03122022_First India_Mumbai.pdf

MAHARASHTRA-KARNATAKA BORDER ROW
Maha ministers’ Belagavi visit not a good idea: Bommai
First India Bureau
Mumbai/Belagavi:
Even as Maharashtra
ministers Chandrakant
Patil and Shambhuraj
Desai pushed back their
visit to Belagavi--origi-
nally slated for Decem-
ber 03--to December 06,
Karnataka Chief Minis-
ter Basavaraj Bommai
has warned against the
trip.
Patil and Desai have
been appointed by the
Maharashtra govern-
ment to coordinate with
the state’s legal team in
the ongoing row over
the border dispute
with the south-
ern state. The
duo are slated
to meet with leaders of
the Maharashtra Eki-
karan Samiti (MES),
which has been
spearheading the
movement to
merge Karna-
taka’s Belaga-
vi (Belgaum)
region with
Maharash-
tra.
In a tweet in Marathi,
Patil said some Ambed-
karite organisations
have urged them to re-
main present in Bel-
gaum on the occasion of
MahaparinirvanDiwas,
the death anniversary
of Dr Babasaheb
Ambedkar.
“Accordingly, I and
coordinating minister
Shamburaj Desai will
visit Belgaum on De-
cember 3 and hold dis-
cussions. Let’s meet up.
Discussions surely will
lead to a way
,” Patil had
tweeted earlier with a
letter from the Mad-
hyavarti Maharashtra
Ekikaran Samiti seek-
ing a meeting with him
and Desai.
Their visit comes at a
time when the Supreme
Court is hearing a case
on the issue.
Maharashtra, since
its inception in 1960, has
been entangled in a dis-
pute with Karnataka
over the status of Bel-
gaum district and 80
other Marathi-speaking
villages, which are in
the control of the south-
ern state.
Chandrakant Patil and Shambhuraj
Desai were originally meant to have
met local leaders today, but visit
pushed to Tuesday
Our Chief Secretary
has written to the Chief
Secretary of Maha-
rashtra. In the given situa-
tion it is not good for (Patil
and Desai) to visit here and
hence, they should not come
here. We have already com-
municated to them. The Kar-
nataka government will con-
tinue to take steps which
were taken in the past.
—Basavaraj Bommai,
Karnataka CM
WATCH THE NATIONAL HINDI NEWS CHANNEL BHARAT24 - JAHAN TAK BHARAT WAHAN TAK BHARAT24
`100 CR EXTORTION
CASE: DESHMUKH’S
BAIL PLEA DEFERRED
SC QUASHES HC ORDER
GRANTING ANTICIPATORY
BAIL TO NAMBI ACCUSED
Mumbai: The Bombay
HC on Friday postponed
the hearing on the bail
petition filed by former
Maharashtra Home
Minister and NCP leader
Anil Deshmukh till
December 6 in connection
with `100 crore extortion
case filed by the CBI.
Mumbai: The Supreme
Court on Friday quashed
the Kerala High Court order
granting anticipatory bail
to four people including
a former DGP in the case
related to the alleged
frame-up of scientist Nambi
Narayanan in the 1994
ISRO espionage matter.
READ
Crucial
Crucial
ADANI GROUP MOVES
HC SEEKING CENTRAL
PROTECTION AT PORT
Thiruvananthapuram:
Adani Group on Friday
moved Kerala HC seeking
the assistance of central
forces to continue with
construction at the
Vizhinjam seaport in
Thiruvananthapuram which
was marred by protests.
GUJARAT POLLS: MODI STEPS UP ATTACK ON CONGRESS
‘THEY WORKED WITH BRITISH
FOR SEVERAL YEARS’
The second phase voting in Gujarat will take place on December 5
Manish Desai
Ahmedabad: PM Nar-
endra Modi on Friday
accusedCongressof dis-
owning Sardar Vallab-
hbhai Patel and said it
absorbed a “slave men-
tality” after working
with the British prior to
Independence.
He was speaking at a
campaignrallyatSojitra
towninGujarat’sAnand
district where voting
will take place in the sec-
ond phase of the state
Assembly elections on
December 5. The Con-
gress’s “policy” of incit-
ing one community,
caste or religion against
another weakened Gu-
jarat, Modi said.
“The Congress has a
problem not only with
Sardar Patel but also
with the unity of India
because their politics is
based on the policy of
divide and rule while
Patel believed in uniting
everyone. Due to this
stark difference, Con-
gress never considered
Sardar Patel as their
own,” the PM said.
Just because the statue has been
built by Modi, Patel became un-
touchable for you? I am sure that
people of Anand district will punish Congress
for insulting Sardar Patel.
—Narendra Modi, Prime Minister
Prime Minister Narendra Modi greets while being garlanded by BJP leaders, workers during a public
rally for the second phase of the Gujarat Assembly elections, in Patan on Friday. —PHOTO BY ANI
WILL SUPPORT ‘FRIEND’ MODI DURING
INDIA’S G20 PRESIDENCY, SAYS BIDEN
SHERGILL NATIONAL
SPOKESPERSON;
CAPTAIN, JAKHAR
ARE EXEC MEMBERS
New Delhi: The BJP on
Friday appointed Jaiveer
Shergill as the party’s
national spokesper-
son. He resigned as
the Congress national
spokesperson in August
this year. Further, former
Punjab CM Captain
Amarinder Singh and
Sunil Jakhar were made
BJP national executive
members. Sunil Jakhar
joined BJP in May. P5
New Delhi: US President Joe Biden on Friday said
he is looking forward to “supporting his friend”
PM Narendra Modi during India’s G20 presidency.
“Together we will advance sustainable and inclusive
growth while tackling shared challenges like the
climate, energy, and food crises,” he said, calling
India a “strong partner” of the United States.
KEY ROLES FOR
FORMER CONG
LEADERS IN BJP
BJP GOVT MEANS
DEVELOPMENT
PEACE, SAYS SHAH
Gandhinagar: Union HM
Amit Shah while address-
ing rallies in poll bound
Gujarat said on Friday
that BJP govt means
devp, peace. If the young
generation of Gujarat
has not seen curfew then
behind it is the rule of law
and peace established by
the BJP. People of Gujarat
stand firmly with the BJP.
Hardworking,humble: Modi,
Shah,others greet JP Nadda
PM Modi and several top leaders on Friday
greeted BJP chief JP Nadda. PM Modi
wished him, “a long and healthy life” and
praised him for infusing “new enthusiasm and
energy” in the ruling party. HM Shah greeted
him saying, Happy Birthday Nadda ji, party
is continuously getting stronger due to your
efficient leadership and organizational skills.
BJP National President Jagat Prakash Nadda turns 62 on Friday. Nadda is an Indian lawyer and
politician serving as the president of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) since 20 January 2020.
BSE SENSEX 62,868.50 415.69 | NSE NIFTY 18,696.10 116.40
MUMBAI l SATURDAY, DECEMBER 3, 2022 l Pages 12 l 3.00 RNITITLE NO.MAHENG/2022/14652 lVol 1 l Issue No.206
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OUR EDITIONS: JAIPUR, NEW DELHI MUMBAI
ED ARRESTS
CHHATTISGARH
CM’S DEPUTY
SECY SAUMYA
California: Singer-politician Sidhu Moose Wala’s murder
mastermind Goldy Brar has been detained in California. Punjab
CM Bhagwant Mann has confirmed that Goldy has been
detained and he will be brought back to India soon. P6
Raipur: ED on Friday arrested Saumya Chaurasia, a
deputy secretary rank officer posted in Chhattisgarh
Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel’s office, in
connection with a money laundering investigation
into an alleged coal levy scam in state, sources said.
ACTOR NORA
FATEHI APPEARS
BEFORE ED IN
SUKESH CASE
New Delhi: Amid ongoing probe in `200 cr extortion
case linked to conman Sukesh Chandrashekhar,
actor Nora Fatehi on Friday appeared before the
officials of the ED. The 30-year-old has been earlier
questioned in the case linked to the conman.
MOOSE WALA MURDER MASTERMIND GOLDY CAUGHT
6 women among 7 people
die as part of limestone
mine collapses in C’garh
Jagdalpur: Seven per-
sons were killed after
some portion of a lime-
stone mine collapsed on
them at their village in
Bastar district of Chhat-
tisgarh on Friday
, police
said. The deceased in-
cluded six women, they
said. The incident took
place in Maalgaon vil-
lage under Nagarnar po-
lice station area, around
12 km away from Jagdal-
pur, the headquarter of
the district, a police offi-
cial here said. “The vic-
tims were digging soil in
the mine when a part of
it caved in, due to which
they got trapped under
the debris,” he said.
With CJI next to him, VP Dhankhar asks
questions over SC undoing NJAC Act
New Delhi: Amid stand-
off between Govt Col-
legium over judicial ap-
pointments, VP Jagdeep
Dhankhar on Friday
raised questions over
undoing of NJAC Act
wondered if a constitu-
tional amendment unan-
imously passed by Parl
reflecting will of people
can be undone by SC.
HAPPY
BIRTHDAYChief!
CJI SAYS, INDIAN
CONSTITUTION IS A
FEMINIST DOCUMENT
CJI DY Chandrachud said
every form of elite under-
standing of democratic
process that educated people
are better decision-makers
must be rejected. “In this
sense, our Constitution was a
feminist document, as well as
an egalitarian socially trans-
formative document,” he said.
VP Jagdeep Dhankhar, CJI Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud Abhishek
Singhvi at 8th Dr LM Singhvi Memorial Lecture in Delhi on Friday.
Rescue and search operation underway after the collapse of a
limestone mine, in Bastar on Friday. —PHOTO BY ANI
DOUBLE
TROUBLE!
SpiceJet IndiGo
int’l flights divert
safely due to snags
New Delhi: Snags led 2
int’l flights being oper-
ated by Indian carriers
on Friday to divert to
alternate airports.
SpiceJet: Boeing 737
MAX flying from Jed-
dah to Calicut safely
landed in Cochin after
carrying out three low
pass, which allowed
ATC to verify whether
the landing gear lever
was down and locked,
say sources. IndiGo:
Airbus A320 winging its
way from Kannur to
Doha diverted to Mum-
bai because of one of
the three hydraulic sys-
tems failing. DGCA is
probing both the cases.

First India Bureau
Mumbai: In a relief to
former minister Anil
Deshmukh, the Bom-
bay High Court on Fri-
day said priority
should be given to his
bail plea in considera-
tion of his medical
condition. Deshmukh
has sought bail in a
corruption and mis-
use of official position
case being probed by
the Central Bureau of
Investigation (CBI).
Deshmukh, 74, ap-
proached the high court
after a special CBI court
rejectedhisbailplealast
month. He sought bail
bothonmedicalgrounds
as well as on merits.
When the plea was
heard on Friday, Desh-
mukh’s counsel Vikram
Chaudhari told a single
bench of Justice MS
Karnik that the former
minister was being
treated but he suffers
from several ailments
that require constant
treatment and care.
“He needs to be re-
leased. He is a chronic
patient,” said Chaudha-
ri.
Additional Solicitor
General Anil Singh, ap-
pearing on behalf of the
CBI, opposed the same
and said he is getting
proper treatment in jail
whenever required.
“His present medical
condition needs to be as-
certained. Medical con-
dition is not static...it
keeps changing,” said
Singh.
After hearing the
matter briefly
, the court
said it would hear the
bail plea on merits.
“I am satisfied that we
can proceed with the
hearing on merits and
give it priority
. This is
my prima facie opinion
that priority should be
given. One of the medi-
cal ailments (that Desh-
mukh is suffering from)
is degenerative,” said
Justice Karnik.
The court said it
would hear the plea on
December 06.
The Nationalist Con-
gress Party (NCP) lead-
er has been in jail since
November last year af-
ter his arrest by the En-
forcement Directorate
(ED) in a money laun-
deringcase.InAprilthis
year, he was arrested by
the CBI in the corrup-
tion case.
He is currently in ju-
dicial custody and
lodged at the Arthur
Road prison.
NEWS
MUMBAI | SATURDAY, DECEMBER 3, 2022
02
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Taking cognizance of ex-min’s ‘degenerative illness’, Court to hear plea on Dec 06
CRUCIAL READ
THREE OF FAMILY KILLED IN ROAD CRASH
MAN HELD FOR ATTEMPTING TO EXTORT `2
CR FROM CONSTRUCTION SITE MANAGER
NSUI MUMBAI CHIEF
CUTS CAKE WITH
SHARP WEAPON, HELD
NINE HELD FOR SAND
MINING IN LATUR
DISTRICT
Palghar: A family traveling to Mumbai from Gu-
jarat collided with a truck, resulting in the death
of three of their members, including an 80-year-
old man. The accident happened on Mumbai-
Ahmedabad highway in Palghar district. A police
official informed that the family was returning to
Kalyan in Thane district after attending a mar-
riage in Gujarat. Their car collided with a truck at
Dhanivari village. The bodies were sent for post-
mortem to a government hospital and the local
police are investigating.
Mumbai: The police on Friday arrested a 49-year-old
man for allegedly threatening and attempting to extort
Rs2 crore from the manager of a construction site in
the western suburb of Kandivali here, an official said.
The accused had allegedly come to the site, where the
complainant worked as a manager, and threatened to
stop the construction activity unless he was paid a bribe
of Rs2 crore. He later settled for Rs1 crore. A trap was
laid near the site and the accused was caught red handed
while accepting Rs5 lakh, the official said. A case under
section 384 (extortion) and other relevant provisions of
the Indian Penal Code has been registered, he added.
Mumbai: Pradyumn
Yadav (25), president
of the city unit of
the National Student
Union of India was
taken into custody
by Mumbai police
for allegedly cutting
birthday cake with a
sword-like weapon,
an official said on
Thursday. According
to sources, A video of
Yadav was celebrat-
ing his birthday with
his supporters near
the Vikhroli railway
station. Police booked
Yadav under relevant
sections of the Arms
act as well as Mumbai
Police Act taking suo
motu cognizance.
Latur: Acting on a
tip-off, police raided
Dongargao and
Boragao river basins
under the jurisdiction
of Jalkoat police sta-
tion and booked nine
persons for illegal sand
mining. Equipment,
stolen resources worth
Rs34 lakh were seized,
police said. While
one man was found
stealing sand using his
tractor in Boragaon,
eight were arrested in
the raid at Dongargaon
around 3 am on Friday,
Two offences have
been registered under
the IPC and Subor-
dinate Minerals Act,
2013.
Raut blasts BJP, govt over remarks on Shivaji
First India Bureau
Nashik: Criticizing
the Bharatiya Janata
Party (BJP) for main-
taining “silence” over
alleged objectionable
remarks made against
Chhatrapati Shivaji
Maharaj by some pub-
lic figures, Rajya Sab-
ha MP Sanjay Raut on
Friday warned “in-
sults” to the Maratha
warrior king will be
avenged.
Talking to reporters
in Nashik on Friday,
Raut said while the BJP
is sensitive to comments
perceived as insulting to
Prime Minister Naren-
dra Modi, the party re-
mains quiet when it
comes to remarks made
against the 17th century
Maratha warrior king, a
revered figure in Maha-
rashtra.
Maharashtra Gover-
nor Bhagat Singh Ko-
shyari, BJP Spokesper-
son Sudhanshu Trivedi
and state Tourism Min-
ister Mangal Prabhat
Lodha faced criticism
for their recent remarks
on Chhatrapati Shivaji
Maharaj which were
deemed as offensive.
Raut also attacked the
Eknath Shinde-led gov-
ernment over the fester-
ing Karnataka-Maha-
rashtra border row and
said the chief minister
of Karnataka “spits” on
the face of the current
dispensation, but the
stategovernmenthasno
self-respect.
The Shiv Sena (Ud-
dhav Balasaheb Thack-
eray) leader was react-
ing to the Karnataka
government’s move to
release water to some
villages in Jath tehsil in
Sangli district of Maha-
rashtra. The tehsil is
known to face water
shortage.
TOUGH TALK
First India Bureau
Mumbai: Amid rising
complaints of several
autonomous colleges
in the state overcharg-
ing fees to students,
while offering profes-
sional courses under
the traditional arts,
commerce and science
streams that are not
covered under the Fee
Regulatory Authority
(FRA), The state gov-
ernment has decided
to conduct random fi-
nancial audits of pri-
vate colleges.
“We will take a re-
view of such colleges.
Even as they are award-
ed autonomy; it is re-
lated to academics. The
government is bearing
the salary expenditure
of their staff. It is im-
portant to inspect if
academic autonomy is
used to gain monetary
benefits by charging ex-
orbitant fees.” an offi-
cial from The higher
and technical education
department said.
Also, the state govern-
ment is contemplating
different ways to reim-
burse fees of students
coming from reserved
categories and studying
in deemed universities,
following a court order
in such a case.
For this purpose,
about 10 percent of the
private colleges will be
randomly selected for
the audit. It will be ob-
served if these colleges
are charging more than
the fee amount as fixed
by the FRA and if ir-
regularities are found,
actions would be taken
accordingly
.
Along with colleges
offering professional
courses covered under
the FRA, The higher
and technical education
department will be con-
ducting a review of au-
tonomous colleges of-
fering professional
courses under the core
streams of arts, com-
merce and science.
FIRED UP!
Navy personnel practise for the upcoming Indian Navy Day celebration 2022, at The Gate Way
of India, in Mumbai on Thursday. Navy Day is marked on December 04 each year to recognize
the achievements and role of the Indian Navy in the country's security. —PHOTO BY ANI
PrioritytoDeshmukhbail
pleaovermedcondition:HC
First India Bureau
Nagpur: A day after
they were suspended
from their internship
at the Government
Medical College and
Hospital (GMCH) in
Nagpur over allega-
tions of ragging, six
MBBS students have
now been booked by
the police.
A case under section
323 (voluntarily causing
hurt) and other rele-
vant provisions of the
Indian Penal Code and
Maharashtra Prohibi-
tion of Ragging Act has
been registered, an of-
ficial from Ajni police
station said.
A student, in the first
year of the MBBS
course at the college,
had sent a secretly re-
corded video of the in-
cident--which allegedly
took place in April--to
the Central Anti-Rag-
ging Committee, follow-
ing which the
accused
w e r e
sus-
pended on Wednesday
.
After receiving the
video along with the
student's complaint, the
central committee di-
rected the GMCH ad-
ministration to initiate
action.
THE CONTENTION
Former Home Min Deshmukh has been lodged in Arthur Road jail since Nov last year. –FILE PHOTO
SIX MEDICAL INTERNS
BOOKED FOR RAGGING
WRplans`264croffencesto
stopVandeBharatanimalhits
Mumbai (PTI): The
Western Railway (WR)
on Friday said it would
install fences along
the Mumbai-
Ahmedabad route by
May next year to stop
animals from straying
onto the tracks and
getting run over.
The move coming in
thebackdropof thepres-
tigious Vande Bharat
Express hitting cattle
four times since its
launch on September 30.
Addressing a press
conference at the rail-
wayzone’sheadquarters
at Churchgate here, WR
GeneralManagerAshok
Kumar Misra said ten-
ders have been invited
for the construction of
the fences on the 620-kil-
ometre-long route,
which is expected to cost
Rs264 crore.
The third semi high-
speed Vande Bharat Ex-
press, flagged off by
dra Modi on September
30betweenGandhinagar
in Gujarat and the coun-
try’s financial capital,
has hit cattle four times.
Auditforpvtcollegeson
allegedovercharging
First India Bureau
Mumbai: More than 50
buildings in Mumbai
that were declared
dangerous but whose
redevelopment was
stuck have got relief
now that President
Droupadi Murmu has
signed the bill amend-
ing the Maharashtra
Housing and Area De-
velopment (MHADA)
Act 1976, Deputy
Chief Minister Deven-
dra Fadnavis said.
President Murmu
signed the amendments
in the MHADA Act 1976,
giving preference to the
owner or the tenants of
a residential building to
submit a proposal for
redevelopment once it
is categorized by the
civic body as being too
dangerous to live in,
Fadnavis explained.
If the residents or
owner fail to submit
any proposal for its re-
development, MHADA,
the apex public body
constituted under the
MHADA Act, has now
been empowered to take
the project in its hands
for the same, Fadnavis
tweeted further.
The president has
cleared the way for the
redevelopment of 56
buildings that had been
paying cess, and whose
redevelopment was
stuck despite being cat-
egorized as dangerous
structures.
PRESIDENT MURMU SIGNS MHADA ACT AMENDMENT BILL
Rajya Sabha MP warns of ‘avenging
insults’ to Maratha warrior king; calls
out K’taka CM Bommai for border row
At an election rally in Gujarat, Con-
gress President Mallikarjun Kharge
compared Prime Minister Modi
with demon king Ravan. The PM termed it
as an insult to Gujarat and made it a big is-
sue in the elections. In fact, I also did not
like (Kharge) calling Modi as Ravan, but in
Maharashtra, the same BJP and the Shinde
faction are silent on insults to Chhatrapati
Shivaji Maharaj.
— Sanjay Raut, Shiv Sena - UBT leader
Even colleges that
have been awarded
autonomy may come
under scanner

MAHARASHTRA
03
2018 embargo on single-use
plastic partially rolled back
First India Bureau
Mumbai: Four years
after it completely
banned plastic items,
the state government
has decided to allow
some single-use plas-
tic items, such as
straw, plates, cups,
glasses, forks and
bowls—as long as they
are made from com-
postable polymers.
Often seen as a viable
alternative to conven-
tional plastics, com-
postable polymers mim-
ic the former’s positive
qualities such as barri-
er properties, durabili-
ty and shelf stability
butcanbebrokendown,
unlike synthetic poly-
mers that have had a
negative impact on the
environment and hu-
man health.
The government has
also allowed non-woven
polypropylene carry-
bags, specifically those
made from materials
weighing more than
60gsm (grams per
square metre) with a
thickness of less than
50 microns.
The partial rollback
will bring relief to re-
lief to plastic manufac-
turers, traders and us-
ers of plastic such as
restaurants, shops and
businesses across the
state. The notification
was issued by the envi-
ronment department on
Wednesday, while the
decision was taken on
Monday after Chief
Minister Eknath Shin-
de and Deputy Chief
Minister Devendra Fad-
navis chaired a meeting
with the environment
department.
The notification also
allows plastic items less
than 50 microns and
itemslessthan60grams
per square metre for
packaging purposes.
“The packaging mate-
rial shall be more than
50 microns thickness.
In case the thickness of
plastic sheets impairs
the functionality of the
product, the packaging
material shall be of less
than 50 microns,” it
says.
However, it does come
with a rider that manu-
facturers will have to
secure certificates from
Plastic Engineering
and Technology (CI-
PET) and Central Pollu-
tion Control Board
(CPCB) for manufac-
ture and trade of such
items.
The current iteration
of the 2018 ban already
allowed compostable
plastic carriers for in-
dustries such as Solid
Waste Management
(SWM).
Move will bring
relief to Maha
manufacturers
and traders, as
well as
restaurants,
shops and
businesses
Synthetic polymers have a negative impact on the environment and human health. —FILE PHOTO
Pleatorule 2019CRZ
orderillegaladmitted
First India Bureau
Mumbai: The Na-
tional Green Tribu-
nal (Pune) has ac-
cepted a plea to de-
clare the 2019 Coast-
al Regulation Zone
(CRZ) notification
illegal, ultra-vires
and violative of Ar-
ticle 14 and 21 of the
Constitution. Inci-
dentally
, the CRZ no-
tification, came into
force in 2021.
In a plea filed by
NGO Vanashakti, it
was stated that rather
than protecting the en-
vironment, the 2019
CRZ notification re-
moved various envi-
ronmental protections
bestowed under CRZ
2011.
While admitting
the plea on Thursday,
the NGT also directed
the issuance of notic-
es to the Union Minis-
try of Environment,
Forests and Climate
Change, and the Na-
tional and Maharash-
tra Coastal Zone Man-
agement Authorities,
respectively
.
The tribunal said
that the plea has
pointed out that the
special protections
granted to Greater
Mumbai in CRZ 2011,
have been severely di-
luted. The plea states
that CRZ 2011, laid
special emphasis on
Greater Mumbai on
subject matters rang-
ing from “construc-
tion of roads, solid
waste disposal sites,
slum rehabilitation
scheme, redevelop-
ment of dilapidated
buildings,” among
others.
“But the entire sec-
tion, except protection
of open spaces and
construction of sew-
age treatment plan,
was deleted in the 2018
draft notification and
also the 2019 notifica-
tion,” it added.
The National Green Tribunal will investigate claims of special
protections dilution granted to Greater Mumbai.—FILE PHOTO
First India Bureau
Titwala: A woman
gave birth to a child
aboard a local train
bound for Mumbai
from Kasara on
Thursday.
According to Titwala
Lohmarg police offi-
cials, the mother Preeti
Vakchaure and the
child are safe and in sta-
ble condition.
A resident of Atgaon
area of Shahapur talu-
ka, Preeti boarded the
train to Mumbai from
Atgaon station early in
the morning.
Interestingly, she in-
tended to get to a hospi-
tal in Mumbai for a
check-up when she
started experiencing la-
bour pains at Titwala
railway station.
After hearing her cry
for help, passengers in
the women’s coach im-
mediately informed the
Railway police about
Preeti’s condition.
A team of women
Government Railway
Police (GRP) and Rail-
way Police Force (RPF)
immediately reached
the spot.
With their assistance,
the woman successfully
gave birth to a healthy
child. Both the mother
and her newborn were
then taken to a nearby
private hospital for ob-
servation by the police
personnel.
Their actions, which
were recorded in the
CCTV camera footage
of Titwala railway sta-
tion, were shared on
social media platforms.
Netizens hailed the
police officials for their
assisting Preeti with
her unique delivery
.
In November a simi-
lar incident occured in
neighbouring state of
Rajasthan, where a
woman gave birth to a
child on a moving train.
A brick kiln worker
boarded the Ratlam-
Mathura MEMU train
back to his village along
with his pregnant wife.
She went into labour
after the train left
Hindaun station and
soon after gave birth to
a baby boy
.
The woman received
assistance from other
female passengers on-
board the train. She
was taken to a hospital
after the train arrived
at Bayana station.
Woman gives birth on Mumbai-bound local train
SMALL MIRACLE
Swift response
by Mumbai Govt
Railway police
personnel helps;
both mother and
child under obs
at pvt hospital
Screengrab of CCTV footage showing GRP and RPF personnel assisting the woman.
First India Bureau
Mumbai: The Met-
ropolitan Region
Development Au-
thority (MMRDA)
has collaborated
with Adani Elec-
tricity Mumbai Ltd
to power two Metro
lines—Metro 2A
(Dahisar-DN Na-
gar) and Metro 7
(Dahisar E-And-
heri E). The total
power to be used by
these lines annual-
ly comes to around
120 million units.
With multiple elec-
tricity distributors in
Mumbai city
, the pow-
er supply sector is a
complex structure.
These include the
state-owned Brihan-
mumbaiElectricSup-
ply and Transport
(BEST), Maharashtra
State Electricity Dis-
tribution Company
Limited (MSEDCL)
along with the two
major private play-
ers—Tata Power and
Adani Electricity
.
“In the last few
years, power-inten-
sive establishments
such as airports, data
centres, hospitals,
metro networks, soft-
ware parks, and ho-
tels are choosing
Adani Electricity as
their supplier. This is
due to reliable and
sustainable power
supply at competitive
tariffs supported by
customer-centric ser-
vices,” said a spokes-
person from Adani
Electricity
.
“We are pleased to
support MMRDA and
Mumbai Metro’s
commuters with our
sustainable solutions
being a key differen-
tiator to help reduce
our customers’ car-
bon footprint,” he
added.
Adani Electricity
meets close to 2,000
MW of power de-
mand in Mumbai’s
largest and the most
efficient power dis-
tribution network.
First India Bureau
Mumbai: The Brihan-
mumbai Electricity
Supply and Transport
(BEST) Undertaking
plans to launch 50
new double-decker e-
buses in a phased
manner beginning
January 14, 2023.
The body was sup-
posed to introduce new
double-decker electric
buses in September, but
delayinthecertification
process has hindered
the plan.
“Processof gettingap-
proval for the new dou-
ble-decker e-buses is on.
Wearehopingthatitwill
becompleted soon,” said
Lokesh Chandra, Gen-
eral Manager of BEST.
“BEST wants to intro-
duce 50 new double-
decker e-buses in the
current financial year.
First lot of nearly 10
double-decker e-buses
will be introduced on
January 14” added
Chandra. The undertak-
ing will phase out all
existing double-decker
buses by June 2023. Cur-
rently, there are 45 dou-
ble-decker diesel buses
running in the city on
different routes.
Further, in order to
improve connectivity,
BEST will also start a
cab service soon. The
body has begun the pro-
cess of floating tenders
to invite agencies which
can provide environ-
ment-friendly e-cabs
with drivers. Those ve-
hicles will bear the
BEST logo and accept
bookings from bus pas-
sengers using the Chalo
app. BEST plans to in-
troduce 500 cabs by June
2023. All traditional me-
ters will soon be re-
placed by smart meters
by September 2023.
BEST will also set up
330 EV charging sta-
tions at 55 locations
across Mumbai city for
the public.
Adani Electricity
to power two
Mum Metro lines
50 new BEST double-decker
e-buses to ply from Jan 2023
Delay in
certification process
pushed plan from
September this year
Under collab
with MMRDA,
Lines 2A 7
connecting
Andheri to
Dahisar to get
power supply
Local NGO
lodged
complaint on
ground that it
removes
environmental
protections
First India Bureau
Mumbai: After receiv-
ing a directive from
Deputy Chief Minister
Devendra Fadnavis,
the Maharashtra State
Electricity Distribu-
tion Company Ltd
(MSEDCL) has simpli-
fied the procedure fol-
lowed for changes
made to names on elec-
tricity bills after sale
of flats, shops or any
other commercial es-
tablishments.
Thisstepwastakenas
part of the state govern-
ment’s ‘Ease-of-living’
initiative.
In the earlier process,
after paying stamp duty
and registration for a
new flat, a person was
requiredtosubmitanap-
plication to the power
utility firm with all rel-
evant documents.
Officials then con-
ducted checks at the site
andaskedthenewowner
to pay relevant fees, etc.
“Now, things have
been simplified and one
need not venture out of
home to submit any ap-
plication,” informed an
official. The process,
which took weeks before
will now be over in a
matter of days.
The stamp duty and
registration department
is linked to the MSED-
CL’s IT system. Now, of-
ficials will send a SMS
with charges for name
transfer, which will be
reflected in next bill au-
tomatically
, he added.
MSEDCL eases name
transfer procedure
GLIMMER OF HOPE
BEST also set to introduce 300 cabs under its service by June next year. —FILE PHOTO
According to the United Nations, plastic accounts for 85% of all marine litter, and
by 2040, it will nearly triple, adding 23-37 million metric tons of waste into the
ocean per year. However, the Association of Compostable Products in India says
that the domestic market is seeing “significant growth” in the compostable plas-
tic packaging material sector, led by growing awareness and benefits from using
sustainable and eco-friendly products that leave no harmful footprints behind.
Adani Electricity provides electricity to more than 31 lakh
homes in suburban Mumbai. —FILE PHOTO

ussia’s broad interests in
Ukraine: Russia has deep
cultural, economic, and po-
litical bonds with Ukraine
that go back centuries with
approximately more than ten
million ethnic Russians liv-
ing in Ukraine. Ukraine go-
ing NATO or Western orbit
way is viewed as a security
threat to Russia as well as its
standing as a great power.
The city of Sevastopol is
home port for Russia’s Black
Sea Fleet, the dominant mar-
itime force in the region and
any loss of control over it is
detrimental to Russian stra-
tegic interests. Russia and
Ukraine have been largest
trading partners with Russia
having relied on Ukrainian
pipelines to pump its gas to
customers in Central and
Eastern Europe for decades,
and it paid Kyiv billions of
dollars per year in transit
fees. Russia was keen to pre-
serve its political influence
in Ukraine but the current
President Zelenskyy definite-
ly isn’t the right man. The
Russo-Ukrainian conflict has
been ongoing since February
2014, when Russia annexed
Crimea from Ukraine and
supported pro-Russian sepa-
ratists. The conflict escalated
on 24 Feb 2022 when Russian
President Putin sent troops
into Ukraine from the north,
south and east claiming to
“demilitarise and de-Nazify
Ukraine. In reality it was
framed as an attempt at en-
suring neutral status and
preventing NATO from gain-
ing a foothold in Ukraine.
Current situation and
Impact: After months of
war, both armies are ex-
hausted and depleted. The
continual attrition has taken
a toll on men and equipment,
even though Ukraine has re-
ceived aid and trained re-
servists to make up their
losses and Russia’s partial
military mobilization would
make another 2,00,000 or so
conscripts available to fill
their tired and ragged lines.
The civil population is suffer-
ing with Millions of civilians
unable to return home. Many
still in the country are forced
to live without access to food,
water, health care, and other
essential supplies. With
Over 17,000 causalities, in-
cluding 6,500 killed and 6.5
million people internally dis-
placed, the war is getting hei-
nous. Increasing food and
fuel prices have an immedi-
ate impact on the poorest
people in developing coun-
tries, causing hunger and
suffering for families.
Ukraine is historically a
large exporter of grain and
the current war is increasing
food insecurity and contrib-
uting to the risk of famine in
the world.
Some possibilities in the
current scenario with im-
plications: With winter set-
ting in and then the melting
snow and slushy ground of
spring a pause can be expect-
ed around December or so till
March. Both sides may like to
make maximum gains and
perhaps even bring the war
to a conclusion before that
but it seems difficult to pre-
dict the timelines or even the
manner in which the war
could end. The war is swing-
ing between extremities with
no clear evidence where it’s
heading. But some of the
likely possibilities are: - Rus-
sians launch a renewed offen-
sive with 200,000 recently
mobilized conscripts to at-
tain their military aims and
regain the territory lost to
Ukrainian counter-attacks
have pushed them back from
some of the occupied territo-
ries. They could even push
ahead in the south towards
Odesa, the one vital port on
the Black Sea which the
Ukrainians still hold. The
likelihood of a renewed Rus-
sian offensive is high, though
one cannot predict the gains
it could make, or in what
time frame.
A successful Ukrainian
counter offensive aided by
NATO (an additional $400
million in military aid by US
including refurbishing 45
T-72 tanks and missiles for
HAWK air defence systems
for Kyiv) pushing the Rus-
sians back to their own terri-
tory
. The Ukrainian offensive
has made sizeable gains both
in the east and in the south.
Buoyed by their success, and
replenished with western
arms and freshly trained re-
servists, the Ukrainians
could continue their offen-
sive to recapture the lost ter-
ritory
. A complete Ukrainian
victory, in the near term, at
least, could be difficult.
Another possibility is that
the war becomes an intermi-
nable frozen conflict, with
neither side being able to
change the status quo. Both
sides dig in along the posi-
tions they hold which be-
comes the Line of Contact.
There could be a stalemate
along the line held by Rus-
sian and Ukrainian troops
along which low intensity
fighting could continue in-
terminably. Ukraine may
not like it, but would be un-
able to change the overall
picture.
In another possibility of
worst case scenario is a
NATO - Russian conflict
wherein in the fog of the
war crossing of a “Red Line”
which could be the use of a
chemical, biological or a nu-
clear weapon, or maybe even
a particularly devastating at-
tack on a civilian target could
draw NATO into the conflict.
A more pragmatic view sug-
gests NATO will continue to
prop up Ukraine with infu-
sions of arms and aid, which
will keep the conflict going.
After all, this state suits them
where they can continue to
weaken Russia “to the last
Ukrainian” without being
directly involved. Neither
does Russia want a direct
confrontation with NATO -
one in which they may lose.
This scenario may be seri-
ously viewed by both sides
but the last G- 20 Summit
where the world leaders in-
cluding China have stressed
“the use or threat of use of
nuclear weapons is inadmis-
sible” makes the chances of
this scenario dim.
THE VIEWS EXPRESSED BY
THE AUTHOR ARE PERSONAL
Dharmendra Pradhan
@dpradhanbjp
The world trusts and acknowledges
the prowess of this #NewIndia.
There’s no spin to it. One can ignore
it due to his/her political alignment.
130 crore+ Indians see India’s G20
Presidency as an opportunity to
showcase their best. Congress is free
to show what it is best at.
Shandilya Giriraj Singh
@girirajsinghbjp
‘Kuwa Tok’ locality residents had
to travel a trail-like raw path to get
there. In rainy weather, this road was
impassable due to excessive mud and
soil erosion. As a result, crops could
be damaged and accidents could occur.
#MGNREGA was used to facilitate this
inaccessible path.
SPIRITUAL SPEAK
Those who cling to
perceptions and views
wander the world
offending people.
—Buddha
IN-DEPTH
CHANCE FOR NEW
DELHI TO PLAY A
PIVOTAL ROLE IN
WORLD AFFAIRS
aving taken over the
G20 Presidency from
Indonesia for the
first time, India will
host 19 of the world’s
largest economies and the Euro-
pean Union in September 2023.
India occupying the top seat at
the summit will affirm its im-
portance in global affairs. While
making India’s image more lus-
trous, the G20 Presidency will
also make the BJP stronger for
the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
What India can achieve during
its G20 Chairmanship, however,
is much more than that. This of-
fers New Delhi the best opportu-
nity to showcase its ancient
Hindu culture and philosophy
.
It can narrow the North-South
divide by emerging as the “voice
of the global South”, which
broadly refers to regions in Asia,
Latin America, Africa and Oce-
ania, for inclusive development.
The External Affairs Minister
has said that New Delhi will
work to “depoliticise” the global
supply of food, fertilizers and
medical products. “As the moth-
er of democracy, India’s G20
Presidency will be consultative
... collaborative… and decisive.
TOP TWEETS
H
ive years after
Prime Minister
Narendra Modi
launched the Digi-
tal India initiative
in 2015, the country contin-
ues to make steady progress
in the digital world. That it
can be an enabler and benefi-
ciary was best proved by the
COWIN app which tracked all
vaccinations during the Cov-
id pandemic. They later be-
came useful documents for
travelers in particular and
also for people in general.
Now comes the Digi Yatra
app which will enable flyers
to forget about collecting
their boarding passes at the
airport. From Thursday, pa-
perless entry to select air-
ports has been introduced.
Seven airports will be cov-
ered in the first phase of the
initiative starting with Del-
hi, Bengaluru and Varanasi.
Remaining four airports - Hy-
derabad, Kolkata, Pune and
Vijayawada - will get the fa-
cility in March 2023. Subse-
quently, all the airports will
have this technology. This
will be made possible by Digi-
Yatra, facial recognition soft-
ware, for entry into airports.
The technology will gradu-
ally make ID cards and board-
ing passes redundant.
DigiYatra envisages con-
tactless and paperless move-
ment of travellers through
various checkpoints includ-
ing entry, security check ar-
eas and aircraft boarding.
The technology uses facial
features to establish identity
.
To avail the facility, a passen-
ger will have to register his/
her details on DigiYatra app
using Aadhaar and a photo.
The government has also
introduced the E- rupee as a
form of transaction. The e-
currency is not much differ-
ent from other UPI based wal-
lets except that the limit on
holding digital rupee is much
more than in other wallets.
DIGITAL INDIA
MARCHES AHEAD
Seven airports will be
covered in 1st phase
of the paperless entry
initiative starting with
New Delhi, Bengaluru
and Varanasi.
Remaining 4 airports -
Hyderabad, Kolkata, Pune
and Vijayawada - will get
the facility in March 2023
F
UKRAINE-RUSSIA WAR
WORSENING SITUATION
R
Chinese President Xi
Jinping and German
Chancellor Olaf Scholz
oppose Russia’s threats to
use atomic weapons in
Ukraine. Scholz even
warned that Moscow risked
“crossing a line” in the
international community
by resorting to nuclear
force. As the G- 7 leaders
reiterated its stand against
Moscow’s war in Ukraine,
the foreign ministers of the
group said any use of
chemical, biological or
nuclear weapons by Russia
would be met with severe
consequences. Most
members of G- 20 and
India also suggest for a
diplomatic solution,
through talks to the
Russian-Ukraine conflict.
After months of war, both
armies are exhausted and
depleted. The continual
attrition has taken a toll on
men and equipment, even
though Ukraine has
received aid and trained
reservists to make up their
losses, Russia’s partial
military mobilization
would make another
2,00,000 or so
conscripts available to
fill tired, ragged lines
COL RAJESH BHUKAR
The author is a Post Graduate in
International Studies, Alumni of Defense
Services Staff College, Wellington
and College of Combat, Mhow
PERSPECTIVE
04
l Vol 1 l Issue No. 206
l RNI TITLE NO.
MAHENG/2022/14652
Printed and published by
Anita Hada Sangwan on behalf of
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Published at Plot No. 3 Scheme C
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Limited, Survey No. 5, 6C (Part) Ville
Parle East, Mumbai 400057.
Phone 022-46031417.
Editor-In-Chief: Dr Jagdeesh Chandra
Editor: Kartikey Dev Singh
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under the PRB Act

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05
INDIA
TELANGANA MLAS
POACHING: 3 GET
INTERIM RELIEF
QUTUB MINAR ROW:
COURT TO PASS
ORDER ON DEC 12
Kochi: The Kerala High
Court on Friday granted
interim protection from
arrest to three persons
who are co-workers of
a person facing probe
in the case of alleged
conspiracy to poach
TRS MLAs. The three
persons, all employees
of a private hospital
here, moved the High
Court seeking bail,
anticipating their arrest
by Telangana police.
New Delhi: A court here
will on December 12
pass an order on the
review plea to its earlier
order dismissing an
intervention application
on the Qutub Minar row.
The intervention appli-
cation, filed in an appeal
seeking the restoration
of Hindu and Jain deities
in an alleged temple
complex inside Qutub
Minar, was dismissed by
the court on Sep 20.
SC: COLLEGIUM
SYSTEM SHOULD
NOT BE DERAILED
NOD TO CBI FOR
LR AGAINST
NIRAV MODI’S KIN
New Delhi: The apex
court has said the colle-
gium system should not
be derailed on the basis
of statements of “some
busybody”. Amid divi-
sions in judiciary and its
dispute with govt over
the system under which
judges appoint judges
to courts, it said it does
not want to comment on
what a few former SC
judges are now saying
about the mechanism.
New Delhi: The CBI on
Friday told the Su-
preme Court it has got
the Centre’s go ahead
to move a Mumbai
court for issuance of
letters rogatory (LR)
to a Singapore court
for obtaining evidence
against Mainak Mehta,
the brother-in-law of
fugitive diamantaire
Nirav Modi, who is an
accused in the PNB
fraud case.
New York (ANI): India
is ready to take its place
atglobaltoptablesnclud-
ing G-20 and the UN Se-
curity Council presiden-
cy as the country is will-
ing to bring solutions to
the table, India’s Perma-
nent Representative to
the UN Ruchira Kamboj
said on Friday
.
During the press
briefing, when asked
about UNSC reforms
and India’s permanent
seatatthesecuritycoun-
cil, Kamboj said, “India
is ready to take its place
attheglobaltoptablesas
a country that is willing
to bring solutions to the
table. One of the central
tenets of our foreign
policy is human-centric
and which will remain
the same.” India has
been one of the leading
voicesforthelong-stand-
ing reforms due in the
UNSC, stating that it
surely deserves a posi-
tion at the highest level
of the UN as a perma-
nent member. Proposals
to restructure the secu-
rity council which now
has five permanent
membersandtenelected
to two-year terms, have
beenaroundforovertwo
decades, but have hit a
stalemate in the UN
General Assembly
.
Ambassador Kamboj
told reporters that even
as the world grapples
with a pandemic and
multilateralism is un-
der stress, India has
emerged on the interna-
tional stage as a rally-
ing point of hope.
“India ready to take its place at global top tables”
INDIA AT WORLD STAGE
New Delhi (PTI): The National Green Tribunal (NGT)
has directed the Manipur government to pay Rs 200
crore as environmental compensation for improper
management of solid and liquid waste. A bench
headed by chairperson Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel
said remedial action cannot wait for an indefinite
period, nor loose-ended timelines without account-
ability can be a solution. It said the responsibility
of the state is to have a comprehensive time-bound
plan with tied-up resources to control pollution. The
bench, also comprising Justice Sudhir Agarwal and
expert member A Senthil Vel, said it is high time the
state realised its duty to the law and to citizens and
adopts further monitoring at its own level.
MANIPUR GOVT TO PAY `200 CRORE FOR
IMPROPER SOLID LIQUID WASTE MGMT
IN THE COURTYARD
India’s Permanent Representative to the UN Ruchira Kamboj.
G20 PRESIDENCY ROTATIONAL, INEVITABLE;
GOVT INDULGING IN ‘HIGH DRAMA’: CONGRESS
GUJARAT RECORDS 63.14% TURNOUT IN
FIRST PHASE, DOWN FROM 66.75% IN 2017
CONGRESS ONLY BELIEVES IN
STALLING, DELAYING,
MISLEADING, SAYS PM MODI
MEHSANA MLA NITIN PATEL
NOT CONTESTING BUT STILL A
FACTOR IN DISTRICT
New Delhi (PTI): A day after India assumed the leader-
ship of the G-20, the Congress on Friday attacked the
Modi government, saying the presidency was rotational
and inevitable with none of the countries that held the
responsibility earlier staging a “high voltage drama”
as is being done now. India on Thursday assumed the
Presidency of the G-20 with Prime Minister Narendra
Modi making a strong pitch for “fundamental mindset
shift” to benefit humanity as a whole and saying the
country will work to further promote “oneness”.
Ahmedabad (PTI): Prime Minister
Narendra Modi on Friday alleged that
the Congress only believed in ‘atkana,
latkana aur bhatkana’ (stalling, delay-
ing and misleading), and said those
who looted poor people in the coun-
try were now abusing him for putting
an end to corruption. He also alleged
that the previous Congress govern-
ments never showed any interest in
bringing the Narmada river water to
the parched regions of Gujarat as the
party was only interested in doing
those works where there was scope
to indulge in corruption. Modi was
addressing a rally in Kankrej village of
Banaskantha district, where voting for
the second phase of Gujarat Assem-
bly polls will be held on December 5.
Mehsana (PTI): BJP leader and for-
mer deputy chief minister Nitin Patel’s
name features prominently in poll ral-
lies in his home turf Mehsana ahead
of the Gujarat assembly elections,
despite the Patidar heavyweight not
being fielded by his party this time.
The party’s banners across the state
usually have five faces on it Prime
Minister Narendra Modi at the front,
Amit Shah and JP Nadda on one side,
and Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra
Patel and CR Patil on the other. But in
Mehsana, Nitin Patel also features in
the posters, a proof of his popularity
in the district. The BJP has fielded its
Mehsana city unit president Mukesh
Patel from the segment for the up-
coming assembly elections.
Ahmedabad (PTI):
dra Modi on Friday said
the Congress alleging
tampering of Electron-
ic Voting Machines is
an indication that it has
already accepted defeat
in the Gujarat Assem-
bly elections.
Voting for 89 seats in
the first phase of the
Gujarat elections took
place on Thursday
.
“The way Congress
has started blaming
EVMs after yesterday's
voting in Kutch, Sau-
rashtra and south Guja-
rat, it is evident the op-
position party has con-
ceded defeat and has
accepted that the BJP
will win the election.
Alleging EVM tamper-
ing is an indication the
Congress is on its way
out,” said Modi.
He was speaking at a
rally in Patan where
voting will be held
along with remaining
92 seats on December 5.
“TheCongressknows
only two things, abuse
Modi ahead of polls to
please the voters and
then blame EVMs after
voting. This proves the
Congress has accepted
defeat,” he said.
He also slammed past
Congress governments
for ‘widening' the rift
between the rich and
the poor in the country
and “looting” the funds
meant for the welfare of
the poor.
Mainpuri (ANI): Akh-
ilesh Yadav will turn old
but never return to pow-
er, said Tourism and
Culture Minister of Ut-
tar Pradesh, Jaiveer
Singh, on Friday react-
ing to the Samajwadi
Partychief’sallegedjibe
at Deputy Chief Minis-
tersKeshavPrasadMau-
rya and Brajesh Pathak.
The Samajwadi lead-
er has alleged that both
the deputy chief minis-
ters of UP have been
eyeing an opportunity
to become CM, but have
“failed”. Addressing a
public rally supporting
party candidate Asim
Raza in Rampur ahead
of the bypolls, Akhilesh
Yadav said: “There are
two Deputy CMs in the
state. Both of them are
looking for an opportu-
nity to become CM. We
have come to give them
an offer.”
“Take 100 MLAs from
us, we are with you, be-
come CM whenever you
want,” the Samajwadi
Party chief offered
Maurya and Pathak.
He also said the BJP
government of the state
should not be so harsh
on the Opposition party
believing it would be-
come “vindictive” when
it returns to power.
Reacting to the SP
leader's statements dur-
ing an election cam-
paign, Jaiveer Singh
mocked Akhilesh Yadav
for having fallen on
hard times.
New Delhi (ANI):
Newly appointed BJP
spokesperson and For-
mer Congress leader
Jaiveer Shergill on Fri-
day expressed his grati-
tude to Prime Minister
Narendra Modi, BJP
president JP Nadda and
Union Home Minister
Amit Shah on Friday
.
Earlier on Friday
, the
BJP appointed former
Congress leader Jaiveer
Shergill as its national
spokesperson.“Iexpress
myheartfeltgratitudeto
dra Modi, BJP national
president JP Nadda and
Home Minister Amit
Shah for appointing me
as the national spokes-
person of the world’s
largest party,” Jaiveer
Shergill tweeted.
The BJP appointed
nine senior leaders for
key national roles in the
party, including Capt
Amarinder Singh, with
immediate effect.
As per the statement,
formerPunjabCMAma-
rinder Singh, former
MP Sunil Jakhar, and
Ministerof JalShaktiin
the UP govt Swatantra-
dev Singh have been ap-
pointed as members of
the National Executive.
MAINPURI BYPOLLS
BATTLEGROUND GUJARAT
UP Minister hits out at Akhilesh
ShivpalforremarksagainstBJP
CONG HAS ACCEPTED DEFEAT: MODI
PM says that Congress alleging tampering of Electronic Voting Machines is an indication that it has already accepted defeat
Samajwadi Party National President Akhilesh Yadav addresses an
election rally, in Jaswantnagar, on Friday. —PHOTO BY PTI
PM Narendra Modi addresses BJP’s Vijay Sankalp convention for
Assembly polls at Sojitra, in Anand, on Friday. —PHOTO BY PTI
Jaiveer Shergill
“YOU WILL NEITHER
BECOME CM,NOR BE
ABLE TO MAKE ANYONE”
MEVANI CONFIDENT
OF WINNING FROM
VADGAM SEAT AGAIN
BJP HOPES TO
TROUNCE CONGRESS
IN DANILIMDA SEAT
Lucknow (PTI): Akhilesh
Yadav will neither become
chief minister nor will he
be able to make anyone
get that position, Ut-
tar Pradesh Deputy CM
Keshav Prasad Maurya
said Friday responding to
the SP president’s “offer”.
At a rally in Rampur a day
earlier, Yadav claimed the
two deputy CMs — Kes-
hav Prasad Maurya and
Brajesh Pathak — wanted
to become CM. He offered
to support them if they
joined the Samajwadi
Party along with 100 BJP
MLAs. “What is the use
of holding the deputy CM
position when you can-
not even transfer a chief
medical officer,” he said.
Vadgam (PTI): Vad-
gam, an SC-reserved
Assembly segment in
Gujarat, is considered
an easy seat to win for
the Congress owing to
its demographic profile
with high number of
Muslim and Dalit voters.
But retaining it will not
be easy for sitting MLA
Jignesh Mevani, who
is contesting from the
grand old party this
time, as it has become a
four-cornered fight with
the entry of AAP and
AIMIM. Although Mevani
himself is confident of
his victory, the BJP and
political analysts feel
otherwise.
Ahmedabad (PTI): An
intense battle of prestige
is on between the BJP
and the Congress over
the control of the minor-
ity and Dalit-dominated
Danilimda Assem-
bly constituency in
Ahmedabad, which the
saffron party has never
won since the seat came
into existence a decade
back. The BJP is hopeful
of breaking the jinx this
time as it is pinning
hopes on the division of
Congress's votes in the
seat that is all set for a
four-cornered contest
with the entry of the
AIMIM and the AAP into
the fray.
Shergill thanks PM after
being appointed BJP’s
national spokesperson
BJP supporters wave party flags during PM Narendra Modi’s election campaign roadshow for the Gujarat Assembly elections, in Ahmedabad, on Friday. —PHOTO BY PTI
Ahmedabad (PTI): A voter turnout of 63.14 per cent
was recorded in the first phase of Gujarat Assembly
elections covering 89 seats across 19 districts of
Saurashtra-Kutch and southern regions of the state,
the Election Commission said on Friday. In the 2017
Assembly election, the voter turnout in the first phase
covering the same 89 constituencies stood at 66.75 per
cent. Polling for the first phase, in which the electoral
fate of 788 candidates was locked in Electronic Voting
Machines (EVMs), was held on Thursday.

06
INDIA
USA and UK from Dec
9th to 15th: IAS officers
Shashi Prakash Goyal
(ACS CM), Arvind Ku-
mar (ACS Infrastructure
and Industrial Develop-
ment), Prashant Trivedi
(ACS Finance), IRTS
Amit Singh (Secretary
CM)
Australia and Singa-
pore from December
13 -14 : IAS officers
Deepak Kumar (Prin-
cipal Secretary Basic
Education), Subhash
Chandra Sharma
(Principal Secretary
Provisional Education),
Mayur Maheshwari
(CEO UP SIDA), Ritu
Maheshwari (CEO
Noida), Prathamesh
(ACEO Invest UP)
Mexico, Brazil, Argenti-
na from December 9 to
December 14: IAS offic-
ers Manoj Kumar Singh
(APC), Dr. Rajneesh
Dubey (ACS Livestock),
Sanjay R Bhoosreddy
(ACS Sugar, Sugar-
cane), Sanjay Prasad
(Principal Secretary
CM), Kumar Harsh
(Special Secretary CM)
New Delhi (PTI): Con-
gress leader Jairam
Ramesh on Friday said
people like Kapil Sibal
who maintained a “dig-
nified silence” after
leaving the party could
be allowed to return, but
not the ones like Jyotira-
ditya Scindia or Him-
anta Biswa Sarma.
Ramesh, who is the
Congress’s media head,
also termed Union min-
ister Scindia as a “24
carat traitor.
Asked what would be
the party’s stand if any
of the renegade leaders
wished to return,
Ramesh told PTI, “I
think the people who
have left the Congress
should not be welcome
back. “There are people
who left and abused the
party
, so they should not
be taken back. But there
are people who left the
party with dignity and
have been maintaining
a dignified silence on
the Congress party and
its leadership,” he said.
Rameshwasspeaking
on the sidelines of Con-
gress leader Rahul Gan-
dhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra
which reached Agar
Malwa in MP on Friday
.
“I can think of my for-
mer colleague and a
very good friend Kapil
Sibal who left the party
for some reason, but he
has maintained a very
dignified silence on the
Congress party, unlike
Mr Scindia and Mr Him-
anta Biswa Sarma,”
Ramesh said.
Qatar (ANI): CostaRica
and Germany played a
see-saw encounter in a
Group E clash that saw
Germany beat Costa
Rica 4-2 at the Al-Bayt
StadiumonFridayinthe
ongoingFIFAWorldCup.
The win however
could not save the four-
time champions from an
early departure as Ger-
manysuffereditssecond
straight exit. They had
also failed to reach the
2018 edition’s round of
16. Germany were ahead
with a 1-0 lead over Cos-
ta Rica but the central
American team came
out all guns blazing in
the second half as they
found the back of the net
twice through Yeltsin
Tejeda in the 58th min-
ute and Juan Pablo Var-
gas in the 70th minute.
Alateresurgencefrom
Germany led by Kai Lu-
kas Havertz saw them
score three goals in the
last20minutestowinthe
match. Havertz scored in
the 73rd and 85th min-
utes while Niclas Full-
krug found the back of
the net in the 89th min-
ute to secure a 4-2 win.
TheGermanstookthe
leadalmostimmediately
after the kickoff, with
Jamal Musiala testing
Kaylor Navas from out-
side the box.
Germany crash out despite win over Costa Rica
FIFA WORLD CUP
lll
The win however
could not save
the four-time
champions from
an early
departure as
Germany
suffered its
second
straight exit
VP visits WW-II memorial in Kohima memorial in Kohima
Kohima (PTI): Vice
President Jagdeep
Dhankhar visited the
historic World War-II
memorial here on Fri-
day and paid his tribute
to the valiant soldiers
who made their su-
preme sacrifice in the
line of duty
.
Dhankhar, who is ac-
companied by his wife,
is on his maiden visit to
the north east state af-
ter assuming office in
August this year.
“Humble tributes to
the valiant soldiers
who laid down their
lives fighting here in
2nd World War. This
memorial is reminder
of innumerable sacri-
fices. Their act of brav-
ery and selflessness
will continue to inspire
generations,”Dhankhar
wrote in the visitor’s
dairy at the war memo-
rial. He left for Delhi
Friday after visiting
the war memorial.
Dhankhar inaugurated
the 10-day-long 23rd
Hornbill Festival on
Thursday evening at
Kisama. He also held
closed door meetings
with state Governor
Prof Jagdish Mukhi,
Chief Minister Neiph-
iu Rio and his cabinet
colleagues at Raj
Bhavan.
Mukhi and Rio bid
farewell to the vice
president at the Assam
Rifles helipad. “Thank
you for visiting Naga-
land, Hon’ble Vice
President of India Shri
Jagdeep Dhankhar Ji
@jdhankhar1. Your
gracious presence at
the opening of the
#HornbillFestival2022,
the #FestivalOfFesti-
vals, made the occasion
more special. We hope
you will visit us again,”
Rio posted on Twitter
conveying gratitude to
the vice-president on
behalf of the people of
the state.
Humble trib-
utes to the val-
iant soldiers
who laid down their
lives fighting here in
2nd World War. This
memorial is reminder
of innumerable
sacrifices.
—Jagdeep Dhankhar
Vice President
VP Jagdeep Dhankhar and his wife Dr Sudesh Dhankhar,
Jagdish Mukhi and Neiphiu Rio in Kohima on Thursday.
New Delhi: The BCCI is
planning to introduce
tactical substitutions
and could make an ap-
pearance in the upcom-
ingIPL2023.Thetactical
substitutions concept
was introduced by the
BCCI for the first time
during this year’s Syed
Mushtaq Ali Trophy in
October-Nov. “Also note
that from IPL 2023 Sea-
son a strategic concept
will be introduced to add
a new dimension to IPL,
wherein one substitute
player per team will be
able to take a more ac-
tive part in an IPL
match. The regulations
pertaining to the same
will be issued shortly
.”
IPL announces new tactical
substitute rule from 2023 season
BRAVO ANNOUNCES RETIREMENT FROM
IPL, APPOINTED CSK’S BOWLING COACH
Chennai: Former West Indies all-
rounder Dwayne Bravo has announced
his retirement from the IPL as a player,
but he will continue his journey with
the league and his franchise Chennai
Super Kings (CSK) as a bowling coach
for next season of the league. Chennai
Super Kings had parted ways with veteran all-round-
er Dwayne Bravo and released the West Indian ahead
of the IPL mini-auction.
BHARAT JODO YATRA
PeoplewhohaveleftCongshould
notbewelcomedback:Ramesh
Jairam Ramesh,
who is Congress’s
media head, also
termed Union
Minister Scindia as
a 24 carat traitor
Jairam Ramesh addressing media on Friday.
Guwahati (ANI): A let-
ter from the AICC may
have brought to light a
brewing internal rift in
the Assam Pradesh Con-
gress Committee as it
has revealed that many
state Congress leaders
are choosing to keep
themselves away from
the state’s ongoing
‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’.
In the letter, under-
signed by AICC member
and senior Congress
leader Jitendra Singh,
the president of Assam
Pradesh Congress Com-
mittee (APCC), Bhupen
Kumar Borah, has been
directed to draw up a
list of party leaders who
skipped the ‘Bharat
Jodo Yatra’, Assam.
“I have been joining
the Yatra from time to
time and have noticed
that some APCC office
bearers, executive
members, DCC, block
president, OBs and
leaders have neither at-
tended this Yatra nor
have not made any ef-
forts to make this his-
toric march a success,”
Singh wrote in his let-
ter.
Citing the AICC let-
ter, the Congress’ state
unit has issued a letter
to all leaders and execu-
tive members of the
APCC,sayingthatAICC
general secretary Singh
and APCC president Bo-
rah were not satisfied
with the non-participa-
tion of some state party
leaders in the ongoing
‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’.
AICC asks Cong Assam chief
to send names of absentees
New Delhi: A pair of dogs wel-
comed Congress leader Rahul
Gandhi with bouquets when
he stopped for tea during the
party’s ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ in
Madhya Pradesh’s Agar Malwa
district on Friday. The dogs,
Lizho and Rexy, held a basket
of bouquets with the messag-
es “Chale Kadam, Jude Vatan”
and “Nafrat Chhodo, Bharat
Jodo,” and handed it over to Gandhi.
TWO DOGS WELCOME RaGa WITH
BOUQUETS IN MP’S AGAR MALWA
MAN BOOKED FOR
KEEPING ELEPHANT
WITHOUT LICENCE
Uttar Pradesh: A man has
been booked for keeping an
elephant in UP’s Jaunpur
district without taking a
proper licence, an official
said on Friday. Divisional
Director (Forestry) Praveen
Khare said Dubey was
rearing an elephant without
a licence in Sidhavan village
under Rampur police sta-
tion area. Khare said on the
basis of this information,
Forest Inspector Nandlal
Yadav reached the spot
asked Dubey for the licence
and other documents is-
sued by the Chief Conserva-
tor of Forests, but he could
not present the documents.
MAN IMPALED ON
IRON ROD ON BOARD
DELHI-KANPUR TRAIN
New Delhi: A passenger
onboard the Nilanchal
Express from Delhi to
Kanpur was killed after an
iron rod broke through the
glass window and pierced
his neck. The incident took
place around 8.45 am
Friday between Danwar and
Somna in Aligarh, in the
Prayagraj division of the
North Central Railways. The
passenger, Harikesh Dubey,
died on the spot. The rod
had pierced through his
neck and through the wall
into the next compartment,
narrowly avoiding further
injuries to the passengers
seated there.
4 CHARRED TO DEATH IN LORRY-CONTAINER
COLLISION IN ANDHRA PRADESH
Kakinada: Four persons were charred to death after a
sand-laden lorry collided with a diesel container in Andhra
Pradesh’s Kakinada district, police said. The accident
took place on the Chennai-Kolkata national highway near
Dharmavaram village of Prathipadu block in the wee hours
of Friday. The driver of the lorry lost control and crossed
the road divider on the national highway and rammed into
a stationary diesel container, resulting in the accident. The
impact of the collision was so intense that it resulted in
the explosion and the drivers’ cabins of both trucks were
completely gutted in the fire, said police.
CRUCIAL READ
Ahtesham Siddiqui
Lucknow: To make the
UP Global Investment
Summit 2023 a grand
success, Uttar Pradesh
Chief Minister Yogi
Adityanath is sending a
team of officers from
the bureaucracy on a
foreign trip.
As many as 33 senior
officers going on for-
eign tours have to bring
more foreign investors
to UP by promoting the
development works and
schemes of the state
along with holding road
shows abroad.
33 senior officers to go on foreign tour
New Delhi (ANI): A
four-member team of
the FSL on Friday
reached Tihar Jail for a
post-narco test analysis
of Aaftab Poonawalla,
accused in the Shrad-
dha Walkar murder
case. Official sources
said that a team of four
including two senior
scientists and two sup-
porting staff along with
the case investigating
officers arrived at Cen-
tral Jail No.4 for a ‘post-
test interview’ with
Aaftab at around 11.30
am, and the exercise
was on.
The team during the
post-test interview was
carrying out a detailed
analysis of replies he
gave in his polygraph
and narco tests earlier.
He was also cross-ques-
tioned on the replies to
eliminate the possibility
of any lie, said sources.
Ahmedabad (PTI):
Punjab Chief Minister
Bhagwant Mann said
here on Friday that
gangster Goldy Brar,
the mastermind behind
the brutal murder of
singer Sidhu Moosewa-
la has been detained in
the US, and he will “def-
initely be brought to
India” and be in the cus-
tody of the Punjab Po-
lice “very soon”.Brar
was detained by the
California police which
have contacted the In-
dian govt and Punjab
police about it, he said.
New Delhi (ANI): The
NIA has arrested ab-
sconding Dec 2021 Lu-
dhiana Court building
blast conspirator and
wanted terrorist Har-
preet Singh from Delhi
airport soon after his ar-
rival from Kaula Lum-
pur, Malaysia, the agen-
cy said on Friday
. An as-
sociateof LakhbirSingh
Rode, a Pak-based self-
styledChief of the ISYF,
Harpreet was one of the
conspirators of the De-
cember 2021 Ludhiana
Court Building blast.
Shraddhacase:FSLteaminTihar
forAaftab’spost-narcotestanalysis
CBI ARRESTS ONE FOR BLACKMAILING
US-BASED ECONOMICS PROFESSOR
New Delhi: The CBI has busted a racket of “sextor-
tionists”, arresting one who allegedly blackmailed an
economics professor at California University into shelling
out USD 48,000 threatening him with making public his
sexually explicit video chats with a female gang member,
officials said. Based on information received from the
Federal Bureau of Investigation of the US, CBI arrested
Rahul Kumar, a resident of Delhi’s Asola, while the search
for his purported girlfriend who lured the professor into
sending explicit videos on Facebook chat is going on, the
officials said on Friday.
New Delhi (ANI): Both the narco analysis and
a polygraph test of Aaftab Amin Poonawala,
who is accused of murdering his live-in girl-
friend Shraddha Walkar and dismembering
her body has revealed similar responses to the
information gathered by Delhi Police so far in
its investigation of the case, officials said on
Friday. Delhi police sources said that Aaftab was
fully cooperative during his narco as well as his
polygraph tests.
POLYGRAPH AND NARCO TEST
RESPONSES SAME: DELHI POLICE
Ludhiana blast
conspirator Singh
arrested: NIA
SP Goyal Durga Shanker Sanjay Prasad
Goldy Brar to be brought
to India: Bhagwant Mann
MOOSEWALA’S
FATHER WELCOMES
DETENTION OF BRAR
Chandigarh (PTI):
Murdered Punjabi singer
Sidhu Moosewala’s father
on Friday welcomed
the news of detention
of gangster Goldy Brar,
the prime accused in the
case, by the US authori-
ties. Punjab Chief Minister
Bhagwant Mann con-
firmed in Ahmedabad that
Brar has been detained by
the police in California and
that he would “definitely
be brought to India”.
OFFICERS GOING
ON FOREIGN TOUR
Germany’s Serge Gnabry celebrates with teammate Thomas
Müller after scoring a goal during the match against Costa Rica.
—PHOTO
BY
ANI

business
BRIEFS
New Delhi: The oil minis-
try will seek compensa-
tion from the finance min-
istry for the losses state-
owned fuel retailers in-
curred on holding petrol
and diesel prices in the
last eight months despite
a spike in cost of raw ma-
terial, a top official said
on Friday. Indian Oil Cor-
poration (IOC), Bharat Pe-
troleum Corporation Ltd
(BPCL) and Hindustan
Petroleum Corporation
Ltd (HPCL) posted a
combined net loss of
`21,201.18 crore in April-
September. —PTI
OIL MIN TO SEEK
COMPENSATION FOR
PETROL, DIESEL LOSS
New Delhi: Maruti Suzuki
India will increase the
prices of its vehicles ‘sub-
stantially’ from next
month as it looks to offset
the impact of rising input
costs and make provi-
sions to update the model
range to conform to
stricter emission norms
which kick in from April
2023. MSI said it contin-
ues to witness increased
cost pressure driven by
overall inflation and re-
cent regulatory require-
ments. MSI makes maxi-
mum effort to reduce cost
and partially offset the in-
crease, it has become im-
perative to pass on some
of the impact through a
price increase. —PTI
MARUTI SUZUKI TO
HIKE VEHICLE PRICES
FROM JANUARY
New Delhi: Mercedes-
Benz India on Friday
launched two seven seat-
er sports utility vehicles
— GLB and EQB — in the
country priced between
`63.8 lakh `74.5 lakh.
The three trims of the
GLB range are priced at
`63.8 lakh, `66.8 lakh
and `69.8 lakh respec-
tively. The full electric
EQB 300 4MATIC is
tagged at `74.5 lakh. For
the first time, it is offering
three powertrains, a pet-
rol, diesel, and an electric
for customers. —FIB
MERCEDES-BENZ
DRIVES IN GLB, EQB
MODELS IN INDIA
New Delhi: India’s smart
TV market recorded a
38% year-on-year growth
in shipments during the
July-Sept quarter, mainly
driven by festive season
supplies, multiple new
launches, discount events
promotions, said a re-
port. According to the re-
port, global brands led In-
dia’s smart TV segment
with a 40% share, fol-
lowed by Chinese brands
with a 38% share. While
the Indian brands showed
the fastest growth, dou-
bling their share to 22%
of the total smart TV
shipments. —FIB
INDIA’S SMART TV
SHIPMENTS GREW
38% IN SEPT QTR
07
Commodity Price Change % Chg
GOLD 54,195.00 473.00 0.87 (Per 10g)
SILVER 66,064.00 1216.00 1.84 (Per 1kg)
COMMODITIES
Currency Price Change % Chg
USDINR 81.35 0.09 0.11
GBPINR 99.41 0.14 0.15
CURRENCIES
*Rates till the edition went to print.
WESTLIFE TO ADD 300
MCDONALD’S
RESTAURANTS BY 2027
New Delhi: Westlife Foodworld,
the master franchisee of Mc-
Donald’s restaurants for West
and South In-
dia, is looking
for an almost
three-fold jump
in sales up to
`4,500 crore in the next five
years by 2027, mainly on the
back of network expansion, om-
nichannel approach, according
to company officials on Friday
(December 2, 2022). As part
of network expansion, Westlife
Foodworld will add around 300
McDonald’s restaurants in the
next five years, in which 60 per
cent of the new stores are likely
to be in the southern region and
the rest in the western zone,
said the company in its ‘Vision
2027’. —PTI
INDIA’S COAL
PRODUCTION RISES
17% IN APR-NOVEMBER
New Delhi: The country’s coal
production increased 17% to
524.20 million tonnes in the
April-Novem-
ber period of
the ongoing
fiscal. India’s
coal output
was at 447.54 million tonnes
in the year-ago period. In a bid
to augment coal production
capacity, the government has
put 141 new coal blocks for
commercial mines auction and
has been engaging regularly
with various coal companies
in the country and monitor-
ing their production, the coal
ministry said in a statement.
The all-round efforts made to
enhance the domestic coal out-
put and despatch have shown
extremely good results. —PTI
OTHER STORIES
ONGC, IOCL, VEDANTA’S BONDS WORTH $1.9 BILLION
MATURE IN FINANCIAL YEAR 24: MOODY’S
Hyderabad: Three major oil and gas companies- Oil and Natural Gas
Corporation Limited (ONGC), IOCL and Vedanta Resources Limited
together have around $1.9 billion of rated US dollar bonds maturing
next year, rating agency Moody’s Investor
Services has said. Capital markets are
volatile and investor appetite remains
selective, so refinancing risks will remain
elevated particularly for high-yield is-
suers such as Vedanta, which accounts
for around 47% of the upcoming bond
maturities, it opined in a report. —PTI
WORLD MUST START
BRACING FOR LOW
INFLATION: RAJAN
First India Bureau
New Delhi: The global
economy could go back to a
low inflation regime and
central bankers pursuing
restrictive monetary po-
lices should keep that in
mind, said Raghuram Ra-
jan, a former governor of
India’s central bank.
Central banks must ask
themselves if their poli-
cies were nimble enough
when inflation shifted
from low to a high regime,
said Rajan.
“We should be prepared
to potentially go back to
low inflation regime,” he
said Friday in a conference
organized by the Bank of
Thailand and the Bank for
International Settlements.
“We need to examine
what constrained us, Rajan
said. “We need to assess if
we didn’t recognise infla-
tion building or we were
actually waiting for our in-
struments to play out,
wanting to preserve them
for the next time.”
Therefore, it is impor-
tant for central banks to-
day to pursue policies that
provide for changes in in-
flation dynamics over time,
he said, adding that head-
winds, including de-glo-
balisation, slow growth in
China and K-shaped recov-
ery in emerging economies
can hurt growth.
Amid volatile times, Ra-
jan said, emerging market
central bankers have done
a wonderful job in antici-
pating the need to raise in-
terest rates and it has
“served them well.”
TOP TALKING
POINTS
z Former RBI governer
Raghuram Rajan said that
global economy could go
back to a low inflation regime
and central bankers pursuing
restrictive monetary polices
should keep that in mind
z Central banks must ask
themselves if their policies
were nimble enough when
inflation shifted from low to a
high regime
z It is important for central
banks today to pursue policies
that provide for changes in
inflation dynamics over time
New Delhi (PTI): Niti
Aayog CEO Parameswaran
Iyer on Friday said the food
processing sector is critical
for the Indian economy as
well as job creation and
stressed on ramping up
production and exports of
processed items.
Iyer said there is a need
to encourage the MSME
sector to enter the food pro-
cessing sector, which he
described as a very impor-
tant sector for the health of
the economy and people.
He underlined that food
processing can boost farm-
ers income and also help in
achieving nutritional
goals. Iyer said there is a
need to augment primary
processing at farm level.
Stating that food securi-
ty has become important in
the current global context,
he said the government has
taken a number of steps in
this regard.
The Niti Aayog CEO
highlighted that there has
been a steady growth in ag-
riculture. On the food pro-
cessing front also, Iyer said
a number of initiatives
have been taken by the gov-
ernment, including the PLI
scheme.
“This is a very, very im-
portant program of the
government, which is re-
ally looking to incentivise
investment, but manufac-
turing in very critical stra-
tegic sectors such as food
processing,” he added.
The Niti Aayog CEO said
that the year of the millet
is going to start in less than
a month.
‘Foodprocessingsector
critical for Indian
economy, job creation’
‘NEED TO
ENCOURAGE’
z Niti Aayog CEO Iyer said
there is a need to encourage
the MSME sector to enter
the food processing sector,
which he described as a
very important sector for the
health of the economy and
people
z He underlined that food
processing can boost
farmers income
‘Need to scale up
RD, innovation
in field of advance
materials’
New Delhi (PTI): Invest-
ing in advanced materials
innovation is investing in
India’s future, NITI Aayog
member V K Saraswat said
on Friday while stressing
on the need for scaling
up RD and innovation in
the field.
Saraswat said the time
is now ripe for India to
harness indigenous devel-
opment of advanced mate-
rials, thereby reducing
imports.
According to him, ad-
vanced materials are tech-
nology enablers, and revo-
lution in this field will be
driven by computational
materials, big data, ma-
chine learning, multi-scale
modelling, and other new
technology paradigms.
Saraswat also elaborated
on the applications of tita-
nium, graphene, rare earth
and smart materials.
He also mentioned about
the energy applications of
advanced materials start-
ing from energy genera-
tion, conversion.
Assocham asks
RBI to moderate
rate hikes
New Delhi (PTI): Industry
body Assocham on Friday
asked the Reserve Bank,
which has hiked the key
policy rate by 190 basis
points since May, to moder-
ate the interest rate hikes
so that it does not have ad-
verse impact on nascent
economic recovery
.
Reserve Bank of India
(RBI) Governor Shaktikan-
ta Das headed six-member
rate setting panel is sched-
uled to meet for three days
from Monday to take a call
on the next set of monetary
policy. The central bank is
scheduled to announce the
decision of the Monetary
PolicyCommittee(MPC) on
December 7 (Wednesday).
“At most the new rate
hike should not exceed the
25-35 basis points band,”
Assocham said in a letter.
Civil aviation min
issues guidelines
for incentives in
drone production
New Delhi (PTI): The civ-
il aviation ministry has
notified the operational
guidelines for the Produc-
tion Linked Incentive (PLI)
scheme for drones and
drone components.
The government has ap-
proved the PLI scheme
with an outlay of `120 crore
and the scheme is to be im-
plemented during the 2022-
23 to 2024-25 period.
The PLI will be extended
only to companies engaged
in the manufacturing of
drones and drone compo-
nents in India.
The total PLI per manu-
facturer is capped at `30
crore.
Wheat sowing up 5.36%
in 2 months of rabi season
New Delhi (PTI): Area
sown to wheat has in-
creased by 5.36% annually
to 211.62 lakh hectares in
the first two months of the
ongoing rabi (winter) sea-
son, with higher coverage
being reported in Ra-
jasthan, Bihar and UP, ac-
cording to the agricultural
ministry data on Friday
.
Sowing of wheat, the
main rabi crop, begins in
October and harvesting in
March-April. Besides
wheat, rice and pulses,
such as gram, urad as well
as oilseeds such as ground-
nut and mustard are also
grown in this season.
SUGAR PRODUCTION
MARGINALLY UP AT
47.9 L TN IN OCT-NOV
New Delhi (PTI): India’s sugar
production has increased mar-
ginally to 47.9 lakh tonnes in
the October-November period,
according to industry body
ISMA. In a statement, ISMA said
that production of sweetener till
30th November in the current
2022-23 marketing year is 47.9
lakh tonnes as against 47.2 lakh
tonnes in the corresponding
period of the last year.
AIresumesdirectB’luru-SanFranciscoflights
New Delhi (FIB): Air In-
dia on Friday resumed di-
rect services from Bengal-
uru to San Francisco and
now the airline has 37 non-
stop flights every week be-
tween various Indian and
US cities.
In a release, the airline
said it is resuming the non-
stop flight connecting Ben-
galuru to San Francisco.
The flight will operate
thrice a week on Fridays,
Sundays and Wednesdays
with the Boeing 777-200LR
aircraft. The service start-
ed on Friday
.
“The direct distance be-
tween Bengaluru and San
Francisco is 13,993 km ap-
prox. And the cities are dia-
metrically at opposite ends
of the world with a time
zone change of approx. 13.5
hours. The total flight time
on this route will be of
more than 17 hours de-
pending on the wind speed
on that particular day,” the
release said. With the re-
sumption of services, Air
India now has 37 non-stop
flights per week between
India and the US.
Currently, the airline op-
erates non-stop flights from
Delhi to New York, New-
ark, Washington DC, San
Francisco and Chicago and
from Mumbai to Newark.
FLIGHT WILL OPERATE THRICE A WEEK
VISTARA STARTS
PUNE-SINGAPORE
DIRECT FLIGHTS
New Delhi (FIB): Full service
carrier Vistara has started
direct flights between Pune and
Singapore. The airline said it will
operate 4x weekly flights on this
route using its A321neo aircraft.
“The inaugural flight departed
from Pune at 0210 hours (IST)
and arrived in Singapore at 1030
hours (GMT),” it said.
Markets settle lower
after 8 days of rally
INDIAN RUPEE FALLS 9 PAISE ON FRIDAY TO
CLOSE AT 81.35 AGAINST US DOLLAR
Mumbai (PTI): The rupee pared its initial gains and settled down by
9 paise at 81.35 (provisional) against the US dollar on Friday as the
support from weak dollar was negated by weak domestic markets
and a surge in crude oil prices. Forex traders said foreign fund out-
flows also weighed on investor sentiments. At the interbank foreign
exchange market, the local unit opened at 81.11, but pared the gains
and ended at 81.35, down 9 paise over its previous close. During
the day, the local unit witnessed an intraday high of 81.08 and a low
of 81.35. On Thursday, the rupee appreciated by 4 paise to close at
81.26 against the US dollar.
Mumbai (PTI): Equity
benchmark indices ended
lower on Friday, halting
their eight-day rally, amid
a weak trend in global mar-
kets and emergence of
profit-taking.
The 30-share BSE Sensex
fell 415.69 points or 0.66% to
settle at 62,868.50. During
the day, it tanked 604.56
points or 0.95% to 62,679.63.
The broader NSE Nifty
dipped 116.40 points or
0.62% to end at 18,696.10.
Among the Sensex pack,
Mahindra Mahindra,
Hindustan Unilever, Maru-
ti, Nestle, HDFC, Asian
Paints, Bajaj Finance and
Power Grid were among
the major laggards. Tata
Steel, Dr Reddy’s, Tech Ma-
hindra, IndusInd Bank and
HCL Technologies were
among the winners.

08
2NDFRONT
Stop for a minute-everyday
and reflect on what is special
about that day-there is always!
— Dr Jagdeesh Chandra,
CEO Editor-in-Chief, First India
First India Bureau
Navi Mumbai: Amid
the measles outbreak
sweeping Maharash-
tra, the Navi Mumbai
Municipal Corpora-
tion (NMMC) has
identified four affect-
ed areas in the city,
namely Juhu Gaon,
CBD Belapur, Karave
and Pawne.
In response to the
spread of viral infec-
tion, the civic body
plans to administer an
additional dose of vac-
cinations to children
between six months and
five years of age.
According to local of-
ficials, Navi Mumbai
has witnessed a limited
number of measles cas-
es due to continuous
vaccination from the
beginning. However,
the outbreak’s impact
has been observed in 11
places under the mu-
nicipal area. Efforts to
control the spread of
measles infection in
three areas have been
successful. Out of the
remaining eight areas,
four have been declared
as “measles-affected”.
“Vaccination is an ef-
fective measure for mea-
sles control, and, for
that purpose, emphasis
should be placed on vac-
cination in a more com-
prehensive manner.
More focus should be
given to measles-affect-
ed areas where measles
patients are found,” said
Municipal Commission-
er Rajesh Narvekar.
A special meeting of
the NMMC Routine Im-
munization Task Force
was held in view of in-
creasing incidence of
measles in various cit-
ies. Efforts to control
the spread of disease
were discussed.
Meanwhile, the state
Health Department has
also formed a state-level
task force headed by Dr
Subhash Salunke to
tackle rising measles
cases, an official state-
ment said.
The Brihanmumbai
Municipal Corporation
(BMC) inoculated over
1,162 children against
the viral infection on
the first day of its Out-
break Response Immu-
nization drive.
The tally of measles
cases reported in Maha-
rashtra between Janu-
ary 01, 2022 and Novem-
ber 30 stands at 754 and
death toll at 18.
NMMC identifies 4 measles-affected areas
VIRAL DISEASES
Efforts on to curb infection
spread in Juhu Gaon, CBD
Belapur, Karave and Pawne
First India Bureau
Pune: Achieving full
recovery after being
infected by the Zika
virus, a 67-year-old
man in Pune city has
beenmedicallycleared
after he showed no
symptoms of the dis-
ease, said state Health
Department authori-
ties on Friday
.
The man, who hails
from Nashik and had a
travelhistorytoSuratin
neighbouring Gujarat,
was found infected with
the virus last month.
“He had come to
Bavdhan area in Pune
on November 06, but
had gone to Surat later.
On November 16, he
visited Jehangir Hospi-
tal (in Pune) for treat-
ment of fever, cough,
joint-pain and fatigue.
Tests conducted in a
private laboratory on
November 18 con-
firmed he was infected
with the virus,” it said.
Further tests at the
premier National Insti-
tute of Virology (NIV)
in Pune further con-
firmed the infection,
they added.
“In the backdrop (of
the infection), the
Health Department
has intensified epide-
miological survey in
Pune city and Bavdhan
area,” it said.
In July this year, a
seven-year-old girl was
found infected with
Zika virus in Palghar
district near Mumbai.
The Zika virus dis-
ease is transmitted
through the bite of an
infected Aedes mos-
quito, which is also
known to transmit in-
fections such as den-
gue and chikungunya.
First India Bureau
Pune: Several mem-
bers of the Swarajya
organisation were de-
tained by the Pune po-
lice on Friday for wav-
ing black flags at gov-
ernor Bhagat Singh
Koshyari, as the row
over his comments on
Chhatrapati Shivaji
Maharaj continues.
Koshyari has been
facingmassivecriticism
because of a comment
he had made at a func-
tion. Earlier, when you
would be asked who is
your icon - Jawaharlal
Nehru, Subhas Chandra
BoseandMahatmaGan-
dhi used to be the an-
swers. In Maharashtra,
you need not look else-
where as there are so
many icons here. While
Chhatrapati Shivaji Ma-
haraj is of olden days,
there are BR Ambedkar
and Nitin Gadkari, the
governor had said.
Since then, opposi-
tion parties and sever-
al members of the Bal-
asahebanchi Shiv Sena
led by Chief Minister
Eknath Shinde have
been calling for his res-
ignation.
Mumbai (PTI): Ma-
harashtra on Friday
recorded 50 cases of
COVID-19, raising
the tally of infec-
tions to 81,35,900, an
official from the
state health depart-
ment said.
The toll remained
unchanged at 1,48,407,
while the count of re-
coveries rose to
79,87,133 after 63 pa-
tients recovered from
the infection during
the day
, he said.
This is the third con-
secutive day that the
state has reported zero
fatality, the official
said, adding that the
fatality rate stands at
1.82% and recovery
rate is at 98.17%.
Of the latest infec-
tions,Mumbairecorded
five fresh cases, while
Pune saw 17, he said.
With this, the state cur-
rently has 360 active
cases, the official said.
At least 9,843 swab
samples were tested in
the state in the last 24
hours, taking the total
number of tests con-
ducted in the state so
far to 81,35,900.
First India Bureau
Nashik: A nine-year-
old boy was found
dead, with his right
hand and left little fin-
ger missing, near the
Manmad-Daund rail-
way tracks in Nashik
district, a police offi-
cial said on Friday
,
adding that area resi-
dents have demanded
capital punishment
for those involved in
his alleged murder.
Lokesh Sunil Son-
awane had gone missing
on the evening of No-
vember 30 while out on a
rented bicycle. His fami-
ly and neighbours
searched for him for
hours, and filed a police
complaint when they
had no luck finding him
themselves, the official
added.
“We found the body of
the Class IV student on
Thursday morning in a
thicket near a filtration
plantalongtheManmad-
Daund railway tracks.
The right hand and the
little finger had been cut
off.Therewerescratches
on the face as well,” he
said,addingthattherail-
waypolice--underwhose
jurisdiction the body
was found--and the po-
lice in Manmad city
,
where the case was filed
have both launched an
investigation.
First India Bureau
Mumbai: Two Class
VIII students have
been booked for alleg-
edly gang-raping their
13-year-old classmate
in Mumbai’s Matunga
area, an official said
on Friday
.
“The incident took
place inside their
classroom at a civic-
run school on Monday,
when their fellow
classmates stepped out
of the classroom for
dance practice,” an of-
ficial of Matunga po-
lice station said.
“The incident left
the girl rattled and she
shared her ordeal with
her family members,
who lodged a com-
plaint,” he said.
Based on the com-
plaint, the police regis-
tered a case against the
boys under the IPC sec-
tions for gangrape of a
woman under 16 years
of age and under rele-
vant sections of the
Protection of Children
from Sexual Offences
(POCSO) Act.
The duo has been
sent to a juvenile deten-
tion centre in Mumbai.
Navi Mumbai civic body to administer additional vaccinations to
kids between ages of 6 months and 5 years. —FILE PHOTO
Maha: 50 new nCoV cases,
no deaths; active tally 360
At least 9,843 swab samples were tested in the last 24 hours.
—FILE PHOTO
67-YEAR-OLD RECOVERS
FROM ZIKA VIRUS IN PUNE
The Zika virus was first identified in Uganda in 1947. —FILE PHOTO
KIDS ARE UNSAFE
9-year-old boy found dead in Nashik
Body discovered missing his right hand and
little finger, face had scratches, police say
Class 8 boys booked for
gang-raping classmate
Both accused
have been sent to
juvenile detention
as cops investigate
case lodged under
IPC, POCSO
Several held after
black-flag protest
against Guv in Pune
Protesters detained for showing black flags to Governor Koshyari.
—PHOTOS BY ANI
Marilyn Gore
Mumbai/Nashik/
Nanded: The resur-
gence of the Maha-
rashtra-Karnataka
border row seems to
have spurred dissi-
dents in other border
districts to action. Sev-
eral villages in Nand-
ed have reiterated
their demand to be
merged with Telanga-
na, while the northern
Nashik district wants
to leave Maharashtra
for Gujarat.
Chintaman Gavit,
chief of the Nationalist
Congress Party’s unit in
Nashik’s Surgana talu-
ka, attributes this to the
“apathy” of the Maha-
rashtra government,
whichhasledtoalackof
development in the area.
“Evenafter75yearsof
Independence, many vil-
lages and hamlets in
Surgana taluka do not
have basic amenities. If
youcannotdevelopthese
villages, merge them
with Gujarat,” Gavit
said on Friday
, adding
that he had presented a
memorandum to this ef-
fect to tehsildar Sachin
Mulik on November 30.
While this follows
closeontheheelsof Kar-
nataka Chief Minister
Basavaraj Bommai’s
claim that villages in
Maharashtra’s Jat tehsil
in wanted to merge with
his state, Gavit insists
the move is not political.
Meanwhile, residents
of 25 villages in the bor-
der district of Nanded
have renewed an old de-
mand to be allowed to
merge with Telangana.
BaburaoKadam,afor-
mer sarpanch of the
Babdi Bandhara village
(7km from the border)
who had led a drive of 40
villages to pass a resolu-
tion to merge with Tel-
angana, claims the
neighbouring state does
moreforresidentsinthe
area than Maharashtra.
“The Maharashtra
governmentisyettogive
us decent roads. On the
other hand, farmers in
Telanganagetfreeseeds,
and government also
gives round-the-clock
power supply and com-
pulsory MSP implemen-
tation,” he said.
Back in Nashik, Gavit
further laments the lack
of basic infrastructure
such as irrigation and
healthcare.
In border areas of Gu-
jarat, there are good
roads,reliableelectricity
supply
,andbetterhealth,
water and transport fa-
cilities, he claimed.
He also received
phone calls from people
in Dhadgaon and Nav-
apur in Nandurbar who
endorsed the demand of
inclusion in Gujarat,
Gavit claimed. Border
areas of Nashik and
Nandurbar districts are
predominantly tribal.
“We have convened a
meetingatPangarnevil-
lage on December 04 to
decidethenextcourseof
action, he said.
GREENERPASTURES:NASHIK,NANDED
VILLAGERSTOLEAVEMAHARASHTRA?
Lack of development being cited as main reason for demanding to be merged with Guj, Telangana, respectively
This does
not have
anything to
do with any politi-
cal party. Residents
of Subhash Nagar,
Dolare, Alangun
and Kathipada vil-
lages have come to-
gether for this de-
mand and there are
many others. Guja-
rat’s Dharampur ta-
luka is 15km away
and Wasda is 10km
away. We frequently
go there and we have
been seeing the dif-
ference in develop-
ment for years now.
—Chintaman Gavit,
Surgana taluka chief, NCP
KAKINADA

www.firstindia.co.in I https://firstindia.co.in/epapers/mumbai I twitter.com/
thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia 09
MUMBAI, SATURDAY,
DECEMBER 3, 2022
iving does not only pre-
cede receiving it is the
reason for it. It is in giv-
ing that we receive be-
lieves, Apoorva Sharma
who is also one of the
finalists of the First In-
dia Queen shares her shared her
uphill adventure of being a
hero from zero.
“I’m 21 years old and
currently pursuing
a Master’s in clin-
ical psychology.
I am a profes-
sional singer,
sports per-
son, dancer
and model.
As a sports
freak, I have
learned lead-
ership quali-
ties that took
me forward to-
wards my projects.
Each one of them
teaches me something
and providing knowledge to
underprivileged children is one
of them” the diva expressed.
Like every other girl from
a small town, Apoorva
has also faced many bar-
riers, speaking more
about it she said, “In
Gwalior, women are
not able to choose any
thing for themselves,
So, I decided to pro-
vide self-employment
for women with the help
of our Aviation Minister,
Jyotiraditya Scindia. I be-
lieve in being a helping hand to
people who are not fortunate
enough. I am also a brand ambas-
sador of Swachhata Sarvekshan
by Nagar Nigam Gwalior.”
Stated about her achievements
diva added, “I started my journey
in 2019 when I won my first pag-
eant, JCI Miss Gwalior. But it
was very difficult for me to pur-
sue my passion. Then I won Ru-
baru Miss Cosmopolitan World
India 2021, giving me the oppor-
tunity to represent our country,
India, on a global stage. I am
blessed with one more achieve-
ment this year, which is Miss
Body Beautiful in First India
Queen 2022 and I am very thank-
ful to Dr Jadeesh Chandra Sir for
providing me with this golden op-
portunity to be a part of First
India Queen.”
G
“I believe in being a helping hand to
people who are not fortunate enough”
stated Apoorva Sharma, one of the
finalists of First India Queen during a
chit-chat session with City First MRIDULA SHARMA
cityfirst@firstindia.co.in

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