22122021 first india ahmedabad (2)

Exam for recruitment to head clerk posts cancelled
GSSSB LEAK
Main accused, two
candidates who
took the exam after
obtaining the leaked
paper nabbed
First India Bureau
Gandhinagar: The Gu-
jarat government has
cancelled the recently
conducted written test
for the recruitment of
head clerks following
leak of a question paper
ahead of the exam, Gu-
jarat Minister of State
for Home Harsh Sang-
havi said on Tuesday
.
Meanwhile,policesaid
they have arrested the
mainaccusedinthecase.
The paper leak case will
be tried in a fast track
courtto“setanexample”,
Sanghavi told reporters
in Gandhinagar after a
meeting with Chief Min-
ister Bhupendra Patel.
He said the CM took
thedecisiontocancelthe
exam in the larger inter-
estof nearly88,000candi-
dates who had appeared
for it. “
A fresh exam will
be conducted in March
2022 in a more transpar-
ent manner and using a
different method. All the
candidateswhohadfilled
upformsfortheprevious
test will be considered
eligible for the new test,”
the minister said.
The written exam for
the recruitment of 186
head clerks was held at
different centres across
thestateonDecember12
by the Gujarat Subordi-
nate Service Selection
Board (GSSSB), with
nearly 88,000 aspirants
appearing for the test.
Meanwhile, the Gandhi-
nagar police on Monday
night arrested Jayesh
Patel (39), the main ac-
cused in the entire con-
spiracybehindtheexam
question paper leak.
He was subsequently
handed over to the Sa-
barkantha police, as the
FIR in connection with
thecrimewasregistered
at Prantij police station
there, Sabarkantha Su-
perintendent of Police
Neeraj Badgujar said.
Twocandidates—Ritesh
Prajapati and Ronak
Sadhu—who had ap-
peared in the exam after
obtaining the leaked pa-
per from Jayesh Patel
and his associates, were
also nabbed by the Sa-
barkantha police on
Monday night.
Withthis,sofar14peo-
ple have been arrested
from different parts of
the state in connection
with the case. Two other
persons—Deval Patel
and Satish Patel—both
associated with Jayesh
Patel,arestillontherun.
The case will be tried in a fast
track court, MoS (Home) Harsh
Sanghavi said on Tuesday.
CRUCIAL READ
MEA: 68 FISHERMEN DETAINED BY LANKA
BETWEEN DEC 18 & 20, TALKS UNDERWAY
New Delhi: The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA)
on Tuesday said about 68 Indian fishermen and 10
boats were taken into custody from Tamil Nadu by
the Sri Lankan authorities between December 18
and 20. MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said,
“We are concerned about the detention of the Indian
fishermen.”
LANDSLIDE WIN
FOR TRINAMOOL IN
KOLKATA CIVIC POLLS
COLD WAVE, FOG IN
STORE FOR NORTH,
CENTRAL INDIA
Kolkata: TMC on Tuesday
registered a landslide vic-
tory in Kolkata Municipal
Corporation polls, winning
134 of 144 wards. BJP,
which had emerged as
the main Opposition party
in Assembly polls earlier,
won 3 seats, while the Left
Front and Congress won
two each.
New Delhi: The MET
department has predicted
cold to severe cold wave
conditions over central,
north and east India in the
next two days, following
which a relief is likely.
Cold wave conditions are
likely to persist in parts
of Punjab, Haryana, Delhi
and Rajasthan.
WOMEN’S MARRIAGE AGE
CAUSING PAIN TO SP: MODI
PM CHIDES RIVALS FOR BASHING DECISION; ATTENDS ‘NARI
SHAKTI’ PROGRAMME IN PRAYAGRAJ; TRANSFERS `1K CR TO SHGs
Prayagraj: Prime Min-
ister Narendra Modi
took a jibe at the Sama-
jwadi Party on Tuesday
and said the govern-
ment’s decision to raise
the marriage of women
to 21 has caused pain to
some. PM Modi was ad-
dressing a rally in UP’s
Prayagraj, which was
attended by over two
lakh women.
Taking a swipe at
his rivals, PM Modi
said women are hap-
py with the govern-
ment’s decision to
raise the marriage age
but this has caused pain
to some. “We are trying
to increase the age of
marriage of women
to 21 years so that
they can have time to
study and progress.
The country is taking
this decision for its
daughters. Everyone is
seeing who is having
problems with this...it
has caused pain to
some,” he said.
PM’s remark follows
after some SP MPs
made adverse com-
ments on
the issue re-
cently. PM also
took a dig at SP
rule from 2012 to
2017. Ahead of the UP
Assembly polls, PM
transferred Rs1,000
crore into bank ac-
counts of various self-
help groups. Nearly 16
lakh women will ben-
efit from the scheme.
Bill linking voter ID,
Aadhaar gets RS nod
New Delhi: The Elec-
tionLaws(Amendment)
Bill, which aims to im-
plement long-pending
electoral reforms in-
cluding linking Aad-
haar with the voter ID
card, was passed in the
Rajya Sabha amid a
walkout by the Opposi-
tion on Tuesday. The
Bill was passed in the
Lok Sabha on Monday
.
Besides linking elec-
toral roll to Aadhaar,
the proposed legislation
seeks to make the stat-
utes gender neutral by
substituting the term
‘wife’ with ‘spouse’ to al-
low husbands of service
voters to cast their vote
from the place where
their wives are posted.
It also seeks to provide
four qualifying dates—
January 1, April 1, July
1 and October 1—in a
year for registration of
voters, instead of a sin-
gle qualifying date—
January 1.
Earlier in the day, RS
proceedings were ad-
journed till post-lunch
session without trans-
acting any business af-
ter oppn objected to al-
location of time for pas-
sage of Election Laws
(Amendment) Bill with-
out them being part of
BAC meeting. —ANI
LOK SABHA ADJOURNED AS OPPN
DEMANDS MoS MISHRA’S SCALP
TMC MP DEREK O’BRIEN SUSPENDED
FROM RS FOR ‘UNRULY BEHAVIOUR’
New Delhi: Lok Sabha was adjourned till 2 pm
on Tuesday following ruckus from Opposition
members demanding the resignation of Union
Minister of State for Home Ajay Kumar Mishra
and to exempt Tamil Nadu from National Eligibility
cum Entrance Test (NEET). Opposition members
stormed the Well of the House shouting slogans
and displaying placards as soon as the Question
Hour began. Due to continued disruptions,
Speaker Om Birla adjourned the House 47
minutes into Question Hour.
New Delhi: Trinamool Congress MP Derek O’Brien
was on Tuesday suspended from Rajya Sabha
for remaining part of the
current Session for ‘unruly
behaviour’ in House. He
allegedly threw RS Rule
Book towards Chair during
discussion on Election Laws
(Amendment Bill) 2021.
He was suspended after House passed a motion
moved by MoS for Parl Affairs in this regard.
Prayagraj has
been land of con-
fluence of Ganga-
Yamuna-Saras-
wati, symbol of our mother
power for thousands of
years. Today this city is also
witnessing such a wonderful
confluence of women and
power. —Narendra Modi, PM
PM Modi interacts with women
during distribution of certificates
to women beneficiaries under
various government schemes at
Parade Ground, in Prayagraj on
Tuesday. —PHOTO BY ANI
EX-PUNJAB MIN
SODHI QUITS
CONG, JOINS BJP
Chandigarh: Former
Punjab cabinet minister
Rana Gurmit Singh Sodhi
Tuesday resigned from
the Congress and joined
the BJP in the presence
of party leaders Gajendra
Shekhawat and Bhupendra
Yadav in Delhi. Rana So-
dhi has been a confidant
of former chief minister
Captain Amarinder Singh.
A sitting MLA from Guru
Har Sahai, Sodhi was
dropped from the cabinet
after Amarinder’s ouster.
Volatile Sensex
snaps falling,
surges 497 pts
New Delhi: Bottom
hunters gathered on
Dalal Street on Tuesday
after a sharp drop in the
previous sessions, tak-
ing benchmark indices
higher and helping
them snap two-day los-
ing streak.
The 30-share pack
Sensex rose 497 points
or 0.89 per cent to close
at 56,319.01. The index
closed nearly 600 points
lower from day’s high.
Its broader peer NSE
Nifty advanced 156.65
points or 0.94 per cent to
16,770.85.
However, selling at
high levels indicates
that the overall trend
remains weak in the
market.
20 anti-India YouTube
channels blocked by govt
New Delhi: The central
government blocked 20
YouTube channels and
two websites on Tues-
day for spreading anti-
India propaganda and
fake news on the inter-
net, according to the
Ministry of informa-
tion and broadcasting.
Theministrysaidthat
the now blocked chan-
nels and websites be-
longed to a coordinated
disinformation network
from Pakistan and used
to post divisive content
on Kashmir, Indian
Army
, Ram Mandir, mi-
nority communities,
and CDS General Bipin
Rawat,amongothervar-
ious sensitive subjects
related to India.
INSTA ACCOUNTS
OF MY KIDS TOO
HACKED: PRIYANKA
Lucknow: Asked to com-
ment on pre-election raids
on political opponents,
Congress leader Priyanka
Gandhi Vadra went one step
further on Tuesday, accusing
the government of preying
on her children on social
media. “They are even hack-
ing my children’s Instagram
accounts, let alone phone
tapping. Do they not have
any other work?” she said.
www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
AHMEDABAD l WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 22, 2021 l Pages 12 l 3.00 RNI NO. GUJENG/2019/79050 l Vol 3 l Issue No. 28
OUR EDITIONS: JAIPUR, AHMEDABAD, LUCKNOW & NEW DELHI
At least three people were killed and 44 injured after a massive fire broke out
at the Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) refinery at Haldia in West Bengal’s Purba
Medinipur district on Tuesday afternoon. Sources said that they had seen a flash
which might have started the fire. Authorities have started a probe to ascertain
the cause of the incident.
Bhilwara: 12 employees of Agucha Mines were injured when a blast occurred
in a vehicle that was moving ahead of them in Bhilwara district. “Employees
were moving in a vehicle when a blast occurred in another which was moving
ahead. They were admitted to a hospital where their condition is stable,” SHO of
Gulabpura police station Satish said.
3 KILLED, OVER 40
INJURED IN FIRE AT
IOC REFINERY IN
WEST BENGAL
12 EMPLOYEES OF
AGUCHA MINES
INJURED IN BLAST
IN BHILWARA
OMICRON SPREADS ITS
TENTACLES IN MAHA,
EVADES VACCINE TOO
Mumbai: Eighty-one
percent of the 54 pa-
tients detected with
the Omicron variant
in Maharashtra are
cases of break-
through infections,
which means they
got infected while
they were fully vac-
cinated. A few have
even taken a third in-
jection of Pfizer vac-
cine. According to
experts, this is in line
with the growing evi-
dence that the vari-
ant can evade the im-
mune response.
LOK SABHA MP KUNWAR DANISH ALI
TESTS +VE, WAS IN PARL ON MONDAY
BOOSTER JAB TO
HELP: MODERNA
`1 LAKH FINE FOR PLEA AGAINST PM
MODI’S PIC ON VACCINE CERTIFICATES
New Delhi: Lok Sabha MP Kunwar Danish Ali, who
attended Parliament on Monday, said he has tested
positive for Covid-19. The BSP leader added that he is
fully vaccinated, and urged people who had come in
contact with him to isolate themselves. “Despite being
fully vaccinated, today, I tested positive for #COVID19.
Yesterday, I attended Parliament also. I request all
those who came in my contact to get tested and isolate
themselves. I am having mild symptoms and hope to
recover soon,” he tweeted.
Washington: Moderna
has said that a booster
dose of its Covid-19
vaccine should offer
protection against
the rapidly spreading
Omicron. Moderna said
lab tests showed the
half-dose booster shot
increased by 37 times
the level of so-called
neutralizing antibodies
able to fight Omicron.
Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala HC on Tuesday dismissed a
petition questioning PM Modi’s picture on Covid-19 vax
certificates & fined the petitioner `1 lakh while calling the
plea “frivolous” and “politically motivated”. It said Modi is the
country’s PM and not that of any political party or ideology
and that such a petition was “not expected from a citizen”.
CORONA
CATASTROPHE
INDIA
GUJARAT
5,326
new cases
453
Omicron tally
87
new cases
02
new fatalities

NEWS
AHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 22, 2021
02
GRAM PANCHAYAT
RESULTS ANNOUNCED
he results
of Sun-
day’s elec-
tion to 8,686
gram pan-
chayats and 48,573
wards were an-
nounced through-
out the day on
Tuesday. About
77% of voters used
37,000 ballot boxes
across more than
23,000 booths to ex-
ercise their fran-
chise in the polls,
with the sarpanch
election witnessed
a turnout of
77.03%, while that
of ward members
was 72.92%, the Gu-
jarat State Election
Commission said
in an update up-
loaded on its web-
site on Monday. A
total of over 1.81
crore people were
eligible to vote, it
said. A total of
27,200 candidates
contested for the
post of sarpanch,
while 1,19,998 vied
to become panchay-
at members. While
representatives
were elected unop-
posed in as many as
1,165 village pan-
chayats and 9,613
wards, another 473
sarpanches were
elected in a partial-
ly uncontested pro-
cess, it said.
The election is
seen as the last ma-
jor test for political
parties ahead of the
Assembly elections
scheduled in De-
cember next year.
A gram panchay-
at election is fought
by a candidate in
his personal capac-
ity and not on po-
litical party sym-
bols. The candidate,
however, remains
affiliated with one
party or another.
In gram pan-
chayat polls, each
voter is required to
cast two votes, one
to elect the sar-
panch and another
to elect for a pan-
chayat member for
their ward.
Paper ballots
were used instead
of EVMs due to a
very high number
of wards, the SEC
said.
Notably, in
around 2650 gram
panchayats, the
seats of around 65
Sarpanch and
around 3300 wards
have remained va-
cant without any
nomination. Such
seats remain va-
cant for various
possible reasons
like the villagers
declaring boycott
of the election due
to some issue, una-
vailability of a re-
served community
candidate for a
seat declared re-
served for the par-
ticular community,
death of
candidate(s) and
cancellation of
nomination form
of candidate(s).
T
It was party time outside the counting centre at Madhavnagar in Sanand even before the results were announced. —PHOTOS BY HANIF SINDHI
OUT OF THE 8,686 GRAM
PANCHAYATS, RESULTS OF 5,331
WERE DECLARED TILL 6 PM
TIED RESULTS? CHIT-TING ALLOWED!
The winners to the post of Sarpanch were
decided by way of picking chits in two villages in
Mehmadabad taluka of Kheda district, which wit-
nessed a tie. In Aamsaran village, Amrat Chau-
han was declared the winner after being tied with
a co-contestant at 727 votes. In Jamaipura vil-
lage, Savita Solanki was declared a winner after
being tied at 212 votes with a co-contestant. In
both cases, the returning officer picked chits to
declare the winner. Meanwhile, In Navsari district
village gram panchayat elections, there was a tie
on two seats. In the first incident, a tie was found
between two candidates, Sumitra Halpati and
Nitisha Halpati. Both of them got 32 votes each
in the Pathri village panchayat election member
election from ward no 08. Officials drew chits
and Halpati was declared a winner. Similarly, for
the Sarpanch seat of Vansi village in Jalalpore
taluka, both Bharat Patel and Bharti Patel got 176
votes. The former was declared the winner, after
a chit draw. Another tie was reported in Bakrol
village of Waghodia taluka in Vadodara district,
during vote counting on Monday. Kanu Nayka
and Shailesh Nayka bagged 401 votes each and
after a chit draw, the returning officer declared
Kanu Nayka as the new sarpanch.
NOTES FROM THE FIELD
MOURNING OVER
CELEBRATIONS
Days before the election,
tragedy struck Bambusar village
of Bharuch when four-time
Sarpanch Usman Patel passed
away. Villagers went to the polls
for the first time in two decades
as Patel had been winning
unopposed for the last 20 years.
This time, though, another
villager Sayeed Vali Patel filed
his nomination. Four candidates
of his panel won, including one
that walked away with 100%
votes, but the village decided
not to celebrate the victory in
respect to fallen sarpanch, who
died after suffering a cardiac
arrest while offering namaz the
Friday before the election. The
late sarpanch was very popular
in the village, and had under-
taken several developmental
projects for the 1,200 inhabit-
ants over his four terms.
SURPRISING VISITOR
In an unusual incident, a snake en-
tered the counting centre at Jhagadia
village. The officials were shocked,
and they immediately vacated the
room. All the windows and doors of
the room were swiftly locked. An of-
ficial called a snake charmer named
Sunil Sharma, who reached the spot
immediately and caught the snake.
This enabled officials to resume the
vote-counting again.
MODEL WITH SARPANCH
ASPIRATION BOOKED
Model Aeshra Patel, who was in
the fray for the post of sarpanch in
Kavitha village in Sankheda taluka
of Chhota Udepur district, was
booked under the SC/ST Atrocity
Act and provisions of the Indian
Penal Code. An offense against
Aeshra, her father Narhari Patel and
10 others was registered by Manoj
Solanki, whose wife Jyoti Solanki, is
contesting against Aeshra.
DRAMATIC SCENES AT
COUNTING CENTRES
Ashmitaben Vasava, the wife of Vasudev
Vasava, who contested for sarpanch seat
from Chitrada gram panchayat in Narmada
district, collapsed on the ground at the
counting centre, after her husband lost
the election by merely 10 votes. She was
rushed to a nearby hospital, where her
condition is reported stable. In another
incident, Rajesh Vasava, a candidate of the
Jarsad village gram panchayat member
poll, collapsed on the ground after he lost.
VOTE OF NO CONFIDENCE?
A candidate for village panchayat from
ward no. 5 in Valsad district was dis-
traught when he learned that he got
just one single vote--probably his own.
Santosh Halpati, a first-time contender,
started crying while coming out from the
counting centre. He said, “I am not crying
since I have lost. Polls come and go. But
I got one vote which means even my 12
family members didn’t vote for me. I hope
that my wife Pooja had voted for me.”
KEEPING IT ALL IN THE FAMILY
In the Delvada village of Gir Somnath
district, candidate Pooja Bamania
was pitched against her mother-in-
law Jiviben Bamania in the race for
the post of sarpanch. In the count-
ing so far, two candidates of Pooja’s
panel have won two wards of that
village panchayat. Jiviben’s son and
Pooja’s husband Vijay Bamania, a
BJP worker, is the outgoing sarpanch
of Delvada village.
SURROGACY TO POLITICS
The new sarpanch of Gorva village in
Borsad taluka of Anand district, Bhanu
Vankar, 43, has turned her life around
by being elected for the first time. A
former surrogate, she had to rent her
womb twice to survive. “From the Rs9
lakh I earned doing surrogate work,
I built a house, freed my husband’s
mortgaged land, started a milk busi-
ness and got my brother-in-law mar-
ried. Surrogacy changed my life for
the better,” said Bhanu.
Counting in progress at the Madhavnagar centre in Sanand. —PHOTO BY HANIF SINDHI
Jayesh Boghra, who was elected chairman of Rajkot Agricultural
Produce Market Committee early this month, was elected
sarpanch of Ramnagar village.
Baluben Lilajii Thakor has been winning the sarpanch election
for the past 45 years in Hanumanpura village in Patan.

GUJARAT
03
V’DARA TO GET HOUSING
PROJECT AIMED AT ELDERS
Vadodara: Paranjape Schemes (Construction)
Ltd (PSCL) launched the second phase of senior
living housing project ‘Athashri’ in Vadodara
on Tuesday. Athashri is a housing project for
senior citizens that aims at providing them with
essential facilities by catering to their housing,
personal and medical needs. The housing project
boasts primary and state-of-the-art services
like ambulance, tie-ups with nearby hospitals,
round-the-clock security with CCTV cameras,
housekeeping, domestic help, and a state-of-the-
art clubhouse. The premises are also wheelchair
enabled. So far, 10 Athashri projects have been
developed—eight in Pune, one in Bengaluru and
another in Vadodara.
CRUCIAL READ
PARUL UNI STUDENTS SELECTED
FOR INT’L TOURISM MART ’21
SURAT DIAMOND COMPANY
DEFAULTS ON `16.72 CR LOAN
Vadodara: Students of Parul University were
selected to participate in the 9th International Tour-
ism Mart 2021 organized at Kohima, Nagaland. The
International Tourism Mart is annually organized
by the Ministry of Tourism, Government of India to
explore the tourism potential of the North-Eastern
states of India. Every year, one among the 7 NE
states hosts the event. For 2021, the ninth edition
was hosted by the State of Nagaland in its capital
city Kohima. The Association of India Universities
selected 50 students from India for the event.
During their visit, the students interacted with the
locals, government officers and local media to
experience the state’s culture, and cuisines.
Surat: Sanghvi Exports International Pvt. Ltd, a
leading diamond company owned by brothers
Chandrakant, Kirti and Ramesh Sanghvi, took a
loan of Rs 16.72 crore and later turned defaulter.
The news has caused a stir in the diamond indus-
try. IDBI bank has been sealing its assets for a
long time due to pending dues. The bank has also
initiated proceedings for the recovery of its arrears.
Earlier in 2018, another bank confiscated 27
properties owned by the company. A consortium of
banks led by the Bank of India had taken over their
office at Mumbai-based Bharat Diamond Bourse
(BDB) to recover the loan of Rs 468 crore.
PLEASE SEND US YOUR PRESS STATEMENTS &
INVITES AT: news.ahmedabad@firstindia.co.in
First India Bureau
Vadodara: The Saya-
jibaug Zoo in Vadodara
welcomed two young
lion cubs from Sakkar-
baug Zoo in Junagadh
on Sunday. After the
death of the lioness
Gayle, authorities re-
ceived the cubs in ex-
change after a proce-
dure spanning a few
months. They hope to
achieve their objective
of breeding cubs in the
zoo with the new sub-
adults. The pair has
been put under quaran-
tine and will be open to
the public for viewing
after 15 days.
Earlier, the zoo lost
the lioness Gayle to an
injury on her face and it
resulted in the male
lion losing his mate.
With the arrival of the
young pair, the total
number of lions at the
zoo stands at three
males and one female.
SayajibaugZooreceived
the lion cubs in ex-
change for the exotic
birds it had given to
Sardar Patel Zoological
Park in Kevadia in Nar-
mada district.
“It is a happy moment
for us. The arrival of
the young sub-adult
pair aged around one
year and eight months
has given us a ray of
hope. The male cub is
more aggressive than
the female cub. The pair
we had earlier was bro-
ken due to the death of
the lioness. Despite our
best efforts, we failed to
breed a cub. And now,
with this young and
healthy pair of mates,
we are hopeful of breed-
ing a few cubs. The open
enclosures will help the
lions move freely and
hopefully yield good re-
sults for us in the fu-
ture,” said Pratyush
Patankar, Curator, Saya-
jibaug Zoo, Vadodara.
Patankar also added
that the Vadodara zoo
had requested that the
lions should not be over
three years old. The
pair of cubs, yet to be
named, was born in
April 2020 in the
Sakkarbaug Zoo.
“There is an animated
discussion going on
about the cubs’ names.
As of now, we are lean-
ing towards giving
them Indian names
rather than English
ones,” he informed.
After death of a lioness,
authorities were eager to bring
in a new pair to breed cubs
PRIDE & JOY
Vadodara’s Sayajibaug Zoo welcomes two young lion cubs
The cubs were born in captivity, but have a wild lineage. They are yet to be named. —FILE PHOTO
HC STAYS CLASS I AND II APPOINTMENTS IN
INFORMATION DEPT TILL JAN 18
First India Bureau
Ahmedabad: The Gu-
jarat High Court on
Tuesday stayed the ap-
pointments of Class I
and II officers for the
state information de-
partment till January
18. On reviewing the
primary submission of
a petition moved by can-
didates, the court ob-
served that they were
not evaluated equally
. It
has issued notice to the
state government and
asked it to file a re-
sponse on the matter.
The department has
also been directed not
to issue any appoint-
ment letters to selected
candidates yet.
Aspiring candidates
had moved a petition by
stating that oral inter-
views were held for 23
posts and 101 candi-
dates were short-listed
and called for them. For
the viva, a five-member
committee was consti-
tuted, but the panel
only sat in on the first
day of interviews. For
the rest of the duration,
the number of mem-
bers conducting inter-
views varied from three
to four and even two
members. “Such con-
duct is in violation of
interviewees’ rights to
be evaluated equally,”
stated the petitioner.
The state government
has selected 23 candi-
dates, but their appoint-
ment orders have not
been issued yet.
Directing its ques-
tions at the state gov-
ernment, the court in-
quired whether the en-
tire five-member panel
was present for all in-
terviews. Presiding
judges also asked how
they were marking the
interviewees, if any
member was absent
from the interview pan-
el. Remarking on the
interview process, the
court inquired about
the reason for the ab-
sence of panel mem-
bers from interviews.
In response, the state
government submitted
that the five-member
panel convened for the
interviews and that only
onepanelisthadbeenab-
sent on one of the days.
All interviews were held
from October 25-30.
High Court of Gujarat. —FILE PHOTO
THE ISSUE
Tallyshootsupby87
inhighestspikethis
month,2moredead
First India Bureau
Gandhinagar: Guja-
rat reported 87 new
COVID-19 cases, the
highest one-day addi-
tion this month, and
two deaths—in Rajkot
and Valsad districts—
in the 24 hours ended 5
pm on Tuesday, taking
the caseload to 8,28,703
and the death toll
reached 10,104, respec-
tively an official of the
state health depart-
ment said.
The recovery count
rose to 8,18,010 after 73
people were discharged.
Gujarat now has 589
active cases including
eight critical patients
on ventilator support.
Ahmedabad reported
33 new cases followed
by 12 in Surat and 11 in
Vadodara, among other
districts.
The number of anti-
COVID-19 vaccine doses
administered in the
state rose to 8.75 crore
after 2.16 lakh jabs were
given on Tuesday, a gov-
ernment release said.
Meanwhile, the lab at
Vadodara’s Sayaji Hos-
pital announced that it
had conducted three
lakh RT-PCR tests
since the start of the
pandemic, as of this
month.
CHRISTMAS TIME IN THE CITY
As churches get last-minute touch-ups ahead of Christmas
on Saturday, Ahmedabad is awash with festive kitsch, from
streamers to Santa hats and regalia, to enough stars to fill a
small galaxy. But the cold and the pandemic have combined
to ensure that there isn’t the usual rush in the city’s stalls.
—PHOTOS BY HANIF SINDHI
COVID-19
UPDATE
589
33 MAX
CASES IN
A’BAD
ACTIVE CASES
8,18,010
TOTAL RECOVERED
73 RECOVERED
IN A DAY
8,28,703
TOTAL CASES
87 CASES
IN A DAY
10,104
TOTAL DEATHS
02 DEATHS
IN A DAY
Aspirantshaveclaimedthatselectionprocesswas‘unequal’aspanelmemberswereabsentduringinterviews
—FILE
PHOTO

SPIRITUAL SPEAK
The spirit is beyond
destruction. No one can
bring an end to spirit
which is everlasting.
—Bhagavad Gita
IN-DEPTH
Piyush Goyal
@PiyushGoyal
Held a meeting with Food Ministers
from various states. Inaugurated the
Rice Fortification Dashboard and
held wide ranging discussions on
community kitchens as well as Fair
Price Shop transformation to ensure
food security & nutrition for all.
Avinash Pande
@avinashpandeinc
On behalf of the Uttarakhand
Screening Committee, thanks to all the
applicants, State Congress Committee
and District Congress Committee
office bearers for their cooperation.
@INCUttarakhand is definitely headed
for victory. @INCIndia
@kcvenugopalmp
TOP TWEETS
PUTIN’S
UKRAINE
FORMULA
s reports pile up
about Russia’s mili-
tary mobilization on
Ukraine’s border and
the Kremlin’s diplo-
matic demands, questions
abound. What is going on? What
will come next? Will Russia in-
vade? In fact, Russian President
Vladimir Putin is following an
eight-year-old script.
In the fall of 2013, Putin’s gov-
ernment launched a multifac-
eted offensive to prevent
Ukraine, Moldova, and Armenia
from signing free-trade agree-
ments with the European Un-
ion. That set off a gradually
deepening crisis that would pro-
foundly alter Ukraine’s domes-
tic politics, Russia’s position in
Europe, and the future of NATO.
Less than a year later, Russia an-
nexed Crimea and embarked on
a barely disguised effort to dis-
mantle the rest of Ukraine. The
Kremlin then launched two
more incursions into eastern
Ukraine to save the separatist
statelets that it had managed to
set up there. Since then, 14,000
people have died in this low-level
“frozen” conflict.
PROJECT-SYNDICATE.ORG
A
fter a year in
which people
longed to get back
to “normal,” it is
now clear that
COVID-19 will not make this
possible. The pandemic, now
heading into its third year,
has profoundly affected indi-
viduals, communities, coun-
tries, and international coop-
eration, creating four tough
challenges for 2022. Rebuild-
ing trust will be critical to
confronting all of them.
The first challenge is that
people’s relationship to work
has changed. In some coun-
tries, lockdowns, the death of
loved ones, and the general
uncertainty of the pandemic
have prompted or accelerated
arethink.IntheUnitedStates,
the number of workers quit-
ting their jobs exceeded four
million in each month from
July to October 2021. Many
young Chinese are joining the
“lie flat” movement by opting
outof longworkinghours,do-
ing the bare minimum to get
by
, and striving for only what
is absolutely essential for sur-
vival.Thepandemichasdeep-
ened the divide between those
who can work from home and
the many who cannot.
In 2022, people need to
trust that going back to work
will genuinely improve their
lives. Getting to that point
will require action by both
governments and companies.
Investment to help remedy
the disruption in education
caused by COVID-19 is cru-
cial. Some 1.6 billion students
in 180 countries were kept out
of school as a result of the
pandemic. Establishing pro-
grams to help students catch
up – and gain the skills and
training needed for the twen-
ty-first-century economy –
will help them get better jobs.
PROJECT-SYNDICATE.ORG
KEY TO COVID POWERED
CHALLENGES OF 2022
The first challenge is
that people’s
relationship to work has
changed. In some
countries, lockdowns, the
death of loved ones, and
the general uncertainty of
the pandemic
have prompted or
accelerated a rethink
A
KMC OUTCOME A REASON
TO REJOICE FOR TMC
ven as the Trinamool supre-
mo was busy with the Goa
campaigning, her party work-
ers were led by Abhishek Ba-
nerjeeduringtheslogoversto
the run up to the crucial KMC
elections and on Tuesday
, the
TMC left its indelible mark on
the civic polls. By noon, the
writing on the wall was clear.
TMC had taken a lead in 133
out of 144 wards in the Kolka-
ta Municipal poll elections.
Earlier, the elections were
held on December 19 which
registered a 64 per cent turn-
out. With this civic poll vic-
tory, it was TMC’s third con-
secutive win in the Kolkata
Municipal elections.
As the TMC was leading in
133 of 144 KC seats while this
article was being written,
party supremo and West Ben-
gal CM Mamata Banerjee
said TMC maintained a
“landslide victory” as they
work at the grassroots. “Kol-
kata is now the safest city (in
the country). We have al-
ready beautified the city
. My
intention now is to see that
urban area, semi urban area
and village areas are devel-
oped,” she said.
Earlier, on Sunday sporad-
ic incidents of violence, in-
cluding hurling of two crude
bombs at two booths, marred
the KMC elections on Sunday
as nearly 40.5 lakh voters ex-
ercised their franchise.
In 2015, TMC had won 113
seats which was, so far, the
highest in recent times and
this year it has broken its
previous records turning the
Opposition into absolute
minnows. All the 16 boroughs
have been under the control
of Trinamool Congress.
Till late noon, no one from
the saffron camp had given
any comment neither was
there any tweet.
In a little over six months,
that the TMC has again
drubbed the BJP… but this
time the BJP was minus the
star power.
The TMC has bettered its
positionintheKMCbyatleast
20 seats as compared to the re-
sults of 2015 KMC elections.
It may be recalled earlier
that despite the starry cam-
paign by the BJP in 2021, the
TMC managed 215 seats and
BJP ended with 77. And by
November-end… defections
and desertions had reduced
the BJP to 70 and left the
TMC hovering around 221.
The Assembly poll story
might be hugely rejoicing for
the TMC, but Mamata had to
prove a point as she had lost
to Suvendu Adhikari in a
keenly contested contest at
Nandigram. She, however,
fought back and was su-
premely in power from Bha-
wanipore. Since then, Didi as
she is fondly known, has left
for the national vista to
broaden her party’s pros-
pects. Earlier, during the elec-
tion day… the Leader of Op-
position and BJP leader, Suv-
enduAdhikarihadsaid…“We
werepreventedbypoliceaswe
came out of my house where I
was holding a meeting. Police
hasnorighttopreventusfrom
going to Kolkata. Bidhanna-
gar Police has no role and this
is not the jurisdiction of Kol-
kata Municipal polls. My resi-
dence is in Bidhanagar Mu-
nicipality area and the police
have no right to stop us.”
Even the West Bengal Gov-
ernor,JagdeepDhankhar,had
tweeted, “Leader of Opposi-
tion has communicated “In
Salt Lake my residence was
totally blocked by Bidhanna-
garpolicewhere20BJPMLAs
including some state leaders
stayed. regards Suvendu
Adhikari Lop WBLA”. He also
mentioned that a delegation
of BJP MLAs will meet him
today on the issue.
However, in politics it is
kabhi khushi kabhi gham. If
the KMC outcome was a rea-
son to rejoice overwhelm-
ingly, grapevine has it that
Mamata who flew to Guwa-
hati to seek the blessings of
Ma Kamakhya and from
there she is expected to visit
Shillong where everything is
not so fine for the party
.
Frombeingtheprincipalop-
position party in Meghalaya
until of late, a beleaguered
Congress decided to support
the ruling National People’s
Party led by CM Conrad Sang-
ma,in“interestof thepeople.”
“We have decided to offer
our support to the govern-
ment on the aspect of govern-
ance in greater interest of
the people of Meghalaya,”
Congress leader Ampareen
Lyngdoh said.
In November, the Congress
suffered a huge loss when 12
of its 17 MLAs led by former
chief minister Mukul Sang-
ma defected to the Trina-
mool. The development re-
duced the Grand Old Party
(Congress) to a smaller party
and made the Trinamool the
state’s principal opposition
in a matter of time.
But in deciding to support
the current government, the
CongressgotclosertotheBJP
,
an NPP ally and a constituent
of the Meghalaya Democratic
Alliance (MDA) government.
The Trinamool said after it
emerged in Meghalaya, the
Congress was, perhaps, feel-
ing threatened. “But our in-
tention is not to threaten any-
body. We want to build the
party that will work for the
people,” TMC state chief
Charles Pyngrope said.
Mamata, as political sourc-
es say… will visit Shillong
after her Guwahati trip to
gauge the situation.
THE VIEWS EXPRESSED BY
THE AUTHOR ARE PERSONAL
E
Assembly poll story might be
hugely rejoicing for TMC,
but Mamata had to prove a
point as she had lost to
Suvendu Adhikari in a
keenly contested contest at
Nandigram. She, however,
fought back & was supremely
in power from Bhawanipore.
Since then, Didi as she is
fondly known, has left for the
national vista to broaden her
party’s prospects
As the TMC was
leading in 133 of 144
KC seats while this
article was being written,
party supremo and West
Bengal CM Mamata
Banerjee said TMC
maintained a “landslide
victory” as they work
at the grassroots
ROBIN ROY
The writer is Senior Associate Editor,
Free Press Journal, Mumbai and former
Managing Editor, First India
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee offering prayers at
Maa Kamakhya temple, in Guwahati on Tuesday. —PHOTO BY ANI
PERSPECTIVE
04
Vol3IssueNo.28
RNINO.GUJENG/2019/79050.
Printed and published by Anita
Hada Sangwan on behalf of First Ex-
press Publishers. Printed at Bhaskar
Printing Planet Survey No.148P,
Changodar-Bavla Highway, Tal. San-
and, Dist. Ahmedabad. Publishedat
D/3023rdFloorPlotNo.35Titanium
Square,SchemeNo.2,ThaltejTaluka,
Ghatlodiya,Ahmedabad.
Editor-In-Chief: Jagdeesh Chandra.
Editor: Haresh Jhala
responsible for selection of news
under the PRB Act

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INDIA
05
Goa:ECholdsmeetwithpol
partiesaheadofelections
Panaji: The Election
Commission of India
held a meeting with the
representatives of all
political parties in Goa
on Tuesday, months
ahead of the Assembly
election.
The meeting was
chaired by Chief Elec-
tion Commissioner Su-
shil Chandra and other
members of the com-
mission were present.
The meeting was held at
Hotel DoubleTree by
Hilton. Representatives
of BJP, Congress, TMC,
M a h a r a s h t r aw a d i
Gomantak Party
(MGP), Goa Forward
Party (GFP) met the
CEC.
After the meeting,
representatives of par-
ties said that they have
given some suggestions
to the Commission.
BJP Goa unit presi-
dent Sadanand Tana-
vade and Senior Con-
gress leader Altin
Gomes appreciated the
online registration sys-
tem of the SUVIDHA
App by the Election
Commission.
The GFP and BJP re-
quested the Commis-
sion to delay the imple-
mentation of model
code of conduct in the
State. —ANI
Plea in SC for fresh
Nat’l accreditation
policy for hospitals
New Delhi: A plea has
been filed in the Su-
preme Court seeking a
fresh national accredi-
tation policy that en-
sures the optimum doc-
tor to patient and nurse
to patient ratio is ad-
hered to in all the Na-
tional Accreditation
Board for Hospitals and
Healthcare Providers
(NABH) hospitals and
those who apply for ac-
creditation.
The plea filed by the
Indian Professional
Nurses Association, a
non-governmental reg-
istered body working
for the welfare of the
nurses across India,
also prayed to direct the
Quality Council of In-
dia and the National Ac-
creditation Board for
Hospitals and Health-
care Providers (NABH)
to place on record the
documents it peruses
while granting accredi-
tation. The plea also
sought direction for
forming a committee to
monitor the quality of
patient care, patient
safety and satisfaction.
The petitioner said
that the plea has been
filed in light of the RTI
responses and also in
the context of the over-
burden put on medical
staff during the ongoing
pandemic. In the RTI re-
sponse, Quality Council
of India admits that it
has no specified norms
related to the patient-
nurses ratio. —ANI
IN THE COURTYARD
Govt plans review plea for
OBC quota in local polls
New Delhi: The Union
government plans to file
a review petition in the
Supreme Court to allow
political reservation of
other backward classes
(OBC) in local bodies
and municipal corpora-
tions “for the time be-
ing” till the states meet
the criteria set by the
top court, a government
statement issued late on
Monday said.
The government plan
comes after the Su-
preme Court, in sepa-
rate verdicts delivered
over the past fortnight,
struck down 27% reser-
vation for OBCs in local
body elections in Maha-
rashtra and Madhya
Pradesh citing the ab-
sence of empirical data
on OBC.
The union ministry
of social justice and em-
powerment said it is
consulting the law min-
istry and other stake-
holders in this regard.
How apt is Cong’s appointment of in-charges?
Sharat K Verma
New Delhi: Is any work
being done in the Con-
gress party under some
plan, or is it a free meal
for all? This important
question is being raised
by party leaders and in
informal conversations,
the party leaders have
raised several logical
questions regarding the
appointment of Con-
gress in-charges.
Like some time back,
questionhadarisenasto
why Harish Rawat was
keptinchargeof Punjab
when elections are to be
held simultaneously in
Punjabandhisownstate
Uttarakhand?
He was earlier in
charge of Assam, from
where he was made in
charge of Punjab. Simi-
larly
, now it is being
asked that Imran
Masood has been made
in charge of Delhi even
whenthereisanelection
in his own state Uttar
Pradesh. Meanwhile
therearetalksof Masood
joiningtheSPbuthewas
madein-chargeof Delhi.
However, perhaps the
biggest question of all
this is as to why is Dev-
endra Yadav made in
charge of Uttarakhand?
Yadav vote in the state is
negligible and there is a
kind of prejudice to-
wards Yadavs since the
firing on the agitators
of Uttarakhand under
Samajwadi Party rule.
It is worth noting that
in 1994 when Mulayam
Singh Yadav was the
Chief Minister, seven
people were killed at
Rampur Tiraha when
agitators demanding
for the state of Uttara-
khand were fired upon.
Even though Devendra
Yadav has nothing to do
with Mulayam Singh
Yadav, but only after lis-
tening the word Yadav,
people here get upset.
Brahmin and Rajput
voters are in majority
in the state but Con-
gress has kept Deven-
dra Yadav as in-charge.
Banned Assam outfit inches
towards peace talks with govt
Guwahati: The Kamta-
pur Liberation Organi-
zation — a banned sepa-
ratist group active in
western Assam and
northern Bengal — is
inching closer to re-
suming peace talks
with the government.
The KLO was once al-
lied to ULFA, or the
United Liberation Front
of Asom, in Bhutan and
Myanmar, wants a sepa-
rate Kamtapur state for
the Koch Rajbongshi
community
.
On Tuesday, in a vid-
eo message sent from an
undisclosed location,
Koch Pavel, the KLO’s
Foreign Secretary, re-
minded the government
of the Cooch Behar
Merger Agreement that
recognised Kamtapur
as a “full-fledged con-
stituent state of Union
of India”. —Agencies
Meghwal: Govt will consider revoking
suspension if Opposition MPs apologise
New Delhi: Union Min-
ister Arjun Ram Megh-
wal on Tuesday said
that the 12 suspended
Rajya Sabha MPs from
the Opposition had low-
ered Parliament’s dig-
nity while adding that
the government will
consider revoking the
suspension if they apol-
ogise.
“They have (sus-
pended MPs) lowered
Parliament’s dignity.
They should have some
remorse. If they apolo-
gise, the government
will think about revok-
ing the suspension. It
has been Parliamenta-
ry tradition if some
MP does something to
lower Parliament’s dig-
nity, they apologised,”
Meghwal told the me-
dia. Union Min AR
Meghwal Asked about
the Bharatiya Janata
Party (BJP) Parliamen-
tary Party meeting, the
Union Minister said,
“Union Law Minister
Kiren Rijiju gave a
presentation that why
does the country need
the Election Laws
(Amendment) Bill that
was passed in the Lok
Sabha yesterday. Our
national president (JP
Nadda) addressed us at
the end that we have to
celebrate December 25,
the birth anniversary
of Atal Bihari Vajpay-
ee, as Good Govern-
ance Day.”
Since the beginning
of the Winter Session
on November 29, Rajya
Sabha has been facing a
ruckus over the revoca-
tion of the suspension
of 12 MPs from the
House. —ANI
Ruckus continues in Parliament; Suspended MPs have lowered Parl’s dignity, says Union Min
Delhi Police acted
swiftly: MoS Rai
New Delhi: Union
Minister of State for
Home Nityanand
Rai on Tuesday in-
formed the Lok Sab-
ha that Delhi Police
acted swiftly in an
impartial and fair
manner during the
violence in the North-
east part of Delhi in
Feb 2020.
Rai in a written re-
ply to Lok Sabha MP
Thomas Chazhikadan
said,“DelhiPo-
lice makes sus-
tained efforts
to obviate the occur-
renceof anyuntoward
incident in the NCT of
Delhi. During the vio-
lenceintheNorth-East
partof Delhi,DelhiPo-
lice acted swiftly in an
impartial and fair
manner.” MoS Home
further inform Lower
Housethatproportion-
ateandappropriateac-
tions were taken by
Delhi Police to control
the situation.
“ S i n c e re,
dedicated and
incessant ef-
forts made by Delhi
Police brought riot-
ous situation to nor-
malcy within a short
span of time and also
prevented riots from
spreading across to
other areas of Delhi/
NCR” he added. —ANI
BJP PARLIAMENTARY
PARTY MEETING BEGINS
New Delhi: BJP Parlia-
mentary Party meeting
has commenced at the
Ambedkar Interna-
tional Center in the
national Capital on
Tuesday. Prime Minister
Narendra Modi is not
attending the meeting.
Union Home Minister
Amit Shah, Finance
Minister Nirmala Si-
tharaman; Ports, Ship-
ping and Waterways
Minister Sarbananda
Sonowal, Minister of
State (MoS) for Food
Processing Industries
Prahlad Singh Patel;
Environment, Forest
and Climate Change
Minister Bhupender
Yadav, MoS Ministry
of External Affairs V
Muraleedharan and
other union ministers
are present at the meet-
ing. BJP chief JP Nadda
and other party MPs
are also present at the
meeting. In its notice,
the BJP Parliamentary
Party has requested
the attendance of all
BJP members of both
Lok Sabha and Rajya
Sabha. The winter
session of Parliament is
scheduled to culminate
on 23 December. —ANI
Oppn MPs hold march seeking
MoS Ajay Mishra’s suspension
New Delhi: Several
Opposition MPs of
both the Houses on
Tuesday marched from
the Mahatma Gandhi
statue in Parliament to
Vijay Chowk, demand-
ing suspension of Min-
ister of State for Home
Affairs Ajay Mishra
Teni over Lakhimpur
Kheri incident.
Congress leaders Ra-
hul Gandhi, Adhir Ran-
jan Chowdhury, Leader
of Opposition in Rajya
Sabha Mallikarjun
Kharge, Shiv Sena MP
Sanjay Raut, Trinamool
Congress MP Dola Sen
among others partici-
pated in the march. At
least 17 political parties
joined the protest
march including Shiv
Sena, TMC, NCP, Con-
gress, DMK and others.
Earlier today, the Op-
position leaders held a
meeting in the Parlia-
ment on Tuesday to
chalk out the floor strat-
egy for the day
.
Some of them were
seen carrying placards
that read “Sack MoS
Home”.
Teni’s son Ashish is
accused in the Lakhim-
pur Kheri case and is
presently in jail.
Rahul Gandhi while
addressing the media at
Vijay Chowk accused
Prime Minister Naren-
dra Modi of inaction
over the Opposition’s
demand for Teni’s dis-
missal. —ANI
LAKHIMPUR KHERI INCIDENT
Union Home Minister Amit Shah arrives to attend the BJP Parliamentary Party meeting at Ambedkar
International Centre in New Delhi on Tuesday. —PHOTO BY ANI
Rahul Gandhi along with Oppn MPs including Sanjay Raut, Adhir
Ranjan Choudhary, Mallikarjun Kharge, Anand Sharma others
march from Gandhi statue to Vijay Chowk on Tuesday.
N-E DELHI
VIOLENCE
Anita Hada
New Delhi: The in-
fighting within Bharati-
ya Janata Party (BJP)
in West Bengal does not
seem to be ending any-
time soon and the move
of replacing Dilip
Ghosh by making Su-
kanta Majumdar the
state president, does
not seem to be paying
any dividends.
On the contrary
, since
then, the internal strife
and controversies in
the party have also in-
tensified. Many senior
party leaders, who have
been associated with
the BJP for decades, are
angry with the politics
of Suvendu Adhikari,
who is joined BJP from
Trinamool.
Former Governor
Tathagata Roy, who was
a senior leader of the
party, targeted the in-
charge of the state and
the state leadership sev-
eral times and levelled
some serious allega-
tions regarding the
policies of the party
and the selection of
candidates.
Now, BJP MP Roopa
Ganguly has also made
similar allegations
stressing that the party
has sold tickets in the
Kolkata Municipal Cor-
poration elections,
claiming that she has
proof of this. She has
also said that she is not
an office-bearer of the
party, so she has no re-
sponsibility
. Ganguly is
a nominated member of
Rajya Sabha and her
term is to end in Octo-
ber next year. She has
an idea that the party
will not send her to the
Rajya Sabha again, that
is why she is separating
herself.
But apart from Gan-
guly, many other lead-
ers had levelled allega-
tions of tickets being
sold in the Assembly
elections and similar al-
legations are being
made in the corpora-
tion elections as well.
Bengal BJP’s internal strife does not seem to be ending!
POLITICAL SCHISM
lll
Now, BJP MP
Roopa Ganguly
has also made
allegations
stressing that
the party has
sold tickets in
the Kolkata Civic
polls, claiming
that she has
proof of this
Sukanta Majumdar Dilip Ghosh

INDIA
06
NIPUN ANTI-PERSONNEL MINES
ARMY GETS WEAPONS BOOST FOR PAK, CHINA BORDERS
New Delhi: The Indi-
an Army is set to re-
ceive indigenously de-
signed and developed
anti-personnel and
anti-tank mines,
which will help secu-
rity personnel foil at-
tempts made by adver-
saries on the borders
with Pakistan and
China.
“The Indian Army
is going to induct 7
lakh indigenously de-
veloped ‘Nipun’ anti-
personnel mines
which carry a potent
mix of RDX,” a secu-
rity official familiar
with the developments
also told.
The Corps of Engi-
neers is showcasing
the indigenous equip-
ment in Pune, which
were inducted into the
army for carrying out
anti-terror operations
against the enemy as
well as defending its
own areas.
“The Indian Army
started inducting 200
high head water
pumps which can help
pump water and fuel to
locations at higher al-
titudes in those areas.
Two hundred of these
pumps are being in-
ducted into the Corps
of Engineers under
the emergency pro-
curement powers,” the
official of the depart-
ment added. —ANI
Indian Ar-
my’s Corpo-
rations of En-
gineers getting a new
set of anti-personnel
and anti-tank mines
for acting as the first
line of Indian defence
against enemy infan-
try and armoured
columns or terrorist
trying to infiltrate
into own territory.
—Army official
The Corps of Engineers is showcasing the
indigenous equipment in Pune which were
inducted into the army for carrying out anti-
terror operations against the enemy as well
as defending its own areas. Nipun mines
were developed by an Indian firm in
partnership with the DRDO
POLLS IN MIND! PUNJAB CONG PANEL
HOLDS MEETING WITH RAGA IN DELHI
New Delhi: Members
of the AICC Screening
Committee for Punjab
on Tuesday held a meet-
ing with party leader
Rahul Gandhi at his
residence in the nation-
al capital.
Congress General
Secretary (Organisa-
tion) KC Venugopal and
AICC in-Incharge of
Punjab, Harish Choud-
hary, were present at
the meeting. Punjab as-
sembly polls are sched-
uled to be held in 2022.
In 2017 Punjab As-
sembly polls, Cong won
an absolute majority in
state by winning 77
seats ousted SAD-BJP
govt after 10 years. —ANI
New Delhi: Union
Minister of Jal Shakti,
Gajendra Singh Shek-
hawat, said on Tues-
day that Congress has
no right to raise the
issue of mob lynching,
as the biggest incident
of lynching in the his-
tory of Independent
India happened during
Rajiv Gandhi’s era.
Shekhawat’s re-
sponse came hours af-
ter Congress leader
Rahul Gandhi tweeted,
“Before 2014, the word
‘lynching’ was practi-
cally unheard of.
#ThankYouModiJi.”
BJP national spokes-
person RP Singh said,
“Rahul Gandhi forgets
that his father Rajiv
Gandhi supported mob
lynching of more than
3,000 Sikhs by Con-
gress MPs and work-
ers.”
Referring to Rajiv
Gandhi’s comment,
‘Jab bhi bada ped girta
hai, dharti hilti hai’
(whenever a big tree
falls, the earth shakes),
another BJP leader,
Manjinder Singh Sir-
sa, said, “It is true that
Rahul Gandhi didn’t
hear about lynching
before 2014, because
they equated the kill-
ings of thousands of
innocent Sikhs with
fall of big tree.” —ANI
Biggest lynching in Independent
India happened in Rajiv’s era: BJP
Punjab Assembly polls are
scheduled in 2022
KC Venugopal and Harish
Choudhary were present
Chhattisgarh CM in Delhi,likely
to meet Congress high command Gajendra Singh Shekhawat with Bhupender Yadav felicitates former Punjab Cabinet Minister Rana
Gurmit Singh Sodhi as he joins BJP during an event, at party headquarters, in New Delhi on Tuesday.
Rahul Gandhi addresses media at Vijay Chowk in Delhi on Tuesday.
New Delhi: Rahul
Gandhi on Tuesday
again lashed out at
the media when asked
about his latest tweet
on lynching and told
the journalist to stop
working as a govt
agent. When ques-
tioned, the Cong MP,
who was addressing
media at Vijay Chowk,
lost his cool and said,
“Sarkar ki dalali mat
kijiye (Don’t be an
agent of the govt).”
New Delhi: Attacking
the Centre, Congress
leader Rahul Gandhi
on Tuesday said the
incidents of lynch-
ing were unheard of
before the Bharatiya
Janata Party (BJP)-led
government came
to power in 2014.
Taking to Twitter,
Rahul Gandhi said,
“Before 2014, the
word ‘lynching’ was
practically unheard of.
#Thank you Modi Ji.”
RAGA: BEFORE
2014, WORD
‘LYNCHING’
WAS UNHEARD
RAHUL LASHES
OUT AT MEDIA,
SAYS ‘STOP
GOVT DALALI’
1 2
New Delhi: Chhattis-
garh Chief Minister
Bhupesh Baghel is vis-
iting New Delhi where
he is likely to meet par-
ty leaders Sonia Gandhi
and Rahu Gandhi on
Tuesday
.
According to sources,
there might be meet-
ings with Congress in-
terim president Sonia
Gandhi, party MP Ra-
hul Gandhi and Con-
gress general secretary
Priyanka Gandhi.
Baghel is also sched-
uled to visit Uttar
Pradesh for two days
where he will address
public meetings and
election rallies along
with Congress Uttar
Pradesh in-charge Pri-
yanka Gandhi in Luc-
know and Lakhimpur
Kheri and other areas.
Assembly polls in Ut-
tar Pradesh are slated
for early next year. —ANI
CRUCIAL READ
New Delhi: President Ram Nath Kovind visits Kerala on
Tuesday. As per the official statement, President will be in
Kerala from December
21 to 24. “On Decem-
ber 21, the President
addressed the fifth con-
vocation of the Central
University of Kerala in
Kasargod,” reads the
release. “On December
22, the President will witness the operational demonstra-
tion by the Southern Naval Command in Kochi,” it added.
Mumbai: Bollywood actor Aishwarya Rai Bachchan
returned to Mumbai Tuesday night after appearing before
Enforcement Directorate in New Delhi in connection
with the Panama Papers leak case. The ED on Monday
questioned Bollywood actor Aishwarya Rai Bachchan for
nearly 5 hours in the Panama Papers case. She deposed
before the investigators following the summons issued by
the federal agency against her to join the probe.
Dehradun: Uttrakhand
Chief Minister Pushkar
Singh Dhami injured
his hand during a
cricket match on
Tuesday. The match
was organised in Deh-
radun’s Abhimanyu
Cricket Academy
between Chief Min-
ister 11 Vs BJP Yuva
Morcha. Dhami was
playing for Chief Min-
ister 11. Despite his
injury, the Uttarakhand
chief minister played
the match and led his
team, Chief Minister
11, to victory.
Pune: Defence Minis-
ter Rajnath Singh on
Tuesday witnessed a
MAE and inaugurated
an equipment display
on the second day of
PANEX-21, a HADR
Exercise for BIMSTEC
member nations,
organised at College of
Military Engineering in
Pune. Singh witnessed
a demonstration of ca-
pabilities of the IAF to
launch swift, coordi-
nated and incremental
relief efforts in case of
occurrence of calamity
in a particular region.
PRESIDENT KOVIND’S KERALA VISIT BEGINS
AISHWARYA RAI BACHCHAN RETURNS TO
MUMBAI AFTER BEING GRILLED BY ED
U’KHAND CM
PLAYS CRICKET
MATCH DESPITE
BEING INJURED
INDIA READY TO
HELP COUNTRIES
IN BAY OF BENGAL:
RAJNATH SINGH
GUJJARS, BAKERWALS
FROM JK’S TRIBAL
COMMUNITY THANK PM
New Delhi: The In-
come Tax Department
carried out a search
and seizure operation
on a Neyveli based
group, engaged in the
business of chit funds,
finance and real estate.
As per an official re-
lease, the IT department
conducted the search op-
eration on December 16.
The group also runs edu-
cational institutions
through its trusts. The
search action covered
around 30 premises lo-
cated at various places
like Neyveli, Chennai,
Coimbatore,Nilgiris,etc.
The search action has
led to the seizure of un-
accounted cash of more
than Rs 12 crore.
During the course of
the search operations, a
remotely located cloud
server containing a par-
allel set of books of ac-
count secretly main-
tained by key persons
of the group has been
unearthed. Various doc-
umentary and digital
evidence have also been
seized. —ANI
Jammu: Leaders of the
People’s Alliance for
Gupkar Declaration
(PAGD) on Tuesday
termed the draft pro-
posals by the Delimita-
tion Commission as ‘di-
visive’ and said they
will stage a peaceful
protest against the draft
proposals on January 1,
2022.
The PAGD leaders
met at the residence of
National Conference
president and Lok Sab-
ha member Farooq Ab-
dullah here on Tuesday
.
MY Tarigami of the
CPI-M, who is the PAGD
spokesman said that ab-
rogation of Article 370
and 35-A was unconsti-
tutional and the step
was taken without tak-
ing into confidence the
stakeholders from JK
and Ladakh.
Tarigami Farooq Ab-
dullah and other mem-
bers of commission re-
iterated in commission
meeting that proposal is
not as per the wishes
and interests of people
and is just a step to cre-
ate wedge on regional,
community basis. —ANI
Panaji: Prime Minister
Narendra Modi is the
first politician from In-
dependent India to be
recognised as a world
leader, Goa CM Pramod
Sawant said on Tues-
day. “Prime Minister
Narendra Modi’s drive
to carve out a new India
has given him the iden-
tity of a world leader,”
Sawant said at a state
govt function here. “In
the 75 years of coun-
try’s Independence, this
is the first time that
such an honour has
been associated with In-
dia. This is very impor-
tant from our perspec-
tive,” he added. —ANI
PAGD leaders call delimitation
commission proposals ‘divisive’
BJP usurped
temple land in
Maha, siphoned
off crores: Malik
‘Modi 1st Indian to be known as world leader’
PAGD President Farooq Abdullah, alliance spokesperson MY Tarigami, alliance VP Mehbooba Mufti
and other leaders speak to media after a meeting at Abdullah residence, in Jammu on Tuesday.
Gujjars and Bakerw-
als from Jammu and
Kashmir’s tribal com-
munity visited New Delhi
on Tuesday to thank PM
Modi for recommenda-
tions of Delimitation Com-
mission that proposed
reserving nine Assembly
seats in JK for STs.
Union Minister Krishan
Pal Gurjar said people of
Gujjar Bakerwal commu-
nity live in JK. They had
many demands continu-
ously over years.
Mumbai: Maharashtra
Cabinet Minister
Nawab Malik on Tues-
day alleged that the BJP
leaders - MLC Suresh
Dhas and former Ashti
MLA Bhimrao Dhonde
from Beed district--
have usurped the tem-
ple land and siphoned
off crores of rupees by
indulging in Benami
transactions.
This statement came
a day after the ED con-
ducted searches at five
places related to Ma-
lik’s son Faraz Malik in
a case where a national-
ised bank was duped to
the tune of Rs 149.89
crore. NCP leader said
that his colleague in the
party, Ram Khade, has
filed complaint against
these illegal transac-
tions with ED. —ANI
JP Nadda, Pramod Sawant, Mandal Prabhari, Mandal President
General Secretaries attend BJP meeting in Goa on Tuesday.
I-T dept conducts
searches,
seizes `12 cr
unaccountable
cash in TN
Bhupesh Baghel
Nawab Malik

BIZ BUZZ
07
Funds shunning India turn rupee into
ASIA’S WORST CURRENCY
New Delhi: The Indi-
an rupee is wAsia’s
worst-performing cur-
rency with foreign
funds fleeing the na-
tion’s stocks.
The currency de-
clined 2.2% this quar-
ter as global funds
pulled $4 billion of
capital out of the
country’s stock mar-
ket, the most among
regional markets
where data is availa-
ble.
Foreigners sold In-
dian stocks as Gold-
man Sachs Group Inc.
and Nomura Holdings
Inc. recently lowered
their outlook for equi-
ties, citing lofty valua-
tions, at a time when
concerns about the
omicron virus variant
are roiling the global
markets. Record-high
trade deficit and the
central bank’s policy
divergence with the
Federal Reserve have
also impinged on the
rupee’s carry appeal.
Depreciation in ru-
pee is a double-edged
sword for the Reserve
Bank of India. While
a weaker currency
may support exports
amid a nascent eco-
nomic recovery from
the pandemic, it also
poses risk of imported
inflation, and may
make it difficult for
the central bank to
maintain interest
rates at a record low
for longer.
QuantArt Market
Solutions expects the
rupee to decline to 78
per dollar by end-
March, falling past
the previous record
low of 76.9088
reached in April 2020,
while a Bloomberg
survey of traders and
analysts forecast the
rupee at 76.50. The
rupee is set to drop
about 4% this year in
a fourth straight year
of losses. —Agencies
The
currency declined
2.2% this quarter as
global funds pulled $4
billion of capital out of
the country’s stock
market
INR (PROJECTION)
78/$
by end March 2022
76.9088/$
in April 2020
RUPEE VS DOLLAR
75.63/$
on Tuesday
` JUMPS 31 PAISE TO END AT 75.59 AGAINST $
New Delhi: The rupee surged by 31 paise to close at 75.59 (provisional)
against the US dollar on December 21 as positive domestic equities
and a weak American currency in the overseas markets boosted inves-
tor sentiment.At the interbank forex market, the domestic unit opened
strong at 75.74 against the greenback and witnessed an intra-day high
of 75.41 and a low of 75.74 during the day’s trade. It finally ended at
75.59 a dollar. In the previous session, the rupee had settled at
75.90 against the US dollar. —PTI
RBI empanels CSB Bank
to undertake govts biz
New Delhi: Private
sector lender CSB
Bank on Tuesday
said it has been em-
panelled as an ‘agen-
cy bank’ by the Re-
serve Bank of India
(RBI) to undertake
general banking
business of central
and state govern-
ments. This appoint-
ment will allow CSB
Bank to undertake
general banking
business of the cen-
tral and state gov-
ernments which
may be entrusted by
the RBI, the bank
said in a statement.
“As an agency
bank of the RBI,
CSB Bank is now au-
thorised to enter
into an agreement
with different state
governments and
central government
departments for
businesses such as
tax collections, pen-
sion payment, col-
lection of stamp
duty, etc.,” the bank
said.
It will also enable
CSB Bank to handle
a broad range of
transactions related
to government busi-
ness, such as tax de-
ducted at source
(TDS), goods and
services tax (GST),
stamp duty
, registra-
tion, property tax,
value-added tax and
professional tax, it
said further.
Narendra Dixit,
head (retail bank-
ing) at CSB Bank,
said, “This is a good
opportunity for us
to offer our services
to different govern-
ment depart-
ments.
With
our extensive net-
work of 562 branch-
es across the coun-
try
, this appointment
will ease the routes
between govern-
ment-related pay-
ment services and
our customers.”
This facility shall
provide the bank’s
customers with an
efficient path to con-
duct payments to the
government from
their existing ac-
count with CSB
Bank, Dixit added.
The south-based
private sector bank
said it has been ex-
panding its business
by adding new prod-
uct lines and in-
creasing the distri-
bution channel
through physical
and digital channels.
Over 85 per cent
of the transactions
in the bank are con-
ducted through the
digital mode, CSB
Bank said.
—PTI
As an
agency
bank of the RBI,
CSB Bank is now
authorised to enter into
an agreement with dif-
ferent state govts and
central govt depart-
ments for businesses
such as tax collections,
pension payment, col-
lection of stamp duty,
etc.
—CSB Bank
Consumer durables industry eyes a great 2022
New Delhi: With de-
mand for premium and
technologically advanced
products on the rise, In-
dia’s `75,000 crore appli-
ances and consumer elec-
tronics industry will be
switching on to 2022 with
hopes of double-digit
growth despite anxiety
over semiconductor
shortage and the impact
of the spreading Omi-
cron variant on business.
The industry is expect-
ing double-digit growth
on a year-on-year basis,
helped by a possible price
correction after soften-
ing of raw material in-
puts and factors such as
positive sentiments, pent
up demand and improv-
ing economic conditions.
Besides, a shift in con-
sumer behaviour from
price consciousness to-
wards technologically
advanced premium prod-
ucts with quality, value
proposition and safety
aspects leading to a rise
in demand for home auto-
mation products is mak-
ing the industry upbeat.
With the government’s
PLI scheme for white
goods, which has wit-
nessed a committed in-
vestment of `4,614 crore,
in place, many manufac-
turers are gearing up to
make the most out of the
opportunity as well as
take steps towards reduc-
ing their dependency on
imports and make prod-
ucts more affordable.
Leading players like
Samsung, LG and Pana-
sonic have reported con-
sumers getting more
tech-savvy in 2021 with
growing awareness for
AI and IoT enabled prod-
ucts and expect this trend
to gain further momen-
tum next year.
Strong demand for pre-
mium segment products
such as larger screen
TVs, higher capacity re-
frigerators and washing
machines, and especially
IoT and AI-enabled prod-
ucts, were witnessed not
only from the developed
metro markets but also
from smaller tier-II
towns. However, the ap-
pliances and consumer
electronics industry will
also have to tackle the
shortage of semi-
conductors, which
has resulted in
postponement of
new launches of
smart and con-
nected products.
The `75,000
crore consumer
durables indus-
try excludes
phones and IT
equipment. —PTI
The industry is
expecting double-digit
growth onY-o-Y basis,
helped by a possible
price correction
Mumbai: Equity
benchmark Sensex re-
bounded 497 points on
Tuesday after a two-
day selloff, tracking
gains in index majors
Reliance Industries,
ICICI Bank and HDFC
Bank amid a positive
trend in other Asian
markets.
The 30-share BSE
index jumped 497
points or 0.89% to end
at 56,319.01. Similarly,
the NSE Nifty ad-
vanced 156.65 points
or 0.94% to 16,770.85.
HCL Tech was the
top gainer in the
Sensex pack, rising
around 4%, followed
by Wipro, Tata Steel,
Titan, Tech Mahindra
and Sun Pharma.
On the other hand,
PowerGird, Axis
Bank, Bajaj Finance
and SBI were among
the losers.
Elsewhere in Asia,
bourses in Shanghai,
Hong Kong, Tokyo and
Seoul ended with
gains.
Stock exchanges in
Europe were also trad-
ing on a positive note
in mid-session deals.
—PTI
Sensex rises 497 points;
Nifty settles at 16,750
Apple starts trial production of iPhone 13 in India
New Delhi: Apple has
announced that it has
started trial produc-
tion of the iPhone 13 in
India at the Foxconn
plant near Chennai.
The company report-
edly will only produce
the iPhone 13 and has
no plans to produce the
iPhone 13 Pro and iP-
hone 13 Pro Max in the
country
.
According to an Eco-
nomic Times report,
the company expects to
start the commercial
production of the iP-
hone 13 from Febru-
ary. The device pro-
duced will be sold
domestically as well
as exported to the
company’s other
markets.
Apple has been
struggling in ramp-
ing up the production
of the iPhone 13 due
to chip shortages and
has been finally able to
secure supply for its
flagship devices.
A s
per the report, 20-30%
of the iPhones pro-
duced in India are ex-
ported to other
countries so
the produc-
tion of iP-
hone 13 in
India will
also help the
c o m p a n y
ease up the
supply issues
in other coun-
tries.
The iPhone
13 is the most selling
device from the com-
pany’s iPhone 13 series
in the country and this
is likely the reason why
the company is focus-
ing on producing it
first.
Apple currently pro-
duces the iPhone 11
and iPhone 12 at its
Foxconn plant in the
country and the two de-
vices are among the
top-selling devices for
the company
. Addition-
ally, the affordable iP-
hone SE is produced in
the company’s Wistron
plant in Bengaluru.
—Agencies
Centre slashes
import duty on
refined palm oil
New Delhi: Concerned
over high prices of
cooking oils, the gov-
ernment has reduced
the basic customs duty
on refined palm oil to
12.5 % from 17.5 % till
March next year to
boost domestic sup-
plies and bring down
rates in the domestic
retail markets.
With reduction in the
basic custom duty
(BCD), the effective
levy (including social
welfare cess) on both
refined palm oil and re-
fined palmoline will
come down to 13.75 %
from 19.25 %, according
to Solvent Extractors’
Association of India
(SEA).
—PTI
INDIA SEES RECORD MA VOLUME IN 2021
New Delhi: India witnessed mergers and acquisitions (MA) at an all-time high in
2021, led by more first-time buyers accounting for more than 80 per cent of the
deals closed in 2020 and 2021 -- an increase from less than 70 per cent through
2017 to 2019, a new report showed on Tuesday. The nature of deals was broad-
based, including more mid-sized deals ranging from $500 million-$1 billion,
compared to the mega $5 billion deals that drove activity in 2017-19, according
to a Bain Company report. While MA activity has been robust for a few years,
the nature of deals in the past 18-24 months has been very different from those of
earlier years. Scope and capability deals accounted for nearly half (46 per cent) of all
strategic deals above $75 million closed in 2021. —Agencies

It is truly said that flowers are
the sweetest thing that god made
and forgot to put a soul into.
—Jagdeesh Chandra, CEO Editor-in-Chief, First India
08
2NDFRONT
First India Bureau
Ahmedabad: In a
unique gesture of hu-
mility and dignified
selflessness, a father-
daughter duo moved a
petition to return the
alimony payment
made by the woman’s
ex-husband after di-
vorce, at the Gujarat
High Court on Tues-
day.
The applicant had
married to a million-
aire in Jamnagar a
few years ago. After
an initial phase of to-
getherness, the hus-
band entered into an
extra-marital rela-
tionship with another
woman. When the pe-
titioner learned about
it, she tried to save
her marriage and at-
tempted to convince
him to discontinue
the affair. However,
her husband did not
agree to it, which
compelled the woman
to return to her paren-
tal home.
As the petitioner
had refused to return
to her husband till he
cut off relations with
the other woman, her
husband filed for di-
vorce in Jamnagar
family court. It was
granted by the court
after hearing argu-
ments of both the par-
ties. And when the
divorce decree was
announced, the fami-
ly court ordered the
petitioner to pay Rs45
lakh alimony to his
wife. Despite agreeing
to the order, he later
moved a petition be-
fore the court chal-
lenging the alimony
order.
During the hearing
on Tuesday, the wom-
an’s father was in
tears and told the
court, “My son-in-law
is doing all his best to
ensure that we lose
this case. And so, we
have decided to re-
turn the money as my
daughter’s life is ru-
ined and happiness
will never return in
her life.”
The court recom-
mended both parties
to try and agree to a
settlement, failing
which, it will decide
on the matter on
merit.
WOMAN, FATHER RETURN `45 LAKH ALIMONY IN HC
Her ex-husband had
challenged the order passed
by Jamnagar family court
LEGAL TRAUMA
Mumbai: Indian Oil
Corporation Limited
(IOCL) said on Tues-
day it will invest
Rs9,028 crore on build-
ing a new crude oil
pipeline from Mundra
in Gujarat to Panipat
in Haryana.
The Board of Indian
Oil at its meeting held
on Monday accorded
approval for the invest-
ment proposal of a
new crude oil pipeline
system with a name-
plate capacity of 17.5
million tonnes per an-
num (MMTPA) from
Mundra to Panipat
along with augmenta-
tion of a crude oil tank
farm at Mundra, at an
estimated cost of
Rs9,028 crore, IOCL
said in a regulatory fil-
ing to the stock ex-
changes.
The project will meet
the enhanced crude oil
requirement arising
out of the capacity ex-
pansion of Panipat Re-
finery from 15 MMTPA
to 25 MMTPA.
The project is expect-
ed to be completed with-
in 36 months and would
be synchronized with
the commissioning of
the Panipat Refinery ex-
pansion project.
First India Bureau
Bhavnagar: A woman
in Bhavnagar’s Pali-
tana town was serious-
ly injured after she
was set on fire, alleg-
edly by a group of
neighbours who were
over the similarity be-
tween the name of her
puppy and one of her
attacker’ wife’s nick-
name, police said on
Tuesday.
Neetaben Sarvaiya
(35) suffered severe
burn injuries and is
currently undergoing
treatment at the gov-
ernment hospital in
Bhavnagar, a Palitana
town police station of-
ficial said.
Sarvaiya had been
home alone with her
youngest son, while
her husband and two
other children had
gone out, when her
neighbour Surabhai
Bharwad and five oth-
ers barged into her
house on Monday af-
ternoon. They objected
to Sarvaiya naming
her puppy “Sonu”,
which is the nickname
of Bharwad's wife, as
per the FIR.
Bharwad accused
Sarvaiya of deliber-
ately naming the pup-
py after his wife, police
said.
In her statement to
the police, Sarvaiya
said that Bharwad
abused her but she
tried to avoid him and
others. As she entered
the kitchen, three per-
sons followed her. One
of them poured kero-
sene on her and lit a
match, the police said.
Neighbours rushed
to her aid when Sar-
vaiya raised an alarm.
Her husband coinci-
dentally arrived at the
same time, and the fire
was put out using his
coat.
Police registered an
FIR against six per-
sons under various
sections of the Indian
Penal Code for the at-
tempt to murder, house
trespassing, insult,
etc., but no one has
been arrested yet.
Police say the fami-
lies of Sarvaiya and
her attackers had
quarrelled in the past
over water, but had re-
solved the issue matter
amicably.
Bhavnagar woman set on fire by
neighbour over puppy's name
Attacker accused victim of deliberately
naming the puppy after his wife, police said.
FIR filed against six, but no arrests yet.
Indian Oil to invest `9K cr on
pipeline from Mundra to Panipat
The project is expected to be completed within 36 months, officials said.
AAPLEADERSSENTTOJUDICIALCUSTODY
First India Bureau
Gandhinagar: More
than 200 workers and
six functionaries of the
Gujarat unit of the
Aam Aadmi Party
were sent to sent to ju-
dicial custody by the
First Class Judicial
Magistrate of Gandhi-
nagar on Tuesday
.
AAP workers, led by
Gujarat unit president
Gopal Italia, had
barged into the state
BJP headquarters in
Gandhinagar to regis-
ter their protest over
the recent leaking of a
question paper of clerk
recruitment exam, and
clashed with activists
of the ruling party on
Monday
.
They were then
booked on charges of
rioting, sexual harass-
ment, assault on wom-
en, trespass, among
others, Gandhinagar
districtSuperintendent
of Police Mayur Chav-
da had said on Monday
.
BJP worker Shrad-
dha Rajput had lodged
a criminal complaint
against AAP leaders
Shivkumar, Pravin
Ram, Isudan Gadhvi,
Gopal Italia, Nikhil
Savani and Hasmukh
Patel and 500 mem-
bers of the crowd, ac-
cusing them of ver-
bally abusing and
physically assaulting
BJP women workers.
She also alleged that
Gadhvi had been drunk
atthetime,sopolicehad
taken him to the Civil
hospital to have his
blood tested for alcohol.
Later that night, the
police produced wom-
en workers before the
First Class Judicial
Magistrate, their bail
applications were re-
jected and sent to judi-
cial custody at Sabar-
mati jail.
On Tuesday even-
ing, the rest were pro-
duced before the court
in small groups of
eight to 10. As each
group’s bail applica-
tion was rejected, the
court sent them all
into judicial custody
.
They were booked for rioting, sexual harassment and assault,
among others, after barging in to protest at state BJP HQ
First India Bureau
Gandhinagar: The
Congress in Gujarat
on Tuesday demand-
ed an inquiry by a sit-
ting High Court judge
intotheleakof aques-
tion paper for the
exam conducted re-
cently for the recruit-
ment of government
head clerks. They
have also reiterated
their demand for the
removal Asit Vora
from his position as
chairmanof theGuja-
rat Subordinate Ser-
vicesSelectionBoard.
The party said that
“big fish” was always
let off whenever such
paper leaks happened
in the past. Earlier in
the day, the state gov-
ernment declared
that the exam, held
on December 12, was
cancelled following
the leak of the ques-
tion paper ahead of
the written test.
Over 30 MLAs of
Congress, led by Lead-
erof OppositionSukh-
ram Rathva, met
Chief Minister Bhu-
pendra Patel on Tues-
day and handed him a
memorandum de-
mandingaHighCourt-
monitored probe.
“This is not the
first time a paper has
been leaked in the
state. It is happening
again and again be-
cause the govern-
ment never goes to
the root of the entire
conspiracy. Big fish
are always let off
while petty criminals
are held for the sake
of action. Thus, we
demand a thorough
investigation under
the High Court’s su-
pervision,” Rathva
told reporters in Gan-
dhinagar after meet-
ing the CM.
Meanwhile, Yuvra-
jsinh Jadeja, the Aam
Aadmi Party and stu-
dent leader, who first
raise the issue of the
leak has demanded
that a Special Investi-
gation Team be set up
tolookintothematter.
Hehasalsodemanded
thatpoliceinvestigate
the role of GSSSB
staff, member secre-
tary and chairman.
Cong MLAs meet CM, demand
GSSSB chairman be removed
Over 30 MLAs of Congress, led by Leader of Opposition
Sukhram Rathva, met CM Bhupendra Patel on Tuesday.
All political parties
have the right to pro-
test. But they (AAP)
should have done so
at a Satyagrah site
and not at the BJP of-
fice. This unfortunate
incident could have
been avoided. The pa-
per leak was painful
but the authorities
will hold a fair inves-
tigation and will not
spare anyone.
—CR Patil, Guj BJP president
AAP state unit chief Gopal Italia and leaders including Nikhil
Savani were all denied bail. —PHOTOS BY HANIF SINDHI

09
AHMEDABAD, WEDNESDAY
DECEMBER 22, 2021
City First in conversation
with Yashasvi Shrivastava, one
of the finalists of First Miss India
2021 held at Hotel Novotel,
Goa on October 30!
he dazzling diva,
Yashasvi Shriv-
astava hailing
from Mandsaur,
Madhya Pradesh
shifted to Pune to
pursue her edu-
cation. A lawyer by pro-
fession, she always car-
ried a strong desire for
the stage of modelling.
She is blessed with par-
ents who supported her
all the way and encour-
aged her to follow her
dreams.
Talking about how her
modelling career took
off, Yashasvi shared,
“Modelling caught my in-
terest when I was in first
year of College and got
selected in the Fashion
team and bagged the title
of Miss Pune 2016 Run-
ner up.” She further
shared that she was often
misguided as she further
took step in the industry.
After receiving an
opportunity at the
beauty pageant
First Miss India,
she gained her
c o n f i d e n c e
and belief in
people.
When asked about
what would she be if not
a model, she commented,
“I would want to be a suc-
cessful entrepreneur but
would always stick to the
creative side so some-
thing like being a Make-
up artist. Also, I don’t
want to restrict myself to
a single profession, I
want to explore and try
my hands on everything
that I would love to do.”
Lastly talking about
her source of inspira-
tion, Yashasvi credits her
Mother for letting her
choose her own path.
Keeping her passion as
the source of inspira-
tion that drives her,
the young model
sticks to maintain-
ing a positive envi-
ronment and being
led by her passion
itself, keeping all
the distractions at
bay and focusing
solely on herself.
She further wishes
to represent India
internationally as
a model. The beau-
ty with brains is
ready to set
the world
on fire.
SUSHMITA AIND
sushmita.aind@firstindia.co.in
T
www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia
facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
Yashasvi Shrivastava’s proud parents: Prakash and Rekha
Yashasvi Shrivastava

10
ETC
AHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 22,2021
ittle Affair is a
newly construct-
ed boutique Jun-
gle Lodge with 6
luxury stone vil-
las, inspired by its
natural surround-
ings and is an eco-friendly
marvel of note. It is situ-
ated near the Tehla gate of
Sariska. True to its name,
Little Affair takes care of
all the details that contrib-
ute to a comfortable stay.
Every private villa boasts
of a spacious living area
with minimalist design
furniture, bathroom, open
shower and outside sitting
deck striking a perfect bal-
ance between casual luxu-
ry and sophisticated ele-
gance.
It’s the intricate details
tucked with warm hospi-
tality serving an amalga-
mation of rustic wilder-
ness that will make your
stay memorable. From eas-
ing into the luxury of shar-
ing family meals under the
stars every night to having
high tea by the lake, you’ll
create memories to last a
lifetime. The sunset roof-
top lounge will settle you
in the middle of panoram-
ic views, globed by starry
skies while the stillness is
punctuated by the wilder-
nessof Sariska.Amidstthe
plethora of experiences to
indulge in, the place offers
you a curated menu, cater-
ing to your taste buds with
flavours from a variety of
delicacies. For another
spell of rejuvenation, one
can enjoy bonfire and can-
dlelit dinner while build-
ing the most beautiful
memories with your loved
ones. Combine this with a
lounge equipped with a
pool table, a stacked li-
brary and TV for your en-
sured days full of adven-
tures, even for the most
restless souls. With excit-
ing wildlife safaris in the
vast wilderness of Saris-
ka, stone villas designed to
immerse you into the lap
of nature, and sumptuous
cuisine to treat your sens-
es, you’re going to live the
adventure that you’ve al-
ways dreamed of. Little Af-
fair, Sariska offers great
packages for Christmas
and New Year. So get into
the celebration mood
amidst the beautiful na-
ture of Sariska.
L
KAVITA CHAUHAN
cityfirst@firstindia.co.in
AN AFFAIR
WILDERNESS!
AN AFFAIR
AN AFFAIR
WILDERNESS!
WILDERNESS!
Distance by road:-
2 hrs from Jaipur,
3 hrs from Gurugram,
3.5 hrs from New Delhi
For reservations:-
Contact No: +91 78770 83719
Mail: info@littleaffairsariska.com

ETC
11
is officially the
holiday season,
the most joyous
time of the year.
With the shorter
days, cold winter
breeze,andChrist-
mas decorations every-
where, it is impossible not
to think about watching a
feel-good holiday movie
while you’re curled up in
your blanket.
I personally like to top
the experience with a little
hot chocolate and some
gooey marshmallows to
make it all the more cozy
.
There’s nothing better
thanenjoyingmyfavourite
movie with my family at a
time like this. Here is a list
of somesoul-warmingNet-
flix movies you are sure to
enjoy this Holiday season!
DEVANSHI MUDGAL
cityfirst@firstindia.co.in
T
SINGLE
ALL THE
WAY
Peter’s family is
concerned that
he is unmarried,
so he invites his
closest buddy
home for the
holidays to act
as his lover.
When his
family
comes in
to play
match-
maker,
their plan goes
badly.
THE PRINCESS SWITCH
You’ll have to take another look at
this one. It is the classic princess and
the pauper come to life but with
Margaret, the Duchess of
Montenaro, and Stacy, a
normal Chicago girl.
ANGELA’S
CHRISTMAS WISH
Set in Ireland in the 1900s,
this movie depicts the narra-
tive of the strength of family
and a child’s naive wish to
keep her family safe around
Christmas in an adorable
animated programme.
THE
CHRISTMAS
CHRONICLES
Two children attempt to capture
Santa delivering presents, but they
wind up accompanying him as
his tiny assistants. It is engag-
ing for all ages.
THE
BOY CALLED
CHRISTMAS
Nikolas, a young man accompanied
by his furry mates, journeys north in
pursuit of his father, who is looking
for an elf settlement. Find out what’s in
store for him.
SINGLE
SINGLE
SINGLE
SINGLE
SINGLE
SINGLE
SINGLE
SINGLE
SINGLE
SINGLE
ALL THE
ALL THE
animated programme.
animated programme.
animated programme.
animated programme.
animated programme.
Two children attempt to capture
Santa delivering presents, but they
wind up accompanying him as
his tiny assistants. It is engag-
ing for all ages.
SANTA BROUGHT MOVIE
SANTA BROUGHT MOVIE
recommendations this year!
recommendations this year!
REVEL IN THE HOLIDAY MERRIMENT WITH 8 OF THE MOST HEART-WARMING MOVIES OF ALL TIME
HOME ALONE
Christmas just wouldn’t be the
same without this film. Kevin Mc-
Callister, being left behind by his
family on a trip to Paris must de-
fend his home from 2 burglars. Will
he be able to protect his house?
KLAUS
Jesper, a poor
postal school student, is
sent to serve on an Arctic
Circle island. It is here that
he meets Klaus, an elderly,
lonely carpenter who lives
in a cottage filled with
handcrafted toys.
THE HOLIDAY
CALENDAR
Abby Sutton, a strug-
gling photographer
working a dead-end
job at Sears has her
luck turned when her
grandfather gifts her a
magical calendar that
can predict the future.
Will she find her
dream career or true
love behind one of the
calendar doors?

12
CITY BUZZ
THE PARADOX OF
THE PARADOX OF
BODY
BODY POSITIVITY
POSITIVITY
ave you ever re-
sorted to tradi-
tional Kurtis and
palazzos because
western wear was
too tight for you?
Did you go to a
plus-size Vero Moda sec-
tion to only find clothes
on the corner shelf in
black colour? Did you sigh
when your friends bought
affordable clothes in the
Sarojini market but you
wereleftchoiceless?“Mad-
am ye aapke liye nahi hai”
is a common sentence for
a chubby shopper.
Local sellers will offer
youachoiceontraditional
wear but not western.
Evenif chubby womende-
cide to explore western
wear, their families ob-
struct it. No one would
choose a “fat” woman for
marriage if they see her
wearing tight jeans that
show her thick thighs
or belly
.
To break the barri-
ers, Ms Fafa Plus Size
Beauty Pageant 2021 was
held at Delhi NCR’s 5 Star
hotel The Leela Ambience
on Sunday
. More than 30
models were part of the
grandfinale.Theshowwas
organised by Poonam Sin-
gh and Rajdeep Chauhan,
sponsored by First India
News.Theshowwasdirect-
ed by fashion choreogra-
pher Shie Lobo. The judges
of the show included Ms
Delhi NCR 2020 -Aakriti
Sambayal, Ms Delhi NCR
2019- Deepali Sharma, Ms
Gurgaon 2014 and Supriya
Nagpal. The highlight of
the show was the launch of
the FAFA Luxury party
wear dress Collection by
Poonam Singh and the
launch of the 1st Plus Size
Calendar by FAFA. The ti-
tle of Ms Fafa Plus Size
Beauty Pageant was won
by Snehanjali Sahoo, 1st
runnerupwasSanhitaRoy
2nd Runner up was
Shweta Matias.
H
MITALI DUSAD
mitalidusad01@gmail.com
RE-DEFINING
BEAUTY PAGEANT...
CITY FIRST
T
he star-studded
event hosted by
eminent televi-
sion host and co-
median Vikalp Mehta
witnessed 25 finalists
put their best foot for-
ward intending to
achieve the crowning
glory
. The judging panel
included Ashley Rebel-
lo and Yuvika Chaud-
hary
.
After an enthral-
ling evening, the
search for Miss Diadem
India concluded with
the crowning of Poon-
am Maharana. The first
and second runner up
titles were awarded to
Punita Bhardwaj and
Saylee Sawant. India
Legacy title was bagged
by Alisha Ohri. The
first and second runner
up was Dr Meena Ver-
ma and Dr Sonal Mahal-
war respectively. The
title of Mrs India Lega-
cy 2021 - Beauty With
Purpose was awarded
to Harshala Tamboli.
Diadem founder Ami-
sha Chaudhary in-
formed, “Pageants have
long been associated as
frivolous beauty pres-
entations. We are here
to change that. Dia-
dem’s day to day activi-
ties are primarily fo-
cused on our several
social welfare projects
and we now have our
brilliant pageant
queens who will help
further our cause.”
VANDE BHARATAM!
Harshika Kasliwal
U
nder the aegis
of Azadi Ka
Amrit Mahot-
sav, The grand
finale of the ‘Vande
Bharatam - Nritya Ut-
sav,’ an All-India dance
competition was or-
ganised on Sunday as
part to honour India’s
75th year of independ-
ence which was held in
the Jawaharlal
Nehru Stadium,
New Delhi. Over
2,400 participants
from over 200 teams
wereshortlistedforthe
zonal level competi-
tions. The winners
from the Grand Finale
willnowperformatthe
cultural program at
the Republic Day Pa-
radeheldatRajpath
on January 26. In
the finale, over 800
artists from 64 teams
selected from across
the country gave their
final performances.
The Grand Finale was
attended by the Minis-
ter of State for Culture
and External Affairs
MeenakshiLekhialong
with other renowned
personalities from the
field of art and culture
like Ila Arun, Shibani
Kashyap, Prathibha
Prahlad and Shovana
Narayan. TheGrandFi-
nale was judged by an
esteemed jury including
GeetanjaliLal,Maitreyee
PahariandSantoshNair
.
Theeventalsoincludeda
star performance by the
renowneddancerTanus-
reeShankarhertroupe
and by Rani Khanum
andhertroupe.
SWAWLAMBAN MELA
Small Industrial
Development Bank
of India (SIDBI),
Ahmedabad organised
a ‘Swawlamban Mela’
on December 16. In
this ‘Mela’ around 90
micro-entrepreneurs and
artisans showcased and
sold their handicraft,
hand loom and other
art-based products. Free
stalls and meals were
provided to all artisans /
micro-entrepreneurs by
SIDBI. The closing day
and prize distribution
ceremony of ‘Mela’ took
place on December 20.
Sudatta Mandal, Deputy
Managing Director, SIDBI
felicitated winners with
awards and certificates.
ADVANCE LIFE SUPPORT
CITY FIRST
S
EEDS (Sustaina-
ble Environment
and Ecological
Development So-
ciety), a national not-
for-profit organisation
dedicated an Advance
Life Support (ALS) am-
bulance for paediatrics
to help save the lives of
children during the on-
going pandemic crisis.
The ambulance was in-
augurated on Tuesday
by Satyendra Jain,
Minister of Health
Family Welfare, and
was handed over to
Chacha Nehru Bal
Chikitsalaya (CNBC)
under the Government
of NCT of Delhi provid-
ing treatment to under-
privileged children-
from newborn to 12
years old. Dr Manu
Gupta, Co-founder,
SEEDS said, “The pan-
demic, brought to light
the struggle with health
infrastructure in the
event of a sudden surge
in demand. This small
intervention will take
care of some of the
needs especially for pre-
hospital life support
and transportation of
patients to the hospital
during an emergency.
Since the children are
not vaccinated yet and
remain vulnerable, the
hospital is augmenting
its capacity in anticipa-
tion of future surges.”
ALS offers an autoload-
er stretcher, detachable
mobile incubator, pneu-
matic air splints with
pump, oxygen cylinder,
and provision to mount
Critical Care Equip-
ments. SK Bagga, MLA,
Vikas Gaur, Represent-
ative Dy Dr Mamta Ja-
joo and Dr Urmila
Jhamb amongst other
guests graced the event
with their presence.
INTRODUCING
BONE BROTH
CITY FIRST
A
s shared by
nutritionist
Ruchika So-
dhi, Bone
broth is a nutri-
tional power-
house packed
with amino
acids and
minerals.It
is one of
the great-
est colla-
gensources
around. It
can aid with
digestiveissues,
thyroid problems,
diabetes, arthritis,
ageing, flaky skin,
skin conditions, auto-
immune problems, as
well as obesity be-
cause it decreases in-
flammation. So much
potency in a mug –
That’s why it’s called
liquidgold.Bonebroth
can manage it all,
whether you have
achy joints, aches,
or ageing con-
cerns. It will
make your
skin seem
younger,
stronger,
andhealth-
ier
. It can
heal like no
other bever-
age.It is time to
rediscover bone
brothandbenefitfrom
it in our daily life.
Consuming it from a
young age would defi-
nitely benefit.
—PHOTO
BY
SHAZID
CHAUHAN
—PHOTOS BY SHAZID CHAUHAN
—PHOTOS BY RISHABH SAINI
Poonam Singh felicitating
Aditi Nagr of the First India family Priyadarshini Neiharika and Sanhita Roy
Poonam Singh with (L-R) Alisha Joyal,
Snehanjali Sahoor, Sanhita Roy, Vaishali Taneja and Dipanwita Das
Poonam Singh felicitating Shei Lobo and
Uttam Singh. Also seen is Ashok Singh
Poonam Singh with her exclusive
FAFA India Plus Size 2021 collection
Aakriti Sambyal,
Snehanjali Sahoor and Akanksha Dutta
Nishita Thakur
Poonam Singh with (L-R) Alisha Joyal, Richa Bose, Shivani K Sachdeva, Sonashree Kaur, Rajbir Kaur, Dipanwita Das, Snehanjali Sahoor,
Akansha Grover, Khyati Chauhan, Ekta Gakkhar, Shweta, Vaishali Taneja, Kajal Verma, Sanhita Roy and Taruna Singh
Participants during the event
During the event
Beauty with purpose
Harshala Tamboli
Mrs India Legacy 2021 Alisha Ohri with (L-R)
Dr Meena Verma and Dr Sonal Mahalwar
Models during the show

22122021 first india ahmedabad (2)

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