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The first meeting of the new
Modi Cabinet on Thursday
approved the C1 lakh crore
fund for disbursement among
farmers through Agriculture
Produce Marketing Committee
(APMCs) to provide a medium
to long term debt financing
facility for investment in viable
projects for post-harvest man-
agement infrastructure and
community farming assets
through interest subvention
and financial support.
The scheme, C1 lakh crore
fund, will be provided by banks
and financial institutions as
loans to primary agricultural
credit societies (PACS), mar-
keting cooperative societies,
farmer producers organisa-
tions (FPOs), self-help groups
(SHGs), farmers, joint liability
groups (JLG), multi-purpose
cooperative societies, agri-
entrepreneurs, start-ups, aggre-
gation infrastructure providers
and Central/State agency or
local body sponsored public-
private partnership projects.
Loans will be disbursed in
four years starting with the
sanction of C10,000 crore in the
current year and C30,000 crore
each in the next three years.
The fund was announced
in the Union Budget, but it was
approved on Thursday with
some modifications.
Amid the ongoing farmers’
protest, the Government also
asserted that the procurement
system on the minimum sup-
port price (MSP) and APMC
market yards will stay and
rather be strengthened.
The decision has come
amid decision of farmer unions
to intensify their strike during
the Monsoon Session of
Parliament.
This is the first major deci-
sions after mega reshuffling of
the Modi Cabinet to woo the
protesting farmers. The
Government has once again
appealed to farmer unions to
end their protest and resume
talks on provisions of three new
farm laws, but ruled out repeal
of these Acts.
Addressing a Press confer-
ence following the first Union
Cabinet meet after the rejig,
Union Agriculture Minister
Narendra Singh Tomar assured
that APMCs will continue be
strengthened.
?=BQ =4F34;78
Amid a row between the
Central Government and
Twitter, newly sworn-in Union
Information Technology (IT)
Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw
on Thursday said all those
who live and work in India will
have to abide by the rules of the
country.
He was responding on
Twitter’s stand-off with the
Government over the new IT
rules while talking to reporters
after meeting BJP general sec-
retary (Organisation) BL
Santhosh at the party office.
:D0A274;0??0=Q :278
Amid the Covid-19 pan-
demic that has hit Kerala
hard, the State has a new worry
on hand. On Thursday, a con-
firmed case of the deadly Zika
virus was diagnosed in the
State while tests reports of 19
others were awaited.
However, unconfirmed
reports said that as many as 13
cases of Zika infection have
been detected in the State.
The detection of Zika virus
has come at a time when the
State has not been able to con-
tain the second wave of Covid-
19. On Thursday, the State
reported 13, 772 new cases of
Covid-19 and 142 deaths. State
Health Minister Veena George
said the Test Positivity Rate
stood at 10.83 per cent, slight-
ly higher than the 10.36 per
cent registered on Wednesday.
The Minister said as on
Thursday 1.1 lakh persons
were undergoing treatment for
Covid-19 in the State.
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After remaining peaceful for
about four months, the
Line of Control (LoC) between
India and Pakistan is once
again hotting up.
Two Indian Army jawans
were martyred, while two ter-
rorists were eliminated during
a fierce gunfight near Dadal vil-
lage of Sunderbani along the
LoC in Rajouri district on
Thursday. Since February 25,
2021, the day India and
Pakistan had decided to strict-
ly adhere to the ceasefire agree-
ment no major incident of ter-
rorist related violence was
reported along the LoC.
Even Army Chief General
MM Naravane on July 1 had
maintained that there had been
a marked change since the
ceasefire agreement as there
had been no infiltration from
across the LoC.
According to official
sources, “After infiltrating
inside the Indian territory, a
group of terrorists had been
hiding in the area since June 29.
Soon after their movement
was recorded in the forward
area the counter infiltration
grid was activated and a mas-
sive cordon and search opera-
tions were launched in the
thickly forested area to track
down their footprints.
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Fans were banned from the
pandemic-postponed Tokyo
Olympics which will open in
two weeks, following a state of
emergency on Thursday,
Olympic Minister Tamayo
Marukawa told the Japanese
news agency Kyodo.
The ban was announced by
the International Olympic
Committee and Japanese
organisers, reducing the games
to a made-for-TV event.
Fans from aboard were
banned months ago, and the
new measures announced by
Japanese Prime Minister
Yoshihide Suga will clear
venues around Tokyo —
indoor and outdoor — of any
fans at all.
The emergency declara-
tion made for a rude arrival in
Japan for IOC President
Thomas Bach, who landed in
Tokyo on Thursday just hours
before the new measures were
announced.
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Gearing up for the impend-
ing third Covid-19 wave,
the Union Cabinet chaired by
Prime Minister Narendra Modi
on Thursday approved a new
C23,123 crore package to ramp
up the medical infrastructure
in the country.
Out of C23,123 crore health
package, C8,000 crore will be
given to the State Governments
in 9 months to ramp up the
infrastructure as per need.
Addressing a press briefing
after the meeting, new Union
Health Minister Mansukh
Mandaviya said the package
“India Covid-19 Emergency
Response Health System
Preparedness Package: Phase-
II” will have provision for ICU
beds, medicines, among other
medical supplies.
Various theories about the
third wave are doing the
rounds with the majority point-
ing out that it may arrive
between August and
December.
It is likely to be more vir-
ulent given that 51 Delta Plus
cases have already been report-
ed from various States amid
apprehension that it is likely to
spread fast with people not fol-
lowing Covid appropriate
behavior.
Giving details, he said
pediatric care centres will be set
up in 736 districts and 20,000
ICU beds will be created under
the Covid relief fund.
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Srinagar: Four terrorists,
including three from Lashkar-
e-Tayyeba (LeT), were killed in
two separate encounters with
security forces in South
Kashmir’s Pulwama and
Kulgam districts as some parts
of the valley observed a shut-
down to mark the fifth death
anniversary of Hizbul
Mujahideen commander
Burhan Wani on Thursday.
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The Delhi High Court on
Thursday said the
Government is free to take
action against Twitter Inc in
case of any breach of the new
IT Rules even as it directed o
Twitter Inc to file an affidavit,
notarised in United States,
within two weeks on compli-
ance with the new Information
Technology (IT) Rules.
Twitter informed the court
that they have appointed inter-
im chief compliance officer
(CCO) on July 6 and resident
grievance officer (RGO) and
interim nodal contact officer
will be appointed by July 11 and
within two weeks, respective-
ly. Twitter’s advocate Sajan
Poovayya told the court that
Twitter was “actively recruiting
for permanent position”.
“This court has granted
time to Respondent No 2
(Twitter Inc) to file affidavit,
but no protection is granted,” a
Bench of Justice Rekha Palli
said while listing the matter for
further hearing on July 28.
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Prime Minister Narendra
Modi on Thursday out-
lined the dos and don’ts for the
new inductees in his Council of
Ministers even as he empha-
sised that the exit of the 12
Ministers was not linked to
performance but was based
on the “need of the hour”. The
PM made it clear that corrup-
tion will not be tolerated and
Ministers should not speak
out of turn to the media.
According to sources, the
Prime Minister also asked the
Ministers not to leave the
national Capital until August
15 and understand, interact
and attend the Monsoon ses-
sion of Parliament with full
seriousness.
The PM first chaired a
meeting of the Union Cabinet
and followed it up with the
Council of Ministers.
Modi said there was no
doubt on the capabilities of the
dropped Ministers and asked
the new appointees to meet
their senior Ministerial col-
leagues to learn about the min-
istries.
He also advised his new
team to take the Government’s
welfare schemes to the ground
among the masses and use
social media for a better reach-
out. It is not unusual for the
Prime Minister to hold Cabinet
and Council of Ministers
meetings to reset the goals
and set new targets just after a
reshuffle.
Modi, in the first meet fol-
lowing the reshuffle, is also
understood to have stressed the
need to recover ground lost in
the wake of Covid-19.
As many as 43 leaders took
oath on Wednesday in the first
reshuffle and expansion after
Prime Minister Modi took up
the reins of the Government at
the Centre for a second time in
May 2019.
News agency ANI quoted
the PM as saying that over the
past few days there have been
pictures and videos of crowd-
ed places and people roaming
about without masks or social
distancing. “This is not a pleas-
ant sight and it should instill a
sense of fear in us,” the PM said.
Modi added that in such a
time, there should be no space
for carelessness or complacen-
cy. A single mistake would
have far-reaching impacts and
weaken the fight to overcome
Covid-19.
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Atowering figure in
Himachal Pradesh,
Virbhadra Singh, who was
famously known as “Raja
Sahib” passed away in the wee
hours on Thursday, marking
the ending of an era in the
northern hill state where he
dominated the politics for
almost six decades.
The longest-serving Chief
Minister of Himachal and
Congress veteran had con-
tracted COVID-19 twice, once
in April and then in June. After
a month-long battle with the
deadly virus, he succumbed to
COVID-related complications
at IGMC, Shimla.
The death of Virbhadra
Singh (87) has left a big vacu-
um in the Congress and will
affect the party's dream of
bouncing back in the 2022
State Assembly Polls as no
other leader enjoys the kind of
mass appeal and popularity
that “Raja Sahib” did across
Himachal. Singh, a nine-time
MLA and five-time Member of
Parliament, was Himachal’s
Chief Minister for six terms
since 1983. He also remained
the leader of Opposition
between March 1998 and
March 2003. The veteran
leader also served as Union
Minister.
He represented Arki con-
stituency in Solan district in
the present State Assembly.
A scion of the Rampur-
Bushahr royal family, Singh
will be cremated at his native
place, Rampur on Saturday.
The mortal remains of the
Congress leader have been
kept at his private residence,
Holly Lodge in Shimla for
people to pay their last
respects.
The body will be taken to
the state Congress office on
Friday and later to Rampur
Bushahr for the cremation.
Singh is survived by his second
wife Pratibha Singh, a former
Member of Parliament, son
Vikramaditya Singh, a legisla-
tor, and two daughters,
Abhilasha, a former High
Court judge, and Aparajita,
who is married to Punjab
Chief Minister Capt
Amarinder Singh’s grand-
son.The Himachal
Government has declared a
three day mourning as a mark
of respect to the former Chief
Minister. A staunch
Congressmen, Singh had start-
ed his political innings at the
age of 27 when he was elected
a MP in 1962. He had been an
MP thrice, in 1967, 1971 and
1980 before he became the state
Chief Minister.
Singh had the experience of
working with four Congress
Prime Ministers -- Indira
Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi,
Narasimha Rao and
Manmohan Singh.
Born into the royal family
of Sarahan in Shimla district on
June 23, 1934, Singh was anoint-
ed the king at the age of 13 in
1947. He studied at Bishop
Cotton School at Shimla before
graduating with honours from
St Stephen’s College in Delhi.
A Congress veteran, Singh
was often quoted as saying, “I
am a grassroots worker. I have
risen from the ground and my
roots are still firmly stuck here
(in Himachal Pradesh).
Celebrating his 87th birth-
day on June 23, Singh had said
that he was once again ready to
serve the people as his health
was getting better.
During his six decades
political career, the former Chief
Minister survived many battles
including threats from party
rivals, corruption charges and
waning influence within the
Congress.
Before the 2017 elections,
Singh was at war with state
CongresschiefSukhvinderSingh
Sukhu but had managed to
resolve the differences later.
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Leaders across the political
spectrum paid rich trib-
utes to former Himachal
Pradesh Chief Minister
Virbhadra Singh, who died in
Shimla in the wee hours on
Thursday due to post-COVID
complications.
The politicians remem-
bered him as a stalwart who
was committed to serving the
people in his long political
career.
The 87-year-old Singh was
a six-time Chief Minister, nine-
time MLA and five-time MP
and former Union Minister.
The Congress veteran had
passed away at the Indira
Gandhi Medical College and
Hospital (IGMCH) here after
a three-month long battle with
post-Covid complications.
President Ram Nath
Kovind, Prime Minister
Narendra Modi, former Prime
Minister Manmohan Singh,
Congress president Sonia
Gandhi and several Chief
Ministers and Union Ministers
were among those who
remembered the veteran
leader.
President Kovind noted
that Singh's long political
career was marked by his com-
mitment to serve the people of
Himachal Pradesh.
In a tweet, the Prime
Minister said, Shri Virbhadra
Singh Ji had a long political
career, with rich administrative
and legislative experience. He
played a pivotal role in
Himachal Pradesh and served
the people of the state.
Saddened by his demise.
Condolences to his family and
supporters. Om Shanti (sic).”
Former Prime Minister
Manmohan Singh in a letter to
Virbhadra Singh's wife
Pratibha Singh said he left a big
vacuum in the Congress, as no
other leader enjoyed the mass
appeal and clout that he did.
Congress president Sonia
Gandhi described him as one
of the tallest stalwarts in the
party and said the veteran
leader leaves behind a legacy of
service rendered for nearly six
decades to the people of
Himachal Pradesh and the
nation.
“Popular for his affable
and grounded nature, he
remained close to people and
brought about far reaching
positive changes through his
administrative acumen, she
said in her condolence mes-
sage.
“He was one of the tallest
stalwarts of the Congress Party
and remained a dedicated
Congress person throughout,
'' she added.
Congress leader Rahul
Gandhi described Singh as a
stalwart, and said his commit-
ment to serve the people was
exemplary till the end.
A number of union min-
isters including Home Minister
Amit Shah, Defence Minister
Rajnath Singh and Transport
Minister Nitin Gadkari
expressed their condolences on
Singh's demise. BJP chief J P
Nadda also sent his condo-
lences.
The Chief ministers of
Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan,
West Bengal,Himachal and
Delhi also condoled the demise
of the veteran leader.
Himachal Chief Minister
Jai Ram Thakur who visited
'Holy Lodge', the private resi-
dence of Virbhadra Singh and
laid wreath on his mortal
remains said that contributions
of the former CM for devel-
opment of the state were
unprecedented.
He said that Virbhadra
Singh devoted his entire life for
the upliftment of every section
of the society with special
focus on weaker and vulnera-
ble sections. He also played a
pivotal role for the develop-
ment of the country as well as
for the state while serving as
Union Minister at the Centre.
The void created by Virbhadra
Singh’s death would be difficult
to be filled in for the time to
come, Thakur said.
Describing the former
Himachal Chief Minister as an
able administrator and a gen-
tleman who was loved by the
people, Punjab Chief Minister
Amarinder Singh said
Virbhadra Singh was not just
an elder brother but also a
mentor to many to us.
Rajasthan Chief Minister
Ashok Gehlot said Virbhadra
Singh's contribution to the
party and in serving people
would always be remembered.
Former Haryana Chief
Minister Bhupinder Singh
Hooda said he was saddened
by the loss. I am heartbroken
on hearing the news of the
death of my friend, six-time
chief minister and former
union minister Virbhadra
Singh. I shared a personal
relationship with Virbhadra
ji, who was a good human
being and was very affection-
ate. My heartfelt condolences
to his family and supporters.
Glowing tributes, Hooda said
in a tweet in Hindi.
Tibetan spiritual leader
the Dalai Lama also condoled
the death of the former Chief
Minister.
In a letter to Pratibha
Singh, the Dalai Lama wrote:
Dedicating himself to the ser-
vice of others, Virbhadra Singh
led a long and meaningful
life. I admired the way he lis-
tened to people's needs with
deep affection and compas-
sion.
I am personally grateful
for the warm friendship he
showed me over the many
years we knew each other.
Historically there have long
been close ties between the
people of the erstwhile prince-
ly state of Bushahr, to which
'Raja Sahib' belonged, and
their neighbours in western
Tibet. Here in Himachal
Pradesh, Shri Virbhadra Singh,
our longest serving Chief
Minister, will be sorely missed,”
Dalai Lama said in his letter.
Among other leaders who
condoled his death include
Shiromani Akali Dal chief
Sukhbir Singh Badal, former
union minister Harsimrat Kaur
Badal, Haryana Congress chief
Kumari Selja and Rajya Sabha
MP Pratap Singh Bajwa.
The Himachal
Government has declared
three-day mourning on the
demise of Congressman
Virbhadra Singh, who was at
the helm in the state for six
times.A government
spokesperson said that there
shall be no official entertain-
ment during this period.
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Chief Minister Pushkar
Singh Dhami said that he
will soon visit Kedarnath to
inspect the construction works
being undertaken there. He
said this while chairing a meet-
ing to review the progress in
Kedarnath reconstruction pro-
ject and the Badrinath master-
plan.
Dhami directed the offi-
cials to speed up execution of
the Kedarnath reconstruction
works and the Badrinath mas-
terplan construction works.
The execution of these works
should be ensured according to
the vision of Prime Minister
Narendra Modi.
The chief minister also
directed officials to expedite
preparation of detailed project
report for beautification of
Badrinathtemplecomplex,river
front development, arrival plaza
and other works there. A dedi-
cated division of the Public
Works Department should be
formed to speed up the con-
struction works, he said.
Tourism secretary Dilip
Jawalkar informed that Rs 170
crore is available for Kedarnath
reconstructionunderwhichfive
construction works are in
progress. The command and
control room, queue manage-
ment system shelter, hospital
building, Sangam Ghat recon-
struction and the
ShankaracharyaSamadhiworks
areinprogress. Worksinthesec-
ond phase of Kedarnath recon-
struction will also be started
soon. Jawalkarinformedthatthe
Badrinath masterplan had been
finalised. There is an arrange-
ment of Rs 250 crore for works
under the masterplan.
4e`Z_daVTeh`cdZ_VURc_ReYd``_
3WPXSXaTRcb
^UUXRXP[bc^U^a?F3
STSXRPcTSSXeXbX^]
c^Tg_TSXcT
R^]bcadRcX^]f^aZ
?=BQ ?8C7A060A7
An RCC bridge collapsed
following heavy rains on
Wednesday night at Kulagad on
the Pithoragarh-Gunji road
affecting traffic to the border
region in Pithoragarh district.
This bridge at Kulagad leads to
the border areas with China and
Nepal including the Darma,
Byas and Chaudas valleys of the
region in Pithoragarh district.
The Pithoragarh district
magistrate Anand Swaroop
informed that due to heavy rain
in the upper reaches of
Dharchula, the bridge on the
Pithoragarh-Gunji road had
been swept away on Wednesday
night due to which the impor-
tant road was closed to traffic.
Officials of the Border Roads
Organisationhadbeeninformed
about the incident on Thursday
morning.Theyhavemanagedto
arrangeforpedestriantrafficbut
willneedtosetupabaileybridge
for vehicles which may take a
few days, said Swaroop.
According to the locals,
about 100 villages in the
Dharchula region have lost road
link after the collapse of the
bridge.
0RRTbbc^Q^aSTa
PaTPPUUTRcTSPUcTa
QaXSVTbfT_cPfPh
QhWTPehaPX]
?=BQ 70A83F0A
About half a
dozen armed
and masked thugs
looted a jewellery
shop during broad
daylight in
Haridwar on
Thursday. The
criminals raided
the Morotara
Jewellers near
Shankar Ashram
intersection which
falls under the
Jwalapur Kotwali
area. According to
sources, the crimi-
nals threatened the staff and
customers at the shop and loot-
ed jewellery and cash valued at
lakhs of rupees. Reaching the
siteonbeinginformedaboutthe
incident, the police questioned
the showroom operator, staff
members and the guard.
Checking the CCTV footage,
the police ascertained that six
persons were involved in the
crime. The place where the
daylight robbery took place is
not far from the homes of for-
mer cabinet minister and cur-
rent BJP State president Madan
Kaushik and cabinet minister
Yatishwaranand. The heist car-
ried out in broad daylight has
raised concern among the locals
regarding the law and order sit-
uation in Haridwar.
3Ph[XVWcWTXbcPcYTfT[[Tah
bW^_aPXbTbP[Pa
?=BQ 70A83F0A
In an incident which has
raised questions at the pur-
pose of some people visiting
pilgrimage places, a group of
tourists were roughed up for
smoking a hookah while sitting
on the steps of the Ganga
bathing ghat in Har Ki Paidi
here. Reportedly from
Haryana, the group of three to
four men was spotted dipping
their feet in the Ganga while
smoking a hookah at Har Ki
Paidi. Members of the Ganga
Sabha reached the site and
roughed up the men, as seen in
a video clip that went viral on
the social media. They were
handed over to the police who
penalised them for disturbing
peace and order.
T]_T]P[XbTSU^a
b^ZX]VW^^ZPW
Pc6P]VPVWPc
?=BQ 270=3860A7
There was no let up in hot
weather conditions in
Punjab and Haryana where the
maximum temperatures were
several degrees above the nor-
mal on Thursday.
Gurgaon in Haryana sizzled
at 43.7 degrees Celsius, six
notches above what is normal
for this time of the year, accord-
ing to the meteorological
department here. Among other
places, Ambala, Hisar and
Karnal recorded their maxi-
mum temperatures at 40.8
degrees Celsius, 42.8 degrees
Celsius and 39.4 degrees Celsius
respectively, up to five degrees
above the normal. Narnaul and
Rohtak witnessed their respec-
tive maximum temperatures at
43.3 degrees Celsius and 41.8
degrees Celsius. In Punjab, the
maximum temperatures of
Amritsar, Ludhiana and Patiala
settled at 40 degrees Celsius,
39.3 degrees Celsius and 41.4
degrees Celsius, up to six notch-
es above normal.
7^cfTPcWTa
R^]SXcX^]b_TabXbc
X]?d]YPQ7PahP]P](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7)
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- 1. 20?BD;4 B2FAA843E4A ;4=6C7H0A6D4=CB =Tf3T[WX) CWTYdSXRXP[bhbcT TgXbcbU^acWT°R^^]P]± cWTBd_aTT2^dac^QbTaeTS^] CWdabSPhfWX[TTg_aTbbX]V R^]RTa]^eTa[T]VcWhPaVdT]cb Qh[XcXVP]cbcWPcc^^SdaX]VcWT 2^eXScXTbP]SbPXSaTbcaXRcX]V cXTU^a^aP[bdQXbbX^]b]TTSb c^QTT]U^aRTSCWTP_TgR^dac P[b^bPXSXcfPbPfPaT^U°T`dP[ aTb_^]bXQX[Xch^UcWXbbXST^UcWT QT]RW± ?=BQ =4F34;78 The first meeting of the new Modi Cabinet on Thursday approved the C1 lakh crore fund for disbursement among farmers through Agriculture Produce Marketing Committee (APMCs) to provide a medium to long term debt financing facility for investment in viable projects for post-harvest man- agement infrastructure and community farming assets through interest subvention and financial support. The scheme, C1 lakh crore fund, will be provided by banks and financial institutions as loans to primary agricultural credit societies (PACS), mar- keting cooperative societies, farmer producers organisa- tions (FPOs), self-help groups (SHGs), farmers, joint liability groups (JLG), multi-purpose cooperative societies, agri- entrepreneurs, start-ups, aggre- gation infrastructure providers and Central/State agency or local body sponsored public- private partnership projects. Loans will be disbursed in four years starting with the sanction of C10,000 crore in the current year and C30,000 crore each in the next three years. The fund was announced in the Union Budget, but it was approved on Thursday with some modifications. Amid the ongoing farmers’ protest, the Government also asserted that the procurement system on the minimum sup- port price (MSP) and APMC market yards will stay and rather be strengthened. The decision has come amid decision of farmer unions to intensify their strike during the Monsoon Session of Parliament. This is the first major deci- sions after mega reshuffling of the Modi Cabinet to woo the protesting farmers. The Government has once again appealed to farmer unions to end their protest and resume talks on provisions of three new farm laws, but ruled out repeal of these Acts. Addressing a Press confer- ence following the first Union Cabinet meet after the rejig, Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar assured that APMCs will continue be strengthened. ?=BQ =4F34;78 Amid a row between the Central Government and Twitter, newly sworn-in Union Information Technology (IT) Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Thursday said all those who live and work in India will have to abide by the rules of the country. He was responding on Twitter’s stand-off with the Government over the new IT rules while talking to reporters after meeting BJP general sec- retary (Organisation) BL Santhosh at the party office. :D0A274;0??0=Q :278 Amid the Covid-19 pan- demic that has hit Kerala hard, the State has a new worry on hand. On Thursday, a con- firmed case of the deadly Zika virus was diagnosed in the State while tests reports of 19 others were awaited. However, unconfirmed reports said that as many as 13 cases of Zika infection have been detected in the State. The detection of Zika virus has come at a time when the State has not been able to con- tain the second wave of Covid- 19. On Thursday, the State reported 13, 772 new cases of Covid-19 and 142 deaths. State Health Minister Veena George said the Test Positivity Rate stood at 10.83 per cent, slight- ly higher than the 10.36 per cent registered on Wednesday. The Minister said as on Thursday 1.1 lakh persons were undergoing treatment for Covid-19 in the State. 78C:0=370A8Q 90D After remaining peaceful for about four months, the Line of Control (LoC) between India and Pakistan is once again hotting up. Two Indian Army jawans were martyred, while two ter- rorists were eliminated during a fierce gunfight near Dadal vil- lage of Sunderbani along the LoC in Rajouri district on Thursday. Since February 25, 2021, the day India and Pakistan had decided to strict- ly adhere to the ceasefire agree- ment no major incident of ter- rorist related violence was reported along the LoC. Even Army Chief General MM Naravane on July 1 had maintained that there had been a marked change since the ceasefire agreement as there had been no infiltration from across the LoC. According to official sources, “After infiltrating inside the Indian territory, a group of terrorists had been hiding in the area since June 29. Soon after their movement was recorded in the forward area the counter infiltration grid was activated and a mas- sive cordon and search opera- tions were launched in the thickly forested area to track down their footprints. 0?Q C:H Fans were banned from the pandemic-postponed Tokyo Olympics which will open in two weeks, following a state of emergency on Thursday, Olympic Minister Tamayo Marukawa told the Japanese news agency Kyodo. The ban was announced by the International Olympic Committee and Japanese organisers, reducing the games to a made-for-TV event. Fans from aboard were banned months ago, and the new measures announced by Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga will clear venues around Tokyo — indoor and outdoor — of any fans at all. The emergency declara- tion made for a rude arrival in Japan for IOC President Thomas Bach, who landed in Tokyo on Thursday just hours before the new measures were announced. 8`gecVRTYVd`fee`ZdR_ hZeYC=TcWf_UgZR2A4 0XVWDELGHEODZV RIODQGVDV,70LQ D]X^]X]XbcTaU^a8]U^aPcX^] CTRW^]^[^Vh0bWfX]XEPXbW]Pf PbbdTb^UUXRTX]=Tf3T[WX^] CWdabSPh ?C8 ?=BQ =4F34;78 Gearing up for the impend- ing third Covid-19 wave, the Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday approved a new C23,123 crore package to ramp up the medical infrastructure in the country. Out of C23,123 crore health package, C8,000 crore will be given to the State Governments in 9 months to ramp up the infrastructure as per need. Addressing a press briefing after the meeting, new Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said the package “India Covid-19 Emergency Response Health System Preparedness Package: Phase- II” will have provision for ICU beds, medicines, among other medical supplies. Various theories about the third wave are doing the rounds with the majority point- ing out that it may arrive between August and December. It is likely to be more vir- ulent given that 51 Delta Plus cases have already been report- ed from various States amid apprehension that it is likely to spread fast with people not fol- lowing Covid appropriate behavior. Giving details, he said pediatric care centres will be set up in 736 districts and 20,000 ICU beds will be created under the Covid relief fund. C! !Rac^aP_ d_TSXRP[X]UaPU^a aS2^eXSfPeT AVUZRecZTTV_ecVd Z_($'UZded#! :4FSVUda]R__VU 7ZcdeKZRTRdV cfSddR]eZ_e` VcR]R¶dcRXZ_X 4`gZUh`f_Ud 7R_dSR__VUWc`^ @]j^aZTdRdE`j` f_UVcV^VcXV_Tj MDZDQVPDUWUHGDIWHU PRQWKVRI/RFDOP Srinagar: Four terrorists, including three from Lashkar- e-Tayyeba (LeT), were killed in two separate encounters with security forces in South Kashmir’s Pulwama and Kulgam districts as some parts of the valley observed a shut- down to mark the fifth death anniversary of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani on Thursday. %f]ecRdZ]]VU Z_dVaRcReV V_T`f_eVcd D]X^]X]XbcTaU^a0VaXRd[cdaT 5PaTabFT[UPaT=PaT]SaPBX]VWC^Pa PSSaTbbTbP?aTbbR^]UTaT]RT^] 2PQX]TcSTRXbX^]bX]=Tf3T[WX ?C8 =Tf7TP[cWX]XbcTaP]bdZWP]SPeXhPPaaXeTbc^PbbdT ^UUXRTX]=Tf3T[WX^]CWdabSPh ?C8 0]daPVCWPZdacPZTbRWPaVTPbcWTX]XbcTa^U8]U^aPcX^]P]S1a^PSRPbcX]VX]=Tf3T[WX^]CWdabSPh AP]YP]3XaXk?X^]TTa D]X^]X]XbcTaU^a;PQ^da1Wd_T]SaPHPSPePbbdTb^UUXRT X]=Tf3T[WX^]CWdabSPh ?C8 GRZdY_RhcVda`_Ud`_EhZeeVc¶ddeR_U`WWhZeY8`ge ?=BQ =4F34;78 The Delhi High Court on Thursday said the Government is free to take action against Twitter Inc in case of any breach of the new IT Rules even as it directed o Twitter Inc to file an affidavit, notarised in United States, within two weeks on compli- ance with the new Information Technology (IT) Rules. Twitter informed the court that they have appointed inter- im chief compliance officer (CCO) on July 6 and resident grievance officer (RGO) and interim nodal contact officer will be appointed by July 11 and within two weeks, respective- ly. Twitter’s advocate Sajan Poovayya told the court that Twitter was “actively recruiting for permanent position”. “This court has granted time to Respondent No 2 (Twitter Inc) to file affidavit, but no protection is granted,” a Bench of Justice Rekha Palli said while listing the matter for further hearing on July 28. 6^ecUaTTc^_d]XbWCfXccTaU^a QaTPRW^U8Cad[Tb)3T[WX72 A]ZdedU`dU`_¶ed W`c_VhZ_ZdeVcd ?=BQ =4F34;78 Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday out- lined the dos and don’ts for the new inductees in his Council of Ministers even as he empha- sised that the exit of the 12 Ministers was not linked to performance but was based on the “need of the hour”. The PM made it clear that corrup- tion will not be tolerated and Ministers should not speak out of turn to the media. According to sources, the Prime Minister also asked the Ministers not to leave the national Capital until August 15 and understand, interact and attend the Monsoon ses- sion of Parliament with full seriousness. The PM first chaired a meeting of the Union Cabinet and followed it up with the Council of Ministers. Modi said there was no doubt on the capabilities of the dropped Ministers and asked the new appointees to meet their senior Ministerial col- leagues to learn about the min- istries. He also advised his new team to take the Government’s welfare schemes to the ground among the masses and use social media for a better reach- out. It is not unusual for the Prime Minister to hold Cabinet and Council of Ministers meetings to reset the goals and set new targets just after a reshuffle. Modi, in the first meet fol- lowing the reshuffle, is also understood to have stressed the need to recover ground lost in the wake of Covid-19. As many as 43 leaders took oath on Wednesday in the first reshuffle and expansion after Prime Minister Modi took up the reins of the Government at the Centre for a second time in May 2019. News agency ANI quoted the PM as saying that over the past few days there have been pictures and videos of crowd- ed places and people roaming about without masks or social distancing. “This is not a pleas- ant sight and it should instill a sense of fear in us,” the PM said. Modi added that in such a time, there should be no space for carelessness or complacen- cy. A single mistake would have far-reaching impacts and weaken the fight to overcome Covid-19. 7KHGURSSHGZHUH FDSDEOHEXWWKHH[LW ZDVQHHGRIWKH KRXUVDV0RGL /CWT3PX[h?X^]TTa UPRTQ^^ZR^SPX[h_X^]TTa 7`]]`hfd`_+ fffSPX[h_X^]TTaR^ X]bcPVaPR^SPX[h_X^]TTa ;PcT2Xch E^[ $8bbdT '% 0XaBdaRWPaVT4gcaPXU0__[XRPQ[T ?dQ[XbWTS5a^ 34;78;D2:=F 17?0;17D10=4BF0A A0=278A08?DA 270=3860A7 347A03D= 7H34A0103E890HF030 4bcPQ[XbWTS '%# 51,1R5HJQ877(1*5(*'1R8$'2''1 347A03D=5A830H9D;H (!! *?064B !C! @A:?:@?' 74?ACA0H434C8=B =0CDA0;;H0B54F2D;3 DA@CE 4=6;0=3A4027 4DA!!58=0; m m H@C=5) 0545542C)?0:CBC0AC A468BCAH5A5A486=4AB 7??42I5 ?7819B* F1BE481G1 ! F9F139DI
- 2. ]PcX^]! 347A03D=k5A830H k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·VZLOOQRWEHKHOGUHVSRQVLEOHIRUDQNLQGRIFODLPPDGHEWKHDGYHUWLVHUVRIWKHSURGXFWV VHUYLFHVDQGVKDOOQRWEHPDGHUHVSRQVLEOHIRUDQNLQGRIORVVFRQVHTXHQFHVDQGIXUWKHUSURGXFWUHODWHGGDPDJHVRQVXFKDGYHUWLVHPHQWV ?=BQ B78;0 Atowering figure in Himachal Pradesh, Virbhadra Singh, who was famously known as “Raja Sahib” passed away in the wee hours on Thursday, marking the ending of an era in the northern hill state where he dominated the politics for almost six decades. The longest-serving Chief Minister of Himachal and Congress veteran had con- tracted COVID-19 twice, once in April and then in June. After a month-long battle with the deadly virus, he succumbed to COVID-related complications at IGMC, Shimla. The death of Virbhadra Singh (87) has left a big vacu- um in the Congress and will affect the party's dream of bouncing back in the 2022 State Assembly Polls as no other leader enjoys the kind of mass appeal and popularity that “Raja Sahib” did across Himachal. Singh, a nine-time MLA and five-time Member of Parliament, was Himachal’s Chief Minister for six terms since 1983. He also remained the leader of Opposition between March 1998 and March 2003. The veteran leader also served as Union Minister. He represented Arki con- stituency in Solan district in the present State Assembly. A scion of the Rampur- Bushahr royal family, Singh will be cremated at his native place, Rampur on Saturday. The mortal remains of the Congress leader have been kept at his private residence, Holly Lodge in Shimla for people to pay their last respects. The body will be taken to the state Congress office on Friday and later to Rampur Bushahr for the cremation. Singh is survived by his second wife Pratibha Singh, a former Member of Parliament, son Vikramaditya Singh, a legisla- tor, and two daughters, Abhilasha, a former High Court judge, and Aparajita, who is married to Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh’s grand- son.The Himachal Government has declared a three day mourning as a mark of respect to the former Chief Minister. A staunch Congressmen, Singh had start- ed his political innings at the age of 27 when he was elected a MP in 1962. He had been an MP thrice, in 1967, 1971 and 1980 before he became the state Chief Minister. Singh had the experience of working with four Congress Prime Ministers -- Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi, Narasimha Rao and Manmohan Singh. Born into the royal family of Sarahan in Shimla district on June 23, 1934, Singh was anoint- ed the king at the age of 13 in 1947. He studied at Bishop Cotton School at Shimla before graduating with honours from St Stephen’s College in Delhi. A Congress veteran, Singh was often quoted as saying, “I am a grassroots worker. I have risen from the ground and my roots are still firmly stuck here (in Himachal Pradesh). Celebrating his 87th birth- day on June 23, Singh had said that he was once again ready to serve the people as his health was getting better. During his six decades political career, the former Chief Minister survived many battles including threats from party rivals, corruption charges and waning influence within the Congress. Before the 2017 elections, Singh was at war with state CongresschiefSukhvinderSingh Sukhu but had managed to resolve the differences later. 'HPLVHRI5DMD 9LUEKDGUD6LQJK PDUNVHQGRIDQHUD ?=BQ B78;0 Leaders across the political spectrum paid rich trib- utes to former Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh, who died in Shimla in the wee hours on Thursday due to post-COVID complications. The politicians remem- bered him as a stalwart who was committed to serving the people in his long political career. The 87-year-old Singh was a six-time Chief Minister, nine- time MLA and five-time MP and former Union Minister. The Congress veteran had passed away at the Indira Gandhi Medical College and Hospital (IGMCH) here after a three-month long battle with post-Covid complications. President Ram Nath Kovind, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Congress president Sonia Gandhi and several Chief Ministers and Union Ministers were among those who remembered the veteran leader. President Kovind noted that Singh's long political career was marked by his com- mitment to serve the people of Himachal Pradesh. In a tweet, the Prime Minister said, Shri Virbhadra Singh Ji had a long political career, with rich administrative and legislative experience. He played a pivotal role in Himachal Pradesh and served the people of the state. Saddened by his demise. Condolences to his family and supporters. Om Shanti (sic).” Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in a letter to Virbhadra Singh's wife Pratibha Singh said he left a big vacuum in the Congress, as no other leader enjoyed the mass appeal and clout that he did. Congress president Sonia Gandhi described him as one of the tallest stalwarts in the party and said the veteran leader leaves behind a legacy of service rendered for nearly six decades to the people of Himachal Pradesh and the nation. “Popular for his affable and grounded nature, he remained close to people and brought about far reaching positive changes through his administrative acumen, she said in her condolence mes- sage. “He was one of the tallest stalwarts of the Congress Party and remained a dedicated Congress person throughout, '' she added. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi described Singh as a stalwart, and said his commit- ment to serve the people was exemplary till the end. A number of union min- isters including Home Minister Amit Shah, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari expressed their condolences on Singh's demise. BJP chief J P Nadda also sent his condo- lences. The Chief ministers of Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, West Bengal,Himachal and Delhi also condoled the demise of the veteran leader. Himachal Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur who visited 'Holy Lodge', the private resi- dence of Virbhadra Singh and laid wreath on his mortal remains said that contributions of the former CM for devel- opment of the state were unprecedented. He said that Virbhadra Singh devoted his entire life for the upliftment of every section of the society with special focus on weaker and vulnera- ble sections. He also played a pivotal role for the develop- ment of the country as well as for the state while serving as Union Minister at the Centre. The void created by Virbhadra Singh’s death would be difficult to be filled in for the time to come, Thakur said. Describing the former Himachal Chief Minister as an able administrator and a gen- tleman who was loved by the people, Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh said Virbhadra Singh was not just an elder brother but also a mentor to many to us. Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot said Virbhadra Singh's contribution to the party and in serving people would always be remembered. Former Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda said he was saddened by the loss. I am heartbroken on hearing the news of the death of my friend, six-time chief minister and former union minister Virbhadra Singh. I shared a personal relationship with Virbhadra ji, who was a good human being and was very affection- ate. My heartfelt condolences to his family and supporters. Glowing tributes, Hooda said in a tweet in Hindi. Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama also condoled the death of the former Chief Minister. In a letter to Pratibha Singh, the Dalai Lama wrote: Dedicating himself to the ser- vice of others, Virbhadra Singh led a long and meaningful life. I admired the way he lis- tened to people's needs with deep affection and compas- sion. I am personally grateful for the warm friendship he showed me over the many years we knew each other. Historically there have long been close ties between the people of the erstwhile prince- ly state of Bushahr, to which 'Raja Sahib' belonged, and their neighbours in western Tibet. Here in Himachal Pradesh, Shri Virbhadra Singh, our longest serving Chief Minister, will be sorely missed,” Dalai Lama said in his letter. Among other leaders who condoled his death include Shiromani Akali Dal chief Sukhbir Singh Badal, former union minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal, Haryana Congress chief Kumari Selja and Rajya Sabha MP Pratap Singh Bajwa. The Himachal Government has declared three-day mourning on the demise of Congressman Virbhadra Singh, who was at the helm in the state for six times.A government spokesperson said that there shall be no official entertain- ment during this period. ?aTi?2bP]S^cWTa_^[XcXRXP]b_PhaXRW caXQdcTbc^U^aTa7?2EXaQWPSaPBX]VW ?=BQ 347A03D= Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said that he will soon visit Kedarnath to inspect the construction works being undertaken there. He said this while chairing a meet- ing to review the progress in Kedarnath reconstruction pro- ject and the Badrinath master- plan. Dhami directed the offi- cials to speed up execution of the Kedarnath reconstruction works and the Badrinath mas- terplan construction works. The execution of these works should be ensured according to the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The chief minister also directed officials to expedite preparation of detailed project report for beautification of Badrinathtemplecomplex,river front development, arrival plaza and other works there. A dedi- cated division of the Public Works Department should be formed to speed up the con- struction works, he said. Tourism secretary Dilip Jawalkar informed that Rs 170 crore is available for Kedarnath reconstructionunderwhichfive construction works are in progress. The command and control room, queue manage- ment system shelter, hospital building, Sangam Ghat recon- struction and the ShankaracharyaSamadhiworks areinprogress. Worksinthesec- ond phase of Kedarnath recon- struction will also be started soon. Jawalkarinformedthatthe Badrinath masterplan had been finalised. There is an arrange- ment of Rs 250 crore for works under the masterplan. 4e`Z_daVTeh`cdZ_VURc_ReYd``_ 3WPXSXaTRcb ^UUXRXP[bc^U^a?F3 STSXRPcTSSXeXbX^] c^Tg_TSXcT R^]bcadRcX^]f^aZ ?=BQ ?8C7A060A7 An RCC bridge collapsed following heavy rains on Wednesday night at Kulagad on the Pithoragarh-Gunji road affecting traffic to the border region in Pithoragarh district. This bridge at Kulagad leads to the border areas with China and Nepal including the Darma, Byas and Chaudas valleys of the region in Pithoragarh district. The Pithoragarh district magistrate Anand Swaroop informed that due to heavy rain in the upper reaches of Dharchula, the bridge on the Pithoragarh-Gunji road had been swept away on Wednesday night due to which the impor- tant road was closed to traffic. Officials of the Border Roads Organisationhadbeeninformed about the incident on Thursday morning.Theyhavemanagedto arrangeforpedestriantrafficbut willneedtosetupabaileybridge for vehicles which may take a few days, said Swaroop. According to the locals, about 100 villages in the Dharchula region have lost road link after the collapse of the bridge. 0RRTbbc^Q^aSTa PaTPPUUTRcTSPUcTa QaXSVTbfT_cPfPh QhWTPehaPX] ?=BQ 70A83F0A About half a dozen armed and masked thugs looted a jewellery shop during broad daylight in Haridwar on Thursday. The criminals raided the Morotara Jewellers near Shankar Ashram intersection which falls under the Jwalapur Kotwali area. According to sources, the crimi- nals threatened the staff and customers at the shop and loot- ed jewellery and cash valued at lakhs of rupees. Reaching the siteonbeinginformedaboutthe incident, the police questioned the showroom operator, staff members and the guard. Checking the CCTV footage, the police ascertained that six persons were involved in the crime. The place where the daylight robbery took place is not far from the homes of for- mer cabinet minister and cur- rent BJP State president Madan Kaushik and cabinet minister Yatishwaranand. The heist car- ried out in broad daylight has raised concern among the locals regarding the law and order sit- uation in Haridwar. 3Ph[XVWcWTXbcPcYTfT[[Tah bW^_aPXbTbP[Pa ?=BQ 70A83F0A In an incident which has raised questions at the pur- pose of some people visiting pilgrimage places, a group of tourists were roughed up for smoking a hookah while sitting on the steps of the Ganga bathing ghat in Har Ki Paidi here. Reportedly from Haryana, the group of three to four men was spotted dipping their feet in the Ganga while smoking a hookah at Har Ki Paidi. Members of the Ganga Sabha reached the site and roughed up the men, as seen in a video clip that went viral on the social media. They were handed over to the police who penalised them for disturbing peace and order. T]_T]P[XbTSU^a b^ZX]VW^^ZPW Pc6P]VPVWPc ?=BQ 270=3860A7 There was no let up in hot weather conditions in Punjab and Haryana where the maximum temperatures were several degrees above the nor- mal on Thursday. Gurgaon in Haryana sizzled at 43.7 degrees Celsius, six notches above what is normal for this time of the year, accord- ing to the meteorological department here. Among other places, Ambala, Hisar and Karnal recorded their maxi- mum temperatures at 40.8 degrees Celsius, 42.8 degrees Celsius and 39.4 degrees Celsius respectively, up to five degrees above the normal. Narnaul and Rohtak witnessed their respec- tive maximum temperatures at 43.3 degrees Celsius and 41.8 degrees Celsius. In Punjab, the maximum temperatures of Amritsar, Ludhiana and Patiala settled at 40 degrees Celsius, 39.3 degrees Celsius and 41.4 degrees Celsius, up to six notch- es above normal. 7^cfTPcWTa R^]SXcX^]b_TabXbc X]?d]YPQ7PahP]P
- 3. dccPaPZWP]S 347A03D=k5A830H k9D;H (!! ?=BQ 347A03D= Adelegation comprising Teerth Purohits from the Char Dham and other stake- holders connected to these temples met Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami and demanded that the government reconsider the contentious Char Dham Devasthanam Management Board. They demanded that the status before the formation of the board be restored. Meeting Dhami on Thursday, the delegation informed him about the issues that had emerged after the enactment of the Devasthanam Board Act. The chief minister sought related documents from the Teerth Purohits in order to help in deciding the future course of action. The Devbhumi Teerth Purohit Mahapanchayat spokesman Brijesh Sati said that the delegation requested the chief minister to restore the ear- lier arrangement. Dhami was informed that Teerth Purohits in the Char Dham shrines were agitatingsincetheDevasthanam Board came into existence. On being requested to restore the earlier system of temple management and oper- ations, the chief minister sought relevant documents from the delegation. The Gangotri tem- ple committee head Suresh Semwal, Yamunotri Teerth Purohit Mahasabha head Purushottam Uniyal and others were part of the delegation. Cabinet minister Dhan Singh Rawat was also present on the occasion. It is pertinent to mention here that while the Devasthanam Board came into existence during the tenure of Trivendra Singh Rawat as chief minister, the previous chief minister Tirath Singh Rawat had said that the state govern- ment would reconsider its deci- sion on the Devasthanam Board. However, no decision has been taken on this issue so far. ?=BQ 347A03D= The newly appointed Health Minister of Uttarakhand Dhan Singh Rawat has claimed that the State would achieve the task of 100 percent vaccination by the month of December this year. He said this while under- taking a review meeting of the health department at the state secretariat on Thursday. The minister said that the state government has set a target of cent percent vaccination till December 2021 for the safety of people from Covid-19. He said that a five member high level committee at the govern- ment level would be constitut- ed for implementation of the vaccination resolve. This com- mittee would submit its report every 15 days to the chief min- ister. He added that similar com- mittees would be set up at dis- trict level (headed by District magistrate) and assembly con- stituency level (headed by local MLA). These committees would oversee the vaccination drive and other preventive activities for Covid -19. In the meeting Rawat directed the officials to ensure availability of doctors and other staff at primary health centres (PHC) and com- munity health centres (CHC). He said that all the sanitation status of all the hospitals of the state would be reviewed every 15 days. Rawat assured that the departmental promotion process would be completed soon and the medical profes- sionals and health workers would be felicitated at every level. The minister also sought information about the deploy- ment of doctors, technicians and other staff members and the Ayushman scheme from the officials in the meeting. He was also informed about the activities of the National Health Mission (MHM). The meeting was attended by the secretary health Amit Singh Negi, Pankaj Pandey, MD NHM Sonika, director general (DG) state health ser- vices Dr Tripti Bahuguna, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) state health authority Arunendra Chauhan and oth- ers. DQGLG1RWHV %*DMHQGUD6LQJK1HJL ?7=HA4BCA82C8=B CWTbdaVT^Uc^daXbcbfXc]TbbTS aTRT]c[hX]cWT_^_d[PaSTbcX]PcX^]b^U cWT7XP[PhP]bcPcTWPbQa^dVWc bX[TbQPRZ^]cWTUPRTb^UcW^bT Pbb^RXPcTSfXcWcWTX]SdbcahP]SWPb P[b^RaTPcTSP]²P[[XbfT[[³X[[dbX^] P^]VcWTVT]TaP[_dQ[XRFXcWcWT aTbcaXRcX^]bU^acWT2^eXS (bcX[[QTX]V R[PXTSc^QTT]U^aRTSQhcWT V^eTa]T]cP[QTXcfXcWb^T aT[PgPcX^]bP]ScWTR^_d[bX^]^U ]TVPcXeTaT_^ac^UAC?2AcTbcbcX[[_TabXbcX]V^]Tf^]STabW^fW^aSTb ^UTaahPZTabUa^^cWTabcPcTbPaTUX]SX]VP]TPbhT]cahX]c^cWTbcPcT CWTc^da^_TaPc^abPaTaT_^acTS[h_a^eXSX]VUPZTAC?2AcTbcaT_^acbc^ cWTeXbXc^abfXcWb^T^UcWTTeT]X]R[dSX]VXcX]cWTXa_PRZPVTCW^bT P]]X]VcWTQ^aSTaRWTRZ_^bcbc^^PaTbPXSc^QTbh_PcWTcXRc^fPaSb cWTc^daXbX]Sdbcah^UcWTbcPcTQhP[[^fX]Vd]aTbcaXRcTST]cahc^cWT c^daXbcbfXcWb^TVaTPbX]V^U_P[b]Td]STabcP]SbcWTc^aT]cX]V cXTcWTc^daXbX]SdbcahfT]ccWa^dVWSdaX]VcWT_P]STXR_TaX^SQdc cWTXa_[XVWc_P[TbfWT]R^_PaTSfXcWcWTW^aaT]S^db_TaX^SSdaX]V fWXRWRaXcXRP[[hX[[_PcXT]cbfTaTST]XTSPSXbbX^]bX]cWTW^b_XcP[bP]S fWT]VTccX]V^ghVT]Rh[X]STaU^aVPb_X]V]TPaP]SSTPa^]TbfPb ]^cWX]V[TbbcWP]P]XVWcPaT;TccX]V^UUcWTVdPaSR^d[SQTbdXRXSP[Pc cWTcXTfWT]cWTSaTPSTSST[cP_[dbePaXP]c^U2^eXS (WPbPSTP] T]cahX]c^cWTbcPcTP]SfXcWPePbcPY^aXch^UcWT_^_d[PcX^]bcX[[c^QT ePRRX]PcTS =4F4@D0C8=B CWTSTRXbX^]^UcWT19?WXVWR^P]Sc^TUUTRcPRWP]VTX][TPSTabWX_ X]DccPaPZWP]SU^abTR^]ScXTX]U^da^]cWbfWTaTX]Ph^d]V ?dbWZPaBX]VW3WPXWPbQTT]_dcX]cWTSaXeTa³bbTPcR^d_[TSfXcW aT_[PRX]VeTcTaP]²=XbWP]Z³fXcW0YPh1WPccX]cWTD]X^]R^d]RX[^U X]XbcTabWPbaTbd[cTSX]P_PaPSXVbWXUcX]_^fTaQP[P]RTX]cWTbPUUa^] _PachUa^6PaWfP[c^:dP^]aTVX^]=^ffXcWQ^cWcWT2P]ScWT d]X^]X]XbcTaR^X]VUa^:dP^]cWT6PaWfP[aTVX^]fWXRWPRR^d]cb U^a# bTPcbX]cWTbcPcTPbbTQ[h^UP__TPab]TV[TRcTSQdccW^bTfW^ PaTfT[[eTabTSfXcWcWTbch[T^UUd]RcX^]X]V^UcWTbPUUa^]_Pach_^X]c^dc cWPccWTaTPb^]U^acWXbRWP]VTSU^RdbbcTTSUa^cWTQT[XTUX]cWT _PachcWPcXcXb^]PfTPZfXRZTcX]cWT:dP^]aTVX^]=^f3WPX1WPcc Sd^f^d[Scahc^R^a]Ta2^]VaTbbbcP[fPac7PaXbWAPfPcX]WXbW^TcdaU ^U:dP^]P]ScWTQPccTah^U[TPSTabfWXRWX]R[dSTbcWT[XZTb^U=XbWP]Z CBA8P]S88EXYPh1PWdVd]P0]X[1P[d]XBPc_P[PWPaPPi7PaPZBX]VW P]S3WP]BX]VWf^d[ScPZTRPaT^UcWT6PaWfP[QPbcX^]X]cWTd_R^X]V PbbTQ[hT[TRcX^] :49A8´B0E0C0A CWTb^d[^U3T[WX20aeX]S:TYaXfP[P__TPabc^WPeTT]cTaTSX]c^7PaPZ BX]VWAPfPccWT_^fTaUd[RPQX]TcX]XbcTa^UDccPaPZWP]S0UcTa QTR^X]VcWTUXabcX]XbcTa^U?^fTacWXb_^acU^[X^WPbcaPSXcX^]P[[hQTT] ZT_cQhcWTRWXTUX]XbcTabPQT]Te^[T]c7PaPZP]]^d]RTScWPc d]Xcb^UT[TRcaXRXchTeTah^]cWf^d[SQTVXeT]UaTT^UR^bcc^cWT R^]bdTabX]cWTbcPcT1hPZX]VcWT_^_d[Xbc_a^d[VPcX^]cWT TaRdaXP[X]XbcTaWPb]^c^][hcPZT]cWTfX]S^dc^UcWTbPX[b^U0aXeX]S :TYaXfP[³b0P0PSX?PachfWXRWWPScP[ZTSPQ^dcX_[TT]cX]V²3T[WX ^ST[³X]DccPaPZWP]SQdcP[b^WPbd_bcPVTS7PaXbWAPfPcfW^c^^WPS VXeT]²UaTTT[TRcaXRXch³_a^XbT^]RTWXb_PachR^Tbc^_^fTaX]cWT bcPcT8]WXbUXabcTTcX]VfXcWcWT1PQdb^UWXb]TfST_PacT]c7PaPZ PbbTacTScWPcWTf^d[SPZTcWTbcPcT_^fTaR^a_^aPcX^]P_a^UXcPZX]V Q^Shf^d[SX]XcXPcTcWT_a^RTbb^UaTRadXcT]cP]S_a^eXSTUaTTT[TRcaXRXch c^cWT_T^_[T8cP__TPabWTWPbPPVXRfP]SX]WXb_^bbTbbX^]fWXRW fX[[T]bdaT_a^UXcPQX[XchP]S_^_d[XbPccWTbPTcXT ?=BQ 347A03D= Chief secretary Sukhbir Singh Sandhu chaired the meeting of the high powered committee on World Bank funded Uttarakhand decen- tralised development project- phase II (Gramya) here on Thursday. The committee members recommended exten- sion of the contract period with various technical partner organisations in the meeting. The chief secretary said that focus should be laid on maximising the achievement of the project’s aims. He also directed the officials to ensure that the project is completed within the set time frame. Further, regular monitoring should be undertaken to ensure the quality of the works. He also directed the officials to ensure that the benefit of the scheme reaches the maximum number of citizens, adding that the local residents should be provided training so that employment can be generated for the locals in this area. The participation of the general public should be informed by informing them about the poli- cies and programmes of the project. The project director Neena Grewal informed that the main aim of the project is to ensure full use of natural resources with participation of the rural community in the selected micro watershed areas of the state and to increase the pro- ductivity of dry farming. Works including natural resources management, forestation,dig- ging of trenches, chal-khal and dug-out ponds are undertaken as part of the project. A total of 82 micro watershed areas locat- ed between 700 metres and 2,700 metres altitude have been selected under this project. As per the performance indicators, at present the discharge in the water sources has increased from 12.3 per cent to 22.2 per cent. Further, there has been a 33.2 per cent increase in the productivity of dry farming. Against the target of directly benefitting 40,000 families, this project has benefited a total of 54,948 families with 64 per cent of the beneficiaries being women, informed Grewal. Secretaries Sowjanya and V Shanmugham were also pre- sent along with other officials concerned in the meeting. !!gRTTZ_ReZ`_Sj5VTeYZdjVRc+5YR_DZ_XY ?=BQ 347A03D= The Health and Family Welfare Minister Dhan Singh Rawat made a surprise visit to the Government Doon Medical College (GDMC) hos- pital on Thursday evening. The minister visited the wards of the hospital and gave neces- sary instructions to the officials. Senior officers of the health department and medical super- intendent (MS) of the hospital Dr K C Pant accompanied Rawat during the visit. +HDOWK0LQLVWHUYLVLWV *'0KRVSLWDO ?=BQ 347A03D= The State Health Department reported no death from the novel Coronavirus (Covid-19) for the second consecutive day on Thursday in Uttarakhand. The authorities reported only 64 new cases and 120 recoveries from the disease on the day. The cumulative count of Covid-19 patients in the state has now increased to 3,41,023 while a total of 3,26,267 patients have so far recovered from the disease. In the state 7338 people have so far lost their lives to Covid -19. The recovery percentage from the disease is now at 95.67 and the sample positivity rate is at 5.95 per cent in the state. The authorities collected 27,624 samples in different parts of the state on Thursday. The department reported 17 new patients from Dehradun, 13 from Haridwar, five from Chamoli, four each from Almora, Nainital, Pauri, Pithoragarh and Udham Singh Nagar, three each from Rudraprayag and Tehri, two from Champawat and one from Uttarkashi on Thursday. No new case was reported from Bageshwar district on the day. The state now has 1,445 active patients of the disease. Dehradun district is at top of the table in the list of active cases with 511 cases while Bageshwar is in the second position with 146 active cases. Nainital has 127, Pauri 124, Pithoragarh 112, Chamoli and Champawat 93 each, Uttarkashi 46, Rudraprayag 45, Tehri 41, Udham Singh Nagar 42, Haridwar 40 and Almora 29 active cases of the disease. The state reported four new cases of Mucormycosis (Black fungus) and one death from it on Thursday. A total of 514 patients of the disease have so far been reported in the state out of which 103 have died. In the ongoing vaccination drive, the health department vaccinated 35,955 people in 483 sessions held on Thursday. A total of 9,69,723 people have been fully vaccinated so far in the state while 38,61,709 have received the first dose of the vaccine in the state. RYLG1RGHDWK UHSRUWHGIRUVHFRQG FRQVHFXWLYHGDLQ6WDWH 0UXeTTQTaWXVW [TeT[R^XccTTc^ QTR^]bcXcdcTSU^a X_[TT]cPcX^]^U cWTePRRX]PcX^] aTb^[dcX^] ?DA=8018B7CQ 347A03D= By making small changes in our daily life, we can all do our bit in protecting our envi- ronment. With the right mind- set and simple methods, everyone can contribute to saving the earth. This was stat- ed by Dehradun resident Anisha Madan who has made simple yet effective changes in her life and developed a lifestyle that is aimed at min- imising the negative impact on the environment. Madan, who is a graphic designer, said that though she was always inclined towards the topics that talked about saving the environment or ways that might harm the earth, she never actually did anything practical about the environ- mental issues. However, when Madan started working in the fashion industry after com- pleting her studies in fashion designing, she observed that lots of chemicals were being used and tonnes of fabric were being wasted on a daily basis which disturbed her. After this, she started working as a graphic designer but the real change happened after she was diagnosed with endometriosis in the year 2005. Endometriosis is a dis- order in which tissue that usually lines the inside of a woman's uterus grows outside the uterus. She said that when she researched about endometriosis, she found out how bleach, synthetic sanitary napkins, industrial waste and other chemical by-products can severely affect our health. Madan said that being diag- nosed with endometriosis was a turning point in her life after which she gradually started making small changes to her lifestyle. Now for over a decade, she has adopted sev- eral ways to live a life with minimum waste generation. Little changes on a daily basis can bring a great change over a period of time. For instance, we keep our dry and wet garbage separately. Wet garbage is used to make manure at home. We also separate our dry garbage under different categories like e-waste and anything which can be sent for recycling or can be reused in any other way, said Madan. Besides this, she also uses handbags and wallets made of fabric instead of artificial leather. She also uses a bamboo tooth- brush instead of a plastic one. She said that she also avoids bringing vegetables and ration supplies in polythenes and always carries a fabric bag to carry things. She added that she grows most of her veg- etables in her own garden. Interestingly, Madan even does not use any bottled shampoo, soap or talcum powder. According to her, she uses a shampoo bar that comes in paper packaging and makes Ubtan at home to wash her face. She said that she uses alum (fitkari) instead of talcum powder during summers. She also disclosed that rather than using synthetic sanitary napkins, she uses reusable sanitary napkins, dis- posable cloth napkins and menstrual cups. A woman on average uses several synthet- ic sanitary napkins which can harm the environment. Such sanitary napkins can also cause several diseases and hormonal imbalance in women if used for a long time. So women should either use reusable sanitary napkins made from cloth which can be easily made at homes too or should use menstrual cups, stated Madan. She also uses solar energy for electricity at her home. She said that installation of a solar plant is not difficult and any- one can install it as the gov- ernment also provides subsi- dies on its installation. She also said that though some might find the installation cost of solar plants somewhat expensive but it is worth it in the long run. Besides con- tributing to a safer environ- ment, it also reduces the con- sumption of electricity to a great extent. Depending on the power consumption of a family, the electricity bill can also be zero with the use of solar energy, said Madan. On being asked about whether it has been hard to follow all these things, she said that nothing seems hard once we make up our minds. She said that she is not doing any- thing extraordinary and everyone can follow this path by putting some effort to bring small changes. By taking steps to save the earth, we are actually sav- ing ourselves. Since we live here, it is our duty to do as much as we can to save this planet, said Madan. She also opined that children should also be motivated to take gradual environment friend- ly steps like avoiding the use of single-use plastics and mak- ing manure at home so that they continue to carry such habits to their adulthood too. CTTacW?da^WXcbTTc2STP]SaTbc^aPcX^]^UTPa[XTaPaaP]VTT]cb ?=BQ 347A03D= Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has directed officials to hold detailed dis- cussions with neighbouring states and then take a decision on the Kanwad Yatra. The chief minister said this while chairing a meeting in the secretariat regarding the Kanwad Yatra. He directed the officials to hold deliberations with the neigh- bouring states and consider all aspects to reach a decision on the Kanwad Yatra. It is pertinent to mention here that lakhs of people travel to Uttarakhand where they collect water from the Ganga mostly in Haridwar to offer to lord Shiva at temples in their respective hometowns. While most cover long dis- tances on foot, many also trav- elbyvehicles.TheUttarPradesh government recently decided to allow the Kanwad Yatra from later this month with Covid restrictions. Along with UP, many from the NCR, Haryana and Punjab among other states undertake the Kanwad Yatra to Uttarakhand. Chief secretary Sukhbir Singh Sandhu, additional chief secretariesRadhaRaturi,Anand Bardhan, director general of police Ashok Kumar, Garhwal commissionerRavinathRaman, secretaries Amit Negi, Shailesh Bagauli, Haridwar district mag- istrate C Ravishankar and Haridwar SSP Senthil Avudai Krishnaraj were among those present in the meeting. 23WPXSXaTRcb ^UUXRXP[bc^SXbRdbb :P]fPSHPcaPfXcW ]TXVWQ^daX]VBcPcTb 2B)5^Rdb^]cXT[hR^_[TcX^]`dP[Xch PgXXbX]VQT]TUXcUa^F1Ud]STS_a^YTRc ³;Xcc[TRWP]VTb^]SPX[hQPbXbRP]bPeTcWTTPacW´ 3TWaPSd]aTbXST]c0]XbWPPSP] WPbPSTbX_[ThTcTUUTRcXeT RWP]VTbX]WTa[XUTP]SSTeT[^_TS P[XUTbch[TcWPcXbPXTSPc X]XXbX]VcWT]TVPcXeTX_PRc^] cWTT]eXa^]T]c
- 4. ]PcX^]# 347A03D=k5A830H k9D;H (!! ?=BQ =4F34;78 Almost 30 years ago, Madhav Rao Scindia han- dled the Ministry of Civil Aviation during the PV Narasimha Rao regime from 1991 to 1993. His son Jyotiraditya Scindia on Thursday took charge of the same Ministry in the Narendra Modi Government. It could be a real test for Scindia as he steps into the shoes of his father. Amid pan- demic, airlines are still strug- gling to survive as flights have drastically reduced all over the world with passenger traffic, fuel prices, rising debt levels, high taxation, and the uncer- tainty of when a recovery can be expected. This even as inter- national flights too have been banned since March last year. Bringing passengers traffic to pre-Covid era, privatisation of debt-laden Air India, law- suits by Cairn Energy and Devas Multimedia, both seek- ing to recover their dues from the Indian Government, are attempting to seize Air India’s overseas assets are major issue before the civil aviation minis- ter. Besides, modernisation of airport will be another issue to be addressed in the coming days. “I thank Prime Minister Sh @narendramodi ji, @JPNadda ji the party lead- ership for entrusting me with the responsibility to serve as civil aviation minister,” Scindia said on Twitter. “Looking for- ward to working under the guidance and vision of the PM to build a strong aviation sec- tor for Aatmanirbhar Bharat!” he added. When Modi was sworn in as the Prime Minister in 2014, Ashok Gajapathi Raju from ally Telugu Desam Party (TDP) was sworn in as the civil avia- tion minister. With TDP with- drawing support to the gov- ernment in March 2018, Suresh Prabhu became the Minister for Civil Aviation. Both these positions were in the Cabinet Rank. All along there were two Ministers of States, first Mahesh Sharma and later Jayant Sinha. In 2019, in the second tenure of the BJP-led government - the Ministry of Civil Aviation saw Hardeep Singh Puri lead it but as Minister of State with Independent Charge. ;f_Z`cDTZ_UZRWZ]]dWReYVc¶ddY`VdRWeVc$!jcd ?=BQ =4F34;78 Rajya Sabha MP from Odisha, Ashwini Vaishnaw, took charge as the new Railway Minister on Thursday. After taking charge, the new Minister said that Railways is a major part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision and he would work to make the vision a real- ity. A former IAS officer, Vaishnaw also took charge as Minister of Communications, and Minister of Electronics and Information Technology. “His (PM Modi’s) vision for railways is to transform the lives of the people, that everyone — common man, farmers, the poor — gets the benefit of the railway. I will work for that vision,” said Vaishnaw. He said excellent work has been done in the Railways over the past 67 years. On Twitter, the new Minister thanked Modi for giving the opportunity to serve the nation and for that he will “work relentlessly.” Vaishnaw major challenge is excute the High speed rail corridors including the pending Bullet Train project besides com- plete modernization of the Indian railways. The Railway Ministry was earlier under Union Minister Piyush Goyal who has been given charge of the Ministries of Commerce and Industry; Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution; and Textiles. Vaishnaw also replaced Ravi Shankar Prasad, as Minister of Communications, and Minister of Electronics and Information Technology. The first time Minister has an MBA from Wharton School, Pennysylvania University, and MTech from IIT Kanpur. Taking the charge of Communication and IT Ministry, Vaishnaw held a meeting with telecom secre- tary Anshu Prakash and dis- cussed priority industry issues. Some of the immediate challenges for Vaishnaw include holding fifth genera- tion (5G) spectrum auctions, bringing back industry’s con- fidence, and clearing some of the regulator’s recommendations to improve sectoral health. ?=BQ =4F34;78 Newly appointed Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Thursday said India’s education system has taken a giant leap with the introduction of the National Education Policy (NEP). Pradhan was given the education portfolio in a reshuf- fle-cum-expansion of the Union Council of Ministers on Wednesday. Along with Pradhan, Rajkumar Ranjan Singh, Subhas Sekhar and Annapurna Devi were appointed as Ministers of State for Education and they also took charge at Shastri Bhawan. In his first meeting as Education Minister, Pradhan said, “The Indian education system has taken a giant leap with the introduction of NEP, towards fostering an environ- ment for creating a future ready India. The policy has not only been welcomed in India but also foreign coun- tries.” “We are committed to making students and the youth the primary stakehold- ers in propelling India towards an equitable knowledge soci- ety,” he said. All the new ministers also participated in a meeting presided over by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on discussion on centrally fund- ed technical institutions, including IITs and IISc. @bQTXQ^*5@XQc Rb_eWXd]QZ_bSXQ^WU Y^S_e^dbiµcUTe`_YSi ?=BQ =4F34;78 Soon after taking charge as Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, S Shobha Karandlaje, on Thursday tried to strike an emotional chord with the farm- ing community and said she will reach out to convince farmers across the country about the benefits of three controversial farm laws. Thousands of farmers, mainly from Punjab, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh, have been camping at Delhi’s borders for more than seven months now in protest against the three laws that they say will end state procurement of crops at minimum support price. “The Centre has passed three agriculture laws in the interest of the farming com- munity. However, these laws are being opposed due to polit- ical reasons. We have a big responsibility to convince farmers about the benefits of these laws. I will travel to all states and convince farmers,” Karandlaje told reporters after taking charge. Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Narendra Singh Tomar and Minister of State in the ministry Kailash Choudhary were also present when Karandlaje was taking charge. She said she will make efforts to convince farmers that the farm laws are aimed at doubling farmers’ income and removing them from the clutches of middlemen. The 55-year-old Karnataka BJP leader said: “I will respond to all problems faced by farm- ers, be it relieving farmers from debt or drought, working alongside senior minister Narendra Singh Tomar ji.” ³CWT2T]caTWPb _PbbTScWaTT PVaXRd[cdaT[Pfb X]cWTX]cTaTbc^U cWTUPaX]V R^d]Xch´ ?=BQ =4F34;78 Ajay Bhatt on Thursday took charge as Minister of State for Defence. After assuming the new responsibility, he called on Defence Minister Rajnath Singh at his office in South Block. Defence Secretary Ajay Kumar and other senior offi- cials of the Ministry of Defence received Bhatt and welcomed him into his office. In a tweet, the new incumbent thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for giving him the responsibil- ity, saying that he will strive to build the ‘AatmaNirbhar Bharat’ of the 21st century. Bhatt is a Member of Parliament from Nainital- Udhamsingh Nagar con- stituency, Uttarakhand. He is the member of Standing Committee on Defence; Consultative Committee, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare; Committee on Subordinate Legislation; Joint Committee on the Personal Data Protection Bill 2019 and Committee on Estimates. He had earlier served as Cabinet Minister in Uttarakhand Government, holding portfolios such as Parliamentary Affairs, Health and Disaster Management. He was also the Leader of Opposition in Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly. For his part, Rajkumar Ranjan Singh took charge as the Minister of State (MoS) in the Ministry of External Affairs and said “I’m very happy with the assign- ment by PM Modi to have responsibility. I belong to Northeast India bordering China, Myanmar and Bangladesh. We’ve to maintain good relations with neigh- bours as advised by the PM. I will try my best to serve the purpose.” The External Affairs Ministry got another Minister of State, Meenakshi Lekhi. A member of Parliament from Delhi she said, “I am really thankful to PM, HM party president JP Nadda for show- ing faith in my ability, that I can handle this portfolio.” 1WPcccPZTbRWPaVTPb^BU^a 3TUT]RT;TZWXPb^BX]40 ?=BQ =4F34;78 Soon after the new Health Minister Mansukh Mandavia assumed the charge on Thursday, the Congress sought to know whether there will be any changes in the health system and will there be no shortage of Covid vaccines. “Does this mean no more vaccine shortage,” asked former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi. Former Union Minister P Chidambaram said the first task of the new Health Minister is to remove vaccine shortage as some states are facing acute shortages. Congress has been criti- cising the government’s vacci- nation policy, alleging that it is moving at a slow pace and needs to be accelerated. Congress also said that the dropping of former Health Minister Harsh Vardhan is an admission of the government’s failure in handling the pan- demic. Chidambaram said the new Health Minister’s first task is to ensure adequate and unin- terrupted supply of vaccines. He said vaccinations have been suspended at several centres in Tamil Nadu as vaccines have run out of supply. FX[[RWP]VTX]VdPaS X]7TP[cWX]T]bdaT PST`dPcTYPQPbZb2^]V A0:4B7:B8=67Q =4F34;78 The CRPF has warned that any violation of cyber secu- rity protocols by its personnel will attract strict action. The move comes after a number of sensitive documents were found to be circulating on the social media applications, compro- mising security. The recent directive regard- ing violation of cyber security instructions and guidelines after it was noticed by the Force that correspondences consisting of classified/sensitive information like programmes of VIPs/senior officers, operational plans/mat- ters, vital information relating to arms/.ammunition, move- ment of troops/vehicles, com- ments of senior officers, reports on any incident and important instructions were getting viral on various messaging applica- tions. “Putting out any message containing sensitive official information on social media platforms is not a healthy prac- tice and amounts to breach of Official Secrets Act and viola- tion of various instructions on the subject, including cyber security guidelines. Hence, the Force has decided to deal with such misconduct in a stern manner,” a senior official said. All the formations have been asked to ensure that all sensitive messages should only be communicated on a need to know basis and should not reach anyone for whom such messages are not meant, he said. Spreading official messages on various messaging applica- tions should be strictly avoid- ed and violation of the instruc- tions would entail actions as per the laid down procedures with zero tolerance. All the formations have been instructed to avoid social media platforms for sending or receiving official messages and communication, and instead only bank on the internal com- munication system of the CRPF for sending such documents. “The growing indiscipline among the rank and file with regard to use of foreign mes- saging platforms compromis- es operational secrecy and gives a lever to hostile intelli- gence agencies to extract sen- sitive information. Even the disposition statement (tele- phone/email directory of the organization) and deployment pattern of the Force in various operational theatres are avail- able in PDF formats and are widely circulated amongst the personnel on messaging apps like WhatsApp,” another offi- cial said. The official further said that despite cyber security guidelines being in place, a few operational/intelligence meetings have been conduct- ed online via Skype VoIP- based videoconferencing application. The open availability of mobile phones numbers and email IDs of officials have recently been exploited by Pakistan’s covert agency Inter- Services Intelligence (ISI) that had stepped up espionage bids to seek information through spoofed calls on the Force’s deployment and strength in Jammu and Kashmir in the run up to the drone strikes on the Jammu air force station. The footprinting of the Force’s mobility or location can easily be tracked by inim- ical agencies by sending mes- sages on various messaging apps of the security personnel, officials added. 2A?5bcPUUc^UPRTdbXRXUcWTheX^[PcTRhQTabTRdaXch_a^c^R^[b ?=BQ =4F34;78 Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday inter- acted with directors of cen- trally-funded technical insti- tutions and stressed on the need to adapt higher and tech- nical education to the chang- ing environment and emerging challenges. According to a Government press note, the PM noted that technological and RD institutions will play a major role in the upcoming decade, and coined as “India’s Techade”. Interacting with over 100 heads of institutions via video-conferencing, Modi highlighted the need to focus on developing futuristic solu- tions in the fields of education, healthcare, agriculture, defense, and cyber technologies. The newly appointed Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and the Ministers of State for Education Annapurna Devi and Dr Subhas Sarkar were also present during the virtu- al interaction. The Prime Minister also lauded the research and devel- opment work done by these institutions towards meeting the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic and appreciated the efforts of young innovators towards pro- viding quick technological solutions. In a tweet, Modi later said, “Had an enriching interaction with Directors of leading IITs and @iiscban- galore during which we exchanged thoughts on a wide range of subjects including making India a hub for RD, innovation and popularising science among the youth.” Emphasising the need to adapt to changing environ- ment and emerging chal- lenges, Modi said this requires the institutions to reinvent and reevaluate themselves, develop alterna- tive and innovative models in accordance with the present and future needs of the coun- try and society. He stressed that the country’s higher educational and technical institutions need to prepare the youth for continuous disruptions and changes, keeping in mind the fourth industrial revolu- tion, the PMO said. He underlined the need to progress towards educa- tion models that are flexible, seamless, and are able to provide learning opportuni- ties according to the requirements of the learners. ?=BQ =4F34;78 India’s top drug regulator has given go ahead to Sanofi SA and GlaxoSmithKline Plc for a late-stage clinical trial of their protein-based Covid-19 vac- cine candidate, the drugmakers said on Thursday. France’s Sanofi and Britain’s GSK in May kicked off global trials to include more than 35,000 adults to test the shot. They hope to get approvals by the end of 2021 after early-stage results showed the vaccine pro- duces a robust immune response. The Indian arm of the studies will enroll roughly 3,000 adults between the ages of 18 years and 55 years, according to India’s clinical trial registry. The assessment is expected to run for a year and the first enrollment in India is shown to have been made on Tuesday. “As the virus continues to evolve, we are anticipating what will be needed in the coming months and years, and accord- ingly, have adapted our vaccine development program,” Annapurna Das, Sanofi’s India head, said in a statement. ?=BQ =4F34;78B78;0 President Ram Nath Kovind, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu, several Union Ministers and Chief Ministers were amongst the leaders who paid rich tributes and fondly remembered veteran Congress leader and former Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh who passed away at his residence in Shimla. In his condolence mes- sage, President Kovind said that his political career span- ning six decades in his roles as chief minister and parliamen- tarian was marked by his com- mitment to serve the people of Himachal Pradesh. “Sad to know that Shri Virbhadra Singh is no more. His political career spanning six decades in his roles as chief minister and parliamentarian was marked by his commit- ment to serve the people of Himachal Pradesh. Condolences to family and fol- lowers,” a tweet from the Rashtrapati Bhavan said. Taking to Twitter, Modi said, “Shri Virbhadra Singh Ji had a long political career, with rich administrative and legislative experience. He played a pivotal role in Himachal Pradesh and served the people of the state. Saddened by his demise. Condolences to his family and supporters”. Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jairam Thakur also expressed grief over the death of Virbhadra Singh and said that that this is an irreparable loss for the state, which will never be compensated. The Himachal Pradesh government decided to observe three days of state mourning as a mark of respect to Virbhadra Singh. Congress President Sonia Gandhi described Singh as a stalwart, and said his commit- ment to serve the people was exemplary till the end. Former party chief Rahul Gandhi said the stalwart leader will be missed. Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh and Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot also remem- bered Virbhadra Singh and expressed their condolences to his family. Former Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda said he was saddened by the loss as he shared a per- sonal relationship with Virbhadra. Congress leader and former union minister Anand Sharma said he was deeply saddened by the news of Singh’s demise. ?)CTRW]^[^VXRP[A3X]bcXcdcX^]bc^ _[PhPY^aa^[TX]d_R^X]VSTRPST BP]^UXB0P]S 6[Pg^BXcW:[X ]T?[RVTc]^S U^acaXP[^UYPQ ?aTiE??^cWTab_PhcaXQdcT c^7XPRWP[Tg2EXaQWPSaP =TfAPX[fPhbX]e^fbc^ PZT^SXbeXbX^]PaTP[Xch FX[[R^]eX]RTUPaTabPQ^dc QT]TUXcb^UUPab[Pfb)X]
- 5. ]PcX^]$ 347A03D=k5A830H k9D;H (!! ?A0344?B0G4=0Q 0;860A7 The families in Aligarh are living under the fear of child thieves. The panic is such that innocent children are kept chained. The root cause behind this panic is the disappearance of few children within a week. However, three of them have been recovered. But now families are worried about the their children and are keeping them chained. The incident started outside Saroj Nagar as some nomadic families are staying for a long time near bypass. Earlier they lived on Etah Chungi. They work as blacksmiths. Last fortnight, a 3-year-old innocent girl Shivani sud- denly disappeared from there in the night. She slept with her mother on the bed at night. At 4 o'clock in the morn- ing, the mother saw her missing. In this matter, a case was registered against unknown person for stealing the girl child in Mahua Kheda. However, since then the parents themself has been searching for the girl from place to place. At the same time, the police is also looking for the girl. But there is no concrete clue yet. Now keeping in mind the safety of other children, the families have invent- ed a way. At night, while sleeping in the slum, they tie the children with chains on the cots with their feet. The purpose behind this is that even if someone takes them now or if the child gets up on his own and goes somewhere, then there will be the sound of his falling etc. Accepting this, Liladhar from one of those families said that it is our com- pulsion. We have no security arrange- ments as we live in a slum. Due to this compulsion, we have taken this step. Only then can we sleep at night. Otherwise, after the incident of Shivani, there was a fear that someone might steal the child. Three children went missing from Lachimpur under Bannadevi police sta- tion area of the district on wednesday evening. On this information, the police immediately swung into action, under Operation Khushi, in an effort of two hours, the three children were recovered and handed over to the family. The family expressed happiness when the children returned. According to CO II Mohsin Khan, news was received through the police control room that three children, 8- year-old Vishal, 6-year-old Kanha and 3-year-old Krishna, son of Dharamveer, had gone missing from Lachimpur. On this information, the CO himself and the Bannadevi police, while trying under Operation Khushi, made an announcement from the PA system and after contacting the people, recovered the three missing children. The CO told that after calling the family to the police station and the children were handed over to them, the family has expressed happiness towards the police. B0D60AB4=6D?C0Q :;:0C0 In a development that could leave many a polit- ical pundit guessing, Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday paid a sudden visit to legendary cricketer and BCCI president Saurav Ganguly’s Behala residence to wish him in his 49th birthday. This is the first time that the Chief Minister met Ganguly at his residence where she stayed for about 45 minutes offering the former Team India captain a bouquet of flowers and meeting his wife, daughter and mother. Though the Chief Minister has always shared a good and cordial relationship with the former southpaw batsman her visit gains impor- tance on account of the fact that he also shares an excellent chemistry with Banerjee’s arch polit- ical rival and Union Home Minister Amit Shah the person who is understood to be the man behind his becoming the BCCI top boss. While the ruling Trinamool Congress lead- ership refused to read much into Banerjee- Ganguly parley a senior party leader and a min- ister said, “when Didi (elder sister) meets Dada (elder brother) it must be and it should be special,” adding, “both Mamata Banerjee and Trinamool Congress Government knows how to honour a star performer.” He also wondered whether there was any phone call or “any match- ing congratulatory words from the Centre.” The flurry of greetings started with the one coming from his good friend and opening part- ner Sachin Tendulkar who wrote: “My beloved Dadi. Happy birthday. Wishing you a healthy and happy year ahead.” Another legendary cricketer of his times Virendra Sehwag wrote “Few could match Dada ka Junoon, Dada ka Iraada . May you be in good health and spirits always Dada,” while his cricketing peer Mohammad Kaif tweeted, “When Dada led you on to the field, you some- how felt taller. Happy Birthday to the captain who patted your back when you did well and put a hand around your shoulder when you did- n’t.” Former India opener Wasim Jaffer too tweet- ed, “He took charge of Indian cricket in its dark- est hour and led Indian cricket to a new dawn. Happy Birthday to the ultimate leader of men.” The BCCI president had led India to the World Cup final in 2003, retired from interna- tional cricket in 2008, finishing as the best left- hand batsman and one of the most successful captains across Tests and ODIs for India. He had played 113 Tests and 311 ODIs for India, scor- ing more than 18,000 runs and scoring 39 hun- dreds. Kolkata: The Enforcement Directorate investi- gating the multi-crore coal scam along with the Central Bureau of Investigation is known to have summoned at least seven IPS officers from Bengal. The issuance of summons comes amid ongoing bitter rivalry between the BJP-led Centre and Mamata Banerjee’s Bengal government. According to sources the officers who have been summoned by the ED are in the rank of Additional Director general, Deputy Inspector General and Superintendent of Police. According to sources a top police officer from Asansol- Durgapur Commissionerate to have been sum- moned along with the other officers --- some of whom have already been quizzed by the CBI in the coal and cow-smuggling cases. The coal and cattle smuggling rackets became a major electoral issue in the recently held Bengal Assembly polls which saw TMC roaring back to power. The central agencies had earlier interrogated the wife of TMC general secretary and MP Abhishek Banerjee leading Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to come down heavily on Prime Minister Narendra and Home Minister for their alleged “vendetta politics.” PNS 'LGLYLVLWV'DGD¶VKRXVH RQKLVWKELUWKGD ('VXPPRQV %HQJDO,36PHQLQ FRDOVFDPSUREH C=A067D=0C70Q D108 Aday after his son-in-law Girish Chaudhary was arrested for alleged money laundering in the much-dis- cussed Pune land deal case, senior Nationalist Congress Party leader Eknath Khadse was grilled by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for nine-long hours in the same case on Thursday. Khadse reached the ED office at 11 am and was allowed to go at 8 pm. Sixty-eight-year-old Khadse boarded his SUV and left for his home, without inter- acting with the waiting media persons.There is no confir- mation yet as to whether he has been summoned again for questioning in connection with the with a questionable land deal in Pune. Earlier in the morning, before going to the ED office in Mumbai, Khadse had said: “ This is nothing but a political- ly motivated case registered against me. My family mem- bers and I are being targeted politically to defame us. However, I am cooperating fully with the probe agencies”. “Entire Maharashtra is witnessing what is going on. This case has already been investigated five times. The Anti Corruption Bureau had given me a clean chit. But it is still being investigated once again,” Khadse said. Meanwhile, coming out in support of Khadse's support, State NCP president and senior minister Jayant Patil said: “Khadse has been wrongly implicated in the case. He is innocent. He will come clean in the case”. The allegation that Khadse is that that he, wife Mandakini and son-in-law Girish Chaudhary had hatched a con- spiracy and purchased a 3-acre plot of land at Bhosari near Pune owned Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC) in the name of his kin for Rs 3.75 crore as against the market price of Rs 40 crore. The deal, according to ED, has caused a loss of Rs 61.25 crore to the public exchequer. On his part, Khadse had denied that he had indulged in any wrong doing in the Pune land deal case. Trouble had begun for Khadse -- a former minister in the previous saffron alliance government in the state, after he resigned from the BJP on October 21, 2020 and joined the ruling NCP two days later. Around the time when he left the BJP and joined the NCP in October last year, the the ED filed an Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) against Khadse, his wife Mandakini Khadse, son-in- law Girish Chaudhry and Abbas Ukani in the alleged grab of Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation land at Bhosari village in Pune. Ukani is the original owner of the land. Khadse – who had played a key role along with late Gopinath Munde in building the Maharashtra party unit after the formation of BJP in 1980 –had then accused former chief minister Devendra Fadnavis had indulged in low- level politics against me for the past four years. Khadse had alleged that Fadnavis had defamed him by making all kinds of allegations, including charge of molestation, against him. It may be recalled that on June 4, 2016, Khadse had resigned from his post as the State Revenue Minister over irregularities in the purchase of a plot of land at Bhosari in Pune district. The ED had questioned Khadse in January this year in connection with the question- able Bhosari land in Pune. Khadse -- who was denied a BJP ticket to contest the 2019 State Assembly polls from his home constituency of Muktainagar in Jalgaon district of north Maharashtra and whose daughter Rohini was defeated in the Assembly polls --- had for the past four years made no secret of his frustra- tions within the BJP. Khadse was in the isolation within the BJP ever since June 4, 2016, when he resigned from his post as the State Revenue Minister over irregu- larities in the purchase of a plot of land at Bhosari in Pune dis- trict. Later in May 2018, Maharashtra’s Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) had reportedly given a clean chit to Khadse in the alleged Pune land scam case. In the run-up to the Assembly polls, there was con- siderable speculation that he might take a stand against the BJP. There was a likelihood of his phone having been tapped during this period. However, Khadse did not work against the BJP during the State Assembly elections. In December last year when the ED summoned him for questioning, Khadse had said: “The land in the MIDC deal has been transferred in the name of my wife. I have absolutely nothing to do with this land deal. Earlier, the Anti- Corruption Bureau, Pune, the Anti Corruption Bureau, Nashik, Income Tax depart- ment and a judicial committee headed by retired Bombay HC judge Dinkar Zoting, had looked into the allegations against me. Now the ED has summoned me for questioning. I will appear before it”. ?=BQ 90D The Jammu Kashmir unit of the Bharatiya Janta Party on Thursday demanded the unfreezing of the 24 Assembly seats falling in Pakistan- Occupied Kashmir to grant reserva- tion to people displaced from PoK, Kashmir Pandits, SCs and STs during their meeting with the members of the Delimitation Commission. The commission arrived here in Jammu after meeting several delega- tions and Deputy Commissioners of three neighbouring districts in Kishtwar. Led by JK BJP president Ravinder Raina, the delegation also sought adequate representation for Jammu in the Assembly. Once the delimitation exercise is completed, the number of assembly seats in JK will go up from 83 to 90. Twenty-four seats of the Assembly continue to remain vacant as they fall under PoK. “We demanded political reserva- tion for POJK refugees by unfreezing the eight assembly seats from the POJK quota, three seats for Kashmiri Pandits, Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes and other neglect- ed people. Jammu, too, must get ade- quate representation in the assembly,” Raina said. The BJP delegation included for- mer deputy chief ministers Nirmal Singh and Kavinder Gupta, BJP chief spokesperson Sunil Sethi and former legislator R S Pathania Meanwhile, the National Conference delegation headed by for- mer MLA DS Rana from Jammu region in their memoranda demand- ed that the delimitation exercise should be carried out as per the con- stitutional framework based on the basic tenets of Delimitation – popu- lation, geography, topography, area, physical features, contiguity, conve- nience of administrative units and facilities of easy communication and approachability of public convenience. We feel that decentralisation should form core of democracy, all regions or sub-regions crave for equal role in the governance where no one should nurture a feeling of sub- servience or discrimination the NC leaders demanded. The leaders of the JK Congress unit also submitted their memoranda in which they highlighted the vast diversities of the population and area of Jammu Region and its various parts and their respective urges and aspi- rations of their identity and repre- sentation in the state legislature. Former Congress MLC and chief spokesman Ravinder Sharma said, The restoration of statehood is para- mount for any meaningful delimita- tion and restoration of democracy. He said we urged the Commission to adopt a fair and transparent exer- cise and share the draft proposals in public domain for any meaningful inputs by the political parties and pub- lic. They also urged to keep the administrative boundaries in mind, to avoid inconvenience to the people They urged the Commission to recognize and consider the respective demands of diverse sections of soci- ety in Jammu like SCs, STs, OBCs, Paharies, Sikh Minority, POJK refugees, KPs etc and give them their rights due to each one of them. Several other parties including Panthers party, JKAPNI party, repre- sentatives of West Pak Refugees led by Labha Ram Gandhi, SC/ST's, a dele- gation of Chamber of Commerce and Industries also submitted their memoradas seeking justice and ade- quate representation to the deprived population of Jammu region. :D0A274;;0??0= Q :278 The Catholic Church in Kerala is upset over the untimely death of Stan Swamy, the Jesuit evangelist who suc- cumbed to Covid-19 early this week in a super speciality hos- pital in Mumbai. “Sathya Deepam”, the offi- cial mouth piece of Catholic Church in its July 8 issued described Stan Swamy’s death as “judicial murder” as well as an act of “State terrorism”. The judicial system in this country cannot wash off its hands from its role in this cus- todial murder, said a heart- rending editorial of the week- ly. The Church is of the view that the martyrdom of Stan Swamy was caused by the lack- adaisical and go slow approach of the judiciary which inordi- nately delayed the verdict of the bail plea filed on behalf of the 84-year old frail and weak man, the editorial said. The editorial said though he breathed his last in a private hospital, it remained a custodial death. “The cold and frozen body that was lying in St Peters Cathedral at Bandra in Mumbai was the dead body of democratic India,” said Sathya Deepam editorial. “The BJP Government that came to power in the 2014 Lok Sabha election treated Stan Swamy as an eye sore. The Government got furious when Swamy came to the help of more than 3,000 tribal youths who were falsely implicated as Maoists in criminal cases. The Jesuit priest was the only source of help for these innocent and gullible youths,” said the edi- torial. The editorial blames the supreme bodies like the Catholic Bishops Conference of India and Kerala Catholic Bishops Council for their fail- ure in condemning the mar- tyrdom of the priest in the strongest of words and in not taking up the issue with inter- national human rights organ- isations and the global media. It also blames the anti-ter- rorism laws as a façade to destroy the last vestiges of human rights and civil rights from the country. “With peo- ple like Stan Swamy getting imprisoned and murdered in prisons, the country is losing its identity as a free and indepen- dent India. This is the new story from new India. We are sure to lose more and more Stan Swamy’s in days to come as the rulers term activists as anti socials, a definition used by fascists,” says the editorial. 7cVV;2ddV^S]jdVRedZ_ A`+3;Ae`UV]Z^ZeReZ`_aR_V] ?=BQ =4F34;78 Amid continued verbal attacks against Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa, his loy- alists are ready to head to the national Capital to meet central leadership, demanding expul- sion of the 'rebels'. Encouraged by the inclusion of four Karnataka Ministers including Yediyurappa's close associate Shobha Karandlaje in the Union Cabinet, the 'loyalist group' is planning to put dissidents on the mat by seeking disci- plinary action against them. Yediyurappa supporters are planning to meet the BJP top brass during the Parliament session, beginning July 19. According to Chief Minister's political sec- retary M P Renukacharya , BJP MLAs will meet the top BJP leaders in Delhi and demand for their expulsion. He challenged Yediyurappa's detractors to resign and face the election fresh, as he cred- ited the CM for the party's growth and its com- ing to power in the state. Is Yediyurappa a ready-made food? He has built and nurtured this party. Criticising Yediyurappa is the same as criticising the BJP, Renukacharya said at Benguluru. NewDelhi:Seekingtoreachout to the farmers and increase coconutproduction,theCabinet on Thursday decided to amend the Coconut Board Act and appoint a non-official person as its president by roping in a sec- tor-expert instead of a bureau- crat. “The Coconut Board pres- ident will be from the farmers' community, who knows and understands the work of the field,” Union Agriculture MinisterNarendraSinghTomar said after the cabinet meeting. “There is a large part of the country where coconut farming is done. To increase coconut farming, we're amending the Coconut Board Act. Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat will berep- resented in the board now,” he added. Traditional areas of coconut cultivation are the states of Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. Also, Maharashtra, Odisha, West Bengal, Gujarat, Puducherry and Goa; and the island territo- ries of Lakshadweep and AndamanandNicobarareother areas of coconut production. About 54 million coconuts are produced every year across the globe. In this calculation, India grabs the 3rd position in its con- tribution. PNS ?=BQ =4F34;78 India and Italy on Thursday held bilateral talks on defence and strategic ties during a meet- ing between Army Chief General M M Naravane and his Italian counterpart Lt General Pietro Serino and Defence Minister Lorenzo Guerini in Rome. Both the sides focused on further strengthening defence cooperation, including military- to-military engagement. Naravane arrived in Rome on Wednesday on a two-day visit on the second leg of his two- nation tour of the UK and Italy. About his meeting with Italian Defence Minister Guerini, officials said they exchanged views on strength- ening defence cooperation between the two countries. General MM Naravane #COAS interacted with Lieutenant General Pietro Serino, Chief of Italian Army and discussed aspects of joint military cooperation, the Army tweeted. The Army chief is also scheduled to inaugurate an Indian Army memorial in the Italian town of Cassino. The memorial has been built to pay homage to Indian soldiers who losttheirlivesduringWorldWar II. The talks between the two army chiefs came after ways to further intensify defence coop- eration had figured prominent- ly at a virtual summit between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and then Italian prime minister Giuseppe Conte in November last year. The two prime minis- ters had underscored the need to further expand defence engagement through greater two-waycollaborationandtech- nology cooperation, including co-development and co-pro- duction of military hardware. Naravane's visit to Italy comes days after Indian naval ship INS Tabar and Italian frigate ITS Antonio Marceglia carried out a two-day maritime partnership exercise in the Tyrrhenian sea. The exercise on July 4 and 5 covered a wide range of naval operations,includingairdefence procedures, replenishment at sea, communication drills and cross deck helo operations by day and night, an Indian Navy spokesperson said. 6GLVPLVVHV)%,QGLD 93SOHDFKDOOHQJLQJ 'HOKL+RXVHVXPPRQ 9^TYQQ^T9dQi X_TRYQdUbQdQ[c DWKROLFKXUFK XSVHWRYHU6WDQ 6ZDP VGHDWK 2WX[SaT]QTX]VcXTSfXcW RWPX]bU^aUTPa^UVTccX]V ZXS]P__TSX]0[XVPaW CWTa^^cRPdbTQTWX]ScWXb_P]XRXbcWT SXbP__TPaP]RT^UPUTfRWX[SaT]fXcWX]P fTTZ7^fTeTacWaTT^UcWTWPeTQTT] aTR^eTaTS1dc]^fUPX[XTbPaTf^aaXTS PQ^dccWTXaRWX[SaT]P]SPaTZTT_X]V cWTRWPX]TS (' JULOOV.KDGVHLQ PRQHODXQGHULQJFDVH ?D=4832;0=3340; 1BHbd__^acTab_[P]]X]V c^TTc19?c^_QaPbb 2PQX]Tc]^Sc^2^R^]dc1^PaS0RcPT]ST]c 0QPQh^]ZThSaX]ZbfPcTaUa^PcP_X]6dfPWPcX^]CWdabSPh ?C8 ?=BQ =4F34;78 The Supreme Court on Thursday dismissed a plea filed by Facebook India vice president and MD Ajit Mohan challeng- ing the summons issued by the Delhi Assembly’s Peace and Harmony committee for failing to appear before it as witness in con- nection with the north-east Delhi riots last year. A Bench headed by Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul termed Mohan’s plea as pre-mature saying nothing has hap- pened against him before the Assembly panel. Pronouncing the verdict, Justice Kaul said technologi- cal age has created digital platforms which can be uncontrollable at times. The Bench, also comprising Justices Dinesh Maheshwari and Hrishikesh Roy, delivered its verdict on the plea filed by Mohan, Facebook India Online Services Pvt Ltd and Facebook Inc which contended that the committee lacked power to sum- mon or hold petitioners in breach of privileges for failing to appear before it and had exceeded its constitution- al limits. The apex court said the option of not answering before the committee cannot be dis- puted and representative of the petitioner can deny answering the question if it falls within the prohibited domains. It said the Assembly does not have the power to legislate on the issue of law and order which falls under the Union List in the Constitution. It said the objective of peace and harmony goes beyond law and order and police. The Bench said in the judgement, it has divided the issues into three cat- egories - privilege, free speech and leg- islative competence. The petitioners had challenged last year’s September 10 and 18 notices issued by the committee which sought Mohan’s presence before the panel probing the Delhi riots in February and Facebook’s role in spread of alleged hate speeches. The Delhi Assembly had earlier said no coercive action has been taken against Mohan and he was only summoned by its committee to appear as witness in connection with north- east Delhi riots.