@TheDailyPioneer facebook.com/dailypioneerFollow us on:

MONEY 8TESLA TESTING ‘FULL

SELF-DRIVING' VEHICLES

ANALYSIS 7DANGEROUS

DELAY

SPORTS 11MUMBAI HUNT SUPER KINGS BY 10

WICKETS TO REACH ON TOP

VIJAYAWADA, SATURDAY OCTOBER 24, 2020; PAGES 12 `3

}PAWAN TO PLAY

A COP. AGAIN!

Page 12

www.dailypioneer.com

RNI No. APENG/2018/764698

*Late City Vol. 2 Issue 354*Air Surcharge Extra if Applicable

Established 1864Published From

VIJAYAWADA DELHI LUCKNOW BHOPAL RAIPUR CHANDIGARH

BHUBANESWAR RANCHIDEHRADUN HYDERABAD

{

VIJAYAWADAWEATHER

Current Weather ConditionsUpdated October 23, 2020 5:00 PM

ALMANAC

TODAY

Month & Paksham:

Ashwin & Shukla Paksha

Panchangam

Tithi : Ashtami: 06:58 am

Nakshatram: Shravana: 02:38 am

(Next Day)

Time to Avoid: (Bad time to start

any important work)

Rahukalam: 09:07 am – 10:33 am

Yamagandam: 01:26 pm – 02:52 pm

Varjyam: NIL

Gulika: 06:15 am - 07:41 am

Good Time: (to start any important work)

Amritakalam: 03:43 pm – 05:24 pm

Abhijit Muhurtham: 11:37 am – 12:23 pm

FFoorreeccaasstt:: Partly cloudyTemp: 33/24Humidity: 95%Sunrise: 06.11 amSunset: 05.48 pm

SEC to meet parties, discussconducting local body pollsPNS n VIJAYAWADA

Andhra Pradesh State ElectionCommissioner NimmagaddaRamesh Kumar will hold ameeting with all political par-ties on October 28 to discussthe local body elections.

The opinion of the partieswill be sought regarding theconduct of the postponed elec-tions.

A circular has been issuedregarding the meeting to beheld at the State ElectionCommission office inVijayawada.

The SEC would later discussthe issue with the governmentafter consultation with politi-cal parties. It may be recalledthat Ramesh Kumar had post-poned the local body electionswhich were scheduled in thelast week of March as theCoronavirus cases startedspreading across the state.

The YS Jaganmohan Reddygovernment took this matterseriously and brought a specialordinance curtailing the tenureof the SEC and removedRamesh Kumar from office.He appealed to the HighCourt, which ruled in his

favour, forcing the State gov-ernment to approach theSupreme Court challengingthe High Court judgment.

The Supreme Court toorefused to stay the High Courtorders and Ramesh Kumarwas reinstated as SEC.

Jagan: Banking on bankers to boost agri sector

PNS n VIJAYAWADA

Pointing out that the agricul-tural sector is the backbone ofthe financial sector since near-ly 62 percent of the statedepends on it, Chief MinisterYS Jaganmohan Reddy onFriday said that the state gov-ernment duly recognises thisfact and has taken several stepsto strengthening it.

Addressing the 212th StateLevel Bankers Committee(SLBC) meeting at his campoffice, the Chief Minister saidthat the government has beensuccessfully implementing PMKisan-YSR Rythu Bharosaschemes by providing Rs

13,500 to farmers in threespells (Rs 7,500 in Kharif, Rs4,000 in Rabi and Rs 2000 dur-ing harvest time in January).

The Chief Minister statedthe loan target for 2020–21Kharif season was at Rs 75,237crore, and so far Rs 62,650

crore has been disbursed,which is 83.27 percent of thetarget. He asked bankers tocheck whether all the farmerswho were enrolled on the e-cropping platform are receiv-ing loans.

The Chief Minister said that

it was mandatory for the farm-ers to have an e-cropping cer-tificate to avail of crop insur-ance and zero-interest loans inorder to avoid being cheated.

Bankers were told to payspecial attention in grantingloans to farmers and check for

e-cropping certificates whileissuing crop loans.

The Chief Minister said thatthe government introduced amarket intervention fund andprocured crops by paying aMinimum Support Price withRs 3,200 crore. He said that thisyear, the market interventionfund is going to be about Rs3500 crore. Besides this, over10,600 RBKs have been estab-lished at the village level todeliver hassle-free services tothe farmers by door deliveringquality seeds, fertilisers, andpesticides within 48 hours ofplacing the order.

Centre limits onion stockswith traders to check pricesPNS n NEW DELHI

To boost domestic supply andprovide relief to consumersfrom rising onion prices, theCentre on Friday imposedstock limits on both retailersand wholesalers with immedi-ate effect till December 31.

Now, retailers can stockonion only up to 2 tonne,whereas wholesale traders areallowed to keep up to 25 tonne.This will check hoarding andblack marketing, it said.

Onion prices have shot upsharply to over Rs 75 per kg inthe past few weeks in the wakeof damage to the standingkharif crop in producing areasdue to heavy rainfall as well ashoarding.

Addressing media,Consumer Affairs SecretaryLeena Nandan said, “This is adecisive step. We have imposedstock limits on onion traderswith an immediate effect tillDecember 31 after concernsthat traders were releasingtheir stored stocks slowly, cre-ating artificial price rise situa-tion."

She said the governmenthad to invoke the recentlypassed Essential Commodities(Amendment) Act, 2020,which provides regulation of

agri-commodities "only" in thetimes of extraordinary pricerise situation.

“Under this law, normally,we would not be regulating

agri-food stuff like cereals andonion. But, in times of extra-ordinary price rise, we can reg-ulate if the retail price breach-es the trigger levels specified in

the law," she said.In case of onion, the average

all-India retail price of onion ofRs 55.60 per kg that prevailedon October 21 breached thetrigger level as per the formu-la specified under the ECAmendment Act, she said.

The all-India average retailprice of Rs 55.60 per kg washigher by 22.12 per cent com-pared with last year's rates of Rs45.33 per kg and by 114.96 percent as against average rate thatprevailed in past five years. So,the retail price had actuallymore than doubled and, there-fore, decided to impose thestock limits on the commodi-ty, she added.

Later, Consumer AffairsMinister Piyush Goyal tweet-ed that the Modi governmenthas taken third step to curbhoarding and check prices.Stock limits have been imposedon retailers and wholesaletraders of onion.

The government said actionunder the Prevention of Blackmarketing and Maintenance ofSupplies of EssentialCommodities Act, 1980, wouldbe taken to prevent any hoard-ing, black marketing of onionsby unscrupulous elements.

Centre borrows Rs 6,000 cr,transfers GST compensation PNS n NEW DELHI

The Centre has borrowed andtransferred Rs 6,000 crore asthe first tranche of GST com-pensation shortfall to 16 statesand two union territories, thefinance ministry said onFriday.

Last week, the Centre gavein to the demands of opposi-tion-ruled states to borrowand fund the GST compensa-tion shortfall.

"Today, the Central govern-ment borrowed and trans-ferred Rs 6,000 crore as firsttranche to 16 states namelyAndhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar,Goa, Gujarat, Haryana,Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka,Madhya Pradesh,Maharashtra, Meghalaya,Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Tripura,

Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhandand two union territories: UTof Delhi and UT of Jammu andKashmir," Finance Ministrysaid in a statement.

It said that the Centre wouldborrow from the market to paythe GST compensation short-fall of Rs 1.1 lakh-crore tostates, and then act as an inter-

mediary to arrange back-to-back loans to state govern-ments.

The Ministry said theGovernment of India hasevolved a special borrowingwindow to address the short-fall in the GST collection dur-ing the year 2020 2021.

Vijaya Dasamioptionalholiday on MondayPNS n VIJAYAWADA

The AP State Governmenthas announced that theoptional holiday for VijayaDasami has been changed toOctober 26 (Monday).

Chief Secretary NilamSawhney issued orders tothis effect on Friday.

Earlier, the State govern-ment had issued ordersdeclaring Vijaya Dasamiwould be celebrated onOctober 25 (Sunday).However, the AndhraPradesh Secretariat WomenEmployees WelfareAssociation, Velagapudirequested the Government tochange the holiday toOctober 26.

First-of-its-kind flashflood warning systemPNS n NEW DELHI

A first-of-its-kind system forSouth Asian countries thatwill provide alerts for flashfloods 6-24 hours in advancewas launched at the IndiaMeteorological Department(IMD) here on Friday.

The World MeteorologicalDepartment (WMO) hasentrusted India with theresponsibility of the RegionalCentre of South Asia FlashFlood Guidance System forcoordination, developmentand its implementation.

India also shares cyclonewarning alerts with neigh-bouring countries.

The system will enable themember countries -- India, SriLanka, Bangladesh, Nepal andBhutan -- issue impact-basedforecasting of floods which arevery sudden and of shortduration at watershed andalso city level, IMD directorgeneral Mrutunjay Mohapatrasaid at the online launch.

Representatives of themember countries attendedthe event.

Flash floods are highlylocalised events of short dura-tion with a very high peak andusually have less than sixhours between the occurrenceof the rainfall and peak flood.

n To stabilise prices, retailers allowed to stock only two tonnes till December-end

AP Rythu Bazaars to sell onions at Rs 40 per kgVIJAYAWADA: Asking districtCollectors and SPs to ensure thatonions are sold at Rs 40 per kg,Chief Minister YS JaganmohanReddy on Friday directed officialsto take stern action againstanyone creating artificial scarcityof essential commodities in thename of floods and heavy rains.This was disclosed by Ministerfor Agriculture Kurasala KannaBabu to media at the CM’s campoffice here on Friday.The Collectors and SPs wereasked to ensure that all shops

display the price list prominently.As per the instructions of theChief Minister, onions werepurchased through Nafed and arebeing sold at the rythu bazaars atRs 40 per kg.Kannababu said that the ChiefMinister was regularly reviewingthe flood situation and all stepswere being taken to provide reliefto the flood-affected people.Every affected family was beingprovided with food, medicinesand essential commodities.

Covid won't allow polls in Nov, says MinisterVIJAYAWADA: IndustriesMinister Mekapati GauthamReddy on Friday said thatthere was no way localbody elections couldbe held in Novemberin the wake of theCovid situation. The minister saidthat though itappears that there issome relief with fewernumber of Covid casesbeing reported in the state duringthe past few days, the possibility

of a recurrence was very real.Gautam Reddy spoke to the

media after attending ameeting of state level

bankers in Tadepalli.He said that Covidcases couldincrease inNovember. “Elections in states

like Bihar aremandatory while we

have some flexibility forlocal body elections,” said theminister.

TS jumps on‘free vaccine’bandwagon NAVEENA GHANATE n HYDERABAD

Call it injection of politicsinto public healthcare,politicisation of pandemic,getting around the ModelCode of Conduct, or, bet-ter yet, making aam aadmia bakra; ruling parties instates, taking a cue frompoll-bound Bihar, wherethe BJP-led dispensationhas announced free Covid-19 vaccination to everyperson in the state, are ju-mping on the bandwagonof 'Free Covid vaccination'.

Within hours of UnionMinister Nirmala Sithara-man's announcementregarding free vaccine inBihar, Chief Ministers ofTamil Nadu (which haselections next year) and ofBJP-ruled Madhya Pradeshannounced free Covid-19vaccination. The state thatis the latest to make anannouncement in thisregard is Telangana.

Infection rate dips, Covidtally crosses 8 lakh markPNS n VIJAYAWADA

Andhra Pradesh’s Covid-19tally crossed the eight lakhmark on Friday but the infec-tion’s declining trend was clear-ly evident as the last lakh casescame in a longer span of 23days. A record 80,238 samples weretested in 24 hours ending 9 amon Friday, turning out 3,765fresh cases of the pandemic andtaking the cumulative to8,00,684.

Also, 4,281 patients gotcured while 20 more suc-cumbed, the latest bulletinsaid.

The state now has 31,721active cases after 7,62,419

recoveries and 6,544 deaths, itsaid.

Andhra Pradesh is only thesecond state to log over eightlakh Covid-19 cases afterMaharashtra which has record-ed more than 16 lakh infec-tions.

The total infection count ofAndhra Pradesh crossed theseven-lakh mark on October 1,taking 14 days to rise from sixlakh. It had breached five lakhcases on September 17 afterreaching the first one lakh onJuly 27.

The state so far tested 74.28lakh samples for the infection,at the rate of 1,39,101 per mil-lion, with an overall positivityrate of 10.78 per cent.

n Andhra Pradesh is well on course to disburse Rs 75,237 crore loan target for the 2020–21 Kharif season

2

2

22

2

2

The Railways said that around 2.4 crore candidtates have applied for1.4 lakh vacancies in Indian Railways for various categories of staff to

be hired by the Railway Recruitment Boards (RRBs). A statement issuedby the Ministry of Railways said, "It may be noted that RRBs had issuedthree centralised employment notifications for NTPC categories, isolatedand ministerial categories and Level-1 categories for a total of about 1.4lakh vacancies for various categories of staff." "Against theseemployment notifications, more than 2.4crore candidates have applied," it said, addingthat the national transporter has maderequisite preparations for smooth conduct ofcomputer based tests (CBTs) which isscheduled from December 15 onwards.

RAILWAYS RECEIVES 2.4 CRAPPLICATIONS FOR 1.4L POSTS

CIVIL PRELIMS RESULTS DECLARED

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday asked the voters in Biharwhether they wanted 'jungle raj' (lawlessness) or 'sushasan' (good

governance) in the state. Addressing his third and final rally of the day atBhagalpur in Bihar, he continued his attack on the opposition RashtriyaJanata Dal. "Bihar deserves investment. Who will ensure this? Those whoturned Bihar into 'jungle raj' or those who are delivering good governancein Bihar and are dedicated to the state's development? Bihardeserves better law and order. Who will ensure that? Thosewho patronised goons or those who showered batons onthem? "Bihar also deserves better education system. Can it beensured by those who are not even aware of value ofeducation or by those who are working 24/7 to bringIITs and AIIMS to the state?"

The pandemic that's led to more than 1 million deaths globally hasalso led to a decline in individual wealth, yet household wealth largely

held up and even increased in China and India. Only China and Indiasaw gains in household wealth in the first half of the year, growing by4.4% and 1.6%,respectively. Latin Americasuffered the most, with a13% plunge, as currencydevaluations aggravatedlosses in gross domesticproduct. According to theCredit Suisse Group AG’s2020 Global Wealth Report

Result of Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination, 2020 held onOctober 4 has been announced. List of candidates who have qualified

to apply for Civil Services (Main) Examination, 2020 has been uploadedon UPSC website. This time, over 10,000 candidates from across thecountry have qualified to appear for the Civil Mains examinations.Qualifying candidates will have to now fill the Detailed Application Form-I(DAF-I) for the Civil Services Main examination. TheDAF will be available on the website of the UnionPublic Service Commission from October 28 toNovember 11, till 6 pm. The CSE Main will be held onJanuary 8, 2021. The e-admit card along with the timetable of the said exam will be uploaded on thecommission's Website for the eligible candidatesaround 3-4 weeks before the commencement of theexam, as per the official notice.

WANT JUNGLE RAJ OR SUSHASAN?MODI ASKS AUDIENCE AT BHAGALPUR

INDIA, CHINA GET RICHER AS VIRUSHITS US WEALTH: CREDIT SUISSE

8

World shares gain after last Trump-Bidendebate

5

Ex cricketer Kapil Dev suffersheart attack

2

Paving the way forgrassroots democ-racy

Printed and published by B Krishna Prasad for and on behalf of CMYK Printech Ltd., Phone: 040-23322341, Hyderabad Office: F-502, Diamond Block, Lumbini Rockdale, Somajiguda, Hyderabad - 500 082. Telangana. Printed at Sree Seshasai Enterprises, Plot No.19, IDA Balanagar , Hyderbad-500037, Medchal -Malkajgiri District, Telangana. Chief Editor: Chandan Mitra. Resident Editor: B Krishna Prasad, AIR SURCHARGE of Rs 2.00.

Although every possible care and caution has been taken to avoid errors or omissions, this publication is being sold on the condition and understanding that information given in this publication is merely for reference and must not be taken as having authority of or binding in any way on the writers, editors, publishers, and printers and sellers who do not owe any responsibility for any

damage or loss to any person, a purchaser of this publication or not for the result of any action taken on the basis of this work. All disputes are subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of competent court and forums in Delhi/New Delhi only. Readers are advised and requested to verify and seek appropriate advice to satisfy themselves about the veracity of any kind of advertisement before

responding to any contents published in this newspaper. The printer, publisher, editor and any employee of the Pioneer Group's will not be held responsible for any kind of claim made by the advertisers of the products & services and shall not be made responsible for any kind of loss, consequences and further product-related damages on such advertisements.

vijayawada 02VIJAYAWADA | SATURDAY | OCTOBER 24, 2020

EGG

RATES

` 51, 380 (10 gm)

` 1110

GOLD

` 62,600 (1kg)

` 4400

VIJAYAWADA 529

HYDERABAD 500

VISAKHAPATNAM 522

RREETTAAIILL PPRRIICCEE `̀55..2299

SILVER

VIJAYAWADA

BULLION RATES

`̀//110000

CHICKEN

RATES

Dressed/With Skin `193

Without Skin `219

Broiler at Farm `133

`̀//KKGG

(IN VIJAYAWADA)

Auto-rickshaw unions protestAP adopting Motor Vehicles ActPNS n VISAKHAPATNAM

Resenting the AP Governmentadopting the amendments inthe Motor Vehicle Act 1988that allows imposition of heavyfines for violating traffic rules,the auto-rickshaw driversunions in Vizag staged aprotest on Friday.

AP Government recentlyadopted the Motor VehicleAct, 1988 thereby increasingpenalties for various trafficrule violations.

The penalties range from Rs1,000 to Rs 10,000.

The government authorisedofficials of the rank of motorvehicle inspectors and above ofthe transport department andpolice officials above the rankof sub-inspectors and above topenalise violators and collectcompounding fees. The gov-ernment order explained theaim is to ensure better enforce-ment of the Motor Vehicles Act

1988RKSV Kumar of CITU and

Manmadha Rao of AITUCsaid that in the name of roaddiscipline, AP government hasincreased the fines for trafficviolations. The Covid-19 hashit the transport sector hardand hefty fines for the trafficviolations will lead to a burdenon the people who have beendepending on the road trans-

port sector, he said.“We are demanding the gov-

ernment to cancel the GO MS21 (adopting the amendedMotor Vehicle Act-1988) tosave the auto-rickshaw driversand others. An auto driver whoearns around Rs 500 to Rs1,000 per day cannot pay achallan of Rs 1,000 to Rs 5,000for traffic violations,” the asso-ciation members contended.

India's active Covid caseloadbelow 7 lakh after 2 months PNS n NEW DELHI

In a significant milestoneIndia's active Covid-19 case-load has fallen below 7 lakh forthe first time after two months,while the total recoveries havecrossed 69 lakhs, the UnionHealth Ministry said on Friday.

The recovered cases arenearly 10 times more than theactive cases, it said.

The active caseload of thecountry has fallen below 7lakh for the first time after twomonths (63 days), the ministrysaid. The active caseload wasbelow the 7-lakh mark(6,97,330) last on August 22.

There are 6,95,509 activecases of coronavirus infectionsin the country as on date,which comprise merely 8.96per cent of the total caseload,according to ministry dataupdated at 8 am.

With a high number ofCovid-19 patients recoveringevery day along with a steadi-ly falling and sustained lowmortality rate, India's trend ofregistering decreasing activecases continues, it underlined.

The total recovered caseshave surged to 69,48,497 andexceed active cases by

62,52,988 as on date. The datastated that a total of 73,979patients have recovered andwere discharged in a span of 24hours, whereas 54,366 newinfections were reported dur-ing the same period.

The national Covid-19recovery rate has further pro-gressed to 89.53 per cent.

Increased countrywide med-ical infrastructure, implemen-tation of the Centre's StandardTreatment Protocol by statesand union territories (UTs),and total dedication and com-mitment of doctors, para-medics and frontline workershave led to a persistent increase

in the number of total recov-eries with commensurate dipin the fatality rate, the ministrysaid.

It said that as on date thecase fatality rate stands at 1.51per cent.

These have together result-ed in a consistent slide in theactive cases, the ministryunderscored. Twenty-fourstates and UTs have less than20,000 active cases of Covid-19.

The ministry said 81 percent of the new recoveredcases are observed to be con-centrated in 10 states and UTswhich are Maharashtra,

Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu,Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal,Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Rajasthanand Uttar Pradesh.

Maharashtra has contributedmore than 16,000 to the single-day recoveries followed byKarnataka with more than13,000 recoveries, it said.

Of the total 54,366 newcases of Covid-19 recorded ina span of 24 hours, 78 per centare from Maharashtra, Kerala,Karnataka, West Bengal, Delhi,Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu,Chhattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh,Odisha.

Maharashtra and Keralacontribute the maximum tonew cases with more than7,000 cases followed byKarnataka with more than5,000 cases.

Also, 690 case fatalities havebeen reported in a span of 24hours. Of these, nearly 81 percent are concentrated in 10states and UTs — Maharashtra,Karnataka, West Bengal,Chhattisgarh, Tamil Nadu,Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Kerala,Andhra Pradesh and Odisha,the ministry said.

Maharashtra has reportedthe highest number of single-day deaths at 198.

Conventionally, the polit-ical executive is expect-ed to make policies and

leave execution to bureau-cracy.

This separation workedwell as long as the primaryrole of the bureaucracy was tocollect revenue, maintainorder and administer justice.During the 1950s, communi-ty development programmeswere initiated and a major rolewas given to locally electedrepresentatives - samiti pres-idents. This experiment can becalled India’s first wave ofgrassroots democracy.

However, as communitydevelopment lost its impor-tance during the 1960s, therole and influence of the sami-tis dwindled and in the 1970s,bureaucracy started to direct-ly implement burgeoningdevelopment programmes.

The increasing role of thebureaucracy in developmentprogrammes led to increasingtension with the elected rep-resentatives. The standoff wasresolved by creating differenttypes of structures at the dis-trict-level (e.g. planning

boards, review committees) aswell as unique financialarrangements (e.g. funds forMLAs).

Over time, district in-charge ministers with legisla-tors largely replaced the dis-trict officers in deciding whatprojects should be undertak-en and how.

The political preference toparticipate in execution, asopposed to only policy-mak-ing, is vividly brought out inan apocryphal conversationbetween Pratap Singh Kairon,Chief Minister of Punjab andhis Chief Secretary. On beingtold by the Chief Secretarythat the role of CM is mainlyto frame policies, Kairon islearnt to have replied that insuch a case, he would preferto implement programmesand leave policymaking tobureaucrats!

The second wave startedduring the 1980s, culminating

in the 73rd and 74thConstitutional Amendments.Similar trends were visible inother parts of the world, too.Around the time when urbanand rural bodies were given aConstitutional position inIndia, the Republic of SouthAfrica (1996) drafted its ownConstitution establishing aunitary state with threeautonomous but interdepen-dent spheres of government atthe national, provincial andlocal levels.

A noteworthy feature was

the creation of a separate listof exclusive subjects for localbodies (e.g. water, sewerage,solid waste management,roads and electricity distrib-ution).

At present there is a newtrend in the world to permitpeople to manage their ownaffairs directly, and one exam-ple is the emergence of citizenassemblies in the USA,Britain, France, Canada andNetherlands. This swingtowards a direct role for citi-zens can be imagined as the

beginning of the third wave ofgrassroots democracy.

Presently, control and mon-itoring in India is done verti-cally through the bureaucrat-ic hierarchy. This leads to, inthe words of Vincent Ostrom,Professor of Political Scienceat Indiana University, “remote,power-driven form of publicadministration” and citizens

do not take interest in publicadministration because theirpreferences and demandshardly count.

The way out is horizontalsupervision by citizens. Inother words, citizens woulddirectly control and monitorthe services that most matterto them.

Ostrom recommendsdevolving control and moni-toring to several citizengroups (also called ‘communi-ties of interest’) having inter-est in the provision of a spe-cialised type of governmentservice. As services are provid-ed at multiple levels, thesecommunities of interest couldbe set up at the locality level,citywide or non-geographical-ly organised, depending onthe government service.

The first step is to identifywhat services should be con-trolled by the citizens at dif-ferent levels — village, block

and the district. For this, a preliminary

assessment of each type ofgovernment service has to bedone, including the way con-trol is exercised. Next, newservice delivery arrangementswould follow from this assess-ment where citizens wouldexercise control over the gov-ernment functionaries as wellas monitor its provision, withthe help of digital technology.

To apply digital technology,each service would be brokendown into inputs, activitiesand outputs.

Let’s take the example ofsanitation. The input would beattendance of workers andavailability of materials. Theactivities would be workerssweeping streets and collect-ing garbage from households.The outputs would be cleanstreets and collection ofgarbage. All these could bemonitored by street cameras

and images shared withhouseholds interested in cleanstreets and garbage disposal.

Effective control would takeplace by linking wage perfor-mance to a digital poll amongcitizens concerned to assessthe performance of variousactivities and outputs.

Thus, the way forward tobring about ‘real’ grassrootsdemocracy is to mutate to amodel where citizens monitorand control services that mat-ter to them. The public woulddirectly guide the work of gov-ernment agencies as they havea stake in the results. Once cit-izen preferences and demandscount, there would be greaterscrutiny, leading to efficiencyand integrity of services.

(Author has a PhD fromthe USA and a DLitt fromKanchi University. The arti-cle is based on his researchand practice and views arepersonal)

DR. SAMEER SHARMA

Ostrom recommends devolving controland monitoring to several citizengroups (also called ‘communities ofinterest’) having interest in theprovision of a specialised type ofgovernment service

Paving the way for grassroots democracy

Jagan: Banking on bankers to boost agri sectorContinued from Page 1

The State government is alsoon a mission of establishingcold storage units and godownsat mandal level and village levelalong with Janata Bazaars, toprovide a marketing platformfor the farmers, Jagan said.

He also discussed Nadu-Nedu in schools and hospitals,village clinics and the establish-ment of new medical collegesin the State. The Chief Ministersaid that as many as 15,715schools are being revampedunder the Nadu-Nedu initia-tive, wearing a new look alongwith basic amenities. The Stategovernment will be spendingRs 4000 crore in phase-1, Rs4500 crore in phase-2 and Rs3500 crore in phase-3 of Nadu-Nedu project.

With regard to the healthsector, the government will besetting up village clinics acrossthe State taking basic medicalservices into interior villages.

Similarly, the governmentwill be establishing 16 newteaching hospitals across theState, ensuring each parlia-ment constituency has one

teaching hospital. In the next three years, the

state government targeted tospend Rs 13,000 crore tostrengthen the medical infra-structure and health services inthe State, he said.

The government will belaunching Jagananna Thoduscheme in November to bene-

fit small traders and supportthem by providing loans. So far,the state government broughtin Cheyuta, Asara schemes,and successfully implementedthem to benefit 25 lakhwomen.

In addition to this, the gov-ernment stood by the MSMEsby offering financial assistanceand providing industrial incen-tives.

The officials said that theloans target has increased by9.78 percent for 2020-21 at Rs2,51,600 crore when comparedto previous year.

Of the total loan targets, thegovernment aims to lend Rs1,28,660 crore to the agricul-ture sector that is an increaseof 11.9 percent over the previ-ous year and to lend Rs 39,600crore to micro, small and medi-

um enterprises (MSMEs)which is 10 percent more thanlast year.

For the priority sector, thestate government intends tospend Rs 1,87,550 crore, whichis 10.88 percent higher than lastyear, and Rs 64,050 crore to thenon-priority sector, which is anincrease of 6.75 percent overlast year. The officials saidthat the government has decid-ed to provide Rs 2,29,200 croreof loans during 2019-20 ofwhich Rs 2,27,882 crore hasbeen issued by achieving 99.42percent of the total target.

Speaking at the conference,G Rajkiran Rai, SLBC Presid-ent and MD of Union bank ofIndia hailed the State govern-ment initiatives, ensuringfinancial progress among smallscale traders and craftsmen.

Centre borrowsRs 6,000 cr,...Continued from Page 1

Twenty-one states and twoUTs opted for this specialwindow involving back-to-back borrowing coordinatedby the Ministry of Finance.Out of these, five states didnot have any shortfall on ac-count of GST compensation.

The borrowing is at aninterest rate of 5.19 per centand tenor of borrowing isexpected to be broadly in therange of 3 to 5 years, the min-istry said it intends to releaseRs 6,000 crore to the statesevery week.

This arrangement, theministry said, will not reflectin the fiscal deficit of theCentre and will appear ascapital receipts for state gov-ernments.

The Centre had in Augustproposed two options tostates: borrow Rs 97,000 crore(on account of GST imple-mentation) from a specialwindow facilitated by theRBI or the complete shortfallof Rs 2.35 lakh-crore.

First-of-its-kind flash flood...Continued from Page 1

There is a general lack offlash flood warning capabilitiesand capacities among coun-tries across the world.

Recognising that f lashfloods have a particularly dis-astrous impact on lives andproperties of the affected pop-ulations, the 15th WMOCongress had approved theimplementation of a FlashFlood Guidance System pro-ject with global coverage.

The system has been devel-oped by the WMO Commi-ssion for Hydrology, jointlywith the WMO Commissionfor Basic Systems and in col-laboration with the USNational Weather Service, theUS Hydrologic Research

Centre (HRC).The IMD has highly adva-

nced capabilities with respectto computing power, numeri-cal weather prediction, vast ob-servational network (gro-und,air and space based), and aninternationally accla-imedweather forecasting system.

It has tested the perfor-mance of the system duringrecent monsoon seasons in thepre-operational mode and theflash flood bulletins wereissued to national hydrologicaland meteorological servicesin the region for its validation,said B P Yadav, a senior scien-tist at the IMD.

The system has in-depthscience, dynamics and diag-nostics to provide guidance forthe possible occurrences of

flash floods at local level."The guidance for flash

floods in the form of Threats(6 hours in advance) and Risks(24 hours in advance) will beprovided by Regional Centre toNational Meteorological &Hydrological Services, Nat-ional and State DisasterManagement Authorities andall other stakeholders for tak-ing necessary mitigation mea-sures to reduce the loss of lifeand property in the SouthAsian region countries,Mohapatra said.

M Rajeevan, secretary, Min-istry of Earth Sciences, stressedthe need for enhancing theobservational network for rain-fall and soil moisture to impro-vise the performance of thesystem.

AP RythuBazaars to...Continued from Page 1

All the ministers, officialsand YSRP MLAs were tour-ing the affected areas for thepast 20 days and providingrelief to the affected people,he said.

“The CM is monitoring thesituation on a daily basiswhile there is no sense inwhat Chandrababu Naiduand his son Lokesh weretalking from their hideout inHyderabad for the past eightmonths,” the Minister said.

“Lokesh’s irresponsiblecomments are ludicrous. Heshould know the differencebetween floods and heavyrains before he talks,”Kannababu said.

Amaravati was not notifiedin the name of anybody. TheDalits and the poor haveevery right to seek lands inthe region and nobody hasthe right to stop them. Hesaid the government wouldnot remain quiet if anybodytries to boss over the weakersections.

He said Jagan had declaredin the Eluru BC Garjanarally that BC corporationswould be established in thestate. Soon after the BCCorporations wereannounced, Naidu made hisown announcements, he said.

TS jumps on ‘free vaccine’ bandwagon Continued from Page 1

Speaking to The Pioneer,Health Minister EatalaRajender said: “The govern-ment is giving free and qual-ity health care already in theform of a variety of vaccinesand treatments for people .This government is proactiveand people oriented. We willgive the vaccine (when itcomes) for free, to all and firstpriority will be given to poor”.

As per the statement by BJP,the Center will provide vac-cines to states at a nominalrate. It is for the state govern-ments to decide if they want togive it free or otherwise ashealth is a state subject. TheNational Expert Group onVaccine Administration (part

of the Centre’s Covid taskforce) too had made it clear, inits very first meeting, thatstates should not chart theirseparate pathways for pro-curement.

Amidst all this, only theopposition parties, whetherat Centre or states, are cryingfoul, with the ruling partiesunabashedly seeking to makethe most of the pandemic,regardless of ethics and theModel Code of Conduct.Congress leader Rahul Gandhihad a dig, saying peopleshould refer state-wise pollschedule to know when theywould get the vaccine, whileOmar Abdullah sought toknow how Bihar could get freevaccines while the rest of thecountry had to pay for it.

Centre limits onionstocks with ...Continued from Page 1

Highlighting other mea-sures taken to cool down thespiralling trend in onionprices, the secretary said thegovernment has decided toaugment domestic suppliesthrough imports for whichstate-owned MMTC wouldsoon float a tender for redonions to meet the demandsupply gap.

Recently, the governmentrelaxed fumigation and phy-tosanitary norms for import ofonion and activated Indianconsulates to facilitate trade,she said.

The secretary said the gov-ernment had taken a pre-emptive step by announcing aban on onion export onSeptember 14 itself so as toensure availability to domes-tic consumers at reasonablerates, before the expectedarrival of kharif onion fromnext month.

"Thus, the retail price risewas moderated to some extentbut recent reports of heavy

rainfall in the onion-growingdistricts of Maharashtra,Karnataka, Andhra Pradeshand Madhya Pradesh havecreated concerns about dam-age to kharif crop," she said.

She also said the develop-ments on the weather fronthave contributed to the sharpincrease in onion prices.

However, to tide over thepresent situation, the govern-ment has stepped up offload-ing of onion from its bufferstock of 1 lakh tonne createdin 2019-20, which is being car-ried out swiftly but in a cali-brated manner from the sec-ond half of September, shesaid.

The secretary further saidonion from the government'sbuffer stock is being sold inmajor mandis as well as retailsuppliers such as Safal,Kendriya Bhandar, NCCF, andNAFED outlets in major citiesand also via states.

Currently, Assam andKerala governments are beingsupplied from the retail dis-posal mechanism.

Tata bags order for6,413 Ace vehiclesPNS n VIJAYAWADA

Tata Motors on Friday said ithas secured an order from theAndhra Pradesh Civil SuppliesCorporation for supply of6,413 Tata Ace Gold vehicles.

The custom-built vehiclesare meant to be used by theCorporation for the proposeddoor-to-door delivery ofessential commodities to ben-eficiaries of the PublicDistribution System.

The state government plansfor door delivery of PDS itemsacross AP from December.

Tata said it won the bidthrough the Union CommerceMinistry’s Government e-

Marketplace.Tata Motors Vice-President

(Product Line) Vinay Pathaksaid in a release that theywould be delivering cus-tomised, fully-built Ace Goldmini trucks, meeting the BS6standards, to the state govern-ment soon.

Though the company didnot disclose the price, thestate government said Tataquoted a price of Rs 5,72,539per vehicle, reducing it fromRs 6.60 lakh through a reversebidding process.

In a press release, the gov-ernment, however, said it waspurchasing 9,260 vehicles fromTata at Rs 550.78 crore.

VIJAYAWADA | SATURDAY | OCTOBER 24, 2020 vijayawada 03

On the seventh day of Dasara Navaratri festivities on Friday, GoddessKanakadurga is adorned as Sri Mahalakshmi. She is the Goddess of wealth,prosperity, wisdom and fortune

GODDESS DURGA IN SRI MAHALAKSHMI ALANKARAMGODDESS DURGA IN SRI MAHALAKSHMI ALANKARAM

Lord Malayappa Swamy enchants devoteesPNS n TIRUMALA

On the eighth day ofNavaratri Brahmotsvams, SriMalayappa Swamy, along withHis consorts Sridevi andBhudevi, blessed devotees onSarvabhoopala Vahanam onFriday.

As part of the Central andState governments Covid-19guidelines, the vahana sevawas conducted in ‘ekantham’and the utsava idols wereseated atop the richly decorat-ed Sarvabhoopala Vahanamat the Kalyana Mandapaminside Lord Venkateswaratemple.

Sarvabhoopala means thatLord was the SupremeCommander of the entirecosmos. The message spelledout of this vahanam indicatesthat Lord Venkateswara con-

trolled the entire universe asthe controller of all on His

instructions Indra (east),Agni (south-east), Yama (god

of death on the south), Niruti(north – east), and Varuna on

(west), Vayu (south-west) andKubera (god of wealth onnorth) and Parameswara (onnorth-west) execute their jobchart.

Later in the evening, SriVenkateshwara took a ride onAswa Vahanam, the last of theBrahmotsava Vahanams.Tirumala pontiffs PeddaJeeyar Swamy and ChinnaJeeyar Swamy, TTD ExecutiveOfficer KS Jawahar Reddy,Deputy Speaker KonaRaghupathi, MP VemireddyPrabhakar Reddy, AdditionalEO AV Dharma Reddy, Boardmembers Dr Nischitha,Chippagiri Prasad, GovindHari, DP Ananth, PrasanthiReddy, CVSO Gopinath Jatti,chief engineer Sri RameshReddy, Peishkar JaganmohanCharyulu and others werepresent.

On the eighth day of Navaratri Brahmotsvams, Sri Malayappa Swamy, along with His consorts Sridevi and Bhudevi, rides onSarvabhoopala Vahanam in Tirumala on Friday

PNS n VIJAYAWADA

The government was accord-ing top priority for effectiveimplementation of ninehours free power supply dur-ing the day time to the agri-culture sector, which wouldgive a boost to rural econo-my as the farming communi-ty would be strengthened,said Minister for Energy,Forest and EnvironmentBalineni Srinivasa Reddy.

The minister said that thegovernment is committed tocreate a robust power sector inthe State by strengthening thepower utilities and it is deter-mined to make the State a des-tination for cost-effectivepower.

The minister further statedthat the free power scheme hadbrought light in the lives offarmers in the State. The Stategovernment had also laid spe-cial focus on nine-hour power

supply and sanctioned Rs1,700 crore to upgrade infra-structure of agriculture feeders.The AP Transco had taken upelectricity substations andother infrastructure develop-ment works for better imple-mentation of the scheme.Stating that farmers' welfare is the highest priority for the gov- ernment, the minister said

that the government was mak-ing sincere efforts to ensurefarmers to get free power forthe next 30 years for which thegovernment had taken steps toestablish a 10,000 MW solarplant as well.

The government was spend-ing Rs 8,353.58 crore to sup-ply free power to 18.5 lakhagriculture connections andwas providing Rs 717.39 croreto aqua farmers to supplypower at subsidy rates. Thegovernment also released65,565 new agriculture con-nections during 2019-20.

The minister said that theirgovernment is the pro-farmergovernment. Chief Minister YSJaganmohan Reddy is deter-mined to continue the freepower for next three decades. Strengthening the agriculturesector and bringing a smile onfarmers' faces is the ultimateaim of the Chief Minister, headded.

Govt to make power sector robust

PNS n VIJAYAWADA

On the seventh day of DasaraNavaratri festivities, GoddessKanakadurga was adorned as SriMahalakshmi. She is theGoddess of wealth, prosperity,wisdom and fortune. GoddessMahalakshmi is believed to pro-tect Her devotees from all kindsof money related sorrows.

She appears in eight forms andis well known as Astalakshmi.Mahalakshmi Devi is especiallyworshiped on Fridays and Diwalifestival day with red color flow-ers.

Mahalakshmi played a vitalrole in Mahishsura mardhanam.She is greatly praised and her sig-nificance is given in detail in SriSuktam and Lakshmi Tantra.

Satyalakshmi, Bhogalakshmi,

Rajyalakshmi, Yogalakshmi,V i d y a l a k s h m i ,S o u b h a g y a l a k s h m i ,Amruthalakshmi andKamyalakshmi are the mainavataras of Devi besides thefamous Astalakshmi avataram.

Addressing the media here on

Friday, Durga Temple TrustBoard chairman P Somi Naiduand Executive Officer MVSuresh Babu said that silk robesfor Goddess Kanakadurga werepresented by Annavaram templeon the seventh day of the Dasaranavaratri celebrations.

Annavaram temple presents silkrobes to Goddess Kanakadurga

Chinna Jeeyar Swami being greeted on the premises of Durga temple on Friday

Counselling for EAMCET beginsPNS n VIJAYAWADA

The Andhra Pradesh StateCouncil for Higher Education(APSCHE) on Friday com-menced the AP EAMCET-2020 counselling. The coun-selling will screen and shortlistthe candidates for admission toBE, B Tech and Pharmacycourses in colleges across theState. As part of the counsellingand seat allotment process,the exam authority will consid-er AP EAMCET score as wellas marks secured by candidatesin their Intermediate BoardExam. Qualified candidatescan get their documents veri-fied online and also checkdetailed instructions via examportal apeamcet.nic.in.

The complete schedule forthe AP EAMCET certificationverification process is availableon the official website of APEAMCET. Candidates can alsocheck the APEAMCET coun-

selling certificate verificationschedule.

According to the scheduleavailable, the certificate verifi-cation process will be conduct-ed on October 23 for the stu-dents from rank 1 to 20,000;from rank 20,001 to 50,000 willbe conducted on October 24;from rank 50,001 to 80,000 willbe held on October 25; fromrank 80,001 to 1, 10,000 will be

held on October 26 and fromrank 1, 10,001 till the lastrank will be held on October27.Candidates appearing forthe certificate verificationprocess must also note that theverification process will beconducted at the nearest HelpLine Centre (HLC) and afterverification, students have toproceed with the option entryprocess.

Man, daughter washedaway in Chittoor streamPNS n CHITTOOR

A man and his daughter diedafter they were washed away ina stream while returning froma wedding in Chittoor districton the intervening night ofThursday and Friday. Pratap(45) and his daughter SaiVineeta (15) had hitched areturn ride in a fellow weddingguest's car on Thursday night.As they approached a streamnear Kalikirikonda, which wasin spate due to heavy rains,they did not stop and wentahead.

"From 8 pm on Thursdayto 2 am on Friday, there wastorrential downpour, resultingin the stream gushing withwater, which swept away thecar," a police officer said.Incidentally, the deceased

from Vaddivarlapalli villagewas only some 6-7 km awayfrom home when the accidentoccurred in the dead of thenight amid pounding rain.

Though Penumuru policeand local villagers launched ahunt for Prakash and Vineeta,they could not retrieve them,considering the difficult con-ditions.

Pratap's wife Shyamala, thedriver of the car and theguest managed to escape thefatal water currents.

The accident occurred inthe stream nearKondayyagaripalli village andthe rescuers later found awhite car with a broken wind-shield. Police registered acase under CrPC Section 171.According to police, Prakashwas a farmer.

TDP LEADER VISITS FLOOD-HIT VILLAGES

PNS n VIJAYAWADA

TDP National GeneralSecretary Nara Lokesh made awhirlwind visit to the flood-hit villages and inspecteddamaged crops in Tadipatri,Guntakal, Singanamala andRapthadu areas in Anantapurdistrict on Friday.

He enquired from the farm-ers the extent of losses they suf-fered in heavy rains and floodwaters that have submergedtheir crops. When he askedabout their opinion about theproposed installation of meterson agricultural pump sets, farm-ers vociferously expressed theirdisapproval.

He strongly objected to the

fixing of meters for the sake ofgetting permission from theCentral government for bring-ing more loans to the State. Thefuture of farmers and agriculturewas being pushed into danger,he opined. Unfortunately, the

YSRCP regime was givingcounter statements when theTDP raised problems of flood-hit farmers, he alleged.Ministers, MLAs and officialswere not making field visits andnot responding to the actualcrop damages.

He stepped into the knee-deep waters in fields andchecked the extent of crop dam-ages, along with local farmers.He visited the submergedgroundnut and food grain cropsat Karakonda in Gutti mandal.He demanded Rs 25,000 com-pensation per acre for ground-nut farmers.

He slammed the governmentfor putting estimated crop dam-ages in Anantapur district at Rs

38 crore while the actual extentof damage would come to Rs2,000 crore in the present floods.Heavy rains ravaged crops inover 12.2 lakh acres. Groundnutfarmers suffered the most loss-es as they invested Rs 20,000 peracre. Farmers were saying thatofficials have not visited theircrops for enumerating the dam-age even many days after thefloods began.

He said as per an RTI enquiry,it was revealed that only Rs 25lakh compensation was paid bythe Jaganmohan Reddy'sregime. Ministers were not mak-ing field visits to damaged cropsbut they were attacking theTDP leaders for reaching out tofarmers.

Lokesh demands Rs 25,000 per acrePNS n VIJAYAWADA

YSRCP MP Nandigama Sureshlambasted TDP chief NChandrababu Naidu for belit-tling the agitation of Dalitsand weaker sections inAmaravati, who wanted theland in the region and alsosought equal development of allregions of the State.

Speaking to the media hereon Friday, the MP said therewere parallel agitations inAmaravati region on Thursday,one by the weaker sections andthe other by the so-calledfarmers of the region, whowanted Amaravati to be thesole capital and sponsored bythe TDP. He alleged that it wasevident that those who were

agitating for the capital to beset up in Amaravati were allbenamis of Naidu, who werebeneficiaries of land scam dur-ing his regime. What one

should realise is that none ofthe TDP leaders were presentto back the agitation of Naidu'sbenami farmers, he pointedout. People have realised thegenuineness of the agitationlaunched by Dalits and weak-er sections and the ongoing stirof the benamis of Naidu. OnFriday, the goons of the TDPtried to disrupt the agitation ofweaker sections by threateningthem, the MP alleged.

He ridiculed Naidu for call-ing the stir of benamis as anagitation for faith inAmaravati. He alleged thatNaidu took away 53,000 acresof land from the poor farmersin the name of building a cap-ital but handed over the landsto his henchmen on a platter.

YSRCP MPNandigama Sureshalleged that Naidu tookaway 53,000 acres ofland from the poorfarmers in the name ofbuilding a capital buthanded over the landsto his henchmen on a platter

YSRCP MP flays TDP chief3 boys meetwatery gravePNS n VISAKHAPATNAM

Tragedy struck a remote villagein Anakapalle mandal ofVisakhapatnam rural districtwhen three boys drowned ina water body on Friday after-noon. While two boys man-aged to swim to the shore.

The deceased were identi-fied as N Sarat Chandra (13),Podugu Girish (12) andNeelakayala Balaji (11) ofAkkireddypalem village inAnakapalle mandal.

The rural police said SaratChandra, Girish, Balaji,Hemanth and Bhaskar went toswim in a small water bodycreated by an abandoned quar-ry. After playing some time onthe banks, they jumped intothe water for swimming butcould not; therefore, Bhaskarand Hemant ran to the villageand raised an alarm. But by thetime the family membersarrived at the spot, the threechildren drowned. Girsh,Hemant and Bhaskar arebrothers, of them, Girish died.

Police said quarry was givenpermission in MarupudiSurvey No 357 and the workwas abandoned due to thelockdown.

The rain water filled a largeportion of earth that was dugby the quarry workers. The vil-lagers blamed the revenueofficials for insisting the quar-ry lease holder fill the cratersthat became the death trap forthe children.

Raid on layout for illegal excavationPNS n VISAKHAPATNAM

The Regional Vigilance Squad ofthe Mines and GeologyDepartment led by its assistantdirector R Prathap Reddy raid-ed a layout located betweenNagarapalem and Rajapulovaareas in Bhogapuram mandal ofVizianagaram district andimposed a penalty of Rs 1.6 croreon the management of the lay-out on the charges of illegal exca-vation and laying of gravel andordinary soil in the layout illegal-ly. Based on the specific informa-

tion, the vigilance squad raidedthe Utkarsha Estates Layout sitenear Nagarapalem inVizianagaram district. The lay-out has been developed withroads while the roads and layoutsite was filled with gravel and thepark area was filled with ordi-nary soil. The gravel and ordi-nary soil laid in the layout arecompacted.

When the vigilance squadasked the management of thelayout to produce documentaryevidence of the gravel and ordi-nary soil that was filled in the lay-

out, the site engineer showed thelayout side plan but failed to pro-duce the required documentsrelated to the procurement ofgravel and the soil. Officialssaid that they had observed thatthe management of the layoutillegally procured the gravel andthe soil and used it for thedevelopment of the layout.

Prathap Reddy said that if themanagement of the layout failedto pay the fine, they will ask thelocal body authorities to cancelthe plan and a few other clear-ances of the project.

Two labourers electrocuted PNS n VIJAYAWADA

Two farm labourers were elec-trocuted and two others sus-tained serious injuries atSrikakulam village inGantasala mandal of Krishnadistrict in the wee hours ofFriday.

The injured were shifted tothe Challapalli GovernmentHospital for treatment. Thedeceased were identified as GSitaramanjaneyulu (30) andCh Anil Kumar (30), residentsof Apparaopeta suburb ofPamidamukkala mandal in

the district. The accidentoccurred when the high ten-sion wires fell on the workers,who were working in thefarm.

Farmers in an effort to pro-tect the rice crop from pestswith fertilizers and chemicalsas the recent heavy rains havesubmerged the paddy crop hashired labourers from sur-rounding villages to sprayinsecticide.

At this point, the workerssustained burn injuries whenthe hanging high tension elec-tric wires hit them.

Pay out to farmers for crop losson Oct 27, says CollectorPNS n VIJAYAWADA

Krishna District Collector MDImtiaz announced that 10,003farmers will be given Rs 7.60crore as compensation for cropdamage on October 27.Addressing the media here onFriday, the Collector said thatdue to heavy rains during July,August and September in thedistrict, 8,200 farmers and 1,803horticulture farmers incurredlosses and the governmentwould pay Rs 7.60 crore ascompensation on October 27.

He further stated that duringthe torrential rains in October,20,000 farmers in the districtsuffered losses to the tune of Rs15 core. After finalising the

estimate of crop loss, compen-sation to those farmers will betransferred directly into theiraccounts by November 20.

During the floods, the districtauthorities were alert and nountoward incident was report-ed in the district. In 45 reliefcamps, 6,167 people were relo-

cated and provided food andaccommodation. In all, 16,658victims were provided with 25kg rice, oil, onions, pulses andpotatoes. The family membersof T Sivashankar Rao and KNaveen, who were electrocuted,were given Rs 4 lakh each, saidthe Collector.

Krishna District Collector Md Imitiaz speaks at a review meeting on rains andfloods in Vijayawada on Friday

Civil Prelimsresults declaredPNS n HYDERABAD

The results of Civil Services(Preliminary) Examination2020 held on October 4 havebeen announced. The list ofcandidates who have quali-fied to apply for Civil Services(Main) Examination 2020has been uploaded on UPSCwebsite.

This time, over 10,000 can-didates from across the coun-try have qualified to appear forthe Civil Mains examinations.The qualifying candidates willnow have to fill the DetailedApplication Form-I (DAF-I)for the Civil Services Mainexamination. The DAF will beavailable on the website of theUPSC from October 28 toNovember 11, till 6 pm. TheCSE Main will be held onJanuary 8, 2021. The e-admitcard, along with the time tableof the exam, will be uploadedon the commission’s website.

Minister for Energy, Forest andEnvironment Balineni SrinivasaReddy addresses a press conferencein Vijayawada (file photo)

Students attend Eamcet counselling in Vijayawada (file photo)

TDP leader N Lokesh interacts withfarmers during his visit to flood-hitvillages (file photo)

PNS n HYDERABAD

The Jubilee Hills Police onFriday arrested four personsfor selling ganja and seized10 kg of the banned contra-band from their possession.The accused were identifiedas Chetan Kumar Upadhyay,Abrar Bin Hussain, UdarlaRamesh and Sanyam ShivaReddy.

Based on a tip off thatbanned narcotic drugs arebeing sold in YadagiriNagar, Jubilee hills police

raided a room and nabbedthe four persons who werein possession of bannednarcotic substance. "At thetime of the raid, the accusedwere packing ganja intosmall plastic cover for sell-ing," said A Ramesh,Detect ive Inspector ofPolice, Jubi lee hi l ls .Investigation revealed thatthey were being suppliedwith ganja by Kalyan, who isabsconding, at Rs 20,000per kg. The accused weresent to judicial custody.

4 held for selling ganja

The government was spending Rs8,353.58 crore to supply free power to18.5 lakh agriculture connections andwas providing Rs 717.39 crore to aquafarmers to supply power at subsidyrates. The government also released65,565 new agriculture connections

VIJAYAWADA | SATURDAY | OCTOBER 24, 2020 telangana 04

PNS n HYDERABAD

The Dubbak by-election isgoing to be an acid test for theBJP and its new leadership inthe state to prove that theparty's victory in the 2019 LokSabha elections is not a fluke.The BJP has been claimingitself to be a viable alternativeto the TRS in the state in the2023 elections. But the party issaddled with the responsibili-ty of proving that it has popu-lar support.

How Bandi Sanjay, who hasbeen given the reins of the stateparty, faces the first ever elec-tions after he became head ofthe party in the state? Can theBJP upset the applecart of theTRS in its stronghold ofDubbak? The BJP, which hasplans to wrest power from theTRS in 2023 polls, is going toface a major hurdle throughDubbak by-election.

Other political outfits in thestate give no priority to the BJPwinning four LS seats in the2019 elections describing theBJP victory as a mere fluke. Torebut the criticism of the TRSand the Congress, the BJPshould prove that its victory is

not fluke by winning theDubbak by poll. The BJPseniors see an opportunity inthe by-poll to prove that itselectoral victory in 2019 LSpolls is not a joke, to prove thatthe Congress is not in the racefor power in the state and toprove that the leadershipchange in the state will impactthe poll outcome.

Opting for the out of turnelections to the state Assemblyin 2018, TRS managed to win80 Assembly seats and posteda major victory. But the BJPgave a rude shock to the TRSby winning four Lok Sabhaseats in 2019 elections.Moreover, the party showed

improved performance in 30plus Assembly segments. Sincethe last LS polls, the BJP isemerging as a viable alternativeto the TRS. Till the lastAssembly elections, the fight ismainly between the TRS andthe Congress. But the BJP iskeen on converting it to TRSbetween the BJP. The BJP lead-ership has affected the changeof leadership by placing thereins of the state party in thehands of a dynamic leader.

BJP state president BandiSanjay, Nizamabad MPDharmapuri Arvind, BJPGoshamahal MLA Raja Singhand BJP Dubbak nomineeRaghunandan Rao wants to

take strongly among the peo-ple how the KCR governmentis belittling Hindu festivals. Theparty local cadres are taking theissue strongly into the peoplethrough social media. Theobjective of the BJP Leaders isvery clear to unite the Hinduvote bank in the state againstminority and other vote banks.

Raghunandan, who unsuc-cessfully contested from theseat earlier, wants to grab theopportunity to post victory inthe seat. The BJP wants to grabthe limelight in the state bywinning the Dubbak seat,which is described as thestronghold of the TRS. On theother hand, the TRS is bankingon the sympathy wave infavour of Solipeta RamalingaReddy. However, the BJP begsto differ and quotes the exam-

ple of Narayanakhed by elec-tions, where sympathy factordid not work. It also argues thatin fact people would have sym-pathy towards Raghunandanwho unsuccessfully contesedtwice from the seat. The BJPsays that the sympathy wave isa thing of the past. The peoplebecame more aware. The issuesof government's failure to dealwith the Corona virus issues,denial of pension to the peopleof Dubbak till the last minuteand distribution of pensionsamong the people in a huff,denial of fair compensation tothe lands acquired from thepeople of the issue and a strongcontender like Raghunandanwould be positive factors forthe BJP victory. The NarendraModi factor would help BJPwin votes.

Dubbak by-poll acid test for BJP The BJP, which has plans towrest power from the TRS in2023 Assembly elections, isgoing to face a major hurdlethrough Dubbak by-election

PNS n HYDERABAD

Union Minister of State forHome G Kishan Reddy onFriday said he asked theCentral team, currently visit-ing Telangana to assess thedamage by heavy rains andfloods, to submit its report asearly as possible. "The teamtold me that the state govern-ment was yet to give full detailson the damage," Reddy said.The Centre would be able torelease funds after receiving adetailed report from the state,he said.

The Centre and state shouldtogether help the people, hetold reporters. Reddy suggest-ed that the state governmenttake up immediate relief workwith the state disaster relieffund. The inter-Ministerialteam, led by Joint SecretaryPraveen Vasishta, met Reddyhere and interacted with him.The five-member team beganits two-day visit to the state onThursday. Meanwhile, theCentral team continued itsvisit to various rain-hit areas ofthe city. On Thursday, the

team visited the affected partsof the state, especially the city,as the state government peggedlosses to crops and roads atover Rs 8,500 crore. The teammet state Chief SecretarySomesh Kumar and it wasgiven a power-point presenta-tion and briefed on the dam-age that took place since lastweek when 70 people died.The officials of different gov-ernment departments interact-ed with the Central team andgave an overview of the loss

incurred. They informed theteam that there was excessrainfall during the last 10 days,resulting in flooding. Thoughthere were rains in the entirestate, excessive damageoccurred in and aroundHyderabad and neighbouringdistricts. Breaches to threemajor tanks, coupled withflooding in Musi river, inun-dated low-lying areas. Thelosses to crops and roads wereestimated at Rs 8,633 crore andRs 222 crore respectively.

Central team told to submitreport on rain damage soon

PNS n HYDERABAD

The rains that lashed the stateduring the past one week havecaused extensive damage to thestanding crops and damagedcrops in at least 14.06 lakhacres, including cotton crop in7.50 lakh acres, according tothe preliminary report submit-ted by the AgricultureDepartment.

In the first three days, therains caused damage to thecrops in an extent of 8 lakh acres.Subsequently, the damage tocrops increased to 14 lakh acres.An official of the AgricultureDepartment, who wished toremain anonymous, said that thefinal report on the crop loss dueto the rains is yet to be compiled.

The agriculture authorities havenot been revealing the details ofthe crop loss.

According to informationreceived from sources, paddycrop has been damaged in5.10 lakh cres and cotton in7.50 lakh acres. The damage

caused to crops exceeded 14lakh acres with the inclusion ofthe damage to other crops.According to a conservativeestimate, rains affected at least7.60 lakh farmers.

Farmers have invested atleast Rs 25,000 per acre to raise

paddy and cotton crops, whilethe maximum investment peracre by farmer did not exceedRs 35,000. The farmers are not

in a position to recover theinvestments made. They appealto the government for paymentof compensation under theprevailing situation. The farm-ers have no prospect of gettingcompensation under cropinsurance scheme as the stategovernment opted out of thePradhan Mantri Fasal BimaYojana this year. Earlier, theState Government demandedthe Centre to implement cropinsurance scheme taking afarmer as a unit, but thescheme is yet to see light at theend of the tunnel. WhenPocharam Srinivasa Reddy wasAgriculture Minister, an exer-cise was done to implementcrop insurance scheme in thestate.

Farmers in trouble as rains destroy crops Farmers haveinvested at leastRs 25k per acreto raise paddyand cottoncrops, while themaximuminvestment peracre by farmerdid not exceedRs 35,000

PNS n HYDERABAD

Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan on Friday distributedsarees to all the women of RajBhavan parivar as part of theBathukamma celebrations atthe Raj Bhavan. The Governorhas been personally sponsor-ing and distributing sarees toall the women of the RajBhavan parivar since last yearBathukamma celebrations.

Speaking on the occasion atthe Durbar Hall at Raj Bhavan,the Governor termedBathukamma festival as aunique celebration of life bywomen of Telangana. TheBathukamma festival is prideof Telangana. "TheBathukamma festival offers arich tribute to the MotherNature and has socio-cultur-

al and emotional connect withthe women of Telangana," shesaid.

Elaborating on the impor-tance of the traditional fooditems that women distributeduring the nine-day long fes-tivities, Tamilisai emphasisedthat they do have lot of nutri-tional value to improve theimmunity and health of thewomen. "Our ancestors incul-cated this habit of offeringnutritious food items towomen by attaching devo-tional value to such fooditems," she added. TheGovernor also pointed out thatthe traditional seasonal flowersused to prepare the Bathukammaidols also possess medicinal valueand they purify the water bodieswhere the Bathukamma floweridols are immersed.

Guv: Bathukammais pride of Telangana

Nizamabad MP Arvind Dharmapuri inspecting damaged paddy in farms of Pipri village, Armoor on Friday

PNS n HYDERABAD

Telangana Pradesh CongressCommittee (TPCC) presidentN Uttam Kumar Reddy strong-ly condemned Chief MinisterK Chandrashekhar Rao forneglecting the problems beingfaced by maize, paddy and cot-ton farmers despite massiveprotests going on across theTelangana State.

He was speaking to mediapersons after inaugurating acamp office in Dubbak for theduration of the by-electioncampaign. Former ministers G.Vinod and Damodar Reddy,ex-MLAs Maheshwar Reddyand Mahender Reddy, TPCCGeneral Secretary Prem Laland other senior leaders werealso present on the occasion.

Uttam said that the fate oflakhs of farmers depends onthe outcome of Dubbak elec-

tions. "CM has been pursuinganti-farmers policies since2014. The TRS government notonly neglected the welfare offarmers, but created new prob-lems in every season for thefarm sector," he alleged citingthe example of how the ChiefMinister advised farmers togrow specific crops like maizeand superfine varieties of

paddy and now the govern-ment is not procuring thosecrops.

The TPCC chief said that thelakhs of farmers, who cultivat-ed maize on the advice of theChief Minister, are nowdemanding Minimum SupportPrices of Rs 1,850. However,with less than 15 days left forcompletion of harvesting, not

a single procurement centrehas been opened. He pointedout that farmers in Jagtial,Nizamabad, Sircilla,Kamareddy and other districtshave been holding massiveprotests demanding procure-ment of maize at Rs 1,850 asMSP. Similarly, Uttam saidthat the Chief Minister hadadvised farmers to growsuperfine varieties of paddy,instead of regular varieties.

PNS n HYDERABAD

The Central Government onFriday released long pendingfunds of Rs 202.3 crore forthe development of NationalHighways in Telangana.Union Minister for RoadTransport and HighwaysNitin Gadkari has approvedthe amount for repairs andmaintenance of 868-km ofeight National Highways thatpass through the State. In astatement, Minister of Statefor Home Affairs G KishanReddy thanked UnionMinister Nitin Gadkari forgranting the amount andsaid that the decision wastaken immediately aftermeeting the Union Ministeron Friday.

Kishan Reddy said thatthe amount will be useful forthe State to undertake repairsto the highways that weredamaged in the recent floods.He said that the amountgranted by the Center is 85per cent more than the pro-posals sent by the State gov-ernment. He said that theamount should be used torepair the roads in such a waythat traffic will move smooth-ly without any potholes infuture. The Minster reiterat-ed maximum support to theflood-hit Telangana state fromthe Central government forundertaking rescue. repairand rehabilitation activity.

PNS n PNS/DUBBAK

Telangana Pradesh CongressCommittee (TPCC) MinoritiesDepartment Chairman ShaikAbdullah Sohail on Fridayappealed to the voters ofDubbak Assembly constituen-cy to defeat TRS party for itspolicies 'targeting the minori-ties of Telangana State'.

Speaking to media personsafter participating in the door-to-door election campaignlaunched in Dubbak con-stituency, Sohail said that theTRS government would beremembered in history for

"causing the maximum dam-age to minorities, especially theMuslim community, by wear-ing a fake mask of secularism"."Chief Minister KChandrashekhar Rao hascheated the Muslims on thepromise of giving 12 per centreservation in jobs and educa-tion," he said and also allegedthat the CM ruined the Wakfproperties and weakened allthe institutions associated withthe welfare of minorities bystarving them of funds andmanpower".

The Congress leader saidthat CM would be remembered

as a 'destroyer of places of wor-ship' and a 'liar who repeatedthe same crime after apologis-ing for the first offence. He saidmore than a dozen places ofworship, including mosquesand temples, have been demol-ished by the TRS regime with-out any fear of people or God.KCR has displayed equal dis-respect for all religions andgave prominence only to hissuperstitious beliefs, he said,added that he doesn't deserveto continue on the post of theChief Minister which demandstrue secularism and protectionof all places of worship.

PNS n HYDERABAD

Telangana Pradesh CongressCommittee Treasurer GudurNarayana Reddy on Fridaydemanded the government tobe transparent in distributingthe financial aid to the peoplewho are affected by the floodsin Hyderabad in the past twoweeks. In a statement, he saidthat so far there was no clari-ty on the number of affectedpeople and number of familieswho have been provided withfinancial relief so far.

He reminded that the gov-ernment has announced finan-cial aid of Rs 10,000 to eachaffected family. He demandedthat the government shouldput the details of the affectedwho have received the finan-cial aid so far in public domain.Narayana Reddy said thatthough the governmentannounced a relief package of

Rs 550 crore, he was doubtfulabout the proper distributionof it. According to mediareports as many as 1,500colonies were affected by thefloods in the city.

He alleged that the TRSleaders have been using thedistribution of relief to theaffected for photo ops. Healso alleged that made-up pho-tos of providing the financialrelief are appearing in themedia. While the number ofaffected people was in lakhs,the number of beneficiaries,

who got the financial aid so far,was in hundreds. TRS leadersare trying to show that all theaffected were provided withrelief. Upon inquiry manyaffected people have told himthat they have not received thefinancial help so far.

He criticised that manytimes in the past, whenever thepeople faced natural calamities,the relief has not reached allthe affected ones and the dis-tribution of relief material andfunds has been used for thepublicity of the ruling party.

PNS n HYDERABAD

.South Central Railway hasdecided to operate 1,310 spe-cial trains during the festivalseason of Dussehra, Diwaliand Chat puja seasons. Apartfrom these, another 456 fes-tival special trains are passingthrough the zone during thefestival season. Due toincreasing in frequency oftrain services, additional safe-ty measures are being imple-mented at all the railway sta-tions.

Gajanan Mallya, GeneralManager, South CentralRailway held a review on theincrease of passengers flowduring the festival seasonand instructed the officials tomake adequate arrangements.He advised the RailwayProtection Force (RPF) andGovernment Railway Police(GRP) to maintain a strictvigil and regulate the passen-ger movements and ensuremaintenance of Covid-19precautions. He also directedall the Divisional RailwayManagers to monitor the sit-uation continuously.

Cong: Ensure transparency indistribution of financial aidKCR neglecting cotton ryots: Uttam

Uttam said thatthe fate of lakhsof farmersdepends on theoutcome ofDubbakelections

SCR to operate1,310 festivalspecials

PNS n HYDERABAD

Finance Minister T HarishRao on Friday took potshots atBJP and termed the saffronparty as ‘Bharatiya Joota Party.’While participating in theelection campaign inRajakkapeta village, HarishRao said that the credit of giv-ing drinking water to allhouseholds in the state goes toChief Minister KChandrasekhar Rao.

“KCR is giving 24X7 freepower to farmers and givingRs 5 lakh Rythu Bhima insur-ance to the farmers. Castingvote to Congress is nothingbut dropping it in drainage,” hesaid. Bandi Sanjay Kumar did-n’t respond to my challenge onpensions, however, the BJPleaders are speaking on jobs,Harish Rao said and addedthat TRS gave 1.24 lakh jobsafter the formation ofTelangana state. He questionedthe BJP leaders to reveal howmany jobs they gave aftercoming to power. He said thatthe TRS government will

develop Dubbaka constituen-cy in all aspects. The BJPshould reveal whether theCentral government is con-fined to Bihar or to the entirenation as it assured that it willdistribute Corona vaccine freeof cost as poll promise.”

He said that nothing willhappen with BJP andCongress. Harish Rao urgedthe voters to cast their vote toSolipeta Sujatha and ensure ahuge majority to her. He saidthat the TRS government issincere in implementing theassurances given in elections.He said that the state stood asa role model in implementingwelfare schemes and develop-ment schemes.

PNS n HYDERABAD

The Telangana State RoadTransport Corporation is run-ning festive special busesbetween various destinationsin order to facilitate the pas-sengers. There are over 600buses — originating from var-ious bus stands in Hyderabad— during Dusshera.

A total of 103 buses fromMahatma Gandhi Bus Station,194 from Jubilee Bus Stand, 81buses from LB Nagar and 95

buses from Dilshuknagar and219 from Uppal are beingoperated every two hours,starting 8 am to 12 midnight.These special services will beavailable only till October 24.

“We have been making surethat all the buses are sanitisedproperly. In fact, we have beensanitising each bus twice, beforeit leaves the depot and after isarrives there, to make sureevery surface is clean. No pas-senger is allowed in the buswithout a mask,” said an official.

Defeat TRS for its ‘anti-minoritiespolicies’: Congress urges voters

Centre releasesRs 202 crore for NH works

Harish terms BJP as‘Bharatiya Joota Party’

Over 600 spl buses for festive season

So far there is no clarity on thenumber of affected people andnumber of families who have beenprovided with financial relief, saidTelangana Pradesh CongressCommittee Treasurer Gudur Narayana

Central team assessing the damage wrought by heavy rains and floods inHyderabad on Friday

TAKING SSTOCK

VIJAYAWADA | SATURDAY | OCTOBER 24, 2020 nation 05

INDIA CORNER

Former Maharashtra BJPleader Eknath Khadse onFriday joined the Nationalist

Congress Party (NCP) in thepresence of the party's chiefSharad Pawar.Sulking since hisunceremonious exit from theDevendra Fadnavis-led ministryin 2016 over land graballegations, Khadse (68) onWednesday quit the BJP. The same day, state NCP chief Jayant Patilannounced he would be joining the Pawar-led party. NCP is part of theruling alliance in the state along with Shiv Sena and Congress, whoseMaha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government assumed office 11 monthsago. Khadse, former Maharashtra Revenue Minister and also an ex-Leader of Opposition in state Assembly, was inductedinto the NCP atthe partys head office here. The leader, who flew in here on Thursdayfrom his native Jalgaon district in north Maharashtra, was in politicalwilderness during the last four years, though he quit the BJP only twodays ago.Khadse's formal entry into NCP, scheduled at 2 pm, wasdelayed by over an hour as Pawar was in a meeting with partyminister Jitendra Awhad.

Former Maharashtra BJP leaderEknath Khadse joins NCP

Depression over the Bay ofBengal will bring heavy rainson Friday to the

northeastern states of Tripura,Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram,Assam and Meghalaya, theCyclone Warning Division of theIndia Meteorological Depar tment(IMD) said. The IMD said thedepression is very likely to cross West Bengal and adjoiningBangladesh coasts between Sagar Islands (West Bengal) andKhepupara (Bangladesh) over the Sundarbans on Friday. "Due to this,light to moderate rainfall at most places, with heavy to very heavy falls(115.6-204.4 mm/day) are likely at a few places, and extremely heavyfalls at isolated places are very likely over Tripura, heavy to very heavyfalls at a few places Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, south Assam andMeghalaya are likely," the IMD said. Depression is a cyclonic circulationand is packed with squally winds and heavy rains. The depression isexpected to abate and become a well-marked low pressure area byOctober 24. Low pressure area is the first stage of any cyclone and awell-marked low pressure area is the second stage.

Depression to bring heavy rainsover northeastern states: IMD

The Supreme Court Collegiumhas approved the proposalfor appointment of three

Additional Judges of GauhatiHigh Court as Permanent Judges.The collegium, headed by ChiefJustice of India S A Bobde,recommended the proposal forappointment of Justice ManishChoudhury, Additional Judge ofGauhati High Court as Permanent Judge.It also approved the proposalfor appointment of Justices Sanjay Kumar Medhi and Nani Tagia asPermanent Judges of Gauhati High Court. Justice Medhi completed hisschooling from the Don Bosco School, Guwahati and was enrolled as aLLB student in Campus Law Centre in the University of Delhi from1991 to 1994. He was elevated as an Additional Judge of the GauhatiHigh Court on November 19, 2018. Justice Tagia was designated asSenior Advocate by the Gauhati High Court on August 4, 2014 andelevated as Additional Judge of the Gauhati High Court on November19, 2018. Justice Choudhury was designated as Senior Advocate bythe Gauhati High Court in April 2017 and elevated as Additional Judgeof the Gauhati High Court on January 18, 2019.

3 Additional Judges of GauhatiHC to be Permanent Judges

Acook in a restaurant run by atrans woman (59) was arrestedon Friday for allegedly killing his

employer and dumping the body in adrum here, police said. The cookRajesh (23) alleged sexuallyharassed the trans womanSangeetha (59) who warned him ofgoing to the police if he continued toindulge in such harassment, theysaid. This made the cook angry and he killed the trans woman byslitting the throat and dumping the body, the police said. The bodyof Sangeetha with injuries was found in the drum on Wednesdayfollowing complaints of a foul smell, they said. Investigations led tothe arrest of Rajesh on Thursday. He had also stolen Rs 20,000 fromSangeetha's house after the crime, the police said. Sangeetha hadopened 'Trans Kitchen', a restaurant, in the city a month ago andRajesh was employed as the cook.

Cook sexually harasses, killstrans woman running restaurant

PNS n NEW DELHI

Citing lack of time for prepa-rations and pending permis-sions amid COVID-19 pan-demic, major Ramleela com-mittees in the city have shelvedburning of Ravana effigies,while others plan to employlight and sound effects to recre-ate ‘Ravana Dahan' thisDussehra.

The Ramleela Ground atRed Fort, the hub of Dussehrafestivities attracting common-ers as well as dignitaries,including the prime ministersand presidents every year, willbe deserted this time.

"We had applied for bookingthe venue at Ramleela Maidanabout three months back, butthe permission has not yetbeen granted by theArchaeological Survey of India.It is impossible to celebrateDussehra with burning ofRavana effigy on October 25this year as there was no time

for preparation due to COVID-19," Ravi Jain of Shri DharmikRamlila Committee said.

Some organisers, however,are trying their best to celebratethe day by cutting down on thescale of festivities as per thestandard operating proceduresfor holding big gatherings amidthe pandemic.

In east Delhi, the Dussehrafestival held at CBD ground

near Karkardooma attractsthousands, but this year the sizeof the crowd cannot be morethan 200 as per the DelhiDisaster ManagementAuthority (DDMA) directions,organisers of the Shri BalajiRamlila Committee said.

"We are prepared with small-sized effigies to be burnt onDussehra. Arrangements havealso been made to maintain

social distancing. However,police permission is awaitedafter which the size of the gath-ering will be fixed," SatishAgarwal, patron of theCommittee, said.

The DDMA had on October11 issued guidelines for hold-ing gatherings ahead of the fes-tival, limiting the number to amaximum of 200 people andrestrictions on setting up foodstalls, swings, squatting amongothers at the venues.

In view of the threat ofCOVID-19 infection, difficul-ties in keeping the crowd size

under 200 and enforcing socialdistancing, many Dussehrafestival organisers here willalso resort to using footage ofprevious years as well as audio-visual and light effects to recre-ate effigy burning and streamit online.

"We will use previousfootage with light and soundeffects this year as it will bevery difficult to control thecrowd and ensure social dis-tancing in view of COVID-19,"Ashok Goel of Sri KeshavRamleela Committee in ModelTown said.

Coronavirus plays dampener this DussehraThe Ramleela Ground at Red Fort,the hub of Dussehra festivitiesattracting commoners as well asdignitaries including the primeministers and president every year,will be deserted this time

PNS n NEW DELHI

In his first poll rally in Bihar,Prime Minister Narendra Modion Friday invoked the allegedreign of crime and loot duringthe 15-year rule of the RJD andalso targeted the Oppositionfor "daring" to seek votes in thestate while seeking restorationof Article 370 in Jammu andKashmir.

Modi sought vote for anoth-er term of the NDA govern-ment under Chief MinisterNitish Kumar, saying he hadbeen working with the JD(U)president only for the lastthree-four years and that thestate had seen much speedierdevelopment in this period.

Kumar had returned to theBJP-led National DemocraticAlliance in 2017 after fightingagainst it in the last assembly

polls in 2015.Referring to the supreme

sacrifice made by soldiers,including by those from Bihar,in Galwan Valley while fight-ing Chinese troops, he hit outat the opposition.

"They are saying they willrestore Article 370 if they come

to power. Look at their audac-ity, they are still daring to seekvotes from the people of Bihar.Isn't this insult of the senti-ments of Bihar which sends itssons and daughters to bordersto protect the country?" he said.

He accused the opposi-tion of siding with forces

which are conspiring toweaken India by promisingto restore Article 370 inJammu and Kashmir if itcomes to power.

Referring to the Galwanclash, Modi said the sons ofBihar laid down their livesfor the tricolour but did notlet 'Mother' India's head bow.

The soldiers of Bihar werealso martyred in thePulwama attack, he noted.

Asserting that the Kumar-

led government had workedfor the state's development,he said its continuation isnecessary to fulfill the hopeswith which people had votedfor the NDA at the Centre inthe 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

The Congress-led UPAgovernment at the Centrebetween 2004 and 2014 put"roadblocks" in the state'sdevelopment as Kumar was amember of the NDA formost of the time, Modi said.

PM slams Opposition for seekingrestoration of Article 370 in J-K

Modi sought vote for another term ofthe NDA govt under Nitish Kumar,saying he had been working with theJD(U) chief only for the last three-fouryears and that the state had seen muchspeedier development in this period

PNS n NEW DELHI

The coronavirus vaccine, onceavailable, will be distributedunder a special COVID-19immunisation programmewith the Centre procuring thedoses directly and making itavailable for priority groups,official sources said.

According to them, theCentre will procure the vaccinedirectly to make it available tothe priority groups free-of-charge through the existingnetwork of states and districts.

States have been asked notto chart separate pathways ofprocurement, they said.

The Centre, with the help ofstate and union territory gov-ernments, has started theprocess of identifying around30 crore priority beneficiarieswho would be given vaccinedose in the initial phase.

This special COVID-19immunisation programmewould run in parallel with theUniversal ImmunisationProgramme, but will use itsprocesses, technology and net-work of the existing vaccinedistribution framework,sources said. The governmenthas demarcated four categoriesof people for vaccination in theinitial phase -- around onecrore healthcare professionalsincluding doctors, MBBS stu-dents, nurses and ASHA work-ers, etc.; around two crorefrontline workers includingmunicipal corporation work-ers, personnel of the police and

armed forces; about 26 crorepeople aged above 50; and aspecial group of those below 50years of age with co-morbidi-ties and requiring specialisedcare. "States have been asked toenlist by mid-November thepriority population groups....Each person in the immunisa-tion list will be linked withtheir Aadhaar cards so as totrack them," a source said.

The existing digital plat-form and processes used forthe Universal ImmunisationProgramme (UIP) are beingenhanced to track COVID-19vaccine administration andmovement -- from procure-ment to storage to distribution

to individual beneficiaries -- asand when the vaccine becomesavailable, Health Ministry offi-cials have said.

Also, online training mod-ules are being developed forvaccinators. The digital plat-form that is being enhanced isElectronic Vaccine IntelligenceNetwork (eVIN), which pro-vides real-time informationon vaccine stocks and storagetemperatures across all coldchain points in the countryunder UIP.

Under UIP, children, adoles-cents and pregnant women arecurrently vaccinated againstvaccine-preventable diseasesfree-of-cost by the state.

Special immunisationprogramme for Covid vaccine

The Centre, with the help of stateand union territory governments, hasstarted the process of identifyingaround 30 crore priority beneficiarieswho would be given vaccine dose inthe initial phase

PNS n NEW DELHI

India has crossed the 10crore-mark in conductingtests for detection of COVID-19 with 14,42,722 tests beingdone in a span of 24 hours,even as the cumulative posi-tivity rate continues todecline, the Union HealthMinistry said on Friday.

High level of comprehen-sive testing on a sustainedbasis has also resulted inbringing down the nationalpositivity rate, it said.

"This indicates that therate of spread of the infectionis being effectively contained.The cumulative positivityrate continues to decline asthe total tests cross 10 crore,"the ministry underlined.

The national COVID-19positivity rate is 7.75 percent as on date, it said.

Covid positivityrate ondownward trend

PNS n NEW DELHI

India's first World Cup-win-ning cricket captain Kapil Devsuffered a heart attack andunderwent an angioplasty hereon Friday but is expected to bedischarged in the next coupleof days, said the hospital wherehe is currently admitted.

The 61-year-old complainedof chest pain on Thursday fol-lowing which he was taken toFortis Escorts Heart Instituteemergency department.

"Kapil Dev suffered a heartattack. He was evaluated andan emergency coronary angio-plasty was performed in themiddle of night," the hospitalsaid in an updated health bul-letin after only mentioningchest pain in its initial state-ment.

"Currently, he is admitted in

ICU and under close supervi-sion of Dr Atul Mathur and histeam. Kapil Dev is stable nowand he is expected to get dis-charged in a couple of days."

Angioplasty is a procedureto open blocked arteries andrestore normal blood flow tothe heart.

Indian CricketersAssociation (ICA) President

Ashok Malhotra, a friend ofKapil, earlier told PTI that theiconic cricketer is doing fine.

"He is feeling okay now. I justspoke to his wife (Romi). Hewas feeling uneasy yesterday.He is undergoing check-ups ata hospital as we speak,"

Malhotra, also a former Testplayer, said.

The 1983 World Cup-win-ning legendary all-rounderwas wished a speedy recoveryby many on social media,including India's current cap-tain Virat Kohli and SachinTendulkar among others.

"Praying for your speedyrecovery. Get well soon paaji,"Kohli said.

"Take care @therealkapildev!Praying for your quick recov-ery. Get well soon Paaji,"wished Tendulkar

Also wishing him goodhealth were India batsmanShikhar Dhawan and bad-minton player Saina Nehwal.

Kapil's former teammateMadan Lal said he has con-veyed some of the concern ofhis well-wishers to theChandigarh-born legend'sfamily.

PNS n NEW DELHIThe Delhi High Court said

Republic TV's editor-in-chiefArnab Goswami can use thetagline ‘NATION WANTS TOKNOW' as part of his speechor presentation. The high court

noted in its order that BennettColeman and Co. Ltd, whichhas filed a suit against Goswamior ARG Outlier Media PvtLtd, which owns Republic TV,has submitted that the journalist is free to use the same

as part of his speech/presenta-tion of any news channel.“Regarding the taglineNATION WANTS TO KNOW,no interim order is passed atthis stage in favour of the plain-tiff (Bennett Coleman).

Ex cricketer Kapil Dev suffers heart attack“Kapil Devsuffered a heartattack. He wasevaluated and anemergencycoronaryangioplasty wasperformed in themiddle of night,"the hospital saidin health bulletin

PNS n NEW DELHI

Three former chief electioncommissioners on Fridaysaid the BJP's move topromise free coronavirusvaccine to people in its man-ifesto for the Bihar assemblypolls cannot be legally fault-ed.

But, the move does raiseethical question as the modelcode of conduct is all aboutethics, said S Y Quraishi,who served as the poll panelchief between 2010 and 2012.

O P Rawat, who retired asthe chief election commis-sioner in December 2018,reminded that the SupremeCourt had made it clear thata party promising something

in its manifesto should alsomention the budgetary pro-visions it would put in placeto fulfil the promise.

One can put anything inthe manifesto, but theSupreme Court has ruledthat parties have to explainthe budgetary provisionrequired to fulfil the promise,Rawat said.

Another former chief elec-tion commissioner, who didnot wish to go on record, saidthe timing of manifestorelease is also important.

"The EC has so far notbeen able to implement thesuggestion that manifestosare released well in advanceand not on the eve of thepoll," he pointed out.

PNS n BENGALURU

Underlining that India hasbeen more of a "rule taker"than a "rule maker" at the UN,senior Congress leader ShashiTharoor on Friday said thecountry needs to fix its domes-tic issues, including that of theeconomy, and have "moralauthority" if it wants to be arules contributor to the world.

The former Union minis-ter said he has always arguedthat India's internationalcredibility is often a reflectionof its domestic postures andthe success at home is thebest guarantee that "we will

be respected and effectiveabroad".

"Now we have unfortu-nately been going through afew very bad years domesti-cally in terms of crumblingsocial cohesion, the erup-tion and uncontrollablespread of the coronaviruspandemic, the border trou-bles with China, the eco-nomic collapse after demon-etisation, unemployment fig-ures worst recorded in thehistory in these years, every-thing is wrong," he said at asession of the 7th nationalforum of the Public AffairsForum of India.

PNS n HISUA (BIHAR)

RJD leader Tejashwi YadavFriday asserted his father andparty supremo Lalu Prasadwill come out of jail onNovember 9 after securingbail in a fodder scam case, andBihar Chief Minister NitishKumar will have his farewellthe next day.

The votes for the stateassembly polls will be count-ed on November 10. Prasad isin judicial custody inJharkhand capital Ranchi afterhis conviction in fodder scamcases. He was recently grantedbail by the Jharkhand High

Court in the case related toChaibasa treasury but couldnot come out of jail as his bailplea in another case of fraud-ulent withdrawals fromDumka treasury is beingheard. "Lalu ji is getting

released on November 9. Hehas got one bail and will secureanother on November 9, whichalso happens to be my birth-day. The next day, Nitishji willhave his farewell, Tejashwitold a poll rally here, exudingconfidence about winning theelections. The state is voting inthree phases on October 28,November 3 and November 7,and the results will beannounced on November 10.

In his address, he accusedthe Nitish Kumar governmentof failing to root out corrup-tion, bring industries, provideemployment and check migra-tion for livelihood.

PNS n BENGALURU

The Karnataka governmenton Friday decided to reopenengineering, diploma anddegree colleges that were shutsince March due to theCOVID-19 pandemic, fromNovember 17, with studentsfree to opt for online oroffline classes or a mix ofboth. "In a meeting that tookplace under the chairmanshipof the Chief Minister, it wasdecided to start degree col-leges from November17.Engineering, diploma anddegree colleges will all start,"Deputy Chief Minister C NAshwath Narayan said.

‘Free vaccine can’tbe legally faulted’

Arnab can use ‘Nation wants toknow' as part of speech: HC

Lalu coming out on bailonNov 9, says Tejashwi

Colleges toreopen in K’takafrom Nov 17

‘India needs to fixdomestic issues’

India completed the year-long celebrations of the150th birth anniversary ofMahatma Gandhi onOctober 2. One had the

privilege of participating in sever-al learned deliberations on the rel-evance of Gandhian ideas in thepresent context. In most of these,it was rather a unanimous conclu-sion that Gandhi’s principles, val-ues and his life could give a heal-ing touch to suffering humanity ina world characterised by wars, vio-lence, distrust, hatred, fundamen-talism, terrorism, arms race,hunger, poverty, ill-health andmuch more. Peace, non-violenceand religious harmony remainelusive commodities. And Gandhisuccessfully demonstrated a non-violent path to human dignity, har-mony and liberty. He could influ-ence leading personalities withinand beyond India, who plungedheadlong into creating a peacefulworld by following his values andsuccessfully achieving attitudinaltransformation within their com-munities and nation.

The life of Khan Abdul GhaffarKhan, also known as Bacha Khanand Frontier Gandhi, presentsone of the most scintillating exam-ples of achieving a rare communi-ty transition from violence as a cultto the path of peace and love as thevalue of total commitment. Hisname may appear just as unfamil-iar to most young Indians as hisrole as a stalwart in the Indian free-dom struggle, and afterIndependence, as a fighter for hispeople in Pakistan, that he wagedtill his last breath on January 20,1988. He finds little resonanceeven in India for various reasons.

In July 1942, Jawaharlal Nehruissued a statement on the happen-ings in the Frontier Province —now in Pakistan — clearly indicat-ing how scarce the news fromthere was, and that too, was “oftentainted and contained many wrongallegations.” Nehru had personal-ly experienced difficulty, duringhis own visits to the FrontierProvince, in sending out propernews through normal agencies orotherwise. He further observedthat restrictions on such newsbeing sent out were stricter in theFrontier Province than elsewherein India. He then revealed apainful truth: “The result is thatthe people in the rest of Indiaknow little of what is happening inthis highly important part of the

country.” In this very statement,Nehru wrote about FrontierGandhi. He said: “Few peopleknow about the work that KhanAbdul Ghaffar Khan has beencarrying on during the last sixmonths. He does not believe inostentation but he has gone tovillages seeing his people,organising them and encourag-ing them in every way. Thus, hehas covered the entire province.”

Apart from numerousimpediments from variousquarters, Khan also had to facefalse propaganda of vestedinterests. Born in 1890, he wasgreatly touched by the devastat-ing misery of his own peoplewhich, he concluded, was dueto the lack of education andconsequent ignorance. He start-ed schools and the British didnot like it. He was 19 when hewas first imprisoned and thenit was a life in and out of jailsof the Britishers, and then theGovernment of Pakistan. Hishistoric movement, KhudaiKhidmatgar, was launched toovercome poverty and banishthe British from India. He was,till the end of the freedomstruggle, for a united India.

Khan was inspired byGandhi’s message of non-vio-lence and he knew how difficultit would be to convince his“freedom-loving” Pathans toexecute the idea. He had thecourage and conviction toaccept the challenge and heachieved this miracle. The typeof attitudinal transformationachieved by this charismatic

personality could only betermed unparalleled. He gave anew interpretation of force,courage and valour to his peo-ple and the community. This, hecould do through his creativeleadership, deep and thought-ful interpretation of Islam as areligion of peace. He was a manwith a universal message ofbrotherhood and camaraderie.He knew how vibrant the cul-tural heritage of his people andthe region was, and how thiscradle of learning and culturesank “into a state where therewas no room left for such goodwork such as education andlearning.”

While India was celebratingthe birth anniversary ofMahatma Gandhi, an eruditescholar of post-Independencehistory, RNP Singh, was search-ing literature and sources inlibraries and institutions to putup an authentic account of thegreat Gandhian, Khan AbdulGhaffar Khan. And how Indiaignored his contributions whichhad the potential to bring forthpeace not only to the erstwhileNorth-West Frontier Province(NWFP), Afghanistan andBaluchistan but to the entireMiddle East region, and evenbeyond.

Singh has established, basedon his study, how great was themeasure of wrong done to thisfrontline freedom fighter andan exceptional devotee ofGandhi. In his seminal work,Durand line: Did India FailFrontier Gandhi, Singh very

succinctly summarises: “Hewas among the very few lead-ers of undivided India who, bydint of their sincere effort andselfless service to their people,rose to eminence and earned aniche for themselves in the toppolitical hierarchy of the coun-try. Yet in spite of having earneda place among the galaxy ofeminent leaders, Khan AbdulGhaffar Khan never advancedhis claims to recognition in theIndian context.” One could saywithout hesitation that Indiafailed Bacha Khan, hisPakhtoon people and theNWFP. There is no other wayout of this but to follow the pathshown by Gandhi and BachaKhan.

During the freedom struggle,Gandhi tried his best to per-suade the Muslim League andMohammad Ali Jinnah to giveup the two-nation theory. Hefailed in his persuasion andIndia suffered the ghastlytragedy of the Partition. And westill need persistent efforts tostrengthen our efforts to cementthe age-old mutual harmonybetween the two major com-munities.

Inspired by the increasinginfluence of Gandhi, whosepersona and ideas had begun toinfluence the remote North-Western part of the empireand Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,young Bacha Khan openedschools for both boys and girls.He organised young peopleunder the banner of servants ofGod — Khudai Khidmatgar —

who, contrary to the prevalenttradition, decided to follow theGandhian path to achieve free-dom for India and its people. Tothese highly motivated andcommitted people, his messagewas, “The fundamental princi-ples of all religions are thesame though the details differbecause each faith takes thecolour and flavour of the soilfrom which it springs… I can-not contemplate a time whenthere will be one religion for thewhole world.” And this camefrom a devout Muslim whonever missed a namaaz andwho also had “the spirit ofbrotherhood” innate in himselfmore than many so-calledorthodox Muslims.

Religious fundamentalistsand protagonists of the two-nation theory, expectedly, dis-liked him and his approach andinflicted numerous crueltieson him and his followers oncethey came to power. The per-sona of this Frontier Gandhi,sufferings that he endured evenafter Independence, must berevealed to young Indians, whoare working for religious amityas the core value that could leadIndia to its destination of hon-our and acceptability in a strife-torn world.

What happened to BachaKhan or what was done to himis summed up by MohammedArif Khan in the foreword tothe treatise by Singh: “As anIndian, I feel that what we didto Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khanand the Pashtuns in 1957 wasvery unfair. The Pashtuns hadvoted in 1946 for a unitedIndia but the decision of theIndian leadership reduced themto being subservient to thebreakers of Indian unity. Theresult was that Khan and his fol-lowers were treated as traitorsand he spent more time in jailsof Pakistan after 1947 than inBritish jails before 1947.” All thishappened in spite of the factthat the top Indian leadershipof the freedom struggle wasfully aware of the significanceof Bacha Khan’s contributionand his unflinching commit-ment to a united India. Sadlyenough, India was divided.Even Gandhi, who had declaredthat Partition could take placeonly over his dead body, accept-ed it. All that the great BachaKhan could say to the Indianleadership that had accepted thePartition of this great countrywas: “You have thrown us towolves.” He and his peoplewere left at the mercy of thosewho never liked him for his lib-eral stance on Indian culture,history and his progressiveideas about religious harmonyand social cohesion.

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

People living in north India, particularly Delhi, undertruly choking conditions would not really disagreewith US President Donald Trump’s statement

about India’s air being filthy. They should hope that thisultimate repudiation of our ambient quality and pollu-tion in a US presidential debate might force the Centraland State Governments to finally do something aboutit. Like it or not, Delhi’s air knocks years off the livesof its citizens and if farmers want the sympathy of theurban populace and the media over the new Acts, theywill not get it till they stop burning stubble that leavesa haze and blocks sunlight every morning. The per-

sistently poor air quality in India is now officially a global joke and our politicians’ reluc-tance to deal with the issue holistically because they do not want to irritate their agri-cultural votebank is an even bigger one. Hundreds of crores have been raised as greencess in Delhi; why is this money not being used to subsidise agricultural machinery forfarmers in North India so that they can get rid of crop waste in an eco-friendly man-ner? The lives of our children are being ruined by chronic pulmonary conditions suchas asthma and politicians are trying to blame everything under the sun but the mostobvious cause. They can’t even attack the automotive industry anymore as it has movedto very low emission BS-6 vehicles now. There could soon be medical evidence to provea direct connection between high levels of pollution and the spread of the COVID-19pandemic. Say what you will about Donald Trump, he does speak about a lot of thingswithout filtering them through political doublespeak. He was proven right about Chinaand he is absolutely right about Indian air quality.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has the political capital to do something about thisand he must because inaction on this front will taint his legacy. The right to clean airshould be a given and like it or not, this impacts the poor and underprivileged whomModi and even Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal claim to stand for the most. The chatter-ing classes with access to air purifiers can afford to live with it. So whether Trump remainsin office or the US gets a 46th President, the time for Indian politicians to act is now.

Political adventurism shouldn’t trespass reason. Andgovernance is about contextual maturity. Besides,certain issues are just not meant to be politicised,

especially something as serious as the Coronavirus vac-cine, a hope that’s sustaining the entire nation which couldstill end up being the worst-hit in the world. That, too,at a time when an effective vaccine is like the prover-bial El Dorado, as trials are still going on and there isno proof yet that it would work on a mass scale. Evenassuming it does, every citizen, graded according to pri-ority and co-morbidities, has a right to be administereda shot. And any smart Government would try to sound

altruistic enough about protecting all citizens, if not mean it, only to reap political gains.Agreed politics is all about making tall claims that are rarely achieved. Still, for all the elo-quence, there ought to be some sense of prudence and judgment. Most importantly, noparty can advocate anything that is morally questionable. In this sense, the ruling BJP hasoverreached itself a bit much, promising the voters in Bihar free vaccines, without realis-ing that it is implicitly saying that official benefits will now flow selectively among thosewho vote for it as a quid pro quo. That sounds as bad as a public threat. Worse, its promiseis not just another instance of poll populism — it’s an attempt to manipulate the anxietiescaused by the most lethal pandemic to have ravaged the world in more than a century.And when somebody like Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman makes the announce-ment, it shows that the Government is desperate about the poll arithmetic of the party itrepresents than pursuing holistic policies, that it is cavalier about the demands of scienceand health protocols and is unconcerned about lives, leave alone being compassionate.However, this isn’t the first time the party has made such questionable promises. Therewas talk that Prime Minister Narendra Modi wanted to launch a home-grown COVID vac-cine by August 15 to mark the nation’s 72 years of Independence. Apparently, the IndianCouncil of Medical Research (ICMR) was under pressure to fast-track clinical trials butwidespread criticism about compromising efficacy for the sake of political expediency andpressure from scientists ensured that a life and death question was not made a mockeryof. Yet the BJP’s claim of free vaccine doses has already trivialised a grave issue into apoint-scoring exercise. A similar announcement followed in Tamil Nadu, where the elec-tions are due next year. AIADMK leader and Chief Minister E Palaniswami promised theshots on the basis of his proximity to the BJP. In other words, tradeoffs of this nature willbe made to buy the allegiance of federal parties. One wonders what the BJP’s stand wouldbe in Bengal, where it is seeking to dislodge the Trinamool Congress? But the BJP’s fatalflaw has certainly galvanised the Opposition. Delhi Chief Minister and leader of Aam AadmiParty (AAP) Arvind Kejriwal was quick to point out the plight of the people in non-BJPruled States while National Conference leader Omar Abdullah called the announcement a“blatant populism” that “shamefully exploits COVID fears.” He even wondered if the BJPwould be paying for these vaccines from the party treasury. So when the Union Ministerof State for Health, Ashwini Chaubey, tried to clear the air, it was too little too late. Accordingto him, the Centre had prepared an elaborate plan on distributing the vaccine and identi-fying those who would be given “preference.” He even added that every State would begiven free Coronavirus vaccines. But Amit Malviya of the BJP’s IT cell further complicat-ed matters when he said that like all programmes, the Centre would provide vaccines toStates at a nominal rate. And health being a State subject, the Bihar BJP unit had decid-ed to give it free if elected and that other State Governments, too, can decide to do thesame. This is not unexpected, as it has become normal for the ruling dispensation to changeits stand on what subjects under the State List can be manipulated by the Centre. Exceptthat the Opposition is not buying this narrative with the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) urgingthe Election Commission to restrain the BJP from “signing a poll deal using the vaccine.”

The larger concern is that the political parties will still get away making wild claims dur-ing the Bihar elections, the results of which will be announced in November. And no trialresults will be available before December, leave aside the prospect of a rollout by the begin-ning of next year. Would the voter bet on something that has still not seen the light of day?The Government should instead focus on the vaccine administration process and set up aseamless cold chain infrastructure, both of which are humongous challenges. Vaccine preser-vation is a tricky business as wide swathes of vials could go bad if safety norms are notadhered to and the temperature controls are not monitored strictly. The COVID vaccine hasto be stored at temperatures lower than other known vaccines. The Serum Institute hasalready raised questions on the Government’s ability to keep aside `80,000 crore for therollout. Is the Government equipped to handle this without roping in the private sector? Ifso, how much will the private sector be ready to subsidise costs? Besides, how will thoseat risk be mapped, considering that most Indians have a heavy disease burden and co-morbidities? Vaccine distribution and administration will be no less of a logistical challengethan the general elections and will require the Centre and States to work together. So beforeit promises the moon, the BJP should realise that gravity is rude and it alone would landwith a thud if it doesn’t pursue collaborative politics on COVID for its own good.

Vaccine politics

BJP’s new lowSir — The BJP has sunk to a newlow by promising freeCoronavirus vaccine shots forthe people of Bihar. This onlyproves that the party is fearful ofbeing defeated and hence isselling the fear of the pandem-ic to the people. The fact of thematter is that the Coronavirusvaccine is not the private prop-erty of the BJP and it cannotdecide which States can have freeaccess to it. Its leaders need torealise that they are also inpower at the Centre and theentire country’s well-being istheir concern and not limited tothe States that are or might beunder their rule. If they want togive away free vaccines, thenthey will have to do so in all theStates and not only in Bihar.After the dismal performance ofthe Janata Dal (United)-BJPcoalition in handling the pan-demic, the returnee migrants’issues and not to forget thefloods, the NDA is offering freevaccines to woo the electorate. Itshould instead focus on improv-ing the conditions in core sectorslike education, employment andhealthcare.

Noor Ahmad Hyderabad

Noxious hazeSir — Once again, US PresidentDonald Trump has made acritical reference to India dur-ing a presidential debate. Earlier,he had questioned India’sCoronavirus data amid criti-cism of his handling of the pan-demic. And recently he calledIndia’s air “filthy” while claim-ing that the US has the “lowest

carbon emission.” Contrary toTrump’s claim, the US standssecond in the world in terms ofcarbon emission. It leaves a big-ger carbon footprint than themajority of the world’s popula-tion. However, in terms of hiscomment on India’s poor airquality, the truth is that he wasjust stating a known fact. NewDelhi has indeed been blanket-ed in a noxious haze. Smoke

from stubble burning in itsneighbouring States, vehiclefumes and industrial emissionshave been turning the Capital’sair toxic every winter. It was theworld’s most polluted capitalcity for the second straight yearin 2019, according to Swiss-based group, IQ AirVisual.Additionally, according to theState of Global Air 2020 study,that was released on October 21,

air pollution caused the deathof 4,76,000 new-borns in 2019and nearly two-thirds of thedeaths came from harmfulfumes emanating from cookingfuels. The study also highlight-ed that more than 1,16,000Indian infants died due to airpollution in 2019. So, whileTrump’s comment might sting,the Indian Government shouldtake the poor air quality ofIndia, especially Delhi, seri-ously. The blame game betweenthe Centre and the States needsto stop and adequate stepsshould be taken.

Bhagwan ThadaniMumbai

Low-key festivitiesSir — The festive season hasstarted but at no cost should welet our guard down during theongoing pandemic. We willhave to celebrate with caution.Use of face masks, adhering tosocial distancing and avoidingcrowded areas should be every-one’s priority. This year, let uspray from our humble abodes.

Rishav VatshMumbai

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

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

op nionVIJAYAWADA | SATURDAY | OCTOBER 24, 2020

06

Recall Frontier GandhiKhan Abdul Ghaffar Khan was a rare example of community transition, who

showed how easy it was to shed the cult of violence and walk the path of peace

Bihar deserves investment. Whowill ensure this? Those who turnedBihar into ‘jungle raj' or those whoare delivering good governance inBihar and are dedicated to theState's development?

Prime Minister —Narendra Modi

Death penalty is not a deterrent

The Karnataka High Court rightly said that an “attackon anybody’s daughter is an attack on our daugh-ter.” The observation came in the context of uphold-

ing the trial court’s order of sentencing seven accusedto life imprisonment for the gang-rape of a law studenton the Jnana Bharathi campus in Bengaluru in 2012.The court noted that the difference between the 2012Nirbhaya case and the gang-rape of the law student wasthat in the former, the girl died but in the latter, the sur-vivor discontinued her studies and traumatised,returned to her homeland in Nepal.

The High Court has recommended amending pro-visions of the Indian Penal Code to include capital pun-ishment for gang-rape in addition to the existing pro-visions of life imprisonment with fine. The death penal-ty already exists for rape-cum-murder cases, as in theNirbhaya case, but is not applicable for cases of gang-rape in which there has been no death. However, stud-ies don’t prove that the death penalty is a deterrent. Itcould also lead to perpetrators making sure that their

victims are left dead or in no state to make a complaintor recognise them. Also, in a larger number of cases,the accused is known to the victim and the loomingfear of the former being handed out a death penaltycould stop one’s family from reporting the crime. Hence,we need to strengthen the process of rehabilitation.

KV SeetharamaiahHassan

Send yyour ffeedback tto:letterstopioneer@gmail.com

Filthy air?

Perhaps the BJP forgot that as a party in governance, it isanswerable to all citizens, not just those of poll-bound States

US President Donald Trump has a point about Indian airquality and it is no laughing matter

JS RAJPUT

When I was 21, I felt like the Asian Games was a different platform. There wasa lot of pressure becauseeverybody had their eyes onyou and the game.

Cueist—Pankaj Advani

I don't believe a full lockdownis the right course. To all thoseenduring these restrictions inall parts of the country, I wantto repeat my thanks for yourbravery and your patience.

UK Prime Minister —Boris Johnson

By the end of January,enough vaccines will beavailable for all of ourseniors as well as our healthcare workers and first responders.

US HHS Secretary —Alex Azar

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

S O U N D B I T E

I THINK I HAVE GREAT RELATIONSHIPS

WITH ALL PEOPLE. I AM THE LEAST RACIST

PERSON IN THIS ROOM.

—US PRESIDENT

DONALD TRUMP

HE (TRUMP) POURS FUEL ON EVERY SINGLE RACIST

FIRE. THIS GUY HAS A DOG WHISTLE ABOUT AS

BIG AS A FOG HORN.

—FORMER US VICE-PRESIDENT

JOE BIDEN

POINTCOUNTERPOINT

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

An exaggeratedclampdown

GWYNNE DYER

The youth in the streets of Lagos may not realisethat their rebellion could endanger a corrupt

system, but those who benefit from it certainly do

The young Nigerians who were protesting at Lekki Toll Plazain Lagos recently were not the African touring company ofLes Misérables. Lekki is one of the poshest suburbs of Lagos,

full of gated communities and most of the protesters were literate,media-savvy youths who reeked of urban cool. The army killed themanyway. Or maybe it killed them precisely because of who theywere. IZZY@theleventh, who does not explicitly say he was there,tweeted: “They removed the cameras two hours before, turned offthe street light and the LED billboard and deployed soldiers to openfire at the crowd singing the national anthem...they brought tanks!!Over 78 people are dead. The Nigerian Army then began to put thedead bodies in their trucks.”

The numbers may be exaggerated: One eyewitness told theBBC he had counted about 20 bodies and at least 50 injured afterthe soldiers opened fire. Official sources have denied that anybodywas killed, or that the army was even there. But Channels Televisionhas videos showing men in Nigerian Army uniform walking calm-ly up to the barricade and firing into an angry but non-violent crowd.The massacre comes after two weeks of protests, mostly in south-ern Nigeria, that were initially targeted on the Special Anti-RobberySquad (SARS).

Almost all Nigerian police forces are corrupt and brutal, butSARS specialised in robbing, torturing and sometimes murderingprosperous and trendy young people. If you were young, had hairof a different colour or tattoos, and were in a flashy car, you stooda statistically significant chance of having an unpleasant encounterwith SARS. The protests began two weeks ago after pictures alleged-ly showing a man being beaten to death by SARS circulated onsocial media. Muhammadu Buhari, a military dictator 35 years agoand now back at 77 as Nigeria’s elected President, recognised thedanger and acted fast. Within two days he abolished SARS, promis-ing it to replace it with a kinder, gentler force — but the protest-ers had heard that story before, and besides they had already movedon to broader targets.

Nigeria is a powder keg at the best of times, and with lengthylockdowns this is not the best of times. Protests exploded acrosssouthern Nigeria, and not all were non-violent. On October 19 amob burned a police station in Yaba, another upscale suburb ofLagos, and 120 km to the east in Benin City armed crowds freedmore than a thousand prisoners from two jails. The State claimsthat the protests have been infiltrated by criminals and in some placesthat is clearly true, but that’s not why the ruling political class ispanicking. That’s not why they shot down well-educated, trendybut law-abiding young people in Lekki. It’s because those in powerfear a youth revolt that could not only transform the country, butsplit it in half.

Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation (200 million people),is really two countries. The southern, mostly Christian half, withall the oil and ports and most of the industry, is around 95 per centliterate. Only one of the 19 northern, mostly Muslim States is over50 per cent literate, and half the young women in the northernregion have no formal education whatever. Naturally, relative pros-perity shows the same disparity. Only 27 per cent of the south-erners live below the poverty line and 72 per cent of the northern-ers do. Yet it is young southerners who are on the brink of revolt,because it is the political domination of the north that keeps theruling kleptocracy in power.

It starts with the army, whose officer corps has been domi-nated by Muslim northerners since colonial times. That is whyMuslim military dictators and elected presidents from the north haveruled Nigeria for 38 of the 60 years since independence, but evenChristian presidential candidates from the south are in hock to north-ern interests. The traditional rulers and religious authorities of thenorth control the big banks of voters that can be sold to the high-est bidder, and it is in their interest to keep those voters ignorantand obedient. The southern kleptocrats, who buy the votes, havean equally strong interest in the system as it lets them go on steal-ing: One-third of Nigeria’s oil revenues over the past 50 years haveended up in foreign bank accounts.

The young men and women in the streets of Lagos may notrealise that their rebellion could endanger an entire corrupt sys-tem, but those who benefit from it certainly do. Which is why theirresponse has been so extreme. What happens next matters a lot,because 25 years from now Nigeria will have overtaken the US inpopulation and become the third-biggest country in the world. Itwould be nice if by then it was a stable, well-educated democra-cy where prosperity extended beyond the south.

(Gwynne Dyer’s new book is ‘Growing Pains: The Future ofDemocracy and Work.’)

India’s unaided private school edu-cation is collapsing as thousandsof institutions have closed down

and many others are struggling to sur-vive. This may cost the nation over`1.75 lakh crore a year, as theCoronavirus-induced lockdown hasharmed the education sectorimmensely. Though the mention ofprivate education conjures up imagesof swanky private schools with world-class facilities and sky-high fee struc-ture, these are also in crisis today.

However, it is the online, low bud-get schools that have been the worst-hit by the pandemic. These schoolspenetrate rural areas, small towns orlow-income localities of metros,according to the State of the SectorReport on Private Schools by theCentral Square Foundation (CSF). As

per the recently released HouseholdSocial Consumption on Education inIndia Report, the aggregate householdexpenditure on private schools isapproximately `1.75 lakh crore,almost equal to the e-commerce sec-tor. Also, about 50 per cent of the totalschool enrolments are in privateschools.

Though almost all schools,Government or private, are understress due to the lockdown, the worstsufferers are the virtual informalschools. With or without Governmentrecognition, they serve the hinterlandof the country. They have improvedschool enrolment, especially in ruralareas, where the number of studentsattending private schools hasincreased from four per cent in 1993to 26.6 per cent in 2017-18.

The CSF says that the struggle forthe survival of private education in thecountry is intense. Even under nor-mal circumstances, it is not easy forprivate schools to attract students andduring the Coronavirus era, the sit-uation has worsened further as par-ents refuse to pay fees. Plus, the dig-ital footprint has made online educa-tion unaffordable.

So most such schools have eitherclosed down or are facing closure asthey are neither able to pay theirteachers nor can they afford infra-structure costs. Some had plannedexpansion in early March and takenloans. Many have gone into severedebt and even after closure, are in dis-tress. Most of these are entrepreneur-ial ventures by innovative individuals.In Fatehpur, Uttar Pradesh, a shop-keeper’s son started a school that fol-lowed the concept of “pay `1 a day.”However, since the students are notcoming to school, entrepreneurs likehim have little option but to closedown operations.

The impact on society is severe asthese virtual schools employ mostlyjobless youth at low salaries. The pay-ment is on a daily or hourly basis. Buteach school sustains at least 100 peo-ple on an average. The youth preferto opt for such jobs for sustenance aswell as for the prestige they enjoy intheir neighbourhood due to it. In vil-lages or semi-urban areas, suchschools have become the first choicefor parents, as they are perceived tobe better than Government schoolsdue to the overall care that a child is

given as the teachers (trained or not)are from the neighbourhood. This ismaking education more mass-basedas the official system has many limi-tations and despite some recentefforts, suffers from delivery prob-lems. Recruitment of teachers itself isflawed as the disclosures from VYA-PAM in Madhya Pradesh and by theUP Government have shown. TheYogi Adityanath Government alsofound that the district officials inter-fered in “Basic Shiksha” schools andissued orders for severing these fromthe district administration. Plus,online education has largely come a

cropper in all such institutions. The pandemic gave rise to the

need for having a digital infrastruc-ture and due to their low budgets, theunaided private schools claim thatthey are neither able to match up withelite schools nor with the State-runschools, for which the content is airedthrough television and radio channelsand other Government-run plat-forms. To make matters worse, par-ents do not consider online teachingto be proper education. They do notpay the schools because their wardsare not going there. Apart from that,they find online teaching expensivedue to the high internet costs. Anotherproblem they face is that each childneeds a smart phone or computer,which they cannot afford.

Apart from this, many childrendo not find online teaching interest-ing as there are many glitches andteachers, too, find themselves strug-gling due to the lack of eye contact.Plus, students mostly switch off thevideo mode because of the poor net-work across the country and toreduce unaffordable data use.

The students and their parentsfind brick and mortar schools more

affordable and fruitful because apartfrom learning from books and theteachers, the children learn languageskills, etiquette, discipline, interactionwith peer groups, use of a library andsocial behaviour. So parents, despitetheir low incomes, do not mind pay-ing for education at brick and mor-tar schools.

As per a Ministry of Statistics andProgramme Implementation report,Indians pay 12 times the money forpre-primary education at a privateschool. The number decreases toabout three times at the higher sec-ondary level. A majority, 70.8 per centstudents, pay less than ̀ 1,000 month-ly fee, while 45.5 per cent pay less than`500. The monthly median fee in anelementary unaided school is ̀ 958 inurban areas and `500 in rural India.Schools complain that at least one-third of the parents default in payingthis minimal amount also. The closureof budget private schools can adverse-ly impact “education for all” and mul-tiply unemployment. With apathy, lowGovernment allocation and high-handedness, school education isbecoming nobody’s baby.

(The writer is a senior journalist)

Closure of budget private schools looms large With apathy, low Government allocation and high-handedness, school education is becoming nobody’s baby

SHIVAJI SARKAR

VIJAYAWADA | SATURDAY | OCTOBER 24, 2020

www.dailypioneer.com

F O R E I G N E Y E

Globally, the life of theelderly has changed from asimple, mainly localisedconcern to a systemic,comprehensive and long-term factor related to thesustainable development ofthe economy and society.With a rapidly ageingsociety, the challenges thatneed to be overcome rangefrom the rising shortage oflabour to increasinglyunsustainable pension fundsand inadequate medical andnursing resources.(China Daily editorial)

CONCERNS OVERAN AGEING WORLD

Forty five-year-old Ayesha (name changed), aresident of a small town in west Uttar Pradesh(UP), first spotted a tiny painless lump in her

breast in April this year. However, the Coronavirus-induced lockdown and the fear of catching the infec-tion in a healthcare setting prevented her from see-ing a doctor. Even when the lockdown was eased,her family was too scared to travel to Delhi to seekmedical consultation. By the time she reached anoncologist four months later, her aggressive cancerhad already hit Stage III, diminishing the chancesof her survival.

Unfortunately, Ayesha is not a lone case of a seri-ously-ill patient being deprived of timely treatmentdue to the ongoing contagion. While we will neverbe able to collate data of how many such patientssuffered delayed diagnosis and treatment this year,it is evident that the number is significant. Patientattendance in oncology clinics fell significantly inthe initial months of the pandemic. The number ofnew cases diagnosed continued to remain relative-ly low even several months after the total lockdownhad been eased. Breast Cancer Now, a British char-ity organisation, estimated that due to the contagionalmost a million British women had missed a screen-ing appointment. This might have led to thousandsof cancers going undetected. For a country like India,where a majority of breast cancer detections still hap-pen in the later stages of the disease, the Coronavirusoutbreak has further hampered diagnosis andtreatment, and is likely to negatively impact survivalrates from the disease.

Rising disease burden in India: Breast canceris the most common form of the disease amongIndian women and accounts for an estimated 28 percent of all cancers. In fact, a woman is diagnosedwith it every four minutes while another dies of thisdisease every 13 minutes in the country. In 2018, itis estimated to have claimed as many as 87,000 livesin India. The incidence of the disease has increaseddramatically over the last 25 years due to multiplefactors, including increasing urbanisation, adoptionof unhealthy lifestyles (smoking, drinking, junk foodconsumption and so on), increased use of plasticutensils and microwave ovens, rise in obesity, dropin physical activity levels, delayed age of child-bear-ing and reduced breast-feeding.

India also has a high mortality rate because amajority of the patients are still diagnosed in the latestages of the disease and a significant proportion ofthem are not able to get appropriate treatment.Another worrying trend is an increasing incidenceof the disease in younger women. Shockingly, near-ly half of the patients in urban India are less than50 years of age. Poor awareness about symptoms,lack of a universal and comprehensive screening pro-gramme, social taboos and embarrassment to dis-cuss the issue are the main reasons behind delayeddiagnosis as well as the resultant high mortality.Unfortunately, the prevailing situation due to aworldwide pandemic has impeded diagnosis andtreatment of a number of non-Coronavirus diseases,including all types of cancers. Already a neglectedsubject, women’s health has further been relegatedto the back-burner as families delay medical con-sultation and avoid visiting healthcare facilities orundergoing regular disease screening.

Pandemic or not, do not put health issues onthe back-burner: The Coronavirus is a long-termproblem, which is likely to stay with us in the nearfuture. While containing the pandemic and ensur-ing treatment of all infected people must be a high

priority, adequate policy measures needto be taken to ensure that other seriousdiseases are not neglected in the process.Governments as well as healthcareproviders, both have a role to play inachieving this. It is important to educatepeople about the importance of notneglecting their health conditions and pre-vent interruptions in treatment modali-ties, too. It is equally important to ensurecontinuation of unimpeded non-Coronavirus services in hospitals whilealso instilling confidence among peopleabout the safety of hospitals and clinics,especially outpatient departments (OPDs).

However, the silver lining in the darkcloud is that thanks to advanced diagnos-tic and treatment modalities, survival ratesof breast cancer patients have increasedsignificantly globally. While survivaldepends on a number of factors such asthe type of cancer, stage at the time of diag-nosis, the quality of treatment, in the USit is estimated that up to 90 per cent ofwomen survive five years after diagnosisand 84 per cent manage to survive 10years.

However, in India, the survival ratesremain abysmally low for reasons men-tioned above. Increased awareness andhealth literacy, regular screening after 40years of age, adoption of a healthy andactive lifestyle sans smoking or excessivedrinking, timely and appropriate treat-ment can help improve survival rates inIndia too.

New-age technologies can help nav-igate the Coronavirus pandemic: Theadoption of new-age technologically-advanced methods further helps improvethe quality of life of patients. Now, surgi-cal treatment does not mean removal ofthe whole breast in all patients. It is pos-sible to offer a breast conservation surgery

in nearly 60-70 per cent of the patientseither upfront or after chemotherapy.

Similarly, complete removal of armpitnodes, a procedure done routinely in allpatients until a couple of decades ago, hasgiven way to sentinel lymph node biop-sy in which only a few nodes need to betested for the presence of the tumour.

If these sentinel nodes are notinvolved in the disease, one does not needto remove the remaining nodes, thusbringing down the rate of shoulder dys-function as well as lymphedema (swellingof the arm) significantly. Similar tosurgery, personalised systemic therapy(chemo, hormone, immune and targetedtherapy) has enabled us to avoid moretoxic treatment in patients with a goodbiology tumour. Two patients with thesame size of tumour can have very differ-ent outcomes. New-age prognostic testshelp predict the risk of cancer relapse inthe early stage of breast cancer with a highdegree of accuracy, stratifying patients intolow and high-risk categories, based ontheir tumour biology. Those patients whofall in the low-risk category have very lim-ited risk of relapse and may be able toavoid chemotherapy.

Cancer patients face a higher risk ofcatching the Coronavirus infection as wellas suffering from its complicationsbecause of their immuno-suppressivestate as a result of the disease itself and dueto chemotherapy. These prognostic teststhat can help them avoid chemotherapy,if used judiciously, can kill two birds withone stone — patients can avoidchemotherapy, which is immunosup-pressive, and avoid visits to the hospitalto undergo chemotherapy.

Radiation therapy has also undergonea complete metamorphosis over thedecades and modern machines enable us

to deliver more precise radiation (thussparing adjacent organs like the lungs andthe heart from a high dose of radiation)and in a shorter interval of time (as lessas two weeks as compared to the usual fiveweeks in a select group of patients).

In more good news, researchers inCanada have developed a new, inexpen-sive technology that could save lives andmoney by routinely screening women forbreast cancer without exposure to radia-tion. The system, developed by researchersat the University of Waterloo, uses harm-less microwaves and Artificial Intelligencesoftware to detect even small, early-stage tumours within minutes.

By comparing the tissue compositionof one breast with the other, the systemis sensitive enough to detect anomalies lessthan one centimetre in diameter. A neg-ative result could quickly rule out cancer,while a positive result would trigger refer-ral for more expensive tests using mam-mography or magnetic resonance imag-ing. In addition to reducing patient waittimes and enabling earlier diagnosis, thedevice would eliminate radiation expo-sure, improve patient comfort and workon particularly dense breasts, a problemwith mammograms. However, this tech-nology will take a while to come to Indiaas it is still at the nascent stage.

In the end, people have to realise thatwhile the Coronavirus is a serious pan-demic, they must not neglect their over-all health, compromise on regular check-ups and doctor consultations or delay can-cer treatment. However, all hospital vis-its must be undertaken with complete pre-cautionary measures that are the new nor-mal now.

(The writer is head, Department ofSurgical Oncology, Manipal Hospitals,Dwarka)

VEDANT KABRA

INDIA ALSO HAS AHIGH MORTALITYRATE BECAUSE A

MAJORITY OF THEPATIENTS ARE STILLDIAGNOSED IN THE

LATE STAGES OFTHE DISEASE AND A

SIGNIFICANTPROPORTION OF

THEM ARE NOTABLE TO GET

APPROPRIATETREATMENT.

ANOTHERWORRYING TRENDIS AN INCREASINGINCIDENCE OF THE

DISEASE INYOUNGER WOMEN.

SHOCKINGLY,NEARLY HALF OFTHE PATIENTS IN

URBAN INDIA ARELESS THAN 50

YEARS OF AGE.POOR AWARENESS

ABOUT SYMPTOMS,LACK OF A

UNIVERSAL ANDCOMPREHENSIVE

SCREENINGPROGRAMME,

SOCIAL TABOOSAND

EMBARRASSMENTTO DISCUSS THE

ISSUE ARE THEMAIN REASONS

BEHIND DELAYEDDIAGNOSIS

Dangerous delay In a country where a majority of patients are diagnosed in the later stages of the disease, the

Coronavirus outbreak is further hampering diagnosis and treatment of cancer

analysis

VIJAYAWADA | SATURDAY | OCTOBER 24, 2020 money 08

MONEY MATTERS

Bharti Airtel Africaoperations, Airtel Africa,on Friday posted 8.8 per

cent decline in profit at USD88 million (around Rs 647crore) for September quarter2020-21.The company hadrecorded a profit after tax ofUSD 96 million for the sameperiod a year ago. Revenueduring the quarter under review grew 14.3 per cent to USD 965million from USD 844 million in the year-ago period, the companysaid in a statement. "Importantly, the fundamentals of our businessremain strong and revenue growth further benefited from theexecution of our strategy with a specific focus on expandingdistribution in the rural areas, investing in our network andincreasing 4G coverage, as well as benefiting from the fact weprovide an essential service to consumers," Airtel Africa CEORaghunath Mandava said. The company's revenue on constantcurrency terms grew 19.6 per cent during the period under review.

Airtel Africa Q2 profit slips 9% toUSD 88 mn

Around 9.30 lakh newmembers joined ESIC-runsocial security scheme in

August, against 7.55 lakh inthe previous month, officialdata showed on Friday, givinga perspective on formal sectoremployment in the country.The latest data is part of a

report released by the NSO onFriday. Gross new enrolments with the Employees' State InsuranceCorporation (ESIC) were registered at 8.21 lakh in June, 4.84 lakhin May and 2.61 lakh in April, showing an increase in enrolmentsafter easing of lockdown. The government had imposed a ationwidelockdown on March 25 to contain the spread of coronavirusinfections. Restrictions were eased from June. In March, as manyas 8.21 lakh new members had joined the scheme run by ESIC,against 11.83 lakh subscribers in February, according to the payrolldata released in May. The NSO report showed gross enrolments ofnew subscribers with ESIC were 1.51 crore in 2019-20, against1.49 crore in the previous fiscal.

ESIC scheme adds 9.3 lakh newmembers in August

IDBI Bank on Friday reporteda net profit of Rs 324 crorefor the second quarter of

the current fiscal year againsta loss of Rs 3,459 crore forthe same period of theprevious fiscal. Comparedsequentially, the bankregistered a 125 per cent jumpagainst the first quarter netprofit of Rs 144 crore, IDBIBank said in release. Totalincome of the bank fell by 7.5 per cent to Rs 5,761.06 crore duringJuly-September 2020-21 compared to Rs 6,231.02 crore in thesame period of 2019-20, the private sector lender said. The bank'snet interest income grew by 4 per cent to Rs 1,695 crore during thereported quarter, while the net interest margin improved by 37basis points to 2.70 per cent from 2.33 per cent.The lenderpromoted by LIC said it also improved on its bad assets ratio byreducing gross non-performing assets (NPAs) to 25.08 per cent ofgross loans as on September 30, 2020, against 29.43 per cent ayear ago.

IDBI Bank reports Rs 324 cr profitfor Q2; NPA ratio down

After a gap of 35 years,India assumed theChairmanship of

Governing Body of International Labour Organisation(ILO), with Labour SecretaryApurva Chandra beingelected to the post. "After 35years, India assumed theChairman ship of theGoverning Body of ILO.Labour Secretary Apurva Chandra has been elected as theChairperson of the Governing Body of the ILO for the periodOctober 2020-June 2021," a labour ministry statement said onFriday.According to the statement, India assumed the Chairmanshipof GB after 35 years, marking a new chapter in the 100 years ofproductive relationship between India and ILO.The Chairperson ofthe Governing Body of ILO is a position of international repute. TheGoverning Body (GB) is the apex executive body of the ILO, whichdecides policies, programmes, agenda, budget, and elects theDirector-General.At present, the ILO has 187 members. Chandrawill be presiding over the upcoming the Governing Body's meeting,to be held in November 2020.

India gets Chairmanship of ILOGoverning body after a gap of 35 yrs

PNSn TOKYO

World shares and U.S. futuresadvanced Friday after PresidentDonald Trump and his chal-lenger former Vice PresidentJoe Biden faced off in their sec-ond and final debate before theNovember 3 election.

Stocks rose Friday in Paris,London and Tokyo butdeclined in Shanghai. Thedebate over, investors will againbe focused on hopes for anoth-er round of aid for the U.S.economy.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosisaid progress was being madeon talks to deliver more stim-ulus but it remains unclear ifthe Democrats andRepublicans will manage toset aside their differences toprovide help for businessesand millions of people whohave lost their jobs during the

coronavirus pandemic.In their debate late Thursday,

Trump and his Democraticchallenger Biden managed amore substantive exchangethan during their first raucousclash several weeks ago. Therewere no major market-movingsurprises.

“The final U.S. presidential

debate was less chaotic than thefirst but offered little new infor-mation to inform the result formarkets," Stephen Innes of Axisaid in a commentary.

“Meanwhile, discussion rel-evant to the post-election eco-nomic outlook was limited,particularly from PresidentTrump." Germany's DAX

gained 0.9% to 12,654.60 whilethe CAC 40 in Paris jumped1.1%, to 4,904.25. Britain'sFTSE 100 gained 1% to5,843.13 after Japan and the UKsigned a trade agreement toreplace the pact with the EUwhich will no longer applyafter Britain's exit from thebloc.

Stocks rose inParis, London andTokyo but declinedin Shanghai. Thedebate over,investors will againbe focused onhopes for anotherround of aid

World shares gain afterlast Trump-Biden debate

PNSn DETROIT

Earlier this week, Tesla sent outits “full self-driving” softwareto a small group of owners whowill test it on public roads. Butburied on its website is a dis-claimer that the USD 8,000 sys-tem doesn't make the vehiclesautonomous and drivers stillhave to supervise it.

The conflicting messageshave experts in the field accus-ing Tesla of deceptive, irre-sponsible marketing that couldmake the roads more danger-ous as the system is rolled outto as many as 1 million electricvehicle drivers by the end ofthe year.

“This is actively misleadingpeople about the capabilities ofthe system, based on the infor-mation I've seen about it,” saidSteven Shladover, a researchengineer at the University ofCalifornia, Berkeley, who hasstudied autonomous drivingfor 40 years.

“It is a very limited function-

ality that still requires constantdriver supervision.” On a con-ference call Wednesday, Musktold industry analysts that thecompany is starting full self-driving slowly and cautiously

“because the world is a com-plex and messy place.”

It plans to add drivers thisweekend and hopes to have awider release by the end of theyear. He referred to having a

million vehicles “providingfeedback” on situations thatcan't be anticipated.

The company hasn't identi-fied the drivers or said wherethey are located. Messageswere left Thursday seekingcomment from Tesla.

The National HighwayTraffic Safety Administration,which regulates automakers,says it will monitor the Teslasclosely “and will not hesitate totake action to protect the pub-lic against unreasonable risksto safety.”

The agency says in a state-ment that it has been briefedon Tesla's system, which itconsiders to be an expansion ofdriver assistance software,which requires human super-vision.

On its website, Tesla touts inlarge font its full self-drivingcapability. In smaller font, itwarns: “The currently enabledfeatures require active driversupervision and do not makethe vehicle autonomous.

Tesla testing ‘full self-driving' vehicles

The conflicting messages have expertsin the field accusing Tesla of deceptive,irresponsible marketing that couldmake the roads more dangerous as thesystem is rolled out to as many as 1mnvehicle drivers by the end of the year

PNSn NEW DELHI

The coronavirus pandemic isexpected to delay the penetra-tion of electric vehicles inIndia, as low affordability andthe government's priority onreviving existing conventionalautomobile industry shift thefocus away from EVs in theinterim, according to ratingfirm Ind-Ra.

The passenger vehicles(PVs) segment of e-mobilitywill face a double whammy, asconsumers would be wary tobuy a costlier EV than an

internal combustion engine(ICE) vehicle, while originalequipment manufacturers(OEMs) would refrain fromincurring high Capex, IndiaRatings and Research (Ind-Ra)said in a statement.

"Low affordability and thegovernment's priorities onreviving the otherwise suffer-ing auto industry could shiftthe focus away from EVs in theinterim," it added.

Reduced affordability and

lower economic activities dueto the pandemic could result inthe automobile industryrecording a decline in sales ofover 20 per cent year-on-yearfor the second consecutiveyear in FY21, the agency said.

This is likely to impact thesales of EVs, which are costlierthan an ICE vehicle. Two-wheelers have benefitted fromrural demand and shift to per-sonal mobility, and the seg-ment could be the least impact-ed with regard to electrificationdue to better pricing andmodel choices, it noted.

PNSn MUMBAI

The rupee depreciated 7 paiseto close at 73.61 (provisional)against the US dollar on Fridayeven as the domestic equitymarket was trading with sig-nificant gains.

At the interbank forex mar-ket, the local unit openedweak at 73.62 against the USdollar and remained stressedfor majority of the sessionbefore closing at 73.61, a lossof 7 paise over its previousclose. During the session, thelocal unit witnessed an intra-day high of 73.46 and a low of73.67 against the US dollar.

It had settled at 73.54against the greenback in theprevious session on Thursday.

According to forex dealers,positive sentiment in thedomestic equity market andweakness in US dollar overseasrestricted the rupee's fall.

Rahul Gupta, Head ofResearch- Currency, EmkayGlobal Financial Services said,“As we get close to the US elec-tion day, uncertainty over theoutcome will keep USD-INRspot afloat. On the domesticequity market front, BSEbenchmark Sensex was trad-ing 151.26 points higher at40,709.75 and the broaderNSE Nifty rose 45.25 points to11,941.70.

PNSn MUMBAI

Equity benchmark Sensexended 127 points higher onFriday, primarily led by gainsin auto, metal and power sec-tor stocks amid positive cuesfrom global markets.

After rising 252.63 pointsduring the day, the 30-shareSensex settled 127.01 pointsor 0.31 per cent higher at40,685.50, and the broaderNSE Nifty rose 33.90 pointsor 0.28 per cent to end11,930.35.

On the Sensex, MarutiSuzuki was the top gainer, ral-lying around 4 per cent, fol-lowed by M&M, Tata Steel,PowerGrid, Bajaj Auto andNTPC.

PNSn NEW DELHI

The Delhi government hasapproved more than 100models of vehicles, including45 makes of e-rickshaw and12 of four-wheelers, for sub-sidy under the new electricvehicles policy, TransportMinister Kailash Gahlot saidon Friday.

"Vehicles priced up to Rs15 lakh will be eligible for thepurchase incentive(subsidy),besides exemption of road taxand registration fee. Electricvehicles having a price overRs 15 lakh will not get sub-sidy but will be eligible forroad tax and registration feeexemptions," he told a pressconference.

The minister launched awebsite having details ofapproved models, dealers,subsidy disbursal process aswell as the network of 70charging stations across thecity. The 100 approved mod-els of electric vehicles include45 of e-rickshaws, 14 of two-wheelers and 12 of four-wheelers. He also said 36manufacturers have been reg-istered with a network of 98dealers across the city.

PNSnTHIRUVANANTHAPURAM,

Kerala Chief MinisterPinayari Vijayan has launched26 new tourism projects acrossthe state in a bid to boost thecrisis-hit tourism sector.Vijayan on Thursday said thetourism sector in the state hassuffered an estimated loss ofaround Rs 25,000 crore due tothe COVID-19 pandemic.

He said the epidemic arrivedat a time when the tourism sec-tor in the state was thrivingafter overcoming several crises.

"Once our state, the countryand the world surviveCOVID-19, Kerala will onceagain become a tourist par-adise," Vijayan said while inau-gurating the projects in 14districts through video confer-ence. He said the state govern-

ment is implementing ade-quate projects to boost thetourism sector.

"The tourism sector wasestimated to have lost Rs25,000 crore due to theCOVID-19 crisis, which hadalso resulted in huge job loss-es," he said.

The projects, a state govern-ment release said, are spreadfrom thehilltop tourist centrePonmudi in Thiruvananthapuram to the northernmost dis-trict Kasaragod.

The completed infrastruc-ture development project inPonmudi has provided play-

grounds, landscaping andseating for children.

The chief minister alsoinaugurated Malamel ParaTourism Project at KollamBeach and Thanni Beach.

The Green TourismCoplex, modelled on theLouvre Museum in Paris, atPala in Kottayam,Aruvikkuzhi TourismDevelopment Project inIdukki District; Elapparaamenity centre, pathway to thefinishing point of thePunnamada Nehru Trophyboat race and two two boatjetties, the tourism project aspart of the Bhoothat hanket-tu dam in Ernakulam district,the botanical garden and ren-ovation of the tourist centre atPeechi dam in Thrissur are thefew projects which werelaunched.

PNSn FRANKFURT

Daimler AG, maker ofMercedes-Benz luxury carsand Freightliner trucks, sawthird-quarter profit reboundas the company clampeddown on costs and as autosales recovered after the coro-navirus lockdowns of earlierin the year. Highly profitablevehicles such as the GLE,GLE and GLS sport-utilityvehicles boosted earnings, asdid the economic recovery inChina, said CFO HaraldWilhelm. The existing ver-sion of the S-Class luxurysedan also did well eventhough it is being replaced bya new model, Wilhelm said.The company now expectsfull-year operating earningsto equal those from 2019,before the virus. Previously itsaid it expected to make aprofit below last year's.

PNSn NEW DELHI

In a bid to cool down retailonion prices that are rulingover Rs 75 per kg in someplaces, the Centre has steppedup efforts and asked states andunion territories to take thekitchen staple from the centralbuffer stock for retail interven-tion.

As per data maintained bythe Consumer AffairsMinistry, retail onion prices inMumbai were ruling at Rs86/kg, Chennai at Rs 83/kg,Kolkata at Rs 70/kg and Delhi

at Rs 55/kg on October 22. "We have stepped up efforts

to check the price rise. We haverequested state governmentsand union territories to takeonion from our buffer stock forretail intervention," ConsumerAffairs Secretary LeenaNandan told PTI. Assam,Andhra Pradesh, Bihar,Chandigarh, Haryana,Telangana and Tamil Naduhave shown interest and takinga total of 8,000 tonnes ofonion from the buffer, shesaid, adding that the ministryis awaiting response from

other states. The centre isoffering onion from the bufferstock stored at Nashik,Maharasthra, at the procuredrate of Rs 26-28 per kg to stateswho wish to lift the stock ontheir own. For others whowant it to be delivered, theoffered price would be Rs 30per kg, she added. Besidesthis, the secretary said thatcooperative Nafed, which isprocuring and maintainingthe onion buffer stock onbehalf of the government, isoffloading the stock in whole-sale mandis across the country.

PNSn MUMBAI

LIC has raised its stake in IRBInfrastructure Developers,which operates the iconicMumbai-Pune Expressway,to 5.27 per cent in theSeptember quarter, the high-way construction firm said onFriday.

IRB Infra is the largesthighway developer in the pri-vate sector with an asset baseof Rs 45,000 crore and two

InvITs. It has constructedover 12,300 lane kilometres(kms) across the country inthe past two decades.

LIC has been increasingtheir holding in our compa-ny for long. In the Septemberquarter, LIC's stake in thecompany rose to 5.27 percent from 3.81 per cent in theJune quarter, IRB Infra chair-man and managing directorVirendra D Mhaiskar said ina statement.

PNSn BENGALURU

Karnataka Chief Minister B SYediyurappa on Friday said thestate continue to be the mostpreferred destination forinvestors and has attractedthe highest FDI inflow of Rs10,255 crore in the country inthe April-June quarter, amidthe COVID-19 pandemic.

"Karnataka continues tobe the most preferred destina-tion for investors and has

attracted the highest FDIinflow in the country in Apr-Jun 2020 quarter.

The state received invest-ments worth Rs.10,255 crore($1,350m) in these threemonths amidst pandemic," hetweeted. In a series of tweets,the Chief Minister said Indiasfirst sector-specific investmentRs 3,540 crore ConsumerElectronics and DurableGoods cluster will come up inHubbali.

PNSn MUMBAI

The country's foreignexchange reserves touched alife time high of USD 555.12billion after it surged by USD3.615 billion in the weekended October 16, accordingto RBI data.

During the latest reportingweek, the rise in total reserveswas due to a sharp rise inForeign Currency Assets(FCAs), a major componentof the overall reserves.

FCA jumped by USD3.539 billion to USD 512.322billion, the data showed.Expressed in dollar terms,FCAs include the effect ofappreciation or depreciationof non-US units like the euro,pound and yen held in theforeign exchange reserves.The country's reserve posi-tion with the IMF declined byUSD 11 mn.

PNSn MUMBAI

Non-banking financial com-panies (NBFCs) have writtento the Reserve Bank of India(RBI) to include them as ben-eficiaries for availing fundsunder on tap targeted long-term repo operations(TLTRO) scheme.

To ensure comfortable liq-uidity conditions in the sys-tem, the RBI on October 9announced to conduct on tapTLTRO worth Rs 1 lakh crore.

The central bank had saidthe liquidity availed by banksunder the scheme has to bedeployed in corporate bonds,commercial papers and non-convertible debentures issuedby the entities in specific sec-tors. Banks can also use thefunds to extend credit to thesespecific sectors. The centralbank made sectors such as

agriculture agri-infrastructure,secured retail, micro, smalland medium enterprises(MSMEs) and drugs, pharma-ceuticals and healthcare, eligi-ble for deployment of fundsavailed under on tap TLTRO.

In a letter written to RBIGovernor Shaktikanta Das,Finance IndustryDevelopment Council (FIDC),a representative body of(NBFCs), said while sectionsincluding agriculture, MSMEand retail are covered, NBFCshave not been included as asector which could avail fundsunder the on tap TLTROscheme.

Rupee ends 7 paiselower against $

K’taka most preferredby investors: BSY

Pandemic likely to delay penetration of EVs

Sensex ends 127 ptshigher

Kerala CM launches 26 tourism projects"Once our state,

the country and

the world survive

COVID-19, Kerala

will once again

become a tourist

paradise," Vijayan

said .

Delhi govt okays100 models ofvehicles

Buffer stock onion to states/UTs

Forex reservestouch life time high

LIC hikes stakein IRB Infra

Daimlerrebounds afterlockdowns

NBFCs: Include usas beneficiaries

SHIKHA DUGGAL

f Mumbai is to beconsidered thecity of dreams, sois Hyderabad. Ithas been abode toseveral outsiders

who today feel immensely athome penning their successstories here. M.M.Manasi,the known playback singerwho won a SIMA award forRangamma Mangamma

from Tollywood periodicdrama starring Ram

Charan’sRangasthalam has

dismissed herfears of notbeing a Teluguand yet becom-ing one of thefavourite singers

here! Chennaiborn trained

vocalist belongingto the arena ofTamilians saysHyderabad welcomeseveryone with openarms. Yes, she was anoutsider here but nomore because this citymade her who she’stoday and her future lies

here. Hyderabad can be char-acterised having the merefocus on societal develop-ment providing all kinds ofsolution to a newly arrivedoutsider by minimising thelocal challenges. It empow-ered the singer to instil herfuture over here in all theoptimistic ways possible.“From having to visitHyderabad for vacations inchildhood to finding a safehaven here, things changed alot. This city is pure joy! Nowmy heart lies here, it seemslike I have taken birth again.My telugu fans play a signifi-cant role in this due to theabundant love they haveshowered on me. They nevercompartmentalised my craftand applauded me for thatevery different song I sungfor them,” shares Manasi.Being thankful to friends andcolleagues, Manasi managedto learn Telugu which waschallenging and sometimesjust downright difficult.Recollecting it as one of herfondest memories over here,her friends helped her figureout the best way to learnTelugu! She’s a multi-lingualnow and with so much tooffer she keeps reviving her

drive to learn new things inHyderabad.

Chennai v/s Hyderabad —one is her birthplace and theother nurtured her profes-sional dreams yet she choos-es Hyderabad personally allbecause of a moderate cli-mate. Chennai is quitehumid, she says. A full onshopaholic, she compulsivelyshops from all the flea mar-kets, exhibitions and streetvendors across Hyderabad asthat’s the one thing inHyderabad which cheers herthe most. She’s not somesuperficial young womanwho’s looking for expensiveshoes or handbags but some-body who has a shoppingspree in herself whenever shegets to know that the city’sflea markets are around thecorner! She strongly believesthat the people of Hyderabadsee a spark of talent in her,they could witness her bestloved qualities. It shows theirquality of thinking accordingto her. She has alwaysreceived good inputs fromher colleagues and this helpsher grow. Owing all her suc-cess to this city today she’shappy about the fact it’s fullof pure lovers of music who

appreciates all kinds ofchords touched or sung. Theuntimely death of legendarysinger S.P.Balasubhramaniyam came asa shock to her as well, shereminisces her journey ofhaving the opportunity tosing with him and receivingflattering comments thatmade her life — “I considermyself to be lucky, that’s it.He highlighted the unparal-leled power of music in methat germinated me to a pathof discovery. The one thingthat really touchedme was that sir wasright there presentfor my rehearsalsdespite finishing hisdub and that left anindelible mark inmy heart. Havingsaid to me that‘This is the markof a true musicianby learning thewhole song’, itinspired and uplift-ed me to no end!May God bless hissoul.”

Concluding theexclusive interviewon the note thatHyderabad is a city

that converts vibes into cul-ture, dead matter into livelysymbols of pride and biologi-cal reproduction into socialcreativity — Tollywoodsinger M.M. Manasi hasfound her awakeningmoment here. “Its a citywhere men and women areseeking highest degrees ofwhat they want to be andinvolving into a fast-pacedlife while thriving successful-ly. I look for best moralityover here , it’s forcing growthand I am here to entertain!:

I

SP Balasubhramaniyam highlightedthe unparalleled power of music inme that germinated me to a path of

discovery. The onething that reallytouched me was thatsir was right therepresent for myrehearsals despitefinishing his duband that left

an indelible mark in myheart. Having said to methat ‘This is the markof a true musician bylearning the wholesong’, it inspiredand uplifted me tono end! May Godbless his soul.

— MMMANASI

‘TELUGU FANS MADEME WHAT I AM TODAY’

t’s not just the kidsand artsy young-sters loving thesewing machine,homemakers areenjoying adding

their creative touch to homedécor amidst all the time theynow have at hand, men learn-ing to fix their shirts, buttonsand grandmothers makingcute little clothes for theirgrandchildren, the demand forsewing machines is on the risein India. What is heartening tosee, is that the craft is beingrecognised as being genderagnostic and many men arenow exploring and honingtheir creative skills on thesewing machine in their leisuretime.

Parveen Sahni, Senior VP,Usha International, talks aboutgrowth of sewing machinesindustry in India, sewing as atherapy and more. The sewingmachine industry has seen arenaissance of sorts in the lasttwo decades with consumersrediscovering the advantages ofsewing, in tandem with theevolutions of the sewing

machine itself — from themanual black machines of theyore today we have a slew ofhigh tech automated sewingmachines. This entire transfor-mation in perception and thenew age machines has set off arevival of sewing as an art andhobby and Do-It-Yourself(DIY). Likewise, Usha too hasalso evolved to traverse theentire spectrum of the market,anticipating consumer needsaligned with the changing con-sumer demographics.

Praveen explains, “While thesewing machine industry inIndia is substantial, currentlythe unorganised sector con-tributes about 60-70% of thebusiness. However, this ischanging very significantly infavour of quality brands in theorganized sector, given thatconsumers are realizing theneed for quality products andhassle-free after sales servicesupport, as well as value addi-tions like skill training andteaching tutorials — basicallythe whole value propositionthat is offered by trusted andestablished brands.”

With people busy navigatingunchartered waters as the pan-demic unfolded, workingremotely in the absence of pro-fessional and social contact,self-isolation due to fear ofinfection, all began to playchaos in our lives. Anxiety,stress and the strain of dealingwith new realities began totake a toll on mental health. Ina scenario like this, creativehobbies and passions haveplayed a huge role in helpingaid mental wellbeing. Sewing isone such hobby that is asmuch fun alone as it is with

people. It keeps you busy andas you lose yourself in themoment — unleashing yourcreativity, doing what you areloving — it helps the brainrelax and release the feel goodhormones helping lift yourmood instantly. Sewing givesyou a sense of purpose, a senseof accomplishment, a sense ofhappiness and joy that goes along way in evoking positivity.Many people have taken topublic platforms to expresshow sewing helped them fightoff anxiety and stress.

The lockdown has led to thesurge in DIY hobbies especial-ly for making their own masksand PPE kits. He says, “Evenbefore the pandemic drivenlockdown, adoption of auto-mated sewing machines and

industrial garment machineswas seeing an upswing in India— for both apparel and non-apparel manufacturing — con-tributing to the growth of thesewing machine market. As forthe demand from the homeconsumer — it is fueled by thegrowing numbers embracingsewing as a hobby irrespectiveof age group. Part of this is ledby parents who want to incul-cate sewing skills amongst kidsto give them a creative outletand reduce time spent onTV/mobile screens.” He goeson to add that many are pick-ing up sewing as a creative out-let to deal with the stress —from masks to accessories,clothes, and home décor, aswell as to follow the trend ofupcycling and recycling.

Favorable government poli-cies for the textile industry aswell as government initiativesto support sections of societybecome self-reliant in Indiafurther helped spur thedemand for sewing machines.“Migrants who had to flee thecities in the wake of the pan-demic and lost their means ofearning, are being supportedby their state governments toset up tailoring units to helpthem earn a livelihood andstart their lives afresh. Usha ispartnering with many stategovernments to support suchinitiatives in skilling people tomake them self-reliant,” hesays. The senior VP says theywitnessed a 20-25 per centgrowth in demand of their

products during the lockdown.What is the future outlook

for sewing machines in India?He explains, “The future out-look for sewing machines isdefinitely positive. In fact thereis a lot to cheer for us playersin the organised sector as therehas been a shift from the unor-ganised sector to the organisedone with customers looking atthe overall value offering. Weare expecting the sewingmachine market to double inthe next five years. Consumersare focusing on craft and cre-ativity, where Usha is playing abig role — in offering a hugerange of sewing machines inorder to cater to diverse needsof consumers keen on learningand honing their craft.”

I

The rising trend:One stitch at a time

From kids who love toengage in craft activitiesand small DIY projects, tothe young generation wholove to enhance the lookand value of their garmentsby embellishing them tomake a personalised stylestatement, everyone hastaken to seeing these days.The lockdown has onlyaided this newfound lovefor the art of sewing. K RAMYA SREE talks toexperts in the field tounderstand the rising trend.

The lockdown hasled to the surge in

DIY hobbiesespecially for

making their ownmasks and PPE

kits. Many peoplehave taken to

public platforms toexpress how sewing

helped them fightoff anxiety and

stress.

Parveen Sahni

SaturdayOctober 24, 2020

Follow us on

@TheDailyPioneer

facebook.com/dailypioneer

ctor Vijay Varma,who rose to fame asMoeen in GullyBoy, has spokenabout why it tookhim so long to find

success in Bollywood, thoughhe has been a part of the Hindifilm industry since 2012.

Vijay made his acting debutin 2012 with Chittagong. Hewas then seen in films likeRangrezz, Monsoon Shootout,Raag Desh and Manto. It wasonly in 2019 that recognitioncame his way, after he featuredin the Ranveer Singh-starrerGully Boy.

He describes the success ofGully Boy as an overall tri-umph of the venture. “I just feel it’s the success of a venture. Gully Boy becamea splendid success and also

became a part of pop culture,and it spoke to the audiencevery loud. So, I think that wasthe turning

point,” Vijay told IANS.The actor says he still does-

n’t know what was lacking in

him all these years.“Basically I was part of pro-

jects that didn’t meet the thun-derous success of Gully Boy, sothat was the only difference.Also, I was evolving as anactor constantly. I was aging inlife and at the same timeevolving artistically,” he said.

Vijay currently has the web series Mirzapur seasontwo coming up. Talking about being a part of the popular show, he said, “Itfeels amazing, absolutelysmashing. I cannot expresshow fascinated and euphoricI am right now, knowing that the fandom of the show is of another level and that expectation is high. The trailer was wellreceived.”

10

Vijayawada Saturday October 24 2020 what’s brewing?

FUN

Rules

ARCHIE

GARFIELD

SUDOKU

REALITY CHECK SPEED BUMP CROSSWORD

GINGER MEGGS

NANCY

CALVIN AND HOBBES

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

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

Yesterday’s solution

ollywood starRyan Reynoldsconfessed onsocial media thathe has cast hisvote in the US

for the first time. However,it was the footwear fetishhis wife, actress BlakeLively, revealed in theimage that made the postviral.

The actor shared theupdate on Instagram page.“This is my first time votingin America. I’d like to thankmy wife Blake for makingmy first time so gentle andloving. It was super scary atfirst, then exciting and nowI’m a little tired. But proud.#VoteEarly,” Reynolds wrotealongside a picture of himand Lively with their elec-tion ballots.

In the image, theDeadpool star keeps thingscasual in a button downwith sleeves rolled up andtrousers. Lively wears aplaid coat with a turtleneck.

“It was Ryan’s first time.He was understandablyscared. It all happened sofast. Like, really fast. He

wept. I pretended to weep.Then he called all hisfriends,” Lively wrote shar-ing the same pictures, butwith one difference.

In her image, she haddrawn heels on her barefeet.

“Can you tell I was sohappy to get outta a onesieand vote. Sure it was anabsentee drop off ballotwith a mask covering mylook. But dammit I exer-cised my right to vote. Andto not wear shoes thatruined my outfit,” shewrote.

Reynolds also shared thephoto, on which his wifehad doodled brown bootson.

“... I don’t see the issue,” the Deadpool starquipped.

In another image sharedon Instagram, Lively drewon a pair of brown bootsand tagged Louis Vuitton.

Reynolds, who reportedlybecame an American citi-zen in 2018, shares threechildren with Lively. Theyare Inez, four; James, two;Betty, one.

Ryan Reynolds oncasting his vote forfirst time in the US

Hctress PreityZinta missesthe days whenpandemic wasa word in text-books and

safety was taken forgranted.

Preity’s new Instagramimage has her kissinghusband GeneGoodenough. “Missingthose carefree days whenPandemics were in histo-ry books and we took ourlife, safety and health forgranted and roamedaround as free birds.Bring back those days,”she wrote as caption.

Recently, Preity jokedabout becoming anexpert at taking Covid-19 tests. The actress iscurrently in the UAE tosupport her cricket teamKings XI Punjab in theongoing edition of theIndian Premier League(IPL), and she posted anInstagram video of hergetting tested for coron-avirus.

PREITY ZINTA: Missing thosecarefree days when pandemics

were in history books

A

t would takeactor ManojBajapayee overfour hours toget ready for

his numerous avatarsin the upcoming

film, Suraj PeMangal Bhai.

The film, co-starring DiljitDosanjh andFatima Sana

Shaikh,has

Bajpayee playing a detec-tive who habitually slipsinto multiple disguises.

In the trailer, the actoris seen in the guise of abeggar, an old dab-bawala, a turbaned Sikh,and a Maharashtrianwoman in a nauvarisaree, prosthetic work inplace.

On Friday Bajpayeeposted an Instagramvideo, created on time-lapse and showing theactor undergoing hours

of dress-up procedurefor his many looks in thefilm.

“Here’s a sneak peekinto the mystery sur-rounding the nationalman of mystery!#SurajPeMangalBharireleasing this Diwali,” hewrote as the caption.

Suraj Pe Mangal Bharitells the story of a wedding detectiveagency that runs back-ground checks onprospective grooms.

Manoj Bajpayee would take4 hours to get his look right

for Suraj Pe Mangal Bhari

I

Vijay Varma decodes his initial struggle in B’wood

A

PTI n DUBAI

Their campaign back on trackwith a hat-trick of wins,

Kings XI Punjab will take onanother resurgent team —Sunrisers Hyderabad — here onSaturday in a must-win IPLgame for the two well-matchedsides.

Both KXIP and SRH areon the same pedestal, hav-ing garnered eight pointsapiece after 10 games,but the Hyderabad outfitis a rung ahead in theeight-team stand-ings, on the fifthspot by virtue ofa better net runrate.

And boththe teamsneed to wintheir remainingfour games to guar-antee their place inthe play-offs

It has been a ter-rific turnaroundespecially for KXIPafter a slow start to thetournament.

After the initial hiccups,KXIP got its campaign back ontrack with three consecutivewins — over mighty Delhi

Capitals, Mumbai Indiansand Royal ChallengersBangalore and the KLRahul-led side would be

hoping to carry the winningmomentum forward to

break into top four.While KXIP’s bat-

ting is in the safehands of skipperRahul, MayankAgarwal, Chris Gayleand NicholasPooran, the shakyform of GlennMaxwell remainsa concern.

It has beenan erratic sea-son for KXIP so

far despite hav-ing the tournament’s top

two run-getters in openersRahul (540) and MayankAgarwal (398) in its ranks.

But the successful return ofGayle has been awelcome relief forKXIP as it reducedthe burden on theshoulders of its staropeners, especiallyallowing Rahul toplay more freely.

Jimmy Neesham’s inclusionhas given some depth to KXIP’sbatting as well bowling unit ledby the experienced MohammedShami.

SRH too find itself in simi-lar position and needs to win itsremaining four matches to seala play-off berth.

The side managed to keepitself in the play-off hunt with aconfidence-boosting eight-wick-et win over Rajasthan Royals onThursday after three consecutive

defeats.And the David Warner-led

side can’t slip a bit from hereonif it wishes to stay alive in the

tournament.The positive for

SRH is that despiteWarner and JonnyBairstow departingearly in the 155-runchase against RR in

their last match, young ManishPandey (83) and Vijay Shankar(52) rose to the occasion andshared an unbeaten 140-runpartnership to secure a comfort-able win.

Jason Holder’s inclusion hasadded firepower to SRH’s bowl-ing attack as the West Indianpicked up three wickets for 33runs against RR.

But it’s high time that SRH’syoung guns — Priyam Garg,Abdul Samad and T Natarajan— own up some responsibility.

PTI n SHARJAH

Trent Boult and JaspritBumrah’s devastating pace-bowling spell in tandem

before Ishan Kishan’s battingheroics helped Mumbai Indians'post a comprehensive 10-wicketwin over Chennai Super Kings ina completely lop-sided IPL matchhere on Friday.

With the embarrassing loss,CSK are all but out of reckoningfor the play-offs with just sixpoints from 11 games, while MIjumped to the top spot with 14points from 10 matches.

Bowling in tandem, Boult

(4/18) and Bumrah (2/25)reduced CSK to 21 for 5 insidepowerplay with three and twowickets respectively and CSKnever recovered from there, limp-ing to 114 for 9, largely thanks toSam Curran’s 52.

Chasing 115 for a win,Kishan (68 not out), opening inplace of regular skipper RohitSharma who missed out due to ahamstring injury, and Quinton deKock (46 not out) knocked off therequired runs in just 12.2 overs.

The duo toyed with the CSKbowling attack on a dreadful dayfor the MS Dhoni-led side tocarry their bats through the

innings.The left-handed Kishan, who

has not had a substantial scoreafter his knock of 99 againstRoyal Challengers Bangalore,was at his attacking best as hesmashed six fours and five sixesduring his 37-ball innings.

The South African de Kockplayed second fiddle during his37-ball innings which had fivefours and two sixes.

Earlier, Boult and Burmahproduced a devastating pace-bowling spell in tandem torestrict CSK to 114 for 9.

Put in to bat, CSK were fivewickets down inside powerplay

overs with Boult and Bumrahtaking three and two wicketsrespectively.

CSK could reach to 114 for 9thanks largely to Sam Curran’senterprising half-century. Theyoung Englishman mixed cautionwith aggression to top-score with52 (47 balls, 4 fours, 2 sixes) in anotherwise pathetic display byCSK batsmen.

Boult eventually picked upfour wickets for 18 runs, 13 ofthose coming in the final over.Bumrah (2/25) and leg-spinnerRahul Chahar (2/22) picked uptwo wickets each while NathanCoulter-Nile ended with 1 for 25.

Incidentally, Curran’s 43-runpartnership for the ninth wicketwith Imran Tahir (13 not out) wasthe highest partnership of theCSK innings which showed therest of the batsmen in poor light.

CSK had a horror start andslipped to 3 for 3 after two oversand lost two more wickets beforethe powerplay ended.

It all started with RuturajGaikwad, back into the side,being trapped LBW in the open-ing over bowled by Boult for aduck.

Ambati Rayudu fell to a shortball from Bumrah, gloving aneasy catch to de Kock. NJagadeesan followed him to thepavilion off the next ball, pokingat one to be caught bySuryakumar Yadav.

Faf du Plessis, the only CSKto batsman to shine this seasonso far, edged one to give de Kockhis second catch of the night.

Skipper Dhoni’s (16) poorrun continued as he fell to leggieRahul Chahar while going for abig one off a tossed-up deliveryafter having smacked a six of theprevious ball.

Ravindra Jadeja (7) hit aboundary before pulling onestraight to Krunal Pandya atmid-wicket to give Boult histhird wicket and leave CSK in tat-ters at 21 for 5.

PTI n ABU DHABI

Table-toppers DelhiCapitals would

expect more fromtheir batsmen after anunderwhelming performancein the loss to Kings XI Punjabwhen they take on a low-on-confidence Kolkata KnightRiders here on Saturday.

For Delhi, opener ShikharDhawan has been in brilliantform but even his record-set-ting hundred was not enoughto save the side from a defeatagainst Kings XI Punjab forlack of contribution from otherbatters.

Young Prithvi Shaw needsto bat with more responsibili-ty at the top since Dhawan maynot be able to rescue the side allthe time. Shaw’s lastfour innings haveincluded twoducks.

Skipper ShreyasIyer too has not beenhitting the ball as flu-ently as he was beforesuffering a side strain.Rishabh Pant, whomade a comeback frominjury against Punjab, toohas not yet set the stage onfire.

Iyer and Pant, alongwith Marcus Stoinis,form the backbone ofCapitals’ middle order.They are vital cogs inDC’s wheels andneed to do morethan just makinggood starts.

Pacer AnrichNortje, who has beeninstrumental inCapitals’ superb runthus far along withhis South Africanc o m p a t r i o t

Kagiso Rabada, hada niggle and missedthe last matchagainst Punjab.

If he comesback, it will add

sting to DC’s attack and in thatcase Australian pacer DanielSams will have to make way forhim.

KKR are heading into thecontest after an embarrassingbatting performance againstRoyal Challengers Bangalore.

Blown away byMohammed Siraj’s furiousspell, KKR managed just 84runs on the board.

It certainly was a confi-dence-crushing defeat andKKR need to regroup quickly.

Sitting at fourth place inthe table with 10

points, they wouldbe desperate toincrease their tally

to stay alive in theplay-offs race.

Even the change incaptaincy has notinstilled much confi-dence in the side.

The performanceof pacer LockieFerguson has been theonly bright spot forthem amid the disap-pointment of AndreRussell’s poor run.

Russell missed outon the last match due to

an injury and it will beinteresting tosee if the teammanagementreposes faith inhim, if he is fit.

KKR needs acollective effort from now onwith skipper Morgan, DineshKarthik, Shubhman Gill, NitishRana all required to contribute.

KL Rahul 540 runs

Kagiso Rabada 21 wickets

VIJAYAWADA | SATURDAY | OCTOBER 24, 2020

11

MOTION PICTURE

DUGOUTI am the one who's lucky to getthe wickets, but everyone hasbeen contributing to the side.All the bowlers, batsmen andeven fielders have contributedin our good performances

The challenge is pretty clearwin three in a row and seewhere we are in the run rate.We have no option. It's aboutcontinue to prepare and believethat we are good enough

We just slipped in the lastminutes. A win like this will giveconfidence to each and everymember of the team. We canwin the remaining games andkeep ourselves alive

Dev on top has beenincredible. He has got a similarimposing way of batting asHayden...The way he conductshimself, you can say ‘he is thefuture of Indian cricket'

TODAY

STAR SSPORTS 11

Live from 3:30pm Live from 7:30pm

VS VS

POINTS TABLEP W L NRR PTS

1 MI 10 7 3 +1.448 14

2 DC 10 7 3 +0.774 14

3 RCB 10 7 3 +0.182 14

4 KKR 10 5 5 -0.828 10

5 SRH 10 4 6 +0.092 8

6 KXIP 10 4 6 -0.177 8

7 RR 11 4 7 -0.620 8

8 CSK 11 3 8 -0.733 6

MATCHES 24

KOLKATA KNIGHT RIDERS 13

DELHI CAPITALS 11

Stats: Faisel FFeatures

MATCHES 15

KINGS XI PUNJAB 04

SUNRISERS HYDERABAD 11

Stats: Faisel FFeatures

Chennai Super Kings skipper MS Dhoni chats with MumbaiIndian’s all-rounder Hardik Pandya during team’s warm-upsession ahead of the start of IPL game @ChennaiIPL

MI’s Rahul Chahar chats with his cousin and CSK pacerDeepak Chahar before the start of IPL game @mipaltan

AFP n LONDON

Gareth Bale said it feltgood to be “loved and

appreciated” after helpingTottenham to a 3-0 win overAustrian club LASK in theEuropa League on Thursday.

The Welsh internationalstarted his first match sincehis return from Real Madridand played for an hour beforeJose Mourinho gave hima break.

“It is amazing to beback,” Bale told BT Sporton Thursday.

“It is a big reason whyI play well and why Icame back. Youwant to beloved andappreciated. Iwil l g ivee ver y t h ingfor thisshirt.”

However,he admitted it willtake time to find hisfeet. “I am a bit stiff.It is like a mini pre-season for me and Iam trying to getminutes into the

legs,” he said.Despite Bale starting, it

was on-loan Carlos Viniciuswho made an impressivedebut in the Group J opener.

Vinicius started in placeof the resting Harry Kane andhe made goals in either halffor Lucas Moura and SonHeung-min, while he wouldhave also netted himself hadAndres Andrade not scored

an own goal. Bale madethat goal whereAndrade put throughhis own net.

Leicester made theperfect start in Group

G with a comfort-able 3-0 win

over ZoryaLuhansk ofU k r a i n e .J a m e sMaddison,H a r v e yB a r n e sa n dK e l e c h i

Iheanachowere on the

scoresheet.In Glasgow,

Celtic struggledagainst Serie Aleaders AC

Milan who were 2-0 up athalf-time thanks to goals fromRade Krunic and BrahimDiaz.

Mohamed Elyounoussireduced the arrears after thebreak, but Jens Petter Haugebroke clear to secure Milan’sGroup H 3-1 win in stoppagetime. Milan were so comfort-able that they could afford totake off Zlatan Ibrahimovicjust after the hour.

GUNNERS CCOMEBACKEarlier, Arsenal came

from behind to down RapidVienna 2-1 and Rangers beatStandard Liege 2-0.

After a goalless first halfArsenal went behind whenkeeper Bernd Leno fluffed aclearance on a night hewill want to forget but theGunners then turned thegame around in four sec-ond half minutes.

David Luiz put themlevel with a deft glancingheader off Nicolas Pepe’sfree-kick, with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang thentapping home to bag the threeGroup B points.

The other Group B gamewas being played out in

Dublin where Dundalk, onlyIreland’s third ever represen-tative in the group stage, werebeaten 2-1 by NorwegiansMolde.

In Belgium, StevenGerrard’s Rangers took onStandard Liege fresh from theirOld Firm derby win overCeltic.

James Tavernier scoredfrom the spot after NoeDussenne handled in the areato put them into a 19th minutelead.

Then three minutes intostoppage time Kemar Roofeproduced a wonder goal fromthe halfway line, the ball flyingover the head of bewilderedkeeper Arnaud Bodart.

Benfica had claimed thefirst goal of the nightand they went on tobeat Lech Poznan inPoland 4-2 in the otherGroup D game.

Elsewhere, BayerLeverkusen ran riot 6-2 against French sideNice and Spanish side

Granada, in their first everEuropean campaign, beat PSVEindhoven 2-1.

PTI n KARACHI

Pakistan Test captain AzharAli may lose his job as

leader of the side when theteam tours New Zealandamidst speculations that eitherwhite-ball skipper Babar Azamor Mohammad Rizwan couldreplace him.

Azhar, who is the most Testcapped player now in thenational team with 81 appear-ances, is said to have lost favourwith a influential member ofthe cricket committee while thePCB Chairman and CEO arealso said to be having secondthoughts about retaining himas captain.

He was named Test captainlast year in October after sack-ing of Sarfaraz Ahmed ascaptain and playerfrom all three formats.

With just 12months in thejob, Azhar sawthe Pakistanteam lose two-nil inAu s t r a l i ab e f o r esecuringh o m eT e s tw i n s

over Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.Then they travelled to

England where the teamlost the three-match

Test series 0-1.Wicketkeeper-

b a t s m a n ,M o h a m m a d

Rizwan who isright now ridingon a wave ofpopularity and

recently led the KPK team tothe National T20Championship title is said to befavourite to replace Azhar.

PCB CEO Wasim Khantold a television channel that ameeting could be held onNovember 11 to decide onAzhar’s future and find a newchief selector as head coach,Misbah ul Haq has relin-quished the post.

AFP n LONDON

England’s centrally contract-ed men’s cricketers have

agreed to take a 15 percent paycut as part of cost-cutting mea-sures due to the coronaviruspandemic.

The England and WalesCricket Board says the Englishgame has already lost morethan £100 million ($130 mil-lion) — a figure that could riseto £200 million next year.

Bowlers Stuart Broad andChris Woakes have said recent-ly that players are willing totake a pay cut, which the ECBrevealed on Friday would comefrom retainers, match fees andwin bonuses.

The annual contracts,which started on October 1,were understood to have beenworth £650,000 for Test starsand £275,000 for white-ballperformers in 2019/20.

“We need to recognize thatour players, led by captains JoeRoot and Eoin Morgan, haveconducted themselves withgreat maturity and responsibil-ity throughout this challengingtime,” team director AshleyGiles said.

DUBAI: For all-rounder Chris Morris,cricket without pressure is boring andhe feels the clarity over his role in theRoyal Challengers Bangalore set-uphas helped him perform consistent-ly so far in the IPL.

Morris has always been a sought-after cricketer in the IPL and afterfour seasons with the Delhi Capitals,he is currently with the RCB provid-ing the balance that Virat Kohli’s teamwas seeking desperately.

After missing the firstfour games of the seasondue to a side strain, theSouth African made aninstant impact and he hasalready picked up ninewickets in five matches ata very impressive econo-my rate of five runs perover.

Along with NavdeepSaini, he has plugged the holethat RCB had in the deathbowling department. To addto it, he has also been mak-

ing the new ball talk.So, what has worked for him this

season?“The break (due to Covid-19)

was really nice both for the body andmental freshness. Good to be play-ing again and it is just lot of clarityand how the execution needs to be,”said the 33-year-old in an onlinemedia interaction on Friday.

“We do a lot homework. By thetime we get to the game, we knowwhat is required. Our plans have beenclear and if something falls we have

a plan B ready, if that doesn’t workwe got a plan C and if that alsofails, hopefully my over is done(laughs).”

Asked about bowling in thebeginning as well as at the

death, Morris said: “To behonest, I feel I am in ablessed position. Cricketwithout pressure is bor-ing. You always want toget tested as a cricketer.

PTI

Mumbai Indian’s Director of Cricket Operations Zaheer Khanposes for photo @mipaltan

KKR aim to stay in hunt

Mumbai Indians pacer Trent Boult celebrates with teammates after taking wicket of CSK batsman IPLT20.com

DOMINATIONMumbai hunt Super Kings by 10 wickets to reach on top

KXIP, Sunrisers meet in must win game to keep play-offs hopes alive

Survival of the fittest Clarity about role keyto Morris’ success

Azhar Ali may lose Pak Test captaincy

WTC should be extended: MisbahKarachi: Pakistan’s head coachMisbah-ul-Haq wants the ICCto conduct the World TestChampionship exactly the wayit has been planned even if itmeans extending the durationof the event due to the disrup-tion caused by the Covid-19pandemic. Misbah’s statementcame amid reports that theICC is considering splittingpoints for unplayed games inthe championship cycle whichwas originally scheduled to endin June-July 2021 with the finalin England.

“The Covid-19 situationhas hit the World TestChampionship series but Iwould still prefer to see the ICCcomplete the championship

with all teams completing theirscheduled matches,” Misbahsaid in an interview on theCricket Baaz channel on YouTube.

“I think the matches can berescheduled because every teamshould get a fair chance to takea shot at qualifying for the final,”Misbah said.

The former Pakistan cap-tain felt that the league can beextended to accommodatematches hit by the pandemic.

Pakistan’s one Test againstBangladesh in April has notbeen played due to the pandem-ic. Other countries have alsohad several of their scheduledseries disrupted due to the pan-demic. PTI

English cricketerstake 15% pay cut Europa biggies start with win

After months of speculation, it isnow confirmed that Pawan Kalyanwill be spearheading Ayyappanum

Koshiyum Telugu remake, withSaagar K Chandra set to direct. It

will roll early next year in Pollachi,finds NAGARAJ GOUD

he buzz sur-roundingAyyappanumKoshiyum Teluguremake neverceases it seems.

Although Pawan Kalyan’sname has been attached tothe project for the past twomonths, many felt that it waspure gossip as he has filmsqueued up with Krish,Harish Shankar andSurender Reddy to honourafter he completes VakeelSaab. But surprisingly,according to an industryinsider, he has green-lit theremake.

The insider points out,“Pawan has watched theoriginal version at his homethree months ago and washighly impressed with thestory and the cop roleAyyappanum played by BijuMenon. Luckily, the rights

were with SitharaEntertainments, the sisterconcern of Haarika &Hassine Creations, produc-tion house of which is familyto his best friend Trivikram.Initially, Sithara planned theremake with Ravi Teja step-ping into the shoes ofAyyappanum but afterPawan’s interest, theydropped the plan altogetherand the wheels were set inmotion with Pawan as theface.”

The insider adds, “SaagarK Chandra, who was spokento direct the film when RaviTeja was initially consideredfor the lead role, has beenretained. The stakeholders ofthe project had a word withhim earlier this week and hewould be meeting Pawan ina day or two, briefing hisvision for the project. Hehad already tailored the film

to suit Telugu nativity andwith Pawan on board, hemight tweak the lead role abit to suit the actor’s imageand body language. Also, hewould make the film a littleshorter to that of the origi-

nal.”The source notes the

biggest challenge the makersface right now is whetherRana will reprise Koshiyum(Prithviraj) or not. “Rana hasgiven his nod to the projectwhen Ravi was attached toact but with Pawan onboard, equations will change.However, the makers arehopeful of the lanky actor'sparticipation. He hadreturned to Hyderabad onThursday night after hishoneymoon and Sitharachief Naga Vamsi will bespeaking to him shortly,” the source states.

Furthermore, the sourceinforms that makers areplanning to wrap up thefilm in 35-50 days, withthe majority of the film-ing set to take place atPollachi, Tamil Nadu. “Thechances of this film going to

floors early next year aremore. Release-wise too, itwill be Pawan’s next afterVakeel Saab,” the source con-cludes.

Directed by the late Sachy,Ayyappanum Koshiyum, oneof Malayalam cinema’sbiggest hits this year, wasabout a relentless ego clashbetween a proud yet notall-out evil, well-con-nected and finan-cially well-offKoshiyumand acom-

mit-ted and

occasionallyhot-headed SI

from less privilegedcircumstances,

Ayyappanum, transform-ing into an intense psycho-logical game over its runningtime. It is also being remade

in Hindi, withJohnAbrahamdonningthe pro-ducer’shat.

12

Vijayawada Saturday October 24 2020

PAWAN TO PLAYA COP. AGAIN!

tollywood

T

s we’ve reportedearlier thismonth, the film-ing of superstarNagarjuna-star-rer Wild Dog

has moved to Kullu Manali.Posting a video messagefrom Rohtang Pass, (whichis 51 kilometres away fromManali), Nag on Fridaysaid that he is happy to beshooting in the Himalayas.“This is a beautiful morn-ing at Rohtang Pass. It islocated at 3,908 m abovesea level and is a dangerouspass. It is shut fromNovember to May. We’vecome here for Wild Dog.The filming is going great

in these beautiful moun-tains, blue-skies and water-falls. Lovely to be here afterseven months; I’m extreme-ly happy. Shooting will bewrapped up in the next 21 days,” he said in thevideo.

A joint production venture between NiranjanReddy and Anvesh Reddy,Wild Dog, directed byOopiri writer AhishorSolomon, is an action-thriller, where Nag playsthe role of an NIA officer,while Dia Mirza will beseen as the female lead.The likes of Saiyami Kherand Ali Reza are playingsupporting roles.

A

It’s lovely to shoot inthe Himalayas: Nag

s speculated,the release ofSuriya-starrerAkasaam NeeHaddhu Raon Amazon

Prime on October 30has been called off. Thedelay has been attrib-uted to the makers fail-ing to get a clearancefrom the IndianAirforce, whichhas beendepictedthroughoutthe narrative.The film is afictionalisedversion of thebook SimplyFly written onthe life of AirDeccan

founder Captain GRGopinath.

In letter to his fans onTwitter on Thursday,Suriya, spelling out thereasons behind the post-ponement, said thatsince the team had todeal with numerousprocedures and permis-

sions while shootingwith real Indian

Airforce air-crafts andthey wereinvolved inmatters relat-ed to nation-al security, afew NOCsare still pend-

ing for

approval. “And weunderstand the wait isinevitable as this adversetime is demanding moreand more focus on thenation and its priorities,than anything else!”Suriya said.

He added,“Unfortunately, the waitfor the film’s release willnow be a little longerthan anticipated.”

Directed by Gurufame Sudha Kongara,the film, a GV Prakashmusical, also starsAparna Balamurali, DrM Mohan Babu, PareshRawal, Urvashi,Karunas, VivekPrasanna, KrishnaKumar, and KaaliVenkat. One of themajor Tamil releases tohave opted for a direct-

to-digital release dueto the pandemic, it isproduced by Suriya’s2D Entertainment

and co-producedby GuneetMonga’s SikhyaEntertainment.

Akasaam … Amazonrelease deferred overpending NOCs

A

Son of India rolls;Ilaiyaraaja tocompose music

nnouncedon Indepen-dence Dayearlier thisyear, Son ofIndia, head-

lined by Dr M MohanBabu, was launched athis residence inShamshabad,Hyderabad on Friday.The shoot commencedon the same day as well.The sophomore direc-torial venture of writerDiamond Ratnababu, itis a joint productionventure between SreeLakshmi PrasannaPictures and 24 FramesFactory.

For the muhurat

shot, Vishnu’s wifeViranica and childrenAyra, Avram switchedon the camera, whileManchu Lakshmi andher daughter VidyaNirvana Manchusounded the clapper-board. Vishnu directedthe honorary first shot.

Speaking about theproject to us earlier,Ratnababu had this tosay, “Mohan Babu willbe playing his age andwill go make-up freefor the project. He willbe seen as a commonman who fights againstthe system after he failsto get justice (over anincident). The film will

not have any politicalovertones. The scriptwill surprise and keepthe audience’s guessingas it begins to unfoldscene after scene.”

The makers haveroped in maestroIlaiyaraaja to composemusic for the project,while Sarvesh Murariwill discharge duties asthe cinematographer.

Interestingly, MohanBabu has written thefilm’s screenplay, whileViranica will style him,making her debut as astylist. The film wouldbe shot acrossHyderabad, Tirupatiand Visakhapatnam.

A

RADHE SHYAM to redefine love andrewrite history: Makers

couple ofdays afterrevealing abrand newstill and thecharacter

name of Prabhasfrom his on-sets filmRadhe Shyam, themakers on Friday-onthe occasion ofPrabhas’ birthday-released a motionposter of the roman-tic drama titled Beatsof Radhe Shyam. Itstarts off in the mid-dle of a mysticallooking forest withnothing but a singletrain track in themidst of it. Soon,glimpses of famous

star-crossed loverslike Romeo-Juliet,Salim-Anarkali andDevdas-Parvati sit-ting in a train areshowcased. After theanimationsequences, the videoshows Pooja Hegdeand Prabhas dan-gling out of the train,striking a romanticpose.

Sharing themotion poster, themakers wrote,“Come, witness themagic as they rede-fine love and rewritehistory with theireternal love story.”

Presently, the peri-od romance is pro-

gressing in Italy,where directorRadha KrishnaKumar is filmingscenes on the leadpair and other sup-porting actors. Theunit is expected toreturn to Hyderabadtowards the month-end.

A romantic dramaset in Europe; RadheShyam is being shotin Telugu and Hindisimultaneously,while it will bedubbed into Tamiland Malayalam.Highly talentedTamil composerJustin Prabhakaran isthe film’s composer.

A