16052022_First India_Mumbai.pdf

Did NCP Chief suggest Modi should retire after 2 terms as PM?
Renni Abraham
Mumbai: Prime Min-
ister Narendra Modi
made a cryptic politi-
cal comment during
his public address in
Gujarat’s Bharuch on
May 12, in which he
cited a senior political
opponent who met him
and apparently sug-
gested that he hang up
his boots after two
terms as Indian Prime
Minister. According to
a senior BJP leader, he
was referring to none
other than Nationalist
Congress Party (NCP)
chief Sharad Pawar,
who met him in April
this year in New Delhi.
Modi, in his speech,
had said, “One day, a
big leader met me. He
is a senior politician
and has consistently
been my political op-
ponent also. I have
consistently been re-
specting him as well.
For some reason, he
was upset and he came
to meet me.”
He further noted,
“He (senior political
opponent) said, ‘Modi-
ji, twice the nation has
made you Prime Min-
ister. What (more) do
you want to do now?’
He thought that by be-
coming PM (twice) a
lot had taken place.
But, he does not know
that Modi is made of
different ingredients.
The soil of Gujarat
has prepared me. So,
after all that has been
achieved, it does not
mean that I will relax
(read: retire). My
dream is 100% satura-
tion (of people-centric
schemes) and making
the administration ha-
bituated to ensuring
the same.”
According to the
senior BJP source,
Modi was referring to
his meeting with NCP
Chief Sharad Pawar
in New Delhi. Pawar
had subsequently told
the media that he had
met the PM over is-
sues pertaining to the
Lakshadweep Union
Territory and even the
actions being taken
against Shiv Sena
Member of Parlia-
ment Sanjay Raut.
“The meeting also
must have witnessed
this personal aside
that the PM has re-
ferred to in Bharuch.
He has also clarified
that his mission to en-
sure the 100% satura-
tion of toilets, immu-
nization, electricity
and bank accounts for
all needy citizens
would be his continu-
ing objective till it will
be achieved. He has
responded to his po-
litical opponent in his
public address by indi-
cating that he is still
keen to carry forward
his political mission
in the foreseeable fu-
ture without any inter-
est to hang up his
boots,” the BJP leader
said.
A senior Congress
leader who refused to
speak on the record,
and who is familiar
with Pawar’s style of
politics, told First In-
dia: “It is only specula-
tive. It would be better
if the PM himself
identified the politi-
cian who made the
comments he has quot-
ed in his public ad-
dress. However, I do
not feel it is Pawar’s
style of politics to
have made such a com-
ment. Narendra Modi
should elucidate on
the issue and close
down the speculation
on the subject.”
Repeated attempts
to speak to Pawar’s
close aide T Dhuwali
failed to elicit a
response.
Women community health workers on warpath for minimum wages
Renni Abraham
Mumbai: Hell hath no
fury as a woman
scorned and, now, 4,000
women community
health workers
(CHWs) contracted by
the Brihanmumbai Mu-
nicipal Corporation
(BMC) are on the war-
path once again. After
deferring their agi-
tation--launched
on March 8, coin-
ciding with Inter-
n a t i o n a l
Women’s
d a y - -
o n c e ,
f o l -
l o w -
ing a
writ-
ten assurance by then-
BMC Commissioner
Iqbal Singh Chahal of
an imminent resolution
to pay them minimum
wages, the women
feel let down and
will recommence
their agitation from
June 1, for a second
time.
Says Sharda
Chandrakant
B a n s o d e
(53), “I have served as a
CHW for the last 25
years starting in 1997 on
a wage of Rs500 per
month and involved in
creating awareness on
family planning, con-
ducting polio vaccina-
tion camps, maternal
and child care duties.
We launched our agita-
tion on Women’s day to
highlight our plight and
were enthused when the
then-BMC chief as-
sured us of a resolution
by March 28. After wait-
ing inordinately long,
we are now forced to re-
commence the deferred
agitation.”
Advocate Prakash
Devdas, president of the
Mahapalika Arogya
Karmachari Sangha-
tana (MAKS), told First
India, “On March 11, a
MAKS delegation met
then Municipal Com-
missioner Chahal who
assured them that, after
the State Legislature
session concluded on
March 28, he would dis-
cuss the issues finally
and decide positively on
the demands of CHVs.
A committee headed by
AMC (WS) Suresh Ka-
kani and comprising
DMC (Health) Sanjay
Kurhade and EHO Dr
Mangala Gomare held
discussions with us on
May 14 and 16 on the en-
titlement of minimum
wages for CHVs under
the Minimum Wages
Act of 1948 and even
submitted a proposal to
the civic chief, but then,
suddenly, the issue was
placed on the backburn-
er and has been conven-
iently forgotten.”
Sanjay Kurhade re-
fused to comment on the
contents of the report
submitted to the BMC
Chief following the de-
liberations on the issue.
He said, “There will be
a meeting on the issue
where a decision will be
taken on the matter. I
have no comments on
the report.”
However, the women
CHWs are not willing to
wait any longer will set
upon the path of agita-
tion once again from
June 1. Currently, the
CHWs are paid Rs8,100
every month (after a
TDSdeductionof Rs900)
and are seeking the en-
hancement of their
wages to bring them on
par with the minimum
wage stipulated by the
courts so they will earn
between Rs13,000 and
Rs15,000 per month.
Attempts to reach
BMC Administrator
Iqbal Singh Chahal
failed to elicit a re-
sponsewhileDrGomare
sought details over
short-messaging ser-
vice (SMS), and then
chose not to respond to
First India’s queries on
the issue.
BMC chief IS
Chahal has
placed proposal
from three-
member BMC
committee on
back burner
WOMEN DEMAND MINIMUM WAGES
PM Narendra
Modi said senior
political leader
he respects asked
what more he
wanted to
accomplish!
Australian all-rounder Andrew
Symonds dies in car crash
Harbhajan Turbanator
@harbhajan_singh
Shocked to hear about
the sudden demise of Andrew
Symonds. Gone too soon. Heartfelt
condolences to family and friends.
Prayers for the departed soul
l Former Australia
all-rounder Andrew
Symonds has died
aged 46 in a car
accident, about 50
kilometers outside
Townsville on Satur-
day night. The disturb-
ing news sent shock
waves through the
cricket fraternity
l Emergency services
attempted to revive
him, however, he
died of his injuries,
Queensland Police
said in a statement
after the incident
l The all-rounder
played 26 Tests, 198
ODIs, and 14 T20Is
for Australia between
1998 and 2009. He
was an integral part
of Australia’s World
Cup-winning sides
in the year
2003 and 2007
BADMINTON WIN
BEDAZZLES INDIA
Thomas Cup: Indian Men’s Team script
history with 1st-ever gold in 73 long years
India beat 14-time champions Indonesia 3-0 in the final
Bangkok (PTI): The In-
dian men’s badminton
team beat 14-time cham-
pions and holders Indo-
nesiainthefinalonSun-
daytowinamaidengold
medal at Thomas Cup.
First-time finalists
India produced a stun-
ning performance in the
final to blank Indonesia
3-0 and script history
. It
all started with 20-year-
old Lakshya Sen beating
Tokyo Olympics bronze
medallist Anthony
Ginting.
Doubles stars Satwik-
sairaj Rankireddy and
Chirag Shetty then gave
India a 2-0 lead by beat-
ing Mohammad Ahsan
andKevinSanjayaSuka-
muljo 18-21, 23-21, 21-19.
Andfinally
,KidambiSri-
kanth sealed India’s win
by outclassing Jonatan
Christie 21-15, 23-21.
TRIUMPH BIGGER THAN 1983 WORLD CUP, SAYS GOPICHAND
SPORTS MINISTER
ANURAG THAKUR
ANNOUNCES `1 CR
CASH AWARD
India’s chief badminton coach and former All England champion, Pullela
Gopichand highlighted the enormity of India’s Thomas Cup victory, say-
ing it is even bigger than the 1983 Cricket World Cup triumph for Indian
badminton. “I would say that in badminton terms this is even bigger
(than the 1983 World Cup win). I think nobody would have imagined
that we would win something as big as this,” Pullela Gopichand said.
Sports Minister Anurag
Thakur on Sunday an-
nounced a cash award of
Rs 1 crore to the Indian
men’s badminton team
which created history
by winning the coveted
Thomas Cup title for
the first time. “India’s
extraordinary feat of
winning the Thomas Cup
with successive victories
over Malaysia, Denmark
and Indonesia in the play-
offs called for a relaxation
of rules,” said Thakur
in a statement. “It is
with pride that I an-
nounce the award of
Rs 1 crore to the team
that Indians so much joy
this weekend.”
Narendra Modi
@narendramodi
The entire nation is
elated by India win!
Congratulations to
our accomplished
team and best wishes
to them for future.
This win will motivate
so many upcoming
sportspersons.
India’s team members pose with their nation flag after winning Thomas Cup title in Bangkok.
Manik Saha takes oath as Tripura CM
Agartala (PTI): Manik
Saha, the BJP’s Tripura
unit state president,
took oath as Tripura’s
Chief Minister on Sun-
day. Governor SN Arya
swore in Rajya Sabha
MP Saha at the Raj
Bhavan in Agartala.
Former CM Biplab Deb
was also present at the
ceremony
.
Tripura Governor Satyadeo Narain administers oath to BJP leader
Manik Saha as the new chief minister in Agartala on Sunday.
Apart from being an explosive cricketer, Symonds in India will also be remembered
for his involvement in the infamous ‘Monkeygate’ scandal involving Harbhajan.
MUMBAI l MONDAY, MAY 16, 2022 l Pages 12 l 3.00 RNI TITLE NO. MAHENG/2022/14652 l Vol 1 l Issue No. 10
OUR EDITIONS: JAIPUR, LUCKNOW, NEW DELHI & MUMBAI www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epapers/mumbai I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
MODI IN NEPAL TODAY; WILL
ALSO MEET YOGI CABINET
NEW YORK: 10 KILLED IN
‘RACIALLY-MOTIVATED’
SHOOTING,SUSPECT HELD
New Delhi: PM Narendra Modi
will launch the construction of
the ‘India International Centre for
Buddhist Culture & Heritage’ on
Monday during a day-long visit to
Lumbini in Nepal. Later, PM will
meet UP CM Yogi Adityanath and
cabinet over dinner in Lucknow.
New York: A heavily-armed
18-year-old white man shot 10
people dead and injured three
others, most of them Black, at
a grocery store in New York on
Saturday, as per US authorities.
The meeting also must have witnessed this personal aside that the
PM has referred to in Bharuch. He has also clarified that his mis-
sion to ensure the 100% saturation on toilets, immunization, elec-
tricity and bank accounts for all for all needy citizens would be his contin-
uing objective till it will be achieved. —BJP insider

NEWS
MUMBAI | MONDAY, MAY 16, 2022
02
www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epapers/mumbai I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
First India Bureau
New Delhi: Inde-
pendent Lok Sabha
member Navneet
Rana on Saturday
accused Maharash-
tra Chief Minister
Uddhav Thackeray
of deviating from
the path shown by
Shiv Sena founder
Balasaheb Thack-
eray. She also ac-
cused him of acting
on the directions of
‘Matoshree’ resid-
ing at 10, Janpath,
in apparent refer-
ence to Congress
President Sonia
Gandhi.
Rana, along with
her husband Inde-
pendent MLA Ravi
Rana, also hit out at
Thackeray for not
mentioning the
burning issues of
farm distress and un-
employment in his
rally in Mumbai on
Saturday
.
Shiv Sena had de-
clared that it will
change the name of
Aurangabad to
Sambhaji Nagar, but
now the chief minis-
ter claims that it was
not required, said the
Rana couple at a
press conference.
They said Thack-
eray was worried
that if he followed up
on the long-standing
promise to rename
Aurangabad, Shiv
Sena’s alliance part-
ners would withdraw
support and the gov-
ernment would fall.
The chief minister
only has fear in his
mind, Navneet said,
accusing the Shiv
Sena of abandoning
the path of Hindut-
va.
But, Uddhav
Thackeray has dis-
carded the ideals of
Sena founder Balasa-
heb Thackeray and is
now acting as per the
directions of the ‘Ma-
toshree’ of 10, Jan-
path, the Rana cou-
ple said.
First India Bureau
Nagpur: Former Con-
gress councillor
Manoj Sangole took
potshots at the minis-
ter as well as the cab-
inet of Maha Vikas
Aghadi (MVA) during
the Lok Samvaad or-
ganized by the dis-
trict administration
on Saturday, alleging
that Guardian Minis-
ter Nitin Raut has not
responded to his sev-
eral letters on issues
of North Nagpur in
the last 17 years. San-
gole is a senior Con-
gress leader from the
North Nagpur con-
stituency, which Raut
represents.
According to San-
gole, a large number of
people are experiencing
water crisis. “A year
ago, Nagpur Municipal
Corporation (NMC) laid
drinking water pipeline
in three localities, but
supply has yet to begin.
Work for a new over-
head water tank was
not completed in the
last one-and-a-half
years and it has stopped
now,” he said.
Sangole also com-
plained about the Nag-
pur Improvement Trust
(NIT) for “failing to take
action against a football
club for recovering
charges from players in
violation of norms.” He
also complained that
the NMC is not provid-
ing basic amenities to
flat schemes built under
the SRA scheme.
“North Nagpur vot-
ers elected me four
times and my wife
once. Raut has not re-
sponded to my letters
or resolved issues dur-
ing his 17-year tenure
as a state minister. He
is not paying attention
to people’s grievances,”
Sangole said.
First India Bureau
Mumbai: Shiv Sena
leader Sanjay Raut on
Saturday announced
that Maharashtra
cabinet Minister
Aaditya Thackeray
will visit Ayodhya on
June 15.
While addressing a
public rally at Bandra
Kurla Complex (BKC)
Ground in Mumbai,
Raut said, “Maharash-
tra Environment Minis-
ter Aaditya Thackeray
will be visiting Ayod-
hya on June 15.”
On being asked about
Bharatiya Janata Party
(BJP) slamming All In-
dia Majlis-e- Ittehadul
Muslimeen (AIMIM)
leader Akbaruddin
Owaisi for paying his
respects to the tomb of
Mughal emperor Au-
rangzeb at Khuldabad
in Aurangabad on May
12, he said, “In 2014,
Owaisi came to Maha-
rashtra, why didn’t for-
mer CM Devendra Fad-
navis stop him when he
came to Aurangabad
back then?”
Aurangzeb was born
in Gujarat, while
Chhatrapati Shivaji
Maharaj was born in
Maharashtra, he added.
“In Kashmir, in the
past three months, 27
Kashmiri pandits were
killed by terrorists. To-
day and yesterday
Kashmiri pandits took
to the streets to pro-
test against the
central govern-
ment and were
detained in
Kashmir,” he
alleged.
Rahul Bhat, a
Kashmiri Pandit
was recently
killed by terror-
ists in Budgam.
First India Bureau
Mumbai: Three more
cases--two in Mumbai
and one in Akola dis-
trict--have been regis-
tered against 29-year-
old Marathi TV actor
Ketaki Chitale for al-
legedly sharing an
objectionable post on
social media about
NCP chief Sharad Pa-
war, police said on
Sunday.
The information
came hours after she
was remanded to police
custody for three days
by a Thane court.
Cases had earlier
been filed against her in
Thane, Pune and Dhule
districts in connection
with the online post..
“In Mumbai, the cas-
es were registered at
Goregaon and Bhoiwa-
da police stations on
Saturday,” an official
said.
At Bhoiwada, the
case was registered
based on a complaint
filed by advocate
Prashant Shankar Du-
ete, a students’ wing
president of NCP’s
Mumbai unit.
In Akola, the FIR was
recorded at Khadan po-
lice station against Chi-
tale after a complaint
was lodged by Kalpana
Gawarguru, a local of-
fice-bearer of the NCP,
another official said.
The cases at these po-
lice stations were regis-
tered under Indian Pe-
nal Code sections 500
(defamation), 501 (print-
ing or engraving matter
known to be defamato-
ry), 505 (2) (making,
publishing or circulat-
ing any statement, ru-
mour or report promot-
ing enmity, hatred or ill
will between classes),
153 A (spreading dis-
harmony among peo-
ple), police said.
Thane Police had on
Saturday arrested Chi-
tale from Navi Mumbai
after a case was regis-
tered against her at
Kalwa police station
over the social media
post.
In Pune too, a case
was registered against
her based on a com-
plaint filed by an NCP
worker. The cyber wing
of the police registered
a case against Chitale
under IPC sections 153
(A), 500, and 505 (2).
At Dhule in northern
Maharashtra, a case
was lodged against Chi-
tale and Nitin Bhave,
the purported author of
the post shared by her,
on a complaint lodged
by an NCP leader.
3 more FIRs against Marathi
actor Chitale over Pawar post
First India Bureau
Mumbai: NCP MP
Supriya Sule on
Sunday said a per-
verted mindset is
not good for the so-
ciety in view of
Marathi actor Ket-
aki Chitale alleg-
edly sharing an ob-
jectionable post
about Sule’s father
and NCP chief
Sharad Pawar.
The post shared by
Chitale, purportedly
written by someone
else, contained
phrases like “hell is
waiting” and “you
hate Brahmins”, al-
legedly referring to
the NCP president.
Asked if she sup-
ported the protest in
which NCP’s women
wing workers had
thrown black ink and
eggs at Chitale out-
side Kalamboli po-
lice station in Navi
Mumbai, the MP said
the issue is about cul-
ture when someone
wishes death to your
parents and someone
you idolize in public
life.
“Pervert mindset
is not good for the so-
ciety,” she said, add-
ing that she was
thankful to Chief
Minister Uddhav
Thackeray
, Leader of
Opposition Deven-
dra Fadnavis and
MNS Chief Raj
Thackeray for speak-
ing out against the
post.
Pervert mindset not
good for society:
Supriya Sule
Thane court on Sunday remanded her in police custody till May 18
The post in Marathi written by someone else,
which Chitale allegedly shared on Facebook
on Friday, only mentioned the surname Pawar
and the age of 80. The NCP supremo is 81 years
old. The post contained phrases like “hell is
waiting” and “you hate Brahmins”, allegedly
referring to Pawar whose party shares power in
Maharashtra with the Shiv Sena and Congress.
THE CONTROVERSY
First India Bureau
Nagpur: Kendra Pra-
mukhs at Zilla Pari-
shads have written to
the state government
demanding a perma-
nent travel allowance
at par with that of
gram sevaks. They
are demanding it as a
fixed component in
their salaries paid on
a monthly basis say-
ing they have to un-
dergo a lot of travel
in villages.
Senior member
Sharad Bhandarkar
said that “Kendra pra-
mukhs are dealing with
three to five-gram pan-
chayats and that’s why
their average village
tour is much higher
than gram sevaks, but it
seems that the state gov-
ernment is not inter-
ested in looking after
our well being. Hence,
our association is now
raising its voice to en-
sure that kendra pra-
mukhs get what is due
to them.”
“The gram sevaks
working in ZP are get-
ting Rs 1,650 per month,
currently we are not
getting anything. They
stopped it a long way.
We too are demanding
the same amount as a
fixed component in our
salaries,” said
Bhandarkar,
On further compari-
son between the two,
Bhandarkar said, “On
an average, a gram se-
vak tours just one or
two villages. Despite
this, the government
has approved a perma-
nent travel allowance
for them. Our members
travel anywhere be-
tween 10 to 15 villages
and yet they have not
received anything.”
Kendra pramukhs
demand monthly
travel allowance
The gram
sevaks
working
in ZP are receiving
Rs1,650 per
month. We too are
demanding the
same amount as a
fixed component
in our salaries,
—Sharad Bhandarkar,
senior member, Nagpur Zilla
Parishad
North Nagpur not on Nitin Raut’s
mind: Cong ex-councillor Sangole
CABINET MIN AADITYA THACKERAY TO
VISIT AYODHYA ON JUNE 15, SAYS RAUT
Shiv Sena acting on
directions of 10
Janpath: MP Rana
Guardian Minister Nitin Raut presided over the first Lok Samvaad of the MVA government on Saturday.
The Shiv Sena leader slammed
Centre for failing to keep Kashmiri
Pandits from harm in Kashmir
First India Bureau
New Delhi: Former
Delhi University (DU)
professor GN Saiba-
ba, who is serving a
life sentence in Nag-
pur for Maoist ties,
has vowed to go on an
indefinite hunger
strike inside his jail
cell in protest against
the installation of a
CCTV camera that re-
portedly records im-
ages of the toilet and
bathing area.
On Saturday, his wife
Vasantha Kumari and
brother G Ramadevudu
wrote to the Maharash-
tra Home Minister,
requesting that the
CCTV camera be
removed. Saibaba
is now held in the
Nagpur Central
Prison.
H i s
lawyer had previously
claimed that he had
been denied a plastic
water bottle by the pris-
on officials.
Saibaba’s wife and
brother stated in the let-
ter, “On Tuesday, the
jail authorities put a
wide-angle CCTV cam-
era in front of his cell
that can capture video
of the complete cell in-
cluding, toilet seat,
bathing spot, and every-
thing in the small cell.
As a result, he is unable
to use the toilet for uri-
nals or even take a bath
before the camera,
which takes video
of everything
24X7 hours.
How can Dr
GN Saibaba
live in these
circumstanc-
es?”
Saibaba to go on
hunger strike in jail
over ‘toilet camera’
Ketaki Chitale
Supriya Sule
NCP leader
Sharad Pawar
Navneet Rana
GN Saibaba

MAHARASHTRA
03
READ
crucial
crucial
JEWELLER HELD FOR
THROWING ACID ON HIS WIFE
JEWELLER HELD FOR
THROWING ACID ON HIS WIFE
Maharashtra
Maharashtra
BRIDE, 3 OTHERS INJURED AFTER
PANDAL COLLAPSES DUE TO WINDS
TEEN BOY DROWNS IN 25-FEET DEEP
POND WHILE PLAYING IN NAGPUR
ONE BOOKED FOR TRYING TO SIPHON
OFF `78 LAKH FROM MLA’S BANK AC
MUMBAI BUSINESSMAN FOUND DEAD IN
VASHI CREEK, BODY SENT FOR AUTOPSY
UNION MIN ATHAWALE DEMANDS WIFE’S
DAY ALONG LINES OF MOTHER’S DAY
Palghar: A bride and three others were injured on
Sunday after the pandal at a mass-marriage event
collapsed in Palghar district collapsed due to strong
winds while the event was underway, an official from
Dahanu police station said. There were several people,
including guests, at the event in Aina village of Dahanu
taluka where 125 couples were to tie the knot, the of-
ficial said. When the pandal collapsed, people started
running out seeking safety, leading to commotion at
the venue, and minor injuries for a bride and three
others. They were provided first aid at a local health
centre, and the event was later shifted to an adjacent
kitchen pandal.
Nagpur: A 17-year-old boy, Prem Dhamne, drowned in
a pond in Ramtek taluka in Nagpur district, police said
on Saturday. The incident occurred on Friday after-
noon when the boy was playing with his friends on the
bank of the pond, which is 25-feet deep. His body was
fished out on Saturday afternoon. A case of accidental
death has been registered.
Mumbai: An unidentified accused was booked for try-
ing to siphon off `78 lakh from Shiv Sena MLA Ajay
Chaudhary’s bank account by using a cheque with his
forged signature. The Kalachowki Police registered an
FIR and is trying to trace the accused. The transaction
was declined after a bank employee called Chaudhary
for verification. The accused deposited the cheque
in the Ahmedabad branch of a bank asking the bank
to send the money to a particular bank account.
Chaudhary was attending an official meeting when he
received a phone call from a bank official who asked
him if he had issued a cheque to withdraw `78 lakh.
The MLA denied issuing any cheque.
Thane: The body of a businessman from neighbouring
Mumbai was found in a creek here on Sunday morning,
police said. Some passers-by spotted the body in the
Vashi creek and alerted police. The police retrieved the
body, later identified as that of Prashant Tukaram Vichare
(54), from Bhandup suburb in Mumbai, and sent it for
post-mortem, an official from Vashi police station said.
More details about the deceased were not immediately
available. The police have registered a case of accidental
death and are investigating further, the official said.
Mumbai: Union Minister of State for Social Justice
Ramdas Athawale urged that a “Wife’s Day” be observed
in the same way that Mother’s Day is celebrated. Speaking
at an event in Sangli on Sunday, Athawale said, “A mother
gives birth while a wife stands by her husband in good
and bad times. Behind every successful man there is a
woman. We should celebrate Wife’s Day.” International
Mother’s Day is celebrated and observed on the second
Sunday in the month of May.
Nagpur: A 40-year-old jeweller was arrested for allegedly
throwing acid on his wife and attacking his brother-in-
law with a blade, leaving them injured, in Nagpur district
of Maharashtra, police said on Saturday. Vinod Vinkane
threw acid on his wife Bharati (36) during a heated
argument over some financial matter at their house in
Veltur village on Friday, a police official said. When his
brother-in-law, Saurabh Yavalkar (31), tried to intervene,
the accused attacked him with a blade. Bharati and her
brother were injured in the incident and taken to hospital
for treatment.
Three rescued as
cargo vessel sinks
Technical fault in
the boat’s engine
led to the incident
First India Bureau
Mumbai: A cargo boat
sank into the Arabian
sea off Ballard Pier in
south Mumbai, and
threepersonsonboard
were rescued soon af-
ter they jumped off
when it started sink-
ing, a police official
said on Sunday
.
A video of the inci-
dent, which occurred
on Saturday morning,
was widely shared on
social media.
“Goods were loaded
into the cargo boat at the
Mumbai Port Trust. Af-
ter that, the boat went to
the Ballard Pier nearby
and the stock was un-
loaded and filled into a
bigshipthere.Justasthe
process of unloading got
over,waterstartedenter-
ing the cargo boat and
three persons on board
jumped into the sea out
of fear,” the official said.
However, the crew
from another boat near-
by rescued the trio,
he said.
Kissing prima facie not unnatural
sex, says Bombay High Court
First India Bureau
Mumbai: Granting
bail to a man accused
of sexually assault-
ing a minor, the Bom-
bay High Court has
observed that kissing
would not prima facie
constitute offence un-
der section 377 (un-
natural sex) of the
Indian Penal Code.
Thecourtobservation
came while granting
bail to Vikas Mohanlal
Khelaniwhowasbooked
for offences under sec-
tions 377, 384, 420 of the
Indian Penal Code and
Sections 8 and 12 of the
Protection of Children
from Sexual Offences
(POCSO) Act, 2012.
Justice Anuja Prab-
hudessai, in an order on
May 5, made available
on Sunday, said, “The
statement of the victim,
as well as the First In-
formation report prima
facie, indicate that the
applicant had touched
the private parts of the
victim and had kissed
his lips. In my consid-
ered view, this would
not prima facie consti-
tute offence under sec-
tion 377 of the Indian
Penal Code.”
The court said that
Khelani had been in
custody for almost a
year already and, given
that charges are yet to
be framed against him,
the trial is not likely to
commence in the imme-
diate future.
“Considering the
above facts and circum-
stances, the Applicant
(Khelani) is entitled to
bail,” the court said and
imposed various condi-
tions including the fur-
nishing of bonds in the
sum of `30,000.
The other conditions
include that applicant
Khelani shall report to
Oshiwara Police Sta-
tion once in two months
on every first Monday
between 11 am to 2 pm
until further orders.
Besides these, the
court directed him not
to interfere with the
complainant and the
other witnesses and
shall not tamper with
the evidence or attempt
to influence or contact
the complainant, wit-
nesses, or any person
concerned with the
case; keep the Trial
Court informed of his
current address and
mobile contact number
and/or change of
residence or mobile de-
tails, if any, from time
to time.
Wriddhiman Saha's 67 powers Gujarat Titans
to seven-wicket win over Chennai Super Kings
Mumbai (ANI): Wrid-
dhiman Saha smashed
the third fifty of the
ongoing IPL season
(67*) to power Gujarat
Titans (GT) to a seven-
wicket win over Chen-
nai Super Kings (CSK)
here at Wankhede Sta-
dium on Sunday
.
It was not a memora-
ble day for CSK on the
field as the side sunk to
their ninth defeat of the
season and were out-
played by the Titans in
all departments.
With this win, GT
maintains their top spot
run in the points tally,
having gathered 20
points. On the other
hand, CSK is at the
ninth position in the ta-
ble with only eight
points.
Having restricted
CSK to 133/5, GT got off
a great start, with open-
er Wriddhiman Saha
attacking the Super
Kings bowlers aggres-
sively
.
Gill from the other
end stayed slow from
the other end but start-
ed to show some aggres-
sion in the sixth over.
At the end of the pow-
erplay
, GT were right on
track, sitting at a
healthy 53/0.
With CSK in need of
a breakthrough and to
restrict the run flow, Sri
Lankan medium-pacer
Matheesha Pathirana
gave the side just that.
The IPL debutant
struck at his first ball
itself, trapping Gill leg-
before-wicket for 18 off
17, breaking the 59-run
first-wicket stand be-
tween the duo.
Aussie southpaw
Matthew Wade then
smashed the debutant
for two stylish bounda-
ries, with one being a
beautiful flick over
backward square leg.
The duo started
building the innings for
the Titans once again.
In the 12th over, spin-
ner Moeen Ali broke the
31-run stand between
Saha and Wade, dis-
missing the latter for
15-ball 20 with help
from Shivam Dube, who
took a great catch.
Captain Hardik Pan-
dya was trapped by
Pathirana for just 7.
Saha eventually
brought his third fifty
of the season, his 11th
overall in the league.
When David Miller
came to the crease, the
duo started to rotate
strike, looking to take
the Titans over the line
without losing any
more wickets.
Eventually, Saha
sealed a seven-wicket
win for his side with a
four at the first ball of
the final over by Pathi-
rana and, alongside
Miller (15*), gave GT
their side their tenth
win of the season.
With this win,
With this win,
GT maintains
GT maintains
their top spot
their top spot
run in the
run in the
points tally,
points tally,
having
having
gathered 20
gathered 20
points
points
Water tax in Aurangabad
to be slashed by half,
says Subhash Desai
First India Bureau
Aurangabad: District
Guardian Minister
Subhash Desai on Fri-
day announced that
the water tax in Au-
rangabad city would
be reduced by half.
Desai has asked the
Aurangabad Municipal
Corporation (AMC) ad-
ministrator to act on the
directivesassoonaspos-
sible to ensure that the
move benefits the com-
monpeople.Thecityhas
approximately 1.25 lakh
legal water connections,
with an almost equal
number of illegal water
connections, according
to reports. The govern-
ment’s latest move will
save citizens `25 crore.
AMC has frequently
faced criticism for er-
ratic water supply
, rang-
ing from once a week to
onceamonth,invarious
parts of the city within
civic body limits. Fur-
thermore, the civic body
has a history of levying
`4,050 as the highest wa-
ter ta tax imposed by
any civic body in the
state.
Taking cognizance of
the growing discontent
among citizens, repre-
sentatives from the Con-
gress, Shiv Sena, NCP
raised the issue
with their respec-
tive leaders, expressing
concerns about the im-
pactoncivicbodyelec-
tions scheduled for
this year. The state
govt decided to pro-
vide some relief to
the citizens, who re-
ceive civic water sup-
plyforlessthan60
days per year
on average.
Mumbai suburbs to get 12 more AC locals
First India Bureau
Mumbai: Considering
the increase in num-
ber of commuters
travelling by AC lo-
cals, the Western Rail-
way will increase the
number of air-condi-
tioned local services in
the Mumbai suburban
section from 20 to 32
from May 16.
After the fares for AC
local travel were sub-
stantially reduced on
May 5, there has been a
significant rise in the
number of commuters
travelling by AC locals,
according to the railway
.
“Out of the addition-
al 12 services being in-
troduced, six services
each will be in up and
down directions. In the
up direction, there will
be five services between
Virar and Churchgate,
and one between Bhay-
andar and Churchgate.
Similarly, in the down
direction, there will be
four services between
Churchgate and Virar
and one between
Churchgate and Bhay-
andar and another be-
tween Andheri and Vi-
rar,” said an official.
After the fares were
slashed, the minimum
single journey ticket up
to 10km costs only `35.
Grants bail to man accused of
sexually assaulting minor boy
THE VERDICT
People spend their weekend at the
Dadar Chowpatty in Mumbai, on Sunday.
-PHOTO BY PTI
LEISURELY SUNDAY
GT's Wriddhiman
Saha plays a
shot in the match
against Chennai
Super Kings, at the
Wankhede Stadium
in Mumbai on
Sunday.
—PHOTO BY PTI

l Vol 1 l Issue No. 10
l RNI TITLE NO.
MAHENG/2022/14652 Printed
and published by
Anita Hada Sangwan on behalf of
First Express Publishers. Printed
at Dangat Media Pvt Ltd, No.22,
Dighe MIDC, Vishnu Nagar,
TTC Industrial Area, Dighe, Navi
Mumbai-400701. Published
at Plot No. 3 Scheme C of
Manglorean Garden Home, CHS
Limited, Survey No. 5, 6C (Part)
Ville Parle East, Mumbai 400057.
Editor-In-Chief: Jagdeesh Chandra
Editor: Anita Hada Sangwan
responsible for selection of news
under the PRB Act
PERSPECTIVE
04
Amit Shah
@AmitShah
India clinched the Thomas Cup.
A momentous day for the Indian
Badminton team that will be etched
in the annals of our sport’s history. I
congratulate our entire team on this
great accomplishment. Every Indian is
immensely proud today.
Dharmendra Pradhan
@dpradhanbjp
Best wishes to @DrManikSaha2 ji
for taking oath as the Chief Minister
of Tripura. It is my belief that under
the guidance of Prime Minister Shri
@narendramodi ji and under your
leadership Tripura will continue to reach
new heights of progress and prosperity.
SPIRITUAL SPEAK
Because an original
is always better than
a copy!
—Bhagavad Gita
IN-DEPTH
INDIA’S MAIDEN
TRIUMPH IN THE
73 YEAR HISTORY
OF THOMAS CUP
escribe it as historic,
momentous, epic or
by any other adjec-
tive to applaud the
Indian badminton
team for their stupendous per-
formance at Bangkok’s Impact
Arena where they blanked out
Indonesia 3-0 to snatch the
Thomas Cup. This is India’s first
gold-winning moment in Thom-
as and Uber Cup’s 73-year his-
tory
. Pullela Gopichand, India’s
chief badminton coach, called it
“even bigger” than the 1983
cricket World Cup winning mo-
ment. Indeed, in both the events
no one gave India a chance. But
the team spirit shown by the
cricket squad in 1983 and by the
shuttlers on May 15, 2022 has
brought glory to the country
.
Badminton is essentially an
individual sport but Thomas
Cup being a team event each
member was required to put up
awinningperformancethrough-
out the tournament. That is why
it will be unfair to single out in-
dividual performances of young
Lakshya Sen or Kidambi Shri-
kant for heaping praise. Hail the
new badminton heroes as the
cup of joy spills over.
TOP TWEETS
D
ess than a week
ago Turkey placed
a confirmed order
for 50,000 metric
tonnes of wheat
from India. This is the first
time that Turkey is buying
wheat from India. The devel-
opmentwasseenasbenefiting
farmers. For consumers bat-
tling inflation it was a wrong
move as exports would have
pushedupwheatpriceswhich
have already risen by around
15 percent in recent weeks.
The government also planned
to send trade delegations to
nine countries to look for pos-
sibilities of boosting wheat
export to achieve the wheat
export target of 10 million
tonnes fixed by the Centre.
All of a sudden India de-
cidedtobanexports,addingto
the global supply crisis. The
ban, which came two days af-
teranambitiousexporttarget
was fixed, took everyone by
surprise. The export ban will
notonlyhurtfarmersbutalso
countries relying on Indian
supplies. Domestically
, the de-
cision is being seen as anti-
farmer. The government rea-
sonedthatthedrasticdecision
was taken after projections
showed lower output than es-
timated earlier. While earlier
projections showed a record
111.3 million tonnes of pro-
duce,afterrevisionitwaslow-
ered to 98 million tonnes. The
government also argued that
the measure was meant to en-
sure wheat availability in the
domestic market where the
cereal’s prices are facing an
upsurge after Russia’s inva-
sion of Ukraine which pro-
duces 7 percent of the world’s
wheat.
The ban has not been taken
well by G7 nations who have
questioned the decision. Ger-
many’s agriculture minister
Cern said, “If everyone starts
to impose export restrictions
or to close markets, that
would worsen the crisis.”
A QUESTIONABLE
MOVE ON WHEAT
All of a sudden India
decided to ban exports,
adding to the global
supply crisis. The ban,
which came 2 days after an
ambitious export target was
fixed, took everyone by
surprise. Domestically,
the decision is being
seen as anti-farmer
L
Prabhu Shakti, Mantrana
Shakti and Utsah Shakti
THE NATURE OF POWER
n important, and perhaps the
only rule about power is that
it abhors a vacuum. Thus, if
you are mandated by Raj
Dharma to exercise power,
you must exercise it with full
vigour. Any abdication of the
same is not just criminal, but
also sinful. I urge you to ex-
ercise your Mantra shakti
and Utsah Shakti – because if
you don’t, someone else will.
If you’re not in a position to
render advise to the political
leadership, someone else will
step in, and in this day and
age of IT – there is no mo-
nopoly over knowledge, and
the past precedent is not the
only source.
HOW DOES ONE
LOOK AT POWER?
Do we see it as static – or do
we take a more dynamic view
of its multiple manifesta-
tions. It is true that as indus-
trial areas, education com-
plexes, tourism destinations
and production clusters, and
agribusinesses value chains
take root in the district, there
would be many more power
centres – but this also makes
the task of managing dis-
tricts more meaningful and
interesting for the DM. What
it also means is that the focus
will shift from livelihoods for
survival to skillsets for up-
ward mobility. Internal mi-
gration within the country
has been going on for over a
decade- but after Covid, dis-
tricts have started tracking
where the residents are – to
ensure that they get their en-
titlements – from a PDS card
to health facilities. Do we
view IT as a tool of empower-
ment, or do we see it as cut-
ting down our discretion?
FROM RULES TO ROLES
As the Prime Minister said in
his keynote address on the
Mission Karamyogi – we
have to move from a Rule-
based approach to one in
which the Role becomes the
driving factor. Thus, if you
take a dynamic view of pow-
er – you will find that the Am-
rit Kaal of India’s century
offers a billion opportunities
to do good, and to excel. If
you are governance profes-
sionals – which I believe you
are – then you must view
your role in that light. Study
the ground reality. observe
the rules that are not in sync
with the zeitgeist (spirt of
the time) and change them
(where you can) and ask for
them to be changed when the
authority lies elsewhere. And
one can be at the bottom of
the administrative pyramid
to initiate change.
Now that I am a senior
citizen, I am entitled to tell
some stories and blow my
trumpet. In the fifth year of
my service, I was the CEO of
the Himalayan Milk Union
where our profitability was
affected because as per the
extant norms of PFA, toned
milk had to have a minimum
of 3% fat. The norms for milk
had been made for the city of
Bombay- and the main source
of procurement was buffalo
milk – which naturally had a
higher fat content. These
norms were applied, without
adequate thought – across
the country, including the
municipalities in Darjeeling.
Now you can visualise the
difference between the desi
cows of the hills with the
sturdy buffaloes of Maha-
rashtra and Gujarat. The in-
tent was to prevent adultera-
tion –but for Himul, it meant
that we had to add WMP to
increase the fat content of
the naturally ‘lean milk’ of
the cows.
Let me also take this op-
portunity to address the ele-
phant in the room: I know
that many readers have been
concerned about comments
of Mr D Subba Rao, an ex-
governor of RBI about rele-
vance of IAS. He blames dis-
regard of merit and the ‘au-
tomatic promotion’ policy as
main reason for so-called de-
cline in the fabric of civil ser-
vices. Are we going to accept
the proposition of Mr D Sub-
ba Rao and others of his ilk
who believe in writing the
epitaph of the IAS (and by
implication – the other con-
stituted services). To this my
response is an emphatic NO.
For if we accept that India
has done well in most param-
eters of governance the cred-
it should be shared equally
by the political executive and
ourselves. We handled the
Covid crisis admirably – in
all the states and UTs – even
when they were under differ-
ent political dispensations.
As such, while it is impor-
tant to acknowledge our fail-
ures, it is equally, if not more
important to acknowledge
our successes and celebrate
them.
THE VIEWS EXPRESSED BY
THE AUTHOR ARE PERSONAL
A
Now that I am a senior
citizen, I am entitled to tell
some stories and blow my
trumpet. In the fifth year of
my service, I was the CEO of
the Himalayan Milk Union
where our profitability was
affected because as per the
extant norms of PFA, toned
milk had to have a
minimum of 3% fat. The
norms for milk had been
made for the city of Bombay-
and the main source of
procurement was buffalo
milk – which naturally had
a higher fat content
RAJ DHARMA 9
SANJEEV CHOPRA
The writer is Distinguished Fellow,
USI Delhi and Historian Policy
Analyst. Also former Director,
Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy
of Administration, Mussoorie
In this edition, the column shall expostulate concept of Raj Dharma
–also name of this column on Governance. Raj Dharma is about power
– yes, but power with responsibility. And to exercise power respon-
sibly, one has to look at 3 types of power – Prabhu shakti – power of
sovereign, Mantrana shakti – the power of knowledge and Utsah shakti
– power of enthusiastic energy. As civil servants, we are duty-bound
to give to political sovereign our Mantrana shakti – which in our case
translates to following constitutional verities – and Utsah Shakti –
which means that we should bring to any task that we take up – from
promotion of Geographical Indicators to Fasal Beema Yojana our full-
est commitment to the task at hand.
THE CONCEPT OF RAJ DHARMA
YOU READ RAJ DHARMA 8
IN FIRST INDIA ON MAY 2, 2022

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05
INDIA
Thiruvananthapuram
(PTI): As rains contin-
ue to lash across Kerala
days ahead of the ex-
pected onset of South-
west monsoon, the India
Meteorological Depart-
ment (IMD) on Sunday
issued a red alert in five
districts of the state for
the next two days indi-
cating extremely heavy
rainfall.
IMD issued red alert
in Ernakulam, Idukki,
Thrissur, Malappuram
and Kozhikode districts
for Sunday
.
Red alert has been is-
sued in Ernakulam,
Idukki, Thrissur,
Kozhikode and Kannur
districts for Monday
. Ex-
cept Kasaragod, other
districtsinthestatehave
an orange alert for Sun-
day
. Revenue Minister K
Rajan, who met the me-
dia, said directions have
been issued to district
collectors to deal with
any emergencies.
“We held a meeting on
Saturday
, chaired by the
Chief secretary
. Direc-
tionshavebeenissuedto
alldistrictcollectorsand
other concerned author-
ities. As of now, the riv-
ers are not overflowing.
We have issued special
directions to hilly dis-
tricts and hazard ana-
lysts have been asked to
closely monitor the situ-
ation,” Rajan said.
He said all depart-
ments concerned have
been alerted and people
fromdanger-proneareas
will be evacuated with-
out delay if necessary
.
IMD issues red alert in 5 districts of Kerala for next 2 days
SOUTHWEST MONSOON
lll
Kodungallur in
Thrissur district
received 20 cm
of rain on
Saturday, as per
the IMD website
which is the
highest rainfall
in Kerala in the
last 24 hours
KP’S KILLING WAS TARGETED,
KP’S KILLING WAS TARGETED,
SIT TO PROBE CASE: LT GUV
SIT TO PROBE CASE: LT GUV
GUPKAR ALLIANCE URGES KASHMIRI PANDIT EMPLOYEES NOT TO LEAVE VALLEY
New Delhi: Rahul
Bhat’s killing was tar-
geted, said Jammu and
Kashmir Lieutenant
Governor (LG) Manoj
Sinha.Healsosaidthat
the Special Investiga-
tion Team (SIT) will
probetheincidentfrom
all angles. This was re-
ported by media on
Sunday
, May 15.
Meanwhile, the Gup-
kar alliance on Sunday
urged Kashmiri pandit
employees not to leave
the valley as it was
theirhomeanditwould
be “painful for all’’, af-
ter the community de-
manded relocation.
LT GOVERNOR ORDERS PROBE INTO TEAR GAS
SHELLING ON KASHMIRI PANDIT PROTESTERS
Srinagar (Agencies):
JK Lt Governor Manoj
Sinha on Sunday
ordered a probe into
the tear gas shelling
incident on protesting
Kashmiri Pandits on
May 13. “Strict action
will be taken against
officials involved in
the action,” adminis-
trative sources said.
Police had used tear
gas against Kashmir
Pandits, who were
protesting against the
killing of government
employee, Rahul Bhat,
by terrorists inside a
government office.
Manoj Sinha said,
“Rahul Bhat’s killing
is targeted one. SIT to
probe it from all angles
along with probing use
of force to disperse
Kashmiri migrant
protestors in aftermath
of incident. 2 foreign
militants killed. Direc-
tions given to adminis-
tration to not use force
anywhere.”
JK Lt Governor Manoj Sinha
CHINTAN SHIVIR
Cong leaders not to indulge
in Hindu-Muslim debate
Udaipur (Agencies):
The Chintan Shivir of
the Congress discussed
about ideological clarity
,
underliningthereshould
be no confusion in the
party even as different
voices seemed emanat-
ing from different re-
gions.
The Hindi heartland
people were wary of the
Congress being termed
as‘Muslimparty’sothey
wanted to toe the line of
soft Hindutva.
Meanwhile,thepeople
of Northeast and South
had different views on it
with the southern states
opining the party should
stick towards its secular
credentials and “not fall
into BJP’s trap”.
Sources say former
MaharashtraChief Min-
ister Prithiviraj Chavan
pointed that BJP is not
fighting directly
. Refer-
ring to his state, the sen-
ior Congress leader said
thesaffronpartyisusing
proxies like Raj Thacka-
rey
,andactorsandfringe
elements.
Meanwhile, the Mus-
lim leaders were of the
views that withering
support from the com-
munity is the reason be-
hind the Congress not
taking an aggressive
stand,withmanyleaders
assertingthattoconfront
the BJP
, the Congress
should not get into the
Hindu-Muslim issue but
push the people-centric
and development issues,
and question the govern-
ment various subjects.
Congress interim president Sonia Gandhi with other party leaders
during a meeting on day 2 of the Nav Sankalp Shivir, in Udaipur.
Cong manifesto to promise scrapping
EVMs, reintroduce paper ballots
Udaipur (ANI): The
Congress leaders
participating in the on-
going Chintan Shivir in
Udaipur agreed to a call
to include in the party’s
manifesto the removal
of the Electronic Voting
Machines (EVMs) from
the electoral system
while also vowing to re-
introduce the paper bal-
lots if the party comes
to power at the Centre.
Congress leader Prithvi-
raj Chavan emphasised
the need for the party
to win the Assembly
polls that are lined up
before the commence-
ment of the Lok Sabha
polls in 2024. Speaking
to media, Chavan said,
“We had discussions
over the issue of the
EVM tampering. But it’s
my personal opinion
that filing petitions or
urging won’t compel
PM Modi to change it.
There is only one way,
that is to defeat him.”
Civilian killed during gunfight between
security forces, terrorists in Pulwama
Srinagar (PTI): A ci-
vilian was killed dur-
ing an exchange of fire
between security forc-
es and terrorists in
Pulwama district of
Jammu and Kashmir
on Sunday, police said.
According to the po-
lice, terrorists fired
upon a joint patrol
team of the CRPF and
the police near a bridge
connecting Litter Pul-
wama with Turk-
wangam in Shopian.
During the exchange
of fire, a civilian, iden-
tified as Shoib Ah Gan-
ie of Turkwangam,
was injured.
The police said the
civilian was referred to
the District Hospital in
Pulwama where he suc-
cumbed to his injuries.
The terrorists, “af-
ter a brief chance en-
counter”, managed to
slip into nearby or-
chards, the police said.
A case has been reg-
istered and a search
was underway for the
terrorists, the police
said.
2ND CASUALTY
Kirit Somaiya accuses
CM of ‘appeasement
towards Muslims’
Rajiv Kumar new Chief
Election Commissioner
New Delhi: Former Fi-
nance Secretary Rajiv
Kumar on May 15 as-
sumed charge as Chief
Election Commissioner
(CEC), taking over from
outgoing CEC Sushil
Chandra who retired on
May 14.
After taking office,
Mr. Kumar said a lot
had been done over the
past 70 years by the
Election Commission
of India (ECI) to ensure
free and fair elections.
“The Commission
will follow the time-test-
ed and democratic
methods of consulta-
tions and consensus
building in bringing
about any major re-
forms responsible un-
der the Constitution.
ECI will not shy away
from tough decisions,”
he said.
First India Bureau
Mumbai:Bharatiya Ja-
nata Party (BJP) leader
Kirit Somaiya has ac-
cused Maharashtra
Chief Minster Uddhav
Thackeray of indulging
in politics of appease-
ment towards Muslims
by not allowing aartis
(Hindu prayers) on
loudspeakers.
Somaiya’s comments
came after a visit to the
Gol Deval Temple in
Mumbai on Saturday.
“For the first time in
history
, a Shiv Aarti has
not been played in this
temple. Thackeray is
impressing Muslims,
selling religion for safe-
guarding Chief Minis-
ter’s post. Instead of
opting for such moves,
Thackeray should say
sorry to Hindus living
here,” he said.
“Shiv Sena is trying
to impress Congress
President Sonia Gandhi
by opting for such
moves,” he added.
Rajiv Kumar takes charge as
25th CEC.
New Delhi: Addressing
thediscomfortexpressed
by G-7 nations about its
recent ‘Wheat Exports
ban’, Union
M i n i s t e r
H a r d e e p
PurisaidIn-
diawillfulfil
all its com-
mitment to
vulnerablecountriesand
won’tabandontheneigh-
bours who depend on
India for their food sup-
plies.InaTwitterposton
Saturday
, Union Minis-
ter Hardeep Singh Puri
said the country’s wheat
stocks are at a “comfort-
able” level and will be
used to fulfil all the prior
export demands as well
as the domestic need.
“Wheat stocks are
comfortable. The deci-
sion to restrict wheat ex-
ports was taken with a
focus on India’s food se-
curity
, ensuring afforda-
ble foodgrains combat
market speculation. In-
dia, a reliable supplier
will fulfil all commit-
ments including needs
of neighbours vulner-
able countries,” wrote
Puri on Twitter.
Wheat ban: After
G7 flak, Puri says
India will fulfil all
its commitments
Cong to field those below 50
in half of seats in ’24 LS polls
Udaipur (PTI): The
Congress on Sunday
said that starting 2024
Lok Sabha elections,
half of its tickets will
be given to those be-
low 50 years of age.
The party also said
that the retirement
age will be fixed for
those in Parliament,
state legislatures and
other elected posts.
The bold decisions
are part of the Congress
‘Nav Sankalp’ declara-
tion that was adopted at
the end of the three-day
‘Chintan Shivir here.
The exit of several
young leaders from the
Congress in recent
years had been attrib-
uted to the party’s old
guard failing to ad-
dress the aspirations
of the so-called ‘gen-
next’ leaders.
Sukhbir Badal’s appeal to S Jaishankar
after 2 Sikh men shot dead in Pakistan
New Delhi (Agencies):
Shiromani Akali Dal
(SAD)presidentSukhbir
Singh Badal on Sunday
urged external affairs
ministerSJaishankarto
take up the issue of safe-
ty of Sikhs in Pakistan
with the neighbouring
country’s government,
aftertwomembersof the
community were shot
dead by unidentified
gunmen in Peshawar.
“Shocked pained to
learn about the dastard-
ly killing of two Sikh
shopkeepers-Ranjit Sin-
gh and Kuljeet Singh in
Peshawar (Pakistan).
Condemning the inci-
dent, I urge EAM @
DrSJaishankar ji to en-
sure justice to the be-
reaved families also to
take up Sikhs’ safety is-
sue with @PakPMO,”
Badal wrote on Twitter.
Meanwhile,according
to local media reports,
the victims were both
shopkeepers who sold
spicesinBataTalbazaar
in Peshawar’s Sarband.
SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal
STATE GOVT ISSUES GUIDELINES
Shiv Sena
is trying
to impress
Congress President
Sonia Gandhi by
opting for such
moves.
—Kirit Somaiya,
Bharatiya Janata Party

06
INDIA
Kohima (Agencies):
Even as the Naga peace
talks have entered the
last but a critical phase
withtheCentralGovern-
ment stating clearly that
itcanneverreconsider
demands related to a
separate Flag and Con-
stitution, veteran state
politician SC Jamir has
counselled both Prime
MinisterNarendraModi
and Union Home Minis-
ter Amit Shah that one
should not expect “100
per cent unanimity”.
“The talks should not
be delayed further,”
Jamir, also a former
Chief Minister of Naga-
land and former Gover-
nor of Maharashtra and
Gujarat, told media.
I told the government
of India and two of our
leaders (Modi and Shah)
do not expect unanimi-
ty
... Even in parliament
you don't get unanimity
,
same in a family
. Democ-
racymeanssomeonewill
not agree. It's all right.
To specific questions
on the issues of a sepa-
rate Flag and Constitu-
tion as raised by the
NSCN-IM, he told me-
dia: I speak frankly
and so many Naga lead-
ers do not like me. I
have always been speak-
ing the truth.
Both the Framework
Agreement of August 3,
2015, inked between ne-
gotiator RN Ravi and
NSCN-IM, and the
Agreed Position signed
by the NNPG in 2017,
have no mention about
the two points.
It is very clear from
two agreements, the
Framework Agreement
andtheAgreedPosition,
neither of them men-
tionsthesetwodemands.
Thereisalsonomention
of Sovereignty and Inte-
gration of Naga inhab-
ited areas... If any of the
competencies has to be
incorporatedintheCon-
stitution of India, it has
to come through Parlia-
ment of India, the for-
merChief Ministersaid.
Jamir explained that
itoughttobeunderstood
properly that all agree-
mentsmadebytheCen-
tre with both NSCN-IM
and NNPG, have to be
incorporated in the
Constitution of India.
When things are so
clear,somymootpointis
intheNagaspirit,Ithink
they(Nagaunderground
leaders)shouldadhereto
the signature they have
appended willingly and
knowingly in the agree-
ment, he told media.
Jamir, who enjoys a
good working relation-
shipwiththePrimeMin-
ister since their days in
Gujarat,said:Ihavetold
both our leaders (Modi
andShah)firstyousettle
the issue and work out
the Solution. For post-
solution issues and chal-
lenges we can help.
DON’TEXPECT100%UNANIMITY
ON NAGA TALKS: JAMIR TO GOVT
‘Even in Parl you don’t get unanimity; democracy means someone will not agree’
Former Chief Minister of Nagaland SC Jamir with Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
Kolkata (Agencies):
Bengali television ac-
tor Pallavi Dey was
found dead in her rent-
ed flat in Kolkata’s
Garfa on Sunday, the
police said, adding that
prima facie it appeared
to be a case of suicide.
Dey’s family, however,
raised the suspicion
that she may have been
murdered.
“She was rushed to
Bangur Hospital where
she was declared
dead,” an officer said.
The police are now in-
vestigating the circum-
stances that led to her
death. The actor’s body
has been sent for post-
mortem.
Dey was reportedly
in a live-in relation-
ship with her boy-
friend, officers said,
adding that he was be-
ing questioned at Garfa
police station.
Born and brought up
in Kolkata, Dey – who
was playing the female
lead in the series ‘Mon
Mane Na’ – was first se-
lected for a lead role in
the Bengali show ‘Aami
Sirajer Begum’. Her
other TV shows include
‘Reshma Japi’, ‘Kunjo
Chhaya’ and ‘Saraswati
Prem’. Over the years
she has portrayed a
wide range of charac-
ters in several televi-
sion serials.
Bengali actress Pallabi found dead
at Kolkata flat, kin suspect murder
Moni Sharma
New Delhi: Election
strategist Prashant
Kishor had said many
good things in his pres-
entationtotheCongress,
in which one good thing
was that there should be
continuity in the pro-
grammes of the party
.
He had said that the
party should come out
on the road after fixing
the programme and try
to convert its protest
into mass protest. Politi-
cal movements do not
arisebymerelytweeting
over issues every now
and then. Prashant
Kishor reiterated many
times outside that Con-
gress and other opposi-
tion parties are not able
tocreateanymassmove-
ment. There are many
problems like inflation,
unemployment, poverty
and people are also an-
gryaboutthem,butCon-
gress is not able to give
voice to the displeasure
of the people.
Take for example the
coronavirus epidemic.
Thousands died due to
lack of oxygen, medi-
cine and treatment dur-
ing the pandemic. De-
spite the financial crisis
in front of millions of
people, the BJP got a big
victory in the elections
held after Covid. The
reason for this is that
Congress or other oppo-
sition parties could not
organise any movement
regarding the difficul-
ties faced by the people
during the time of the
epidemic. Everyone sat
in the house on the pre-
text of Covid and kept
tweeting from there.
As the farmers raised
an issue and stood on it
for a year, then the com-
mon people of the coun-
try and the government
also took notice and the
government accepted
their point and with-
drew the law. Therefore,
consistency is most im-
portant for the success
of any agenda or issue.
If the Congress party
decides any program
for the next two years in
Udaipur’s Chintan Shi-
vir, then first of all it
should ensure that that
programme will run
continuously. Initially,
it may not get success,
but due to continuous
running of the pro-
gramme, people’s atten-
tion will eventually
turn on the party and
they will notice what
the party says.
Will Congress follow Prashant Kishor’s advice?
FOR POLITICAL SURVIVAL
Aditi Nagar,
Yogesh Sharma
and Naresh Sharma
Udaipur: As a part of
the party’s outreach
programme, Congress
will launch a nation-
wide yatra “Kanyaku-
mari to Kashmir
Bharat Jodo” begin-
ning on October 2, said
the party’s interim
president Sonia Gan-
dhi on Sunday.
Speaking at the con-
cluding day of the
three-day brainstorm-
ing session, Chintan
Shivir, in Udaipur, So-
nia Gandhi said, “We
will launch a national
Kanyakumari to Kash-
mir Bharat Jodo Yatra
beginning on Gandhi
Jayanti this year. All
of us will participate
in it. The Yatra is to
strengthen the bonds
of social harmony that
are under stress, to
preserve the founda-
tional values of our
Constitution that are
under assault and to
highlight the day-to-
day concerns of crores
of our people.”
Congress to launch
‘Kanyakumari to
Kashmir Bharat Jodo’
Yatra from October 2
Chennai (Agencies):
AIADMK leader and for-
mer Tamil Nadu Minis-
ter D. Jayakumar’s
daughter, Jayapriya is
on the run after being
charged in a case related
to the death of a Class 11
student.
Thestudentwaskilled
in a lift crash at a mar-
riage hall owned by
Jayapriya. She was
charged with culpable
homicidenotamounting
to murder. Police said
that the culprit would be
apprehended soon.
The tragedy occurred
on Friday at the mar-
riage hall in Gummidi-
poondi in Tiruvallur dis-
trict when the lift in the
three-storey building
crashed killing the girl,
Sheethal, who had
reachedthehalltoattend
a marriage function.
The hall supervisor,
D.Thirunavakarasu, lift
operations in-charge S.
Kakkan from Pulian-
thope and manager B.
Venkitesanhavebeenar-
rested in the case while
Jayapriyaisabsconding.
Police said that the
lift was not built under
the prescribed guide-
lines and sthe upervi-
sor claimed that it was
only to ferry food and
not for carrying people.
The police said that the
building was construct-
ed in 2015 and the lift
was made of wooden
planks and surrounded
by plastic sheets.
The lift’s carrying ca-
pacity is 300 kg and on
Friday, Sheethal and
three others boarded
the lift to reach the sec-
ond floor of the mar-
riage hall. The lift
snapped in between
leadingtogrievoushead
injuries to the girl who
died immediately
.
Ex-TN Minister’s daughter on the run
CULPABLE HOMICIDE CASE
Chennai (Agencies):
The Dravida Munnetra
Kazhagam on Sunday
announced three can-
didates for the upcom-
ing Rajya Sabha polls
while giving one seat
to ally Congress as
elections to fill 57 Ra-
jya Sabha seats will be
held on June 10.
The candidates that
the MK Stalin-led party
announced include
Thanjai Kalyanasunda-
ram, KRN Rajesh Ku-
mar and Girirajan.
The ruling DMK has
125 seats in the Tamil
Nadu Assembly while
its ally Congress has 18
seatsoutof the234seats.
The DMK alliance is
likely to win four out of
the six seats while AI-
ADMK is likely to re-
tain two seats.
The Election Com-
mission announced
polls for the seats that
will be falling vacant
due to the retirement
of members on differ-
ent dates between June
and August.
Several members of
the Rajya Sabha will
retire between June 21
and August 1. The BJP
currently has 95 MPs
and Congress 29 in the
245-member house.
While 11 seats will
fall vacant in Uttar
Pradesh, six members
each will retire from
Tamil Nadu and Ma-
harashtra.
DMK announces 3 candidates
for RS,gives one seat to Cong
New Delhi (Agen-
cies): A new initia-
tive may soon be
taken to promote
Vedic education in
the country
.
TheUnionEduca-
tion Ministry is go-
ing to recognise the
Veda-based educa-
tion board, which
would work like any
other education
board. Experts of
Sanskrit language
and mathematics
will also be involved
in the process.
Though there is
no degree level
courseonVedicedu-
cation so far, the
ministryisinfavour
of providing Vedic
education and Veda-
based knowledge to
thestudents.Inview
of this, the govern-
ment is mulling
linkingtheVedasys-
tem with the mod-
ern education sys-
tem and the process
of establishing a
dedicated education
board has started.
Lucknow (Agencies):
Uttar Pradesh reeled
under intense heat-
wave with Banda dis-
trict in Bundelkhand
region recording the
maximum day temper-
ature of 49 degrees Cel-
sius on Sunday, the
highest in the state.
As per the India Mete-
orological Department
data, this was the high-
est-ever temperature
recorded in Banda in
May
. The previous maxi-
mum temperature in
the district was 48.8 deg
C on May 31, 1994.
In nearby Agra, the
mercury touched the
47.7 degrees Celsius
mark.
Jhansidistrictrecord-
ed 47.6 degrees C, Praya-
graj 46.9 followed by
Kanpur 46.1, Varanasi
46, Churk 45.6, Hamir-
pur, Fatehpur 45. 2 and
Orai 45 degrees Celsius.
The maximum tem-
perature in Lucknow,
the state capital, was 41.
3 degrees Celsius.
Centre to set
up board for
promotion of
Vedic edu
UP’s Banda dist
breaks 28-yr-old
temp record;
reels under 49°C
A MONTH AFTER VIOLENCE, KHARGONE
COLLECTOR, SP, ASP TRANSFERRED
Bhopal: A month after communal clashes broke
out in Madhya Pradesh’s Khargone, the state
administration has transferred
the district collector, Super-
intendent of Police (SP) and
Additional Superintendent
of Police (ASP). The major
reshuffle came late Saturday.
The collector, Anugraha P
has been transferred as an officer on special duty
(OSD) at the Madhya Pradesh Bhawan in Delhi.
Guwahati (Agencies): loods and landslides have
killed three persons and affected more than 56,000
people across eight districts of Assam since May 14.
Three others were reported missing. Flash floods
and landslips damaged the hill railway section in
Dima Hasao district at 26 locations, leaving more
than 2,000 passengers stranded for more than 24
hours before some of them could be airlifted to
safety. Officials of the Assam State Disaster Man-
agement Authority (ASDMA) said three persons,
including a woman, were killed in a landslide in Dima
Hasao district on Saturday. Three others, including
a child, have gone missing in the adjoining Cachar
district after heavy rainfall and floods. Locals of
Hokai Pungchi, a village 6 km from Dima Hasao
district headquarters Haflong, had sought the help
of defence personnel after a landslide flattened many
houses. The bodies of three persons were later
retrieved from the debris.
FLOODS, LANDSLIDES KILL 3 IN ASSAM;
OVER 56,000 PEOPLE HIT IN 8 DISTRICTS
NEWS DIGEST
Pallavi Dey
Sonia Gandhi Prashant Kishor
New Delhi (Agencies):
Adani Group’s media
arm, AMG Media Net-
works Limited (AMG
Media), is set to
acquire a 49 per
cent stake in
QuintillionBusi-
ness Media Lim-
ited (QBML).
A sharehold-
ers’ agreement
has been signed to this
effect with Quintillion
Media Limited (QML)
andQuintillionBusiness
Media Limited (QBML).
Also, a Share Purchase
Agreement with QML,
QBML and Quint Digital
Media Limited (QDML)
was signed on May 13,
2022 in connection with
its proposed acquisition
of a 49 per cent
stake in QBML.
In a stock ex-
change filing,
Adani Enter-
prises Limited,
said, “The SHA
and SPA record
the terms of agreement
withrespecttotheacqui-
sition of 49 per cent eq-
uity shares of QBML by
AMG Media and the in-
ter se rights and obliga-
tions other matters in
connection therewith.”
Adani group to buy 49%
stake in Quint Media
A damaged line of Northeast Frontier Railway after landslides
due to heavy rainfall on Sunday. —PHOTO BY PTI
Gautam Adani
Rahul Gandhi and Govind Singh Dotasra engrossed in discussion
where Priyanka Gandhi, Ashok Gehlot, KC Venugopal, Ajay Maken,
and Sachin Pilot are also seen at the dinner table at Udaipur on
Saturday night.

BIZ BUZZ
07
New Delhi (PTI): The
Reserve Bank of India
is not “behind the
curve” in hiking inter-
est rate to tackle rising
inflation, Monetary
Policy Committee
(MPC) member Ashi-
ma Goyal said on Sun-
day and asserted that it
is never wise to overre-
act to shocks when the
economic recovery is
shaky post the corona-
virus pandemic.
While acknowledg-
ing that India is “espe-
cially vulnerable” to
the combination of
food and crude oil in-
flation unleashed by
the Russia-Ukraine
war, Goyal, also an em-
inent economist, said
rate hikes should be
aligned with the eco-
nomic recovery
.
Her comments come
days after the MPC, the
central bank’s rate-set-
ting panel, surprised
the markets with a 40
basis points hike in
repo rate in an off-cycle
policy meeting this
month. It was also the
first rate hike after Au-
gust 2018, amid spiral-
ling inflation.
“RBI started rebal-
ancing liquidity last
year, while the US Fed-
eral Reserve is yet to
start contracting its
balance sheet, with in-
flation far in excess of
its target,” she said.
While noting that In-
flation has just exceed-
ed RBI’s tolerance
band due to the pro-
tracted Ukraine-Rus-
sia war, Goyal said In-
dian demand and wag-
es are ‘soft’.
“In the US, there was
over-stimulus due to
large government
spending. Labour mar-
kets are tight. The Fed
may be behind the
curve, the RBI is not.
The Indian inflation
trajectory differs from
that of the US,” she
stressed.
Goyal was respond-
ing to a question on
why RBI did not raise
interest rate much ear-
lier despite rising infla-
tion and whether the
central bank will fall a
little behind the curve
compared to the US Fed
in this regard.
Earlier this month,
the US Fed hiked the
benchmark lending
rate by 50 basis points.
On the domestic
front, retail inflation
surged to an eight-year
high of 7.79% in April
this year and RBI is
likely to further tight-
en the monetary policy
.
Inflation galloped for
the seventh straight
monthinApril.RBIhas
been mandated by the
government to ensure
that inflation remains
at 4% with a margin of
2% on either side.
According to Goyal,
making sure the real
interest rates do not
deviate too far from
equilibrium levels and
avoiding undue volatil-
ity in rates would help
to maintain a balance
between growth and
inflation.
She also pointed out
that after the global fi-
nancial crisis, real in-
terest rates were high-
ly negative creating
overheating and in the
2010s they swung to
large positive num-
bers aggravating the
slowdown.
“The rate rise
should be aligned to
the recovery. In this
way the growth sacri-
fice required to
moderate inflation
under persistent sup-
ply shocks can be min-
imised,” she said.
“It is never wise to
overreact to a first-
round shock, even if it
follows a series of ear-
lier shocks, especially
when the country is in
a shaky recovery from
a pandemic,” she said,
adding that long-term
price pressures have
materialised in India
only after the Ukraine
war started on Febru-
ary 24. Noting that
markets overreact to
fears and had already
priced in large rate
hikes, Goyal said.
RBI not ‘behind the curve’ in hiking
RBI not ‘behind the curve’ in hiking
rate: MPC member
rate: MPC member Ashima
Ashima
MPC recently
surprised the
markets with a 40
basis points hike in
repo rate
Global trends,
earnings major
drivers for stock
Amazon created
over 11.6 L jobs
in India to date
New Delhi (PTI):
Global trends, WPI
inflation data for
April and the ongoing
quarterly earnings
of corporates would
be the major driving
factors for the stock
markets, analysts
said. Investors would
also keep a tab on
the movement of
foreign institutional
investors who are
on a selling spree in
the domestic equity
market for the past
many days. “Infla-
tion concern and
monetary tightening
across the globe are
key concerns for the
equity markets,” said
Santosh Meena.
Meena said there
are no major cues for
this week therefore
direction of global
cues will be import-
ant, however some
stock-specific move-
ment will continue
amid the tail-end of
Q4 earnings. Inves-
tors would also watch
out for WPI inflation
data for April.
New Delhi (PTI):
E-commerce major
Amazon India on
Sunday said it has
cumulatively created
more than 11.6 lakh
direct and indirect
jobs, enabled nearly
$5 billion in cumu-
lative exports and
digitised over 40 lakh
MSMEs in the country
till date.
In January 2020, at
the first edition of its
annual event Amazon
Smbhav, the company
had pledged to digitise
1 crore MSMEs
(Micro Small and
Medium Enterprises),
enable $10 billion in
cumulative exports
and create 20 lakh
jobs in India by 2025.
“Amazon India
today shared updates
on its key pledges for
India and announced
that it has cumulative-
ly created more than
11.6 lakh direct and
indirect jobs, enabled
nearly $5 billion in cu-
mulative exports and
digitised over 40 lakh
MSMEs in India till
date,” the company
said in a statement.
Kolkata (PTI): In one
of the largest expan-
sions in the labour mar-
ket since the beginning
of the pandemic, 8.8
million people joined
the country’s workforce
in April, as per data pro-
vided by the Centre for
Monitoring Indian
Economy (CMIE).
However, the jobs
that became available
were inadequate com-
pared to the demand, it
said.
India’s labour force
increased by 8.8 million
to 437.2 million in April,
one of the largest
monthly increases
since the beginning of
the pandemic, CMIE
Managing Director and
CEO Mahesh Vyas said.
The country’s labour
market was at 428.4 mil-
lion in March, he added.
In 2021-22, the aver-
age monthly increase in
the country’s labour
force was 0.2 million, as
per the data.
The report said that
an 8.8 million increase
in labour force partici-
pation was only possi-
ble if some working-age
people who were out of
jobs joined the working
population in April.
This is because the
working-age population
cannot grow by more
than two million per
month and any rise be-
yond that implies that
those who were out of
jobs returned to the
workforce, the report
said.
It may be useful to
note that the 8.8 million
increase in April comes
after a 12 million fall
during the preceding
three months, it said.
The increase in em-
ployment in April was
in industry and in ser-
vices. Industry added
5.5 million jobs and ser-
vices added another 6.7
million jobs, as per the
data. Within industry, 3
million jobs were gener-
ated in manufacturing,
while construction add-
ed nearly 4 million op-
portunities. Employ-
ment in the agricultur-
al sector fell by 5.2 mil-
lion,CMIEdatashowed.
India adds 8.8 million jobs in April: Report
NEW HEIGHTS
New Delhi (PTI):
Eight of the 10 most
valued companies
suffered a combined
erosionof `2,48,372.97
crore in their market
valuation last week
in line with a weak
broader market
trend, with Reliance
Industries taking the
biggest hit.
While Reliance In-
dustries, Tata Con-
sultancy Services,
HDFC Bank, Infosys,
ICICI Bank, State
Bank of India, HDFC
and Bharti Airtel
were the laggards,
Hindustan Unilever
Limited and Kotak
Mahindra Bank
emerged as gainers.
The market valua-
tion of Reliance In-
dustries tumbled
`1,30,627.7 crore to
reach `16,42,568.98
crore.
State Bank of In-
dia’s market capitali-
sation (mcap) tanked
`35,073.72 crore to
`3,97,189.84 crore.
The valuation of
ICICI Bank plummet-
ed by `29,279.72 crore
to `4,70,856.80 crore
and that of Infosys
eroded by `16,869.36
crore to `6,32,432.92
crore.
HDFC Bank’s mar-
ket valuation dimin-
ished by `14,427.28
crore to `7,16,641.13
crore.
New Delhi (PTI): The
relentless selling of In-
dian stocks by foreign
investors continued, as
they pulled out a little
overRs25,200crorefrom
the Indian equity mar-
ket in the first fortnight
of thismonth,onhikein
interest rate globally
and concerns over ris-
ing COVID cases.
“Headwinds in terms
of higher crude prices,
rising inflation, tight-
ening monetary policy
etc weigh on indices.
Besides these, investors
are worried about
growth expectations
while inflation remains
elevated globally.
Hence, we believe FPIs
flows are likely to re-
main volatile in the
near-term,” Shrikant
Chouhan, Head - Equity
Research (Retail), Ko-
tak Securities, said.
FPIs remained net
sellers for seven
months to April 2022,
withdrawing a massive
net amount of over
`1.65 lakh crore from
equities. Going ahead,
FPIs selling will con-
tinue in the coming
weeks as heat waves in
the market and outside
will make investors
sweat a bit more, Vijay
Singhania of
TradeSmart, said, add-
ing that the selling has
resulted in FPI’s stake
in Indian companies
falling to 19.5%.
FPIs pull out `25,200
cr from equity market
Kolkata (PTI): Steel
sector players are fac-
ing some heat owing to
high input commodity
prices as finished steel
products have begun to
decline since April after
the Russia-Ukraine war
broke out.
Prices in the long
products segment have
declined on an average
of 10-15% to Rs 57,000
per tonne in Kolkata
market from a high of
Rs 65,000 a tonne. Coal
which is a key raw ma-
terial for the secondary
steel producers has
turned out to be the ma-
jor pain point, officials
said.
Steel prices from
leading players were
higher at Rs 75,000-
76,000 per tonne at its
peak.
“Steel products, be it
construction like TMT
bars and structurals
have come down be-
tween 10 and 15% due to
sluggish demand and
are expected to ease a
little more before it set-
tles. While our costs
have soared,” Steel Roll-
ing Mills Association
chairmanVivekAdukia
said.
“Our costs have in-
creased by 50% despite
a compromise on qual-
ity of inputs, secondary
steel producers using
DRI require high quali-
ty thermal coal to make
sponge iron.
STEEL SECTOR PLAYERS
FACE HEAT AS PRICES FALL
LABOUR FORCE INCREASED IN APRIL
Mcap of 8 of top
10 firms tumbles
over `2.48 L cr
In the ranking of
top-10 firms,
Reliance
Industries
remained the
most valued
firm, followed by
TCS, HDFC Bank
New Delhi
(PTI): Bharti
Airtel is plan-
ning to set-up a
new technology
centre in Pune to
support digital services in the Western
region and will be hiring around 500
digital engineering professionals by the
end of the current fiscal. This will be
Airtel’s fourth digital technology hub in
India and first in the Western region to
support its strategy to pivot to a digital
services company. Confirming the
plans, Bharti Airtel chief information
officer Pradipt Kapoor said that Airtel
is rapidly scaling up its in-house digital
talent pool to support its transforma-
tion into a digital telco.
Airtel to set up digital
technology hub in Pune
New Delhi (PTI):
MarutiSuzukiIn-
dia (MSI) has
lined up `5,000
crore capex for
various initia-
tives, including new product launches,
for the current financial year, according
to a senior company official.
The country’s top carmaker, which
had earmarked around `4,500 crore in
FY22, also believes that parent Suzuki
Motor Corp’s investment in Gujarat
would help in expanding its BEV range
in the country
. “Capex of `5,000 crore is
something that we’ve committed for this
fiscal on various projects, including, the
new model launches etc,” MSI CFO Ajay
Seth said in an analyst call.
Maruti lines up `5,000
crore capex for fiscal
New Delhi (PTI): The government
would soon finalise the restructur-
ing of Banks Board Bureau (BBB)
as its extended two-year term con-
cluded last month.
The extended term for the BBB,
the headhunter for top manage-
ment of state-run banks and finan-
cial institutions, ended on April 10.
The Appointments Committee of
the Cabinet would take a call on the
restructuring of BBB soon.
BBB since April 2018, has been
headed by former Secretary in the
Department of Personnel and
Training B P Sharma.
The other part-time members are
Vedika Bhandarkar, former MD of
Credit Suisse among others.
Govt to approve
recast of BBB
New Delhi (PTI): IT
services company HCL
Tech plans to double its
headcount in nearshore
locations over the
next 3-5 years, CEO C
Vijayakumar said. HCL
Tech employs about
10,000 people in all its
nearshore locations,
globally. “We expect
that number to double
over the next 3-5 years,”
Vijayakumar said.
The company oper-
ates from 20 nearshore
locations including
Mexico, Toronto, Van-
couver, Costa Rica and
Romania. HCL Tech’s
top honcho said the
company will continue
to expand in these
locations.
New Delhi (PTI): Realty
firm Godrej Properties
Ltd has added seven
housing projects since
April 2021, for future
development with sales
potential of over `9,500
crore and aims to
expand its portfolio in a
big way this fiscal.
Godrej Properties
Executive Chairman
Pirojsha Godrej said the
company will add more
projects during this
fiscal year to achieve
higher growth.
“We added six resi-
dential projects to our
portfolio during the last
fiscal year and we have
added one in April,”
Executive Chairman
Pirojsha Godrej said.
HCL Tech to double
headcount in
nearshore locations
Godrej Prop adds 7
projects with sales
value of `9,500 cr

08
2NDFRONT
There is a lot of discussions on the
‘secret to success’ but we all know
that it is loads of preparation,
hardwork and consistency - an open secret.
—Jagdeesh Chandra, CEO Editor-in-Chief, First India
Cruise tourism to grow 10-fold
in next decade, says Sonowal
First India Bureau
Mumbai: Indian
cruise market has the
potential to grow 10-
fold over the next dec-
ade, said Union Min-
ister for Ports, Ship-
ping and Waterways,
Sarbananda Sonowal
on Saturday. He inau-
gurated the first In-
credible India Inter-
national Cruise Con-
ference 2022 in Mum-
bai on the day.
Speaking at the occa-
sion, Sonowal said, “In-
dian cruise market has
the potential to grow 10
times over the next
decade, driven by ris-
ing demand and dis-
posable incomes. The
central government
realizes this potential
and is determined to
position India as a
global cruise hub with
state-of-art infrastruc-
ture for both ocean as
well as river cruises.”
Stating that India is a
magnificent cruise des-
tination, the minister
said, “Several attrac-
tions of India along its
7,500 km long coastline
and vast river systems
are yet to be unveiled to
the world.”
Global players have
evinced a keen interest
in promoting cruise
tourism in India, and
with the development
of the right infrastruc-
ture and adoption of
modern technology, In-
dia will certainly be-
come one of the top
tourism destinations in
the world, he added.
Sonowal stated that
the government has set
up a task force headed
by the secretary of tour-
ism and shipping for the
development of cruise
tourism. The minister
also announced the set-
ting up of a high-level
advisory committee,
comprising national
and international ex-
perts, to assist the task
force in creating an ena-
bling eco-system for the
development of cruise
tourism in the country
.
“Transformation is
possible through trans-
portation and for that,
we need to leverage
technology,” he said.
Elaborating on the ef-
forts of the Ministry of
Tourism and Ports,
Shipping and Water-
ways, Minister of State,
Shripad Naik said,
“Four theme-based
coastal destination cir-
cuits such as Gujarat
Pilgrimage tours, West
coast - cultural and sce-
nic tours, South coast -
Ayurvedic wellness
tours and East coast -
heritage tourism have
been developed to acti-
vate cruise demand.
Lighthouse and island
development is also be-
ing undertaken to at-
tract coastal tourists.”
He further said river
cruiseorinlandcruiseis
another potential com-
ponentof cruisetourism
that could be explored.
GETTING AN UPGRADE

z In order to boost the cruise tourism industry in
the country, the Centre has taken several initiatives
including infrastructure upgradation, rationalization
of port fees, removing ousting charges, granting
priority berthing to cruise ships, providing e-visa
facilities etc, said the Ministry of Ports, Shipping
and Waterways.

z Upgradation and modernization are being car-
ried out at seven major ports in the country includ-
ing the flagship New International Cruise terminal
coming up in Mumbai at an estimated total cost of
Rs495 crore.
(R to L) Union Minister for Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal interacts with
Goa Tourism Minister Rohan Khaunte and Shiv Sena MP Arvind Sawant at the Incredible India
International Cruise Conference 2022 in Mumbai on Saturday.
With several infra
upgrades in the
works, Centre
plans to promote
India as a global
cruise hub
Enact Lokayukta law
or step down: Hazare
tells Maharashtra govt
Pune (PTI): Social ac-
tivist Anna Hazare
has warned of agita-
tion for the Lokay-
ukta Act and said the
Maharashtra gov-
ernment should re-
sign if it fails to en-
act the anti-corrup-
tion legislation.
Speaking to reporters
in Ahmednagar, Hazare
said the erstwhile Dev-
endra Fadnavis govern-
ment and the incum-
bent MVA government
had promised to enact
the Lokayukta Act but
haven’t done anything
in this regard so far.
“Either enact Lok-
ayukta act or step
down from power,”
Hazare said.
He said committees
were formed in 200
tehsils in the state to
launch the agitation for
the Lokayukta law.
‘We will launch the
agitation in 35 districts
of the state. We had
submitted a letter (for
the Lokayukta act) but
the chief minister is
keeping mum. It has
been two-and-a-half
years now but the Lok-
ayukta law is not en-
acted. As this govern-
ment is silent, I see the
need to launch the agi-
tation across the state,”
Hazare added
Govt dental college student
accuses HoD of demanding
sexual favours, probe ordered
First India Bureau
Mumbai: A post-grad-
uate student of the
Government Dental
College near Chhatra-
pati Shivaji Maharaj
Terminus (CSMT) has
accused her head of
department (HOD) of
demanding sexual fa-
vours. The incident
has come as a shock
and the hospital dean
has assured forma-
tion of a committee to
probe the allegations.
According to sourc-
es, a row erupted after
the final year PG stu-
dent wrote to Dean Dr
Dimple Padawe about
the sexual harassment
by the HOD. The hospi-
tal immediately
formed a committee
comprising the dean, a
head of department,
an official from the ad-
ministration depart-
ment, a lawyer and a
social worker to inves-
tigate the allegations.
“It is a sensitive mat-
ter and we will conduct
the investigation ac-
cordingly. The student
is on examination pre-
paratory leave and the
HOD is on vacation
right now. We have also
informed our superiors
about the complaint,”
said Dr Padawe.
Further, a student
from the same depart-
ment, on condition of
anonymity said that
the complainant was
on examination leave
and had gone back to
her hometown. The
matter has reached the
Directorate of Medical
Education and Re-
search (DMER) Dr
Vivek Pakhmode, Joint
Director of Dental
DMER, said, “It would
be too early to com-
ment on such a sensi-
tive issue. The commit-
tee will investigate and
take further steps.”
It is a sensitive matter and we will conduct
the investigation accordingly. The student
is on examination preparatory leave and
the HOD is on vacation right now. We have also in-
formed our superiors about the complaint.
—Dr Dimple Padawe, Dean, Govt Dental College
Co-operative sector should be made more people oriented: Ajit Pawar
First India Bureau
Sangli: Stressing the
need for a robust co-
operative sector, Dep-
uty Chief Minister
Ajit Pawar said that,
“Co-operative finan-
cial institutions
should run well, the
government is mak-
ing all efforts for
their empowerment.”
He said that “In the
coming period, the co-
operative sector should
be made more people-
oriented and transpar-
ent, professionalism
should be introduced
and modernization
should be adopted, in
which home banking
services should be
made available to the
customers through digi-
tal medium.”
Pawar was speaking
at the inauguration of
the new head office of
Karmaveer Bhaurao
Patil Nagari Sahakari
Patsanstha, Marya San-
gli.
“Co-operative credit
societies have huge
challenges, the entire
co-operative sector is
facing many problems.
Nevertheless, overcom-
ing all these difficulties,
the co-operative is mov-
ing forward,” said Pa-
war.
Talking about the
role of directors of a co-
operative, he said “That
the role of the directors
of a co-operative society
is equally important for
its proper functioning.
They should take care
of the interests of their
members and the organ-
ization,” adding that the
government will always
support the co-operative
societies in this regard.
He told that, “The
RBI had earlier offered
insurance cover of Rs 1
lakh, but now it has in-
creased it to Rs 5 lakh.
In the same vein, a poli-
cy will be decided soon
on the extent of insur-
ance coverage on depos-
its in credit unions in
the state.”
Kolhapur: Deputy
Chief Minister Ajit
Pawar inaugurated
the multi-storied
parking building
constructed from
Kanyagat Ma-
haparvakal Fund
at Shrikshetra Nrusinhwadi. Considering the
crowd of devotees at the Nrusinhawadi pil-
grimage site, the parking building constructed
here will provide better parking facilities. Built
at a cost of `6.63 crore, the parking building
will have a parking facility for 270 four-wheel-
ers , which will benefit the devotees.
MULTI-STOREY PARKING BUILDING
AT NRUSINHWADI INAUGURATED
Pawar was speaking at the inauguration of the new head office of
Karmaveer Bhaurao Patil Nagari Sahakari Patsanstha
‘Will bring down Babri structure of MVA govt’
Mumbai (PTI): Hitting
out at Maharashtra
Chief Minister Ud-
dhav Thackeray, sen-
ior BJP leader Deven-
dra Fadnavis on Sun-
day likened the Maha
Vikas Aghadi (MVA)
government in the
state with the Babri
mosque structure and
said he would not rest
till the Shiv Sena-led
dispensation was
brought down from
power.
The Shiv Sena does
not mean Mumbai, Ma-
harashtra or Hindutva,
he said, adding that no-
body can separate Mum-
baifromthestate,buthe
wants to free the city
from “corruption and
misdeeds”.
He was addressing
‘Hindi Bhashi Ma-
hasankalp Sabha’ or-
ganised by the BJP’s
North Indian cell in sub-
urban Goregaon, a day
after CM Thackeray’s
rally in the city, where
he slammed Fadnavis
and the BJP. Fadnavis’s
rally began with the
chanting of Hanuman
Chalisa.
Elections to several
civic bodies in the state,
including Mumbai,
where the Shiv Sena has
ruled for more than 25
years, are due this year.
Describing Thacker-
ay’s rally as a “laughter
show”, Fadnavis said,
“This man has never
spoken about the state’s
development, progress
and welfare of the peo-
ple in the last two-and-a-
half years (of his rule).”
He added: “One
doesn’t become a tiger
just by clicking photo-
graphs of tigers. There
is only one tiger now-
-Narendra Modi,” he
said.
During his rally,
Thackeray had targeted
Fadnavis for saying that
he was in Ayodhya dur-
ingthedemolitionof the
Babri mosque. “If you
had tried to climb the
Babri mosque, it would
have collapsed under
your weight,” the chief
minister had said.
Referring to it, the
Leader of Opposition in
the state Assembly said
he weighs 102 kilos now,
while back in 1992 his
weight was 128 kilos and
reiterated that he was a
part of the ‘kar seva’ in
Ayodhya at that time.
“I will not rest till I
bring down the Babri
structure of your pow-
er,” Fadnavis said.
Asking whether
Thackeray contribut-
ed to any move-
ment or agita-
tion, the BJP
leader also
taunted him
saying that
during the
p a n d e m i c ,
T h a c k e r a y
was live
on Face-
book,
while he was “alive and
on the field”.
Hitting out at the
chief minister, the BJP
leader said Shiv Sena
speaks about a ploy to
separate Mumbai from
Maharashtra when it
has no issue to high-
light.
“Who can dare to sep-
arate Mumbai from Ma-
harashtra? We want to
free Mumbai
from your
cor rup-
tion and
m i s -
d e e d s.
S h i v
S e n a
doesn’t
m e a n
M u m -
bai, Maha-
rashtra
or
Hindutva,” he said.
Wondering what
would Sena founder Bal
Thackeray have said
about the prevailing sit-
uation in Maharashtra,
“where reciting Hanu-
man Chalisa is sedition,
while visiting Aurang-
zeb’s tomb is protocol,”
Fadnavis said, “This is
shameful.”
He questioned why
Thackeraydidnotspeak
during his rally about
COVID-19 deaths in the
state, the lynching of
sadhus in Palghar, the
murder of Thane busi-
nessman Mansukh Hi-
ran, allegations against
former home minister
Anil Deshmukh, ED’s
arrest of NCP minister
Nawab Malik and mis-
appropriation of funds
by a Sena leader in the
Mumbai civic body
.
“Shiv Sena sought
votes in our name, but
formed the government
by joining hands with
the Congress to get the
chief minister’s post
(after the 2019 Assem-
bly polls). In 1975 also,
the Sena had supported
the Emergency im-
posed by the then Con-
gress government,” he
added.
Fadnavis said Bal
Thackeray used to taunt
Sharad Pawar over his
weight, but now his son
became a chief minister
by bowing before him
(the NCP chief).
Co-operative
credit societies
have huge chal-
lenges, the entire co-op-
erative sector is facing
many problems. Never-
theless, overcoming all
these difficulties, the co-
operative is moving for-
ward.
—Ajit Pawar, Deputy Chief
Minister
HARSH JAB?
Devendra Fadnavis

MUMBAI, MONDAY,
MAY 16, 2022
09
Fashion with
Fashion with
PURPOSE
PURPOSE!
!
hat you
wear is how
you present
yourself to
the world,
especially
today
, when human
contacts are so quick.
Fashion is an instant
language and its be-
lievedthatyoucanhave
anything you want in
life if you dress for it.
City First brings to
you a woman who nev-
er misses style and en-
sures to make a state-
mentwithherfabulous
fashion sense Lekh
Uthaiah 23 year NBA
graduateworkingasan
associate consultant.
During the inter-
view, Lekh introduced
herself as a passion-
ate and goal-oriented
woman who has been
in the performing arts
since she was only
three. She mentioned
that she is a trained
Bharatnatyam dancer
and Karnatik music.
Following this, she
told us about her jour-
ney in this field. “En-
chanted by a commer-
cial, I remember wish-
ing that I could make it
on the screen someday
.
I started to freelance
by collaborating with
photographers and
makeup artists. Later,
I participated in a few
competitions like First
MissIndiaandFemina
Miss India.”
Speaking on her she
also added “I would
like to thank Gaurav
Gaur for being my
mentor and making
this journey easy on
me.”
This diva, as she
mentioned earlier, is
passionate. When
asked about the inspi-
ration she said, “Mak-
ing my younger self
proud. Growing up, I
was an insecure child
who constantly felt
misunderstood. I al-
ways felt like I was
meant for more.”
Coming to her fit-
ness regime, the model
toldusthat“Fitnessfor
me is a lot more than
looking aesthetically
pleasing. It includes
both mental and physi-
cal fitness and I make
sure that I practise
gratitude and mindful-
ness every day
. I also
makesuretoeathealth-
ily and exercise.”
Speaking about the
impact she wants to
make in this industry,
the model said “The
world of fashion and
glamour has always
enticed me. I know
that fame comes with
responsibility. I want
to bring an impact in
this world of fashion
by telling people that
it is important to use
your platform to make
people aware of global
issues.”
W
FASHION IS PART
OF THE DAILY AIR
AND IT CHANGES
ALL THE TIME. YOU
CAN EVEN SEE THE
APPROACHING OF
A REVOLUTION IN
CLOTHES. YOU
CAN SEE AND FEEL
EVERYTHING IN
CLOTHES.
BRINGING
REVOLUTION TO
THE WORLD OF
FASHION AND
GLAMOUR, NBA
GRADUATE,
ASSOCIATE
CONSULTANT,
DANCER, AND
MUSICIAN, LEKH
UTHAIAH TALKS TO
CITY FIRST ABOUT
HER JOURNEY AS
A MODEL.
www.firstindia.co.in I https://firstindia.co.in/epapers/mumbai I twitter.com/
thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
DEVANSHI MUDGAL
cityfirst@firstindia.co.in

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