16
T he Centre on Thursday dispatched a high-level team to probe the death of 100 infants in a Kota hospital in Rajasthan even as Congress president Sonia Gandhi summoned the party’s State incharge to Delhi over the issue and Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot sent a detailed report to her. While Gehlot said the issue is being raked up to divert attention from anti-CAA protests, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and BSP supremo Mayawati slammed Congress general sec- retary Priyanka Gandhi and party leader Rahul Gandhi for their alleged indifference to the tragedy. The Centre has dispatched a high-level team comprising experts from AIIMS Jodhpur and health economists to Kota. Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan said the Centre was ready to provide any technical help or assistance. “Let us ensure no child suc- cumbs to preventable causes or due to lack of health system capacity,” Vardhan wrote to Gehlot, who has urged the Union Health Minister to visit the State-run JK Lon hospital in Kota and see for himself the “best facilities” provided there. Expressing concern, Gehlot said the alarming sta- tistic is in fact an improvement over what the previous Vasundhara Raje-led BJP Government had recorded at the same hospital. “Government cites figures to say child casualties in JK Lon Hospital in Kota have reduced to 963 this year from 1,260 in 2015 and 1,193 in 2016 when the State was ruled by the BJP. In 2018, 1,005 children lost their lives here,” tweeted Gehlot defending his Government. The hospital in Kota is about 250 kms from the Jaipur. The State Government in its report admitted that some of the incubators at the hospital used for newborns were not in proper working condition. The committee, led by secretary medical education and senior doctors who visited the hospi- tal on December 27 to investi- gate the matter, also pointed out that the extreme cold has made it tougher for babies, already fighting for their life, to survive their illnesses. Sonia discussed the tragedy with Avinash Pandey, who is the chief of the Rajasthan Congress. Talking to media, Pandey said the Congress chief is “upset” and “wanted to know the reason for the deaths”. Yogi and Mayawati target- ed the Congress over infant deaths at a Rajasthan hospital, saying party general secretary Priyanka Gandhi should have gone there to console the chil- dren’s mothers instead of “playing politics” in UP. Other BJP leaders have also attacked the Congress-led Government in Rajasthan over 100 deaths in December at the Kota hospital. Attacking Priyanka and Sonia, the UP Chief Minister said it was extremely sad that despite being women both could not feel the pain of the mothers. In a series of tweets in Hindi, Yogi said, “The death of 100 innocent children is extremely saddening and heart- wrenching. The death of chil- dren is a blot on a civilised soci- ety, human values and feelings.” “It is extremely sad that Congress president Sonia Gandhi and general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, despite being women, are not able to understand the sorrow of the mothers,” he added. He said it would have been better “had Priyanka met and consoled the aggrieved moth- ers instead of indulging in pol- itics in UP”. A 20-year-old firefighter died while 17 others were injured after an Okaya battery godown was engulfed in a blaze in northwest Delhi’s Peeragarhi following an explo- sion due to fire early on Thursday morning. Firefighter Amit Kumar Balyan, a fire operator with Delhi Fire Services (DFS) post- ed at Kirti Nagar fire station and a resident of Delhi’s Shahdara area, died after he was trapped in the debris of a portion of a factory building which collapsed in the fire, said police, adding that the incident will be probed by its Crime Branch. Delhi Home Minister Satyendar Jain visited the spot and ordered a magisterial enquiry. Police said Amit was admitted to Sri Balaji Action Medical Institute and suc- cumbed to his injuries during the treatment. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal condoled Amit’s death and announced an ex gratia of 1 crore to the fam- ily of the firefighter. According to Atul Garg, Director, DFS, a call regarding a blaze in a factory located at Udyog Nagar in Peeragarhi was received at 4.23 am fol- lowing which firefighters rushed to the spot. “While the firemen were dousing the fire, a large portion of the two-storey building col- lapsed following an explosion. The National Disaster Response Force, CAT and civil authorities rushed to the spot to control the situation and a total of 35 fire tenders were at the spot,” said Garg. “The fire was brought under control by noon. All the firemen, who were trapped under the debris, were rescued,” said Garg. Police said eighteen people were rescued, including two caretakers and a security guard. “A total of 14 injured were fire- fighters. The other injured also included a security guard and two workers of the godown. They all were rushed to near- by hospitals,” said a senior police official. Initial investigation revealed that it was outlet- cum-godown of Okaya batter- ies and the fire was in the base- ment of the building used for storing batteries, said police. T he Delhi Metro on Thursday launched free high-speed WiFi services in train coaches on its Airport Express Line, the first such facility in any country in the South Asian region, officials said. The 22.7-km swankiest line on the Delhi Metro net- work has six stations. The WiFi facility, with 2 Mbps speed, inside train coaches on the Airport Line was launched by DMRC chief Mangu Singh in a running train on the Airport Express Line. The DMRC plans to extend the facility to Lines 1- 6, officials said. WiFi facility is already available on platforms of the Blue Line and the Airport Express Line, officials said. “At present underground metro train WiFi facility is available in Russia, South Korea and China. This is the first such facility in India and the South Asian region,” a senior official said. T he Union Home Ministry has set up a dedicated desk, headed by an Additional Secretary, to look after all mat- ters related to the Supreme Court judgment on the Ayodhya temple issue. In an official order, the Union Home Ministry said Ayodhya matters and related court judgments will be han- dled by three officers, headed by Additional Secretary Gynesh Kumar. The move follows the November 9 judgment of the Supreme Court which allowed construction of a Ram temple on the disputed site in Ayodha. The apex court also ordered handing over of a 5-acre plot to Uttar Pradesh Sunni Waqf Board and setting up of a trust for construction of the Ram temple. The new wing of the Home Ministry, headed by Kumar, will look after all matters relat- ed to the Ayodhya issue. It is learnt that the Uttar Pradesh Government has sent a pro- posal to the Home Ministry suggesting three plots in Ayodhya, one of which can be given to UP Sunni Waqf Board. There was a dedicated Ayodha cell in the Home Ministry in the 1990s and early 2000s. A dding another feather to its cap, the Agriculture Department on Thursday won the Krishi Karman Award for total food grain produc- tion in the year 2016-17. Agriculture Minister Arun Kumar Sahoo received the award for the ‘Commendation Achievement in Agriculture’ from Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Tumakur in Karnataka. The award consists of a tro- phy, a citation and a cash amount of Rs one crore. Additional Chief Secretary and Agricultural Production Commissioner Pradipta Kumar Mohapatra and Agriculture and Food Production Director M Muthukumar were present at the event. The department had earli- er bagged the Krishi Karman Award five times. F ollowing the directive on drunk driving by the Supreme Court Committee on Road Safety, the State Government has directed the Regional Transport Officers (RTOs) to suspend driving licences of the vehicle users for- warded by the police. As per the order, the DLs against the drunken driving cases detected by the RTOs and forwarded by police would be suspended. The RTOs were also direct- ed to furnish the reasons for not cancelling the DLs for- warded by the police for sus- pension. “The Supreme Court com- mittee has directed for 100 per cent suspension of the DLs against the cases of drunk dri- ving detected. In this regard, time to time directions have been issued from this office for 100 per cent suspension of the DLs in the SARATHI Database against the cases detected,” said a notification by the Transport Commissioner. As per data, while 334 e- challans have been issued for drunk driving cases by the RTOs in September 2019, 496 DLs have been forwarded by the different police districts to the concerned RTOs for sus- pension of DLs in drunken dri- ving cases. But as per SARATHI data- base, only 126 DLs for drunk- en driving cases have been suspended during the month of September 2019. It is noticed that in some of the regions, e-challans had been issued for the drunken driving cases and police have also forwarded DLs for sus- pension for the drunken dri- ving cases. But, the suspension of DLs in the SARATHI data- base for drunken driving is nil or negligible, said the notifica- tion. E ven though drunk driving claims a majority of lives in road mishaps, the Commissionerate police’s sympathy to the offenders has raised many an eyebrow. The twin city cops’ move to fine 34 drunk drivers Rs 1,000 each on Tuesday night during New Year celebrations instead of Rs 10,000 as per the amend- ed Motor Vehicles Act has raised many questions. As per reports, the Commissionerate police caught 34 drunk drivers during check- ing from late night on Tuesday till 6 am on Wednesday. In Bhubaneswar and Cuttack, 22 and 12 motorists, respectively, were fined for drunk driving. But the Commissionerate police have not given any clar- ification as to why only 10 per cent of the fine was collected from the drunk drivers. S everal parts of interior and coastal Odisha are likely to experience thunderstorm and rainfall for the next two days, said the Regional Office of the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) here on Thursday. “Eight districts of coastal Odisha will experience thun- derstorm along with light to moderate rainfall for two days. These districts are Deogarh, Sonepur, Dhenkanal, Boudh, Angul, Sundergarh, Keonjhar and Jharsuguda,” said the IMD Several places had experi- enced rainfall on the New Year day on Wednesday. Koraput recorded a rainfall of 3.2 mm, Paradip 1.9 mm, Puri 1.5 mm, Chandbali 4.8 mm and Gopalpur 0.6 mm. The rainfall brought respite from the bone-chilling cold as most places of the State wit- nessed a rise in the minimum temperature. “Temperature has increased by 2 to 3 degrees Celsius in most places. Barring Keonjhar district 9.6 degree, most places recorded temper- ature above 10 degrees Celsius,” said the weather office. However, the weather would be dry and the cold wave would return to the State from January 5, added the IMD. A 25-year-old hardcore crimi- nal, Santosh Mallick of Kutaranga village under Nikirai police limit, who was want- ed by the Kendrapada police for his involvement in a series of armed dacoit cases under several police station of the district and later nabbed, on Wednesday night escaped from police custody by giving the police a slip. According to police sources acting on a tipoff from reliable sources on Wednesday that Mallick was at his house , a special police squad conducted a raid at his house and apprehended him near Kahuniadiha. Later, he was detained at the Reserve police office in order to get clues about his associates. During interrogation, Mallick revealed that one of his asso- ciates was hiding at Khamar Keshpur; so a police escort team took Mallick with them to identify the house. But Mallick managed to escape from the spot on Wednesday night. In this regard , the Havildar JS Ekka lodged an FIR at Kendrapara Sadar police sta- tion. Meanwhile, Mallick's wife Jhilli alleged that the police had allegedly killed her husband and to cover the crime, they had scripted a plot by saying that her husband had escaped. “An inquiry is going to be sought against the errant police officials ,who were on escort duty and under which cir- cumstance the detainee escaped," said Kendrapada SP Niti Sekhar.

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Page 1: 12ˇ˘,ˆ1-*34567 )-./.)/0 &)*+ ˇ, %˛ - ˙ #˘2#/ +#4=9*#& >9˘6$94˘

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The Centre on Thursdaydispatched a high-level

team to probe the death of 100infants in a Kota hospital inRajasthan even as Congresspresident Sonia Gandhi summoned the party’s Stateincharge to Delhi over theissue and Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot sent a detailedreport to her.

While Gehlot said the issueis being raked up to divertattention from anti-CAAprotests, Uttar Pradesh ChiefMinister Yogi Adityanath andBSP supremo Mayawatislammed Congress general sec-retary Priyanka Gandhi andparty leader Rahul Gandhi fortheir alleged indifference to the tragedy.

The Centre has dispatcheda high-level team comprisingexperts from AIIMS Jodhpurand health economists to Kota.Union Health Minister HarshVardhan said the Centre wasready to provide any technicalhelp or assistance.

“Let us ensure no child suc-

cumbs to preventable causes ordue to lack of health systemcapacity,” Vardhan wrote toGehlot, who has urged the

Union Health Minister to visitthe State-run JK Lon hospitalin Kota and see for himself the“best facilities” provided there.

Expressing concern,Gehlot said the alarming sta-tistic is in fact an improvementover what the previous

Vasundhara Raje-led BJPGovernment had recorded atthe same hospital.

“Government cites figures

to say child casualties in JK LonHospital in Kota have reducedto 963 this year from 1,260 in2015 and 1,193 in 2016 whenthe State was ruled by the BJP.In 2018, 1,005 children losttheir lives here,” tweeted Gehlotdefending his Government.The hospital in Kota is about250 kms from the Jaipur.

The State Government inits report admitted that some ofthe incubators at the hospitalused for newborns were not inproper working condition. Thecommittee, led by secretarymedical education and seniordoctors who visited the hospi-tal on December 27 to investi-gate the matter, also pointedout that the extreme cold hasmade it tougher for babies,already fighting for their life, tosurvive their illnesses.

Sonia discussed the tragedywith Avinash Pandey, who isthe chief of the RajasthanCongress. Talking to media,Pandey said the Congress chiefis “upset” and “wanted to knowthe reason for the deaths”.

Yogi and Mayawati target-ed the Congress over infantdeaths at a Rajasthan hospital,

saying party general secretaryPriyanka Gandhi should havegone there to console the chil-dren’s mothers instead of “playing politics” in UP. OtherBJP leaders have also attackedthe Congress-led Governmentin Rajasthan over 100 deaths inDecember at the Kota hospital.

Attacking Priyanka andSonia, the UP Chief Ministersaid it was extremely sad thatdespite being women bothcould not feel the pain of themothers.

In a series of tweets inHindi, Yogi said, “The death of100 innocent children isextremely saddening and heart-wrenching. The death of chil-dren is a blot on a civilised soci-ety, human values and feelings.”

“It is extremely sad thatCongress president SoniaGandhi and general secretaryPriyanka Gandhi Vadra,despite being women, are notable to understand the sorrowof the mothers,” he added. Hesaid it would have been better“had Priyanka met and consoled the aggrieved moth-ers instead of indulging in pol-itics in UP”.

���������������� �9:�2961#

A20-year-old firefighter diedwhile 17 others were

injured after an Okaya batterygodown was engulfed in ablaze in northwest Delhi’sPeeragarhi following an explo-sion due to fire early onThursday morning.

Firefighter Amit KumarBalyan, a fire operator withDelhi Fire Services (DFS) post-ed at Kirti Nagar fire stationand a resident of Delhi’sShahdara area, died after hewas trapped in the debris of aportion of a factory buildingwhich collapsed in the fire, saidpolice, adding that the incidentwill be probed by its CrimeBranch. Delhi Home MinisterSatyendar Jain visited the spotand ordered a magisterialenquiry.

Police said Amit wasadmitted to Sri Balaji ActionMedical Institute and suc-cumbed to his injuries duringthe treatment.

Delhi Chief MinisterArvind Kejriwal condoledAmit’s death and announced anex gratia of �1 crore to the fam-ily of the firefighter.

According to Atul Garg,Director, DFS, a call regardinga blaze in a factory located atUdyog Nagar in Peeragarhiwas received at 4.23 am fol-lowing which firefightersrushed to the spot.

“While the firemen weredousing the fire, a large portionof the two-storey building col-lapsed following an explosion.The National DisasterResponse Force, CAT and civil

authorities rushed to the spotto control the situation and atotal of 35 fire tenders were atthe spot,” said Garg.

“The fire was broughtunder control by noon. All thefiremen, who were trappedunder the debris, were rescued,”said Garg.

Police said eighteen peoplewere rescued, including twocaretakers and a security guard.“A total of 14 injured were fire-

fighters. The other injured alsoincluded a security guard andtwo workers of the godown.They all were rushed to near-by hospitals,” said a seniorpolice official.

Initial investigationrevealed that it was outlet-cum-godown of Okaya batter-ies and the fire was in the base-ment of the building used forstoring batteries, said police.

���������������� �9:�2961#

The Delhi Metro onThursday launched free

high-speed WiFi services intrain coaches on its AirportExpress Line, the first suchfacility in any country in theSouth Asian region, officialssaid. The 22.7-km swankiestline on the Delhi Metro net-work has six stations. The WiFifacility, with 2 Mbps speed,inside train coaches on theAirport Line was launched byDMRC chief Mangu Singh ina running train on the AirportExpress Line.

The DMRC plans toextend the facility to Lines 1-6, officials said. WiFi facility isalready available on platformsof the Blue Line and theAirport Express Line, officialssaid. “At present undergroundmetro train WiFi facility isavailable in Russia, South Koreaand China. This is the first suchfacility in India and the SouthAsian region,” a senior officialsaid.

����� �9:�2961#

The Union Home Ministryhas set up a dedicated desk,

headed by an AdditionalSecretary, to look after all mat-ters related to the SupremeCourt judgment on theAyodhya temple issue.

In an official order, theUnion Home Ministry saidAyodhya matters and relatedcourt judgments will be han-dled by three officers, headedby Additional SecretaryGynesh Kumar.

The move follows theNovember 9 judgment of theSupreme Court which allowedconstruction of a Ram templeon the disputed site in Ayodha.The apex court also orderedhanding over of a 5-acre plot toUttar Pradesh Sunni WaqfBoard and setting up of a trustfor construction of the Ramtemple.

The new wing of the HomeMinistry, headed by Kumar,will look after all matters relat-ed to the Ayodhya issue. It islearnt that the Uttar PradeshGovernment has sent a pro-posal to the Home Ministrysuggesting three plots inAyodhya, one of which can begiven to UP Sunni Waqf Board.

There was a dedicatedAyodha cell in the HomeMinistry in the 1990s and early 2000s.

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����������� ��������������������������������������������������� ���������������� �������� �������!��"����������� ���#$�� ��%����������&������ ���&� �������������� ���'��� �������� ���������"���� (��'���"����)�������

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Ad d i n ga n o t h e r

feather to itscap, theA g r i c u l t u r eDepartment onThursday wonthe KrishiKarman Awardfor total foodgrain produc-tion in the year 2016-17.

Agriculture Minister ArunKumar Sahoo received theaward for the ‘CommendationAchievement in Agriculture’from Prime Minister NarendraModi at Tumakur inKarnataka.

The award consists of a tro-phy, a citation and a cashamount of Rs one crore.

Additional Chief Secretary andAgricultural ProductionCommissioner Pradipta KumarMohapatra and Agricultureand Food Production DirectorM Muthukumar were presentat the event.

The department had earli-er bagged the Krishi KarmanAward five times.

����� $1<$"�9�:">

Following the directive ondrunk driving by the

Supreme Court Committee onRoad Safety, the StateGovernment has directed theRegional Transport Officers(RTOs) to suspend drivinglicences of the vehicle users for-warded by the police.

As per the order, the DLsagainst the drunken drivingcases detected by the RTOs andforwarded by police would besuspended.

The RTOs were also direct-ed to furnish the reasons fornot cancelling the DLs for-warded by the police for sus-pension.

“The Supreme Court com-mittee has directed for 100 percent suspension of the DLsagainst the cases of drunk dri-ving detected. In this regard,time to time directions havebeen issued from this office for100 per cent suspension of the

DLs in the SARATHI Databaseagainst the cases detected,”said a notification by theTransport Commissioner.

As per data, while 334 e-challans have been issued fordrunk driving cases by theRTOs in September 2019, 496DLs have been forwarded bythe different police districts tothe concerned RTOs for sus-pension of DLs in drunken dri-ving cases.

But as per SARATHI data-base, only 126 DLs for drunk-en driving cases have beensuspended during the month ofSeptember 2019.

It is noticed that in some ofthe regions, e-challans hadbeen issued for the drunkendriving cases and police havealso forwarded DLs for sus-pension for the drunken dri-ving cases. But, the suspensionof DLs in the SARATHI data-base for drunken driving is nilor negligible, said the notifica-tion.

��� �$1<$"�9�:">

Even thoughdrunk driving

claims a majorityof lives in roadmishaps, theCommissioneratepolice’s sympathyto the offendershas raised manyan eyebrow.

The twin city cops’ move tofine 34 drunk drivers Rs 1,000each on Tuesday night duringNew Year celebrations insteadof Rs 10,000 as per the amend-ed Motor Vehicles Act hasraised many questions.

As per reports, theCommissionerate police caught34 drunk drivers during check-

ing from late night on Tuesdaytill 6 am on Wednesday. InBhubaneswar and Cuttack, 22and 12 motorists, respectively,were fined for drunk driving.

But the Commissioneratepolice have not given any clar-ification as to why only 10 percent of the fine was collectedfrom the drunk drivers.

����� $1<$"�9�:">

Several parts of interior andcoastal Odisha are likely to

experience thunderstorm andrainfall for the next two days,said the Regional Office of theIndian MeteorologicalDepartment (IMD) here onThursday.

“Eight districts of coastalOdisha will experience thun-derstorm along with light tomoderate rainfall for two days.These districts are Deogarh,Sonepur, Dhenkanal, Boudh,

Angul, Sundergarh, Keonjharand Jharsuguda,” said the IMD

Several places had experi-enced rainfall on the New Yearday on Wednesday. Koraputrecorded a rainfall of 3.2 mm,Paradip 1.9 mm, Puri 1.5 mm,Chandbali 4.8 mm andGopalpur 0.6 mm.

The rainfall brought respitefrom the bone-chilling cold asmost places of the State wit-nessed a rise in the minimumtemperature. “Temperature hasincreased by 2 to 3 degreesCelsius in most places. BarringKeonjhar district 9.6 degree,most places recorded temper-ature above 10 degrees Celsius,”said the weather office.

However, the weatherwould be dry and the cold wavewould return to the State fromJanuary 5, added the IMD.

����� +9�2>"%"2"

A2 5 - y e a r - o l dhardcore crimi-

nal, Santosh Mallickof Kutaranga villageunder Nikirai policelimit, who was want-ed by theKendrapada policefor his involvementin a series of armeddacoit cases underseveral police stationof the district and later nabbed,on Wednesday night escapedfrom police custody by givingthe police a slip.

According to policesources acting on a tipofffrom reliable sources onWednesday that Mallick was athis house , a special policesquad conducted a raid at hishouse and apprehended himnear Kahuniadiha. Later, hewas detained at the Reservepolice office in order to getclues about his associates.During interrogation, Mallickrevealed that one of his asso-

ciates was hiding at KhamarKeshpur; so a police escortteam took Mallick with themto identify the house. ButMallick managed to escapefrom the spot on Wednesdaynight.

In this regard , the HavildarJS Ekka lodged an FIR atKendrapara Sadar police sta-tion.

Meanwhile, Mallick's wifeJhilli alleged that the police hadallegedly killed her husbandand to cover the crime, theyhad scripted a plot by sayingthat her husband had escaped.

“An inquiry is going to besought against the errant policeofficials ,who were on escortduty and under which cir-cumstance the detaineeescaped," said Kendrapada SPNiti Sekhar.

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To promote women empowermentand gender-sensitive policing,

the Commissionerate police onThursday formed a team of 246Special Police Officers (SPOs) involv-ing women from various institutionsacross the Twin City.

On the occasion of its Raising DayParade held at the OSAP 7 BattalionGround here, Commissioner of PoliceSudhanshu Sarangi announcedappointment of the SPOs, who willhave power, privileges and immuni-ties equivalent to other police per-sonnel. They will be engaged for threemonths in a first phase.

“The women SPOs are directed tocreate a sense of security amongwomen and girls and the society atlarge. They will assist police in caseof eve-teasing and harassment of

women in the Twin City. They willinform police about such incidents forsuitable action and provide necessaryassistance to the victims as well,” anofficial said.

On the occasion, as many as 20police personnel of various ranks werefelicitated in 13 categories. Among the20 cops, Prana Krushna Rout, postedin Bhubaneswar Urban Police District(UPD) was awarded as Best ACP(Territorial) with cash reward of Rs4,500. Ashok Kumar Panigrahi andHemanta Kumar Dash, both posted inBhubaneswar UPD, were adjudged as

Best ACP (Armed) and given cashreward of Rs 4,500, each.

While addressing at the event,Commissioner Sudhanshu Sarangiannounced that the Commissioneratepolice building would soon berenamed as ‘Police Seva Bhawan’.

Director General of Police Abhaysaid that in urban areas, the biggestchallenge for police is a rapid andcoordinated response and effortshave already been initiated in thisregard. A Unified Control Room forBhubaneswar and Cuttack and morePCR vans would be introduced soon.

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Odisha has registered only atwo-per cent growth in

collection of the gross StateGST in December 2019 ascompared to the correspondingmonth of 2018.

The State collected Rs 2,383crore in December compared toRs 2,347 in December. Thenational growth in GST collec-tion in December 2019 wasvery impressive at 16 per cent.

Neighbouring States regis-tered higher growths. WhileWest Bengal recorded 16 percent growth, Assam 33 percent, Chhattisgarh 15 per centand Andhra Pradesh recorded11 per cent growth.

The gross GST revenuecollected in the month ofDecember 2019 is Rs 1,03,184

crore of which CGST is Rs19,962crore, SGST is Rs26,792crore, IGST Rs48,099crore (including Rs21,295crore collected onimports) and Cess is Rs8,331crore (including Rs847crore collected on imports).

The total number of GSTR3B Returns filed for the monthof November up to December31, 2019 is 81.21lakh.

The Union Governmenthas settled Rs 21,814 crore toCGST and Rs 15,366 crore toSGST from IGST as regular set-tlement.

The total revenue earnedby Central Government andthe State Governments afterregular settlement in the monthof December 2019 is Rs 41,776crore for CGST and Rs 42,158crore for the SGST.

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There will be some confu-sion from hence over the

expression twenty-twenty. Thefastest cricket had grabbed thisname. So, until the year 2020 ispast, there shall be some prob-lems because of the alliterativename. People must also knowthat using the shirt form '20could spell disaster particular-ly with cheques as part of date.For instance, the full ‘2.01.2020’may be written rather than2.01,'20; or else any crook canturn the year into 2019 or anyother figure.

The year 2019 was reallyhistoric. India sufferedPulwama massacre; retaliatedgrandly with Balakot attack; didaway with Articles 370 and 35A. The apex court upsetwomen with a review of theSabarimala verdict; stunnedthe world with a highly-bal-anced Ayodhya judgment anddismissed review petition inonly three days. The Modiadministration received a lot offlak for the seemingly lop-sided Citizen AmmendmentAct apart from a violent riotous

protest against the NationalRegister of Citizens. HomeMinister Amit Shah tookrevenge against the formerincumbent Chidambaramby putting him in jail.

The disturbing devel-opments included thealarmingly slow economicgrowth resulting in horrificunemployment and drop-ping Sheikh Abdullah birth-day from the list of holidaysin Kashmir. Four rape andmurder accused guys werekilled in a highly-suspectpolice encounter in

Hyderabad.One of the warmest of all

events was the November 9inauguration of a 4.5-kmKartarpur corridor by PMModi on the occasion of the550th birth anniversary ofGuru Nanak Dev, founder ofSikhism. He flagged off the firstbatch of over 500 Indian pil-grims visiting the shrine inPakistan. The sacred corridormay unite India and Pakistanin a geopolitically shrinkingworld of today. Pakistan isinterestingly getting madder asevident by local court awardingformer President India-bornGeneral Musaraf with a deathsentence with a peculiar orderfor hanging the corpse in pub-lic in the event of death of con-vict before execution of courtverdict.

Odisha too had its own his-toric and memorable events.The 75-meter clearing aroundthe Jagannath Temple has beenhailed by pilgrims and touristsfrom across the world. UntilNaveen happened to Odisha,the temple had become infa-mous for anarchy due to greedyand unruly servitors. The local

authorities had never evendared to dislodge high-charg-ing shoe stands run by goonsand hoodlums; let alone pulldown huge, congestive concretestructures. Puri is fast going toacquire the looks of a unique-ly magnificent, world-class her-itage site. The 5,000 million-rupee project will be completebefore the Car Festival this year.

The makeshift Eco Retreatoutfit to last for 45 long days onthe Marine Drive road aroundthe river-sea conflux is a won-der by itself as visitors respondexcitedly.

What many cynical maynot agree to is the fact of a rel-atively younger IAS officermanaging a first-of-its-kind5T department that overseesdevelopment in all domains ofprogress. Naveen Patnaik, thenonsense chief executive ofOdisha, has a unique skill ofsniffing out the best perform-ers who are able to figureabout his dreams, likes and dis-likes. Naveen choseKathikeyan, a 2000-batch IASofficer, after putting him to rig-orous tests to ensure the youngguy could really deliver.Karthikeyan has been provinghis worth all this while unfail-ingly.

On the last but one day of2019, Naveen lost his celebri-ty brother-in-law Sonny Mehta,often called the ‘best publish-er in the world’. Like many

Odisha people do not knowmuch about the personal non-political achievements ofNaveen, they barely knewSonny, who had risen to be edi-tor-in-chief of Knopf and thechairman of publishing giantKnopf Doubleday which hadtaken over the highly reputedRandom House as well. Priorto the Knopf appointment,Sonny had made a name cre-ating Pan, one of the earliestpaperback imprints in the UK.Born in 1942, ‘Sonny' AjaiSingh Mehta was son of AmrikSingh Mehta, one among thefirst of Independent India'sdiplomats. Sonny was educat-ed at the famous LawrenceSchool Sanawar and SevenoaksSchool, UK, where he won anopen scholarship to theCambridge University, acquir-ing two degrees, in History andEnglish Literature, while alsoediting the magazine 'Granta’.He began his publishing careerin 1965 in London at RupertHart-Davis, then joinedGranada Publishing in 1966 tocofound a new publishinghouse, Paladin, where he com-missioned such seminal booksas Germaine Greer’s 'TheFemale Eunuch' and broughticonic American writers to theUK public with books such asHunter Thompson's 'Fear andLoathing in Las Vegas'. Movingto Pan Books in 1972, he addedto its list of bestselling authorsby publishing writers who wenton to become household namessuch as Jackie Collins andDouglas Adams. He also re-launched the storied Picadorimprint, publishing a host ofBooker Prize winners. leadingThe Times of London todescribe his tenure as produc-

ing "the Picador Generation".In 1987, he moved fromLondon to New York to headthe legendary American liter-ary imprint Alfred A Knopf aspresident and editor-in-chief.Under Mehta, Knopf has pub-lished six Nobel literature lau-reates, numerous Pulitzer Prize,Booker Prize and NationalBook Award winners and con-tinued the tradition of pub-lishing important writers aswell as works by such contem-porary leaders as US PresidentsGeorge H W Bush and BillClinton, UK Prime MinistersMargaret Thatcher and TonyBlair, and Pope John Paul II.Mehta's tenure has also beenknown for important newtranslations of books byTolstoy, Thomas Mann, RobertMusil and Albert Camus. Hewas also among the first torecognise the importance of thenew genre of graphic novels,publishing prize-winning titlessuch as Maus and Persepolis.

It is very interestingtoknow that Naveen grew up asa quiet and calm and sensitivechild amid his siblings andimmediate cousins at AnandBhawan in Cuttack in the1940s. Close cousins wouldsay everyone was reporting tothe enormously adorable homebully Gita, who was the mastersecond only to father BijuPatnaik. While playing in thegarden, if a captured dragonflysuccumbed to death, Naveenwould break down and insiston a respectable burial to theinsect as others would onlylaugh off the seemingly sillyproposal. But Gita would standby the kid brother firmly. So,Naveen respects Gita as guideand guru even today!

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In view of the continuingglobal warming and earth’s

changing weather patterns,Odisha may witness severeheat ahead in the year 2020.

According to weatherexperts, the maximum tem-perature at all the places inOdisha may increase by 1 to 2degree Celsius during summerthis year as compared to 2019.

As per forecast by weath-ermen, 2020 is likely to be hotyear for Odisha. The cold wavemay continue till mid ofFebruary and there may be hotweather towards March last

week that may continue till themonth of June this year.

The hot days are aheadafter the winter in Odisha,especially in western region,where most of towns may standabove 45 degree Celsius.

Meanwhile, the weather-men predicted ‘normal’ down-pour across the State duringmonsoon this year.

As the year 2019 was thehottest year, the global warm-ing is expected to continue thisyear too. The global tempera-ture may rise by over 1.11degree Celsius in 2020 makingthe year as the hottest since2011, opined weather expertSurendranath Pasupalak. Hepredicted extreme heat duringsummer and monsoon seasonnormal.

Also, the State may facenatural disasters like floodsand cyclones in the year 2020,he said.

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The State Government onThursday effected a reshuf-

fle in the IAS and IPS cadresand appointed six bureaucratsin different departments.

According to a notificationissued by the GeneralAdministration Department,Pradipta Kumar Mohapatra,who is Additional Secretary toChief Minister Naveen Patnaik,

was given additional charge ofRevenue and DisasterManagement Department withimmediate effect.

IPS officer Arun Bothrawas given additional charge ofCMD, OSRTC to his presentassignments of CEO, CESUand MD, CRUT. Revenue andDisaster Management PrincipalSecretary Nikunj Bihari Dhalhas been appointed as thePrincipal Secretary of Healthand Family WelfareDepartment.

Dr Pramod KumarMeherda, who was Secretary,Health and Family Welfare,was shifted as Commissioner-cum-Secretary, Commerce and

Transport Department withadditional charge of SpecialSecretary, Agriculture and FEDepartment.

In the reshuffle, 2016-batchIAS officer Dibya Jyoti Paridawas appointed as theCommissioner of RourkelaMunicipal Corporation withadditional charge of CEO,Rourkela Smart City Limited,replacing Yeddula Vijay, whohas been assigned as theDeputy Secretary of Planning& Convergence Department.The 2024-batch IAS officerYeddula is also holding the postof Member Finance inRourkela DevelopmentAuthority (RDA).

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To bring more transparencyin payment of pension reg-

ularly under schemes like theNational Social AssistanceProgramme (NSAP) andMadhu Babu Pension Yojana(MBPY), the State Governmenthas asked the district Collectorsto complete Aadhaar seedingby March 15, 2020.

Social Security andEmpowerment of Persons withDisabilities Secretary BhaskarSharma issued a direction inthis regard on January 1.

Pension under the NSAPand the MBPY would not bedisbursed without Aadhaar,said the officer.

Referring to a letter issuedon August 30, 2019, Sharmasaid that the district authorities

had earlier been asked to com-plete Aadhaar seeding byOctober 2019. By now, 91% inNSAP and 73% in MBPY havebeen achieved. The Aadhaarseeding needs to be enhancedto 100%, he said.

As per the order, the ben-eficiaries whose Aadhaar ver-ification/seeding is pending,would be asked to mandatori-ly bring a copy of their Aadhaarcard on January 15 to receivepension. Those who fail tobring the Aadhaar card will beoffered another opportunityto submit the same on March15. The process of capturingAadhaar particulars of the ben-eficiaries would be completedby January 31. The Aadhaarlinking in respect of all bene-ficiaries would be completed byMarch 15.

The beneficiaries of theNSAP and the MBPY wouldnot be given pension fromApril 1 without Aadhaar link-ing.

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In anotherstep under

the 5T initia-tive, ChiefSecretary AsitT r i p a t h ylaunched an e-Gazette portalon Wednesday.

Tr i p a t hydirected alldepartments tomake use of the portal for allgazette notifications.

“E-Gazette is a milestone inGovernance. Gazette publica-tion will be error free andpaperless. There would be notransportation of trucks ofpapers from the GovernmentPress to departments, districtCollectorates and other offices,”said the Chief Secretary.

Commerce and TransportSecretry Gudey Srinivas said,“The e-gazette portal will pro-vide department wise and sub-

ject wise notifications.”User departments would

register themselves in the por-tal. They would upload theircontent material which wouldbe scrutinised by theGovernment Press as per thenorms. The number and dateof the gazette would also bethere on the portal.

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Braving winter night,Commissioner of Police

(CP) Sudhanshu Sarangi andhis team kept a vigil at variousplaces in Bhubaneswar toensure safety of people outdoorfor Zero Night celebrations.Sarangi was also seen sharing

a light moment with his col-leagues during a tea break.

While people were busycelebrating New Year, the copsspent the whole nightpatrolling on roads to avoid anyunpleasant situation.

Sarangi took to Twitter toshare a few pictures and wrote,“My gratitude to all our officers.

Have wished all of them aHappy New Year over PoliceRadio. We will be on duty tillpeople return home safe.”

He continued, “Wentaround Bhubaneswar sharingtea with our staff on duty forthe Zero Night celebration.Morale is high & commitmentunflinching.”

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Even though mobile jam-mers and CCTV cameras

have been installed in the high-security Choudwar jail, hard-ened criminals are able tooperate their crime syndicatesfrom the prison.

This has come to the foreafter the Commissioneratepolice on Wednesday arrestedgangster Mohammad Shakil’sgirlfriend. A team of specialsquad and Dargha Bazar policearrested the woman when shewas returning after meetinghim in the Choudwar jail.

It is alleged that the womanwas operating Sakil’s illegalfirearms and extortion racket inthe gangster’s absence. Sakil,against whom more than 30

cases are pending at differentpolice stations, is now coolinghis heels at Choudwar jail.

The woman’s involvementin Sakil’s crime syndicate is nowunder scanner. Cuttack DCPAkhileswar Singh said thewoman was coordinator ofShakil’s crime syndicate.

“We had registered a case inconnection with the extortionthreat. Our probe reveals that thewoman had provided weaponsto some youths who had ter-rorised the businessman. Ourefforts to recover the firearms areunderway,” said Singh.

Recently, the cops wereleft jittery after an extortionvideo of Sakil went viral onsocial media, notwithstandingthe fact that the gangster islodged in jail. It was alleged thatthe extortion video was sent toa Buxi Bazar-based business-man from Choudwar jail onDecember 14.

In the video, an extortionof Rs 10 lakh was demandedfrom the businessman. Earlier,four persons including Sakil’sfather have been arrested inconnection with their links tothe gangster’s extortion racket.

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The BJP on Thursday alleged that the Jajpurpolice have hatched a conspiracy to help

main accused Rupesh Bhadra get bail in theHaridashpur PEO Smitrarani ‘killing’ case byfiling a weak chargesheet in court.

“Over two months have passed sinceSmitarani was gangraped and murdered.However, police are yet to unearth the inci-dent. Instead of taking the main accused intocustody, the police are now trying to file aweak chargesheet in the court,” alleged BJPState secretary Dr Lekhasri Samantsinghar.

Addressing a Press conference,Samantsinghar wanted to know how thepolice prepared a 2,000-page chargesheetagainst Rupesh without taking him to custody.She also questioned how the SP termed theincident as suicide when the postmortemreport has revealed his death was caused byasphyxiation. “She might have been strangu-lated to death,” she pointed out.

Dr Samantsinghar also wanted to knowwhy four BJD leader and Ramco officer havenot been arrested even if they were present.She reiterated a CBI inquiry into the incident.

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Are Odias poor donors? Thequestion is natural when

the Shree Jagannath Temple inPuri received only Rs 11,46,650on the New Year’s Day.

This apart, the templehundi also received only 2gram 240 milligram of gold and11 gram 500 mg of silver fromdevotees offering prayers to theTrinity on the auspicious firstday of the English calendar day.

The amount of donation tothe 12th century shrine is saidto be meagre because morethan six lakh people visited thetemple with hope to get theLord Jagannath’s blessings onthe first date of 2020.

The Puri district adminis-tration has said lakhs of devo-tees thronged the temple forwhich elaborate securityarrangements were done on theoccasion. If the footfall in thetemple will be six lakh, theneach devotee paid only Rs 1.91to the temple while the cost ofa small diya is Rs 5 and Rs 10for a cigarette.

No doubt, the people are

spending lots of moneythrough travelling, eating out-side in better hotels and shop-ping as well as roaming in seabeach. However, when it comesto making donation to thetemple, they appeared to bereluctant.

The devotees are alsospending a lot on pujas and giv-ing “dakshina” to the priests butnot to the Lord!

Had each devotee donatedRs 10 only to the temple, theamount would have been Rs 60

lakh. But, that is not happen-ing in Odisha.

It is said that LordJagannath has 13 major festivalsin 12 months a year, nowanother has been added to thetemple calendar. This isbecause lakhs throng on theNew Years’ Day.

The socio-economic con-ditions of the people of Odishahave so far changed which isevident from their congrega-tion at the temple. But, theycontinue to uphold the poor

mindset of not making dona-tions, a senior official said.

As Lord Jagannath is con-sidered as the “Patitapaban”,means the Lord who gives sal-vation to the poor, Dalits anddowntrodden, many devoteesalso carry the impression thatthere is no harm to avoid donat-ing anything to the temple.

It is greatness of the Lordof the Universe that He gives“mokshya” to all. That does notmean that the devotees will notmake donation. While other

major temples across the coun-try earn good amount in thedonation box, the LordJagannath temple continues toremain poor in terms offinance.

Therefore, the experts saythe people of Odisha shouldmake a pledge that they shoulddonate something to the Lordwhile visiting the temple. Alarge number of tourists fromoutside Odisha are also includ-ed in the about 6 lakh devoteeswho visited the temple.

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Two persons were killed onthe spot and three others

were injured when a car bywhich they were travelling hita truck from behind inKendrapada on Thursdaymorning.

The deceased persons wereidentified as Pranati Pandaand Bijay Sahoo. The injuredpersons were ultimately takento Bhubaneswar for treatment.

The mishap took placenear Duhuria Chhak under theKendrapada Sadar police lim-its while the victims werereturning home after havingdarshan of Lord Jagannath inPuri on New Year.

Locals rescued the injuredpersons and rushed them to theKendrapada DistrictHeadquarters Hospital. Later,the victims were shifted to theAIIMS and the Apollo Hospitalin Bhubaneswar.

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Ayouth was murdered dur-ing a New Year feast at

Jalanga village under theBhadrak Rural police station onWednesday night.

The deceased was identi-fied as Satyabrata Sial. As pera complaint lodged by his fam-ily members with police,Satyabrata was part of a feastwhich was organised in thelocality by some youths.

A dispute betweenSatyabrata and another youtherupted during the feast andthe incident took a violentturn as the latter thrashed himwith iron rod killing him on thespot, they alleged.

The body was later founddumped on the verandah of abank. Police have sent the bodyfor postmortem and startedinvestigation.

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Awoman Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI), posted at

the Pattapur police station inGanjam district, was suspend-ed on Thursday on the chargeof assaulting the Inspector-in-Charge (IIC) of the police sta-tion over a dispute in duty allo-cation.

As per the allegations, theASI Pritimanjari Garnayakalong with her husbandattacked IIC Ajay Barik at thepolice station at around 10 onWednesday night. Sources saidGarnayak with the help of herhusband allegedly thrashedBarik and attempted to stran-gulate him.

Following the assault, Barikregistered a complaint in thePattapur police station levellingmultiple charges includingattempt to murder and obstruc-tion of Government work.

Ganjam SP Thakur PrasadPatra has placed the SI undersuspension and initiated aprobe in the matter.

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As half-burnt body of anewly-wed woman

was found in mysteriouscircumstances in herhouse at Sipura villageunder the Mahanga policestation in Cuttack districton Thursday.

The deceased wasidentified as Suchitra Samal.

Sources said Suchitra hadbeen in love with one UttamJena and married him sixmonth ago. On the day, herhalf-burnt body was found at

her in-laws’ house.Later, family members of

the deceased lodged a policecomplaint alleging that she has

been burnt to death by her in-laws.

Acting on the complaint,police have detained Suchitra’shusband and are interrogatinghim in this connection.

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Bodies of a young man anda girl were found hanging

from trees in a forest nearBharuakani village under theTurekela police station in thedistrict on Thursday.

The deceased were identi-fied as Sushant Mirdha andSebati Hans of the village.Locals had on Wednesday spot-ted the two bodies hangingfrom two separate trees in theforest and informed the police.

Cops reached the spot onThursday morning, sent thebodies for postmortem andstarted investigation. Thoughthe reason behind the deathswas yet to be ascertained, it wassuspected that they committedsuicide by hanging themselves.Reports said that the two werein a love relationship.

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Former national speaker ofthe Parliament of Bhutan

and former president of theMahabodhi Society of IndiaDasho Passang Dorji, alongwith two monks, visited theBuddhist sites of Ratnagiri,Lalitagiri and Udayagiri onWednesday.

He was accompanied byChief Secretary of the ChiefAbbot of Bhutan Ugyen Tenzinand personal Secretary of theChief Abbot Pema Dorji.Karma Lhamo, a devoutBuddhist, too was present.

They visited the museumsat Lalitagiri and Ratnagiri andappreciated the efforts of theArchaeological Survey of Indiaand the Government of Odishafor the upkeep and preserva-tion of these importantBuddhist vestiges. The relicsthat were uncovered atLalitagiri are now kept in the

museum there underproper care and secu-rity.

Dorji lauded theefforts of theGovernment of Indiain promoting theancient Buddhist sitesand monuments allover the country. Hesaid that properresearch should be car-ried out on the rele-vance and spread ofBuddhism fromOdisha and the role ofGuru Padmasambavaand his origins fromOdisha.

Dr BimalenduMohanty, who is thevice-president of theMahabodhi Society ofIndia and an eminenthistorian, is of theopinion that thegrowth of Buddhism inBhutan was first

advanced by the greatUddiyana GuruPadmasambava in the 8th cen-tury C.E who laid the founda-tion of one of the most impor-tant and unifying forces thathas sustained the Bhutanesepeople and contributed to theevolution of their unique cul-tural and religious tradition.

Dr Mohanty had validat-ed the origins of GuruPadmasambava being fromOdisha in his book written afew years ago.

Anil Dhir, noted heritageexpert and a member ofINTACH who accompaniedthe team to the BuddhistCircuit, said the scope of reli-gious and cultural tourism ofthese sites still remaineduntapped. If proper awarenessand promotion is undertaken,these sites and the otherBuddhist sites of the State willdraw more than a milliontourists annually, he added.

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Panic gripped employees andcustomers at a vehicle

showroom in the Niali area ofCuttack district as a cobra wasfound in a scooter on Thursday.

One of the customers spot-ted the head of the snake under

the footboard of the scooterand alerted the staffers. Theemployees and customers thenran out of the showroom toavoid any untoward incident.Later, some of them killed thecobra by repeatedly thrashingit when it started to come outof the vehicle.

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Mission Shakti-fame andfirst-time Parliamentarian

from Aska Pramila Bisoyiappeared in a different avatarat a zero night celebration toring in New Year 2020.

The 74-year-old MP, thedown-to-earth self-help groupactivist, enjoyed the zero nightby cutting the New Year evecake with Aska MLA ManjulaSwain and danced with sup-porters on the stage during theprogramme held at the TownHall in Aska.

Bisoyi enthralled the audi-ence by singing a Bhajan ded-icated to Lord Jagannath. Shealso performed a song with amessage for the village cultureand women empowerment.

Sanakhemundi BDOGayatri Dutt Nayak, AskaBlock Chairman HarekrushnaMallick, Kabisuryanagar BlockChairman Santosh Padhi, BJDGanjam district youth secretaryShiva Nahak, youth leaderNachiketa Swain were amongothers, present to bid farewellto the old year and welcome thenew year.

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In a tragic incident, a munic-ipality official and his wife

died of electrocution atSunabeda in Koraput districton Thursday.

The deceased were identi-fied as Sudhakar Biswal, TaxCollector of the SunabedaMunicipality, and his wifeChanchala.

Biswal was hanging wetclothes on an iron wire whenthe mishap occurred. Theclothes line was alreadycharged with an unknownsource of electric current.Hearing his scream, his wifesoon plunged to rescue him butshe too got contacted with thewire.

Seeing them tangled, theirgranddaughter called up herfather (son in-law of the vic-tims), who was at his workplaceHAL then, informed about theincident.

He came and took them toa hospital where doctorsdeclared them dead.

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A35-year-woman and hernine-year-old daughter

were electrocuted as an 11-KVelectric wire snapped overthem while they were takingbath at a tube-will inMakhapadar village under theSinapali police station inNuapada district on Thursday.

The deceased were identi-fied as Tarunlata Chandi (35)

and Dusila (9). The duo fell ina water tank after getting elec-tric shock and died on the spot.

On being informed, policereached the spot and recoveredthe bodies. However, tensionran high as locals demandedcompensation Rs 1 lakh fromthe Wesco over the Red Crosssupport of Rs 20,000 and did-n’t allow police to take the bod-ies for postmortem.

Meanwhile BJP districtpresident Subrat Thakurdemanded a criminal caselodged against the Wesco.“Electrocution deaths areoccurring often due to lack ofmaintenance of power lines,which were laid 40 years ago. Acriminal case should be filedagainst the company,” saidThakur.

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The Jharsuguda district fes-tival "Dulduli -2020" was

inaugurated on Wednesdayevening by Health and FamilyWelfare Minister Naba KishoreDas as chief guest.

The five -day long districtfestival is being organised onthe 27th foundation day of thedistrict formation. The Chiefguest called upon everyone towork together irrespective ofcaste, creed and colour forthedevelopment of Jharsugudadistrict. He expected to take thedistrict to its peak with con-certed efforts.

Attending the functionat Manmohan Schoolground as guest of honour,Bargarh MP Suresh Pujarisaid the Dulduli had kept itsuniqueness in all spheres."The artists are elevated bygetting a chance to performin this forum," he told. Onthe occasion, a souvenir of"Dulduli" was released bythe chief guest and otherinvited guests.

Presiding over the func-tion, district Collector SarojSamal said that the festival"Dulduli" had taken theshape of a drive with activecooperation of the districtresidents. Besides creating aspecial identity for the dis-trict in the State map, it willgo ahead in the field of art,culture and tradition, Samaladded.

DIG (Northern Range)Himansu Kumar Lal alsospoke.

The programme was coor-

dinated by Tapas RayChoudhury while the voteofthanks was given by DIPROAjay Jena. Many exhibitionswere inaugurated.

In the evening of the inau-guration day, Bihu dance byartists from Assam was pre-sented.

A cultural procession start-

ed from the Jhadeswari Templewhich ended at Dulduli Pendalwith participation of the artistsand cultural troops of variousparts of the country.

The district Collector alsoparticipated in the processionalongwith all the members ofthe organising committee.

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Indian women’shockey team

defender Sunita Lakraon Thursdayannounced her inter-national retirementciting a knee injurywhich would requireanother surgery.

Lakra said thenagging injury hascome in the way of herdream to be a part ofIndia’s TokyoOlympics competitionto be held in 2020.

“Today is a veryemotional day for meas I have decided toretire from the inter-national hockey,” shesaid in a statementissued by the HockeyIndia.

“I was very fortu-nate to have played atthe Rio Olympics in2016, India’s first appearance inover three decades. As much asI wish to be part of the Indianteam as they prepare for theTokyo Olympics, my kneeinjuries have cut short mydream,” she added.

“I have been told by thedoctors that I would be requir-ing another knee surgery in the

coming days and I am unsurehow long it would take beforeI fully recover,” she explained.

Lakra said after recovering,she would continue to turn upin domestic hockey. “Pursuantto my treatment, I will playdomestic hockey and play forthe Nalco who have supported

my career by providing me ajob,” she said.

Lakra thanked her team-mates and chief coach SjoerdMarijne for their support. “Myheartfelt thanks to HockeyIndia who ensured I was giventhe best treatment during myinjury and I am grateful fortheir unparalleled support to

women’s hockey,” she said.“My family, my husband

and friends back in Odishahave been my strongest sup-porters and I wish to thankthem for helping me pursue mypassion for hockey. I could nothave come this far withouttheir encouragement,” sheadded.

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Chief Minister NaveenPatnaik on Thursday reit-

erated that Mahatma Gandhi’sahimsa (nonviolence) is hisbest gift Gandhi to the worldand called upon all to desistfrom violence in words, worksand thoughts

He stated this whileaddressing the 33rdSwadhinata SangramiMahotsav here. “Each andevery problem of the world canbe resolved through nonvio-lence. Hence, we should makeahimsa a main aspect of ourlives,” opined he.

Stating that freedom strug-glers have got opportunity incelebrating the 150th birthanniversary of Gandhi, Patnaiksaid the nation can’t forgettheir sacrifices that fetched

Independence.“Independence was not the

sole aim of Mahatma Gandhi.He had also dreamt of a healthsociety and a self-dependenteconomy. If we all work in thisdirection, it will be the biggesttribute to him on his 150thbirth anniversary,” said Patnaik.

Noted freedom fighterBhabani Charan Pattnaikpresided over the meeting.Among others, MinistersPrafulla Mallick and AshokPanda, Saheed SwadhinataSangrami Sadan chairman andMP Bhartruhari Mahtab, MPRamesh Chandra Majhi, MLASuresh Routray, PCC presi-dent Niranjan Patnaik andSwadhinata Sangrami All Indiapresident Kulkarni were pre-sent.

On the occasion, the ChiefMinister paid tributes to DrHarekrushna Mahtab andreleased a logo and a souvenirof 120th year birth anniversarycelebration of Dr Mahatab.

The Chief Minister alsowatched a photo exhibitionheld to mark death anniversaryof Dr Mahtab.

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A22-year-old youth died andtwo other persons suffered

critical injuries in a head-oncollision between a truck anda motorcycle near BaliapalChhak under the Bari policelimits in Jajpur district onThursday. The deceased wasidentified as Chinmay Mallickof Bandhadiha village underthe Brahmabarada police lim-its in the district.

Chinmay, who works inChennai, had come to visit hisfamily for New Year. When hewas riding the motorcycle, thetruck loaded with bambooscollided with it. The bikewhich lost control after thecrash hit a 55-year-old cycliston the road later. WhileChinmay died on the spot, hisfriend Bunty (21), who was rid-ing pillion, and the cyclistSomnath Padhee sufferedgrievous injuries.

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Late Bibhuti BhusanPattnaik's wife Swarnalata

Pattnaik's first death anniver-sary was observed on Thursdayat Balarampur, Kujang withvarious activities.

In early morning, Geetachanting, worshipping gods,fruits and sweets distribution at

hospital were done.Minister Pratap Chandra

Jena joined as chief guest andunfolded a statue of Swarnalataand spoke about the Pattnaikcouple and their traditionaljoint family members. Amongothers, Minister Raghu NandanDas, Tirtol MLA Bishnu Das,Paradip MLA Sandip Routray,former MP Dr Kulamani

Samal, Swarnalata’s eldest sonSaroj Kumar Pattnaik, NishakarMuduli, Ananga Mohapatra,educationist Manoranjan Das,former Jagatsinghpur ZPPresident Sabita Mohapatra,Baburam Chaudhury,Jagannath Behera andDinabandhu Senapati spokeabout Swarnalata and BibhutiBhusan Pattnaik.

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Dr AchyutaS a m a n t a ,

founder, KIIT &KISS and MP,Kandhamal, hasbeen nominated asthe chief patron ofV o l l e y b a l lFederation of India(VFI).

Ramavtar SinghJakhar, secretarygeneral, VFIdeclared DrSamanta’s name atthe valedictory cer-emony of 68thSenior National VolleyballChampionship (Men &Women) 2019.

The executive committeeof VFI decided to nominate DrSamanta as chief patron inview of his immense contribu-

tion towards sports andsportspersons. Dr Samanta hasbeen actively patronising sportsand games at the State, nation-al and international level, saidJhakhar. The VFI will achievenew milestones in future under

his guidance, he stated.Expressing his happiness, DrSamanta thanked VFI and said,"I will try my best for the devel-opment of volleyball in Indiaand will work for the success ofthe Indian team in Olympics."

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Radhashyam Mahapatroassumed the charge of

Director (HR) of the National

Aluminium Company Limited(Nalco) on Wednesday.

Prior to this assignment, hewas with Central Coalfields Ltdas Director (Personnel). He

has rich experience in power,oil and coal sectors in differ-ent capacities. He is a Physicsgraduate from the KhallikoteCollege, Brahmapur and apostgraduation in IndustrialRelation &Labour Welfarefrom the BerhampurUniversity.

Mahapatro's areas ofinterest include improvingproductivity, human devel-opment, creation of employ-ment through skill develop-ment, sports, culture andimprovement of human dig-nity. He has passionatelyworked for reformation inadministration to make itresponsive to the need andaspirations of the communi-ties. His induction to theNalco is expected to furtherstrengthen the company.

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The Berhampur Universitycelebrated its 54th founda-

tion day here on Thursday.University Vice-ChancellorProf Govind J Chakrapanipresided over the function.

Eminent LitterateurPratibha Ray, who was chiefguest, was conferred with theKabi Samrat Upendra BhanjaNational Award. Similarly,UNO Assistant GeneralSecretary Satya SundarTripathy was coffered with theDistinguished Alumnus Awardon the occasion.

As many as 13 students of

the university were awardedgold medals by ProfChakrapani for excelling indifferent activities. Cash prizeswere also given to 19 students.The vote of thanks was offeredby Prof Bhagirathi Panigrahi.

Among others, formerBrahmapur MLA Dr RameshChandra Chyau Patnaik,Khallikote Cluster UniversityVice-Chancellor ProfAmarendra Prasad Mishra,former BrahmapurDevelopment AuthorityChairman Subash Maharana,former University VC Prof PCSahu and Jayanta Mohapatrawere present.

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Chief Minister NaveenPatnaik inaugurated

Boudh Mahotsav thorough avideoconferencing at Lok Seva

Bhawan here on Thursday.

“The Mahotsav will promoteart of Boudh and the State

and create a platform forartists,” said the Chief Minister.

On the occasion, Patnaikinaugurated or laid foundation-stone for 27 infrastructure pro-jects worth Rs 114 crore forBoudh district. While drink-ing water supply project inBoudh town was inaugurated,foundation-stone was laid for

District Headquarters Hospital,Boudh. He said Rs 60 crorewould be spent for the DHH.

Among others, WorksMinister Prafulla Mallick,Forest and EnvironmentMinister Bikram KeshariArukha, Panchayati Raj andDrinking Water MinisterPratap Jena, Sports and YouthServices Minister TusharkantiBehera and Boudh MLAPradeep Kumar Amat werepresent.

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Newly-appointed first everChief of Defence Staff

(CDS) General Bipin Rawat hasdirected various branch headsof Integrated Defence Staff inthe Defence Ministry to comeup with recommendations forinter-service synergy and joint-ness in time bound manner.He also asked the officers tofirm up the proposal by Junethis year to set up Air DefenceCommand to protect India'sairspace and common logisticssupport pools as part of syner-gy.

This directive comes inthe backdrop of the charter ofthe CDS to achieve optimalsynergy between the threeServices including the Army,Navy and IAF to fight modernday war. Moreover, the CDSwill also ensure maximum uti-lization of resources withinthe budgetary constraints tomaintain operational readi-ness and sustain the temp ofmodernisation.

On assuming charge as thefirst CDS, Rawat onWednesday held a meetingwith important functionaries ofthe Integrated Defence Staffhere, officials said on Thursday.

Besides directing that theproposal to create Air DefenceCommand be prepared by June30, 2020, he also set out prior-ities for execution of synergy byJune 30 and December, 312020. Some of the areas iden-tified for jointness and syner-gy include creation of commonlogistics support pools in sta-tions where two or more ser-vices have their presence.

Emphasising collegiate sys-tem of functioning, Rawatdirected that all three servicesand Coast Guard must be con-sulted and their views obtainedin a time bound manner.Decisions will, however, be

taken to ensure optimisation ofresources. Efforts will be madeto cut out infructuous cere-monial activities, which aremanpower intensive. The CDSstressed that all must worktowards accomplishing desiredresults and coming up withhealthy views and ideas.

After taking charge as theCDS on Wednesday, Rawathad said the armed forces stayfar away from politics. Hiscomments come in the back-drop of his recent commentscondemning student protestswhich drew sharp responsesfrom political parties and onsocial media.

"Armed forces stay faraway from politics. We workaccording to the directions ofthe Government in power," hesaid talking to the media afterreviewing a tri-service guard ofhonour outside South Block.

Stating that the task cut outfor the CDS is to integrate thethree services and enhancetheir capability, Rawat said theCDS will "remain neutral with-in the Service [Army] and to allthree services."

It is important to ensurethat the 1+1+1 combine of thethree services should add up tomore than 3 through synergy,he observed. "We have toachieve more through inte-gration. The synergised effortshould not be the sum total ofthe whole. It should be more,"

he observed adding his focuswill be to ensure best and opti-mal use of resources allocatedto the three services.

The mandate of CDSincludes promoting jointness inprocurement, training andstaffing for the Services; facil-itation of restructuring of mil-itary commands for optimalutilisation of resources bybringing about jointness inoperations, including through"establishment of joint/theatrecommands and promoting useof indigenous equipment by theServices."

However, there is no con-sensus presently among theServices on the formation ontheatre commands and the AirForce has been especiallyopposed to the move. On this,Rawat said there are methodsto achieve theaterisation. "Ithink we are copying Westernmethods and what others havedone. We can have our ownsystems. We will work out amechanism... We have to finda system which suits India," hestated.

The CDS has an office inSouth Block and will continueto wear the uniform of the par-ent service. However, the rankbadges and accoutrements ofthe CDS reflect jointness, inte-gration and synergy andaccordingly there is a newPeak cap, shoulder rank badges,belt buckle and car flag.

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India and Japan hope to soonfinalise dates for summit

talks between Prime MinisterNarendra Modi and hisJapanese counterpart ShinzoAbe. The two leaders wereearlier scheduled to meet inDecember in Guwahati butthe summit was postponedfollowing protests regardingCitizenship AmendmentAct(CAA). Meanwhile, Indiaalso reached out to countriesacross the world on the CAA,External Affairs Ministryspokesman Raveesh Kumarsaid here on Thursday.

On the India-Japan sum-mit, the spokesman during hisweekly briefing, said, "We arein touch with the Japaneseside through diplomatic chan-nels and hope we very sooncome to the finalisation of thedates. It is an annual mecha-nism."

He also said "the summitwhich was supposed to be heldin December is the one whichgetting postponed but all thesematters will be under discus-sion with the Japanese side,"Kumar added.

Modi and Abe were set tomeet in Guwahati betweenDecember 15 to17.

However, the venue, alongwith the dates for the summit,was postponed after protestserupted in the North-East overthe CAA.

During the eighth round ofbilateral consultations in Tokyoon December 23, India andJapan exchanged views on theissues of disarmament, non-proliferation and export con-trol. In the meeting, both sidesalso agreed to hold the nextround of Dialogue on a mutu-ally convenient date in India,the Ministry of External Affairshad said in a statement.

Kumar had said last month

that both sides decided to"defer" Abe's visit for theDecember 15-17 summit to amutually convenient date. Thecancellation of the Japaneseprime minister's trip came aday after Bangladeshi ForeignMinister A K Abdul Momenand Home MinisterAsaduzzaman Khan called offtheir visits to India in view ofthe situation arising out of theenactment of the CAA.

Diplomatic sources hadsaid the Japanese governmentclearly conveyed to New Delhithat it would not be possible forAbe to travel to Guwahati inview of large-scale protests inthe northeastern region.

Meanwhile, on ThursdayKumar also said India hasreached out to countries acrossthe world on the issues of theCAA and the proposedNational Register ofCitizens(NRC). "We did reachout to countries across the

globe on CitizenshipAmendment Act and theNRC," he said.

Kumar said "we empha-sised that the Act (CAA) justexpedites acquiring of citizen-ship to persecuted minorities.It does not change basic struc-ture of Constitution." Theministry also said the Indianmissions abroad were asked toshare the prospectus on theCitizenship Amendment Actwith the host Government.

Asked about Indo-Chinaboundary negotiations lastmonth and talk of early harvestto the boundary question,Kumar said there was this feel-ing that the boundary issueshould be addressed from astrategic perspective of Indo-China relations.

"It was also decided thatwhile the discussions go onunder the SpecialRepresentative talks frame-work, there should be peace

and tranquillity along the bor-der which is very important forthe overall development of thebilateral relationship," Kumarsaid. Noting that these weresensitive negotiations,spokesperson said one issueshould not cloud the overallrelationship.

India and China last monthagreed to intensify efforts toachieve a "fair", "reasonable"and mutually acceptable solu-tion to the vexed boundaryissue, resolving that its early set-tlement will serve the funda-mental interests of both coun-tries.

There was a consensusduring "constructive" bordertalks here between ChineseForeign Minister Wang Yi andNational Security Adviser AjitDoval that both sides shouldrespect each other's sensitivitiesand concerns in order to buildmutual trust, according to theexternal affairs ministry.

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New Delhi: The MumbaiRegional Passport Office (RPO)has sought the External AffairsMinistry's nod to prosecuteNarmada Bachao Andolan(NBA) activist Medha Patkarfor not disclosing criminal casesagainst her in her passportapplication.

Sources in the passportoffice said the department hadwritten a letter to the MEA,seeking it go-ahead to file acriminal case against Patkar forconcealing the details aboutmany pending cases againsther at the time of filing thepassport application in 2017.

The officials said her pass-port has automatically beenimpounded after she surren-dered it on December 9, in

response to a notice issued toher seeking explanation.However, by surrendering thepassport she cannot absolveherself from prosecution, theyadded.

After receiving the per-mission, the RPO will file acriminal case against her as perthe Passport Act. The maxi-

mum punishment under theAct is two-year rigorous impris-onment or �5,000 fine or both.

A complaint was filedagainst the activist in June 2019by a journalist, alleging thatPatkar had obtained her pass-port by concealing and sup-pressing material facts from theRPO Mumbai.

The complainant had pro-vided the details of nine crim-inal cases with documentaryevidence, pending against herin various districts of MadhyaPradesh.

Patkar in her passportapplication of March 30, 2017claimed that no criminal casesare pending against her and inthe column on pending crimi-nal cases, if any, she declared

"none".The RPO Mumbai also

sought details of pending casesfrom the Director General ofPolice, Madhya Pradesh, whoconfirmed that charge sheet hasbeen filed against her in fivecases.

In the show cause notice toPatkar issued on October 18 lastyear, the RPO Mumbai hadasked as to why her passportshould not be impounded forfailing to disclose informationregarding pendency of criminalcases against her.

Out of the nine criminalcases registered against her,three are in Barwani, one inAlirajpur and five in Khandwadistrict of Madhya Pradesh.

The notice had said: "While

obtaining passport bearingno...Dated March 30, 2017 youhave not disclosed the factregarding pendency of abovecases and obtained passport bysuppression of material infor-mation".

"In view of the same, it isproposed to impound yourpassport bearing no...And anyother passport if issued subse-quently under section 10(3)(e)of the Passports Act 1967. Youare requested to state whyaction should not be takenunder section 12(1) of thePassports Act 1967," the noticeissued by the passport office onOctober 18 said.

The passport officials hadsought her explanation within10 days. PTI

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The CBI has transferred 19 officersincluding two Deputy Inspector

Generals, 14 Superintendents ofPolice and three Additional SPswith "immediate effect".

Deputy Inspector GeneralAbhay Singh, who was leading theprobe into sexual assault on minorgirls in Muzaffarpur shelter home,has been brought to the EconomicOffences Wing in Delhi from theSpecial Crime Branch in Kolkata,but he will continue to probe sexu-al assault cases, according to theorder.

The order, approved by the CBIDirector, specified that officers whohave been specially directed bytheir names to supervise, investigate,or enquire into any case or matterby any Constitutional court shallcontinue to do so.

DIG Nitin Deep Blaggan who isheading sensitive Anti-CorruptionUnit has been given the additionalcharge of Anti Corruption-V unit,officials said.

SP Partha Mukherjee whoseunit Economic Offences IV, based inKolkata, was probing chit fundcases, has been brought to the head-quarters as Assistant InspectorGeneral (Policy) here replacingVivek Priyadarshi who has beentransferred to Jaipur, they said.Priyadarshi had led the probe into2G spectrum cases.

SP, Economic Offences-III,Vijayendra Bidari has been trans-ferred to Interpol Coordinationunit and he will also look after thesystems wing of the agency.

Kiran S, who is part of the teamprobing Agusta Westland, VijayMallya and other cases, has beenmoved to AC-V unit.

Other officers transferred orgiven additional charge include SPsAbhishek Dular, Anoop T Mathew,Rajpal Meena, Shiyas A, JayadevanA, Sudhanshu Dhar Mishra, PKManjhi, Jay Narayan Rana, SantanuKar and P K Pandey, Additional SPsSanjay Kumar Sinha, S D Mishraand Gajanand Bairwa have alsobeen transferred, they added.

New Delhi: The office of the Lokpal, theanti-corruption ombudsman, will soonmove out of its �50 lakh per month rent-ed accommodation at a five star hotel toits own permanent building here.

A senior Personnel Ministry officialsaid the Lokpal is likely to move out of itsfive star hotel temporary office at TheAshok Hotel in Chanakyapuri by thismonth.

"Total monthly rent is around �50 lakhand �3,85,09,354 has been paid fromMarch 22, 2019 to October 31, 2019 forrent," the Lokpal of India said in responseto an RTI application filed by this PTI jour-nalist.

Space at the former ICDAR(International Centre For AlternativeDispute Resolution) building has beenallotted for the office of Lokpal, the replystated when asked details of the steps beingtaken for providing permanent office forthe ombudsman.

However, the reply did not give detailsof the location of the new office.

"The office of Lokpal will move out to

its own permanent space in the nationalcapital," an official said.

The Lokpal is an apex body to deal withcases of corruption at the national level. Ithas to enquire into allegations of corrup-tion against public functionaries of theCentral Government in a time-boundmanner.

President Ram Nath Kovind on March23 administered the oath of office to JusticePinaki Chandra Ghose as chairperson ofthe Lokpal.

The Lokpal's eight members wereadministered the oath by Justice Ghose onMarch 27. PTI

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All India Institute ofMedical Sciences

(AIIMS)'s Professor SureshChandra Sharma, who is thechief of ENT head-necksurgery department, will bethe chairman of NationalMedical Commission (NMC),the new medical educationregulator to replace scam-tainted Medical Council ofIndia (MCI). TheAppointments Committee ofthe Cabinet has approved theappointment of Sharma for aperiod of three years or till theage of 70 years.

According to theDepartment of Personnel andTraining (DoPT), RakeshKumar Vats, the secretary gen-eral in the board of governorsof the Medical Council of India(MCI), has been appointed asthe secretary of the Commissionfor the similar term.

President Ram NathKovind had on August 8 givenassent to the National MedicalCommission (NMC) Act,2019, which provides for a sys-tem that improves access toquality and affordable medicaleducation and ensures avail-ability of adequate and highquality medical professionalsin all parts of the country,among others.

The new law provides forsetting up of an NMC in place

of the Medical Council ofIndia for development andregulation of all aspects ofmedical education, professionand institutions. The presidenthad dissolved the MCI in 2018and a Board of Governorswas appointed to perform itsfunctions. At least 72 applica-tions for NMC were receivedby the central government.

On the dissolution of theMCI, the person appointed asits chairman and othersappointed as the member, anyofficer and other employee ofthe Council shall immediate-ly vacate their respectiveoffices, according to the pro-vision of the NMC Act. TheCommission will have a chair-person, 10 ex-officio members

and 22 part-time members,according to the law.

Amid allegations of cor-ruption against MCI officebearers and probes intoopaque accreditation to med-ical colleges, the SupremeCourt had in May 2016 direct-ed the government to set up acommittee with the authorityto oversee all statutory func-tions of MCI till the new leg-islation comes in.

Many of MCI membershave been accused of takingbribes to fast-track accredita-tion. There have been allega-tions of corruption in granti-ng different kinds of permis-sion by the council to medicalcolleges across the country,officials said.

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India on Thursday said it hasin no manner revised its

boundary with Nepal and thenew map issued by it inNovember 2019 accuratelydepicts its sovereign territory.

MEA spokespersonRaveesh Kumar made theassertion while responding toa question on whether theKalapani border issue was dis-cussed between Prime MinisterNarendra Modi and NepalesePrime Minister K P Sharma Oliduring their telephonic con-versation on Wednesday.

Prime Minister Modi onWednesday held telephonicconversations with top leadersof Bhutan, Sri Lanka,Bangladesh, Nepal and TheMaldives, conveying New Yeargreetings and emphasisingIndia's commitment to region-al peace and security as well asthe 'neighbourhood first' pol-icy.

Nepal had in Novembersaid the Kalapani area situatedin the country's far-West lieswithin the Nepalese boundary,after India issued new politicalmaps reportedly showing theregion as part of its territory.

"Our map accuratelydepicts the sovereign territoryof India. The new map has inno manner revised our bound-ary with Nepal," Kumar said ata media briefing on Thursday.

"The boundary delineationexercise with Nepal is ongoingunder the existing mechanism.We reiterate our commitmentto find a solution through dia-logue in the spirit of our closeand friendly bilateral relations,"he said.

Kumar said no officialcomment has been receivedfrom the Nepalese side on thematter.

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Vadodara (Guj): States passing reso-lutions against the Citizenship(Amendment) Act (CAA) are mis-leading people, as citizenship fallsunder the Centre's purview, BJP work-ing president J P Nadda said here onThursday.

The Kerala Assembly on Tuesdaypassed a resolution against the CAA,demanding scrapping of the contro-versial Act which grants citizenship tonon-Muslim refugees from Pakistan,Afghanistan and Bangladesh whoarrived in India before 2015.

"Some states are passing resolu-tions against the CAA. Citizenship isa subject under the Central govern-ment, and the law has been passed bythe Centre and bears the signature ofPresident," Nadda said.

"It has been implemented, andbeneficiaries will get citizenship, you(state governments opposing theCAA) should stop misleading people,"he added, speaking at `CAAJanjagaran Sammelan' organized bythe BJP here.

"You can tell facts to the Congress,but it is not in a position to understandtruth. We can explain only if theyunderstand, but if they do not want tounderstand despite being intelligent,then we cannot do anything," he said.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi didnot know anything about the CAA, hesaid.

"I would like to ask the Congresswhy its leaders did not condemn theviolence during (anti-CAA) protests

that caused damage to public proper-ties. They are all hand in glove," theBJP working president said.

Eighty per cent of beneficiariesunder the Act would be Dalits, Naddaclaimed.

"Congress sheds crocodile tear forDalits....It only used them for politi-cal ends....80 per cent of those beingprovided citizenship under the Act areDalits," he said.

Communities such as Matua,Rajvanshi and Namo Sudra migratedto India from the three neighbouringcountries and they would be thebiggest beneficiaries of the CAA, hesaid.

Nadda also said, citing reports inthe Washington Post and New YorkTimes, that there were 5,50,000 Sikhfamilies in Afghanistan at one time butnow only 2,000 families are left.

"A momentary mistake ofPartition made generations suffer," hesaid.

While the population of Muslimsin India rose to 14 per cent from 9 percent (at the time of Independence), inPakistan, Hindu population declinedfrom 23 per cent to 3 per cent, heclaimed.

"These are the people who cameto India to save their lives, respect andculture," he added.

"Mahatma Gandhi said in 1947that arrangements should be made forthem if they cannot stay there, theyshould be brought to India and givencitizenship," Nadda claimed. PTI

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Ahmedabad: The Gujarat High Court has saidthat a woman once divorced cannot seek mone-tary relief from her former husband under theProtection of Women from Domestic ViolenceAct.

HC judge Umesh Trivedi recently gave thisruling while quashing the proceedings against thewoman's estranged husband, 27 years after theirdivorce.

"The wife would be an aggrieved person(under the Act) so long as the domestic relation-ship survives. As soon as it is snapped, it is an endto their domestic relationship and she would notbe an aggrieved person then," the court said.

The court quashed the proceedings againstpetitioner Kanji Parmar under sections 19 and 20of the Protection of Women from DomesticViolence Act, dealing with the monetary relief byway of compensation, as sought by his former wifeUrmilaben Parmar.

The couple had tied the knot in 1984, but gotdivorced in 1990. Urmilaben then married anoth-er man with whom she had three children.

However, she moved a petition a few years agounder the Prevention of Domestic Violence Act,seeking compensation from Kanji Parmar.

The court considered the documents placedon record by the petitioner's lawyer, AshvinGateshaniya, proving that the respondent(Urmilaben) had married another man and evenhad three children from him. "Referring the def-inition of domestic relationship, it is clear that itis a relationship, which is alive between the per-sons. Even on separation or staying apart, mari-tal relationship continues. But once the marital tieis severed by way of divorce between the parties,the relationship between them is snapped," thecourt said. PTI

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Jaipur: Rajasthan ChiefMinister Ashok Gehlot onThursday urged Union HealthMinister Harsh Vardhan tovisit the state-run JK Lon hos-pital in Kota, where 100 infantsdied in December, and see forhimself the “best facilities”provided there.

The BJP has been targetingthe ruling Congress over thefunctioning of the hospital.

“I telephoned CentralHealth Minister @drharsh-vardhan ji and requested himto visit #Kota personally so thathe can see the best of facilities

and proper management byState Health Department andget himself apprised of thefacts,” Gehlot tweeted.

He further wrote, “HarshVardhan ji is himself a doctorand if he visits the hospital in#Kota, it will also clarify the sit-uation for people, who are giv-ing reaction mischievously,knowingly, unknowingly andalso innocently.”

Earlier in the day, Vardhanhad tweeted about sending ahigh-level team to the hospitalto provide all assistance.

“The high-level team being despatched by

@MoHFW_INDIA incl expertsfrom AIIMS Jodhpur, HealthFinance & Regional Director,Health Services Jaipur. It willreach #Kota tomorrow. In myletter too to @ashokgehlot51 ji,I've offered all possible assis-tance to prevent any furtherdeaths (sic),” Union HealthMinister Harsh Vardhan said ina tweet on Thursday,” hesaid.

Vardhan has also written toGehlot, assuring him of allassistance. He also urgedGehlot to initiate measures tostop the deaths of children atthe hospital. PTI

Bengaluru: Prime Minister NarendraModi on Thursday called on scientists andinnovators of the country to widen theirhorizons, as he assured them thattheGovernment was completely with them.“Your capability is vast, you can domany things, widen your horizons,change the parameters of your perfor-mance...Fly spreading wings...There areopportunities, I'm with you,” he said.

Addressing a DRDO event here, hesaid he was assuring them, as the PrimeMinister, that the government was com-pletely with the scientists of the countryand innovators.

“You all are aware that along with airand sea, cyber and space will define theworld's strategic dynamics.

Along with this, intelligent machineswill play a key role in the defence sectorin the days to come .

In such a situation, India cannot lagbehind,” he said, adding that to protect thecitizens, borders and interests, it wasimportantto invest in future techniquesand innovation.

The Prime Minister was speakingafter dedicating to the country the YoungScientists laboratories formed by DefenceResearch and Development Organisationto start focused research in advancedtechnologies.

DRDO Young Scientist Laboratories,in short DYSLs, are located at Bengaluru,Mumbai, Chennai Kolkata andHyderabad. PTI

Bengaluru: Prime Minister NarendraModi on Thursday slammed States,which have not enrolled with thePradhan Mantri Kisan SammanYojana (PMKSY), saying that suchpetty politics has done great damageto the farming community.

“I expect that in the new year,those states which are not associatedwith the Kisan Samman Yojana willat least become a part of it this year,”the Prime Minister said at a functionin Tumakuru where he disbursed � 12,000 crore to six crore beneficia-ries under the Government scheme in one-go. Also, he gave away the KrishiKarman Award to the selected farm-ers and distributed fishing equipmentto the chosen ones on the

occasion.Modi said political considerations

by the State Governments in imple-menting the PMKSY has causedsevere loss to the poor farmers.

“Such politics has never strength-ened the farmers. Our Governmentunderstood your (farmers') needs,requirements and your aspirationsand accordingly tried to implementthe schemes,” said Modi.

He further said his Governmentnever saw agriculture in fragments butin its totality. Claiming hisGovernment has ensured that theentire money reached the poor ben-eficiaries, Prime Minister hit out at theprevious Governments, when mid-dlemen ruled the roost. PTI

Lucknow: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister YogiAdityanath on Thursday attacked Congress pres-ident Sonia Gandhi and general secretaryPriyanka Gandhi Vadra, saying it was extreme-ly sad that despite being women both could notfeel the pain of the mothers wholost their children at a hospital in Rajasthan's

Kota.In a series of tweets in Hindi, he said, “The

death of 100 innocent children is extremely sad-dening and heart-wrenching.

The death of children is a blot on a civilisedsociety, human values and feelings.”

“It is extremely sad that Congress presidentSonia Gandhi and general secretary PriyankaGandhi Vadra, despite being women, are not ableto understand the sorrow of the mothers,” headded.

In another tweet, he said it would have beenbetter had Priyanka met and consoled theaggrieved mothers instead of indulging in pol-itics in UP. PTI

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Reacting to criticism over thedeath of 100 infants at

Kota's JK Lon Hospital,Rajasthan Chief MinisterAshok Gehlot on Thursdaysaid the issue should not bepoliticised and his Governmentwas sensitive to it.

His remarks came amidcriticism by the BJP and BSPsupremo Mayawati, whoaccused the State Governmentof being insensitive.

Expressing displeasure onthe response to the tragedy,Mayawati also questioned thesilence of Congress generalsecretary Priyanka GandhiVadra, saying if she does notmeet mothers of the deceasedchildren, then her meetingwith the kin of the victims ofviolence during theanti-CAA protests in UP will

be “construed as pure the-atrics”.

“The Government is sen-sitive to the death of sickinfants in JK Lon Hospital inKota. There should no politics

over the issue. Infant mortali-ty at this hospital is steadilydecreasing. We will try toreduce it further. It is our toppriority that mothers and chil-dren remain in good healthy,”Gehlot tweeted in Hindi.

Gehlot further claimed thatthe first ICU for children inRajasthan was established bythe Congress Government in2003.

“We also established anICU for children in Kota in2011,” he added.

Gehlot said the aim of'Nirogi Rajasthan' was a prior-ity for the government and anexpert team from the Centrecould further help improvehealth services in the state.

“We are ready to improvemedical services in the statethrough discussions and coop-eration with an expert teamfrom the Centre,” he said.

Meanwhile, BJP state pres-ident Satish Poonia expresseddispleasure on the state gov-ernment's attitude towards theissue.

“It is regrettable that thestate health minister did noteven visit the hospital. TheChief Minister is known forbeing sensitive. A delegation ofBJP MPs had met the familieswho lost their children. Theywere in deep anguish. If thegovernment is not sensitivethen it is worrisome,” Pooniasaid.

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At least nine passengers werekilled and 38 others were

injured after a bus skidded offthe road and fell in to a deepgorge near Siot in Rajouri dis-trict on Thursday.

According to local residents, who accompaniedcritically injured passengers inJammu Medical College, hos-pital, the mishap took placewhen driver of the ill fated busbearing registration numberJK02AL 1361 lost control overthe wheels and it rolleddown in to a deep gorge near

Siot. Local residents also

claimed the driver of the buswas using mobile phone at thetime of the accident.

According to police, sevenpassengers died on the spotwhile two others succumbed totheir critical injuries on reach-ing / enroute GMC, Jammu.Local residents along with res-cue teams of the state policeand paramilitary forcesrushed to the spot and shift-

ed the injured to a nearby dis-trict hospital from where theywere referred to GMC, Jammu.

Meanwhile, broadbandinternet connectivity wasrestored at 80 Government

hospitals, including health cen-tres and offices linked to thehealth department, in theKashmir Valley on Thursday.

“Broadband high-speedinternet connectivity restored

at 80 Government hospitals,including health centres andoffices linked to the depart-ment of health, acrossKashmir,” an official said.

Internet services were sus-pended in the Valley on the

night of August 4, the daybefore the Centre announcedabrogation of Article 370 pro-visions and bifurcation of theerstwhile Jammu & KashmirState in to Union Territories.

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BSP PresidentMayawati on

Thursday questionedthe silence of Congressleader Priyanka GandhiVadra on the death of infants inRajasthan's Kota dis-trict and said sheshould have met thewomen whohad lost their childrendue to “laxity” of the AshokGehlot Government.

In a series of tweets, theformer Uttar Pradesh ChiefMinister also slammed theGehlot Government for thedeath of infants.

“The death of 100 childrenin Rajasthan's Kota district isvery sad and painful. ChiefMinister Ashok Gehlot andhis Government are still insen-sitive, disinterested and irre-sponsible, which is highly con-demnable,” she charged in atweet.

“But, what is more sad-dening is the fact that the topleadership of the Congress andespecially its lady general sec-retary maintaining

silence over this issue. It wouldhave been better that like shedid in UP, she had met theaggrieved mothers, who losttheir children due to the laxi-ty of the party's Government,” she said.

The BSP chief also said, “Ifthe lady Congress general sec-retary does not meet mothersof the deceased children, thenher meeting with aggrievedfamily members of UP will beconstrued as pure theatricsand political self-interest, whichthe public of UP should bewary of ”.

At least 100 infants havedied at a Government-run hos-pital in Kota in December lastyear.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to visitKolkata next week sources in the BJP said. In Kolkata

the Prime Minister will attend the 150-year celebrationsof Kolkata Port Trust, sources said adding he wouldcome on the night of January 10 and attend the KPTprogramme the next day on January 11.

There was no information on whether during thevisit he will have a meeting with Chief Minister MamataBanerjee who has been at the fore front of the move-ment against Citizenship Amendment Bill and NationalRegister for Citizens.

“The Prime Minister will stay at Raj Bhavan for thenight and attend the KPT programme the next daywhere after he will leave for Delhi,” an informed sourcesaid refusing to comment on whether the ChiefMinister will meet him at the Governor’s House orwhether there will be a one-on-one parley between thetwo leaders in the side lines of the Port Trust pro-gramme.

The State BJP leaders also would not share infor-mation on whether the Prime Minister would addressany political rally in Kolkata.

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IIT-Kanpur has formed a com-mittee to inquire into a com-

plaint against the recitation of FaizAhmed Faiz's noted poem 'HumDekhenge' on campus by studentsto express solidarity with theirpeers at Jamia Millia Islamia, theinstitute's Deputy DirectorManindra Agarwal said.

He said a “very peacefulprotest” was held on December 17by about 300 students of the pre-mier institute at its premises asthey were not allowed to go outdue to enforcement of prohibito-ry orders under Section 144 of theCrPC in the city.

An IIT-Kanpur student recit-ed the poem 'Hum Dekhenge' byFaiz against which a complaintwas filed by Dr VashimantSharma, a temporary facultymember, and 16 others, includingfaculty members and students.

“The video suggests that thepoem also provokes anti-Hindusentiments,” the complaint stated.

The written complaint filed

by them with the IIT-Kanpurdirector states that the poem hadsome words that could hurt thesentiments of Hindus, Agarwalsaid.

“A committee of six memberswas established, headed by me, toinvestigate the matter. Some stu-dents have been questioned, whilethe others will be questioned afterthey return to the institution afterthe holidays,” the deputy directorsaid.

There was a war of words onsocial media between those sup-porting the recitation of the poemand those who opposed it, he said.

“It was contributing to esca-

lation of the situation and hencewe requested both sides to stop itand they obliged,” Agarwal said.

The video also shows studentscarrying placards with slogans like'Tumhari laathi aur goli se tezhamari awaaz hai' (our voice islouder than your sticks and bul-lets) and 'IIT-Kanpur condemnspolice brutality on Jamia andAMU students. Shame on DelhiPolice', an official said.

“We would take some moredays to hear both sides beforecoming up with the findings assome students were left to ques-tion and it could only be possibleafter their return to the institutionafter holidays,” Agarwal said,adding, “Once everything coolsdown, we will be able to sort outthe matter amicably.”

However, IIT-Kanpur directorAbhay Karandikar has criticised asection of the media for reportingsince Wednesday that the institutehas set up a committee to decidewhether the poem by Faiz is anti-Hindu or not, saying this is “verymisleading”.

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Even after conducting houseto house searches in sever-

al forward villages along theLine of Control in Nowshera,the joint teams of securityforces continue to struggle totrack down the foot prints of agroup of heavily armed terror-ists responsible for killing twosoldiers of the Indian Army inthe wee hours of Wednesday.

According to DefencePRO, Lt-Col Devender Anand,“29 year old Naik SawantSandip Raghunath,hailing fromSatara district of Maharashtraand 25 year old Rifleman ArjunThapa Magar, hailing fromNepal had attained martyrdom during exchangeof fire with heavily armed ter-rorists in a thickly forested vil-lage of Dabar-Potha inNowshera area of Rajouri in theintervening night of December31-January 1, 2020”.

Since then, joint teams ofsecurity forces have laid a tightcordon in the general area toplug all the escape routes of ter-rorists, believed to have infil-trated from across the line ofcontrol early Monday morning.

According to local villagers

in the area, “a group of heavi-ly armed terrorists had takenshelter for some time in thehouse of a local villager inDabar-Potha and had madespecific queries related to loca-tion of local army camps, routetowards Kashmir valley viaMughal road”.

Soon after terroristsstepped out of their home, thehead of the family had raisedfirst alarm and tipped off thevillage sarpanch to immediatelyalert local army unit.

Despite launching cordonand search operations in realtime, the security forces have sofar failed to track down theirfoot prints.

Highly placed sourcesclaimed, possibility of theirpresence (heavily armed ter-rorists) in a safe hideout, can-not be ruled out as security

forces have failed to establishfresh contact with them after abrief exchange of fire leading tofatal injuries of two soldiers.

The security forces aremaintaining a tight vigil in thearea and have even stoppedvehicular movement towardsthese forward villages to pre-vent these terrorists from mix-ing with the local populationand escaping using publictransport vehicle. Local resi-dents in the area continue tospend sleepless nights for lasttwo days despite huge presenceof security forces in the area.

Meanwhile, after organis-ing a wreath laying ceremonyin Jammu on Thursday themortal remains of martyredsoldiers were dispatched totheir native places where theirlast rites will be performed withfull military honours.

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Tumakuru (Karnataka):Lambasting Congress and itsallies for opposing theCitizenship Amendment Act,Prime Minister Narendra Modion Thursday said the ongoingprotests were against theParliament and called on theagitators to raise their voiceagainst Pakistan's atrocities onits minorities for the last 70years.

The Prime Minister saidprotecting and supportingminorities of neighbouringcountries who have soughtrefuge in India was our culturaland national responsibility.

“Those who are protestingagainst the Parliament of India,I want to tell them that the needwas to expose Pakistan's deedson the world stage. If you wantto protest, protest and raisevoice against Pakistan's deedsfor the last 70 years, you shouldhave that guts,” he said.

Addressing a gathering at

Siddaganga Math near here, hesaid, “If you want to shout slo-gans, shout against the way inwhich atrocities are happeningagainst minorities there; if youwant to hold rallies, hold it infavour of dalits and down-trodden who have come fromPakistan (to India). If you wantto do dharna, do it againstPakistans deeds.”

Modi was speaking afterpaying respects at the'Gadduge' (final resting place)of Shivakumara Swamiji atSiddaganga Math, a promi-nent Lingayat seminary here.

Pointing out that few weeksago the Parliament passed theCAA, Modi said, however, theCongress and its allies and theecosystem created by them arestanding up against the IndianParliament. He said, “the kindof hate they have towards us(BJP), similar voice can beheard against the country'sParliament these days. PTI

Panaji: Four Goa Congressleaders resigned from the partyon Thursday to protest againstits stand on the CitizenshipAmendment Act and three ofthem later joined the BJP, aheadof the saffron party's rally hereon Friday.

Former Panaji Congressblock committee presidentPrasad Amonkar, former block

committee secretary DineshKubal, former youth leaderShivraj Tarkar and North Goaminority cell chief Javed Sheikhquit the party in the morning,saying they were in favour of theamended citizenship law.

Amonkar, Kubal and Tarkarlater joined the BJP, ahead of theparty working president JPNadda's public awareness rally

on the Citizenship AmendmentAct here on Friday.

The three were welcomedinto the BJP by party MLA fromPanaji Atansaio Monserratte.

Later, talking to reporters,Amonkar said they joined theBJP as they support theCitizenship Amendment Actand want to create awarenessabout it. PTI

Mumbai: Senior BJP leaderEknath Khadse has allegedthat former Maharashtra ChiefMinister Devendra Fadnavisand party leader GirishMahajan were behind denial ofticket to him in the StateAssembly polls held last year.

Khadse, while speaking toMarathi news channel ABPMajha on Wednesday, also saidthat some people wanted to endhis political career.

“I am told by the BJP's Statecore committee members thatDevendra Fadnavis and GirishMahajan had opposed issuingticket to me from MuktainagarAssembly seat in Jalgaon dis-trict. They even opposed BJPcentral committee's willing-ness to give ticket to me,”Khadse said.

“I was told about it by somecore committee members oncondition of anonymity,” theformer State Minister claimed.

Khadse resigned as revenueminister in 2016 in the thenBJP-led Government over alle-gations of impropriety in a landdeal. He was at that time thesenior-most minister in theFadnavis-led Cabinet.

He could never return tothe Cabinet and was deniedticket by the BJP in theAssembly polls in October lastyear. The saffron party, instead,gave the ticket to his daughterRohini Khadse fromMuktainagar. However, she lostto Shiv Sena rebel ChandrakantPatil. PTI

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Amajor political controver-sy has erupted in Kerala

with Governor ArifMohammed Khan on one sideand the entire political spec-trum in the State barring theBJP on another side over theresolution adopted by theLegislative Assembly urgingthe Union Government toscrap the CitizenshipAmendment Act.

On New Year Eve, theKerala Legislative Assemblyhad passed a resolution againstthe Act with the ruling CPI(M),CPI and the OppositionCongress and the MuslimLeague coming together in arare show of unity. The loneBJP member in the Houseexpressed his oppositionagainst the resolution.

On Thursday, GovernorArif Mohammed Khan in abrief interaction with the mediaat Thiruvananthapuram on the

sidelines ofa nationalseminar onVedas saidthat theresoilutionpassed byt h eLegislativea s s e mb l yagainst theCAA has no constitutional orlegal validity.

“Citizenship is an issuethat comes under the UnionGovernment. State governmenthas got nothing to do with it.Why is the State Governmentwasting time? The resolutionpassed by the Kerala Assemblyhas no constitutional or legal validity,” said theGovernor.

Arif Mohammed Khanfurther pointed out that theCAA would not have anyimpact in Kerala as there wereno illegal migrants in the State.The Governor expressed his

surprise overthe obsession ofcertain politicalparties in theState over theCAA which hasno bearing inKerala.

The obser-vations by theG o v e r n o r

earned the ire of Marxist andCongress leaders in the State.K Muraleedharan, MP, who isthe son of former Congressleader late K Karunakaranwarned that he would notallow the Governor to comeout of the Raj Bhavan. In ascathing attack, the MPdescribed the Kerala Governoras an agent of the BJP.

Fornmer Chief MinisterOommen Chandi too camedown heavily on the stance ofthe Governor viz-a-viz theCAA. But Subramanian SwamyMO and former UnionMinister of law fully agreed

with Kerala Governor. “Theresolution adopted by theKerala Legislative Assemblyagainst an Act passed by bothHouses of Parliament is ameaningless action. It is illegaland unconstitutional. All I cando is to pity the members of theKerala Legislative Assemblywho showed the outside worldthat they were ignorant of thelaw and Constitution of thecountry.

The Governor has pointedout their mistake and I fullyendorse his views as he waswell within his rights to say so,”said Dr Swamy.

Meanwhile in Chennai,there are reports that the DMKmay bring in a resolution in theassembly condemning theCAA, in the lines of KeralaLegislative Assembly. The CPI,a major ally of the DMK , hasdemanded in a statement thata Kerala style resolution shouldbe adopted in the Tami NaduAssembly.

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Justifying the Citizenship(Amendment) Act (CAA),

Gujarat Chief Minister VijayRupani on Thursday said it wasIndia's responsibility to take inthe persecuted minorities fromneighbouring countries.

Addressing a gathering atKothamba in Mahisagar dis-trict, Rupani slammed theCongress for opposing the con-troversial new law that grantscitizenship to non-Muslimrefugees from Afghanistan, Pakistan andBangladesh.

“The Congress alwaysindulges in vote-bank politics.Why is the party opposingCAA? This is a conspiracy bythe Congress and other

Opposition parties to incitepeople to commit violence,” thechief minister said.

Rupani was in Kothambato unveil a statue of Dr B RAmbedkar and to inauguratesome developmental works.After Partition, MahatmaGandhi had said Hindus ofPakistan and Afghanistanshould be allowed to return toIndia, he claimed, adding thatthis was also agreed upon in theLiaquatNehru Pact, but theagreement was not imple-mented.

“Due to anarchy, majorityof 450 temples were demol-ished and only 20 remained inthose countries,” he said, refer-ring to alleged templedemolitions in the three coun-tries.

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The ruling TrinamoolCongress is expecting a

massive turnout on its Fridayrally at Siliguri which will beled by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to carry theprotest movement against thecontroversial CitizenshipAmendment Act in NorthBengal.

In what is being termed asa “comeback rally” for theBengal ruling outfit — consid-ering the fact that the TMC lostseven out of eight parliamen-tary seats in that part of theState stretching about 400 kmsand including seven districts —the Trinamool leaders are leav-ing no stone unturned toensure attendance of at least alakh of people.

“Though we had lost theLok Sabha seats in NorthBengal as the BJP managed topolarize the atmosphere, thistime the people have realisedtheir dirty game plan to neu-tralize the impact of price rise,joblessness, fall of industrialand agricultural output with ahighly communal narrativethat manifests itself through theobnoxious CAA and NationalCitizenship Register,” saidBengal Minister and local MLAGautam Deb adding there is nodoubt that Friday’s marchwould witness about a lakhpeople walking with the ChiefMinister.

The TMC has been partic-

ularly working among theGorkhas who were largely coldto a BJP’s pro-CAA rally onDecember 24 so that a major-ity of that community joins theFriday march. Gorkhas form alarge part of the population inDarjeeling Hills, Siliguri,Terrain are and parts ofJalpaiguri and Alipurduar.

“The treatment theGorkhas have been meted outin Assam where about onelakh people from the commu-nity have been thrown out ofthe final NRC list is a matter ofconcern here in Hills andTerrain region. They had votedfor the BJP in the Lok Sabhaelections but now they will notside with them. This wasproved by the minimum pres-ence of the Gorkha populationin the BJP’s Abihandan Yatraon December 24,” said a localTMC MLA. This apart, theTMC is also counting on theRajbanshi, Kamptapuri andCooch population of Raiganj,Jalpaiguri, Alipurudar andCoochbehar for making therally a grand success.

After taking out five con-secutive rallies in Kolkata andaround the Chief Minister hasdecided to take out her cam-

paign in districts. She led alarge rally at Purulia onDecember 31.

According to a local TMCleader in Coochbehar thoughthe BJP had been able to makean inroad amongst these com-munities in the parliamentaryelections they were not willingto remain by its side thanks tothe faulty implementation ofNRC in neighbouring Assam.

“More than 10 lakhBengalis including Rajbanshis,Cooch and Kamptapuris havebeen thrown out of the NTC.Despite being Indian citizensthey are now spending theirtime in courts and tribunals toget back their citizenship rights.

Thousands of local peoplehave their relatives in Assamwho are suffering under theNRC’s impact and these peoplewho had voted for the BJP willnever go back to its fold. Theywill naturally side by MamataBanerjee and respond to hercall in Friday’s rally,” said theTMC district leader fromCoochbehar who had earlierbeen in the BJP but hasrejoined Trinamool for thesame reason.

“We hope to get more thana lakh people coming to therally. Maybe the rally turns outto be bigger breaking all therecords. In fact the Leftistsand the Congress men toomay join the rally not becausethey will be with us in futurebut because they want to reg-ister their protest,” he added.

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Afierce controversy brokeout on Thursday over the

rejection of the tableaux ofMaharashtra and West Bengalfor the Republic Day parade, asthe ruling Shiv Sena, NCP andTrinamool Congress (TMC)dubbed the development as an“insult” to the people of the twoStates and said that behind themove, there appeared to be aCentre-hatched “political con-spiracy” against the States ruledby the non-BJP parties.

On a day when the TMCcharged that the NarendraModi Government was “vin-dictive” in its approach andwas meting out “step-mother-ly” treatment towards WestBengal, Shiv Sena spokespersonand MP Sanjay Raut tweeted:“At this year’s Republic Dayparade, the tableaux ofMaharashtra and West Bengalwill not be seen. Is there anyconspiracy behind this? Is thatour crime that we are strongpatriots?”.

“Maharashtra tableauattracts the nation’s attentionduring the parades alongRajpath in New Delhi.Maharashtra tableaux havewon first prize on several occa-sions in the past. What does theUnion Government wants toachieve by sidelining

Maharashtra? Had such a thinghappened during the Congress’rule at the Centre, the BJPwould have raised hue and cry.Why is the BJP keeping quiet?,”Raut asked.

Raut urged the ChiefMinisters of Maharashtra andWest Bengal to take up thematter with the Centre and findout reasons for rejection oftheir tableaux for the RepublicDay parade.

NCP leader and MPSupriya Sule, who took the leadin flagging the issue, tweeted:“The Union Government hasrejected the tableaux ofMaharashtra and West Bengalfor the Republic Day parade.Republic Day is a national cel-ebration. It is essential that theCentre gives representation toall States. The Centre’s actsmacks of malice. It is metingout discriminatory treatmenttowards to the Opposition-ruled states”.

“Maharashtra and WestBengal played an importantrole in the country’s indepen-dence struggle. The act ofrejecting the participation oftheir tableaux in the RepublicDay parade is an insult to thepeople of the two States. Wecondemn publicly the Centre’sact,” Sule tweeted.

Meanwhile, West BengalMinister of State for LegislativeAffairs Tapas Roy charged that

the Narendra ModiGovernment had adopted a“vindictive” attitude towardshis state “Since we have beenopposing anti-people policies ofthe BJP Government, theCentre is meting out step-motherly treatment towardsWest Bengal. As we haveopposed anti-people laws likeCAA the Centre has rejectedour tableau proposal”.

Roy recalled that the WestBengal’s earlier proposals toshowcase Kanyashree in 2015and 'Ekata-i Sampriti' (unity isharmony) programme in 2018during Republic Day paradeshad been rejected by the Centre.

However, West Bengal BJPunit president Dilip Ghoshcontested Roy’s statement bysaying that West Bengal’stableau proposals were reject-ed as the State Government did-n't properly follow the rules andprocedure regarding it.

“The State Governmenthas not followed the rules.Other states have followedthem, so their tableau propos-als have been accepted. TheTMC should stop doing politicson each and every issue,” Ghosh

said. On its part, theGovernment has rejected theState Government’s criticism, bysaying that it had followed dueprocess in the selection oftableaux.

Official sources said thatthe tableaux proposals receivedfrom various states/UTs andCentral Ministries/departmentswere evaluated in a series ofmeetings of the expert com-mittee comprising of eminentpersons in the field of art, cul-ture, painting, sculpture, music,architecture, choreography etc.

“Many tableaux of BJP-ruled states have also beenrejected this year. These statesare Haryana, Uttarakhand,Tripura, Arunachal Pradesh. Itis pertinent to mention herethat the tableau of the govern-ment of West Bengal was short-listed for participation inRepublic Day Parade 2019 asan outcome of the sameprocess,” the sources said.

“For Republic Day Parade2020, a total of 56 tableaux pro-posals (32 from states/UTs and24 from Ministries/depart-ments) were received. Out ofthese, 22 proposals, comprisingof 16 states/UTs and six min-istries/departments, have final-ly been shortlisted for partici-pation in the Republic DayParade 2020 after a series of fivemeetings,” the sourcesadded.

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There is no doubt that 2019 hasbeen a special year for China:Lavish events were organised tocelebrate the 70th anniversary ofthe founding of the People’s

Republic of China (PRC). In 1949, from therostrum of the Tiananmen Square,Chairman Mao had announced, “China hasarisen.” On October 1, 2019, ChinesePresident Xi Jinping was on the same wave-length as his predecessor when he said, “Noforce can ever shake the status of China orstop the Chinese people and the nation frommarching forward.” On that day, Beijing dis-played several futuristic military gadgets.

On December 29, the Global Times list-ed China’s advanced weaponry. It said, “theyear 2019” has been a “year of harvest” forChina’s military equipment as the countryshowcased a “massive selection” of the latest,advanced and powerful weapons that oper-ate on land, sea and air. It is not only in thefield of advanced armaments that Beijing hasbeen “doing well” but in this domain, theprogress is indicative of an assertive China andof the innovative developments undertakenby Beijing. Comparatively, India is definitive-ly trailing. Even though the communist party’snewspaper observed, “These displays ofChina’s new weapons showed transparencyin the country’s military development” andsent a message to the world that China wasdetermined to “safeguard sovereignty andpeace,” the fact remains that China is stillpreparing itself.

Last week, in the Port of Dalian inLiaoning Province, China launched thecountry’s 23rd Type 052D and the sixth Type055 destroyer. Experts said “the ship was oneof the world’s largest and most powerfuldestroyers” and was capable of leading a highsea fleet or becoming the “pillar in an aircraftcarrier battle group”, said the Global Times.

A few days earlier, China had officiallycommissioned its first domestically-builtaircraft carrier, the Shandong. The CNNreported, “China has officially commis-sioned its first domestically-built aircraft car-rier, the Shandong, a significant step forwardin Chinese President Xi Jinping’s ambitionsfor the country to field a world-class Navy.”Xi attended the commissioning ceremony inthe southern province of Hainan where thecarrier joined the Chinese Navy. In 2019,China launched the highest number of war-ships in the world: Nine destroyers, one com-prehensive supply ship, one comprehensivelanding ship, one amphibious assault ship, 12light frigates with a total displacement of200,000 tonnes, surpassing the US by far.

The Global Times quoted military expertsas saying, “2019 will not be the end of China’smilitary equipment development. Moreweapons are expected in 2020 and beyond.”But there is another side to the coin. PresidentXi has been facing a rough sea at home. Thefourth plenary session of the 19th ChineseCommunist Party’s Central Committee washeld in Beijing from October 28 to 31. The

members discussed the workreport presented by Xi and adopt-ed it “to uphold and improve thesystem of socialist rule of law withChinese characteristics andimprove the party’s capacity forlaw-based governance and law-based exercising of state power.”

The communiqué mentions,the nation is facing “increasingchallenges at home and abroad.”The gathering upheld the prin-ciple of “one country, two sys-tems,” maintaining lasting pros-perity and stability in HongKong and Macao, and “promot-ing the peaceful reunification ofChina.”

Despite the serious difficul-ties faced by China, India needsto be prepared to respond to itsrise. But first, let’s talk about whatIndia should not do. The two-daymeeting between Prime MinisterNarendra Modi and President XiJinping at a resort in October inMamallapuram was an occa-sion to talk about “civilisation.”But was it of any help?

As it is, during Nehruviandays, India was fond of this hazyconcept. The dictionary thusdefines the term as “an act or aprocess of civilising, as by bring-ing out of a savage, uneducated,or unrefined state, or of beingcivilised.” Already, in the 1950s,this great “idea” allowed theIndian leadership to “dream” oflofty principles such as peacefulco-existence, while China wasquietly consolidating its presenceon the Tibetan plateau andpreparing for a war with India.

Today, India should look

after its own interests and forgetabout vague idealistic concepts.It should learn from the Chineseleadership, which has alwaysremained pragmatic and down-to-earth. Unfortunately, whenIndia speaks about its past, it doesso to avoid talking about the pre-sent. This is what may have hap-pened between India and Chinaduring the two-day encounter atMamallapuram. Though it isnot known what went on for two-and-a-half hours during the one-to-one dinner composed of exot-ic Tamil dishes, very few concretedecisions seem to have beentaken. The Indian foreign secre-tary affirmed that the “K” wordwas not pronounced. This isregrettable for the occasion wasopportune to clarify the Indianposition.

One positive outcome fromthe meeting was the decision toestablish a high-level economicand trade dialogue mechanism“with the objective of achievingenhanced trade and commercialrelations, as well as to better bal-ance the trade between the twocountries.” This can, hopefully,help rebalance the trade deficit —today in India’s disfavour.

An example of a positivepragmatic policy for India hasbeen the creation of the post ofChief of Defence Staff (CDS). Aday before the end of the year,the Government finally nomi-nated Gen Bipin Rawat, outgo-ing Chief of Army Staff, as thefirst CDS “to drive the desper-ately-needed integration amongthe three services.”

But why did we have to waitfor one day before the end of GenRawat’s tenure to see his namereleased? There was probably anintense lobbying from the babusto preserve their turf. The his-tory of modern India is aMahabharata between the pro-gressive forces, which want tochange “eternal Bharat”, and theentrenched administration stick-ing to their privileges.

To win this battle would bethe best way to counter China. AsRawat was handing over thebaton to Gen MM Naravane, hissuccessor, he was asked a ques-tion: Is the Army better preparedtoday to face the security chal-lenges than when he took over?Gen Rawat replied, “Yes, we arebetter prepared.”

Preparation for any even-tuality is the way forward tocounter the rise of China. Atthe same time, India needs tocontinue investing in infra-structure, telecommunicationsystems, roads, airports andborder areas while also provid-ing a decent living and empow-ering frontier populations. Inthe future, ArtificialIntelligence (AI), latesttelecommunication means andnew technologies should beindigenously developed if Indiadoes not want to be left behind.Only then will China respectIndia and will not be temptedto engage in an adventure likeit did in 1962. This is a toughagenda for 2020.

(The writer is an expert onIndia-China relations)

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Sir — The Prime Minister must becomplimented for implementing arecommendation made in 2001 bya Group of Ministers on nationalsecurity, headed by the then deputyPrime Minister, LK Advani.Expectation is that with the appoint-ment of Bipin Rawat as the newChief of Defence Staff (CDS),defence management will improvesignificantly.

The Government’s own Pressrelease defines the appointment ofthe CDS as “landmark”. Hopefully,Gen Rawat will give “effective lead-ership” to the services at the top levelof decision-making, improve coor-dination among the three servicesand prepare them better to deal witha rapidly changing security environ-ment and the changing nature ofwarfare.

To accommodate the CDS inthe higher defence organisation, itis understood that the Governmenthas decided to create a brand newDepartment of Military Affairs(DMA) in the Ministry of Defence(MoD). Though it is clear that high-er defence management structureswill now have an additional personin the shape of the CDS, his rela-tionship with the three Chiefs and

the Defence Secretary has not beendefined clearly.

One hopes that the roles andfunctions of other departments inthe MoD, too, will be re-examinedso that the military and civilianbureaucracy work together in theinterest of the country. However,dealing with the bureaucracy will bea challenge for the CDS.

J AkshayBengaluru

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Sir — After the Shiv Sena’s exit fromthe NDA, it’s now the time for theJanata Dal (United) [JD(U)] to playball. JD(U) vice-president PrashantKishor’s suggestion that the partyshould contest a lion’s share of seatsin the Bihar polls later this year sig-nals trouble for the BJP. BiharChief Minister Nitish Kumar is a

shrewd politician. He had hiredKishor as a strategist way back in2015 during the Assembly electionsbut was later elevated to the post ofparty vice-president.

Nitish Kumar knows the weak-nesses of the BJP, especially after itsuffered debacles in Maharashtra,Jharkhand and the poor show inHaryana. He wants to exploit the sit-uation to its maximum. Kishor’s lat-est statements should be seen in this

context. In retaliation, the BJP hasgiven its command to DeputyChief Minister Sushil Modi. The lat-est war of words between them isa strategy of the two parties to exertpressure on each other.

However, the weakening posi-tion of the Rashtriya Janata Dal(RJD), the Congress and othersmaller Opposition parties hasstrengthened the bargaining powerof the JD(U). The fear of loosingBihar, like Jharkhand, is hauntingthe BJP as it knows, it cannot winthe State all alone. Now time hascome when the BJP, like Congress,will have to play the second fiddlein Assembly elections to regionalparties in States where they arestrong and in return seek conces-sions in parliamentary elections.

Remember, the Congress wasquick to mould its strategy inJharkhand where it agreed to con-test lesser seats than its regional ally,Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM).Similarly, the BJP would have todevise a way to empower Nitish’sJD(U) to avoid any rift. It can ill-afford to rub Nitish Kumar thewrong way for fear of losing Bihar.

J AkshobhyaMysuru

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Economic development and human well-being hinge on the availability of naturalresources on affordable terms. India’s ambi-

tion of high growth and meeting human aspira-tions has led to the widespread use of naturalresources, many of which are non-renewable andimport-dependent. For example, crude oil. In2018, India imported more than 225 milliontonnes of crude oil at a cost of $ 130 billion. India’sdemand for fuel and non-fuel resources has beenskyrocketing in recent times owing to strong eco-nomic growth and technological advancements.Between 1990 and 2017, India’s material con-sumption increased almost three times from 2.5billion tonnes to 7.4 billion tonnes.

Continued reliance on virgin materials fromwithin India and outside for driving economicgrowth will not only have adverse consequenceson their future availability and costs but also posea serious threat to the environment. “Doing morewith less”, also known as “resource efficiency”, hasemerged as a key strategy that can transform theconventional linear production-consumptionsystem to one that is circular, thereby preventingresource wastage and overuse of virgin materi-als by industries.

Resource efficiency encompasses a widevariety of technologies, processes, policy and insti-tutional interventions along with the product andservice life cycle stages. These typically includemining, design, manufacturing, consumption andend-of-life. Resource efficiency promotes life cyclethinking that helps in identifying opportunitiesto reduce material/resource footprint along thevalue chain, thus improving resource productiv-ity and value enhancement. A resource-efficienteconomy would help, for example, extend prod-uct life, develop products that can be kept in cir-culation to minimise loss of resources, close mate-rial loops, reduce landfill dumping, and degen-erating resources (incineration of waste) and soon.

The United Nations Development Agenda of2030 (UN 2016), too, recognises the importanceof efficient use of natural resources through SDG-12, i.e. promotion of sustainable consumption andproduction (SCP). By becoming a signatory to theUNSDG, India has committed to achieving sus-tainable consumption and production by 2030 bysubstantially reducing waste generation throughprevention, reduction, reuse and recycling.India’s commitment towards promoting sustain-able consumption and production is reflectedthrough the recent draft of the Resource Efficiencypolicy prepared by the Ministry of EnvironmentForest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC). Thedraft of the National Resource Efficiency Policy,2019, is considered to be a significant step towardsthe desired transition as it will help identify oppor-tunities and facilitate thinking and supportaction towards closing resource use loops byestablishing links and synergies across existingsectoral and/or resource-specific strategies.

One of the key aspects the policy focusses onis establishing an institutional mechanism thatintends to promote inter-ministerial engagementand facilitate exchange of ideas for implementa-tion on resource efficiency. The consequentchanges in regulation and policies are expectedto generate new economic opportunities and busi-ness models, resource-efficient products and ser-vices and increase investment and employment.

Transport is a major resource-consuming sec-

tor with high environmental impacts. Atransition from personalised vehicleownership to shared facilities can sig-nificantly improve resource efficiencyin the sector. It has the potential to notonly attract economic investments butalso create employment opportunitiesfor thousands of Indians.

Sustainable agricultural methodscan increase yield, reduce the environ-mental impact and improve profitabil-ity for farmers. Further, labelling andretailing will create a market for theseproducts at the domestic level. Strategiesfor reduction in food loss during han-dling and transit will go a long way inmeeting increased per capita availabil-ity of food. In the urban environment,car-pooling clubs, sharing of buildingservices and office spaces would alsolead to saving of resources while the useof innovative building and infrastruc-ture design and resource-efficient inputscan achieve significant energy savings.

Pricing externalities linked toresource extraction and use throughtaxes can increase the prices of virginraw materials, thereby generating theeconomic incentive to use them moreefficiently and make the secondaryresources more price competitive.Resource efficiency standards are anextremely important enabling factor topromote the use of secondary rawmaterial and products made fromthem. These standards not only enableidentification of resource-efficient prod-ucts or raw material but also indicatetheir quality and enhance acceptabili-ty.

Higher acceptance will lead toincreased demand and generation ofeconomies of scale. However, large-scaleawareness generation efforts anddemonstration projects will need to beundertaken to change perceptions about

products made from waste/secondaryraw material. Further, setting up ofmandatory targets for recycled contentin new products will stimulate and sup-port responsible consumption demandsfrom both consumers and businesses.

Participation, collective action andcommitments from all major stakehold-ers, including industry, policymakers,Government agencies, academic, andcivil society organisations comprisingnon-profit institutions, think tanks,business groups, consumers, technolo-gy developers and solution providers areessential. But this will need the supportof administrative and managementmechanisms for implementation andenforcement of resource efficiencymeasures. Business models can also bedeveloped to design products to usethem for as long as possible, reusing andthen remanufacturing them at the endof service life. Further, the creation offinancing mechanisms that includemeeting the requirement of viability gapfunding will make these business mod-els scalable, replicable and will be ableto generate larger social, economic andenvironmental benefits.

Technology could play an importantrole by enabling application of circulareconomy principles on a larger scale byimproving access to information, man-agement of materials through efficientrecovery and recycling, tracking andlogistics, transparency and accountabil-ity. Good practice guidelines andmanuals help in standardisation to theextent possible and in mainstreamingresource efficiency across businesses andtheir value chains. India’s MSMEs formthe backbone of the industrial sector.Due to the paucity of financial andhuman capital, resource-efficient strate-gies for MSMEs might remain a distantdream. Although there are schemes for

these industries, there is a need tostrengthen the existing industrialecosystem between large and small enti-ties by bringing in more capacity devel-opment, process and product develop-ment and support green procurement.

State governments and local author-ities can focus on their sectoral priori-ties and design resource-efficient strate-gies at their level and become leaders infostering resource efficiency and circu-lar economy at the sub-national level.Given that the Niti Aayog has highlight-ed the importance of competitive fed-eralism, the focus on State-level resourceefficiency strategies will help in the cre-ation of a competitive edge. Circularthinking can be embedded in design-ing the municipal services provision,integration of circularity principles inprocurement processes and related ten-ders and in setting up the infrastructureof urban industrial symbiosis.

It is important to also emphasise onthe need for systems thinking andconsider resources from a supply chainperspective, using a life cycle approach.There is a need to tap into the synergisedknowledge and expertise of differentministries and departments of theGovernment and promote holistic con-sideration and recognition of resourceefficiency challenges.

Further, a monitoring process thathelps assess the resource use, efficien-cy of sectors and resources with har-monised metrics and regular publica-tion of results could give resource effi-ciency a higher profile in India’s eco-nomic growth pathway.

(Bhattacharjya is a Fellow andAssociate Director of the ResourceEfficiency and Governance Division andBakshi is a policy research Fellow at theEnvironment and Waste ManagementDivision at TERI)

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An alarming number of 2.69million cases of tuberculosishave been reported in India by

the World Health OrganisationReport (WHO), 2019. As of now,India contributes to 27 per cent of theglobal burden of tuberculosis.However, diligent efforts and constantdetermination may enable the coun-try to demonstrate leadership in thecontrol of this communicable disease.The country, though reeling under animmense population burden, has thepotential to achieve tuberculosis elim-ination through innovations in health-

care technology.India possesses the capacity to

serve as the global centre for innova-tions focussed on neglected diseasesand the current technologicaladvancements that exist are inade-quate to bridge gaps in neglected dis-eases that affect the Indian population.At this juncture, it is important to nur-ture the innovation ecosystem inIndia and increase investment in thesame. It is imperative to integrate cut-ting-edge technology and systems inall aspect of healthcare, particularlysurveillance and monitoring mecha-nisms, diagnostic technologies, treat-ment approaches, preventive andpalliative strategies and the systemsrequired to make healthcare availableand accessible to all those in need.

The National Strategic Plan2017-2025 for tuberculosis elimina-tion by the Government endorsesinnovations and technologies throughcollaborative efforts by Governmentbodies and organisations, including

civil society organisations and the pri-vate sector players.

It is on these lines that the IndiaHealth Fund (IHF) was conceptu-alised to strengthen the health ecosys-tem by bridging the gap between thelaboratory and the market and trans-lating proof-of-concepts into a sus-tainable impact.

The health fund aims to fosterout-of-the-box thinking aimed ateliminating tuberculosis and malar-ia by 2025 and 2030 respectively,which is aligned with the vision of theGovernment. In an attempt to serveas a catalyst for change, it provides aplatform for innovators to supportstrategic products and processes thatwould result in reduction of sufferingand deaths occurring due to theseinfectious diseases.

The IHF recently launched theTB Quest 2019 post a rigorous screen-ing and evaluation process to awardnovel pathways towards addressingthe multiple challenges of tuberculo-

sis that result in huge economic andhuman costs. One of the awardeeswere innovators working to addressthe pressing problem of delayedtuberculosis diagnosis in remote areasusing artificial intelligence and deeplearning technology for imaging forquick and accurate diagnosis.

Another awardee is working onpreventing transmission of tubercu-losis from animals to humans with anovel diagnostic kit that uses a com-bination of native and recombinantantigens to detect bovine tuberculo-sis. Sputum collection has proven tobe time-consuming and inaccurate attimes, so to address this problem,another firm created an immune-magnetic cell capture technologythat replaces sputum smearmicroscopy as a method for diagnos-ing tuberculosis.

For efficient implementation oftuberculosis diagnostics at the districtand sub-district level of healthcaredelivery, yet another innovator devel-

oped a real-time quantitative micro-PCR system with the aim of bringingbattery-operated, point-of-carePolymerase Chain Reaction (PCR)testing and molecular diagnosis topatients.

The Centre for Health Researchand Innovation (CHRI), in partner-ship with an innovator aims to enablefaster diagnosis and treatment initi-ation of tuberculosis patients throughthis system, allowing primary health-care workers to diagnose tuberculo-sis in primary health settings wheremicroscopy is the sole diagnostic tech-nique available.

Further, a device calledTuberculosis MonitoringEncouragement Adherence Drivethat is aimed at improving drugadherence was another path-breakingtechnology that was recognised andawarded. To ensure a smooth transi-tion from the laboratories to the mar-kets for these technologies, a team ofscientists, public health and medical

practitioners will guide and mentorthe innovators in their journey.Furthermore, the IHF aims to createa platform for these innovators bymobilising resources and buildingpublic-private partnerships to initiateinnovative solutions, business mod-els and bring a transformative change.

Innovations that combine afford-ability along with ground-breakingtechnology should be encouraged andsupported to the very last mile.Elimination of tuberculosis fromIndia will be achieved by breaking thesilos, forging partnerships, creatingnovel business models and extendingsupport to innovations curated byyoung entrepreneurs.

A comprehensive and collabora-tive platform involving public and pri-vate stakeholders can facilitate thisprocess and accelerate the process ofelimination of such diseases fromIndia.

(The writer is CEO of a corporateventure on health funding)

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The country’s manufacturingsector activity improved in

December driven by neworders that rose at the fastestpace since July as companiesramped up production andresumed hiring efforts, amonthly survey said onThursday.

Notwithstanding theimprovement in operating con-ditions during December, com-panies were cautious regardingthe annual outlook of 2020 andthis could have an impact onjob creation and investment inthe year, the survey said.

The IHS Markit IndiaManufacturing PMI rose from51.2 in November to 52.7 inDecember, registering the

“joint-strongest” improvementin 10 months.

“Factories benefited from arebound in demand, andresponded by scaling up pro-duction to the greatest extentsince May. There were alsorenewed increases in inputpurchasing and employmentduring December,” Pollyannade Lima, Principal Economistat IHS Markit said.

As per the survey, newwork orders witnessed markedimprovement, with the pace ofexpansion picking up to thefastest since July. Moreover, theuptick in total sales was sup-ported by higher demand fromoverseas. New export ordersexpanded for the 26th monthin a row, albeit modestly, thesurvey said.

This is the 29th consecutivemonth that the manufacturingPMI has remained above the50-point mark. In PMI par-lance, a print above 50 meansexpansion, while a score belowthat denotes contraction.

Lima, however, said “a note

of caution is evident from thesurvey’s measure of businessconfidence. The degree of opti-mism signalled at the end of2019 was the weakest in justunder three years, reflectingconcerns over market condi-tions, which could restrict jobcreation and investment in theearly part of 2020”.

According to the survey,production is expected toexpand in the coming 12months, but the degree of opti-mism weakened to a 34-monthlow. On the inflation front, theoverall rate of inflation reacheda 13-month high.

“At the same time, priceindicators showed acceleratedrates of inflation for both inputcosts and output charges. Thelatter reflected a combinationof improved pricing power,given the favourable demandenvironment, and efforts toprotect margins from costrises,” Lima said. The RBI isscheduled to hold its MonetaryPolicy Committee (MPC) dur-ing February 4-6, 2020.

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In what can potentially hurt thefiscal math for the ongoing fis-

cal, a senior Government officialsaid strategic divestments inAir India, BPCL and ContainerCorporation are “unlikely” to becompleted in FY20.

Work on all these compa-nies is on and the process is fac-ing delays due to “surprises”encountered once the wheelshave begun moving, the officialfrom the Department ofInvestment and Public AssetManagement (Dipam) said.

The Ministry has budget-ed to garner �1.05 lakh crorefrom divestments during thefiscal. The Government hasalready breached the budgetedfiscal deficit gap and the extentof the gap stands at 115 percent with four months to go.

The official declined tocomment on the impact of suchevents on the fiscal math.When asked if the strategicdivestment in the BharatPetroleum Corporation(BPCL) — which can alonefetch the Government over

�60,000 crore if it were to sellits entire 53 per cent stake —will be completed this fiscal, theofficial said, “unlikely”.

“We are not saying that forourselves and our timelines aresuch that it should happen. Butwe know that the processthrows up surprises,” the offi-cial said speaking on the side-lines of an event here.

Similarly, on ContainerCorporation (Concor) and AirIndia as well, the official saidthat the sales will not gothrough in the current fiscalending March 31.

The official said theGovernment is preparing thefinancial statements and gettingthe data room ready for thesales, suggesting that suchaspects take time. Till now, theindustry has shown “excite-ment” over the companieswhich are being floated, the offi-cial said, adding that there areadditional details which may besought by potential bidders.

When asked about thestrategic sale in ShippingCorporation of India (SCI), theofficial said the sale is at a cer-

tain stage and going strong.The Government, which hadexceeded the budgeted divest-ment target last fiscal, hasmopped up only �12,359 croreof the �1.05 lakh crore target asof September. According tomedia reports, the stake sale inSCI can fetch it �2,000 croreand over �13,000 crore canaccrue from Concor.

Meanwhile, EdelweissMutual Fund’s Bharat BondExchange Traded Fund listedon the National StockExchange on Thursday with amarginally down opening.

Dipam’s joint secretaryAnuradha Thakur said thegovernment is working hardwith the regulators in order toensure that the bond marketgets maximum traction.

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Mumbai: The Government hasno option but to privatise AirIndia as it has around �80,000-crore debt and needs cooper-ation of the employees for car-rying out the privatisationprocess, Minister of State forCivil Aviation Hardeep SinghPuri is said to have told the air-line unions on Thursday.

At a meeting with some 13Air India unions in Delhi, Purialso said that the governmentwas trying to address the con-cerns of the employees regard-ing issues such as job protec-tion post privatisation, a unionrepresentative said.

“The Minister said AirIndia has a debt of �80,000crore and no expert has solu-tion to that. In this situation,privatisation is the only choiceleft for the Government,” oneof the union representativestold PTI after the meeting,which lasted for an hour.

He also said Puri soughtcooperation from all airlineunions in carrying out the dis-investment process of thenational carrier. PTI

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Tata Sons on Thursdaymoved the Supreme Court

challenging reinstatement ofCyrus Mistry as executiveChairman and director of TataSons and the three group com-panies — Tata ConsultancyServices Ltd (TCS), TataIndustries Ltd and TataTeleservices (Maharashtra) Ltd.

The company has chal-lenged the complete order ofthe National Company LawAppellate Tribunal (NCLAT),pronounced on December 18,restoring Mistry as executiveChairman and also his imme-diate reinstatement as directorof Tata Sons and three groupcompanies.

The petition seeks a stay onthe NCLAT order in the wakeof the TCS Board Meeting

slated for January 9.It is learnt that the board

meeting is likely to consider thethird quarter earnings and a dis-cussion on the reinstatement ofMistry as a director. The peti-tioner will urge the apex courtto list the matter for urgent hear-ing after the court reopens after

vacations on January 6.The NCLAT while rein-

stating ousted chairman CyrusMistry, held that the appoint-ment of N Chandrasekaran ashis successor is illegal. Theappeals court observed thehaste in Mistry’s removal aschairman of the Tata group’s

holding company, and thisaction completely ignored theinterest and oppression ofminority shareholders.

However, the appellate tri-bunal has granted the TataGroup four weeks to file anappeal against its judgement.The restoration order will only

be operational after this timeperiod.

Aryama Sundaram, coun-sel for Mistry, had told IANS,“NCLT appeared to have gonewith the Tata name and themajoritarian view in its earlierjudgment. This goes against thegrain of Company Law andCompanies Act. If one followsthe earlier path, then you don’tneed provisions in law whichsafeguards minority share-holders’ rights. “This was anerroneous approach. What wedid as counsel was that we con-tested this template. It wasn’t theindividual right of Mr Mistry,which was being trampled, itwas the oppression and mis-management of the board thatwas in question and this direct-ly impacted varied sharehold-ers including millions of pub-lic shareholders.”

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������3C/�)'1��/��(,*��/'���2�#��12)>�D�1*�2�,,�2/3�>New Delhi: The NCLAT hasadjourned till Friday hearingon the Registrar of Companies’plea seeking modifications inits judgement which reinstatedCyrus Mistry as the executivechairman of Tata Sons.

A two-member bench ofthe National Company LawAppellate Tribunal (NCLAT)headed by Chairman Justice SJMukhopadhaya directed the

Ministry of Corporate Affairs tosubmit details of the definitionof private and public companiesunder the Companies Act.

The bench also asked forclarifications on the paid up cap-ital requirement for the same forchange in the certificate of incor-poration of a company. TheNCLAT was hearing an urgentapplication moved by the theRegistrar of Companies (RoC),

under the Ministry of CorporateAffairs, seeking to be impleadedas a party in the two petitionsand deletion of the words “ille-gal” and “with the help of theRoC” used by the NCLAT in its172-page-long judgement.

The NCLAT on December18 directed the USD 110-bil-lion Tata group to reinstateCyrus Mistry as the executivechairman of Tata Sons. IANS

New Delhi: Telecom regulatorTRAI on Thursday started anindustry-wide consultation onframework for network trafficmanagement practices andmulti-stakeholder body outlinedin the net neutrality principles.

The consultation paperissued by TRAI on Thursdaydiscusses various challengesin measurement of internettraffic and compilation of rea-sonable traffic managementpractices. “The objective ofthis consultation paper is todeliberate the issues related totraffic management practices

and the Multi Stakeholderbody... It discusses about estab-lishment of a framework to for-mulate traffic managementpractices. The paper also dis-cusses about the issues relatedto composition, function,Governance Structure of multi-stakeholder body,” TelecomRegulatory Authority of India(TRAI) said.

The discussion paper is“limited” to the issues on whichadditional recommendationwere sought by TelecomDepartment in its letter on July2018, TRAI said while pointing

out that the regulator has nointention to revisit its principleson Net Neutrality and broadapproach recommended earli-er. TRAI said comments onissues raised in the consultationpaper should be submitted byJanuary 30 and counter com-ments by February 13, 2020.

The net neutrality principles— approved by the telecomdepartment in 2018 — prohib-it service providers from dis-criminating against internetcontent and services by block-ing, throttling or according pref-erential higher speeds. PTI

New Delhi: The National PaymentsCorporation of India (NPCI) on Thursday saidthe homegrown payments technology RuPay will offer 40 per cent cashback for itsinternational card users for transactions in selectcountries.

Indians travelling to the UAE, Singapore,Sri Lanka, the UK, the US, Spain, Switzerlandand Thailand will be able to earn up to�16,000 cashback per month by getting theirRuPay International Card activated, the NPCIsaid in a release.

With RuPay International cards — JCB,Discover and Diners Club — customers usingmultiple cards can earn more cashbacks underthe ‘RuPay Travel Tales’ campaign. PTI

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�(������ ����������������������� ������������� &�����7 �������������������������������New Delhi: Major two-wheeler makers of the

country, Hero MotoCorp, Bajaj Auto and TVSMotor on Thursday reported decline in theirdomestic sales in December, ending 2019 on anegative note. Suzuki Motorcycle India Pvt Ltd(SMIPL), however, reported a marginal increasein domestic sales last month. The country’slargest two-wheeler maker Hero MotoCorpsaid sales in domestic market were at 4,12,009units last month as compared to 4,36,591 unitsin December 2018, down 5.6 per cent.

Bajaj Auto also reported 21 per cent declinein motorcycle sales in domestic market at 1,24,125units last month as against 1,57,252 units in theyear-ago period. TVS Motor Co said its domestictwo-wheeler sales were down 25 per cent at 1,57,244units last month as compared to 2,09,906 units inthe corresponding month of 2018. PTI

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India can explore an annualUSD 82-billion export poten-

tial in twenty products, including electrical equipmentand ferro alloys, in the world’s second largest economy China, according toa report.

Indian exporters have acompetitive advantage as far as these 20 goods are concerned.

Currently, India meets only3.3 per cent or USD 2.7 billionof the total annual importdemands of USD 82 billion forthese 20 products in China.

India’s exports of these 20 products are wortharound USD 15 billion to theworld, which is 4.5 per cent ofthe country’s annual outwardshipments.

These goods constitutedabout 17 per cent of India’sexports to China in 2018,according to the report byMVIRDC World Trade CentreMumbai.

India can substantiallyreduce its trade deficit withChina, which stood at USD53.56 billion in 2018-19, byenhancing its market share forthese products in that country,the report added.

Electrical equipment,tobacco, iron and steel, ferro

alloys, parts of aircraft, enginesand other auto-components,benzene, frozen bonelessbovine meat are some of theproduct segment out of the 20in the list.

“In order to realise thisuntapped export potential,India and China must exchangetrade delegation with membersfrom these identified sectors.We must also create awarenesson this opportunity amongIndia’s micro, small and medium enterprises producingthese identified products,”MVIRDC World Trade CentreMumbai Senior Director RupaNaik said.

Increasing India’s marketshare for these products inChina will add further momen-tum to the growing exports ofIndia in this country, sheadded.

India’s overall exports toChina grew 5.39 per cent toUSD 11.57 billion in April-November 2019, even as ourtotal exports to the world declined 2 per cent dur-ing this period.

The country’s overall tradedeficit with China declined 5per cent to USD 35.3 billion inthe first eight months of thecurrent financial year, com-pared to USD 37.3 billion in theyear-ago period, the reportadded.

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Jindal Steel and Power Ltd(JSPL) on Thursday said its

domestic production of crudesteel and related products forthe quarter ended December31, 2019 stood at 1.61 milliontonnes (MT), up 22 per centfrom the year ago period.

The company’s crude steeloutput had stood at 1.32 milliontonnes in the correspondingperiod last year, JSPL said in astatement.

According to JSPL, this is the“highest ever quarterly domes-tic production of crude steel andrelated products... as a result ofthe strong and consistence per-formance across all locations,especially in Angul operations,”.

During the third quarter ofFY20, JSPL recorded a growth of30 per cent in sales at 1.66 MT,as against 1.27 million tonnes ayear-ago.

JSPL further said exportshipments increased to morethan 3 lakh MT. In Oman, thesales of its subsidiary — JSIS-Oman Steel — increased by 27per cent to 0.572 million MT andsteel production increased by 10per cent to 0.502 million MT.

“We are going to start ourDRI- CGP (Coal Gasificationplant) unit at Angul during Jan2020, and together with afavourably evolving product mix,we expect to further drivegrowth in sales and profit,” JSPLMD VR Sharma said.

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The Sensex rallied over320 points while thebroader Nifty ended at its

fresh lifetime high on Thursdayas investors poured moneyinto infra, banking and energystocks amid strong global cues.

The 30-share BSE Sensexended 320.62 points, or 0.78%,higher at 41,626.64. Similarly, theNSE Nifty closed 99.70 points,or 0.82%, up at 12,282.20 — itsnew closing record.

Sentiment remained bullishfor the second straight day afterPMI data showed that the coun-try’s manufacturing sector activ-ity improved in December, dri-

ven by new orders that rose atthe fastest pace since July, traderssaid.

GST collections remainingabove the �1 lakh crore-mark inDecember also indicates thatconsumption recovery has takenhold, they added.

Ultratech Cement was thetop gainer in the Sensex pack,surging 4.37%, followed by TataSteel, IndusInd Bank, L&T,Reliance Industries, SBI, HDFC,HDFC Bank, Axis Bank, ONGCand ITC. On the other hand,Bajaj Auto, TCS, Infosys, NTPC,Nestle India, Kotak Bank andHero MotoCorp fell up to 0.89%.

“Government’s more thandouble capex plan for the next 5

years and uptick in steel priceswith the announcement of US-China deal signing date pushedthe market higher led by sectorssuch as infra, commercial vehi-cles, cement and metals.

“Strong expectation inunion budget, positive data likeGST revenue and India factoryproduction at 7-month highbrought a broad based rally,” saidVinod Nair, Head of Research,Geojit Financial Services.

Sectorally, BSE basic mate-rials, metal, capital goods, indus-trials, energy, realty and financeindices ended up to 2.94% high-er, while IT and teck closed withlosses. Broader BSE midcap andsmallcap indices rallied up to

1.44%.On the currency front, the

rupee lost 16 paise to close at71.38 against the US dollar onThursday amid steady rise incrude oil prices and strengthen-ing of the greenback overseas.

Forex traders said the rupeeis trading in a narrow rangeamid lack of directional cuesfrom the global market.

At the interbank foreignexchange market, the domesticcurrency opened weak at 71.27a dollar. It finally settled for theday at 71.38, showing a fall of 16paise over its previous close.

Brent futures, the global oilbenchmark, advanced 0.42 percent to USD 66.28 per barrel.

Hong Kong (AFP): Asian markets start-ed the new decade on the front foot, withmost rallying out of the blocks onThursday on lingering trade optimism,while China’s central bank announcedfresh stimulus for the country’s stutter-ing economy.

The broad advances come asinvestors remain upbeat about the glob-al outlook after Washington and Beijingeventually reached a trade agreement toease tensions between the two, whileBrexit uncertainty has essentially beenremoved.

However, geopolitical worries resur-faced following a warning from NorthKorean leader Kim Jong Un that mora-toriums on nuclear and intercontinentalballistic missile tests had ended, with talkswith the US going nowhere.

Shanghai and Hong Kong led gainsafter the People’s Bank of China said itwould lower the amount of cash lendersmust keep in reserve, freeing up morethan USD 100 billion for loans to smallbusinesses.

The move comes as leaders try tokickstart growth in the world’s number

two economy, which is running at itsweakest for almost three decades.

“We expect the PBoC to continue toease policy through 2020, trying toensure growth remains around that sixper cent target,” Stephen Halmarick atCommonwealth Bank of Australia toldBloomberg TV. “Easier monetary policyacross Asia and the Pacific is a theme forthis year as well.”

Shanghai and Hong Kong bothadded one per cent, while Sydney gained0.1 per cent and Singapore put on 0.7 percent. Taipei and Bangkok also rose,

though Manila and Jakarta retreated.Tokyo remains closed for the rest of theweek.

Dealers were also being supported byrelief after Donald Trump said the miniChina-US trade deal will be signed off inWashington on January 15, and he willlater travel to Beijing for the next phaseof talks.

Seoul was down one per cent afterKim declared a self-imposed moratori-um was no longer needed, raising thepossibility that the North could soonresume missile launches or nuclear tests.

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India’s gold imports, whichhave a bearing on the current

account deficit (CAD), fellabout 7 per cent to USD 20.57billion during April-Novemberperiod of the ongoing financialyear, according to theCommerce Ministry data.

Imports of the yellow metalstood at USD 22.16 billion inthe same period of 2018-19.

The decline in goldimports has helped in narrow-ing the country’s trade deficitto USD 106.84 billion duringthe eight-month period underreview as against USD 133.74billion in the year-ago months.0

Script Open High Low LTPRELIANCE 1514.00 1540.80 1513.00 1535.35IBULHSGFIN 312.70 328.50 310.20 325.10TATAMOTORS 187.40 194.60 184.80 193.85TATASTEEL 472.75 487.75 472.15 484.95HINDALCO 215.50 221.20 215.50 220.20MARUTI 7315.00 7368.00 7312.10 7331.80ICICIBANK 536.80 542.00 535.95 540.70YESBANK 46.65 48.50 46.45 47.30SBIN 334.85 339.85 333.40 339.30ADANIPORTS 379.00 384.60 376.55 383.45JINDALSTEL 170.00 174.20 169.05 173.40RBLBANK 347.00 372.30 345.10 369.60SAIL 44.00 47.60 43.75 47.25KOTAKBANK 1672.10 1682.10 1664.30 1671.45ULTRACEMCO 4072.25 4256.00 4072.25 4242.85LT 1310.30 1347.70 1310.30 1345.00PNBHOUSING 450.00 499.00 450.00 492.90ZEEL 283.90 291.55 279.85 289.80ADANIGAS 178.10 185.60 177.35 179.75IPCALAB 1138.10 1142.85 1132.75 1141.10APOLLOHOSP 1432.50 1507.35 1432.50 1494.35ASHOKLEY 81.00 84.50 80.80 83.95TCS 2173.10 2177.90 2150.00 2157.45CARERATING 693.30 714.90 685.00 697.20EICHERMOT 22160.00 22317.90 21481.00 21610.85INDUSINDBK 1490.00 1533.00 1486.65 1528.95VEDL 155.70 159.90 155.35 159.45TITAN 1154.50 1159.25 1140.00 1155.45JSWSTEEL 271.90 277.15 271.45 276.50IBREALEST 77.00 78.85 75.50 78.85BANKBARODA 101.75 104.85 101.75 104.40INFY 738.05 740.20 731.35 734.70BAJFINANCE 4237.85 4296.00 4234.35 4248.30L&TFH 118.25 122.20 118.10 120.95AMBUJACEM 197.30 206.50 197.30 205.40PNB 65.30 66.95 64.60 66.70SUNTV 430.80 438.30 411.45 433.95GUJGAS 255.00 269.70 248.00 255.10BEL 100.35 103.80 99.95 103.15SUNPHARMA 433.00 442.35 432.25 435.35AXISBANK 751.95 759.00 747.90 757.25HINDCOPPER 41.00 48.45 40.75 48.45BOMDYEING 78.90 85.30 76.40 83.00MINDTREE 816.85 818.80 800.40 813.20STRTECH 116.00 128.20 116.00 126.15LICHSGFIN 434.35 457.70 433.50 456.20BHEL 43.50 45.80 43.50 45.40M&M 537.00 540.95 533.45 539.90IDEA 6.02 6.18 5.99 6.11HDFC 2430.00 2472.85 2422.95 2466.20DLF 227.00 234.15 226.55 233.75ADANIENT 209.00 213.10 207.45 211.15GRAPHITE 305.00 314.40 305.00 310.30EDELWEISS 111.00 121.25 110.60 120.05BAJAJ-AUTO 3159.35 3171.35 3112.20 3118.75NCC 55.10 58.80 55.05 58.45TATAGLOBAL 324.00 327.40 321.30 323.50SPICEJET 116.35 117.30 111.55 113.90HDFCLIFE 623.70 638.50 619.00 633.85DMART 1832.00 1854.00 1812.80 1822.60BHARTIARTL 454.00 459.35 453.65 455.00HDFCAMC 3180.00 3212.30 3160.15 3171.80FEDERALBNK 88.75 92.75 88.75 92.20ACC 1444.85 1500.95 1444.85 1493.10HDFCBANK 1278.00 1287.90 1277.50 1286.65JINDALSAW 86.50 89.40 82.20 85.00GRASIM 742.55 768.65 741.90 766.60NBCC 34.70 38.15 34.50 37.40NATIONALUM 43.50 46.20 43.25 45.95CANBK 222.45 229.45 221.00 228.80ADANIPOWER 64.30 64.80 63.40 64.50RELCAPITAL 16.25 16.25 15.10 16.22ADANIGREEN 181.30 183.50 177.50 183.50PHILIPCARB 124.50 131.80 124.45 127.70ITC 238.75 240.60 238.35 239.80JUBLFOOD 1666.00 1687.75 1656.90 1681.55MFSL 542.15 556.00 541.15 553.25TATAMTRDVR 76.95 80.10 75.95 79.75AVANTI 612.80 624.50 610.80 613.05ABCAPITAL 101.90 108.45 101.60 106.50HINDUNILVR 1940.00 1952.25 1930.50 1938.15NMDC 129.00 131.55 128.95 131.20HEROMOTOCO 2444.40 2450.00 2420.00 2429.25BPCL 488.05 491.70 486.55 487.45MOTILALOFS 824.75 859.50 793.00 828.45ASIANPAINT 1790.60 1800.00 1785.00 1790.25ESCORTS 607.65 620.50 605.00 618.60ADANITRANS 332.00 365.80 332.00 357.05CGCL 203.10 203.40 201.30 202.10MOIL 147.75 158.50 147.75 154.40JUSTDIAL 562.00 564.95 554.85 560.80BAJAJFINSV 9389.95 9530.00 9388.10 9505.70GLENMARK 351.00 356.95 344.00 354.10GODFRYPHLP 1296.75 1418.00 1296.75 1353.80GNFC 159.50 171.60 155.15 168.25POWERGRID 196.20 196.65 194.40 195.20TATACHEM 673.00 675.00 668.00 672.40HINDPETRO 266.50 270.45 264.70 269.65PEL 1535.60 1545.90 1512.40 1524.55JAICORPLTD 92.85 98.60 92.25 97.60NOCIL 107.10 110.95 106.60 109.95RAJESHEXPO 689.85 690.50 678.50 687.70MARICO 346.90 347.20 336.20 337.10RELINFRA 32.25 32.35 30.40 32.35HEG 1066.00 1098.00 1065.00 1075.20INDIACEM 73.45 77.45 73.30 77.10DISHTV 12.85 13.25 12.72 13.12

PVR 1900.00 1915.00 1874.75 1879.15IDFCFIRSTB 45.95 46.50 45.50 46.15COALINDIA 212.70 212.70 208.40 211.05BANDHANBNK 503.00 503.00 495.60 499.20MRF 66683.05 67672.90 66473.50 67311.65ISEC 417.95 424.15 412.75 417.10

UJJIVAN 348.05 353.95 347.00 352.20TATAPOWER 57.85 58.15 56.85 58.00GAIL 121.90 124.00 120.65 123.45BIOCON 294.40 298.40 294.30 296.20EIDPARRY 211.70 225.00 211.70 223.80MOTHERSUMI 147.00 150.60 145.75 149.80LUPIN 772.65 780.10 764.70 774.95RAIN 100.00 107.80 100.00 105.40UBL 1306.00 1306.00 1265.50 1281.50STAR 363.20 377.70 362.10 376.05M&MFIN 333.00 340.40 329.70 339.40BATAINDIA 1745.25 1758.05 1732.40 1751.00DELTACORP 195.00 202.80 195.00 201.20AUROPHARMA 459.00 465.60 458.00 462.00NTPC 121.50 122.10 120.55 121.35CIPLA 478.20 478.95 472.30 473.70HONAUT 27299.95 27470.00 27070.00 27070.00EXIDEIND 186.00 189.95 185.60 189.05TVSMOTOR 464.00 469.15 456.25 458.85INDIGO 1338.00 1346.05 1329.60 1332.90CONCOR 576.80 576.80 568.90 571.95APOLLOTYRE 166.00 170.80 163.50 170.30WABAG 182.50 198.45 180.70 193.40RECLTD 143.60 145.85 143.60 145.30PCJEWELLER 24.50 24.60 23.65 24.25DRREDDY 2891.70 2891.70 2861.60 2864.10RNAM 356.25 357.60 352.30 353.35UPL 581.00 597.15 581.00 595.60RVNL 23.10 23.85 22.95 23.75NESTLEIND 14869.25 14869.25 14700.00 14724.75MIDHANI 156.00 165.00 156.00 161.70GICRE 229.00 251.30 228.00 245.25ICICIGI 1386.00 1390.25 1352.40 1360.00IOC 126.45 127.20 126.00 127.00IGL 435.00 435.00 419.60 421.55SRF 3465.00 3470.40 3438.45 3464.95KEC 306.75 324.60 305.00 310.55SIEMENS 1496.55 1516.90 1486.40 1513.75TATAELXSI 828.60 836.00 823.50 827.90BALRAMCHIN 187.80 189.00 185.00 185.20BHARATFORG 486.60 492.00 485.60 490.95MUTHOOTFIN 763.10 772.05 762.50 767.85IRB 73.90 76.05 73.30 74.90DBL 405.90 421.00 404.00 413.10DEEPAKNI 375.20 389.80 372.20 384.70PFC 118.55 120.25 118.20 119.80INFRATEL 256.70 257.20 253.00 253.70HCLTECH 575.00 575.00 570.05 573.45ITI 92.00 96.40 91.80 95.75TECHM 762.10 769.10 761.85 766.00ONGC 127.35 128.60 127.35 128.00BALKRISIND 982.00 988.10 974.45 978.70NIACL 135.00 148.40 133.65 145.10BANKINDIA 70.20 71.70 69.70 71.25CESC 749.75 760.00 747.30 754.35SHREECEM 20396.20 21270.00 20396.20 21222.05RITES 296.00 301.20 294.15 300.45RPOWER 3.69 3.69 3.47 3.57BRITANNIA 3059.95 3064.00 3045.00 3053.30DCAL 78.90 78.90 70.65 70.85SUZLON 1.93 2.29 1.92 2.29LTI 1798.00 1827.70 1783.55 1821.50CUMMINSIND 553.15 570.45 551.30 569.10VIPIND 415.05 437.20 415.05 430.05SPARC 157.00 164.00 155.15 160.40SWANENERGY 108.10 126.65 108.10 115.70MMTC 18.90 21.05 18.90 20.20RAMCOCEM 753.70 780.00 753.70 769.35VENKYS 1794.45 1812.80 1785.00 1789.95EQUITAS 106.60 108.70 105.35 107.70ABFRL 234.05 249.70 234.00 240.55PAGEIND 23676.90 23844.00 23400.00 23589.20SRTRANSFIN 1145.85 1163.30 1145.05 1159.55MANAPPURAM 177.60 180.30 177.00 178.90BOSCHLTD 15345.00 15448.05 15201.00 15402.90AMARAJABAT 725.90 728.80 719.60 727.20BBTC 1036.70 1071.05 1027.80 1058.35ECLERX 633.35 654.55 626.25 640.30ICICIPRULI 484.15 487.35 481.00 486.70RAYMOND 672.00 677.45 662.20 670.60GRANULES 122.65 123.75 121.50 122.00KRBL 284.50 307.20 283.35 291.40

VOLTAS 652.50 660.75 647.65 659.25WIPRO 248.70 249.90 246.05 248.25WOCKPHARMA 236.65 239.90 235.35 237.75PIDILITIND 1402.00 1409.80 1396.85 1398.80GSPL 221.45 233.15 219.00 232.10SCI 62.05 64.50 61.75 62.40RCF 46.65 49.40 46.55 49.20GMDCLTD 63.65 69.35 63.15 66.95BLISSGVS 149.50 149.55 146.90 148.65GODREJCP 691.35 693.70 679.75 683.90DIVISLAB 1817.50 1833.75 1817.50 1825.25CEATLTD 997.90 1045.75 997.45 1033.30COLPAL 1464.95 1466.00 1454.25 1459.55ASHOKA 103.85 111.00 102.50 109.15HAVELLS 650.00 655.50 649.00 654.20FRETAIL 345.00 345.00 330.65 331.80UNIONBANK 55.00 55.45 54.60 55.10NAUKRI 2549.00 2560.00 2522.20 2531.85MPHASIS 924.00 925.65 890.00 893.95BEML 990.65 992.10 981.85 987.90TATAMETALI 627.00 668.95 625.00 645.20DIXON 3803.75 3933.70 3780.00 3913.15JAMNAAUTO 46.75 48.50 46.45 47.15NIITTECH 1587.55 1587.55 1573.60 1579.80BERGEPAINT 522.90 522.90 509.30 511.70LALPATHLAB 1551.00 1570.00 1530.00 1534.15SBILIFE 974.90 975.00 966.30 969.85DCBBANK 176.70 184.30 174.95 183.20GICHSGFIN 156.10 175.45 156.10 164.50MCX 1175.00 1193.95 1168.00 1189.45CASTROLIND 129.45 130.70 128.60 130.25IRCON 415.00 433.50 413.30 428.95INDIANB 102.15 103.70 101.50 102.85NATCOPHARM 620.00 632.35 618.30 620.70INFIBEAM 54.90 55.40 53.95 54.70HIMATSEIDE 125.60 135.45 125.00 131.40QUESS 482.25 510.00 480.35 504.05MGL 1067.85 1074.15 1061.65 1064.85CHOLAFIN 302.90 310.05 301.75 309.20GMRINFRA 20.80 21.80 20.80 21.65RADICO 321.00 329.70 319.80 325.50ENGINERSIN 99.10 100.20 98.50 99.20SUNTECK 422.00 431.40 419.80 429.70PIIND 1445.00 1452.00 1422.00 1439.90PNCINFRA 199.40 203.90 194.50 199.25MEGH 56.65 59.00 56.60 57.95GODREJPROP 984.00 987.00 956.50 966.95HEIDELBERG 176.20 184.25 175.70 182.35JKTYRE 76.40 78.45 75.15 77.85KNRCON 259.30 269.70 253.70 264.05INDHOTEL 143.95 150.55 143.95 146.50TV18BRDCST 21.40 22.80 21.20 22.30OMAXE 156.25 156.25 155.15 155.75HINDZINC 212.40 214.90 210.85 214.15FORCEMOT 1094.80 1098.00 1069.65 1073.60PERSISTENT 705.00 727.00 705.00 713.80RALLIS 175.00 181.60 174.95 178.65HUDCO 37.75 39.25 37.50 38.80CADILAHC 255.00 257.20 253.75 256.15DEEPAKFERT 96.70 102.30 96.70 100.20BIRLACORPN 610.05 632.10 607.00 629.25DABUR 460.00 462.10 458.10 460.00SUDARSCHEM 410.00 421.40 407.25 414.50JSWENERGY 71.70 71.70 69.20 69.55IDBI 37.10 37.80 37.05 37.50NH 325.90 332.50 321.00 329.95JSL 39.55 41.70 38.85 39.50ERIS 499.15 505.05 487.60 489.55JMFINANCIL 91.45 95.10 90.80 94.40AMBER 1147.35 1177.80 1125.20 1151.25PRSMJOHNSN 64.95 70.00 64.85 67.403MINDIA 21535.05 21641.30 21300.00 21377.60SHANKARA 315.00 342.40 313.00 342.40PETRONET 267.90 270.00 267.35 268.90DALBHARAT 804.65 832.00 804.65 819.00IDFC 39.45 39.45 37.90 38.10MAHINDCIE 164.60 171.60 163.65 169.25JKCEMENT 1182.00 1225.00 1182.00 1218.30NILKAMAL 1292.45 1338.30 1291.50 1325.80POLYCAB 993.65 993.65 975.00 977.65RESPONIND 93.40 93.95 92.10 93.20TORNTPOWER 287.05 289.80 285.35 288.15ITDC 309.20 316.65 309.00 311.05TRENT 528.00 545.00 528.00 541.00JKLAKSHMI 287.30 305.00 285.05 303.75HSCL 61.30 63.05 61.20 62.35GSFC 70.00 73.00 69.70 72.55JUBILANT 534.35 536.70 531.00 534.55INTELLECT 142.80 148.15 140.00 145.45FSL 41.05 42.60 41.05 42.10CHAMBLFERT 153.20 156.80 153.00 154.40UFLEX 205.60 218.80 205.60 215.45LTTS 1500.00 1515.00 1482.00 1509.45GHCL 183.70 186.00 183.00 183.95KTKBANK 72.55 73.80 72.35 73.40MAGMA 53.55 55.80 53.00 55.15WELCORP 147.35 148.30 145.00 146.30FORTIS 133.10 136.10 132.75 134.30TORNTPHARM 1853.20 1871.15 1845.00 1864.30APLAPOLLO 1911.10 1917.00 1880.30 1898.65COROMANDEL 532.00 543.00 530.05 533.15KAJARIACER 525.75 535.00 524.95 532.00INOXLEISUR 383.30 384.40 378.50 379.05ALLCARGO 97.35 105.50 97.30 103.75IFCI 6.80 7.05 6.70 6.88ALKEM 2091.00 2098.00 2075.00 2084.40CYIENT 437.00 447.00 434.40 442.35PARAGMILK 140.55 145.70 139.20 141.75

OIL 152.40 153.30 151.55 153.05SUVEN 307.60 310.85 306.60 308.75CUB 233.65 235.00 230.40 232.00HFCL 17.45 18.10 17.45 17.90BALMLAWRIE 123.85 128.90 123.75 124.95LINDEINDIA 662.00 677.95 662.00 671.60FCONSUMER 22.85 24.25 22.55 23.90SOUTHBANK 10.39 10.43 10.26 10.36TATACOFFEE 92.25 93.25 92.10 92.50DCMSHRIRAM 409.45 414.00 393.60 397.15PTC 55.60 57.20 55.60 56.75AAVAS 1974.95 2007.90 1939.50 1990.90WHIRLPOOL 2336.80 2350.85 2301.85 2332.95JISLJALEQS 8.58 8.76 8.50 8.76SADBHAV 117.90 125.55 117.05 124.30TRIDENT 6.70 6.79 6.61 6.75BAJAJHLDNG 3400.00 3498.00 3400.00 3476.60CANFINHOME 396.45 404.50 395.60 400.10SHK 113.20 128.00 112.25 120.35METROPOLIS 1442.40 1442.40 1399.60 1406.00LAXMIMACH 3309.65 3347.05 3300.00 3321.70AEGISLOG 196.00 200.90 193.10 198.70SJVN 25.90 25.95 25.45 25.70GLAXO 1652.95 1652.95 1615.00 1623.10KEI 469.00 477.20 469.00 474.00JSLHISAR 78.15 80.85 77.70 80.50BAJAJELEC 366.00 369.80 353.25 364.10FINCABLES 388.85 406.25 388.25 399.85RELAXO 619.15 625.80 618.00 622.60IEX 144.00 153.95 143.95 149.85HEXAWARE 335.40 338.50 332.85 337.05GODREJIND 430.00 436.50 428.00 429.80GALAXYSURF 1491.60 1500.10 1463.00 1469.80JBCHEPHARM 431.00 435.00 430.30 432.85ABBOTINDIA 13172.30 13292.15 13124.85 13156.95CROMPTON 242.00 242.25 240.05 240.50BDL 299.00 310.00 298.80 305.75TIMETECHNO 56.95 58.05 55.80 56.00PFIZER 4245.80 4245.85 4217.55 4233.70PGHL 4400.00 4440.00 4353.05 4395.90ORIENTBANK 52.25 53.40 52.05 53.20JAGRAN* 62.55 63.50 61.50 62.60IIFL 141.90 147.00 141.20 143.05SUNDRMFAST 507.00 507.00 493.10 502.05ALBK 18.55 19.20 18.55 18.90SHOPERSTOP 365.80 373.45 363.30 371.95BAJAJCON 242.60 247.85 239.40 240.65VBL 700.10 711.00 698.75 707.25AKZOINDIA 2007.80 2035.40 1971.75 1985.65OFSS 2743.90 2747.30 2715.05 2720.15FINEORG 1913.35 1917.60 1892.00 1899.55MINDACORP 99.75 104.00 98.40 100.95CHALET 344.20 346.00 338.25 339.40GUJALKALI 419.00 430.55 417.80 426.30SYNGENE 323.70 340.05 320.20 335.15PRESTIGE 335.15 335.15 326.25 329.90NAVINFLUOR 1001.00 1009.55 1001.00 1005.50VINATIORGA 1975.00 1984.95 1953.55 1960.75DHFL 16.45 16.65 16.35 16.50GREAVESCOT 132.20 135.25 132.20 135.00SYMPHONY 1150.45 1155.60 1127.00 1132.20SOMANYCERA 227.00 240.00 223.55 231.25LAURUSLABS 370.00 377.00 370.00 372.90ASTRAZEN 2626.00 2655.35 2616.10 2631.60MAHSCOOTER 4437.50 4479.95 4437.00 4461.95NBVENTURES 72.95 79.20 72.75 78.85STARCEMENT 89.95 94.50 89.95 93.25ESSELPRO 177.40 181.05 175.00 179.20JYOTHYLAB 152.10 152.60 149.35 151.35J&KBANK 29.80 30.30 29.75 30.00ITDCEM 57.80 59.40 56.70 58.75COCHINSHIP 401.35 411.60 401.35 409.10LEMONTREE 64.05 64.10 63.05 63.25CREDITACC 764.35 772.55 749.00 752.20CRISIL 1938.60 1950.00 1920.30 1929.55BLUESTARCO 823.00 823.00 807.80 812.85GODREJAGRO 516.55 528.00 516.55 520.20WELSPUNIND 49.50 49.95 49.10 49.45MAHLOG 402.00 420.00 389.65 418.60ATUL 4063.60 4119.95 4050.00 4102.50WESTLIFE 344.55 370.20 344.30 367.15MRPL 43.65 44.30 43.05 43.85OBEROIRLTY 523.55 534.45 522.35 528.55KANSAINER 519.85 527.90 516.25 524.75AUBANK 791.00 801.05 791.00 796.15KPITTECH 92.55 92.55 89.00 89.15CHENNPETRO 123.00 127.80 123.00 125.65MASFIN 864.40 880.75 861.65 864.40SOBHA 403.15 410.00 401.60 408.20LUXIND 1270.40 1323.30 1267.75 1315.05ASTRAL 1170.35 1177.05 1153.00 1159.90THYROCARE 542.20 542.70 537.35 538.75REPCOHOME 322.15 334.15 322.15 327.25GDL 124.45 124.80 121.30 121.85ORIENTCEM 72.65 77.40 72.50 76.80VGUARD 212.50 216.55 212.50 215.05UCOBANK 16.80 17.05 16.60 16.80CENTURYPLY 168.00 169.30 166.40 167.25NHPC 24.00 24.15 24.00 24.05EMAMILTD 319.00 319.00 309.15 312.05MINDAIND 358.00 364.00 355.00 361.85AJANTPHARM 975.00 981.60 973.50 979.35ASTERDM 162.55 164.60 160.40 161.00TTKPRESTIG 5720.50 5921.60 5705.40 5793.55THERMAX 1112.30 1115.00 1088.00 1098.40NLCINDIA 57.70 58.60 57.20 58.00SCHAEFFLER 4621.55 4633.35 4611.00 4619.70VARROC 418.00 429.75 417.00 424.95

TEJASNET 92.00 96.10 89.15 92.70PHOENIXLTD 848.90 861.60 836.70 838.80ANDHRABANK 17.00 17.05 16.75 16.85SONATSOFTW 316.00 317.00 312.90 313.85CAPPL 298.00 298.00 294.00 295.35TIMKEN 925.65 929.90 910.05 913.50EIHOTEL 143.00 145.15 142.90 144.75TAKE 99.75 105.00 99.75 102.55PGHH 11420.00 11420.00 11284.30 11321.10ARVINDFASN 397.85 409.00 391.85 396.40TCIEXP 737.80 741.05 729.25 731.65CENTRALBK 18.05 18.30 18.00 18.20GILLETTE 6601.50 6620.00 6575.05 6587.95KALPATPOWR 435.00 435.00 411.45 416.75LAKSHVILAS 17.05 17.15 16.90 17.00TATAINVEST 807.80 826.00 807.00 809.65CORPBANK 25.25 25.70 25.10 25.35SKFINDIA 2200.00 2237.10 2200.00 2214.85SOLARINDS 1068.00 1124.50 1068.00 1115.15ADVENZYMES 165.35 169.50 165.35 169.20FINOLEXIND 539.75 550.00 536.00 547.75SANOFI 7005.00 7005.00 6969.10 6979.50TNPL 169.00 172.50 168.70 170.00INOXWIND 34.85 36.40 34.80 35.15TVTODAY 247.00 259.60 247.00 251.80HAL 736.90 745.00 730.35 736.15LAOPALA 145.00 146.80 143.95 146.60GPPL 87.75 90.00 87.75 88.90INDOSTAR 195.00 200.00 193.40 195.55NESCO 671.00 673.00 668.10 669.05SYNDIBANK 27.90 28.45 27.90 28.25MHRIL 229.90 234.50 229.00 233.00MAHSEAMLES 391.00 404.00 391.00 395.15BASF 1008.00 1008.95 997.00 1000.90ZENSARTECH 177.00 182.00 176.75 180.70TVSSRICHAK 1660.00 1695.80 1659.65 1683.70VMART 1668.20 1670.00 1654.70 1664.20VSTIND 4348.00 4394.00 4240.30 4277.85ENDURANCE 1082.40 1089.40 1068.45 1072.70GET&D 148.60 154.70 148.60 152.90

MAHABANK 12.88 13.18 12.88 12.92SCHNEIDER 67.60 69.60 67.15 68.65RATNAMANI 1064.00 1104.75 1064.00 1099.70GAYAPROJ 82.00 83.60 81.35 82.05SHILPAMED 283.50 292.35 283.00 287.30WABCOINDIA 6540.00 6590.65 6523.75 6574.60ZYDUSWELL 1466.05 1494.55 1466.05 1475.95CENTRUM 19.25 20.55 19.10 20.05AIAENG 1624.50 1627.90 1609.05 1623.15HATHWAY 22.50 22.50 19.00 19.75NETWORK18 24.70 25.40 24.00 25.40DHANUKA 423.45 423.45 414.05 416.15SFL 1320.00 1320.00 1295.00 1304.70IOB 11.10 11.31 11.10 11.17GSKCONS 8400.00 8400.00 8350.00 8386.10CARBORUNIV 316.80 322.00 316.80 320.35APLLTD 558.00 563.45 558.00 561.15GESHIP 302.90 304.45 300.35 300.65HERITGFOOD 357.90 357.90 347.95 351.50CHOLAHLDNG 514.60 515.50 497.15 510.75SUPREMEIND 1135.00 1145.75 1131.90 1143.70CCL 198.00 199.95 197.00 198.75DBCORP 134.10 135.40 134.00 134.75BAYERCROP 3603.35 3647.15 3597.00 3641.00ORIENTELEC 191.50 193.55 190.00 191.30VTL 989.25 989.25 980.45 981.65GULFOILLUB 813.00 813.00 795.65 806.45CERA 2715.00 2715.45 2630.00 2636.55SUPRAJIT 204.55 204.55 201.50 202.55MAXINDIA 80.70 81.50 79.05 80.20SIS 964.20 976.00 960.05 972.35GRINDWELL 596.50 598.70 587.00 595.45REDINGTON 117.20 117.60 116.25 116.85TEAMLEASE 2495.15 2540.00 2494.05 2510.25IFBIND 675.00 680.00 671.40 677.15JCHAC 1892.10 1903.55 1892.00 1900.35TCNSBRANDS 606.50 614.40 606.50 611.40TIINDIA 496.25 499.45 493.50 495.30MAHLIFE 401.95 407.95 396.60 398.55IBULISL 95.05 95.05 95.05 95.05VAIBHAVGBL 851.65 851.65 850.00 850.05FDC 211.70 212.60 209.20 210.70GEPIL 730.00 743.00 730.00 737.40UNITEDBNK 8.93 9.00 8.80 8.97VRLLOG 273.15 278.80 273.00 278.10BLUEDART 2199.95 2207.00 2193.60 2205.00FLFL 398.20 402.00 398.05 399.10GARFIBRES 1206.95 1226.95 1206.00 1216.65SHRIRAMCIT 1385.65 1432.50 1375.10 1387.60KPRMILL 662.50 666.15 662.50 663.50

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SCRIP OPEN HIgh LOW LTP CHANGENIFTY 50 12198.55 12289.90 12195.25 12282.20 99.70TATAMOTORS 185.00 194.70 184.60 193.85 9.40TATASTEEL 472.00 487.80 472.00 487.80 20.05ULTRACEMCO 4069.90 4256.30 4068.15 4237.00 172.00JSWSTEEL 272.00 277.00 271.55 276.90 8.80INDUSINDBK 1491.75 1534.30 1486.10 1533.00 48.70VEDL 155.30 159.85 155.30 159.45 4.85GRASIM 742.00 768.50 741.00 765.30 22.80LT 1312.00 1348.00 1311.00 1344.90 34.95HINDALCO 216.00 221.20 216.00 219.60 5.30GAIL 121.50 123.95 120.65 123.40 2.20RELIANCE 1512.00 1540.95 1512.00 1534.10 24.50YESBANK 46.80 48.50 46.40 47.40 0.75BAJAJFINSV 9378.50 9530.95 9378.45 9525.00 146.55HDFC 2430.00 2472.75 2422.00 2469.90 35.95SBIN 334.50 339.85 333.35 338.80 4.35ADANIPORTS 377.95 384.70 376.50 382.50 4.85UPL 589.50 597.20 584.20 595.00 6.75AXISBANK 750.00 759.00 747.60 756.00 7.30ITC 238.20 240.95 238.10 240.30 2.20IOC 126.20 127.20 126.00 127.00 1.05ICICIBANK 536.00 541.90 535.85 540.80 4.05HDFCBANK 1279.00 1288.00 1279.00 1286.00 7.40ONGC 127.65 128.65 127.10 128.10 0.65BRITANNIA 3047.00 3065.00 3043.05 3055.25 15.60TECHM 762.10 769.15 761.00 766.00 3.90M&M 537.00 541.00 533.50 539.00 2.40BHARTIARTL 454.10 459.40 453.50 455.30 2.00HCLTECH 572.55 575.00 570.50 574.00 2.05BAJFINANCE 4240.00 4295.75 4235.00 4243.80 12.50ZEEL 282.00 291.70 279.20 289.50 0.85WIPRO 246.60 249.90 246.35 248.35 0.65HINDUNILVR 1940.00 1952.60 1930.00 1941.00 4.45TITAN 1157.00 1159.90 1140.00 1156.00 1.25SUNPHARMA 434.00 442.60 432.00 434.65 0.35MARUTI 7327.60 7368.00 7312.00 7316.45 4.75INFRATEL 257.00 257.50 252.70 254.10 -0.35KOTAKBANK 1680.00 1683.50 1664.65 1671.50 -2.55INFY 738.90 740.80 730.90 735.75 -1.10POWERGRID 195.55 196.70 194.35 195.20 -0.30HEROMOTOCO2447.80 2452.00 2417.05 2428.20 -4.35ASIANPAINT 1791.00 1799.90 1783.40 1789.80 -3.40NESTLEIND 14848.90 14852.95 14687.15 14729.00 -50.05DRREDDY 2883.80 2892.40 2860.20 2869.00 -10.40NTPC 121.50 122.15 120.60 121.00 -0.55COALINDIA 212.50 212.80 208.30 210.95 -1.00TCS 2179.95 2179.95 2149.20 2157.00 -10.60CIPLA 478.85 479.90 472.30 472.95 -2.95BAJAJ-AUTO 3154.95 3172.50 3112.05 3121.75 -28.35BPCL 491.20 491.70 486.45 486.85 -4.80EICHERMOT 22090.00 22341.85 21471.10 21568.45 -507.35

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SCRIP OPEN HIgh LOW LTP CHANGENIFTY NEXT 50 28325.45 28552.80 28314.55 28535.40 242.05GICRE 228.40 251.70 227.10 245.50 18.15NIACL 135.00 148.40 133.80 145.00 10.05SHREECEM 20320.00 21279.90 20320.00 21249.50 929.60AMBUJACEM 197.35 206.40 197.20 205.20 8.20IBULHSGFIN 314.00 328.60 310.30 325.50 12.80ACC 1442.00 1501.70 1442.00 1494.80 54.70ASHOKLEY 81.00 84.50 80.80 84.10 3.05PNB 65.00 67.00 64.55 66.80 2.10MOTHERSUMI 146.00 150.50 145.65 150.20 4.50BAJAJHLDNG 3385.00 3484.40 3381.55 3477.00 100.30DLF 227.50 234.40 226.50 233.85 6.30L&TFH 118.60 122.20 118.05 121.15 3.05BANKBARODA 102.10 104.85 101.75 104.45 2.55HINDZINC 211.40 214.95 210.55 214.50 4.40HDFCLIFE 622.70 638.80 618.40 633.00 11.55NMDC 129.15 131.65 128.95 130.55 2.20SRTRANSFIN 1145.00 1163.85 1145.00 1161.00 18.55SIEMENS 1499.00 1518.90 1485.60 1514.90 23.65HINDPETRO 266.50 270.65 264.55 268.90 3.40AUROPHARMA 458.80 465.95 457.50 463.20 5.10PFC 118.70 120.30 118.10 119.65 1.25CADILAHC 255.40 257.50 253.55 256.95 2.70PETRONET 267.00 270.50 267.00 269.40 2.80ICICIPRULI 482.25 487.35 480.60 485.80 4.85BOSCHLTD 15320.95 15450.00 15200.00 15433.00 148.20UBL 1275.00 1284.60 1265.10 1283.00 9.25HAVELLS 650.00 655.75 647.80 654.00 4.50LUPIN 773.00 780.35 764.20 776.00 4.85BIOCON 294.50 298.30 294.10 296.00 1.45DIVISLAB 1820.50 1833.80 1820.50 1826.85 8.00DABUR 459.80 462.20 458.00 460.10 0.30COLPAL 1466.90 1466.90 1454.25 1461.45 0.35NHPC 24.00 24.10 24.00 24.00 0.00IDEA 6.00 6.20 5.95 6.10 0.00DMART 1831.00 1854.85 1815.00 1826.95 -1.55INDIGO 1340.00 1346.95 1330.00 1331.00 -2.00CONCOR 575.95 575.95 568.45 571.85 -1.15HDFCAMC 3171.25 3212.00 3160.65 3171.00 -6.40PAGEIND 23622.00 23849.00 23400.00 23500.00 -102.15OFSS 2737.05 2752.05 2710.00 2723.00 -13.15MCDOWELL-N 598.30 599.40 589.45 593.30 -3.60PIDILITIND 1405.00 1411.00 1395.50 1396.00 -9.35SBILIFE 975.70 975.70 966.00 969.75 -6.65BANDHANBNK 502.95 502.95 495.25 499.10 -3.90BERGEPAINT 517.95 518.85 509.20 512.80 -4.65PEL 1533.00 1545.00 1504.75 1522.70 -14.00PGHH 11360.00 11451.20 11290.10 11291.00 -117.60GODREJCP 691.00 693.90 679.20 682.80 -8.55ICICIGI 1380.00 1389.95 1352.00 1362.00 -23.45MARICO 345.75 347.40 336.10 337.50 -8.25

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Expressing deep frustrationover stalled nuclear talks,

North Korean leader Kim JongUn warned of unspecified“shocking” action and that hiscountry will soon reveal a new“strategic weapon” to the worldas its bolsters its nuclear deter-rent in face of “gangster-like” USpressure.

Kim also said North Koreawas no longer obligated to main-tain a self-imposed suspensionon the testing of nuclearweapons and intercontinentalballistic missiles, whichPresident Donald Trump hastouted as a major diplomaticaccomplishment. But Kim gaveno clear indication that aresumption of such tests wasimpending and appeared toleave the door open for eventu-al negotiations.

Kim has used the diplomaticstalemate to expand his military

capabilities by intensifying testsof shorter-range weapons. Hisarsenal is now estimated toinclude 40-50 nuclear bombsand various delivery systems,including solid-fuel missilesdesigned to beat missile-defensesystems and developmentalICBMs potentially capable ofreaching the US mainland.

Kim has also strengthenedhis negotiating position, movingthe diplomacy closer to an armsreduction negotiation betweennuclear states rather than talksthat would culminate in a uni-lateral surrender of the weaponshe sees as his strongest guaran-tee of survival.

Lee Sang-min, spokesmanfor South Korea’s UnificationMinistry, said North Korea car-rying out its threat to showcasea new strategic weapon would beunhelpful for diplomacy.

Strategic weapons usuallyrefer to nuclear-capable deliverysystems such as ICBMs, but

North Korea otherwise has beenvague about what new arms itwould display. It announced inDecember that it performedtwo “crucial” tests at its long-range rocket launch site thatwould further strengthen itsnuclear deterrent.

Kim’s comments publishedin state media Wednesday weremade at a key, four-day meetingof the ruling Workers’ Party’sCentral Committee as talksbetween Washington andPyongyang have faltered overdisagreements on disarmamentsteps and the removal of sanc-tions.

Some experts say NorthKorea, which has always beensensitive about electoral changesin US government, will avoidserious negotiations in the com-ing months as it watches howTrump’s impending impeach-ment trial over his dealingswith Ukraine affects US presi-dential elections in November.

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Over a dozen Chineselawyers and activists were

detained or went missing in thefinal days of 2019 in a crack-down on participants of a pri-vate democracy gathering,rights groups said on Thursday.

The Chinese governmenthas severely reduced the spacefor civil liberties since PresidentXi Jinping took power in 2012,rounding up rights lawyers,labour activists and evenMarxists students in varioussweeps.

The latest crackdown waslinked to a December gather-ing in the east coast city ofXiamen in Fujian province,where participants discussed“democratic transition inChina,” said Human RightsWatch researcher Wang Yaqiu.

The period aroundChristmas and New Year is tra-ditionally when China choos-es to sentence prominent dis-sidents in an effort to minimise

international media attention,“so it is not a surprise that theychose this particular time tolaunch a manhunt of activists,”Wang said.

The meeting involved asmall group of people “peace-fully discussing politics in a pri-vate space,” she said.

Ding Jiaxi, a prominentBeijing-based disbarred lawyerpreviously jailed for protestingagainst official corruption, wasamong the activists known tohave been detained across thecountry since December 26,according to China HumanRights Defenders (CHRD).

At least seven people,including Shandong-based dis-barred lawyer Liu Shuqing,were released after beingdetained for questioning.

Other civil society figures,including pro-democracyactivist Xu Zhiyong and humanrights lawyer Tang Jingling,have gone missing or are cur-rently unreachable, CHRDsaid.

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Two men who attacked apolice post this week killing

at least one officer in theRussian Caucasus were fightersfrom the Islamic State jihadistgroup, the ISIS propagandaagency Amaq said.

The perpetrators rammeda car into a traffic police postoutside the city of Magas inIngushetia region around 5.30pm on Tuesday, after whichthey attacked policemen withknives, according to the region-al Government.

The Amaq statement onTelegram posted lateWednesday said the men were“two fighters from Islamicstate” who killed two officersand injured others.

The Ingushetia regionalGovernment and regionalinvestigators said one officerdied from injuries.

There has been no official

confirmation of a second policedeath.

The attackers wereAkhmed Imagozhev, a well-known arm wrestler, andMikail Miziev, both residents of Ingushetia and Russian cit-izens.

Miziev was shot dead bypolice while Imagozhev is inhospital, Ingushetia’sGovernment said.

The governor on Tuesdayevening lambasted regionalpolice, saying incompetenceon New Year’s Eve — a hugeRussian holiday — led to theincident, while negligenceresulted in the death as the offi-cer was not wearing protectivearmour.

Ordering a boost in secu-rity measures, he said one ofthe attackers worked as aguard in the local culturecentre.

Investigators launched aprobe into an attempt on the

life of police officers, makingno mention of terrorism as amotive.

North Caucasus has been ahotbed of Islamic extremismafter the breakup of the SovietUnion followed by two sepa-ratist wars in Chechnya, aregion bordering Ingushetia.

Many radical Islamistswent to Iraq and Syria in recentyears to join IS and otherjihadist groups.

The Islamic State groupconsiders North Caucasus aspart of its “caliphate” and hasclaimed several attacks, mostrecently on police near thepresidential palace inChechnya in June.

Russian authorities fre-quently do not recognise theseattacks as acts of terror.

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Residents of Indonesia’s cap-ital who had been forced

into shelters by widespreadflooding began returning totheir homes Thursday as thewaters started to recede, thoughthe death toll from the disasterjumped to 30.

Monsoon rains and risingrivers submerged at least 182neighbourhoods in greaterJakarta starting Wednesdayand caused landslides in theBogor and Depok districts onthe city’s outskirts.

Jakarta Governor AniesBawesdan said much of thewater had receded by Thursdayevening and the number of dis-placed people at temporaryshelters had fallen to about5,000 from 19,000.

Officials had earlier said35,000 people were in sheltersacross the greater metropolitanarea.

Those returning to theirhomes found streets covered inmud and debris. Cars that hadbeen parked in driveways wereswept away, landing upsidedown in parks or piled up innarrow alleys. Sidewalks werestrewn with sandals, pots andpans and old photographs.

Authorities took advan-tage of the receding waters toclear away mud and removepiles of wet garbage from thestreets. Electricity was restoredto tens of thousands of resi-dences and businesses.

At their peak, the floodshad inundated thousands ofhomes and buildings, forcedauthorities to cut off electrici-

ty and water and paralysedtransport networks, NationalDisaster Mitigation Agencyspokesman Agus Wibowosaid. Floodwaters reached ashigh as 2.5 metres (more than8 feet) in places.

Wibowo said the numberof people killed in the disas-ter had climbed to 30.

It was the worst floodingsince 2013, when 47 peoplewere killed after Jakarta wasinundated by monsoon rains.

Jakarta’s HalimPerdanakusumah domesticairport reopened Thursdayafter operations were sus-pended when flood watersubmerged its runway, saidMuhammad Awaluddin, thepresident director of PTAngkasa Pura II, the air-port’s operator.

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Former US secretary of stateHillary Rodham Clinton

has been appointed as the firstfemale Chancellor of UK’sQueen’s University, it wasannounced on Thursday.

Clinton, who received anhonorary doctorate fromQueen’s in October 2018, willbecome the University’s 11thChancellor and will serve in thepost for a period of five yearswith effect from January 1,2020, the university said in a

statement.Clinton succeeds Tom

Moran, who died last year. Queen’s University, a pub-

lic research university inBelfast, United Kingdom, wasopened in 1849 and is one ofthe leading universities in theUK and Ireland with a distin-guished heritage and history.

The 72-year-old formerDemocratic presidential nom-inee said it was a great privilegeto be appointed as theChancellor of the prestigiousQueen’s University and hasgreat fondness for it.

“It is a great privilege to

become the Chancellor ofQueen’s University, a place Ihave great fondness for andhave grown a strong rela-tionship with over the years.The University is makingwaves internationally for itsresearch and impact and I am proud to be an ambas-sador and help grow its rep-utation for excellence,” shewas quoted as saying in thestatement.

Hillary, who was theDemocratic presidentialnominee, lost the 2016 USelection to Republican can-didate Donald Trump.

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Baghdad: An Iraqi activist wasshot dead overnight inBaghdad, a police source toldAFP on Thursday, as anti-gov-ernment rallies carried ondespite a separate day-longsiege of the US embassy.

The activist, Saadoun al-Luhaybi, was shot in the headin a southwestern neighbour-hood of the Iraqi capital, thepolice source said.

He had been taking part inyouth-led demonstrationsrocking Iraq since earlyOctober that have demandedthe ouster of a governing classseen as corrupt, inept andbeholden to Iran. AFP

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Pakistan Government onThursday sought a

stay order from the SupremeCourt against its landmarkverdict in the extension of ser-vice case involving PakistanArmy chief General QamarJaved Bajwa.

Prime Minister ImranKhan had extended 59-year-oldGen Bajwa’s tenure through anotification on August 19.However, the Supreme Courtsuspended the Governmentorder, citing irregularities in themanner the army chief, a close

confidant of Khan, was grant-ed an extension.

The Government in itsplea requested the apex court“to accept the application andsuspend/stay the operation ofthe impugned judgment datedNovember 28, 2019, in theinterest of justice”.

This is the second petitionfiled by the government inthis high-profile case.

On December 26, the lawministry had approached thetop court against its detailedjudgement, issued onDecember 16, in which theGovernment was ordered tolegislate on Bajwa’s extensionwithin six months.

The Government urged

the apex court to form a larg-er bench to hear the case andset aside the earlier judgment.

On November 28, Bajwagot a six-month conditionalextension from the apex court,ending an unprecedented legalwrangle that shook thePakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)government and pitted thepowerful military against thejudiciary.

The petition filed onThursday prayed to the courtthat the “petitioners have astrong prima facie case to suc-ceed; hence the operation of theimpugned judgement may besuspended/stayed till the finaldecision of this civil reviewpetition.”

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The first two decades of the 21stcentury have been kind to

Dubai. From a relatively sleepy lit-tle town, it is now the symbol of themodern metropolis, and let alone itsairport, which is now the greatestinternational hub in the world.Dubai boasts some of the moststunning architectural marvels inthe world, including the BurjKhalifa, the tallest building on theplanet. It was in the shadow of thisspire that we began our drive ofAudi’s latest offering, the new Q8.And we took it to the desert. In fact,there isn’t much desert near the cityanymore and the Dubai DesertConservation Area is a good 90minutes of fast driving outside thecity.

But now, the car. First thingsfirst, dispel any notion that the Q8is larger than the Q7. It is not. Infact, while it shares the platformwith the older SUV, it is shorter thanthe Q7 and sits lower as well.Coupled with its sloping roofline,this is a SUV that puts the “sports”back into the name. It is in a sense,competing with the BMW X6 andRange Rover Sport. When it launch-es in India on January 15, it will setyou back a pretty penny at �1.5crore.

For that kind of money, youshould get a lot. And you do. TheQ8 we drove in Dubai was in S-Linespecification and our particularcar came with beautiful 22-inchwheels, and it must be said thatdespite such large wheels and thintyres, particularly on a SUV, onsome pretty rough stretches of theroad, the Q8 rode masterfully. Iwould not want to take this car forhardcore off-roading but it can dealwith bad roads. Although in IndiaTrim, it will most likely come with18-inch wheels as standard and pos-sibly 19 and 20-inch wheels areavailable as an option.

The Q8, however, is not a stan-

dard car and Balbir Singh Dhillon,the new honcho at Audi India, tellsme that the Q8 will be completelycustomisable, provide a huge choiceof exterior colours with over eightinterior colour options with the abil-ity to mix and match wood veneerinlays or even carbon fibre ones.“This car will be driven,” saysDhillon and adds, “And owners whodrive themselves will want their carsto say something about them. Wegive them that option. Of course,there will be a stock car as well.”

Ergo, the Q8 will not be a bigseller but Dhillon and the market-ing folks at Audi are seriously hop-ing that the Q8 will not be as rareas the herd of Oryx that we crossedin the desert. The Oryx, an antelopeindigenous to the ArabianPeninsula, once common across theArabia, now survives only in smallprotected zones. Much like howAudi has been hunted down in thepast three years by its German rivalsBMW and Mercedes. That’s becausethe German carmaker and its par-ent, Volkswagen, are still paying thebill from the fiasco of the Dieselgatecrisis, a reminder of which are theapproximately half-million Audiand Volkswagen diesel cars parkedin lots across the United Stateswhich were bought back atimmense cost and that is before the

huge fines. In fact, Audi’s man at thehelm during the crisis was arrest-ed for his role in it.

So it isn’t surprising that the Q8,when it comes to India, will be avail-able with only a petrol engine, muchlike the recently launched next-gen-eration A6 luxury sedan. The Q8,as far as we know for the time being,will be equipped in 55TFSI trim.While you cannot ask anyone tomake sense of how the Germanmanufacturers name their productsanymore, what this means is thatthis three-litre V6 petrol engine willproduce 340 horsepower, which, Ican assure you, propels the car for-ward very fast. Of course, there issomething else about Dubai thatyou must know, it is the land ofspeed cameras and if you exceed the(generous) limits, you can be fineda fair bit. So there was no findingout of how fast the Q8 is but it cango pretty fast. For the time being,this is the peppiest and most funsporty and large SUV out there. Itmight be eclipsed by the potentialarrival later this year of the RS ver-sion of the Q8 which borrows the600 horsepower motor from theRS6 but that is another story foranother time.

Dhillon did admit that there area class of Audi buyers who lovediesel cars and he wanted to assure

them that Audi will be bringing insome diesel options later this year.But come April 1, 2020, Audi,alongside other manufacturersincluding Maruti-Suzuki, will not beselling diesel vehicles in their line-up thanks to the regulation aroundBharat Stage 6 emission norms. Tobe fair, manufacturers such asMercedes-Benz, BMW and evenHyundai and Kia have said that theywill make their diesels available inBS6 but there is a significant priceissue to meet BS6 emission norms.Diesel vehicles need all sorts of newfilters and even spray the exhaustwith something called ‘Ad-Blue’,which in essence is a mixture ofwater and urea. Audi will most like-ly bring in a two-litre BS6 compat-ible diesel later in the year.

But Audi is just the tip of thespear for Volkswagen Group inIndia for 2020. The company, nowunder the leadership of Skoda,which frankly it should alwayshave been, is positioning 2020 as amake-or-break year for itself. Thereare some vital new launches fromthe Skoda and Volkswagen stablecoming later in the year and onehopes that this fresh line-up willhelp all the brands of the carmak-ers. Other than Lamborghini andPorsche, whose sales are up (Weakeconomy? What weak economy?).

It’s that time of the year againwhen you take stock of your life,reflect on your shortcomings

and pledge to start afresh. Whilethere could be some most genuineresolutions made on the new year,these also turn out to be the most“broken” ones. From taking apledge to adopt a healthier lifestyleto giving more of ourselves to ournear and dear ones, our resolutionsare like milestones set by our con-science so as to follow a path thatwill be good for us. Psychologistsestimate that approximately 50per cent of the population makesresolutions each year, which are pri-marily focussed on weight loss,exercising, quitting smoking andbeing able to manage money bet-ter. Alas, a few months into the newyear, most of these are broken, dueto several reasons, bringing usback to where we started from. Andthe struggle begins again.

Reason for failureResolutions are an effort to

renew oneself. People look at res-olutions as a way of motivatingthemselves and making theirlifestyles a little better. However,having said that, people are neverready to change their habits, par-ticularly the bad ones, and thataccounts for the high failure rate.

Making resolutions work involveschanging behaviour and in order todo that, you have to change yourthinking. When goals are set, wehave to make them specific andtimebound. But it turns out thatthose characteristics are preciselythe reasons goals can fail. A specif-ic timebound goal drives behaviourthat is narrowly focussed and oftenleads to either cheating or myopia.Yes, we often reach the goal, but atwhat cost?

How can graphology helpChanging the way you write

can change your approach towardslife. Graphology is a proven sciencethat can express the currentthought pattern of a person by theway they present their writings. Tothe untrained eye, some notesscribbled on a piece of paper mayseem to be innocuous and only thecontent of the note may be of anysignificance. But a recent studyfrom the University of Haifa, Israelshows that your handwriting actu-ally says more about you than youthink. You may notice that whenyou are sad or tired, your handwrit-ing may be just a scrawl. And thenon the days when you are chirpy,you display bubbly, curvaceous, anduplifting strokes. Though the basicsteadiness of your natural writing

remains the same, the mood ofyour writing undergoes differ-ences which only a keen observermay notice. Researchers havealready developed a computerisedsystem that measures and analyseseven the smallest detail of an indi-vidual’s handwriting such as theamount of pressure applied whilewriting or even the space betweenthe letters/words.

Many people ask whether aperson can change their personal-ity with a mere change in theirhandwriting. Is it that simple? Theanswer is yes. It can be donethrough the science of graphology,which is different as compared toother sciences, and the deeperyou study it, many new and hidden

aspects of disposition of a personwill be revealed to you.Handwriting of a person reveals thepattern of thinking and the psycho-logical state of a person. It is, in fact,a direct reflection of a person’sthoughts. Graphotherapy helpsunderstand these patterns andbring a change in the handwritingwhich can help you make thedesirable changes in your lives.Then over a period of regular prac-tice of 30-40 days, these adaptationsstart reflecting in your behaviouras well.

It’s not the written content butonly the handwriting that needs tobe read. The way to change is notmerely to compel oneself to followthe resolution. Instead, a small

graphology exercise on focus canhelp bring about the change. Everymorning, as soon as you wake up,make a habit of practising to writea little — something, anything —putting a heavy pressure on thepaper. This needs to be done firstthing in the morning before gettinginvolved in other chores like read-ing the newspaper or respondingto notifications on your smart-phone. Make a to-do list or somediary entry of the previous night,this will tremendously helpimprove your focus. You will beable to put a lot of thought in everyaction and increase your concen-tration level. The check list that youmade in that morning hour willinstantly grab your focus and yourday will be more dedicated towardsdoing it.

This is what graphology does.It detects and sets an alarm priorto your setting of the resolution.Here are some ways to under-stand it better:

- Check if your handwritingis larger than usual. In that case,your “characters” do not supportyour consideration to resolu-tions.

- People with many friendsoften display a need to be lovedand appreciated, which is reflect-ed in their handwriting. Such

people hate to be tied down toresolutions that require monoto-nous repetition because they can-not stay focussed.

- People who have a largehandwriting do not worry aboutsmall things. They are quick toleave behind unpleasant experi-ences and get on with life. Thiswould explain giving little impor-tance to a small but significantchange in life that was their res-olution but then they simplydon’t find it meaningful enoughto hold on.

Apart from the purpose ofincreasing focus, graphology hasalso proven effective in parentingtechniques, for purposes of effec-tive HR policies, hiring, andteam-building as well as for entre-preneurs who can hone theirleadership skills by modifyingtheir signature.

Resolutions can be madewith the beginning of every yearbut this graphology practice donefor a certain tenure, daily, canimprove the thought pattern andhence, the quality of everyday life.One good habit is better than averbal resolution. Do think aboutit and implement it.

(The author is the founder ofThe Graphology Research Institute,India.)

When DeepikaPadukone unveiled

her look in Chhapaak, basedon the life of acid attack sur-vivor Laxmi Agarwal, peo-ple saw her decision to dothe film as “gutsy”, “brave”and “life altering.” Deepika,who has also turned a pro-ducer with the MeghnaGulzar directorial, said shedidn’t think about herappearance in it and howpeople would react to her“different look.”

Apart from her talent,the audience and her fanshave been in awe of herbeauty. Asked if she sawChhapaak as a risky film asshe looks different, Deepikasaid, “No, it is not somethingthat ever crossed my mind.I never thought about myappearance or theway I am going tolook. In fact, that’sexactly what wewant to challengethrough this film.That we all havevery set ideas,notions of whatbeauty is and wereally want tochallenge thatand broadenthat perspec-tive through thisfilm.”

She added,“I never reallythought aboutwhat people aregoing to thinkor say because Iwas going tolook differentfrom the waypeople haveseen meo n s c r e e nbefore.”

The pro-ject is cer-tainly veryclose to herheart and it

didn’t take her long to say“yes” to it.

“Meghna came to mewith the script and I wasinstantly drawn to Meghna’shonesty, to Laxmi’s storyand her journey. I felt like itwas very very powerful andI felt like as an actor, I defi-nitely wanted to be a part ofthe film. Even as a person, Ifelt like there’s a really strongnarrative in Laxmi’s life, andI wanted the world to seethat,” she said.

Deepika said that shewas so impressed by Laxmi’sstory, among other things,that she decided to beattached to the film as a pro-ducer too. “We finished thenarration and I said yes tothe film. I said, ‘wait a sec-ond, should we produce thisfilm as well?’ Meghna wasopen to the idea. She and Icame on board as producersand then we went around tostudios and had Fox (Fox

Star Studios) join us,”she said.

The film’s narra-tive leans on Laxmibut Deepika says it’snot a biopic. “It alsothrows light on acidviolence in ourcountry,” she said.

The film’s teamhas women callingthe shots. Whatwas it like forDeepika to workon a film set fullof powerfulwomen? “Genderhas never figuredin my scheme ofthings. I am notdoing Chhapaakbecause it is by afemale director.I am doing itbecause I reallyhave faith inMeghna,” shesaid.

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From early December toJanuary, the pop of a cham-

pagne or sparkling wine corkis a welcome and frequentsound. Fizzy wine is just themost festive of drinks, whethersipped straight up in a flute ormixed into cocktails. Andmany a New Year’s toast wouldfeel incomplete without a glassof bubbles.

But whether you arequaffing French champagne,prosecco from Italy, cava fromSpain or something domesticand sparkly, you may end upwith some left in a bottle.Since sparkling wine corks arenotoriously tough to jam backinto bottles, use a wine stopperas soon as you can to hold onto some effervescence. Tuckthose half-full bottles into thefridge. And then… what?

A mimosa (orange juiceand sparkling wine) as a post-holiday brunch drink is a love-ly little bit of decadence andshould be considered. You alsocould make sparking wine thebase of a sangria the next day,maybe with some berries andberry liqueur, plus a touch ofsome sweetener. Or add it tosome pureed and sweetenedfruit, like mangoes or peaches,for a Bellini-type cocktail. Itmight not be as fizzy as it wasthe day before but if you sealedthe bottle in a timely manner,it should be bubbly enough.

But maybe you’re cocktail-ed out. If your sparkling winewas dry (not sweet), then youcan use it pretty much as youwould any other leftover whitewine in cooking. And if thebubbles are gone, no worries— the fizziness would be lostin the cooking process any-way.

Sweeter Champagneshould be saved for drinks anddishes that have sweetnessalready in them. Zabaglione,an airy sweet pudding, is adessert traditionally madewith champagne, so youmight head in that direction.Note that in cooking, most ofthe alcohol burns out but ifyou are adding wine to anuncooked dish, make surethere is no one with an alco-hol sensitivity consuming it.

51/� �0)���9��60�������*��'�.)0

Use leftover sparklingwine to deglase a pan, pour-ing it in after you’ve sautéedyour onions, garlic or otheraromatics to loosen the brownbits from the bottom of thepan and beginning to build apan sauce, with broth or someother liquid added after thewine cooks and reduces a bit.

You can also add cream, alovely partner to sparklingwine or champagne. Or addminced fresh herbs and otherseasonings like mustard, olivetapenade or hot sauce. Drizzlethe sauce over sautéed chick-en, pork, fish or seafood.

)30�0'Replace half the milk in

your favourite crepe recipewith champagne. You can usedry or sweet sparkling wine,depending on what type ofcrepe you are making. Dessertcrepes can be made with sweet-er bubbly.

7�*/.0Use it instead of white

wine in your favourite fondueor Welsh Rabbit recipe. A bit ofwhite wine is traditional inthese European melted-cheesedishes.

'20��1*8��'�0--71'�Simmer some garlic and

herbs and whatever other sea-sonings you like (tomatoes,fennel, saffron, etc) in cham-pagne, perhaps combined witha bit of broth or water and thensteam clams or mussels untilthey open. These can be eatenright from the shells or used tomake a seafood soup or stewor pasta with mussels or clamsauce. The broth from steam-ing the shellfish should bestrained and used in any recipeas well.

31'�22�When you start your risot-

to (any version), after you’vesautéed the rice in oil or but-ter, start adding liquid bypouring in half cup ofsparkling wine. This willabsorb quickly into the grainsand give the finished dishanother level of flavour. Then

switch to broth, adding it slow-ly until the rice is plump andal dente, stirring frequently.Also use sparkling wine to startoff farrotto, a modern take onrisotto using farro.

51*�1830220A splash of wine can

enhance the taste of a home-made vinaigrette, to dress agreen salad, vegetable salad(such as a green bean salad),grain salad or even better, aFrench-style mayo-free potatosalad. If your champagne ismore than a week old and hastaken on a vinegary taste, youcan still use it this way.

%3�1'0'If it’s not sweet, think

about adding a few glugs ofleftover bubbly to dishes likebraised chicken with mush-rooms or pork chops withapples. Or use it in braised veg-etable dishes, like braised cip-polini or pearl onions orbraised cabbage and radic-chio.

'20�'Champagne would be

great in a chicken or fish stew,especially one withMediterranean flavours. Andeven though many meat stewscall for red wine, if it’s a smallamount you can usually sub ina dry white or sparkling wine.Use it in a lamb stew withorange and fennel, or a pork orbeef stew with root vegetables.

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As I sat at the Cafe Roadieson a chilly winterevening, I stared blankly

at the golden Edison bulbsspread all across the ceiling,wrapped in green climbers. Onmy left were glass windowssplashed with what looked likemelted chocolate. The TV showRoadies has always had a sepa-rate fan base and this newbiecafe at Gardens Galleria, Noida,is based on the very theme. Itsset of wooden tables and chairsgives a very rustic and ruggedfeel, similar to that of the show.To make the decor look moreragged and rough, a bullet stoodright in front of a wall as thoughbreaking it through. It couldhave easily won the tag of an“insta-worthy picture spot,” onlyif there was any such contest.Some quirky quotes on the wall,too, resonated with the themeand the vibe of the game show.

Coming to what I was herefor — food — they suggestedthat I should start with hummus.Well, if you want to up yourhummus game, you should tryyour hands at Hum-Mus SathSath Hai, an authentic varietyseasoned with tandoori pickleand served with pita bread.Prepared using chickpeas, itwas cooked, mashed and blend-ed with tahini, olive oil, lemonjuice, salt and garlic. The onlyvariation, here, was that it hada touch of tandoori pickle. Justfor the record, I am a huge fanof hummus and usually like toadd a swirl of yogurt to bump upthe creaminess factor but thisone was just complete in itself.Initially, I wondered why wouldanyone like a bland bread as wellas an almost bland dip togeth-er? But this triangular pita breadcleared the apprehension.

Before I could even realise,the next on the plate was RoadiesFry-Yay, one of the finest prepa-rations of potatoes loaded withsesame and goodness of honey.Let’s just say that they camestraight from the wok. Whenyou eat honey chilli potatoes,

what really matters is how crispthe potatoes are in spite ofbeing tossed in the sauce. Thekey to making the dish supercrispy is to batter fry the pota-to fingers twice. Deep fryingthem only once results inpotatoes that don’t holdtheir shape and get soggyafter a few minutes.These really stood out fortheir crunch. Ideally, Ishould have used a forkor a toothpick but toenjoy the realflavours, I ate themwith bare fingers.

A f t e rmunching onto the starters, Ihopped on to try-ing something different andcheesy altogether. And wait, theplace actually had ‘my’ kind ofcombo — It’s Cheesy. It was acombination of melted cheeseserved fondue style with toast-ed bread sticks and crispy naanfingers. Even though it was anamalgamation of five kinds ofcheese, the dish tasted blandand the graph of my expecta-tions declined a bit. Let’s say, tosoothe the tastebuds or just asa mere accompaniment, Iordered Old Fashion andMargarita. While the formercocktail was blended withBourbon, sugar cubes andorange bitters, the latter hadtequila, triple sec, sweet andsour. I could taste all the differ-ent flavours, which seemed

p e r f e c t l yblended, and the drinks — notmuch diluted — certainly madea mark.

Moving on to the maincourse, I ordered the specialvegetarian tandoori platter. Thetwo-levelled plate was filledwith Achari paneer tikka,Kagazi paneer barfi on the firstbase and Beetroot seekh,Tandoori mushrooms on thesecond. The former, Acharipaneer tikka, was yet anothervariation of the regular paneertikka, flavoured with picklingspices. If you enjoy pickle andrelish the sour taste of lemon ormango, you might love it.However, the Kagazi paneer

barfi was the ultimate of all.Filled with crushed dry fruits,while its outer layering wasextremely delicate and soft, itturned out to be a completeopposite when I bit into it.

Next up was the Peri perichicken, which was overnightmarinated chicken patty, servedwith homemade peri peri sauce.The dish, topped withjalapenos, melted yellow ched-dar and emmenthal, had its suc-cess mantra in its sauce — bothspicy and hot.

Then the Cottage cheesesteak, paneer slab marinatedwith cajun spice, got me going.A huge burger, after eating

four dishes, sipping and repeat-ing cocktails, was certainly abad idea. However, the very firstbite made me go to ‘I need moreof this’ from ‘I think I am near-ly full’. The grand burger wascrunchy from the outside andtender on the inside. It was agreat combination of lettuce,sliced tomatoes, onions, cottagecheese and spices. What madeit look appealing? — The bite-sized tomato or one may con-fuse it with a cherry on the top.

For accompaniment, therewas subliminal music for arelaxed evening. And also,because I finally found the bestburger in town.

TRY THIS ROAD TRIP

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Arsenal rang in the new year by giving bossMikel Arteta his first victory as lacklustreManchester United crashed to a 2-0 defeat,

while Tottenham and Chelsea also slipped up inthe Premier League’s top four race on Wednesday.

Arteta had watched Arsenal take only onepoint from his first two matches, with last week-end’s 2-1 defeat against Chelsea especially painfulafter the Blues scored twice in the final minutes.

But Arsenal had played well for long periodsin that London derby and they produced an evenmore sparkling display to put United to the swordat the Emirates Stadium.

The Gunners took the lead in the eighthminute when Sead Kolasinac’s cross ran throughto Nicolas Pepe at the far post and the Ivory Coastwinger beat David De Gea from close-range.

Arsenal, who last won in the league at WestHam on December 9, got a deserved second goalin the 43rd minute when De Gea kept outAlexandre Lacazette’s flick and Sokratis reactedquickest to lash home.

Arteta’s team are nine points adrift of the topfour, but their second win in 16 matches in all com-petitions offers hope of a brighter future under theformer Arsenal midfielder’s management.

“It feels great, incredible. I’m so happy andproud of the players,” Arteta said.

“Physically the level dropped in the second halfbut the commitment and desire was terrific.

“The performances are getting better so I wasdesperate for the win and we got it.”

United are fifth, five points behind fourthplaced Chelsea, after the latest in a long list ofunderwhelming performances in a troubled cam-paign.

“We started decent the first five or six min-utes, didn’t capitalise, and then they played real-ly well,” United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer said.

“We were too slow in the first half, but that’scredit to them. Some tired heads maybe.”

Chelsea remain in pole position to secure thefourth Champions League qualification placebut manager Frank Lampard will rue concedinga spectacular late equaliser in the 1-1 draw at

Brighton.Cesar Azpilicueta gave Chelsea the lead, tap-

ping in from close-range in the 10thminute.

But Brighton scored the goal their per-sistence deserved in the 84th minute whenIranian substitute Alireza Jahanbakhshacrobatically found the bottom-left cornerwith an overhead kick.

Those dropped points gave JoseMourinho’s Spurs the chance to crank upthe pressure on Chelsea and United, but theyslipped to a 1-0 defeat at Southampton and

England captain Harry Kane limped off with ahamstring injury.

Tottenham fell behind to a 17th-minuteDanny Ings goal and Kane injured himselfas he converted Christian Eriksen’s free-kickin the second half but was flagged offside.

Mourinho’s frustration boiled over as hewas shown a yellow card after an alterca-tion with the Southampton bench.

“I was rude,” Mourinho said. “I clearlydeserved the yellow card. I had bad words.”

Elsewhere at the top of the table, second-placedLeicester cruised to a 3-0 win at Newcastle and

Manchester City beat Everton 2-1 to hand CarloAncelotti his first defeat since taking over as man-ager.

Leicester appear to have put a mini-slumpbehind them, courtesy of goals from Ayoze Perez,James Maddison and Hamza Choudhury to moveto within 10 points of leaders Liverpool.

City remain in third after their home winagainst Everton, a single point behind Leicester.

Gabriel Jesus scored twice in the second halfat the Etihad before Richarlison pulled a goal backfor Everton but City held on despite some nervymoments.

“This period is so tough. When you are faraway from the first position sometimes people giveup, but we never give up,” City boss Pep Guardiolasaid.

Struggling West Ham made a flying start underMoyes, returning to the London Stadium for a sec-ond stint as manager, hammering haplessBournemouth 4-0 and lifting themselves out of therelegation zone, with the visitors now in the bot-tom three.

Watford continued their impressive run undernew manager Nigel Pearson, holding on to beatseventh-placed Wolves 2-1.

Villa beat Burnley 2-1 with first-half goals fromWesley and Jack Grealish while Norwich drew 1-1 with Crystal Palace.

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Neither criticism nor the burden ofexpectations bother world champi-

on shuttler P V Sindhu, who says she iscompletely focussed on improving hercraft in pursuit of a second Olympicmedal at this year’s Tokyo Games.

Sindhu claimed India’s first everWorld Championships Gold in 2019 butshe made early exits from a series of tour-naments the rest of the season, includ-ing her failure to defend the World TourFinals title last month.

“World Championship was reallygood for me but after that I kept losingin the first rounds but I kept myself pos-itive. It is not possible that you will winall matches. Sometimes you may playbrilliantly, sometimes you will make mis-takes,” Sindhu said.

“I learnt a lot from those mistakes.It is important for me to stay positive, andcome back stronger,” she added.

Sindhu said she is working on hertechnique to iron out the flaws.

“There will definitely be a lot ofexpectations from me but pressure andcriticism doesn’t affect me because peo-ple always expect me to win whenever Igo. Olympics is the ultimate aim, for any-body. “We are doing a lot of work ontechnique and skill workouts and every-thing will be planned and it will go wellin the Olympic season,” Sindhu exudedconfidence while talking about theTokyo Games.

The 24-year-old from Hyderabad,who claimed a Silver at the Rio Olympics,will have the opportunity to emulatewrestler Sushil Kumar in becoming thesecond Indian to secure two Olympicmedals when she turns up at the TokyoGames.

“He (Sushil) has done really well forthe country and I hope and wish that Ialso do well and get a medal in Tokyo.It never crossed my mind where I thinkabout others. It is step by step for me. So,I think I need to train hard and give mybest,” she said.

ALONSO IS INTER MIAMI’S 1ST HEAD COACHMiami: 2 ����"�������������������������� ������� �� �����2�� ��$� ����N��#����4 �� ������������� �������� ������� �� ���� ����� "�� �N�� 4�I�6�������� �!�'#��2 ��������������������������� ������ ������ �������� �� ��������� �� ����� ��� �� �� ��� ���� ��� ��� �����)� �� �� #���� 4 �� ���������� %����4 2������!� '1�� � ���� �� ���� ����� �� ������ ���� ���� �(� �� ��������� ����������� ������ ������������������������ ����� �����"�� ��!�':�������� ����� �� ���������� ���������� ���� 2 ���� ���� ���� ���� � ���� ���� ��� ���������� ������ ���� �����������!)�

FOUR PAK CITIES TO HOST ENTIRE PSLIslamabad: ����%�� �����& ����$������������������������� �� ���� ����� ��� � ����� ������������� �N��������������� ������ �����!�-������� ���� ����������� ��� ���� �� %�� ����N�� ��� �� ������ ��������� ���������� � ��� ��� ����� �� ���� ������� ���� ���� ��I�� � ��!� ���� %&$� ������ ��� ��:��������� ����� +�� � �� 6������ >����� �� � ���4������� �������������H�%�� ����������6������7%�68������� ���� ��� -��� ��!� 6����� ���� AH� ��� ���� � ��� �������� �������4� ����!

SODHI JOINS RR AS SPIN CONSULTANTJaipur: >�I������� >������ ��� �������� ���� �������� T������� ���(�� ���� #��� ���� � ��� ��� � �� � ������������������������ � ����������#�� ���%�� �6�����!� ���� �K(���(���� ���� ���� ��� ���� >������,���� ��������AJ�������AG��������� �����������������������������N��#%6��� � ��!�"���������� ���������� ���������� � �������� �� ��������� ��� ������� ��� ���� ��� �� �� �� �I� $�������� ���� &� ��=���� ��� =�� �� 3���� 6���� 4 &��!� ���� � �������������>������ ��� ����#%6���� �������� ���� ��� ������������ �������������B!BG!�

PAK WITHDRAW NASEEM FROM U-19 WCKarachi: %�� ����� ��� :��������� � ������ �������������������������� ���<���(AG�:����&���,����� ��� ��� ���� ��������� �� ����� ��� ����� � ������������������ �������!����������������� ������������ � ������� ���� ����� ���� ��� ��� 4�������:�� ��3�� �� ����+�����%����������!����������������� ������<���(AG��,����������� �� ���� ���� I�� �� ����� �� ��� 9I�.� "����� ���� ����� � � ����� ��� ����� �� "����� �� ���� �� ���� ���� ������ ��� ��� ���� � � 6����� ��� ������ ����� �� �4 ����(��(1�,��������� ��� �� ��:�,��C��� ������������������������� ���������������I�� ���,���!

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CHINA APPOINT LI TIE AS NEW COACHBeijing: -���� 9������ � �� ����� 6 � � �� ������������ �� �����&� ��N�����N��������������������������� ������� � ��� �� � ��� ��� � :���� &��,��� �� ��� ���� ��� ����� 4� ����� 6 �� N�� ������������!�����&� �����-��������"��� �� ����� ��6 ������������ ��&� ��N�������:����&���������� �� ������� �����'�������� ������������ ������&� ������������� ������)� �������� ���� ����� ����� ��� ������ ���! �*8!.�8�

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National men’s hockey teamcaptain Manpreet Singh

believes India has the capabili-ty of reaching the final of theTokyo Olympics, provided asense of discipline and consis-tency is maintained in the run-up to the quadrennial extrava-ganza.

Leaving behind a disap-pointing 2018 where Indiacrashed out in the quarterfinalsof the World Cup at home, theManpreet-led side has man-aged to maintain its consisten-cy and qualify for the 2020Tokyo Olympics under a newcoach in Australian GrahamReid.

Reviewing the year gone by,Manpreet said 2019 has beenproductive for the team in termsof its performances despite notgetting enough opportunities tocompete in high-level interna-tional tournaments.

“Looking back, 2019 hasbeen very good for us. Westarted the year in the fifth spotand managed to maintain that.

The biggest aim for us in 2019was to qualify for the Olympicsand we have managed to achievethat under a new coach,”Manpreet said.

“Our main target in 2019 isto reach the finals of theOlympics and believe me it’sachievable. Throughout the yearwe have managed to maintainthe No 5 position in worldrankings and there is no reasonwhy we can’t climb from that.

“But for that, we have tomaintain the consistency whichwe have showed in the entire2019,” he added.

The ace mid-fielder saidencounters against top teamslike the Netherlands, worldchampions Belgium andAustralia in the upcoming FIHPro league will give India a fairidea about where the eight-time Olympic champions stand.

“The FIH Pro League is ourfirst step towards Olympicpreparation. In the Pro League,we will get to face all the topteams of the world before theOlympics and this experiencewill give us an idea where westand before the Olympics,”Manpreet said.

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Superstars Novak Djokovic and RafaelNadal on Thursday said that there was

little point in having two men’s team ten-nis competitions so close together andsuggested the new ATP Cup shouldmerge with the Davis Cup.

The ATP Cup is about to kick off itsinaugural edition, replacing a number ofprevious Australian Open warm-uptournaments.

It comes six weeks after therevamped Davis Cup, which also hascountries playing each other in a round-robin format, was held in Madrid.

Canadian Denis Shapovalov suggest-ed Thursday that the two events — onerun by the men’s tour, the Association ofTennis Professionals, and the other bythe International Tennis Federation —should combine.

“It’s a really similar event and it’s lit-erally back-to-back from the other one,so it’s a little bit of a weird sensation com-ing from what felt like the world cham-pionships coming to play another worldchampionship,” Shapovalov said.

“So for me I don’t see why they, theATP and ITF can’t combine, can’t join,can’t come to some agreement andmake just one, really unique and specialtournament for everyone.”

When asked about the Canadian’scomments, Djokovic, who heads the

ATP players’ council, agreed.“We need to have one Super World

Cup event, whatever you want to call it,”he said.

“That’s not going to happen nextyear as well. But if the two sides, the ITF,the Davis Cup, and the ATP get togeth-er very quickly, it can happen possibly

for 2022.“I hope it will happen because it’s

kind of hard to get top players to com-mit to play both events, the Davis Cupand the ATP Cup.

“And it’s six weeks apart, so they’re

not really helping each other in terms ofmarketing, in terms of the value of theevent.”

Djokovic’s concerns were shared byworld number one Nadal, who also ques-tioned the timing of the events.

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On course to seal a berth for theTokyo Games, former world

champion Mirabai Chanu main-tained her eighth spot in the Olympicqualifiers ranking list released by theInternational WeightliftingFederation (IWF) on Thursday.

In the race for Olympic qualifi-cation, the 25-year-old, who com-petes in the 49kg category, has gath-ered 2966.6406 ranking points tillnow.

To qualify for Tokyo, aweightlifter must compete in at leastone event in each of the three peri-ods of six months (spread overNovember 2018 to April 2020), atleast six events overall and in at leastone Gold and Silver level event.

The latest qualifying rankingsfeature three Chinese weightlifters inthe top five.

However, only one of the threeChinese lifters will compete at theOlympics as a nation can send nomore than one athlete each perweight category.

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FIGURATIVELY

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��'������������ ��������������� Paul Pogba will undergo surgery ona recurring ankle injury and is expected to spendanother month on the sidelines, ManchesterUnited manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer con-firmed.

The French World Cup winner made hiscomeback after nearly three months out in a 2-0defeat at Watford 10 days ago and also made anappearance off the bench in a 4-1 thrashing ofNewcastle four days later.

“We’ve had scans and it’s nothing major, it’ssomething that has to be sorted and dealt with.

He’s been advised to it as soon as,” said Solskjaer.Pogba has made just six starts in all compe-

titions for United this season and his influence inmidfield has been badly missed with United sit-ting fifth in the Premier League.

His latest setback comes at a bad time forSolskjaer with Scott McTominay also sidelined fortwo months leaving the Norwegian extremely shorton midfield options.

“It’s a big blow that Paul is out now that Scott’sout, he’ll be out for a few months. Paul will be backwithin a month.” AFP

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Indian women’s hockey teamdefender Sunita Lakra, who

was part of the 2018 AsianGames Silver-winning side, onThursday announced her inter-national retirement, citing aknee injury which wouldrequire another surgery.

The 28-year-old said thenagging injury has come in theway of her dream to be a partof India’s Tokyo Olympics cam-paign this year.

“Today is a very emotion-al day for me as I have decidedto retire from InternationalHockey,” she said in a statementissued by Hockey India.

“I was very fortunate tohave played at the Rio Olympicsin 2016, India’s first appearancein over three decades. As muchas I wish to be part of the Indianteam as they prepare for theTokyo Olympics, my kneeinjuries have cut short mydream.”

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World number four DominicThiem on Thursday

expressed confidence a newGrand Slam champion will becrowned in 2020 outside the bigthree of Novak Djokovic,Rafael Nadal and RogerFederer.

While the Austrian, Germany’sAlexander Zverev, Greece’sStefanos Tsitsipas and others havehad success at lesser tournaments,the big guns continue to dominatethe majors.

Thiem, in Sydney for the inau-gural ATP Cup team event, is one ofthe men tipped to make the break-through, with the first Grand Slam ofthe year, the Australian Open, justweeks away in Melbourne.

He said the younger players were

getting close.“I think we challenged them

already a lot. We also beat themespecially on Masters 1000stages and the ATP Finals,”said Thiem, who was runner-

up to Tsitsipas at the ATPFinals in London inNovember.

“I think the last stagewe have to conquer is theGrand Slam stage, and I

really think we’ll see a newGrand Slam champion in 2020.

“I really hope that it’s me, butyou cannot guarantee anything.

There are also many other verystrong guys who can achieve that.

“Maybe it’s also not happeningand Big Three are taking all four,” headded. “But we are trying everything

to achieve top position, to achieve thebiggest titles, Grand Slam titles.”

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The Sri Lankan cricket team, led byveteran pacer Lasith Malinga, arrived

here on Thursday for the three-matchT20 series against India amid tightsecurity after the city witnessed wide-spread protests against the CitizenshipAmendment Act (CAA).

The Sri Lankan team headed straightto the team hotel amid thick securitycover. The members of the Indian teamare expected to arrive in batches todayfor the series opener on Sunday.

“Both the teams have optional train-ing sessions, Sri Lanka followed byIndia in the evening,” a official of theAssam Cricket Association (ACA) said.

Assam had witnessed widespreadprotests against the CAA in December,which affected Ranji and U-19 matchesat the domestic level because of curfew.

“But situation is absolutely normalnow and tourism is back in the state. Weare hosting Khelo India Games fromJanuary 10 and about seven thousandplayers will participate,” ACA secretaryDevajit Saikia said.

“It’s now safe as any other place in thecountry. The state government is look-ing after the security arrangement andthere’s no issue at all.”

About 27,000 tickets of the 39,500-capacity Barasapra Stadium has alreadybeen sold out.

“People were busy with theChristmas and New Year celebrations.We are expecting a last minute ticket rushnow,” he said.

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Batting legend Brian Larabelieves the Indian

cricket team, under ViratKohli, is capable of winningall ICC tournaments it com-petes in.

The 50-year-old left-handed batting icon was ofthe view that every interna-tional side sort of targetsIndia in ICC tournaments.

“I think they are defi-nitely capable of winning alltournaments that they play.I think what Virat Kohli andcompany and the Indianteam has to appreciate thefact that everybody sort oftarget India,” Lara was quot-ed as saying by India Today.

“Everybody knows thatsome point of time oneteam is going to play thatimportant match againstIndia. If it’s a quarter-final,semi-final and final,” headded.

Under Kohli’s leader-ship, India has reachedgreater heights in both Testsand ODIs but has so farfailed to win an ICC tour-nament, fizzling out in cru-cial games.

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Rassie van der Dussen willremain in the South Africa side

for the second Test with England atNewlands after his impressive debutdisplay in his team’s opening win,keeping Temba Bavuma out despitehis return to fitness from a hipinjury.

Bavuma will not have thechance to repeat hisNewlands heroicsagainst England fromfour years ago, whenhis thrilling centurymade him the first black African tomake a hundred for South Africa.

The decision to overlookBavuma for a white player maycause some controversy in view ofan official target of having two blackAfricans in the national team.Kagiso Rabada is now the onlyblack representative.

“Temba passed his fitness test.But we think it is the right thing to

do to give Rassie an extendedrun,” said captain Faf Du Plessis.

“Temba is on board withthe process that we are part ofto try to get guys to score big

runs. Temba will bereleased to play some four-day (domestic) cricket andit is a great opportunity for

him to score some runs.”Asked what message he

had for black followers of the game,

Du Plessis insisted the decison tokeep Bavuma out was a purelycricketing one.

“We don’t see colour.Opportunity is very important.Temba will be the first guy toacknowledge that he got a reallygood opportunity,” he said.

“There will be things in place tomake sure we keep producing play-ers of all colours but right now weneed to win Test matches.”

The vacancy in the battingorder caused by Aiden Markram’sbroken finger will be filled by newcap Pieter Malan, a specialist open-ing batsman and a like-for-likereplacement.

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Focus will be firmly on Test spe-cialist Ajinkya Rahane andyoung prodigy Prithvi Shaw

when Mumbai take on Karnataka intheir Ranji Trophy Elite Group Bgame, beginning here today.

Both Rahane and Shaw failedwith the bat in the last Ranji gameversus Railways which the domes-tic giants lost by 10 wickets insidetwo and half days.

It will be a good opportunity forthe two players to get some runsunder their belt. This will be the lastRanji match for Shaw, who departsfor New Zealand with the India Ateam on January 10.

The pint-sized opener got startsbut was not able to convert in thelast game, following his doublehundred in the lung-opener againstBaroda.

Shaw will have tocounter Karnataka’sattack in slightly windyconditions at theBandra-Kurla Complexground.

For Rahane, who has played 63Tests, the Karnataka game pro-vides perfect platform to find formbefore he also departs for NewZealand.

Also, Mumbai needs to improvein all departments after the embar-rassing loss against the Railways athome.

The 41-time Ranji championswill miss the services of India play-ers Shreyas Iyer, Shivam Dube andpacer Shardul Thakur, who will beon national duty.

In their absence, it will be achance for the likes of skipperSuryakumar Yadav, crisis manSiddhesh Lad and experiencedAditya Tare to make a mark. Also,if another player Sarfaraz Khan, whohas been named in the squad,makes the playing XI, then it will bean opportunity for him to make itcount. Yadav also heads for NewZealand with the India A team onJanuary 10. The bowlers will be ledby Tushar Deshpande.

Meanwhile, Karnataka wouldnot have the services of India open-er Mayank Agarwal but have thelikes of skipper Karun Nair, open-er Devdutt Padikkal to do the job.Their pace bowling attack, led byprolific Abhimanyu Mithun, willpose a huge challenge to theMumbai side.

The BCCI has asked Mayank torest in view of the upcoming seasonand hence he would not be playing

the game, said sources in theKarnataka team.

PUNJAB HOST DELHI������Sans India opener ShikharDhawan and speedster IshantSharma, a depleted Delhi will haveto improve their game significant-ly to present a tough challenge

against table leaders Punjab.Delhi, whose batting has proved

to be their weakest link so far thisseason, will find it tougher in theabsence of Dhawan, who will missthe game as he will be on nationalduty.

The southpaw had made amatch-winning 140 in testing con-

ditions against Hyderabad in theprevious game at Feroz Shah Kotlagrounds.

Kunal Chandela, who failed inthe last two games after scoring ahundred against Kerala in the tour-nament-opener, is likely to open withAnuj Rawat in Dhawan’s absence.Since it is an away game, Delhi’s lead

pacer Ishant is also be unavailable ashe play only home matches as partof his workload management.Expectations are high from 21-year-old Simrajeet Singh, whoimpressed in the last two gamesagainst Hyderabad andAndhra, taking 12 wickets.

Medium pacerSubodh Bhati may get achance to play his firstgame of the season inIshant’s absence.

The Dhruv Shorey-led side has its task cut outagainst hosts Punjab, who arethe team to beat with two bonuspoints victories and a draw.

Young India batsman ShubmanGill was back among the runs witha 100 in the last game againstdefending champions Vidarbha.

He would be aiming for moreruns before he leaves for NewZealand with the A team. CaptainMandeep Singh has been leadingfrom the front with 385 runs in threegames, including a double hundred.

Gurkeerat Singh too is in fineform, having scored 149 againstVidarbha.

Leg-spinner Mayank Markandehas been the pick of Punjab’s bowlerswith 11 wickets at an average of 18.45.

BENGAL TAKE ON GUJARAT&�&�����With weather threaten-ing to rob the opening day’s play,Bengal find themselves in a famil-iar tight spot against an in-formGujarat in a home Elite fixture.

In their previous match,Bengal had taken a firm footingagainst Andhra but rain and badlight resulted in a truncated matchand eventually the hosts had to set-tle for three points on basis of firstinnings lead.

Outside top-five in the elitecross pool, Bengal will have to keepa close eye on the skies with rainforecast today. But the Arun Lal-mentored side will be desperate forfull points against a team, who areon a roll with successive wins overHyderabad away and Kerala athome.

In Ashok Dinda’s absence,who is out of the team on discipli-nary grounds, 21-year-old IshanPorel relished the challenge ofbeing the leader of Bengal’s paceattack.

In the batting department,Abhishek Raman, with two consec-utive centuries, will be the one to

watch out for, while skipperAbhimanyu Easwaran will

also be desperate toreturn among runsbefore leaving for NewZealand tour.

Bengal will missboth Easwaran and Porel

in the later stages of thepremier domestic tournament

as both are part of New Zealand-bound India A squad.

Bengal also might be temptedto hand a maiden Ranji cap to 24-year-old Ritwik Roy Chowdhury inplace of a struggling SudipChatterjee.

The Parthiv Patel-led Gujaratalso boast of talented openerPriyank Panchal, who scored amatch-winning 90 againstHyderabad, while the experiencedduo of Piyush Chawla and AxarPatel will lead the spin attack.

The visitors will also look upto some insights from coach SairajBahutule, who was in charge of theBengal side before Lal took over.

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Veteran wicketkeeper batsman ParthivPatel on Thursday advised young

Rishabh Pant to ignore criticism and focuson his game, saying dealing with this con-stant pressure can help him emerge as abetter batsman.

Seen as heir apparent to MahendraSingh Dhoni, the 22-year-old Pant hasbeen receiving flak for his failure to per-form consistently at the top level.

“Today’s youngsters have got thatadvantage of playing with the big playersand sharing the dressing room withthem. But when you are struggling forform, you get opinions from all quarters.It’s about keeping yourself away fromopinions and focus on your game,” Patelsaid.

“If you play for India, there would bepressure. Every player has got pressure ofdifferent situations. Your skills get honedin such pressure situations.

“In the T20 series (against WI) he didwell. You see he’s having a fun time at the

ground as well. He can become a goodplayer when he comes out of such pres-sure situations,” said the Gujarat skipper.

On Pant’s wicket-keeping technique,the 34-year-old Patel said: “Obviouslywhen you play for India, you have some-thing in you. He made his Test debut ina tough place like England where the ballswings a lot. He’s a young player. It’s aboutgaining confidence. It can change in a mat-ter of one-two innings.”

Having made his Test debut at 17, theyoungest to don the wicketkeeping gloves,Patel has seen it all — the rise of Dhoniand the unflinching support of the teammanagement for Pant.

“Opinions should not matter whenyou know that the team management andselectors back you. It’s about enjoying themoment and express yourself,” he said.

“It’s just because he’s doing well there’sso much talk about him. He has done wellin the last series. He has got the talent andthe team is providing him that confidenceto do much better,” added Patel, a veter-an of 25 Tests and 38 ODIs added.

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Mayank Agarwal’s absence from theircrucial Ranji game against Mumbai

will be an opportunity for others to provethemselves, said Karnataka skipper KarunNair, who attributed the India Test opener’ssuccess to years of consistent hard work.

Karnataka will miss the services ofMayank as he is set to leave for New Zealandwith the A team on January 10 and BCCIhas requested to exempt him from theupcoming Ranji game.

“Mayank is big player, but it (hisabsence) opens an opportunity for someoneelse to come and grab their chance,” saidNair, who has played six Test matches forIndia.

In his short-international career,Mayank has already scored two double hun-dreds and Nair, who has watched the IndiaTest opener from close quarters since hisfledging days, on Thursday paid glowingtribute.

“I think, Mayank has always been ahard-working cricketer, so I think it was hightime that the hard-work paid off,” Nair said.

“It is just to do with his hard-work thathe (Agarwal) is doing well now and I don’tthink he has changed much at all.

“It is just that with the runs that he got,his confidence also improved and then as abatsman confidence plays such a big role, itis all down to his hard work (rather) con-sistent hard-work that he is reaping therewards.”

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New Zealandsweated on

the fitness of batting kingpin and captain KaneWilliamson on Thursday after he and HenryNicholls missed a second day of training aheadof the final Test against Australia.

Both are battling viral infections as theyrace to recover for the clash in Sydney, wherethe visitors are desperate to salvage some prideafter being thrashed in the first two Tests.

Spinner Mitchell Santner is also unwell anddid not practise on Thursday, with batsmanGlenn Phillips making a late dash to Sydneyon Thursday evening as cover.

“It’s up in the air at the moment — a cou-ple of boys are a little bit crook unfortunate-ly,” said opener Tom Latham, filling in forWilliamson in his pre-match press conference.

“They’re having today off, as well as yes-terday, so fingers crossed they’ll be right to gotomorrow.

“It’s gone around the team a little bit whichobviously isn’t ideal, but fingers crossed,they’re resting up and hopefully they’ll wakeup tomorrow morning and be good to go.”

If they are not fit, it will leave New Zealandwith big problems.

Jeet Raval is the only specialist batsmanwaiting in the wings, but he has been out ofform and was dropped for the last Test inMelbourne.

They also have bowlers Todd Astle, KyleJamieson, Matt Henry and Will Somerville onstandby.

Coach Gary Stead stressed Phillips’ inclu-sion was precautionary and they were stillhopeful all players would be fit.

“We’re still hopeful Henry and Kane willpull through and we will give them everychance to prove their fitness,” he said.

“Glenn has been in terrific form this sea-son and has good versatility with where he canbat and the roles he can play.”

Australia captain TimPaine has made clearhis team has no inten-tion of easing up despitethe series being won,after winning allfour of this sea-son's homeTests withinfour days.

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The National Cricket Academy,which has often been criticised

for its handling of players’ injuries,is set to get the help of a BCCImedical panel and a dedicatedsocial media department as part ofits overall revamp plan.

The need for a medical panelwas discussed at the NCA’s recentmeeting which was attended by allthe BCCI-officer bearers, includ-ing president Sourav Ganguly andNCA cricket head Rahul Dravid.

The development comes afterthe criticism the NCA drew for theinjury management of leadingIndia players, includingWriddhiman Saha and morerecently Bhuvneshwar Kumar.

All-rounder Hardik Pandyaand premium pacer JaspritBumrah added to the NCA’s woesby choosing personal rehabilita-tion over recovering in Bengaluru.

“The BCCI will consult aLondon-based clinic, Fortius, forsetting up its medical panel,” a topBCCI official said.

Head of fast bowling, a posi-tion which has been lying vacantfor a long time, will also be filledsoon.

That person will be in chargeof setting up a fast bowling pro-gram at the NCA. The board willalso hire a nutrition head for theBengaluru-based facility.

The NCA has mainly been inthe news for all the wrong seasonsand there is no official communi-cation coming out of it.

A social media manager willcome on board to provide regularupdates on the happenings insidethe facility. The move could alsogo a long way in repairing NCA’sreputation, the Board officialadded.

The NCA will also be con-

ducting Level 2 and Level 3 coach-ing courses at its premises withstate associations footing the billfor their respectively coaches.

“Coach development consul-tants” will also be hired onrequirement basis.

Utmost caution will be takenwhile issuing medical updates onthe Indian players with vetting ofthe information done by the teammanagement as well as the NCA.

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