04052022_ First India New Delhi.pdf

Rajnish Singh
New Delhi: Ministry of
HomeAffairs(MHA)has
written to all the states
andUnionTerritoriesas
well as their prison au-
thoritiestotakeeffective
steps to prevent prisons
frombecomingbreeding
ground for anti-national
activities.
For this, the Ministry
,
in an order, suggested
conducting a regular
inspection of prisons.
The order also stressed
on the need to take ap-
propriate measures to
strengthen security ar-
rangements and imple-
ment effective adminis-
tration in prisons. In
the order, which was
issued on Monday to
ACS and Principal Sec-
retary (Home) of all
states and UTs as well
as Director-General or
Inspector General (Pris-
ons), it is directed that
the inmates should be
motivated to leave the
life of crime and be-
come responsible citi-
zens of the nation.
Inthisorder,thestates
andUTsarerequestedto
expedite various meas-
ures for strengthening
the prison administra-
tion and ensuring the
security of prisons.
The states and the
UTs have been suggest-
ed to strengthen and im-
prove the medical facili-
ties in jails in such a
manner that reduces
the requirement of re-
ferral of inmates out-
side the prison complex.
It is suggested that
psychological assess-
ment of inmates should
be done by competent
medical professionals
to reduce depression in
prison inmates and pro-
vide them with a posi-
tive outlook in life.
“Assessment of in-
mates by Psychologists
and Correctional Ex-
perts may be done
wherever necessary for
studying the stress and
behavioural issues of
inmates and appropri-
ate programs may be
prescribed for them,”
mentions the order.
Theorderstressedthe
need for training of
prison and correctional
staff pointing out that
they play a significant
role in the efficient man-
agement of prisons.
“States and UTs may
identify and establish
suitable training insti-
tutes for providing
training to prison per-
sonnel on varied as-
pects of prisons and
correctional adminis-
tration on regular ba-
sis.” —ANI
Prevent prisons from becoming breeding
ground for anti-national activities: MHA

z The prison staff should
be encouraged to make use
of innovative methods for
better prison administration

z To discourage compla-
cency and corrupt practices
in Prisons, the order em-
phasises that prison staff
may be rotated regularly.

z The jail structure and pe-
riphery wall of jails should
be inspected regularly.

z The order further
emphasises on ensuring
effective jamming solutions
with the use of modern-day
advances in technology to
restrict illegal access or use
of mobile phones by the jail
inmates.
THE ORDER
ADVISES
Communal tension
hits Jodhpur on Eid
Jodhpur: Communal
tensions gripped Ra-
jasthan CM Ashok Ge-
hlot’s hometown Jodh-
pur hours before Eid on
Tuesday
, prompting the
authorities to suspend
mobile internet servic-
es and impose a curfew
in 10 police stations ar-
eas of the city till
Wednesday midnight.
Tensions broke out past
midnight over members
of the minority commu-
nity installing Eid flags
on the Jalori gate circle
and putting up a flag on
a roundabout alongside
the statue of freedom
fighter Balmukund Bis-
sa. It led to a confronta-
tion as members of
other community al-
leged that a saffron flag,
put up there ahead of
ParshuramJayanti,had
gone missing. P8
NEW DELHI l WEDNESDAY, MAY 4, 2022 l Pages 12 l 3.00 RNI TITLE NO. DELENG/2021/19840 l Vol 1 l Issue No. 244
OUR EDITIONS:
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Have appealed for immediate
ceasefire in Ukraine: PM Modi
Copenhagen: PM Nar-
endra Modi on Tuesday
reached Copenhagen in
Denmark to begin the
second leg of his visit to
the three European na-
tions. This is Modi ‘s
first visit to Denmark,
but his third summit-
level interaction with
his Danish counterpart,
Mette Frederiksen .
BothPMshelddelega-
tion-level talks to review
progress in the Green
Strategic Partnership
between the two coun-
tries. “Delegation level
talks led by PMs @nar-
endramodi@Statsmin
Mette Frederiksen be-
gin. Both sides to review
progress in the Green
Strategic Partnership.
Will also discuss our
wide-ranging coopera-
tion in areas of skill de-
velopment, climate, re-
newable energy, Arctic,
P2P ties, etc,” the Minis-
try of External Affairs
(MEA) tweeted.
(Top) Prime Minister Narendra Modi welcomed by Denmark PM Mette Frederiksen in Copenhagen
on Tuesday. (Bottom) Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Danish PM Mette Frederiksen during a
Delegation level talks, in Copenhagen on Tuesday. —PHOTOS BY ANI
Rahul Gandhi seen
at nightclub in viral
video; BJP takes dig
New Delhi: Former
Congress chief Rahul
Gandhi was seen in a
viral video at a night-
club in Kathmandu.
The video seemingly
has a discotheque as its
background with peo-
ple around him seen
consuming liquor.
The viral video has
come at a time when
Congress is seen to be
in deep leadership cri-
sis, with the party’s bid
to onboard the poll
strategist Prashant
Kishor having failed.
Rahul Gandhi, who is in
Kathmandu, reportedly
attended the wedding
of a friend a day ago.
Video grab of Rahul Gandhi in Kathmandu’s Famous Pub.
CONG DEFENDS RaGa
Congress spokesperson
Randeep Singh Surjewala
has defended Rahul Gan-
dhi saying
he has gone
to a friendly
country Ne-
pal to par-
ticipate in a
private marriage function
of a friend. “...having fam-
ily friends attending
marriage ceremonies is
a matter of our culture
and civilization. It has still
not become a crime in
this country. Maybe after
today, BJP may decide it
is illegal to attend a mar-
riage and a crime to have
friends,” he said.
Covid XE variant
confirmed; no
cause for alarm,
say officials
New Delhi: Weeks after
two unconfirmed cases
were reported from Ma-
harashtra and Gujarat,
thecountry’sfirstcaseof
Omicron sub-variant XE
has been confirmed by
the Indian SARS-CoV2
Genomics Sequencing
Consortium(INSACOG).
Asof now,expertssay
,
there is no evidence to
suggest that a Covid in-
fection from the XE sub-
variant is different from
those caused by the oth-
er Omicron sub-line-
ages. The new sub-vari-
ant has been found to be
only about 10 per cent
moretransmissiblethan
the currently dominant
BA.2 variant of Omi-
cron, which triggered
the third Covid wave in
the country in January
.
“Less than a handful
of recombinantvariants
have been detected in
the country so far. All of
themarefromgeograph-
ically disparate regions.
No cluster formation
has been seen,” a Gov-
ernment official told.
FRANCE OPTS
OUT OF INDIA’S
SUBMARINE
PROJECT
Before Modi meets
Macron, French opt
out of India project
for submarines Ahead
of PM Modi’s sched-
uled visit to France,
French defence major
Naval Group has
announced that it is
unable to participate
in the P-75 India
(P-75I) project under
which six conven-
tional submarines are
to be built in India for
the Indian Navy. The
group, one of the five
shortlisted interna-
tional players for
the Rs 43,000-crore
project, said it can-
not meet conditions
of the Request for
Proposal (RFP) and
will, therefore, not
continue with its bid.
BMC CHIEF CHAHAL UNDER IT RADAR AFTER
RAIDS ON STANDING COMMITTEE EX-CHAIRMAN
Renni Abraham
Mumbai: A high profile
and a corona control ex-
pert, Brihanmumbai
Municipal Corporation
(BMC) commissioner
Iqbal Singh Chahal was
summoned by the In-
come Tax department
recently in connection
with the search and sei-
zureoperationsconduct-
ed upon the civic body’s
former Standing Com-
mittee chairman Yas-
wanth Kamlakar Jad-
hav by officials attached
to the office of the Direc-
tor General (Investiga-
tions). The Deputy Di-
rector’s office located at
ScindiaHouseatBallard
Pier in south Mumbai
hadissuedthesummons
to Chahal to appear be-
fore its office on March
10, 2022. According to a
senior IT official, “Fol-
lowing the seizures of
documents and other
leadswehadsoughtdata
from the BMC in the
form of documents per-
tainingtoroadandother
civic contracts executed
between 2018 and 2021.
Summonswereissuedto
theBMCChief toappear
beforethedepartmentin
the same matter.” The
civic body had sought
time to submit the
sought documents and
other details. Investiga-
tions are believed to
have led IT sleuths on
the trail of benami
transactions, particu-
larly with road contrac-
tors, with some alleged
payments being linked
to the civic chief as well.
Chahal, who recently
earned kudos over his
corona management in
Mumbai city, is a high
profile IAS officer in
Maharashtra bureau-
cracy and is considered
close to the Chief Minis-
ter Uddhav Thackeray
.
HORATTI TO JOIN BJP
BOMMAI TO
CONTINUE AS CM
Chairman of Karnataka
Legislative Council Basavaraj
Horatti met Home Minister
Amit Shah in Bengaluru,
and said he would join the
BJP soon. He is likely to be
the BJP’s candidate for the
upcoming MLC polls.
Karnataka BJP in charge
Arun Singh has clarified that
CM Bommai would continue
in his post and there are no
plans of changing the leader-
ship. Arun Singh maintained
that, Bommai is a common
man’s CM. “He is delivering
good governance,” he said.
Shah raises political heat in Bengaluru,
sets the poll drum rolling in Karnataka
Bengaluru:UnionMin-
isterAmitShahonTues-
day reached Bengaluru
for his day-long visit to
thesouthernstatethatis
set to go to polls early
next year. Shah paid
homage to Shri Basa-
vanna on the occasion
of Basava Jayanti in
Bengaluru on Tuesday
andsaidthatBasavanna
had set an example hun-
dreds of years ago of
universalandall-encom-
passing democracy in
Kannada society
. Later,
Shahheldmeetingswith
party leaders.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah being felicitated by Karnataka
Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai during the foundation laying
program of Nrupatunga University, in Bengaluru. —PHOTO BY ANI

CAPITOL
NEW DELHI | WEDNESDAY, MAY 4, 2022
02
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2 yrs post Covid, Eid celebrations
see big rush at city’s Jama Masjid
New Delhi (ANI): Af-
ter almost two years,
devotees in large num-
bers offer Namaz at
Delhi’s Jama Masjid on
the occasion of Eid-Ul-
Fitr on Tuesday
.
“I wish everyone on
the occasion of Eid. I
hope peace and growth
prevail everywhere,”
said Rahim, a devotee.
During the occasion
of Eid-Ul-Fitr in the last
two years, devotees
were requested to offer
Namaz in their homes
as mosques in the na-
tional capital were
closed due to COVID-19.
“We are happy that
we got a chance to offer
namaz here after al-
most two years. I have
come here with my en-
tire family,” said anoth-
er devotee.
Hoping for the peace
in the country, another
devotee said, “I am hap-
py offering namaz here.
I wish peace prevailed
in the country and the
country should not be
divided in the name of
religion by politicians.”
Meanwhile, Police
have also deployed ade-
quate security arrange-
ments around Jama
Masjid to avoid any
mishappening.
“Adequate security
arrangements have
been done in Jama Mas-
jid and nearby places.
There is sufficient de-
ployment of police forc-
es. Eid celebrations
must be done peaceful-
ly, following law and or-
der,” said Dependra
Pathak, Special Com-
missioners of Police,
Delhi.
With the sighting of
the crescent moon on
Monday
, the month-long
fasting observed by the
people of the Muslim
community during
Ramzan has come to an
end and Eid-ul-Fitr is
being celebrated across
the country on Tuesday
.
LOCAL RESIDENTS TREAT THE SECURITY PERSONNEL DEPLOYED IN JAHANGIRPURI WITH SWEETS
Best wishes on
Eid-ul-Fitr.
May this auspi-
cious occasion
enhance the
spirit of together-
ness and brother-
hood in our
society. May
everyone be
blessed with good
health and
prosperity.
—Narendra Modi,
Prime Minister
Children play after offering prayers at Jama Masjid on the occasion of Eid-ul-Fitr which marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan
in the old quarters of Delhi —PHOTO BY ANI
Hindus and Muslims celebrate Eid
together in violence-hit Jahangirpuri
New Delhi (Agen-
cies): Hindu and Mus-
lim communities to-
gether celebrated Eid
on Tuesday at Jahang-
irpuri’sKushalChowk
by exchanging sweets
and hugs, giving a
message of peace and
harmony in the area
that witnessed com-
munal violence last
month.
The locals also
treated the security
personnel deployed
there with sweets.
“Last month was
quite tough for the
people of Jahangir-
puri. Today, on the oc-
casion of Eid, we gath-
ered at Kushal Chowk.
We exchanged sweets
and hugged each other
and sent a message of
harmony and peace.
This shows people in
Jahangirpuri live in
harmony and respect
each other’s reli-
gions,” a representa-
tive from the Muslim
community Tabrez
Khan said.
Khan expressed
hope that full normal-
cy will return in the
area soon.
“The situation is
improving. Normalcy
has returned to a
large extent and we
are expecting
complete normalcy in
the coming days,” he
said.
Police said they
have ensured ade-
quate security ar-
rangements on the oc-
casion of Eid.
SECURITY COVER
Loudspeakerrow: CM
yettocomplywithSC
order,saysDelhiBJP
New Delhi (PTI):
Amid a controversy
over the use of loud-
speakers, Delhi BJP
chief Adesh Gupta on
Tuesday said the Delhi
government has not yet
complied with the Su-
preme Court orders re-
garding the removal of
loudspeakers from
mosques and other reli-
gious places.
According to the
norms, loudspeakers
are prohibited within a
circumference of 100
metres of silent zones
such as hospitals,
courts and schools
among others.
“In my survey of
many temples and gu-
rudwaras, I found that
there was no noise pol-
lution. Bhajan and
keertans were taking
place only inside the
temple or gurudwara
premises. The Delhi
government did not do
its duty (of removing
loudspeakers from oth-
er religious places),”
Gupta said in a press
conference.
On Monday, he had
written to Chief Minis-
ter Arvind Kejriwal in
this connection, hours
after BJP MP Parvesh
Sahib Singh Verma
made a similar request
to Lieutenant Governor
Anil Baijal and com-
missioners of the three
municipalities in the
capital.
Verma apprised Bai-
jal that the Uttar
Pradesh government
had cracked the whip
on loudspeakers and
sought to nudge the
Delhi government to
follow suit.
Adesh Gupta
National Capital’s peak
power demand touches
highest in first week of May
New Delhi (ANI):
Delhi saw a peak
power demand of
6,194 MW on Monday,
the highest demand
ever recorded in the
first week of May, as
the people of the city
battled heatwave
conditions.
The city had also
seenrecordpeakpow-
erdemandlastmonth.
Delhi saw a peak of
6,197 MW, an all-time
high for the month of
April ever. The capi-
tal’s peak power de-
mand clocked 6,194
MW at 3:34 pm on
Monday
. The intense
heatwave in the past
few weeks across sev-
eralpartsof Indiahas
ledtoincreasedpower
demand.
New Delhi (PTI): After
the implementation of
‘tactical urbanism’ tri-
als at Rajghat intersec-
tions, pedestrian safety
on roads has improved,
finds a study by Save-
LIFE foundation which
implemented the trials
along with the Delhi
transport department.
Transport Minister
Kailash Gahlot last No-
vember inaugurated
the ‘tactical urbanism’
trials to improve safety
for pedestrians, cy-
clists, and other road
users at Rajghat inter-
sections.
During the trial peri-
od, pedestrian exposure
distance and pedestrian
exposure time have
come down by 47 and 30
per cent respectively.
Pedestrian exposure
distance means (in me-
tres) the distance for
which a pedestrian is
exposed to traffic. Pe-
destrian exposure time
means (in seconds) the
duration of time for
which a pedestrian is
exposed to traffic.
The public realm, in-
cluding the refuge is-
lands and pedestrian
walkways, grew by 25
per cent ensuring safe
pedestrian passage, the
study found. Further,
pedestrian-vehicle con-
flicts came down by 32
per cent (38 per cent
lesser conflicts with
cars and 33 per cent
with motorcycles), it
says. Before the trials,
on average, around 252
pedestrians conflicted
with vehicles such as
trucks, autos cycles,
cars and buses from 9
am to 11 pm. Whereas
after the conflicts be-
tween people and vehi-
cles came down to 171,
the study says.
The survey shows
that ‘tactical urbanism’
designs helped to re-
duce the maximum
speed at intersections
by 10 per cent at peak
hours and 2 per cent at
non-peak hours.
Pedestrian safety improved, says study
‘TACTICAL URBANISM’ CRUCIAL READ
GANGRAPE: POLICE
MAKE SECOND ARREST
AFTER ENCOUNTER
New Delhi (PTI): Nearly
two and a half months
after a 14-year-old minor
was allegedly kidnapped,
gang-raped and killed in
Outer Delhi’s Narela area,
the Delhi Police made its
second arrest in the case
following an encounter
in Shahpur area Monday.
The deceased hailed from
Bihar and had shifted
with her family to Delhi in
February. Her parents had
filed a missing person
report on February 15.
The girl was allegedly
gang-raped by two men
who later killed her and
dumped her body, said
the police.
WATER SUPPLY IN NORTH, WEST, SOUTH DELHI TO
BE AFFECTED TILL TODAY EVENING
New Delhi (ANI): Water supply in the areas of North Delhi,
North West Delhi, West Delhi and parts of South Delhi includ-
ing Delhi Cantt and the command area of Deer Park will be
affected till tomorrow evening. “Due to excessive and unusual
floating and filter clogging algae material resulting in choking
of filter beds, the treatment process has slowed down at
Haiderpur WTP. The production is expected to become normal
by tomorrow evening,” tweeted Delhi Jal Board saying that the
DJB is endeavouring to rationalize the water supply.
DRIVER DIES AFTER SCHOOL BUS RAMS
INTO TRACTOR ON SOHNA ROAD
New Delhi (Agencies): A 45-year-old school bus driver was
killed after the bus allegedly collided with a tractor-trolley on
Sohna Road. Police said 15 school students, and school staff,
who were travelling on the bus, were unhurt in the incident.
A case has been registered against the tractor-trolley driver
under IPC sections 283 (danger or obstruction in public way
or line of navigation), 279 (rash driving or riding on a public
way), and 304-A (death by negligence). The deceased has
been identified as Ram Hari, a native of Hardoi, Uttar Pradesh.
Heatstroke:
Birds taken
to hospital
Gurugram (ANI): As
the scorching heatwave
continues across Delhi
and NCR, several birds
suffering from heat-
stroke were admitted to
a bird hospital in Guru-
gram. Speaking on this
development, Dr Rajku-
mar of Charitable Bird
Hospital, Gurugram told
ANI, “Several birds
came here to Charitable
Bird Hospital in Guru-
gram due to heatstroke.
Since the beginning of
last week of April, the
cases of heatstroke in
birds have increased.”
“So far, about 198 birds
have been victims of it,”
the official said.
Revise school timings or advance summer
holidays,demand concerned parents of kids
New Delhi (PTI): Con-
cerned about their chil-
dren’s health due to the
extreme heat, parents in
Delhi have urged the
Delhi government to ei-
ther revise school hours
or advance the summer
vacation.
Schools have already
announced reduction in
outdoor activities in
view of the sweltering
heat coupled with the
ongoing spike in the
number of Covid cases.
However, parents
claim the school timings
are not feasible for stu-
dents to step out in this
extreme heat.
On Monday, the Hary-
ana government had an-
nounced that due to in-
tense heatwave preva-
lent throughout the
state, the timings of all
schools — government
and private — will be
from 7 am to 12 pm for
Classes 1 to 12 with ef-
fect from May 4.
However, no such
measures have been an-
nounced in Delhi yet.
“On one side, the Cen-
tre advised not to go out
in the sun, especially
between 12 noon and 3
pm. But in Delhi, most
of the schools timings
are between 8 am-2 pm.”
“Students reach home
by 3 pm. That means
during peak summer
hours, students are out
in the sun, which is re-
ally dangerous. We re-
quest Delhi government
to either revise the
school timings or pre-
pone summer holidays,”
said Aparajitha Gau-
tam, President, Delhi
Parents Association.
HEAT IS ON
Delhi student
attacked
with knife
New Delhi (ANI): New
Delhi: A school student
was allegedly attacked
with knives by un-
known miscreants out-
side his school campus
in New Delhi’s Mangol-
puri area on Monday,
according to a police of-
ficer.
“The boy has told us
that after giving an
exam on Monday when
he was leaving school, a
bike that was crossing
from there accidentally
hit him. The victim boy
had an argument with
the bike rider and pil-
lion. The bike rider
called two more people
and they all started
beating the schoolboy
.
New Delhi (ANI): Del-
hi Commission for
Women (DCW) on Mon-
day rescued five minor
boys employed as child
labour in a bangle mak-
ing unit in Delhi’s Ja-
hangirpuri area.
The DCW chief Swati
Maliwal has issued a
notice to Delhi Police
seeking registration of
an FIR against the ac-
cused. The DCW in a
statement said that it
received information
on its 181 Women Hel-
pline from an anony-
mous source who in-
formed that five minor
boys were employed in
a bangle making unit
and were regularly
beaten up brutally by
their employer.
“A team of the Com-
mission immediately
reached the spot, along
with Delhi Police, and
rescued the minor boys.
Out of the five children
rescued, two were 8
years old each, one was
10 years old and the
other two were 13 years
old each,” the Commis-
sion informed.
DCW rescues 5 minors
from bangle making unit

INDIA
03
Amit Shah: Regional languages
will revolutionalise education
Bengaluru (Agen-
cies): Union Home Min-
ister Amit Shah on
Tuesday said that re-
gional languages will
play a crucial role in
revolutionising the edu-
cation system guided by
the National Education
Policy (NEP) 2020.
In his inaugural ad-
dress at the Nrupatunga
University on the auspi-
cious day of Basava Jay-
anti, Akshaya Tritiya,
and Eid, he said that the
Narendra Modi-led gov-
ernment has vowed to
realise the dream of
making India knowl-
edge-based superpower.
The Centre, he said,
aspires to inculcate the
culture of patriotism
among students dur-
ing the celebration of
75 years of Independ-
ence (Azad ka Amrit
Mahotsav). In the past
eight years, a total of
410 higher education
institutions, including
six central universi-
ties, seven IIMs, 15
AIIMS, have been es-
tablished in the coun-
try, he added.
North East region
which was earlier ne-
glected has also been
given prominence in
all developmental
works, including edu-
cation and Sindhu Cen-
tral University has
been established in
Ladakh, the minister
mentioned.
Further, he said that
the union government
has been focusing on
developing India as a
global manufacturing
hub. He also lauded that
Karnataka has become
an example for other
states in the implemen-
tation of NEP-2020.
Speaking on the occa-
sion, Chief Minister
Basavarja Bommai,
stated that the govern-
ment is emphasising on
three Es- Education,
Employment, and Em-
powerment.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah with Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai and others during
the foundation laying programme of Nrupatunga University, in Bengaluru on Tuesday.
North East
region, which
was earlier
neglected, has also
been given promi-
nence in all develop-
mental works, in-
cluding education.
Sindhu Central Uni-
versity has been es-
tablished in Ladakh
—Amit Shah, Union Home Min
‘Karnataka has become example for other States in implementation of NEP-2020’
LOUDSPEAKER ROW
Raj Thackeray booked
for Aurangabad speech
Mumbai (Agencies):
Two days after the Ma-
harashtra Navnirman
Sena (MNS) held a
massive rally in Au-
rangabad, an FIR has
been registered
against party chief
Raj Thackeray and Ra-
jiv Jawalikar, the or-
ganiser of the rally
, for
allegedly violating the
terms and conditions
imposed by the police
while granting per-
mission for the rally
.
The police said
Thackeray has been
named the main ac-
cused in the case as he
allegedlymadeprovoc-
ative statements at the
rally and “instigated”
hissupporters.Thepo-
lice have also issued
notices to hundreds of
MNS workers.
“The speech was
provocative in nature
and that can disrupt
peaceinsociety
.Hence,
an FIR has been regis-
tered,” said a senior
officer with Aurang-
abad city police.
On Sunday, Thack-
eray had reiterated
the May 3 “deadline”
for removal of loud-
speakers from
mosques in the state.
Mumbai: With the
Aurangabad police on
Tuesday registering
a case against MNS
Raj Thackeray over
his speech against
loudspeakers on
mosques, some party
leaders slammed the
MVA govt and said
they will hit the streets
in case of further
action against their
party head. Talking to
reporters, MNS Thane
district chief Avinash
Jadhav criticised CM
Uddhav over the issue.
Jadhav claimed it was
Bal Thackeray who
had first demanded
the removal of
loudspeakers from
mosques, but his son
has booked Raj Thack-
eray for the same.
MNS LEADERS WARN OF AGITATION
What is Gaya Lal’s ‘backing’ in Congress?
Sharat K Verma
New Delhi: An inde-
pendent candidate from
Hasanpur seat in Palw-
al district of Haryana,
by the name of Gaya
Lal had won the Assem-
bly election in 1967,
when 16 independents
won election to the Har-
yana Assembly and
both the Congress and
the United Front were
busy bringing together
independent MLAs to
form their own govern-
ment. At that time,
Gaya Lal changed the
party thrice in a day
. At
first he went to Con-
gress but after a while
went with United
Front. But within a few
hours he again had a
change of heart and
joined the Congress.
After coming back to
the Congress, the then
Congress leader Rao
Birender Singh took
him with him and held
a press conference in
Chandigarh, in which
he said – Jo Gaya Ram
The, Wo Aaya Ram hao
Gaye Hain. Since then
the jumla of 'Aaya
Ram-Gaya Ram' has
come in Indian politics.
Uday Bhan, who con-
tests from Hodal as-
sembly seat, is the son
of the this Gaya Lal,
and been given the
command of Haryana
Pradesh Congress. Ac-
cording to the old for-
mula, Bhupinder Singh
Hooda was to become
the president and Gee-
ta Bhukkal was to be-
come the leader of the
legislature party. But
both these leaders are
from Rohtak district,
hence the plan was
changed. Uday Bhan,
who comes from the
Dalit community, was
made the president by
the choice of Bhupin-
der Singh Hooda, since
the party failed to find
a combination of fe-
male leader and Dalit
face, as was projected
by Kumari Selja.
Udai Bhan (middle) is a four-time MLA from Hodal constituency.
Will the Jakhar family
head to the BJP?
Mahesh Sharma
New Delhi: In Pun-
jab, although the
Bharatiya Janata
Party has sidelined
Captain Amarinder
Singh,theadvocateof
Sunil Jakhar, but it is
being said that
Jakhar can talk di-
rectly to the BJP. Af-
ter the assembly elec-
tions, the BJP left
Captain. The BJP it-
self will contest the
municipal elections
to be held in three cit-
iesandtheby-election
of Sangrur Lok Sab-
ha seat. Actually Cap-
tain is not fit in BJP
politics even because
of his age and habits.
So, he may not go to
BJP or continue with
hisparty
,butmanyof
his close leaders will
head to BJP, includ-
ing Jakhar.
However, the Con-
gress party has
shown leniency on
Jakhar. His suspen-
sion from the party
was recommended by
the Disciplinary
Committee but in-
stead of suspending
him, the Congress
President decided to
remove him from all
posts. Anyway, he
was not in any posi-
tion, so this decision
has no meaning.Heis
not even a legislator
of the party
. He has
given his traditional
Abohar seat to his
nephew Sandeep
Jakhar, who is the
MLA from there. Re-
garding the attack on
Sunil Jakhar, the
Jakhar family said
that he is a Hindu, so
he is being treated
like this. Keep in
mindthatinthename
of being a Hindu, his
name was cut in the
race for the post of
Chief Minister. So,
his family is playing
the Hindu card,
which will culminate
in BJP politics.
Former Punjab Congress chief Sunil Jakhar (C)
Congress fields
Uma Thomas in
Thrikkakara
Thiruvananthapuram
(Agencies): Congress
appeared to have stolen
a march on its rivals by
naming Uma Thomas as
the party’s candidate for
the Thrikkakara As-
sembly by-election.
The CPI(M) and the
BJPwillsoonfollowsuit
so as not to be outpaced
by the Congress in the
campaign.
Opposing fronts view
the bypoll as a yardstick
of the second Pinarayi
Vijayan government’s
performance and a bell-
wether of the public’s
position on the Silver-
line project.
Thomas is the wife
of late Thikkakara
MLA PT Thomas, and
the party hopes to cash
in on the groundswell
of sympathy that fol-
lowed her husband's
death.
Thomasisnopolitical
novice. She has a histo-
ry of student activism
and significant election
experience, shadowing
Thomas on his many
campaign trails.
TN to send essential
items to Lanka: Stalin
Chennai (Agen-
cies): Tamil Nadu
Chief Minister MK
Stalin on Tuesday
said the government
will send rice, milk
power and life saving
drugs to crisis-hit Sri
Lanka in the first
phase. He also ap-
pealed to the people
to contribute money
for the purpose.
Stalin said with the
permission of the
BJP-led central gov-
ernment, the state
will soon send 40,000
ton of rice, 500 ton of
milk powder and life
saving drugs to Sri
Lanka caught in a se-
vere economic crisis.
He also appealed to
the people to donate
on humanitarian ba-
sis so that necessary
items can be bought
and sent to the island
nation.
Earlier, Stalin had
requested the Centre
to allow the state to
ship the essentials,
includingfoodgrains,
vegetables and medi-
cines, from the
Thoothukudi port to
the Tamils living in
Northern and East-
ern Parts of Sri Lan-
ka and Colombo.
Nadda to attend Telangana
BJP’s public meet on May 5
Hyderabad (PTI): BJP
president JP Nadda
will attend a public
meeting at Mahabub-
nagar in Telangana on
May 5 as part of the
state unit president
and MP Bandi Sanjay
Kumar’s ongoing
‘padayatra’.
BJP is organising
the ‘Janam Gosa- BJP
Bharosa’ (people’s suf-
fering — BJP’s reas-
surance) rally to mount
pressure on the Telan-
gana Rashtra Samithi
(TRS) government to-
wards implementing
its election promises
and to rebuild the state
as per the dreams of all
sections of society,
state BJP general sec-
retary G Premender
Reddy and other lead-
ers said in a statement
on Tuesday.
Sanjay Kumar began
the second phase of his
‘padayatra’ on April 14
after offering prayers
at the temple of God-
dess Jogulamba at
Alampur in Gadwal
district.
Jolt to Trinamool’s UP unit as
State chief, members resign
Lucknow (PTI): The
Uttar Pradesh unit of
the Trinamool Con-
gress (TMC) suffered a
jolt after several mem-
bers, including the
state unit president,
Neeraj Rai, resigned.
Big leaders in the
Trinamool Congress do
not want the party to
expand beyond West
Bengal. The party's
committed workforce
in Uttar Pradesh is be-
ing side-lined and at-
tempts are being made
to disintegrate the state
unit, Rai told report-
ers on Tuesday
.
He, however, did not
divulge his future plans.
The infighting within
the party will hit Mama-
ta Banerjee's plan to
have a stronger pres-
ence in Uttar Pradesh
ahead of the 2024 Lok
Sabha elections.
Thepartyhadnotcon-
tested the 2022 state elec-
tions but started ground
level preparations for
the 2024 Lok Sabha elec-
tions by raising a strong
organisational setup in
Uttar Pradesh.
The mass resigna-
tions, however, seem to
have brought the party
back to where it stood
in Uttar Pradesh before
May 2021, when Mama-
ta won for the third
time in West Bengal.
Mamata's win con-
vinced the party work-
ers that she is the only
leader who can take on
the saffron might. This
emboldened Trina-
mool's workforce in Ut-
tar Pradesh as well and
it started making efforts
to gain visibility
.
Uttarakhand Char Dham Yatra begins
Dehradun (Agencies):
The Char Dham yatra
began on May 3 with the
portals of Gangotri and
Yamunotri temples in
Uttarkashi district
thrown open to devotees
on the occasion of Ak-
shay Tritiya.
The gates of Gangotri
were opened at 11.15
a.m. and those of Yamu-
notri at 12.15 p.m. in the
presence of thousands
of devotees, administra-
tive and temple commit-
tee officials.
The idols of goddess-
es Ganga and Yamuna
were brought in ornate
palanquins decorated
with flowers from their
winterabodesbeforethe
vedic rituals were start-
ed by the priests to mark
the opening of the tem-
ples. A record number
of pilgrims are likely to
visit Char Dham this
year as it is for the first
time since 2019 that the
yatrahasbegunwithout
the COVID-induced
restrictions in force.
However, a daily limit
has been imposed on the
number of pilgrims vis-
iting the temples so that
they do not face any in-
convenience due to lim-
ited accommodation
available for them at the
Himalayan shrines.
The opening of Gan-
gotri and Yamunotri
marks the commence-
mentof theUttarakhand
Char Dham yatra. Ke-
darnath opens on May 6
and Badrinath on May 8.
Chief Minister Push-
kar Singh Dhami along
with his wife also visit-
ed Gangotri to offer
prayers and witness the
ceremoniousopeningof
the temple gates.
Uttarakhand CM Pushkar Singh Dhami during the opening
ceremony of the Gangotri Dham portal, in Gangotri on Tuesday.
Portals of
Kedarnath to open
on May 6 and
Badrinath on May 8
JK Delimitation Commission
to submit report soon: Sources
New Delhi (Agencies):
The Delimitation Com-
mission on Jammu and
Kashmir is likely to sub-
mit its report shortly,
sources said.
The Commission’s
tenure expires on May 6
and it is likely to submit
itsreporttotheECsoon.
The Commission has
been constituted to re-
draw the Lok Sabha and
Assembly constituen-
cies of JK, and once it
submits the report, the
Election Commission
will take a call on hold-
ing Assembly elections
in the Union Territory
of JK.
The sources also said
that the govt will review
all the aspects, includ-
ing the security facets.
Officials in the gov-
ernment set up also said
that the draft electoral
roll will be published
and a ‘door-to-door’ veri-
fication of the roll will
be done and the Centre
will also discuss this in
an all-party meeting to
have their opinion.
The sources said that
elections can be held
earliest in October and
the state electoral office
would like to get them
conducted before the on-
set of winter in JK.

l Vol 1 l Issue No. 244
l RNI TITLE NO. DELENG/2021/19840
Printed and published by
Anita Hada Sangwan on behalf of
First Express Publishers. Printed at
Impressions Printing and Packaging
Limited, C-21, 22 Sector-59,
Noida-201301. Published at G-20,
3rd Floor, 309, Preet Vihar, New
Delhi-110092. Phone 011-49846474.
Editor-In-Chief: Jagdeesh Chandra.
Editor: Sharat K Verma
responsible for selection of news
under the PRB Act
SPIRITUAL SPEAK
A disciplined mind
brings happiness.
—Buddha
IN-DEPTH
Rajnath Singh
@rajnathsingh
Met with the family of Major CB
Dwivedi, who made supreme sacrifice
during the Kargil War. His daughters,
Neha and Diksha shared with me
copies of their work. Kudos to them
for their wonderful work and efforts.
My best wishes to them.
Anurag Thakur
@ianuragthakur
Whether its on field or off the field,
your passion for sporting excellence is
inspiring the next gen Rahul Dravid!
TOP TWEETS
SHOULD HE
OR SHOULD
HE NOT GO TO
NIGHTCLUB IN
FOREIGN LAND
s it wrong for a politi-
cian to visit a night-
club, that too in a
foreign country? Cer-
tainly, if the politi-
cian belongs to a star-crossed
national party and has doubtful
leadership credentials. We are
talking of Rahul Gandhi, a vid-
eo of whom partying in a night
club in Nepal has gone viral.
The BJP pounced on the Con-
gress leader as he is known for
disappearing on “holidays,
pleasure trips and private for-
eign trips” when the party needs
his presence. The undated video
from a Kathmandu hotel does
show Rahul with a friend but
not with glass in hand as much
as his detractors would have
wanted.
Rahul’s video has emerged at
a time when the party is busy
thrashing out its internal prob-
lems related to G23, the restless
Sachin Pilot, upcoming polls in
Gujarat and giving the party an
assertive, strong and cohesive
leadership. The Congress natu-
rally defended his Nepal visit
but it can’t really explain his
lack of leadership skills.
I
rime Minister
Narendra Modi’s
statement that
“there will be no
winning party in
this war, everyone will suf-
fer”, reminds of the Mahab-
harata war, an epic battle that
offers strong lessons to us
even today
. The battle be-
tween two groups of cousins
spanning 18 days is said to
have ended with heavy casu-
alties on both sides. There
were only a few survivors in
thewarthatgaveustheBhag-
vad Gita and a pyrrhic victo-
ry to the Pandavas. Another
war that should be looked at
for a lesson is the Kalinga
war in ancient India. The
deaths and destruction in Ka-
linga wrought by King Asho-
ka for victory over Kalinga
moved the Magadh king so
much that he turned Bud-
dhists.
The Russia-Ukraine war
could also give Moscow a
similar victory after huge
human and material losses
on the Ukrainian side. Not
all countries in today’s world
believe in a “rule-based or-
der” which Modi spoke of.
India and Germany, PM
Modi said, agreed that “bor-
ders should not be changed
through the use of violence
and that the … sovereignty
of nations has to be univer-
sally accepted”.
Both Vladimir Putin and
Volodymyr Zelenskyy must
strive to end the senseless
war as the world is already
bearing the brunt. From oil
to food and homeless mi-
grants, the devastation’s im-
pact can be felt in several
countries. There is no sign
that Russia will end hostili-
ties anytime soon, even as
world is staring at an eco-
nomic crisis. India’s stand on
war will not bring about
peace. Nor will stand of West.
BATTLES ONLY BRING
PYRRHIC VICTORY
Prime Minister Narendra
Modi’s statement that “there
will be no winning party
in this war, everyone will
suffer”, reminds of the
Mahabharata war, an epic
battle that offers strong
lessons to us even today
P
AAP’S INROADS MAKING
TIES WITH TMC FROSTY?
Politics is a strange game. If it brings strange bedfellows together… today’s friends can have frosty ties by tomorrow!
One great example or rather a case in hand is that of the Aam Aadmi Party and the TMC relationship
It will be interesting to see
how things shape up even as
AAP has expressed its
willingness to contest the
panchayat polls in West
Bengal in 2023 and has
also begun a membership
drive in the state. With the
Congress’ gradual slide and
the extreme infighting in the
BJP in Bengal, it may not
be difficult to predict that
AAP can garner some
support for itself
ample this… In 2015, when
Arvind Kejriwal visited Par-
liament for the first time after
he stunned one and all and
became Delhi Chief Minister,
Mamata played the role of an
elder sister and guided him
around the iconic monument.
However, as I had said ear-
lier, politics is a strange
game… in the next few years,
the two formidable leaders
had started charting out dif-
ferent paths. Especially in
July 2021, when Mamata vis-
ited Delhi after TMC’s re-
sounding victory in the Ben-
gal Assembly polls for the
third consecutive time and
defeating the Saffron might,
she met a number of noted
Opposition leaders, but the
“non-meeting”withAAPboss
created “more headlines.”
And from there on, as po-
litical grapevine has it… the
ties between TMC and AAP
have turned frosty, cold and
“strained” if we may say so
though it was never made
public.
In September 2021, the ties
between the two parties were
destined to hit a “collision
path” when both the parties
decided to take a plunge in
the Goa Assembly elections.
Both parties had jumped into
the fray and wanted to make
their presence felt as a “Na-
tional Opposition” following
the gradual “relegation” of
the Congress.
AAP managed to post vic-
tories on two seats in Goa,
with Kejriwal terming it as
the “beginning of honest
politics in Goa”.
Meanwhile, despite a high-
decibel campaign, a pre-poll
alliance and the might of
Prashant Kishor, TMC failed
to create a flutter in Goa.
TMC bagged no seats in the
40-member Assembly and
managed a meagre vote share
of 5.21 per cent.
However, recently on Fri-
day, both the CMs “met”
again, as Mamata was in Del-
hi to attend a joint conference
of CMs and High Court Chief
Justices, which was inaugu-
rated by Prime Minister Nar-
endra Modi on Saturday
.
Even as there was no offi-
cial word on what had tran-
spired between them, the
meeting for obvious reasons
generated political ripples as
it was held ahead of the up-
coming Presidential polls.
The meeting has also as-
sumed major significance as
barely a month ago, Mamata
had written to all non-BJP
CMs, including Kejriwal, on
the need to ensure a united
front against the BJP-ruled
Centre’s alleged excesses.
However, in the past and
even today with just two
years to go for the crucial
Lok Sabha elections, AAP
has never shown its zeal for a
joint effort by the Opposition
forces to take on the might of
the Saffron “collectively”.
Even as Mamata has been
seen hobnobbing with KCR,
Sharad Pawar… the notable
absence of Kejriwal in all
these meetings always sur-
prised political analysts.
Accordingtoglobalpolitical
strategist and founder of the
upcoming world’s first socio-
politicalapp,Sanyog,DrAyan-
jit Sen, “There is no doubt that
AAP has emerged as the main
Opposition party post the re-
cent assembly elections, with
inroads even in civic elections
in Assam. But what must be
seen is the way the other main
contender, TMC, functions in
the next few months and the
strategies they implement.
With Tripura and Goa not do-
ing well for Mamata, the focus
has nationally shifted to Kejri-
wal, who has played his cards
very well to gain Punjab with
a brilliant populist agenda.
This strategy will take the
AAP boss quite a distance in
some states but he has to also
understand that the same po-
liticalstrategywillnotworkin
other states. However, he is
targeting West Bengal as well
and accordingly building that
national look for AAP
.”
It will be interesting to see
how things shape up even as
AAP has expressed its will-
ingness to contest the pan-
chayat polls in West Bengal in
2023 and has also begun a
membership drive in the
state. With the Congress’
gradual slide and the extreme
infighting in the BJP in Ben-
gal, it may not be difficult to
predict that AAP can garner
some support for itself.
THE VIEWS EXPRESSED BY
THE AUTHOR ARE PERSONAL
S
ROBIN ROY
The writer is Senior Associate Editor,
Free Press Journal, Mumbai and former
Managing Editor, First India
RECENT MEET FUELS
POLITICAL RIPPLES...
However, recently on Friday,
both the CMs “met” again,
as Mamata was in Delhi to
attend a joint conference of CMs
and High Court Chief Justices,
which was inaugurated by
Prime Minister Narendra Modi
on Saturday. Even as there was
no official word on what had
transpired between them, the
meeting for obvious reasons
generated political ripples
as it was held ahead of the
upcoming Presidential polls.
The meeting has also assumed
major significance as barely a
month ago, Mamata had written
to all non-BJP CMs, including
Kejriwal, on the need to ensure
a united front against the BJP-
ruled Centre’s alleged excesses.
New Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee
PERSPECTIVE
04

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INDIA
05
Rakesh Ranjan
New Delhi: Officialsare
unable to figure out the
meaning of the recent
large-scale reshuffle of
Union Secretaries that
took place on Monday
.
However, Pradeep
Kumar Tripathi’s ap-
pointment (on a lateral-
shift basis) as Secretary
(Coordination) in Cabi-
net Secretariat by in-
stalling Mrs S Radha
Chauhan as new
DOPT Secretary has
triggered many stories
that also include the
take from the CSS Cad-
re. However, none of
them convincingly ex-
plains the reasons.
In addition to the HR-
related policy frame-
work, the Department
of Personnel Train-
ing (DOPT) looks after
all important transfer
postings of senior level
officers in Government
of India and is con-
cerned with Cadre
Management welfare
of 20k Central Secre-
tariat officials, the CSS
cadre version of the
change of guard in this
department may seem
interesting even though
it oversimplifies the
change of guard in the
department (DOPT).
Alargesectionof CSS
cadre looks, rather
wishes to look, at the
change with its own per-
spective. It presumes
that it is the manifesta-
tion of the continuous
embarrassment faced
by PMO and especially
MoS Dr Jitendra Singh
as all his assurances re-
gardingimmediatereso-
lution of the long-pend-
ing issues of Central
Secretariat Officers
failed to be acted upon
by the DOPT even after
clear instructions.
Further, the said
transfer is different in a
sensethatsince2014sec-
retaries posted in
DoPT served till their
superannuation and
Tripathi could also have
continued as DOPT
Secretary till June 2024.
Earlier, on February
25,2022agitatedwiththe
non-resolution of their
long pending issues of
promotion, CSS Officers
under the leadership of
CSS Forum (their um-
brella association) gath-
ered in protest in front
of the office of the Min-
isterinchargeof DoPT
at North Block. CSS Fo-
rum had then raised its
voice and claimed that
DoPT did not work on
any of the issues includ-
ing promotions of CSS
officers so far and offic-
ers were still retiring
every month bearing
huge financial losses.
Senior officials,
though, believe that
CSS Cadre’s version
might have been de-
signed to escalate pres-
sure on DOPT and its
new Secretary to fast-
track the pending is-
sues of the Cadre.
Though the guardian
minister for Personnel
Dr Jitendra Singh had
assured the Cadre to re-
solve their issues, one
should not forget that
the present regime at
the Centre has its own
way and timing to tack-
le critical issues.
Theveryview-pointof
a large section of CSS
Cadre appears to ignore
the fact that the matter
of pending promotions
has legal implications as
well and secondly
, the
timing of PK Tripathi’s
shift from DOPT to
Cabinet Secretariat i.e.
ahead of completion of
CabinetSecretary’sterm
in August this year.
DoPT change of guard looks enigmatic amid too many speculations
TWO TRIBALS ACCUSED OF KILLING COW
BEATEN TO DEATH IN MADHYA PRADESH
Seoni (PTI): Two tribal
men on Tuesday were
beaten to death after
they were allegedly as-
saulted by a group of
15-20 people over suspi-
cion of cow slaughter in
Madhya Pradesh’s Seo-
ni district, police said
on Tuesday. Another
person was also injured
in the incident.
As per the media re-
ports, the complainant
in the case and the op-
position Congress in the
BJP-ruled state have al-
leged the attackers be-
long to the Bajrang Dal.
According to officials,
over 20 people have been
booked in connection
with the incident, which
took place at Simaria
under Kurai police sta-
tion limits between 2:30
AM and 3 AM on Mon-
day, including six on
charges of murder.
Soon after the inci-
dent was reported, a
group led by Congress
legislator Arjun Singh
Kakodia started a pro-
test on the Jabalpur-
Nagpur highway
. More-
over, the Seoni Superin-
tendent of Police and
other officials visited
the protest site.
“Two tribal men have
died. It was alleged a
group of 15-20 people
went to the victims’
house, accused them of
killing a cow and as-
saulted them. The two
men died while being
taken to hospital and
another sustained mi-
nor injury. A postmor-
tem is yet to be conduct-
ed,” Additional Super-
intendent of Police SK
Maravi told media.
“A case of murder
has been registered at
the Kuarai police sta-
tion and police teams
are searching for the
accused. Some of the
accused are named and
others are unidentified.
We have taken 2-3 sus-
pects into custody.
Some 12 kilograms of
meat has been found in
the victims’ house,”
Maravi said.
In his complaint,
Brajesh Batti, who was
injured in the incident,
said the mob was hit-
ting Sampat Batti, a
resident of Sagar, and
Simaria resident Dhan-
sa with sticks when he
arrived at the spot, and
he, too, was assaulted.
During the protest,
Congress MLA Kakodia
claimed the attackers
comprised Bajrang Dal
members and called for
a ban on the right-wing
outfit. He further said
the kin of the victims
should be given Rs 1
crore each as well as
government jobs.
Meanwhile, Congress
has demanded a high-
level inquiry into the
incident and swift ac-
tionagainsttheculprits.
Taking to Twitter,
MP Congress presi-
dent Kamal Nath said,
“I demand from the
government that strict
action be taken against
the culprits by an-
nouncing a high-level
inquiry into this inci-
dent. All possible help
should be given to the
families of the victims
and arrangements for
treatment of the in-
jured man at govern-
ment expense.”
Furthermore, Kamal
Nath said the kin of the
deceased and local resi-
dents have claimed the
Bajrang Dal was in-
volved in the incident.
Complainants allege that attackers belong to the Bajrang Dal; 20 booked, say cops
Protests erupted on NH-44 after the mob-lynching incident.
SII: Covovax
now available
for kids in India
New Delhi (Agencies):
Children aged 12 to 17
years in India can now
get the Serum Institute
of India’s (SII) Covid-19
vaccine Covovax, phar-
ma company’s SEO
Adar Poonawalla an-
nounced on Tuesday
.
“Covovax (@No-
vavax), is now available
for children in India.
This is the only vaccine
manufactured in India
that is also sold in Eu-
rope and has an efficacy
of 90%,” Poonawalla
tweeted.
He also hailed Prime
Minister Narendra
Modi for his vision of
providing another vac-
cine for children.
“This is in line with
Shri @narendramodi
Ji’s vision of providing
yet another vaccine to
protect our children,”
he added.
Covovax is the sec-
ond Covid-19 vaccine
manufactured by SII,
which makes the Cov-
ishield, the dose that is
most widely used in the
country. On December
28, the DCGI had ap-
proved Covovax for
emergency use in
adults, and approved
the vaccine for emer-
gency use in those aged
12 and above in March
this year, making it the
fourth Covid vaccine
approved for emergen-
cy use in children in
this age group.
The NTAGI had re-
cently recommended
that Covovax be includ-
ed in the government’s
programme for chil-
dren aged 12 and above.
CHANGES IN
VACCINATION
POLICY: SC
DISMISSES PLEA
New Delhi (PTI): The
Supreme Court has
asked the Ministry
of Health and Family
Welfare Ministry to
decide on a repre-
sentation of a person
seeking modification
of COVID-19 policy
to allow voluntary
re-vaccination of
persons who have
received the Sputnik-
V vaccine and are
desirous of travelling
abroad. A bench
of Justices Chan-
drachud and Surya
Kant while refusing
to interfere with the
petition granted lib-
erty to the petitioner,
Tarun Mehta, to
move a represen-
tation before the
Ministry. The plea
stated that Mehta
was vaccinated with
Sputnik-V vaccine,
but, since it has not
been approved by
the WHO, he was un-
able to travel abroad.
Agartala (PTI):
Twenty-four Roh-
ingya immigrants
were detained in
Tripura's Unakoti
district, police
said on Tuesday
.
Acting on a tip-
off, BSF intercept-
ed three cars at
J i t u r d i g h i p a r
check-gate on
Monday evening,
they said.
They were on
the way from Ku-
marghat to Kailas-
hahar, police said.
On suspicion,
all the suspected
Rohingya immi-
grants were de-
tained and taken to
Kailashahar police
station for interro-
gation. In the
course of the inter-
rogation,threepeo-
ple showed their
refugee cards is-
sued by the UN,
SuperintendentPo-
lice Kishore Debb-
barma told media.
BSF ARREST
24 ROHINGYAS
IN TRIPURA’S
UNAKOTI DIST
Top security cover for
777 vital installations
New Delhi (ANI): As
many as 777 vital instal-
lations in India are cur-
rently under special
security cover provided
by the Central Armed
Police Forces (CAPFs),
working under the Min-
istry of Home Affairs
(MHA) and the state
governments.
As per the recently
published Annual Re-
port 2020-2021, based on
threat vulnerability,
these installations are
being guarded by Cen-
tral Armed Police Forc-
es and state forces.
The report says that
the security categoriza-
tion of vital installa-
tions has been re-
viewed, and they have
been re-categorised as
A, B, C, D and E, in
view of their threat
vulnerability and to in-
clude a wider range of
vital installations.
These vital installa-
tions include nuclear
and aerospace build-
ings, sensitive govern-
ment departments, and
power and energy set-
up among others.
Casewon’tstandincourt:Choksi’s lawyer
New Delhi (ANI): Me-
hul Choksi’s Advocate
Vijay Aggarwal on
Tuesday said that the
Central Bureau of In-
vestigation’s (CBI) fresh
case against fugitive
diamantaire and his
company Gitanjali
Gems, for allegedly de-
frauding the Industrial
Finance Corporation of
India (IFCI), will not
stand in court.
“This case may be
good for coffee table
talk, but will not stand
in the court,” Aggarwal
told media.
Further, the Advo-
cate said that in the ear-
lier cases, “not the
slightest development
has taken place in trial
and this will also go
into the storage house.”
Slamming the central
agency, Choksi’s Advo-
cate said that the finan-
cial institution should
have carried valuation
immediately after de-
fault. “Government
agencies can go up to
Antigua to kidnap the
man but they have not
checkedtheirownhouse
and have found it now.”
Fugitive Mehul Choksi
The CBI recently
registered a
fresh case
against Choksi
and his company
for allegedly
defrauding IFCI
Central Govt seeks time from
top court for filing response
PLEAS CHALLENGING SEDITION LAW
New Delhi (Agen-
cies): The Centre has
sought time from the
Supreme Court to file
itsresponseonabatch
of pleas challenging
the constitutional va-
lidity of the colonial
era law on sedition.
Athree-judgebench
of CJI Ramana and
justices Surya Kant
and Hima Kohli, on
April 27, had directed
the Central govern-
ment to file the reply
saying it would com-
mence the final hear-
ing in the matter on
May 5 and would not
entertain any request
for adjournment. In
an application filed
before the court, the
Centre said while the
draft of the affidavit is
ready
, it was awaiting
confirmationfromthe
competent authority
.
The top court, in its
last order, had noted
that senior advocate
Kapil Sibal will
lead the argu-
ments from the
petitioner's
side against
the validity
o f
section 124A (sedi-
tion) of the IPC in the
matter.
Concerned over the
enormous misuse of
the penal law on sedi-
tion, the top court in
July last year had
asked the Centre why
it was not repealing
the provision used by
the British to si-
lence people like
Mahatma Gan-
dhi to suppress
the freedom
movement.
Agra (Agencies): A
seer from Ayodhya Ja-
gat Guru Paramhans
Das was stopped by po-
lice in Agra on Tuesday
.
He had announced
that he would visit the
Taj Mahal, to perform
‘shudhikaran’withman-
tras on Akshaya Tritiya.
The seer was earlier
denied entry on April 26
at the Taj Mahal for try-
ing to enter the prem-
ises with a ‘brahmdan-
da’ (a wooden stick car-
ried by Hindu seers).
Agitated with police
action, the seer has said
that while members of
other communities are
allowed inside, he was
stopped because he was
wearing saffron clothes.
“Why was I invited if
they had to insult me,”
he had said.
Meanwhile, the seer
has announced that he
would give up food and
water until he was al-
lowed to offer prayers
inside the Taj Mahal.
Seer detained in Agra, wanted
to offer prayers at Taj Mahal

BIZ BUZZ
06
Coal production rises 28% in Apr on
strong demand from power sector
New Delhi (PTI): India’s coal out-
put soared by 28% to 66.1 million
tonnes in April amid high demand
from thermal power plants as sev-
eral parts of the country grappled
with power shortage.
The overall coal production was
at 51.6 million tonnes (MT) in April
2021.
“During the month of April,
2022 India’s total coal production
stood at 661.54 lakh tons (66.1 MT),”
the coal ministry said in a state-
ment.
While Coal India Ltd (CIL) and
its subsidiaries produced 53.4 MT
of coal, production by Singareni
Colleries Company Ltd (SCCL)
stood at 5.3 MT and by captive
mines at 7.3 MT during the last
month.
According to the provisional
data of the Ministry of Coal, while
the total offtake of the coal sector
was 70.8 MT during the month, the
power sector offtake touched 61.7
MT in April. At the same time, coal
supplies to the power sector from
Coal India alone stood at 49.7 MT.
On an average, the PSU supplied
1.66 MT of coal per day to power
utilitiesinAprilwhichincreasedto
1.73 MT during last week. Avg sup-
ply per day is at par with what was
programmed by CIL for this sector
during the first quarter of FY23.
India fell short of domestic coal supply
targets to utilities by 7.6% in April, as
output from mines owned by companies
for self-use were 33% lower than required
and a shortage of trains for delivery fur-
ther exacerbated a crippling power crisis.
India faced its worst power crisis in over
six years in April as demand hit a record
high. Local supplies are crucial as coal
inventories at utilities are at the lowest
pre-summer levels in at least nine years
and electricity demand is expected to rise
at the fastest pace in nearly four decades.
India’s supply to the power sector in April
was 61.72 million tonnes, the government
said in a statement on Tuesday, 7.6% low-
er than the target of 66.8 million tonnes.
INDIA FALLS 7.6% SHORT OF
SUPPLY TARGETS
New Delhi (Agencies): India
has asked state and private
sector utilities to ensure
delivery of 19 million tonnes
of coal from overseas by end-
June, according to a power
ministry letter. The move,
which marks the first time the
world’s second-largest coal
importer is issuing timelines
for imports, can put pressure
on the global prices of coal. If
the timelines are adhered to,
the imports by the states and
private utilities over the next
five months for blending with
domestic coal will surpass
annual imports by the entities
in at least six years. The fed-
eral government has asked
state government-owned
utilities to import over 22
million tonnes of coal and
private power plants to
import 15.94 million tonnes,
the power ministry said in a
letter reviewed by Reuters.
The power ministry asked
all utilities to ensure deliv-
ery of 50% of the allocated
quantity by June 30, another
40% by end-August and the
remaining 10% by the end of
October.
INDIA SETS END-
JUNE COAL IMPORT
TARGETS
Wheat procurement down
44% on higher exports
Centre’s wheat pro-
curement declined by
44% to 162 lakh tonnes
till May 1 of the cur-
rent rabi marketing
year on higher exports
and low arrival in Pun-
jab and Haryana man-
dis, according to offi-
cial sources.
As per the latest of-
ficial data, about 162
lakh tonnes of wheat
have been purchased
by the government
agencies till May 1 of
the ongoing 2022-23
rabi marketing season
(RMS). It was 288 lakh
tonnes in 2021.
Around 14.70 lakh
farmers have benefit-
ted from the procure-
ment at the Minimum
Support Price (MSP)
value of Rs 32,633.71
crore, the data showed.
State-owned Food
Corporation of India
(FCI) and state agen-
cies undertake pro-
curement at a mini-
mum support price to
meet the requirement
under the Public Dis-
tributionSystem(PDS)
and other welfare
schemes.
The Centre has set a
target to procure re-
cord 444 lakh tonnes of
wheat in the 2022-23
marketing year as
against an all-time
high 433.44 lakh tonnes
in the previous mar-
keting year.
The fall in the gov-
ernment wheat buying
was mainly due to in-
creased private pur-
chase for the export as
well as lower crop
yields, especially in
Punjab and Haryana
because of the sudden
rise in temperature.
New Delhi (Agen-
cies): India’s wheat
output looks likely to
fall in 2022 after five
consecutive years of
record harvests, as a
sharp, sudden rise in
temperatures in mid-
March cut crop yields
in the world’s second-
biggest producer of
the grain. The govern-
ment is yet to formally
revise its production
estimates, but an
official note, said the
output could fall to
105 million tonnes this
year.
HEAT WAVE
THREATENS
INDIA’S WHEAT
PLANS
LIC raises `5,627
crore from anchor
investors
New Delhi (PTI): In-
surance behemoth
LIC on Tuesday said it
has garnered a little
over `5,627 crore from
anchor investors led
primarily by domestic
institutions ahead of
its mega initial public
offering (IPO).
Anchor Investors’
(AIs) portion
(5,92,96,853 equity
shares) was sub-
scribed at `949 per eq-
uity share, the insurer
said in an early morn-
ing filing to exchang-
es.
Out of the alloca-
tion of about 5.9 crore
shares to AIs, 4.2 crore
shares (71.12%) were
allocated to 15 domes-
tic mutual funds
through 99 schemes,
the filing said.
Besides, investment
was made by some do-
mestic insurance com-
panies and pension
funds.
Some of the promi-
nent names in this cat-
egory included ICICI
Prudential Life Insur-
ance, SBI Life Insur-
ance, Kotak Mahindra
Life Insurance, PNB
Metlife Insurance, SBI
Pension Fund and UTI
Retirement Solutions
Pension Fund Scheme
among others.
Foreign participa-
tion included Govern-
ment of Singapore,
Monetary Authority
of Singapore, Govern-
ment Pension Fund
Global and BNP In-
vestment LLP.
As per the prospec-
tus, out of the 22.13
crore shares offered
for sale, 5.93 crore
shares were reserved
for anchor investors.
India's exports rise 24% to $38 billion in April
New Delhi (PTI): Led
by petroleum products,
electronic goods and
chemicals, India’s mer-
chandise exports rose
24.22% on-year in April
to $38.19 billion, pre-
liminary data released
on Tuesday showed.
A higher increase in
imports of 26.55% at
$58.26 billion, left a
wider trade deficit in
the first month of
FY23. The trade gap
was $20.07 billion as
against $15.29 billion in
the year ago period and
$18.51 billion in March
2022.
“April exports jump
24.22%, continuing the
record-breaking 2021-
22 performance, result-
ing in highest ever ex-
ports in April,” the
commerce and indus-
try ministry said in a
statement.
It said that petrole-
um products (113.21%),
electronic goods
(64.04%) and chemicals
(26.71%) led the way in
high increase in ex-
ports during April.
Imports of petrole-
um, crude and prod-
ucts rose 81.21% on-
year while those of
gold contracted almost
73% compared to 2021.
BSE smallcap, midcap indices skid up to 4% this yr
BSE smallcap and mid-
cap indices have under-
performed the bench-
mark gauge so far this
year, falling up to 4%,
with experts saying a
hawkish US Fed and
soaring inflation may
lead to more market
volatility in the near
term.
Domestic equity
markets have faced
many headwinds in re-
cent times like the
emergence of geopoliti-
cal tensions, inflation
concerns and FII sell-
ing, analysts said.
“Markets need just a
single reason to fall
when they are trading
at all-time highs. And
this year has been full
of negative surprises
like Ukraine war, re-
cord FII selling, global
economy losing its
growth momentum, in-
flationary headwinds,”
said Parth Nyati,
Founder, Tradingo.
He explained that the
smallcap and midcap
indices consist of
stocks that have char-
acteristics like high
growth, high return
and high volatility
.
“In other words, both
losses and gains are
magnified compared to
the large index. Thus,
during a market fall,
small and midcap indi-
ces underperform the
largecap index,” Nyati
added. The BSE small-
cap index has tumbled
1,095.98 points or 3.72%
so far this year, while
the midcap gauge has
lost 666.1 points or
2.66%.
In comparison, the
Sensex is down 1,277.83
points or 2.19% till May
2 this year. Stock mar-
kets were closed on
Tuesday (May 3) for
Eid.
Nonetheless, there is
no significant under-
performance by the
broader market, Nyati
said. “This under-
scores the strength of
our domestic flows.”
SENSEX DIP 2% New Delhi (PTI): Realty firm Godrej Proper-
ties on Tuesday reported a consolidated net
profit of `260.47 crore for the quarter ended in
March while its sales bookings grew by 23% to
`3,248 crore on improved housing demand de-
spite the second wave of the COVID-pandemic.
The company
had posted
a net loss of
`191.57 crore
in the year-ago
period. Total in-
come increased
to `1,522.57 crore during the January-March
quarter of the last fiscal from `576.08 crore
in the year-ago period. Mumbai-based Godrej
Properties posted a net profit of `352.37 crore
during the 2021-22 fiscal year as against a net
loss of `189.30 crore in the previous year.
GODREJ PROPERTIES FY22
PROFIT AT `352 CRORE
CUMIN PRICES SET TO TOUCH
FIVE-YEAR HIGH
New Delhi (PTI): Cumin prices are likely to soar by up to
30-35% to touch a five-year high of `165-170 per kg in the
2021-2022 crop season following a decline in production,
low acreage and damage to the crop due to excess rainfall.
Cumin appears set to take the centre stage as a sharp decline
in production in crop season 2021-22 (Nov-May) drives up
its prices to a five-year high, Crisil Research said. Crisil esti-
mates cumin prices to shoot up 30-35% to touch a five-year
high of `165-170 per kg in the Rabi season 2021-2022.
ADANI WILMAR BUYS SEVERAL
BRANDS, INCLUDING ‘KOHINOOR’
Mumbai (PTI): Adani Wilmar Ltd (AWL) on Tuesday an-
nounced the acquisition of several brands, including the
renowned ‘Kohinoor’ brand from McCormick Switzerland
GMBH to strengthen its leadership in food business. The
deal size was not disclosed. The acquisition would give
AWL exclusive rights over the brand ‘Kohinoor’ basmati rice
along with ‘Ready to Cook’, ‘Ready to Eat’ curries and meals
portfolio under the Kohinoor brand umbrella in India, the
company said in a statement.
AC sales hit record high in April
New Delhi (PTI):
Driven by the early ar-
rival of summer and
intense heat wave, res-
idential air condition-
er makers are looking
forward to a record
sales of around 90 lakh
units this year, said
Consumer Electronics
and Appliances Manu-
facturers Association
on Tuesday
.
Already, in April the
industry has clocked
the sale of around 17.5
lakh units, which is
also an all-time high
for the month.
However, the availa-
bility of certain prod-
ucts could be an issue
in the next couple of
months as manufac-
turers may not be in a
position to supply
their entire range of
models to meet market
demand, especially the
energy-efficient 5-star
range, due to high de-
mand and supply con-
straintsof components
such as controllers and
compressors, said Eric
Braganza, president of
CEAMA (Consumer
Electronics and Appli-
ances Manufacturers
Association).

07
NEWS
New Delhi (PTI): Amid
apprehensions of pow-
er supply disruptions in
Delhi, the DMRC on
Tuesday said Metro’s
operational need ac-
counts for only 2.5 per
cent of the total power
requirement of the city,
and even if there is a
total breakdown, pas-
sengers can be evacu-
ated from trains and
stations using back-up
arrangements.
A Delhi Metro Rail
Corporation (DMRC)
spokesperson, interact-
ing with reporters on
the sidelines of its 28th
Foundation Day on
Tuesday, also said the
mass rapid transit sys-
tem’s operations in Del-
hi-National Capital Re-
gion (NCR) require
around three million
units of power per day
.
“The 3 MU (million
unit) electricity is used
for traction and auxil-
iary requirements such
as lighting and air con-
ditioning, lifts and esca-
lators, and fire fighting
load, etc,” the spokes-
person said.
Amid a deepening
coal shortage crisis, the
Delhi government on
Thursday had warned
that there may be prob-
lem in providing unin-
terrupted electricity
supply to important es-
tablishments in the cap-
ital including Metro
trains and hospitals.
At present, the DMRC
is handling operations
and maintenance of
over 390 km of network,
comprising 286 metro
stations, including the
Rapid Metro in Guru-
gram and Aqua Line in
Greater Noida, and is
ranked amongst one of
the world’s largest Met-
ro networks.
DMRC’s Managing
Director Vikas Kumar,
when asked if there
will be an impact on the
Metro operation due to
the impending power
crisis, said,”Delhi Met-
ro’s power requirement
accounts for only 2.5
per cent of the total
power requirement of
the city
.”
“DMRC receives
around 2 MU electricity
from power distribution
companies of Delhi, Ut-
tar Pradesh and Hary-
ana. Around 0.9 MU
power is received from
the on-site solar power
plant through open ac-
cess. Further, 0.1 MU is
drawn from the rooftop
solar power plants in-
stalled on Delhi Metro’s
stationsanddepots,”the
spokesperson said.
“Also, in case there is
a total breakdown and
all grids fail, we have
back-up arrangements,
like batteries, inverters,
DG sets to provide pow-
er to system, to evacu-
ate passengers out of
trains and stations, but
trains won’t operate in
that condition,” he told
the reporters.
Another senior offi-
cial said Delhi Metro’s
requirement on an aver-
age, per day
, is about 200
MW, out of which 99
MW is received from so-
lar power system in
Rewa, and another 50
MW from DMRC’s solar
power system on roof-
topsof itsbuildings,and
rest from discoms.
“Solar power can be
used only during day-
time or in sunny weath-
er, and for after dark,
our operational require-
ments need to be supple-
mented,” he said.
Also, the DMRC has
about 28-29 substations,
so even if one substa-
tion fails, there are oth-
er options, the official
said. “Generally a long
Metro line has four sub-
stations. Even if one of
those reports failure,
power supply will be
made from other sub-
stations,” the spokes-
person said.
In emergency situa-
tion, DG sets will be
used for supplying pow-
er to important opera-
tion-related tools and
equipment such as
lights, signalling equip-
ment, lifts and fire fight-
ing load, etc, he added.
With heatwave condi-
tions continuing una-
bated, the peak power
demand in Delhi rose to
6,194 MW on Monday,
the highest ever for the
first week of May, offi-
cials said.
The power demand
had crossed the 6,000
MW mark for the first
time in April. It was
over 6,000 MW on sever-
al days in the last week
of April amid a rise in
maximum day tempera-
ture. The Delhi govern-
ment has expressed ap-
prehensions about sup-
ply disruptions claim-
ing shortage of coal at
thermal plants.
‘HAVE ARRANGEMENTS TO EVACUATE PASSENGERS’
IN CASE OF A TOTAL BREAKDOWN, PASSENGERS CAN BE EVACUATED FROM TRAINS AND STATIONS USING BACK-UP ARRANGEMENTS
POWER USAGE Greater synergy needed between
DMRC, DTC operations: Chief secy
New Delhi (PTI): Del-
hi Chief Secretary
Naresh Kumar on
Tuesday pitched for
bringing “greater syn-
ergy” in operations of
the DMRC and DTC,
saying with the expan-
sion of mass rapid
transit network, this is
needed to promote use
of public transport and
provide more ease to
commuters.
Addressing a gather-
ing at an event at Metro
Bhawan here to mark
the 28th foundation day
of the DMRC, he also
stressed that full imple-
mentation of common
mobility card across the
network was essential
in achieving that syner-
gy
. Kumar said, several
years ago, he had sug-
gested to the city gov-
ernment to “integrate
Delhi Metro and DTC”
but somehow that has
not been considered.
“If we cannot inte-
grate the two, we can
surely bring in greater
synergy in operations
of the metro and the
buses, and synergy in
scheduling services.
With the advancement
in technology, use of
public transport has to
be enhanced,” he said.
Manoj Joshi, Secre-
tary, Ministry of Hous-
ing and Urban Affairs
(MoHUA),inhisaddress
described DMRC as an
“island of excellence in
Delhi”, and also empha-
sised on the need for
working in synergy
.
‘‘DWARKA SEC 21-IICC METRO LINE SEGMENT
EXPECTED TO BE COMMISSIONED BY JULY’’
New Delhi (PTI): A two km-long Delhi Metro line between
Dwarka Sector 21 and the upcoming India International
Convention Centre (IICC) is expected to be commissioned
by July, DMRC chief Vikas Kumar said on Tuesday.Inter-
acting with reporters on the sideline of the 28th Founda-
tion Day of DMRC at Metro Bhawan here, he said despite
being disrupted by multiple waves of the pandemic, the
Delhi Metro is picking pace, and currently the ridership
stand at about 40-45 lakh, which is 78 pC of the pre-Covid
figures. Journey or line utilisation is calculated by the
number of corridors passengers use to reach their desti-
nations. Work is underway on the three priority corridors
of Ph-IV of DMRC, and our target is to finish it by 2025.
First India Bureau
New Delhi: As a count-
down to the Internation-
al Yoga Day on June 21, a
programme of common
yogaprotocolwasorgan-
ised on Tuesday by the
Ministries of Petroleum
andNaturalGasHous-
ing and Urban Affairs.
Events were held at 75
placesacrossthecountry
by the two ministries, in-
cludingcertainlocations
abroad of the Petroleum
and Natural Gas Minis-
try
. Secretaries and oth-
ersofficersfromboththe
ministries and other of-
fices associated with the
ministries participated
in the yoga sessions. The
sessionwasattendedvir-
tually by the Union Min-
ister of Petroleum and
Natural Gas Housing
and Urban Affairs Hard-
eepSinghPurifromNew
Delhi while the Minister
of State for Petroleum
and Natural Gas
Rameswar Teli joined
from Asia’s first and
world’s oldest refinery-
Digboi Refinery
.
ManojJoshi,Secretary
,
Ministry of Housing and
Urban Affairs, led the
Yoga training-cum-dem-
onstration session at Nir-
manBhawan,NewDelhi.
Petroleum and Natural
Gas Secretary Pankaj
Jain and officers of the
ministry and oil market-
ing companies partici-
pated in the main yoga
session at New Delhi.
In his message tele-
cast during the event,
Puri appreciated the
initiative of the AYUSH
Ministry for organizing
the countdown to the
International Yoga Day
in which the two minis-
tries took part whole-
heartedly at places
spread all over the
country
, including over-
seas locations.
YOGA TRAINING SESSIONS ORGANISED
HEALTH IS WEALTH
Events held at 75 places across
country by Ministry of Petroleum
and Natural Gas, Ministry of
Housing and Urban Affairs
IIT Delhi, ITC ink MoU to
carry out research in STEM
New Delhi (PTI): Indi-
an Institute of Technol-
ogy (IIT) Delhi and mul-
ti-business conglomer-
ate ITC Limited have
signed a memorandum
of understanding to
support research in
identified STEM (sci-
ence, technology, engi-
neering and mathemat-
ics) areas for “accelerat-
ing India’s journey to-
wards achieving its
sustainable develop-
ment goals (SDGs)”.
The areas which have
been identified for re-
search are energy stor-
age, low carbon cold
transportation and plas-
tic biodegradation. Prof
Sunil Khare, dean, Re-
search and Develop-
ment at IIT Delhi, said
the industry was under-
going “massive trans-
formation with ever-in-
creasing need for sus-
tainable and functional
products that are driv-
ing new innovations”.
“The collaboration
will combine the cut-
ting-edge research at IIT
Delhi with application
know-how of ITC to ac-
celerate innovation and
develop solutions for a
variety of end-use appli-
cations of our custom-
ers and society at large,”
he said.
“It is ITC’s objective
to leverage the techni-
cal expertise of institu-
tions like IITs and sup-
port RD activities in
identified areas, which
will accelerate India’s
journey achieving its
SDGs,” said Prabhakar
Lingareddy, Executive
VP and Head – Social
Investments at ITC
Limited.
OVER5LAKHOFFERNAMAZAT
LUCKNOW’SEIDGAHMAIDAN
First India Bureau
Lucknow: Over five
lakh people, including
a large number of
women, offered namaz
at the Eidgah maidan
here on the occasion of
Eid-ul-Fitr, and prayed
for the peace and pros-
perity in the country,
besides the rise in em-
ployment and fall in
inflation.
The offering of the
namaz and special
prayers were led by Ei-
dgah’s Imam Maulana
Khalid Rashid Farangi
Mahali, who, while ad-
dressing devotees later,
said Islam was the first
religion to spread the
message of human
rights in the world.
ADGP Prashant Ku-
mar later thanked UP’s
religious leaders say-
ing that Eid was peace-
fully celebrated in the
state amid its “tradi-
tional Ganga-Jamuni
tehzeeb”, which would
be on display in future
celebrations as well.
—With PTI inputs
First India Bureau
Lucknow: With Uttar
Pradesh peacefully cel-
ebrating Eid-ul-Fitr, Ak-
shay Tritiya and
Parshuram Jayanti on
Monday
, Chief Minister
on Tuesday praised the
people of the state for
“not organising” reli-
gious events on roads.
Chief Minister Adity-
anathpraisedthepeople
shortly after Additional
Director General of Po-
lice (Law and Order)
Prashant Kumar
thanked UP’s religious
leaders for peacefully
celebrating the festivals.
Kumar thanked the
leaders saying the state
celebrated the festivals
amid its “traditional
G a n g a - J a m u n i
tehzeeb”, which would
be on display in future
festivalsaswell.CMAdi-
tyanath took to Twitter
to praise the people.
“Today, a number of
religious events were
successfully held in Ut-
tar Pradesh. The people
of the state have taken a
good initiative by not or-
ganisingthemonroads,”
the UP Chief Minister
twitted in Hindi.
Seeds of hatred
don’t bloom in
Punjab:CM Mann
First India Bureau
Chandigarh: Chief
Minister Bhagwant
Mann on Tuesday said
hatemongers have no
place in Punjab and
seeds of hatred don’t
bloom on this land, re-
marks which come days
aftertwogroupsclashed
in Patiala.
A n y -
thing can
be planted
in the fer-
tile land of
Punjab but
not the seeds of hatred,
he said addressing a
gathering in Malerkot-
la after offering prayers
at the local Idgah on
the occasion of Eid-ul-
Fitr.
Mann said, “Punjab’s
social bonding is very
strong. We live in broth-
erhood and those who
spread hatred find no
place here”.
“Punjab is the land of
gurus, pir, fakirs, poets
and martyrs, seeds of
hatred don’t bloom
here,” he said.
First India Bureau
New Delhi: Operation
Satark launched by the
Railway Protection
Force (RPF) from April
5 to 30, yielded good re-
sults. During this peri-
od the Force detected 26
cases of transportation
of illegal tobacco prod-
ucts; 177 cases of trans-
portation of illicit liq-
uor; unaccounted cash,
gold, silver etc worth
about Rs 2.60 Crore.
The RPF is an armed
force of the union en-
trusted with the secu-
rity of railway property
,
passenger area and pas-
sengers.
Indian Railways, be-
ing the primary trans-
porter of the nation, is
likely to be used by tax
evaders, smugglers,
gun runners, and forces
inimical to the nation to
transport illegal items
to different parts of the
country for acting on
their nefarious designs.
Railway Protection
Force is alive to this and
has recently started
“Operation Satark”
with an objective of tak-
ing action against illicit
liquor/FICN/illegal to-
bacco products/unac-
counted gold/cash/pre-
cious items/ any other
items being transported
through railway net-
work for the purpose of
tax evasion/smug-
gling/commission of
crime/acts of terror.
Focused effort under
“Operation Satark” was
launched from 5th April
to 30th April 2022
wherein 26 cases of
transportation of ille-
gal tobacco products
were detected with sei-
zure of tobacco prod-
ucts worth more than
Rs 44 Lakh and
arrest of 14 persons in-
volved.
First India Bureau
Chandigarh: Modern
teaching is no longer
limited to the class-
rooms, blackboard or
green board, now edu-
cation in schools is be-
ing imparted through
digital platforms. Stu-
dents have also learned
anewe-wayof studying.
While realizing the
importance of online
education, e-Aahigam
scheme has been imple-
mented by the Haryana
government. In this am-
bitious scheme, 5 lakh
students of government
schoolswillbegiventab-
lets equipped with 2GB
free data and Personal-
ized Adaptive Learning
(PAL) software.
This will not only
boost the morale of the
children of government
schools studying across
Haryana but will also
save expenses on stud-
ies, tuition, coaching
and books as incurred
by their parents.
An official spokesper-
son said that the state
government aims to
bring a paradigm shift
in the education sector.
While constantly em-
phasizing on e-learning,
several programmes are
being run by the State
Government.
While taking this e-
learning drive a step
further, now the State
Government will be pro-
viding free tablets to the
students. Through this
e-Aahigam scheme the
students will get oppor-
tunities to not only
learn from their school
teachers but also from
teachers.
Haryana Govt shaping
students’ future
through e-learning
Delhi Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar. —FILE PHOTO
Yogi thanks people for not
using roads to celebrate
RPF’s ‘Op Satark’
yields good results
RPF detects 26 cases of transportation
of 177 cases of illicit liquor; unaccounted
cash, gold, silver etc worth Rs 2.60 Cr
Haryana CM ML Khattar.
Union Minister Hardeep Puri at a Yoga training session.

08
2NDFRONT
Education guides a man to
learn and change, to adapt to
survive and thrive.
—Jagdeesh Chandra, CEO Editor-in-Chief, First India
Covid not completely over yet, be alert, follow guidelines, warns Prez
First India Bureau
New Delhi: President
Ram Nath Kovind on
Tuesday cautioned the
people that Covid-19 is
not completely over yet
and asked them to be
alert and follow all the
government’s guide-
lines.
He said during the
coronavirus pandemic,
masks have been used
as an effective means of
protection against the
virus.
Kovind was speaking
after laying the founda-
tion stone for Bhagwan
Mahavir super special-
ity hospital in Delhi.
Speaking about the
importance of face
masks, the President
said, “We know that the
introduction of surgi-
cal masks into modern
history dates back to
the year 1897 when sur-
geons began using
masks to protect them-
selves from bacteria
during operations”.
“But Jain saints un-
derstoodtheimportance
of masks centuries ago.
Bycoveringtheirmouth
and nose, they were not
only able to avoid killing
living beings but they
werealsoabletoprevent
the entry of microor-
ganisms into their
body
,” he said.
During the COVID-19
pandemic, masks have
been used as an effec-
tive means of protec-
tion against the virus,
the President was quot-
ed as having said in a
statement issue by the
Rashtrapati Bhavan.
He said that priority
hasbeengiventoservice
in the Jain tradition.
Kovind noted that a
state-of-the-art Bhag-
wan Mahavir Super
Speciality Hospital
with 250 beds would be
completed by 2023, the
statement said.
Hesaidthatitisamat-
ter of happiness that in
this super specialty hos-
pital,highqualityhealth
services will be made
available to all sections
of the society at afford-
able rates, and free of
cost to the poor.
The President said he
was also happy to note
that this hospital has
rendered its services as
Covid Care Hospital
during the pandemic.
He cautioned the peo-
ple that Covid is not
completely over yet, the
statement said.
The President ap-
pealed all citizens to be
alert and follow all the
government’s guide-
lines, it said.
He said that Jain
saintsalsolaidgreatem-
phasis on walking to un-
derline the importance
of physical exercise.
Kovind expressed
confidence that this
hospital would follow
the path of making hu-
manity healthy on the
basis of scientific tradi-
tions shown by the
saints.
The President said
the “Jain tradition
teaches us to adopt a
balanced and environ-
ment-friendly life-
style”.
Gujarat ATS seizes 56 kg of
heroin worth `280 crore
First India Bureau
Kutch: A team of Guja-
rat ATS and the Indian
Coast Guard on late
Monday intercepted a
boat called the Al-Hajj
within 14 nautical miles
from the notional Inter-
national Maritime Bor-
der Line (IMBL) in the
coastal waters of India
and seized heroin worth
Rs 280 crore.
On searching the
boat, 56 packets (ap-
prox. 56kg) of heroin
worth Rs 280 crore were
found from the nine Pa-
kistanis on the boat.
Subsequently, a case
was registered under
the Narcotics Drugs
and Psychotropic Sub-
stances Act, 1985, and
all the Pakistani sailors
were arrested.
Later, several teams
were dispatched to dif-
ferent states of North
India to conduct raids.
In the preliminary in-
vestigation, the names
of Raji Haider and
Avtar Singh alias Sun-
ny were revealed.
Accordingly, a team
of Gujarat ATS, along
with the team of NCB
Operation, Delhi, con-
ducted a joint operation
and arrested Raji Haid-
er, a resident of New
Delhi, Imran Amir, a
resident of Uttar
Pradesh, Avtar Singh
alias Sunny of New Del-
hi, and the Afghan Ab-
dul Rab Abdul Khalik
Kakad, who is currently
living in New Delhi.
A case was registered
at NCB Delhi in this re-
gard and further inves-
tigation was carried out
by NCB Delhi. Moreo-
ver, based on the infor-
mation obtained in the
joint interrogation of
Raji Haider by Gujarat
ATS and NCB, another
50kg of heroin was
seized by NCB Delhi
from Jamianagar,
Shaheen Bagh along
with Rs30 lakh in cash.
Communal tensions on Eid
in Jodhpur,curfew imposed
Rajeev Gaur
Jodhpur: Communal
tensions gripped Ra-
jasthan Chief Minister
Ashok Gehlot’s home-
town Jodhpur hours
before Eid on Tuesday,
prompting the authori-
ties to suspend mobile
internet services and
impose a curfew in 10
police stations areas of
the city
.
The Chief Minister
has appealed to people
to maintain peace and
harmony
.
The Jodhpur deputy
commissioner of police
issued orders imposing
a curfew till May 4 mid-
night besides suspend-
ing mobile internet ser-
vices to check the
spread of rumours.
Tensions broke out
past midnight over put-
ting up of Islamic flags
on the Jalori gate circle,
which led to stone pelt-
ing in which five police-
men were injured.
The situation was
brought under control
in the early hours on
Tuesday with heavy de-
ployment of police but
tensionsescalatedagain
in the morning after
prayers at an Eidgah.
Shops, vehicles and
houses were pelted with
stones near the Jalori
gate area.
Members of the mi-
nority community were
installing Eid flags and
they put up a flag on a
roundabout alongside
the statue of freedom
fighter Balmukund Bis-
sa.
This led to a confron-
tation as members of
the other community
alleged that a saffron
flag, which they had put
up there ahead of
Parshuram Jayanti,
had gone missing.
The issue snowballed
into stone-pelting and
clashes, officials said.
Police rushed to the
spot to control the situ-
ation during which five
policemen were in-
jured, the police control
room said.
Police had to lob tear
gas shells to disperse
the mob.
Mobile internet ser-
vices were suspended
in the area to check the
spread of rumours, the
officials said.
Gehlot in a tweet
urged people to main-
tain peace and called the
incident unfortunate.
Don’t wait for weekends to play games, says Thakur
First India Bureau
Bengaluru: Anurag
Singh Thakur, Union
Minister of Informa-
tion Broadcasting
and Youth Affairs and
Sports said that one
should not wait for the
weekend or holidays to
play games but start
anywhere and at any-
time. Thakur, while in-
teracting with the
sports persons at the
Padukone-Dravid Cen-
tre for Sports Excel-
lence (CSE) said that
the state-of-the-art fa-
cilities at this Centre
should be utilised to de-
velop more skills to
compete at the Interna-
tional level.
The Padukone-Drav-
id Centre for Sports
Excellence (CSE) is a
world-class integrated
sports complex built
on 15 acres in Bengalu-
ru. CSE offers state-of-
the-art facilities in
badminton, cricket,
football, tennis, swim-
ming, squash, basket-
ball and shooting. CSE
aims to encourage
competitive and recre-
ational athletes, pro-
fessional coaches,
sports academies and
aspiring young talent
to excel in their sport
of choice. CSE was re-
cently recognised by
the sports authority of
India as a National
Centre of Excellence
for both badminton
and swimming.
Academies at CSE
cater to grassroots lev-
el programs to encour-
age and build a sport-
ing culture, whilst also
aiming to produce in-
ternational players in
the future. CSE is al-
ready host to some of
India’s most talented
and successful ath-
letes in the likes of
Lakshya Sen, Srihari
Nataraj, Ashwini Pon-
nappa and Apurvi
Chandeli.
CSE is home to some
of the most successful
and well renowned
sports academies in the
country, run by some of
the most accomplished
coaches, including Dro-
nacharya awardees Vi-
mal Kumar (Chief
Coach of Prakash Padu-
kone Badminton Acad-
emy) and Nihar Amin
(Head Coach of Dolphin
Aquatics).
An important aspect
of an athlete’s journey
is the support they re-
quire through sports
sciences in order to per-
form on the world
stage.
Anurag Singh Thakur, while interacting with the sports persons at the Padukone-Dravid Centre
Jodhpur Deputy Commissioner of police issued orders imposing a curfew till May 4 midnight
While respect-
ing the tradi-
tion of love and
brotherhood of Jodhpur,
Marwar, I make a
touching appeal to all
parties to maintain
peace and cooperate in
restoring law and order.
—Ashok Gehlot, CM
Rajasthan
Police had to lob tear
gas shells to disperse
the mob. Mobile
internet services were
suspended in the area
to check the spread of
rumours, the officials
said.
LeT linked man brought
in Cal HC for appeal
against death penalty
Kolkata (PTI): A per-
son who had links with
terror outfit Lashkar-e-
Taiba and sentenced to
death by a West Bengal
court in 2018 for waging
war against the country
was on Tuesday pro-
duced before the Calcut-
ta High Court from
Tihar Jail in New Delhi
forhearingof hisappeal
against the sentence.
Abdul Nayeem alias
Samir Nayya was
awarded capital punish-
ment by a court in
North 24 Parganas dis-
trict in December 2018.
Nayeem who had ex-
pressed the desire to
argue his appeal in per-
son against his convic-
tion by the district
court was produced be-
fore a division bench
comprising justices
Joymalya Bagchi and
Bivas Pattanayak.
To enable the convict
to effectively argue his
appeal before this court,
it is imperative that
Nayeem be kept in Kol-
kata during the hearing
of the appeal, the bench
observed.
It also directed the Di-
rector General, West
Bengal Correctional
Services, and DGP
, West
Bengal Police to make
arrangements for hand-
ingoverof theconvictto
thecustodyof thesuper-
intendent, Presidency
Correctional Home here
by the police who escort-
ed him from Delhi.
“The convict shall re-
main in Presidency
Correctional Home,
Kolkata under high se-
curity during the hear-
ing of the appeal and
shall be produced be-
fore this court in per-
son with an appropri-
ate police escort and
security measures to
advance his arguments
in person,” the bench
directed.
In April 2007, BSF
had apprehended four
persons, including
Nayeem.
JUDGES SPEAK
Bihar Police crackdown on
fake SIMs to check sextortion
Kumar Prabodh
Patna: The Bihar Po-
lice has ordered a crack-
down on SIM cards pro-
cured through fake
documents amidst a
spurt in online sexual
blackmailing cases.
The police have
asked telecom compa-
nies to book customers
with SIM cards issued
on fake documents.
“Cases of sextortion
are increasing in the
state.TheEconomicand
Cyber Crimes Division
(ECCD) of Bihar Police
hasregisteredaround15
such cases in the last
three-fourmonths.Ithas
taken the shape of an
organized crime,” Addi-
tional Director General
of Police (Economic Of-
fences Unit), Nayyar
Hasnain Khan said.
There are several
gangs based in Ra-
jasthan, Delhi,
Jharkhand, and West,
the ADGP said.
Bihar Police has
registered around 15
such cases in the last
three-four months
AFRICAN HELD
WITH HEROIN
WORTH `4.7 CR
The Gujarat ATS recovered nearly 90kg of heroin worth Rs450
crore from a shipping container at the Pipavav port just a few
days ago. —FILE PHOTO
IMPORTANCE OF
MASK

NEW DELHI, WEDNESDAY,
MAY 4, 2022
ndian hand-
loom textiles
acquire a de-
gree of creativ-
ity and intrica-
cy that is unpar-
alleledandbeyondthe
grasp of contempo-
rary machines, main-
taining the country’s
tradition and culture.
Aachho Jaipur
Weaves Magic at Ra-
jasthan Handloom
Show 2022 as an exclu-
sive design develop-
ment partner.
B.D.Kalla (State
Education, Sanskrit
Education, Arts, Lit-
erature and Culture
ASIMinister)andMa-
hesh Joshi (PHED
Cabinet Minister
Govt of Ra-
j a s t h a n )
were the
c h i e f
g u e s t s
for the
s h o w
andmulti-
ple other dignitaries
of Jaipur graced the
show with their at-
tendance.
Supermodels Deep-
ti Gujral and Candice
Pinto walked the
ramp as showstop-
pers.Theorganiserof
the show and CMD of
RSHDC, Neha Giri in-
formed that 30 IAS
and IPS wives came
together on stage in
the show. These in-
cluded wives of for-
mer and present IAS
officers. The theme of
the fashion show,
‘Time Travel’ focused
on promoting sustain-
able fashion along
with the artisans,
weavers, and makers
behind textile crafts.
Aachho, one of In-
dia’s leading ethnic
wear fashion brands
basedout of Jaipur
was the design de-
velopment part-
ner for the fash-
ion show.
Launching their
capsule collec-
tions that included a
range of contempo-
rary and ethnic wear
for men, women and
children, the entire
collectionwascreated
using indigenous nat-
ural fabrics and tradi-
tional dyeing and
printing techniques.
Rimjhim Hada,
Founder and Creative
Headof Aachhobeau-
tifully designed the
entire collection with
a focus on blending
ethnic fashion tradi-
tions with modern
sensibilities. The col-
lection included eth-
nic ensembles such as
dresses, jumpsuits
and shirts in western
wear. Floral themes
and prints on Chand-
eriandcottongrabbed
the show with match-
ing purses, ac-
cessories and
shoes. The offi-
cial make-up
and hair part-
ner was Sizz-
lin Scizzors
while Diggi Palace
raised the bar high for
exceptional guest
service. The
fashion chore-
ography was
coordinat-
ed by Ab-
hishek
S i n g h
of Van-
a m o
Enter-
t a i n -
ment.
09
www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epapers/delhi I twitter.com/thefirst-
india facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
UTTKARSHA SHEKHAR
uttkarsha.shekhar@firstindia.co.in
I
THE RAJASTHAN STATE HANDLOOM
DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION HELD A ONE-
OF-A-KIND FASHION SHOW IN PINK CITY, WITH
30 WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS WALKING THE
RUNWAY AND SHOWCASING THEIR SPECIAL
HANDLOOM COLLECTION!
FASHION
FASHION
AGAINST TIME!
AGAINST TIME!
Top: (L-R) Ana and Netra Patel
Down: (L-R) Divyansh Tank, Aksha Khan, Priyanshi and Priya Choudhary

10
ETC
www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epapers/delhi I twitter.com/thefirstindia facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
he Rajasthan Po-
lice personnel are
protecting the
lives of the people
by putting their
lives at risk as per
the intention of Chief
Minister Shri Ashok Ge-
hlot. Recently in Karauli, a
constable Netresh Sharma
while discharging his duty
saved 4 persons surround-
ed by fire. Sirohi constable
Labhu Singh got alert with
the help of CCTV cameras
and saved a six-year-old
minor from being raped.
Similarly, on April 24, con-
stables Ashok Kumar and
Mahesh Kumar saved 6
people from a fire that
broke out at Cine Star Tow-
er located in Vidyadhar
Nagar by risking their
lives. These examples dis-
play the sense of duty and
dedication of the police
personnel.
Chief Minister Shri
Ashok Gehlot during the
Rajasthan Police Raising
day celebrations empha-
sised that the police should
protect the life, property
and dignity of the people
keeping in mind the State
Government’s goal of pro-
viding responsive, trans-
parent and accountable
administration without
any pressure.
Rajasthan Police is
working with determina-
tion to win the trust of the
people by participating in
many innovations of peo-
ple utility and social con-
cerns including corona
management during the
corona pandemic in the
last 3 years.
The Rajasthan police
have a distinct identity
across the country for dis-
charging its duties. Imbib-
ing its motto “Trust in
common man, fear in crim-
inals’, Rajasthan police are
discharging their respon-
sibility of curbing crimes
in the State and providing
speedy justice to the weak
persons and victims with
complete dedication. At
the same time, the Ra-
jasthan police is emphasis-
ing that there should be no
injustice to any person in
any situation.
The State Government
has taken many several
steps on the initiative of
Chief Minister Shri Ashok
Gehlot to increase the ef-
ficiency and working ca-
pacity of the police along
with has taken many effec-
tive decisions towards
strengthening and mod-
ernisation of police. There
is no dearth of resources.
Reception rooms are being
constructed in all the po-
lice stations to provide a
positive ambience to re-
solve the problems of the
general public and for
their convenience. So far,
reception rooms have been
constructed in 731 police
stations. Emphasis is be-
ing laid on the immediate
investigation in the cases
of gender crimes against
women and this has re-
duced the investigation
time. In 2019, the average
time taken for investiga-
tion was 129, which now
the investigation is com-
pleted in just 79 days.
The results of the imple-
mentation of uninterrupt-
ed registration are visible.
In 2017, 33.4 per cent rape
cases were lodged through
courts, but now this num-
ber has come down to less
than half which is 16 per
cent. Cybercrimes are pos-
ing a major challenge to
the police. To deal effec-
tively with cybercrimes,
the state government in
the budget for the year
2022-2023 has decided to set
up cyber police stations in
all the districts of the state.
It has also been decided to
set up a Centre for Cyber
Security for Rs 50 crore to
prevent cybercrimes, for
the protection of digital
eco-system from cyber
threats and to create the
public awareness.
To maintain the law and
order situation and to nab
the criminals, the state
government has also de-
cided to set up 500 police
mobile units on the lines
of 108 ambulances by link-
ing dial 100 and dial 112. To
keep a close watch on inci-
dents, the number of cam-
eras attached to Abhay
Command and Control
Center is being increased
from 10,000 to 30,000. Provi-
sion is being made to make
the installation of CCTV
cameras mandatory in
large private institutions
and commercial places.
Rajasthan Police officers
and jawans played a com-
mendable role during the
lockdown in the first wave
of corona infection. The
people fighting the infec-
tion saw the human face of
the Rajasthan Police. The
policemen worked hard
round the clock to provide
food and medicines to the
common people.
The state government
has provided many facili-
ties to the police regarding
basic and scientific inves-
tigation along with has in-
creased the posts of ASI,
the opening a cyber police
station in every district,
the introducing of Mobile
Investigation Unit and en-
suring three promotions to
every policeman during
his service period.
Police are facing many
challenges at the current
time and these challenges
are going to increase in the
coming time. The police-
men will have to keep
working with more enthu-
siasm and dedication for
the safety of the citizens so
that the credibility of the
Rajasthan Police remains
high. The Rajasthan Police
would continue its identity
as the best police force in
the country by being dedi-
cated as always with the
goal of public service.
Rajasthan Police is winning
Rajasthan Police is winning
THE TRUST OF THE PEOPLE
THE TRUST OF THE PEOPLE
T
GOVIND PAREEK
Additional Director Publicity,
Rajasthan Police

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04052022_ First India New Delhi.pdf