaders were doing all

kinds of ‘dandas’ in the State.He said that the KCR’s govern-ment failed to fulfil electionpromises. The atrocities againstwomen have increased in theState. The BJP has been fight-ing the dictatorial rule in theState, he said. Laxman had ahalf-an-hour meeting withAmit Shah. They discussed theBJP’s growth in Telangana aswell as activities of the OBCmorcha across the nation.

Laxman said after meetingwith Amit Shah that theTelangana BJP would givePrime Minister NarendraModi a gift by winning theTelangana Assembly elections.He said that the BJP high com-mand is focused on Telanganaand the party is going to con-duct its National ExecutiveCommittee meetings inHyderabad.

He said that the high com-mand had accepted him fororganising the huge publicmeeting in which the PM willbe attending.

Nothing wrong in Eatalameeting Amit Shah: Sanjay

PNS n BHUPALAPALLY

Bhupalapally Superintendentof Police J Surender Reddy onMonday said that PreventiveDetention (PD) Act wasinvoked against five personsfor supplying narcotics toyouth.

Disclosing this at a mediaconference here, he identifiedthem as Bhanoth Babukumar,a resident of Chelpur inGhanpur mandal, DharawatMalsur, a resident ofPaloncha of BhadradriKothagudem district, GopuSridhar Reddy andKomireddy Ravinder Reddy,residents of Gorlaveedu vil-lage of Bhupalapally mandal,and Angot Rajender ofBhupalapalli town. They weredetained on December 20 lastyear while smuggling ganja atMylaram in Ganapurammandal of Bhupalapalli dis-trict. Currently, there werelodged in Khammam prison.

PD Act invoked against5 ganja smugglersarrested last year

YSRTP president YS Sharmila interacting with people in Kodad on Monday

nation 05HYDERABAD | TUESDAY | JUNE 21, 2022

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R HP: Cable car with 11 onboard stuckmid-air in Parwanoo, 9 rescued

Eleven people were stranded mid-air in a cable car at Parwanoo Timber Trail inHimachal Pradesh's Solan district as rescuers began bringing them to safety oneby one, a state disaster management official said on Monday. Nine of them have

been rescued and efforts are on to rescue the remaining two, Parwanoo DeputySuperintendent of Police Pranav Chauhan said, adding the incident was reportedaround 11 am. Chief Minister Jai RamThakur said that the rescue operation isgoing on at Parwanoo Timber Trail inSolan. I will also reach the site soon.Teams from NDRF and district administra-tion are at the spot and all the passengerswill be rescued, Thakur said in a tweet inHindi. One of the rescued persons told themedia that all 11 tourists were from Delhi.Earlier, State Disaster ManagementDirector Sudesh Mokhta said eight peoplewere stuck in the timber trail due to sometechnical snag in the cable car.

UP: Dalit delivery worker abused,thrashed by customers in Lucknow

ADalit man allegedly faced casteist slurs, was spat upon and beaten up when he wentto a home in Aashiyana locality here to deliver a food order, police said on Monday.The customers told him that they cannot accept food touched by a Dalit, according to

a complaint lodged with police. Police have lodged an FIR against two people, includingAjay Singh, a resident of sector H Aashiyana, and 12 unidentified others, they said. Thedelivery boy, Vineet Kumar Rawat,alleged that on Saturday night when hereached the delivery location, a personcame out of the house and asked forhis name. He then hurled casteistremarks at him, a police officer said.Rawat alleged the person refused tocancel the order, spat tobacco juice onhis face and thrashed him, the officersaid. Reacting to the incident,opposition Samajwadi Party claimedthat attacks on Dalits have increased inthe state under the BJP government.

Simple glucose-meter test can be usedto monitor Covid-19 antibody levels

Researchers have developed a simple, glucose-meter test that can help people monitor theirown antibody levels against the SARS-CoV-2 virus, that causes COVID-19. The team fromJohns Hopkins University in the US noted that over-the-counter COVID-19 tests can

quickly show whether a person is infected with SARS-CoV-2. However, if a person has apositive result, there is no at-home test toassess how long they will remainprotected against reinfection. In theJournal of the American Chemical Society,researchers described a simple, accurateglucose-meter-based test incorporating anovel fusion protein. They said thatconsumers could someday use this assayto monitor their own SARS-CoV-2antibody levels. Vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 and infection with the virus itselfcan guard against future infections for awhile, but it's unclear exactly how longthat protection lasts, the researchers said.

Over 150 Sikhs in Kabul desperate to come to IndiaPNS n NEW DELHI

Over 150 Sikhs who were stay-ing in a gurudwara in Kabulthat was struck by terrorists onSaturday have been desperate-ly waiting for visas to move toIndia ever since the Talibantook over Afghanistan, accord-ing to a top shrine official.

Gurnam Singh, the presidentof Gurdwara Karta-E-Parwanwho spoke to PTI over phonefrom the Afghan capital, alsourged the Indian governmentto step up evacuation efforts forHindus and Sikhs.

India has given e-visas ''onpriority" to over 100 Sikhs andHindus living in Afghanistanfollowing the deadly terror

strike on the gurudwara inKabul on June 18, governmentsources said on Sunday.

Several blasts were reportednear the Sikh shrine, in the lat-est targeting of a place of wor-ship of a minority communityin the Taliban-ruledAfghanistan. India hasslammed the "cowardly attack".

"There are over 150 AfghanSikhs who have desperatelybeen wanting to come to Indiaever since the Taliban returned.They even had valid Indianvisas but those were suspend-ed after the takeover.

"They are willing to selltheir shops in Kabul leavingtheir livelihoods behind andmove permanently. They have

been spending sleepless nightsand counting days," GurnamSingh said.

He said Afghanistan's ministryof interior affairs (MOI) officialsmet them on Sunday and offered

support for the repair of the dam-aged gurudwara.

"But it is time the (Indian)government steps up too.The evacuation process thatthe Indian government

started is not yet over. Thereare still many who are will-ing to come to India andhave been waiting for sever-al months for their visas," headded.

Asked about the govern-ment's move to grant over 100visas, Singh said, "Still there isa lot to be done. We urge thegovernment to step up theevacuation efforts, help withflights and also explore ways sothe livelihoods of these peoplearen't affected."

He requested the Indiangovernment to come up with aplan to ensure temples andgurudwaras will remain safe inAfghanistan and "will not bedamaged".

Cyber security integral tonational security: Amit ShahPNS n NEW DELHI

Union Home Minister AmitShah on Monday said cybersecurity is integral to nationalsecurity and the NarendraModi government is commit-ted to making it robust.

Addressing a conference on'cyber safety and nationalsecurity', Shah said technolo-gy is being taken to the grass-root level in India and if cybersecurity is not ensured, it willbe a big challenge for thecountry.

"We all know how importantis cyber security and how it cancontribute for the develop-ment of India. India's progressis not possible without cybersecurity. Cyber security is inte-gral to the national securityand the Modi government iscommitted to making itrobust," he said.

The home minister saideveryone knows that the mis-use of cyber space is not newand various kinds of cybercrimes are seen very oftenthat include malware attacks,phishing, attacks on critical

infrastructure, data theft,online economic frauds, childpornography among others.

Such crimes are expected toincrease in the coming days, hesaid.

Shah also cited the data onthe increasing number of cybercrimes being reported in thecountry.

"In 2012, a total of 3,377cyber crimes were reportedand it has gone up to 50,000 in2020. The number of cybercrimes which were not report-ed could be in lakhs. We are

resolved to create the mostsecured cyber atmosphere inthe world," he said.

The home minister said theMinistry of Home Affairs haslaunched a cyber crimesreporting portal about threeyears ago and so far, 11 lakhdifferent kinds of cyber crimeshave been reported there.

Besides, he said, there wereover two lakh social mediacomplaints which were regis-tered on the portal.

"This is going to increase inthe coming days, because cur-

rently, 80 crore Indians areactive online. This is a bignumber and as the prices ofdata go down, there will bemore users," he said.

Shah said the governmentwants to progress in digitisa-tion but at the same time,ensure a secured cyber place inIndia.

He said Prime MinisterNarendra Modi's vision is tomake every Indian technolog-ically empowered and due todigitisation, there has beenempowerment and technolog-ical advancement.

The home minister saidbecause of technology, 130crore people in the country aregetting benefits through theDirect Benefit Transfer (DBT)scheme.

"For a country like India, thisis a big revolution. Before2014, we just could not thinkabout it as there there were 60crore families in the countrywho did not have any bankaccount. Forget about transfer-ring benefits digitally, they didnot even have a bank account,"he said.

Youth should not fall formisinformation over ‘Agnipath’

PNS n NAGPUR

RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat onMonday laid importance onorganic and ancient methods offarming and said it would bewrong to reject such local knowl-edge as unscientific withoutexamining them.

He was speaking at the annu-al 'Convocation-cum-Scientific Convention'jointly organisedby NationalAcademy ofVe t e r i n a r yS c i e n c e s(India), NewDelhi andMaharashtraAnimal andFishery SciencesUniversity, Nagpur.

Union Minister ofFisheries, AnimalHusbandry and DairyingParshottam Rupala, who wasthe guest of honour, wasbestowed honorary fellowshipalong with Bhagwat and stateminister Sunil Kedar at the event.

India's farming and animalhusbandry methods are the old-est, Bhagwat said, adding thatmodern science has side effectsbut our ancient knowledge andmethods do not have side effects.

"Focus must be on flexibility in

research and use of local knowl-edge. It is wrong to reject localknowledge by terming it unsci-entific. You can reject it afterexamining it, you are free to rejectit if it is not right," he said at theevent.

"Secondly, mechanised farm-ing would not last long. Eventoday, 65 per cent farmers culti-

vate on small land holdingsand mechanised farm-

ing is not very ben-eficial for them.

Because of fertil-izers etc, he(farmer) fallsinto debt andthen commitssuicide. He

should be taughtsustainable agri-

culture which he canunderstand," the RSS

chief said.He stressed on "Bharat centric"

method of farming, which canincrease our GDP, adding that thecountry was the number oneeconomy in the world till 1700AD.

"We had agrarian economythat time and industry and com-merce were also related to agri-culture. We will need to haveBharat centric approach toachieve this (increasing GDP),"he said.

PNS n NEW DELHI

Congress leader Rahul Gandhion Monday appeared beforethe Enforcement Directoratefor the fourth day of question-ing in the National Heraldmoney laundering case.

A day after his 52nd birth-day, Gandhi arrived at the EDheadquarters on the APJAbdul Kalam Road in centralDelhi at 11.05 am with his "Z+"category CRPF security escort.

A huge contingent of policeand paramilitary personnelwas deployed around the fed-eral agency's office even asSection 144 of the Code of

Criminal Procedure (CrPC)has been imposed in theadjoining area like last week.

Leaving the ED office for

over an hour-long break, theformer Congress chief re-joined the questioning around4:45 pm.

Senior Congress leaders andworkers held a protest at JantarMantar here against the EDaction and the Centre'sAgnipath defence recruitmentscheme.

Gandhi, the Congress MPfrom Kerala's Wayanad, hasspent around 35 hours at theED office during these fourdays, where he was questionedover multiple sessions and hisstatement was recorded underthe Prevention of MoneyLaundering Act (PMLA).

PNS n NEW DELHI

The Centre on Monday start-ed a two-day programme inRajasthan's Udaipur to informcentral government pension-ers about various rules andprocedures of disbursement ofpension.

It will also update the fieldfunctionaries about the changesthat take place from time to timethrough various amendments inthe policy and procedures. "TheDepartment of Pension andPensioners' Welfare (DoPPW),under the Union Ministry of

Personnel, Public Grievancesand Pensions, has started aseries of awareness programmefor central pension processingcentres and field functionarieshandling pension related workin the bank," an official state-ment said.

Since the major pensiondisbursing authorities arebanks, the first such pro-gramme in the series is beingheld for officers of State Bankof India (SBI) on June 20 and21 June at Udaipur, coveringthe northern region of coun-try, said the statement issued

by the Personnel Ministry.Bankers's awareness pro-

gramme was inaugurated onMonday by V Srinivas,Secretary, DoPPW.

"The objective of these pro-grammes is to spread aware-ness of the various rules andprocedures regarding dis-bursement of pension to cen-tral government pensionersas well as to update the fieldfunctionaries about thechanges that take place fromtime to time through variousamendments in the policy andprocedures," the statement

said. The purpose of the pro-gramme is also to understandissues faced by bank officialsin handling these processesand pensioners' grievances, itsaid.

There have been a numberof amendments in the pensionrules and several clarificatoryorders and instructions havebeen issued during the last 50years and these have beencompiled and brought out asCentral Civil Service (Pension)Rules, 2021 in December,2021, according to the state-ment.

‘People’s love forModi increasingas is Cong'shatred for him’PNS n NEW DELHI

The BJP on Mondayslammed the Congress for"hateful" comments of itsleaders against Pr imeMinister Narendra Modiand asserted that people'slove for him has beenincreasing as is the opposi-tion party's "hatred" forhim.

BJP spokespersonSudhanshu Trivedi citedseveral instances ofCongress leaders' objec-tionable comments againstModi over the years andasked the opposition partyif it has expelled or takenany disciplinary actionagainst anyone.

There are more than 80such instances, he said.

His comments camehours after Senior Congressleader and former Unionminister Subodh Kant Sahaialleged that Prime MinisterNarendra Modi is behavinglike Adolf Hitler and "willdie like Hitler" if he followsthe path of the Germandictator.

‘India is one ofAustralia's ‘closest’security partners’PNS n NEW DELHI

India is one of Australia's"closest" security partners andCanberra is keen to workclosely with it for an open andinclusive Indo-Pacific,Australian Deputy PrimeMinister Richard Marles saidon Monday as he begins afour-day visit to New Delhi.

It is the first high-level visit to Indiafrom Australiaafter PrimeM i n i s t e rA n t h o n yAlbanes e ' scenter- l e f tLabor Partycame topower lastmonth defeatingpredecessor ScottMorrison's conserva-tive coalition in the parliamen-tary elections.

Marles, who is alsoAustralia's defence minister,said the rules-based interna-tional order that has broughtpeace and prosperity to theIndo-Pacific for decades isexperiencing pressure, seenas an oblique reference toChina's growing assertivenessin the region.

During his visit from June

20 to 23, he is scheduled tohold wide-ranging talks withDefence Minister RajnathSingh.

"Australia and India areComprehensive StrategicPartners. I am committed tostrengthening Australia'sdefence and security cooper-ation with India," Marles said.

"I am looking forward tomeeting with my coun-

terpart, DefenceMinister Rajnath

Singh, andholding ourfirst bilateraldefence min-isters' meet-ing," he said,according to a

statement bythe Australian

government.India is one of

Australia's closest security part-ners and his government isfocused on revitalising thecountry's historically deepengagement with its partnersacross the Indo-Pacific, he said.

"The rules-based interna-tional order that has broughtpeace and prosperity to theIndo-Pacific for decades isexperiencing pressure, as weface shifts in the geostrategicorder," he said.

ED questions Rahul on 4th day

50 pc Delhi-NCR residents with Covid-likesymptoms in last 30 days took no tests: NGOPNS n NEW DELHI

Despite a spike in coronaviruscases, a large number of peoplein Delhi and neighbouring citiesin the last one month eitherrefrained from undergoing testsor opted for a simple rapid anti-gen test after they showedCovid-like symptoms, a healthNGO has claimed.

Coronavirus cases are againrising across most of the coun-try, and NCR cities are alsoexperiencing yet another surge.

"With 1,500-1,800 dailyreported cases just in Delhiand another 600-1,000 record-ed in NCR cities, many are ques-tioning if these reported casesare estimating the spread ofCOVID-19 accurately,"LocalCircles said in a state-ment.

To understand the on-groundsituation, LocalCircles soughtinputs from residents of Delhiand neighbouring cities askingthem if they or anyone in theirfamily had symptoms in the last

30 days and how they got them-selves tested in such a situation.

The survey received 11,059responses from citizens located inall districts of Delhi-NCR. Ofthese, 64 per cent respondentswere men while 36 per centrespondents were women, it said.

"Of those who had Covidsymptoms, only 16 per cent tookRT-PCR test, 34 per cent did at-home RAT (rapid antingentest), and 50 per cent took notest," the NGO claimed.

Delhi on Sunday recorded

1,530 new Covid cases andthree deaths in a day while thepositivity rate rose to 8.41 percent, according to data shared bythe city health department.

This is the fifth consecutiveday that Delhi recorded over1,300 cases in a day. The freshcases were detected out of18,183 Covid tests conducted onSunday. The fresh infectionspushed Delhi's Covid case tallyto 19,22,089 while the death tollrose to 26,232, the departmentsaid in its bulletin.

Centre holds awareness programmeabout pension rules, procedures

RSS chief calls for‘Bharat centric’approach to farming

PNS n AHMEDABAD

Amid firestorm over the"Agnipath" scheme, UnionMinister Arjun Ram Meghwalon Monday said the country'syouths should not fall for "mis-information campaign" regard-ing the new recruitmentprocess announced for thearmed forces.

Calling it an "importantscheme" for the country andfor those interested in workingfor the defence forces,Meghwal said some youthsare opposing the plan unveiledlast week due to misinforma-tion, and advised them not tofall for it.

"Agnipath is an importantscheme. It offers opportunitiesto those who want to join thearmed forces," the UnionMinister of State for Culturetold reporters here.

"Some of the youths areopposing the scheme due tomisinformation. They shouldnot fall in the trap of certainparties who are running amisinformation campaign

regarding the scheme. I wel-come the scheme," he saidamid violent protests in manystates against the scheme.

The BJP leader said evenafter 25 per cent of the recruitsare absorbed for regular jobsunder the programme, thosewho leave the forces after fouryears of service will get a sev-erance package and have theopportunity to take up jobs inparamilitary forces consideringthey will be well trained.

Meghwal was here to attenda book launch programme ofthe Navjivan Trust and theNational Archives of India.

Violent demonstrationswere held in many statesagainst the scheme, with sev-

eral trains and railway stationsset on fire by protesting youthsover the last few days.

The Centre had last weekunveiled the Agnipath schemeunder which youths between17.5 and 21 years (upper agerelaxed for 2022 recruitmentprocess) would be selected forinduction into the three wingsof the defence services for afour-year tenure. Twenty-fiveper cent of the recruits will beretained for regular service atthe end of four years.

The government projectedthis scheme as a major over-haul of the decades-old selec-tion process to enhance theyouthful profile of the services.However, the scheme has invit-ed criticism from oppositionleaders who have maintainedit would adversely impact thefunctioning of the armedforces.

Defence job aspirants arenot happy with the short-termnature of the recruitmentscheme which comes withoutpension and medical coverbenefits.

Union Minister Meghwal calls the scheme as important

NATIONAL HERALD CASE

Call it the fear of the unknown or the karma catching up with him, Pakistan’s for-mer military leader Pervez Musharraf is likely to stay on in Dubai, his familyhas hinted as the required “medical facilities are unavailable” in Pakistan. It is

being claimed that the experimental drug Daratumumab, which is required to treatMusharraf’s medical condition, is currently unavailable in Pakistan. The former General’sailment, known medically as Amyloidosis, is a rare disease that occurs when an abnor-mal protein builds up in an individual’s organs and interferes with the normal func-tions. Earlier reports had claimed that the Pakistan military’s ex-military dictator, 78,who is in a UAE hospital for the past three weeks in a critical condition with no pos-sibility of recovery, may be brought back to Pakistan in an air ambulance as the nation’spowerful Army establishment “fully stands behind” its former chief. But the family

remains apprehensive and has stated that it has toconsider medical, legal as well as security challengesbefore Musharraf’s return to Pakistan. Musharraf ruledPakistan from 1999 to 2008. He came to power ina bloodless coup in 1999, deposing the then PrimeMinister Nawaz Sharif, largely because Musharraf’srelations with Nawaz Sharif were not comfortablefrom the outset.

He had to cope with the latter’s penchant for inter-fering in Army postings. The former Pakistan Armychief was the main architect of the covert, thoughfailed, Kargil war on India in 1999. Four years oldduring Partition, when his family moved from their

Nehar Wali Haveli home in Old Delhi, Musharraf grew up in middle-class environs inKarachi, where his father served as an accountant in the Foreign Ministry and laterduring the latter’s seven-year posting in Turkey. He studied in Forman Christian College,Lahore, before joining the Army in 1961 and ultimately rose to become the General.Facing impeachment following the elections in 2008, Musharraf was forced to resignas the Pakistan President and soon after went into self-imposed exile in Dubai. Earlierin Pakistan, he was charged with high treason and given a death sentence in 2019for suspending the Constitution. Later, however, his death sentence was suspended.But there still lingers the threat of Musharraf facing a number of cases if he is broughtback to Pakistan, as indicated by the country’s federal minister Javed Latif.

Amajor, if not the main, factor contributing to the agitation against the Agnipath schemeis massive unemployment all around, especially at the low-skill levels. One neednot be an economist to know that. The Narendra Modi Government and its sup-

porters may try to heap the entire blame on the COVID pandemic, but the truth is thatthe situation was pretty bad even before the novel Coronavirus hit India. According tothe data that the Labour Ministry released in May 2019, the unemployment rate in thecountry was 6.1 per cent in 2017-18, the highest in 45 years. While 7.8 per cent of allemployable urban youth were without a job, the unemployment rate was 5.3 per centin villages. The pandemic worsened the situation, especially for those at the bottom ofthe pyramid. Thankfully, some improvement has been recorded. The quarterly period-

ic labour force survey that the Ministry of Statistics& Programme Implementation released last weekshowed that the unemployment rate in urban Indiain the January-March quarter of this fiscal fell for thefourth consecutive quarter. From 8.7 per cent in theOctober-December quarter, it came down to 8.2 percent. In the July-September quarter, it was 9.8 percent and in the April-June quarter, 12.6 per cent. Thedecline was sequential and sustained over the entirefiscal. Non-governmental sources seem to corrob-orate the official claim regarding the declining trend,if not numbers.

The Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy,whose data and analysis are often seen as critical of the Government, said in the firstweek of April that the overall unemployment rate came down from 8.1 per cent in February2022 to 7.6 per cent in March. The Ficci quarterly survey of manufacturing also hintsat buoyancy in the job market. “There seems to be an improvement in employment cre-ation by the sector as compared to the previous quarter (Q-3 of 2021-22), where only25 per cent of the respondents were looking at hiring in next few months. This percent-age has improved significantly to 53 per cent of the respondents in Q-1 2022-23 whoare now looking at hiring additional workforce in the next three months,” the survey,which was released on Monday, said. But the magnitude of the unemployment crisis isso huge that the improvements recorded appear to be too inconsequential to make abig dent to it. Unsurprisingly, a Government job — with the security of tenure, the socialsecurity benefits, etc — seems like a boon. Concomitantly, its removal, or perceptionof removal, looks nothing but betrayal; it becomes more painful when there is an acutepaucity of jobs elsewhere. This pain is getting manifested in the stir, which has becomeviolent in many places, against the Agnipath scheme. While short-term measures areneeded to end the agitation, medium- and long-term steps are also required to addressthe longstanding issue of unemployment. The nation can ill afford stirs at the time ofeconomic recovery.

Fuelling the fire

A PROPER ANALYSIS IS NEEDEDSir — In spite of widespread protestsagainst the Agnipath scheme, it seems theCentre is stuck upon not rolling it back.The three service chiefs and PM NarendraModi, with no direct reference to thescheme, said it is India’s ‘misfortune’ thatgood intentions get trapped in politics.Almost 90 per cent of defence job aspi-rants participated in agitations against thescheme. It is ridiculous to note that Lt GenAnil Puri, the additional secretary in theDepartment of Military Affairs, said thatall those who want to become part of thearmed forces under the Agnipath schemewill have to give a certificate that they werenot part of any protest.

Even the comments made by UnionTourism Minister G Kishan Reddy andBJP leader Kailash Vijayvargiya display apoor mindset. Reddy says that thoseselected as Agniveers would be impart-ed the skills of drivers, washermen, bar-bers, electricians and other professionals.Vijayvargiya offered to hire Agniveers athis party’s office as security guards. Theyouth work hard because they want toserve the country for by joining the Army,not because they want to be appointed asguards outside the BJP office.

Zakir Hussain | Kazipet

MIDAIR SCARE FOR SPICEJET PASSENGERSSir — The airports in India are facing theproblem of bird hit as there are a num-ber of abattoirs near their vicinity andthere is a threat to flight operations. Thesituation is turning worse. The Spicejetaircraft took off from the Patna airportwhen the engine was hit by a bird and thepeople, seeing the plane in flames, report-ed the matter to the airport authorities andthat helped take timely action. Thankfully,all the 185 fliers were safe as the planereturned to the airport with all securitymeasures in place.

The aircraft landed safely in Patna andthe passengers safely deboarded. Post-flight inspection showed a bird hit withthree damaged fan blades. Fortunately,

timely action was taken to avoid a majortragedy. Fire engines were deployed at theairstrip where the emergency landing wasmade though the flames had, by then,come under control. The Patna airauthorities should ensure strict action andsee that the presence of abattoirs causingdangerous situations and the danger incausing human deaths due to planecrash at landing or takeoff is avoided. Itis time to address the pathetic position ofairports on priority basis.

CK Subramaniam | Navi Mumbai

CHESS HONOUR FOR INDIASir — India hosted the Chess Olympiadfor the first time and in Asia after 30 years,which has been organised since 1927. Inreality, Russia’s loss has been India’s gain.Chess has always been seen as an analo-gy for war, but a real war, Russia’s invasionof Ukraine, has sent the entire chess worldinto turmoil. Due to this war, theInternational Chess Federation (FIDE)revoked Russia’s rights to host the 2022

Chess Olympiad as well as the 93rd FIDECongress, while Russia and Belarus havealso been suspended from playing in thetournament.

With 188 registered countries, Indiais set to witness a huge congregation ofnations for a sporting event for the firsttime. To make India’s Chess Olympiadmemorable, FIDE introduced anOlympic-style torch relay tradition forits Olympiad from this year and namedIndia as the starting flame point. FIDEPresident Arkady Dvorkovich handedover the torch to Prime MinisterNarendra Modi, who gave it to five-time world champion ViswanathanAnand and flagged off the first ever-torch relay for the Chess Olympiadahead of the 44th edition, and made aceremonial move on the chessboardagainst woman Grandmaster KneruHumpy.

Bidyut Kumar Chatterjee | Faridabad

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

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Ado about nothingIt now transpires that Pakistan can’t take medical

care of its ex-President Pervez Musharraf

PICTALK

Trade union members march during a demonstration to protest against the rising cost of living, in Brussels AP

LETTERS TO TTHE EDITOR

Acute and persisting job crisis has inflamedpeople’s passions against the Agnipath scheme

Ever since the Modi Government took overthe reins of the nation in 2014, the much-hyped promise of bringing back black

money from Swiss banks within stipulated timehas remained unfulfilled. The data fromSwitzerland’s Central bank, released recently,states that Britain topped the list while India wasplaced 44 on the list for foreign clients’money. It reveals a trend that has often beenassociated with parking money by unethicalmeans. But there is more to it than meets the

eye. There has been a spurt in parking fundsby Indian individuals and firms in Swissbanks, including through India-based branch-es from ̀ 6,625 crore in 2019 to ̀ 30,500 crorein 2021.

This can be attributed to their reputationfor privacy and a combination of conditions thatensure returns and make them lucrative as wellas a safe haven for foreign deposits. What iseven more dangerous is the fact that citizens’hard-earned money flows out of the country thatwould have otherwise remained in India andcould have been used as a key driver for theeconomy. Another area of concern is the mootquestion why even clean money is leaving thecountry? The phenomenon of untaxed slushfunds gaining safe parking lots abroad is alsobaffling. A study reveals that about 8,000 highnetworth individuals could navigate out of Indiaowing to stringent tax rules.

Vijay Singh Adhikari | Nainital

Funds parked in tax havens

SOUNDBITEOur cooperation(with Bangladesh)has been taken toa higher levelover the pastyear.

External Affairs Minister—S Jaishankar

Our (the US-lednations againstRussia) maintask is to ensurethat time is onUkraine’s side.

British PM—Boris Johnson

I was asked if I’d

consider contest-

ing (Prez poll) if

a consensus was

to arise.

Mahatma Gandhi’s grandson

—Gopalkrishna Gandhi

Tough condi-tions with theweather, buthappy to get myfirst win of theseason.

Javelin star—Neeraj Chopra

I don’t understand

why non-Hindi

films are called

regional films, to

begin with.

Actor

—Aditi Rao Hydari

Radical Bosnian Croatpolitical forces attempted thesame, but under US pressurein 1994 allied with Bosniaks(Bosnian Muslims) and creat-ed the Federation of Bosniaand Herzegovina. After muchfighting and political mas-querading, Serb forcesadvanced and took control ofmajor portions of the country.The coalition fought back, asa result thousands — Serbs,Bosniaks and Croats, wereforced to leave homes. TV, anew medium in the 90s inBosnia, was harnessed tospread hate propaganda. It isduring the fighting years, theUN decided to create UN safezones — the first time ever! —in vulnerable pockets to pre-vent genocides. Dutch peace-keepers were protectingSrebrenica near the Serbianborder. The UN military offi-cials guaranteed safety to peo-ple of Srebrenica, who hadnow doubled to over 60,000due to the ongoing ethnicviolence. Now Serb forcesclaimed that the UN safe areawas being used to carry outattacks on nearby Serb villageand Ratko Mladic reacted bypersonally leading the assaulton the UN safe zone. First,Serbs stopped all supplies,starving not only the peoplebut the UN peacekeepers of

food and medicines.As the crisis aggravated,

supplies had to be airdroppedin mountains. Desperate res-idents risked their lives every-day just to get flour or sugar.Then Mladic’s troops usedYugoslav armies’ Russian tanksand artillery to shell UN postsin Srebrenica and finallymoved in to capture the UNstronghold. Despite Srebrenica’sUN commander’s repeatedrequest for air support againstheavy tanks, the UN highcommand did nothing. Withthe UN stronghold overrunand looted, peacekeepers heldhostage, residents of Srebrenicawere now at the mercy ofMladic’s troops. AndSrebrenica was lost without abullet being fired by the Dutchpeacekeepers in its defence.

After nights of plundering,rapes and murder, womenand children (12 and below)were separated from the men.The women and children weresent to inhumane prisoncamps and the men werestarved and shot! ReportedlySerb platoons were doingseven-hour shifts shootingblindfolded, unarmedMuslims. Serb resisters weretreated as Muslims sympathis-ers and shot, too. Thousandswere killed within days andburied in mass graves. The

world watched and Srebrenicawas uprooted forever.

Later, the InternationalCriminal Tribunal forYugoslavia (ICTY) accusedand sentenced Mladic andKaradzic for war crimes,genocide included. Miloševicwas the first head of Stateaccused of war crimes afterWWII. He died during thetrial.

Although ICTY has endedits ad hoc mandate recently,denial of genocide committedin Srebrenica became part ofpolitical “games” not only inBalkans but other pro-ultranationalist circles. The con-scious forgetting of the geno-cide indicates that the lastphase of genocide is com-plete. Srebrenica today hasalmost no Muslims, and it’spart of the Serb-majorityRepublika Srpska — Serbrepublic within Bosnia andHerzegovina. Most of Muslimslie dead, some in the gravesand others numb with painand indignation, perhaps ques-tioning how many more inno-cent lives be lost before justiceis delivered.

(The author writes on agri-culture and environment, andis a former Director — Policy& Outreach, National SeedAssociation of India. The viewsexpressed are personal.)

Most of the Muslims lie dead, in graves and in numbness, questioninghow many more innocent lives will be lost before justice is delivered

DESPITESREBRENICA’S UN

COMMANDER’SREPEATED REQUEST

FOR AIR SUPPORTAGAINST HEAVY

TANKS, THE UN HIGHCOMMAND DID

NOTHING. WITH THEUN STRONGHOLD

OVERRUN ANDPEACEKEEPERS HELD

HOSTAGE,SREBRENICA WASLOST WITHOUT A

BULLET BEING FIREDBY THE DUTCH

PEACEKEEPERS INITS DEFENCE

INDRA SHEKHAR SINGH

A silent prayerfor Srebrenica

As July 11 passes, myheart bleeds forSrebrenica. I rememberthe attack on the UN-

protected safe area at Srebrenicaand the genocide that followed;an act so egregious that even thetwo international tribunals at TheHague shivered at the evidenceof butchering of people. Imaginean entire civilian population,first starved, raped and finallymassacred for revenge. Peoplehigh on hate killed other people,political experts are quick to callthe victims — Muslims and theaggressors — Serbs, but myheart tells me that the real victimwas humanity, and the winnerwas greed. Allow me to narratea genocide that happenedbetween July 11 and 22, 1995, innewly independent Bosnia andHerzegovina. This is story ofSrebrenica — Silver Town.

Now Srebrenica is an oldmining town, where silver andother metals were mined sinceRoman times. Over time, itchanged political overlords, butthe life of people remained con-stant. They lived a hard moun-tainous mining town life as theirancestors had. But trouble start-ed brewing with breakup of for-mer Yugoslavia. After the 1990s,as a socialist country non-alignedcountry in the new unipolarworld, her days were numbered.Marshall Tito’s death in 1980 hadYugoslavia practically leaderless,and its federal “socialism” wasthreatened by new radical ethno-nationalism. 1992 to 1995 werethe bloodshed years which beganwhen Croatia and Slovenia —two most developed republicswithin Yugoslavia — seceded perthe Yugoslavian Constitution,but Yugoslav army troops weresent in. After an armed resis-tance, Croatia and Sloveniareminded sovereign. But by theninsurgency spread to Bosnia.The Serbian and Bosnian Serbsleadership led by SlobodanMiloševic (Serbia) and RadovanKarad�ic was supported byYugoslav army from Belgradeand its proxy in Bosnia andHerzegovina Army of RepublikaSrpska (VRS) of Ratko Mladic tocarve out another Serb republic,perhaps to complete the mythi-cal ‘Greater Serbia’ destiny.

evident from some countries insist-ing on ‘safeguards’ and ‘transparen-cy’ obligations after it invoked thepeace clause in 2018-19.

Against this backdrop, India waslooking for a “permanent solution.”It had asked for “total exemption forsupport to PSH for food security.”Alternatively, it sought to rework theformula for computation of theAMS by removing flaws under theAoA. The flaws include (i) takingERP for the year 1986-88; (ii) notexcluding subsidies given to theresource-poor farmers; (iii) using theentire output instead of quantity pro-cured for PSH.

These flaws “artificially” inflatethe AMS thereby pushing Indiansubsidy beyond the 10 per centthreshold, hence vulnerable toviolation of its obligations underthe WTO.

Despite its overwhelmingimportance to India and otherdeveloping countries, the issue wasnot even put on the table (it has beendeferred to the next ministerial).Meanwhile, the MC-12 decidedagainst any export restrictions onWorld Food Programme (WFP)purchases for food security in othercountries. For India, the only savinggrace is that it may restrict exportsfor “domestic food security.”

The second major issue wasIndia’s demand of Trade-RelatedAspects of Intellectual PropertyRights (TRIPS) waivers for allCovid-related therapeutics and diag-nostics, besides vaccines. Againstthis, the MC-12 has granted apatent waiver (albeit ‘temporary’ and‘limited’) only for Covid-19 vaccineswhich will allow India to authoriseproduction of patented vaccineswithout taking consent of the patentholder for domestic requirementsand exports.

War against the Covid pandem-

ic has to embrace all the three crit-ical dimensions—testing, tracking,and treatment. Apart from the vac-cine, diagnostics and therapeuticstoo need to be supplied at affordablerates.

To say “A decision on thesewould be taken in six months” is nei-ther here nor there.

Even for the vaccines patentwaiver, putting a time limit of fiveyears is too restrictive consideringthat Covid- 19 is here to stay anda host of new variants popping upevery now and then, and even theWorld Health Organization(WHO) cautioning people againstoccurrence of the pandemic everysix months.

As for the third issue on fish-eries subsidies, in sync with theprinciples of “polluter pays” and“common but differentiated respon-sibilities,” India had proposed thatdeveloped countries abolish theirsubsidies over the next 25 years evenwhile exempting developing coun-tries from over-fishing subsidy pro-hibition within these 25 years.

The MC-12 has decided that “nosubsidies will be given for fishing inareas outside EEZ (exclusive eco-nomic zone) or RFMOs (regionalfisheries management organiza-tion); these are inter-governmentalorganizations having competence toadopt legally binding conserva-tion/management measures regard-ing fisheries especially in the highseas as set out in the 1982 UN Lawof the Sea Convention and describedfurther in the 1995 UN Fish StocksAgreement).”

It has also agreed to check ille-gal, unreported and unregulated(IUU) fishing and mooted “verystrict controls” on overfishing so thatfish stocks are restored.

This is a path-breaking decisionthat should help in curbing fishing

(rather over-fishing) by big playersin the deep ocean. However, itwould have been better if time lineswere agreed upon for abolishingsuch subsidies and mechanismslaid down for its enforcement andmonitoring.

These decisions don’t impact us,as the curbs are only on subsidies forIUU fishing and fishing outside EEZor RFMOs, and India does notindulge in any such activities.

The fourth issue pertains to themoratorium on customs duty on e-commerce. The developed coun-tries have been the prime beneficia-ries of this arrangement in voguesince 1998. India was keen that itshould go as developing countriesare losing billions of dollars induties foregone. Yet, it was decid-ed to extend the moratorium till thenext MC-13 or March 2024,whichever is earlier.

India could have used it as a bar-gaining chip to make developedcountries agree to a ‘permanent solu-tion to the PSH program for foodsecurity.’

Here, it may be worth recalling:In the WTO-General Council (GC)meeting in Geneva (July 31, 2014),India had insisted on a time boundaction plan to find a permanentsolution on food security to be exe-cuted before end of 2014 co-termi-nus with approval of TradeFacilitation Agreement (TFA)—an area of great interest to devel-oped countries. But it let thisopportunity go in December 2014.At the WTO, India has missed thebus yet again.

To conclude, at MC-12, it isadvantage developed countries allthe way, though India was able toavoid further harm to its interests,courtesy deft handling of the issuesby the Indian team led byCommerce Minister Piyush Goyal.

WTO MC-12: Defthandling by India

THERE SHOULD BE NO POLITICS ON SUBJECTSOF NATIONAL IMPORTANCE… BUT IT ISHAPPENING ON THE AGNIPATH SCHEME.—BJP SPOKESPERSONSAMBIT PATRA

THERE’S NO BIGGER PATRIOT THAN YOU(DEFENCE ASPIRANTS). OPEN YOUR EYES AND

RECOGNISE FAKE NATIONALISTS.—CONGRESS LEADER

PRIYANKA GANDHI VADRA

Beginning in 2015, International Yoga Day is celebrated all over theworld on June 21. The proposal to celebrate Yoga Day was firstproposed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his address to the

United Nations General Assembly on September 27, 2014.Yoga is known for its amazing health benefits. It enables the unity

of mind, body, and spirit. Different forms of yoga benefit our physicaland mental health in different ways. There is mention of yoga in Indianmythology. It is said that Lord Shiva gave birth to this art, known asAdi Yogi. However, the first systematic presentation of yoga was byPatanjali in the classical period. One of the eight limbs of yoga ispranayama, which focuses on breathing. The combination of all theeight limbs of yoga is called Ashtanga Yoga. Centuries ago, MaharishiPatanjali described the eight doors of liberation, which we now callAshtanga Yoga. Today we know only some parts of Ashtanga Yoga likeAsana, Pranayama, and Dhyana. The first of the eight limbs of PatanjaliYoga is Yama, which is derived from the word ‘sanyam’.

Yama also has five parts. Ahimsa: not to harm anyone by thought,word, and deed. Satya: knowledge of truth beyond illusion. Asteya:

absence of theft. Brahmacharya: keeping the conscious one with theBrahman element. Aparigraha: absence of acquisitiveness.

Niyama is the second part of yoga, which also has five parts. Shauch:inner and outer cleanliness. Contentment. Tapa: striving hard. Svadhyaya:study to understand the self-parmatma. Ishvara Pranidhana: surrenderto God and renunciation of ego. The part of yoga that is most clearlymanifested in our times era is Asana. Maharishi Patanjali, while explain-ing its state, has said, “Sthirtam sukham asanam.” That is, the stabili-ty of the body, bliss, and ease of mind are the asanas. The practice ofexpanding the subtle life force in the body is Pranayama. The YogaYajnavalkya Samhita describes the combination of awareness of prana(incoming breath) and apana (outgoing breath) as pranayama. With thehelp of breath, we can cultivate both body and mind.

The Hatha Yoga texts say 'Chale vaate, chalam chittam', which meansthat our mind becomes sharp by having a strong breath, and by har-monising breath, there is peace of mind. With the awareness of breath,Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment. Guru Nanak told the watch-fulness of every breath as the key to connecting with God.

These days, we often mistake the practice of dharana for medita-tion. Dharana is a practice to concentrate the mind. It has many formslike Prana-dharana, i.e., focus on breath, jyoti or bindu tratak, etc. Dharanais actually the state before meditation; it controls the flood of thoughtsof the mind and gives us peace. The Yoga Sutras say that when dha-rana persists, meditation takes place, which is the next part of yoga.Clearly we cannot meditate; rather it happens. Whatever method or processwe adopt in the name of meditation can only lead us towards dharana,i.e., concentration. Meditation is that state where the doer, method, orprocess is all finished; there is just an emptiness like we prepare beforesleep, but this preparation is not a guarantee of sleep; it comes sud-denly, i.e., it happens.

Samadhi, which is the next part of yoga, comes from the word samad-hi which means equanimity. In the Yoga Yajnavalkya Samhita, the stateof communion of the soul with the Supreme Soul is called Samadhi.Maharishi Patanjali says that when the yogi becomes absorbed in hisreal form (Sat Chit Anand Swaroop), then that state of the seeker is calledSamadhi. Samadhi is the manifestation of the perfect yogic state.Expressing this state, Kabir says, "Whenever I swing, then I do parikra-ma." Buddha has called it Nirvana and Mahavira has called it Kaivalya.

The author is Assistant Professor, Mechanical EngineeringDepartment, Kanpur Institute of Technology

HYDERABAD | TUESDAY | JUNE 21, 2022

07

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FIRSTCOLUMN

YOGA ENABLES UNITYOF BODY, MIND, SOUL

POINTCOUNTERPOINT

UTTAM GUPTA

Today is the International Yoga Day

AT WTO,DEVELOPEDCOUNTRIES

SET THEAGENDA OF

MEETINGS. THEOUTCOME OF

THE JUSTCONCLUDED

12THMINISTERIALCONFERENCE

(MC12) ISBROADLY INSYNC WITH

THIS TRENDSEEN IN

THE PAST

The author is a policy analyst

(www.uttamgupta.com)

The government’s recentlyannounced Agnipathscheme for recruitment of

youth in the three wings of mil-itary—the Army, the Air Forceand the Navy—has been metwith violent agitation in manyparts of the country.

The scheme, ‘a tour of duty,’usually is a period spent by sol-diers in combat or in a hostileenvironment. This scheme pre-cisely provides this opportuni-ty to the patriotic and motivat-ed youth to serve the defenceforces. Many countries allowtheir youthsto serve for a fewyears in the Army which bringsa feeling of patriotic fervouramong them. It also createsreserve combatants at the timeof emergency.

In India, the governmentallows a 10-year service, with anoption of a four-year extension,

as commissioned officersthrough the short-service com-mission. Previously—during1948, 1962 and 1965—officerswere recruited under theEmergency Commission tomeet the shortage.

The Agnipath scheme is asimilar scheme for the non-offi-cer cadre with the difference thatit would be the only way to enterthree Indian defence forces. Ifimplemented properly basedon merit and transparency, it willbe one of the most forward-looking revolutionary stepstaken by the government post-Independence for the moderni-sation of the defence forces.

The scheme will make theIndian military younger: theaverage age of soldiers, which is32 years now, will be reduced to26 year in due course. This willalso reduce other expenditures

which can be diverted to mod-ernise and make them techno-logically equipped to fight mod-ern wars, while promotingyoungsters to join armed forcesfor a short period.

The question is: why hasthe scheme become politicised?Youths have taken to the streets,with many indulging in vio-lence and arson. There areinstitutions and forums toexpress dissent but of late hooli-ganism and road blockageshave become the norm. Most of

the time, such stirs are takenover by external as well asinternal anti-national forces.Such protests cause immensehardship for the people.

The government to a certainextent must share the blame.Howsoever good a scheme maybe, it must be introduced afterwide consultations with thestakeholders. Especially afterthe experience of farmers’ agi-tation, one would have thoughtthat the government wouldlearn this lesson; for good lawshad to be rolled back by PrimeMinister Narendra Modi.

For the Agnipath schemethe Ministry of Defence shouldhave invited public commentsand then announced it ratherthan the government now say-ing 10 per cent vacancies inCentral police organisationswill be reserved for Agniveers

and also increased the upperage to 23.

A few anti-social elementsbacked by frustrated leaders arewaiting to cash in on suchopportunities, as they knowthey can force a rollback and thepolice cannot take strong actioneven if they indulge in arson andviolence.

As a student of resourcemanagement, this writer wouldlike to suggest the PrimeMinister and the DefenceMinister that the concept ofAgnipath is definitely a revolu-tionary one which needs to beintroduced in a gradual manner.We must also be aware aboutour socio-economic conditions.

Further, there is the possi-bility of the militarisation ofyouth. Some thought should goto a difficult question: what willhappen if the energies of the

youth, with four years of mili-tary training, are not chan-nelised carefully after theirreturn from the Army.

The government shouldcontinue to fill up at least 50 percent posts in technical wings fora few years directly on a regularbasis till the efficacy of Agnipathis ensured. Second, there is noprovision for Gorkhas of Nepalwho are a very vital part of theIndian Army and a shiningexample of Indo-Nepal ties.

Third, the caste, religion andregion-wise constitutions of reg-iments must not be abandonedas it has been a big motivation-al factor. Fourth, it should bepossible to have a provision offour years’ extension for theAgniveers without any pensionliability. Fifth, the governmentmust suitably enhance itsmonthly contribution, allow

dearness allowance and give agratuity of 10 lakh in addition towhat has been promised.

Sixth, the insurance cover of`44 lakh for a young Agniveeris on a lower side. It should beat least `1 crore.

Last but not the least, theverbal and executive instructionsare pooh-poohed by politicalleaders and bureaucracy.Therefore, some percentage ofposts in police and other uni-formed services, both underthe Central as well as in statesand also in private sector shouldbe reserved for eligibleAgniveers by an Act ofParliament. If these suggestionsare considered, the scheme maywell change the future of Indiandefence forces as well as themindset of our youth.

After all, change is a mustand it is inevitable.

Govt can offer 50 per cent posts in technical wings for a few years directly, increase DA, gratuity and insurance cover

There are ways to make Agnipath more acceptable

The writer is Chairman,Centre for ResourceManagement and

Environment

VK BAHUGUNA

RISHABH MISHRA

At the World Trade Organization(WTO), even as all decisions aretaken by consensus and everymember country has equal voice,

when it comes to actual confabulations, thereare glaring inequalities. The developedcountries—the US, the European Union, theUK, Australia, etc.—exercise disproportion-ately greater influence. They set the agen-da of meetings, and get away with what theywant even as developing countries aremade to concur.

The outcome of the just concluded 12thMinisterial Conference (MC12) at theWTO headquarters in Geneva (June 12-17) is broadly in sync with this trend seenin the past.

For India, the most crucial area was ‘apermanent solution to the public stock-holding (PSH) program for food security.’Under this program, government agencieslike Food Corporation of India (FCI) buyagri-produce such as wheat, rice/paddy, andcoarse cereals from farmers at the mini-mum support price (MSP) and distributeit at a subsidised price of Rs 1/2/3 per kgto meet the needs of India’s poor and vul-nerable population.

The excess of MSP plus handling, stor-age and distribution cost over the realisa-tion from sale (that is, Rs 1/2/3 per kg) ispaid as subsidy from the Union Budget.This includes (a) subsidy to the farmer,being the excess of MSP of, say, rice overits international price also known asExternal Reference Price (ERP) in WTOparlance and (b) subsidy to the food con-sumer, being the excess of ERP over theprice paid (Rs 3 per kg rice).

The WTO is concerned with (a) brand-ed as “product-specific” subsidies. It is alsoconcerned with subsidies on agriculturalinputs like fertilizers, seed, irrigation, power,etc., referred to as “non-product specific”subsidies.

Under the Agreement on Agriculture(AoA) of the WTO, the sum total of prod-uct and non-product specific subsidies oraggregate measurement support (AMS) iscapped at 10 per cent of the value of agri-cultural production for a developing coun-try. If a member country gives AMS inexcess of 10 per cent, it is a violation.

At present, India enjoys protectionunder a “peace clause” which was sanctionedin the 9th MC held in Bali (2013). It said“if a developing country gives AMS in excessof 10 per cent, no member will challenge thisuntil 2017, when the WTO would look fora permanent solution.”

In the General Council (GC) held inDecember 2014, this sanction was modifiedto say “the peace clause will stay till a per-manent solution was found.”

However, the peace clause comes withseveral riders, such as submission of data onfood procurement, stockholding, distribu-tion and subsidies.

These also include establishing that sub-sidies are not “trade distorting.”

This makes India vulnerable which is

While it was advantage developed countries all the way, India was ableto avoid more harm to its interests

HYDERABAD | TUESDAY | JUNE 21, 2022 Money 08

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Automaker Kia India on Monday said its compact SUV Kia Sonet has crossed thecumulative sales milestone of 1.5 lakh units since launch in September 2020.Themodel has contributed over 32 per cent of the company's total sales and commands

almost 15 per cent share in the highly competitive compact SUV category, Kia India said ina statement."The Sonet has won several accolades not only for its design, performance, andpracticality but also by creating favourabilityfor iMT (intelligent manual transmission) andintroducing the only Diesel AT in thesegment," Kia India Chief Sales OfficerMyung-sik Sohn said.In April this year, hesaid, "We added four airbags as standardacross even the lower variants of Sonet,further enhancing the vehicle's safety andpropelling its popularity."Kia India said thetop variants of the model contributed to 26per cent of its overall sales, while 22 per centof buyers preferred automatic transmissionand diesel powertrain accounted for 41 percent of the total sales.

The Income Tax department has detected a "large-scale tax evasion" of over Rs 400crore after recently raiding a Tamil Nadu-based group engaged in liquor manufacturingand hospitality, the CBDT said on Monday.The raids were launched on June 15 and

more than 40 premises in cities such as Chennai, Viluppuram, Coimbatore, and Hyderabadwere covered."Undisclosed cash of Rs 3 crore and unaccounted gold jewellery worth Rs2.5 crore have been seized so far," theCBDT said in a statement.The CentralBoard of Direct Taxes (CBDT) framespolicy for the tax department.It,however, did not identify the businessgroup that is engaged in logistics,entertainment, hospitality and liquoranufacturing.An analysis of the seizeddocuments and digital gadgets"indicates that the assessee group hasindulged in large-scale tax evasionexceeding Rs 400 crore by debitingnon-genuine purchase bills in the booksof account of varied businesses."

The rupee appreciated by 7 paise to settle at 77.98 (provisional) against the US dollaron Monday as crude oil prices retreated from elevated levels.However, unabatedforeign fund outflows restricted the appreciation bias in the rupee, forex dealers said.

At the interbank forex market, the local unit opened strong at 77.98 against thegreenback and witnessed an intra-day high of 77.87 and a low of 78.03.It finally settled at 77.98, a rise of 7 paiseover its previous close of 78.05."Rupee consolidated in a broad rangedespite volatility in domestic and globalequities. Fed projection showedeconomic growth slowing to a below-trend rate of 1.7 per cent," said GaurangSomaiya, Forex & Bullion Analyst, MotilalOswal Financial Services.On thedomestic equity market front, the BSESensex ended 237.42 points or 0.46 percent higher at 51,597.84, while thebroader NSE Nifty advanced 56.65 pointsor 0.37 per cent to 15,350.15.

Rupee gains 7 paise to close at77.98 against US dollar

PNS n NEW DELHI

Industry leaders, includingMahindra Group ChairmanAnand Mahindra, RPGEnterprises Chairman HarshGoenka and Biocon LtdChairperson Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw on Monday came out insupport of the Agnipathscheme, saying it has largepotential for employment ofyouth in the corporate sector.

Mahindra also expresseddismay over the violenceagainst the scheme whileasserting that the farm equip-ment to aerospace conglomer-ate welcomes the opportunityto recruit trained, capable andyoung people under the pro-gramme.

The Agnipath scheme,

announced on June 14, pro-vides for the recruitment ofyouths between the age brack-et of 17-and-half years to 21 foronly four years with a provisionto retain 25 per cent of them for15 more years.

Later, the governmentextended the upper age limit to23 years for recruitment in2022. Protests have erupted inseveral states against theCentre's scheme.

Expressing his opinion onthe scheme, Mahindra saidthere is a large potential foremployment of "Agniveers" inthe corporate sector.

"Saddened by the violencearound the #Agneepath pro-gram. When the scheme wasmooted last year I stated-& Irepeat-the discipline & skills

Agniveers gain will make thememinently employable,"Mahindra tweeted.

The Mahindra Group wel-

comes the opportunity torecruit such trained and capa-ble young people, he furthersaid.

When asked by a Twitteruser on what post will be givenby the Mahindra Group toAgniveers, he responded,

"Large potential for employ-ment of Agniveers in theCorporate Sector. With leader-ship, teamwork & physicaltraining, Agniveers providemarket-ready professionalsolutions to industry, coveringthe full spectrum from opera-tions to administration & sup-ply chain management."

Responding to Mahindra'stweet, Goenka said,"The RPGgroup too welcomes the oppor-tunity to employ the Agniveers.I do hope other corporates willalso join us to take this pledgeand assure our youths of afuture."Expressing similarviews, Mazumdar-Shaw tweet-ed:"I firmly believe thatAgniveers will have a distinctadvantage in recruitment in theindustrial job market."

‘Agnipath has large job potential in corporate sector for youths’

I-T dept detects over Rs 400-cr tax evasionafter raids on liquor, hospitality group in TN

PNS n NEW DELHI

Markets regulator Sebi has setup an advisory committee onhybrid securities, which willmake recommendations forgiving a fillip to the growth ofsuch instruments, includingmeasures focusing on ease ofissuance and attracting domes-tic and global capital.

The 20-member committeewill be chaired by K V Kamath,Chairperson of National Bankfor Financing Infrastructureand Development, an updatewith the Securities andExchange Board of India (Sebi)showed.In addition, the com-mittee comprises top level offi-cials of infrastructure invest-ment trusts (InvITs), real estateinvestment trusts (REITs),finance as well as legal expertsand representatives of Sebi.

REITs and InvITs are classi-fied as hybrid securities andthey are relatively new invest-ment instruments in the Indiancontext but are extremely pop-ular in global markets.

The committee has beengiven the task of advising Sebion issues related to develop-ment and regulation of prima-ry and secondary markets ofhybrid securities in the coun-try.

Further, it will identify usecase scenarios of hybrid secu-rities in the context of theinfrastructure financing needsof the Indian economy andmake recommendations fordeveloping instruments to meetthe needs of the infrastructuresector. Also, the panel willmake recommendations on

infrastructure financingthrough capital markets.

The panel will also beresponsible for making sugges-tions to facilitate greater retailparticipation in hybrid securi-ties while ensuring protectionof interest of investors andmaking recommendations fordeveloping engagements withvarious stakeholders includ-ing creating more awarenessabout hybrid securitiesamongst investors.

While a REIT comprises aportfolio of commercial realassets, a major portion of which

is already leased out, InvITscomprise a portfolio of infra-structure assets, such as high-ways and power transmissionassets.

Apart from Kamath, thecommittee has membersincluding Harsh Shah, CEOand Whole-time Director, IndiaGrid Trust; Sanjay Grewal,CEO and Executive Director,Virescent Renewable EnergyTrust; Tushar Kawedia, CFO,IRB Infrastructure Developers;Mathew George, CFO, NationalHighways Infra InvestmentManagers; Preeti Chheda, CFO,Mindspace REIT; and AravindMaiya, CFO, Tata Realty andInfrastructure.

Samarth Jagnani, ManagingDirector at Morgan Stanley;Kranti Mohan, Partner at CyrilAmarchand Mangaldas;Pratichi Mishra, Associate atS&R Associates; Rakesh Vyas,Fund Manager at HDFCMutual Fund; andGopikrishnan M S, FinanceProfessional are the othermembers of the committee.

Sebi forms advisory committeeon hybrid securities

PNS n NEW DELHI

Industry body ISSDA onMonday termed the govern-ment's move to impose duty onsteel products as "knee jerk"action which came as a shockto domestic steel industry.

On May 21, the governmentannounced waiving of customsduty on the import of some rawmaterials, including coking coaland ferronickel, used by thesteel industry. Also, the duty onexports of iron ore was hiked byup to 50 per cent and on a fewsteel intermediaries to 15 percent.In a statement, K K Pahuja,president of Indian StainlessSteel Development Association(ISSDA), said: "The knee jerkaction of imposing 15 per centexport duty came as a shock todomestic steel industry, whichwas charting new capex plansto meet government's ambi-

tious target of doubling steelcapacity to 300 million tonnesby 2030."

The government's objectivebehind the move was to cooldown steel prices. However, theprices anyway had startedshowing a downward trend, theindustry expert said.

Pahuja, however, hailed thegovernment's decision toreduce customs duty on certainimported raw materials.

The impact of export duty onstainless steel industry is muchharsher and unwarranted. Incase of flat rolled products ofstainless steel of width 600mm or more (HS Code 2019),the government had alreadyrevoked countervailing dutyon imports from China andIndonesia since February 2021,facilitating a free flow of sub-sidised stainless steel flat prod-ucts from Chinese companies.

Imposing duty on steel items a ‘kneejerk’ action for industry: ISSDA

PNS n KOLKATA

Signify Innovations India,erstwhile lighting divisionof Philips Eindhoven ofNetherlands, is aiming togrow by 18 per cent to 20per cent during 2022 inIndia, a top company offi-cial said.

Presently, the company isenjoying a market share ofaround 25 per cent in valueterms in a lighting solutionbusiness whose size in thecountry is close to Rs15,000 crore.Sumit Joshi,vice-chairman and manag-ing director of Signify, saidthe company manufactureshigh-end lighting solutionsunder the 'Philips' brand.

Joshi, who looks after thecompany's operations inIndia, Bangladesh, SriLanka and the Maldives,said the lighting businesswas the major revenueearner when the split hap-pened in 2017.

In 2017, the lighting andthe healthcare verticalswere split, with Signifydealing with lighting solu-tions systems.

Signify lightingsolutions aims to growby 18 per cent in 2022

Maruti Suzuki new Brezza bookingsopen; to be launched at month-end

PNS n NEW DELHI

Gold prices in the nationalcapital on Monday declinedby Rs 242 to Rs 50,735 per 10grams amid rupee apprecia-tion, according to HDFCSecurities.In the previoustrade, the yellow metal set-tled at Rs 50,977 per 10grams.

Silver also tumbled by Rs770 to Rs 60,460 per kg fromRs 61,230 per kg in the pre-vious trade.The rupee appre-ciated by 7 paise to settle at77.98 (provisional) againstthe US dollar on Monday ascrude oil prices retreatedfrom elevated levels.In theinternational market, goldwas trading higher at USD1,839 per ounce while silverwas trading flat at USD 21.60per ounce."Gold prices trad-ed steady with spot goldprices at COMEX tradingmarginally up at USD 1,839per ounce on Monday.

Gold lower by Rs 242;silver drops Rs 770

PNS n NEW DELHI

Vedanta has put on sale itsSterlite copper smelting plantat Thoothukudi in Tamil Naduafter facing a lot of hurdles inreopening the unit and hasinvited an expression for inter-est from the potential buyers.

The plant got closed in 2018following the Tamil NaduPollution Control Board'sorder over environment con-cerns.

In an advertisement in thenewspaper Vedanta in con-junction with Axis Capitalinvited an Expression ofInterest (EOI) for "sale of thestate-of-art smelter and refin-ing complex situated atTuticorin, Tamil Nadu."Thelast day to submit the EOI isJuly 4.According to Vedanta'sspokesperson, the Tuticorinplant is a national asset which

has been catering to 40 percent of the national demand ofcopper and has played an inte-gral role towards country'sself-sufficiency in copper.

"In the best interest of coun-try and the people of TamilNadu, we are exploring optionsto make sure that the plant andthe assets are best utilised tomeet growing demand of thenation," the spokesperson said.

The advertisement further

said that the plant contributesaround Rs 2,500 crore toexchequer, 12 per cent ofThoothukudi port's revenue,95 per cent market share forsulphuric acid in Tamil Nadu,direct employment to 5,000people and another 25,000indirectly through the valuechain.The plant meets higheststandards of ESG and environ-ment standards compared toglobal peers, it said.

Vedanta puts on sale its Sterlitecopper smelting plant in Tamil Nadu

Kia Sonet crosses cumulative salesmilestone of 1.5 lakh units

PNS n NEW DELHI

India is facing near-term chal-lenges in managing its fiscaldeficit, sustaining economicgrowth, reining in inflationand containing the currentaccount deficit but the coun-try is relatively better placed toweather these headwinds com-pared to other nations, thefinance ministry said in itsmonthly economic report.

Near-term challenges needto be managed carefully with-out sacrificing the hard-earnedmacroeconomic stability, theMonthly Economic Reviewsaid.

"Many countries around theworld, especially developedcountries, face similar chal-lenges. India is relatively bet-ter placed to weather thesechallenges because of its finan-cial sector stability and itsvaccination success in enablingthe economy to open up," itadded.

India's medium-termgrowth prospects remainbright as pent-up capacityexpansion in the private sectoris expected to drive capital for-

mation and employment gen-eration in the rest of thisdecade, as per the report.

Observing that the capexbudget for 2022-23 is expect-ed to underpin growth, thereport said an upside risk tothe budgeted level of gross fis-cal deficit has emerged follow-ing cuts in excise duties ondiesel and petrol.

An increase in the fiscaldeficit may cause the currentaccount deficit to widen, com-pounding the effect of costlierimports, and weaken the valueof the rupee thereby, furtheraggravating external imbal-ances, creating the risk (admit-

tedly low at this time) of a cycleof wider deficits and a weakercurrency, it said.

"Rationalising non-capexexpenditure has thus becomecritical, not only for protectinggrowth supportive capex butalso for avoiding fiscal slip-pages.

Depreciation risk to rupee,however, still remains as longas net Foreign PortfolioInvestor (FPI) outflows contin-ue in response to the increasein policy rates and quantitativetightening in advancedeconomies as they wage a pro-longed battle to calm inflation,"it said.

‘India faces near-term challenges;better placed to deal with them’

Air India considering procuringover 200 new planesPNS n DOHA

Tata Group-owned Air Indiais considering buying morethan 200 new planes with 70per cent of them being nar-row-bodied aircraft, aviationindustry sources said onSunday.While Air India haszeroed in on Airbus's A350wide-bodied aircraft for theprocurement, the talks withAirbus and Boeing for narrow-bodied aircraft is still on, theysaid.A wide-bodied plane likeAirbus A350 has a bigger fueltank that allows it to travellonger distances such as theIndia-US routes.

Air India has not bought asingle aircraft since 2006 whenit placed orders for purchasing111 aircraft 68 from the US-based aircraft manufacturerBoeing and 43 from Europeanaircraft manufacturer Airbus.

The Tata Group took con-

trol of Air India on January 27after successfully winning thebid for the airline on October8 last year.On the sidelines of78th annual general meetingof International Air TransportAssociation, aviation industrysources said Air India is con-sidering buying 200 newplanes. The share of narrow-bodied aircraft to that of wide-bodied planes will be 70:30.

They said that the decisionon which narrow-bodiedplane to buy to go for AirbusA320 family aircraft orBoeing's 737Max aircraft is yetto be taken.

PNS n NEW DELHI

The country's largest carmakerMaruti Suzuki India on Mondayannounced opening of book-ings for the upcoming newversion of its compact SUVBrezza.The new Brezza, to belaunched at the end of themonth, will come with featuressuch as electric sunroof alongwith an array of sophisticated

new-age tech, comfort, conve-nience and connected features,the company said in a state-ment.It will also have a next gen-eration powertrain with 6-speedautomatic transmission option,it added without disclosingdetails.Customers can pre-bookthe new Brezza with an initialpayment of Rs 11,000 at any ofthe company's Arena show-room or from its website, it said.

PNS n MUMBAI

Snapping a six-day losing run,equity indices settled in thegreen after a highly volatile ses-sion on Monday, with the Sensexclimbing 237 points amid posi-tive cues from European mar-kets.

The BSE benchmark gained237.42 points or 0.46 per cent tosettle at 51,597.84. During theday, it hit a high of 51,714.61 anda low of 51,062.93.

The NSE Nifty ended 56.65points or 0.37 per cent higher at15,350.15.

From the Sensex pack,Hindustan Unilever, HDFC,Wipro, UltraTech Cement, AsianPaints and HDFC Bank wereamong the biggest gainers, climb-ing as much as 3.97 per cent.Onthe other hand, Tata Steel,IndusInd Bank, RelianceIndustries, M&M, NTPC andState Bank of India were amongthe major laggards."Positive

trends in the global marketsinspired domestic market totrade positively with large capsgaining the most while mid andsmall caps continued to tradewith cuts."Prevailing inflationarypressure and concerns over pol-icy tightening limited the upside,"said Vinod Nair, Head ofResearch at Geojit FinancialServices.In the broader market,the BSE smallcap gauge dived2.95 per cent and midcap indexdeclined by 1.39 per cent.

Among the BSE sectoralindices, metal tumbled 4.46 percent, followed by oil and gas (3.48per cent), energy (3.26 per cent),basic materials (2.30 per cent)and capital goods (2.14 per cent).

FMCG, finance, healthcare, ITand teck recorded gains.

"Markets finally heaved a sighof relief and logged steady gainsafter early optimism in keyEuropean indices promptedselective buying in IT, financeand healthcare stocks.

Markets halt 6-day losing streak; Sensex jumps 237 pts in choppy trade

PNS n NEW DELHI

Subscribers under the twoflagship pension schemesadministered by PFRDA roseby over 24 per cent from ayear ago to 5.32 crore as ofMay 31, 2022, official datashowed on Monday.

"The number of subscribersin various schemes underthe National Pension System(NPS) rose to 531.73 lakh bythe end-May 2022 from428.56 lakh in May 2021showing a year-on-yearincrease of 24.07 per cent,"the Pension Fund Regulatoryand Development Authority(PFRDA) said in a release.

Atal Pension Yojana (APY)-- the highest contributor tothe subscriber base -- regis-tered a growth of 31.6 percent to 3.72 crore by end ofMay this fiscal year.

Subscribers underPFRDA pensionschemes up 24 pc

SHIKHA DUGGAL

laya F thinks it’s impor-tant to not just viewyoga as a physical exer-cise but always also con-sider the spiritual aspect.

She understands yogaas the connection between thebody, mind and soul. Earlier agymnast, she is looking at yoga as arevolutionary movement this year

wherepeoplewill pri-

oritisetheirhealth

andwell-beingto anextraextent.

In an exclusive con-versation with us, shetells us how yoga is infull swing in her life. “It'shelping me clear my head-space a lot better, now Iknow where my endorphinsare going (she crackled). Today,I am a more positive and ener-gised being on this planet earth.There has never been a time whereI don't want to work-out, it rathermakes me feel better. As a gymnast,I was aware of the flexibilities. Iused to see these cool yoga poseson Instagram and the urge to copythose, not knowing it takes properposture and concentration. Backthen, it was dangerous for me toeven copy it, now that I realise.”

As a celebrity, she's convincingyou to add yoga to your workout

routine on this International YogaDay and wants you to move awayfrom all kinds of stress. But, is shealso just following the trend? Sheclarifies, “It's good that celebritiesare using social media as a plug-intool, because that's what it's about.It's a reflection of your daily rou-tine. Workout regime is a part ofour work. The yoga that I have putup for the public isn't the one Iperform in my yoga class, by the

way because the actual yoga ismore about the force, strength,maintaining the posture and flowand that one can't learn from anapp. I call my insta yoga, the 'show-off ' yoga (she giggled) because justafter a yoga picture, fans want theglamorous Alaya. Whatever goesinto my glam, yoga is a majorpushover to my glow.”

Basically, the ancient Indianpractice of yoga remains just as

relevant in the digital age asit was in the past.

Adding to that, shesays, “Most of us are

living a way morestressful life than

earlier and withthe help of

yoga, thefeel-good

chemi-cals

help

decreaseanxiety andimprovemood. Yoga isthe privatemoment to your-self you'll be gift-

ing in this pace of the world.Making yoga a part of our lives canhelp protect against the effects ofaging on our memory and cogni-tion too. It's scientifically proven.For people who are starting out,the first step is learning how tofocus on just the feeling of breathgoing in and out of the body, that'sall.”

The popularity of this form ofexercise has increased exponential-

ly today, and she says, “In general Iam a difficult person in real-life,but I always listen to my body. Ihave made a procrastination rule,try it for five minutes and boom, Idon't feel lazy anymore. Yoga is alifelong, non-competitive form ofexercise that allows people to con-nect with supportive communitiestoo. I understand, beginning is thehardest part but once you're in theflow, it feels good. Need not worryabout how flexible you are becauseyoga is more about mindfulness forme.” She advises beginners to cre-ate a synergy with their yogainstructor, begin with short ses-sions of yoga, and make it a habitbecause it will lead to the improve-ment of life.

A

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TuesdayJune 21, 2022

Are you plan-ning to relo-cate soon? If

you answered yes, we’reassuming you’ve figuredout where everything is.Moving larger homethings is easier to managebecause they are visibleand quicker to pack, butyour high-value objectsdemand special attention.

High-value or preciousitems are frequently senti-mental or have a highfinancial value, and somemay be your valuedbelongings.

While a professionalteam will do all possibleto secure your belongings,there is something thatyou can handle on yourown.

So how will yourelocate your pre-cious art pieces

safely? Nitin OMahipal,

ManagingDirector,Mega FreightMovers, tellshow.

Assesstheitemsthor-oughly

It isessential to con-sider and note

each of your price-less possessions. Make

a list of the items you’ll becarrying and make adetailed note of their con-dition. Sorting themshould be done carefully,as certain valuables aredelicate and may bedestroyed.

Wrap it up right

Wrap each fragile itemindividually in a piece ofnew bubble wrap or pack-ing paper. Wrapping frag-ile goods too tightlyincrease the risk of crack-ing or breaking them andhence wrapping themgently and taping it tightfor added protection.Consider adding a secondlayer of protection to theitem by taping malleablecardboard pieces aroundit.

Use the right pack-ing materials

Avoid saving costs byusing your grocery ordelivery boxes for theshifting of your importantitems. To secure yourpossessions, make sure

you utilizethe rightpackingsupplies.Don’tskimp onpackingmaterials.Rather,spendmoney onhigh-qual-ity pack-agingproducts.To protectthe safety

of your high-value pos-sessions, always use thebest packing materials.

Insure your items

If you hire a skilledmoving company, you willalmost certainly receivemoving insurance.Moving insurance addsan extra layer of protec-tion to your goods. Thiswill protect you in theevent that your valuablesare damaged while intransit. As a result, havingtransit insurance is essen-tial.

Mark the boxes

Mark all your valuableboxes with a visibleFragile sticker. Oncedone, let these boxes siton the top of heavy goodswith a fitted rope aroundthem to keep the box inplace and encounter theleast movement duringthe transit.

Eventually, you won’thave to worry about any-thing if you use an experi-enced packing and mov-ing company like Mega.They are available to relo-cate your items anywherefrom or to.

ThisInternational

Yoga Day, AlayaF known for herrole in JawaaniJaaneman, talks

to us about herlove for yoga,

how she looks at it as a

revolutionarymovement and

more.

Sunaina was busy finishing heroffice emails when her eight-year-old announced that Shiv

and Reena liked each other. Sheasked how he knew. He mentionedto the mother that Reena shared herchips with him, and he invited herto play on his team.

They are dating, it seems. Comeagain? The mother interrogates. Heclarified that after their class, theywere asked to work in pairs on theassignment and she asked if hewanted to help her.

Sunaina’s heart gradually slowedback to its normal pace, but she wasat a loss for what to say. We asadults think eight is too young for acrush, but crushes happen. Most

young crushes aren’t quite whatthey seem though. So, what is acrush for the little ones?

It is building a relationship out-side their comfort zone, beyondtheir family relationships. Theirconnection with other little ones isan exciting journey of liking some-one, beyond even themselves.Maybe they like sharing stationarywith them, being part of a teamwith them.

Developmental milestone-wise,between ages eight to ten, mostchildren stick to their own gender.When two children of the oppositegender spend a lot of time togetherin a platonic manner, it is defined asa crush by other peers.

“Crushes and infatuations areexciting. It is an adventure, a real-life dream. It makes your child feelhappier and positive like you havearmour, and nothing can make youfeel terrible. But crushes are super-ficial, they are based on outer looks

and our impression ofwhat the crush can giveus. There is the chancethat your child does seesomething in anotherchild which makes theirheart feel jumpy, theirtummy filled with butter-flies. Maybe someone’smathematical skills, somesmart answer, a haircut,even a giggle,” informsAarti Bakshi, thedevelopmental psy-chologist.

All this in late pri-mary and early middleschool, does that meandating? Nah. It only means

liking someone. “Well, there are limits, if you

encourage cuteness of holdinghands, daydreaming and sighing,the next steps to dating follow. Ipersonally believe that maybe, rela-tionships may be age-appropriatemuch later. Now, how to handle itas a mature adult? Don’t tease themand do not treat it as a taboo sub-ject, firstly. Balancing a talk andhelping them speak their mindhelps them make a responsible deci-sion. Avoiding goading, or pushingthem towards a relationship is a no-no. It is an innocent liking and ask-ing age-appropriate questions sup-ports them,” guides the psycholo-gist.

She further mentors, “A few morequestions can be asked, such aswhat qualities does that person havethat you like, did you ever wish thatyou had those qualities yourself,what would it be like to be appreci-ated in that way, what are your

strengths, your best qualitiesthat others might marvel at,would you have to do anythingdifferent in order to admireyourself more. Just because yourchild has a crush doesn’t meanthe crush likes them back. Acrush when reciprocated is relatedto being well-liked and perceivedas popular by peers. Every one ofus has had a crush on someonewho didn’t return the feelings, soyou can be there for emotional

support.” As adults, one needs to take

hold of the initial reaction offear, anger, surprise and

denial, amongst others.Take deep breaths in and

out and remember how all emo-tions are acceptable.

She continued, “Allow the childto express and not jump to conclu-sions. Accept their conversation.Avoiding talking and acceptingyour child’s feelings confuses them.A crush is exciting, new and usuallytransitory and passes through.Hearing your child, and acknowl-edging them helps their thinkingbrain to continue to evolve. It alsohelps them realise that their feel-ings, and their words are importantto you. Be cautious with yourwords, accusatory words affect achild's self-esteem,” she added.

Mistakes help us learn and agrowth mindset is the way out.

Crushes are also a way to self-explore oneself, self-awareness leadsto self-management. The immediateconcern of a child’s crush shouldnot morph into the overview thateverything children learn is byexperimentation. Relationships startwith knowing and loving yourselfand lead to liking someone else.Parents mirror every action a childshows. Fear-laden conversations orthreats are an absolute no. The pur-pose of a crush is to converse andexpress one’s feelings.

“Let emotion be expressed and ofcourse, parents watch out for theintentions, age difference and activ-ities your child indulges in withhis/her crush. But imagine explor-ing the infatuations of children canhelp them recognize what theymight need for themselves. A jour-ney starts with a single step, so sup-porting a child verbally and non-verbally is part of the conversation.Let’s humanise every emotion. I ama mother of three kids, I feelblessed that each of my childrentalks of all that holds their atten-tion. From crushes to a love interestand heartbreaks are all topics ofconversation, I as a parent indulgein. Dinner time family conversa-tions on my husband and myescapades are part of parenting,”she concluded.

Rel

ocat

ing

prec

ious

art p

iece

s sa

fely

Is your child talkingabout their crush?

We all havestress. Buthow we

deal with it is awhole differentstory. The next timeyou need to unwindafter a long day, trya few of Dr.SurendraChoudhry'sfavourite yogaasanas. The yogaguru tells us howinversions, forwardfolds and recliningposes help de-stress.He says, “Yoga is amind-body practicethat combines physi-cal poses, controlledbreathing, and med-itation. Yoga helpsreduce stress, lowerblood pressure andlower your heartrate. And almostanyone can do it.”Sukhasana (easypose): Sukhasanawill lengthen yourspine and open yourhips. It can alsoimprove posturalawareness, creates afoundation for med-itation practices, andcan help managestress.Balasana (child'spose): The balasanayoga or the asanahelps release anytension in the chest.The posture alsoallows you to releasetension as youreconnect to yourbreath and bringyour focus inward,naturally bringingyou to a much moreenergized statePaschimottanasana

(seated forwardbend): This posestretches your spine,shoulders, and ham-strings. It also stim-ulates the liver, kid-neys, ovaries, anduterus and can helpimprove digestion.Ananda Balasana(happy babypose):This pose canrelieve lower backpain. Calms thebrain. Helps relievestress and fatigue.Uttanasana (stand-ing forward bend):Uttanasana is a com-mon pose that gen-tly massages yourabdominal organs,calms your nervoussystem, and stretch-es your back body

The founder ofYoga Sanjivani andBoon Wellness, alsoleads us to somerelaxation benefits.

“You probablyalready know thatrelaxation is goodfor you. But its ben-efits go well beyondsoothing stress andanxiety and allowingyour body space torest and recover.Relaxation can posi-tively impact yourphysical and mentalhealth, and primari-ly for busy daysahead. Thisimproves your heartrate, improves diges-tion, eases musclepain and soreness,reduces chronicpain, increases ener-gy levels, improvessleep duration,” heconcludes.

Yoga is Alaya's

best respite

Get stressrelieved withthese asanas

10

Hyderabad Tuesday June 21, 2022 what’s brewing?

PAR

TY

Ph

oto

s b

y S

V C

ha

ry

l Nikita and Bhuvaneshwari

l Srilekha

l Sahasra Reddy

l Ritvikal urimila and Sony

SHAADI MUBARAK

Several well-known personalities from the cityincluding ministers Sabitha Indra Reddy,Koppula Eshwar, speaker Srinvas Reddy,

Sukunder Reddy, DGP Mahender Reddy, andCommissioner of Police Mahesh Bhagwat, amongmany others graced the marriage ceremony ofMohd Furqan Ahmed, grandson of MohammedMahmood Ali, Minister for Home, Gov ofTelangana.

l Mohd Furqan Ahmed and Mohammed Azam Ali

l Mohd Furqan Ahmed and Mohammed Alil Gutha Sukender Reddyl Suma

l Shikha Goel

l Pocharam Srinivas Reddy

l Mahender Reddy

l Sabitha Indra Reddy l Koppula Eshwar

l Mahesh Bhagwat

l Spandana Palli

FUN

ARCHIE

GARFIELDREALITY CHECK CROSSWORD

GINGER MEGGS

NANCY

Yesterday’s solution

CALVIN AND HOBBES

SPEED BUMP

SUDOKU

Rulesl Each row and column can

contain each number (1 to 9)exactly once.

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

ActressSpandana Palli,

amongothermodelsgraced thelogo launchof Aarnikha,an exclusivejewelleryexhibition at

Road no: 10,Banjara Hills.

JEW

EL E

XPO

l Thanmayee

The makers of Malayalam actorPrithviraj Sukumaran's nextmovie Kaduva have made the

movie's release date official.Earlier on Monday, Kaduva pro-

ducers took to their social media tomake an announcement of therelease date, along with an interest-ing poster.

As announced by them, Kaduvawill be released worldwide in the-atres on June 30.

Being a pan-India movie, Kaduvawill be released in Malayalam,Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, and Hindisimultaneously.

Touted to be a high-octane actionentertainer, the movie starsBheemla Nayak fame SamyuktaMenon as the female lead oppositePrithviraj Sukumaran.

Bollywood actor Vivek Oberoiwill be seen in an interesting role inKaduva as well.

Kaduva isdirected byShajiKailas,

while it is produced byListin Stephen andSupriya Menon under

the banners MagicFrames & PrithvirajProductions. Musicby Jakes Bejoy.

Prithviraj Sukumaran-starrer

Kaduva to release on June 30

Sampath Nandi, Sai Tej team

up for action entertainer

DirectorSampathNandi

carved a niche forhimself in mak-ing high voltageaction entertain-ers.

The directorwill next be join-ing hands withmega hero SaiDharam Tej.Producer NagaVamsi will poolresources for the

movie under hisSitharaEntertainmentsbanner. SaiDharam Tej whowas looking for astrong comebackfound this as aperfect subjectand the newmovie is going tobe SampathNandi markactioner. Thedirector tookgood time in

preparing thescript and hemade sure themovie will haveelements for dif-ferent section ofaudience, thoughhis prime target ismasses.

The film to behigh on actionwill go on floorssoon. The makerswill reveal otherdetails of the pro-ject later.

RanaDaggubati,who rose to

fame across Indiafor his most por-trayal in S.S.Rajamouli'sBaahubali, appearsto have fallen shortof the mark.

After the massivesuccess of theBaahubali duology,Rana hasn't hadmuch success, andhis supporters areworried that he'ssquandered theentire Baahubaliexcitement.

The Aranya starhas been workingon a variety of pro-jects, and his fanshave embraced his

unconventionalapproach to acting.However, sincethen, his admirershave begun to getconcerned becausehe has not achievedany sizeable hits.

Fans tell Rana tofocus on building astrong market forhimself and concen-trate on commercialfilms in order toretake control ofpopular opinion.

Virata Parvam,Rana's most recentfilm, has had a dis-mal start with week-end box-office fig-ures not encourag-ing.

“If all goesaccording to plan,

Rana's careerwill be on trackin no time. He'sa seasoned per-former. However, afew decisions weremade incorrectly,”wrote one of hissupporters on socialmedia.

Rana's participa-tion in PawanKalyan's BheemlaNayak had a biggerimpact because thefilm had two strongactors going head-to-head. Apart fromhis trials with sub-jects, this is the typeof subject Rana'sadmirers want himto choose.

11

Hyderabad | Tuesday June 21, 2022 tollywood

Rohan, who willsoon be seen

starring in 7 Days 6Nights gets candid

with The Pioneer

and shares someexclusive details

about the filmPNS | HYDERABAD

n conversation with thelead hero of 7 Days 6Nights, actor Rohan spillssome beans on his role inthe film. However justbefore that he goes back

to where he began, his parents hailfrom Guntur and his father is apilot in the Air Force, owing towhich he has got to live in severalplaces across India since child-hood. That way, he is a pan-Indiachild already.

Moreover, “I studied inHyderabad and moved to Francewhen I got a scholarship to pursueMS in Mechanical Engineering andRobotics. I have always been pas-sionate about acting. Since I haveno film background, I always hadmy doubts as to whether I wouldland offers in the film industry. Igot myself associated with theatrewhile in France. I trained as anactor. That's when I really fell inlove with acting. After completingthe theatre course, I told my par-ents about my interest to join afilm school in Europe.”

While he was at the film school,he did a showreel to showcase hisacting skills. He used to give audi-tions here in Hyderabad too. He

used to show prospective filmmak-ers and producers his showreel,which somehow Sunil garu gothold of.

He showed it to MSRaju too. At that time,Raju was planning7 Days 6 Nights,for which he waslooking at cast-ing new talents.He felt that acharacter suitsRohan the best.And Rohanjumped with joywhen the offercame his way.

He was selectedafter he gave twoauditions. Adding tothat, he says,“Mangalam is thename of my charac-ter in the film.He is some-one we

would find among our friends,someone who gets pally with girlswithout inhibitions. They don'tthink twice before initiating some-thing in life. Mangalam goes on a

bachelor's trip with his friendAnand. What happens dur-

ing that trip is the crux ofthe story.”

He has watched thefilm already. He can saythat nowhere does itmake you feel uncom-fortable. “You can hap-pily watch it with yourfriends and family.Nowhere is the contentcheap. And this film hasno similarities with the

Hollywood movie 6 Days 7Nights. I grew up watch-

ing MS Raju garu'smovies. Bagging his

film is a bigthing.

He gave blockbusters in the past. Iwas nervous on the first day of theshoot. He encouraged me by tellingme he had roped me in because heknows my potential. I focused onmy acting and everything was sort-ed by the second day.”

Rohan was a bit nervous onmeeting Sumanth Ashwin for thefirst time. He elaborated, “He is anestablished actor. He is such adown-to-earth person. He nevershows airs because he is MS Rajugaru's son.”

He has played a comedic role inthe movie and he found, “Comedyis not easy at all. But since thedirector believed that I could pull itoff after I auditioned for the role, Iwent along. His confidence waseverything. This is a new-agemovie that the youth are surelygoing to like. As an actor, I totallyenjoyed playing Mangalam. Hespeaks in Telangana slang. I am areserved person in real life.Mangalam is an extrovert person.That's why it was a bit of a chal-lenge to play the role.”

When the director first toldRohan that he has to mouth hislines in the Telangana slang, hesaid ok while being nervous.Because he has some friendsfrom Telangana. He startedconsciously interacting withthem and practiced his linesthoroughly. And, “It was funworking with the twoactresses. They are veryfriendly. I am paired oppo-site Krithika Shetty. MeherChahal is the other heroine.For both, this is their firstmovie. There are a fewmessage scenes in themovie but I can't divulgemuch. But they are not

preachy. I am in talks with acouple of movies. MS Raju

garu has been my mentor. I amopen to playing all types of roles,not just lead roles.”

I focused on my acting and then

everything was sorted: Rohan

i andamuriBalakrishna isone name thatTollywoodand audiences

across India can't missout on. Informallyreferred to as NBK, donsmany hats that of actor,politician, businessman,producer, and host.

He is set to returnwith his most famous,quirky, in-depth talkshow - Unstoppable withNBK 2. The chat show,which created a remark-

able rating on IMDB forits season 1, is all set toreturn. The show hasseen stalwarts such asMahesh Babu, AlluArjun, Mohan Babu,Ravi Teja, and RanaDaggubati in season 1.The show has createdunprecedented buzz andaggregated consumersacross the world.

The popular talk showwill soon hit the screensentering its second sea-son. Yes, expect theunexpected, as friends

and foes, star familiesand many more comeover for a friendly chatand conversation withBalakrishna. NBK willunravel different facetsof the superstars thatpromise to be fresh andendearing. aha, hasannounced that the100% Telugu OTT plat-form is bringing backthe show. NBK said, “Weare here to create memo-ries, and Unstoppable isone. So yes, we are com-ing back.”

Aha announces Unstoppable Season

2 with Nandamuri Balakrishna

n

Rana Daggubati's fans askhim to take it easy withhis experimental approach

ctressAparnaBalamurali,who playedthe femalelead oppo-

site actor Suriya indirector SudhaKongara's Tamilblockbuster SooraraiPottru, is over-whelmed at havingmet Bollywood starAkshay Kumar, who isnow playing the leadin the Hindi versionof the film.Taking toTwitter, Aparna said,“The feeling was over-whelming. Thank youAkshay Kumar sir foryour time. For beingsuch a joy!! It was apleasure to see youbecome Veer.

Forever grateful tomy Sudha Kongarama'am for everything.Missed meeting youRadhika Madan. Can'twait to see your magic

on screen.”Radhika Madan

reprises Aparna's rolein the Hindi remake.Only last week Suriyahad disclosed that hehad called on the crewof the Hindi remakeof Soorarai Pottru,which was partlyinspired by eventsfrom the life of AirDeccan founderCaptain G.R.Gopinath, and that hewas playing a cameoin the Hindi version.

The Hindi versionis being produced bySuriya's productionhouse 2DEntertainment, alongwith AbudantiaEntertainment andCape Good Films on alavish scale.

2D Entertainmentwill be making itsdebut in Hindi filmproduction with thisfilm.

a

Ace cinematogra-pher and actorNatraj Subramani,

who is now playing thelead in a number ofTamil films includingdirector Mohan GKshatriyan's upcomingfilm 'Bakasuran', saysthat he is ready to jointhe army this minute, ifhe gets the permissionto do so.

Taking to Twitter, theactor observed in Tamil,"If I get permission fromthe army, I am ready tojoin it this minute, giv-ing up everything else.Country is God."

It is unclear why theactor made such anobservation but it defi-

nitely assumes signifi-cance as it comes in thewake of the protests thathave erupted all over thecountry over the recent

Agnipath scheme, whichthe Centre has now cho-sen to introduce forrecruitment to thearmed forces.

On the films front,apart from 'Bakasuran'in which he plays thelead along with directorSelvaraghavan, Nattyalso has 'Web', a thrillerthat has been directed byHaroon. Natty has calledthe film, an awarenessfilm.

Apart from Natty, thefilm also features ShilpaManjunath andShubhapriya Malaramong others. Thatapart, Natty also has theTamil-Malayalamthriller 'Yuki', which fea-tures Kathir, Narain andAnandhi among others,and another film titled'Infinity' that is awaitingrelease.

Ready to join the Army this

minute if given opportunity: Natty

Meeting Akshay Kumar was overwhelming

for actress Aparna Balamurali

PTI n NEW DELHI

It's 8'o clock in the morningand one by one, all the

wrestlers sneak out of traininghall after the regular 90-minutesession. But not Bajrang Punia.

Drenched in sweat, Bajranggets ready for a 'plyometric'workout and slogs for another45 minutes. An athlete usesspeed and force of differentmovements to build musclepower through plyometricworkouts.

His new-found energy andenthusiasm come from encour-aging results from a few testshe underwent -- TechnobodyAssessment, FunctionalMovement Screening BodyComposition Analysis andVo2max.

There is nothing wrongwith his body, these tests affirmand help in getting rid of a"mental block" that hadstraight-jacketed the TokyoOlympics bronze medallist onthe mat.

It was this mental blockthat had tied him to an ultra-defensive approach ever sincehe suffered a knee injury aheadof the Tokyo Games last year.

He appeared in the CWGtrials in New Delhi and justabout managed to beat hiscompatriots. A few days later, hecompeted at Bolat TurlykhanovCup in Almaty and lost a bout- against Uzbekistan's AbbosRakhmonov - that he had in hisgrasp.

All because of his defensivetactics, that had triggered spec-ulations that Bajrang ispast his prime. EvenBajrang himself began todoubt his worth.

"I told my coach that Iwill attack more and play myold style but the body did notsupport me in Almaty. There isno lack of effort, I was actual-ly putting in extra effort but wasnot getting performance and

results," Bajrang said."At times I thought I will

never be able to repeat thosestupendous performances. Ifelt my body has slowed down.Something was amiss in mybody and it was consistentlyplaying in my mind," he sharedhis doubts.

But he is quick to remindthat he has overcome that self-doubting phase.

"Now I feel my best is yet tocome and you will see that."

"After coming back fromKazakhstan I underwent a fewmedical tests on the advice of

my physio Anand Dubey toassess power, speed, body bal-ance, stamina and endurance.The results are 'super' if notexcellent.

"After seeing the encourag-ing test results, I analysed thatI am doing better in training.Perhaps a mental block wasthere. It's broken."

Bajrang reveals that even anathlete of his calibre can startdoubting himself if the mindgets clogged or if the fear ofinjury grips the mind.

The 28-year-old earned apodium finish in each andevery tournament he entered inlast five years. But all of thatdidn't matter.

"I was disturbed, I knowmedia was also calling me outof concern (in Russia), but I didnot need media at that time butrehabilitation. There was moreload on left knee because ofinjury in right knee.

"I did not have a physioand was doing rehab on

my own afterOlympics. I trainedfor 8-10 days andinjured my rightknee again. The fearof getting injured

again stuck to mind,it just crippled me,my attacking

instincts."

sports 12HYDERABAD | TUESDAY | JUNE 21, 2022

PTI n BENGALURU

South Africa head coachMark Boucher termed

India seamer BhuvneshwarKumar's performance in theseries as "special" while ruingthe absence of AidenMarkram, who he feels couldhave made a lot of differencefor the Proteas over the courseof the five T20Is.

Bhuvneshwar, who nowonly plays white-ball cricket,got six wickets in four com-pleted games and gave awayonly 85 runs in 14 overs at aneconomy rate of almost sixruns per over.

"Bhuvi was special in thiswhole series as we came upagainst some quality bowling.He put us under pressure inPowerplays and barring onegame (Delhi), where we gotoff to a good start, they havedominated us with both balland bat in Powerplays,"Boucher said after the seriesended in 2-2 despite Proteasgoing 2-0 up at the onset.

However, losingMarkram due to COVID-19at the start of the series had ahuge impact, felt the formerglovesman.

"It was tough losingAiden Markram even beforewe started the first game. Wewanted to play six batters withAiden being our sixth optionand we couldn't do that,"Boucher added.

The long IPL did makethe players tired and that alsohad an effect on the final out-come, he said.

"We didn't play our bestcricket and it was quite toughon our IPL players to staythroughout the whole IPLand then come to India back-to-back as well," he explained.

"Guys are little bit tired aswell. So they will all enjoy thebreak and (having learnt a) lot

of lessons in World Cup year.And see, if we can plug a fewgaps going into Australiaalbeit in different conditions."

While stars like RohitSharma, Virat Kohli andJasprit Bumrah were rested forthe series, Boucher lauded thedepth of the Indian cricketsystem created by the IPL.

"I know there weren't a lotof top (India) players overhere but the depth that Indiancricket has at the momentlargely due to the IPL, theycan take lot of confidence aswell."

"You just can't walk up inIndia and expect to win aseries as well. So, we played acouple of good games and twobad games and there are acouple of reasons for that, butyou can't get too much into it,"he added.

However in Australianconditions, South Africa willhave a different gameplan.

"Plans will change inAustralia and we are aware ofthat. We tried a few options inthese conditions and saw ifthey worked or not.

"And I think, we asked afew questions and we gotsome good answers."

Boucher made no bonesabout the fact that SouthAfrica need to improve upontheir Powerplay batting.

"We struggled to getgoing in few of the games andwe speak about it after everygame and may be see how wecan change our mindset andintent, specially after thirdgame, when we went afterwith the intent we needed," hesaid.

"And our bowling at cer-tain stages was very good andat certain stages, we lookedrusty and sort of understandthat couple of guys cominginto the series after IPL andmay be a bit tired," he added.

PTI n BENGALURU

Dinesh Karthik as an "enforcer"opens up a lot of options goinginto the T20 World Cup, says

India head coach Rahul Dravid, whowants to identify a core group of 18-20 players by the end of England series.

For Dravid, to be a part of theWorld T20 set-up, it won't be enoughto just the "knock the door". Anyonewho wants to stake a claim in thatsquad of 15 will need to "bang it down".

"It was really nice to see Karthikcome off and do what he has beenpicked to do. That was good and itopens up a lot more options for us,going forward," Dravid said after thefive-match series against South Africaended in a 2-2 draw.

The last game was abandoned dueto rain.

"He was picked for what he hasbeen doing exceptionally well for thelast two or three years (in IPL) and kindof indicated in the sense that it almostcame together in the game at Rajkot,"Dravid spoke about the Tamil Nadudasher's 27-ball-55 that was crucial inIndia restoring parity in the series.

For Dravid, Karthik and HardikPandya are the two "enforcers" in thedeath overs.

"We needed that big performancein last five overs to make a par scoreand he and Hardik batted beautifully.Both of them are enforcers for us at theend," Dravid spelt out what role theteam management has in mind forKarthik.

The coach had no hesitation inadmitting that Karthik has made agood case for himself going into theT20 World Cup.

"I was telling guys that you have tostart banging the door down and notjust knocking the door down andinnings like that (Rajkot fifty) meanshe is knocking very hard."

WANT TO GET HANG OF COREAS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE

Dravid doesn't want to put a timeline but by the end of the EnglandT20Is, he wants to have a fair ideaabout the 18 to 20-odd players hewould be looking at ahead of WorldCup in Australia.

India and England will clash in sixwhite-ball games (July 7-17) after one-off Test.

"As you come closer and closer tothe event, you want to firm up yourfinal squad or if not, obviously youwant to have some contingencies inthe kind of world we live in today.Obviously you want to take only 15 tothe WC but (need to identify) top 18

to 20 players," he replied to a query onwhere he stands on his core team.

"Obviously, there could be oddchanges due to injury and things thatare beyond your control but we aregoing to start looking to firm up thatsquad as quickly as possible.

"Whether that will happen innext series (Ireland) or series after that(England) is hard to tell but we are cer-tainly looking to do that as quickly aspossible," he revealed.

COACH DEFENDS UNDER-FIREGAIKWAD AND IYER

If there were two people who haveideally blown away their chances to bea part of World T20 core squad, theyare Ruturaj Gaikwad (96 runs in 5games) and Shreyas Iyer (94 runs in5 games). Gaikwad is looking com-pletely out of place in internationalcricket and Iyer's struggle against qual-ity pace bowling is now well-docu-mented.

The head coach however chose tobe a bit more empathetic towards theduo even though one will not playagainst Ireland (Iyer is in Test team)and other unlikely to get any morestarts.

"We are not going to make knee-jerk reactions on people just like that.I don't like judging people after oneseries or one game," Dravid said.

"Shreyas on a couple of trickywickets showed a lot of intent, played

really positively for us. Ruturaj in oneinnings showed what he has got. Weare not disappointed with anyone,"Dravid once again showed the doggeddefence of his playing days.

ATTACKING BRAND OF CRICKET"As a group, we wanted to play a

certain brand of cricket and we weretrying to play a slightly more positiveand attacking brand of cricket rightfrom beginning and we knew whenyou try and do that, it is not alwaysgoing to come off. But we are certain-ly clear about the kind of cricket wewant to play," he said.

EVEN BIG BASH STATS NEEDSTO BE LOOKED AT BEFOREWORLD T20

Dravid is known to rely a lot ondata analysis and he would love togather information on playing condi-tions and oppositions before the tour-nament-proper.

"Lot of our boys have played inAustralia and we certainly will be hav-ing conversations with them on whatkind of tactics and strategies work," hesaid.

"In terms of data and analysis, wewill look at all games being played inAustralia and obviously they areinternational games, there is Big Bashand I mean we will do all our researchand background things that happensin terms of analysis.

"And of course, we don't have aseries against them (Australia inAustralia), so we can't change that. Iguess we have to make do with twoweeks we have in the lead up to theWorld Cup and make best use of it."

WILL BE A DIFFERENT ENGTEST SIDE

Rahul Dravid loved playing Testcricket in England and loves coach-ing a Test team. He reckons that theone-off 'fifth Test' against the hosts willbe a different proposition from lastyear when the team under ViratKohli led 2-1 before Covid-19 cases inIndia camp forced the cancellation ofthe final game.

"England are playing well at themoment and it is going to be a bit dif-ferent from last year when Englandwere probably a little bit on backfoot.They have played some good gamesand we have a pretty good side aswell," Dravid said, referring to BenStokes' side's series win against NewZealand.

"Loved playing Test cricket, lovewatching it and love coaching in Testcricket and so you know, looking for-ward to it," he concluded.

PTI n BENGALURU

India head coach Rahul Dravid hasmade it clear that the under-fire

Rishabh Pant is a "big" and "integral"part of the set-up heading into theT20 World Cup in Australia.

"Personally, he would have likedto score a few more runs but it is notconcerning him. Certainly, he is avery big part of our plans goingahead in next few months," Dravidsaid during the post-match pressconference.

He was categorical that he won'tjudge someone based on one series— whether it is batting form or cap-taincy. "I just don't want to be crit-ical. In the middle overs, you needpeople to play slightly attackingbrand of cricket, to take the gameon a little more. Sometimes it's very

hard to judge it based on two orthree games," the head coach said.

Pant's is a high risk game thatcomes with a price and the coach isready to pay the price looking at thebigger picture.

"In the process (of playing an

attacking game), he might go wrongin a few games but he remains anintegral part of our batting line-upwith the power he has and the factthat he is a left-hander is importantto us in the middle overs, he playedsome good knocks," he said.

About his captaincy, Dravidfelt that Pant did well consideringthat he led the side back in the seriesfrom 0-2 down.

"To bring a team back from 0-2 down and to level it at 2-2 and giveus a chance to win was good.Captaincy is not about wins andlosses only. He (Pant) is a youngcaptain, growing as leader. It is tooearly to judge him and you don'twant to do that after one series,"Dravid was clear in his thought-process.

"It was nice to see he has gotopportunities to lead, keep andbat. He had a lot of load on him butgaining from that experience andcredit to him for ensuring that wewent from 0-2 down to 2-2," thecoach was all praise for the stand-in skipper.

AP n AMSTELVEEN

England beat off a pluckyattack by the Netherlands on

Sunday to defeat the hosts by sixwickets in a shortened secondODI at VRA cricket ground out-side Amsterdam.

The win by the world cham-pions give them an unassailable2-0 lead in the series, with thefinal match to be played at thesame venue on Wednesday.

The Netherlands won thetoss and opted to bat, settingEoin Morgan's men a target of236-7 in 41 overs.

Heavy rain overnightdelayed the start of the matchwith officials waiting for wetpatches to dry next to the bat-ting-friendly pitch and on theoutfield.

England opener Phil Saltslapped 77 off 54 balls beforefalling to Dutch youngster ArjanDutt, who also claimed thescalp of fellow opener Jason Roy.

Roy, who scored a single runin England's record total of 498on Friday, redeemed himself byhitting 73 off 60 balls.

Unlike Friday's run-festwhich was peppered with sixes,Sunday's match was a moredemure affair, with England'sfirst six only coming in the 15thover when Roy smacked Duttover midwicket to clear theboundary.

Salt survived an early scarewhen an attempted off-side cutsent the ball into the air, only tofall between two Dutch fielders-- none of whom decisivelynominated for the catch.

The Welsh-born Salt neverreally seemed troubled afterthat, celebrating his half-centu-ry with a stylish four off thebowling of Bas de Leede.

Dutt however had the lastlaugh when Salt attempted toplay around the ball and wasbeaten, seeing the bails flying off

the stumps behind him.England however scored

freely, smacking 29 fours despitethe fall of Morgan and LiamLivingstone's wickets in quicksuccession.

"I'm delighted," Morgan toldSky Sports after the match.

"With the ball, BrydonCarse came into the game andhit the series with plenty of paceand with something we haven'tseen before.

"And with the bat again PhilSalt contributed for the secondtime doing what he does. JasonRoy did well in his 100th cap,"Morgan said.

The Netherlands earlierposted a solid 235-7 against ablistering England attack led byDavid Willey and Carse on adeck that mainly stayed low.

AGENCIES n AMSTELVEEN

After missing out the secondODI match against

England, Netherlands skipperand batter Pieter Seelaar onSunday announced his interna-tional retirement, citing persist-ent back problems.

The 34-year-old made hisdebut for the Netherlands teamin 2005, eventually taking overfrom Peter Borren in the lead-ership role in 2018. Starting hiscareer as solely a left-arm ortho-dox spinner, Seelaar's battingbecame more vital for the side,and he moved up the battingorder as a result.

"Since 2020 my back prob-lems got worse to such an extentthat - much to my regret - I amno longer able to give everythingI've got," said Seelaar in a state-ment.

Seelaar played 57 ODIs and

77 T20Is for the Netherlands,taking over 100 wickets acrossthe two formats. Known for sti-fling opponents with craftyangles and subtle changes, thecanny spinner kept his ODIeconomy to just 4.67 and T20Ieconomy at 6.83.

Seelaar was part of the teamthat famously ran over Englandboth at Lord's in the openingmatch of the T20 World Cup in2009, and in Bangladesh in thesame tournament five yearslater.

Seelaar claimed four-wick-et hauls in both internationalwhite-ball formats, though hisbest achievement with the batcame in red-ball cricket, making138 not out against Hong Kongin the ICC Intercontinental Cup.Seelaar and Ben Cooper added288 runs for the sixth wicket, arecord partnership in the com-petition.

PTI n PARIS

Sidelined after the TokyoOlympics debacle, star Indian

archer Deepika Kumari is all setto make a India comeback in theupcoming Stage 3 of the WorldCup beginning here on Tuesday.

Exactly a year after she wonan individual Gold here in thesame tournament last year, the28-year-old world number threewill look to redeem herself afterfailing to win a medal at theTokyo Games.

That the Olympics is slatedin two years at the same venuewill be an added motivation forDeepika, who also has won aWorld Cup Final Silver medalhere in 2013.

Having returned empty-handed from her third Olympicscampaign last year, Deepika

saw a slump in form along withher husband and country's topmale archer Atanu Das andfailed to make the Indian team.

The duo also could notqualify for the team for the AsianGames which was later post-poned as the ArcheryAssociation of India conducteda fresh trial of the top-eight

archers for the Stage 3 of theWorld Cup.

Earlier the same squad wasto compete in both the WorldCup Stage 3 and the AsianGames but after the postpone-ment Deepika and PravinJadhav, who were in the top-8 ofthe earlier conducted trial, got afresh opportunity and madethe cut.

Das, however, missed outhaving finished outside top-8 inthe earlier conducted trial.

Deepika made the cut at theexpense of Komalika Bari, whileher Tokyo Olympic mixed teampartner Jadhav ousted SachinGupta to complete the WorldCup Stage 3 lineup.

Deepika was last seen inaction for India in the YanktonWorld Cup Final in September2021 where she finished fourth.

KARTHIK OPENS UP LOT OF OPTIONSGOING INTO T20 WORLD CUP: DRAVID

Bhuvi was special inwhole series: Boucher

‘Rishabh is very big &integral part of our plan’

Bajrang ready to sheddefensive approach

‘After coming

back from

Kazakhstan I

underwent a few

medical tests on

the advice of my

physio Anand

Dubey to

assess

power,

speed, body

balance,

stamina and

endurance.

The results are

‘super' if not

excellent’

England beat Netherlands by 6wickets in 2nd ODI, seal series

Dutch skipper Seelaar announcesretirement due to back injury

Archer Deepika set forIndia comeback at Paris