17022022 first india new delhi

New Delhi: Union Home
Minister Amit Shah on
Wednesday lauded the
DelhiPoliceforits“strict”
and“fair”investigationin
the northeast Delhi riots
and said the force should
lay out a roadmap for the
nextfiveyearsandalsofor
25 years.
Shah, who was ad-
dressing the 75th Raising
Day parade of Delhi Po-
lice said, the force not
only did an “exceptional
job” during the COVID-19
pandemicbutalsothwart-
edseveralterrorattempts
during the period. “The
Delhi Police has worked
hardduringthenortheast
Delhi riots and the coro-
navirus pandemic. For
the way the Delhi Police
investigatedtheriotcases
in a strict and fair man-
ner and presented the ri-
oters in court, I congratu-
late them,” he said.
Shah said the Delhi Po-
lice faces several difficul-
ties and being the police
force of the national capi-
tal, it has several duties
that include providing se-
curity to dignitaries, en-
suring that various pro-
grammes happen without
glitches and other law and
order related matters.
“Wheneveranyeventhap-
pens at an international
level,itsrepercussionsare
also felt in Delhi. The po-
lice also has the job of
monitoring the situation
here,” he said.
Shah said the 75th
birthday of the Delhi Po-
lice coincides with the
Azadi Ka Amrit Mahot-
sav celebrations and
stressed that the force
should prepare a road
map for the next five
years. “The Delhi Police
has changed with the
times. I urge the Delhi Po-
licecommissionerandthe
Union home secy to pre-
pare a road map for the
next 5 years and 25 years
with well-defined goals,”
he said. —PTI P2
Amit Shah lauds Delhi Police for “strict” & “fair” probe
NORTHEAST DELHI RIOTS
l UNION HM SAYS FORCE SHOULD
LAY OUT ROADMAP FOR NEXT 5 YRS
Amit Shah being felicitated by Delhi Police Commissioner Rakesh
Asthana during the 75th Raising Day parade of Delhi Police, on
Wednesday. —Photo by ANI
NEW DELHI lTHURSDAY, FEBRUARY 17, 2022 l Pages 12 l 3.00 RNITITLE NO.DELENG/2021/19840 lVol 1 l Issue No.169
OUR EDITIONS: JAIPUR, AHMEDABAD, LUCKNOW & NEW DELHI www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
Sensex fell 145.37 points or 0.25% to end the day at 57,996.68, while Nifty was down
30.30 points at 17,322.20. About 1958 shares advanced, 1309 declined, and 99 were
unchanged. Power Grid Corporation, UltraTech Cement, NTPC, ICICI Bank and SBI were
the worst hit on Nifty, while Divis Labs, Adani Ports, ONGC, IOC and HDFC Life rose.
Banks, financials, auto, metal stocks fell, while pharma and realty shares advanced. P6
SENSEX ENDS
SHY OF 58K,
NIFTY HOLDS
17,300-MARK
A Mumbai sessions court today granted bail to former MD and CEO of YES Bank, Rana
Kapoor, in a money laundering case related to the wrongful loss of over Rs 300 crore to
the bank. A special court under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) granted
Mr Kapoor bail on certain standard conditions. Businessman Gautam Thapar and 7 oth-
ers in case also got bail pertaining to the sale of a property at a prime location in Delhi.
YES BANK FOUNDER
RANA KAPOOR
GETS BAIL IN `300
CRORE FRAUD CASE
Centre asks states to end
additional Covid-19 norms
New Delhi: The Centre
on Wednesday asked
states and union territo-
ries to review, amend or
do away with additional
COVID-19 restrictions
after considering the
trend of new cases and
positivity rate in their
regions, stating sus-
tained downward trend
in the nationwide case
trajectory
.
In a letter sent to
chief secretaries and
chief administrators of
all states and UTs on
Tuesday, Union Health
Secretary Rajesh
Bhushan said the coro-
navirus pandemic in
India is showing a sus-
tained declining trend
since January 21.
The daily case posi-
tivity rate had declined
to 3.63 per cent on
Tuesday
.
CORONA
CATASTROPHE
NEW DELHI
766
NEW
CASES
901
RECOVERED
05
NEW DEATHS
Don’t panic, more flights planned: Centre to Indians in Ukraine
Mohd Fahad
New Delhi: India has
asked its citizens living
in Ukraine not to panic
over reports of people
not getting flight tick-
ets amid rising ten-
sions between the for-
mer Soviet state and its
neighbour Russia,
which has deployed
troops, tanks and war-
planes along the bor-
der, leading to fears of
an invasion.
India’s embassy in
Ukraine, in a tweet,
said it is aware of re-
ports of people not get-
ting flights; however, it
asked Indians living in
Ukraine not to panic as
more flights are being
planned. A 24-hour hel-
pline has been set up for
Indians. The embassy
did not specify by when
exactly the additional
flights would be opera-
tional. It said details
would be shared by the
embassy “as and when
confirmed”.
“Embassy of India
has been receiving sev-
eral appeals about non-
availability of flights
from Ukraine to India.
In this regard, students
are advised not to re-
sort to panic, but book
the earliest available
and convenient flights
to travel to India,” the
embassy tweeted.
l THE RUSSIAN
DEFENCE MINISTRY
ON WEDNESDAY
PUBLISHED A VIDEO
SHOWING TROOPS
WITHDRAWING
FROM CRIMEA. THIS
CAME A DAY AFTER
PRESIDENT
VLADIMIR PUTIN
SAID RUSSIA HAD
DECIDED “TO
PARTIALLY PULL
BACK TROOPS”
FROM THE BORDERS
OF UKRAINE
l NATO DOUBTS
CLAIMS OF FORCES
DRAWDOWN
Russian tanks moving back to permanent base after drills in pic released by Defence Ministry.
YOU READ IT FIRST
IN FIRST INDIA
FEBRUARY 14, 2022
Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said the United
States is yet to see any evidence of a significant Russian
withdrawal of its military forces from near Ukraine’s
frontiers, despite claims from Moscow that a pullback is
under way. Blinken said “critical units” were in fact con-
tinuing to move “toward the border, not away from the
border”. US President Joe Biden will conduct telephone
talks with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
WASHINGTON CASTS DOUBT ON RUSSIA’S
CLAIMS OF PULLING BACK FORCES
Indians in Ukraine who
need information and
assistance can contact
the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs, or MEA, which has
set up a dedicated control
room. Toll free number
is 1800118797. Mean-
while, 24x7 emergency
helpline in Ukraine is
+380 997300428, +380
997300483.
24X7 HELPLINE FOR
INDIANS IN UKRAINE
PETITIONERS QUESTION IN HC
Why not hijabs when
ghoongat, turban permitted?
Bengaluru: Petitioners
challenging the hijab
ban in educational insti-
tutions made their sub-
missions in the Karna-
taka High Court saying
that hijab was being
singled out and Muslim
studentsarebeingasked
to choose between faith
and education.
Senior Advocate Ravi
Varma Kumar appear-
ing for petitioners said,
A bindi wearing girl is
not sent out. A bangle
wearing girl is not. A
Christian wearing a
cross is not touched.
Why only these girls?
This is a violation of
Article 15 of the Consti-
tution,” Advocate Ku-
mar said.
Ghoongats are per-
mitted, bangles are per-
mitted. Why only hijab?
Why not the turban of a
sikh, cross of the Chris-
tians? he added.
AGAIN, KARNATAKA
STUDENTS WITH
HIJAB TURNED AWAY
Vijayapura: Another
government college in
the state has turned
into a site of protest for
sending away students
who insisted on wearing
the hijab (headscarf) in
classrooms. “We are
in accordance with the
High Court’s order that
says no religious gar-
ment, whether hijab or
saffron shawls, will be
allowed inside educa-
tional institutions,” the
Principal said in the
video surfacing online.
Pathankot (PTI): Ad-
dressing his second
election rally in Punjab,
Prime Minister Naren-
dra Modi on Wednesday
said the AAP was a pho-
tocopy of the Congress
and accused both par-
ties, which he called
“partners in crime”, of
opposing the Ram Tem-
ple in Ayodhya and
questioning the bravery
of soldiers.
“When soldiers show
bravery, leaders of
these parties say what
Pakistan says. One has
pushed the youth of
Punjab into the clutch-
es of drugs while the
other is making the
youth of Delhi liquor
addicts. One looted
Punjab while the other
is doing scams in Delhi
one after the other. Ye
ek hee thaali ke chatte
batte hain. Now these
two parties are doing
noora kushtie (fixed
fight)” in Punjab, like
WWE,” said Modi.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi along with Priyanka (right) served food during langar on
Ravidas Jayanti at Sant Shiromani Guru Ravidas Mandir in Varanasi on Wednesday.
PM Narendra Modi greets supporters during an election
campaign rally in Pathankot on Wednesday. —PHOTOS BT PTI
BJP LEADER
VISITS OWAISI’S
ATTACKER’S HOME
On Wednesday, BJP’s
Sunil Bharala, who
is the chair-
person of
the state
labour wel-
fare board,
visited the
family of
Sachin Sharma, a resi-
dent of Dadri, who is in
jail for allegedly shoot-
ing at Owaisi. Bharala
during visit to Sharma’s
home declared him to
be innocent.
‘AKHILESH BEGAN
SWEATING OVER
KARHAL ATTACK’
Union ministers
Piyush Goyal and Anu-
rag Thakur
slammed
SP supremo
Akhilesh
Yadav over
the attack
on the BJP
Karhal candidate SP
Singh Baghel’s convoy
late Tuesday evening.
Thakur has lodged
a complaint to the
Election Commission
demanding strict action.
EITHER PUNJAB CM
OR KHALISTAN PM:
OLD VIDEO EMERGES
The BJP on on Wednes-
day shared a video of
poet and
ex-AAP
leader
Kumar
Vishwas
alleging
that Delhi
CM Arvind Kejriwal
wanted to be “either the
Punjab CM or the PM of
Khalistan”. In the
video, however, Vish-
was didn’t mention
Kejriwal’s name.
AAP, Cong questioned
soldiers’ bravery: PM
MODI: AAP A PHOTOCOPY OF CONGRESS...
‘BOTH OPPOSED
RAM TEMPLE’
NOV 27, 1952 - FEB 15, 2022
DISCO KING OF BOLLYWOOD
BAPPI LAHIRI PASSES AWAY
usic composer and singer Bappi Lahiri has
passed away at the age of 69 in Mumbai. He
died at around 11.40 – 11.45 on Tuesday night.
The composer has been ailing for many weeks and was
suffering from Obstructive Sleep Apnea. Lahiri was
primarily known for his contribution in popularising the
sound of disco music in India. Known for his success
with Bengali films like Amar Prem, Mandira, Badnam,
Aamar Tumi among others, Lahiri also contributed sig-
nificantly to the soundtrack of Bollywood movies in the
80s and 90s like Disco Dancer, Namak Halaal, Dance
Dance and Sharaabi among others.
M

CAPITOL
NEW DELHI | THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 17, 2022
02
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75TH RAISING DAY PARADE
SANT RAVIDAS’ BIRTH ANNIVERSARY
New Delhi: Concerned
that poorly lit streets
make women in the city
feel unsafe and prevent
them from stepping out
after dusk, Delhi gov-
ernment has asked the
Centre to release `11.3
crore under Nirbhaya
funds so that it can iden-
tify and illuminate more
than 1,000 dark spots.
Officials said that the
issue was discussed at a
high-level meeting of
the government task
force on women’s safety
last week. The meet was
chaired by lieutenant
governor Anil Baijal.
The Nirbhaya fund
was set up by the Centre
in 2013 to be used to-
wards ensuring wom-
en’s safety with an an-
nual allocation of Rs
1,000 crore. Sources,
however, said that fund
utilisation has been
abysmal so far, with
only a few states spend-
ing money on measures
to enhance women’s se-
curity
.
Delhi government,
said officials, had earli-
er sought disbursal of
Nirbhaya funds for in-
stallation of CCTV cam-
eras and making provi-
sions for GPS and panic
alarms. Sources, how-
ever, claimed that the
Centre had refused the
funds for those purpos-
es. A senior Delhi gov-
ernment official said
that the additional chief
secretary (home) has
spoken to the joint sec-
retary in the ministry of
home affairs for early
sanction of money
. “Del-
hi government has even
written to the Centre
twice for the allocation
of Rs 11.3 crore for illu-
minating the dark spots
and developing a portal
for monitoring function-
ing of streetlights. The
request is under MHA’s
consideration,” said an
official, requesting ano-
nymity
.
As per officials,
SafetiPin, an NGO
which has specialised
skills and experience to
find out infrastructural
lacunae in the way of
women’s safety, had ear-
lier conducted a survey
and identified 421
stretches with close to
40,000 dark spots across
the city. While most of
the spots identified by
the NGO are illuminat-
ed, a few falling under
the jurisdiction of
North DMC and South
DMC were left due to
fund constraints. —PTI
Delhi Govt seeks `11 crore under Nirbhaya fund
ZERO TOLERANCE
City’s air quality in
‘poor’ category
New Delhi: As winter
begins to recede, the air
quality in Delhi has
slightly improved. As
per the data revealed by
the System of Air Qual-
ity and Weather Fore-
casting And Research
(SAFAR), the air quali-
ty in the national capi-
tal has marginally im-
proved but is still in the
‘poor’ category
.
With PM2.5 being a
lead pollutant, the Air
Quality Index (AQI) in
Delhi stands at 235.
According to SA-
FAR’s forecast, “The
AQI in Delhi on Tues-
day was in the ‘lower
end of poor’ category.
Low wind speeds on Feb
16, 17, 18 are likely to
reduce ventilation and
AQI is expected to wors-
en to ‘upper end of
poor’ or ‘lower end of
very poor’. On Feb 19th
and 20th, AQI is likely
to improve due to high
wind speed and strong
dispersion.”
On Wednesday, sev-
eral places such as Del-
hi University, Pusa, Lo-
dhi Road, Mathura
Road, IIT-Delhi and In-
dira Gandhi Interna-
tional Airport (Termi-
nal 3) recorded AQI of
262, 249, 228, 297, 176 and
215 respectively
.
The air quality re-
mained in the ‘poor’ cat-
egory
. —PTI
FESTIVAL AROUND THE CORNER
A vendor sells colours and water guns ahead of Holi festival at Sadar Bazar —PHOTO BY ANI
Two minors among three held
for murder in South Delhi
New Delhi: Police have
arrested a man and ap-
prehended two juve-
niles for allegedly stab-
bing a man to death in
South Delhi’s Neb Sarai
on Sunday
. The murder
was a fallout of a verbal
spat, senior cops said.
The arrested man has
been identified as Rake-
sh (21), a resident of
Sangam Vihar, who has
an attempt to murder
case registered against
him. One of the two ju-
veniles apprehended
was also previously in-
volved in an attempt to
murder and a robbery
case, police said. A
knife, which was used
in the murder, has been
seized.
On Sunday, a call was
received at Neb Sarai
police station regarding
the stabbing incident. A
policeteamthatreached
the spot found that the
victim had been taken
to a hospital where he
was declared dead. The
deceased was identified
as Mukul (23) who
worked as a helper at a
shop. Following the in-
cident, his family mem-
bers staged a protest at
the police station.
“A case of murder
was registered and dur-
ing inquiry, a police
team collected CCTV
footage in which three
people were spotted es-
caping the area after
the murder. —PTI
Modi takes part in ‘Shabad
Kirtan’ in Karol Bagh
New Delhi: Ontheocca-
sion of Sant Ravidas’
birthanniversary
,Prime
MinisterNarendraModi
on Wednesday (Febru-
ary 16, 2022) offered
prayersatthe‘ShriGuru
Ravidas Vishram Dham
Mandir’ in Delhi’s Karol
Bagh. The Prime Minis-
ter visited Shri Guru
Ravidas Vishram Dham
Mandir in the national
capital and took part in
‘Shabad Kirtan’, and in-
teracted with the devo-
tees.ThePrimeMinister
also shared a video clip
of himtakingpartinthe
‘Shabad Kirtan’ at the
Temple and called it
‘very special’.Earlier on
Tuesday
, PM Modi had
hailed the mystic poet
and said that he dedicat-
ed his life to eliminating
evil practices such as
casteism and untoucha-
bility
. —PTI
Notice to ED on Yes Bank
promoter Rana’s bail plea
New Delhi: The Delhi
High Court on Wednes-
day issued notice to ED
on Former MD and CEO
of YES Bank Rana Ka-
poor’s bail petition in
`466.51-crore money
laundering case being
probed by the agency
.
The Bench of Justice
MK Ohri sought a re-
sponse from the finan-
cial probe agency and
slated the matter for
March 11, 2022, for fur-
ther hearing.
Advocate Siddharth
Aggarwal along with
Advocate Stuti Gujral
appeared for Kapoor in
the matter while Advo-
cate Amik Mahajan ap-
peared for Enforcement
Directorate. Last month,
the trial court had re-
fused to grant bail to Ka-
poor. The same court
earlier had also dis-
missed the bail petition
of businessman Gau-
tam Thapar, promoter
of Avantha Group. —PTI
Covid-19: Every fourth teen
now fully vaccinated in Delhi
New Delhi: India has
again observed a rise in
daily COVID cases. On
Wednesday, the country
logged 30,615 new COV-
ID-19 cases whereas, on
Tuesday, the daily cases
were 27,409, 11 pc lower.
However the Delhi, ac-
cording to a report, is
considering withdraw-
ing all the COVID-19 re-
strictions imposed dur-
ing the peak of the
wave. Assam is the first
state to do so. Delhi gov-
ernment also claimed
that every fourth child
aged 15-17 years is fully
vaccinated against the
virus. —PTI
—REPRESENTATIVE IMAGE
The AQI on Tuesday
was in the ‘lower end
of poor’ category.
Low wind speeds on
Feb 16, 17, 18 are
likely to reduce ven-
tilation and AQI is
expected to worsen
to ‘upper end of
poor’ or ‘lower end
of very poor’.
Kiosks in the
NDMC will soon
be redeveloped
New Delhi: The kiosks
in the New Delhi Mu-
nicipalCouncil(NDMC)
area will soon be rede-
veloped and given a
modern look along with
display panels for ad-
vertisements, accord-
ing to officials. While
the NDMC has built the
first sample kiosk near
the Constitution Club at
Rafi Marg in Lutyen’s
Delhi, it plans to rede-
velop 30 such kiosks in
the first phase and ulti-
mately up to 250 kiosks,
they said. —PTI
‘WOMEN SAFETY OUR UTMOST PRIORITY’
New Delhi: On the 75th
Raising Day Parade of
the Delhi Police, Delhi
Police Commissioner
Rakesh Asthana on
Wednesday said his de-
partment intends to in-
crease the strength of
women in the force to
one-fourth of its total
strength by 2025.
He said the Delhi Po-
lice has also taken up
several community out-
reach initiatives, par-
ticularly skill training
for the youth. Address-
ing the gathering on the
Delhi Police Raising
Day, Asthana said, The
safety of women and
vulnerable sections is a
top priority for the Del-
hi Police. With the
blessings of the home
ministry, our target is
to raise the participa-
tion of women police
personnel to one-fourth
of the total strength by
2025.
The Delhi Police has
always risen to the oc-
casion and proved it-
self in every field. A
total of 79 police per-
sonnel lost their lives
during COVID-19 the
Delhi Police remained
on the frontline with
doctors and health
workers and provided
all possible assistance
to citizenry going be-
yond the call of duty, he
said.
Asthana said the Del-
hi Police is providing 30
digital services to the
residents of the nation-
al capital, including, e-
beat book and com-
plaint monitoring sys-
tem among others.
The Delhi Police
chief said the depart-
ment is committed to
the welfare of its per-
sonnel and has given
over 5,000 promotions
in the current year, 48
of which were out-of-
turn promotions. —PTI
Union Home Minister Amit Shah with Delhi Commissioner of Police Rakesh Asthana releases a
special postage stamp commemorating Delhi Police platinum jubilee following the 75th Raising Day
parade of Delhi Police at Police Lines, in Delhi on Wednesday. —PHOTO BY ANI
HOME MINISTER AMIT SHAH
INSPECTS PARADE
As a Chief guest, Union Home Minister Amit
Shah was also present who took the salute
and inspected the parade and also released
‘Delhi Police Commemoration Stamp’ along
with MoS (Communications) Devusinh J.
Chauhan and Rakesh Asthana, in recognition of
75 years of glorious services rendered by Delhi
Police to its citizenry. In his welcome address,
the Commissioner of Police while greeting the
guests, presented a brief on evolution of Delhi
Police in independent India under guidance of
visionary Home Minister Sardar Patel.
45 ASADHARAN KARYA
PURASKAR AWARDED
Besides, 45 police
personnel were
awarded Asadharan
Karya Puraskar and
164 kin of deceased
police personnel were
granted jobs on com-
passionate grounds.
A special medal has
been dedicated in
the memory of late
HC Rattan Lal, who
attained martyrdom
in the Northeast riots.
Efforts are also being
made to fix the duty
hours of the person-
nel, he said.
DELHI POLICE TO CRACK
WHIP ON ERRANT OFFICERS
New Delhi: After find-
ing that cops have been
easily getting away for
their faults with just a
warning or a censure,
Delhi Police has asked
senior officers to
properly scrutinise the
nature of punishments.
It was observed that
punishments awarded
to police officers for
inadequacies in prob-
ing cases and non-
appearance in court
in bail matters were
lenient. “All disciplinary
and appellate offic-
ers must ensure that
disciplinary action is
commensurate with
the misconduct. Non-
appearance in court can
have different results,
like the accused being
released on bail,” police
said.“Punishment must
be commensurate with
the negligence or mis-
conduct of the investi-
gating officer and SHO
where laxity or poor
investigation leads to
the acquittal of the ac-
cused. If a case is failed
as a result of policemen
turning hostile, then it
should be mentioned
in the show-cause
notice and appropriate
action taken for the
misconduct. The officer
conducting an investi-
gation must keep the
statutory limitations in
the finalisation of the
case,” stated police.
It was also found that
a defaulter police-
man was transferred
to another unit by the
disciplinary authority
concerned when there
was a need to initiate
departmental action.
“If any departmental
proceedings are going
on, then the policeman
should remain in the
same district.
DELHICONSIDERS
LIFTING MORE
RESTRICTIONS
Health experts
advising the
Delhi government
have recommended
the remaining COVID
restrictions be
removed since the
daily case count has
continued falling,
with the positivity
rate too well under
control.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the Shri Guru Ravidas Vishram
Dham Mandir at Karol Bagh in Delhi. —PHOTO BY ANI

INDIA
03
New Delhi: Punjab
chief ministerCharanjit
Singh Channi waded
into a controversy drag-
ging senior party leader
Priyanka Gandhi along
with him when he asked
Punjabistostandtogeth-
er and reject the ‘bhai-
yyas’ from UP
, Delhi and
Bihar who come to Pun-
jab.
Channi’s comments
were immediately
latched onto by opposi-
tionpartieswhoaccused
Congressof playingdivi-
sive politics.
Clips of Channi’s
speech went viral on so-
cial media in which he is
heard proclaiming in
chaste Punjabi that Pri-
yanka Gandhi is the
daughter-in-law of Pun-
jabis.
Channi claims that
Priyanka is a punjabi
and asks Punjabis to
stand together and re-
ject the bhaiyas from
Uttar Pradesh, Delhi
and Bihar who are com-
ing to Punjab. A smiling
Priyanka Gandhi is
seen vigorously nod-
ding in support of
Channi’s statement. Ap-
parently Channi, by try-
ing to project Priyanka
as a Punjabi, was trying
to hit out at rival AAP
and also BJP. Many of
AAP leaders who have
worked or are working
in Punjab are from out-
side the state. Similarly
.
BJP also has its nation-
al leaders campaigning
as is the Congress.
However, the com-
ment against UP and
Bihar ‘bhaiyyas’ comes
at a time when Priyan-
ka Gandhi is trying
hard to muster votes in
Uttar Pradesh. There is
also a sizeable migrant
population in cities like
Ludhiana in Punjab.
Rival parties were
quick to hit out at the
Congress. At a press
conference, AAP lead-
ers Arvind Kejriwal and
Bhagwant Mann con-
demned the statement.
“It is very shameful.
We strongly condemn
comments aimed at any
individual or any par-
ticular community
,” Ke-
jriwal said. —ANI
Sitapur: Prime Minis-
ter Narendra Modi on
Wednesday said Uttar
Pradesh cannot pro-
gress under a Govern-
ment that supports riot-
ers and mafia.
Addressing a public
rally in UP’s Sitapur,
PM Modi said, “The de-
velopment of UP can-
not be done by those
people who encourage
rioters, goons, mafia.”
PM Modi urged the
public to vote for the
BJP as it has brought
the “rule of law” in
the state. “Now Yogi
ji’s government is
working to liberate
the people of UP from
these rioters and crim-
inals. That is why to-
day the whole of UP is
saying we will bring
those who have
brought the rule of
law,” PM Modi said.
PM Modi said the
BJP government in UP
“means equal control
over rioters, mafia raj,
goonda raj. It means
open freedom to cele-
brate the festivals, pro-
tection of sisters and
daughters, continuous
work for the welfare of
the poor”.
Mahesh Sharma
New Delhi: Arvind Ke-
jriwal, the Chief Minis-
ter of Delhi and Nation-
al Convener of Aam
Aadmi Party, gets vari-
ous surveys done on
smallest of issues. He
has such a technique to
get these surveys con-
ducted that they issue a
normal mobile number
instead of toll free and
in two-four days the re-
sponse of lakhs of peo-
ple comes on the same.
At present, surveys are
conducted in states,
where the population is
less, otherwise the re-
sponse would have been
in crores. He conducted
a survey to decide the
chief ministerial candi-
date in Punjab, in which
more than 23 lakh re-
sponses were received
on a mobile number in
four days and 93 percent
liked Bhagwant Mann.
Similarly, it has been
two weeks since Punjab
Chief Minister Charan-
jitSinghChannibecame
the candidate from Bha-
daur seat of Malwa re-
gion and Arvind Kejri-
wal got the survey done
thrice there. Kejriwal
also got the survey done
thrice on Chamkaur Sa-
hib, the traditional seat
of Channi. Now the
question arises if he is
runningapoliticalparty
or a survey agency?
Channi is losing in both
his surveys. In Delhi
also, he has been con-
ducting surveys and
many times he has has
got posters and hoard-
ingsputupof theresults
of that alleged survey
.
Once he had put up a
poster of AAP’s win-
ning survey in the Delhi
University Students’
Union elections as well.
It is a different matter
that his party could not
win even a single seat. A
special feature of his
survey is that every
time it is his party that
wins and the Opposition
parties lose and even
where there is no win-
win case, he get the de-
sired results on the sur-
vey at least!
Kejriwal and his survey propoganda machine!
POLLS
Uttar Pradesh
MAFIA PROMOTERS CAN’T DEVELOP UP: PM
BJP government in UP means equal control over
rioters, mafia raj, goonda raj, says PM in Sitapur
Punjab CM Charanjit Singh Channi with senior Congress leader
Priyanka Gandhi Vadra during an election rally. —File photo
Meghalaya CM Conrad Sangma discusses HNLC peace talk issue
with MHA Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla on Wednesday.
Channi stokes controversy
with ‘UP-Bihar’ comment
BAGHEL GETS
Z SECURITY;
BJP BLAMES
AKHILESH
AAP SURVEYS!
CONVOY ATTACK
New Delhi: Union
Minister Satya Pal
Singh Baghel has
been provided ‘Z’
category security by
the Home Ministry
after his convoy was
attacked late Tuesday
evening in Karhal in
the Mainpuri district
of Uttar Pradesh.
Baghel is contesting
the Uttar Pradesh
Assembly polls
against Samajwadi
Party (SP) chief
Akhilesh Yadav from
the Karhal seat. The
BJP had alleged on
Tuesday that Baghel’s
convoy was attacked
by “SP goons” with
stones and sticks
near Attikullapur
village in Mainpuri
district. However, a
media report said the
‘Z’ category security
cover was provided to
the Union Minister of
State in the Ministry
of Law and Justice on
February 11. Earlier,
Baghel was accorded
‘Y+’ category CISF
security cover.
Channi is losing in both
his surveys. In Delhi also,
he has been conducting
surveys and many times
he has has got posters
and hoardings put up of
the results of that alleged
survey.
Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas Slogan
Inspired By Guru Ravidas: UP CM
PM Modi addressing a public rally in Sitapur on Wednesday. —PHOTO BY ANI
Varanasi: Prime Minis-
ter Narendra Modi’s
‘Sabka Saath, Sabka Vi-
kas’policyisinspiredby
the teachings of Guru
Ravidas, UP Chief Min-
ister Yogi Adityanath
said on Wednesday as he
paid obeisance at the re-
vered icon’s birthplace.
Adityanath reached
the Ravidas temple at
the Seer Govardhan
premises in the morn-
ing, paid his respects to
the 15th-16th century
poet and also had ‘pras-
ad’atthe‘langar’served.
“It’s maghi poornima
todayandalsothebirth
anniversary of
Guru Ravidas,
whowasbornin
the holy land
of Kashi at
Seer Govard-
han. To-
d a y,
lakhs of people are ex-
pressing their respects
towards the sadhguru,”
he told reporters.
“Under PM Modi’s
leadership, we are tak-
ing forward to all
the ‘Sabka Saath,
Sabka Vikas’ poli-
cy which is also
inspired by Saint
Ravidas’s teach-
ings,” Yogi added.
— PTI
WILL SEND FARMERS’
KILLING CASE CULPRIT,
HIS PROTECTORS TO
JAIL: AKHILESH YADAV
“Babaji’ is levelling allegations the most
but see the work of their govt too”
Auraiya (UP): Samajwadi
Party president Akhilesh
Yadav on Wednesday con-
demned the state govern-
ment over grant of bail to
union minister Ajay Mishra’s
son in Lakhimpur case, say-
ing he would ensure that the
culprit and his protectors go
to prison when he comes to
power. “The minister’s son
who trampled farmers has
got bail from court. The gov-
ernment did not pursue the
case as it should have been,”
said Yadav. “SP assures you
all that our government is
coming and when it does, the
case will be pursued in such
a manner that not only the
one who took the life
of farmers will go to
jail but also those
patronising them,”
Akhilesh Yadav said address-
ing an election meeting in
Auraiya. MoS Home Ajay
Mishra’s son Ashish Mishra
is an accused in the Lakhim-
pur Kheri incident which had
left eight people, including
four farmers, dead. Mr
Mishra was recently
granted bail and
was released
from Lakhim-
pur Kheri jail after his arrest
in October last year. Faced
with continuous attack on
the law and order situation
during his govt, Akhilesh said
that those who want to take
law in their hands need not
vote for his party in the com-
ing elections. He alleged that
Yogi is the only CM in the
country who has withdrawn
cases lodged himself. —PTI
POLLS
Punjab
z BJP MLA gets EC
notice for ‘threatening
voters’ in UP; clarifies
statement
z BJP announces 3 more
candidates for UP polls
z Hyderabad: Case
against Himanta for his
comments on Rahul
❍ POINTERS
MAMATA ANGRY OVER
‘STUCK’ RAJYA SABHA SEAT
Hijab row: Rana
Ayyub booked over
‘terrorists’ remark
Sangma meets Home
Secy over peace talks
with militant outfit
WB: Counting of votes for
108 local bodies on Mar 2
Moni Sharma
New Delhi: West Ben-
gal Chief Minister
Mamata Banerjee is
upset with the party’s
political campaign in
Goa since the ‘rosy
picture’ drawn before
her regarding her par-
ty’s electoral chances
and the assurance
given to her, have
turned to be nought.
She is said to be most
upset that a Trina-
mool Congress Rajya
Sabha seat got stuck in
the affair of Luizinho
Flario. According to
informed sources,
Flario had joined Tri-
namool cracking a
major deal. It was
then said that he
would contest the as-
sembly elections and
would vacate the Ra-
jya Sabha seat after
winning. It is being
told that Mamta Ba-
nerjee was going to
give that Rajya Sabha
seat to Yashwant
Sinha. But at
the last mo-
ment, Flario
has refused to
contest the as-
sembly elec-
tion.
The term of
the Rajya
S a b h a
seat of Luizinho Fler-
io is till April 2026. He
is 70 years old and
even if he doesn’t do
anything, then too he
will remain a member
of upper house till
2026. He will be of no
use to the Trinamool
Congress after the Goa
assembly elections are
over. Mamata also
feels that she will
hardly contest
the Lok Sabha
elections in
2024. That’s
why she is angry
with the
leaders
a n d
elec-
tion strategist
Prashant Kishor who
has pitched Trinamool
in Goa. After the Rajya
Sabha seat was not va-
cated, Mamata has
made Yashwant Sinha
a member of the par-
ty’s National Working
Committee. Now keep
in mind that no seat is
being vacant in West
Bengal in the biennial
elections to the Rajya
Sabha this year. In
Bengal, six seats will
be vacant in August
next year and five in
April of 2024. There-
fore, all Trinamool
leaders will have to
wait till then.
New Delhi:Anadvocate
has filed a complaint
with the Mumbai Police
against journalist Rana
Ayyub over ‘derogatory
remarks’ against stu-
dents holding saffron
flags while protesting
againstwearinghijabby
Muslim girl students in-
side educational institu-
tions. The complainant,
advocate Ashutosh,
claimed that in an inter-
view with BBC World
News, Rana Ayyub said
that “students with saf-
fron flags in Karnataka
are terrorists”. —PTI
New Delhi: Meghalaya
Chief Minister Conrad
Sangma on Wednesday
held a discussion with
Union Home Secretary
Ajay Kumar Bhalla over
the issue of peace talks
with the banned mili-
tant outfit Hynniewtrep
National Liberation
Council (HNLC).
“Following the re-
quired process to take
forward the peace talks
with HNLC, met the
Home Secretary of the
Ministry of Home Af-
fairstodiscussthesame.
The Government of
Meghalayaiscommitted
to see this through,”
Sangma tweeted after
the meeting.
The move comes days
after the HNLC offered
to sit down for peace
talks with the Central
and the Meghalaya state
governments without
any pre-conditions. The
outlawed militant made
the announcement
through a press release.
On Feb 8, in a state-
ment issued by HNLC
general secy-cum-pub-
licity secretary Sainku-
par Nongtraw said that
the organisation has de-
cided to give peace a
chance after receiving a
lot of requests from el-
dersandsocialorganisa-
tions over past few days.
“After consultations
with elders recently
, we
have decided to come to
a peaceful pact with the
GOM (Govt of Megha-
laya) and the GOI (Govt
of India),” the militant
group had said, adding,
“
As of now we are ready
to talk within the ambit
of the Indian constitu-
tion and we are ready to
have talks without any
pre-conditions.” —ANI
Kolkata: The counting
of votes for 108 munici-
palities going to polls
on February 27 will be
held on March 2, an-
nounced West Bengal
state election commis-
sion on Wednesday
.
“On being satisfied
that in the Municipal
General Elections to the
108 Municipalities, 2022
the Counting of Votes
cannot conveniently be
done immediately after
thecloseof thepollatthe
polling stations as pro-
vided under Section 12
of the West Bengal Mu-
nicipal Elections Act,
1994 for the said Constit-
uenciesundertheabove-
noted Municipalities,
the West Bengal State
Election Commission
hereby directs that the
MunicipalReturningOf-
ficers concerned shall
arrange strong rooms
for storing of polled
EVMs and counting of
votes on 02.03.2022 at a
central place of the re-
spectiveMunicipalareas
to be fixed and notified
bythemintermsof Rule
61B of the said Rules,”
the Election Commis-
sion said. The elections
to 108 municipalities in
the state will be held on
27 February. —PTI

PERSPECTIVE
04
mid the reported rift at the
top order and dissolving
all national posts on Sun-
day… there was good news
for the Trinamool Con-
gress on Monday when it
made a clean sweep in the
civic polls to four munici-
pal corporations in West
Bengal that is Bidhanna-
gar, Siliguri, Chanderna-
gore and Asansol. TMC
retained Bidhannagar by
winning 39 out of 41 seats
while the Opposition BJP
and the CPI(M) failed to
open their account. The
Congress managed to bag
one seat, and an Independ-
ent candidate secured vic-
tory in a ward. In Chand-
ernagore, the TMC bagged
31 of the 32 seats, while the
CPI(M) won in one.
In fact, the epicentre of
theverdictepisodeisTMC’s
winning the prestigious
Siliguri Municipal Corpo-
ration (SMC) by defeating
the CPI(M)-led Left Front,
wheretheTMCpocketed37
out of 47 seats. The BJP
,
however, managed to get
the status of opposition by
clinching only five seats,
whiletheLeftwasrelegated
to the third position as it
managed to win four seats
and the Congress only one!
But we shall concentrate
later in this article on how
the Left is still managing to
retain its relevance albeit
not in a great way and in
politics every move counts
as they say
.
A look at the vote share
may be bewildering. The
TMC’s (vote) share in
Siliguri was 78.72 per cent,
while the BJP and CPI(M)
managed to bag 10.64 per
cent and 8.5 per cent of the
votes polled respectively
.
West Bengal Chief Min-
ister Mamata Banerjee
wasted no time to an-
nounce that party leader
Gautam Deb, who won by
a margin of 3,000 votes,
would be the next mayor
of SMC. It may be recalled
that it was at the Siliguri
Municipal Corporation…
The Left and Congress
came together in 2015 to
keep the TMC out of pow-
er and had made an elec-
toral arrangement called
the ‘Siliguri Model’. Sen-
ior CPI (M) leader and for-
mer Mayor of the Corpo-
ration Asok Bhattacharya
who had brought the Left
and Congress together,
lost from Ward Number 6.
The results and the pat-
tern of TMC’s win indicate
the highest ever support
for a ruling party in West
Bengal and political ob-
servers very rightly have
raised questions of the ex-
istence and relevance of
Opposition parties. In at
least 17 wards of the Bid-
hannagar Municipal Cor-
poration, TMC candidates
mustered more than 80%
votes and in a particular
ward the percentage of
votes polled in the favour
of TMC was 95%.
Polls to another 108 civic
bodies across 20 districts
are scheduled on February
27. TMC has won three of
thelocalbodiesunopposed.
A look back would reveal
that TMC had also won the
Kolkata Municipal Corpo-
ration election held in De-
cember 2021. The TMC had
bagged134outof 144wards.
The BJP finished second
with just three seats.
In the Assembly general
election results while the
Left – the CPM, CPI, Revo-
lutionary Socialist Party
(RSP) and Forward Bloc –
secured only 5.87% of the
polledvotes…inthestate…
in south Bengal’s urban
pockets, especially in the
areas which fall inside 100
km from Kolkata, Left can-
didates bagged 10-20% of
the polled votes. This was
in sharp difference to their
show especially in the ru-
ral areas, mainly in dis-
tricts away from the city of
Kolkata, like north Bengal
and southwestern Bengal,
where Left candidates got
2-4% votes.
In the urban areas of
Hooghly, Howrah, North
24 Parganas, Bardhaman
and even in Nadia, Left
candidates (especially
those of CPM), secured 12-
15% votes. However, Left-
backed Congress candi-
dates did not get that much
votes even in urban areas.
Meanwhile, interesting-
ly… as soon as the results
were out, Jayaprakash Ma-
jumder once again blamed
the state leadership of the
BJP
. It may be recalled that
he was expelled from BJP
a few days ago. He blamed
them for the current situa-
tion of the Saffron camp in
the state. He attacked state
president Sukant Majum-
der, general secretary (or-
ganization) Amitabh
Chakraborty and Amit
Malviya. He claimed that
the new leadership wanted
to usurp power by elimi-
nating the old party. He
further added that a con-
spiracy is being hatched
within the party to bring
40 per cent of the vote back
to 4 per cent.
Jayprakash also said
just going to the court and
the Raj Bhavan won’t help.
The state leadership has to
stand by its committed
workers who had worked
overtime to help the party
win 18 Lok Sabha seats in
West Bengal in 2019. On the
other hand, Dilip Ghosh
said, “Votes have been loot-
ed. Nominations have been
blocked by using gangster
police to nullify the Oppo-
sition. Attempts have been
made everywhere to block
the election, to zero in on
the Opposition. The vote
did not go well and the re-
sults reveal the same. The
court will decide.
THE VIEWS EXPRESSED BY
THE AUTHOR ARE PERSONAL
A
ROBIN ROY
The writer is Senior Associate Editor,
Free Press Journal, Mumbai and
former Managing Editor, First India
CIVIC POLLS: RIFT OR NO RIFT,
TMC DOESN’T DRIFT FROM WINNING SPREE
INTERESTINGLY, IN
ALL FOUR CIVIC BODIES
z Asansol, Biddhannagar, Chandannagar and
Siliguri – put together, TMC received 61%
vote share while the BJP managed 14.5%
z The Left Front, which failed to win even a
single seat in the Assembly polls last year,
fared better by getting 16.75% vote share
z The Congress managed to get only 3.5% of
the vote share. Although it failed to make
much headway in the civic polls to the four
municipal corporations
z The Left Front’s 16.75% vote share ahead
of the Saffron party’s 14.5% may boost its
workers morale for another fight for 108
local bodies on February 27
IN THE BIDHANNAGAR
CIVIC ELECTIONS
z The Left Front bagged 10.7% of the polled
votes against TMC’s whopping 73.95%,
BJP’s 8.37% and Congress’s 3.42%
z In Chandannagar, the party’s vote share
increased to 26.40% from 18.5% in the last
Assembly polls. The BJP came third with a
9.80% vote share
z In Siliguri too, the Left Front with a 17.39%
vote share trailed TMC (47.14%) and the BJP
(23.24%), but ahead of the Congress (5.32%)
z BJP’s sitting MLA Shankar Ghosh also lost
and ranked third. In the last Assembly polls,
the saffron party had bagged the Siliguri
seat with more than a 50% vote share
LEFT STILL RELEVANT?
AFTER MASSIVE WIN ON
FEBRUARY 14, 2022
Mamata Banerjee @MamataOfficial
It is once again an overwhelming victory
of Ma, Mati, Manush. My heartiest
congratulations to the people of Asansol,
Bidhannagar, Siliguri & Chandanagore for having put their
faith and confidence on All India Trinamool Congress
candidates in the Municipal Corporation elections.
West Bengal Chief
Minister Mamata
Banerjee shows
victory sign as she
celebrates TMC win in
Kolkata on Monday.
Smriti Z Irani@smritiirani
Deeply saddened by the demise
of musical maestro Bappi Lahiri.
His timeless music will continue
to enthral generations to come.
My heartfelt condolences to Bappi
Da’s family, friends and millions of
admirers across the globe. Om Shanti!
Kiren Rijiju@KirenRijiju
Commitment of @narendramodi
Ji’ Govt for Judicial infrastructure
is so apparent. In the last 7
years Government has released
more funds under the Centrally
Sponsored Scheme for Judicial
Infrastructure in District and Subordinate Courts.
TOP TWEETS
SPIRITUAL SPEAK
Thousands of candles can be lighted
from a single candle, and the life of the
candle will not be shortened. Happiness never
decreases by being shared.
—Buddha
alu Prasad Ya-
dav, the former
Bihar Chief
Minister and
Rashtriya Ja-
nata Dal chief, is headed
back to prison in the fa-
mous Rs 950-crore fodder
scam. A CBI court in
Ranchi convicted him in
the fifth case pertaining to
the scam in which Rs 139.5
crores were fraudulently
withdrawn from Doran-
da’s treasury in Ranchi.
Giving Lalu (73) company
in the case are 74 other ac-
cused. Their sentencing is
due on February 21. The
case dates back to 1995-96
and Lalu has already
spent time in jail but not
the entire cumulative pe-
riod of about 20 years of
his sentence. Most of the
time he has been in a hos-
pital because of uncon-
trolled diabetes and other
health issues.
That nemesis has caught
up with Lalu, a Bihar
strongman for whom was
coined the popular slogan
“jab tak samose me aaloo,
tab tak rahega bihar me
Lalu”. Lalu is there in Bi-
har but is now a pale shad-
ow of his once towering
figure. Should a prison
term alone be enough for
high-profile public figures
who defalcate public mon-
ey? If Lalu has been con-
victed in cases involving
crores of rupees, shouldn’t
he and the other accused
be ordered to cough up the
amount? In 1998 the In-
come-Tax department did
file a disproportionate as-
sets case against Lalu,
claiming that the former
CM had amassed Rs 46
lakh from government
treasury
. Lalu’s wife Rabri
Devi was also charge-
sheeted in the case. How-
ever, a special CBI court
acquitted the two in 2006.
After a long legal battle,
Lalu’s challenge to his ac-
quittal in the case was up-
heldbytheSupremeCourt.
FODDER SCAM STILL
HAUNTS LALU YADAV
A CBI court in Ranchi convicted him in the fifth
case pertaining to the scam in which `139.5 crores
were fraudulently withdrawn from Doranda’s
treasury in Ranchi. Giving Lalu (73) company in
the case are 74 other accused
L
Vol 1 Issue No. 169 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

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INDIA
05
Sharat K Verma
New Delhi: The Chief
Ministers of the states
ruledbyanti-BJPparties
have once again started
acampaignof solidarity
.
Usually this work is
done during Lok Sabha
elections but in the last
few days, one after the
other, decisions of the
central government
have been such, due to
whichthestatesruledby
theoppositionhavebeen
troubled. Whether it is
the matter of increasing
the scope of the BSF’s
jurisdiction or changing
the rules of deputation
of All India Services of-
ficers to the Center or
the matter of reducing
the share of states in
central taxes, all have
raisedtheconcernof the
state governments.
That is when Tamil
Nadu Chief Minister
MK Stalin, West Bengal
Chief Minister Mamata
Banerjee and Telanga-
na Chief Minister K
Chandrasekhar Rao
have taken the initiative
of solidarity. All three
have talked to each oth-
er and it is learnt that
Chandrashekhar Rao
has said that he will
soon head to Mumbai
and talk to Maharash-
tra Chief Minister Ud-
dhav Thackeray
. He also
told that Mamata Ba-
nerjee is going to come
to Hyderabad. Mean-
while, MK Stalin said
that a meeting of Chief
Ministers of anti-BJP
parties will be held in
Delhi soon.
Now the question is
whether the Congress
party will attend this
meeting or not? So far,
noneof thethreeopposi-
tion chief ministers
have spoken to the Con-
gress. The Congress has
three chief ministers
and all three have op-
posed the central gov-
ernment’s decision af-
fectingCentre-staterela-
tions. In Punjab, due to
the increase in the juris-
diction of BSF, almost
theentirestatehascome
under the ambit of this
central force. But like
the chief ministers of
other states, the chief
ministers of these three
Congress-ruled states
cannot decide on their
own. If Stalin, Mamata
and Rao take any initia-
tive then one has to talk
to Rahul Gandhi about
it. Stalin and Rao can
hold talks but both have
to take Mamata Baner-
jee’s consent as well.
As far as Congress-
backed governments are
concerned, the Chief
Minister can decide in-
dependently
. Mamata
Banerjee went to Mum-
baitomeetMaharashtra
Chief Minister Uddhav
Thackeray and met Adi-
tya Thackeray and San-
jay Raut. Similarly
,
Jharkhand Chief Minis-
ter Hemant Soren can
also do politics separate-
ly from Congress. Only
then it will be interest-
ing to see what the Chief
Ministers of the Con-
gress and the govern-
ments running with its
support,dointhis initia-
tive of the opposition
Chief Ministers? The
Tamil Nadu govern-
ment also has the sup-
port of the Congress,
but there Stalin’s party
DMK enjoys an absolute
majority on its own.
WHAT WILL THE CONGRESS CHIEF MINISTER DO?
SHOWCASING SOLIDARITY
New Delhi: The exit
of senior leader
Ashwani Kumar from
the Congress has once
again brought to the
fore simmering ten-
sion in the party.
While the party main-
tained a silence, lead-
ers of the ‘G-23’ group-
ing in the party said
his exit shows all is
not well in the party.
Senior party leader
Ghulam Nabi Azad
said exit of “leader af-
ter leader” from the
party is a “matter of
serious concern”.
Azad, Congress depu-
ty leader in Rajya Sabha
Anand Sharma and Lok
Sabha MP Manish
Tewari said it is time the
partyholdsaseriousand
sincere introspection.
Allthreeof themaresig-
natories to the letter 23
senior leaders — or G-23
—had written to Con-
gress president Sonia
Gandhi in August 2020,
calling for sweeping
changes in the party
.
Several leaders on
the condition of an-
onymity said they
would not be
s u r-
prised
if the
party
faces an implosion after
March 10 if the Assem-
bly election results are
not in its favour.
“It is a matter of great
concernthatleaderafter
leader are leaving the
party
. (Ashwani) Kumar,
I think, is the fourth or
fifth former Union min-
ister who has left, be-
sides a large number of
leaders and workers at
various levels across the
country
,” Azad said.
Azad, a member of
Congress Working
Committee and former
Leader of Opposition
in Rajya Sabha, said
this shows the Con-
gress needs to do a lot
of introspection to find
the cause of these exits.
It is not right to say
these leaders are going
at the behest of any in-
dividual, or (any) party
.
There must be some
disquiet within the
party (that) makes even
hardcore Congress
leaders uncomforta-
ble.” Tewari and Vivek
Tankha called Kumar’s
exit “sad” and
“unfortunate.”
Bhupinder Singh
Hooda, former Haryana
chief minister and an-
other G-23 leader, tweet-
ed, “The news of Sh
Ashwani Kumar leav-
ing Congress is sad and
unfortunate. He is an
old dear friend and one
belonging to a freedom
fighter’s family
.”
Tewari said, Ashwani
Kumar and I worked to-
gether in Dr Manmohan
Singh’s government. He
and I have had civilised
differences on a number
of issues. However, even
if a small worker leaves
the party, it calls for in-
trospection.”
AFTERASHWANIKUMAR’SEXIT,CONG
G-23 LEADERS CALL FOR INTROSPECTION
While the party leadership has remained silent on Kumar’s exit, the G-23 have called a review
Mumbai: Maharashtra
chief minister Uddhav
Thackeray has extend-
ed support to his Telan-
gana counterpart K
Chandrasekhar Rao for
the latter’s efforts to
unite political organisa-
tions against the BJP
and the NDA.
Thackeray’s tele-
phonic conversation
with KCR is seen as a
statement amid its on-
going tussle with the
BJP-led central gov-
ernment. Earlier this
week, the Telangana
chief minister said he
would visit Mumbai to
meet his Maharashtra
counterpart. A Shiv
Sena leader informed
that Rao is expected to
visit Mumbai around
February-end to meet
Thackeray
.
“Uddhav ji, in his
brief conversation, ex-
tended support to the
Telangana CM’s efforts
to unite regional parties
to join forces against the
Centre. This is in line
with what Uddhav ji has
been saying in the over-
reach of the Centre.
Thackeray dials
KCR, extends support
in fight against BJP
New Delhi: Tax offi-
cials on Wednesday
conducted searches at
the offices of Chinese
tech giant Huawei, the
firm said, days after
New Delhi banned a
host of Chinese apps
over national security
concerns.
Tensions between
New Delhi and Beijing
have been running high
since a deadly 2020
clash in Ladakh. The
latest volley from India
saw officials from its in-
come tax department
search Huawei's prem-
ises in Gurgaon, on the
outskirts of capital
New Delhi, and in Ban-
galore, according to the
company
.
We have been in-
formed of the visit of
income tax team to our
office and also of their
meeting with some per-
sonnel, Huawei India
said in a statement
emailed to AFP
.
Huawei was confi-
dent their operations in
India were firmly com-
pliant to local laws and
they would fully cooper-
ate with the authorities,
the statement added.
The government au-
thorities were not im-
mediately available for
comment.
Local media reports
said the officials were
looking at the financial
documents, account
books, and Huawei's In-
dian businesses as well
as overseas transac-
tions. Earlier this week,
the home ministry
banned 54 mobile appli-
cations of Chinese ori-
gin, including the popu-
lar game Garena Free
Fire, several news out-
lets reported.
India is the world's
second-biggest market
by number of phone us-
ers, and the government
has justified the bans on
the apps, saying they
threatened its sover-
eignty and integrity
.
Tax searches on Chinese
telecom giant Huawei Haryana: Bharatiya
Kisan Union national
spokesperson Rakesh
Tikait on Wednesday
condoled the death of
actor and farm activist
Deep Sidhu in a car ac-
cident and ruled out
speculation that a con-
spiracy was at play.
Terming Deep Sid-
hu’s passing a “tragic
incident”, Tikait told,
“I don’t believe there
was a conspiracy be-
hind [his] death. He
was travelling on the
highway and it was re-
ported that his car
rammed [into a truck]
from behind. It seems
to be an accident, the
rest is a matter of in-
vestigation.”
Asked about Deep
Sidhu’s alleged involve-
ment in the violence
that erupted at the Red
Fort during the farm-
ers’ tractor march on
January 26 last year, Ti-
kait admitted that it
gave the farmers’ agita-
tion a bad rap. He, how-
ever, claimed that the
actor was taken to the
scene by authorities in
a bid to implicate the
protesting farmers.
“We did not tamper
with the tricolor, there
was a bare pole and a
religious flag was un-
furled from it. It was a
conspiracy by the
government to defame
the farmers’ union and
the entire movement.
Deep Sidhu got
caught up in this
chakravyuh [trap] of
the govt,” said Tikait.
Chaotic scenes were
witnessed at the Red
Fort in Delhi during the
farmers' tractor parade
onRepublicDayassome
miscreants clashed with
the police. Deep Sidhu
was arrested in Febru-
ary 2021 by the Delhi
Police in connection
with the violence.
Police claimed that
the actor-activist par-
ticipated in the protest
with the intentiontocre-
ate violence and that he
was the main instigator
of unlawful assembly
.
TikaitcallsSidhu’sdeath
‘tragic’,rulesoutconspiracy
SERIOUS CHARGES
MK Stalin, Mamata Banerjee and K Chandrasekhar Rao.
Ludhiana: A day after former Union Law Minis-
ter Ashwani Kumar quit Congress, party leader
Manish Tewari on Wednesday called the decision
unfortunate and said that the ambition for Rajya
Sabha seat makes people do many things.
Addressing a press conference in Ludhiana today,
Tewari said, Whenever a leader quit Congress
party, it's a loss for us. Ashwani Kumar who left
Congress yesterday was Rajya Sabha MP from
Punjab Congress. It's a very unfortunate deci-
sion for us. The ambition for a Rajya Sabha seat
makes people do many things, the Congress
leader added. Former Union Law Minister and Con-
gress leader Ashwani Kumar on Tuesday resigned
from Congress after a long association of 46 years
with the party. Ashwani Kumar was a part of the
UPA term two government's cabinet. Currently, he
was not holding any main profile in the Congress
party and did not have a post in the AICC.
‘LOSS FOR US’: TEWARI ON
ASHWANI’S RESIGNATION
COMING TOGETHER
DIG INTO FINANCIAL DOCS
Local media reports said the officials were
looking at the financial documents, account
books, and Huawei’s Indian businesses as well
as overseas transactions. Earlier this week, the
home ministry banned 54 mobile applications of
Chinese origin, including the popular game Garena
Free Fire, several news outlets reported. India is
the world’s second-biggest market by number of
phone users, and the government has justified
the bans on the apps, saying they threatened its
sovereignty and integrity.
LIQUOR BOTTLE RECOVERED
Haryana: A partially consumed bottle of liquor was
recovered from the ill-fated car of Punjabi actor
Deep Sidhu, who died in a road accident on Tuesday
near Sonipat in Haryana. An FIR has been registered
for rash and negligent driving against the driver of
the truck with which the actor's car collided. Viscera
samples of the actor have been collected. We re-
trieved a partially consumed liquor bottle from Deep
Sidhu's car. It is a case of rash and negligent driv-
ing. An FIR has been registered. The driver has been
identified and police teams are trying to nab him.”
New Delhi: The
NIA on Wednesday
carried out a search
operation at three
places in Kashmir
Valley in the case of
“radicalising, moti-
vating and recruit-
ing” youth of Jam-
mu and Kashmir by
outlawed terrorist
organisation LeT.
The agency con-
ducted the search
operation in coordi-
nation with Jammu
and Kashmir Police
and CRPF person-
nel. The agency
said it seized in-
criminating mate-
rial and digital de-
vices during the
search operation.
The case pertains
to radicalisation
and recruitment
of youth in JK
for violent activi-
ties in the erst-
while state and
other parts of the
country by Sajjad
Gul, Salim Rehma-
ni alias Abu Saad
and Saifullah Sajid
Jutt, the command-
ers of LeT and The
Resistance Front.
New Delhi: Delhi
police have taken a
person into custody
after he tried to
drive into National
Security Adviser
Ajit Doval’s resi-
dence.
The incident oc-
cured today around
7.30 am when a per-
son tried to enter
Mr Doval’s resi-
dence in a car today
.
He was stopped and
taken into custody
by the Central In-
dustrial Security
Force (CISF) per-
sonnel who guard
Mr Doval’s resi-
dence. The NSA is
secured under the
top Z category of
CISF commandos.
Ajit Doval was
present at his resi-
dence when the in-
cident took place.
NIA raids
sites in JK in
terrorism
related cases
Man held for
attempting to
enter NSA’s
residence
Manish Tewari
K Chandrasekhar Rao
Ajit Doval
—FILE
PHOTO
Uddhav Thackeray
It is a matter of great concern that
leader after leader are leaving the
party. I think, is the fourth or fifth
former Union minister who has left.
—Ghulam Nabi Azad, Senior Congress Leader
Anand Sharma
Rakesh Tikait
Will Congress CMs
attend the meeting
led by anti-BJP
CMs in New Delhi?

BIZ BUZZ
06
Indianeconomytogrowatquickest
pace among large nations: Fin Min
New Delhi:The Indian
economy is poised to
grow at the quickest
pace among the league
of large nations on the
back of various initia-
tives taken by the gov-
ernment in Budget
2022-23, said the Fi-
nance Ministry’s
Monthly Economic Re-
view.
“The current year
may as well end with
an economic reset
manifest of a post-
C O V I D - 1 9
world...Manu-
facturing and
C o n s t r u c -
tion will be
the ‘growth
d r i v e r s ’ ,
triggered by
the PLI
schemes and
public capex in
infrastructure,”
the report said.
Agriculture, which
continues to see a con-
stant increase in net
sown area and crop di-
versification, will
strengthen food buffers
while benefiting farm-
ers through generous
volumes of procure-
ment at remunerative
minimum support
prices and income
transfers through PM
KISAN scheme, it add-
ed.
Observing that the
IMF in its January 2022
u p - date has
l o w - ered its
global growth estimate
for 2022, it said India is
yet the only large
and major country
listed by the IMF
whose growth pro-
jection has been
revised up-
wards in
2 0 2 2 -
23.
“In a testimony
to the resilience of
its people and the far-
sightedness of its poli-
cymaking, the Indian
economy that contract-
ed by (-)6.6% in 2020-21
is now projected in
2022-23 to grow the
quickest among the
league of large na-
tions,” it said.
The report said the
Budget 2022-23 has
strengthened the direc-
tion set for India’s
economy by the previ-
ous year’s
budget.
The capex budget,
higher by 35.4% over
current year’s budget
estimates and rising to
4.1% of GDP after in-
clusion of grants-in-
aid to
states for
c a p i t a l
works, will
power the seven
engines of Gatishakti
to reduce the infra-
structure gap and fa-
cilitate private invest-
ment in the country, it
said. —PTI
Observing that IMF in its Jan update
has lowered its global growth
estimate for 2022, it said India is yet
the only major country listed whose
growth has been revised upwards
ATF prices at record
high after 5.2% hike
New Delhi: Jet fuel
prices on Wednesday
soared to record high
levels across the coun-
try after rates were
increased by 5.2% in
line with a rise in in-
ternational oil prices.
This is the fourth
hike in jet fuel or Avia-
tion Turbine Fuel
prices in less than two
months following a
spike in global oil pric-
es but petrol and die-
sel prices remained
unchanged for a re-
cord 103rd day in a
row, coinciding with
electioneering to elect
new governments in
states like UP and
Punjab.
ATFpricewashiked
by `4,481.63 per kiloli-
treor5.2%to`90,519.79
per kl in New Delhi,
according to a price
notification of state-
owned fuel retailers.
This is the highest
ever price touched by
ATF. —PTI
4TH INC. IN 2021
Agriculture,
which continues
to see a constant
increase in net sown
area and crop
diversification, will
strengthen food
buffers
LIC sits on `21,500
cr unclaimed funds
New Delhi: State-
owned insurance be-
hemoth LIC had un-
claimed funds to the
tune of `21,539 crore
as of September 2021,
according to draft pro-
spectus filed for IPO
with market regulator
Sebi.
This includes inter-
est earned over the
outstanding un-
claimed amount.
As per the Draft Red
Herring Prospectus
(DRHP) filed by the
Life Insurance Corpo-
ration of India (LIC),
theunclaimedamount
was at
`18,495 crore at the
end of March 2021 and
`16,052.65 crore at the
end of March 2020.
Every insurer is re-
quired to display in-
formation about any
unclaimed amount of
`1,000 or more on their
respective websites (to
continue even after
completion of 10
years) and a facility is
to be provided on the
website to enable poli-
cyholders or benefi-
ciaries to verify un-
claimed amount due
to them.
Further, it said, the
u n c l a i m e d
amounts circular
by Insurance
Regulatory and
Development Au-
thority of India
(IRDAI) pre-
scribes the proce-
dures relat-
ing to the
mode of
payment
of the un-
claimed
amount
etc.
—PTI
2022-23 Budget proposals set
tone for economic revival: RBI
New Delhi: The 2022-
23 Budget proposals
and the recent mone-
tary policy announce-
ments have set the
tone for a durable and
broad-based econom-
ic revival which has
started gaining trac-
tion as the nation
emerges from the
third wave of the
COVID-19 pandemic,
according to an arti-
cle published in RBI’s
February bulletin.
The RBI article on the
‘State of Economy’
also emphasised that
the domestic econom-
ic situation continues
to improve, the unset-
tled global environ-
ment notwithstand-
ing.
The renewed em-
phasis on public in-
vestment in the Budg-
et through infrastruc-
ture development is
expected to crowd-in
private investment
and strengthen job
creation and demand
in 2022-23, it said. —PTI
Sensex ends volatile session 145 pts lower
Mumbai: The BSE gauge
Sensex closed below the
key 58,000-level after a
highly volatile session on
Wednesday, dragged lower
mainly by banking, metal
and auto shares.
The 30-share bench-
mark swung nearly 800
points during the session
before closing at 57,996.68
-- marking a loss of 145.37
points. Likewise, the NSE
Nifty settled 30.25 points
lower at 17,322.20.
On the Sensex chart,
NTPC, SBI, ICICI Bank,
Tata Steel were among the
major laggards. —PTI
Mumbai: The rupee appreciated by 25 paise
to close at 75.07 (provisional) against the
US dollar on Wednesday, amid signs of
de-escalation in the conflict between Russia
and Ukraine. At the interbank forex market,
the local unit opened at 75.24 against the
greenback and witnessed an intra-day high
of 74.96 and a low of 75.24. It finally settled
at 75.07, a rise of 25 paise over its previous
close. On Tuesday, the rupee had snapped
its five-session losing streak and surged 28
paise to close at 75.32. —PTI
` SURGES 25 PAISE TO CLOSE AT
75.07 AGAINST US DOLLAR
FAITH suggests ‘Vision 35’ road
map to achieve tourism goals
New Delhi: The Fed-
eration of Associa-
tions in Indian Tour-
ism and Hospitality
(FAITH) on Wednesday
unveiled the ‘Vision
2035’ road map outlin-
ing strategic pillars to
achieve tourism goals
to mark the 75th year
of India’s Independ-
ence.
These goals target 75
million inbound tour-
ists, aim for 150 billion
of foreign exchange
earnings from inbound
tourism, eye 7.5 billion
domestic tourism vis-
its, and target 15 crore
direct and indirect em-
ployment from tour-
ism, among other ob-
jectives.
The vision docu-
ment proposes four
strategic pillars to
achieve the goals, in-
cluding a shared na-
tional tourism ap-
proach, value accretive
regulations, invest-
ment drivers and mar-
ket excellence.
It recommends tour-
ism to be a concurrent
subject as a shared ex-
ecution between the
Centre states, and
setting up of a Nation-
al Tourism Council of
PM and CMs, among
others.
The vision also sug-
gests travel credit for
domestic travel and
MICE (meetings, in-
centives, conferences
and exhibitions), sin-
gle-windowe-clearance
for all projects and na-
tional seamless tourist
transportation. —PTI
New Delhi: B2B eCommerce
platform Udaan announced
an ESOP policy covering all
employees and said future
allocations will vest every
quarter, as it removed the
standard one-year cliff. The
one year ‘cliff’ period is a prevalent industry prac-
tice that requires employees to wait for a year for
their employee stock option plan to start vesting.
UDAAN REMOVES 1-YEAR ESOP CLIFF
New Delhi: The coun-
try’s oilmeal export
declined by 65% YoY
to 1.76 lakh tonnes in
Jan 2022, mainly due
to fall in shipments of
soyabean and rape-
seed meal, industry
body SEA said on
Wednesday. In Jan
2021, the country’s
oilmeal export stood
at 5.01 lakh tonnes.
During the April-Jan
period of the current
fiscal, overall export
of oilmeal fell 35%
to 19.43 LT, when
compared with 29.69
LT in the year-ago
period. —PTI
India’s January
oilmeal export
dips 65% to 1.76
lakh tonnes: SEA
New Delhi: Income earned from providing guest
lectures will attract 18 per cent GST, the Karnata-
ka bench of AAR has ruled. The applicant, Sairam
Gopalkrishna Bhat, had approached the Authority
for Advance Ruling seeking clarity on whether the
income earned from conducting guest lectures,
amounts to or results to as supply of taxable ser-
vices. —PTI
New Delhi: State-owned GAIL
India Ltd plans to lay a pipe-
line to Srinagar to take the
environmentally friendly
natural gas to the Kash-
mir Valley as it doubles
down on efforts to expand infrastructure to
helm the government vision of a gas-based
economy, its chairman and managing director
Manoj Jain said. —PTI
GAIL to connect Srinagar to gas grid
New Delhi: Full-service carrier Vistara on
Wednesday said it is gradually resuming
certain services that were suspended
temporarily due to the pandemic. The
airline also plans to improve its inflight
entertainment offerings across its domestic
and international network by introducing a
wider variety of content. Since the start of
Covid, Vistara had taken various measures
including altering several processes, trun-
cating many inflight services, intensifying
sanitisation efforts to maintain safety and
hygiene standards, it said. “While we are
restoring our services progressively and
systematically, we will also be introducing
new enhancements at various customer
touchpoints, said
Deepak Rajawat,
Chief Commercial
Officer. —PTI
Vistara gradually restoring services to pre-Covid levels
Mumbai: Admitting
that Vistara fell short
of customers’ ex-
pectations in the last
few months, its CEO Vinod
Kannan has said the airline is
addressing some of the gaps
on a war footing. “We have
always wanted to make flying
an experience a joyous and
memorable. But, I admit that
we fell short on this commit-
ment in the last few months
and did not live up to your
expectations,” Kanan said.
DIDN’T LIVE UP TO
CUSTOMERS’
EXPECTATIONS: CEO
New Delhi: The diversified Tata Group touches
every online shopper with existing consumer
brands and the attempt of Tata Digital will be to
bring together all the assets under a single value
proposition, the new outfit’s president Mukesh
Bansal said on Wednesday. The group -- which
will be competing head on with Mukesh Ambani’s
digital business, Amazon and the Walmart-owned
Flipkart -- will be making announcements on how it
goes about the job in the coming months. —PTI
Tata brands touch all e-shoppers: Bansal
18% GST ON GUEST LECTURE INCOME: AAR

07
NEWS
Punjab’s CEO issues SOP for
last 72 hours before Poll Day
Ashok Kaura
Chandigarh: Chief
Electoral Officer (CEO)
Punjab Dr S Karuna
Raju on Wednesday is-
sued Standard Operat-
ing Procedure (SOP) for
last 72 hours before Poll
Day in Punjab.
Divulging details, Dr
Raju said that instruc-
tions have been issued
to all the District Elec-
tion Officers-cum-Depu-
ty Commissioners that
they should make neces-
sary arrangements for
third randomisation of
polling personnel, Cer-
tificate of formation of
polling party
, accomoda-
tion and food for polling
parties and deployment
of micro-observers, Vid-
eo Cameras, Still Cam-
eras, Webcasting at poll-
ing stations. He also
asked them to ensure
training to polling per-
sonnel, sector officers,
EVM management, be-
sides strengthening All
Election Expenditure
Monitoring team like
Flying Squad Teams,
Static Surveillance
Teams, Video Surveil-
lance Teams, Video
Viewing Team, Excise
Monitoring Team,
MCMC, DCMC, Ac-
counting Team and 24x7
district EEM Team,
Controlroomduringthe
last 72 hours.
He also asked them to
intensify monitoring
and surveillance by the
Flying Squads (FS) and
Static Surveillance
Teams (SSTs), Assis-
tance from Booth Level
awareness group, area
of special focus for Ex-
penditure Monitoring,
Implementationof Mod-
el Code of Conduct for
Political Parties and
Candidates besides di-
recting them for vehicle
permission and ensur-
ing Assured Minimum
Facilities at all the Poll-
ing Stations. Voter edu-
cation camps should be
organised, he added.
CEO Dr Raju directed
Security Authorities for
Advance Police Deploy-
ment plan for the last 72
hours, Intensified Moni-
toring and Surveillance
by the Flying Squads
(FS) and Static Surveil-
lance Teams (SSTS),
Area of special focus for
Expenditure Monitor-
ing Law Order/Secu-
rity Arrangements/
CAPF and Special ef-
forts to curb misuse of
money power.
Special Election
Observers review
pollprepsinPunjab
Mahesh Kumar
Ludhiana: Special
Election Observers sent
by the Election Com-
mission of India to re-
view the preparations
for the Punjab Assem-
bly elections held a
meeting with Election
Observers, District
Election Officer, Com-
missioner of Police Lu-
dhiana and SSPs of Lu-
dhiana (Rural) and
Khanna, through video
conferencing.
Special General Ob-
server Vinod Zutshi
IAS (Retd), Special Po-
lice Observer Rajni
Kant Mishra IPS (Retd)
and Special Expendi-
ture Observer Himlani
Kashyap IRS (Retd)
made it clear that fol-
lowing the instructions
of the Election Com-
mission of India, every
effort should be made to
conduct this election
fair, transparent and in
a fear-free environ-
ment.
They said that every
polling station should
be closely monitored.
No mischievous ele-
ment should be spared.
Every effort should be
made to prevent possi-
ble untoward incidents
at polling stations.
They said that web-
casting of every polling
station would be done
by the ECI. Where there
is a problem with web-
casting, make sure to
have videography done.
Every activity of such
elements should be
monitored 24 hours a
day. They said that
there should be an ade-
quate police force with
the sector officers so
that they would be able
to face any untoward
situation. They should
have a list of mischie-
vous elements and vot-
ers who can be influ-
enced by them.
UP CM Yogi,Punjab’s Channi
offer prayers in Varanasi
First India Bureau
Lucknow: In view of
on-going Assembly elec-
tions the birth place of
Sant Ravidas “Seer
Goverdhan” temple in
Varanasi on Wednesday
turned out to be a major
political pilgrimage
with leaders making
beeline to the shrine on
the occasion Ravi Das
Jayanti.
With large numbers
of followers coming
from Punjab to partici-
pate in the ceremony at
the Shrine, Punjab CM
Charanjit Singh Chan-
ni was first to reach the
temple early morning
to offer prayers there.
Thereafter the Con-
gress leaders Rahul
Gandhi and Priyanka
Gandhi arrived and the
duo also served langar
to devotees. The UP CM
Yogi Aditynath also
landed there to partici-
pate in the prayers.
Yogi slams previous govts
forspoilingB’khandregion
‘AAP’s education
model inspired
by Guru Ravidas’
Varanasi: The educa-
tion model presented by
the Aam Aadmi Party
(AAP) in Delhi is de-
rived from the thoughts
of Guru Ravidas and B
R Ambedkar, party
leader Sanjay Singh
said here on Wednesday
.
Singh, the AAP’s in-
charge for Uttar
Pradesh, said this after
paying obeisance at the
Guru Ravidas temple at
Seer Govardhan.
Singh said Guru
Ravidas worked all his
life against casteism
and discrimination in
the society and contin-
ued to inspire people
through his life lessons.
“He taught us that
people’s work and not
their caste make them
big or small. AAP works
on these principles. The
education model pre-
sented in Delhi by
Arvind Kejriwal is de-
rived from Sant Ravidas
and BR Ambedkar’s
thoughts and works to-
wards making India an
educated nation,” he
said. “The AAP not only
respects Sant Ravidas
but tries to follow the
path shown by him and
abide by his thoughts. I
have come to express
my respects and on be-
half of Delhi CM
Arvind Kejriwal, our
Punjab leader Bhag-
want Mann and all oth-
er workers of the par-
ty,” Singh said. —PTI
First India Bureau
Hamirpur: UP Chief
Minister Yogi Adity-
anath on Wednesday ac-
cused the previous state
governments of devas-
tating the Bundelkhand
region by handing over
its resources and for-
ests to mafia elements
who “looted” them.
Lashing out at his
predecessors for failing
to resolve the water cri-
sis in Bundelkhand and
develop the region, Yogi
while addressing a pub-
lic meeting in Hamir-
pur said, “It is not hid-
den from anyone that
this resource-rich re-
gion was handed over to
the mafia. The manner
in which these people
behaved with Bun-
delkhand will not be
forgotten by the people
here.”
“The previous gov-
ernments helmed by
the SP and the BSP left
no stone unturned in
devastating this region
turn by turn,” the CM
said while counting a
slew of projects under-
taken by BJP’s govern-
ment aimed at ending
the water scarcity
.
First India Bureau
Lucknow: The ‘Biwi’
Brigade is back in ac-
tion. The wives of can-
didates contesting dif-
ferent Assembly seats
have started campaign-
ing for their husbands
in the earnest, mingling
with residents and urg-
ing them to ensure the
victory of their hus-
bands.
Namrata Pathak,
wife of minister
Brajesh Pathak, who is
contesting on a BJP
ticket from the Luc-
know Cantt constituen-
cy, is aggressively cam-
paigning for her hus-
band. Along with her
team of BJP workers,
she campaigns in re-
mote colonies of Luc-
know Cantt. She says,
“My husband works
hard.Heisalwaysready
to help everyone, so it is
my duty to support him
in his work. I am trying
to connect with each
and every woman voter
in the constituency and
seek support for my
husband.”
She plans out her
campaign a day in ad-
vance and coordinates
so that there is no dupli-
cation in the campaign.
SP candidate from
the Lucknow Cantt
seat, Raju Gandhi, also
has his wife Charanjeet
campaigning for him.
He says, “My wife is my
strength. She plans my
campaigning for the
day and she works from
morning to late in the
night to ensure my vic-
tory. As a woman, she
strikes a chord with
women voters immedi-
ately
.”
‘BIWI’BRIGADETAKEFIGHTFORHUBBIES
BATTLEGROUND UP
BJP candidate Brajesh Pathak his wife Namrata during rally.
UP CM Yogi Adityanath pays obeisance to Guru Ravidas.
Special Election Observers during the meet.
Punjab CM Charanjit Channi Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi
This SP leader has been to jail 251 times but isn’t a criminal
First India Bureau
Lucknow: He is one of
the oldest student lead-
ers contesting the ongo-
ing elections.
He is better known
for making a record of
sorts by going to jail
more than 251 times in
his 40-year-long career.
Meet Ravidas Mehro-
tra, the Samajwadi Par-
ty (SP) candidate from
Lucknow Central.
Mehrotra, 66, an alum-
nus of Lucknow Univer-
sity, has had a cheq-
uered career with more
downs than ups but that
has not lessened his zeal
for social work.
About his jail record,
Mehrotra says, “All the
cases against me are re-
lated to demonstrations
and protests held by me
during my university
days and after that,
when I joined politics. It
speaks for the fact that I
have been a fighter all
along. There is not a sin-
gle ‘criminal case
against me.”“The SP
government will be a
government for the
downtrodden and those
denied justice, be it
Muslims, Dalits, Chris-
tians and especially
Brahmins, who have
been persecuted under
the BJP government.
We will make sure we
bring ‘vikas’ to all, irre-
spective of caste, com-
munity and religion,”
Mehrotrasaysandadds,
“We are standing by the
claim that “roti, kapda
sasta ho, dava padhai
muft ho.”He claims that
the Covid oxygen crisis
has hit the people badly
and that is why the sit-
ting MLA from here, a
minister, is contesting
from the neighbouring
constituency this time.
“Why did he have to run
away if not for SP’s ap-
parent victory
,” he asks.
Mehrotra feels that
the promise of the resto-
ration of the pension
scheme if SP comes to
power is his biggest ad-
vantage since his con-
stituency comprises
mainly the salaried
class.As he informs his
voters about the
schemes promised by
his party if it comes to
power, he says, “BJP has
not done anything for
the state’s development.
The law-and-order situ-
ation is bad and women
and children are not
safe. We are also asking
people to fill in a form
where they can tell us
what schemes they
want,” he said.
Samajwadi Party candidate from Lucknow Central Ravidas Mehrotra appeals for vote.
‘Expectingvotingpercentage
togoupinupcomingphases’
The electoral process is going on in the state with the largest population of the country. The Election Commission
is carrying out the responsibility of completing this most important task of democracy in a fair and smooth
manner. Additional Chief Electoral Officer (ACEO) of UP, Brahm Dev Ram Tiwari discussed in detail with
Gyanendra Kumar Shukla, Editor (News) First India, regarding several aspects of election. Excerpts:
The voting per-
centage in the first
two phases crossed
the figure of 60 but
the voting percent-
age was less as com-
pared to the last
elections.
More than 62% voting
took place in the first
phase and 64.43% in
the second phase. The
turnout has definitely
been a little less than
last time. In some
districts, the
enthusiasm
of the vot-
ers was
definitely
low, but in
many plac-
es the poll-
ing figures
have been
encourag-
ing. There has been
some adverse effect
due to cold weather
and Covid factor, but
in the coming phases
we are expecting bet-
ter weather and better
voting percentage.
What steps have
been taken to fulfill
your responsibility
of conducting fair
and free elections.
Any new steps?
Yes, many measures
have been taken for
the first time in this
election. Special ar-
rangements have been
made for the elderly
and disabled per-
sons who are un-
able to reach the
booth. They
have been giv-
en the facili-
ty of vot-
i n g
through postal ballots.
Steps have been taken
to ensure transparen-
cy. Micro observers
keep a close watch.
Photography of this
entire process of vot-
ing is done. Agents of
the parties concerned
are also given an op-
portunity to be pre-
sent.
The ideal condi-
tion of democracy
demands that the
voting percentage
should be more than
70 but this is not
possible, how will
this average in-
crease.
Efforts are being made
at every level to in-
crease the voting turn-
out. However, there are
many socio-economic
reasons that people
shy away from voting.
Anyway, no one can be
forced to vote; our job
is to provide better fa-
cilities, better environ-
ment so that there is
no inconvenience in
voting.
Some areas in the
eastern region of UP
are considered very
sensitive. What ar-
rangements are be-
ing made for such
areas?
The sensitivity of an
assembly constituency
is decided on the basis
of several parameters.
Security arrange-
ments have been made
more effective in all
such areas.
Brahm Dev Ram
—PHOTO
BY
ANI

COVID-19
UPDATE
WORLD
58,59,609
TOTAL DEATHS
33,94,74,044
TOTAL RECOVERED
7,12,79,963
ACTIVE CASES
41,66,13,616
TOTAL CASES
INDIA
5,09,903
TOTAL DEATHS
4,18,43,446
TOTAL RECOVERED
3,70,209
ACTIVE CASES
4,27,23,558
TOTAL CASES
08
2NDFRONT
PM Modi: Cong failed to merge
Kartarpur Sahib within India
Pathankot: Launching
a scathing attack at
Nehru-Gandhi dynasty,
Prime Minister Naren-
dra Modi on Wednesday
slammed the Congress
Government for failing
to merge Kartarpur Sa-
hib, the final resting
place of Guru Nanak
Dev, within India’s ter-
ritory during partition
in 1947, or after wins in
subsequent wars.
“Even during the
1965 war, Congress did
not bother to take back
the land. During the
1971 war, Then the gov-
ernment sitting in Del-
hi would have returned
90,000 Pakistani sol-
diers on the condition
that it returned the
Tapobhumi of Guru
Nanak Dev Ji Kartar-
pur Sahib Gurdwara.”
“When the country
was partitioned, the
people of Congress
were there, did they not
understand enough
that Guru Nanak Dev
Ji’s Tapobhoomi should
be kept in India at a dis-
tance of 6 km from the
border. Congress people
have committed a
crime, crushed our sen-
timents,” he added.
He further said that
the BJP gave recogniza-
tion to this heritage of
India all over the world.
“We are a dedicated
people, we are also
proud of our heritage,
the responsibility of de-
velopment is also in
front of us. We cele-
brate Prakash Parv of
Gurus with full faith
not only in the country
but all over the world.
Recognize this heritage
of India all over the
world,” he added.
The Prime Minister
accused Congress of be-
littling and insulting
the sacrifices of the sol-
diers who died during
the 2016 Pathankot at-
tack.
He praised Captain
Amarinder Singh, say-
ing that he was in Con-
gress earlier and
stopped such intentions
of the party. “But now,
he has also left,” Modi
said.
He also attacked dy-
nasty politics. “Wher-
ever we win, we oust
remote-control govern-
ment and appeasement
and dynasty politics,”
he said. “We will make
a new Punjab. BJP will
leave no stone un-
turned. People do not
leave our side, once
they back us,” he added.
—ANI
PM PROMISES
PUNJAB DEVP
When the country was partitioned, the people of Congress were there, did they not under-
stand enough that Guru Nanak Dev Ji’s Tapobhoomi should be kept in India at a distance
of 6 km from the border. Congress people have committed a crime, crushed our sentiments.
—Narendra Modi, Prime Minister
Will take strong action,if
our MLAs ask for‘cut’:AK
Mahesh Kumar
Chandigarh: Aam
Aadmi Party (AAP) na-
tional convener and
Delhi CM Arvind Kejri-
wal made many big an-
nouncements related to
the security of the busi-
nessmen, traders and
common people of Pun-
jab. In a presser with
AAP’s Punjab CM can-
didate Bhagwant Mann
in Mohali on Wednes-
day, Kejriwal an-
nounced that for the
safety of the business
class, after March 10 no
leader or officer would
intimidate any busi-
nessman of Punjab or
get him raided. After
the formation of AAP
govt, if any of our
MLAs or ministers asks
for a share from a busi-
nessman, then we will
take an immediate ac-
tion against the leader.
Bhagwant Mann as-
sured the businessmen
and traders of Punjab
that we will not ask for
any share from any
trader, but will make
them (business class) a
partner in the govern-
ment. Mann said that
with the increase in
business, the revenue
of the government
would also increase and
employment opportuni-
ties would also increase
for the youth.
Mohali: Delhi CM and AAP’s national
convenor Arvind Kejriwal slammed Pun-
jab CM Channi for his purported appeal
to the people to stop people from UP
and Bihar from coming to the Punjab.
Saying that the statement is “shameful”,
Kejriwal claimed that the Channi calls
him a “Kala (black)”. “The comments
are really shameful. We strongly con-
demn comments aimed at any individu-
al or any particular community. He also
calls me ‘Kala’ (black),” said Kejriwal.
Earlier, Channi had said, “’Don’t let UP,
Bihar ke bhaiya enter Punjab”.
KEJRIWAL SLAMS CHANNI FOR
REMARKS ON UP, BIHAR PEOPLE
Jalandhar: AAP’s
national convener
Arvind Kejriwal
and Bhagwant
Mann on Wednes-
day paid obeisance
at the famous Shri Ravidas temple in
Jalandhar and prayed for peace and
prosperity of Punjab. Kejriwal said that
may Guru Maharaj give us courage and
strength so that we continue to serve
people selflessly. Mann said that Guru ji
gave the message of equality, freedom,
humanity and brotherhood.
KEJRIWAL, MANN PAY HOMAGE
AT SRI RAVIDAS MANDIR
‘Cong playing dirty politics to
divide country on caste basis’
Ashok Kaura
Phagwara: Whilereact-
ing sharply upon the re-
marksof Chief Minister
Punjab Charanjit Singh
ChanniaboutBihariand
UP Migrants, Union
Minister of Women and
Child Development, Sm-
riti Irani, on Wednesday
hit at the Congress and
alleged that the Con-
gress is playing a dirty
politics and wanted to
dividethecountryonthe
basis of caste and creed.
She was addressing
an election rally in Had-
iabad to support the
BJP candidate from
Phagwara, Vijay Samp-
la. She asked voters to
choose the govt after
watching the practical
performance. Smriti ap-
pealed to the people to
cast their vote wisely
and put a stamp on BJP
.
She claimed that the
Women will get the due
honor if they go to the
polling booth and sup-
port the BJP on Feb 20.
FLIGHT OF FANCY
Exotic birds resting on the Ujani Reservoir in Maharashtra. These migratory birds have come flying covering several thousand
kilometers as the cold wave spreads across the continent of Europe. —PHOTO BY VIJAYKUMAR HARISHHCHANDRE
AIMIM refuse to
sing ‘Vande
Mataram’ in
Bihar Assembly
Patna: The AIMIM
MLAs have refused to
sing ‘Vande Mataram’
during the upcoming
budget session of Bihar
Assembly
.
State AIMIM chief
and member of Legisla-
tive Assembly from
Amaur, Akhtarul Imam
said that he and four
other party MLAs had
refused to sing the na-
tional song on the last
day of the winter ses-
sion and will do the
same in the Budget ses-
sion getting underway
on February 25.
Imam’s statement
came a day after Speak-
er Vijay Kumar Sinha
askedeverylegislatorof
the Assembly and Coun-
cil to sing national an-
them (Jana Gana Mana)
and national song (Van-
de Mataram). He said
that the national an-
them and national song
are the symbols of unity
and integrity of the na-
tion, everyone should
sing them publically
.
“Vande Mataram
gives an impression of
worshipping a piece of
land and other things
which in Islam, is not
mentioned. Hence, we
refuse to sing it on any
platform. The NDA gov-
ernment is in majority
They should respect
every caste and religion
to present a beautiful
picture of democracy,”
Imam said. —ANI
Smriti Irani during election rally in Hadiabad to support the BJP
candidate Vijay Sampla from Phagwara, on Wednesday.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi speaking at a rally in Pathankot in Punjab.
Arvind Kejriwal and Bhagwant Mann during Press conference.
If you measure your success by
how society views you then it will
be forever a shifting benchmark.
—Jagdeesh Chandra, CEO Editor-in-Chief, First India
Aditi Nagar
Shivendra Parmar
Ludhiana/Chandi-
garh: Congress’s ‘star
campaigner’ Rajasthan
CMAshokGehlot‘spear-
headed’ the party elec-
toral campaign in Pun-
jab on Wednesday as he
addressed a rally and
also spoke to the media
there. Raj CM Gehlot
reached Ludhiana and
Chandigarh where he
made scathing attacks
on opposition parties
whilepraisingtheChan-
nigovt.Duringthistime,
he appeared to be ex-
tremely confident of
Congress’ victory in the
state.
Raj CM Gehlot flew
from Jaipur at noon and
landed at Ludhiana
where a host of party
leaders, from various
parts of the nation, gave
him a warm welcome at
the airport. In a special
conversation with First
India at Ludhiana air-
port, Gehlot,ontheissue
of declaring Channi as
CM face, said, “The mes-
sage of the decision of
the Congress high com-
mand went across the
country
.”
Addressing the elec-
toral rally in Ludhiana,
in support of party’s
candidate Surendra Da-
var for Ludhiana Cen-
tral constituency, Raj
CM said, “My experi-
ence says that only an
aware MLA can get so
many things done.
Surendra Davar loves
you very much and he
has been made party’s
candidate on the trust
you have put in us. This
isthefirstseatof Punjab
where I have come advo-
cating for a candidate.
Sonia ji and Rahul ji
made Channi sahib CM
which created an envi-
ronment in the nation
that a Dalit can become
CM. In Rajasthan, Pa-
hadiajiwasmadeCMby
Indira Gandhi.”
‘
AAP thinks that Pun-
jab is like Delhi. They
should know big states
work differently. Just
see, petrol and diesel
prices are no longer in-
creasing as soon as elec-
tions came.” he added.
Raj CM Gehlot plows through Oppn seeking votes in Ludhiana
‘STAR POWER’
l GEHLOT ALSO ADDRESSES A PRESSER AT CHANDIGARH,
STRESSES THAT CHANNI DID WONDERFUL WORK IN 111
DAYS AND THUS SHOULD BE GIVEN A TERM OF 5 YEARS
Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot addresses a public meeting in support
of Surinder Kumar Dawar, Congress candidate from Ludhiana on
Wednesday. Bhajanlal Jatav, Jitu Patwari and others are also seen.
Raj CM Gehlot flew
from Jaipur at noon
and landed at
Ludhiana where a
host of party
leaders,from
various parts of the
nation,gave him a
warm welcome at
the airport.

NEW DELHI, THURSDAY,
FEBRUARY 17, 2022
www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia
facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia 09
ANITA HADA
anita.hada@firstindianews.com
eri neend ude te
ud jaaye…
Bindiya Cham-
kegi, Chudi
khankegi …
Lata Man-
g e s h k a r
crooned as
Mumtaz wooed the reticent
Rakesh Khanna, looking ab-
solutely stunning in an or-
ange saree, gajra, bindi, ban-
gles. Coupled with her imp-
ish sexiness the song has
become one of the biggest
hits and would not be fair to
say Mumtaz’s best. But Do
Raaste is actually not about
the love story of Khanna and
Mumtaz even though with
Chup Gaye Saare Nazaare
and Mere Naseeb Mein ae
dost, one might be misled
into thinking the same.
With the pandemic, many
have had a forced or chosen
‘homecoming’ and in a way,
the theme of Do Raaste is
relevant again as people
with different outlooks and
attitudes live together as a
family
. Once again, we are
close-knit as try to compro-
miseandadjusttoeachother
to keep a family together.
As a child, I would be an-
gry at Balraj Sahni for not
being harsh with Bindu as
sheselfishlyandwithschem-
ing breaks the ‘home’ built
so lovingly with sacrifice
and love but today I can un-
derstand the positives of the
stoic Balraj. Bindu as the
‘evil bahu’ gives a stellar per-
formance and much of the
film is enacted as Rajesh
Khanna and Bindu spar- she
for her own interests and he
for the ‘family’. Bindu had
no songs in Do Raaste but a
powerful ‘vamp’ role which
she did full justice to.
Thetrialsandtribulations
of middle-class India were
depicted with emphasis on
respect of elders, relations
are supreme, mother-power
and the sanctity of joint fam-
ily
. Raj Khosla hit upon a
‘winning formula’ and to
date, hundreds of directors
have followed suit.
Rajesh Khanna dominat-
ed the scenes as the angry
young man, upholding fam-
ily values with little care
of high-society- a man
who puts his elder step-
brotherandBhabhifirstand
foremost.Veenaasthemoth-
er and Kamini Kaushal as
the Bhabhi play supporting
roles though on reflection
one does wish they had han-
dled things better rather
thanbeingdoormatsinfront
of Bindu. K L Sigal’s Ek
Bangla bane nyara – the
song echoes as the family
disintegrates – is haunting
and a masterpiece.
Essentially, the lesson is
clear- as a family
, we all will
face problems sometimes in-
ternal and many times ex-
ternal. We all have Do
Raaste- two paths in front of
us- do we stay united as a
family and sort things out
with compromise and love
(not sacrifice) or do we allow
‘trials’ to break our family?
We all choose…daily…
BINDIYA
CHAMKEGI
T
THIS THROWBACK THURSDAY WE BRING YOU DO RAASTE, A 1969 FAMILY DRAMA
WHICH CELEBRATE THE AGE-OLD THEMES OF FAMILY, LOVE, SACRIFICE AND MORE.
POST PANDEMIC, THE IMPORTANCE OF THE FAMILY HAS DEFINITELY BEEN
REINFORCED AND ‘TOGETHER WE CAN’ IS THE KEY PHRASE FOR THIS GEN TOO!

10
ETC
F
A
C
E
O
F
T
H
E
D
A
Y
AKSHARA KHANNA, Blogger
LEO
JULY 24 - AUGUST 23
Your depressing thoughts
vanish as a special friend or
relative arrives to lift up
your spirits. Those fed up
of frequent travelling will be able to
do something about it. Some major
changes may be initiated in a property
owned by you. You will need to
become proficient in everything.
LIBRA
SEPT 24 - OCTOBER 22
Family will be loving and
supportive of your ideas. A
ride to the countryside will
help some unwind.
Property issues are likely to get
settled in your favour. Distractions
may find your focus wavering on the
academic front. Someone you hate is
likely to turn over a new leaf.
ARIES
MAR 21 - APR 20
Take up meditation or yoga
for achieving a fit body and
mind. You will manage to
tie up a lot of loose ends
on the domestic front. Your desire to
visit someplace out of town is likely
to get fulfilled. You will manage to
book property that you had been
wanting to for long.
SAGITTARIUS
NOV 23 - DEC 22
Enjoying extra time on your
hands on the academic front
may not be possible today.
You enjoy good health by
remaining regular in your exercise
regimen. A guest arriving at home will
prove quite entertaining and lighten the
domestic atmosphere. Gains from
rented out property are foreseen.
GEMINI
MAY 21 - JUNE 21
Setting out early on a
journey will be in your
favour. A property matter,
pending for long, will
proceed smoothly and get your
dream house registered in your
name. Excellent academic perfor-
mance will help you catch up with
the lead pack.
AQUARIUS
JAN 21 - FEB 19
A family youngster may
need to be dealt with firmly
in regards to spending
money. You will need to
define your career goals clearly before
deciding what to pursue on the
academic front. You will be able to
overcome the feeling that nobody loves
or cares for you.
TAURUS
APR 21 - MAY 20
Selective eating will keep
you fit as a fiddle. Taking
up meditation will prove
beneficial for both body
and mind. A family youngster may
require a push from your side to gain
confidence in something attempted.
Adopting a more convenient route for
workplace is possible.
CAPRICORN
DEC 23 - JAN 20
You will have a good time
in the company of friends
or cousins. Going on a
short vacation in future
after lockdown restrictions just for a
break is possible. A property is likely
to be yours soon. You will be able to
maintain the tempo on the academic
front and fare well.
VIRGO
AUG 24 - SEP 23
A family get together may
find you in your element.
Travelling to meet
someone close is
indicated. A house or an apartment is
likely to come in your name.
Competition on the academic front
may unsettle you, but not discourage
you to put your best foot forward.
CANCER
JUNE 22 - JULY 23
Planning something
together with family will be
fun. Good news on the
professional front can
prove highly motivating. A different
mode of conveyance will be better
suited to your needs. A good price
can be expected for a piece of
property being sold.
PISCES
FEB20 - MARCH 20
Coming back in shape can
prove an uphill task for
some. You will go out of
your way to extend a
helping hand to a family member. Be
careful of property dealers promising
you the moon. Doing exceptionally
well on the academic front will add to
your prestige.
SCORPIO
OCT 23 - NOVEMBER 22
You may get involved in
arranging something on
the family front. A loan you
had applied for will be
sanctioned. Remaining regular in
workouts is the key to achieve total
health. You get a chance to visit your
favourite place. Settling a property
deal is on the cards for some.
YOUR
DAY
Horoscope by
Saurabbh Sachdeva
stablished in 1982
under Section 5 of
the Rajasthan
Wild Animals and
Birds Protection
Act, 1951, Ra-
jasthan’s Ram-
garh Vishdhari Wildlife
Sanctuary is expected to be
formally announced any-
time as a tiger reserve. The
Centre and technical com-
mittee of the National Ti-
ger Conservation Author-
ity (NTCA) have already
given their consent to
grant tiger reserve status
to Ramgarh Vishdhari
Wildlife Sanctuary. If it
happens then after Ranth-
ambore, Sariska, and
Mukundra tiger reserves
in Rajasthan, Ramgarh
Vishdhari Wildlife Sanctu-
ary would be Rajasthan’s
fourth and 52nd tiger re-
serve in the country. This
initiative will strengthen
tiger conservation and in-
crease the tiger population
in Eastern Rajasthan.
On February 9th, 2022 as
a recent development, the
first-time movement of
four tigers have seen. Near
Chakan Dam T129 and
near Kamleshwar T110
and T59 have been spotted.
In search of territory for
the last one-month T129 is
in Ramgarh sanctuary.
4-year-old male tiger T115
has already been in Ram-
garh for the last 18 months
and it is presumed that the
tiger has made its abode in
Ramgarh sanctuary. It is
believed that from the for-
est of Kamleshwar T115 in
search of food and water
reached to Sakhavada Mej
River. From there the tiger
crossed the Indragarh
Buffer zone and went to
Ramgarh sanctuary
.
According to the forest
officials, 5-year-old male
tiger T110 and female ti-
ger T59 (mother of T115)
come very frequently to
Ramgarh from Rantham-
bore Tiger Reserve. The
place where all these ti-
gers have been spotted is
a few kilometres away
from the Sakhavada Mej
river in Ramgarh.
“Biodiversityof Bundiis
suitable and rich for tigers.
Due to tiger clashes and
pressure tigers are coming
out of Ranthambore Tiger
Reserve and making Ram-
garh as their destination,”
stated A.N.Gupta, DFO
Wildlife, Kota.
Tarun Mehra, Assistant
Conservator of Forests,
Ramgarh Vishdhari Sanc-
tuary, Bundi district in an
exclusive interview stated,
“In Bundi district, this
would be the third tiger re-
serve. As a unique feature,
once the official announce-
ment of Ramgarh Sanctu-
ary as the Tiger Reserve
will be made Bundi would
be the first district in India
where three tiger reserves
will be found.”
Mehra further said,
“The North area of Bundi
is the part of Rantham-
bore Tiger Reserve and the
southern area of the dis-
trictisthepartof Mukund-
ara Tiger Reserve. As Ram-
garh becomes the tiger re-
serve, the portion of
Southern Eastern Ra-
jasthan from Karauli to
Jhalawar districts will be-
come a territory. From
Mukundara and Rantham-
bore tiger reserves move-
ment of tigers is very often
or frequent in Ramgarh
sanctuary
. To protect a cor-
ridor there is no provision
in the wildlife protection
act. And hence as a corri-
dor between Mukundara
and Ranthambore and also
to protect that area the
Ramgarh Wildlife century
is decided to be announced
as a tiger reserve.”
Ramgarh Tiger Reserve
will be spread across 1,501
sq km. of reserve area
comprising three forest
blocks of Bhilwara; a cor-
ridor and territorial for-
ests block of Bundi along
with a part of Nainwa,
Hindoli, and Dabi; from
Kota to Bundi, the Nation-
al Chambal Ghadiyal Cen-
tury of Rajasthan will be
included as the core area
of the tiger reserve. Simi-
larly, the area of Ramgarh
Century will also be the
core area, and the remain-
ing part would be the buff-
er zone of the sanctuary
.
In the proposed tiger re-
serve a 225.6 sq. km. would
be the Core-I area and 256
sq. km. will be the Core-II
area for Tigers and 1019 sq.
km. will be preserved as
the buffer area. The core
areas of the sanctuary
have 8 villages with a pop-
ulation of 5000 and are
home to large numbers of
wild animals like samb-
hars, caracals, wild boars,
nilgai, and striped hyenas.
There are around 35 vil-
lages in the zone of influ-
ence of the sanctuary area.
It is pertinent to men-
tion that the tigers were
disappeared from the sanc-
tuary in 1999. During the
budget session in the year
2019, the Chief Minister of
Rajasthan Ashok Gehlot
showed interest to exam-
ine the Ramgarh area to be
made as to the Tiger Re-
serve. Later, the expert
committee and then NTCA
found the area suitable for
the Tiger Reserve. The
State Government of Ra-
jasthan has given nod to
develop Ramgarh as the
Tiger Reserve but the offi-
cial announcement will
soon be made just after its
notice gets published in a
gazette or a public journal.
ANUBHA JAIN
Journalist writer
E
RAMGARHVISHDHARIWILDLIFE
SANCTUARYGEAREDUPTOBE
THE4THINRAJASTHANAND52ND
TIGERRESERVEINTHECOUNTRY.
ANEXCLUSIVEINTERVIEWWITH
THEASSISTANTCONSERVATOROF
FORESTS,RVWS!
RAMGARH VISHDHARI
RAMGARH VISHDHARI
RAMGARH VISHDHARI
RAMGARH VISHDHARI
RAMGARH VISHDHARI
RAMGARH VISHDHARI
RAMGARH VISHDHARI
RAMGARH VISHDHARI
RAMGARH VISHDHARI
WILDLIFE SANCTUARY

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